and to think you thought I was missing.

Well, sort of missing I guess. I have been busy with many things, and blogging just didn't seem that important - until now.

I have been for the day (last Friday) to the Sydney Motor Show, very enjoyable experience but too much to do on one day. I did bump into our house designer at Sydney airport coming home. He and his wife were rerouted home from a brief holiday in Fiji via Sydney, so was surprised but pleased to meet them and have a drink in a bar to pass the time.

Our new apartment is one bedroom, and we inspected it the other day and found it to be very small - VERY small, so our plan is to use it for Rene's business until June and we'll attempt to rent a 2 bedroom apartment in addition until our home is built. We won't have to pay for storage either, so we'll offset some of the cost. I think it'll work.

We also attended the Multicultural Festival at Roma Street Parklands at the weekend and found it to be a very enjoyable distraction. A couple from my past came back to visit me whilst walking through the railway tunnel at Roma Street. A couple of teachers that I worked with over 34 years ago in Dirranbandi saw me and heard my voice, recognised it, and introduced themselves. I was really surprised to see them after all this time. They both looked exceedingly well and I was flattered that they recognised me.

I've been commuting for over a week and a half now from Mount Gravatt on the Southside of the city to schools on the Northside. The commute has been very tedious and slow, but seeing as though it is for a few weeks only, it's more than tolerable. I'm really impressed with the courtesy and patience of the drivers as a whole.

Kit's wife Polly arrived back Sunday from working for seven weeks back in the US. Now we're a household of four instead of three and it is really delightful to be so welcome here in Mount Gravatt. Dinners are shared and we dine exceedingly well, and once again the recycle bin is on a hiding to nothing to escape being extra full again this week. Incidentally Polly arrived back nearly recovered from a seriously sprained ankle (reputedly from dancing outside at night - hmmmm) plus sporting a viciously black finger nail attached to a strapped, alas broken, finger that was the result of her encounter with public transport (a train I think?) in Boston. Now when is that girl going to learn that dancing and public transport just aren't safe any more?

Decisions are looming on colours/materials for our new house. We hope to have that hurdle out of the way by mid November, then we won't have to think about it anymore.

The Iraqi family I teach have had a miraculous turn of events happen in their lives. Their father, who was kidnapped three years ago in Baghdad, has been found by US troops alive, but imprisoned underground, during a house sweep in mid August. He was released after questioning two days later and it took him three weeks to find contact his family here in Brisbane. We at the school only found out last week. Today I helped write a letter from my school to support his repatriation with his wife and five daughters here in Australia. It just goes to show that one should never give up hope, even though it may seem to be impossible to consider.

That's all for now. We are in the midst of a federal election campaign that will culminate with the polls on November 24. Those of you overseas, please think of us poor sods Down Under enduring the rhetoric and vitriol of a lot of people whom you really wouldn't like as friends. There is little difference at present between the policies of either of the two major parties, therefore I just want a new crew in Canberra because the old crew is too tainted by the past ('children overboard' is but one example). Oh well, at least we are fortunate enough to have relatively minor issues to distract us unlike many other nations.