Let the holiday begin

Today was a day off together – possibly the first full day off together since arriving and the beginning of many more.  We slept in, I blogged, Will listened to music and dozed.  When I heard movement at Pete and Di’s van I rushed out to see when they would be leaving.  ‘Not until we’ve had morning tea at the Ghan café with you and the crew’ I was told.  Hmm, forty minutes, time for a shower, to place a few more drip catchers in the van and a great excuse to not have to cook breakfast. 

9.30am saw Vonda & Graham, Pete & Di, Ricki & David and ourselves seated with Devonshire teas and ham and cheese toasties.  There was an excited buzz from the two couples ready to hit the road. Unlike last year the farewells were tearless as our next get together is already set.  Shouts of ‘See you at your place’ and ‘Catch in you October’ resounded loudly over the raindrops!!

I headed back to the van after bravely standing in the rain to farewell the travellers so I could update Facebook appropriately and had just begun sorting photos when Will arrived. “I’ve just spoken to Liz and David and I need to go to the shire office to put in an official tender slip for the old truck, what are you up to?”  “Give me ten and I’ll be ready” I said.  “Can you remind me, what are you going to use this D-Line International Truck for if we are lucky enough to win it via the tendering process?”  “Well...” as I got organised I learnt that the doors and door handles can go on our C-line truck and would look more authentic, the V8 motor can be used in a tractor – just for fun, the cab is in good nick and can be put in the shed for the day when the prices go up etc. etc. etc.

After finding the civic offices and having deposited our tender slip with the mighty offer of $162 we wandered down the mall to enquire about the road out to King’s Canyon.  The rain it seems hasn’t been in that direction, so the road is still easily passable.  Permits for the road are $6 and usable for three days including the day of purchase.  We decided to wait until we hit the road to purchase it.  Next job on the ‘To Do’ list was to purchase tickets for the Red Centre Nat’s. Done at $50 for the three day pass.  Next job – find the toy shop that sells the awesome model cars in the jeweller’s window (A little aside here, when on the day after my birthday Will said “Hey, check out the corner window in the jewellery shop” my heart did a little flip – could he have decided to buy me jewellery as well as a plane ticket to Tassie? No, but the model Holden cars really were special!)  Alas, some nice model cars but no EH’s of FJ’s so no purchase here. 

Home for lunch – a nice curried sausage casserole because if I had to eat one more piece of bbq’d red meat today I think I’d have gone hungry! And the casserole base hid the fact that I was using left over bbq’d sausage.

After lunch we took a trip to the Kenworth shed to return the washed table cloths and I had a chat with Mike and Sherrill about me doing a few hours here and there at the front counter over the next week or so.  An hour later and I had the till under control - I think. 

Home for a play with some photos, then off to The Heavy Tree Gap Tavern for a farewell meal with Ricki and David and John who kindly drove us.  David, another Tasmanian, had me talking about Dad, his timber jack and wood cutting.  David has participated in many woodchop events including the Sydney Royal Show, some alongside David Forster, a man Dad enjoyed meeting and reading his autobiography.  It would have been nice to be able to share that story with Dad.  David also reminisced about attending a logging industry field day at Myrtleford in the late 70s (I think) which reminded me of the white coffee cups Uncle Jack brought home one day from a field day he had attended.  If I’m not mistaken they had the Cummins symbol on them – meant nothing to me then, today I understand how well Cummins and a Kenworth go together – bizarre where we find connections in our life.    

To end the day I had a chat with my great friend who is collecting my mail and a cuppa tea while enjoying a long distance chat with my son – a superb day!

I slipped out of work on Monday with some
friends to catch this shot from the overpass south
of Alice Springs

The winding down begins

After an early morning start the Kenworth floor was mopped back to its normal self by about 9.30am.  I left Will, who had joined me around 9am, and came home for breakfast and a shower.  Later Will came home for a cuppa and a snack of left over croissants as we debriefed on the day before.  Will has come armed with a wise attitude this year which he has aptly shared with those of us who’ve struggled one day or the other for different reasons – his advice and philosophy is ‘That happened yesterday, today is a new day, so let’s start fresh!’ These wise words, and a few emotional tears, thanks to feeling very over tired, calmed me and set me on the path for a happy day.



