No news is good news

Monday ....... we went to the town pool and I was delighted to find that Tom is still massaging there. His English hasn't improved but he leaves no doubt as to what he means. I was given 2 kisses on each cheek and Steve got a double hand shake.

Tuesday ...... must have been advertised as Open Day because many visitors turned up to look at the van. I can't imagine strangers going to look at a neighbour's house; this is a caravan park thing. It's a big community, where anything new must be shared, examined and discussed.

Wednesday ..... Lindy came and picked us up for a tour of the big new house that she and Neville have had built. It was always the plan to rent it out but Lindy says it feels like adopting out her own child.
Steve put up the annexe. It came with the first caravan we bought 10 years ago (which is now "our townhouse" in Melbourne) and we never used it. It's not a perfect fit for this big van but it's in excellent condition and will provide shade in summer.

Carissa and Emily came after school and behaved well. They brought with them a big jigsaw and expected that I would be delighted. I didn't dare tell them that I hated jigsaws and Steve loved them, otherwise they would have badgered Steve. They set themselves up with table and chairs and were satisfied to do their jigsaw, as long as I talked to them while they did it. Fine by me --- just don't expect me to find missing pieces!
It didn't occur to me that the jigsaw wouldn't be finished in one sitting, so it has remained behind, in one corner of the van. It has actually done us a favour ---- it shows that a table and chairs will fit nicely in that corner. That area was destined to be the wardrobe but the day before we left home, Dominic suggested that the area would make a good eating place. We continued to think about that and have decided that the shower will become the wardrobe. If we need a shower in later travels, we'll have an outside one.

Thursday Tatum's 18th birthday. When I spoke to her this evening, she told me all about the parties that had been held for her at school during the day. She has been quite sick for the past few weeks, sore throat and sleeping a great deal. No prizes for guessing that the test results showed glandular fever. It will be a miracle if her good friends don't get it, as they share everything.
Hannah was cremated today..... no service, no family or friends present. I went to the newspaper office yesterday to put a notice in the paper, from park friends, but I was shocked to find that it must be on the letterhead of the funeral director.

Warmer weather has come at last! Neville demolished a lot of the garden after we left last year but some faithful bulbs are popping up their heads. Marion and Gwen will be disappointed to hear that the beautiful roses and the May bush have gone.

Tatum

Tatey is 18 today. HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOVE.

HANNAH

Hannah embarked on her final journey at 8am today.
No family by her side and no funeral service to commemorate her life ---- I feel sad and hollow. Everyone deserves a farewell, at least, but this is how Hannah wanted it, for her own reasons.

Goodbye Hannah. I enjoyed knowing you. Rest in Peace.

Lazy Days

We're just ambling along lazily, not aiming to achieve too much just yet.
We've been to the Library and borrowed books and were pleased to find that our old friends are all still there.
This photo shows the arrival, around 5pm. I'm very happy to see the orange bougainvillea that I rescued last year.

The washing machine that we bought in Werribee is now located in one of the sheds and has already been put to good use. I figure that it will have paid for itself in about 7 weeks, (by not having to put coins in slots at the park laundry.) There's a clothes line right beside us so it's all very convenient. The rotary line was erected by Eric, the original tenant on this site. When Eric died, his sheds, line, garden, greenhouse and many bits and pieces were all left behind when a removalist came and towed away his caravan. The man in the site beside us is a great know-all and told us that Eric didn't pay his rent and was kicked out of the park. Steve said mildly that Eric had died, but the neighbour loudly contradicted this! We always meet several noisy, know-alls up here!
You might like to picture us as I write ------ The lounge is at the back end of the van. I have a recliner chair, a "granny chucker", with a massage insert and Steve has an office chair. We had planned to buy matching chairs but this can wait. I have purple throws over both chairs to make them match a little. We both have a window beside us; mine looks out over the airfield, the highway and the railway line and Steve has a view of the park. I have my laptop and Steve faces the side wall of the slide out pantry, which houses his terminal. His monitor is in a frame on the wall and he has a ledge above it for his bits and pieces. We're both connected to the Internet via the satellite. Steve built a ledge on the wall beside me, this morning. Later it will have a magazine rack built below it. Sounds comfortable, huh??




We've met many previous fellow travellers in the pools. We were particularly pleased to see Marco and Rosa, with whom we've shared many happy times. Everyone is late coming this year because of the cold weather.
Today's weather :- -1.4 to 16C but next week is forecast to climb to 21C. Now that's more like it!

Love to all family and friends,

Laurie

Our Neighbour

Those of you who travelled with me last year, might remember Hannah, our neighbour in Moree.
Two months ago, I received an email from Keith, who lives opposite Hannah, telling me that the poor dear had fallen and had broken a leg, ribs and ankle. She fell at Bingo, which she loves and played every day.
Despite surgery at Armidale and Moree hospitals, she made no progress and is now in the Moree nursing home. Unfortunately, the Armidale hospital lost her glass eye and it wasn't replaced. I'm sure that this hurt Hannah a lot, as she was very particular about her appearance.
Everyone keeps telling me that she refuses to eat and doesn't like the hospital food. I guess that no one mentioned to her doc that she eats only pickled herrings, whole beetroot and an occasional egg.
She hasn't recognised her partner, Bernie, for the last couple of weeks but knew her son whom she hasn't seen for a long time. Hannah had a lot of skeletons in her closet and told me about some of them last year. I think she would be very sad that her 2 daughters didn't come to see her.
I was going to see her today but Bernie said it might be better not to go. He told us that she is now unconscious and he has been interviewed by the staff about funeral arrangements.
I have great difficulty thinking about these arrangements. He says that Hannah wanted no service, no funeral, just a cremation. When she dies, her body will be sent straight from the hospital to the crematorium, which will go ahead without family or friends present. It seems such a lonely way to leave this earth, after nearly 80 years. Bernie is taking Hannah's son back to Victoria at the weekend. I do hope that Hannah can wait until his return.

