I fell like a bloke today, a blue collar hard working stinky dirt covered bloke! And I don’t like it. I have been spoiled by the men in my life. Today was a lesson.
We are rebuilding a queenslander over the back from our ppor and have the top section raised on 3 huge steel beams supported by sty (piles of wooden sleepers). The footings for the new lower section were dug this week and were to be concreted yesterday. Imagine big trenches right beside the things holding the house up. Unfortunately the concretor cancelled until Monday.
The weather forecast was for rain. I was feeling a bit worried as the entire area under the house is lower than the surrounding ground level and prone to flooding. I talked to the builder about my concerns and he agreed that it was possible that the whole thing could collapse if it rained a lot, but he said that it should be covered by insurance. Great, so no need to worry – NOT!
Yesterday, my husband, his dad and brother went to New Zealand. My Dad went to the reef fishing until Monday and my builder went to Brisbane for the weekend. My male support network has vanished.
Last night at midnight we had the biggest thunderstorm in around 4 years. The whole house shook, doors and windows were rattling and moving even though everything was closed up. And I have not been home at night without Troy for 10 years, so I wasn’t getting much sleep. I wandered over at 1:00am with a torch to make sure house was still standing. It was, but footings (and between my toes) were full of water and mud.
This morning I decided to hire a pump to get the water out and buy hay bales to try to stop any more mud running down into the trenches. There is no way I can stop the water, especially as we have ripped off the guttering, so it just pours straight in all the way around. I called the hire shop and booked the pump and asked my Mum to pick it up for me as I couldn’t fit it in the car with 2 kids in car seats. Mum called from the hire shop as the salesperson ‘decided’ we shouldn’t have the pump as it ‘wouldn’t be any use’. How would he know? I had to speak to the manager and explain why we needed it before they would give it to Mum.
Mum arrived to mind the kids while I went to get the hay bales. Problem – Dad’s toyota that I borrow for this kind of thing is attached to his boat trailer locked in a boatyard. Have to take ‘THE UTE’. The Ute is Troy’s 1964 Holden EH. Looks great but no speedo, not fuel guage, no rearview mirrors and based on past experience, an aversion to me driving it. Took a good 10 mins to start it (in 3rd), stalled at every set of lights, managed to get hay. Had to change lanes in heavy traffic – couldn’t see out rear windscreen for hay. Near death experience. Get to last turn on main highway before home – stopped, won’t start. Sounds like no fuel – remember, no fuel gauge. Get out – how embarrassing, nice young couple behind me help push it into a side street and take me home.
Get Mum and the kids in my car along with the fuel drum for the pump and get some fuel. Drive to the Ute and put it in. Still won’t start. Sounds like flat battery now as it doesn’t even try to start. No spanner to get the battery out, no leads to jump start it. Take the load of hay 2 at a time in my car boot to the house. All this outside a café on a busy road.
Talked to Troy in NZ and told him what was happening. He was so worried – about the damn UTE. I would like to throw a hand grenade in it. He told me to push in the choke, push the accelerator 4 times and hold it in then turn the key and keep it full on. I drove back in my car and tried what he said – amazingly it started. But it made a really really bad sound. Drove 50m before stopping. Had a look under the hood, for what I don’t know, just seemed the thing to do under the circumstances. I took the radiator cap off – no water to be seen. Asked a young bloke in a nearby house for some water. He poured it in and offered to stay while I tried to start it. It did and sounded fine so I took it home and swore never to drive it again. Walked back and got my car. It smelled like petrol. The fuel can had tipped in the boot and leaked petrol everywhere out the vent.
Back to the original problem. I spread out the hay around the footings. Set up the pump at the lowest point and started the motor. Holy Moses! At a capacity of about 60 000 litres/hour the muddy water blew out the end of the hose like a massive firehose. That was so much fun,but it only took about 5 minutes to do the job. Neighbors from hell were scowling at the mud flowing out into the gutter. I started to worry about them calling the council (again) so cleaned out the gutter. Storm clouds were brewing, with thunder and lightning.
Wet, muddy, sweaty, scratched, itchy and smelling pretty bad I went home and made a long awaited cup of tea. I sat down just it started to rain.
2 storm cells later I have it figured out, gumboots at the ready. All I need to do now is keep going over and starting the pump after each downpour, day and night until Monday morning. It seems to be working so far. Mum is ‘sleeping over’ so I don’t have to leave the kids in the house alone when I go to start the pump. I am so tired, I am just worried if I go to sleep I won’t hear the rain. What a day it has been.
