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I didn’t actually look out the window this morning, when I briefly rose early to phone in my local sports results service to Ron on 3NRG, so while I had the feeling that I had heard some rain overnight [and also while Heather mentioned, in a brief early morning phone chat that it was raining in Ballarat], it was a bit of a shock when I went out to the car at 8am –  to find it overcast, cold and drizzling rain, and judging by the amount of water around the driveway area, had been raining consistently for a while!! Didn’t have to go out, in fact was feeling a little unwell, but had decided to make an early visit to the newsagent in town, and the coffee shop across the road. Copies of today’s Australian Financial Review [FR], and the Weekly Times, while cross the road, I made do with a small cappuccino.  I thought briefly of calling in at Baker’s Delight to say hello to son Adam, whose car was out the front of the  shopping centre, but decided he would probably be at the peak of business at present, better not disturb him!

I don’t apologise for the major emphasise of today’s blog on subjects of a financial and national interest – each of the items referred to below, were newsworthy items of importance yesterday, and having read some of the relevant articles, like to record and/or share one or two of the principal media approaches to reporting upon them. Despite studying economics and finance at university during the early 1970s, I don’t claim any expertise in those areas, but accept that there are many different viewpoints quite strongly expressed from time to time by a range of ‘experts’ and others on such matters.  The following are just a small sample aimed at giving some idea of the matter at hand.

Not surprisingly, the feature articles, Editorial, etc in the FR were concentrating on yesterday’s decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia to lower the official interest rates – by .05 of a percentage point [to 3.75%] – the biggest cut in official interest rates since the height of the global financial crisis! The question being asked, by borrowers in particular, was whether the major banks would follow that lead and pass on the full reduction to customers. Unlikely it seems!  Meanwhile, in the Weekly Times, concern there was back onto to one of my pet topics of interest – foreign invasion of investors, with reports that a huge chunk of Victorian farmland [about 11 times the size of Melbourne’s CBD] had controversially fallen into foreign hands. The gist of this kind of report is that such sales are angering ‘locals and politicians, with many calling on the Foreign Investment Review Board to more closely scrutinise the purchase of farmland to foreigners’. I personally have to wonder, whether these levels of foreign investment, not just in farmland but in other resources as well, are really in the national interest?  The problem it seems, is that often, Australians have the opportunity to make these purchases, but fail to do so, and the reasons for this needs to be considered. Certainly, the issue received much attention in the ‘Letters’ page of the Times today, and is obviously concerning many Australians.

Meanwhile, the other issue of significance yesterday was the State Budget – the editorial in the Weekly Times [which is obviously slanted towards the rural side of things] felt that the Budget was ‘good on surface’! This is what the Weekly Times Editorial had to say.

‘At a quick glance it appears country Victoria has fared reasonably well in what looms as one of the toughest state Budgets in years. While the Baillieu Government announces its big spends and tries to convince a sceptical electorate his team has true leadership and vision, the Budget’s real impact will be felt for years to come.

What isn’t clear yet is what has missed out on funding, or where the gradual public sector cuts, already announced, will be most felt. While it has achieved the promised surplus, the Coalition has played true to its conservative roots, pulling in the purse strings to keep the ship afloat. And it appears it has still managed to allocate some decent spending – $5.8 billion for infrastructure projects and upgrades to the rail network and major roads, mostly around Melbourne.

The agricultural sector has had both a major win and a major loss in the Budget. It secured $61 million over four years for a new farming research and development strategy. Compared with manufacturing’s package of $58 million to boost that sector, it looks pretty decent. But if you look at the former Brumby government’s Future Farming Strategy the new plan replaces, the picture is not as rosy. That strategy was $205 million over four years.  Many country people will agree with the Government’s frugal approach, but time will tell how reduced spending will affect services and Department of Primary Industries jobs. Some country schools appear to have missed out on much-needed funding to upgrade buildings. Rural councils have welcomed the ongoing $160 million roads and bridges spend. Yet, it means each council can only access $1 million a year. Considering the condition of many country roads, you don’t have to be too cynical to think the money won’t go far. Despite heavy lobbying from the Victorian Farmers Federation for an expansion of the young farmer stamp duty exemption scheme, there won’t be any additional help provided in this Budget.  So while it appears Premier Ted Baillieu and his deputy Peter Ryan have done a fair job for country Victoria in difficult times, country people will be right to reserve their right to see how the next year of the Government’s term plays out’.

Certainly in that latter respect, the confidence in the Victorian Government is not very high at the moment, and the Financial Review’s impression of the State budget uses terms like ‘Baillieu’s tough task: to hold spending’; Not enough for industry, say lobbyists;  with an introduction which tells us that ‘Ted Baillieu might not be very popular, but he has taken on a difficult task.  Victoria is caught in the same revenue undertow that is affecting most of the other states. But along with South Australia, it also is the epicentre of Australia’s highly assisted manufacturing – a part of the economy particularly affected by the resources boom and the strong Australian dollar. Yet while the economy slows, Victoria’s Premier is trying to strengthen the government’s medium-term financial position, which was allowed to deteriorate behind the veil of federal government fiscal stimulus money’ [before the State Liberals came to power].  Certainly, some of my Face Book friends are not happy about many of the aspects in the budget, particularly those affecting cuts to education funding, and public service job cuts, although I’d expect that response from a group who are essentially Labor supporters, with their attitude being that ‘anything’ the Baillieu Government does is ‘wrong’!!

Finally, looking at the FR’s Editorial on the Reserve Bank’s cut in interest rates, which is headed ‘Rate cut won’t cure all our ills’, their view is as follows.

print‘The Reserve Bank of Australia’s decision to deliver a super-sized cut in official interest rates has been driven by the impact of a “persistently” high exchange rate on non-mining sectors of the domestic economy, the dark clouds that hover over Europe, and the prospect of tighter fiscal policy delivered through state and federal budgets.  But cheaper money shouldn’t be viewed by government and business as some sort of quick fix to avoid the major structural adjustments the economy is undergoing due to high commodity export prices and the resulting strong dollar.   Lower interest rates aren’t going to prevent these difficult adjustments from taking place, nor are government handouts to rent-seeking sectors of the economy and uncompetitive ­industries. Households still need to “deleverage” their balance sheets by paying off their debts. Australians will still take more of their holidays abroad because of the high dollar. By cutting the RBA’s overnight cash rate by half a percentage point instead of the quarter of a point expected by financial markets, governor Glenn Stevens and the central bank’s more dovish board have moved to get ahead of the curve, recognise that the cash rate lever has to work harder to deliver a given change in so-called financial conditions, and defuse some of the wackier policies being pushed to protect the slow lane of Australia’s two-speed economy.

The high exchange rate, which has helped contain inflation well within the RBA’s target band by lowering import prices, even if domestically generated inflation remains ­worrisome, is still likely to stay stronger for longer. The aggressive cut takes into consideration the fact that ­Australia’s commercial banks are unlikely to pass on the full reduction to mortgage holders due to their higher funding costs, much of it reflecting the higher premium needed to attract more stable deposits, despite the jaw-boning of federal Treasurer Wayne Swan. As Mr Stevens made clear in his statement on Tuesday, the cash rate cut, from 4.25 per cent to 3.75 per cent, is designed to achieve an “appropriate’” level of interest rates charged by banks to their business and household customers. Mr Stevens has toughened up his language on the strong Australian dollar, pointing out that the exchange rate “remains high” even though the terms of trade have come off their peak, and that the economy is going through considerable structural change. The governor is now talking more about “financial conditions”, recognising that the transmission of monetary policy to the economy through the interest rate that banks charge for ­overnight money – the cash rate – is influenced more than ­previously by the floating dollar and by bank funding costs.

Perhaps strangely, the RBA has steered clear of any commentary on how fiscal policy fits in with its monetary policy stance, perhaps to avoid being seen to pass political judgment on the ­federal budget on Tuesday. But there is little doubt that the rate cut is, in part, a dividend from the federation-wide tightening of fiscal policy highlighted by the Victorian budget on Tuesday and, hopefully, by the federal budget. As The Australian Financial Review  suggested when helping to put this idea on the policy agenda in November last year, such a change in the mix of macro-economic policy would help rebalance it towards the demands of the mining boom economy. Budget policy has been structurally too loose for most of the mining boom, throwing too much weight on monetary policy through higher interest rates and a stronger dollar that, in turn, has disproportionately fallen on sectors such as manufacturing. The central bank has begun to rebalance this mix. Now the federal budget will play its part by delivering a confidence-boosting surplus through cuts to wasteful government spending rather than by simply slugging more productive higher-income earners who already pay the bulk of the nation’s tax.

[from the Australian Financial Review, 2^nd May 2012 Editorial]

With all this conversation about budgets, interest rates, and so on, it was a sharp contrast and a return to the real world of personal friendships [that can never be destroyed by macro financial and economic woes] to open a piece of mail this afternoon and to be almost reduced to tears, by the kindness, love and respect which came through the words written therein. Maybe, older age is leading to a more emotional response to things beautiful in one’s life, or perhaps it’s simply a part of one’s nature that doesn’t surface very often.  The writer will leave it  at that!  Anyway, a bit of TV tonight [another episode of ‘Revenge’] followed by attempts to have a reasonably early night, which as usual was not successful – well, I think I did wake again when Susie returned home from a late volleyball game with Jodie, and that set the pattern for the rest of the night – wake, dose, sleep, wake, and so on >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

 

A heart- warming start to our mornings for both Heather and myself with early greetings via text and a quick phone call. Pleased to hear that she had a planned lunch with her daughter, with whom relations had been a little strained of recent times. Speaking as an outsider, I think a mother/daughter relationship is a very important connection to be nurtured – and I note that Sunday 13^th  is Mother’s Day here in Victoria.

A relatively quiet day for this writer this Tuesday – catching up on some paper and computer work, a bit of a shopping visit to the town, and the welcome arrival in today’s mail of a letter posted on the 19^th April – as my friend suggested, ‘snail mail’ at it’s worse, considering the letter only had to come 100 kilometres!!  The contents made the wait worthwhile, however!  In the meantime, the weather, while remaining fine throughout the day, retained the ‘hint’ of a change for the worst particularly late afternoon, and while I would not particularly notice it,  the night would bring the rain again.

Meanwhile, during unsuccessful attempts today, to try and organise some tickets for the family for the ‘Class of 59’ Rock n Roll national tour [featuring my Brisbane nephew Duncan McConnell performing the role of Eddie Cochran] which begins this weekend with two performances in Melbourne, I discovered from youngest daughter Jodie, that she and boyfriend Ash, were planning to move into an inner city apartment. Good news in itself, as they both work over in that part of the city, and Jodie’s daily commuting by car had been a bit of a worry to me recently. I guess my discomfort about that was the fact that it perhaps signalled the beginning of the move of the family [my ‘kids’] way from Sunbury. James & Adam had already left and returned at various stages, but I imagined that James at least of the two boys, and perhaps eventually Susan, would move away to new lives as the years went by, and that thought saddened me a little, despite it’s inevitability. Any thoughts I might have had in recent years to leave Sunbury, had always being tempered by the knowledge that all of my ‘kids’ were still in the area – despite the obvious realisation, that it would be highly likely they would all eventually move away through circumstances and life choices. The thought that I would also see less of Jodie than I currently do, played on my feelings a little too, I must admit!  Oh well, such is life!

A couple of major events occurring in two capital cities today  – the Reserve Bank of Australia announced a 0.5% reduction in official interest rates, while in Melbourne, the Victorian State Budget was brought down. I include various media comments on those matters in tomorrow’s entry.

Referring back to the ‘Class of 59’ concerts, the two performances in Melbourne this weekend are apart of a number of performances in Victorian regional centres over the next few weeks. The ‘tour’ is described as enabling the audience to go back to the era when rock and roll influenced and created a social movement for the teenagers of it’s day……………..an era which fired up a musical movement  that would only be lived for a short while, but would last in the hearts and souls of billions for eternity. It features a number of modern day artists/singers [including my own nephew] performing the roles of Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, Bill Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Eddie Cochran and The Big Bopper. When my arrangements to get tickets for this weekend failed [everyone was already busy!] I fell back to my original plan of going up to the Bendigo performance at the end of June. Looking forward to it!

 

It was friend Heather in Ballarat, who reminded/advised me via text this morning,  that today was the inaugural International Jazz Day. April 30 was recently proclaimed by UNESCO as ‘International Jazz Day’ with plans of it becoming an annual event each year. In conjunction with that, Herbie Hancock was recently named as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for the promotion of inter-cultural dialogue, and his first act in this position was to instigate the UNESCO International Jazz Day, today!!  Many countries were already involved in the celebration of that occasion, and I noticed there was a 2 hour program concert at Melbourne’s City Square at lunch time today of jazz performers.

Well of course, with that news, I immediately decided it was necessary to make a small addition to tonight’s ‘Smorgasbord’ program, and to include early in the show, acknowledgement of the Day [and of my Ballarat friend’s advice thereof] – I included a track from Herbie Hancock himself – ‘Canteloupe Island’. I always play jazz tracks during the final 30 minutes of the show, after 11.30pm, but am always keen to find an excuse to add a little extra of that ‘genre’ throughout the program. Must admit, I was a little distracted at one point in tonight’s program –  the exchange of text messages with said friend, I guess a preferable alternative to those on-air presenters who find themselves caught up in phone conversations during their programs. Meanwhile one of my other Monday night segments ‘of world music’ included a track from the Royal Scottish Fusilliers, bagpipes and all, called Bonnie Galloway – played that one especially for Jayne out there at Glenhuntly, who continues to be a loyal listener of the station despite now having being through over 12 months of illness and pain, a problem which the medical people she goes to can’t seem to fix!!

Earlier today, had a rather ‘tough’ session at the gymnasium [first visit since this time last week], followed by an hour of ‘banking’ etc in the town before I could finally get home. Was pleased to hear later in the afternoon, that the letter note & card I’d sent to Heather, just yesterday, arrived in Ballarat today. A bit of a contrast to the now obviously ‘lost in the mail’ item she had sent me ten days ago!

Meanwhile, my weekly email from the coach of the Carlton Football team arrived today – well, I can’t claim it was sent personally to me, more a generic correspondence to members etc, however it is constructed to be of a personal nature almost!

Certainly, an efficient means of keeping in touch with the club   membership and internet based supporters, while enabling a close watch on the   coach’s thinking on games past and future.

‘Dear Bill
Friday night’s eight-point victory over Fremantle was a huge result for us given the disappointing loss of six days before. The win was the first for any visiting team to Patersons Stadium in the 2012 home-and-away season, and to be truthful we really thought we were up to the task. We’re generally pretty confident whenever we go on the road because the whole experience seems to bring us closer together.
Undoubtedly, the key focus for “Freo” was our approach. That was the one thing we could control. We couldn’t control the crowd numbers or who was supporting who over there, but we could control what we were doing and it was more about effort than anything else.
Another message related to responsibility when in possession of the ball and composure when dealing with the numbers up the ground. It was also about knowing that when one-on-one or two-on-two scenarios were “on” in the forward 50 this was the right time to go in.
Though a few unnecessary risks were taken once a reasonable lead was established late, the boys were for the most part tremendous in the way they played on what was a 24-degree night with a six-day turnaround.
On a personal level, I managed to get the “red-eye” safely home, arriving in Melbourne at five o’clock on Saturday morning – just in time to be with my wife Jo for the birth of our little daughter Tilly at 8.16am. Before I’d departed for Perth, Jo and I had spoken at length to the doctor and thankfully the birth went according to the “gameplan”.
At the time of writing I’d had about an hour’s kip on the return flight with a 40-minute powernap on Saturday afternoon and a spasmodic sleep through Saturday evening. But I can rest easy knowing that mum and baby are fine.   The game of football and of course the four points are pretty important. But there are moments in life that are very special, you can’t get them back and sometimes you do have to stop to smell the roses because it all passes so very quickly.
Nobody wants to be in a place where they one day reflect with some regret . . . and I’m just so rapt that the events of the weekend worked out so perfectly.

Kind Regards

Brett Ratten
Member #1018372’

From football, to politics, and as referred to over the weekend, things are heating up ‘again’ in Federal politics for the Labor Party, and I thought the following Editorial from today’s edition of the Australian Financial Review provided an interesting perspective and one view of the current situation. Headed ‘Too long to fix Labor’s festering mess’ it went on to say:

‘Julia Gillard moved to clean up a huge political mess ­yesterday, but once again belatedly, and a mess that is largely the result of her own missteps. She should have forced the suspension of Craig Thomson from the Labor Party some time ago and it is increasingly clear that Peter Slipper should never have been elevated to the Speakership of the Parliament.

Ms Gillard says she took action yesterday because of her view of what’s best for the Australian people. “I understand the matters concerning Mr Thomson and Mr Slipper have caused Australians to become concerned about standards in public life today,” she said. But this is very hard to reconcile with her protection of Mr Slipper and Mr Thomson thus far. She was much closer to the mark when she suggested, in contradiction, she acted because the Australian people had been disgusted by the stinking mess that props up her government.

The fact is that her protection of both men in order to retain enough support to hold government has made matters worse for the Labor Party. Mr Thomson offered to stand aside 12 months ago. And Ms Gillard should not have been blind to Mr Slipper’s self-confessed colourful background before appointing him as Speaker, and not pushed for his return in time for the budget once the travel abuse claims were decided.

Rather than taking the honourable course and cleaning up the mess of Mr Thomson at the start – he has been accused of misuse of Health Services Union funds and has been the subject of an investigation by Fair Work Australia – Ms ­Gillard let it fester because it suited her own purposes, as Mr Thomson’s continued presence on the government benches secured enough votes for Labor to retain government. And instead of asking Mr Slipper to stand aside while the sexual harassment and travel entitlements abuse allegations are ­settled, she originally wanted his return to the Speakership in time for next week’s budget session even if the harassment claims were still ongoing. It is hard to believe she only recognised after returning from overseas that the Australian people are becoming increasingly revolted by this situation.

Until now Ms Gillard has given her unwavering support to Mr Thomson, ostensibly to back the principle of the presumption of innocence. However, she showed no apparent concern in the face of credible evidence that Mr Thomson and his fellow ­cronies had plundered the union that helps prop up Labor, to the cost of low paid and mostly female workers.

After ditching her promise to Tasmanian independent Andrew Wilkie to enact poker machine reforms in return for his support for minority government, she then had to find another vote and did what this newspaper then described as “the dirty deal” of installing Mr Slipper, the former Liberal, in the Speaker’s chair. Yesterday Ms Gillard talked about the importance of respect for the Parliament, but she in fact showed contempt for the people by installing such a dubious figure into what should be one of the most unimpeachable positions in Australian parliamentary democracy. The line she says has been crossed is the public disgust over her ­handling of parliamentary matters.

