Coffee Catch-Up #52

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If we were having coffee I would tell you today is my 64th birthday. And yes my husband has already sung to me with the help of the Beatles When I’m Sixty Four. I remember when I was young this seemed so old, but now I am here I feel like a baby in the next few decades of my life. In Australia today is also National Rum Day which is fitting as it is one of my favorite drinks. To celebrate hubby has also made me his specialty, Ginger Chocolate Rum Cakes. It is yummy so I can’t wait for this years version. To celebrate my birthday today Mickey Mouse is adorning our coffee direct from the Disney Wonder last January.

If we were having coffee I would tell you how surprised and excited I was recently when I received notification from WordPress that my little blog had achieved World Dominance Award. This apparently means that it has been read by people in 150 countries. I think that I have found my voice which was one of my goals when I started Inspiring Max in 2014. The other real shock is that it happened over time with people picking up and finding things I wrote up to 12 years ago. Thanks to you all for supporting my journey

If we were having coffee I would tell you I can’t believe it has been nearly six months since our last coffee. Where does the time go. Mind you this coffee catch-up is like my real life ones. Suddenly I turn around and realise it has been many months since we have seen each other. Like me, my blog has developed a life of its own. With 100+ views a day without me adding new content it deserves focus. So focus it will get. It’s exciting. I never dreamed this was possible so lets see where the next 12 months brings us.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that my hamstring injury is healing well. I have returned to Aqua aerobics which I love as well as exercises for older people which are good for my hamstring. It has now been 9 months since my wave caused injury and I have not yet returned to the ocean. In Australia it is winter so that part is easy at present. Hopefully it will continue to improve as time goes by.

If we were having coffee I would tell you how my Etsy shop is going. Like blogging it is hard to get your designs seen at first. but everyday I am seeing this improve. Also like blogging some of my original designs need upgrading which I am doing slowly. I currently have 660 designs and a clear vision for what is maxxinspired and what isn’t. As my blog and Etsy shop were made to go together I have decided to add a weekly segment called Maxxinspired Catch Up. A sister segment to my Coffee Catch -Ups where I talk about and upload the designs I have created that week as well as anything else of interest. I am sure that getting back to blogging will help inspire some fun t shirt, blanket and mug designs too. I have added a link to my shop and will let you know for the 16th my birthday I am running a sale if you stop by and anything peaks your interest. https://maxxinspired.etsy.com

If we were having coffee I would ask you what is happening in your world.

Thanks to Natalie for hosting weekend coffee share

Coffee Catch-Up #51

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If we were having coffee I would tell you about being lucky enough to get the second last stateroom on the Disney Wonder’s last cruise out of Australia. It was a 3 day cruise to nowhere that was all about Disney and fun. I loved it. I did think that it was interesting that we ended up sailing in circles between Sydney and Newcastle (my home town). Given how much fun we had I am sad that at this stage Disney has no plans to bring the Wonder or any other ship back to Australia for future cruise seasons. Over the next few weeks I will share more details of my amazing and very different cruise on the Disney Wonder.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I started an Etsy shop in early January. It was something that I had wanted to for many years. To find out more about how it developed I have linked my post Coffee Catch-Up #50. Over the last two weeks I have been very busy designing and today I am very excited to announce that I have uploaded my 100th design, (shown above.) My “Be Yourself” design is all about self love and inclusion. What I didn’t realise is that this weekend is the 48th Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. The other even more pleasing connection is that tonight is the start of Newcastle’s first dedicated LGBTQIA+ festival, which runs over the weekend. What an excellent way to celebrate inclusion and being yourself. If you are interested in stopping by and having a look, here is the address. https://www.etsy.com/shop/maxxinspired/?etsrc=sdt

If we were having coffee I would tell you how excited I was when my grandson called me ‘Grandma’ for the first time on my recent visit. I don’t think I realised how special it would feel. He has just turned 3 and his brother is 10 months old. I can’t believe how quickly time has flown since they were born.

If we were having coffee I would ask you what is happening in your world?

Coffee Catch-Up # 50

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If we were having coffee I would tell you that I retired last August when my long service leave ended. I had been planning it for 3 years so I was ready. Now nearly one year since I worked my last shift (26th Feb), my days fill so quickly. I can’t believe I had time to work. And I’m only just returning to blogging. I have so many stories to share with you all. When I was talking to my daughter yesterday about returning, I could feel my energy rising even at the thought of creating again. A good sign I think.

