Ravelry is eating my blog

Like too many knitters I am spending more and more time on Ravelry and less and less on my blog. Not sure this is a bad thing but I like having some sort of diary of what I've been up to.

Recently completed projects:

• 9 15 X 15 cm squares for a blanket that a group of us is making for a fellow Raveller who is going through a rough time.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• The politically correct Girlfriend Market Bag. Made out of a banana silk yarn made by women in Nepal, dyed bright purple and now hand-knit into a bag which can be used in lieu of plastic bags while shopping. I'm choking on how many PC boxes this ticks. I have an inner-city left-leaning girlfriend who will love it. I think I prefer making this bag out of cotton - too many flaws for me.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• A stack of hats. I'm losing count. I made some chunky knit beanies out of Naturally Aspire Super Chunky Alpaca yarn I got on sale. It's lovely soft squishy yarn but I've found I hate knitting with super large needles (10-12mm!) I also made some purple hats out of some Bendigo 12-ply - one for a colleague's daughter, the others for whoever.

News: Hurstbridge Bushfire Relief Centre has now put out the call for woollen beanies, scarves and gloves. I knew they would eventually be wanted.

Blog news: Part of this blog may be immortalised in the Victorian State Library archives. The librarians there are putting together a collection of community writings about the recent bushfires and have asked for permission to archive my entries. Of course I said 'yes'. It's funny to think of future generations possibly reading excerpts from my blog much the same way we read excerpts from the letters of convicts, etc when studying Australian history. Of course that is based on the assumption that we don't kill ourselves off in the next 100 years.

Jess update: It's hard to believe my friend was literally at the point of death just 3 weeks ago. She is now in a rehab hospital close to home and her baby has been sent home with his dad and big brother. Big brother is totally in love with the baby and wants to visit and cuddle him all hours of the day and night, get involved in feeding and even changing the nappy. It's too cute for words. Jess has regained her speech and can read and walk short distances. She still gets incredibly tired and still has another big operation ahead of her but compared to that terrible day when we feared losing both her and the baby, the change is just amazing.

It's good to know that it's not just me

Yarn Harlot on her attempts to knit an Estonian Lace Shawl

Not that I would ever be so ambitious to do anything that required the casting-on of more than 300 stitches, let alone the reading of lace charts, etc.

I'm not one of the Harlot's devotees but a friend pointed me to this post and it all just seemed a little too familiar.

EASIEST-EVER SIX-STITCH CIRCULAR CAST-ON

OK, maybe every other knitter in the universe knows this and I was the only daft one to not get it, but just in case my counterpart is out there is cyberspace banging her head on the wall...

One of the reasons I HATE knitting hats, etc from the top town is because I find it way too awkward to spread just six stitches over 3 DPNs. I'm just not that graceful. I've fumbled my way through the Figure 8 cast on for socks (as it makes so much more sense to knit toe-up rather than cuff down) and I've even managed to do the famous Emily Ocker crochet loop cast-on - but both of these usually involve numerous (as in getting into double figures) false-starts and mistakes.

BUT I FINALLY WORKED OUT THE EASIEST-EVER SIX-STITCH CIRCULAR CAST-ON!!!

1/ Cast on 3 stitches onto one DPN (I use the cable cast-on as I think it is the strongest)
2/ Using a second DPN, knit forward and back into the first stitch. You now have 2 stitches on that DPN
3/ Using a third DPN, knit forward and back into the next stitch. You now have 2 stitches on that DPN
4/ Using a fourth DPN, knit forward and back into the last stitch. You now have 2 stitches on that DPN and no stitches left on the first DPN.
5/ I find that the six stitches created this way seem to hold onto the needles much more firmly than just cast on six stitches and trying to slip them two by two onto DPNs, making it easier to join in a loop and knit around.

(Obviously this can be adapted for 8 stitches and five DPNs)

Update

Yay! I can move my arm.

Double, triple, yay - my friend with the brain tumour can now walk short distances unassisted and it looks like she'll be starting official rehab any day now.  Her son (still officially minus four weeks - as he was delivered six weeks premature) is on the point of being kicked not only out of special care but also out of the hospital.  Which is causing all kinds of logistic problems, but in a good way.

Jinxing myself

Previous post
To be able to get up in the morning, move around freely, knit a hat and read a good book is a wonderful thing. Everything else is trivia.

