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It's Remembrance Day and we've come to Kingswood Sports for a morning game. It's a decent-sized clubhouse. It's owned by East's Leagues Club (Roosters). We asked Jake the greenkeeper about bowls. Jill the Treasurer showed us where to go. John took our names. Jill came up to Jean and said " Because you're such a nice lady you get a tube of Grippo! " Chris, Ron and Phil looked after the money. We sat with the boys before the game. It was Mal, Jim, Albert and Billy. There are two nice grass greens. We played on the back green. The Hec Cameron Green. Green one was closed so we had to play Fours instead of the usual Pairs. They are the Roosters. It was Ted, Richie, Jean and Mal Against Mick, Don, John and Harry. On the Bobby Lamont Rink(what a great idea!). Jean forgot to bring her Bowling Arm so her first bowl went really narrow (out! - she bowls left-handed with it so today is right-handed.) Eventually she got one in there when Mal scored two. In fact he was all over it. Lead Jean kept going crook on the boys because every time she got a photo-worthy bowl they took it out! So she raced up when there was only a couple of bowls on the green! Of course John then took it! At 11am bowls stopped, hats came off and we stood for the ode. Jake has done a fabulous job of the other green. It looks fantastic - deep green! Jean got a photo of her shot bowl before the boys put a five in! We laughed all the time at the boys putting sh.t on each other. It was hilarious. Two ends to go Jean said " I finally did a good bowl! " But then Mick thrashed it for three! Mal cried " Yay! We got double figures! " 31 to ten! We came inside to commiserate (and laugh some more!) Kingswood Country - for great company!

We're back at Windsor Bowling and Sports Club for Jean's Uncle Donny's 90th. We'll have some Barefoot Bowls. We were here a year ago for a game. In the carpark we met Max who we played last year. Rod and the boys from Lawson are here for a game of Pennants. Uncle Donny was happy to see everyone. Jean's sisters Megan and Roslyn brought Jean's Mum Betty as a surprise. Mal and Jean sat with Jean's sister Roslyn. Jean was excited to see her cousins Donna and Little Heather. It's quite a turnout. It's hard to fit 90 on one cake! Donny did his best to blow out the candles. Donny and Tracey had a dance. He earned his money as a young man dancing his way around the world. THE BOWLS Cousin Doug nominated Jean to run the Barefoot Bowls. (Aunty Tracey photobombed) There were Jean's first cousins, first cousins once and twice removed and Second cousins - all on the bowling green. There were bowls EVERYWHERE! It was too much for Mal. He rolled up alone. He did better than the rest! We played a Spider. Bob won with Mal's bowl! Bob was supposed to win a bottle of Scotch. He's never bowled before. He went for beer instead! Jean got to present it! When we finished the Windsor boys wanted to take a photo with Mal. Paul sent it to Jean. Paul is doing a website lawnbowls.com . He promoted our blog on there so took a new photo of the three of us. Windsor again - so much fun!

It's just a few days to Jean's Uncle Donny's 90th in Windsor so we've stopped off in Lawson for a game if we can. MONDAY Jean's been in touch with the Chairperson Helen about parking our caravan there. She said that was fine and that she looked forward to meeting us. We spoke to the barman as we arrived and he got Helen to show us where to go. She told us they have Pennants on tomorrow so there won't be social bowls but she thinks she's organised a couple of people to roll up with us. Helen introduced us to Greenkeeper Rod. It's a smallish club . with a decent sized dining room which overlooks the green. It's a very neat club with a great outdoor area. Right next door to Lawson Railway station. There's just one grass green. It looks good. The John Hall Green. We're told this is the old clubhouse. The new one is round. It's built in an old water tower. Lights were installed in 2014. There's a wagon wheel by the back corner. And a pot stand made from old bowls. Mal stayed inside for a few drinks and met some of the bowlers. He told them about the Eildon song and they said they had their own. (Apologies for the swearword.) They had the Greenkeepers Challenge on against Hazelbrook which we visited last year. We met Morgan who remembered us from our visit to Hazelbrook. Mal loves their shirts with Jack Frost on it. He said " I've always wanted one of your shirts! " TUESDAY The ladies turned up to play Pennants on Tuesday. It was Lawson vs Hazelbrook again. Diane from Hazelbrook (on the right) recognised our caravan from when we went to Macknade in Qld . She said she's been following the blog. The Lawson ladies have the Three Sisters on their shirt - which seems quite appropriate! Ray from Hazelbrook knocked on the caravan door with a present for Mal. Jean sat and chatted with the Lawson ladies while they watched Pennants. Cath and Tina agreed to roll up with us. They came second in the Zone final a couple of years ago. Jean and Mal played together. Mal and Jean had five shots until Cath did a beauty and took third. Jean had two until Tina snuck one in. The Hazelbrook ladies killed it in the Pennants! Jean asked Rod if he had any old bowls bags, because Mal's Parramatta bag broke. He said he does but they sell new bags. Even better! We came in later for Melbourne Cup. Jean did numerology and came up with number 9. She bet on two that had names of 9, two that had barriers adding to 9 and horse number 9. Closest she got was fourth. The boys gave Mal a Club Lawson shirt 👕. Club Lawson - we feel rich!

