Summer Is Over

Monday 28th February, 2011

Well for some, today is the last day of Summer, for others it is on the 21st/22nd March.  We didn't have much of a summer this year....it was very mild.  We only had 2 days where the temperature got to over 40 degrees.  We had several days with the temperature in the 30's but most of the time it was in the 20's.

I am noticing that it is getting darker earlier each evening and we still have another 5 weeks of daylight saving.  Let's hope autumn and winter fly by, and before we know it, it is springtime once again. 

Yesterday while on the way to Strathalbyn from Goolwa we came across the Aboriginal Canoe Tree.  The aborigine's took the bark from this gum tree and made a canoe around 100 years ago.

From the Lens.........

No Plans Are The Best

Sunday 27th February, 2011

We had plans for today but when the alarm went off at 6.00am I told Tony to turn it off, rolled over and went back to sleep.  3 hours later we got up. 

Had a lazy morning and around lunchtime Tony decided to go and drop off some bags that we had in the garage at the Charity Centre.   We ended up going down to Christies Beach and dropping off the bags at Savers.  That is the only outlet they have so far in SA.  Not knowing if they would be even open we went anyway and to our surprise they do open Sundays until 5.00pm. 

We continued on down to Goolwa where over the weekend they held the Wooden Boat Festival.  It was getting fairly late in the afternoon by now and a few of the boats were heading away from Goolwa so we didn't know if it was still on.  Goolwa is on the River Murray and this is where the river flows out into the sea.

When we got to Goolwa we went and had a coffee, and then walked down to the river.  We took a wrong turn and found ourselves heading for the bridge that goes over to Hindmarsh Island.  We walked part of the way across it and then the camera's battery decided to go flat.  The spare battery was in the car and so we walked back to the car.   Tony decided to bring the car closer to the wharf.

There were still quite a few of the boats on the river.  They were getting ready to have a final sail past and so we got to see quite a few of the boats.  Some of them were reminiscence of what life would have been like on the river when the river was used for ferrying people and goods to the towns along the Murray.

We decided to come home through Strathalbyn and finally got home around 9.00pm.

From the Lens..........River boats

The "Oscar W" one of the oldest boats at Goolwa

This boat was a tug that was used in Queensland for the ships carrying sugar cane

Old paddle boat "William Randell"

The bridge over the Murray River that goes to Hindmarsh Island

A Touch Of The Orient

Saturday 26th February, 2011

We decided to take our DVD cabinet door out to Mezner's Furniture store in Gawler to see if they will be able to make up 2 new ones.  This is the door that had the glass shatter in it several weeks ago.  We also need a matching door for the other DVD cabinet.  That door is still intact.

The girl in the shop is going to call us mid week to see if new ones can be made.  While there we had a browse in Ned's and I love these little Japanese/Chinese dolls.  They come in several colours.....green, pink, orange, blue, red and purple.  I have them on the ledge of my kitchen window.  We also called into Mitre 10 where Tony got himself some tree loppers.

Went and saw Robyn and Bob to say 'Hi'.  They have just had solar panels installed on their house.  This seems to be the 'in' thing at the moment, the government is giving a rebate to those who install solar panels and all new houses that are built have to have them. 

In about 3 weeks we are going to Ardrossan over on Yorke Peninsular to do some crabbing.  Ever since Katie saw people crabbing from the jetty at Henley Beach she wants to try and catch some as well.  Bob offered to take her so she is really looking forward to going crab fishing (as she calls it).

From the Lens..........solar panels

We Got Water

Friday 25th February, 2011

Have my nail appointment later on and then into town to meet Tony.  Haven't heard about the splatter guard that I returned, so we rang them and were told that it was going to be replaced and was supposedly in the mail.  They will contact us when they receive it.

Went and filled our water bottles.  We have a rainwater tank but don't use the water for drinking anymore as it needs a good clean out.  We go to the Brewery where they have a fountain and for a small donation, $2 (which goes to local charities) we can fill up water bottles.  It is the same water they use in the making of beer.

We can usually fill up two 15 litre bottles for $2.  Much cheaper than the $6.50 per bottle they charge when you return the empty bottle back to the service stations.  We don't use the water that comes out of the taps for drinking or cooking.  Not that it can't be used but it's just that it has an awful taste.  I don't know about now, but ships that came into the Port would not  take on water here.  

We decided to go down to West Beach and get pizza for tea.  Instead of eating it at the beach we ate it while watching the planes take off and land.  Tony worked at the airport for some 23 years as an electrician and then as an Air Traffic Officer.   I think he still misses the place though he denies it.