This photo of my swimming hole was taken two weeks later when I was trying to photograph the Southern Aurora. It looks so innocent, doesn’t it.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that the morning after my farewell dinner I was so excited. I had to decided to go for my first swim of the season in this pool like section of our local beach. It is always fun just floating around in the waves here. I felt pumped and full of life as I walked into the ocean. I was part way in when a wave came with such force it pushed my left leg hard and fast to a 90 degree angle. Definitely not something 60+ year old legs are meant to do. I couldn’t believe it.

I was alone, although there were many other women and children in the swimming area. I crawled out. A lady came to help but I was sure I’d be alright when I made it to the shore. But I was very wrong. On the beach I couldn’t stand up due to major pain and dizziness. I screamed so loudly every time I attempted to get up. Another lady got the lifeguards and I eventually made it off the beach and into an ambulance. The problem was I couldn’t weight bare and had to sit to control the pain. When the ambo’s arrived they gave me “the green whistle” to manage the pain. Then I could walk supported. As I spent so much time sitting in the sand and it was high tide, every time I moved all day, sand dropped all over the floor. I’m sure people were wondering why is there sand in the ED.

I ended up with a hamstring tear 22cm x 3cm (7 in X 1in). Let me tell you not being able to walk is scary. I am recovering well and realise it could have been a lot worse. I am very grateful for all the help I received on that day. I’m not sure when my family will let me swim in the ocean again.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that once I could sit comfortable in my chair I used my recovery time wisely. One of my 25 goals for 2025 was to start designing for an Etsy shop I wanted to create. So I did. I watched many You-tube videos, upskilled myself in Canva and found Kitttl. (a new design software that uses templates). Chat GPT also became my new best friend. I began creating designs in November. I found it so exciting. When I was ready to open my shop in January, I had over 80 to choose from. The whole process has been so interesting.

After a slow and steady start to help the ETSY algorithm do it’s thing, I uploaded my 50th design this morning. Now I can chose my upload rate, I have decided on 3 a day. This keeps me moving but doesn’t overwhelm me. Initially, I had no plan what my shop would look like. It developed itself organically. It is not trendy. It is based on all the areas and eras of my life. My shop’s tag line is “inspired by a life well lived.” Like my blog, it reflects t shirt designs that mean something to me. Some examples of my sections are feel good life, everyday life, bookish life, nursing life, gymnastics life, adulting moments and outdoor/adventure. It has been fun creating a design and then working out where it will sit in my shop.

Ironically, even before I knew this was going to happen I chose to name my shop, maxxinspired ,a turn about of my blog name Inspiring Max. Here is the link if you are interested in stopping by, https://www.etsy.com/shop/maxxinspired/ I’d love to know your thoughts.

If we were having coffee I would ask you what is happening in your world?

R: Road Trains

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For anyone who has ever seen a road train they are essentially very huge trucks. They carry freight on the highways especially in Australia’s outback. Previously these goods may have been carried on trains but over the years the railroads have been closed.

There are many different combinations of road trains. They can have up to 7 trailers attached and can be up to 54 metres in length. This makes overtaking them very dangerous. Our experience was that road train drivers would help guide smaller faster cars to overtake if it was safe to over take by pulling over. We however would do the opposite. Our slide on is heavy and slow so we would pull over to help the road trains overtake us. Due to their sizes they are not allowed on all roads and it was not unusual for car parks to hold the trailers if the road trains needed to go into an area where the road rules didn’t allow the complete structure.

On our travels the longest road train we saw was 50 metres. I was so surprised I took a photo. During our trip to South Australia and the Nullabor we saw so many road trains that it was easy to see why people say that without trucks Australia stops.

Q: Quandongs

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These plants are found in the semi arid deserts in South Australia. Also called wild peaches, they are native to Australia.

When we were in South Australia we were very happy to find some bushes that were also bearing fruit. I had always wanted to try quandongs. Unfortunately, I still haven’t tried a fresh one as I left the ones I saw on the tree for others to enjoy seeing. I did have a quandong pie and quandong jam on scones. I didn’t find any roasted quandong nuts to try. It turns out the quandong is an very versatile fruit with edible fruits and nuts(seeds). We also found some quandong jam and quandong chutney to bring home with us.

P: Penong – Windmill Museum

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Penong is a small town on the Nullarbor Plain in South Australia. For years it was known for its windmills due to the number of farms around that used windmills to pump their water. However, over the years technology changed the farming landscape. The windmills were no longer required. As the windmills dropped off so did the tourists who previously would stop, look st them and spend money in the town.

