I took lots of photos but will only post a few here. Aircraft buffs will recognise most of the planes I have posted. There is a 1917 vintage Sopwith Pup in the lineup.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Langley Park Fly-In
This weekend, Langley Park which is on the foreshore of the Swan River and very close to the Perth CBD was host to a ‘Fly In’ of over 100 planes on the grass strip which was Perth’s original airstrip back in the 1920s. Langley Park is used for many events throughout the year and I am always impressed how the park grass recovers after car rallies, circuses etc. I believe that Langley Park is unique in as much it is the only place in the world where aircraft fly from a grass airstrip in the heart of a city.
I took lots of photos but will only post a few here. Aircraft buffs will recognise most of the planes I have posted. There is a 1917 vintage Sopwith Pup in the lineup.
I took lots of photos but will only post a few here. Aircraft buffs will recognise most of the planes I have posted. There is a 1917 vintage Sopwith Pup in the lineup.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Of crisps and aphids
I visited brother Graham, had a couple of beers and sampled some of the ‘New’ vegemite flavoured Smith’s Crisps. Very nice subtle flavour even if you don’t much like vegemite. Americans, generally, don’t like vegemite, but then, they think that Dr Pepper’s is actually drinkable....cough syrup if you ask me! Interesting history of Smiths Crisps here.
Our roses; they are still also Joan’s roses, are suffering with the spring infestations of aphids. It is not a biggy, they are easily washed off with a hose. I have to look after the roses as Joan in her last couple of weeks told Helen to watch that I don’t get rid of them. A couple have died without any malice on my part. I will replace them soon. There is a space in the front garden and over the weekend I will look for a mango tree. There are lots of mango trees around here and they bear well. Helen and James have a large mango which earlier this year had lots of large mangoes at the time they were inspecting the house prior to buying it.
Our roses; they are still also Joan’s roses, are suffering with the spring infestations of aphids. It is not a biggy, they are easily washed off with a hose. I have to look after the roses as Joan in her last couple of weeks told Helen to watch that I don’t get rid of them. A couple have died without any malice on my part. I will replace them soon. There is a space in the front garden and over the weekend I will look for a mango tree. There are lots of mango trees around here and they bear well. Helen and James have a large mango which earlier this year had lots of large mangoes at the time they were inspecting the house prior to buying it.
Friday, October 14, 2011
To sell or not to sell
Yesterday I went down to the unit to do some final touch-ups. It turned into one of Kev’s mess-ups instead. I found that one of the light bulbs had died and decided to go to the local shopping centre and buy a new one. Once outside I found I had locked the house keys inside. Damn, I would have to return home and hope to find the spare set of keys. Problem #2: the remote for the security gate was also in the unit. Hmn. I walked past other units until I found someone home and fortunately they had a remote and I was able to get out and head home. When I returned, I realised that now I was locked out. Fortunately I was able to raise the same person with a bit of yelling and after getting into the unit I felt a bit less embarrassed. Are regular readers seeing a pattern here?
Later I went to see an estate agent about either selling or renting. It seems that selling is not an option at the moment as they have a number of units on the books and sold only one in the last year, so renting is probably how I will go. My cousin Ted suggested that I advertise the unit for sale and throw in Helen’s car as a sweetener. The car is good, but is worth only about $1500 on the market. Might work! Don’t know if I can be bothered with the selling bit though. A few pics of the unit...put your hand up if you want to buy it.
Later I went to see an estate agent about either selling or renting. It seems that selling is not an option at the moment as they have a number of units on the books and sold only one in the last year, so renting is probably how I will go. My cousin Ted suggested that I advertise the unit for sale and throw in Helen’s car as a sweetener. The car is good, but is worth only about $1500 on the market. Might work! Don’t know if I can be bothered with the selling bit though. A few pics of the unit...put your hand up if you want to buy it.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Not a good look!
I have been very busy at the Orelia unit. Today I returned to look at the paint job we thought we had finished on Saturday.....there were a few ‘holidays’ and I had to re-coat the ceilings again today. It is just about ready to either sell or rent out. I haven’t heard from our settlement agent about progress in transferring the titles over to me rather than the joint names of Joan and Kevin. Can’t sell until it is in my name.
There is so much junk around that it is not a good look for prospective buyers. Next to our car bay there is a car wreck and next to that a large piece of dumped furniture. The rubbish bins are not brought in from curbside and they remain there for the entire week...again not a good look.
Joan’s rose bush is looking good. She always loved roses and now, as she wished, is a good companion of a nice one.
Martin rang this afternoon. He has been successful in his job search in Melbourne. He has won two jobs and has another interview on Monday next for the job he originally went to Melbourne for. My bank balance should stabilize soon...I hope.
There is so much junk around that it is not a good look for prospective buyers. Next to our car bay there is a car wreck and next to that a large piece of dumped furniture. The rubbish bins are not brought in from curbside and they remain there for the entire week...again not a good look.
Joan’s rose bush is looking good. She always loved roses and now, as she wished, is a good companion of a nice one.
Martin rang this afternoon. He has been successful in his job search in Melbourne. He has won two jobs and has another interview on Monday next for the job he originally went to Melbourne for. My bank balance should stabilize soon...I hope.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Snake oil
The Australian Pharmacy Guild has pulled out of a deal with Blackmores ‘health’ food supplement range of vitamins etc.
The way it was to work was that when a Pharmacist filled a prescription he/she would recommend a ‘companion’ Blackmores product. Snake oil salesmen!
There was so much bad publicity that the deal fell through and folks will still have to rely on the very sincere recommendations of faded sports stars to get their life saving/improving tablets.
Our son Martin who is in Melbourne is giving my cash transfer system a workout. Hopefully he will soon gain employment and be less of a worry for me. Our unit at Orelia where Martin lived for some years is almost ready for sale or rent. Saturday, Helen and James are going with me down to Orelia to paint a couple of bedroom ceilings. I am also going to replace the washing machine I removed when I thought I was going to sell. There are two other units in the same block which have been for sale for some time, so it may well remain with me as a rental property. If Martin returns to W.A. I would not expect him to want to return to that unit. The tenants in neighboring units are feral.
The way it was to work was that when a Pharmacist filled a prescription he/she would recommend a ‘companion’ Blackmores product. Snake oil salesmen!
There was so much bad publicity that the deal fell through and folks will still have to rely on the very sincere recommendations of faded sports stars to get their life saving/improving tablets.
Our son Martin who is in Melbourne is giving my cash transfer system a workout. Hopefully he will soon gain employment and be less of a worry for me. Our unit at Orelia where Martin lived for some years is almost ready for sale or rent. Saturday, Helen and James are going with me down to Orelia to paint a couple of bedroom ceilings. I am also going to replace the washing machine I removed when I thought I was going to sell. There are two other units in the same block which have been for sale for some time, so it may well remain with me as a rental property. If Martin returns to W.A. I would not expect him to want to return to that unit. The tenants in neighboring units are feral.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Young Blue Eyes
Helen and James' new puppy is an American Staffy whilst Ruby is an English Staffy. They have decided to name the new pup Rosey. It has blue eyes and I am told, in this breed, the eye colour is closely related to the coat colour. Rosey will be about twice the size of Ruby in about 12-18 months and she may remember Ruby being a bit bossy when she was young.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
My daughter Helen
I am truly grateful that my daughter Helen has followed on from her mother, my Joan, and become the chef extraordinaire and presents wonderful meals of which I am not capable of making....and don’t feel the need to cook.
This afternoon she served up lamb kofta meat balls and a Turkish dish, Gozleme.
Usually I am not into this sort of food, but today has changed my mind set and I am up for anything Helen serves up. It is always delightful!
There was also a bit of wine and I am ready for bed at 6.35pm.
They...Helen and James, have a new (second) dog; a puppy. Whilst there isn’t too much jealousy, Ruby, their first dog, is feeling a bit left out. Should be interesting in the future because the new puppy of eight weeks is going to grow to about twice Ruby’s size.
They were searching for a name for the new dog and I suggested a Papuan name ‘Sisia’ which is Motuan for dog...they liked it.
This afternoon she served up lamb kofta meat balls and a Turkish dish, Gozleme.
Usually I am not into this sort of food, but today has changed my mind set and I am up for anything Helen serves up. It is always delightful!
There was also a bit of wine and I am ready for bed at 6.35pm.
They...Helen and James, have a new (second) dog; a puppy. Whilst there isn’t too much jealousy, Ruby, their first dog, is feeling a bit left out. Should be interesting in the future because the new puppy of eight weeks is going to grow to about twice Ruby’s size.
They were searching for a name for the new dog and I suggested a Papuan name ‘Sisia’ which is Motuan for dog...they liked it.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
More road trip stuff
En route to Esperance last Monday we stopped over for a look at the Wagin Historical Village which has the usual exhibits of tractors, machinery, schoolrooms and other shops of old. It is unfortunate that Wagin doesn’t get many tourists and the only person in the ‘Village’ was an elderly volunteer collecting the entry fee. In other more visited touristy places we have visited in various parts of the world each point of interest was ‘manned’ and an interesting story was told.
This is a pic of an Australian invention in the machinery shed. It is a mobile circular saw...the blade covered by a bicycle tyre. It was used for land clearing and was, as it looks, quite dangerous. The blade could be turned to horizontal for lopping trees or vertical for cutting firewood etc. There were reports of the blade digging in and chasing the operator around in a big circle. My uncle had one...for how long I don’t recall.
Another exhibit was a steam stationary engine which, when I was a young fella, was in a house yard at the next farm to my grandparents’ farm. I don’t know why country museums have to paint exhibits in gaudy colours?
Further down towards Esperance is the town of Ravensthorpe. Through the town is a long hill of a 10% gradient and large ore bearing road trains have great difficulty getting over the hill some needing a pull by a tractor.
It is rare that Kev gets a break, but I have been pleased by the assistance the carpet company which laid the carpet at our unit is offering. A couple of days after the man laid the carpet I saw a small mark on the carpet. I dampened a clean cloth and gave the spot a gentle rub....it dried worse. I was not sure whether the layer had dropped some glue and wiped it off or I had brought in some dirt on a shoe. I went to the company seeking information on what I should use to try and remove the stain. To my surprise they told me they would send down their fixit man to take care of it either by cleaning it or replacing that piece of carpet. Unbelievable!
This is a pic of an Australian invention in the machinery shed. It is a mobile circular saw...the blade covered by a bicycle tyre. It was used for land clearing and was, as it looks, quite dangerous. The blade could be turned to horizontal for lopping trees or vertical for cutting firewood etc. There were reports of the blade digging in and chasing the operator around in a big circle. My uncle had one...for how long I don’t recall.
Another exhibit was a steam stationary engine which, when I was a young fella, was in a house yard at the next farm to my grandparents’ farm. I don’t know why country museums have to paint exhibits in gaudy colours?
