Those "Moving In" blues!

(All photos enlarge when clicked)

On the 6th. of June, after the painter had finished doing the walls and ceilings, we moved in the first items of new furniture, which we had bought "locally" - the nest of tables from a furniture store here in Yamba and the arching floor lamp from Harvey Norman in Ballina.
These were the only items belonging to us when this photo was taken. The removalist was to arrive a week later.

On the 12th. of June they turned up and unloaded SEVENTY-THREE boxes!!
I thought we'd packed about 46 but no, the total was almost double that number.

Two weeks have passed since that day and we still have 13 boxes to unpack.
Most of those contain books, magazines, CDs, LPs and DVDs plus a smattering of miscellaneous stuff not needed on a daily basis.
Once all the boxes are emptied I will be putting them up for sale on the internet.

We are still awaiting the delivery of furniture that we have ordered over the past three weeks.
The items include a dining suite, a lounge suite, a bedroom suite, an entertainment unit and an office desk for the study.
So we are making do with a couple of bean-bags, cushions, a collapsible picnic table, some plastic garden chairs and empty packing boxes as desks and bedside tables.

Packing-up a household, moving it 900+ kilometres and then unpacking it into the new home should only ever be done once as a maximum and preferably never!

However, the BIG positives, which far outweigh the pain of the moving process, are the location, the weather, the people and the overall ambiance of Yamba and the region.

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On a walk along the breakwall a couple of weeks ago I spotted a lone fisherman accompanied by his dog.
It was a lovely scene - very peaceful. Just a bloke and his mate fishing for Blackfish.

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Rosie the cat settled into her new home pretty smoothly after we picked her up from the cattery on June the 17th.
We hadn't seen her for exactly a month but she remembered us and within a few days had eased into the new situation, even finding the best sunny spots in which to snooze and grab some vitamin D.

It's a hard life, being a cat!

On guard!

Just across the road from Waves Fitness Centre here in Yamba is a grassed area  adjacent a sports ground and it is hemmed by ti-tree (or"tea tree" or "paperbark") bush.
(Click on the link and you'll get a Streetview. Rotate it and you'll see the location to which I refer).

The other day a large male 'roo was sunning himself right on the edge of the scrub.
But he wasn't relaxing; he was quite alert. Notice his ears (checking for sounds behind) and also the way he is holding his head.

You wouldn't want to come across this big bloke unexpectedly - he could be dangerous if surprised.

I was about 50 metres away when I took this shot, using the full zoom of the Lumix TZ40, resting it on the roof of my car to reduce unsteadiness.

TLC FM 100.3 Yamba

Yamba is home to the studios of The Lower Clarence community radio station, TLC FM 100.3, a station which must sit in arguably the most picturesque location of any radio station, anywhere!

I've mentioned before in this blog that the studios occupy the replica of the original lighthouse building, which sat here from the late 1800s until 1955, when it was demolished.

The two photos below show what the replica looked like well prior to completion (left) and then as it is today (right).

The view from this spot is delightful.
Here is a short video made from just outside the studio. It is in high definition and 16:9 ratio, so watching it directly on YouTube may be preferable............

Incidentally, my "Baby Boomer Radio" program has moved (along with me!) from Canberra to Yamba and may now be heard on TLCFM every Wednesday afternoon between midday and 4:00 PM.
I have a separate blog devoted to the program - just click on Baby Boomer Radio to access it - where you can find information about the show.

Yamba - Seascapes

One of the things I love about living on the coast is the relationship between the sea and clouds.
When the clouds build up over the water they take on a completely different appearance to those I've been used to living in Canberra, which is some 150 kilometres from the sea.

Here are a couple of seascapes taken a few days ago. All photos enlarge when clicked.

Looking north past Turners Beach towards the southern (Yamba) breakwall on the Clarence River.
A rain-band is building up out to sea and within 12 hours we had good soaking rain for a day.

The cliff at the south end of Turners changes colour, depending upon the time of day and the sun's intensity. Out on the horizon the clouds are billowing.

A couple of people fishing from the rocks but there was only one surfer this morning.

This picture hangs on one of the walls in the TLC FM studios. A wonderful photo, more than a metre in length.


SUNDAY 1st. June
We did a trip up to Lismore (70km) this morning and on the way back went off the highway on the north side of the river to visit Iluka.
The village is 40+ km from Yamba by road yet less than 5 km by water!
Here are two shots of the "harbour" (Iluka Bay) taken from the extreme western-most point (see map link above) .