Saturday, February 23, 2013

Life in the Lockyer

It's an overcast Sunday here in the Lockyer. It's really the perfect day for quiet pottering around the place, which is what I feel like doing.

Our neighbours, though... Two of our closest neighbours are fans of dirt bikes. Mostly, during the week, it's not a problem. But on weekends, one or both households like to bring the bikes out to ride around. And around. And around.

They're SO LOUD!!

Both households are moving on soon - one has their place on the market, the other is renters who've told us they'll be relocating soon - so I'm trying to be patient and put up with it.

But it's crazily disruptive. Lucinda can't sleep through it and the irregularity of the noise - the revving of the engines shattering a quiet afternoon - is, basically, incredibly aggravating.

Moving on from that, life is ticking along nicely here. I've been using my month of solitude to really get stuck into taming the paddocks and gardens.

Working on a new flowerbed today.
A new flowerbed around the tipuana tree.

I've spoken to one of the neighbours about buying a couple of sheep off him to keep some of the lawns down. Much though I actually enjoy the mowing (luckily), it's much too big a job without some animal help.

A few times a week we're out there currently, Lu strapped to my body in a harness (wearing all her safety gear of course), to mow and mow and mow. Then, there's whipper snipping and trying to get weeds under control too.

We've now got cattle on the back half of the property, but we still need help to keep the rest under control.

Can you tell the houses haven't featured too highly on our priority list recently?

The sky went purple for a heartbeat. #lockyervalley #sunset
Lockyer Sunset.

Home.
Saying hi to Dad.

Lucinda's been having a great time out here. She is thick as thieves with our neighbour's son, and they play together most days now.

Escape artists.

Another neighbour also comes over and collects her to take her for a ride around the arena some afternoons...

Lu went for a ride with the neighbours.

Lucinda takes her own horses along too, of course. 

Taking her own ponies over the road to the riding school to show the big kids (they were all very jealous).


11 comments:

  1. Once the dirt bike enthusiasts move on, you'll be back in paradise. In school hols we get a few dirt bikers ripping through the crown land adjoining our place and our dogs go crazy. With the noise of the bikes and both our dogs barking constantly, I could easily learn to use a shotgun! Fortunately someone else must complain (or use the shotgun) because after a few days they disappear. I hope your offenders move out very soon, to be replaced by peaceful dwellers.

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  2. We have a dirt bike neighbour too, I understand how annoying it is when they get started, seems to be a common reason for getting this size block, either too many animals, overgrown bush or dirt bikes! I hope the your neighbours (when they change) are better! We just got back from 2 weeks holiday and are amazed by how everything has grown. Our cattle are looking fat and happy (and our neighbour's block is too overgrown for bikes :) ).

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  3. I'm not a fan of dirt bike enthusiasts here either. But I try to look at it as a clean way for teenagers to have fun. At least they're not vandalising other people's property in a destructive manner, or hooning their cars up the street. I guess you just notice the noise intrusion of dirt bikes, that much more, when you're used to hearing the various bird calls and the wind through the trees most of the time.

    I've noticed in our six years of living in the Lockyer, the dirt bike enthusiasts are seasonal. They don't like to ride much during winter or when the storm season arrives. So at least for some of the year they aren't so annoying.

    I don't mind if they ride around their own properties, what annoys me more is when they ride up the street. Thankfully it's very rare.

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  4. Little Lucinda doesn't know it yet, but you are creating memories of a life time for her, and I guarantee she will look back on her "time on the farm" as THE happiest days of her life. Take it from someone who had a taste of farm life as a child, it's great!

    I love that you are focusing on the garden early on in the piece, one thing I regret doing on our 4 acres is concentrating on the house renovations first. Logically it's best to get gardens established early, especially if you are into food production, if we had planted out all the fruit trees etc that I'm aiming to plant out soon when we first bought the place, we would already have been enjoying our harvest by now.

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    1. I totally agree, having grown up on a farm, ive a lifetime of really great memories. Mucking around with the neighbours kids and waltzing in and out of their's and our home. It was never so social when we moved to town. Now that im in the city, we dont know anybody. Enjoy.

      Good idea too. So long as you are comfortable and ready for winter months, go crazy on your garden to get the growth into it. Im waiting for cooler months to get my potted citrus into the soil because i know i wont be getting crops for a while.

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  5. Hi Edwina - love your new Blog. Have seen the pics on IG but only just realised you have this new Blog after seeing it on Carmel's sidebar. Looks like you're all settling in well, aside from the noisy dirt bikes which I agree are extremely aggravating (unless you are the ones riding on them) but at least they're moving on soon. Looking forward to seeing more updates. Mel x

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  6. So crazy to ruin all that serenity with bikes. We have visited out your way before and found that with everyone mowing and whippersnippering there was not a skerrick of peace and quiet to be found! Hope they zoom off soon. Bet your grass is going nuts with all this rain, ours looks like a prairie. That last pick of Lucinda with her ponies is priceless. mel x

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    1. My husband says it's the "call of the wild" when he hears the neighbours start up their mowers and brush-cutters. He just has to go out there and join them, lol.

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  7. I was wondering how you do the mowing with Lucinda. I have to do ours in shorts bursts, so I can stop and entertain Jarvis.

    http://iliska-dreams.blogspot.com.au/

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  8. Sorry to hear the dirt bikes have ruined your serenity...you could get some native tube stock (Toowoomba PCYC markets have heaps) and plant up a thick hedge, with all the rain and heat at this time they should take off well,grevillias and bottlebrush would attract the birds and keep bugs off the vegies.You can tip prune the natives from when small to make them thick, not stragley.
    Something else to try at nap time, a radio or cd of constant music, loud enough to mask any outside noise, if you put it on before Lucinda goes to bed it will just be a background noise that won't intrude on her nap.....good luck : )

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