Son Ben and grandson Willoughby arrived at Cait's bright and early. Willo to play with his cousins and Ben and I to go up to the farm as he has expressed an interest in possibly restoring the Datsun Fairlady. He's seen the pictures but I don't think that he realises just how far beyond repair it is.
Ros in the meantime has taken the dogs to the vet in Hurstbridge, who like so many other generous people has waived his fee's for animals impacted by the fires.
As Ben and I drive past the police check point, he is able for the first time to feel the difference as well as see it. We drive in silence to the farm, I think he's suffering the same disorientation that we've all felt as the road looks the same, but it doesn't feel as if it's where it's supposed to be, because all of the familiar landmarks have changed.
Ros and the dogs join us a short while later and as we walk down the dam paddo
ck towards the barn, I show them the overflow drainage pipe from the dam, 
smashed beyond repair by the army/police as they carried out their second sweep for human remains. I now accept that what's done is done but I will be seeking replacement of the drain-pipe.
I was going to put in some more pictures but they are chewing up lots of space and as I'm in catch-up mode the time to sort out how to resolve this later!
A wander through the ruins of the barn soon demonstrates that apart from a few very old hand forged hinges and fittings, there is practically nothing to be salvaged. All of the steel that Ben bought at a clearance sale several years ago is bowed and heat softened. Even the concrete foundation piers which look as untouched as they have for more than 50 years, crumble at the slightest push.
Back at Cait's I set of with Phoebe to get some batteries and a retractable clothes line for Cait. If this sounds familiar, it's because some of what I reported on Friday, really happened on Saturday. We got as far as about 50m past the Research roundabout heading towards Eltham when the Volvo spluttered, chugged a bit, spluttered some more as I quickly drove up onto the road verge and then the motor died. It would turn on the starter but wasn't going to fire.
All the signs of being out of fuel except that the usually infallible orange "you've got about 50k left" light wasn't on. I called the RACV and Ben who came with 5L of petrol which didn't make the slightest difference. The RACV guy turned up and after adding another 6 L and testing everything he could declared that it was most likely the petrol pump as it did not seem to be drawing enough current to be able to reach the required 40psi pressure.
Ben & Phoebe went home and I waited for the tow truck and the subsequent trip to our Volvo repair shop in Doncaster. I could go off what someone once described as "the fastest tractors in the world!".
Sunday 15 March 2009
The day promises to be good. Our oldest friends from Perth, Sue & Rob are in Melbourne and we have arranged to spend the day together. They have a hire car so we will be able to travel without wondering what else can befall a car. We sleep in until just before they arrive and then, suitably abluted and dressed for an excursion, we check to see that a table for four is available and head off to breakfast at "Lily's on Brougham", in Eltham.
Rob & I choose the full bacon eggs and mushrooms on toast while Ros has salmon and scrambled egg and Sue the eggs Bernaise unless I've made all this up which is just possible. Breakfast was excellent and the conversations were as if we'd only seen each other just last week. A sign of a long and abiding friendship.
A casual wander around the topiaried shrubs including teucrium fruiticans; pine mulched vegetable gardens, with espaliered apple trees and a classic cottage flower garden was concluded with a brief excursion through the mostly French themed shop by Sue, Ros and my credit card.
The pine mulch was visually quite attractive and initially I thought it would be an excellent idea for our new vegetable garden. In writing this however, I remember that the slow breakdown of the pine mulch will consume much nitrogen and will probably be detrimental to the plants in the longer term. I'll have to go back and have a coffee with the landscape gardening side of the business.
A Meeting with Christine Nixon
Our Day with Rob & Sue has unfortunately clashed with a visit to St Andrews by the newly appointed head of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority, ex- Chief Police Commissioner, Christine Nixon. I am keen to meet and present her with an extract from the blog which describes the impact the second sweep for for fire casualties had on our home and ourselves; and suggest that treading lightly on what was left of peoples property and spirits would engender more cooperation than the example demonstrated by the members of force, formerly under her command.
We had no sooner arrived at St Andrews Fire Station than Christine was whisked away to do a tour of the fire affected area. Rob and Sue headed off for a walk towards the general store while Ros and I chatted to various of our friends and acquaintances. I eventually caught sight of Ms Nixon queuing in the barbecue line and after introducing ourselves, we both spoke with her for a few several minutes, during which time I gave her a copy of the previously mentioned blog extract and enquired about the possibility of employment in her organisation. After appending this request to the bottom of the sheet with my details on we thanked her and departed. She had listened but I didn't really feel heard.
Glad to be away from the grey and sad looking faces we drove up to the farm with Rob & Sue and after a very brief visit headed towards Yering Station via Buttermans Track and Yarra Glen.
After very filling breakfasts, none of us felt terribly hungry so we decide to go upstairs to Matt's Bar and have a bottle of something with a platter of excellent eating dips, spreads and bread with of course my favourite olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The conversation was again all over the place and covered children, remembrances of times and incidents past at Wellington Mills in the depths of Winter and on Rotto in Summer; friends and acquaintances, photographs of events almost forgotten and cameras. Rob & I both have Nikons.
Bloody fire siren has just gone off! We had a power hit a few minutes ago and doubtless the two are connected. I suspect a MVA. The CFA incident log on the Web shows:
| Reg | Location | Name | Date/Time | Type | Status | Size |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | NORTH WARRANDYTE | KANGAROO GROUND-WARRANDYTE RD | 19/03/2009 00:48:00 | Non structure | Going | Small | 3 |
After a pleasant walk around the gardens of Chateau Yering by Sue & Ros and an ex
change of lenses by Rob & I, followed by a wander through the garden of Yering Station and a look at the view from both the frontand back of the restaurant,
we headed back to Nth Warrandyte via the Yarra Glen - Kangaroo Ground but not before I purchased some Chocolate Macadamias for Macca whose Birthday BBQ we were going to next.
After farewelling Sue and Rob at Cait's we drove the short distance to Jenny and Macca's where we spent a very relaxed evening with only about 90 minutes spent talking about fire related matters. Macca an excellent and professional chef served a very flavoursome and filling bbq dinner, followed by Jenny's Strudl with vanilla icecream. They have an eclectic collection of CDs which were much to Ros' liking. Jenny a GP suggested a number of health supplements to assist in stress reduction and aid Ros with her sleeping. After a final cup of tea, we took the long route home and were asleep in bed about 10 minutes later.
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