Saturday, October 04, 2008

Hard Yakka and New Skins

Babybro is a piece of work! He and Stressany do nothing during the winter but work and sport. He coaches a premier league soccer team and plays, she umpires netball and until recently was the Secretary of the Baulkham Hills Netball Association (pretty huge). So from April to October they are non compus mentus, in absentia. I potter about blowing leaves, watering hanging baskets, shooing ducks and maintaining things as best I can and Adam mows.

On the odd days that they had free, they took short breaks, completed their Sudoku or watched sport on telly. So now, because it's a long weekend, sport has finished, Pete has decided that he'll order two tip trucks full of pine bark to dress the garden borders which of course have to be weeded first, have a massive rubbish throw out, pick up all the bits that have fallen off the trees in the past 2 weeks and get everyone moving. Well he didn't insist but I felt guilty watching him labour so the three of us dug in while Adam tidied the shed and moved his new tools from cluttering the verandah. Really, this is tidy for our shed!

Steph put in the hard yards actually but boy she has more smokos than a brickies labourer

Pete was a trojan and with two of us shovelling and barrowing it really only took a couple of hours.

Oh, it rained . . .but that nice summery drizzle that kept us cool. And I hurt my back because I worked like a bloke while Stressany pootled around with a rake and had a beer and was bitten by a bull ant (ok that's a good excuse to shy off) Me, I had the biggest wheelbarrow and the heaviest shovel and have discovered that I do still have muscles in my bum!

Anyway, most of it is done. Except the bit where the bull ants' nest is which Adam has just bombed with diesel and some toxic insecticide. The only problem, their little love next happens to be on my side of the ranch! Make these boys angry and they're a formidable force! If any come in the house there will be hell to pay! They're aggressive and very tough so a thong won't cut it, you need a steel capped boot to smash these big boys, they're about 2-3 centimetres long, they bite and they sting!


So there's this little pile for me to contend with tomorrow (or maybe Monday given that I'm walking around like a cripple). Depends when the Voltarin kicks in, my back is killing me . . might be a good excuse for a Sunday massage.


There's always some beer drinking 'here's Wally in my shot!


Amazing what a difference it made. The only problem with living on a big block in a big commune is that the borders are huge! This is just a fraction of the border at the back.


At least the pool is clean, even Lily is happy to dangle her toes with Adam!


And on another note . . we have a saying here when we receive something novel or kitch "That's going straight to the pool room!" These things can be tacky bar toys, ugly statues, novelty drink bottles - the sort of 'I wonder who gives these for Christmas' things that you find in Tobacconist shops. You know, the lava lamps and semi-pornographic mobile phone holders. The metre high beer tin money boxes, and giant bottles of Galliano with the little tap on them, the glass yard that's broken out for 21st birthdays . . catch my drift?

Well not in our house. Besides a half size pool table, wet bar, three bar stools, computer station, numerous signed photographs of sports celebrities, the mandatory Manchester United strips, dart board and a signed cricket bat. There is also an entertainment system and a massive TV (largely for XBox nights and Grand Finals).

. . .then last night, these came home to roost. Adam's is normally at the band rehearsal studio and Babybro just ordered his in! I wonder which one decided they were going 'straight to the pool room'?


Two kits seem a little excessive to me! Pete's a bit rusty but it won't be long before there's a 'drum off!' Earplugs please! That'll show the new neighbour!

33 comments:

a. said...

Can Megan and I come pitch a tent in your yard? Looks like a lovely place to hang out for a stretch.

a. said...

Hey, I just noticed you added me to your blog roll! Thanks! I feel so special. You were the first to tag and the first to link me! I super love you right now! :)

Megan said...

Except for the GIANT ANTS.

a. said...

Yeah, except for those. But I'm sure Baino can offer some local defensive tactics.

Thriftcriminal said...

Ah, I like that kinda work, it's hard going but very rewarding. Don't kill the ant's, karma will get you (no plums for me this year thanks to my was-icide). They look quite cute really. Actually they remind me of the wood ants we got in the side of the Galtys, we called them piss-mires (not sure why). They tended to sprout wings in autumn, very intimidating!

