Hobart

Today we travelled into Hobart to have Geoff's final monthly hospital check up. Which he passed with flying colours. He now only has to go in once every two months. It was a beautiful morning and as the hospital appointment was at 8am we spent a half hour or so walking around the City BEFORE the shops opened! Very nice!

We then had to go to the Crown Lands Department to pay for the Grazing Licence for the strip of Crown Land that passes through our property. All done with minimal fuss and collected Sushi on the way home for lunch! Yum!! Checked out some televisions on the way back as we thought we might get one for the long winter nights and headed home early afternoon.Didn't achieve a lot once we were back as the electrician came at 4pm. We fixed the hinges on the goat shed shutters so they swing up and down beautifully and can be lifted up during the day and closed down on the coldest nights!

Just had time for a quick wander around before it got too dark. Hey , you've heard of one man and his dog? How about one man and his goat!!!

Just checking out the car.haven't been in there for a while!!

Finished off our day with a delicious meal of home made potato and bacon soup, red wine roast pork and hot buttered bread! Hmmm not good for the waistline but excellent for the soul!!

Goat Palace Part Two!

Up early this morning to finish off the goat shed. Out came the Ute still loaded up with gear and back round the shed we went! l don't think we would have been very popular neighbours today with angle grinders cutting tin, hammers, drills and nails going all day! l went to the barn at one stage to get something and the noise echoing off the hills sounded like guns ricocheting! Oops!

Lilli unimpressed yet again and this time spent the day (on the pink blanket) snuggled up in the Ute

Roof on and now the sides to stop the wind

The tin was given to us by some friends of ours who have just re roofed their old place. Its a gorgeous very old green colour which looked rather lovely with the rust coming though

Voila! One sheltered Goat Shed! They can now go outside and not get wet, the rain will no longer blow into their beds and the wind shouldn't either! Happy cosy goats! The two panels to the left of the shed l made with hinges so in summer or at any time we want we can lift them up to let the breeze in but on a cold wintry night they are closed up to keep it really snug..(Spoilt... spoilt... spoilt!!!!!)

From the back........... looks as old as the shed its attached to... perfect!!!

Hard to get reaction from the girls!! They were very very interested though.

And checked out every nook and cranny...

The door here closes shut too. This is just for us big people to access the yard.

They all even went outside to check it out from the other way!

Mr Super Talented then grouted up the joints in the fire hearth. It goes in now on Wednesday not Thursday! Rush to get the electrician in tomorrow so he can disconnect the power point behind the fire! Its all systems go! A big day but we achieved heaps!



The Goat Palace!

Began our Sunday with the most delicious scrambled eggs. You really can't beat home grown eggs!

Today was put aside as the day we revamped the goats shed! As you probably gather by now our goats are very spoilt and very loved! One thing goats HATE is the rain! Their shed at the moment is not very wind and rain proof so today was the day the extension went on. Veranda and all!

The Ute got loaded up and off we went!

Lilli is more suited to inside life so sitting outside all day wasn't really her thing! We finally compromised by getting her blanket so she quite happily curled up on that for the afternoon! Half an eye kept on the sky as  several big Wedge Tails were circling above!!

Due to a very lovely but unexpected visit from some friends of ours, we didn't get quite as far as we hoped on the work but finished the timber frame and the tin goes on tomorrow! The goats will be very snug and cosy in readiness for the Winter ahead!

And today is one year on exactly that Geoff finished his Radiation Therapy. When he had the chemo he lost a small tuft of hair at the back of his head right down at the base of the neck.When it grew back it grew back virtually black! He never cut it and it grew and grew! It became sort of a Talisman and one year on today we thought it was fitting to chop it off!   It was still very black (compared to the rest!) A year gone by and he is hale and hearty again. Still skinnier but all good and a very different person to this time last year!!!

Hearths and The Light Horse!

Next Thursday our wood heater goes in! We can't wait!!! First things first though..... we had to put in the hearth. Actually the very first thing was to decide WHERE to put it!!! We brought it in and plonked it in the corner (it was very heavy!)

We then got a box about the same size as the heater and a piece of cardboard the same size as the hearth and moved the whole room around till we found the best place for it. It was in fact in the original spot we had decided for it but we just had to be sure! It would be an expensive mistake to have got it wrong!

 

Treeka wasn't impressed as it took up a fair bit of her bed!

 

Then of course the hearth making began in earnest. Quite simple really, a piece of cement sheet straight onto the carpet. A bed of mortar and pavers on the top. All to the regulation length and width.

Armed with all the right tools it didn't take long for Geoff to cut everything to shape (with fancy appropriate mask .......which made him look like a terrorist..........)

One hearth. All looks bland and boring there at the moment but the pavers have to be sealed and the wooden surround to go on the edges. The pavers are terracotta but are a bit browner then we thought...but we still like them!

Then we scooted down very briefly to the Focus on Franklin on the Village Oval.It's a wonderful local event held once a year and organised by a very dedicated and devoted bunch of people.(Dad included...... well l think Dad did most of it...............well done Pa!)

