GRATITUDE

@AlwaysMyself 🫵🏼 You’re going. Definitely on my stowaways list.

I get by with the Romantic languages. Enough to order beer 🍺 or coffee Italian, Spanish, French - basically all the same language. A bit of Greek.

@ENKELI ’s Finno-Ugric languages and North Germanic - I haven’t a clue.

Horses: Dun coats 🧥 Norwegian Fjord horses. Hella strong 💪🏼

@ENKELI I took the wrong antihistamine last night 😳 know wonder I was sanding wood at 2am 😵‍💫

Oh no! Are you in the % of people who get hyperawake/active from specific antihistamines that normally make people really drowsy @Glisten ?

I shouldn't laugh, but I am. But I hope it wore off and you were able to sleep in today to make up for it!!!

@AlwaysMyself I have ADHD-ADD, the condition has a lot of sensory sensitivity.

I have been referred to as a “(Miner’s) Canary” of anything chemically and or naturally toxic.

I have a highly tuned physiology. But my entire family has the same sensitivity.

I should have taken half an antihistamine that begins with P.

But I took my chances with a new generation antihistamine.

Oh well trial and error.

Oohhh interesting @Glisten! I guess you have to try it once to see though eh.

I know some people respond hyperactive to one that starts with P. Which is also one I was told to use as a late teen to help with insomnia as needed occasionally lol. Thankfully I do not get hyperactive from it lol.

@AlwaysMyself tell me about your horse riding adventures.

Do you have any hobbies?

Do you like sports?

Are you a gardener?

Do you like cooking?

Pets?

@Glisten i have only done horse riding through touristy settings. One was a trail ride through Blackheath in the Blue Mountains - very lovely one that was! I remember the horse liked to be sneaky and try to eat anything it could 🤣🤭 so it was my job to make sure I held the reigns short enough that he couldn't reach the grass.

Im not a sporty person, generally. I dont do gardening myself, but can appreciate some plants. I outsource my gardening to my green-thumb mother 😆. I particularly like my lillies and my 12yo gerbera plant.

I like trying out new sweet recipes and how to adapt them, but I find it too physically tiring and too much cleaning up. 😔

I am often occupied by my pets and could talk for almost forever about animals lol. I have 2 dogs (feet of one has been posted and should appear in my pics list on my profile). There are some links to similar-looking dogs on the Sane Tour De Aus! thread if you are interested. 😊

Do you have pets at all @Glisten ? Or just plans to kidnap MM while stalking @ENKELI ? 😆😋

@Glisten I have absolutely no idea what his malfunction is. I am hoping it's not the dimensions as bro and I call it. His mum had it and we think his sister has too.

He has always been a selfish SOB but people who don't know him well think he is wonderful. Ever since stepmonster carked he's been even more miserable, despite him complaining about the woman constantly as soon as she popped her clogs he was whining about how he nothing to live for anymore. I replied "oh so your 4 kids mean nothing to you? Nice."
He claims my emails went into his archive folder. I was emailing and texting him regularly but the final straw for me was when he didn't even have the decency to thank me for his birthday present. So I told him that if he can't be bothered with me to grow a set and tell me.

Then a few days ago he texts my brother and asked for my phone number. Which he already has. He then went on to say I'd better pull my finger out if I wanted his service medals as he hasn't mentioned them in his will. The moron gave me his medals about 8 years ago.

I could rant on forever but I won't bore you any longer!

When we have finished our trip to Lapland and Canada, I want to take you to San Diego, which is Perths' sister city. It's a lot like Freo. It was my favourite city in Cali.

Anywhere else we should travel to? I've done North America, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. I wouldn't mind seeing NZ as well.

@AlwaysMyself oh I am pretty sure @Glisten would return MM after one night. He likes to launch himself onto me and demand his Kitty Krack and doesn't care it's 0200 in the morning.

Horse riding through Blackheath would have been beautiful! My father lived in Blackheath for a time until stepmonster made him move elsewhere. The photos he sent me were beautiful.

I haven't been on a horse in ages sadly. I used to go riding as a teen whenever I visited my relatives in Geraldton. One of my rellies had horses and I'd go riding with my cousins.

The last time I went riding was when I was in Canada and we did a trail ride in Alberta. It was freezing and wet even though it was summer but I loved it anyway.