Further down towards Esperance is the town of Ravensthorpe. Through the town is a long hill of a 10% gradient and large ore bearing road trains have great difficulty getting over the hill some needing a pull by a tractor.
It is rare that Kev gets a break, but I have been pleased by the assistance the carpet company which laid the carpet at our unit is offering. A couple of days after the man laid the carpet I saw a small mark on the carpet. I dampened a clean cloth and gave the spot a gentle rub....it dried worse. I was not sure whether the layer had dropped some glue and wiped it off or I had brought in some dirt on a shoe. I went to the company seeking information on what I should use to try and remove the stain. To my surprise they told me they would send down their fixit man to take care of it either by cleaning it or replacing that piece of carpet. Unbelievable!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Esperance, Western Australia
This week, early on Monday morning, brother Graham and I started off on a drive to Esperance on the South coast of Western Australia where our sister lives. Esperance is around 720 kilometres from Perth and takes about 8 hours driving at the speed limit of 120kph with a couple of breaks. We decided to overnight at Lake King.
There is a lake at Lake King, albeit dry. There is also a motel....and that is about it!
Neither of us slept well...Graham suffers from heat and I suffer from the cold. He spent the night throwing off the doona and I spent the night wrapped up to keep warm.
We arrived in Esperance and moved into separate rooms at sister Shirley’s house.
This was not just a social visit, but I had brought with me a couple of computers to replace a previous machine which had died. I managed, after a lot of mucking around and talking with a help desk in the Phillipines, to get a connection and set up a freeby email client; Yahoo Mail. The Skype camera she had bought was not compatible with Macs, so I have suggested she sell it locally and once she has become familiar with using Skype, then buy a camera which is Mac compatible. Not sure that this will eventuate as Shirl is a bit timid when it comes to computers.
Esperance has a population of about 15,000 and magnificent beaches and outlying islands. Being so far south I imagine the water would be too cold for Kev. About 15 kilometers out of town is a large wind farm of about 15 turbines. It supplies about 22% of Esperance’s power consumption. Esperance has plenty of wind and most of the surrounding farms have large New Zealand style windrows of gum trees to break up the howling winds.
On Wednesday evening we dined out at a nice restaurant with the rest of Shirl’s family; Karen, her lovely daughter and the grandkids. A nice meal and good to catch up with them after so long. I don’t think I will visit Esperance again unless there is a funeral to attend....more like they will attend mine.
We did the drive back in 8 hours with us driving 200 kilomters each and making a couple of food stops. Graham’s new Volkswagen Passat was a pleasure to drive and when overtaking road trains went like a ‘shower of s***’. First time I have driven a turbocharged car and I was suitably impressed. The Passat has lots of interesting technological tricks, but is a bit bossy....it won’t let you do anything until the driver’s seatbelt is attached. Not sure how that is overcome in those states of the U.S. where the civil liberties of the citizenry allow them to drive without a seatbelt??
Nice to be home in familiar surrounds and with my own comfortable bed!
Yesterday I drove to the young Cambodian mum’s new retreat and replaced a MacBook laptop with Joan’s PC laptop. After giving her the Macbook a week ago she went out and bought a PC modem and Skype camera. It was easier to give Joan’s PC that trying to return and change the camera and modem. She is a lovely young lady and her joy at being helped is ample reward for me.
There is a lake at Lake King, albeit dry. There is also a motel....and that is about it!
Neither of us slept well...Graham suffers from heat and I suffer from the cold. He spent the night throwing off the doona and I spent the night wrapped up to keep warm.
We arrived in Esperance and moved into separate rooms at sister Shirley’s house.
This was not just a social visit, but I had brought with me a couple of computers to replace a previous machine which had died. I managed, after a lot of mucking around and talking with a help desk in the Phillipines, to get a connection and set up a freeby email client; Yahoo Mail. The Skype camera she had bought was not compatible with Macs, so I have suggested she sell it locally and once she has become familiar with using Skype, then buy a camera which is Mac compatible. Not sure that this will eventuate as Shirl is a bit timid when it comes to computers.
Esperance has a population of about 15,000 and magnificent beaches and outlying islands. Being so far south I imagine the water would be too cold for Kev. About 15 kilometers out of town is a large wind farm of about 15 turbines. It supplies about 22% of Esperance’s power consumption. Esperance has plenty of wind and most of the surrounding farms have large New Zealand style windrows of gum trees to break up the howling winds.
On Wednesday evening we dined out at a nice restaurant with the rest of Shirl’s family; Karen, her lovely daughter and the grandkids. A nice meal and good to catch up with them after so long. I don’t think I will visit Esperance again unless there is a funeral to attend....more like they will attend mine.
We did the drive back in 8 hours with us driving 200 kilomters each and making a couple of food stops. Graham’s new Volkswagen Passat was a pleasure to drive and when overtaking road trains went like a ‘shower of s***’. First time I have driven a turbocharged car and I was suitably impressed. The Passat has lots of interesting technological tricks, but is a bit bossy....it won’t let you do anything until the driver’s seatbelt is attached. Not sure how that is overcome in those states of the U.S. where the civil liberties of the citizenry allow them to drive without a seatbelt??
Nice to be home in familiar surrounds and with my own comfortable bed!
Yesterday I drove to the young Cambodian mum’s new retreat and replaced a MacBook laptop with Joan’s PC laptop. After giving her the Macbook a week ago she went out and bought a PC modem and Skype camera. It was easier to give Joan’s PC that trying to return and change the camera and modem. She is a lovely young lady and her joy at being helped is ample reward for me.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Phnom Penh
A couple of weeks ago I gave a Mac laptop to a young Cambodian woman who was being looked after by a welfare agency. She was in secure housing as she had suffered badly from beatings by her husband. Since then she has been moved to another unit. She wanted to use the laptop to Skype her mother in Phnom Penh. I gave her a few quick lessons on the Mac OS and she was delighted that she would soon be talking to mum.
Unfortunately she purchased a USB modem which needed a later version of the Mac OS which that computer will not run. Also she purchased a webcam which has only a PC driver. I have loaded the higher OS onto another Mac, but have decided to give her Joan's PC laptop as her support person is a PC guy and he can do the hard yards setting it all up. Joan had that PC laptop to run one of her embroidery machines, but switched to a Mac laptop using an emulation program to run PC programs named Parallels.
Things like this have suddenly put me under a bit of pressure I don't need at this stage. Joan's estate probate is still dragging out and I have no idea when it will be settled and to be perfectly honest I don't quite understand how it all works. One thing I am certain of, is that If I had gone first, things would be well and truly under control with Joan at the helm.
Unfortunately she purchased a USB modem which needed a later version of the Mac OS which that computer will not run. Also she purchased a webcam which has only a PC driver. I have loaded the higher OS onto another Mac, but have decided to give her Joan's PC laptop as her support person is a PC guy and he can do the hard yards setting it all up. Joan had that PC laptop to run one of her embroidery machines, but switched to a Mac laptop using an emulation program to run PC programs named Parallels.
Things like this have suddenly put me under a bit of pressure I don't need at this stage. Joan's estate probate is still dragging out and I have no idea when it will be settled and to be perfectly honest I don't quite understand how it all works. One thing I am certain of, is that If I had gone first, things would be well and truly under control with Joan at the helm.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Not easy
I have finished refurbishing the unit our son Martin was living in and on Sunday a young couple are going to take a look at it with the probability of purchasing it. Hope they do as it will save about six thousand dollars in agent's fees.
The transfer of the title from our joint ownership to me is not as easy as I though it would be. Joan's probate needs to be finalised and those documents forwarded to the settlement agent so she can apply to have the title re-issued in my name. Same goes for our residence.
As George Bernard Shaw once said....... 'Life isn't meant to be easy'.
The transfer of the title from our joint ownership to me is not as easy as I though it would be. Joan's probate needs to be finalised and those documents forwarded to the settlement agent so she can apply to have the title re-issued in my name. Same goes for our residence.
As George Bernard Shaw once said....... 'Life isn't meant to be easy'.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Volkswagen
I have just watched a TV movie ‘Fateless’. It is a Hungarian production of a most horrific event of WW2, the incarceration of European Jews
and the treatment of those who were not immediately consigned to the gas chambers. It is in black and white and to me, most emotional.
In my youth I owned a Volkswagen car. It worked well..much like the gas chambers of Auschwitz. Later when I read more about the WW2 I made a conscious decision not to buy a German product. We have been to Germany and in the cities we visited there was always a Holocaust Museum….but I am still not sure that the older generation still don’t think the Juden brought it on themselves.
So ist es auf die welt.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Carpet goes down at last
I spent the last couple of days filling numerous gaps in old vinyl floor tiles in preparation for carpet laying today. I had an early phone call from the carpet place telling me that the layer man was waiting outside the units at Orelia and I had to race down to let him in. My mobile phone had the sound turned off and I missed the call to tell me he was on his way.
He wasn't fazed and he is laying the carpet now. I just hope I haven't miscalculated the floor area and we are short of carpet. I will return to Orelia in about an hour to open the gate to let the man out of the compound. When I returned he told me he was having some difficulty and it was going to take another couple of hours. What he had done looked OK to me.
A work in progress....and no, the carpet is not blue.
Helen and James arrived back in Perth from the U.S. On Saturday morning. They did expect that their bags would also arrive along with them, but L.A. Airport sent them somewhere else. One of the bags has turned up and Qantas has delivered it to their home...the other is still in the jetstream somewhere. They enjoyed San Francisco and the wedding immensely. Katherine and Rick did themselves proud with a super wedding which must have cost heaps. 'Lots' would be under $100,000....'heaps' is heaps more. I am sorry that I didn't attend. I am just not ready to travel yet. Had Joan still been with us and not sick I am sure we would have had a wonderful time there.
He wasn't fazed and he is laying the carpet now. I just hope I haven't miscalculated the floor area and we are short of carpet. I will return to Orelia in about an hour to open the gate to let the man out of the compound. When I returned he told me he was having some difficulty and it was going to take another couple of hours. What he had done looked OK to me.
A work in progress....and no, the carpet is not blue.Helen and James arrived back in Perth from the U.S. On Saturday morning. They did expect that their bags would also arrive along with them, but L.A. Airport sent them somewhere else. One of the bags has turned up and Qantas has delivered it to their home...the other is still in the jetstream somewhere. They enjoyed San Francisco and the wedding immensely. Katherine and Rick did themselves proud with a super wedding which must have cost heaps. 'Lots' would be under $100,000....'heaps' is heaps more. I am sorry that I didn't attend. I am just not ready to travel yet. Had Joan still been with us and not sick I am sure we would have had a wonderful time there.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
It aint easy!
