Town and around.

Last Sunday I decided to go for a drive in my new car, woohoo, and so went down to Port Dennison/Dongara and stayed the night with friend Jude who lives at Port Dennison.  The drive was excellent. I fished out the ipod connector thingie and OMG found an extra plug in the car ( you can use it  while still leaving the cigarette lighter free), placed just above the gear stick console.  So, once I had, plugged in my ipod  it was up in the air on an arm type thingie,  and I could  change songs without causing a massive pile up as I did not need to take my eyes off the road.  Consequently, my ipod  which I have not listened to in eons, got a bit of a work out and it was great to hear some favourite songs as I drove and sang along. I also tested the CD player and that got the thumbs up as well.   I got to Judes just after midday after she got home from cooking at the local rest home, so we decided to go to the local Thai/Vietnamese restaurant for lunch for their $15 special.   I had garlic prawns and they were plentiful and delicious.  We then went for a drive around Dongara and environs, checking out several places of interest and two different beaches,  looking for somewhere to have a coffee.  I took this photo from the lookout back to Port Dennison which is where the crayfish factory is situated and further down the coastline from Dongara which is further down than Geraldton (for those looking on a map, lol).

Port Dennison from lookout at Dongara

The local pub was open so we called in there for a coffee and shared a slice of cheesecake to round off our lunch.  Jude lives over the road from the beach so on the way back to her place we parked along side the boardwalk along the tidal estuary and went for a stroll.  There were heaps of wild ducks with a few ducklings about, a lone heron and a mudhen (not seen one of them before). Jude thought we might see some swans as well but no such luck this time.  Jude lives in a pensioner flat so  though I had taken my swag just in case, she pulled out a mattress for me to sleep on the floor in the lounge which was totally comfortable and I was warm enough with a single blanket having forgotten to take my sleeping bag for the night.
I returned to Geraldton mid morning after a hearty cooked breakfast, as Jude had grandchildren to mind for the day.  My latest house inspection was the following day so had some last minute things to do.  I had bought some sugar cane mulch (have been told it is the best mulch) so put some on two gardens which involved watering the garden first, mulching and then watering again.  I had a bit of weeding to finish as well so was ready for a rest by the time I had finished.   I finished off dishes, cleaned the stove, then swept and mopped the floors throughout.  Last thing I did was to have a shower and wipe that all out before heading to bed.  Not sure what happened but missed my alarm the next morning and woke to the phone going, realising I should have been at work.  Flew out the door arriving 1/2 hour late, luckily it was still school holidays so all the kids had just finished breakfast and were ready for the day.  I mentioned that I had seen all these ducks the day before, a heron etc when the boss said, why don't you take the kids for a drive down and go feed the ducks.  No sooner said than done.  I had been in such a hurry to get to work I had forgotten my tablets so luckily was able to drive past and get them on the way. 

One of the lads was in a VERY talkative mood on the way down and it was Lynn, question, Lynn, question, Lynn, question all the way.  Highlights for them on the way  were three dead foxes and a dead joey on the side of the road and seeing over 10 chicken hawks resting on various fences as we drove past.  Some of the boys missed the first dead fox so we had to look especially for it on the way back and drive very slowly past to have a good look, lol.  Luckily it looked alright  dead and wasn't mushy so I coped ok with that.  On reaching Dongara we went straight to the estuary to feed the ducks which was fun.  A loaf of bread, a packet of  English muffins and some left over hot cross buns later and we were done.  A flock of sea gulls also arrived on the scene and not only was the heron back again, there was a cormorant/shag and a pelican also present.  From there we drove to the playground at Port Dennison where the kids had a great time playing in a boat, in a hurdy gurdy machine, throwing rocks into the tide, climbing on rocks and generally mucking about.  We had gone prepared for what passes as a wintery day as it was cold and blowing in Geraldton but by mid morning everyone had shed their extra layers and we were on the edge of getting too much sun.  We had hot chips for morning tea out of the wrapping paper as we sat around.  A quick walk down to one of the wharves to see some other kids catching fish and it was time to leave to get back in time for lunch.  I had a chuckle with my co-worker getting paid for having so much fun.