Here is HRH Mr Murdermittens pretending to be cute -

@ENKELI I reckon MM would love being boss over my 2 dogs 😆. Make them steal the Kitty Krack from the bench top 🤣.

MM looks very snuggly and cute 😊. False sense of safety - if you dont give him what he wants he'll dig the claws in lol.

Sorry about your father ☹️. Families can be so stressful sometimes. Sounds like "dimensions" (lol, love it) is a real possibility with the family history. Sorry his behaviours have been getting less appreciative of you and your efforts. 😣 I wonder if it could be related to if he is not coping since the passing of your 'step-monster'? (Doesn't excuse it though! Just in terms of "its not a reflection on/of YOU!)

I haven't been to NZ yet. Id like to. 🙂

I guess overseas travel is a "hobby" of mine. Its what i save up for and gives me the "goal" to work towards. I've been to a number of places, but never any of the America's. I'll join for that too ☺️.

I highly recommend (safe parts) of Africa for wildlife and interesting culture - although ive only been to 3 countries there so I cant say for all of it.

Okay @Glisten, @AlwaysMyself is coming with us on our travels! I would love to visit Africa. I have a friend who travels there frequently and whenever she shares her photos I get envious. I have an appreciation of the big animals and if I had the means I would definitely go over and volunteer my time with an organisation dedicated to saving the elephants and rhinos.

So you will be our tour guide for Africa, I can do North America and Tomaatti, what country do you want?

A bit of background on my dad - my parents split when I was about 4 or 5. He couldn't keep it in his pants and decided that the latest woman was the love of his life so he dumped mum, my brother and I. We had just moved from Melbourne to Canberra and mum knew no one. Her parents ended up coming over and driving us back to WA, specifically Geraldton where they lived. I had no contact with father for several years, he married his affair and had 3 kids with her. I got to meet my half siblings in my teens and I got on really well with their mum. I am forever grateful to her for opening her arms to me. Naturally he cheated on her as well, divorced her and has bad mouthed her ever since even though he was the A-hole not her.
He got engaged a couple of times but they didn't work out and then he married the last one, stepmonster. She was an awful, nasty manipulative b*tch who set out to destroy me by planting lies in my fathers' head (despite only having met me twice). They nearly succeeded in destroying me but as I got older I forgave dad and moved on. Several years passed and father decided he wanted to get in touch with me. I allowed him to email me but was wary. We had a really good relationship for many years and when stepmonster had a stroke a couple of years back I was going to travel to NSW and become his carer. He suffers from PTSD as he served in Vietnam and had a breakdown so was unable to work. He is on total permanent disability and stepmonster was his carer.
I was packing my bags and getting quotes on how much it would cost to get my car transported over when he changed his mind and told me to wait as he had been admitted to hospital. He was in the MH ward for just over a month and was not able to go home because stepmonster was in hospital after having another stroke (the cow just wouldn't take the hint and cark it!). During this time his stepdaughter took it upon herself to sell their house and kept 2 thirds of the proceeds, leaving dad with a third. I tried to get him to fight it but he wouldn't.

Finally stepmonster got the hint and shuffled off her mortal coil, again leaving everything to her daughter and dad got nothing. Again I told him I would come over and help fight it but by this stage he had lost the will to live himself and was just a morose pain in my neck. Despite having 4 kids, of which 2 loved him very much, he said he had nothing to live for.

Since stepmonsters' demise he has been up and down, complaining about how he is on oxygen 24/7 due to being exposed to toxic chemicals in 'Nam. He had a wonderful couple of friends who bent over backwards for him and I got to know them. The sad thing is that I speak to them more than I do the old man nowadays. He ghosted them despite them doing practically everything for him. He hasn't been in touch with me in over 2 months aside from sending a couple of emails with jokes. I didn't feel special, he sent it to my brother and cousin as well. He didn't acknowledge whether he received his birthday present and when I confirmed that he'd received it at the nursing home he still didn't thank me.

I feel nothing for him now and given the pain and torment he put me through for over 25 years I am fine with that. He was never much of a father even to his 3 kids who lived in the same city as him. When my stepbrother passed away he didn't even contribute to the funeral. I am supposed to be organising his funeral and he's told me what he wants but I have no idea whether I will actually be called upon to make the arrangements! His loss really.

So that is my darling father story!

Sorry this is so long, as most people on Sane know I can prattle on for ages!

Where have you travelled to? And aside from Africa are there any other countries you would recommend?