4 Sleeps Past Christmas

Well, Christmas has come and gone for another year. We hope that you all had a good one and didn't increase the national debt too much. It was Stephen and my intention to forgo exchanging Christmas presents with each other this year and focus on having a lovely meal together with all our favourite Christmas foods (and drink!). I must confess that this was my suggestion but while out shopping for our Christmas fare on Christmas Eve, I felt very much like Ebenezer Scrooge. Perhaps it was the crowds of shoppers at Park Beach Plaza or the carols reminding me of the few minutes of happiness ripping open presents on Christmas morning brings, but whatever it was, I suddenly had the urge to go buy Stephen something that would be fun and relaxing. Nothing PRACTICAL!!! I found him the perfect presents....a hammock, a kite and a couple of movies. Next, I had to break the news to him that I'd changed my mind about the "no present" policy and send him out on Christmas Eve afternoon to find me something. He was not really surprised as he's always known I'm a bit fickle but wished I'd had this policy change a few days ago. He did a great job finding me something with the same fun/relaxation theme and I'm now the proud owner of an inflatable hot pink oval water lounger with a drink holder.

Christmas Day in the caravan park was spent BBQ'ing, eating and chatting with caravan neighbours Chris, Gill and family and the English family camped in front of us who were cooked their plum pudding all morning on their gas stove. Although the morning was grey and even rained a bit, the afternoon was lovely so we both got to try out our Christmas presents. We were able to hang Stephen's hammock between two trees near us just next to the tennis court. We nearly had to give out numbers as our neighbours wanted a try. The water lounge was christened in the creek and I let the current carry me along the "S" bends nearly all the way to the ocean. That's what I call going with the flow.

On Boxing Day we had to pack up the caravan and move to the Corindi Beach Caravan Park where we will be until 3 Jan. Luckily we started packing early so we were heading out as the hoards were starting to arrive. It was my turn to drive and tow the caravan (2nd time). The only part that I had been concerned about was having to pull out to make a right hand turn onto the Pacific Hwy in all the holiday traffic. The traffic all week had been very busy so I had expected Boxing Day to be the same. Thankfully, there wasn't much traffic so my slow right hand turn was easy to do. Reversing the caravan into the spot proved to be more difficult than I expected as it looked like such a straight forward site but I couldn't get the caravan far enough over to the right for the awning to go out. Finally, I got us onto the site from the rear thanks to the people beind us moving their car to allow us to drive through. I definitely need more practise at this. Corindi Beach Caravan Park is very different again to the other 2 we have been in. We're on a low headland overlooking the ocean and 2 beaches. Corindi Beach which is the one to the right, allows dogs off leash so this is where Stephen and Angel have been getting their daily exercise. Dogs are allowed on leash only on the beach to the left as it borders on the Yuraygir National Park. Corindi Beach has one general store with only the barest essentials, a post office come gift store and a motor mechanics. Our site is on the outer rim of a large grassy circle opposite the amenities block. Behind us is another ring of unpowered sites full of tents and camper trailers and a middle circle has thankfully been left empty so people can access their sites. There are some parts of the caravan park that look like a tent city but it's not too bad near us. Oh, by the way Boxing Day was my 50th birthday and it was spent just how I wanted - with no fuss, being in a new place, doing new things.

The nearest supermarket is about 10 kms away down in Woolgoolga. I took a trip to Woolgoolga the other day to buy a new front door step stool. We're higher up off the ground here than our last two spots. It's definitely a case of "watch that first step" as you get out of the caravan. Our little step stool which was only a cheapy, could only take one day of us both stepping on it before the top cracked. So I managed to have a good look around Woolgoolga before leaving but without a new step stool - they had been cleaned out by all the holiday makers. I ended up having to drive all the way back to Coffs Harbour to find one. But the one I found is great! It has a non-slip top and folds flat when it's not needed - perfect.

Anyway, that's lots to read for now. Have a look at the pictures opposite. We wish you all have a safe and happy New Year.

Two Sleeps till Christmas

We had a full day of being, today. Our next van neighbours are Chris and Jill and they are a really nice couple who have bought a bock of land at Saphire just down the road from Moonee Beach, which they intend to build on. Anyway, when we got up this morning it was high tide in the estuary and Chris asked if Rosy and I would like to go out in the kayaks. It was a nice thought and we took him up on it. Chris and I went out first. It wasn't so bad heading out as the wind was blowing me along, but the kilometer we travelled coming back was an uphill battle. Although I did see about two stingrays flapping around on the sandy bottom.

We got back to shore and then it was Rosy's turn. She wanted to take Angel so that she could see how she handled being on top of water, rather than swimming in it. Rosy had a lot of treats so it wasn't to bad keeping Angel in the kayak.

Really, Rosy and I have been in a two-man canoe and we wanted to see the difference between that and a one-man kayak. We are planning on buying one or the other when we get to Yamba. The end result was that we think with our (lack of) experience level it is better to have the two-man canoe. I think that Rosy wants to be able to slack off.

In the middle of the day the place we are staying at held a park get-together for Christmas, so guests could meet up with each other. Sort of like a street party. They supplied a huge wheelbarrow full of king prawns and a choice of a mocha, or fruit pavlova. The lunch was free and they just asked anyone who turned up to bring a plate of something to contribute. It was a nice experience. Mind you Angel was kept in the van with a bone. She behaved herself and didn't mess up the van.

Angel and I went on our daily vigil along the beach. I am trying to teach her not to be frightened about dogs running towards her, so we both go running along the beach, splashing through the water, chasing seagulls and getting some rays. The walk is about 4km's long.

Then for dinner Rosy BBQ'd some pork chops. I don't think either of us have mentioned on the blog before that we bought a Weber Baby Q a few weeks ago. They say it is the hottest outdoor camping BBQ you can get. It runs on gas and it is better to cook the food with the lid down to keep the extra heat in. Well, the pork chops that Rosy cooked were the best I have ever eaten. They were hot, juicy, melt-in-your-mouth and very flavourful. The Baby Q is great for just the two of us and we see more and more of them around the park. I can't wait for the next culinary delight.

On my way back from the amenities block, I met up with a boy we met at the lunch today with his family. He remembered me and said that he found a rock on the beach and he thinks it is for me. It's a special rock made up of two colours - black and white. I've never been given a rock before. It was getting dark and he wanted to go and get the rock from the beach. I said that I was happy that he wanted to give me the rock, but that it was probably meant to stay on the beach for other people to enjoy. Ti's the season for giving after all.

It's a little after 8pm. Angel is asleep on the lounge, which Rosy is also sitting on. I don't know who has the most space. All is quiet. The sound of distant discussions and laughter. Children are asleep, the air is cool and it's nearly time for a cup of Joe. Life is good.

I added this next bit the following morning.

At about 7am we were woken be a slight tap, tap, tapping at our front door. Angel started barking to wake us up, just in case we hadn't heard the knocking. Rosy got up and went to the door. It was the little boy from yesterday and his sister. Their names are Timothy (8) and Rebecca (7). Timothy had gone down to the beach as soon as he got up so he could get the two coloured rock and had brought it up to give to me before they headed off this morning. I went back into the caravan while they were outside patting Angel. I was quickly scouring the place for something to give back to them. Then I remembered the free Christmas cartoon DVD we got in last Sundays paper. I gave it to Timothy and then Rebecca said "Where's mine?" To which I replied "It's for you both to watch".
"Ok then" - and with that they both rode off on their bikes back to their caravan.

What greater gift could there have been this Christmas. And then it clicked how the universe conspired. Timothy is Tiny Tim after he gets better. The sick child that was within and is now out and about exploring, being with other people and speading good cheer. I have to go now and dry my eyes.

Thank you Teva!

I'm over the moon! Finally, I've made it across the creek and have been able to walk on the beach thanks to a pair of Teva sandals from Athlete's Foot. These sandals are designed to be worn in water and have a strong arch support. They also have a drainage system so water escapes though the soles of the shoe. Whilst they are not quite as good for my foot as wearing orthotics and joggers, I can wear them on a short walk without any ill effect (so far).

In a small way I have experienced the disappointment and frustration of not being able to go somewhere because of a physical injury and my deepest admiration goes out to those who have to experience this on a daily and permanent basis due to a physical disability. I know that my injury will heal EVENTUALLY however it did leave me feeling quite depressed at times.

Over the past 4 months since re injuring my foot, I had often thought that someone should invent shoes with arch support that can be worn on the beach and in the water. To my amazement, someone has. There is quite a range of "water shoes" available on the Internet available in the US. Thank you Teva for making shoes available in Australia! I'd love to hear if anyone has bought any other types of water shoes with arch support.

Now after boring you with stories of my footwear, onto something else.

We will be moving further up the coast on 26 Dec to the Corindi Beach Caravan Park. Although a site became available here so we could stay until 3 Jan, we have decided to move on to experience somewhere new. Weeks and weeks ago, we sent emails to a number of caravan parks to see if anyone had vacancies from 26 Dec but most came back with "Sorry, fully booked" or "Sorry, no dogs allowed during the peak period". However, the caravan park at Corindi sent us an email today to let us know they had a cancellation and asked if we were interested. "Which one were they again?" I thought to myself. But after a quick look on their website, they are a nice little caravan park right on the beach. So off we go again next week.

There was a bit of excitement in the caravan park here today. 2 horses had decided to go for a run down the road and as we are at the end of the road, decided to run around the caravan park for about an hour. They were finally caught on the grassy slope just behind us after their owner finally arrived. All the rest of us could do was watch them run about and get out of their way. One of the horses had a couple of cuts on it's legs but on the whole I think they had a good time visiting us.

Bye everyone, Rosy

Knowing who one is..

The modern day media and pop psychologist have a lot to say about finding oneself. I used to think that it was about reminding yourself of who you were, before family, community and the government got involved with our individual lives. But I have discovered that it is not about that at all. It goes deeper than that. For me, it is about realizing what my role in life is and to honour it. It's not husband, brother, son, Manager, supervisor, web developer, marketer or any of the other jobs I had in corporate land. It actually came to me in a dream about a very early job I had in a bank - a 'teller'. In the land of symbols and metaphor I understand that as being a teller. Like a storyteller, or like Jessica Fletcher in Murder She, Wrote. Using my intuition I gather my observations on a situation, let them mull around in my head for a while and then a movie/fairytale/book that I have watched or read will pop into my head that provides the basic outline of the difficulty I or someone else is experiencing. This is what makes me whole as a person. I also understand now that it's not how I write something that is important, but what I am writing about. That is where the gem is. Storytelling is not just about grammar, but the emotions that let fly with the words. Just ask J K Rowling.

So there you have it. I don't have images to put up on the post, but I can tell you how I feel. Like Scrooge after meeting with the three spirits and like Tiny Tim after Scrooge decides to help this family. God bless everyone, and to all a Merry Christmas.

p.s. And just to think. I didn't need to buy anything to feel like this.