Just lately, or is it all my life, things don’t go as expected? The carpet guys turned up and took a look at the job. I was told that the edge grippers were stuck down to a previous vinyl tiled floor with glue and over the years that glue had deteriorated and the grippers had in many places come loose. As well as that, the vinyl tiles had become so brittle that as they lifted the edge gripper chunks of tile also broke away...no warranty if the carpets are laid over gaps in the vinyl.
I dragged my brother down to the unit and we lifted the carpet and took it to landfill. Tomorrow I will remove all the edging and fill the many gaps in the vinyl with car body filler. The carpet can then be fixed directly to the vinyl using adhesive on Tuesday. Hope that is it for the whole place...too old at 71 for this stuff!
Helen and James arrive back from San Francisco this morning. I have to collect Ruby, their dog, from the boarding kennel and them from the airport at 11.30am.
I dragged my brother down to the unit and we lifted the carpet and took it to landfill. Tomorrow I will remove all the edging and fill the many gaps in the vinyl with car body filler. The carpet can then be fixed directly to the vinyl using adhesive on Tuesday. Hope that is it for the whole place...too old at 71 for this stuff!
Helen and James arrive back from San Francisco this morning. I have to collect Ruby, their dog, from the boarding kennel and them from the airport at 11.30am.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Return journey is quicker
This morning I did the last cleanup of our unit which housed our son Martin. The carpet layer is to lay the new carpets on Friday. I thought I would ring the daughter of the tenant in the unit above Martin’s to inform her that she could view the unit over the weekend. She was most enthusiastic which feels good for a sale.
Later I had a second thought as to whether I could sell the unit before Joan’s estate is settled by the Public Trustee. We were joint owners of the unit and after a phone call to the trustees I was relieved to find that as it was in joint ownership, all I have to do is to present the appropriate department with the Death Certificate and new title will be issued.
On ABC talkback radio today there was a discussion about research which showed that the return journey of any trip almost always goes quicker than the journey to the destination. I would agree with that.
Later I had a second thought as to whether I could sell the unit before Joan’s estate is settled by the Public Trustee. We were joint owners of the unit and after a phone call to the trustees I was relieved to find that as it was in joint ownership, all I have to do is to present the appropriate department with the Death Certificate and new title will be issued.
On ABC talkback radio today there was a discussion about research which showed that the return journey of any trip almost always goes quicker than the journey to the destination. I would agree with that.
Boat People
Today I am finishing off the refurbishing of our unit in downtown Orelia. The carpets are to be laid this Friday. Orelia is part of what was originally known as Kwinana.
We both taught at Kwinana High School in the late 1960s and believe me when I say it was a tough school to work at. Kwinana HS has been rebuilt and named Gillmore College....I believe it has the highest rate of student absenteeism in the state. Nice looking building though!
Kwinana promised employment in the nearby industrial area, but employment gradually slowed down and many locals are unemployed and a malaise has settled over the youth of the area.
Both sides of politics in the Federal Parliament are still saying that they want to stop the refugees arriving by boat because it is very dangerous and people could, and have, drowned. They,of course, cannot publicly say that they just want to stop the boats.
The government’s deal with Malaysia to accept 4,000 largely Cambodian /Burmese refugees deemed to be genuine refugees with a swap for 800 of our boat people currently locked up in detention centres has stalled because of a court ruling. I would think that South East Asian refugees would be more acceptable to most Australians than Middle East refugees because of their track record of assimilation and that their religious beliefs and practices do not cause conflict.
We both taught at Kwinana High School in the late 1960s and believe me when I say it was a tough school to work at. Kwinana HS has been rebuilt and named Gillmore College....I believe it has the highest rate of student absenteeism in the state. Nice looking building though!
Kwinana promised employment in the nearby industrial area, but employment gradually slowed down and many locals are unemployed and a malaise has settled over the youth of the area.
Both sides of politics in the Federal Parliament are still saying that they want to stop the refugees arriving by boat because it is very dangerous and people could, and have, drowned. They,of course, cannot publicly say that they just want to stop the boats.
The government’s deal with Malaysia to accept 4,000 largely Cambodian /Burmese refugees deemed to be genuine refugees with a swap for 800 of our boat people currently locked up in detention centres has stalled because of a court ruling. I would think that South East Asian refugees would be more acceptable to most Australians than Middle East refugees because of their track record of assimilation and that their religious beliefs and practices do not cause conflict.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Orelia, the Nedlands of the South...not!
I have been very busy refurbishing our unit readying it for sale. For such a small 2br unit I am amazed at how much work was required to bring it up to scratch. I decided to have new carpet laid instead of trying to clean the existing stuff. It will be done next Friday and shortly after it will be on the market.
This block of units was originally built sometime in the 1970s for the State Housing Commission and probably in the 1980/90s, sold off to individuals. The area is not what one would describe as salubrious and this particular block has run-down gardens and tenants who care little for their surrounds or their neighbours. In short it is crappy and I will be glad to be rid of it.
This description will not accompany the for sale advert.
Doesn't look too bad from a distance
Today is father’s day and it is the first time I can recall not having my children visit. Martin is in Melbourne and Helen is in San Francisco. I do expect that they will ring though. At the time of writing this the time here is 7.18am and it 4.18pm in SF and just to complicate things it is Sunday here and only Saturday there...Australia is ahead of the U.S. in a few things.
Martin rang me for Father’s Day just as I was leaving to bring a trailer load of furniture etc back from the unit. When I was loading a dining room table and chairs onto the trailer a tenant of one of the other units struck up a conversation.
As it happens he is gay and I was introduced to his rather shy aboriginal partner. He told me he loves it there...must be insane! I asked if he had room for some furniture for free. He ended up taking the dining table, a coffee table, an outdoor setting and all the saucepans, crockery, cutlery and glassware. All I brought home was the washing machine and a few tools etc. Easy! Saved me finding places to store it all and if/when Martin returns, we can always buy new stuff
This block of units was originally built sometime in the 1970s for the State Housing Commission and probably in the 1980/90s, sold off to individuals. The area is not what one would describe as salubrious and this particular block has run-down gardens and tenants who care little for their surrounds or their neighbours. In short it is crappy and I will be glad to be rid of it.
This description will not accompany the for sale advert.
Doesn't look too bad from a distance
Today is father’s day and it is the first time I can recall not having my children visit. Martin is in Melbourne and Helen is in San Francisco. I do expect that they will ring though. At the time of writing this the time here is 7.18am and it 4.18pm in SF and just to complicate things it is Sunday here and only Saturday there...Australia is ahead of the U.S. in a few things.
Martin rang me for Father’s Day just as I was leaving to bring a trailer load of furniture etc back from the unit. When I was loading a dining room table and chairs onto the trailer a tenant of one of the other units struck up a conversation.
As it happens he is gay and I was introduced to his rather shy aboriginal partner. He told me he loves it there...must be insane! I asked if he had room for some furniture for free. He ended up taking the dining table, a coffee table, an outdoor setting and all the saucepans, crockery, cutlery and glassware. All I brought home was the washing machine and a few tools etc. Easy! Saved me finding places to store it all and if/when Martin returns, we can always buy new stuff
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
A Chinese stove made in Turkey
Helen and James are in San Francisco for her cousin Katherine’s wedding to Rick. It is going to be a big affair over several days including a harbour cruise, a baseball game (all the guests have been told which team to barrack for) and of course the wedding.
On Monday Helen went to work and James was to go to work on Tuesday. After work I was to take them to Perth airport for their flight to Brisbane and SF. Monday evening around 8.30pm I had a flustered call from Helen telling me that they had miscalculated and it was actually Monday night they were to depart. I had had a couple of beers so couldn’t drive. They had to taxi it to the airport. James had bought a new suit and the alterations were to be completed Tuesday morning. They flew without that one.
Tuesday, I found instructions on taking Ruby, their dog, to a boarding kennel, cancelling a vet appointment and ringing the people where the suit was being altered.
I received a call from Helen saying that they had safely arrived in Brisbane. They should be now looking for a suit rental place in SF.
Work on our unit at Orelia is going reasonably well. I have decided to sell and hope to come out of the deal with a loss of around $30k. Hopefully I can claim this loss against my income tax, but the waters around this situation are quite muddy. Time will tell.
At the unit I have an electrician coming along on Friday to connect the new stand-alone stove for $95. There are three wires to tightens crews down on, but as I am selling the unit I don’t want to electrocute a new buyer by doing a amateur wiring job myself.
I notice that the stove, although a Chinese brand, is made in Turkey. Are wages in Turkey lower than China?
Local laws demand that smoke alarms be hard wired, unless, as in the case of this unit, there is no ceiling space. In this case an alarm with a 10 year Lithium battery can be fitted. A little bit expensive, but no where near the cost of an electrician to visit.
On Monday Helen went to work and James was to go to work on Tuesday. After work I was to take them to Perth airport for their flight to Brisbane and SF. Monday evening around 8.30pm I had a flustered call from Helen telling me that they had miscalculated and it was actually Monday night they were to depart. I had had a couple of beers so couldn’t drive. They had to taxi it to the airport. James had bought a new suit and the alterations were to be completed Tuesday morning. They flew without that one.
Tuesday, I found instructions on taking Ruby, their dog, to a boarding kennel, cancelling a vet appointment and ringing the people where the suit was being altered.
I received a call from Helen saying that they had safely arrived in Brisbane. They should be now looking for a suit rental place in SF.
Work on our unit at Orelia is going reasonably well. I have decided to sell and hope to come out of the deal with a loss of around $30k. Hopefully I can claim this loss against my income tax, but the waters around this situation are quite muddy. Time will tell.
At the unit I have an electrician coming along on Friday to connect the new stand-alone stove for $95. There are three wires to tightens crews down on, but as I am selling the unit I don’t want to electrocute a new buyer by doing a amateur wiring job myself.
I notice that the stove, although a Chinese brand, is made in Turkey. Are wages in Turkey lower than China?
Local laws demand that smoke alarms be hard wired, unless, as in the case of this unit, there is no ceiling space. In this case an alarm with a 10 year Lithium battery can be fitted. A little bit expensive, but no where near the cost of an electrician to visit.
Monday, August 29, 2011
The Bridal Train
On Saturday morning a group of friends did a tour of the Woodman Point Quarantine Station. Most of us had heard about this establishment but had no real idea about the fact that it was in operation from about 1852. It is on a beachfront site and there was a large jetty for ships to tie up and disembark passengers and crew who had contracted one of the major plagues of the time. It was still operational into the 1970s. The site is now run by the Department of Sport and Recreation, but the quarantine station and machinery are left in place for tours. $9m was spent restoring the timber cottages, hospitals etc.
There was much to see and learn and everyone enjoyed the experience. The station has the first crematorium ever built in Australia. Because of the deadly diseases treated here, bodies were not buried, but cremated.
For those interested here is a link for a site with interesting details...