When asked yesterday whether Australia would be better served by an election, she suggested that it would be better to allow the government to pass legislation such as the budget and then dwelt on meetings with leaders in Singapore and Turkey and the renewed weakness in the British economy. But after the bitter divisions over Kevin Rudd, the latest imbroglio is ­turning Australia into an international laughing stock and confirms that a vulnerable minority government is not best placed to insulate us from the shock waves of budget austerity in the northern hemisphere.

This minority government has been a mess. One of the key independents, Rob Oakeshott, who originally proclaimed the new political paradigm could be “beautiful”, last week said these have been its darkest days.

Labor has rebutted Opposition Leader Tony Abbott’s demand that Mr Thomson shouldn’t have a vote by arguing that he has not been proven guilty of anything and to withdraw his vote would invite more charges against others. There is strength to this argument, but there are larger matters to consider. The Thomson affair should have been dealt with years ago, and Mr Slipper should not have been installed as Speaker in the first place.

We are left with a government of enormous precariousness. With Mr Thomson on the crossbench, Mr Slipper not voting and Labor MP Anna Burke in the Speaker’s chair, the Coalition, with 71 votes, has more numbers in Parliament than Labor, with 70.

Labor’s continued need to secure enough votes to hold government and pass legislation has left it more ­distracted and vulnerable than ever.’

The same newspaper had an even more balanced article, which from my point of view provided a good summary of the whole range of sagas referred to in the above editorial. Titled ‘Storm began brewing nearly 10 years ago’ and beginning with the paragraph that ‘Craig Thomsom was not yet an MP and Peter Slipper was still firmly in the Coalition camp when the saga started….The saga surrounding [them] has all the drama, intrigue and lurid detail of one of Gore Vidal’s epic novels about politics, sex and power. As Prime Minister Julia Gillard attempted to rescue her troubled government by distancing itself from both men yesterday, the two MPs maintained their innocence and each said they hoped they would soon return – one to the ALP and the other to the Speaker’s chair. If, as Gillard observed, the Australian public looks at Parliament and sees a ‘dark cloud’ over it, then it is a storm that started brewing a long time ago’  –  for my own interest and record I would have liked to have copied that article to these pages also, but it seems I need to be a formal online subscriber of the Financial Review. I find many of their articles extremely interesting but I’m not quite ready or in the position to pay for a daily subscription, only buying the paper on the occasional basis.

Anyway, back to mundane matters – as indicated earlier, another enjoyable on air program tonight, and home soon after midnight, where I then sat down for an hour watching a taped version of a show called ‘Revenge’ which I seemed to trapped myself into following – I think it’s getting close to a climax and ending, I notice there is an extra screening this week, on Wednesday night! Earlier in the day, Bill’s ‘good nature’ was called upon again, with Shirley asking me if I could drive her to the local Day Hospital early on Thursday morning next. No problem of course, she has done the same thing for me over recent years irrespective of our ‘separation’, although I did indicate that a gym session between 9-10 am might coincide with her return home – we would sort that out at the time.  In the meantime, I reminded myself that nephew Duncan’s ‘Class of ‘59’ rock n roll touring show is on at the Crown Casino in Melbourne this Friday and Saturday nights, and while my original intention was to go and see it in Bendigo in a few weeks, I did give some thought to going this weekend.  I actually promoted the show on the radio tonight.

 

 

 

 

Cold morning, and seemed to remain that way in the studio whilst I was on air, air conditioning didn’t seem to be functioning very well. Felt a bit warmer after a couple of text messages from Ballarat, just a pity Heather couldn’t actually pick up the broadcast! Meanwhile a little annoyed to see that there was ‘again’ no-one on air after noon yesterday – annoyed at the people who continually select these prime time spots of a weekend, then regularly do not turn up to do their programs!!  Being through that argument before, and until there is a queue of people wanting to do programs, unlikely that any major action can be taken against those who apply a casual approach to their voluntary roles and privilege.

Back home with cappucinio to warm the insides up on what was still a very cold morning.  Whilst I was catching up on some typing on the computer [something I would spend most of the day occupied with], I had a couple of rare online ‘chats’ with overseas friends – Brenda and daughter who were having a night together watching horror movies, and Jelia in the Phillipines, still looking for a partner, and requesting that I play a couple of songs for her on the radio [that she couldn’t hear either!!]. Never seem to have time to chat with anyone on line much these days – but when I do, like today, is always rather pleasant.

About 11am, gave Heather a brief call in Ballarat – as expected, she was about to have her daily ‘brunch’ [her mix of breakfast and lunch] in a café somewhere, this time with a friend named Jan [haven’t met that one but she sent me a cheerio via Heather, seems they all know of me!!!].  I think Susan was still in bed when I went back into town soon after midnight to post a letter to Ballarat –  Heather wanted some details of one of the Tchaikovsky pieces I’d played on air this morning.  We spoke again later in the afternoon by phone. She has a very busy three weeks ahead of her, leading to the long overdue operation to reconstruct her knee later in May. While we would both like to catch up again in the interim,that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, another request from son James this afternoon to ‘proofread’ another of his university assignments – last minute request as usual, but we managed to get it finished before he [and dog Murphy] called over this evening to collect the amended result. Whilst I was down at Barwon Heads, he messaged me with the news that three of the previous four essays I’d checked for him had earned him a High Distinction.

Our politicians seldom seem to be able to keep a low profile  –  a quite major [potentially]  set of ramifications for the Federal Government occurred today, with announcements by the Prime Minister that she had [finally] asked two members to stand down pending investigation of charges against them. Julia Gillard said that  she was trying to rid parliament of a “dark cloud” by having Craig Thomson quit Labor and asking Peter Slipper to remain stood down as Speaker.  The Prime Minister also moved to protect her embattled government with today’s simultaneous announcements, at which she said a “line has been crossed” when it came to maintaining Australians’ respect for federal parliament. Mr Thomson, the embattled backbencher facing allegations of fraud while head of the Health Services Union, will be suspended from the Labor Party but remain in parliament as an independent. Ms Gillard said she had also asked Peter Slipper, who is facing allegations of fraud and sexual harassment, to remain stood down as Speaker for a “further period of time”. Mr Slipper has already stood down as Speaker over the fraud allegations, but today said in a statement they had been shown to be a fabrication and “there is no longer any reason to step aside”.

However, not surprisingly, as far as the Liberal Party is concerned, nothing has changed – today, Tony Abbott stressed that Julia Gillard’s announcements today on Craig Thompson and Peter Slipper has changed nothing. It has been very clear to most Australians for some time what Julia Gillard needed to do in relation to both Craig Thompson and Peter Slipper. Today Julia Gillard again simply reacted to events further confirming her lack of judgement. Julia Gillard and Labor will continue to rely on the tainted vote of Craig Thompson to keep themselves in power at all costs. It is an act of a desperate and tricky government to have Craig Thompson suspended from the ALP Caucus but still accept his vote in parliament. The Prime Minister, if she is to restore a shred of credibility for herself, the ALP and this dysfunctional parliament, must refuse to accept Craig Thompson’s tainted vote. Craig Thomson should do the right thing and let the people of Australia have their say. The Peter Slipper saga has descended into even deeper farce, with the Parliament of Australia effectively having no Speaker and no certainty as to when we will have one again. Australia is a great country with a great future which is being let down by a very bad government. A government that is being led by a Prime Minister with no vision for Australia – only a vision for her own survival. Julia Gillard won’t support Australians who are battling cost of living pressures and dealing with greater job insecurity from her carbon tax, but she will continue to support Craig Thompson and Peter Slipper. The only way to clean up the mess of this tainted government and tainted parliament is to let Australians have their say through a fresh election.

Away from the political front, the 5^th round of AFL football concluded this afternoon, and it left the top eight teams as follows, with the Blues hanging onto that third position.

AFL Ladder [top 8 teams] after Round 5

• West Coast Eagles                              20                 170.89
• Sydney Swans                                     20                 149.28
• Carlton Blues                                      16                 146.50
• Adelaide Crows                                  16                  123.24
• Essendon Bombers                             16                  116.78
• St Kilda Saints                                    12                  146.70
• North Melbourne Kangaroos              12                  129.70
• Geelong Cats                                      12                   106.71

Feeling a little tired tonight, guess I should try and get an early night, like my friend in Ballarat apparently is, claiming not to have recovered from our visit to the coast, which I thought had been a project of rest and relaxation. Must have been that sea air!! However, I did want to have a look at the Motorcycle Grand Prix from Spain that was been televised tonight, even if Australia’s Casey Stoner had not earned himself a very good spot on the starting grid!

 

 

 

I didn’t go to the gymnasium this morning, and while there may have been an element of guilt in not doing so, it was probably the correct decision, because after an early morning text to Heather to check on her health and recovery this morning [and noting her reply, which indicated as I’d suggested, that a visit to her doctor ‘before’ next week might happen, I actually slept for another two hours or so, after an initial 7 hour uninterrupted sleep – rare occurrence on both counts.  When I did eventually put in an appearance, it was a moist but beautifully sunny morning – the grass and plants in the sunlight, still glistening from the overnight dew.

Meanwhile, for my weekly Saturday morning piece of poetry for the Face Book page, I included a couple of verses this morning from Australia’s Henry Kendall.

The song that once I dreamed about,

The tender, touching thing,

As radiant as the rose without,

The love of wind and wing:

The perfect verses to the tune

Of woodland music set,

As beautiful as afternoon,

Remain unwritten yet.

 

Perhaps the lady of the past

Upon these lines may light,

The purest verses, and the last,

That I may ever write;

She need not fear a word of blame;

Her tale the flowers kept –

The wind that heard me breathe her name

Has been for years asleep.

