Steven Klotzback, Brant Wagner and Marjorie Neset did not have a January 5 ^th this year. How is that possible? I understand about the International Date Line and all that. And that somehow the missing hours aren’t actually missing. But, I am telling you, we did not experience that day!  How can you not have a day of your life? ‘What did you do on January 5^th ?’ ‘Well, I didn’t have January 5^th this year!’ So all of the good we intended to do on that day will be shifted to January 18^th when we travel the opposite direction for 15 hours and still arrive at about the same time we departed and haven’t wasted any time being selfish or cranky.

Are not date lines and time zones and meridians and latitudes and longitudes—imaginary lines and missing days and Atlantis and black holes fantastic inventions?

 Steven and Brant, my grandson and his best friend, delightful, smart, witty, kind and handsome young men—and my companions on this trip down under (Steven’s 16^th birthday and high school graduation present a couple of years late) are in love with their first big semi-independent (I am here for the occasional check-in only) trip to foreign lands. Brant has only been to Mexico and, while Steven has been to the Philippines twice, it was as a young kid with mom and dad only steps away so this is a big deal. This trip to Australia and New Zealand is all planned and programmed by them and since they’re both friendly and laid-back it is an easy going adventure.

Into Brisbane yesterday morning with only one small hitch between LAX and our Australian hotel. We had to throw away our stash of uneaten Costco cinnamon rolls before going through border control. Now honestly, what ingredient among all that dough and frosting and cinnamon and sugar could have infected their crops?

I am apparently having an attack of something like pleurisy (as in I can’t really breathe!) so did not see much of Brisbane. What I did see reminded me of what a small placid Houston might be like more than a California coast town. This morning we took the Gold Coast train down here to SURFERS’ PARADISE.

SP is a high-rise beach town, a slightly dowdy Miami Beach with a little of that lovely beach town tackiness of Pacific Beach thrown in. Steven and Brant tell me the water is warm and the waves are high but they are having some trouble figuring out how to rent a decent board for at least a day of surfing. The available rentals are not up to fussy California surfer dude standards and the price to purchase one second hand and sell it back is beyond poor California surfer dude budgets so I am not sure what they will finally do.

Our rooms at the VIBE Hotel are pleasant…overlooking the ocean…supposed to be rainy and stormy tomorrow which the guys seem okay with because there is roaming about town and skate boarding and swimming and movies and games and each other’s company and life is good. Of course I would be more than thrilled with a day of rain in which I can write and read and overlook crashing waves and drink coffee and contemplate my naval. As long as the guys remain happy which they show no sign of stopping all is well.

Tomorrow I will search out and find Vegemite no matter the weather or the state of my health.

Now we are going to have a room picnic while the guys get on line to search for surfboard rentals. $66 to have internet while here so needless to say we only have it in one room.  G ‘day then Mates.