The interval betwixt ‘tick’ and ‘tock’ is horrendously long at the moment. We
saw an absolutely perfect flat / unit / apartment / whatever on Saturday
lunchtime. We both decided that it was the business, so we abandoned the last
scheduled viewing and bolted to the real estate agents to sign our lives away
for the next four seasons. We filled out every last detail in their scrutinising
application forms and handed them over, pleased that we had arrived at the
office prior to the crowd of others at the flat. We were asked for a multitude
of types of identification as well as past rental history. Sadly, neither of us
is in the habit of carrying birth certificates, utility bills or suchlike with
us and so we were told that our time would be better spent at home, gathering
the required identity-confirming paraphernalia. In any case, applications would
not be considered until Monday morning.
Phew! It is very warm outside and is likely to remain so for the weekend. This
is, after all, what summers are all about. While the readership may be happily
ensconced in the coldest season of the year, the writer is adjusting to February
falling in between the Summer Solstice and the Vernal Equinox.
K deftly negotiated the final kilometres of The Great Ocean Road on Saturday
morning. We stopped to look at the waterfall at Carrisbrook and while we were
there we got to see some koalas in the wild.
The YHA at Alice Springs comes highly recommended. Not only does it have
super-quiet air-conditioning that keeps the bedrooms nice and cold all day (and
night) long, it has a lovely swimming pool in the garden that is just right for
a mid-afternoon dip to cool off when the fluid in the thermometer has passed the
fifty degree line marking the end of its calibration!
Of all the places in the World for my camera to finally give up the ghost, The
Red Centre of Australia would have to be about the worst: home to some of the
most amazing landscapes that I shall ever see and absolutely no way of getting a
replacement. I was not a happy camper on Thursday evening!
The car, you’ll be delighted to learn, is doing very well indeed. It has been
driven a serious distance along Australia’s highways since I last updated this
log.
We eventually left Mildura with
an apparently fully-functioning car shortly after noon. The staff at the motel
were all very good and understanding, which was very nice indeed.
It is not often that I write for this blog while I am sitting outside, but this
morning is one such occasion. The sun is reflecting off the motel’s swimming
pool, the bright blue sky is dotted with little fluffy clouds, K’s dozing in
bed (this motel has great black-out curtains) and I’m sitting a table in my
shorts and t-shirt tapping merrily on my laptop.
