Tuesday, August 22

It's nearly a fortnight since I wrote my last blog.  I haven't been particularly busy, so I can't use that as an excuse, and there's certainly been a lot happening in the mad world of Australian politics which is deserving of comment.  No, I think it is the weather.  There's a lot written about how bad weather can slow you down, like a mild form of hibernation.  But, whatever the cause, I've enjoyed the past couple of weeks, allowing the world to pass me by and avoiding anything which suggests work.

While I've been vegetating, the local farmers have been busy.  There are lots of lambs around and the word is it has been a great season with a huge number of births and few deaths.  Carrots are also on the go.  The harvest is in and there have been huge trucks up and down the highway, taking the crop to wherever carrots go to be washed, graded, processed, weighed, packed, stored, etc.  For all I know, they might also to be DNA-tested, de-sexed, made halal and injected with hormones, but why would you bother.

Some farmers have not done as well as others.  There's a 2-acre field just outside town which was planted with carrots this year but something has gone wrong and, the other week, the ground was turned over and the whole crop has been left to rot.  I don't know whether there was a growing problem, or the farmer lost his contract, but it has turned out to be a bad year in that family's life.

We usually buy our carrots at Woolies or Coles at $1 a bag, small, insipid and bland, but today we were given a bag of the biggest carrots I have ever seen - freshly picked and coated with red Deloraine soil.  Nera was given them by one of her workmates and she shared them with us. They remind me of the carrots that Bugs Bunny used to eat: large, wedge-shaped and bright orange.  Looks like Curried Carrot Soup is on the menu (or Carrot and Ginger, or Cream of Carrot ....).