Updated:

12.15 PM

Extremely hot. Debilitating.

Showered at Moruya sth side spot, then it hit. Too hot to sit around so decided to drive to Batemans Bay to the post office box, get some electricity into the batteries constantly struggling with the fridge, and now sitting under the bridge in the shade and merciful breeze.

After today, two more days forecast worse. Heat plus jammed-in bad public behaviour, crowds and cars and holiday hungriness everywhere equals my nightmare.

Too tired to paint- woke at 3 AM something, and just trying to get through the day.

4.10 PM

Unbelievably hot. Sugars plummeted dangerously, sensor alarm going berserk. After lunch, too, as though lunch didn’t register.

Bought a new kettle in the Bay.

Long way then to Broulee pharmacy for Galvumet.

The obnoxious girls who turned up last night and from whom I had to move away, arseholes, are still at Waldrens. Saw them going past, to the bay. Saw them when back, and I kept going past, to Moruya.

Imagine, obnoxious selfish idiots stuck in the sun, inside a van, in a barren rest area alllllllll day. Fuck that. Stay right away.

So I’m cooking dinner at Riverside Park, stopped in the shade on the road because all the grassy shade is taken up with similar heat refugees. Listening to my fridge not coping, at all.

These heatwaves are horrific and frightening. The landscape hurts. I hurt for the landscape.

Can’t think straight. Half dead. Sweaty and sticky and oppressed.

6.35 PM

Appallingly hot. Not feeling well. Sedan pulled up behind, could be a noise problem. It might be their radio going. Can’t handle noise as well as heat. Yay, they’re leaving. Phew.

But the spot is open. And it’s the “best” one left.

And bastard. It wasn’t their radio. Fuck.

8.15 PM

Noise from new van tourists, young and in a bubble.

Had a wash down, lovely, but immediately hot again.

In bed. Fly screen over the sliding door, pulled out of storage. Fridge stop start can’t operate properly in hot environment.

Anyway, bring on the mongrel night. Two more days aftet it.

Can’t wait to fall unconscious ie sleep, if I can.

No one behind me, in the spot, yet.

9 15 PM

Bored myself tired with a crap tv show. It is intolerably hot. People unsettled here and there. Will try to sleep.

The prick and company was noisy obnoxious, but quieted at 9PM. Late 4WDers talked loudly but shut down in unison.

Prick and Co made up for it earlier this morning. So much for birdsong and ambient nature. Rotten to have to hear the blunt loud drone of the bore.

But it wasn’t too bad. Feeling very hemmed in. Have to shift away from prickhead so might shower in Narooma (prick is likely to interrupt me after sticking his nose in the van) and try for another spot later. We’ll see how things unravel. Might be able to slip down a spot instead.

So now 9.20AM. Woke at 5AM, late, so it wasn’t too bad at all.

Waldrens Swamp And No Pests Yet

2.15PM. No one, in fact. Terrific surprise. Enjoying it while I can.

I’ve parked in the snippet of shade, which happens to be the spot The Pests Of Waldrens Swamp regard as “theirs”. I’ve been parking here for years, long before the curse of their discovering the place.

Maybe they are back home in Canberra and I can rest out the heatwave for the next three or four days.

I thought about staying in Bodalla State Forest but with everyone jammed in, and the prick-that ugly Australian selfishness-I just drove on past, after a Narooma shower.

3.30 PM

Yep. Idiot bullseye. I’m the only vehicle on this side of the rest area road. A van toddles in, sure enough, comes up behind me – and keeps on coming.

A bloke probably my age and demanding wife get out, up goes the top. I hear every word they say outside and inside the van.

It’s a stupidity phenomenon.

I start the car and move to a reasonable distance. They don’t match eye contact.

I can still hear them, though, just her voice droning on forcefully.

6 PM

Had to move. A pair of loud laughing cocoon-brains unbearable to be around, lost selfishly in noisy phone shit.

But am I now far enough away?

Next spot is in the truck section if they keep it up.

Equally nasty thing is heat from forced closed windows to block out the selfish brainless arseholes’ noise.

