7.07 am Saturday 25 December 2010 AEDST
up until 2 am this morning wrapping; if retail sales are down it isn't my fault.
drank a mock mai tai while wrapping:
1 litre pineapple juice
1/2 cup grenadine
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/4 teaspoon almond essence
juice 1 juicy lime
about 1 litre of ice
to garnish:
lemon verbena or mint large sprigs
maraschino cherries
cold sparkling mineral water
straws
mix all of above in 2 litre mixing jug, placing ice in first and then pouring other ingredients over.
mixing shouldn't be necessary.
serve in large ie at least 400 ml glass, placing a small sprig of lemon verbena and 2 (I had 3) maraschino cherries. I started out drinking this straight, then cut it 50/50 with cold sparkling mineral water. I ended up stirring the ice melt in after I had finished up the mineral water (a 750 ml bottle). got clearer as ice melted.
my ice was from some I bought at the BP at Mt Lambie en route to Bathurst for an afternoon's christmas shopping and I had a big lump about 1 litre in size.
it was best after a couple of hours, when the almonnd extract kicked in (still no orgeat syrup and Monin don't list it on their Australian web site).
there are recipes for home made orgeat and marischino cherries (although they only have a three week refrigerator life span. I'll try because it is cherry season here.) on the chow.com site; this has various other syrups which I am interested in and good cocktail recipes which I would like to try.
I was going to add a little St Germain but decided not to (had too much wrapping) ; I added some elderflower cordial, bought earlier in the year at the Orange Markets, about 50 mls after I had had the first couple of drinks; not certain that this helped.
chow.com is recommended, has good photos and videos, but you might have to wade through a lot of americanisms. it seems to be mainly out of the west coast/texas but also has some contributors from Chicago, New York and maybe mid West.
merry christmas. wrap in moderation.
Friday, December 24, 2010
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
... rained in ...
Tuesday 14 December 2010 10.28 pm AEDST
started raining lightly, was very tired and lay down, got up to close car, garage, toolshed, cottage and for Nigella and Cheese Slices; watched Nigella (can a christmas party be made up of glazed petit sausages, litttle meat balls in tomato sauce, gingerbread (sans icing) and seasonal coloured jelly beans with pink processo flavoured with ? Chambord ???????); kitchen sluttiness is one thing but poor menu planning is another :: time to call in the caterers, honey.
watched some of Cheese Slices, this was about truffled cheese in Piedmont; poor doggies didn't get any, even though they found them.
was more interested in reading about white charcoal and japanese knives at Chef's Armoury on Botany Road, Roseberry (NSW), mentioned in this weeks Good Living (online version, not same as weekly edition, a newsprint magazine lift out every Tuesday in SMH. has local foodie news, recipes, product reviews and lots of ads. now on holiday until 18 Jan 2011. why do they go on holiday just when everyone has time to read them beacuse they're on holiday; television and radio also closing down until late Jan/early Feb and leaving us with rerebroadcasts of rebroadcasts and 48 hour marathons of Top Gear old series; already filling staellite waves with reruns of 4 year old Great British Chefs).
now raining lightly and cool breeze through mosquito screen ( determined mosquito could knock to verandah in microseconds). hope rain disappears in morning so can finish off front lawns (now high alpine meadows full of yellow flowers). yawn.
started raining lightly, was very tired and lay down, got up to close car, garage, toolshed, cottage and for Nigella and Cheese Slices; watched Nigella (can a christmas party be made up of glazed petit sausages, litttle meat balls in tomato sauce, gingerbread (sans icing) and seasonal coloured jelly beans with pink processo flavoured with ? Chambord ???????); kitchen sluttiness is one thing but poor menu planning is another :: time to call in the caterers, honey.
watched some of Cheese Slices, this was about truffled cheese in Piedmont; poor doggies didn't get any, even though they found them.
was more interested in reading about white charcoal and japanese knives at Chef's Armoury on Botany Road, Roseberry (NSW), mentioned in this weeks Good Living (online version, not same as weekly edition, a newsprint magazine lift out every Tuesday in SMH. has local foodie news, recipes, product reviews and lots of ads. now on holiday until 18 Jan 2011. why do they go on holiday just when everyone has time to read them beacuse they're on holiday; television and radio also closing down until late Jan/early Feb and leaving us with rerebroadcasts of rebroadcasts and 48 hour marathons of Top Gear old series; already filling staellite waves with reruns of 4 year old Great British Chefs).
now raining lightly and cool breeze through mosquito screen ( determined mosquito could knock to verandah in microseconds). hope rain disappears in morning so can finish off front lawns (now high alpine meadows full of yellow flowers). yawn.
Monday, December 13, 2010
... snowed under ...
i'd update a bit more frequently if i didn't get caught in blooger/google's infinite loop sign in; each time i have to work out how to get out of it and sign in here; i think that this is because i am signed into gmail under my other user names.
email status:
mac.com mail has been online again for a few days; i am monitoring gmail and forwarding anything that comes in to mac.com and replying through mac.com (ad cetra ad nauseating etcetra);
email's working but i'm not (actually i am):
there is a 2 to 3 day turn around on most email at the moment; i am wrapping, shopping and mowing (and sitting down because i am still dizzy quite a lot) and otherwise away from email (and blogger, although infinite loop has been a real drag (doesn't help when you're dizzy; also to and fro email is the flavour of the month and it gets, well, complicated, as they say; i've also started reusing my cpap machine and have started sleeping longer (and on foggy/cloudy mornings sometimes don't wake until 7.15 am ish although was up at sparrow (jenny wren and husband around here) fart yesterday, which was bright and sunny (today has been grey and cool and is now, now that i have got petrol from Lithgow to make two stroke, thundery). i don't think that the lawn likes being cut.
otherwise tsunami continues and i am, i speak metaphorically, clinging to a very soggy bent palm tree occupied by a breakfasting monkey (papaya and banana) who is very annoyed and demanding that i depart immediately and where is blooody management when it's needed; bloody tourists have their own place and pleese git there right now (monkey has for some reason mixed south african/hindu gentleman accent). am trying to point out impossibility of this as tsunami continues breaking (so far longest ever recorded). ho ho bloody hum.
was going to do my day starting maybe 8 December but this has turned into my week and shortly will be my fortnight. don't think eleanor roosevelt had these problems.
ipod, at suggestion of technical advisor, has been put off until new model announced maybe in February; iPad funds have been spent on chistmas present for mother in Queen Street (Woolahra, there is no other (except of course in Brisbane and Auckland but they don't quite have the same expenditure opportunities as the 2025 postcode zone)).
kindle australian charger has arrived; otherwise no sign; false alarm last week with large USPS bag, which contained two books from guys at Baked, in Red Hook, Brooklyn.
fat boy Ralph is enroute from Price USA agent since early am yesterday. am making do with sunday afternoon's nautica, cutter and buck and gazman (said to be capri pants but more like long shorts) from big boy's store at Skygardens.
new pitt street mall, with gap arrived and zara coming, is complete fizzle with many potential buyers on sunday afternoon but nothing for them to buy.
