The tide's out

I find tides quite interesting. My father would always say, the tide's coming in, or going out. This was evidently important if you wanted to catch fish. I don't like fishing. Along with it being ever so boring, I don't like to see fish gasping for oxygen once they are out of the water. I like my fish in a can or batter where I can ignore their suffering of a slow death.

Tides, yes, that was what I am talking about. Where is a big one? Funny that you have asked. Maybe outback explorer Red or local WA person Grace or traveller Diane have seen this, but no matter, there are very big tidal changes at a certain place in Western Australia. Correctly now perhaps, West Australia, a state within our great Commonwealth of Australia. You are waiting to hear about tides? I seldom write a post without a personal connection, however obscure at times.

David Attenborough featured the location on one of his shows, I believe. Let me see what I can find out about it.

It is near Derby, way up north in West Australia. I think that is pronounced as written rather than Darby. Ok, I have found Attenborough's clip on YT.

Talbot Bay is the exact location. The bay has two narrow openings to the Indian Ocean and the tidal water flows in and out these gaps with huge force. The highest world tides recorded are in Nova Scotia, but this place has the second highest in the world.

There can be a fourteen metre change in the water level in just four hours. To visualise, think of the height of a five storey building. I'm thinking of a couple of turbines to generate electricity. I can also imagine a lot of sea creatures get swept in and out if they are nearby. Your pooh stick would take off like a rocket.

Best you watch the You Tube clip.

Where was Tim?

Our Prime Minister's consort was clearly busy with other matters on the day. He could not rescue his damsel in distress. As this photo from The Age shows, instead a federal policeman stepped up to the crease. One could do worse if you are in difficulty when bolting from 'rampaging Aboriginal protesters' than have him envelop you in his strong and powerful arms.

Farewell Dinner

We decided to shout our guests to a last meal somewhere outdoors along the river at the casino. Too expensive, too posh, too this, too that. What about this one? It has spare seats for us. And so we ate at Cafe Baci.

I wasn't really expecting too much, but it was first class. The service was excellent. So good in fact, and I have never done this, I discretely tipped our waiter $10. The food was very good and more than we could eat, even though we did not order too much. We finished our meal with coffee and cognac, watched the fire show, walked through the casino to where we thought there would be an animated display for Chinese New Year, but there wasn't. To celebrate CNY many stalls had set up along the river, unfortunately blocking the view of the river. We crossed the river and made our way to the Federation Square tram stop. It was just a great evening, made better by us not shouting the meal, but R's sister and her friend paying. We paid for breakfast the next day and a late beachside lunch.

A few little surprises appeared around the highrise before they departed on Saturday evening.

The flowers were pretty obvious. You can't exactly miss them.

Good call here.


Potions, a pack for R too. In the box is teeth cleaning tablets! They'll be interesting.


I'd forgotten that we saw acrobats on the river front.


Very busy and very pretty along the river bank. Sometimes I just love my city.

Gratuitous

R's sister and her friend wanted to go to Victoria Market for some rubbish gifts to take back to the UK. We were sitting and having coffee when I noticed an interesting looking cafe. I went to take a snap but some photo blockers got in the way.

Screwing the worker

Briefly when I was a callow youth, I had a business. It was a joint venture with my step mother, a garage in South Gippsland. My father owned the building freehold and we paid him rent. It was successful, but the bright lights of the city were calling me. Does that qualify me to comment on business? No, not at all, but I did learn some business things. One was don't trust staff. The other was if you do happen to have staff who are trustworthy, do all you can to keep them.

I just worked out this formula below in my head today. I am absolutely sick of owners of businesses complaining about how much their staff cost them. One successful restaurateur, George Colombaris, suggested staff should not get penalty rates for working un-sociable hours. Ha, so the lowest paid workers in Australia are getting rich on penalty rates. I don't think so.

Business owners, here is a formula. Costs, including staff, rent, supplies, taxes and all the rest, plus a profit margin for yourself equals the price you charge. It is that simple.

There is not a lot you can do to reduce many of your costs, except for staff and so you target the soft option. Fortunately in Australia workers are protected by awarded conditions and pay, so you can't cut those costs either. Instead you make a big noise in the media about staff costs. No, all business should be paying their staff the same basic pay or more. Staff costs do not make your business uncompetitive, so cease your bleating.

To the hills

Last Sunday we started at Grants Picnic Ground. It was very busy with people barbecuing. The rosellas have been driven away by the cockatoos, it would seem. There was only one rosella, hanging back in a tree. Others had the cockies on their arms, but I find they scratch my tender young skin.



I seldom drink tea, but coffee does not go with scones like tea does, so a fine pot of tea each with our scones.


I heard a slight laugh in the trees. More half a laugh. Yep, there is the culprit, a kookaburra. They apparently like eating snakes and lizards, which they kill by carrying them up into a tree and dropping them, repeating until the reptile is dead. We have seem them do it with a sausage off a barbecue.


