Tag: Lighthouse

Wetlands, Stroller and Walking.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
The Flinders Lodge

Well everything is booked for next Monday  and we set out for Adelaide, booking into the  Lodge sometime Monday afternoon. Tuesday morning I take her to the Flinders Clinic and she will go for day surgery. I don’t collect her again until around 1:30. After I  hand her over to the medical staff – who have my  mobile phone number – I  take off to Marion Shopping Centre.   After the surgery  and the Vet Bills for Benji I was going to put the New Laptop on hold, but we discussed this and  decided that I really do need a new laptop. At the last Church Conference in Norwood, it was embarrassing the way my old laptop kept falling out and had to be reset, so I need a new one. I hope to get it on Tuesday at Marion..

This last week or so has been pretty hectic with Annabell being ill and setting up a bed for her, so I can keep an edye on her              . Her recovering – well sort of – and then Benji and his operation and me sleeping on a blowup mattress on the floor beside him rather

He’s getting better.

than take him into the bedroom with me. The reason  being is that I was afraid the he would try to jump on the bed to be beside me and cause injury to himself. Or if I put him on the bed beside me he might jump off during the night and also injure himself, so  what I did do was the better option. Crazy I know, but Benji is my  dog and I look after him. Anyway, it was only for a few days.

At the moment because of the  attack, followed by the operation followed by the number of dogs we now have around here, we have been driving to the Wetlands and walking

Peek-a-Boo.

around there. He is in the stroller, of course, and he has made lots of new friends. Sometimes it’s “Good morning Benji” then as an after thought, “Good Morning John” However, I have found that even two laps of the wenlands is only slightly more steps than the walk of the district that we used to do before  his “injury”. But it’s a good walk and we both enjoy it and the people we meet are really nice = even the joggers  who give a “morning”as they go whizzing past in the dark – and yes, most  (Me too) use a head light.  This afternoon, I put the lead (leash) on him and took him outside and had him walking for a few minutes – about six minutes in all and I am pleased to say that he did well.. He did lift his leg a couple of time but mostly he walked using all four paws, which was great. – and yes, it is the leg he lifts when he “Lifts his Leg”!  Hopefully, once we come back from Adelaide and he gets the stiches out, a few more days and we can retire the stroller for a while.. What I will do is one and a half turns in the stroller and the remaining half turn with him walking,  and see how that goes.

At the Wetlands today I saw a man who had a dog with him, but  the dog had a blue light attacked to his collar so that it tells people in the dark that there is a dog comming towards them. I thought this was a great idea. First time I have ever seen him or the dog and I didn’t get an opportunity to talk to him. There is a  “Pets Domain Shop”here so I may have a look in there in the morning, but they tend to be over-priced in many things. But that is common here. I could get the laptop I want here rather than in Adelaide, but there is a difference of over $100 in the price, so I can wait until Tuesday. The reason for the difference in prices is  “Transport

The French Connection..

During the week I  drove out to the Lighthouse and in our wander round I discovered a new  information board which tells of the exploration of the Upper Spencer Gulf,  Matthew Flinders was not the only explorer to venture up here. The French  charted the area of the Gulf up to and including what is now Whyalla, whilst Matthew Flinders explored and charted the other side. There is an information Board for Flinders but I thought the French Connection would be more interesting.  The ship was built in New South Walesd and sold to the French Government

What the French ship may have looked like.

 

Benji, Walks and Photographs

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Benji – bright eyed and bushy tailed.

One week today since Benji was injured in an attack.  He is recovered fairly well and we are out walking again, but on a different route. Actually we are back on the original route which is in the opposite direction from the  area where  we were injured. He still has antibiotics to take twice daily  and I will take him back to the Vet on Tuesday as a follow up when the antibiotics finish. Apart from the surface wounds there seems to be no internal damage, for which I am most thankful. After three days in the stroller, he was ready for walking. He was glad to get out again and enjoying the walks and the fresh air. We stick mainly to the Ada Ryan Gardens, the Wetlands, the lighthouse and Stoney Point during the day when there are  very few people with dogs around. Since we are surrounded by National Parks and Conservation parks, there is not many places we can go to.  There are a number of places further down the coast that are pet friendly and the nearest of them is 70 miles away so just going there and then coming back again seems to me very wasteful. In order to justify travelling that distance it is necessary to make a day of it. At the moment I am not happy  going off and leaving Annabell. Yes the boys are here and that’s fine when I have to go to Adelaide for Presbytery, but leaving her on her own while I go off on an unnecessary  road trip with my dog is a different matter altogether,  I think the term self Indulgent kind of fits the bill.  When we have to go Adelaide and the Clinic, John usually looks after Benji, makes sure he is ok and feeds him. With the dog door, Benji can get in and out as he needs.

