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[warrior queen]

Good morning

It has been a while since I posted on here and a lot has happened...

Once again, my body clock has decided that I need to be awake at some ungodly hour.... seems having to wake up at 3-30am once a fortnight to attend my medical study in Hobart has completely reset me, and waking at 3-30 to 4am is the new normal now!

Today is the 1st May, and I now have 11 days until I enter homelessness.
My landlady decided to put the house on the market, and despite assuring me it would be sold as an investment-only property, she then went on to accept the only offer that includes people who want to move in
I have been frantically searching for another place to live, but given our absolutely dismal vacancy rates and massive rent affordability hikes here in Tas, I have not found (or been accepted) for any rental.
Now.... I 'could' exercise my right to stay here until the end of my lease, as is r/e law in Tasmania, but! If I do that, I have been told - without them actually saying it - that I would then be blacklisted on the r/e internal database, and likely NEVER be approved for a rental in Tassie again. Talk about shafting a tenant!

So, I have instead been building my lwb van into a camper, and soon my pup and I will have the joy of actually living in it. Not. Winter will be hell. But I have to stay in Tas for the next 6 months to complete my medical study..... no way am I risking getting kicked off it as that is pretty much the only way I have been able to access the drugs that keep my illness under control (without them, I would be unable to complete anything due to mobility issues and pain.)

I am in that demographic - over 50, single, no job (my illness means it is extraordinarily difficult for me to find work) and of course, my non-negotiable dog.
Real estates have been telling me "Get rid of the dog and we might be able to help you!" which is absolutely NOT an option. I would rather be in my van WITH my mate, than in a home without him!!!!

I am on the list for public housing, but have been told that the current waiting time for a place in Tas is between 4 and 6 YEARS! I do go up the list a bit the day I actually become homeless, but it still won't be fast enough to escape winter.
They also told me I would be eligable for Emergency Accom - but that I would not be allowed to have my dog. And again - he is NOT NEGOTIABLE. So I said thanx, but no thanx. It would only have been for 6 weeks anyway.... after that, you have to move out of emergency accom, which then makes you eligable for it again....
I actually asked the lady if she could hear what she was saying to me - every 6 weeks you have to completely move out of the accommodation, which then makes you eligable again, so that you can move back in!?!?! In what universe can someone in that position afford to move out their entire houseload of stuff every 6 weeks for 24 hours, only to then move it all back in again????

Add to all of this, my daughter just had baby no 3, and he was born with a few health issues
Within 12 hours of birth, he was on an emergency flight to Hobart for surgery and spent the next 2 weeks in ICU.
He will need another 5 to 7 surgeries to resolve his problems within the next 10 months, but so far is doing well and actually thriving now. Fingers crossed all stays good.
The only bonus here is that all this is happening within his first year, and he won't remember any of it!

But of course, this has eaten away at my time to get out of this place and get my camper built, so now it will be a frantic rush to complete everything!
I should be waaay more stressed than I am - but I figure it is what it is, and I will just have to deal as best I can as each situation presents. Not much I can do to change it!

We have our election today. Not sure who I will vote for, given I have spoken to each of my local candidates and instead of them giving me real, tangible policies, they each spent the entire time trashing their opposition.
All I have figured out so far, based on the worst electioneering I have ever encountered, is who NOT to vote for!
I guess this time I will make my decision once I am actually in the polling booth. Normally I already know prior to voting, but not this time.
And let's face it - they really are all just bad options this time round, so I will likely vote for who I believe to be the LEAST BAD out of all the bad available!

Anyway, that is pretty much my news for the past few months.
I will still have access to the net and phone regardless of my living situation, so once this has all been done and sorted I will pop back in and let you know how Twitch and I are doing

Stay well!

 

[darkelf9]

Morning all,

Well this first week of May got quicker towards the end of the week. May be it's the weather with less daylight hours. Happy Mother's Day for tomorrow to all the mothers. Lots of people will be visiting their mother's this weekend, even in Sydney given their latest outbreak, the cemeteries will be busy as well. I noticed that the florists have removed their customer limits so it will be another stampede this weekend for flowers.

Weather here in Melbourne is now chilly mornings with warmer afternoons if you stay in the sun provided we don't get those southerly winds. If you're from north of the border, those chilly winds in Winter will catch you off guard. Don't get those in types of winds in Sydney.

Yet another virus outbreak in Sydney. Lost count of how many that is. Sydney continues to be lucky with virus outbreaks, but also given their slack rules, the virus will continue to bubble along in the community for another year, assuming we all get vaccinated by the end of the year. Will check in with my GP in the coming week to see if I can book in for the jab. Not sure what the availability is with local GP's. Don't really want to go into the city to one of those mass vaccination places if I can get the jab in my local area. I'm not desperate to get the jab.

The social commentary about the lock out of Aussies in India continues. Of course the so called "social media" twits have done their normal racist thing. Previously it was about Chinese, now it's Indians. Kinda funny how it's never about white people bringing in the virus to Australia. Never heard those comments about people from the UK or the USA coming back to Australia. The comments about banning Aussie citizens coming back from India is very similar to the comments about asylum seekers. The media has replaced comments about asylum seekers and refugees with Aussies trying to get back to Australia. Don't be surprised if the far right next start making stuff about banning kids from coming back, just like they did about refugee kids. Although it was funny to watch Bolt sending a shiver thru the LNP talking about the govt being racist. Also it was probably not a good look that Smoko was talking about the ban on people coming back from India whilst visiting beef week, given that India is a Hindu country where the cow is a sacred animal. Given that Smoko is a marketing guy, whoever is doing his PR didn't think that one thru.

So Tassie has continued the trend to vote back in the incumbent govt. That seems to work in local govt but the Feds just can't seem to read the room. The fumble over this India issue just went too far, but they couldn't see it. Just like the bushfires where they didn't read the room there either. Whether this hurts the LNP in the national elections well that's yet to be seen. Seems all the Feds have to do is promise tax cuts and ensure the wealthy and well off people are not touched, then they will be voted back into power. That's more an indictment on the voting public than it is on the pollies. Greed always wins out, so we can all debate climate change, child care, etc, but little point to it all if we continue to vote in pollies that cater to our personal needs and policies only impacts others. Seems we are One in song only. Elon Musk has shown how dumb the financial systems are by boosting a fake currency and the markets are falling for it. The whole system needs an overhaul considering it only caters for the wealthy.

Decided to buy one of those newly advertised rock lobsters in Woollies. Was on the small side. Nothing like the ones that we export to China. But it was a treat and I forgot how much work it was to get a feed. Not something I do too often. Who ever designed the new Woollies in my area thought it would be a good idea to put in speed humps in the middle of the car park which means you can't get the full trolley over the speed hump since they are those metal ones. Dumb design. It's the only Woollies or Coles I've seen with that design. It's also not walker friendly if you have a walker or are elderly. Who the fuck is speeding in a supermarket car park anyway given most of them are barely large enough to drive around.

Hope the weekend is good for you and that you spend time with your mum, whether she is alive or not.

 

[missswannie]

Happy Mothers Day for yesterday. Happy those that support or hold a memory of mothers as well.

Got in on the first day of the age group vaccinations. Did the mass vaccination clinic down at the showgrounds. The premier and his ministers that got one were exiting as I went in. It was quite efficient, rows of 20 at a time going in, move up a row of chairs. 2nd shot booked in for the mid July. There were a range of reactions to it from my cohort, all of whom elected to go in straight away. Average was nothing much on day 1, a bit of dull head and about 70% energy on Day 2 with the usual punch in the arm feeling, all clear by day 3. I found the more that I kept moving around and drinking water, the less the dull feeling. Some people had an overnight hot cold fever (Some laughed at their partners and said menopause babe).

It had finally settled into that late autumn Perth weather, 20-22 in the afternoon 12 overnight. A bit of heavy rain (the farmers are rather happy over this way) but mostly fine weather. Fortunately we are popping up to 25-27 for the next few days so a chance at some Vitamin D and a swim. Should get spikes like that every week or so leading into mid June if it goes to pattern. Second year in a row of not being in London for meetings about now. I enjoy the weather here of course but old London town is rather a nice place in May.

The government's messaging is not the best. There was no need to use the stick messaging with the ban on Indian flights, the penalty has been embedded in the Biosecurity Act since 2014. You'd think there was a bunch of right wing voters feeling all lonely and in need of a bit of birch to get them all excited. As for all the war rhetoric on China, fair go, we know there is an election coming up, but do you think you have a half a chance in a stoush? Even the Yanks think we are under done and putting in their own fuel supply in Darwin. Just over 40% of Australian exports (probably more this year) goes out of the Pilbara but you haven't got a defence presence within 2000km, mostly more.

Miraculously, we have found capacity to do repatriation flights from India after dithering for a year. Still haven't got remote quarantine set up other than Darwin though. Dutton reckons it is not comfortable enough at Curtin or the other bases. Thats more hotel usage and clearly more quarantine jumps to be expected. You wonder why people are in to get vaccinated quick smart.

Have people we know who have flown in to WA for the 'lifestyle' festival this weekend. They were regaling us over dinner of a bunch of first time things they were going to experiment with this time. The whips and canes side of it all doesn't do much but can appreciate the doing something in front of people type thoughts. I would be more tempted by being asked to be the life drawing model or something like that. They will join for a 27c day at the beach tomorrow so no doubt there will be a few extras down there.

Enjoy yourself people, life is short.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all from chilly Melbourne, well at least in the mornings.

The lack of daylight at 4pm is now very noticeable. Spent my Saturday at the other property. Got up very early to drive over there. Was only 7, only got to about 13 with that typical Wintery chilly southerly wind which hit you as you exited the front door or the car. Not much rain wise, was expecting worse based on the forecast. Didn't get any hail on the drive across the city and back. Did yet more painting tasks over at the other property but inside with the central heating on. Will be back there again next weekend.

So the women's budget seems to be not well received by most women except those in the LNP. The performance of the LNP rep on Q+A was quite laughable. Not sure how she could defend the bread crumbs for women in the budget. The money allocated is just enough for the govt to say it's doing something. As usual nothing in the budget for me. There never is except for tax cuts, but even that given my pension status these days is kinda meaningless and yes I still pay tax even though I'm retired, more about my age than anything else. I'm still considered a youngster in that respect.

The repat flights from India hasn't been thought thru. There is no plan if people test positive prior to the flight. There should be a back up list, like a standby list, of people if someone tests positive so at least the flights back are full. At the rate the govt is repatriating people it's going to take years given there are about 9000 waiting to come back and only about 150 on each flight. Don't have to be good at maths to work out it's going to take several years which is just nuts. The Americans and pomes got their people back quick smart last year. The USA can get their shit together given the turmoil they went thru over the past 12 months, yet we can't get things done because we have a govt that is more concerned about the politics of the situation than the humanitarian crisis that is occurring for Aussies OS. The longer we leave them over there the higher risk of them catching COVID in health systems that can't cope for the needs of their own people. The govt has a shit load of resources they could use which is already funded by tax payers. We wouldn't hesitate if this was a natural disaster. What this situation does tell Aussies that if you travel OS in the future and you are in a situation not of your making, then you are on your own. Being a citizen of this country counts for nothing and the words in the passport are just words. I've had a passport since I was 19, which is some 4 decades now and I haven't taken much notice of the words under the coat of arms. The govt isn't living up to those words. If they don't mean anything then why are they there, is it just to give people false hope? As for building proper quarantine facilities, again we have the govt resources to start this off and private industry has shown an interest in doing this as well, so what the fuck is the delay all about if not politics. It's all about the upcoming election but the govt may pay a price for it's reluctance. Aussies stranded OS are still part of the voting public and they have extended family and friends who vote as well.

Purchased a new video game, Ghost of Tsushima, last weekend and have been enjoying it. The scenery is postcard stuff. Reminds me of the scenery in Witcher 3 in respect to the beauty of the graphics. The game has been out since late last year but I totally forgot about it. Had other life stuff going on. Like Witcher 3 even on the easy setting it bites you on the arse if you get lazy. Keeps you on your toes. Worth playing again when I finish it. Played Cyperpunk, wouldn't play it again. Too many errors in that game plus the driving aspect is not very good given you need to do lots of it. The camera angles are rather poor. I reckon they have lost a lot of credibility on this game. The company would of been better off doing another Witcher game. It's a case of stick to what you are good at. Whilst waiting in line I picked up an Elvis CD, was only $10. Had Elvis vinyls years ago back when we had turntables. Gave the vinyls to one of my nephews who thinks vinlys are new. Just reminds me that I'm an old dude. Next they'll be inventing phones that are actual phones rather than devices.

Hope the start of the week is good for you. I'll probably just stay in bed a bit longer. Nothing urgent to do.

 

[missswannie]

Happy day. Just got final approvals to smelter Tantalum and Niobium into pure ingots over here. 3017C and 2477C so energy intensive. Gas and solar furnacing to start with with modular upgrade to hydrogen in a few years. Might see if we can score a contract with the new palladium discovery 100km north. Fancy noone looking for stuff within the city fringes. #suburbmining

Interesting political scene in the UK. The progressives becoming so progressive they are alienating the working class and women into being centre conservative. If those rusted on supporters not only not vote for them, but abandon their parties and join in numbers with the conservative side, the sheer numbers of centrist party voters would drown out the old school tie and right that dominate candidate selection. Could that be the way it goes in Aust? We tend to change our votes but not become members, so don't get a say in candidate selection, just elections. Would that be what it would take to change a few things? We seem to be treading water in a stalemate here.

Latest budget has 52% of the tax burden on individuals, 48% on corporates. Dangerous times. $1T of debt is not going to be paid back on the back of individuals. The scope for income rises to match the level of continued spending and debt repayment post-iron ore bubble is not there. They might need an extra-ordinary resource profit fee to start building up a payback cushion, otherwise they will eyeing off the Future Fund again.

Managed a couple of mornings on the beach while it has been warm, but am waiting for the rain to set in for the next few days. The prescribed and private burning from the last month has been blanketing the place with smoke so it would be nice to put them out and clear the air out. Of course, a bit of cloud and a bit of smoke makes for the usual May-June spectacular sunsets here, last night's not withstanding.

The earlier rain and cold nights this year have brought the oranges to ripen a touch early on the trees. We now have boxes of them in storage. I don't mind peeling a few a day and eating them fresh.

I was having a laugh this morning. Getting rid of a few greys at the hairdressers and one of their girls does waxing as well. The lady who does my hair gave a wink and said first time fanny wax as someone went in. We were all waiting for the noise from behind the curtains. It gets progressively easier after you thin out and get used to it, but the first time can be a little breath taking for some, especially the looser skinned areas. I remember tentatively checking to see if they had ripped my flaps the first time. I always recommend IPL over waxing.

With this weather system the nomads will be on the move if they haven't already. Watch out for the slow movers on the highways. The beaches up north in the state are starting to fill up with the seasonal campers.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well had my Astra jab a couple of days ago and no issues apart from a little soreness at the injection area which is usual for me as I don't normally have any reaction to injections. The needle is longer than the flu jab and you do feel a small pricking sensation when the needle goes in so not totally pain free as has been stated. As for the process, it went rather well and it was totally run by nurses so no chance of doctors buggering it up. It all went smoothly with lots of musical chairs, but you weren't sitting around long till you were moved onto the next bit. The recovery wasn't the 15mins I've heard on the TV. I was sitting around for less than 5 mins before I was allowed to leave. You made the next appointment before leaving and they went old school by giving you a card with the details. No smart phone tech. I don't think they trust it. Less for the govt to fuck up.

Had to go to a mini hospital run my Monash Health to get my jab. Didn't want to pay the outrageous car parking fee so found a side street and took a walk in the brisk air. Couldn't go to my GP because they didn't have any supply. There seems to be an over supply at the mass vaccination centres but the supply to local GP's is very hit and miss. They also aren't getting a regular supply so that would make bookings even harder.

Saw Luke McGregor give it to Barnaby on Q+A and of course Barnaby did his normal belittling when he can't match facts plus he just saw Luke as a comedian, but actually the guy is quite smart and did raise an interesting point about debt which Barnaby obviously had no clue on. I think they keep inviting Barnaby back on to give the idiot factor in the community a voice. Not much intelligent conversation comes out of his mouth.

As we continue to debate the issue of Aussies stranded OS, more Aussies are going to die in India. As they say in America, nothing changes till a bunch of white people die. What is not surprising is that new Aussies are still not considered Aussies. The returning Aussies from India were talked about as Indians not Aussies coming home. Not sure what the criteria is for that mentally to change. How many generations does it take to be considered a true Aussie? This used to happen with Italians and Greeks back in the 70's. I went to school with a lot of them. 40yrs on now it's switched to people from Asia and Africa. If we are going to play the generation card then all the white people should go back to where they come from cause the indigenous people have been here for over 60,000 yrs that trumps all other claims to heritage. If you have an Aussie passport then you're an Aussie. Doesn't matter where you're born. Lots of discussion with respect to migrant communities not speaking up. Well there is a fear that if they do, they will be deported or thrown in jail for speaking out against the govt. This is quite a valid fear because of what they have seen and experienced in the old country. Something that we with our freedom of speech can't get our heads around.

The mornings here in Melbourne are now consistently below double digits. Day time temps are still reasonably good given how cold the mornings are. Had to fire up the heater in the lounge this morning just to take the away the morning chill while watching the TV. Off across the city again tomorrow for more painting and hacking stuff as well since the weather is fine. Not how I'd like to spend my weekend but needs to get done.

Hope the weekend is good for you.

 

[warrior queen]

Good morning

Not totally homeless as of about a fortnight from now.... I have managed to get myself a 'double-wide' cabin at a caravan park.
So now I will be trailer trash instead of homeless, lol.
No lease, so it doesn't affect my rating for housing which is good (I am classed as urgent now, which means a 2 year wait instead of a 7 year wait!)

When and how did it come to this? The Real Estate Institute did a survey of all 74,000 rental listings across Australia and found that not a single property was affordable for a single, non-working, over-50 female with an illness and no super.
Not A Single One.
In Australia this should NOT have happened!
We urgently need a massive investment in social housing, but the successive gov'ts of this country have completely failed to both understand the severity of the issue, and implement policies to fix it.
I have half a mind to put a large sign on my van asking my gov't why they have allowed so many to fall thro the cracks.
I have now met more than 50 women in my situation - all older, all homeless, and all disadvantaged by our housing and superannuation inequality.
Not good enough

Still.... I lucked out with finding my trailer/cabin, so I am one of the lucky ones I guess.

Getting very cold down here in Tassie. I will be happy to go to a place with a little more shelter than my van (and I am allowed to have my pup, which is a huge bonus!)

I will check in again once the move is done and I am sleeping safe again

 

[darkelf9]

Good morning

Not totally homeless as of about a fortnight from now.... I have managed to get myself a 'double-wide' cabin at a caravan park.
So now I will be trailer trash instead of homeless, lol.
No lease, so it doesn't affect my rating for housing which is good (I am classed as urgent now, which means a 2 year wait instead of a 7 year wait!)

When and how did it come to this? The Real Estate Institute did a survey of all 74,000 rental listings across Australia and found that not a single property was affordable for a single, non-working, over-50 female with an illness and no super.
Not A Single One.
In Australia this should NOT have happened!
We urgently need a massive investment in social housing, but the successive gov'ts of this country have completely failed to both understand the severity of the issue, and implement policies to fix it.
I have half a mind to put a large sign on my van asking my gov't why they have allowed so many to fall thro the cracks.
I have now met more than 50 women in my situation - all older, all homeless, and all disadvantaged by our housing and superannuation inequality.
Not good enough

Still.... I lucked out with finding my trailer/cabin, so I am one of the lucky ones I guess.

Getting very cold down here in Tassie. I will be happy to go to a place with a little more shelter than my van (and I am allowed to have my pup, which is a huge bonus!)

I will check in again once the move is done and I am sleeping safe again

Hey WQ,

Good to see you are remaining positive. Yep the govt doesn't care about people who don't fit into their typical voters who are the well off and weathly and those who have their own business. They just believe everyone can either get a job or are homeless because they want to be. Best way to make your voice known is just pepper your local member with emails and gather your fellow people together to make a collective noise. Pollies don't read signs as they liken those to protesters.

I was thinking of where to live when I sell up while waiting to move down the coast. I'm not ruling out living in a caravan or something similar and putting all my stuff in storage. Would be cheaper than renting. Not planning to stay in the city for too long after I sell up.

Hope it all works out in the immediate future.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well we have stopped our run of no community transmission for over 80 days here in Melbourne. So we are back to wearing masks indoors and back to only 5 people in the family home on any day. Good thing I purchased an extra box of masks a couple of months ago. When I purchased them I didn't think I'd need them, so mask on. As for the culprit well it's hotel quarantine again. Someone was released from hotel quarantine in Adelaide but then fell ill days later, so they must have got it in hotel quarantine but the testing didn't pick it up. So the latest outbreak was imported from Adelaide. Not impressed. This crap will keep happening till we get a proper quarantine system that doesn't include hotels.

So the big waste of tax payer's money on that new gas power station which initially will be powered by diesel, is just about votes. It's not supported by any experts nor private industry which the govt keeps saying is what should lead decision making. There are more urgent needs in the community to spend the $600Million not wasting taxpayers money on votes.

A resounding win for the Nat's in the local election but both major parties lost votes to minor parties. The mining industry might see this as a win for coal, but all it's doing is setting people up to fail. Head in the sand stuff. These same people will be crying when the big switch is flicked off in several decades and people are left with no job future. You can't stop change just as you can't stop the ageing process. You can go on all those kale, grain, plant based diets and put all those creams on your face, but at the end of day you are going to get old and you are going to die so deal with it. Don't pretend it's not going to happen.

Lots of rain on the forecast today. Thus far haven't seen any, only some wind and a darker sky. Was going out but changed my mind based on all that rain we were supposed to have in Melbourne by now.

Hope the rest of week is good for you.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well here we are again in Melbourne with a lock down lasting a week, that makes the second one this year. Have had to stop work on the other property once again. Have a repair underway so that's now stalled and with the 5km restrictions back in place I can't travel anywhere. This current lock down is the third major lock down we've had since July last year. Hopefully this latest one won't go on beyond the 7 days. We are back watching the daily briefings to see what the latest virus numbers are and there is one person in ICU as a result of this latest outbreak which once again was not the fault of Victorians but we keep paying the price.

To say that I'm pissed off is an understatement. The Feds have been sitting on their hands for the past 12 months and the clusterfuck in the vaccine rollout just makes the current virus outbreak even worse. The only reason Smoko is now talking about green lighting the Melbourne proposal for a proper quarantine facility is that the optics now look bad because of the latest out break in Melbourne. Now we have three phases of the vaccine all happening at the same time. WTF? No wonder people are confused. The younger generation are also asking for their turn on the vaccine rollout cause they are also now nervous. The country is looking like some third world country. We still have elderly people who haven't received their first jabs and only just over 500,000 fully vaccinated. Apparently we are behind Kazakhstan. Again WTF! The Feds are just incompetent at people stuff. I couldn't get the jab at my GP so the continual bullshit from Smoko that the vaccine is available at your local GP is just adding to the confusion.

Perhaps the only positive from this latest outbreak in Melbourne is that people will get off their arse and book in for the vaccine. The larger centres were very quiet earlier in the week, now they are turning people away because people are panicing. Was out on Wednesday just as the news was breaking and I saw a traffic jam at one Woollies. Went out yesterday to do my usual weekly grocery shopping and was met with a full car park. This was at 11am. And once again there was panic buying, although there was toilet paper on the shelves. Not sure why people panic buy since the supermarkets remain open. You can go everyday if you want to.

Weddings and funeral have once again been put into chaos and visitors are once again restricted in old age care homes. The people in there must be concerned again. We have had Victorians taken off trains interstate and sent to quarantine hotels. Never heard of that before. The Feds want us to travel in our own country, but why would you in the current situation. All of this could of been avoided if we had a Fed govt that did their job rather than doing fuck all because they don't want to be held responsible and only looking to the next election. If they piss off the Boomers and the over 70's with their franking credits and investment properties, then the next election isn't going to go the way of the LNP. The very thing they are trying to avoid could be the reason they lose the next election. It seems it's ok for Aussies in India to die because that's offshore but if people start dying again in this country well that will change things. But that is ok as well cause the govt will just employ the Virgin boss to manage the health system. Cause only old people die right and they don't buy airline tickets. Fuckwits.

On a happier note, played thru the Ghost of Tsushima and not one error in the game which was refreshing. Giving it another go since I can't do what I want to do till the end of next week. Still watching the Giro which is getting to the final bit. No doubt people's mental health in Melbourne will take another hit over the next week so there will be outcomes of that as well. Wonder if Smoko still thinks he is doing God's work, must be one twisted warped God he worships.

 

[missswannie]

Ah Melbourne.... you are getting on top of it, stay the course and get rid of it again. I hate shit-for-brains politics getting in the way of hard effort. If 13 secs of proximity in a telstra store was all it took for one to get it from another, this one has to be wiped out. Too hard to root this one out of a community if it takes hold. The whole shit show of the old age care homes vaccinations and workers just comes back to visit all over again. Might as well have an applicator and string hanging out, she going to come back every time.

Essendon v Richmond in Perth on Saturday has sold out in 24 hours. 60000 full house. WA people know a good game to go and see. Clever of the two clubs to ask if Eagles and Dockers corporate boxes would like to take up for that game. They had no chance of filling them themselves. Full allocation. AFL took one box and the clubs took one each too to take care of the odd traveler in their corporate stable.

There was talk of NRL Origin I being relocated to Perth. We would have filled that, but good to see the new stadium up in Townsville given a run. They will pack it out and have people in the streets watching on screens up there.

Seeing as Brendan Nelson is the latest to go under the Scomo bus, I hope he takes a few DNA samples of the flesh under there so we can catalog all the under bus sacrifices. Own your words mate.

The slow but mighty Japanese government machine has been equally criticised for getting the vaccination drive off the ground slowly, but now in its second full week, they have passed Australia. Corporate vaccinations, University campuses, and schools will be the sites from tomorrow. Come through the gates, one in the arm, go about your day. They may just do the whole place for the first shot by the time the Olympics start. Time for Australia to have a good hard look in the mirror.

Love the messaging about the submarines. We stand committed to the French design, even though they have to make a nuclear design into a conventional. And the deal that we said had been signed was actually just a MoU and we haven't signed a deal yet, so maybe just have another look at the German and Japanese designs once more. There's a waste of 5 years...

The cops are camped out at Balingup again, with the winter cold evenings after the recent rain bringing out all the funny mushrooms in the forest there. Many moons ago they were seeded all the way through there, and have spread far and wide. Every weekend of the winter season sees truckloads of people going down there and picking bags full of them, then trying to avoid the police roadblocks.

Not enjoying winter's first embrace. I need to find things to do up north and thaw out again. Did go for a swim this morning as part of the Icebergs club. 7C at 6:30am, and the sand was the same. Water was 20C so a delight to get into. Outdoor showers afterwards were still a cold blast to remind you though. It keeps everything tight and the wrinkles away they say. So long as its healthy for you!

 

[darkelf9]

Ah Melbourne.... you are getting on top of it, stay the course and get rid of it again. I hate shit-for-brains politics getting in the way of hard effort. If 13 secs of proximity in a telstra store was all it took for one to get it from another, this one has to be wiped out. Too hard to root this one out of a community if it takes hold. The whole shit show of the old age care homes vaccinations and workers just comes back to visit all over again. Might as well have an applicator and string hanging out, she going to come back every time.

Essendon v Richmond in Perth on Saturday has sold out in 24 hours. 60000 full house. WA people know a good game to go and see. Clever of the two clubs to ask if Eagles and Dockers corporate boxes would like to take up for that game. They had no chance of filling them themselves. Full allocation. AFL took one box and the clubs took one each too to take care of the odd traveler in their corporate stable.

There was talk of NRL Origin I being relocated to Perth. We would have filled that, but good to see the new stadium up in Townsville given a run. They will pack it out and have people in the streets watching on screens up there.

Seeing as Brendan Nelson is the latest to go under the Scomo bus, I hope he takes a few DNA samples of the flesh under there so we can catalog all the under bus sacrifices. Own your words mate.

The slow but mighty Japanese government machine has been equally criticised for getting the vaccination drive off the ground slowly, but now in its second full week, they have passed Australia. Corporate vaccinations, University campuses, and schools will be the sites from tomorrow. Come through the gates, one in the arm, go about your day. They may just do the whole place for the first shot by the time the Olympics start. Time for Australia to have a good hard look in the mirror.

Love the messaging about the submarines. We stand committed to the French design, even though they have to make a nuclear design into a conventional. And the deal that we said had been signed was actually just a MoU and we haven't signed a deal yet, so maybe just have another look at the German and Japanese designs once more. There's a waste of 5 years...

The cops are camped out at Balingup again, with the winter cold evenings after the recent rain bringing out all the funny mushrooms in the forest there. Many moons ago they were seeded all the way through there, and have spread far and wide. Every weekend of the winter season sees truckloads of people going down there and picking bags full of them, then trying to avoid the police roadblocks.

Not enjoying winter's first embrace. I need to find things to do up north and thaw out again. Did go for a swim this morning as part of the Icebergs club. 7C at 6:30am, and the sand was the same. Water was 20C so a delight to get into. Outdoor showers afterwards were still a cold blast to remind you though. It keeps everything tight and the wrinkles away they say. So long as its healthy for you!

Hey Misswannie,

C'mon, how can you call it Icebergs Club if the water temp is warmer than the air temp. That's like saying it's Icebergs Club if you soak in a hot springs. Try swimming in the water at Melbourne's beaches in Winter. You wouldn't feel your lower extremities. It's cold enough now in Melbourne to not need to keep chilled water in the fridge. Just need to turn on the tap to get chilled water.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well we are into the second week of lock down here in Melbourne and the streets are looking similar to what it looked like late last year. The panic buying has cooled off. Was able to get a car park at the supermarket without driving around. The only issue encountered was the check-in process at the supermarket. Once again the technology seems to only work on the latest version of smart phones similar to that failed COVID safe app which didn't work on my smart phone. Tried to use the QR scanner app on my phone only to be told it's not compatible with the latest QR codes. Have downloaded the other version of the QR app today, but not holding out any hope that it will work, so will need to carry a pen with me next week. If this is an on-going requirement then going shopping will turn into a pain in the butt. If the govt's both Fed and local want to make the use of technology a mandatory requirement then they need to ensure everyone is able to use it. It shouldn't depend on purchasing the latest technology. The technology needs to be backwards compatible. I'll happy comply if the respective govt's want to buy me the latest iPhone. There are lots of people who can't afford the latest smart phone technology especially those on and below the poverty line. There are a lot more people who are considered the "working poor". So if the govt's want to have a solution it needs to cover everyone, otherwise it gives people a false sense of security and once again vilification of people. Social media is very good at vilification of people without any facts and it seems that has now seeped into politicians wanting to be popular.

Had to line up again to get into the supermarket as the store rep had to check everyone's mobile and like me a number of old folks had to sign in which just held up the line even further. There was only one paper list and the same queue for people signing in with the app. Now it seems even if you just pick up a coffee you have to sign in as well which seems extreme. I also noted once again an LNP supporter on the TV having a go at Victorians and the local govt, blaming the latest outbreak on Victorians and the local govt. These comments are not helpful and just cheap shots at people who are going thru a serious health issue not of their making.

Latest news conference today has now identified that Melbourne has two different strains of the virus. Seems this new strain has not been identified in the country before and most likely came from NSW. As to why the virus spreads in Melbourne quicker than Sydney, not sure. Could be that in Melbourne it's very easy to get around. The number of contacts sights is massive compared to what happened last year. Last year it was more suburb focused, this time the virus has spread across the city and even to regional Victoria in places that are 90mins to 2hrs from Melbourne on both side of the state. What does the news of this new strain means to the lock down in Melbourne, well who knows.

Have managed to do a couple of more tasks around the house. Was up the ladder again doing a few touch ups jobs inside. Have some more rain today. Started in the early hours of the morning. Was just going to bed as the rain started. Still doing tasks on the estate even though I can't travel across the city. Now just waiting to see when I can get more traidies to that property. At the moment as part of the lock down, auctions are cancelled and can only happen on-line but people are reluctant because it means less money using that method.

The rollout of the vaccine continues to be a disgrace. There are still people in old age care facilities who haven't had their first jab. That was all supposed to be sorted by last week but hasn't. Workers at these facilities haven't been given priority even though they were in Phase 1b. We are on to Phase 2b, that's 4 stages, yet people who are working with the vulnerable are told to get their jabs on their own. What a clusterfuck that is. As for going to respiratory clinics, these are essentially hospitals so the cost of parking is very high. The one I went to started at $11. I found a side street to park in so it didn't cost me anything but older people would have no choice but to pay for parking.

Once again we have the Feds paying private industry for doing fuck all. Why we are paying an OS based consultancy firm millions of dollars to do health tasks when this is an in-house govt task. If we don't have the expertise within govt to do this then why not? Is private industry running the govt? We have a public service for a reason, not just to be contract managers which by the way is run by accountants not by people who have expertise. Those people are not listened to.

No matter where you look in regard to the management of quarantine or the vaccine rollout, the Feds have dropped the ball and have put people's lives in danger, yet they seem to be unmoved because Smoko never admits when his govt gets it wrong. Frankly people don't care who fucked up, just fix it.

Hope your weekend is good for you, no matter your circumstances.

 

[missswannie]

Hey Misswannie,

C'mon, how can you call it Icebergs Club if the water temp is warmer than the air temp. That's like saying it's Icebergs Club if you soak in a hot springs. Try swimming in the water at Melbourne's beaches in Winter. You wouldn't feel your lower extremities. It's cold enough now in Melbourne to not need to keep chilled water in the fridge. Just need to turn on the tap to get chilled water.

Icebergs WA is the easiest of all the winter clubs in Australia that's for sure. The Leeuwin current drifts around the corner as far as Albany in winter which makes it warm (north to south in winter, south to north in summer) but go further around the corner to Esperance and your flaps are sealed shut for a week jumping in there. Perky to say the least.

Melbourne cold, especially if the wind is up, is weirdly colder than places with cooler temps. Can't explain that but maybe dry cold and wet cold.

Hang in there guys! Smash it, not live with it.

 

[darkelf9]

Icebergs WA is the easiest of all the winter clubs in Australia that's for sure. The Leeuwin current drifts around the corner as far as Albany in winter which makes it warm (north to south in winter, south to north in summer) but go further around the corner to Esperance and your flaps are sealed shut for a week jumping in there. Perky to say the least.

Melbourne cold, especially if the wind is up, is weirdly colder than places with cooler temps. Can't explain that but maybe dry cold and wet cold.

Hang in there guys! Smash it, not live with it.

Hey there!

Hope things are going well. As to why it's colder in Melbourne with similar temps, I've had that comment from friends in other states. 7C in Melbourne is colder than 7C even in Sydney. Most likely because we don't have the humidity. Every time I've gone to Sydney I notice how warmer it is even on a cool day.

Rather like the temps in Albany because it's cooler than the rest of the state. Suited my type of temps. Just a long way from Perth, but closer to foodie stuff.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well here in Melbourne we are in the second week of lockdown and about to go into week 3 of a semi-lockdown. Whilst there will be more freedoms come tomorrow, the travel restriction of 25km and no visitors to the home means you can only stay locally, but not everything is open. If the long weekend wasn't happening, may be the restrictions would be different. Even before the 2 week lockdown was set to end, the health authorities were hinting that the Queen's birthday long weekend was a worry due to the potential for people to travel to regional Victoria and gather in homes.

So I'm stuck on my side of the city for another week. The 25km only gets me to part of the city centre. The CBD area is just outside the 25km for me. If you're in what we call zone 1, then you can travel to both sides of the city. So I just have to wait it out for another week. This second lockdown this year means we have lost a month to lockdowns in Melbourne so far this year and it can happen again this year.

The wild weather in Melbourne overnight has thrown in another complication with the lockdown in regard to people who have to evacuate their homes. Family and friends can't visit to help, but you would hope the practical side of things are considered and cops don't start fining people trying to help their family and neighbours.

Had a quick look around the house and nothing is out of place. Was very windy from yesterday afternoon. Managed to get back home before the worst of the rain hit in the afternoon yesterday. Not the day to be working outdoors. Did see a contractor mowing a naturestrip in the heavy rain, which just looked dumb, but the guy was being paid. Windows rattled most of the night and heard lots of wind noise all night. Still a bit windy in Melbourne. Flooding in some regional parts of the east of the state. The rain is coming from the east which is unusual since usually the rain comes from the west and south.

Hope your weekend is good for you.

 

[missswannie]

Afternoon all,

Well here in Melbourne we are in the second week of lockdown and about to go into week 3 of a semi-lockdown. Whilst there will be more freedoms come tomorrow, the travel restriction of 25km and no visitors to the home means you can only stay locally, but not everything is open. If the long weekend wasn't happening, may be the restrictions would be different. Even before the 2 week lockdown was set to end, the health authorities were hinting that the Queen's birthday long weekend was a worry due to the potential for people to travel to regional Victoria and gather in homes.

So I'm stuck on my side of the city for another week. The 25km only gets me to part of the city centre. The CBD area is just outside the 25km for me. If you're in what we call zone 1, then you can travel to both sides of the city. So I just have to wait it out for another week. This second lockdown this year means we have lost a month to lockdowns in Melbourne so far this year and it can happen again this year.

The wild weather in Melbourne overnight has thrown in another complication with the lockdown in regard to people who have to evacuate their homes. Family and friends can't visit to help, but you would hope the practical side of things are considered and cops don't start fining people trying to help their family and neighbours.

Had a quick look around the house and nothing is out of place. Was very windy from yesterday afternoon. Managed to get back home before the worst of the rain hit in the afternoon yesterday. Not the day to be working outdoors. Did see a contractor mowing a naturestrip in the heavy rain, which just looked dumb, but the guy was being paid. Windows rattled most of the night and heard lots of wind noise all night. Still a bit windy in Melbourne. Flooding in some regional parts of the east of the state. The rain is coming from the east which is unusual since usually the rain comes from the west and south.

Hope your weekend is good for you.

It's a pathway out anyway, which is good sign. You are right, it probably would have been a different radius if it wasn't for the long weekend. And if it had been all kappa and not the Delta thrown in there. I suppose they really do need to know how it got into the community, and whether it was another person on the plane that managed to make it out of quarantine.
Delta does give a few problems that hopefully they are all nailing down now after complacency.

Let's face it, any place over here could go into lock down with Delta and Kappa having a r=5 infectiousness. Remember the effort it too last year getting an r=2 down to sub r=1, so I don't even think NSW bravado and talk will last too well in the face of a 5x run in the community. Only answer is vaccination and good to see the states pushing the envelope on the age brackets. Some are 40-49, we are 30-49 now, NT is 16 up. It doesn't stop you from getting infected but does make it mild and difficult to pass on as evidenced in the aged care and the UK.

Looks like Vic gets its quarantine at Avalon, even WA has been sounded out for a new place, so long as it is on Commonwealth land. That practically leaves one of the airforce bases up north, Pearce AFB on the north side of the city, or HMAS Stirling on Garden Island, although mixing quarantine and a submarine base is probably not a good idea. Finally though they are looking at buying out the old Argyle Diamonds accom village and long runway up at Lake Argyle, perfect fit for purpose.

I wouldn't worry about flooding and maintaining quarantine. Like with the big fires here during lockdown, survive first and work out the rest later.

Dying to hear details of the two that squirreled out of Melbourne and made it through NSW and Qld before turning up positive. NZ is pissed off at the mob that went to Sydney then across as well, so you don't have to wonder why the strong measures persist with all these numb nuts. The retirees that went though the NT into WA without filing a declaration didn't like the the fine, but then were dumb enough to drive into the NT again and not file anything and get another 5k fine.

Love peeking in on the EIU Liveability Index every year. Kiwi cities, Aus cities and the two big Japanese ones for the win. Melbourne and Sydney took a bit of a dive down a few places this time on the back of lockdowns and loss of amenity, but not too bad. Interesting enough the biggest mover upwards was Honolulu, up 60 places or so, as they US discovered island borders and containment. They also bought up all the real estate on offer there so rents have gone sky high. I think they go the right idea.

Morrison was back over here on his way to the UK, chirping it up about having a stoush with China. Election year and doesn't want to be pinned to a climate change target at the G7. Even old Matthius Corman has changed his tune after joining OECD. Rev up the pensioners again, but wouldn't they scream if the iron ore exports got into trouble. It would be the Aussie peso and hyper-inflation before you could say jack robinson.

Weird weather, its raining over here as well as in the east, but mid way through the week it switched to a north-west rain, so increased the temps. Woke up hot and it was not menopause coming on. Hopefully it keeps up for the weekend, I have football tickets for both days.

Anyway, if the rain stays away a bit more it is good firepit weather. Not too cold but just enough to make it worthwhile.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well today is the first day of no travel restrictions here in Melbourne coming out of the latest lockdown. This one lasted 3 weeks so all up we have had 4 weeks of lockdowns here in Melbourne. Even though travel restrictions were eased after 2 weeks, today is first time in 3 weeks that you can have visitors to your home but only 2 adult visitors per day so that also impacts on tradies. The next set of tradies I was looking to employ are painters, but will have to wait till these latest restrictions are lifted. The rules in regional Victoria are different and less restrictive but if you travel from Melbourne to regional areas then you are bound by the rules in Melbourne. Anyone wanting to visit the ski fields needs to have a negative COVID test and have the documentation to prove it. So travel still comes with restrictions for at least another week. Masks are still required indoors but not in your home. So we are back to mask on mask off situations.

The Winter cold has now kicked in here in Melbourne. The typical 14-15C temps are well set in and the morning temps are rather chilly. Haven't got down to those 3C temps yet but not far off. The afternoon chill kicks in around 4pm so not long now when it starts to get dark by 4pm. Normally I would reduce my activity around the house at this time of year but I've got too much stuff to do on both properties. Hopefully it will only last a couple of more months. This will be the second Winter we are dealing with COVID and less that 3% of our population is vaccinated. More people are vaccinated in Victoria than any other state. Given it is colder here in the south, if the virus is going to spread during Winter it will happen in the south easier. Not a good situation to be in.

It seems the govt is caught on the hop with the latest recommendation from the medical experts. We don't have enough Pfizer doses to match the new recommendation so it just means that it will take longer to vaccinate the population. People who were waiting for the Pfizer are now rushing to book appointments but there isn't enough supply to match these new demands and the Feds seem to be unconcerned. I've had the Astra and don't have an issue with getting it for the second dose. Given the rarity of the blood clots the reporting has spooked a lot of people for no reason. The vaccine is a lot safer than more well known drugs. Then again if the govt had a better plan and a wider selection of vaccines on offer there wouldn't be this amount of panic and noise around the vaccines. You can't have it both ways. You can't complain about lockdowns if you are also holding back on getting vaccinated. A lot of people have been complacent because we are in a better position than most of the world. But if you live in Melbourne you have more incentive to get vaccinated since we have lived thru the worst of it and there is more to come till we get a proper quarantine system in this country and most of the population vaccinated.

So it seems I'm off to meet with yet another specialist more out of an abundance of caution than anything urgent. Good thing I can afford all these additional expenses. Just more things to deal with along with all the other stuff I'm engaged with. I'm sure at some point this retirement thing is going to kick in I keep hearing about. Feels like I'm back at work, only difference is that I don't have to put up with dickheads. The alarm clock has come back out of retirement.

Well the QR code thing just doesn't work for me. I've tried several times and nothing. Then I discovered that my phone is older than even the latest app is compatible with. It doesn't tell you that when you down load it. I have a smart phone but the app only works on later models. So I now carry a pen with me when I need to visit the shops. The bank is now requiring every one to check-in. The rule in Melbourne was that you only needed to check-in if you were in a venue longer than 15 mins which was based on medical advice, now even if you pick up a coffee you have to check-in. Which seems a bit over the top but if those are the rules well then that's what we have to do.

Got caught up with that meltdown of the IT systems. Only one terminal was working at the bank. The queue was nearly out the door. Shows how vulnerable the computer systems are. There is no redundancy in these systems. Also who knew that one system is being used by so many different businesses. Single point of failure stuff.

Lots of rain was predicted here in Melbourne and across the eastern part of the state which hasn't happened. Have had some rain over several days but not much. Good for those people impacted by that storm last week. Places like the Dandenongs are a beautiful part Victoria, still a part of Melbourne. Lots of tall trees and winding roads. Usually cool in Summer. Makes for nice day out. A couple of famous sites there like the Cuckoo Restaurant and Ricketts Sanctuary and of course every kid knows about Puffing Billy.

As for that couple that escaped Victoria well a fine is not enough. Jail time even for a week would send a message to everyone that this is a serious health issue which people need to take it seriously. These people knew the rules but deliberately broke them for their own selfish reasons. What still amazes me is that they were not stopped thru NSW. A quick check of their driver's licences would show where they live. They weren't picked up till they were in Qld. How did that happen given all the other states were alerted to issue in Melbourne and Victoria at the time?

Hope the weekend is good for you. Have a new video game to play. Well it's a re-mastered version of an old one first published back in 2011. Has been a slow year for new video games.

 

[missswannie]

Wet and cold in the west, well, both by our standards. I was aiming to be in Hobart on Tuesday for the Solstice Swim at Sandy Bay as part of Dark Mofo, but that was via Sydney for the weekend. That would earn me a few pokes up the nose and some hotel days, so pass, am sitting at home and someone else from the reserve list can have a nude solstice swim.
Without a Friday flight to get on it was plan B and fueling up the boat for lunch over at Rottnest. The weather wasn't coming in until Saturday afternoon, so that turned into staying overnight on the boat. We have had a couple of 2C nights in town with clear skies and no wind, but the water temp is 19 so it was warmer sleeping at the waterline.
Vaccine rollout... What a shambles. Japan surging ahead in their program and ours has stalled and falling. Interesting to see Singapore adopting the Hong Kong 21 day quarantine saying too many getting out of the 14 day program. If we are not going to pull the finger out, which we can't as we have just promised non-existent supply to 50-59 hold outs, then we had better get serious. PM's comments about "useless" health bureaucrats who failed to negotiate supply contracts last year - welcome to the pile on of bodies under the Scomo bus.
Maybe not on everyone's palate but Chinese credit has just been noose tightened back to the 2014 dive levels. Off the waterfall. Not going to be pretty.
Everyone loves a chicken parmi in this country. Tried the served in the frypan version down at Samuderah, with a bucket full of chips. Have to say, game on, they are probably well deserving of their top 10 position. Rottnest pub on Saturday night was a quality effort too by the way if you happen to find yourself on the island in the off season.
On the sexier side, the three couples on the boat moored next to us on Friday night... Not sure what was powering that effort but I'll have some of that. We started about an hour after they had and they were still playing group tag a few hours later after. Still night so the only waves were coming from them. Smiles in the bakery line ashore in the morning though.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well now it's Sydney's turn to deal with the virus once again. Still the policy in Sydney to not lockdown anything no matter what. The best contact tracers in the world apparently, well that is ok provided the virus doesn't spread faster than you can trace people's movement. Hope they get on top of it, but taking a larger risk than other states have an appetite for. Interesting how now reporters are asking why there isn't a lockdown in Sydney. No doubt the better take up of QR codes and check-ins in Sydney is allowing faster contact tracing. We here in Melbourne have now mandated it as a result of our latest lockdown, but these new variants are more infectious than the strain we were dealing with earlier in the year. Keep pushing your luck and at some point it will run out. Lots of examples now around the country of what can happen if you aren't lucky in this pandemic.

Just had an email from the vaccine people saying that my next jab will be done at a different location because the place I got the first jab is closing their vaccination centre plus one other. The next jab is at another hospital, so looked up where to park and not pay excessive parking fees.

The city here in Melbourne was rather quiet on Monday. First time in 3 weeks I was allowed to travel to the city. The travel restrictions were removed on Friday last week so I can now travel across the city and to regional Victoria. Waiting for the home restrictions to be eased before getting the next set of tradies at the other property. Managed to get the other delayed task concluded this week. With the lockdown that task was delayed nearly a month. Not sure how else COVID is going to impact on the tasks ahead. Hopefully there won't be anymore outbreaks in the next couple of months. No house auctions were possible for the last 3 weeks. As of tomorrow 15 people are allowed at your house which is set to go for another couple of weeks. So anyone buying or selling a property will be impacted by these restrictions. We don't do on-line auctions much this country and sellers don't like it because it typically brings in less money for the property. We like to kick the tyres in this country not just look at pictures on-line when it comes to buying properties.

Seems Smoko is getting rather sensitive about the lack of progress by his govt to deal with the vaccine rollout and hotel quarantine. He seems to forget that Abbott was nothing but negative when the Libs were in opposition. So it is the job of the opposition to question the govt in power. And going way back, Fraser blocked supply which led to the downfall of the govt of the day and put Fraser in power. So no sympathy for the current govt being criticized but it seems the LNP keeps saying everything is fine, nothing to see here. The latest statement about a vaccine Horizon sounds like a sailing journey to a new world. Hopefully it doesn't turn into an Event Horizon, that didn't end well.

The news about discontinuing Astra sounds like yet another fuckup in planning. Now we are going to rely totally on OS supply. Astra was supposed to be the main vaccine manufactured here, so supply wasn't going to be a problem. Just looks like the govt doesn't have a plan, they are just reacting to what doesn't look good. Not a lot of confidence in their claims we are all going to get vaccinated by Oct as per their original statements. Not going to happen. With vaccinations centres closing down, not sure how the vaccine rollout will be completed before the end of the year. It was not made clear that vaccination centres that opened would not stay open till the vaccine rollout was completed.

So it seems the world is more in touch about the danger to the Great Barrier Reef than our own govt. So now the reef is fine? Not sure which part of the reef the govt is looking at, may be only the good bit. Nothing to see here! Well there will be if nothing is done, then where will the tourist industry be when nobody wants to see a dead reef. If you want world heritage status then you need to play by rules set by someone else. If not then don't go for it. It's like companies going for certification to international standards, which means more dollars, then telling the bodies that run these standards to fuck off we don't need to listen to you. Can't have it both ways.

So Barnaby is back and the Nat's have gone back in time. The in-fighting didn't take long to happen. He will be entertaining for the media. Not sure Smoko can control him so fun for all and the puppet show is back in town. The water wars are back on the menu. Trading water like a commodity on the stock market is just a road to nowhere. Water belongs to everyone and essential for life, not a commodity to be traded by some private companies.

We are expecting lots of rain in Melbourne today and the thru the weekend. So far haven't seen anything. Hope the weekend is good for you.

 

[missswannie]

Somewhat of a telling national cabinet last night and the fallout from it. "It's not a race." Yes, it is. Thanks Gladys. And thanks Scott for congratulating her and encouraging no lockdowns. Muppet.
4 days at home over here for them to try and sort out this northern suburbs spread. So far the FIFO guys from Granites are showing negatives but they are all isolated now so contained even if. Queensland has similar.
I think it is a valid thought process for people to elect to have AZ right now or wait until Dec-Jan for Pfizer. If I wasn't already vaccinated I would probably elect for now rather than later, others may choose differently. The fuck-ups continue so no doubt this will be on repeat cycle for the rest of the year.
I had a couple of east coast trips planned for the first weeks of July. At present that can't be swapped out for a few north site visits either with state regional zones back in place.
Ah well, sitting out the back with a few lumps of wood in the firepit before Le Tour comes on might have to be the highlight for a bit.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Hope that where ever you are, you are dealing with the respect virus lock downs around most of the country except in Melbourne and Tassie. Apparently half the population of the country is in some form of lock down at the moment. I guess the rest of the country is now getting a taste of what Melbourne has had to endure during lock downs for now a total of nearly 5 months since last July. No guarantee Melbourne won't go back into some sort of lock down between now and the end of the year given the local govt's zero tolerance for the virus circulating in the community. Thankfully most of country did not have to listen to a daily death count that went on for many weeks. We don't need to see or hear of that again in any part of the country.

Well Gladys finally had her luck run out. The bravado of the past successes has cost not only Sydney a lock down but also other parts of the county. Doesn't take much for this new variant to spread. Our Chief Medical Officer was pissed off that NSW Health didn't inform VIC Health about the outbreak in Sydney in the early stages. So the virus made it's way to Melbourne and other states. We had just come out of a lock down and was possibly going into another one. It was a tense few days down here before they managed to track it down. No community spread thank goodness.

NSW should of learnt from what happened to Melbourne but Gladys was too caught up in the her own hype and held up as the best state in the country to deal with the virus by Smoko. The LNP has been anti-lock down from the start of this virus. Now people are seeing the cost of that political strategy. Seems the pollies will follow the health advice when it suits them. So it has to make you wonder whether Gladys was actually following the medical advice or making political decisions to override that medical advice. The AMA had to get involved before she even thought about doing anything. Just moronic leadership. It's also quite noticeable that there hasn't been any criticism from the Feds about the lock down in Sydney. The far right has been very quiet. Funny that.

Hopefully things in Sydney get under control soon. But if you think it will be over in 2 weeks, think again. She waited too long now it's going to cost the economy in NSW as well as the mental health of it's people and their financial situation. People are already panicking. Simply, you can't fuck with virus. The only way to stop it is to reduce movement of people. We have proven that here in Melbourne. Since we don't enough vaccine for everyone and hotel quarantine is still fucked. Reducing movement is the only strategy we have right now.

As for the news that everyone can get Astra, well where the hell did that come from? Can only be because the govt knows there isn't enough of Pfizer to go around even with the new shipment due in Sept/Oct. It seems everyone was blindsided by this. ATAGI doesn't agree with this nor does the AMA. Got to make you wonder where the Fed's are getting their medical advice. Right now it looks like it's coming from the back of the cereal packet.

Didn't understand why they were shutting down vaccinations clinics. Now it's obvious they don't have enough supply to keep these places open. Otherwise why would close down these clinics given only 4% of the population is vaccinated. As in getting both doses. Unlike the lies spread by the far right you aren't vaccinated till you get both doses. One dose is only 30% effective against the new strain. I'd like to get my second dose now but I have to wait till August.

Having another busy week. Has been a bit difficult to be motivated on those cold mornings. Was only 4 degrees the other day when I had to get up. By the time I was on the drive across the city it was a balmy 7. It was warm in the sun today but only if you stayed in it. Has cooled off again rather quickly.

Have been watching Le Tour. Had to stock up on cheese today, so a cheese and wine night coming up. Try to do that a couple of times during the tour.

Hope everyone is finding a way to stay safe in various parts of the country. As for mask wearing, well that has been mandatory on our PT here in Melbourne since July last year. Should be mandatory for all major cities in the country. Nobody likes it but get over it. Just do it.

 

[waratah]

Afternoon all,

Hope that where ever you are, you are dealing with the respect virus lock downs around most of the country except in Melbourne and Tassie. Apparently half the population of the country is in some form of lock down at the moment. I guess the rest of the country is now getting a taste of what Melbourne has had to endure during lock downs for now a total of nearly 5 months since last July. No guarantee Melbourne won't go back into some sort of lock down between now and the end of the year given the local govt's zero tolerance for the virus circulating in the community. Thankfully most of country did not have to listen to a daily death count that went on for many weeks. We don't need to see or hear of that again in any part of the country.

Well Gladys finally had her luck run out. The bravado of the past successes has cost not only Sydney a lock down but also other parts of the county. Doesn't take much for this new variant to spread. Our Chief Medical Officer was pissed off that NSW Health didn't inform VIC Health about the outbreak in Sydney in the early stages. So the virus made it's way to Melbourne and other states. We had just come out of a lock down and was possibly going into another one. It was a tense few days down here before they managed to track it down. No community spread thank goodness.

NSW should of learnt from what happened to Melbourne but Gladys was too caught up in the her own hype and held up as the best state in the country to deal with the virus by Smoko. The LNP has been anti-lock down from the start of this virus. Now people are seeing the cost of that political strategy. Seems the pollies will follow the health advice when it suits them. So it has to make you wonder whether Gladys was actually following the medical advice or making political decisions to override that medical advice. The AMA had to get involved before she even thought about doing anything. Just moronic leadership. It's also quite noticeable that there hasn't been any criticism from the Feds about the lock down in Sydney. The far right has been very quiet. Funny that.

Hopefully things in Sydney get under control soon. But if you think it will be over in 2 weeks, think again. She waited too long now it's going to cost the economy in NSW as well as the mental health of it's people and their financial situation. People are already panicking. Simply, you can't fuck with virus. The only way to stop it is to reduce movement of people. We have proven that here in Melbourne. Since we don't enough vaccine for everyone and hotel quarantine is still fucked. Reducing movement is the only strategy we have right now.

As for the news that everyone can get Astra, well where the hell did that come from? Can only be because the govt knows there isn't enough of Pfizer to go around even with the new shipment due in Sept/Oct. It seems everyone was blindsided by this. ATAGI doesn't agree with this nor does the AMA. Got to make you wonder where the Fed's are getting their medical advice. Right now it looks like it's coming from the back of the cereal packet.

Didn't understand why they were shutting down vaccinations clinics. Now it's obvious they don't have enough supply to keep these places open. Otherwise why would close down these clinics given only 4% of the population is vaccinated. As in getting both doses. Unlike the lies spread by the far right you aren't vaccinated till you get both doses. One dose is only 30% effective against the new strain. I'd like to get my second dose now but I have to wait till August.

Having another busy week. Has been a bit difficult to be motivated on those cold mornings. Was only 4 degrees the other day when I had to get up. By the time I was on the drive across the city it was a balmy 7. It was warm in the sun today but only if you stayed in it. Has cooled off again rather quickly.

Have been watching Le Tour. Had to stock up on cheese today, so a cheese and wine night coming up. Try to do that a couple of times during the tour.

Hope everyone is finding a way to stay safe in various parts of the country. As for mask wearing, well that has been mandatory on our PT here in Melbourne since July last year. Should be mandatory for all major cities in the country. Nobody likes it but get over it. Just do it.

We can't afford to shit ourselves every time there's a minor outbreak.

I'll take Gladys and her balanced, targeted approach anytime.

 

[darkelf9]

We can't afford to shit ourselves every time there's a minor outbreak.

I'll take Gladys and her balanced, targeted approach anytime.

Well good for you. Not sure people in the NT would agree with you. If you watched that press conference it may make you rethink.

What politicians in all parts of the country need to understand is that their decisions in regard to the virus impacts other parts of the country. If Gladys moved quicker there would of been less of a chance of the outbreak in Sydney escaping to the NT and Melbourne. Since you guys in NSW have not been thru the worst of it, I don't expect you to understand. Enjoy your utopia while it lasts. Playing chicken with the virus is not a good idea, the virus will win every time until most of the population is vaccinated.

Hope NSW health gets on top of this latest outbreak. I wouldn't wish what happened here in Melbourne last year on anyone. Listening to the daily death count was not good for anyone. Out of the over 900 people who died, most of those were in Melbourne. People not being able to get close to their dying parent is not something we need to experience again in this country. That's not being dramatic, that is now history.

 

[darkelf9]

Afternoon all,

Well Melbourne has been virus free for 5 days which is good. Still have to wear masks indoors. Hoping that restriction will come off soon. Have had to go to the city a few times in the last couple of weeks, so been on the PT several times. Wearing a mask on the PT sucks, especially if you wear specks. Nobody likes it but we get why it's needed. If it means we have freedom of movement, then that's ok.

Must be due to the school holidays, as I noticed there were more people in the city centre. A vast contrast to a few months ago. Melbourne isn't a ghost town anymore. Hopefully that continues for the rest of the year. The vaccination numbers need to triple according to some experts if we are going to get the adult population vaccinated by the end of the year. The debate about vaccinating kids continues. So that's the next hurdle. At least they are finally realizing that teachers need to get vaccinated.

Had to go back to the dentist to do some exploring. Turns out the tooth in question was doing something unusual. Haven't had a filling in several decades so it wasn't that. It was a rare condition that happens mainly to men and in only about 10-15% of adults. So end result was that I lost that tooth. Last time I had an extraction was over 20yrs ago. I'm usually a good boy. Didn't miss out on getting my bag of chocolates across the street from the dentist. Makes the trip into the city worthwhile. I was surprised to learn that the dental nurses couldn't get vaccinated. Seems rather odd given they are literally in your mouth.

So this check-in thing has been an issue. Since my phone doesn't work with the QR codes I now carry a pen with me when I go out and I have to wear a watch. Haven't worn a watch on a regular basis since I left the workforce. What I have noticed is some shops don't have the paper register. It's either use the QR code or nothing. My local Woollies actually hides the register in a plastic case under the front counter. Not sure why. Have to ask for it every time I go in there. Nobody checks if you have scanned the QR code either. Seen a few people just waving their mobiles at staff as they walk in. Not sure what the point of having the system is if the staff aren't checking that people are using it.

The Grand Prix looks like it won't happen this year in Melbourne. Some other state might try to steal but given that F1 drivers will not quarantine in Australia cause they're special, not sure any state would be dumb enough to allow them in. Australia may loose it altogether.

Given the cases in Sydney, it doesn't look good for the lock down to end this week. A few people are in ICU so that's not a good sign. Really hope Sydney can get thru this without any major issues or loss of life. I wish them all the best.

Getting the next tradie at the other property this week. Hopefully that task can start within the next week. Then one more after that but it's a minor task. Will see how the rest of the month will go. I just keep pushing to get stuff done.

Had to get a couple of my rings resized due the recent weight loss. Have been putting up with things but it got to the point of rings falling off. Most of my pinky rings now fit the third finger. Weight loss is expensive.

Had to do a plumbing task on the weekend. Had to be inventive. Trying to fit new stuff into an old house can be challenging. Found a solution which worked and I learned something new. Would cost a couple of hundred dollars if I called a plumber, mainly for the time involved.

Having some dry days in Melbourne. More cold mornings. Hard to get motivated to even leave the house. Hope the rest of the week is good for you. Another trip across the city for me tomorrow. Not impressed with the price of petrol at the moment. Of course it wouldn't have anything to do with the school holidays.