Cyclone Yasi

       The preparation, enduring, and cleanup of a cyclone is a very taxing process and something I will never forget and in fact feel privileged to have experienced. On Tuesday the preparation began with the complete evacuation of the RSPCA. It was crazy, we had to fly out all of our adoptable animals to Brisbane, which meant loading 3 cats or 5 kittens in crates (pet packs) due to limited space on the plane and as many dogs as we could fit. The rest were sent to emergency fosters, myself being one of them. The whole place was chaos, the cats were all labeled incorrectly and had to be scanned and sorted, paperwork placed printed in triplicate and issued to Brisbane and kept for our records. Channel 7 news came out to film the process and now my arm is famous! The pound (council) let the dogs go to their owners without a fine, we just needed everyone out. The tidal surge was supposed to be high and would put one of our kennels underwater, the strays and isolation kennels were not made to withstand a cyclone at all so everyone had to go. This is alot of animals I'm talking about and I don't know how many made it out safetly as I only worked adoptions. To add to the chaos they started canceling flights and arrangements for a shuttle began. It's good to know that no matter what, the animal's welfare is a priority. The foster I got to look after is "Rose" or "Rosa" as I call her.

         Rosa is a cattle dog/kelpie mix and I have been working with her for a few weeks now as she was an abuse case that left her very shy and just as she was coming out of her shell she was attacked by the dog in the run they shared. She regressed and couldn’t be put through the trauma of being flown to Brisbane.

        The next step was to get my house ready and make plans for alternate shelter if necessary. We put everything that was loose, including tables and chairs in my house. The fridge was tied down the back of my house and had a tent over it to keep it from getting drenched. The plants went into the garage, as did my bike. We sandbagged the front of my house and taped all of the windows. I also packed a bag of my most precious valuables. This included some of my books, pictures of my family, my safe, some electronics, and some cloths. I put all of these things into a room underneath the main house, which is bricked in, and where shelter would be sought if things got too hairy in my house.

 

 

      The cluttered mess was only made worse by the rain that started to blow in, prompting me to cover anything I didn't want ruined. 

       Robbie stayed with me as his place was in a flood prone area and wasn’t safe for him. It was great to have someone there to help prepare and even better to go through it with. Both being adrenaline junkies it made the whole thing a lot less of an ordeal. 

      On Wednesday we were ready for the cyclone to hit and ride it like a roller-coaster, as my good friend Rikki put it. At 3:30pm the power went out and thus began a long line of improvisation. We had 4.4 gallons (20 litres) of water, 20 litres of fuel (petrol) and 26.5 (12 kilos) of ice in three coolers (eskies). All batteries charged and movies ready to watch, candles and flashlights (torches) at the ready. At dusk the real gusts started but it had started blowing in around 12pm, and it was time to move in. We got settled and made dinner in the dark.

        I had made rice earlier knowing it didn't need refrigeration and would be the base of all our dishes. Tonight's cuisine was tin salmon, rice, ranch dressing, cocktail sauce, heaps of Tabasco, and Julio's seasoning (folks from Texas know the brand). Sounds gross but actually it was pretty good!

      Bellies full we got settled and listened to the storm. I have recorded it's sounds and have video of what we could see before dark, these will be uploaded later as they still need to be sorted. Around 11pm the gails could be felt inside the house and the rain was horizontal. At midnight it started to get interesting with gails blowing at about 90 mph (144 kph). The rain started coming in a vent at the eve of my house and it literally rained inside half of my little flat. I did my best to move things and cover what I could with the two towels I had. At about 1:30am the full intensity was felt and the house shook with each gust. It was time to move below. We didn't go underneath the main house as it was a bit dodgy outside so we sheltered underneath the loft ready to put the couch over us. Around 2am the storm peaked and did so for about 3 hours. The wind speeds were up to 127 mph (204 kph) and maybe higher with each gust. I started to doubt whether the roof would stand up to it but it did. I got about 3 hours of sleep and woke around 7am to see the damage. It was still blowing pretty hard in gusts and rain was coming intermittently. 

                                                              Ready to rock n' roll!

                        One of the many frogs forming a cacophony of croaking throughout the evening.

        The sound of the storm.... or rather the storm in the background. Honestly you could here the frogs from in the middle of the yard with the wind whipping around you.

