Those observant amongst may have noticed that there wasn’t a XMAS letter for 2017. After a deluge of enquiries, errrrrr, nope, not a single one, I have decided to try to recap and do a combined one for 2017/18, if only so in my later years, I can remember what happened when.
Christmas Day 2016 saw Krystyna and myself jetting off to Vietnam on what appears to be my last overseas holiday (oh, ok, good news on this front a bit later in the tome). The Vietnam adventure was blogged and appears on the website but for me the least memorable part was getting food poisoning at my first breakfast and spent most of the cruise around Ha Long Bay being violently ill.
Easter 2017 saw the complete extended family (including Penfold and Keiko) holidaying at Wombarra just North of Wollongong. Pretty expensive digs but they did allow 4 legged critters and it was absolute sea frontage with a path winding its way down to rocky sea shore. On the very busy Lawrence Hargrave Drive which eventually, a few kilometres north, becomes the scenic Sea Cliff Bridge. The multi bedroom house was sheltered from the road noise but the weekend traffic is non-stop and it was a bit dangerous trying to get out of the driveway. Anyway, it is now Krystyna’s dream to own some similar real estate. The sunrises are second to none and the sound of the waves at night is mesmerising.
Krystyna flew to Europe in June to catch up with family and friends and some dental work. She had a short enjoyable excursion to Barcelona. Parliament was sitting in June so I was unavailable, plus I really don’t like the idea of long haul economy flights and I haven’t earned enough or saved enough over 39 years to deserve a seat in Premium Economy. I seem to recall one night during that winter of Parliament pulling an almost overnighter – stupid dicks, they really don’t use their time wisely during sitting periods, particularly the House of Reps.
Krystyna bought some more inner south Canberra Real Estate – I had nothing to do with this. This purchase is possibly the opportunity for Alex to migrate her Yoga studio away from Kent St. The property has ample space in backyard for a dedicated studio to be built and there is good on street parking for clients.
During December, the group house tenants of our other investment property moved out – Good riddance, they were painful. We took the opportunity to give it a quick renovation to bring it up to the standard that would suit diplomatic leases. We all pitched in, ESPECIALLY Michael but it was a very hard slog and to make matters more awkward Michael’s Ranger was off the road with extended transmission problems (fixed under warranty despite its age) – the X5 stepped up to the challenge and reacquainted itself with the tip. We knocked out bedroom walls, split a bathroom into 2 to create an ensuite for a new decent sized master bedroom. New cupboards for all bedrooms, windows cleaned and painted, all internal walls painted, downstairs floor sanded and polished, new carpets upstairs and a brand-new kitchen[KF1] installed. Ducted cooling and we were right to go. Phew – It took us a month and I hated every micro-second but with a new Agent on board, who I must say have been excellent (Purnell’s Citywide) we soon had a tenant who is willing to sign an extended lease. So much for taking it easy over summer.
There were no holidays as such for us but Michael and Eva headed off to China over Christmas where they had a good time, despite the cold. After the previous year’s disaster in the Veggie patch, it was left fallow for the season. I found the whole summer very saddening.
In March, I headed up to Sydney with Team COMCAR for the ASEAN Special Summit. This was much better organised than the G20 in Brisbane a few years back. We stayed in plush digs close enough to walk to the Entertainment Centre where the summit was held and where our Depot was located. I shared a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with my mate Warren and we were both rostered to Singapore. AND THE MOTORCADES – Ohhhh, such fun! Motorcycle Cops performing outrider duties ducking and weaving amongst us. Flashing lights everywhere, green light traffic corridors and the smile on my face needed a week to subside. Actually, those flashing lights at night at such close quarters is a bit blinding Sure there were moments of intense boredom and the 40 degree heat on the last day was not appreciated but such fun was had by all. Even at the end of shifts, we had police escorts to get us back to the Depot. More on those police bikes later.
Some real joy, I have befriended my local magpie family. I spotted a magpie having a drink from one of our big pots. I was surprised to find that he was happy to take bacon from my hand. I later watched how awkwardly he flew after grass hoppers and the next time I was feeding I found out why. He was missing one eye – I have named him “Buddy”. His partner is much shyer and doesn’t allow me to hand feed her (she does now) and she is called “Jasmine”. Their child has a deformed foot, quite a common occurrence and I think is a little girl (HopaLong). HopaLong does feed from my hand but as I write now, I note that the parents are trying to encourage her to move out by giving her the odd beating. Still, there is nothing quite like when the 3 of them serenade me. They now turn their noses up at bacon but they do love their cheese (of which I give them tiny amounts – never feed them bread which is just bad for them).
