There's creek running through this suburb called Toomuc Creek. We've had very heavy rainfall over the last two days and the upper reaches which run through farmland are very flooded. Toomuc gains another letter, becoming Toomuch Creek.
It's not getting any better. There's good reasons I'm receiving a disability support pension: my lower back is very fragile and arthritis in my left knee inhibits mobility greatly: So when I used the line trimmer to reduce the length of the overgrown grass in the back yard two weeks ago, I twisted awkwardly and since then the left side of my lower back has been exceptionally painful. Ice packs, heat packs and various liniments provide temporary relief. Few positions are comfortable for very long, standing, sitting or lying down need to change frequently. I'm not overly happy with things at present.
I used to use a 30cm box fan in my bedroom to stop the space from getting too stuffy at night. But that was rather loud and really moved to much air. Now I use a 15cm rechargeable battery fan that's far quieter and still move plenty of air.
Daihatsu, Toyota's small car subsidiary, shuts down factories due to falsified safety tests.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-27/japan-auto-maker-daihatsu-suspends-production-safety-testing/103268528
Two days ago my car lost its air conditioning, coolant system pump and alternator. There was an almighty squeal and screech followed thumping and flapping sounds from within the engine bay.
I found a shady spot in a safe location, checked the serpentine belt that drives those accessories. It was thoroughly shredded. I called the auto club and a service van arrived. The mechanic confirmed my diagnosis and arranged for a flatbed tow truck. I had to pay for an extra 16 km as the level of service agreement I have only allows for 30 km of free towing.
When we arrived at the auto club affiliated repairer at 3pm on Friday, it was closed so I arranged to have the car dropped off at home.
For the preceding week I'd been suffering from a really sore lower back and getting up int the cab of the Hino truck was quite a trial.
Once home I made an appointment with a mobile mechanic who replaced the belt and showed me that the tensioning pulley had excess sideways slop which would have contributed to the serpentine belt's sudden demise. While he was there I got him to do a 10,000km service as it was due.
The job's not over yet. He's coming back on Friday to replace the tensioning pulley. The all-up cost of this episode will be in excess of A$1000, for a car that's 11 years old with 232,000km on the odometer.
My back is still exceptionally sore.
Suffering after-effects of 2015 cataract surgery. Four years ago at a checkup the operating surgeon told me he might see me in a few years or in ten. After lens replacement a “bag” forms at the front of the eye and vision can over time become hazy and blurry. A laser is used to puncture that bag and drain off the buildup. The optometrist said she noticed at last month’s bi-annual eye check that the bag was showing the onset of haziness. Nothing can be done until the eye clinic reopens after the Xmas break. According to their website they reopen on Jan 5th.
They say it's silly to have a hot roast Xmas lunch in such a climate as Australia, where it's technically Summer. But the weather today was overcast, with intermittent rainfall and the temperature never exceeded 19ºC. Perfectly fine for roast pork, ham and steamed or baked vegetables.
@jextxadore Likewise. It worked out OK, the meal I cooked was tasty and everything came together at the same time - rare for me! And I've been on the gin, trying two interesting flavoured ones served over ice with either white peach or lime juice flavoured sparkling water.