Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Completely gratuitous

Yesterday was Anzac Day, when New Zealanders remember the soldiers who died in the wars. It rained. And it's raining again today. Which is great. I now live in the part of the country that contains our hydro lakes, responsible for most of the country's electricity production, and these have been dangerously low through lack of rainfall. Which means power cuts over winter if they don't fill up.

Here are some completely unrelated and gratuitous photos.

A vapour trail - doesn't it look great?

The Lindis Pass in Central Otago - so bleak, so austere, so beautiful....
The lighthouse at Akaroa, Banks Peninsula (close to where I used to live). Now just for decoration. I have a thing for lighthouses, cos my grandmother grew up on one (sadly, it's no longer there, and neither is she).

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

We are in the midst of a drought too....Hopefully it will rain this weekend. With the growing season just getting started this is NOT the way to get going......Thanks for the photos!!

teri

Shirley Goodwin said...

Actually Teri, it has just rained here - about 5" in 24 hours, which cut my town off yesterday and caused substantial flooding in the region.

Rayna said...

Wow, Shirley. Such beautiful pictures. Nothing where I live is this lovely. And Home Despot was not, of course, a typo. It has driven out all the small hardware stores and the people who work there leave something to be desired in terms of knowledge and service. But it's all there is.

Glad you got some rain - but it doesn't seem to know the word 'moderation.'

arashi said...

I love the second photgo especiaolly. Can I have permisswion to play with it digitally?

His Office, My Studio said...

WOW great photos! I have a yard full of new grass seed and could use some rain.

Anonymous said...

The Lindis Pass is beautiful. I am trying desperately to find an artist in residence position in just such country, but alas, just got my latest rejection today.

And rain, I understand, coming from Oregon US. June

NZBC said...

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~ourstuff/Lighthouses.htm Between 1880 and 1900 nine more manned lighthouses were build - at Akaroa Head, Cape Saunders, Mokohinau, Waipapa Point in Southland, Cuvier Island, Stephens Island Cape Palliser, and Kaipara Heads and French Pass, the last two becoming automatic lights in the 1920s. In 1881, the tower and light from Mana Island, closed down when The Brothers was light in 1877, were carried in sections by the Government Steamer Hinemoa and re-erected at Cape Egmont, the most westerly point of Taranaki.