Cambrian Common Forest Blog

Arboreal disaster part 3 [arse-about-face]

2012-01-26T22:53:00.000-08:00

Check out the previous two .

Arboreal disaster ...part 2 ...photos only

2012-01-26T22:31:00.000-08:00

Arboreal disaster

2012-01-26T21:33:00.000-08:00

It never pays to get too smug on this planet of ours ,I have been patting myself on the back for how nicely things have been going ,forest-wise this season ,a nice bit of moisture ,lots of warmth good growth ,what more could I want ?
Who would have thought that SNOW would have been my nemesis in the last week of January ! Yesterday at 2pm I had to knock off work as it was just too hot ,by 10 pm a nice welcome rain was falling ,rain on the old tin roof has to be one of my favourites ,so I was looking forward to bed .As I went to bed ,around mid-night ,I looked out the window and BLOW-ME-DOWN it's snowing ,so I decide to put a photo on facebook before I go to bed ,well BLOW-ME-DOWN the power goes off ,and whose only torch is in the car !Anyway I'm only in bed 10minutes and BLOW-ME-DOWN a huge poplar branch lands on the roof ,so I hide under the blankets ,but it's not long before I hear another crash ,and then another ,the weight of the snow on the fully leafed trees is just too much ! it's a bit like being in Kabul ,but I manage to keep myself in bed and even get a little sleep .About 6 I decide to get up and survey the damage ,unusually the snow has FROZEN ,it is not your lovely chrystaline powder stuff from the winter but hard and course and weighing everything down to the ground ,the place is like a disaster zone ,I would say that 20% of the trees were damaged in some way or other ,the very little ones were OK and the very big ones ,but the middle sized ones were most vulnerable .The evergreens were obviously OK ,but the deciduous just couldn't handle it .My French WWOOFer and I have spent the afternoon cutting the tops out of damaged trees and making bonfires .
Now nobody was killed or injured ,no property was lost ,but I still felt a great sense of loss as I am on first-name terms with most of my trees ,and on those that have a particular owner ,I feel more grief . The good side is ,is that they will grow away again ,with probably MORE vigour than before, and make a more unusual shaped tree ,but it will take that much longer ,and I don't have 'that much longer'.!! I find it most ironical to be punished by SNOW in the middle of SUMMER.All sympathetic words will be greatfully received .Tomorrow the sun will shine and we will picnic in Naseby ,but there will be one less cocky sylvanite in Central Otago .Life is great !!

Continued

2012-01-13T02:28:00.000-08:00

A few more photos .Yasoda in the orange shirt ...Two French children devouring my childrens books ...20 litres of cherries is a helluva lot of cherries ! tomorrows work ...

First for the year

2012-01-13T01:56:00.000-08:00

Happy new year to you all ,half of it's gone already !! sorry that I haven't been on for a while but the days are so long that by the time it is dark and I've fed myself the old brain has given up ,but I will try to be more productive from now .[new years resolution].
Until last night we had had minimum rain in 6 weeks ,the creek was down to a trickle and I was spending lots of time watering the trees ,then last night ,and today, the skies have opened up and drenched the place ,beautiful glorious rain which should get us through the next month .One shower of rain is worth 5 waterings with a hose ,must be different water .I am starting to see a real difference in the growth now ,in fact I am contemplating which trees to cut out !!!! The Merry-go-round of Sequoias is getting quite spectacular . My hari krishna friend Yasoda has given me a sculpture for the forest ,what's a good name for it .My last family of WWOOFers from France sent me a bottle of whiskey with the mail-man ,look what he wrote on the bottom of their note !!
Today a man arrived with a trailer load of cherries and I just filled a 20litre pail !!! how good can it get ,but this IS the fruitful time of year ,yesterday I picked 3 icecream pottles of raspberries for the winter .
OK that's not a bad start ,here's a few random photos .

Photos

2011-12-21T02:30:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the two photos the same ,I'll add a couple more to compensate !! cheers

Christmas greetings

2011-12-21T02:04:00.000-08:00

Seasons greetings to you all ,especially today which is the summer solstice [it was light till 10pm tonight] I feel particularly guilty at this time of year ,I want to make individual contact with you all ,but there are just so many that I get swamped ,and you are ALL at the top of the list !if you have sent me a card then I am very appreciative and humbled .
Tonight is family night on the blog ,last w/e was Cams graduation and after the ceremony we all went for a lovely dinner at an Italian restaraunt ,a great time was had by all .Where Cam goes from her ,Cam only knows [but I don't think that he knows either !! watch this space ] Cass and Manu are having their baby in April ,close to MY birthday on the 10th .Cam and his brother Rupert are coming here for a couple of days over xmas so that I don't get lonely or have to drink on my own !! Cambrian ,the village is looking beautiful at the moment ,all the young trees have got their clothes on again ,having got them burnt off a month ago .
I hope that you ALL have a great season ,I would love to see you all in Cambrian ,but I don't think that it will happen . Love to you all ....Bob ....xxxxx

Working with WWOOFers

2011-11-28T02:00:00.000-08:00

I have a young Englishman from London with me at the moment ,Alex by name ,keen man by nature ,so we have got just an amazing amount of work done ,I have most of my wood in for next winter ,60L of elderflower champagne made ,another batch of beer ,bread baked lawns mown,I'm really quite exhausted ,but he's off next week to run a marathon in Austin Texas ,what's the world coming to ???
What's NZ coming to for that matter !!what's the betting that the rich-poor divide will be a gaping chasm by the NEXT election ,don't say you weren't warned! at least I have my beautiful rhododendron for consolation ...cheers all .

Having fun

2011-11-19T17:31:00.000-08:00

Wow,doesn't time fly when you are having fun ..or mowing lawns in the springtime ...My week in Auckland was just fantastic ,had lots of time with Mum ,enjoyed Margaret and Raenas company once again and caught with lots of old army friends after 40 yrs .
But the payback came when I got home and the lawns had grown with a vengence, I have quite a lot of lawn and I see it as a form of exercise ,but I also do Antons and others ,so by the time I get to the end ,it's time to start again !!! However the place does look good even if I say so myself .I'm very glad that I invested in a good weed-eater .
This is probably the time of year that I like best ,after all the bare months of winter all of a sudden everything is doing something ,be it birds ,buds or flowers but it is really satisfying to see everything come back to life ,then god sends a frost to just to keep you in check ,the young oak trees are particularly succeptable,I feel it like a punch in the kidneys .However they do come back again after a couple of weeks .
Overall life is its normal idylic self and if any of you out there want to come and share some of it you are more than welcome ,Cam came home for a week ,that was especially great .
Now on a more serious note ...Think VERY hard before you re-elect this govt. !!! If you do ,expect to be sold down the river by lunchtime ,everything will be sold of to benefit the top 16%,so if you are not amongst them [not many of my friends are !] then vote for someone else ,the Wall St sit-ins didn't just happen on a whim ,nor did the French revolution .Don't say that you weren't warned . Cheers all ....Bob
The photos are just things that I wait for all winter .