Tripping about

We've been here at Moonee Beach for 2 weeks and I've got to say this is a great caravan park (which will now be abbreviated to c/pk as I'm sick of typing it out in full) especially if you have dogs. A few more caravans and campers are starting to turn up and I suspect this will increase as we head towards the busy Christmas holiday period. We're confirmed here until 26 Dec. but may have to move to another c/pk as this one is fully booked to fill the gap until we head to Iluka on 3 Jan. Fingers crossed there is another cancellation at Iluka and we can get in there earlier than 3 Jan. We had no idea just how booked up ahead these c/pks get during the Xmas school holidays.


Anyway, more about what we've been doing since you last heard from us.


Last Friday we put Angel into the local kennel for an overnight stay so that we could spend the day at South West Rocks to see Stephen's sister, Robyn sing at the local country club with her quartet Sharp Focus. The 4 girls sang up a storm with their barber shop harmonies of Christmas songs to an auditorium full of local senior citizens. They even managed to get 3 of the male seniors to dress up in drag as part of the act. The notion of prim and proper little old ladies definitely went out the window when they roared with laughter seeing the men strut their stuff on stage. As Robyn and girls had to make tracks back to Sydney immediately after the show, we explored the little village and had lunch at the local Seabreeze Hotel (across rd from C/pk and beach). I highly recommend their fish & chips - best I've had in ages.

The next day we took a drive to visit the Dorrigo National Park, which is another reason why we needed to have Angel doggy sat for the day. The Dorrigo Rainforest Centre has a spectacular skywalk going out above the rainforest treetops which I had been keen to see. We were not disappointed - the view was MAGnificent (see photos). We headed into Dorrigo to take a look around and stumbled across the Dangar Falls just a km or 2 out of town. The falls were definitely falling which probably is thanks a lot to the heavy rain which fell the previous day. While we were there a guy and his wife struck up a conversation with us. It turned out that Phil and Jan have been travelling around Oz for the last 8 mths in a caravan and were also staying at Coffs, so we stayed talking to them in the carpark for ages getting lots of good travelling tips. Really nice people.

On the local side, we've been exploring the shops up here (of course). Coffs Harbour has a CBD area just off the Pacific Hwy with a pedestrian friendly, flag lined shopping street. Then about 1km up the Pacific Hwy heading north you have the Park Beach Plaza, full of boutiques, shoe shops, Target, BigW and Woolworths. There is a Homebase shopping area just across from the Park Beach Plaza with all the furniture stores, auto parts, pet stores, etc. So everything is conveniently laid out. On the approach into Coffs there is a big Bunnings and all the auto mechanical places. I've also found quite a few recycled clothing shops which I love rummaging through.

Emerald Beach is the next headland just to the north of us. We took a drive up there the other day to take a look back at Moonee Beach. It was a fantastic view looking back but also looking out at one of the 5 Solitary Islands which has the white lighthouse. The headland area is called the Moonee Beach Nature Reserve (National Park) and we got to see 3 kangaroos who were grazing in bush just next to the car park, they seemed used to people being around as the surfers come up there all the time to access the beach. There is a paved walk around the headland which we'll do another day when the feet aren't so sore.

Nearly forgot, we couldn't resist calling in to the BIG Banana for a banana split each. Just as nice as I remember but not as cheap. There is a great puzzle shop there which had the largest jigsaw puzzle in the southern hemisphere on display 18,000 pieces. Sadly, it is now no longer the largest as someone has now put out a 24,000 piece puzzle. Anyone got nothing to do for a couple of years ???

Anyway, that's all for now. Bye, Rosy

Dog Walk/Swim

I thought it was time that I added some content to the blog. Rosy can't have all the fun.

The big challenge of late has been getting Angel used to swimming so that I can take her for a walk along the long expanse of beach here at Moonee Beach. It's actually like getting back to nature keeping an eye on the tide, because we can only cross the river when it is low tide and even then Angel can't touch the bottom. She still has to swim across (I'm not going to pick her up as I have my hands full with thongs, doggie treats, doggie bags and sometimes a camera). Anyway, for the past few days, Angel has hesitantly got in the water and started the dog paddle. I have her on her lead as there is a strong current. It's quite funny as she starts on my left hand side, starts paddling and then crosses in front of me and has the lead extended all the way as the current drags her along. Poor little thing. She is almost out of breath when we get to the other side. although, yesterday, she went across the river before I could put the lead on. She sort of went diagonally, but nevertheless made it across.

The beach itself is about 4km long. Today was the first day that Angel and I made it all the way to the end. It's quite a dramatic coastline when you get up close to it. Angel continues to boss other dogs around, even German Shepherds, but they seem to just be curious about what this noisy little thing is that runs like the sugar just kicked in. She came across a puppy Jack Russell mix, today and they followed each other for quite a long time.

Due to her encounter with the tick, I have been trying to keep her out of the surrounding bushland. The message seems to have sunk in. She doesn't go into the bush and now returns to me without have to receive a command - just a treat. Now I can enjoy my walk as well, without having to be anxious about where she is.

Cheers
Stephen

Welcome to Moonee Beach

This is a beautiful spot to spend a few nights or weeks. It's only 10 minutes drive from Coffs Harbour and we've only just started to explore. Moonee Beach Caravan Park is at the very end of the road opposite a large wide creek which flows to the beach and the only way to get across to the beach is to cross the creek at low tide. So there is no traffic passing by and we wake up to the sound of the birds. The caravan sites are all fairly level (hooray) and most come with a cement slab to put your outdoor chairs, annex, etc on. Nearly every site also seems to have it's own large timber table with benches each side. We've moved ours off the slab to give us room for our chairs & BBQ.

