Far out. You wander off for 5 minutes....(oh ok, a coupla days)...and the whole world changes completely.

Hello folks. The board looks heaps busy.

Great to see OldPro here, sharing and flying the flag of success. Have enjoyed reading back over your triumphs and am impressed by your willingness to give sobriety a real good go. So glad you are here.

Heart dropped when I read about the young guy, his carer and the annuerism. You can trust I have whacked a whole heap of belief in behind those prayers too.

Have had a busy day out in the world. Dragged the bike out and went wandering this arvo, collecting pics for some local history stuff I've been putting together. Called in on my mate who is still sober and doing well. He scared the daylights out of me when I first arrived though, as the door was swinging open, all his vehicles were parked in and there was absolutely no sign of him or his dog. I figured if he'd gone anywhere beyond view he would have taken his quad. I did a lap of the house yards and scanned the closest paddocks, then took a trip through his house (holding my breath)...just plain scared I was going to find him in trouble. (Either drunk or that his ticker had given up ticking). I had myself convinced an ambo must have come out and picked him up when I couldn't find him anywhere. I had just about made it back to his gate (2km driveway) when he came bouncing around the corner on an old tractor he'd spent the last week restoring...proud as punch and cheering triumphantly. He'd seen my bike come in from across the hill! It is great to see people enjoying life sober, achieving things they would never have even bothered to try doing when they were drinking. Very precious stuff.

Came home when my daughter phoned me saying a friend had come home with her from school. Little did I know what was ahead of me. The little girl rang her Mum three times to get picked up and I spoke with her Mum the last time...she lives about 15k's away with one right turn. She kept saying she didn't know how to get here, which I thought was a bit odd, but I was late milking so just told her where we were and went to milk. The little one comes out to watch and tells me her Mum is drunk and that's the problem. Oh...

I say I will drive her home instead, and explain its not a great idea to get into cars with drunk drivers. She says its ok, that her mum drives like that all the time and has only ever had one accident with her in the car....(rolled backwards down a hill into another driver). No, no she says...it'll be fine. She'll be here soon. I'm bottling the milk and see her car lights down at the bottom gate. They don't move, so I tell the little one Mum must be here and doesn't look like she's coming up to the house, so the girls and I will walk her down. We all prepare to go down. Next minute the car comes flying up the hill.

My oldest daughter goes out to open the top gate and within seconds another girl (who lives down the road) has come flying through my door shaking and crying uncontrollably begging me not to make her go back in that car. She's standing there in a T'shirt and her knickers and bawling uncontrollably. What the...?

Turns out the little ones mother has stopped down the road and told one of our neighbours, she has no #$%@%$ idea where her kid is, so this ones Dad has suggested his daugher travel down and show her where we live. Only problem was Dad didn't realise how blind she was. The poor kid was part of a noisy swerving and speeding trip down the road, punctuated by lots of colourful frustration alongside beer swigging and swaying. The poor kid was a wreck. I say don't worry I'll drive you home.

I go out to see if the little one's ok, and her Mum had no idea what was happening. Tripping over her feet, totally confused, telling me she has no idea what is wrong with that kid...assures me she drove fine, and is fine to drive. Says she is a single mum and has another 4 year old at home and would do nothing to hurt kids. Asks me what the kids problem is. Insists the girl come out and tell her what is wrong. The girl comes to my house gate and tells her straight (through tears) "I am not going back in that car with you. No way." Woman trys to comfort her and she looks like she has just seen the grim reaper... I say Whooo. Just let her be and I'll drive her home. No problem. The other little girl keeps trying to get her Mum in the car and then she starts crying, and I tell her her daughter is getting very upset, it might be best to just leave the other one be. So then the Mum starts crying! 

A 14 year old passenger offers to drive the car. I'm standing there wondering if I have actually fallen asleep and this is one of those weird nightmares I have sometimes, that remind me why I joined AA in the first place... Mum suddenly rallies up and decides there is something wrong with the freaky kid, and she is perfectly fine to drive her own car thankyou very much! And off they go.

What a sad, sad world we all came from, huh?

I take the other girl home and her Mum is standing outside worrying. Dad comes out ropable and says he's going down there tomorrow, and I explain that she was that plastered she really had no idea she had done anything wrong. He says she will know tomorrow morning when he gives her a serve.

I felt nothing but sorry for every one of them. Especially the little one, who was trying so very hard to keep it all together, making excuses for her Mum, suggesting everything was ok when it clearly wasn't...trying to cover it up and avoid dramas. When it was all over, my youngest said to me, "You like her, don't you Mum?" (referring to the little girl). I said I am worried about her travelling home in that car, thinking it is ok. Now I understand why I always see her roaming about on her own in town, and she always says she is staying at other peoples places.

My kid says to me, "Yeah, she's a nice person though. It's funny how some kids have to learn stuff on their own and you wonder how they do. I think she'll turn out ok. You did."

I just looked at her....and decided I needed a meeting.

So here I am.

Glad you're all here.