Commuting by chain saw

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wind damage to the grand old wattle

Winter has come and almost gone and things have slowed down, the grass certainly has, with the result that the cattle are looking trimmer by the day. Not a bad thing really as some of our girls could barely fit through the cattle crush at the end of last summer.

In other ways mother nature has been on speed dial, or just plain speed, dishing out wind, sleet, rain and more rain. Whole generations of drought raised wombats round us have had to learn how to dig a hole that doesn't flood.

This year the winter rains have left the paddocks difficult to access. The tractor is definitely off limits as it turns them  into a Somme-like battle field, so it's just as well it's been at the mechanics shop the last few weeks for a holiday. All of which has nothing to do with the driver believing he is on a machine with double the horse power.  That old farm adage  'the only good tractor is a contractor' has some truth in it.

After the rains came the winds where trees that have stood for 50 plus years were snapped off and uprooted all over our shire.  In the days after the storm the only way out was by a chain saw as the roads had to be cleared tree by tree. Lots of fire wood but a 20 minute trip to town took well over an hour.
Ahh ... fond memories of commuting in the city - maybe all traffic jams could be resolved with a chain saw .. hmm -would that be a massacre or infrastructure management?

knots of debris after the high winds

Days later, trees were still silently keeling over even in the calmest of weather. With their root structure water logged and weakened they are all potential killers. A friends stitched up head attests to their unpredictable power. When his wife asked why he didn't move out of the way, he replied that the first thing he knew about it was waking up and wondering why he was on the ground with blood pouring down his face.
Two days later he went back to the scene and found he could barely lift the offending branch. It was either a glancing blow or he has a very thick skull. Either way he is probably lucky to be still walking.
                                                                               

Marilyn the feral fruit tree

It's a little early to be talking about Spring, we still have frosts in the mornings,  but the flowering fruit trees are ready to go. It's good to see that nature is not just about destruction. Our favourite little survivor sits in a paddock surrounded by neglect, her mop of brilliant white blossom sparkles in daylight and glows in the dark. Dressed in her party best she is oblivious to the weeds and dead trees around her. She's commonly referred to as a feral fruit tree, we prefer to call her Marilyn.  Sing the words to Elton John's Candle in the Wind and you'll know why.