OH BTW, still jealous as hell of your setting.

Anonymous said...

While you are in the mood my garden could do with a tidy/autumn clear-up/ make over, you name it.

Baino said...

Haha . .you two are a cack! And I haven't even started on the giant spiders (nah it's not that bad . .I like to scare the foreigners) Spring's a bit weird because everythings nesting and wondering for 'mates' so spiders are lively, snakes are around but the bloody ants have been there for ever. They're OK unless you disturb them. As for camping on site, it's a national past time when the kids have parties, looks like a rock festival only we have flushing toilets!
Ah you're family people, of course you went on the blogroll! pwn teh_n00bs I say (a young person told me that!) besides, I like your blogs.

Thrifty it's fine and it does look so much better. Why we have to move two truckloads of bark in one day I dunno. Actually I do, he gave up a day at the races for a 'busy bee' at home so wants to nail it so he can go to the Spring Carnival next week. . .remember we didn't have one last year due to horse flu! I'm just so unfit it killed me but that Voltarin is bloody good stuff. Yeh as I said, the ants aren't a problem unless you disturb them but shit they hurt if they bite! Look it's a fantastic place, just run down and hard work to maintain. If I was rich, I'd do it proud, fix it up and stay . . .

Oh GrannyMar, you've already got JD quoting the job! No way! We're doing lunch and chardy with Steph . .How Adam does this and more six days a week I don't know . .no wonder he's looking pretty buff at the moment! Bloody killed me!

Bimbimbie said...

Voltarin tick, Man U tick, bull ants ouch tick. Smokos? as in plural, wow she in the union? ;) Hope the back feels better tomorrow .. how come you get a holiday Monday?

Thriftcriminal said...

I once shifted 2 tonnes of topsoil in one day. I felt fecking great afterwards. Bloody sore, but great.

Bear Naked said...

I remember when we had to do that in one day also.
It was because we forgot to move the car out of the garage BEFORE they delivered the cedar mulch right smack in the middle of our driveway.
I also remember those sore bum muscles.
Bear((( )))

Anonymous said...

Love the photo of the ant ... is that yours ?, if so, what camera are you using ?, Mrs M is about to bankrupt me with a new camera .... !

I love the term 'smoko'.. haven't heard that since I worked in the Adelaide docks years ago !

Don't Bug Me! said...

Love the ant! Just saw some that were very similar in the Peruvian jungle - 1" long, huge jaws that will leave you out of comission for 24 hours after 1 bite. You just have to respect an ant like that.

Unknown said...

I would like a pool table as well but there is no enough place for it.

Baino said...

Tsup*! . .it's the October Labour Day Weekend! (Plus I'm off next week to complete even more Spring Chores!)My back's very sore actually which is why I'm up at 2am (then again with Daylight Savings starting this weekend I guess it's 3am so not so bad)

Thrifty you're considerably younger than this old fart! My best shovelling days are behind me!

Bear, fortunately we were up and about when the truck came, otherwise he'd probably have done the same!

Sorry Moon, I wasn't getting up close and personal with the buggers so I pinched the pic. They're very aggressive and will actually rear up at you ready to nip. I have a good camera tho Canon 400D Eos. If you have a zoom lens, you could easily take such a photo. Ask DBM what she uses, her macro shots are brilliant.

DBM, absolutely!I've only been bitten once but it's mighty sore, they have some sort of poison on their nippers which exacerbates the pain! The diesel won't do much, they'll just relocate.

We're lucky Ropi, it's actually two houses joined together by one roof and what used to be the carport in the middle is now our 'party' room. Although there's precious little room in there to party since the drums arrived!

Ces Adorio said...

This is like a ranch with all that land. A huge yard. Who mows the lawn? Looks like a productive day. Love the rain fashion wear :-)

Baino said...

Hi Ces. Adam is my lawnmower Man, that's the orange mini tractor in the shed. He's a good boy that way. About 2 acres is paddock, the remaining 3 scrubby lawn. I think the rainwear was a freebie from the Australian Open or some other sporting event, Hey, it works. I however, did not have such an elegant see-through poncho and got very wet! And not in a good way!

Sugar Britches said...

