Living Contentedly

Well, the pendulum has swing back and this time spurred me on to consider things differently. Before, I'd only ever considered moving to be close-ish to my daughter. But after listening to Peter Crone on " being free", I thought more about what I actually wanted out of my senior years. So I made a list:- Access to cycle paths. Hiking opportunities. Running options. Somewhere near water for fishing, canoeing or sailing.  Then I considered a unique place where these needs could be met, and I am gravitating to the north west coast and hinterland of Tasmania.  I could still visit my daughter during the winter, but my lifestyle would be heavily geared towards outdoor pursuits that I love.  The potential to buy land, put a tiny house on it, is very doable. The benefit of a tiny house is that it forces simplicity, and takes less time to keep clean and maintained.   Yutori by Lusk, Japanese inspired. There's a truckload of work betwee...

Europe is reeling from a record-breaking drought which has closed nuclear power stations, stopped river traffic and sent food prices soaring. And there may now be more intense droughts in some parts of the world because of climate change ".         Ref: BBC world service Meanwhile I want to sell my property and go full on into a super healthy & adv caenturous life.  This looks like: car free, cycle paths, touring  routes, ready access to water for canoeing, sailing, fishing, camping. The "house" doesn't matter, it could be a boat, shed, van or house.  Step one of moving in this direction is selling off my larger boats & preparing the property.  Where to? Online research indicates that Coffs Harbour is the top Regional City with cycling facilities, the best Small Town being Deloraine TAS. I do love Deloraine, but being so far from my daughter would be a wrench. Perhaps using it as a temporary base is doable? Bale out during winter and tour ...

Today was always going to be a recovery day after a hectic week and my sore knee. So the routine run didn't get done, I didn't even walk it do weights. The fact is the ache was digging me more so today than yesterday and it's playing with my head. So I consciously rested my knee as most as I could, while I unpacked the car, did household chores and tuned up the velo.  Tuna can photo is there because I encountered more bad tuna today as I prepared my usual lunch of rice, beans and tuna. On alert, I reacted quickly to any tiny sign and the first inkling was after the dish was prepared. It had a faint whiff, so it got plucked out and left aside for the cats. I reported this to ALDI. The Velo got attended to: Not selecting smaller chain ring, was fixed by slacking off the L screw and the cable. Whoever fitted the cable did a crappy job, quite annoying. When I tested thus later (with rear chocked up), it seems to struggle aligning the little chain ring. Chain Length...

Tumbarumba, a goal to get here for a few years.  Cuddy The Butterbean Dog  and I will be heading back to home with our new velomobile. It'll be a cruisy day after working hard here with Mia dismantling her brick fencing, a little carpentry and gardening. Having bought a large brick home a year ago, holding a full time job with Council and running her horses and boyfriend Zack remotely, she appreciates a hand.  I did the Parkrun but later in the day a decent knee pain kicked in.   It was probably caused by havingvthe RV1's boom set too long, so I've rested from running and riding. Thankfully it has worked.  So today, shortly we'll be loading the Subaru and driving 420k home. Its hitting 27°C in parts today, so it will be a hot spring ahead. Plenty to do at home with hazard reduction and setting up house sprinklers. But of course making the transition to Car Lite which will mean no driving unless towing a boat or travelling with velo.  After ...

Wednesday: WORRIED I head off with dog towards TRISLED, Victoria to check out a used Rotovelo 1. I haven't seen a velo on the flesh let alone ridden one, so the 1100k drive may be for nothing.  I sleep on the front seat of car overnight and vow " never again".  Thursday: HOPEFUL, We motor through the scenic Yarra Valley, 3 hours to TRISLED.  I see an orange RV1 in the corner, all dusty, but looking beastly tough. Its aided by sharing its stable with a famous green RV1 owned by Mark Doble and ridden twice across Australia in the IndiPac Endurance Races. Rebecca helpfully gets me going and I pedal the rugged backstreets of Morwell. The surface is uninspiring bit there's enough on this velo'ing thing to tickle my interests. I later meet Ben, The Ben. I'm inspired by his gentle ways and inspired lifestyle. He helps me, The Orange Velo is in the back of the Sooby as we motor away.  I spend another night slumped on the front seat, even more tightly and v...

Today's colour is brought to you by the colour blue. While the image looks more grey, in reality weak UV rays piercing layers of cloud shed a cool blue hue. Almost marine, like being in a massive goldfish bowl.  My new 6am pattern continues & today I introduced a cold shower. After running & being midwinter, that was a shock that kept giving. Perhaps I will do longer next time? Today, after "discussions" with my pet minding son I have "decided" to begin my road trip tomorrow. Apparently, I am staying away for the weekend. My latest iteration is taking my smaller trailer sailed. This will add adventure, the privacy of "offshore" camping & greater storage.