General Chat

evening all,

one of the hardest things about the weather is no relief at night, just been out to pick up no 3 from work at 9.30 and it was still 27 outside.....

if only we had the water the size of SA in SA, like you Tony we have not had rain since Christmas, and now someone let the plug out in the Torrens and its a series of mudflats with the occasional pool of water......looks very sad and sorry for itself.......

even Adelaide was covered with a dirty brown haze today from the fires, the photos taken by NSA of the spread of smoke are unbelievable .......

care and good wishes to everyone else.......look after yourselves and each other......

nite all

sleep well

love June (CG) xoxox

Arvo

Weather starting to warm up again for Victoria, and expected temps to reach into the 30s over the next few days. ( Sun is Orange and the moon is Red )
Melbourne City is blanketed by haze and smoke from various fires around the outskirts, and has been for the last few days. Not great for those who suffer from Asthma or respiratory problems.( Best to stay indoors ) News reports tell us that there is also much backburning going on by CFA ......as they try to contain various spot fires breaking out from floating embers, and try to establish a fire break between the two larger fire fronts Yea - Murrundini and Bunyip ridge so they do not join up......so they warn us of a very smokey Melbourne city and suburbs over the next week.

Although any major fire threat to Towns and Communities are mainly contained...... The main threats are:
The KILMORE EAST - MURRINDINDI COMPLEX NORTH is still (going ) and now over 144,617 Ha ( 355 thousand Acres ) The KILMORE EAST - MURRINDINDI COMPLEX to the SOUTH ( 4km SE Healsville and Yarra Valley area ) at 75,034Ha ( 185 thousand acres ) .....STATE FOREST

Where as BUNYIP SP - BUNYIP RIDGE TRK ( going ) at 25,500 Ha ( 61 thousand acres ) The CHURCHILL - JEERALANG still going and at 32,300 Hectacres burnt ( 79 thousand acres )

In the.... DARGO - WHITE TIMBER SPUR ( still going )13,640 Ha

Where i live ( outer Melbourne suburbs ) we have not seen rain since before Christmas, and if ever we need it....we need it now.

Special thoughts also to our neighbours up North in Queensland floods ( Ironic aint it )...such a diverse Country.......and News reports telling us this flooding is the size of the State of South Australia.

A bit of a scare last night in the outer Melbourne suburbs in the north ......Belgrave, Ferny Creek, Kallista and Sherbrooke, Tecoma ( Dandenong Ranges Nat Park. ) large populated area's............as some idiot arsonist tried to start a fire, but was contained by Water Copters dumping thousands of litres to extinquish it........Police are now patrolling the area.

Never thought i would say this ( loving our Summer months)....but Winter and rain cant come quick enough for me. ( but dont mention that word ...Rain...... to our neighbour up North in Q.L.D ).

Best wishes to all..

Tony

Morning all.. We have had boootiful rain now for 2 days and I am so happy about that,,More to come this week also so I is a happy chappy...wish I could send some down south to the fire areas but praying for rain for them instead..
Having lovely quiet days and resting all I can..last week was not a good week so am making up for it this week,,trying to do some FH and soon it will be time to get back to searching parish records at the FHC not to far from me,,The lady that ran it has retired and a new person has taken over,,so I had better go and see who it is and introduce myself..

Glad the fires down south are gradually being contained and hope no more idiots decide to start any more...they should put them in jail and throw away the key...

Hope all are well and hugs for them not the best..

Love Mary xxxxxx

evening all

feel abit overloaded with images at the moment and trying to continue on with everyday activities without feeling guilty for getting on with life, going out to the movies, family fun etc

Mary, we have had the first piece of good news about the house, the council have APPROVED the application for the drive way and flat area, with some minor changes but the first tiny step has begun........

prayers and thoughts to all the Wattlers who have family and friends in Victoria and NSW...... hopefully the weather will continue to stay cooler and no wind...

nite all

sleep well

Love June (CG0xo)

Hi people, glad to hear that so far all is well.I'm praying for you all and any families in the danger zones.
Hi badger, gosh the whole world has gone crazy weatherwise hasn't it. We are actually having a hot summer over here and a few fires, also deliberately lit but nothing like Victoria thankfully.
Am gradually recovering and limping without a stick so must be improving.Tomorrow is the last physio appt. so a couple of us are going to go to the public pool each Tuesday morning to do the exercises weve learned and will keep the home ones going for a while too.Will probably be months before I get my next one done (Ihope).
Stay safe all of you, Luv Me

Hi everyone Well its nice to see a bit of rain..not a lot but enough to dampen things down and a lot cooler..John who feels the cold is back into his winter clobber and I am in a T/shirt and short..really funny..

