Burn's Night

We had a very drunken time round at my mate Neil's hoose for a belated Burn's Supper. I worked with Neil at RBS on a few projects and it's great to have him in town for a while as he and his girlfriend Rhianon work their way round the world.

I had dropped off the haggis the day before and it was cooking nicely as Kath and I arrived, wine and whisky in hand. Another ex-RBSer, Ewan was there already with his wife, wrapped about a can of Tennant's Lager no less. We joined in with a Boag's.

Neil toasted the haggis with the Selkirk Grace, but nobody wanted to attempt the Ode to a Haggis... we certainly didn't know more than the first few lines, but we'll practice for next year. The cranachan for pudding must have given me the taste for whisky, because we cracked open the bottle and I took a wee dram. It's not a drink I usually go for, but seeing as it was Burn's night I thought I'd have a wee one. Or two. Or six. We managed to destroy most of Neil's bottle and all but a tiny bit of mine and everyone was suitably merry as 3:00am rolled about. I knew it was time to go when I went to the toilet and found Kath sleeping on the floor - apparently it was nice and cool.

A good night had by all, and a stinking hangover had by me all the next day.

Update from Melbourne

A big G'day to everyone from our new home here in Australia!

Before I update you on our news, I'll apologise for not letting you know before now that we are not, in fact, dead. We've had a bit of a mad time getting everything sorted, and I've let communication slip.

 

We arrived here in Melbourne on the 22nd of December during a massive downpour. That wisnae in the bloody brochure but, given that they are in the grip of a ten-year drought, I can forgive a bit of rain.

We've moved between hotels and hostels a few times since arriving, and every time has been a pain. After our four-month long road trip we really needed to get settled, and the good news is that we have finally got a flat. The rental market over here is a nightmare for tenants at the minute and the search for a property has been very frustrating. Once we learned the tricks we managed to get a twelve-month lease on a great apartment, just a short walk from the beach. No pool unfortunately, but it will do for the time being.

I have resumed my contract with Hilton which, despite some teething troubles with working remotely, is going OK. Kathleen is busy networking and gathering contacts.

It's not all been work though, and we are loving being back in Melbourne and have even been out on the VB once or twice to meet up with some old friends. We spent Christmas with Clair (Kathleen's Aussie pal she met in Canada); had a good old fashioned Scottish pissup with Neil (who I used to work with in RBS) and his missus, Rhianon; met up with our Aussie truck buddies Shaun and Belinda; and went on a late night beer and vodka bender with Clair and her boyfriend Mark. Despite our new pals, we are both missing everyone terribly. It's another reason we haven't been in touch yet - as soon as the trip was over and we landed in Australia the homesickness set in with a vengeance. Once we get a bit more settled, we will be on the phone, webcam, facebook, messenger and e-mail more than we ever were back home.

Just so you know, this blog will be the main place for our updates, photies will probably be on faceboook, and Kathleen is getting her own exciting blog at http://thenippysweetie.blogspot.com. Nothing on it at the minute, so don't go rushing there just yet.

 

We'll be in touch soon!
Your favourite Aussie bawbags, Thomas & Kathleen.