Mud and Stuff

 Lindsey and I went to the Zoo Drive market on Saturday morning. It was cool and grey but not actually wet. Underfoot, however, it was extremely muddy. My black shoes ended up a kind of mottled brown and black and they weren't really suitable for struggling round a muddy paddock. Not that it its a paddock, but it was definitely muddy. Next time I might look out my walking shoes and see if they still fit!!

I took the opportunity on Saturday afternoon to wander round to the reserve/building site and see what they've been doing.  Among other things they seem to have been putting in the foundations of a road And creating even more mud than there was at Zoo Drive!):

It's not a very long wander, just down the driveway and then back up along the path on the other side of the fence leading to the tiny little woodland over the back fence:

That's our place, from the back

We were supposed to be going to Macedon on Sunday to have lunch with Chris and John and Irene and Gillie. Alas, Jim refused his pre-breakfast cup of tea, refused breakfast, and went back to bed. And there he stayed pretty much all day. I didn't feel that I could leave him to his own devices while I pottered off for a leisurely lunch. Fortunately, Chris and John have friends who live locally who were more than willing to ride to the rescue and eat our share of cauliflower soup, salmon and steamed pudding. 

I slept in the spare room on Sunday night so as not to disturb Jim. I have to say that the spare bed, which once upon a long time ago was Emily's and which came to us from a garage or a shed when we moved into Tani #1, is very comfortable. If I didn't sleep as well as I might have done it was partly because I was sleeping on the "wrong" side of the bed. I dropped onto the side closest to the door, which is where Jim would usually sleep and it just felt wrong.  The cats didn't care.  They curled up around me and slept the night away. It's a nice bedroom. We should holiday in there from time to time :-)

Jim woke up fine and dandy on Monday morning. Next time I'll get in a Jim-sitter and leave him behind!

I have finally assembled the new clothes line:

It wasn't as simple as the box said it would be, although it became easier as I worked out what was going on.

Whiskey doesn't mind the puddles, damp and coolth of the courtyard. He enjoys it out there.

Brandy also goes out, but he very much prefers the dry and the warmth of the house

It was Austin and then Tatsuki's birthdays on Friday and Sunday. They seemed to have a good time celebrating. I showed Brandy to Tatsuki when I was speaking to him one Sunday and he declared Brandy to be "very scary".  Brandy isn't scary, he's the smallest, fluffiest, softest cat in the whole world. Not in the least bit scary!

And so we reach the mid-point of the year. It seems to be galloping by, although I was looking at my photos for this year yesterday and they all seem to be of sunrises and sunsets, cats, dogs and trees. My calendars for 2022 are going to be very dull unless I find some more interesting things to portray! I must look for interesting things to do in the second half of the year.

Skies

This morning, from the car park at Hill House:

 

Last night, also from Hill House, but looking the other way:

And yesterday morning, from the bottom of our driveway at Tani:

I wandered, lonely ...

Weekend

It remained wet, chilly and foggy for most of Saturday. There were no local markets but Lindsey and I went out to the mushroom farm and to the farmgate shop inn Elaine. We also went to Petstock, where we had attempted to buy cat and dog supplies on Thursday, only to be thwarted when the major banks' electronic presences abruptly disappeared. No electronic payments possible. Fortunately on Saturday all was well and Rupert, Hugo, Brandy and Whiskey are nicely stocked up again.

Sunday was an entirely different story. Sunny, bright, still, not too cold. A lovely, bright blue sky. I was reminded how very lovely the front rooms of our house are when the morning sun is shining. The spare bedroom has a lovely view from the bed. Our bedroom also has quite a nice view but not from the bed. which runs parallel to the windows. There isn't anywhere else to put it. If you placed it so you could see out while reclining in the cosiness of the pillows, you would block off the wardrobes!

The sun was shining beautifully yesterday morning.

