Thursday 17 March 2016

The Queen on a rainy day

You've gotta love the dramatising of the media.


You would think, the way they are going on, that the whole of Far North QLD is going to be washed off the map.


Things have certainly gotten very wet over the last day or so, and cooler. It is about time, I tell you.


We've been put on flood watch and I don't deny that in the typically high rain areas that things would be getting rather wet but it really isn't anything new, it happens every year. Someone did have to be rescued from a river but honestly, flooded, forget it. What were they doing, sitting on the causeway waiting for the water? I know, serious stuff, luckily he was rescued, but the stupidity. By the way, they drove into flood water. This was part way up the Cape (Cape York).You need to understand that these areas flood, every year. They are low creek and river crossings and water comes up fast and often goes away just as fast. The Cape (the pointy bit at the top of Australia) gets cut off from further south, like Cairns, all the time. Come to think of it Cairns gets cut off from further south, every year. Up there is still very much a remote area.


They've even put emergency services on alert. I think that was more for when they thought there would be a cyclone. A category 1 cyclone. Locals wouldn't really even blink an eye at that, just a bit of wind and rain. Well, the local I live with wouldn't. 


 For now though, the cyclone thing isn't happening, unless that low moves its butt away from the coastline, so we just get a tropical low playing around up in the Gulf (Gulf of Carpentaria). See what we like to do with the names of places. 


So, I believe we are in for another wet day. I'm glad I don't have to be out on the road during peak hours. It seems that people forget how to drive, properly, when it rains. It rains a lot here, normally. I do have to go out for another interview though. I can't believe that the majority of the jobs I've applied for recently are calling up to organised a chat. I've spent three years waiting for replies. Maybe it is my turn. Even Mr Sparky is flabbergasted (I just wanted to use that word).


 So by now, if you haven't gotten too carried away with my very exciting life, you are probably wondering about the ship photos.


That, out there, hovering off the coast of Yorkeys Knob, is Queen Mary II.


She doesn't look all that big, out there, coated by rain but she is the largest ocean liner ever built. She apparently was also the longest passenger ship but Freedom of the Seas has that distinction. She is now about 13 years old. In boat years that is middle aged.


Yorkeys is where the big cruise ships get to hang out because Trinity Inlet is too shallow to take them. Instead passengers get to do ship to shore and catch buses to various locations around Cairns. When my Aunt and Uncle came up this is where I met them.


After going around to the boat ramp side of the Knob for a look I headed to the beach side. There were a few people who did the quick stop and shoot (with a camera) thing before racing back to the car. Maybe they thought they would shrink in the rain.


I got sidetracked from the ship but an interesting little fellow who kept taking off and landing in the trees above me. A cute little Rainbow Bee Eater. I know their call well so it is easy to know when they are around. They sound almost cricket like. This one caught himself a good little feast before heading off. Maybe he was headed to the meeting outside Cairns Central. When I dropped in there on the way home there were so many flying around. Something I thought was a bit funny, we are talking the middle of the city here.


One thing that did make QM2 look big was the ship to shore boats coming up beside it. There was the ones that belong to the ship (maybe just one) and then local companies send the boats the use for the reef. This time it was Reef Magic and Silver Swift (two different companies).


The beach was looking rather rainswept and dreary but there were a few people out enjoying it.


I actually quite like the beach in the rain. Maybe it is because it is usually pretty quiet.


The mountains to the south were barely visible.


Rain drops marked the sand and bounced on the water.


It certainly gave it that moody look.


This is called the wet season look. This is what the end of our summer and beginning of Autumn should be looking like. 


As much as we whinge about the constant rain and cloudy days when we want to see sunrises and sunsets and blue skies, it is all bluff. If we don't get this rain now then it would be a very dry year with not much rain happening throughout the middle of the year being normal. We need this wet time of year to keep the place green.


 Rainy days are perfect for being home with a good book or movie, don't you think.


