Ugly Babies

Two nests were built in our tree this year, one lot of young ones were eaten, but the others have been going pretty well. It may be due to the great camouflage; and also the fact that the birds basically look inedible.

This is the nest. It looks like a cotton wool ball wrapped in straw. If you look carefully you can make out a beak to the left of the top of the nest.

Another look at the nest, and on the left of the nest you should be able to make out a baby's beak, green eye and ear. A hole in the side of it's head!

Rob and Annette's Visit

Rob and Annette are some friends that we met 10 years ago in Sydney while Fay was working at Qantas. They came to visit us on their way to New Zealand for a couple of days of rest. They were lucky that the weather was bad as we couldn't take them up Mt Warning, or paddling in the creek. However they did have to endure walking to the Byron Lighthouse from the main beach and walking to salt a couple of times.

We also managed to eat quite a lot of pretty good food. The Thai in Kingscliff has picked up again, the Choux Box cafe was on it's game, the Salt Bar had excellent pub grub and the Rock Salt Pizzeria served some great pizzas.

So we have some unfinished business with Rob and Annette and we'll have to try and get them back here to try the new Italian in Kingscliff and the new Fins restaurant at Salt.

Comedy Night

We went to our second comedy night at the Salt Bar. At $6 entry you can't go too far wrong. It was actually great.

We decided to cycle down there as it's only 2.5km and we didn't feel like walking. However when we got the the bridge about 500m up the road they were closing it to do some test drilling for the new pedestrian and cycle bridge. We got chatting to the workmen and told them we were heading for the pub and asked whether the bridge would be open later that night.

When we cycled home and approached the bridge, they were waiting for us and started to say that we need to do a breath test before we could cross. We had a laugh and they escorted us across to many knowing smiles from all. We've got some good people up here.

4 Months to the Half

I'm going to attempt the Geelong Half Ironman on February 10 next year. I need to get a goal up so that I keep up the training. Another reason for choosing Geelong is that it seems I'll be spending quite a bit of time down there for work from November to April.

We've been having some big storms up here. Fantastic light shows and heavy rain. We even had some hail last Saturday; however we were spared the big one that hit nearby Lismore in the hills. They had extensive damage.

Fay is slowly getting closer to taking up her job. The main issues are with vaccinations.

On a beautiful day Fay goes for a swim

It's sunny, mild day here today. Everything that summer offers, without too much heat or humidity. Fay decided to hit the creek at high tide, and I took a video of her returning to the pontoon.



Meanwhile I proceeded to do some coding for the fellows in Melbourne, inside, at my PC. Some of us have to work!

Fay has another Job

Fay went for an interview Wednesday and was terribly disappointed about how she went. Until the interviewer rang her up to offer her the job!

It is involved with a team that aims to get old folks who have had a stay in hospital back to their home and living as independently as they can, or want to.

So it's a big step in her career into the area of rehabilitation and trying to improve the lives of the aged, rather than assisting them to get from day to day.

She really likes her work with the aged.

That went fast

One minute it was the 4th and now it's the 16th!

Anyway the pee wees have almost completed their nest. It took a lot longer than usual. The main problem was the female, as she is missing most of her right foot (claw?) and she is constantly flying at the windows and looking at her reflection. Still the male has got most of the nest done and we're watching it every day.

The first triathlon was Saturday. It went well and we had a great time. It's great to be racing again, mind you I probably won't be so enthusiastic in a month or two.

Today was one of those near perfect Sundays. We went for a ride early this morning, had a lazy breakfast after and then read for most of the day. The sun was shining the sky was clear and the creek was full of people enjoying themselves.

I'm packing for Melbourne tonight and I'm heading down for the week tomorrow. It will be good to see the Melbourne Crowd.

Nesting Birds

We have our Magpie Larks (pee wees) building a nest outside our window again. We think they're too late as a lot of birds already have their chicks in the nest.

Still it's fun to watch them build the nest from mud and spit. It's started to rain again, so I think that will set them back again.

More news as it comes to hand.

Long Ride

I went on a ride with Phil this morning, Fay slacked off and did a ride on the mag trainer. We went out through the hills towards Murwillumbah.

We stopped on the way to take a look at the airstrip at Murwillumbah and then on to a coffee shop for some morning tea. A blues-roots singer was playing a steel guitar and didn't sound too bad at all.

We headed home via Tumbulgum and Stotts Creek before heading over the hills and back home. A 60km bike ride on a lovely sunny day.

Almost too good.

Everybody's Out

We've just been out to sit on the breakwall and check out what's happening. The wind has dropped the rain has gone and it's back to lookinging like this.

The beach was full of surfers heading for the large waves leftover from the storm. The birds are catching up on fishing and every toy that hasn't been out for a while is out. Surf skis, tinnies, motorcycles, bicycles and all the people that go with it.

A definite feeling of summer coming on. It won't be long.

Still blowing the birds out of the trees

The wind is still howling up here and it feels cold and miserable.

Hopefully it quietens down tomorrow. Another day exercising indoors.

Stormy Weather

We have had a storm for the last 48 hours or so. It is meant to continue until tomorrow sometime. These are some photos from the breakwall at 10am.