Today, Sunday we understand there is bowls at Club Lithgow. Yesterday we went to Lithgow Workers so today we look forward to a nice game. We parked our van outside while we bowled. The Supervisor let us park it there overnight. When we got there we met some bowlers. Cheryl, Lyn, Dennis, Les, Peter and Mal. Cheryl introduced Jean to 96 year old Fay who is the Singles Champion. It's a decent sized clubhouse. With a 1935 foundation stone. Outside a nice seating area has umbrellas. Cheryl told us lots of players are at a tournament today so we might not have enough for a game. Either way Peter and Danni said they'd roll up with us. Today they have a uniform competition McMurtrie which is 18 ends of three-bowl pairs. There are three greens. Two grass And one synthetic. It's the Tom.Wade Memorial Green. Paid for by NSW Government. It has impressive signage. And good advertising on the seats. There's a small five-rink grass green. It's the Riv Achurch Memorial Green. We were on the synthetic. It has a nice park next door with a rotunda. Jean and Danni played together. Danni said she always Skips which made Jean happy. They played Peter and Mal. Mal started well. Jean just missed out with one on the brink. Jean was on the money. She did it again. Mal drove and took all their bowls out. They were five down then he put one in for second. Every now and then he got shot but he gave away five shots! Jean enjoyed playing against Peter. He was talkative, positive and funny which she loved! He's been unwell so it's great to see him back on the green. She also liked that almost every end she was in the count like at Workies yesterday. Mal and Peter were 13 shots behind then won the last four ends and ended 15 to 18. We came in for a 🍸 together. Danni sat outside to watch the McMurtrie bowlers. Then Stan came over to say gidday. Mal reckons we've met before. After she published and sent off the blog, Mal called Jean to take a photo of him with President Garry. Lithgow City - a good game (for Jean)

We're a week away now from Uncle Donny's 90th. There are two bowling clubs in Lithgow. Today we've stopped finally for a game at Lithgow Workers. We were running late so Jean rang the club and spoke with David wo said " Come on down! " We sat and chatted with Glenn, David, Mal, Trevor, Neil and Mick. They told us most of their members are at Goulburn today. It's a very big club in a city. Underneath is a big indoor/outdoor area. There are two plastic synthetic greens. One was closed. We were on the left green. It's called the Memorial Green which is nice. There were fourteen so two pairs and triples. Jean and Mick Played Klaus and Ken Mal and Treasurer Neil. Were against Trevor and Stephen. Jean told Mick about her sixth end come good thing but first end she did two gooduns. Then Mal scored shot - just! Jean was happy. In the first half she said. " I'm in the count every end! " A good day. Jean was bowling well. Jean couldn't get over to Mal's rink to photograph his bowls. She managed to get him with second shot after he took the kitty. Mal lost and Jean won. Jean and Mick also won the day. They gave us a hat to remember them by. They wanted to give us a group photo. We loved that idea! Lithgow Workies - a great group.

Molong is just a hop, step and a jump from Manildra where we've been staying so we popped in to have a rollup there. We were told when we were at Yeoval that Molong got destroyed in a flood . They are still recovering. They have free camping so we're camped here. The club is not open as it's being re-built. We might be able to roll up. Just after we parked the van we met Narelle. She told us Friday night they have Brag Bowls. We told her we're up for that! We peeked inside through the window to see the repairs. Outside the club are seats with memorials. In the grounds is a children's playground. They seem to be big on memorials. There's a memorial garden. For past members with individual memorials throughout. There are two nice grass greens. We played on the outside rink. We were only going to get a game if regulars didn't show up. In fact we got distracted and arrived late. They were already underway. Narelle told us a lot of the people who play aren't bowlers. They just come for the fun. They seem to have uniforms. We saw Narelle. She said she'd arranged for us to roll up with Sarah and Steve who were practising for the State Mixed Pairs qualifying rounds being held here tomorrow. We were getting flogged and finally got two. Mal snuck one in. And again. Jean raced down to photograph here three shot bowls before the boys bowled. She's glad she did because Steve stole shot! We didn't score but we're pretty sure they beat us something like 25 to 10. We think they'll qualify well tomorrow! We stayed for the sausage sizzle. It was late when we finished so we dashed off to get some takeaway Chinese for dinner. We met Sarah and Steve there. We asked if they are confident. Steve said they've won the State Mixed Pairs before. Molong - a rollup with champions.