I sometimes wonder if I am going through life jinxing myself. I slept very badly last night due to a sore neck and back and by the morning could barely move my right arm. No work for me today. A trip to the chiropractor confirmed my suspicions, I had somehow got my neck out of alignment, pinched a nerve and most of my upper right back muscles had seized up in protest and pain.

He clicked my neck back into alignment and told me to avoid turning my head to the right today - an instruction easy to follow as I physically can't at the moment. The problem is exacerbated as I'm not allowed to take anti-inflamatories at the moment. So no knitting, no work and virtually no reading as I'm too tired from lack of sleep. Paracetamol is a poor alternative to anti-inflamatories for this problem but it's my only option at the moment for pain control.

Of course all of this is minor, compared to X who is now learning how to use a walker in the hope she may soon be able to go to the toilet with minimal assistance. A 33-year-old in a walker. I want to cry. Even as I realise what a huge achievement this is, compared to a fortnight ago.

I got an email from another friend who had been allowed to visit today. X looked great and was up and talking, she reported. I think she thinks I was making up how bad things got. I speak to X's husband who tells me that the change today has been amazing. Last night X struggled to remember her parents' names. Today she could recall the names of friends' children. The brain truly is an amazing organ.

I'm hoping that a bath and a good night's sleep tonight will fix all my problems. And that I haven't jinxed it by typing this :)

CFA/CFS Thank-You Beanie

Carol at http://jesschocolateect.blogspot.com adapted the SES hat to create a beanie to suit the CFA volunteers in Victoria and the CFS volunteers in South Australia. Pattern posted on my free pattern site at her request. Take a look and knit one to say thank-you to our hard-working volunteers.

How life can change in an instant

I've been offline for a couple of weeks due to some very serious stuff happening in the real world. It has taught me (yet again) how life can change in an instant and that we shouldn't take anything for granted.

One of my friends (X) who was 33 weeks pregnant had been incredibly lethargic and "out of it" for most of her pregnancy. She couldn't seem to concentrate on anything for long and struggled with the most basic day-to-day activities - like getting up, getting dressed, making meals, etc. Something was clearly very wrong but nobody including her family and doctors knew what to do. I assumed that she was in a deep depression, although she kept on insisting that she wasn't. She developed severe gestational diabetes but wouldn't (or couldn't) remember to do the regular (four times a day) blood sugar tests without extreme prompting from her husband.

Finally she was convinced to check herself into the maternity hospital for a few days "to sort out some of her health issues" prior to the birth of her second child.

That night (a Monday) I had a terrible call from her husband. X wasn't depressed. She had a brain tumour. She could no longer remember her parents' names, her husband's job or her own phone number. It could be terminal. X & her husband are our closest friends, closer to us than much of our family. I was so sick and stressed by the news that I took the following day off work, unable to function.

Tuesday, an MRI confirmed the brain tumour but it looked more likely to be benign rather than cancerous. A tiny glimmer of good news.

Wednesday, the neurologist and obstetrician debated the risks and merits of operating on her brain while she was still pregnant (and possibly causing distress to the baby) or inducing the baby six weeks early (which had its own risks) and allowing the tumour to keep growing at its alarming rate while her body recovered sufficiently from a Cesarean before conducting the brain surgery.

On Thursday the decision was made to take out the baby. Friends and family waited tense for news knowing there was a real possibility we could lose either or both of them. Finally the news came that she had had a healthy boy. Two hours later we got the good news that she had survived the operation. We could start breathing again.

Friday, Saturday, her body was recovering. J & I were one of the very few non-family members allowed to see her, when we came to pick up her husband from the hospital. We were glad we did. Maybe she couldn't talk and maybe she was very tired but through gestures we could see that it was our friend X in there and she wasn't completely gone.

Sunday was the brain operation. The neurologist opened up her head and discovered that the tumour was twice as large as he expected. During a marathon 8 hour operation he removed about half the tumour & cutting the blood supply to the other part of the tumour before stapling her head back up and deciding to let her body recover further before going in on another angle in 6 weeks time.

Everything is relative. The neurologist is pleased with his work. The pathology has confirmed that the tumour is benign. Every day X has got a little bit better, is remembering more and is slowly, very slowly, regaining some of her motor skills. She is exhausted - even sitting up was hard work during the first few days.

Meanwhile her new son, thank God, is continuing to thrive. He will be out of the special care nursery and back home, long before his mother.

X's husband's life has been turned upside down. Even in the best case scenario he will be the primary carer of their two children (one of them a new born baby) and her for months. A long- fought for promotion has been put on the back burner. He is off work on compassionate leave, sick leave, primary carer leave, annual leave, long service leave - whatever leave he can find. He is better off than most people in this situation - it looks like he has the better part of a year's worth of accrued leave he can access - once he sorts it out with the HR Department. Which he doesn't have the energy for at the moment.

His family and in-laws are intelligent, educated and connected people. But even they are struggling with the bureaucratic red tape that is Medicare, health insurance and the various government allowances and payments that the family might be entitled to - if they can ever work out how to fill in the forms. Even the social worker assigned to the family can't help them completely. How less educated people or those for whom English is a second language manage, God only knows.

For the first fortnight everyone was running on adrenalin, wanting to help but not knowing what to do. X's freezer is over-flowing with food and her room looks like a florist shop. But adrenalin only lasts so long. We have to create a new normality that incorporates the reality of X's illness and long-term recovery. There is a good chance she will recover - but this could take months or even years. And there is the very real possibility that some functions may be impaired forever.

J & I are having some friends over for a BBQ on Sunday. I mentioned this casually to X's husband, expecting he wouldn't be coming. He asked me to keep reminding him about the BBQ all week because he wanted to, needed to, get back into some sort of normal life - including going to a Sunday BBQ even if he had a wife and child in hospital.

The whole event has, yet again, underscored for me what is important in life. To be able to get up in the morning, move around freely, knit a hat and read a good book is a wonderful thing. Everything else is trivia.

Extreme sheep

OK, this is a viral marketing video - but at least it is a very funny one and appropriate for a knitting blog. Via CraftyScience on Ravelry.

The only problem? Having put so much effort into creating a great funny viral movie, the web address advertised for more information isn't yet an active page! Silly Samsung.

Good news

Snoopy's tests came back all clear - looks like he had a spare life after all. But apparently it's nearly time to put him on" seniors'" food. The concept of Snoopy and seniors does not compute. He has the most adorable kitten-like attitude, even during this difficult patch. He's only 9 but apparently he's got very early-stage kidney problems. So he and his brother are to be weaned off the "McDonalds" of cat food (apparently that is how the vets describe the most popular dry food sold in Australian supermarkets) and put onto the (far more expensive) "Science Diet". I can't even accuse the vet of having a vested interest as he doesn't sell it himself.

I've also been stash busting, knitting another hat (or two)



This is a simple top-sown hat made using about 1 1/2 skeins of Jo Sharp Ultra dark brown that I picked up for about $6 on Ravelry.

Plus another Israeli soldier hat

So you want to craft for bushfire victims...

For those not on Ravelry (why not??? Go sign up for an invite.  You only have to wait a few days; I waited months for my invite)...

• Blankets of Friendship (knitting or crocheting 30cm/12" squares to be sewn into blankets for survivors of the bushfire) have their own blog and yahoo group (international participants welcome)
• For those in Melbourne, Meet me at Mike's has a list of local businesses that are accepting and storing handmade items until the relief agencies can arrange appropriate distribution.
• Handmade Help is focussing more on sewing projects and making up hip and colourful bags of supplies for kids who have lost everything.
  

3 Calorimetries Full

I love knitting Calorimetries - they are a fast, fun knit that is great for stash busting - and fun and useful to wear too.

I've knit my first Calorimetry for a swap partner who likes the colour blue and things that are both quirky and useful. I used some left-over Merino Supreme, the softest wool I've ever encountered that is unfortunately no longer being made, and finished it with a little sheep button I acquired during a recent swoop at Clegs. If that's not both quirky and practical, I'd like to know what is.



I was happy how it turned out, and I had some wool left over, so I cast on for another swap I am taking part in. I even found a second identical sheep button.

I STILL had some wool left over and managed to find YET another identical sheep button, so I decided to make a Calorimetry for myself.

So there you have it. 3 identical Calorimetaries, each adorned with a sheep. Three bags full.

Snoopy: The economic stimulus cat

Snoopy is doing his bit for the economy, with every cent of our up-coming economic stimulus payment earmarked for the local vet.


For once he isn't directly or indirectly responsible for the loss of one of his 9 lives.

Since the move, Snoopy hasn't been his usual perky kitten-like self. We thought he was stressed and depressed from the move but last week J found a lump on his front paw. We thought it was a cyst but the local vet found that it was a solid lump.

