Early this year, an issue arose in which the actions of other indiviuals put me in hot water through no fault of my own. Simple matter i would have thought, ring the police, they enforce the law and life goes on.
No. "That's not something we want to get involved in".
So perhaps the Office of Fair Trading?
No. "We can send a letter asking for an explanation, but we have no other power".
So it looked like legal action was necessary, which would mean Legal Aid as LDR Inc. is not exactly flush with coin.
No. The case could ONLY be heard by the Supreme Court, and Legal Aid is not available for that.
So I had to prepare and file a case in the Supreme Court myself, and then represent myself in front of a rather unwelcoming judge. That was after having to sit there and listen to details of child sexual abuse allegations in the case before mine.
The case was adjourned and the lawyer hired by the other side immediately set to work on arranging an out of court settlement, the confidentiality clause contained therein being the reason for the vague language I'm using. In the end it was resolved to a sufficient degree.
The problem was that the above few paragraphs took EIGHT MONTHS to unfold, with enormous, debilitating pressure on me the whole time from the threat of baseless police charges and potential financial ruin. By the end of it all my mental and physical health was completely shot to pieces, though I am now recovering pretty well.
With that horrendous saga, issues with work, and the goats and house rebuild, it will come as no surprise to learn that there has been virtually no riding all year. To be specific, just 626kms, with absolutely nothing between the end of January and early July. My withering leg muscles meant my back started crapping out again, which made things even more fun.
Although I was worried that all that would make me bitter, I have still retained my optimism, so now time to report on the good things that have happened.
Winnie has grown so much this year, and she is becoming a fascinating little girl, with her dad's adventurous spirit and predilection for bouncing off things (and a little of Mrs LDR's fiery temper!)
My ventures on Yami (which proved extremely beneficial to my health in the later part of the year) culminated in a camping trip on Noosa North Shore, and finally succeeding in traversing the length of Borgan Road near Baiyambora Gorge.
And best of all, after nearly 4 years we have finally moved out to the farm just 3 days before Christmas! It's still far from finished, with no TV, phone or internet yet, but it's still a huge improvement over living in Coolum.
Another huge development in the dying moments of the year was finally finding a buyer for the goats. I've been searching high and low for the last 3 years for a processor, butcher, anyone who wanted a regular supply of goats to no avail, only for a processor to just appear on our doorstep out of the blue and announce they are happy to take as many as we can turn off, and at an excellent price to boot. With that one crucial event, the goats have gone from being one of my biggest mistakes, to a reliable and predictable source of income (though not a large income yet).
So that was 2016. Next year I'm hoping to get some proper miles on the bike, spend more time with my lovely family, and have my goats breed like rabbits. Fingers Crossed!
Fair Winds,
LDR.