Onto Mount Dandenong, which is absolutely wonderful now. The five dollar entry charge keeps the hoards away a bit, thankfully. Every other park was so crowded. We have given up on barbecues in parks in the hill and surrounds. They are always too crowded now.

This pole has Australian animals and an Aborigine carved into it.


This world globe has figures linking hands on its circumference. It sits on pumped water and with some effort, you can get it turning and its momentum keeps it going for some time.


This is or was a tv broadcast tower. Now, I don't know if they are still used. At the base of one on a building looked to be an old sign, perhaps Channel 9. The elm tree was just glorious.

Nice work Jetstar

Unbeknownst to us, R's sister and and her friend spent five hours at Melbourne airport after their Jetstar flight to Sydney was cancelled. I suspect the flight was cancelled because of insufficient numbers. It is Andrew's fault. We wanted to go Qantas.

Upon arrival at Sydney airport they caught a taxi to their hotel. The taxi gave them a Cook's Tour and charged accordingly, about 30% more. Andrew said taxis in Sydney are really good.

It rained and it rained. Andrew said Sydney weather is lovely.

They went for a drink to the pub opposite the Travelodge. A old guy tried it on with them. He was more successful with another lass. They observed him crossing the road with her to the hotel where they were staying. Andrew has put us up in a knocking shop.

Lasses, did you have a nice view from your hotel? No Andrew, we had a view of the pub across the road.

They et in Chinatown. Andrew, that takeaway Asian food we had at your place was so nice, we thought we would try some in Sydney. It was awful. It is your fault.

Andrew said how sparkling blue the harbour will be. It isn't.

Yep, it is all my fault. All a joke of course.

As Victor pointed out in a comment, the full day they were there it just rained and rained. They did go on the ferry but came straight back. A couple of nice young men bought them vodkas in the hotel opposite where they were staying. They also had fish and chips, which were lousy too. At least the hotel room was good.

We collected them from the airport at about 5pm and immediately they were back here, they wrapped themselves up, still not rid of the Sydney damp.

Some spark plugs for the diesel electric

I like trains. They are a marvellous way to travel. I have a vague understanding of electric trains, they have electric motors and electric bits and the power comes from an overhead wire or a rail on the ground. It is all I need to know.

Steam trains are so cool. All that smoke and steam, shovelling coal into a boiler, pressured steam moving pistons to drive wheels. Not too hard.

Modern diesel electric trains just seem to work without a problem. They are high tech beasts and there is nothing really to see. They just work.

But old diesel trains have become quite fascinating to me, especially the starting up of them. It is not a simple process of pushing a button and the engine starts.

There is a long whirring I think of a starter motor. There is what looks like steam belching out, and then the steam is combined with black smoke and lots of putt putt noises. Sometimes the engine settles to a regular beat, but not always. Is that a fail to start?

Like cars, of course of diesel engine needs a starter motor. What powers it? Batteries? How many and what voltage are they usually? How long does the starter motor engage?

What is the steam? Or is it not steam but white smoke?

Do the engines kind of start, but don't really, and hence the starter motor has to keep turning? They seem to start a bit, like firing, but don't really start for quite a long time.

In the probably forlorn hope that I have reader who understands old diesel electric trains. I might have to go to a website forum and ask questions there.

Stay in Florida. Cheap digs.

Another fine photo from shorpy.com It is the Tampa Bay Hotel in Florida in 1902. It is a big photo and if you click it, you will see the fine detail. I do love restrained architecture. Can you imagine staying there, the interior, the uniformed staff tending to your ever want. I was made for such a life. Pity it didn't happen.

Happy Oz Day

It is Australia Day today. It is a public holiday and we celebrate.....umm, being Australian I suppose. At times you will see cars with Australian flags attached to them. I have never felt comfortable with the use of our flag in such a manner. To use a word my grandparents used to use, it is skiting. Apparently flying our flag on the car is a favourite things for racists to do. I'll make do with the toothpick with the Aussie flag.

I like my country as much as the next person. There are many people in Australia who will justifiably disagree with me, but Australia truly is the lucky country. By this I mean it is relatively successful for no reason other than succeeding by arse rather than class.

I am sorry for being so negative on what is supposed to be celebratory day, but I have and most of you have seen many changes in Australia, and mostly they have been for the good. What troubles me is the lack of political passion, be it left or right, it doesn't matter. What is wrong is that no one believes anymore. Everyone is so cynical. It is easy to blame the politicians who literally or figuratively pork barrel. It is easy to blame the shallow five second grab media.

But no, the fault lies with us, you and me. We have fallen for the 'give them cake'. We are fat and gazing at our navels.

Australia has such a huge potential and many individuals do fine things, but collectively, we really need to get our act together.

I would like to expand further, but I have to write an email to the manager of the building next door to query why the air conditioning is running at night time and disturbing my sleep.

Later edit: This is all very glum. Try last years Oz Day post or the year before for some nice music.