1st Aussie Xmas...

Happy Christmas and a Merry New year 2 you!
We have had a wonderful Christmas and a great new year. (I know it's only 1/4 past 10, but we're home after a short party at Andy & Gail's as we're all cream crackered and want to see the new year in in our pool with a glass of something nice!)

We start with our traditional Xmas eve dinner at home, where we all enjoyed a beautiful turkey crown with all the trimmings and a sparkly Xmas pud before we made reindeer food to spread on the front lawn.

We were all to bed early, so Santa could visit, as we all know he comes here first!!!
and he DID, but I managed to get a quick photo before we opened any???
We took just our stockings to the beach for a Xmas day Barbie with Charlie, Tracey, Will and Tom, where we saw another group on the beach with a blow up tree!!! Now we've seen it all!


We then had a cracking Boxing Day with Mike, Sandra, Matt, Tom and Jen, our friends from KL!
They were here for Xmas so we HAD to have a few days together to catch up and have a few bottles of something nice!?!

Temperatures started to get higher - up towards the high 30s, so a pool party and few more bottles of something nice??? with Linda, Murray, Tiannah, Carly and Georgia.

Cricket was so bad with Aus being thrashed by South Africa that we thought we'd have a little game of our own on the fron green...
Problem was, we only had a tennis ball with a racket to use as a bat! Such is life!
Yesterday was PPs birthday, so we went to Hillary's boat harbour for lunch, a dip in the sea (as it reached 39 C!!!) and it's a nice drive anyway! We came home to a warm pool and glass of something nice!
Cheers! and a Happy New Year!
J,P,E n C xxxx

A birdie at GOLF!!!

Just had to take this pic last Sat whilst spoiling the usual walk around Mari Park Golf Course.

It'll be the only birdie I get!!!

Amazing Suzuki

And we call these 'hairdresser's cars' ???

Top Fuel Drag Racing

Wow!
I was shaken, not stirred by these wicked machines

Did you know …

… that the nitromethane-powered engines of NHRA Top Fuel dragsters produce approximately 7,000 horsepower, about 37 times that of the average street car?

… that one cylinder of the eight cylinders of a Top Fuel dragster produces 750 horsepower, equaling the entire horsepower output of a NASCAR engine?

… that an NHRA Top Fuel dragster accelerates from 0 to 100 mph in less than 0.8-seconds, almost 11 seconds quicker than it takes a production Porsche 911 Turbo to reach the same speed?

… that an NHRA Top Fuel dragster leaves the starting line with a force nearly five times that of gravity, the same force of the space shuttle when it leaves the launching pad at Cape Canaveral?

… that NHRA Top Fuel dragsters consume between four and five gallons of fuel during a quarter-mile run, which is equivalent to between 16 and 20 gallons per mile?

… that NHRA Top Fuel dragsters can exceed 280 mph in just 660 feet?

… that from a standing start, NHRA Top Fuel dragsters accelerate faster than a jumbo jet, a fighter jet, and a Formula One race car?

… that it takes just 15/100ths of a second for all 7,000 horsepower of an NHRA Top Fuel dragster engine to reach the rear wheels?

… that it's desirable for an NHRA Top Fuel dragster to race with its front wheels inches off the ground for about the first 200 feet of the run? This ensures proper weight transfer to the rear wheels, a crucial part of a good launch and quick run.

… that the nitromethane used to power the engines of NHRA Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars costs about $16 per gallon?That's about £35.00!!! and we complain about fuel prices!

Christmas in OZ

Our first Xmas here and things are weeeeired!
We went to buy our tree last Saturday and it seemed wrong to be enjoying high 20s and brilliant sunshine whilst looking for a Christmas tree?
We're used to freezing rain and blowing a Hooley near Newton Abbott, so this was a welcome break.
The tree farm has it sussed, as they give you a trolley, saw and carpet square (for kneeling on) and off you go to find your tree. PP was brave enough to hold the saw but you can guess who did the actual hacking???
The houses around us are all in the mood with thier decs too - reminded us Courtfields in Milverton? (without the snow!)

Getting hotter

Whew - what a scorcher!!! Nearly anyway!
It reached 32 today, after a dodgy start - It nearly RAINED - The cheek of it! but as usual, it turned out nice again - Or was that a saying that George Formby used to say? Now I'm showing my age!

32 deg C was enough to start the clothes pegs melting! Well - the cheap ones we buy anyway!
The pool was LUVERLY though! Thats been THREE days running that PP has ventured in. I'd show you a photo but have yet to get 'permission' !!! So enjoy the girlies having a spot of fun - Oh and Nutty swam 10 lengths today - that's 200 metres, about 500 ft!!! for you whom are yet to go metric. You'd better get used to that before you come here as EVERYTHING is metric - you can't even buy a PINT - you ask for a 'schooner' or LARGE glass - That'll be MINE then!!!
CHEERS!
Jcp

Summer is nearly here!

I know it's blinkin' freeeeezing in the UK, but we're really looking forward to having OUR summer soon. It's getting warmer now and we've been in the pool. Even PP was in yesterday, now that means it's warm!!!

Typical Aussie Humour

MAKES ME PROUD TO BE AN AUSSIE:

'Hello, is this the police?'

'Yes it is. How can we help you?'

'I'm calling to report about my neighbour, Wazza. He's hiding Cocaine inside his firewood!'

'Thank you very much for the call.'

The next day, police officers descend on Wazza's house in great numbers.

They search the house and then go out to the shed where the firewood is kept. Using axes, they bust open every piece of firewood but they find no cocaine.