Baino, I read you all the time but have yet to produce balls enough to comment.

The world just seems a little smaller when you realize that everyone does yard work, even though the seasons are a little cockeyed. It's Autumn in my little neck of the woods.

I enjoy your stuff. Carry on!

Baino said...

Hey Sug! I've read you too! Yep, while you're raking autumn leaves, I'm raking pine bark!

laughingwolf said...

gak... tired me out just looking at all the hard work! :O lol

bull ants? must be oz thing? they look mean! :(

Christopher said...

Aren't bull ants the ones that don't live in colonies but just attack individually--which just makes them even nastier?
By the way, I promise if I ever get you something it'll be something you won't put in your pool room, something you can be proud to put on clear display. I'm thinking a completely pornographic mobile phone holder would be just the thing.

Baino said...

Wuffa and Chris, yep, they're fine if left to themselves but pretty horrible if you disturb them and they do live in underground colonies but unilke other ants they aren't obvious, no giveaway mounds or disturbed earth just a little hole in the ground. They very rarely come inside but occasionally you'll see a 'scout' hence the need for a heavy workboot!

Paddy in BA (Quickroute) said...

you have a pool table - I'd never leave as long as there were beers - my dream house - no joke!

Melissa said...

Looks great! Isn't it amazing the muscles we find when we do this sort of work? :D Eli chopped some wood the other day and in the morning he said he had sore muscles where he forgot there were muscles at all. That is one hell of an ant ...

I'm sending you a case of earplugs!

Baino said...

Quickie, we're Aussies, no little bar fridge in our bar of course there are beers in a massive fridge! Unfortunately, now that we have two drum kits, there's barely room to pull back a cue without hitting a cymbal.

Melissa, thanks for the virtual gift. I fortunately have two doors between the pool room and my living room so am well insulated! My muscles are feeling a little better today although I resemble Quasimodo when picking things up off the floor. Poor Eli . .buy him a chainsaw!

Miles McClagan said...

Manchester United? My sworn enemies! That's because of my Dad continually rubbing in the 10-0 League Title record he has over me in recent years...

I was in Man-chest-ah the day after they won the Champions League, it was horrible, fat cockneys wanted to give me a hug...

Unknown said...

That is not an ant - that is a suburban terrorist! Yikes!

Now look, when you've done your garden do you want to fly over and do mine? I'll lay on plenty of chardy.

Anonymous said...

Baino - you need Grannymar's new chair for that sore back of yours.

It sounds like it'll satisfy all your needs at once!

Hope the back eases up soon (((hugs)))

Miladysa said...

Manchester United?!!! United?!!! Shame on you Baino!

Never mind the earplugs from Melissa I am going to send you something from a real team - Manchester City :-D

That's a flaming big ant...

Anonymous said...

Summery rain?

How can it be summery rain? You've only just switched to daylight saving time; you're in the equivalent of early April here - when snow and frost aren't uncommon.

Baino said...

Miles, you're a Scot no wonder you don't like Man Utd. Fat cockneys support the Reds? Well I never!

AV you don't have big ants in SA? They're as mean as terrorists but I've never seen one explode, except when Adam poured petrol down a hole last summer!

Hey Steph. Nah a day of rest yesterday and it's pretty good today. Although the rain has set in so no physical labour until tomorrow when I have to finish my side which involves removing two dead shrubs (killed by gregarious rabbits who have built a warren underneath them) and topping up the bark near the ant nest!

Miladysa it's not me who's the fan although I have seen a couple of games .. Babybro is a ballistic supporter and has even erected a name plaque on his front door "Old Trafford"

Ian, quite right, it's Spring not summer. Although if its any consolation, it's cooled down to about 20. Read it and weep!

kj said...

now all i can think about is 'the invasion of the giant mean ants'.
help! help!

Unknown said...

pool is looking much better! bring on summer!

Baino said...

Haha . . no worries kj, they're really not that big a deal unless you step on a nest! I would have loved to have come to your YART sale this weekend. Hope it goes well.

Ryan, hope you had a fine time at Hawks Nest. Yep, the boy did well and it's shparklarkly . . Come over and be the first to get wet!