Maureen, Author at MountainView-Living

Dangerous Scam!

Beware of a scam that I consider to be extremely dangerous. Recently I missed a call from an 02 number. The caller left a message, and when I dialled my message bank, I was greeted by an automated, computerised voice, announcing with some urgency that an affidavit had been filed in my name for a tax fraud, and my house was under surveillance. I was given a number to phone, or have my lawyer phone, with an added warning of urgency. The number even showed up as from Canberra. All very official. I immediately checked the number on Reverse Lookup and found that other people had experienced the same call, and identified it as a scam about tax evasion. I then filed the number neatly in my Spam file in the contacts list on my phone.

I know the steps to take to check a number and to file it in a Spam Folder, but for some residents, the call could spark fear, panic, and even life-threatening health issues. The very least that could happen is the unsuspecting person could make the call to the number and fall victim to the scam that this is.

I tend not to answer calls from numbers I don’t recognise and wait for the caller to leave a message. If the caller has a valid reason for calling me, they will leave a message. Spammers and Scammers tend not to. Another way of identifying possible ‘spam’ or ‘scam’ calls is by the number of rings. Spammers and Scammers will usually only wait for 3-4 rings before hanging up and moving on to the next call.

If you are concerned about any call you receive, check with a family member or friend, and NEVER ever give any personal or banking details over the phone unless you know the person and trust that it is a legitimate reason.

There are a few things you can do to guard against scammers:

Refuse to give details over the phone
Check the number on the Reverse Lookup website, or ask someone to do it for you
If the caller says they are from your bank, don’t give any details but ask for a contact name and tell them you’ll call them back.
- Look up the phone number for your bank and call them.
- Tell them about the call and ask if they had called.
Learn to be very suspicious about calls you get
Don’t worry about offending the caller – if they are legitimate, they’ll understand

It pays to be suspicious in this technological age

The Recipe Book

Cooking! The Chore We Either Love or Hate….

I have always found the hardest part of cooking is just figuring out what to cook. Day in and day out, we have to come up with ways of tempting our taste buds with something different, because let’s face it, the old standard of steak and three veg. can only go so far. Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with that if it’s your favourite food. For almost 70 years my dear old dad fronted up each night for his staple diet of steak and veg., without ever tiring of it. None of that fancy pasta stuff for him. And I’m not sure if it was anything to do with my mum’s early attempts at cooking or not, but he always ordered his steak ‘to look like it had been nailed to a tree in a bushfire‘. Perhaps he’d grown to like it that way, or perhaps he really did prefer it to be well done – and I mean ‘REALLY‘ well done.

Let’s Share The Love … of those old recipes

If you’ve got a favourite recipe that’s been handed down through the ages, or one you’ve copied from a magazine in the Dentist’s Office, how about sharing it here? We could all do with a bit of variety in our lives, especially when it comes to cooking and eating.

One of the recipes that was handed down through my family was Grandma’s omelette recipe. With ten hungry mouths to feed when times were tough, Grandma knew how to stretch the budget. With just an egg and a slice of bread for each person, she could whip up a very filling meal. Two generations and a lot of years later, I would use that old recipe to whip up a tasty breakfast or lunch for my family (and occasionally even a quick dinner after a long day at work). Quick, easy and reasonably nutritious – and the family loved it.

Grandma’s Omelette (serves 1 or 2)

Adjust the ingredients depending on the number of serves: 1 egg and 1 slice of bread for each person.

Ingredients:

2 eggs
2 slices of bread (with crusts removed)
season to taste

Method:

Break the eggs into a mixing bowl
Tear the bread into small pieces and place in the bowl with the eggs
Add seasoning
Use a fork to beat the eggs and bread – you don’t have to be too fussy with this – a few lumps are okay
Heat a lightly greased frying pan on a medium heat
Pour half the mixture into the pan – it will look like a pancake
Cook until bubbles form around the edge of the mixture and it is reasonably ‘set’ in the middle
Flip the mixture over and cook the other side
Repeat with the remaining mixture

Enjoy…..

Notes:

You can add any ingredients you have on hand, including chopped onion, tomato, ham, even cheese (my favourite). Mix the additional ingredients in after beating the eggs and bread.

