Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Classic cars, weekend away and chemo tomorrow!

Sunday we left early for Melbourne making sure that Charlie (our siamese cat) had plenty of food namely his free range chicken to eat, plus a cat food and lots of water to drink and a comfortable bed for the night to snuggle into a thick blanket that we leave on the lounge room chair for him to cocoon himself in.  Just as well because that night we had the worst lightening and thunderstorms across the State of Victoria. 
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/wild-weather-huge-storm-hits-melbourne-and-regional-victoria/story-fni0fit3-1227103101936?nk=cc586aca6db9a4a60f896e473e12b59b

This photo was submitted by Herald Sun reader Terry Davis. He took this photo at Bundoora
 Sunday morning we went to http://www.motorclassica.com.au/about-concours-delegance/
Exhibition Building, Carlton gardens Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.  
The organiser of Melbourne's Motorclassica event is confident it can keep support from carmakers.

Motorclassica lays down challenge to motor shows

Date
Organiser of successful classic car display says there is not room for three major motoring events in Melbourne.
The organiser of Melbourne's Motorclassica event is confident it can keep support from carmakers. The organiser of Melbourne's Motorclassica event is confident it can keep support from carmakers.
Melbourne's Motorclassica attracted thousands of enthusiasts across the weekend, along with attention from blue-chip brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Maserati and Jaguar.
It's the nearest Australia came to hosting a motor show in 2014 and event director Paul Mathers is happy with how the nation's premier classic car event is tracking, just as long as you don't call it a motor show.
"To be honest I'd like to distance our event from being a motor show," he says.
A classic Bentley Continental fetched more than $1 milllion during Motorclassica's auction. A classic Bentley Continental fetched more than $1 milllion during Motorclassica's auction.
"I think the name 'motor show' has a negative connotation right now. It's something that is defunct and broken.
"Motorclassica is not a motor show at all. It doesn't want to be and doesn't need to be that."
Held in Melbourne's heritage-listed royal exhibition halls each year, Motorclassica is fast-becoming a must see for automotive enthusiasts.
This classic Porsche 356 convertible was also a hit at the show.

 Next it was a short drive to Balwyn (suburb of Melbourne) to MacLeay Park for the annual (AussieFrog) French car display where we met my brother Chris and his wife, my SIL Cheryl for lunch and a walk around the cars.  They were celebrating their first wedding anniversary on this day - what better way of celebrating then looking at beautiful cars!



 Next a scenic drive to South Yarra where the 4 of us were staying the night in Amity Apartments.  A beautiful sunny and warm Sunday afternoon - a short walk to the French Fantasy cafe where we sat outside with croissants, lemon tart and good coffee/green tea and enjoyed people and poodle watching!
That evening we went to a Greek restaurant and sat outside to enjoy the sidewalk dining and cooler air!
During the night very scary thunderstorms and lightening.  Lucky for us we had a midday checkout as the traffic in Melbourne that morning was at a standstill due to the the heavy flooding and storms!  When we left the apartments hardly any traffic on our way home.

An early start tomorrow for chemotherapy and an appointment with my oncologist in Melbourne.

During the week I received an email from Italy - a sister of a lady who has just been diagnosed with mesothelioma.  She had been told of a lady who lived in Australia who was a long term survivor so had looked me up online and bingo found this blog.  Thanks to social media it is possible to connect worldwide with mesothelioma so that no one is on their own ever!  There is support online and contacts to be made with others and various groups.  I was able to put this family in touch with a very good oncologist in Italy.

To all those who are doing it tough at the moment my heart goes out to you.  Sending you love and strength.

Friday, October 24, 2014

Flu gone! Life is good! Asbestos events for November 2014

Finally after 2 weeks both Keith and myself have just about shaken off our flu and coughing.  One minute we would be feeling fine, then next aches and pain all over and a feeling of being just so weak and having to lie down, have a sleep and revive again.  I hope that we have had our share of the flu for the year!  So many people have been affected by it on a global scale.

Summer is trying to peep its head around the corner with days of sunshine and warmth.  The nights are still quite cold.

In the opening plenary session of iMig 2014, Dr. Jim te Water Naudé and Dr. Steven Mutsaers welcomed close to 300 healthcare professionals to Cape Town, South Africa. It’s an impressive number of attendees for this somewhat remote but beautiful venue and given iMig’s membership of around 500 members. The assembled group comprises the finest minds in mesothelioma related research, treatment, and advocacy from around the world. It’s quickly evinced as a heavily scientific affair with a fun spirit as Dr. te Water Naudé jokingly threatens to use a vuvuzela horn on speakers who defy their time restrictions.