I am beginning to not like my toenails. Their distance away from my head is just the wrong distance for my eyes to focus on with my reading glasses. With my multi-focals, I need to have my head at an impossible angle – and now my nails are tending to in-grow. I had one partially removed by my GP and like 30 years ago, the local anaesthetic doesn’t really work when the nail is yanked off – I have since had a few trips to Podiatrists who help but not fix the problem – sigh – and as I type this now (June), I feel the need for another visit.
A few day trips down the coast for Krystyna to investigate real estate – sometimes I don’t know about this until 15 minutes before departure. She has checked out a few places around Culburra Beach near Nowra but Nowra does nothing for me, and more around Wombarra.
We again ventured down to Wombarra to the same Easter Digs as last year but this time Eva’s critter Caesar also came down - He got along famously with Penfold and Keiko. More sunsets were enjoyed, we probably did the food bit a bit better than last year including a most enjoyable fish and chips take-away feast from the famous Jolly Roger. And we celebrated Krystyna’s 60th birthday (a few days before the actual event).
With all this talk about Real Estate (with my aversion to debt), I decided it was time for me to get back on 2 wheels. Those Police Bike outriders at ASEAN really didn’t help. So, after a bit of wheeling and dealing with the local Motorrad dealer, I am the proud owner of a BMW C650 GT, which is BMW’s maxi-scooter. A scooter you scoff? Plenty of power, nice low centre of gravity (though it is a tad heavy at 270 kg) which makes it easy to chuck around, great weather protection with electric adjustable fairing, heated seats and hand grips. Tons of room under the seat so it is very practical. My helmet has integrated comms so it syncs with phone and if I want, I can talk on phone, intercom to other nearby riders or listen to music. I prefer to do none of those except on the highway. Top speed of 180km so I can escape nearby traffic if need be. I choose to be a fair-weather bikie but the day that I had it booked in for its first 1,000 k service, the heavens opened up twice that day, once in the morning when I was dropping the bike off and once in the afternoon when I picked up. With the adjustable fairing, I can redirect airflow in the rain so that my helmet visor remains relatively rain free. I would rather ride in the rain than strong winds. I did set off one Friday with the view to getting down Macquarie Pass to the coast but an overnight low of minus 5 made it a freezing morning and I just could not stop my teeth from chattering.
For my birthday, I did venture down the coast via Nerriga, Nowra and had lunch near our Wombarra digs. Very warm winters day down the coast (about 22) but the wind did come up as I rode down the Hume to home. Got home in time for the end of a multi hour blackout. We had takeaway Turkish for dinner and I slept like a log.
I have also been trained as a COMCAR Reservations Officer (and little bit Allocator). They have trouble filling the overnight shifts (22:10-0610) and I can understand why. The money is ok and is good to have an understanding of how the whole thing fits together but the overnighters take me days to recover. Plus, who wants to receive a ph call from the big hatted Queenslander at 00:50 am (I really thought it was a friend taking the piss). I have told them to keep me as an emergency but the overnighters are not for me.
For my Birthday, I received a voucher for “Meet a Cheetah” at the National Zoo. What a special day out that turn out to be. We had a bit of an explore before my scheduled appointment. The Zoo is quite good at sending warnings about we are doing to this planet. Prior to my appointment, I watched the group meeting the cheetah before me. It was quite obvious that the guests were a little nervous and the cheetah sensed this and was a little spooked. When it was my turn to go in, the zoo staff apologised and said I could reschedule or they could take me to see another cheetah that was a bit special. I had read about this cheetah in the Canberra Times, it had been abandoned by its mother because it was an only child (called “Solo”) so a rescue dog/puppy was its companion and I got to meet both. Absolutely mesmerising, especially the purring bits.
The big drought continues. One of the driest winters on record so does not look good for the summer. Having said that, (this is written mid October), fake Spring has been and gone – back to wintery weather.
