Sunday

Here we are in Weekes Road Moggill waiting for da bus.

Today we volunteered to help clean up the rubbish left by the floods in Brisbane.

Our day started at about 5:30 - up and at 'em and off to get Thommo from Ashgrove and then to make our way to Mt Coot-tha Gardens to register to volunteer.

The queue was long but moved reasonably quickly.  They had hats, gloves and water for us - even tetanus shots - and handed out oranges on the buses.  Today's mystery tour went to Moggill.  I was glad.  They are our neighbours. 

It was a bit sobering driving down Moggill Road - a journey I have done for many years taking the kids to riding lessons and pony club.  You could see the water line way up high in the trees where the leaves were all brown.  We passed the McIntyre Centre and all the horse rugs were out to dry.  The bus left us at the local store - 70 odd people standing beside the road starting to giggle and wondering where we should go.  After a while an organised bloke directed us to cross the road and sit in the shade of the church until the next bus came. 

It did and we were taken somewhere else...and then we walked...and walked and walked....I started to giggle thinking "Does anyone actually know where we're going...all the houses looked fine. 
 
We got right to the end of  Weekes Road and that's where the piles of rubbish were...there were volunteers everywhere and no trucks....some of us tried to clear out gardens but a lot of it had already been done.  I was a bit reluctant to go into people's houses because there were so many of us there and we had been clearly told what our job was...get the rubbish in the trucks.. ..

So then the trucks started to come...but there were bobcats too and it became this mad game of avoid the bobcat  and then try and throw stuff into the trucks....Well I've never been very good at throwing and, let's face it...I am a short arse......but I think we did help in a weird kind of way...

Certainly Thommo and Cas got into it and were called upon to lift heavy logs and other big boy crap like carpets and what not and Cas said he feels really good about it...and so I think we done good...and my legs are sore so I must have done something :)....We were very well fed by someone - sausages sizzles and bottles of water and cupcakes......The bus took us back to the Church and then I rang my walking mate who lived over the hill and she drove us back to the Gardens.  I haven't seen her since she went overseas.  She's been without power, water or phone for four days at Bellbowire.  She was in fine spirits and waxing enthusiastic about the Queensland spirit in her thick Scottish brogue.  Bless.  


Here are the boys in their volunteer kit....they'll hate me for posting this but they really were just lovely and the kind of people I'd want around me if I needed help ....