21. June 2020 17:03
by Rene Pallesen
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Aidens birthday was during the covid lock down.
Fortunately we were still allowed to have a couple of his school friends over for a little celebration (his school was still open anyhow).
We decided to have it in the garden with a fire pit with roasted marshmellows, sparklers followed by cake.
5. March 2020 20:03
by Rene Pallesen
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Recently I had the chance to visit the shooting range at Malabar headland with a group of friends.
I used to do a lot of shooting in my younger days, so I was curious to see if I still had it in me.
On this day we were shooting on the 800 meter range (which is a very long distance) with 7.62 NATO rounds.
The distance means that you cannot see where you hit, so they have an electronic readout next to the shooter. The two circles in the middle are about 25cm in diameter at the far end.
Below is the group of shots from my round.
This photo gives a better idea of the distance we were shooting at (It was also a very windy day)
Apparently I shot the best round of the day including the regulars...
Conclusion is that, yes, still got it and I may pick it up as a regular activity some time in the future.
20. October 2019 19:10
by Rene Pallesen
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13. April 2022 10:04
by Rene Pallesen
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Last weekend it was Ethans 21st Birthday. He had a bit party with the whole family and his friends.
They had arranged for catering with lots of Cambodian, Laotian and other asian foods.
5. April 2022 19:04
by Rene Pallesen
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It has been three years since I last spent time with my dad. This is due to Australia closing its borders for two years due to the Covid pandemic.
As soon as they announced opening the borders again in February my dad booked his ticket to come a visit.
It was really nice to have him here and different from when he has been here previously. For starters, he was here by himself which was a different dynamic and also Aiden and Lucas have grown older and really enjoyed bonding with 'Bedstefar'. Especially Aiden and my dad found that they had music in common and Aiden took great prise in being able to play some of the pieces on piano that my dad was able to sing.
I really enjoyed having a few beers (and other good stuff) with him while he was here.
A couple of years ago I bough a machine to transfer my dads and grandads old 8mm film to digital. Because of the pandemic I was never able to try it out. My dad brought one of his films to do a trial transfer. It worked really well and he'd now brought it back to Denmark with him to transfer the rest.
One afternoon dad and I went up to the Barrenjoey lighthouse. My dad is still able to do it although he is a bit slower and not as strong as he used to be.
5. April 2022 19:04
by Rene Pallesen
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With Kim having a few weeks gap between jobs and badly needing a break she wanted to go somewhere relaxing and where the water and weather would be warm.
After a bit of research we settled on a week to the Phillipines to an island called Boracay.
This is a small island with the most beautiful beach we have seen anywhere outside of Bora Bora (interesting that both have the name 'Bora').
The boys (and adults) managed to get a mighty sunburn already on the first day.
The island also has the most amazing sunsets at the beach.
Also lots of activity on the beach in the evenings whereas during the day is is mostly empty.
We stayed in a large resort built around a golf course. It had seven swimming pools and we spend a lot of time here relaxing with the boys and sipping cocktails.
It was really nice in the evenings to sit in a bar listening to cruisy music. Most of the restaurants and bars would have live entertainers on in the evenings.
One day we went on a snorkeling trip around the island. The boys are well accustomed to snorkeling now and love it. Unfortunately I didn't bring an underwater housing on the trip, but I can say that the coral reef looks to be in a good shape although a lot of the larger schools of fish and large predatory fish seems to be scarce.
We also did a day trip to the main island where we went through one of the local caves.
The cave was full of little bats and also had other creatures that were attracted to the bats and insects such as a snake and spiders I've never seen before.
We even spotted a large hermit crab (size of a hand).
We also went to a local river where there was waterfalls and also rafts for the boys to have a play with.
The food in general was pretty good although we only tried a couple
of local dishes (Phillipines is not famous for its food). Especially
some of the seafood was really nice.
The way we got around the island was on these small tricycles.
There are two types, the old ones pulled by a small moterbike and then
the new ones which are all electric. The government wants to have all
the old ones off the roads by 2024 which is very sensible both
environmentally and economically as even the locals say that they make
more money on the new ones.
The main road however is horrendous. In late 2018 the island was closed for 6 months to any visitors due to them sorting out a lot of issues with the sewage system. This means that they have dug up the entire road to install large pipes along with a road widening. A lot of this was still ongoing with the main road being full of holes, but given that it is such a small place it was alright to still get around.
Kims dad passed away 92 years old. He will be greatly missed by his daughters, grandchildren, grandsons and friends.
It was a beautiful funeral following chinese traditions with wearing white clothes to celebrate a long life.
Aiden played a beautiful song on the piano in front of everyone and we had put together slides showing his life.
Day after we did the traditional cleaning of the tomb stone and also the burning of paper clothes and money (theory is that it will then go to the afterlife for him to wear).
I hope that the boys are old enough to remember their time with him.
Even though his old body was failing him, his mind was still sharp enough to play Mahjong and other games with us. These photos are from our last trip with him down to Bowral.
5. April 2022 15:04
by Rene Pallesen
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Lucas is part of the schools chess club.
The other day he was very proud that he'd received this award.
30. December 2021 17:12
by Rene Pallesen
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10. October 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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This year the boys started doing Karate.
It was something that I've always wanted do do with them, so we looked around for a place where initially they could join some kids classes and then along the way I'd join as well.
Initially they got their red and white stripe belts (automatically)
And then later they went up for grading to get their Red belts.
They love training with some of the equipment that we have at home for it.
Late in the year I joined as well once the sensei established some adult classes and I have now after 20 years (I did a bit of karate back in 1998) finally received my Red belt.
Even Kim has taken a couple of classes - maybe she will even grade on of these days.
1. October 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Aiden as part of his school had to do his holy communion.
He looked very handsome in his little suit.
10. September 2019 21:10
by Rene Pallesen
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This Christmas was almost normal with the Covid restrictions lifted.
As usual we did our annual Christmas photo.
Kims dad is staying at Kims sisters place over Christmas after haing been in hospital. He is looking the best he has for years.
29. December 2021 17:12
by Rene Pallesen
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This are from various events of 2021
Lucas Holy Communion
Lunar Esclipse
Swimming at Yarra Bay in the middle of winter
Aidens Learning award
Empty Maroubra Beach during covid lockdown
Seafood dinner with family
Chillies harvested from the garden
Cooking lobster at home during lockdown
Spotted Herbie in our local area
Monkeys in a tree
Playing games at home during Covid lockdown
Enjoying a hot chocolate during Covid lockdown
Boys make a mess and have to clean the house
Dinner at home during Covid lockdown
Conference call with family during Covid lockdown
How many people can you fit into a dinghy?
Pho at the local cafe
Going for a walk after Covid restrictions lifted
On a conference call with Dalai Lama from home
Kim received a Hoodie to keep her warm in the cold winter evenings. I thought it was something else and wrote instructions on the packaging.
Aidens birthday was bowling with his friends and dinner with family
Kim dressed appropriately for walking 20 meters to the car
The boys learning to use a hammer.
Spending time at Yarra bay
Aiden still struggling, although him now having a piano seems to help him.
Lucas got some more awards at the Athletics carnival to add to his swimming awards.
29. December 2021 17:12
by Rene Pallesen
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Mid year I decided to get an electric piano. I've always wanted to learn and we wanted to boys to start playing as well.
We have been using an online lesson system and it has been working really well for us. Especially Aiden seems to pick it up quickly.
Aiden has also been begging to get an electric guitar, so this Christmas we got him one. It is fortunate that the same online lesson subscription also covers guitar playing.