I know you are waiting to hear more about the airplanes we have in the garden, since I wrote to Mum a couple of months ago. Well things have changed a bit since then but I had better start at the begining.
The planes do not belong to Jim. He has been babysitting them for three years for some friends who purchased them at an auction and then realised they had no place to keep them. Two have been sitting in a shed - all in bits of course. The third one, which at least had wheels, has been sitting in the garden near the drive and was always a talking point for friends making their first visit to the house. Children loved to play in it, in fact, I was always threatening to make it into a climbing frame/play area for children if no one was going to fix it up to fly! We finally decided a few months ago that they had to go, we needed the space, and the longer they sat, the more unlikely it was they would ever be repairable. So, one Saturday, all the bits came out onto the lawn, the boys came over and, like a jigsaw puzzle they all worked out exactly what went where to make three complete planes. The boys then had to decide what they wanted to do with them. Finally the one on wheels was pushed up the drive, through our gate, down the road a bit and into the neighbours. Who knows how long it will sit there, maybe until Jim offers to rebuild it after he has done the one/two he has now as a result of the negotiations!
The substitute 'hangar' has been prepared with a new floor, the body has been suspended from the ceiling (so it si easy to work on), all the other bits stored in safe places, and the internet is buzzing as Jim looks for new and spare parts.
I am very excited for the project to begin. One - it will be sooner finished if sooner started and Two - I want to fly off in our own little plane for weekends at the coast or upcountry. I love flying in the tiny planes. My cousin, Lil, and I used to go off in her family's plane years ago and my very first experience was with your Mum, with our friend James who had flown up to meet us in Lightening Ridge when we were visiting Dad at BilBil (well before they were married).
It is going to be a long project and I realise that getting Jim out of the shed to even eat is going to be a challenge. Hopefully it will all be ready by the time you come to visit next year. I have taken some photos to start and will take progress photos for you to follow the work. So to start I have a photo of my friends Gabriel and Ella playing pilots.
I hope you are enjoying reading,
Love Cath
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