Picture of a chicken hawk taken on my front lawn on my return from NZ in Feb. (taken with zoom lens on heh heh)

Got back and had nice comments from the property manager on the state of the house, whew.  She had mentioned the lawns needed attention last time - both were near dead at the Jan inspection.  I had been watering the back lawn frantically over the past weeks and had cut it once so that looked as though it was being cared for however the owner had already told me not to bother with the front as there was too much lawn to water.  I left a note regaling the property manager of the same so hopefully that worked.  Lo and behold, it has rained yesterday and today and I can already see a smidgen of greening on the front lawn - bizarre but true.  Just remembered it rained the day before inspection as I was out in it washing the windows, lol.  Although I use the word rain advisedly, that day it was for about 1/2 hour.  I could smell the rain coming yesterday, and afterwards the smell of wet concrete and earth was strong.  Not something I would appreciate back in NZ often, lol although I am told there was over two weeks of good weather during April, heh heh.  As I got up yesterday, I heard several long ship horn sounds and raced outside to see a cruise ship creeping up the harbour and park off shore.  It looked pretty amazing and I never get tired of looking at all the ships coming in and out of the port.  The cruise ships arrive usually around 9am ish and leave around 4.00pm - I was having an afternoon doze so did not see it leave.

Must mention the photo of the chicken hawk above.  The day I returned to Geraldton from NZ in Feb, this hawk was sitting underneath a gum tree on my lawn.  I  got out of the car with my camera and started taking photos straight away, much to the amusement of the WMH.  The bird stayed under the tree for awhile before flying to the next door neighbours where it grabbed a locust off the lawn and ate it.  It appeared the next day  on my front lawn again, and then again with another chicken hawk the following day.  Jude reckoned it was a baby and was learning its territory.  After the first week I haven't seen it up so close again, but did see one flying over the house today.

My other encounter with the local fauna was over Easter.  I went into the garage to get my tent out as friend Donna visited with her foster lad and we had (my) little lad visit as well so  they slept in the tent for two nights.  When I opened the side door to go in, I saw a movement to my right and saw a head about two inches big and leapt outside as my first thought was humungous sized snake.  As I went to go, it moved too and I was able to see it was a bobtail lizard, whew, though it took awhile for the heartbeat to return to normal.  These lizards are relatively harmless but will give a nasty bite if riled.  I am not sure who got the bigger fright at the time.  It scuttled away and I later saw it hidden amongst some boxes and thankfully Donna hooked out the tent for me so all was well.  I usually check for snakes when going out to the compost bin and into the garage just in case but it is easy to get relaxed and forget this is Australia and not NZ at times. I am now back to opening the door carefully though it is cooler now and should not be a problem again until next summer.

I am off on an adventure on Tuesday.  Jude and I are heading to New Norcia to have a look at this town built around  a monastery.   I have been through there before with Br M on the way to Perth but we are going to stay the night this time and do a guided tour through the Spanish styled buildings and the museum.  We are going to end up in Northam at this stage to stay with Jude's sister.  Will be taking my laptop so hope to update as the trip unfolds - watch this space.

ANZAC day has been and gone for the 97th year.  I worked a day shift so most of it passed me by.  I did see a couple of programs on TV that night of Aussie's at various Dawn Parades here and overseas.  It is always moving to watch and gives a pause to remember all those who have died or been injured (sometimes worse in my opinion) in the various wars to ensure our freedom.  RIP to all those diggers who did not come home.

I am typing this at work - it is nearly 3am and time to do a walk around so will sign off for now.  :):)

Another update

I have been told by friends (and family) that my postings have been sparse again, - too much living getting in the way, lol.  The days are flying past and I cannot believe we are into the fourth month and the first school holidays begin on Friday, eeek.  I found my last post sitting in drafts hence there may be two arrive on the same day but hey ho, its now or never as I have a few moments whilst on night shift to get a few words down. 

Two pieces of exciting news first.  Last Thursday I went to the Post Office to pick up a piece of registered mail and on opening it found I had achieved an Associate Degree in Social Sciences (Residential Care) from the Australian Catholic University in Brisbane, where I did external papers whilst at Tardun, building on my Duty of Care qualifications already attained from the same University.  I was stunned and amazed and thrilled to bits as I thought I still had some work to do on it.  It would seem that a good amount of the course was granted through prior learning from the Bachelor of Social Sciences that I began in NZ at Waikato University and my Diploma of Social Work (also gained in NZ).  I am certificate crazy at the moment as I also earned a certificate from doing the health and safety course at Durack the other week, another for doing the "Circle of Security" training at work at my Senior First Aid certificate also arrived.  I have thoroughly enjoyed the learning over the past few weeks and feel my brain has had a bit of a work out to boot. 

