We went for a birthday holiday on a house boat on the Mighty Murray River. I’ve never been on a house boat before and it was pretty funny to be in something with six bedrooms, but on the water! We set out on a sunny day and it was just lovely. And then, hours before sunset, the sky turned dark. The river was anything but calm. My capable companions decided it was time to find a mooring, and that the green tinge in the distant clouds was a sign of hail even though it is November. And we moored just in time for powerful winds, amazing rain… the whole thing.
Eventually things calmed down and for those feeling nauseous, that part subsided, and the sun set over beautiful river red gums.
Last week I finally stitched these two little eucalyptus dyed needle books together with madder-dyed thread and they were in my sewing tin along with everything else, so they found new homes among my companions. Here they sit on the obligatory holiday puzzle.
It wasn’t all wild weather… there were naps and songs and stories and birthday cake and lots of delicious food and company, and beautiful views. There were so many birds… cormorants, pelicans, ducks and ducklings, superb blue wrens, raptors of various kinds… fabulous!
On our return we discovered that every single car (and a lot of houseboats) had been hit by hail the size of golf balls. In November. We’d had a summary phoned in on our first night out, but it was quite a sight in person. After a safety check, we drove home slowly, with the light dancing off all the cracks from 17 major hits on the windscreen. Too many dents in the car to count! Just as well there were needle books to keep things a little bit sensible in between times. A person needs evidence of the ordinary in these challenging times.
Local & Bespoke 
Oh what a dramatic experience. Spectacular and frightening.. I hope your insurance covers the damage to your car. Our gutters overflowed inside and did some damage too. It certainly was out of the blue and extreme…I feel very sorry for Riverland farmers who have lost so much.
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Sorry to hear you’ve had damage. I think we were lucky really. No one hurt and our car is just not that special. New windscreen, done. Dents we will have to learn to love, but the car still works. I too feel for people who have lot so much more.
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Ah, that was last weekend, wasn’t it? Fortunately no hail happened at my place; but apparently there were actual golfball sized hailstones in several suburbs a few kms away from my place. One of my gliding friends was at Waikerie for the National Comps when it happened, and fortunately spotted the incoming hailstorm in time for everyone to get their aircraft de-rigged and undercover before it hit. Yikes! That could have been a *very* expensive bit of weather…
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Not to mention dangerous and terrifying! Glad pilot and glider were safe!
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Indeed! Definitely not weather to be outdoors in, for sure. I hope your car insurance covers hail damage. Sounds like it made one helluva mess. *shudder*
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Nope. We went to basic insurance this year. So decorative dents it is!
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Oh my, that’s some serious hail! Luckily only material damage, and nothing too major, but still. 😲
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Exactly. I can’t say I am thrilled by the damage, but really… we are all OK!
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Sounds like a fabulous trip – weather drama notwithstanding. Glad it was relatively “superficial.” Those cliffs are beautiful. As are the needle-cases. Every time I use the one I made (inspired by yours!) I think of you and all your wonderful inspiring projects. (hope this doesn’t sound fawny-creepy…)
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Awwww! Thanks! Yes, I loved the cliffs too.
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Sorry to see the damage! We had a great trip on the Murray, minus the hail, a year ago.
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We had a great trip in spite of the associated drama 🙂 Glad you enjoyed it!
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Happy Birthday !
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Thanks Wendi! It wasn’t my birthday but two other friends were celebrating 🙂
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