Visit North

2011-11-03T17:25:00.000-07:00

Hi...it's about 2.30 Friday morning and would you believe that it's trying to snow !!!!I hope that it doesn't succeed ! I've just had the most marvelous week in Auckland visiting my mother who is in a "Home" in Ellerslie ,we went for long wheel chair walks around the streets smelling the flowers and chatting to passersby,cities really are just one big botanic gardens ,or hothouses in the case of Auckland .That took up most of my time but I did manage to fit in a dinner with my old TF pals that I hadn't seen in 40 yrs !!!! it was exciting and frightening at the same time ,from 26 to 66,I'd be fibbing to sat that we hadn't changed at all !!!
Mum is as well as can be expected of someone 98 who is not mobile ,she gets quite frustrated at times ,but can still play scrabble and is quick off the mark with her "tables". She is in a very lovely home called "Mercy Parklands" and Margaret gets to see her frequently so we are all very fortunate .
I am fortunate to have Cambrian home with me for the week ,but less fortunate that the weather is crap and the lawns are a foot high.Once again the place is waterlogged ,but I'm sure that that will save me a lot of watering later in the month ,most of the trees are in leaf now and looking sumptuous ,I hope that the weather doesn't knock them around too much .Here are some photos of the family ,I am always sorry to miss people out in Auckland ,but one day .... love to you all ...Robert

Spring rains

2011-10-19T03:31:00.000-07:00

Three inches of rain in two days [78points for the young] what a magnificent effort ,and couldn't have come at a better time ,but it does point out where your weak plumbing points are !!! gorgeous day today ,rather like a sauna ,but with birdsong and aromas ,nothing like a spring shower to bring out the smells ,particularly the balsam poplars .

Let's sing again ! Tulips from Cambrian.

2011-10-13T01:59:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately the folks around Tauranga won't be feeling like singing ,my heart goes out to them .I can only hope that it raises our awareness of the dangers .
The spring has well and truly sprung ,now I need some WWOOFers to help me get all the daffodils out from amongst the bluebells .Anyone local that wants to visit can be assured of a cuppa [at the very least]. The smells of the spring flowers and trees is amazing ,especially the balsam poplars .
On a completely different note ,Cam tells me today that he has handed in his final thesis,the end of four yrs hard work ,I'm obviously very thrilled for him .

DEFINITELY spring now .

2011-10-02T02:13:00.000-07:00

"Evening" Well no snow this week ,but lots of daffodils .Rae went back to Wgtn this afternoon ,but we surely had a lovely 10 days.Always good to have family visit . A few bluebells are poking through ,but lots of pretty little fritalarias have popped up .
Next w/e would be about right to catch the bluebells [as long as it doesn't snow]

Family visit

2011-09-26T03:03:00.000-07:00

A few Tiki touring days in Dunedin with my sister Rae ,all the galleries and the albatross colony .
Home on Saturday in the sunshine ,then woke up to 7cm of snow on the Sunday ! I have my work cut out keeping Rae warm ,but a beautiful day today, Monday, and lots more to follow ,hopefully .The first bluebells have poked their heads up and quite a lot of fritalarias are out ,I love them ,they are so delicate .

Out of winter ....into spring

2011-09-20T02:55:00.000-07:00

Just a few shots before I head away tomorrow to collect my Sister Rae from Dunedin .We'll stay a couple of nights with the boys in Dunedin and have a look around .The weathers been great in Cambrian this week ,no snow at all ,maybe just a couple hailstones ,so I have been busy planting oak trees and larches .Cheers

Missing photos

2011-09-13T03:21:00.000-07:00

A few more photos !

2011-09-11T03:05:00.000-07:00

Well into spring now ,the snowdrops are nearly finished and the daffodils are setting off .No sign of bluebells for a while yet .Tree planting is the order of the day at present ,and some flaxes.

Long shot

2011-09-06T04:31:00.000-07:00

Tried to get a long shot this morning from the hills opposite ....only mildly successful. The snowdrops are about finished and the daffodils are about to take over .Beautiful days here in Cambrian ,hard to believe that there is so much chaos out there in the world .The amazing thing is that my mother is now 98 !!! with still a good bag full of "marbles" !!

Quote for the day ,There's lots of simple questions,like "what's wrong with the world" but not many simple answers !!..........cheers

Snowdrops keep fallin on my head.

2011-08-26T02:29:00.000-07:00

Lovely week in Cambrian ,just made for spreading snowdrops and having bonfires .My spring flowers have been discovered by lots of lovely ladies from the Alpine Garden Society ,I thought that the snow might have knocked them back , [the flowers ,not the ladies]but they are alpines of course ,and each day they just seem to get better ,it's worth all the cold of winter just to get them . Cheers
Movie of the week ..."The Kings Speech" ....it'll leave you speechless.

Flamin pictures

2011-08-21T01:23:00.001-07:00

Especially for you Ken ,enjoy your week on the mountain ...cheers all .

Southern storm

2011-08-21T00:58:00.000-07:00

Well what an amazing week that was ....everyone got the snow ,even you Aucklanders weren't going to be left out ,mind you that's enough now ,a jokes a joke ,and I'm ready for spring now .

Winter into spring

2011-08-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

Evening all , waiting now for the big snowstorm that is being predicted ,the last week has held hard [-6] frosts but lovely days ,just what you like for working in ,and then a lovely fire in the evening with a good book or a dvd. Feeding of the chooks was at 9am this morning ,sublime conditions .The snowdrops look a treat and I've had some lovely visitors coming to see them .

Heartfelt Products

2011-08-06T20:58:00.000-07:00

Afternoon All ...I woke this morning to a frantic sleet storm ,it lasted ten minutes and left the place white ,by ten o'clock we were sunbathing again !Most of my snowdrops are out ,some croccuses and the first daffodil should flower any day ,the place looks beautiful but I just hope not too much comes out to be burnt off by a late frost .Here's hoping .Now I have just finished three days of frantic felting ,Lea ,a German WWOOFer from Kleve near the Dutch border was keen to learn about felting so we decided to flag the forest away and just felt ! she was quite a taskmaster and look what we achieved .I've never had such clean hands !! We were particularly proud of the bag that we made as it was quite ambitious in design and pattern ,but it turned out great .
Last w/e I spent in Dunedin and had a grand time with Manu and Cam ,and a superb walk along the Portobello peninsula with Halina ,who is in Dunedin on stable ground ! Back into the" woods" tomorrow and more bonfires .
Thought for the day ."Better a quiet man with ethics ,than a brash man with money "!!!

