214 days to Antarctica..."Welcome To The Jungle" Guns N' Roses

Approximately 7 minutes reading time 

 

 

 

 

 

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” ―Nelson Mandela

 

Hello, another week has passed and so quickly. I hope that you have had a good week.

Covid-19 has once again reared its ugly head. We are back in lockdown and restrictions are tightening, almost daily. How the world has changed is unimaginable. We keep our Social Distance, wear masks, are tracked by the government and everything has become so much harder. I long for the threat and danger posed by Covid-19 and all its strains to dissipate.

I am reminded how lucky and blessed I am that last year I was looked after, taken care of and kept safe by wonderful people who cared about me. I miss them all. My Hero looked after me, doing what he could to love me and keep me safe. I am reminded of everything that Covid-19 took from me, this is my lament. I am grateful to be happy and well. Everything that happened seems so unreal. Fortunately, I am stronger now and independent, refusing to cower to Covid-19. I am reconsidering getting the vaccine but only the Pfizer Vaccine. What an irony it would be to have survived the horrors of the last eighteen months to succumb to the vaccine. I believe in vaccines and have had them all. Schrodie is also fully vaccinated. Yet the newness and uncertain safety of the Covid-19 vaccines scare me.

Luckily I can still have fun and social interaction with people I like, which was missing from my life last year. Twice a week I play trivia and masks are worn. So many people are complaining about masks. Yes they are uncomfortable, especially if worn for more than a few minutes. They keep us safe and this is what matters. This needs to be the focus. In the meantime, everything other than my guitar lesson is cancelled.

I have been meeting my personal deadlines and meeting every requirement I need to fulfill on a daily and weekly basis. This has not been easy and is important to me achieving my short and long term goals. I am grateful that I can talk to people I love and care about and see their faces, look into there eyes regardless of lockdown. My writing goals keep me busy. There are never enough hours in the day.

Schrodie and I only missed our walk on Saturday because of rain and incredibly strong, dangerous winds. A few times it had started sprinkling before we returned home but we beat the heavy rains and storms. It has been freezing but the sun has been shining and the days glorious. This keeps us happy.

Johnny, my guitar, and I are enjoying our time together. I learned the D Major chord this week and it is rather challenging for my fingers. The weakness in my hands and fingers becomes more obvious at certain times but I am building up my strength. My playing is improving, as is my strength. I am diligent with all my daily physiotherapy and hand therapy exercises. My neck, shoulders and right arm have been particularly sore and no doubt aggravated by my exercises. Anne, my Physiotherapist massaged me which really helped and told me to cut back on the number of exercise repeats that I have been doing to build up strength in my arms. There has been much discomfort in my feet which I believe is a good sign of nerve repair. All my feeling is restored for which I am incredibly grateful. This is what happened with my hands. For months my hands have been fine with no discomfort or pain. This has changed as these have mildly returned. I am hoping that it means more nerve repair which is wonderful. I know that my ulnar nerve has been aggravated but it seems to be settling down. I have read that exercise helps with nerve regeneration and pain mitigation. I continue doing everything I must to strengthen my body, regardless.

Since raising my concerns with the changed custom-water tanks costing me about forty thousand dollars and the collapsed boundary fence the Site Manager responsible for my Bushfire Rebuild is not communicating with me. He did not return my call last week. I have been more than patient, reasonable and understanding but this is very disappointing. To make matters worse, again on Saturday morning I received a distressing, angry message and photos from my neighbour about the fence which collapsed in Friday’s strong winds. The Site Manager had assured me that this would not occur. I forwarded the message to the builder and Site Manager. I have done all that I can to support my neighbour. I am at the mercy of the builders. I have even agreed to pay for a retaining wall to support the area under the fence as this collapsed after the excavations for my new house. The Site Manager told me that this had occurred at the lowest point of the excavation. I had paid a lot of money for a Soil Report, an Engineering Report and Engineering, this problem was avoidable but no one wants to take accountability for their incompetence. 

