The downside of enjoying a holiday during the Australian summer, is that some years in this part of the country, events can suddenly turn off the charts crazy, without warning. Welcome to fire country. This week was one such experience, which candidly speaking, I’m grateful to have survived. Maybe the universe was attempting to suggest that a bit of time out from work would be a good thing? Certainly 42’C / 108’F in the shade makes it difficult to do hard work. Spare a thought for the 8,000 or so volunteers who were and still are out battling the fires and putting their lives on the line.
By midnight Thursday evening, the outdoor temperature recorded 29’C / 84’F. Yeah, a dude has the impression that the following Friday was going to be pretty special, like in a bad way. That was the case, and it’d been hot for days leading up to that moment.
It’s worth noting that the indoor temperature was 24’C / 75’F at midnight, and comparatively that felt pretty good. The recently installed combination of UV stable sun blinds and portable air conditioner, earned their keep. Shame the limits of the off grid solar power system meant that we could only run that cooling machine from 10am, until about 9pm. Even so, on the hottest day, Friday (we’ll get to that), we pulled a record breaking 475Ah (amp-hours) from the system at an average of 54.5V (Volts), which equates to 25.9kWh of electricity for the day. That is extraordinary for us, but about the average daily household usage in this country.
Whatever the case, it was good result for us, and it sure beat the 90,000 households in the state who were without power because of the bushfires. The town of Kyneton, just north of this mountain range, was without power when it was 42’C / 108’F here in the shade at this elevated mountainous location. Being at a lower elevation, it was most likely much warmer there.
Overall, the electricity grid in the state performed quite well, and credit should go to the many household grid tied roof top solar power systems. They work well in summer when people are at home using electricity. Frankly speaking, I never thought I’d get to the stage where I’m suggesting that it would be a good idea to turn the many air conditioning systems on in households, simply to maintain grid stability (i.e. the ability to match electricity supply with demand). I can admit when I’m wrong.
Here is an interesting and easy to read article on what went down with the grid: Solar to the fore as grid sails through heatwave and record demand
As a technical matter, mechanical cooling uses at least half the electricity that heating does, and so reducing a household internal temperature, is actually a good use for excess electricity in the grid – nobody wants to replicate Spain’s experience where rising voltages most likely caused the grid to pop. The only problem is that, once the sun goes down, the grid relies on fossil fuels all over again, which was the unspoken reality anyway. But for a moment there, solar hit it out of the park. It’s not 24 hours day though, is it? And this trick is not possible to reproduce in the winter months with heating due to there being not much solar electricity to capture.
Four consecutive days of temperatures hovering around 40’C / 104’F, is challenging for a house design to remain cool for the occupants. Even with a super insulated house, double glazing blah, blah, when the day begins indoors at 24’C / 75’F, and spends about six hours hovering around 42’C / 108’F in the shade, it’s a challenge keeping the temperature sort-of comfortable. We did OK and it’s a good enough result for us. The recent shields upgrade worked a treat with the sun blinds. The indoors peaked at 27’C / 81’F, which when compared to outdoors, sure felt cool.
The winds were feral during the hot days. At night the skies lit up with dry thunderstorms. They looked very pretty, but the lightning strikes also set off a huge number of fires across the state. It was, and still is mayhem. The land is covered by thick smoke which you could see rolling in.
The fierce summer sun burned orange through thick clouds of smoke. It was quite eerie at times with an apocalyptic quality.
Australia is a dry continent. There’s no getting around it. Pretty much anywhere outside of a large metropolitan city is at risk from bushfire, and sometimes not even those areas are safe. The nations capital city of Canberra was hit pretty hard by a big fire in 2003. Some years are worse than others, and whilst the rainfall was average in this tiny region, elsewhere was deficient.Thus why there are now very large fires burning all over the state. Not much will put them out, other than running out of fuel, or big rains, and maybe both. Doesn’t make for a comfortable existence.
Speaking of comfort, we’re on limited tank water here, which refills from collected rain. I envy those who garden using bore / well, or town water ,and hope they appreciate how good they’ve got it. Every single drop has to count here. And not all of the stored water can be used. Reserves have to be maintained in the circumstance that we need to defend ourselves against a fire. Sobering.
The stores at the moment are at:
- House 49kL 60% full at 29kL
- House reserves 34kL 100% full
- Machinery shed 35kL 70% full at 24kL
- Garden 8kL 80% full at 6kL
- Garden reserves 11kL 100% full
- Chickens 2kL 50% full at 1kL
Not bad for approximately half way through summer, although who knows when the rains will return? Last year it was dry until about August.
Just to show how much can be achieved in extreme hot weather, with minimal watering, I’ll take you the reader, around the property to see how it looked at the conclusion of the heatwave.
The kitchen garden adjacent to the downhill side of the house comprises a dozen raised garden beds. Attached to each of those is a sprinkler which has been individually adjusted for the different sized beds so as to not waste water. The beds receive about ten minutes of watering per day, and sometimes none at all.
We’re trialling growing some edible plants in the steep garden beds just below the kitchen garden. It’s a good space to allow plants to do their own thing for their full cycle. This way we can use the additional growing space to collect seeds. It’s also a good space for sprawling plants like pumpkins. In those beds, only the pumpkins are watered (a watering can per day), and thus we are also selecting for more dry adapted and hardy varieties of the plants we eat.
The grass in the sunny orchard has dried up in the past few days, and only sustained rain will revive it. None of the fruit trees in the shady, or sunny orchards receive additional watering. We don’t have the reserves for that. Throughout the year though, the soil surrounding the trees are fed with lots of the compost mixture which includes plenty of additional mineral goodies. All of the grass and ground cover plants are chopped and dropped where they grow.
Observant readers will note that in about the middle of the above photo, and just a little bit to the left, a Canadian red maple tree lost a large branch during the heatwave, the softy! I’ll chip it up this week and feed that back into the soil.
Interestingly, the almond trees in the sunny orchard responded really well to the hot weather. Given the unreliable cropping, they’re probably a bit marginal in this climate.
The greenhouse uses a bit of water each day. A rough guess is 7 x 9L watering cans at 63L per day for the lot. Super fertile soil in the raised beds, probably assists the low water usage. It’s a valuable and productive growing space and we’re keen to construct a second greenhouse.
The biggest water requiring area are the young fruit trees in the citrus enclosure. Citrus trees have naturally shallow root systems, so they’re not dry adapted until much older. Still, there is no point planting trees, and not looking after them. The 36 trees in that enclosure receive about 10L of water each per day if the soil is dry. In the next photo, you see that the topsoil is not as deep as in other more established parts of the property because the ground cover plants look the driest.
Further uphill are the five garden terraces. They have super deep topsoil, and require almost no watering, with a few minor exceptions. Beans grow well here in the loamy rich soils, and one watering can of water per day, does the lot.
The terrace with the thornless blackberries is just starting to produce ripe berries. I’ve not watered it at all, and the plants thrive in the heat.
The grape cage sits on the next terrace up the hill, and that too has not been watered. The vines in fact need pruning over the next week. Grape clusters have formed on most of the vines.
The next terrace uphill is the exception as it receives around 40L of water per day. Globe artichokes and some local varieties of tomatoes (a gift from a local lady) enjoy the sunny conditions.
The final two terraces have raspberries on one side, and roses on another. None have been watered this season. The raspberries in particular have produced an awesome crop this year, all of which is being converted into jam. Here’s a batch we made during one hot day this week:
Back to those unwatered garden terraces. Water is precious here.
Alert readers will notice in the above photo that there is a fence on the uphill side. The rabbits had managed to both smash through and under that fence then nibble on our roses and raspberries, and so in the heat the chicken wire was doubled up and strengthened. Hot work.
It was actually difficult working in the heat, but even so, with time pressures there are jobs which need doing. The firewood pile which sits under a large tarpaulin was neatened up over a few hours.
A huge tarp sits over this firewood, and the resource gets used first in the season before the winter weather arrives in earnest, and that firewood becomes too moist. Burning moist timber can damage the steel in a wood heater, I have experience at having done just that.
Despite the heat, two days were spent in the forest splitting, hauling and stacking firewood in the shed. It’s of interest to note just how dry the forest is in the next photo – there are simply too many trees for the available resources. And that problem has been allowed to play out over the entire state of Victoria to disastrous consequences this week. It needn’t be this way, as a society we could do better.
The firewood shed is fast filling up. One more day of work should complete that job for the year.
As an interesting side note, you find some interesting things when wood is split. Occasionally there are wood grubs which are apparently edible (although I am not inclined to try them out). I feed these to the friendly magpie family of birds which live here, and they appreciate the gift.
More tasty perhaps are the last of the Anzac peaches we harvested this week:
Also, breakfasts have been enlivened by a whole bunch of different summer fruits and berries. Here is a random sample:
Onto the flowers:
The temperature outside now at about 12pm is 22’C (72’F). So far for this year there has been 4.8mm (0.2 inches) which is up from last weeks total of 4.6mm (0.2 inches)
Comments
41 responses to “The Big Heat”
Hello Chris,
Good to hear that you survived the heatwave. Chilling story, pun intended.
Solar power is compatible with AC cooling. I read that on a global scale, more electricity is used for cooling than for heating, and in those locations (not here) solar power is great.
Sleeping at +27C is not easy, and builds up a deficit. I hope you can take some time to recover afterwards and get some good naps.
Your garden looks so lush, even though the land is dry, and I guess your hard work on building soil is paying back now.
I think it is an interesting observation that there simply are too many trees in the forest. How will you go about thinning? Does that story involve a mill? Moving logs is hard work and may intice you to purchase even more machines, beware!
Up here in Scandinavia, we have a blast of the unbalanced polar vortex, so even in our southernly location we have snow since Christmas Day. Today is the last cold day, according to the forecast, at -12C, and starting tomorrow a warm front will bring rains and mild weather. Let’s see.
This year is our first year with hens, so there have been some new challenges with keeping their water frost-free and handling their feed in a practical way. I think we have the systems tuned now, and we are much better prepared for next years’ cold season.
Wish you both best of luck with your water supply. May the rains come soon to your mountain range!
Peace,
Göran
Yo, Chris – Well, you two have had quit the week. Fraught, frightening, and uncomfortable, due to high temperatures and smoke.
I wondered (and worried) about your Green Wizard mob. I’m sure the next gathering will have the members a bit shell shocked, with stories to tell. I hope they, their’s and their properties, all made it through, unscathed.
That was an interesting article about how solar picked up a lot of the slack, during the recent high demand days. They were pretty upfront about the drawbacks of nights and winters. But then, people tend to just skim over those parts.
I also found the sidebar, of more in depth reporting on the fires in Victoria, to be pretty detailed. Oh, my. All that livestock lost. Even told you what to do if you run across wild critters that have been injured.
I found it very interesting, how you manage your watering routines, when your place is under heat stress. Everything looks like it came through in good condition. Did you get a chance to check the fern gully? I’d guess being shaded, it ought to be ok. And, I suspect there might be a small water seep, below ground. Or at least, water collects in the gully and keeps things moister, for longer.
The raspberry jam, looks yummy! Just a suggestion, if you’re not already doing it. My Ball canning guide instructed to put about 2 tablespoons of butter, in a batch. To keep the froth down. I thought it was an odd idea, but gave it a spin. Oh, my. I have had no froth, to skim off the jam, since beginning to do that. No matter which fruit I was boiling up.
Not that I’m going to give it a try, but grubs are best skewered and roasted over a fire. Or, fried up in a pan. Still, good to keep in mind, just in case. 🙂
The fruits all look so tasty. And, the flowers, as always, are lovely. Lew
Hi Pam,
Unincorporated areas interest me, and I know of a bloke who lives in one on a large island just off the coast. It makes for a complicated, but fascinating tale. We’ve often discussed the difficulties of getting ‘stuff’ (materials, tools etc.) into remote locations, but his difficulties make mine pale into insignificance. On that note, today we travelled into the nearest big town and stocked up on many items, including a trolley jack. The biggest ride on lawn mower has a slowly deflating tire, and the machine is 880 pounds and way beyond my pay grade to lift by hand and shove wedge chocks underneath it – thus the jack. Plus nabbed a 40 pound bag of dog kibbles and whilst there, why not grab a Bahn Mi roll for lunch?
The wildfire risk in Colorado was not lost on me either. Sorry to say it, but 15-ish inches of rain per year is too dry for my tastes, and barely enough to support trees, especially given that Greeley gets similar summer temperature extremes to here. You dodged a bullet there, apologies for saying so, and Fort Collins is not much better in my opinion. If but for them Rocky Mountains with the rivers draining from the headwaters, it’d be desert.
Hehe! That can happen, and sometimes the wood heater overheats the house here as well. That system is entirely manual, and at such times I open a window or two to let in the winter-esque cold southerly Antarctic derived blasts of iciness. It can be a point of contention at times, but with the wood heater cranking, I prefer a touch of fresh air as a compliment to the warmth of the firebox and hydronic radiators. Plus the air quality is just better. It’s an option, although how Mr Baby would react to that can possibly set the overall tone of the debate!
Cats love warming themselves in the winter months, due to inbuilt sensible feline practicalities. As a kid I had a fluffy white cat who’d jump on top of the hot water boiler and sleep the winter days away all toasty warm and stuff. Occasionally she would get mild burns from the exhaust flue, but no doubts the cat was happy with the minor inconvenience. At night she’d sneak into my shed and climb under the blankets for warmth, and I’ve nothing but fond memories of the moggy.
Yes, well, err, perhaps Mr Baby, like the fluffs here suffer from that most awful of winter malaise, boredom… 🙂
The kid has a sense of adventure which does his parents proud. The shark would scare me silly, but then you talk casually of bear this, mountain lion that, and not to forget the worst of the lot, the dreaded groundhog!
It was much cooler here today which is something of a relief, but the sunset tonight was a baleful red due to the smoke. I can smell it, but the acrid stench doesn’t bother me too much. A few of the fires are still burning hard.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Göran,
Respect for getting my humour! 🙂
All very true, although things are changing on that front. Australia exports an enormous quantity of gas for other countries use, particularly Asia. Nothing good lasts forever, and whilst the gas exports are committed, local demand is at, or has already exceeded local supply limits. There’s been a huge push to get households off gas, and onto electricity for heating, and hot water. In fact new builds cannot be connected to the gas network. Given that electrical heating – resistance in particular – uses so much more energy than cooling (which is running a compressor), I expect to see the electricity grid stressed out in the winter months.
