Market Day

Some time ago, the Ballarat Council decided to rejig the Bridge Street Mall and convert it back to a roadway. Only one lane, heading out of Ballarat City centre.

This provoked considerable discussion amongst the nay-sayers and whiners who inhabit the Ballarat Facebook groups. What a ridiculous decision it had been to turn it into a pedestrian mall in the first place. How ridiculous it is to convert it back. How ridiculous the plans and designs were. How ridiculous the (almost) finished product is.

They illustrate this with photos of Bridge Street from the 1950s and 60s, waxing lyrical about how vibrant and active it was. How many thriving businesses there were. How many people used it. I look at these photos and all I see is lots of cars and other vehicles. It doesn't look particularly vibrant to me, though I will allow that I wasn't there to observe it in the 1950s or 60s. Or at any time really, until the 90s when the pedestrian mall was long in place.

During the re-making of the road, the Bridge Mall market has been much reduced in size and pushed out of the way of the roadworks. Lindsey and I didn't go very often; only if we had another reason to be in town on market day. There wasn't enough of interest for it to be worth making the trip into town just for the market.

Now, however, the roadworks are almost complete. The Moaners and Groaners are complaining on Facebook how horrible it looks, how it will never work, how the children will get run over (there is a play area to one side, which is fenced off from the single lane road); waste of money; stupid council; will have to be closed on market days; mumble, mutter, whine, whinge.

On Saturday the market moved back to what had been the pedestrian mall and there were lots more stalls in play. So Lindsey and I went to have a look. It was busy and bustling. The sun was shining. Everyone seemed happy. The stalls were attracting lots of attention. The shops along the street were also busy.

The Bridge Street market is on the first Saturday of the month. They did try having it also on the third Saturday but that was suspended once the roadworks began. I wonder if they'll try again.

Apart from that, things have been trundling along. I've been at work. I've done a bit of shopping. I've done a bit of tidying. The wind has continued to blow, although mercifully not as strongly as before. Spring taunts us by pushing the temperature up to the high teens and then dropping it back down to very low double figures. My tiny peach tree still has bright pink blossom and, although small, looks cheerful. The apple trees are beginning to wake up. The peas are flowering. The broad beans are struggling a bit. I don't think they've been getting enough light and they are quite weedy. It is true they are underneath some trees over the back fence, and I think that, combined with what was quite a dull winter (in terms of light), has left them a bit sun deprived. Maybe they'll strengthen up now that Spring is (more or less) Sprung.

This turned up during the week:

I like Mingle spice mixes and am looking forward to trying some of the ones that you don't find in the supermarkets. I might have to share some of them, though. It was a very full box and I don't think I can use it all before the mixes are a long way past their Best Before date.

Weather

It has been faintly irritating, over the past few days, listening to people on the radio and TV talking about how many parts of Australia have been unseasonably warm, even hot. I have not been hot, or even warm. In Ballarat it has been decidedly on the cool side. I have been listening to these reports of heat and warmth while snuggled under the heated couch throw, fire lit, wearing thick winter jumpers. I agree that 40° is rather too hot, especially at the tail end of winter, but something slightly warmer than the 9° that is the forecast high in Ballarat today would be nice.

It would be even nicer if the strong, strong winds would die down a bit. It has been unbelievably windy over the past two or three days. I am lucky that I have electricity. So many places in Victoria do not. I am also lucky that none of the local trees have blown onto my house, or any other houses immediately round me. The worst I have is twigs, some small branches and a bit of bark. Oh - and the "greenhouse" has blown over. Not a big problem - there were no plants in it and I was thinking of moving it anyway.

There are twigs and small branches everywhere

Brandy is not enjoying the wind, or the disruption

I wondered what this was when I first glimpsed it
It's quite a large piece of bark that
wasn't in the front yard when I locked up last night

It is still very windy this morning but at least the sun has come out. I would be tempted out into the garden were it not for the wind and the fact that it's about 5° outside. I may settle for tidying up inside, rather than out.

I brought the daffodils, tulips and jonquils in before the storms arrived. There weren't a lot, but I figured they would be safer in a vase in the lounge room rather than taking their chances under the fruit trees.

Sunny and cheerful

I couldn't bring the peach blossom in, or not if I want any chance of peaches. I am happy to report it is still on the tree. It's a very small tree and protected by the fence, but I am pleased and a bit surprised anyway. I had two peaches last season and they were delicious.

Apart from the wind, it was a fairly quiet weekend. It was cold and drizzly or cold and rainy. And windy. So there wasn't much incentive to go outside. Or even out, although I did go shopping with Lindsey later yesterday morning. Apart from that, nothing exciting to report.

Some of us are enjoying the electric chair throws: