Wednesday, December 1, 2010

'allo 'allo


Image credit: Unknown

Hello Friends,

I'm back in cyberspace again - actually, I've been online for a few days but have been so mesmerized by the Wikileaks 'Cablegate' drama I've neglected to do anything else, like compose blog posts ...



The weather in the North during October and most of November was unbearable - even my emergency lighting system wilted in the heat.

I'm not sure whether it's age taking it's toll or the result of global warming but this year the temperatures seemed to affect me more than ever before.

The intense heat and drab, dry environment was depressing at times, the whole world seem cruel and hostile to the existence of life.

It was extremely difficult motivating myself to do any building and I didn't complete half of the work I could have.



I did manage to complete the last section of the East wall.

It was difficult because of the height - the scaffolding in the pic above is seven feet high but not even that was high enough to finish the last few rocks ... as you can see I had to work whilst standing balanced on an upturned plastic crate perched on the unsteady scaffold plank.



I'm glad that the high rock-work is completed - I'm getting too old for monkeying about like this and am not as sure-footed as I used to be.

For the first time since starting building ten years ago, I dropped a big rock - I momentarily lost concentration and pulled out a wedge holding the rock and it fell to the ground, narrowly missing my feet on the scaffold and the window - luckily there were no animals below but I was so rattled by this incident that I had to sit down for a few minutes in order to regain my composure.



As I said, it was stinking hot all the time I was home. On some days clouds would appear and at times I could smell rain in the distance but nothing fell near me.

Amazingly, as I was grouting the last rock in the wall, it started raining - the hole was fixed and for the next few days it pelted down, making the world feel a friendly place again ...


I'm back in the desert now where one would expect searing temperatures but that's not the case ... being 80ks from the coast the air is quite cool and I have to wear a jacket in the evenings - I'm not complaining though ...


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24 comments:

  1. Welcome back!My blogging has been hit and miss over the past few weeks too but I am grounded this morning due to icy roads!
    We have been having arctic temps ,snow and frost which is very unseasonal for us at this time of year.
    The house is looking good and I love the tree with the red flowers shading it, from what you say it needs all the shade you can get!

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  2. Beautiful rock work on your home. So glad you didn't get injured when the rock fell. I agree.. I would much rather have to wear a jacket than have to put up with sweltering heat. Enjoy the cool evenings.

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  3. Thank you Peggy - yes, I've been watching your big freeze on Sky TV and as much as I've been complaining about the heat here, I don't think I could handle the extreme cold in your world ...

    The tree with the red flowers is a Flamboyant (sp?) - it is very messy and the roots cause a lot of damage but I won't cut it down because it does provide shade for most of the year ...

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  4. Thanks Callie - yeah, I am enjoying the cooler temperatures here in the desert, hopefully when I go back north it'll be in the middle of the rainy season and the temperatures will be lower ...

    I must admit that falling rock scared me and I'm glad all the higher work is finished now ...

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  5. For a moment I was scared to look at the following picture of the first picture. I had to gather composure to figure out what it was exactly.

    allo allo to you. I had decided to change my mind and blog again as Ocean Girl. And it is good to be back.

    Your house is beautiful made prettier with that awesome tree over it. I will go investigate what that wikileaks is all about. I have not looked at news for a while. A long while. Anything important, I believe my son would tell me!

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  6. Welcome back! I stumbled across your blog while you were gone and I've been hoping you'd be back! :)

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  7. 'allo and thank you Fazlisa ... especially for the good news that you're blogging again ...

    "allo allo!" is the name of an old BBC TV comedy series, they're doing re-runs here and I love them ... the first pic is a still from one of the episodes ...

    ... as for Wikileaks, perhaps it's better to stay away from the information keep your innocence ...

    Good to see you again :)

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  8. Thanks for your comment Tara ... I hope that you'll become a regular visitor ... :)

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  9. Allo, Allo, my friend. Good to see you blogging and updating us about your house. May more refreshing rain come your way.

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  10. 'allo and thanks lgsquirrel - yes, the world seems to change when it raines after a long hot dry spell ... the smell of the earth is magical ...

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  11. Good to have you back and unharmed despite a few risky bits! When do you think the abode will be finished? (Or do you not even want to contemplate that?)

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  12. good to see new pictures up here again.
    Be careful if you are planning more work up high you should probably invest in better scaffolding or hire some help.

    Your story brought back a memory of when I almost fell off a ladder painting my parents house. I slipped but caught my self.

    The candle pic could be a viagra ad.

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  13. Thanks Dave - yeah, I can't even begin to imagine when the house will be finished - the outer rock work is almost done and then I have to turn my attention to the more expensive stuff; build a new septic tank, fittings and pipes for kitchen and bathroom etc ... you're right, I don't really want to contemplate that - perhaps I'll never 'complete' it - maybe that's a task for my kids ...

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  14. Thanks lisleman - the high work is finished now ...

    ... hehe, yeah, you're right, the candle is rather suggestive ...

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  15. Its good to have you back. The stone work looks fantastic but I can just imagine how you felt dropping one of the stones. Good job nobody was hurt.

    I know what you say about the heat, I think it must be age :-( This year in France when the temperatures reached almost 40C I was very glad to have a stone house that stays cool. It never used to worry me and the hotter the better, not any more though.

    Have you decided what roof to put on the rondavel yet? I am looking forward to you finishing it all but I am worried that you will disappear with no broadband!! Diane

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  16. Thanks Diane - it's good to receive such a great welcome back from all my friends ...

    ... if I wasn't so egotistical about the whole thing I probably would have employed an apprentice a long time ago ... :)

    ... no, I haven't decided on the roof yet but it's looking more and more like I might have quite a few rocks left after I've finished all the walls ...

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  17. Forgot to mention that suggestive candle....... When we lived at Mafikeng we had many laughs over the way the candles slowly drooped in the heat LOL. Diane

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  18. Hehe Diane ... yeah, that's the way my whole body and spirit felt most of the time I was up north ... :)

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  19. Funny I was about to post,the first time in months and there you were .Despite age??? and the weather your place is looking great...and though I am nowhere near old enough according to friends to complain I totally get you about the heat and and crippling fatigue and clumsiness..I felt it for the first time this past summer, except that we had high humidity, making it feel 40 celcius. Yup global warming is upon us. Welcome back :)

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  20. Hehe, hey thanks Monica ... nice to connect with you online again too ... :)

    Yeah, the weather all around the world seems to becoming extreme - I don't know what it's like in Canada right now but I've been watching the big freeze in Europe on TV - I just hope my daughter is coping with it, haven't connected with her for a few days.

    I'm sooo interested to hear what NASA has to say later today about their 'finding that will impact the search for evidence of extraterrestrial life':

    http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/news/releases/2010/M10-110.html?sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4cf49270da49046d%2C0

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  21. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_peronne%27s_disease

    ouch

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  22. haha ... ouch indeed ... well, I'm not going to operate on that candle or dose it with vitamin E ... I'll just trash it ...

    ...thanks for solving the droopy candle syndrome ... :)

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  23. interesting blog,bravo

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  24. Thanks for the visit and comment Ian.

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