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Showing posts from September, 2018

Translation

Don’t Toss that Bike!

This Shed is a bit like the Tardis - it is also a veritable goldmine for things like that weird screw that's missing from your bike or the strange tool you need to remove the what's it from the so and so I am feeling a bit smug today because I just saved two bikes from the tip. To be sure one of them had a bent wheel, but it’s for want of a replacement which, with specialized fitting, cost almost as much as a new bike, that it was destined for landfill. I hope this will give another one a new lease of life, or better still, someone might be able to restore it, if they can find another wheel somewhere. The other one, a Vintage Malvern Star which belonged to my daughter when she was at Uni and has been ridden by me occasionally i.e. about ten years ago, was also headed that way, but today I took both bikes to our friendly neighbourhood bicycle kitchen. You are supposed to fix your own bike, but everyone was very helpful The weather was awful – I ta

Beneath the Walls of Jerusalem

A glimpse of  the Walls of Jerusalem,  though this photo doesn't even hint at how tall and imposing they are I had hoped to post some lovely pictures of waterfalls today, but alas it was not to be. The first of these lay on the eastern side of the Walls of Jerusalem - not the famous historic sort, though they probably should be. The “Walls” are a somewhat mysterious mountain range which lies between Cradle Mountain - its well -known cousin, and the Central Highlands. While traditionally visited by hardy bushmen, snarers and mountain cattlemen, the forbidding terrain, the lack of any kind of services and the difficulty of access, renders it less likely to be on the tourist itinerary.   The road in itself had been closed for several years after the devastating floods and fires of 2015 and 2016 and has only recently been reopened. For some beautiful photos of the region check out David Noble's post about same. Looking over a deep gorge towards Clumner Bluff (I thi

Helping our drought stricken farmers

These two charming hayseeds are raising money for the "A Fiver for  a Farmer" project at their school         If it’s one thing ordinary Australians are good at, it’s rallying around when things are tough, be it because of bushfires, floods, or in this case, one of the worst droughts Australia has had since Federation (in 1902). While the cumbersome machinery of government does its bit with low interest loans, income support and concessions and the like, and large corporations such as Qantas, Woolworths and Channel 9, have made substantial contributions, it is heartwarming to see so many people doing their best to help.  Fundraiser at Groundsman Espresso   for Buy a Bale (see below) Some of the more unusual efforts include a Fiver for a Farmer , begun by ten - year - old Sydney schoolboy Jack Berne and which has so far raised $155, 000, or the two sisters in Queensland , who, thinking of their own rural childhood, are collecting formal dresses,