Foggy morning

 I should be feeling happy but I am not.
to start at the beginning on Sunday we had our Welsh Pony Youngstock Show, it started to rain as I left home and got heavier and heavier as I got nearer to the venue in the Adelaide Hills. I had taken a jacket but was in light pants and shirt as it was quite warm when I left home.
We did very well with our ponies, my special cream filly was the best foal futurity exhibit and went on to be supreme B in both the rings, meanwhile it got colder and colder and wetter and wetter. The Section C Cob filly won and was Supreme C in one ring and went on to be Supreme Pony in ring 1 and our Welsh Mountain colt became the Supreme in ring 2 with the filly beating him for Supreme of Show.
I was so cold I didnt wait until the end of the show as I was shivering and being cold is not good for me and headed for  home,  the temperature in my car as I left at 12.30 said 12degrees C and I didnt warm up much on the long drive home, changed and fell into bed!
Was so pleased for the girls when they rang to tell me, they worked hard in trying conditions and to top it off my other daughter and granddaughter took out the Cob Section D Championships in both rings.
So yesterday I felt flattened and didnt do a lot.
I had a blood test early this morning and as I left home it was 9 degrees and there was lots of fog.
Photos taken as I was driving in.
Home safely to be greeted by the news that one of my ponies was in a very bad way from hitting her head on the  floor, she had gone up and over onto the concrete.
Long story short we had to wait ages for the vet to come and put her down.
No ones fault, just one of those awful accidents that happen when you have animals.
We all feel rather depressed about it and pretty upset.
I wasnt going to write up my blog but as I havent blogged for a while thought perhaps an update might be necessary.

Bag finished and this mornings walk

I finished the bag yesterday, I think it looks ok.
I couldnt get onto the net at all yesterday but today it seems to be a bit better.
We walked early as the sky was clear and it promised to be quite warm, so we went to walk along the cliff tops near Petrels Cove and on to the little beach.
the beaches have been changing over the last few days, there is a lot more sand here but it was also low tide.
No jellyfish to be seen today but lots of lovely swirls in the sandleft from the tide running out, rock pools and a red starfish.
A beautiful walk and now I am home trying to get a heap of ironing done.
We have an art opening to go to tonight and out for a quick meal, bliss to be part of those out in the larger world! Sometimes I feel very cut off living out here but at other times I am glad I am no longer part of the rat race and can do things at my own pace.
On Sunday we have a Welsh pony show to go to, our States youngstock show, it is supposed to be relatively cool, relatively is the operative word. I will probably only stay until lunch time as it starts at 8 am and that will be long enough for me.
I am doing lots of small sewing things, more of those little bits for either a card or? Not sure what but it keeps me busy near the fan when it is hot.
The day starts very early, at daybreal here, around 6 am as that is when I need to get hoses on and the watering done and at least the flies are not so bad when I walk Max.
I had better get back to that ironing or it wont get done!

Feeling just a bit virtuous.

Why? because I have finally managed to clean the house so now I can relax for a few more days and hope the cat doesnt shed too much.
Of course the minute I had finished vacuuming I proceeded to throw random threads all over the floor again. At least they are not cat hairs!
We walked early this morning as the ute had to go in to have the light John broke (he backed into the toyota tail gate!)  and as you can see it was grey and actually cold. Lovely.
I had been up early as the mare we have been waiting to foal was roaring up and down her paddock and not a foal to be seen. I thought it would go down hill but the silly little thing was three paddocks away and uphill, Luckily we found it. So an early morning adventure in my SIL's ute with Sarah holding the foal in the front seat while I drove, still in my yukata, she then got flattened by a very upset mare when she put the little boy back in the paddock  but all seems well now.
A first time mum but she certainly knew it was her foal and he settled for a long drink after his adventures.
I have made a start on this little bag using up what I have, some dupont silk and what I suspect is a piece of gold French lace as it came from a very superior clothing place, I have had it for ages and decided to finally use it, no good keeping everything and I cant take it with me.
I am also fiddling with these little pieces, not sure if they will be cards or what but I have lots of bits that I cant bear to throw away and a use will be found for them.
Finally, instead of mad birds it is a mad fish, this one is finished and I have another under way, I did cut out two more but am not madly keen on them and so something else will be done with the others.
I am feeling I am getting a bit done, and I have a couple of classes coming up to go to soon and possibly a trip to Bali, life is getting interesting.

