Another One Bites The Dust

Month that is.  Two down already.  And I have done hardly anything in the garden.
I have lots of excuses but no real reason.  Just slack!
We still haven't bought any vegetables so far this year but I think that I will end up buying some carrots sometime during March.

Lots has gone wrong, some preventable, some not.
A lot of the viney stuff developed Powdery Mildew so that was disappointing.
We only ended up getting a few Rockmelons and they weren't the best.
We picked some Butternuts and have another 6 or so out there but that vine is on it's last legs. I should pull it up but I'm hoping it will get the last few fruit a bit riper.
I was very sorry with the way the cucumbers performed.  There were nowhere near enough to preserve.  I have 2 plants out there in a different part of the garden that are looking OK but still not a lot of fruit on them.
Tomatoes all died off.  The few that have come up in a different area now have flowers but I'm not sure how they will go.  I should have transplanted them out into a bigger area but the couple that I did died.  I'm blaming the heat and not enough care for that.

The small chooks kept getting out so most of the lettuce are gone.  I put the chook away, fix where I think it is getting out from but it gets out again.  I fix another spot, out it gets.  I'm not planting anything more until I am sure I have fixed the right spot!  They also scratched up most of the Strawberries, young onions, silverbeet...

We've had the worst bout of Fruitfly here than I can remember.  We lost all the Peaches and I now have them in the Strawberry Guavas.  I will pick all the fruit over this week and bag it or drown it in a bucket of water.  We have never had them in these trees before.  Bleedin' chooks are supposed to clean them up but that's not   happening.  We have traps set out in the trees (not the Guavas) and caught heaps but the numbers of them are too high to control. 

Of the dozens (hundreds?) of Sunflower seeds that I planted I have 1 plant.  It is multiflowered but still only the 1 plant.  How sad is that! lol.

I have at least 4 roosters in the young AussieRocks.  Hubby is waiting for a cool day when he is home to do them so not this week.  One of them is getting quite loud!

And bloody Roosters!!  I have lost the Australorp rooster, a parent to these young ones.  Looks like it could have been a rooster fight but because these 2 roosters grew up together and have been together forever I thought they would be all right.  Stupid me, now I only have the Plymouth Rock as a breeder.  He is big and beautiful but not pure so none of these AR chooks can be called pure.  I knew they wouldn't be but I like them, they look much better running around the orchard than the common old brown things.

Lawns are ten foot high again...OK, maybe not 10 foot but pretty damn long.  Because I am riding the pushbike more I am unable to mow as well.
http://fitterbyfriday.blogspot.com/2011/02/another-long-ride.html   Biking is more fun but I really do need to mow.  Maybe this week will see a bit done.

I am hoping for some cooler weather so I can get outside and catch up with everything but might need to wait a couple more weeks.  The heat wipes me out and I don't like being out there after 9ish and I am too sore lately to do anything much in the evening.  Come on the cool weather I say.

Hopefully March will see more getting done.  I do have high hopes that it will but am unsure whether I am as enthused as I was.

I think I need to start listing things again.  That usually helps.  Might even put them up on here...

February 14th.

We *don't do* Valentines Day but as it is our wedding anniversary we are going to the trots.  I think.  That was the plan but we had a busy weekend and I am tired and sore and plans change...

The daughters L and T brought out presents for us on Saturday, thankyou both very much,   My kind of wrapping too so that makes it more acceptable.

T.  The donuts are gone the choccies will go tonight.
L. we have waited like you said to so can't comment yet as he is still in bed!

I hope everyone has a great day.

Updating to say... It's been a week but Thankyou L. for the bag and the chockies, I still have some left!  Your father says thanks for his pressie.  There are a few left there too.
We stayed home and just had a relaxing day here instead of going to the trots.  'Twas nice.

My Baby Is 21.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TIFF!!
Hope you have a good night and enjoy your day out tomorrow.

Can We Be Prepared Enough?

Cyclone Yasi has been and gone and though a lot of property was destroyed there weren't many injuries.  One death has been reported (but I don't put that down to the cyclone.  He was using a generator inside) and from what I last heard at least 1 person is missing.
Over that side of Australia they have had floods, cyclones, fires.  People have been killed, houses and lives washed or blown away...It is all very sad.

