The news all day long here...

Today I got to sit on the couch and watch the telly. Then the midday movie and of course, every hour, the news break would come on. It did, at first, show a crowd of Cab drivers who were blocking the busiest part of Melbourne to make a few points. Then, as the day progressed, it showed the same Cab drivers this time with their shirts off and bandannas on their heads with signs being held up..with poor spelling I might add.
At the weekend a young Cab driver was stabbed and left for almost-dead on the pavement not more than 300metres from his cab. He was rushed to The Royal Melbourne Hospital in a critical condition. Of course, this is shocking and outrageous, but it happens. No one chooses to get stabbed, and we all SHOULD feel safe going about our work. Point is, there are dangerous people about.
What can be done? Make it safer for the Cab drivers while they are working with cameras and alarm buttons to set off perhaps..yes, talk of the bubble that surrounds the cab drivers that separates them from the passengers...yet, I do believe the bubble may cause some concerns when the Cab is involved in an accident, retrieving the trapped driver prolonged..care of said driver therefore takes longer and we all know every second counts. Maybe better to have the bubble in case of the danerous pulic outweights this?
What can the Cab drivers do who were in the demonstration today? Well, from what I did see today, they could have had a shower, presented themselves as a uniform group, they could have voiced their opinions together by appointing one spokesperson and getting their word out. Change cannot happen at a fast pace, we all know it does not work that way, but, if they carry on like dills like today they will not get public support.
My advice, as a member of the public is..get your shit together, dress neater, learn to spell better if you are going to make a point on a placard, and ..go and support your injured colleague.. he needs you!!
After all of this, HERE is a great cablog to spend a few minutes reading. This guy Adrian Neylon is a Sydney Cab driver. He is a hard worker and as far as I can see, a decent guy..perhaps these non-shirt wearing Cabbies from Melbourne could take a leaf out of his book?
I am not saying I think it is wrong to speak your mind or cause some sort of diruption to get noticed and make a point, especially when it invlolves safety at work.. we all want to get home to our loved ones. But do it in a uniform manner, and make someone who is a strong speaker be the one to make the noise. Your thoughts?

Some rain at last..

Last night we got some rain..at last!! It has been so long since the kids seen rain that Mia asked "Why is the ground so wet this morning?" That was this morning when we went for our bike ride to the park. I thought about it and I thought it was quite sad that she asked the question.
I have been reading and catching up on some blogs today and now I feel like having a nice cup of coffee. School has been so busy for the kids.
Last week the kids' school had the Deputy Prime Minister and The Minister for Education Ms Julia Gillard visit to help launch the Primary Connections "Schoolyard Safari" education block. It was an exciting time for Sarah especially as her class got to show the scientists and Ms Julia Gillard how they have began their Schoolyard Safari education.
President of the Australian Academy of Science Professor Kurt Lambeck was also there. He was heard to say, "The Academy is concerned about education at all levels and if we had a motto about this it would be: If Australia gets education right then everything else will succeed, if we get it wrong then nothing else matters." Too right I thought!
Parents got to stay after the assembly and see what the kids have done at school and Sarah had a magnifying glass to show anyone who wanted to look, segments of some rather large worms! She knew the names of them and what they do out in the garden. I ws very proud!
After Nicholas getting student of the week a few weeks ago I was pretty happy. Tomas went very well in athletics and Mia is growing up so fast that everytime I look she is gaining height on me :) Not hard to do when mum is so short ...right!

LEST WE FORGET..

Today is the day our town awakes before dawn and remembers the sacrifices our men and women have an are still making in their lives to make our life free and safe.

To see what my Grandpa Bill did during WW2, you can click on THIS LINK. Of course, much of what went on will never be published, but you can see how far many men and women had to travel to defend our country. What is wonderful is the fact we had wonderful allies and to this day Aussies don't forget who their mates are. The American forces were thankful we arrived in many areas to give their troops some R&R and likewise, without the powers of the American Navy in the Pacific, we could all have very well been speaking and looking quite Japanese!(And..no I am not racist, I love everyone ok!)

Yes, today is a special day, and if I had my Grandad's medals I'd have taken my kids to the march. I did march and assist with the parade many times as a cadet...I hope my kids will want to do the same thing when they reach the correct age.

Of course, today cannot go without saying how wonderful it is that the HMAS Sydney was discovered in its watery grave. How wonderful for the families of the sailor's who lost their lives..now they can remember in peace.

ANZAC DAY..

Tomorrow is such an important time in our history and I have posted of ANZAC Day before and so you know how much it means to me. I try to keep the tradition going with the kids, after all, they are the future. So, in keeping with tradition we will be making ANZAC Biscuits tomorrow. I bought a tin of UNIBIC ANZAC biscuits. The tin is just adorable, it is a keepsake...and well, I will use it to put our home made biscuits in.
Please click on the above link and take 3 minutes of your time to read the legend of the ANZACS, how it all came about and why the biscuits are so important. There are images of the tins available this year..the one I have is to the right of picture.

FINALLY!!!

Another History Post can be seen at my other site...so just make yourself a coffee, and click HERE to view it :)

Part 2..our Easter/School Holiday...

So, I left off on the first part of our trip where we had taken a lovely ride on the tram from Glenelg in South Australia's Capital city of Adelaide. Glenelg is by the bay there, similar to that of our (Melbourne's) St Kilda. Wonderful places to shop and eat and ought I say.....perve :) Oh Shhhh :)

The ride took about 50 minutes if I recall rightly. Being that South Aussie was not on School Vacation yet, we got to see alot of kids getting on the tram in their really nice uniforms. There were quite a few School Buildings along the way that looked like they were built way- back- when. I marvelled in the city Courthouse and other buildings. I always look for the Circa Emblem atop the buildings too.

The people on the tram were lovely and had alot to talk about with Mia and Sarah who sat next to me and asked lots of questions about Adelaide. Mia told one lady that we slept in different places "Every night". At first she looked at me funny, thinking we might have been gypsies? Haha, yet, I promptly told her we were on vacation from Melbourne. Travelled from Halls Gap to Adelaide and planned to see their fine coastline and everything it has to offer.

Anyhow, after the return trip to Glenelg on the tram we stayed at The Adelaide Shores Resort in a self contained unit. The kids loved it because they had this massive jumping pillow which is brightly colored. There were heaps of kids from interstate there having a fun time.

Next morning we travelled the Fleurieu Peninsula. We took Main road South out of Adelaide and up into the hills. We went through some lovely areas like Mclarenvale (famous vineyard there) Willunga and Mt Compass.

We stopped at Victor Harbor and took a ride on the horse drawn tram .The history of this service dates back 150 years, taking passengers 600 metres on a wooden causeway across to Granite Island Kalki. The Island is host to a colony of Fairy Penguins and various other marine life such as Dolphins, Seals and Southern Right Whales too. There is a trail to walk around the little Island and a reataurant to sit and ponder the magnificent setting. 150,000 passengers a year take this experience and well, it is a must I have to say :)

From Victor Harbor we went on to Port Elliot and Goolwa across to the sacred Hindmarsh Island Bridge. It hosts the biggest Fresh Water Marina in the Southern Hemisphere with fourty hectares of basins and lagoons. A massive development is taking place there. Hindmarsh Island is unique as it faces fresh water on one side and salt water on the other - providing wonderful opportunities for birdwatchers and fishing enthusiasts.

We visited the mouth of the River Murray which is certainly a must see when visiting this area. The Mouth of Australia's Largest River pours out into the Southern Ocean with the best viewing from Hindmarsh Island. There is currently a major problem with sand build up which is blocking the flow of water from the Murray River out to the Ocean and a project is underway there which is moving the sand from one area to another to allow flow. There are many ecological problems facing the plants and creatures living in and around this area. Hopefully they can work well against it advancing in the wrong direction.

Part 3 of our journey will have to come in another post as I think there is alot to read here already :)

I had to share this..

Please take two minutes to watch this. Spread the word that if you think somthing is not quite right about your own health then get a second check..it may just save a life.

Our Easter 2008 Vacation...

