|
This is Why Life's about to change....
OK, so it’s about time I brought everyone up to date with
what’s going on over here..…
First things first, the main news is that Sue and I will be
having a baby in August, and that we will be moving back to England in May. We
fly on May 15th, breaking the journey with a few days with Sue’s
Aunt and Uncle in Phoenix and we land in the UK on May 22nd. We are
both excited and really looking forward to seeing everyone. As for August, to be
honest there is some feeling of apprehension…..
As usual, and unsurprisingly my intentions of monthly
newsletters have not been forthcoming, so since this is the first one since
Christmas, I’ll start from there.
We had a wonderful Christmas with friends and their family
near Lakes Entrance, on the coast about 3 hrs drive from Melbourne.
Christmas dinner was Bugs and Shrimps, although the weather was not the  warm,
sunny type we were hoping for. At 3am on Christmas Eve, we were woken in our
tent by a storm and strong winds. The rain on the tent kept getting louder and
louder, until the noise reached ridiculous levels. The tent was moving violently
from side to side in the wind (the wind WAS from outside) and I started to feel
sharp pains as the hailstones struck me on the head. I curled up in a ball in
the centre of the tent, convinced that it was about to fall apart and/or take
off and fly. The cows in the field next to us were mooing loudly and sounding
quite distressed and I know how they felt. It seemed like about 20 minutes but
was probably not much more than 30 seconds before it stopped and we timidly
emerged from the tent to see what was going on. The ground was covered in
hailstones the size of golf balls, most of the leaves had been stripped from the
trees by the force. We dashed up to the house for shelter and to wait while our
heart rates returned to normal. The next morning we went for a walk and saw the
effects of the storm. All the cars, including ours, were pitted on every panel
($5600 worth of insurance repairs now done!), with mirrors and lights smashed
too. Birds were lying on the ground dead or limping along unable to fly, a
nearby fruit farm lost their entire crop and a caravan park all their windows.
We took advantage of the situation and scooped up the hailstones to use the as
ice in the cool boxes and keep the beers cold – every cloud has a silver
lining !
After Christmas, I was offered a new job – I am now the
Manager of Architecture and Design on the project here. Already Sue and I were
thinking that we would probably be leaving to return to the UK before too long,
so I explained this but I was invited to take the job anyway. I have a superb
team and I’ve really enjoyed it. The hours haven’t been any longer, although
it is a little more difficult to take off afternoons for golf now.
 At
the end of January, we went with four friends for a long golf weekend in
Queensland to help Dex celebrate his birthday. Playing at the Royal Pines
resort, which was preparing to host the Australian Womens PGA a few weeks later,
the boys enjoyed the golf while the girls enjoyed the massages and manicures
available. We also had a day at Waterworld and some time on the beach at Surfers
Paradise.
February was a relatively quiet month, I had to stop wearing
after shave as it was making Sue feel sick. Despite a few days where she
didn’t feel too good and a general loss of appetite it wasn’t too unpleasant
(I don’t know what all the fuss is about!).(As the
editor, I would just like to say that the ‘few days’ referred to was spent
with my head constantly down the loo – worse than my heaviest hangover! Losing
3 pounds in weight as a consequence).
I was getting out on the
Golf course most weekends, and although the handicap isn’t coming down as fast
as I would like, the warm conditions made it a pleasure just being out.
March has seen me trying once again to get fit. Plenty of
runs around Albert Park Lake and the Royal
Botanic Gardens together with a bit of hockey training, squash and weights seem
to be making a difference – so I hopefully will not be charged excess baggage
for my belly on the journey home. The same really can’t be said for Sue,
although regular walks and swimming are helping her keep healthy and trim. It
certainly does appear the belly has transferred though….
(Harsh, but fair – Ed)
Easter was fairly quiet here, it’s
unfortunately too far to turn up unannounced at either Watergate Bay or
Amsterdam Airport on Good Friday for family holidays or hockey tours
respectively so we had to make  do
with golf and chocolate, that is me with golf and Sue with chocolate. Since
then, we have been preparing for the big move. We have shipping agents sorted
out and are starting to pack (well, Sue has), but there is a big need to plan
all the parties and leaving drinks as it’s only four weeks from now.
We have decided not to bring home the pet spider Sue was surprised by the other
day - fortunately it was on the OUTSIDE of the car...
Anyway, off to watch the Sunday evening
DVD movie. Until the next time, take care and thanks for reading.
| 
