To be updated with photos during the course of today.
THE FLOOD REPORT:
Please be assured that the catastrophic flooding that has hit Brisbane City, is not affecting my business. Yes, there's water, water everywhere. But it's fresh water, and it's draining into the Pacific via some convaluted, out of the ordinary detours. However, I am high and dry, out here in my township of Harrisville - about one hour's drive from the Brisbane City center, and have food, power and internet.
UPDATE: 6:30 Thursday, 13th January, 2011 - THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD
The weather has been absolutely beautiful here in South East Queensland today. IAs Ipswich (my closest city), was submerged yesterday due to the Bremer River bursting its banks, my usual route down the Ipswich Motorway was cut. I managed to get to my Dad's house, travelling via the Boonah - Ipswich Road to Yamanto, and then taking the Centenary Highway / Logan Gold Coast Motorway, and doubling back through Stapleton Road and Blunder Road. Dad was hale and hearty and glad that at least one of us could reach him. My brothers and sister are all cut off by flood waters, and they live a lot closer to Dad than I do!
Many suburbs were under water this morning, but it is hardly surprising that the humble and poorer suburbs, such as INALA and BROWNS PLAINS were as dry as a bone and residents out mowing their lawns and counting their blessings.
Browns Plains has a large fabric store (similar to Joann Fabrics), and I am able to buy my linings and other items from that outlet. My regular Spotlight Fabrics store in Ipswich, is most probably flooded out. I buy the INTERLINING, a brand called 'Shapewell', for the Roman Vestments, from a store called Bargain Box in Ipswich. Sadly, I believe that Bargain Box went underwater. However, I can buy the interlining in volume lengths from a supplier in Melbourne. On Tuesday afternoon, after fleeing Brisbane City due to the severe flood warning, I rode the train from Roma Street Station to Ipswich, collected my car and drove immediately to Bargain Box, as I needed interlining for a couple of the Russian Roman designs. I wanted to work on the vestments whilest sitting out the flood situation. The owner, Margaret, was stoically instructing the storeman on where to put all the rolls of fabric he was bringing up to higher ground from the basement. Margaret said "We can't get flood insurance here, because of the river". I was aghast, and instinctively reached out for the roll of interlining. "What about the shapewell?!" I offered to take the roll of Shapewell home and babysit it until the danger had passed, but Margaret just sighed and gave me the total for my purchase. "Can you put the shapewell somewhere up high?" I asked. I hopped into the car and drove around the corner thinking "Maybe God can stop the water miraculously..." I tossed Epiphany Water out onto the road and said a prayer that God would protect Margaret and her fabric store. I still don't know what happened to the Shapewell, or to Bargain Box, but I think Margaret's tens of thousands of dollars worth of fabrics have all gone down the drain with the flood waters. I buy pure silk lining from an importer in Fortitude Valley, which went under water this morning; but I can get silk direct from other suppliers. This is the great thing about my business! I source fabrics, trims, vessicas, etc, from all over the world. The business is totally portable, as it is internet based and does not rely on domestic Australian commodities. The most essential thing is my industrial sewing machine, which could easily be replaced for $1000 should anything happen to it. I don't use the embroidery machine so much now, as many of the designs have been superceded by the hand embroidered bullion emblems I source from overseas. The good thing about all this rain is that the eight year drought has finally broken, South East Queensland is fresh, green and clean, and is once again a true 'sub-tropical' place, and not a dried out, pollution draped dust bowl.
I really believe that this whole flood thing has been a punishment from God, and could have been a lot worse. Had the Wivenhoe Dam walls crumbled from the relentless pressure of all that water, Brisbane would have been practically blotted out today.
And SusanMaria.com would still be operating faithfully out of Harrisville, one hour's drive from the downtown... It pays to live in the country.
Update 12:20pm, Wednesday January 12th, 2011: The news from Brisbane is devastating. I am finding it very hard to believe that this is happening, considering that as I look outside, I see beautiful sunshine basking my back garden, and balmy summer air is wafting through my house. It is true that God protects us in difficult times! I have not seen such a beautiful day since November 17th, the anniversary of my mother's death. My vestment work involves materials that are almost all imported and my work can continue without any hindrance. My main concern is to find the time to simply get into the sewing work and get through the backlog of orders.
Below: peaceful Harrisville farmlands. The Great Dividing Range can be seen on the horizon. Photo taken at 11:30am, Wednesday 12th January.
I have noticed more and more, how God has protected us out here in recent weeks. It has rained more or less since November 17th, with Christmas bringing pouring rain. Until now, the Wivenhoe dam has held back the water streaming into it from the huge catchment area of this region. Wivenhoe is now brimming, and authorities will release water today, which will combine with a king tide. It's almost as if 'the government' wants as much devastation as possible, in order to capitalise on the drama. At any rate, I live in Harrisville, a peaceful township of 600 residents. If you google a map for Harrisville, you can see all the tributaries around it, but the town is set on the crest of a hill. We have sweeping views of the Great Dividing Range to the West, and plush rolling farmlands stretching for hundreds of kilometres. Harrisville falls into the Scenic Rim area, and I believe we have about 47 pockets of ancient rain forest in this one small area. My point is that the region has its own micro climate, which is useful in situations such as this. From the viewpoint of vestment sewing, I love living out here, as it is peaceful and quiet, with amazing starscapes at night and FRESH AIR!
Across the farming and grazing tracts though, the water has been rising and then subsiding intermitently for weeks out here. All the water from this catchment area gets dumped into the Bremer water system, which then goes into the Brisbane River system. It's hardly surprising that yesterday, January 11th, the Brisbane River burst it's banks. I am currently working part time as a secretary in the heart of the city (it takes over 2 hrs travel time each way from out here,if).
Below: The view from my office window downtown, yesterday at around 11am, overlooking the Riverside Expressway. The building next door is the National Trust of Australia buidling.
We were told to go home at 11am, due to the severe flood warning. It took me five hours to get home, but no sooner did I get home than the skies out here cleared and we even had a nice sunset.
BELOW: Flood fields and grazing lands on the western side of Harrisville. This is due to the Warrill Creek overflowing from all the rain. However, the water level has receded substantially since last evening. This body of water skirts around Harrisville and empties into the Bremer water system, which is yet one more reason why Ipswich residents are in dire straights. Ipswich woke this morning to find their city flood.
Below: The only 'damage' at my house... annoying mud tracks in the driveway, due to the oversoaked lawn.
