Lightning sparks fires on catastrophic day
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/19/2747854.htm

Also features new fire ratings

Hotel offers guests night as hamster

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/17/2745682.htm?section=justin

30` days are a blessed cool relief!

Adelaide Forecast
Issued at 5:15 am CDT on Friday 13 November 2009

Warning Summary
The SES has issued an Extreme Heat Warning for South Australia.

Forecast for Friday
Dry, hot to very hot and sunny. Light to moderate northerly winds with a south
to southwest sea breeze developing late morning. Winds turning light to moderate
southeast in the evening.

Precis Dry. Sunny.
City: Max 39
Elizabeth: Max 40
Mount Barker: Max 38
Noarlunga: Max 37

UV Alert: 9:00 am to 5:10 pm, UV Index predicted to reach 12 [Extreme]
Fire Danger: Very High (Mount Lofty Ranges Fire Ban District)

Saturday Dry. Sunny. Min 25 Max 39
Sunday Dry. High cloud. Min 26 Max 40
Monday Fine. Mostly sunny. Min 19 Max 28
Tuesday Fine. Sunny. Min 15 Max 30
Wednesday Dry. Sunny. Min 20 Max 36
Thursday Dry. Mostly sunny. Min 25 Max 38

http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDS10034.shtml

Sliced capsicum spread with cream cheese.

Pretty good!

Glorious cool breeze and sprinkle of rain.  All very pleasing.

It's not yet desperately hot, but hot enough for me to be aware it's heading in that direction.

Another summer of potentially unprecedented fire danger, another summer of near-record temperatures, heatwaves like the 1930s (I think), another summer of water restrictions, possible blackouts and so on.

I'm trying to think of what I can do to stay cool at home that doesn't require electricity.

I'm planning to get a small paddling pool for the animals as last year I was tipping water over them regularly - if they can do that for themselves it will be better.  You know it's hot when you put the cat under the tap and he just lies there soaking it up!

I have water spray bottles, a little neck bandanna that's filled with water-absorbing/evaporating gel crystal things (must find it!).  I tend to wear short muslin skirts and singlets at home, and often wet a towel and wear it/drape it round my shoulders.  Or just wet my clothes periodically...

I keep the house shut up and with blinds, curtains down etc, to avoid the hot winds, but mostly I am too tired and floppy to go open it up much when there are occasions like cool nights, random breezes etc.

We are on permanent water restrictions here and may move to a higher level of restriction, so spending ages in the shower 10 times a day is not a responsible or appropriate option.

So I would love input on anything else that's easy to do and doesn't require much use of electricity OR major financial outlay at any point.  This would probably have the added benefit of being somewhat more environmentally responsible than running an air conditioner...

College at present - there is some interesting preliminary talk going on about re-opening the cafeteria.  It closed last year as the people who were running it wanted to leave and no one else to take it on.  It had been run as a catering business with a side business of selling food to students, as it was not deemed viable to run solely as a business within the college.

However since then all there has been is some food machines that sell dodgy questionable expensive food and make the place feel empty and sterile.  For a while there was free tea and coffee (proper coffee) but then they got a machine for that too (it's appalling).

Last week there was a conversation between a few of us about the quality of the food, the decline of the refectory as a social facility as a result of the changes, and the general dissatisfaction with what is currently on offer.

Coming out of that, a couple of the students have bounced the idea round of opening some kind of student-run refectory service.  They are meeting this Friday to discuss it further.

I have just composed and sent off an email making some points I wish to be considered should such a service start.  I have no idea at all how extensive or limited the service might be - or what resources they have or what the college is willing to invest in it.  I have offered my services and skills in market research, interviewing and statistics (part of my previous training plus working in market research)... but also made some of my own suggestions about my personal priorities and perceptions about a student food service.

I'm wondering if anyone wishes to comment on what might work or be valuable to consider, given that this is a small college with both part time and full time, young and mature students, there are places to buy food in the surrounding suburb but it's a bit trendy and expensive,  and there is lots of bad feedback about the food machines.    I am interested particularly to hear of/from anyone who's been involved with a student-run food service or co-op, either as a worker or consumer.  But also what you would like if you were a student at this college...  

I have cool shoes.  They are very pleasing.

I am massively impressed by the shop and the sales person who totally did not try to 'sell' but listened to what I want, listened to my feedback about how the shoes were fitting and understood that something I slipped out of was not going to work.

And I ended up with this: www.zappos.com/n/p/p/7372106/c/7.html in the colour "serrano viola kombi".  I am totally pleased and fulfilled - don't think I could have found anything better given what I was looking for originally.

I am amazingly stable when I stand or walk in them.

Mostly we don't actually have kangaroos hopping around the main street of town. Contrary to some popular opinions.

But if you're in Tasmania, it seems there are other things to watch out for:
www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/13/2654765.htm

A town in eastern Australia is banning the sale of bottled water.  There is some controversy over this move and the primary issues appear to be decreasing the bottle waste (lots of people pushing for refundable bottle deposits Australia-wide, like SA has) versus minimising the availability of water alongside sugary drinks in shops.

Interested to hear anyone's comments on the matter.

www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/09/2620882.htm

Just for reference, the 'Bundy' in the title has nothing to do with Bundy Rum, which comes from Bundaberg in Queensland.  Apart from perhaps some implied humour.

Out of Time: A chilling investigation of an ambulance service that is putting patients' lives at risk' airs on ABC1's Four Corners at 8:30pm tonight.

www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/06/2617498.htm

Paramedics in Western Australia claim patients have died while waiting for an ambulance, and say the system is so poor it is putting other people's lives at risk.

ABC1's Four Corners program tonight hears from a group of 30 paramedics who say things need to improve quickly.

It's absolutely pissing down here!  The power lines are waving violently, I can hear the rain louder than anything else (and it's not a bare tin roof), the rain is slanting sideways and I just saw something flying through the air; I think it might have been something from a tree but visibility is too low to make it out!

Lovely.  Send her down, Hughie!

There are cameras on ebay.  I have a short list compiled.    With a guitar thrown in for good measure.  And a wooden block in the form of a piece of swiss cheese, accompanied by a little mouse on a long string.  It's a lacing toy for children, and if I manage to get it, it will go to one of the nieces for a birthday or Christmas present.

I will also start looking at other instruments available cheaply, as I'd love to get back into music soon. 

Tonight, we are keeping up appearances with Mrs Bucket.  A while since I've seen such things; nice to permit myself the genuine time to relax and be a bit frivolous.

Train driver under fire over trapped guide dog

Melbourne rail operator Connex is investigating an incident in which a guide dog's tail was stuck in a train door last night.
www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/05/05/2560906.htm

As if this wasn't bad enough, what I'm *really* unimpressed about here is the range of idiotic 'commentary' afterwards: ( Read more... )