Here are few photos I took yesterday.

More later.

Downs and Ups...

Sorry, it's been a while since our last update. This month has had it's share of ups and downs.

We drove down to Sydney on Nov 6 and were lucky enough to stay at Robyn and Garry's house at Caringbah for the whole 2 weeks we were there. Their backyard is fully fenced so Angel could stay too which was company by their lovely dog, Bella. Although Angel took over Bella's home, beds, backyard and food, I think Bella enjoyed having the company of another dog too.

Cathie and Joel's wedding was held on a beautiful Thursday afternoon at the Gunner's Tearooms, Mosman overlooking Sydney Harbour. It had been pouring with rain most of the morning so it was touch and go whether their wedding would be able be held outside. But the skies cleared up to a beautiful sunny afternoon and the wedding went ahead outside as planned. Everything was beautiful (especially the bride) and we all think she can go into the wedding planner business if she tires of legal work.

The rest of our stay in Sydney went very quickly catching up with family and friends for dinners or lunches, whatever we could arrange. While we were in Sydney, I was able to go along to the ING Direct dinner to celebrate people with 5, 10 (me) and 15 years service this year. There was 1 person with 15 years service, 8 of us celebrating with 10 years and 62 with 5 years. Quite a crowd. It was lovely to be invited as I am on a career break and luckily it coincided nicely with our trip to Sydney. Although it was a good night good to catch up with friends from work again. But don't get me wrong, I'm still not missing work!

We headed back up to Bonny Hills on Friday 16 Nov and made it back to our caravan at about 5pm. As we were planning to leave and head further north in 3 days we decided to leave the caravan on the site where we left it. Out of the blue the following day I received a phone call to say that my 86 year old father who had an existing heart condition, had been admitted to Mona Vale Hospital with chest pains and was waiting to be transferred to the San for an angiogram as soon as a bed opened up. I wanted to go back down in Sydney to be there in case I could do anything to help him. So the next day, I jumped on the XPT in Wauchope and was back down in Sydney by dinner time. Thankfully, tests showed that Dad's heart was not the cause of the chest pains and while we still do not know what caused the pains he is feeling much better now. Meanwhile, Stephen stayed with Angel back in the caravan and had to put up with the van being on a slope for a while longer.

I stayed 5 nights in my father's unit at the retirement village while he was in hospital. His retirement unit is set in lush rainforest with a duck pond at the bottom of the footpath below his unit. One morning while I was making my breakfast I a family of young ducks decided to come up the steps to the front door while mother duck stood patiently on the footpath below. They came right up to the wire door but as soon as I went to get my camera they all waddled back down the stairs again. However as soon as I returned and opened the door they headed back up the steps again long enough for me to take a few piccies.

After 5 days in hospital Dad was given the OK to go home and feeling like he had a new lease on life, decided to come back up to Bonny Hills with me to see our caravan and stay a few days with us. We arrived back up there last Friday and Dad stayed 3 nights in one of the fantastic cottages in the caravan park overlooking the ocean. He's now heading back down to Sydney staying at a night at few places along the way.

So, with all the visiting and being visited out of the way we finally left Bonny Hills yesterday and headed north. With Stephen behind the wheel, we towed the caravan up to a very hilly caravan park overlooking Nambucca Heads, but after seeing how steep the sites were decided to go further north to Coffs Harbour. We're now settled in a caravan park at Moonee Beach, about 12 kms north of Coffs Harbour. Moonee Beach has a small shopping centre with a Coles, pharmacy, newsagency, post office, bakers and a Best & Less opening this Thursday. Across the road from the caravan park is a wide tidal creek leading into the beach which is around the corner. It's nice to be in a level caravan park for a change after being on a hill for 8 weeks.

That's all for now. Cheers, Rosy

Angel Update and Getting Ready for Trip to Sydney

Angel is doing well after the tick attack. Her breathing is still rhaspy and she is ever so eager to get out and do the beach walk again. I am under strict orders not to let her exercise too much and she is allowed only a very short walk out each day this week. I think she is past the danger period.

Bonny Hills Caravan Park has a facility that allows you to store your caravan for $5 a day for a period of up to 2 weeks. The van was in the forest area, which doesn't have many people around, so Rosy and I decided it would probably be better to move the van to the more popular open area. The Manager, suggested we put it in the lot that it next to their residence.

So this morning, we got the van ready for the move and headed out. There was a bit of a tight curve and some exposed tree roots that caused the van to jump. And jump it did. Right off the tow ball!! Luckily I had the chains on so it didn't run away from us. Also lucky for us, we decided to buy a bottle jack, just in case we needed to fix a spare tyre. We were able to get the van connection up high enough to get back on the tow ball. And then off we went to the other side of the park.

We got to our spot and drove onto it and amazingly the van wheel axil was level, which is the first thing you have to do. We were in exactly the right spot. Then the Manager comes over (Judy) and tells us that people who use this spot usually bring it side on, instead of facing down the slope. Remember I said the spot was near the residence? Well it sort of stops the drive through thing happening. So back and forth and back and forth I go, trying to get the van on the levelest part of the lot. Turning the wheel all the way. Back and forth and back and forth. Then....the steering wheel stops turning. I can't change the direction of the car. Shit!!!! We decide to leave the caravan where it is on a 5 degree lean from the left side of the van to the right, unhitch the caravan and try to move the Landcruiser. The power steering stopped working and it was like having to manually turn a semi trailer. Then I called the NRMA. Terrible thoughts were going through our minds as we were off to Sydney on Tuesday, or maybe not.

