Our temp was 23 yesterday and being cooler was much appreciated here in Canberra. I'm quite hot at present as have just swept up near stormwater drain in anticipation of rain and potential storms coming this afternoon. Husband has insisted on riding motor scooter to work in order to get free and close parking to workplace. I suspect he might be a bit wet and bedraggled when he gets home this arvo. I am very grateful for the soft ground after the rain and have a green bin full of weeds waiting for collection.
I wish we could get enough rain to soften the ground. At present I have a raised garden that looks like a raised lawn. I was hoping to weed it rather than use weed killer as Spooky the black cat from up the road sleeps there and I don't want to poison her. She does steal Aroha's food, but she's someone's beloved pet and doubtless Aroha steals food as well.
Having to work on hard ground is awful Huia, so I do sympathise. Like you, I don't like using sprays as our area is one popular with dog walkers. Sometimes when I'm weeding I take out with me a rinsed milk bottle of water just to pour on the area I'm going to work on. I'm a bit fixated on not wasting water, so every time I run the hot tap a milk bottle is under the tap while I wait for it to run hot. This I then use on pot plants outside., or to help with the weeding. I've just come back into the house as I still had room in the green bin, so managed to get a few more weeds in there before pickup. It's going to be hot at the weekend (roughly 30), and I know I'm not good in the heat, so today was it for quite a few days, I think! We've not had too much water, but I'm really thinking of those who have had too much in Qld and Vic and wonder what this will mean long term, if it's the new normal.
About 30C tomorrow and 32C on Saturday here according to MetService. My work around for water is putting a plastic barrel under the broken down pipe of the garage, and a plastic rubbish bin under another part of the garage roof. My shower takes a while to heat up as it was plumbed in last, so a large plastic tub goes under that.
Having said that much of Christchurch's water comes from aquifers under the Canterbury Plains, but we still have restrictions during the summer months.
When I moved here I was surprised at the lack of rainfall (618mm on average) whereas the valley where I grew up averages 1938.5mm and water is pumped from there to Wellington - where they currently have many old, leaky pipes so a lot is wasted.
I had a lovely Christmas in late 2023. WE stayed in QLD at the house of my son with his new wife and new baby, and our daughter and her family were also there. Went to the beach, and all good.
Unfortunately it only now in mid-Jan that I can return to post here. We flew back to Canberra after Christmas, then on New Year's Eve I went on a routine cycle ride to empty our post office box. However I collapsed on route; fortunately I was found by a passer by who called an ambulance, did CPR and saved my life. I was in hospital for the next 10 days, and have had a defibrillator inserted - and am now back home. .
I had a lovely Christmas in late 2023. WE stayed in QLD at the house of my son with his new wife and new baby, and our daughter and her family were also there. Went to the beach, and all good.
Unfortunately it only now in mid-Jan that I can return to post here. We flew back to Canberra after Christmas, then on New Year's Eve I went on a routine cycle ride to empty our post office box. However I collapsed on route; fortunately I was found by a passer by who called an ambulance, did CPR and saved my life. I was in hospital for the next 10 days, and have had a defibrillator inserted - and am now back home. .
It is four and a half years since I had a similar event at the gate to the polling booth for the 2019 Federal election. Our State MP [a personal friend] caught me as I dropped and commenced CPR and with the assistance of an off-duty police officer kept me alive until paramedics arrived. A stent to the 'widowmaker' artery by lunchtime, and I give thanks every day for those men and the medical professionals who have granted me these extra years. Glad to hear of your good result.
I had a lovely Christmas in late 2023. WE stayed in QLD at the house of my son with his new wife and new baby, and our daughter and her family were also there. Went to the beach, and all good.
Unfortunately it only now in mid-Jan that I can return to post here. We flew back to Canberra after Christmas, then on New Year's Eve I went on a routine cycle ride to empty our post office box. However I collapsed on route; fortunately I was found by a passer by who called an ambulance, did CPR and saved my life. I was in hospital for the next 10 days, and have had a defibrillator inserted - and am now back home. .
Shocked to read this @Tukai, I was thinking the other day that you hadn't posted on the book discussion thread in a while. As @Barnabas_Aus says, good to hear you're doing well.
Firenze, thanks for that - I know what you mean about memories suddenly surfacing, seemingly out of nowhere. Brains are weird and they get weirder as we get older.
