Back in 1966 I was a loyal fan of a very ordinary Pompey side, albeit one that was two divisions higher than today. These days I do no more than watch from afar and I’ve noticed something tha…
Source: Rewrite needed
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New Norcia
Yesterday, we traveled up along the Great North Highway to visit New Norcia, located approximately 140 kilometers from Perth.
New Norcia, Australia’s only Monastic Town, was founded as a Benedictine Mission to local native aboriginals on 1st March, 1846. The settlement was led by the two Spanish Benedictines, Rosendo Salvado and Joseph Serra. The name New Norcia, is taken from Norcia, Italy which is the birthplace of St Benedict. For some reason New Norcia is pronounced “new nor-sia” as opposed to it’s original Italian namesake, which is pronounced “nor-chee-a”.
A visit to New Norcia is highly recommended. It is architecturally so unlike any other Australian town.
Abbey Church – New Norcia, WA
Abbey Church – New Norcia, WA
St Ildephonsus College – New Norcia, WA
Visitor Centre, Museum, Art Gallery – New Norcia, WA
St Gertrude’s College – New Norcia, WA
St Gertrude’s College – New Norcia, WA
The museum contains exhibits focussed on the monastery and key individuals as well as “rooms” specific to advances in medicine, technology and agriculture. Outside of the main museum building there is a separate, dusty, machinery shed which contains several curiosities.
Early Dalek ? Nope Washing M/C & Spin Dryer – New Norcia, WA
Lanz Bulldog – New Norcia, WA Various versions of the Bulldog were produced between 1921 & 1960
Corrugated Iron Roller – New Norcia, WA
This “Heath Robinson esque” device was hauled behind horses, later tractors, to break down brush before turning land to agricultural use.
Newman Tractor c1947/8 – New Norcia, WA
Cool Drink Machine – New Norcia, WA Used to make “coka-cola & lemonade” by adding together food colourings flavoured essences, water & gas
The second floor of the museum building houses the art gallery which house both modern and classical pieces.
Agony In The Garden – New Norcia, WA
The Holy Family According To St Luke by Robert Davies – New Norcia, WA
Born For You by Julie Dowling – New Norcia, WA
The Archangel Michael Fighting Lucifer – New Norcia, WA
Untitled Piece by Paul Kaptein – New Norcia, WA
Trust In Providence by Allan Baker – New Norcia, WA
In 1986, the gallery was the scene of WA’s biggest ever art theft, when twenty-six paintings were stolen by two robbers. Although described as a robbery it was more an act of vandalism as the paintings were cut from their frames, then rolled up, further damaging them in the process. Several weeks later, all but one of the stolen paintings were returned. The remaining painting, too big to fit in the robbers car, was cut into pieces and thrown away. The recovered paintings have been the subject of a long restoration at the cost of over 100, 000 dollars.
On the top floor of the museum can be found St Joseph’s Aboriginal Girls’ Exhibition which reflects the experiences of Aboriginal girls resident at the orphanage at New Norcia.
Also on this floor is the Gardner Botanical Exhibition, featuring artworks on paper of Western Australian plants, by WA’s first Government botanist, Charles A Gardner.
A couple of monastery residents, not sure if they are Benedictines.
While visiting New Norcia we also had lunch, sat on the terrace of the New Norcia Hotel.
While sitting on the terrace drinking Abbey Ale was very pleasant, my meal didn’t live up to expectations. Although Gerry’s Pork Cutlet, with Chat Potatoes, veggies and gravy, was fine my Ribs were under cooked for the most part and totally raw in the center of the thickest portion. I don’t mind rare beef and lamb but like my pork to be fully cooked. Unfortunately I didn’t notice the rawness until I had cleared my plate of the rest of my meal. However, I returned the plate to the bar and complained. The staff were very apologetic and offered me a refund. I suggested that wasn’t necessary and that they give me a piece of the New Norcia Nut Cake instead. They insisted on giving me the refund as well as the Nut Cake. Smiles all round.
Kalbarri to Jurien Bay / Perth
Despite Gerry tweaking her back, we enjoyed Kalbarri and would really like to go back and spend more time there. Unfortunately, we’ll have to save that for another trip. And so we headed out on the road to Jurien Bay a journey, of approximately 350 kilometers, that was supposed to take just under four hours.
