Hallowe'en

We're off to Townsville, northern Queensland, for the upcoming long weekend. It's the Melbourne Cup here in Victoria, which is THE horse race of the year, on Tuesday. So we are heading off to meet up with a European travel friend of Tom's who is in Townsville. A bit of R and R. It'll be hot and humid, that much we know. Enjoy the visit of the Great Pumpkin, and I hope it doesn't snow (in Winnipeg) for the big night! Hallowe'en isn't a big deal here, although you see lots of merchandise in the stores, as the bigger retail outlets are trying to cash in on this all "American" event. We'll cash in after the stuff that didn't sell goes on sale!

Everyone, behave yourselves....

Happy Birthday Nicole!

Today, Oct. 28, Nicole celebrates her 12th birthday. We had a party a few weekends ago with friends from school, and she had a great time there. This has been a busy and intense year for Nicole. She's just getting used to being 12, she told me this morning. It may take her a little while. It's a spring birthday this time, in the southern hemisphere.


She moved house in Winnipeg, changed schools, travelled via Vancouver to Hawaii, New Zealand (south and north islands), and landed in Australia in Ferny Creek. Touched Uluru. Soaked in hot mineral water in New Zealand.


Went to a new school, met new staff, made some great friends, travelled all over the bottom parts of Australia stuffed into the back seat of the Saab (didn't love that part all the time...!), was a sultana in pink satin (pics to follow when we receive them), learned some Aussie lingo ("haitch" for the letter H; "... as", a way of adding meaning to a comment such as "good as", "tired as", "happy as", "mad as", etc.). She is friends with the large Huntsman spider who lives in between the window and screen in the living room.

She's been wakened by hissing and snorting, heavy-breathing possums and even tried to make friends with one of them. A king parrot ate out of her hand. A kangaroo followed her around (and her brothers) looking for a snack. She heard a dingo howling. Saw the Southern Cross. Picked up some red dust on her footwear. Wore out a few pairs of shoes. Enjoys Vegemite on toast with the best of them.

Walked up One Tree Hill Road many times weekly. Endured her dad and brothers teasing her about a variety of events. Jumped on the trampoline, almost daily. Played in the Australian surf and swam in salt water. She danced at a disco. Read even more books about the Titanic... She misses her grandmother and her Winnipeg friends. They mean a lot to her as well.



May your next 12 years be just as amazing. Happy Birthday!

Poke the Possum

The possums were very wild last week. They are nocturnal, sleeping during the day and foraging and living during the night. Last week they were jumping and running wildly, on the roof and on the deck. They are heavy enough to shake the house when they land (it's built on blocks). At least the big ones are. The bigger ones are brush tail possums. Sometimes it sounds as if they are going to enter the house. We often wake in some state of terror or confusion after a frenzy of activity, which includes hissing and heavy breathing when they find another possum on their territory.

We returned from Brisbane to find a hole in the bathroom ceiling... eaten through. Fortunately our little friend(s) didn't break through, or there would have been mayhem in the house. After consulting with our exchange partner, Tom screwed a piece of wood over the hole. The other thing to do is to put steel wool in the hole as they don't enjoy chewing on it... who would? The next day I noticed another hole (yikes) in the hall. Our little friend (or another friend) chewed a hole here.

We stuffed steel wool in that hole until Tom could borrow the equipment he needed from his school. Until Friday afternoon, the steel wool stayed there. Then, in the afternoon, the possum went wild. Something woke it up. Must have intruded on its territory. They were chasing, fighting, running. Scared me silly. I actually thought someone had leapt onto the deck and was breaking into the house. Then the hissing started. When we got home from errands after school, we noticed the steel wool was gone. Must have pulled it into its sleeping spot. For all we know they're building nests in order to create a warm and loving environment for their babies.

So I thought it might be fun to wake up our little friend -- I mean, he/she has woken us up the last 3 nights, and a bit of its tail was sticking out of the hole. "Poke the possum"... it took a few pokes before our buddy shifted its butt. Didn't wake up though. Too deeply asleep after its hideous noisemaking and thumping and roaring around in the night. But the tail was still sticking out of the hole, and Nicole gave it a lot of love before Tom put some wood over that little hole. Once Tom started work on the spot, the little possum awoke and treated all to more hissing and snarling... sigh.

Kai has decided to name this possum "Noke". Here's Kai's version of the events. He sleeps at the end of the house where much of the nocturnal activity happens and has been awake each morning at 5:30 when they fight as they re-enter their sleeping spots.

Noke the possum was a possum who chewed a hole in the wall. Mom and dad decided that steel wool would stop the possum. It stayed a while. Today Noke must have pulled the steel wool away because it was not there anymore. So mom got a good idea to wake it up, after waking us up.

Dad got the chair and poked the piece of fur. After a while it moved but then came back. Eventually every one got a turn. Let's hope animal cruelty doesn't come to our door!

The possum is fine, the hole is covered, and the morning fighting continues...