The next piece of exciting news is that I picked up my new (preloved) care yesterday and I am loving that too.  Central locking, cupholders front and back, air con that does Siberia at its coldest, windscreen wipers on the back windows, car radio and CD player, cruise control and a decent boot which is even better if I put the two back seats down.  The car is a 2006 Kia Cerato (for those playing at home, lol) that was first sold in 2007, one lady owner and only done 35,000k.  I had always planned on getting a better car since buying my first one 18 months ago and feel like I have gone a quantum leap in comfort and dependability as well.  My old car was just that, old, nearly 300.000 k, no shock absorbers in the back, no central locking, (does have good stereo though), and I never felt entirely comfortable going more than work and back and in and out of town in it just in case it broke down.  Now I can go anywhere woohoo, - well almost anywhere, probably not  serious four wheel drive territory but this will get me most places I need to go.  It will certainly get me to Perth and back without a second thought.  I had been keeping my eye on the paper for some time and last Thursday the heavens must have been in alignment cos I got up and decided that was the day I was going to do it.  I went round and dragged Gerard (WMH) of his sick couch (he had tonsillitis) and a workmate of his (David) to come with me while I shopped.  The first car we looked at Holden Cruise and even though it was cheaper than the one I bought, it had been dented, the wheel alignment was out and the gear box felt funny when I drove it.  We were going to head back into town but at the last minute I said no, lets go further out of town to this other place and work our way back.  There had been another Kia advertised for $8999. It looked alright but next to it was the one I bought.  It had just come on the lot, was not even cleaned or ready for sale but the price was right and so was the mileage so took it for a test drive  and decided I liked it very much.  The dealer offered me $1000 off the listed price on the spot.  I had then to wait until Monday while they cleaned the car and got it looking like brand new.



Cripes, these pictures just took 3/4 hr to upload.  Grrrr.

Once again I have been delayed midst post but will scramble to get this done before I head off to work.
As I was saying, I was meant to get the car on the Monday. I had been to the bank to get the money organised in the afternoon and was going to get cash but on checking with the teller, I was told I could pay using my bankcard which they preloaded with the monies I required.  All good.  I got back home and rang the car dealer so let him know I could be picked up any time and just happened to mention I would be using my bank card only to find there would be a $200 extra loading to do so but did I have internet banking, yes, so gave me the details and I hied myself to the computer to start the transaction.  Wouldn't you know it, as I tried to progress with the transaction it said there would be a fee, (fangs were sprouting at this time) and when I rang the netbank number I was put onto the bank card people.  I explained where I was at and the bloke on the other end said yes there would be a similar cost to me using internet banking (now smoke pouring from my nostrils) as it was the same as getting a cash advance.  I said IT IS MY MONEY, THERE IS NO CASH ADVANCE, IT IS ALREADY THERE!!!!!!.  He at least understood my predicament and said he would waive the fee and go back to carry on transaction.  Right. Back I went only to find the flaming bank thingie had timed out and when I restarted the transaction, it said I could only send a limit of $5,000!!!! By now the smoke from my nostrils was sulphuric, blood pressure through the roof and luckily there was no axe or brick about to chop or throw.  Grabbed my keys, jumped into my (old) car and zoomed back to the bank and wait there's more, arrived at 2 mins past 4pm and the doors were closed in my face.  ARRRRRRGH.  Was now muttering dire imprecations and curses on the bank and there was nothing left to do but go back home, ring the dealer and say I could not do anything until the next day.

