While travelling I usually stop once or twice a day to check emails from clients and, of course, I choose stopovers with a view. And, in Tasmania that often means an ocean panorama.

Above is the very pretty Pirates Bay lookout near Eaglehawk Neck, and below is a very low tide at the beach at the southern end of Dunalley.

Both turn a potential chore into a pleasure.

Missing bits for the solar installation, including the four new AGM batteries have finally arrived and been fitted.

The inverter and charger are wired up in the boot, the Morningstar solar charger is installed and showing all is well with the battery bank fully charged.

Only trouble is the existing 12v wiring seems to have decided to do things its own way and when you switch on the pump the kitchen light comes on!

Have left the bus overnight so they can get an early start. As usual, it has taken nearly double the time they initially indicated. Luckily the labour was costed into the quote.

About eight years ago I was in a minor dispute with the Tax Office and they requested bank statements for the previous five years.

Not a problem I tell the accountant, they’re in a box in the basement storeroom and I’ll send them to you by the end of the month.

It was not to be. A wild storm, a blocked drain, and the storeroom was flooded. By the time I realised what had happened, about three days later, the documents were a solid brick of sodden paper.

Many phone calls later, the bank finally delivered the needed records, at a price — a big price. Only consolation the ATO agreed with our figures in the end.

I imagined travelling with seven years of business records and started feeling a bit depressed. Then sometime last year I got this from my bank:

Smart Statements You can now choose to view, download and save up to the last 7 years of your statements online free of charge. View your statements online 24/7 within NAB Internet Banking by selecting “account info” then “View statements”.

Good timing for my travels. My paper files gets lighter by the day.

Now I’ve got to find a way to lighten my load of books.