Archive for the Category »Everyday Life «

22
Nov 2011

Power problems

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Having your power go out is never great. It happened again today while I was at work. It surged on and off and took out half the shop, and caused one of our computers to fry and stinck the place out. So the end of the day was spent guessing the price of beer and writing it all down to enter into the compute once it’s fixed.

The bin across the road which my DH runs also came to a stand still. (Just what you want during harvest..not)

Farmers left waiting to see how long till the power was back on. Would they get their load off today? As it turns out, no. So then they had to ring up and get people to come pick them up and take them home. (After a few coldies, mind you.) This also meant headers would have to stop also.

I took the kids over to see their dad and pop. I think this is the most fluro yellow I’ve seen together in one spot. Once no one wore hi-vis shirts, then it was just the bin crew, now it’s everyone. So much has changed with saftey these days. (Gone are the days when you learnt the hard way lol)

My Dad waiting by the sample hut. His truck way down the line but he’s lucky…he only has to walk over the other side of the bin and he’s home.

I’m happy to report it finally came back on…thank god my laptop has it’s own battery. Love my laptop…at least I could charge my phone on it. I was worried it’d go flat for a while there, oh how would I cope :(  

I’m off to Albany tomorrow to see the wonderful Lata, who will be taking some photo’s for me (publicity profile pics) as I need something new for the next book.

Enjoy the rest of your week! :)

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18
Nov 2011

Bluey & Tiger

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I went out today to help my friend with her horses again as we met the farrier near this paddock. These two horses belong to another lady, but I helped look after Bluey and Tiger (the pony).  And it was a good excuse to catch up with my friend :)

Here’s Wayne at work on the side of the road, well actually on it, but that was where the shade was. Not likely to see a car on this road very often anyway. (Besides my mum who would be doing the mail run an hour later)

This is Bluey. I’ve only been for a ride on him once and that was many years ago…before kids.  He was a good boy for me. He snotted all over his boss (my friend) before I had to take him, and even Tiger was well behaved.

When I was little we had horses practically in our back yard, which we used to feed. Then the neighbours left and took them and I never saw another one until I was 12.  Now quite a few of our friends have horses. I would love to be able to ride them really well, through rolling paddocks just like The Man from Snowy River, but i’m a total novice and think i’ll stick to cars which don’t have a mind of their own.

I’ve got to drive to town now, take one kid to an appointment and then to Milo Cricket, and be home in time for the CWA ladies BBQ under the Tree. Enjoy your weekend everyone. Hope you’re doing something fun. xx

(I have just seen the new cover for the book and I really hope everyone’s going to like it. Everyone should be able to see it early next year!)

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Category: Everyday Life, Only in the country  Tags: , ,  3 Comments
29
Oct 2011

Bush Living

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We are a funny lot, country people. We get excited about things like rain and even this new section of road.  It wasn’t a long stretch of new bitumen, but all the same its still less gravel we have to travel along. Not much happens around here, so things like this are exciting for a little town. (Don’t let me get started on our curbing in town! Curbing…in Pingaring!!)

At work on Thursday we had some fella’s from Perth come down to train us, as we are Milne Feed reps, (easy lick)  and one of the guys was from India.  He was saying that after living in India, coming to Perth was a huge change. He couldn’t sleep because it was too quiet and he could hear the cockroaches!  So if he thought Perth was a country place, imagine what he thought of our 5 house town!!  First thing he said to me is ‘what do you do?’

I had to chuckle. What does he do in Perth? 

Well one of the things we do is have fire truck training…or fire ute training.

This little beauty is on loan until our tiny town gets its new fire truck. A real truck.  So Thursday afternoon, here we were gathered around in the rain learning how to work everything in case of a fire. In the rain!! Yes, we were.  I think there was about seven of us, mostly local farmers and a couple of townies, getting to play with the hoses and switch on the sirens and lights. (yes, that was the best bit) Kids in a candy shop we were.  Hopefully we never have to use it, especially this harvest as there is so much grass around after the wet year we’ve had.

And as for the Perth fella, well i’m yet to meet a country mum who’s not flat out with fifty million things on the go. Never a dull moment in the country.     :)

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21
Oct 2011

Seasons

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I love my lilac trees. (Not as much in autum when they drop their leaves everywhere and the gutters get blocked) But right now they are full of tiny flowers that sprinkle down in the breeze like snow. (actually I wouldn’t know, I’m guessing here as i’ve never seen snow!)

Their leaves provide us with awesome shade during the stinking heat of summer. One of my favourite spots to be, if only the flies and mozzies would leave me alone.

I have another one out the front but it fends for itself without water and it does it’s best to grow in our horrible clay ground. Nasty stuff that clay, you should see the cracks in our house!!

