Oh no, not again!

Where are we … ? We are in Hervey Bay. As the crow flies, it’s 1.5 hours north of Gympie.

What were we thinking?

Image by Alexas_Fotos, via Pixabay.

We have very, very short memories! What were we thinking? A year ago I recall blogging about the midges and how prolific they are in this area. Well, when we arrived, we got out of the car to greet the homeowners and sat on their patio chatting – unprotected. That was enough for AJ to be eaten alive! I had a denim on with a long-sleeve shirt, fortunately. However, he was in shorts and open sandals. Once the homeowners left, he needed to park the van in the backyard and level it. It was late afternoon. Too late we remembered to spray insect repellent.

From that day, for 10 days he lived in pure hell. I don't think there was a spot on his arms and legs that was not bitten/stung/attacked! The first three days he was quite ill from the reaction. Nothing, but nothing removed the itch. Several trips to the pharmacy resulted in zero relief! He reacted adversely to each and every bite, clearly allergic to the peskies. 

Image by Pete from Pixabay

A strong antihistamine helped a little, but he needed to teach, and it can make him drowsy. He is now terrified of putting his nose out of the door and who could blame him? Somehow, he still gets a new bite now and then, probably when he goes (5 steps away) to the van to fetch something or to throw rubbish in the bins. You reason that if you go quickly, you should be safe. Seemingly not! Mornings, evenings, all day long! They are savage. Otherwise, they're finding their way into the house too. 😫

A midge is the tiniest of tiniest insects. In America, they are called “no-see-ums”! That says it all. Unless you’re wearing white, you don’t see them. And the bite only begins to itch up to 24 hours afterwards. No fun! So yes, what were we thinking, in agreeing to come back here!?! 🥴

After a few days, he began walking with me in the mornings to get exercise. The suburb we are in is a wetland, next to a creek – paradise for midges.

Like a man from the snowy regions, AJ is completely closed up with only his nose and mouth exposed. 😆 Fortunately, it’s still cool in the mornings. Other than that, unless we go to the beach where there seem to be no midges, he does not go out. Cabin fever has set in, with one week to go before we leave. We cannot wait to be back in our van and to flee this place.

I have not been spared either. Watering the garden is my task. I spray tropical strength commercial insect repellent on myself along with my mix of natural essences. (Probably not a good idea to mix the two, but I’m desperate.) Trust me, they still find a spot to bite. When they do, it stays itchy for about 3 days. 😣

There hasn’t been much sightseeing. A couple of visits to the beachfront were a treat though … the area is beautiful. We love early morning walks along the Esplanade. We visited the Urangan Pier one Friday afternoon, for fish and chips in the park. But it was a cold, windy day, so we didn't tackle the walk out over the ocean.

Views from the Esplanade.

Hervey Bay is known as a retirement hub. Many old folk live in the area in over-fifties-lifestyle villages. However, it is increasingly becoming more popular with tourists, and the Esplanade will soon change to accommodate a 20+ story high rise for apartments and a hotel. Not all the locals are happy about it. It will become a hot spot, not unlike Coloundra on the Sunshine Coast, where we housesat a few months ago.

This is Hervey Bay at present …

Journey to Hervey Bay 

The journey to Hervey Bay was interesting. But first, some news … just before we left Tandur our permanent visas were granted. We received the visas via email on 28 September, but we only saw the email 2 days later. 😅😆 Funny how something you wait for, for almost 6 and a half years, can be such an anti-climax. We are extremely thankful and humbled to be here on a legitimate visa. But, that said, with all the political upheaval in this country, don’t for one minute think that we are in a better place than you, no matter where you are reading this from. Indeed, if the ‘Voice to Parliament’ referendum of a few days ago had passed, we would’ve found ourselves in an increasingly Marxist, socialist-run country. Don’t be deceived – it had nothing to do with Aboriginals and improving their representation in society. 

[As an aside, this country is not racist ... but the recent referendum has opened many wounds and pitted the Yes camp and the No camp against each other in an ugly way over the past year. The ideological leftist agenda is causing Australia to change. In Queensland last week, very quietly, the Queensland government passed a law banning the public display of hate symbols. The law was passed, without actually stipulating WHICH symbols are banned. Someone merely needs to be offended by something. We all tend to think of the Swastika or the Hamas flag, or something as hateful. Did you know that, to some, the Christian cross that you wear around your neck is a hate symbol? Christmas symbols are also increasingly under attack.]

Anyhow, back to 30 September … we left the Adorables (dogs) behind in Tandur with a little sadness, because we have come to love them so much. They are so much fun! 😄 

With two nights to spare before we were to begin this housesitting, we drove halfway and stopped at Tiaro where there is a free camp for caravanners. This was only the 2^nd ‘free’ camp we have stayed at. Essentially a large car park for vehicles with caravans.  

It was quite the experience. Never have we had neighbours that close! 😁 We set up, had lunch, and later took a walk through the town to the old historic Railway Hotel from the early 1900s, where we had a cool drink each. 

Walking back, in the late afternoon was lovely with many birds in the trees around us. The idea of free camps, mostly council-run, is that they would draw caravan nomads to the towns to stay for the night, thereby encouraging them to spend a dollar or ten in the local hotel pub (& restaurant), café, bakery, butcher, grocery store, etc. This helps to keep the small towns alive.

