News & Updates from Vicki Avcin ~ AusCrafts · Page 80
Well after the weird weather weve been having the last few months, Spring is over but the rain weve been having has been wonderful for the gardens.
Now anyone that knows me, knows Im far from being a green thumb so I get excited when I have plants flowering!!
With the record dry/drought early this year in summer, a warmer winter, I wasnt too sure what Id have left in the garden and it was wonderful to see things flowering.
My double hibiscus has just started flowering and producing beautiful red/orange blooms and Im eagerly waiting for all the other buds to open up.
My Sun Jewels, well theyd have to be the hardiest plants I think Ive ever had in the garden.
Proper name for them is Portulacas and theyve popped up in all my gardens (some of which I hadnt planted them in) and make a very pretty ground cover.
Oranges/yellows/white/purple and pinks they really do brighten up the place. They close at night but open to a wonderful display during the day. They say they are nearly indestructible and I believe it and require very little care or maintenance.
If a piece breaks off you can pick it up and just put it in the garden and it will grow.
My kind of plant! Then we have the beautiful Queen of the Night cactus orchid. They only bloom at night and you need to be an early riser to see it fully open as soon as the sun is up it closes up.
A very special flower.With summer here tomorrow (1st December) we are getting some unseasonal heavy rain again yesterday and today and it is forecast to continue with heavy falls over the weekend and into early next week at least the garden will be watered well and I hope plants flowering for a while yet.
Ambulance/paramedics are always known for their compassion, kindness and their caregiving, but our paramedics here in Hervey Bay went over and above and beyond their duty to give a patient one last look at the ocean and Fraser Island.
A week before the crew had taken a patient home to pass away but were called back to transport the patient to the palliative care unit at Hervey Bay Hospital.
The patients one last wish was to see the ocean her beloved Hervey Bay one last time, so the QAS crew found a nice spot along the foreshore, took the gurney out and wheeled it to the waters edge.
One of the paramedics then came up with a plan.
He got a vomit bag, climbed down the rock wall and put some sand and seawater in it and brought it back up to the patient to feel and smell her beloved ocean one last time.
She was quoted as saying tearily, she was happy and at peace now. We have awesome emergency services here in Australia and the whole of Hervey Bay is bursting with pride over the compassion shown at what this QAS crew did.
Really is a beautiful story.
The photo was taken by the paramedics partner and has gone viral on social media and the news around Australia.
Driving into Brisbane last Wednesday we noticed the continued upgrades to one of the busiest sections of motorway in the city.
These have been ongoing for years as they open one section they start working on the next section.
It is supposed to make it easier driving on our roads…… well except for the large volumes of traffic that have to contend with area constantly being closed so they and upgrade that, then next thing you know another part is closed off.
Frustrating! But something caught our attention this time the number of yellow men in the middle of these works. These yellow men are yellow figurines in fact on pieces of PVC pipe.
Some just stand there and others point a finger up and they are all part of guarding sensitive plates or warning of a safety hazard.
Each figurine had been placed on top of settlement (testing) plates that are used by the workers to monitor how much soil can be loaded onto the ground.
This is extremely important due to the nearby wetlands making mud and settlement difficult to build highways on.They are also a safety component as it keeps the big machinery aware….well you wouldnt drive at a person would you?
Some of these yellow men point up when there is overhead powerlines also. The figurines have created a bit of a stir and it has been a good opportunity for the construction companies to let people know this is the sort of thing we will do in the future.
Well Mother Nature just keeps throwing this crazy weather at us again. Last Tuesday the forecasts were that we were in a stretch of the Queensland coastthat would be in for storms. .
There was a 2300klm line of storms stretched up through our State. That is pretty unheard of.
Some forecasters saying our patch was in for severe/supercellstorms. But being that a lot of the time and that dome that lies over Hervey Bay all we could dowas wait and see.
About 4.30pm we could see we would get something but the cell wasnt really that big.
It moved to the north towards us and some rain was about all we thought wed be getting. Well….. next thing we heard it on the roof but to our astonishment (and delight) it was hail!! We have been in this house for 10 years now and it is only the 2nd time we have had hail.
The storm only lasted 5 mins with the hail, lightening/thunder, the wind and 10 mm of rain in that 5 mins.
But thankfully the hail wasnt big damaging hail, it was exciting to get it. Later that night the rain started again and hammered down with another 53mm recorded. Maybe our weather patterns are finally coming back to the good old days and we will once again get some good storms.
There was no damage recorded from this storm here. Unfortunately though, Bundaberg (an hour up the road) was smashed from the same storm system with a lot of damage from 100kph winds.
Last weekend Hervey Bay Queensland was the venue for the 5th Round of the Offshore Superboat Championship. This was the last round for 2017. These boats are spectacular in themselves and a real sight to see.
There are 2 classes, Superboat Extreme Class 1 where the Boats 38ft to 46ft long and capable of speeds of 210kph with Engines 2 x 750 hp V8 inboard motors.
Then there is the Supercat Outboard Class 600hp Catamarans, with a Minimum weight 1800kg, Maximum horsepower 600 (2 x 300hp outboards).
With top speeds approx 185kph (110mph)The Superboats are too big to be brought in on boat trailers, so it is quite a spectacle to see these huge boats coming into town on the backs of customised semi trailers.
They are then lifted by cranes from the trucks and taken down to be put on the water in the marina.
They race in open water offshore.Hervey Bay has a reputation for turning on a bit of short sharp chop that can stand up and send the boats off into any direction for Sundays finals.
The shootout for pole position is done on the Saturday and the water is quite glass like.
Spectators line the foreshore to watch, and a supersize TV screen is also put up for those who like a close up view provided by a helicopter that follows and hovers over the course.
It is always a fantastic weekend and draws huge crowds. The photos are used with kind permission from the copyright holder.
