28 January, 2026 05:31

First coffee in the shopping centre empty parking lot. Why not.

Worst sleep since living in the van. Awake at 12.40 AM.

6.10 AM

Lifesaver. Found a toilet. Bega I think is extraordinarily bad regarding public toilets and I knew staying here would be a problem. I went up to the shopping centre doors, aching but locked. Then happened to fluke upon a clean modern amenity.

That’s one homeless daily task sorted.

Terrible night. Truck sounding vehicle crawled past and woke me up. It stopped 60m away and turned off its lights. But that was it. Very uncomfortable aboutbeing in that spot, and anxious about my life in general per usual. Mostly I hope my life is nearing the end and I think a lot about dying and death.

Skull is still sore. Not good.

Having coffee number two beside a pond (Bega: the pond) and listening to raucous birds.

I am going to need some sleep today, and find a new place for tonight.

Curse on the Quaama Stalker. Fuck you.

9.30 AM

Very hot in the van already. Temperatures don’t cool until Monday, apparently. Heatwave persisting at Nimmitabel Cooma until then. Have to be careful here. No idea what to do now, today, tomorrow.

I’d get through a few days if the Quaama Creep stalker left me alone. I feel like telling the General Store, but in that weird place anything could blow up.

Note to self: do not presume people are thoughtful and decent. Not on hot, emitive topics. You can hit the dark lode real quick.

3.40 PM

Pulled ip in the same corridor of trees as last night, but farther back, towards the oval, because some camper got my old spot up nearer the causeway.

I’ll try another night here, and probably the early bolt if I don’t get the boot or fined before then.

Turned out a pretty superb day. I got some shade in the parks beside the river bank, which though hot was acceptable enough to just lay down and close the eyes. Might’ve slept a bit but was rejuvenated well.

Then I read a plaque and discovered this part of the river is the junction of Bega and Broga Rivers. So I swam right where the waters met!!

Very shallow, a couple of feet deepest, but clear (that’s not mud in the pics) fresh and fast running. So I lay on my back and scraped the bum along gravel and spun in the current and cooled right off.

And…it is stunning. A very typical Australian bush, tree and river creek scene. Paintings everywhere I looked.

It’s important I have these simple experiences in the landscape, because I realized today the people are only going to let me down if I’m hanging experiential value on them. I needed to mentally send the Quaama Stalker bastard into perspective.

So it’ll end well if I can sleep undisturbed. That’s a day I didn’t spend $25 on petrol and wear the car, too, which is important to me. I have to get a better handle on it.

Poor fridge struggling all day. Heatwave everywhere but once the breeze came up it was bearable, and it’s a shocker up top (Nimmitabel) and elsewhere.

BROGO & BEGA RIVERS JUNCTURE

The exact place.

Where I ‘swam’.