Anywhere's Better Than Here...

There will be many in today's world who'd much sooner be anyplace other than where they are but they won't have the freedom of choice this young traveling man has.
I'm thinking of those seeking political asylum and have ended up in grotesque refugee camps. The casualties of Iraq, Syria, Palestine and other war zones. The survivors of Cyclone Pam. The too many people on death row somewhere, or those incarcerated for crimes they are innocent of. Victims of family violence, political prisoners. Those behind bars for daring to speak their truths. They would give their all to be standing in this man's shoes and be able to go.
Anywhere...

Rex And Colleen's Very Unusual Get Away From It All 4WD Little Home on Wheels...

You'd be forgiven if at first glance you thought this very unusually shaped vehicle was an amphibious one. But it's not.
It is 4WD though and because Rex and Colleen like to get away from it all, this Series 2A Landrover Forward Control all aluminum vehicle allows them that freedom. The freedom of choice to fish and enjoy some of the most remote areas of this beautiful country.
When I first met them, Rex was thinking of selling the wonderful little getaway home on wheels they've had for about thirty years but I suggested he saw a psychiatrist and just got on with living. After all, I said to him, who in their right mind would give up such a perfect mode of go anywhere transport. When I last heard from him, the medication had kicked in and he wasn't going to sell it for all the tea in China.
Good on you Rex. I wonder just how much tea is there in China...

Jimmy's Got Plenty Of Nothing. He's A Lucky Man...

I met up with Jimmy Randell a few days ago at Reids Farm near Taupo.
Jimmy's a lucky man. Having plenty of nothing.
You know how the song goes. I've got plenty of nothing and nothing's plenty for me...
All Jimmy possesses is a horse called Angel, a tiny tent he calls home and now, a little book called How To Live Well On A Small Income that he keeps in his back pocket.
Everything he needs and nothing he doesn't.
Jimmy delights in owning so little, he's aware the less he has the freer he is and here's a man who revels in his freedom.
Apart from looking after his horse, having nothing means he doesn't have to maintain it, clean it, fix it, lend it, insure it, spend his precious time going to work to earn the money to buy it.
Jimmy's a lucky man.
He's got plenty of nothing...

You Get What You Pay For...

The best things in life are free,
but what happens when free enterprise
meets free enterprise.
You get what you pay for, or don't pay for.
The freedom of choice.
Consider yourself hugged.
From me. For free...
 

The Joys Of Peace And Freedom Of Choice...

I realise how fortunate I am, how lucky to be freedom camping at Tokerau Beach in New Zealand's Far North.
As I've said before, it's one of the most beautiful places on the planet.
We've just recently enjoyed the winter solstice and a period of short days and long nights.
There's been the usual storm or two but as you can see, there's been calm, sunny,
summer-like days too.
No matter the weather, nature's beauty nourishes my soul and provides a buffer and a stark contrast to the storms of man's inhumanity to man that prevails in much of this so called civilized world.
Where others are protesting to pursue their own preferred way's of life, peace and freedom of choice...

Another Gypsy...

Another of the beautiful housetrucks
we are so fortunate to have
enhancing our roads in New Zealand.
This one travels with the Gypsy Faire...