Tuesday 20 October 2015

Red Reflections

The other afternoon, on the long way to grab a carton of milk, I stopped at the Centenary Lakes.
There has been lots happening there recently with new structures being built for the Chinese Friendship Garden.


To be 100% honest, since I first saw they were putting it there I was disappointed. It was a change I didn't want to see. But now that it is getting closer to being finished. I think I might kind of like it. It'll be even better when grass and other plants blend it in a bit more.


The thing is, I've always quite liked coming to this spot, it is usually peaceful and the water makes it relaxing. A bit of nature that felt like nature, right in the city. I didn't want that feeling ruined. But it seems I might come to quite like that red reflection on the water in among the green. Maybe I was too fast in my judgements.


It doesn't seem to have bothered the locals either.


I can see how it will end up blending in quite nicely, making that cement not seem as stark.


Meanwhile the water in the Centenary Lakes is getting pretty low again and there was talk on the news the other night about the need to put in drought/ water management for the sugar cane farmers now so that if the wet season isn't very wet, they'll be right.


It is pretty hard to think of a lack of water in the tropics, but it does happen. It is even harder to think of it when every morning for the last week or so it has rained. It is starting to drive me batty. But the reality is no one is expecting much in the way of rain when wet season comes around, whether they live inland or on the coast. But there is always hope. Those weather people are also saying that it might just be a late wet season.They are predicting at least four cyclones after all, even if they come late in the season.


So this little stop off, that really is out of the way for getting milk, was to save my 'stuck at home' sanity and get me outside for a bit.


It worked well.


Other than my trip away for a week, nothing much has been happening. Just the same old work and job hunting. Try that on a dilapidated computer that gets slower and slower every minute until you have to restart it and begin the process again.


I did mention to my boss that I could do more hours and straight away he jumped on putting me on all day Monday, a split shift. I wasn't too keen on the split shift idea, not with the travel around it adding up to around 2 hours. Hardly seems worth it, but then maybe I should just do it. Money and all that.


Oh, on the weekend we nearly headed down a very grown up path, coming close to putting an offer on a house. The lure of a 800m squared block with a 3 bedroom house with plenty of living space and a shed was pretty high. Prices for housing up here just keep creeping up and up so it was a bargain according to that. So close but then the call was never made to make that offer. Secretly, the idea of it is still sitting in the back of my mind but impulse buying a house is probably not the best course of action. We literally had seen the ad for it that morning, went to look and got told the other people who where there at the open house were going to put in a offer, which they did. They gave us until Sunday lunchtime to put in our. Really too fast to make a decision on a idea that was just forming.


Instead we have gone with another very adult decision to keep saving and looking. Really, neither of us want a house here unless it was an investment in the end and prices don't seem to match up with rental values very well.


That was all very serious, wasn't it.


The next thought was looking into costing a wedding up here at a place that appeals to both of us. It literally involves a shed on a farm. Think catering, think photographer, oh we didn't even get to the grog bill. I can see how easy it is for people to have those tens of thousands of dollars weddings, it would be so easy to rack it up. But you see we want cheap. Not cheap and nasty but cheap and nice. It was interesting to do a quick look anyway. We don't want to waste a deposit on a place on a wedding but we do want a wedding.


Money, if only it grew on trees. Which brings me back to the job hunting.


I better go do some applying.


Mind you I am that close to just going 'stuff it'I'll go back governessing'. Not to make it sound like a last resort just more of a 'I don't want to hardly ever see Mr Sparky' thing.


Even our bits and pieces of time together is better than only the odd weekend.


Ah well, time to stop time wasting and get too it.


Enjoy your week.




I Must Confess

 

Friday 16 October 2015

Four years ago ...

My personal Facebook reminded me this morning of an event I posted about four years ago.
FOUR years ago, I can hardly believe it. 
It also told me about my dislike of shoe shopping seven years ago, but that is nothing new.

Four years ago I was sitting at the station/ schoolroom computer on the 16th of October uploading photos from the night before. Actually quite a lot of the even happened on the 16th of October. It was photos like this one that I was putting up.

Burning off at The Station at 2ish this morning 16 Oct (from facebook)

It was my first up close experience with bush fires in the fact that it wasn't just something I saw but something that was so close to having a detrimental effect on me and where I was living and working as well as on those around me. Actually, some were very lucky in that their homes were saved yet they did loose so much when it came to their land and livelihood.

Back burning to try and stop it jumping the road here ... the fire was just behind it. This is the road we travel to Aramac on. (facebook)

It reminded me of the teamwork and the get in help out attitude we all had and the fact that everyone was looking out for each other. It also reminded me of the devastation fire can cause. 

Back burning to stop the fire getting to the house on the neighbouring property. (facebook)

So here is a little reminder for all those Aussies that are heading to the warmer end of the year where fires are a reality. Get your place ready, clean up and know your plan. Then if or when it happens you'll know what to do. 


Something I do recall is that even though we were out fighting fires with what resources we had, to try and save what we could, sitting back in the quarters, right beside my door was a bag of stuff ready to grab in a hurry, the things I really didn't want to loose, paperwork and photos on storage and possibly something sensible like a change of clothes. Sometimes being prepared is a good thing because it is better to be safe than sorry. Thank goodness my preparations weren't needed then.

So here is the original post I did four years ago.


What would you grab in an emergency?

Note: So the computer is in for a checkup and I am working with waht I have which is nothing new in the photo department.

Wednesday 14 October 2015

Birds and Such

Well, I'm back, in a fashion. 
Did you miss me?