 

[taken from the poem ‘After Many Years’ taken from one of three books published  by Henry Kendall, titled ‘Leaves From Australian Forests’ –  an Australian poet,  born1839, died1882 –  brought up amongst the mountains and forests of the  south coast of New South Wales. From the start, his life was rarely happy, and  as a young man he was a disturbing mixture of shyness, melancholy and intense ambition, though while unfortunate in life, much more fortunate  with friends  and supporters who gave him constant encouragement in his writings].

I wondered, as I copied this, whenever anyone reading it might apply the words to m own current life and situation – not really intended that way, but in retrospect, and when reading the other numerous verses which complete the poem – these were just two of the verses- such an interpretation could quite possibly be applied!

Watched part of the Sydney Cup carnival day’s racing this afternoon, a coverage which concluded with a race from Adelaide, featuring the magnificent ‘Black Caviar’ which went on to win it’s 20^th race from 20 starts in Australia. Likely to have one more Australian run before going over to challenge all comers in the UK.

Meanwhile, over in the Caribbean, the 3^rd and Final cricket test match was completed early this morning – Australia’s last Test match for 6 months until we host South Africa out here in Australia. [or is it over there?]. Anyway, the match resulted in a win for Australia, and subsequently a Series win -2-0, with the 2^nd Test having being drawn. Final scores were:

Australia:         328 and 259

West Indies:     218 and 294

Australia won by 75 runs: Man of the match: Matthew Wade. Man of the Series: Shivnarine      Chanderpaul

 

Unfortunately, the weather was not very kind to us, but it would nevertheless be a peaceful and sharing few days – a chance for me to get away from daily commitments and routines, and for my old school friend, the opportunity to wind down after a year or so of drama leading up to the death of her mother a few weeks ago

Tuesday, 24^th April – I precede my journey with another visit to the dentist!!

Yes, that was the start to my day – a 9.15 appointment at the dentist, really, a follow-up and finalisation of the process of the past few visits, and not too difficult a procedure to cope with. But what a miserable morning to have that appointment, prior to my drive across to the coast!

Thankfully, the dental appointment was over fairly quickly, no injection for pain, so no likelihood of any drowsiness or numbness, but disappointed to find it was still raining when I set off from Sunbury, because with the car packed, etc, there was no need to return home.  My destination was the small coastal town of Barwon Heads, but rather than drive what was probably the most direct and fastest route – across the Western Ring Road to the Geelong Highway, and bypass freeway around Geelong, I travelled across country, via Melton and Bacchus Marsh, and then through the ‘backblock’ country between the Marsh and the city of Geelong. As I would remark to Heather later in the week, as a father with young children, any such trip, no matter how short a duration, usually involved the obligatory toilet stops for one or other of the kids. These days, such stops were necessary for the ‘old Dad’, and with the day being wet and miserable,  that necessity seemed even more prevalent – so for what turned out to be a two hour trip, I had to stop twice, at Melton, and then on the Bellarine Peninsula side of Geelong!!  Actually, the weather improved a little as I got closer to Geelong, but again, the rain began once I reached the Ocean Grove area, and Heather would tell me that it had not really stopped raining through the night – I think she had been a bit concerned about my driving in the weather as it appeared where she was, and was surprised [and I think relieved] when she learnt I had reached Geelong earlier than anticipated [for those not aware, Geelong is the largest city in Victoria, outside of Melbourne, and is located on the coast, an hour down the highway from Melbourne].

The holiday town of Barwon Heads is located on the southern coast of the Bellarine Peninsula and separated by the Barwon River from its twin coastal town of Ocean Grove which I passed through just a few short kilometres from my destination.. Barwon Heads is a popular seaside community, offering a diverse variety of coastal attractions from the shallow and sandy shoreline of the Barwon River to the windswept surf beaches which front Bass Strait along 13th Beach Road. The Bluff Lookout, at Point Flinders, is situated on a rocky outcrop and a network of surrounding walking tracks provides views over the town centre, along the Barwon River and in all directions across Bass Strait. I have spent many visits either walking around the Bluff area, either at the top, or exploring the rocks, etc, at the waterline below.  The commercial centre of Barwon Heads includes the town’s major hotel just near the river bridge and a strip of shops including cafes and restaurants along Hitchcock Avenue.  Since I was last here, those kind of facilities have grown and modernised immensely, and in particular, I would soon realise the variety of eating places had also grown. Just north of Barwon Heads is the expansive waterway of Lake Connewarre and surrounding wetlands which make an ideal spot for fishing and bird watching. I seem to recall sitting on the back of a motorbike back in the early 1960s, on an early morning rabbiting outing with a fellow camper [Roger, the ‘ambulance driver’] – presumably he obtained permission from my mother at the time for me to go with him!

Anyway, I think it was about midday when I reached Barwon Heads, and turned into the street whether Heather had found her accommodation for the week [she’d being here since late Sunday morning]. A brief delay to respond to a text message from Susie –  she’d had obviously just got up, seen the state of the weather outside, and was sending her commiserations for my decision to spend these few days at ‘the beach’!!

It was raining steadily when I reached the apartment, and it would in fact, continue in that manner for the whole of the afternoon and into the night. Heather had already organised food, etc, so that unless absolutely necessary, there would be no need for us to leave the apartment again today should the weather continue, as in fact it did. There would be no excursions along the beach front on this particular first day!!

And why are the two of us here, in this relatively quiet seaside location, on a miserable wet Autumn afternoon?  Two people who a few months ago had almost forgotten the other had previously existed in our lives. Although that is not really true, because as conversations over the next day or so would reveal, neither of us had ever completely obliterated the other from our collective memories.  We went through most of Primary School together in the 1950s, were associates in Church and Sunday-school during that same decade, and sat up on that makeshift stage for the annual Neil Street Sunday-school anniversaries for a number of years. Both of our parents were associates of each other, and on one occasion, Heather’s mother showed a particular kindness to my mother, and younger sister,   a kindness that was looked down upon by others in the Church at the time! And then, at the end of our primary school years, and with my family moving to another part of Ballarat, and our attendance at different secondary schools, we  drifted apart as pre-teens at the time.    Until that  arranged lunch meeting, in Bacchus Marsh, this past January, following my decision to contact Heather late last year, after speaking with her brother at the Neil Street 150^th anniversary reunion in August!!  After 50+ years, two friends have found each other again, and neither of us dare to think beyond each day as it passes!!

Certainly, with atrocious weather outside, there was little incentive to venture beyond the apartment for the rest of today – think it was called the Ozone Apartments, one of two, with the bottom one unoccupied this week, we were upstairs, and the complex owners [husband and wife] away at work, in Geelong I assume!]. Both quiet and private, although as we would discover during the night, rather open externally to the forces of the strong winds which were roaring inland off the southern ocean right through the night. However, also a great opportunity to share thoughts, reminisces of what we had both being doing over the past 50 years, including three marriages, both of hers with men who  turned out to be cheating and violent partners, and to also share and enjoy our mutually found love of both classical music, and in particular, jazz!!!  Together with the odd class of wine – although in that area for me,  one glass is genuinely my limit these days!

Meanwhile, as already indicated, it would be a wild night outside. The wind was ongoing, and the fierceness of it  continued relentlessly until around daylight when I think it calmed a little, while the rainstorms continued in an unusual pattern – consistently, there would be a major thunderous downpour lasting 10-15 minutes, followed by relative silence [apart from the wind] followed by another spell of drenching rain. My original plan for this Tuesday night [before I’d decided to come and join Heather a day earlier than intended] had been to go around to Sunbury’s Clarke Oval and watch the Sunbury football team’s first 2012 game in the Ballarat Football League – what a miserable night that would have been – a game won by Sunbury by the way, in dreadful soggy conditions –  I had absolutely no regrets about the change of plans, and choosing to be with an ‘old’ friend in a warm and comforting environment, irrespective of what was going on outside!!

Wednesday, 25th April –  a wet & miserable [weather wise]  Anzac Day

It was a little calmer outside this morning – the rain seemed to have gone away in the main, though it remained quite windy. It was while we were preparing to go out, that Heather pointed out the sound of the bagpipes coming from the nearby main streets, clearly audible above the wind.  This morning was of course Anzac Day, and I noted that this was the first time for many years that I had not been wake from 5.0am of an Anzac morning to listen to the broadcasts of the Dawn Services, firstly from Canberra, and then from the Shrine in Melbourne. In fact, to be honest, Anzac Day didn’t really register, until we heard the bagpipes playing. I don’t know if Barwon Heads had any kind of Dawn Service – didn’t hear anything – but in the town this morning, local residents were assembling for a service and parade from around 9am I think it was [when we heard the band music] from Hitchcock Avenue along the road to the Barwon Heads RSL building where a wreath laying ceremony took place. In fact, that site was just around the corner from here we were staying, and when we passed just after 10am, there was quite a large collection of wreaths, etc at the local war memorial.

April 25^th is of course the day that we Australians remember the sacrifice of those who fought in both the First World War, and all subsequent wars and conflicts. Normally on this morning, I would be in front of the TV, religiously watching the Melbourne Anzac march down St Kilda Road to the Shrine of Remembrance. But this week, there would be no television watched in our unit [apart from a brief look at tonight’s news] – not even the big annual Anzac Day football match between Collingwood and Essendon, the result of which I noted this evening, was a one point win to Collingwood [another disappointing outcome for Adam, though his team had all the glory last Saturday, when Essendon thrashed Carlton!!