I was expecting to take the coastal route out of Kalbarri but the satnav had other ideas and we found ourselves back, heading South, on the Northwest Coastal Highway before rejoining the Brand Highway. We made good progress and soon made the turn onto Indian Ocean Drive.
Indian Ocean Drive is a much quieter road. I had read that there were no road trains on this road. Not strictly true, we did encounter a couple but they are less intimidating as they are having to travel more slowly due to the winding nature of the road.
AS we followed the road to Leeman we became aware that the clouds were thickening and that somewhere up ahead it looked like a lot of rain was being dumped. By the time we pulled into Leeman it had gotten quite dark and the ever-present coastal wind was winding itself up into a frenzy. We topped up with fuel and continued down the road.
Shortly after leaving Leeman we saw a huge lightning strike. What I called a floor to ceiling bolt. I think the storm we had been trailing stopped and waited for us. And there we were driving with windscreen wipers going full pelt, headlights on and our speed less than half what it was.
I became aware of flashing lights coming up fast behind me and I pulled off onto the verge to let them go by, three fire service trucks on a mission. On our way again but a short distance up the road we moved over to allow some more to go by.
We eventually cleared the storm, the rains petered out and it became brighter. At Green Head we pulled off the road to look out over the ocean and at the storm clouds.
This was the filthiest stop we had made, north of Perth. Alongside this view-point there was heaps of litter and just off the tarmac was masses of used toilet paper and disposable nappies as well as the bane of the modern world, wrappers and containers from numerous takeaway establishments. I was surprised that there wasn’t a supermarket trolley.
Arriving in the Jurien Bay area we prepared to locate the B & B. This was easier said than done as the satnav had decided that the B & B was located off-road to our left. At the next turn we hung a u-turn and headed back thinking we had missed a farm entrance or something similar. But no, the satnav seemed to be suggesting that we go off-road and follow a line of power lines disappearing into the bush. Not prepared to do that we continued down the road and towards the centre of Jurien Bay where we came across an information board and map. There we found an ad for our B & B, helpfully marked with a grid reference. The only problem was that the map wasn’t sporting a “you are here” arrow. As luck would have it a truck pulled in to empty the bins. The driver was very helpful and knew exactly where we needed to go.
Firmly on the scent of our accommodation we headed back the way we came. It was around this time that Gerry began to feel unwell. Not just her back but also some kind of skin irritation. She was itching all over. We think it was probably a reaction to the pain killers she had just taken. Either way she didn’t want to stay anywhere, she just wanted to go home. Given we were so close to the B & B, I said we had to do the courteous thing and go in an explain why we wouldn’t be stopping the night.
The landlady was very understanding, even offering us tea before we headed on back to Perth. When we declined, she pointed out to us that, South of Jurien Bay, Indian Ocean Drive was closed due to bushfires. That explained the fire service trucks that had passed us earlier. Her recommendation was for us to go back to the Brand Highway, which is what we did.
As we headed on our way to Perth we began to see the smoke from the bushfire, mingling with the clouds. The smoke stack was to be visible to us for most of our journey back to Perth…
Bushfire Smokestack -viewed from Brand Highway
Bushfire Smokestack – viewed from Emu Downs Wind Farm WA
After around seven hours of driving, broken up by pee and fuel stops and, much to my son-in-laws surprise, we arrived back home, a whole day early.
We were sad to have missed Jurien Bay but never has a cup of tea tasted better.
Catch These Bastards
We are appealing for witnesses after an 84-year-old man was assaulted and then robbed in his own home by three men in Hazelton Way, Cowplain at around 6pm yesterday, January 13.
It has been reported that one man entered his house by breaking in the back door while he was in his lounge watching television and sleeping.
The man has then tried to confuse the elderly gentleman by telling him to look at the damage and asking for £50.
Two other men then arrive and assault the elderly man, knocking him to the floor, before stealing his wallet.