 On the home front there are quite a few events on for asbestos month/asbestos week in Australia.




 
 
 
 
The Asbestos Diseases Foundation of Australia Inc.
(
adfa
)
is a not
-
for
-
profit organisation working to
provide support to people living with asbestos
related diseases, family members, carers and
friends.
adf
a is a community based group founded
by the union &
concerned citizens to meet the
needs of people affected by asbestos related
diseases and has a long history of being engaged in
advocacy work within the Australian community.
adfa
works to provide information to the community
as to the dangers of asbestos. Our aim is to reduce
the number of people exposed to asbestos and
future incidence of asbestos related disease in the
Australian community.
We support members living in metropolitan and
regional NSW. We are actively engaged in health
promotion initiatives in the provision of education to
the wider community.
Help us support
ADFA’s
vital funding for asbestos
suffers and their families by purchasing a
Race
Sponsorship Package.
Watch each race in comfort in
The Grand Pavilion
while enjoying a three course meal, fine wines, beer
and soft drink, with the added convenience of
betting facilities within the room.
Fantastic items will be available in the silent and live
auctions and raffle prizes and games.
























Asbestos Diseases Foundation of Australia Inc (adfa) is hosting their annual fundraiser on 1 Nov 2014 Gala Race Day at Rosehill Gardens, Sydney in the Grand Pavilion.  Please support this very worthy fundraiser and fun day.  Further details info@adfa.org.au


1st International Conference on Asbestos Awareness and Management 16-18 November 2014, Crown Melbourne. http://asbestossafetyconference2014.org/

16th - 18th November, 2014
Crown Melbourne,
Southbank, Victoria

"Working towards an asbestos free Australia"

The Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency is holding the inaugural International Conference on Asbestos Awareness and Management 2014.
November is National Asbestos Awareness Month and the agency has organised a conference featuring well renowned international experts in asbestos management, health, advocacy and governance to challenge delegates into thinking how Australia can drive change in our region and globally when it comes to the continued manufacturing and distribution of asbestos containing materials.
The conference will start with a welcome reception on Sunday evening 16th November and will run the 2 full days Monday 17th and Tuesday 18th November 2014 with a conference dinner on the Monday evening all within the confines of the Crown hotel and conference complex on Melbourne’s Southbank.
This event will provide a stimulating and entertaining environment for delegates and stakeholders to discuss the big issues facing them in raising awareness about the dangers of asbestos in our work and domestic environment and how it can be managed into the future.
This event will also highlight the role of the agency in advocating change and the need for an independent body to deliver change on the ground, in the Australian and international community.

About the agency

The Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency was established on 1 July 2013 to provide a national focus on asbestos issues, which go beyond workplace safety to encompass environmental and public health issues. The independent agency will ensure asbestos issues receive the attention and focus needed to drive change across all levels of government.
Asbestos Safety & Eradication Agency 
Contact: Shane McArdle
Email: Shane.McArdle@asbestossafety.gov.au
Ph: -61 2 9246 0558
 
Bernie Banton Foundation - Stan's van promoting awareness and the dangers of asbestos. 
The last week of November is Asbestos Awareness Week, Australian-wide. To recognise Asbestos Awareness Week the Bernie Banton Foundation's Mobile Asbestos Education and Awareness Unit - Stan's Van will be exhibiting in Melbourne's Fed Square Swanston Street Forecourt (directly opposite the Flinders Street Station) from Tuesday the 25th to Saturday the 29th of November. We will be open from about 8.30am to 8.00pm each day. So far we have supporters from Victoria, NSW and SA coming to help man Stan's Van and promote awareness of the dangers of asbestos. We will be having the official Victorian launch of the Mobile Asbestos Education and Awareness Unit during the week, and be recognising the 7th anniversary of Bernie Banton's passing on 'Bernie Banton Day', Thursday the 27th.  A big thankyou to Fed Square for coming on board as Event Partners, helping to make the Bernie Banton Foundation Asbestos Awareness Week possible.

To find out more contact us on:
Freecall 1800 031 731
Email: stansvan@berniebanton.com.au
Facebook: Asbestos Education and Awareness - Stan's Van
Twitter: Stan's Van @AsbestosEducate

http://www.fedsquare.com/events/asbestos-awareness-week-stans-van/
 
Asbestoswise
On Wednesday 26 October 2014 Asbestoswise will be holding their annual Commemoration Day - this year across the road at St Pauls Cathedral, Melbourne at 11am.
Due to the flu my chemotherapy regime has been postponed until next Weds 29 October providing that my immune system is stronger after the flu.