The weather over the last week has been great and the boy and I have got out and about. However, with the cyclone in Western Australia and the  effects  reaching to us, this will change over the next few days with forecast rain and high winds. Well yes, it was a bit on the  windy to very windy when we were out walking this morning but we didn’t get blown away and made it back to the house safe and sound. Sitting hear I can hear the wind rushing through the carport. It’s not constant and comes in waves.  Anyway, a very warm welcome to  Bogie. He is lovely and I did reply to the post but it seems to have vanished into  some void. I am finding this with a lot of things recently.

There is a photograph exhibition in May and I have been thinking of  submitting photographs to it. I like my photographs but I’m not so sure  others will. I was at  the photograph club

No idea what they are but I liked them

last night and photographs that I thought were good were  criticized  by the judge who found many faults with them. I guess the idea is that the criticizing and pointing out the faults – as the judge sees them –  is supposed to  assist you in  doing better, grow and mature, so to speak, in all the aspects of photography. I shall never succeed in this because I found many of the  comments, pointless and excessively picky. Just as well I had no photographs there or he would have had a field-day,  What I have is an excellent camera but I don’t know how to use it to get the best out of it. This group is  “Competition Based” with only some minor practical nights. They are really very nice people but this is not what I want and really not helping me much. Many years ago the TAFE (Technical and Further Education) ran  a number of Community Courses. A course on Photography – a Basic Computer course, the wife of one of the local doctors, ran a course on Indian Cooking, another lady ran a course on Italian Cooking. The fees were reasonable, cooking people brought the ingredients as required each week, and so forth. There were no Diplomas nor Certificates at the end, but they were well attended. But the Government of the day spent money on other things and when it needed money, it started closing down TAFE Campuses. It tore the heart out of the TAFE system and it never really recovered – it still has not.

I seriously dislike Blocks!

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Seems about right.

I had already completed a post with over 800 words and several pictures but a malfunction in WordPress – or me – lost everything. It had gone back to blocks and I tried to get it and load again in Classic and lost everything. I  have no idea if this will survive. Anyway –  What I do remember from the lost post is that I  did recall on seeing an item in the news about a unit that is similar to a pacemaker only this unit is for the brain. Once activated it send signals to the brain and can reduce the trembling of hands as well as other aspects that are associated with Parkinson’s Disease. There was a demonstration on the news  and once activated the difference in the man’s hands and in his overall demeanor  was incredible. The reason I mentioned this was not really to highlight a breakthrough in Parkinson’s  but the fact that the Medical Scientists are looking further and feel with further investigation and development it could  be used to control and contain the effects of epilepsy. That would be some breakthrough.

Apart from a  few days here and there, we didn’t have much of a summer. However, this early weeks in Autumn  have been glorious, mild to warm and sunny – warm and sunny during the day, still warm in the early evening and cool to cold at night and in the morning. Yesterday Benji and I  went for a drive in the car out to Fitzgerald Bay and the Shingle Ridge, from there to the Lighthouse. From there we drove to the Foreshore – which was busy so we went to the Wetlands and had a good walk there. This was followed by Ice Cream , Vanilla for him and Almond for me ( but don’t tell  Annabell)

During the week  I attended a Memorial Service at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church. Brian, a member of St. Mark’s, was also a good friend to us when we needed help. He died last year but because of Covid-19  nothing could take place.  As of Midnight Tuesday  most of the restrictions in South Australia were lifted and, with some assistance, I have put all the pews back to their positions and removed the seating tags.

Had a telephone call from Flinders yesterday and  the reports from our last visit and not great but not bad. The cancer is still there but not moved nor enlarged. However, we will go back down to Adelaide in about six weeks and spend a few days there,   There will be an investigation of what is happening and  day surgery to replace the units. They will be left in place for six weeks and  if there is no progress  then they will consider chemotherapy.

