well thats that over for another year, thank god, now we can start to get the household back in to some sort of normallity (whatever that is) I hope you all had a great and safe xmas, we dont want to lose any gn's at this or any other stage,

I must take this oppurtunity to make a correction, in one of my earlier answers to a post request I stated the CMCA stood for CARAVAN and MOTORHOME owners CLUB of AUSTRALIA. 

this is of course incorrect, the correct meaning is CAMPERVAN and MOTORHOME owners CLUB of AUSTRALIA,

I'm sorry for any confusion that I may have caused, but I am sure that if you are a member and own a caravan then all insurance benefits from lumleys (through ken tame) would still apply

if you have made an approach and been accepted or rejected would you please let me and the forum know!!

G'day Dave,

Had a good one pal and as you say back to normal thank God, was a good boy yesterday had only one glass of the grape and one beer all day.

I hope to be on the road somewhere next Christmas, maybe secluded in some nice, quiet bush camp, just me the wife and nature(Heaven).

Hope you have a great time in Tassie.

Best Regards and Safe Travelling.
John

well john after the end of year that you've had I dont know of anyone more deserving of a bit of piece and quiet you look after yourself and make sure you find that quiet spot and just whisper sweet nothings into your girls ear, forget about life for a little while and relax, and have a cold one for me when you are under that gum tree by the babbling brook!! and yep me and the dragon will have a ball in tassie at the end of January, I got little blue all serviced and greased and checked so now something is sure to go wrong, never mind thats what traveling is all about,

Couldn't have been better, heaps of g/kids and food and noise what more can ask for . May we all see the next one Enjoy

G'day Dave,

Many thanks pal, I will certainly enjoy the peace and quiet when I find a spot. Next year we are starting our around the block trip and as I am fond of saying if I don't get there today I'll get there tomorrow or the day after.

I am certain that after all the TLC Little Blue will behave admirably (we don't want to evoke Murphy's Law) and you will have a great time in Tassie.

All the best for the New Year.

Best Regards and Safe Travelling.
John

Yes had a nice relaxing one at home with family thanks Dave. Next Christmas we could be celebrating Christmas anywhere north, south, east or west of the proverbial Black Stump, Grey Nomad style.

Hi Dave and everyone I still am not back to normality I think I have been home for 30 mins in 3 days apart from sleeping the xmas party thing seems to last right through to new year. but I have learnt one thing not to drink on xmas day too early in the morning before eating it goes straight to your head and then have to spend part of the afternoon having a nap. I hope I have learnt from this. Happy travels everyone and a Happy New Year. chezgo

"normality" is a state to which I am not familiar, if normal for this time of year is having your first beer at 8 am with half a dozen mates all sitting around the Weber's, full of all sorts of roast meats, then gradually by lunchtime we are cracking our umpteenth with about 60 people under our back veranda feasting and laughing with about thirty kids (all call me granddad) racing around with all their new ill gotten loot, then a total crash at about 3 pm for a nanny nap of about 2 hours then getting up off the floor to do it all again, this continues in various forms until after the new year, so if this is "normal" then I guess we must be close god help us we wouldn't have it any other way, to those having an "orphan" Xmas, I wish you all the best that life and friendship can bring, get yourself into town, to the pub and just see how many Friends you have over new year, enjoy life, don't sit on the side lines, living is not a spectator sport!!! you are not alone, take all of us with you to those in hospital, have a ball, our nurses are absolutely fantastic and the best in the world at this and any other time of year, jump in your wheelchair or hitch up your dressing gown chuck on your hush puppy's and go and say gday. have a drink with them, join in with their celebrations, get someone to smuggle in some contraband, they will have a drink with you to those that have lost a loved one recently, my sympathy lies with you, it is particularly hard at this time of year with the empty chair looking back, all I can say is life in all its splendour goes on, greive, certainly but it is up to those of us that are left behind to continue on to the single pensioners living alone, my heart goes out to you, you feel particularly alone at this time of year, take yourself down to the rsl or bingo hall or even the local pub, dont sit home, get out and rejoin life, grab a plate and go see your neighbor, the one that you speak to all year, I doubt very much that he/she would refuse you entry to his/her celebrations, I know that nobody on our street would, we enjoy the company of two single pensioners in our celebrations and we are glad to have them whoever you are and whatever your celebration, just be safe and happy and dont be afraid to share the laughter and the good times, if you are at home and have a neighbor that may be alone, surely it wouldnt hurt you to set another place and just go and ask them to join with you, you will be rewarded with a totally different perspective on life, he/she may be the substitute granddad or grandma that your kids miss so much

Our Christmas I recon will be made into a movie starring Sydney Greenstreet,  Jimmy Stewart & James Cagney...... What a mess, MUm in law with bowel cancer gets operated on sucessfully, Sister in law holds one of her rapairian vegan feasts, grandson comes of his new moto x bike (that Santa somehow got him from the north pole) and has to be ambulanced to hospital, after being freed from surban park bench which he hit at 20 kmh, then while we are all rejoicing at MIL's success Sybil comes down with some mystery illness and had to be briefly hospitalised, tested, injected, inducted and released....
I recon it was the food, give me trad Xmas fare anyday.... Honestly a sauasge roll that has had the sausage replaced with some sort of ersatz sausage mince is just not the same, not even the fruit mince pies were genuine.... We snuck out to Hungry jacks for burgers it was that bad....
Still there was I gues a festive if evasive aire around our celebrations.... Best of all I was notallowed to drink beer o I have a whole case of Cascade for my enjoyment at my liesure, I think I'll have one now...