Louise
We are rebuilding a queenslander over the back from our ppor and have the top section raised on 3 huge steel beams supported by sty (piles of wooden sleepers). The footings for the new lower section were dug this week and were to be concreted yesterday. Imagine big trenches right beside the things holding the house up. Unfortunately the concretor cancelled until Monday.
The weather forecast was for rain. I was feeling a bit worried as the entire area under the house is lower than the surrounding ground level and prone to flooding. I talked to the builder about my concerns and he agreed that it was possible that the whole thing could collapse if it rained a lot, but he said that it should be covered by insurance. Great, so no need to worry – NOT!Yesterday, my husband, his dad and brother went to New Zealand. My Dad went to the reef fishing until Monday and my builder went to Brisbane for the weekend. My male support network has vanished.
Last night at midnight we had the biggest thunderstorm in around 4 years. The whole house shook, doors and windows were rattling and moving even though everything was closed up. And I have not been home at night without Troy for 10 years, so I wasn’t getting much sleep. I wandered over at 1:00am with a torch to make sure house was still standing. It was, but footings (and between my toes) were full of water and mud.
This morning I decided to hire a pump to get the water out and buy hay bales to try to stop any more mud running down into the trenches. There is no way I can stop the water, especially as we have ripped off the guttering, so it just pours straight in all the way around. I called the hire shop and booked the pump and asked my Mum to pick it up for me as I couldn’t fit it in the car with 2 kids in car seats. Mum called from the hire shop as the salesperson ‘decided’ we shouldn’t have the pump as it ‘wouldn’t be any use’. How would he know?
I had to speak to the manager and explain why we needed it before they would give it to Mum.Mum arrived to mind the kids while I went to get the hay bales. Problem – Dad’s toyota that I borrow for this kind of thing is attached to his boat trailer locked in a boatyard. Have to take ‘THE UTE’.
The Ute is Troy’s 1964 Holden EH. Looks great but no speedo, not fuel guage, no rearview mirrors and based on past experience, an aversion to me driving it. Took a good 10 mins to start it (in 3rd), stalled at every set of lights, managed to get hay. Had to change lanes in heavy traffic – couldn’t see out rear windscreen for hay. Near death experience. Get to last turn on main highway before home – stopped, won’t start. Sounds like no fuel – remember, no fuel gauge. Get out – how embarrassing, nice young couple behind me help push it into a side street and take me home.Get Mum and the kids in my car along with the fuel drum for the pump and get some fuel. Drive to the Ute and put it in. Still won’t start. Sounds like flat battery now as it doesn’t even try to start. No spanner to get the battery out, no leads to jump start it. Take the load of hay 2 at a time in my car boot to the house. All this outside a café on a busy road.
Talked to Troy in NZ and told him what was happening. He was so worried – about the damn UTE. I would like to throw a hand grenade in it. He told me to push in the choke, push the accelerator 4 times and hold it in then turn the key and keep it full on. I drove back in my car and tried what he said – amazingly it started. But it made a really really bad sound. Drove 50m before stopping. Had a look under the hood, for what I don’t know, just seemed the thing to do under the circumstances. I took the radiator cap off – no water to be seen. Asked a young bloke in a nearby house for some water. He poured it in and offered to stay while I tried to start it. It did and sounded fine so I took it home and swore never to drive it again. Walked back and got my car. It smelled like petrol. The fuel can had tipped in the boot and leaked petrol everywhere out the vent.
Back to the original problem. I spread out the hay around the footings. Set up the pump at the lowest point and started the motor. Holy Moses! At a capacity of about 60 000 litres/hour the muddy water blew out the end of the hose like a massive firehose. That was so much fun,
but it only took about 5 minutes to do the job. Neighbors from hell were scowling at the mud flowing out into the gutter. I started to worry about them calling the council (again) so cleaned out the gutter. Storm clouds were brewing, with thunder and lightning.Wet, muddy, sweaty, scratched, itchy and smelling pretty bad I went home and made a long awaited cup of tea. I sat down just it started to rain.
2 storm cells later I have it figured out, gumboots at the ready. All I need to do now is keep going over and starting the pump after each downpour, day and night until Monday morning. It seems to be working so far. Mum is ‘sleeping over’ so I don’t have to leave the kids in the house alone when I go to start the pump. I am so tired, I am just worried if I go to sleep I won’t hear the rain. What a day it has been.
Louise