For your interest, during the winter months we heat the house with firewood, which also warms the hot water via a heat exchanger. It’s not always an ideal system because it is optimised for warming the house in preference to the hot water supply. So we use a 8.5kg gas bottle every 37 days to supplement the water heating. In summer with the solar hot water panels running hot, that life extends out to 70 days per 8.5kg bottle. I’m not sure we can do better than that! 🙂
Maybe cold baths in winter are an option? 😉 Far out!
I’d imagine that solar photovoltaic power is pretty good for your part of the world in summer, but you’d struggle even more than down here in winter. And I can confirm that snow on solar panels is a total buzzkill for their output. It’s surprised me that armchair theorists have argued with me in the past about that last point.
The tests have been done and the results are not a single Amp of electricity, and here is a photo from September 2020:
Thank you for understanding, and sleeping in caused the blog this morning to be much later than usual. Plus Sandra and I had to drive to a nearby town to run some errands. Life goes on…
Göran, that is high praise and much appreciated. The plants dealt far better with the heat, than we did. And it is a real pleasure to see the work of almost two decades of continual soil improvement – everything just worked out.
No worries on that score, I have rights to use the trees for firewood for the household use (that excludes commercial sales), and will only use younger and thinner trees, unless they are already on the ground.
Moving saw logs is not as difficult as you’d imagine – you wait and see what tricks I’ve got up my sleeve on that front.
Nice to enjoy a white Christmas with all that snow, although the -12’C air temperatures sound alarmingly cold to me. Hope you post some photos, with the story as to how you resolved the frozen water supply for the chickens? 🙂
For your interest, with the feed I keep it stored mixed and ready to use in a very heavy duty plastic bin, with sealed lid. Rats are always an issue with chickens and their feed. My friend Simon, taught his chickens to use a feeder which the birds themselves trigger so as to thwart the rodents. It’s a very impressive design. Hopefully the used bedding straw gets mixed into the polytunnel soil? I’ve read that too much high nitrogen chicken manure can burn up soil carbon, so the soiled bedding straw offsets that loss.
Thank you, and may the coming spring be fruitful for your household, nursery and garden.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Yeah, it was feral here last week, and some periods of time are best not repeated, although history suggests otherwise. Many of the large fires are still burning away, despite the cooler conditions today. Hopefully there will be a bit of rain on Thursday, fingers crossed. Although four days out is pushing the boundaries of exact forecasting.
Thanks for asking, and as far as I’m aware, none of the Green Wizards mob are under threat of fire. However I know of two households which are uncomfortably close to the fire fronts. It’s not good. I’d imagine the stories at the next catch up will revolve around the challenges to their gardens and housing due to the heat, plus the electricity system will certainly be discussed. Man, I hope they get through OK too, and after the disaster of Black Saturday 2009 with 173 dead, people take big fires seriously now. It’d been too long between big fires, and people forget how bad it can be.
That’s true, you can tell people that solar photovoltaic panels only produce electricity during the day, depending on cloud cover etc. And yeah, like you noted, they hear something else altogether. Down here is dry enough some years, that even hydroelectric cannot be reliable.
Livestock are doing it very tough down under this summer. The fires are bad, but even more stock drowned in the flooding up north of the continent. The numbers are off the charts for horror value. The advice on wildlife is good too, and I know a few people who volunteer for that service, and what amazing work it is that they do.
On the Friday during the 100’F weather, I walked multiple runs of buckets of water uphill to the fern gully. Actually, I’d planned to do the same again today, but was sidetracked with other tasks. We went to the nearby big town on a sourcing day. The big Japanese low centre of gravity mower has a slow leak in one of the tires, and I need a jack to lift the heavy machine. It’s way over 800 pounds, and I can’t budge the thing. 🙂 Also grabbed a big 40 pound bag of dog kibbles, and of course stopped off for a tasty Bahn Mi lunch. Plus I’m standardising all of the taps and hose connections to make life easier if there is an emergency. It was cooler today, so the plan is to get to the watering tomorrow. The ferns which have survived are doing OK. The dry months earlier last year killed off a few of the tree-ferns, and that was a hard loss.
Interesting! We don’t get a lot of froth with the jam making, and I’ll pass on the tip about adding butter to a batch. Could be handy.
Me neither man, the grubs lacked all appeal, but! If I were hungry enough… Exactly, in an emergency, fry / roast grubs, and hopefully this state of affairs can be studiously avoided?
The garden held up pretty well all things considered, and continued to produce.The raspberries are coming to an end now, just as the blackberries are ripening. I’m wondering now if we picked the original batch of Anzac peaches a few days too early? They taste good.
The blog was posted very late today due to, sleeping in. I woke at maybe 6:30am this morning, but after last week, the Editor needed her sleep so I just stayed quiet. Best to recover is my thinking.
I’ve not yet read the link to the article. I know! I disappoint myself sometimes. The fire monks did an enviable job saving that monastery, and I’m envious of their running water supplies despite the conditions.
The Beast of War trailer was horrific, like Jaws, but way out to sea. Reminded me of the story of the aftermath of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis.
Ice cream is a much nicer way to spend the afternoon than firewood work. Hope to get that job done and complete this week.
I’d not been aware of the sheer number of trades involved in making a mechanical watch. It’s impressive that even today, sometimes those ancient time pieces can be restored to function.
73’F here today, and feeling much cooler. Fingers crossed that the forecast rain for Thursday arrives, although the word on the street is that the storm is very dynamic. Big week of rain for eastern Australia. Hopefully some falls on the fires, which are still burning.
A high-pressure ridge for you! Hope you and H enjoy some sunshine and a break from the rain. How’s Carl doing?
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
The Editor adds the butter to the jam making process! 🙂 Who knew?
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – I think, in one way, the internet is useful in keeping people aware of the dangers of wildfires. You might not have local wildfires, for awhile, but people hear about places like Maui, Paradise, California, and the recent fires in LA. And, they take note. The smart one’s, at least.
We’ve had years where our rivers have run low, and hydroelectric power is a bit touch and go. But it doesn’t happen very often. There’s a whole science (or is it an art?) to calculating how much water to retain, behind the dams on the Columbia River, to carry us through.
Looks like you may, or may not, get some rain. But, it also looks like someone on your continent will. Judging from the article.
Years ago, I read a science fiction novel, about the Columbia River running dry, and the impacts of that on Portland. A good read, as I recall, but can’t remember the author or title.
Always good to cram in as many stops as possible, on a supply run. And a stop for Bahn Mi is just frosting on the cake. Gives you a chance to catch your breath and take stock of what’s been done, and what stops still need to be made.
Poor tree ferns! But I believe you said, some were showing “signs of life.” Although after the last heat wave, they may have been knocked back, again.
No worries about not making it to check out some of the links posted. I don’t think there will be a test. 🙂
And, here’s another one. A minute and a half video. On one hand, it’s “the revenge of analog.” On the other, do you know you could collect typewriters? 🙂
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/09/style/video/typewriter-making-a-comeback-vrtc
I thought about the USS Indianapolis, when I saw the trailer. I think there’s been a move or two, about that disaster. I’m deep into season three of “The Gilded Age.” And, there will be a season four.
Our high yesterday was 50F (10C). Our overnight low was 45F (7.22C). Our forecast high for today is 49F. Last night and this mornings walks were dry. We may get some rain, late this afternoon, but then it’s clear sailing for the rest of the week.
Little Mary Sunshine was “receiving” in her office, this morning. I needed to get a couple of rolls of quarters, for the laundry. I also asked her about her mention of a HUD inspection. Centralia Providence Place always gets inspected, before us. They had one scheduled in late January. Which was canceled but wasn’t rescheduled. And, she mentioned if there’s another government shutdown, it will be pushed even further into the future.
I also checked out the Master Gardeners storage room. There are plastic pots. I think I need about 14-16, to pot up some parsley and elephant garlic for their sale. I’ll have to let them know I’m digging into their supply. And, ask if I can use some of the compost they have piled, next to the grapes. It’s a small pile.
I saw Carl yesterday, and he’s doing well. LOL. His redwood starts are still green, but no roots. Lew
Hi, Chris!
Wasn’t The Big Heat a 1950s movie?
If it wasn’t for you, I might forget things like how the firefighters have to add the 108F to the already unbearable conditions that they are working in. It seems impossible that they can do so.
Is it true that solar systems don’t work as well in extreme heat? That is what I have always heard. And it is fascinating that the power must be used so as to match the supply with demand.
From the article: “Winter, not summer, is the risk.” It all seems backwards to me, but I think I begin to understand it. “What’s more, Mr Mountain said the apparent ease with which the market sailed through the heatwave this week was still thanks in large part to coal plants. Take them out of the equation, he said, and the pressure on supplies and the security of the system would bear down once again.” It’s a delicate dance.
And look at the photos of those batteries! That’s impressive.
I think that you and your house have done very well through all this. And it looks like a green paradise there, in spite of the heat and dryness. Thank you for the lovely tour.
Could the thick black clouds blocking the sun possibly lower the temperature some?
I’ll bet some Body helped that maple branch break. Oh, blah. You have reminded me that I am supposed to be working on groundhog fortifications in this off season.
Boy, your chickens would like those grubs! I expect there would be a fight, though.
From last week:
In winter, Mr. Baby likes a roaring fire – with the window open. Most of his tastes are rather exotic – and expensive. We once had a cat that would sleep inside the fireplace in the ashes as soon as they had barely cooled down.
Did you used to sleep in a shed? Maybe that is why you build so many.
What impressive geraniums, unlike like my one skinny one in the window. But it is blooming. I am glad that you still have some agapanthus; they are such a beautiful color. I love that rose. It is about the most cheerful thing ever.
Pam
Hi Pam,
Or that other film from 1983, The Big Chill… 😉 Which was the 1950’s one again? There’s a vague memory that it may be a surf cult film, maybe.
Yeah, the gear is crazy hot to work in, although fairly loose. The hats have a nifty fire retardant cloth hanging off the back of them which stops embers falling down the back of your jacket. Ouch! I don’t know how they put in 12 hour shifts as volunteers, and candidly I don’t work that hard for myself. Although when we work here, generally we don’t take breaks. After a few years it began looking like an unpaid job to me, and if I don’t do paid work, nobody pays me – which was a conflicting problem.
On that note, the firewood job for the year has now been completed! And the peasants rejoiced! 🙂 It’s a pleasure to have that task behind us now. The last load of firewood hauled back uphill was only a half load, so the big yellow power wheelbarrow was filled up with rocks instead destined for the gabions.
It is absolutely true that solar power systems do not operate at full output in the heat. For your interest, there are a couple of factors in play. The solar panels themselves operate best at temperatures 25’C / 77’F or lower. A cold sunny day around midday in mid-spring is when solar panels can exceed their rated output – and that was exactly when the Spanish grid popped. It’s a subject not usually discussed in polite company, so please do cover over Mr Baby’s ears. 🙂 Also the various electronic components output declines as they get hotter. The stuff I used was designed and made down under, so it can handle air temperatures of 50’C / 122’F without difficulties, however the European stuff in the blue colour which people rave over, dislikes temperatures in excess of 30’C / 86’F – they begin to lower their output. You saw in the photos how hot the inside of the house got last week, the battery room was much warmer again. Hmm. If people think it is a good idea to use equipment not suited to the climate it’s installed in, that ain’t my problem.
It’s an interesting problem that of matching supply with demand. People generally aren’t aware of how that plays out on the local circuit for say, your area. Just say your household decided to use a huge amount of electricity all at once, the voltage in your area actually drops. But then if say all of your neighbours have solar power feeding into the local circuit, and nobody is at home using the electricity, the voltage rises, a lot. If it rises too high, the local transformer for the whole circuit can shut down, but well before then, the more delicate electrical equipment attached to it, say a refrigerator controller (which is switched on all of the time) gets fried due to high voltage. Always better to err on the side of too much demand, and not enough supply, which results in lower voltages.
The electrician who did the wiring for this house was astounded that the off grid inverter kept the voltage for the entire house rock solid at 233V. We had quite the long discussion about it at the time.
Spare a thought for the poor folks who have to manage the grid. They can control the super large generators and the electricity that lot sends into the grid, but once past the local transformer, they have very little control as to what goes on. Thus the push for smart meters which can switch off individual households. And add too many err, self interested grid tied solar power systems, and the voltage can rise too high on the household and business side of a transformer. Spain learned that lesson, the hard way.
A transformer by the way just takes the really high voltage supplied by the big grid generators and reduces it to the more usual household supplies. Those machines get hot doing that work.
Exactly, the whole edifice is a beautiful line dance in which all of the participants must act in concert and step lively to the approved tunes, and put their own funky moves to the side. 🙂
The wildlife here appreciate the vast expenditures of effort to right the environment to that of the climate. Last evening, Ollie and I went outdoors so that the big dog could perform his ablutions, and a massive wombat stood it’s ground in the middle of the path to the chicken enclosure. We knew we’d been beat, so turned around. Thank you, and hopefully over the years the place just gets better again.
On that note, the Editor just showed me a photo of the insides of Martha Stewart’s machinery shed, which is only four times larger than the one here, and I was impressed with the order, and duplication of equipment. Probably better financed… 😉
Yeah, that’s my thinking as well – and it was misty and cloudy today with a top temperature of 15’C / 59’F. Look at what volcanic eruptions do to the climate… It’s the exact same effect.
The plan is to chip up that broken maple branch tomorrow, and I know, awful isn’t it? 🙂 Pam, the groundhog war will be long, there may be sacrifices… The rabbits are already testing the new fortifications surrounding the garden terraces.
Nope, the grubs went to my bird friends, the magpie family. This season has two adults and three fledglings. They live for up to twenty years and have good memories.
Mr Baby has tastes which I can sympathise with! 🙂 Oh no, that other feline is a touch extreme and hopefully wasn’t too singed… Cats have high tolerance levels to such things.
