29th June, 2024

Lots of rain finally, cold with it. The weather bods say an arctic blast is coming.  There's been 75mm so far in this fall, three inches.

The bull is finally courting Annie, with the net effect that the sheep are being blocked out of the loafing shed. I opened the shearing shed for them, but before the blast comes I'll put them in the hay shed again. They rough the bales up a little, but they don't eat much and will be safe and comfortable.

We are going through a bale every three days with Jaffa's group and once a week with Annie's. Roughly three bales a week. I have 27 new rounds left and 9 silage. That makes 36 bales or 12 weeks. July, August and September hopefully. Fingers crossed for an early and warm spring, or things might get interesting.

The Macquarie bank account is confirmed empty and closed. The SMSF forms are all drawn up and dated the day the account was cleared and will need signing on Monday. There will be about $40 tax to pay on the last little bit of the SMSF and then that will be that.

The upshot of this is that there is no-one requiring payout or else, the else being having to sell the farm. The mortgage is about $60,000 and is easily covered by the rent from the cottage and for the first time in about eight years we are the masters of our own fate again. I can finally concentrate on running the farm and planning how to make it efficient and fun for the future.

We received two $150 gift vouchers from Woolies "celebrating" the new agreement with the union. I doubt that the agreement will bode all that well for the staff, but the money will come in handy. Might have to stock up on cat food.

There is a casual job going at the Post Office. I discounted it because I would be silly to give up permanent part time for casual, but someone has suggested the hours are much more regular, so I will have a chat with them on Monday and think about it. 

Sarge and Suzie on the hot water heater

26th June, 2024

It seems I offended the weather, or at least it took my comments as a dare. We had wind and rain and hail and even a storm cell bellying down like the start of a tornado. 15mm by lunchtime. Glad I did the tractoring yesterday !

The sheep spent most of the day camped in the loafing shed and the cattle went back and forth from cowmahal to the bales. The chickens didn't even bother leaving the chook shed and the dogs spent the day snoring on the loungeroom floor.

Today I checked the Aware super account and all the money had shown up in that. The balance in the Mac Bank account was zero, and my accountant said that was all she needed and she'd be in touch when she needed me to do the tax.

I made it under the deadline !!!!!!!

In celebration, here is a button sheep :-)

25th June, 2024

Forecast for 90% chance of 10-20mm. Did not happen. We got some showers, but the sky is clear right now.

I put out a round bale for both sets of cattle on the basis of the forecast for bad weather for the next five days. They are happy anyway.

Today I also completed the transfers of funds to the Aware super account and sent the email with the form asking for the SMSF bank account to be closed. One more step forward. I will be relieved when I see the funds appear in Aware.

24th June, 2024

Mixed weather today, ever so slightly warmer overnight. Rumour has it there will be rain for the rest of the week.

I rocked up to the accountant's office at 10am and we launched into attempting to process the SMSF rollover. It was a bit like the quest for all the parts of a magic key. We went into one program and did all the steps and pressed all the approval and authentication buttons that came up on the various phones (we had four phones and a computer all operating) and each time we came back to the gateway with one more number or link or file and progressed to the next quest.

After an hour of that we met with a stone wall in that the gateway was timing out when trying to "validate the member", ie confirm that we had Geoff's Aware Super account details right. So I went home to ring the bank account and the super fund for ideas. And was unable to get onto either. If an organisation is going to rely on increasingly complex systems they need to provide adequate support.

So I went into the manual super rollover system offered by Aware and started a parallel rollout. Same deal, off on various quests but at least knowing how to get each part of the magic key now. Until I reached the same point and discovered a small paragraph on the Aware site that gave me the clue of how to actually give the gateway the approval to validate the member, because it didn't automatically have that and made no mention of needing it. Ta da !! Done and another piece slots into place.

After the hour at the accountant's and (I kid you not) another THREE hours of solid work at home I had assembled all the pieces and pleased the gateway and tax office demons and obtained the account and reference details from Aware to ... do a bog standard EFT of the funds from the bank account into the super fund.

Really. I get that they want to protect us from identity theft, but the hours and hours and having to get a passport and all sorts of authentication just to get the account and BSB details for the money to go into and a reference number to make sure the transferred money went to the right person. The BSB and Account could just have been provided in Geoff's Aware account as you have to have the right to get into that account to see it. 

