Bedlam

Mum described the scene as ‘bedlam’ shortly after we arrived. I’m guessing this was because of Bernard being his usual manic self while I was sitting peacefully and quietly.

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As you can see Dad’s in fine health. Here’s another shot of him hiding behind my dinner:

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Bernard screamed manically about beetroot being ‘The King’s Tuber’. I sagely, peacefully and quietly agreed…

So, going back a bit, yesterday we came up to Newcastle. Mum and dad were of course glad to see us…. and then we left again to go shopping! This included a delicious lunch:

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Oh, and here’s Bernard playing SFL’s favourite poker machine:

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Here’s a giant spider on mum and dads window:

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In the evening we entertained aunts and uncles…

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Before I retired in my hotel room for the next 10 days:

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The To-Do List

I had some things I needed to do yesterday, so after a brief stop in the CBD for lunch…

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…the boys took off for Pats party while I scurried around the city. I didn’t have much time so I made it quick (and made some purchases) before heading to meet them at the casino.

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That’s a sculpture near Chinatown. It says ‘yuk’. Can you see what it’s filled with? Here’s a close up:

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Yuk indeed!!

Here’s the city from Darling Harbour on the casino side:

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When I found the boys in Star City they were quite tipsy and on the way to tipping over. Here’s Bernard enjoying a frosty margarita:

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And here he is again, a while later, flushed with a win from a Michael Jackson pinball, enjoying dinner. This was his second fish’n’chips in two hours!

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Tomorrow we’re heading to Newcastle. I’m looking forward to some R & R!

Giddy Up!

January first means two things:
1) New Years Resolutions are broken, and
2) Racing at Randwick!

I didn’t make any resolutions, so off to the races it was!

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There have been major upgrades since I was last here, including an all-new stadium. The place has ‘ritzed up’ a bit but still welcomes a diverse crowd including these three punters:

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The serious look in their eyes is a hint to the theorycrafting going on inside as they pick their winners. More on the results in a bit 🙂

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There are 8 races in total, and we all bet on each. The boys drunk some beer, and I shuffled around (Bernard says I’m like a shark because I can’t be still!) and watched the activities.

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Here’s the view from where we sat, dubbed ‘The Kings Seat’ by Adam:

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Needless to say we all had a flutter! In the interests of privacy, I was requested by East to anonymize names. Who is East? Well, I’ve given the four of us code names as you’ll see on this chart of our cumulative winnings per race:

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In total, $638 was bet, and $790.30 was won. Much of this was due to a single spectacular win of $360 by North on Race 7. Not bad for a $20 bet. Even the three of us who lost overall didn’t lose much and great fun was had by all.

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The question remains: who is who? Rather than say, here’s a puzzle that will let you work it out.

Four punters went to the races. Two of them always tell the truth, and two always lie. When asked their real names, here’s what they said:
North said: South is Robert
South said: West is Pat
East said: North is Bernard
West said: I’m Adam

Can you work out who’s who?