I am taking the path of least resistance for now as I just want my house built so that Schrodie and I can go home. Schrodie and I finally want a chance to recover from this ongoing nightmare in which we have been stuck.  I have referred my neighbour to the Builder and Building Supervisor and Building Certifier as they are responsible for the build, collateral damage and repairs, not me. I am paying them an exorbitant amount of money to spare me the stress so I no longer want to be involved. It is out of my hands and power. The Site Manager has agreed to all the fixes at the Builder’s expense for all restoration of the fence in its previous as new condition as well as all necessary repairs to my neighbour’s yard caused by the build. My expectation is that everything will be repaired as required as soon as possible. My last update from the Site Manager is that the fixes will happen this week, although I need to receive a quote for the retaining wall, which I have not. I need a quote before I can agree to the retaining wall. I will not approve a retaining wall without a quote. Else I will find my own contractor. This is my expectation after previous conversations and agreement with the Site Manager. These constant angry, threatening, distressing messages from my neighbour about this unfortunate situation have negatively impacted my health. I do not want any more communication from her about this matter. She seems to forget that I lost absolutely everything and cared enough about her when I learned that my home had burned down in the horrific Bushfire and hers had not, that I told her immediately. My neighbours seem to have no care or empathy, ‘tis a shame and is so telling.

The very exciting thing is that the frame of my home is up and I saw this in the photos of my house, that my neighbour sent me. I believe that the next step is the roof going on and then the bricks. As I cannot be there, I have asked for photographs, as yet I have heard nothing. I remain optimistic. I am still keen to meet the Site Manager. We cannot wait to go home. So much needs to be done when the house is built so that we can go home. I got two more unexpected bills this week related to the power. I am haemorrhaging money and it’s terrifying. It will be worth it once we can return home to be safe and comfortable.

I made Octopus earlier, it was delicious with a salad. I saw what I thought was a piece of the tentacles but was a whole octopus. I boiled it with red wine vinegar, whole peppers, salt, bay leaves and seven garlic cloves, yummy. I served it with a squeeze of lemon. I’m having beef burgers later, inspired by the kids. Made some the other day and they were delicious. I grilled the beef patties, added two slices of Australian Hamburger Cheese at the end of the grill so it’s melted and yummy, inspired by Bobby Flay. Baby spinach and tomato slices were the healthy and delicious final toppings. I didn’t have any dill pickles which was disappointing. I couldn’t open the jar of gherkins that I had which was more disappointing. Having a big strong man around, who has strong sexy arms and hands to help me, would be wonderful. I am not yet sure if I have found one who suits me. It is fun and exciting finding out. I love the way that the Americans add the pickle, even though it’s imported from the Europeans and Jews and a memento from my travels.

Travelling is something I have been thinking about, I miss it. Covid still threatens my trip to Antarctica. I am really looking forward to visiting Brazil and the Tierra del Fuego. Meeting hot South American men in their own country will be a Bonus. I am looking forward to hanging out with some Scientists on my Scientific Expedition, I can't wait.  I remain optimistic that we will still go. I have not done any kayak training and hope that I can before the end of this year. I have no travelling bags or suitcases anymore so this will need to be rectified. Two hundred and fourteen days is not a long time. 

There are so many Adventures that have thrilled me since childhood. I used to travel overseas every year for about three months. I used to travel within Australia taking at least two week long trips every year and countless day trips. I miss it all and yearn to start again. Once again this will need financial resources that I currently do not have but I will find a way to do it myself, as always.

Thank you for your company once again. I hope this has helped or interested you in some small way. Feel free to refer anyone here for anything you think might interest or help anyone else.

I hope that my pages filled with information on My Heroes and my inspirations also inspire you in some way.

Stay Happy and Well. Take care and stay safe.

I will post again next Sunday and post a page on Wednesday and Friday, perhaps more.

Until then, watch this space....