There could be a button that said "I am sending money your way and it's a rollover and not an ordinary contribution" that generated a reference number. 30 seconds work. If they wanted it could even take an email to Geoff and a text to his phone that each have a pin number that could be entered to confirm he hadn't been hacked. But no.

Anyway, I sent the first sum, the maximum I could send in one day, and scheduled the second amount for tomorrow, and with any luck the fund will get both of those and they should show up in his account in a few days. As soon as the second one goes (I'll check at one minute past midnight) I transfer the remaining funds to our saving account and close the SMSF account and that will allow the paperwork to close the SMSF. Yes, there's another round of paperwork, but this is in the hands of the accountant and is (I am told) pretty straightforward and should be done by the end of month deadline.

I got to feed the critters at about 3pm, raced out to get maize, barley and pellets and picked up a pizza base and milk from the supermarket. I had received a shift offer for today but didn't even open it, not happening. Two hours nap, a home made pizza and a glass of wine later and I am just starting to settle down. 

That four hours work rates up there among the most intense things I have ever done. These include getting lost in the middle of Melbourne looking for the dock for the Spirit of Tasmania and wrestling a full size quad bike around a bush track in the Snowy's when I'd never even been on one before. So, yeah, adrenaline.

23rd June, 2024

More frost, I'm looking at getting some transparent window film (electrostatic, no glue) to see if we can insulate the bedroom windows and save me having to squeegee them every morning.

Woolies called at about 9am and left a message, to see if I wanted to work a 3 hour shift. Slightly tempted, as it's a Sunday, but I wouldn't have been able to put out a bale for the cows and it's also the day I set aside to clean the loungeroom and dining room. Plus, I really just didn't feel like it.

I put out a round of silage for Jaffa's mob, as I need to get the silage used up. It wasn't one of the best ones and their disapproval was palpable. I'll let them get whatever they can out of it before spreading the remains over the top of some barley grass areas and putting out one of the newer ones.

22nd June, 2024

We've been in the middle of what is apparently a record cold snap. It certainly has been sharp !

I heard back from the job agency about the adult literacy job, they gave me the number of the recruiter who was filling the job. Despite leaving several messages she didn't bother calling me back. Perhaps I dodged a bullet. 

There is a job going at the Scottsdale Post Office, but that is casual and the knock off time is 5.15pm, so I'd have to give up guaranteed part time hours for maybe casual hours. Which is a pity, because I think it looks like a good place to work.

Robyn and I went for lunch at the Art Gallery on Wednesday, they have sold and are closing on Sunday. This painting was there in their final sale, by my favourite artist.

My passport arrived yesterday and I went straight in and did my MyGovID and set up transfer protocols and authentications with the Macquarie bank account ready for my appointment with the accountant on Monday. Fingers crossed we can finish the process ! 

I did some shopping on Temu, bought some led lights for the inside of the corner cupboard (the darkest cupboard in the darkest corner of the house), some storage for under the bathroom sink, a toothpaste holder, a saucepan drainer, a mince breaker upperer, an eggs storage caddy and a cordless phone charger. There are heaps of things at good prices, but it can be like getting lost in an infinite bazaar.

Star was on heat on Thursday, evidence that my decision to put her on the "can't be in with the bull" list was correct. Neither Annie or Beanie have come into heat yet. I've worked out the breeding/calving cycles so that no-one needs my presence in October 2025, so I know when to put the bull back through the gate to Robyn's. That's Sharik's wedding date (in New Zealand).

Today was my birthday and I pottered about doing the essentials and enjoying the quiet and the weather. I never work on my birthday. I took the drone out for a flight and worked on getting better control over small moves and then we went to Bridport to the Bunker Club for dinner. It was their last night open before their winter break.

18th June, 2024

The cold continues, fed by a low pressure system sitting between Tasmania and New Zealand. Mostly the mornings are frosty, the days fine with occasional clouds, and the temp drops dramatically at about 3pm.

The chooks continue to lay one egg every three days. I suspect it's just one chicken doing the heavy lifting, if you can call one egg every three days "heavy lifting". They are getting plenty of food, it's just a day length thing and I don't put lights in their coop to trick them.

