Not counting today, only four days left until Spring is here. Not going to miss winter one little bit. The days have been mild but the mornings and evenings have been very cold. This morning it was foggy and very cold – so cold that I really entertained thoughts of giving up the morning walk, turning round and heading for home and a heater. I didn’t!! However, as soon as I got in I went directly to my room and turned my heater on full. Benji has had his breakfast and is curled up in his bed. However, we can’t really complain too much since the weather this last week has been mild and it has been enjoyable walking around the Wetlands with Benji during the day. It has also allowed my to get back out in the garden and start the process of cleaning up the 40 billion leaves. Ok so I exaggerate – there’s only 20 Billion. I also have an area out front that I have tried to grow things in without success. I had a think about this and finally decided this last week to dig it all out and remove all the soil and replace it with new material ( 3 x 70 ltrs of material) and finally, on Saturday, I bought new plants from the Garden Centre and planted them – we’ll see what happens. Oh and I also put down fertilizer. My stick was just that – a stick, so that’s gone. With the lack of rain the Kangaroos have been wandering well into the area looking for water and food. In another area, close to bushland, they have Emus wandering around. I see the Roos in the new area beyond me, but I haven’t seen any down near me—-yet.
The fact that we have a shortage of water is illustrated in the level of water at the Wetlands. There is still a fair volume of water in the pools but the drop in water
level is fairly obvious. The black Swans returned – briefly – but I hope that this is a sign of things to come and the swans and big ducks will return. The Kiosk is just about completed and I believe it’s due to open sometime next week. If the day is very warm to hot – and it will be in summer – I really think that if the opening hours are good, the kiosk will do well. I do a full lap and a half when I am there, but if, after a full lap, I could have a drink and relax, I could end up doing two full laps. A full lap is 3.5 Klms – so Benji and I, when we go to the Wetlands, do 5.35 klms. The front – across the bridge from the car park, is the barbecue areas, the exercise area, the flying fox, the grassed area for family play, and the children’s play area. There is also a barbecue area just down from the carpark and just beyond that is where the kiosk is situated.
All winter I have escaped colds and flu. There are two days of winter left and I have come down with a very heavy cold. Seen out winter the cold, fog and wind and now this. What happened to all this Vitamin C and all those Oranges and Mandarins that I have consumed by the bucket load?? I sort of feel cheated. To add insult to injury the high winds have returned. So much for my leaves cleaning. Don’t really know, some blame climate change whereas others ( and a growing number) blame stuffing around with clock changes and daylight saving. We have always had strange weather up here but I really do not remember the continual and sustained wind that we are having presently causing concern to both country and city. Today (Wednesday) it’s warm, it’s overcast, the temperature is 26c , yet we have high winds 42 – 65 km/h – battering the place again. It is now after 9pm and the wind is still going and no sign of letting up. Reports of dust storms across the mid north and pollen is being blown arond as a result of the mild conditions. And still not much rain. The little rain we did have was, according to the farmers, too little, too late.
I had been thinking of the WaWa recently and surprisingly, I actually miss her. In the last three or four months she became my friend and wanted to be lifted up to sit with me on the chair, with Benji. Then she left, but these last months made up for everything.
PS All night. The wind died at 10:30 Thursday – for a whole two hours before starting up again.
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