Not much happens in our little bay here.
That's usually true, it's kinda quiet, especially during the winter when you might be the only person walking along the shore - and often with good reason because we've had some wild and cold windy weather lately.
I do think signs of Spring are popping out as the season begins to nudge Winter along its way, sometimes more of a pummeling than a gentle shove with the change-of-season storms that often come about.
On my walk today, I noticed someone had placed a yellow lemon and a large bundle of rosemary with its lavender flowers on one of the picnic tables, securing it with a plastic tie to keep it from blowing away in today's brisk sou'wester. Nice. Anyone welcome to wander along and take a sprig and I suspect there were more lemons on offer too before I came by.
As I was walking along, I saw one of my neighbours coming down his driveway with the food scraps he brings to the seagulls each day. They know him, see him coming, and they gather in the road and won't move much if a car comes, so intent are they on their treat.
My neighbour and I had a chat and he told me about the latest happening in our bay.
Early Sunday morning the electrical box by the beach dunny, the one that controls the pump that pumps the storm water and sewage to who knows where, failed. There was smoke, no fire, but enough to alert someone who called the fire trucks. Then came the tanker trucks, and their flashing lights and the high-pitched whine of their pumps as they began to suck out the 'stuff' that the disabled pump could not. Needless to say, the commotion at round 3am woke most everyone.
That was Sunday morning and since then, around the clock, and ongoing, a rotation of very flash toxic waste removal trucks take turns to remove the stuff, take it somewhere (my neighbour and I are curious and nobody seems to know), deposit it, and return.
There is one truck that has a more distinctive sound than the others, louder, more insistent, like it's just about had enough of this continual pumping debacle with no decent break.
This is a big event for us, and is, no doubt, costing alot of money, running at least three trucks 24 hours a day, complete with drivers in white overalls and special gear and a number of extra pickup trucks hanging about, all until such time as the electrical box is fixed and can once again issue the pump with its instructions to continue its brave work.
So whilst this isn't an event we can be very pleased with, it is indeed wrong to say nothing happens at Arkles . The trucks and the pooh are definitely centre stage right now, but there is so much more going on too.
No flashing lights, no loud noise.
The kindness of placing fruit, from those who have more than they need, inviting those who haven't to take some.
The seagulls who gather just after lunch for their treat of the day.
The chat between neighbours, having a laugh or two about the pooh, but mostly just enjoying a bit of a chin wag.