It was time for lunch, so Rosy cooked this great steak and we each had a glass of wine to calm our nerves.

An hour later the guy from the NRMA arrives and shows us what happened. All the manouvering of the van with putting the steering wheel in lock position (going all the way until it won't turn any more) caused one of the tubes to pop off. He said that the best thing to do, when manouvering a van is to not turn the wheel all the way and keep it there, but to turn it all the way and thing bring it back a little. He was a nice guy and it cost us $10 for the automatic transmission oil.

So the moral to this story is - follow your gut instinct and do what you are capable of doing. Irrespective of whether someone else comes along and tells you differently. Next time someone does that to me I am going to say "Thank you for the advice, but my experience level is only capable of doing this." I mean the caravan was initially in exactly the right spot. Why did I feel obliged to move it?

By the way the caravan is still leaning, but we are only going to be in it for two nights, so we will live with it.

Angel's visit to Doggie Hospital

Rosy and I have had quite a few anxious days regarding Angel recently. It started 5 days ago when Angel stopped eating her normal meals. 3 days ago I took Angel out for her morning constitutional 6km run/walk. After Rosy had pointed out to me that Angel's hind legs were a bit wobbly. I started getting concerned when Angel would fall over herself while she was running around. She had been eating some strange things off the beach and the thought had crossed my mind that Angel had had some sort of food poisoning. I cut the walk short and brought Angel back to the van.

Rosy called the local vet and they said it sounded like a tick. And armed with that information Rosy started scouring Angels thick coat. Low and behold, underneath Angel's collar was a dirty big (5mm) grey tick - a paralysis tick to be precise. Rosy knew what to and she instructed me on how to extract the little bugger, which I was able to do without leaving some of it embedded in Angels neck.

Off to the vet we went, with Angel and tick. The vet was a nice guy called Dr Steve (nice name, I trusted him immediately). His main concern was whether we got the tick off in time. Apparently, the tick will cause a bacteria to progress through Angel's body, which will cause difficulty with her breathing and eating, apart from causing paralysis in her limbs and eye lids. What they did was give her a blood transfusion, and overnight stay to enable them to keep an eye on her deterioration. Rosy was visibly upset and I didn't know what to expect.

The following day, the vet gave Angel the all clear to recuperate with us back at the van. She is under strict instructions not to do anything that would cause excitement as her breathing has not completely been cured. She is a van-bound dog for one week and then she can go on very short walks during the second week. Our task is not to allow another paralysis tick on Angel this season as she may not recover.

Angel has made some doggie friends here at Bonny Hills, so I went over to their owners and just told them what had happened, just in case they were wondering why Angel hadn't made her presence known for a few days.

So now I have Rosy bound to her banana lounge chair waiting for her foot to heal, and Angel laying on it with her, not understanding why we haven't taken her for her walks of late.

I can't wait until all three of us are back on the beach.

Rest, rest and yes, more rest

We're still here at beautiful Bonny Hills. Last week it rained a little but most days have been lovely with a gentle coastal breeze except for yesterday, which had quite a strong NE wind blowing. The annex did a bit of flapping but is still standing.

Stephen and Angel are both great. Stephen is looking so relaxed (beard and all) despite completing all the bookkeeping for the last 3 months and working on some websites. Angel is having a great time too, though I think we should rename her "Itchy" or "Scratchy". Something seems to be irritating her and we can't see what or anything on her skin. It could be that she keeps lying underneath the caravan in the long grass with whatever bugs live there. Tonight we're trying her with a different treatment to see if this will give her some relief. So far, not a scratch in sight.

Meanwhile, I've been adjusting to the fact that my foot (heel) needs plenty of rest and time in order to heal. So I'm staying off it and have put just about everything on hold for a while including the sewing I was going to do. I didn't realise how much I was on my feet while sewing the other week. As chance would have it, the sewing course at Spotlight I was going to start last week was cancelled due to lack of numbers. I'm enjoying the rest though and Stephen bought a banana lounge for me to laze about on with my foot up, so I lie there looking out at the ocean (as long as no one has their caravan in the way) and only be a few feet away from the caravan. It's great!

Today is battery recharge day. Every week we need to recharge a 12V battery that runs all the lights in the caravan. Gradually the lights get dimmer and dimmer until eventually it's like dining by candle light. Not that I mind that. When we finally remember to set up the recharger it needs to run from morning until night and even though the completed light doesn't come on, the lights are nice and bright again. Some of the caravans we saw had 2 switches for every light so they can be run from 240V or 12V. I don't know what it is but there's something quite nice about this little weekly ritual.

Anyway, that's all from us.

A Whale of a Time

Unfortunately, for the next month or so at least, I can no longer go on the morning beach walks. My foot injury (plantar fasciitis) which I've had for 12 months now has flared back up again despite wearing the recently purchased expensive orthotics and joggers on my walks. After a phone call yesterday to the Heel Pain Centre to get their advice, it seems I've been doing all the wrong things to aggravate the injury plus the ONE time I went barefoot on the beach last week sealed the deal. Beach walking, walking up and down hills, going barefoot are all big NO, NO's. So, feeling a bit sad and sorry for myself I stayed at the caravan this morning and did the washing while Stephen and Angel went off on their respective walk and run.

It was while I was hanging out the washing that I noticed several people standing around looking intensely out to sea. Like the busy body I am, I took a glance toward the sea as well and there to my delight were 3 or 4 whales close in to the headland just in front of me slowly making their way northward. WOW, this was the first time I'd ever seen whales this close in the wild. They were magnificent to watch. They were just hanging around off the coast leisurely rolling around in the sea taking their time to get to where they needed to go.