Winter fun

2011-07-24T00:19:00.000-07:00

On a VERY cold Sunday night ....well winters finally struck ,a few good hard frosts and a LITTLE snow ,much more in Dunedin ,but enough ice to play with and enough snow to feel good about sitting in front of the open fire reading ,I love it .Here are a few shots of the ice artwork that we made ,fairly basic ,but good fun .I hope that all you out there are warm and comfortable ,if you want a beautiful and cheerful movie to watch get "Pride and Prejudice [Kera Keightly]warm and fuzzy with amazing country scenes . Cheers

New bluebell woods

2011-07-18T04:00:00.000-07:00

Evening all ....pleasant days at the moment ,cold mornings ,slow starts ,but then as the day warms up I have been clearing under trees and planting more bluebells ,very satisfying .Then getting a big open fire going and reading in the evening.Life is good !

Cambrian stream

2011-07-11T03:32:00.000-07:00

"Evening" the snow came ,and the snow went ,who knows where we are ? Here's a few different shots of the Cambrian Common Forest ,I am pottering along clearing the stream to make a little track ,helped mightily by my WWOOFers . PS my Facebook page has miniaturized itself ...any suggestions apart from shrinking myself ??

False start to winter

2011-07-08T20:48:00.000-07:00

Hi All ...It's a very wet and cold Sat. afternoon ,I've got a Frenchman staying [Julian] and we've got lots of work done cutting broom and burning it ,things are really moving at the moment and augers well for the spring .We had a covering of snow yesterday but it's all gone now .This morning as the sun rose over the Hawkdun mountains it had 3 minutes of shining through onto a grey background it was most impressive I'm not sure that I have done it justice on the photos .My neighbour Grahame took the one of the Hawkduns from his house . Here are a few shots from the last couple of days . Keep warm ...

Last day of June

2011-06-30T02:04:00.001-07:00

Evening all . Quiet times in Cambrian ,but very pleasant .am digging up clumps of daffodils and replanting them up the roadside ,it never ceases to amaze me how many bulbs come out of a clump .Lots of snowdrops in flower now ,but the temperature hasn't been below -2,it's like the tropics !

Winter solstice

2011-06-21T01:33:00.000-07:00

Evening all ,yes it's the winter solstice at 5.30 tomorrow morning ,not that it feels like it ,japonica in flower ,snowdrops out and bugger all ice ,now I'm not complaining ,it's all very pleasant conditions ,but it does make you think a bit with all these dramatic weather events taking place .
My feeling is ,is that the situation in Chch is the most traumatic event in NZ's history ,not only in personal terms ,but it's economic effect on the whole country will be widely felt .We mustn't forget those that are still there even though it is hard to help them at this stage .
Here are some photos that I took this afternoon ,no sun but quite mild ,I am loving having bon-fires each day ...Keep warm ....Bob

Nearly mid-winter

2011-06-16T03:07:00.000-07:00

Hi .....we are having beautiful early winter days ,bordering on spring !! today I found some snowdrops flowering !!! photo tomorrow . It is such glorious burning weather that I am taking the opportunity to have lots of fires down by the creek ,burning all the fallen willow and blackberry .Slowly making a track to the back of the property ,it is not very photogenic ,but good fun .
Winter solstice bon-fire on Sat evening about 4.30,hard to think that you are celebrating the return of the sun when you feel as though it hasn't left yet !!! but a good excuse for some mulled wine !! Special visitor for lunch today.
Can't get photos on tonight !! not clever enough .

Queens Birthday

2011-06-06T01:29:00.000-07:00

Good old Queenie ,I feel much better having had another holiday !!
She gave out about 166 "honours" today....ONE of them was for conservation !!!!!
what does that say about our priorities ? and one foreigner got one ...surprise,surprise it was to an American for "bringing us closer together" [Apologies to my American friends,]
but with "friends "like THAT administration ,who needs enemies !!!
On a happier note I've just had a great week with my Chch friends and two WWOOFers ,Sarah from Galway and Anne from the Black Forest [is it really made of chocolate ?] the three of us cleared a little more of the stream for the walkway-to-be.
To anyone local we are having a bonfire and fireworks on the 18th ,hot-wine and cold beer provided .I'm going to light the fire about 5 and fireworks at 6 and pot-luck dinner at 7 if you want .It's no big affair just a small celebration to welcome the sun on it's return journey . Cambrian will be 22 on the day ,Manu was 33 4 days before and I'm an ancient 66....all in the year 2011,must be auspicious .See you here .

New pond fixture

2011-05-28T03:04:00.000-07:00

Well finally I have the pond full again ,and blow me down ,look what surfaced !! It felt like the first day of winter today ,perfectly clear morning ,slight frost and lovely day .lorna and David donated a couple of old signs to add to the decor ,much appreciated .For the less imaginative amongst you ,it's a yellow submarine !!! and the second one is a self portrait [I've become a prickly old bugger ]

Global warming

2011-05-26T02:27:00.000-07:00

Here are five reasons that I believe in global warming ,or something weird going on in the atmosphere ! All of these plants shouldn't be out until SEPTEMBER !!
Snowdrop leaves ,,,,Voilets ,,,Snowdrop clusters ,,,,japonica blossom ,,,,red yarrow .
We haven't even had a decent frost recently and it's less than 4weeks till mid-winter.

The warm before the cold !

2011-05-21T04:10:00.000-07:00

Evening all, sorry that it is so long since the last blog ,it is that strange period between autumn and winter ,nearly all the fruit is picked and what isn't the chooks are getting .The days are lovely and warm ,just made for cutting tracks in the broom and planting elm suckers or any other trees that I can re-locate .It has been so moist this year and so fruitful ,seed-wise that I have gathered up SACK FULLS of acorns and just broadcast them by hand into the rougher spots ,watch that space in about 4yrs .I have also planted a certain number to see how they go .Under Antons trees there is just a carpet of seedlings ,but I never find them very easy to transplant .Look at what I am cooking up tonight ,Big Cone pines ,to get some seeds ,you can see a seed in front of the cone ,they are a beautiful pine tree and I'm keen to get a bunch growing .The pond is my big worry at the moment ,getting it built up before the winter ,but it WILL happen ....Cheers Bob

PS does anyone else find a little irony in the juxtaposition of these two Aussie stamps?

Late Autumn

2011-05-04T02:34:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks ,,,,late autumn now ,in fact today it rained all day long ,gentle warm rain mind you ,but it is certainly getting closer to winter now .Lots of firewood in and lots of coal ,so let it come !! I have had a great week with a couple of French WWOOFers ,we cut tracks in the broom and had nice warming bon-fires ,then planted a number of cork elms ,so 20 yrs down the track there should be a nice little elm woods ,hopefully .
I always TRY to get the WWOOFers to make themselves a felt hat .Etienne made himself a black helmet specially for the "Rugby World Commerce" and Aurore made herself a chic little No. for the streets of Paris .
Heres a few photos from the last week ,including the chickens that came on May 1..