From the Lens........the flying kangaroo

Our Car Comes Home

Thursday 24th February, 2011

Yaaaaayy today's the day we can pick up our car.  Caught the bus into town, met Tony, caught the bus out of town and went and picked up the car. 

It was so different to drive, there was no thump when it changed gears and it felt oh so smooth.  Went and did the grocery shopping, had dinner at our usual place and then to come home and not have to get out of the car to open the garage door was great.  Just a click of the buttton and wallah....open sesame.....lol

From the Lens..........gotta get me some of these

Sitting Around Waiting

Wednesday 23rd February, 2011

The TV is still full of yesterdays earthquake in Christchurch.  Overnight they pulled some more survivors from the rubble but so far today I have heard of only one woman being rescued.  They also fear that more of the buildings will collapse.  I don't hold out much hope for anymore survivors.

I am waiting, waiting, waiting for the roller door people to come.  It is now 3.00pm and they still haven't shown up.  I rang Tony earlier and he rang them and they said that we are booked in for this afternoon.  I hope they won't be too much longer.

The guy for the roller door finally showed up.  He informs me that they can only replace one wheel for now as they have run out.  What's with that?  You would think that seeing they had known that both wheels needed replacing, they would have put two aside.  Oh well, he will just have to come back another day.

When Tony came home from work he had to put a power point on the ceiling for the door controller.  Lucky he is a qualified electrician.  Apparently the roller door people don't do that, that's up to the householder to organise an electrician.  They said we should have the other wheel in about a week.  Yeah we'll see.

From the Lens.........coming out of the ceiling (the manhole is in our laundry)

Inside our ceiling...........



Another Natural Disaster....This Time In NZ

Tuesday 22nd February, 2011

Tony rang me this morning to tell me that we maybe could pick the car up sometime after 4.00pm.  They were assembling the gear box back into the car and if it passed the road test then it was ours.

Just as I was about to get in the shower Tori and her mates called by.  She had been to an appointment and wanted to print off some photos.  I told them that I had to go out so they only stayed a short while.

Caught the bus into town and Tony met me as I was walking in to his work and he said "We have to catch the bus home".  "What???" I said.  "They road tested the car and found the gearbox needed a few minor adjustments, so it will be ready anytime after 12 tomorrow," he told me.

We decided to maybe pick it up Thursday now.  I don't fancy catching the bus into the city again tomorrow, plus the guys are supposed to be coming to do the roller door and we don't know what time they will be coming.  After not having the car for 9 days, 1 more day is not going to matter.

This morning while listening to the radio I heard on the news that Christchurch in New Zealand had suffered a major earthquake.  I quickly turned on the TV to watch Sky News and it was all unfolding right there on the TV.  They were showing many of the city buildings that had collapsed and with many people still inside them.  It happened at around 9 minutes to 1 (NZ time).  It would have been around 10.20am our time.

The earthquake was 6.3 on the Richter scale and it was only 5km underground hence the destruction.  Back in September last year they had a 7.1 earthquake, which was 33km's underground, and that caused a fair amount of damage, and ever since they have been having after shocks. They had a reasonable quake (4.9) on Boxing Day.

We visited there around 11 years ago and I remember the Cathedral which stood in the square.  Today it has been extensively damaged, the bell tower has collapsed and there is quite a bit of damage inside.  There has been deaths, 65 so far, and they expect that total to increase.  Many people have been injured, a lot of them seriously.  My thoughts and prayers are with all the people who have been affected.

                                              Photos from Adelaide Now website

Sheesh, the first 2 months of 2011 has certainly brought some natural disasters.....floods, cyclones, fires and now an earthquake.  We are often told that Adelaide is due for another one.  Our last sizeable one was back in 1954 and we had a tremor back in April last year.  I don't wish to experience one thankyou very much after seeing the damge in Christchurch.

Anyway Tony and I caught the bus back home and seeing that I have done no grocery shopping yet we decided to go to the Green Ginger Asian Restaurant for dinner.  Ohh mmmm it was sooo good.  I could get used to this eating out, not having to cook and do the dishes.  It feels like I am on holidays.

From the Lens.........Green Ginger

What!! Still No Car!

Monday 21st February, 2011

Oh no!!!! bad news.  No car again today.  It looks like tomorrow now, we can go and pick it up.  Well that's alright with us, at least the job is being done properly and not being hurried just to be able to let us have a car. 

I think I have a touch of Mondayitis today.......can't seem to get motivated at all.  Perhaps it's a hangover from all the public transport travelling over the last few days and I've still got to catch the bus tomorrow to go and pick up the car.