Waiting for opening time

By 11.00am we were well on our way to being set up at the ‘Piston Broke’ bar.  As it was the third day of the event and the sun was shining brilliantly many visitors took the opportunity to stay late at their accommodation, enjoy a swim or do a bit of sightseeing so a nice quiet couple of hours followed. 

Brian kindly helped me out for ten minutes which gave Will the chance to pop into the silent auction.  As the ending time arrived Will filled in our bid on the Kenworth Drivers Kit then cheekily handed the board to the organiser and said ‘This one’s finished’.  She was already collect them so took it from him telling him what a cheeky bugger he is.  And surprise, surprise a few hours later when it was all sorted guess who’d won the drivers kit – a new overnight bag, jacket, hat, pen and travel mug?  All with the Kenworth bug on them of course!



After another feed of bbq’d red meat and salad we headed home for a well-deserved nana nap. We both woke feeling more refreshed and ready for a chat with our fellow South Gippslanders, so back to the bar we went.  A lovely afternoon was spent chatting, catching up and laughing.  After tea, yes, that’s right, more bbq’d red meat I left Will, Mr Kenworth and the French backpackers to chat.  I’d missed the fire pit the night before due to overtiredness and I wasn’t going to miss my last opportunity to sit around with the crew.  Will arrived back about 11pm after helping with the dishes to find us still up and laughing.  Bob and Margie came to farewell Vonda and Graham and the party fired up again – at least Vonda did.  I said my farewells and came inside to rest my weary bones.  One of the experiences I love most on our holiday is sitting quietly inside listening to the cacophony of laughs that spring up around the fire.  You know whose laugh it is, not necessarily what they are laughing at, but it’s just a lovely moment to sit back and hear people you care about sound so happy and relaxed.  I didn’t enjoy the sound for long as I started dozing, although I do remember Vonda calling loudly to Will ‘You’re not going to bed yet are you?’ and as it was well after midnight he assured her he wasn’t, walked straight in put his head on the pillow and was out like a light!!

 

A birthday party, an induction and a big day at the office

6.30am – Up early so I’m ready for Vonda’s birthday celebration

7.20am – Start preparing ham and cheese croissants.  Ask Will to turn stove on – oops regulator not regulating.  Time to stir the coals in ‘Jimmy’ - the fire pit

8.00am – The crew is assembled around the fire pit; some croissants warmed nicely, others burnt nicely and a stunned Vonda.  Graham lead the singing of Happy Birthday

8.30am – Time to head to the Induction ceremony



Almost time to start the
 induction ceremony

9.15am – Mr Kenworth smiles cheekily ‘Hey Will I’ve got a deal for you.  Help me wash one hundred chairs by lunch time and you can keep the item I gave you yesterday.  Don’t help and I’ll reposes it!’ After some gentle ribbing and to and froing it was agreed Bill and Pete would help with the chair washing



Alice Springs Mayor

9.30am The mayor arrives, opens the ceremony and inductions begin.  Will’s friend was totally stunned when his name was announced and the biggest smile crept across his face as all his relatives let out their collective breath as they had been unsure if he would be excited or outraged.  The smile stayed in place all day as far as we could see.

10.30am Will and Pete start washing chairs, Kate starts final mop before big crowds head to the shed.



11.00am Induction ceremony finishes and guests wander to all corners of the museum, too many feet to mop around so Kate calls it quits

11.30pm Head home for a bite of lunch

12.30pm Head to kitchen, Will finds the sink a little low so uses a chair to sit on so he can wash while Kate dries for the next hour

1.30pm Time for a break before starting preparations for the pre-dinner drinks.  Kate chooses to head back to the van, Will catches up with his mates

2.45pm Preparations for evening begin – setting up bar, food tables, chairs, drinks on ice etc. etc.

