Bottles of Booze

 Dot and I have been rearranging our house to enable painting of walls in some living areas. In the process, I had to empty one place where we stored bottles of mainly spirits. I used to buy quite a few bottles of this that or the other while overseas or in some parts of Australia, but recent aversion to spirits has left many unopened. Here's a picture of the bottles extracted from one location in our house:

The list includes  Vicker's Gin (Australia - OZ); Cointreau (France (FR); Remy Martin Brandy (OZ); Benedictine (FR); 100 Pipers (UK); Shiraz Liqueur (OZ); Limoncello di Sorrento (Italy - IT); Tudor Royal Scotch (UK); Hennessey Brandy (OZ); Teacher's Highland Cream Whiskey (UK); Jim Beam Bourbon (USA); Chatelle Napoleon Brandy (FR); Grand Marnier (FR); Marko Dry Vermouth (OZ); Calvados Boulard (FR); BORZO Vodka (UK!); Drambuie (UK);  Maple Schnaps (Canada); Port (Portugal); and Licor di Leiti (Portugal).

Then I remembered that I hid a whole lot more bottles in my study ... mostly Scotch Whiskey. The list comprises: Ballantine, Bailey's Irish Cream, Tobermory, Langavulin, Glenmorangie, and Bushmill Malt Irish Whiskeys. In addition I have Doktor Vodka (Russia), Gota De Minas Cachaca (Brazil), and Sulwha Saki (Japan).

Anyone fancy visiting me for an extended booze-up? It might take a couple of weeks or more to clear the decks prior to checking in at our local hospital!

AS

New Year Fireworks 20-21

 Armidale might be a small town of c. 25,000 people, but it has a tradition of great firework displays heralding the New Year. And at 9 pm on the 31st December 2020 we collectively saw one of the best displays ever. Thanks to the absence of COVID-19 in our region a large audience comprising all age groups - and ignoring social distancing - crowded on to the Wicklow field, which forms part of our green corridor along the banks of Dumaresq Creek.

The cloudy sky ensured a jet black background, which made the displays all the more impressive. And, for 10 minutes, the audience gasped at - and applauded - the great aerial display paid for by the Armidale Regional Council. The pictures below are representative of what we saw - lots of different colours and configurations of the fireworks.

Because of the virus, organisers of the event decided to give the  displays greater altitude this year so that people could potentially watch them from the safety of their homes. This ploy didn't seem to work well given the massive throng of viewers clustered on the creeklands!

AS