The summer rains finally got here...

Most would be aware that here in Queensland, at the moment our weather is being affected by an ex tropical cyclone, Oswald. This has brought rain, winds and even a number of mini tornadoes and just about all the eastern seaboard of the state, plus now the coast of NSW has been affected. A number of cities and towns have, or will, flood and the severe winds have done a lot of damage in some areas. Many people have already suffered considerable damage to their homes (from flooding and also the tornadoes) and many more await the flood peaks expected both today and tomorrow and expect their homes to be affected by flooding again. People who were flooded in 2011 must be so stressed, anxious and on 'tenterhooks'...poor things!

Where DH and I live, we're fine...just a soggy back yard, leaves and twigs and small branches blown to the ground and a dampness in a lot of the furnishings. Last night the winds were very strong and I lay in bed wondering whether any of the roof tiles would dislodge...or whether a neighbour's tree would fall on our house and front veranda...you know all those thoughts that make it hard to sleep. None of those 'disasters' happened though! So once again DH and I are very fortunate in that we live on a hill.


On Saturday the strong winds blew my pukeko ornament off a table on the veranda. I bought it on our last trip to NZ because I think that they are a beautiful bird. When this one broke I quickly removed other little statues and a lantern to a safer spot...poor pukeko!

This was taken on Saturday afternoon when the rain became heavier...

Reflections in the water on the veranda! (the plate had had a snack of chicken scraps for  Eduardo :-)) 

The view from the kitchen window...looking west. Those pencil pines in the photo were bending with the wind at alarming angles, but every time  I took a photo they were upright! lol

The winds just blew the rain on to the veranda. The rain is so heavy to the north east that the homes and the hill in the distance are 'invisible'

I managed to bring in some of the cushions and a quilt which  are normally on the cane sofa on the veranda; they still 'feel' damp so we're looking forward to sunshine to dry and air everything.

The winds just stripped the crepe myrtle trees of most of their leaves...

My frangipani is 'listing'. It normally stands up straighter and gives a bit of summer shade to the garden bed in the background. I have to investigate the reason for the list...

Just got a text message from DD2. She and her housemate have been without power for 16 hours and they need to charge their phones. And of course DH and I have been fortunate enough to have power (and a working phone land line, which many people don't have at the moment), so the girls can recharge their phones here.
Spare a thought for those who are not so fortunate here at the moment.

Some great ideas from a blog that I follow...

For a little while I've been following some blogs via email. This has worked really well while I have been so busy working. Every day I can find time to check my emails but lately haven't always found the time to check in on my blog's dashboard. (I do plan to catch up on a lot of reading of blogs when I'm able, such as next weekend)
I want to share a link to a blog that I follow called 'Frugal and Thriving'. If you're like me, you hate putting excess jars/bottles into the recycling bin, especially all those Moccono (a brand of coffee) jars. F&T's blog post showcases a number of ideas and links for using jars creatively. I loved this post!
here

We've been having slightly crazy weather here over the past few weeks. Lots of clouds that come up quickly and bring a few showers. The garden is full of weeds and mosquitoes are a bit of a problem in the evening. The weather is getting more like what it was when I was a girl...a definite rainy season in the subtropics of the state where I live. That old saying comes to mind...'the more things change, the more they stay the same!'