HAPPY NEW WEEK and HAPPY SOLAR ECLIPSE!
I hope everyone has a fun and joyful week! The Cicadas are now singing their high-pitched, rattle-screeching song from all the trees on my patch. The noise is overwhelming! I've been turning the radio up indoors, because the ebb-and-flow of their continuous screaming becomes mind-numbing. I revere all Earth's creatures, but I'm glad these critters only visit every 17 years.On Thursday, 10 June, a rare Ring-of-Fire Solar Eclipse will occur. Most people won't be able to see the full eclipse with the fiery ring live, but you can watch a partial eclipse if you go outdoors. The partial eclipse is visible in the U.K. I will see part of the partial. Bjane will see a short partial eclipse. Annette and AQ won't be able to see the eclipse at all, unless you watch it online. Insert the name of your nearest town/city in the Eclipse Lookup box on this page for the eclipse times and visibility in your location. The page also provides info about this eclipse. The website, Time and Date, is safe.
You can watch a live stream of the full RING-of-FIRE Eclipse online HERE. Also at Time and Date.EDIT: I forgot to mention that you'll need eye protection if you watch this week's solar eclipse. I'm sure most folks know that eye protection is required for any solar eclipse, but this is a public forum and I felt a responsibility to include the warning.
Hallo all;: Site was very slow again today, but have caught up with everyone's news.
I also saw the news reports on the plague of mice afflicting farmer in OZ. It looked horrendous and obviously drastic measure were called for. I hope they work.
Lindybird: Gorgeous photos. Sounds like Toffee will need some training and/or time before he's trusted off the leash again. Has Sue's problematic neighbor moved out yet?
AQ: If travel friend not able to travel anymore, would you consider - at the appropriate time - going with a group? Any such trips on the horizon?
OG: Sorry your leg is grumbling about your PC. Any news on that Swedish gizmo?
Back to sorting photos. Have a good Wednesday everyone.
OG & DIANE - The mouse plague in NSW, now in 8th month, is not over, just as bad as ever. Mice are eating grain, stored or still on stalks, hay bales, fresh shoots as they appear, electricals in tractors, etc. Uncover anything and mice scatter, 100s, 1000s. There is talk of poisoning but it’s costly. However there are claims that native fish (Murray cod) are eating the mice and the poison will enter the food chain. Also galahs & other seed-eating parrots eat the poisoned grain. It is winter now, farmers are dreading the spring when the mice start breeding.
ANNETTE – Travel Friend is quite happy to drive herself alone wherever within our state. (Crossing borders at the wrong time can lead to unwanted lockdown if there is another covid outbreak.) I had considered a bus trip after I have second jab. Two reasons why not. One, there are no day trips on offer that I have not already done, some places several visits. Two, when I mentioned possible bus trip to Doc (who knows date of my next jab), he frowned, shook his head and said “It’s a confined space”. This latest Delta variant is being transmitted by people just passing each other briefly. Too scary a risk.
Any thoughts we would go out to dinner tomorrow have been curtailed by chosen venue changing to winter times. Only dinner Friday to Sunday. Back to search engine. But probably weather too miserable to venture out anyway.
I like my money right where I can see it: hanging in my closet. (Carrie Bradshaw)
A thing of beauty is a joy – until the style changes.
When in doubt, do without. (Samuel ben Hofni)
Couldn't get on here (again...) this morning. AQ - Sorry you've missed out on a meal out. We saw scary videos of the mice running in all directions, in their thousands. What a huge problem. And I wouldn't be able to sleep unless I'd sealed up all the doors to my room, even though I'm not afraid of mice or rats at all. A very muddled day here: my OH has taken out the toilet in our downstairs bathroom, in readiness for a new piece of flooring being installed on Friday. He's now going to line the floor with hardboard- he wouldn't let anyone else do it. So there are bathroom things all over the house, and a toilet sitting in the hall! He took an hour off to go to the funeral of his golfer friend who died recently, just after enjoying his day on the course. A very nice service, he said, with modern music and no hymns. As usual, a relative tried to read out a meaningful poem but failed as she was too upset to get the words out. We think that someone not related should be nominated for this job as we've seen it happen so often. I've been ironing and trying to keep order in the chaotic scene here-- I'm also packing to go to Wales again at the weekend, as although we don't know when the flooring man is coming on Friday but we hope to leave once he's done.
AQ: Didn't realize you had scavenger fish in Oz (though I did read Bill Bryson's book). That's a real conundrum with the mice given the poison/food chain complication, which is only obvious when you think it through.... How about a plague of cats as an alternative? Sorry , I'm being facetious. Is anyone worried about all that dried up feces from the mice that might set off cases of Hantavirus? Speaking of viruses, I can't get my head around the new politically correct Covid names; still, with ignorant people ganging up against innocent people with an apparent regional identity, I guess it makes sense. A bit late though. I've read the Delta variant is more contagious, but I wonder about the 'just walking by' theory. I also read the Pfizer vaccine and mostly like the Moderna versions are 88% effective against that particular strain; still these strains do keep evolving..... Re Samuel ben Hofni: He'd clearly never been to Costco. :-)
Lindybird: Think of the toilet caper as a fitness opportunity (assuming you now have to use an upstairs loo). Hope the weather in Wale is kind and that those noisy folks have departed by then.
OG: Hope your chic new kettle performs as well as it looks.
Heather: I assume the neighbors who arrived home late aren't the same ones who were doing night-time remodeling last week?
We are going out to dinner tonight to our favorite fish place thanks to a gift voucher from daughter and g'daughter (for a past birthday/anniversary.....we can't remember which...)
Take care everyone
PS: Has anyone seen the videos/photos of that adventuresome herd of elephants in China? :-) The last one of them having a family nap is so sweet.