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Apr 2009


Changes to Currawinya are afoot!

The spare room of our little house is full of "stuff" that came with us from our previous nomad life and the dining room is full of "stuff" and cant be used for its proper purpose..

We have planned to put a shed in the back yard so that we can put all the unused "stuff" away so the Dining Room and the "Office - Sewing Room" can be set up properly.

I eventually found that I could buy a suitable shed from the local hardware store.

The manufacturer's website provided all the information I needed to choose the most suitable shed. It is a large utility shed with a high roof. It is 3m by 6m (10ft by 20ft), and 2.3m (7ft 6in) high, with a double door at the end allowing access for ride on mowers and the like, and a single door in the side facing the house for normal access.

I planned to put it half way down the back lawn but "they" suggested it would be batter at the back of the back lawn so that's where it's going.

The shed is on order and due to be delivered in a couple of weeks.

I found a local guy who can lay a suitable slab for the shed and he stared work on Wednesday. It will be finished early next week.

I will have to erect the shed myself but I chose one with the simplest design so it won't be hard. As soon as it is finished I will move all the "stuff" into it so we can put a decent floor covering in the spare room and set it up as the Office - Sewing Room. The Dining Room will also lose lots of "stuff" so it will be useable.

Posted: 17/4/09 1:55 PM

Another Golden Good News Story

Yesterday was Barraba Lions Charity Gold Day. The weather turned out beautifully sunny which was a wonderful change for Saturday wen we had about 25 mm (1 inch) of rain and we assumed that we might well have a washout. The weather sated great all day and the large contingent f golfers had a very good day.

We started work at 8.30 am to get ready for the golfer who were scheduled to arrive at 10 am. I contributed to the catering effort by peeling and slicing a very large bag of onions, a task which took me about an hour and a half. We served everyone a barbecued steak sandwich lunch and a sausage sandwich tea.

The raffle ticket sellers had a great day selling some hundreds of dollars worth of tickets.

After tea, we had a prolonged prize giving with about half the golfers winning something.

The raffle prizes included a great big hamper of groceries, a big meat tray, a carton of chickens, and a fruit and vegetable tray, all of which had been donated by members and local businesses and organisation.

Then we raffled off the remaining donations in kind we had been given by our sponsors. The first lot was a 1 kg box of best Ceylon tea which I won after some very active bidding. Many people took home stuff they would not have normally bought.

The wrap up of the day was that we had added well over $5,000 to our funds which will be a big help when it comes to our making our annual donations to the many Lions Charitable Foundations. It was a most heartening result for all the work we had put in.

Posted: 6/4/09 2:21 PM

Is this an April Fool's Day Joke?

I read in today's paper that "The Government is expected to introduce special long-term investment bonds to help self-funded retirees avoid a repeat of the superannuation calamity caused by the global financial crisis". This measure, the commentators say, will encourage the Government to control inflation.

Forgive an old black-handed engineer with little experience in the unreal world of finance, but I see the problem self-funded retirees suffered was caused by their own choice of investment vehicles which was driven, at least in some cases, by the desire for "maximum returns". I don't see anything in this plan which would suppress this desire. Perhaps the more cautious would welcome a guaranteed income directly linked inflation but those with the opportunity and desire to increase their wealth would surely continue to use the "market".

If the Government of Australia and the other G20 countries are not prepared to reform the financial system so that the "crisis" will not recur, then the opportunities for windfall profits will continue to dominate the world of those with significant cash assets with the possibility of future "crises" just like the present one.

One of the topics I repeatedly come across in my studies for the Transition is the role of debt created money in the unsustainable "growth" of our economies.

There is no doubt in my mind that we need to get off the "growth" train so that we don't consume all the non-renewable resources and leave none for future generations. I realise that getting those who control our societies and economies to accept that limitless growth is impossible and that reverting to sustainable consumption patterns must happen sooner rather than later if we are to avoid an ecological disaster of much greater impact than the present "financial crisis" is a very challenging task but we had better try and work hard enough to succeed if we are to leave a sustainable planet to our descendants.

Posted: 1/4/09 1:00 PM

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