Tag: mountain hidden

Australia · clouds · garden flowers · in my garden · Mount Warning · rain · summer · Tweed Valley

Colour on a Rainy Day

Joanne4 Comments
Lavender Lights

There was nothing to see in the valley today other than mist and rain, so luckily I have a few photos taken around my garden when the sun shone brightly in the blue sky. With the amount of rain we have had lately, fine days are fast becoming a distant memory.

White Buddleia

On the plus side, the rain is chasing away the heat, so it isn’t all bad news. I can’t remember a February – ever – filled with day after day of cooler temperatures.

Duranta

With our kitchen renovation in full swing, husband and I have been surviving on pre-prepared freezer meals or take-away meals. Another day of cooler temperatures today inspired me to try something unseasonal – I cooked a meal in the slow cooker. It must be the first time I have served a casserole-style meal in summer, but it was soooooo good!

Type of hydrangea. I’m not sure of the name.

We both went back for second helpings, and there’s leftovers for tomorrow too. 🙂

Rain, rain, rain …

The last photo is to document today’s weather. Nothing to see here! Rain persisted all day, with the temperature reaching around twenty-five degrees Celsius. I can imagine how happy the weeds are, but when we have a break in the rain I will have a quick whip around the garden to remove any wayward weeds. Thankfully, the plants are all getting a good soaking too. 🙂

Australia · Australiana · Mount Warning · native Australian birds · summer · Tweed Valley

Mist, rain, and no view of the mountain

Joanne25 Comments

We were spoilt over the weekend – yesterday at least – with a lovely, sunny, not-too-hot summer’s day.

Today we have rain.

All that is visible where Mount Warning should be is next door’s bamboo (who plants bamboo these days … ??) which grows at a rate of about one metre per week, (!!**!!) and I have been assured will be trimmed  – “soon”.


I found a wet little Hoppy (of gammy foot fame) huddled on the veranda late this afternoon, along with a friend.

They seem to like sheltering on my veranda. I’ve also noticed they spend time on rainy days sheltering in our bar-be-que area. Yesterday, I had to give the area a good hosing, as they had left some “evidence” of their visits!

Next week – on the 26th – it’s Australia Day, and the Australian flavoured posts are beginning to do the rounds of the internet. I thought I’d add one today (author unknown) and ask the question –

Without Google searching, how many of these words or phrases have you heard, or now the meaning of? 😉

Australia · garden flowers · gardening · in my garden · Mount Warning · native Australian birds · summer · Tweed Valley

Around the Garden

Joanne8 Comments

Little Hoppy – of one gammy leg fame – stood nice and still on his healthy leg this morning while I took a photo of him. I had run out of fresh meat and had to thaw a batch from the freezer in the microwave, and he was very patient indeed.

Baby Magpie simply looked bewildered. If he could speak, I’m sure he would stamp his claw and demand his breakfast. 😉

The weather appeared to be threatening rain all day, but when no rain had fallen by this afternoon, I ventured outdoors to pull out a few weeds. All the rain we have been having has encouraged a new crop of weeds in several patches through my garden beds, so I’ve made a start on getting rid of a few. I also dead-headed my flowering plants. This rose bush still has several fresh roses on it, so nothing needed to be removed from this plant. 🙂

I had my iPhone in the garden, so took a photo of the valley from the top of the garden with my phone camera. There’s really nothing going on down in the valley today except heat haze or mist, but as always, I can’t complain when it is not an overly hot day.

We are having rather a mild summer this year! 🙂

Australia · Christmas · clouds · family · Mount Warning · summer · sunset · Tweed Valley

A Bit More Mood at Sunset

Joanne14 Comments

If you close one eye and squint, you might just see the outline of Mount Warning. Well, almost. For just a few hours yesterday the mountain was visible. I must be careful not to claim the mountain is back, because clearly it didn’t go anywhere. It just hasn’t been visible much lately, due to the clouds, mist, or heat-haze we have had hovering across the valley. Today, it was hidden again.

Just as the mountain teased us all with a hint of normality, so too did Covid-19. Australia had no new community transmitted cases for a short while, until late last week. Somehow, it has leeched into Sydney, sending the country into a panicked frenzy of border closures again. The Queensland border, which is just up the road from us, had reopened. The community rejoiced. The locals were free to cross between states without being scrutinized as if they were lepers. Families planned on travelling far and wide across Australia to be together again for the first time in months, to celebrate Christmas.

It seems like it was all a cruel joke. In many ways, people are suffering more from the promise of seeing their loved ones only to have that promise ripped away, than they were when they thought they couldn’t be together at all. Tonight on the news, we saw scenes at airports, of people disembarking from ‘planes only to be told they couldn’t stay. Border closures were announced mid-flight. The government would pay for their return flight, or they could go into two weeks quarantine. Theose were the choices – four days before Christmas.

I am one of the lucky people. My children and grandchildren all live nearby, in the same state. We can spend Christmas together. Our friends from Sydney, who were going to join us, have to stay home. Their visit will have to wait. My heart bleeds for those people who are not fortunate in having their family close by, as I do.

Did I just note that it’s just four days to Christmas? I have so much to do in so little time!

In other news, tonight at 9:02pm – just over two hours ago – our summer solstice occurred here on the eastern coast of Australia.