Tori and her friends, Michael and Leanne, came around again this afternoon.  She said they wanted to chill out here for awhile.  Tony came home from work and they left soon after.

We walked up to Fasta Pasta for some dinner and then over to the shopping centre to pick up some milk.  I will have to do the bulk of the grocery shopping when we get the car back.

From the Lens........

The Garden Of Unearthly Delights

Sunday 20th February, 2011

This morning looks cool and overcast outside, let's hope the sun comes out and turns it into a nice day like yesterday weather wise.  We are planning on going to the Garden of Unearthly Delights today and have a look at some of the Fringe activities.

We also wanted to catch the train to Outer Harbour to see the Queen Mary 2 cruise ship leave but by the time we got ourselves organised it was too late.  It was due to leave at midday.  It was just after midday when we left the house to go and catch the bus to go into the city.

We caught the M44 bus this time, but for some reason (maintenance most probably) part of the O-Bahn was closed and so the trip into the city took over an hour.

We dropped Katies' bag off at work and walked down to the East End and the Garden of Unearthly Delights.  The day had turned out nice weather wise, though the wind was cool.  All Katie was interested in was having rides on the sideshows. 

Seeing we only had a couple of hours to spare that's all we decided to do.  She got fed up waiting in line as a couple of the lines were 30-45 minutes wait to have a turn.  She wanted to go on the trampolines and have a go in the giant balls on the water. 

She stood in line for about 20 minutes at the trampoline and got sick of waiting.  Then decided against the balls when she saw how long that line was.  She did get to go on the Sky Diver.  We let her go on by herself and she enjoyed it. 

By now it was getting on for after 4.00pm and we had to head back to get her bag and then catch the tram down to Glenelg.  We met her mum around 6.00pm.  Tony and I then went and had coffee at The Dome.  Dominic was working (he is a partner in the business which also has a coffee shop at Tony's work) and we got talking to him.  By the time we left there it was after 7.30pm.

Instead of catching the tram back into the city and then waiting for the bus we can get the J1 bus from Glenelg which takes us back to Golden Grove.  We decided to do this but having just missed one we had to wait almost an hour for the next bus.  Grrrrr that's what I don't like about public transport, the sitting around, waiting, especially when you don't have a timetable.

This trip took 1hour 20 minutes.  Bloody hell!!! would hate to do the trip during peak hour.  No sooner had we walked in the door and the phone rang.  It was Tori and she wanted to come around to discuss some problems she was having......what a time to want to do it!!  Still, I would never turn my back on her so she came around with 2 of her friends.

They left after 11.00pm and so it was off to bed for us.  Fingers crossed we get our car back tomorrow.  Catching buses is OK once in a while, but doing it all weekend.......it is too tiring. 

From the Lens........a few of the entertainment tents in the garden

Monster Trucks

Saturday February 19th, 2011

This morning there was no rain in sight.  It was overcast and cool.  We decided to go to the Monster Trucks tonight and so I got online and purchased the tickets.

Tony went to the shops and got some rolls and so I made them up for us to have tonight.  We packed our drinks and some nibblies and off we went.

We caught the bus into the city and as we had some time to kill we ended up catching the tram down to the Entertainment Centre and then to the Showgrounds. 

When we got off the tram we had a short walk to the grounds because I thought we could enter through Leader Street entrance, but because I opted to pick up the tickets from the venue I was told we had to walk around to Rose Street (the main entrance) to collect them.  Not happy!

20 minutes later we finally got our tickets.  One good thing to having pre-purchased the tickets was that we didn't have to wait in the very, very long line of people wanting to buy theirs.  They had to delay the start of the show due to the large number of people still trying to get in.

The day turned out to be very nice, the sun came out which warmed it up and the evening was very mild.  No need for jumpers or coats.

Loved the trucks, huge giant machines they were.  The three moto-cross bikes were awesome with their high flying antics.  Too scary for me, even to watch, in case they came off their bike.  The jet van was good and was even more impressive when it got dark and they turned off the lights and the van drove around the circuit with the huge flame coming from the rear.

They also had races with quad bikes, smash-up derby with the chance for some listeners from Triple M radio station to win a trip to Las Vegas, and the car drop.  This year it was a 'limousine'.  Fireworks ended the night.

One Monster Truck, named "Freakshow" was or should have been able to do a back flip, this was the result of his attempt........

It ended up on it's roof among the wrecks.  The driver did walk away unscathed.

