All the mucking around!

Well it is now Friday 24th August and the palace is still sitting waiting patiently for some attention!

Not sure if I mentioned we got the go ahead from the insurance company and I signed the forms in agreement and so had hoped something had at least been started by now.

I was in Melbourne for the week and Richard from Bay Building services rang to inquire as to when the neighbours would be home as they had to get the polished floor re done in their billiard room and I am sort of the carer for their home for now til they get back from travelling around Oz having an absolute blast of a holiday. So during the conversation he mentioned things would be happening as soon as possible to the palace.

Yeah right.. So last night after I got home, there was a knock at the door from a chap in a Bay Building T-shirt and his name is Jason and Richard has passed some of the jobs onto him as he has so much work to do that he cannot manage it all. Jason has come up from Frankston for who knows how long, he was recently up north helping do work from the floods up there, so he has plenty of work to do.

So after checking out what had to be done in the palace he was reluctant to believe me about the ceiling and if the insulation was causing the softness and ballooning, he wanted me to get in touch with the insurance company. Oh no here we go again around in circles. At that moment Richard appeared and thank goodness he did coz I mentioned the conversation and he confirmed what was going to happen. Well... if we did not see Jason three more times in less than 24 hours...

So what he wants to do before they go ahead and take off a quarter of the plaster is cut out some holes in various parts of the walls to see if the insulation is wet and go from there. Oh boy why don't listen to me???? Hey I am just a silly "middle aged" grey haired old biddy!! carrying on about nothing... Surely it makes sense if you have condensation running down your walls from the ceiling and the whole wall from top to bottom feels damp and at the ceiling also, does that not mean there is moisture in there?? The insulation has obviously soaked up the water higher than the other places seeing the floods were in June and it is now 25th August and the insulation has not been removed??? The walls are the aqua plaster so the walls have not soaked up the water like normal plaster so they look in good condition!

I am sorry I am having a whinge here, but it is so frustrating... these young guys in their 30's say, some of them are not bad to look at.. hmmm, have a bit of attitude... and think we know absolutely nothing...

So of course when Jason called for the second time today, I just asked him his opinion about the outside of the palace as I had been cleaning the lower parts of the walls with a "gurnie" and the marks were not coming off! They look like rust, but when you rub them with your finger while wet they go away and then when it dries there is a mark there again and it leaves a chalky residue on your finger!! Also where the silicone had been put down on the concrete and the bottom of the shed the paint was coming off the shed!! Oh boy this is supposed to be a "Colourbond" shed.. supposedly not to rust and all that guff!! well I got told it was the silicone causing the problems! Oh yeah???? it has not touched the areas where it is chalky, o.k. the lower parts where the paint is coming off I could agree with, but not the other. He went away and within 15 minutes he was back again to tell us that the whole outside walls of the palace will have to be replaced!! OMG......... If not done it will all go rusty!! can you imagine me sitting at my table with the outer walls collapsing around me? pulling down the insulation and the wind blowing the plaster walls away and there is me sitting at my table trying to do some embossing??? what a scream.

So the framework is going to remain, but the metal walls are coming off so then they will see what the insulation is doing and the plaster walls!! Oh boy what a circus this is. Meanwhile I need to get organised here inside to have everything all sorted out to put in the palace when it is all done. say maybe by Christmas??

Just had a thought, I wonder if we could add another two metres onto the shed??? Might have to make an enquiry about this... ummm I wonder...

Well it could be done, just got Gerard outside and we measured up the area and two metres would fit in quite well. Might look up to see how much a two by 4 metre shed would cost and maybe ask Jason about it!! will let you know what the answer is later..

Well instead of me dreaming about the Palace, I should be spending time sorting out some stuff. I can hardly move in this second bedroom so I will get on with it!

talk soon

luv Jill

It's the 4th May 2007

We are hoping for rain, the drought has taken its toll. We are on Level 4 water restrictions. The only reason we have a bit of green on our grass is because when we have our showers each day, we stand in the shower with one foot in a large plastic tub allowing the water to run from our bodies down our leg and into the container. Gerard then struggles to carry it outside to put around the plants and trees etc.

Wednesday 27th June 2007 12.37 p.m.

The puddles are turning into small ponds and the water is not going away! I am getting concerned at this point. I took this pic from our back door looking onto the grass area.

Thursday 27th June 2007

Gerard has been away for two weeks in Queensland.I stayed home as someone needed to be here for the animals! I had a great two weeks taking the dogs for their walks each day I vowed to continue on doing this when Gerard got back, but alas I haven't. We had some heavy rain the first week and I was a bit concerned as the water created rather large puddles out the back of our place on the grass. Down by the water I noticed the water level had risen a bit covering some of the rocks near where we launch our kayaks.

A couple of days later and the water had gone down to it's usual level and I felt a lot better about it all. BUT.... the next week we had some more heavy rain and those little puddles were turning into little ponds. Gerard was due home on Thursday night 27th June, I was going to meet him at Bairnsdale station at 10pm coming back from Melbourne. I told him I was worried about the water rising and he gave me his usual speil about having the extra canals now so it won't flood!!! yeah right. I spoke to him on the Wednesday and that evening I decided to lift as much as I could in the Palace as I was rather concerned with the water rising. It took me a good two hours to move as much as I could up, I was buggared, my back and hips hurt so much I had to leave the rest. It was getting rather late, I took some strong pain killers and fell into my reclining chair to rest. I finally went to bed at about 3a.m. in my clothes!! of all things, I just did not have the energy to take them off!

