TEA ROOM # 28

I forgot to say to everyone battling floods up North stay safe too. It looks bad up there and down South too,we are thinking of you all, please let us know you are safe. 14 deaths in Vic ...unspeakable.

I hadn't seen the news today,that is just shocking all that loss of life!

Judy the scenes are just dreadful ...brings back horrible memories of our black Christmas ...they say there may be over 40 dead and that the conditions are worse than ash wednesday, I feel sick thinking about what they are going through there, even when you are saved like we were there was no Electricity ...no water ...you could not go anywhere for days. Jean are you there?

Chrissy,I've just seen the news...unbelievable ,60 homes at least gone just in one area and now the police& emergency service workers have to comb through all that from early tomorrow looking for any loss of life...they are asking/telling any sightseers to keep away from these areas....how tragic for everyone concerned..and now they say the cooler change has come through and the temp tomorrow will only reach a max of 26c...20degree difference!

Good luck all. Just left ABC site and things seem pretty bad. All take care and stay safe. Lee

Chrissy, Have been in touch with Jean's hubby. Everything is okay. Jean will get in touch with us all in the morning . Colleen

Not going to sleep much tonight ...

Gee thanks mate ...whew, my heart goes out to our Victorian folk ...
see you all in the morning ...

Some places in Vic reached a max of 48c today...and they are saying now with the cooler change coming through it could make things even worse in some areas...how much worse can it get!

morning to all ,
It is a sad day it is heart breaking hearing about the loss of life and homes .
A very big to thank you to our fire fighters all round the country and all volunteers who give their time to help .
My thoughts and prays are with all.-------Sammut

Hello Everyone. Thank you for your concern and for taking the time to contact us. Hubby was amazed that people I have never met would take the time to contact us. I told him, that the people on DG are much nicer than some people we have met.
It was a long night as the phone was going and the pager was going . Hubby was called down to the HQ twice after he finally got home . He had to go down and get a generator out for use at the fire. . He just got into bed and was called out again. Poor thing , he was up at 6.30am with more phone calls.
The fire was a fair way from us but with the wind could have gone a long way. Only a wind change did save the town of Coleraine from a lot of damage. Plus a water bomber was a great help.
Our fires are usually in more open country. Although there is a lot of forest and hilly areas, we are a lot better off than the fires that get into the mountain areas.
My sympathies go out to all those who have lost loved ones in the other fires. Losing a home is terrible with all the memories contained but losing a loved one is devastating.
There is still lightning forecast which is a worry. The terrible thing is knowing that another human being can deliberately light a fire with the knowledge that it could kill.
I also feel for all the people at the top end of our country with all the floods. I hope all are safe.
It is certainly the land of contrasts. The morning is quite cool here and calm after the wild winds of yesterday.
It can be deceptive and the danger is still very real.
I will be looking around the garden today and giving thanks that it is there and that I can enjoy it.
I am going off again now as hubby needs some help with a few things . I usually answer the other phone while he is on the radio and our other line to CFA. He has to have me chasing him to make sure he stops to eat and drink. It is easy to lose track when he is on the phone trying to get relief crews . He is always thinking of the others not himself.
I will leave you with something nice to nibble on Strawberry Banana Muffins.
Thank you for being such caring friends.
Jean.

Oh Jean thank goodness you are ok ...you poor things, I feel sick at the thought of it ...shelley4kids? ...are you ok?
Of course we were worried Jean ...((((HUGS)))) and one for your hubby too ((((Hugs)))) we lost 33 homes here in the christmas day fires ...our wonderful firefighters saved us ...sadly Warragamba shops were never rebuilt and the town has gone downhill since then ...I hope and pray there are no more deaths or injuries and that the community and all Australia supports those who have lost loved ones and homes/business/animals etc.

Good morning everyone. So glad to hear that the fires aren't too close to you Jean, and Chrissy I hope you finally got some sleep. Much cooler here today. Did quite a bit of potting this morning as it was lovely outside a 7 o'clock. The plants are coping amazingly well, some have sucumbed to the heat but generally they're not too bad. Will be so glad when this weather is over. Brical1, Chrissy and I were doing the midnight post last night. I was sure relieved when I could reassure Chrissy that you were okay Jean. Anyway had better go and do some housework. Talk later. Colleen

Every year it seems some arsonist strikes..
some are mentally ill, others are just evil.
On our news they said Aust. Govt was looking at harsher penalties.
Lighting a fire that kills has got to be murder just the same as spraying machine gun fire down the street.
You may not hit anyone but you sure as heck know the chance is there...
hands up those wishing for a magic wand to lift the water from up north & drop it on the fires!
Take care everyone.