Mid-Autumn

2011-04-20T03:57:00.000-07:00

Well here we are just past the peak of Autumn ,two falls of snow on the mountains ,half a dozen frosts ,beautiful days and hosts of amazing WWOOFers .I literally couldn't survive without my WWOOFers ,I have fabulous friends [besides the facebook variety],
but with WWOOFers you have lots of social interaction and STILL get your work done ! the last man Antoine from the Basque country tried also to give me a few pointers on my camera ,so see if you can spot an improvement .
I hope that you all have a good Easter break ............cheers ........

Only in NZ

2011-04-07T03:39:00.001-07:00

Now here is a funny story for you that could only happen in NZ.
I was taking Zhouhui down to Raes Junction ,Sth of Roxburgh ,so we decided to have a famous"Jimmys" pie as we passed through .She decided that she needed some shopping so we wandered up the main st to the supermarket ,whilst she was shopping I was looking in the window of the shop next door ,woolcrafts and souvineers ,it appeared to be closed,then I just stood there with my back to the window and waited .In the distance I could hear a phone going ,then a little old lady ,whom I'd never seen before came out of the supposedly closed shop and said " are you Bob ?" I said yes,because I was ! and she said "you are wanted on the phone " !!!!!!!! STONE THE CROWS !!
It turned out that she was the mother-in-law of the woman that we were going to visit ,and I had jokingly said that if we had time to spare I'd look up her mother-in-law ,she took me seriously ,and needing a parcel bought & rang her up .Talk about freaky !

The big tree

2011-04-04T22:22:00.000-07:00

The big tree is gone !! long live the little tree that I planted to compensate .I must say that I was impressed with the arborists skill, strength and professionalism,even if I didn't want them to do it !!

Warm weekend weather

2011-04-03T02:37:00.000-07:00

Fabulous w/e in Cambrian this w/e, Katrina McFie got married in the middle of a field !!
Anna Smythe had an art opening ,Keith and Jan came for pancakes and we[xiaohui and I] went to huge Bar-b-que @ Mcfies and drank too much wine in the midday sun ,and had to sleep it off afterwards ,all in all a very social w/e.
Here's a photo of Xiaohui in her "glad-rags"

Autumn colours

2011-04-01T01:59:00.000-07:00

Big frost this morning ,but a beautiful day ,the trees are starting to turn quite quickly now so if you are coming to Cambrian for coffee ,you'd better make it fast ! Big wedding in the town tomorrow ,photos in the Cambrian Common Forest ,should be interesting .It's still early autumn but a few trees have nice colour ,,see you .

Washed out expedition

2011-03-28T02:19:00.000-07:00

l"Evening all", Last Sat. was fine ,today ,Monday was spectacular ,but yesterday ,the day of our Autumn expedition into the hills ,it litterally hosed down and washed us out of the mountains .However ,a nice hot wine ,a bit of Stones green ginger and a pot-luck dinner ,set us right again .
Snow on the tops this morning !!! WWOOFer and I spent part of the day dividing and spreading autumn crocuses,should be a picture in 2 or 3 yrs .The autumn colours are just starting to come into their own ,photos tomorrow.

Fungi fun

2011-03-22T02:12:00.000-07:00

Evening all , this has been the wettest Feb/March on record ,and to prove it the fungi have been popping up all over the show ,I won't beat you up with the stinkhorns again but todays speciman is a magnificent young Amanita Muscaria,can you believe the redness of this thing ,just growing out the back by the trampoline .Tomorrow I'll photograph some shaggy inkcaps !
I have a young lady WWOOFer from Shanghai at the moment ,she's lived in Auckland for 6yrs and done computer science for three of them .What do you reckon I asked her first ?? have you got any brothers and sisters ....DUH.....anyway she's good value and we are having great discussions on China .
This must be the best year ever for tree growth ,I just cant believe how much ,just hoping that the autumn will be as spectacular .

Guilt

2011-03-14T02:30:00.000-07:00

I'm racked with guilt [whatever that means],how can one live in paradise yet still listen to the radio and read the newspaper [the ODT of course ] it's just not fair .Who still believes in a just and loving god ?? well she must be taking a holiday at the moment .I hadn't even come to terms with the Sept quake ,no loss of life ,when along comes the Feb one with lots .To top it off we now have the tragedy in Japan ,utter chaos ,a little bit of chaos in the middle east an oil spill of gigantic proportions in the gulf of Mexico ,what next .
How am I expected to enjoy the abundance of rowan berries ,the golden hue of the maple leaves ,the miracle of the autumn crocuses just popping out of nowhere ,a fresh trout for dinner last night ,good company ,the sound of thirty quail all launching themselves at the same time ,the frustrated voice of my mother saying "I'm bloody awful !" Well I do !! because that's my lot ,but I think of all those in less pleasant circumstances and if I could have you here to share it with me ,I WOULD.
So love to you all ....come and visit if you are stressed ..slow down ....Bob

Dunedin Visit

2011-03-08T00:58:00.000-08:00

I've just got back from Dunedin ,visiting the boys .My car played up so I got an extra couple of nights .They are both well and happy ,and working hard in their respective fields ,we had a great walk around the botanic gardens on Sat afternoon ,they really are an arboreal treasure .[even if their coffee isn't !!!!!] The Cambrian Valley is looking beautiful,as green as green with just a hint of autumn to come .As nice as Dunedin was ,I still felt rapt driving back into the valley and looking forward to checking out all the little trees tomorrow .....cheers

Vintage visit .

2011-03-02T02:20:00.000-08:00

For someone who is not particularly interested in cars I found this particular group to be most interesting .I fair knackered myself riding home from Antons on my bike,into a head wind !!, to see if they had stopped at my place .Who said Cambrian is a quiet little village ??

Stink horns

2011-02-22T01:23:00.000-08:00

Cop these !! Sympathy to all those in Chch ,,,Always beds in Cambrian if you need to evacuate .

Last light

2011-02-21T01:11:00.000-08:00

The evening light tonight was so fantastic that I just had to take a couple of shots ,not really true to colour ,but interesting .The last light just seems to bring out the most vivid greens ,but I can't capture them .

Early Autumn

2011-02-19T00:27:00.000-08:00

"Evening all".....Great days in Cambrian ,lots of warmth [both physical and emotional]'
lots of moisture and fantastic tree growth ,the landscape is greener than an Irish paddock on St Patricks day !! Three overseas students are staying in the lodge whilst they study the local stream ecology ,fascinating stuff. Nothing dramatic happening but it is all so pleasant that I am not complaining ,let the people of Egypt and Libya have all the excitement . The onset of Autumn has begun ,Rowan berries ,hawthorn haws ,autumn crocuses are popping up ,on my reckoning all a month early ,could be a long winter .Cast an eye on this unusual fungi ,I've only seen them twice before ,they are called stink-horns ,and look quite incredible ,but they smell foul to attract the flies ,there are still more to come out so I'm hoping for a better photo .

