Forever House #25

Saturday 24th August 2013 (continued)

Hannah's planet, stars, comet and UFO

Danika's landscape featuring horse, sunset, cliff,  river

Two weeks ago my extended family gathered for a week in a delightful holiday house on the river at Evans Head for our Mum Jude's 80th Birthday. It was so close to the water that while inside it felt like being in a boat - river views on three sides. My daughter Danika flew up from Melbourne and her cousin Hannah, my sister Peita's younger daughter, trained up from Sydney. The four of us snuck away to the farm for twenty four hours so that Danika could have a "Currawinya hit" and the girls could make a mosaic each to be laid with all the other mosaics on the Forever House floor when I get to that stage. It was a very special time of secret women's business; and I came from behind to thrash them at scrabble on my last move. Here are the splendid results of our girls' work. I am very excited to have tiles from these two most precious girls - they both love the Forever House and Currawinya - in the future I imagine they will be regular visitors with their friends and families.

Danika Donna Peita Danielle Hannah at Rous Mill Hall Ball

While the girls were here we went to the Full Moon Masquerade Ball at Rous Mill Hall - here we are looking fabulous dahhhling!







On our twenty-four hour sojourn to the farm, while the girls were creating magic in the Mosaic studio, Peit was keen to continue the curved area at the entry to the house where she has created a dry river rock wall over recent visits. So, she and I made a start on the paving - using all the pavers we had plus some river stones for good measure. The area - which Peit calls the Sun Trap - is looking fab. She thinks the paving looks like a war head - I thought a boat.

Peita watering pavers we laid in the Sun Trap

Today I brought out as many more pavers as Jeff thought my new smaller car could comfortably tow in the trailer. 

Peita has a plan to come up for four or five days at the end of September when we will bring out another trailer load and continue with this project. That is the next time I will be here to work - I will visit also in a couple of weeks for the AGM on the Saturday and a General Meeting on the Sunday while everyone is around, "to allow an officer from the fire department to talk to everyone about the fire risks on Currawinya and actions needed to keep us all safe. Brian would also like to discuss at this meeting Currawinyas policy on the use of sprays as there has been some discussion at past meetings and he would like a definite policy set down for the future." 

pile of pavers now at the farm awaiting Peit's next visit

Tuckurimba paved path

The collection of pavers I have goes back about seven or eight years - a friend was working at a Macadamia Farm, in Brooklet behind Byron Bay, where the wealthy owners were doing a renovation - so these pavers were destined for landfill if someone didn't claim them. I towed the trailer back and forth until we had every useable one - gave half to my girlfriend Toni (who made the gorgeous ceramics that feature in the mosaic that will become the Forever House shower floor - see in Forever House #16). She created a beautiful outdoor area at her place with her pile of pavers. Mine have been piled up waiting for their time to shine - and they moved house with Jeff and me to Tuckurimba. I will get them all out to the farm trip by trip. I did use some here at the back entry to our Tuckurimba house - I am quite fond of my little path.

Masking paper and tape to help keep the ceiling clean

Dave hasn't done any work on my Forever House since he and Jeff last did ceiling sheets and insulation a month ago. He's got lots of work picking avocados at the moment. And after that there will be mangos. I think he is letting my Currawinya fund build up again - which takes a bit of time at one hundred and fifty dollars a fortnight. Suits me really - it's me that has to keep on keeping on. Dave will get the work I have earmarked for him done in the fifty eight weeks we have left I'm sure.

I spent a little out of the fund today at Bunnings on the way out for moulding and nails to hold the stained glass window in it's opening in the dunny, and masking paper and tape so that I can mask the ceiling where the mud walls are going to reach it hopefully this weekend. The ceiling will get muddy as I push and shape wet mud up against it. I will cut the paper away with a Stanly knife when the mud is dry, to reveal a clean ceiling ready for its third and final coat of paint.

a Blossom I hope to transplant to the garden

Tomorrow I will prepare materials (dig dirt, carry water, collect sand and cut straw) and lay a row of mud around the mudroom and bathroom. I will hopefully manage another row on Monday before I head home.

I also brought out some cuttings for the garden which I hope to plant. The garden took a bit of a hit with the frost this week - but I think the nine or ten plants in there will survive as spring comes around. I would also like to dig up a blossom tree that I noticed on the driveway into Currawinya. There are quite a few that are self sewn along the creeks. I'll see how I go for time.

I don't think it's yet quite the weather for an afternoon bath/swim in the river - but if the heat of today is any indication - maybe when Peit and I come in September we can have a skinny dip.