And we are back! We know you have all missed your weekly fix of OC Life, but you will find our little magazine in all the usual places every Thursday until next Christmas.

I hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year. My own plans for a relaxing/productive holiday were thrown awry by a slippery patch of tile on Christmas evening, which resulted in a fall and a visit to the emergency department on Boxing Day, where a broken leg was confirmed, then back the following day for surgery. I do not recommend the experience to any of you, but these things happen. It is more annoying than anything else and a little frustrating not being able to tackle my list of jobs around the house as I had intended, but I guess they will have to wait a few weeks longer.

We understand it is a big weekend ahead for our local bowlers, with Orange Tenpin Bowl hosting the NSW Country Championships and Masters. Organisers have been thrilled by the response to the tournament, which has attracted entries well above previous years. A change in the scheduled start of the 2026 Pro season in the US means Orange’s own world champion bowler, Jason Belmonte, will be competing in the local event. It should be a top weekend for fans of the sport.

It’s Australia Day on Monday, which means our office will be closed for the public holiday. As we go to print on Tuesday afternoon, we will require you to get in touch with us with any advertising enquiries and other requests before the close of business on Friday.

I hope you enjoy a relaxing long weekend. I know I will be putting my feet up as I don’t have much of a choice about it!