Bunny Prints

 Estelle was up at a reasonable time around 7:00 am. It was still a bit dark but there were these white footprints in the courtyard leading up to the door.  She figured out quickly that there was a game to be had.   Eggs were turning up all over.  It wasn't until she searched every room three times that she was happy there were no more to be found.  Then the counting game started and there were no less than 35 eggs in her basket.  She was used to the very small solid eggs but these slightly bigger ones were something else and the very first one she got through half and that was it.  At least there was a book as well which will last longer than chocolate.

Blue Eyed Trevally

 No we didn't do the reef addicts trick of shooting off on the jetski, catching a fish and bringing it back for lunch. We did get a huge fish that someone else has caught though.  The conditions are very calm lately and the canoe fishermen are out and about.  We also got baguettes from Ket bakery this morning and they were still warm. It will take a while to lose this extra kilo.  Estelle is off visiting Olive so we have some down time to catchup on blogs and sleep.  As for the fish, between four of us we ate only half, so today is going to be fish patties and chocolate.

Blue eyed

Red ball going down

Taste of France

Estelle crab walker

 It turned out the perfect beach day even if the tide was way out.  Estelle had some quiet play and some fairy garden play before lunch then we made our way across to the beach.  It was fairly deserted at first around 1:00pm but by the time we left at 4:00pm there were more arriving. It was like the Bluey beach walk book was being re-enacted except it was swans instead of pelicans.  The mermaid tail was there, the seagulls were there and even the side ways crab.  The water was very still and a bit seagrassy but Estelle still made it into the shallows.

flying with fairies

bucket and spade

Larger Fonts

 I have struggled to see the small font on the details panel since the last Windows 11 upgrade.  The text there used to be black on a white background now it is grey text that tends to merge into the background. I left a complaint (suggestion) in the Windows feedback page about putting it back the way it was. I'm not holding my breath. I use the details panel everyday, putting info into those fields and creating a psuedo database out of the file system for image files.  I have now used the Accessibility options in the Windows settings area to increase the font size by 20%.  This takes effect immediately across all text everywhere and has made a huge difference.  Whilst it is still grey I can see the text better due to being larger. 

Beach Report No598

 I found the beach to be in a very clean state this morning. I guess we are coming to the end of the litter season.  There were a few small plastics and cigger butts but not much else.  I found a good shell fully rounded and complete but we have enough shells around the place.  I was late with the sunset last night and could only get a long orange slice. The You Yangs were an exact opposite with a fog like cover over them this morning.  

Possible Possum Pee

 Some years back we had a tree fern on the wall here and a possum made its home in there.  So the fern had to be moved and we placed it on the fence and no possums have snuggled up in there since. But that does not mean there are no more visits. Regularly the path along the rafter to where the fern was is still a walkway, but now it goes nowhere. Those pesky possums still want to hang out there. They are very unflappable. I made noise, I banged the wall, I said boo.  In their own good time they went on their way. For some reason they did not dribble along our rafter this time.

 

Doors of Perception

 Aldous Huxley was a thinker. I can imagine him sitting down with his chin on his hand, thinking about stuff. He was thinking so hard he wondered what was at the back of his mind and he tried drugs, hypnosis, meditation and even chanting to see if he could get back there.  Brave New World was a book on every school list but this one is something else. This book examines ways of communicating without talking.    In that psychedelic time frame of the 60's, the Doors named their band from this book title. Another rocknroll claim to fame is that his picture appeared on the cover of Sgt Peppers. Maybe thinkers have too much time on their hands. He would have been a good devotee of pictionary. No talking just drawing.

Estelle balloons away

 Yes we repumped the no 3 balloon with new gas ready for another go around.  The trip to Lower plenty Hotel was timed exactly to midday and 4 hours later I am back here typing this. Seems like a whirlwind. I had the roast of the day and from what I could see the birthday girl and the cousins had chips.  It seemed the play room was a bit over powering but eventually they got into it. Not too bad considering Asher was throwing up yesterday.  The pub was packed with birthday parties. Grandpa walked in and said I am with the 3 year old bithday party and the reply was 'which three year old party?'  

Dune

 This is the first Hugo winner I read way back before this blog started 10 yar ago. It was written last century and I read it last century yet it keeps cropping up.  I also got some of the sequels like Dune Messiah and Children of Dune.  I got stuck part way thru that third one and never finished reading it.  We went to see the latest incarnation yesterday using my free pass that I was given.  There were only six of us in the theatre.  It is a better version than the film of 1984.  What I do remember about that one is a young Sting playing Feyd-Rautha.  There is a part three to this series so maybe I will go back and try Children of Dune again before it comes out but I am not sure if part three will be limited to Dune Messiah.  The Dune series is more than a franchise it is an industry like Star Wars. Frank Herbert's son Brian has been churning out books yearly for the last twenty years. 

