Badger Galore
Staying ‘Up Over’ for a while.
Fire Alarm!
So...summer has not even started and yet we are at the start of a heatwave. Today the temperature was nearing 35 degrees and heat means extreme fire danger.
The morning was pretty uneventful but we do have six new chicks in the 'Chickery' with Pacha which is very nice.
I stayed inside cleaning the kitchen cupboards and the fridge while Will was out doing the washing.
Just after lunch we could smell smoke which was alarming since there is a total fire ban here at the moment. We went out to the rocks and saw a plume of smoke just over the next hill. It was very alarming since the wind appeared to be carrying the smoke our way.
We set about clearing all the leaves and branches from the roof on Frogknot and cleaned out all the gutters. Then we raked all around the house to clear potential fuel for any approaching fire.
We even cleared the whole side of the dam nearest to Frogknot of any combustible leaf litter. We packed the cars with our important belongings and clothes ready to leave if the situation got worse.
The Queensland Fires website showed this...
Planes were flying around monitoring the fire and looking for spot fires, we could hear sirens wailing and eventually a helicopter turned up to water bomb the flames. We popped out to the rocks a few times to how things were going. Jenny next door said Dave had gone over there with his bobcat to help clear fire breaks and she said he felt that we were lucky with the wind direction and that as things stood we were not presently in danger.
By 6.00 pm I was completely exhausted after being out in the heat of the afternoon frantically trying to do what we could to lessen the risk to the houses.
We went out after dark, again to the rocks, and could see the glow of the fire over the next hill and it was very smoky which did not bode well, but since then the wind has changed again and we can no longer smell smoke.
To top the day off, we were inundated with flying ants tonight, perhaps because of the heat today or because it is a full moon tonight. I have never seen so many as there were tonight.
Here are some of the pictures from a very troubling day.
Here is the news.
So...we have been back from our holiday for nearly a week. I have had a pretty full week at the 'Book Cave' and have been in every day since Monday, with half a day last Wednesday. I still managed to be responsible for two embarrassing encounters though that afternoon. The first being a customer who wanted to check the status of his library card as he had been away for a few months.
" Ooh! Been anywhere nice?" I asked.
The long pause until his reply was very telling and I started to squirm as I foresaw the reply.
"Shall we say I was staying at her Majesty's pleasure." He said.
I could only manage a squeaky "Oh" in response.
The second incident occured right at the end of the day when a gentleman appeared and, with everyone else otherwise occupied, I stepped up to assist him.
"Oh, I don't think we've met before Nick," he said before I could even ask how I could help.
I was puzzled and the pause that followed was longer than the earlier one as I was trying to take in what was going on and why he would say that.
A colleague stepped in, noticing my confusion, and said " Let me help you Nick.his is our new CEO."
"Oh!" I squeaked again, "pleased to meet you."
I automatically held out my hand and the CEO reached out his hand but just before they touched I snatched it back saying,
"Oh, we're not supposed to do that are we?!"
I held out my elbow towards him and he started to lean his elbow towards mine but again I pulled it back at the last moment saying,
"Oh, we're not supposed to do that either!"
I must have given him a terrible first impression. I just wanted the ground to open up and swallow me. I cringed all the way home!
And what of Will?
Well, as you know he left the Cheese Factory for ethical reasons. Due to their shut down earlier in the year they had lost their fresh milk supply and since reopening were using bottled milk and Will could not, in all conscience, throw away 700 plastic bottles a week, so he trained a new cheesemaker and left.
He had made enquiries and tried out a job making jams and chutneys but later heard of a possible apprenticeship opportunity at a local brewery. He had a meeting at the brewery before we went away and it all seemed positive as they said they would discuss options and 'crunch numbers'. So Will informed the jam makers that he might have a chance of a job at a brewery instead.
Just before we returned from our hols he got an email from the brewery thanking him for his interest and they said that their meeting had made them think seriously about what they wanted to do and they had decided to employ a fully qualified brewer instead and that no part time apprenticeships were available.
He went cap in hand back to the jam makers but they too had embarked upon a restructure and with the situation changed, no longer had a position available.
So, for now, he is unemployed but I am sure something will turn up that he will once again shine at.
While we were away, four of our chooks went broody and have been sitting on three lots of eggs that change in number as they steal from each other while one is out dust bathing. Tonight, they have started to hatch and Pacha has two chicks under her so far.
There are about 18 eggs altogether under the four birds but we doubt they will all hatch. Time will tell.
Our two little Silkies are still growing though they are terribly wary of Manitou and our last three, now large, hatchlings. One of the Silkies is a bit odd in that it often holds its head strangely to one side and sometimes rolls around on the floor as if having a fit. We didn't really expect it to be alive when we got back from out trip...but it is. We forgot to close the pen up last night but happily they were still all there this morning. The fox is still about though and we heard it calling tonight.
From the 1st December the state borders are opening fully and we will no longer be required to show a pass when crossing. There are still a few Covid cases in Adelaide in South Australia but there is no community transmission in any of the other states and hasn't been for some time now.
Thursday saw us down at the Glen Aplin village hall for another Festival of Small Halls. This year we were entertained by Nine Year Sister, a very talanted local duo from Stanthorpe , Women in Docs, another great female duo and longhaired Karl S Williams, and his blues, folk, americana 'stylee!'...
The evening began with an unexpected lecture on bush fires from the local fire service as they had a captive audience. I guess it is very important but it was not what we went for.
Despite a predicted 'La Niña', which has not yet manifested itself, we are faced with a heatwave over the coming week. Today the temperature got up to 37 degrees and next week it is predicted to be higher. The dam is now disappearing again and we are back to using all our waste water on saving the fruit trees around the house. We now have tank capacity for 25,000 litres but with three tanks empty and two less than half full, it looks like we might be buying water again soon.
Summer is nearly upon us and the cicadas are calling nonstop in the trees about Blue Moon. There appear to be more about this year than last year and it is very much like we are living next to a very busy airport with planes taxi- ing about all day.
Today we began to work on the deck extension over our two new water tanks. More on that story later.
And finally...our possums are still around, with Jnr still hanging about with mum. They spent yesterday in the possum box and hung out for snacks last night but today they must have slept somewhere else and they didn't show up tonight.
In the once Forbidden Zone - Pt 2.
So...after a day down on the river near Grafton, we headed further south to camp at Boorkoom camp site near Wooli in the Yuraygir National Park. We explored the Wilson Headland the first day. I was up to see the sunrise over the Pacific before we packed up and headed further south to Woolgoolga. Driving down the highway, at speed, I was startled when a big spider ran all around the the steering wheel before disappearing into the driver's side door pocket. A bit later it reappeared on the side window so I wound the window down and whacked it out.
We had breakfast in Woolgoolga before heading back up the coast to Tracy's, visiting, Safety Beach, Arrawarra Headland and Red Rock.
On the last day I spent the afternoon in Yamba and went for another swim out at Angourie Back Beach while Tracy and Will were in Maclean discussing an Art Project they going to be working on .
...And that is our holiday over.
In the once Forbidden Zone - Pt 1.
So...we are down at Ashby with Tracy for the week after the Queensland border opened to most of New South Wales (Parts of Greater Sydney are still declared Covid hotspots). We will still need a pass to re-enter Queensland on Sunday but we won't have to quarantine for a fortnight. It has been lovely to spend time by the river and the sea.
We are off camping further south tomorrow night to explore the coast around Wooli and Red Rock.