Sunday, March 22, 2009

Major Pond Reconstruction Underway




Yesterday was the first full day of Spring here. Spring dawned at 7:44am on Friday March 20th. The first brave bulbs are blooming and yesterday was a sunny, clear day - so I began the pond re-building project. The water level kept dropping at the end of the fall last year - so I suspect a leak. It has been seven years since I put this lining in - so considering the extreme temperatures of seven winters - it has done good service.

The plan is to take the lining out and dig the pond a little deeper. The retaining wall on the side by the grass needs more height. The plan ALSO includes Kevin or Joel digging!!!! Then I'll put a new lining in and replace the rocks (which you can see I removed and put on mesh on the grass to clean - seven years of pond scum!). There are at least two fish I have spotted that made it through the winter - so I will try and catch them and put them in a container to wait until their new home is finished. If they don't make it they are only 25c each at the pet store!

I'll post photos once the project is completed.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Approved for U.S. Citizenship


I had my Citizenship Interview yesterday with Officer Gieler. She went through my application, asked a few questions - like how many children I had born in the U.S. , how many times I have been married, whether I have ever been arrested. Then she asked me 10 Civics questions (I had studied all 100), had me sign some documents and indicated she would be approving my application for citizenship. The whole thing took about 10 minutes. Next step is to get notification on the next Oath Ceremony (she said I'll receive notification in 2-3 monhts) and once I take the oath - I will be a U.S. citizen. I will, of course still have my Aussie citizenship - so I will be dual.

One step closer......