How true Dalfyre. I agree entirely. If you light a fire you have to know that apart from destroying property you may cause the death. The penalties should be in line with murder or attempted murder.
Watching people on the news who have lost everything! Imagine losing your life's treasures, photos, heirlooms, favorite things, all those plants you painstakingly gathered. Losing lives to an unspeakable act! Heartbreaking!
Steve

G'Day All
Hope you are all OK.
When I was younger I worked with an old chap who had the right idea for punishment for the Firebugs and some others. The idea was to stake them out on a "Meat Ants' Nest" not "Bullants" or as know here "Inch ants" they would kill too quickly. The "Meat ants" would slowly eat from the outside in and the culprit would have time to regret his or her actions.
Best Wishes to all Brian

Stake - extreme but surely effective.
As Dalfyre indicated they label most of these people in the 'Disturbed' or 'Evil' category.
I really don't care which category they come from the penalty should be extreme and immediate.
I personally don't think people like this are able to be rehabilitated so lock 'em up for good.
Steve

Hi all.
Another successful foray into maintaining my vice.
On Grays I picked up a blend that I don't recall trying before.
Semillon Riesling Chardonnay
Here is the description:
BETHANY WINES `THE MANSE` SEMILLON-RIESLING-CHARDONNAY, BAROSSA VALLEY, SA. A FRESH AND LIVELY STYLE, WITH HONEYSUCKLE BLOSSOM AND LIGHT CITRUS. SOURCED FROM VINEYARDS OF SEMILLON, RIESLING AND CHARDONNAY GROWN IN THE VILLAGE OF BETHANY. MADE BY BETHANY WINES OF THE BAROSSA.
I'll let you know how it goes. Got it at a good price because Mya's husband was not bidding against me. Just as an aside I placed a bid, refreshed the screen and found that from bids all over Aus there were two bids simultaneously from Caringbah. Both received at the same time to the second.
Anyway stay cool. Going to see if we can save some face and beat the Kiwis in the cricket.
Steve

Hey guys, Sharon in Las Vegas. I was just checking in to make sure all is well with you. I saw pictures of the fire damage on the news. It showed homes destroyed one after another. My prayers go out to you and your citizens that you all be safe. And yes, let get that hot weather out of there. We have had snow, rain, snow again and then currently rain for the last two days. We need the moisture so we are not complaining. My garden thinks I have moved it to Oregon. All is well. Starting to warm up for our spring and plants are popping up all over. This a pot that I have cordolines (sp) as the center piece. I have about 8 of these scattered around the back garden. They love the heat and the cold does not effect them. As for ancestors, My are all from England on both sides. My mother's older brother was born in England. I know all of mine were criminals because I could sell you your own shoes when I was ten years old and never looked back. LOL...

Hello my Aussie/NZ friends, It's been all over the news here of the terrors that are going on there and am most concerned for you all. I've checked the ABC website and getting there what we are getting here. I understand Marysville is destroyed as is a place I think is called King's Lake(?).
Am so sorry for the losses.
What else can I say... Lee

I'm shaking my head in disbelief,all that tragedy....words can not discribe the sadness that I feel....I will never complain about our cyclone season again....

Words fail me ...we are full of grief for our people, all we can do is support them in any way we can.

Prayers going to all in Australia !!!!!!!!! I can't even imagine the grief and fear.

GOD BE WITH YOU ALL.

footage on our news last night was just horrific...
interviews with different people, one said that he could rebuild his house and considered he was lucky - he felt sorry for those who lost family.
A woman commented that she had 100 dogs & some cattle on her property but the report was edited so that we didn't learn if she had to leave the animals behind when she was evacuated or if they survived.
So much wild life would have been unable to escape - the scale of this tragedy won't be revealed for some time to come.

we dread that some loon will light a fire somewhere on NZ's East Coast as it is tinder dry in many places.