Hidden lake

2011-02-06T16:41:00.001-08:00

Hi. Yesterday was the hottest day of the year [over most of NZ] 35-40 degrees .Then last night it rained ALL night, today I am having to duck and weave amongst the new growth on my trees !!!!! what fantastic growing conditions .What's more amazing is that yesterday a group of neighbours took a 4WD expedition into the hills to visit the hidden lake on Mt StBathans,it's at about 5000ft and on the western end ,DEFINITELY 4wd
territory,hot dusty and awe inspiring ,getting home about 7pm.The only way I could cool off was by jumping in a 44gal drum of cold water ,that cooled me down .Then an hour later the rain began ,talk about good timing ,just heard that we got 3inches of rain ,that's a lot for us.So today I am a happier man than usual ,I can just about see my trees growing !Here's some photos from the trip .
cheers

Berry time

2011-02-04T02:09:00.001-08:00

Hi folks ...sorry that I haven't been posting much lately ,not too much to post about .
However life is still its very pleasant self ,the forest is coming along beautifully ,helped by the occasional downpour and lots of sunshine ,the growth this year is phenomenal ,long may it continue !
The only blot on the landscape is that a section owner in Cambrian intends to cut down our tallest tree ,a magnificent Oregan pine [or Douglas fir],it must be at least 100 yrs old ,and who knows how high .It doesn't have to be cut down only trimmed for the power wires ,but the owners decided to cut it down ,even though he has a "For sale" sign on his gate !! If you are motivated at all you could send him a polite e-mail asking him not to .His e-mail address is hannibal9@xtra.co.nz
The rowan berries are in full fruit at the moment ,they make a great sight ,I feel that the branches will break under all that weight ,I'm not sure what eats them ,but they will soon disappear. All the best .....Bob

Local wedding

2011-01-23T01:07:00.000-08:00

Evening all .....well what a busy month it's been ,I totalled up the "bed-nights" since Dec 23 and its 74 !! but what an interesting time it's been although i must admit to enjoying a few days to myself at the moment .Even that's not quite true ,we had a local wedding here on Friday in the St Bathans hall and a bar-b-que at Shepherds flat yesterday ,so there were millions of nice new people to meet ,it was a great occasion .
I can't believe that Auckland and the Coromandel are getting washed out at the moment ,today here in Cambrian was just so still and beautiful,what a strange country that we live in [mind you still better than Aussie [glug...glug....glug...] See you

2011

2011-01-18T01:19:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year, I know that it is the 18th of January ,but I have been rather busy .I have had 73
bed-nights here since Dec 22,which probably means 73dinner nights as well !! Anyway it has been an interesting and stimulating time and I have met some lovely people .Fortunately it's been the wettest period for years and so I haven't had to spend too much time watering trees ,and ALL BY THEMSELVES they have been doing beautifully .Central Otago is still pretty green and moist ,so I am hoping that it will be a grand season .I've seen Manu and Cam occasionally and they are both well and happy ,I trust that YOU are as well ,and if I get to hear from or about you this year I will be very happy . Love to you all . Just a few random photos .

Last for year

2010-12-30T01:31:00.000-08:00

Evening All, I've got a feeling that this will be my last chance to blog for the year ,I enjoy it ,I just hope that some of you do also ! Cambrian changes just so much ,every day it is a different picture and every season it is a whole new world ,I would love to have you all visit to see this magic ,but that cannot be so photos will have to do .My New years resolution already is to put more effort into it ,here's hoping.
Christmas was good lots of visitors and merriment ,Manu and Cam were both home for a few days and that always makes it special .LLewe and Amy are here now for a few days and will take my French WWOOFers on the rail-trail tomorrow,may the sun shine .
It has been a good year for the "Common Forest", I can finally see some progress being made ,it takes the young trees a lot of time to get established ,but I'm sure that if you hadn't been here for a couple of years then you would notice the difference ,I hope so .! the sequoias in the Merry-go-round are now a good 5m tall,and the golden elm in the centre is going to be a beauty.The rain that flushed the whole country out these last few days has been an incredible bonus ,I can SEE them growing when the sun comes out !!
Thank you to all those who sent me a xmas card ,I do love getting them but am not very good at sending them .I think of you all often ,I love my photo albums and if one day a warm fuzzy glow comes over you for no reason at all ,you will know that I am thinking of you !!! lots and lots of love from Cambrian ,go and hug somebody for me !
yours ....Bob ....xxxx

Pot of gold

2010-12-17T01:31:00.000-08:00

"Evening all", we had a much appreciated fall of rain today ,not heavy but good enough for the lawns and hopefully fatten up the raspberries ,which might be ripe by xmas.I had a surplus of lemons today so treated myself to a batch of lemon-honey for xmas,as I was stirring it I could see it as a "pot of gold" and Voila there outside was this magnificent rainbow .........ain't life grand ....The other photo is a tiger-lily,I only have one of them ,but it always flowers beautifully . Now don't get too stressed this week !

Long hot days

2010-12-11T01:01:00.000-08:00

I woke up to sunbathing weather this morning ,must have been 20 degrees ,and it stayed hot all day .I'm spending lots of my time running around after water and little trees ,but it's all good fun .The village is looking spectacular.Three more weeks and the festive season will be over !!! in the meantime enjoy it as much as you can ,or IF you can .For those of you who are worried about the "sleakness" of my dog I just bought him an $80 sack of premium dog food today ,so he better put on weight or I;ll sell him as a grey hound !!! or give him to Pippa ,she likes skinny dogs .Here's a photo of what I wake up to ,if you get tired of photos of Cambrian then you should read my profile again !! cheers

Spring rains

2010-12-06T01:34:00.000-08:00

Beautiful conditions here at the moment ,hot last week ,and a little moisture at the moment ,great growing conditions ,alas for the broom as well.Very busy on the WWOOFing front, and a pleasant visit by the Marler family from Dunedin .Building up to a WWOOFing xmas now !Photo one is Scottish Colin and his English friend Ben packing to go camping ,No.2 is a "moody " shot and 3 is the Marler family having pancakes on Sunday !! cheers

The night of the porina beetles !!!

2010-12-01T00:58:00.000-08:00

"Evening all "...it's so warm tonight that all the porina beetles are flying ,the air is literally buzzing ,and tomorrow half the foliage will be gone !,it's lucky that I took the photos of these flowers today ,I'm not a flower gardener ,but against all odds some of these beautiful specimens appear out of the" jungle" ,isn't colour in nature magic .

2010-11-28T01:42:00.000-08:00

Great days in Cambrian at the moment ,lots of moisture, lots of sunshine and lots of visitors ,not to mention the great home-brew !Here are a couple of shots from today .