6.24 AM.

Neat slow sunup of heavy mist and isolation. Been good to me, this hilltop rest area. Haven’t had to deal with noise ir people parking too close, but one (who moved).

No idea how Moruya is faring from visitors. Not looking forward to it.

But it’s Monday after Christmas and New Years, now mercifully past, and with it hopefully goes the worst. Sad as always to see a tormentor go. I so easily and deeply relate.

Enjoying fog and coffee and all NYT commentary options closed. Peace.

8.40 AM

Packed up and now down at Quaama Dry Creek (low) stop. Filled up water bottles in case, scrub the face, and now leaving Quaama altogether.

Aiming for a shower at Narooma.

Arrived Bodalla SF

11.05 AM

Boiling a coffee. Long Narooma shower, then groceries, Narooma packed, Wild Fin is out but C’s car not parked. Then here.

Acutely aware this and Moruya won’t be as easy or wonderful as Quaama hilltop. Travellers everywhere. Could get cramped out and expect I will.

Anyway, I have a spot with a table to paint on.

6.25 PM

A prick turned up. Could tell by him inviting himself to the table where I was privately reading and looking into my can twice. Cantankerous self-righteous fuck. He blocked out a potential neighbour by putting redundant solar panels on the ground – in rain and a thunderstorm.

So the lovely couple who arrived are on an angle. Then he invited another huge van onto his spot and is talking loudly.

Prick. Going to be here a while too, by the look of his set up.

The entire rest area is packed out now, people drinking and set up with florid decorations.

I think I’ll be okay tonight, but it’s nothing like my isolated beautifully-lonely hilltop.

Then this week Wed Thurs Fri is deadly heatwave. I detest summer holidays. Good luck to everyone else though.

As I write, the caravan on the other side has fired up TV or music with noisy talking and a beat. You have to be joking!!!!

Fucking hell.

(I’m using earplugs for the news. Aren’t I the idiot.)

7.25 PM

Now a 4WD has driven offroad and parked nearby. This was also the only view I had but now they both block that slither and can look in.

I’m surrounded 320 degrees by vehicles.

This place is nasty. The rationale is that if there’s a patch of ground it can be taken, no matter that it’s adjacent to someone else.

People who get here late, instead of preparing and getting early, push in and destroy the amenity of those like me who do the right thing. They simply have a fuck you I’m selfish attitude and barge in, usually noisy too in setting up.

As for the prick. He’s into the beers and talking loudly to his little, organised social club.

I knew it would be bad here.

Seconds ago, using "night" mode on the camera.

The shots of the rest area are actually taken in the dark. In others, barely light from predawn with the moon receding behind mist shrouded mountains.

I noticed this morning a couple of other vans had stopped over. Lovely foggy, warery morning. A real joy to see and feel it unfold from the night.

UPDATE 7.35 AM

Just went outside to get these shots of wonderful persisting fog and got assaulted by a hundred voracious flies.

UPDATE 12 NOON

Thunderstorm brewing. Here at Quaama low site having painted all morning. A bloke prior to that stuck his stickybeak head in the window to see if I was alright Sure. He lives up the road and my being at hilltop day after day spun out his little head. Lives with his wife, who’s been doing watercolours all her life, won Quaama awards or some such (birds), on their daughter’s property.

“It’s not normal, ” the daughter told him so, on his way for the daily paper at Quaama store, he stuck his head in.

Nice enough, and had a lot to say about neighbours.

A few people have called in to the toilets, and the highway is very busy. Nonstop.

It’ll be good to leave here after tonight. Been a very good escape. Not at all looking forward to Waldren’s Swamp rest area, mainly because of the jamming up close and, particularly, the Pests of Waldrens Swamp. Daniel and Jarnie. Guaranteed to disturb, and act like it’s theirs and not the community’s. Smug selfishness. Horrible.

As soon as I can (Bluetti hold up) I’ll get up on the tablelands.

2.15 PM

Gone up to hilltop. The storm has passed. Going to just chill and enjoy the spot, leaving tomorrow. Bit weary from painting earlier.

The updated works from today. Still a long way to go on some.