4.15pm Time to kill before guests arrive

5.00pm Bus with officials arrive, bar opens, security guards arrive and nerve hits the very newly trained RSA permit holder

6.00pm VIP paying guests arrive and bar really fires up!  4 staff members and 300 thirsty customers – a busy time for everyone

8.00pm Guests head to Buntine Hall for dinner

8.10pm Bar staff sit down with very tired feet!



8.15pm Staff begin returning the bar to a museum

9.15pm Those with enough energy head to Jimmy, the fire pit, will others take time to look at the beautiful desert sky filled with stars before crashing out with a cup of tea

10.55pm Will climbs into bed



A very proud recipient - Merv

Who built this sink???
And who is that using it??

Just a quiet Friday??

We woke to the usual sounds of Alice Springs; quiet bird calls, trucks on the Stuart Freeway and not much else.  I had to shake myself, ‘Is this really the first day of the reunion?’ ‘Yes it is and you’re planning on being at the Women’s Breakfast, best you get moving!’  Time and again the executives of the museum had referred to the year after the big reunion as ‘Just a garden party!’  And with so little fuss and to do the garden party began!

Our walk to work was through empty paddocks, ok, we might have passed four low loaders whose cargo now sat around the museum somewhere – nothing like the thousands we walked past last year. The breakfast guests took up about three quarters of Stuart’s Bush Kitchen.  Our Leongatha friends easily spotted me and I joined them for a cup of tea while waiting for the guest speaker – a woman from Shell.  After that I wandered back to work, suggested to Mr Kenworth I’d be more help at the sink which he quickly agreed with so back to Stuart’s Kitchen I went for an hour or more. 

I headed over to find Will at 10.30am for a cuppa break before our first run at operating a bar began.  He, Mr Kenworth and Pete were around the radio waiting to hear Pete’s interview.  We caught it just before we had to leave for our bar duties.  Pete did a wonderful job reflecting more on the changes he has seen as his career spans nearly 45 years.

CEO and Right Hand Woman
having a break at lunch time

The rest of the day just flowed easily and quietly.  The numbers for lunch and therefor the bar were probably around the 100 or so, last year 800!

As we’d finished our rostered work and the shed was up to date we zipped into town and came home via The Cummins Cup.  Another first – I’ve never been to the horse races (shame I live so far from a racecourse!)  where we once again met up with our friends from Leongatha and before we knew it we were home for a shower, a taxi ride to town and a night out in a ‘real’ restaurant.  This included another first, a look at the Todd Mall after dark as we made our way to ‘The Red Ochre’ restaurant.  Beautiful food, even Will commented on how nice the sauce on his barramundi was – another first, food being more than a mere source of energy!  Kath and I decided the native dukkha crusted chicken was out of this world.  A taxi ride home via the Big 4 saw us tucked up in bed with a cup of tea by about 11.30pm. 



Todd Mall at night

Happy Birthday to Me

For the second year in a row I woke up in Birdsville for my birthday. 

What is the definition of irony? Kate completing a Responsible Service of Alcohol course on her birthday!! It was finished and the certificate emailed to Liz by 8.30am leaving the morning free for other things.  Each Birdsvillian wished me a Happy Birthday every time I walked past them or they walked past the van until at least noon, which was gorgeous.  Disy gave me a crocheted beanie the night before, I won $10 thanks to a scratchy from one sister, had a chat with my mum, a text from my son and a card that had made me laugh out loud from dear Will, so my day was going well. And it was only 9am! After a very brief catch up blog I headed to the Kenworth shed. 

Along the way I got Will’s and my volunteer goody bags, a few more birthday wishes and kisses and some sunshine on my back.  Lovely! I also had a lovely chat with David K who once again enquired about Will’s finger.  When I thanked him for the kindness he’d shown Will after the mishap which had led to the sore finger David said, “No worries, he’s a top bloke, a really top bloke!” My heart swelled with pride.