I have heard that there arem also fires over East and I have just read about the bad storms and flooding going on in Victoria...
Surely this is not all normal?  Or is it that we hear about it more now, there are more cities, towns and people affected because there are more cities, towns and people...

Over here in WA we too have had floods and storms and fires.
Hubby has been away this week cleaning up after a massive storm knocked down trees and made a mess of the bush area and blocked off roads where they are working.

It is happening all over the world.  We are always hearing about people being killed in Natural Disasters.

I don't personally know anyone that has been badly affected and I think that makes me a bit blase about it all.  I think it is horrible but it's been happening forever, here and in other countries, and it will continue happening.

It is hard to believe though that there are still thousands of people that are not prepared in any way.  Some people, even knowing that they are in areas where cyclones and storms happen regularly and that they may be cut off, do not have enough food in the house for more than a day or so.  I do know people like this.  They think it wont happen or that the shops will always be there...

I like to think that we could live through a lot of things but really, we probably couldn't.  We would easily manage with no power for a week or two.  We have rainwater tanks.  I have a stockpile of food and things put away.  But when I think about it it is not as good as it should be...If the water tank was blown away or struck by lightening we could use the water from the dam out the back.  But it's not clean enough to drink...
If a storm destroyed all the gardens then fresh food would be scarce.  It the roof blew off the house?  I'd camp in one of the sheds if they were still standing otherwise...What is our plan?

What I need to do is think about what is most likely to happen and to do things that will make it easier if it ever did.   I have a long way to go and might work on that this year.

A few years ago a tornado went through this area.  It didn't hit this house but a couple of houses down the road were damaged.  What would I do if I was home alone and there was a massive storm here?  I'd probably freak out and panic.  After that...I dunno. I should learn and have a plan in place.

*I do have a plan for if I am here alone and *boogymans* came.  I hope I never have to use it.
*When our water is turned off for 2 days I can manage.  It's better when I get notice that it will happen but the last 2 times we had no notice.  We planned and we manage.
*When I can't move very well for 2 days, I have a plan in place and manage OK.
*If Hubby couldn't work for a few months...we could manage because we have planned for it.
Do you have a plan for what *might* happen?   Do you stockpile?   Do you have an emergency bag ready to go?  

I'd be interested in your thoughts on this subject so please leave a comment and let me know your ideas.


ETA.  And now there are massive fires around Perth and north of....Dozens of houses burnt, hundreds of hectares of bushland... People evacuated...How do you prepare for something like that!

Queensland, I'm Thinking Of You.

I have been outside most of the morning trying to catch up on a few things that I was too sore to do yesterday.  And as usual I was playing the *poor me* card...too much to do, I hurt, I can't do it...I came in for lunch and to watch the midday movie...

Instead of the movie there is coverage on the cyclone that is heading towards Queensland.  I am quite ashamed of myself, having a pity party over here when there are thousands of people over there that are in danger of losing their homes, their possessions and maybe their lives.  I really feel for everyone over there in the danger zones.

Recently Queensland has had floods and storms and now this massive cyclone is on the way, due to hit tonight and it will probably wipe out a lot of towns.  Towns are being evacuated, people are boarding up their houses, some are staying in their homes...I am scared for them all.  I hope there are no deaths but it is a BIG cyclone, 500km across...that's going to do a lot of damage.

The weekend just gone, over here in WA, the southwest area had a cyclone warning and I was scared about that.  Ours turned out to be a non event but knowing how I worried I cannot imagine how the people in far north Queensland are feeling.

I sincerely hope things are not as bad as we are hearing they will be...

January-February Food Supply.

Well January is already gone and we are into Feb.  That didn't take long!  So far this year there has been no veg bought.  No fruit bought.  No meat bought.  No eggs bought.

We are eating quite well considering that a lot of the gardens are bare and need replanting.  *Chicken* will be on the menu soon as the AussieRock chooks are at *that* age.  One is making attempts to sound like his father and though I tried to tell him, he is being a typical boy and not listening.  Maybe he doesn't understand that he will lose his head if he doesn't shut up but I can only protect him for so long..
His brothers will be in the same boat (frypan!) if they start.

