We planted ours some time in May 2009, and it was about 2 feet tall then (or about 50-60cm). It’s now 8-9 metres tall. Very fast growing. Our plan is to grow it up and then trim and shape it like giant bonsai so that it becomes a screen from the neighbours to give us a bit more privacy (we can see right onto their deck, and they onto ours) and to soften the summer sun. Oh, and for reference, the Box is the building on the right.

Well, this photo was taken last week. Yep. They’re still up. They’re a bit rain soaked, the colour is running and fading, and they’ve become home to various spiders and bugs. But I haven’t had the time or the inclination to take them down yet. They still look kind of cool at night with the fairy lights on. And the Widg loves to stare at the giant “balls” blowing in the breeze.

While we are sure to still have a few more warm days ahead before the cold sets in, there will be fewer opportunities for leisurely outdoor time. Like this:

(from Lonny Mag)

I know, our garden doesn’t actually look anything like this. But, well, pretty!

(from Lonny Mag)

Doesn’t this just make you want to make a cup of tea in a pretty cup and take it outside?

(from Apartment Therapy)

It at least makes me want to throw a table cloth on the outdoor table and hang some lanterns or streamers from the deck roof. Maybe put some flowers in a vase. Perhaps we should make an effort to have one more outdoor meal while the weather’s still warm.

But don’t be dismayed. Winter brings it’s own joys. Cosy blankets, scarves, socks, flannelette pyjamas. Yummy soup and crusty bread. Open fires. And I can start wearing my boots again. There’s always a silver lining.

And that it fell precisely between our 2 parked cars, missing them both by only a few inches. And that the Widg slept through the whole thing.

Bless the boy.

to mow the lawn

to make a garden

to have a dog

So when we bought our abode in Warrimoo there was some lawn to be mowed, a garden to be tended, and definitely the yard for a dog to run wild and free. However the house on stilts didn’t offer us much protection in keeping said dog inside purchased land.

So we reveled in other people’s dogs – namely our parents. In January my parents bought this gorgeous little puppy Shaogo – who ran amock on our deck and generally caused a bucket full of mischief. The little slideshow is some pics of her looking sickeningly cute. (By the way if you hadn’t noticed – I have fallen in love with this google slideshow – damn you google and your irresistible goodies)

We have found that since our reno – and the addition of the deck (with the soon to be roof – thanks for the donation myles) these flighty green creatures have been paying us a visit. In fact their has been a plethora of birds. But these little fellas were very friendly and happy to eat the seed i scatted on the deck.

We bought a tank. And I am proud of my tank (as said photo demonstrates). We live in a water-conscious world and a tank is small way that I can do my bit to recycle, to continue to keep my small patch of the world green. Seven years of drought and 10 out of 11 years of below average rainfall have changed our perceptions of how we value water.

For me, the water revolution has impacted me marginally. Like all, I take shorter showers, wash the car with a bucket, do bigger loads of washing, but in reality this is a small, insignificant sacrifice compared to the hardships that are endured by those living on the land where every drop is precious, and every drop literally translates into survival. The biggest impact on me personally is keeping the natural environment around me green and lush. Not being able to water my garden frustrates me – seeing trees die that you have planted and nurtured is deflating. Thus a big shiny tank was necessary.

Tank selection is now like buying a new car. A visit to my local tank retailer turned what I thought would be a simple decision into a complicated and highly provoking one. PVC, corrugated, tall, squat, round, square, oval, coated, colour, pump, first flush. These are the tank terms specific to these tank tales.

At the moment, buying a tank isn’t as easy as rocking up with your trailer and taking one home. There is about a 12-15 week wait on most tanks at the moment with some places not delivering until late July/early August.

I chose my tank based on 3 points. Price, availability and flexibility. I purchased a 10,000 litre Aqua Clear Tank, made from Bluescope Aquaplate corregated steel with a galvanized exterior. Aquaplate steel has a plastic lining which prevents corrosion and that yucky metal taste from infiltrating the water. Suprisingly the steel tank was much cheaper than a PVC tank and had a much shorter turnaround than the PVC (4 weeks compared to 15 weeks). The practicality of a steel tank is worth addressing. Most PVC tanks have special mounts for intake, outlet and tap fittings. If those areas don’t correspond to the orientation of your tank, you then end up with a mess of plumbing to solve this.

Tank site is also important. We relocated our shed to use the solid foundation of the shed slab, as well as making use of the location of the slab in relation to the house. Our tank is plumbed underground using a gravity level method, rather than a drainpipe method which runs directly into the top of the tank. Also the slab itself needs to be sturdy. Remember that 1 litre of water weighs 1kg and 10000 litres is 10 tons in weight. Our tank installer recalled some very messy situations where tanks had sunk into the ground because the base was dodgy.

Currently our tank is empty (or near empty). We had the wettest beginning to a year in 10 years while they were completing the building of our house, but since the tank has been completed we have had next to nothing. However our roof will catch 55,000 litres of rain every year of average rainfall. How do I get this figure? For every millimetre of rain that falls on a square metre, 1 litre of water is captured. We get 1,050mm on average a year, thus 55,000 litres.

Our tank stands proud and ready to capture the rain that should fall over the next 8 weeks. Hopefully we can get it full enough to get us through the dry of winter and spring.

In a crazed wilderness called Warrimoo their once lived a man and his wife. They sought to work the land; to tame and subdue it. Over many a year they tore down the spindle and cut away at the jungle that reckoned to invade and destroy their protected home, set aside for relaxation and prosperity.

They built towering structures that cast shadows across the plains, moved volumes of earth to satisfy their hungry delights for transport and technology and changed watercourses to catch and harness the rarified resource of H2O.

Once there was a shed, rusted and ill-formed in its appearance, that stood on a misshapen slab of stone, set down in layers of concrete so twisted that one could see the very work of the gods in its chaotic, sloping form. It had seen the passing of time and been a home to the ants and birds which played from its sheltered vantage.

The man and wife one day looked at the slab on which the shed sat with jealous eyes. The proximity to the house and position in the yard made it a suitable candidate for a watertank.

Thus over 3 days a new slab was rendered for the shed, one more level and more sturdy than had ever come before. It was cut from the earth, paved and concreted. The shed was carried in a military like operation that required skill and precision by the man and wife, brother and father.

The shed now lies upon foundations strong, further down the yard. And the new tank stands proud and strong where there once was shed.

After conversation with our neighbour a line a of agreement was founded… [me tryinf to sound ye olde worlde ]. From this day proceeding, these two clans hereby agreed that in thither will be a wall of such magnitude that the vast collosus of this fair estate be draw and ne cleft in twain with a vast stretching monument to divide the two entities. So hereby stands such a divisionment.

…i.e. a wood fence. We have opted for a hard fence next to the house so we can construct some sort of gating across the front – as well as some drainage to divert the rain (when it falls) around the side. At the back of the property will be normal agricultural fencing – suitable for keeping pets no larger than specifed local hound.

Here is some before and afters – we had Jim’s Fencing come in – and he completed it in one day! Super tradesman!