lpq definitely not up to Brussels standard, but better than any competition except maybe cheese sit up counter at DJ's Market Street (highly personal preference; cheese plate is casual anytime meal of choice).
back soon, maybe sooner if it rains.
email status:
mac.com mail has been online again for a few days; i am monitoring gmail and forwarding anything that comes in to mac.com and replying through mac.com (ad cetra ad nauseating etcetra);
email's working but i'm not (actually i am):
there is a 2 to 3 day turn around on most email at the moment; i am wrapping, shopping and mowing (and sitting down because i am still dizzy quite a lot) and otherwise away from email (and blogger, although infinite loop has been a real drag (doesn't help when you're dizzy; also to and fro email is the flavour of the month and it gets, well, complicated, as they say; i've also started reusing my cpap machine and have started sleeping longer (and on foggy/cloudy mornings sometimes don't wake until 7.15 am ish although was up at sparrow (jenny wren and husband around here) fart yesterday, which was bright and sunny (today has been grey and cool and is now, now that i have got petrol from Lithgow to make two stroke, thundery). i don't think that the lawn likes being cut.
otherwise tsunami continues and i am, i speak metaphorically, clinging to a very soggy bent palm tree occupied by a breakfasting monkey (papaya and banana) who is very annoyed and demanding that i depart immediately and where is blooody management when it's needed; bloody tourists have their own place and pleese git there right now (monkey has for some reason mixed south african/hindu gentleman accent). am trying to point out impossibility of this as tsunami continues breaking (so far longest ever recorded). ho ho bloody hum.
was going to do my day starting maybe 8 December but this has turned into my week and shortly will be my fortnight. don't think eleanor roosevelt had these problems.
ipod, at suggestion of technical advisor, has been put off until new model announced maybe in February; iPad funds have been spent on chistmas present for mother in Queen Street (Woolahra, there is no other (except of course in Brisbane and Auckland but they don't quite have the same expenditure opportunities as the 2025 postcode zone)).
kindle australian charger has arrived; otherwise no sign; false alarm last week with large USPS bag, which contained two books from guys at Baked, in Red Hook, Brooklyn.
fat boy Ralph is enroute from Price USA agent since early am yesterday. am making do with sunday afternoon's nautica, cutter and buck and gazman (said to be capri pants but more like long shorts) from big boy's store at Skygardens.
new pitt street mall, with gap arrived and zara coming, is complete fizzle with many potential buyers on sunday afternoon but nothing for them to buy.
lpq definitely not up to Brussels standard, but better than any competition except maybe cheese sit up counter at DJ's Market Street (highly personal preference; cheese plate is casual anytime meal of choice).
back soon, maybe sooner if it rains.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
... xmas is coming ...
was coming like waves of gentle inbound tide; now in full tsunami force and crashing inland with vengance. caught only half way to high ground, as usual. every thing in place but assembly still required, and caught as by blizzard (that would be nice but flood much likelier).
... Pearl Harbor outranks mai tai
10.06 pm Wednesday 08 December 2010
We always forget about that pesky international dateline, maybe because we are still primarily anglo centric.
The Japanese attack on the US base at Pearl Harbor was at about 7 am on Sunday 7 December 1941 Hawaiian time, which would have been ? around 3 am in the morning on Monday 8 December 1941 in eastern Australia.
So here is a Pearl Harbor cocktail from : http://cocktails.about.com/od/vodkadrinkrecipes/r/pearl_harbor.htm
Would think calls for a pretty paper parasol.
Was in 1966 on overcast day at Pearl Harbor; didn't seem place for cocktails.
Simple, but think I still prefer mai tai.
We always forget about that pesky international dateline, maybe because we are still primarily anglo centric.
The Japanese attack on the US base at Pearl Harbor was at about 7 am on Sunday 7 December 1941 Hawaiian time, which would have been ? around 3 am in the morning on Monday 8 December 1941 in eastern Australia.
So here is a Pearl Harbor cocktail from : http://cocktails.about.com/od/vodkadrinkrecipes/r/pearl_harbor.htm
- 1 oz melon liqueur = midori
- pineapple juice
- maraschino cherry for garnish
- pineapple chunks for garnish
Preparation:
- Pour the vodka and melon liqueur into an old-fashioned glass filled with ice.
- Fill with pineapple juice.
- Garnish with a maraschino cherry and pineapple chunk on a cocktail skewer.
Was in 1966 on overcast day at Pearl Harbor; didn't seem place for cocktails.
Simple, but think I still prefer mai tai.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
...... behold and there was restart, and email flowed ...
07.57 am Wednesday 08 December 2010
software update, some bits I wanted, forced restart (Illustrator and Acrobat uncooperative as ever) and then email from last few days flowed into Mail.
Now, and probably ever after, will have to keep monitoring gmail, previously only used as online back up for email.
Gmail is pain in neck to log into as sometimes just takes me to bloggger.
Ho ho hum.
software update, some bits I wanted, forced restart (Illustrator and Acrobat uncooperative as ever) and then email from last few days flowed into Mail.
Now, and probably ever after, will have to keep monitoring gmail, previously only used as online back up for email.
Gmail is pain in neck to log into as sometimes just takes me to bloggger.
Ho ho hum.
Monday, December 6, 2010
how to make a mai tai
oops; had saved this as draft and forgotten to post::
you might need this; know I do.
recipe from Cocktails.About.Com, commentary mainly mine.
light rum = white bacardi
dark rum = bundy (op for preferance) in original circa 1944 would have been either cuban or from trindad locally available here would be Captain Morgan or Mountgay (but you'll need a fancy liquor store like Dan Murphy's local pub won't do)
orange curaco = tautology; all curaco is orange flavour; use it if you've got it or can find it; Cointreau or Grand Marnier instead. Prefer Cointreau myself for drinking, GM for cooking. Don't use blue coloured stuff!!!!
maraschino cherries = turn up on Colesworth's/IGA but not so far Aldi shelves at this time of year; maybe good bottle shop; caters suppliers. Knew I should have bought 1 kg jar from Essential Ingredient in Orange; would probably have seen me out as they are basically inert and indesructible.
orgeat syrup = almond, barley and lemon syrup, can still be obtained in Monin range some supermarkets but delis or caters suppliers (Chef's Warehouse, Essential Ingredient) better bet, isn't used in modern version; can recreate by adding a (very) few drops of almond essence to about 500 ml of lemon cordial or better, lemon barley water cordial. Australian world has largely lost taste for bitterish almond flavour (if it ever had it) more popular with Europeans.
lime = consider using Sicilian lime juice in green limeish shaped bottles (used by Nigella) and sold at Harris Farm if limes are more than about 50 c each; also roll on chopping board if using real thing to break up internal segments before squeezing (old foodie trick).
This is circa 1944 rummy original version as served in Trader Vic's Oakland, California:
old fashioned glass = 300 ml tumbler please, and don't forget little paper parasol but no fruit bits.
