WEEKLY CHAT (non-osprey) SUNDAY, JULY 26, 2015

Hello Margo, you are being a really brave young woman and lets hope they can get to the bottom of what is going on.  As to Billie, could it be something to do with the thyroid gland.  This has happened to one of our cats - she became incessantly hungry and was asking every hour, losing weight, and slept outside when the weather permitted.  Eventually we took her to our vets and was diagnosed with an overactive thyroid so now she has been put on medication and we are still going for blood tests until it has stabalised. With Billie it may mean an underactive thyroid but lets hope its nothing more than a virus.Margo just seen your latest post further on so glad it is nothing to worry about and only a heavy molt.

OG - the weather has been relatively kind for Kids Week although somewhat chilly.  Showers have stayed away at crucial times and even the BBQ evening (today) was dry although Dau said it was quite chilly sitting outside. They have the use of a local school for the week so it is all held there.

Clare - enjoy your work day at Minsmere

Lindybird - glad to see you are back with us, do hope you can sort the new hub out to agree with your tablet etc.   Enjoy your break in Wales.

Nice to hear from you Annette and that your friend arrived safely - enjoy your time with her.

OH has been commentating again at County Ground and is Umpiring tomorrow so on one's own most of the day again.   Dau out at Kids week in the morning. I'm left to my own devices - hmm, what shall I do!!! lol.

Have a good rest of the week and weekend folks, and do hope we hear from Dibnib soon.  Did she say she was going away at all, or maybe she has been busy with work.

Rita – Good to see you are back home. You may think recovery is slow but in a week or two you will be surprised at how well you feel.

Margo – You’ve bounced up from “down” days before and will again. You said Billie was was shedding lots of fur but eating & drinking That’s me too, I thought, as I battled my hair tangled in the vacuum cleaner brush. Should I visit the vet?

Annette – Pesky fountain. Don’t you love (not) those intermittent faults that behave when the repairer takes a look.

I had been preparing myself for my long-awaited photo excursion to the Clare Valley. It’s just over 80 miles away, but I am tired, days are short, so I decided to make it a 2-day visit including Friday when local history rooms open and I would have plenty of time to seek out old ruins on back roads. Alas & alack. Miss19 sprang a surprise. Her uni timetable is changed. Could I swap my Wed for her Fri nanny duty. Of course I said yes. Decision: shall I forget history centre & find 2 days when I am not nannying or aching or shall I wait for uni holidays (Oct).

Victoria trip continued. Day 8. Packed up for our next motel, we drove towards the Grampians, passing through Dunkeld & Glenthompson – do you get the impression there were Scots settlers here? We visited a lovely old homestead, Narrapumelap, French Gothic style, that had been neglected, abandoned & vandalised. The owner is restoring it at weekends as he runs the farm weekdays. In the garden, previously a dustbowl, he has planted topiary. The garden urns would have cost too much to restore so he taught himself, likewise unsatisfied with work supplied, he taught himself cabinetmaking, plasterwork, etc inside the house. The old servants quarters have already been restored and are let as a B&B, more rooms planned, some stunning bedrooms nearing completion. Many years ago he climbed up to cover the stained glass windows and the vandals didn’t find them! The tower lost 20 feet in a storm decades ago is to be restored. Some pics & video here.

We had an hour to wander in Ararat. Needless to say, I found the Catholic church and stained glass. Back on the bus for a visit to a Chinese Museum. Many Chinese came to Victoria during the 1850s goldrush. Last drive for the day took us to our motel in Stawell. My pics on flickr.

Evening all:  

AQ: Spoke to handyman re fountain today. He keeps trying to save us money and is now suggesting how to test for a  short in the pump vs. a fault in one of the two CFI plugs.   That means I unplug the fountain, then stand on my head (plugs are six inches from ground), hit all Test/Reset buttons, then plug in another device to see if the plugs are working. If they are, it's the fountain pump. If they aren't, then we have to call the oh-so-considerate handyman again. Next time, I'm going to insist he get over here ASAP and I won't care about the service charge!  :-)   Oh boo. Sorry to hear you've had to postpone your trip to Clare Valley.  Can you  make the trip during Uni holidays and still see the history center?  I say make some time for what you want to do and be sure you do it. Hey! I see a Buckley in the woodpile at Narrapumelap - we have Buckley's (Irish) in our family on my aunt's side.  In spite of the quality of the videos, it's obviously a remarkable house. Your photos are much better,  That is some homestead!!    I always like to imagine these places when they were newly built and bustling with life.  Amazing that McIntyre was only 12 years old when he covered up those stained glass windows.  Must say the topiary is - um - odd. Interesting architecture on the Ararat Marian College; and the Dominica House too - quite different aren't they?   A surprising variety of materials were used to build all these places..

Hope everyone else is okay.  Have a good Thursday!

Annette - If you are connected to Buckleys, note that the Narrapumelups Buckley was him of Buckley & Nunn, a once famed store in Melbourne (until it was taken over). That Dominica House is directly opposite the Marian College & Catholic church. When I have time to wander streets, I find such “gems”.

A plane wing has been found washed up on Reunion Island. They are checking if it is from the missing Malaysian MH370.

AQ, I hope Kevin succeeds in the restoration. He deserves it. An intriguing history. I love your photographs. Thank you.
You could write your own guide book to these places.

Hello all

Just to say that I have read all your posts(thank you) and will reply tomorrow when I've promised myself a day at home, have been out and about every day since last Friday and looking after children etc so feeling a bit wiped out!

Hi Heather, Sounds as if you have had a hectic, but enjoyable time with your family.

I hope everyone else is fine.

Off to my bed now.

Good morning, all!  Had a good day at Minsmere but my arms and hands felt like they were dropping off afterwards and I actually took painkiller when I got home.  I've recovered enough to type, thankfully.