Looking back across the landscape of 2024, I see that overall it was a year of massive growth for me. I did a whole lot more than I expected to do, faced some pretty unpleasant situations and had some major celebrations and massive highlights along the way as well.
I do love to brag about my amazing yearly achievements, not because I want to rub anyone's face in them, but mostly because looking back and remembering a year completely really helps me to identify all of the joys, personal highlights and reasons to be grateful, of which I have many in my life. Just take a look over the epic year that 2024 was for me: 
JANUARY: 30 Days of Yoga with Adriene (FLOW), Fruit Picking, Spicywatch Movie nights started, joined the sangha, Seth's 19th birthday, Hepburn bath-house, Day-tripping around Victoria, Chinese New Year celebrations, tuned in to the Triple j Hottest 100.
FEBRUARY:  Freja was born! Blackberry picking. 
MARCH: International Women's Day, My 50th birthday, Joined the Women's New Moon Circle, Drag Bingo, Dahlia Flower Arranging Class with Seth, Mushroom picking, Bendigo Stupa - Enliven Festival 2024, Easter Sunday with the family. 
APRIL: Long Service Leave, Groundhog Day in Melbourne, French Cooking Class in Sorrento, Sanctuary Day Spa,  Trivia Nights Started, Surprise birthday lunch at Myra's, Craig's birthday.
MAY: Ghost Hunt at Barwon Estate, Fiji Holiday (Snorkelling and Kayaking), Heritage Week events and tours, Paris: Impressions at Bendigo Art Gallery. 
JUNE:  White Night, Mindful Mingle Started, Spicywatch's 10th Birthday, Ghost hunt at the Palais in Daylesford, Zoe's 27th Birthday.
JULY: Winter School Holidays, 9 to 5 The Musical, French Cooking Day in Enfield.
AUGUST:  Poco Film Festival, Yoga day at Rocklyn Ashram, Ghost Hunt at Bishop's Palace, Book week dress up, Bowling. 
SEPTEMBER: Girl's Night Out with Zoe, Day out with friends in Geelong, Zoe and Ben purchase their first house, Father's Day, Spring School Holiday Break, Ghost Hunt in Elmore, Day out with mum. 
OCTOBER:  Horror Movie Night, Jubilee Lake Picnic, Cave Hill Creek Camp with School, Overnight Freja babysitting, Halloween Trivia Night at Piano Bar. 
NOVEMBER: Accidentally Wes Anderson, Lunch in Buninyong with friends, Ghost Hunt at Bishop's Palace, Sanctuary Day Spa, 30th Wedding Anniversary,  Zoe and Ben's Housewarming, Winning the Trivia Night at Brown Hill. 
DECEMBER: Wreath Making, Colour Run, Forest Glade Gardens in Mt. Macedon, Year 6 Graduation and farewell, Christmas trivia, Landing a great new job, Christmas Drinks with friends, Christmas Day with the fam,  Midsummers Night's Dream at Kirk's Reservoir. 

There is a lot here to celebrate and appreciate that's for sure. And on top of all of that, I have also managed to squeeze in:

• Daily meditation.
• 72 books - a new record for me!
• Workouts - 5 times a week.
• 211 movies.
• 11,500 average steps a day.
• 143 TV series 
• 22 brunches/ lunches and  delicious restaurant meals with family and friends. 
• A daily French lesson on Duolingo.
• Brain Gym everyday for 10 minutes.
• A daily journal entry. 
• 12 Spicywatch movie nights and 8 cinema visits. 

​
Woohoo! That's a lot of 'doing' for one year! 
And now, as 2025 commences I wonder what will arrive in the next 12 months. A new job on the horizon and a lot of new experiences to be had that's for sure. Let's hope that it's as equally fortuitous and joy filled as 2024 was because the last 12 months were a total game charger for me!

ANORA
Release Date: 2024
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 139 mins 
A comedy-drama, written, directed and edited by Sean Baker; Anora premiered in May 2024 at the 77th Cannes Film Festival where it won the Palme d'Or and quickly became the 'must see' comedy of 2024. Anora comes on like a fever dream, taking unpredictable turns and unleashing something that is equal parts seriously screwball and surprisingly sensitive, making it one of the most original films of 2024. 
Anora 'Ani' Mikheeva is a twenty three year old stripper just making ends meet when she is introduced to Ivan, the twenty one year old son of a wealthy Russian oligarch. The two spend a whirlwind week together with Ivan paying Ani $15,000 to be his girlfriend. Whilst the two are partying in Vegas, Ivan asks Ani to marry him at a Vegas chapel. However, once the news of Ivan's marriage to a stripper reaches home, things take a turn for the worst. 
Mikey Madison is fantastic as Anora and completely embodies the sassy, smart talking  character with an infectious energy. She is extremely well support by Mark Eydelshteyn who plays Ivan and Yura Borisov, Paul Weissman, Karren Karaqulian and Vache Tovmasyan who make up the Russian gangster crew. 
This is a very funny movie, I laughed out loud so many times that I almost got tossed out of the cinema! Easily the funniest film of 2024, Anora is a fabulous offering that shouldn't be missed. 
FINAL SAY: I don't have Instagram. I'm an adult, man!
4 Chilli Peppers ​

We are freshly back from our incredible island holiday and we are now trying to re-adjust to the realities of life again. As our leave comes to an end, Craig and I reflect on the wonderful time that we have enjoyed together. We have done so many lovely things and shared special time with all of the important people in our lives, we have been abroad and reminded ourselves of what it means to be off the clock and living on our own terms. And it was perfect, honestly, the time was just perfect in every single way. 
Fiji was in a word - incredible! It far exceeded our expectations and we had the most wonderful time. I wouldn't really recommend the mainland of Fiji, or anywhere around Nadi for a holiday, but the island that we spent our time on called Savusavu, was nothing short of a tropical paradise.  Just a short one hour flight from Nadi, in a tiny little 18 seater plane and you find yourself smack bang in the lushest, greenest jungle imaginable with the warmest tropical waters teeming with tropical fish and colourful corals. We spent seven perfect days in the Fijian sunshine; hiking, kayaking and snorkelling everyday. We had total Fiji - Shi Shi - Beverly Hills all the way! We ate like kings, slept like queens and didn't do anything but enjoy ourselves completely for the entire time. 
We kayaked the pristine Salt Lake of Savusavu, we snorkelled the tropical and much renown coral reefs of Natewa Bay and we ate three course meals three times a day! We lived the high life and it was heaven! Craig and I always have a blast when we travel together and we share the same level of curiosity and need for relaxation when we go abroad. We love to explore and we love to rest. We love to eat and we love to be active, and we always manage to make memories that will be with us for a lifetime.
Craig is a fantastic travel companion, he always offers me the window seat on the plane, he always lets me hide my face in his neck when I am terrified (which I did when we took off in that tiny plane) he always dresses smartly for dinner and holds my hand whenever we enter a room and he never gets upset or angry if I wuss-out on anything, which I didn't do this time but have done on trips before. Like me, he loves the frills and fancies that comes with a five star holiday, but he is also happy to go back to fish and chips and a beer when its done without a hiccup. 
And now, we enter the reality zone once again, the holiday that we had planned for the last 18 months suddenly over. But we are happy to be back, with a million beautiful memories and a swag of braggy photos to reminisce about, we aren't sad or disappointed. We feel blessed that we have been able to have such an astounding experience together and share yet another trip abroad. It's been a magical time and now, well I suppose that we should start to save our money once again, focus on what we have here and now for a while and smile because we were lucky enough to have done something so special together. 
For a little time, we got to live a life that was free from responsibility, free from chores and expectations and free from routine. In that time we could just take to the warm tropical sea whenever we felt like it, falling into the rocking waves together and completely letting go of all worry and concern, and just being in the moment 100% - you don't get that feeling everyday, it's special. And what a feeling that was while it lasted. That's the feeling that I am holding on to from this whole experience; the feeling of being alone, together and completely at peace. 

NYAD 
Release Date: 2023
Rating: PG 
Running Time: 121 mins 
A biographical sports drama film about swimmer Diana Nyad's multiple attempts in the early 2010's to swim the Straits of Florida. Directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin (in their feature narrative film directorial debut) and written by Julia Cox, the movie is based on Nyad's 2015 memoir Find a Way. 
Diana Nyad, now sixty, resolves to accomplish the one thing that has eluded her - a 110 hour nonstop swim from Cuba to Florida, which she unsuccessfully attempted 30 years earlier. With her best friend Bonnie Stoll and a team of experts behind her, Diana sets out to achieve the unachievable with a dogged and inexhaustible determination. 
This is a fantastic tale of motivation and unwavering determination, that is not only really interesting to watch but  incredibly well acted with Annette Benning as Diana Nyad and Jodie Foster as her loyal best friend Bonnie Stoll. Both women received nominations at the 96th Academy Awards, the 81st Golden Globe Awards and the 30th Screen Actors Guild Awards for their efforts here and after seeing this film, I can see why. 
You do not need to like sports dramas to enjoy what Nyad is delivering, because this story is far more concerned with the human spirit than it is with swimming. 
FINAL SAY: Never, ever give up!
3 Chilli Peppers ​

I remember Craig coming home from a Christmas party one night a few years ago, he was up to his eyeballs in alcohol and was, for want of a better word, utterly 'pissed.' He was so full of beer that he needed me to pull over so that he could pee on the side of the road on the way home to Enfield, which was only a 25 minute drive, but he just couldn't hold it in. As he was peeing on a tree in a tucked away corner he had the sudden realisation that he was just about to commence a four week holiday break, and he also had a big wad of cash in his pocket that was his annual Christmas bonus. He proceeded to call out as loudly as his lungs would allow (to no-one in particular - maybe some cows in the paddock) "I am living the dream!' He yelled it over and over again, all the way home in the car and to the kids when he stumbled drunkenly in the door. And I remember thinking, geez calm down dude, it's the Christmas holidays, it's not that big of a deal!
And I never really understood just how golden that feeling must've been for Craig at that moment, but I think that presently, I actually do. I am actually starting to understand what Craig was feeling that night that I drove him home with a skin full; he was feeling freedom and release, and joy - pure, pure joy. And I reckon that I have got that very same feeling inside of me at the moment (minus the beer and the Christmas bonus), the feeling of freedom and pure joy and it feels pretty amazing!
I may not be shouting it out to the cows in the paddock as I piss against a tree, but I do feel an overwhelming sense of joy in my life right now. I am, in Craig's words, literally living the dream. I am just about to end my two week school holiday break, which was without a doubt one of the busiest, most wonderful and deeply rewarding school holiday breaks that I have ever had in my life. And I am just about to commence six heavenly weeks of long serve leave, that includes a week in Fiji on a gorgeous stretch of private island with a personal chef and free cocktails - so yep, I get it now, just like Craig, "I am living the dream!" 
And, to be honest, I have been living the dream since my 50th birthday way back in March with more daily celebration than a champagne cellar! Seth and I did the Dahlia flower arranging workshop and lunch extravaganza (which was just beautiful), I had a full day of Mindfulness in Daylesford with the Buddhist community out there, I visited the Bendigo Stupa for their Enlighten event, I had Easter with my darling family (Freja came to Enfield - woo-hoo), I had a movie night and drinks with a dear friend and then afternoon tea with another; I went to Melbourne to see Groundhog Day with lovely Helen, had brunch with another friend, got to babysit Freja with Craig for a night, had another amazing Sangha, went to Sorrento and did an incredible French Cookery Class (Bon Appetit) with a bloody legend of a friend, went to the spa with another gorgeous friend, had my hair done and even got to spend time with Freja and Zoe in Bendigo every mid-week since I've been on break - just because I could - and it's been delightful! Tomorrow night is April Spicywatch movie night, which has been running successfully once a month this year and in a couple of days I will take my mother on a road trip to Bendigo for the day. Yes, yes, yes, I am living the dream and I have 6 more week of joy ahead of me as well. It feels like all of the flowers in my life have bloomed at once and I feel so very blessed and extremely fortunate.
​And I am sharing time; sharing precious, joyful time with so many beautiful and caring and wonderful people. My heart is full of smiles and warmth. I am grateful beyond words. This must be what it feels like to be living the dream. I get it, I am living the dream - 100% and I just don't want to wake up!