The saffron bulbs continue to grow. For some reason my mulberry tree has just dropped it's last leaf and now has buds and new leaves. I am sure some of the overnight temps are coming as a shock to the tender new growth. The daphne is blooming and it's lovely smelling that when I come and go by the side door.

Still no word on the passport, but I will be ready to roar into action the moment it's issued.

The sheep are now taking chips off the lucerne cubes as treats. Except for Pickle, who has historically insisted on only taking calf muesli and only from a bucket. She will now condescend to take the muesli from my hand if the alternative is a lucerne chip.

I sourced some wood from old pallets out in the barnyard and Geoff put feet on our second hand picnic table and chairs to keep the metal out of the dirt.

The cattle are going through the round bales faster than I am comfortable with. Hopefully there will be an early spring with good grass growth. Beanie and Abe are now sharing a scoop of chaff while Annie eats (Selkie and the bull don't come up to the yards) and Zippy has taken his first lucerne cube from my hand. Freya remains aloof.

Flora will be 17 this year, and Jack 14. They are still holding condition well, Jack especially could lose a few kg. I think that Flora will struggle with her knees in the coming year and will have to keep a close eye on her mobility.

I rearranged a section of the dairy room, as the feed barrels were kept under the mesh racking and dragged out each day to make up the ration. I realised that this would eventually wear through the bottom of the plastic barrels. So some of the gear that is waiting to be washed and stowed went under the racks and the barrels now have their space against the wall and don't have to be moved to be opened. I also shuffled the chaff bin and the milking machines around and access to everything is much improved.

I am down to 92.4 kg, from a starting point of 97.8 kg. This was a pleasant surprise after not weighing myself for a couple of weeks. If I can control the urge to snack in cold weather I might even get down to 90 in the next couple of weeks.

Geoff is back at work after his two weeks off. He's done some of the longer listed projects and started on a couple of big ones. He's going to dedicate one day a week to those now he has the electrical work list back under control.

Selkie and the bull sharing the round bale

14th June, 2024

Wednesday was a trip to Launceston. It was cold and windy but thankfully not the rain we had on Tuesday.

I had my will appointment and came home with a list of homework. Shopping at Officeworks and I picked up my big laminated air photo for farm planning. A bag of lucerne cubes, some cat food from Bunnings (they have bulk boxes) and a car phone cradle for Geoff. Then we did our tour of mower dealerships and Geoff came home with a short list of four to choose from. He thinks he might go with the Toro.

Thursday was cool and cloudy. 

I visited Siobhan and Shannon, and Shannon loaned me a pair of new work shoes to try out to see if they are more comfortable than my current ones. More stock feed from Stronach, tried to bank a cheque at the Commonwealth bank, that is such a frustrating process these days.

Today I had a sleep in as I'd missed a lot of sleep due to hot flashes. A 2pm to 7pm shift made for a short day on the farm, I fed everyone and put out a bale of hay for Jaffa's group. I tried out the shoes at work and they are much lighter than my current pair, and seem to have given me enough support. I'll see how my feet feel in the morning.

Last night I saw an ad for an adult literacy program coordinator position at the Scottsdale Library. Permanent part time, a good pay rate. I sent a message to the job agency for more information.

11th June, 2024

It was clear and quiet and sunny on Monday. The forecast for bad weather coming stood, so I checked on everyone's hay and ended up putting out a bale of silage for Jaffa's mob. 

Usually I use a strap and chain to drag silage, but this time I was able to lift a bale just off the ground and carry it to the right place. Carrying with hay forks means piercing the plastic wrap so can only be done when you are about to feed out. When you bring silage in from the paddock you need a tractor with soft grab "hands" to carry it.

Geoff cut the water soaked shelf out of the bathroom cabinet with our small chainsaw, now I need to get some storage shelves to make the most of the cupboard.

Today dawned miserable, wet and windy. The rain and wind arrived in the wee small hours and was almost horizontal. I did the animals and then went back to bed until 1pm. The dogs spent the day inside too, pretending that there was thunder in the storm.