Meanwhile it's a clear, sunny day and I'm doing some gardening before it gets too hot.
Are you able to raise concerns about dementia with the nursing staff discretely - as in "don't tell him I said this, but..."
Sometimes people who see an elderly person every day are less able to notice the decline in the early stages. And really earlier the better to pick it up.
What Nenya said ... @Tukai and yes, @Barnabas_Aus (cos I was out of the loop then) ... hang round a bit longer, huh?
All quite in my two worlds. Well .. frenetic on the Side of the Zed but cruisy here at Real Hsome (except brutally cold yesterday and this morning .... too soon. I'm only just beginning to thaw out. Wonder if there's a job going in Marble Bar.
Zappa has an Australian attitude to temperature, and while the area he frequents is stunning, I don't think it has never been listed on the MetService's "hottest place in NZ today" statistics.
Today it's 18C in Christchurch and tomorrow is forecast as being 20C, which I am finding very pleasant. Saturday is forecast to be 29C here and I wish is could bundle up 9 of those degrees and send them south.
Sympathy on the humidity. We hit 40°C here in the Overberg an hour ago and nothing is moving in the street or the farmlands. At about 8pm this evening everyone will stream out into gardens to sit outside and get eaten alive by mosquitos. Nothing beats full moon on Cape summer evenings.
In honour of global warming I bought a new sunhat. As various parts of Christchurch have featured as the windiest place in NZ at different parts of the day I may have to sew on elastic to keep it secure.
Yesterday my neighbour across the road and her children hosted a chicken cafe (like a cat cafe only with chickens) to raise money for World Vision. I'm not sure how much they raised, but net time I'm sitting with the kids who don't air obnoxious political views ( another guest, not the hosting family).
We're not going for our normal walk to afternoon coffee - far too humid, really heavily humid, to walk.
I didn't go for my usual morning walk before breakfast as it was 27 deg at 7.30am, watered all the pot plants instead
Set them up well for the day as it turned out. It's still heavily humid here, and 27 degrees as well, so rather than put the oven on, I'm cooking a couple of pieces of fish on the gas bbq.
That sounds like a very good idea Gee D. We have had a few quick n easy meals this week using airfryer and sandwich press rather than put the griller on. I baked a cake this morning as it's supposed to warm up over the next few days and I thought it would be the best chance to use up the ageing bananas!
Salade nicoise ("salade niçoise," Dr Google tells me) is clearly a little fancier than the salads I purchase* or knock up , which consist of a helluva a lot of greens stuff, and or bucket loads of oil and vinegar and or may. aioli, anything to give the rabbit food flavour
*sadly though involving bucketloads of plastic wrapping
That will now be my new definition of Gazpacho and I mean that in a good way, it made me smile! I think the fancy salad sounds very good. I remember a friend buying it at a cafe one day and was very pleased to hear her order it, as I'd seen it on the menu but no idea how to pronounce it! My school taught Asian languages, not French.
Enjoying a cooler day today with a bit of light cloud cover. Am feeling relieved to have this week's two medical appointments for Cheery Son out of the way and looking forward to watching a spot of BBC's Return of the Psammead, which I found on DVD a week or so ago. Even though aimed at primary aged kids son and I both love the puppetry of the Psammead, so that will kill an hour or so this afternoon.
I had hoped to catch up with friends this week, but one has cancelled as they were a close covid contact at the weekend, and the other has had to travel for a family emergency. So neither of those are goers. I'm hoping my covid friend won't become ill as she has medical issues and am hoping her very recent vaccination will kick in PDQ.
Salade nicoise ("salade niçoise," Dr Google tells me) is clearly a little fancier than the salads I purchase* or knock up , which consist of a helluva a lot of greens stuff, and or bucket loads of oil and vinegar and or may. aioli, anything to give the rabbit food flavour
*sadly though involving bucketloads of plastic wrapping
Not mine, Zappa.
It includes diced seared tuna, hard boiled eggs, beans, anchovies, boiled baby potatoes and tomatoes. No aioli , just a classy vinaigrette.
I am trying to reintroduce salad to the otherwise green-free winter diet. I find walnuts help, and crumbled blue cheese, with a dressing of walnut oil, lemon juice and Dijon mustard.
Have you encountered Gazpacho - the liquid salad ?
I tried that once. It tasted exactly how I expected - cold tomato soup. Seeing as I don't even like hot tomato soup, it's not an experience I intend to repeat.