DREAM SCENARIO 
Release Date: 2023
Rating: R 18+
Running Time: 102 mins 
An American fantasy-comedy film written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli that delivers something that is so bizarre, so funny and yet so disturbing in equal measure, and yet it still works completely as well. Nicholas Cage again delivers all of the talent that everyone knows that he has but for perplexing reasons does not always deliver upon; and here he shines brightly and carries the entire film to new levels of humour and discomfort in ways that only Nicholas Cage could. 
Paul is a mild manner biology professor that no-one really pays much attention to, that is until he starts to turn up in people's dreams. Paul is rocketed into fame by his ability to be 'inside' everyone's head, but when dreams turn into nightmares, people start to see Paul in a whole new way. 
There is something deeply sinister about the storyline in Dream Scenario as it unfolds, leaving the viewer, just like the main protagonist, reeling at the fickle changes of desirable pop culture and the swift retribution of cancel culture. It's certainly a surreal journey into the possibilities of futuristic dream intervention; which in itself is a frighteningly possible scenario to imagine. 
FINAL SAY: Trauma is trending these days.
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​

Another whirlwind month passes me by, and boy what a month it has been! I kicked off my birthday long weekend in style with a trip to the movies to see Dune Part 2 in Gold Class and then followed it up the next evening with a New Moon women's circle and sound bath session. Went to the Begonia festival, out for lunch and to the theatre with my mum the day before my birthday and then on my actual birthday I was spoilt rotten by my loving family and generous friends who showered with both attention and affection in buckets.
I had breakfast made for me, a gigantic flashy chocolate fudge cake and Thai food from my favourite Thai restaurant in Ballarat. And the gifts! Holy cow was I spoilt! So many generous offerings and lots of wonderful follow up adventures to be had as well that were gifted to me. Craig got me a Fitbit and my favourite French perfume, Seth got me a Dahlia flower arranging class and lunch - just for the two of us, Zoe got me a pass to the spa for a sauna, soak and a massage at Sanctuary Day Spa, Helen got me tickets to see Groundhog Day at the theatre in Melbourne in April and Michelle got me a French cooking Class in Sorrento that she is taking me to in April as well. Winning!
On top of that I went out to Drag Bingo with my work team, for a night of too many cocktails and so many belly laughs. Around 25 people came out to celebrate my 50th from work, which was just incredible; it was an amazing night! Georgia took me out for a Japanese dinner and wants to take me to Melbourne for a night out down the track and I also received a number of very kind messages and lovely gifts from many other people that share their time and energy with me. It was stunningly overwhelming, emotional and deeply moving for me. Turns out that turning 50 is not a bad thing at all, its a bloody awesome thing! And this year is shaping up to get better and better as it goes along. 
You would think that I couldn't top becoming a Bibi and turning 50, and yeah okay, maybe I can't actually top those things, but more joy is definitely coming! I start my long service leave in a few weeks and will be having a couple of months off work which is awesome on its own, but Craig and I have also decided to get away together for a break and we are heading to Fiji for a holiday in May. An overseas holiday - oh joy - it has been 5 years since Craig and I have travelled overseas together so we are really looking forward to this get away. And the extra time off is going to give me so much more time with Zoe, Ben and Freja as well. The distance between us has been really challenging since Freja arrived in the world and I am looking forward to having more quality time with my now extended family over the next couple of months - I just cannot wait! So yes! Life is beautiful and filled with joy and bursting with opportunity and good fortune, and I am so grateful for everything that I am experiencing. 
Oh, and let's not forget that the Oscar's also happened the day after my birthday this year as well, which just happened to be a public holiday so Helen and I hit the couch with some bubbles and a giant wedge of cheese to take it all in.
And just in case you missed it, here are the (not at all surprising) results:
OSCARS 2024 FULL LIST
Best picture
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer – WINNER
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest

Best actor in a leading role
Bradley Cooper – Maestro
Colman Domingo – Rustin
Paul Giamatti – The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy – Oppenheimer – WINNER
Jeffrey Wright – American Fiction

Best actor in a supporting role
Sterling K Brown – American Fiction
Robert De Niro – Killers of the Flower Moon
Robert Downey Jr – Oppenheimer – WINNER
Ryan Gosling – Barbie
Mark Ruffalo – Poor Things

Best actress in a leading role
Annette Bening – Nyad
Lily Gladstone – Killers of the Flower Moon
Sandra Hüller – Anatomy of a Fall
Carey Mulligan – Maestro
Emma Stone – Poor Things – WINNER

Best actress in a supporting role
Emily Blunt – Oppenheimer
Danielle Brooks – The Color Purple
America Ferrera – Barbie
Jodie Foster – Nyad
Da’Vine Joy Randolph – The Holdovers – WINNER

Best directing
Anatomy of a Fall – Justine Triet
Killers of the Flower Moon – Martin Scorsese
Oppenheimer – Christopher Nolan – WINNER
Poor Things – Yorgos Lanthimos
The Zone of Interest – Jonathan Glazer

Best animated feature film
The Boy and the Heron – WINNER
Elemental
Nimona
Robot Dreams
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Best adapted screenplay
American Fiction – WINNER
Barbie
Oppenheimer
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest

Best original screenplay
Anatomy of a Fall – WINNER
The Holdovers
Maestro
May December
Past Lives

Best cinematography
El Conde
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer- WINNER
Poor Things

Best costume design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER

Best documentary feature film
Bobi Wine: The People’s President
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
To Kill a Tiger
20 Days in Mariupol – WINNER

Best documentary short film
The ABCs of Book Banning
The Barber of Little Rock
Island in Between
The Last Repair Shop – WINNER
Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó

Best film editing
Anatomy of a Fall
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer – WINNER
Poor Things

Best international feature film
Io Capitano
Perfect Days
Society of the Snow
The Teachers’ Lounge
The Zone of Interest – WINNER

Best makeup and hairstyling
Golda
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER
Society of the Snow

Best original score
American Fiction
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Killers of the Flower Moon
Oppenheimer – WINNER
Poor Things

Best original song
The Fire Inside – Flamin’ Hot
I’m Just Ken – Barbie
It Never Went Away – American Symphony
Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People) – Killers of the Flower Moon
What Was I Made For? – Barbie – WINNER

Best production design
Barbie
Killers of the Flower Moon
Napoleon
Oppenheimer
Poor Things – WINNER

Best animated short film
Letter to a Pig
Ninety-Five Senses
Our Uniform
Pachyderme
WAR IS OVER! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko – WINNER

Best live action short film
The After
Invincible
Knight of Fortune
Red, White and Blue
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar – WINNER

Best sound
The Creator
Maestro
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Oppenheimer
The Zone of Interest – WINNER

Best visual effects
The Creator
Godzilla Minus One – WINNER
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One
Napoleon

KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Release Date: 2023
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 206 mins 
An American western and also a crime drama, directed and produced by Martin Scorsese, who co-wrote the script with Eli Roth. Based on the book of the same name by David Grann, Killers of the Flower Moon is not just a movie, it an epic, with an all star ensemble cast and enough corruption and intrigue to keep viewers riveted for the almost three and half hour run time. 
In Oklahoma in the 1920's, a series of grisly deaths continues to befall the Osage Nation People that have a strong hold on the land; due to striking oil. Behind these murders is the land grabbing and influential cattle rancher William King Hale, who will even use his own kin (and any other means available) to take down the Osage members from the inside so that the land inheritances eventually fall into his own family's hands. 
This is a sad story, peppered with the worst kinds of people doing the worst kinds of things. The Osage Nation are represented beautifully, with the main focus firmly placed on Molly Burkhart, a headstrong Osage whose family owns oil headrights. She is portrayed perfectly by newcomer Lily Gladstone and she is extremely well supported by Leonardo DiCaprio as her conniving husband Ernest and Robert De Niro as the awful uncle William Hale. 
Parts of this film are really hard to watch; seeing gentle people being swindled and manipulated continuously is not at all joyful, however the strength, dignity and spirituality of the Osage shines through at every facet  of this movie, and overall, Killers of the Flower Moon delivers something reflective, noteworthy and valuable. A must see epic that deserved all of the accolades and attentions that it garnered. 
​FINAL SAY: Can you find the wolves in this picture?
4 Chilli Peppers ​

Looking back across the landscape of 2023, I see that overall it was a year of massive growth for me. I did a lot more than I expected to do, faced some challenges, had some celebrations and also had some massive highlights along the way as well.
I do love to brag about my amazing yearly achievements, not because I want to rub anyone's face in them, but mostly because looking back and remembering a year completely really helps me to identify all of the joys, personal highlights and reasons to be grateful, of which I have many in my life. Just take a look over the epic year that 2023 was for me: 
JANUARY: 30 Days of Yoga with Adriene, Escape Room Adventure, Seth's 18th birthday,  Mini Spa Day, Enfield deck revamp, Seth got his license, Clunes Ghost Hunt, Seppelt Winery Tour, Halls Gap Road Trip, Chinese New Year celebrations, tuned in to the Triple j Hottest 100.
FEBRUARY:  Italian Dinner Party, Blackberry picking. 
MARCH: International Women's Day, My birthday, McQueen Exhibition, Harmony Day Intercultural Celebration, Kate Bush Tribute Show. 
APRIL: Easter Sunday with the family, April holiday break, Spa Day with Craig, Eastern European Dinner Party, Craig's birthday.
MAY: Spicywatch's 9th Birthday, Golden Plains Art Trail, Mother's Day.
JUNE: Mushrooming,  Fleetwood Mac Tribute Show, The Garden's of St. Erth, Torquay Trip, Zoe's 26th Birthday.
JULY: Winter School Holidays, The Sound of Music Theatre Show, Horror Movie night, Bishop's Palace Ghost Tour, Addams Family Theatre Show.
AUGUST: Immigration Museum, Middle Eastern Dinner Party, Borealis at Daylesford Lake, Book week dress up. 
SEPTEMBER: Amazing trip to Uluru, Father's Day, Spring School Holiday Break, Mum's 80th Birthday.
OCTOBER:  Girls Shopping Day, Photo Biennale in Ballarat, Moulin Rogue Theatre Show, Yoga at Chat for Tea, Yoga Festival in Bendigo, Halloween horror movie/ dinner night.
NOVEMBER: 29th Wedding Anniversary, Deep Blue Spa, Enfield Smoke event, Public Speaking Event, Zoe and Ben's baby Shower.
DECEMBER: Summer Holidays kicking off, Seth buys his first car, Wreath Making and Candle Decorating events, Enfield Xmas Brunch, Christmas Day with the fam, Family Smoke Event. 

There is a lot here to celebrate and appreciate that's for sure. And on top of all of that, I have also managed to squeeze in:

• Daily meditation.
• 66 books.
• Workouts - 5 times a week.
• 180 movies.
• 11,000 average steps a day.
• 160 TV series - a new record for me!
• 26 brunches/ lunches and  delicious restaurant meals with family and friends. 
• A daily French lesson on Duolingo.
• Brain Gym everyday for 10 minutes.
• A daily journal entry. 
• And....I reviewed another 38 movies on Spicywatch.com bringing the total number of reviews to more than 1,000! 

