Clunes Bookweek happiness

 Cold, bright and dry, a perfect autumn day for the annual Clunes Booktown weekend. The town was so packed with booksellers and books for the weekend, that I spent five hours blissed out looking at books, and only got halfway round the town. I also forgot to get a ride behind these beautiful horses - maybe next year.

 I took these pictures at the end of my day, sitting on one of the straw bales scattered through the town, waiting for the free (thank you booktown committee!) bus back to Ballarat.

 I was sitting right by my favourite bloke in Clunes, and saw across the road that we're still in a fire danger period. It's been so dry, with no real rain for a months.

 See that little group with a banner just at the right? (Just click on the image and you'll see them)

Yes, the Clunes footy club (and netballers) were raising funds with bags of spuds and sheep poo - both local products.
For those not familiar with the Australian idiom, 'Yoohoo!' is what my Mum and my grandmas would shout over the back fence when they wanted to have a chat with the neighbours.

I was sorry that I didn't have room in my backpack for either spuds or poo, although I did get a jar of quince jelly - but not from these lads.

Clunes Show

Caught the one bus from Ballarat to Clunes this Saturday to go to the Clunes Show.

The one hundred and fifty first Clunes Agricultural Show smelt of pine and eucalypt, wet earth and and animals, with  a tang of cooking oil and hot sugar.

Clunes has a lovely showground. It's green,  full of huge old trees and sits at the very edge of a hill looking over the vast country around.

I couldn't make my camera encompass what I was looking at. The show ring sits against the sky and the mountain, a calmly busy space. This is the best of a poor set of images.

There was a shed full of wool and shearing.

I would have liked to take some bags away to play with.

Traditional bakery contest - I loved the  sponges, fruitcakes, shortbread on their fly-proof  shelves.

Preserves of  pride- jams, jellies and pickles,

Garden produce, and children's artwork.

I admired the goats and chooks of varied breeds and beauty, put some money in the Ferret Society's Ferret Rescue tin and snacked at the CWA stall.


But the best were the miniature donkeys.

I've loved donkeys since I got to look after two of them at Ceres over quite a few years. Could I fit a couple of these into my yard and go walking with them in Victoria Park?