Comunication is a wonderful thing!

Um .......

While I was forgetting to write things over the recent past, I had a visit from Tony Johnston, his wife and a couple of young Swiss travellers one of whom Simone was doing a school project on the bushfires. Tony works for ABC Northern Rivers at Lismore in NSW and they had been travelling around the fire affected area and dropped into say hello.

Tony subsequently phoned to ask if I would do a radio interview on his morning program. I agreed and the result is contained in Tony's blog in which he writes movingly about their experience in Victoria . It can which can be found at
http://blogs.abc.net.au/nsw/2009/07/the-victorian-bushfires-new-hope.html#more

I've discovered that I say um a lot more than I was aware of but once again it was a special feeling, being able to say thank you to so many people I will never know who have and are contributing to our recovery.

Power and Glory!
What does this man

and this box have to do with this ??

Well - he's Brendan Freeman the local electrician who didn't have a spare moment but found time to install our meter box, sort out SP-Ausnet and make our camp at 2335 feel like the pot of gold!

You have no idea how wonderful it is to be able to sit up in bed and watch TV that isn't going to stop in the middle of the last episode of Foyle's War because the genny's run out of fuel or to have to get up in the nearly sub-zero temperature, struggle to put your boots on and then wander down through the mud and damp weeds, to avoid falling base over apex on the clay and finally switch off the generator before doing it all in reverse to get back freezing to bed.

Thanks Brendan

Just when you thought it was ...
I'm really a bit shattered at the moment - spent several hours this afternoon re-formatting and updating a spreadsheet for work and then somehow managed to delete the bloody thing. It's the second time I've done it recently and its hard enough trying to focus on the detail without stuffing the bloody thing up.

Tomorrow & Tomorrow & Tomorrow 21/07/09

22/07/09
"They" say that tomorrow never comes - well perhaps it's true but here I am again some three weeks later. Apologies to anyone who has been disappointed with my lack of continuity - I'm afraid that I've not been terribly focused or conscientious over the last few weeks. It has been easier to put it off until tomorrow than find the time to honour what is at least an implicit commitment. If one starts a blog then one is obliged to blog or tell one's readers that its no happening any more. Truth is - sometimes it just isn't happening - I get caught up in living or surviving and blogging takes a lower priority.

I think I'm back mostly - and to continue - on Wednesday after lunch we drove up to Ngapla to stay with brother Dig and his wife Lynn. Dig was responsible for preparing dinner as Lynn who works nights supervising a bottling line in the Barossa was still sleeping. After dinner a quick conversation and she was off to work leaving Ros watching tv and the tennis while Dig and I had a few Bundy & cokes and talked about house plans bureaucracy and the nature of humans before hitting the sack. I think his most useful observation regarding our house plans was, "If you like the design just build the bloody thing!"

Dig was well gone to his job in Clare by the time we surfaced, just in time for Lynn to get home. Another brief but pleasant chat before we let the poor girl go off to bed but not before she had most generously given us a dozen bottles of excellent red (Sorry Jim) and two ports of similar quality, to sustain us against the cold Victorian nights.

A meandering trip to the bakery in Eudunda and then a quick return to John and Norma in Kapunda where I had the opportunity to have a look at John's dobsonian telescope. Unfortunately the weather had not been suitable for viewing at night so it may be some time before I see it in action. LR packed, a final lunch and hugs and kisses all round we headed off to visit Ian and his wife who's name has completely escaped my memory.

The wilds of Adelaide only got us a little confused before we eventually arrived and enjoyed coffee and more food than I knew what to do with. Eventually completely sated, we staggered out to the LR and drove south to Morphett Vale and dinner with Strachan and Karol before retiring some time in the morning having eaten to capacity and drained the remains of a bottle of Jack Daniels which had been looking for a good occasion to be emptied for nearly 10 years. considerable number of years.

We got to April 4 and had a most enjoyable 60th with Greg, Sylvia, family and friends.




Originally we had planned to go back to Morphett Vale but by 03:00 it was no longer an option and after a final generous wee dram, bed beckoned.

Next morning after a cleansing coffee, a hot breakfast and some hysteria over Stavros Flatley (check it out on google - I guarantee you'll enjoy it!) we downloaded the pictures from the party and chatted about building the new house, a possible Grampians meeting in August and a bunch of other stuff that has disappeared into the ooze of my brain.

Reluctantly after hugs kisses and a bit of cheek, we left and headed off to North Adelaide to meet Strachan, Karol and Hayley for lunch. Is it any wonder I'm beginning to have trouble seeing my feet! Lunch was excellent and the rest of the day has also largely disappeared except the certain knowledge that we returned to Morphett Vale. I think a sleep was involved somewhere before Strachan and I packed a few useful tools like a router, angle grinder, sander and sundry bits and pieces that he kindly donated to my somewhat depleted tool kit. I was also fortunate to be given a fishing rod to encourage a bit of leisure taking. 2010 is looking good!

Monday morning and it was time to leave a warm bed, eat yet more breakfast, do the final packing and leave Strachan & Karol to a couple of well deserved days off.

The newly "up-chipped" LR which I think now stands for Lightning Rocket behaved very well on the trip back and we made good time much to the obvious pleasure of Angus the dog who was ecstatic to see his good friend Meggy - nearly wagged his tail off.
Since our return and this is really a summary to bring this blog up to date, we have bought some new fittings for the caravan damaged by the severe winds while we were away. Endured another weekend of howling bloody winds and rain which damaged the awning fittings quite extensively, necessitating the purchase of yet more fittings. In the mean time we have rolled up the awning and will repair it when the wind abates in summer or I pluck up enough courage on a calm day to repair it.