As I arrived at the Kenworth shed the radios were blaring – Will’s interview was due on local ABC radio sometime between 10am -11.00 am.  We were all excited!  To kill some time Will and Pete washed trucks, I wiped boards, Disy stood near the radio on high alert, Mr Kenworth wandered nearby and then David H popped in, so we took the opportunity for a semi Birdsville pose right next to ‘Black Beauty’ as our truck from last year has been christened.  Mr Kenworth grabbed the camera off me so I could be in it too – awesome!

All of a sudden the cries went up ‘Will, Will, shh everyone’ as Mr Will K from Fish Creek was introduced.  The interview went for about five minutes covering topics from why Will chooses to volunteer to what life was like trucking interstate, carting livestock and more.  Not surprisingly Will expressed himself articulately, confidently and with a hint of humour – my heart swelled again!

Lunch time arrived, Mr Kenworth joined us back at camp for the second day in a row and we all sat around enjoying ourselves.  Disy and Pete were with us too!  Then back to the grind (not for me at least), the boys headed off, I updated Facebook then wandered over a little later.  A little bit of mopping, a little bit of sweeping and we decided it was time for birthday drinks. 

As the afternoon progressed one more van pulled in – a lovely surprise awaited us, John, from last year had made it all the way from Queensland on his own; his wife Dot is off in Europe with the family. I quietly sat at the table watching Disy crochet a hat for Vonda as her birthday is on Saturday, I listened as Pete and John caught up on all the news as they set up John’s camp, Graham was busy fitting a new shelf into the car and Vonda popped in and out as her phone went off.  Will wandered between fixing the light in the ladies shower to helping John, to just chatting.  It was lovely to sit and just be happy with good people all around me. 

All of a sudden it was after 5.30pm and Rikki arrived to pick us up to go to Anzac Hill, my chosen place for my birthday.  I wanted to get some snaps of the sunset over Alice Springs.   Seven of us piled in her car, Vonda and Graham took their own and away we went.  Rikki and I had a great time taking snaps, Will and the others palled up with a very friendly non-English speaking photo crazy Asian gentlemen and managed to amuse themselves until the sun was nearly down and it was time to go grab a pizza.  Just then, who should pop up but Mr Kenworth who had come to join us for a drink for my birthday? As our driver was ready to go we left him there with his drink and a view of the town lights coming on. 

Pizza, fire pit, good friends and a glass of wine – who could ask for anything more!  But wait, out came a birthday cake, homemade dish cloth, birthday card and wine glass tag – another special Birdsville birthday.

A quick run down of the last few days

Tuesday

·         9.15am a morning off for coffee at the Water Tank, lovely local café – very quirky.  When asked on Facebook what quirky meant I said something like me – a little left of centre but very likeable!

·         12.30pm arrive home from coffee and visit to Alice Springs School of the Air

·         12.35pm invited out to lunch – off to Gillen Club to welcome home Pete and Disy

·         2.30pm turn up for work – just sweep those two areas then head home – Okay, if I must

·         4.00pm sit around campfire and chat

·         8.00pm left overs for tea because we’d had a good lunch!

 

Wednesday

·         9.00am go to work meeting

·         9.30am no meeting – go to Kenworth shed

·         10.00am ‘Not much to do Kate, just do a bit of sweeping’, ‘OK if I do my Responsible Service of Alcohol Course then?’, ‘Sure!’

·         11.00am – start course

·         5.30pm – get locked out of course because one answer incorrect three times – not happy Jan!!

·         5.35pm – let  back into course but am ready for irresponsible serving of alcohol so pour a glass of bubbles and head to fire pit

·         6.00pm – 10.00pm – shared campsite BBQ tea, baked potatoes – beawdiful!!

 

Thursday

·         6.00am – work out I could Google the trick question

·         6.30am – make cup of tea and sit in bed and work on my course

·         8.00am – complete course!! Yay!!