In the afternoon I went to collect a computer donated by a lady in her eighties. She was as bright as a button and she told me that she had spent 57 years in California. I asked her if she was a war bride and sure enough she married a U.S. Submariner in Fremantle in 1944. She only returned to be with her sisters in 2001 after the death of her husband. He served on the USS Tautog out of Fremantle. Some info about the Tautog.
Lovely lady and I am sure we will talk more about war brides.
There is a nice song by a local group called ‘The Bridal Train’ written by the band’s singer about her grandmother who married another U.S. sailor and sailed to America on the Monterey.
You can hear 'The Bridal Train' here.
There was much to see and learn and everyone enjoyed the experience. The station has the first crematorium ever built in Australia. Because of the deadly diseases treated here, bodies were not buried, but cremated.
For those interested here is a link for a site with interesting details...
In the afternoon I went to collect a computer donated by a lady in her eighties. She was as bright as a button and she told me that she had spent 57 years in California. I asked her if she was a war bride and sure enough she married a U.S. Submariner in Fremantle in 1944. She only returned to be with her sisters in 2001 after the death of her husband. He served on the USS Tautog out of Fremantle. Some info about the Tautog.
Lovely lady and I am sure we will talk more about war brides.
There is a nice song by a local group called ‘The Bridal Train’ written by the band’s singer about her grandmother who married another U.S. sailor and sailed to America on the Monterey.
You can hear 'The Bridal Train' here.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Mike's wake
There was a change of plan in last night’s wake for my Bro-in-Law, Mike. I decided to be the ‘skipper’ and abstain from drinking. It worked well and I kept myself busy taking photographs and serving snacks.
I made some Aussie fare....celery pieces, filled with curried egg. They went like hot cakes and I was surprised that not many of the guests had tasted it before.
A pic of one of four plates.
The recipe is simple...hard boil your eggs, then remove the yokes and mix with mayo and curry powder and fill the celery. I recommend you try it. Young crisp celery is essential.
Some heartfelt speeches were made in honour of Mike.
Greg made a touching, but humorous farewell speech.
I was surprised how many of their friends are travelling to San Francisco today to attend Katherine and Ricks’ wedding. Dorothy, Katherine and Rick are off at about 5.30pm on the long flight from Perth. I feel somewhat guilty that I am not also going, but Helen and James are representing me.
Cousins...Katherine, Helen, Vanessa, Fiona and Janine.
I made some Aussie fare....celery pieces, filled with curried egg. They went like hot cakes and I was surprised that not many of the guests had tasted it before.
A pic of one of four plates.
The recipe is simple...hard boil your eggs, then remove the yokes and mix with mayo and curry powder and fill the celery. I recommend you try it. Young crisp celery is essential.
Some heartfelt speeches were made in honour of Mike.
Greg made a touching, but humorous farewell speech.
I was surprised how many of their friends are travelling to San Francisco today to attend Katherine and Ricks’ wedding. Dorothy, Katherine and Rick are off at about 5.30pm on the long flight from Perth. I feel somewhat guilty that I am not also going, but Helen and James are representing me.
Cousins...Katherine, Helen, Vanessa, Fiona and Janine.
Friday, August 26, 2011
six months
It is six months today that My Joan passed away. We were 46 years together and it is a comfort to remember those good years.
I am doing OK, but need to keep very busy.
The six month mark is not especially important...I think of Joan every day.
I am doing OK, but need to keep very busy.
The six month mark is not especially important...I think of Joan every day.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
There will be days like this
With the events of this year I have had a on off relationship with a bit of melancholia.
Today I had a bright spot when I delivered a laptop to a young Cambodian woman who has suffered at the hands of her violent husband and is now in respite. She is just 26 and has a nice young son. The agency looking after her asked me if I had a computer and printer which she could have. When I set it up and gave her some instructions she was beaming and heaped thanks on me. ‘Then I must remember, there will be days like this’.
Mike’s wake is on Friday evening and we are all driving up North of the River in my car and leaving the car there and cabbing it home. Should work out about $25-30 each for the four of us, which isn’t even the cost of a restaurant meal. Mike wanted a wet wake.
Today I had a bright spot when I delivered a laptop to a young Cambodian woman who has suffered at the hands of her violent husband and is now in respite. She is just 26 and has a nice young son. The agency looking after her asked me if I had a computer and printer which she could have. When I set it up and gave her some instructions she was beaming and heaped thanks on me. ‘Then I must remember, there will be days like this’.
Mike’s wake is on Friday evening and we are all driving up North of the River in my car and leaving the car there and cabbing it home. Should work out about $25-30 each for the four of us, which isn’t even the cost of a restaurant meal. Mike wanted a wet wake.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Vale Mike Treasure
My brother-in-law Mike passed away this morning. Parkinson’s Disease ravaged his body and his mind. The gifting of his body to UWA Medical School for research into Parkinson’s was a wonderful thing for him to do.
This bastard disease stole his very being.
This bastard disease stole his very being.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Mike Treasure
Yesterday; Saturday, James and Helen helped me do some cleaning and repairs at the unit I own which our son Martin lived in for a few years. Helen busied herself cleaning out the fridge and it was soon evident that the door seals were damaged and most of the storage plastic-ware was cracked or broken. A quick decision saw the fridge on the back of James’ pickup and on its way along with the stove to the local landfill recycling centre. The heavily stained carpet in the main room proved to be salvageable after a few test scrubs with heavy duty spotter. I will hire a ‘Britex’ machine next week and give all the carpets a thorough clean. I decided to hire a painter to repaint doors and door frames.
Later in the day I decided to sell the unit rather than be the nasty landlord. I am guessing that I will lose around $30,000, but in the current economic climate, housing values are unlikely to get back to their previous levels in the time I have left. So I rang the young woman who was interested in renting the unit and told her that I was sorry, but I had decided to sell it. In no time a text message appeared on my phone saying that she would be very interested in buying it. Great news! There would be no selling agents’ fee and as her father lives in the unit above, she knows all the problems associated with this block of units. Once I have finished the refurbishment, she will take a look and haggle with the price I have indicated I would like.
My brother-in-law Mike is in hospital and he is in the final stages of his time here. Helen and I drove to the hospital to pay our respects to Mike. His daughter and son-in-law to be have travelled from the U.S. to be there with him. If he has not passed away over night he will soon leave us.
Mike had left instructions that his body be given to the medical school at the University of Western Australia to do research into Parkinson’s Disease.
Later in the day I decided to sell the unit rather than be the nasty landlord. I am guessing that I will lose around $30,000, but in the current economic climate, housing values are unlikely to get back to their previous levels in the time I have left. So I rang the young woman who was interested in renting the unit and told her that I was sorry, but I had decided to sell it. In no time a text message appeared on my phone saying that she would be very interested in buying it. Great news! There would be no selling agents’ fee and as her father lives in the unit above, she knows all the problems associated with this block of units. Once I have finished the refurbishment, she will take a look and haggle with the price I have indicated I would like.
My brother-in-law Mike is in hospital and he is in the final stages of his time here. Helen and I drove to the hospital to pay our respects to Mike. His daughter and son-in-law to be have travelled from the U.S. to be there with him. If he has not passed away over night he will soon leave us.
Mike had left instructions that his body be given to the medical school at the University of Western Australia to do research into Parkinson’s Disease.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Big Spender
Martin, our son, has just emailed me to say that he has found suitable accommodation near where he will start work in Melbourne. He cannot move in today as the room will not be available for a couple of weeks, but he has paid a month’s board in advance to secure the place. Whew! Meanwhile he will remain in the cheapo hotel.
My friend Albert had his radical prostatectomy. The operation was more difficult than anticipated and went for 5 hours. Soon after he was moved to intensive care due to an infection. He is responding to treatment for the infection and should be out of IC in a day or so. Kathy, his wife, is issuing a daily bulletin to friends and family.
The repairs and reno at the unit we own are going reasonably well. Rather than try and refurbish the stand-alone kitchen stove, I went and bought a new one and also a clothes drier. Quite something new for me who is not noted as a Big Spender. The laundry and toilet have been repainted and repairs made to a sliding glass door damaged by a recent break-in attempt. The carpets might come up with a professional carpet cleaner. If not, I will replace the worst of them.
The neighbors are feral. I couldn’t live there, but I won’t have any trouble renting the place.
My friend Albert had his radical prostatectomy. The operation was more difficult than anticipated and went for 5 hours. Soon after he was moved to intensive care due to an infection. He is responding to treatment for the infection and should be out of IC in a day or so. Kathy, his wife, is issuing a daily bulletin to friends and family.
The repairs and reno at the unit we own are going reasonably well. Rather than try and refurbish the stand-alone kitchen stove, I went and bought a new one and also a clothes drier. Quite something new for me who is not noted as a Big Spender. The laundry and toilet have been repainted and repairs made to a sliding glass door damaged by a recent break-in attempt. The carpets might come up with a professional carpet cleaner. If not, I will replace the worst of them.
The neighbors are feral. I couldn’t live there, but I won’t have any trouble renting the place.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Renting accommodation
Our son Martin is in Melbourne, He rang yesterday and admitted that it was going to be more difficult than he thought to find single accommodation. Duh!
Here in Perth, people are lining up to get rental accommodation. It is so scarce that people are pushing up the rental prices by bidding for the accommodation. I cannot see that Melbourne will be any different.
He may have to share a house with others and that is not a good option for him. He is having his job interview today, which he says is just a formality, and he will probably start work next week.
I have been doing lots of work on the unit where Martin lived for several years. It is going to cost. The stove needs replacing as does the carpet in the main room. The bathroom/laundry is getting a repaint and there are other jobs such as patching walls, replacing power and light switches etc. Should take a couple of weeks to get it to rentable condition. I knew there was a reason we didn’t want Martin living with us.
A good friend from the early 1960s in Papua New Guinea had a Radical Prostatectomy yesterday. Albert is to stay in hospital for seven days. This operation to remove a cancerous prostate is sometimes difficult to avoid nerve damage and can leave the patient with incontinence and or impotence. I hope Albert's is a successful operation with no bad side effects. I had a Radical Prostatectomy some 12 years ago and all I will say about that is, I am not incontinent!
Here in Perth, people are lining up to get rental accommodation. It is so scarce that people are pushing up the rental prices by bidding for the accommodation. I cannot see that Melbourne will be any different.
He may have to share a house with others and that is not a good option for him. He is having his job interview today, which he says is just a formality, and he will probably start work next week.
I have been doing lots of work on the unit where Martin lived for several years. It is going to cost. The stove needs replacing as does the carpet in the main room. The bathroom/laundry is getting a repaint and there are other jobs such as patching walls, replacing power and light switches etc. Should take a couple of weeks to get it to rentable condition. I knew there was a reason we didn’t want Martin living with us.