Spam!

Spammers – the callers we love to hate!

We all hate getting those annoying phone calls, at the most inopportune times, from people trying to sell everything from Life Insurance to raffle tickets, but there’s not much we can do about it…. or is there?

I’ve found a really useful way of dealing with these calls. And don’t get me wrong here – the calls from Charities trying to squeeze an extra dollar out of us for a good cause are the exceptions; the rest are just annoying.

I know you can go on the ‘Do Not Call’ list, but we all know what a joke that is. It’s like a Green Light to every spammer on the planet as it identifies your number as a legitimate phone number, and spammers know every trick in the book for getting lists of phone numbers. I kid you not, there are businesses that make a lot of money out of selling lists of phone numbers.

I’m going to share with you what has worked for me. It takes a little bit of time, but it is so worth it.

Create a contact in your Contacts list called ‘Spam’
When you answer a call and it is someone trying to sell you something that you just couldn’t possibly live without (according to them), but you obviously don’t need or want, immediately add the number to your ‘Spam’ contact
Keep on doing this until you can’t fit another number in – then create Spam 2 etc. My original list is pretty long, but still going, so you shouldn’t really need to create a second one… hopefully.
You might want to put Charities in a separate Contact called ‘Charities’ so that you can choose whether to answer or not

You don’t answer a call because you suspect it might be spam based on the fact that you don’t recognise the number, and decide to wait and see if the caller leaves a message, and trust me, they usually don’t.

The next steps explain what I do with those calls…

Write the number down
Find out who the number belongs to by going to Reverse Lookup Australia
Type in the number – chances are you won’t get a result, but if you look down the page you will see the comments made by people who have also taken calls from that number – and 99% of the time – it’s spam
Add the number to your Spam folder

When you get a call from one of those numbers, it will show up on your phone as ‘Spam’, and you simply ignore it

Simple – but effective!

Who Is Responsible?

When something goes wrong and we are faced with an expensive repair job, the first question most of us ask is ‘Who Is Responsible?’ While most situations are easily determined as either ‘Owner’ or ‘Owner’s Corporation’, there are some areas that aren’t quite that easy and lie in that murky area between the two.

So next time something goes wrong and you’re not sure who is responsible, check out the Who’s Responsible Guide. Or, ask the Village Manager.

Retirement Re-Badged

Aveo China Campus

Being part of a Retirement Village can have it’s benefits – beyond the obvious: like-minded neighbours; peaceful and quiet living; security of having retired neighbours watching out for your unit while you travel the world; no gardens to maintain – lawns to mow – pool to clean (someone else takes care of all of these).

If you’re in an Aveo Village, retirement just got a whole lot better!

Being part of an Aveo Retirement Village has an extra bonus – reciprocal visits to the China Campus.

The inaugural exchange happened in October 2016, and I’m proud to say I took the challenge and signed up for a two-week tour of the village near Shanghai. Residents of the Aveo Group of retirement villages in Australia were eligible to participate in the inaugural trip and 20 residents from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast opted to blaze the trail for future travellers. Aveo plan to take 4 groups each year, as well as arranging for our Chinese counterparts to visit our fair shores and see how we define retirement here in Australia.

My limited knowledge of China and all things Chinese had me believing that we would be teaching the Chinese residents a lot about being active in our later years. We were asked to bring equipment and expertise to teach the gentle art of Lawn Bowls, and I assumed we would be teaching a lot more than that while we were there. I couldn’t have been more wrong! Yes, we did take some Bowls, and yes, those with expertise did teach the finer points of using them, but that’s (almost) where our part of the exchange ends. We did manage to teach our hosts the words and actions of ‘Give Me A Home Among The Gum Trees’, but more about that later.

A very successful cultural exchange, on the croquet ground? Oh well, it worked.

As perfect hosts, our Chinese counterparts welcomed us with open arms and treated us like royalty during our stay.

The Chinese residents couldn’t have done more to ensure our stay was perfect in every way

My view of retirement until then was that retirement is passive. It’s something that happens to you at the end of a usually busy career. It’s when you start working your way through the long list of books you stockpiled over the busy years, with the words ‘for retirement reading’ embossed on each cover, even though the History of Russia will be ancient history by the time I actually get to read it.

