An unexpected birthday invite
Saturday, I went to Dave's birthday dinner. Dave & Jen are friends of montjoye, so I was touched to be invited.
It was a make-your-own-pizza night, always fun. I brought along a zindanfel (as recommended by the owner of that splendid local institution, The Seddon Wine Store), a muscat and a tokay (purchased that afternoon just-before-they-were-closing from the Candlebark store at Queen Vic Markets, having pottered around the CBD earlier in the day). Apart from Dave & Jen & montjoye & myself, there were two couples, the younger housemate of one of the couples (Katrina?Caitlin) and another friend (Kim) who turned up later. (My normal facility with names means I remember one out of five and I only remember Kim because there was a boy Kim and a girl Kim.)
It was quite an enjoyable night, though I also experienced how much I do not fit into married-with-kids-suburban-professional life. The wife in the couple with the housemate, as well as the younger housemate, had successfully lost lots of weight (over 20kgs each) through exercise and portion control.
One of the husbands work in the State public service, so at one stage us boys (apart from Dave) had quite a conversation about the bushfires and the Royal Commission. We basically agreed furiously with each other. The State public servant guy was a bit kinder on the Department of Scorched Earth and No More Water than I, saying that the Dept wanted to do various things (like more burn-backs and clearing sides of roads) but greenie sentiment had blocked them. If the State Opposition was able to find its rear with both hands, there seems to be a massive sitter opportunity for them but they apparently cannot, so it will likely pass them by. (Though the observation of a political friend on Monday night that nothing will save the State Government if we have another bad bushfire season this Summer may have some truth to it: hence the State government allowing folk to clear up to 30 metres around their houses--i.e. giving them back ownership of trees & bushes in that 30 metres--even over the outrage of the trees-are-sacred crowd.)
The younger housemate showed us this which had us rolling around laughing (it helps if you remember the 80s). She also regaled folk with tales of her mother's fights with the previous parish priest: someone who apparently had been rejected for the priesthood on psych grounds, got then ordained by Archbishop Pell and subsequently transferred out of being a parish priest. Naturally, her mother had been threatened with excommunication. Another confirmation of my observation that excommunication is all about defending priestly authority. One can kill any number of Jews and not be excommunicated: threaten priestly authority and you are for the high jump.
Desert was cake and desert pizza. Eventually, off home. A fun night.
ADDENDA: I am told they were Kim & Susan, Des & Jeanette.
It was a make-your-own-pizza night, always fun. I brought along a zindanfel (as recommended by the owner of that splendid local institution, The Seddon Wine Store), a muscat and a tokay (purchased that afternoon just-before-they-were-closing from the Candlebark store at Queen Vic Markets, having pottered around the CBD earlier in the day). Apart from Dave & Jen & montjoye & myself, there were two couples, the younger housemate of one of the couples (Katrina?Caitlin) and another friend (Kim) who turned up later. (My normal facility with names means I remember one out of five and I only remember Kim because there was a boy Kim and a girl Kim.)
It was quite an enjoyable night, though I also experienced how much I do not fit into married-with-kids-suburban-professional life. The wife in the couple with the housemate, as well as the younger housemate, had successfully lost lots of weight (over 20kgs each) through exercise and portion control.
One of the husbands work in the State public service, so at one stage us boys (apart from Dave) had quite a conversation about the bushfires and the Royal Commission. We basically agreed furiously with each other. The State public servant guy was a bit kinder on the Department of Scorched Earth and No More Water than I, saying that the Dept wanted to do various things (like more burn-backs and clearing sides of roads) but greenie sentiment had blocked them. If the State Opposition was able to find its rear with both hands, there seems to be a massive sitter opportunity for them but they apparently cannot, so it will likely pass them by. (Though the observation of a political friend on Monday night that nothing will save the State Government if we have another bad bushfire season this Summer may have some truth to it: hence the State government allowing folk to clear up to 30 metres around their houses--i.e. giving them back ownership of trees & bushes in that 30 metres--even over the outrage of the trees-are-sacred crowd.)
The younger housemate showed us this which had us rolling around laughing (it helps if you remember the 80s). She also regaled folk with tales of her mother's fights with the previous parish priest: someone who apparently had been rejected for the priesthood on psych grounds, got then ordained by Archbishop Pell and subsequently transferred out of being a parish priest. Naturally, her mother had been threatened with excommunication. Another confirmation of my observation that excommunication is all about defending priestly authority. One can kill any number of Jews and not be excommunicated: threaten priestly authority and you are for the high jump.
Desert was cake and desert pizza. Eventually, off home. A fun night.
ADDENDA: I am told they were Kim & Susan, Des & Jeanette.