SATURDAY IN BILAMBIL pt 2.
http://northernbelles.wordpress.com/
There’s a cane toad in the Van and a Snake in the palm tree. Robbie told me last night that he saw more snakes last year in Hungary than he sees down here where we are renowned for them. He saw a snake take a wee fish in one of the Big Lakes. The biggest freshwater lake in Europe? I am an Untravelled person so I can’t be sure of its location but Robbie described it well. He is an artist, Robert is . Robert Todonai and he lives ina sandstone castle out near UKI. This is his art site. THE ART OF ROBERT TODONAI. He also told there are death adders up here. I hadn’t knnown that. I am not fond of death adders. Now that I look at the name -perhaps the poor things are maligned. He also told me that once on S.A a brown snake came UP their toilet. I don’t fancy that either.
Don told me that Bilambil Valley has more varieties of snakes than any other place in Australia. Hmm! http://todonaiart.com/
I now find that he has been given the honour of being named THE EARL OF LOCK. Robert suggested that if we leave the door of the Van open, the Cane Toad will exit of its own free will. We didn’t know it was there until Izzy had unpacked most of the gear for the gig. He adds it to the hazards of performing in the sub-tropics. Never, says he, has he been rained out of so many gigs as he has up here in the North of NSW. Drought ? What drought?
Luckily, just over the border, the forward thinking Queensland Government planted many drought resistant gardens. They’re doing well in the relentless, daily rain as is the desalination plant off Tugun and the LETS DRINK EACH OTHER’S WEE project in Toowoomba.
Here on the Hill, I shall lock the doors and windows and not allow myself out until I am able to guarantee my own behaviour. Could be a good long wait.
On a note of cheer, I have discovered the PLUOT. A cross between an apricot and a plum and the summer fruits which were not splendid at Xmastime are rather good now. CoastFM, Pluots and the Internet are a combination I can enjoy.
SATURDAY IN BILAMBIL.
“Journeys, like artists, are born and not made. A thousand differing circumstances contribute to them, few of them willed or determined by the will –whatever we may think.”
Lawrence Durrell.
The kookaburras are about this morning. I have been thinking about NSW schools and GRAMMAR. Years back, when I re-entered the world of Education, my daughter, Kati B, was found to have a love and passion for GRAMMAR. I then discovered that GRAMMAR was no longer approved of in NSW schools. I found that a little unnerving. Just as later in the return to the world of Teaching, I was informed at an in school training session that SPELLING was NOT THAT IMPORTANT either. Be that as it may, when Kati B was developing her fondness for the English language at South Coogee Public School, Grammar was seriously discouraged. Glad to say a wonderful Canadian Teacher by the name of Ms Saunders was in charge of her class and apparently Canada had not yet heard of the Anti-Grammar Theory of Education. Ms Saunders almost in the tradition of WWII underground movements encouraged Kati B in her Grammatical Development. Canada hadn’t heard of the need for constant ASSESSMENT either. I wonder whether I could return to the old 18th century homeplace of one of my ancestors. John McLean, I think it was.
Smuggling grammar books into schools – “for goodness’ sake.”
I seem to have woken in a very Saturday kind of mood. the two year long SATURN/URANUS Opposition is affecting me profoundly. Add the green Lu-Lin Comet and best I remain Eremite out here on The Hill. I am not actually fit for human consumption. It comes from dreaming Clarenzian Dreams which don’t come true methinks. I did, however, find a Cyclopaedia of Roses for a little girl and am well pleased with that. BIRDWING CAFE in TUMBULGUM is where I found that.
We didn’t have much luck eating out in Brisbane when we were living there and we don’t have a lot of luck on the Gold Coast or Tweed. Murwillumbah does us OK and so does Bellingen but the last few weeks since we located South Golden Beach and areas nearby we have really struck it lucky. In Ocean Shores where there is a fine Heart Halo eatery and in Mullumbimby where we were actually had several options of food which suited us very well. Chose Santos in the end.