I realised how very lucky I am to be here, that the foot will get better eventually (although I've had it now for 12 months) as long as I give it time and that there'll be plenty of time for walking along beaches. In the grand scheme of things, it's not that big a deal.

So now that the annex is up, I've got somewhere to do my sewing. I've got a little project underway to make something to wear to our niece's wedding next month. Also, I've signed up to do a short overlocking course at the Spotlight in Port Macquarie. Although I've had my overlocker for over 20 years, I've never done anything more with it than neaten seams and I know there's a whole lot more I should be able to get it to do. The course is only 3 hrs a week for 4 weeks and hopefully, my ancient overlocker will be able to do all the things they are going to teach.

Anyway, that's all for now. Good night!

Up went the caravan annex!

It has been a few weeks since we bought the caravan and we thought it was time to try and erect the annex that came with it. We only got shown once by Watson's and there were quite a few processes involved. So, we both took a deep breath and attempted to get it done, before the sun set in 6 hours.

Slowly, but surely, bit by bit, we remembered what we had to do and within 90 minutes we had another room, which by the way, Angel has taken up residence in. Rosy is going to use the room for her sewing. Our large table fits in there quite nicely. We are both quite proud of ourselves as we didn't bend or break anything, and seeing the annex costs around $2000 to replace, it's a good thing.

Now all we have to do is wait for it to rain and for it to be windy to see how it will hold up. There's a picture of it on the right.

On the beach this morning, during our walk along the beach a woman walked passed us, after being sussed out by Angel, who was 'off lead'. She said "I didn't recognise your dog without the lead!". It's quite a looong lead that Rosy put together. It's 20 metres long and causes much talk amongst the other walkers. We need a lead that long to keep Angel happy and a little free, while we are around a lot of people. Angel tends to lose us in a crowd, maybe intentionally.

Another guy we met on the beach couldn't believe how much Angel runs. She normally does 10 lengths of the beach to our one, and all in running mode. I am thinking of changing her name to 'Everyready' - it just keeps on keeping on.

I wonder who we will meet on the beach tomorrow.

Well, well, well

Guess who was still asleep in bed till nearly 8:30am this morning? I'll say no more.

Who's in Bed until 8:30am??????

I would like to say in answer to one of Stephen's posts not too long ago that not all of us are in bed having breakfast until 8.30am. Some of us (me) are usually up making the said breakfast. However, I think I owe Stephen quite a few breakfasts as he made mine for the last 6 years M -F. I must say I am sleeping a whole lot better here despite being in a much smaller bed, a nearly level caravan with the noise of waves crashing and the occasional car or truck passing by. Could it be the fresh air, exercise, lack of stress - who knows as long as it keeps going.

We visited a couple of markets over the long weekend which really turned out to be the same market in two different locations. On Saturday we were at the craft market at the Port Macquarie near the marina. They had a good selection of stalls with all the usual jewellery, knitting, painted wood thingys, more craft things made out of towelling than I've ever seen and belly dancers. Then on Sunday we visited the markets in the main street of Laurieton. I recognised the same stalls from the previous day but this market came without belly dancers. Nevertheless, we had a good time and found a great little cafe to sit outside and have lunch.

The other day we took a trip up to Kempsey and South West Rocks. Not much to report about Kempsey - we went there to pick up something from a shop there and as it was so hot we didn't look around too much. A friend recommended we visit South West Rocks. It's quite a drive out there, but worth a visit. Once you turn off the Pacific Hwy, the road eventually runs alongside the Macleay River for kms & kms. It's a lovely drive out there and once you finally arrive you find a cute little beach village with a caravan park right on the beachfront. Although it was school holidays the village didn't seem too crowded but the caravan park seemed busy.

Speaking of school holidays, quite a few people turned up here for the long weekend but quickly disappeared once Monday came around. There were a few big groups who despite being in tents brought along their TV sets and sat around outside somberly watching the footy grand final. They were the quietest bunch of footy followers I'd seen - must have been because Melbourne won.

That's all from me for now. Cheers.

All things spiritual

I apologise to all of you who are not into spirituality for this post, but there are some who may find this interesting.

For a year or so now Rosy and I have had this feeling that the universe has been conspiring to have us try out this lifestyle. We don't know why, but we went with what we felt. I mean if you don't try these things you end up with a lot of regrets. Anyway, a dear friend of mine sent me a dvd, which I received yesterday. It wasn't on a subject matter that I thought was relevant to Rosy and I, but it did have something very interesting to say. It's about the four great services of myth. And that the individual or community has a living connection with
1/ Nature
2/ The tribe
3/The Cosmos
4/Sense of personal identity

Well you can't get more involved with nature than staying on the beach in a little area of forest, being mindful of what resources you utilise.

And you can't get more involved in a tribe than other caravaners and people who stay in caravan parks. They are so friendly and help each other at the drop of a hat. Everyone is full of stories. Sitting around their campfires, reminising about the one that got away.

Rosy and I have be working with our own unconscious content for a number of years now. Yes we do believe there is something bigger than the individual. In the dvd the speaker quoted,
Yes, the world is bigger than "I" am.
Yes, the world is more powerful than "I" am.
Now spend the next 8 or 9 decades getting used to it.

And last of all, Rosy and I are discovering ourselves and who we are meant to be - not what our parents and society thought we should be. Our own sense of personal identity. Mainly through dream analysis and lots of communicating with each other.

