A hint of spring

After a very cold and wet winter, it's lovely to see the beginnings of spring around the place. every year I am surprised by how early our almond tree blossoms, it started last weekend, with it's gorgeous white flowers:


And the beginnings of new leaves:


One week later, it is covered in new growth, and our backyard begins yet again to look less bare.

Also, my favourite trees in all Adelaide are blossoming - the pink ones (I have no idea what they are, someone could surely enlighten me?)


Spring is surely one of the best times in this city.

Do you like your city?

I love the city I live in.

I have lived in 4 other cities in my life and visited many more, and I love this city.

It seems the man who chose the location of this city agrees with me:







I choose praise for Colonel Light.

Realistically, what makes a place home is not the location, or the lifestyle, but the people. And we know and love lots of people here. (for Sydney readers - yes we do love and miss you all as well!)

However, another more trivial reason that I love this city is the things that can grow here in my garden. From our apricots we made jam, from ~30 kgs of a friend's plums I made lots of jam, preserves, plum BBQ sauce and we ate lots too.



Now, the pears are ripening inside and the apples are ripening on the tree!




And we still have a steady supply of eggs too.

I feel like my desire to have a productive garden is certainly met - all 15 mins from the city centre. Adelaide - a brilliant blend!

A little earthquake

Apparently the rumbling and shaking I felt at 11:30 last night was an earthquake. (I thought it was a car bomb far away*)

No damage reported and it was pretty small, bringing only some general interest for locals and the creation of a facebook group. However, but it does make you remember those in Chile, China, Haiti & elsewhere who are still struggling to recover from the disastrous earthquakes that have hit them.

* I realise to reach such a conclusion living in Adelaide does suggest that I have been watching too much Spooks and 24 of late!

What about Adelaide?

I found this post by a friend, Arthur, very interesting. He is from Adelaide, but currently studying at Ridley in Melbourne and so has had to opportunity to compare the Christian scene in the two cities (and with Sydney).

Being originally from Sydney, we have loved our move to Adelaide - and have found many of the same things he notes about the Adelaide Christian scene. I particularly like his conclusions:

If you don’t live in Adelaide, Adelaide needs you! Doing ministry in the eastern centres is a luxury compared with Adelaide. Adelaide churches desperately need building up. Adelaideans who have never heard about Jesus need to know him. It’s not going to be easy — but Adelaide is a great place to do ministry, filled with wonderful people and unique opportunities for Christian community. Some of our most trusted ministry friends uprooted themselves from interstate to serve Adelaide with their families. They saw the need — will you? And if you can’t make it — will you pray for our city?

If you do live in Adelaide, be excited! It’s hard knowing how to live for Jesus in Adelaide, like anywhere else, but the church in Adelaide is in a unique place! The Adelaide Christian community has a unity you may not find elsewhere in Australia, and because of that, you have something great to offer as an Australian Christian! You are the greatest resource of the church in Adelaide!

Of course, ministry everywhere is a good thing. But, why not consider Adelaide?!

Heatwave

As many of you will be aware, we are in the midst of a rather impressive heatwave here in Adelaide.
Today's sixth consecutive day of +40 deg C (+104 deg F) temperatures in Adelaide has equalled the record set in January 1908.

While it is certainly hot, unpleasant and hard to manage children in, it has also made me realise how good our lives are.

I am very glad to be living through this heatwave, rather than the 1908 one! Without much knowledge beyond a quick web search, I would venture to presume that in 1908:
- hardly any one had electricity to their homes (Adelaide only was connected to the grid in 1900)
- no air-conditioning (not invented till the 1920s/30s)
- no refrigeration (not made in the US until ~1915)
- clothing for women was corseted and ankle length
- keeping your babies/children cool would have been very hard
- I don't know how many houses would have been connected to water and sewerage

Therefore, I am very thankful to have air-conditioning, refrigeration, running water, shorts & singlet tops! I am also very happy when anyone with a pool invites us for a swim!