Moree -- at last

Saturday August 9
From home to Jerilderie, the Ned Kelly town. Models of Ned, the Bushranger/hero, depending on which side of the fence you sit, decorate roof tops, shop windows and footpaths. When I was a child, Mum cautioned me about taking sides. She had friends in Glenrowan who were related to Ned and they hailed him as a champion of the poor.
Sunday Aug 10
Jerilderie to Peak Hill. I slept, so Steve kept on driving. 430 kms. We were greeted by the always enthusiastic Lleyton at Peak Hill Caravan Park, with the traditional scones, jam and cream. That was quite amazing, as his wife Pauline, the scone cooker, was away. (I suspect she froze them before leaving but I didn't want to risk insulting him by asking!)
Monday Aug 11
Peak Hill to Moree, arriving 5pm. I slept, so Steve kept on driving!!! 450 kms ---- normally, we don't travel so far with a caravan. After a few necessary jobs were done, we headed straight to the pool. It was a freezing night but the pools were wonderful. I, (attired in bathrobe, beanie and scarf) rode the Panther, while Steve trotted along beside. We were greeted with, "Oh, here's the lady who jumped out of the aeroplane last year." I do hope that there weren't any strangers who added the scooter plus jumping out of a plane and came to the wrong conclusion!!
Tuesday Aug 12
I was up early, with great plans for today. Instead, I slept!!!! Steve had a number of inquisitive visitors during the day --- some even crawled under the van! Emily and Carissa burst in after school, waking me up from my day long sleep in the recliner. They were impressed with the size of the van but scathing about its unfinished state. I hoped that by now, the girls might have learnt to modify their spontaneous outbursts. One of my pet hates has always been kids publicly coming out with statements like, " That old man looks dirty." etc. In our family, we went by the Thumper principle (Bambi) ---- If you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all."
Tomorrow is another day (am I mixing my movie metaphors?) and I hope to be awake!

Scooter

We picked up the Panther in Swan Hill yesterday. Many thanks to Carol, Mandy, Janette and PB for making it all happen so fast. I know that the scooter is going to be very useful to me and give me a lot of independence ...... BUT ....... I wish that my Seattle friend Carole, had it. Carole has Leiomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer, and isn't getting around too well.

After Steve charged the batteries, he pronounced it kaput! Later, he realised that the brake has to be on to start the motor. Now we're in business.

I've been on the phone a lot today, getting insurance for the scooter, re-arranging vehicle insurance and desperately trying to get the 5th wheeler insured. $700 a year seems an awful lot to me!

Using the Delay

The delay in leaving has meant that Steve is able to continue with tasks that were going to be done in Moree. The pull-out pantry is almost finished. I love this space saving feature. The side wall of the pantry faces the lounge and it's on this wall that Steve will have his "computer desk". The tower is hidden in the bottom part of the pantry, which doesn't slide out.

The carpet and vinyl went down on Thursday and I'm thrilled with the overall effect. A friend of Steve's helped with this ; Trevor is a professional carpet layer turned dairy farmer. I'm not publishing photos of the interior until the tools are cleared away.

The building and packing were put on hold for 12 frustrating hours. My hearing aids went missing. I looked for about 2 hours before Steve joined in and then we searched together for another 3 hours. We reached the point of stupidity ----- looking in the fridge and freezer, and re-tracing each other's footsteps. Normally, the hearing aids are either in my ears or within hand's reach, in their box. By the time I went to bed, after searching until the wee small hours, I was in tears. I was woken by Steve after only a few hours sleep. He had continued the hunt for the hiding hearing helpers ---- AND FOUND THEM!! They were in such an obvious place! How could I have missed them? They were in a plastic bag of paper rubbish hanging on a cupboard door in the kitchen! Isn't that where everyone keeps their hearing aids??? I have no explanation.

Delay

We have a delay. Yesterday, I received forms to fill in to receive an electric scooter. I've had the 3 hour assessment, need has been established, doctor's recommendation has been given and the scooter is at Swan Hill. These forms are just the final "handing over" process. We don't anticipate that this will take very long but things can happen ---- forms can go astray, people can go on leave etc. The scooter has a range of 32 kms, which is way more than I need to ride into Moree and back. Should I be let loose alone in the shops???? Steve is trembling!!! Ha! It can take me to the pool on "bad" days. I'll need to exert plenty of willpower, so that I still make myself get there with the walker on most occasions. The scooter model is Panther. Good name --- for years on the CB radio, I was the Pink Panther. It's a delightful irony that 30+ years later, I can get the Panther title back. Pity I can't get my youth with it!!