Pass out to memories of Frannie Halcyon Day, a great (fictional) supporter of San Francisco branch of Trader Vic's and mai tais.
you might need this; know I do.
recipe from Cocktails.About.Com, commentary mainly mine.
light rum = white bacardi
dark rum = bundy (op for preferance) in original circa 1944 would have been either cuban or from trindad locally available here would be Captain Morgan or Mountgay (but you'll need a fancy liquor store like Dan Murphy's local pub won't do)
orange curaco = tautology; all curaco is orange flavour; use it if you've got it or can find it; Cointreau or Grand Marnier instead. Prefer Cointreau myself for drinking, GM for cooking. Don't use blue coloured stuff!!!!
maraschino cherries = turn up on Colesworth's/IGA but not so far Aldi shelves at this time of year; maybe good bottle shop; caters suppliers. Knew I should have bought 1 kg jar from Essential Ingredient in Orange; would probably have seen me out as they are basically inert and indesructible.
orgeat syrup = almond, barley and lemon syrup, can still be obtained in Monin range some supermarkets but delis or caters suppliers (Chef's Warehouse, Essential Ingredient) better bet, isn't used in modern version; can recreate by adding a (very) few drops of almond essence to about 500 ml of lemon cordial or better, lemon barley water cordial. Australian world has largely lost taste for bitterish almond flavour (if it ever had it) more popular with Europeans.
lime = consider using Sicilian lime juice in green limeish shaped bottles (used by Nigella) and sold at Harris Farm if limes are more than about 50 c each; also roll on chopping board if using real thing to break up internal segments before squeezing (old foodie trick).
This is circa 1944 rummy original version as served in Trader Vic's Oakland, California:
- 1 oz light rum
- 1/2 oz lime juice
- 1/2 oz orange curacao
- 1/2 oz orgeat syrup
- 1 oz dark rum
- maraschino cherry for garnish
Preparation:
- Pour all the ingredients except the dark rum into a shaker with ice cubes.
- Shake well.
- Strain into an old-fashioned glass half filled with ice.
- Top with the dark rum.
- Garnish with the cherry.
More modern version, Pineapple juice version of the Mai Tai:
triple sec = maybe unobtainable; use cointreau or grand marnier (actually saw on shelf of liquor store in Katoomba yesterday) (ie Tuesday)
grenadine = try and get real one, not artifical; does exist at good bottle shops; make real pink lemonade with leftovers; is made from highly filtered pomegranates; POM juice not acceptable subsitute
- 1 ounce light rum
- 1/2 ounce triple sec
- 1/4 ounce lime juice
- 1 1/2 ounces pineapple juice
- 1 1/2 ounces orange juice
- 1 dash of grenadine
- 1/2 ounce dark rum
- maraschino cherry for garnish
- Pour all the ingredients except the dark rum into a shaker with ice cubes.
- Shake well.
- Strain into an old-fashioned glass half filled with ice.
- Top with the dark rum.
- Garnish with the cherry.
Pass out to memories of Frannie Halcyon Day, a great (fictional) supporter of San Francisco branch of Trader Vic's and mai tais.
... in all sizes
07.20 pm Monday 06 December 2010
out and about in Oberon: paper shop, big supermarket, bakery (I wasn't going to but I did and regretted it), electronics/video store (almost forgot; had to return videos on seven day hire; screach of brakes, fast 45 degree rear park (this horrible system will be end of car one day, if not of me)).
Target (or similar) clearly sells size 0 (or 1 or 2) baby overalls in marpat! Have seen very well built baby being (wo)manhandled by mother, also of good proportions, into/outof baby vehicle wearing these fairly repellant items.
Do they also provide grenade shaped baby bottles? Potties made from helmets?
Consider this very inappropriate design for infant or indeed any civilian clothing. Try denim and embroidered yellow duckies, please.
Visit to Oberon main event of day; back to loll on sofa, cottage still looking as though has been venue for christmas bash of cadre of very ungruntled junior elves eager to wreak revenge on property of Claus Inc for real or imgained ill treatment by Claus, Herr or Claus, Frau or more senior elvings (no doubt with unmentionable practices). Significant consumption of mai tais appears to have taken place with usual result.
Later in afternoon assembled, with some difficulty, cheap solar lighting in coloured shove in version, flimsy looking nylon Chinese style lanterns with which I have draped tree by gate and more sturdy version of impaler style in stainless steel (the box is quite definite) which will use to provide glimmers of light around courtyard entrance to cottage. Lit up well enough in gloom of cottage but light vanished outside. Will use more to create firefly analogue (no fireflys hereabouts or indeed in any country area I have ever visited in Australia; have only seen as part of Obon revellers kit at Kyoto Station in August 2006) effect by placing under trees along road fence. Now full of greenness; mid summer just around corner. Solar lighting only just coming on now with fall of darkness (07.36 pm AEDST). Foggy and light rain with local temperature (gauge on verandah) at 13/14 C. Neighbour to north (only neighbour) could be heard mowing lawn during day of patchy sunshine; I as ever was having down day and will live with consequenees of unmown lawn later in rainy week.
Consider to be like dishes in sink of cottage; will eventually get done in fit of energy with much boiling water from kettle, eco detergent and eucalyptus oil (wish this still came in 5 litre containers, as I can once recall it doing) and scrubbing with Japanese oval brush made of some natural brushy stuff (hundred yen store in Clarence Street, Sydney; sometimes in back aisles of health food stores; great scubability; pleasure to use (occassionally); recommended). In meantime planet will continue spinning while I nap and yawn and read (and blog).
Ho hum. Must consider (as I have been) ride on lawn tractor (no, not mower; real repellant noise making tractor thing). There will be more on this subject.
out and about in Oberon: paper shop, big supermarket, bakery (I wasn't going to but I did and regretted it), electronics/video store (almost forgot; had to return videos on seven day hire; screach of brakes, fast 45 degree rear park (this horrible system will be end of car one day, if not of me)).
Target (or similar) clearly sells size 0 (or 1 or 2) baby overalls in marpat! Have seen very well built baby being (wo)manhandled by mother, also of good proportions, into/outof baby vehicle wearing these fairly repellant items.
Do they also provide grenade shaped baby bottles? Potties made from helmets?
Consider this very inappropriate design for infant or indeed any civilian clothing. Try denim and embroidered yellow duckies, please.
Visit to Oberon main event of day; back to loll on sofa, cottage still looking as though has been venue for christmas bash of cadre of very ungruntled junior elves eager to wreak revenge on property of Claus Inc for real or imgained ill treatment by Claus, Herr or Claus, Frau or more senior elvings (no doubt with unmentionable practices). Significant consumption of mai tais appears to have taken place with usual result.
