We are just home from a friend's 88th BIRTHDAY, at which one of the guests talked about hopes to travel to the Kimberley Region of Western Australia. Which put me in mind of the day we travelled to CAPE LEVEQUE. Many of you commented at the time, but I thought it worthwhile revisiting our big … Continue reading Full Day Cape Leveque Adventure & Kooljaman, Western Australia, May 2016
Author: Garrulous Gwendoline
Wonderfully Wacky White Cliffs
It’s not a lack of ideas that have kept me from blogging in recent weeks. I have been hectically busy for reasons which may become apparent at some time, and then again, maybe not. But a recent comment on a six year old post warmed the cockles of my heart, and prompted me to reshare it – even those many of my regular followers have read it before. But! What a thrill when a relative of who you have written about takes the time to comment, and praise what you have said. As a writer, for me, that is the biggest reward of all.
Day 6 of our Broken Hill adventure (lunch and after)
Whoever said you should “never judge a book by its cover” might have been thinking of White Cliffs, home of Australia’s first commercial opal fields.
On the surface, despite the pretty blue of the sky, the landscape seems a wasteland, a moonscape dotted with craters:
Opal Pseudomorph, source http://whitecliffsopal.com
Below the surface though, are some of the most magnificent opals available, including the unique speciality, the “pineapple opal“, whose correct title is a pseudomorph.
The other thing you will find underground is the people. Not just while mining. Under the surface is where most residents choose to live, in homes they call dugouts (self-explanatory really). Life underground is a year round 22’c (71’F), while up top, temperatures can range from freezing to 50’c (120’F).
Some businesses must operate above ground though, and we stop…
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Whoops! A Political Essay
I wrote this post WAAAY back in 2013 when the Coalition government of the Liberal/National Party were just on their way in. We then had a succession of Prime Ministers: Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull, and finally, Scott Morrison. None of them visionary. One of them downright misogynist, two of them climate deniers and incredibly right wing. I could go on…
As I wait to learn what will be the final composition of the Lower House, I thought it useful to return to what it all looked like 9 years ago, ‘cos I can tell you now – it’s gunna’ look a heck of a lot different.
And another BIG difference. This time, even though the Senate ballot paper was still as long as a table runner, we could vote below the line with only our first 12 choices of the actual CANDIDATES (instead of having to number the all). Which opened up a great opportunity for me to skirt around the parties I did not support.
Bill and I went to the theatre through the week. Every year we look forward to seeing The Wharf Revue, an all-singing, all-slinging group of political satirists. Every political personality and event is fair game for this mob, and they keep it up to date, even writing new sketches as fresh stories come to light over the course of their theatre season. There is always material to be mined in the Australian political landscape, and this year, they were obliged even further by our going to the polls on September 7th.
We met many people in our recent travels who are intrigued to know that voting is compulsory in Australia for any person aged 18 or older. You have to have a very good reason for failing to vote, otherwise you risk a penalty of A$170 plus court costs. So this post, a short political essay, is really aimed at my readers from outside Australia.
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The Reluctant Retiree 