We walked back to get the tram, called in to work for a toilet break and then caught the bus back home.  This catching public transport is very tiring and so we all flopped into bed when we got home.

From the Lens..........

The Big Wet

Friday 18th February, 2011

Woke up this morning to drizzly rain and during the day it became more persistant only letting up around 9.00pm tonight.  They say Adelaide got around 30mm not the deluge that they were predicitng.  It's still one of our wettest February days for 8 years.

Tony rang to let me know that we wouldn't be getting the car back today.....Monday it is, fingers crossed.  Oh well it looks like public transport for us this weekend.

Caught the bus into town and Kahra dropped Katie off at Tony's work.  We went and had some dinner and as it is officially the start of the Fringe tonight we thought we would go down to the East End and watch the parade that kicks it off. 

Every two years we have a Festival of Arts and the Fringe was held in conjunction with that.  Due to the growing popularity of the Fringe it was decided to hold it annually.  Last year was the first year that we actually got involved and went and saw some shows and took Katie to a few as well.  This year we hope to go and see some more.

Unfortunately due to the persistant rain the parade was cancelled.  The Garden of Unearthly Delights was open, but we decided to come back Sunday as it was too damp.  Katie was excited to see the He11o car (the new Channel 10 digital station) and was given a couple of bottles of water and a lollipop.  Maybe it was because Bart Simpson was on it.

We slowly walked backed to work, collected our bags and went and caught the bus back home.  Tomorrow is another day of buses and maybe the tram as we plan on going to the Monster Trucks at the Showgrounds.

From the Lens.......

What To Do With No Car?

Thursday 17th February, 2011

It looks like we might be without a car over the weekend.  On Tuesday Tony dropped the car off to have the automatic transmission overhauled.  When the car went from first gear into second gear we would have a 'thump' noise.  We thought we had better get it in and looked at before it packed up completely.  Initially they said that they would require the car for 3 days. 

After having taken the transmission out they discovered that a spring was broken.  The mechanic rang Tony to tell him what they had found and to let him know that the car wouldn't be ready today.  It may be ready late Friday or else on Monday.  So until tomorrow we won't know any more.

We don't mind not having a car as we have the shopping centre 5 minutes up the road and if we need a bus they are there too.  It's just that Katie was due to come this weekend.  I have to ring later to see if the arrangements still stand.  I know that she will still want to come.

Shopping centre is at the top of the road

**Rang Kahra and she is still happy for Katie to come to us for the weekend even though we may not have a car.  As I explained to her Katie often asks "Can we go on the bus Nanna?", so I am sure Katie won't mind having to catch buses over the weekend.

The only downside is that we are expecting rain......and lots of it.  They say we could get up to 50mm (2 inches).  I'm not holding my breath as the last few days they have predicted thunderstorms and they haven't eventuated.

From the Lens........on the buses

Getting Somewhere At Last

Wednesday 16th February, 2011

Whoopee!! no phone calls during the night.  At least I didn't hear the phone ring if there were.  I slept like a log and knew nothing until the alarm went off.

Tony finally rang another company to try and get our roller door fixed.  They came out yesterday and have booked us in for next Wednesday to have the door fixed as well as having it made automatic.  This company was a lot cheaper than B&D.  Tony had been trying to contact B&D but each time he rang he was told the girl was too busy, or was out, or was in a meeting and that she would get back to him.  Well she never did return any of his calls.

In the end Tony rang and told them to cancel as he had found another company.  Obviously they didn't want the business.  Plus they also charge $120 call-out fee.....what's with that??

From the Lens........the roller door

A Beautiful Sunrise

Tuesday 15th February, 2011

What a beautiful sunrise this morning.  The sky was so pink it looked like it was on fire.  I was lucky to be awake to be able to see it.

During the night at around 3.20 am T0ny had a phone call in relation to work.  Apparently some guy had broken into the Bull and Bear Hotel and the police were there looking for him.  The guy had jumped over the locked gate and got himself into the courtyard from which there was no exit.

The police wanted access into the courtyard so Tony was going to do it remotely, (dial in from home), but then they decided it best not to as the guy could do a runner once he knew the doors were opened.  Instead, the police cut the lock that was attached to the gate with bolt cutters.  The dog squad was called in and they located the guy, but rang Tony again to find out where he could end up as he was in behind a wall.  They were quite happy when Tony told them that there was only one way in and he would have to come out the same way.

Tony then had to ring the owner of the hotel and also his immediate boss to let them know.  As the Hotel is part of the complex that Tony manages he is the one they contact initially.