Accident Update

I realize now I didn't have the big picture about our car when I wrote about Tom's accident. There is more damage than first appeared -- speaks to the strength of our vehicle in that it took a big hit and managed to stay looking good. The quarter panels in the back are broken, the crash bar (bumper) will have to be replaced, the hatch lid is now askew. The panel beaters (body shops) would have to take the inside of the car apart to repair the frame. Looks as if the frame shifted to the right a bit when it took the hit. And, given the age of the car (1997), it is unlikely that it will be repaired. My next job is to call the insurance company and give them the claim number. Australia has private vehicle insurance, not like Manitoba's MPI. So we will now have to discuss the write off and the pay out. It appears to be safe to drive. I got 2 quotes regarding the damage and both companies figured the insurance company wouldn't repair the car given its age, but that it looked safe to drive. It's just that we wouldn't be able to sell it in that it wouldn't quality under the safety regulations that are in place here.

Vegemite Update (from blunder to blunder, down under)

Trying to move on from the disaster of iSnack 2.0, Vegemite (Kraft) has dug itself deeper. The new name chosen for the unattractive sounding cream cheese/Vegemite combo, is Cheesybite Vegemite. Unfortunately the name Cheesy Bites is registered to Pizza Hut and they are contesting the new name. Spot the difference: Cheesy Bites vs. Cheesybite.

Astute eBay types snatched up a few crates of the "old" iSnack 2.0 and are now flogging it on the old interweb.


In keeping with the theme, one of the table groups at FC school has named their table -- iTurtle 2.0. Nothing like some chips off the old Vegemite block! They change their table names every two weeks..... so maybe they can change it to something along the lines of cheesy bite FC.

He'll do anything to get a day off...

After my thoughts on Thanksgiving about safety, and our travels, Tom had a close call this morning on the way to work. He doesn't drive often, being able to carpool and leave the car for me, but today he drove so he could stay late for a meeting.

A blue Porsche came at him in his lane, passing 4 cars on a curve on a solid line. This is not acceptable driving anywhere, including the winding, narrow roads of the Dandenong Ranges. Tom had to hit the brakes in order not to be in a head on collision, and the blue car barely managed to sneak in what should have been his (the driver was apparently male) driving lane. The car behind Tom hit the rear end of the Saab which is not damaged at all. The other car has its front end caved in, so it's a write off. The driver of the blue car continued on his way, not noticing the damage he caused. Or likely exhilarated by the adrenaline of race car driving on the winding roads... Fortunately no one was badly hurt, but Tom is shaken by the experience. I've had someone come at me head on on Mt Dandenong Tourist Road, passing on a curve, and had to hit the brakes to avoid a collision.

The police are now involved, and an astute motorist behind the Porsche got the license plate so the "hoon" driver will now have received a call from the police. There are strong laws here about hoon driving, usually resulting in people losing their vehicles and receiving major fines. So I'm sure this morning's little racing session will result in the loss of the vehicle. These roads are posted at 60 km, with a few exceptions, and regardless of the posted speed, there are always people who think it's ok to either tailgate (something we have NEVER experienced in Canada's wintry, slippery roads without disastrous consequences) or pass on these dangerous roads.

So Tom has himself a day away from the stress of the classroom in order to recover from his experience.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends. Australia doesn't celebrate this day the way we do in Canada, but we took a few minutes before our evening meal last night to talk about the things that make us thankful.

The kids gave thanks for the school they attend here in Ferny Creek. It's tops! Sometimes I wonder how much learning goes on (inside joke), but they are truly learning a lot about making new friends, new words, sights and sounds, a different climate (especially when we heard about the snow in the prairies), taking part in a musical production, barracking for a footy team, and the list goes on. Tom gave thanks for his family and for the opportunities he's having here -- maybe his studio isn't close by, but his brain is certainly engaged in the teaching and learning process. I gave thanks for the gorgeous birds, their sounds and songs -- I will miss this part of our life in Ferny Creek immensely when we go. I also gave thanks for safety -- we've been here for devastating bushfires and saw the way lives can change in an instant. We've driven through many beautiful spots, and have felt welcomed and respected. And safe. Some of the roads are wild, and drivers can be unforgiving, but we have been safe so far.

I have felt lonely at times, as have we all. Our patterns of living changed. Our friends are far away. When I feel like I'm at the end of my tether, I have only myself. That's another thing we are immensely thankful for -- our Canadian friends and families who have supported us emotionally from afar. The good wishes and comments are very welcome. We're not in a totally remote place, but are far away.

We wish you all happiness and good digestive systems! I planned to make a pumpkin pie, but couldn't find my usual staple, canned pumpkin. So now I'm baking an Australian pumpkin in the oven, and then it will become the pie. We'll have it today or tomorrow.

Term 4 - The home stretch

Things are indeed changing. More trees are leafing out. The possums and rosellas have been spotted nibbling on non-native tree buds. Apparently they are doing a number on maple trees... must have delicious buds. "Our" possums (we're proud to have many possums living in and with us here!) have nibbled through the bathroom ceiling and the hall wall. Tom stuffed some steel wool in the smaller hole and taped up the bigger one until he can cover it more effectively. Steel wool isn't that tasty, so apparently they then leave that part of the house alone. We're lucky they didn't land in the house, as they can cause internal chaos. And we were away for 10 days, so you can imagine the potential mess. The naughty naughty possums (Nicole's words) inhabit a strange part of our existence -- they wake us up at night, we revile them for their scratching and pooing everywhere, but they're "cute as", especially with their big eyes and bushy tails.

