Dellie allow yourselves a good 12 months at least to stem the work urge,after that you fix all the things that are broken,then the ones that you may think will break,after that you will go to a tip shop to buy things you don't really need but they may need fixing.I found that you can't fish everyday,play golf or other sports everyday.I am so fortunate living where I do live,I can watch the tide coming in and out twice a day.The school holidays are really boring no school buses morning or afternoon,goodo when the kids go back to school the buses return.5 days a week about noon great exitement, the Postie will either drive past or stop to give us mail,usually a bill,but wait on wednesday the mobile fruit man will come into the "Village" and if we have been really,really good boys and girls he will ring his bell,yaaaaaay the exitement.Yes retirement is all go,go,mostly bloody go ,hitch up the Penguin,and into the wild blue yonder.....well somewhere new.Happy Days,and even Happier nights to you and Roger.Cheers.Ibbo.

He's finally seen the light then Dell.    Good job too.        Neither of you will regret it.

MOre time to visit us now.  We will be up your way later in the year.  Looking forward to catching up again.

I tell you what Dell you get roger to come up here and take over from me and I will take over his retirement and let you know what it is like

I cant imagine having more than say 3 months with no work, I would really like to but at the moment I will spend the rest of the day up here dreaming of what I could do and the places i could visit

a lot of visits to faraway freinds would certainly be on the agenda, Ma's joint would be up there and Basil and John and Jon and Mon hell the list is endless all those free parks and meals

all I can say is I'm happy for the pair of you, your time starts in JUNE!!!!

oh Lynne I'm sorry there are so many lovely folks here that I couldnt list them all but rest assured if I was retiring I would have a very long list of folks that I would be looking to annoy!

see what I mean Dell, you've got a couple of years just visiting your freinds, make sure you whack us on that list as well! plan for a couple of months here though!

P.S.
You know, you lot..we know nothing of the southern part of Australia....so, just look out!!!! Dave...did you say free lodging, and does that include tucker?? I'll have to budget these things now you know!!! lol.

We went to Gemtree for a week and stayed a month! Loved it. But stock up on water as you go through Alice Springs. As well as the zircons at the Mud Tank diggings you can also get some worthwhile garnet in the region (dry sieve those). It is a really scenic area and there are some great day trips you can do from Gemtree.
Does Roger know about O'Briens Creek (topaz)? Rubyvale (sapphire)? Yowah and Duck Creek (opal)? - they should give him some more to focus on.......

Time to live those dreams Dellie and Roger. I retired 12 months ago but Ted will be retired as of next Wednesday.  

Will have to check out Gemtree when we make it that far. Have already found sapphires at Rubyvale and Opals at Yowah.  A great way to spend a few afternoons.  Looking forward to catching up with a few GNs as we wend our way to  ????????????

Probably not "mad" ones. We puddle about when in an area that offers the chance. Sometimes we have structured parts of trips around the Driver's wish to fossick in a particular place. As in 2002, when we spent time at Leopardwood, near Yowah, and at Mike Pasalic's at Duck Creek. In 2009, went to Lightning Ridge for the first time. Stayed at Lorne. Found a few worthwhile bits noodling on the dump out at Grawen etc area.
The best finds, to date, have been 3 big chunks of blue topaz at Blue hills, behind O'Briens Creek; a nice boulder opal pipe in a dump at Opalton; some good boulder opal at Leopardwood; and we got lots of zircons and garnets at Gemtree. I found a yellow sapphire, out at Mt Leura, near Rubyvale, big as my thumbnail - but too fractured inside, to cut. The Driver picked up a nice piece of topaz in the parking area of a construction site we worked at, in the Pilbara, just as he was walking by.
It is just something else to do on an extended trip.