I'm with you KarlLB, I don't know about you but my Mum was not a soup maker, so my memories of tomato soup are of tinned ones! I'm loving the salad suggestions above they sound delicious.
I'm enjoying a quick sit down in the cool as I race around to finish morning jobs before it gets too hot! Supposed to be 33 today and 36 on Sunday!! I am feeling for those in WA as it's extremely hot at present.
Cheery son wants to watch a movie this afternoon and am thinking if it's going to be hot, I won't have to feel guilty about it, too hot for much else. My thermostat is more aligned with Piglet's!!
I'm glad I went out for shopping and had a couple of deliveries earlier in the week. I certainly won't be venturing out at the weekend! Having said that, the Swedish shop might tempt me if I can get up early enough!!
I'm a soup maker, but tomato would be too acidic for me, and cold soup feels like a contradiction in terms. I know it exists, but have so far managed to avoid it.
I really don't know how people cope with temperatures over 30c (about 25c is my limit). We have been fortunate that cold easterly and south westerly winds have intervened to keep temperatures lower here. I hope that continues next week when high temperatures are forecast.
I got mildly addicted to gazpacho one time we were staying in Barcelona.
Weekends I blitz fresh fruit through the juicer - you can feel the vitamins coursing through the system. And in hot weather I occasionally do the same to salad veg - there is the same shot of freshness.
Btw, the way to de-acidify tomatoes is a pinch of sugar - I add it tomatoey sauces, and sprinkle it lightly over fresh ones.
This is probably too far out on a limb for some but in very hot weather, iced soups are my go-to, especially iced cucumber soup with a little fresh dill. For weekend brunches, I like yoghurt and ice blitzed with fresh peaches, passion fruit and banana -- very chilled smoothies.
Hobbling today, as I measured my length last night as I got up from my chair to go to bed. Caught my leg on the edge of the recycled paper bin beside the chair, overbalanced, bashed my right knee on the carpet edging strip and clouted my head against the china cabinet in the hall hard enough to disarrange some of the shelves. Mrs BA was reading in bed, heard the crash of my 124kg frame, but did she come to see what happened? As they say in Yorkshire, did she hell as like! So much for spousal sympathy.
There must be something in the air - I did the same last night on the way home from the chippy (see the Brit thread) and I now have aches in places I didn't know I had places.
Hobbling today, as I measured my length last night as I got up from my chair to go to bed. Caught my leg on the edge of the recycled paper bin beside the chair, overbalanced, bashed my right knee on the carpet edging strip and clouted my head against the china cabinet in the hall hard enough to disarrange some of the shelves. Mrs BA was reading in bed, heard the crash of my 124kg frame, but did she come to see what happened? As they say in Yorkshire, did she hell as like! So much for spousal sympathy.
Knee and upper shin are turning interesting shades of purple, heat rub and paracetamol are doing their job.
Last Sunday we farewelled Madam Rector into retirement. This morning we welcomed Madam Locum who will be with us for the next few months. Afterwards our retired master mariner commented that he would no longer need to sit in the front pew below the lectern to hear the sermon. Madam Locum can project!
Hobbling today, as I measured my length last night as I got up from my chair to go to bed. Caught my leg on the edge of the recycled paper bin beside the chair, overbalanced, bashed my right knee on the carpet edging strip and clouted my head against the china cabinet in the hall hard enough to disarrange some of the shelves. Mrs BA was reading in bed, heard the crash of my 124kg frame, but did she come to see what happened? As they say in Yorkshire, did she hell as like! So much for spousal sympathy.
Did the audience applaud the performance? Prayers that you recover thoroughly and speedily.
Comments
Having said that much of Christchurch's water comes from aquifers under the Canterbury Plains, but we still have restrictions during the summer months.
When I moved here I was surprised at the lack of rainfall (618mm on average) whereas the valley where I grew up averages 1938.5mm and water is pumped from there to Wellington - where they currently have many old, leaky pipes so a lot is wasted.
Unfortunately it only now in mid-Jan that I can return to post here. We flew back to Canberra after Christmas, then on New Year's Eve I went on a routine cycle ride to empty our post office box. However I collapsed on route; fortunately I was found by a passer by who called an ambulance, did CPR and saved my life. I was in hospital for the next 10 days, and have had a defibrillator inserted - and am now back home. .
