Bill the Housesitter

18/11/2024

“I’ll see you when I’m looking at you.”

15/10/2024

Serious questions for my Scottish and Caledonia-adjacent friends (and by adjacent, anyone can chime in and please do).

Generally speaking, not definitely, and not stereotyping - much - who would you rather sit and shoot the s**t with over a pinte, a coffee, or a rosehip dandelion tea aperol alco-free spritzer?

Someone from:

A. Auld Leekie
B. Home of ya man the Big Yin
3. Home of the Tangerine Blonders (Dundee United)
Vier. Aberdeen, Aberdeen. Prettiest toon ah'vv evah scene (the song, no value judgement)
E. The BordererS - no not Jim Patterson, but the people of the Borders
Z. Any islanders

F - Y add your own.

Your time starts now. This is a bit of fun but also kinda serious for me.

Bill The Gypsy
Bill Quinn, Australia
Walyalup WA

25/09/2024

From our music division.

Folk On The Road – Endless Sky: A Personal, Musical Love Letter To Mparntwe – A literal life-changing experience… well, that’s a bit melodramatic, Bildo. How about it set yo…

25/09/2024

We have (probably) all been the cat and the kitten.

Today? Definitely both. Just come back from breakfast where I was mostly the kitten, but when a few people walked in, I was quite assuredly the cat.

Meow! 🐈 😻 🐈‍⬛️ 😺 🐱 😸

19/04/2024

More pics from that regular Darwin NT gig.

19/04/2024

From four years ago, at Lee Point (Darwin, NT).

Sadly, I believe the little one is no longer on the planet. 😞😢

But I looked after these two for two weeks at a time for many months.

Greetings from the Northern Territory, Australia.

19/04/2024

Readying myself to take a dip back into housesitting paired with some travel plans for 2024.

Thinking it will be a good idea to remind myself of some good experiences that not so much got me into housesitting but kept me there. Despite some tough gigs!

This morning during breakfast at the Hi-Way Inn near Daly Waters, NT.

Where I've come from, where I am, where I'm going to. 🤠🥵😃

📷 Carisa, Hi-Way Inn, Stuart Highway, Jingili land.

21/03/2024

After a couple of troubling experiences in WA in 2023 then a failure to launch with a headcase in SA who couldn't even be bothered to read one page of Ts&Cs AND failed to mention her initial dates weren't required (while I was in the $30 Uber ride en route to a meeting with her she'd forgotten about), but can you commit yourself for eight months in advance?

No, "Gwenevieve", I can't. But tell me more about your dog.

A: Very anxious, doesn't play well with others, please cross the road if you see another sentient being coming towards you.

Right, "Gwenevieve". So YOU'RE anxious, YOU need to cross the road, and YOU need to stay away from others.

And you definitely didn't read my Ts&Cs.

Goodbye, "Gwenevieve". Find another housesitter. It ain't me.

That said, I am available again in very limited areas if you've read my list of reasonable conditions. Mostly in WA and the NT. Maybe NSW. Still no charge.

Experienced, mature housesitter with loads of references

20/03/2024

I've been a trivia buff all my life, but in a "Gee, that's interesting" way, not a "No, no, you're wrong; they were the 36th state of the union, not the 37th state. You see in 1776 when the blah blah blah snooze snore" way.

When I was running trivia, my joy was vicarious. To hear laughter, see smiles, groans at my bad jokes. ("This country has an abnormally high incidence of unfortunate schmelting accidents!" - if you know, you know. Trivia In The Trams At The The Dickson Tradies.​) ​The thrill of a team when they won, the good-natured rivalry and banter.

When I was bumming around the country for all those years in the naughties, it was simple human companionship.

Now it's the fun and bantered and shared time together. $8 off my next chicken parmy is not a goal for me. Even the $33.33 from last night at Torrens Arms Hotel ​with QuizzaMe Australia ​- it's nice, but I'd have happily been relegated to second or third place and had as much fun as I did.

And after the quiz, people from the next table we'd been raggingbon and vice versa all night came over and had a beer with us, including M. who I'd subbed in twice on his bowls team at Hawthorn Hawks Bowls Club ​(SA version; sorry if that's the wrong one) about six weeks ago - but we both had to do the, "Terribly sorry, but your first name is...?" 🤔🤭🤣

Thanks, all. Especially the host with more than most, Justin McPheeber. No wait... Umhmm... see comments. 😉

05/02/2024

Yeah, well. If you never never try, you never never know.

Sorry to not connect you with those tix, Katie C. 🤷‍♂️🙄🙋‍♂️

03/02/2024

G'day to new followers.