I ended up going to a surgeon to get my other toe fixed but this time under general anaesthetic. During my first consultation with him, he looked at the toe that had been done earlier in the year and noted that it hadn’t been treated to stop it growing back. So, whilst under, he would redo it. The surgery was across the road at John James but I couldn’t walk home. Krystyna picked me up and dropped me at home and went off to my script for pain killers filled. I traipsed through the house and got to the ensuite where I looked down and saw I was leaking a lot of blood and had left a trail through the house including on new carpets. Oh dear, sorry Krysia. Community nurses came every day for the next week and changed the dressing on the toes- what a great service. I could drive and walk slowly but couldn’t wear shoes so I didn’t work for a week.
We had another family escape to Wombarra in October, with all the critters as well – lots of whale spotting done from the house. Krystyna spotted an absolute dump for sale further up the road which is being very unkind to dumps. She put in an offer which was accepted. I went for a ride on the bike for a day trip and had another look – it is truly horrid – it was a nice ride though, via Moss Vale, Robertson and had my first go on Macquarie Pass. And I had another nice lunch at the Headland Hotel.
After a bit of angst and a bit of flu shared between the 2 of us (I did have the flu Vac), the house offer was withdrawn just before contracts were exchanged. The block of land didn’t have views and it appeared to be made from asbestos. Hugh sighs of relief all around.
Michael and Eva had a holiday in Hong Kong. Michael came home with a fiancée! Well done you two!
After a little bit of angst due to an application that went “missing”, I was selected for the COMCAR VIP Visits team. This will mean a little more training but more involvement when foreign Presidents/delegations come to visit Canberra – and more motorcades – Yippppeeee!
It is now the 14th of December as I write this last bit. We have just returned from a whirlwind 5 night trip to Fiji to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. The full write up is up on the website under the Stories/Travel section http://www.kimjfitzgerald.com/25th-anniversary---fiji.html
The definite highlights were the breakfast serenading on our anniversary and our tandem parasailing adventure. It was a very relaxing visit and Fiji continues to have a soft spot in my heart.
Time to wrap this up before the end of the 4th page. After our dry Winter, late Spring and early Summer is proving to be very wet but the weather is spooky. Here’s to you. I hope you have a XMAS break that brings you peace and happiness and for those that way inclined – pressies – YAYYYYYY !
[KF1]
Christmas Day 2016 saw Krystyna and myself jetting off to Vietnam on what appears to be my last overseas holiday (oh, ok, good news on this front a bit later in the tome). The Vietnam adventure was blogged and appears on the website but for me the least memorable part was getting food poisoning at my first breakfast and spent most of the cruise around Ha Long Bay being violently ill.
Easter 2017 saw the complete extended family (including Penfold and Keiko) holidaying at Wombarra just North of Wollongong. Pretty expensive digs but they did allow 4 legged critters and it was absolute sea frontage with a path winding its way down to rocky sea shore. On the very busy Lawrence Hargrave Drive which eventually, a few kilometres north, becomes the scenic Sea Cliff Bridge. The multi bedroom house was sheltered from the road noise but the weekend traffic is non-stop and it was a bit dangerous trying to get out of the driveway. Anyway, it is now Krystyna’s dream to own some similar real estate. The sunrises are second to none and the sound of the waves at night is mesmerising.
Krystyna flew to Europe in June to catch up with family and friends and some dental work. She had a short enjoyable excursion to Barcelona. Parliament was sitting in June so I was unavailable, plus I really don’t like the idea of long haul economy flights and I haven’t earned enough or saved enough over 39 years to deserve a seat in Premium Economy. I seem to recall one night during that winter of Parliament pulling an almost overnighter – stupid dicks, they really don’t use their time wisely during sitting periods, particularly the House of Reps.
Krystyna bought some more inner south Canberra Real Estate – I had nothing to do with this. This purchase is possibly the opportunity for Alex to migrate her Yoga studio away from Kent St. The property has ample space in backyard for a dedicated studio to be built and there is good on street parking for clients.
