Speaking of Barby, and of Mumbling…

Norman’s friend Sarah ‘splained the Aussie Language for us.  “All words are shortened as much as possible,  then “Y” (or “ie”) is added to the end.“ SO,  Barbeque==Barby.  Breakfast==Breky.  Laptop==Lappy.  Tasmania==Tassie.  Australian==Aussie.  And my favorite:  Sparky,  which means “Electrician.” OK,  it’s ENGLISH (well,  Strayne, anyway) so rules have exceptions!   Here is the video, courtesy of

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Sydney Charms

Our stay in Sydney commenced when friend Peter Campbell met us at the apartment he had arranged for us. We knew this was located at the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron in Kirribilli from advance discussions with Peter. What we did not fully understand was that this was to be a quaint apartment in an old

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New Zealand – Exit Stage Left

Well, the day the Wilsons have been looking forward to finally arrived! The Harrises Left!!! (The whooshing sound you may have heard and may have been reported on the local Cyclone-warning network was their Collective sigh of utter relief). The washed-out roads were still washed out, but Kevin was DETERMINED to ensure our exit. There

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Heading North(ish)

Weather still sucks as we left Palm Desert,  but begins to improve as we get a little north of Los Angeles.  We decided to stop for the night at Carpinteria State Beach between Ventura and Santa Barbara.  WHAT AN AWESOME PLACE.   Again,  hard against the ocean beach.  Although with the pounding surf and cold weather, 

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