A good friend from the early 1960s in Papua New Guinea had a Radical Prostatectomy yesterday. Albert is to stay in hospital for seven days. This operation to remove a cancerous prostate is sometimes difficult to avoid nerve damage and can leave the patient with incontinence and or impotence. I hope Albert's is a successful operation with no bad side effects. I had a Radical Prostatectomy some 12 years ago and all I will say about that is, I am not incontinent!
Monday, August 15, 2011
San Francisco wedding
I have just returned from Perth Domestic Airport where I dropped off Martin for his plane to Melbourne. He is relocating there and has a job waiting for him....not a great job, but a job.
Finding Accommodation may be a little more difficult and he may have to do the Backpacker thing until he can get a unit.
Meantime, I will continue the refurbishing of the unit we bought to house Martin and ready it for rental. It will be rented as a furnished unit. Already the tenant in the unit above Martin’s has contacted me and wants his daughter and partner to move in. I will let an agent handle the rental. I don’t want the hassles of being the mean landlord.
I had a visit from Joan’s sister Dorothy and Mike yesterday. Mike has had Parkinson’s Disease for some years and it has progressed to the stage that he needs full time care. He cannot speak and needs specialised foods to avoid breathing in liquids and most regular food. I feel for Dorothy as she has to attend to his every need. Even so they are travelling to San Francisco in a couple of weeks for their daughter’s wedding. Mike shouldn’t be going, but Katherine their daughter wants her father to attend. We were invited, but since Joan’s death, I don’t feel like travel, so have apologised and will stay home. Helen and James are also going, so this family is represented. Mike and I got along well and it is very sad to have lost a friend to this insidious disease.
Finding Accommodation may be a little more difficult and he may have to do the Backpacker thing until he can get a unit.
Meantime, I will continue the refurbishing of the unit we bought to house Martin and ready it for rental. It will be rented as a furnished unit. Already the tenant in the unit above Martin’s has contacted me and wants his daughter and partner to move in. I will let an agent handle the rental. I don’t want the hassles of being the mean landlord.
I had a visit from Joan’s sister Dorothy and Mike yesterday. Mike has had Parkinson’s Disease for some years and it has progressed to the stage that he needs full time care. He cannot speak and needs specialised foods to avoid breathing in liquids and most regular food. I feel for Dorothy as she has to attend to his every need. Even so they are travelling to San Francisco in a couple of weeks for their daughter’s wedding. Mike shouldn’t be going, but Katherine their daughter wants her father to attend. We were invited, but since Joan’s death, I don’t feel like travel, so have apologised and will stay home. Helen and James are also going, so this family is represented. Mike and I got along well and it is very sad to have lost a friend to this insidious disease.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Veuve Clicquot
Our daughter Helen, gave us a bottle of Veuve Clicquot for Xmas. We never got to open it at Xmas and last week I opened it to share with Helen and James. It was ‘skunked’, so much so it was undrinkable. Whenever we have had a bottle of cheapo bubbly in the past which was flat or undrinkable, we merely returned it to the bottle shop and took another one off the shelf. Bottle shops don't take back their Veuve without a cash register receipt. You don’t get a receipt with a present and in any case you don’t expect to get a dud bottle of $90 wine.
No amount of googling will bring up an Australian agent for Veuve, but a local bottle shop has promised to do some investigation for me later today. I might be lucky yet.
Helen and James haven’t been too lucky though. They signed up for PhotoVoltaic panels at the same time as my brother Graham and I did and we all had the panels installed on the same day. At the time the sales person faxed off the applications for the 40c per kilowatt power input to be sold back to the energy company. Bro and I got ours acknowledged, but Helen and James heard nothing and when they contacted the energy company they were told that as they had not submitted their application before the government subsidy cutoff date they could only get paid 7c per unit into the electricity grid...no arguments thanks. That makes the expense of the solar panels pretty well useless as it will take a couple of decades to pay off the panels etc at 7c per.
Fortunately my cousin Edward is the man who has volunteered his services as a mediator and he has forwarded all the documents including a Statutory Declaration saying that the application was faxed before the closing date. Hope he can get the decision reversed. Cousin Ted has an impressive track record of winning over lots of government and commercial businesses.
Don’t sell Ted a car unless you are very sure it has absolutely no defects.
Just after lunch today I noticed a Channel7 TV transmitter vehicle near my house front. I’m guessing that something of import has happened in this estate and we should see something on tonight’s 7 News.
The cleanup and repairs etc are progressing in Martin’s unit. A few days ago we opened an inspection door to check out the condition of the electric hot water system. The HWS is housed in a vertical space which services three floors of apartments. It was inhabited by about 300 Australian cockroaches (Periplaneta australasiae). They are a large species of cockroach, winged, and growing to a length of 30–35 millimetres. Martin hit them with a couple of cans of insecticide and yesterday we gave them another jolt with an insect bomb. Martin made sure that the tenants above and below knew when he was going to ‘bomb’ them so they could go out for a couple of hours. I am guessing the bottom unit has heaps of dead cockies next to their HWS.
No amount of googling will bring up an Australian agent for Veuve, but a local bottle shop has promised to do some investigation for me later today. I might be lucky yet.
Helen and James haven’t been too lucky though. They signed up for PhotoVoltaic panels at the same time as my brother Graham and I did and we all had the panels installed on the same day. At the time the sales person faxed off the applications for the 40c per kilowatt power input to be sold back to the energy company. Bro and I got ours acknowledged, but Helen and James heard nothing and when they contacted the energy company they were told that as they had not submitted their application before the government subsidy cutoff date they could only get paid 7c per unit into the electricity grid...no arguments thanks. That makes the expense of the solar panels pretty well useless as it will take a couple of decades to pay off the panels etc at 7c per.
Fortunately my cousin Edward is the man who has volunteered his services as a mediator and he has forwarded all the documents including a Statutory Declaration saying that the application was faxed before the closing date. Hope he can get the decision reversed. Cousin Ted has an impressive track record of winning over lots of government and commercial businesses.
Don’t sell Ted a car unless you are very sure it has absolutely no defects.
Just after lunch today I noticed a Channel7 TV transmitter vehicle near my house front. I’m guessing that something of import has happened in this estate and we should see something on tonight’s 7 News.
The cleanup and repairs etc are progressing in Martin’s unit. A few days ago we opened an inspection door to check out the condition of the electric hot water system. The HWS is housed in a vertical space which services three floors of apartments. It was inhabited by about 300 Australian cockroaches (Periplaneta australasiae). They are a large species of cockroach, winged, and growing to a length of 30–35 millimetres. Martin hit them with a couple of cans of insecticide and yesterday we gave them another jolt with an insect bomb. Martin made sure that the tenants above and below knew when he was going to ‘bomb’ them so they could go out for a couple of hours. I am guessing the bottom unit has heaps of dead cockies next to their HWS.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
London's Burning; London's Burning
London is burning! These riots raise all sorts of questions and the pundits have already solved the puzzle. I am really unsure about the situation there, but it looks remarkably like the G8 protests which start off with a few well meaning folk staging a protest followed up by hooded, masked hoons bent on destruction and looting.
British cops have a policy of going easy on such events. If it were in my neighborhood and the damage to my property, I’d be asking for water canon, tear gas and rubber bullets.
I wonder about insurance problems for buildings and property in these affected areas.
British cops have a policy of going easy on such events. If it were in my neighborhood and the damage to my property, I’d be asking for water canon, tear gas and rubber bullets.
I wonder about insurance problems for buildings and property in these affected areas.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
A letter to Joan
Joan I am watching your fav TV show; Masterchef. It is the final with a female and male cooking it off. As you know I am not into these sort of programs, but I should report back to you about the result. I doubt that most people like us would pay the big bucks for such small serves.
I must thank you for all the pantry stuff you left me. Some of it is out of date now and I used some peanuts in a curry only to find that they were rancid.....should have read the use by date. I am doing OK, but miss you terribly. Helen and James are being very supportive. I eat ...and drink, often, with them and am happy that they still want me around.
Martin is soon off to Melbourne and I will decide if this is a time to sell the unit we bought to house him. I went down to BoganVille to do some maintenance today and wish that I could get out of that situation without losing too much.
I have created a slideshow of photographs of you and us and it brings tears to my eyes every time it starts up on the computer. I love you dearly my Joan.
I’ll let you know later who won MasterChef............results just in...the gal won.
I must thank you for all the pantry stuff you left me. Some of it is out of date now and I used some peanuts in a curry only to find that they were rancid.....should have read the use by date. I am doing OK, but miss you terribly. Helen and James are being very supportive. I eat ...and drink, often, with them and am happy that they still want me around.
Martin is soon off to Melbourne and I will decide if this is a time to sell the unit we bought to house him. I went down to BoganVille to do some maintenance today and wish that I could get out of that situation without losing too much.
I have created a slideshow of photographs of you and us and it brings tears to my eyes every time it starts up on the computer. I love you dearly my Joan.
I’ll let you know later who won MasterChef............results just in...the gal won.
Ferals
Low-lifes are every where! Generally if one buys into a more expensive area, one expects to have reasonable neighbors, but sometimes the rules just don’t apply.
Helen and James bought their house in the same suburb as us and expected that they would have the same sort of neighbors as we have. As it turns out there is a family of ferals two doors up who are doing their best to make it uncomfortable to live there.
James has confronted them and talked to the parents who have no control over their kids and suffer verbal abuse from them. The parents admit that the previous owners of Helen and James’ house almost certainly sold because of their sons’ intimidation. A line has been drawn and things could get worse. Not good!
Similarly, the unit we own which houses our son Martin, has neighbors from hell also. His unit is in a block of about thirty units in a suburb known for its ferals. I would like to sell it when Martin leaves for Melbourne in a couple of weeks, but the housing market has crashed and I would lose too much cash. Never-the-less once I have refurbished it I will get a valuation. I don’t like being a landlord with all the attendant problems of rough tenants.
Helen and James bought their house in the same suburb as us and expected that they would have the same sort of neighbors as we have. As it turns out there is a family of ferals two doors up who are doing their best to make it uncomfortable to live there.
James has confronted them and talked to the parents who have no control over their kids and suffer verbal abuse from them. The parents admit that the previous owners of Helen and James’ house almost certainly sold because of their sons’ intimidation. A line has been drawn and things could get worse. Not good!
Similarly, the unit we own which houses our son Martin, has neighbors from hell also. His unit is in a block of about thirty units in a suburb known for its ferals. I would like to sell it when Martin leaves for Melbourne in a couple of weeks, but the housing market has crashed and I would lose too much cash. Never-the-less once I have refurbished it I will get a valuation. I don’t like being a landlord with all the attendant problems of rough tenants.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
The Oxford comma
Shock, horror.....the Oxford comma has been dropped.
Firstly a lesson on what the Oxford Comma is. I have never seen it used and hopefully have never used it in error.