Victor Harbor Cockle train

After our walk this morning we had a few jobs to do in Victor and this mornings the cockle train was the steam train The Duke of Edinburgh. All newly painted and refurbished here she, no I suppose it should be he is going around the turntable so that he can go back down to the station to couple up to the carriages.
I was a little surprised that he was running as we are terribly dry and usually they dont run the steam cockle train in summer due to the fire risk.
So far all I have seen is the diesel but the steam train is so much more fun.
We are cooler, a bit, and there is still rather a blustery wind blowing.
I feel so sad about the devastation in Tasmania and worry for those in Victoria and New South Wales on this a terrible fire danger day for them.
I hope all are safe and well.
I am doing some silly sewing but its not finished so no photos yet.

Blue stingers and brown jellyfish

The last two days of walking on beaches has meant that we have seen the arrival of the bluestingers on the Hayborough beach, and the first photo is of one washed up and also the brown jellyfish in the water of the little beach at the end of the cliff walk near Petrels Cove.
You cant see them terribly well although if you click twice you may get a larger view, but there were literally thousands of them on the beach and in the water.
I remember one year when we were diving off West Island and they were there and any unprotected bit of you was stung quite nastily.
We have had terribly hot weather, and quite windy weather as well, so the seas have been quite rough and coming from the south.
We have another week of hot weather to come but it is quite comfortable at the moment, I think we got to the equivalent of about 105 degrees or more F, about  41 degtees C but hotter in other places.
So lucky that so far no fires have been near us, but the devastation in Tasmania has been horrible.
While it is hot I have organised a lot of easy sewing to do as really all you can do is go out early to put the hoses on and again late at night and just not do too much during the day.
My hens have stopped laying as well. I knew I needed to get some new ones before Christmas but as we were going to be away I really didnt think I wanted the worry of new hens.
At least we have managed a walk most mornings, I need to get some of that Christmas eating off the body!

Early morning walks

We are heading into a 42 degree day today, wasnt quite as hot yesterday and we had a cool night, infact it was lovely when I got up just after 6 am to turn on the hoses but by 8 it was hot and windy.
A bad fire day so i will be on watch for all the day.
we go down a bit tomorrow and then up again into the high 30's and low 40s.
All you can do in this weather is hibernate and hope the power doesnt go off.
I have several stitching things lined up but I need a bit more stimulation than that!
I have almost finished the washing only our towels to do and that is done.
The internet has been pretty strange, I think that it is because of all the traffic we dont normally get in the area due to holidays. I couldnt get onto blogger yesterday on my small machine, or this morning but out here (in the hot end of the house!) It is better so I am doing this blog early.
Loved these sea gulls and their reflections when we walked yesterday, and of course there are huge numbers of people with dogs that normally we dont see at all.
I had to laugh at the dogs as Tuppy the old pug has moved up to the kennel under the trees at night, must be cooler, and I found Sarahs border collie Sally curled up by the shed in the damp soil where I had watered yesterday.
Max of course does his own thing and demanded to come out when I was doing the hoses and then at 8 said he hadnt had his walk, by then the flies were terribly bad and it was hot and dust was blowing.
Well off to hand out that washing and do the dishes and sit and sew and read. Nice that I did all the shopping yesterday.

Strange things in the sky

 We went in for an early first 2013 walk this morning on the beach near Hayborough and heard this strange buzzing sound in the sky, and there were these two flighted hang gliders, I couldnt get a decent shot as they didnt show up well in my led on the back of the camera due to the bright light.
It was a lovely walk and there was a small yacht coming in past the islands.
I have been making owls, they are such fun to make and each one has its own personality.
I find themf a nice thing tohave on hand and stitch a bit of when I have time.
today I am washing all the bedding, slowly as there is not a lot of water pressure at the moment, and tidying up.
The family laft late yesterday afternoon.
We went to dinner at friends place, a lovely meal and beautiful views across the valleys from their newly refurbished tennis house deck and were home around 11.30 and asleep by the time midnight came in, it has been a very hectic few days!
One nearly nasty accident early this morning as our oldest granddaughter and friends were walking home and they were attacked out of the blue by some young aboriginals, F had a nasty cut on her head from a swung hand bag and ended up in the hospital for a few hours, I didnt even know we had a problem down here.
Of course they shouldnt have been trying to walk home but couldnt get a taxi and their phones ran out of battery so were unable to contact family. Luckily it wasnt worse.
So no resolutions, just hope for a happy and healthy New Year and things to keep me interested. Oh and some rain would be nice.