Some Roses

My camera is having a rest :) due to me not using it, so I found some photos of roses that used to grow in the garden.
It's interesting to go through old photos, some taken in 2000 with the digital camera, and to note how far technology has come with the cameras.
I recall I had a Kodak, Samsung, Canon, Canon, a SLR Canon, Panasonic, DSLR Nikon.  The last two I still have, each camera prior I wore them out expect for one which I dropped.

This one is the only one I still have along with others.

What's everyone doing on Christmas Day?

The Christmas Tree in our city has been up for a while.  I took the photo at the beginning of this month.

At our house for Christmas Day we are having our youngest son, his wife, and their 3 little ones. This is the family that lived with us in winter, and looked after the house whilst we were on holiday.
We are all looking forward to the day, as it's the first time in 6 years that our son and his wife have had Christmas with us.

Last Sunday we had a family barbecue at lunchtime at our eldest sons house.  All our immediate family were there and it was a wonderful day.

I would like to wish 'everyone' a very Merry Christmas, and may your days be good ones.

Be safe.

Island within and Island

Not that far from Launceston in Tasmania is an island within the island.
We drove onto it and took some photos of what was across the water, then we went to Beaconsfield not far up the road.

Beaconsfield was a gold mining town, gold being discovered in 1847.
At the peak of the gold rush 700 men were employed in the gold mine and 26 tonne of gold was recovered.
Back then is was written that, 'the blacks' were there in those days.  Also on each side of the mine there was nothing but thick tea tree scrub and snakes.
In the town at first there were but two shops, drapery and grocery but soon more shops, hotel and so on.  Beaconsfield became the richest town in Tasmania as time went on, but all good things come to and end.  The past several years the town is a shadow of it's former self.
The mine closed long ago then reopened, it was in 2006 that there was a small earthquake underground which effect the mine, one man was killed and two men were trapped for days, these two were rescued unharmed physically.  A book was written 'Bad Ground' about their ordeal which I have read, it was a good story and never lost my interest. 
The mine closed in 2011.

This was where the action was when the trapped miners were freed.

The miners cottage.

A snow globe I made.

Up on the Highlands.

The highlands of Tasmania stretches some distance and it's where snow might fall in the winter time.
We ventured up there last week going to the small village of Poatina for a peek, Great Lake and Arthurs Lake.  These latter two places are good for fishing and there are many shacks up that way.  Most of these shacks have been modernized, some are lived in permanently.
The Great Lake is supposedly the 2nd largest lake in Tasmania.

 A small area of the Great Lake

 A loo at Arthurs Lake, the view is of the lake.

 

Part of Arthurs Lake

 A house/shack at Arthurs Lake

 The bush

 The white flower was pretty amongst the bush. In the distance it looked like snow and there were many white flowers scattered here and there.

A view of the farmland from the mountain, but only about a 1/4 way up.  There are many hairpin bends.

The Christmas Lily

Lovely time of year for the garden, lots of flowers blooming and in my garden the lilies have started to bloom.  We have a had a bit of rain in the evenings so this helps.

These photos were taken a few years ago - one outside and one inside..

Ha! I went to the beach.

We set off to the beach Saturday.
Green Beach which is in the north over looking Bass Strait.  It was rather quite for a Saturday and only spotted a couple in the water which was surprising.  Plenty of golfers playing their golf.
We stopped for lunch at the Greens Beach shop, and whilst walking back to the vehicle I tripped on a stick which in turn somehow got underneath my foot inside my shoe and cut my foot.  It's now healed thank goodness.

It's been a few years since being at this beach, and I was rather surprised to find the same shed still standing, it's where we used to get changed into/out of our bathers and sit out of the sun when I was a late teenager.

These days many people live permanently at this small place, and travel to Launceston each day to work.  Of course there are lots of shacks as well. It's hilly so just about everyone gets a good view of the sea. 

This is the building, men on one side and women the other.  Can't say I like the colour.

Looking to the north east.

Looking to the north west.

Me of course. The sea was warm as it usually is at the edge.

I made a frame for this photo.

A drive!

We went for a drive the other day, well, most days it seems we are going for a drive, eating lunch out.  You see we bought a 2005 new 4 wheel drive, it's good to take it for a drive and to find out how all things work.  It's right up my alley with all it's technology.  I can even sit in one of the seats and watch a DVD if I want.  Yes, I did do that, this feature will be handy when we take some of the grandchildren for a drive.
We sold my husbands (our) white 4 wheel drive on Facebook, sold in 24 hours, so that left us with one car for several weeks until the new one arrived.

The photo was taken with my phone at the Dealers Friday week back.

So we set off for Relbia, (not far from home) passed the vineyard, and a good one at that - Josef Chromy's - we went up hills and down, over bridges into the city, and my husband did blockies!  At his age, really, but I did enjoy :)

Alpacas

The green hills which of course become brown in summer.

Dr. Harry Cooper a TV Vet lived near here, but not anymore.