It was an awful night the dogs were restless and it rained heavily. I had the dogs inside because the night before there was thunder and Millie our little dog was so upset by it all and was running around in the rain getting so wet, I tried to ignore her and Missy joined her too. My disturbed sleep was shattered at 8.30 on Thursday morning with the phone ringing. It was Gerard, wanting to know what was happening, was the water rising??? I did not know where I was as I staggered down the hall to get the phone and it took me a while to become conscious. I said I don't know what it is like as I have not been outside. Well go have a look! Gerard was flying back from Queensland at 10a.m. and wanted to know the situation before he left. I opened the curtains and opened the door onto the verandah and got the shock of my life!!! Oh ______ goodness gracious me!!! There was water everywhere. It had come over the brick wall and was over the car park and creeping up to our back fence. "Oh no it won't flood" is all I could hear!!! Gerard was saying "what, what, speak to me" I spoke to him for a little while and was in absolute shock as to what my eyes saw. We hung up after saying I will see him at 10 p.m. at the station.

While talking to Gerard, a couple who regularly walk their dog came by and as I hung up the phone, they asked me if I was o.k., did I need any help?? I said I don't know!..... They took over as I was in shock. Another couple who heard the water had risen came around to see if I was o.k. as they knew Gerard was not home yet. The four of them stayed with me the whole day taking charge. I am so grateful to them for helping me as I would have not been able to rescue all the heavy boxes in the garage of photo's, slides, records, stamping stuff and lots more that I had not got around to unpack and put in the Palace.

I hadn't had time to change my clothes, go to the loo, eat breakfast or even have a much needed drink of water and take my tablets. There were other things to do like ring the SES, the fire brigade, the shire to find out about sand bags. To keep the water out of the Palace. I also needed to go to the chemist to get some tablets I ran out of the day before. I really don't remember a lot of that day as it was so hectic.

Those wonderful people worked so hard for me and then the decision came as to leaving the house as the water was going to come up under the house for sure.

You know when you talk about things like, "what would you take if you had to leave your house in an emergency?" or "what three things would you take if you were going to stay on a deserted island for three days?" Well you have time to think about it and make your decision.

Claire said, "well come on Jill you need to pack some stuff to take next door, get going!" OMG what do I take???

Well because I was taking the dogs, their bedding and also at that point were taking the two cats too, so their bedding, cat food, then decided not to take them, they would be o.k. where they were. O.k. so mobile phone, the lap top of course coz I can keep in touch on the net, my camera, forgot the extra battery though! 6 pairs of clean undies (always the Girl Guide! Be Prepared!!) clean socks, two short sleeved Tshirts.. hey it is freezing cold of course you take short sleeved clothes with you!! I am not stressing, some track pants, pj's, sleeping bag... why do I want a sleeping bag?? there are beds there? Oh just take it in case says Claire lol.. I am so glad I did.

I looked around the house in a daze as it looked like a bomb site as we had raised the furniture inside the house also just in case the water got inside, and thought to myself "what do I take??? what means a lot to me???" I just could not decide. Mind you I looked at my newly aquired dragonfly plate, vase and salt and pepper shakers that cost me a fortune on lay by. and said nup!! what good are they going to do me?? I made sure my Cricut was up on the kitchen bench though!!

We take all this stuff to the house next door and as I look up at that stair case I think oh no how are my knees going to cope with these stairs!! Well my calves were sore for days, thank goodness I had lost weight as it was easier than I thought it would be.

The cat food came in handy for the dogs as I forgot to take some for them. They settled in well and were so well behaved thank goodness.

I will let you now browse down and have a look at the photos I took with brief descriptions. I have mainly focused on the Palace and will put other photos of the area on later on.

Don't forget to click on the photo if you want to see a bigger version!!

Here are the table and bench seats at the end of the car park. It is hard to see the brick wall beyond the table. Part of the car park is still above the water, opposite is Raymond Island.

The Purple Palace and garage sand bagged ready in case the water rises this far!!!.........

The Purple Palace, yes I know it is not purple, but inside is. Our driveway, our letter box, and the road going around the corner. On this side of the house you would not suspect a thing, it is like going through a tunnel (through the house) and coming out the back door to a different world.

At the bottom there are some pics of the palace when we put in the new carpet, you can see how tidy it was back then.

Thursday 1.46p.m.

Our verandah is on the right, the water has reached the corner of our little fence. The grass strip stretches right down to the water. In between the house and the bush in the middle of the picture the car park is covered with water. The small bushes at the waters edge are still visible resting by the brick wall.

Thursday at 2.50p.m.

The water has reached our back fence and creeping past.

The top of the table at the waters edge, the seats are under water, the foreground is the car park and about 2 metres past the table is the waters edge concrete bank! Across the water is Raymond Island.

