On a lighter note - OPAM January finishes

Well, I actually completed two bags over the weekend for some flood victims. I meet with a group of friends once a month - we started out many years ago creating cloth dolls. We decided that we would like to give to some of the nearly local people who have suffered badly in the recent flooding in Queensland. There are many groups making quilts and sewing things, and we thought things for personal use might also be needed. So, cosmetic bags with some toiletries, pretty things to make them feel good, pencil cases with some essentials for notes and lists, and some bags for them to use.
Here is a cosmetic bag and a little purse.

Army helicopters

I hate the sound of the army helicopters coming in. We live under the approach path for the local hospital, and the arrival of an army helicopter means that they have found yet another body down the valley. Our base hospital is the morgue for the flood victims. I wish I wasn't so emotional about this - tears easily spring to my eyes still thinking about or seeing the flooding. One of my workmates is moving to an apartment today - he and his family live at Murphy's Creek which sustained a lot of damage, and his house is uninhabitable.

Drought to floods at Toowoomba

When I left on holidays at the beginning of September our dam levels were at 7%, with less than one year's water supply for our city. We were on level 5 water restrictions - no garden watering, washing of cars etc. When I returned at the beginning of November, our dams were at 60% and we could water our gardens twice a week for one hour. Today our dams are full. We had a flash flood through the centre of town. At least one life was taken and others are missing. Queensland is very wet. At least Toowoomba is not suffering as much as many other communities are.

Jenny of Elefantz is having a giveaway

Jenny reminds us all to Give Thanks for what we have. We need to appreciate our lives and give thanks. Jenny is creating a BOM reflecting the idea of giving thanks, and you will find it at her blog from February.