Woohoo! That's a lot of 'doing' for one year! 
And now, as 2024 gently unfurls itself before me I wonder what will arrive in the next 12 months. Probably the most exciting thing will definitely be the arrival of my grandchild! As for the rest, well only time will tell, but let's hope it's as exciting as the last year was!​

SALTBURN
Release Date: 2023 
Rating: R 18+
Running Time: 127 mins 
A psychological thriller and a black comedy; written, directed and co-produced by Emerald Fennell, Saltburn is definitely one of my favourite films of 2023. Steeped in gothic mystery, chock full of unscrupulous characters and peppered with kinky interludes, Saltburn is deeply intriguing and absolutely original in every respect. 
Oliver is struggling to fit in at Oxford University. He becomes fast friends with Felix Catton, a rich and influential student that takes Oliver under his wing and asks him to join him at his family home 'Saltburn' for the summer break. Saltburn is a sprawling estate in the British countryside, filled with strange and entitled people and offering a release and a refuge to Oliver who has shared his tragic upbringing and difficult home life situation. But nothing is at all as it seems at Saltburn. 
Sumptuously designed from the costumes and sets to the exceptionally good soundtrack, Saltburn is a true jolt to the senses. Intoxicating in every way, you just cannot look away, especially from the incredible cast that sports the likes of Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi, Alison Oliver, Carey Mulligan and Rosamund Pike. This film made me long for a summer holiday and envy the privilege of wealth, but most of all, it made me laugh and it made me blush, and for that I am giving this a big fat tick and a very high recommendation. Feel the burn of Saltburn for yourself!
FINAL SAY: I'm sorry my performance wasn't good enough. 
4 Chilli Peppers ​

I have been ridiculously busy for the last month, not only have I barely watched any movies (shocker I know) but I have also been completely immersed in a flurry of pre-Christmas events, personal wellness activities and a multitude of celebrations, which have kept me far from my computer and far from my beloved Spicywatch. However, it is only three more weeks until my Summer holidays officially begin and I cannot wait to re-immerse myself in some sunshine, relaxation and restorative practises, which will of course involve plenty of late night movie marathons and some lengthy TV embraces. 
So what have I been so busy doing since I last blogged over a month ago? Well, shit loads but here's a quick run down:

• Five delicious restaurant dinners out with friends 
• A yoga festival weekend away in Bendigo
• Halloween Night event 
• A meat-smoke event
• Dinner at my mum's, for my Dad's 4th remembrance (we miss ya dad) 
• Swanky Cocktails at Itinerant Spirits
• Craig's parent's birthday dinner (which I hosted and catered) 
• Ceramic Open Studio visit with my bestie. 
• 29th wedding anniversary getaway to Warrnambool (visited the Deep Blue Spa)
• A Public Speaking competition for School 
• A Trivia Night at the pub
• A Baby Shower celebration for Zoe and Ben - not long to go now!

I'm guessing that you can now see why I haven't been watching many moves or blogging for four weeks, it has been a tad hectic, but really amazing as well. The next few weeks aren't looking like they will be slowing down either with all of the Yuletide events firing up and end of year celebrations lining up. However, I have created my Christmas shopping list, I have put all of the important events on the calendar which well and truly covers all of the necessary bells, whistles and jolly gatherings one could ever hope for during the silly season. And, like a good and committed movie goer, I have even created a list of 'seasonally appropriate' viewing options for the days leading up to Christmas. If you too are looking for some festival choices, I am going to share my list with you, and we can compare notes right here on Spicywatch in the coming weeks. I haven't yet seen any of the options listed below, so whether they are good or not, well that remains to be seen!
Here's my viewing line up for this December:

• A Boy Called Christmas - Netflix
• Violent Night - Netflix 
• Genie - Netflix
• Happiest Season - Netflix
• The Velveteen Rabbit - AppleTV
• That Christmas - ABC iView 
• Catherine Tate Christmas Special - ABC iView
• Miracle on 34th Steet - Disney
• Le Pupille - Disney
• High Holiday - Stan
• Jones's Family Christmas - Stan
• Almost Christmas - Stan
• Christmas Obsession Eps - Stan 
• Baking It - Seven Plus
• Candy Cane Lane - Stan 
• 8 Bit Christmas - Binge 

AND.... well, I have seen this one many times, but will probably make the time to revisit it again this season because I love it so much!

• ​The Nightmare Before Christmas - Disney. 

After passing along covid to the entire family for Christmas we all found ourselves back together for new years eve. I mean, no risk of anyone getting sick if everyone's already riddled with the contagion right? There was little point to us all isolating from each other when we were all carrying the same strain and generally feeling fine; so, all of us 'sickies' congregated on the deck out here in Enfield to share a few nibbles and drinks, listen to some tunes and make some resolutions.
And looking back across the landscape of 2022, it really wasn't a bad year by any stretch of the imagination. Sure, things got a bit pear shaped towards the end, but generally speaking things were pretty cruisy and I got to do so many things once everything opened up again and the world got rolling again.
Here are some of my personal highlights from 2022: 
JANUARY: 30 Days of Yoga with Adriene, Smoker arrives in Enfield, Seth's 17th birthday, Bridal dress shopping with Zoe, Seeing Harry Potter - The Cursed Child in Melbourne, tuning in to the Triple j Hottest 100, Paint Your Mate event. 
FEBRUARY:  Chinese New Year celebrations, Smythesdale Fiesta, Ghost Hunting at Blackwood Pub, Spa day with Craig, Summersalt Music Festival, Blackberry picking. 
MARCH: Deep Blue Spa Day, My friends and family being a huge support to me when I had covid on my birthday!
APRIL: Easter Sunday with the family, April holiday break, ELVIS exhibition in Bendigo, Metal detecting with Ben and Zoe, Craig's Mustang arrived.
MAY: A trip to the Gisborne markets, Mother's Day, Spicywatch's 8th Birthday, Tour of the Old Ballarat Gaol, Seth's formal, Barwon Manor Ghost Hunt, Seth's Deb Ball. 
JUNE: Illuminate at the Bendigo Stupa, Mushrooming, Salem is born, Port Campbell Road Trip, Psychic expo, Winter School Holidays, Creswick Ghost Hunt, Zoe's 25th Birthday.
JULY: Winter Movie Marathon nights,  Road trip to Barwon Heads, Twin Peaks show at Hepburn Springs, POCO Short Film Festival, a trip to the Clunes markets. 
AUGUST:  Salem joined our family, The LUME gallery - Van Gogh exhibition, completed the Heritage walk, Book week dress up. 
SEPTEMBER: Father's Day, Spring School Holiday Break, Kyneton Ghost Hunting, High Tea at Fortuna, Girls Road Trip. 
OCTOBER:  Mother of the Bride dress shopping, Seth's last day at Damascus, Yoga Festival in Bendigo, Pumpkin carving, Halloween horror movie/ dinner night.
NOVEMBER: Hen's weekend in Melbourne with Zoe, High Tea at The Grand Hyatt, Zoe and Ben's wedding in Hepburn, Grade 4 Camp at Narmbool, Seth's Year 12 graduation, Spa day with Craig, 28th Wedding Anniversary.
DECEMBER: Carols event, Renault Koleos arrived, Summer Holidays kicking off, Christmas, fishing at Jubilee Lake. 

Pretty fair to say that even in spite of having had covid twice this year (once on my birthday and once at Christmas), getting my poor car's face pranged in and having to navigate the financial pitfalls of 2022, I have still had a really lovely year. 
There is a lot here to celebrate and appreciate that's for sure. And on top of all of that, I have also managed to squeeze in:

• Daily meditation.
• 62 books.
• Workouts - 5 times a week.
• 185 movies.
• 10,500 steps a day.
• 158 TV series.
• 42 brunches/ lunches and  delicious restaurant meals with family and friends. 
• A daily French lesson on Duolingo.
• Brain Gym everyday for 10 minutes a day.
• And....I reviewed another 45 movies on Spicywatch.

Woohoo! That's a lot of 'doing' for one year! 
And now, as 2023 gently unfurls itself before me I wonder what will arrive in the next 12 months. Only time will tell, but let's hope it's as exciting as the last year was for me. 

C'MON C'MON 
Release Date: 2021
Rating: M
Running Time: 109 mins 
A touching and truly effecting drama that was written and directed by Mike Mills. It's been a while since I have watched something this genuinely raw and real. With an undeniable sweet chemistry between Joaquin Phoenix and Woody Norman and filmed in moody black and white, this tale about an uncle and his nephew transcends in the simplest and purest of ways. 
Johnny and Viv have become estranged siblings since the painful death of their mother from dementia. When Johnny reaches out to Viv for the first time in a year he is saddened to hear about the struggles that she has been having managing her estranged husband's mental wellbeing. Viv reveals that she needs to be with her husband as they try to find him the correct care but doesn't have a carer for her nine year old son Jesse. Johnny volunteers to care for his nephew whilst Viv deals with her husband, and he and Jesse embark on a life changing road trip together. 
This is a stunningly beautiful movie about family loyalties, caring for others and uncovering unknown and foreign aspects of ourselves. The struggles and the triumphs feel incredibly plausible and as a parent, very relatable. The fragility and the strength of the ties that bind us to those we love are explored in sensitive and heartfelt ways and the cast is exceptionally good all round. 
C'mon C'mon is unmissable viewing, and it's definitely one of the best dramas to come out of 2021, so make the time to see it whenever you can. 
FINAL SAY: In your confusion and delight, you will forget where you came from.
4.5 Chilli Peppers ​

Since my last blog post, we have experienced a string of rather unfortunate events. I guess that it was bound to happen eventually, we were riding pretty high on the wave of good fortune and happy times, and even the stupidest people know that nothing stays like that forever. To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction and well, I think we have gotten ours. 
On the day that I was to collect my new car, yep, you heard right, a new car - I got a new car for Christmas! I told you we were riding the wave high! A flash car too, a brand new Koleos Intens Renault, flash as hell with all the trimmings and a pearl white glaze, a real beauty! It was the last day that I would ever have to drive my darling Penelope (my Holden Cruz) before she was handed over to Seth for his 18th birthday. I was dropping Craig off at his work to collect his work ute after his break up the night before when an old, half deaf and clearly half blind guy backed his massive 4WD with a tow ball into the front of Penelope. Poor Penelope! Her beautiful face all crumpled up!
Okay, not so bad, the car is still 100% working, a little uglier but it wasn't our fault, I'll just get the quote done and get her all fixed up to hand over to Seth in January. Turns out that the old fellows insurance company only uses one repair place in Ballarat, which is fully booked until March! So poor Penelope has to go about with her face caved in for the next few months and we have to give the car to Seth with her face caved in which is just as sad. Ahhhh! So not the way we planned for things to go. 
And then I collected my Koleos and the sun came out and the world didn't look so shitty again. I have called my new car Pierre. Firstly because he is French and secondly because Koleos means testicles in Latin and sheath in Greek, so with a collective meaning of dick and balls I could hardly give it a lady name could I? And so Pierre was born. We took Pierre out to stretch his legs the following day when we drove to Ararat to take my mum out for an early Christmas lunch. This is where we encounter our next wave of shit.
Unbeknownst to mum, she had contracted covid, and yep, you guessed it, so did we! Between then and now we have all succumbed to the dreaded lurgy and our second round of covid for 2022. I have been forced to cancel all of my plans for the week which included a breakfast gathering with my friends, a day out/ lunch/ drinks with Helen and my new years plans with Zoe and Ben which did include tickets to an escape room. Talk about a bummer, got me a brand new whip and I can't even take him out! We are all housebound and robbed of a week of holiday adventures. I want to say that I don't care, but I do. It's shithouse, it's annoying and it's massively inconvenient.  
However, what goes up must come down, and so it goes. No point carrying on about it, it happened. There was nothing we could've done to prevent any of it, none of it was our fault, it just happened. Did we want Penelope to get her face smashed in and have another a round of covid for Christmas? Nope! But there is fuck all that we can do about any of that, so it's time to find the shine in the grime and embrace the distaste. I now have more than enough time to get Spicywatch.com back up and thumping. I can set up my diary and journal for 2023. I can clean up the house, take down the Christmas decorations and get some yard work done.  I can put firm plans in place for 2023 and research cool road trips for Pierre to take me on. Yeah, I can turn this misfortune into a good use of my time and get some things sorted. I'm gonna pull myself out of this funk, shake off the blues and use this time to my advantage. 

THE BLUES BROTHERS 
Release Date: 1980
Rating: M
Running Time: 133 mins 
An American musical comedy directed by John Landis that has since become a cult classic. In 2020, The Blues Brothers was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant."
Jake Blues is finally reunited with his brother Elwood after being released from prison. However, the brothers soon discover that the catholic home they were raised in is about to be closed. Determined to save it, they plan to throw a huge benefit concert. But first, they have to get the old band back together and embark on a wild, police chasing, road trip to make that happen. 
Originally a skit on Saturday Night Live, The Blues Brothers is a virtual who's who of Blues and Soul music and features musical performances from James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and John Lee Hooker to name but a few. And if you don't get a lot out of the storyline here, that's okay; the energetic and lively soundtrack makes this worth seeing on its own. 
John Belushi is at his absolute best here and even Dan Aykroyd, whom I am not a big of, manages to impress. Sure it's utterly implausible and deeply silly and makes very little sense at all, but it does rock very hard, and for that reason, it's definitely worth a look. 
FINAL SAY: We're on a mission from God. 
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​

I have been dreadfully neglectful of my blog these past few months, however when you hear about how busy things have been around here you may be more forgiving. Since mid-October I have squeezed more action and adventure into my life than an Indiana Jones movie, I kid you not, I have had more ins and outs and ups and downs than a roller coaster in the last 6 weeks and although I long for a good TV embrace, I have barely had time to shower properly! 
Check out this list of my goings on and you'll start to get the idea of just how much I can ram into 6 weeks, whilst still work 5 days a week. It's actually pretty head spinning how much I have been able to achieve really. 