🙂 Yes, it’s true. As the only male of an all female household, I was relegated to the old unattached laundry shed – which suited me just fine. I could come and go as I pleased from that location.
Spare a thought for your poor geraniums who’d shiver through the worst moments of your winter. However, with a bit of global warming…
A neighbour appears to have wiped out the deer, which I’m not unhappy about. Last summer they ate all of the Agapanthus flowers which made it hard for the honeyeaters. The rose is awesome, and sets little baby roses – which I’ve already gifted here and there.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
It’s a good use of this ‘ere data, with occasional bright spots of information, super duper electronic highway to hell… I do agree with you, and the numbers of deaths suggest that people have been more careful this time around (one so far). Back in 2009 when 173 folks met their end, I recall hearing a report later by a bloke who survived and he was surprised by the big fire and mentioned that he’d been in the middle of constructing a chicken shed. That day, the maps showed where the fire was, the topography and the winds, and there was no way I’d have been up where he was, but you know… Times are different, and warnings are now getting out to those who need such things, but even then there are a few who disregard. Like old duffers driving across flooded roads – which happens down under too.
The hydroelectric drought years are rare here as well, although the island state of Tasmania which has a lot of hydro potential, had a massive issue in 2016 when drought and alleged over-use of the resource, faced the reality of a break in the undersea cable linking to the coal generators in this state. I recall heady claims that the cable would be fixed in a couple of weeks, but no, it took six months to repair fully. The underwater cable is over 400 miles long… They had troubles in that state for sure: 2016 Tasmanian energy crisis. Had to hire massive diesel generators.
Like solar and wind, hydro is good, but nature imposes limits which should always be respected. Hehe! A little bit art, and a little bit science, combined with a whole lot of luck, yup.
The big tropical cyclone has broken records way up north for rain, and down here I’d just be happy if that dog’s tail wags. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday some rain is predicted here (with this location being favoured for some weird reason), although it is a dynamic system.
Incidentally, the scorching from the fires can now be seen on satellite images (almost a million acres have now burned, with many fires not yet under control): Victorian bushfire smoke visible from space.
I reckon all that particulate matter entering the upper atmosphere tends to cool the climate and produce wet periods in the following years, in a similar way to that of volcanic eruptions.
Had a look for the fictional book on the Columbia river running dry, and holy carp, many a word has been penned on the Colorado River issues and dare I say it, that drowned out references to the work you mentioned. You can tell where the tech bros controlling the search engines perhaps reside and their concerns… 🙂
Yeah, the Editor and I will plot out the route for best efficiency and do all of the needful stops. Our only minor disagreement is with the big box hardware store which has multiple lines for checkout (including a self serve). The Editor has some idea that she’s always ended up in the slow moving queue and wants to jump over to a different line. I’m more relaxed about such things, it takes what it takes, and may offer useful mystical suggestions that a state of acceptance has much to recommend it. 🙂 Once the dreaded queue has been vanquished, calm yet again descends upon the journey. I’d imagine that you’re chill with queues?
Although when I was a young bloke, a trip to the motor vehicle registry office was a nightmare. Take a packed lunch and hope you don’t have to go to the toilet. 😉
Almost forgot to mention, but last evening at bedtime whilst taking the dogs out for their final ablutions, I heard huge crash and thud in the forest. A big tree came down deep into the forest near a steep, but small gorge and from a distance late this afternoon, it looked like a landslide.
The firewood job for the year was completed today! Yay! The conditions were near perfect for such work at 15’C / 59’F. It was a cold, cloudy and mostly dry day – although at times the mist felt like drizzle. Crazy huh after last weeks heat? Oh well, what is a stable climate again?
About four of the maybe ten tree ferns have survived last years early months of last years dry weather. Better than none, and many other varieties of ferns thrived in the conditions.
Glad to hear that there is not to be a test. 😉 I might fail abysmally!
The typewriter bloke is awesome, and I’m old enough to have used them too. He made an interesting point about having to consider the words prior to committing them to paper, and suggested that some folks appreciated that with the creative process. Perhaps you and I are not easily distracted in the first place! 😉 He’s doing good work out there.
Some films leave me with nightmares, and a visual depiction of the aftermath of the USS Indianapolis disaster would have that effect.
That high pressure system Professor Mass wrote of is surely coming into play. Hope the garden plants aren’t too confused, although daffodils would be making an appearance some time this month for you – at a wild guess.
Clearly you are benefiting from the Federal governments attempts to reduce the outlays for bureaucracy. It’d be amazing if the number of inspections settled to a more reasonable level, like maybe once or twice per year. Something to celebrate. How often is a reasonable number of inspections anyway? When I was a young adult, nobody inspected rental properties, that sport I reckon came about as a way to justify their commissions.
Nice choices of plants for the sale, and hope the master gardeners were cool with you?
Time, maybe will produce the root systems for the redwoods? Don’t they produce seeds?
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – Other than being close to a “point of ignition” I just don’t see why people don’t pay more attention. Have a plan, pack the car. Early in your fires, there was a family of three, who were too late to evacuate, and were told to shelter in place. They were lost track of, for awhile, but I guess they made it through, OK. I wondered why they didn’t lift them out with a whirly-bird. Maybe the smoke was too dense, or winds too high.
That was an interesting article on the Tasmanian energy crisis. I noticed the internet was also knocked down. LOL. The only thing I would have changed about the article is their constant reference to “energy storage.” Without making it very clear that that is “the water behind a dam.” 🙂
I hope you get a bit of rain from that system. Top up your tanks. The satellite pictures were interesting. Australia takes a smoko. 🙂 . The picture of the pyrocumulus cloud was impressive.
My search for the sci-fi novel, about the Columbia River drying up couldn’t seem to get past the “Riverworld” series, by Farmer. I read some of it, way back when. It was even done as a tv miniseries. Not what I asked for. It seems like sometimes, searches get in a rut, and you can’t shake them out.
Speaking of tech run amok, I phoned in my rental insurance payment. Or, attempted to. Robo Man needs to get his ears cleaned out. Took me two attempts. And, he started some song and dance about sending a code, either by test (sorry, no dumb phone), or e-mail. I ignored those prompts and he finally took my money. I do not need the aggravation.
If there are multiple queues in a store, I do a quick size up. Who has the least amount of item. (And are they men or women. Shhh!)
🙂 Dude shopping is in and out. And, they’re more likely to use cash. At least, here.
That’s interesting about the possible landslide. Dig out the telephoto lens, and we may have a picture? There may be rocks? Who knows what might fall out of the bank? I’d guess the tree (and maybe the rocks) will stay where they lay. It sounds like there are trees and rocks more easily accessed, closer to home. And eventful walk. I saw you mentioned a wombat blocking the path.
Congratulations on nailing down this years firewood. Now onto more interesting things. Not that harvesting firewood isn’t interesting. Maybe I should have said “different,” instead.
Our high yesterday was 54F (12.22C). Our overnight low was 41F (5C). Our forecast high for today is 56F. And, it’s sunny. No daffodils, yet, that I can see. But I expect there will be some plant confusion.
Some people turn old typewriter keys, into jewelry. Will the lust for bling, outrun the lust for working typewriters?
It would be nice if we actually had a schedule of inspections. And they stuck to it. As with so many other things, inspections are outsourced. With Mars Boy and his merry men, gutting the government, it mentioned that many outsourced contracts were terminated. From what I can tell, many of those contracts are being slowly put back in place. As large chunks of the government ceased to function.
A look down the rabbit hole indicates that redwoods have tiny seeds. Interesting that there are male and female cones. They’re light enough to be dispersed by wind.
I was uninspired over a choice of dinner, last night. Then I remembered I had those packets of New Year’s Day meal, in the freezer. I took a bed of rice, tossed in some pumpkin and sunflower seeds, garlic and broccoli. The packets contain collard greens, black eyed peas, a few chunks of ham hock and a generous amount of potlikker. Mixed all together and heated up, it was pretty tasty.
Another project, last night, was slaughtering the last two pumpkins. One looked like it might be getting a bit soft. So, I cleaned them out and baked them up. Saved the seeds, cleaned and roasted them. Two pumpkins, two cups of puree to go in the freezer. Lew
Chris:
Not surfing. Gangsters – what else?
Congratulations, and an Elephant Stamp on completing the job which is like money in the bank.
That is really interesting that the panels – I guess, other components, too – can be made somewhat specific for a particular climate. So much to learn! And Mr. Baby doesn’t care and wasn’t listening and is not polite company anyway.
Are surge protectors of any use in those grid surges?
“A transformer by the way just takes the really high voltage supplied by the big grid generators and reduces it to the more usual household supplies. Those machines get hot doing that work.” Nicely put, and easy to understand.
The ghost of Fatso the Wombat . . .
Wow – I had to go look at it: Martha Stewart’s machinery shed is a jaw dropping sight. I just about swooned. Note this caption under a photo: “On this rainy day, I asked that the equipment barn be well organized. All the pieces of equipment are brought out onto the driveway for inspection and cleaning.” “I asked”: She had her minions do the work (which I expected). That said, she is one gutsy lady who made a strong comeback after cooling her heels for awhile in the big house for something that a fair number of our politicians are a little too familiar with.
As a young teenager, my bedroom was in a room with outside access. I think it was once a den, or something. The door was fixed so that it could not be opened. I guess my parents had an inkling of my true nature . . .
This fall, one of our neighbors tried to wipe out all the deer, but that would be impossible. There are just too many here.
When at my grocery store yesterday, I glanced at the headlines of our local newspaper. One was about how the city of Charlottesville was had gone over to using AI paperless in all the parking garages in the downtown area. I still haven’t figured out how to use a card; what’s wrong with a human taking your 50 cents (well, that was the cost once upon a time) when you left? I asked a neighbor if she had encountered that. She had and this is what she said: “Now you have to sign up online and optical scanners will read your license plate when you come and go. I signed up but I haven’t tried it yet. I got into a long online conversation with them because when I entered my license plate, I couldn’t put in the space between (redacted). I wondered if it would be a problem and the first response was probably not, but it might be. So I pursued it further and I guess they got tired of me since they told me it wouldn’t be a problem.”
Pam
@ Pam,
During some of our nasty heat waves during thick smoke, well, indeed, the smoke does keep the temperature down a bit. I distinctly remember forecast highs near 105F, but the thick smoke kept the temperatures to a “cooler” 99F. However, they also insulate somewhat at night so the nights don’t cool well. Also, when the smoke is thick enough to keep the temperatures down a bit, the amount of solar power generated plummets.
At least that’s my experience. Chris may have experienced something different.
DJSpo
Chris,
Hmmmm, I seem to remember reading your last reply to me something about “The Dune series lost its spice” or something similar. Brilliant. I had a long laugh at that.
I see in a reply that you completed the firewood for the year. The peasantry in Spokane rejoices with you! Go Chris, go! Three cheers for the Editor! And so on.
42C is some serious heat. That heat with smoke would be almost unbearable to me. 29C indoors would be outrageous to sleep in. I think after 4 days away in the summer with highs near 35C, our house was about 27C indoors. Uncomfortable, to say the least. Glad it has cooled some where you are.
High heat. Wind Smoke. Dude, that is a Terrible Triad. Survival mode.
Thanks for sharing your water levels. You look to be in okay shape. Getting some rains would make you feel better, I’m sure.
We were +11C with sun today. The snow from last week has disappeared mostly, except for shaded areas. Freezing fog forecast for the next two mornings. And dry. Nothing wet in the forecast for the next two weeks at least. This is our wet season. And this region has very low snowpack in the mountains. Nice to have a few dry days, but we need the snow like you need rain.
Wow. You have your soils so good that the plants can survive that heat and dry with little water. Well done.
This is a busy week. The club’s new treasurer and I had some business to attend to Monday. Later this week, we will go to nearby Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and pick up some basswood from a small business. We’re getting a very good price for it. That will take about half a day.
Meanwhile, the Princess is still with her brother. The relative’s funeral got delayed until midweek. Princess might get home Thursday. Just in time to rest for a couple days then go back for her normal monthly visit.
Did get a fun visit in today, however. Young Neighbor wanted to get together, so we met for an early dinner after her workday ended. Good meal and a nice visit.
Methinks you maybe need to explain something to Ollie, as he thinks you went mad in the heat. Not a chance. That going mad in the midday sun is for mad dogs and Englishmen. You’re neither. You might be safe for awhile. Maybe.
Thanks. Those old timey roses are spectacular.
DJSpo
Hi Pam,
Silly me, how could I possibly forget The Big Lebowski? 🙂
Did you know, that the CBF attempted to install an arty-fish-al robotic interface at the shed? And well here we must blame Ollie, for he did what dogs do, and now all the circuits are damaged. At least the manual firewood processing works! Naughty Ollie. He and I sat outside in the evening cool sunshine and I brushed down his coat. After last week’s heat, all three dogs are blowing their coats. This is resulting in lots of vacuuming, so why not get in early with the carding brush?
Nah, the solar panels can’t be optimised for the heat, they all are about as good as they can be, and are rated to work at 25’C / 77’F. Cooler than that, with the sun facing the panels dead on, will produce higher output. Warmer, lower output. All the rest of the stuff, absolutely can be made better to withstand the local environment it’s installed in. Excessive heat is what shortens the life of electronic components. Glad to hear that Mr Baby was sanguine regarding the conversation.
Maybe, much depends upon exactly what the surge protector does. Hmm, they seem to redirect the electricity to earth if the main supply circuit goes over voltage. Most households do not have such a device, but I believe they can be installed in the circuit box and are a use once device, but with replaceable cartridges – Surge Protection Device. Probably not a bad idea, although they’re a couple of hundred bucks down here.
Fatso the wombat is very much alive and kicking! 🙂 Lovely critters, despite the many challenges they present.
I know, total drooling with envy at the sheer organisation of the shed. Hey, sets the gold standard for us lesser folks to strive towards. Yeah, the lady did the crime and time, and has now put her energy into something really lovely. Yes, it’s been remarked upon elsewhere by cleverer brains than mine, that nobody donates to the folks you mentioned, without expecting a return on the investment. Hmm. The difference is very fine indeed between the two scenarios, but the system is what it is…
We’re all a bit wild at heart! It happens. 🙂 I used to be able to jump the back fence, and be off down the lane way, and it was good to keep some distance from the other members of the household. Made my life easier.
