What’s top of my mind: Time.
Can you believe that the last time I posted a Wednesday W’s post was at the end of January??? Wow. All of the travel blogging has taken over, but now I have a gap of a few weeks (oh no!) before I head off to Iceland, Greenland, Scandinavia and the Baltics. Time for regular blogging to get back ito gear.
WHAT a year this has been so far! It can’t be faulted on the travel side, though of course my life has been turned upside down since Dad had his fall and my parents have required so much time and care.
Honestly, there has not been a single day since my father fell that, when I’m home, I haven’t had to do something for them. Some days are all-encompassing, while others might be doing admin. I’m visiting Mum every day when I’m here. I’m not complaing, but it has required a big mental shift on my part.
The good thing is that the place where Mum now lives is happy for dogs to come and visit, so Scout usually comes with me. She still hates the car and begs to be allowed to go back inside when I open the car door, but once she’s there, she loves it. When Mum lived here for a month after Dad fell, Scout adopted her, so she-s always glad to see her Gran, while I pretend not to see the shnacks Mum quietly feeds her.
Where I’m going: 2026 travel is being booked, baby!!!
So far, The Galapagos Islands/Sth America for nearly a month; and Nepal/Bhutan for my birthday. I’m eying off some other destinations as well.
Where I’ve Been: Did I mention Borneo?
Haha.
Yesterday Mum, my sister Kate and I went into the city to organise probate for Dad’s will, and also to take Mum and my brother off as executors. Kate has already said that I’ll be the one doing everything. Oh joy.
It’s an uncomplicated will at this stage. Everything passes to Mum, so this is probably a good exercise in finding out what to do before Mum goes and we have to split the assets between us. I’m not looking forward to that exercise.
Still, I’m feeling better now that an expert is taking care of the boring nitty-gritty details. We had a nice day out, too. We made a day of it, going out for lunch as well.
What I’m reading: Look above. 🙂
I read 8 books when I was in Borneo, and I have a stack of 7 books piled up beside my bed, with 2 more ready for me to pick up from the library. I see a lot of comfy reading days in my immediate future!
What I’m watching: Squid Game 3, and Alone Africa,
I’m livid at the news that Survivor Australia has sacked Jonothan LaPaglia as host and has cast David Genet to replace him. The man wn Survivor AND won 5 million US dollars on another reality tv show. He’s got BIG shoes to fill. JLP was amazing.
What I’m listening to: Tom Odell.
Tom33’s girlfriend put me onto him. It’s gentle, sad boi energy.
What I’m eating: Pea and ham soup with home-made bread.
It’s the weather for it. It’s bubbling away in the slow cooker as we speak.
What I’m planning: an epic holiday.
Guess what? Remember Antarctica, where I made such dear friends? Morgan, Baptiste and Corinna are joining me in Iceland! Remember North Korea, where I met the unforgettable James? He’s joining us!!! The 5 of us are going to have an absolute ball.
THEN: at the other end of my Scandi trip, I’m meeting up with Liga, (also from Antarctica, but we travelled together last year on the Epic Road Trip), and she’s going to show me the Baltics for a week. That’s Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, for those playing at home.
How fantastic is that? I’m so very happy that we’ll all be travelling tgether. James says that he might join us in the Baltics, which will be so very great. I’ve got my fingers crossed.
Who deserves a ‘thumbs-up’: Fortunate Frogdancer.
This is my mother’s laundry trough at her old place. A few days before, when Kate was there with Mum, she put something in there to soak. Unbeknownst to her, the tap had a slow drip.
We visited the house on Sunday to start clearing out cupboards. I nearly pushed it back, as I was tired after travelling 24 hours to get home, but decided to suck it up and just go.
Look at the water level – another hour and it would have started to flood. Phew!
What has made me smile: Look at the kms on my car.
Added to all the ones, is the fact that my trusty little Golf is 11 years old.
Dad joke of the day:
I’d love to go to Estonia. I follow a wonderful homesteader and artist in Estonia on Instagram and it looks beautiful. I can’t believe JLP has been sacked. Everyone adores him. You have certainly done some amazing trips this year.
I can’t argue with that!