During December, the group house tenants of our other investment property moved out – Good riddance, they were painful. We took the opportunity to give it a quick renovation to bring it up to the standard that would suit diplomatic leases. We all pitched in, ESPECIALLY Michael but it was a very hard slog and to make matters more awkward Michael’s Ranger was off the road with extended transmission problems (fixed under warranty despite its age) – the X5 stepped up to the challenge and reacquainted itself with the tip. We knocked out bedroom walls, split a bathroom into 2 to create an ensuite for a new decent sized master bedroom. New cupboards for all bedrooms, windows cleaned and painted, all internal walls painted, downstairs floor sanded and polished, new carpets upstairs and a brand-new kitchen[KF1] installed. Ducted cooling and we were right to go. Phew – It took us a month and I hated every micro-second but with a new Agent on board, who I must say have been excellent (Purnell’s Citywide) we soon had a tenant who is willing to sign an extended lease. So much for taking it easy over summer.
There were no holidays as such for us but Michael and Eva headed off to China over Christmas where they had a good time, despite the cold. After the previous year’s disaster in the Veggie patch, it was left fallow for the season. I found the whole summer very saddening.
In March, I headed up to Sydney with Team COMCAR for the ASEAN Special Summit. This was much better organised than the G20 in Brisbane a few years back. We stayed in plush digs close enough to walk to the Entertainment Centre where the summit was held and where our Depot was located. I shared a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with my mate Warren and we were both rostered to Singapore. AND THE MOTORCADES – Ohhhh, such fun! Motorcycle Cops performing outrider duties ducking and weaving amongst us. Flashing lights everywhere, green light traffic corridors and the smile on my face needed a week to subside. Actually, those flashing lights at night at such close quarters is a bit blinding Sure there were moments of intense boredom and the 40 degree heat on the last day was not appreciated but such fun was had by all. Even at the end of shifts, we had police escorts to get us back to the Depot. More on those police bikes later.
Some real joy, I have befriended my local magpie family. I spotted a magpie having a drink from one of our big pots. I was surprised to find that he was happy to take bacon from my hand. I later watched how awkwardly he flew after grass hoppers and the next time I was feeding I found out why. He was missing one eye – I have named him “Buddy”. His partner is much shyer and doesn’t allow me to hand feed her (she does now) and she is called “Jasmine”. Their child has a deformed foot, quite a common occurrence and I think is a little girl (HopaLong). HopaLong does feed from my hand but as I write now, I note that the parents are trying to encourage her to move out by giving her the odd beating. Still, there is nothing quite like when the 3 of them serenade me. They now turn their noses up at bacon but they do love their cheese (of which I give them tiny amounts – never feed them bread which is just bad for them).
I am beginning to not like my toenails. Their distance away from my head is just the wrong distance for my eyes to focus on with my reading glasses. With my multi-focals, I need to have my head at an impossible angle – and now my nails are tending to in-grow. I had one partially removed by my GP and like 30 years ago, the local anaesthetic doesn’t really work when the nail is yanked off – I have since had a few trips to Podiatrists who help but not fix the problem – sigh – and as I type this now (June), I feel the need for another visit.
A few day trips down the coast for Krystyna to investigate real estate – sometimes I don’t know about this until 15 minutes before departure. She has checked out a few places around Culburra Beach near Nowra but Nowra does nothing for me, and more around Wombarra.
We again ventured down to Wombarra to the same Easter Digs as last year but this time Eva’s critter Caesar also came down - He got along famously with Penfold and Keiko. More sunsets were enjoyed, we probably did the food bit a bit better than last year including a most enjoyable fish and chips take-away feast from the famous Jolly Roger. And we celebrated Krystyna’s 60th birthday (a few days before the actual event).
With all this talk about Real Estate (with my aversion to debt), I decided it was time for me to get back on 2 wheels. Those Police Bike outriders at ASEAN really didn’t help. So, after a bit of wheeling and dealing with the local Motorrad dealer, I am the proud owner of a BMW C650 GT, which is BMW’s maxi-scooter. A scooter you scoff? Plenty of power, nice low centre of gravity (though it is a tad heavy at 270 kg) which makes it easy to chuck around, great weather protection with electric adjustable fairing, heated seats and hand grips. Tons of room under the seat so it is very practical. My helmet has integrated comms so it syncs with phone and if I want, I can talk on phone, intercom to other nearby riders or listen to music. I prefer to do none of those except on the highway. Top speed of 180km so I can escape nearby traffic if need be. I choose to be a fair-weather bikie but the day that I had it booked in for its first 1,000 k service, the heavens opened up twice that day, once in the morning when I was dropping the bike off and once in the afternoon when I picked up. With the adjustable fairing, I can redirect airflow in the rain so that my helmet visor remains relatively rain free. I would rather ride in the rain than strong winds. I did set off one Friday with the view to getting down Macquarie Pass to the coast but an overnight low of minus 5 made it a freezing morning and I just could not stop my teeth from chattering.