• Visited an art showcase
• Hosted a dinner party
• Went shopping for a 'mother of the bride' dress in Melbourne
• Went to friends for dinner
• Went my son's final day of school ceremony
• Went to see the specialist - twice
• Went to a yoga festival in Bendigo
• Wrote my emcee and mother of the bride speeches for the upcoming wedding
• Celebrated Halloween
• Went to the NGV
• Went out for Yum Cha in Melbourne
• Had a spa day with my daughter
• Went to Modiva's for dinner
• Went to a Bridal Shower high tea at The Grand Hyatt in Melbourne
• Went to a Grade 4 overnight camp
• Celebrated my in-laws birthdays with a family dinner
• Got my cat desexed
• Went to my son's year 12 graduation event and dinner 
• Had dinner with my mother in Ararat 
• Went out for a wellness massage and hydrotherapy spa with my husband
• Had my 28th wedding anniversary and went out for dinner
• And never missed a day of meditation, brain gym or French in the process!

And now I am rounding the corner to one of the biggest events that we have ever celebrated as a family - the marriage of our daughter! Zoe and Benjamin will be tying the knot and becoming a 'Mr and Mrs' in six short days time. They are having their special day in Hepburn Springs and I am going to be the emcee, so needless to say I have had to spend a fair amount of time writing and practising speeches and toasts as well. And I think that I am almost ready to go.  
Hopefully, I will deliver it all with just the right amount of magic, humour and joy to make their event run smoothly and seamlessly. May need to sprinkle a little extra magic on my speech though, because I really want Zoe and Ben's day to be extra special!

THE LOVE WITCH 
Release Date: 2016 
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 120 mins 
An art house comedy/horror that was written, edited, directed, produced and scored by Anna Biller, an independent feminist American filmmaker who consciously explores feminist themes throughout her work. The Love Witch offers a playful and colourful homage to the 1960's and Technicolour Hammer Horror films whilst  probing into contemporary gender roles and stereotypes. 
A beautiful young witch named Elaine is looking for a new start in life after the death of her husband. Elaine attempts to use spells and magic in an attempt to find a new suitor, and although she succeeds at getting men to fall in love with her, the long term results are disastrous. 
From the dramatic eye make up to the lurid bright-red fake blood effects, The Love Witch is a throwback masterpiece. Amusing and at times visually stunning, this film isn't subtle in any way and although it is slow, it still delivers in so many unique ways. Samantha Robinson is terrific as Elaine, bringing loads of feminine energy and rocking all that swinging '60s fashion with big charm and allure. Jeffrey Vincent Parise also does great job of Wayne, the first man to fall under Elaine's spell and that psychedelic sex scene is utterly unforgettable!
FINAL SAY: Men are like children. They're very easy to please as long as we give them what  they want. 
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​

The spring break came and went so fast that I barely had time to register just how good it was until I found myself back at work this week. The sun was mostly present for the two week duration and I managed to fill it with an amazingly enjoyable array of fun activities.
In the space of 16 days I squeezed in all of the following things:
A ghost hunting adventure in Kyneton
Dinner at an Asian fusion restaurant 
A brow sculpting and trip to the hairdresser
High tea at Fortuna in Bendigo with my family
Lunch at Enfield with a dear friend
A replant of my vegetable garden
A trip to the Ballarat public library 
A leisurely walk and lunch with another friend
A full re-worked of the front garden beds and I even planted some new spring blooms 
A road trip through central Victoria with friends
Another terrific Asian fusion dinner and I also had some time to spare to....
Clean out my wardrobe, my pantry, my make up and even reorganised my game cupboard. 
Read four books, watch ten movies and finish three TV series that I had on the go. 
Review ten new movies on Spicywatch; journal, work out and meditate everyday and I even tried out some new home cooked recipes on the family - which they loved! It was a terrific break and also a deeply rewarding one for mind, body and spirit. I returned to work feeling like I had enjoyed a good mix of leisure time, family and friend time, practical time and my fave, me time!
However, the very best of the year lies just ahead of us now as Craig and I prepare for the most wonderful events that will be happening over the next couple of months. Between now and the end of January 2023 we will be celebrating:

• Halloween
• Seth's Year 12 Graduation
• Our 28th Wedding Anniversary
• Zoe and Ben's Wedding
• Christmas
• New Years 
• Seth's 18th Birthday and hopefully, all going well...
• Seth getting his drivers license. 

All that in just under 16 weeks, should be a breeze right? Lucky I know how to hustle when I need to that's all that I am going say!

HUSTLE
Release Date: 2022
Rating: M
Running Time: 117 mins 
A sports drama directed by Jeremiah Zagar that was released by Netflix streaming service and received wide critical acclaim, mainly due to Adam Sandler's tremendously good performance. Now I'm not going to lie, I don't generally like sports dramas and I really don't know the first thing about basketball, but there is a real charm to this simple tale that makes it feel genuine and heartfelt without feeling forced or try hard. 
Stanley Sugarman is scouting for the next big basketball star for the Philadelphia 76ers when he stumbles across Bo Cruz in Spain. Bo is hustling for extra money in street basketball games and he is good, very good in fact. Stanley tries hard to get Bo into a Showcase game so that he can be signed, but Bo's streetwise manner, poor knowledge of professional basketball and lack of self control prove to be unforeseen and challenging obstacles to overcome. 
Adam Sandler is undoubtedly the heart and soul of this film, proving that he has come along way since his Billy Madison days of acting. He is well supported here by Queen Latifah who portrays his wife, Juancho Hernangomez (an actual Spanish basketballer) who plays Bo Cruz and dozens of real life basketball players who play themselves in this movie. 
Essentially, Hustle is a feel good sports film that will leave you with that fuzzy feel good vibe when it ends, it's sweet and it's simple and sometimes we all need a little bit of that. 
FINAL SAY: Do you love this game?
​3 Chilli Peppers ​

I always feel like I have so much time when I start a school holiday break, but two weeks is never really as long as you would think, especially when you have lots of people to catch up with and appointments to keep. However, I am certainly not complaining, I am always deeply grateful for the respite and reset time and having a couple of weeks off to gather my bearings and reboot my system every 10 weeks or so is truly a god send. 
​In the last two weeks I have really used my time efficiently, swinging between obligation, organisation and pure indulgence, and I have loved every single moment of it.
The highlights for me were:

• Having cocktails with friends.
• Enjoying afternoon tea in the sun at the botanical gardens.
• A freshly baked morning tea at a dear friend's house.
• Walking the neighbourhood most fine days.
• Spending Easter with my loved ones.
• Hosting a pizza/movie night.
• Catching up with far away friends for brunch.
• Going to the ELVIS exhibition in Bendigo with the family.
• Sipping a 'Dark and Stormy' in a swanky bar with a buddy.
• Getting my hair and eyebrows tizzied up.
• Finally organising the the cable guy to hook up the Ethernet to my TV - so long Wi-Fi drop outs!
• Enjoying two meat smoker events.
• Going to the movies.
• Watching 16 films and finishing eight TV series.
• Reading four books.
• Cleaning out my jewellery cupboard and wardrobe - long overdue!
• Eating out at delicious restaurants four times.
• And I also took Craig to pick up his new whip for his 50th birthday - a brand new cherry red Mustang.

Never was there a happier man than Craig when he pulled up in our driveway in that car, smiling from ear to ear and more gleeful than I have seen him in an age. Craig has wanted a flashy car for as long as I have known him, which is almost 30 years now. He has saved and worked his arse off to make it happen and to see him get something that he has wanted for so long made my heart so full of joy. It was the icing on the cake of my already incredible holiday break. 
And so, like it does at this time every year, a new term begins and I return to the hamster wheel of work  for another couple of months, refreshed and relaxed after my epic break  but still always longing for the days ahead that offer me another round of respite and indulgent joy. 

I WANT YOU BACK
Release Date: 2022
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 111 mins 
A romantic comedy directed by Jason Orley from a screenplay written by Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger that actually delivers just the right mix of rom/com to work. 
Two recently dumped strangers team up in attempt to win back their exes through unscrupulous and underhanded methods. 
The storyline here is simple enough, but the cast are truly terrific and deliver their roles with tonnes of humour and likeability which really elevates this rom/com from predictable and basic to the halls of genuine enjoyment.
Charlie Day and Jenny Slate play the roles of the two devious and heartbroken friends with a plausible onscreen chemistry and they are very well supported by Scott Eastwood, Manny Jacinto, Clark Backo and Gina Rodriguez whom all believably fall into the messy love entanglement that ensues.
I Want You Back is no game changer, but for a rom/com this is a solid and enjoyable watch. 
FINAL SAY: We're each others sadness sisters. 
3 Chilli Peppers ​

Over the years I have invested in a number of ghost hunting experiences. I have done the ghost investigation tour at the Aradale Lunatic Asylum in Ararat, the Ballarat Walking Ghost tour, the Melbourne Walking Ghost tour, a tour of J Ward in Ararat, the Old Melbourne Gaol tour and I have even been to Monte Christo in Junee which claims to be one of the most haunted sites in Australia as well.
In fact, all of these sites and tours claim to be in very active and haunted places and all them failed to deliver any ghostly activity that I would consider to be significant or particularly memorable. Now I am not saying that these sites aren't actually haunted, many if not all of them probably are, but I myself failed to have what I would consider to be a  significant ghostly encounter at tours of this nature; that was until this week.
Seth had desperately wanted to do a ghost investigation for his 17th birthday and we were all booked in to do just that on his birthday in January.  However, the God's did not smile upon this and not only did the tour guide get Covid-19 and have to isolate, but the actually site that we were going to investigate got totally flooded the week prior to us attending and had to close for refurbishment. Seriously, if that's not a sign that you're not meant to go then I don't know what is really. Anyway, we had to withdraw and reschedule for a future date and not wanting to leave it too long after Seth's birthday to get the ghost hunting rolling, I booked the two of us in to a ghost hunting experience and investigation session at the Blackwood pub last Wednesday night. 
The Blackwood pub is a small venue about 15 minutes outside of Ballan in Victoria. It was once a morgue for the graveyard that is adjacent to the venue and it's history is speckled with both tragedy and mystery which our guide and host "Dolly" informed us of whilst we enjoyed a hearty pub meal before embarking on two hours of ghost investigating. 
Armed with an array of ghost detecting equipment (that had been kindly supplied by our host) and an extensive knowledge of the history of the venue, we were allowed free reign to the venue and graveyard to explore at will. And I am not going to lie, I was not really expecting to experience anything much and had pretty much agreed to do the tour with Seth for a few shits and giggles. And how wrong I turned out to be. 
I can say without any hesitation that the Blackwood pub is haunted, very haunted. And I am not sure if it was the combination of people that were in attendance that evening, if it was just the right pace at the right time or if this place is always running this hot but both Seth and I felt  and saw a lot of odd phenomena that night. From scary shouting ghost box messages, flashing lights, EVP activity, orbs caught on camera, sensations of feeling compressed, dizzy, disorientated and listing from side to side to photos that appear to depict full apparitions, unseen movements and even ghostly faces - we had it all going on. Other people in the group of around 20 people claimed to being touched and grabbed, which thankfully Seth and I did not experience and one poor woman was even struggling to stay upright throughout the night. It was weird beyond all explanation and was easily the most significant and active ghost investigation tour/experience that I have ever been involved in. 
This was both good and bad. Good because if you are going to invest your time and energy in to doing a ghost hunting tour then you do want all of the bells and whistles and this certainly delivered on those fronts. However, it was also kind of bad because when you are around that much activity you need to make sure that nothing is latching on. I had to burn a shit tonne of sage and Palo Santo and do lots of white light meditations after the effect to make sure that nothing came home with us or had latched on to us. And I have never felt compelled to be that thorough when I have been doing a ghost investigation with a tour group before because they just aren't usually that active or significant. 
So would I recommend doing a ghost investigation of Blackwood pub? Yes, I would. But as I said before it is always hard to say just what it is that makes these kind of supernatural experiences amplify, because in all sincerity I have no doubt that someone else could do this tour and experience nothing at all. I personally do think that Blackwood pub is haunted and I do think that there are active spirits at the venue. Can I guarantee an experience if you go? Of course not, but when you stack it against the other ghost related tours that I have been on, it's the best experience that I have had in a tour group thus far and that is worth noting. 
Even if you are a total sceptic, at worst you'll still enjoy a decent pub meal and a little intrigue and a bit of local history. At best, like Seth and I, you'll be shocked and surprised by the levels of activity and creeped out for days to come about what you just experienced first hand. I don't know why I like this kind of stuff so much, at heart I have always loved ghost stories and the unexplained and having had lots of supernatural and eerie experiences all on my own I suppose that it is just nice to have a shared experience with like minded others as well. It is not only affirming but also very bonding, and what's not to like about that? 

GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE 
Release Date: 2021 
Rating: PG 
Running Time: 124 mins 
Made for kids and playing out with as much youthful energy as The Goonies and enough sentimentality as any good Spielberg film, Ghost busters: Afterlife directed by Jason Reitman, delivers a simple and sweet supernatural tale that the whole family can enjoy together.
Egon Spengler, one of the original ghostbusters, passes away and leaves him weird home to his estranged family. Upon moving in, the youngest child of the family Phoebe discovers that Spengler is communicating with her from beyond the grave and is trying to warn her about an impending doom that lies ahead. A supernatural doom that consumed his entire life and now threatens the lives of everyone on the planet.  
There are plenty of call backs to the original film for die hard fans and all of the original gang make appearances at some point during the movie, except of course for Harold Ramis who originally played Egon Spengler in the first Ghostbuster film and passed away in 2014; and there is a tribute to him at the end of the film. Along with the old Ghostbusting crew, the new recruits: Finn Wolfhard, McKenna Grace and Logan Kim are terrific here and Carrie Coon and Paul Rudd fill in the shoes of the supporting adults nicely as well. 
I won't lie, it is a little sappy at times and super sentimental, but it is also a PG rated film, so it kind of needs to be. Ghostbusters: Afterlife is not a life changer, but it is wasn't a bad way to spend a couple of hours either. 
FINAL SAY: I don't remember this job being so painful. 
​3 Chilli Peppers ​

A lot of people were probably really happy to see the back end of 2021. It was another year of COVID-19 madness wasn't it? From vaccinations to pandemic variants, we were subjected to more lockdowns and interruptions than ever before. Communities, workplaces and even families were divided by the decision to vaccinate or not vaccinate and we all tried very hard to keep our heads and our kindness in check as we navigated through another very strange year indeed. 
However, I don't want to whine on about all of the bad things that happened in 2021, I would much rather celebrate the great things that happened and reflect on all of the joys that I managed to squeeze into my time. 
Craig and I were just saying how blessed we were to be operating in virtual 'business as usual' mode during 2021. Unlike many people, we survived relatively unscathed. We didn't have any cut backs to our paid employment, we didn't have to navigate much work from home because we were both considered to be essential workers, we also thankfully did not catch COVID and neither did anyone else in our families and we all managed to get vaccinated with minimal side effects. I would say that these statistics alone would make us more fortunate than 70% of the people on the planet and certainly places us in no position to whine about just how bad 2021 was.
So, there will not be any complaining from me about 2021, instead I am counting my blessings, thanking my lucky stars and acknowledging just how grateful I am for all of the tremendous endeavours that I did get to enjoy  this year.
Here are some of my personal highlights from 2021:

Pretty fair to say that I have had a really lovely year actually.
There is a lot here to celebrate and appreciate that's for sure. And on top of all of that, I have also managed to squeeze in:

• Daily meditation.
• 61 books.
• Yoga 5 times a week.
• 213 movies.
• 10,000 steps a day.
• Nine trips to the cinema.
• 142 TV series.
• 30 delicious restaurant meals with family and friends. 
• A daily French lesson on Duolingo
• Brain Gym everyday for 10 minutes a day.
• And.... I lost 5 kilos and drank 1.5 litres of water a day.

Oddly, 2021 may well have been one of my most productive and focused years to date, go figure. 
Now, let's see what 2022 will bring my way!

DON'T LOOK UP
Release Date: 2021 
Rating: M
Running Time: 138 mins 
An American satirical science fiction film, written, produced and directed by Adam McKay that hosts a massive ensemble cast of Oscar winning actors and comedians. After receiving mixed review from critics upon it's release in December 2021, Don't Look Up went on to become a cult favourite, receiving four Golden Globe nominations and making the top ten movie list of 2021 from The National Board of Review and American Film Institute. 
Two astronomers attempt to warn humanity that a giant comet is on a collision course with Earth that will set about the total destruction of human civilization. However, with a world that is more invested in what pop culture icons are doing with their spare time, the fatal news is not properly received or heard. 
In my opinion this is one of the funniest and sadly also one of the most depressingly accurate films of the year. Slammed for being too heavy handed about total world annihilation, I think that this film was lost on people that don't have a good sense of humour, because it made me laugh out loud so many times. Sure it's not joyful material and the overall message about what the general population have the capacity to digest is undoubtedly provoking, but it is a science fiction comedy for goodness sake, so just have fun with it! 
The cast is insanely good here, from Meryl Streep to Leonardo DiCaprio to Jennifer Lawrence; to name but a few, the performances are solid and the story is genuinely engaging and entertaining. I really liked this movie and it will probably make my top ten of 2021 as well. 
FINAL SAY: You guys, the truth is way more depressing. 
4 Chilli Peppers ​

I have no idea what happened to the last two weeks of my life. Last time I blogged we were only heading into December and now we are almost half way through! Seriously, the time is just flying by and I really need to slow down and allow myself to smell the flowers because things are getting very busy and I don't want to miss the fun of the journey, particularly the last couple of weeks before Christmas. 
So, at this point all of the important things are done, like the Christmas shopping, which is 95% completed. The tree is up, some decorations are out, the Christmas cards have been mailed and I have celebrated the season over a couple of pre-Christmas dinners and tipples with my friends. I have one week of work left and then I get an almost 6 week respite from all work responsibilities, which is exciting beyond compare. I have a couple of lovely day trips and events planned over January but I am sporting a mostly free calendar for the better part of the Summer and I have serious plans to start 2022 happier and healthier than I was in January 2021, which I feel very confident that I will do.
And now the really fun stuff starts! Like menu planning for my Christmas gatherings and putting all of the finishing touches on the joyful and time consuming things. Things like table decorations, gift wrapping, baking treats, spoiling my friends, colleagues and neighbours with goodies and just generally spreading happiness and good cheer. Like I said, the best stuff!
I have a pre-Christmas dinner, a wreath making session, two brunches and a Christmas movie night planned in the days leading up to Christmas with my dear friends and I am sure that a few more delightful events will crop up before the big day as well. As for Christmas, well my mother will be joining us for Christmas brunch, Zoe and Ben will share a dinner feast with us, Craig's folks will spend Boxing Day with us and my nephew and his family will see us on the 27th of December for post Christmas luncheon. A busy, lovely, exciting and wonderful Christmas to look forward to this year. 
I have actually been doing a lot of things in the last couple of weeks that have nothing much to do with Christmas at all if the truth be told. Things that I have been doing just because they make me happy, like going to the movies (twice), restocking the bar and learning how to make some new cocktails, chatting on the phone for hours with friends, taking long walks in nature, doing yoga every morning, catching up with people who will be busy over the silly season for an early Christmas dinner and drink, having cocktails at a local bar with some friends, making cupcakes for my work colleagues because it's good to give treats, going shopping in Daylesford, travelling to Bendigo with Seth and experimenting with various forms of meditation practise. And, maybe most importantly of all, trying desperately to be kind and gentle with myself during this hectic time of the year, which can sometimes mean saying 'no thanks' or 'not right now' and putting boundaries around what you can physically or mentally manage at this time of the year. 
However you may be travelling, do remember to be kind, gentle and caring with yourself at this time of the year. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a perfect Christmas, there is no ideal gift and there is absolutely no need to stress about any of it. Just do you, be you and enjoy the ride to the finish line, the holiday season is just around the corner!

Just spent the last fortnight in a state of complete and utter holiday bliss. The sun was out almost everyday and when it wasn't, well it really didn't matter because it just gave me plenty of opportunity to laze about at home and do all of the things that I love to do. I have read seven books, binge watched entire TV series, done 40 minute of yoga each day, slept in for at least half of those days and also watch a movie everyday for 14 days straight and I don't feel even slightly guilty for indulging my passions or getting as much rest and relaxation time in as possible. 
I brunched with friends, picnicked in the local gardens, played tennis twice, walked 10,000 steps a day, meditated for hours, had my first restaurant lunch in months and caught up with family. I baked, cooked, drew, journaled and sat about on Pinterest to my hearts content and I have loved every moment of it. I have zero regrets and tonnes of gratitude for just how rejuvenating and rested I am feeling right now. 
I could mention how out of hand the COVID numbers are and how depressing it is to still be in a pandemic, but I'm not going to go there. Instead I am going to draw your attention to the mighty fine Emmy Award Winners for 2021 (which just happened to air on the very first of my holiday break- just to add a little icing to my happy time cake). And if you haven't seen the list yet, it's impressive and will definitely give you something to turn your attentions to if you need some distraction from the miserable state of the world right now. 

​Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Cecily Strong, Saturday Night Live
Aidy Bryant, Saturday Night Live
Rosie Perez, The Flight Attendant
Hannah Einbinder, Hacks
WINNER: Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso
Juno Temple, Ted Lasso

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live
Kenan Thompson, Saturday Night Live
WINNER: Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso
Brendan Hunt, Ted Lasso
Nick Mohammed, Ted Lasso
Jeremy Swift, Ted Lasso
Paul Reiser, The Kominsky Method
Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Hacks

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie
Jean Smart, Mare of Easttown
WINNER: Julianne Nicholson, Mare of Easttown
Kathryn Hahn, WandaVision
Phillipa Soo, Hamilton
Renee Elise Goldsberry, Hamilton
Moses Ingram, The Queen's Gambit

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Daveed Diggs, Hamilton
Jonathan Groff, Hamilton
Anthony Ramos, Hamilton
Thomas Brodie-Sangster, The Queen's Gambit
WINNER: Evan Peters, Mare of Easttown
Paapa Essiedu, I May Destroy You

Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series
The Boys (Rebecca Sonnenshine, Episode: "What I Know")
WINNER: The Crown (Peter Morgan, Episode: "War")
The Handmaid's Tale (Yahlin Chang, Episode: "Home")
Lovecraft Country (Misha Green, Episode: "Sundown")
The Mandalorian (Dave Filoni, Episode: "Chapter 13: The Jedi")
The Mandalorian (Jon Favreau, Episode: "Chapter 16: The Rescue")
Pose (Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Steven Canals, Janet Mock, Our Lady J, Episode: "Series Finale")

Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series
Bridgerton (Julie Anne Robinson, Episode: "Diamond of the First Water")
The Crown (Benjamin Caron, Episode: "Fairytale")
WINNER: The Crown (Jessica Hobbs, Episode: "War")
The Handmaid's Tale (Liz Garbus, Episode: "The Wilderness")
The Mandalorian (Jon Favreau, Episode: "Chapter 9: The Marshal")
Pose (Steven Canals, Episode: "Series Finale")

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
WINNER: Gillian Anderson, The Crown
Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown
Emerald Fennell, The Crown
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid's Tale
Yvonne Strahovski, The Handmaid's Tale
Samira Wiley, The Handmaid's Tale
Madeline Brewer, The Handmaid's Tale
Aunjanue Ellis, Lovecraft Country