·         8.30am – eat birthday breakfast cooked by Will and win $10 from scratchy from my sister

·         9.45am – show up for work

                           Thursday TBC

A day off, a day in nature

We woke to the sound of raindrops on the roof again – not many and only on the outside (so far) so all good. The sky is grey, (hmm, thought I was here to avoid that) yet that too allows for something new.  I haven’t seen the grey green leaves against the grey sky here before.  Also, because of the very small amount of rain we’ve had on four different days wildflowers are popping up everywhere!  There are flowers at The Gap that are standing tall looking very much like sunflowers, just smaller.  I’m off to coffee soon with a born and bred Alice Spring’s lady so I’ll ask her what she knows about them. 

Water in the Todd springs

Yesterday I was completing my clean-up of the Kenworth video room due to the small conference held there when Mr Kenworth said there was no need to stay, he really only had jobs for Will.  I didn’t say ‘Beg your pardon’, I said ‘See you tomorrow, after I’ve done coffee with the girls.’  With a smile he said “Good idea, see you about noon.” 

So I came home, grabbed my camera and took off to the Telegraph Station, a spot I really enjoyed last year.  There were a number of walks I’d missed and after being assured I couldn’t possibly get lost I set off to explore the rockier of the walks.  It only took two goes to find the beginning markers and then I was off!  The track (my track) took me past the spot where the spring in the Todd River was found which this town was named for.  While that spot itself was dry there were other spots in the river bed holding water.  

West MacDonnell's

Natural shelter

As I wandered around I thought of the talk by Allison who said bush tucker abounded – I thought I’d starve, I hadn’t even spotted an animal let alone a berry when a massive red roo stood up to let me know I wasn’t on my own.  As I watched where he went I turned around to find a wonderful view of the West MacDonnell’s over my shoulder and I felt the stress and worries of our working holiday slip away.  Timelines and ‘must do’s’ disappeared and I settled into the quiet rhythm of walking and photographing.  Having made it about three quarters of the way to town (a walk of about 3kms and half an hour longer than I had estimated I would wander for) I turned around and headed back to the station where my car was parked.  Shortly I received a text “Are you lost?” I smirked and sent Will a text to say I was nearly home. 

A native cactus?

Tree shape often shown in
local art work

Wattle breaking forth

More new experiences!!

Wow, so few days and so many more new experiences.  Let’s see if I remember them all!

 

Never trust these
two together!!

Some views are better
than others. lol

1.      Attending the Henley on Todd after completing the setting up for a conference at the Kenworth video room.  Each new race was interesting but when there were many heats of the same event it became a little tiring to me, although when the crowd was asked to join in I could see how much fun it would be if you had a group of friends willing to ‘hire’ a boat and have a go.  When it came to the ‘Budgie Smuggling’ competition my thoughts raced to my dear son who has been known to be keen on a nudie run!! Then when the final event of the program started I could see why we had been advised to stay.  Last year we had seen the Pirate Ship, the Navy Ship and the Vikings Ship in the Grand Parade.  We had no idea at that stage that they had a massive water fight!  There was water, flour bombs and simple fireworks shooting all over the place as they spent about 5 minutes zipping and darting around the river doing their best to out play each other.  A real laugh – glad I’m not cleaning that mess!!

Bill and Graham
were supporting the Vikings

2.      Waking to the sound of rain on the roof – so glad Will fixed the leaking ceiling last week – oh but wait, is that water dripping in beside the bed again??  Oh dear, back to Bunnnings!

3.      Coffee at Piccolos- seems it’s one of THE coffee shops in Alice.  Very nice, very busy and a lovely place to spend a few hours chatting with Vina and Rikki

Hmm, thought
Di removed the splinter?

4.      The Emergency Department of Alice Springs Hospital! What friendly jovial staff work there on a relatively quiet Sunday afternoon – well from 1pm until 4.30pm at least? They have a lovely triage area, a lovely spot to watch the Olympics while waiting to see the doctor, the AFL was showing just outside the x-ray room, then back for some more Olympics to see if the doctors were willing to take out the foreign body (piece of Kenworth Exhaust Pipe) from William’s very swollen and sore pointer finger on his right hand.  Luckily the x-ray clearly defined the area the object was in and the two doctors were very excited about the prospect of completing a digital nerve block using the pneumatic cuff (usually reserved for the surgeons upstairs).  At this point I declined the offer to accompany Will and continued reading my novel rather than watching the removal of the piece of alloy!!  But I was glad to see the junior doctor whistling her way to the storeroom for bandages – I figured that meant all had gone well!!

