Greetings from The Outback

Well, it has been quite warm here in The Isa and today it is 34C...a little hotter than it was when I left Brisbane on Friday all rugged up with a cardigan and scarf due to the rainy weather. I don't think scarves will be worn up here for a while.

My granddaughters were keen to watch the finals of My Kitchen Rules to see if the local girls Jac and Shaz would win but the littlest one fell asleep while her night-owl sister lasted the distance but was disappointed when they came a close second. Mt.Isa has certainly been promoted well during the show and I believe the two ladies will be appearing on the billboard on the outskirts of town which acknowledges famous locals like Pat Rafter and Greg Norman. We went for lunch on Sunday and the first person we saw as we walked in the door was Shaz having lunch with a group of friends. The girls were so chuffed!

On Saturday night the power was cut for a few hours which sent us on a mission to find torches as that rarely happens here unlike other areas of Queensland where power cuts are common during storms and cyclones. So it was an early night for us when the power wasn't restored for a while and we were saddened to hear the following morning that a young teacher from my granddaughters' school had been killed when the car she was a passenger in was hit by one driven by a teenager who I believe had been drinking. The car ended up hitting a power pole with fatal consequences. Such a tragedy for all concerned and I feel for the grieving families.

The school organised for counsellors to be available for staff and students on Monday and the staff tried to continue with the school routine as much as possible despite the sadness and grief they were obviously feeling. My daughter and I attended Parade in the afternoon as Miss Four (very soon to be Miss Five) received her first Prep award for being a good listener etc. She was thrilled of course. The staff still looked very flat at the end of the day as I heard that the young teacher had been very popular so it would have been a great shock to everyone.

I have had a look around the garden to see what had survived the summer temps of over 40C and there aren't a lot of flowers apart from a number of roses that the previous owners planted. I didn't bring my new DSLR camera with me which is just as well as it would have been drenched during my run across the tarmac on Friday night. I am using the iPad to take photos for a change. 

This is what is left after a plague of locusts passes through.

I am not sure what the name of this plant is but it is certainly pretty in this dry area where it is nice to see some colour in the harsh climate.

This little boy keeps everyone entertained and he is certainly a delightful baby. Did you know that he still lives with his parents? Ha ha!

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week and that the weather is finally warming up for my Northern Hemisphere readers. I am sure we will be complaining about the cold soon :-)

...oOo...

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