Date: May 8th 2009

Westprint Friday Five May 8, 2009  

Included this week are:

·         Cobbler Desert

·         Angel Flight

·         RFDS Wings for Life

·         Canning Stock Route Book  

 

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Friday Five 08.05.09  

1. Century of Australian Stories. From early bush life to contemporary urban existence this book celebrates our finest writers; the lively comic fiction of Henry Lawson and Stele Rudd, the distinctive imaginations of Christina Stead and Patrick Whick the experimental style of Peter Carey and the lyrical prose of Brenda Walker and James Bradley. 850 pp. $44.50 including post. 

2. The Centre. The natural history of Australia 's desert regions can now be easily understood due to the excellent work of Penny Van Oosterzee, who has combined with nature photographer, Reg Morrison to produce this stunning nature book. It traces the geological history of central Australia along the World's oldest river, the Finke. The associated ecosystems of central Australia detailed in this book explode the myth of the 'dead heart'. Frogs, lizards, birds, termites, wildflowers, spinifex, trees, bats and spiders are just a few of the subjects covered. This book is highly recommended as a reference for all travellers into any part of central Australia . 175 pages. Fully indexed. $37.45 including post.

3. Lost World of the Kimberley . Ian Wilson. The Kimberley was the cultural hub of the Ice Age world. Today it holds the largest collection of Ice Age art giving us clues to the origins of other cultures right across the world. $44.50 including post. 

4. Battle of Vinegar Hill. Lynette Ramsay Silver. Australia 's Irish Rebellion. This is the story of botched mini rebellions, failed escape attempts, mutiny, conspiracies and personal tragedy. The author reveals the lives of key rebels and their enemies against a background of Irish politics that carried over to colonial Australia . $49.45 including post. 

5. Flying Nun (The). The story of Sister Jensen's aerial ministry and the women to whom her life has been devoted. 'Thank goodness for Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council because wearing a long mediaeval-style habit complete with veil and stockings would hardly be the right outfit for climbing in and out of my Cessna plane three or four times a day in forty degrees-plus heat.' A baseball cap, riding boots and Cessna are not normally part of the image that comes to mind when we think of a nun - but then Sister Anne Maree Jensen's 'Aerial Ministry' is not a conventional calling either. 248pp. $34.50 including post. 

Postage Rates. These items will usually not be found on our website. Orders will be supplied on a ‘first come, first serve’ basis. Postage rates are $9.50 for one book, $12.50 for two books, $14.00 for 3 or more books. Free post applies to orders of more than $150.00. Postage rates apply to Australia only. Airmail postage rates apply to overseas orders.  

An important message.

Please note that the opinions and articles included in the Friday Five are not necessarily those of the Westprint mob. Nor do we endorse products (other than our own) listed in contributed articles.  

Friday Forum

Jo’s forum comments in green  

Canning Stock Route Book  

·         The Canning Stock Route book has been reprinted and is now in stock. This is the best book available about travelling the Canning Stock Route and has been out of print for some time. Please note that this is a reprint of the 3rd edition Canning Stock Route book, not a new edition. Price is $55.00 plus $9.50 post. Order from our website. (It is near the bottom of this page.)

Eric Gard is working on the 4th edition but several issues relating to access need to be finalised before printing can go ahead. This is proving to be a lengthy process.

 

Other products relating to the Canning Stock Route (Check links for more details and prices).

Canning Stock Route – book by Eric & Ronele Gard

Canning Stock Route - Map by Westprint

Canning Stock Route - DVD

Spinifex and Sand - Book

The Beckoning West - Book

To The Great Gulf - Book

And If Her Droughts are Bitter - Book

Last of the Nomads - Book

Journal of the Calvert Expedition - Book

In the Hands of Providence - Book  

Triple Zero Heroes  

·         It is now three months since the Victorian bush fires. The following is taken, in part from the latest edition of The Fireman magazine – with a few notes by Jo.  