Spring trees

2010-11-21T00:44:00.000-08:00

Sunday night ,it's been raining off and on for two days ,which it hasn't done for two months !! so everything is nice and wet and hopefully well watered .It is a treat to walk around the place in between showers ,the freshness and the colours are just so strong .
Pauls off tomorrow and some new WWOOFers are coming on Tuesday ,it's a busy time .
Here are a few shots taken this morning just to keep you up with the growth [and the whitening of my whiskers !!!] cheers

Master WWOOFer

2010-11-18T02:05:00.000-08:00

Evening all, I have my friend Paul staying at the moment ,as a WWOOFer ,and we [well he] is making great strides in the engineering dept. I have a new chimney pot to stop all the smoke coming into the kitchen ,and it works a treat ! I can now start my old motor mower . The kitchen has a new radio ,coutesy of Winton ,the chainsaw is sharp ! and we still have a couple of days left .
The spring is lovely ,but we had a frost the day before yesterday that burnt a lot of my smaller oaks ,always very sad ,but they should bounce back ,apart from that the tree growth is fantastic ,maybe some photos tomorrow !

Spring has sprung

2010-11-11T00:42:00.000-08:00

Hi All ,sorry that I haven't been on for a while ,with spring comes a lot more work ,but that is no excuse .I had a fabulous w/e in Dunedin last w/e ,Manu has a new studio and Cam has finished his exams ,another year coming to a close ,and jolly old santa is out conning people already !
The bluebells have nearly finished ,but most of the trees have got there new leaves ,the hawthorns are spectacular,they are whiter than in the middle of a snowstorm ,and the catkins on the sycamores are just beautiful.Danish Karen is back in for a few days and Pasta Paul is due on Sat. ,it's all go in Cambrian .Here is the last bluebell photo .cheers

Near perfect conditions

2010-11-01T01:54:00.000-07:00

Now PERFECT is not a word that is used much in Cambrian ,but today the weather was just about that ,we had breakfast outside at 8.30,and my young American visitors left about 9.30 to go back to Dunedin .All day I heard the quail calling ,chaffinch's,ducks of all sorts ,grey warblers ,[the other day I saw a shining cuckoo !]and the smells are just amazing, particularly the lilacs ,the bluebells are just about at their best and most of the trees have come into their spring clothes .Today I cycled around the road to feed my neighbours 11 little wild ducklings ,what a great time of year it is !!!

Limits on blogging

2010-10-24T01:24:00.000-07:00

Hi All , Sunday night of Labour w/e ,I hope that you are all having a good time .The village is fair thriving ,at least another 37 people in residence ! makes for very slow progress as one cycles down the road .The spring is such a joy ,just seing all the plants come back to life ,I can certainly send you photos but sadly I can't send the aromas with them ,and some of the smells are just mind blowing ,I could ride up the road blindfolded and tell you exactly where I was by the smells ,well maybe not today as we had about 50 Vauxhall enthusiasts drive up the road this afternoon ,it was rather like being caught in a time-warp . The dafodills are nearly over and the bluebells are in ascendency ,all good stuff.

Heaven on earth

2010-10-14T03:19:00.000-07:00

If those Chilean miners had surfaced in Cambrian today and not Chilethey would have thought that they had arrived in paradise.Going outside today was like sliding into a spa pool ,except you didn't get wet !!! not like the poor folk in Gisborne, what a strange country this is !!
I just remembered this afternoon how to take better photos [by focusing on a bright area and transferring back to the subject ,makes a hell of a difference] anyway a few more shots of the woods ,it's about at its best for variety ,just today the bluebells started so anyone within striking distance come for a coffee and a look-see. Cheers

Photos

2010-10-10T03:29:00.001-07:00

Local Body Elections

2010-10-10T03:06:00.000-07:00

Quite pleased with yesterdays elections ,glad that Chins gone from Dunedin and Banks from Auckland .Lepper won't be any different from McPherson locally ,both pretty useless ! surprised that "Tim" got back in in Invercargill.Mind you nothing much will change out there regardless ,so I think that I will just keep hiding away here in Cambrian and planting my trees .Typical spring weather at the moment ,sun-bathing one day and snowing the next ,pity those poor lambs !!!! The betting money is on a cracker of a frost in the morning ...........see you ...

Potato patch

2010-10-06T02:54:00.000-07:00

Evening all ,,,sorry that I've been a bit slack lately [at blogging] no excuses ,but the spring has such a hold now that I just have to share it .I have a nice load of willow wood in for kindling ,8 ton !!! of lignite to last me over a year and the front lawn is starting to dry out at last .We are in the process of draining the pond to improve the edges so that will look quite unsightly for a couple of months ,but the woods in general look fantastic lots of daffodils and red tulips and soon to be bluebells ,each year it just gets better !!

Spring

2010-09-23T03:23:00.000-07:00

"Evening"....things are starting to dry out slowly,I might be able to order my truckload of coal by next week ,it would be just too much to have to shovel it from the front to the back !!!!
Saw my first fritilaria today ,I'll photograph it tomorrow .Here are some more of Anthony Vickerstaff's photos .
On a completely different line .......heaven help the country if Mary Wilson takes over from Sean Plunket ,it's bad enough listening to her carping on at dinner time without having to wake up to it !!
Is there a TV channelout there that would like her ??????

Different viewpoint

2010-09-21T02:25:00.000-07:00

Evening all ...the last time that I "posted" it was snowing ,now it is AGAIN,this has got to stop ,the snowdrops are finished and the daffodils have started ,so the bleeding snow should have stopped also ! mind you we cut a trailer load of willow wood this morning and stacked it so I'm not feeling too bad . Here are some photos taken by my WWOOFer ,he has a good camera and an interesting eye ,I hope that you enjoy them .
cheers ....Bob

A Sting in the Tail

2010-09-15T01:54:00.000-07:00

Evening all ,Yesterday was a perfect spring day ,warm ,drying out, lots of flowers and then it b*****y snowed !!,I had all these jobs sorted out for my keen young Kiwi WWOOFer ,and then it snowed ,fortunately it was beautiful ,and it was gone by lunchtime [like the ACT party!!]. I have 60 little oak trees arriving tomorrow ,so I am planting them along a fenceline just above Rainers gate ,might do the other side next year ......Cheers.....

Olgas 97th

2010-09-11T23:44:00.000-07:00

Nothing about Cambrian today ....just my mothers 97th birthday and some photos of ALL the simblings together ,the last time was 7 yrs ago .Mum is in a nice home in Waihi ,just sth of Auckland ,so Margaret found us a crib at Whiratoa beach and we all gathered for the w/e bringing mom out each day .She is as well as can be expected for someone of her age who never ate her vegetables !!!she is quite fragile but still enjoyed a joke or two as long as it was delivered slowly .Present also was Mary Christianson who was the flower girl at her wedding and just lives close by,the wedding was in Waihi ! so you could say that life is just one great big revolving wheel.Grahams daughter Carla was across from Aussie with her boyfriend ,so she came as well .We all had a most enjoyable time ,lots to eat and lots to drink and even more to think about ,nothing like a good dose of nostalgia every so often !!! remember what you do today will be the quality of your memories in the future .