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Michael K. Williams, Lovecraft Country
Bradley Whitford, The Handmaid's Tale
Max Minghella, The Handmaid's Tale
O-T Fagbenle, The Handmaid's Tale
John Lithgow, Perry Mason
WINNER: Tobias Menzies, The Crown
Giancarlo Esposito, The Mandalorian
Chris Sullivan, This Is Us

Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series
The Amber Ruffin Show
A Black Lady Sketch Show
WINNER: Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Variety Talk Series
Conan
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert
The Daily Show With Trevor Noah
Jimmy Kimmel Live
WINNER: Last Week Tonight With John Oliver

Outstanding Variety Sketch Series
A Black Lady Sketch Show
WINNER: Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series
The Flight Attendant (Steve Yockey, Episode: "In Case of Emergency")
Girls5eva (Meredith Scardino, Episode: "Pilot")
WINNER: Hacks (Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, Jen Statsky, Episode: "There Is No Line")
PEN15 (Maya, Erskine, Episode: "Play")
Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis, Brendan Hunt, Joe Kelly, Episode: "Make Rebecca Great Again")
Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt, Joe Kelly, Episode: "Pilot")

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
B Positive (James Burrows, Episode: "Pilot")
The Flight Attendant (Susanna Fogel, Episode: "In Case of Emergency")
WINNER: Hacks (Lucia Aniello, Episode: "There Is No Line")
Mom (James Widdoes, Episode: "Scooby-Doo Checks and Salisbury Steak")
Ted Lasso (Zach Braff, Episode: "Biscuits")
Ted Lasso (MJ Delaney, Episode: "The Hope that Kills You")
Ted Lasso (Declan Lowney, Episode: "Make Rebecca Great Again")

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Aidy Bryant, Shrill
WINNER: Jean Smart, Hacks
Allison Janney, Mom
Kaley Cuoco, The Flight Attendant
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
WINNER: Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
William H. Macy, Shameless
Kenan Thompson, Kenan

Outstanding Competition Program
The Amazing Race
Nailed It!
WINNER: RuPaul's Drag Race
Top Chef
The Voice

Outstanding Directing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Hamilton (Thomas Kail)
I May Destroy You (Sam Miller, Michaela Coel, Episode: "Ego Death")
I May Destroy You (Sam Miller, Episode: "Eyes Eyes Eyes Eyes")
Mare of Easttown (Craig Zobel)
WINNER: The Queen's Gambit (Scott Frank)
The Underground Railroad (Barry Jenkins)
WandaVision (Matt Shakman)

Outstanding Writing for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
WINNER: I May Destroy You (Michaela Coel)
Mare of Easttown (Brad Ingelsby)
The Queen's Gambit (Scott Frank)
WandaVision (Chuck Hayward, Peter Cameron, Episode: "All-New Halloween Spooktacular!")
WandaVision (Jac Schaeffer, Episode: "Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience")
WandaVision (Laura Donney, Episode: "Previously On")

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie
WINNER: Kate Winslet, Mare of Easttown
Michaela Coel, I May Destroy You
Anya Taylor-Joy, The Queen's Gambit
Elizabeth Olsen, WandaVision
Cynthia Erivo, Genius: Aretha

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Paul Bettany, WandaVision
Hugh Grant, The Undoing
WINNER: Ewan McGregor, Halston
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton
Leslie Odom Jr., Hamilton

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Emma Corrin, The Crown
WINNER: Olivia Colman, The Crown
Uzo Aduba, In Treatment
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid's Tale
Jurnee Smollett, Lovecraft Country
Mj Rodriguez, Pose

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Regé-Jean Page, Bridgerton
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Billy Porter, Pose
Jonathan Majors, Lovecraft Country
Matthew Rhys, Perry Mason
WINNER: Josh O'Connor, The Crown

Outstanding Variety Special (Live)
Celebrating America – An Inauguration Night Special
The 63rd Annual Grammy Awards
The Oscars
The Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show Starring The Weeknd
WINNER: Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020: Democracy's Last Stand Building Back America Great Again Better 2020

Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded)
Bo Burnham: Inside 
David Byrne's American Utopia
8:46 - Dave Chappelle
Friends: The Reunion
WINNER: Hamilton 
A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote

Outstanding Comedy Series
Black-ish
Cobra Kai
Pen15
Emily in Paris
Hacks
WINNER: Ted Lasso
The Flight Attendant
The Kominsky Method

Outstanding Drama Series
The Boys
Bridgerton
WINNER: The Crown
The Mandalorian
Lovecraft Country
Pose
The Handmaid's Tale
This Is Us

Outstanding Limited Series
Mare of Easttown
I May Destroy You
WandaVision
WINNER: The Queen's Gambit
The Underground Railroad

​AND...the best movie I watched over the spring holiday break was...

ANOTHER ROUND
Release Date: 2020
Rating: M 
Running Time: 117 mins 
A Danish film originally entitled Druk or "binge drinking" that was directed by Thomas Vinterberg and premiered at the Toronto Film Festival.  Another Round went on to great acclaim; winning the Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards and then two BAFTA's in 2021. 
Another Round cleverly uses a mixture of dark humour and drama to address sensitive topics like alcoholism, mid-life crisis and pressure in the workplace to create a thought provoking and affecting dialogue.
Four teachers undertake an experiment to test the Finn Skårderud theory that human's are born with a blood alcohol content (BAC) that is 0.05 deficient. By imbibing just enough alcohol to maintain a 0.05 BAC reading, as long as they don't drink after 8pm and abstain altogether on the weekends, the four friends make a pact to see how this experiment will affect their lives. 
As you would imagine, getting partially drunk at work on the daily is challenging, especially when you are a teacher and the results are somewhat amusing but also quite disturbing.
Mads Mikkelsen delivers another solid performance in the lead role and he is very well supported by the Thomas Bo Larsen, Lars Ranthe and Magnus Millang as the drunken brotherhood. This film says a lot about our social attitudes towards drinking, our tolerance and acceptance of it as a readily available and social stimulant and just how easily excessive drinking can destroy lives and relationships. Another Round is truly food for thought and it really made me reassess the way that I approach alcohol in my everyday life. 
FINAL SAY: We're not alcoholics. We decide when we want to drink. An alcoholic can't help himself. 
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​

I'm not going to lie about it, 2019 was NOT my favourite year. It was a year when things that could go wrong did go wrong for me. It was year of loss, sorrow, illness, confusion and things just frickin breaking or catching on fire (seriously - catching on fire people - just nuts!), but you know what I have to say about that? I say, well yeah it was pretty shitty a lot of the time, but I survived it. And I am stronger and smarter and calmer and wiser because of it all, I have learnt more about myself and others this year than I ever thought that I could learn in one year and even though I am praying that 2020 is somewhat kinder and gentler to me, I am actually proud that I have managed myself as well as I did in the face of all that adversity. 
And it really wasn't all doom and gloom anyway, some really good stuff happened to me in 2019 as well, and I would really like to focus on those peaks and forget about the valleys right now. 

See, loads of good things happening all year long! If you just look hard enough at what you've been doing, you can always find the positives. And although this year has really tested my fortitude, it has also proven to me that I have some incredibly strong, kind and generous people in my life that have really supported me through the tough times, and that is better than so many others things and pretty much makes up for things catching on fire as well! 
So onward and upward I go, 2020 has arrived and along with it an opportunity to rise up, dust off and face the world again with a fresh perspective and some new found optimism. I feel that brighter days lie just ahead!

It is difficult to say whether or not the holiday that Craig and I had booked for our 25th wedding anniversary in Vanuatu had arrived at the most inopportune time ever or the most opportune time ever, but it did happen and we did get on a plane just days after my father's funeral and escape all of the worry and strife of the real world to go to one of the most pristine stretches of beach in the Eastern Pacific to sip cocktails and bask in the sun for five incredible days. 
This was our first trip to Vanuatu and the first time that Craig and I have booked a holiday that was just about the two of us in almost 12 years, so you could say that we were more than due to have some quality 'one on one' time. And perhaps it really was the best time to get away. I was still numb from all of my grief and in dire need of some TLC and headspace, and this holiday did feel genuinely like a complete exhale and a total spiritual reboot in so many ways. 
We stayed at the Eratap Beach Resort which is a boutique style, eco-friendly and completely authentic beach resort that is focused on low numbers, no children and complete five star beachside luxury. From the moment that we arrived and our accommodating host placed a cocktail into my hand as we entered I felt my shoulders drop and my stress begin to just melt away. We had just arrived in paradise, a real paradise with crystal clear waters, gentle ocean breezes and an award winning chef in the kitchen who provided us with nightly seafood feasts that were some of the best dishes that I have ever eaten in my life. 
The food? Completely gourmet and absolutely delicious. The drinks? Different cocktail specials every night and an extensive list that I indulged completely. The beach? White sands, azure and turquoise sparkling waters and the most incredible snorkeling you could ever imagine with clown fish, angel fish and even a giant red octopus; it was so damn good that I couldn't believe it was actually real. The resort? Pristine, perfect and completely seducing with it's swaying palms, tropical grounds and uber friendly staff. We felt like kings from the moment that we arrived and were treated like superstars for the duration. 
We kayaked, snorkelled, swam, hiked, ate, drank and lounged about for five days. We took two journeys outside of the resort which were both provided free of charge by the resort, one to visit the local village of Eratap to see their homes, school and church, and one into Port Vila for a spot of souvenir shopping. The rest of the time we did our own thing, ate whenever we wanted to because the restaurant was open until 11pm every day, and pretty much felt like we were there on our own because there are only 12 villas on the premises, so their were really only around 20 guests on the grounds at any given time. Heaven, totally and utterly divine in every way, we loved it and we were so sad to leave when our stay finally came to it's inevitable conclusion. 
Anyway...one quick 4.5 hour flight back to Melbourne from Port Vila and a fairly short drive from Tullamarine and we were back in Enfield. Unfortunately, it was not the happy return that we had been expecting and we were quickly slammed back into reality when we realised that both of the kids weren't well. Zoe could barely speak and was sporting a raging head cold and a very sore throat, and Seth who seemed okay on Friday night when we got home very late, arose on Saturday morning saying that he felt unwell and by 7pm on Saturday night we had him at the hospital Emergency Room after he had a febrile seizure and passed out in our lounge room. 
He had been vomiting on Saturday and his temperature had gotten dangerously high, then his blood pressure plummeted and teamed with his dehydration from vomiting, he went down for the count (thank God Craig caught him) and they had to put him on drip at the hospital, administer anti-nausea tablets and run some blood tests just to make sure that he didn't have anything more sinister going on. It was pretty stressful, and it was really not good to be back in the emergency ward of a hospital again so soon. However, all is well and Seth was released from hospital at 11pm on Saturday night with the all clear and slept like a baby at home until 9.30am this morning. 
Today I have been able to play nursemaid to both of the kids, and although I wish that we had returned home to happier circumstances, I am also tremendously relieved that we were home to take care of them and the entire situation ourselves. It is wonderful to get away and I am glad that Craig and I got to share such a wonderful experience of complete tranquility in Vanuatu; but for now.... it's back to reality and back to work tomorrow, because nothing - not even paradise - can last forever. 

The winter holidays kicked off in style, as they always do at the commencement of the June/ July break because Zoe's birthday always occurs right at the beginning of this break every year. Today we celebrated her special day with a leisurely and much needed break together at Peppers Mineral Spa in Hepburn Springs. A full day of mineral spas, detoxing saunas,  a relaxation massage and a two course lunch injected just the right amount of respite and recuperation into all of weary and exhausted our lives, leaving us feeling fresh and pampered in every way. 
Seth spent a day at Ballarat's Winterfest as a volunteer for the Winteractive Arcade at The Mining Exchange where he worked the interactive tattoo booth and taught newbs how to use virtual reality, which he loved doing. So the winter break has really kicked off well for us, and the next few days will be for catching up on some rest, spending some time with my parents and getting together with a few friends. 
​As much I would love for this entire break to be all couch bashing and movie binging, unfortunately it just can't be because I really do need to get some jobs done around here, especially in the garden which is starting to look like the set of The Jungle Book. And this is the biggest dilemma that I face every holiday period, finding that perfect balance between self time, job time and time that I give to others.
In the past I would've had my entire two week hiatus booked out well in advance, but I try not to torture myself like that anymore. Then I went through a faze where I would just hide from everyone and not even return text messages so that I could slip unencumbered onto the couch everyday to binge watch entire seasons of TV, but I just ended up feeling like a big lazy lump at the end of the two weeks because I hadn't got anything important done.
These days I like to find a healthy and also not completely unproductive medium where I catch up with people that I  want to see (not people that I feel obligated to see), get a few things ticked off the household 'to do' list and also settle back onto the couch to binge watch TV and movies for a couple of uninterrupted hours a day. 
There is absolutely nothing selfish about making sure that you actually get some needed rest during your holidays, and sometimes that means that you have to politely say no to requests or put a 'to do' list job on the 'do later' list.
Besides I can admit that I practically limped over the finish line last week. I was exhausted, tired and still not 100% well after the dreaded lurgy smashed me apart two weeks ago. Choosing to take some time to completely repair seems like a necessity to me at this point and I really don't think that I have the energy to soldier on much more anyway if I am really being honest.  The time to go outlaw and reclaim some self time has truly arrived, and I am claiming my self time for myself...y'all hear me? I am claiming it! So step back and give me some room to reclaim my me time! Phewww... really got lost in the moment and went all Outlaw Josey Wales for a minute there didn't I? And that's how I know for sure that I need to claim back some me time and get some rest, I am literally going crazy! 