     

     This is a 19 hour progression of the storm starting at 8pm Wednesday. The timestamps on the images are what times it was predicted to have been there, however the actual times vary a little bit.

 

 8:00pm

                                                                       12:30am Thursday

                                                                             2:00am

                                                                           4:00am

                                                                              6:00am

                                                                           8:00am

                                                                           10:00am

                                                                            12:00pm

                                                                        3:00pm

     We left the perishable food in the fridge and freezer as long as we could before transferring it to the eskies. This was about 24 hours later and I was surprised at how well it kept. We still had no power and soon the water would be cut. We were fine though, we had survived and so did my house. There was some tree damage around but not much. The real damage was around town.

                                                             1:45pm on Wednesday

        I consider myself lucky to have survived and been able to witness such a rare and powerful natural event. In my next post I will cover the aftermath which still boggles my mind.

Cyclone ready?

       Cyclones are a tropical weather system similar to hurricanes except they spin the opposite direction due to Coriolis force. I would classify them as less severe than hurricanes but they shouldn't be ignored either. Townsville is supposedly due for some serious cyclonage, like 150 years due.

      Well here one comes, tomorrow.

      I would equate this with a tropical storm verging on a cat 1 hurricane so batten down the hatches but no need for panic, yet. The one that is following it is due to hit landfall Thursday and is much bigger. That one  has got me on my toes...

     In order to be cyclone ready I should: move the critters inside, move the plants inside, basically move anything I care about that I don't want subjected to 165 kph+ (102 mph) winds inside and have plenty of water available. Power may be cut, but I'll live, I'm stocking up on ice. I have bread, eggs, milk, and vegemite so I'll be fine. (I've also got a bunch of fruit and veg, nutella, oatmeal, taro chips, Tim Tams... ) I think I'll survive. 

Let's see how it goes..... weeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

UPDATE!

30/1/11

Looks like cyclone Anthony will be hitting just south of me and therefore I'll miss the worst of the storm. It's still nothing to snub your nose at. Townsville and Mackay have been preemptively declared disaster areas, so it will be a good precursor to the bigger and badder cyclone just behind it.

Here's the latest:Weather update: 9pm.

UPDATE! 

31/1/11

This morning I awoke to business as usual. Chirping birds and dew moistened grass, so no rain really. It seemed to fizzle out just south of us so that one is a miss! 

Next Thursday might hold different results with Cyclone Yasi being upgraded to a category 4 and expected to reach a category 5 by Wednesday. The warning areas go as far north as Cairns and as far south as Bowen. So as of now it's swung upwards and we will either get hit head on or get the nasty side of it. Unlike hurricanes, cyclones can change direction at any time so nothing is set in stone. I will keep updating this post as the storm develops.

UPDATE!

1/2/11

It looks like Cyclone Yasi has us in her path. Severe winds and rain with a massive tidal surge. I'll start battening down the hatches after work today. I'll keep updating on this post and you can track the storm via this website: Cyclone Yasi tracker

UPDATE!

2/2/11

 Here is the latest on the storm's position:

  

Looks like were going to get more of a wallop than we previously thought.  A category five now and heading south, could be the worst cyclone Queensland has seen. Good news is I'm prepared. I can seek shelter under the main house which is bricked in if necessary and I have plenty of food and water. I have portable BBQs to cook on and charged up all my batteries. So worse comes to worse, it'll rain sideways and flood some areas, howl like crazy and blow stuff around. My little granny flat may have some issues with water coming in but not much and the roof may be a little flighty but all in all we should be safe and that's what matters.  As always I'll keep you posted as much as I am able.

On a side note, I have plenty of beer and wine so helloooo cyclone party!!!! Woot!

STRAYA DAY!

Traditionally Australia day was to promote nationalism and pride for one’s own country. The tradition of noticing 26 January began early in the nineteenth century with Sydney almanacs referring to First Landing Day or Foundation Day.  That was the day in 1788 Captain Arthur Phillip, commander of the First Fleet of eleven convict ships from Great Britain, arrived at Sydney Cove. The raising of the Union Jack there symbolized British occupation of the eastern half of the continent claimed by Captain James Cook on 22 August in 1770.

