A day in the life of Dianne, a resident of The Atrium Lutwyche

Dianne Russ and her husband Richard were among the first residents to move into The Atrium Lutwyche when it opened in February 2020.

Dianne leads a busy and active lifestyle within The Atrium (as a member of the social committee) and also works two days a week in an administration role with a disability services and support organisation.

This is a typical Friday for Dianne …

“Richard and I always get up early for our morning walk. We mix it up, some days we walk the nearby Kedron Brook path, or we walk up around Albion, but we really enjoy taking different streets around the area to admire the lovely old Queenslander homes. We usually walk for 30 to 45 minutes. The only times we don’t walk is in torrential rain.

“Every Friday morning we play indoor bowls at Zillmere, where we’ve been playing for the past three or four years. Today another resident, Leslie, joined us and she did really well as her prior experience with outdoor bowls held her in good stead. Membership at the indoor bowls club has fallen due to Covid so I recently asked around The Atrium if anyone might be interested and now a few others are also planning to join us.

“After bowls we head back to The Atrium for lunch before I play Friday cards downstairs at 1.30pm. I play American Canasta with a group of about eight other residents. American Canasta is different to regular canasta, it’s a little more complex and the games last longer. I really enjoy the card afternoons.

“Sometimes when we finish off our cards around 5pm someone may suggest opening a bottle of wine or we may occasionally head into the library for drinks to catch up with some of the other residents. Other times Richard and I just have a quiet Friday night dinner together in our apartment.’’

On other days of the week, in between her work schedule, Dianne is learning Bridge, organises monthly trivia nights for the residents, joins the Wednesday stretch classes downstairs at The Atrium, heads across the road to the gym for a workout, or plays Mahjong which Dianne also teaches.

“I like the fact that there are activities at The Atrium we can take part in if we feel like it,’’ Dianne says. “I enjoy the camaraderie and interaction with the other residents. Regular Sunday night drinks is another occasion for residents to catch up.’’

To find out more about living at The Atrium Lutwyche, please call (07) 3357 9092 or email live@theatriumlutwyche.com.au