Back to reality

If you’ve been wondering about the lack of recent updates to Tortoise Loft – The Blog, it’s because I’ve been to Australia. Visiting my friend Kevon in Melbourne. We both attended the 68th World Science Fiction Convention, Aussiecon 4; we went to exhibitions, museums and galleries and interesting places; we rode trams and ate tasty food and met up with friends; we spent a couple of nights at Port Fairy on the Great Ocean Road; we saw wild seas, wildlife and even the occasional bit of sunshine. It was a good trip. Very good.

But now I am back in Shrewsbury, and the very first thing that I learn is that my part-time job has vanished for the time being, ‘purely due to the drop-off in work’. Not the best of homecomings. I also had urgent phone messages left by the housing association, worried about a possible leak in my water pipes – although an emergency visit from the plumber on Monday morning failed to find any sign of leakage. (It’s probably a problem in another of the flats.) My good friends Dez and Ali had looked after the place well in my absence, and had kindly left me milk and cheese in the fridge, bread and fancy biscuits – a very welcome sight. But I was feeling alone, missing Kevon very much, having to deal with the unpacking, the clothes-washing and all the other sad reminders that a good holiday is over. All this and jetlag too! 

But I am in too good a mood to feel down for long. I still have some more photos to process and upload, and then I’ll be writing about my visit to Australia, and showing you some of the sights. There will be wild koalas. Watch this space!

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