Our room.
The red car out the front isn't ours.
Lindsey had just arrived in Ian's car

The spare room, resplendent in
the morning light

We haven't been to the Talbot market since January of last year. For most of 2020 and parts of this year it was in abeyance. When it has been on, it hasn't been convenient to go. Yesterday, however, Lindsey and I were both free for an outing. Jim was persuaded to come along. Ian was in Melbourne for the weekend so wasn't available. The weather was beautiful. So off we went.

Jim was a bit worried about walking all around the market which, you may remember, takes over pretty much all of Talbot. But we took his walker and Talbot is mostly flat and the market is along the roads so navigation was relatively easy. I think he quite enjoyed his morning out. Lindsey and I very much enjoyed our first visit to a country market for well over a year. We must go to more now that we can.

The market was as busy as you would expect on such a lovely day. I'm not sure so many people would have gone had the weather been like Saturday's offering!

Lindsey is ahead in the colourful coat

Jim using the walker with determination -
avoiding small dogs and darting children 😁

We thought about having lunch out but decided that the various restrictions and density limits might make it hard to find somewhere where we could just walk in. So we all came back to Tani and had a steak and mushroom pie that I had bought at the mushroom farm.

I still haven't constructed the new washing line. I really should. The fixed washing line is along the back wall, which is the only place you could sensibly put it. Alas, that wall gets very little direct sunshine at any time of year and certainly not in the winter. I put the clothes horse out yesterday before we went out and it worked well.  Yesterday! On other days it doesn't work so well. It is quite light and blows over when it is windy. The new clothes line is free standing so can follow the sun - and is much sturdier. I might give constructing it a go this morning.

It took me ages yesterday afternoon to work out how to put the blade into the small hedge trimmer I've got, only to discover that it is entirely ineffective against agapanthus leaves. So I trimmed a small shrub along the front fence. And made a start on cutting back the dead flowers on the massive bank of agapanthus which sits along the front fence, using garden shears instead.  I also cut back the agapanthus which are trying to take over the front wall where the letter boxes are. I haven't finished either endeavour. My green bin is now full. Fortunately, it is due to be emptied on Wednesday. I'll try and get the rest of the tidying up done after that. And I have every intention of finding out how much it will cost to get someone with a small digging machine to come and dig them all out.  I hate agapanthus in large quantities. They are quite pretty when in flower but for the rest of the year they are a complete waste of space, in my view. I could be growing edible things along the fence.  Or Australian natives. Or even a proper hedge.

So Sunday was quite a busy day, all things considered.

At EXACTLY 7am yesterday morning, a giant blue dragon appeared in the site over the front fence, with blazing eyes and a huge roar.  It startled the cats and more than attracted my attention.

I assume that council regulations or perhaps state requirements mean that construction work can't start before 7am and I understand that workers should be allowed to work during permitted times. But this was very close to local houses and it was nowhere near sunrise. It's not so bad when they are in the middle of the site, but right up by the fence was pushing it a bit, I think. These photos were taken a little after the dragon had arrived when it was starting to get light:

It was properly daylight by the time the trucks turned up to take the piles of soil away:

As it happens, it didn't disturb me. I had been up for a couple of hours and was pottering around anyway. I'm glad I didn't have small children, though.

We were up looking after Rupert and Hugo for most of yesterday. I think they were happy to have us there:

Jim and Rupert watching TV in the morning

Hugo and me watching TV in the late afternoon

Brandy was also pleased when I got home early in the evening. So was Whiskey but he was pleased from a distance:

Jim has had his final (I hope!) visit to the dental technician and now has a full set of teeth. I'm hoping that once the teeth settle in we can eat something other than soft food. We had (homemade) fish and chips last night and I have chicken for tonight but I am thinking something a bit more challenging for tomorrow. I have some lamb backstrap in the freezer. We might attempt that.