It’s challenging to attempt such a thing with the deer. A bit like the rabbits here. There aren’t too many, and they’re nervous and have no housing on this property. I could wipe them all out, but then more will turn up. It’s like a game of whack-a-mole. Best I just keep an eye on the ones here in the hope that a population of predators hangs around and deals to them.
When the neighbour was blasting away down in the forest, he sure went through a lot of ammunition over a number of weeks. It ain’t cheap.
The deer bother me the most of all of the critters, only because other than humans, they have no predators and the population explodes like nothing else I’ve experienced. In the distant future, wild dogs will take them down, but for now it’s humans or nothing. We don’t have wild dingoes in this area.
Ha! Welcome to the phone app nightmare, and they have such things in the big smoke too for street parking. How hard is it to employ someone to collect the coins from the machines? Although cash is always a risk. I avoid that street system because of the app requirement. Commercial car parks tend to have the pay by credit card and the number plate readers work well, although much depends upon how dirty they are (i.e. easy for the computer to read).
Fingers crossed it works for you, and we’re being forced onto all sorts of stupid systems. Sandra had to go to a different supermarket this morning which had a self checkout. The really dumb system confused bananas for canola oil, both being somewhat yellow. Hmm. The attendant agreed that bananas were indeed purchased, and made the interesting remark that the system is more wrong than it is right. You’d think that these things would be better tested in the real world? Apparently not.
Cheers
Chris
Hi DJ,
Trust me, there were a lot of laughs here about that one too. Pretty funny. Man, that Dune joke is just asking to be told, although I can’t say I’ve heard it said elsewhere. Maybe the latter instalments of the series just weren’t that popular enough for folks to realise where the storyline travelled, and people just don’t know?
Yes, the firewood job is now done for the year. Thanks, and it’s absolutely a completed task worth celebrating. 🙂 The new firewood shed project has gone up the priority list on the basis that it would be easier to do the work throughout the year, rather than all at once in summer. Anywhoo, we’ve got the various rock and path upgrades to complete next, but once they’re done… Milling the timber for the shed will be interesting.
Mate, 27’C indoors is no fun either, and makes for difficult sleep. The sudden shift into winter weather the past few days is making my head hurt a bit, and tonight I’m wearing a woollen jumper. It even rained 2mm this morning, which was gratefully received. Extreme climate variability is not ideal for growing edible plants. The corn basically failed to germinate this year, and growing grains here in this location would be difficult. It’s a task I’m thinking about for the future. Buckwheat might work here, and it’s only been in the country for around four decades. Both rhubarb and sorrel grow well here and self seed, and they are related plants. Might have to get some seeds. Hmm.
The fires have burned almost a million acres of land in this state since last week, and a number of them are still going. There’ll be a bit more rain each day over the next three days, not much, but hope it helps. Each day I pour over the forecast and see what the tea leaves foretell. Yup, take each day as she comes.
The water reserves depend on how the weather goes for the next three months. After mid-April, the sun has little energy to scorch the plants, and so they survive on water rations. But until then, much is unknown.
Hope you get the snow, soon. 11’C would be warm here for the month of July. Dunno about you, but my mind keeps cycling back to the old timey song which made the observation that: ‘dunno what you’ve got, ’til it’s gone’, when it comes to the concept of not messing around with a stable climate. After all, I’m wearing a woollen jumper this evening and was wondering if the wood heater needed to be lit. My thoughts in the matter are probably irrelevant in the larger context of this ‘ere civilisation.
Yeah, other than the newest fruit trees in the Citrus enclosure, the orchards have received no watering. As a species, we can do better.
Nice score with the basswood / American linden. Impressive, and some of the images displayed beautiful fiddle-backing in the grain. Nothing cheap, comes easy. The old adage of: Good, Fast, Cheap, Pick any two – applies equally to your bargain purchase. I never offered my services as a treasurer to groups, because professional requirements force me to treat them equally as a client, just for free.
Hope the funeral service is blessed by good weather, and that’s what connections look like. My lot are the exact opposite, and sometimes I wonder about their sanity, whilst not wanting anything to do with them.
Lovely, and I do hope that the Dame was on her best behaviour?
Hehe! I’ll take your warning about the heat under advisement. Having some more northerly blood running in the veins supplies dollops and lashings of pragmatism. 🙂 After 2pm that awful hot day, I’d had enough outdoors. Dame Avalanche who is also sensible, would no doubts agree with the decision. The dogs here have a bit of heat rash, and I’m daily thinning their coats with a carding brush.
The roses are a true delight, and a recent lovely visitor was quite taken with the gardens. The fires are still on-going, and hope the memory serves them through their still at-risk ordeal.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
You’d have to suggest that those three folks you mentioned caused a lot of drama – the news was describing them as ‘missing persons’, not something you ever want to become in a big fire. Clearly they decamped from their situation. It appears that they did make it through, and so far there has only been one fatality, which is quite astounding for almost a million acres of burnt land.
That’s a good point, and on Friday the winds were feral, and I believe much of the air fleet was grounded. To be honest, it’s probably a bit much to expect rescue from the air, although there were some incidences of that actually occurring.
Exactly! Energy literacy is remarkably poor, and energy stored, is sort of the same thing in the context of hydro as: ‘water stored behind a dam wall’. They’re constructing a massive pumped hydro project I believe which may be described as the Snowy Hydro 2.0. Dunno what the decimal point is all about. The original costings were something like $2bn, but are now projected to be around the $12bn mark. Can’t say I’ve ever been that wrong in an estimation, and it’s an impressive achievement.
About a tenth of inch of rain fell this morning, and hope that much more arrives tomorrow. We’ll see. Certainly made for less work this morning with watering, and anyway, we did paid work today. Back to it, albeit slowly. Very funny too, yeah. Smoko, just on a grand scale. 🙂
The tech bros running the search things, probably have bills to pay, and so I guess what gets shown, is what pays. Probably not always what we need though, is it? Mine didn’t even turn up that series you mentioned.
Oh my, the Editor had a similar insurance experience to you in that what was last year human contact, has been replaced by a robo-loop. I hear you about that unwanted aggravation, and am not a fan of those systems. Speaking of such things, the Editor went to a different supermarket this morning, and had to run the gauntlet of the self-service checkout. So get this, the stupid computer couldn’t tell the difference between bananas, and canola oil, both being somewhat yellow. An alert went off, and the overseer came over to sort the mess out, and surprisingly mentioned that the system is more wrong, than it is right. We usually shop at a store which has cashiers, but they don’t carry all items. Like you, we’re going to multiple places now. What do you do?
Ha! That’s funny, and hey, I speak dude shopping. 🙂 Some queues are hard to discern whether they’ll flow faster or what, and often it comes down to hardware items not scanning properly, and then there is a giant kerfuffle to sort it all out. First rule in big box store shopping is: Relax! Not always possible in such environments.
The slide was about 600ft further in to the forest, and candidly I’m not comfortable about venturing deeper in, due to unknown, unknowns. Not sure photos would turn out all that well at this distance. The big wombat can be a bit stubborn and stand its ground, like what it did that night. Best to wait, and the marsupial will move on. Ollie was outraged, but he must learn to curb his boisterous enthusiasm.
After paid work finished earlier this evening, Ollie, Ruby and I sat on the veranda, and I got the wire hair brush (it looks like a carding brush) onto their coats for about half an hour. Big wads of winter fur were gently drifting off in the breeze. The dogs got rather hot last week, and have a bit of heat rash, so I’ll keep regularly thinning their coats over the next week or so.
Speaking of overly enthusiastic, I even hand washed both Suzuki’s this evening. This is almost unheard of, and the Dirt Rat in particular had a number of alarming looking spider webs. It’s a bit stressful to be driving down the freeway only to discover a massive huntsman spider walking near to your head. Yes, they do bite.
Nah, I’m looking forward to getting onto other jobs, like fixing up the many rock lined paths near to the house. When access to the garden beds is easier, they get maintained more, and put to productive uses. The loose talk here is that the new firewood shed will be next on the agenda after the paths are done.
Oh yeah, you’re in for plant confusion with those warm winter temperatures. Today was cool at 68’F. Quite nice really, although doing paid work felt cold indoors. The weather cares not for how my brain feels, or probably yours for that matter! 😉
Far out, do they really do that to typewriter keys? Oh well, literacy rates are on the decline anyway. A typewriter is a handy machine though. Thought you may appreciate this article on the local scene: Business booms for Melbourne’s last typewriter repairman, Tom Koska
The smaller goobermint thing was bound to happen sooner or later. It’s economics my dear Mr Watson! Hehe! Who was the clever dude who came up with the saying that what can’t be sustained, won’t be?
Nice dinner. Innovative. We had rice, egg, veg and cooked greens this evening. Tasty.
Take that pumpkins, and you’ll both be stool pigeons no more! Getting a bit soft with pumpkins, is definitely telling you that without a rapid response, it’s going to get messy. Zucchinis are the worst for that – it’s disgusting to put your finger through the skin and have all of the gunk gushing out of the vegetable. Pumpkins tend to go mouldy.
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – Cost overruns in big projects seem to be baked into the cake. Inflation, unexpected problems. Graft and corruption. 🙂
Our high yesterday was 55F (12.77C). Our overnight low was 41F (5C). Our forecast high for today is 51F. Prof. Mass has an interesting post. Interesting as the last bit of it is about lowland snow. Though I think what he’s saying is, don’t pay attention to such a forecast, so far out, from one source.
A laughable bit of the robocall was an announcement that it may be monitored and recorded for quality control. Monitored by who? Another robot? They cover for each other, you know. 🙂
From what I’ve read, some businesses have given up on self-checkout. Come to think of it, our library system uses self checkout. Or I should say, it’s available. If you don’t want to deal with it, you can take your books to the front desk, and they’ll check them out for you, no problem. I don’t go into the library, much. I usually use the drive through window. But when I do, I do use the self checkout. It’s fairly straight forward.
What would unknown, unknowns be in the slide area? Might you stumble on a teddy bear’s picnic? 🙂 Or, given the small things that can kill you, in your part of the world … Poisonous snakes, ground wasp nests, etc. etc.. I was speculating on what could have fallen out of the slide. Large gold nuggets? Whetstones?
That was quit an article about Mr. Koska, the typewriter repair dude. In the first picture, the typewriter he’s holding, and the one behind him look very much like the heavy beast I taught myself to type on, when I was a wee small lad. Later on, I had a “portable” (I put that in quotations marks, as it was also quit heavy) that I lugged around, for years. I can’t remember whatever happened to that.
The article didn’t mention if he had an apprentice.
Speaking of Dr. Watson, I ran across an older film in our library catalog, that I’ve put on hold. “Arthur and George.” Arthur, as in, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Ah, I see it’s a mini-series.
https://w.wiki/HT6i
Last night was a popcorn night. I watched “Spinal Tap II.” Sir Paul McCartney and Sir Elton John had cameos. It was quit amusing, but I wondered if a few of the jokes were perhaps too American-centric. Do you have the restaurant chain, International House of Pancakes (IHOP), down there? And, a bit of disquiet hung over the whole thing. Given the recent tragedy in Rob Reiner’s family. Every time he appeared on-screen, it came to mind.
Well, guess what? “28 Years Later” is a trilogy. I do hope, as with part two, part three is already “in the can.”
I’m going to visit city hall, this afternoon, and see if I can get H’s yearly dog license. Then onto see if Jane is back at her post, at the Club. Lew
@ DJSpo:
Thanks for your observations. We had one summer with Canadian wildfire smoke that was quite heavy here, but nothing like actually being in the area where the fires were. I do remember that we built some kind of filter for filtering the smoke in the house; it was that bad.
Pam
Chris:
I never did see The Big Lebowski; I take it you liked it? I did see The Big Heat. I was a bit dark for me.
Well, now – you are going to have to explain to me what Ollie did (I know what Ollie did), because why was he involved with an arty-fish-al thing and how did it get there?
Time to make a dog hair-filled pillow.
This is the sort of surge protector I was thinking of. What are “joules”?
https://www.amazon.com/Furman-SS-6B-PRO-6-outlet-Surge-Suppressor/dp/B07WZP86CW/ref=zg_bs_g_761520_d_sccl_39/137-4084701-6464122?psc=1
That’s one of the things I thought about all the ammunition I heard being used this fall: It costs a small fortune. Yeah – wild dogs. We also have large wolf/coyote crosses, but they don’t seem to be making a dent. Maybe some of the cattle and sheep farmers around here have been removing them.
Speaking of deer: The vultures must have gone somewhere for the winter – I don’t know about the other wildlife that scavenges – because deer bodies are beginning to pile up along the roadside of the 2-lane highway I take into town. Neither the state nor the county is used to having to deal with that. Of course, that shows that there are now less deer . . .
I have a friend that works at a grocery store as the self-checkout monitor. She stays very busy fixing things the machine does wrong. I myself, who usually uses them in grocery stores, so I should know what I am doing, often need help at some point.
My son and I were talking today about whether or not we need more hand tools. So much of what we have now is gas or battery-powered (he has just bought a stump grinder). We didn’t really come up with anything more than what we already have. It’s the firewood that is the most concerning. You know how hard that stuff is to cut and split by hand. That doesn’t even count cutting the tree down. That said, I keep urging him to buy a power wheel barrow.
Pam
@ Pam,
My sister uses a commercially made filter for the smoky days. I made one. I duct taped a 1 inch thick PF13 furnace filter to the back of a 20 inch box fan, then sealed around the filter with duct tape. It works well enough and is portable from room to room. At the same time I also run the fan on the furnace. The furnace has a PF 11 filter which filters out most things that are larger than smoke particles, leaving the “heavy lifting” of the smoke to the system I made.
