Author: jkirkby8712

Not a great deal of sleep overnight, I’d been waiting to get a phone message from Jodie, who spent some 4 hours or more in the casualty/emergency department of the Sunshine Hospital, while they waited for her mother to be given some specific attention. But when Jodie returned home, she decided it was too late to ring ‘Dad’, so by the time I got up this morning, I was completely ‘in the dark’ as to what was going on. At that stage, I was also expecting Susie to arrive back from Bendigo.

One of the few highlights of today, was the opportunity to see [on the television] the horse, which is currently being described as the greatest sprinter in the world – all seems a bit overdone, that kind of description – however, it is a magnificent animal to watch in action. This afternoon, competing in a 1200 metre race at Randwick [in Sydney], the annual T J Smith [Group 1] Stakes, we saw Black Caviar [ridden by Luke Nolen] run it’s 12^th race – and the horse has won every one of those twelve races, including today. Certainly it was a red hot favourite, and  a massive crowd of past years’ proportions turned out to see Black Caviar –  not to win any money on it, as any gains on a bet would be minimal, but simply to watch the horse run.

I seemed to be on the phone most of today, or relaying text messages to various family members, and the hospital over in Sunshine [in Melbourne’s western suburbs], trying to find out precisely why the children’s mother was there and/or how long she would be a patient. It was apparently a case of no doctors or surgeons available today, certainly not until later in the afternoon, and when James visited with Shirley’s mother and aunt, I think he might have stirred up a bit of action, because by the time Susan and I arrived at around 6pm, and Jodie not long afterwards, Shirley was much happier and feeling more comfortable, following the visit of a doctor.

As for Susie, I’d been expecting her to arrive back home from Bendigo this morning, and then go straight to work. But she must have decided to delay her return until this afternoon, and at the same time, give her job a miss this weekend – obviously the emotional upset of last weekend’s situation was going to take a while to heal, and she presumably didn’t feel able to face the people she had been working with for some years now, at this point. I just hope that that decision wouldn’t end up costing her the job eventually!  As for the description of tenseness and concern, well that was basically how this writer was feeling all day – a combination of the ongoing concern of how Susie was coping after the breakup with Jimmy, and now on top of that, her mother’s sudden overnight admittance to hospital. When I rang her this morning, with news about her mother’s ‘illness’, that perhaps encouraged her to return a little earlier than planned.

The weather deteriorated quite considerably by late afternoon, and our beautiful Autumn days  came to a sudden [but expected] end – by the time Susie and I headed off to the Sunshine hospital this evening, it was raining steadily in wild and windy conditions, and with darkness now coming earlier since the finish of daylight saving, they were the kind of night driving conditions I dreaded these days.. If I’d been tense earlier in the day, by the time we hit the highway, things were even worse. Thankfully, the return trip, which I did alone, the conditions were much better. I didn’t stay at the hospital for very long after James and the two older ladies left. Although Shirley was in no real good state herself, she had not seen Susie since last weekend’s episode, so I thought it would be nice to leave the two girls [Jodie had arrived from her work by now, and she would bring her sister back to Sunbury] with their mother, to talk, and while I wasn’t there, I’m hoping that Susie finally opened up to someone in the family. Incidentally, she said nought about the flowers and gift I’d bought for her yesterday – perhaps they had not yet being noticed, but no matter, it was something I wanted to do, and I’d half expected there would be no acknowledgement, at least initially anyway.

I was standing outside the Thai restaurant, after returning to Sunbury this evening, and waiting for my ‘takeaway’ meal order for Susan and myself to be prepared, when one of the diners came outside to have a smoke [as of course, no smoking is permitted inside public places anymore]. Noticing his actions, reminded me of a report which appeared in the media a couple of days ago.  As part of a major overhaul in how cigarettes are sold to consumers, the Federal Government is planning to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes. Under proposed legislation, logos will be removed from packaging, the packet will be printed a plain olive green colour and tobacco companies will be required to print their brand in a smaller, specific font.  If the legislation is passed, health warnings and graphic pictures showing the dangers of smoking would cover 90 per cent on the front of packs and 75 per cent on the back. With a recent push by local councils to ban smoking in more public places, some consumers, and the tobacco industry, believe we are becoming a “nanny state”. I noticed in particular, that one major tobacco company intended to go to court over the matter. I think that industry is eventually going to have to accept that they are fighting a long term losing battle.

I noticed one interesting comment from someone who, while stating that they were not a supporter of smoking, did feel that the government has gone far enough on the smoking issue, for the moment. The observer noted that the haste to wipe out smoking left the assumption that it is a hot number for attracting votes. This contrasted with the hands-off approach to alcohol sales which is no doubt popular with the general public and vote sensitive. A minimum of 3 full page ads for example,  for cheap booze every Wednesday in that person’s  local surburban newspaper does not seem to balance with the current demolition job on smokers and smoking. Interesting point!

Anyway, with all these goings on through the day, I would end up missing out on the first of this year’s concerts by the Heidelberg Symphony Orchestra – a pity, because I had only just arranged the season subscription yesterday, but by late afternoon, when I realised there would not be time to go to both Sunshine and Heidelberg, I rang the organisers of the concert, and told them to give my ticket for tonight, away to another worthy concert lover! So here I am – when I should be sitting in the Concert Hall of the Ivanhoe Girl’s Grammar School listening to my favourite suburban orchestra, I am instead, sitting here beside a radio,  listening to a similar concert recorded at the Melbourne Recital Centre last November [music by Beethoven at the moment], and also listening to the rain falling steadily outside – and admittedly, a little thankful that I don’t have to go back out in that weather. I imagine however, that it will be little changed when I hit the road at 6.15am tomorrow morning!  After my earl.ier trip this evening, it was good to be able to remain home, away from the rain and wind, both of which seemed to be settling in for 24 hours or so.

After work tonight. I made a point of purchasing some flowers and a little gift for Susie, upon her return to Sunbury tomorrow morning. The gesture may not be wanted or appreciated, in her present state of mind, however it was simply part of my acknowledgement of the personal hurt she was going through at present.

Meanwhile, another big game of football on the TV tonight – in days gone past, nothing would have kept me away from attending such a game in person, but these days, Bill prefers the comfort of watching his team, on most occasions, in the comfort of home. Tonight, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, we have a clash between the two most traditional and historic rivals in Australian football  –  Carlton versus Collingwood. I once stood for most of a day in a crowd of over 121,000 people to watch these two teams play for a premiership. Speaking before the match, Carlton captain Chris Judd had this to say:- 

‘Earning the right to play finals two years in a row provides a real platform for Carlton going forward. In 2010 we finished in a similar position to 2009, however we did it with a much younger team and I genuinely believe there are some exciting times ahead. The whole group is now getting a real hunger for achieving something together. We want to be the best possible players we can be so we’re the best possible team we can be. We want Carlton supporters to have a similar attitude, the desire to achieve to be the best possible supporters you can be. We want a huge membership team supporting the club as we strive to achieve something special together, 50,000 members and beyond. For my career to be fulfilled I need a premiership at Carlton. That’s what we’re all working towards and we want you to be involved.  The Carlton Football Club is at a stage where we’re ready to achieve again and I know the players are really hungry for that. It will take a lot of hard work. Together we can achieve, on and off the ground. However to succeed we must have no passengers’.  [Chris Judd, Captain].      Michael Jamison was selected in Carlton’s team for  tonight’s blockbuster against Collingwood. He returns after missing the first two matches due to suspension and is joined by a New Blue as part of two changes. Andrew Collins will make his Carlton debut in tonight’s game against Collingwood.  Collins will become the 1,333rd player to represent the Carlton Football Club in the AFL when he makes his Blue debut against the Pies. Collins turned 21 in November last year; he is 187cm and 80kg. He will wear number 16 for Carlton, the number having been worn in 100 games for the Blues by Scott Camporeale, Jimmy Buckley, and Maurie Sankey [three players from my period of watching the Blues].

Prior to the game coverage tonight – a direct telecast for a change –  I exchanged a few messages with my Collingwood supporting siblings up in Brisbane, who were also sitting down to ‘enjoy’ the match.

Well now, after all that build up  –  we didn’t actually win! A good even first quarter which gave promise of a ‘blockbuster’ game the match had been built up to attract the crowds –  which it did. At the MCG tonight, a crowd of  88,181 spectators turned up   –  the biggest ever home and away crowd for these two teams. Last year’s premiers, Collingwood were the red hot favourites, but one had to be optimistic that the improving Blues would make them earn a win. Unfortunately, it was the 2^nd quarter that did the damage – Collingwood got away to a 4 goal margin, and while Carlton, never really allowed their opponents to get much beyond a 5 goal margin, Collingwood always seemed to have the answer to any serious challenge that was mounted – mind you, a few crucial mistakes, in front of goal, and in other areas did not help the Blue cause!!! In the end, that quarter time margin of 27 points, had been increased by just one point, we were never able to bridge that gap!!  Final scores, quarter by quarter in AFL Round 3 for the 2011 Season:

Carlton Blues:                    4.3.27           5.4.34                      8.5.53                     Final:  11.8.74

Collingwood Magpies:      4.2.26            9.7.61                     12.8.80                    Final:  15.12.102

Meanwhile over at the family home in Goonawarra, poor Jodie, also a keen Carlton supporter like her Dad, had to relinquish her viewing of the game at quarter time – mother Shirley, who had been bitten by an insect of some sort during the week, and had gradually being feeling more unwell each day since, deteriorated quite severely tonight, and Jodie took her to a local doctor  I assume he then recommended that if there was no improvement, she should go to a hospital.  Not long after tonight’s football match finished, I received a phone call from eldest son James, and expecting him to have some comments about the football, instead, it was with the news that ‘Jodie is taking Mum to the Sunshine hospital’, and he explained why.  That was certainly a bit of a shock!  I contacted Jodie later  – they were still waiting [presumably in the emergency department] for Shirley to be given some attention. It would be around 3.30 am before Jodie was able to return to Sunbury, minus her mother, who would be kept in overnight and treated.

I would wake up numerous times over night, waiting to hear from Jodie, or James, as to what was happening, but I would end up having to chase up that information myself on the morrow.  Family wise, it had been a rather dramatic week, and obviously not finished yet!!

They often say that the best time of the year to be in Melbourne is doing the Autumn months, and certainly this week, that is so true – some beautiful weather, and improving as the week goes on. I recall back in 2006, when the Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, that each of the 10 days or so, produced pretty well perfect weather for most of the time – a perfect month to hold the event. I should know, as I was a spectator at events on each day and night that year!

A useful meeting of the radio committee tonight – a very cooperative group, plenty of differing ideas and viewpoints, but nevertheless, working well together. As part of our current licence renewal process, the point was brought home clearly tonight the importance of ensuring that the broad community [to which our broadcasting licence applies] must not just appear to be provided for or represented by our programming, but also be a major player in the actual choice and preference of the kind of programs the station presents – the ‘for’ the community component should also be the significant aspect. It seems that the relevant authorities are trying to ensure that community radio throughout Australia are all in tune [pardon the pun] with that concept and philosophy, and those that don’t strictly adhere to the relevant requirements should never assume that licence renewal is automatic in the industry. Quite a challenging discussion took place, on this whole question, with the outcome of which to be presented to next week’s general meeting of members.

