Our next door neighbour, Elsie-May, had asked if she could clean out the weeds which were growing along her fence in the back paddock. I felt that I should do this as they were our weeds. The guy was due to come and mow the back paddock so I was out early planning to get the weeds out before he came so that he could take them to the tip. As it happened, he didn't come, probably because it was too hot - well into the high thirties (about 100°F). I finished the weeding only by taking it in smallish doses and even then I was absolutely knackered by the time I had finished.
We spent the rest of the day in the Motley watching cricket and golf on the TV.
Another hot day. I worked on some easy things to save my sanity.
The batteries in the Motley have given up the ghost. I had noticed that they didn't want to start the engine when I last moved the truck. The water level had got very low and the charger was cooking the batteries. I rang around for replacements. The Battery World shop in Tamworth was out of stock of the Federal batteries that I had been using. They priced them at $250 each which is a pretty hefty hike on the $205 I paid last time. Jean suggested asking someone in Barraba because,being a farming community, there must be demand for such things.
I talked to the guy in Barraba Motors and he was happy to help. He couldn't get Federal batteries but offered me several other brands, the cheapest of which was from Supercharge and the price was only $180 each.
Tony came and mowed the back paddock.
It rained a bit overnight and dawned bright and clear. Perhaps the hot spell is over.
I wasn't able to do much because I slept badly.
Jim from Barraba Motors rang to say that the batteries I had ordered were out of stock. The alternatives were a lot more expensive and too big to fit nicely into the battery compartment. I said I'd have to think about what I wanted to do.
The weather was a bit cooler so I got stuck into some jobs.
The kitchen nook is modified and in place. It makes the kitchen look a lot better. We discovered that the table top is not big enough so I will have to find a way of replacing it. Perhaps I'll have to make a new table. That would leave the present one as a work table.
I had a phone call from Jim saying that his supplier had found four batteries and, if I still wanted them, could deliver them on Friday. I jumped at the chance.
Another night with insufficient sleep. We went to Tamworth to buy some material for Jean to make new shorts and some battery lugs to facilitate the installation of the new batteries. We had lunch at The Homestead and I downloaded some more software.
I got some more small but necessary jobs done in the morning.
I picked up the new batteries from Barraba Motors. When it came to paying for them I had to go home to get my cheque book because Jim doesn't have access to plastic money. I sometimes forget that we live in the country. The price was even lower than what he had quoted me so I was well pleased with Jean's advice to try the local suppliers first. I spent the afternoon installing the batteries. They fitted nicely and seem to work well.
I took the old batteries to the tip and did some shopping.
Yesterday's efforts left me a bit second hand so I did some work on documentation.
We had been invited to the Lions Club 30th birthday dinner. We were warmly welcomed and had a very enjoyable time. The meal was pretty good and the conversation over dinner was entertaining. I arranged to go to the next meeting.