There are times that we get inundated by Canadian wildfire smoke also. This past summer the winds were weird so you got blasted with “our” Canadian smoke. We settled for a mix of Idaho and Oregon smoke instead. 😉
DJSpo
Chris,
Oh, I sit corrected. Monday was actually +13C here rather than the typical +1C for this time of year. It felt like March. Today, however, was different. +2C all day with pea soup fog. Thick stuff. Visibility varied between 50m and 150m all day. Still foggy tonight.
I had a wee nip of something to celebrate your finished firewood stacking. That should be a worldwide celebration and holiday, shouldn’t it?
A million acres burnt in a week? The largest fires in our general area were in 2014 and 2015. I think one year two largish fires merged, the giant fire totalled about 300,000 acres. Yes, took about a week, maybe 10 days to get to that size. I can’t imagine more than tripling that. That’s a LOT of smoke.
Very appropriate song, “don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone”. So true about burned out areas, or a winter with very little snow. It fits a lot of life.
I tell ya what. Today’s +2C with thick fog and the resulting high humidity chilled me to the bone. I always feel colder in this weather than when it is -15C but dry. You would have needed maybe two jumpers here today. 🙂 And I wouldn’t have laughed at you!
While we were dealing with chilly fog, it was sunny and at least +5C where the Princess was. A nice heat wave and warmish.
A tenth of an inch? And maybe near that for a second day? Not bad. Every little bit helps. Another outlook is that you’ve got to have the first rainstorm, no matter how big it is, before the better rainstorms hit. Hopefully, you’ll get more rain.
Hmmmm, let’s see. Young neighbor and I were indoors at the restaurant. Dame Avalanche was sleeping in my car. She travels well and stays very calm when alone in the car. She KNOWS I’ll be back. So, yeah, I guess she was on her best behavior.
If you can work until 2 on a hot day, you can stay in the heat a lot longer than I can. Of course, even into my early 40s, working in the heat didn’t phase me much, especially if I was hydrated. Now? Nope, not a chance. Late morning and I’m done in the heat. Also, similar to the husky, in the cold I can pretty much keep chugging along all day.
Your gardens, both flowers and foodstuffs, are a joy to look at. You give us all a wonderful weekly break from northern hemisphere winters.
DJSpo
Hi Pam,
I’d never heard of the film you mentioned, and yeah, the plot line was dark with a cast of bodies. Reminded me of the old adage that a person has to be careful with whom they hang around with. I saw the Big Lebowski long ago, and have since forgotten most of the plot. Perhaps a re-acquaintance is in order? Dunno, bit busy at the moment! 🙂
Tackled about half of the wild blackberry problem today. Cut all of the very nastily spiked canes with thorns into small chunks about a foot long. The plan was to burn them all off in the brazier this evening, but the wind is a little bit feral tonight and nobody wants to be the most hated person in the mountain range for causing a massive fire. It was only a year or two ago that I heard a couple of old timers disparaging the hapless dude who set off the 1983 fire in long grass at the water works. In some ways it was fortunate that the guy created such a monster burnt out fire break, because when an even biggerer fire swept through – there was nothing left to burn, and that fire got stopped in its tracks.
It was meant to rain here today, but somehow all of the rain stalled along the coast line far to the south west of here, and caused a huge amount of damage. It’s hard to believe that an active fire is burning in forest near to there and only 40 miles away, but… Emergency warning for Great Ocean Road as record-breaking downpour sweeps cars to sea. Never seen a car swept out to sea before…
Ollie is a very practically minded pooch, and kept things real by forcing the CBF to maintain manual records and systems. Very considerate of the dog. And Pam, I was wrong. So very, very wrong. One deer escaped the recent mayhem. It was here last evening, and twice today. I wish this problem was not dumped at my door. Might call for some help. Hmm.
😉 I’ve heard that some folks have made clothes from spun and then woven dog hair. Yesterday the stuff was blowing away in the breeze.
Joules is a measure of energy, and if the reviews of the product are good, and the possibility is more likely than not, it’s cheap insurance – which hopefully works when it is meant to. Nothing is certain in that world of electronics, and much depends upon the quality of the item. You may recall that in the past year or so I recently upgraded all of the fuses for the off grid solar power system.
Is it an effective use of mad cash? Clearly there were holes in the use of ammo sweep for the err, deer. Wiley critters they are. I reckon the cattle and sheep farmers would be culling the deer, if only because the herbivores are competing for limited feed. That’s how the deer came to be here, local cattle folks drove them out, and the deer retreated here.
Ooo. Not a pleasant sight, and one wonders how the various vehicles cope with their sudden interactions with deer? Things are different down here, and although I drive slowly and carefully, others… Dead marsupials have their pouches checked for young uns by volunteers, and the council hauls away the carcasses and presumably adds them to the compost for sale.
From a customer perspective, it’s rather alarming to have the check out system publicly crack the sads, so your friend is doing an admirable job, and probably knows more of the gentle art of diplomacy than either you or I – or the folks working in that role. The current Australian ambassador to the US has finished his stint a year early, and it’s hard not to notice some of the stupid things he’s allegedly said about your President in the past. Working as a diplomat, requires a person to actually be diplomatic, and think before they say whatever rubbish is on their minds. At the very least there should be some respect for the office.
Go the stump grinder, and that machine is a real back and shoulder saver, although they’re still hard work. A two person cross cut saw could be handy, and it is a subject which is on my mind. Hmm. At the moment they are well made and cheap, but who knows what the future holds in store for us all? Axes are good too, and I love the power wheelbarrows.
Cheers
Chris
Hi DJ,
It wasn’t all that warm here today at maybe 20’C, with mist at times. 2’C is of course much colder feeling, but fog is fog, isn’t it? It was meant to rain here today, but the Otway Ranges along the coastline way off to the south west of here, appears to have blocked all of the moisture flow. And the storm stalled over that region for many hours. A stalled storm is not something anyone wants to ever experience: Record-breaking Great Ocean Road downpour sweeps cars to sea, inundates caravan parks. I know that area well, and it’s horrific to see what occurred to the holiday makers. Like those Texas flash floods, I doubt they had much warning, although there was no loss of life here.
It would be nice to get some rain from the swirling storm system, although it’s been mostly mist so far. Maybe later.
I’d had plans to weld this afternoon, using the new MAG welding machine, but it’s probably not safe to do that activity when moisture levels are up around 99%. Last week was nuts, this week is simply crazy weather wise.
😉 Respect, and hey, I’m still celebrating the firewood achievement, so yeah, why not go international?
The million acres mostly burned within a day or so, then weather conditions eased and the feral monsters could at least be sort of contained, if that is ever truly possible. 300,000 acres is a very large fire. Dude, to put it all into perspective, the 2019-2020 Black Summer of fires – the super hot year I could grow melons with ten days over 40’C, took out 59 million acres. We do things big down here: 2019–20 Australian bushfire season. The view of the fires from the International space station in that link tell the whole story.
Yeah, those words do fit a lot of life, and all that you and I can do is adapt to the changing circumstances, and remember to share a few stories and laughs. Speaking of which, I dug up this old article which may be of interest to you considering the dog breed: Pet hair yarn: Clothing made from dogs proving popular for animal owners. It’s not a quick process to groom the hair of a dog.
Oh yeah, three jumpers may have just sufficed for one who is summer softened in those Arctic conditions. By the way, tonight here is a one woollen jumper evening, and it is now pea soup conditions with wind.
5’C and sunny feels quite pleasant in winter, and it is thoughtful of the universe to provide good conditions for the service.
Fingers crossed that some of the moisture will push north this evening. Looking at the winds for the state on the weather interweb models shows a really interesting swirling motion for the storm. I’d add the words, Brownian motion (!) but alas, little moisture has been delivered here. 😉
Very good to hear that the Dame comprehends the niceties of patience. Not all dogs get that memo, or people for that matter.
Agreed, physical work when it’s in the colder months is no problem at all, although I tend to start the days later. In summer, the work days start early and finish up around the 2pm to 2:30pm mark. Any later in the day and there is a serious risk of cooking one’s head. Hey, I may be more acclimated to those warmer conditions having experienced them for so many years? Dunno. It’s not like I have much choice about the matter of weather.
Husky’s are sensible canines, and know when to retreat to cooler conditions when in hot weather. The Kelpies were running around like crazy this morning whilst I tackled the huge patch of blackberries which seem to grow every year in the steep batter on the uphill side of the house. One year I pulled the lot out, roots and all – and the canes simply grew back. Now I just cut them near to the ground, and burn the canes off. Used a new tool too today. Quite effective.
🙂 My pleasure, and thank you so much for saying those lovely words. It is a joy to speak with your good self, and also the other lovely people who take the time to drop by and say hello.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Probably, and yeah, maybe some of those big gobermint projects would never get off the ground in the first place if it were acknowledged early on as to how expensive they really are. 🙂 What you say is true too, when pockets are super deep, then many hands see what is in there to be looted. Someone told me last year that their brother was a second year apprentice electrician on one of those big goobermint jobs, and he was allegedly earning more than I ever made annually when working in the big end of town. I don’t reckon the person was lying either, for they too were annoyed by the income disparity. Hmm.
Scrounging alert win mode number five: 😉 Hang onto your hat, for I finally tracked down a not-too-far-away source of cheap second hand solar panels. I’ll pick up some for the yet to be constructed larger firewood shed project, and also just to have some for spares. The variety of solar panels my power system uses is now considered ‘old school’, and so a bit of scrounging is required. It’s sad that such high tech devices have almost no value. So weird that, oh well. Panels these days are made with a different number of cells, which in turn produces a slight lower voltage for all sorts of reasons. Hopefully the second hand ones are alright, but they tend to either work or not.
Very little rain fell here today, despite the epic size of the storm. The rain stalled at the coastline far to the south west of here, and wow, almost seven inches fell there during the day. A swollen river appears to have wiped out a tourist caravan park with cars even getting washed out to sea. The footage is bizarre. Record-breaking Great Ocean Road downpour sweeps cars to sea, inundates caravan parks. Fortunately nobody appears to have been injured in the flash flooding. Looking at the forecast, I couldn’t see any possibility of that big rain event in that location, but then it was meant to rain here today and hasn’t, and I did suggest yesterday that the storm was described as dynamic. It sure was that.
Professor Mass wrote about the dew in your region. Interesting, and did I mention that there was dew here two mornings ago? And there was fog this morning, and a real pea souper tonight – but with strong winds. A stable climate would be nice, but I have observed that plenty of folks have a penchant for novelty, so it’s little wonder that there is little constructive action to protect the environment as it is.
Oh no! That’s funny about one robot covering for another, and who listens to those recordings anyway? It sounds more of an implied threat those messages, or at least that is how they appear to me.
Picked a bucket of apricots this evening and it weighed in about 5kg / 11 pounds. That should be enough fruit for about 16 jars of apricot jam, maybe more. Not a bad haul given that awful 32’F frosty morning earlier in the growing season which blasted the blossoms. The batches will have to be made over the next week, but the fruit has to soften a little bit first.
Yeah, self checkout is an over rated experience in my opinion. The one at the big box hardware store works pretty well, but that supermarket system was just bad. If a computer can’t tell the difference between bananas and canola oil, there’s something seriously wrong with it, because it appears not fit for purpose.
The wind is feral here tonight. Dealt to a huge number of thorny wild blackberry canes earlier today. Quite stabby those plants. Anyway, they were no might for the the little Stihl battery chainsaw on an extendable pole. A serious bit of equipment. We were intending to burn off the wheelbarrow load of canes tonight in the brazier, but the wind… We’ll wait for a calmer evening.
🙂 Your drive through facilities are amazing! The only drive through business I can think of down here, are the bottle shops. And there aren’t too many of those around in these enlightened days.
That’s the thing isn’t it? If I knew what the unknown, unknowns were, they’d be known. I’m being serious too, heading off into the forest here involves a lot of unexpected risks, and the forests are pretty choked up with stuff on the ground – so you may not get much warning of impending trouble. Far out too, on that note, there is one deer left. Hubris is to blame, I thought it was all a done deal, but no. Ollie and I chased the big deer off into the forest this afternoon, and it made some weird loud ‘cough or bark’ like sound when in the safety of the trees. Never heard that sound before.
Alas, the mountain range rocks are not old enough to produce nuggets of gold. That’s a job for the land an hours drive north of here. Fossicking for precious metals in that area still goes on today – and people find gold. It happens, and interestingly I read that during times of economic hardship, that hobby gets more popular.
I wondered whether the old bloke with the typewriter repair business had an apprentice too. I remember those err, not quite portable, but more luggable machines. Early computers were like that too in being super heavy bricks.
The series has Martin Clunes too. Hope it is good.
Nope, that chain is not present down under that I’m aware of. There’s a local mob which has been operating since the 1960’s known as the ‘Pancake Parlour’ and I’ve always enjoyed the offerings there. It used to be quite quirky, which was fun.
Oh! Was that Rob Reiner? Ah, not a good situation at all, and yes, very tragic and sad for all involved.
They were discussing 28 Years Later on the radio today. Ralph Fiennes has had a remarkable career.
Hope you didn’t have to wait in queue for hours with H for that registration process. I’ll bet it wasn’t the $160 a year per dog it is down here?
Cheers
Chris
@DJSpo:
The box fan set-up sounds just like what my son put together. I hope it is still around. We don’t have any central heating or central AC, so we can’t run that. We have an attic/whole house fan, but I expect that running that would be the very worst thing one could do, pulling in outside air. I know what happens when you turn it on when the room is full of smoke because someone didn’t open the fireplace damper . . .
Pam
Yo, Chris – Well … inflation. 🙂 You worked at the high end of town, quit a few years ago. I was rather horrified when I went in to have my Social Security figured out. There’s some formula where they take your top three earning years, and work out how much your monthly check, will be. I mean, I worked a lot of years as store manager, and, at the time, it was a pretty lush salary.
They also dangled a bit of “bait.” Take a larger monthly amount, and it will remain static for the remainder of your life. Take a smaller amount, and you’ll have to depend on COLAs for any increases. I’m glad I went with the COLAs. They’ve exceeded what the static payment would have been. But then, I’ve lived a long time. :-). State COLAs are a bit more iffy. The state legislature has to ok them. I doubt we’ll see one this year, due to budget problems. The federal COLAs? They always seem to be eaten up by the Medicare charges.