An abandoned little chapel past Relbia.           

What do I do with it all?

Having inherited all my late mother's crockery just what do I do with it all and where do I put it?

I have Royal Dalton Old Country Rose made in England Tea Set, with little jugs, sugar bowls, teapot, cups, mugs, sauces and plates along with an abundance of different styled plates. These go with my own.  Tea sets cups saucers and plates, and I have many jugs plus sugar bowls.
Then I have inherited Crystal glasses galore, crystal vases, and bowls to add with my own.

Then of course there were 3 dinner sets, and double ones at that.  I gave two away and kept one.  The one I kept is a Noritake, Highclere made in Japan, one with 2 settings. I put my everyday Willow dinner set away to have a change.  Then there are 2 full sets of Corning Ware to add to my own. All are in excellent condition, some things as if new. The list goes on....Don't mention the cultery!
A lot of the items have been packed in the garage as I can't throw them out or give them away. One day they may be worth a bit of money and my sons might benefit from that. I know where they are if I need them.

Have cleaned out my cupboards and took what I hadn't used of my own and gave it to charity today.  That made a lot of room for the extras.

Royal Dalton Old Country Rose. Royal Dalton brought this design out in 1962.

Noritake - Highclere made in Japan.  

I borrowed both the photos from the internet.  The photo of this Noritake sugar bowl is not true to it's colour.  It is gold, grey, and white florals.

The View from the Carpark.

There are several small car parks along the Mersey River in Devonport, Tasmania. Australia.
It's in one of these car parks we sit and view the ships passing, there are only a few. It's a peaceful place to sit in the car or go for a walk along the waters edge.

We still have a fair bit of business to do in Devonport since the passing of my father.  As the house sold in 3 days, there is no house to go to.  We have never lived in Devonport.

The Mersey River and Bass Strait. Devonport.

Old house opposite one of the car parks.

I made the graphic below.

Wednesdays Fun!

I decided not long ago to make the Initials of our family on some Christmas Tree balls.  I bought some tiny flowers and glue, used old balls to practice on and below is the result of a few of what I have done.

The photos were taken with my Samsung Galaxy Note 4, and I am thrilled with them, the photos are sharp where I wanted them to be, and blurred where I wanted them to be.

The new fascia and guttering all finished. 

Fascia & Guttering

The workmen are here at our house taking down the fascia & guttering, replacing with new.
The old has been on the house since it was built over 40 years ago, it leaked when it rained, was repaired several times over the years.  Yesterday was the beginning of the project and it was very cloudy, of course it did rain.  There is a mess at the back of the house and the front, but will be nice to have it all done.
The back and front door will be painted the same colour as the fascia.
We are going to have new windows all around the house and they will be done late January or February.

The colour we have chosen for the Fascia is Shale Grey.

The Guttering colour is Monument.

The windows will be Monument.

Dorothea MacKellar OAM

Photo via Wikipedia.

Dorothea MacKellar was born in Sydney NSW in 1885 a third generation in her family.
At the age of 22 (some documentations says 19) whilst in England she wrote the poem My Country which she is well known for.  Missing Australia, her beloved country out came the words with many alterations until the final verses were satisfactory.

My Country,

The love of field and coppice,
Of green and shaded lanes,
Of ordered woods and gardens
Is running in your veins,
Strong love of grey-blue distance
Brown streams and soft dim skies
I know but cannot share it,
My love is otherwise.

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains,
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel sea,
Her beauty and her terror
The wide brown land for me!

A stark white ring-barked forest
All tragic to the moon,
The sapphire misted mountains,
The hot gold hush of noon,
Green tangle of the brushes,
Where lithe lianas coil,
And orchids deck the tree-tops
And ferns the warm dark soil.

Core of my heart, my country
Her pitiless blue sky,
When sick at heart, around us,
We see the cattle die,
But then the grey clouds gather,
And we can bless again
The drumming of an army,
The steady, soaking rain.

Core of my heart, my country!
Land of the Rainbow Gold,
For flood and fire and famine,
She pays us back threefold,
Over the thirsty paddocks,
Watch, after many days,
The filmy veil of greenness
That thickens as we gaze.

An opal-hearted country,
A wilful, lavish land -
All you who have not loved her,
You will not understand -
Though earth holds many splendours,
Wherever I may die,
I know to what brown coutnry
My homing thoughts will fly.    Dorothea Mackellar.

Gunnedah is where the Memorial below was unveiled in 1983 of Dorothea. I took the photo when passing through this year.

Travelling through Young in NSW.

This little town we travelled through on our recent holiday.  Young is known for it's Cherries, it's hilly, green in the winter and springtime as it's in the hills.
We have stayed in Young a couple of times over the past several years, this time we didn't stay, we just drove through of course stopping to take these photos.

Young Memorial Tower in the town. 

St. Joseph's School. It's called St. Mary's Primary School.

The Church next door, This is St. Mary's Church.