The weather since the beginning of Autumn has been great – this is the weather that we should have had over summer. Yes we had a couple of heatwaves that lasted a few days each time, but other than that it was not all that great. This weather coupled with the Easter Holidays has people swarming to the beaches and

Part of the Shingle Ridge from the roadway.
The Lighthouse – again.

holiday spots. After church today (Friday) I made sure Annabell was ok then took Benji for a drive in the car. We had a great time and went to Fitzgerald Bay, the Shingle Ridge, the Lighthouse and back to  the Wetlands ( no ice cream) – a pretty busy afternoon and since we went much further along the coast road, this time, slightly different from last time. I drove to the end of the bitumen and  went on the gravel until I was able to turn around and head back. When I go out I always make sure I have my  phone with me. When the hands free speaker tells me I am “disconnected” I will turn back and get my phone. It does this about 100 yards away from the house and out of range. If Annabell were to call me I am only about 40 minutes away from home and can soon be back.

Dogs, weather and former leaders.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Playing with a new lens – settings not right yet.

Sunday and I am tired from very little sleep. Max is, as I have already said, very overweight and the problem with that is the noise he makes. He woke me up several times last night with loud snoring and other noises so, really, I am more exhausted than tired. It’s daylight and now he’s quiet. In three hours I have to be at church but when I get back home I  will get changed and try and get some sleep.. I have not been out walking much as I would be with Benji so, as I said, my fitbit steps are way off. I didn’t even make half the standard yesterday. Go out without Max – just me and Benji – well yes,  I tried that and Annabell suffered by having to listen to his  complaining – he was not happy at us going out without him and made his feelings known. He’s a lovely, lovable dog, but he’s hard work.  Took them to the lighthouse yesterday and this time I let Benji out of the car and closed the door before I let Max out. I have to lift him into the car – and he’s heavy!!!  Was trying out a new lens yesterday – a wide angle lens – and I still haven’t got the setting quite right and ended up sending most of the shots I took yesterday to the trash – best place for them! Sometimes I get frustrated and slightly short with people who advocate all kinds on on-line courses. I have tried them and gave up.  It just didn’t work for me. Yes I know, they work for most people but I am not most people.. We used to have short-term  community courses for many things at the Tech. College here and although they still hold photography courses in Adelaide, they don’t here any more. Actually, they don’t do much here any more! – Yes I know – I am living in the past. Well, the music was better then!

I was thinking about a recently former President of the United States the other day. Why this should be, I have no idea,  but for some very strange and odd reason the following came to mind –

“How many times can a man look up,

before he sees the sky?

And how many  ears must one man have,

before he can hear people cry?

And how many deaths will it take ’til he knows

that too many people have died?

I check the  Covid updates released by governments throughout the world every morning and I find it very sad to see that the USA will reach 500,000 deaths within a month. The UK as a whole is over 1600 deaths in the last 24 hours, which is the highest in Europe. People are dying in their thousands and how any rational person can say that this is fake news and that Covid is not real, beggars belief. And people outside of hospitals in England chanting that Covid is not real and harassing nurses trying to get in to attend to their duties, is just not acceptable.

Taken yesterday morning – out with dogs 06:10. Looks better on the phone.
Just Because

This last week we had a heatwave from 33c up to a top of 46c. The top temperature was yesterday (Sunday) Today –  Monday –  the day started off quite well, humid but not too bad. I was out with the dogs and then shopping for Annabell. In the afternoon, the  thunderstorm hit and the rain came crashing down. It is now 5pm and it’s still going and by the sound of things likely to go into the night. Sorry boys – no walk again tonight  – same reason – different aspect.  Had a look at the satellite and it might be clearing shortly but the Yorke  Peninsula and then across to Adelaide  could get a bit of a hit. Tomorrow, however looks nice.  The rain stayed away and I took the dogs out – well I took Benji out. I started off with two dogs and had only gone  about twenty odd feet when he started  sitting down and wouldn’t move, so as soon as he did move I turned around back to the house put him inside, took off his harness and left with Benji and we had a good walk together. Annabell suggested that I just go out without him but that presents problems in that I take them out at 6am .If I go out without him ( as I did once)  he  whines, barks and makes a racket which will waken Annabell and that’s what I don’t want to happen, so I just take him with me in the morning. He should be going home this Thursday.  He is a lovable big soul, but he is  really not too much, but I have concerns about Benji. I mean  yesterday Max came and sat down beside me. Benji got up and was making straight for him – and I got up and put myself between them, facing Benji. He stopped, then turned and went back to his mat. It’s a worry.