We're eating a lot of salads so I am thankful that I put in extra lettuce but am running low on carrots.  And I have only 1 Cucumber vine producing.  I lost 3 to something and this one came up by itself.  I have 3 others in but they are too small yet to feed us.  I can't see there being enough to make a batch of Bread and Butter Pickles with which is a bugger.  I might have to use the zucchinis for that instead.  I won't tell if you don't.

In the fruit department, the apples from the dam area are finished, strawberries aren't doing anything.  We are getting figs and grapes but it looks like we will lose all the peaches to fruit fly.  We have never had FF so bad as this year.  The traps are getting a lot but they are still ruining the fruit.  I need to get out there and check the ground and pick any fallen up from the chookpen and I think I will remove all the rest from that tree.  I wonder what green peaches taste like when stewed...That might be the only way we get to eat some.

To go with what I grow we are eating meat from the freezer, fish that Hubby has caught or that my lovely sister K. has given us.  Son caught a shark late last year and that is lovely but the pork is getting low.  Might need to get the son to bring another one home one day soon.  He hunts wild pigs and there really is nothing wrong with the taste of them.

All up it doesn't look like we will be going hungry any time soon and I am thankful to live where we do and to be able to feed ourselves from the gardens and surrounds. 
It is sometimes hard work but well worth all the pain and discomfort that it brings with it.

Snake Update.

I haven't seen the snake/s since Thursday but I still have the trap out near the pens.  I will shift it tomorrow and put fresh milk in there.  What I will do if one decides to get in there though I have no idea.  Leave it for someone else to deal with I think. 

The trap that we are using is a square metal box thing with 4 entry points, 2 each side.  The idea is that the snake goes in a cone shaped spiky opening and can't come out again because of the spikes.  The live snake can then be relocated.  It will be good if it works as it was quite expensive and was bought after having 3 snakes here within weeks of each other late last year.

We get quite a few snakes here but I still let the yard get messy and the grass and gardens are, more often than not, overgrown.  We also walk around without shoes and I garden without gloves.  We know the dangers but don't seem to take them seriously.  Which is dumb really. We get Tiger snakes and Dugites, bites from both are deadly if not treated and still we ignore the risks. 
I suppose I trust in their fear of us and luck to not get bitten.

I have spent a few hours out there today though, getting the long grass around a few overgrown areas down.  I mowed and tidied around the house on Friday and will be out there again tomorrow.  Mowing grass here seems to be a never ending job, I cannot seem to keep it under control at all.  By the time I finish one area another needs doing again.  It does make me jump though when I step near a stick and it moves!

We haven't had any in the house yet but mice and skinks can get in here there is no reason why a snake couldn't.  Maybe I should tidy up inside as well...just in case.

Help!!!

I am still worried about the fox from last night and the chooks have been noisier than usual so I have been going in and out to them all morning.  It's just happened again but more so.  So I hear the cjhooks going nutso in their house open the door and see the last 2foot of a Dugite going out into the food forest part.  Bugger.  I know it was a Dugite because of the olive green colour.  Anyway the grass is too long everywhere and I lose it.
I go back in to check the house and see a stick along the back wall, what starts to move.  So, OK, not a stick.  The snake must have come back into the house but looks smaller.

That goes into the pen where I have the chickens.  I'm starting to freak out a little bit.  I remember Hubby bought a snake trap which also is supposed to catch mice and he has it in the shed. I go get that, no mice so I need some snake bait.  Milk!  I go inside to put some shoes on, thought I'd better, get some milk and come back out and a snake, NOT THE SAME COLOUR, is where I want to go!! 

I have put the trap with a tray of milk in where I last saw a snake.  A different colour one to the one in the shed.  This one was a light, milky colour.  Can snakes change colour?  Please tell me that they do otherwise I have more than one snake out there. 

And Hubby is right, If I didn't have so much shit laying around the place they would have nowhere to hide and probably wouldn't stay.

