Archive for December, 2008

Belated Christmas gift

For slackers like me, I often post people Christmas messages after the event!

Here’s your chance to get in the good books with our nude fundraising shearer’s calendar [see below].

The gorgeous Cameron Wilson from ABC’s Country Hour, who also took the photograph, had this to report on it …

Merry Christmas from Rachael

It’s Christmas Eve and I’m off to Buckland Pub for a Bundy!

It’s been a mad rush to get the ewes shorn and the prezzie’s wrapped!

Also, the big news is I’ve submitted the first draft of The Mountain Cattlemen to my publisher, and they have given it the thumbs up.

Come January, I’ll begin the big editing process so I can have another book to you by Christmas 2009!

Merry Christmas to one and all and may the rain fall at the right time in 2009! 

German surprise

In the pre-Christmas rush at our place, which always involves shearing, I was very grateful to Petra from Germany for sending me word that Jillaroo is now out on the shelves there!

I had no idea so it was a lovely surprise! Thank you Petra!

You can see more of my German books here.

Calendar of shear delights!

Here’s a Christmas gift with a difference! We proudly present, Bare Bellies, Butts & All – our nude shearer’s calendar which is all part of our local community fundraiser for the Woodsdale-Levendale Museum and for the Royal Hobart Hospital Burns and Surgical Specialties Unit.

Our museum is a not-for-profit organisation run by volunteers and John and I, along with our friends Darren and Lucy Byers, who are shearing professionals, are in the process of setting up a Sheep Shearing Interpretation Shed, that will be a living museum with a difference.

By buying this beautifully-shot calendar by photographer Michael Webb, you will help both the RHH Burns Unit and us to further our local museum and in turn our tiny Primary School in the future.

In the calendar, the best bits are on the inside – where you’ll see our handsome locals hard at work and not being at all sheepish with no gear on! A perfect gift for ewe!

Click here to email our Woodsdale-Levendale museum manager to order one of these calendars. Cost $15.00 (plus $5 postage). Thank you for your support.

Levendale Legends

Our Levendale Farmers Market was a huge success last Sunday.

I was not much use on the day as a kick to the leg by a horse has rendered me very lame, but you can see more pics of the market by clicking here.

It seems our direct sales of lamb to customers was very popular and we are still catching up with orders!

Happy Campers

Here’s our Merino ewe mob with their first cross lambs camped on a bank on the farm.

The drought has meant we have sold most of our wethers and these girls may have to be run as dry ewes in the bush next year.

If the lack of rain continues, there will be no extra feed for another batch of lambs so these girls won’t get to party with their bachelor mob of Mr Rams!

Let’s hope this showery December weather continues so the girls get their guy.

Green Drought Doubt

At last we’ve had over two inches of rain — it’s greened the grass up beautifully, but arrived too late to grow us any pasture to cut hay.

The good news is the remaining handful of cows that we have hung onto are doing well as are their big babies.

During drought you come to doubt the decisions you make — whether to sell or to hang on to animals.

In this case our management decision to de-stock over three years has paid off as the animals we do have are healthy and aren’t needing any drought assistance fodder.

The Dare

My 40th Birthday this week was made all the more special with the arrival of a new beautiful UK cover for The Rouseabout.

Renamed The Dare for the English market, the book will be published by Preface, an imprint of Random House.

River Run Deep (Jillaroo) is on the shelves in the UK and was reviewed recently in the Sunday Telegraph as being ‘a romp of a read’.

Getting naked!

I took time away from writing my 4th novel to officially launch our Bare Bellies Butts & All nude shearer’s calendar at the Royal Hobart Hospital.

Our sheep, Nancy Ricketts and Big Bad Bruce travelled with their minder (Kelpie) Gippy to help draw a crowd.

But it was the naked shearers in the calendar who stole the show! We toured the Burns Unit, and we are so glad money from calendar sales are going to this much needed charity.

Proceeds also go to our community museum, click here to order a calendar online.