Our Eventful Day Trip

Yesterday we decided to drive to Warrnambool, as I'd never been there before. We wanted to get some stools for the kitchen island bench, and Id seen some likely ones in a catalogue. By the time we fed Jemima, dressed her and loaded her and Caitlin into the Pug it was 10am. And we were off. Did I mention that I was also stuffed up with a cold and hacking up half a lung each time I coughed (Caitlin has decided to share this with Mim and I).

We drove there via Condah, on some of the non-highway roads, and would have passed less than 10 cars on the whole almost-two-hour trip. Lovely golden fields of canola, cows and sheep grazing on green pasture, dog and cat with a death wish.....


Warrnambool was a shock to the system after Hamilton and Coleraine. They have traffic lights! Lots of them! And four lane Princes Highway (although half of that is actually called Raglan Pde, so it was difficult trying to find an address on Raglan Pde!). We stopped off at two shopping centres, went into a Kmart and Caitlin and Jemima became very excited to see a Hungry Jacks and Red Rooter.

So, with the purchase of my gym ball, some clothes for Caitlin, two stools and a fold up card table, we decided it was lunch time. It was a toss up between some bar/bistro and Subway. We chose Subway.

Michael was served by a young(ish) girl and the conversation soon got around to Casterton. As it transpires, Michael taught her in 2003 in Casterton, and she was now studying primary teaching! Can't take him ANYWHERE!!!

Lunch over, we went to Rays Outdoors and found me a Japara (raincoat type thing), as the girls' Japaras are very effective. Then we hit Bunnings and got some chicken wire to fence off the vegie patch, to stop Morticia using it as her own personal dumping ground. The firemen were having a display and jumping castle outside so I took Mim to look whilst Michael was paying for the wire. She ended up having her photo taken at the display.

Then it was out of Warrnambool, up to Grassmere (10 mins away) to discover the huge George Taylor shop Disposals store closed at midday, then across to Mailors Flats to have a look at the Antiques and Demolition barn. Would love to wander around that a bit more. There were some really nice antiques/collectibles and then there were the 'WTF's. For instance, the dressing table with drawers around the mirror, all covered in a red plush velvet (ewww) and the Jemima size statue of Jesus (freaky). Michael is sure the dressing table was much beloved of the brothel it came from.

I was seriously flagging by this stage, it was almost 5pm and I just wanted to shove two tampons up my nose to stop the snotflow and take some drugs to pass out, but I agreed to driving home past Port Fairy, as I'd never been there before either. We stopped off at a cafe and had a Timboon ice-cream (rather delicious) and saw the wind turbines (they have a dedicated viewing area off the road - like you can miss them anyway!!!)

From Port Fariy we headed up to Bessiebelle. It was a one lane bitumen road with dirt sides. Not a car in sight.... until we came to an overgrown "Reduce Speed" sign, and suddenly there was a car trying to come out of a driveway and another car coming in the other direction!

When we hit Bessiebelle (all two houses?), we turned left towards Heywood. And disaster struck.

The engine started making a funny noise, Michael exclaimed "Oh, shit!" and we pulled over on the 30cm bank of the road. Turns out the band that operates the aircon, the alternator and the power steering had frayed. Michael managed to cut off the frayed pieces and tried turning over the ignition. Nothing. Seems the alternator has not been charging the battery.

So we called RACV and Michael was able to let them know exactly where we were (between Pullits Rd and Bishops Rd, ironic huh) and we sat down to wait for the 50 mins. Three paddocks worth of cows came to check out what was happening. I have decided that cows are stupid and flighty creatures, sharing two braincells between a whole herd. Sheep are more intelligent, they are conniving buggers.

Of the approx. 12 cars/trucks that drove past, only two stopped to see if we needed help. One of the fellas lived just down the road, he and Michael chatted for a while, and Caitlin and Mim went into ecstacies over the working dogs on the back of the ute.

Our hero, Gavin, arrived just before the 50minute mark. It was now 7.15pm and the sun was starting to sink. He went past us, did a U-turn and then pulled in front of us with the car trailer. After a look-see, he then decided to try jump starting the battery, so his landrover and trailer went up the road and did another U-turn. The engine would not kick over, and there was a funny knocking/ticking sound, so good old Gavin did yet another U-turn and backed the trailer up again. I'm seriously impressed with his ability - the road was narrow with not much bank.

So, with thePug on the trailer behind us, we all piled into Gavin's landcruiser and headed to Heywood. There we changed cars and lovely George, 60+, partially deaf and the ability to outtalk Michael drove us the 40mins to home in his little red Datsun. He did not stop talking the whole way home, not when we almost drove over the kangaroo, not when we did drive over the rabbit (bunny-bowling). Gavin will drive the Pug into Hamilton on Monday morning for the mechanics there to fix it.

We arrived home at 10pm, with Gomez leaving bursting bladder trails to the back door in his haste to relieve himself. Mim (who'd fallen asleep in George's car) was feed a bowl of cereal for dinner and put into bed. Michael managed to concoct a dinner out of nothing (we hadn't done our shopping yet) within 20 minutes, and then Caitlin and I zombie walked to bed.

I could not fault the service we got from RACV, with Gavin and George driving us the one hour and twenty minute trip to our front door, and the car to Hamilton. It's not like we could catch public transport or a cab home!