Shellharbour Reunion

Waterfront Site at Shellharbour.

From the farm we headed back to Shellharbour. We always enjoy another catch up with Bev & Fred, not to mention the chance of a little fishing, but this time we have another big plan, a reunion with old friends, Wayne & Debbie, and Graeme & Louise. They have booked a cabin at the Caravan Park, to spend the weekend, reminiscing and partying. 
As you can see from the photo, and as I've said many times, this is an amazing location for a caravan park. You are right on the sea shore, just 200 metres from the ocean pool, and a short walk to the cafes and shops of the village.

Our site is crawling distance from the Cowrie Cabin where our friends will be staying. We settle in quickly, after a surprise at check in, when we learned that the caravan park is under new management. The new managers are Darren and Karyn, who also run the Poplar Caravan Park at Camden, another regular haunt of ours, when visiting Cheryl & Chris. They come from Shellharbour and have added a second park to their portfolio, and will share the management with a brother and sister-in-law. The park will be even better, when they apply their polish.

We caught up with Bev & Fred for dinner at their place on the Thursday evening, and from then on we were into planning for the reunion weekend.

With Wayne. Debbie, Louise & Graeme.

I have known Wayne since my first day at school. We were lined up alphabetically, and Anderson and Ayers were seated together. We've been friends through primary school, high school, a host of births deaths and marriages, my divorce and countless fun times. Graeme was Wayne's neighbour and came into my life through school, and ultimately was the man responsible for building our beautiful home at Illawong, which many of you will remember. Debbie and Louise married the guys and they each had three children who are all adults now. Carolyn joined the crew, firstly as my tennis partner, in a team where Wayne & I played together, and then at our wedding where Wayne was best man, and Graeme official photographer.We drifted apart through the '90's and 2000's when they pursued family events, but late last year, I attended a "Boys Reunion" on the Grand Final weekend, and it was as if there had been no separation at all, and the Shellharbour weekend was planned.

The "Piss Ants."

When Graeme & Louise arrived a little late due to car trouble, the party began. We set ourselves up on the huge veranda of their cabin, and we just sat and talked, reminisced, laughed and laughed, took time out for hot and cold nibbles that everyone had pre prepared, and finally had a lovely BBQ'd dinner that Carolyn had worked out, all washed down with plenty of beers and wines. The girls just kept rolling their eyes as they heard stories for the umpteenth time. They are hardened to this frivolity now! The caravan park was quiet, except for us, but no complaints as it seemed as if everyone had sensed that this was a special weekend.

Graeme surprised us when he produced a bag with three T Shirts, all emblazoned with our "Piss Ant" emblem. This was a blast from a forgotten past, when the big group of mates we had gone through school and early manhood with, had become known as the "Piss Ants", probably because were were known to occasionally imbibe! One of the boys, Daff, was a printer, and he had produced the T Shirt for a Boys weekend back in the 70's. Graeme had found out that Daff still had the original screen, so new, larger T Shirts, were printed!

Are we having fun yet??

Graeme landing a big one.

Saturday, three slightly hungover boys walked around to the boat ramp, to meet up with Fred for a days fishing. It was sea sick tablets all around. It was looking highly likely that burly was going to be in plentiful supply!
We quickly trolled around and picked up 4 nice Benito for bait, and headed out in search of fish. We had a successful time, with everyone landing a good fish or two, and the boast to the girls that we would be bringing home the dinner, became a reality. Fred was fantastic, dutifully helping out with tangles and lost gear, and landing the fish. 

The mother of all storms!

It was all going too well! We glanced north to see the mother of all storms brewing on the horizon. The  confident prediction was that it would miss us. WRONG!!!! It hit us with all its stinging force, and we slowly limped back in, soaked to the bone. Graeme was shivering so much that his teeth wouldn't stop chattering. Fred thought the engine was misfiring!! Wayne & I just started shaking in sympathy. Still we got back in one piece, along with boatloads of other drenched fishermen. The one thing that couldn't be taken away was the big bag of fish that would be dinner that night.
While all this was happening, the girls were happily ensconced at a cafe, sipping lattes. The boys found this out, when they got back to the cabin drenched, in search of a hot shower, and found the door locked! More teeth chattering until the door was mercifully opened.

That night we did a re-run of the previous night with heaps of food and drink, culminating in a big fish fry up. It was delicious. Bev & Fred joined us for this night, which was a fantastic, and again pretty late. It was the night that daylight saving ended, so we all got an extra hours sleep. We all wobbled up the street for a late, leisurely breakfast. Graeme and Wayne, of course ordered the weirdest thing on the menu, Bulgarian Pancakes, and once the laughing had subsided when their food arrived, the rest of us enjoyed a delicious breakfast!