As I have been realising over recent months, Heather doesn’t cook many meals at her unit in Ballarat, certainly her late morning habit being to partake of what one could call ‘brunch’ [combination of a late breakfast/early lunch] as her main meal of the day, and I soon discovered, something I would have to [willingly] adjust to this week!!  It was after 10am when we found our way to ‘Annie’s’ all day breakfast establishment [which also provided a huge range of other speciality produce, wines, etc] – Heather had already made herself at home here, but sadly this morning [obviously not long since the Anzac Day ceremonies] the place was packed out. So down the street a few doors to one of the more modern pubs which also served a pretty good [if not over-priced] breakfast menu. That would also be my major meal for the day –we would get to Annie’s on the next two mornings –  which actually suited me at present in view of my current dietary problems, finding heavy and/or large meals at the end of the day not agreeing with me. I actually can’t recall what I ate this morning, but it was tasty and filling, and naughtily, followed up with an iced coffee [the only one today!!].

Went for a bit of a drive after our ‘brunch’ – up to the top of the Bluff’.  This feature is represented by a set of imposing limestone cliffs, forming a simple peninsula at the point of the Barwon Heads township – described by ‘The Friends of the Bluff’ [a local environmental group] as a ‘spectacular symbol of the beauty and diversity of our marine and coastal environment’. The Bluff is indeed a local icon, a popular tourist destination and a profound Aboriginal site of significance, as well as being of geological, scientific and educational value. It’s really the only ‘high’ point in this part of the coast, rising above Bass Strait, and forming the western headland of the Barwon Estuary [entry point of the Barwon River].

In past years, I have spent many hours exploring both round the top of the Bluff and down the narrow steps that lead to the beach and rock pools etc below [which I think was under cover of high tide at present]. We stopped briefly at the lookout, but the wind was still too strong [and cold] to venture out for long, and for Heather’s sake, with a major knee operation due within the next few weeks, there was no question of asking her to attempt to clamber down those steps [think I might have struggled with the return journey myself!!]. Despite my many past visits, I wondered if I had really taken much notice of the following kinds of facts applicable to this area, as promoted by the conservation group?

The Bluff has more than 80 indigenous species of grasses; herbs, twiners, ground covers, shrubs and spectacular coastal wildflowers including many that are considered locally rare and threatened.

• From Prickly Stipa grassland      on the western slopes to the large ancient Moonah on the east represents      the diversity of plant communities on the Bluff.
• The rugged cliff face is      home to kites, kestrels and falcons and a host of hardy plants growing in      sand traps.
• The dunes to the west have a      unique natural flora and are home to the rare Hooded Plover.
• The dynamic tidal estuary is      a stunning ecosystem that is a regular stopover for dozens of species of      resident and migratory shore birds.

The rockpool shelves of the Barwon Bluff Marine Sanctuary are teeming with a myriad of marine flora and fauna and are the most complex of ecosystems.

Most likely not, and it was obviously a much more fascinating environment than I had imagined, but for today, not the ‘climate’ to prove or disprove those facts!! Back into the car, where we proceeded on a casual drive [to the annoyance of a couple of locals using the road] along the cliff-top coast road – some magnificent views looking out to the Southern Ocean and Bass Strait, but we both agreed, not the morning to be in  boat out on those waters – wind still quite vigorous, and the waves from this viewpoint gave the impression that any such activity [in a boat] would be highly uncomfortable, and probably quite dangerous!  As we drove, I looked for a parking spot, so we could get a better view out at the ocean, but there was no clear view by remaining in the car, so I persuaded Heather [and me] to brave the biting wind again and venture to one of the cliff-top lookouts. More steps down to the deserted beaches, which we decided could remain that way today!!

By now, early afternoon, and it was back to the township, for a bit of shopping at the only local supermarket that I could find – just behind the Barwon Heads Hotel, a remarkable old building which was probably one of the town’s earliest buildings – I spent a couple of nights here back in the 1980s at a Shire of Gisborne Council/Management team Conference and Working Weekend – had to share one of  the  traditional rooms with Rick Murrihy, then Manager of Administration if I recall correctly. Interesting to note that in the accommodation blurb, the note is included that because the rooms available are directly above the hotel facilities, which don’t close until late every night, some noise will be heard from downstairs. I would have thought that common to most hotels of this nature anyway. Anyway, our visit to the supermarket, and later, Annie’s again, was to purchase some items for an in-house meal tonight following a mutual decision not to dine out. That suited me for reasons already specified, and with the weather deteriorating again, sounded a good move.

Before we returned to the apartment this afternoon, did another around the town, and came across another very impressive set of accommodation units. Being curious and not shy, Heather decided to go in and ask some questions. She came back with the resident manager who invited us to have a bit of a tour and inspection of the facilities. Wish I could recall the name of the place now, but was quite substantial in size, had a number of varying accommodation units, almost little homesteads, and the internal facilities and contents were quite excellent, think we both went away quite impressed, with Heather retaining a little collection of literature for future reference!

We spent the balance of the afternoon and evening at the apartment, simply enjoying each other’s company, the music [mostly jazz again, although I did take the opportunity to share some of the music I play on the radio, which Heather is not able to hear in Ballarat], some wine [the establishment had left a rather nice bottle of champagne for our use], a casual meal later in the evening, and lots of conversation, as we continued to make up for 50 years of wondering where life had taken the other! It was obvious that my friend had been through some traumatic times in years past, but years which had also included two ‘solo’ holidays in Greece and that part of Europe. Obviously wants to return at some stage!

Thursday, 26^th  April 2012 – touring around the Bellarine Peninsula

This morning, the first of two of Heather’s famous ‘brunches’ at Annie’s restaurant – not sure if I could permanently adjust to this style of ‘meal arrangements’ but for this week at least, I’m enjoying the experience. Though admittedly, my choice of dish this morning proved a little too heavy – field mushrooms and other delicacies, delicious but for myself, a little bit strong for 10.30am of a morning!! It was certainly a very crowded environment, and one where it did not pay to want your own exclusive company – mostly a series of long benches seating up to 8-10 people [there were a few smaller spots but they were usually taken]. This of course was the perfect environment for my friend, as I came to learn and admire yet another aspect of her persona – the ability and willingness to strike up a conversation with complete strangers, and in the process at times, almost gain their life history from them. Today, it was a couple of other women, on their own separately, that she began chatting to as we ate our meal, etc – initially, by simply commenting on the glasses that one of the women was wearing.  Had I been on my own, despite the nature of the seating, I would not have ventured into any kind of conversation [I guess I bit more obvious in terms of an older man seeming to be trying to chat up a woman, regardless of what the real intention was] unless it was initiated by another party – and even then, I doubt very much that I would have continued to have indulged in an ongoing conversation up to the point where the other party came to the time to leave.  For Heather, it was almost as though she’d suddenly found a life-long friend with whom departures were treated in that manner irrespective of the most likely occurrence of never meeting again. Certainly, something about this lady, I am coming to greatly admire and respect, and would be repeated time and again, over the next couple of days.

After today’s brekkie/lunch, it was decided that a trip to a couple of the other Bellarine Peninsula beach towns was in order, and we soon set off via Ocean Grove to the popular resort of Queenscliff, another place I had visited my times in my younger years, and subsequently.

The seaside resort of Queenscliff is located just inside the entrance to Port Phillip Bay on the Bellarine Peninsula near Point Lonsdale [which we would briefly visit on the return trip].  Queenscliff was settled in the 1850s and soon became a strategic defence post given its proximity to the entrance of Port Phillip Bay which provides shipping access to the cities of Geelong and Melbourne. Legacies to Queenscliff’s defence and maritime history can be found at Fort Queenscliff where tours are available [I was a part of one of those tours some years ago], and further insights into Queenscliff’s past can be discovered at the Queenscliff Historical Museum in Hesse Street [thought of having a look there today, but waylaid, pleasantly, in book shops and art places!],  and the Maritime Museum on Weeroona Parade. The commercial centre of Queenscliff, characterised by historic shop fronts and buildings, is situated on Hesse Street, dominated by the ornate Vue Grand Hotel which was constructed in 1881. Grand hotels and guest houses can also be found along Gellibrand Street which is separated from the cliffs along the coast in this area by extensive parkland.

Queenscliff is surrounded on three sides by water, giving the town large stretches of coastline, consisting of a combination of sandy beaches, rocky outcrops, cliffs and historic piers. At Shortlands Bluff is the Queenscliff Lighthouse which was built in 1862 and includes a lookout near the base. Further north along the coast is the Black Lighthouse, unique in Australia, having been constructed from bluestone.  Queenscliff Harbour is located near the eastern end of Wharf Street and consists of several wharves which are home to a number of fishing fleets. A retail strip including a selection of cafes and restaurants overlook the harbour. A circular 30 metre tall navigational tower is located at the harbour, and there is an observation deck at the top which is open to the public and provides panoramic views over Queenscliff and the bay. At the eastern end of the harbour is a car and passenger ferry service which operates between Queenscliff and Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula, providing an alternative to the road route via Melbourne.  Looking at the ocean today, while much calmer than yesterday, I certainly did not fancy that particular means of transport – though I do recall doing that trip with four friends from Queensland, back in the late 1960s, Alan Norris, who was working in Melbourne at the time, with his fiancée and a couple of her girlfriends, touring around Ballarat and this area in one of my little VW cars of that period. I also seem to recall been rather sunburnt ‘before’ we made that ocean crossing! Presumably, we had to make the return journey, as the car was still at Queenscliff!!

