And Then, the Fence Blew Down!

So there we were, my wife, the lady next door and I, all standing looking at our former fence!

We’d been putting off replacing the thing for years, fixing palings and propping it up as it needed, but the storm that had just passed through the area proved to be more than it could handle!

Calling it a storm may be exaggerating a bit – probably not much more than a shower and a good gust of wind or three, but it had certainly done its work!

We hadn’t bothered mowing the grass for a little while, as you can probably see from the photo above. We’d had an extended dry spell, and once the rain came it made sense to let the grass recover a bit before mowing it! (Well, that’s my story, and I happen to think it’s a pretty good one, so I will stick to it!)

Anyway, we’re standing out there and the ladies are wondering aloud “what are we going to do?”.

“I’m going to burn it,” I said, “that’s what I’m going to do!”

And that is exactly what my grandson and I have been doing. Bit by bit.

And toasting marshmallows!

As well as tossing potatoes into the hot ashes just before dinner, and then having them covered in cheese and sour cream!

That was a touch my own Dad would have liked, and I can still remember sitting around a campfire with him all those years back, talking about life, the universe and everything!

So passing on the tradition to a new generation is pretty special.

I must admit that on the first night we had the marshmallows, it was a bit of a shock to find the five year old on the step ladder in the living room, trying to attach an old camera tripod to the ceiling fan!

I guess that I may have underestimated the amount of sugar in those things, eh?

Anyway, it was just the right time to hand him back to his Mum for the night!

I’ve kept a close watch on the sugary stuff since.

But it’s been a great week as far as exercise is concerned as well. The boy and I have been out chopping and sawing of an afternoon, getting everything organized for the evening’s activities.

We’re waiting on the quote for the new fence. And another for the retaining wall that runs under it.

The wall was constructed of old railway sleepers, and they have been there for years as well, having definitely seen better days. I think concrete may be the go this time.

That’s the thing about home ownership, there’s always something to be done.

We bought our house as a renovation rescue some years back, and have been fixing things as we’ve gone along.

Sometimes I feel like selling up and buying a campervan, but I’d need somewhere to come home to occasionally.

It doesn’t happen often, just every now and again when it feels like we’re living in the 1986 movie, The Moneypit (starred Tom Hanks and Shelley Long).

About every second week!

This weekend brought the chance to get out and do stuff.

My grandson and I often go out to the airport on Saturday mornings and watch what is going on.

This week we found the old DC3 airplane (above), which was a bit of a treat for us.

After watching planes take off and land for a while, and seeing a helicopter land and fly away again, it was on to other things.

This week he is on the lookout for books, so it was off to check the local markets and garage sales.

We arrived at the Riverside Markets on the way back into town from the airport to look for some books.

The books there weren’t really that interesting for a five year old, so we settled for a toy helicopter similar to the one we’d seen at the airport and a matchbox car to add to his collection.

And an alpaca fleece for She Who Must Be Obeyed, but spinning isn’t for us, so we ignored the sheep fleeces that were there.

Below: It was all happening at the Riverside markets at Berry Park!

Then it was on to the Artisan markets in town!

We were under the impression that there was going to be a book stall there, but we were disappointed again.

A couple of laps around looking and turning our noses up at stuff like scented candles and such was enough for us.

Fortunately, we found an op shop down the road and bought a heap of books for $5.00, which should keep him happy for a while.

There is a charity book sale on here in town in a few weeks.

It will be a good chance for him to get a few new books, as well as learn a bit more about giving, by donating his old ones for the cause.

After all that, it was time to go home for more chopping and burning.

And marshmallow and pizza this time.

Plus a glass or three of pinot grigio to finish off the day.

I don’t really know how the “other half” live, but life is pretty good to us here!