Back to the days of proof reading my children’s assignments! James, who like Susie, is undertaking a post graduate teaching course, came around late tonight with a couple of assignments he had completed, which he wanted his Dad to proof read before submitting. I must admit that 10.30at night, is not always the best time to be doing things like that, particularly with his over friendly pup bouncing around the house, however we got through the task, and I was quite impressed with the standard of presentation he had completed in both instances. That visit also gave us both the opportunity to get in touch with Susie, up in Bendigo. According to James, and a call from her mother last night, she was ‘managing’, still a bit upset at times, but working away at her studies – in fact, because of those, she not expect to be back in Sunbury until Saturday morning due to some late lectures etc, tomorrow. Probably for Susie’s sake, the less time she spent in Sunbury over the weekend, at present for her own peace of mind.

I read an interesting perspective tonight of one minor little example of cultural differences, and rather seemingly of relative insignificance, the circumstances of it’s existence can represent a major adjustment or acceptance of the way of doing things.

The item I’m speaking of, appeared in the latest edition of our the newsletter of our little Indigenous Hospitality House  [IHH] in North Carlton. I have referred to this establishment previously, but for the benefit of newer readers, it is a small establishment [ a converted former private residence]  close to the CBD operated by a group of permanent on-site residents, which offers a peaceful and homely atmosphere for Indigenous people who arte forced to be in Melbourne for short periods, while they support a family member who is a patient at one of Melbourne’s hospitals. It is a project that is overseen by Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress and supported by the Church of All Nations, as well as Christians of various denominations, other groups, individuals and volunteers. It was established in 2001, and I played a very minor role in assisting with the clean up of the property at it’s time of establishment, and later in encouraging the involvement of our local church in Sunbury, in funding support. Since it’s establishment, the IHH has received over 1200 guests from across Australia.

The article I found of interest was written by one of the current ‘permanent’ support residents, Miriam, and was titles ‘Hospitality: a cross –cultural reflection’.

“Having grown up in Arab cultures, my concept of hospitality is very Arab. This has led to some great discussions with my new housemates about concepts of hospitality in Arab and Australian cultures, and the differences and similarities between them. In Arabic culture a new guest is treated like a king: distant, revered, and the centre of attention. All the best is offered to them, and they are not permitted to do anything for themselves – they are literally waited on, all as a way of conveying honor and respect. When guests become a bit more familiar, they become less of a centre of attention but are still not encouraged to do much for

themselves. When I arrived at IHH I came with that concept of hospitality and was surprised when I encountered a different model. I discovered that Australian hospitality consists of making the guest feel like one of the family – so they are not treated as special or distant, but rather allowed to fit right in and do everything for themselves so they don’t feel like a burden. When I asked an Arab I know who has lived in Australia for many years about his experiences, he explained he had encountered the same differences – specifically, he

commented on how bewildered he was by BYO bbq’s – ‘Why would you bother to invite me, then ask me to bring my own drink? Why wouldn’t I just buy the drink and have it at home?!’

I am realizing that though the focus is different the expressions of hospitality both come from the same place – a desire to make the guest feel loved and respected.

IHH is a good place to figure out how best to do that in the context of many different Indigenous cultures. “…the expressions of hospitality both come from the same place—a desire to make the guest feel loved and respecte”

Meanwhile, I was a little disappointed, when I called around at the family home tonight, that no-one from the family had attempted to contact Susie today. I sent her a message this evening, not really expecting a reply, a guess just a reminder that she was in my thoughts. There was no response, which was fair enough – might have had late lectures, been sleeping, etc, or simply not in the mood for any ‘conversation’; tonight. I did subsequently ask her mother to try and contact her later – never heard the outcome of that either. I had to assume that contact had been made, otherwise I would have heard. Nevertheless, this Dad went to bed tonight, still concerned, and worried as to how his girl was coping but not wishing to ‘push’ too much.

James called around at  my place later in the evening – to borrow a couple of my ‘Art’ reference books which he needed to assist him with an art assignment he was currently working on for his post graduate university teacher training course. I asked him to make sure they were returned  asap and safely  –  sometimes my books tend to become on permanent loan!! One of the books he borrowed had been an Art textbook of mine during my Year 11 of studies – way back in 1963 – Gombrich’s Story of Art [or similar title] – quite a substantial reference source in it’s time, and in my view at least, a valuable part of my book collection!

Later, I watched a rather depressing ’apparent ‘ true story movie on SBS TV, called ‘Lake Mungo’, but in the main, set in the western Victorian town of Ararat, about 200 kms from here.

Basically, the story  of  a teenager who drowns while swimming in the local dam. When her body is recovered and a verdict of accidental death is returned, her grieving family buries her.  The family then experiences a series of strange and inexplicable events centred in and around their home, and they seek the help of a psychic.  It is discovered that the daughter had led a secret double life, and a series of clues lead the family to Lake Mungo [in south west New South Wales] where her secret past emerges.  The ‘ghost’ aspect of the film, was determined to be the efforts of the teenager to reveal the truth about her life, to her family – until then, her ‘spirit’ or whatever could not rest.  I suggested at the beginning that this was a true story – but perhaps not. The ‘film’ [ a low budget variety] is presented in the form of a documentary with the family, various videos, and amateur films from hand held phones, etc, incorporated into the story – though in fact, all of the characters are actors!  Their performance certainly had this viewer thinking initially that all the material being used was original and authentic. In fact, as one online reviewer noted   ‘Anderson and company [the directors] have crafted an almost flawless impostor: a entirely fictional story brilliantly disguised as God’s honest truth. This feat has been attempted by many, though none have come close to executing their visions with the style and grace of Anderson’s eerie endeavor’  I have to agree. It had me fooled for a while.

During my ‘Showtime’ program tonight, I played a song for Susie – she couldn’t hear me of course, by then, she was safely back up in Bendigo –  but I simply felt the need to send some kind of message of  hope to counter her current feelings of despair. Maybe I will give her the words, after the passing of a few days.

