Posts Tagged ‘Cookie’s Diary’

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COOKIE’S DIARY – Pt. 21

Published April 24, 2011 by Anna Johnston

 

 

Each week I post another fascinating true-life excerpt from my friend & mentor’s journals while she was Housekeeper & Cook at The Flamingo, during the period 1968-1999, titled Cookie’s Diaries. Together we’ve changed a few things around & set Cookies story in a fictional Australian country town so as to protect the innocent & the not so innocent!  We hope you enjoy Cookies journey from such humble & all but penniless beginnings to owning & running the highly successful country guesthouse, ‘The  Flamingo’. To read the last chapter click HERE.

Dancing with Pietro

“Open your eyes Cookie, he’s very keen on you, he can hardly take his eyes off you, put the poor man out of his misery & go sit with him” Tilly whispered to me as we walked arm in arm down The Flamingo driveway to the car park.  We’d all been enjoying another happy & successful Friday night BBQ together, & our guests & friends were retiring to their suites or going home, leaving only a handful of people sitting around deep in discussion at the tables.

It had cooled down into one of those crisp early winter evenings, & as I stood watching Tilly & Sam’s car slowly make its way down the drive & out onto the road, I stayed quietly in the dark with the silence of the perfumed shadowed garden for a moment.  Pulling my cardigan around me a little more, I looked up at the enormous clear heavens above me, watching the sparkling busy stars in all their splendour, & drinking in natures pleasures in those few rare moments alone, vaguely thinking of Tilly’s suggestion as I stood in awe watching the wondrous night skies above.

I felt Pietro’s presence nearby before I heard his footsteps & I slowly turned around to watch him approach. I can still hear the crunch of the gravel under his feet as he walked towards me & I can still feel the air in my lungs build as I forgot to breath normally, he had that effect on me. Standing there in front of me, he took off his jacket & placed it around my shoulders, holding my gaze & not uttering a word, which was just as well, as I was utterly incapable of coherent thought, let alone speech at that moment. Continue Reading

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COOKIE’S DIARY – Pt. 20.

Published April 17, 2011 by Anna Johnston

 

Each week I post another fascinating true-life excerpt from my friend & mentor’s journals while she was Housekeeper & Cook at The Flamingo, during the period 1968-1999, titled Cookie’s Diaries. Together we’ve changed a few things around & set Cookies story in a fictional Australian country town so as to protect the innocent & the not so innocent!  We hope you enjoy Cookies journey from such humble & all but penniless beginnings to owning & running the highly successful country guesthouse, ‘The  Flamingo’. To read the last chapter click HERE.

 

A typical 2011 presentation of Cookie's Spaghetti

 

A note from Anna:

Originally, when Cookie gave me her old journals of her time at The Flamingo, we all hoped it would be possible that Cookie whip out that apron again & show us some of her magic, but sadly Cookie’s health doesn’t allow her to participate in this project at that level.

So, once again, I’ve recruited my mother to step into Cookie’s shoes & cook one version as it was described in the journals & I’d cook another.  It is becoming such a fun project to see what each other comes up, we’ve decided to continue cooking our way through many of Cookie’s recipes as the story unfolds like this.

Cookie’s Spaghetti is one dish we’ve never changed much, although the presentation has had many variations over the years, this dish became a firm family favourite when I was growing up after Cookie so generously shared the recipe with Mom in the mid 1980’s when we first stayed at The Flamingo. Continue Reading

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