But I stray in my thoughts  again!  It is April 26^th, 2012, and today there are just the two of us, with no intention of getting on the water! First ‘port of call’ [appropriate description] was a quayside restaurant – forgotten the name again, but right on the port, which was full of moored boats, didn’t seem to be too many of them out at the present time, imagined this to be a very busy little harbour on the esplanade there.  This whole area was obviously fairly new and recently developed with shops, restaurants and some offices as well covering the complex. Just here for a drink and a nibble of something before moving on – via a couple of the shops, where Heather began another of her conversations with the proprietor whilst choosing a couple of small ‘soap’ items for purchase!!

The next couple of hours  – well we spent that time wandering around the streets of Queenscliff – sometimes together, occasionally wandering off separately, Heather to a clothing shop, your writer mainly in the couple of bookshops, one in particular, where I spent almost 40 minutes, and left with three purchases, including another of Arnold Zable’s stories about migrants, etc, and their lives in a new homeland – this one was entitled ‘Violin Lessons’, published in 2011 – and written within a quite modern recent aspect. More on that at a later date.  Meantime, also purchased another book for Susie, and a little gift book for Heather, which at the time, I would not realise the significance or impact it would have upon her – in retrospect, an intuitive selection.  Meanwhile, more shops, more wanderings, more examples of my friend striking up conversations with shop proprietors and others, and then we came upon a beautiful little at shop/gallery – where Heather had visited quite recently when she came down here with a girlfriend over Easter [explained why she was familiar with where she was guiding me too!!] –  now I recall the name this time – the ‘Seaview Gallery’ [86 Hesse Street, Queenscliff, even has a web site I can explore, because this place had some beautiful original paintings].  As it happened, there was an exhibition of  paintings by Michael Parker – it was some of his pictures that Heather and I had been admiring up at Daylesford a couple of weekends ago.  Here, there was much more to see with a full exhibition of a range of his works, which covered a much broader scope than had been evident in Daylesford. Born in Melbourne in 1968, and spending many years in Europe observing the techniques and styles of the masters, he has over the past 26 years, explored art and challenged himself by painting a range of subjects, including portraits, landscapes [these attracted our attention in Daylesford] and abstracted works. When he returned from overseas in 1996, he was commissioned to paint the cricketer, Sir Donald Bradman, walking out onto the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1937. This very successful painting was reproduced in a limited edition print, 20 of which were signed by Sir Don himself. At the Gallery today, there was one of these prints on sale [I didn’t notice but I doubt it was one of the 20 signed copies] priced at about $200. I was very tempted, knowing exactly where I would hang it at home – Heather reminded me it was ‘only’ a print of the original, and while I  reminded myself that prints were all I was ever likely to own, I put aside the idea of a spur of the moment purchase [as I am prone to do, viz, that ‘family’ connected book in Daylesford]. I wonder, if like the book [by Lilian Kirk] that Bradman print will still be there on my next return?

Apart from the Michael Parker exhibition, there was a wonderful collection of the works of other artists – one of two of them, having being commissioned to produce limited copies of particular paintings – most of these well above my price range, but apparently selling fast, according to the gallery proprietor  – whom I left behind briefly with Heather, as she tried to sell my friend a lovely scarf that Heather had been admiring. Don’t know what the price was, but perhaps that should have been my call to be chivalrous and purchase it for her.  Somehow, I think it would have been out of my price range also! Heather came out of that gallery without the scarf!   Meantime, Heather had been keen to show me through a second hand bookshop, which was located in an old church, opposite the gallery we had just visited, but it must have been one of those weekend/public holiday places, no sign of human life around at all, apart from us.

From Queenscliff, it was across to the nearby spot of Point Lonsdale. I had bought the family down here on numerous occasions when they were younger, and had come here with James’ Grade 6 as a parent helper for their school camp, in 1993, I think it was.  From memory, it was quite a good camp site for schools and other community groups, and was located just on the other side of the sand dunes from the ocean fronting beach.  Point Lonsdale is a coastal township on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Queenscliff, and included in the municipal Borough of Queenscliffe. Point Lonsdale is also one of the headlands which, with Point Nepean, frame The Rip, which is the ‘narrow’ entrance to Port Phillip Bay on which Melbourne is situated at the head of the Bay. The headland is dominated by the Point Lonsdale Lighthouse, a rather spectacular construction which I have inspected on the odd occasion. The town had a population just below 2,500 at the 2006 Census.

Historically, the traditional  Indigenous owners of this area are the Wautharong people of the Kulin nation. The escaped convict William Buckley is the first known European to have resided in the area, having lived with the local people between 1803 and 1835. A signal station was built in 1854. Permanent European settlement began at Point Lonsdale in the latter half of the 19th century with the construction of the  lighthouse occurring  in 1863. Since settlement numerous ships have been wrecked here on the rocky reefs at the entrance to Port Phillip, hence the need for the lighthouse, which even then did not save all shipping that came adrift.

Our visit to Port Lonsdale was long enough for another coffee and a shared savoury for afternoon tea, followed by a brief walk along the estuary – this was cut short, by the tide coming in, and waves being swept right up onto the footpath, as one unfortunate passing walker discovered to his wet chagrin. Whilst I visited the nearby public facilities, Heather wandered back across the road – looking for one of the local clothing stores I think from a previous visit. No purchases made however.

Hit the road, back towards Barwon Heads, with a brief stop at the Ocean Grove beach front – I think by now the weather had become a little cooler again, so it was decided no beach walk today! For me, Ocean Grove has always represented the best beaches in this area. The bustling commercial and holiday centre of Ocean Grove is situated on the southern coast of the Bellarine Peninsula, separated by  the Barwon River from its twin coastal town of Barwon Heads. Much of Ocean Grove is spread over the undulating hills and valleys which characterise this section of the Bellarine Peninsula, giving good views down to the ocean and of the surroundings. Blue Waters Lake and the Begola Wetlands are two major inland water attractions at the bottom of the town’s valleys, featuring walking tracks and a collection of birdlife.\  Being the largest town outside of Geelong on the Bellarine Peninsula, it offers a wide selection of shopping facilities including major supermarkets, restaurants, cafes and speciality shops, spread between the main shopping strip near the coast along The Terrace and the Ocean Grove Marketplace shopping centre to the north on Shell Road.  Coastal attractions include the surf beaches  [there were some brave souls out there today] which front Bass Strait and several walking tracks that offer good views along the beach. The focal point on Ocean Grove’s main surf beach is the Dunes Cafe & Bar, next to the Surf Life Saving Club, which is surrounded by lawns, native gardens and bollards carved and painted into people depicting the life and times of the area, and where we briefly parked the car.. The Barwon River, near the river mouth, offers safe and sheltered swimming along its sandy shoreline, while further upstream is a jetty and boat ramp.

Back to Barwon Heads, where we spent a little time exploring the streets, and actually looking for somewhere suitable to eat this evening, or some form of suitable takeaway meal. I think in the long run, we both decided that once we returned to the apartment, we would be content to eat there, and be satisfied with each other’s company.  In actual fact, Heather was waiting for a call from her son in Melbourne, who was supposed to receive some crucial medical test results today – that call came through just after 6pm, and as it eventuated, I was rather glad [as was Heather] that I was there with her tonight  –  the test results were apparently inconclusive, which left some doubt in the air, and upset Heather to a large degree with her thoughts all leaning towards the  negative side of things. She needed a friend with her this evening, and I was glad to be available and accepted in the specific role as needed on this occasion.

More jazz tonight, a lightish meal for both of us, and more conversation about the past, present and future. I think we both agreed, that from the distant past of our 1950s primary school days, some unknown ‘force’ had brought us together here in 2012, but where we would go from here was in the hands of the ‘gods’ or ‘something’!

 

Friday, 27^th April 2012 –  back home after another of those ‘brunches’!!

Our final morning at the Ozone Apartments, and while there was nobody to ‘sign us out’ we did the right thing and attempted to leave by 10am. Didn’t quite work out that way – locked up the apartment, etc, but then we couldn’t get the key locking mechanism outside the building, where the key was to be locked away for the owners, and despite having to resort to ringing them, subsequent attempts continued to fail!  In the end, Peter [the owner, probably in disgust at a couple of incapable individuals] simply said leave the key & mechanism in the SEC meter box.  We were not happy to walk away, with that solution, but had little alternative. Hopefully the owner would be back here this evening, or he could arrange for their regular cleaner to call in – in fact, in retrospect, with us moving out, it wouldn’t surprise me if he was aware that the cleaner of the apartments was due in the near future in any case!

Anyway, with that little drama solved [albeit unsatisfactorily] we drove our cars back into town, and returned to Annie’s restaurant for one final ‘brunch’!! That occupied a good hour or so – I went for something I assumed would be a bit lighter this morning, a healthy mix of muesli and yogurt, etc, though wasn’t quite given enough milk to do it complete justice! Heather had a much more filling meal – in her usual fashion, this would last her through to tonight no doubt.  Meanwhile, not to vary her personality, whilst I was at the counter placing our breakfast order, Heather struck up a conversation with a youngish couple and their two young daughters.  As with the other occasions is was difficult to become a part of these conversations, and my friend always made sure I was included in any case. One of the daughters, aged about 6-8 years I think, had leukemia [Heather probably picked that up immediately, and it was fairly obvious that there was a problem of that nature]. Despite that, they seemed to be quite a happy and optimistic foursome, and the two girls, very bright and outwardly cheerful. Needless to say, the tests which Heather’s son had just been through, inconclusive, but similarly related came into the discussion, and I think [hope] that some of the doubt and negative feelings that Heather might have had about her phone talk with her son, might have been eased a little by today’s conversation with this ‘almost hippy style’ little foursome – I got the impression, they moved around a bit, for purposes of the medical attention required for their daughter, and generally stayed in caravan parks. Both parents were solicitors of some sort – interestingly, he had worked for a time with the Tenants Union of Victoria, with which my organisation prior to retirement, the Victorian Public Tenants Association, had regular dealings. He, or they, lived or were based in Northcote, and they were down here today, on a bit of a break from hospitals, etc.