Hope Victoria gets a lot of rain soon and makes it to wet for anyone to light another fire..hope they find out who did the lighting and throw them in the clink for life and throw away the key...

Am leading a quiet life at the moment and taking things easy..went to water jerks this morning and it makes me feel so much better..I love swimming and the pool..

Hope all are well and things are looking up for our Merle,,and she hasn't done a triple somersault over any more dogs and buttered up her knee again,,only one silly butter allowed here and I got the title..big hugs xxx

Well am off to bed..sleep tight all and Angels on your pillows..

Love Mary xxxx

Evening

Hi Sandra.

We are all fine mate. My own children are not under any direct threat, its more so their spouses/partners familys who live in the north and north-east communities. My main concern was that they ( my own children )would stay put in the area where they live, and not try to venture into any of these horrific scenes.

My own direct family, and my siblings familys, are from the Warburton,Yarra Junction, Mansfield and Jamieson townships, some which are on alert.

Barbs from the Neerim,Gippsland, Meriijig region........so also in the North and north east.......so for myself like many other Melbournians and Victorians, who have visted or holidayed in these areas all their lives,and know how much forest and dry scrub/bush there is at the moment, just puts us on tender hooks,as these fires race around all over Victoria, not knowing which way the winds might turn.

A bit of sad news for us today, although not directly close friends,we had heard of people /aqaintences we knew from our teenage years, that belonged to the Square dancing exhibition society. They were up around the Kyneton area doing a Square dancing exhibition with a group last week, but they had decided it was to hot with the weather being the way it was, so went home with his family to Kinglake and along with his wife and three children had perished in the fires.... Very sad.

So much heartbreak and sadness coming through, but also the ones who were lucky and escaped in time, and the goodwill pouring into these communities to help out others less fortunate is amazing.

44 Million dollars raised so far........and help pouring in from all over the country, and from O/seas.

God bless all.

Tony.

ps. A great link i use to keep up with whats happening.

http://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/incidents/incident_updates.htm#1476983215763

and

http://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/incidents/incident_summary.htm

hello to all, what can we say that hasen't already been said on the bushfires,such tragic stories unfolding and such destruction.
Tony i hope your daughter and family are ok,it must be a worry for you..
Much cooler temps this week but still very dry in parts.

well not much to report really

cheers Sandra in the gong

Update from the North East of Vic, where there are fires still causing concern around Beechworth, Yackandandah, Dederang, Myrtleford. Not much wind today and MUCH cooler, which helps. As those familiar with the area know, the ridge tops are forested and the valleys farmed, so the houses are well spaced and this is an advantage as each one is threatened in isolation and teams can be sent in when danger occurs. Stanley is safe so far - we were there ten days ago picking berries at the berry farm, charming spot. Two lives were lost last Saturday when it was so dreadfully hot west of Beechworth in the Buckand Gap/Murmungee area, which happens to be where my forbears settled to farm after trying for gold in Beechworth. Ten houses lost and I don't know about the 100 yr old Murmungee Hall where I've attended a family reunion in the past.
It is very smokey, and the mood in town is very sombre. There's an awful lot more very dry forest around here, and no expectation of good rains for many months to come.
Well, what is done is done, now we need to clean up. I don't know what is worse, waiting for stinking stagnant floodwater to recede, or bulldozing blackened ruins, we are a land of extremes. God Bless all those families affected directly losing loved ones and family homes. Mwah to All, Hz

Evening.

Yes...Not good news for the State of Victoria.

Phones ringing hot here,( Back and Forth ) as Barbs sister and hubbie were evacuated a few days ago, as there farm and other properties were in the direct line of fires in the Bunyip State forest area. After opening gates to release there cattle/horses, they with other familys in this area were evacuted to local footy oval, and then convoyed to main township of Warragul. Here they slept in there cars with there family pets and whatever they had time to grab before evacuation. Barb had spoken with her by mobile phone, and her sis rang to say they were safe.