Retirement is what we look forward to, but worry about finding enough to do to keep us occupied. It’s about winding down; taking it easy; being a lot more sedentary.

But that isn’t how it is in China. There are courses for those who may not have had the opportunity to go to College, and dedicated classrooms and teachers ensure that learning is successful. Some residents are studying English, while others master Calligraphy, Mahjong, or Music. The sounds and signs of practice can be heard and seen throughout the campus. The melodic notes from a piano or flute float down from an upper floor window and calligraphic signs adorn the walls and halls of the learning areas.

The evenings are for gentle exercise in the Quadrangle in fine weather, or the Community Hall if the skies open up. The days are for the full rigour of the gym under the expert guidance of a personal trainer. And the residents are there: in the quad gaining strength of mind and body with every disciplined but poised movement; in the gym toning muscles and ensuring flexibility in the aging process; in the pool pushing laps; in the dance studio learning the ancient art of traditional Chinese dance or ballroom dancing; in the library stretching the mind; in the craft room creating exquisite masterpieces to share with friends. Participation is active and interactive. Retirement isn’t a passive phase that happens to them, it is a new stage of active learning and growth. Even ballroom dancing is undertaken with skill and precision and there were many talented couples tripping the light fantastic on the dance floor on our first night on the campus.

And the concert at the end of our tour was spectacular! Choirs sang, musicians played ancient instruments, and Mr Bridge Lee gave a very professional rendition of Santa Lucia and Moscow Nights. And the Aussies? Well, what else would you expect? ‘Give Me A Home Among The Gum Trees’, complete with actions, was the order of the day (hastily put together on the day, I might add), and was very well received by all. Our Chinese hosts loved it! and even requested an Encore after our Farewell Dinner the night before we left. Our Aussie host, Julie, was a bit ‘over it’ after the third or fourth time of seeing us all up on the big screen in the Quadrangle, belting out every last note of the song, but I suspect just a little of that stemmed from the homesickness the song evoked in her, having been away from our fair shores for more than just a few years while overseeing the setting up of the China Campus.

I came back to our village with a new perspective on retirement. I want to re-write the script. There is no need for the retirement phase to be the final journey when it could so easily be reversed to become a new beginning.

The view from my balcony – and this is winter!

What could we achieve in our later years if we adopt a philosophy of learning new skills: A second language; Writing a novel; Learning to play an instrument? Anything is possible – we are limited only by our imagination. We just have to change our mindset from master to student, and actively engage in learning.

The difference between East and West is no more clearly defined than in the learning centres of the China Campus. The emphasis is on learning, training and discipline.

Happy Retirement!

Photos of China

Photos from China

On the second day of the tour, Joan, Lynette and I decided to check out Zhujiajia, a town just 10 minutes from the Campus. We were fascinated by the waterways that divided the town, with access from one side to the other being across unique stone bridges. From the centre of the main bridge we had a view of both sides.

Joan & Lyn on a blustery day in Zu Zha Zhou — Joan & Lynette on a blustery day in Zhujiajia

Our first major expedition was to Nanjing. The bus took us to Shanghai Station where we boarded the Bullet Train to Nanjing. The train was fast, quiet, and extremely comfortable. Attendants provided snacks and bottles of juice along the way, and we were able to sit back and relax, taking in the unique scenery that we sped past on the journey south.

I guess that's why it's called the Bullet Train? — The Bullet Train – fast and comfortable

A selfie with Ping Ping (Kelly) our tour guide at the start of our 3-day stay in Shanghai. We were booked into the fabulous Radisson Blu for 2 nights.

An old London Cab in Nanjing — An old London Cab

Mr Lee enjoys the Chinese Opera at the Tea House

A trishaw – still a good way to get around town

The view from the 25th floor of the Radisson Blu Hotel in Shanghai.

After a great dinner at Lost Heaven Restaurant, we were treated to a spectacular view of the city on our first night in Shanghai.