For my birthday, I did venture down the coast via Nerriga, Nowra and had lunch near our Wombarra digs. Very warm winters day down the coast (about 22) but the wind did come up as I rode down the Hume to home. Got home in time for the end of a multi hour blackout. We had takeaway Turkish for dinner and I slept like a log.
I have also been trained as a COMCAR Reservations Officer (and little bit Allocator). They have trouble filling the overnight shifts (22:10-0610) and I can understand why. The money is ok and is good to have an understanding of how the whole thing fits together but the overnighters take me days to recover. Plus, who wants to receive a ph call from the big hatted Queenslander at 00:50 am (I really thought it was a friend taking the piss). I have told them to keep me as an emergency but the overnighters are not for me.
For my Birthday, I received a voucher for “Meet a Cheetah” at the National Zoo. What a special day out that turn out to be. We had a bit of an explore before my scheduled appointment. The Zoo is quite good at sending warnings about we are doing to this planet. Prior to my appointment, I watched the group meeting the cheetah before me. It was quite obvious that the guests were a little nervous and the cheetah sensed this and was a little spooked. When it was my turn to go in, the zoo staff apologised and said I could reschedule or they could take me to see another cheetah that was a bit special. I had read about this cheetah in the Canberra Times, it had been abandoned by its mother because it was an only child (called “Solo”) so a rescue dog/puppy was its companion and I got to meet both. Absolutely mesmerising, especially the purring bits.
The big drought continues. One of the driest winters on record so does not look good for the summer. Having said that, (this is written mid October), fake Spring has been and gone – back to wintery weather.
I ended up going to a surgeon to get my other toe fixed but this time under general anaesthetic. During my first consultation with him, he looked at the toe that had been done earlier in the year and noted that it hadn’t been treated to stop it growing back. So, whilst under, he would redo it. The surgery was across the road at John James but I couldn’t walk home. Krystyna picked me up and dropped me at home and went off to my script for pain killers filled. I traipsed through the house and got to the ensuite where I looked down and saw I was leaking a lot of blood and had left a trail through the house including on new carpets. Oh dear, sorry Krysia. Community nurses came every day for the next week and changed the dressing on the toes- what a great service. I could drive and walk slowly but couldn’t wear shoes so I didn’t work for a week.
We had another family escape to Wombarra in October, with all the critters as well – lots of whale spotting done from the house. Krystyna spotted an absolute dump for sale further up the road which is being very unkind to dumps. She put in an offer which was accepted. I went for a ride on the bike for a day trip and had another look – it is truly horrid – it was a nice ride though, via Moss Vale, Robertson and had my first go on Macquarie Pass. And I had another nice lunch at the Headland Hotel.
After a bit of angst and a bit of flu shared between the 2 of us (I did have the flu Vac), the house offer was withdrawn just before contracts were exchanged. The block of land didn’t have views and it appeared to be made from asbestos. Hugh sighs of relief all around.
Michael and Eva had a holiday in Hong Kong. Michael came home with a fiancée! Well done you two!
After a little bit of angst due to an application that went “missing”, I was selected for the COMCAR VIP Visits team. This will mean a little more training but more involvement when foreign Presidents/delegations come to visit Canberra – and more motorcades – Yippppeeee!
It is now the 14th of December as I write this last bit. We have just returned from a whirlwind 5 night trip to Fiji to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. The full write up is up on the website under the Stories/Travel section http://www.kimjfitzgerald.com/25th-anniversary---fiji.html
The definite highlights were the breakfast serenading on our anniversary and our tandem parasailing adventure. It was a very relaxing visit and Fiji continues to have a soft spot in my heart.
Time to wrap this up before the end of the 4th page. After our dry Winter, late Spring and early Summer is proving to be very wet but the weather is spooky. Here’s to you. I hope you have a XMAS break that brings you peace and happiness and for those that way inclined – pressies – YAYYYYYY !
[KF1]