Tuesday [that's original eh?]

2010-08-31T02:25:00.000-07:00

OK here's a" must"..the latest Michael Moore movie called 'Capitalism: a love story"...
rent it today ! don't worry that he is grossly overweight ,prone to hamming it up ,may exaggerate a bit ,ignore all that ,just listen to the message and ask yourself if NZ is far behind ,remember that they, [the states] have 300million people and we have 4!!!!
Fortunately the sun shone today and the world was beautiful ,I had afternoon tea with the" Tiger on the hill" in Omakau and dinner with my neighbours ,a very social day
I took these shots of Mt St Bathans on my way home ,the light was fantastic and the mountains incredible ,I love this place .

Water ,water everywhere

2010-08-30T02:40:00.000-07:00

Very wet in Cambrian at the moment ,2 inches in the last 48hrs ,that's a lot for us ,but at least we will go into the spring damp .Thank the lord for snowdrops they really do lift my spirits when I can't get into any other outdoor work . I finally decided that my face was just getting a bit TOO woolly,so I employed an Aussie shearer to go to work on it ,must say it does make me look a little tidier [not too much I hope]
Off to Waihi next Thursday for Mums 97th birthday ,she's going to referee a girls rugby game to celebrate !!! All the siblings will be there ,might have a party !
The snowdrops are probably at their peak now ,they look best just after the sun has gone down . Happy spring all round .......

Photos

2010-08-23T03:11:00.001-07:00

Warm day :cold beer

2010-08-23T02:54:00.000-07:00

Great day in Cambrian today ,got up far too early to go to Alex but that fell through ,so donned our work clothes and got into another patch of scrub ,marvellous fire .Took a break to pull a couple of old geezers out of a mud puddle ,their van that is ,not themselves ,long cup of coffee and back to the fire ,lunch outside with the paper and back to the fire .Finished the day with a lovely cold home brew and a Vietnamese dinner
Sat by the fire and read ,what more could a man want [don't answer that !!!] cheers

WWOOFing laws

2010-08-20T02:36:00.000-07:00

There's an unwritten law that says that when WWOOFers arrive it's bound to rain ,and although we don't work in the rain [union rules] we still eat in it !!and the last couple of days have been just that ,but today the sun shone ,and it was great ,my two WWOOFers, Mariko and Tuan, and I cut traks through the broom to make spaces for ten sweet chestnut trees given to me for my birthday by Bruce-Halina-Sarah and Philip .I'll enjoy planting them especially if they grow as well as the limes that I got previously .One of the great benefits of hosting WWOOFers is all the interesting meals that you get ,I never stop anyone practising in my kitchen ,at the moment we are having one night asian, the next night kiwi,[not that we are EATING any asians or kiwis !!],it all makes life very colourfuland satisfying ..hope the sun shines tomorrow . cheers

Wet Underfoot

2010-08-16T02:37:00.000-07:00

Hi All,
beautiful day in Cambrian today ,quite unlike Pakistan ,China ,Moscow ,Bay of plenty and probably Auckland ! but it IS wet underfoot with all the winter moisture rising .As you can see the snowdrops are presenting themselves beautifully again ,they never cease to impress me ,and each year more ,they even sat in a bath of water for part of the winter .Two new WWOOFers arrived this afternoon ,Tuan ,a Vietnamese/French
and Mariko a Japanese lass,so they should make for a fascinating week or two .Sometimes I just meet the most interesting people passing by ,this evening there was a "Wicked" rental van alongside and out came a bona fide Rastafarian , Jason ,what a cool guy ,there was even a picture of Jimmy Hendrix on the van .Interesting days ,he WAS a little nervous with the lack of people about ,as he's living in New York at the moment ,can't get much more of a contrast can you .....cheers

"The sting in the tail"

2010-08-07T19:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning I officially declared it spring,there was no frost ,by two in the afternoon it was snowing ,so much for MY weather forecasting !! But we have had a good week ,a few bonfires burnt ,a couple of school projects completed and lots of pleasant discussions .I have Ricky Toogood staying with me at the moment from Sth West Devon ,but he's been in the country so long that he may as well be a KIWI .All the ice has gone now and my three Khaki Campbell drakes have taken over the pond ,much to the anoyance of the Paradise Ducks .Lots of snowdrops are out in the woods and I've even seen a couple of grey herons fly over ,so spring MUST be quite close .
The picnic table and the fireplace are obviously in the old school ,and the red hat is self made on Rickys head . All the best to everyone .......

"world trip "

2010-08-05T03:31:00.000-07:00

I had a great trip around Otago last w/e ,spent Friday night with the Queen of Windsor and Clarkie the Sparkie,attended Manus exhibition opening on the Sat afternoon ,dined with Cam and a thousand students in an Indian restaraunt in Dunedin ,felted for five in a wool shed in Raes junction on Sunday afternoon and had dinner in Clyde with Chris and Debbie on Monday ,finally arriving home at lunchtime on Tues .What a fabulous round trip ,my thanks to all involved ,especially Barbara at Tally-ho Wools in Raes junction ,that's a mighty fine operation going on there .
I have Ricky fron Devon here at the moment ,courtesy of Andranika,and tomorrow we are going to install an outdoor table outside the school ,much excitement ,photo tomorrow .

Missed photos

2010-07-24T02:52:00.000-07:00

Goodbye winter

2010-07-24T02:34:00.000-07:00

Goodbye winter ....welcome spring . or if you are in the northern hemisphere.. goodbye summer ....welcome autumn. Isn't it a fantastic earth that we live on ,aren't you glad that you don't live in Singapore or Brisbane !!!boring boring ,the only choices to be made are "which t-shirt will I wear today " !! The second sign of spring that I got today was going through the ice on the pond ,one leg only mind you ,the neighbours lad laughed his head off as he pulled me out .But the days are glorious .How do you like the new hat that Margaret and Raena bought home for me from Sarajevo ?I think that I might become a Greek Orthodox priest in my next life ![ha ha this one is enough for me]

Work and play

2010-07-18T03:53:00.000-07:00

Great day today ,it was only on freezing point at first thing,pancakes for brunch with Tim and Colin from Scotland .We discovered a new game on ice for poor people who can't afford curling stones and then we set about clearing a track along the creek bank .hopefully we will finish it tomorrow ,All in all a great winters day ,including Pippa...

Boys on Ice

2010-07-12T22:38:00.000-07:00

Here you are boys ,now you are world famous !!!!!