The 'Oxford comma' is an optional comma before the word 'and' at the end of a list:
We sell books, videos, and magazines.
It's known as the Oxford comma because it was traditionally used by printers, readers, and editors at Oxford University Press. Not all writers and publishers use it, but it can clarify the meaning of a sentence when the items in a list are not single words:
These items are available in black and white, red and yellow, and blue and green.
The Oxford comma is also known as the 'serial comma'.
Anyway, Oxford University has dropped it and just the ‘and’ can now be the standard without the comma. Whew!
Today I returned our cat Amber to the Cat Haven. It has been a very timid cat over the last four months and spent most of its day hiding from me. The real reason I got rid of it was its bad habit of urinating inside the house. I had to fill out a form with a reason for bringing it back after a year and pay a fee of $15. Good value I reckon. I used a nice Apple iBook box to take her to her new premises after drilling a peephole in the end. She didn’t whinge too much after I assured her that she wasn’t going to be ‘put to sleep’.
I did want to be on good terms with Amber, but that wasn’t to be. Over the years we have had quite a few cats and with the exception of Amber, they have all been great.
As an ex teacher I should write a smoothover report on her and mention the good things about her.
She is a very attractive cat, who has a placid manner, neither scratching or biting its owners. She should do well in new surroundings.
Firstly a lesson on what the Oxford Comma is. I have never seen it used and hopefully have never used it in error.
The 'Oxford comma' is an optional comma before the word 'and' at the end of a list:
We sell books, videos, and magazines.
It's known as the Oxford comma because it was traditionally used by printers, readers, and editors at Oxford University Press. Not all writers and publishers use it, but it can clarify the meaning of a sentence when the items in a list are not single words:
These items are available in black and white, red and yellow, and blue and green.
The Oxford comma is also known as the 'serial comma'.
Anyway, Oxford University has dropped it and just the ‘and’ can now be the standard without the comma. Whew!
Today I returned our cat Amber to the Cat Haven. It has been a very timid cat over the last four months and spent most of its day hiding from me. The real reason I got rid of it was its bad habit of urinating inside the house. I had to fill out a form with a reason for bringing it back after a year and pay a fee of $15. Good value I reckon. I used a nice Apple iBook box to take her to her new premises after drilling a peephole in the end. She didn’t whinge too much after I assured her that she wasn’t going to be ‘put to sleep’.
I did want to be on good terms with Amber, but that wasn’t to be. Over the years we have had quite a few cats and with the exception of Amber, they have all been great.As an ex teacher I should write a smoothover report on her and mention the good things about her.
She is a very attractive cat, who has a placid manner, neither scratching or biting its owners. She should do well in new surroundings.
Monday, August 1, 2011
A large family
Yesterday I visited Joan’s aunt, Pat Wray. Joan’s sister Dorothy was also invited and by late afternoon there were about 15 family members attending. I thought this was some big event, but I was assured it was a regular Sunday gathering.
Pat has 8 children, 25 grandchildren (with a couple more soon to arrive) and 12 great grandchildren. This handsome little bloke is a month old and another was born on Saturday. I think they all pity me without any grandkids. I can live with that.
Pat is in her 80s, still very bright and computer literate. She told us of a recent discovery of what she called a strange and well kept secret about her family history. This has inspired her to research her family tree and she has turned up some very interesting stuff. I can’t tell you what it is...but it is a bit spicey!
Pat has 8 children, 25 grandchildren (with a couple more soon to arrive) and 12 great grandchildren. This handsome little bloke is a month old and another was born on Saturday. I think they all pity me without any grandkids. I can live with that.
Pat is in her 80s, still very bright and computer literate. She told us of a recent discovery of what she called a strange and well kept secret about her family history. This has inspired her to research her family tree and she has turned up some very interesting stuff. I can’t tell you what it is...but it is a bit spicey!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Of times past
Yesterday I collected a Mac from a chap. He said it wouldn’t get up. but I thought I might be able to coax it into life....no joy as yet.
On the way home from collecting the computer I visited my cousin Val. We talked lots and I asked about a house the family lived in in East Perth. It was a semi detached house of around 1870 vintage. owned by the government Railways and rented to railways employees. Peter, Val’s husband, worked for the Railways.
Val told a fascinating story about the neighbors and the ongoing family strife all around them. Later at home I thought about the story and rang her to suggest that she write her story. Hope she does as it has the makings of a movie. I could see the story being written by Tim Winton or the late Tom Hungerford; both wrote wonderful pieces about suburban life.
Sometimes when I think about times past I remember how we, without Google, the universal encyclopedia, got information. We weren’t wealthy enough to have set of encyclopedia and to be honest, I doubt we would have used it had we owned one. Most of what I knew then was from questioning others who did know lots more than me about most things.
I also remember the horrific arithmetical disaster of the old currency...Pounds, Shillings and Pence. Cruel teachers would set some long division ‘sums’ and whilst kids worked through them go on a world trip.
An example of a ‘keep ‘em busy’ maths lesson would be like this........
£17/13/11 ÷ 27
For the younguns, that reads seventeen Pounds, thirteen Shillings and eleven Pence divided by twenty seven. Nasty teachers could add a halfpenny to the eleven pence.
Given that there are 20 shillings in a pound, 12 pence in a shilling, there is a whole lot of ‘carrying on’ to be done.
On the way home from collecting the computer I visited my cousin Val. We talked lots and I asked about a house the family lived in in East Perth. It was a semi detached house of around 1870 vintage. owned by the government Railways and rented to railways employees. Peter, Val’s husband, worked for the Railways.
Val told a fascinating story about the neighbors and the ongoing family strife all around them. Later at home I thought about the story and rang her to suggest that she write her story. Hope she does as it has the makings of a movie. I could see the story being written by Tim Winton or the late Tom Hungerford; both wrote wonderful pieces about suburban life.
Sometimes when I think about times past I remember how we, without Google, the universal encyclopedia, got information. We weren’t wealthy enough to have set of encyclopedia and to be honest, I doubt we would have used it had we owned one. Most of what I knew then was from questioning others who did know lots more than me about most things.
I also remember the horrific arithmetical disaster of the old currency...Pounds, Shillings and Pence. Cruel teachers would set some long division ‘sums’ and whilst kids worked through them go on a world trip.
An example of a ‘keep ‘em busy’ maths lesson would be like this........
£17/13/11 ÷ 27
For the younguns, that reads seventeen Pounds, thirteen Shillings and eleven Pence divided by twenty seven. Nasty teachers could add a halfpenny to the eleven pence.
Given that there are 20 shillings in a pound, 12 pence in a shilling, there is a whole lot of ‘carrying on’ to be done.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Donation to the Cancer Council
Yesterday I delivered the cash raised at the sale of Joan’s fabrics etc to the Cancer Council of W.A.. I was not prepared for the legalities of such a donation and the questions to determine how it was deemed.
Was it in her will? Did she nominate that exact amount? etc etc.
I explained with some difficulty, that before she died, she had wished that the cash from sale of her fabrics, dies etc be donated to the Cancer Council. That sorted out, a couple of employees went into ‘The Counting Room’ .....a store room I suspect, and after two counts came back with a figure of $2,200.
I was given an interim receipt which is posted here for any people who donated money to see.
I must find out if the other money raised by the sale of Joan’s books has been donated as yet and if it is donated with reference to Joan.
Joan’s friend Juliet was the driving force in the garage sales to raise that money. My sincere thanks to her for all her efforts.
Was it in her will? Did she nominate that exact amount? etc etc.
I explained with some difficulty, that before she died, she had wished that the cash from sale of her fabrics, dies etc be donated to the Cancer Council. That sorted out, a couple of employees went into ‘The Counting Room’ .....a store room I suspect, and after two counts came back with a figure of $2,200.
I was given an interim receipt which is posted here for any people who donated money to see.
I must find out if the other money raised by the sale of Joan’s books has been donated as yet and if it is donated with reference to Joan.Joan’s friend Juliet was the driving force in the garage sales to raise that money. My sincere thanks to her for all her efforts.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Bad Cat
Our cat has been giving me the shits. For some reason it has decided that it is better to take a pee inside the house rather than in its tray or going outside. For those unfamiliar with cat pee, as I am unfamiliar with skunk pee, it is overpowering.
The first time she did it was about two months ago and every effort to shampoo the smell out has failed miserably. She then decided that the bathroom mat was a good spot and after that she moved on to a pair of my trousers which were laid out on the bed. The trousers and Joan’s bed quilt copped it badly. The trousers have been washed and the quilt also cleaned and put out in the sun to dry and air. She is smart enough to know that I am very unhappy and is hiding from me in the three rooms I have banished her to.
Photo of Amber thinking that I can’t see her sunk into a mohair rug.
I am seriously thinking that I will return her to the Cat Haven. I can't see how I can modify her at this stage. Maybe a new owner can start over.
The first time she did it was about two months ago and every effort to shampoo the smell out has failed miserably. She then decided that the bathroom mat was a good spot and after that she moved on to a pair of my trousers which were laid out on the bed. The trousers and Joan’s bed quilt copped it badly. The trousers have been washed and the quilt also cleaned and put out in the sun to dry and air. She is smart enough to know that I am very unhappy and is hiding from me in the three rooms I have banished her to.
Photo of Amber thinking that I can’t see her sunk into a mohair rug.
I am seriously thinking that I will return her to the Cat Haven. I can't see how I can modify her at this stage. Maybe a new owner can start over.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Bikies and a mass murderer
The Western Australian Bikies’ war is still simmering. Last night a local tattoo parlour run by one of the groups was firebombed for a second time. As I passed it on my way to the Post Office this morning,I saw a large contingent of cops, TV crews and a surly looking mob of bikies standing opposite the Tatpalour. After I had done my post...a couple of DVDs to Bernie in Canada, I returned home to get my camera and see if I could get a picture for the blog. I didn’t want to get too close to the tattooed, bearded nasties so my pic is from from some distance. Nothing to see here folks....move along. Got to be some payback coming soon!
The Norway tragedy is horrible. I taught a Norwegian exchange student at Willetton SHS in the late 1980s. We got along well although he seemed a little more mature than most of his year 12 cohort. He came across as a bit cold, which may have been because he hadn’t yet thawed out. A couple of years later he returned to W.A. for a visit and specifically came to visit me.
Back to the massacre in Norway. It is quite strange how ill prepared the government of Norway was for an act such as this. Utoya, where the youth camp shootings took place is only about 20 miles from Oslo. Even though mobile phone calls alerted Oslo as soon as the shooting started, it took police and military an hour to get there. They didn’t have helicopters capable of taking security forces and presumably couldn’t borrow any, so they drove to a point near the island of Utoya and commandeered local pleasure craft with almost disastrous results. meanwhile Breivik had 90 minutes to casually murder 85 people.
I am sure more transport and personnel are available in sleepy Perth should something similar happen here.
Probably not the time to mention it, but the island is owned by the Workers Youth League and all the youth on the island were members of the political party presently in government. I think the average Australian would worry about political youth groups. I would see it as a little too similar to Hitler-Jugend.
The Norway tragedy is horrible. I taught a Norwegian exchange student at Willetton SHS in the late 1980s. We got along well although he seemed a little more mature than most of his year 12 cohort. He came across as a bit cold, which may have been because he hadn’t yet thawed out. A couple of years later he returned to W.A. for a visit and specifically came to visit me.
Back to the massacre in Norway. It is quite strange how ill prepared the government of Norway was for an act such as this. Utoya, where the youth camp shootings took place is only about 20 miles from Oslo. Even though mobile phone calls alerted Oslo as soon as the shooting started, it took police and military an hour to get there. They didn’t have helicopters capable of taking security forces and presumably couldn’t borrow any, so they drove to a point near the island of Utoya and commandeered local pleasure craft with almost disastrous results. meanwhile Breivik had 90 minutes to casually murder 85 people.
I am sure more transport and personnel are available in sleepy Perth should something similar happen here.
Probably not the time to mention it, but the island is owned by the Workers Youth League and all the youth on the island were members of the political party presently in government. I think the average Australian would worry about political youth groups. I would see it as a little too similar to Hitler-Jugend.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
The Moon and space
Today the US space shuttle landed for the last time. It is the youngest of the shuttles and will now go to a space museum in LA. They are such big and ungainly looking craft and I am always amazed at how graceful they look when landing after a mission. I’ve been in quite a few ungainly landings on commercial aircraft...some have tested the build of the plane, bouncing several times along the strip.
NASA has been told that the shuttle program is too expensive to maintain and future flights to the orbiting space station will be made in a Russian rocket or commercial vehicles.
With the poor condition of the US economy I would think that there would be lots of back-room talk about pulling the US forces out of Afghanistan pretty quickly to save lots of money. Then, I guess, lots of servicemen and women would leave the military and try and seek employment causing more problems for Pres. Obama.
As I went out front this morning to collect the paper I saw the moon in the sky and thought of the moon landings...1969 was it? We were teaching at Kwinana High School at the time and every person in the school watched as man set foot on the moon for the first time. A moment in history!
Boy, how the money is rolling in. I received this welcome email message a couple of days ago. I think they may have me mixed up with my brother who recently bought a new VW Passat, so I guess I will have to forward it on to him. Maybe he’ll give me a few dollars from his win.
NASA has been told that the shuttle program is too expensive to maintain and future flights to the orbiting space station will be made in a Russian rocket or commercial vehicles.
With the poor condition of the US economy I would think that there would be lots of back-room talk about pulling the US forces out of Afghanistan pretty quickly to save lots of money. Then, I guess, lots of servicemen and women would leave the military and try and seek employment causing more problems for Pres. Obama.
As I went out front this morning to collect the paper I saw the moon in the sky and thought of the moon landings...1969 was it? We were teaching at Kwinana High School at the time and every person in the school watched as man set foot on the moon for the first time. A moment in history!
Boy, how the money is rolling in. I received this welcome email message a couple of days ago. I think they may have me mixed up with my brother who recently bought a new VW Passat, so I guess I will have to forward it on to him. Maybe he’ll give me a few dollars from his win.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Linotype and letterpress
Sunday afternoon I watched a TV presentation about the history of printing. Having been a Graphic Arts teacher in the 1980s it grabbed my attention. The show was about a printing museum in Two Rivers, Wisconsin USA and I would visit it if I had the chance.
It is a working museum with artisans assembling lead lettering and large wooden letters to do artistic printing in the mode of the time. Large headlines such as hit the press at the end of WW2 were made using wooden letters rather than lead.
When I taught Graphic Arts at Rockingham SHS, letterpress printing was well out of fashion and lithography in the form of offset printing was the go. We didn’t have to gather individual letters in a gallery to make up words and sentences and after printing, place the individual letters back in their alphabetical homes. Arduous work and very time consuming. In large printing works typeface was made in ‘slugs’ using a linotype machine. This wonderful invention was still in use in the newspaper industry up until the 1970s and some small outfits still use them. See more on YouTube here and here.
I was reminded of letterpress printing when on Friday, I received an invitation to Rick and Katherine’s wedding. The invitation is beautifully done and the print has a fine but deep impression in the paper, as it would have if it were printed by letterpress. I am assuming it is a newer form of lithography which would allow for a raised text on the printing plate. Must investigate.
My cold is improving. I found a couple of packets of antibiotics in the medicine cupboard and decided to use one of them. Cilamox (amoxycillin) is one often used for chest infections. They were prescribed for Joan, but not used.
Once again I went to Restaurant Helen yesterday to have dinner. Helen prepared Lamb Souvlaki wraps. Delish! Lamb, with a Greek salad, sour cream and chilli sauce
It is a working museum with artisans assembling lead lettering and large wooden letters to do artistic printing in the mode of the time. Large headlines such as hit the press at the end of WW2 were made using wooden letters rather than lead.
When I taught Graphic Arts at Rockingham SHS, letterpress printing was well out of fashion and lithography in the form of offset printing was the go. We didn’t have to gather individual letters in a gallery to make up words and sentences and after printing, place the individual letters back in their alphabetical homes. Arduous work and very time consuming. In large printing works typeface was made in ‘slugs’ using a linotype machine. This wonderful invention was still in use in the newspaper industry up until the 1970s and some small outfits still use them. See more on YouTube here and here.
I was reminded of letterpress printing when on Friday, I received an invitation to Rick and Katherine’s wedding. The invitation is beautifully done and the print has a fine but deep impression in the paper, as it would have if it were printed by letterpress. I am assuming it is a newer form of lithography which would allow for a raised text on the printing plate. Must investigate.
My cold is improving. I found a couple of packets of antibiotics in the medicine cupboard and decided to use one of them. Cilamox (amoxycillin) is one often used for chest infections. They were prescribed for Joan, but not used.
Once again I went to Restaurant Helen yesterday to have dinner. Helen prepared Lamb Souvlaki wraps. Delish! Lamb, with a Greek salad, sour cream and chilli sauce
Friday, July 15, 2011
cold and flu tablets
I had a bad night last night with the rapid onset of a heavy cold. I had to stuff tissues in my nostrils to stem the flow of ‘the runnies’. I can’t complain when I think of Joan’s last four days.
Later in the morning I went to our regular pharmacist to get a pack of ‘cold and flu’ tablets,. The girl who served me summonsed one of the Pharmacists and he advised me that because I was on blood pressure tabs he wouldn’t give them to me. I told him thanks and went to another nearby pharmacy and straight-faced told them I am not on any medications. They had to register my ID before supplying the tabs. The government in Western Australia is reining in sales of Pseudo Ephedrine which the bad boys buy to make speed and this cold and flu stuff is loaded with it.
Our son, Martin is soon to shift to Melbourne and today I went down to his (our) unit to do some maintenance and suss out what I will have to do to easily rent it out once Martin has left.
There will be lots to do to make it rentable.
Helen and James have invited me to dinner and I am typing this on her laptop. Starting the meal with Garlic Prawns, then Rack of Lamb with roast vegetables and green beans and herbs from the garden.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
A San Francisco wedding
My niece, Katherine, is marrying her man Rick in September. The wedding is taking place in their home town, San Francisco. Daughter Helen and James are travelling to SF for the wedding as are Katherine’s mother and father and a couple of their good friends Greg and Janice. Joan and I were invited, but since Joan died in late February I have not been inclined to travel and won’t be attending.
Dorothy, Katherine’s mother, is having a book of friends’ recipes printed and bound as a present. I am contributing a recipe for Ceviche. Helen is writing up one of Joan’s favourites....French Style Chicken with Rosemary, her own specialty, Quick Fish Pie and James contributed his Asian Style Pork Ribs.
My Ceviche recipe was given to me by a colleague I taught with in Papua New Guinea in the 1970s. Mario Cortesano is Argentinean. We keep in touch still.
Here is the Ceviche recipe
Ceviche
Ideally Spanish Mackerel is used to make Ceviche.
The flesh is cut into strips of roughly 8 - 10mm X 50mm lengths and put into a glass or ceramic dish.
Cover the fish with newly squeezed lemon juice. Season with fresh ginger, garlic, chillies, chopped spring onions and salt. The amount of each seasoning depends on individual taste.
The 'cooking' should take about three hours. Ceviche should be eaten at a single sitting to avoid contamination because the process does not involve heat in the 'cooking'.
Dorothy, Katherine’s mother, is having a book of friends’ recipes printed and bound as a present. I am contributing a recipe for Ceviche. Helen is writing up one of Joan’s favourites....French Style Chicken with Rosemary, her own specialty, Quick Fish Pie and James contributed his Asian Style Pork Ribs.
My Ceviche recipe was given to me by a colleague I taught with in Papua New Guinea in the 1970s. Mario Cortesano is Argentinean. We keep in touch still.
Here is the Ceviche recipe
Ceviche
Ideally Spanish Mackerel is used to make Ceviche.
The flesh is cut into strips of roughly 8 - 10mm X 50mm lengths and put into a glass or ceramic dish.
Cover the fish with newly squeezed lemon juice. Season with fresh ginger, garlic, chillies, chopped spring onions and salt. The amount of each seasoning depends on individual taste.
The 'cooking' should take about three hours. Ceviche should be eaten at a single sitting to avoid contamination because the process does not involve heat in the 'cooking'.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
VoIP and Skype
I have finished the rooftop repairs to our house and it would look pretty good to a blind man galloping past on a horse. That's not quite true...it looks good and I am pleased with it.
The garage door closer was installed and I was well satisfied with this tradesman’s work and price. He was very professional and did not leave a single piece of anything behind as is the norm with most ‘tradies’. This door closer should see me out.
I cancelled the VoIP phone service with my ISP as the quality of the reception, either at my end or for the recipient of any call was usually very poor. I was paying $20 per month in the hope that I could cancel my landline and get free calls in Aus and Internationally. Skype gives me good quality phone calls free to other Skype users and to most international phones at a cheap rate. Skype is also VoIP and I cannot understand why I cannot get the same quality through my ISP. If you would like to wade through some technical info about VoIP it can be found here. Heavy stuff!
When I was buying materials at Bunnings Hardware for my roof repair job I became aware of a little bit of discrimination, shall I call it, on my behalf. I passed a couple; a professional painter and a young sales lady in the paint department. She was offering the man advice on his selection of paint. At the time I thought that I would have sought out a male to give me such advice, but later thought how stupid that was as the male sales people were no older than she is and they would have received the same training. I have been trying to think of some sort of reverse discrimination....in what situation would I seek out a female instead of a male for advice? Help me here.
