I mentioned in my last post that our weather has been very hot and New Year's Eve was over 40deg, which meant that my night was very quiet. It was a welcome relief on the weekend when the temperature was much cooler. It was time to get out into the front and start working on replacing the garden edges and doing some long overdue weeding. Then I went inside, put some clothes in the machine to wash, and started doing some cleaning in my kitchen, and washing floors etc. This led to a cleanout of the fridge!! Also a job that has been overlooked for ages. I found all sorts of jars in the dark depths which went into the bin. And then I defrosted the freezer and looked into the depths of that. Which led to a quick decision, (while the weather was being nice), to have a bit of gathering of friends that evening. I made some phonecalls and invited them to a meal of "whatever I can make or find, from the fridge, freezer and pantry"! I still was working out the menu at that stage. I guess that is what you call a "potluck" tea? Very casual, in the pergola, with paper plates and throw away cutlery for easy cleanup.
The next photo is my nearly 87 years old neighbour, on the right, who is proudly wearing his embroidered shirt. The embroidery down the centre is done by hand, and is a pattern of the Ukrainian Hutsul tribe, which was his district of birth.
Nic is known for his singing ability and playing his guitar, and someone asked him if he was going to sing for us. As he lives next door, he was going to go home and get his guitar to play, but before that could happen, there was "music" of another sort happening. The wind came, the thunder and lightening played, and the hail on the roof sounded like gunfire! The hail was about 1/2", but did not last too long. We had our own "New Year's Eve" fireworks show, and it did not cost us a thing. (As an aside here, I will say that I think it was such a waste of lots of money, that went up in smoke, all over the world in the fireworks displays. There a lots of better ways that money could have been used).
And then the rain came, lots of it in a very short time, and as the following photos show, the gutters could not cope, and my plants in the pergola had a new watering system!
All in all, it made for a very entertaining evening, although it was quite dry in the middle where the table was. It was the biggest rain we have had for a long time, and our tanks and gardens appreciated every drop. Some houses in town had flooding, and I heard that a local business had their ceiling fall in. Rainfall recordings varied from 30-40ml, so it will save me a few days of watering the garden. There is a storm weather alert out again tonight, and I have heard some thunder, but in the distance this time I think.
Before the weather changed, I took this photo of a bromeliad in my new garden. The flowers are quite spectacular, with the part that is drooping out the end of the pink petals. (I know my terminology could be improved!)
All that was on my "day of rest", and I have to admit that today I have come to a bit of a halt. I have cleaned up the dishes in the kitchen, loaded another quilt, went shopping for a large tin of paint, and had a little nana nap. It is now time for bed, and tomorrow will be another day.
Blessings, From Jude
2 comments:
Wow, that was some rain. We've only had 2mls since some time before Xmas and although very cloudy and a lot cooler that seems to be about it for now. I love that you did a potluck dinner for friends. Hope you have a good week and take care.
Yikes that was a great day of work and rain! WE had thunder, lightening and about five minutes of rain! And not much housework, still I think that is on todays agenda, as I finished a table runner yesterday!
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