                                                 My little Granny flat all decorated. 

Today it’s about getting wasted and running around in everything that could be made with an Aussie flag on it and listening to Triple J’s top 100 countdown on the radio; maybe a bit of cricket if it’s on.

It’s a shame really because the traditional owners of this land have to look upon this debauchery and think about how their land was invaded. I don’t mean to get all left wing but I truly am affected by the indigenous people here and wish to respect them and their glorious and soon-to-be erased history.

Sandy, a very committed volly  at the RSPCA told me to wear aboriginal colours on Australia day, I didn’t really have any, save for black (the colours are black, yellow and red) so I ended up in an Aussie flag bikini with a white top over it and a blue skirt. (Oh the hypocrisy)

                                                      Drinking New Zealand sparkling, ironic?

It ended up being a very relaxed day, I worked for the first half as it was a national holiday and the RSPCA was closed but the animals still need to get fed.

Afterwards the day way spent relaxing with some beers and then off to the store to gather the BBQ supplies because what's a holiday in Oz without a BBQ?

                      Tiger Prawns decorated with a flower from one of my orchids and Aussie pinwheels!

We set off at dark to the nearest park (Currajong park) and grilled up some banana prawns, chicken kebabs and a steak!

                      Of course Robbie did the honors and I learned you shouldn't grill shrimp (prawns) with the shells on...

Emmanuel from my old house came to add some French flare the evening and it was quite a lovely time.

What did I learn from today? That I need to find a way to contribute to the local Aboriginal community and that Aussies get REALLY into Australia day above any other holiday, well most Aussies. 

                                    

My new digs!!!

I moved out of the roach hostel today and into a lovely granny flat in Gulliver. There were just too many people there, it was poorly kept and the landlord was nuts. I will miss the pool however but there is a nice one here in the neighborhood. 

I hate moving but moving when you don't have that many possessions is great!!!

Now I enjoy a simple and clean life behind a house owned by a yoga instructor and her Slovenian husband. They welcome my pets and I have my own place with my own kitchen and even a lovely yard with freedom to garden! 

Happy in my own little corner of the world.

I love my little verandah with a great breeze coming through so no need for Aircon, just open it up and nature provides the cooling needed!

The louvered windows provide excellent ventilation and cool plants on the fence outside provide nice scenery!

                                                          

My bed is in the loft above, there is a fan in the rafters that I put on at night and I even get a chill sometimes!              

                               

                      

The lounge and desk area is really nice and super colourful, just the way I like it!

Looking out onto the verandah, many more plants will be gracing it soon! My cupboard is inside so as to keep the critters from rummaging through it and my dresser and chest of drawers have plenty of room for my loads of cloths!

The kitchen is a bit unconventional being outside but I like it as it doesn't get hot when you cook and nothing really gets into your stuff if you keep it clean which I do now that the only dishes I have to do are my own. :)

I went from one colourful cottage in Texas to one here in Oz and I think it suits me rather well!

BIG wheels. Mo bettah.

   So the car search concludes this week with a truly awesome find. An '01 Mazda Tribute V6 4x4.

        This baby comes with alloy wheels, a sunroof, a towbar,  roof rack, CD player, automatic transmission AND as I mentioned before, it's a 4x4. I think I struck gold kids and I feel pretty good about it. Since I'm buying it from a dealer I also get a warranty which will fix anything that might go wrong. It's mileage (kms) is relatively low at 99,200 miles (160,000 kms). 

 All I need to do is get used to driving on the other side of the car on the other side of the road. I think I'll manage. :)

Lastly and most importantly, I need to slap a Texas bumper sticker on her and we'll be ready to rock!

Trouble in paradise?

         Perhaps it was a bit naive for me to move here and think I would find nothing but smiling faces, eagerly awaiting my fascinating stories of life from Texas.... I am a sort of celebrity here, well rather, a novelty. Not many of my kind grace this fantastic continent and far less fall into the bowels of Townsville in North Queensland but here I am, in all my starry-eyed stubborn glory. I've mentioned before that the people here are far from idyllic yet I find them charming in their odd red-neckary because in the end they mean well. This may apply to everyone here as far as I can tell but I do know one thing, there is one horribly rotten apple; my landlord.