Mum visits the new caravan.

Caravan at Wayne & Debbie's.

The weekend was over, but not for long. The reunion continues at Wayne & Debbie's this week. We enjoyed the rest of the week, heading up to Sydney to see my mum on her 89th birthday. She still looks so well. Sister Jenny joined us for a lovely lunch at Brighton. We continued to spend time with Bev and Fred, with the girls off to Bingo and Fred and I got in another day on the water, that ended with a few good fish, but heaps of frustration as the leather jackets kept chewing through our lines! At the end of the week we hooked up and headed to Wayne & Debbie's, as they have kindly allowed us to park and ultimately leave the caravan at their place, while we go on our Hawaiian cruise, with Nancy & Keith.

Workmate Geoff with Partner Mark

Carolyn's ex boss Ian
and his wife Ruth.

Once at Wayne's it was all go. We have heaps to do to get ready for the cruise. Visits to the storage facility to get extra "dress up" clothes, and a busy round of social engagements. Saturday is a another reunion. This time it is Carolyn's turn, with her old boss having arranged a reunion for past employees of PC Henderson, where Carolyn had worked in the 80's and 90's. The event was at the Hunter's Hill Club, and it was a great day catching up with many people we hadn't seen for too many years.

Breakfast at Zimzala Cronulla.

Carolyn with Kerrie.

At Wayne & Debbie's we continued our reunion. Their three children, who are all grown up with successful careers in a variety of fields, all dropped in over the weekend. First Kelly, then Ben and Mel, all took time out to call in and say g'day. We hadn't seen them for more than ten years, so it was wonderful. Sunday morning dawned a beautiful day, so we headed out to Cronulla for breakfast on the beach at Zimzala. It is a bit of a hot spot, right on the beach. It was quite a buzz for us, with the restaurant packed and the beach just outside. It was a delightful breakfast, but sadly for Wayne, no Bulgarian Pancakes!

Our Blow up Champagne
bottle for our 30th Anniversary.

Sunday evening it was off to brother Neil's for an early celebration of our birthdays, as well as my mum's birthday, brother-in-law David's birthday, and a really belated one for nephew-in-law(?) Dan. What a great night it was. Neil and Adrienne had gone to so much trouble, and to top it off, the family had remembered that our 30th Wedding Anniversary would be celebrated whilst we are on our cruise. It was a really special night, catching up with all the family. The only absentee was my sister Jenny and her hubby David, who last week had an operation for his prostate cancer. All went well with the operation, and we wish him a speedy recovery. The really big news at the party though, was the announcement by my niece Tracey, that she and hubby Dan, were expecting their first baby. This is wonderful news, as they have been working through an IVF Program for some time. The new addition will be my sister Jenny's first grandchild, and my mum's first great grandchild, so November will be a big celebration in the family. Congratulations Tracey and Dan.

So there you have it. I'm all caught up to date. Today is Tuesday 16th April, and on Friday we board the Radiance of the Seas to sail out of Sydney Harbour headed for Hawaii via New Zealand and Tahiti. We are going with Nancy & Keith, and will spend the next three nights at their place, getting in the mood. The caravan is all safe and sound at Wayne and Debbie's, though Wayne keeps thanking me for letting him take the van on holidays while we are away! I'm sure that little Mazda won't get the van up the driveway! Will it???

Aloha!!! 

Back on the air when we return from Hawaii mid May.

Gloucester Easter 2013.

Milking time at the dairy.

For Easter, we left the madding crowd and inflated prices of the coast behind, and headed back to the farm, to spend a week with Lindsay, Myrelle and family and friends.

Driving out to the farm along Thunderbolt's Way, the country is looking fantastic. With all the rain through February/March, the place has greened up beautifully.

As you know, I'm a bit of a broken record when it comes to time at the farm. I love coming here. We arrived on Thursday and the whole week was terrific. Being a dairy farm, the cows don't know its a holiday weekend, so it is milking as usual twice a day every day, but in between there is lots of time for other activities involving neighbours, and family.

Margot, Adam,
Alby and Ellie.

Michael, Wendy,
Andrew and  Samantha.