Later in afternoon assembled, with some difficulty, cheap solar lighting in coloured shove in version, flimsy looking nylon Chinese style lanterns with which I have draped tree by gate and more sturdy version of impaler style in stainless steel (the box is quite definite) which will use to provide glimmers of light around courtyard entrance to cottage. Lit up well enough in gloom of cottage but light vanished outside. Will use more to create firefly analogue (no fireflys hereabouts or indeed in any country area I have ever visited in Australia; have only seen as part of Obon revellers kit at Kyoto Station in August 2006) effect by placing under trees along road fence. Now full of greenness; mid summer just around corner. Solar lighting only just coming on now with fall of darkness (07.36 pm AEDST). Foggy and light rain with local temperature (gauge on verandah) at 13/14 C. Neighbour to north (only neighbour) could be heard mowing lawn during day of patchy sunshine; I as ever was having down day and will live with consequenees of unmown lawn later in rainy week.
Consider to be like dishes in sink of cottage; will eventually get done in fit of energy with much boiling water from kettle, eco detergent and eucalyptus oil (wish this still came in 5 litre containers, as I can once recall it doing) and scrubbing with Japanese oval brush made of some natural brushy stuff (hundred yen store in Clarence Street, Sydney; sometimes in back aisles of health food stores; great scubability; pleasure to use (occassionally); recommended). In meantime planet will continue spinning while I nap and yawn and read (and blog).
Ho hum. Must consider (as I have been) ride on lawn tractor (no, not mower; real repellant noise making tractor thing). There will be more on this subject.
Email trouble; alternative email address
My mac.com email address, which has worked fairly well since I started using it full time in May 2009 is having trouble.
Can't work out whether this is at computer level (nothing arriving, not keeping copies of sent messsages), Telstra G3 level (as erratic as ever, but basically works), or mac.com/me.com.
Maybe they want me to change over to me.com address, but that doesn't seem to make much difference.
Mail still seems to be arriving at me.com website and I can see it online; maybe a few semi-junk have been lost in last 24 hours – hard to say; Sunday pm/Monday am is quiet time for semi-junkers.
Please use alternative email address: harry.dickinson.jnr@gmail.com
Still having a bit of trouble with gmail interface; have been using it as back up of mac.com email for more or less this situation and have let a lot of junk backed up. Now going through and deleting.
Printing email from me.com horrible experience; had to print one tonight for my mother and ended up using gmail as me.com was off in cyberspace doing who knows what (? singapore slings at local apple store).
Can't work out whether this is at computer level (nothing arriving, not keeping copies of sent messsages), Telstra G3 level (as erratic as ever, but basically works), or mac.com/me.com.
Maybe they want me to change over to me.com address, but that doesn't seem to make much difference.
Mail still seems to be arriving at me.com website and I can see it online; maybe a few semi-junk have been lost in last 24 hours – hard to say; Sunday pm/Monday am is quiet time for semi-junkers.
Please use alternative email address: harry.dickinson.jnr@gmail.com
Still having a bit of trouble with gmail interface; have been using it as back up of mac.com email for more or less this situation and have let a lot of junk backed up. Now going through and deleting.
Printing email from me.com horrible experience; had to print one tonight for my mother and ended up using gmail as me.com was off in cyberspace doing who knows what (? singapore slings at local apple store).
Sunday, December 5, 2010
... Millthorpe battleground
05.53 am Monday 06 December 2010 AEDST
Didn't make 8 am departure; I was behind schedule.
We did get to Millthorpe about 09.45 am. Temperature cooled down to about 18 C from Canowindra's sunny/patchy cloud 21 C. Drove through quite pretty rural country along Belabula Way to Mandurama, then onto Mid West Highway and then off again over back roads, some unsealed (wish Google maps would show this) to Millthorpe entering via railway underpass on south side.
All creeks very high and signs of flooding along creek beds.
Morning humid and cloudy, top of Mt Canobolas clouded out.
Many birds and many rabbits; also many different combinatons of roadside grasses and flowers.
Overtaken on Belabula Way by carful of young rural idiots in older model white 4 wheel drive ute with red P plates (supposedly limited to 80 km) who immediately increased speed to about 130 km on overtaking. They also squashed small tortoise who was crossing road (I had gone over, not squashed). Small, oval dinner plate sized tortoises quite often seen crossing roads around watery areas. Also often seen squashed, as are young Echidnas.
Apart from young idiots almost no traffic on roads until closer to Millthorpe.
Fair amount of activity in lower Millthorpe but market turns out to be at School on road from Orange at top of town. Had expected it to be in main streets or in front of railway station. Easy parking. Crowd mixture of yokel peasantry (wearing Target marpat* pants and shorts) and urban sophisticates from Millthorpe, Bathurst and Orange (wearing either quasi RM Williams and boat shoes or lycra rich semi sporting gear). many black fleece sleeveless vests in evidence, ubiqutous symbol of rural middle class (have several myself, fortunately for public a bit too snug for public wear).
Market in school ground shelter (now ubiquitous in Australian schools) is overattended and understocked. Unsatisfactory experience over bacon, egg and suasage roll, this combination being locally unheard of although standard at nearby Orange and Bathurst markets. Foood of supermarket origin rather than free range organic. No where to sit and eat (standard local market experience). No coffee in any form. Screaming adults, about raffles. Lolly fueled jet propelled school children. Ugly.
School ground well kept and pretty although we are surprised to see three demountables along edge of school green and no evidence of class room air conditioning. Had thought demountables now all vanished and air con becoming standard (as it should be; still remember Queensland fan only school experience and afternoon persperation making writing in excercise books impossible).
There were two demountables at Young yesterday but these were in front of large two storey block of classrooms under construction (must be unpleasant in demountables during construction work hours; not possible to keep noise down on construction sites).
Escape experience at school for coffee at La Boucherie. Many people about. La Boucherie overwhelmed by volume but we sit at end of big table, me with old out of print book on Edna Walling gardens which includes her own black and white photos and some pages ripped out of Home Beautiful circa 1983 with ? reprints of her columns. Includes tip on making stones out of rough home made cement for those who have trouble getting rocks for gardens (ie, me), which I copy onto back of bill from Canowindra motel. Coffee, very welcome, and toasted day old croissant, better than it sounds, ultimately arrives.
Then off to local shoppes. During course of all this stories about flooding in Millthorpe village on Wednsday afternoon emerge. There is visual evidence of this in amount of soil and sand across roads and various lots of twigs in low lying areas. Also true story of markets comes out.
Markets actually cancelled on Saturday. What we had attended was emergency Garage Sale organised by school on cancellation of market. Markets were to be held on oval, next to police house adjacent to school but too wet. Blayney Council would not allow to take place in drier streets or, as is traditional, in tarmacadamed yard in front of station because of cost of public liability insurance.
Heroic effort by school, although not much appreciated by me; feel cancellation at last moment a mistake as very many people turned up; markets should have been relocated to church and community halls in village. Fairly certain could have been relocated to Orange and that Orange market people would have provided emergency assistance, but no doubt local politics and feelings involved. Local market attending populace hardy stock and unlikely to be put of by a bit of rain and mud.
Millthorpe stores crowded to overflowing. We eventually leave as temperature rises to about 26 C and sun comes out at about 1.30 pm. Back to Hampton via Bathurst just after 3 pm, temperature at about 18 C, with cooling breeze. Lawn bad, but not quite at elephant eye level. Unpacking, resting, snacking, internetting, dvd watching and to sleep at about 11.30 pm. Temperature has fallen by then to customary 12 C, so back to preferred climatic conditions.
