Hot, hot, hot

Well, summer has certainly hit here. Second day of temperatures over 40 degrees and the days before and after were and will not be a lot cooler. A week ago we had cool weather and rain and we played Lawn Bowls in the wet - the Saturday before that Bowls was cancelled because the temp was over 38 degrees.

I mention bowls because that is my new addiction. I only started at the beginning of the season and I am loving it - so much so that I played on Wednesday in 36 degrees, practised yesterday in 38 degrees and am playing tomorrow in 35 degrees. Am I mad??  Well I am half English and there is that thing about "Mad dogs and Englishmen" going out in the midday heat.

Here I am in my natty uniform - I do wear long shorts in the heat, but I won't bore you by showing my ageing legs.

The garden is really suffering in the heat and we have trouble keeping water up to it. We only have one tap and with about 2 acres of garden, watering is a slow process. I am always amazed at how the plants bounce back - well some of them don't, but on the whole they survive pretty well.

The poor chooks are feeling the heat and struggle to produce eggs in this weather. Who can blame them? On Christmas Eve our little bantam "Goldie" hatched out 5 chicks. They were not her eggs but the young of our handsome Plymouth Rock rooster "Rocky" and our own hens from a couple of years ago. The chicks are voracious eaters and will soon tower over their little mother.

Rocky and some of his ladies

Last time we hatched out 4 chicks - all hens. This time we have 5 chicks,but I suspect there are at least 2 roosters there!  Decisions to be made at some stage.

Liz Needle

Sepia Saturday 404

Such an age since I have posted, but here I am back again.  This photo was taken circa 1927 on the occasion of a fancy dress ball in a country town on the Yorke Peninsula - or possibly at Port Lincoln, Eyre Peninsula. (I'm not sure which).

My mother was a young primary school teacher from a strict family and once she left home and went teaching in the country, she had a marvellous social life. Young, bright single women were much sought after in country towns and she and her friends had many admirers among the bank clerks, stock and station agents, farmers, male teachers, doctors
and young businessmen in the local towns.

 These days their social behaviour would be very tame, but in those days some of their high jinks were deemed unsuitable for pillars of the society like teachers and several of them were hauled over the coals and transferred to other towns.

Mum is the one sitting down on the right. I'm not sure if they performed, but they certainly looked the part of gypsy musicians.

Liz Needle linking with Sepia Saturday

On This Day

..................56 years ago Elizabeth St George Hornblower and Donald John Needle tied the knot at St matthews Church, Norwood South Australia  - and in all probability their first child was conceived on that evening!!!

My bridesmaids were three friends from Teachers College - Lia Kontoupis, Kate Mahoney and Chris Wardrop. I made my wedding dress - white satin underskirt with a sheer nylon embroidered overskirt and a wide embroidered cummerbund. The girls' dresses were made by Lia's mother and were in autumn coloured floral nylon over white satin.

I was given away by my father - Austin St George Hornblower - known as Charles, but that's a long story.

Just married

Don's attendants, resplendent in hired dark suits were Francis Hornblower, Fred Needle (best man) and Bronte Schubert.

This photo shows Don , me and our parents Ron and Mavis Needle and laura and Austin Hornblower

The wedding reception was afternoon tea in Mum and dad's back yard at Norwood. We had just finished teachers College and had a year out teaching on the lowest of salaries and were as poor as church mice. I had saved up to buy the fabric for my dress and going away outfit - very expensive, a revolting hat (you had to have one!!) and shoes for both outfits. Don's savings had paid for an engagement ring and wedding rings. Mum gave us 100 pounds for the wedding and we managed on that with 10 pounds left over.

I said it was revolting! The outfit - pencil skirt and jacket was embroidered turquoise linen, which I never wore again as it was too hot in Darwin. My wedding dress was put to good use in a school production of Trial by Jury.

We couldn't afford a honeymoon, but as we were going to teach in Darwin, we figured that would do. We spent the first two nights of our married life in a tiny room at the South Brighton hotel - barely enough room for a double bed. But we didn't care. We fronted up at the Needle home for breakfast the next morning, much to the surprise of the family.

 The next five nights we stayed with Don's grandparents - in a feather bed in a heat wave!!  Don came down with a rash on his body and was most amused when the doctor asked him if he had been doing anything stressful lately - "Does getting married count?" And then off to Darwin to begin married life together!

And now 56 years later and still together!!

Liz Needle