Tag: heat

Travel and Changes

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
When the world was young
When the world was young

I have downloaded Windows 10 on the computer in the office. Can’t get it to download on this one yet – have no idea why, the icon is there but it just hangs. Fullness of time I expect. I haven’t had time to really have a look at this new Windows but I hope to sometime soon.

Although it might not seem like it there are advantages/ disadvantages  in the dissolving of the State Assembly. Instead of 7 meetings a year, by dissolving the Assembly and amalgamating the two presbyteries into one, we reduce the meetings per year  from 7 to 4 –  1 meeting per quarter – two meetings in Adelaide -two meetings in Mount Gambier / and that’s the

The size of this place
The size of this place

sting in the tail. There was  a total of 5700 Klms for six meetings and the assembly.  The new system will mean 98ooKlms for four meetings and an assembly – with the assembly being in Brisbane, Queensland – which, from here,  is a 22 hour drive. Looks like a bunch of fun.

John’s knee operation was successful and having been down to Adelaide to see his surgeon he has been given the all clear and will not have to see him again – unless there are any problems, so I can scrub the Memorial and Flinders Hospitals off my list. I  came back from Adelaide late last night and have no intention of moving again until I go back down and pick up Catherine from the Airport. I have booked us into the Chifley on South Terrace. Her flight wont get in until after 8p.m. so we stay overnight and head north in the morning. Good,  because I gets to chat to her first and catch up with all the news in Scotland. I am so looking forward to seeing Catherine again. It will be an interesting visit in that we had word from Scotland that Catherine had a fall and has broken her shoulder, but she’s still coming  over.

Other than two trips to Adelaide, one to collect Catherine and one to take her back to Adelaide Airport, I have no trips planned until November and Mount Gambier.  I had a trip to Adelaide on Tuesday for the West Terrace Consultative Committee. A presentation to the Committee on  Jewish Funeral Customs was made  by Dr. Klee Benveniste of the Adelaide Hebrew Congregation, which I found very interesting. She also gave  an explanation on some of the most common features within the Synagogue, which I also found  interesting and most of which I did not know. I would like to do a presentation but at the moment with everything sort of up in the air, I have no idea how things will develop. Perhaps November will bring some clarity and we can  work towards acceptable changes. There are two changes that we cannot accept and if either one is imposed on us, many of the people will leave. I am not sure about me but  I don’t think I could work with either of these unacceptable changes.

The last few days have been cold, wet with very high winds. I’m so over winter. Although I have to admit that the high winds and rain that were an annoyance here, caused a fair amount of damage  elsewhere. Being in the center of Australia we are “protected” from the excesses of weather that other parts of the country experience, The only really issue we ever have is when there is a coupling of high temperature and a north wind coming in off the desert – things tend to get a bit on the hot side then. I have  gotten used to Central Australian weather, but what I think I will never get used to are the flies. Still, two out of three is not bad – Central Australia, Heat, Dust and Flies.

Fires, thunderstorms and fires

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Fires burning out of control 90 miles from here.
Fires burning out of control 90 miles from here.

Over 20 fires are still burning in South Australia and the residents in the Northern Grampians in Victoria have been told to be ready to evacuate as a massive fire burns out of control. Once our fires are under control we will be able to spare firefighters to go over to Victoria and help out. I am so glad that we don’t do fires or floods here. The heat has not abated any and we are still in the mid to high 40s and have been for five days now.  I have tried my best with water and mulch but my plants have just burned off and the Natives are struggling. And the constant wind means that my garden has become a leaf depository on steroids. Once this heat is over and we go back to normal it will take me ages to clean the place up. The heat I can take but I have never known a period when we have had constant wind day in-day out and it becomes more of a struggle to keep the place clean because the dust gets everywhere.  The wind is fanning the fires burning out of control some 95 miles away in the National Park. However the main threat is in Victoria where several small town have been evacuated.