The singer was Anne Sofie Von Otter [whom I’m hoping to go and see in concert towards the end of the year] – and the song ‘April After All’, with the words and music written by Ron Sexsmith, and Anne’s vocals joined by Elvis Costello. Just a short song, of less than 3 minutes, I felt the lyrics expressed what I somehow wanted to say – ‘But there’ll be other days’ and ‘Life goes up and down’ –  it’s just raining because ‘It’s April after all’!!  Obviously, a northern hemisphere April, but no matter, I think we are going to get a fair share of showers, in this southern April, this year. Published in 1997 by Ronboy Rhymes, these are how the lyrics go.

April After All

It’s really coming down;

It’s raining cats and hounds.

It’s falling on parades

And on the plans we’ve made.

But there’ll be other days

When things will turn our wsay,

And rain will start to fall,

It’s April after all.

Even the longest night,

Will lead you to daylight.

It’s the way May leads to June

And it’s how I’ve come to you.

The world goes spinning round,

Life goes up and down,

And rain is bound to fall;

It’s April after all.

But there’ll be other days,

Darling, come what may,

The rain has got to fall,

It’s April after all.

And tears are bound to fall.

It’s April after all.

I was disappointed to get home late this afternoon, and find Susie had already left, for the return to Bendigo, but I was also glad in a couple of ways – leaving any later, and she would have been driving into the western sun for  most of the trip, and she would also, for the first half of the journey, have been amongst the late afternoon traffic coming out of the city. Perhaps she still caught a bit of that!  And just the fact that she had made the effort to return to the university and  her studies after what had happened. The temptation just to stay down here, and just put everything aside must have been strong, but I’m pleased my girl was stronger, and able to withstand those feelings. Unfortunately, tonight she is alone – away from all family and friends with no-one up there to turn to. Though she has been getting a steady stream  of text messages this evening, and while they may seem like a nuisance, I feel they will be welcomed.  I’m particularly pleased, that eldest son, James, has been in regular contact tonight with his sister. He really ‘comes through’ at times like that!

But tonight, my own heart is aching for the loneliness and  pain of hurt that I know my daughter is feeling right now – and there is really little I can do about it. Sorry Susie. I guess most of us at some stage [I certainly have] have gone through the pain of a broken relationship, but until it actually happens, it’s difficult to really understand the depths of despair and personal loss that one feels.

Over the years, I have retained a little self made poster, thast Susan, aged 9 nines, gave to me for Father’s Day, in 1995.  It was ‘The DAD Award’, Awarded to Bill Kirk because you are the GREATEST Father in the World for the following reasons……………….1.  You always love me and care for me.  2. When I am worried, you cheer me up.  3. I love it when you take me places.  4. I love you because you are my Dad.  Happy Fathers’ Day, Love Susan.

Over the past couple of days, I haven’t really felt like the ‘Greatest Dad’ because I can’t stop my Susan from hurting………………………..

The day didn’t begin well, with a 90 minutes drive to the office in the morning – usually, just under an hour –  all good to put one in a fantastic mood for the rest of the day!

But of course. all of that was overshadowed by concerns for Susan – thankfully, she had a couple of days this week before she was due to return to Bendigo, but I have to assume that for her, this was a very long, lonely and unhappy Monday.  Visited by her Mum during the day, and then younger sister Jodie came over and joined Susan and I for an evening meal. I think my girl made an effort to eat, but didn’t really achieve much, and soon after, apologised, and went back up to bed.  Neither Jodie nor her Mum [nor myself] had achieved a great deal of conversation from her, and I guess none of us wanted to push, she would talk when she was ready to. Jodie herself had a heavy cold, so was not feeling 100% herself.  The only positive aspect was that Susie went out for a while later, to visit a girlfriend who lives nearby – one of those loyal team of friends from schooldays who all seem to have stuck with each through good and bad. At least there was potentially someone to share her pain with, and for that I was grateful, having been feeling somewhat inadequate myself, and wishing the impossible, to rid a daughter of the pain she was going through – of the sort that many of us experience in the world of relationships, sometimes early in life, sometimes later. For Susie, this was a new, and painfully unexpected occurence.  I feel a little useless at present, but of course, won’t hesitate to assist when it is needed.

Again, with not as much enthusiasm as usual, I watched the ABC’s QA & A program tonight, the pasnel for which included former Prime Minister and now Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party, Julie Bishop. Those two seem [not surprisingly] to bare the brunt of the questions, and responses – some of Julie’s comments, when they became negative, annoyed me, while I have to admit that I felt  Kevin Rudd handled himself quite well, particularly in responding to the kind of ‘grilling’ he got from host, Tony Jones, who seemed to be inputing more vigorous questions than time allowed from the audience, from where most of the questions should have been allowed to come.  In fact, the outcome was a series of ‘almost’ confessions from Mr Rudd, as indicated by this report, taken from a National Nine Newsonline item.

“Former prime minister Kevin Rudd says he made the wrong call when he decided to shelve the federal government’s emissions trading scheme (ETS).  But, he said, he was trying to find the middle ground after some members of cabinet argued the scheme should be scrapped for good.  Asked on ABC television why he delayed the scheme until 2013 despite calling climate change the greatest moral challenge of our time, he said he made a mistake. “The judgment I made then was wrong,” he said.  He said the decision had been swayed by the roadblock faced in the Senate, which had already twice blocked legislation setting up the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS).  But, Mr Rudd said, he’d also faced the difficulty of placating party colleagues who wanted to “kill the ETS” completely. “You had some folk who wanted to get rid of it altogether, that is kill the ETS as a future proposition for the country. I couldn’t abide that,” he said on Monday. “There were others that said we should stick to the existing timetable, apart from the fact that the Senate couldn’t deliver it.  “I tried to find a way up the middle of all that, preserve the unity of the government.  “On balance it was the wrong call. We should have simply tried to sail straight ahead.”