***UPDATE. The Western Australia / South Australia Border has been closed – Max may not be going home on Thursday ***

Hospital, Fires and Dog Problems.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Benji and Max walking – before the heatwave,

Friends, Jennifer and Milan,  have left to go to Western Australia (Perth)  Because of the covid-19 and border restrictions, they have not seen their children and grandchildren since Christmas 2019. They asked  me if we would look after Max – the Pug –  for a couple of weeks and I reluctantly agreed. Max is a lovely, calm and very placid dog, but last time Max was here  he and Benji did not get along too well. I was concerned for Max because all terriers can get very nasty if threatened, or think they are being threatened.  It’s only been a few days but Benji is older and wiser and the dog-door helps because Max spends much of time wandering in and out of the house and  just wandering around the back. I have been out walking with them and for the moment Max needs to stop and smell everything .That aside, they walk well together and  they are getting along fairly well. However, and here I delve into history. Many moons ago in the UK there was a Ballroom Orchestra led by a man called “Victor Silvester” –  you may remember (Galivanter) that he had a catch phrase associated to him – “slow, slow -quick, quick – slow”  Well being out with Max is like – “Slow, slow – slow, slow – slow. At night Benji and I generally go on a : Block Walk:  from the house to the end of town i.e. the end of the street. This distance takes Benji  and me about 8/ 10 minutes  about 20 mins there and back. With Max, it’s 20+ minutes just to get there- and that’s when  he’s not stopping every three feet. He is the most unflappable , placid dog you could imagine. He’s a Pug – a very overweight Pug – calm, quiet and peaceful. Sort of reminds me of me, really – except for the overweight bit!!  :o)

Annabell has not been too great this week and tiredness is only part of her problem but we are getting there. The Ultrasound should give us more information in what is happening. Annabell says it’s like being a teenager again only with the “Month” happening every few days. Poor thing!  The Ladies Coffee Group starts back tomorrow (Tuesday) so  she is quite looking forward to that.  I have to remember to remove the dog seat cover tomorrow since I will be picking up two other ladies. I’ll give the car a clean out and a spray so it will be nice and fresh for the ladies.

With South Australia in the midst of a heatwave (37 – 43C) the dogs and I are out only in the morning (05:40) and even then it’s only for a short walk, Yesterday the temperature was 38c and today it is expected to be around 42c and the same again tomorrow. The fire ban across the State came into effect at midnight last night. We have one large fire in Tasmania – contained but not

And it’s gone 8:30 already

controlled – and we had a fire at Salisbury. The Salisbury fire was believed to have been the work of an arsonist. Never mind, a severe look and a talking to by a Magistrate together with a good suspended sentence should sort things out – just like it did during the fire season last year. The favoured word by magistrates in South Australia is “naughty “, a term most  people would not use in reference to a 18/19 year old male. Well, a week of heat and back to  low to mid 20c for the next six days.

Annabell’s tests at the hospital here were  completed without any problem,  so that’s good. The results will be sent to  the  Clinic at Flinders Medical. At the moment  she is taking things fairly easy. My frustration is that I cannot go anywhere – no – not because of Annabell  – but because of having Max. Took a run out to the lighthouse on Sunday afternoon. Took four photographs and drove home.  I got Benji out and got his harness on, then lifted Max out.  I had foolishly left the front door open so Max moved to the door,  jumped in  plonked himself down in the seat well. and refused to move. I took a couple of photographs, got Benji back in the car and drove home, concerned about getting stopped by police and fined for having an unrestrained dog in the  car. As for other things – I have just about given up  making up the setps on my Fitbit and I don’t think I am going to get anywhere until Max goes home in two weeks.