We made the decision to allow the vet to remove the lump, which also entailed removing a toe. Domestic cats can live quite happily minus a toe - and the loss of a third of Snoopy's ear some years ago doesn't seem to have impacted negatively on his life.

The lump is currently being tested. Hopefully it is benign. If it isn't benign, hopefully the vet got the whole mass and his blood tests are clear for cancer markers. If they aren't, we have some serious decisions to make. We are adamant that we won't let him suffer.

Fortunately Snoopy seems to be quite relaxed and pain free now. He hates the cone but we can't risk him getting to his wound. We can only hope for the best. Snoopy has stared death in the face many times before; hopefully he still has a spare couple of lives to get through this one.

Dispatches from the front line

My friend who volunteers for the SES has returned from one of the main bushfire relief stations and given me a new perspective on why the aid agencies are asking people to hold off on their donations of food, clothing, furniture and basically everything but money and blood.  The simplest answer is, "there is nowhere to store it yet". 

Two days after the fires, the community centre was literally overflowing with clothes, food, children's toys and bikes.  A separate giant marquee was filled with household furniture.  The Department of Human Services coordinator was flat out trying to find space for telecommunications, insurance companies, banks, Centrelink and emergency relief agencies to set up their services for the victims.  Every hour literally dozens on well-meaning people came up to him wanting to donate their time or goods but inadvertently causing more chaos.

A farmer who had lost his house showed no interest in the piles of furniture and clothing.  His main concern was for stock that had survived the fire but were in danger of dying of starvation because the bridge connecting his property to the main road had been burnt out.  Could the SES send a team to rebuild it today?

In Judaism there is a prayer said during the harvest celebration of Sukkot asking for the right amount of rain and the right amount of sunshine to be provided at the right times in the season.  A substantial rainfall is crucial while the seeds are germinating but fatal for a crop that's ready to harvest.  Similarly, bright sunlight that is necessary for a mature plant to grow will kill a freshly sown seed.  It's not enough to pray for sunshine and rain; we need it at the right time and in the right amounts. 

The same could be said for donations after a natural disaster.  In a year's time, people who have rebuilt their houses will want and need furniture to put in them.  But in the meantime, while they are staying in friends' spare rooms and crisis accommodation they cannot accept these donations and the furniture needs to be stored somewhere.  The Salvation Army has had to take out a 12-month lease on a warehouse and shop front in Whittlesea to accommodate some of the donations, and this of course costs money that could otherwise be spent on more immediate assistance.

On the day of the fires the police visited a hairdressing salon in a nearby town and asked if any staff could be spared; many of those who had escaped the fires had singed and burnt hair and what they needed before they could even start to consider the future was something as simple as a humanising shower and hair cut.

So at the moment my hats and other well-meaning donations for bushfire victims are sitting in my spare bedroom.  Until I get the word that the time is right for them to help, rather than hinder, the relief efforts.

I can't look at the news any more

Well if you're reading my blog you can probably see I am trying to channel my fear and obsessiveness in a useful direction.  I think the phrase "there but for the grace of God go I" pretty much sums up how I'm feeling.

I can't look at the news any more; it's got to the emotional pr0n stage.  I don't want to intrude on people's suffering and grief.  All I want to know is how is the appeal going, what's the death toll and what can I do to help.  I live 7km from one of the worst-hit areas and I have no desire to go and see what happened - unless it is in the context of me being actually able to help out. 

Oh, and I just discovered we are 20km from Kinglake, not 30km...

They've been burning containment lines and I am very glad this has been well publicised because even knowing this I get very nervous smelling the smoke. Apparently the winds are picking up again and we can only hope and pray things will remain OK this weekend.

We live in a mad country - apparently there are parts of Queensland managing to experience both drought AND floods at the same time.  What the...???

It's amazing how much everyone wants to give; I just hope people realise the help will still be needed in the months that follow, after the media coverage has gone away.  I find myself questioning everyone's motives, including my own, in this outpouring of grief and generosity - there are similarities to the days after Princess Di was killed in the car crash.  Is there something inherent in us as humans that we need to vicariously experience others' pain? 

I figure that as long as I focus on doing practical stuff to help those in need, I can live with whatever my motives are.

There was an article on the ABC website about how Queensland flood victims were donating to the Victorian bushfire appeal.  I found myself thinking "Yes, of course they want to send all their excess water down south!"

