December – Good Grief!!

The RFDS Simulator last time we used it.

I took the dogs out for their walk this morning, I was at home starting to get ready for the three events today.  I would be involved in two of them.   About 7:30, down it came – heavy rain, no wind but heavy, straight down rain. It didn’t  let up  but my fundraising was under cover  ( not the best of cover, but still cover) and we were mostly protected. The other one was not and they bravely  took the rain in their stride. By 11am the thunder started and then some lightening. There was some concern regarding the  Children’s  Christmas Pageant due to start at 5pm today. There was no let-up in the rain and the thunder so it was decided at 3pm to cancel the  Pageant and the After Pageant Fair. It will now take place on the 9th December. Sadly the RFDS Simulator started back to Adelaide and it is unlikely that we will be able to get the simulator back up from Adelaide again. This is a great pity because it’s a great draw-card and it is very popular, giving people`the opportunity to see how the inside of a RFDS aircraft is set up and all the equipment it contains. This also presents problems for the organisers of the After Pageant Fair in that some of the traders who would have been at the Fair will not be able to come back on the 9th December because of other commitments. We will just have to see how things  work out, but the decision not to go ahead with the Pageant was the right decision given the weather at the time. Actually it has been raining again today (Monday) I have to get my terminology right and it’s not the After Pageant Fair anymore – it’s the After Pageant Market

Referring back to the last post, I did resign as Secretary four years ago. The person that took over lasted for less than a year, then left and I was asked to  take it over again until the AGM and new elections. LOL, I’m still here…

Benji and Dougal at the Wetlands

Dougal is still with us and will be here at least until  the weekend, perhaps even beyond that, depending what happens in Adelaide. The were home during the week and I spoke to them and it was my suggestion ( and the right one) that Dougal should just stay here until they  finish all the medical appointments Adelaide and be back home. I thought that was preferable to him

being moved back and forward – Benji and Dougal get on well so it’s not a problem. — Wife phoned and Sam is not too great and still in hospital. Not very sure about when he would be allowed out and home. She was concerned about the imposition on us. I assured her Dougal was fine and I was happy for him to be here. It was not an imposition in any way and we were happy to help — better here than in some Kennels ( however good they might be)

Since I started writing this we have had an RFDS Workshop which was run by Central Operations during which we were told that it would be unlikely that we would get the simulator back but they would see what they could.  Well, they did very well and the Simulator will arrive here on the morning of the 9th and be set up.  The tentative date for the Pageant was Saturday 8th Dec. but it turned out that the Ada Ryan Gardens had been booked out for that day with a big wedding and  that date could not be moved, so it became Sunday  the 9th. I am not sure if I will be able to  assist – actually it is unlikely that I will be able to assist. The same will apply the following week – Carols in the Park –  which clashes with our own Carol Service at church.

Just Because.

During this coming week we are in for a few days of hot weather somewhere between 28c on Tuesday up to 37c on Thursday and a cooler 30c on Friday. I think the weather should be ok for the children’s Pageant and the Market afterwards.  Annabell has not been at her best this last week, so we will have to keep a close eye on her and make sure she does not overdo things. Only two more coffee nights and them they break up until next February.

 

A bit of a mixed bag!!

Mom , dad and the WaWa – reunited
Benji and the WaWa at the beach

On Friday 8th April 2016, Sooah brought her dog, Kongsoon, around to us. It had been agreed that we would look after the dog for the three months they were back in South Korea, whilst the immigration authorities sorted things out.  Kim, Sooah’s husband,  had an employer and a sponsor, sadly the employer and the sponsor were the same company – which collapsed with the Arrium problems. With no sponsor and no employer, Sooah and Kim had to go back to South Korea while things were sorted out. It was expected that this would take about three months but things did not go as planned ( not that we knew any of this) and they did not return, nor did they send any word. After about ten months we began to think of the dog as our dog. A year passed and still nothing, then in July of this year,  whilst I had Annabell at the doctor, I got a message to say that she was going to visit us and collect the dog. I told her where I was and said I would let her know when we were back home We didn’t know that they were in Australia, let alone Whyalla.  I called her ; she arrived and we made arrangements for the dog to be returned. Seems they were offered employment in Sydney, so they accepted. They came to town to collect their things left with other people, then to us to collect the dog. The following morning, Thursday 20th. July, at 6am they came; we loaded all the dog things into the covered trailer and, after tearful farewells, Sooah took the dog and they left to head to Sydney. The oddest thing is that I knew she at least was well because I would post a photograph of the two dogs at the lighthouse or the beach and she would post a “like”then nothing. I tried to message her, as did others, but no reply. Anyway, it is all over now – they are both lovely people and Annabell and I wished them well. I

Tanks for the Memory.

really do hope everything is well and they have settled into their new home in a new state. Sooah gave Annabell a lovely card which contained a Woolworth Credit Card, which we didn’t know about until after they left. The WaWa  did cause concern and perhaps we were guilty of that in the initial stages since we didn’t correct any behaviour problems, believing that she was with us for only a short time. But in the end she became my BFF and in essence I could do anything with her – except get her to be friends with Benji when they were in the house. Outside – no problems, but she considered the house was hers and he had no right to be there.

The Army have been doing exercises around the town for most of the week. I was stopped and sent back from my usual walk, road blocks were set up and cars examined and the occupants checked, there were also holding areas for suspicious people. All done in good spirit and people were willing to participate. This was  Cadet Officers from the Military College at Duntroon. Next year we will have the Army back again for another Joint exercise with  other countries. Last time there was about 15,000 troops with heavy equipment, tanks and armoured carriers. Should be interesting.