Up bright and early, left home by 8.45am to be on the door step as the bank opened only to find the bank did not open until 10am.  Smoke, flames, and imminent hissy fit on the spot, and zoomed off to find another bank to instantly transfer everything on the spot, only to find in Geraldton that no bank opens before 10am.  I looked around to see if a Wells Fargo coach was zooming through town as I was sure I had flashbacked to the 1900's.  Do I use banks so seldom I have forgotten how they work since the 1950's, I am sure in Hamilton if you go to the mall they are open early and close at the end of the shopping day.  Wanting to rip some small living thing to bits, I decided to get my glass frames readjusted to kill time, and finally got back to the bank as it opened.  Some poor hapless women smiled cheerily as I entered and asked me how I was, to which I replied, very, very, very pissed off, and was immediately whisked into an adjacent office (bank had several customers who may have overheard me, heh heh) to listen to my plight.  She could see that I had tried to do the right thing and said yes, the bank would treat it like a cash advance from my card, even though my money was already there and I would not be in debit, but she would sort it for me.  Up to the teller and several backwards and forwardsing moments and my money was once available to ME again with no extra costs.  Not trusting them further than I could throw them by now, I said I wanted the money in CASH.  I think the teller knew I was over them by then and was more than happy to see me go.  (Mind you all there training for handling the difficult customer would have got a work out that morning so really a plus, lol).  I rang the dealer who immediately sent a bloke to pick me up and hey ho, by lunchtime actually had my new car to drive home in.  Almost an anti-climax by then and only a minutes to spare before I had to turn around and head to work. 

Last week I went to the transport dept to change ownership and register car.  Over there the change of ownership is $15 and then they sting you for stamp duty based on the cost of the car - $290 thank you very much, and then registration - also based on the cost of the car $547 - at that point I chose the 6 month version as I had insurance to go.  Up the road to RAC and after many taps on the computer, discount because of no claims, discount because the length of time I have been a member (years as member of Automobile Assoc. in NZ count here), age and stage of car, another $700 in round figures flying out of my bank account.  The whole process has made me realise, that a) I don't deal with banks on a regular basis, b) I don't buy a car often enough, and c) it is the first car that I have had worth insuring beyond 3rd party to fully appreciate all the costs and machinations you have to go through to do so.   I am not sure whether this is a good or bad thing.  I am still considering changing banks as there are some other issues I have with the Commonwealth bank such has not being able to do any transfers of my money without having a mobile ph so I have no access when I am back in NZ.  I am seriously contemplating buying a large mattress and find my self mutter bah banks, thieving b*****s and other such like comments so will have to do some research to find a bank that suits me and my way of wanting to work.  I have to say, I do not ever recall having the above issues with the banks back in NZ. 

Gotta dash, working till midnight tonight and then weekend off woohooo.  Lots more to catch up on but no promises as to timing as I seem to be hopeless with that at the moment. :):)

Back to the Present

I will finish tales of my holiday later  (I think) as there is the whole Sydney slot to mention but am needing some quiet contemplation and brain power for that so thought I would more concentrate on more current happenings.

I pretty much hit the deck running on my return to Geraldton and environs.  My work roster had been changed to incorporate several chunks of training so did not quite have the expected days off etc I had planned to catch up on myself post holiday.  It was great to see our kids - one of the babies soon to turn has begun to walk and the other is scooting over the floor with his own style of crawling.  There were hugs all round on my return and one of the babies has become glued to me when I am on shift. 

The first training I am involved with is in house and comes by way of an American parenting program that has simple but obvious concepts however they are explained mixing developmental age and stage behaviours to recognise and shows what can get in the way of helping a child to achieve safety and secure feelings.  It has been fun practising with the babies going at their pace and seeing how much the techniques work.  It is an excellent fit for our work with traumatised children as we work a lot with the children's emotional ages rather than their chronological ages.  Traumatised children often have developmental and emotional deficits to averagely grown children.  Working with traumatised children you are always looking for the need, want or fear that underlies  their behaviours and a good part of our work is trying to grow them into secure beings which means they can then go on to learn and achieve much better at school, kindy etc.  Part of the course focusses on our own behaviours in certain situations, the lack or not in our own childhoods that causes us to react or not to better understand our interactions with the children in our care. 

