19th Jun 2012 - 28th Jun 2012 - Australia for the Birthdays...
Checking In from Sydney
Not all that much to report I don't think - though when I start to think about it, I discover that I am probably very busy in actual fact......I am still in Sydney and the rain is settling somewhat - the days are freezing cold or so it seems to me. The sun comes out but it is too cold outside to find a little space to take it all in. Am doing a lot of different things all at once and enjoying them immensely. The biggest thing is that I have started seeing patients with the North Shore oncologists at French's Forest in earnest - Monday is my day - and I am having an absolute ball. I did not realise how much I loved seeing individual patients and I am having a dream run, or so it seems, as they are such lovely people and so very grateful and responsive. Maybe I have spent too much time in the Corporate Barracuda Bowl - it is so wonderful to now be dealing with people who are actually nice to you! One patient even came to her second appointment last week with a beautiful bottle of Moet, just to say thank you for seeing her..... I have been coming away from my clinic days feeling really lighter and happy, first time in a long time it has felt so good. As well as that, I have been asked to join a new Board Committee of the Australian Cancer Council - the Innovations Committee - which will be fun with some really interesting other members to be working with. Have been meeting with various people around clinical trial research networks as well, and in between times, able to spend some time with Roslyn, who is doing really well on her new chemo. And then trying to make a home for everyone to come to at the end of the day, complete with my lovely open fire and I am really enjoying experimenting with new foods. In between, am attending quite a few medical appointments of my own as I am catching up on some health issues, and my US consultancy work continues, though in the wee small hours! Still pretty manageable to be working virtually like this, with the occasional day where I am a bit shattered from night-time teleconferences. I had a wonderful Friday night dinner last week with Dave and Adrienne Kitching catching up on old times. Now that I am home I am also back in to the ancestry.com explorations (in a small way this time as I am so busy) but planning a trip to Bulahdelah where my father's relatives all started in Australia - I have found that my father's relatives came from Ireland (!not Scotland!) in the very early 1800's as 'Bounty Settlers' (they were paid an amount of 19 pounds to come and settle and make their new lives) which means that they would have been some of the very earliest pioneers in the area and in actual fact, in Australia itself!! I want to go and see where they settled and also explore some of the cemeteries and Church records to be had. We have found that my gX4 grandfather was set upon and murdered in the area as he came home from the bank with 11 pounds, and the man who did it was actually hanged for the crime(!) so there is much more to find out, I am sure. Chris and Jen are well, though busy and stressed at work. The cat is an ever-present force to be reckoned with and Chris is actually looking in to getting him a companion cat.....Jen is horrified!!
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| 21st Jun 2012 Koala Bear in Australia |