From Annie’s restaurant, Heather followed me to Ocean Grove, where we parked our cars near the Dunes Café & Bar, and walked down to the beachfront, sat together on the retaining for a brief time. Heather had come here with ambitions of regular beach walks, but the weather had basically thwarted that idea – today she wanted to do that. Despite the fact that neither of us wanted to ‘part’ and go our separate journeys home, I felt that she wanted a little time on her own – sit and look at the ocean, and walk on the sand [both of which she would do after I left], and perhaps reflect on the concerns she had for her son’s health.  So around Noon, we said our farewells, and I left for the return to Sunbury.

Drove through Geelong with only a brief stop for fuel – had considered driving back via the  freeway, but instead, headed back across country, through Bacchus Marsh, and then onto Melton, where I stopped for a drink, and a call of nature. Through our regular communication,  I discovered that Heather herself had just reached Geelong where she had also stopped for a drink, before calling in to visit a girlfriend in Pakington St, Geelong. It would be late afternoon before she got back to Ballarat, mid-afternoon when I hit Sunbury, to find Susie at work until the early evening.

Feeling rather weary tonight despite the restful, and relaxing four days that had just past, and felt it a pity that tonight’s football coverage did not begin until 8.30, which would mean quite late getting to bed!!  I think tomorrow’s usual Saturday gymnasium session might be given a miss!!

The Carlton team to played Fremantle at Patersons Stadium in Perth tonight, and there were a number of changes with three players being ruled out from last week’s team due to injury. Andrew Carrazzo and Jeremy Laidler will both be out of action for up to two months as a result of injuries sustained in the Blues loss to Essendon in round 4. Carrazzo had surgery on Monday to repair his fractured shoulder blade while Laidler had surgery on his knee on Tuesday.  The former was a real blow, and disappointment, because he had made a wonderful start to the season. Chris Yarran was the third player to be ruled out of tonight’s important clash. Yarran injured his toe against the Bombers and while it was hoped he may be available, he will join Carrazzo and Laidler on the sidelines. Brett Ratten confirmed earlier in the week that both Andrew Walker and Dennis Armfield would resume this week. The big question is who else will be selected and will there only be three changes to the Carlton team for what is a very important game.

The game was on the TV at 8.30pm tonight  –  as indicated, in many ways, I wished it was on at some other time over the weekend, feeling rather exhausted after a ‘restful’ few days – those two descriptions don’t seem to fit, must have been the sea air!  In fact, as it turned out, the Blues went into tonight’s game as selected. I was a little worried about this game, as Fremantle were in pretty good form,  and one expected the Carlton team to have lost a bit of confidence after last Saturday’s disastrous result. However, after an even first quarter, the Blues started to get on top of the Dockers, and while the scores at the end of the match, were a bit flattering for the home team, it was a good game to come away from, over in the west, with any kind of win. Final quarter by quarter scores were:

·         Fremantle Dockers:    1.2.8      3.9.27     4.10.34    Final:          7.15.57

• Carlton Blues:            2.1.13    6.2.38      9.4.58      FINAL:     10.5.65

In the meantime, a new addition to the family was announced this week – the baby that Colin and Angela have come down to Melbourne for over Easter, and had to return before it arrived – a little girl to my nephew, Craig and his partner, Cherie – Krystal Angela Kirk. Another name for the family tree!!

11am, good session at the gym, rest of the day spent packing for my few days down the coast, organising radio program for tonight, and catching up on various other tasks.

A little disappointed that letter from Heather didn’t arrive in today’s mail – the mail between here and Ballarat seems to be a bit slow lately, as my letter was similarly delayed last week! Instead, I found the VicRoads Car Registration account !!

It was a strange day, weather wise – heavy rainstorm, thunder, high wind, and almost wintry conditions in the middle of the day, other times, the sun was shining. The rest of the week promises similar unfortunate conditions.  It doesn’t promise much for a few days down at the beach resorts, where the weather is apparently already rather miserable!

An email message from the Carlton coach  received today, following the weekend’s rather disastrous performance –

‘Dear Bill,  Friday night’s match with Fremantle at Patersons Stadium is now at the forefront of our planning . . . but that’s not to say the events of last Saturday afternoon have been swept under the carpet either.  We don’t shy away from what happened at the MCG. Clearly, there’s a need to address some big ticket items and we’d be negligent in our duty if we didn’t. On Saturday the opposition sought to make an imprint on the game and did so early. For the most part their pressure was greater than ours, they got in our faces more than we did theirs and we were basically reactive. We thought the game was still up for grabs at quarter-time. Both teams played reasonable footy in the second, but we missed our opportunities and they grabbed theirs. We closed them down in the third, but they seemed a lot more composed with the long ball going inside 50 and they also claimed their marks.  On the other hand, we were a bit cute with our kicking and we over-finessed. Whereas against Collingwood we smothered a lot of opposition kicks, this time around a lot of our kicks were smothered – which had a lot to do with the implied pressure around the ball carrier. It seemed that we were always having to kick over a man to get the ball inside 50 whereas our opponents had “clean air” when they kicked with no bodies in front of them and therefore found it easier to hit their forwards. The early injury setbacks to Jeremy Laidler and of course Carrazzo may have unbalanced us somewhat. We had planned to make Dustin Fletcher a bit more accountable with Mitch Robinson, but we needed “Robbo” in midfield because of the numbers and Fletcher went to Jeff Garlett anyway.  On top of that, our sub Brock McLean, as a midfielder, was ready to fill the breach once Carrazzo was out of the game, so ultimately we make no excuses for our performance. Put simply, we were beaten by a hungrier opponent.

Kind Regards

Brett Ratten
Member #1018372

A wonderful night of music on the radio tonight, well on my show anyway!! This Wednesday would be Anzac Day, and in view of that, I decided that tonight’s program would be entirely devoted to a form of dedication to that event. So I played a series of songs and music from the war years, a selection of military marches,  and even a couple of extended march pasts [from the UK]  plus various other elements, all aimed at keeping within the Anzac Day frame of mind. I don’t normally get a great number of phone calls during my programs, but did receive a couple of welcome calls tonight – one from a gentleman who didn’t give his name, but seemed to be from a military background, had listened to the first part of the program, which encouraged him to believe he was going to enjoy the rest of it. Later in the night Jean of ‘the Carousel’ Tuesday program rang to tell me that were her 90 year old father still awake in his hostel, he would be ‘loving’ the band music!! Hopefully, there were others out there similarly getting something ‘special’ from tonight’s show, which went overtime a little.

 Enjoyed my return to the Sunday morning show, must have been keen, got there earlier than necessary, so started the show earlier, at 6.15 am. But no messing around afterwards, straight back home, had many things I wanted to get organised over the next couple of days.

Meanwhile Jodie was apparently the organiser of an ‘Inaugural Olympics Melbourne West Action Tournament’ to be held throughout today at the Action Indoor Sports at Maribyrnong, which is I think associated with where she works [Surf Life Saving Association]. I had initially accepted an invitation to go over there – noticed that Susie and James were doing so –  but I realised that the invites were really for people [much younger than me!!] to participate in the events, and as I had a lot to do at home today, decided to give the event a miss. Don’t think I will be missed, hope Jodie not offended!!  From subsequent reports by Susan, James and others, the outcome of the day was quite successful, and various congratulations were being extended to Jodie for her organising.

On the Federal political front. The Speaker of the House of Representatives stepped aside from his role this evening, pending an investigation of claims he misused cab-charges, and also, accusations of sexual misconduct with a male staffer!!  These politicians just don’t seem to be able to keep out of trouble!!  No doubt, over the weeks ahead this item, amongst others is likely to dominate much media attention.

In the meantime, after today’s 4^th Round of AFL matches, the top 8 teams now look like this:

1. West Coast Eagles           16
2. Sydney Swans                  16
3. Essendon                          16
4. Carlton                             12
5. Adelaide                           12
6. Fremantle                         12
7. St Kilda                              8
8. North Melbourne                8

This was my piece of Face Book poetry for this Saturday morning:-

Wisdom can see the red, the rose,

the stained and sculptured curve of grey,

the charcoal scars of fire, and see

around that living tower of tree

the hermit tatters of old bark

split down and strip to end the season;

and can be quiet and not look

for reasons past the edge of reason.

[from ‘Gum Trees Stripping’ by Judith Wright, 1915-2000]

Judith Arundell Wright (31 May 1915 – 26 June 2000) was an Australian poet, environmentalist and campaigner for Aboriginal land rights. I’m more familiar with her through her poetry, and amongst my literary collections, have at least one booklet of some of her poems. As noted in Wikipedia, Judith Wright was the author of several collections of poetry. She was a lover of nature too. Her work is noted for a keen focus on the Australian environment, which began to gain prominence in Australian art in the years following World War II. She deals with the relationship between settlers, Indigenous Australians and the bush, among other themes. Wright’s aesthetic centres on the relationship between mankind and the environment, which she views as the catalyst for poetic creation. Her images characteristically draw from the Australian flora and fauna, yet contain a mythic substrata that probes at the poetic process, limitations of language, and the correspondence between inner existence and objective reality’

That’s today’s poetry lesson!!