It is 6.15pm on Thursday night, the water has now past our back fence and well up past the house.

A closer look at the front of the Palace from the street.

This gives a good idea of our position. I am standing on the road, what is left of it, the water still has a way to rise. To the left of the Palace is a long grassed area that runs to the waters edge, the council cut the grass and also close to the Palace seeing we are on the edge of the council land. Beyond the Palace the cream timber that is visible is our verandah where we enjoy the winter sun's warmth. Beyond that where the bush is on the left is the large car park that reaches down to the waters edge in a normal situation.

And I thought the water was deep enough here! Looking from the front door down the drive onto the road, the Palace is on the left with the sand bags in front of it.

Our place in paradise????? hmmmm!

I am across the road would you believe. The lake is behind the houses beyond the car park.
The water still had to rise up to the garage door next door still got a way to go.

Thank goodness we have not got around to doing the front garden, I still need to paint the fence.

There is the Palace on the left of our place behind the trees! Next door towers over our little home.

The water is still rising!

My neighbour across the road wants me to "paint" one of those "tromp l'oeils", you know with the garden arch and wisteria hanging off it and a garden path going through with a bench seat and some topiary trees!! Yeah right. They don't have a rubber stamp big enough to do that!! lol..... On the Palace wall, I have to admit it would look good although I can't pronounce it properly.

The water is still rising!

Not reached it's peak yet.

Looking out from the front door, garage on the right then the Palace on the right. The water is on our driveway, across the road to the neighbours front gate.

At this point, I was starting to get worried as the water just did not seem to be stopping. It rose 12cm per hour and it took 4cms per hour to go down.

This the front of the Palace facing the street, the dirt was eventually under water also.

Four houses down this ornamental fish was still spurting out water above the fish pond. Mind you the whole yard was under water! I could see the funny side of course!

A change of scenery

These gorgeous little swallows stood still on the neighbours fence for some time as if they were saying "where has the grass gone?" They usually flit about in a large group some mornings and afternoons, but I have never seen them settle for so long.

I am standing on the neighbours landing outside the ground floor "Nanna's" unit looking into our back yard. The round dish is one of our bird baths, the other one is under water. On the left where the cream boards are, there are about 5 blue boards under water. I was constantly nervously watching them disappear. Beyond our wire fence is usually grass and small bushes. It is usually dry to the edge of those trees in the background, then the lake usually starts.

My kayak came in handy to take things next door on it. I felt like I was walking the dog, but it was the kayak on a rope following me down our street to next doors garage door loaded with things we needed while living next door! Mind you we had to carry everything back as the water had left the road!

I am upstairs now overlooking our back yard. You can see the lake beyond the trees. As I said in the above picture the land before the end of the trees is usually dry with lots of bird life. Sorry the pic is not straight! Hey look there is my umpires chair!

Poor Missy, there is usually grass here, she could not hold on any longer. We had to evacuate her the next morning as she would not go again after this episode the afternoon before! Such control!!

Oh my goodness

that is the fourth row of sand bags starting to go under! The blue tarp is in front of our garage as we have no door and it was to protect my boxes from any rain. Believe it or not there are two rows of sandbags there under the water to hold the tarp down. They worked keeping the tarp down, but that's all!

Looking out of the main bedroom window next door.

That is the Palace's roof, the flat part. To the left is the road going around the corner. Where the fence posts are is a sign which says "walking track" which is under water. Usually it is all dry in that wet area. I take the dogs along the walking track to the right, it winds to the left and along the main waters edge in the background. Looks like a glorious sunset was about to happen. Imagine my view if we had upstairs. Oh boy!

Sidetracked again

Watching the moon is a love of mine

I was thrilled to get these images

These were taken from the balcony next door. Just unreal. The green bit is the street lights reflection. Usually don't get such a long reflection as the light is at the edge of the carpark and the water normally.

Our front door

Look at the colour of the water, it was so brown. On the left is our garage, the water was up to my knees in there. There are two steps underwater. Those two bits of green on the third step are actually in pots. On the right is our bedroom.

Looking out my bedroom window

The reflection is the venetian blinds on the window. The water to the left of the Palace beyond those posts is the road. Between the bedroom and the Palace is the driveway, well was the driveway!

I have been side tracked as usual

The water was so calm this reflection caught my eye.

This was the first yacht to sail by for days, such a beautiful sight.

The water was about four inches high here and these swan footprints in the mud showed through on the driveway.

What a shame

My heater/air conditioner was only used for one winter and summer and part of this winter. Half of it went underwater as you can see by the water line.

At long last it was time to take the sand bags away

It was nearly a week before the water had gone down enough for Gerard to take the sand bags away

Almost done with the sand bags.

The sand bags were so much heavier as they had soaked up a lot of water

Oh my goodness!

The water did get into the Palace, look at that water line!

The first think I saw when the doors were opened.

Oh why didn't I pay that extra few cents for that new ultra thick paper towel?

My carpet!

Thank goodness the sandbags sifted the water and only let a little bit of mud inside, it was like a coating of very thick cream!

The water reached the power points.

The skirting boards and plaster walls have to be replaced.