Jaffa's group and Annie's group were in their sheds, making trips out to their bales. The bull, however, hadn't followed the girls in and was standing in the rain up the far end. He could see the trees nearby, I wonder if he is a bit dumb to sire the next lot of calves...

The sheep were also standing out in the rain, but I could do something about that. I opened the hay shed up for them and they started nibbling on the rounds happily out of the wind and rain. I left them there for the day and night, I'll see what the weather brings tomorrow.

Beanie managed to come in with Annie for breakfast, so I gave her a few scoops of chaff and some horse & pony pellets as well. I picked up stock feed later on, and found that chaff had been reduced in bag size. Apparently Work Health and Safety had decided that 25kg was too heavy for the employees.

Geoff picked up another "huggle" from the post office, a fleecy smock type of thing for sitting around in. They are very warm and comfortable so we got one each instead of arm wrestling for the one.

We are off to Launceston tomorrow, Geoff to look at zero turn mowers and me to pick up a number of small items and have my appointment to draw up my will. The car is fueled up and I have picked an e book to listen to on the way down. I think we will have lunch at a nice restaurant too.

9th June, 2024

The clouds are starting to gather, rumour has it there's another front coming in. Everyone has food and shelter so I feel good. I'd like to replace the plastic curtain in front of the chook house before the next easterly though.

I thought the bull was going to come through the gate and find the hay bale and shelter, but he got distracted by one of the heifers and didn't get any further than the corner of the paddock. Annie and Beanie and their calves were all at the gate, so at least he saw where it is and that it's open.

I did a bit of research on zero turn mowers today. Getting one is the biggest item on the wish list. If we get a good tough one I don't even need to get a slasher for the tractor. It would be handy to be able to tidy up the areas the hay mowing doesn't get, to bring on new growth.

Geoff did a couple of jobs around the farm today. A waterproof cap on the top of one of the power poles, to prevent water getting down the cut end and rotting it out. While he was on the ladders he also screwed down the eastern end of the dairy roof before the next easterly started pulling that off. 

In the house he ran the first lengths of copper pipe to replumb the laundry and make life a little simpler. He was planning to go and get the other parts tomorrow, but forgot everything (except Woolies) will be closed because it's Kings Birthday long weekend. That sounds really odd, I guess we'll get used to it.

8th June, 2024

It was very cold this morning when I got up to go do my fortnightly office shift, but no frost on the windscreen.

I was in by myself with Janice at home staying close to her phone in case I needed to ask any questions. I only needed to ask 2; why did we have tickets for christmas stock (she has no idea but said to bin them) and how to make the bank note counter stop doing bundles of 10 (hit menu, bundle and type in 250).

I finished all the essential jobs with ten minutes to spare. I figure as I get faster I can start fitting in the non essential but handy ones too. Not bad for only my third shift and all a fortnight apart.

When I got home at about 11.30 I found the bull finally up near the girls, with Abe hero worshiping him. Beanie went out later and was licking his ears, so I think he'll be fine.

I fed all the critters, did some basic chores, threw my uniform in the wash and went to bed for two hours for a much needed catch up. Five shifts in a row, tomorrow off and then back Monday. At least it's a public holiday so on a good loading rate.

I went shopping online for spare parts for Geoff's CPAP mask and found headgear and clips for $25, and two spare face cushions for $28, all free shipping. I also bought a knee pillow, one of those things you sleep with between your knees to align your back and hips properly. That was $6. 

Finding these bargains is helping stretch the dollars right now. I picked up a hooded fleecy smock at the post office, which is wonderful for keeping warm of an evening.

7th June, 2024

Another lovely day following a frost. There was no wind so the grass was still wet by the time I went to work.

Robyn's bull still hasn't joined the girls. Abe was in with Jaffa's group again, I can only assume he ducked under the electric again. Annie, his mum, wasn't happy about that but his love for milk arrowroot biscuits makes it easy to get him back on the right side of the fence.

Beanie had a bleed off today, which means the bull missed her heat by 24 - 48 hours. I will have to factor in two heats in keeping the bull here, so that effectively adds three weeks to his visit. 

I did a hay and silage stocktake today, 3 days per bale will eat up my 33 rounds in approximately 100 days. Just over three months. This doesn't allow for eating more as the weather gets colder. I have 11 bales of silage, that may just cover the shortfall. I think I will be lucky if I am moving onto fresh grass by the time we run out.