Was only yesterday that they were allowed back to there property, to find they had been spared. Her hubbie then jumped up on roof to check rain Water tanks,and found the water was black with ash and soot, so unuseable for drinking water. Most peeps in these smaller bush communities and smaller towns are all on tank water.They were given an allowance of $800 to have Water tank trucks come to fill there water supply, and any immeadiate needs. Total devistation all around them.

Had been a little concerned for daughter number three ( Melanie ) as she had only just moved further out from outer suburbian area, and now living in the Mount Everlyn community, which is heavily tree'd in a lower valley and not far from the Dandenong Ranges. A few smaller towns close by are on ember and evacuation alert, and now fires moving into the Healsville area, about 15 min drive from her. She had rung me this evening to tell me they had lost power supply ( Electricity ) and although not directly in any danger.......she had mentioned the township of Woori Yallock had been evacuated ( Two community towns away )...so i had mentioned to her at the first sign of smoke and or floating embers, she
is to grab grankids and leave. The Dandenong Ranges are a tinder box waiting to explode, and it would only take one spark or one idiot fire bug, and it would go up quick as a flash.
We lived at Bayswater ( just below the Dandenongs )when the Ash Wednesday fires in Feb 1983 devastated this area, and my girls were small children. Its something i will never forget, as long as i live.......and the fires burning through at the moment surpass the Ash wednesday fires.
So naturally i am a little concerned re my daughter and family.

I'm sure they will be o'k......but as we as Aussie's only know to well, Fires can easily turn in any direction fanned on by strong winds at the drop of a hat. One minute you see smoke...then in a blink of an eye, its up over the ranges,valleys and ridges like a giant fireball sunami fueled by Gum tree, Pine tree, and Eucalypt..........and its upon you in an instant.

God bless all our Familes who have lost loved ones in this tragic display of mother nature, and may the long hand of the law deal with these fire bug arsonist, and i feel a good public flogging is way over due.

Best wishes to all.

Tony.

Hello my friends,Hz,Lara ,Edith ,BadgerJune,Yvoonie, I am so pleased to know you are all safe. i have just seen on the 7.30 report that the death toll is now 131 and rising and still the fires rage.Tony I hope your family are ok, I was worried about my son and his family as they live between Castlemaine and Hartcourt but they assured me they are fine.I thank God for this.

I am feeling so angry as most of the fires were deliberatly lit ,how could they do such a terrible thing, these people have lost so much their homes ,members of their family and neighbours they have known for years .
I can understand the police not allowing them to go back as they wish to catch the person or persons who have commited this terrible terrible crime.
I hope and pray that we do not lose any of our wonderful men and women in the CFA or the NSW firefighters.

God bless them all, we couldnt do with out them. My thoughts and prayers are with all of them.
Tony please let us know if your family are ok.
Kindest Regards Marie.

hello all,

Not much to say - such a terrible, terrible toll in the fires and also some from the floods. As far as we know all Wattlers safe but many have family and even more friends affected.

Love to all,
Vonny

I have been watching the video'sof the fires over there this morning,god bless all of you,please stay safe and take care,wether you are caught up in the fires ,or floods.
If anyone hears anything from bill,last heard of in Bendingo,please let me know,i know we had a disagreement but i am worried as to his safety,as we both are concerning to all of you others.
Somehow the excitement of us two getting our tickets to Cyprus has paled into insignificance.
Cath up with you all later,hve to get the grandsons dinner though we neither feel hungry,just very upset at the conditions and suffering out there.Fred.

OMG sitting watching the news and I cant believe the devastation in the Victorian fires, I have family in Bendigo, we spoke to them earlier and while their houses are not in danger they are all volunteers so have been out and about for many hours. Even my 75 yo aunt has been out with the Red Cross making sandwiches etc for the CFA.

Our prayers and thoughts are will all of those who have lost their possessions and the families who have lost loved ones.

June (CG)

Hello to all. I thought we had weird weather in Canada but you are

really being challenged. Good thoughts go out to all of you with

special wishes to Mary, J.A, Sylvia, cousin Ian , the Martins, Hensons

I will keep you all in my prayers. Please stay well.

Edith

hello all
Nice to hear from you Fred and Liz yes we are a country of droughts and flooding rain and sadly dreadful bush fires at the moment its hard to believe how bad it is but we live on a lake and it has lots of old rivergums in it well at the moment they can't be seen as the smoke is so thick pretty hard to get your breath.

