Wednesday 28th July

We’re really running behind whatever schedule we are on this week. I had another day yesterday carting the remaining statues from Frank Haikus’ studio, we got the last of the panels into the container about 3pm, not without a bit of a struggle. But all done. Some rope blocks and pulleys would have been a real help, but we have people instead here.












We spent today putting in the last of the posts, and started on the first wall, hopefully by lunchtime tomorrow it will look a bit more completed than at present for the school trip to see our new composting area. It looks quite impressive already, just with one side up, by the time we all get stuck in tomorrow it should be at the 3 or 4 sides stage.






We had a visit from a person who is trying to get recycling going here, and as we are starting to get a name finally in Honiara for what we do, he came to us with a proposition for us to start collecting and chipping the plastic bottles etc, which is something I’ve had in mind, but a long way down the track, let me finish something first before loading more on. I’m all for it, but we will need more area, as if I haven’t mentioned that before. All we have at present is sufficient for the nursery, and the composting, although I can see that growing like Topsy as well. My idea of compressing the compost into 20kg bales is taking root. If we can get a consistent supply of waste products, between sawdust, chicken manure, and brewery waste, we stand a good show of having a good mix. With a bit of green mulch spread through from the chipper. Getting the right amount of nitrogen into it to decompose the sawdust is going to be the biggest hurdle, I’m hoping the brewery waste will supplement the chicken manure, and if we can get brewery sludge as well as the spent mash the moisture content should be fine.

I’ll have to pay a visit to Ranadi Tip and see what is available there for a recycling centre for the plastics. Then we go back to the usual arguments with the City Council, who can’t seem to get their own organisation doing it, but don’t want anyone else doing it either. At times I think baseball bat diplomacy is something that there should be more of.

The Official Nursery Opening is for the first week of October, so the next couple of months are going to be a bit hectic. If only everything went to schedule I’d be feeling a lot happier about it all. Then again, I don’t get much enjoyment out of things that just plod along either, I like it when everything is a panic, and you can make decisions and just do it, without going backwards and forwards with committees for everything, and interminable discussions that only come up with what you were going to do days or weeks before.

I mentioned last year while I was working at Rove Prison about the earth snakes that were in the soil we got from Tetere. We found some today digging out the postholes, and I finally managed to get some pics of them. The guys were standing well back, I don’t know if they are poisonous or not, the general rule here seems to be that every snake is poisonous, but I figured something so small that eats ants eggs isn’t going to have much of a mouth to bite with, ok, I could be wrong, but what the heck. If anyone does know more about them please let me know.





They are small, about 100mm (4 inches) long, and extremely fast. I was having to catch them with one hand, throw them back on the heap of soil, take a pic, then grab them again for another pic to make up for the ones I missed. Out of a dozen shots, I got three that caught 2 of the snakes. The bright red one vanished into the soil or grass faster than I could find it. I’ve seen them in yellow, blue like in the pics, dark blue, bright red, black, brown, and green. Whether different species or just natural variation I have no idea. They would make great herpetologists specimens, if you like that sort of thing. Keeping up with ants eggs may be a bit awkward at times though.

Plus you would never see them unless you had a set up like an ants nest glass box.

Ah, ok, get an antbox, fill it with ants, and put a couple of earth snakes in, you’d never be worrying about the ants getting too numerous.

I’ve mentioned Zoe in here a few times, nice lady, in Michigan, she’s bought herself a small country house down a dirt track, that she is going to renovate. Ok, how do you write that so it is the house not the dirt track she is going to renovate? Huh? Well? She has started a blog about it, early days yet, I’ll keep on at her to remember to update whenever she can, but please call over there and say hello, and offer words of encouragement. I’m having trouble posting comments with FireFox, IE7 seems to work, FF blocks the captcha box, despite having it set to allow. If you have trouble posting comments try IE7 if you are using any other browser.

http://littlehouseonthedirtroad.blogspot.com/

Should find Zoe and her little house

Just reread this before saving, God I ramble all over the place don’t I? Oh well, life isn’t a straight line at the best of times for me. Well, apart from born to dead, but even then I seem to be taking a circuitous route.