Let's Forget All About the Footy!

For both Trish and myself, this was yet another weekend to disregard the footy.  But there were plenty of turn ups this round with numerous lower ranked teams toppling their higher ranked opponents.

So what's news?  Well I did a bottling the other day.  I noticed the brew I was bottling was extremely cloudy so I reckon I have messed this one up!  With the cooler mornings lately I have put on the heat pad to keep the brew between 25° and 30°.  There isn't a thermostat or anything, you just keep an eye on it and turn the heat pad off if it gets a bit too warm.

First thing one morning I wandered in to have a look at how things were going and saw it was close to 35°.  The yeast is a living thing and I reckon the 35° was too hot and killed off the yeast.  It may not be a complete failure because I imagine if the brewing process was completed prior to the 35° it may still be drinkable.

But I am not keeping my hopes too high.  But what it did mean was Saturday, another brew went on and 19 bottles were washed, sanitized and put out to dry.  Sunday was almost 100% cooler and overcast so now being a lovely sunny Monday I am hoping they will dry and I can put them away ready for bottling!  I am keeping an extra close eye on the heat pad and using it sparingly!

With Bunnings around 1 kilometre from us it was no problem to spend $100 on new plants which now adorn the upgraded front garden.  Today is around 24° and lovely and sunny, good growing weather.  Even the lawn seed planted to fix up a couple of bare patches in the lawn is now sprouting.

Friends John and Raelene host international students.  Steena is from Germany and has spent 6 months here attending the local High School.  She is being hosted by John and Raelene and is just about to finish her 6 months time here and fly home again.  She has a surfboard to pack into her luggage to take home.  The nearest beach to her home is around a 500k return trip. So the surf board may not get a lot more use!

A few of us got together last night for a few drinks and to farewell Steena.  A new exchange student arrives in a few weeks time!

I have a Management meeting to chair at a private home again tonight while Trish is off to a CACA Craft group.  So we are both out this evening.

It has been quite cool here so there hasn't been much bike riding.  Despite the chilly misty weather yesterday I knocked off around 18k's yesterday and managed another 16k's this morning.  Today's weather is just magic but overall it hasn't been the usual bright sunny weather we are used to in winter.  But in another 2 weeks the weather begins to turn a little warmer again.

This winter we've had the heating on for a couple of evenings while last year it didn't get turned on at all.

I have been called to lunch so that's it for today.