Two weeks have fled the calendar: two weeks in which I seem to have accomplished very little. I find myself discombobulated (is it possible to be combobulated, do you think?) and strangely unwilling to knuckle down to tasks that need doing; an after-effect, I expect, of having spent five months away. There is a mess of papers on the kitchen table that glowers at me when I walk by, so I avert my gaze. Now and then I feel guilty, so I shuffle the components around a bit and divide them into piles, but they keep telling me that's not what's needed. I refuse to acknowledge that they really do have to have Things done to them, so the papers and I are engaged in a Mexican standoff.

When I arrived home, I found several books waiting to be reviewed, largely from Hachette Livre who have recently set up shop in Australia under the Orbit banner. Two of them found homes with other reviewers, and I have just uploaded one of the others, which I reviewed myself. It is Feast of Souls by Celia Friedman, an excellent tale of magic and despair. Now I'm reading Dr Whom (subtitled "ET shoots and leaves"!) by A.R.R.R. Roberts. You will gather from the title that it is a spoof on all things speculative and many things linguistic:-) I should be able to get the review on line sometime this week.

At the same time, I have also been at least a bit active on the Family History front. I received lots of new information from cousins old and new while I was travelling and there were also several requests for information clogging up my inbox on my return. I think I've dealt with most of those now and am a fair way through entering the new info into my data base. I currently have a collection of 21,877 relations, most of them dead. I keep telling myself "Enough, already!" but then someone will send me a new and intriguing line to investigate and I'm off again. It's awful, loving lots of things. I've never been able to give up any of my favourite activities, with the inevitable result that I've become a jack-of-all-trades. I long to get back to my writing, but it will have to wait until I've finished entering the rest of the Dead Rellies. And, of course, dealing with that ominous paperwork:-(

Five months ago almost to the day, I set off on a great adventure. I met many friends and rellies, new and old, and saw so many historical and scenic places that my mind is quite boggled. Two new favourite cathedrals, Winchester and Canterbury, have been added to my collection (tick, tick, - ye gods and little fishes, I've turned into a tourist!) and I've fulfilled a long-held ambition to tread where my ancestors trod in Staffordshire and Yorkshire. The Rhine and its magic will live forever in my heart, and the dizzying contrasts of Luxembourg have also created lasting memories. And the time I spent in Perth, Western Australia, recently was a precious bonus, thanks to Sandra and Ashlea who gave me the chance to house-sit for them. Am I not the most fortunate of little fat old ladies?

However, it seems that it is now time for me to settle down in Mount Gambier. I do so with not a little kicking and screaming, mind you, for part of me will always call Perth home, but I think the heavens are pointing out to me that my future lies here. First, I thought I had another house-sit in Perth lined up - for three months! Joy oh joy... but the joy turned to ashes when the owner returned unexpectedly. Then, just as I was packing for the airport, I had a phone call from Homeswest, the public housing authority in Western Australia, to ask if I wanted a refurbished flat in Subiaco. I could have wept a river, believe me, since when I found myself homeless I had to borrow the money to move to Mount Gambier. There is no way in the world I can afford to move back to Perth. That was really painful - if only they'd had a place to offer me this time last year!

While in Perth I was able to attend meetings of my face-to-face writing group and to catch up with several friends from the Katharine Susannah Prichard Writers Centre. I also went to a couple of meetings of the Society of Editors and one with the Shakespeare Club of WA. It's sad to think that I won't be able to do any of those things in the future. Nevertheless, there are some things I can do even from the wilds of country South Australia, like my work as Reviews Editor for The Specusphere. I've recently uploaded no fewer than eight new reviews, two of which I wrote myself - see links at left. (Others were kindly submitted by Edwina Harvey, Donna Maree Hanson and Bobbi Sinha-Morey.) I can also stay in touch with writing buddies and exchange crits by e-mail. And there's always the phone, and Skype, and texting - no, my friends in Perth and elsewhere have not heard the last of me!

And I can submit works for publication by e-mail. In fact, I have a piece in a new poetry anthology, The Weighing of the Heart, edited by Roland Leach, Shane McCauley and Donna Ward, with an introduction by John Kinsela. I'm in extraordinarily good company, with people such as Kevin Gillam, Mardi May and Ross Bolleter, among others, being represented. There are some very fine poems in the antho. Mine is the only conventional one, being a sonnet, but if you like modern poetry you will love this book. New Editions in Fremantle has it, or you can order it from the publisher, Sunline Press in Cottesloe, Western Australia. They can be found at http://www.sunlinepress.com.au/sunline/

Enough procrastinating. I really must get back to sorting out the mess I've made with unpacking!

I've had a wonderful few weeks in Perth. I've caught up with many old friends and had some great yarns over coffee. It's so good to be with like-minded people who like to discuss matters of mutual interest in some depth. Being with fellow writers has inspired me to get on with the Trilogy. I'm nearly 40,000ww into the new book one and have had useful critiques from several writerly friends.

Through a family history site, I've also met a new cousin for the first time. Andrew is my second cousin, being descended from Emanuel and Martha FLAVELL who married in Dudley, England, in 1873. Andrew's family immigrated in 1958 on the Stratheden, the same ship my lot arrived on in 1952! His had the sense to get off in Perth, however, and have stayed in WA ever since. I had a lovely coffee-chat with Andrew and his wife and his dad, too, last weekend. His dad, now in his eighties, remembers my father and grandfather as well as Manny and Martha in person! How strange that we've lived in Perth so long without knowing each other! However, we intend to swap family photos and stay in touch now. Family history is a super hobby as you meet such nice people:-)

Did I mention this is the best place in the world to live? It's just such a darned shame that property prices have gone up so much that many low-income people such as aged pensioners (like me) can't afford to live here any more. We are moving to the country in droves, apparently, and with a one bedroom flat in Perth likely to cost you over $200pw there's small wonder. I'm feeling around for more house-sitting so I can stay in Perth a while longer or come back next year! If nothing turns up now I fly out on Wednesday 11 July:-( A bright spot: son Scott is back after five weeks in the States and I'm looking forward to spending time with family over the weekend.

Happy Fourth of July to all my Stateside friends!