It is during times of struggle and difficulty that we absolutely must endeavour to tighten our commitment to ourselves and bring more attention to our need for self care. The urge to soldier on in the face of adversity or crisis is generally so strong that we will happily place our needs on the back burner and forge forward, often at the peril of our own wellness and sanity. It is a weakness that I too am guilty of, but when push comes to shove, we really aren't doing ourselves or anyone else any favours when we ignore the signals that our bodies are sending us for better self care by continually placing ourselves last. 
By learning about the different forms of self care, we can better arm ourselves with an ability to recognise when we are moving into personal crisis or neglect, and how to fill the voids in our self care routines when they do occur. 
A terrific article from tulipandsage.com categorizes self care into six main types: 
1. Physical Self Care
This is an awareness of your physical body and what it needs to thrive. Exercise, rest and clean food. It does not need to be vigorous or intense to be effective, aim for consistent and enjoyable long term activities, healthy diet choices and adequate sleep to improve your physical self care.
2. Emotional Self Care
Become mindful of your emotions, listen to your feelings and recognizing patterns, triggers or obstacles to your ability to remain calm, focused and happy. Writing in a journal, being artistic, dancing or being creative are just some ways that you can express and develop your emotional awareness and self care. 
3. Spiritual Self Care
This doesn't need to be religious or rigid to be meaningful. Anything that brings you closer to the essence of yourself is nourishing your spiritual self care. It could be doing charity work, being more mindful, taking up meditation, walking in nature; there are lots of ways to strive for more inner awareness. 
4. Intellectual Self Care
We all need new challenges to invigorate and nourish us mentally. Anything that will expand your knowledge and awareness falls into this category, from reading a book or watching a documentary to taking up a class or learning a new language, you'll be expanding yourself and meeting your intellectual needs. 
5. Social Self Care
Whether you're an introvert or an extrovert, people need people. You do need to spend time with other people and have meaningful connections with loved ones, so make plans to get together with people that you enjoy spending time with. Catching up, going out for dinner, meeting for coffee or going to the movies is not only an escape from the norm, it's social self care and it's important to your wellbeing. 
6. Sensory Self Care
Nourish your senses and send healing stimuli to your brain, sensory care is so deeply fulfilling. Through sight, smell, touch, sound and taste you can reinvigorate yourself. Listen to some soothing music, light a scented candle, eat a delicious meal, get a massage, go for a barefoot walk in the park and please don't forget to always stop and smell the roses!

All forms of self care are equally as important as each other and you should endeavour to not neglect your needs in any area. Listen to your body, listen to your soul, listen to your heart...it may sound corny but you are actually sending yourself small but not insignificant messages about your needs all of the time and you just need to be quiet enough to hear them. Self care matters because you matter, and it is neither selfish nor self indulgent to take care of yourself, so listen carefully to your self care needs and learn how to be kinder to yourself. 

This week I was fortunate enough to go to Underbar restaurant in Ballarat for dinner. For those of you that haven't heard of Underbar yet, please allow me to explain it to you. According to their website, Underbar (pronounced oon-de-bar) is a Swedish adjective that means delectable, divine, gorgeous, lovely, marvelous and wonderful; which is a pretty good description of how amazing this place actually is. With only 12 seats in the restaurant and only one Friday or Saturday evening dining opportunity, this place is not easy to get a table at, but the wait to get one is totally worth it. 
Zoe and I, with the help of two of my dearest friends, indulged in the inspired chef's seasonal tasting menu with accompanying wines on Friday night; which allowed us to share in four hours of delicious eating, indulgent drinking and cosy conversation to kick off our weekend and celebrate Zoe's upcoming graduation on Thursday next week. 
It's pretty hard to describe the food that you eat at Underbar, and you could never really say that going to Underbar is 'going out for dinner' because it is really more of a culinary experience than a dinner. In saying that however, don't think that you are not going to be fed enough at because nothing could be further from the truth. You are doing nothing but eating and drinking on and off for the duration and by the end of the evening you are bursting at the seams and completely satisfied and content. Let's just say that you need to be in it for the food to go to Underbar. I slept like a baby after we got home, and slept in for the first time in an age on Saturday morning as well. Talk about ultimate contentment! 
10 courses of deliciousness were enjoyed in total. Beginning with nibbles, we then headed into appetisers, meandered through two entrees, delighted in three mains and then rounded it all out with two desserts and finished with delicate liquored jelly sweets; the courses just kept coming and coming and nothing disappointed. Chef Derek Boath clearly has a passion for good food and local produce and it is such a rare privilege to be able to observe a dedicated chef busily at work in the kitchen, giving your dishes his personal and intense attention to detail with lavish flourishes and impressive creativity. 
I tried new foods, I 'oohed and ahhed' at the incredible presentation of the dishes and I ate like a queen for a day. I cannot recommend the entire experience enough. If you haven't looked into a seat at Underbar yet, you really should. This restaurant is a bucket list experience that everyone should do at least once in their lifetime. Yes, it is pricey, but it is also worth it and I think that it was excellent value for money, Underbar is definitely a dining experience that you will never forget. 

Freshly back in Australia from our adventures in New Zealand, and what adventures we all had! I can honestly say that our family trip to New Zealand was one of the best trips that I have ever had overseas and now I am already keen to return and check out the New Zealand South Island as well.
The Gods truly blessed our trip and we had terrific and mostly mild weather for the entire duration, all of our Airbnb accommodations were even better than we had anticipated them to be and we managed to fit in everything that we had planned to do (and then some) without a hitch or a glitch along the way. And trust me when I say that we did plenty whilst we were there.
We only spent one night in Auckland before hitting the road for the Waitomo Caves to do the 'Black Labyrinth' glow-worm cave tour. This tour required us to don a wetsuit and caving gear, carry a flotation tube into the depths of the earth and then navigate ourselves through the uneven and dark terrain to see the glow worms that line the roof and walls of the caves. No-one told me that this tour would require me to leap backwards off waterfalls into water of an unknown depth in the dark whilst we were in the caves, if they had've I probably would've chickened out and then missed out on what turned out to be three of the funnest and most exhilarating hours of our entire trip.
For all of the initial fear, there was a tonne of fun to be had in those caves, and our guides were really helpful and knowledgeable and certainly  alleviated all of our concerns very quickly. The glow-worms are really dazzling and floating about in the dark water surrounded by their intense blue light is a pretty magical  and once in a lifetime experience.
We spent the next few days indulging in all of the exciting opportunities that Rotorua and the surrounding areas had to offer us. Which included a tour of Hobbiton (which made us all gung-ho to re-watch the trilogy again), a ride on a skyline gondola, some downhill luging, ziplining through the forests, kayaking on Lake Rotorua, zorbing (not for me thanks!), a Maori interactive experience and hangi (cooked in coals under the earth) dinner, a trip to see the thermal geysers and hot pools, a visit to a wildlife park to see a kiwi up close and personal (turns out that they are nocturnal birds, which I did not realise until I went to see one) and we also celebrated Seth's 14th birthday as well!
For the five days that we spent in Rotorua we stayed on the lake in a home owned by a movie lover like myself, which meant unlimited access to thousands of DVD's and also included a hot-tub, a daily visit from the resident swans and around an acre of immaculately landscaped gardens to explore, tough going I know, but someone had to do it!
From Rotorua we headed to the largest lake in New Zealand, Lake Taupo. Lake Taupo is large enough to fit Singapore inside of it! No shit, it's really that big! We went out on a yacht to take a look because there are some incredible Maori carvings out there that can only be reached by boat, and even though we sailed on the lake for the entire morning, we only saw around 6% of it. It has it's own horizon for goodness sake, it is absolutely massive! We had a lovely couple of days chilling out and enjoying our final days of lake life at Taupo. 
From there we headed down to our final destination of the trip, Wellington. The home of the vampires from What We Do in the Shadows and the city that Wellington Paranormal (one of my personally favourite TV shows) is based on. We stayed on the edge of the North Island in a flashy modern beach house that shares its neighbourhood with Peter Jackson. We kept our eyes open for any sign of him, but sadly he wasn't anywhere to be seen.
However, we did get to see a seal which was lazily sunning itself and hopping into the sea for a cool down swim off the rocks just across the road from our accommodation, which absolutely chuffed me! I haven't observed a large wild animal (without a handler) doing whatever it likes that close up before, usually you have to pay for those kinds of experiences, it was a real treat. There were also penguin nesting boxes there as well, but I think that the seal may have scared them away, so we didn't get to see them in action, but apparently they do cross the road regularly in that area because our Airbnb host told us to watch out for them. 
The coastline provided us with plenty of opportunities to collect abalone shells (paua shells), observe starfish and native sea life in the rock pools and also swim and snorkel. Our (I say our, but really it was mine) main priority whilst we were in Wellington was to visit the Weta Caves, which is a treasure trove of movie memorabilia and special effects information for movie geeks like me. I got a some great shots with the cave trolls from The Hobbit whilst I was there. And then in Wellington central we rode the city Cable Car to the peak of the city and strolled the botanical gardens taking in the incredible views and local flora. 
Fair to say that we were kept pretty busy, but it was a joyful level of busy. There was still ample time for sleeping in, eating out, shopping, meandering, meditating, late night movies and generally lollygagging in an awe-struck fashion at the incredible mountainous and green landscapes that we constantly engaged as we traversed the island. I have some incredible photographs of the amazing and altering terrain, it was so lush and made Australia look even more flat, arid and dry than I remembered it being when we left ten days ago, but I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't glad to be home again, because we all know that there is no place like home. 
Would I recommend a trip to the New Zealand North Island? Hell yes I would! Our family trip was worth every cent that we spent on it, we all had the best time in New Zealand and now we have a lifetime of memories of our time together to enjoy forever. It has been an unforgettable summer vacation  for us all.

Another year is drawing to a close and what a wonderful year it has been for me. There have been so many highlights and so many special events, holidays and celebrations that I have been able to share with my family, my friends and my work colleagues this year that it is hard to know where to start. 2018 has truly been a year filled with great blessings, personal growth and many, many smiles.
I really like to make a list of the highlights of a year as it draws to close because it is so easy to forget just how many joyful things you do and get to be apart of; and how much you have achieved if you don't take stock on some level.  I always feel so deeply overwhelmed whenever I look back at everything that I have achieved and shared throughout the year and reflecting on a year is a really lovely thing to do that really helps you to count your blessings and focus on the abundance in your life. 
Here are my favourite highlights from 2018, all of which have brought me a great deal of joy, a sense of belonging, a feeling of enrichment and have provided me with many memories to reflect upon during the quieter and more contemplative times of the year. 

