Month: October 2012

Not friendly – definitely not friendly

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
The Maltese Terrorist

Last week  the weather was lovely and I was working outside again. It came as something of a shock to the system when the weather took a severe turn for the worse and brought it storms, rain, hail and cold. Definitely not friendly weather.  In fact it was so cold it snowed in the Adelaide hills and the northern Flinders ranges. Further to the east communities were cut off  by heavy snow falls. And just in case you are wondering, this is Australia and this is mid-spring. Thursday was really bad and then on Friday, the front cleared away, the sun came out and it was warm and sunny again. It’s been a very busy week – Monday I was working in the garden at the new clothes line area – Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday  I have already mentioned, Friday I had to drive to Port Lincoln  –  about 165 miles east of here. We, my son and I, went down there to pick up his new mobile (cell) phone. The closest office of the company he is contracted with  (as am I) is in Port Lincoln. Saturday I was at the Civic Park all day  running a fundraising event for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. On the following Tuesday I was again fundraising at a Government Sponsored Jobs and Skills Expo. The Gov. wanted the food to be free so they asked us to put on a Barbecue and they would pay for everything, plus give us a fee for the day.  It was a great event, well attended and we were very busy.

When I came home I was told by my wife that one of our dear friends had died in Adelaide. On Wednesday I  organised things that I needed to do,packed the case and set off to  – picking up a dog to take down to be taken to his new mummy and her “forever” home.  The poor foster mummy was all tears as we settled her  (the dog that is) into the car.  Five hours later, with two walks and pit stops and a drink, we arrived at  the area where we were to meet and I handed the dog over to her new mummy.  The dog was happy  and the new owner looked very happy, so I think they will get on well together. The dogs name was Violet and she was a real sweety.

Do you have to point that thing at me?

The funeral was on Friday morning and after lunch I started heading back home. I was home just before 6pm. The following morning I was on the move again, this time 80 klms to Port Augusta for a meeting, which lasted until 1:30. I had the rest of the day to myself – wasn’t that nice?  All being well I should not have to be moving again until early December and a meeting in Seacliff – about 450 klms away.   I am starting to get just a tad worried about the ‘Terrorist”. My wife said that last time I left he went into his house and didn’t move out for two days and just refused to eat. When I came back I took his dinner and sat down on the floor with him until he had finished it. He worries me at times.  Fierce – heck no in order to be fierce you have to have teeth and he has none. He is a rescue dog who we believe was abused and although the vet did what he could , we just could not save his teeth and they were removed.  He generally eats pretty well but for some reason this last while back he seems to mope when I go out of town. He has our other dog and the family but it seems that’s not enough at times. The odd thing was that after his teeth were removed and he started to recover he took on a new lease of life. Probably  the result of not being poisoned by rotting teeth.

And they call the wind — Annoying!!

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

The temperature has started to rise and today was a nice 26c. However, not a lot of work was done outside because although the temp. is fair, it’s blowing a gale. Dry with high winds – this, if it keeps up, will mean dust storms over the next few days. As it is, trying to keep the place clear of dust is a full time job at the moment.  I have cemented the washing line holder into place  and although it is a tab too high for herself, I will take it back out over the week end and cut some off the bottom so that it will be easier for her to work with. However, until such time as I can get the area  completed I will probably hang out and take in her washing because the ground is too uneven for her to walk on. But this is South Australia – either wet, dry with high winds, or stinking hot (45c) with a hot wind coming off the desert.  Gets a bit tiring at times, but I prefer that to the cold and the wet – as do most Australians.

We came to a decision that we will not move the washing area after all. The difficulty in  rebuilding the area I had in mind for her was just too great so we decided to buy a new rotary hoist and redo the present area. We  also decided to buy a second clothes trolley so that she can use one  from the back door to the dog gate, then lift the wash basket onto the second trolley at the other side of the gate and take that to her washing line – repeat process with dry washing on way back.  Now that the better weather is starting – despite the winds and the frustration of  debris from trees, it is starting to get quite nice outside, so I will be able to get out and get on with some work.  One of the wettest winters on record, a few weeks into spring and the farmers are complainig about the lack of rain. You can’t win with some people since it is only a short time ago that they were complaining that the ground was too wet to plant.