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We're only in Nanango two nights at the showground so we miss out on their social day. So we came for a rollup. We arrived and walked all around the grounds to find mats and jacks. Alas there were none. In a happy coincidence President Dave pulled up just as we walked around the front. (Dave and Mal) We chatted for a while and found out we'd just missed Kingaroy social Day. A few minutes later greenkeeper Rod turned up. He was here for a rollup. The club has two nice grass greens - one on the left. We played on the right hand side. Dave got us mats and jacks and we started our rollup. We told Rod we were impressed with the greens. Jean took first blood with two. Mal then got one, Jean then got four, one and three to win the ten we played up to. Two ladies, mother and daughter Kathy and Sharon came to watch. Jean asked if they were bowlers. They said no but Kathy said she was interested in joining and learning to play. . Rod suggested she turn up at 12 on Tuesday to ask for coaching. Jean and Mal gave Kathy a bit of coaching. She did two ends and got it on the last bowl. Nanango - we missed the social game but had a nice rollup.

Mal rang Yarraman yesterday to find out there's bowls this morning and put our names down. It's about 50 minutes from Kilcoy where we're staying. It started at 9 and we had a long way to drive so we got up at 6:30 and arrived before everyone else. We liked the statue out the front. It's really in the country. There are cows next door. And an old sulky in the grounds. The little clubhouse is nice. And the outdoor area looks well-used. Robyn turned up around 8:45 and opened up. Mal walked to the pool to find a loo. Jean sat and chatted with Robyn, Rod, Nancy and Ailsa. The shirts have pine trees and horses. Yarraman is the Indigenous name for horse and the region is famous for Hoop Pine forests. Jean played lead in a triples game for Robyn with Jenny (Jenny, Jean and Robyn) Against Ailsa, John and Eunice. Mal played lead for Ron. Against Nev and Glenn. Only two rinks played. By end three Mal started to work it out. The triples game swapped places after six ends. Jean went Skip. Jean drove and took out their shot for five. She went down to take a photo of her good bowls but John deliberately stood in front then kicked the bowls away. Only the second rude person we've met on the trip! A couple of ends later, after swapsies, John got the mat and made a long end because they were down 16 to 5. Jean and Robyn nailed it. John had a shot on the kitty and Jean really wanted to take him out. She missed. Mal had to measure for shot. Down. Jean's team won by nine, Mal's lost by five. We came inside for sandwiches and drinks. We stopped at the Yarraman pub on the way home for Mal to get some beer. We saw the woodmen. Yarraman - great hospitality!

We arrived yesterday in Kilcoy. Jean drove to the bowls club to find out they have bowls this morning. She put our names down for 9am. The first people we met were Trudy and Pattie who took the money. Then we met Lyn, Pauline and Ann who did the draw. They were trying to work out what Mal's name was. The club is nice and quaint. It has nice pics. Some history And a collection of club badges. Jean had a chat with Michael (Grumpy) about some NSW clubs - including many in Wollongong, where he lived - 5 k from Jean's parent's place. We've played at many of them. There was a singles championship on when we arrived. We arrived late because Jean couldn't find her phone. She ran back to the caravan three times. Mal rang it and Jean could see it on her watch but couldn't find it. She said "We have to go. You'll have to take photos and I'll write notes on paper" Jean chatted with the ladies and told them why we were late. Mal walked in with Jean's phone. He said "It was in the fridge in the car!" All the ladies kept saying to Jean "Have you looked in the fridge lately?" Trudy introduced us and told everyone she'd read about us and our trip in 'The Bowler '. It's fours. Mal played skip for Bill, Neil and Lyn. (Bill, Lyn, Neil and Mal) Against skip Jenny, Sharon and Janis with Jean as Third. (Janis, Jenny, Jean and Sharon) There's only one grass green. It's quite nice. There were three games played. First three ends Jean's team drew well and we're up 3 to 5 shots each end. Mal came in each time and took kitty. His team ended up 7 - zip after three ends. He said "Nothin' like playing against a bunch of draw bowlers!" He had to work hard. Later Jean's team had two then Mal came in and took second. Still, Jean was in there. Jean kept drawing and Mal tried to take her out. The girls did their drawing best and it was too much for Mal. Jean's team won the money. We got our green fees back. It was Pam's and Joe's birthday this week so we came inside for birthday cake after the game. Patty presented us with club badges. They said the main industries in Kilcoy are logging and dairy. Hence on the badge are a cow and a log. Kilcoy - Mal played valiantly but alas, to no end!

