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We drove unexpectedly to Bairnsdale on Saturday. We went to the Bairnsdale Bowls Club to check it out. It was full of Pennants finals. We decided to come back another day. We came back the next day - Sunday. It's a biggish club with pokies and a bistro. There's a separate area for the bowlers. When we arrived we met Bruce who rolled up with us. Bruce said there used to be four greens. One is left fallow. One green was named after T Sim and A.S. Winter in appreciation. The green out the back was nice. It was great to see grass again after so many synthetics. There's a nice little Croquet clubhouse. The old green was turned into Croquet Lawns. Bruce's Mum Audrey popped down to say hello. Jean put down the first bowl. She did OK - despite two wrong biases. She said "I've done more wrong biases since I started using this bowling arm than I ever did before!" Mal went next. Jean said "You're just showing off!" Then Mal wanted Jean to go first, out of turn, so he could take out her bowls. He just missed. But Mal had the last word. Mal stopped to watch Stephen and Brad who'd come down for a rollup. "These guys are bloody good bowlers!" Mal remarked. Bairnsdale - thanks for the grass!

Jean's been in touch with Jeanette at Warragul Bowls Club. Bowls is on Thursday at 12. However Jeanette messaged Jean while we were at Drouin yesterday to say they will start at 10 due to expected 38 degrees. We caught an early train from Bunyip. We met Jeanette, Ian, Gary at the table. It's a nice little clubhouse. There are three greens with a lovely backdrop. It's a carpet synthetic. The Neil Spencer Green. There are plaques about green installation. We played together. Against Margaret and Bernie. There were six rinks of pairs. Mal started out well. Jean and Margaret got three touchers in a row one end. Eventually we won 16 to 4 even though Mal gave it away four times. Mal and Bill had a talk about crocodiles because Jean was wearing her Weipa shirt. It was getting hot. Already 31 degrees. Our second game was against Brian and David. We only played ten ends. Jean managed to get one close but we got a shellacking 17 to 3. Warragul - too hot for bowls!

Jean's been in touch with Mary at Drouin Bowls club and found out there's social bowls on Wednesday. We rearranged our trip so we could make it for a game. We were going to catch the train from Bunyip but it was 33 degrees and we didn't fancy two 12 minute walks each end. We met Peter who is today's organiser. Margie looked after the money. They already had our names down the bottom. The clubhouse is a nice size. They have a club newsletter. There's a funny trophy for the Indoor Bowls Ladies vs Men Grudge Match. We sat around for a cuppa beforehand. Everyone was so friendly. They all asked about our trip. We played on a nice carpet synthetic. It's been down around three years. It's quick. There's another green out the back that's a little older. The club has a plaque to commemorate the synthetics being installed. There are a mixture of shades. Some nice permanent ones. It was two games of fifteen ends two-bowl triples. Our team was Andy, Jean and Mal. Terry, Richard and Don were first opponents. We were down three and Mal took the kitty to Jean for two. Then Jean drew a pearler and Andy consolidated. They changed it to twelve ends due to heat. We were four up on the last end. Andy and Jean did well. We had five shots then Terry came in and took third. He bowled very well. We won by six. Our second opponents were Neil, Wayne and Dave. Jean said "I'm not doing as well this game!" Then she got shot. It wasn't enough. We went down 23 to 7. Last end we were nine down. We scored four shots. Mal said to Dave "We have four and we're playing our PowerPlay! I've glued all those bowls down!" Dave replied "Yes but you haven't glued down the kitty!" He came down and took the kitty for three. Clean as a whistle! It was hot. We came inside for drinks. Mal had a great chat about fishing in Bermagui. Jean scored some produce. Our last opponents (Dave's team) won the money. We asked for commission. Drouin - bowls with fishermen.

