Australia - The Land Down Under

[Condobloke]

I do not usually post articles of this nature. I simply could not resist. How many of us actually avoid the news....the daily pile on put forth by journalists from all over the world.

The author this piece is Leigh Sales. Her career is interesting as is the woman and her opinion.
She was invited to present the 26th annual Andrew Olle Media Lecture (delivered by ABC journalist and author Leigh Sales in Sydney on Friday, October 27.)

Andrew Olle

Don't just skim the article, please. Read it. Absorb the obvious truths. Allow your mind to stay quiet for long enough to see what she is really saying to you.

When Leigh Sales stole Ita Buttrose's car park, she returned to a note on the windscreen

Recently, I've been one of the many Australians who are avoiding the news. What is going on, when the news is losing not just its regular audience, but alienating a career newshound like me, asks Leigh Sales.

www.abc.net.au

 

[KGIII]

This is a note to myself to read this tomorrow. (Thanks!)

I avoid the news. I go to great lengths to ignore the news. If it's important, someone will tell me. I make exceptions (but not much of an exception) for times like right now. (Right now, we have a spree shooter in Maine and they're on the loose. I live where I'd run to hide if I was the gunman. Don't worry, we're perfectly safe at my house.)

For example, I made an exception for that but only learned about it because someone told me about it. Otherwise, I'd have no clue what was going on.

I've ignored the news for at least a decade.

It has measurably improved my life.

I figure that I'm fortunate. I'm in a position where I'm immune. I'm very fortunate in that I needn't even worry about politics. There's nothing that the government is likely to do that's going to negatively impact my life in a meaningful manner. (Not to delve into politics, just as an example.)

With that conclusion, the news is pretty much meaningless to me. Ignoring the news removes that as a stressor in my life. I also have a real social life. So, as I said, someone will tell me if it's important enough. Most of the time, it's not that important and has nothing to do with me and mine.

 

[Condobloke]

This is a note to myself to read this tomorrow. (Thanks!)

My pleasure !

 

[KGIII]

I worked as a freelance journalist back in my university days. I did not keep that up for long.

There were things I wasn't allowed to say. Well, I could say them but nobody would buy my work and certainly nobody would print my work.

This was on a local level. I can't imagine what it'd be like at the national (or global) level.

 

[Condobloke]

Twenty people, two dogs and one quirky sport keep this small town kicking

The Silo Kick is Mirrool's claim to fame, but the annual event does more than crown the biggest kicker of a football in the New South Wales Riverina town.

www.abc.net.au

SO, you reckon you can kick a footie ?

Go and try your luck at Mirool (NSW, Australia, Twenty people and two dogs, but still kicking)

Here's the 'target....in the background....

and this pic is a bit closer up...

and this one really gives you a close up

Will the ball make it ??

?

You'll just have to read the article and watch the vid to find out, won't you.....


Hint: pay attention to this bloke

Have a listen to the Aussie accents as you watch the video.

And as quickly as you dismiss them as a bunch of larrikins, don't dismiss the amount of money they raise .....
Tracey Bowen, co-owner of the Mirrool Hotel, says they sold a week and a half's worth of beer that afternoon and were very nearly "the pub with no beer".



This year's kick raised $30,000 — 75 per cent of which goes to charity and back into the community, according to Mr Bryce.

 

[KGIII]

SO, you reckon you can kick a footie ?

No... No, I do not.

At my age, I'd fall over and break a hip.

 

[Condobloke]

This is not directly related to Australia......although the principal character is an Australian.

There is inspiration by the tonne, in his story

'I am in awe of where I am today': How Gregory Smith turned his life around after 30 years of pain

Gregory Smith has gone from a homeless forest dweller and a broken man to a PhD graduate, OAM recipient, board member, writer, doting dad and partner. His redemption story is remarkable.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Condobloke]

Friends ...the TV show....lost one of its main attractions....Matthew Perry......died.

Here is one Australian journalist's comment.

ABC

 

[KGIII]

Friends ...the TV show....lost one of its main attractions....Matthew Perry......died.

I saw a blurb about that yesterday and had no idea who he was, so I didn't dig in deeper.

But, I have seen snippets of Friends and know that the show ran for quite a while. I used to joke that I never watched the show but I knew what was going on because of all the commercials for it.

So, even those of us living under a rock knew about Friends.

 

[Condobloke]

How 92yo Bob Holder hangs on to the title of 'world's oldest competitive cowboy'

Bob Holder, also known as "the Cootamundra Cat", won his first event in 1945 when he was 14. Now 92, he rides in an arena that was named in his honour.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Condobloke]

Aurora australis 'brighter than in Antarctica' seen across WA

An aurora australis visible to the naked eye has been seen across Western Australia in the brightest display of southern lights in years.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Condobloke]

 

[Condobloke]

How two Brisbane violinists became global disruptors of classical music

Brisbane violinists Brett Yang and Eddy Chen left coveted orchestra jobs to pursue YouTube stardom. This is how the duo built a social media audience of 7.5 million.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Condobloke]

Slip! Slop! Slap! jingle, I am Australian, Sherbet's Howzat named Sounds of Australia

The Slip! Slop! Slap! jingle, I am Australian, Sherbet's Howzat and a harmonica recording from the 1920s are among 11 new recordings added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry.

www.abc.net.au

 

[Condobloke]

 

[Condobloke]

 

[Condobloke]

 

[KGIII]

As for the video, I was bored...

I looked into becoming a naturalized citizen of your fair country and it wasn't that hard. I was told I qualified quite nicely, even though I was older and retired. I also had the option to invest in an Australian company (a fairly middling some of like 250k was what I recall them wanting) which would help things along. Granted, I have a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics, but I was firmly retired at the time.

It was for other reasons that I decided I could not leave my homeland. For better or worse, I'm an American.

I also enjoyed the mention of the war against the emu. I'm not too keen on the idea of wiping out an entire species, but I could understand if the species was like the huntsman or something.

 

[Condobloke]

There are no self-help books for moving in with your parents in middle age, but there should be

At 43, Claire Mulcahy realised she could no longer afford to live alone. Living with her mother was not the life trajectory she expected but it has come with its own opportunities

www.theguardian.com

 

[Condobloke]

Not all these pics are from Australia.....just a few

But beauty is recognised the world over, not just Down Under...

2023 ocean photographer of the year â in pictures

The winners and finalists of this year’s contest celebrate the blue planet but they also draw attention to the many environmental challenges to marine life

www.theguardian.com