I put in a Diggers seed and plant order a week or so ago. Seed potatoes and asparagus crowns. Broad bean seeds. Member's pot luck seeds. And what I thought were 2 rhubarb crowns. Instead what I got was two packets of rhubarb seeds!!!  I've never grown rhubarb from seed and if both packets all germinate I'm going to have an enormous farm of rhubarb. I'll certainly try the seeds, since I've got them. But I might get some crowns as well, to be on the safe side.  Lindsey wants some rhubarb for Hill House. She may be getting more than she had bargained for 😂

It's wet, foggy and gloomy this morning. I hope it dries up a bit. I would quite like to get out into the garden later today. Although I do have a clothes line and two small wooden boxes to assemble. I could usefully do those if the weather doesn't improve.

Wind and Rain

 My goodness but it's been windy and wet recently.  My rain gauge measured nearly 40 ml in 48 hours, which doesn't sound much but is quite a jump from the 4 or 5 we usually get on noticeably wet days.

The wind blew and blew and blew and the trees danced and danced and danced. On Wednesday and Thursday my phone sounded the emergency alarm again and again and again, warning of trees being down in the local area, varied every now and then with warnings of river floods.

It was dark on Wednesday and Friday when I went to and from work. I didn't go out on Thursday. So it was only yesterday when I was out in daylight that I saw the chaos the wind and trees had caused. There is a large tree resting on a shed in Warrenheip. There are trees snoozing by the side of the road along Yankee Flat Road. There were chopped up bits of tree by the side of the Zoo Drive market. There is tree rubble all over the place.  Fortunately, no tree rubble at our place!

Lots of people lost power. Ours only went off for a few minutes.  Long enough to mean I had to reset clocks and things but not long enough to cause real inconvenience. Parts of the state have proper flooding to contend with; fortunately no significant flooding in the Ballarat area. But it was all very dramatic while it lasted. Now we just have grey, damp, gloomy weather - which I quite enjoyed while we were pottering around in the market yesterday morning. I don't mind gentle winter weather.  During winter :D

We went to the market earlier than we usually do and had no trouble parking. We must go early in future! There were enough people to make it feel busy but not so many that it felt crowded. The market stall holders from Melbourne were largely not there, but everyone else was - including Tim's Toasties.  Lindsey and I often share a cheese toastie. Yesterday we shared a Philly steak toastie. It was very delicious. I could easily have eaten Lindsey's half as well as my own, except she might well have objected.  Loudly!

And now Jim and I are in Mount Martha. Melbourne is still under more covid restrictions than Regional Victoria and no visitors are allowed in people's homes (we can have 2 per day). However, care giving remains an allowed reason for doing things and we are caring for Stella. Doesn't do to leave her on her own all day on Sunday. We had crumbed chicken pieces with roast potatoes and peas and beans for dinner last night. She and Jim have had their usual kippers for Sunday breakfast and we are planning seafood pies for lunch. I'll also sort out food for this coming week for her and organise a few things before heading back home this afternoon. The traffic yesterday was quite light for a Saturday afternoon, and especially for the Saturday of a long weekend.  I am hoping for equally light traffic on the way back.

It's Tabitha's birthday today. We spoke to her yesterday evening. They are slowly emerging from covid restrictions and have just come back from a week camping in Cornwall. They can go out today for birthday celebrations - so they will :D And we get the long weekend in celebration of her birth. 

Usually, I take photos from our front door or front porch, looking across the fence to the reserve / building site, or looking down the driveway.

Late yesterday afternoon, I was walking back up from the front of the driveway. The mail boxes are set in a small wall at the bottom of the driveway and I had been down to check if there was any post.  I wasn't expecting any but if I don't check regularly, the snails eat whatever arrives in the mail box. As I walked back up the driveway I noticed how beautiful the tree over the fence was looking.  It's a glorious tree which I assume is safe from developers if only because it is on council land and also because it is a magnificent, old, native tree which I assume you can't just chop down because you feel like it

Isn't it beautiful?

Speaking of the reserve / building site - I mentioned a few days ago that the builders had put in a road on the other side and then disappeared, never to be seen again. I obviously have greater Summoning powers than I thought because they turned up again on Friday with a big, blue digger. They are digging something with great enthusiasm.

I haven't yet washed any more windows.  When I have been here with the time to do it, it's been raining.