Right at this very moment we are in the middle of a thunderstorm and Chienne is going gaga. Her distress is now passed to the Man and he is a bit upset. It is loud and it is a bit scary. I have medicated Chienne but I am reluctant to give anything to the Man that I have not already cleared with the Vet.  The Thunderstorm is a cause for further concern and it is believed that the lightening could spark off further Fires. Tomorrow the temperature is due to crash from 44c today to an overnight low of 30c and then down to a cool 28c tomorrow, and then we just wait for the next belting  :o)

It’s down to 29c at the moment but over the border in Victoria fires are still burning out of control and although conditions in the South East of  SA are starting to ease, we still have a couple of fires burning out of control with over 12 homes destroyed. If the cool weather lasts for a bit. I’ll  go out and  plant the Pencil Pines.

The cool weather is really not helping the areas where the fires are burning because of the wind change – and it’s a fairly strong wind. All it’s doing is causing the fires to change direction and

The fires on the far side of the Spencer Gulf
The fires on the far side of the Spencer Gulf

add more problems for the hundreds of firefighters battling the blazes.  I have posted here a photograph that was taken from a hill at the foreshore. In the foreground to the left, is the Iron Ore export jetty and in the distance, over the water is the fires burning on the hills at Port Germain about twenty miles away. And yes I did say that the fires were a long way from us and that’s true (170 klms by road) but I have not yet seen or heard of a fire that can travel across 20 – 25 miles over open water.

I am still having major problems with my email system and I know I’ve just lost another batch of mail. It was there this morning but when I went back into MS Outlook a little while later it was all gone. I cannot find it anywhere, so it looks as if I am going to have to bite the bullet, buy a new MS Outlook – from Outlook 2010 –  Outlook 2013- and see where we go from there. If it cannot be fixed it might be just as cheap to have a new battery put into the AppleMac and abandon the PC. Please understand I am not ignoring anyone. Everything else is fine, just MS Outlook.

Heat, Fires and the RFDS

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

It’s 4:35am and I am sitting here hot and sticky. The temperature has been hovering around the 46c mark for the last few days and will continue for the next few days with a cool change coming in at the weekend. I was in bed at 11pm last night so I guess five hours or so in this heat is fairly good. I do not have an AC in my bedroom, only overhead fans – which I find are only really effective in moving the warm are around, not really cooling it. Still, it’s better than nothing. The Man finally crept out from under my bed at 10pm last night.  The  dry thunderstorm (no rain) sparked off a number of fires (200) in South Australia, one of which is only about 50 klm. east of the city. Water bombers have been brought over from  NSW and Victoria to assist. As the high temperatures continue the possibility for bushfires increases., but I have to say (although Chienne would not agree) the light show last night was quite spectacular.

This is not ours, but it gives you an example.
This is not ours, but it gives you an example.

I bought three Pencil Pines when I was in Adelaide, but because of the heat I have not planted them. They should be safe enough remaining in their pots under cover and well watered until I can get them out. Normally I would do it at the weekend once the cool change comes in, but this weekend I am busy with the Royal Flying Doctors and fundraising. On the subject of the RFDS, we are bringing a 10 meter simulator into town at the end of the month. It’s coming from Central Operations and we  will have it for four days, so we will make the best use of it we can. With 557 landings here in the last 12 months, I think many people would be interested to see what the inside of an RFDS aircraft looks like and what range of medical  equipment it carries. We can’t take an aircraft out of service, so the simulator is the next best thing.

There are still fires burning out of control across parts  of  South Australia as the temperature shows no signs of letting up at the moment. Some places further north have recorded  temperatures of 50c – and – would you believe – 11 incidents of  people leaving children in a car and 4 of a dog left in a car. True one of my dogs will be in a car today, but the Man will be with me and you may be certain that the AC is on at full. We will only be driving for about ten minutes – to the groomer – and a further ten minutes when I collect him.