The trip included a mind-blowing show on a very wet night in Shanghai, featuring acrobatic acts. The level of fitness and precision involved in the acts was unbelievable. The highlight was eight motorbikes zipping around the inside of a cylindrical wire frame, at great speed, in synchronised precision. The worst part was I couldn’t take any photos, so you’ll just have to believe how impressive it was. If I hadn’t seen it myself, I’d say it was impossible.

The dinner before the show was just as special; a Hot Pot at a restaurant in the shopping centre next to the hotel.

The following photo is from a model of the campus. To say it is huge certainly wouldn’t do it justice. I have so many photos and stories to share it will take me a while to catch up, but I’ll certainly try

Planning Stage

Suzy Cornelius outlines the travel opportunity for Australian Aveo residents to visit the Aveo campus in Shanghai. It sounded good, but got even better when I found out there was a Starbucks right next door. I signed up immediately!

From the first brochure in July – to our departure tomorrow, there have been emails, meet-ups, and lots of planning happening. We’ve come through it all, and we’re about to set off on a seriously exciting adventure. For my travel buddy and I here at Murwillumbah, the trip starts an hour earlier than everyone else – at 5am. With the time difference between each side of the border, there’s a lot to work out to get the timing right. We were scheduled to leave at 6, but we’re just a little bit nervous about possible heavy traffic on the highway – so we’ve decided to start out a bit earlier. Most people know I don’t do mornings – so just getting to the airport is going to be more than a bit of a challenge.

Alan talks to Christina, with Nicola from Freedom Travel, at the meet-and-greet morning tea in Newstead, Brisbane.

Joan, Lynette and Maureen buddied up to discuss the finer details, like, ‘what to pack’.

Luckily for us, the Murwillumbah bus is going to be our transport to the airport. At the unlikely hour of 5am (I didn’t even know that time existed!), Alan and I will board the bus, being very capably driven by Bev, and make our way to the Gold Coast. All Gold Coasters will have made their way to the designated spot, where we’ll meet them. From there, it’s on to Brisbane airport. I wonder if we could fit the bus through the drive-through coffee shop on the way? I know there’s a warning about the low-hanging beam at one of them, so I’m guessing we wouldn’t fit. I’ve always wanted to go through a drive-through in a bus and watch the worried look on the face of the attendant as they try to calculate serving 20 people in one hit. Maybe it won’t happen tomorrow though. Anyway, it’s okay because I stocked up on some coffee lollies today, just in case. I need my coffee! My eyes don’t even open until I’ve had my caffeine hit for the day.

What I’m still in denial about is the fact that, to be on the bus at 5am, I have to be up about an hour earlier. Now that’s going to be worth witnessing, when I figure out that my eyes will need to open just before 4am and I actually have to make the exit from my comfy warm bed a few minutes later. And the sun won’t even be up then!

And as the clock ticks slowly on, the realisation of how little sleep I’ll actually get tonight is starting to register, so it’s off to bed now, and I’ll report in sometime over the next two days, hopefully.

Review of China Trip – Part 1

Review of China Immersion Program

Inaugural Trip 2016

How do you capture the trip of a lifetime in a simple review of the highlights? I’m not sure if it is possible, but I’ll start at the beginning.

When I bought my unit at Mountain View Murwillumbah in 2015, our Sales Consultant, Molly Cornelius, apologised for having to be away early September, just prior to settlement, as she would be visiting her mother at the Aveo China Campus. When Molly explained the China Campus, my mind raced ahead to the possibility of exchange visits.

A few months after moving in a flyer arrived in my mailbox advertising a meeting about the China Trip at Robina. I reserved my place immediately; after all, it wouldn’t hurt to just find out about it. I sat through the meeting, hosted by the very talented Suzy, and began to crystallize the idea of being guided through China by the very competent team of people associated with Aveo. But, I have to admit, the one word that tipped the balance from ‘probably’ to ‘where do I sign?’ was Starbucks! Knowing that I could get my caffeine fix in the great land of tea was all I needed, although I have to admit I thought the great Seattle coffee place was actually on the campus. I pictured myself rising early, sitting at Starbucks for my eye-opener double-shot of caffeine, and then effortlessly facing whatever the day had in store.