Ros & I met with our builder Michael and have agreed the concept plans with a few minor modifications. I've drawn up a site plan for the Council which has all the things we are likely to want to add to the property including a new barn, new tanks, a new access road, new dam, greenhouses, hydroponic greenhouses, a new sewerage treatment system and nearly forgot a new house.

Michael thinks he will be able to start in about 4-5 weeks. I'm actually quite excited at the prospect.

Other good news is that Bronwyn our Global Care Angel has organised a deck to keep our picnic table off the ground. This was installed by a team of volunteers from South Australia - Many Thanks people.

One of our friends, an older lady called Dell who has not been in good health herself has been making dinner for us on Friday's. I don't generally have a lot of time for Christians but the activities of Global Care and Dell represent the very best of Christianity. I thank them all.

A neighbour Graham with a bobcat let me borrow it to move a load of roadbase up onto the flat. I repaid him by running it out of diesel. Fortunately after a bit of a ring around I worked out how to bleed it. Thanks Sean! All I need to do now is get enough fill to make a road so I can get up to the flat without needing to use low range locked diffs on the LR when its wet.

And finally both Phoebe and Angus are a year older - they are now 4 and 6

Some Have a Gap Year - We had a Gap Week and a bit

A Little History - 7/7/09
Back in 1962 I met a young chap recently arrived from Liverpool and a member of the 1st Alberton Scout Troop. He and a bunch of his mates were camping at Scott's Bottom - I think at Gumeracha in SA. I had been invited to attend by one of their senior members Bob Evans, who was working in Woomera and had been participating in scout meetings of 1st Woomera. To cut a long story short Greg Keegan and I have been best mates ever since.

Last week, Ian Lawrence another of our scouting mates, Greg & I all turned 60. Due to a complete inability to get anything organised in time, I had a quiet and most enjoyable dinner at Mercers in Eltham, on the 25th with Ros Cait,Ben and Ema (Nicco was doing an exam) to celebrate the occasion. We decided we'd have a big celebration in 2010.

Ian's party was on Sat 27 and Greg's on July 4 so we decided to travel to Adelaide on the Friday and stay with my brother Strachan and his partner Karol at Morphett vale and go to Ian's party on Sat, stay with friends at Kapunda, catch up with another brother Digby and his wife Lynn at Ngapla, party on at Greg and Sylvia's and return home on Monday July 6.

We had a few things to bring back so decided to take the LR on a road trip and see how we all coped. Also decided to take Angus the dog as he had demonstrated that travelling in the rear section of the cab was much to his liking. It was an uneventful trip and despite my hip/back/muscles/numb foot etc., reasonably comfortable.

Got up on Saturday morning and after breakfast headed out to the LR to find the front rhs tyre as flat as a pancake. Ros who was already sitting in the cab was removed post haste as I called the RACV .

To my surprise the RACV operator said she couldn't help me but after a pause which was just long enough for me to have almost decided to give her an earful about Total Care and reciprocal arrangements..... she said, " ....but I can call someone who can!". I reckon she's been waiting to use that one for years. She put me through to the RAA operator who said that a service vehicle would be there within the hour. To my surprise he turned up in less than ten minutes and we quickly discovered a common interest in LRs. While he changed the tire we talked about varius marques and he asked if I'd "Chipped it up yet?".

Apparently when the motor was first built in England it didn't comply with EU pollution control standards so LR not wishing for reasons of cost to fit a catalytic converter, detuned it and were able to sell it in Europe. In Australia, all new cars are fitted with cataltytic converters so some bright spark realised that the engine managment system could be re-programmed to improve performance to the original specs. The RAA guy gave me the name and address of Triumph Rover Spares in Lonsdale and reckoned that they'd be able to tell whether or not my model could be upgraded and would also be able to do it.

The good news is that they were only 15 mins away. The better news is that they could do it on the following Monday. The best news is that while Ros was sitting in the cab, it occurred to her that as they are probably the biggest LR wreckers in Australia, it would be worth asking if they had any rear seats and as luck would have it they did. So on Monday morning while they were putting in the new chip in the engine management system, I wandered around the yard inspecting every Defender they had. I chose the best set and about $900, I had a complete set of seats, a vehicle that felt like it was supercharged and the promise that they would see if they could find and put together a set of rear seat belts before we had to return. True to their word we left Adelaide a week later with a complete set of belts and bolts. Very pleasing indeed!

Sat 27th
Began well as above and apart from a little navigational difficulty in finding how to get to the Leicester pub and discovering there was a singular lack of parking at the venue, Ian's 60th celebration was a very successul event. I took a roll or so's equivalent in digital pictures and a grand night was had by all.



On Monday we tracked up to Kapunda to stay with Norma & John. Back down to Westlakes for lunch with Greg, his wife Sylvia and sister Stephanie. Nearly forgot grandson "Jack" Jackson Keegan who of course stole the show. Should probably mention in passing that at this stage, I don't think we'd seen the sun since leaving Vic and some of the worst winds and temperatures in a long time. The company at least was very warming.

That's it for tonight ... more tomorrow - got to go and turn the genny off.