Plumbing

This is a bit of a panic post!
I have disconnected our rainwater collection system with the aim of improving it. We have purchased a 500L tank to store run off from the roof. Under the old system it was pumped up from 2 small tanks housed above the electric pump. The main water tank is on top of the hill above the house - let's say 5m in vertical height. The house water is gravity fed from the main tank.

My problem is that the pump is not working when I tested it. The electric motor is on, but no water is being pumped. The model is called Riva Flo TF30. It is possible that it needs priming (how?) or thet I have damaged it by running it with no water in the system.

Any suggestions on how to remedy this would be gratefully received.

End of Term

Well that's it for 2 weeks! We have got ourselves to the end of term 3. Been getting my head round NCEA marking of the senior mock exams. As well as getting my head around becoming "Associate Junior Dean", my head is ready for a break from school work.

Other pressing matters are piling up demanding attention. There are the goats feet which need another pruning. The veggy garden needs starting if we are to get much in the way of veg this year. I want to make a salad and herb bed on the back lawn and a larger plot down on the chicken field. That is the bigger job as there needs to be a fence to keep out all the animals that are partial to veggies.

We reckon that one of the bantams went this week. We ate the wyandotte cock last sunday. He was a bit tough, not surprising as he spent most of the last few months chasing hens and mating with them brutally. The hens seem a lot calmer without him around. It would be nice to get some chicks to start growing into future Sunday dinners. Not too sure what happened to the bantam. It went about the time of a big storm last w/e. We had 100km winds, with trees down in town and the roof of the timber mill blown onto Pukepoto Road. Plus a lot of damage at Ahipara. Eric reports seeing a harrier flying off with the bantam in its talons.

On a happier note, the ducks have taken to the pond enthusiastically. They have a stoat proofed house and have been out in the open with no protection for a night already. They are not always keen on going into their lovingly made house every night. So far so good and we still have 5 of them.

Election wise, I am not sure who is going to run the country yet. And I am not the only one. Labour have a slight majority on the main lot of votes, but a load more "special" votes have to be counted. Then all the smaller parties start horsetrading over who they will support in government and what their terms will be for that support. We shall see what the outcome is .... obviously.

Election Eve

The big day tomorrow!
Although we cannot vote, we are still taking a keen interest, as we live here now and it is our country! We have had some interesting tea time conversations with the boys. Eric would vote National if he could "because he looks like a man I could trust", Stuart would vote Clark, but I cannot understand (or explain) his reasoning. Patrick is letting it pass over him, and why not, he is only 6 after all.

Meanwhile the politicians are fighting dirty and the smaller parties are trying to get themselves as much media exposure as possible. Winston Peters comes across as a media tart, he strung them out for a whole week over which side he would support in a coalition, to finally announce it would be neither, unless he changes his mind.
Amusement of the week has been the mudslinging he has tried on with his main constituency opponent, National's Clarkson. Peters has dragged up some incident from years ago when Clarkson allegedly harrassed one of his female employees. It all sounded a bit pathetic until Clarkson himself told a female interviewer this week that he would have to stand up "because my crotch is so sore".

Seriously though, I do fear for our futures here in Northland if National get in. They will increase racial tension between Pakeha and Maori for one thing. Plus they are going to bring back bulk funding to schools which will probably lead to job cuts and strike action.

Enough politics ... at least until tomorrow when the result comes in.

Family news: boys all ok, no sports on this weekend. Stuart played in a soccer day this week. The big event of the week has been the saga of the broken glasses. Namely Stuart's, broken beyond repair and with new ones costing over $200, we needed to know who did it. That has cast a shadow over the week and we have only just resolved the problem. I won't say how because the offender/ chief suspect has been granted name suppression to protect his character.

We are basically hanging in there until the end of term one week today.

Included are some pics of animals. Miss Clucky was insisting on laying an egg each afternoon under the stairs; only in this household could this sort of situation happen. I am alternately amused and not amused - though my amusement or lack of counts for little. Meanwhile, the ducks spend most of their day sat on the concrete right outside the back door, liberally spraying it and the window with their faeces. Luvverley! They are going to be taken down to the pond tomorrow, the basic idea being that they will eventually waddle up and down by themselves. Chucks are Ok. Wyandotte cock earned himself an extra week of life by refusing to go in the pen on Saturday night and then staying out on Sunday morning, even when the food arrived. Just how did he know I was after him? Was it my chicken killing gloves or could he tell by my body language? The hatchet was way out of sight. Other livestock are fine. Rams are back to head butting each other intermittently.

Award winner!!!!

Well, hasn't he done well !!!
In his first season of playing "soccer" - Football is rugby?!?!?, Paddy has been awarded player of the season for Pirates . He was awarded on stage infront of about 300 people. He was cheered by many.Well done son !! We are proud.

September Happenings

A few pictures from the last week. Ducklings get bigger and are now in with mrs clucky outside the back door. No sign of the wild ducklings; I fear that the stoat got itself another supper. No success with the trap.
No more rats. The bio students enjoyed dissecting them.
We had a quiet w/e with 2 lie ins. Father's Day on Sunday was nice for me, breakfast in bed and someone else fed the chucks. We went down later on and saw to the goats feet; they are better than last week. My attempts to find them a retirement home have not been successful, so we shall have to keep them here.

The election draws nearer and the polls show that it maight be a close run thing. National are in the lead by 8 points at the moment. If they get in things might warm up here as they are into bulk funding for schools, stopping race-based funding etc.

new life in the pond

The first day of Spring a new lives were discovered by the pond.From the two ducks that have made a home of the pond , 8 duckling appeared. by Eric.