Starbucks – although not on campus, it was still only 10 minutes away at Zhujiajiao – very do-able.

As the plans developed, my excitement grew … a little. Having no idea of what to expect, I wasn’t exactly brimming with excitement, but I went through the motions of getting the paperwork sorted, and working out what to pack.

The pre-travel morning tea brought emotions to the surface a little as I met fellow travellers, especially, Alan from Mountain View, and Joan and Lynette from the Gold Coast, which started a chain of phone calls and emails over the following weeks. Knowing someone in advance really made a big difference.

Joan, Lynette and Maureen at the Pre-Travel Morning Tea

Alan discusses the trip with Christina, and our travel agent

The Journey Begins

There was something magic about standing outside my unit in the early morning darkness on departure day, waiting for the Mountain View bus to transport us to the airport, via the Gold Coast.

On to the Gold Coast to pick up the others, and then to the airport.

Arrival at the Airport – a lot of very excited travellers.

The long flight was broken-up by our short stop in Hong Kong. By the time we finally arrived in Shanghai, we must have looked like a line of zombies filing through Customs and Immigration and out into the terminal, to be greeted by our local hosts. Finally, we were on the bus for the last leg of the journey – to the Aveo China Campus.

By the time our rooms were sorted out, luggage delivered, and wind-down chats completed, it was close to 2am. My head finally reached the pillow. And I slept!

Next morning, in the bright light of day, the full extent of the campus was breath-taking. The dining hall was massive, and the breakfast was a very welcome change from the airline food from the day before. We were ably assisted by the lovely Wendy, who didn’t speak very much English, but certainly took care of our every need – always there with the coffee, tea and hot water (the local beverage of choice), and anything else that was required to make our dining experience the best it could be.

I have to admit the rest of the trip is a bit of a blur in terms of days and times – they just happened. And the highlights?; like Topsy – they just grew. Each day I would be heard saying “Now that was the highlight of the trip!” – only to be outdone by a scene or event the very next day.

If there was one highlight that really stood out it would have to be the day Lynnette, Joan and I decided to use some of our down-time to visit Zhujiajiao, the ancient water-town just 10 minutes drive from the campus. “We’ll only be an hour”, I assured Julie when we left; “we’re only going for a coffee, and then we’ll get a cab back”. The arranged transport picked us up from the Campus Square at 10am and dropped us a short walk from Starbucks. After enjoying a coffee, we ventured across the ancient bridge, took heaps of photos, and stepped off the other side into a vibrant market area. The rest, as they say, is history. Lost amid incredible 100% silk (rayon) scarves, tanks of therapeutic fish that gently nibble your feet, and model bullet trains, time quickly slipped away. While waiting for Lynnette to have her feet nibbled (the only one brave enough to partake of this extraordinary therapy), I realised how late it was, and how many WeChat requests for our whereabouts I’d missed. The only solution was obvious. We’d go back to Starbucks, use their free WiFi and message back that we were safe, and would return soon.

Joan and Lynette

To go back a step – there was one bit of sage advice given by Suzy somewhere in the planning stage that I had not followed: “Buy a Chinese SimCard at the Airport” she’d said. I didn’t! As soon as we had our second coffees securely in hand, I ventured to the counter for the password for the WiFi. “Do you have a Chinese Cell Phone” they asked? Obviously not, and without it – no WiFi. So, only one course of action required – enjoy the coffee and scenery, and face the consequences when we got back. Seriously, anyone else would have done the same thing, right?

When the cab delivered us back to the campus at 4.30pm, we immediately made our way to our units, heavily laden with shopping, only to be confronted by Julie, standing with hands on hips, informing us that a search party was minutes away from being assembled and dispatched. Grounded! But worth every minute. We were only sorry that we’d missed the cooking competition at 2pm back at the campus, but the experience of Zhujiajiao was exceptional – not to mention two trips to Starbucks for coffee and very western-style pastries. I may just be a tad guilty of leading Joan and Lynnette astray on this trip – but I will add that they were more than willing participants. I really believe the events of the day sealed our friendship; we have vowed to make our way back to China next year to see more of the history and beauty that make this land unique.

The entrance to the Campus is very colourful and very welcoming.