Ok, so we travelled to Halls Gap the day before Good Friday and set up camp there. Spent some of the day on Good Friday in Stawell, got some fish and chips for lunch. We ate in a lovely park there and got to feed some ducks and water chooks, it was nice.

Next day we travelled past the Giant Koala and all the way to Dimboola to have a look see there. We got to see the sad empty river that used to flow through Dimboola and is actually home to Australia's first ever Rowing Club. What a pity. A local police officer told us that there was plenty of water there up until about 4 years ago when it all just disappeared. Perhaps someone used it to irrigate their property? Who knows. We drove through Dimboola and had a look at The Little Desert.. it sure was that. Amazing how the plant life and soil colors change as we drive through the Little Desert and back towards Halls Gap where it is still quite dry yet more hydrated than the area of Dimboola.

It was quite a hot day on the Sunday and we were swimming in the pool at The Gap when an almighty storm encompassed the area and a deluge of rain came through. It was quite remarkable as we stood there under the shelter of the pool area and watched the lightening and the rain so thick we couldn't see the road across from the pool itself. Half the little kids there with their mums were crying, I think it would have to be the first lot of rain they ever did see, even since they were born, sad isn't it?

An amazing thing happened quite soon after the deluge stopped, there were literally thousands and thousands of bugs that took flight out of the wood that surrounded the park. We were soon to learn that they were termites who got their wings to fly. The rain precipitated the event. The birds and the ducks were seemingly happy with the event.

With the receding of the storm it left alot of campers washed out, and muddy. Some people had to hose out their annexes and tents, others left the place only to return the next day to clean up and pack up. The day was warm on the Monday, and so the canvases dried out easily on the bitumen roads of the caravan park.

It was, however, set to be another day of some rain and so we set off to drive to Mt Gambier in the state of South Australia. We packed lightly and left the van at Halls Gap.

We drove to Dunkeld, a cute little town with great views of the Grampians mountains and a nice looking pub to have meals at. From there we drove on up to Mt Gambier and took in the spectacular views of farms, wild life and some amazing densely planted forests of enormous native trees. We also got to see alot of "road kill", kangaroos and other animals too.

We had a look at Umpherston Sinkhole ( Or also known as The Sunken Garden) first off when we got to Mt Gambier. Then we went to my lovely Aunt's place there and she was delighted at the surprise visit... she had just got into her kitchen loaded with groceries when I peeked through the glass and she was like, "Wow!".

After a cuppa we were off on the Riddoch Highway which took us through wine creating country of Penola, Naracoorte, Keppoch, Padthaway and up to Keith. We stopped and went into the IGA Grocery store there in Keith and got some rolls and cold meat and some rice crackers.

Taking the Dukes Highway from Keith through Coombe, Tintinara, Coonalpyn, Kiki, Yumali and Coomandook (What? I don't make the town names up okay, LOL). We arrived next at Tailem Bend and then drove to and through Murray Bridge. We crossed the Murray River and stopped at a nice little park land there next to the river to take in the views. We were then only 40 mins from Adelaide itself.

Through the rolling Adelaide Hills we drove, passing trucks that were forever testing their breaks lest they need to roll into the sidings of sand made especially for them if they loose their breaks all together..and it looked like they had been used more than once by the markings in the sand there. You could see some lovely old homesteads right next to the freeway that would have been gorgeous in their day. I am sure that the homestead owners would not have envisaged a freeway rolling right past their backdoors in the future.

We arrived at Glenelg in Adelaide, a lovely bay side town, much like our ST Kilda here in Melbourne. We stayed there the night in a motel and took the kids to a fun park the next day. The BeachHouse is an awesome fun park, all indoors. The kids had a ball there riding the dodgems, going down the three water slides they have there, riding the bumper boats that squirt water at each other and riding the renovated Carousel too. We had lunch at a nearby Chinese take away place and I got to watch the World Tournament of Beach Volleyball played out there on the Glenelg Beach right in front of The BeachHouse.

After the kids had their fun we rode the Glenelg tram into town and it took 40 minutes until the ride terminated up inside the heart of Adelaide, near the Adelaide Train Station. Then, we rode it all the way back again to the end. More on our trip next post :)