For those who don't know the whole family, Lindsay & Myrelle, have a son Michael, who is married to Wendy, and they have two young children, Andrew and Samantha. They also have a daughter Margot, who is married to Adam, and they also have two young children, Alby and Ellie. Michael & Wendy have their own dairy farm just south of Gloucester, whilst Adam and Margot are School teachers in Gloucester. It is a busy life for all of them, but it is great for Lindsay & Myrelle to have the whole family so close. During the course of the weekend, we will catch up with all of them.

What an Easter weekend we had! It was non stop action from beginning to end. Thursday night after milking we were all quickly showered and dressed for town, to go to the opening night of a photography exhibition at the Art Gallery. Wendy is one of the exhibitors. She is extremely talented with her camera, and had a couple of lovely abstract photos in the exhibition. So it was champagne and canapes with the local Gloucester art fraternity, before heading across the road to "Roadies Cafe" for dinner. Huge servings are the name of the game at Roadies, which has quite a name among the Biker brigade, and has some fantastic old memorabillia on display.

Entree of Oysters Kilpatrick,
Lindsay style

Main course of Snapper.

Good Friday after milking we did the neighbourly thing and headed next door to Dallas and Larissa's farm to help repair all the fence crossings that had been washed away in the recent flood. They are great neighbours swapping their fresh eggs and vegies for milk. They run around 35 beef cattle on their farm, and as well they have an engineering business with offices in both Gloucester and Newcastle. They are fun to be around, and really bright company. We had them all done in a couple of hours, with only a bit of fine tuning to be done by Dallas at a later time. We also had time to agree on having dinner together on Sunday night, and mustering Dallas' cattle on Easter Monday. 
That night Lindsay was in the kitchen. Lindsay likes to buy his food direct from the source. I don't know how he meets all these people, but he does. He has an Oyster Farmer who has leases on Wallis Lake, a commercial fisherman who only fishes the rivers and lakes, and who is at Dunbogan, near Laurieton, and he always gets stuff at amazing prices. Tonight, we were having oysters from the oyster farmer, followed by a snapper that he had caught the previous weekend at Laurieton, fishing with his mate Al and son Michael. It was all delicious.

Alby, Pop and Rex on the quad bike.

Ellie, Nan & Carolyn.

Saturday morning after milking, the girls headed into town to the markets and shops, whilst Lindsay and I worked. Lindsay had to get some feed ready for the afternoon milking, so I volunteered to do a run to the tip. We loaded up the farm ute with all the recycle bins, and off I went to the tip near Barrington. All was going great until I got pulled over for a breath test on the way home. I wasn't at all worried about the booze, it was all the used and unused shotguns shells lying on the dashboard and floor!! The copper didn't even bat an eyelid! If I'd been in Greenacre, I'd still be looking for bail!! Saturday afternoon, Margot & Adam were dropping by to leave Alby & Ellie with Nan and Pop, while they headed off to  friend's 30th birthday. Alby can't wait to get on the quad bike. Saturday night was a family affair for dinner while we watched the football and entertained the kids.

Ex Girlfriend Heather,
second from right.

Official BBQer .

Sausage Sizzle for Ellie.

Easter Sunday started with an Easter Egg hunt. Margot & Adam had arrived home late from their party, but still had time to hide Easter Eggs all over the place. The kids had a ball, and it was chocolate for breakfast, as the kids worked hard to keep the grown ups away from their eggs! After brekkie, we all piled into the cars to head out for a real treat, a picnic cricket and fun day, at Rawdon Vale, scene of the 30th birthday party the night before. Rawdon Vale is in a valley on the other side of the Copeland Tops. It is one of the most scenically beautiful valleys you will ever see. The venue for the event is a magnificent two story heritage home, built in the 1880's and retained in the same family ever since. We were treated to a tour of the home that is still retained with all the original artworks, furniture and photos. It was during the tour, that I heard Myrelle yell out "Hey John, one of your ex girlfriends is here!" I'm not sure who was most stunned, Carolyn, me, or the ex girlfriend, Heather! When I got back downstairs, there was Heather. We went to a couple of dances when I used to visit Gloucester as a teenager, and Heather even came down to Sydney and stayed at our place at Peakhurst. Heather even remembered that we went to the movies, and what's more, even remembered the movie we saw, The Graduate! Her two daughters thought the whole thing was hilarious, while I was hoping that her husband wasn't the really big guy across the room!! Her sister is the current owner of the Rawdon Vale property, whilst Heather lives over the range at Wallabadah.

Tug-O-War for the Girls.