The last two days have been  celebrated by lightening, thunder and heavy rain. Been a lovely two days really  :o)  Unlike others, Benji is not phased by the thunder, which is probably just as well since there is a lot of it.  It is now 4:45 on Friday morning ( Thursday Thanksgiving in the USA) and the rain has finally stopped. It really has been heavy – bounce of the sidewalk rain – and I expect to hear about and see some flooding here, but if Adelaide has had anything like this, there will probably be serious flooding.

When we picked up the Simulator last time

The RFDS Simulator  is always in demand and getting it is difficult. We have managed to do just that but it’s a year away. We wanted the simulator for the Christmas Pageant but knew that the chances of getting it for this year were zilch –  however – we have got it for next year. Last time we had it for three days and we made the most of that, setting it up at Woolworth Carpark, and with the Council down at the Foreshore. Don’t know how long we will get it for this time – hopefully, the weekend, which will allow us to benefit from it being here.

Medical Tests and another Road Trip

Australia’s National Highway 1 was created in 1955 and is the longest National Highway in the world. It circumnavigates Australia, linking all the mainland Capital Cities together. It is some  14,500 klms. long, the nearest being the Trans-Siberian Highway followed by the Trans-Canada Highway.  We are not part of the National Highway Grid. We join the Highway 60 klms Northeast of here and then travel along its route to Adelaide. I said once that I would like to drive the National Highway, going where I felt like going and stopping where we felt we had driven long enough for a day. Sadly that never happened and with the state of herself’s health, it probably never will.

The garden has not quite been abandoned and I still have to go out every few days to sweep up  6 million tons of leaves – well, ok, perhaps not quite that amount it just feel like it at times. There is no point in planting anything at this time because the ground is much too warm and besides, I think it’s much too hot to be spending hours out in the sun. All I am really doing is sweeping up and keeping up the watering as much as I can. I have already lost a number of plants, including the Hibiscus, despite watering and mulching.

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The girls at the Barbecue

The RFDS simulator was set up in the Reserve from 9am – 4pm and we were fairly busy. However, I had to leave about 1pm to take herself to the hospital for tests. Likewise with Friday, busy,  but I was with herself at the hospital – this time for a stress test – which was a failure. Not that she failed the stress test, but that she could not walk at even the slow speed that they wanted her to do on the treadmill. The test was abandoned. But we did go for chest x-rays. Saturday and I  spent all day in the Woolworth Carpark with the simulator and a barbecue. Both areas were very busy and it being a hot day, Woolworth were good to us providing cool drinks and chilled watermelon.

Today the unit is down at the foreshore but I believe that due to the extreme heat it was closed down fairly early. Tomorrow ( Monday) it goes back to Adelaide. Four days and we were very luck to have it out of Adelaide for one day,let alone four. It is fully equipped  and is a training unit for medical personnel  new to the RFDS.

The Main Highway

On Monday (Tomorrow) I take herself back to the doctor and  see what happens next. In essence, nothing much can happen until the Specialist gives his report, but we’ll see what transpires tomorrow.  On Friday morning I set off for Adelaide and will be away until late Saturday. I will have to keep an eye on the weather because I really don’t want to be driving 400 klms in a 43c heat. True the AC is pretty good, but that’s not really the point. It puts a fair strain on the engine. However, I will take an extra container of  Coolant and a container of water, and if it is hot – no long sections – frequent stops. Of course I generally have two stops anyway, The Tin Man and Port Wakefield. From Port Wakefield into Adelaide it’s four land motorway all the way. But that’s good Adelaide only spends money on roads that benefit Adelaide – country roads generally get ignored. Oh well, election in five weeks.

Dogs, Hospital and The RFFDS

AussieThis is the Australia Day long weekend, which means that, other than supermarkets, most places are closed until Tuesday. I took herself to the doctor on Friday and he has ordered blood and other tests  to determine where we go from here. We should have the results in a few days. Our fire crews came home on Friday night after ten days away. The fire is still burning but our crews were relieved by crews from another area, so they can have a bit of a rest. The temperature has calmed down a little and at the moment it’s about 34c and expected to climb to about 42/42c during the week. Hot but bearable. Thankfully last week was rare and we really do not get extended temperatures of 48c. However, what we do still have is the wind and that is keeping the flames going.  Fortunately I do not have to travel to Adelaide since the smoke from the fires is causing a few problems on National Highway 1 – our main road in and out of here.

I visited the Vet on Friday morning and asked for a repeat of the flea treatment for the dogs. We have never had fleas before but because offrontline the hot dry conditions this year, there is a lot about and many people who never had the problem now have. However, I got on top of it right away and for the last three months I have been treating the dogs with Frontline.  I didn’t wash their beds – I dumped them and bought new beds. The raised beds and the dog houses, I  washed with an antiflea treatment. I took the Man to the groom and she found no sign of reinfection, but me being the sort of paranoid person I am, decided to extend the treatment for a further three months.   One pack set me back $96 -that’s about 48 pounds. I will be down in Adelaide in early February and I know where to get Frontline for half that price. But then. I wont really need it but it’s good to know for the future. I also discovered that I can buy the packets on-line.

20140130_090802We brought the RFDS Simulator back, which was fun and a bit novel judging by the looks we were getting from other drivers. It’s here for the next four days and we will certainly make the most of it. Our main sponsor for this year – Woolworth – are organising a barbecue for us and we will have the simulator at their carpark on Saturday. It is a fully equipped training model laid out with the same equipment that would be in the aircraft.

This afternoon I take herself to the hospital to see the specialist. The telephone call came through yesterday when I was out of town and although it it short notice, I don’t mind in the least because the next appointment woud not be until March. The specialist will complete his report and we will know on Monday of next week what  is to happen.