The Power of Nature

We've had one aunt write to ask if we were surviving the heat, one aunt write to check if the floods were causing any damage, and one aunt write to see if we were safe from the fires. First, let me just say how much it means to know we're still in your thoughts, even though we've disappeared to the bottom of the earth! Second, we are both doing fine in our respective places. Australia has had a rough go of it lately, but right now New South Wales is OK.

Queensland (to the north) has been suffering through cyclone season. [The last one was named Ellie - you're famous, grandma!!] From what I can tell, it's not a particularly unusual summer for QLD - they always get storms and flooding. But it's still hard on everyone, I'm sure.

Victoria (to the south) is just the opposite, and is setting records left and right (and not necessarily records you'd want to be setting). Last month they had an unprecendented heatwave, with some bush towns hitting 125F. Then the heat and dryness (with the help of some lunatic arsonists) transformed into the worst bush-fires Australia has ever seen. They are anticipating that the death toll will rise to at least 200 - more than triple the worst year before this. And while the fires aren't in Dubbo now, large clouds of smoke have covered the town in a haze for a few days. There has been an impressive mobilization of aid efforts in town, too: truck drivers volunteering to run supplies down to Victoria, fund-raisers all over, and every store in town (jewlers, grocery stores, etc.) designating times when all of their profits will go to fire victims.
This is actually a photo from 2006, but gives you an idea of the smoke cloud generated by the fires.

So for right now, New South Wales is sitting in the middle of these two devastated areas, but is doing fine. However, bushfire season isn't over, yet, and there has been a lot of talk about it in town (probably more of a threat for Dubbo than Sydney). Let's hope that the rain up north decides to make its way south... and fast.

A fellow US-Oz transplant blogger (whose blog I quite enjoy) has provided a visual aid appropriate for this entry.