When I was a boy I went camping, fishing and hiking in the Scottish Highlands with my Dad. After my Dad died, I went off hiking on my own and an kept up the fishing. No. 3 GF came hiking with me but we are talking about the late  1960s in Scotland, so camping was out and we stayed in B&B – separate rooms, of course and if I went in to see her, the room door had to remain open.  Even better – she liked Sinatra!! I get slightly amused with the term “relationships”because we never had “relationships” which seems to me to be a fairly modern term. You either had  Boyfriend or you had a Girlfriend – there was no relationship – or what moderns would consider a relationship. Yeah, but what about the 60s, Woodstock, Hippie Generation, Free Love and all that – yes certainly in America, possibly even to a small extent in England, but  in Presbyterian,  Conservative Scotland – I think not!?! After  herself and I were married we went back to the Highlands and the mountains for a few carefree years before the twin adventure dampeners  of mortgage and family.  After the first son was born we did spend some time in the North and my family looked after the child. When he was about four, we introduced him to Loch Earn. We even took him out to Rannoch Moor for a walk. Not really knowing much about Australia I assumed that I could go for long walks and to off fishing. The bulk of Australians fish from the Jetty and that really didn’t appeal to me. The nearest river was the Murray – about 100 miles away and the nearest trout fishing was in the Australian Grampians which are cold enough for trout. I didn’t get used to the flies and still have not, but I missed my highlands so at weekend for the first year or so we were here I very selfishly took off to the upper Flinders Ranges. It wasn’t too bad walking through the SA High Country because we seemed to be out of the way of flies. I don’t think I will ever get used to them.

Heat, Chienne and Road Trips

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Chienne and her Thundershirt
Chienne and her Thundershirt

After discussions with herself  and the fact that the temperature is going to be  extreme , I telephoned Adelaide and cancelled my booking. I will not be going to Adelaide after all. Probably just as well. The high to extreme temperatures will cover about two thirds of the continent according to the Bureau  of Meteorology  – should clear South Australia by late Friday but  with a second front pushing in and lasting until at least the New Year. Already there are reports of fires in the Adelaide Hills and the fire Services are on alert. Sadly, two 9 (NINE) year olds have been picked up by police for lighting fires. Police are patrolling the back country roads looking for anything suspicious. Temperature (Official) is expected to reach 43c with the chance of a thunderstorm in the late evening. This means it will really be about 45c+ since the Official Temperature is taken from a protected area and does not really reflect what’s beaming down on your little head as you walk outside – somewhere between 109f and 113f. However, thunderstorms – with or without rain – are not uncommon after a bout of high temperatures.

I have an industrial grade Thermometer under the pergola and when I checked in at 3:50 it was nudging 47c. On the news this evening the Official Temperature was 44.5, which is only 2.5 degrees of a difference. I will probably  dress Chienne in her Thundershirt again tonight as we are advised that there will a severe weather warning for tonight – High Wind  Thurderstorm and  Lightening strikes, but probably no rain – which is what I suggested a paragraph or so ago.  I spoke to Alan and he seems resigned to not being able to spend Christmas with us. However, I will make time to go down to Adelaide sometime after Christmas and  visit with him for a while. Perhaps we could get a wheelchair and I could take him out for a coffee somewhere – that should be ok.

edwardian01Friday 20th (am)  and the forecast high winds and thunderstorm never eventuated. Of course, sometimes the forecasts are out by 24 hours and instead of a Thursday night, it could all happen tonight. Still that’s ok – Chienne looks good in her Thundershirt and she was a bit agitated last night but that could have been due to the change in  pressure after the wind change. While I wont be in Adelaide now until after Christmas I hope (weather permitting) to take a run through to the Arid Lands and bring

This little fellow was abandoned and is now in the care of SA Dog Rescue.
This little fellow was abandoned and is now in the care of SA Dog Rescue.

back some plants. Oddly enough, I have bought Native Plants here and within  months they die, whereas the plants I bought  almost a year ago in the ALBG are still with us. I have three rose bushes out front and to be honest they have never flourished, never flowered and are half dead. I am going to replace them with natives.  I might remember to take my camera with me and take some photographs along the road.

Gardens and dogs – too much heat.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

My HumanIn South Australia we are used to the heat of summer – that does not bother us too much – but the last couple of years we have experienced high levels of tropical humidity. This means that it is 35c during the day but only dropping down to 29/30c at night. Most people are getting tired through lack of sleep. Many, like me wake up in the morning as tired as when we went to bed. The overhead fans  drying things out. It’s all right for the dogs, they have an air conditioner and are fairly cool.  The humidity at this level and for so long is not what we are used to and it’s draining. We had the door open and the nets up (keep the flies out) so the dogs could wander in and out at will. It has been so humid and  draining that we have had to close the door just to keep the heat out and the cool air in. And the tiles of the laundry are  cool. We are used to arid and dry, not hot and humid. Today, for example, the temperature is 38c but that’s ok – it’s hot and we can deal with that – not sure about tomorrow though – 42c.