       Adam Jeremiah, an oddly Christian name, is an awful and perceivably insane man. He owns the property at 4 Sixth Avenue, South Townsville and has run off countless tenants with his aggressive, childish and ultimately violating approach. I should go on to note that he has even failed to properly maintain the property due to his lazy attitude towards even the smallest maintenance; taking four days to perform a simple repair on a aircon unit, prioritizing a swim in the pool over the security of his tenants whose pool he swam in. His laziness can be seen in the inactive smoke alarms, the very active roach population of various species and his slaughter of the beautiful palms, ferns and frangipani trees that once used to grace the property before he took ownership.


      Adam asked a real estate agency to ask me to vacate the property within 24 hours while I was at work. Anyone reading this will know that this is not something you can ask someone to do without due cause. To what do I owe this honour? I harbored ducks for all of an instance for they are no longer here and did not stay long either but a breach it was as no pets are allowed on the property. He might have never known had I not left a dog cage downstairs in the run-down semi-functional bathroom outside. I didn't have a truck to haul it until the following day so it stayed there and Adam saw it when he came over unannounced. What then followed was a very bizarre and unnerving encounter with a man that needs a psychiatrist and a heavy dose of Xanax. Either way, I made a mistake and understandably he was upset, it was his demeanor that was unnerving and his response even more so. I won't bore you with legal talk but suffice it to say that if I were to breach he is to notify my lessor, and she is to notify me with 48 hours to remedy. Since the breach had already been remedied, no further action needed to be taken yet this is Adam we are talking about.... He "Big Brothered" me with the help of another flatmate. Her help was and still is a mystery to me in its nature as I have been nothing but kind to her but I suppose being pestered by someone of his level of madness would motivate, I can only try to understand. 


       In the end, it has been a small annoyance at the bottom of a pile of bigger concerns. He has no leg to stand on and I have been in contact with the more than reasonable real-estate agency that has the unfortunate task of managing his property. I leave, of my own volition, at the natural termination of my sub-let on Monday and move into a wonderful granny flat/shack where I can have reptiles, birds, and even my ever-so-handsom and greatly missed cat. The landlady there is a yoga instructor and full of good energy so I'm pretty stoked! 


      What have I learned?? That one bad man can bring about 7 great people. These people all existed beforehand but this ordeal (if you want to give it that dignity) has brought them to the forefront as wonderful, supportive friends. I would like to thank Robbie for his prompt and devoted attention to the legality of this matter and his kind shoulder to lay my head on. I'd like to thank Sandy for the offer of her home and boat and her advice and support emotionally, reminding to take the good in life instead of focusing on the bad. I would also like to thank Carly, my flatmate who is also undergoing an eviction without due cause whose sisterhood in this matter has been of great moral strength to me. I would like to thank Chantal for listening and making the best mojito in Townsville. I would like to thank Maurry, Julie, and Kiri at work for being at my side, giving me advice and offering me their shoulders to lean on.
Lastly and never the least I thank God for making me so strong and reminding where I came from. 


     The moral of the story kids: Don't Mess With Texas!!! 


I would also like to thank this frog for making another day in Australia Ozsome:

Flood update.

       The floods here is Queensland are pretty epic. Like most things in Australia, if it's hard core elsewhere, it's epically hard core here. The floods are no exception. While it's not flooding in Northern Queensland where I live we are still effected in that the supermarkets are almost empty. No lettuce, tomatoes, infact most fruit and veg are gone save for apricots and plums. No meat, the milk is gone too. The trucks are now driving inland to deliver food up north. If you go to the local market on Sunday you can get food. There really is plenty here locally save for lettuce and the odd vegetable. North Queensland is an oasis of tropical fruit, so no shortage there.

    The images of these floods are pretty shocking too:

           It's unbelievable the magnitude of these floods. Some footage of the flash floods in Toowoomba: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYUpkPTcqPY at about a minute in it all starts to go crazy. I've never seen anything like this in my life. It must be horrifying for the people living there. My thoughts and prayers are with them.

       Many people are coming together to provide aid to the flood victims and acts of heroism are seen everyday:

These guys are saving a family heirloom.

Wait a second.... hey there fella... I think I need to start helping out down there ;)

                          If you can't be here to help, please donate to the flood relief.