They were taken at low tide, so the waves are a lot farther out than usual. So we're heading back down after lunch to see the waves.

I seem to have caught Fay's bug, so I'm taking it easy.

We sacked our tiler last week. He seemed to be a pretty tragic fellow. He just couldn't seem to get his act together or give us a reasonable story. So we still don't have tiles on the floor, after 10 months without carpet. We should have the floor down in a couple of weeks.

We are also starting to get quotes for the bathroom. Since we sold our Sydney flat, we have committed to this flat for 10 years, or so. We'll see what happens.

Go Go Gadget: Walkmen NW-S203F

This is the new addition to the running kit. It has a stopwatch, fitness goals and a pedometer built into a combined Radio and MP3 player. It's shaped like a stubby cigar, if you remember what they look like, and it weighs about the same.

The earphones it comes with are top notch for running and the only sore point is the software that you have to use to load songs onto the little sucker. It only runs on windows and has a pretty lame interface. I don't know why they don't just use the drag and drop.

I haven't had much chance to use it with the calf injuries, but I should be back on the road in the next few days. I had a massage yesterday and that certainly helped.

Rolling with injuries

I suppose it had to happen that I would come a cropper after my last post. I went for a run on Saturday afternoon and developed a cramp/spasm in my left calf. My right calf was also painful. I ran, limped and walked home from the 7km mark of a 10km run. Not fun.

I improved over the Sunday; so Monday morning Fay and I went up the creek. The Ospreys near Salt seem to have eggs, so we may have some babies there this year. We don't expect any from the pair near the VMR.

After we got back I braved the water and attempted some rolls in the small plastic kayak. Surprisingly it went very well. So I should be good to do some trips up and down the coast pretty soon. Maybe a trip to Byron is on the cards!

Training

I'm racheting up the training now. Not sure about the target, but they'll come. The more likely are the Noosa or Byron Olympic distance. Less likely are the Canberra or Port Macquarie Half Ironman.

Cycling up here at this time of year is unbeatable. I've been out down the freeway for the 74km round trip a couple of times. The Condong 40km Sunday morning rides are a bit chilly on the hands, but the warm gear is standing up to it.

I managed to make two squads this week and working on the stroke to get some semblance of speed back.

Today I'm off for a run along the beach on the low tide. So that should be pleasant.

Fay is still struggling with a sore calf. She has tried a few things but is still finding it difficult getting going. We may try some aqua-jogging at the pool to see if that helps.

Go Go Gadget: Beyonwiz

I went crazy just before the Tour De France and bought the Beyonwiz 'media centre' box. It replaced the set-top box ( for receiving digital TV), the VCR and the DVD player. It also will play movies downloaded from the internet, podcasts, music and display images from our PC's, via the WiFi network we have. It also allows you to 'pause' live TV and do all that PVR timeshifting stuff, including jumping 10 seconds forward and backward in a show.

It's a great box that's working well. I'm still using the IceTV guide, so at a push of a button I can see what is on for the next few hours, or days, and then record them for watching at a later time.

So I manage to catch more show's I'm interested in, and can skip through the commercials I don't like.

Work

I got a call from one of the nice fellows in Melbourne this morning. It appears that they have got some work for me and I'll be starting it in early September.

So the days of building the killer websites are limited. I better get the new release out soon!

Saying goodbye to Father Tom

The priest who lived just across the way from us died last Monday. He was 96 and had been in bad health for the last few months. Born in Ireland in 1911, he came out to Australia around 1935. He was a parish priest for the next 50 years, or so, on the north coast before retiring in Kingscliff.

He was a great chap, always ready with a joke. When we first got here he was zooming around on a electric wheelchair, at breakneck speeds usually. He was also very proud of his hat that had holes from where the magpies pecked it while swooping him. He then started getting lost so they downgraded him to a walking stick. He would poke you with it and say "Watch out".

He started getting ill and heading out half dressed and falling over, so they eventually popped him in a home. Only lasted a couple of months there before dieing.

We went to his funeral yesterday. It was a great hoo-haa with all the priests from the local diocese and the bishop. It was strange going to another Catholic funeral. My mothers and her parents were all very similar; just a lot less priests and no bishop.

3 Days on the Noosa River

We started out at Boreen Point at the campground. The people who run the place are really nice and it's a great place to leave the car. Add to this a shower when you get back and it's a great spot to depart from.
Here the kayaks are ready for loading in the morning and Fay is catching up on her reading.


Fay is rugged up as a wind is making the 17C appear much cooler.


Moon Rise over the lake was amazing. I don't remember the color being this red, but it appeared huge and in a bit of a hurry as it came over the horizon.


We timed the trip to coincide with the full moon and we weren't disappointed. See all the photo's here.

John and Jan run a marathon

Fay's brother and wife came up for the Gold Coast marathon on July 1. I just found the photo's on my camera.

John ran the marathon and did a PW for a marathon. He blamed it on his lack of training. Jan ran a PB for the 10 km and credited her success to clean living ;)

Here they are with Fay enjoying post race celebrations.















Unable to walk John attempts to drive into the restaurant.

