So far this week I’ve…
Still on my To Do list: a visit to the Pub With No Beer!
A Holiday in the Bush (Subtitled: Internet Withdrawal)
On Saturday the Snook and I made the six hour drive up to Eungai to visit the Snook homestead. It’s gorgeous up here, and so far we’ve been doing a really good job of being completely lazy. We went for a walk. We’ve taken naps. We’ve watched native birds playing in a birdbath. We’ve got very little cell phone signal, and we haven’t touched computers for 48 hours. (Yeah, I was starting to shake a bit.) Today we’re going to Timbertown for a “fair dinkum day out.” I can hardly wait!
If you don’t hear from us before then, have a Merry Christmas everybody!
This morning the Snook and I both confessed a shameful admiration for the ATM bandits. They’re just so crazy! For the past couple of months they’ve been blowing up ATMs with, like, compressed gas and making away with the cash. They haven’t killed anybody yet, and the police seem nowhere near catching them. They’re like modern bushrangers!
Garden Update
This cooler, wetter summer has been great for my veggie patch. You’ll recall that we planted seedlings in October, which were coming along nicely in November. Now? It’s like a jungle out there.
I laid down weed matting last month, over which I put a layer of lucerne mulch. We’ve been keeping it well watered and fertilizing every Saturday. So far the only casualty has been my tiny pea plant, which suddenly stopped growing and withered away. (No idea why; maybe it didn’t like the soil acidity or something?) Anyway, more pictures after the jump, including THE PUMPKINS THAT ATE CHIPPENDALE.My little chilli plant is starting to produce! There are three small green chillies on it. I have no idea how big they get nor when I’m supposed to pick them. (They’ll turn red eventually, right?)
The tomatoes are just going crazy. I’ve had to restake them several times, and they’re now spilling out over the back wall into the stairwell. They’re laden with green fruit, both shiny cherry sized and big juicy ones. We’re going to have so many tomatoes… I think I may need to learn to can.
Eggplant! My eggplant plant has produced loads of pretty purple flowers, but so far no actual fruit. I wonder if birds are eating them or something. Or maybe it just wasn’t old enough? At any rate, it’s big and hearty now so hopefully we’ll eventually get fruit.
Beans! My little bean plant has so far provided the only harvests. I’ve taken about a dozen beans off it and it’s got plenty more tiny slender ones growing.
The herbs have been a constant battle against the scourge of caterpillars. Our basil got hit hard and is just now starting to recover. (Natural selection at work: we easily picked off all the brown caterpillars but couldn’t figure out why they were still getting eaten. Closer inspection showed a number of little green caterpillars happily munching away. Bastards.) The mint and the cat grass are doing well.
Lemons! After a couple seasons with little fruit, our lemon tree is thriving again. We repotted it last year into a much bigger container, and I think that’s made it happy. It’s covered in little green lemons right now.
And lastly, the PUMPKINS. This is what they looked like six weeks ago. Remember how Frances warned me that pumpkins like to take over the garden? Look at this.
A cascade of pumpkin leaves! The pumpkin patch has been extended about eight feet! And I’m happy to report that it’s a very sincere pumpkin patch, with not a bit of hypocrisy. The vines have completely wound in amongst the existing plants along the side of the fence. (A friend warned that they might strangle the other plants, but I don’t mind. I think they look rather lush and pretty.) If you lift the leaves and spy underneath, you can see the whole network of beautiful delicate green tendrils supporting the whole structure. There aren’t any blossoms yet though, and I’m a little worried about how many pumpkins we’re going to end up with. Also, those vines are climbin’. How does a pumpkin grow three feet off the ground??
More adventures in urban gardening to come in 2009…
“Fed Cuts Rates on Money, Chicks”. Hahahaha… That one totally took me a minute. The Snook is going to love it.
Three little kittens… Yay! Miss Fee and the Sock Victim found three little kittens in their yard yesterday. They’re thinking of keeping two, and we’re thinking of finally getting Dr. Amy Jones a little brother. We’re just waiting to hear back from the vet. (Being a responsible pet owner, Miss Fee is arranging to get them desexed, chipped, and vaccinated.)
NEW JOB! Just heard back from the interview I had yesterday… and I got it! Very similar job in a different company. I get to start on January 5, which means I’ve got a nice little bit of vacation time here. So if you crossed your fingers or put some positive vibes out into the universe for me, THANK YOU! It’s such a relief. 🙂
Barack Obama on Flickr. I clicked on that gallery expecting to see photos of Obama, but really it’s more artwork and photos inspired by Obama. There’s some really cool stuff in there. But hey, no knitting? Must get on that.
Unemployment in Sydney. Interestingly, the area where I live (the inner suburbs) has relatively low unemployment, whereas in the distant suburbs it’s climbing. Presumably that has to do with the cost of living in the inner city. I guess if you can afford to live here at all, the chances are you’re in a more stable industry and you can get rehired easily. Seems pretty pathetic to pin your optimism on some dubious government statistics, but I’ll take it.
The Official Tough Bloke Challenge Pictures are now available! They had photographers on the course in certain spots, so if you wanted to see us on the actual obstacles, now you can. [Me / Rodd] I’ll leave it up to Clare and Emily whether they want to share theirs with the whole Internets.
 
I told you it was muddy. (More after the jump…)
Before the start
Hurdles. We had to go over and under these giant posts.
Running between obstacles. The course doubled back at this point, which is why you can see people heading the other direction. (Yes, I’m doing the thumbs again. And the girl behind me is laughing because I said, “CAMERA! LOOK TOUGH!”)
Suspension bridge
Balance beams. I made it all the way across without falling!
After the beams. Yeah, we’d hit some mud by this point.
The dreaded rope swing. Snookums prepares to leap.
SPLOOSH!
I hesitated on the swing. It took a conscious effort to step off the platform.
Trying to extricate ourselves from the mud.
I have never felt so muddy and dirty in my entire life.
There were loads more obstacles, but those are all the photos we can find for now. We’re still combing through the “unidentified” pile. (Everyone’s sticky numbers came off in the mud.)