Ferny Creek Primary School has buckled down following its successful production of "Kids at Sea" at the end of term 3. Some catching up may be required as they spent much of the last few weeks of term 3 practising. Matthew, the principal, is gloating over the Grand Final win of his beloved Geelong Cats. It was one of the first things he told the kids -- "Barrack for the Cats... you can't lose". To be perverse, I cheered for St. Kilda, so close to a victory... it's been a long struggle for this club, so I thought they needed more support. Matthew somehow heard of my disloyalty, and I was confronted as we walked into the school on our first day. This morning, his coffee cup, precariously balanced on a tiny fence top on a wiggly fence, fell to the ground and broke. I got my own back. Gabe, Kai and Nicole are enrolled in a 10 day swimming programme -- I foolishly thought it was once/week for 10 weeks, but this is a daily trek to the Y. More catching up of school work will be required.

Tom is gearing up for the last projects and exams in his classes. The year 12s in Victoria are writing practice exams, to prepare for their VCE finals. The practice exams count for their final mark. Students with portfolios (major projects) in courses had to finish those by Oct. 3. He's managed to find a bit of time to work on some pottery, and is now making mugs and teapots. He hopes to fire those with Robert Barron of Gooseneck Pottery in November, in Robert's wood-fired anagama kiln. Tom has missed his studio and missed making pots so it's great for him to show his pottery skills to his colleagues.

I am hanging around the house, as Tom has the car. It's still chilly, so I made a nice fire in the wood "heater", and baked a chocolate cake for the gang. There were several very big hints directed my way... I can take a hint. We walked to school this morning in the sunshine, listening to the magpies carolling. Two of the girls in the year 5/6 class at FCPS found baby birds outside of their nests, so they have decided to hand raise them with a dropper, mushed worms, and some sort of mushed bird food. They aren't interested in the regurgitation method employed by many bird parents, and the worms were trying to wiggle out of their bucket prior to becoming bird food. They are bringing those birds to school every day to continue the feeding regime.

We are hoping for sunny weather this weekend -- I think it's time for a visit to the foreshore of Port Phillip, so see how the beach is faring. Water temps are 14C, so I don't think anyone will venture much past their knees. A dead tree came down in the front yard, and right now it's propped up in another tree, but we have to deal with that on the weekend as well. Fortunately most of these trees fall downhill, and it's downhill of the house.

Don't Mess with my Vegemite

A while back, Kraft (the giant "food" corporation) decided to brand and name a new Vegemite product, combining the classic Vegemite with cream cheese... yes, I know, gag me. I like Vegemite (call me strange), which is unusual in a non-Aussie. However, I digress. Kraft now produces Vegemite, so it appears as if the people in charge of marketing thought they could appeal to a younger generation to sell the new product. A national competition was launched to name the new spread, which combines the classic Vegemite (called Parwill in an earlier time) with cream cheese.

The result was announced at the AFL grand final 10 days ago -- iSnack 2.0. It didn't take long for the scorn to start. Then out came the news that Kraft had applied for trademarks on the new name 2 weeks prior to the end of the contest. Looks like they'd already decided what they wanted to call it. They told the public that they applied for several trademarks, once they saw where the competition was going. Sigh...spin, spin, spin. The consensus was immediate... no one liked it. The "younger" generation, to which the product name was aimed, went wild, twittering, blogging and facebooking their disgust. The name is going nowhere, and people didn't run screaming to their grocery shelves to pick up the product. So now there is a big rethink (iThink 8.2) going on.

Stay tuned... don't mess with the classic Aussie icon of Vegemite!

Dust Storms

This hasn't happened in 40 or more years... the sky turned red...our eyes were watering... the winds howled from the dry western (middle Australian) salt lakes and deposited tonnes of dust on the beaches and buildings of the eastern coast of Australia.

We were on the 2nd day of our visit to the Gold Coast (southern Queensland and northern NSW) and our friends Ted and Penny (Ped and Tenny as they are now known) took us to a gorgeous beach just north of Surfers Paradise. A paradise indeed... kilometres of gorgeous sand and waves. The stretch south of Southport, where we chose to play/swim, is built up with high rises, the playground of many international travellers. We were stopping in for some beach fun before we drove on to the Byron Bay area. The sun was out, but the day descended into murk as the dust storm hit the coast. We had to give up and head for a shopping centre (gasp!) to take a break from the dust-laden air. Of course there is a gigantic shopping centre, just ready for the tourist dollar. After a few hours it calmed down, but by then the zest for the beach was gone. THe wind was still howling and the waves were wild and strong... it was too much work to stay upright and try to body surf or boogy board, so we headed "home" to Beenleigh.

Bring Nellie home - Winnipeg Free Press

Bring Nellie home - Winnipeg Free Press

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