NORTHERN BELLES
I have started another blog with the familiar sudden inspiration and longer term regret. ” a Permanent Reminder of a Temporary Feeling”. I heard that on a CD which JB lent me once. Jimmy Buffet. No I am aiming to make 366 posts – one per day for a calendar year inc Leap Years with Images and Bizarre Proverbs. Saints Preserve me from myself. http://northernbelles.wordpress.com/
Long Road ahead. Especially with the flaws in both WordPress and Windows Live Writer. Ah Well. I have done half of February and most of March. My LIVE WRITER just refuses to respond at speed and wordpress is cumbersome. I shall continue. Daily motivations for me. Including some fine SIERRA LEONE and HAITIAN Proverbs. There’s a twist of thinking there that works for me. I can ponder the following concept for One Day. Have been doing so for the 2 weeks since I first read it.
“IF ONE IS WILLING TO EAT SOMEONE’S HEAD, WHY WORRY ABOUT THE DIRT IN THE EYEBALL?”
DAY OF MOURNING
Today is the official day of mourning for the Fire Victims. Izzy is playing at ILNAM ESTATE which feels a little inappropriate. I guess life is often inappropriate. Its quiet up there in the Hills and Respectful at the very least.
WHINGEING AND PROTESTING
I woke yesterday morning weary of my own whingeing and wondering why it wouldn’t stop. I came then to a conclusion that perhaps, instead of trying to quiet it as I have been for years, I should in fact become louder and let the WHINGER become a PROTESTER again. Perhaps we might even see something more radical than a GREEN Candidate. Maybe a day will come when there is a SOCIALIST or even a COMMUNIST Candidate. I don’t even know if I want to be a Socialist or a Communist but I surely would like the FREEDOM to be one. There are concepts even more radical than bikeways or koala crossings under the Highway – noble though those two things are. DON’T WHINGE – PROTEST!
CASSANDRA POMROY IN BRIXTON
I am accustomed to receiving postcards from the Brother. He travels a good deal and is a postcardsender. I do however receive almost no other mail and nor do I send it. Electronics suit me very well. However, today on returning from Coles at Banora Point (and Coles and Shopping malls are NOT something I do happily or well) the DOS had brought the mail up from the Letter Box and under my screen door was POSTCARD FROM BRIXTON. Cassandra Pomroy – my niece. AUNTY LYNNE – it was addressed to. She appeared to have drawn a stamp on. Fine artist Cassi, but I recognised the handiwork. She needs to be careful. One of the first of our ancestors to be given a one way ticket to Australia was a forger of sorts. COINAGE. JOHN CURTIS – 1749-1821. Check http://lynnesheritage.wordpress.com/
Very nice indeed to have a card from Brixton.
FLOODS IN BELLINGEN
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BELLINGEN BRIDGE which is way under water today. It has a side rail which can be dropped allowing the debris to float over the top with minimised destruction. |
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I LIVE ON the QLD NSW border and almost all the news we receive is QUEENSLAND news. So – early this morning, when my COASTFM Brekkie News Reader mentioned BELLINGEN, it caught my attention immediately. Bellingen often doesn’t reach the news even in NSW and even in midst of BIG events. The Daughter, Kati B, contacted me by SMS a few seconds later. Yes! BELLINGEN IS FLOODED. Wooyung was NOT flooded yesterday despite the road blocks and the signs. We contacted the WOOYUNG CARAVAN PARK and they reaffirmed their NON FLOODED status. BELLINGEN, however, IS FLOODED. 7.32 metres at BELLO bridge and heading for 8.2.
Kati B and IMM had headed in from Hyde’s Creek to work in town but on reaching North Bellingen were faced with the flooded BRIDGE which separates the two halves of town. I have experienced many Flood Events in Bello over many years. I have not as yet determined the precise nature of TWEED Flooding but I know the Bellinger very well.