Geoff discovered a leak in the plumbing for the bathroom vanity. The shelf inside has gotten wet and has mostly disintegrated. I emptied everything out and when he's fixed the plumbing and removed the shelf I will get some stacking racks to help organise the contents better.

The passport office rang again just as I was getting ready for work. Instead of mentioning this when they asked for new photos, they waited until they'd received those before looking at the next box. The requirement was a stat dec saying I'd lost my expired passport. In some contrition the lady said I could fill in the form, scan in and email it to them instead of racing up to the post office to send it and ending up late for work. Hopefully that's the last problem.

These are the unsuccessful applicants for the cow daddy job. Speckle park on the left and hereford on the right. I'll get a photo of the successful angus if he ever shows his face near the girls.

6th June, 2024

The weather was lovely today, at least after a frost the days are generally pleasant. The forecast shows another front coming in by the end of the weekend.

Robyn and I dropped a bull in with Beanie and Annie this morning. First through the gate was the angus. Sigh. All black calves again this year. If he gets his act together ... he didn't want to leave his buddies. I put Beanie and Abe into the paddock to show him there were cattle here, but they didn't want to leave Annie and Selkie, and Abe even managed to four wheel drift right under the electric fence in with Jaffa's group.

In the end I left all the gates open for Annie's group to roam up where the bull is camped so they can bring him back to where their round bale is. Thankfully Abe is used to following a biscuit, so he was relatively easy to get back into the right paddock.

While I was bull wrangling Freya and Zippy got into the feed bunks to fight with Star and Joey over their pellets. When I found them all four were cleaning up the small bale of grass hay that I'd put out for Annie last rain event. At least someone liked it. Got those four all back where they were supposed to be.

Jaffa's group have already eaten the round bale I put out for them, I was hoping it would last a week. Three days is going to go through my hay pretty fast. I tried to start Bessie and she flat out wouldn't go. I am going to have to warm the motor before starting when the mornings are below 5 degrees. Eventually she started and I put out one of the remaining older rounds.

I went back up to the house for lunch and noticed a gate had actually fallen over when I went out to feed the chooks. Annie had knocked the gate next to the hayshed off the combination of baling twine and chain loosely hooked around a nail and was in the hay shed. Some running repairs to that and Annie back where she should be and I turned around and the sheep were in the hayshed. What is with everyone today ??

5th June, 2024

I had a sleep in this morning. Four hours standing in a trailer holding large dogs onto a table followed by a five hour shift on my feet at woolies was more than exhausting. I didn't do much more than the basics around the house (filled the dishwasher and brought in a load of washing) but I did do some cow moving.

Annie, Beanie, Abe and Selkie are now in the piggery paddock, and I used Bessie (now fully charged) to put a round bale out for them. The rest of the cattle and the sheep have the sheep shelter/barnyard and cowmahal areas, with the bale I put out the other day.

The reason for the moving is that a bull is going in with Annie and Beanie. I tried getting the bull once the girls were set up, but they took one look at me and headed for the other end of the paddock. Big babies. Robyn will give me a hand getting one tomorrow. There are an angus, a hereford and a speckle park. While I would like more pretty babies, which the speckle park bull will give, it really doesn't matter on a practical level. Both girls have calved before so I don't need to worry as much about the size of the calf.

We are clearing alot of discontinued stock at work at the moment. One of the things on the clearance table is vegan spam. As if normal spam wasn't bad enough ...

4th June, 2024

I got straight down to the post office as soon as it opened, and thankfully their camera was working. We took new photos and sent them off and fingers crossed we might even have an approval by the end of the week.

I had time to feed and treat the critters before the groomer arrived to do Poppy and Finn. Poppy had the full bath and blow dry and Finn had a good brush through. That will keep them comfortable and matt free for a couple of months.

Robyn has moved her three bulls to the paddock next to the gate between our farms. I'll separate Beanie and Annie and their calves and the first bull through the gate is going to be the beau. Bull roulette.

This is the herd enjoying the round bale I put out for them. They are making a mess of it, I wish they'd stand and chew instead of dragging it out and dropping half of it. At least the dropped and trampled hay is helping squash out the barley grass.

