Source: (consider it)
|
Thread: Pacifica - Let us all Rejoice... Australia, NZ, islands, etc
|
|
Mr Curly
Off to Curly Flat
# 5518
|
Posted
The last gasps of the cricket season. Watching the last game for Middle today. Biggest had last game of the season for his new school yesterday, may squeeze something in back at his grade club next weekend.
Then it's the change of season. Middle and Little Miss are both starting careers as ref/umpire in respective sports, which will be interesting.
As for driving on the other side of the road, it took ages for my normal confidence to return after I got home after 4 weeks driving around Europe.
mr curly
-------------------- My Blog - Writing, Film, Other Stuff
Posts: 2645 | From: Curly Flat | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged
|
|
Banner Lady
Ship's Ensign
# 10505
|
Posted
Spent most of the long weekend renovating our hallway. Despite suggestions a little help would be handy, I was left to my own slightly less than handy devices. After 7 hours of painting yesterday, TP & B1 wandered through to comment on my work.
"Needs another coat of paint." "You should have filled those better."
It felt like an episode of the blasted Block.
BL. Not impressed.
-------------------- Women in the church are not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be enjoyed.
Posts: 7080 | From: Canberra Australia | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
Threaten to fill something else - what better?
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
Tell them if they can do any better, they can get on with it.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
Miss M's Dad has joined in raising money for cancer research in various ways over the years. Two things he has always done are the World's Greatest Shave and November. I must say I prefer looking at his shaven head to a month of moustache.
This time last year was not long after Miss M's diagnosis with leukaemia. He raised over $2000 and has set that as his goal for this year. Last time I looked he was almost at $800 although the appeal really opened only yesterday.
So this year, he will have no hair, and Miss M now has beautiful curls after hers has grown back from the chemo. She still has at least another two years of treatment and maintenance chemo to go, but the difference in her is just amazing.
His new work is very supportive. They are holding a morning tea for him this morning and his workmates will shave his head. He has also been given permission to email staff with link to donation page.
Link to page is in signature and donations can be anonymous, private or public.
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
For those like my family who are not fans of FB, I have amended link in Signature.
That was strange. I thought it should have changed on all posts but it didn't so added this post. It has now changed to new link. [ 10. March 2015, 23:44: Message edited by: Lothlorien ]
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Clarence
Shipmate
# 9491
|
Posted
Praying for our Pacific neighbours; some islands are being hard hit by the cyclone. It distresses me how much media focus has been given to cyclones on the Australian coasts and none to the Pacific.
-------------------- I scraped my knees while I was praying - Paramore
Posts: 793 | From: Over the rainbow | Registered: May 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Evangeline
Shipmate
# 7002
|
Posted
I expect Australian media to show a lot of warnings and predictions re impending cyclones on Australian coast. I find it really offensive though when media coverage of cyclones that have hit our Pacific neighbours is really scant and/or focuses on Australian holiday makers-horror of horrors having their holidays cut short and having to wade through knee-deep water-when locals have had their houses and all their possessions destroyed.
On a positive note there has been massive relief efforts by Australia to our Pacific neighbours following tsunamis and cyclones in the past.
Posts: 2871 | From: "A capsule of modernity afloat in a wild sea" | Registered: May 2004
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
I saw that, Clarence. Vanuatu badly hit. I have a friend who goes there and also to Solomons regularly.
Son is now on home stretch of his Leukaemia Foundation fundraising, although I think the donation lines stay open for several more days. Last year, with the newness of Miss M's diagnosis he raised much more than his original goal. He has had about 75% of this year's goal donated so far.
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Curiosity killed ...
Ship's Mug
# 11770
|
Posted
UK news this morning is all about Vanuatu and there was nothing about Australia being hit at all. But it sounds terrible in Vanuatu - whole islands flattened
-------------------- Mugs - Keep the Ship afloat
Posts: 13794 | From: outiside the outer ring road | Registered: Aug 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
MrsBeaky
Shipmate
# 17663
|
Posted
My eldest daughter lives in the Far North of New Zealand and I've just picked up an email from her. They've been told to prepare for the cyclone to possibly hit them in the next few hours....
-------------------- "It is better to be kind than right."
http://davidandlizacooke.wordpress.com
Posts: 693 | From: UK/ Kenya | Registered: Apr 2013
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
Pictures from Vanuatu were shown on the Weather Channel's "force of nature" slots here today - it looked very nasty.
for the people affected.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Clarence
Shipmate
# 9491
|
Posted
Vanuatu is a disaster area: Red Cross calling for donations and Cyclone Pam is still likely to cause damage as it moves south. NZ MetService
-------------------- I scraped my knees while I was praying - Paramore
Posts: 793 | From: Over the rainbow | Registered: May 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
Galloping Granny
Shipmate
# 13814
|
Posted
A number of my friends were teaching on Vanutu in the fifties and sixties; they'll be distressed.
As for Matarangi (eastern Coromandel), a fair bit of rain yesterday and lasy night at around 10.30 tremendous gale that slammed into the house with loud crashes and creaks of walls and roof, but not for long because we'd just gone to bed and it didn't keep us awake. Overcast and almost calm this morning, with flowers from my various hibiscus scattered around (but plenty of buds waiting to open!)
Have to see if we can give to Red Cross or CWS.
Neighbour's wifi is now on but we have to sit in the car outside his fence to get a useful signal.
for the homeless and the bereaved and all those affected.
For all those who are helping.
GG
-------------------- The Kingdom of Heaven is spread upon the earth, and men do not see it. Gospel of Thomas, 113
Posts: 2629 | From: Matarangi | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Huia
Shipmate
# 3473
|
Posted
No weather warnings here, but the only day without rain forecast for this week is Friday - which is the day the school is holding the cross country run.
I don't think it will be enough to help the farmers though.
-------------------- Charity gives food from the table, Justice gives a place at the table.
Posts: 10382 | From: Te Wai Pounamu | Registered: Oct 2002
| IP: Logged
|
|
DangerousDeacon
Shipmate
# 10582
|
Posted
When I worked with the Anglican Church of Melanesia, I spent a fair bit of time in Vila, Luganville and Northern Vanuatu. Unfortunately, no news from them since Friday afternoon. Also badly affected were the eastern parts of the Solomon Islands (Temotu Province) especially Tikopia and Anuta which have also been out of contact since Friday.
Many prayers
-------------------- 'All the same, it may be that I am wrong; what I take for gold and diamonds may be only a little copper and glass.'
Posts: 506 | From: Top End | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
The subconscious speaks. I glanced up to see an election ad for the Libs. It came from a site called "backbaird." My mind read that as "black beard." [ 19. March 2015, 07:55: Message edited by: Lothlorien ]
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
DangerousDeacon
Shipmate
# 10582
|
Posted
RIP Malcolm Fraser. Controversial and ambitious in earlier years, in later years wise and reconciled with Gough Whitlam and other foes of earlier times.
-------------------- 'All the same, it may be that I am wrong; what I take for gold and diamonds may be only a little copper and glass.'
Posts: 506 | From: Top End | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
sharkshooter
Not your average shark
# 1589
|
Posted
It looks like my daughter will be spending her next semester at the University of Wollongong, near Sydney, Australia. What a wonderful opportunity for her, having never left North America.
She is so excited, as are her mother and I.
-------------------- Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. [Psalm 19:14]
Posts: 7772 | From: Canada; Washington DC; Phoenix; it's complicated | Registered: Oct 2001
| IP: Logged
|
|
Barnabas Aus
Shipmate
# 15869
|
Posted
Wollongong's an interesting place- founded on coal mining and heavy industry, but the university has a reputation for innovation. The industries brought many postwar migrants to the region, mostly from central and Southern Europe, so that influence remains strong. Just south of the city is Australia's largest Buddhist temple. All of this squeezed between a dramatic escarpment and the Pacific Ocean. My daughter and her family live on the heights of Port Kembla, immediately South of the city, with dramatic views South along the Pacific Coast. I hope your daughter has a great time there in addition to her studies.
Posts: 375 | From: Hunter Valley NSW | Registered: Sep 2010
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
quote: Originally posted by sharkshooter: It looks like my daughter will be spending her next semester at the University of Wollongong, near Sydney, Australia. What a wonderful opportunity for her, having never left North America.
She is so excited, as are her mother and I.
How exciting for you all. Wollongong beaches are beautiful as is the area behind with rainforest patches and great scenery.
A word of advice from someone who used to deal with students here for a semester from Canada and USA. Sydney winter temperatures are laughable when compared with temps from such places. Many of the students said they had never been so cold as winter in Sydney.
Our houses are not built for our climate, being until recently copies of Uk design. Fortunately this is changing.
New places may be centrally heated, but this is not a usual feature of houses and student housing. When does she arrive? June is first month of winter down here but July and August can be colder as the earth tilts more away from the sun for us.
Wollongong has a good reputation. What will she be studying? You are lucky. Just now the exchange rate is well in your favour. [ 20. March 2015, 21:07: Message edited by: Lothlorien ]
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Evangeline
Shipmate
# 7002
|
Posted
Wollongong has become a bit of an extreme southern suburb of Sydney. It's naturally very beautiful, with proximity to beaches and a fairly laid-back, unpretentious (some would say unsophisticated) feel. I hope your daughter has a wonderful time. There are a number of us shippies in Sydney, so sing out if you have any questions or we can do anything to help..
Posts: 2871 | From: "A capsule of modernity afloat in a wild sea" | Registered: May 2004
| IP: Logged
|
|
sharkshooter
Not your average shark
# 1589
|
Posted
She arrives in late July and will be there until the end of November. The weather is much milder than our winters here in Ottawa, as we went more than two full months without ever seeing above freezing temperatures. From what I have read, winter in Sydney is more like spring or fall with temperatures, I think, rarely falling close to freezing. Her major is business.
My wife and I are going to plan a couple weeks with her after her exams are over and tour the country. It looks like Sydney, Cairns and Uluru (and surrounding areas) might be the targets. This would allow visits to the Great Barrier Reef and Ayers Rock.
-------------------- Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. [Psalm 19:14]
Posts: 7772 | From: Canada; Washington DC; Phoenix; it's complicated | Registered: Oct 2001
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
quote: From what I have read, winter in Sydney is more like spring or fall with temperatures, I think, rarely falling close to freezing.
Exactly. Which is why OS students find it cold down here. We try to pretend we are warm, a beach city etc. Houses are ill equipped for cold days and usually only the main living area is heated and that while people are in it, not all day.
As I said, there are places with central heating, my brother's is and I guess GeeD's probably also is as it is in a similar area. It has never been the norm around here.
August is usually windy.
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
That sounds really exciting, Sharkshooter - I hope she, and you and Mrs. S. when you go, have a wonderful time.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
quote: Originally posted by sharkshooter: My wife and I are going to plan a couple weeks with her after her exams are over and tour the country. It looks like Sydney, Cairns and Uluru (and surrounding areas) might be the targets. This would allow visits to the Great Barrier Reef and Ayers Rock.
Please, Sharkshooter, no more Ayers Rock. For 20 years or more now, it's usually been called Uluru. Much the same as calling your First People Eskimos. And although it's not illegal, please don't climb it either. It is a sacred place for the ancient peoples who live in the area, and to climb it is much worse than clambering over the high altar at St Peter's. It is a stunning sight, as is most of Central Australia. Watching sunset on Uluru is very moving. Nearby Kata Tjuta is worth a side trip.
Neither Sydney or Wollongong is very cold. Where we live can get close to zero at nights in winter, but Sydney itself and Wollongong are close to sea level, and being on the coast also moderates the climate. Think of it as being similar to Vancouver, a bit warmer and quite a bit less rain. Yes, we did have central heating - now converted to air-conditioning after we installed solar generating panels - and it's very handy. We usually use enclosed fires, burning wood.
When you arrive in November, Sydney will be having daily maxima in the mid 20's. In Central Australia and Cairns, the maxima will be mid to high 30's. November would be good in Cairns as it's before cyclone season. Just remember that the land area is just a bit less than Canada and distances between the places you talk of visiting are substantial.
Something your daughter will need to be very careful about: we drive on the left and she will need to reverse her usual practice when crossing a road. It sounds a small point, but several US tourists have been killed when they step from the kerb into the path of a car approaching from their right.
Wollongong is an attractive city, spread out on a narrow strip of coastal land between the sea and the Illawarra escarpment. Plenty of good clean beaches.
Trains to/from Sydney in off-peak are at hourly intervals but probably finish around midnight. They are all double-deck EMUs and would be safe. Outside the area between Newcastle to the north, the Blue Mountains to the west and Wollongong to the south, train services in NSW are very infrequent, probably much the same as you'd be used to in Canada. Should your daughter want to travel to Canberra, she'd need to catch a bus.
Crime rates here much the same as Canada, a lot lower than the US.
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Banner Lady
Ship's Ensign
# 10505
|
Posted
Yay - we love having Canucks in Oz because we usually understand each other very well. She'll have a ball, and so will you. Just remember to wear insect repellent.
-------------------- Women in the church are not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be enjoyed.
Posts: 7080 | From: Canberra Australia | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
sharkshooter
Not your average shark
# 1589
|
Posted
I had no idea the name was changed - all the tourism pages I visited still call it that.
As to driving on the wrong side of the road , yes, I will over-parent her on that issue. The fun part will be me driving rental cars when we are there. I had a brief experience with that in the Bahamas many years ago. The hardest parts were turning in the city and passing on 2-lane roads.
I expect that we will fly from Sydney to Cairns then to Uluru and back to Sydney, each being about 3 hours. The trains would take up a lot of our time, but the final decision will also depend on cost.
-------------------- Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. [Psalm 19:14]
Posts: 7772 | From: Canada; Washington DC; Phoenix; it's complicated | Registered: Oct 2001
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
Indeed, Lawrence lived in a house called Wyewurk in Thirroul for long enough to write a pretty poem called Kangaroo there as well as a novel of the same name. I've always thought that the novel has early fascist overtones, the sort of thing which the Futurists were writing in the 1910s.
Back to more serious things for the Sharkshooters: When you arrive in Sydney, you can catch a train from the airport into a major city station, change trains and get one straight to Wollongong. Make sure that you take a seat on the left-hand side of the train and on the upper deck for the best views. Neither will be especially set up for plane travellers, but reasonably quick, and certainly save the problems of getting off a plane, tired and a bit jet-lagged, and having to find your way to a strange destination and driving on the correct side of the road for only the second time.
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Vulpior
Foxier than Thou
# 12744
|
Posted
Flying is the way to go between destinations that far apart. Don't even think about anything else.
You should be aware that the time you are coming is not generally recommended for either Cairns or Uluru; have a read of Trip Advisor's information. However, if those are the places you want to go and this could be your only visit, you don't really have a choice. You should be forewarned, though.
-------------------- I've started blogging. I don't promise you'll find anything to interest you at uncleconrad
Posts: 946 | From: Mount Fairy, NSW | Registered: Jun 2007
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
Uncle Pete
Loyaute me lie
# 10422
|
Posted
There is quite possibly no good time for tourists to visits some sights. I missed out of number one on my bucket list due to air travel and road travel to Cairns being totally disrupted during my February 2011 visit. And Vulpior should remember what happened the day I was driven to the Blue Mountains
Always have backup plans. There was no sun in Australia (nearly) until I got to Perth.
-------------------- Even more so than I was before
Posts: 20466 | From: No longer where I was | Registered: Sep 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
Sharkshooter, Zappa may be very reverend, but don't listen to his advice about driving. Certainly, if you look at a map you can see that if you travel north from Alice Springs, then right, you will eventually get to Cairns. On the way, you will find a few places to eat and spend the night, but..... The car will be knackered, you will be racing to get divorced, and your daughter will never again speak to either of you. The Canadian equivalent would be driving from somewhere in the Yukon to the northern trip of Quebec.
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Uncle Pete
Loyaute me lie
# 10422
|
Posted
Which has certainly been done, but there are more places to eat or sleep. (But if you are talking of a direct line then Hudson's Bay and James Bay might be an insurmountable obstacle.) But it would be an interesting ride to the Tip. What's a Trip? Although granted that the entire province can be a real trip if you are not prepared for it.
-------------------- Even more so than I was before
Posts: 20466 | From: No longer where I was | Registered: Sep 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
sharkshooter
Not your average shark
# 1589
|
Posted
quote: Originally posted by Gee D: Sharkshooter, Zappa may be very reverend, but don't listen to his advice about driving. Certainly, if you look at a map you can see that if you travel north from Alice Springs, then right, you will eventually get to Cairns. On the way, you will find a few places to eat and spend the night, but..... The car will be knackered, you will be racing to get divorced, and your daughter will never again speak to either of you. The Canadian equivalent would be driving from somewhere in the Yukon to the northern tip of Quebec.
Indeed. Don't forget, of our 2 weeks in Australia, we would spend about 10 days of it driving. Not really what I want to do.
quote: Originally posted by Vulpior: Flying is the way to go between destinations that far apart. Don't even think about anything else.
You should be aware that the time you are coming is not generally recommended for either Cairns or Uluru; have a read of Trip Advisor's information.
Cairns shows average high around 30 in November - that is not problematic. We try to avoid Phoenix in the summer when the temperatures are over 40C, but will be there in May this year when the average temperatures are about 34C - that's about the top end of comfortable, and have seen that temperature there in February before.
However, we don't really have a choice of the when, and those are areas I really have always wanted to visit, so we will survive.
-------------------- Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. [Psalm 19:14]
Posts: 7772 | From: Canada; Washington DC; Phoenix; it's complicated | Registered: Oct 2001
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
If it is very hot or otherwise unfavourable, you can console yourself with the thought that you are not living there.
Vulpior came up from near Canberra to take Pete and me to mountains. The fog began as we were not far on the road and became thicker the higher we went. We arrived at Echo Point and Scenic railway and could see next to nothing. Poor Pete had to buy postcards in the souvenir shop to see what he should have been looking at.
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Mr Curly
Off to Curly Flat
# 5518
|
Posted
Home after the penultimate rehearsal for the Wesley Mission Good Friday procession. Sydneysiders should head into Martin Place on Good Friday at 1.30 - it will be good.
Quite tired, though.
mr curly
-------------------- My Blog - Writing, Film, Other Stuff
Posts: 2645 | From: Curly Flat | Registered: Feb 2004
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
quote: Originally posted by Lothlorien: ... Poor Pete had to buy postcards in the souvenir shop to see what he should have been looking at.
That happened to us when we went round the Burren of Clare in Ireland when we were on our honeymoon: all we saw was a few rather dejected-looking sheep.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Banner Lady
Ship's Ensign
# 10505
|
Posted
A small service of dedication and blessing for my studio to be a place of prayer & creativity will be held tomorrow night. Some of my Christian friends are rather puzzled that I have chosen the colours and the symbol of the peacock for it.
I have always felt sad that such a beautiful creature should be saddled with associations of vanity. There are ancient nativity scenes with a peacock depicted alongside the stable animals because of the many 'omniscient' eyes and divine colouring. It has been said to be a symbol of renewal because when it sheds its feathers the ones that grow in are ever more beautiful each year. But my favourite association is that it is a symbol of humility, because it carries its beauty behind it, and hides its tail most of the time.
BL. Embracing peacockery.
-------------------- Women in the church are not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be enjoyed.
Posts: 7080 | From: Canberra Australia | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
I think a peacock seems like an excellent symbol for an artist's studio - after all, you're going to be producing beautiful things, and a peacock is certainly a thing of beauty.
Once, when we were in the Isle of Man, we saw a splendid peacock strutting his stuff, and being completely ignored by the peahen he was courting. We assured him that we were impressed, even if she wasn't.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Banner Lady
Ship's Ensign
# 10505
|
Posted
My grandmother (an Australian born to stern German parents) kept them on her farm as watchdogs. Whenever someone came near the house they would screech loudly. This was in the days when the countryside was wary of itinerant workers and on high alert for bushrangers.
She was very proud of her pair of white peacocks and delighted when they produced a family. When one of the chicks went missing she observed that a farm cat was looking rather pleased with itself. So she wrung its neck and performed an instant autopsy to see if it had eaten the chick. It had!
Also interesting is that the peacock is a symbol of uncorruptibility - the ancients thought its dead flesh would not decay, which led to peacock blood having a high black market value as a bringer of immortality, and a ward against evil.
-------------------- Women in the church are not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be enjoyed.
Posts: 7080 | From: Canberra Australia | Registered: Oct 2005
| IP: Logged
|
|
Lothlorien
Ship's Grandma
# 4927
|
Posted
quote: A small service of dedication and blessing for my studio to be a place of prayer & creativity will be held tomorrow night.
How lovely! Having seen some of the beautiful articles done by you, I echo your prayer for the studio and for you.
-------------------- Buy a bale. Help our Aussie rural communities and farmers. Another great cause needing support The High Country Patrol.
Posts: 9745 | From: girt by sea | Registered: Aug 2003
| IP: Logged
|
|
Huia
Shipmate
# 3473
|
Posted
Look! A new library for Christchurch I was so excited when I saw it that I cried. I have missed having a reasonable sized library to visit since Feb 22 2011. It will be completed in 2018.
I think the design will grow on me and they did use lots of ideas that the public submitted including some that Shippies suggested when I started a thread about it a couple of years ago.
I feel like all my birthdays and Christmases have come at once.
Huia
-------------------- Charity gives food from the table, Justice gives a place at the table.
Posts: 10382 | From: Te Wai Pounamu | Registered: Oct 2002
| IP: Logged
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
I'm not sure that I'd like that design to grow on me Huia, but let's see how the reality is rather than an "artist's impression". Better to look at the contents.
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|
Piglet
Islander
# 11803
|
Posted
I think it looks lovely - I hope the ground beneath it behaves well enough for them to be able to build it.
-------------------- I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander. alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Dennis the Menace
Shipmate
# 11833
|
Posted
For those of us in NSW, 'Vote early, vote often'!!!
-------------------- "Till we cast our crowns before Him; Lost in wonder, love, and praise."
Posts: 853 | From: Newcastle NSW Australia | Registered: Sep 2006
| IP: Logged
|
|
Gee D
Shipmate
# 13815
|
Posted
Not quite Dennis - it's "Vote early, vote often and vote for the dead".
-------------------- Not every Anglican in Sydney is Sydney Anglican
Posts: 7028 | From: Warrawee NSW Australia | Registered: Jun 2008
| IP: Logged
|
|