Most of those experiences were without mobile phones. Today, Kati B was able to ring me from the outside the Providore in North Bellingen where IMM and her were topping up provisions but lots of guesswork used to go into flood assessment in my previous experiences. Still has my adrenalin on the drip and a strange excitement. Memories of children and floating VWs and calculated estimations of how high the waters would come.
I have very few images of those times. Certainly I have none to hand, but I have some fine mental images of days flooded in and floodboats bringing supplies across.
1974, the Cyclone came down off the coast and URUNGA was flooded in with the rarely seen flooding of RALEIGH BRIDGE and Urunga Caravan Park.
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The loos near the River and the Bridge will most likely be under water. At times when they have accommodated temporary residents, there have been concerns about said residents being caught unawares but I don’t think we have actually lost anyone as yet. |
I just checked my FACEBOOK friends and several of them are flooded in and most of them seem to be enjoying it. No work today! That indicates that Urunga is also flooded in. That’s dramatic.
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One of the Kalang Road bridges west of Bellingen. I lived on Kalang when the Kids were little. The School Bus used to pick the children up from the schools when waters began to rise. The driver then honked the horn to let families know the Kids were on their way home. |
COAST FM at 12.01pm NSW time – says that water is across the road at URUNGA and north of Frederickton. That’s dramatic too.
Lifted this from the RTA site.
BELLINGEN – WATERFALL WAY between PACIFIC HIGHWAY and DORRIGO MOUNTAIN
ADVERSE WEATHER – FLOODING
Initial report
Lanes closed:
Both directions – All
RTA advice:
Exercise caution
Other advice:
There is no access to Bellingen.
Motorists are advised to delay their journey.
Attending:
Emergency service(s)
THE WALKWAY AT THE END OF THE FOOTBRIDGE OVER URUNGA LAGOON. Most likely flooded today. (That’s my academic analysis. )
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http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3133122
The West Australian
Saturday 29 March 1890
NEW SOUTH WALES.
THE FL00DS.
THE DAMAGE IN THE COUNTRY
DISTRICTS.
[BY TELEGRAPH]
(FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT)
SYDNEY, March 28. 1890
Walcha, a township 300 miles north of Sydney, is under water. The inhabitants have removed their things to a place of safety. Great damage has been done. The river at Walcha fell considerably yesterday. It is raining in torrents at Armidale, where the floods are the greatest ever experienced. Several houses on the low land at Armidale are flooded. The gasworks also are flooded, and the fires have been put out. The damage on tbe Bellinger river is estimated at between £35,000 and £40,000. The river is again rising. Thirty three inches of rain have fallen at Fernmount up to date, and nearly three inches fell last night. At Inverell the river rose 20 feet, overflowing its banks in many places. Families, in many instances, have deserted their homes. The people in the Kempsey district are preparing for another flood. The largest flood since 1878 has been experienced at Tenterfield. Several residents have left their homes, and one house is in water 4 feet deep.
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http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2424414
The Canberra Times ; Monday 15 February 1937
FLOOD DANGER PASSES QUICKLY IN THE NORTH
SWIFT RISE AND FALL
SYDNEY, Sunday.
Flood danger on the North Coast is rapidly passing as the flood waters are being carried swiftly away, and although some townships are still isolated by water; the worst appears to be over.
The severest local floods for 40 years were experienced at Gleniffer, on the Bellinger River,which had 32 inches of rain in 48 hours; Much damage has been caused to property, maize crops being washed away, and fencing swept out to sea while heavy losses of stock are expected to be revealed when farmers can inspect their flooded lands.
At Gienreagh, the Orara River which had risen more than 30 feet: dropped 9 ft last night and rain ceased altogether this morning.Gangs of men are out repairing bridges, filling in washaways and clearing railway lines. The falling, of the river has made it posslble to reach Glenreagh by rail, though roads are still impassable. At East Bellingen, residents were forced to evacuate their homes.
Occupants of Gleniffer stocked their houses with provisions to withstand a flood seige, and have received no mail or food yet. Their only available means of communication waa the telephone.
