A lumpy and kind of major piece of work I have been working on for the past 4 or so months, is coming to a pointy end. We’ve lost a couple of procurement officers along the way, but a commercial lead in the IT projects area has held the fort almost single-handedly. As a legal support resource, I have tried to make the task easier whenever possible but it remained a challenging task and I continue to admire focused and driven professionals like this lead person.

So work builds a crescendo to accord with the season. Many want to just get as much done as possible, before breaking up for the year. We are all kept busy at work and the after-hours busy schedules also keep the wheels of a sense of accomplishment whirring along.

Tress and I are relatively less busy outside of work and that is because I have chosen to disengage myself from the local church which we have been part of from the time we arrived in Melbourne. Other than responding to queries and requests to meet or talk – all arising from my decision to leave – we have been quite free.

So we’ve taken long walks with the dog after work, come home to cook and eat a proper meal and settle down to do whatever pleases us. Tress has been busy planning our holidays, which would be soon. I have looked up old movies and Humphrey Bogart continues to strike a chord.

Last night however, I made plans to watch the repeat of the United v City game. It came on at 8pm, which was near perfect. After dinner and cleaning up, I settled on the couch and savoured the moment. With a glass of red, it was a perfect way to wind down the day. United looked like battling an uphill task, as City mounted a series of moves. We beat them in the end (literally – thanks to an injury time goal) but only just and barely deserved I think. And yet, like many things in life, the details are forgotten and the result/outcome is what will be etched in the annals. At this point in time, it’s a win for United who sits atop with a 6-point margin. There’s only one thing to top that off and that is the prospect of seeing them when they do their pre-season thing Down Under in July next year…

This car looks like it escaped from the production set of the movie “Cars”…

The weathermen said it was going to be a scorcher last Saturday. So Tress and I got up early and headed to the park across the street, to walk the little fellow. I did a shortish run and when we were heading home, it had become warm and the poor little fellow was actually struggling a little bit. He probably ran more than normal, and for longer.

After breakfast and dry cleaning drop-off/pick-up, we headed into the city. Tress was going to look for a Christmas gift for a colleague and we decided to shop at the Queen Vic market. It got really warm and when we got home I thought it would be good for us to head back into a shopping centre and do something like catch a movie, to escape the heat.

We opted for the latest Bond saga – Skyfall. When the movie was over, it was just before 6pm and the cool change had – thankfully – well and truly arrived. We came home, did a quick barbie of some fish and egg plants, and spent the rest of the evening just surfing the net, watching tv, etc… and went to bed early.