In order to attract the tourists back, the locals created a free outdoor windmill museum. It’s very interesting. The windmills come in all shapes and sizes. During the creation stage the locals were lucky enough to find a broken down 35ft Comet windmill. It was one of the biggest in Australia and they were able to restore it to working order. Big Bruce now stands pride of place in the windmill museum. I was surprised that windmills came in so many shapes and sizes and were able to do so many different jobs.

O: Old National Cash Register

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We found this beautiful old cash register while exploring Streaky Bay. It was made in 1907 and was used until Australia changed to decimal currency in 1966. I had never seen anything like it.

It had nine cash drawers and a storage cupboard at the front. Each drawer has a different bell tone when it opens. It has keys which list how many customers have been served, the money received, paid out or charged.

I love that it continues to be on display for future generations to admire.

N: Nullarbor Plain

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The Nullarbor Plain connects Eastern and Western Australia. Starting at Ceduna, South Australia and finishes at Norseman, Western Australia it is an almost treeless straight drive. In fact, I believe Nullarbor means treeless plain.

It has many free camps spots and everyone is discouraged from driving at night. This is due to the danger of animals crossing the road. The road that crosses the Nullarbor Plain is called the Eyre Highway and is the longest straight stretch of road in the world. (146 kilometres.)

When I was a teenager I drove with my family on the old highway just after it was fully sealed. I remember being fascinated by the straight road. Back in the late 1970’s people didn’t travel like they do today, so we were often the only ones using the road. To entertain ourselves we drove on the wrong side of the road for as long as we could. These days it is so busy. If you are lucky, you can quickly run into the middle of the road to take a photo – that’s it. The photos below are of the original Nullabarbor Roadhouse’s buildings the ones I visited as a child. Of course on the same site are modernised buildings.

The Nullarbor Links Golf Course is the longest in the world. It is an 18 hole par 72 course that covers 1365 kilometres (850 miles) from South Australia to Western Australia. It is on my husband and my bucket when we drive the whole way across. Last time we stopped at the Nullarbor Roadhouse.

M: Miyagi Zao Fox Village

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Whilst in Japan recently we had the experience of a life time. We spent the morning in the world’s only fox village, according to the road signs. It can be found in the Zao mountains above the township of Shiroishi. It was winter in Japan at the time of our visit and the Zao mountains are over 1800 metres and are active volcanoes. The area also boast some of the highest annual snowfall in the world.

The fox village is over 30 years old and houses over 100 foxes. There are 6 types of foxes here – red foxes, silver foxes (the black ones), blue artic foxes, white artic foxes, platinum foxes as well as cross foxes. My favourite foxes are still the white artic foxes although the platinium and black foxes fascinated me as I had never seen them before.

They live in a fenced open area and have little fox house to sleep or rest in. Otherwise they move around freely doing what foxes do. They played. There were several fights. Some slept. Some appeared to hump each other. Others rolled around in the snow. They are very comfortable living this life while hundreds of visitors walk around with them taking many photos of them. We are warned on entry not to get too close or pat them as even though they are very cute they are still wild animals and will bite. If the foxes came up to us we were told to keeping moving.

You can only feed the foxes from one place. It is like a big hut that is off the ground with viewing platforms all around. The foxes know that this is where they can get food and many would get underneath to beg, jump and look cute to get some food. It was fun to pick your favourite fox then attempt to throw the pellets well enough that your fox could catch it in his/her mouth. You had to be strategic as there were definitely some pushy one who would try and steal the younger foxes food.

As you first enter the village there is a petting area where you can pay to cuddle a fox. Many people lined up for this experience, we just watched their enjoyment form the side.

If ever you have the time I would recommend visiting this special place. It was easy to get to via the bullet train and taxi and not speaking Japanese wasn’t a problem.

L: Lion 360 Degrees

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At Montaro Zoo we gave ourselves a special treat. We joined the Lion 360 degrees tour. This bus tour took us into the lioness enclosure to watch them being feed. We stood under a metal dome. We had 100% access to all the lioness who came up for a feed. Some of our fellow travellers were lucky enough to experience hand feeding them, although to be honest I still haven’t decided if I’m not sure what my answer would have been had I been asked.

Watching them play and eat was amazing. They seemed to enjoy our company and sometimes seemed to play up just for our cameras.

After the feeding we were taken on tour of the lioness and lion cub enclosure. It is a very large space. In the wild lions don’t eat everyday so not all of them come up for a feed daily. They were in various groups and I loved seeing the cubs playing like they didn’t have a care in the world.