They swear at Wazza and leave.

The phone rings at Wazza's house. 'Hey, Wazz, Did the cops come?'

'Yeah!'

'Did they chop up your firewood?'

'Yep.'

'Happy Birthday, maaaaaaaaaate...!!!

A busy day...

Getting into the Aussie way of life well and truely now - playing golf, relaxing by the pool, drinking beer and going to the drags!!! (NOT men dressed as women, running down the road, as you might think??? but, reportedly, the best drag racing strip in the world!)
Life's tuff!

Andy, his father in law and I playing golf at Marri Park, a public course seems to be a ragular thing now, so it'd be rude not to wouldn't it?

The pics here are a bit grainy as they were taken on the phone again - sorry 'bout that!

This is why I nearly missed last week's game! Had to wait for this thing to pass as they closed the road to raise the electric cables across the road.

Charlie G, Nige and I went to see the top door slammers comp, which runs once a year in WA as we have the best strip in Australia, so boys with their toys all 'rock up' from all over the world to compete at this event.

Last night, a bew record was set by the door slammers (ZapRat pictured here), which are not true drag cars. They are just 'toys' with 5 litre V8s, producing almost 3000bhp and reaching the end of the 1/4 mile in 5.6 seconds!!! They're doing over 300kph by then too! Wicked!


Looking forward to next month's meet - when the BIG boys bring their BIG toys - The top-fuelers, so watch this space!

The Footy

It's a bit late, this one as we've been a little 'busy' with the move, but are well and truely in a nd settled (almost) now, so was trawling the photos and found this one of when we went to 'Subi oval' to watch the International rules, Ireland vs Oz. Guess who won???

We had to support BOTH sides of course, so we drank Guiness from stubbies and held them with coolers!

That'll make sense when you come see us!
Cheers.

We've MOVED!!!

Well, We're here! We moved last Monday, JUST before it started to rain! (as usual, when we move - EVEN in Oz!) Above is a landscape shot of the other side of the street, as Google maps, streetview doesn't have this street in yet!
Like Father, like Daughter...s. They couldn't wait for ME to build their beds, so they did it themselves!
Just a shot of the kitchen.
And the lounge.
This was PP on the day we moved - I think she's thinking "Here we go again" She says this is the last time, before we move into our OWN house next year, then that's it!! NO MORE piggin MOVIN!
But the pool is nice... ... now! It was a little "unloved" before we came!
How's this for a G n T tree?
Just add ice, oh, and Gin and tonic! but the meringue pies are goooooood!
Nutly in the pool - "It's 2metres deep!"
Ans a shot if where we are now! Jen Jen and all! the balcony is for the G n Ts I mentioned earlier. I'll have one for you Allan P if you're watching!
Cheers!

Get ORF Moi LAND!!!

I'd love to actually say that!
Well - we've done it...
...We're the proud owners of 450square meters (don't ask me to convert that to feet!) of land!
We've been looking at various lots (plots to you and me) around the Canning Vale and Southern River areas for months now and finally fell in love with this little bit in a new housing area called Bletchley Park (which, surprisingly, was the home of the cipher machine in London that Winston Churchill used to create codes in the war!) You could win pub quizzes with knowledge like that!
This is a 'pre-build' photo, so I'll keep taking shots as it goes up (expected to take 10 to 12 months) Yeah - right. You know builders????

Thsi is the plan of where our Lot (734) is in the bigger scheme of things
And a bigger picture again...

Some of the surrounding areas are GORGEOUS. They've planned it all very well!

The lake, just across the road.

The stream by the side of the lot

Little bridges over the stream dotted along the length of it.
It was a bit overcast that day. It's much warmer now (11 Oct) and forcast to reach 32 C by Wedsnesday - Loverly!

Albany? More like ANTARCTICA!

Well - we decided to take a 'little' break down to Albany last weekend with the tent and gear we've grown to love. Strange how you can get to like something you've not liked before, when the sun actually shines!
this is us setting off in Jen-Jen after she was fitted with a (new-to-her) rear diff (The pinion seal went in the old one, so I had to source and fit the new one myself!) They say a woman's work is never done and I add a mechanic's work to that!



We took about 5 hours to get to Albany and were determined to have a good time, even though the weather was rather different to that in Perth (see pic)

We pitched tent right on Shelley beach after a few locals at Eleker were keen to tell us their favourite pitches. Shelley Beach is the most southerly point of WA. Looks a bit like Dartmoor, but on white sandy beach with crystal clear sea too!
Weather coming in - the sand was blasting at my legs!
Where do you weigh a pie???
Somewhere over the rainbow... Weigh a pie!!!!!


Inside the tent, temperatures were much higher as you can see from PP's atire?
Home from home???
We felt it was too cold in Albany to stay TWO nights, and Jen Jen was feeling sick again (the second bloody Diff seal to change!!!!) so we drove the long way back up to Perth, along the South Western Highway and came across the sign for the tree-top walk, so had to take a small detour to see what it was like...
This was a photo I took of the four characters in a row... PP, Nutty and Noonie, with the old man in the back ground?
Some of the Giant trees (Tingles) were so big, they'd grown hollow and we were able to stand in them


The height of the walk-ways was only about 100ft up and it only wobbled a bit!!!!
You can easily see why they call it the land of the giants!
Came back that night to a place just south of Dwellingup and camped here all night - MUCH better!
Jen Jen and the tent well-settled in the trees.
Spectaclear! views over the dam
and some Roos to keep remiding us that we're in Oz!