Good on ya for finding the slightly used solar panels. I gather there will be panels on the new firewood shed roof?
Our high yesterday was 52F (11.11C). Our overnight low was 39F (3.88C). Our forecast high for today is 50F. That was quit an article about caravans flooded and cars swept away. They’re lucky it happened in daylight. If it had happened at night, there might have been a high body count.
The apricot jam sounds very tasty. I’ve got dried apricots, on my WINCO shopping list. Depends on price. I might end up going with some tinned.
Yes, best stay out of the forest deep. Who knows what might be lurking in there. So, a deer got lucky. Lucky for him, not for you. Yes, deer and their relatives cough or bark. And, during mating season, Elk bugle. I used to hear them, where I lived before. Bigfoot hoots. 🙂 But not like an owl. Very distinctive.
As we’re knee deep in The Wonderful World of Nature, I saw a couple of articles, yesterday, that you might find interesting. Both about birds. One in New Zealand, and one in London.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/why-world-fattest-parrots-now-133852187.html
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/officials-announce-plans-reintroduce-creature-140000257.html
With the return of the storks, I wonder if the birthrate will bump up? 🙂
I saw a headline that the price of gold and silver has really bumped up. Seems to happen in “uncertain times.”
There was an IHOP close to the Uni. Favorite student hang out. I can still remember their blueberry blintzes. The author Sherman Alexi mentioned that a lot of his early books were written, late night, at that IHOP.
Getting H’s license wasn’t too bad. Although an adipated (just try and find the correct spelling for that. No, I don’t want adapt or adopt. Or something to do with organic chemistry.) older lady was in front of me. Bring her vet paperwork with her? Surely you jest. So, there were calls and e-mails, back and forth to the vet, etc. etc.. Luckily, another city hall worker stepped into the gap, and … well, I had problems of my own. Apparently, the guy who did the transfer paperwork on H, had botched the whole thing. So, I had to fill out a lot of paperwork that would have been unnecessary, had he done it right. But, I kept my good humor, throughout. If everything is in order, and, you apply for the renewal in January, the cost was just $5.
I stayed up way too late, last night, reading. I picked up a book, yesterday, “The House That Held Everything: A Family’s Hidden Hoarding and the Secrets Left Behind.” (Stukane, 2025). The author discovered she and her siblings had inherited a house, from a not so distant branch of the family. And, it is packed, floor to ceiling. But, rather than just call a removal crew (or, burn it down) she decides she want to go through everything, and try and figure out how this happened. How a fairly conventional family ended up going down the path of hoarding. It’s an interesting read. Lew
Chris:
We used to have wild blackberries before the deer ate them back so constantly that they haven’t come back. I really enjoyed them, but had to be careful, as Rex – who was Ollie’s size – would just saunter along licking all the ones he could reach, so you never knew which ones had dog slobber on them. The blackberries were replaced by wild wineberries and I like those alot, too, but the deer still get to them first. I do have some trouble keeping the canes cut back in some places. We grow thornless blackberries, but I have not been impressed so far.
We are super careful not to burn anything if there is even a slight breeze, or if it is extra dry. You are right: Besides not wanting to start a wildfire, who wants to become notorious?
It is so frightening seeing the cars being washed out to sea, or smashed up against bridges. That is sort of a pet fear of mine and I don’t like it that cars have electric windows, as I am pretty sure that they would not work if they got too wet. Mr. Musty has manual rollup windows, but I rarely drive him.
Bad news. Is there a Deer Eradication number? Only those in the know, know?
I remember the fuses upgrade.
I have heard a few things about that Australian fellow. His next post might not be so cushy.
My son is on an “organize the whole house” kick. I like that, it seriously needs to be done, but I am exhausted. I also have to stay on my toes that some of my most valued things don’t disappear into the trash or the donate boxes. Oh, well – it can’t last forever. Other projects await . . .
Pam
Pam
Chris,
More fog again today. +2C. Everything is wet. The fog might disappear sometime Friday. Time will tell.
I think I prefer this weather to the flooding you linked to. That is some serious water. 7 inches in 6 hours. That is brutal. And complete with flash floods carrying trees and boulders with the water. And cars in the raging torrent. So severe fires at one area, severe flooding nearby.
Despite the fog, driving conditions were okay. We were able to pick up the basswood today. The gent who sold it to us is a master craftsman with wood. That’s all he does, makes a living at it. The conversation about woodworking was fun. AND he had two wonderful road signs on his wall. One was a kangaroo crossing sign, the other a wombat crossing sign. He spent a year in Australia once and his friends did something we won’t talk about and shipped the signs to him after he moved back to this country.
Isn’t the 2019-2020 fire season when Australian smoke circumnavigated the globe? I remember some news coverage of those fires even here. That was an intense year.
Thanks. Those were cute Samoyeds. Rakhi the Samoyed shed like that. Now I’m wishing we had made yarn from her fur. She loved to be groomed. I think I mentioned it when Dame Avalanche was young and one of the teenage girls in the area pulled a ton of fur off the Dame, made finger puppets out of it?
Okay, three jumpers. One of my favorite sayings has always been that I prefer being too cold to being too hot. When you’re too cold, you can always add more clothes. There is a limit to what you can remove if it’s too hot.
Yes, +5C with sun feels nice this time of year. Even -15C can feel nice in the sun, as long as there is no wind and proper attire is being worn.
Brownian motion indeed. 😉 That was a good one.
You need goats. They’ll take care of those blackberry bushes for you. Some people in the Seattle area rent their goats to various property owners to clean up blackberry patches and other weeds. Apparently, the goat owners make a good bundle of cash. Meanwhile, the goats get fed and the brambles are reduced. Something for everyone.
DJSpo
Hi Pam,
The deer here must be spoilt for they studiously avoid the patches of wild blackberries – which we used to pick until an unnamed local sprayed them with potent herbicide, but neglected to inform the area. Hmm. Goats on the other hand will happily consume the canes, although who knows how they can perform such a trick given the dastardly wicked thorns? By the way, long ago a white albino goat used to run with a mob of kangaroo. Quite the contrast. Haven’t seen the goat in many years. The lone deer on the other hand was present today, and I took a long walk into the forest to learn more about the big herbivore.
Rex was clearly of noble lineage for Ollie too samples the raspberries, and a human has to be fleet of foot with the harvesting, and careful of washing the berries afterwards. Dogs, huh? 🙂
Pam, wine raspberries sound delicious to me, so I sympathise with your plight. Out of curiosity, do you know which variety of thornless blackberry you grow? I’ve observed that the flavour is better if the canes enjoy drier soils – it concentrates the sugars. Sure, the berries are smaller, but they taste better in my opinion.
Exactly! Such brazier burn offs are pre-planned with the winds and moisture conditions, plus the forecasts for the following day, very much in mind. Good to hear that you also appreciate the niceties of not annoying the entire area! 🙂 You may have noticed that things are different in the bush?
It was super weird seeing the cars floating out to the ocean, and your worry perhaps is only applicable in flooded roadways – which are easily avoidable by the common sense response of not entering them in the first place. And who knew that the cars would float? As to the windows and the electrical motor winders, you might be surprised and much depends upon how well the battery is sealed from the higher pH sea water.
Ollie is big enough to hold his own against a deer, but the two smaller Kelpies are idiots and may enjoy the chase as an act of fun – which could end badly. My mind was made up this afternoon when the big herbivore was again in the orchard. It takes ten to fifteen years to produce a resilient fruit tree, and that big critter can damage the same tree in a day. I wish this problem were not mine, but then I’ve heard it remarked upon elsewhere that sometimes you get to face your worst fears. And here I am. That’s a nice way to put it, those who know, know.
He’s done remarkably well for himself, and hey, I voted for his party when he was elected Prime Minister – one of the most popular in recent history. I kind of felt bad for him in the end because after he got kicked out of the role he spent two weeks in hospital. Like that can’t have been good. But all the same, diplomacy is not saying what he did. Trump tells Rudd ‘I don’t like you’, reportedly offers forgiveness off-camera. Dunno about you, but old timers used to say that ‘sorry, is the hardest word to say’, and he should have spoken that very thing in person, prior to such a public forum.
Hehe! Total respect to your son, but yeah, some things have sentimental attachments. As always there is middle ground. Pam, wishing you good luck with that one, and you know, something will happen. Sometimes younger eyes see things which we don’t. How’s the crushed rock bedding down in that new larger flat site?
Took today off any and all work. Headed north to stock up on honey and apples, which took us near to one of the big fires. It was a bit distressing, but the businesses there also need the mad cash. Lunch was nice, with a walk around a big public garden. You could see that water resources had been diverted for the fires because some of the plants looked a bit water stressed. Plants can adapt to low water environments, it just has to take place slowly, and gently.
Cheers
Chris
Hi DJ,
Fog here as well this morning, with moisture dropping overnight and some rain which the household weather station somehow didn’t record. Makes me wonder if a spider has set up home again in the tugboat looking outdoors device. That machine is one of the few things I spray with insecticide because it doesn’t work for long otherwise – and spiders are fast to capitalise on any appropriate housing. But then the rain washes away the earlier applications of poison and the spiders return with thick webs. Who will win? Let’s find out!
The big localised rainfall near to the coast was off the charts crazy! Occasionally four inches of rainfall can drop here in an hour, and those super cell storms are total mayhem. It’s quite disconcerting to be cleaning drains and water tank inlet filters when lightning is repeatedly striking nearby. Seven inches in a day is beyond my experience, and the idea candidly scares me silly. The fires are in the same mountain range about 40 miles away to the west – but avoided the rain. Nature sure is a trickster! 😉 That mountain range has the wettest location in the state at a town called: Weeaproinah. I’d suggest that just under 2m per year is somewhat damp.
How much fun would you have had picking up the Basswood and chatting shop with a master of the trade? It’d be my sort of ideal catch-up. And the bloke would have been super chuffed that you recognised the wombat and kangaroo road signs – which are actually seen in these parts. Funny to think that knowledge and people can travel to far distant places! Sometimes you meet folks who are your people. There’s also a Koala road sign, and some cheeky wag long ago drew on an upturned middle finger. It was a real hoot and attention grabber. The local council thought otherwise and eventually replaced it. Was the timber to your liking?
Oh yeah, our island friends across the Tasman Sea in New Zealand are usually the first to appreciate the err, distinctive waft of bushfire smoke, but it can reach as far as the Andes and may rise over that monster mountain blocking range, and that was a bad summer with 59 million acres burned. Has anything changed since those days, not that I can discern, although funding to the rural brigades was increased. The melons we grew were small that summer, but tasty.
Man, I’ve cracked it with the deer, and decided today to follow it deep into the forest, with an appropriate tool. Of course, I was outwitted early on. Those herbivores know every trick in the book, although I discovered a small clearing the critter had made. It was here again in the orchard this afternoon, and every time I head outdoors with the Kelpies now, I’ve got to go and check to see whether it is there. The dogs are small, but stupidly brave, and this is not a good combination when encountering such a large beast. Ollie would be fine, but do I want him blooded and looking for action? Not really. So it’s come down to me, as perhaps you always knew it would! 🙂 It happens…
Oh yeah, I recall that use of Dame Avalanche’s fur. I’ll bet a vest made from Samoyed hair would be super toasty? Rahki would have appreciated the summer grooming as well, and yeah, what a memento. I’d imagine that there’d be a certain percentage of the population who’d get a bit freaked out by the thought of using the fur for that purpose?
Agreed! Yup, all very true, and chucking on the sheepskin jacket is a real pleasure when it’s bitingly cold outside. I get that about the three jumpers, and it is again a one jumper evening tonight. Quite cold here today, at a top of 20’C with thick clouds. We headed north to stock up on honey and apples, plus splash some much needed cash in that bushfire affected area. Mount Alexander was still smouldering from the Ravenswood fire. Hmm, a lot of destruction, and we skirted around the closed area. The public garden we visited clearly had water diverted away from it. Hmm.
😉 Gotcha! Hehe! There’s always time for a good quote don’t you reckon?
Goats would be great for such work, but with no fencing, I reckon they’d roam off and away into the forest. But, they do that down here with bramble berries as well.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
If that’s what the rules are for the system – even if they make little sense – who are we to not avail ourselves of the opportunity? Jevons paradox perhaps also suggests that if the benefits ain’t going to you, then they will be to someone else. Anyway, that system you mentioned is quite complicated and possibly under funded, but dunno. What fiat currencies are actually worth is a bit like the subject of selling an item in order to determine the market rate – and this of course fluctuates over time. So yeah, inflation is a bummer.
I so hear you about the carrot being dangled before your eyes trick. They used to have a similar system for retirement benefits down here (above the old age pension – which I believe you have to be over 67 to claim, and let’s just say that I have some doubts about economic conditions in 2038! Oh well…) Some folks are still on such a system – usually those working in goobermint jobs, but most retirement funds now work like bank accounts with the balances being depleted in all sorts of ways.
Hehe! Live long and prosper my friend! 🙂 Spotted an interesting article on the impact of sleep, diet and exercise on longevity, and thought you might be interested: Just a few extra minutes of exercise and sleep a day can extend life expectancy: study. I was a bit miffed that the article didn’t really cover what the baseline numbers were. When it mentioned extra sleep – how much were they talking about in the first place? Oh man, the thought is making me yawn!
Yes, absolutely. How many additional solar photovoltaic panels can go onto the new firewood shed depends upon the size of the roof once constructed, but we’ll see how it goes. And the solar panels my system uses, are no longer being made – the new ones use the same technology and materials, they just have fewer cells which results in a lower voltage.
You’re having quite a warm winter, but I reckon February will have some super cold days, maybe. So far, citrus would be alive and kicking it.
Holy carp! You’re right, and I’d not considered that aspect to the flash flooding. Far out, they were all very lucky indeed that the rain occurred during the daytime.
Might make a batch of apricot jam on Sunday, dunno. I’d lean towards tinned apricots. Sometimes – just to my palate – dried apricots taste a bit funny due to the processes used to dry the fruit out and preserve them. I believe it is some sort of sulphur compound but don’t really know. I recall seeing some films from WWII and earlier where sulphur powders were poured onto wounds.