A normal Saturday visit to the gymnasium this morning, followed by a rushed return home, a quick shower & change, and down to the railway station Unfortunately, due to more weekend track-works, there were no trains running – transport into the city would be by coach today, which turned out quite comfortable as it was, although reading on the bus not quite as beneficial.  I was off to my second football game in as many weeks at the Melbourne Cricket Ground after not being here for about 3 years. Carlton versus Essendon this afternoon, both teams undefeated!  This time I was alone – everyone working, or busy otherwise –  but at least today, despite another expected large crowd, I was able to get into the crowd without having to pay an extra charge for a reserved seat. In fact I ended up in a similar seat to last week, this time almost looking right down over the goals. I was there far too early for a 1.45pm start, but at least that enabled me to choose the position I wanted within the area available.

It was a sunny afternoon, but I never anticipated it would actually be uncomfortably hot, having expected overcast conditions to dominate the afternoon. So the warmth of the sun, shining directly into this spectator’s face for part of the game, came as a surprise, and for a while a bit of a concern – never even thought to bring a hat with me. However, in the context of the afternoon, the sun was the least of my worries. For the first three matches this season, the Blues had ‘owned’ the midfield, dominating contested possessions and also the outside game and uncontested marks. That all changed today, after an even first quarter, and my team looked – well, disgraceful, missing kicking opportunities, wrong decisions [constantly], it was a complete reverse of the kind of form they had turned on last week. One spectator from the Essendon crowd referred to Carlton as a ‘rabble’, and he wasn’t far wrong – that’s the way they looked and played for 65% of the match. An attempted fight-back in the last quarter, but the match was too far gone by then, it was all too late.  Yes, it was disappointing to watch that, not so much at the loss itself, but at the manner in which it occurred. As the Carlton coach would comment later, his players had failed to respond to Essendon’s bruising start and greater urgency to win the hard ball. And when they did try, mistakes and indecision were everywhere.  Not the reason for the loss, , but it was certainly not helped by a star of the first three weeks, being crashed to the ground early in the first quarter and having to leave the field, giving the opponents he probably would have come out on top of, a free reign almost for most of the game. I’m talking about Andrew Carrazzo, and I would be sorry to read next day that he was likely to be out of the game for up to 8 weeks, with a fractured right shoulder blades – disappointing news for our No. 44.

Quarter by quarter scores:

Carlton Blues:          4.4.28      4.7.31      5.12.42       Final:    11.13.79

Essendon Bombers:  3.6.24     8.11.59    12.17.89     FINAL:  15.19.109

Crowd: 73, 172

After the game, made the ‘mistake’ of walking back into the city from the MCG – would probably have been preferable to ‘brave’ the crowded trams or trains, because by the time I got to Flinders Street, transport going on to Southern Cross seemed to be rare indeed, would have got there quicker by continuing to walk!! Oh well, gave up worrying about aiming for a particular ‘coach’ back to Sunbury – would just take what was available once I got to the terminal. In fact, eventually managed a 5.35 express coach to Sunbury [which actually turned out to be not very ‘express’ because of heavy traffic all the way out the highways]. The sooner they get these rail works, the more comfortable it will be getting into the city and back again!

It was a weary and disappointed supported who finally got back to Sunbury around 6.30pm, and after a bit of shopping, made his way home, where he intended to remain for the rest of the night!!………………………….

 

I woke this morning to discover, that as anticipated, the Second Cricket Test in the Caribbean ended in a draw, although I think we have to blame the weather for that, with rain stopping play early on both the 4^th and 5^th days of the match. Anyway, for the record, this was the final overall scoreboard.

From Queens Park Oval, Port-Of-Spain:  Australia won the Toss, and elected to bat.

Australia:      311,  and 8 declared for 160 [Ricky Ponting, top score 41]

West Indies:  257,  and 2 for 53……………………………………MATCH DRAWN

Drove over to Bunning’s Hardware & Garden store this morning, and purchased a few little plants to brighten up [and fill some gaps] in my front garden.  Straight into that garden when I returned home –  planted my purchases while the sun was trying to weakly shine, with the weather prospects not looking too good. We will see what the day brings.  I’m predicting it will improve, which in fact it did, we ended up with another beautiful Autumn afternoon, and overall, I probably managed a few hours today, attending to matters in both the front and back garden areas.  The other day, while beginning a long overdue clean-up along the non-public side of the house, I’d discovered that the brick pathway that ran down the middle of part of that area had collapsed, or should I say, the ground underneath had subsided, and taken much of the brickwork with it!! Another task to be attended to, but before deciding what to do there, I would clear the whole area first, of excess growth, etc.

Meanwhile news from the Blues as they prepare for tomorrow’s clash against the equally unbeaten Essendon team, included a special notice from Club President, and former champion captain, Stephen Kernahan – which began with  ‘Leading into this season Brett Ratten and the players openly stated their goal for 2012 is to finish in the top four.  The performances to start the season have reflected the determination of this side to reach their goals in 2012.  While it is only early and there is a long way to go, there is no doubting the resolve of the players and coaches to work to earn a position in the top four on the AFL ladder…..’.

In the meantime, midfielder Brock McLean will come into Carlton’s line up for Saturday clash against Essendon, replacing the injured Dennis Armfield.  After sustaining a heavy knock to the knee in Carlton’s 60 point win over Collingwood, Armfield was cleared of any structural damage and is only expected to miss this week. Carlton Football manager Andrew McKay said McLean’s inclusion this week was reward for his ongoing consistency at VFL level. “Brock has been the number one performer with the Northern Blues for three weeks now, and has well and truly earned his place in the team this week,” he said. This will be McLean’s first AFL match for the season. He battled to maintain a spot in Carlton’s senior team in 2011 playing four games with his last game being against Melbourne in round 20’.

As a former student of Melbourne University [albeit many years ago now, when I completed my Bachelor of Commerce Degree, graduating formally in 1977], I’m also interested in keeping track of the University’s progress and achievements. So it was with interest that I noted that in the 2012 Times Higher Education World Reputation rankings, the University of Melbourne has risen two placings from the inaugural reputation rankings last year,  to 43^rd ranking, and remained the top ranked Australian university.

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The rankings are based on a survey of 17,554 academics from 137 countries. The survey asked academics to nominate up to 15 of the “best” institutions in their field of expertise, based on their experience and knowledge. The reputation rankings complement the Times’ annual World University Rankings, in which Melbourne is ranked 37th in the world and top in Australia. Vice-Chancellor Professor Glyn Davis said it was a tribute to the University’s teaching staff and researchers that it had managed to improve on last year’s excellent performance in the reputation rankings. Professor Davis said the result continued the trend of improvements in the University’s rankings over the past few years. Meanwhile, Professor Davis has created his own Blog so that members of the university community and the wider public can engage with him, and submit questions. The Blog also features speeches, audio and visual material, and general comments and opinion pieces. The following introduction by the Vice Chancellor,  gives a bit of an idea of the current status of Australia’s leading university, and one which I am proud to have studied at in my younger years.

“Colleagues, friends, members of the University community and the general public – welcome. This blog has been created so you have the opportunity to engage with me on issues affecting the University, the broader education environment and public policy. As you may know, in late 2005, the University adopted a curriculum which was a first for Australian universities. Encompassed within the Growing Esteem strategy, it combined the best of European and US educational systems, replacing the traditional undergraduate/postgraduate model with a suite of undergraduate degrees and graduate programs. The new combination was aimed at delivering an academic and disciplinary grounding followed by superb professional or research training, increasing students’ ability to study and work around the world and providing multiple points of entry to courses. The strategy reaffirmed Melbourne’s intention to be one of the finest universities in the world.
It was a difficult birth – as systems created through revolution often are – and there have been modifications along the way. However, the incredible persistence and hard work of our staff and our students’ preparedness to consider a different approach are paying off. Recently, first round offers to students through the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) showed Melbourne had performed exceptionally. VTAC data showed first preference applications for Melbourne’s degrees jumped by 21 percent overall from last year, the largest increase in Victoria. There was also a 24 percent increase in applications through the Access Melbourne program for disadvantaged students, including large increases for those from rural areas and low socio-economic backgrounds. In addition, Melbourne had five of the 10 most sought degrees offered by Victorian universities, as measured by first preference applications through VTAC. The demand has also contributed to a rise in the Australian Tertiary Admission Ranking (ATAR) for all our degrees – we were the only university in Victoria to achieve that.
Melbourne’s attraction to international students has also continued to grow despite a significant national downturn, with the University making 40 more offers to that group through VTAC than last year. We believe the increased overall demand reflects the growing awareness of our new programs and their attractiveness to students from all backgrounds. However, there is still much work to do as the challenges facing the tertiary sector continue to grow. Nevertheless, we believe we are well placed to meet those challenges and 2012 promises to be an exciting year for the University. The current CEO of the Australian Research Council, Professor Margaret Sheil, will take up the role of Provost, bringing a breadth of experience to the role. Both the University and Victoria will benefit from her appointment. Our new Research Strategy will establish a 10-15 year framework for University to continue its 19-year trading of excellence into this millennium and beyond. And we will pursue increasing internationalization and collaboration with Asia – notably India and China – and a greater focus on partnership with government and industry.
As Vice-Chancellor, I am very proud of our staff, our students and the fact that we are Australia’s leading university and one of the finest in the world. I look forward to your questions and responses and to engaging with you as the year unfolds.