Dalekboy

So where to begin? ( Long post that is just about general life stuff. Some mention of bodily functions because I live with small children. Some stories about small children because I don't get the chance to do much that doesn't involve them in some way. You have been warned. )

It's starting to seem like every few years I'll have a panic about my car, only to find that no, the universe likes my car, and just wants to keep testing my love for it.

Last few weeks, I've been doing the running around just getting a couple of prices on fixing it up so it's legally drive-able in NSW. Got a quote in Canberra on fixing up the structural rust - the stuff I was really concerned about as being super expensive. It was a quarter what I'd imagined, and still half what I'd hoped for. Then I got a quote in Cooma, which was almost an eighth my original figure.

And that's kind of what I've suddenly discovered - if you want your old car fixed up at very reasonable prices, get it done in Cooma. The quotes for the upholstery and basic mechanical work are also really reasonable. My four weekends of Santa work, for three hours each of the days, will pay for most of it.

But the best thing? If I wanted to I could use the money we'd already budgeted for yearly basic car maintenance, and we'd still have over half of it left.

So my eventual goal of letting MaybeZoe tool around in my car in 20 years time is still on!

Various photos from the last few months beneath the cut ( One shot with some fairly inoffensive nudity. )

I am heading to Melbourne for a few days... maybe a week... it's variable. Finalising a few things with the sale of the Noble Park house, last catch-up with a few people before Lex turns our lives upside down, last face-to-face with my suppliers for a while, etc.

If I fail to catch up with you while I'm in town, please don't take it personally. Actually, if you're that bloody sensitive, do take it personally and then learn to get over yourself :P

In other news, after 20 years of driving, I seem to have suddenly developed the trick of flooding the engine every bloody time I start the car! I'm utterly consistent, too. No idea what I've suddenly started doing differently. So if I have trouble starting the car when I'm with you, it's not the car, it's me :)

Danny go whoosh now...

WHOOSH!

Woke up at 6, wrote and got latest story up, faffed around and did a small amount of stuff, then went off to meet up with oothoona. We had decided to get together and have a yak, and today was the day.

I don't write about everyone I meet up with, but Oothoona is an exceptional person. Clever, funny, compassionate, thoughtful and gorgeous. Met up at 2 and was expecting to talk for an hour or two, given I was feeling tired - we finished up the chat at around 6:30-ish. Could easily have chatted the night away, very easy to talk to.

Had a party to go to tonight, but I'm a wee bit tired, it's bucketing down, and most importantly, the wiper that got replaced recently jammed on the way home. I was able to unjam it, but don't fancy driving the car in the rain until I've had a look to see if I can fix it or bodge something up. Would actually like to go to the party, though I'd probably only last an hour before I wanted to crash, but buggered driver's side wiper + heavy rain = no go.

But, had a fantastic afternoon with someone I would love to chat to and hang with lots more. Yay!

So, today for the second time this year, I told someone in all seriousness that they needed to get away from the job they hate and cross the Nullarbor with me.

"I'm going next week, come with me!"

In both cases I figured the person would actually benefit from it. Away from home for about a week, out of contact for good chunks of it, seeing the size and scope of what's out there... Being reminded that there are different, more rewarding, and often more interesting ways to live. You don't have to want to do them, but knowing they exist changes your perspective. To have the freedom to think about what's going on in your life without all the niggling reminders, distractions and doubts that try to convince you that you really can't leave that job and/or life you hate.

Everyone one should do a long slow trip to somewhere in Australia. It opens your mind in interesting new directions if you let it. Though not everybody should do it with me. Some wouldn't cope with me, some I would kill before we got halfway across.

So now, because it's much in my mind (Three days! Eeep!) I present the "Do the Nullabor with Danny" ( poll! )

...it's not really just a car.

More pictures! These ones relate to this post and this one. Though some of the pics I put up next will also relate to the second post as well.

( 14 pictures (815k) below the cut. One with a recently dead bunny, one with nudity, but you've all seen my bum by now... )