COVID and my accident took a chunk out of my regular schedule of combining two winters, one summer and an autumn of activities into one year. But now I'm back on track, but maybe not really for all that long into the future...
The current schedule is to work and ski in Japan from just before Xmas until late February, return to Australia in March to complete a section of the AAWT, wing back over to NZ in April for a few months of tramping, cycling, paddling etc before settling in mid June for another NZ ski season. In early October I swap ski boots for shorts and bare feet and spend the next 2-2.5 months back home in Geraldton doing home maintenance, car maintenance, gardening, and a decent smattering of windsurfing.
So in October I returned home to Geraldton. This year there were a lot of home maintenance issues to deal with, like rusted downpipes, overgrown hedges, boxthorn infestations, painting the exterior brickwork, doing some paving, and the decision to install an air conditioner in my own self contained accommodation.
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| new paint job |
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| new paved area |
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| new air con |
I also needed to get 4 new tyres for the Troopy, and some more rust repairs. Not as much as last year, thank goodness. When you're only home for a couple of months each year, there's not much point in me doing anything but nursing my 30 year old car along. The motor is still fine and most of the rust is superficial, it gets all my gear up to Coronation Beach and back, and I have somewhere to store it a few kms away from the salt laden ocean breeze.
And finally I did a fairly big overhaul of my road bike, mainly because it took over a month to get it booked in at the mechanics. He was pretty impressed with how I'd replaced the gear shifters and all the cables, as well as re-taped the handlebars, and he only ended up having to replace the front detailers. I took the opportunity to purchase a smart trainer as well, so I'm all set up for doing some indoor training when the mercury gets far too high to be outside. The air conditioner helps....
It wasn't an awesome couple of months for wind, but it was consistent enough for me to get out and ride a few waves. I've definitely noticed myself being a little less aggressive and a little more cautious than I used to be. Maybe I'm getting old!!
Talking of getting old, I achieved my goal of surviving on savings until I reached 60! The aforementioned maintenance costs completely decimated the last of my savings, so I was more than grateful that I could rollover my superannuation into an income stream and start receiving a monthly tax free "pension"!! Of course I probably would have deferred some of those costs if I hadn't the money to pay for them....
In March I will complete the final section of the AAWT. Matt and Iain have missed some sections but I will be done. Which opens up my options for new adventures, and with much more disposable income it's kind of hard to justify working two winters as well. The problem is I both enjoy the teaching, and the community, so it's hard for me to give them up. But I do want to go explore more of the world before I'm too old or sick to be able to.
In order to work in Japan there is a convoluted process to get a work visa. I'd filled in my application for a certificate of eligibility back in September, but the immigration office in Japan took until the day before I left to grant it. Luckily, the Japanese Consular Services now accept the COE in digital form, or a printed out copy of it, but I had run out of time to get the visa processed in Australia.
I had to make alternate plans.
I had bought my flights using Qantas Frequent Flyer points, and the latest available award seat was the 6th December. That was too early to start work, so I had decided to be a tourist for 10 days before arriving in Hokkaido on the 17th.
Instead of spending those days sightseeing in Japan, I booked some flights to South Korea. I'd be spending my time sightseeing around Seoul whilst waiting for my visa to be processed.
That's next....
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