It wouldn't be a return to work without picking up something so the second week I was back, I had another bout of gastro - 24 hours thankfully but I naturally thought I was dying for the 9 hours that I felt the worst.  I had just completed day one of my Senior 1st Aid course and had bought a roll from down the road and lunch time.  It had felt a bit heavy on my stomach but had had a coffee with full milk so also thought initially it may have just been too rich so ignored it.  By the time I got home at 4 pm I wasn't feeling that bright so lay down on the couch and just felt progressively worse.  It was a hot day so lay out in the porch where the air con was on but continued to feel hot and bothered and uncomfortable.  I ended up by getting a cold, wet flannel and lay with that on my head, back of my neck alternating every 10 mins or so.  The level of discomfort was increasing not abating and after a day at 1st Aid I am lying there thinking, this is not recognisable pressure but I am now feeling hot and clammy, is this a sneak heart attack???  I didn't think I had chest pain like I normally feel but at the same time it was a pressure feeling.  I thought if I have some GTN spray and it goes away, then it is my heart, but if not, then back to the check list.  So, at about 7.30 had to puffs of spray under my tongue and flip flopped back on the couch.  I still felt yuck (great medical diagnosis there, lol) and wasn't sure whether I was in fact feeling any better or not and decided to get a bucket handy just in case as nauseous was the best way to describe how I was feeling a little later.  It proved to be good thinking as half an hour later, up she came, my late lamented lunch, which did provide some relief.  I waited a little longer then hied myself off to bed for a good nights sleep which seemed to do the trick.  At first I thought I may have had a dose of food poisoning being as I had had a chicken roll for lunch but on relaying the nights events to workmates the next day, I was informed that one of the babies had gastro as had two other staff.  Though feeling a little shady the next day still I was able to complete the 1st Aid course so am now current if CPR, using a defibulator, bandaging wounds with bits protruding, and how to assess someone unconscious and or not breathing.  We also had a segment on snake bites (not in any NZ first aid, lol) and poisonous things in the sea which reinforces my feelings about not swimming in the ocean over here at all.  I am also revising gardening and do not think I will ever garden over here anymore without gloves on in case of spider bite.  There are the most deadliest spiders in the world in Australia we were told, thankfully the worst one only lives on the east side so feel a little easier about that.  None of this helps with my insect phobia and of course I raced down and refilled all my non-stop repellents in the house and fitted them out with new batteries, once again to provide myself with as insect free an oasis that I can make it.

This week I am at Taffe or Durack as the place is called doing a 5 day Health and Safety Course.  I was voted in as the OHS officer at work last year and have not known much about anything in all that time so what an eye opener the course has been.  We spent the first day on legislation covering the Act, Worksafe Australia and Codes of Practice .  Yesterday we covered hazards in the workplace that included a walkthrough the carpentary workshop and the brickies area to see what we noticed and it is amazing what you see when you are looking for things.  In fact there was one breach of the Act where there was a ladder to an area with no guard rails (it was over the height that required this to happen).  Our lecturer had a word to the lecturer there and although they were aware of the hazard and were taking steps to rectify it, they did not realise that they could be closed down as it was right then.  There were several other issues that we noted and past on, the main one being the amount of young lads working without their safety glasses on - something that can fail them the course here. We also went through the process of an accident investigation - lucky I watch so much CSI heh, heh, as I was right about what happened, just had to work out how many steps it took , who to talk to and what to look for to prove what happened.  The purpose of an OSH rep investigating an incident/accident is not to apportion blame etc but to look at what needs to be put into place to minimise or remove the causes that led to the incident occuring again.   Today is the difference between hazards and risks, how to work out the difference and how to use the correct procedures to promote worksafe practices.  I can see I am going to have to ask a few questions when I get back to work and look at some of our workplace practises that need to be put in place to make us compliant with the Act. 

Since my return in between these courses I have been doing a lot of night shifts so keeping fairly inhospitable hours again.  I did manage to get round to Bronwyn and Gerards one night last week and was invited to stay for dinner which was nice.  I had called in for a coffee and was going to leave my car going for 15 mins after having it go flat when I went to Weight Watchers necessitating a call out to RAC (AA in NZ) to get me jump started.  The bloke who turned up said he couldnt tell me whether it was the battery or not and to call into his work the next day.  I had been out to training and managed to start the car both times that day but I had turned the air con off in the car as I wondered whether that made any difference as I had it on full blast when it wouldn't start the night before.  Nope, the battery was dead as dead on testing so $170 later (that is with a discount for belonging to the RAC) I was on my way and havn't missed a beat since.