 

 

Wandering, new lenses and vanishing comments

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
The Almond Blossom

As suspected the Zoom Conference was a series of drop-outs ( NO not that kind of drop-out)  and I  dropped out 8 times and missed much of the discussions.  Mind you, having said that, the last quarter has seen everything closed down, so, really, there was not a lot to discuss and anything I did miss, I’ll pick when the minutes arrive.. The last two days have been reasonable with regard to the weather. I even managed to take Benji out to Point Lowly and the lighthouse. For Benji it was an afternoon out in the car and a wander around old, familiar ground. For me it was an exercise in frustration. I bought a new lens for the camera – a 15mm wide angle lens and I just couldn’t get the setting right. All the  photographs I took were just blank shots – nothing but white. To make matters worse, somehow a feature had gotten activated that was really frustrating me and no matter what I tried I just could not get it off. Eventually I gave up – put the camera in the car,  took Benji for a last walk to the lighthouse and then drove home. Once home I took out the camera went into the back yard and  stayed there until I removed this annoying feature – which I eventually did – and if you even think to ask me what I did – don’t – because I have no idea ! That’s about it for the moment since the next few days are forecast to be cold, wet and miserable again.

Before he went back up north to Olympic Dam ( Roxby Downs) Andrew and I spent a day in Port Lincoln. He drove as far as Franklin Harbour  (107klm) and I drove to  just after the Tumby

The Pride of Port Lincoln

Bay (140 klm) turn-off and he drove from there into Port Lincoln. I wanted to go to Bunnings so we went there first, mainly because it was the furthest away and we would work back from there. Andrew wanted some things for Connor so we spent some time in Children’s Clothing. I wandered off to the pet section and  had a look around finally buying a new toy for Benji. I did, however, get the photograph of the Champion Racehorse that I didn’t get last time we were in Lincoln. Same as last time, we went for lunch at  Del Giorno’s Restaurant, which is always excellent. I found Andrew’s car new difficult to drive. What I mean is that it drives very well, responsive and smooth, but difficult for me. I am a midget a mere 5ft. 5 inches and this car was not designed for someone as small as me.   The driving seat only went so far forward, which was not close enough for me. By the time I had

The other side of the Gulf – 152 klm. by road

driven to the 140 klm, I was  quite painful and had to  pull over and change drivers. Yes I know but everything in this car is electric including the seat adjustment and Andrew has it set up for him and was  unable to make too much in the way of changes to accommodate me.   I was uncomfortable mainly because I felt I really didn’t have full control of the vehicle. Still, it was a good day out and I got the bench cushions that I wanted and a new toy for Benji. Andrew did get some things but not as much as he wanted and we did have a nice lunch. The following morning Andrew went back up to Olympic Dam.

Benji and I spend the yesterday afternoon (Friday 15th) at Stony Point and the lighthouse. I have been playing with a new lens and during the afternoon I took lots of photographs – dumped lots of  photographs. This new lens will take a bit of getting used to and setting up. It’s interesting – frustrating – but interesting.  It is supposed to be a nice day today so more than likely I’ll drive out to the Point again and play some more with the new lens,  and Benji doesn’t care where I go to in the car just as long as I go with him. I might even get to keep some photographs this time :o)  I have ordered a battery for the camera. I have the feeling I might need  an extra battery. And again my comments have vanished from a post – both by the same person. Perhaps their server does not like me, they don’t like me or my server is playing silly beggars, I know not, but something is not right

 

Towards the Final Curtain U.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
I’m only getting out if there’s food..

The weather for the last few days has been quite mild and at 22c  good for wandering around  the lighthouse and the foreshore.. Most of the restrictions have been lifted so it’s

What ?? Get out of the car on to the cold road??? You Jest!!

