Dust storm carried five million tonnes of soil

You probably saw the unusual dust storms in Australia, in your news during the last week. It was a bizarre event. The dust is still hanging in the air a fair bit. My nose and eyes are a sore with it. But it is fading, and I am so thankful to live in a place that (normally) has such wonderfully clean and clear air.

Imagine if the Earth was dusty like that all the time. Or if you lived in one of the big cities of the world; living with heavy smog every day. It’d be a sad thing, losing the beauty of the blue sky above.

Driving through the dust was an eerie experience, very much like being in a Science Fiction film. I wasn’t sure if zombies were about to emerge from the threatening brownness. However, the nice thing about the dust storm was the way it encouraged strangers to talk freely to one another. I almost couldn’t leave the video store, with all the discussion going on. Whilst the air conditioner was working over time, we talked and watched the dust thicken. The street lights came on, and drivers crawled through the soupy streets with their lights on high-beam. As we drove out of town the boats on the river  had disappeared, the river and mountains had too.

It wasn’t quite as thick out at our house, but it was still very creepy afternoon.

Here is a photo of normal afternoon, looking behind our place, at about 4:30pm.

And here is the dust storm, at the same time of the day, and the same tree.

At 4:45pm the sun could be seen, but by 5:03pm the sun was still in the sky, but had disappeared completely (to the naked eye), lost in the dust.

And here is the view, when looking in the other direction.

Look who’s back

It’s been hot and very dry around here, and if you don’t water the plants close to the house, they shrivel up after a day or two. Luckily, a quick drink brings them back to life again.

When watering the hanging baskets last night, a little visitor made it’s unique little entrance back into our little everyday adventures. So cute, don’t you think?

I wonder if any more will return. I’m glad the water from the plants, gives the frogs a drink too. This one gave a little croak this evening. I’m not sure if the water woke it up too early, or was a welcomed and refreshing bath. If only they could talk like Toad in ‘The Wind and the Willows’. Then I would know where they go to in the winter time when they leave the hanging baskets.

Don’t touch the flowers, they’re alive, and they bite

I went to an Orchid Show today. I can remember stumbling into one when I was very young, and the flowers looked like they were straight out of a wild jungle. It’s a happy little  memory that’s stuck with me all these years. And so when I read about this Orchid Show in the newspaper, I decided to go along and revisit the past.

The flowers were overwhelming in all their different colours, shapes and structures. The people were just as lovely as the folk I remember listening to on an afternoon, in a small country town hall, long ago. They’re so passionate about the plants.

Instead of thinking of adventurers hiking through dangerous jungles to find these exotic beauties, this time the flowers looked so Gothic to me. Maybe I’ve read Harry Potter et al. too much, but to me, these flowers look like they could jump right off their stems, on a frightening All Hallows Eve, sprout fangs and latch onto the neck of any unsuspecting soul who walks out in that dark and misty night.

Beautiful, and alive the flowers were, and eager to become your werewolf-vampire-ghoul, at the stroke of midnight.

The Dirty Dozen, Books

My local library is spring cleaning their book catalogue. Previously it cost two dollars for each book, but at the moment a gold coin (one or two dollars) gets you a whole bag of books. And yesterday when I was in a mad dash to collect the regular books that were waiting for me, I glanced over to the books for sale and noticed a fancy French cookbook. After that I was a goner.

Selecting a whole bag full wasn’t too easy though as I was in such a hurry I didn’t really have time to look closely at the various titles, and Ineeded to dart in and around two ladies who were slowly picking each book up one at a time and them replacing them, unwanted.

I really enjoy going to the library, and I enjoyed giving these books a new home. After my flurry of activity I ended up with this collection, which only cost me a dollar.

1. Illustrated Escoffier- French Traditional Cuisine by H. Cracknell + R.J. Kaufmann So if I ever want to cook a lobster, I can, though that would be hard to imagine. We do catch the odd yummy mudcrab around here - delicious!
2. Stack cooking for two by V. Hill
3. Clearly Delicious – preserving, bottling and pickling by E. Lambert Ortiz I didn’t even realise this book was about preserving when I  added it to my bag, I just thought the Author must have been very confident about their writing skills (Clearly Delicious) but I’m thrilled I did get this one as I have been following Moonwaves ( Living the Simple Life I want ) in her preserving adventures and have a very healthy respect for her bottling ambitions.
4. Caviar for Breakfast by B. Roland This one is a modest looking book but it sounds so interesting, about Australian spies in Russia, or some such. It looks juicy and intriguing.
5. Yamuna’s Table – Indian Vegetarian by Y. Devi I want to buy a bamboo rice cooker, and I can tell that the Indian man in my local Asian Supermarket is ready to take me under his wing and instruct me in the ways of Indian food. I’ve no idea if my tummy can accommodate the rich spices, but when I’m brave enough, I’m going to give it a go.
6. Ma Cusine by Auguste Escoffier Oh la la, fancy
7. Pressure Cooking the easy way by D Chace Nope, I don’t happen to have a pressure cooker, but that won’t slow me down.
8. Setting up an aquarium I’d like to get a pet fish again, but have ethical concerns about animals and captivity, yes, even for fish.
9. Death of a Princess: An Investigation by T. Sanction + S. Macleod With a name like Sanction, I thought this Author might have something interesting, and conspiratorial to say about Diana’s demise.
10. Margerate Thather the Downing Years by herself I thought this one might be a good history lesson, especially with the economic times we’re experiencing.
11. Dublin: Foundation by E. Rutherford
12. Convists and the Colonies by A.G.Shaw Am always curious to find a little more out about the ‘how’s and why’s’ of my families’ arrival here.

Mullberries in the sun

It is that time of year again, when the limbs of the mullberry hang low with fruit, in the corner of our garden.  However the forbidden fruit is at the top of the tree, extra juicy and fought over by various species of birds. I need the step-ladder to climb up high enough to pull the top branches down.

Sia: Soon we’ll be found

Last night I was watching a bit of Rage* and I caught a song that I really liked, and the film clip was cool too. If you’re a user of the American iTunes you may be familiar with it already, but I’m pretty sure I haven’t heard of this song or singer before, which seems a shame as she is Australian.

I really wanted to post the official clip for this song, as it is clever, and pretty. There are hand-puppet shadow stories and sign language and a creative use of vibrant colour. I couldn’t embed that clip, but this performance from David Letterman is no disappointment. A very smooth performance. I really enjoyed it. And pretty sign language is there too.

Oh! And if you’re keen on this singer, Sia has a catchy song called Buttons on Youtube, and it shows the quirky side to the Australian sense of humour. The way she looks in the chorus, reminds me so much of the witch in the famous Japanese film Rashomon. That chorus, is such a good look.

*a famous and long running alternative music television show