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00:00Living off-grid means that we're always kind of training for disaster, and hopefully we're
00:05prepared when the power cuts out, the road access is washed away, and the food is inaccessible.
00:10Earlier in the week the threat of a cyclone seemed far away, and little did we know that
00:14this fresh organic food harvested straight from the tree would come in handy later in
00:18the week when disaster strikes.
00:20This week the eastern coast of Australia is preparing for a cyclone, and things aren't
00:24looking great here.
00:26As southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales brace for the arrival of tropical
00:31cyclone Alfred, now when it makes landfall it will be the first cyclone to hit the region
00:36in more than 50 years.
00:38But for now I'll take you back to sunnier days at the start of the week, harvesting bananas
00:42from the orchard.
00:43My patch of bananas is going so well, I'm so excited.
00:46These are all ladyfingers, and then I've got dwarf Cavendish out the back, and there's some
00:51plantains as well.
00:52There's so many!
00:53So through this tunnel of bananas that I probably planted 18 months ago maybe?
00:58They've grown so big, but these are dwarf Cavendish, so they're actually a small variety, so they
01:03don't grow too tall, so they're easier to get the fruit, and I've got a huge bunch that's
01:08ready to harvest, so I'm really excited.
01:13Being self-sufficient is such an important part of living remotely.
01:17We don't grow all of our own food, but we're getting closer each day, and at the moment
01:20we have bananas, cherry guavas, guavas, light cheese, and star fruit in season.
01:24So banana trees aren't really trees, so I'm a bit wrong calling them banana trees.
01:29I think they're technically a herb, not even, I call them banana plants, I don't know what
01:33they're supposed to be.
01:34But this is like a pulpy stalk instead of like a tree that's wood, and it can be used
01:41for lots of different things.
01:42You can even weed from it, and there's all these different things you can use from it,
01:45so it's amazing to see purpose in everything.
01:47I always feel so proud that my own hands grew this much food.
01:51But this week, when almost every shop in a 200km radius has been completely sold out
01:56of food due to everyone preparing for the cyclone, it feels even more meaningful and practical.
02:01So bananas can't be grown from seed anymore because the seeds have been lost, so it's
02:10really sad they have to instead be grown from suckers or pups, which are these smaller banana
02:15plants that come up next to them.
02:17So it's this circular system that kind of, the tree itself dies once it fruits.
02:22So this one I have to cut down to get these fruit off it.
02:26And then once that one has died, it kind of creates these little babies, and that's what
02:30these are, so then you can re-disperse them around the garden and grow more bananas.
02:34So it's pretty amazing because you have like an eternal food source.
02:37I started with like probably three banana plants, and now I've got, I don't know, 40?
02:44So the problem is these bananas are really heavy, so I'm a bit worried about that.
02:48And so I'm going to, I'm going to cut this maybe at its base, and I'm going to try to
02:51make it so that it actually falls this way instead of down that way, because I don't
02:55want it to fall down the hill because then it's going to like go into a ditch and it's
02:58going to be even harder.
02:59But I don't know how I'm going to go at this angle because it really wants to fall that
03:03way.
03:04I'll see.
03:05I'm not the best at understanding how to fall a tree in the right direction, and I see
03:08my mistakes now, but let's just say that I'm learning on the job.
03:15Oh, it still wants to go the other way.
03:19So it still feels like it wants to fall this way.
03:22This is why I'm too scared to chainsaw trees because I don't know this kind of science behind
03:27the way that a tree wants to fall, but I really want it to come this way so it won't be too
03:31heavy.
03:32I think we should make it fall that way.
03:33Oh no, it's about to fall right now.
03:34I don't have a choice.
03:35That's not good.
03:39This is where I fall short in banana farming.
03:46It's not easy, it's so heavy, and I'm really worried that there's a big ditch here.
03:52So the moment I chop this, I think it's going to fall into the ditch, and once it isn't there,
03:56I don't know if I'll ever be able to carry it.
03:59So, I don't know, I think I'm just going to have to try it.
04:02I'm just going to have to see if it works.
04:04I don't want to get my hands in the way because these are so sharp.
04:11I almost fell in the hole with it, so things could be worse, but they're not great.
04:16Hello snakes!
04:17Please leave.
04:18Sometimes, living off-grid can be difficult.
04:31I'm pretty small, and lately I've found that a lot of my time is spent working out how to
04:33do jobs, like lifting ridiculously heavy things on my own.
04:38To be fair, these bananas weigh a whole lot, and I'm not very strong, and I tried my hardest,
04:43and I'm very proud.
04:45Oh, I'm so proud!
04:52They started to get eaten by parrots here, which you can see, so that's why I was urgent
04:57to pick them today.