THE LANE BELOW THE FLATS
I am putting this haunting melody on today. Brings to my mind the tales My Mother and Father told me of Early Sydney . They were born in the 1920s and passed on a fine ‘ oral history ‘ to me. My father also left his diaries and letters of WWII. I am in the process of getting the letters into order on a blog site of his own. In his later years, we combined to ensure that they were all recorded on ” floppy disks” before sending them off to the AWM where we hoped they would be best cared for. I have converted them to CD records and online blogs. BRUCE SANDERS. The letters still haunt me and bring tears unexpectedly at times. More is said in what has not been written than what has been. Dad was very keen to have his letters and diaries published but we had no resources with which to do so in the 1990s. I am hoping that having them online would please him. His diary featured in Peter Stanley’s (AWM) book on EL ALAMEIN.
My Mother was born in REDFERN and my father in HURLSTONE PARK. As a result I have stories of SURRY HILLS and back lanes of CANTERBURY. This brings me back to THE LANE BELOW THE FLATS.
THE LANE BELOW THE FLATS. Originally a poem by WILFRED NATHAN published in the BULLETIN in the early 20th Century and set to music by members of PASPALUM. Another wee entry into the 20th Century but charming nonetheless. IZZY Foreal ( Peter Knox) located the poem and the vocals are his.
BRUCE AND J.G. SANDERS 1946 STREETS OF SYDNEY
WOOYUNG
Took a trip to WOOYUNG today. Well, we tried to take a trip to WOOYUNG. We looked it up last night on the net and found some interesting details in this development mad shire.
http://wooyungbeach.com.au/. “Wooyung Beach Motel & Caravan Park is one of the very few remaining bush camping grounds on the Australian East Coast. We are pet friendly and you can enjoy a camp fire on your site and absorb the fresh air while enjoying the sweet smell and sounds of the bush and the Pacific Ocean.” Sounded Good. I have driven through but Izzy has never been there. We didn’t get there today either. Just out of POTTSVILLE we encountered WOOYUNG ROAD FLOODED signs so we took the long way round and at the CRABBE’S CREEK entrance ran into more WOOYUNG FLOODED signs. Wot is this ???? Having just watched http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIl0GtBWgYk conspiracy theories began to FLOOD my mind. I didn’t go there but I didn’t go to WOOYUNG either.
Good food at EATZ CAFE POTTSVILLE.
FIRE
Here in the North, its tropically wet and lush. I don’t have words for Victoria and will stay silent. These few days are days to stand silent before. The Container that will hold the Sorrows of this dimension will need to be vast.
BUSHFIRES IN VICTORIA
Just a note. Nothing I can think of to say about it. 21st Century indeed. Eric Idle of Monty Python Fame spoke of similar situations in California and here we are with the great sadnesses.
ALPHAINVENTIONS.COM
Was working through yesterday on SILVER THREADS AND GOLDEN NEEDLES and noticed the Hits going through the roof. I thought for a time that I had stumbled upon a blog writing technique that really appealed to people. However as the Hits continued to climb, the wee Saturnian Voice began to mumble that something was odd about these figures. On investigation, I tracked down the referrers for the day and came across alphainventions.com. http://alphainventions.com/
I was a little disappointed at first due to my theory of personally being a genius was demolished but its a very interesting concept – like a massive leaflet drop or letterbox assault on a suburb. Take a look. You can post your blog or any other blog you fancy onto alphainventions.com and it goes on a reading list. Saturating the Interverse with all our blogs and by passing the Megas by the look of it. I am quite impressed so far. Will see what holding traffic remains after the initial Tsunami. It could be a radical new departure. That would be something nice instead of Google search pages of drivel.
P.S. Still a lingering regret that I hadn’t earned the attention all by myself. Ah well.
One should worry about fame just as pigs about being fat.