My mum has a massive lilac tree, which my brother and I always climbed.  I had this spot where I could lay back against a curved branch and enjoy the peace and quiet.  That poor tree endured our climbling endeavours as we used it like a playground. Every kid should climb a tree! 

It’s funny how certain things stick with you, and it’s the love (and sometimes hate relationship) I have for these tree’s that has carried over into my fourth book. It just magically appeared into my main street and planted itself next to one of the main buildings in this town. Oh well, at least it’s providing shade for my characters, can’t have them roasting in the summer sun. 

I’m only up to chapter 6 so I best be off to do some more.  The wonderful Jo, who’s doing the edits on The Road Home, is off on her honeymoon so I have some time before I get them back.  So I’m back off to the small town of Bundara to see where my characters are going next. 

Oh and don’t forget, in this chaotic world, to stop and smell the roses. Even if its for five minutes, just let yourself take in the beauty that surrounds us. Sometimes we forget that it’s there. :)

Also don’t forget to check out my facebook page for the link to Blog Bites where the wonderful Kez gave me a list of questions. I am giving away a couple of books to those who comment.

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Category: Everyday Life, Only in the country  2 Comments
30
Sep 2011

Wildflowers

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On the weekend we played our wind-up day of golf.  There was only six of us (huge club, I know) but we had a gorgeous day, the sun was warm and all the flowers were out. My golf was so wonderful that I spent most of my time in the bush taking photo’s of the wildflowers and orchids.

The daisy’s were everywhere and so bright. They looked great around this tee base. The photo dosn’t do it justice.

Of course I was lucky to find a donkey orchid. Most of them were already gone. I didn’t find a spider orchid either :(

And a few others that I stumbled across. (better than looking for a white ball that didn’t want to co-operate!!)

I didn’t have time to focus this picture…I was lagging behind the others! (I was supposed to be playing flog) And lucky I wasn’t fined!

Now the the school holidays are here, hopefully I can take the kids for a walk through the bush and up to the rock for a picnic.  See if we can find some ant eaters, lizards and tadpoles. :)

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12
Sep 2011

Writing spaces – part 1

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I don’t know about you guys, but I love getting glimpses into writers lives. It’s one of the reasons I love reading the acknowledgements in the books I love.  So this is what inspired the next few blogs on ‘writing spaces’.  I have asked a few of my writing friends for a snap shot into their lives and of the special place where our characters are born and our stories are made.

My first author is Nicole Alexander, writer of The Bark Cutters and A Changing Land. She is not just a writer but a fourth generation grazier working on her family property which is located 110 km north west of Moree and 100 km west of Goondiwindi near the NSW QLD border.

 

Nicole: “As I’m easily distracted I make sure I can’t look directly out a window, hence my corner position. Having said that when the floods were on in January I did keep my eyes glued to the Boomi River which is just through the window over my right shoulder. About seven years ago I was looking for a new  desk, eventually  I purchased this one, an actual door and then screwed in legs care of Ikea! Presto the perfect length and width.  I have to admit that I tidied my desk for the shot as I’m a great hoarder of resource material.”

***

Next I have the lovely Karly Lane author of North Star.  We both have a similar ‘glitch’ in our writing…a small thing called children. We love them lots but kids don’t understand it when you’re in the ‘zone’ and need to just finish this chapter. Their bellies are more imporant and as mine always say ‘they are going to die if they don’t get something to eat now’.

Karly: “This is ‘control central’! It’s in the corner of my lounge room where I can see what the kids are up too and if I’m writing at night, I can still be  part of the family…I’ve just had to learn to block out noise and write in short snatches of time, but a set of headphones can solve the noise problem when it gets too bad!

I love my cork boards and if you look closely you might see my little bits of inspiration- scrap cotton picked up from the side of the road out around the Namoi area where I got the inspiration for Morgan’s Law, which you might also see, sitting on my desk going through edits!”

***

Now I bet you’re eager to see more, I know I am.

This next author has a rather different ‘spot’ where she writes.  Helene Young, author of Wings of Fear and Shattered Sky, is a busy pilot. And winner of the Romantic book of the Year award!! (I really like the pilot cap in the picture, Helene. It’s always great that an author knows what she’s writing about.)

Helene: ‘Being in a day job that involves travel has some advantages – someone else vacuums the floor and the towels are always dry – but it’s fortunate that I’m not fussy about where I write. Provided I have power for my laptop, internet connection (for research purposes only, honestly!!) and a comfy seat, I sink into my story and my surroundings disappear.’

