Camping Cousins, April 11, 2011

Before the last visitors (Family Fly-by-Nighters) had even cleared the horizon my favourite cousin's wagon train had hauled into view.  With wife, two children, mother-in-law and piano, yes, I say it again, PIANO! MFC had made the long, winding trip over the mountains from Oklahoma, I mean Hornsby.

Where do I start with how fantastic these visitors are.  For starters, they don't actually stay.  MFC has a train carriage on a large block of land at the back of my place.  Secondly, they do great fires, great dinners, great company, great intellectual chat and great drinking of vino around said fire.  And if all mothers-in-law were this lovely and interesting more people would probably be married.

MFC's partner is - like MFC - an ambulance officer.  The AO regaled us with tales of death and rescue, mainly involving children and swimming pools.  I was stunned to be told that 1 child drowns every week in an Australian swimming pool. Understandably the AO is so perturbed about this that she has very definite ideas about the dangers of (a) having a swimming pool, (b) keeping it fenced (fences are just as bad in some cases because they increase complacency and (c) poor supervision.  Mind you, as I listened to these very well-put arguments, the two kids are wandering around the large bonfire in the dark tripping over sticks and being blinded by smoke and grabbing for the tale of The Dog, who - as has been explained before here - gets a little snappy with proximity issues.  The AO didn't seem as concerned about Death by Fire, Dog or Sticks so much as Death By Pool.  Which is fair enough if you've spent the last 6 months vainly trying to save drowned kids.

But to top off their list of fabulous attributes... they bequethed me the piano!

Now, this is a lendy not a keepy.  In the Cattle Baroness's family certain terms have a provenance that gives them legal status.  Lendy-Not-A-Keepy means at any time the original owner can reinstate his or her ownership of said item and remove it.  Although the effort getting it off the trailer and into its current position suggests MFC isn't going to be in a hurry to haul it out again.

So as the wagon train headed back east two nights later, The Dog and I were left sadly contemplating the blackened coals of the dead fire...

... and happily practising Pachelbel's Canon in D.

the new piano!

The next visit of MFC, the AO and their entourage is eagerly anticipated.  If 'cousins' are rated in the 'family' section these guys could give the Fly-By-Nighters a run for their money.