G’day,
I haven’t put pen to paper for over a year. In fact I haven’t been doing much at all since I had my heart attack, not much fun are they. I got a stent in the L.A.D. I then went on to develop internal abscesses and got a blood condition – white cells too big and too many of ‘em. Lymphocemia something or other – so I’ve been a bit crook, but I’m coming good now.
I’ve been working all year on my old mobile home, a Toyota Coaster bus, 92 model LWB. I have been fixing rust, sprucing her up for sale. I have nearly finished it. I will sell it and move onto my boat full time.
The boat is in pen H22 Gladstone marina. She is covered in coal dust from the huge coal loading facility close to the harbour and has a coral reef on her bum. There is a bloke in the marina will dive on her and scrub her for $100. I want to get her up to Rosslyn Bay Harbour as soon as pos’ and out to the islands. I can run a mainsail only at the moment. Not deck gear for a jib and I still have to fit winches. I’ve got two new 2-speed winches, so the plan is to get the engine started, which is pretty involved. I have to cut open a seized aluminum inspection part on top of the tank and sort out the filler-breather problem. Then I can put to sea motor sailing with main only. I will probably head up the Fitzroy River and pick up a mooring to fit the deck gear and winches and I will save $540 a month in marina fees. It was $520 – then $540 and now it’s gone up again. But! I have to sell my old bust first to make it all happen.
It costs money to be crook and between doctors, surgeons and the boat I’m a pauper until I sell my bus.
The gem mine was a non event. Bit of a cock up all round, but a stroke of luck as it happened. The gem fields got more rain than they have ever had, the whole place got washed out and the mine I was going to buy was made unworkable “like start again.” I am still interested in doing it, but I will get on my boat first and wait until my projected disposable income of $1,000 per month add up a bit - HA!
I have been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century. I have E-mail and send and received my first E-mail the other day. I can’t type and the letters are not in order, HA! I will take a typing course.
The year started crook for me. I had to have a cyst cut out from under my thumb nail. I had a huge wound to the bone which had to be packed every other day so I spent most of January something like – (drawing of huge thumb) so I didn’t get much done. The weather isn’t helping. It’s 8:00 AM at the moment and the temp is 30c (85f) with 78% humidity. The worst it’s been this summer is 41.5c and 80-90% humidity, mid to high 30's every day. Sweat drips onto your work in buckets and runs into your eyes, so things are moving pretty slow at the moment.
All the best to you all, sorry again about the long silence. Do you know I have never seen the association’s Website? I’m not Fick. I’m just uneducated. HA! See-ya, Geoff.
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