 This isn't quite the blog post I was going to write but with a broken computer, which is housing the photos I took while away for a week, this is what I am bringing to you.

P.S I hope the colours on the photos are okay because this computer has weird colouring.


As I said, I've been away for a week, or should I say, we've been away for a week. It was a pretty full week too which is why you didn't get any of my mind blowing posts to read (insert sarcasm as needed). And then the laptop packed it in. Exciting stuff.


As per usual the holiday was too short and having to go back to work Monday night wasn't high on my list of priorities. Well, I did enjoy it for about the first half of my shift, catching up etc. but then the energy ran out and I decided I was in need of a holiday again. 

I don't think anything happened while we were away, what can happen when you are gone for only a week.
Although the trees around the corner are definitely in full flower now and the Rainbow Lorikeets out in full force.


So are the bees, out in full force that is.



It was about the time that kids are heading to school that I was looking to the tree tops, craning my neck.


When I was about ready to head back in and was doing my camera upwards pose a young kid stopped beside me and looked up too. I am sure he was wondering what the silly lady was looking at. So I asked him if he could see the Rainbow Lorikeet. He got just a bit excited when he could and as the rest of his companions (mother as well) caught up he pointed it out to them as well. So now you can picture this, me with a tribe of kids close by all staring up at a tree. Pretty funny from the outside.


Then they had to trot off to school, reluctantly, and I really needed to get out of the sun.


How can you forget how burny the sun gets between seasons?


Anyway I am sure you'll get to see even more pics of Rainbow Lorikeets with heads buried in flowers soon enough. I just can't help myself when it comes to wanting to get a decent photo of these fidgety, noisy birds.




And as to my holiday, I'll get back to that later.

What has been happening in your neck of the woods?

My Memory Art


http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/2015/10/wild-bird-wednesday-168-marsh-harriers.html

 


Thursday 1 October 2015

Goose, Goose, Goose ... Jacana


Early this afternoon when a motorbike was revving one side and the gardeners where mowing, whipper snipping and blowing the other I really wished I was in some other, peaceful place. I also wished they would shut up so I could hear what they were saying on Love Child which I was wasting time watching back to back episodes of. I never got to watch it on t.v, night shift and all that. Actually as nice as it is not having to maintain the gardens, meaning the grass, I still feel like my privacy or my space is being invaded. However it is not worth owning a mower for our tiny patch of grass and the maintenance comes with the rent.
Anyway, so back before the machinery noises I actually did head somewhere quiet. This morning I spent some time hanging out at Cattana Wetlands. It had been a while since I'd been there and even longer since I'd been there during the day rather than for sunset.


It was a nice morning for it too, prefect spring like weather with warm sun and a cool breeze. It really was the breeze that made it. It also made it had to take photos of leaves on trees, they kept moving for some reason.


I ummed and ahhed about going, which seems to be a running theme, but went in the end. I wasn't really feeling the urge to go somewhere but felt I probable should. You see I'd been to she shops yesterday and maybe, just maybe made some purchases I probably shouldn't have but I did need new good shoes as opposed to my not good shoes, which are thongs. So basically I'd been out recently and wasn't feeling housebound.


As per usual it ended up being worth it, the view over the big lake there was definitely worth it.

Metallic Starling
I was hoping for lots of bird life. Apparently that wasn't going to be the case, although heard a few I didn't have much lack seeing them.



I was also hoping for lots of flowers. That was another thing that didn't seem to be in abundance although there were lots of water lily flowers and some bright yellow hibiscus flowers.

native hibiscus



There might not have been flowers but what there was, were berries. So many different ones and I had no idea what any of them were. I figured taste testing wasn't a particularly good idea, obviously. I'll have to pick Mr Sparky's brain to see if he knows any of them. He is my resident bush tucker man.





So with a lack of feathered creatures to view I was getting quiet bored to be honest. I was hoping for something new to look at.
But then ... while crouching in the shade seeing what I could see and trying to be invisible I spotted some other winged creatures.



My enthusiasm lifted by about 300%.


And then when looking at the next lake I spotted some feathered creatures feeding among the lilies.



So many water lilies to find them among.



It turns out back at the big lake there were some spectators, hanging out in the middle of the lake.


There was also an awesome reflection of the mountains to be seen among the trees.



My enthusiasm for the reflections and details, probably got a little overboard.



But it was that relaxed observation that probably was the reason I saw more than I could see before. Either that or I was actually near the more popular part of the lake.


What was a game of hide and seek turned into a game of eye spy among the lilies.

eye spy a acana


I'd never really thought that water lilies would make good place to camouflage yourself but it turns out they are good for it, even when you have bright red on your head. 
I don't have bright red on my head by the way, according to recent ads on t.v I have now discovered I am actually a 'Bronde'.

Green Pygmy Goose
Even black, white and glossy green blend in well. Actually that isn't a surprise when I think about it.


I liked this little game of eye spy.


Plus I'd gotten to see what I'd wanted to see, another Jacana.

 
 But then I lost the Jacana and couldn't find it again.


But the little geese, I found a few of them.




And water lilies, still plenty of them.



So nice and quiet and relaxing, nothing like the sounds that greeted me around lunch time.


This next picture is just for the giggle ... you'll spot it I'm sure. 
Hint: it is something to do with the signs.


My Memory Art

http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/2015/09/wild-bird-wednesday-166-satin-bowerbirds.html

More Starlings here and Jacanas and more Jacanas and Cattana Wetlands here.