The Farmgate shop has been jollifying its car park.  Lindsey thought this might amuse my grandchildren.  I thought it might amuse you:

It was very, very windy overnight and it rained a lot. The guava tree got blown over, although it is only in a small pot.  I must pot it properly into the large pot I bought for it. It's just getting light now. I should probably go and see what else got blown around overnight

Not-Locked-Down Weekend

Lockdowns might very well be frustrating or boring but it does mean that pretty much everyone stays at home. If it is necessary for you to go out for one of the lawful reasons, there aren't many people out and about.

On Friday, regional Victoria was no longer in lockdown. And people had definitely emerged from their hibernation, just as we emerged from ours.  

I persuaded Jim to accompany me to Bunnings. We went to the one just outside of town, rather than to Delacombe. This may have been a mistake, from Jim's point of view. It is further for him to walk to get from the car to the store entrance, and he is struggling to walk at the moment. And it was really quite busy. Nevertheless, he managed to get into the store and to make his way around to the various places I wanted to go. We had gone for a new compost bin and for a new washing line. The existing, fixed washing line at our place is probably in the only place it could sensibly go, but it is also in the place that gets the least sunshine, regardless of the time of year. I wanted a portable washing line, but not a clothes horse or airer. 

And we found what I wanted.  It wasn't heavy but it was very long. So long, in fact, that it only JUST fitted into Ziggy. A few centimetres longer and I would have had to leave it at the service desk and come back the following day with Lindsey's (longer) car.  The compost bin fitted with no trouble at all.

We came back via Officeworks, which was also. very busy. Jim waited in the car while I did some shopping for the surgery. And then we decided that everything was really far too busy and went home.

The Saturday market had been cancelled early on in the lockdown. I don't know what effect that had on the numbers of people heading to the mushroom farm, or to the Elaine Farmgate shop, but both of them were very busy. It was busy in Dan Murphy's. It was very busy in Woolworths. It was a bit busy in Petstock.  The roads were busy. I spent Saturday afternoon and all of Sunday in the peace and quiet of my not busy house.

I used up various odds bits and pieces that were hanging around in the fridge and freezer and made these:

Three cheese and bacon rolls, made with scraps of pastry; 
a feta, tomato and mushroom tart, using puff pastry;
a blackberry and cherry tart, using shortcrust pastry

I pre-prepared loads of vegetables, which are now in boxes in the fridge, ready for me to choose from when making dinner. I made a potato and parsnip soup for Jim and a chicken and vegetable soup for me. I trashed the kitchen multiple times and tidied it up again.  I caught up on a bit of TV and read bits of my library books. It was a good weekend.

Once upon a time, many, many, many years ago, I bought Jim a red jumper. He was very fond of that jumper and wore it pretty much all the time during jumper weather. We took it to England with us last year but by then it was beginning to look very sorry for itself and was slowly starting to come apart. When we retreated back to Australia when Covid hit we decided to leave it behind. It didn't seem worth hauling it all the way back across the globe only to have to throw it away shortly thereafter.

Jim missed his jumper. Every now and then he would forget that we had left it behind and would go looking for it. I kept an eye out in the shops to see if I could find anything similar to replace it. I bought him red cardigan from Kathmandu, which he likes a lot. I bought him a red cardigan from Uniqlo, which he doesn''t like at all because it has a hood and he isn't a big fan of hoods apart from on outside jackets (so I wear it because I do like it and I am not bothered about hoods). Then last week I found the replacement jumper in Aldi. Jim is very, very pleased!  It's not exactly the same but it is close enough.

Jim, wearing the original, much lamented red jumper on his birthday in 2017:

And here, wearing the new one yesterday, but with apple juice in his glass rather than beer:

It's not a bad replacement.

Lockdown Thursday

Yesterday marked the end of the original seven day lockdown across Victoria. It's been extended in Greater Melbourne for another seven days but was eased a little in Regional Victoria from midnight. We are still under some restrictions (no visitors at home, for example) but at least the requirement to stay at home unless absolutely necessary has been lifted. 