We found out Manildra has social bowls on Wednesday. We were very happy we could make it for a game finally! Unfortunately Jean rang the club to find out what time. She was told it is ladies and they've all gone away to play in a game somewhere else - so no game today! We came for a rollup and were all alone! After a while Graham turned up - then Margaret. We got a peek inside. Jean snuck a photo of Margaret and Graham. Graham told Jean the club will be open tomorrow at 3pm so we can meet others. We'll come back for that. Actually once we do Manildra, you can see from our trip map that we've done all of western NSW ( and Western Qld [pink ones]) so only the East to do now. There's a nice shaded verandah by the green. The club has just one grass green. It was named for Reg Hughes in 2002. Mal took his turn. " It's pretty quick. " He said. Jean had two shots then Mal stole it! Jean concentrated on her shot. It was pretty fast. It took Jean a while to get the weight. Then she did! Then she put in a miraculous bowl! She said " I think now quick greens suit me! " We finally did a good head. We both had shot a couple of times. She thinks Mal already had it but Jean took the kitty to Mal's bowl. Jean thinks she won! We came back Thursday arvo to meet some bowlers for a drink. Greg came out to say gidday. He's the Greenkeeper's brother. Sam, Wilbur and Ian had a rollup. We saw some very good bowls put down. We went back to the caravan to prepare for our rollup tomorrow at Molong. Manildra - just a little win for Jean!

We're headed east from Hillston for Jean's Uncle Donny's 90th birthday party in Windsor Sydney. We've stopped in Yeoval for a rollup as they don't have social bowls today. We're staying at the Royal Hotel in Yeoval. Out the back. We met bowls life member Tommy at the pub. At the pub there's an impressive array of paintings of the regulars. Tommy is up there. Top, fifth from the left. Then Yeoval Bowls Club President Barry turned up at the pub. He recognised our bowls shirts and introduced himself. Jean's been in touch with a member on Messenger to say we'd be here today. They told us there was a wake on at the club. It was in full swing when we arrived in the afternoon. It was packed. A lady at the bar introduced us to Golly the Greenkeeper who was at the funeral. He opened the mat/jack box for us. There are two good-looking grass greens. They are a bit long (the grass) so it will be slow. We liked the Frank O'Halloran Green. Jean went out in front of the mourners. It was hard to tell which direction bowls would land. It took all our muscles. It was close. Mal was a little frustrated. He got some in there. Mal had shot. Jean put her bowl down. It went left, then right, then left again. It took the kitty back for three. Mal hadn't done a good shot for a while. He said " I can't bowl on this! " Jean sent his bowl back eight times. Then he came to the party! Golly asked what we thought about the green. Jean told him about her wandering bowl that took the kitty. He said : " You worked it out then! " We came back to the pub for a meal. (Forgot to buy steak and no supermarket here!) We had a nice chat with the publican and good food. Yeoval - we can bowl on any surface!

We've left the West and are on our way East for Jean's Uncle Donny's 90th. We stopped in to Condobolin Sports Club for a rollup. It's a nice clubhouse. We're told it's been refurbished over the last ten years. Next, and last, is the bar. Paula came out and explained there's no power as their board is being updated. We met Viv (Richards), Paula and Kristin. The guys at Hillston told us to be careful. " You don't say 'Condobolin' you say 'Condo'! " There were sports cartoons on the window. We liked the bowling kangaroo! There was an old bowling club. The Sports Club was opened in 2010. Mal met bowler Max. They chatted for ages about bowlers they both know and Max's mates at Ettalong. There are two pristine-looking grass greens. The front one is named after a bar manager who was a full-on St George fan. We played on the other unnamed green. Jean had a go. She was upset and swearing because she couldn't put a good bowl down. Mal was doing fine which annoyed her even more. Mal claimed three. Jean was sure it was only two. " Mine weren't that far off! " She cried. At last Jean managed a couple. Not too close! The closer Mal got the crankier Jean got! She tried unsuccessfully to take him out! Mal suggested " Make this the last end? " Jean replied " Not until I do a good bowl! " She doesn't usually do as she's told! We came in for a drink in the air-conditioning. Condo - the people you meet!