We didn't end up playing in the tournament at Boronia so decided to drive up to Neerim Bowling Club to check it out and roll up. When we got there, Ross, John and Graeme were sitting down after a game of 100-up. They told us they invented the Big Bash format we played at Garfield yesterday. John is the club President. He asked Jean if she wanted to take home a cucumber. We liked the club logo. Jean forgot to take a clubhouse photo when the boys were there so took one through the door. There's a large shade outside. The side garden is pretty. There's one plastic synthetic that's been in since 2017. The boys stayed, watched and chatted with us for a little while. Jean had a go. She was pretty impressed she got shot and that we both had grass worked out. Mal let one go. He just beat Jean. Mal had shot then knocked Jean up. Mal got the last laugh with two. Neerim - just a little rollup and some new friends!

We saw there's a bowling club at Cardinia Waters Retirement. We're a bit uncertain so thought we'd turn up on Pennant day to see if they are playing. On Monday Jean rang John, whose name she found online, to check if it was OK. He said Tuesday is a bit difficult but suggested we come today, Monday, for a rollup before their Thursday Night Triples Final. We got in the car and met John at the green. They use the retirement village clubhouse as their bowls clubhouse. It's very nice. There's a lovely shade structure in front of the green. There's a nice carpet synthetic green. John rolled up with us. He said the club has two Tuesday Pennants teams and one Saturday team. Both the Tuesday teams are in the finals. Given John said most are over 80 that's fantastic! Jean started off. She dis ok. Our heads weren't bad. Mal was eager to show his skills. He was successful. And again. Jean didn't take photos of John's bowls but most often it was John on the kitty, not us! John introduced us to Graeme. He was proud of his club shirt. Everyone started to turn up for the final. We watched for a while. Jean remarked that she'd seen a few retirement villages with a rink or two but none with a beautiful green like this! Cardinia Waters - ah, retirement life!

Jean's been in touch with Damian at Garfield Bowling Club via Messenger. Damian's managed to get us into their Triples Tournament on Sunday. We had time to kill on Saturday so we went to visit the club. We met Richard in the carpark who let us in. He was waiting to be picked up to play Pennants in Neerim. We arrived on Sunday and saw the inside of the clubhouse. We all sat around before the tournament. Gordon organised things. It's a game like Scroungers. Five games of five ends. Here are the rules. We sat and talked with Rick and Peter before The game. Damian came up to say gidday. He's been corresponding with Jean via Messenger and organised us joining the tournament. There's just one synthetic green. Richard said it's been down about seven years. Given that it's in really good nick. Our team was Mal, Jean and Barry. First game was against Des, Gary and Peter. They were from Mordialloc and Boronia. We lost big. There were people here from lots of clubs around The Dandenongs. The bowl gatherers hung nicely at each end. Second game we played Ian, Laughton and Jeffna from Chelsea. Jean finally drew a shot. Mal wasn't doing well. Always narrow. It was a shocker! We lost again. Third game was Cookie, Lexi and Luke from Garfield. Mal finally got the grass! Last bowl. Nobody else within cooee. Barry and Jean had a good end. We won with a seven on the last end, our Power Play which made 14. We won. We came in for lunch and had a pie. Fourth game our opponents were Jan, Malcolm and Ivan from Garfield. Jean did a couple of great bowls with the jack right in the middle until Malcolm moved the kitty back. Barry said "Must've been that pie you had for lunch!" Jean said "It was a really good pie!" We dropped 14 on the last end! Last game it was Steve, Bruce and Adrian from Burden Park. Second time in five games Mal got the grass. But we lost. Zero again on our Power Play. The four teams that played in the finals were all four game winners. Two of them beat us. The guys sat around to watch. We really enjoyed chatting with them about our time in Deniliquin and Deni RSL. We watched the semi. The Burden Park boys won and got to play Des' team which won. Garfield - talk about getting beaten!