If you make a Triple Zero call you are asked ‘Police, Fire or Ambulance?’ When you ask for fire you are directed to the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority (ESTA or more often known by Fire Brigades as Vicfire). There are two Vicfire centres, one metropolitan based and one just south of Ballarat.

Both CFA and DSE had warned of extreme fire danger on Feb 7, 2009 and ESTA management had arranged for increased staff at both centres for that day. Up until noon at both centres, calls were at a normal level, however this changed dramatically during the afternoon and evening.

ESTA Ballarat logged 2014 fire related emergency calls on Feb 7, compared with the daily average for February of 125. This roughly translates to an emergency call every 20 seconds from noon to midnight . The following day, Sunday February 8, ESTA Ballarat took 885 emergency fire calls.

Call takers and dispatchers are used to handling calls from people confronted with an emergency, some of whom are highly emotive and have difficulty providing the details required to dispatch the appropriate emergency service. It must have been incredibly difficult for operators at both centres during the afternoon and evening of February 7 as they were aware of the heavy demand on resources within the fire service – from early afternoon all fire fighting appliances in the fire areas were fully committed. There were no more fire trucks available. The professionalism and proficiency of ESTA operators was, and is, outstanding.  

More on Bull Ants  

If you were only bitten by a bull ant, you were lucky. I was stung by one (they are, after all, related to wasps) and I went into anaphylactic shock – not a pleasant experience. Not only that, apparently any subsequent stings will result in an increase in the effects to the point where you may eventually be prescribed a loaded syringe to carry at all times. Ron  

I was bitten during our recent Top End trip…..by a beetle. Needless to say I got no sympathy from Bev!  

 

Royal Flying Doctor Service - Wings For Life Ball  

·         Without doubt one of the feature charity events on the Adelaide social calendar, this year’s Wings for Life Ball will be held on Saturday 30 May at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.
Former Noiseworks front man Jon Stevens has been secured as the headline artist for the event, and one lucky guest (along with five friends) will leave the night with a date with the man himself at a secret rendezvous in the Barossa Valley . Many other great prizes, including a ‘lucky door’ Gold Class train trip for two on the Indian Pacific, will be up for grabs on the evening.
What better way to celebrate being Australian than to get together with ‘your mates’, dine on superb food and wines, dance the night away to famous hits from Noiseworks and other classic Australian bands, while raising vital funds for the Flying Doctor along the way!
 
Adelaide Entertainment Centre

May 30, 6.30 for a 7.00pm start

Lounge Suit

$150 per person. Pre sold tickets only.
Email: crystel.casey@flyingdoctor.net  

Great Victoria Desert

·         Advice for John who plans to cross the Great Victoria Desert in June or July this year. The Anne Beadell continues to maintain its reputation as a corrugated road but it does not have the sand dunes or hills that make it necessary to carry a flag. However, travellers will notice that the vehicles associated with the mining exploration south of the Mamungari Conservation Park often have safety flags. There have been numerous new tracks bulldozed through the vegetation outside the park and south of the Anne Beadell. Those travelling north toward Voakes Hill Corner are warned to be careful on the mining tracks. The road can be relatively smooth and comfortable for a while but the wind and rain can change road conditions quickly.

It should not be necessary to clear vegetation from the track. Recent reports indicate that from Voakes Hill Corner to the WA border is clear and the Friends of the Great Victoria assisted with the clearing of dangerous branches growing near the track east of the Voakes Corner in 2007.

It is necessary arrange permits to travel the Anne Beadell Highway .

