Strike 3!

Sorry about that. You know how it is sometimes - you pop out for Pizza and by the time you get back it's eight months later.


Whilst in many respects nothing fundamental in life has changed for me since I first started my original daynotes, followed by last year's scribbles from our extended trip down under, in several ways everything's different.


For a start, we're now all a year older, with the Lemmings pack now weighing in at 99 years young. Chaz has the dubious honour of taking us to 100 what with his being the next birthday come March '08.


Work-wise, I'm still plugging away with the same old techno crap, consultancy and project management though (usually) enjoying it more so than I have over the past few years owing to the current mix of content, clients and colleagues.


On a personal level, it really has been a year of two halves. The pre-Australia partying and pratting around continued unabated upon our return until being rudely interrupted by Chandler* discovering he had cancer. Poor sod has subsequently endured 3 surgeries along with daily blasts of radiotherapy and chemo sessions, but is now, thankfully, on the mend. Physically, at least. He stills tells crap jokes and farts too much.


Those of you who know us will however be aware that friends suffering a life-threatening illness is nothing new to us over these past few years and being hard, insensitive types, we've tried to not let it get in the way too much of the drinking, dining and casual sex that hitherto marked with absolute certainty that it was, once again, a day ending in the letter 'y'. To be honest though, come September we were all bloody knackered and waved goodbye (or at least au reviour) to the drunken and debauched life following a big party in the paddock for Ali's birthday. Partying (for me, at least) has been restricted to weekends since then, a tragic waste of one of my few natural talents about which I intend to make amends forthwith.


The Wanderlust following the Australia trip is still burning strong to the extent that we're in the [very] early stages of applying for resident visas with a view to eventual migration down under. Meantime, our house is on the market - the eventual sale of which will certainly herald another decent [3-9 month] break and perhaps even mark the end of our lives as we know it. I've been thinking for some time about moving the business along and may well use the sale as my excuse for 'retirement'. We'll be so loaded, I won't even need to think about earning money for a good 4 or 5 weeks. We all want another trip back down-under to have a proper look at the employment, education and lifestyle opportunities in our chosen destination (South Australia, somewhere South-East of Adelaide in the general direction of the SA/Victorian border), us boys fancy driving across the US and Ali's definitely up for a bit more shopping in Asia, so we may well decide just to bugger off for good.


As Jerry Pournelle is fond of saying, we live in interesting times.


Oh, by the way, it's nice to be back. Again.


*for the uninformed: Chandler is our friend Ian Chandler, husband of Jools, consumptor extraordinaire of strong European beer and the inspiration behind the blog from down under)