Heather was in for a surprise whilst walking the pooch this afternoon when some heavy breathing  nearby caused her to look with some alarm into the river.

(Click on the photos for an enlarged version)

 We are 10.2 kilometers up the river from the sea and so it comes as some surprise to come across a New Zealand fur seal enjoying a swim more-or-less in our back yard. 

The fishing must be good to entice him so far up-river.

Crikey! Here we are in August already!

Heather and I decided that building a shed with hardwood poles for posts and 4.8m long half-round pine poles for beams would make a good winter project and so after a few false starts due to weather and other issues, we were able to get stuck in by the second half of July.

First we had to dig the holes down to almost the length of the shovel handle and plonk the heavy hardwood poles in, shoring them up to the perpendicular until we were able to mix the concrete and tip it in.

 We had to use our heads to get the heavier stuff aloft, as, with a combined age of nearly 140 years, the green timber was bit too heavy for us. Cunningly placed ropes and the power of the tractor and/or the farm bike were enough to get things standing up. Son-in-law Daniel lifted the last four rafters into place as if he was placing broom handles there. Such are the joys of youth, eh!

 A new member of the family only temporarily distracted us. Here he is thinking about his next bottle.

 In an effort to remain dry between rain squalls, we placed the corrugated iron on as soon as the rafters and purlins were in place. The purlins were put between the rafters to deny any roosting place for birds.

 Finally, on what would have been my father's 101st birthday, the shed was finished and we had transferred all of our firewood in, and the tractor finally has a place to call home out of the weather.