Hi, I'm not sick or dead or anything!

Sorry I haven't been updating in a while. I have just been very homesick. Being homesick has nothing to do with where you are, it's where you aren't. I miss my loving family and friends very much. I miss Dr. Pepper. Heck, I even miss Wal-mart. (Stores here close down at night -can you imagine that? No 24/7, no buying groceries at 2 am anymore!)

V and I, and occasionally his folks have been busy the last few weeks with council clean-up. Once a year (on a scheduled basis) people around here all put things they don't want out on the curb. It's not normal trash -it's like the things people here would donate to churches, charities, or college students. :) It sits out on the curb until someone scavenges it (One person's trash is another person's treasure!) or eventually the shire councils haul it away to be recycled. Charities go around and loot if the have the man-power, people who run 2nd-hand shops, people who recycle metal for cash, and people like us who need furniture/dishes/etc.

We have many, many little treasures (and big ones) from our looting. We found cash (about $15, plus $5 canadian), metals which we recycled for more cash (Yes Dad, V finally got to haul a carload of scrap in for cash), this 19inch moniter I'm looking at to type this (and 3 other 17 inch ones), speakers for my computer, a 120 GB hard drive, a 7 ft couch, desks, computer tables, art supplies, set of black plates, 3 teapots and teacups, a whole complete teaset with tags still on, a Tiffany glass bowl, nice computer chair, drafting set, a working clothes-dryer (Yes!!!), and the list goes on and on... It's totally unbelievable what people throw away.

This is some of my favorite loot. It was all carefully wrapped in newpaper and put in a box, then piled with lots of other things...


We went to some really nice neighborhoods where people were just upgrading. It seems a shame to me that people don't rehome things. Recycling is all well and good, but isn't it better to use things that still work?

Anyhow, been busy on the days off cleaning the scavenged items and sorting them all. Good timing for us that cleanup was now.

Sadly, all the cleanups are over with now. Still very busy though -beautiful weather so V's job of feeding people is really busy. Easter weekend is coming up -and with it a wedding in the family here. Lots of people staying at the house in our 1 extra room and the rooms of our level we aren't allowed in, all here for the big event. Should prove to be really crazy. We are all hoping for sunny weather as we will be out on the beach. It's been really warm and summery here still, despite a few days in the high 60's-low 70's when Aussies declared winter had come early!

Thanks for all the comments, I appreciate hearing from everyone and miss you all a great deal.