 
My newest little 6 week grandchild!  Still no name as yet!!


 
 
















Sunday, October 12, 2014

PET scan results and passing of a warrior friend

It seems ages since I have written my blog.  I did have good intentions Sat morning to do so, however body aches/flu got in the way!!  Late Friday evening a visit to Melbourne for results of recent PET/CT and round table discussion of my case.  The appointment with my oncologist was a mixed bag this time - the multi disciplinary team all came to the same conclusion NO DRAINAGE as the tumours would seed.  All including my oncologist felt that further chemo is the way to go to get a bit more shrinkage of fluid only.  Where the dead mass is (and no one can actually come up with what it is) there is active tumour activity there - that is what the PET scan showed,  chemo will not shrink the tumours anymore as they appear to now be too resilient to further treatment, however as good as it gets fluid shrinkage may occur so I was due to have further chemo Weds 15 Oct, due to the flu it now will be Weds 22 Oct.  So tumour growth is on the increase however as I said to my oncologist I feel well and my breathing is good - so quality of life is there!!  Now I just have to lol shake this rotten flu bug!

On another note, we lost a very brave warrior friend yesterday to mesothelioma in Queensland.  Pat McCormick born in 1956 who was married to his beautiful childhood sweetheart Marilyn.  I have very special memories of a wonderful dinner party at Gail and Steve Cook's home in July 2013 where Keith and myself got to meet Pat, Marilyn and their beautiful daughter Nicole.  Steve was the perfect host along with Gail and cooked up a hearty meal for us.  Steve sadly lost his life in Nov 2013 to mesothelioma.  Again in July 2014 Gail, my friend Helen, Pat and Marilyn caught up once again at Burleigh Life saving club for a wonderful lunch of laughter, sadness and 3 hours of friendship.  Pat like Steve was a brave warrior who never gave up even though his pain was so unbearable for most of his 2.75 years of living with this deadly and aggressive cancer.  Pat is now resting free of pain.  Both Steve and Pat should still be here living their life with their soulmates however thanks to asbestos greed their lives were cut short.  Both Gail and Marilyn are left to pick up the pieces without their soulmates.  RIP Pat and Steve you both are dearly loved and sadly missed.  

Our recent quick trip to Queensland was wonderful, hectic and enjoyable.  I got to spend time very special time with my beautiful daughter Debbie and little grandchildren Lux, Evie and new little baby girl.  No name yet for bub - keep posted!  This picture is taken at Shingle Inn, City Hall, Brisbane.
When my children were little in the early 1980s we would on special occasions visit the original Shingle inn for birthdays and other special events.  This visit to the 'newly restored' inn brought back very special memories for both myself and Debbie.  Especially as Debbie has now returned as a mum with her daughters!



 http://www.weekendnotes.com/shingle-inn-brisbane-city-hall/
Brisbane's favourite place to dine since 1936
One of Brisbane's great icons, the Shingle Inn, has returned to the city. If you're a little puzzled as to why I refer to it as returned, it's because I'm not talking about the Shingle Inn cafes that can be found dotted around the CBD and suburbs, but the flagship restaurant that once resided on Edward Street. The original Shingle Inn has reopened in its new home on the ground floor of the recently refurbished Brisbane City Hall. Steeped in tradition and offering an exceptional dining experience, a visit to the original restored Shingle Inn is the new must-do for visitors to Brisbane as well as returning diners.

Shingle Inn Brisbane City Hall
Inside Shingle Inn Brisbane City Hall, image courtesy of Shingle Inn


The original Shingle Inn opened in 1936 as a café bakery renowned for its decadent sweet treats, exquisite surrounds and outstanding customer service. When it closed a little over 10 years ago to make way for the Queens Plaza shopping development many people thought that Brisbane would never again see a true English teahouse. Thanks to some careful storage, diligent restoration work, and the generosity of the Bellchambers family who have gifted the café to the city of Brisbane, the original Shingle Inn is once again open for business.
Many of the classic Shingle Inn heritage fixtures have been faithfully restored in the new premises. Original light fittings, the ornate chandelier that once hung in the front window display area, polished brass table footings and warm wood panelling are all on display once again. However it is the beautifully restored wood booths and iconic shingled roof awning that visitors will instantly recognise and remember. Apart from the fixtures and furniture there are more subtle traditions that have endured the test of time. The shiny silver sugar bowls that are turned to represent whether a table has been served, the mouth-watering display of decadent treats in the front window, and the friendly hospitality of the waitresses dressed in distinctive black and white outfits have all continued.

Shingle Inn Brisbane City Hall