OMG!! Is it really that long since I last posted...no, can't be! Where the hell have the years gone??
Well, 2016 must have been pretty good because nothing fundamentally challenging really stands out in my memory, and it was SUCH a loooong time ago. 2017 on the other hand.......
2017 has been the biggest year of ups and downs that I have experienced so far in my many, but not too many, years of living. We have had holidays, we have welcomed new members into our family, we are currently amidst a bathroom renovation (finally).....but..... this year we have also seen tragedy and misfortune.
What's that saying? Bad luck comes in threes. Well for us it seemed like it was just going to keep coming there for a while. I have experienced loss before but none hit quite so hard as the suicide of a family member. I think it's particularly hard when you just don't see it coming. It was just shit! That's all I can say.
Literally a week or so later, a close friend lost her sister in a tragic accident. Followed close behind by a very very very close call when Brett's son rolled his car. All in the car were okay luckily, but it was a very frightening time. Not helped by the timing either. The big "C" word has also reared it's ugly head this year, with my cousin succumbing earlier in the year.
On a happier note now....
Brett and I enjoyed an amazing holiday to Tasmania earlier in the year. Three weeks of sight seeing and nomad campervan style trekking around the state was awesome. Loved it!
 |
| Cascade Brewery |
 |
| Eaglehawk Neck (dog line memorial statue) |
 |
| Queenstown caravan park (and a break in the overcast weather) |
 |
| Sun setting off Bruny Island |
 |
| Sun rise off east coast (near Freycinet) |
 |
| A top the 'nut' (Stanley) |
2017 started out great! It was a time of blissful ignorance, with seemingly never ending holiday plans....
With 3 weeks in Tassie, we were home for about a month before leaving for another almost 3 weeks camping and 4wding up through Cape York again. This time we were not alone! What started out as a father-son only trip, turned into a three vehicle entourage. With Bretts dad in with us, there was also our neighbour and his wife, and one other couple. Both relatively inexperienced 4wders, jumped at the opportunity to tag along.
 |
| Black Mountain lookout |
 |
| Elim Beach (walking towards the 'coloured sands') |
 |
| Bramwell Junction (the start of the old tele track) |
 |
| Beautiful Fruitbat Falls (no crocs) |
 |
| Punsand Bay resort bar |
 |
| The 'croc' at the Croc Tent (not real) |
 |
| At the TIP |
 |
| The old tele track (posing with one of the few telegraph poles still standing) |
 |
| On the old tele track, getting into some serious 4wding |
 |
| Woops! Fell into a rut and almost toppled. Needed a pull out from behind. |
 |
| One of many beautiful spots to cool off along the old tele track |
 |
| Home again! Almost don't want to wash the red dirt off the car... |
Once the nostalgia and enjoyment of our holidays had waned, and the reality that there would be no more holidays for quite some time (humph), we settled back into normality. Pretty soon, perhaps slightly bored again, we decided we should add to our family. No no no...NO! I'm not going THERE again. Been there, done that - our children are all grown up and life is good. No, what I mean is we decided to get a puppy.......
Enter...Louie the Jack Russell
Louie has been a joy and constant source of entertainment since the day he arrived. Well, I say 'arrived' but it was actually quite a long journey to collect him. He is the short legged, short haired, variety of JR which we found really hard to find locally. Brett spotted him online with a breeder in southern Qld and when we rang, he was the only one still available so we decided it was fate. We left home at about 4am, with the breeder agreeing to meet us in Rockhampton, where we arrived around lunch time. We intended to stay overnight but sharing the driving, we ended up all the way home. About 17 hours all up. Louie was great. Slept most of the way. Slept through the night when we got home, and has done ever since.
The house has taken a back step in recent years, mainly for economic reasons, however we have recently decided that the bathroom must be done, sooner rather than later. I'm pretty sure the bathroom has been renovated in the past, but I'm guessing probably not in the last 20 years. In any case, we embarked on a full scale demolition and redesign. Our bathroom, our ONLY bathroom I might add, has been out of action for about 3 weeks now, so it's been camping style facilities ever since.
I've heard the term 'bull at a gate' quite a few times, and I do have a tendency to rip into something and stop to think about the consequences afterwards. Unfortunately with this renovation, we completely underestimated the amount of work required just to stabilize the floor joists and straighten the wall studs. Old houses!! At least it is being done properly and should be strong enough to last another 70 years. Not a lot to see at the moment so will post pictures next time - hopefully in the not too distant future!!
Have an enjoyable and uneventful 2017 Christmas everyone. Hopefully 2018 will be a good year!
