PERFECT AFTERNOON

My idea of the perfect afternoon:

......go for a drive in the country.....making sure you take the camera......

because you may see something worth recording......such as this:

The Weddin Mountains make a nice backdrop to a canola crop.

Then, after driving a little further, you see a couple of God's wonderful creatures on the road:

Eastern Bearded Dragon, possibly female.

You stop the car and get out, thinking that this will scare them off but hoping it won't......

You're in luck! They just flatten themselves on the road, thinking they won't be seen.......

though the tip of the smaller one's tail (right) is a bit of a giveaway........

Eastern Bearded Dragons, possibly mother (left) and offspring.

You spend AT LEAST 10 minutes in their company, taking photos from various angles......

They even allow you to get close enough for a reasonable close-up............

Eastern Bearded Dragon, possibly female.

They are so quiet, you are tempted to pick one up.......but think better of it!

They don't move, even after you get back in the car and drive on.......right past them!

A memorable encounter!

And, just to finish off the day........

Canola farm near Greenethorpe.

Actually, this one was taken a couple of days ago.......just thought I'd chuck it in........

FANTASTIC NEWS!!!

Holy Trinity, Grenfell, autumn 2012

G'day to all my Christian friends! I thought you would be interested to hear the terrific news that was given to us last Sunday by Bishop John Stead (our current relieving priest), which is that, after Bishop John leaves us on 10th June to take up his new appointment in South Australia, Michael Pailthorpe will become our new PERMANENT part-time priest!


I haven't met Michael but, apparently, he is a young married man with a young family. He and his wife have 3 kids, including a 6-week-old baby, so I'm sure he will appeal to many people in the town, who aren't currently connected with a church or whose church doesn't have a minister, etc.


The Pailthorpes will live in the Rectory at Holy Trinity ALL THE TIME, even though Michael will only serve the Grenfell Parish for 3 or 4 days a week. The rest of his time will be taken up in looking after the Eugowra Parish. Eugowra is about 70kms from Grenfell by road.


I reckon it's a 'master stroke' by Bishop Richard (guided by God, of course) that will save our church from a lingering death, due to the age of many in the congregation.


Hallelujah!

What's wrong with this photo?

My bike at turning point of last Wednesday's ride.

C'mon, all you smart people out there! See if you can work out what's wrong with this photo.......

On Wednesday, 9th May (2012), I rode westward from Grenfell on the Mid-Western Highway, then along Sandy Creek Road for about 12 kilometres, where, as you can see in the photo, I reached a point that was 35 kilometres from Grenfell. This means, of course, that I covered 70 kms altogether. (BTW, I rode in from the left of the photo and headed back that way.)

It was much like a summer's day (max. 25C - in the shade), so I was glad to get back home without melting!

Just to add a little bit of 'culture' to the story, out to the right of the above photo, I saw this sign and gate:

Yes, that's Ben Hall, the infamous bushranger of the gold rush days! His former homestead at this site was burned to the ground on the orders of the new owner of Sandy Creek station, after Hall was hanged. It's a prickle farm now!

Postscript, 26 Nov., 2013: Well, no-one has got back to me with an answer to my conundrum, so here is the answer.......

The photo of my bike was taken AFTER I HAD FINISHED THE RIDE, when I headed out there again to check the distance, because I was having problems with my bike's computer and I don't trust signposts for distances.

The clue is that there are no bidons (drink bottles) on the bike and a bike rider with any sense would never head out on a long ride on a warm day without taking some liquid along. I think I carried three on the day, two on the bike and one in a pocket of my jersey.