The renewal

Oscar was born on the tenth of this month in Newcastle upon Tyne, and will be known by the name Oz. If you'd like to tell me the correct title for him in relation to my late partner Ray, please do so. He is Ray's sister's great grandson, the child of Ray's great nephew who visited Australia with his partner and stayed with us a few years ago. Daddy, the great nephew, is one handsome and lithe dude, and clearly fertile (Stop your thoughts right there Andrew, quite inappropriate).

As we oldies become fading history, I wonder if Oscar will ever be curious about his ancestor Ray and his Australian partner.

Ray had an aunt who at a youngish age married and moved to Sascet,Sasquesti, Seschesuwan, that province in Canada. She had children, who are Ray's cousins, but he was never curious about them. Ray was very much a person who wasn't interested in the past or history. He liked to look to the future, until the day came for him that there wasn't one.

Copy, paste, Saskatchewan.

Adjusting the furniture (not a code phrase)

I generally believe there is right place for furniture, which are very obvious in my bedrooms by power point placement. The open area of my kitchen, lounge, desk and dining area is not so fixed, well actually only the dining table. 

The table and dining chairs are very old, dating back to about 2003. The hard chairs do not encourage diners to linger at the table, which brought them closer to leaving, such a good thing in my opinion. 

The dining table always sat as it is in the second photo, but after the new carpet was laid, the forgetful layers put it back with a 90 degree rotation. I quite liked the new position, and kept it.

But then the new lounge chairs arrived and while I got rid of one old lounge chair, I decided to keep one of the old chairs after moving it to the dining area. 

Lounge chairs were moved forward and the dining table reinstated to its original direction. The sideboard was moved to left, and after looking at this photo has been moved to the right to line up its edge with the edge of the Miro wall print. The old chair sits perfectly at the wall and is a very popular seat for all, including Jass. Just rotating the table, adding the chair and rearranging a couple of things seem to have it turned in into a cosier space. I like the new arrangement, and there it all can stay. 

The world of garden

I took the lads to Garden World for an outing a couple of months ago. I had not been there for over twenty five years and it is whole lot larger than it was once. It is partly display but of course is a retail outlet. There's a decent cafe, with a liquor licence. I am not rally a cactus person but the displays were amazing. Here a few too many photos.

Phyllis and Kosov bought a carnivorous plant but it can live on water and soil nutrients. They are not great at looking after plants and I don't interfere, but the plant has survived. 

Sexism in Politics

I am sorry this is a long read and ignore it if you wish. I think it is very important. 'Liberal Party' in Australia means conservative/Tory/Republican party. The person, Jacinta Allan, is the Premier of the State of Victoria. 

Funded by a brothel owner and others, the mobile ad is travelling around Melbourne, where mobile advertising is allowed, and it is just appallingly sexist. Shame, shame, shame. Photo from The Age.

Franco Puleo, who owns Gotham City brothel in South Melbourne, is among the people funding the $105,000 Ditch the Witch advertising campaign.

The campaign is using misogyny to get Jacinta Allan out of power in Victoria.

I've spoken to many SWers who say Puleo is as sexist as this campaign.

Billboards are being ferried across Melbourne with Allan as a witch.

I have it on authority the campaign has the support of the Liberal Party and Liveable Victoria - an organisation focused on planning and other state issues.

The Herald Sun ran a page on the campaign in its print edition and used the slogan in the copy in the same way it uses slogans for its own campaigns. Interestingly, the Herald Sun refused to name the organisation and people behind the campaign. Possibly because the editorial department is firmly focused on securing a Liberal Party win in the state.

The Ditch the Witch campaign reflects the Liberal-aligned Ditch the Witch campaign against Julia Gillard in 2011. 

Monday Mural

With Sami and others, here are a series of murals in the same laneway.

Munch's Scream reinterpreted?

Evil eyes.

Cute puppy.

The best that can be said is that some effort was put into this one. 

Sunday Selections

Along with River and others, here is my random photos for Sunday Selections.

Phyllis nagged me about my old breadboards which were a soft plastic that didn't blunt knife edges. He likes his big heavy wooden one, but I don't. I agreed my old plastic boards could go, replaced by these.  

We maybe chose the wrong places but fish and chips were a disappointment in England. They are better in Australia. 

Comedy Festival in Melbourne, second only to Edinburgh's. The next time I saw these, there was a miked comedy performer next to the mike.  

Lovely. 

                                                                                  

                                 

A new building diagonally across the road from here, not ready for occupancy. The balconies are small and I am not sure about the vertical decorative stripes. $4 million plus, you can buy one.                                                                                                                                

Kosov teases Jass endlessly and Jass loves the attention. She loves Kosov. He has put her in a bag.

Enlarge this photo to take a proper look. Our bank notes are beyond being forged. $100 notes seem to have disappeared in Australia. The Gov didn't like them as they made it easier for crims to store money, and pensioners to hide money under their beds, and generally people didn't like them. 

Kosov likes the eggs to symmetrically arranged. I love annoying him by making them un-symmetric. 

Stupid motorist drove along Bourke Street Mall. Police intervened. A tram came up behind, so both the offender and the police car turned into Elizabeth Street. I hope she was prosecuted. The signage is very clear, never mind 'Why aren't there cars driving in this street in the middle of the city'.

There are precious things on these shelves Jass. Get down.

A convoy of trucks, no doubt on important business. 

Beautifully fresh longan fruit from Victoria Market. Delicious. 

Capybara is under threat.

The lads are really quite gross. 

Cranes with the colours of the Hungarian flag, perhaps celebrating the fall of Orban.

Tomorrow is a public holiday to celebrate our king's birthday. Pretty cool to see in our lift a display of King Charlee as a drag queen.

Oh, it seems the bird like creature has consumed the BP truck driver. 

The price of fagging

Like it not, I will use the US currency for the price of a packet of 20 fags from around the world.

US, $8 to $12

UK, $15 to $18

France, $12 to $14

Japan, $4 to $6

Indonesia $2 to $4 

Portugal $6 to $7

Australia, $28 to $35

As you can note, cigarettes are very expensive in Australia and over 70% of the cost is government taxes, that increase often and has acted as a disincentive to smoking, a good thing. Australia's rate of smoking is around 10% of the adult population is one of the lowest in the world. 

That is until the illegally imported cigarettes arrived that sell for around US$9, which is close to what the rest of the world pays.

That came the stand over tactics, 'buy our illegal cigarette or you business will be firebombed', and mayhem arrived, with many many outlets firebombed, with flats often in the same building.

The sale of vapes has been banned unless by doctor's prescription, yet vapes are readily available in the cigarette shops that sell illegal cigarettes.

It is a protection racket, which has now extended to nail salons, dance club venues, gyms, and new car businesses, one close to the dealership where I bought my car.

Let me draw a parallel. Extortion at cigarette shops that sold illegal cigarettes and vapes was ignored by governments, just as cops ignored manic ebike and electric scooter riders speeding along footpaths. Eventually authorities were forced into action, but had they clamped down on all before they became so big, Australia would be a better and more law abiding place.

The illegal cigarettes come in by container load from China and the Middle East, the latter via Singapore, I believe. I've seen and in a minor manner used AI. Surely can't technology detect the illegal cigarettes? 

At best I suggest there has been a lack of political will, at worst, some very powerful people, and I don't mean gangs, have a vested interest.

This is mayhem that has never been seen before in my lifetime. Changing your vote on polling day will make no difference. A chilling statistic is in Victoria, nearly all Melbourne based, between mid year 2024 and mid year 2026, there has been 300 fire bombings, a shocking statistic.