Two Weeks in the Country

I haven't had a stint this long before on our country property in Gundy. I really enjoyed it; apart from the odd snake of course. What was there to enjoy? Well, nothing really other than the country. Somehow I feel more alive out there and more aware of my being.

I work harder too. And it doesn't quite seem the effort that it seems at home. I need to watch the water usage with the tank water out there and I happily hand wash all the dishes. Scrub the bathrooms, vacuum, dust - no probs.  And I love cooking the meals at night for the hungry men who have put in a long day's hard work.

Losing weight was a plus. No cravings for chocolate or bikkies or anything naughty.  Despite making some cakey things whilst there, I myself didn't feel like eating anything much sweet.  I've come back lighter; but I do wonder how long will that last. I've already eaten a number of chocolates from the Lindt box.

Hardworking fellas? - what an understatement. My Hubby and son spent an entire day removing the flood ruined engine from the Toyota ute and then remarkably putting in the new engine. My Hubby is the most inventive man I know. He used the forklift with straps and the metal pole you see above their heads to carefully insert the engine. And removing the ruined engine too.

 What an exacting exercise; it took ages with lots of careful back and forths; up and downs with Mitch at the forklift wheel while Hubby steered the engine very slowly till it lay precisely where it should. The nuts, the bolts, the bits and pieces all one million of them needing to go where they needed to go. I called them mechanical surgeons. By the end of the day, she didn't crank up right away, something wasn't right; to the starter motor by the sounds of it. A few rectifications; another turn of the key and motor murmurs. Success.

I'm told it would have been a two thousand dollar job for the mechanics in town - the labour mind you not including the engine. A very good day's work as it turned out. Better still, two grand up in our pocket. I raced in to cook the grass-fed valley T-bone steaks, along with coleslaw, beans, scalloped potatoes, pumpkin and onion.  The workers definitely earned their dinner.

I love windy days. The skies change all the time out here; they are so variable. I headed out to the cultivation paddocks to blue, billowy cloudy skies. By the time I got there the scene had totally changed. I felt so alive this day; the wind blowing in my face, the moody sky changing before me; I skipped up and down the road like a child. It felt wonderful.

While I had fun acting like an excited kid dancing in the wind, my two fellows took the opportunity to
do some very much needed spraying.

After three weeks, there were still paddocks too difficult to navigate due to the previous flood. Not wanting to bog his machinery; Hubby ordered a plane for aerial spraying. I nearly died when I found out how much that cost; but; such is life if you want to run a property successfully.

The road to our machinery shed

I loved my two weeks in Gundy. I'm seriously thinking of spending the entire winter there this year. Space, serenity, solace.........sounds so soothing for the soul.

PS:  Best of all - no snakes in the Winter.