This morning cold and misty, temperature a bit above 12 C according to thermometer by front door on west verandah. Looks like overcast drizzly day, not ideal for lawn mowing. However Mt Washington must be conquered as there is huge pile of weekend clothes as well as Thursday's awaiting processing.
*marpat is the technical name for camouflage (from MARine PATtern), much beloved of chain store clothing buyers. the best was at one point considered to be from South Africa with colours of grey and lilac. Australia has dessert colours, ochres, yellows and olives. there are many designs and they change often. not certain whether term applies only to US patterns and their derivatives but UK has also used for long time and Australia's no doubt has descended from there.
Didn't make 8 am departure; I was behind schedule.
We did get to Millthorpe about 09.45 am. Temperature cooled down to about 18 C from Canowindra's sunny/patchy cloud 21 C. Drove through quite pretty rural country along Belabula Way to Mandurama, then onto Mid West Highway and then off again over back roads, some unsealed (wish Google maps would show this) to Millthorpe entering via railway underpass on south side.
All creeks very high and signs of flooding along creek beds.
Morning humid and cloudy, top of Mt Canobolas clouded out.
Many birds and many rabbits; also many different combinatons of roadside grasses and flowers.
Overtaken on Belabula Way by carful of young rural idiots in older model white 4 wheel drive ute with red P plates (supposedly limited to 80 km) who immediately increased speed to about 130 km on overtaking. They also squashed small tortoise who was crossing road (I had gone over, not squashed). Small, oval dinner plate sized tortoises quite often seen crossing roads around watery areas. Also often seen squashed, as are young Echidnas.
Apart from young idiots almost no traffic on roads until closer to Millthorpe.
Fair amount of activity in lower Millthorpe but market turns out to be at School on road from Orange at top of town. Had expected it to be in main streets or in front of railway station. Easy parking. Crowd mixture of yokel peasantry (wearing Target marpat* pants and shorts) and urban sophisticates from Millthorpe, Bathurst and Orange (wearing either quasi RM Williams and boat shoes or lycra rich semi sporting gear). many black fleece sleeveless vests in evidence, ubiqutous symbol of rural middle class (have several myself, fortunately for public a bit too snug for public wear).
Market in school ground shelter (now ubiquitous in Australian schools) is overattended and understocked. Unsatisfactory experience over bacon, egg and suasage roll, this combination being locally unheard of although standard at nearby Orange and Bathurst markets. Foood of supermarket origin rather than free range organic. No where to sit and eat (standard local market experience). No coffee in any form. Screaming adults, about raffles. Lolly fueled jet propelled school children. Ugly.
School ground well kept and pretty although we are surprised to see three demountables along edge of school green and no evidence of class room air conditioning. Had thought demountables now all vanished and air con becoming standard (as it should be; still remember Queensland fan only school experience and afternoon persperation making writing in excercise books impossible).
There were two demountables at Young yesterday but these were in front of large two storey block of classrooms under construction (must be unpleasant in demountables during construction work hours; not possible to keep noise down on construction sites).
Escape experience at school for coffee at La Boucherie. Many people about. La Boucherie overwhelmed by volume but we sit at end of big table, me with old out of print book on Edna Walling gardens which includes her own black and white photos and some pages ripped out of Home Beautiful circa 1983 with ? reprints of her columns. Includes tip on making stones out of rough home made cement for those who have trouble getting rocks for gardens (ie, me), which I copy onto back of bill from Canowindra motel. Coffee, very welcome, and toasted day old croissant, better than it sounds, ultimately arrives.
Then off to local shoppes. During course of all this stories about flooding in Millthorpe village on Wednsday afternoon emerge. There is visual evidence of this in amount of soil and sand across roads and various lots of twigs in low lying areas. Also true story of markets comes out.
Markets actually cancelled on Saturday. What we had attended was emergency Garage Sale organised by school on cancellation of market. Markets were to be held on oval, next to police house adjacent to school but too wet. Blayney Council would not allow to take place in drier streets or, as is traditional, in tarmacadamed yard in front of station because of cost of public liability insurance.
Heroic effort by school, although not much appreciated by me; feel cancellation at last moment a mistake as very many people turned up; markets should have been relocated to church and community halls in village. Fairly certain could have been relocated to Orange and that Orange market people would have provided emergency assistance, but no doubt local politics and feelings involved. Local market attending populace hardy stock and unlikely to be put of by a bit of rain and mud.
Millthorpe stores crowded to overflowing. We eventually leave as temperature rises to about 26 C and sun comes out at about 1.30 pm. Back to Hampton via Bathurst just after 3 pm, temperature at about 18 C, with cooling breeze. Lawn bad, but not quite at elephant eye level. Unpacking, resting, snacking, internetting, dvd watching and to sleep at about 11.30 pm. Temperature has fallen by then to customary 12 C, so back to preferred climatic conditions.
This morning cold and misty, temperature a bit above 12 C according to thermometer by front door on west verandah. Looks like overcast drizzly day, not ideal for lawn mowing. However Mt Washington must be conquered as there is huge pile of weekend clothes as well as Thursday's awaiting processing.
*marpat is the technical name for camouflage (from MARine PATtern), much beloved of chain store clothing buyers. the best was at one point considered to be from South Africa with colours of grey and lilac. Australia has dessert colours, ochres, yellows and olives. there are many designs and they change often. not certain whether term applies only to US patterns and their derivatives but UK has also used for long time and Australia's no doubt has descended from there.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
... warm to hot, high cloud, slight chance of cherries
06.32 am Sunday 05 December 2010 AEDST
cherries achieved, much better than Bathurst/Orange/Oberon damp wet little squibbs; farmers market like all held at schools – not great (maybe this is rememberance of drinking hot little bottles of milk at 10.45 am in the damp heat of Edge Hill State School in Cairns in the early 1960's), Young busy but not exactly en fete. very hot (28 C) and humid by our standards.
travelled via Cowra (Santa's arrival day) and Greenthorpe, having to use high level second turn off from Cowra because of flooded creek. evidence of floods – willows washed away and vegetation around creeks flattened for several metres on each side, water still high. Saw Iandra from road (also known as Mt Oriel Homestead, original 1900's home of the Mr Greene of Greenethorpe, built in German suburban style ie like a Peter Behrens house circa 1905 of reinforced concrete; great location on small rise with extensive views around countryside).
Greenthorpe village more run down than website suggests. mainly pretty country en route to Young.
Shopped nicer boutiques of Young with mild success, back to Cowra via Grenfell (petrol and ice block stop), then after a little indecision about Japanese Gardens (no; too hot at 29 C) back in 20 minutes to motel in Canowindra for afternoon nap from 3 pm to 6 pm.
Drive back through cold front, temperature in rain belt drops from 29 C to 19 C but vanishes in sight of communications tower just south of Canowindra and temperature back to 28 C, with sunshine.