JANUARY:  Zoe and Lachlainn's engagement, Seth's 13th birthday, Jubilee Lake Picnic in Daylesford, Australia Day Fireworks, BBQ's and Drinks on the Enfield deck, TRUE - 30 days of Yoga program, Started my new job adventures. 
FEBRUARY: Chinese New Year- the Year of the Dog,  Rockabilly Festival, dinner and coffee dates with friends, Curry/movie night get togethers kicked off. 
MARCH: White Night Festival, International Women's Day, Cooking Day at Enfield  with friends, My Birthday, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Begonia Festival, The Arts Trail, the Egg Painting session at Enfield on Easter Saturday.
APRIL: Craig's Birthday, Eating Hot Cross Buns and good quality Chocolate on Easter Sunday, Dinner Parties, the Autumn School Holiday Break, Movie Nights at Enfield with mates, Apple and Quince harvesting. 
MAY: Mother's Day, The Festival of Light at the Great Stupa in Bendigo, a Daylesford Chocolate Mill visit, meeting Daniel Kish (aka. The Batman- echolocation expert), Spicywatch's 4th Birthday.
JUNE: Zoe's 21st Birthday, Winter Solstice Celebrations, Mushrooming, Completing my Level One Braille Qualification, Weekend Breakfast Dates with friends, the Winter School Holidays.
JULY: Alice in Wonderland at ACMI, Winter Movie Marathon nights, Flashy Cocktails and Long Lunches with my friends, When I Grow Up Art Exhibition, All day Baking and Soup making Sessions, Prospects dinners, eating Homemade Apple Pie with my Family. 
AUGUST:  Dinner parties, Dress-up Events at School (Book Week, 100 days of School, PJ day), committing to 30 days of 30 minutes of extra exercise (which I have continued with ever since).
SEPTEMBER: Father's Day, Seeing the Showcase Performance at school, Commencing 20 minutes of daily Transcendental Meditation (have also continued with this all year), the Spring School Holiday Break.
OCTOBER: Halloween horror movie/ dinner night, Rediscovered the joy of the local Botanical Gardens, School trip to Melbourne Zoo, Landcare Open Day, Cocktail and Perfume Night at The Lost Ones.
NOVEMBER: Bonfire Night, Anniversary weekend at Skenes Creek, Dinner Dates and Movie Nights, Sunday afternoon Live Music at Smythesdale Pub. 
DECEMBER: Dinner Party with friends, Having a KK to spoil and one that spoilt me as well, Staff Christmas function, Student Graduation, the Foundation Team Dinner, Summer Holidays kicking off, Christmas Day, Champagne Breakfasts, Reuniting with my nephew. 

Seriously, it has been the best year, I have so many things to be grateful for and so many reasons to celebrate what a wonderful life I have. On top of all of that, Spicywatch hit 11,000 return readers this month and I cannot tell you how wonderful it is to think that people are not only reading my blog and reviews, but are returning for more, it is just incredible to me. I am truly thankful to each and every Spicywatch reader for their continual check ins to my website, for their beautiful comments and their amazing support throughout the year. 
May 2019 bring you all much peace, much happiness and an abundance of all of the best things in life. I look forward to delivering more reviews and movie information to you all in 2019 and sharing my personal life experiences with you along the way as well.
Happiest of New Year's wishes to you all, may your resolutions be fulfilled, your hearts be full and your hangovers minimal; may you discover many new, enjoyable challenges and rewards in the new year and I hope that 2019 allows you to find your groove in all things,
Sending all of my love to you,
Happy New Year,
From Spicywatch xx

I cannot deny that the fatigue of a rather long term has begun to set in over the last week. Since the beginning of December I have attended seven dinner events, two graduations, five after hours appointments, two breakfast dates, squeezed in a trip to the movies and not missed a day of work in the process. I have also finished my Christmas shopping, wrapped all of my presents, sent off my Christmas cards, put up the tree and decorations, planned my Christmas menu and volunteered to work for the Salvos and wrap presents on the Sunday before Christmas. I don't want to brag, but I am bloody well going to because I am slamming this Christmas so hard!
With only two days of work left, I am starting to feel the drag of this busy time of the year weighing down on me, which means that I need to shift my focus back to the positive things that have lead to me to this point in the year. I admit that I am ready to unwind a little, and I probably deserve to because I have been going at it like the clappers, and even though work will fall into blissful respite for a while, I still have quite a lot to do between now and the new year, which at this stage looks like a sweet lull from the busyness for me. However, no matter how you look at it, it is always easier to get  more done when you are on holidays and things don't ever feel like a chore when you are marching to the sound of your own drum and don't feel compelled to adhere the time constraints of paid employment. 
Overall, 2018 has been an absolutely massive year for me in every way, absolutely positive that is. I have incorporated so much new learning and self discovery time into my life this year, and for that reason I have a much fuller and richer life than I have ever had before. I have worked really hard to develop routines that have offered me a healthier lifestyle overall; one that embraces me in mind, body and spirit, and I have reaped a  lot of rewards for those efforts. I have also worked harder at my employment, taking on new skill sets and trying out new experiences on a level that I would never have had the confidence to do before, which has pushed me out of my comfort zone but made me grow as a person. And I also believe that I have worked really hard to cultivate meaningful relationships in my life this year by nurturing the positive and uplifting relationships that I am lucky enough to have by spending more time with people who stimulate, entertain, enchant, respect and interest me, which has made my family and social life incredibly enriching and deeply satisfying. 
On all fronts, I feel blessed. Blessed to have had the year that I have had, blessed to be able to spend Christmas time with my family and friends and blessed to have grown as much as I have this year. And even though I have no idea what kind of fuel is carrying me across the finish line of Term Four this year, I am deeply thankful for it and cannot wait to see what lies ahead for the rest of this wonderful season of celebration. 

In life we are presented with a never ending stream of opportunities. Opportunities to meet new people and experience new things, opportunities to evolve and unfold as a person and opportunities to change your way of life or your way of thinking. These opportunities come to us every single day, and sometimes we don't even recognise them for what they are because we are too busy or distracted to see what we are being presented with. 
This time of the year in particular is so consuming; consuming of our time, our money and often our patience as well as we scramble toward Christmas, hanging all of our hopes on the day that our holidays begin or that special day when we get to celebrate with our family and friends. We become so fixated on arriving at our destination (which isn't happening for another month yet mind you) that we completely forget to look around and embrace any new opportunities that may be arriving, and we certainly don't make the most out of everyday of the festive season along the way. This happens every year, and I write about it every year because I see it happening to people all around me every year. For some reason we just don't allow ourselves to enjoy things completely in the lead up to Christmas and I am beginning to think that we have all been programmed to do this, and it really has to stop. 
Now don't get me wrong, I do really enjoy Christmas, I am not Scrooge for goodness sake! However, I do feel like people lose focus of what is important at this time of the year and hold themselves to ransom, often sacrificing huge amounts of money, time and energy which they invest into just one day of the year. A day that comes and goes without nearly as much fuss required as we feel compelled to throw at it in my opinion. What about the next 30 days leading up to Christmas? Don't we deserve to enjoy the ride, the countdown and the anticipation with a bit of joy as well? Damn straight we do! We totally need to stop and smell the flowers along the way, indulge in the lead up to the day and seize any new opportunities along the way to Christmas day, but often we just don't. 
The pressure to deliver a so called 'perfect' Christmas quite frankly has balls on it! The best Christmas's that I have ever had were really quiet events spent with my nearest and dearest in total relaxation. I cannot tell you how much stress I have put myself under for Christmas events in the past, and for what? I've spent hours stressing about whether people would be happy with their gifts or not and then barely received a thank you when the gifts were actually opened. I have spent hours slaving away in the kitchen trying to cook for a tribe of people and then had people only point out what they didn't like about the meal when it was over. I can even recall Christmas' where my own family have made me feel completely unwelcomed at Christmas events, and it honestly made me realise that none of it is worth it. 
The build up, the expectation to deliver, the need to perform, blah! Who needs all that? That is the complete opposite of what Christmas is about in my mind, and I think that so many people are getting it all wrong. Why not take some pressure off yourself this year and seize an opportunity to look around at what is really going on. Be honest with yourself, are you really embodying the Christmas spirit or are you just ticking off some stupid 'to do' list that you feel compelled to complete that has nothing to do with love or generosity or kindness, or bloody Christmas spirit for that matter!
Let's get this into perspective. In a nutshell, gifts at Christmas are a bonus, and should never be an expectation unless you are under 10. Kids get to expect Christmas gifts, adults need to be happy with whatever they bloody well get and should not sook or bitch about it because  it's petty and it's mean to look any gift horse in the mouth, especially if you have enough money to buy yourself whatever you want anyway, which is often the case with the biggest whiners. Keep gifts small and thoughtful and never let yourself get frazzled when selecting gifts for people, remember that it is the thought that counts and anyone that thinks otherwise is an asshole! 
The Christmas food on the day should be special but also simple and it should never be too labour intensive because no-one wants to be chained to the kitchen on Christmas day, it's cruel. And people please, think about your food quantities and don't over do it. Creating days of leftovers is hardly 'good will' toward the planet, it is Christmas dinner, not a 'feed the world' campaign and therefore the amount of food doesn't need to increase. Remember that sometimes less is more, and a delicious simple meal with a couple of special additions always works best in my opinion, so don't freak yourself trying to make a 10 course extravaganza, it's not worth the hassell. 
Decorating before Christmas should be a joyous thing to indulge in, something that the whole family can do together which will also take the pressure off one person being responsible for 'doing' the tree and making things festive. Small accents are enough, you don't need to go all 'flashing lights on the house' crazy to feel like you're bringing the Christmas spirit into your home. Effective natural decorations and Christmas accents can be as basic as a few sprigs of evergreen and a couple of pinecones from outside; so damn simple and also free!
So, how are you going to spend your time in the lead up to Christmas this year? Freaking out or chilling out? Seizing and embracing new opportunities or completely oblivious to anything else because you've got your Christmas 'to do' list to perform and come hell or high water you're gonna get it done? Well, essentially the choice is your own, but I know that I'm not gonna sweating the small stuff this year, that's for sure. I'm on the lookout for fun, frivolity and opportunities to enjoy every day leading up Christmas day and every day after that as well!

Craig and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary this weekend by getting away on our own. We headed out to a quaint and quiet Bed and Breakfast in Skenes Creek; if you don't know where that is, it's an extremely picturesque location just a few kilometres away from Apollo Bay and a stone throw away from The Great Ocean Road. The excellent location meant that we were able to enjoy the Otway Ranges on our drive there and the amazing coastal drive on the way home, giving ourselves the best of both worlds when it comes to road tripping. 
Craig and I haven't been away by ourselves for a while now, and I think that as the years tick over and things get a little rusty it is really important to escape the daily routine and getaway together at least once in a while, even if it is only for a short time. And I must say that a couple of days of salty air, sandy feet and hand held strolls did not do us any harm whatsoever. In fact, it probably did us the world of good, because we had been a bit niggly with each other in the weeks leading up to our departure; which is kind of par for the course in long term relationships. Sometimes when you've been married a long time, you can just annoy the shit out of each other and you need to find more creative ways to break that cycle of annoyance and remind yourself of why you love this person so much. 
Over my 24 years of marriage, I have found that a few days alone together can be very rejuvenating for a tiring relationship and I always make sure that wherever I stay when I get away with Craig has as little distraction from each other as possible. Farming your kids out with good intentions of spending some quality time alone at home never ever works. Regardless of how amazing your home may be, being at home alone for a romantic weekend is never as good as getting away together.
When you're at home, you really don't have your full focus on each other for very long, it is way too easy to get swept away or distracted by chores that you feel compelled to complete, unfinished jobs or projects, or other mundane things that may be going on around the house. You may have the most terrific intentions of spending quality time together, but from my experience, you'll soon be spending time doing loads of other things and not actually doing anything special together at all. I've done that so many times that it's just not funny, and it's most definitely not the best way to rekindle a little magic into a relationship.
However, when you're in a completely new place that has no WiFi connection, an alluring natural setting and heaps of tasty restaurants nearby for dinner, well that's what I call a recipe for success, and a success it was. The Airbnb that we booked was even better than we had hoped that it would be and boasted a huge outdoor soaker tub, generous self serve breakfast and a late check out. It would've been completely perfect if poor Craig hadn't found the bed a bit uncomfortable for sleeping on...ahh, the trials of being a 6'3" man, you just have to have a huge bed to accommodate that much leg! However, apart from that hiccup, it was a great little escape and a terrific opportunity for us to rekindle the spark and recharge the batteries before the madness of the silly season dominates all of our free thinking and spare time over the coming weeks.