So as you can see the similarities to our current lifestyle fit into the four great services of myth. We had never known that this theory existed and it sort of explains what has been guiding the both of us in our endevours. Interesting hey?

Angel on the beach.

Every day, after we have had breakfast in bed (around 8:30am) it is time to go to the beach and take Angel for her morning constitutional. She is such a different dog on the beach and now has no problem with going up to any dog and saying "Hey" (as they unceremoniously sniff each others butts). The walks we use to have in Engadine were very different and full of anxiety. It seems that all the fuss is about Angel going where she wants to go, and if she can't go there she whines and barks. It brings a tear to my eye to have anxiety free walks. She is reminisant of a toddler who just wants to go and explore, while the mother is worried about he/she is getting up to. When Rosy calls Angel to have a drink of water, she comes over bregrudgingly, just like a kid would say "Oh Mum..I've had a drink can I go now." After a week of this we just ignore what she does on the beach now, and she seems to be all the better for it.

Rosy and I started to notice that Angel was giving the ocean a wide berth so we have been getting her use to it, enticing her with food treats. Although it looked like Angel was just copying what Rosy did, with not getting her feet wet with her shoes on. Just today Angel was getting into the surf and running along. She even went over to the pond and ran into it. We saw her go in and suddenly she disappeared. She mustn't have noticed the sandy bottom dropping away from her. We were wondering if she knew how to swim and suddenly we see this little white head bop up and down (doing dog paddle) until she got to a place where she could stand up. It didn't bother Angel and she still ventured into the ocean after this event.

Just as a treat we have put a video on the blog of Angel on the beach. If you want to watch it and have speakers, be sure to turn the audio on. Just double click the thumbnail image on the right. The video will give you some idea of how Angel goes for a walk now. Let us know what you think of the video through the comments section.

Yesterday, Angel met up with a rather large Golden Retriever. This dog was so cute. It would run into the surf and then lie down in the water, waiting for Angel to make a move. Then this dog would run out and roll all over the sand. Then the whole process would begin again. We get to talking a bit with other dog owners and mostly they say what a well behaved dog Angel is. What the!!!!!

I feel so happy that Angel has found her Nervana. And the great news is that she spends the rest of the day outside the van, behaving herself.

Well, I must away now, even though I don't have anything to do. I think I will just BE, for a while.

Survival week 1

Well, we survived our first week of caravan life and haven't been voted off the island (c/park) yet.

As first time caravaners we are constantly learning things our new home. Firstly, we learned (or should I say reconfirmed) that the NSW Government will take any opportunity to squeeze money from people. We bought our caravan second hand caravan through a dealer and were well aware that we would have to pay stamp duty to transfer the registration from the previous owner to us. What we didn't know was that the poor dealer is also hit for stamp duty they take over the registration of the caravan even though they are merely acting as a seller. However, I'm sure this gets passed onto the buyer so we would end up paying stamp duty twice. So not only did Morris and friends collect $800+ in stamp duty from us for this caravan they also collected $300+ from the dealer for the same caravan. I won't even go into how repetitious the rego transfer form was.

Secondly, we learned that the caravan is quite watertight even with the 4 seasons roof hatch open in rain mode position (this leaves the roof hatch open just a bit to let air flow through). Late yesterday, there was a torrential downpoor while we were out so we crossed our fingers and hoped that we wouldn't come back to puddles of water. The only soggy things we found when we got back were the 2 towels hanging over the back bumper bar.

And lastly, we moved the caravan to be in a more level position today. We would have done this last week however no sooner had we got here, than another couple came in straight after us and parked where we needed to move to. It didn't matter as they left today so we have the whole area to ourselves (at least for today). Stephen did a fantastic job of backing the van up hill and relocating us down into just the right spot. I must say a big "thank you" to the person or magazine, I can't remember which, who suggested to getting walkie talkies to help with directing someone who is backing a caravan. It made the job so much easier. It takes a bit of practice not only to do the backing, but to give clear directions (not really my strong suit) AND operate the w/t but we got there in the end.

Now we are happily balanced in our new spot and will put up our awning tomorrow. That'll be another learning exercise (the guy from the dealership spent more time showing us how to put up the awning than anything else on the caravan and there were about 100 instructions to remember). We'll tackle that tomorrow - today we'll just enjoy where we are.

"Shitter's Full" (National Lampoon Christmas Vacation)

One of the reaons Rosy and I picked this carvan was the open space it had for the things we wanted to do in it (get your mind out of the gutter). We decided not to get a caravan with an ensuit because it reduces the amount of space available in the van, they take a lot of cleaning, and they wanted an extra $10,000 for a metre square floor space taken up by the shower and toilet.

So, we decided to get a "g'zunder", a neat little toilet that stores in the van and we can use in the middle of the night, rather than having to walk to the amenities in the cool night air (sorry for the subject matter).

Anyway, today we had to find out what to do with the contents of said toilet. It was surprising how clean and easy it was, so don't be afraid to look at this type of option for your next camping holiday. They all operate with detachable cartridges that you can carry to the "dump" and empty out. All in all it has worked quite well and if you didn't know there was a toilet in the van, you would never know.

Every day I learn something new.

We've been in our c/van at Bonny Hills nearly 4 days now and I just love being here. It's a great spot to slip into our new nomadic lifestyle and get used to living in our new mobile home. I must admit I was a bit nervous about driving the c/van from Pt Mac down to here but it really wasn't as difficult as I thought. 2 things I've discovered about towing the van I will share with you: 1) when Navman says turn in 600m don't wait until the next time they say turn to put your foot on the brake as there's no way the c/van will slow down in time; 2) if the c/van salesman says "No, you won't need driving mirrors if you have a Landcruiser", don't believe him.