The oval was alive with activity, stalls, music, Punch and Judy shows. Zumba dancing, wood chopping, a quilt exhibition, an apple cake competition, an art exhibition, water events, dragon boats and the Tasmanian Light Horse who were just fantastic. We didn't stay long but long enough to appreciate the amount of work it takes to organise something like that...l wouldn't know where to begin!!! In between rain showers l think it was a very successful day........lets wait and see if Dad raises his hand to do it again NEXT year!!!

Geoff had a couple of pictures in the Art Exhibition this one being our favourite of the two..

All in all a lovely day...................

Rain and a Fabulous night!

Goodness me has it rained!! Snowed too! Hello Winter. No idea HOW much rain we have had last night but l am guessing over 25ml. Today was the first day of a week holiday! Wonderful! l steeled myself and went in and finished the second coat in the spare bedroom. It came up very well. We just need pictures to go up now and it should be just about finished. Better then the deep purple anyway! l just can't quite decide on the colour of the bedspread (oh lucky me if THAT'S all l have to worry about!!!!)Either my lovely hot pink Indian embroidered one.......................................

Or the way more subtle muted brown minke one..............................Brown one has won for now..........................but subtle is not really me......................!

Friday evening we braved the freezing cold and headed down to the Palais in Franklin to see the Tasmanian Heritage Fiddle Ensemble. A very brilliant dedicated group of musicians (all ages , some being very young!) They were just great and had the full house tapping their toes.

They were accompanied by an incredible group called the Blue Mosquitoes. These kids were aged between 15 and 19 years old.. The girl sang and played the fiddle. She was just mesmerising to watch and quite breathtaking to listen to. They have toured England and are heading back there this next year. Definitely recommend if anyone sees that name to go and watch them.

Got home quite late and had a mellow red wine in front of the fire then off to bed. A lovely lovely day to start my holidays!

Quinces Anyone?

A bucket full of Quinces. What on earth do you do with quinces? Quince paste and jelly seem so tasteless and dull! The quince itself though is actually quite interesting!

The seeds contain nitriles and when eaten, our stomach acid causes some of the nitriles to be hydrolyzed which in turn produce hydrogen cyanide which is a volatile gas! Toxic if eaten in large quantities!! Luckily the chances on overeating in the Quince department is probably pretty minimal!!

In places like Malta, Afghanistan and various parts of the Middle East it is used for medicinal purposes for ailments like pneumonia,intestinal discomfort and to treat sore throats and to relieve coughs.

In the Canary Islands and some places in South America, a quince is used to play an informal beach toss-and-swim game, usually among young teens. When mixed with salt water, a mature quince will turn its sour taste to sweet. The game is played by throwing a quince into the sea. All players race to catch the quince and whoever catches it, takes one bite and tosses the quince again, then the whole process gets repeated until the quince is fully eaten!!!!!!! How bizarre!

Among the ancient Greeks, the quince was a ritual offering at weddings, for it had come from Aphrodite and remained sacred to her. Plutarch reported that a Greek bride would nibble a quince to perfume her kiss before entering the bridal chamber, "in order that the first greeting may not be disagreeable nor unpleasant"

Interesting really! Not that it makes me any more excited about it though!

Aside from that as a full on Wintry day is about to hit us, the garden has survived Summer quite well. Apart from dry patches on the lawns where obviously the huge slabs of rock are close to the surface, the place has remained reasonably green.

The Walnut Tree is now dropping Walnuts and soon doubt will be shedding its leaves. l think we might need a Blower Vac machine for that!!! There's going to be a lot of leaves!!

 

And little Pushka. without doubt the least demanding member of this menagerie. l think she was intently staring at a mouse or rat amongst the flowers as she didn't look my way or move a muscle as l took her photo!

Moving Day!

Yesterday l moved the sheep,goats and cows back up to the Big Paddock. We will have them in there for a few weeks then put them back in the hay paddock one more time hopefully before it gets too wet! They are so easy to move........we have this wonderful Sheep Dog......he's called Sheep Nut! Put him in a  tin and rattle him and the sheep follow him anywhere!!!

Little Tinks wasn't too happy about leaving the security of the shed and her home paddock and bleated and looked a bit sad there for a while but l determinedly walked away and she soon ran off after the other two. Thank goodness (so far, touch wood etc etc) our goats have no desire to climb over fences at all!

After Sheep Nut and l moved the sheep l then had to go look for the cows. Its hard when you have little cattle in long grass! l actually walked the entire perimeter of the paddock before l found them right back near the house!l had no idea they were so close and was beginning to think they had been rustled out of the place!Three little dots of black!

Sheep Nut did his work and they easily followed me into the Raceway . Note the REAL Sheepdog watching from afar!!!!!!Well done Treek! Good Girl!!!!!!!!

They all seem very happy up there and wasn't too long before they were little distant blobs on the horizon! Of course FINDING them every morning before l go to work will be fun!!!

By the way..check out this cucumber!!! l am sure that tripled in size overnight!!!

The beans are pretty long too though! l think side by side they have some sort of competition going on!!