A slogan in TV. A company wants you to sell your unwanted jewellery.

I got to know a different kind of shop: the fodder store.



Yes, 1 bale of lucerne hay = $ 16.50

Waiting. Whole life waiting. For something. For anything. Waiting for the response of the Immigration Department, waiting for the telephone (yes, the trench is still like it was in October), waiting for the return of my bond, waiting since August for a receipt from the RSPCA (tax deductable expenses I spent for Miss Piggy), waiting for the erection of the verandah (should have been done in November). I could continue with this list if desired.
Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.

Here something to pass the time:

Today the hottest day since January 2009: 44*C and 2% humidity. Warnings without end - where already bushfire occured, how to prevent bushfire. Drink a lot, stay inside and not underneath a gum tree (because they tend to loose their limbs when stressed by heat)....

http://www.cfs.sa.gov.au/site/news_media/current_incidents.jsp

... and don't fall off the Fiscal Cliff. Otherwise your New Year's Party will end like this:

Neither fish (scientific) nor fowl (pulp fiction) but somehow in-between and entertaining. Especially the little episodes at the beginning of each chapter. The author describes the life with her former dog Pump(ernickel) and you can feel the love she has for her furry friend.

http://www.insideofadog.com

[German: Was denkt der Hund? ISBN 978-3-8274-2969-8]

Despite the good wishes of my faithful readers Mrs Kelef, Mrs Annemarie and Mr Kluettenrath (thank you) I didn't enjoy the Christmas Days at all. The reason? How would you react?

On the 23rd of November I sent the 96 pages application for Sponsorship by registered letter to the appropriate Department in Adelaide.
On the 14th of December I thought it may be a good idea to ask whether my documents have arrived at their office. No answer. Another email on 19th of December. No answer. A third email to a different address on 20th of December. Finally a response on 21st: "I’ve checked and we don’t have a record of having received your application. Could you please checking the tracking and confirm it has been sent to the correct address? Thanks,... " First panic attack. I checked the tracking (ridiculously it took 10 days to deliver the registered letter! There are 45 km between the post office and the Department in Adelaide and they sent it to NSW first!) and I was able to confirm that the letter arrived on the 3rd of December at 06.31. My next email on the 24th of December: "Did you find my documents or do I have to send them again? I'm really nervous about this incident." Reply: "It being Christmas Eve, there’s no-one in the mail room today. But I am making every effort to locate your application in the instance that it may have been misplaced. There is a possibility that it’s in someone’s in-tray, something which I’m checking as we speak. I don’t want to ask you to send another copy before we’ve had time to check everywhere first. I appreciate how much time and effort it takes to put a full application together." Additionally he kept me busy in asking some more information about my visa details. I submitted them and received the next email: "..Please don’t worry too much about this – there is plenty of time left on your visa and I still have several avenues to chase up. I’ll be in the office on Thurs and Fri where I will follow up with the other sections..."

Today the relieving email: "Good news – we’ve located your file safe and sound. Just a minor error in the mailroom had it sent to the wrong floor, but this morning someone finally turned it in. We’ll begin processing this application and let you know of the outcome in due course. "
...Just a minor error....Processing time (according to the website): 2 months!

... to all (both readers of the blog) and don't eat too much!

Today lots of shopping done. I know that I'm blessed to live in a prosperous country and I shouldn't complain but I'm missing ...

'Kochbeutelreis'

'Puddingpulver'

'Mayo in der Tube'

and 'Kirschmarmelade'

No cherry jam - any other kind of jam and marmelade but no cherry! Don't know why.

Something I have to teach Clare:

SA Power Networks: "We are experiencing widespread power interruptions and advise there may be delays in restoring power. We apologise for the inconvenience".

Sitting in the dark, 30*C inside the house and the content of the freezer is melting away.
My aggressive guarddog is crouching in the w-i-r, shaking.


PS: Powerinterruption lasted for 18 hours.