Jean's been in touch with Lowood club via Messenger. They told her they have Barefoot Bowls on Sunday with a sausage sizzle. We drove out from Marburg where we're staying and arrived two hours early. When we Got there there was a semi-final on. the boys told us it was Dad and Grandad against grandson - and a ring-in. It's a quaint little country clubhouse. We went to the bakery for some food. When we came back we met Di (Grandma) and Secretary Peter who used to live in Charnwood ACT. We found out the older generation won the semi. The club is the Lowood Plovers. Jean just told a lady at South Tweed that she loves Plovers. They have one grass green the Ron Krause Green. Ron was a greenkeeper who kept the grass long - like a lawn. The current greenkeeper is a young player who was unemployed. He works a couple of days a week and the green is lovely. The boys had a little rollup beforehand. There were two games - one triples and one pairs. We skipped triples. Jean was with young Corbin and his Grandfather Peter. And Mal skipped young Callum and his Dad Allan. It was pretty clear from the start that Peter's purple bowls would be the stars of the show. We came inside at half time for a sausage. Peter gave us some stubby holders with the plover on them. When we came back out Mal's team caught up a little. It was a bit lopsided. Peter was a good bowler who coached grandson Corbin. Callum and Allan were both novices. Many, many times Mal's team was down 5 or 6. Mal would come in and cut it down to one. Jean won 23 to 7. They drew player numbers out of a hat. Jean won some chocolates. Lowood - a lopsided win for Jean.

We're only in Beaudesert one night. We're on our way to Jean's sister Roslyn's 50th birthday party on Heron Island end of June. Jean's been in touch with the club via Messenger and was told there's no bowls on Friday so we decided to go for a rollup. We arrived 1:30 and met Mick and Shannon. They told us lots of members come around 3pm Friday for a rollup. We said we'd wait for that. Mick introduced us to Brian who's the President of Gold Coast Bowls. We sat and chatted with him about his work and the live-streaming they do. Brian said he read about our trip in 'The Bowler'. Who knew someone wrote about us! The clubhouse is nice. Mick said it's "an old-fashioned club". We sat and waited for arrivals and had drinks with the boys - including the greenkeeper. Mick tended the bar. Club Chairman Doug popped in for a chat. The back green was out So we played on the front green. It's the Ron Newton Green. Not many people came. Mal couldn't wait any longer. Jean took out Mal's bowl for shot then Mal took kitty for two. We did a few ends then came back inside for one last drink. Brian told us we can park the caravan here with power and water and a toilet. We said we'd do that on our way back down and come on a Saturday to watch them play Pennants. Beaudesert - nice club, nice people, nice greens.

We're only in Ipswich one day, especially so we can play at Goodna, which we missed when we came through a couple of weeks ago. We rang and left two messages yesterday but took off from Beaudesert very early to arrive with enough time to park the caravan and hang out the washing. We arrived at 8am for a nine o'clock start. We met Tim, Kathy and Dave in the office. Chairperson Thelma came and introduced herself. She said she'd been President for twelve of the nineteen years she's bowled and now was elected Chairperson. The clubhouse is nice, and small inside. Jan told Jean the club has been damaged by floods twice. The first was in January 2011 when they lost the clubhouse when the flood came in from the north. A new clubhouse was built but February 2022 it went underwater with a flood from the south. The concrete floor bears witness. The club has two greens. One looks like it's being refurbished. We played on the side green. Mal played with Brad (Brad and Mal) Against Brian and Jan in a Pairs game. Tony, Jean and Clive (Tony, Jean and Clive) Played three-bowl triples against Tim, 96 year old Brian and Tony. Thelma told Jean Brian is one of the founding members of the club. We sat on seats, like other clubs we've been to, donated by members. Tony told Jean that, because of the flood , they haven't been able to do anything with the green. It's a bumpy old thing. Don't know where bowls will end up. Jean managed to put one on the kitty but the other two ran over the bumps and stayed out wide. Clive's team was bowling really well. We had the mat nearly every end. Thelma said "I should have had my photo taken with my uniform instead of my jacket!" Jean was happy to oblige. Mal said "This green is doing my head in! That's the closest I've been all game!" There were two games - one pairs and one triples. There were also two championship games on. Jean asked Mal if he won. He laughed "No! We came back from the dead though! It was 17 to 20. We came inside for drinks and presentations. One of the guys Barry Butler gave Mal a photo he took outside on the green. He doesn't know how to spell Mynah! Goodna - Jean had a good win