A friend of Cassie and Jason's was in her house boat at the southern 80 and it was hit by a speed boat and she is badly injured and in serious condition in hospital ,her mothers and fathers (he is away in China) house was burnt down in Kilmore and her mother can't get to Bendigo hospital to see her so they are tranferring Melanie to Melbourne prayers needed for this family too
they are saying up to forty people may have perished omg please bring in the army Mr Rudd they are needed now

Tony are your girls all safe and Barbs sister too ?

Please anyone reading this say one for all those who have lost their homes and more importantly their Lives and for all the families who are now devastated in Victoria and in far north Queensland where they are trapped by flood waters
I know too as have seen the video of the snow in the UK we are thinking of you all too have to go and watch the news
bye for love and prayers

Lara

Hi Badger,
Yes we having some alarming weather here in Oz. You takes your choice -
yards of water up north (can't flush the loo when it's under water) or
stifling heat, winds and fire threats down south (the outhouse burned down!)
Seriously, overnight there was a tragic loss of life north of Melbourne in the beautiful forested areas, plenty of spots still ablaze. A coolish change is passing through but the change of wind direction makes it difficult for the Country Fire Authority. So it's all hands on deck down there, with quite a few
Wattlers waiting for news from their loved ones in affected areas.
We are also seeing pictures of your deep freeze and the havoc on the roads especially in the south of England. Hmm, (Hz takes deep breath smelling in that delicious bread) - yummy !
Keep warm Badger and Liz, ~~ HZ

Hi all,i thought it was about time i came onto this thread again ,if only to say that Liz and i are rather concerned about the conditions over there,that a lot of you are having to live with.
It seems strange to us still that your country is so vast, both in length and breadth trhat you can have such extreemes in weather.
Hea tand fires in some regions and floods ,loss of cropsand livestock ,in others ,and more to the point,loss of human lives all over the continent.
I note thatthe oz sence of humour is still evident ,thank goodness[reference to Tony in the pool lol]
I amsitting here lappy in use because my wife has nicked tother one,getting the first smell of the bread i am making,weeeeell,i have to keep my hand in don't i?
Stay safe all of you and bear up,the cooler weather is on the way. Fred.

Hi folkses, what a topsy turvy world we live in. Sincerely hope everyone is safe, thats the main thing.I'm hobbling again. A Large friendly dog decided to play with me last Saturday and launched himself at me ,turned in mid air and got me right across both knees. I hope your eyes watered because mine sure did. Pushed my knees backwards.Haven't done too much damage to the new knee but the doc says it's made a bit of a mess of the other one. To top this week off, I fell face first into the garden last evening. Go on, laugh, I did once I got over the fright and I'd managed to get myself upright again. I did say it was a topsy turvy world!! I keep asking him upstairs why I have to stay here and I think he needs a good laugh and I'm it.Oh well, someone has to provide the comic relief. Otherwise all is well.Life goes on as usual. Nothing too exciting.
Noeline and Chevaun are settled in to their new abode and I've got used to not seeing them quite so much. Shevaun is currently over in Thailand at the leper colony in Prasat. They'll be back about Tuesday I think.Rianna and her cat are still quite content in their little house. Kevin and Amanda's house is nearly finished. She's madly painting inside.won't be much longer now and they'll be able to move into it. GDno3 is living in Albany doing her nursing training and N4 is on her last year at school. in Mt Barker.There you have it. Not much else to tell you so bye for now. luv Me

Evening..:>))

Another warm one coming up for Melbounians for Saturday, 44c predicted.
I think the state of Victoria has moved north....lol
Country Victoria and lower N.S.W ( Boarder ) i think are in for a scorcher too on Sunday,and heard that they could get as high as 47-48c

Many heat related deaths accuring in Melbourne at the moment, and our news on tele tonight ,tells us the Melbourne city morgue is full ?.........and that the Morgue have requested that the hospitals around the city are being asked to help hold bodies. ............I think that says something in itself.

Most of England is under snow, and Australians are dying of heat exhuastion. They cant get out of there houses ( snowed in )..and we dont want to go outside ( heat stroke).........lolol
T'is a strange world we live in.

Have a great weekend, and stay cool.


Tony...:>)) *Who will be spending his weekend in his pool"