5.      Dinner at the Eastside Club – a place we’d never been.  Great pizza, easy to talk to all the other volunteers and $25 per head for expenses for the night – way to go!!

 6.      Renewing our friendship with Mr Kenworth- he’s very pleased to see us – assured us there was no need to rush over tomorrow and agreed with me that William would have a day off washing the trucks – doctor said a week – if I can keep him away from water for a day I’ll be surprised and pleased!!

A Cultural Day

Allison

I decided on Wednesday evening that it was time to make the effort to see more sights of Alice, an air of ‘Yeah, I’ve seen it before’ has been slowly settling over me which has seen me swap my walking shoes for a book, a glass of wine or a nana nap.   So I gave myself a shake and said “Get out and do something different” and so I did. 

I had hoped to do a free walking tour of Alice Springs however that’s no longer available so I decided to attend the first ever ‘Journeying to the Dreamtime’ walking tour guided by an Indigenous lady – Allison.  Allison’s country is 60km north of Alice Springs which means that this is not her land which is very significant in Aboriginal communities. 

Allison explained the extent to which boundaries apply in their life – her people can only tell the stories of their country as there are natural boundaries that kept her people in that region and therefor their stories within those regions – they may have been hills, rivers or other natural land formations.  These boundaries were a means of making sure each tribe had their own food and water sources and one tribe didn’t take what another tribe needed. 

River Red Gum,
at the top of the mall

She also spoke about the boundaries between men and women and their stories.  She took us to the corner of Todd Mall, right next to the shopping centre to show us a tree of significance to the Aboriginal people of Alice Springs. (I’ve been down the mall countless times, stood under the tree to watch excavators work but hadn’t noticed the tree!!)  She could only say that it is a men’s story and that it is about two boys – because she is not male it is not her story to know or tell.  Similarly, she was able to say that the Dreamtime story of the West MacDonnell Ranges is about a caterpillar, but as she is not from this Country it is not her story to tell.

We then went into an art gallery (which sells great earrings – another new pair this year) where Allison explained how Aboriginal Art is based on telling the artist’s story – whether that is a story from the Dreamtime or a story from their own life. She also said that their markings are traditionally the marking that would be left by the object if it was imprinted in sand – the curved shape is the shape of a ‘rump’ mark in the sand, as she explained.  When I look at their art work now it makes a lot more sense.

We continued our wandering past the civic buildings where she pointed out the Coolamon shaped seats I had photographed last year. She also had us smelling and tasting lemon grass and she pointed out that most of the plants around were used in either medicine or for food.  She pointed out the natural supermarkets – River Red gum trees.  She explained how as a child she would scrape the white dots of the leaf at a particular season and her siblings would see who could make the biggest ball, it was then popped away as it was their ‘lolly’.  She also pointed out the Witchetty Grub Tree, an acacia.  She prefers her grubs cooked and she explained that a grub broken and rubbed on a wound is very good at healing.  (Maybe Will should try it on his finger – he thought he got all the alloy out of it after a bit of panel beating but as it is getting bigger and sorer every day I think maybe he missed some of it!)

As we wandered over to the other side of the Todd River she explained it flowed frequently when she was a child.  She also mentioned that there is a board walk being built on sacred ground so she had asked her grandson not to work on the site out of fear something bad would happen.  And so he isn’t working there – it made me wonder how accommodating employers would be in this regard. 

After Allison explained a little about the skin system, which is passed down from father’s and is another way of having boundaries, as you can’t marry someone of the same skin, she explained a little about the Dreamtime. She explained how there are three components to their law and life – 1. Human World, 2. Physical World, 3. Sacred World (which incorporates the Dreamtime).  It was a very informative hour and a half.

