Daily Archives: 2019-05-30

Way after midnight I was surprised to hear what sounded like running – gushing – water from close to, or inside, the cottage. I investigated and found that one of the little plastic on-off valves in the irrigation pipes feeding the micro-fruit-orchard, manuka, and bay trees had exploded. Turned it off and this morning replaced it.

An hour or so later one of my printers burst into life, again. Of its own volition it begins printing test pages – same as the night before – so I turned it off.

Otherwise a quiet day and I made good progress on my program. The one puzzling bit I struggled with was sorted out in moments by Bridget, screen-sharing this evening from her home in Khandallah.

Odd Leak In My Basin Tap

Oak Avenue Weather:13℃—22℃ 2.3mm rain [75.72] IBOrchard

We three went to the SwimGym this morning; later we went into town for a mid-week forage at New World, Countdown, Mitre-10, and Rebel Sport, not forgetting The Artisan Coffee shop for coffees and friands. What a life!

Rebel Sport for Karola to get a pair of swimming googles as Corinne, one of the supervisors at SwimGym and avid mutton-birder, said Karola’s eyes looked sore and she should perhaps wear goggles. As Mitre-10 is nearby I spent the time buying an extension hose for the Karcher K3 water blaster that Bridget bought last time she was up here. After she, Alex, and Natalie did some water blasting to clean the homestead garage walls Bridget said she needed a longer hose – so now she has it.

In the evening we went to a talk in the Hastings Library by a young chap (31 years old), Kinley Salmon. Born and raised in Nelson he’s an economist working in the USA – places like McKinsey – educated at Cambridge – BA with 1st in economics etc etc. He was talking about his book Jobs, Robots, and Us, a calm and mildly optimistic discussion of the future of work in New Zealand.

Walking round the orchard we saw that the proto-frosts have knocked back grasses and vines including the sizeable patch of Clematis vitalba (“Old Man’s Beard”) vine that covers the northern side of that section of the windbreak.

With Large Deciduous Trees Come Autumn Leaves

Attractive Weed – Clematis On A Section Of Our Southern Boundary Casurina Windbreak

Oak Avenue Weather:6℃—21℃ no rain [75.49] IBOrchard