And Katie C., I tried every channel at my disposal to contact you to give you four tix to the cricket, but you've got your comms locked down tighter than Fort Knox. 😢

Hopefully we can sort you out with a consolation prize, if you give us some way to contact you.

25/01/2024

Seems hard to believe my last housesit was less than a year ago. I had the sublime (see below) and the ridiculous in Boorloo/Walyalup, WA before heading east and now call Tarntanya, SA home. Of sorts. For now.

I've hung up my boots as a regular modus operandi, but late last year, an incredible force of nature in the form of a human introduced themself to me at a social gathering and somehow in the space of five minutes, I may have two gigs this year. Ts & Cs apply.

Starting this month, I am going to be coming and going from Tarntanya/Fleurieu at irregular intervals. I may be in your locality. (In fact, given I just travelled 8000+ KMs from Tarntanya -> Meanjin -> Boorloo/Walyalup -> Tarntanya including 4600kms driving coast to coast: I probably *was* within cooee of many of you. 🤯

Make me an offer I can't refuse. As always was and always will be, charges are $0.00 a day, 50% loading for weekends, and 136% loading for public holidays.

Subject to the most eye-watering list of reasonable demands. 😁

OR if I'm in your neck of the napes or vice versa, give me a yodel. The Milky Bars are on me.

Bill Quinn
Tarntanya, Kaurna Country

18/04/2023

After an 18 month break, I dipped a toe back into the housesitting waters in 2023, and it has not been a happy time.

So much so that I'm next month going on indefinite hiatus.

Happily, this current repeat sit in the City of Cockburn is calm and enjoyable.

No more so than when the cat takes any chance he gets, like as I was making dinner tonight, to spring onto my back and perch around my neck.

Three more weeks here then it's back to the airport.

25/02/2023

Great to have a real character of a poesje and a very co-dependent and needy hundje to take my mind of my missing mate, Ted Ted E. Quinn 🧸🐻😟😢🙍🙏🤞

13/02/2023

Well, alright.

Not planned, but very welcome.

Thanks, Ted Ted E. QuinnTed E. Quinn Quinn and Overheard Productions and other pages and groups. Reflective of some harsh times but harder work. 💪😛😜🏋️🏋️‍♀️🏋️‍♂️

www.BillTheHousesitter.com 🐅🐯

🐻🐺🐷🐶🐵🦇🐴🐫🦒🦓🦔🦁🐳🐱🐰🐮🐭🐦🐨🐩🐢🐑🐐🐏🐘🐗

09/02/2023

Reminding myself about some glory days (along with some horrific times) in 22 years and almost six months of housesitting.

A fuller than full year of housesitting from Cairns in the north down to Baulkham Hills in the south. Of all the animals I've cared for this year, these have...

20/01/2023

This week I'm making a return to housesitting after a break of July 2021 to January 2023. Elapsed time? 18 months.

To be honest, I've lost some muscle memory from www.BillTheHousesitter.com days, so it's a relief to:

1. Be a temporary pack leader for two Egyptians 🇪🇬 - one x god, one x goddess.

2. Be in a centrally-located position with short walks north and south to the wonderfully regular, frequent bus services to so many points of the compass, including short hops 🐁🐭🐀🐰🐇 to one two three and more train stations.

3. A pair of regular pack leaders who left a comprehensive set of written guidelines covering responsibilities, rôles, and boundaries.

It's a courtesy not always extended.

So the car has spent most of the six of total seven days parked out front while I've achieved much stuff, ventured out a little but nowhere as much as normally, and in the process, I've been repairing my rather broken and beaten body.

That said, the week, month to date has been marked and tinged with deep, deep sadness. In times like that, it's grand to have a space to one's own albeit with two sensational sentient companions, and a forest/floristry full of plans to tend to.

Happy Friday

W***y the Grounds Keeper
Aka Bill The Housesitter
Aka Bill Q. 🐯🐅

This is a photo of my parents when they were young, happy and in love. ❤️ Couldn't express to you how lucky I feel I was to be raised in a loving household.... The more I grew, the more I realised how fortunate I was. Especially in those vital years as a kid. I'm thankful for everything my parents instilled in me. Good manners, kindness, respect for others... Understanding... Remaining positive.. and the list goes on. 💯💯

I don't know what's next in life after we die... But I hope some how some way my parents get reunited ❤️

I miss you both very much 💔💔

Love always... Your son

25/11/2022

Updated housesitting availability for 2022/2023. Is it just me or do those dates look weird and futuristic? 😲

Available for house-sits in Fremantle and Perth from: Now to 13 January 2023 22 to 31 January 2023 15 to 28 February 2023 5 April 2023 onwards