So the main part of the weather is supposed to get to us here at around lunch time, so lets see how wet it gets. I am hoping the wetland/ creek overflow out the back fills up. Would be good to see that again.


8 days until I get the first of my visitors for Easter, 10 until the bulk of them arrive. I do hope ther weather is nice while they are here, otherwise I'll have to buy some more umbellas.


Turns out that man drove through 1meter of water (guessing depth) before getting stuck. Stupidity.


Enjoy the rest of your week!

http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/2016/03/wild-bird-wednesday-190-white-terns.html

My Memory Art



Links are to previous posts that show this time, place or thing.

16 comments:

  1. I am envious of your rain...but the geass is always greener and all that! Good luck on the job hunt. Beautiful photos xx

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    1. I bet you are a bit envious, hopefully you get some at some stage. I envy your rural views so maybe we are a little equal. Thank you!

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  2. I love your photos, they have such a wonderfully mystical quality with the fog and rain. I can relate to the news getting it oh, so wrong, so I don't put much stock in it any more! Thanks for letting me know my link was bad on WATW.

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    1. Thank you! Rain and fog seems to give things that quality, doesn't it. It also makes it look cold and wintery when it is far from that. No problem on the link heads up. Have a great end to your week.

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  3. Love the bee eater. I have no idea what happened to common sense. My mom was on the original Queen Elizabeth. Great photod

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  4. The rain would be most welcome I would imagine, specially if it is getting a little more inland from you. Great photos as always Anne.

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    1. From what I hear some areas inland got much needed rain while others still missed out. A farmer friend on the Atherton Tablelands says the long term out look for the weather is not good. They are predicting les and less rain until 2020 when it will hardly rain at all with only the Gulf, Cape and far north of WA and NT getting pretty good seasons. I don't like that prediction and hope it isn't true. I hope rain is finding you. Thank you!

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  5. The Bee eater is pretty. WE woke up to thunderstorms today. We have rain throughout the year but the season we get the most rain is in our summer months-June, July and August. This is why swim practices and meets are canceled in the summer.

    Because I live in the /d/e/e/p/ /S/o/u/t/h, we have high humidity most of the year. In the summer, rain does not dissipate the humidity. In fact after a rain the humidity is worse than it was before. Not fun at all.

    I like all the misty moody shots here.

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    1. We also tend to get rain for most of the year with August being the driest (winter) with often no rainfall. Febuary and March are supposed to be the wettest months up in the far north (end of Summer, beginning of Autumn) but with more rain over most of the hottest part of the year and less over the cooler parts. It varies around Australia when rain comes but in the Far North this is pretty much the pattern, anywhere above the Tropic of Capricorn is pretty much like this. Where you live sounds very like here, just in reverse. We also have humidity all year round and rain makes it worse. At the moment the weather is pretty weird and we aren't getting the massive rainfall we should be getting. We aren't far from the end of March and haven't even made 1/2 the rainfall we should have had.
      I remember as a child, further south, the storms around in Summer meaning the days were hot and humid but then the storms would come through and cool it off. We often had swimming practice or public swimming cancelled because of storms.
      Thank you for commenting, I love learning more about other places and seeing the similarities and differences.

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  6. It's the same everywhere - those in charge are always surprised that there is such a thing as weather. But such lovely photos! Well worth a little flooding :-)
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. I know, I know. I just wish their predictions were even slightly true. Where we are we didn't really get the full brunt of the rainy weather, some others did though. It was needed and is needed.
      Thank you!

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  7. Very nice post - love that low angle shot of the shells on the beach. Cant have rainforest without rain! And rule one; dont drive through flood water!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  8. I love the sand and shell perspective. What an exotic bird. It reminds me of a MotMot.

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  9. Such a lot of stunning photos! I enjoyed this trip, thanks.

    Thanks for stopping by an leaving a comment!

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  10. I love that low down shot of the sand on the beach with the sea shells... so pretty!

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