GATAKER’S BAY POINT VERNON
Just heard via snail mail from a friend who has gone north to Gataker’s Bay. She has asked me up to visit. This is one of those “PLACES I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO “. They say the logger head turtles nest there.
MURWILLUMBAH COMMUNITY PRINTMAKERS
Following the visit to the TWEED REGIONAL ART GALLERY, we decided to seek out the Historical Cemetery as some form of relief. We stumbled upon the COMMUNITY PRINTMAKERS MURWILLUMBAH INC. CONTEMPORARY PICTURE MAKERS it says on the pamphlet. An old tumbledown building and an artist at work. He took time out, showed us around, Told us the background of the work he was doing. A woodcut of the Mangroves at the back of Mingunbal in South Tweed. The CPM was a living art centre and our opinion of the MAUSOLEUM effect of the TRG and it CLEANNESS was re-affirmed. Forgot to say that DOS and his friends were told they couldn’t take a peek at the exhibition as important Guests were expected. The 4 gentlemen thought that they themselves were ‘important guests’.
Maybe each person who enters the hallowed doors is IMPORTANT.
I shall resume a more temperate position for a day or so. The Printmakers was far more fun and the cemetery wasn’t far behind.
TWEED REGIONAL ART GALLERY
Today we took a trip to CENTRELINK to hand in additional papers. We met one young lady handing in her fortnightly form. She works fulltime but receives family payment and each fortnight in she goes to hand in the same details as the fortnight before. What we seem to have in common is CENTRELINK SHAME. The FULL MONTY remains in my awareness. We do need something to restore the self esteem. A CENTRELINK CLIENTS ANONYMOUS group perhaps.
The MURWILLUMBAH staff were again friendly and courteous and hopefully efficient. That brings me to today’s gripe. We then proceeded to the TWEED REGIONAL ART GALLERY in South Murwillumbah. I liked the old ART GALLERY in an old house on the banks of the Tweed near the new car parking lot which looks much like the new facade at TWEED CENTRO. One day in the future, perhaps they will try to draw conclusions regarding these fortress like constructions. The grace and elegance of the old ART GALLERY appealed to me. Now the artworks are housed in a multi million dollar establishment much resembling the KEMPSEY MUSEUM. I don’t mind the corrugated iron effect and the setting of the new Gallery is very lovely albeit beyond the scope of the walkers. I don’t however see the need for the noise and visual indignity of air conditioning units, rubbish bins, exposed pipes and the ilk to be the first encounter with the Gallery when alighting from our vehicles.
It was a pleasant enough experience for us to visit but it was disconcerting to find the staff of CENTRELINK to be friendlier and more courteous than the Art Gallery Attendants, who didn’t exchange one word or one smile with us. What is this ? The era of COOL? There were similar comments in the Visitors’ Book as well.
The great pleasure for us lay in the Exhibition which was just opening when we arrived. GREAT COLLECTIONS it is called and is on NSW REGIONAL TOUR.
GREAT COLLECTIONS, as per the blurb;
is a landmark exhibition that brings together iconic treasures from the eight premier cultural institutions of NSW.
The pleasure for us was in one particular section which was the THOMAS BARKER silverware and plaque. Not at all what we expected on a Murwillumbah Morning. There it was – 1830s-1850s artefacts from the man who had BASIL KENDALL tried for his dodginess. The man who employed PATRICK McNALLY and probably my own ancestor, or step/ancestor, HENRY SAMUELS. A great pleasure to be within one sheet of glass from actually touching the history we are seeking. Thanks, ART GALLERY. Perhaps next time a smile and a chat could accompany the Viewing. Next to us was a fascinating couple making some interesting observations on a piece of furniture. They would have been worth talking to as well.
On HomeComing, DOS informed us of a visit he paid with some friends to the Gallery last week in which they encountered a similar reception and don’t intend returning. They were even more unfortunate than us in that the Exhibition was closed and so was the Cafe when they were there. No matter. Lovely views, Thomas Barker and a fine cake and coffee. Enough complaining for today.
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