 

3rd June, 2024

We had a severe weather warning starting at 2am. This did not happen. About lunchtime it got really windy and just on dark we got a little rain. What we did have was some atmospheric moisture and a midday sunshine which put a rare southerly rainbow up. The other end was just on the fig tree (in the tree guard) in the sheep shelter paddock, so it was technically a full arc, just with no moisture to show it at the top.

This is a closer view of the other end, just hovering in the mist.

I needed to put feed out for everyone and decided to use silage, and got the chain and strap out for Bessie. Unfortunately two weeks of cold weather since her last charge left the battery not quite punchy enough to start her. So I put the charger on for an overnight charge and Geoff and I rolled a hay round out of the hayshed by hand and put that in a ring in the barnyard. 

 

While the sheep are in with the cows there is no point trying to feed them treats in tubs, it will be a scrum. So I am introducing the sheep to the lucerne cubes. I am now up to 5 of the 7 happy to eat them. Two of the cattle no longer want chocolate chip cookies, they get two cubes. 

 

I received a call from the passport office late in the afternoon. It turns out that the photos I had found and used for my application were the same shot I had used to renew it last time, so I couldn't use those. I didn't know this because I couldn't find my old passport so didn't see the photo in it ...So I have to get new passport photos, but the camera at the post office wasn't working when I did the passport application. Which is why I was glad to find some suitable pics in the folder ... 

If the camera is still out of order at the post office I will have to drive to Launceston to get shots done. And it will have to be tomorrow because every day counts in trying to get this paperwork done to close the SMSF off before the end of the financial year. I can't believe things are still going wrong !!!

2nd June, 2024

On Friday Aimee and Gray arrived after a slow and steady drive. They saw lots of evidence of trees down across the road, but as most Tasmanian utes seem to contain a chainsaw they had been cleared by the time they went through.

The rains finally finished and the total for the fall was 40.8mm, quite respectable. The dogs spent the night inside, they weren't at all keen on either the high winds or the distant lightning.

I made a hoisin meatball tray bake for dinner, which was popular enough for seconds all round.

On Saturday we did a farm walk and Aimee gave pats to everyone and I showed Gray all the things needing repair or renovation if he wants to do some handyman work over this way. It was a very long list.......

We then changed and headed out to Derby for lunch at the Hub, where Aimee worked for a year when she was living with us in Tasmania. She caught up with the owners and they said to message when she was settled in the UK and they'd give her the contact numbers of some friends there who might be able to be of assistance if needed, or just show her around.

We then grabbed an icecream and did a walk along the main road and checked out all the things that had changed since she was last there. We went into the little school house museum, which now seems to house some of the display that used to be in the tin mining museum nearby, which is now a bar and cafe.

Star had a bleed off on Saturday, which tells me she was on heat three days ago. When I borrow a bull I will have to make sure he only has access to the girls I specifically want bred.

Today Aimee and Gray packed all her gear and adjusted the backpack so that it sat properly and moved the weight from her shoulders to her hips. She will also have a massive suitcase, I hope her luggage arrives at the right place because there's alot of it !

We had breakfast and a good chat and sorted out last details and then Gray took her to Launceston for her first leg to Melbourne. She reported later that the flight was delayed and there was alot of turbulence, but that she was now safely set up in her motel room for the night. Tomorrow she flies from Melbourne to Shanghai, and after an overnight there on to London.

I had a little cry when she left, which is silly, as she's going to be away about as long as she normally is from Tasmania, but it feels like a very long way away. I hope she has a wonderful adventure and makes many good friends and memories.

I fed all the critters and then decided to open the gate and give all the cows and sheep access to all the currently grazed areas so they can share round bales. Neither group is big enough to eat a whole bale before it started to weather, but together they should make more efficient use of the feed.

There's an east coast low bringing more high winds (south easterly for a change) and rain tonight, so I will get the dogs fed and set up with beds in the house before the rains start so that they don't come in soaking wet this time. They have shelter, they just like standing in the rain and barking.

This is the cow herd after they were let in together, the adults settled down to grazing together, but the calves had a very happy run and buck. It's always good to have a group of youngsters. The hills have greened up dramatically, a month ago this view was all brown.