To travel though the Woomera Prohibited Area contact:  Defence Centre, Woomera, PO Box 157 , Woomera SA. 5720, telephone 08 8674 3211. sonia.bayley@defence.gov.au

The permit to travel through the Aboriginal Reserves; (The Maralinga Tjarutja Lands) contact: The Administrator, PO Box 435 , Ceduna SA 5690, telephone 8625 2946. oakval@bigpond.com

Information about travelling through the Tallaringa Conservation Park contact; Dept of Environment and Heritage , 9 MacKay St., Pt Augusta, SA. 5700 Telephone 8648 5300

For travel through the Mamungari Conservation Park contact; Department for Environment and Heritage, PO Box 569 , Ceduna 5690. Telephone 8625 3144 Dalzell.Brett@saugov.sa.gov.au

For further information about the Great Victoria Desert visit the Web Site for the Friends of the Great Victoria Desert on www.fgvd.org.au . From the web site you will learn more about area and helpful contacts.

Those who are interested in the vegetation could order the publication “Shrubs and Trees of the Great Victoria Desert ” available from Westprint or by contacting the Friends of the GVD.

Neville Hudson, Secretary, Friends of the Great Victoria Desert .  

More info next week. Here is your puzzle for the week - Vokes Hill or Voakes Hill? Answer (according to us) next week.

 

·         I ran a trip for the TLCV on the Anne Beadell & Connie Sue in July of last year.

Sand Flag – lead vehicle only & only at 2 metres or so or on a very good spring mount or else it will be destroyed by the over hanging branches.

Heading East to West. Road conditions deteriorated rapidly once in the Tallaringa Conservation park. Heavy corrugations which continue to various degrees until close to Vokes Hill Junction where there had been recent grading works.

The Mamungari section was good going but with close growth on the sides of the road & some sand dune crossings.

Once in WA, the road is very much free of corrugations, easy running with some loose sand to the west of Ilkurlka (phone Peter at the road house to let him know of your approximate eta – he can also provide information of other groups traversing the highway – take a recent news paper in for him too!)

Our Trip – 8 days Coober Pedy to Laverton with side trips. Around 1400 kms at 13.8 litres per 100km from a 1HZ Landcruiser.  Tony  

Cobbler Desert  

·         Re story on Strzelecki track, where is Cobbler Desert ?  Peter  

John (the expert) is away at the Burke and Wills Conference so here goes (Someone cleverer than me is welcome to write and correct the following information).  The Cobbler Desert is the local name for an area roughly between Lake Blanche and Lake Callabonna . The name cobbler comes from an old shearing term, the cobbler being the worst sheep in the pen, therefore usually the last to be shorn. The Cobbler Desert is technically part of the Strzelecki but it is an area which can be easily identified as starting to the north of Mount Hopeless and extending to about Monte Collina bore. The area was originally level sand country until sheep were introduced. The sheep ate all the ground cover and cut up the fragile topsoil. John tells me you know where it is because all the plant growth is stunted and the sand blows up around any little bush growing in the area giving it a unique appearance. Jo

Angel Flight Outback Trailblazer

Story supplied by Lance Smith, Angel Flight.  

The bush roads of the Central Queensland Outback will come alive with a convoy of colourful 4WD vehicles for seven days during October as they embark on the inaugural Angel Flight Outback Trailblazer. Teams will engage in a wealth of unique bush experiences and fun challenges as they compete for over $20,000 worth of prizes whilst supporting a remarkable, remote area charity – Angel Flight Australia .

Angel Flight Australia draws together from across Australia a group of over 1900 aircraft owners who give their planes and services as pilots at no charge to assist many down on their luck and in dire need of help. The Angel Flights take patients from rural Australia to and from treatment in regional centres and cities at no cost whatsoever to the patients and carers. They are the real unsung heroes of this story.

To assist this very worthy cause, the Outback Trailblazer has been launched. Those participating will not only be assisting a very worthy cause but will bring back some memorable experiences. Teams will meet plenty of local characters in the bush pubs along the way. There will be visits to tiny schools in remote communities where they’ll be entertained by the local children who are often the beneficiaries of Angel Flight’s services.