This pristine cover looks nothing like my tattered worn out version

Finnicky Fin

 Went across for a bonus swim due to the weather fining up and the wind dropping off. I always have an awkward moment trying to get the fins on my feet in that half crouched position and mostly underwater. Yet again I have broken the buckle on my new fins for this Summer.  I was not happy and trudged back to see if there was any spares around.  Debbie had a brainwave to use one of those ziplock ties to permanently lockdown the broken side. This worked well which means the adjustment can only come from the otherside.  Note to self: keep the straps looser and tighten them underwater.  I went back across again after this addition and had a good swim out to the elusive sand hole. Still not sure how to get out there thru the jungle at low tide. Maybe bring a boogie board to float over there.  In the video the grass thins out as you approach the sand bar and turning back shows the distance to shore. There is a ray watching me on the way back.

orange yellow purple

Troubled Blood

 This is the 2nd of four JK Rowling books I got for Xmas. It is a 1,000 pages of whodunnit and when you have killers telling lies to cover their tracks how are you supposed to figure out whodunnit.  There are a few other ways to get to the bottom of it without spending the six weeks I did to read it. I have never tried the audio book option for any book ever.  You can also watch the TV show which we started last night.  I have to read the book before I watch the show as TV never quite gets it right. This one is a cold case with many distracting characters and make sure you are paying attention.  

Super Sunset Season

 Went across for a beach check at the highest tide of one metre. The breeze was stiff and the the water stirred up silty so not so good for a swim. If you are trying to cleanup the high tide line then maybe it is better to let it recede. I picked up a half bag of small stuff like butts and plastic screw tops. There was also the tricky retrieval of a milk shake cup wedged at the back of a woody bush. Someone tried to hide it but I found it.  The last item was a good looking pair of sunnies. I left these on a fence as prominently as possible, so if you lost them they are still there.  The Sun has come into proper alignment with the water now so the evenings are aglow.

Rock Pool

 It's not a rock pool as such but the only point you can submerge is at the very end of the the groyne.  There are often fishermen there but not so much at the lowest tide.  We went over there thinking that it is only a 25 metre swim to the sand hole but the water was thick with growth  and we were getting tied up in it.  We had the reef shoes on which was good cover in the thick depth, with the advice in mind not to walk barefoot thru it due to the blue rings liking the darkness. So we just cooled off near the rocks.  The swans are multipying at the moment, as they have discovered the seagrass as well.  The clouds are rolling now with a stiff wind so beaching will be out for a few days. 

clear pool

anchored shade

Currawongs

 Spent another 2 hrs out of the Easterlies and amongst the dunes on the main beach.  We drove right to the foot of the dune climb and parked there as I was having some feet trouble. That was yesterday so will be finding a closer beach today as I want to take a few less steps than the 15,000 I took then.  We did get some good bird life buzzing aroumd us, like the pair of huge currawongs that glided passed.  I went  across the road early as the tide was up at 9:00am.  I am still looking for the illusive sand hole adjacent to the buoy.  The growth does clear more the further you go out.

Pillbox demise

 Went back to the Collendina beach for a few hours and spied what remains of the old pillbox. It is harder to see now as the roof has collapsed so there is no longer a structure that you can step inside of to see the view out.  The original German versions from WWI were round resembling a pillbox and the name stuck. There are still views to be had from high on the dunes.  The breeze was Easterly and unhindered so the dunes are still good shelter.

Steeper is Deeper

 The steeper the slope into the water the deeper it is immediately entering.  We will take a drive this arvo to find that happy in between, as our beach will be drained of all water around 2:00pm.  I spent 45 min gathering produce earlier.  I got 10 lemons without actually picking any. Two were stuck behind a lattice fence, another half dozen were still in the tree but sitting in Y shaped branches and a few more had rolled under bushes.  The tomatoes are ripening fast. We are still losing a few to possums who we heard dancing on our roof last night. I did get some grounded ones as well as a stack high on the lattice.  The strawberries are not finished yet with six more picked and more greenish ones still hanging.

A Ray a Day

keeps the possums at Bay

Low Tide View

 Went across with the trusty rubbish bag just in case there were some items left from the other day. I got a single thong as the larger item and a few bits, including a pen, butts and plastics.  There have been swans hanging around this week which we have not seen before. For some reason I had it in my head that swans preferred fresh water but here they are snuffling around with their heads in salt water. The tide was as low as it gets and demonstrates how the sand has been pulled away with more and more rocks being exposed from the shelf below. Dimples!

swanning around

how low

Asher Cycle Circuit

 My bicycle legs were getting a bit rusty so I got out the cycle for a quick jaunt around the town.  There is a corner we have been going thru for years and for the first time a dog chased me.  I could see it eyeing me off but there was not a single bark.  I took a different route later on and found yet another housing estate about to start. The sign declares this is the last chance, the last subdivision.  Too bad, that five mansions have been pulled down to build 50 houses.  My main aim was to do a circuit of the lake. This will be a good off road path for Grandies to practice bike riding on.  It has a bit of dirt but is mainly sealed. There are a few snake signs around, as well as traversing a horse training base and then there's the bridge crossing but overall should suit grandies just fine. Bonus is the play ground at the start finish area complete with coffee van.  Simples!

Lake view

bike path

Time for a stamp day

 The weather has closed in again so I can spend some time getting the stamp pile reduced. This one has been cut from an envelope so the address is missing but a close look shows there is still a lot of information. I have been to Nassau in the Bahamas and it is not a huge town but in 1918 someone was keen enough to register this letter being the big ovalised R and I think the red 145 is the tracking number pencilled in.  During WWI stamps were used to fund the war effort and this is dated 3-Aug-1918 just three months before Armistice Day on Nov 11th. I think one penny would have been enough to send it anywhere in the Bahamas but you most likely put on an extra stamp for registration and for the size of the envelope. I paid 6c for this and someone specifically interested in WWI era stamps would pay a huge amount more.

LWE clean scene

 Long Week End that is.  I am never sure these days when a LWE comes along.  It was certainly a beach weekend this time around. On Sunday morning we went for an early walk and there was a lot of rubbish even after just the Saturday. I was expecting most of that to still be there plus more however I think a cleanup had already been done. I still got a half bag worth of small stuff including a red sand fish that I will add to the collection. Yesterday,  walking the beach path to the old Collendina beach, it was strewn with cans, bottles, papers etc.  When we used to walk that path we would jump the fence and pick up whatever was on each side, as there was a convenient bin at the bottom of the steps. 

Red Fish on Brown Rock

Collendina Report No 957

 Haven't been back to the old faithful beach since last year. We have gotten used to a quiet beach with no waves.  This was full on wave action and a local surfer came passed us and got swamped so he resignedly took his board and went home.  We were there for lunch but had to co-ordinate with the Taylors (the Melbourne Taylors that is) who were making their way from Lorne and getting to our place by 2:30pm.  We had a few drinks for lunch then we had a few more woth the Taylors during the catchup. Mostly ailments were discussed and Grandies.

Beach Time

Wave Time

Early Walk

This is the most consistent heat we have had for some years.  We had the fans running but not the aircon thru the night.  Debbie has brought back a bug from QLD so she is taking it quietly. That did not stop us going for an earlier beach walk around 9:00am.  We went as far as the Dell. The beach there looks good but the water is gooey and much quieter than our beach.  We went for a quick soak before heading backup. There were about 30 people now for a Sunday morning and increasing. I will think about going back at high tide around 3:00pm but not likely.

Early hosing

Dell sand

Fri v Sat

 It's warmed up lots but was very quiet in the beach areas yesterday. I went to the Dell for a spot of reading. Had it all to myself. There may have been one walker who went thru. Compare that with the this morning.  Dogs, kids and seadoos all over the place and that was at 10:00am. I went early even though the tide was not full until 1:00pm, as the heat is on today and I have to pick Debbie up this afternoon.  I swam out to the buoy, which I have done three times this week.  As expected I did not see any fish with all this racket going on.  I did retrieve a circular object from deep in the grass.  I have no idea what it might be perhaps something to do with boats.

The Dell reading room

Lost Halo?

Sand Bank

 From our deck  you can see a sandbank not far from the buoy I went out to yesterday.  The tides are ideal at the moment, timed for mid morning, no wind and sunshine.  So I got the snorkel out and went searching for that sandy patch. Navigating thru bush is one thing but trying to find something in the water is a whole different go seek game.  I did find some clearer spots and maybe it looks a lot different close up and underwater. In any case there was no fish to be seen. On the way back there were rays and I observed one on the hunt trying to snuffle something out of the sand.

Clifton Springs 2014

 It seems the HiCam people have been taking aerial photos with embedded spatial data from 10 yar back.  So a point on the ground can be identified in 3D eg you compare a point now with the one 10 years back and you can get the difference in height.  I saw their drone flying a few days back. I am trying to work out exactly where the below photo was taken. I think the cars on the right are at the end of Beacon Point Rd, which puts us at the very left of picture. Don't forget to click the photo for a better expanded view.  We had aerial photos and 3D viewers in my day but not drones. 

COMPUTAS

 A series of white crosses has appeared along the beach and as far as the Dell as well. There is a sign near one which says "please don't move this cross. It has been accurately positioned to measure sand movement in the beach area."  Not sure how they can use drones to measure a volume of sand that has moved. Back in the day, like last century in the 1980's I worked with a program called Computer Modeling Package Utilising Triangles And Strings.  Basically you took a series of levels at points covering an area eg if you were digging a large hole for a dam.  A month later you would repeat the exercise and with the two layers recorded you could work out how much dirt had been removed. Contractors were paid according to how much overburden was scraped and carted away.  

If this is a council scheme, too bad they did not do an as constructed survey when they finished the beach 12 yar ago.  I can save them the trouble. There is at least a one metre height gain in sand at the east end of the beach.  Also the high tide line now is way closer to the vegetation than it was six yar ago when we arrived. The underlying rock platform is emerging again and in places is exposed by up to a metre.  Maybe they will bring in some more sand like at the Dell last year.

To the Buoy and back

 I have been watching a few people swim perpendicular to the shore rather than parallel.  I went out to the buoy as you need to have a target to aim at. Once you are out there it seems a long way back to shore. It is probably 100 metres out there and 100 back.  I saw a great fish which I think I spied the other day. The camera went into timelapse for some reason but then went back to normal mode. The fish is in timelapse but I slowed it down, so making the frames last a bit longer, kind of fills in the gaps. I also have two rays. The first is the best as he swims away. The second one is sleeping it off without a care.  Back on shore I retrieved the last of the clothing pile from last week.  Also picked up a nasty dog poo bag. 

Jetty Rd Pier

 I have been wanting to try the snorkel here for some time, as the views from above show a reasonably clean expanse of water with not much grass around the old pylons or the new pylons. I followed the old pier line at first with the water being fairly clear then I headed back to the beach but between the two piers. I kept away from the new one as there were fishing lines dangling at various places.  That was the disappointing part, I only saw some very small fish.  Not sure what those fishermen were trying to catch. Maybe these are smart fish and just keep away from the area.  I will try for the very end of the pier next time as deeper could be more fishy.

New Pier

Ideal Beach Day

 I didn't know we had this many pairs of sheets. I was running out of line space. I got the bike out this morning for a short ride. I think I must have put on a kilo over the weekend. Last week I received a Carlton membership in the mail. It was not addressed to me.  A closer look says it should go to the same number house but at Clear Water Dr.  I took it around there and knocked on the door but no one was home.  I was going to suggest he might end up with some of ours. It's hard to get good posties these days. What if it was sent to a Collingwood supporter?  Also went for a short swim this arvo. Correction a sit down as the tide was way out. I retrieved shorts, shirt and a towel from the pile I have been watching for a week and threw them in the bin. Had to leave two towels as I could not fit them in. 

Flowers from Williamstown 

                                                                     Boogie Rider

Charlie Outnumbered

 Molly and Elyse arrived with a brood of little girls, to add to the mayhem from the rest of the cousins.  The chasy game got even louder.  I got the new spit roaster together just in time for James to start loading it up but then we had the three hour cook time to fill in.  The Metchers had to get back for more basketball before the spit was ready.  It was well worth the wait with a choice of chicken and lamb. There were still 10 adults and five kids for lunch, so most of the three kilos of meat was eaten. Evie held up well with all the action and blew out the candles right on time.  Elyse directed the photo taking and with efficient management got all those kids smiling in one spot. The weather played its part as the clouds cleared away and another two hours was spent across at the beach. Grandpa ventured down the ramp and back with a wade upto his knees as well. Not to mention a half hour snooze under the umbrella.  We had pizza for tea as there was no more cooking to be had and if I had to wash one more dish I would have run away with the spoon.  

Cousins

Grandies

Candles

Shallows

Evie gets a ride

Who likes the beach?

Beach Walk

Bluey quiet time

hugs