Man 1 is described as:
White
Aged mid 20s
Short dark wavy hair
5 ft 6 in
Medium build
Clean shaven
Wearing a dark-coloured clothing and footwear
Man 2 is described as:
White
Aged mid 20s
Muscular stocky build
Clean Shaven
Dark curly hair
Local accent
Wearing a black army style jacket and dark trousers and heavy boots
Man 3 is described as:
White
Aged mid 20s
5 ft 8 in
Slight build
Dark hair
Wearing a dark bobble hat
Detective Constable Barry Martin from the Eastern Investigations Team said: “We are appealing to anyone who saw these males in the vicinity of Hazelton Way on Wednesday or anyone who recognises these descriptions.
“This is a despicable crime committed by three men who targeted an elderly man in his home. If anyone has any information about this incident please call 101 and quote 44160019000.”
RMS Number: 44160019000
Je suis Charlie
One year on from the terrorist atrocity in Paris, I came across this on a wall in Denmark, WA.
UK should ‘degender’ passports, says Maria Miller – BBC News
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-35214487
This is the stupidest suggestion I have ever heard.
At a time when identity is hardly ever far from the news headlines.
I agree that the UK Driving Licence does not require gender. After all, it only indicates authorisation to operate a motor vehicle. Now, if you expand the license to be an identity card then I believe gender is pertinent. We won’t be going down that path, will we? The whining civil libertarians have seen to that.
However, the UK passport is a whole different kettle of fish. The passport is an identity device. And, until biometric data is used as part of personal identification then I believe gender is important.
How does a border control operator know if the passport in their hands, carrying the name Jo Bloggs, actually belongs to Josef Bloggs or Joshephine Bloggs.
This isn’t about gender categorisation, segregation or even
transgender discrimination
, to quote Ms Miller. It’s about security and personal identity, providing our law enforcement and border control personnel with as many tools as possible. It is foolhardy to keep on going down the path where all controls are diluted for fear of upsetting a minority. I am all for equality, but not at the expense of common sense.
If there is such a problem for the, relatively small, transgender population, then surely the right thing, for the government, to do is introduce a new category. It could be as simple as
M = Male, F = Female & T = Transgendered.
I know that something that is so simple in my head, will turn into a “mares nest” at the hands of HMG.
I don’t know about you but in these terrorised times I want tighter controls. I don’t want our security services distracted by anything that is described by Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron as
something this small
Happy New Year
As the New Year approaches us with hopes anew, here is to wishing you and your family a wonderful year ahead. Happy New Year!
Quote for the day Friday 1 January 2016 …
MERRY CHRISTMAS
Merry Christmas to each and everyone.
I hope Santa has brought you just what you need, even if it isn’t what you want.
I also hope you don’t overdo the turkey and manage to keep the hangover to a minimum.
However you spend the day, have a fabulous time <:o) 😀 <:o)
Is This The Best Commercially Made Fruit Cake?
http://www.yummykitchen.com.au/
Note, I did say commercially made.
This is only my opinion, but, The BEST, THE VERY BEST, fruit cakes ever were made by my mum and dad. Of course I may be a little biased. My dad’s boozy Christmas cakes were second to none. What with the fruit being marinated in spirits prior to mixing and baking. Then the cake being fed alcohol regularly prior to being iced and decorated.
Finally, served up with home made brandy butter.
Of course, if anyone would like to try and change my perception, I am willing to sample any challengers. Just send your contender to …. No, I am just kidding.
This Australian Celebration Cake is not in the same league as Mum and Dads yummy cakes and it really should not be compared with other typical Christmas fruit cakes.
But, it is so good. Packed as it is with fruit and nuts. Just look at the ingredients list…. glacé fruit, sultanas, pineapples, apricots, dates, cherries, pears all steeped in brandy and mixed with cashew, brazil and almonds.
There is barely enough room left for the traditional cake mix i.e. the mortar required to bind all that goodness together.
Rest assured it is there but it is just that, mortar.
A lot of commercially made cakes are all cake and little fruit.
I have only been down here in Oz for just over a month but we are half way through our third cake.
From their website, the Yummy Kitchen folks claim that this cake is available pretty much worldwide and, via Tesco in the UK.
My recommendation is, give it a try. Even if you don’t like traditional fruit cakes, this may be the one for you.
WrAnTz 