So a quiet, peaceful day at home on the last day of lockdown for us. The district nurse came to help Jim shower.  An occupational therapist rang to discuss coming to do a home safety assessment. I did a few useful things around the house. And FINALLY, I got around to washing the windows along the front of the house.

We've lived in this house since November 2018 and have not washed the windows on the front of the house in that time - apart from the narrow window by the front door which gets wiped down every now and then. This has partly been because of the (perceived) difficulty of getting to them. Shrubs and garden beds in front of some of the windows made getting to them a bit daunting. The large fly screens were also a bit off putting. 

However, we dug up the garden bed outside our bedroom windows when we first bought the house. There is absolutely no impediment to accessing the spare bedroom window. The lounge room windows didn't seem all that hard to get to. And all the windows were distinctly mud spattered when the sun shines on them.

So I made myself take down the fly screens yesterday, after the district nurse had gone. I washed the windows inside and out. I dried them with a soft cloth. Then I realised that I couldn't get the fly screens back on! I can do the ones along the side and the back of the house but the front ones are bigger and were being very stubborn. But I knew that they could go back on. The people in units 1 and 2 often take them off and put them back. I went and had a look at the fly screens on unit 2. And realised that I was seriously over complicating things.  The screens didn't need to be slotted back into grooves.  They slide in and are then clipped into place.  Took 2 seconds each!  I must remember for next time. And really should wash the windows slightly more often than every two and a half years. They're lovely and clear now.

I might do the windows on the side of the house today, if it doesn't rain.

Lockdown Wednesday

One of the advantages to a fairly strict lockdown is the lockdown traffic. Not as light as it was during the long, long lockdown of 2020 and without the excitement of the threatening side-of-the-road billboards exhorting you to Go Home, Get Tested, Stop the Spread. But much lighter than the usual Wednesday traffic. It was a very pleasant drive to work.

I went in to work because on Wednesdays there are only three receptionists available. If one should happen to be away for whatever reason there are only two. We have been running flu vaccination clinics on Wednesday afternoons; now we are running very popular covid vaccination clinics.The covid clinics are more complicated to run, for a variety of reasons. Even when there are no vaccination clinics, the days are hectic when there are only 2 receptionists.  Add the covid clinic into the mix and there is bedlam. I can't possibly argue that my presence is essential on Fridays. but I think it could be argued that it is on Wednesdays. So in I went.

Every person I saw yesterday morning said something to the effect of: "What are you doing here? I thought you were working from home today!"  Lindsey had told everyone that I would be staying away so I could be their "clean" receptionist should the Sneaky Pathogen breach the surgery's defences and send staff into isolation. Lindsey had told everyone - except me!

As it happened, it was just as well I was there. Mostly we are doing telehealth during the lockdown, which means far fewer people physically in the clinic but does mean lots and lots and lots of phone calls. Plus we had the covid clinic in the afternoon as well as the phone calls. I don't think it would have been a pleasant day had there been only two receptionists.

And, I got to go on an adventure at lunchtime. We have new locks on all the doors and needed new keys for the staff. I got to go to the locksmith in Bell Street to get them cut. Not in itself particularly adventurous but, before they would let me put them on the surgery account they wanted to see my staff card. We don't have staff cards. There aren't all that many of us and we notice when strangers start behaving as though they own the place.  A dilemma! Then I remembered that I have a permitted workers permit in the car, which has my name, the name of the organisation and the address. I have never been asked to show it to the police or to defence force personnel. But finally, it came into its own. I didn't have to flex my card to get the keys.

Also, it was a nice afternoon for a drive.

I was driving through Warrenheip on the way home, just on dusk. It's about 10 minutes from home. On Wednesdays, the Mr Squidgy fish and chip van sits outside the Warrenheip Hall. It used to be there on Fridays but seems to have moved to Wednesdays.

Very enticing, I'm sure you'll agree. Jim was very pleased when I turned up at home bearing barramundi, chips and potato cakes. We'll have to have the shepherds' pie tomorrow!