Bonfires and magicians

2010-07-09T02:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a great few days recently ,WWOOFer Colin from Scotland has been here keeping me entertained with his card tricks and getting me to work outside and Halina ,Sarah and Philip have been down from Chch taking me for" walkies".It has been cold enough for the curlers to have a bonspiel on the Ida Burn ,that's always an amazing sight ,300 people all on the ice at the same time .Colin put on a performance for us yesterday ,he had to juggle fast before he froze up !,but it doesn't stop us drinking home brew.

Winter fun

2010-07-05T04:27:00.000-07:00

Gosh it's a hard life in the country !!!

Morning Repeat pt 2

2010-07-01T03:52:00.000-07:00

We get lots of news about the political world ,the crime world, the business world the entertainment and the sporting world ,but all we hear about the REAL world [and none of the others would exist without it ] is 7 seconds of birdsong !!!! how's that for prioritizing ???

Thought for the day

2010-06-30T03:12:00.000-07:00

Here's another couple of fun photos ,but you have to have a couple of heavy thoughts to balance them out ....I lay in bed this morning listening to "Morning Repeat" ,like I do every morning ,and it passed through my mind that every time the commentator said
Afghanistan I could replace it with Vietnam ,when he said Kazai I just replaced it with Din Diem...when do we get the helicopter extractions from the rooftops ????
That's enough I'll save the other for tomorrow .

Cool pants

2010-06-27T02:14:00.000-07:00

Cool pants eh ??

Ice works 2

2010-06-26T04:10:00.000-07:00

Not exactly the type of art that one does for posterity !!!!

Full moon tonight

2010-06-26T03:45:00.000-07:00

I've just come in from a walk outside ,it's 10.30 pm ,-5 degrees ,an inch of sparkling snow and you could read the paper without a torch !!!! in short it's unbelievable . Over the last couple of nights I've been freezing pottles of water in the shade ,this morning I thought that I'd have a crack at doing something with them ,so here's a series of photos ,it lasted until about 3pm,but was fun to do .Keep warm all of you and I hope that the full moon didn't get you !!

Cold days

2010-06-25T02:24:00.000-07:00

Very Cold at the moment ,and wet underfoot ,but above that it's absolutely gorgeous.The air is just so crisp and clean ,most of the snow from the last fall is still lying ,but starting to form larger crystals .It's always interesting to see which parts melt first and there's nothing more calculated to make you appreciate your green lawn than going through a period WITHOUT it !!!! kind of like MOST things in life eh.

SNOW !

2010-06-22T02:53:00.000-07:00

Well Sat may have been 15 degrees ,but it's snowing buckets now ,started about 6pm so who knows how much by morning ...I might lie in !!
I did a bit of experimenting with the night shots and the speeds ,interesting results .

Cambrians Matariki.

2010-06-20T01:52:00.000-07:00

Two days off the winter solstice and yesterdays 3pm temp. was 15 degrees !!!!! who still doesn't believe in global warming ? A great w/e , I stoked up the hot tub for possibly the last time ,the water was coming through the bottom nearly as fast as I was filling it up and I had to continually bail out the firebox !!but it worked and at 5 o'clock [and 10] we had a great tub .We lit a huge bonfire just before 6 and it's still burning nicely 24 hrs later .Lots of hot wine and nice friends around ,could be my last solstice bonfire as everyone is having celebrations at this time of year now ,time to move the fireworks to this day !!!Manu and Cam went home today [Sunday],I must say that it was special having them both home on this occasion .Cams 21st,,Manus 32nd and my retirement ,not to mention the winter solstice .So Cam's into his adulthood [well sortof !] and I'm into my dotage ,the end of an era.The ice sculpture was not as great as I'd hoped because of the blooming warm weather ,the winter is meant to be COLD like -15 degrees ,maybe it's still to come .

White out 3

2010-06-13T00:13:00.000-07:00

WHITE OUT 2.....

2010-06-12T23:54:00.000-07:00

A few more

WHITE OUT !!!!!!

2010-06-12T23:37:00.000-07:00

Woke up this morning thinking that it was pretty foggy outside ,but no ,it was just covered in beautiful soft powder snow ,about 6cm of it ! The amazing part is that you don't hear a thing ,you just wake up and god has painted all the green bits white !!
It really is quite magical .I'll put some photos on here ,but a few more on facebook for those crazy enough to be on that !!!

Ice Time again !

2010-06-09T03:21:00.000-07:00

I trust everyone got through the holiday w/e OK,with only one death on the roads I think that we did very well .I drove to Chch on the Sat in fine weather ,it takes 7hrs from here counting a few little stops .Bruces funeral celebration was on the Sunday and packed out the local community hall .It was naturally a very sad affair ,but uplifting at the same time ,and I came away with a stronger resolve to enjoy life and its madcap ways .The drive home was completely in rain until the Pig Root ,and then it was snow ! I arrived home to no water ,except that that was roaring down the road ! no power ,no fires ,no nothing ,but within 2 hrs everything was going and I sat in the dark infront of the fire prepared for a long night ,and then the power came on !!!!electric blanket time !!
The mornings are VERY cold at the moment -6,but the days are lovely ,here's a couple of shots of the ice ,more tomorrow .

Playing with ice

2010-06-04T02:42:00.000-07:00

Well the winter has truly set in ,my kitchen was 4 degrees this morning and the sun only rose at 9am,fortunately now that I am retired I rose at the same time !! the middle of the day is absolutely beautiful ,warm ,colourful and full of peace,I love it ,but the sun is down about 4 and it quickly cools down ,but home is cosy with both fires going .
I'm off tomorrow to my friends funeral in Christchurch ,I'll really miss him .I hope that you all have an interesting holiday w/e.

"Carpe Diem"

2010-06-02T02:01:00.000-07:00

A significant tree in my forest of life toppled yesterday ,it is always sad when one falls ,but there is nothing surer than ALL the trees will fall eventually ! There is so much madness and mayhem surrounding us that we really have to work hard to keep happy and enjoy the bounty that we have .Don't wait until "tomorrow" to tell someone that you love them ,eulogies are wasted on the fallen .
On a brighter note I woke up this morning to these amazingly hoary scenes, and only after one nights fog ,it makes the hours between 9 and 12 quite unreal particularly as the sun has REAL warmth in it .
Now I could say that "I love you all" but it sounds a bit cliched,so I'll just say that if you are reading this then be assured that you a valuable part in my memory ,and my life would have been a whole site poorer if you hadn't passed through it ,hopefully lots of you will pass through it again !!!!

ALL POWER TO THE SUN

2010-05-30T01:43:00.000-07:00

It's hard to describe what it's like to wake up to the sun after six days of murk ...but it sure feels good ! .....the place is saturated ,but not flooded ,lots of people are worse off ,particularly on the coast .I'm going to start burning bon-fires tomorrow to warm up the spirit , too much contemplation recently ,not enough action ,so if there is anyone out there who needs a bit of action ,just come on in .
Quote for the day ...." there's two best times to plant a tree ,20 yrs ago or today !!"
cheers