The Gathering Storm.

I couldn’t believe it when I asked what our jobs were today and Dulcie said “Make a batch a’Anzacs.’

We made biscuits yesterday! This was Will’s fault though. She’d asked him if there was anything he wanted and he had said “Anzacs to take to Frogknot.”

We made them in no time, like the crack team we are becoming. Dulcie mixed the wet ingredients I did the dry and then combined them. We both rolled them out and then she kept an eye on them in the oven.

I hung out her washing and swept out the pergola and then we sat in the rising humidity and contemplated rain.

After lunch we played ‘Knock Poker again and this time I won three games in a row. What a turn around!  We agreed to have a decider with Dulcie winning the three games yesterday and me the three today. I beat her again!

I won’t tell you what she said but it involved a preposition (the opposite of down) and my fundament. I quite fancy my chances at strip poker now...but on second thoughts  I might just not mention it.

After weeks of dry weather there is finally a chance of some decent rain! Down in the Blue Mountains where those terrible fires were recently they have already had a few much needed downpours but the’ trough’, that is what we meteorologists call it, responsible for all this rain is heading slowly our way. But this is Australia and it is not as simple as just droplets of water merrily falling from the fluffy clouds...oh no! It would seem to me that if you want that rain then you have to put up with thunder, lightning and wind!

There have been two storms while I have been here and both passed over within about 30 minutes. During the first one lightning struck a tree causing it to explode and damage houses and cars in the area. This was in an area about 5kms away. During the second one, again only a few kms away, a sudden gust of wind ripped the roof off a house and flung it into their garden.

We were sat watching telly just before tea and the phone rang beside Dulcie. She jumped, as she always does and cried ‘Good God!’

She picked it up, listened, said ‘Right Iris’ then put the phone down.

‘It was Iris,’ she said. ‘Something about put Channel 7 on now.’

She put Channel 7 on and we sat watching some bad quiz show, bemused.

‘Is one of Iris’s relatives one of the contestants perhaps?’ I asked helpfully.

The phone rang again, Dulcie jumped again and said ‘Good God!’ ...again.

She listened, said ‘ Yes, Iris,’ and out the phone down again.

‘It’s Channel 10.’ she said, ‘Something about a storm at Stanthorpe.’

The news was on Channel 10 and sure enough they reported that Stanthorpe had been hit by a huge storm and the roof of a motel had been ripped off. It showed pictures of water running down the street and seemingly pouring out of doorways.

‘Good God!’ said Dulcie.

Hardly ‘good’ I thought! I’m sure I remember him making a promise.

We are off up there tomorrow and hopefully if the roof has not been ripped off, trees haven’t been blown down and the repairs we made have worked, Frogknot might still be there.

After tea Will went off to a meeting for work...so much for flippin’part time! Vampires! They want blood and don’t want to pay for it!

Thinking of me on my own again Dulcie suggested Euchre. (Ha! She knows I would beat her at Poker!...she has created a monster! Muahahahahahahahaha!)

She whipped my fundament!...and went to bed.

As I was writing this a storm has passed over and there was one crack of thunder that made me squeal like a girl and clutch my invisible pearls.

It’s life Britain...but not as you know it!