My view while waiting for dinner

Lockdown Tuesday

I happened to look out the lounge room windows yesterday, just before 7 and noticed that the sky was very pink. I went out to have a closer look and saw this:

It was very dramatic, and could obviously seen all over Ballarat. Similar photos were posted on the local community pages on Facebook.

Fortunately it didn't presage a dramatic day of weather. It clouded over fairly soon after I took these but most of the day was cloudy interspersed with sunny spells.

The district nurse came as usual on a Tuesday to help Jim shower. I was beginning to wonder if she would come. They hadn't cancelled because of the lockdown and the hairdresser, dental technician and everyone else had, but mostly the nurse has come between 9 and 10. This one didn't come until just after 11. It was good that she came. Jim enjoys his assisted showers. He had lost one of his slippers. We looked everywhere we could think that it might be but no sign of it. Fortunately, he has another pair which could be pressed into service but they are very much the second best pair.

We went up to Rupert and Hugo's house after lunch. Both Ian and Lindsey had gone to work and animal care is permitted under the lockdown conditions. I wouldn't have thought that it was that long since we were last there but they behaved as though they hadn't seen us for months.  Rupert positively bounced! 

And overnight, Jim found his missing slipper. He had been convinced that he had kicked it under the bed or under his bedside table when he went to bed but he clearly hadn't. He found it tucked down the bottom of the bed, between the mattress and the footboard. He had obviously kicked it off as he got into bed - and equally obviously I hadn't done a very good job of making the bed yesterday morning!

Lockdown Monday

I did manage to get off the couch yesterday.

I pottered about in the kitchen in the morning. I have an enormous shepherds' pie in the fridge, waiting for its first outing tomorrow. I expect to go in to work tomorrow; my Wednesday activities can't really be done from home. I don't usually get back until after 6:30 so it's nice when food is ready just to be put in the oven. There is easily enough for another meal each. If we are not greedy, probably two more (Disclaimer: we are greedy!)

I put a piece of pork shoulder in the oven for a Sunday-Dinner-on-a-Monday. I made a loaf of bread to have with our lunchtime soup. I also made some stock to make Wednesday's lunchtime soup with.

I spent a pleasant, quiet time brushing the cats. Brandy has obviously been brushed since a kitten. He is a long haired cat and needs to be brushed regularly or he gets scruffy and knotty. Whiskey I think may not have been regularly brushed. He obviously wants to be included but until recently wasn't impressed with the actual process of brushing. He's getting more relaxed with it now.

I ventured out to the IGA. My shopping list had lengthened to the point where it seemed reasonable to go. I also went to get fuel for the car and used the app to pay for it. It seemed quite bold to fill up and drive away without going into the shop. It must have worked, though. No one has been chasing me for money owed.

Whiskey was quite keen to head out through the front door, so I put his collar and lead on and took him out. Brandy was snoozing in the sunshine on our bed and seemed disinclined to join in. Whiskey was quite happy - until a group of kids ran down the path over the fence, whereupon he bolted back into the house. I really must remember to take them out on their leads more often so they get used to it.

After lunch I motivated myself to head out into the back yard and Do Useful Things.  I've taken down the gazebo. It makes a significant difference to the amount of light we get in the dining room and lounge room. I'm hoping next summer to get an awning which we can put up and down depending on whether we want to use it. The gazebo is too hard to put up and down to keep changing it. Once it went up it stayed up until now. I've also pulled the sweet corn stalks and the last tomato plants and started weeding the beds.  I really need to sort the compost bins out and then I need to get some more garden soil.  I want to get some for the beds at Hill House too. While I was outside, I swept and organised the patio and cut the grass.  I may not be able to move today!

So now there are some "after" photos now to go with the earlier "before" photos

The pavers that the barbecue is sitting on aren't properly laid. I just put them down so I could move the barbecue. I will lay them properly. One Day. Maybe!

It was a beautiful, beautiful day yesterday. The sun shone and the sky was blue right until late afternoon. I think it's supposed to be cloudy today.

Morning views:

and late afternoon: