Hallo folks. Not much action yesterday afternoon on last week's chat, though SueC quoted a poem by the Wolof fishermen of Senegal about ospreys, which I found reassuring.
yes, glad you got there and back safe TerryM
I remember children in need well. Good luck to all those taking part and doing mad things:)
Thanks, Gary, it was this afternoon I went to see film "Creation" about Charles Darwin's life. Friend & I were a little disappointed though, as although well acted the film seemed to be too over sentimentalised & was concentrated very much on his home life, with not as much about his difficulties with the Establishment over publishing his world changing book. I suppose the title was meant to refer to his creation of the book, which I always understood took many years but this was not clear in the film. Enjoyed ourselves, anyway, & ate a few sweeties we call Midget Gems, which are little hard fruit jellies. Had a whole row to ourselves in the cinema, as not many there today.
Hi everybody! Just another quick post, so please excuse lack of individual replies. I hope the flooding situation in UK is easing. That's a very worrying situation.
Our power surges are because we are part of a grid which covers a very large area of the state, so that lightening strikes, downed power lines, trees on lines, etc anywhere on the grid can affect us. To make it worse, we live at the end of a cul-de-sac. When the County Council replaced poles and re-wired some years ago, they didn't loop the line back to the main line at the beginning of the street because it was cheaper to just run the line one way, to the end of the cul-de-sac!!! So that means that when something happens, the three houses at the end of the street cop the lot!!!! As it is, the council complaints about the frequency of having to replace the blown street light serving the cul-de-sac!
Today, more that half the state of New South Wales, including us, has a declared fire situation of 'catastrophic', the worst category, which means that the situation is so volatile that any fires which may start are likely to be uncontrollable. The temp only dropped to 28 degrees overnight, and at 9.15 am is 34 degrees, with 42 expected. We have humidity of less than 10%, with dry lightning strikes expected. My OH is a member of the Rural Fire service, so to day is a day of constant readiness for call-outs and monitoring radio and website for fire updates. Here is a link to the RFS website for anyone who is interested. http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/dsp_content.cfm?cat_id=683
During the heat fo the afternoon, we usually have all 6 magpies sheltering in the shade under our house, singing softly to themselves and each other to pass the time away. This is also one of Tiger's favourite spots, so he keeps a protective eye on them while they're so vulnerable.
Smiles, Jan.
Thanks for great descriptions, Wattle. Do take care! it sounds a bit serious in your part of the world, now. Will send you some 'electric' thoughts to keep you going. <>><><><<>><><><>>><><><<<><><>>>> ; - )
Good grief: Sounds ghastly and dangerous everywhere. Do take care all. In the meantime, a sunny and calm evening here, with temperatures "plummeting" to the low 40s (around 5C).
stay safe Wattle:)
Hang in there, Wattle, cooler weather is on the way. Our horrendous spell ended yesterday breaking the November record reaching a max of 43 C in the city. So far today the max has been 34 C at 3.34 am !!!!!! No wonder I have trouble sleeping. Currently 26 C with 43% humidity. We had a shower of rain a while ago but the paths are already dry. Thank you to all who have commented. How do we cope? Keep house closed up, blinds down, drink lots of water, avoid using stove, do as little as possible. Yesterday our a/c couldn't cope but at least the fan was blowing. When I go out shopping I take an esky with icepacks, so the food doesn't cook before I get home! Car has a/c but with the sun blazing in the window - enough said. I feel so lethargic today. Struggling to catch up on cleaning. I'd rather catch up on Mull sea eagles, New Forest cam, etc,etc
And while we swelter, I think of those of you with storms and floods. Now if we could only even out these extremes. Caerann - Thank you for the peregrine falcon story. Now about that rash invitation to visit Chicago - what did you say was your address LOL
Hey AQ: Glad the hot spell has gone for now; let's hope it stays gone for a while. Meanwhile, just watched videos of the flooding in Cumbria - wet and cold. Ugh. You are stopping by Santa Barbara en route to Caeranns, right? :-))
Okay, now that my computer has decided to behave again today, for TerryM and any other Chocolate Lovers, here is the Chocolate Cream Pie recipe. Very rich, very yummy, very popular in our family.
Crust - 1 pkt plain chocolate biscuits (not choc coated!) / 3 tblsp margarine, melted.
Filling - 6 oz cooking chocolate / 3 eggs / 1 tblsp port (or brandy) / 1½ cups whipped cream.
Crush biscuits and mix with melted margarine. Press into greased 21 cm (8") spring-form tin. Bake for three minutes only in preheated oven at 180 C (375°F).
Melt chocolate over hot water. Beat in 1 whole egg and 2 yolks. Add port. Fold in 2 stiffly beaten egg whites and whipped cream. Spoon into prepared crust and set in fridge. Decorate with extra whipped cream. Pie improves with age. (I prepare 1-2 days early).
Ooooh! Annette. Another rash invite. Now that's an idea - visiting everyone on the bird blog.