I know I have to go out there and find out where it is and...what?  Chase it away?  Yeah, right.  I can't get to the chicken pen though as the snake was last seen in the area just before it and it is full of bags of mulch, pots, bin of potting mix, chicken cage, crap...

So now I need to mow the grass as well as everything else. 

Might have a little cry first though.

Friggin' Fox.

I am usually up by 6, I think 5 is a good time to be getting up.  This morning I was up and out *fox hunting* at 1.30 so I'm blaming that for the 7.45 wake up time this morning.  I mean, 7:45!!  That's insane. I'll have to get a move on soon to get things done before it gets too hot.

But back to the fox.  We have had foxes here before.  They have killed a lot of my chooks and my ducks in the past.  Hubby has fixed fences and built me fox proof ones and last year we had no trouble at all.  This year I could smell something out along the front fence and me and the son both reckon it smelt of fox but they haven't got to the chooks at all.

So last night I hear a noise, thought one of the chooks that insist on roosting on top of the fence had fallen and got itself caught so go out to rescue it.  The front light gets turned on, I get a torch and go have a look but no there are 2 chooks on the fence, so the bugger has got one to join it.
I see a movement in the driveway and think the cat is coming so I wait so it can come in the door instead of walking around to the cat flap. I know, soft cat owner here.  But the animal that walks up my driveway, past my van towards the front of the house where I am with a torch and the light on is a fox.  It walks past the end of the verandah, less than 5metres from me, up between the house and shed heading out the back.  I walk towards it making a lot of noise and the thing stops, turns towards me and makes a noise at me, not realing a growl but it worried me so I backed off.  It then stops out the back where I had left a bag and chews on the strap for a bit, I throw a potato at it but miss but the thing still doesn't run away.  I grab a *weapon* in this case a scoop net that was laying on the ground but by then it is walking out the back and I lose it in the paddock.

But I have chooks around behind the shed so I have to go check on them but now I am scared of this fox, do foxes attack people?  Maybe not normal ones but normal ones don't walk near houses that have lights on and people around.  Do they?  It was quite a big fox, skinny  though so it must have been sick...do foxes have diseases that people can get...

I go back to bed but was up at every little noise.  So I sleep in and now I will worry about this thing coming back and getting the chooks.  We are away this weekend too and though the chooks can be locked up it's hard to get them into their houses before dark so not really nice to ask the daughter to do that.  And they don't all have fox proof pens.  But I worry about my new AussieRocks.  I will be so sad if they get taken.

I have set up solar lights in one of the pens thinking they wouldn't come near the lights but that theory just got shot to pieces.  Hubby will ask why I didn't shoot it.  I would have had plenty of time but I don't feel safe loading the gun and am not a good enough shot anyway.  What are the chances of it coming back for the chooks.  It could have gotten into the pens I think, if it really tried.  The pens out the back are not foxproof at all.  I'll need to fix those before we go away so another job for today.

I'll be up with every little noise tonight too but I think I'll leave the shed wireless on, that might help deter it. 

I could spend the day practicing with the gun and target shooting but I don't think I could bring myself to shoot an animal.  Even one that should be.

A long time ago when the son was 12/13 he used to go camping and I warned him to be careful of foxes and other *critters* 
People used to mock me for being a worrywort,.with something that I never said.  "You'll get seriously killed by that fox"  Last night as I was out walking in the dark I was wondering if it was a premonition and would I be the one found with bits chewed off of me. 
It was late, there was a wild animal around, I was tired...

Book 2, The Valley of Horses.

The second book in the Earth's Children series was just as great as the first one.

It tells of Ayla's life after being banished from the Clan and of her wanting to find *the others*, people like her. Of her not knowing where the others might be and finding a cave and how she goes about setting up home there by herself and gets prepared to spend a winter there alone.  It tells of her having to learn to go against Clan beliefs so she can survive.
It also tells of Jondalar who undertakes a journey with his brother, how they meet another group of people and stay with them, what happens with them, why they leave and how it comes about that Ayla rescues Jondalar from Baby, a cave lion that she raised from a cub.
The two people then spend time in this valley, learning about their different ways, until they decide to leave.

How this women spends a few years in this valley by herself is a great read and her meeting and having to learn the ways of a stranger adds interest.