We got a message to say that Pakenham has social bowls on Saturday. We booked in to the caravan park on Friday so we could get there bright and early on Saturday. We drove over Friday so that we could put our names down. We came across the little bridge from the carpark. Bowlers Brenda and Julian gave us right of way on the bridge. When we arrived we met Paul who said "No social bowls tomorrow. Pennants are on. " We forgot! It turns out Paul was a plasterer and worked on Parliament House the same time as Mal. Apparently they are The Lions. The clubhouse was closed. We didn't get a very good picture through the window. It's set up nicely for outdoor activity. There are two greens. One outside and one under cover. We rolled up on the under cover green. It's the Jack Banks Green. As usual - named after a man. Jean got going. Jean said "It's not a very good shot but at least I got a shot!" Mal was ready for it. Mal had four then Jean moved the kitty. "Ah, that's better!" Jean said when she drew another. Mal had perfect weight. "I think it's a measure." Cried Mal. "I'm claiming it!" Said Jean adamantly! Mal and Paul then sat around chatting for a while about their fibrosis plastering days at NPH. Under the dome at Pakenham.

After our visit to storm-ravaged Cockatoo we drove over to Yarra Junction to finally get a game of bowls. After all our lonely rollups we really looked forward to it. Jean's been chatting with Elly on Messenger who said she told Bev about us and that we'd be here. We met Bev in the office sorting out Pennants teams. Jean met Ian the President who let us fill up our tank with water. After a while Joy arrived to check in. She can't stay because her power is out until the 17th. We talked about all the downed trees around. The little clubhouse is light and airy. There's a nice photo array of past club functions. Jean bought one of Joy's 'Spicy Plum Sauce' There's a little bird in the garden. It seemed injured. Jerome our cat was very interested in it! There's an old grass green. Left fallow now. The new green is synthetic. The plastic kind. It looks like it's been down a few years. People at Cockatoo told us it's like bowling on concrete. Not so bad we thought. There were plastic snakes on the green. Some looked more snake-like than others. Pete and Alice arrived. Alice will sort out the game we will join today. There were just a few players. We had one game of a triple vs a four. Alice, Bev, Jean and Mal against Reg, Barry and Peter. The green was pretty slick. It took us a few ends to get used to it. We were three down then Mal put one in. End six Jean's first bowl she managed to get shot and kept it. Jean said "Yay! I've remembered how to bowl!" After eight ends we came in for a cuppa. Everyone had had enough so we stopped. We said we'd come back at 3 to play for Pennants practice. We did that. Jean finally met Elly. Mal rolled up with the boys. It was Mal and Adrian one end and Marty (Mal's partner) with Jason on the other. Jean joined in with Howard and Ally against Noel and Ian. Jean did a little better this match. Ron - a life member - came to watch. Elly told Jean Ron is a former President who still does lots for the club. He's a metalworker and made the bowlers on the front of the building. Jean said "I've waited all game for Mal to do a good bowl so I can get a photo!" He did one but the boys decried that. Marty said "He's been all over it. A minute ago he had four on the kitty!" Mal was having a ball! After the game Ian gave Jean a badge for her hat. We went back happy to the caravan. Everyone was so nice to us. Yarra Junction - nice people, good bowls and a great time!

We were staying in a caravan park in Healesville but yesterday afternoon there was a big storm and the power went out across Victoria. We decided to drive the van to Cockatoo Bowling Club while we worked out where to stay. Everything was locked up tight. We're not used to that but guess it's close to the city. We met the greenkeeper Ken who opened the gate and the mat box for us. He said we could park our van out the back. There's just one synthetic green - plastic. With lots of storm debris. We found a clearing spot and got going with our rollup. Initially the green seemed to suit Jean. But then it all went awry. It was Mal's turn. Jean said, "Of course it's Valentines Day so Mal must knock out Jean's shot bowls!" Jean gave up after a few ends but Mal was ages. Jean went to check on him and discovered he'd met a friend. Brian whose Mum lives in Cockatoo is from Alice Springs but has just come from playing bowls in Bungendore near our home in Canberra. The Tennis Club next door shares the facilities. Jean met the President of the Tennis club. He was out with a chainsaw cleaning up the tree that fell on the fence. Cockatoo - no power, no internet but a nice rollup!