It is four and a half years since I had a similar event at the gate to the polling booth for the 2019 Federal election. Our State MP [a personal friend] caught me as I dropped and commenced CPR and with the assistance of an off-duty police officer kept me alive until paramedics arrived. A stent to the 'widowmaker' artery by lunchtime, and I give thanks every day for those men and the medical professionals who have granted me these extra years. Glad to hear of your good result.
Shocked to read this @Tukai, I was thinking the other day that you hadn't posted on the book discussion thread in a while. As @Barnabas_Aus says, good to hear you're doing well.
Are you able to raise concerns about dementia with the nursing staff discretely - as in "don't tell him I said this, but..."
Sometimes people who see an elderly person every day are less able to notice the decline in the early stages. And really earlier the better to pick it up.
All quite in my two worlds. Well .. frenetic on the Side of the Zed but cruisy here at Real Hsome (except brutally cold yesterday and this morning .... too soon. I'm only just beginning to thaw out. Wonder if there's a job going in Marble Bar.
Today it's 18C in Christchurch and tomorrow is forecast as being 20C, which I am finding very pleasant. Saturday is forecast to be 29C here and I wish is could bundle up 9 of those degrees and send them south.
I didn't go for my usual morning walk before breakfast as it was 27 deg at 7.30am, watered all the pot plants instead
🕯🕯🕯
Yesterday my neighbour across the road and her children hosted a chicken cafe (like a cat cafe only with chickens) to raise money for World Vision. I'm not sure how much they raised, but net time I'm sitting with the kids who don't air obnoxious political views ( another guest, not the hosting family).
Set them up well for the day as it turned out. It's still heavily humid here, and 27 degrees as well, so rather than put the oven on, I'm cooking a couple of pieces of fish on the gas bbq.
*sadly though involving bucketloads of plastic wrapping
Enjoying a cooler day today with a bit of light cloud cover. Am feeling relieved to have this week's two medical appointments for Cheery Son out of the way and looking forward to watching a spot of BBC's Return of the Psammead, which I found on DVD a week or so ago. Even though aimed at primary aged kids son and I both love the puppetry of the Psammead, so that will kill an hour or so this afternoon.
I had hoped to catch up with friends this week, but one has cancelled as they were a close covid contact at the weekend, and the other has had to travel for a family emergency. So neither of those are goers. I'm hoping my covid friend won't become ill as she has medical issues and am hoping her very recent vaccination will kick in PDQ.
Hope you are all having a good week
Not mine, Zappa.
It includes diced seared tuna, hard boiled eggs, beans, anchovies, boiled baby potatoes and tomatoes. No aioli , just a classy vinaigrette.
And a bit of “ rabbit food”😛
I tried that once. It tasted exactly how I expected - cold tomato soup. Seeing as I don't even like hot tomato soup, it's not an experience I intend to repeat.
I'm enjoying a quick sit down in the cool as I race around to finish morning jobs before it gets too hot! Supposed to be 33 today and 36 on Sunday!! I am feeling for those in WA as it's extremely hot at present.
Cheery son wants to watch a movie this afternoon and am thinking if it's going to be hot, I won't have to feel guilty about it, too hot for much else. My thermostat is more aligned with Piglet's!!
I'm glad I went out for shopping and had a couple of deliveries earlier in the week. I certainly won't be venturing out at the weekend! Having said that, the Swedish shop might tempt me if I can get up early enough!!
I really don't know how people cope with temperatures over 30c (about 25c is my limit). We have been fortunate that cold easterly and south westerly winds have intervened to keep temperatures lower here. I hope that continues next week when high temperatures are forecast.
Weekends I blitz fresh fruit through the juicer - you can feel the vitamins coursing through the system. And in hot weather I occasionally do the same to salad veg - there is the same shot of freshness.
Btw, the way to de-acidify tomatoes is a pinch of sugar - I add it tomatoey sauces, and sprinkle it lightly over fresh ones.
There must be something in the air - I did the same last night on the way home from the chippy (see the Brit thread) and I now have aches in places I didn't know I had places.
Hope you're mended very soon!
Poor you! Speedy recovery to you
Last Sunday we farewelled Madam Rector into retirement. This morning we welcomed Madam Locum who will be with us for the next few months. Afterwards our retired master mariner commented that he would no longer need to sit in the front pew below the lectern to hear the sermon. Madam Locum can project!
Did the audience applaud the performance? Prayers that you recover thoroughly and speedily.