Where is Embrun?

Here, we are anticipating a cool, wet Christmas. Like your ‘one in seven’, our experience is quite different from recent years when bushfires have been widespread. Steady rainfall has relieved the drought in some areas, although most of the areas west of the dividing range have a long way to go to recovery. The major river systems are still parched.

However, along the eastern seaboard from southern Tasmania to northern Queensland we have hadsteady rain over several weeks. In fact, the rainstorms have been so severe that damage bills have reached into the millions of dollars. Blacktown was the epicentre of a horrendous storm a week ago with major property damage. Your brother has worked very hard during the past week as his crew have been allocated to recovery and clean up duties.

The almost daily rain of recent weeks has given the countryside (and our garden) an entirely different look as we prepare for Christmas. Everything is green and fresh, in marked contrast to the usual summer brown and dry appearance. Whilst S38 is rostered for duty on Christmas Day, we can be sure that he wont be called to fight bushfires this year. But you well know, an Australian summer is long and if we experience a sustained hot and dry spell in January/February, the fire risk will be perhaps greater than ever.

By the way, you write of getting the cars out and the necessary clearing. Does that mean that you are now able to garage them?

Last word. I brought home yesterday a load of rich mulch for the garden beds. Today’s task is to spread it and build up protection against the drying of the soil when the heat of summer really hits us.

Out in Embrun we got 50cm.

The best part: Winter starts tomorrow. That’s right. It’s not even winter yet! Then it’s supposed to rain for two days.

-=Andrew Nordstrum