Not sure I’d want to encounter an Elk bugling, some of the noises from the forest are already a bit blood curdling. 🙂 Actually I broke my rule today, and headed into the forest – with an appropriate tool – chasing the deer. Completely outsmarted me too, and the cough / bark noise taunted me as the herbivore arced away, although the deer was on the run for sure. It was in the orchard during daylight hours again, and I’d had enough. The two smaller dogs could potentially chase the deer, and this is not a habit which they need to learn. Plus it would be quite dangerous for them to corner such a large critter. Ollie would probably be fine, but as I mentioned earlier, is it a good thing that he gets blooded? Probably not. Bigfoot hoots! Funny stuff, and not an animal you’d want to encounter at night.
Our island friends across the Tasman Sea could learn a lesson or two from the Fat Bear week – and launch a Fat Parrot week, in the years the Rimu tree fruits. Stranger things have happened.
Well yeah, storks are indelibly tied to baby production – and of course nobody would ever lie about such a process, would they? 🙂 I get the impression that Europe in general is a bit light on with bird populations. If they need any parrots, we’ve got plenty to spare, no worries about that. I’ve read serious accounts of people in those older countries having freak outs about orchard hygiene and neglected fruit. At present, there is zero chance of that occurring here. The birds and other forest critters clean all of it up. Trying to ensure that some harvest remains to be harvested is the difficulty! Plus the sheer scale of wild areas is probably incomparable – from here I can see forest stretching out to the horizon, this is not an exaggeration.
Actually reproduction rates here have fallen well below the replacement rate, mostly I’d have to suggest due to housing costs and economic insecurity. Australia’s baby recession deepens, new ABS data says. Maybe we need more storks? 😉
Oh yeah, I also hear that gold and silver are on the up.
🙂 A late night pancake may indeed inspire the creative juices. The mob here tend to have quite long trading hours too.
Yes, the definitions were all very confusing, and one of the big name dictionaries now sits behind a subscriber wall. People are used to free content on this ‘ere information super highway. The word was apparently used in the 17th century, but err, paywall… Addlepated perhaps? 🙂 Encountered that at a bakery at lunch today. Serenity now!
Yeah, the transfer paperwork is all rather interesting isn’t it? I worried about that with the two Kelpies, but it all worked out OK, and good you got someone who could fix the nightmare. Yikes! But far out, things are cheap in your country. Just checked. Before we got the dogs fixed up it was $208 for each canine, but now is $64 per year. Yes, always wise to relax and float along with the process in those situations. No good comes from offering helpful suggestions to improve the processes…
I’ve known of some people who’s parents were and are, hoarders, and the book sounds interesting. Learn anything which stood out as to the reasons why things came to be as they were?
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – I saw an interesting article on a new archaeological ship find. Though I think calling it “Viking” is a bit of a chronological stretch.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/archaeologists-just-discovered-9-story-130000497.html
Another “carrot” they dangle is when it comes to loans. Fixed rate, or a low, low (well, lower) adjustable rate? Many a consumer has been badly burned, by that carrot.
Interesting article on life expectancy. Not that I don’t know all those things. And, I think I do fairly good on those accounts. But I could do better. I was surprised they didn’t mention connectivity to social networks. And not the kinds you find on-line. Most aging studies (Blue Zones, etc.), stress the importance of being … engaged with the wider world.
I also found the sidebar article on the Natimuk fire, very interesting. The graphics were great.
The size of the firewood shed vs the size of the solar panels. You might have to break out your resident mathematician. 🙂 You wouldn’t want to discover that you could have squeezed on one more solar panel, if the shed was 3 inches longer, or wider. 🙂
Our high yesterday was 50F (10C). Our overnight low was 43F (6.11C). Our forecast high for today is 51F. Still sunny. Our heather is beginning to bloom, and I checked it out for any pollinators. No joy. You may remember the bumblebees show up in large numbers. Usually, pretty early.
I went to Winco, last night. Spent $116, for five bags of groceries, and a 6 pack of paper towels. I spent the most money, at the bulk bins. $26 for four pounds of shelled walnuts, $27 for 8 pounds of dried cranberries. Dried apricots were $7.08 a pound. I just got a small bag, to try them out. And, forgot to check on the tinned apricots. 🙁 As I do with the dried prunes, I put a few of the apricots in a small bowl, covered it with water, and nuked it for a minute. After it cooled down, I drink the liquid (gotta be good stuff in there), and then ate them with a bit of plane yoghurt. Quit tasty.
I also wanted to get some dried Shiitake mushrooms, but no joy. They should have been in the Oriental food section. Oh, well. Next stop, E-Buy.
I’m working up an order. The mushrooms, large parchment cupcake cups, seed for Yerba Mate and Youpon, and maybe a book or two.
I notice something interesting about the produce section, at Winco. The produce all looks very good. Fresh. But some things are on the small side. Apples, bananas and carrots, is what I noticed. Seems consistent. I wonder if they get a better price, by ordering in smaller fruit and veg?
I’m sure you’re as well grounded in the safe use of the “appropriate tool” for the deer, as you are for using your chain saws. But do be careful.
In the absence of storks, I understand that babies can occasionally be found under cabbage leaves. 🙂 Maybe Australia needs to plant more cabbage?
I think it’s the Germans that intentionally plant fruit trees, along their autobahns, that anyone can harvest. I think I mentioned that the postie and his wife (they live in the neighborhood), have mapped out all the trees they can harvest from, with the permission of the owners. At your mention of possible food waste, in Europe, I got curious about feral parrots.
https://w.wiki/FKhm
Ah, you discovered the correct spelling. Addlepated. A lot of that going around, especially where I live. 🙂
I saw an interesting trailer, for a movie that the library put on order. It’s on my hold list. “Primitive War.” What a mash-up. The Viet Nam war and dinosaurs.
https://youtu.be/FRMFVfs8TCM?si=mrljT-BBUOo1LnP_
The book on the hoarding family, is pretty interesting. It appears that a lot of hoarders have a mutation, on one of their chromosomes. But, a lot of other factors can contribute to it. Traumatic events, of one sort or another, can lead to PTSD or ADHD, which can manifest as hoarding.
So, you have the parents, and two sons. One son dies, and then the mother. When the mother died, then things really began to slide. But even before that, there were signs. The mother was a collector of antiques and collectibles, so, I’m finding that aspect very interesting. Lew
Chris:
I am wondering if that lone deer has come in from further away now that the territory is free. It never fails – deer, squirrel, groundhog, whatever (probably worms, too). If there is a niche, another fills it.
I hate to tell you, but Rex was at the bottom of the totem pole.
We have several different varieties of blackberries. I would have to look for the labels on each group. We had a very dry summer, but I think that about half of them got regularly hit by sprinklers that were on other stuff.
You will never see me trying to cross even a bit of rushing water. I have driven 20 miles out of the way a few times to avoid such a thing and get to my house.
One thing that I have never seen a deer get into is a long narrow 4ft (1.2m) fence by, say, 5ft (1.5m), and as long as it needs be. They cannot jump into something so narrow without coming a cropper. I am trying to remember the dimensions, because we had to protect some trees and garden area about 30 years ago when the deer first started bothering stuff. Since then we have had the 8 ft (2.4m) fence, which has kept them out. Now, they might reach in and eat trees, but that wasn’t a problem for us then. Come to think of it, you have a number of beds that almost fit that description.
Well, I’m not sure how much I can say about the gentleman from Australia and the gentleman from America, but the word muttonheads is somewhere in the mix. I’ll bet Mark Twain had something to say about it. Hmm . . .
The gravel is GOOD!
Apples and honey – two of my favorite things! What kind of apples are available there this time of year?
Yep, here it is: “Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason.” It wasn’t in my file. I had to go online for it.
Pam
Hi Pam,
That deer has I’m guessing, always been by itself, but I don’t really know. When the herd of half a dozen used to turn up, there’d be another one just off on its own arriving at different times to them, so it could be that one, maybe. What you’re saying is so true, so it may be a completely different deer altogether – just here for the feeding.
This loose talk of wandering groundhogs is mildly alarming! 🙂 Before the increased soil fertility, water and plants were all improved here, there just wasn’t that much for the critters to eat, so numbers were low. Pam, we’ve only got ourselves to blame for the present situation.
Oh Rex,
a fine furry companion,
never destined for greatness.
Flaws,
well,
he’d clearly had more than a few.
Yet!
The four legs of mischief,
still brought a smile to the face,
whilst sharing warm moments of cheer.
Some dogs face the lifelong challenge of rising beyond their basest of instincts. We’ve all known a few of them.
Blackberries are hardy, and truly I don’t water the canes at all, but yeah everywhere is different – and even incidental watering can alter things. They do get (during the winter time), my preferred soil feed mix whilst they’re being heavily pruned. Watering I reckon is a difficult balance between producing fruit with lots of flavour and stressing out the plant. It’s very possible that some of the plants here are a little bit moisture stressed. Ook!
The walnut sapling I moved a few months ago is the most problematic fruit tree this summer. A few days ago I mulched around the trunk so as to keep the soil cooler, but who knows. They’re not fans of 108’F I’m guessing. Maybe, that tree is no good here at this location?
Oh yeah, super wise to make that choice. During the last big floods here, we had to do exactly the same thing as you, and go a long way out of the way, just to get home. Even so, when initially confronting the vast river of water in the flood plain at the base of the mountain range, there was some dude with his car way out in the water. I couldn’t even see where the winding road was. Nothing I could do for him, but he survived and hopefully learned a good lesson.
Interesting, and thanks for the information. Hmm. This may explain why the garden terraces and sapling fence enclosure have been left alone by the deer. I see what you mean, and it makes a lot of sense, and the idea would not have occurred to me. And yeah, it takes a very long time to grow trees and a garden, but deer can trash parts of it in a single evening.
Best not talking about either of them, it’s like feeding the beast. ;-)They’ll do what they do anyway. It’s always baffled me that activists get all riled up and stuff, and yet they don’t seem to appreciate that sooner or later, all that energy is better spent elsewhere on something more positive. Oh well, maybe they have to learn the hard way.
I drove an hour and a quarter in a north easterly direction today to pick up the eight second hand solar panels for $300. How good is that price? And they look in great condition. Do you know, the last 24 solar panels have cost us $700 all up? When serious people suggest that our civilisation is perfectly rational, then the question really needs to be asked: How can a solar panel be purchased for $29 each? Crazy stuff… Anywhoo, I stopped off for a gourmet pie, which wasn’t far away from the destination and I’d been planning to go there anyway. Pam, there was also an ice cream. Yum! 🙂 Yes, scrounging needn’t be a drudgery, should it? This time around we took some photos of the pie and nearby ice cream shop. I’ll be curious to hear what you have to say about them.
Crushed rock is an awesome surface, and glad to hear that you’re enjoying it. I do too. Winter is tough for clay surfaces.
I reckon the apples were from last season, and I do wonder if the destruction in the fire of the large community cold store in that town is going to be a problem? Dunno, but I’ll find out. Oh, they’re a Pink Lady apple, which is a favourite, because it is a dessert apple. Yum! What’s your fave apple variety? The honey is beyond good, and I know it’s local and contains no err, additives like sugar syrup – which seems to be a thing I believe with imported honey.
That’s a great saying. Love it, and it’s so true.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Thanks for mentioning the sunken ship, and there were a lot of other interesting articles on the behemoth of a cog. The Viking label may have been applied due to the museum overseeing the dive – which has that label in its name? Dunno. Talk about luxurious accommodation out of the weather for some of the crew. And the galley bricks were a really fascinating way to keep warm when on a timber vessel. Shame there was no mention as to how the beast ended up at the bottom of shallow water. Did I read that correctly: construction of a new Copenhagen district. Like making land on that which was once underwater? Oh my, that’s been going on for centuries. Hmm. I’d read that they do that in I believe Singapore as well. Hope they know that the sea level today, may not be the sea level of tomorrow?
Yeah, I recall reading the opinion that a fixed rate interest only loan is like a rental with debt. Hmm. Not sure if fixed loans in your country can have the principal being paid off as well, but I assume so, maybe? Down under fixed interest loans on housing generally don’t allow for any principal payments at all, and that would make me nervous. And variable rates, are err, alarmingly variable. Yup, there are all sorts of traps for the unwary.
Yeah, perhaps all of us could do better on the longevity front, but a person has to live as well. I also thought it was interesting that the social connections were not mentioned too. I guess studies can have biases. Things are different at this here interweb site, but I believe that a lot of online dialogue is a bit ordinary and hardly going in many different directions – as can happen with real world conversations (or IRL as the kids call it). Man, you get to an age when a lot of people seem much younger! Here’s to the old duffers! Oh well…
Whilst on the subject eating well, we had a gourmet lamb pie for lunch – and took a photo – and also an ice cream. I’ll chuck some photos up next week. Hey, whilst on the road, I arranged to travel a little bit further north and met up with a guy at a country petrol station (gas station) car park, to pick up the eight second hand solar panels I mentioned a day or so ago. It was an unconventional place to meet, but then it was all through eBuy and the guy has 100% feedback and has been trading for years. He seemed like a good bloke too, and we had a great chat. The panels look used, but in excellent condition. I mentioned this to Pam as well, but the last 24 panels have cost a combined $700 due to scrounging par excellence. If we lived in a rational civilisation, this situation would not be. 🙂 Crazy stuff that price does not indicate quality, but yeah, I’ll take ’em and use them. Nice to now have enough, and some spares, just in case.
The drive was interesting too, because that area had dried out a lot, which is the usual case in the summer months. It’s quite a scenic and bucolic part of the world.
Yeah, I was going to link to that article about the Natimuk fires and glad you appreciated the analysis, and you can see how a wind change alters a small fire front, into a monster. The graphics were good at showing exactly that.
Given the earlier discussion of salty sea dogs, thought you might be interested to read about a couple of adventurous lads and their activities almost half a century ago. Australia’s notorious Bass Strait was once conquered by two men in a 4.5m dinghy. They don’t make them like that any more, and 4.5m = 15ft. Not big. And that’s one of the roughest patches of water on the planet.