Return to Cowra for dinner, chat in amiable wine store (opposite Woolworths in a lane; better access than dreadful Coles car park used earlier for spring water and cookies pick up) then to Neila.
Meal elegantly cooked and very efficiently served but not a success; flavour palate, as suspected, not ours, maybe a little sophisticated or a little off key.
room rather crowded, can hear too much of neighbours conversations (local floods, local real estate, christmas parties, travel in Scandanavic, cruises) most tables seemed to have very large supplies of beer and wine; local males obviously demand pre meal beer even in good restaurant, just as observed in Tasmania a few years ago.
don't mind beer but don't think is sympathetic to carefully cooked food of this kind and don't think is good idea before the heavy shiraz style wines many are drinking and that are traditionally produced locally.
we drink local 2006 Muylan Viognier, could have been a bit colder, but oaky complexity good match for cured trout and green mango salad, kingfish with cumin, green apple and culiflower (me) and duck breast confit with kim chi and carrots and pumpkin puree.
then warm vanilla risotto with violet jelly and white chocolate ice cream (me) and gingerbread with butterscotch ice cream (my mother) – quick sip assures that oaky complexity not a great match for puddings.
Neila is a good restaurant, maybe a bit noisy and crowded, possibly great if you can tune your tastebuds to flavour profiles used. Recommended if you are in area.
a few photos to upload when back at Hampton.
now to Millthorpe.
Back at Hampton usual photo problem with blogger:
should be but have loaded in roughly reverse order (eeeek!)
Photo 1 = Santa at Rose Gardens, Cowra;
Photo 2 = Santa mounts Imperial Hotel, Brisbane Street, Cowra
Photo 3 = LJ Hooker Young
Photo 4 = Library, NSW Government Offices, Young
Friday, December 3, 2010
... on the edge of disaster
we are in Canowindra (my pronunciation is incorrect, much to my mother's pleasure – although closer than hers. wikipedia entry's pronunciation a bit better: canowindra actually on deciphering mine isn't that far out).
sun out at Hampton yesterday while loading car. grass promises to be as high as an elephant's eye (from Oklahoma the musical not state) with just a little bit of sunshine. packing although only for two nights, turned into a panic pack where I piled every conceivable clothing combination into large back pack like laundry bag. unfolded, which I paid for this morning when getting dressed and ironing on regulation barely useable motel ironing board (with fold up ski jump like attachment, a new feature). usual budget iron with impossible water inlet. only one useable plug (which also does duty for microwave, toaster, kettle - although this banished by me to bathroom basin side). another plug is on opposite wall between queen and single beds, maybe for vacuum, although now with my travelling radio which is on floor with antenna extended so as to catch signal of ABC FM from Mt Canobolas, on whose western slopes we are, at 200 metres.
downhill 40 minute trip from Orange, followed as usual by boot biting country cretin in Toyota branded 4 wheel drive, probably inevitable Land Cruiser but just might have been Prado. road has double white (I still nearly always say yellow, although these banned in NSW at Victorian insistence several decades ago). speed limited to 80 km then 90 km; beige coloured car overtook as soon as broken lines and 100 km area reached, followed by large shiny white Holden/Falcon ute both immediately increasing to real country speed limit of 130 km. road wasn't in that great a condition. country beginning of real sheep and wheat with rolling hills, isolated clumps of trees and distant hills in blue. drop from Orange at about 900 metres to here, about 200 metres.
we are only a few km from flood water's and today's trip to Young will neccesitate detour via Grenfell because of floodwaters. overcast and humid in low 20's here this morning. yesterday sunny with high cloud and humid until about 4 pm when cloud lowered and filled sky.
town is usual country grid with wide streets and less usual narrow winding main street (Gaskell Street but called "Bendy" Street locally). big modern museum with fish fossils. several art galleries and several more recent boutiques in main street; otherwise contains necessary elements of life mixed with empty shops. shops some still in use mixed with empties on several other parrallel streets to east of main. largish but abandoned railway area. kate, owner of bendy street emporium, the best of main street store, kindly arranged table for us at taste of canowindra, a wine tasting restaurant on ferguson street. more of that later. now to Young.
07.56 am AEDST Saturday 04 December 2010
sun out at Hampton yesterday while loading car. grass promises to be as high as an elephant's eye (from Oklahoma the musical not state) with just a little bit of sunshine. packing although only for two nights, turned into a panic pack where I piled every conceivable clothing combination into large back pack like laundry bag. unfolded, which I paid for this morning when getting dressed and ironing on regulation barely useable motel ironing board (with fold up ski jump like attachment, a new feature). usual budget iron with impossible water inlet. only one useable plug (which also does duty for microwave, toaster, kettle - although this banished by me to bathroom basin side). another plug is on opposite wall between queen and single beds, maybe for vacuum, although now with my travelling radio which is on floor with antenna extended so as to catch signal of ABC FM from Mt Canobolas, on whose western slopes we are, at 200 metres.
downhill 40 minute trip from Orange, followed as usual by boot biting country cretin in Toyota branded 4 wheel drive, probably inevitable Land Cruiser but just might have been Prado. road has double white (I still nearly always say yellow, although these banned in NSW at Victorian insistence several decades ago). speed limited to 80 km then 90 km; beige coloured car overtook as soon as broken lines and 100 km area reached, followed by large shiny white Holden/Falcon ute both immediately increasing to real country speed limit of 130 km. road wasn't in that great a condition. country beginning of real sheep and wheat with rolling hills, isolated clumps of trees and distant hills in blue. drop from Orange at about 900 metres to here, about 200 metres.
we are only a few km from flood water's and today's trip to Young will neccesitate detour via Grenfell because of floodwaters. overcast and humid in low 20's here this morning. yesterday sunny with high cloud and humid until about 4 pm when cloud lowered and filled sky.
town is usual country grid with wide streets and less usual narrow winding main street (Gaskell Street but called "Bendy" Street locally). big modern museum with fish fossils. several art galleries and several more recent boutiques in main street; otherwise contains necessary elements of life mixed with empty shops. shops some still in use mixed with empties on several other parrallel streets to east of main. largish but abandoned railway area. kate, owner of bendy street emporium, the best of main street store, kindly arranged table for us at taste of canowindra, a wine tasting restaurant on ferguson street. more of that later. now to Young.
07.56 am AEDST Saturday 04 December 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
flood of misinformation
I'm not the only person who thinks that the flow of information about the closure (which it appears never happened) of the Great Western Highway in Bathurst because of the rising waters of the Macquarie River was badly handled.
Bathurst's daily paper, The Western Advocate, has two stories on its website this morning: Traffic chaos reigns in rain and Flood of misinformation (there are several other flood stories).
No one knows who started the closure of road at 3pm story, but it was certainly in wide circulation in down town Bathurst on Wednesday afternoon.
There is now a local police information line for road closures in the central west: 1800 227 228. I'll be trying it later this morning to check on the state of roads for our trip to Canowindra (via Orange). The Belabula River peaked at 5.1 metres at 10 am (not earlier, as I was told).
