muffy

Muffy is Sigrid's dog. Sigrid got her when she was about six years old. When we first got Muffy she lived in the bush outside Lismore near the Channon. She then moved with Sig to Mosman in Sydney where we lived from 1994-2006. Sig is now 25 and long since moved out of home. Muffy is now about 18 and living with me (Sigrid's mum). She still recognises Sigrid when Sig comes for a visit.

Sig's visit

Siggy made her last visit before she leaves for a trip overseas. We went for a drive up behind Dorrigo and found a lovely swimming hole that had been swollen by the recent flood:













We found the 'big tallowood':









Stopped the car again to pick the leeches from our feet. A goanna was watching. The photo has been rotated:

funny mushroom

The weather has been quite tropical since the flood. Lots of afternoon thunderstorms. This delicate little thing came up after a storm:

plants grow fast in this climate

There were very few plants in this area when we moved in to the new house two years ago. Look at it now!

jacksville update

Jack has moved into his renovated cabin. Here's a picture of two bums working on the kitchen cabinets:




We are now continuing with the renovation of the second cabin and work on the pergola when it's not raining:

the good old days...

This is one of the reasons that family history fascinates me. How long is it since anyone went to 'Sunday School', dresses were called 'frocks', and people went to 'grocery tea's? Here's a report from the Windsor and Richmond Gazette on a local wedding in 1936:

'St Matthews Church of England, Windsor, was beautifully decorated with white daliahs and asters by friends of the bride for the wedding on Saturday February 1, of Marie, eldest daughter of Mr and Mrs Reg Burton of Windsor, and Alec, youngest son of the late Mr and Mrs Hatherill of Middlesex, England. The Rev Norman Jenkyn RD performed the ceremony.

The bride who was given away by her uncle, Mr H Greentree, wore a gown of white crepe blister, featuring a long train and full tulle veil held with a coronet of orange blossoms. She carried a trailing sheaf of frangipani and tuber roses and a white prayer book, the gift of the bridegroom.

The bride was attended by Mrs W Stubbs as Matron of Honour. She wore a frock of blue morocain with a hat to tone, and carried a trail of blue delphiniums and pink carnations. Daphne and Doreen, sisters of the bride, acted as flower girls, and were frocked in pink ankle length satin and carried gold baskets of blue delphiniums, pink carnations and roses.

Mr W Stubbs acted as best man. The reception was held in the Sunday School Hall, New Street, Windsor, where the bride's mother, wearing a navy frock with white trimmings and hat to tone, and carrying a bouquet of red roses, received the guests assisted by Mrs J Allen, wearing a black figured morocain and hat to tone and carrying a bouquet of red roses.

Rev Norman Jenkyn acted as chairman, and after the usual toasts were honored, the wedding cake was cut by the bride and a very happy function was brought to a close by singing Auld Lang Syne, after which the happy couple left by car for their future home at Castle Hill. For her travelling frock, the bride chose blue morocain and hat to tone.

On arrival at Castle Hill they were met by a party of friends, who entertained them with a further reception, which was quite a surprise and took the form of a grocery tea.'

eggy wegs

Quite a few moths have decided that our fly wire is a good place to put their eggs:

flood goes up, flood goes down

The retard fencing that was erected as part of a landcare grant seems to have done its job during the flood. We think the retard fencing has slowed the river down so that less damage was caused to the tress we've planted and there seems to be less gouging:

flood

We're flooded in at the moment. It bucketed down overnight and we woke to a very swollen river this morning. Luckily Greg made a dash into Bellingen yesterday to stock up on fresh supplies. There's no chance of us starving however. We have a freezer full of pork from a beast our neighbour slaughtered recently. Another neighbour has plenty of eggs on tap. We are cut off in the east by Guesses Bridge and in the west with Richardson's Bridge. Between the two bridges there are seven properties. 5 of the 7 properties are occupied at the moment.

Guesses Bridge is underwater. This is looking east over Guesses Bridge down Darkwood Road. This is our road out to Thora store and Bellingen:



Richardson's Bridge is underwater. Darkwood Road and the bridge are under there somewhere. This is looking west, up the valley.



The view looking downstream from our verandah:



Soggy male and female Blue Wrens taking shelter on our verandah:



We'll have to wait until the river recedes before we can assess the damage to our riverbank tree planting project. Most of the trees are submerged:





Lots of meetings take place on the road between the two bridges. There's not much else to do:



Taken from the verandah of our poolroom/studio:



Taken on the riverbank in front of our house. You can also see the state of play with our lomandra planting project to the right:



Strange mushrooms that appeared as the water receded:



Our bromeliads are liking all this water. This one has decided to flower:



Nothing whatsoever to do with the flood, but here's Greg's lizard sculpture which I tardily neglected to upload to the blog at the time he finished it some months ago:

country charm

Jack be nimble

Jack's place is coming along nicely. We think another week and a half and Jack can move in. And then we can start all over again on the room that Jack's moving out of...

It's damn hot here, like everywhere else in eastern Australia at the moment, so we try to do most of our work in the early morning or late afternoon.

The kitchen is a 'flatpack' modular thingy from Bunnings. A lot of palaver to put together but cheaper than anything else. We did have big probs with Bunnings though. We bought what was in stock in the 'modern gloss white' style of cupboard finish. They were out of stock of one 600 mm cupboard. So, we asked when they would be getting more in - they said about a week. Built part of the kitchen with the ones we had bought and went back in a week's time to buy the rest, and they weren't on the shelves. On inquiring, we were told that that style and colour had actually been discontinued for about 6 months!

Why then did they have it still on the shelves for us or anyone else to buy without some notice saying that that was all there was going to be - ever. It turns out that there was one of what we needed to complete the kitchen in their warehouse in Melbourne, so another week to wait until it is delivered......Phew!





And here's the bathroom: