Melbourne Cup Day

Another Cup Day and another 'no-win'. Will I ever stop wasting my money on horses? My three bets came 10th, 11th and 12th, at least they stuck together. The winnner Almandin, was a worthy steed and it was indeed an exciting finish, although I must agree with the Animal Liberationists, that the Cup can be a cruel master and that many horses suffer as a result. I love horses and certainly don't want them to suffer, and when sometimes they are given steroids to cover their pain the industry is of course at fault as it is solely money based. What can you do?

But just as flawed is Cardinal Pell who hopefully will get his comeuppance one day, to pay for all the  unspeakable results that have been caused by his inaction, and also it seems, by his wrong actions.

Another example of an abused boy...where there is smoke there is a bush fire!

The weak Aussie government being led by this mad right-wing ignoramus, Pauline Hansen.

New Zealand leading the way yet again in how it distributes welfare to at-risk people.

The beautiful horse winning the most expensive cup, $6 million, in the world!

Wotta weekend!

Home late last night in the rain after two great days of spiritual renewal with good friends in  Sydney at the ECK centre at Ultimo, right next to Central Station to be exact. 

Athough there were no trains running as trackwork meant all Central Coast trains were cancelled and this meant a wake-up call at five for a six am bus ride to Sydney. I swore I wouldn't do it again but the return trip was even worse on Sunday with the air-con freezing and the driver saying that he could do nothing about it. Result, everyone froze so really, this will be my last bus-trip to Sydney.

However getting together with all my friends was worth the awful trip, and today I am savouring the experience. Weather has also improved and I am enjoyng the Central Coast sunny experience. I also received an e-mail this morning with a cancellation to the Riverwood Downs Scottish dance weekend so now I can make this favourite weekend next Friday. Also I will be able to catch up with some Newcastle friends which will be excellent.

Melbourne Cup on tomorrow so I will be having a bet....

I always love the greys so tomorrow I will pick this beauty called Grey Lion.

Below, Stephanie Alexander is favourite cook but uses too much sugar for me today...

Below an example of corruption within the NSW Police force, with a Central Coast woman having been tortured and killed by a person who should have been in gaol but for police cover-up

The problem is the custom of covering their brothers' backs in the force, no matter what, they won't admit mistakes.

PM Turnbull taking a photo opp. with the Aboriginal card, which always is a tricky one, reasons being the absolute inequality with the discrimination against Aboriginals running deep, going back two  hundred years of discrimination and gaoling these so-called 'No-people'. Awful, awful awful!

Friday on my mind....

It will be very interesting to see how my life, however similar to that I led in Wellington, may shape up here on the Coast now I am in a very fragile financial situation. Whereas my outgoing, expensive, and expansive life in NZ was so enjoyable, (I did everything I wanted), here my activities will be severely curtailed with my rental and and car expenses biting heavily into my budget. But I knew about this and am aware that my French teaching was the plan to re-invigorate my pocket and that plan needs to be put into effect pretty soon. But I suppose once my stuff arrives in two weeks or so, I will be in a better position to offer my services.. All will be OK I am totally sure as when I went to see Gnostic Forest yesterday, Mary Holstein the very gracious owner welcomed me with an invitation to speak on November 30, as well as taking my batch of HU cds, so it was an excellent result. I am now 'on the way'.

 This weekend the Arahata training in Sydney will consolidate this and set my sails towards the Far Horizon.

Two more clients at Ruby's, examples of the alternate local scene.

Two pieces of theatre worth catching in Sydney..

Especially this one with Colin Friels which I had planned to see but will now just read this excellent review. I have things to do here instead.

HIVstill makes news with Dr. Anthony Fauci admitting he, amongst others, had made a big mistake in the early days. The climate was sheer madness and people wanted to believe anything to cast the blame somewhere. This latest research makes absolute sense to me, that the viral strain was in evidence well before the eighties throughout Haiti and NYC and was not due to the excesses of one French-Canadian Air Steward named Gaetan Dugas!

Italy suffers from ongoing earthquakes and is patently unprepared for rhem. Is this just another, if tragic, example of a country's karma?

Arrived home to a welcome update from Centrlink, they have finally changed my address.

Gold Coast tragedy

Am at Ruby's today and discover I have Maori contact, finally. I speak to Brenda who tells me she used to be a Te Reo teacher and knows Waiata perfectly, but unfortunately there are no groups in the area that do Kapa Haka, something which I thought would be the case. However it has at last ignited the fuse where I can start to do a bit of Te Reo. In the meantime until my books arrive who knows what may happen. I thought something would come from Ruby's, after all it is a book store as well as a café.

Ruby's has a staunch elderly following....

This tragedy could be just what large corporations are guilty of, not looking after the day to day servicing of a very successful, (financially), operation. Four people killed!!

What is is  liberal' Pope about!

I agree wholeheartedly, Brandis must go!

Brenda in the right, I knew she could help me get back into Te Reo!

FitzSimons is right again, stop the cruelty of fighting!

I tried a salmon fritata and it was actually quite good, in a bland sort of way, and very healthy.

Later today is my first foray to put out HU Cds in Woy Woy and I think the venue is the Gnostic Forest. At least there are some like-minded people who frequent that place.

Recovery Day

Well I received another text from Peter who has been discharged from hospital which is at least good news. Tonight I will visit him with some chicken broth, always a cure-all in times of crisis, but there are serious implications and some decisions will have to be made and he knows it by now, even possibly major surgery.

The two baristas at Ruby's are both very good, thank the Lord!

But not this bandit called Brandis who is horrifying all Australia with his autocratic actions and even impeding true Law to take place. He has undermined the Federal Solicitor General  and Australia is again the laughing stock of the world, certainly the legal one. P.M.Turnbull should be ashamed and stand down the Attorney General asap.

This is the Dean of Law at UNSW who says what I said, AG George Brandis is unfit for the job.

A warmup, and warning, for the madness of the Melbourne Cup next Tuesday, a day I always enjoy, and have a bet, mostly to lose of course!

Here is a happy local emigrée who has 'done good' on the Central Coast and even made a forty-five minute doco to show how good it is here. I must try to get to it as it is always interesting to see someone's pov from another country, this time, the UK. Also to support an independent film maker of course. I have been told I should get around to organising my doco to appear on U-tube...hopefully one day.

Tuesday in Gosford

It was a dramatic start to this morning when I received a text saying my good friend Peter was in hospital. Each time I hear such news I always fear the worst. One does that, I think, naturally. Luckily I knew I would be Gosford this morning for an appoinment which actually turned out to be cancelled so I was able to see Peter in ICU with a racing heart rate of 140 when mine is eighty! He was
there for the night with drip and monitoring but would be changing drugs which will help him come through.  It was the result of another over-stressed Tuesday where his day is filled with active lecturing and it always has a debilitating effect on his health. But this time it was near fatal. They kept him in hospital overnight but he said he has to work tomorrow to be present for his students on their final day. Pete is a dedicated teacher but this is at the expense of his health. I just don't know what to say to him but this may be the final straw.

So a coffee later at Café Body Fuel in Gosford prepares me for some more plant shopping on my way home, and hopefully Peter is under good care till tomorrow? I left the latest New Yorker with him and he will see the article I very much wanted him to read, he may even take notice of it if it is in the New Yorker which is is favourite magazine. Timing is everything after all.

This Napoleon character of Attorney-General George Brandis needs to be sacked but the PM has not the balls, to be frank, to do it.

Kibble Park in Gosford which is vasty underused and should be the centre of a thriving town, but isn't.

This should be my next cake to bake, that is when my kitchen stuff arrives from NZ in a few weeks.

Monday at Ruby's

Monday dawns hot and my clothes are on the line to be dried in a whiz. My weekend was great and I have many memories of last night at Paddington Town Hall, hopefully to be resuscitated next year when I join the Sydney GL Choir.

Today more shopping to do, settling in and creating an outdoor space for morning breakfast with a table and chairs in the sun.

Trump's future in Australia is not to be countenanced and I feel his demise is imminent.

Ruby's has good coffee and and i-net connection which is great. Optus has to be looked into as I am not getting a good coverage...

Egypt, once great, now socially crumbling and an economic disaster, is desperate for more sugar which it uses excessively creating enormous problems with diabetes... What can you say, Karma?

Divali, which I celebrated up-close and pesonal last year in Wellington, is in the paper today...

Coca Cola Amatil, the world's unhealthiest company, deserves to go bust, but will it? I doubt it, people are too addicted to sugar. I try never to buy anything associated with Coke. Ugh!

A look into the Optus Shop with obliging young nerds to help me,  showed me that I  am over-consuming  with my use of Facebook and may need to upgrade, but to what? Nathan, a devout Adventist, recommended an $80 plan which gives me a generous 25 gigabytes, but I am not sure I'll need so much once I am setup here with all my other stuff  to do. No more movies  to download and hopefully less Facebook to check into, my Data consumption will reduce drastically I think.

I'll sleep on it....zzzzzz.

Big Day in Sydney

Wow this day has alrady been big and now set to be even bigger.
The meeting I went to at the Eck centre was smaller than expected as the major talk from Minneapolis is not until next month, that is and if I don't download Harold's speech in the audio version  before then. But all was good and I met with my good Eck friends including dear Homyra who brought me up to date with all her plans amd all is well there. Next time I see her may well be in Woy Woy when she comes up for a visit.

Am now at a healthy cafe in Paddington called 'Mickeys ' where I had the healthiest drink imaginable of a mix of orange, apple, kale , turmeric, ginger and lemon. Am sure it will have an effect on my system, being the best thing I have eaten in days, this accompanied  by a salmon and veggie taco which was also extra healthy.
And now for the concert of the year with Sydney GLBTI Choir and a bonus of Michael Kirby's speech. I may even get a chance to chat, who knows?

Café on Hyde Park in the sun but chilly wind blowing....

Deng Adut on the cover whom I met recently in Wellington. He still suffers undestandably from surviving a horrific childhood...

This concert was another great example of how community singing raises the spirits and lightens the soul...I hope to be able to join them next year and raise my voice again...

The tragic passing of Gareth whom I knew from earlier days leaves a great hole but also a great legacy with his beloved choir.

Met up with Tim from many years ago, skinnny as ever and no changes there...and took a train home for a ten pm return. All good with the train system so I should be able to do a day trip easily when the Choir resumes next year. My schedule is gradually taking shape.

The Ocean Beach dream

Yesterday was sunshine and this beautiful view, and today, Saturday, is cold, wet and dreary, but everyone in Woy Woy is still wearing thongs, ie flip-flops or jandals, according to your country of origin, and t-shirts. But not me as I put on my raincoat and green Doc Martens and venture forth to have a coffee at Ruby's and see what the Saturday SMH has to say.

On Friday I went walking with  Cherel and her beautiful greyhound Penny on this pristine Ocean Beach, and then had an excellent coffee at Ettalong which has certainly become a bit more upmarket since I was here years ago. The local ferry takes Palm Beach trekkers on a thrice daily trip which I will do one day also.

It was a good day and I even visited Gosford to finish my relationship with a large fridge which I sold to Mover Wayne, and at Bunnings I bought my my first lemon tree, a Meyer dwarf, which I hope will bear some delicious thin-skins in the future. Now to get a bouganvillea and a red rose bush....I need to have a few plants in this concrete garden I have inherited, but some grass is there too so I have no complaints.

This mad monk Abbott is trying for a comeback but who knows what will happen?

James Packer's problems are getting seriously worse with this high-roller putting all his stakes into gaming casinos. He may well have just taken a very wrong turn.

Elizabeth Farrelly says she had it right years ago, that terraces are the housing solution they were last century. Mid-density terrace housing is the most practical and comfortable as well. I know this having lived in a few in my day and in Summer they are super-cool as long as in winter you can get some Northerly sun, they are great.

In the travel section the Kimberley Tour is now well on my bucket-list to do, it looks amazing  and as well as seeing Uluru I have to do this trip one day, but with some kindred spirit, so I'll just put it out there.

A nine day tour looks fantastic... I'll have to starting working to save some cash for the holiday of a lifetime!

This is Ruby's Red Lounge, an attractive addition to the coffee shop scene.

Am now ready for a busy Sydney trip with a visit to my brother's and and a very full day tomorrow.

Back at Mana

Weird weather makes for a return to sweaters and a warming coffee at Mana. I should be used to the   vagaries of the changing climate but it is still difficult when I am expecting a warmer clime than in NZ....

My hair is starting to look like Donald Trump's so perhaps it is time for a cut!!!

Is this a comb-over!!?

The earlier Bill Leak cartoon about Aboriginal parenting, or the lack of it, has set off a maelstrom of letters and in this latest cartoon Bill joins the fray himself. From my pov, I agree with his intentions but not wirh his action. The fragility of the alcohol-addicted Aboriginal elder men is the direct result of colonial racism and ignorance and I don't think we whites, i.e. cartoonists, have the right to make a joke of it from the paternal viewpoint. I know he didn't mean it that way, but that's how it unfortunately is...

The Gnostic magazine in the Mana café...

...showing a real-life Gnostic full of metal.

...and my next meal!

On the walls of the café are these local artworks at reasonable prices....

The wife of the PM Lucy Turnbull has her own agenda and is seen here to be a powerful broker for the future of Sydney. She wants it to become three cities which is quite realistic and such planning has been done a lot in the US. Expansion is inevitable and has to be sensibly planned especially creating an International  Airport at Badgery's Creek to take pressure off Mascot which is becoming intolerable.

This weekend is a return to Kiwi - Aussie rivalry on the footy ground with Auckland taking off when the All Blacks will doubtless win the third Bledisoe Cup game at Eden Park. I will be in Sydney anyway so may as well see it at my brother's home. Saturday night is for Rugby and Sunday is for ECK with the transmission of the address by the Living ECK Master at the Minneapolis Seminar. It is surely a big weekend for me again, finishing with a concert by the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Choir at the Paddington Town Hall, then home on Sunday night to recover. Such is my new lfe in OZ...