Maryborough showgrounds

From Tiaro, we left for Maryborough, which was only a 20-minute drive up the Bruce Highway. We were booked to stay at the Showgrounds campground. A large site, with many vans, but so far apart that you’re not really aware of your neighbours. Unless of course, somebody’s awning puts on a display with a racket to go with it! As we were setting up, we heard an almighty thump, and about 100 metres away was this campervan. The awning had been pulled out but not secured to the ground. It had a washing line hanging from it with a shirt, a towel and an item of ladies’ underwear, fully on display. 😆

The next minute, it took off, the washing waving in the wind like a banner, it bent over backwards, hit the roof, where it lay until the wind picked it up and put it back down again across the side of the van, looking much worse for wear. All bent and out of shape. 🤦‍♀️😬 Turned out that the van belonged to a senior citizen, travelling alone. Several people rushed to assist once she arrived back at her van. The nomad community is always helpful and supportive.😀  Bless her, perhaps she had thought that it wasn’t that windy, so no need to fasten down the awning. Always a huge mistake. Awnings are not cheap.

There were tons of caravans with horse boxes everywhere as there was a show jumping event taking place at the showgrounds. That reminds me... upon our arrival at the venue, we followed some directions from the campsite App on how to enter the site and find the area for caravans. Well, we got it horribly, embarrassingly, wrong. 🤦‍♀️ We arrived with caravan in tow and found ourselves at a dead end, right in front of the stadium without batting an eyelid. 🤣🥴🤭 There was no way out without making a huge U-turn in front of said stadium, while onlookers were trying to see what was happening in the show ring. Oops! Epic fail.

Anyhow, the next day, hoping no one would recognise us, we decided to walk around and watch some jumping. 😅 Horses are amazing creatures. So powerful. So majestic. 

A mural painted on a wall in the showgrounds.

It made me think of a Bible verse where God challenges Job(?) with some facts …

“Have you given the horse its strength or clothed its neck with a flowing mane?

Did you give it the ability to leap like a locust? Its majestic snorting is terrifying!

It paws the earth and rejoices in its strength when it charges out to battle.

It laughs at fear and is unafraid. It does not run from the sword.

The arrows rattle against it, and the spear and javelin flash.

It paws the ground fiercely and rushes forward into battle when the ram’s horn blows.

It snorts at the sound of the horn. It senses the battle in the distance. It quivers at the captain’s commands and the noise of battle."  Job 39 v 19 - 25

And of Psalm 147 where the writer notes that …

He [God] takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse or in human might.

No, the LORD’s delight is in those who fear him, those who put their hope in his unfailing love.

 This same God notes that putting our trust in horses and chariots is futile …

Some trust in chariots and some in horses,

But we will remember and trust in the name of the LORD our God. Psalm 20 v 7

“Well”, you might say, “that one no longer applies”!

I’d argue that today’s ‘horses and chariots’ are our bank balances, our medical insurance, our homes, our friend circles, our vehicles, and our social media reputations. Any others come to mind? Every time we climb into our vehicle to tow our van, I am reminded to trust in the name of the Lord our God and not in the roadworthiness of our vehicles, or the skill of my beloved husband. Every morning when we rise with yet another ache or pain, or stiff joint, we are reminded to trust in the Lord our God. Every time we feel our bellies churn with butterflies at what lies ahead for us in the next ten years of supposed mandatory financial ‘self-sufficiency’, we are reminded to put our trust in the Lord our God. He shall provide all our needs.

Yep, the horses and their blowing nostrils, their strength and courage, had me thinking. 

But to get back to our travels … the following day we left Maryborough and arrived in Hervey Bay, AKA midge hell.

AJ just managed to fit the van into the back yard.

It's a lovely, meticulous home. No pets to care for. Just the garden. In cloudy weather, however, the house tends to be gloomy because of the midge screens in front of the doors and windows. And there have been too many cloudy days, which also favour the midges – they hate strong sunlight. To pass the days, AJ preps for courses, then teaches. I do some planning work on the computer. When not working, we keep ourselves entertained watching news and videos on YouTube.  We recently watched a full hour of Andre Rieu in Bahrain. What a pleasant experience. It reminded us of Doha, especially the song near the end sung by the Arab guest artist. Just lovely.

Next week, when we leave here, we are planning to head back to Maryborough for a few nights. There is much to see there and we have not had a chance to explore that area yet.  After that, God willing, we are heading west for a week to explore another part of Queensland in and around a town called Biggendon, before we head back to Gympie for the next few months.

Until next time, stay well, stay safe. Blessings, and thanks, again, for stopping by.

Sandy and AJ 🌼

Just a final note:

At a time such as this, we pray for peace in Israel. I would like to bring Psalm 2 to you …

Why are the nations so angry?

Why do they waste their time with futile plans?

The kings of the earth prepare for battle;

the rulers plot together

against the LORD and against his anointed one.

“Let us break their chains,” they cry,

“and free ourselves from slavery to God.”

But the one who rules in heaven laughs.

The Lord scoffs at them.

Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury.

For the Lord declares, “I have placed my chosen king on the throne

in Jerusalem, on my holy mountain.”

The king proclaims the LORD’s decree:

“The LORD said to me, ‘You are my son.

Today I have become your Father.

Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance,

the whole earth as your possession.

You will break them with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots.’”

Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth!

Serve the LORD with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling.

Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry,

and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities—

for his anger flares up in an instant.

But what joy for all who take refuge in him!

 We pray for peace in Israel. 🙏