We left Hillston early this morning so we could arrive at Lake Cargelligo Bowling Club by 11am for the Chicken Run bowls. The first person we met was Steve who is the Greenkeeper. Barkeep Renee put our names down. She introduced us to gun bowler Denise. It's a nice little clubhouse. Kasey looked after the draw. Peter, one of the past Presidents,  came and sat with us for chat. There is a Foundation Stone from 1983. The clubhouse was opened a year later. There are two greens - one up top which looks to be out of action. It's being re-dressed. And one down below. The Ron 'Spike' Delahunty Green. He's one of the former Presidents. Tennis balls mark Jack in the ditch. Golf balls mark rink boundaries. There were two games of three-bowl triples. There was lots of noise. Everyone was having a whale of a time! Otto, Ted and Jean Played Peter, Mal and Bev. Mal and Jean were opposite Seconds. Jean had second shot just behind Mal but he took her out with his third bowl. She got him back but it got knocked out! Ted said " We've gotta get a couple to avoid the nudie run! " Jean did it. Mal had two on the kitty until Otto put the kitty and Mal's toucher in the ditch. Despite winning only four ends, Ted's (Jean's) team won 10 to 9. We had to come in before 1pm for the raffles! Bev found Jean an old Lake Cargelligo WBC badge for her hat. They brought us out some nibblies. We won the raffle but had to give most of it away as we've no room in the caravan. Lake Cargelligo - a relaxed but noisy game!

Hillston is our last club in Western NSW. Jean's Dad's Aunty Doey used to own a pub here, where she stayed as a kid, so we're very pleased to come to Hillston Exies for a bowl. There are two bars: The Workers' Bar and the Sports Bar where the bowlers go. There's a proud Honour Board. Their Fives and Sixes won Pennants in 2005 and 1011. We met Rip the greenkeeper who said the back green just got refurbished. He does all the gardens and the beer taps. We sat for a chat with the boys: Greg, Mick, Roger, Noel, Ade, Mal and Darryl. There's a relaxing outdoor area. Right next door is the tennis courts. And the footy oval is behind. There are two grass greens. The back green is still out of action. We bowled on the side green. Normally they go out and just bowl but there are enough for two games of pairs today. Bowls was supposed to start at 1pm. They started to wander out at 1:30. Ade and Jean Played Mal and Darryl. Jean struggled. Her bowls went everywhere! Mal sorted it ot quickly. They have a rule: After four ends they come in for a beer, get another one to take out, then do the last four ends. Jean said " That doesn't work for me. I only come good after six ends! " Greg said " We're very social here! " After the game we went to The Clubhouse Hotel to ask about Jean's Aunty. He said she likely owned the other pub - Tattersals. Hillston - a little game and lots of beers!

We're stopping a couple of days in Griffith. Initially we stayed at Lake Wyangan but then we came into town to the caravan park so we could play bowls at Griffith Exies Sports today - Thursday. It's a decent sized clubhouse - though the parent club - the Griffith Exies is huge! The ladies from the bar unlocked the gate on Wednesday so we could check out the green. We met Rod the greenkeeper and LT. There are two synthetic greens. It's a plastic synthetic. The Les Foote Green. The sign changes to say which direction to play in. The first people we met were Laurie and his wife Debbie. Rob looked after the money. They put out nice food for after the game. With mini sausage rolls. We played three-bowl triples but after each seven ends we swapped positions. It was Rob, Jean and Ollie. Against Tony Macaroni. Angelo and Kevin. They were Italian so Jean practised her lingo with them. " Io parlo Italiano un po! " They said she was good though broken! Bruna, Mal and Ros Played John, Ben and Robert. Jean was right over on the other green so had to run to get a shot of Mal's good bowl. Jean waited a few ends to do a good bowl. Jean had a Resting Toucher but it got touched out (really truly!) Lots of running for Jean to get Mal's bowls. Jean's game was close. Mal won his game. We didn't win the money or the raffle but we had a great time! Mal wanted a photo with John because he's the Vice-president. Griffith - we loved the format.