Omicrom has officially arrived and there is community spread. My original title for this series of blogs no longer applies. Hopefully, with our low population density and sensible measures in place we won’t go the way of NSW and Victoria and be more like SA.

In Cosy Corner our quiet life continues, although yesterday was a little different. Our friends had offered to have us for an evening meal, but before that we had some chores to do in Albany. One of the plastic strips at the front of our vehicle had lost a screw and was flapping in the wind. At first we thought the noise was the awning, but after bringing it in we still had the sound. So, our first chore was to visit a mechanic to have it looked at. Our friends gave us the name of someone and we headed there without phoning first. We found his office closed and heard later that he had gone to emergency that morning. Someone was working next door and when Stephen asked him for a recommendation he came and looked at the problem. He was a farmer, not a mechanic, but as it was a fairly simple problem he was able to find a suitable screw and secure the flapping thing in place. We were very grateful for his cheerful willingness to help.

Our next destination was nearby at Dog Rock. First of all we went to a pharmacy for some pain killers for our neighbour at CC who had injured his back (a recurring problem). Then we went to one of those cheap stores for a set of flags on a strip to help with marking our camping bay when we drive off temporarily. Australia Day flags were our only option. I forgot to mention that we had visited the laundromat first and put on a load of washing.

Then we did some shopping including for portabello mushrooms for our evening meal. We picked up some takeaway noodles for lunch.

Then it was down to the services bay on the foreshore to empty grey and cassette tanks, and fill up all of our water containers and tank. We also filled up a couple of containers for our evening hosts, a small favour that we were only to happy to fulfill.

Our friend had suggested 4.00 p.m. as the starting time for cooking, but she sent a text to say that my shift as Assistant Chef would start at 4.30 p.m. Not that I did anything, but it was wonderful to be there whilst she cooked various dishes for our meal, with multiple sprices and ingredients. The mushrooms were the main protein source. As her husband sat quietly I said to him that he must be quite used to it to be able to sit so quietly whilst I was savouring each different smell.

We had a lovely evening of food and good stories of our lives and travel.

Today has been a bit lazy, though I fitted in washing the floors. We angled the van a bit differently after returning from Albany yesterday so that we could have more shade on the sliding door side of the van in the afternoons. This has worked out well as there has been very little cloud cover today, though the fairly constant wind has kept us from feeling too hot. We’ve been able to comfortably sit outside and bring the awning in a bit when the wind became stronger in the afternoon without losing our shade.