***

A huge thank you to these lovely ladies for sharing their writing spaces with us, also the other authors which are yet to come.  (Fleur Mcdonald, Rachael Treasure, Margareta Osborn Kerby and Cathryn Hein.)

Keep an eye out…I have more coming soon.  :)

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Category: Everyday Life, Guest Blogs, The Writer's Life  Tags: , , ,  6 Comments
08
Sep 2011

Mail run

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My mum is away for the next month so I am doing the mail run again, twice a week. I must say I didn’t realise how much I missed going for a drive around the district and seeing how good all the crops look. Even the dandelions growing in this paddock look gorgeous.

 

I thought i’d take a few photo’s of some of the stops I make as I head off in our trusy wagon called “Monty”.  I deliver milk, hence the blue esky in the back, bread, sometimes orders from the shop and, of course, the mail.

Another stop, this time milk gets dropped off also. Sometimes people forget to pick it up or the wilk animals get to it first.

If we time it right I’ll meet the person and we catch up for a chat.

The mail boxes are usually drums except for a few like the lovely horse and little shed.

Of course these are just a few of my stops.  Hope you enjoyed the little tour. I have someone else filling in for tomorrow so I can go watch my kids at their sports carnival. But come Tuesday, i’ll be back out on the road.

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22
Jun 2011

Horses

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This is my best mate Jacinta with her two horses Bluey and Tiger.  She was travelling the 30-40km to meet the farrier at another farm and as it was nearby, I met her and went along.

It takes me over twenty minutes to get to Jacinta’s farm so I don’t get to catch up with her as often as I would like, and our kids keep us busy, so I was glad we could catch up today.  I packed up a some tea and biscuits to have on the way, such a nice day for it too. It also gave me a chance to give her youngest child lots of cuddles. :) I miss my kids at that age, before the answering back and the ’you’re the meanest mum’ began.

Now i’m not at home on a horse, I prefere the four wheeled variety of transport. But I still find them amazing and Bluey was the last horse i’ve been on. (who was more interested in going back to find his little mate Tiger then taking me for a ride)  Both my kids have been on Tiger, althought not in a while.  School holidays are coming up so we might have to plan something…

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02
Jun 2011

Rain

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Okay so us country folk get a bit excited about rain. (Okay, maybe a lot!!)  And if you ever hear us chatting for example Fleur and myself on Twitter, we often ask about the rainfall.  Why, because its a huge part of our lives.  I guess in much the same as city folk may talk about traffic and which roads are better to take.

You might think we are all rather obsessed but it’s our livelyhood. The rain fall dosn’t just affect farmers, it can have a huge impact on communities and other business.  If the farmers suffer, then they stop shopping in town and workers can be put off. Contractors lose business and they also stop shopping and then everyone is in the same boat and because everyone is counting penny’s then sports and other activities can suffer. Then people leave the district.  Our little town is shrinking each year, and our clubs are struggling when they once strived. So it’s sad to experience, watching schools and businesses close.

Yes, we could all stop complaining and move and not have to worry about these things, but i’m passionate about where I live. (And just plain stubborn) Sometimes its the struggle that makes a place/person who/what they are.  :)   And i’m a bit sentimental.

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Category: Everyday Life  One Comment
29
May 2011

Lucky chooks

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Here is whats left of my hen’s feathers. The rest have blown away in the wind.  My poor chooks are the delight for my neighbours dog. When my son went in to collect the eggs the dog pushed past and went after the chooks.  I heard my son screaming from the house and thought he’d cut off an arm! Turns out he was just horrified at watching the dog get the hen’s and he couldn’t stop him, he was so upset.

So I went running up the back yard, bare feet hurting on rocks, as the dog ran back out the pen with a chook hanging out his mouth. Luckily I could catch him and let the chook go and told him off. But I accidently/stupidly let go of him and he went after her again. Feathers from ear hole to a** hole!! But I did rescue the chook, and returned her to the safety of her pen, bare bum and all. (I couldn’t see any blood and guts…but I wasn’t game to look too close either, icky)  By then my feet were sore and tender. (Don’t worry I’ll take a tablespoon of cement and harden up!!)

The ol’ rooster got defeathered last time the dog got in and he’s hard to spot now without his big tail feathers. (Lucky for him he’ll be harder to find when he needs to go to chooky heaven!)

It’s Sunday today, and i’ve spent most of the day finishing a book so now i’m stuck in ‘can’t be bothered’ mode. But on a good note i’ve finally done the deed and booked our tickets for our trip east to visit family and for me to attend the RWA Conference. (I can’t wait. It’s like being a bloke in Bunnings, so many wonderful authors to meet you don’t know where to start!)

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Category: Everyday Life, Family, Only in the country  Leave a Comment
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