I then popped into the art gallery briefly where an exhibition titled ‘Unfinished Business’ really caught my attention.  I plan to go back for longer and to read each of the stories and look more carefully at the photos – I think my artistic sister should pop up for a visit too!!

Back to reality for a while – a bit of cleaning and mopping before some more culture.  Rikki and David had organised a group of us to go to the RSL for dinner and to attend the Navy Band performance in honour of Vietnam Veterans Day.  We danced the night away!! Will even joined me for a few dances.  When Graham, who really can dance, asked me for a dance I warned him I couldn’t!! He said he didn’t mind, but it wasn’t long before he suggested ‘Just listen to the beat, can you do that?’  When I informed him I couldn’t he gave up with a laugh and we just jiggled around a bit.  So after a late night and a full day at work, clocking up over 8kms again, it is time to crawl into bed to watch a DVD.



Not a local,
but one I didn't notice
last vist!



Sturt Desert Pea outside the
art gallery
 



Becoming reacquainted with an old friend

We sit quietly in our home away from home reading and blogging as we listen to the trucks on the highway and the local indigenous radio station.  A quiet evening in a quiet camp.  We are down to three couples here in Birdsville as Pete and Di have ‘popped’ home for a wedding and we farewelled Don and Maureen last night.  We had a great night around the camp fire – Sherrill, Liz and David popped in to say their farewells. Alesia also popped over as did the Taswegians – Terry and Eileen and Brian and Lorraine.  We also welcomed the newest arrivals Kristina and Peter, who have just enjoyed three years on a boat around the Whitsundays. 

We all love the shared meals around the camp fire, a plater to share and your own cutlery, plates, drinks and a chair and away you go for a fun night.  The fun night ended only minutes ahead of the day turning to tomorrow so there were a few weary people around here today!!   However we were still at work bright and early.

Will had one truck on the wash bay by 9.30am while I washed glasses, the only windscreen in the place I can reach and I become acquainted with a well-known friend – my mop!! Will has put me onto a new way of cleaning the floor – a can of degreaser is now never far from my side but hot soapy water over the top and on the non-grease spots brings the place up nicely. 

 
As well as the physical work there is also the aspect of chatting to visitors which I really enjoy – now that I know a little about the trucks!!  I was explaining how the Kenworth Shed works to two gentlemen from Canberra when one said “It sounds like you take more than just a little interest in this - you obviously take great pride in your work here.”  I stopped and thought for a moment and realised how true that statement was. I feel very proud to say we had a part in the new shed going from an empty room to a museum, and I still get tingles down my spine when I see the DVD playing in the video room if I catch a glimpse of the truck parade, the naming of the building or the speech at the Women’s Breakfast.  Yes, we do take pride in our work here and we are proud to have left our mark here for however long or short it remains. 

A thousand ways to holiday

I sit with the morning sun warming my back as I prepare the ingredients for potato salad. Tonight we are having a shared meal to farewell Don and Maureen, a couple from Queensland we only met this year. They are heading off to enjoy the outback and nature over the next three months as they make their way home. They have volunteered in many different places but it sounds like playing the tourist is high on the agenda for the next few months.
Yesterday as I was washing dishes for an upcoming conference to be held in the Kenworth shed I thought about a girlfriend and her family trip - they're around Darwin and Kakadu at the moment - jumping in water holes, swimming, exploring etc. I smiled to myself and noticed how pleased I am for them, but not envious. Each stage of life brings with it 'the right way' to do things. For us, this is the right place to be for now. We wanted to be here to see a friend inducted, catch up with mates from last year and see more of this area. So far we are right on track!
Tonight, after my ladies cuppa in the mall and our shared dinner  I plan on making a list of the spots high on my 'to do list' so Will can plan which we do from where etc - and so he can add in the necessary four wheel drive element and we can make the most of the weeks ahead.

