Bloke on a Bike in the Tropics: November 2012

So it was a good ride this morning- no rain, unlike yesterday morning when the skies opened up on the way home. As I was finishing my mid-ride coffee, I could see a bit of a squally shower moving across the bay- what were the chances that I could beat the rain?? I know why I'm not a betting person- traffic and poorly timed lights conspired to make sure that I received a good drenching all the way home- right to the driveway. Felt a bit like Joe Bftslpk from the Al Capp comic strip "L'il Abner"- he was the poor bloke who always had a rain cloud over his head.

But even with rain, any ride from which one returns safely, is a good ride- and there have been many good rides since last I posted (but not much rain).

And there has been much else happening:

I have successfully pollinated a few of these:

These are vanilla beans- we have had the plant for probably at least 10 years and this is the first time I have managed to get the pollination right- it has to be done manually as there are no bees or wasps in Australia capable of pollinating the flowers. The top photo shows a spent bloom in the upper right which I failed to see on the morning it opened and so another missed opportunity.

I'll let you know in 6 months or so how things are progressing. And now I know why real vanilla is so expensive- the pollination is the easy part- the processing and curing is a long slow process.

And then there were the dove orchids- blooming several times per year, the branches are festooned with short-lived, delicate white flowers with an interesting dusty-citrus fragrance.

Dove orchids

And in keeping with nature's phenomena- a couple of shots of our solar eclipse on 14 November- we got 96% totality.

14 November solar eclipse

Viewed with the latest in solar eclipse eyewear fashion.

Fashion eyewear (of a sort)

The neighbour's umbrella tree (or at least a substantial portion of it) came crashing to earth on a Saturday afternoon. These things are pot plants back in the old country (no, not that kind of pot)