Hehe! Good thinking about engaging the brain of the local mathematician, and it’s nice to be able to outsource some problems.
The European honeybees would be shivering in that sort of weather, but maybe a few adventurous ones would test the strength of your winter sun. 50’F is right on the border for them. Did you enjoy the sunshine? It would have felt nice. 27’C / 81’F here today and very pleasant with a breeze.
Grocery bills are on the up, no doubts about it. But like you, I tend to also purchase in bulk. The walnuts interestingly would cost about the same here, but they grow up in the north easterly area of this state – bit cooler and wetter than here. Good thinking with the liquid, and waste not, want not as the old timers used to say. You just made apricot yoghurt! 🙂 Yummo! And that’s why I’m gutted every year the main apricot crop fails due to a late frost / spring snowfall. There’s always something thwarting large hauls of that fruit. 11 pounds is pretty good this year, but I was hoping for three or four times that haul. Given the flesh of that fruit is firm, they bottle well.
Respect to e-Buy. I’ve long appreciated their feedback rating, and also the price is final and non negotiable. I’ve heard some things about the wild west experience that is other cheaper platforms. Not a fan.
Absolutely. From what I’ve heard, the rumour is that the big chains demand produce of a certain size and shape, which doesn’t make a lot of sense to me given that err, natural variability is actually a thing. So the smaller stuff sometimes gets wasted, but mostly its cheaper. In some ways, it could well be better too, on many fronts.
Thanks for the concern, and whilst accidents can and do happen, I try my best to be careful.
Oh yeah, the baby under the cabbage leaf substitute issue. 😉 Cabbage is very hard to grow, but I’m on limited water supplies. Clever stuff to harvest some of the free produce in an area, with permission of course. Parrots are very clever and unfussy birds – I’ve seen them chowing down on dog poop. Survivors, so no wonder they’ve expanded their range.
Yeah, that’s going around for sure man. 🙂 Hopefully neither of us exhibit too much hubris over this matter!
The film trailer was completely mad, and a lot of fun. What a concept.
Ah, interesting, I was wondering if hoarding was a lifelong thing, or came on later after the sort of stress or trauma you referred to. They do say that weddings and funerals are change events.
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – Since the ship is in such good condition, they may be able to tell what sank her, eventually.
“Fill” or “land fill”. A lot of Seattle and San Francisco is built on fill. Creates a problem when earthquakes happen. The ground liquifies. In San Francisco, several ships have been discovered, buried in the fill. They were abandoned when whole crews jumped ship, to go work the gold fields.
I don’t know if principal is paid off on adjustable rate mortgages. I do know that rates change, and get so high, people can’t afford their payments, anymore. The Small Business Administration also does business loans. Apparently, they do offer fixed rate loans, but it’s rather unclear how difficult those are to get. I remember reading stories where many old family businesses, bit the dust, when adjustable rate small business loan payments went into the stratosphere.
A lot of people seem younger, to me. 🙂 If I showed up at your place, my greeting might be, “Hi! Kids!.” That’s how I always greet my friends, Kenna and Michael .. who both have adult children. Same with our night manager, and his fiancé.
For dinner last night, I had my monthly Mac & Cheese. I tossed in so many vegetables, that there’s enough left over for another meal.
It sounds like you had a good meet up, to acquire the solar panels. As we’ve gathered from your adventures in solar energy, it’s not so much the cost of the panels that bite. It’s all the other stuff that goes along with it.
Oh, half a century ago, when I was around 25? 🙂 That was quit a tale of high risk sea faring.
Speaking of sea tales, I settled in last night to watch “Beast of War.” Oh, my, that was an “edge of your seat” movie. Seven guys on a raft, made of debris, being slowly nibbled apart by a 20 foot Great White Shark. Being picked off, one by one. I had to fast forward through a few bits, that just got too intense.
“Based on true events.” Sort of. I did a deep dive down the rabbit hole, and it was (sort of) based on the sinking of the HMAS Armidale, in the Timor Sea, during WWII. The tale of the ship Indianapolis was also on the director’s mind.
https://w.wiki/HWNN
When I take H out for a walk, in weather like this, we usually sit on the garden wall for awhile. Soak up the sun. Get our daily dose of vitamin D. Our high yesterday was 54 (12.22C). Our overnight low was 28F (-2.22C). Forecast overnight low for the next six days is 32F (-0-C). Might get our crunchy grass, yet. When the rain comes back, we “might” get some snow. Sometimes, at the switch over, we get snow. Our forecast high today is 50F.
The walnuts I buy are halves and pieces. They’re raw. So, I take a small handful, put it on a plate and nuke it for 30 seconds. I discovered it really improves the flavor, and makes them more crunchy.
Besides the water issue, trying to grow cabbage (and it’s relatives) is a heart breaker. Due to the cabbage butterflies. I’m surprised that the organic pest control company I deal with, has deterrents to every garden bug known to man … except the cabbage butterfly. About all you can do is cover them with fine netting, and hope for the best.
I’m just about finished with the book on hoarding. It’s a slim volume. Only about 170 pages. It’s also a good blueprint for what to do when confronted with a hoarder’s house, or, just a very large and object rich estate. There are many ways to go.
The author uncovered some pretty startling family secrets. The grandfather that her branch of the family had always been told was dead, but turned out to be alive, and the hoarding family had actually frequently visited him. But kept his existence secret, from the author’s family. She has theories.
“The causes of hoarding disorder are vast, diverse, and hard to pin down.” So, am I a hoarder? No rotting food in my fridge or vermin. But I do have certain traits. There’s the books … 🙂 There’s a desire (bordering on lust) to replace objects I’ve lost, or even sold, along the way. They nag at me.
I lay in bed last night, and considered one object. Why do I yearn after it? I couldn’t come up with any kind of rational, or reason. Maybe like the Bass Straight, because it’s there? 🙂 Lew
Chris:
Thank you so very, very much for Rex’s poem. It fits him to a T. He was loved dearly, flaws and all. He was a Labrador/Husky mix, with some other weird things thrown in.
I don’t know about walnut trees and your situation. I only know that ours have been here for, I have read, millions of years, so they have a bit of a headstart on yours!
Yes – don’t these protesters have something more important to do?
In your own way, you were doing a favor for the fellow with the solar panels. He didn’t want them anymore, but what was he going to do with them – take them to the tip? That would have cost him. Yay! Gourmet pie! Ice cream! I will live vicariously through that comment.
I like Galas and Fujis; I don’t know much about more uncommon apples. I just eat them raw, though I really like applesauce, too. Honey – I eat some every day and cook with it, also. Yum, yum, yum!
Pam
Hi Pam,
My pleasure, and it was really your description of Rex which set the scene, but we’ve all met such canine characters. Every dog brings something different to the table. 🙂
Hey, is it just me, or have you noticed that Labrador breeds can be either really good, or a bit dodgy, but rarely in between. The Golden retrievers which are remarkably similar looking can have very uncertain temperaments… He’d be known as a bitsa breed down here – a bit of this, and a bit of that! Or in more polite company: His was a breed of uncertain parentage.
Yeah, that’s a decent head start for your walnut trees. Still, the race is long, and we mustn’t rest on our laurels – or should we? Rest sounds nice, and today was very far from that state. Oh well… Used my new welder machine today, and fixed up one of the ride on mowers, only to discover the other has a flat tyre (tire).
When I think of that bored lot, the idea forms for harnesses to use that collected energy instead to pull rocks back up the hill. I’m sure that they’d all feel that their day was better spent after about say, six hours of the activity?
🙂 You hit the nail on the head there – there is no facility to recycle these most high tech of items. I don’t even reckon the tip takes them. The truth is, that most urban roof spaces are simply not well designed to utilise the area for the installation of the solar panels. And! I’ve known people who refuse to have the things visible from the street – Whatever would the neighbours think!
Actually the photo of the pies turned out pretty well – and looks like a promotional photo – which it isn’t, although just between you and I, I’d absolutely take the free pies if they were offered in exchange for comment. Sadly, I have to pay for these tasty things. The ice cream shop looks pretty cool too. It’s in an old dairy building dating back to I reckon the 1920’s.
Both Galas and Fuji’s are grown down here, and they’re good, but my favourite is the Pink Lady apple. Yum! I tend to eat apples raw as well, and remain unconvinced about the merits of apple sauce. Oh my, honey is good. Yum! The dogs even start drooling when the container is opened.
Better run, Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
That’s what I was thinking as well. However, in the absence of any detail, how about a theory as to the cause of the sinking: Open cargo hold – check. Rogue wave – oh yeah. Unwisely using cargo as ballast – check. I’m thinking like some of the footage of containers getting washed over board in heavy seas, bam, the cargo got washed overboard and floated away, and the ship lost its ballast and ended up in the briny deeps.
Oh far out, that is so not good to hear. The city of Christchurch in New Zealand, was the first I’d heard of soil liquefying in an earthquake. Not something anyone wants to experience, and last century we visited that city and found it to be charming. Always interesting to see what the earth retains, but occasionally coughs up like a fur ball. 🙂 The bloke I bought the panels off had a hobby as a detectorist, and he lived in the goldfields. Might have been an income stream for him?
Adjustable rates are all the rage down here, and what I’ve observed of the public discourse (which matches) your words, is that rage ensues when the rates are changed either upwards, or left the same. A lot of rage…
Heaps of folks seem younger than I as well. Must be some sort of universal thing, but I’d accept the greeting with good grace.
Vegetables! Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to… Vegetables! And grains, plus fruit, legumes would be ideal as well.
Exactly! Our society is crazy to dump these most high tech of items long before the end of their economic lifespan. That’s where I step in… Still, fuses, cables, lugs, busbars, charge controllers etc. are not cheap.
Glad you enjoyed the tale of the fearless seafaring folks, and if I may say so, the less they thought about the journey, the better. Only those who have fallen from the cliff, know exactly where the edge is. My old mate Mike, who departed this mortal coil five years ago now, made that salient observation.
Oooo, I read the link, and what a horror for the survivors of the sinking to have thought themselves saved with a grainy photo as evidence of their tenacity, only for them all to disappear. Both stories are indelibly etched into the memory. Hmm. I’d not heard of the story of the HMAS Armidale previously. The fatally injured guy who strapped himself to the gun and took out Zeroes but went down with the ship is also astounding.
The sun here was likewise gentle today at 86’F, and yeah, grab that Vitamin D is a wise path. H would have revelled in the winter warmth. Getting cold overnight in your area dude.
Did some paid work this morning due to deadlines, then cracked out the new MAG welder machine and fixed one of the ride on mowers. The other mower has a flat tire. There’s always something. The Editor used some sort of machine to clean the five rugs in the house. The cleaner concoction was mixed up so as to produce low odour. All a bit hippy dippy, with dilute hydrogen peroxide, vinegar etc. but it worked a treat.
Yes, that has also been my experience with cabbage moths. Brassica species in the summer months are a hard ask, and that is when cabbage heads here. There are easier plants to enjoy, like Kale or Silverbeet at that time of year if cooked greens are a person’s thing.
Sorting out an estate is a very complicated and requiring of deep care activity. Plus if there are multiple beneficiaries, everyone of them has an opinion. Hmm. A real balancing act, and good to hear that the book pilots a way through those uncertain waters – keeping with today’s somewhat nautical theme. 😉
There are plenty of relatives out there of my lot who were probably told that I’m dead, so as to benefit themselves. It happens, and none of us can ever choose the circumstances to which we find ourselves enmeshed in.
Books! Well, such things demand shelves, for that is the purpose to which they can be put towards. But they can take you to places, times, and people, who you’d otherwise not meet, don’t you reckon? One of those sliding ladders would be nice too if the shelves were too high. I liked those, lends the collection a certain gravitas, yeah.
Ah, grasshopper, before seeking after lost objects, one must see with their own eyes, the things already there. That old dude in the original Kung Fu series with David Carridine may have made some such mysterious comment. No?
Lindt chocolate? That stuff is expensive nowadays.
Oooo, better get writing. Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – However the cog ship went down, it was a great economic loss to the owner. Might just have been one of those epic storms that strike Europe, from time to time. Something nagging at the back of my mind … ah, yes.
https://w.wiki/GWz8
Did you know there’s a tornado belt, in Germany?
San Francisco’s Marina District suffered a lot of liquefaction, during their last big earthquake, in 1989. Earthquakes can also create “sand geysers.” There were some reported around here, during our big 1949 earthquake.
https://w.wiki/HWy2
Maybe a lot of self rage, at the variable rate loans that go bad. After all, they did have a choice …
It was a popcorn night. Finally, I settled in to watch “The Postman.” I think it’s a sci-fi classic. Although it lagged in parts, due to an overabundance of love stuff. 🙂 Could have tightened up that part of it. Costner got to display his horsemanship, pretty much like a Civil War scene, in “Dances With Wolves.” I was mistake. I thought it was Sting who did a cameo. Nope. Tom Petty. Besides Costner, quit a few of the actors turned in really good performances. Some of the younger actors looked very familiar, and I think they went on to do other things.
Our high yesterday was 52F (11.11C). Our overnight low was 30F (-1.11C). Our forecast high for today is 49F. When H and I went out for our midnight stroll, I thought it was foggy. Nope. Well, a bit. But the air quality was just rubbish. Must have been an inversion layer, holding down all the pollutants. I generally lifts, during the day.
I saw an interesting article about a dedicated fire fighting crew, in LA. Who deal with brush removal.
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/17/us/crew-4-los-angeles-fire-department
I finished the hoarders book, last night. A good read. I thought a bit more about my … problems (?) in that direction. Might have a little more insight. Besides rolling ladders, how about those cast iron circular staircases, that rise to a mezzanine level in some libraries. There was a Doctor Who episode, that according to the “extras” was filmed in an old Victorian British library, that had been made redundant. The cast iron work was just incredible.
Are you sure that quote comes from Kung Fu? Not Shakespeare, the Bible, or Mark Twain? Or … 🙂
It’s Sunday morning here, so I need to roust H out of bed, and head to the Club. Have a chat with Carl. This afternoon they’re having the yearly membership meeting. I’m steering clear. Lew