The garage door closer was installed and I was well satisfied with this tradesman’s work and price. He was very professional and did not leave a single piece of anything behind as is the norm with most ‘tradies’. This door closer should see me out.
I cancelled the VoIP phone service with my ISP as the quality of the reception, either at my end or for the recipient of any call was usually very poor. I was paying $20 per month in the hope that I could cancel my landline and get free calls in Aus and Internationally. Skype gives me good quality phone calls free to other Skype users and to most international phones at a cheap rate. Skype is also VoIP and I cannot understand why I cannot get the same quality through my ISP. If you would like to wade through some technical info about VoIP it can be found here. Heavy stuff!
When I was buying materials at Bunnings Hardware for my roof repair job I became aware of a little bit of discrimination, shall I call it, on my behalf. I passed a couple; a professional painter and a young sales lady in the paint department. She was offering the man advice on his selection of paint. At the time I thought that I would have sought out a male to give me such advice, but later thought how stupid that was as the male sales people were no older than she is and they would have received the same training. I have been trying to think of some sort of reverse discrimination....in what situation would I seek out a female instead of a male for advice? Help me here.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Kiribati
Our daughter Helen has a friend visiting from Kiribati a very small nation in the Pacific Ocean. Maria is working in Kiribus, as the locals call it, on an AusAID program to skill-up local people for the inevitable exodus of the inhabitants to either Australia and or New Zealand. The program is called the Technical and Vocational Training Sector Strengthening Project. At present there is no industry there. People grow coconuts and fish the ocean merely for local consumption and the population will need broader skills once they move south. They will also need to cope with a vastly different climate.
Maria
The main island of Kiribus is around 30 kilometres long and from 100 - 300 metres wide. It is situated north of Fiji and on the equator.
It isn’t sinking and the ocean isn’t significantly rising. The main concern is that the water wells are becoming salty and Kiribus is in a long drought and so, no rainfall. The ‘exodus’ when it eventually takes place is termed ‘Migration with Dignity’.
Maria has been in Kiribati for 18 months and is returning today flying through Brisbane and Nauru. She will be there for another 12 months.
More on Kiribati here.
MariaThe main island of Kiribus is around 30 kilometres long and from 100 - 300 metres wide. It is situated north of Fiji and on the equator.
It isn’t sinking and the ocean isn’t significantly rising. The main concern is that the water wells are becoming salty and Kiribus is in a long drought and so, no rainfall. The ‘exodus’ when it eventually takes place is termed ‘Migration with Dignity’.
Maria has been in Kiribati for 18 months and is returning today flying through Brisbane and Nauru. She will be there for another 12 months.
More on Kiribati here.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Home maintenance
After cutting and replacing some 10 terracotta roof tiles, there is no evidence of my paint spill disaster.
I decided to make up the fancy railing myself rather than seeking out a joinery shop. It worked out well despite the fact that I have few woodworking tools here. A couple of readers confused the photo of the railing with my ladder and advised me not to get on the roof using ‘that’ ladder. It’s OK folks, I do have a real aluminium ladder albeit a bit bent from my previous fall some years ago.
The finished trim to be fitted when James helps me fix it back up on the weekend.
This is a similar part of the roof.
The garage door man came and made a few adjustment to the door mechanism and accepted $100 as a ‘cashy’. No sooner was he gone than the door started playing up again. I rang a different door man and he is fitting a new closer on Monday for an all-up price of $625.00.
I have just received the Water Corporation’s Annual Service Account.
Water is an essential and the supply to my house of clean, almost pure water, is great. But now that I am more aware of the costs of running a household since Joan has gone, I don’t know how lower income people can manage the weekly bills rolling in. In some ways I believe homeless people would not manage even if the government gave them accommodation.
I decided to make up the fancy railing myself rather than seeking out a joinery shop. It worked out well despite the fact that I have few woodworking tools here. A couple of readers confused the photo of the railing with my ladder and advised me not to get on the roof using ‘that’ ladder. It’s OK folks, I do have a real aluminium ladder albeit a bit bent from my previous fall some years ago.
The finished trim to be fitted when James helps me fix it back up on the weekend.
This is a similar part of the roof.The garage door man came and made a few adjustment to the door mechanism and accepted $100 as a ‘cashy’. No sooner was he gone than the door started playing up again. I rang a different door man and he is fitting a new closer on Monday for an all-up price of $625.00.
I have just received the Water Corporation’s Annual Service Account.
Water is an essential and the supply to my house of clean, almost pure water, is great. But now that I am more aware of the costs of running a household since Joan has gone, I don’t know how lower income people can manage the weekly bills rolling in. In some ways I believe homeless people would not manage even if the government gave them accommodation.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
You lose some and you lose some
I have noticed some peeling paint on facia on our roof, so yesterday I decided to tackle the paint job. Unfortunately, as with most jobs I take on, this small job has taken on humungous dimensions.
Firstly, at age 71, I should be banned from climbing ladders and walking about on tiled roofs. I found myself getting a bit shaky getting back down the ladder remembering a 5 metre fall I had a few years ago breaking and dislocating my shoulder. Got to be very careful these days.
As well as painting I discovered that a piece of fancy trim was rotten with dry rot. Dry rot is actually caused by dampness. I will have to get a joiner’s shop to make me a new piece. Next I managed to spill around a litre of oil based paint on the tiles at the top of the roof and naturally gravity caused the white stream to cover about ten tiles before I could race down the ladder and collect rags to stem the flow. Fortunately I have plenty of spare tiles to replace painted ones.
I know I should have called in a tradesman, but I will have saved an estimated $1,000 and I have had some very average results from ‘tradesmen’.
I have a garage door service bloke coming this morning to sort out my door closer. The closer needs an expert to stop it playing around. He charges $150 call out which includes 30 minutes service time, which I am sure will include a new circuit board or something and a couple of hours fitting time. So what I am saving on the roof will probably probably be eaten up by the garage door.
Firstly, at age 71, I should be banned from climbing ladders and walking about on tiled roofs. I found myself getting a bit shaky getting back down the ladder remembering a 5 metre fall I had a few years ago breaking and dislocating my shoulder. Got to be very careful these days.
As well as painting I discovered that a piece of fancy trim was rotten with dry rot. Dry rot is actually caused by dampness. I will have to get a joiner’s shop to make me a new piece. Next I managed to spill around a litre of oil based paint on the tiles at the top of the roof and naturally gravity caused the white stream to cover about ten tiles before I could race down the ladder and collect rags to stem the flow. Fortunately I have plenty of spare tiles to replace painted ones.
I know I should have called in a tradesman, but I will have saved an estimated $1,000 and I have had some very average results from ‘tradesmen’. I have a garage door service bloke coming this morning to sort out my door closer. The closer needs an expert to stop it playing around. He charges $150 call out which includes 30 minutes service time, which I am sure will include a new circuit board or something and a couple of hours fitting time. So what I am saving on the roof will probably probably be eaten up by the garage door.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Dragonfly winter
Most of our rellies and friends know that Joan was very organised...all the fabrics etc we sold were catalogued. In the months leading up to her death she discussed things she wanted done after she was gone such as the solar roof panels. She was concerned that I would have difficulty coping by myself and to that end did lots of grocery shopping for me. It is now months since she left us and I have probably another year’s supply of groceries, laundry detergents etc etc.
Pictured is just one side of the pantry with sauces,dry goods etc
I can do my washing and when absolutely necessary, some ironing. This morning I found this beauty on my briefs on the clothes line.
Beautiful eh? Not my briefs; the dragonfly.
It seems that there is more money coming my way. Out of the blue I received this email message.
Pictured is just one side of the pantry with sauces,dry goods etcI can do my washing and when absolutely necessary, some ironing. This morning I found this beauty on my briefs on the clothes line.
Beautiful eh? Not my briefs; the dragonfly.It seems that there is more money coming my way. Out of the blue I received this email message.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
A retirement
Last week I was invited out to a group gathering at a restaurant which was to be yesterday evening. That small group work at Castlereagh Special School where I have been helping out with their computers for some years.
I begged off the invitation as I am not yet up to socialising. I now feel uneasy that I didn’t take up their kind offer because I ended up attending a function at Willetton SHS for the retirement of Peter, one of my colleagues when I taught there.
I didn’t know about this function until I arrived home at 5pm and found a phone message telling me about it. I owe Peter. He attended my mother’s funeral and Joan’s funeral and it was only right that I front up to his show. It was mostly over by the time I arrived at the school and I stayed for only an hour. I left with a good feeling of camaraderie with Pete and other colleagues I had worked with.
I begged off the invitation as I am not yet up to socialising. I now feel uneasy that I didn’t take up their kind offer because I ended up attending a function at Willetton SHS for the retirement of Peter, one of my colleagues when I taught there.
I didn’t know about this function until I arrived home at 5pm and found a phone message telling me about it. I owe Peter. He attended my mother’s funeral and Joan’s funeral and it was only right that I front up to his show. It was mostly over by the time I arrived at the school and I stayed for only an hour. I left with a good feeling of camaraderie with Pete and other colleagues I had worked with.
Friday, July 1, 2011
A troublesome wallet...and keys
In this morning’s mail (the postie delivered type) I received the Mac Powerbook battery I ordered from China. It is on charge now and I will give it a thorough test before giving the machine to a worthy cause.
An original battery goes for around A$140. and Australian after-market batteries (made in China) sell for A$70. This one cost me A$30 which included postage from HK.
This morning I went to see my GP to get some scripts for medications I take for cholesterol and blood pressure. The doc suggested that I get a flu shot seeing that it is paid for by the government. Not sure that that is the best reason to get a jab in the arm, but I did get it.
I went to the GP’s rooms with a worried brow as I had lost my wallet somewhere....where? Upon returning home I searched the house another 10 times without luck before deciding to return to the liquor store where I bought a couple of bottles of bubbly last night. I would have been very cranky if I had left it there and they hadn’t phoned me to tell me they had my wallet. One last search of the car found it wedged between the driver’s seat upright and the centre door pillar. That bloody wallet....and my car keys, are drivng me nuts with their hiding tactics.
An original battery goes for around A$140. and Australian after-market batteries (made in China) sell for A$70. This one cost me A$30 which included postage from HK.
This morning I went to see my GP to get some scripts for medications I take for cholesterol and blood pressure. The doc suggested that I get a flu shot seeing that it is paid for by the government. Not sure that that is the best reason to get a jab in the arm, but I did get it.
I went to the GP’s rooms with a worried brow as I had lost my wallet somewhere....where? Upon returning home I searched the house another 10 times without luck before deciding to return to the liquor store where I bought a couple of bottles of bubbly last night. I would have been very cranky if I had left it there and they hadn’t phoned me to tell me they had my wallet. One last search of the car found it wedged between the driver’s seat upright and the centre door pillar. That bloody wallet....and my car keys, are drivng me nuts with their hiding tactics.
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