Official scorer John with
Myrelle, Margot and Ellie

After the lover's reunion, we adjourned to the oval to start the other sports. The cricket match was a pairs event, partners drawn from a hat. Pair who scored the most runs in 4 overs wins. Lindsay was the umpire and I was official scorer and beer supplier to the umpire. Everywhere else, the kids and the girls played, ate, drank, and had a wonderful time. Country people always have a cake or biscuits or slice ready for any occasion! When the cricket ended, the BBQ lunch was had by all, and the other games commenced. Another Easter Egg hunt for the kids. Foot races for all ages, Tug-o-War for all ages, Footy kicking contests, Boot throwing and more. It was just a fantastic day. Lindsay & Myrelle had someone else milking for them, so everyone got a whole afternoon to enjoy the festivities. At 5.00pm, we packed up and headed for home as Dallas & Larissa were coming over for dinner!!

Carolyn with Tony.

Thankfully, Dallas and Larissa were fashionably late, so we all got home in time. Carolyn had pre-made a pasta bake for dinner, and Millionaire's Pie for dessert, so all we needed was a salad. Larissa brought over her new kitten Tony, which Carolyn absolutely adored, and hardly let go of all night, and Dallas had the wine covered. We had a great night, and eventually collapsed into bed. I don't know how Lindsay & Myrelle got out of bed to milk at 5.00am. All I remember at breakfast was Lindsay telling me he would be in bed at 8.00pm that night no matter what!!

After brekkie it was off to Dallas's to muster a few cattle and sort a few out. Some of Lindsay's and Dallas' had gotten mixed in with each other. Lindsay and Dallas chased up the cattle on their quad bikes, while Larissa and I worked the gates. Once in the yards, we put them all through their hoops, treating them for ticks, sore eyes and other ailments. It was all a lot of fun for the non farm boy. Back home for lunch and a nanny nap for Lindsay! Carolyn & I headed off on the quad bike to get the cows up for milking. Carolyn whooped and hollered, and I'm not sure if the cows understood or simply did what they always do, but they all got to the yard on time.

Dinner with Lindsay & Myrelle.

Farmer John slashing the paddock.

Tuesday was our last day. Carolyn and Myrelle headed into town to do some shopping and pick up some bolts for the tractor repair. The boys worked on the tractor. When the girls got back, the repair got finished. Lindsay was off to get some more feed ready for the afternoon milking, but not before he hooked up the slasher and set me on course to slash a section of pasture along the river. So off went farmer John, having an absolute ball playing farmer. That night, Michael, Margot, Andrew and Samantha all came out for dinner. Michael had been really busy over Easter with his farmhand on holidays, so it was great to be able to catch up before we left. 

We left on a misty morning.

So, all too soon it was time to hook up and head south. Retirement has been great for us, being able to spend so much time with family and friends. We are loving every minute of it. On the Wednesday morning, Myrelle was off to ladies golf at Gloucester Golf Club, Larissa arrived so Carolyn could get one last cuddle of Tony the kitten, and to bring us a dozen of her fresh eggs, which are so yellow and tasty. We hooked up and headed up the hill, having had another wonderful few days full of family, friends and farm life. 

Port Macquarie (continued).

Last seen entering Bogo Maze!

We're in there somewhere!

I'd have been back on the air sooner, if we hadn't gone to the blasted Bogo Maze! It was really hard!! 

Actually it was a lot of fun. It is situated at the Bogo Winery, so once we escaped we were able to recover tasting some delightful local wines. It was a beautiful day, and the scenery around the winery was quite spectacular. For those interested, the Bogo Maze and Winery is about 15kms out of Wauchope, with the turnoff right in the middle of town at the roundabout.

Sundowner Breakwall Caravan Park.

Rainbow lorikeets feeding.

We had a great time at Port Macquarie. After all that rain, we enjoyed a lovely long spell of warm dry weather. We are finding that by staying a few weeks in a location, we get to know the town really well, and start to feel like locals. The added benefit around Port, is that we have a few friends in the area as well. Since last writing, management at the park has responded to all the complaints, and the lawn mowing brigade has been on constant duty, so the park now looks a picture. We have had some lovely neighbours come and go during our stay, especially Wendy & Barry, who stayed a couple of weeks. They come from Norahville, on the NSW Central Coast, and have been caravanning for 50 plus years. We had several happy hours talking over all our adventures. Another neighbour by the name of Jim, worked for the company that sends the tankers to pick up cousin Lindsay's milk at the farm. He was also a pretty good fisherman, and provided us with fresh bream for dinner one night!

Along the beautiful Coastal walk.