good to get out and about . However, it was never really much of a problem up here. The kind of restricted period has given me  a lot of time to play with my cameras and I have bought a macro lens for the Canon and ordered one for the Nikon. As I said before, I  have a lot to learn and whilst I have no one here to teach me ( will be better when the camera club starts up again) but I like to potter around taking photographs of things and places that interest me and, of course, lots of photographs of Benji – who even has his own folder on my computer. It is still very cold in the mornings. On Tuesday morning Benji and I went up to Hummock Hill to photograph the sunrise. It was bitterly cold and my hands were freezing. Like little digits of ice! Anyway, I took  quite a few photographs of the rising sun and the surrounding area, but I just don’t seem able to get the setting right for a sunrise. Photographs club starts back next week, so I will  start to get some information that I can put into practice.  I did buy a new Camera Backpack which I am quite pleased with. With the restrictions in place the President of the Camera Club posted a letter, number or colour on the website each week. This week the letter was “J” and Annabell and I came up with a few ideas. I did go to the Shopping Centre and photograph the Jewellers, but I wasn’t too happy with that – I felt it was “Ordinary” and  I wanted something different. In the end I drove into town and photographed the Court House and posted it under the tile “Justice”. Our court house, unlike Adelaide, is  a reddish brick building, not at all inspiring but  I was quite happy with what it represented.

I was not involved at the RFDS Fundraising this weekend but I did drive down to the Cuttlefish Area to  catch up on what was happening. Both days have been very productive both for the  RFDS and the Cuttlefish Dive

the Point Lighthouse

Organisers. It was very busy and despite having extra supplies, the RFDS  was starting to run out. Fortunately by that time things were slowing down and heading towards the end of the day. Benji and I left the Cuttlefish area and drove round to the far side of the point  and  the Lighthouse. I like the lighthouse – it’s a nice drive and  it’s a  quiet enough area and the lighthouse always makes for a good photograph subject.  I have a one-person tent and I was thinking of upgrading this to a larger tent  which would allow me to go off overnight with Benji and a photo trip. Of course we would always be at the edge of the National Park and actually driving through the Park should not be a problem as long as I  keep him in the car when I get out to take any photographs.  All pretty much in the air at the moment – not really the weather for camping.

I went back out and did another round of sunrise photographing, but still not happy with the results. I’ll most likely delete them again. Well,  if nothing else, the delete function on the camera is getting a good workout. Anyway, it was -1c and bitterly cold so I’m not doing that again – at least, not until it’s a bit warmer. Benji and I have not been going out in the

Ada Ryan Gardens

early morning walking because it has been so cold. We have taken our walk later in the day when it’s a bit warmer. We also go wandering in the Wetlands and the Foreshore.  To add to the cold the last two days have been wet. According to the forecast we will have showers  until Tuesday – so not a lot of walking. The Cuttlefish Diving is on again this weekend for a three day period – Friday, Saturday and Sunday (today being Saturday) and the RFDS are organising the catering for the three days. A very busy three days for the crews involved, For the remainder, I have been to the council and the two hardware stores and no indication as to when they will be ready recommence their weekly barbecues.

I include the Ada Ryan Gardens photograph mainly because the Council with grants have been working out there and have spent a bunch of cash to install new  ground lighting. It looks impressive on the council  page so as soon we as get some dry weather I will go out some evening and take photographs of the gardens under the new lighting.

Wetlands, Lighthouse and Dust Storms

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Dougal and Benji at Wetlands

Dougal came for a stay last Thursday.  Being flat out for much of last week we didn’t get out much but I did manage to get  them both to the Wetlands for a walk. Still no rain to speak of so there is no change in the water levels. It might not seem like that from the photograph, but then looks can be deceiving , however, the main pond still has water in it. Still it was a good time together and if he is still here, I  will take them both for a drive  out to the Lighthouse at the weekend.  At the end of this month we may be looking after a new dog for two weeks. One of the ladies at the church asked me if I would be willing to look after her dog for two weeks . Annabell was there at the time  and she said we would love to. I totally agree since the lady in question is one of the coffee ladies group and she has a Pug called Max – that should be fun.