04:58But, apart from that, and apart from dropping them, and breaking a few, and embarrassing banana
05:05farmers everywhere, I think I did a pretty good job!
05:08I think the wheelbarrow is the only solution here, because I am not strong enough for this.
05:37In our journey of living on the land, what we have realised the most is that sometimes,
05:41you just have to do the hard things.
05:44A lot of the time, they will feel impossible.
05:46Whether it's preparing for a cyclone, or carrying a bunch of bananas across the paddock,
05:51things will be hard.
05:56Shit!
05:58Oh no, and I got so full of meat.
06:02But it's possible, and you'll learn to find ways around the problems.
06:06I use ratchet straps to raise my banana bunches, because I know that my body just can't do it.
06:11And the work is never over.
06:13When the bananas start to ripen, the goats will smell them, and find a way to sneak in
06:17so they can try them.
06:19This is what happens if you leave the door open.
06:22The goats come and eat your bananas.
06:24But no!
06:26But that's part of the job too.
06:28Stay outside.
06:29Fine, you can have a little bit.
06:31Here you go.
06:36Here you go.
06:37Here you go.
06:38That way.
06:39Maggie!
06:40Chew on your food.
06:42Okay.
06:47Living Off Grid has taught us that everything in life is a balance.
06:50More than anything, we have learned how important it is to balance hard work with moments of
06:55quiet in between.
06:56Hey!
06:57Be nice!
06:59I know you're excited!
07:00Mom's angry because I gave her a banana.
07:03Like the goats, who find time in their day to clear weeds, but they also spend hours lazing
07:07in the sun or playing on logs.
07:09We are always seeking to balance the hard work with an afternoon swim, or something that
07:14fills us with joy.
07:15Don't let them know.
07:19Come on!
07:27Aw, come on.
07:31Everyone, stop fighting!
07:35This is Moth and this is Magnolia, and they're sisters.
07:38And they have a funny relationship.
07:40They love each other so much but they show that by constantly fighting and arguing with
07:44arguing with each other and trying to test who is boss between the two of them.
07:48I don't know who it is at the moment, is it Yuma?
07:51Who are you talking about in a space?
07:53Shut up!
07:55I'm boss, obviously.
08:03It's when we're able to pause for a moment that we gain a bit of perspective.
08:06We're able to realise that the work we do here is really making a difference.
08:10The landscape is regenerating and the native plants and animals are thriving.
08:13Noticing the beauty of the natural world motivates us more than anything else.
08:18There's a big python just there!
08:22But living with snakes is one of the challenges we face, and as with everything,
08:26we've learnt that the best method is to co-exist.
08:29The fact that this big, gorgeous carpet python lives there is such an indication of the healthy ecosystem.
08:35So we go for a swim and just hope that the snake doesn't come out of its hidey hole and swim towards us.
08:43What is it?
08:44What is it?
08:45What is it?
08:46What is it?
08:49When a real disaster comes, we don't really have time for fun,
08:52but that's when we have to remember to carve a little bit of joy into everything.
08:55If this cyclone brings anything like the last big flood we had, we'll be cleaning up for months.
09:00It's in these times that we have to remember balance the most.
09:03Work and play don't have to compete.
09:05They aren't exclusive to each other.
09:07This is what the goats have taught us, that you can always find ways to play with and work,
09:11take things less seriously, and try to have some fun as you do each task.
09:16It turns out that I'm way more scared of snakes than Julia is.
09:19That was quite an experience to swim while you're thinking that a snake might just come and sliver towards you in any moment.
09:26It's huge.
09:27We write a lot about the reality of living off-grid in our book,
09:30and tell the story of how we faced the last flood disaster.
09:33We're doing everything that we can to prepare for this one and keep the animals safe.
09:38If anyone has any cyclone or hurricane tips please let us know, because these cyclones are not so common in the area.
09:44We don't have much experience, and hope all the buildings are strong enough to withstand the winds.
09:48We're not sure if we need to tape our windows, but we've moved everything that could become airborne inside.
09:54The ducks are going to come into the bathroom and live there, and the goats are happy in their pen,
09:59and they also have the structure of the shed that they love to go underneath that, so that'll be a safe spot for them.
10:04So there is a tropical cyclone developing off the coast, and it's about to hit,
10:09and all of the prediction models are saying that it's probably going to hit here.
10:13So we're preparing for a cyclone, which is a bit wild, because we actually haven't had a proper cyclone here
10:19in the last 50 years or something, if there's been one.
10:22So we don't really know what to expect, and everyone's a bit concerned.