Winters Over

We're getting back into the swing of our lives here. I'm working on my google smashing website business :P, and Fay is back to getting paid for chatting to old people. So we're both pretty happy with our work.

I'm also getting some exercise done, which brings me to the subject of this blog. I've started my 9:30am squad again, and as I was about to dive into the crystal clear 27C water I nodded to another tri club member. He looked at the cloudless sky and said "I think winters over".

Its hovering in the low 20's up here, which means the 'softies' where a jumper, and the tourists lay on the beach and swim.

A friend sent me some brilliant cycling websites this morning, BikeRadar and Bikely. The bikely site has lists of rides that are overlaid onto google maps. It's one of the better mashups I've seen. The other has a lot of general bike stuff.

The glass saving pilgrim

This lady saved my glasses from a perilous cliff top. She is dressed in pretty much the 'full' pilgrim's outfit.

She was walking alone. She earned a Koala for her efforts, which she attached to her bag and showed it to us the next morning at breakfast.

Fay is holding my glasses which 'mum' saved from a perilous ledge.

Pilgrim clothing

A Pilgrim we were following on the first day.

Why walk 1100 kms in 47days, in Japan?

It's a fair question really.

We wanted to do something that was Japanese and we wanted to travel slowly. However it also is frequently performed by people who are looking for change in their lives, and by people who commit to do it for the benefit of the dead. So that also intrigued us.

The white coats are death shrouds, and symbolise that the pilgrim has stepped out of their ordinary life. The sticks(staffs) are symbolic of the saint that the pilgrimage is based around, the writing on the staff state that Kobo Daishi, the saint, is walking with you. I likened it to a crucifix, in the Christian traditions. The bell is used to symbolise awakening generally, and on the pilgrimage it is meant to remind you that enlightenment can be achieved in this life time. There are some great statues we saw where the buddha is sleeping on the bell. The idea is that he is waiting for the enlightenment of the world.

I dropped the shroud after a couple of days as it reminded me of being an alter boy in the Catholic church. The top we used to wear was very similar, just a little more lace. Fay stuck with hers all the way. My nice embroidered cover also broke after a week and I ditched it about half way around. There is also a hat and a lot of other pieces of attire. Above is a photo of Fay with a woman we called 'mum', our Japanese wasn't good enough to learn her name.

As for Japan as a destination our niece lived there for a couple of years, and we meant to get there while she was there. I also attended a couple of lectures on Japanese culture at uni and it fascinated me. Then while we were researching Japan we read the Sword and Chrysanthemum. This is an intriguing account of what the 'old' Japan was about. The sentence that really shocked me was that due to the fanatical fighting of the Pacific war, some American planners thought that they would have to bomb the mainland of Japan and kill most of the population. Luckily some people understood that all that was necessary was that the Emperor just had to say enough is enough.

It is one of the most fascinating places on the planet. I'd say it's better than India. Mainly because it's less hassle and misery.

Japanese gifts O Settai

This morning we heard a story on the radio about 10,000 Yen notes being left in toilets in Japan, here's a link to the story .

It is not uncommon for Japanese to assist people, especially pilgrims. They believe by helping others achieve good things they derive benefits from those good deeds. Pretty sound thinking by my account.

While walking around Shikoku we received such gifts on a number of occasions. One fellow stopped his car and gave us $10. Another occasion two women sat at a temple handing out $5 to all walking pilgrims. Some shops would not accept payment for drinks, fruit and food we wanted to purchase.

I can't think of a day that went by where some local didn't go out of their way to help us. So perhaps the dogma of religion doesn't totally eclipse the philosophy. Which in turn makes the community a better place.

More on Japan

I thought I should say more about our trip. After all we spent nearly 71 days there, walked over 1100 km's and saw an estimated 100 temples.

The first 49 days were spend wandering around Shikoku. There is a Buddhist pilgrimage that circumnavigates the island. This turned out to be the only time we were able to communicate with Japanese people who weren't involved in the tourist industry. It was pretty special; but hard and sometimes dangerous due to narrow roads and tunnels overrun with oversized trucks. The drivers of which were often staring at their mobile phones and texting away. One fellow was driving with his elbows to bang out the message faster.

That aside it is an amazing experience to get up every day and walk. I'm not sure if any walk would do the same. Since we've been back nothing is as much of an effort. It could be that the people of Shikoku, in the rural areas anyway, seem to work all the time. They appear calm, helpful and tenacious. Hard to explain.

The down side of all this though is that I'm finished with organized religion. After watching hundreds of people perform arcane rituals, watched over by priests taking donations, I'm convinced that God doesn't care what we do, what we believe and people can convince themselves of just about anything. I mean by and large the Zen Buddhists have a wonderful philosophy, of simplicity and deep understanding. Then they have rituals of burning this and secret hand gestures. It seems to me that the dogma of religions seems to contradict the philosophy to better serve the priests and monks.

New New Seachange

Greetings from the new new blog. I've decided to outsource the blog as it's easier to push images up here and point to them from this blog. It's also far more advanced that my old thing. If you want to check out the old one it's here, and the original one starts here

So we're back from Japan. Take a look at the piccies