Sunday, a winter morning, it got below freezing again overnight.
Nearly every sunday morning since my return from the UK Helen and I and Ms 6 have a ritual. We take a 8 minute walk thru the suburb to the kippax shops and visit a gardening shop, where a middle eastern family have the food franchise. Coffee for the adults and a baby 'cino for Ms 6. I sometimes indulge in a plate of hot bacon, toast, tomato, and sausage and try not to think of the waistline. I did again this morning. The walk there was bitterly cold, even though the sun was shining. The walk back was not too bad.

Later in the morning I took Ms 6 to Lake Ginniderra, an artificial lake off the central shopping area of Belconnen (to the west of Canberra) that has childrens playgrounds scattered around it. I was dismayed to see the effect of the drought, the water level has dropped several feet and the stench of the exposed mud was a bit much. The once green fields are a 'burnt off' dry brown color. Tree roots are coming up out of the ground in a lost search for water.

My daughter did not notice any of this of course, she was happy kicking the fallen leaves and twigs that cover much of the parkland, and climbing over the play equipment.

Such is the civilised bliss I enjoy whilst in Sudan and the Congo it all gets worse and worse...I ponder these things in my heart and mind, and feel uncomfortable.