Aussies! Check in here!

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

One of my things to do now is get on Youtube since I found a whole bunch of stuff on there apart from handyman stuff and music. The latest thing trending is the Fuck Around & Find Out (FAFO) stuff which is hilarious. Dem's laughing at those who voted for Rump now crying that they didn't think of the consequences of voting for Rump. Lots of families cutting out respective family members from their lives. Going to be an interesting Christmas in the US this year. Now the other side is saying "we told you dumbass". Anyway it is my new reason to have a laugh at stuff on Youtube. Laughing at people who are too stupid to know what they did. Lots of them didn't know that Obamacare is the Affordable Care Act(ACA). It was the Republicans that called it Obamacare, because they didn't like the fact a black man was their President. Was purely race based commentary. Now these idiots are going to lose their health insurance which they voted for but didn't realise it. It is fucking hilarious. It will also be interesting to see the first Republican woman who is denied an abortion due to the new stupid rules and she has to travel to a blue state for treatment. She voted against her own health. So fucking dumb. Women throwing away all those women's rights that women of previous generations fought for at a personal cost. Now that is just fucking moronic.

If the Democrats keep playing by the rules the new Republicans will continue to dominate the media and continue to win elections. The Republicans tore up the rule book when they elected Rump the first time and if America is going to recover then the Dems need to stop playing the nice guy and use the same tactics on the Republicans. Now Rump has announced a 25% tariff on goods imported from Canada, Mexico and China so Americans will be paying 25% extra on those imports and it will drive up inflation. That maple syrup on those pancakes is going up.

Those reading this might be wondering why is an Aussie guy including stuff from the US on the Aussie thread. Simply because what happens in the US politically impacts all countries like ripples on a pond. All countries are impacted to varying degrees and those with close ties to the US like Australia, can feel impacts on the budget and trade which then impacts on consumer costs. Rump only cares about money. All his relationships are based on money. He requires tribute. He is shit at managing money which is why he keeps going bankrupt and is short on actual cash. His wealth is mainly in the digital numbers not a physical quantity. He can't even pay his court costs. American politics is also invading our political parties, especially the LNP who have used Republican tactics to stoke fear on immigrants, rights of indigenous people and of renewables and getting out of fossil fuels by going for nuclear the same as the new US govt wants to do which is where Mr Potato Head got the idea of small nuclear. And like the Republicans, the LNP will force nuclear upon those who don't want it. The social discussions here have become so bad, Aussies can't distinguish between legal immigrants, refugees and criminals entering country. Same stuff you hear from America. All immigrants are now bad except the white ones. You can have lots of white immigration as it never makes the news. I've never seen a protest nor marches in the streets of the number of people immigrating from the UK which makes up a majority of the immigrants that come to Australia. Even our top cop was from the UK. Why is that do you think? Cause white people run the respective govts both here and he US. Australia is increasingly becoming a nation of 'what's best for me' rather than 'what's best for us.' Australians are becoming more selfish in their decision making and that is not us. We help a mate when they need help we don't say "fuck you mate, I'm good." That attitude is coming thru social media. Personal interactions between Aussies is being lost and once you can de-humanise some one by only communicating thru social media, then you can justify any action even murder. If you only communicate through an anonymous character then the other person is just a character in a video game. Not real.

With the USA in destruct mode. It might be fair to say the United States of America is now just States of America which would make the acronym SA. Although that might get confused with South Africa (SA) which is run by black people so white Americans wouldn't stand for that. The Republicans refused to recognize a black man as President which fuelled the right wing of American politics to increase it's base. White people felt threatened. So it can't be just SA. What if we add an R to the front. Such as RUSA to become the Republic of United States of America (RUSA). The Republicans might like that as it has Republic in the title of the country. You know like People's Republic of China. That also has Republic in the title and they also hold elections. And sure RUSA might be missing some other letters but I reckon even the other Russian dictator would go for that name. Then there is the flag that will need adjusting for sure. Not sure how to fit the hammer and sickle in there amongst all those stares. Will need to get rid of some of those stars. May be just get rid of the blue type ones. I reckon that will work for the new RUSA. I mean the health care system will also be close to that of Russia. Both flags have red, white and blue so no need to change the colours either. Both have right wing news programs and newspapers so that is another similarity. Both have snow during Winter. Both have a mob that has undying loyalty to their respective dictators. Kinda hard to find a difference now actually. So I think the new RUSA will work.

Summer made an early entrance to Melbourne at the weekend with the temps around 34C for two consecutive days and the humidity hasn't really left so more storms and rain happening today. That is what we usually get in the height of Summer here in Melbourne and at least not till mid to late Dec, so it's a month early. We are still in Spring. Had to prep the fans for use and unpack the portable air con, which I had packed away thinking I wouldn't be in this house this Summer. I've even started making ice again to build up a reserve of that. Was going to do all this next month so this sudden heat has caught me on the back foot. Even had to use the external shade for the kitchen to keep that area of the house cooler.

Was surprised with the cost of getting the car serviced. It actually went down. It has been an excellent car to have now going on 20yrs since I purchased it and hasn't given any major problems. Did have to get the air con re-gased last year which was fair enough given how long I've had the car. Will need to use the car a bit more with the end of the year approaching. Planning a day trip around the bay in Jan for my birthday so all good for that as well.

Hope the rest of the week is good for you.

 

[darkelf9]

So this post is squarely aimed at politics in Australia and makes no attempt to put things in terms Americans can understand because that isn't how the world works.

When you are a kid you go to school where you live based on your school district. To try and get into either a more productive school or "better" school is not easy. Public schools are where a majority of kids attend. Private schools depend on how much your parents can afford. And knowing some of what goes on in private schools the expectation from parents is that they are paying for their kids to pass thru the respective levels even if the kid is not that bright. Which falls on the teachers in these private schools to ensure the little darlings pass all levels. Money aside, where you go to school is based on politics. Councils have always been made up of those with money and power to shape the respective local neighbourhoods. All councils these days are divided up into political parties. Even in councils of the past, they were dominated by the rich and self employed people as they have the most to gain from council decisions.

When you leave school and either start in the workforce or go onto Uni, you don't give a flying fuck about politics nor what is happening in the world outside your small circle of influence. And I'm not talking about protesting. Anyone can protest about anything at any time of their life. So lets not be naive in thinking just because you see Uni students protesting, that all Uni students on that campus are protesting. When I was studying Engineering, the only students who had the time to protest where the Arts and Farts students. They would protest every week about something. The rest of us, as in the majority of the campus, were too busy trying to ensure we can pass our exams. So there is politics in the further education system. You can't avoid it. It decides what you can study and caps on the numbers of how many can study. If there is a very good year of HSC, they just adjust the pass mark to ensure only a certain number of kids get the chance to go to Uni. Even if you pass all your exams that doesn't mean you get into Uni, which gives false hope to school kids. That if they study hard and pass their exams they will go to Uni and get a good job. Again a political decision based on cost. There is no such thing as the 50% pass mark in HSC. There is a higher % chance you will get into Uni if the other kids in your year 12 HSC are not bright. When you get to Uni you find out the number of spots in further years of education is set. In other words the number of graduates for any degree is already pre-determined as is the number of students that make from 1st year to 2nd year, etc. This is based on cost to the uni which is based on politics. Again your life in this further education system is based on politics whether you realise it or not. If you are disabled your entire life has been impacted by politics, which unlike most of the population, you get to realise early on in your life.

In your 20's whether in Uni or working, you again don't give a fuck about politics. You think your parents are not with it as they are focused on watching the news and looking at shows containing politics. Whereas you are focused on getting a root, seeing how much you can drink and complaining about your lack of money. And with the aid of your parents planning a cheap OS holiday. You don't own anything and even though you live at home you don't pay for what you use cause you believe that it's your parents job to continue to pay for you like they did when you were a kid, even though you are now an adult. It's essentially the kids defence of looking at the world even though claim to be a grown adult as you like to say to anyone. I'm not sure whether people in their 20's who live at home even pay board money any more. I've seen people who tell anyone that they are independent yet get their mum to do their washing and supplement their food. They even get their parents to pay for their mobile bills. What you don't realise in your 20's is that politics has already impacted on your life. You are happy to bitch about how tough you got it, but then think you are a rebel by not caring about politics even though when you turned 18 you got the right to vote and are required to engage with politics as voting is mandatory. As we have seen in the US, putting in a protest vote can bite you on the arse. It seems to be a right of passage for someone in their 20's to do a donkey vote to show how much of a rebel they are in society. Which by the way doesn't give a flying fuck about you if you aren't going to engage. If you want to put in a protest vote to prove a point, you are just voting for the other side who doesn't give fuck about you. They just want your vote.

When you strike out on your own and either enter the rental market or try for buy a property you are governed by politics. Rental assistance for those on lower incomes is based on politics. The first home buyers scheme is not open to all first home buyers. It is based on lower to middle income earners and whether or not the property is new or established. When I purchased by first property which was an apartment as I couldn't afford anything else, I was just above the new home buyers threshold so even though I didn't have a high income, I was denied access to the new home buyers scheme. I had a good job and the earning capacity to pay back the loan. It also limited how much I could borrow as a single person. Again this was based on politics. Even though I wasn't much engaged with politics it was deciding where I could buy a property and how much I could borrow which decided where I could live. Even back in the early '90's I couldn't afford to live near where I worked. So this BS going on about living near where you work, well that never happened unless you worked in the suburbs. A majority of what is now called inner city suburbs were working class suburbs with low cost housing all crammed together. Now these are considered middle to upper class suburbs. Because of advertising to look cool if you own one. It is all about status these days rather than the reality of what you can afford. Money management is not something people are good at. There is a basic formula banks work out on the life of your mortgage. Whatever your loan is multiple that by 3 and that is the amount you are paying back with interest. So If you borrowed close to $1million, you will pay back $3million on the life of that loan whether it be 30 or 40yrs. Most people don't see that. They only focus on the amount they borrowed not the amount they will need to pay back.

When you get old and start thinking about retirement, politics decides when you can retire even if you have money. If you are working full time you don't qualify for the Seniors Card even if you are above the retirement age. The Seniors Card gives you half priced public transport costs and the same with movie tickets plus cut priced goods in certain retailers. Whether you take a pension or lump sum and invest it when you retire, is also based on politics. If you get a pension from your super you could still be paying tax even with tax offsets. Again determined by politics. If you have investments then you can get a tax refund even if you don't pay tax if the investments are your sole income. If you have an investment property you can get other tax payers to pay for your life style. Not fair nor moral but all perfectly legal, because politics benefits those who are well off. Even those with multiple investment properties like to play the victim and complain of the cost of living. A big "fuck you" to the rest of society. If you are on the aged pension, your qualification of that is based on politics. The aged pension qualification age is now 67yrs old which only went up from 65yrs old a couple of years ago. It was going up to 70yrs old but that was squashed by the current Federal govt. When you get a fatal illness, your dignity is governed by politics. Which leads people to break the law to die in a dignified way and on their terms. You don't get a say over your own body. Much like women have to deal with.

When you die, the govt makes your estate do a final tax return and you are considered a different entity and need a new tax file number to comply with the politics of death. How and where you are buried is also determined by politics of local councils. If you don't make a will, whilst by law we are governed by the same system as they have in the UK, the govt takes their fee of about $30K of your estate to decide what happens to you. It is cheaper to do a will. So whilst you might not have a will, the govt is obliged to find any close relatives to provide a division of your estate. If you don't give a shit then fine. If you want your relatives to get more of your money then make a will. You still pay, only the fee changes. Again politics gets involved with your death.

Whether people acknowledge it or not, politics plays a big role in your life. You have two choices. Complain about your circumstances or use your democratic rights to elect better politicians. Stupid voters are people who keep doing the same thing expecting a better outcome. You want smarter politicians then think for yourself rather than being corralled like cattle due to fear. Fear works as a political tool. Little Johnny Howard used it to get elected when he couldn't get elected so he lied about the baby overboard story and said refugees were criminals which is now how Aussies see immigrants. Similar to Bush lying about the WMD stuff. Fear continues to win elections because of stupid voters who are happy to be led and can't make the connection between their circumstances and how they vote. Blaming the people you elected into office is a reflection of your choices. You want a better govt, make better choices.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

So another week and more crying Republicans, this time about losing their end of year / Christmas bonus because of the new tariffs on imported goods coming next year. Lots of private companies in the US are now stocking up before Rump takes office to get ahead of the new price increases they will have to pay for imported materials from China. So to do that these private companies are telling their employees in order to pay for these stock increases they won't get their Christmas bonus this year. Which the Republican employees are now freaking out about. They are also being told due to the new proposed changes to overtime, they also will not get overtime payments since Rump is killing off laws to do with overtime payments. Another example of dumb voters which is what the new Republican party relies on. Still more crying of Republicans who were not invited for Thanksgiving nor Christmas. They were boasting about their win to everyone but now saying the other side isn't playing fair by cutting them off family gatherings and friendships. Women are cutting off sex to their Republican partners and filing for divorce which is the latest action being taken. The backlash has only started from Dems, so the next 12 months is going to get interesting. Better than any reality show in that this one is not staged like all reality shows are staged. Americans who are actually intelligent might now want to wake up and take back their country from these idiots rather than just play by the rules which are very fluid at the best of times and can be easily subverted as Rump has shown. Even if you aren't into politics, this stuff is entertaining and fucking hilarious.

Yet another American thing we now have here in Australia with Black Friday sales. Our big sales day is Boxing Day so again not sure why we need this blatant grab for consumer dollars by retailers given it doesn't have any meaning for us economically. We only started having this sales day in recent times. Still I suppose at least it's good to see white people embracing something that is black. Black Friday for us is related to the bush fires not retail sales. We don't need Black Friday sales and it's more influence from the US we don't need. Saw that people are boycotting Walmart because of their support for Rump. And it's not restricted to just blue states, this is happening even in red states where black people have boycotted Walmart for the Black Friday sales. Lots of images on line of empty Walmart stores. People are shopping in Target instead. This is the latest backlash of people voting Rump back in and he hasn't even gotten into office yet. Democrats are out for revenge because they have been passive for a long time. That is all changing in the US now. They are giving Republicans a taste of their own medicine. The Thanksgiving dinner thing turned into family feud and Christmas is set to be the same in the US. Again it will fun to watch Republicans getting a reality check of what they voted for.

In the mean time our domestic politics turned in to a game of chicken and the LNP and the Greens blinked with the govt getting 31 bills thru in a couple of days because the LNP nor the Greens want to go to the election next year showing they are blocking these bills to improve things for the citizens of this country. Labor stood their ground and in the end won the day. So for the entire year the LNP and Greens were just playing games thinking Labor was going to back down. So if the parliament can get 31 bills passed in just two days, imagine how much they could of got done in this entire year if they stopped playing politics and worked for what is best for the country. This is why Australia will never be a progressive country. There is far too much bullshit happening in Canberra with political parties worrying only about themselves and gaining power rather than doing the jobs they were elected to do. Australians have also become too selfish wanting only what they can benefit from personally. We used to have four basic tiers in society, the poor, the working class, the middle class and the rich. The ultra rich are just richer rich people. But they can come down from being ultra rich because of greed. But still rich. Now we have 5 tiers to our society. We now have the working poor who can be homeless and have a job but can't afford enough to even rent a place. So because they have a job they don't qualify for any govt welfare but are essentially poor. These are now the people who are the battlers, not working class people who previously had the tag of battlers. The middle class wants govt handouts. The rich don't want to pay tax and to get rid of rules and any morals in society and the working poor continually get shafted by both the blue collar and white collar workers. Blue collar workers earn more today than their traditional roles did in the past. If you work in the mining industry as just a driver you are making over $100k. Miners in the mines are earning close to $250k, these are not traditional blue collar jobs any more. Which is why Australians have become more selfish in their decision making. And just as the safety demo says..."attach your mask first then help others"...only problem is they forget the second part and once the oxygen mask is attached their face, they shun helping anyone else. The "I'm right jack, fuck you" mentality. It's just that nobody wants to see what is clearly in the mirror. If only they would film themselves and watch it back without editing, they will see how the rest of the world sees them and it ain't pretty.

After the big dump of rain mid week last week the humidity stayed around for a couple of day and come the weekend it rained again. So we are well and truly into Summer now, even if it came a week early. Was another warm start to the week and since it was dry decided to get out in the front yard and cut back the tree in the front rock garden that gives lots of shade during the Summer and helps to keep the front of the house cool on those very warm days. This time however while I was cutting back the higher branches I discovered a ring tail possum up there. Never happened before. May be it didn't get back to it's hidey hole in time. Very unusual to see a possum out in the middle of the day like that. Anyway decided to just keep the trimming to a minimum due to the possum. The ring tails are very docile and timid. The brush tails on the other hand are very aggressive. I have both roaming the area and can hear them on my roof at night. Spent a couple of hours in the heat on Monday cutting back other stuff in the front. Slowly cutting down the hedge on the side of the driveway as well. The rose bushes in that area liked it as well with the extra sunlight and kept blooming. Still some left.

So managed to get rid of another specialist last week. No need to keep seeing him as things have improved a lot. Not sure what I did to get the improved results but just happy I don't need to do more testing. The costs of that kept going up every six months and sure I get a Medicare rebate but it is still an upfront cost. Still have the main specialist so that one is going to be a keeper for life. At least when I move it will be one less thing I have to organize when getting a new GP. Off to the see the main specialist tomorrow to see the results of the other tests I did last week. All this physical work might be improving my medical stuff. Might have put on some muscle or lost some more body fat. The belts I purchased this time last year are feeling a bit looser than normal.

Sent off all the Christmas cards this week but couldn't send the one to my friend in Canada due the ongoing postal strike over there. Canada is not accepting any OS postage not even letters and cards. So will have to get creative to send the card electronically. Already wrote the card so might as well send it. In all the decades I've been sending Christmas cards and parcels to my friend in Canada I've haven't had this happen where you can't send any mail. If you try they just send it back apparently and refund the cost. They have had postal strikes before but never had the case where there is ban on OS mail entering Canada.

I normally send off all the Christmas cards by the end of the first week in Dec and since we are now officially into Dec, it's that time again. Not really feeling festive yet. Once I get my normal Christmas stuff like OS beers and some traditional sweets it will feel more festive. I haven't put up the Christmas tree for many years now, mainly because I was always out for Christmas doing lots of travelling to visit family and doing the big family Christmas lunch. Which for me was a work day doing lots of driving which meant not much eating nor drinking to stay awake on the long drive. Not sure many people would do a 400km round trip just to go for Christmas lunch, but I did that for a long long time. These days I'm quite happy to stay home for Christmas lunch and just have a good lunch, some beer or scotch and relax. I still visit family, I just do it before Christmas day and the big family lunch is a thing of the past for me now. It's up to the next generation to do all that stuff. My generation of the family is on it's way out and have done their bit for a number of decades. Time for the younger generations to step up.

Hope the rest of the week is good for you.

 

[NikolasMann]

Hey folks.. has no idea this thread existed! Just saying G’day!

 

[darkelf9]

Hey folks.. has no idea this thread existed! Just saying G’day!

Yep it's a well kept secret in the sea of mostly American threads. Not many Aussies on Lit and those that are, are scattered sparsely around the place.

 

[NikolasMann]

Well, it feels like home!

 

[NikolasMann]

Afternoon all,

One of my things to do now is get on Youtube since I found a whole bunch of stuff on there apart from handyman stuff and music. The latest thing trending is the Fuck Around & Find Out (FAFO) stuff which is hilarious. Dem's laughing at those who voted for Rump now crying that they didn't think of the consequences of voting for Rump. Lots of families cutting out respective family members from their lives. Going to be an interesting Christmas in the US this year. Now the other side is saying "we told you dumbass". Anyway it is my new reason to have a laugh at stuff on Youtube. Laughing at people who are too stupid to know what they did. Lots of them didn't know that Obamacare is the Affordable Care Act(ACA). It was the Republicans that called it Obamacare, because they didn't like the fact a black man was their President. Was purely race based commentary. Now these idiots are going to lose their health insurance which they voted for but didn't realise it. It is fucking hilarious. It will also be interesting to see the first Republican woman who is denied an abortion due to the new stupid rules and she has to travel to a blue state for treatment. She voted against her own health. So fucking dumb. Women throwing away all those women's rights that women of previous generations fought for at a personal cost. Now that is just fucking moronic.

If the Democrats keep playing by the rules the new Republicans will continue to dominate the media and continue to win elections. The Republicans tore up the rule book when they elected Rump the first time and if America is going to recover then the Dems need to stop playing the nice guy and use the same tactics on the Republicans. Now Rump has announced a 25% tariff on goods imported from Canada, Mexico and China so Americans will be paying 25% extra on those imports and it will drive up inflation. That maple syrup on those pancakes is going up.

Those reading this might be wondering why is an Aussie guy including stuff from the US on the Aussie thread. Simply because what happens in the US politically impacts all countries like ripples on a pond. All countries are impacted to varying degrees and those with close ties to the US like Australia, can feel impacts on the budget and trade which then impacts on consumer costs. Rump only cares about money. All his relationships are based on money. He requires tribute. He is shit at managing money which is why he keeps going bankrupt and is short on actual cash. His wealth is mainly in the digital numbers not a physical quantity. He can't even pay his court costs. American politics is also invading our political parties, especially the LNP who have used Republican tactics to stoke fear on immigrants, rights of indigenous people and of renewables and getting out of fossil fuels by going for nuclear the same as the new US govt wants to do which is where Mr Potato Head got the idea of small nuclear. And like the Republicans, the LNP will force nuclear upon those who don't want it. The social discussions here have become so bad, Aussies can't distinguish between legal immigrants, refugees and criminals entering country. Same stuff you hear from America. All immigrants are now bad except the white ones. You can have lots of white immigration as it never makes the news. I've never seen a protest nor marches in the streets of the number of people immigrating from the UK which makes up a majority of the immigrants that come to Australia. Even our top cop was from the UK. Why is that do you think? Cause white people run the respective govts both here and he US. Australia is increasingly becoming a nation of 'what's best for me' rather than 'what's best for us.' Australians are becoming more selfish in their decision making and that is not us. We help a mate when they need help we don't say "fuck you mate, I'm good." That attitude is coming thru social media. Personal interactions between Aussies is being lost and once you can de-humanise some one by only communicating thru social media, then you can justify any action even murder. If you only communicate through an anonymous character then the other person is just a character in a video game. Not real.

With the USA in destruct mode. It might be fair to say the United States of America is now just States of America which would make the acronym SA. Although that might get confused with South Africa (SA) which is run by black people so white Americans wouldn't stand for that. The Republicans refused to recognize a black man as President which fuelled the right wing of American politics to increase it's base. White people felt threatened. So it can't be just SA. What if we add an R to the front. Such as RUSA to become the Republic of United States of America (RUSA). The Republicans might like that as it has Republic in the title of the country. You know like People's Republic of China. That also has Republic in the title and they also hold elections. And sure RUSA might be missing some other letters but I reckon even the other Russian dictator would go for that name. Then there is the flag that will need adjusting for sure. Not sure how to fit the hammer and sickle in there amongst all those stares. Will need to get rid of some of those stars. May be just get rid of the blue type ones. I reckon that will work for the new RUSA. I mean the health care system will also be close to that of Russia. Both flags have red, white and blue so no need to change the colours either. Both have right wing news programs and newspapers so that is another similarity. Both have snow during Winter. Both have a mob that has undying loyalty to their respective dictators. Kinda hard to find a difference now actually. So I think the new RUSA will work.

Summer made an early entrance to Melbourne at the weekend with the temps around 34C for two consecutive days and the humidity hasn't really left so more storms and rain happening today. That is what we usually get in the height of Summer here in Melbourne and at least not till mid to late Dec, so it's a month early. We are still in Spring. Had to prep the fans for use and unpack the portable air con, which I had packed away thinking I wouldn't be in this house this Summer. I've even started making ice again to build up a reserve of that. Was going to do all this next month so this sudden heat has caught me on the back foot. Even had to use the external shade for the kitchen to keep that area of the house cooler.

Was surprised with the cost of getting the car serviced. It actually went down. It has been an excellent car to have now going on 20yrs since I purchased it and hasn't given any major problems. Did have to get the air con re-gased last year which was fair enough given how long I've had the car. Will need to use the car a bit more with the end of the year approaching. Planning a day trip around the bay in Jan for my birthday so all good for that as well.

Hope the rest of the week is good for you.

In total agreement. I look ahead to the new year with trepidation

 

[UncleWayne]

Older bi married guy in his 60s living in Victoria south west love to chat and meet up.
Part time erotic writer

 

[darkelf9]

Older bi married guy in his 60s living in Victoria south west love to chat and meet up.
Part time erotic writer

Welcome to the thread. Just post stuff that you care about or is just funny stuff. No cover charge for us blokes over 60.

 

[NikolasMann]

And for blokes below 60? I'm looking for a good deal here, mate....but if its going to cost me an arm and a leg....

 

[darkelf9]

Evening all,

Well it's now official, scientists have stated that exercise is useless when it comes to losing weight. All the gym junkies will dispute this as a conspiracy theory but it's true. If you want to lose weight then just simply eat less. The younger generations are so obsessed with their physical appearance that anyone who doesn't try to do lots of exercise is seen as pathetic. Someone who's entire self worth is tied up with their physical appearance has issues. If that's how you want to attract a partner well they will only be with you as long as you keep up the appearance. The fitness industry is based on guilting people into joining gyms and taking dietary supplements. It is quite a toxic environment. I can attest to the fact of losing weight just by eating less. When I resigned my job over 10yrs ago, I just sat on the couch for six months and did fuck all apart from playing video games. I lost a lot of weight, about 10kg just by eating when I was hungry and not to a clock. When I caught up with my ex-work colleagues later that year just before Christmas they were amazed at my weight loss and thought I had gone on a diet and started going to the gym. I did neither. My family were also amazed at the weight loss. My GP didn't believe me when I said I didn't do anything apart from eating less and eating when I was hungry. I haven't put that weight back on and in fact I'm currently about the same size I was back in my mid 20's and I'm 62 yrs old now. Even the first suit I purchased fits me again and I don't do any regular exercise. I just eat when I'm hungry. The only real exercise I get is by doing physical tasks around the house. So for all those who swear by going to the gym as the only way to lose weight, you are fooling yourselves and have bought into the marketing by the fitness industry. The scientists also discovered that you can burn the same amount of calories at the gym as sitting on the couch for the same amount of time. It is a fact that your body is burning calories all the time. Again the gym junkies will say I'm wrong. Hey I don't make this stuff up, it's a fact.

The latest pro-Palestinian protest has now turned to violence yet again with the fire bombing of a synagogue in what everyone here in Melbourne knows is a largely Jewish suburb. I went to primary school and used to live in that suburb till we moved. I know it well. These are also higher priced suburbs and relatively quiet. It's only been in the last 12 months that these suburbs have been targeted by pro-Palestinian protesters who don't live there but are bused in from less affluent suburbs and even from across the other side of Melbourne. I purchased my first property in one of those suburbs and never encountered any of this type of issue. They were always good safe places to raise a family and everyone was friendly. The people who fire bombed that synagogue were just waiting for an excuse to do it and their irrational thinking about Australia not doing enough to stop Netanyhu has caused this act of violence which is now called a terrorist attack. No doubt the attacks in Sydney are being coordinated by people with a similar leaning and all carried out on social media which is how these fuckwits communicate. But is also how they catch all involved. Not smart people doing this.

The Aussies have levelled the test series at 1 all so now the real test cricket begins. The Aussies hadn't played a test match for about 7 months prior to the first test and it showed. They don't do warm up matches these days whereas the Indian team had recently played NZ as their warm up match. The Perth pitch didn't play as a normal Perth pitch does. It was at least one day away from a normal surface. Brisbane should favour the Aussies. The Boxing Day test will be huge as it could decide the series for whomever wins in Brisbane. The drop in pitches we use here in Melbourne these days plays much better but they also normally takes spin in the last two days. The only reason we use drop in pitches here in Melbourne is due the amount of AFL played at the MCG which needs a hard centre. The same exact spot there they play cricket. It was a good innovation when they came up with it and has improved the cricket played at the G.

So Assad fled his throne like the coward he is. Even his troops fled without a fight. Similar to what happened in Afghanistan. For the rebels to take over the country so fast, showed that Assad's army was very brave against unarmed civilians but not so brave against a fighting force without the backing of Russia. Another blow to Poo-tin and shows his war in Ukraine has taken a huge toll on the Russian military. Poo-tin didn't have any spare troops to send to Assad cause he doesn't have them. Shows Poo-tin is weak, a sign that the US will pick up on. What will happen in Syria? Who knows but the people should decide that, not outside countries. I'm sure China will try and step in to help rebuild but I reckon Turkey will have a big say in what happens.

Speaking of regime change, it seems Mr Potato Head now wants to remove yet more indigenous culture from Australia. He now says he will remove the indigenous flag from any press conferences in Parliament which then means the indigenous flag will be removed from Parliament all together. Yet another sign of racism in Australia. It seems much like America, racism is now more open and more acceptable here in Australia. The recent win in the US by Rump has seen a spike in the amount of open racism in America. That influence is also seeping into Aussie society as a given and most people here are just letting it happen cause they don't give a shit. Why? Well it doesn't bother them in their daily lives so why care. That's just how Australian society it changing. Small increments of racism is ok until it becomes the norm.

Been looking at Youtube for entertainment and I've noticed that white women are trying to get black women's butts. Apparently white women think that's ok. White women also go in search of a tan during Summer to look healthy. Which is quite ironic cause it's the same people who then bitch about immigration. So women want the attributes of non-white people yet don't want those people in the country. You could say it's another form of white privilege. A clear double standard in society which I laugh at. White people are also quite happy to eat Asian food yet don't want any Asians immigrating to Australia. The ironies in Australian society are everywhere. When you challenge people on this, they think you are the problem not their own thought processes. Very few people are willing to be confronted by their own biases, because they then have to reflect on their own lives which most people don't want to do.

Spent some time in the garden this week in both the front and back gardens. With all this humidity we have had here in Melbourne and then those days of lots of rain, the stuff in the garden areas has taken off. Had to do another trim of the tree in the front garden bed. No possum this time. Then attacked some of the front hedge. With the humidity the volume in the garden bin had decreased so I could fit more in. Also decided to do the mowing in the front lawn and the nature strip. All that took about 2hrs and it was on the warm side even though the temps were in the low 20's. Certainly got some cardio in. Then did the mowing in the back yard today which has been another warm day. Ok for sitting in a cafe having lunch and a coffee, not so good if you were doing anything physical. I sweated out another shirt. No rain is sight so nothing to cool things down for the rest of the week. The forecast for next week is 40C on Monday. So that will be an indoor day. Already have the ice packs in the freezer for use in the portable cooler.

Finished with the last specialist appointment last week so now I can indulge over the Christmas and New Year period. No more blood tests till near mid next year. Everything was good with the latest tests. Only the dentist to go next week. Christmas is approaching fast now. Will have to go to the local shopping centre to get some Christmas gifts, but don't intend on spending too much time there at this time of year. I have noted the amount of sweet stuff like chocolates has been on the decline in the last couple of years. The stores always blame COVID, but I think it's just that they don't stock as much these days as they did prior to COVID. You have to go to the specialty shops to get the good stuff these days which costs more. Since the advent of having to use your own bags, I always make a point of taking the opposition stores bags in. So if I'm going to Big W, I'll take my Aldi bag in. My car boot is now a bag collection space. I got a free bag once because I took the other store's bag in.

Hope the rest of the week is good for you.

 

[darkelf9]

And for blokes below 60? I'm looking for a good deal here, mate....but if its going to cost me an arm and a leg....

Well if it cost you an arm you'd be ...armless so not a problem, and if you're leggless well then you've already started without us or a fan of Lord of the Rings.

 

[UncleWayne]

Xmas is nearly here hope you have all done your shopping.
It’s to hard buying presents, I prefer giving cash that way they can buy what ever they want.

 

[NikolasMann]

Same here.. it’s a bit tight this year.. we’re working on home baked and DIY stuff!

 

[darkelf9]

Xmas is nearly here hope you have all done your shopping.
It’s to hard buying presents, I prefer giving cash that way they can buy what ever they want.

I bought $80 worth of Haigh's chocs today. When asked if they were a present, I said, yep for me. She laughed.
Like the safety demo says...attend to yourself before attending to others.

 

[darkelf9]

Evening all,

Another house was demolished in my area yesterday which started late last week. It is a corner block which is more of a square so looks bigger plus in my area house blocks are older therefore larger anyway than modern house blocks. So not doubt it will turn into another multi-dwelling development and of course a double storey build as most are these days with little to no backyard. Like other multi-dwelling builds in my area, the issue of car parking will come up, so more people fighting for parking spots. In a modern home people don't use their garages for parking their cars so that leads to more fighting for car parking spaces in the street. Given how close we are to Christmas there won't be any construction on that site till at least mid Jan.

Says a lot when the rebel leader in Syria is sounding more democratic than the future President of the US. There is dancing in the streets of Syria and a united population. Whereas in the US you have hard divisions, and calls for revenge from one half of the population on the other half. The plans by the Republicans to remove about 50 govt departments and sack thousands of govt employees to be replaced by private companies never goes well. The US deems the rebel leader in Syria a terrorist yet Rump has stated he will jail his political opposition and even those who sat on the Jan 6th committee. Makes you wonder who is the real terrorist.

So Rump is sliding into dementia as he now thinks he invented the word 'groceries'. Then went on to say "who uses the word groceries". I mean sure the guy has never shopped for his own groceries in his entire life. I doubt he even knows were food comes from, but to claim you invented the word that people have been using for many many decades if not over 100yrs, then you are a mentally fucked up person. And in America mentally fucked up people become President of that country and even get elected Congress and the Senate. His interview on Meet the Press shows a man not in control of his own mind and dumb Americans voted him into power. His interview for Time magazine was incoherent and Time published his response word for word. His answer was similar to someone who is just learning to speak English. This is the pre-game warm up for Republicans so imagine what a fucked up country America will be in the next four years.

The latest outrage here in Aussie land, and we haven't even got to Christmas, is the fact that a bunch of Aussie pubs have said they aren't doing any special celebrations for Australia Day in Jan. Now on the surface people might be saying..."yep it's that woke culture about not celebrating Australia Day", but when you think about it what could be more Aussie than just saying "who gives a shit". Aussies have always been anti-establishment. We aren't even big flag wavers unless it's your footy club's flag at every footy game. I mean who can be bothered waving a fucking flag in the middle of Summer. That's why they invented flay poles so the flags can wave themselves. So yes Aussies will go to the pub and have BBQ's on Australia Day but it's becoming less of a thing to wave the Aussie flag around and people don't really buy the Aussie flag merchandise unless you're a tourist or you are sending it to friends and family OS as a novelty thing. The main reason they stopped selling the Aussie flag stuff at supermarkets is that nobody was buying the stuff which is made in China anyway. As I said we are not big on waving the Aussie flag around. What really pisses people off about Australia Day is when it falls on a weekend and we don't get the public holiday week day off. That doesn't happen for Boxing Day. If Boxing Day falls on a weekend you get the Monday as the public holiday. Not getting a public holiday on a week day really pisses Aussies off more than if there aren't any Aussie flags in a pub on Australia Day.

So, have been entertained with my new option of looking at Youtube for things other than music. It feels like there is an entire world on Youtube I haven't been aware of as some of the stuff I'm finding is several years old. But I digress. Seems young women, and by that I mean women in their 20's and 30's seem to think it's clever to post themselves at bad moments in their lives and men seem to be getting the short end of the stick on this. There are women in this 20-30yrs age bracket that think men who they date should be paying for their time as well as the meal. There is a name for women who expect men to pay for their time, these women are called prostitutes or escorts. Not sure how modern women somehow think that a man should pay for their time when being asked out on a date and also pay for their beauty regime before the date. Where are they getting this bullshit from? WTF is going on with these younger generations? When did this become a thing in society? I must be fucking old because I've never paid a women for her time if we go out to the movies or dinner or for a drive. I will probably pay for the meal because that's what my generation naturally does. Has nothing to do with dis-empowering women as some women seem to think. Now women are saying there aren't any good men left out there and that if she is earning a certain amount then the man has to earn more than her to date her and that she has to date down. WTF are these women talking about? When men were earning more than women there was no mention of men dating down because the women earned less. Men didn't care and still don't. I also don't get when women in their 20's and 30's say they don't need men but still expect the guy to pay for dinner as that is what they expect. If the guy asks to split the bill apparently that means he is no good and won't get another date. Again what fucking fairyland are these women living in. At the same time while in a relationship they are still on dating apps looking to "level up" to a guy who earns more. At the same time these women will tell you they don't need men and that they are strong independent women. Well if that is the case then why don't they pay the bills? I saw a prank on Youtube where women were telling their husbands and boyfriends that they couldn't pay the mortgage that month. Every guy on that prank said, he pays the mortgage not her. And most of husbands said "since when do you pay the mortgage" then laughed about it. That was one prank that was doomed from the start. So, I'm not sure what is going on in the dating world nor in people's marriages these day, but I can understand why 50% of marriages end in divorce.

Women on social media are also complaining that chivalry is dead and they all want a guy who is 6ft tall who makes $500k. These women are totally delusional. Not sure where they are getting this image of their ideal man from, but if a guy is over 6ft tall and makes $500k he isn't going to bars or clubs to find women and he sure as shit is not on a dating app. He doesn't need a dating app as women are going to find him. He doesn't need to chase women. I'm just under 6ft and I've never made $550k a year but I'm financially well off and never had an issue getting a date. Women still flirt with me on a regular bases even at my age. So not sure where these young women are getting their ideas from. As for the chivalry thing why are young women, and by that I mean women in their 20's and 30's, getting on social media complaining: that there aren't any real men out there cause they don't open doors for women; men don't pursue woman and take the first "no" as a final answer; they don't approach women any more; men don't attend single's nights. Well the reason most men at least the good men take "no" for an answer the first time is, it's called harassment or stalking these days if a guy continues to pursue a woman. Even the word pursue is a negative word these days. So no the only men who will pursue are the creeps or desperate men. Once they get the pussy, they are out of there never to be seen of again. And apparently young women are also boasting about how many men they have slept with. They call it "body count". The only other time I've heard that term is referring to military kills. As for the whole chivalry thing well women killed that off. I stopped doing that when on several occasions I was yelled at by women for opening doors for them and giving up seats on the PT for women. I only give up my seat on the PT these days if the woman is pregnant or she is elderly otherwise I'm keeping my seat and I can see the look on women's faces who expect a guy to get up. So if women are wondering why chivalry is dead well they only have their fellow sisters to blame for that, don't blame men as they are only doing what women wanted and no, women don't get to change their minds as they keep banging on about. Women need to decide what they want, cause men are not mind readers we never have been and never will be. So the real reason women say there aren't any good men out there, is because they aren't being realistic when it comes to having a partner and also don't value a guy when they get a good one. If you are only with your partner waiting for something better to come along then you are going to end up lonely and blaming the world for you bad choices.

Hope the weekend is good for you.

 

[marriedpervs]

Yep it's a well kept secret in the sea of mostly American threads. Not many Aussies on Lit and those that are, are scattered sparsely around the place.

Just saying gooday - Aussie here - been on since the very early days and still love engaging on the threads. Sad about our country's demise though - economy, politics, crime, standard of living. A concern despite our wonderful country.

 

[UncleWayne]

It might be time to move and find a more open minded country or move out bush with like minded people. I went to Torquay nudist beach the other hot day and was disappointed at how many couples and families were there. They have already tried closing the nudist beach like they have done to so many others.

 

[marriedpervs]

It might be time to move and find a more open minded country or move out bush with like minded people. I went to Torquay nudist beach the other hot day and was disappointed at how many couples and families were there. They have already tried closing the nudist beach like they have done to so many others.

Come over to the other side of the Peninsula. Sunnyside in Mornington is still fully nude and quite busy.

 

[UncleWayne]

I might have to come for a drive over to Sunnyside and check it out. I’ve also been told that there is a nudist retreat in the Brisbane ranges out north of Geelong that’s family oriented and that has a lot of couples that attend. I’m thinking of joining them.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

I finished watching The Walking Dead, the Dead City series 1. Wasn't sure about it when it first came out and wasn't going to buy the DVD, but when I was in my local Westfield anyway doing some Christmas shopping a couple of weeks before Christmas and thought well why not buy it. I was wrong about my initial hesitation about this spin off and it was good. The twist at the end of series 1 means this spin off could go anywhere and probably out of the three it probably has more room to grow. I reckon I'll get series 2 of this spin off. I'm building quite a collection of The Walking Dead series in total.

So Raygun turns out to be quite the bitch. Women keep talking her up but her only claim to fame is that she was shit at the sport she chose to do at the Olympics. She didn't even get a score. Getting 3 zeros is not a score. It's not even on the scale. It's as if she didn't show up. Unlike Bradbury, she didn't win anything. She seems intent on taking as many people to court as possible. I mean the only reason people are still talking about her is because she was so bad at break dancing, even the other break dancers were making fun of her. I mean it wasn't even break dancing. It was a form of animal impressions mixed with some yoga bullshit mixed with something you would see kids doing at a child care facility who were trying to dance. I mean she sucked at it. So rather than getting in on the joke she wants people to take her seriously. She shut down a comedy play about her and now is trying to sue another comedian. Someone should of told her she was shit at break dancing right from the start. Aussies are just going to keep making fun of her. Not sure how she thinks she is going to win that fight. A classic case of a person who wasn't given honest feedback and now thinks everyone else is wrong. She even thinks she is a legitimate athlete. Clearly up herself.

I have a confession. I cheated. Nope not proud of it but it happened. Seen several Youtube vids of people cheating so it made me fess up. I....ate a Christmas pudding with brandy custard before Christmas. Now that wasn't really my fault. It was just there on the shelves. Temptation everywhere. I probably need to go to Christmas Pudding Eaters Anonymous. I mean there are those who add their own booze to the custard, the heathens. Those people really do have an addiction to custard. Well it feels better to get that off my chest. I have another Christmas pudding in the cupboard but I can wait another 24hrs so there is time for redemption.

Went to visit family before Christmas day on both sides of the city. Don't enjoy that trip across the city and haven't for many years. And as per usual there was some issue on the roads. This time it was a burst water main that just caused chaos on one of the major roads in my area so had to do a diversion. I know all the roads well, so I know how to get around issues. What did surprise me was how quiet the roads were going into the city centre. Even the trip home wasn't as busy thru the city centre as I expected. Since it was a nice sunny day decided to come home the long way driving along the bay. It is a nice drive on a sunny day. There are lots of expensive homes on that drive with views directly out to the bay from their second storey balconies. There are some homes which back onto the bay so it's one of those situations where houses on one side of the same street are more expensive than houses on the other side of the street. That's just how house pricing happens. Total and utter bullshit, but it comes down to what people are willing to pay. Part of it is also boasting rights which is pricey.

The weather in Melbourne since the end of last week has been typically unpredictable but this time it was not just within a season, we actually got back to something like Winter type temps which has been weird. I've had to break out the Winter clothes again. Because we didn't get any rain with the cool change that came thru late last week after those warmer temps, the humidity stuck around for a few days longer. The temps on the weekend were low 20'sC but it was warm in the morning then chilly in the afternoon. As predicted we got a lot of rain on Sunday night and it kept raining into Monday and things really cooled off to the point it got down to 18C yesterday with a cool wind. Felt like early Winter. As for the weather for Christmas well that is going to be a mini heatwave. Today it's still cool and started overcast but finally the sun broke thru in the afternoon so I decided to do some hacking in the front garden for a few hours. Tomorrow for Christmas Day it's going up to 30C and then up to 40C on Boxing Day. When the cool change happens it will again be a weak one with very little to no rain so the humidity will stick around for a while with temps in the mid to high 20'sC. So good news for the cricket starting on Boxing Day. No chance of rain washing out the test match which is critical for both the Aussies and Indians. Whoever wins the Boxing Day test will be in the box seat to win the series. If the Sydney test is a washout as it has been in the past, the Boxing Day test becomes the critical test match in the series. The largest crowds for any test series is the Boxing Day test at the MCG here in Melbourne so it will be a big money maker for Cricket Australia. Even though Perth has a big stadium, they can't fill it so why they need such a large stadium doesn't make sense. The Perth stadium is an expensive white elephant.

The fridge was full on the weekend so I've had to eat my way thru it. I ran out of space to put food as I don't have a large family fridge because I don't need one. It does amaze me how people go into panic mode each Christmas about the shops being closed for one day. Not sure why people feel the need to buy more apart from the normal Christmas stuff. The shops are all open again on Boxing Day so why are people bulk buying additional stuff? Never understood that. Not sure what to have for Christmas lunch as I have lots of choices, apart from the sweets. Will depend on how hot I feel on Christmas Day. Don't tend to eat much on very warm days. I do have lots of beer though. Did my usual thing of buying some international beers for myself and my brother at Christmas. It has become a bit of a Christmas tradition. I even got a discount because of my Dan Murphy's membership so that was an unexpected bonus. I also got some booze as a Christmas present, so I'm also good for the harder stuff. I even decided to buy some bubbly for New Year's while I was buying the beers, so I'm set for New Year's as well. I also went a bit retro the other week and bought some VB. Haven't had a VB for a very long time.

We have a major bushfire here in Vic in the Grampians National Park area that is still going and with the extreme heat coming in the next couple of days it could get worse. The Grampians are about 300km from the Melbourne CBD in the west of the Vic. That area is a big tourist destination for either just visiting if holidaying close by or going camping. The small town of Halls Gap is probably the more well known of the towns close to the Grampians. It's one of those places you can do a day trip from Melbourne if you do a bus trip. Not really a day trip if you are driving unless you don't mind driving over 600km in a day. There is some amazing scenery in the Grampians and if you like to hike then taking the walk to the summit is for you. But it is all up hill so if you are not fit, then not the walk for you. It also gets very hot in that area even leading into Summer so if you are going to go there as a tourist and are not used to the heat in Australia in the Summer, take water with you on that hike. People who visit Victoria during Summer tend to think because we are in the south that Summer here is cooler. Not true. We regularly get temps in the 40'sC during Summer but mainly in Jan, not in Dec like we are getting this week. So yes for those not familiar with Melbourne during the Summer it can get hotter than Sydney or even Brisbane so come prepared if you are visiting Melbourne during the Summer months.

Hope Christmas is good for you. Might as well enjoy it cause next year could be shit for you. Be in the moment, cause you can't predict the future nor do you have any control over it.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

The bushfires here in Victoria was all over the news here in Australia and it even made the international news bulletins. I look at OS news on a daily basis mainly after midnight cause I don't go to sleep early. There was a cool change in the bushfire zone with a wind shift but it only drove the bushfires in a different direction. The only thing that is going to put that fire out is lots of rain but not much has arrived also not much of that in the coming week so that bushfire is going to keep burning. That part of the national park is too dense for anyone to get to the fires. Thankfully the day itself was overcast in Melbourne so while the temps did nudge 40C there wasn't the sun around to heat up the place even further. It stayed warm going on to midnight in Melbourne on Boxing day. It only really started to cool down close to 2am, yep I was still up. Had the door open till the early hours of the morning in a bid to cool the house down. When the cool change eventually arrived there wasn't any rain with it. We did get rain to the west and east in regional Vic but most of the rain missed Melbourne. Friday was nice and cool compared to Christmas and Boxing Day but still humid. Not much by way of southerly breezes. It was still warmish in the house and didn't really cool off till the evening. Temps went back up again a couple of days later with some rain on the weekend but again nothing like a proper downpour.

Petrol prices were outrageous during Christmas. Normally prices start to come down the day after the mid week hike but that didn't happen for the week leading into Christmas Day here in Melbourne. Two weeks prior to Christmas prices in my area were around $1.63/L. The next week leading up to Christmas they went up to $2.08/L, that's a jump of 45c/L in one day. The price didn't come down all the way to Christmas Day which is not the normal cycle. It's usually the cheapest on the Tues as by 12pm on the Wed they go up again. It remained at $2.08/L in my area all week and into Christmas. It only dropped by 10c/L on the Friday. I was lucky enough to find a really cheap servo when visiting my nephew on the weekend. It was the only one with petrol at 1.73/L whilst all the other ones I passed were over $2/L and that neighbourhood is normally on the cheaper side for petrol. So not sure what was going on with all the servo's in that week leading into Christmas but it was a total and utter rip off. The only way to combat that is get an EV and fuck the petrol companies who have been ripping us off for decades. Yet no govt inquiry into petrol prices cause the Fed govt gets their petrol tax of 45c for every litre of petrol so they aren't going to do anything about it. Having watchdogs like the ACCC is just window dressing, besides which whatever the ACCC does is just a fine. No criminal action is ever taken so what is the point. If you are making billions in profit, a few million in fines is fuck all. My next car will probably be a hybrid as the EV infrastructure is very limited even in Melbourne and even worse in regional Vic.

The day after Boxing Day when doing the grocery shopping I found hot cross buns in Coles. Christmas had just finished and it wasn't even New Year's yet and we have hot cross buns in the supermarkets. WTF is going on with traditions. Easter is 4 months away. Actually it's later in April in 2025. I don't remember hot cross buns coming out before New Year's Eve in previous years. So I don't get it other than it's to cash in on Easter which isn't right and it seems tradition doesn't mean anything any more.

The Boxing Day test turned out to be an old fashioned test match in that is lasted 5 days and was a nail biter up to the last hour of play. Both sides played well and it was heading for a draw but the Aussies found a way to win with the main bowlers getting an even spread of the wickets. Scotty Boland once again proved his worth. He should be getting more games but it is hard to break into the bowling squad on the Aussie team and keep your place. The attendance at the MCG for the Boxing Day test broke all records and was about 20,000 more than the previous record set back in Bradman's days in the 1930's when the Aussies were playing the old enemy England. In 1937 the crowd attendance was about 350,500 for the test match. That was when we used to have a rest day and eight ball overs. I remember those days when I was a kid in '70's we still had eight ball overs and a rest day after 3 days. To break the previous record the last day had to have just over 51,000 people attending, well they smashed that by another 20,000. The crowd on the last day was just over 74,000 people which was more than on day 4. So the new record for a Boxing Day test match is just over 374,000 people which is going to stand for a long time. Again unheard of in this modern era of cricket. Not sure what the overall figure was for the viewing public thru the respect forms of media, but would of been in the high millions given there are Aussies and Indian fans spread around the world in various countries. Lots of Aussies live and work OS. The Sydney test now becomes a must win for the Indians if they are to retain the Border Gavaskar trophy which India currently holds. If the rain being predicted for the Sydney test actually happens, it could be another washout or severely impact India's chance to win that test. The Aussies were robbed of a win in Brisbane because of the rain, may be the rain will work in their favour in Sydney. Unlike Melbourne, the rain in Sydney goes towards the SCG as the weather comes from the coast and goes inland. Either way the final test match which starts on Friday this week will be another interesting test to watch.

Decided to spend a couple of hours in the front garden today on New Year's Eve hacking away at the front hedge again. Turned out I was out there for nearly 3hrs did a couple of other tasks in the front and backyards. The main task was to reduce the height but not reduce it too much either as it gives some privacy. Then decided to trim off a bit more of the tree in the front garden bed and also cut back the ivy creeper around the side of the house a it was getting too close to the air con in the second lounge room at the back of the house. While cutting the hedge in the front I also had to contend with people traffic. Normally everyone is at work of school when I'm out there. It always amazes me when people see you working out the front of your property they expect you to move when they can easily cross the street to go around you. I was only out there today because the weather was good. The weather has been on the warmer side since Christmas so good days to be outside in the garden. Since I cut back the hedge on the side of the driveway the rose bush in that section has continued to blossom and produce more roses now that it is getting more sun and daylight. Not sure how much of that driveway hedge I want to remove. It will be another suck it and see situation.

Hope your New Year's celebration is good for you. I've got all the booze chilling in the fridge with the kabana and cheese ready to go for tonight.

 

[azz_vt]

How good was our win over India?

 

[darkelf9]

How good was our win over India?

Yep the team did well. Was watching it all day and at about 4:30pm I thought it was heading for a draw so the last hour was impressive from Aussies. Let's hope they can keep that up for Sydney and we can get the trophy back.

 

[azz_vt]

I watched a lot but was travelling yesterday and furiously hitting refresh when I had phone service.