Special events include: the Great Outback Riverboat race on the Thomson River ; sipping bubbly at sunset atop the giant red sandhills at Windorah; Australia ’s only solar powered town; and night golf following a Muttaburrasaurus dinosaur dinner at Muttaburra. Another memorable evening includes dinner and a show: the ‘Bards and Bushies’ evening under

the stars at the base of a volcanic grotto outside Alpha where Shakespeare will be performed ‘On the Rocks’ and tales from the earthy bush poets will descend from the cliff face.... a true million star experience under outback skies. This inaugural event will see the teams fishing for yellowbelly in the famous Cooper Creek; drafting sheep on Crossmoor Station; sipping cocktails under the wings of a 747 jumbo jet at Longreach’s Qantas Founders Museum; visiting the amazing Outer Barcoo Interpretive Centre at Isisford; listening to Patterson’s famous ‘Bush Christening’ at Yaraka where the event actually took place at Maguiness Magee’s shanty all those years ago; and watching a live stockman’s show at the world renowned Australian Stockman’s Hall of Fame. The 2009 Angel Flight Outback Trailblazer finishes with a VIP Outback Garden Party at Kyneton Station north of Blackall, which will be remembered forever by those lucky enough to be part of these terrific experiences.

To join in this Outback adventure simply nominate a team (min. 2) and be at the start in Barcaldine on Sunday 18th of October. For further information and costs contact the Barcaldine Regional Council on 07 4651 5601 (Charmain) or log onto www.outbacktrailblazer.com.au and be part of the fun.  

I checked this out, but am unable to participate due to celebrations in Nhill that week (more on that in a Future Friday Five), but it sounds great.   

Friday Funnies

The following story is for all the Mothers. I can relate to this as I can remember proudly writing Mother under occupation on my daughter’s birth certificate application. Imagine my disappointment when it came back as ‘home duties’. Jo.

·         JUST A MUM?
A woman, renewing her driver's licence, was asked by the woman at Registry her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.    
'What I mean is, ' explained the woman at Registry,    
'do you have a job or are you just a  ...?'
'Of course I have a job,' snapped the woman. 'I'm  a Mum.'
'We don't list 'Mum' as an  occupation, 'home duties'  covers it,'  said  the recorder emphatically.  
I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation.  The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, Efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, 'Official Interrogator' or ‘Chief Registrar.'
'What  is your occupation?' she probed.
 I do not know what made me say it. The words simply popped out.   
'I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.'  
The clerk paused, pen frozen in midair and looked up as though she had not heard right.
I repeated the title slowly emphasizing the most significant words. Then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement was written, in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.  
'May I ask,' said the clerk with new interest, 'just what you do in your field?'  
Coolly, without any trace of fluster in my voice, I heard myself reply,
'I have a continuing program of research, (what mother doesn't). In the laboratory and in the field, (normally I would have said indoors and out) I'm working for my Masters, (first the Lord and then the whole family)
and already have four credits (all daughters).   
Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities, (any mother care to disagree?)
And I often work 14 hours a day, (24 is more like it).   
But the job is more challenging than most run-of-the-mill careers   and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.'  
There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk’s voice as she completed the form.
As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants -- ages 13, 7, and 3. Inside I could hear our new experimental model,
(a 6 month old baby) in the child development program, testing out a new vocal pattern. I felt I had scored one on bureaucracy!   
And I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable to mankind than 'just another Mum.'      

Motherhood!  What a glorious career!   
Does this make grandmothers
‘Senior Research associates in the field of Child Development and Human Relations'
and great grandmothers ‘Executive Senior Research Associates?'   
I think so! I also think it makes Aunts  ' Associate Research Assistants.'  
May your troubles be less, your blessing be more, And nothing but happiness come through your door!     

 

·         Q. What did the Zero say to the Eight?    A. "Nice belt!"  

·         "It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and then don't say it." -Sam Levenson

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Cheers for now,

Jo

 

 

 

 

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