I really am counting my blessings; I am well aware that if there hadn't been a wind change last Saturday night, I could have been one of those homeless, injured or killed.

Knitting news
I'm making a Calorimetry for an upcoming swap - my partner describes herself as "somewhat quirky" and I'm tempted to sew a few of my novelty buttons onto it.  If that's too quirky for her, she can always take them off.

Hats away

To Israel

To Bushfire Victims

To Craft4aCause

I now have proper professional looking tags for my knitting gifts

And I have no idea how this yummy 'Baroness' yarn could possibly have been ordered from Hazelknits :)

Why it is worth knitting for the bushfire survivors

Public relations consultant and writer Liz Tilley who lost everything in the 2003 Canberra bushfires yesterday wrote an excellent article on how to help those affected by bushfires for Crikey.

As a knitter, I was especially interested in this part:

Some of our most treasured items are the ones that were made, with love, by complete strangers. The quilt that was one of the hundreds that arrived from all over Australia, the hand-knitted rugs that my children like to snuggle under in winter. If you make jewellery, make a few pairs of earrings or a necklace. If you make toys, make something for the children who have lost theirs. If you knit, make a winter scarf. If you sew, make some table placemats or a beautiful table runner. If you're an artist, paint a picture or frame a drawing.

I still find it incredibly moving that people cared enough to put time and love into making something that has now become a new family treasure for us.

And if you want any more proof that a single person can make a difference, with one phone call and one email I was able to convince Crikey editor Jonathan Green to mark this article a 'free' read on the site. So you don't have to be a subscriber to access all of Liz Tilley's tips on how to help out the survivors of a natural disaster both now and in the weeks and months ahead.


Knit a hat to say thanks to an SES volunteer


I have also managed to put up a pattern of my SES Beanie for anyone who wants to make one as a thank-you for the volunteers who have given so much of their time and effort. Make as many as you like to give away, and print off copies of the pattern for other knitters - just ensure any copies include my name and the note that these beanies are not to be sold without the express written permission of both myself and SES Victoria.


Donate to the Red Cross and win my Beaded Silk Artyarn


Fellow Raveller Serendipity is running a raffle on her blog with great prizes for anyone who donates $10 or more to the Red Cross Appeal. I've donated a skein of Artyarns Beaded Silk (pale pink colourway) valued at US$34 (AUD$50+ on the current exchange rate!) as a prize. It's gorgeous yarn but not quite the right colour for me and I've been terrified of ruining it by actually knitting with it. In some ways it is a relief to give it away to a good cause (and I have another one anyway... don't ask me how I came to spend so much money on unsuitable but delectable yarn). So go show her how much you've donated to the Red Cross and be in the running for some really lovely stuff.


Still knitting
I have been intending to work on a CFA Beanie (based on the SES Beanie)... but I've been too busy churning out the little Knut Hats for another good cause. It is a most addictive pattern and I am almost relieved that I am running out of suitable yarn to make more. Oh yes, I also have to do some knitting for swaps I am taking part in. Lucky that I am theknitaholic!

Knut hat

I whipped up this Knut hat on the train today; it's a great superfast knit and I think I'll make up a few more of them for Craft4aCause. It's hat 9 (I think) in my 52 hat challenge project - somehow I don't think I'll have any trouble meeting the hat a week goal.

I was knitting an Israeli soldier hat on the train this morning but somehow got distracted and ended up having to unravel half a hat of warped rib. I needed an instant gratification project after this.

I think I've over-committed myself with all this hat knitting. I can't knit as fast as my brain thinks or I commit myself to more projects. I've come up with another timely one for the bushfire appeal - more details in a day or two.

Knitting to satisfy the need to feel useful

It's sad that it takes a tragedy to bring out the best in people.  As of 10am this morning - less than 2 days after setting up their Victorian bushfire appeal - the Red Cross had collected over $15 million in donations.  If you haven't yet donated, go here.

Hundreds of people have lined up at blood collection centres to donate much needed blood and plasma.  Our local relief centre at Hurstbridge had a huge sign "Thanks but we can't accept any donations".  Al the relief centres are being overwhelmed by people wanting to give clothes, toys and household goods.  Everyone wants to help, wants to give.  I spoke to a friend in the SES who confirmed the State Emergency Service was sending crews to affected areas.  "I put up my hand but there were 50 people and only 3 trucks."  All these people are volunteers, most with full-time jobs or their own businesses.