Leaked cabinet documents have suggested it was his then deputy Julia Gillard, along with Treasurer Wayne Swan, who urged Mr Rudd to shelve emissions trading. Ms Gillard later toppled Mr Rudd as prime minister. Opposition deputy leader Julie Bishop said Mr Rudd’s mistake had been to trust his deputy. “She gave him the wrong advice, and he’s borne the consequences.”  [Later] asked later about what he’d learnt from his dramatic exit from the top job, Mr Rudd said: “I may in the future be a less trusting soul”.  The now-foreign minister was then asked why he had not explained Labor’s internal debate to Australians at the time, having chosen to instead blame opposition senators. “Guess what? Political leaders are not perfect,” Mr Rudd answered.  “I take responsibility for communicating the government’s message. “But no one gets it right every time, and I did not.”

Perhaps I saw more into his performance tonight than was justified, but I warmed to Kevin Rudd a little more because of his sudden preparedness to be more openly ‘forthright’ about past mistakes, and judgement calls, and his strength in resisting the attempts by Tony Jones to get as ‘bigger story’ out of the program, then would eventuate anyway. An interesting session.  Incidentally, the other panelists on tonight’s show, who didn’t really get much of a go, were Jeff Bleich [the current US Ambassador to Australia], Louise Adler [political publisher], and Robert Manne [writer and academic].

Another disappointment from this Monday was the news from the first day of horse racing’s ‘Jumps Season’, a subject uponwhich I have touched on previous occasions. Only Victoria and South Australia continue to allow the jumps to be part of the racing calender any more, it has been banned elsewhere in Australia. Today, on Day 1 of that season, at Warrnambool, three horses fell in the first jumps event, one of which had to be put down!! A terrible start for the industry, and plenty of ammunition for the anti-jumps protestors  –  of hich I am included, despite actually loving to watch the horses go over the jumps.

Woke up in the early hours of this morning, just as the World Cup Final was being played, in fact as it was finishing  –  India vs Sri Lanka. Great excitement amongst the large crowd, particularly as a supporter of India who won the championship. So finally, the 2011 World Cup Cricket competition was over, and India were the champions, after Australia had won the previous three world cups. A changing of the guard in more ways than one!  India won by 6 wickets, with the final scores –  India 4 for 277 defeated Sri Lanka 6 for 274.

It was just after that, as I tried to get another three hours sleep, that Susie came home  – at 3.30 am in the morning – I’d not heard from her all weekend, and the arrival at that time was a bit of a surprise. Anyway, I went back to sleep, until my ‘Sunday morning ‘ alarm woke me again, two hours later. We had all supposedly gained an extra night’s sleep overnight –  daylight saving officially ended at 2am this morning, with our clocks being wound back an hour, now back with official Eastern Australian Standard Time.   One should have felt a little brighter, on departing for the studio this morning  – not sure if that was the case.  Nevertheless, I enjoyed this morning’s program, which I started just before 6.30 am, and this week, featured Beethoven’s 5^th Symphony – over the past few months, I have been working through Beethoven’s nine symphonies, maybe playing one every 5/6 weeks, and today, I decided it was time for probably the most broadly popular of them. Even people who generally have no interest in classical music, etc, would have some time, if just by accident, heard some aspects of this particular composition, and could recognise it as belonging to Beethoven! Perhaps! Anyway, an inspiring piece of music, in my view.

Jack came in this morning – he had only done a couple of previous shows –  came in to fill the spot usually occupied by our country music presenters who were absent because of illness – he was confident he could manage this morning without another sit-in presenter as guidance. Anyway, I got him  on the way, pointed him into the direction of a pile of appropriate ‘country cds’ and eventually left him to it! Like a learner driver minus  a co-driver!   However, there were two or three of us from the committee this morning, to help him out, at short notice, should he get into trouble.  He didn’t need us!

ABC Radio’s Classic FM station’s monthly newsletter ‘Limelight’ had what I thought was an interesting little article in it this month, written by the Editor, and entitled ‘The elusive art of true listening’. I thought it worthwhile sharing with my readers on this occasion.

“When people ask me why I prefer classical music, as they often do, I refrain from telling them the simple truth – I like it, because it’s better. That’s a sure-fire way to seem like a snob. Instead, I proffer an argument about what classical music is better for. It’s better for listening. I’ll happily concede that the works of Megadeth are great for doing squats at the gym and that the experience of flailing your body around in a nightclub is enhanced by the beats of DJ Tiesto. But try sitting alone in a darkened room for an hour and doing nothing but listening, to say, Lady Gaga [without having a psychotic episode]. When you turn off all the senses extrinsic to listening, classical music comes into its own. Just using your ears…..Not driving to work, reading the paper, cutting your toenails, chatting on Facebook or eating low-fat granola breakfast cereal.

It’s a challenge, for me at least, to do nothing but listen. You need to set aside time for it. You need to concentrate on the music alone [and not on your next deadline]. But when it works, you open yourself up to the transcendent ecstasy good music can bring…………………….So perhaps it’s not so much a question of what music you listen to, but whether you really listen at all. I would argue that true listening brings people to fine music as inevitably as a perfect cadence brings resolution. For me, being a music lover is all about mastering this elusive, exquisite art – the art of listening”.  [Francis Merson].

