The Pool is Cool

I completely have a new found respect for the town pool. I used to practically live there when I was young, and now, it's toats bangin' again, y'all....(is that hip talk?)

When I was in Primary School my boyfriend (we were year 7 lovers - which was strictly forced hand holding at lunch, and he would ride his scooter beside me as we walked home) and I used to go to the pool every afternoon, it was the thing to do.  We'd lay on the hill, eat Big Boss sticks and get an ice-cream on the way home. 

When I was in high school, my friends and I would hang there every weekend.  Bird and I were seasonal swimmers, which meant we would go there every weekend (even thought she had a huge pool in her very own backyard), get chips from The Sail Inn and eat Frosty Fruits while we read the new Cosmo.  A mat was $2 to hire out, the music was loud and totally from the new So Fresh cd, and we thought we were all that, and a bag of hot chips with chicken salt and tomato sauce. 

It was cool, and the Town Pool was definitely a big part of my growing up.  I moved away, didn't want to wear a bikini in public and never saw that bad boy again...until, I came home for the holidays this year and have been hangin' back at the ol' pool every afternoon with my sister and her kiddles.

I must say, the pool has been revamped with new paint, new buildings and a new cafe that serves wonderful coffee, cinnamon donuts and curly fries with a side of aioli - very hip. 

We've been relaxing  at the pool a lot,  my sister makes cookies, we take our colourful towels, and we have a swim, a relax and then enjoy a cup of jo with a cookie in tow. The kids enjoy splashing around, chillin' in the baby pool and getting a bag of lollies, just like we did when we were young nippers, hangin' at the pool with our friends.

The town pool you ask? totally cool again. Run! Don't walk there, on the weekends.

A Cup of Jo, please

A few weeks ago, while mum and I were doing some Christmas shopping out of town, we stopped in for a Cup of Jo. I ordered a mocha and mum ordered a cappuccino. We were so pleased when they arrived at our table, and they were decorated in such a lovely fashion – so creative, and they made the coffee taste better, I kid you not. The chocolate syrup draped across the foam spelling out, “mocha”, made me take a moment to marvel at the creativeness of a kitschy little worker who mastered the best mocha I’ve ever had.

I have come to a conclusion about coffee and tea – there are better ways to enjoy a good cup of cof, and they all begin with the mug. Call me high maintenance, but, I cannot drink coffee or tea out of an ugly mug. Yep, it’s all fine china, Starbucks mugs and expensive handmade porcelain for me. I’m sorry but it’s just not the same. If you’re relaxing with a lovely tea cup and saucer, that makes you smile everytime you take a sip, you’ll enjoy that bad boy a whole lot more than if you were drinking it out of a standard white mug, ugggh.

The art of coffee drinking, and tea too also comes down to who makes it. Have you ever heard someone say to you, “it always taste’s better when someone else makes you a cup of coffee or tea?” – well I say this quite a lot, and it’s true. When my mum makes a cup of tea, it’s so much better than when I do. It’s smoother, sweeter and just strong enough. Even if someone else stirs in the instant coffee, it tastes better.

Another fact – Coffee and tea taste better when the weather outside is cold – when it’s raining, snowing, the air cons on, someone is pointing a fan at you or even a fake snow machine – it’s all the same. You’re not sweating, the hot mug (only nice mugs, thank you very much) warms you up, and it’s just common knowledge that you enjoy a hot cuppa when you need a good warmin’ up.

Another fact – takeaway cups. Coffee on the go taste’s so much delish when you take the lid off the paper cup. Try it. Next time you’re at Gloria Jeans, sit down with your best friend Jo and pop the lid. Eat your froth in peace, and think about how much better it is to drink your cof without the lid on, so it’s not sealing in that smell of those roasted, bad boy beans. I’ll take my Cup of Jo to go, thanks

Merry Christmas, Kooks

The Silly Season has come and gone again, and as most of you are aware – we are currently flooded in, in Central Queensland.

But gloom aside, Christmas day was just lovely, and the pouring rain didn’t stop Oskar, Archie and Henry from running amuck, as they always do.

We unwrapped gifts early in the morning with high spirits, and enjoyed coffee, croissants and the usual festivities of the Big Christmas Breakfast. The kids ran around with their gifts, and were more hyped up than a cordial junkie, as they built train sets, played with Harry Potter wands and ate so much chocolate that we got chocolate kisses all morning.

After a lovely day of relaxing in the cool air and spending time with the fam, my mum, sister and I headed downstairs to sit with the kids and drink some Earl Grey, as they sloshed their Tonka’s through the puddles and stripped off their clothes to play in the rain. It was a less traditional Christmas day than usual and we were missing our other sister who was spending the festive day with her husband’s family, but still, the day was full of oodles of presents, bon-bons, ham, chocolates, fruit cake and all that Christmas cheer, that we’ll no doubt bring in the silly season again with next year.