The news is not looking good for Raches on Ravellry.  The death toll is up to 173 (including 22 in St Andrews just 7km from my home).  Last night she put up a post asking for our thoughts and prayers; her husband hasn't been seen for more than 60 hours, the police found his car but nothing can be confirmed yet. Today she took down her blog and Facebook profile.  But it could take days or weeks for things to be confirmed - many victims will only be able to be identified by their teeth and jewellery - and comparing dental records takes time.  Just last week J had an appointment with our new dentist who's fascinated by forensic dental work and was uncanny in her summation of his dental history.  Today she could very well be putting these skills to use for more important things than just impressing new patients.

The Australian knitters have already started knitting squares for a friendship blanket for Raches.  It looks like we'll have plenty of squares to make blankets for other victims.  Yes we know that wool blankets can be bought far more cheaply than the yarn we are knitting but a handknitted blanket says we care.  It also satisfies our need to do something, anything to help.

We're also putting together knitting survival kits for those knitters who have lost everything - a pair of needles, some yarn and a pattern.  We don't know where to send them or how to distribute them but once the immediate chaos is over we know they will be appreciated.

I can only hope that all this goodwill, all this wanting to give, is still in place in a month or six months of a year's time when the bushfire victims will still need our blood and love and money to rebuild their shattered lives.

A taste of living on the edge of a war zone

Like everything in life, good or bad, this past weekend has been an incredible learning experience.  As I type, the death toll is 107 or 108 (depending which news article you read) and is expected to rise further as police and emergency workers trawl through the charred rubble of the state.  One of my fellow Ravellers, Raches, has lost her home and possibly her husband - he has not been seen for more than a day. Fairfax is updating a Google Map of the devastation.  It is very sobering to realise that we were only a few kilometres and one wind change away from being a point on the map.

Many people who lost their homes and sometimes their loved ones describe their town as a war zone.  And as I reflect on this past weekend I realise this is a good analogy.  All weekend, J & I were glued to ABC radio and the internet, trying to keep track of what was happening, trying to decide what was best to do and realising that we were in a situation that we had little control over, subject the the often unpredictable forces of nature.  After we had packed a box with our important documents and set up hoses there was little we could do but follow the news, follow the weather reports, follow the CFA updates and look and smell outside.

We became obsessive watching and listening to the news until I realised that this way lay madness.  You cannot put your whole life on hold.  Somewhat guiltily we put on the laundry (was it wrong to use water while fires raged in the distance?) and tried to watch a DVD while J kept track of the news on his laptop. 

If we had to go, what would we take with us?  The weekend taught me how little material possession matter.  We kept the cats indoors and had their cages ready if we needed to make a getaway.  I looked at my stash and rued the fact I had just finished bringing all my purchases home from work.  There was hundreds of dollars of yarn that could be replaced but would be a huge loss.  I looked at my pile of completed but unworn hats and vowed that if the house survived, I'd to post them out the following week to various charities.  There was no point to them just hanging around not being used.  I also decided that I would make more of an effort to knit up and enjoy the gorgeous luxury yarns - I wanted to get some pleasure from them before they disappeared.  We'd take our computer boxes and photos and a couple of bags of clothes.  There was no room for any more and I was amazed at how easily I was able to emotionally let go of all my stuff.

I wandered around the house.  What else to do?  I picked up my needles and started knitting another hat.  I had no idea if it would be for an Israeli soldier or homeless Big Issue vendor or someone who had lost everything in the Victorian blaze.  But there was a comfort in the knitting.  It was something productive to do.

Too close for comfort

Seven kilometres from our house, 4 people lost their lives in Victoria's worst-ever bushfires.

In the township of Kinglake, a mere 30km away, at least 12 people are dead and the town may have been more or less wiped off the map - it's so bad that even the emergency services can't get in yet.

We've been on high alert since yesterday afternoon but so far, thank God, all is OK. There was a small grass fire two streets away but fortunately the local CFA - which is just a few hundred metres away - managed to get it quickly under control. Today the wind has turned in our favour and the temperature has dropped (we reached a record 46.4 degrees Celsius - 115 degree Fahrenheit in the shade yesterday) - all we can do is pray for proper rain now.

Technology is both wonderful and terrible - as well as tuning into ABC radio, we can checkout the CFA updates and someone has even plotted all the fires on a Google map.