We haven't heard back from Yarra Glen about social bowls. We left Healesville bright and early this morning and drove here to check it out. There was nobody around. There are two greens. We were excited to see a grass green. But it was all locked up. There's a synthetic out the back. It's the Peter Nelson Memorial Green. It was very windy and there were leaves all over it. Bill the Treasurer arrived after a while and showed us the mats and Jacks. Al, Chris, Wayne, Ash and Beth came. They are playing away today for mid-week Pennants. It's the second-last game of the season and they are third on the ladder so they'll likely make the Finals. Jean was annoyed she seemed to be getting worse with the stick. Then she scored a shot and Mal took it out. Jean gave Mal a serve about taking the enjoyment out of her game so he stopped trying. He' a thoughtful husband really but that made her even crankier! We'd started our rollup before 9am. By 9:30 it was already 28° with a fierce wind so we packed it in. Jean had the last word though suspected not really. Yarra Glen - cranky Jean questionably bests Mal.

This morning we rolled up at Whittlesea, then took the hour-long drive over to Healesville for a very warm rollup. Jean had been chatting with Ian on Messenger. She'd found out social bowls was on Thursday so we decided to come for a Monday rollup. We asked him if we could park our van at the club (gate was locked). He said he'd have to check with Chairperson Rob about that. We were sweltering in our van up the road when he rang back. We met him at the gate. He opened the clubhouse so we could take a peek inside. There's a plaque about when the Mayor opened the new synthetic green ten years ago. After a while Rob arrived to open the gate for us. We parked the van near the old green. We were so grateful to find a cool spot for our van. Ian told us they only use the old grass green once a year for their big Fours tournament. It's full of leaves at the moment. Rob had been out of contact this morning as he was helping his Mum out in her nursing home. Ian told us about her. Her name is Beryl Ayers and she's 97. They named the original clubhouse after her as she had won over 50 competitions in her time - including state championships. She was still a force to be reckoned with at age 92. The most amazing thing about her is that, in the 1950's, she pulled on a guernsey and played footy for Healesville - unheard of for a woman. It would have been a privilege to meet her. There are a couple of old machines around. An aerator and a roller. The new green is a carpet synthetic. Even though it was 32⸰ crazy Mal and Jean rolled up on it. Jean was glad she had her bowling arm because the sweaty bowls would have been very slippery. She did OK despite the heat. In typical Mal style, he didn't complain. He managed good bowls in the heat. The boys told us the big tree over the green is more than 100 years old! They also told us there's a family of platypus in the creek below the green. We thought we'd go back at dusk and see if we could see them. Healesville - so friendly and accommodating in the heat!

We've been hearing about Whittlesea at a number of clubs so we look forward to coming here. Social bowls day is Thursday so we'll miss that. We'll have a Monday rollup. Google Maps showed green areas all around the club. Must be 20 years old because now it's in the middle of suburbia. We parked our van a street away. It's quite a big club. The outdoor area is great. It seems the club is The Whittlesea Eagles. The scoreboards were nice. In memoriam. There are two greens. One is grass. It was closed unfortunately. The other is carpet synthetic. We asked the bar lady inside about bowls. She said "Go outside and look for Jordan!" We found him. He's the greenkeeper. He got nice, new mat and jacks for us. Jean started our rollup. It was only 10:30 and it was already nearly 30°. Her bad luck followed her. She wasn't doing well (in her view). Mal tried next. He did somewhat better. Jean finally did a bowl she was happy with then Mal knocked it up. Later bowler Clint arrived and he and Jordan sat down for smoko. It was hot. We thought that a good idea. Whittlesea - nah, too hot for bowls.