Just about back to sleep when the phone rang again.  It was now 4.30 am and it was the police letting Tony know that they had caught the guy.

This is the second incident in a week.  Even though the first incident didn't involve Tony directly he had to provide the CCTV footage for the police.  Some guy had gotten into the courtyard by jumping over the locked gates, grabbed a chair from the Daily Planet's outside eating area and used it to smash a door on the State Bank building.  He got inside the bank and when the police came they found him in the stairwell still with the chair.  Luckily he could not get into the bank's offices.

Wonder what the next incident will be.....don't they say things come in threes?

From the Lens.........morning sunrise

Happy Valentine's Day

Monday 14th February, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day!!  In our 38 years of marriage I can't remember us ever celebrating Valentine's Day.
Tony once told me, that as he loves me everyday and everyday for him is Valentines Day, he doesn't need one day of the year to remind him.

He certainly knows NOT to buy me RED flowers.  For some reason I don't like red flowers in flower arrangements.  Whenever anyone gives me a bouquet of flowers or sends me an arrangement and there are red flowers in it I always remove them.  I often buy a bunch of flowers for the house but I will NEVER buy red ones.

I don't mind red flowers in a garden but that is where they should stay as far as I am concerned.  Yet the colour red is one of my favourite colours......I love to wear it except in lipstick and nail polish.

Well this year we aren't really celebrating Valentines Day but for a bit of fun I decided to make a heart jar.  I pinched this idea from one of the blogs that I regularly read.  In it I put some candy hearts, 2 chocolate hearts, and cut out some paper hearts on which Tony and I wrote little love notes to each other.  Hehe.

Much better than a Valentines Day card or 100 roses for $990 as seen in the paper today.  OMG who would spend that much on flowers that will last a couple of weeks maximum?

From the Lens.......Valentine cupcakes

A Perfect Day

Sunday 13th February, 2011

What a beautiful day!!!  The weather is perfect, temperature in the upper 20's, not too hot, just nice to be outdoors.

With that being the case Tony and I spent a few hours outside gardening.  With the few hot days we have had, when the temperature got into the 40's, a few of our plants died.  It was also time to tidy up others by removing the dead leaves and tidying up around the back.  

We have this huge pine tree.  It is something we regret planting.  When we bought it as a seedling we thought it was a conifer and the ticket that was attached to it stated that it will grow to about 2 metres in 10 years.   Yeah, right!  This tree is about 12-15 metres tall and it took around 11-12 years to get there.   Not being a true pine it doesn't have needles but it drops it's 'leaves' and makes such a mess in the backyard.  Everyday I can go and sweep up half a bucket of these 'leaves'.   If they are left, the wind blows them everywhere.

Also it is a haven for the birds.  I don't mind the crows and magpies that come but I detest the pigeons.  They poop everywhere and leave such a mess and start their coo-ing even before the sun is up.  Our neighbours like to feed them and so they hang around.  We notice that when they go on holiday they don't seem to be around as much.   Hmmmm I think you know what I am thinking.

Tony was given some anti bird spikes by one of the contractors at work.  So far we're a bit unsure as to where to put them, I don't really want them along the top of the fence, so we're still deciding.  For them to be really effective we need quite a few.  He was given 3 which would cover about a metre in length.

From the Lens..........the dreaded tree

The Weekend Is Upon Us

Saturday 12th February, 2011

Another weekend.....the weeks are quickly slipping by now.  A bit of a late start this morning, maybe it's because we went to bed around 1.00am. 

Last night was a typical Friday night.   Went into town and picked Tony up.  We bought a Scanpan frypan back in August last year and with it came a bonus of a splatter guard.  During the week the welds let go on the handle of the splatter guard and seeing it has a 10 year guarantee we decided to take it back to the shop from where we bought it.

I could see no problem in having it replaced but we have to wait two weeks until the rep comes in to the store and see what he decides, whether to give us a new one or maybe re-weld the handle back on.  The shopowner was rather reluctant to make a decision so I doubt whether I will go back to shop there again.  We bought it from a well known house/cookware store in North Adelaide.

By the time we had dinner, did some shopping, had coffee, went back into work to check on some lights that were left on, we didn't get home till nearly 11.00pm.  

As the car has to go in for the gearbox to be fixed next Tuesday, Tony has been busy cleaning the car.  It's a pain that we can't wash it on our driveway.  If we do we have to use a bucket.  Instead we have to take it to a car wash, and usually the line-up is miles long.  Luckily today it is not too hot to be sitting in the car waiting at a car wash.

From the Lens..........our favourite coffee shop