China Immersion Trip – Planning

Sailing Solo

Travelling the Lonely Planet – Alone…

Not everyone has a travel-buddy to share the journey with. There are some who make their way alone, for a variety of reasons and it seems unfair that they have to pay more. Ships usually charge per person in cabins, and it makes sense for them to do this, but not all of us have access to a compatible travel companion to share the journey with. By sharing our stories and travel plans, we might be able to find someone who is compatible enough to share our travels with. This could mean a more enjoyable trip, without it costing double. If not, then we might just find some tips that help us get the best ‘single’ deal out there.

If you have any favourite tips, let us know by registering for the site, and posting your ideas here.

Travel-Tips

Some suggestions for topics to explore here….

What to pack?

What not to pack?

What will I need?

How will I get there?

Is there a single supplement?

Where do I book my travel?

Creamy Cauliflower and Garlic Rice

White rice has a much higher glycemic index (GI) than brown rice. GI is a measure of how fast a food raises your blood glucose levels, which is particularly important for anyone at risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Serves: Three
Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup brown rice
3-4 cups cauliflower florets
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoons butter
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup Mozzarella cheese for topping

Method

Cook the rice according to usual package directions and set aside. In a large pot, bring vegetable broth and water to a boil. Add in cauliflower and cook for about ten minutes until tender. Transfer cauliflower pieces to a blender or food processor (but don’t drain the liquid) and add in the milk. Puree the contents until smooth, adding leftover vegetable broth as needed to achieve a creamy consistency. Pour cauliflower mixture over the cooked rice, stirring to combine. Melt butter in a large frypan. Sauté garlic over low heat for about 3 to 5 minutes until fragrant, being careful not to burn. Add your rice mixture to the pan and stir through the garlic butter. Stir in cheese until melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Changing the Doona Cover

Without The Frustration

Do you dread having to wash your Doona cover because it is so hard to put back on the Doona? Well there are a few tricks that will make the job a lot easier.

The ‘Turn It Inside Out‘ Method:

Place the Doona on the bed.
Turn the cover inside out, then put your arms right inside the cover until you locate each of the top corners – left hand on left corner – right hand on right corner.
Hold onto each corner, then, while still holding the corners, line the corners up with the bottom corners of the Doona.
The next step involves a bit of practice, but once you master it, the job becomes much easier. While still holding each of the top corners, take hold of the two bottom corners of the Doona. You’ll now be holding both the top corners of the cover, and the bottom corners of the Doona.
Now you need to start pulling the Doona back into the cover; you can use a shaking motion if it helps, but don’t let go of those corners – you’ll need to keep holding them until you get right to the top of the Doona.
Once you get to the top, just button the cover on, and it’s all done. You start with the cover inside out, but it ends up the right way once you reach the top.

The ‘Roll It Up Method’:

This method is the really easy way.

Start by laying the Doona cover, inside out, on top of the bed, with the fastening at the foot of the bed.
Lay the doona on top of the cover.
Starting rolling the doona and cover from the top of the bed towards the bottom of the bed, trying to keep it as even as possible as you roll.
When you get to the bottom, fold the ends of the cover over the ends of the doona. This isn’t as hard as it sounds; this video will help – click here for video.
Then you only have to roll it back up towards the top of the bed, fasten, and you’re done.

Organising The Linen Cupboard

No matter how big the linen cupboard is, we all wish we had more room or could be more organised. One way of packing a little more in, and making it seem like it’s more organised, is to pack our sheet sets inside one of the pillowcases that match the set. By folding the fitted and top sheet, and one of the pillowcases inside the other pillowcase, the whole set is contained inside the one, easy to access place. When it’s time to change the sheets on your bed, the task is made a lot easier. You simply take out the pillowcase, and everything you need is neatly folded inside it. This not only keeps things together, it also means one flat item, taking up less room. Now everything is stored together, and when it’s time to put the sheets on the bed, you’re not searching all over the cupboard for the pillowcases that match the sheets.

What tips do you have for organising the linen cupboard?

Author: Maureen

Dangerous Scam!

It pays to be suspicious in this technological age

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The Recipe Book