Take care everyone
Stay safe!
Dalfyre

Hello everyone. It is so nice to see the wishes from our overseas friends on here. It is a terrible time . I well remember the fear of a bushfire , having been caught up inone back in the very early 50s in the same area.
It is so hard to see the death of children in these tragedies.
So many communities will be torn apart by this but others will come together even more. People are resilient and life goes on regardless . Some will move on to another place without the memories and some will stay. Our hearts are with them all .
Our fire is out, thankfully, although there was a minor flareup this morning.
Our firefighters will now be called on to go and help in other areas.
No punishment is too severe for the arsonists who deliberately cause this havoc.
Back to the garden for a time. I have nearly finished all the benches in the new shade house and once the door is done , the plants will start moving in. I just had to put one in already. So the one bromeliad is sitting on the bench by itself.
Today is quite cool so far as was yesterday. It is supposed to get warm again by the weekend. The garden is looking very bleak and I have given up even looking at parts of it. Autumn and Winter will be a time of major culls and replanting . There are a lot of plants that won't make it so I am just leaving things as they are until it rains. I look like losing a few of the hebes but will take cuttings . The plants have been burnt badly , mostly either on one side or down the middle and won't recover their shape so I will pull them out. Others I can cut back to regrow.. This is part of gardening, the good with the bad.
Thinking again of the fires, how could we complain about a few sunburnt or wet plants , when someone has lost everything ?
Better go and look in the kitchen as I'm sure there will be empty cupboards.
I hope all goes well for the firefighters today. Please look after yourselves eveyone.
I won't say have a good day but rather a safe one.
Blueberry Coffee Cake , for anyone popping in.
Jean.

I am just sat here crying for all the victims of the fires :(

It is beyond comprehension ...I am so so sad that this could happen in our beautiful country...so much tragedy..

So glad you are OK Jean.

Its all just totally horrific. If those fires were lit, I hope they find the degenerate #$%^s, lock them up and throw away the keys.

This message was edited Feb 9, 2009 11:27 AM

All I can say is morning to all take care -----------Sammut

So pleased to hear everyone here is ok. It's just so hard to fathom how such devastation can be happening in the South, while something like 2/3 of Qld is supposedly affected by flood.

Stay safe all. Jean, I'm sure it doesn't need to be said, but make sure that hubby of yours gets enough rest.

This message was edited Feb 8, 2009 8:47 PM

G'Day
I haven't seen anything from The Parrot Lady is she and her's OK.
Brian

we are safe. wandong hit hard. lucky to be alive. shelly

my heart goes out to all down south at this time with these horrific fires, i hope everyone is safe and i have shed many a tear for the families of the people who have so tragically lost their lives. As for the arsonist if caught give them to the people who have lost all and have suffered so much because of thier utter caloussness. It would save we the taxpayer a lot of money procecuting them as there would be nothing left of them to prosecute. I would personally like to thank the many firefighters volunteers and countless people who are out there trying to help these people. If i could i would hug you all for the terrific job you are doing.
There is sunshine up here today and i swore after watching the news last night i would never complain about the rain again.
I send all my best wishes to everyone down south to stay safe.
Shelly :)

If only our tears could put out the fires.

Watching the news. Our hearts go out to you from Canada.

Not too many times has Budgieman been reduced to tears. Last night watching the news I had to leave the room for the solace of my shed. To see and hear people say 'I lost everything but I still have the people I love so really i've lost nothing'.
Thanks to al the os people for your concern. It seems to be getting worse by the day in terms of lost life. We can't begin to imagine....

Hello All, Will fly our Federal Standard at half-mast today in memory of the loss of lives and the continued destruction. Just too troubled for all of you to say more. Lee

G'Day Leeflea,
I noticed back some months ago you asked for some pictures of the Australian animals. These are photos of the Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat which is now the Faunal emblem of Sth Aust. Back in the late 1960s it was feared by some people that this sub species was in danger of extinction because of overgrazing and drought.
So some of us volunteered to take some of them while funds were raised and a reserve purchased and when the drought broke the animals were to be returned to the reserve. The reserve was established and when the feed returned it was found that sufficient animals had survived that we did not need to return our animals if we wanted to keep them and keep a diary with the information being returned to the then Flora & Fauna Dept. We successfully bred these animals and the photos are of the Mother, Father and Young. I hope these photos are clear enough for you to see, the bottom left photo is of a young in its mother's pouch. Because these are a burrowing marsupial their pouch faces backwards not forwards or up like the Kangsroos etc.

Stake, how so kind as to send pics and info on the Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat. I didn't know such a species existed. Thanks for allowing me to learn something new.
Since early childhood, I've been interested in marsupials thanks to a librarian. I suppose it's unfair of me for not mentioning the other lesser known animals in AU but the most popularly photographed are the ones I know. Didn't know of the Spotted quoll until a couple weeks ago on Animal Planet where surrogate 'mothers' (the human kind) were hand raising them to be returned to the wild.
I'm so pleased the population of the Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat has increased and that it is not necessary to worry a great deal about their survival as a species. I'd so love it if the Thylacine were resurrected. It would be equal to the excitement I'd have if someone here in the US would locate a Ivory-billed Woodpecker.
Stake, I hope you and all I know on the forum are safe. Do take care and please allow me to express my sympathies to your whole nation.
With regards and concern, Lee

Good to see some of our Oz members checking in here. Blessings to you all - I know how hard it is to see your neighbors in such dire circumstances, even if you are fortunate to be safe.

Kathleen