2020 Newsletter
 
We have traditionally commenced our tax year with a newsletter to all clients, advising contact details but, more importantly, including our travelogue over the years.
 
The last few years have seen significant changes to our method of operation. The Rowville office was sold and the entire practice changed to a "mail-in" service, using our ever-reliable P O Box 450, Mt Martha 3934. (Some even email their information.) This gives us much more flexibility to meet our workload as well as having time to travel. This successful formula has kept us alive, alert and refreshed for the last 20 years and given us many memorable journeys, both around Australia and overseas. 2019 was another great celebratory year - cruising around the Hawaiian islands, then off to the Taj Mahal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.This followed our own Golden Anniversary in 2018 sailing around the Fijian Islands and a great visit to the champagne houses of Tasmania. 
 
All of this in between 3 or 4 visits per year to family on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Although living amongst dozens of wineries, our pursuit of good food and wine has also taken us to Margaret River, Barossa, Coonawarra, Mudgee, McLaren Vale, Langhorne Creek, Avoca, Heathcote, Yarra Valley and even the granite belt of Southern Queensland.
 
We look back in awe at the journeys we have enjoyed - China, Russia, France, including a "fete-de-vin" in Bordeaux, a barge trip on the Midi Canal, cruising New Caledonia & Vanuatu, New Zealand, Vietnam, Thailand, South America including Macchu Pichu, South Africa, Bali, Ko Samui, Tahiti, Morea, Samoa, Canada, Alaska, Hawaii, Fiji, India, Sri Lanka & Maldives . 
2020 unfortunately saw an end to our travels, not only due to COVID 19, but at the end of 2019 my bride of 51 years suffered a stroke whilst visiting Sunshine Coast. Fortunately, Sunshine University Hospital has a specialist stroke ward and rehab unit, and she was treated by the best possible team. She worked hard on her rehab and regained reasonable mobility and independence fairly quickly. However, there remains some impairment to sight and short term memory, so she can't drive, shop or cook. Also, her arthritis medications had to be curtailed as it clashed with the stroke medicine, so her movement is difficult.   And so I have added full-time carer to my list of duties, which has made my production of tax returns a little slower than usual, so I beg your patience.
Even with all this, we still manage to fit in our important tax work whilst enjoying the lifestyle of the Mornington Peninsula - magic!