What a year! Jane and I are now sitting in the tropics, and our current crowning achievement is that we have yet to turn the air conditioner on at night…..!!! But back to January, when we were living in Canberra, and needed blankets and doonas/duvets at night.
I was fortunate enough to have ‘school holidays’ last Christmas, as I was between semesters at Royal Military College (RMC). I rode the motorbike from Canberra to Queensland to spend time with Mum & Dad, having just proposed to Jane. Wanting to do it a bit differently, and having discussed the possibility, I couldn’t do it over dinner (Jane is a smart girl, and would have figured it out), so decided to propose to Jane at work. I packed for the ride, and turned up in leather… Gave her a card and told her it was the rest of her Christmas present. The proposal was written in the card, and the ring accompanied it. She hyperventilated, said yes, and we had Champagne. Good day all round, really. Jane still thinks we aren’t properly married, as I never properly proposed.
I had to do one more semester at RMC to round out my 18 months in that institution, and was dearly looking forward to graduation. I did well enough, and graduated on 23 June. Needless to say, there were a couple of parties prior to graduation! Highlights for me were being able to play the staff vs students rugby match (Maori Warrior) and the pomp and circumstance of the parade itself. The day was cold and misty, with temperatures well down. Mum and Dad have sworn they may never return to Canberra! Six months later, and they think they have still to thaw properly. The emotion of what we had achieved didn’t hit until we marched off the parade ground and got to toss our caps skyward. Relief, pride, joy- all were felt that morning. Then- just fatigue leading up to the Grad Ball. Again, a great night- and as fancy as we all looked in our mess kits, Jane and the rest of the girls outdid us all! Having said that, I now know how to tie a bow tie properly!
The week just got crazier. Grad was Tuesday, my buck’s party was Thursday and we got married on Saturday. I won’t talk about the buck’s party- but thanks to all who could make it. Note to self- buck’s need to be looked after, and not lost… On Friday, feeling slightly shattered and probably looking a little worse for wear, I had to decorate the wedding cake. We had a three tier cake, with the top and bottom being fruit and the middle chocolate. It was a big cake, and was iced with a brandy cream cheese frosting and white chocolate. I have to say that working with brandy in my delicate state was not the best experience I have ever had. Cake looked good, and tasted better, and was a great end to a brilliant meal. We had the wedding in the chapel at RMC, with my company padre as the priest. The boys all wore kilts and the girls looked fabulous (led of course by Jane).
We didn’t honeymoon, as I had to move to my first posting in Townsville. As soon as we found out we were headed into the tropics, our first purchase was a trio of wine fridges to go some way towards saving our collection! Jane stayed in Canberra as I was almost immediately moving to Albury for an 8 week course. We were able to spend most weekends together, and caught up with friends in Melbourne, and reacquainted ourselves with the fantastic wines of North East Victoria. When the course finished at the end of September, we drove from Canberra to Townsville ready to start work again.
We have been allocated a rather nice married quarter about 12 km from the Army barracks, so my commute is in no way arduous, and we are situated fairly well. We are about 5 km from the shopping centre and a massive outdoor lagoon, and right behind Dairy Farmers Stadium, where the Nth QLD Fury play soccer and the Cowboys play NRL. Unfortunately there isn’t a massive rugby culture here, which has necessitated the subscription to Austar so we can stay in touch with real sports! We are about a 20 minute drive from the beach, and our favourite gelati shop. The beach is ok, but you can’t swim in it over summer because of jellyfish and stingers.
Jane got a job fairly quickly, as Admin Assistant to the Principal of a local Catholic College. She is enjoying the work, and the opportunity to meet people up here. We have both started paddling outrigger canoes for fitness and fun, and are looking to get a lot better at that than we are at the moment!
On the home front, we can’t plant a vege garden because of the rental rules, but have stuff in pots. It is almost too hot to keep anything alive, but we will give it a go. We are busy making furniture at the moment. Bookcases are the top priority so we can finally empty the last of the boxes and feel like we have moved in. We have found the best delis and food sources in Townsville, and we are going to build a wood fired oven in the New Year. We have no news to report yet as to the next generation, but if practice makes perfect, then our babes will be angels!!!
We are keeping a (fairly) regular blog online. The address is http://ourjourneytobeyond.blogspot.com
We intend to use it as a diary to keep friends and family updated and we will also post photographs there.
There are a couple there of the wedding and graduation, and more will follow.
At present, we have not sorted through our wedding photographs, and as soon as we have an album put together, will post it online through the blog.
We would like to thank you for your support during what has been a particularly momentous year, and we look forward to being able to spend time with you in the near future.
We hope you have a fabulous festive season, and a joyful and prosperous 2010!
With loads of love and best wishes
