moving house

6.6.2020

Another week has passed really quickly as we work our way through winter. This week we have been able to get off on errands that involved driving. We picked up the milking machine that was being serviced and went into the city to get material to mend the water tank and seedlings from Ceres community garden. (They have a very good range of plants there that are superior to the average garden store).

Due to the rabbit raiders we have a gap in our vegetable supplies, and I have actually had to buy some from a shop!  Now that Edd and Steve have raised the walls on the beds we seem a lot safer and I have been replanting everything. Now all we need is time for things to grow. At least we have a good collection of pumpkins, lettuce, some silver beat and frozen beans and sweet corn, but I do like more variety.

On Friday Ben and workers arrived to move the cabins that Ben and Indi lived in. Ben had employed a crane to lift them to the hard part of the drive and then they had to be transported on a low loader to their new home.  This all sounds straight forward, but we have had lots and lots of rain and the clay under the thin topsoil is hydrated and slimy.  Even walking round the vegetable bed is a treacherous venture so moving very large heavy cabins was never going to be easy.

They eventually got one cabin on the way, but this involved taking out both gate posts and one was straining up our fence. Luckily, we found this out before we let the goats out to graze, or we would have had them all out on the road.   Ben had to cut down all the over- head branches down our road as they drove out and the truck driver who had arrived in a bad temper got more and more angry.

Even when he got to the highway his troubles were not over. A log truck had tipped and lost its load, so the main road was closed for the day with traffic sent on long detours. I am also told they got bogged where they had to unload too. I am glad I missed this bit; I think furious truck drivers are best avoided. They are planning to come back for the second cabin next week, if the truck driver co-operates.  It is sad to see all the hopes Indi had of a happy family life in the country being sold off but at least we can now move on.

Bo’s eldest son has now got his driving licence and the four-wheel drive he rebuilt registered and on the road. We have all been transporting him to and from his work at the airport, so we are very happy about this, especially Bo who had to get him to work by 6am every morning. Her other kids are back in school and can travel on the bus all of which makes Bo’s life less stressful.  She is such a wonderful support person for everyone. She did all our shopping for us during the lockdown period.  I have now organised to get monthly supplies delivered so I can still avoid shopping centres.   I think it wise at the moment.

This week protests are organised for “Black Lives matter”. Virus laws do not allow for mass protests, but we all feel that we should support this cause.  Basically, I think all lives matter so we will not be part of the mass protest, but I feel we should be. Looking at a list of sixty deaths in custody I found the name of a friend and a friend’s grandson, so sad.