Keep that thought in mind, as we read, from the same publication, a brief item called ‘Music vs Sex’  –  A new study published in Nature Neuroscience links enjoyment of music to the same pleasure-promoting compound that stimulates feelings of love, sexual desire and food cravings in the brain. Researchers have conducted tests to monitor dopamine release at peak emotional arousal during music listening. The results indicate that intense pleasure in response to music is heightened by dopamine flooding the listener’s system.{And for those wondering, ‘dopamine’ is  – a chemical found in the brain that acts as a neurotransmitter, and affects various bodily functions including mood, sleep, learning,  and voluntary movements].

On a personal front, I felt Susie was unhappy about something, but she was not communicating –  got home just before 7pm, found the meal I’d cooked for her untouched, and she was in bed. Part of a brief note about other matters, was mention of the fact that her boyfriend of 7 years had broken off the relationship. I could imagine [perhaps, though can we really, about another’s feelings] how she was feeling – that news while like a stab to the back, as it would be to the rest of the family when it became knowledge. I’ll leave it at that, but I would feel quite distressed for my girl over the next few days, and while it may not have outwardly been wanted, tried to make it clear in that time, that whatever support was needed, would be there.

I finished the night, with little enthusiasm, watching the 2nd MotoGP of the year, from Spain. Australia’s Casey Stoner, who won the first race a couple of weeks ago, and started from the front of the grid tonight, was fancied for further success – it was not to be, he was ‘taken out’ by the mistake of the Italian rider, Valentino Rossi [who went on to finish 5th in the race] in the early stage of the race, and for a justafiably very angry and disappointed young man, his race was over.

Weather wise, a strange day, mixture of  sunshiny periods, interspersed with cloudy overcast conditions, as rain threatened, at times almost felt like it was raining.  Between those periods, we managed to get a bit of work achieved in the back garden [fighting those blackberry bushes again], as well as the front lawns mowed. In fact, I guess I took advantage of the isolated house, and caught up on a bit of ‘old fashioned’ housework, all those things which need to be done, but which one [me] tends to put off, and off, and off!!!  Until today! Even found time to have a look at the big Group 1 horse races up at the Rosehill course in Sydney –  what a great program, five Group 1 races featuring some of the best horses in Australia [and New Zealand] at present. What a pity Black Caviar wasn’t running today. A couple of my tips, from yesterday morning on the radio, came through – must admit, my average of successes are rather low, a good reason why I don’t usually spend much money on the horses!!

Now after reading through it, chapter by chapter, since around November, I finally finished reading the biography published late last year, by former Prime Minister, John Howard –  ‘Lazarus Rising’. While it’s 710 pages had taken me quite a while to get through – occasional diversions to historical novels by Wilbur Smith, and Bryce Courtney, amongst other things –  I found it a relatively easy read, compared with some much ‘heavier’ biographies. In fact, Howard wrote his book in the style of biographical/cum history format that I believe I am trying to write my own family history. Quite often throughout the pages, he refers back to his own diary notes keep over many years, and  many personal recollections and circumstances that give the story a much more personal approach rather than a strictly political history. Whilst any non-Liberal supporter would probably accuse this comment of being somewhat biased, I genuinely felt that I was reading the story of a man who genuinely appears to believe deeply in the those things which his political life worked towards over almost 40 years of ups and downs, defeats and gains, successes and disappointments, etc.

I enjoyed John Howard’s ‘personal’ references to many significant events outside of politics in particular, and the way such events affected him and/or his family. Some examples – Cyclone Tracey, which devastated Darwin on Christmas Day, 1974;  the September 2001 Twin Towers atrocity in New York; the Bali Bombing a couple of years later which cost 88 Australian lives as well as over 120 from other countries; the Port Arthur murders of April 2006 [and the subsequent Gun Laws legislation]; his personal relationship as a ‘friend’ with George Bush;’ and so it goes on. I have over recent months included various quotations from the book in these pages, and probably will again on future occasions, when the circumstances warrant doing so, as I found so many fascinating little antidotes, Howard viewpoints, opinions of other leaders, and personalities in all fields of Australian society, especially in the sporting area.  I read somewhere one that one criticism of Howard was his apparent lack of interest in academic circles and the arts – certainly the latter aspect of Australian cultural life does get little mention in the book, and the arts generally don’t seem to have figured greatly in his life and lifestyle. That may be a misreading, but that impression comes through to this reader anyway.

I might finish this little reference to John Howard’s biography with a quotation from one of the closing chapters, entitled ‘The Tide Runs Out’, which is obviously referring to the election of November 2007, when he and the Coalition Government were thrown out of office. It reveals that he was a realist, who didn’t really hold out false hopes that things would always fall in his direction, as had been proved over many decades of political life, and the honesty of his strength of purpose in accepting defeat, together with his surprise at Costello’s response to the defeat,  He writes:-

“Election day, 24 November 2007, was a lovely summer day in Sydney. I had my customary morning walk, followed by hordes of press people. I thought that it was probably my last day as PM, but still held out a small amount of hope, based once again on that poll shift earlier in the week. Having being a member of the House of Representatives for 33 years and 6 months, which made me the 12^th longest-serving MP out of the more than 1100 who have been elected since Federation,  I had a good sense of the mood of the electorate, simply from moving around, talking to people on polling booths and observing their body language. By mid-afternoon I sensed that the Government was gone and that I would probably lose Bennelong [his seat]. Too many eyes were averted. There were two middle-aged women at Denistone East who simply said, ‘No thanks, Mr Howard’…….It was a different mood that of the two previous elections………………………..About 8.30 it was all over, even though the polling booths in WA had not closed. At about 9.30pm I rang Kevin Rudd, congratulated him and discussed transition arrangements. Peter Costello phoned. I told him that I would make my concession speech shortly and would say that I thought he should assume the leadership of the Liberal Party. He replied that he was not sure that he would take it on and intended to discuss it further with family and friends, Having other things on my mind, I did not think much more about Peter and the leadership. I was genuinely surprised when he walked away from the leadership the next day. As events were to prove, I had wrongly assumed that politics was so much part of his being that he could not walk away whilst the possibility of the ultimate prize was still there………………………………..The following morning I went on my normal walk, accompanied by an army of press people, which included a few strays who have come along for the ghoulish pleasure of watching me the day after my loss. I disappointed them and kept up my usual pace.  Later that morning, Janette and I attended Holy Communion at the local Anglican Church in Lavender Bay. If we had won the election we would have done the same thing. By these actions, I was saying in my own way that I fully accepted what had happened; it disappointed me, but that was the democratic process. For me and my family, life would go on, and it would continue to be a good life.” [pps 645-647 ‘Lazarus Rising’]

Writing in my own ‘Blog’ that night [24 November 2007], I noted “It’s 11.30pm Saturday – I feel a little flat, a bit washed out, a little disappointed, but optimistically philosophical. I feel proud to be in a nation which allows it’s people the freedom to change it’s government without fear or threat”. And later, in responding to a response to my blog from a friend, I replied that ‘It seems  that the desire of the majority of the Australian electorate is fairly clear, as all governments in Australia [Federal and State] [at that time] are now Labor controlled. That for the time being, is the will of the people in our democratic society. Let’s hope that the trust that has been placed in those who govern us will not be betrayed. At least I won’t have to go to work tomorrow morning as I did 3 years ago,  and be told that half of Australia’s population are idiots and imbeciles because they didn’t vote for Labor. This time, only about 48% of us are idiots  in that person’s eyes, lol”.

Blues update, Round 2, 2001 AFL Season:  by Saturday night [back to 2^nd April, 2011] my attention went to more important matters  –  it was the Carlton Football team’s second match for the AFL’s 2011 season, on tonight up in Brisbane. My elder son, James, came over to watch the game on the TV – he  brought his young dog with him [which answers to the name of Murphy, by coincidence, one of Carlton’s best players!!]. A very friendly kelpie [of the sheep dog variety], but not quite properly house trained as yet in some respects, as I would discover on two occasions through the evening!

This was a rather historic game tonight [quite apart from the fact that Carlton captain Chris Judd was playing his 200th game!] – we were playing against the Gold Coast Suns, a new team in the AFL Competition, and this was in fact their first game ever. Many of the pundits were predicting that as with one or two other first time interstate teams,  Carlton would be beaten tonight, but on form, and because of the relatively inexperience of the new team make-up, I couldn’t really see that. Just before the game started, I received a welcome little text message from my Collingwood supporting brother up in Brisbane, whom most of the family have not heard much from lately. I was pleased that football called briefly break that silence. Only brief, but a contact – “Good luck, first to play the Suns’.

As the game eventuated, it was the Suns who needed a bit of luck, but unfortunately for them, it didn’t come their way tonight, and as the score sheet below indicates, it was a rather one-sided affair, and for the Suns, a ‘rather rude welcome’ to the ranks of the AFL. For us Blues’ supporters, a pleasing outcome, which saw the team dominate in each quarter for a change – usually a poor one or two quarters, often leads to a disappointing result.

Carlton Blues:                   9.5.59                  15.7.97               21.10.136               FINAL:  26.15.171

Gold Coast Suns:               1.1.7                     3.5.23                 6.8.44                    FINAL:    7.10.52

[Carlton moves to 2^nd of the AFL Ladder after 2 rounds, behind last year’s premiers, Collingwood – these two teams come up against each other next Friday night, a real good test for the Blues to establish how good their form really is at present].

This date, in years gone past, often meant the playing of practical jokes on others, as an April Fool’s Day contribution. I have to admit that when I called in at the radio station this morning, for a brief sports report, before continuing to work, I would have loved to have created some form of  ‘April Fool’s joke’ for the morning’s host – but admitted to Ron that I simply couldn’t think of anything to impose upon him and/or his listeners!!!  I’m sure there will be something to ‘trick’ the readers in one or other of this morning’s newspapers, but with the one I have to hand, I haven’t ‘found’ anything yet!!  I guess that’s what makes such a thing, a success – if you can’t pick it!!!

It was quite chilly this morning – 5.5 degrees as I drove up the hill to the radio station, and later down to 5 degrees in the Airport area, but despite that, a clear sky and bright glaring early rising sunshine [the car drivers’ blinding variety] assured us that we were in for a beautiful Autumn Friday! That was indicated early by, initial count, at least five hot air balloons up over the city skyline – always a rather spectacular sight!  This morning I did something a little different – have been drinking very little coffee lately, just not enjoying the drink in it’s vasious guises, even the occasional morning cappuccino, and basically admitted this to various people, including the local Clifton Hill coffee house/cafe establishment where our organisation does much of our business for functions, etc – apologised to the manager, Ahmed, that he was not seeing so much of my custom lately! However, this morning, I called in with my paper, and settled down for 30 minutes to enjoy a cappuccino [which I did enjoy – perhaps it’s the take away varieties that my system is objecting to?] and a ‘light’ breakfast –  Iordered a poached egg with tomato, and I meant light, just one of each, but didn’t actually specify that so precisely. Now two eggs and two tomatoes on toast may not seem much to most people, but to this writer who seldom eats more than one bowl of cereal each morning, that little serving was probably enough to see me beyond lunch, and well into the afternoon!  All very pleasant but a little beyond the ‘light’ meal I’d had in mind!  Will remember to be a little more precise next time, though knowing Ahmed and his generosity, it probably won’t make much difference!!

Meanwhile, my day ahead looks like being another very quiet one – alone again, seems to becoming a trend, both at home and at work!  No wonder I was feeling lonely last night, and mentally very tired. Had a good walk earlier in the evening, but I believe I was asleep soon after 10 pm, rather unusual for this ‘historical’ night owl!!   I shall return >>>>>>>>>>>>>

After leaving work, doing a bit of shopping, having a haircut [well overdue, even if there isn’t a great deal on top these days]], I called in at Goonawarra to drop off a few bits and pieces – brief chats to James, Jodie, Nan and Val [and the dog!!]

Rather a coolish night – most of which I spent up at the radio station –  featuring two major areas tonight – a selection of music and songs from the Col Porter song book, a variety of artists, most of them probably from the same era of music that young Scott was playing earlier in the evening, 1946 to 1964, the main difference being the music genre – he was basically in the rock and blues format, my music tonight was basically jazz. Also played five lengthy tracks from a CD released by that great jazz pianist, Ahmad Jamal [whom I had the pleasure of seeing live at the Melbourne Recital Centre, last year], a recording which I think was basically recognising his 70^th birthday at the time, released in 2000. The arithmetic adds up – he will 82 this July, and was about to turn 81 when he visited Melbourne in 2010.

Didn’t hear anything from Susan, bit disappointing! She had suggested earlier in the week that she would not be home Friday or Saturday night. I think she must have called in briefly while I was at the radio station, but as it would turn out, I’d not see her until Sunday.

Yesterday, I made reference to the media report about Australia’s controversial plan for a refugee processing centre in East Timor, and the fact that proposal was effectively taken off the agenda by East Timorese authorities earlier this week.  I think it was obvious that the  plan would never proceed, when one considers the enormous developmental work still required in that new nation, with many problems of their own to be overcome. Thinking about that situation, took me back to a report I prepared for a church social justice group back in 2004, just four years after East Timor became an independent nation, albeit, not without some considerable sacrifice and loss of life over many years leading up to that time. I came across that report recently, and thought I’d include it on these pages. In many ways, some of the difficulties being faced at that time, are still concerns in this tiny nation.

So, writing in 2004………….”Over the period May 16-23, many churches around Australia will celebrate Simply Sharing Week. The theme this year, under the program co-ordinated by ForceTen is ‘Food for Life’, and particular emphasize has been placed on the basic needs of food and water in East Timor at this time..

Over many years, members of the Uniting Church, including individuals and groups here at St Andrews, have attempted to generate various means of support for the people of East Timor, one of Australia’s near neighbours. While East Timor, after many years of occupation and sometimes brutal suppression, became an independent nation four years ago, this young country still needs that kind of support. Just last year, the United Nations World Food Program launched an appeal for emergency food in East Timor. Under that program, food aid is described as “the provision of food for human consumption for development purposes, including grants and loans for the purchase of food.” In East Timor, malnutrition at the time was widespread, as thousands of families existed on wild roots and tubers, and made porridge from the stems of palm leaves. Much of this situation was a direct long term outcome of the occupation by Indonesia, and the terrible infrastructure and personal damage that was imposed upon this little nation in the years prior to independence.

It was noted in a newspaper article just two months ago, that in one of the world’s poorest nations, rebuilding needs a lot more than bricks and mortar. According to that report “The average life expectancy is only 57 years and 41 percent of the population live below the poverty line. Jobs are scarce and the health system is in desperate need of doctors, funds and equipment. There is no local government power base – budgets for the 13 districts are controlled by the central Government in Dili, which also elects the district administrators. And meetings between regional groups can resemble high noon at the Tower of Babel. About 33 languages are spoken in East Timor, many of them specific to isolated regions” [Australian, 3^rd Jan, 2004].

Meanwhile, on the wider scale, security continues to be a major influence in accentuating many of the country’s food, health & social problems. East Timor has turned to Australia as principal professional advisor to its national army,  and to provide support to its police forces.  My own brother is one of those advisors currently serving with the Defence Cooperation Program, in Metinaro, west of Dili, where he has been located since January, and trains the local forces in the defence of their small nation”.    While Ian was over in East Timor, he wrote a very moving summary of his time and activities there, and I will include that in a future contribution to these pages, in a few days.

Interestingly, on the subject of the refugee centre, our Prime Minister seems determined to proceed with negotiations despite the fact that the  East  delegate at this week’s ‘Bali People Smuggling Conference, has reaffirmed his nation’s hostility to a refugee processing centre on  it’s territory, and suggested that Australia should look elsewhere for a location for the centre. Dr Alberto Carlos said “For East Timor, it’s still not possible. Our land is very, very small…..the income is still very low. A lot of infrastructure needs to be built. That’s our main priority…..We would very, very much appreciate that initiative if Australia can find some other places in the region because we have a very, very limited space”.  Australia’s Immigration Minister, Chris Bowen says that Australia wants the centre in East Timor so it can transfer asylum seekers that reach Australia to the country for assessment of their claims and resettlement in other countries. But with East Timor [rightfully in my view] maintaining it’s resistance, Mr Bowen hinted that Australia has been approaching other countries as well.

On another subject, my admiration and respect for emergency services personnel, increased significantly today, after reading reports of yesterday’s terrible car accident. It’s not a job that I feel I could ever cope with  –  descriptions such as ‘two of the injured were not aware of the activity around them, the third was. He had his dead mate in his lap. Their legs were all entangled around the pole and caught in metal. It was really very distressing for everybody to work…to get them out……….It took several hours to separate all the men from each other and the twisted car’.  I could not imagine the stress of going home to one’s family, are dealing with that horror for some hours.  As one emergency officer said ‘Week in, week out, we seem to have a repeat of what we’re seen before. Unfortunately, you can’t put an old head on young shoulders, and we see the same mistakes again’.  Very sad indeed!

Did I note previously, that India won the 2nd Semi Final of the World Cup Cricket – well if not, I do so now – At the Chandigarb ground in India, the co-host for this tournament. India 260 defeated Pakistan 231. So the final this weekend – India versus Sri Lanka.