Needless to say, the dogs have been inside most of the time. We closed tot doors to keep the hot air out and they bark at the door when they need to go out.  They have been good and spend much of the time “resting” and having differences of opinion as to whose turn it is for the raised bed. We have two inside a large one and a small one and they argue over who gets the large one  :o)

According to what we have been told, this is the last  of the string of days over 32c and by Thursday we should  be down to mid to high 20s again.  As I said at the start, I don’t mind the heat, but the humidity is draining. The garden is suffering because although I water at night after the sun goes down, I have already lost  many of the vegetables I planted when I thought the very hot weather was over. Most of the flowers, with the exception of the Lavender, have survived. The Lavander might, but it looks decidedly  unwell at the moment.  Of course it being the hottest day of the week thus far, and I get a call to come into work. Oh well, I suppose my extended holidays had to end sooner or later.

Someone sent me this photograph so I thought I would share it. If I have breached copyright o something, I am sorry and I will remove it if asked.

It’s just a tad warm.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

firiesThousands of Firefighters are  being placed on standby as the temperature soars to 44c and above. To add to the problem, we have a North Wind, which is helping to dry everything out. We are not, officially, in a heatwave  – yet. A heatwave is defined as five consecutive days when the temperature is above 35c. So, if you have, 36,36,42.35,31 – then it’s not a heatwave and if the 6th day soars to 44c.,  then that’s the start of another five day cycle. What you have to remember is that 44c is the “Official” temperature. It is not ground temperature and it is not what the sun is beating down on your wee head. The official temperature is taken in a shaded area not in the direct heat of the sun – like your head.  The dogs are sleeping inside and I have renewed the  bowl of water I have at the end of the drive. In weather like this – when I am home_ I change the water every couple hours to stop it getting hot. This is for dogs, or indeed, any thirsty animal to drink from. The birdbath has a slight leak and needs to be replaced/ repaired. It has been empty and I was intending to do  the repairs soon – however, I have filled that with water also at least the birds can cool down, if needed. The Weather Bureau has warned that we are on track for temperatures above 40c for the next seven days. All the more reason why anyone with a lick of sense should have at least 6 litres of water in the boot (trunk) (for the radiator) and  enough water  for drinking.  Today was 41c, and tomorrow will be 46c – official temperatures so I expect the dogs will be inside all of tomorrow. Actually, unless I have to go out I think I will be inside for most of tomorrow.

The keys to life!

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

“Dogs are our link to paradise. They don’t know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring–it was peace.”

― Milan Kundera

The weather over the last week has been odd, to say the least. It’s still cool in the evenings but the days are starting to warm up. But it has also been odd in that we had one day where the temperature shot up to  41c – crashed overnight and we had a gale and a thunderstorm.  In some parts of the State the Country Fire Service are still fighting fires that were started by the lightening strikes during that storm. I have been ill, herself has been ill and we ended up taking her to hospital because she had difficulty breathing. She was put on a ventolin machine for about an hour and that helped.  I have been unwell to the point where I have not been taking any calls and not moving out of the house much. However, I am well on the mend and have started getting out to the garden again. Even started taking the dogs out for a walk. And that’s the odd thing about the weather – it was a lovely day yesterday but quite cold when I took the dogs out in the late evening. I came back for a a jacket.  It’s been odd. During the week  I was involved in a Fundraiser Event for the Royal Flying Doctors Service and whilst it was warm and pleasant during the day, the minute the sun started to go down, the breeze got up and it became cold. Fortunately I had a jacket in the car that I could get. I suppose,really this is typical for this area and our closeness to the desert. In summer the hot wind comes off the desert and pushes the temperature up, but at  the moment it is cold.  Very odd indeed.

Most of the time I have been spending out has been cleaning up, since I am surrounded by trees – tree leaves and wind don’t go too well together. At least we are not in Queensland that is once again being battered by storms. We are too close to the desert and we really don’t do floods – the occasional  puddle with lots of water, but not floods. This cold and damp weather seems to have gone on forever, so it will be nice to  spend some time talking about the heat for a change  :o)