That discovered, we made it here safely and found a shady spot all to ourselves where we could unhitch the van. This proved to be the next challenge. As it was our first time out with the c/van (apart from the little park at Settlement Pt) we chose a site we could drive through. However, the site had a bit of a slant to it. Stephen did a great job doing all the winding to level the van while I watched little bubbles move around in the spirit level (much less strenuous). Then suddenly, we heard a clunk and saw that one of our front stabiliser legs had buckled. Aggh!!~! It looked like we were going to have to make Bonny Hills our permanent home as there was no way we could raise or lower the leg to move the van. Thankfully, with the help of a mallot, a hammer and much persistence, Stephen was able to bash it into back into shape so the leg can be raised again. We'll get the leg replaced when we move away from here around Nov.

The c/van is now starting to look like a little home sweet mobile home. We've been sorting through all the bags of clothes and stuff we brought up from Sydney. I'm REALLY surprised we've managed to find spots for just about everything we brought, however, we now have a box in the back of the car full of "nice to have's but no room to keep" which will go back into storage when we come back down to Syd in Nov.

We're definitely getting into the swing of this holidaying by the beach lifestyle. Relaxed breakfasts followed by long walks along the beach. Angel loves it too!

More to come later. Bye for now and hope you enjoy reading our blog.
Bye for now, Rosy.

Arrival at Bonny Hills

Just 20 minutes south of Port Macquaire we found a lovely little caravan park at Bonny Hills, overlooking Rainbow Beach (see picture).

Rosy and I had a good look around to find a good location (that we could drive through, rather than reverse in) and that had good Internet connectivity.

I hd a couple of hiccups with the uncoupling and levelling, but this is a pretty big learning curve. We have walkie talkies to communicate with each other when manouvering the caravan around objects and when reversing. A workmate of Rosy's suggested it to her as a means of saving the marriage when driving caravans. It also saves on disturbing other visitors. Rosy did a great job in placement of the van, even after doing a little bit of reversing.

We had our first night in the van and other problem solving situations arose, but then in the grand scheme of things they are not that big a problem. I am sure we will get them worked out over time. The important thing is that we have the desktop computer and notebook operating as this is our entertainment centre and my tools for Internet work.

It's a beautiful day today so we went for a walk along the beach. We passed most of the people and Rosy let Angel off the leash. She shot out of the barriers like a greyhound and went and sussed out every person, dog and pebble. We ended up putting her back on the long lead after it took us a few minutes to get her attention back. That's enough Coke for her. Surprisingly, the stay Angel had in the dog kennel, while we set up things, has given her a better temperament. She hasn't gone off the deep end with any other dog, so far. Also, we have neighbours with two cavalier king charles spaniels (both female) and they all get on so well with each other.

Bonny Hills Caravan Park is only small, with room for about 20 carvans. As long as the hoons stay away over school holidays we will most probably stay here until Cathies wedding in November.

Stephen

We're On Our Way - Ah Ha, Ah Ha.

Well, we arrive in Port Macquarie in one piece and found a nice little caravan park at Settlement Point on the northern outskirts of the town. We got a cabin for a few nights and it overlooks the Hastings River. We were greeted with the most glorious sunset. The park owner is a nice guy and very obliging and vague, which seems to suit us down to the ground seeing we didn't know what to expect with the caravan.

The day finally arrived to collect our van. We were a little late, but it didn't seem to matter because Barry from Watson's Caravans put an electric brake pack in my hands and directed me to an auto mechanic he had booked. It took the best part of the morning for the gadget to be fitted to Herc (short for Hercules, the name we call our Landcruiser). Then in the afternoon we went back to Watsons and they started to show us the ins and outs of the van and how to operate everything. What a brain override that was. Luckily Rosy had a pen and paper handy to jot most things down.

They got to the stage where it was time to hitch the van to Herc and they asked us to unlock the existing tow bar ball. We looked at each other puzzled. What lock? What key? We had no idea what they were talking about and we definitely didn't have a key to unlock the device. No matter, I asked if there was a locksmith in town, of which there was, so off we went. Although the van people were a bit concerned as they weren't quite sure that the locksmith would be able to take the lock off. Apparently, caravaners use them to stop people from stealing their Hayman Reece apparatus, which cost about $1000 a piece. Anyway, we get to the locksmith and they say they will try to unpick the lock. After about an hour they decide that isn't going to work so they then decide to drill through the lock. That didn't work wither. Then they try drilling through the bolt. Hey presto! One busted lock.

It's now 4:30pm and Watson's shut at 5pm. I don't know. these people who live out in the country and have other lives. Well, you can imagine how quickly they showed us how to hitch and unhitch the van, and a very quick lesson on how to reverse it. I have to say though, they were really good with detailing the van, adding quite a few things to it for no extra cost. As it was the Hayman Reece sway bar, the electric brake were thrown in. They basically got the unit in working order before they let us out the gate.

Then it was time to drive out. I had asked Rosy if she wanted the honours, but guess what, she didn't want to do it. So off we go. I have to say, it was remarkably easy. Not at all how I had imagined it. The power of Herc made it feel like i wasn't towing anything at all, and because the twin axles are at the back of the van, it basically followed the tyre marks of Herc. We were going through round-a-bouts and corners and speed humps with very little effort. Wahoo!!!

We have decided to settle in a place called Bonny Hills, about 30 minutes south of Port Macquarie. It is right on the beach and we are looking forward to getting there and setting everything up.