BACK HOME AT THE SHUTTERS

It was a special day when we made our visit to the Specialist and he said Bill’s wound was healed enough to go home to Ballina. There is still some healing to be done but the dressings are now able to be managed by me and we quickly headed for Ally’s for a trip to the airport. We flew to Brisbane where we were met with our car and my sister Sha (or Trish) as our chauffeur. We had a pleasant drive home, stopping for a Yatala pie (as you do) on our way home. It was an overcast day and we ran into a few showers on our way home – we enjoy seeing water fall to earth!

The countryside here is still lush and green and was a real boost after the brown dry environment of Canberra. We took the long way home so we could enjoy the coast drive from Byron through to Lennox and home.

Our Ibis friend was waiting here for us.

Bill nodded to his boat and Discovery as we drove in and we were soon settled into HOME. We took it very slowly, gradually picking up some social appointments but just taking it easy and making some phone calls. For such a special occasion as having Bill at the Shutters - and so healthy - I decided to cook a roast dinner. Not my usual chicken but a special beef roast for Bill. Sha and Murray and Dympna came to share our first family meal back home. It was a great feed and a lovely evening with family. These are the days and nights I crave.


A Ti Tree at Thursday Plantation.

Bill and I visited Thursday Plantation – a local tourist attraction that sells wonderful coffee and serves it on a large shady verandah. The Plantation is a Ti-Tree Farm and sells many Ti-Tree products. I was amazed to see some medical journal reports on the efficacy of Ti-tree oil and its many derivatives. It reminded me of how much use they make of our eucalyptus tree in Vietnam (Tiger Balm etc.). We have some wonderful local resources and maybe we will make better use of them now in the financial crisis. I bought some of the ointment and we are now treating Bill’s wounds with it very effectively. Lanolin from our wool is another Australian resource that we probably could use a bit more.


We never miss an opportunity for coffee at Shelley's Beach. Seen here with nephew Ben.

Sha's birthday dinner with all the family.
We celebrated Sha’s birthday several times – probably because we all wanted to make sure she had a great time before they return to America again for more adventures in their Winnebago. We had a family dinner, a brunch at Shelley's and some walks along the beach. You can keep in touch with their exciting journeys…..and learn a lot about America here http://warwarekrvusa.blogspot.com/.

Bill finished his book and began looking for another. He was very relaxed. We did a trip up to see family in Brisbane (next blog) and Bill returned to Canberra on the way home. It was a bit lonely coming back here on my own again - but I had a great sleep and woke to the sounds of gentle rain on the roof. Life is good.