10:26So we're just doing everything we can to prepare the farm so that hopefully if we get a lot of rain and a lot of wind,
10:33things can get away, so I'm clearing these gutters here right now, and there's a thousand jobs on the list.
10:38We also, we went to town and we got stocked up on supplies.
10:42We've made sure we've got enough food to last us a while, because who knows,
10:45last time we were cut off from town for like five weeks or something.
10:49So if that happens again, we just want to be prepared and have lots of food,
10:53but also not much cold food, because we probably won't have power.
10:57If the power goes out, then everything will go wrong.
11:00It was a really funny move when we were in town. Everyone was like really worried.
11:04I heard one like old man whispering,
11:07it's coming, it's coming in, it's gonna come.
11:11And then I heard another old guy talking about his life here and how he's never,
11:16or the last cyclone he saw was in like 1960 something or something.
11:22So yeah, it's a bit concerning.
11:25My first job is cleaning the gutters, which isn't a fun one,
11:28but is super necessary if we're getting lots of rain and the water needs to get away somewhere.
11:35When I'm doing jobs like this, I always wish that I haven't read where funnel webs like to live,
11:41because they like to live in wet, mulchy soil that's always damp.
11:47And you know where there's wet, mulchy soil that's always damp?
11:50In the gutters.
11:52And you know that funnel webs are highly territorial,
11:55and they'll bite, and they hurt, and they can kill you in 15 minutes?
12:00These are all the things I just wish I didn't know.
12:03Time.
12:05Going in.
12:09Oh, what is that?
12:10It's so hard.
12:12The next job is to get enough duck food to, and human food actually,
12:16and goat food to last us for however long this storm cuts off in the world.
12:21Last flood, the roads weren't drivable for months,
12:23and we got helicopter drops of food.
12:25So this time we're making sure that we're prepared.
12:27So in a flood, this whole cute little valley can turn into a raging river,
12:32so I'm just moving the fence so that it doesn't get debris from there.
12:36It's always weird to even imagine that this beautiful valley could turn into a raging river,
12:40but we know from experience, unfortunately.
12:47Okay, make your bets now.
12:48Will my dilapidated treehouse make it through the cyclone?
12:51I'm hoping yes, but I don't know, it's not very windproof,
12:55and it was on my list to try to make it windproof,
12:58but that's not going to happen anytime soon.
13:00So fingers crossed.
13:02Okay, the next job is to find this electric fence energizer
13:06and bring it home because we're not going to get much sun for the next week probably,
13:10and I think the goats have learnt their lesson
13:12and they're not going to try to jump this fence so we can turn the electricity off it.
13:16The next job is the longest and the most tiring one,
13:21cleaning out the road gutters from debris so that the water can get away
13:24and won't wash away the road instead.
13:27But last time, this road had a car-sized landslip over it,
13:30so again, I don't have much hope.
13:32You know that we don't let anything go to waste,
13:34so the mulch that I just got off the roads are going to mulch the bananas
13:37so that no weeds come up around them.
13:39Hopefully these bananas will survive the winds that are forecast,
13:43but if they do, they'll be such well mulched, full of nutrition bananas.
13:49This is when things started to get a bit more serious.
13:51We started by cleaning out fallen logs from the dam overflow,
13:54and then we actually did a thousand more jobs,
13:56like helping neighbours sandbag and tie down trampolines,
14:00cleaning roof gutters, making sure that our water tanks don't overflow the wrong way,
14:04and so much more, but we got too busy to bring the camera along.
14:07So, it's getting worse and worse,
14:10and we're getting more and more worried about this cyclone.
14:12It's coming in now.
14:14It's not due to hit for 24 hours still,
14:17but we're getting pretty intense weather.
14:20The prediction models aren't looking good,
14:22and it looks like it's going to hit a bit north of us,
14:25which I thought was a good thing,
14:26but apparently the southern aspect of the cyclone is the really intense weather,
14:31so we're going to be copping a lot of rain and a lot of wind.
14:34Some predictions are saying over a thousand millimetres of rain,
14:39which is a lot.
14:41I think we've done everything we can to prepare at this point.
14:44We've tied everything down.
14:45All the animals are safe.
14:47We're safe.
14:48We've got food to last.
14:50We've got backup reserve of power.
14:53We are just hoping for the best.
14:56We haven't lost power yet,
14:57which is really surprising,
14:58so we're just kind of, I don't know,
15:00there's so many trees already down,
15:01but there's still power,
15:03so we're powering through.
15:05We'll try to upload this video before the power goes completely out,
15:09and yeah, hopefully it's all okay.
15:12At this point all you can do is hope everything will be okay.
15:16I hope everything will be okay.
15:46We're fine.
15:47.
15:49.
15:51.
15:56.
15:59.
16:05.
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