During this week we experienced one of the  consequences of the drought.  The weather up until last Thursday was  fair – bit warm but fair- Friday was a different thing

This was at Port Wakefield , I believe.

altogether. Friday we had high winds – as high as 95 klms per hour in places. The traffic ground to a halt in Port Wakefield area as visibility was  zero, due to thick dust storms. We had high winds here and some experiences of the dust storms but nothing like the other areas of the  peninsula. Port Lincoln faced winds of over 100 kms. per hour and it was so bad that the power company shut off the power to Port Lincoln and the surrounding area – some 15,000 people without power. The reason was to protect Port Lincoln.  The power company was concerned that the high winds would bring down trees and branches onto power lines sparking a fire, which, in the high wind conditions, could take hold and spread very quickly. Adelaide also took a bit of a

Wont look at the Camera.

battering. As I said, we were not too bad – things happen above us or below us,

In the far north of the State, things are different  and the desert is blooming again. The flood waters from Queensland have made their way down and are currently pouring into Lake Eyre – normally  dry. As the waters have made their way down from Queensland and filled the dry river beds, the desert is now watered , everything along the way is blooming and there is an abundance of wildlife, swans, ducks, wild geese and pelicans. The  water will create islands in the lake where the birds can breed and raise chicks without foxes and dingos being able to get to them. Lake Eyre is 9,500 square klms however the Lake Eyre Basin and catchment area is 1.14 million square klms. It’s a big, big basin and lake Eyre itself is some 15 meters – about 50 feet – below sea level.  Last time it flooded my  son, John,  took the  flight up there and flew over Lake Eyre and the surrounding area. I did see the photographs and it was quite a spectacular sight to see the water flooding into the lake.

I took the dogs to the lighthouse and we had a good wander around the place and a good long walk  around the point. The weather was nice – bit on the warm side (34c) but quite nice. Benji did his usual and refused to look at the camera.  The drive to and from the lighthouse is 76 klms. or 46.25 miles, so it’s not something I do  too often but there’s no where else we can go – everything else around us is either a conservation area, or a  reserve area and  the whole of the Flinders Ranges are National Parks.

One of the things I enjoy doing is taking photographs. I agree I’m not all that good at it but I like doing it. I did go to a photography club some years ago , but  wasn’t too impressed with it. I am thinking I might give it another go. It seems to have a  different attitude to it these days so perhaps I might not find it quite as I did last time. One can but try. But then I have also changed since then and and I do believe I have quite mastered the Box Brownie now.

Lighthouse, Wetlands and Spencer Gulf

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Benji at the lighthouse.

Friday 22nd. Just after lunch I  put a blanket over the front seat in the car, strapped Benji in and off we went to the Lighthouse. It was a lovely day, warm but not hot, so it was a comfortable ride for the 24 miles. Of course, with the air conditioner on it would have been a comfortable ride anyway, but he did what he usually does, curl up facing me and  have a nap. We spent some time wandering about and it was good for us to be out and about again after all the hot weather we have had recently.

We came back home by way of the town center and I  went into the lolly shop and bought 250gms of sugared almonds, because I knew she had them in for the first time in a long time. I know, but it’s my indulgence and they remind me of my childhood in Scotland – every lovely crunch of them. In the evening, after the news, I took Benji down to the wetlands. It’s been a while since we were there. To say I was shocked is an understatement. The amount of water loss is incredible. With the continued drought and the fact that there is no

The loss of water at the wetlands

water going into the system, this, plus the water going out to water the trees, lawns and plants has really taken its toll. Having said that, it did rain for a bit last night and although it rained for several hours, it was fairly light rain and didn’t make a lot of difference to anything.

Today both Annabell and I are  exhausted.  The family at the back of us were having an 18th Birthday Party. The father came around and told his neighbours  what was going to happen and said he would try and keep the music to a reasonable level. Well, that was a lie right there! He did  indicate that they were going to play music, but they didn’t. I don’t know what the heck it was they played but music it was not – it was just a thump, thump, thump. My son follows Iron Maiden, and some other sort of heavy metal and though I  don’t like to admit it, it is music – of a sort – but this last night, until 2am was just a continual thump, thump, thump. I almost took a serious dislike when the alarm went off at 6am. I did not have

The Spencer Gulf at the Lighthouse.

a good night, but Benji and I went out for our walk in the calm,  early, cloud covered morning. Today was the Congregation Annual General Meeting, so  church was well over two hours long. I think Annabell is resting – good for her. We go back to the doctor this week and we expect he will increase the  amount of her insulin again. At the moment she is not too bad, but  the readings are still higher than he would like.  ( He did increase the  level to 17ml.)

