Solar at The Grange

Take that, coal-fired power stations! The Grange will now generate approximately 6.5 kWh electricity /day from good old Sol.

I am pretty sure this good old house is taking this 21st-century-technology in its 130-year-old stride.

We will probably add more solar panels as time goes by and prices come down. For now it is expected that these 8 panels will generate 1/3 of our power. The builders are at present also installing 8 panels on the nursery roof, which should generate enough power to completely cover the existing electricity bill for our tenants Tasman and Barry who run it as a business, The Clunes Nursery.

Learning to ride

Here's Teun on his second ever horse riding lesson. To the manor born :-) ...  Or should I say "To The Grange He Came?"

House guest

We are very lucky to have a lovely house guest in the form of Teun from Venray in the Netherlands. Not only is he very likeable and exceedingly helpful around the place, he loves animals and is also a Trekkie!! And he's a dab hand with the camera ...

Yarrow, Teun and Tess November 2012. The cowboy and his Clunes sisters :-)

Update on the children of Capt Rainbow II and the Missus II

They grew up and flew away :-) :-) :-)

Dad Rosella and Mum Rosella are debating whether to have a new brood. Dad says YES!! YES!!, Mum so far seems to be saying "NO WAY BOYO". Or tweets to that effect.

Wallaby joey update 3

Sad news. Despite a very good start, the wallaby joey died due to sudden renal failure last Thursday, after three months in superb care. Jan, his carer of 24 hours a day, seven days (and nights) a week, is devastated. Our fantastic vet Willa did all she could but despite Jan's entreaties not to let him die he just slipped away. Willa thinks maybe his period of intense hypothermia at the start could have done some kidney damage, but then again, it could have been a birth defect of some sort.

I really feel for Jan and her husband Peter who gave excellent and devoted care to him for three months and were so looking forward to releasing him into the wilds behind their farm.