A truly lovely day

I sit here late in the evening enjoying a date scone and a proper cup of brewed tea – what luxury! Today has been a truly lovely day – a 9.00am start saw us re-fuelling and topping up the mobile fridge with picnic items.  A phone call came letting us know that one friend has been able to secure a buyer for another mate’s truck – it had been a $12000 noose around the second friend’s neck and the persistence of the first friend has paid off with the unexpected sale.  A great start to the day and a reminder that there are good guys out their looking after their mates.

There was a bit of stirring by Will who was suggesting we were going to the Finke Road but he hadn’t fooled me, I knew he was ready to take me to one of the three places of my choice.  The place was Arltunga Historical Reserve, the ruins of a gold mining town out in the East MacDonnell Ranges.  We whizzed past places we visited last year with lots of reminiscing and laughs.  ‘The flies are definitely worse in the East MacDonnells,’ – ‘Yer, remember last year when we pierced the Aeroguard in the car and it stunk all the way home?’  ‘That’s the road we were on when we got the flat tyre,’ and so on and so on.

Once again we were amused by the sights and signs along the way.  A sign saying ‘No through Road,’ we couldn’t even see a road!! A sign saying beware of road trains – had I not been a loyal watcher of Outback Truckers I wouldn’t have believed a road train could possibly head down such a dirt road. Then we saw a big cat – just like the one Will’s boss owns – only this time it was a roller not an excavator.  As we slowed for the road works we spotted a dog or was it a dingo? We thought probably a dingo but seeing as there were men around working we thought maybe it was one of their dogs.  Will called them up on the radio and we were assured it was a dingo, just a very timid one that really couldn’t care about the trucks, earthmoving equipment or Nissan that was in its way. 

The next sight that had us hanging a ‘u-ie’ (u-turn) was a lizard sunbaking in the upper branches of a tree right on the side of the road.  The wandering cattle over the main road are par for the course these days.  I then spied a beautiful vista that just cried out for me to take some photos and when I asked Will if we could stop he was happy to oblige as the grader had stopped short a few kilometers back and the road was rough and rocky.  With our mates compressor (and satellite phone) on board it was time to lower the tyre pressure a little. (Look out, we’re becoming real 4WD people ASAP)

By lunch time we’d arrived at the Information Station at the historical reserve, so after a brief wander and a bit of drooling over the headlight guards on the old Inter ute we had lunch in a quiet spot in the shade.  With a few discussions regarding which road to take we decided to head on up the nearest road to the historical sites.  We found the ruins of the government buildings and the police station.  Will offered to show me the inside of the cell but as he had his had firmly on the heavy metal door that could be locked from the outside I declined his invitation.  We then went on to Joker Gorge however after walking 10km at work on Thursday and 8km on Friday Will’s feet were still feeling the worse for it, so I wandered off on my own to explore.  Having a little difficulty following the map and the sign posts I began to wonder why I’d left the satellite phone in the car??!!  I retraced my steps and found my way for a short distance.  I came upon a dry river bed with huge boulders and lots of dry grass.  After discovering that some boulders were quite slippery I decided it would be wisest to return to Will and see the gorge another day. 

So off we headed on Binns Track.  We came to the sign to Hale’s River Homestead and camp ground and the original homestead of Old Ambalindum.  So we decided to take a side track and check it out.  The ruins weren’t much but the lady in the kiosk and camp ground was friendly and welcoming.  So after an ice-cream and a wander around we headed back down the few kilometers to Binns Road.  It wasn’t long before we came to a gate – yes, that was Kate’s problem – and then we passed another modern homestead and then a stretch of red bulldust that had the passenger nervous but a little intrigued while the driver held the speed steady and safely made our way through.  Before we knew it we’d found a sign for a private road to the Old Ambalindum homestead and then not much further on we found the same lovely Hale’s River Homestead.  We gave the friendly lady another wave as we  passed on the other side of her property!! A detour of only a few kilometres (which out here takes quite a while)!

We then continued the next 40kms on Binns Track, including the 30km stretch of winding road, to get back to Stuarts Highway. We smiled as dark clouds formed – we knew Steve Graham would be worried if he saw them – but we made it safely back before anything bad could happen.  Just in time for a refreshing shower and drinks around the camp fire.