We caught up with Julie & Ron Daniel, the friends we met on the road in our first year, and who have settled in well at nearby North Haven. They drove up from North Haven, to join us for dinner and drinks one evening. We chose a lovely little Italian restaurant in town, called Cafe 66. It was doing a roaring trade on a Tuesday evening, due to its two for one pasta night. Washed down with a couple of bottles of nice red wine, It was all very tasty. Julie & Ron have really settled in well to the mid north coast lifestyle, both looking fit and well.

Rivermark Cafe.

Of course we sussed out the best coffee in town. We especially liked a little place called The Milk Bar, up on the hill under one of the new resort blocks. We would do our walk along the main beach and up to Flagstaff Hill, and then be really in need of coffee on the way back. It was always very busy, and sitting down looking out over Town Beach was pretty nice. The other one we liked, was Rivermark Cafe, where we went with Robyn & Margaret. This time we each had our own muffin, which was really exciting! It is a lovely spot beside the river, and those home made muffins are really good. 

Carolyn & Marg on
 the Lighthouse walk

Carolyn after the Lighthouse walk.

We spent a lot of time with friends Charlie and Marg, which was fantastic. It is such a nice benefit of a longer stay. For those of you who don't know, we purchased our business, Gaymoir Products from Charlie and Marg, and they moved to Port Macquarie, not long after that. They each 

have a brother who lives in the area, and have settled in fantastically. Marg is a ball of energy, and is into heaps of different activities, like long walks, badminton, table tennis, dancing and others, and she took Carolyn in tow. Morning walks that started at 6.00am, before the sun had risen, with Marg, her brother Arthur, and Carolyn off for two hours three days a week, and culminating in a huge walk undertaken by Marg and Carolyn, all the way to the Lighthouse and back, a total distance of 15kms. They literally packed a cut lunch. It is a serious walk with lots of steps, and they returned pretty exhausted.

John & Charlie off to golf.

Charlie and I chose less strenuous pursuits, namely Golf. We had 18 holes at Charlie's home course, Wauchope Country Club, and 9 holes with a bunch of guys, who play a fun 9 hole comp at Port Macquarie Golf Club, on a Monday afternoon. Both courses are in great condition at the moment, and very challenging. I won a ball in the 9 hole event for nearest the pin, so was happy enough with the way I hit the ball.

We had dinner at Charlie and Marg's, we had dinner at the caravan, and we had dinner out, giving Charlie and Marg their first taste of Mexican food. It was a great night and I think they'll go back in the future. All in all, we had a wonderful catch up with Charlie & Marg.

We also had Lindsay and Myrelle give us a call, to let us know they were coming over to Laurieton for a fast trip, to mow the lawn and tidy the garden at their holiday house. So we headed down to Laurieton for the day to give a hand with the gardening and then take in lunch at the club. Lindsay also took time to visit his local professional fisherman, to stock up his freezer with fresh fish, at unbelievable prices. He has got some contacts that boy!!

Artwork along the breakwall.

When we weren't out with friends, we just settled back and took in the sights and sounds of the caravan park. Each afternoon, the Rainbow lorikeets would come flashing through the caravan park in their hundreds, flying like kamikazes, chirping like mad, and settling into the trees to feed on the fruits in the palm trees. The breakwall walk is always full of walkers, joggers and people just taking a stroll, and the evenings are always full of happy sounds.

Along the way we did manage to find a market or two. The Fresh Food Market at Wauchope was pretty good. They even had a Gospel Choir singing up a storm, and the adjoining Trash 'n Treasure Market must have sold out of Treasures before we got there! There was another Saturday market along the walkway behind the Westport Bowling Club, that had some interesting stalls. It also had some home made jams and sauces at outrageous prices! Small jars for $13.50. The guy looked horrified when I asked if they'd put the wrong price stickers on! Lucky we weren't charged a dollar a taste!

Doing it tough in Port Macquarie.

We celebrated a little anniversary on March 21st, 32 years since we went on our first date. So we took ourselves off to Port Macquarie's celebrated eatery, "The Stunned Mullet". It sure lived up to all the hype, and we had an absolutely magnificent dinner, showcasing the wonderful fresh seafood of the region. A glass of champagne, a view out over Town Beach, and 32 years of wonderful memories, with many more to be made. Our life is good!

We had a fantastic stay in Port Macquarie, and we did have time to get back to Miss Nellie's Cafe in Kendall, for one more of those delicious Finger Lime Cheescakes!

Now it is off to the farm for the Easter break.