The GWH at Bathurst is apparently back to four lanes, so the trip may not be too bad.
A squelchy weekend ahead.
Bathurst's daily paper, The Western Advocate, has two stories on its website this morning: Traffic chaos reigns in rain and Flood of misinformation (there are several other flood stories).
No one knows who started the closure of road at 3pm story, but it was certainly in wide circulation in down town Bathurst on Wednesday afternoon.
There is now a local police information line for road closures in the central west: 1800 227 228. I'll be trying it later this morning to check on the state of roads for our trip to Canowindra (via Orange). The Belabula River peaked at 5.1 metres at 10 am (not earlier, as I was told).
The GWH at Bathurst is apparently back to four lanes, so the trip may not be too bad.
A squelchy weekend ahead.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
... foogy with a slight chance of iPad
07.25 am Thursday 02 December 2010 AEDST
about 10 C with foog (now my preferred spelling); not raining but well maybe raining lightly (it looks very damp out there).
looking at websites re central west flooding; SES is hopeless – not updated much; RTA much better with livetraffic maps you can pick your betes noir and will plot route for you (not avoiding and doesn't seem to like motorways). slow to load on very average 3G (it's back) connection.
problems in area we're going to are GWH at Kelso and flooding 20 km north of Young on Olympic Way. might be able to avoid both by going cross country: to Eglinton; can maybe avoid Young flooding at Bendick Murrell by going via Greenthorpe. edgy that system doesn't bother with minor roads. same problem with Belubula Way from Mandurama to Canowindra. also will still get traffic pile up into Kelso on GWH before can make turnoff.
on to phone motel, tourist offices, rta reports at 09.00 am.
have decided on iPad (will end up later buying MacBook Air, but several budgetery periods might pass by. Dick Smith in Bathurst have at $50.00 off like black friday sale price on apple; listened in on sales pitch yesterday afternoon to a rural macophile and semi non believer wife; store guy about 80% there, didn't warn them to turn off 3G and wifi when not required to conserve battery.
will probably buy from them next week; Target at Lithgow doesn't stock nor does K Mart Katoomba; wary about buying from little apple dealer in arcade off Katoomba Street (main street) as they probably won't have in stock model I want (64gB – don't know how I will use, so will go for biggest as price differential over expected 24 month life isn't much) and probably talk me into lower gB model. will be quicker to order from apple store online. so am considering this but would like to be able to say 'I bought this from you' if problem arises. so nearest reliable dealer = DSE Btahurst (also this in mall with big Woolworths, Harris Farm, Howards Storage and kitchen shop that I usually use).
chance of iPad today maybe not very high.
about 10 C with foog (now my preferred spelling); not raining but well maybe raining lightly (it looks very damp out there).
looking at websites re central west flooding; SES is hopeless – not updated much; RTA much better with livetraffic maps you can pick your betes noir and will plot route for you (not avoiding and doesn't seem to like motorways). slow to load on very average 3G (it's back) connection.
problems in area we're going to are GWH at Kelso and flooding 20 km north of Young on Olympic Way. might be able to avoid both by going cross country: to Eglinton; can maybe avoid Young flooding at Bendick Murrell by going via Greenthorpe. edgy that system doesn't bother with minor roads. same problem with Belubula Way from Mandurama to Canowindra. also will still get traffic pile up into Kelso on GWH before can make turnoff.
on to phone motel, tourist offices, rta reports at 09.00 am.
have decided on iPad (will end up later buying MacBook Air, but several budgetery periods might pass by. Dick Smith in Bathurst have at $50.00 off like black friday sale price on apple; listened in on sales pitch yesterday afternoon to a rural macophile and semi non believer wife; store guy about 80% there, didn't warn them to turn off 3G and wifi when not required to conserve battery.
will probably buy from them next week; Target at Lithgow doesn't stock nor does K Mart Katoomba; wary about buying from little apple dealer in arcade off Katoomba Street (main street) as they probably won't have in stock model I want (64gB – don't know how I will use, so will go for biggest as price differential over expected 24 month life isn't much) and probably talk me into lower gB model. will be quicker to order from apple store online. so am considering this but would like to be able to say 'I bought this from you' if problem arises. so nearest reliable dealer = DSE Btahurst (also this in mall with big Woolworths, Harris Farm, Howards Storage and kitchen shop that I usually use).
chance of iPad today maybe not very high.
... and floood with that ?
it's my typing which is errattic, not my spelling.
Wednesday 01 December 2010 08.04 pm
the 9 am ABC radio news (Claassic FM version) had as a minor story residents of Central West NSW villages affected by flood : Georges' Plains evacuated and nearby Perthville sandbagged.
These are very own own back way villages which we would have driven through en route to Canowindra (think carefully before you say it out loud – it's "Ka nun dra" : they'll think you're a German paratrooper dressed as a nun*) on Friday morning, to stay for two nights for the Young Cherry Festival.
Now, 09.32 pm after reappearance of coq au vin (darker, drier) and with drumstick classique coming to room temperature at bedside, the lovely folks at telstra are playing merry hell with modem: now 2g connection, now unconnected, now back to normal. maybe I haven't told them how much I love working with them. No one's offering me any NBN. I'd love it.
didn't expect this to affect me, however down hill through Raglan and straight into slowly moving traffic backed up past Littlebourne Street (road from O'Connell, Tarana Valley and Oberon ie our back way to Bathurst) and fruit stand.
slowly across road between Bunnings area and town; no sign of horsies who usually live there; flood water up into centre lane, traffic driving on stripy painted median area.
all under police control with traffic cones. late into Bathurst; usual retail scramble ie Discount Daves, coffee stop in Keppel Street (today 20th anniversary of BRAG building), Woolworths, kitchen store, Harris Farm, Dick Smith, Aldi, Post Office, ABC Shop (in local bookstore in Howick Street).
Later part of this was to background rumour that Great Western Highway had been closed at 3 pm by flooding at Kelso and that road through The Lagoon and road to Eglinton (thence Turondale/Sofala onto Ilford and back south via Castlereagh Highway [this is road to Mudgee in other direction]. asked each person I dealt with and got different answer but all agreed Kelso (Evans) bridge closed and road to Eglinton closed (there is a road from Eglinton to Kelso which would allow me to come out on GWH at lights at Kelso pub, a few hundred metres up from flooding)[called Eleven Mile Drive].
contemplated either staying overnight at motel in Bathurst or driving to more salubrious Orange.
finally ended up in McDonald's car park watching traffic very slowly moving in direction of Lithgow; rang NRMA Bathurst office who said they didn't really know and gave me RTA Road Closures 131700. rang this and listened through menus to Western NSW report with no mention of Macquarie River, at end offered option of operator, got quite quickly to operator, who read me a notice about Bathurst they had just received which stated that traffic was going through GWH in two lanes but with severe delays (could see this for myself).