Yesterday when we were at Kingscliff Beach we asked Terry again where we should play Wednesday. He suggested South Tweed and pointed to Dave, in the South Tweed shirt. Dave called the number on his phone for Jean to get our names down. We arrived 8:20 for a 9am start. There were already a few people there. We met Peter in the office. Jean stole his pen then brought it back. He came out and gave her a club pen. They are 'The Sharks'. It's on their Pennants stickers. And the seats. The club has three nice greens that were being rolled as we arrived. Mal thought he could get a beer. Alas, no. Mal played lead for our mate Dave who we met yesterday. Against Jean and Kim. We played on the Jack Bishop Green out the front. It's a nice-looking grass green. Jean's bowls and Kim's grey bowls started out well. Then Mal took over. Jean went crook on Mal for stealing her shot bowl. Jean and Kim were down lots and Jean put in a perfectly positioned bowl. Alas, Kim accidentally took it out. Went down six! Mal threw a long end. Kim asked Jean "Why do you do short ends when you play long ends like that?" It was a tight game. Jean and Kim were ahead for a long time then Dave And Mal got a six. Dave played some very tricky bowls but Jean bowled exceptionally well and Kim was on the money. Kim and Jean got up 23 to 17. We won 13 ends but that's not enough to win. We came inside for drinks and thanked our skips for fantastic bowls. (Dave, Jean, Mal and Kim) The bowls area is nice. There's a nice memorial to a former member. Peter did presentations. He mentioned our trip and wished us well. Jean and Kim were two points off the money. South Tweed - yay! Jean beat Mal.

When we were at Cabarita Beach yesterday Terry told us he's a member at Kingscliff Beach and he rang Jenny to get our names down for 9am pairs. It's a big (long) club and its nice inside. Mal stood and looked out over The Pacific . The club has three beautiful greens that were being rolled as we arrived. There's also a memorial garden. When we arrived we met Jenny in the office who explained the format. We told her about our trip. Then we met Dave from Jean's club Weston Creek. We played together - pairs again (yay!) We played on two different greens We played first game against Bob and Jennifer. Jean was having so much fun she forgot to take photos of our good bowls. Despitethe photo we won 19 to 1. Second game was on the Artie Booth green. We played Barry and Laurel. They were tougher competition. Barry is Games Director at Cabarita who Jean spoke with by phone yesterday. We bowled well but they bowled better. Mal bowled like a champion. To use a Malism, he "Bowled like a man repossessed ". So many times they had several shots. Mal came in and drew beautifully or drove them out. Jean said "You were the star today!" Jean struggled a little with weight, nevertheless she bowled consistently. We lost the game but won on ends 6 to 5. Not enough to win the money! Kingscliff Beach - we tried our best.

We left Jean's niece Melanie's place in Tyalgum this morning. We arrived at Chindera and Jean immediately rang Cabarita Beach Bowls Club to get a game. The guy she spoke to said we were an odd team but that he'd ring back if he could get another team. 5 minutes later he did. We arrived and Ken at the desk took our money. Barry looked after the cards with Terry and Laurie. (Terry, Laurie and Barry) There seems to be a Services relationship The clubhouse is a decent size With a nice outdoor area by the green. There are three lovely grass greens. We played on rink 2 on the Barry Murnane Green Behind the clubhouse. We played together against Terry and Laurie who we met earlier. Laurie wore a shirt from Lismore that they sold to raise money after the floods. Terry and Laurie were good bowlers. We often had shot but they drove it off us. It was fun (though frustrating). Mal did a drive way out wide. Jean lost interest after that. "You can't make a mistake like that when you play bowlers this good!" We dropped a five and lost 17 to 3. Ken asked Jean "Were they nice to you?" Jean replied "No!" He said "No, they never are." Jean said, "They were only not nice for bowling, in every other way they were very nice!" We went in downhearted at half time for tea and bickies. Mal had to ring the wrong bias bell. We started our next game against Tasmanians who were quite unfriendly. We didn't include their photo. We played ok, though the initial score didn't show it. We were down the whole game. President Bob came and introduced himself. We were way behind but won 12 to ten after we threw short ends and won the last five ends.. President Bob called that we weren't actually good enough to win but called Jean up to give her a club badge. Jean also won $20 in the money draw. Cabarita Beach - a new badge for Jean's hat.