The drought continues to bite in the north of South Australia and over in Victoria. There has also been high and strong winds that have  turned the bare paddocks into dust bowls and animals are starting to perish for lack of food and water and the dust that gets everywhere – into the animal eyes and mouth. There’s not a lot of help being handed out. Must have looked away for a moment and when I looked back, March is just about finished and we are rushing towards April. Today – Thursday 28th –  Dougal is coming to stay for a little while. I have no idea how long this time as Ina is still in a Respite Center outside of Adelaide.

Under our system, you can qualify for traveling assistance if you have to travel for treatment.  The hospital at the Port does not have Nuclear Medicine facilities – our hospital does. So  this lady had to travel from Port Augusta to Whyalla for treatment –  a distance of 80 klms. ( 160kms round trip) She does not quality for assistance because the cut off point is 100 klms.  This lady is traveling 160 klms twice a week for treatment but does not  receive assistance. This was highlighted with the  Minister for Health and he  agrees that many of the  rules were made to  apply to Adelaide not the country areas. He has promised to have a look and overhaul where necessary.

Adelaide, Kangaroos and walkin’ the dog!

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

On Tuesday morning I set off for Adelaide. I was  not too far from Adelaide (less than 90klms) when my son contacted me and said that there had been a change of plans and that they were both arriving in Adelaide on Tuesday night and  heading home on Wednesday morning, so I didn’t need to come down after all.  I told him where I was and how impressed I was but I hope I shall be able to cancel  the second room at short notice. This is the hotel I use when Presbytery is in North Adelaide. I took a run out to the shopping center at Tea Tree Plaza and did some shopping for Annabell. I like TTP and am generally quite comfortable there. For  some reason I don’t like Marion Shopping Center. Can’t think why but I just don’t like it. It doesn’t seem to have a lot of character and I find it quite antiseptic. Later on in the afternoon I was at a place that has  an overload of character – The Central Market.  It’s one place I really enjoy wandering around.  Anyway, I  went to the hotel and booked in, explaining why I no longer need two rooms and why I need to cancel one. No problem. They were very understanding.  Once I booked in and put my case in the room,  I took the bus into town. I had some things I wanted for myself at Kikki.k and David Jones

For more years than I care to remember I have used a  Filofax but in recent years it has become ridiculously expensive to get inserts. I think I said before that I can, of course, get inserts from the

I see the moon, the moon sees me!!

UK and the USA  but the cost of shipping/postage is greater than the cost of the inserts.  Yes I can download but my printer cannot not cope with the size and I am not about to buy a printer that can so I can use it once a year. Anyway, there are several printing shops in Adelaide so at the last meeting of the year ( late November early December) I can download, save to a USB and have the inserts printed off for less than $10. For years it was so simple and there were two Filofax outlets in Rundle Mall, Adelaide –  Borders and David Jones. Borders has gone and David Jones don’t really stock much now.

It’s been ages since Benji and I were down at the wetlands. It’s really been too hot  and  sadly there is only a limited amount of shade there. This whole week the temperature will be around the mid 30c mark and still too hot to take him onto the concrete paths at the wetlands for any length of time. Interestingly, there is no shade at the Wetlands Kiosk. Not long after it opened I took Benji for a walk then stopped off for a coffee for me and a small Ice Cream for Benji. The cost was over what I anticipated which I thought was a bit much. I have not been back since. I also notice that it is closed for a number of days during the week, so perhaps it is not doing as well as was expected. Personally, I think the lack of shade might have something to do with that.  The forecast for next week is  for cooler temperatures, so perhaps we can get back down to afternoons at the lighthouse and the wetlands.

In the early evening.

This morning on my walk with Benji, the place was covered in Kangaroos – they were everywhere. Not just the odd one or two as normal, but mobs of them. Why no photographs – it’s 6am and it’s dark. In the early evening, I go around the park/ play area: I no longer go through it. There are quite a few Kangaroos there in the evening and I find that even although Benji is under control and does not offer a threat – he doesn’t even bark at them – they still take off when they see the dog, and that’s my problem. There is bushland across from the park and that’s where they make for, but it means crossing a road and they would just take off without  any concern for traffic. Hitting a Kangaroo is not  good –  it kills the Kangaroo, but  the car would be a write off and  depending on the angle of the hit – the driver could be too. So, I go around the park and leave them be – it’s safer that way