drove out of car park, into lower George Street and went until I found end of queue just in from roundabout where Gordon Edgell (yes Edgell's comes from Bathurst) bridge traffic enters town. Edgell bridge is low level and was well under muddy swirling fast moving water and many inhabitants of Bathurst out taking photos from higher up in riverside park. got back into queue about 03.57 pm. a bit later truck cut in from side street and had logo and frequency of Bathurst radio station on back. had been listening to what I gradually realised was station in Orange so tuned into 1503 AM (had been on FM) and got little bits of news. obviously flood levels were going up and down around the town. eventually, about 4.45 pm, was onto GWH driving through flood waters which were over road (police at side watching) when radio said Bathurst Regional Council and police were urging motorists to use Eleven Mile Drive, which had reopened, as GWH alternative. should have trusted instincts that Elginton would still be reachable and road to Kelso open.
all this with fairly sunny skies and temp in car reading 29 C. traffic to bathurst backed up to Mobil Service Station in Raglan. back up into hill country. grey misty cloud returned around Meadow Flat. temperature down to 16 C. on to Rydal Road and fog from just after Martins Road, temperature down to 14 C. back to Hampton at 05.44 pm, foggy and 12 C. aparently rain had stopped mid afternoon but no sun.
road at Kelso must have been fully closed at some point; radio said that at one point in afternoon, traffic Bathurst bound was backed up to Glanmire which is about 5 km east of Raglan on GWH and is where GWH descends from mountains for run across plains to Bathurst, about 15 km west.
now question of Canowindra/Young trip. flood warning for river at Canowindra. motel looks at river and is called Riverview. bridges at Canowindra to Cowra and into town from Mandurama, selected route, are low level. may be accessible via Orange Grenfell Road around west side of Mt Canobolas. worried about Canowindra/Cowra/Young route on Saturday morning as Lachlan River (Cowra on) is also affected.
ho hum. much telephoning in morning.
Madam Head Gardner wants much staking and tying tomorrow, as owing to rain there is an outbreak of droop amongst plant community.
ho hum. this is how days go.
and so to bed at 10.20 pm AEDST.
* did any German paratrooper's dress as nuns ?; surely their boots would have given them away :: Lobb hob nailed versus Hermes button ups? and Hugo Boss versus Lanvin for robes. a quick google says not; just a June 1940 canard; however in June 1944 the invading Amis in Normandy were confused by the different costumes of the various nunly orders.
Wednesday 01 December 2010 08.04 pm
the 9 am ABC radio news (Claassic FM version) had as a minor story residents of Central West NSW villages affected by flood : Georges' Plains evacuated and nearby Perthville sandbagged.
These are very own own back way villages which we would have driven through en route to Canowindra (think carefully before you say it out loud – it's "Ka nun dra" : they'll think you're a German paratrooper dressed as a nun*) on Friday morning, to stay for two nights for the Young Cherry Festival.
Now, 09.32 pm after reappearance of coq au vin (darker, drier) and with drumstick classique coming to room temperature at bedside, the lovely folks at telstra are playing merry hell with modem: now 2g connection, now unconnected, now back to normal. maybe I haven't told them how much I love working with them. No one's offering me any NBN. I'd love it.
didn't expect this to affect me, however down hill through Raglan and straight into slowly moving traffic backed up past Littlebourne Street (road from O'Connell, Tarana Valley and Oberon ie our back way to Bathurst) and fruit stand.
slowly across road between Bunnings area and town; no sign of horsies who usually live there; flood water up into centre lane, traffic driving on stripy painted median area.
all under police control with traffic cones. late into Bathurst; usual retail scramble ie Discount Daves, coffee stop in Keppel Street (today 20th anniversary of BRAG building), Woolworths, kitchen store, Harris Farm, Dick Smith, Aldi, Post Office, ABC Shop (in local bookstore in Howick Street).
Later part of this was to background rumour that Great Western Highway had been closed at 3 pm by flooding at Kelso and that road through The Lagoon and road to Eglinton (thence Turondale/Sofala onto Ilford and back south via Castlereagh Highway [this is road to Mudgee in other direction]. asked each person I dealt with and got different answer but all agreed Kelso (Evans) bridge closed and road to Eglinton closed (there is a road from Eglinton to Kelso which would allow me to come out on GWH at lights at Kelso pub, a few hundred metres up from flooding)[called Eleven Mile Drive].
contemplated either staying overnight at motel in Bathurst or driving to more salubrious Orange.
finally ended up in McDonald's car park watching traffic very slowly moving in direction of Lithgow; rang NRMA Bathurst office who said they didn't really know and gave me RTA Road Closures 131700. rang this and listened through menus to Western NSW report with no mention of Macquarie River, at end offered option of operator, got quite quickly to operator, who read me a notice about Bathurst they had just received which stated that traffic was going through GWH in two lanes but with severe delays (could see this for myself).
drove out of car park, into lower George Street and went until I found end of queue just in from roundabout where Gordon Edgell (yes Edgell's comes from Bathurst) bridge traffic enters town. Edgell bridge is low level and was well under muddy swirling fast moving water and many inhabitants of Bathurst out taking photos from higher up in riverside park. got back into queue about 03.57 pm. a bit later truck cut in from side street and had logo and frequency of Bathurst radio station on back. had been listening to what I gradually realised was station in Orange so tuned into 1503 AM (had been on FM) and got little bits of news. obviously flood levels were going up and down around the town. eventually, about 4.45 pm, was onto GWH driving through flood waters which were over road (police at side watching) when radio said Bathurst Regional Council and police were urging motorists to use Eleven Mile Drive, which had reopened, as GWH alternative. should have trusted instincts that Elginton would still be reachable and road to Kelso open.
all this with fairly sunny skies and temp in car reading 29 C. traffic to bathurst backed up to Mobil Service Station in Raglan. back up into hill country. grey misty cloud returned around Meadow Flat. temperature down to 16 C. on to Rydal Road and fog from just after Martins Road, temperature down to 14 C. back to Hampton at 05.44 pm, foggy and 12 C. aparently rain had stopped mid afternoon but no sun.
road at Kelso must have been fully closed at some point; radio said that at one point in afternoon, traffic Bathurst bound was backed up to Glanmire which is about 5 km east of Raglan on GWH and is where GWH descends from mountains for run across plains to Bathurst, about 15 km west.
now question of Canowindra/Young trip. flood warning for river at Canowindra. motel looks at river and is called Riverview. bridges at Canowindra to Cowra and into town from Mandurama, selected route, are low level. may be accessible via Orange Grenfell Road around west side of Mt Canobolas. worried about Canowindra/Cowra/Young route on Saturday morning as Lachlan River (Cowra on) is also affected.
ho hum. much telephoning in morning.
Madam Head Gardner wants much staking and tying tomorrow, as owing to rain there is an outbreak of droop amongst plant community.
ho hum. this is how days go.
and so to bed at 10.20 pm AEDST.
* did any German paratrooper's dress as nuns ?; surely their boots would have given them away :: Lobb hob nailed versus Hermes button ups? and Hugo Boss versus Lanvin for robes. a quick google says not; just a June 1940 canard; however in June 1944 the invading Amis in Normandy were confused by the different costumes of the various nunly orders.
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