Jean contacted Condong Bowls Club yesterday via Messenger to discover they have Saturday afternoon Bowls. She asked if they could put our names down. At the Tyalgum pub last night Jean told everyone we were going to play bowls at 'Condom'. They were easily amused. When we arrived at Condong we met Jim who took our money and informed us it might be pairs today. The sign out the front says "Home of 'The Crushers'". That's from the sugar cane crushing plant next door. It's a small club with paid bar staff. Their Bowls shirts have sugar cane on them - and their names. Ben told us it shows the route to the club. Mal chatted with Ben who had an injury and just got back in to bowls. Ben told us when he was a young bloke he got a world record for a 53 hour game of triples. They raised money for charity. They played on the front green - The JR Sam's green. Apparently he's still with us - in his 90s. They have a tournament named for him. The grass is a bit Patchy in parts. They have an innovative resolution. There's a third green, next to the sugar can pressing mill, that Ben said is "A bit rough ". Norm joined the conversation and pointed out to Jean that South was in the opposite direction to what she thought. Instead we played triples. Just two games. Most of the members were playing Singles on the other green. There were a lot of spectators. It was Leanne (Skinny), Matt (bar staffer) and Ben Against Jean, Norm and Mal. Jean noticed an old emblem on the wall. And the new one on the window. It was tough bowling. We were told it was slow so first end we were all in the ditch. As we went on we all got better - especially Mal. Leanne told Jean the club has no women bowlers. Jean found it hard to find the weight. On the fifteenth end Jean finally worked the weight out. Mal consolidated. End sixteen Jean breathed a sigh of relief. She got it. Norm was having trouble with his bowling arm so he threw it away and changed bowls to good effect. Jean said "Mal played this game all by himself!" The final score was 20 to 12. We won. We sat outside for drinks afterwards. Dave came up and told us about the floods here. He said "I'm the only one who's had a kayak on the green". Ben told us it's a worker's club. He said members did work to renovate the club. They did a good job. Jean liked that. Condong - I guess you can say they got crushed!

Jean's been in touch with Fiona via Messenger about today - triples at Mudgeeraba. (Mudgee-rah-bah). Fiona told us to park the van on the grass. We were 20 metres from the green. We were on our way to visit Jean's niece Melanie at Tyalgum. When we arrived we met Wendy and Chris at the table. We chatted for a while with Verna. They are the Jabirus after a beautiful indigenous bird. Pat showed us her Jabiru shirt with 'M' for Mudgeeraba. We put Jerome in his little house so he could see and hear us. He called us a bit. Jean played lead for Wendy and skip Chris. (Jean, Chris and Wendy) Against Laurie, Anne and Byron. Wednesday is run by the women, though it's mixed. It's three-bowl triples. Four rinks - 24 players - nine men. It's pretty easygoing. If someone bowls into the neighbouring head they get to bowl it again. The club has rwo very nice grass greens. We played on the outside green. There's a film crew parked next door. Green was quick. Jean threw a short end. Big mistake but she got shot. Third end they rolled it long and Jean got three. Jean asked Mal if he was bowling well. He answered short and sharp - "NO!" His team however told Jean he bowled brilliantly. That's how it looked to Jean. Jean checked out Byron's bowls. He bowls wit an arm but even when he didn't he bowled with sevens! We came inside for tea and bickies on end ten. Second half it was clear that Laurie and Jean; and Pat and Wendy were pretty evenly matched but Byron with his scary sevens outbowled Chris. Jean's team lost by heaps, so did Mal's because they dropped a six. Mal loved the characters. Frank his opposing second was very funny. "That bowl is a lawnmower!" (Cutting grass). We came inside for results. No wins but Jean got a new badge for her hat and Mal got a lovely cloth. Jean found a book about the club. Great photos. Tyalgum here we come. Mudgeeraba - a new badge for Jean's hat!

We haven't been to Canungra before. We drove up and down the mountain through beautiful scenery for Wednesday 'Paddle Pop Pairs'. First person we met was Bruce the Greens Manager. (Bruce and Mal) Then we met Wendy the Kitchen Manager who just passed her coaches course. They seem to be 'The Owls'. Ann told Jean Canungra is known by the local indigenous tribe as 'Valley of the Owls' The club had a man from the Show sculpt an owl for them. It's on the shirts. There's a lovely garden in the entryway With a memorial. There's also a nice succulent garden on the wall. The club has one grass green. It's beautiful. It looks and feels like carpet. It's a tiny little clubhouse. The bar has great paintings of bowlers In creams. And couple of old bowlers. Bruce took our $10. Jean played with Barry Against Caius from Dublin (in his 5th game) and David. Mal played with Joseph Against Russell and Ann. Jean worked the green out pretty quickly. As did Mal. Jean and Barry did very well. They won 20 to 3. Mal won 19 to 4. We went inside for a cuppa and to select a new paddle pop stick for a new partner and opponents. Jean got Barry again against Bruce and Russell. 2nd game Mal was right into it. Jean started well also. Jean took the kitty back from one to four. Russell took it back then Barry took him out for six. The opposition threw a long end. Jean drew to the T. Jean and Barry had another win. Mal drew. Ann asked Jean if she had a good time. She said "I always have a good time when I bowl well!' Canungra with the owls - we had a hoot!