Thursday, April 11, 2013

There's a hole in the backyard!

Not so big as holes go, wouldn't swallow the cat yet but sank Eric the Mower up to his ankle.
He got a stick, had a poke around, prodded the sides (mushy) and finally felt a clank about  40cm down.
The backyard in that place meets up with 3 other backyards and I distinctly remember when the sewerage was put through that right about there 4 pipes joined up and a concrete lid went on top.
This was so if anything went wrong the pipes could be  accessed so the big question is sewerage pipes or storm water drain.  A hell of a lot has happened in 30 years so I can't remember and dirt and grass has grown over the concrete.  I know it was there because the incinerator stood on top.
I was married to a fire hazard.  Every autumn he would burn everything he could lay his hands on, every leaf, branch or newspaper and that was when he wasn't burning chops on the BBQ.
Some weekends he'd have the incinerator going in the backyard and the BBQ in the front.
I had such a wonderful feeling when he left and I took a sledgehammer to it.  Not the incinerator though I took that apart and used it to bolster up the back fence when the idiots there decided to dig their garden two feet down and I was losing dirt by the bucketful and it looked like the fence might follow.
The smashed up BBQ went into the corner to make a rockgarden so I know there is a concrete thingy down there somewhere.
SouthEast Water are sending an inspector tomorrow but if it's storm water then I have to deal with the Council, that will be a joy.  Thank you Doc Marvin for putting up my anxiety medication.
I don't have a melanoma, the lumps on my leg are old age, the rash intrigued him since I only get it in autumn and spring, I had the flu vac and a pint of blood taken.  Every time  the Diabetes magazine turns up there's something else to frighten the hell out of wimps like me but he said not everything can be put down to overweight and sugar so the blood test will tell him why my joints are painful and why the muscle spasms are hitting all over.  
I should have rung today about the results but I was busy with a hole in the ground.  It's a worry, if Eric the Mower sank, what would have happened to me. 

7 comments:

Ann ODyne said...

Q 1 : will Eric ever come back to mow again? He is a gem not to lose.

Don't let the water authority read this blogpost, and admit nothing about incinerators or bricks.
3. tread carefully.
xx

JahTeh said...

Eric will keep mowing, just more carefully.

I did tell them about the concrete cover since that should be on their plans and I can't remember the exact location.

I don't walk in the backyard, it's full of holes belonging to dead trees. It's not like the Bear would run and get help, more likely to count the cans of food in the kitchen.

River said...

Good idea to not be walking in your backyard, I'd be worried about sinking in holes too. Luckily my backyard is bitumen. Which I wish was concrete like everybody else's.
Stay safe.
I hope the blood tests don't show anything too drastic to cope with, you've already had a lot on your plate this year.

MedicatedMoo said...

Surely if it's full of connected pipes, it aint your fault?

Ah, the good old Aussie incinerator. As a kid I remember throwing in Mum's old cans of hairspray and running off before they went "BOOM!" Mum used to get cranky at Dad if he lit it on washing day though.

Elephant's Child said...

Much, much better that Eric the Mower sank instead of you. And fingers crossed that you don't have to deal with the council. Excellant that there is no melanoma, and fingers crossed that the blood is also benign.

Elephant's Child said...

PS: My father didn't have an incinerator - so he swept things into the gutter and set fire to them there. Quite large fires often.

JahTeh said...

River, my dream is to keep the trees but lay pretty bricks over the rest of the front and back yards. Thanks for reminding me that I didn't ring for the results.

Kath, you know what Councils are like.
I remember my monsters throwing cans in the flames which made me glad cracker night was long banned.

EC, my father-in-law set fires up and down the street in autumn and the neighbours were grateful. I know that's where the fire hazard got it from, it was in the genes.