And Another One Bites the Dust

What a great start to my 47th year! It didn’t matter that I had to work; there were so many rewarding moments:

1. The Cricket

Australia demolished New Zealand in the second and final test match. It was good to see Brett Lee back in some form. He was fast, accurate and a joy to watch. Even better was Ricky Ponting’s one handed, diving catch which ranks as the best I have ever seen. Even better than Derek Randall’s screamer a couple of decades ago.

So it’s a 2-0 whitewash and we look a little better than we did a the start of the season. With a little luck and a lot of guts we may beat South Africa and retain our number one ranking.

2. Presents Delayed, Advent Calendars Opened Instead

The Librarian told me that Mum and Dad had contributed to my birthday present so I decided to open all my presents when they arrived in the evening. This was disappointing to the Master Builder but he was mollified by the fact that he could open the first window on his Lego Advent Calendar. That was a real treat for him. Each window contains a lego piece which is much better than the bargain basement calendars we usually get.

Master Builder also wanted a different edible treat each day (inserted into the now empty window). He said that he was disappointed that last year’s effort saw practically the same thing every day. The Librarian has endeavoured to meet the request for a different daily treat, Master Builder in his Lego Calendar and Game Guru in the calendar we purchased last year.

3. Sri Lankan Food

We were invited to Uncle E__’s for a birthday celebration; we share the same birthday. There were sandwiches, cutlets, pancake rolls, lavaria and love cake. I haven’t had lavaria in a long time so this was pretty special. I even managed to get the Master Builder to come into the party room although he didn’t eat anything.

Master Builder did have a moment, apparently. I was helping G__ with Wii Music when Uncle E__ came into the room and announced that he had received a stern drubbing from Aunty C__. He had tried to engage Master Builder in conversation which didn’t go down too well. In the end Uncle E__ and I had a good conversation about the hills and valleys in life.

4. A Gathering at Home

We went home in the evening and Mum joined us a little later. Dad was arriving by bus so I decided to wait a little longer before opening my presents. W arrived before Dad did and, eventually, we decided that I should go ahead and open everything. So that’s what I did.

Youngest Bro provided me with the means to purchase my own present and I will do that in the near future. Game Guru gave me an Iron Man Blu-Ray disk which is something I really wanted. I was really pleased, especially since he used his own money. Librarian, Master Builder, Mum and Dad gave me the biggest surprise of all – Lego Mindstorms. I was a very happy forty-six year old fart. The Lego will have to wait for batteries but that’s just something to look forward to.

The day almost ended on a sour note because Dad took his time getting to our place which infuriated Mum. There were daggers stared and harsh words spoken. Dad was also in a selfish mood, wanting Youngest Bro to copy disks from work before he left. I told Dad that it wasn’t fair on Youngest Bro or the owner of the software but he kept interrupting to say he’s done it for years. In the end I found an old copy of Microsoft Office which we don’t need anymore and that appeased Dad. In the end it all turned out fine and Youngest Bro can go to Mauritius on Wednesday with a clear conscience.

A big highlight of the evening was the cake made by my beautiful wife. The Librarian concocted the best ginger cake I have ever tasted. It went down a treat with everyone. Even Master Builder liked it. I’m looking forward to many more of this delicious treat.