Free To Air HD VS Foxtel

I've been noticing lately that there's a television airing war going on between free-to-air HD channels and Foxtel.  While it all seems harmless, it's really brainwashing and getting a little too much when they air the adverts during family viewing time.  Foxtel really do have some great deals; ad-free movies and a sports channel or two with free installation.  However, I've found the free-to-air channels are just as good and all I did was go out to WOW Sight'n'Sound down the road and fork out $100 for a HD box, plug it in - according to the instructions in the front of the book - and scan in my channels.  

Easy-peasey... no monthly charges... no extra charges for me wanting to watch a movie... and most of all, if I didn't like the adverts, well, that's what the mute button is for.  

But you see, this free-to-air HD service is all very new to Australians; whereas it's been around for a long time in America.  One of my Canadian friends told me recently that they have 41 free-to-air channels and he complained that there weren't enough channels... um, pardon me?  We were stuck with only 5 or 6 until around three years ago and once you plugged in a HD box, well, you got another 9!  Yay!  And I only plugged a HD box into my television to improve my reception because it really sucked on all 5 channels... I ended up with ABC2, ABC3 and another 3 channels I didn't know existed; not including channel 31 (which I never received anyway because the signal isn't strong enough to be received here).  

Now, HD is absolutely everywhere; not only on the television... it's also on the radio.  If you've got a stereo system that's less than a decade old, you can get HD stereo.  And it can be picked up on your television too if you want to catch a show that's being broadcast in a different band from your radio... that's pretty swish!

So, who needs Foxtel when you can get all this for just a little over $100 and no hoock-up fee, no monthly charges and not extras for extra channels?  I don't... do you?  Of course this only my personal opinion of this.  If you enjoy cable television, leave a comment and let us know why.  Until my next post, keep safe and I'll still be here.

January's Something Different!

This is the first 'Do Something Different' for 2011, and seeing it's January, it's always something completely different when I come around to writing this one.  I didn't start off this year with a bang like I normally do; instead, I had such a quiet New Year's Eve that I nearly missed it because I sat around the house and watched dvds until midnight, called Mum down the coast, then gave Little Miss Stevie a cuddle and went off to bed after all the fireworks around the place settled down.

I did plan to get a lot of writing done; and with the rain that had been bucketing down since the beginning of school holidays, I had plenty of time to do just that; as well as a lot of reading.  So, there was one thing I got myself into.

I also wanted to get myself in Brisbane City more; but that would have to wait for a few months seeing our poor city underwent some big changes thanks to Mother Nature.  Once Toowoomba had an Inland Tsunami - which took out the Lockyer Valley and some townships between there and Brisbane - well, there wasn't anywhere for the water to go but here.  So, along with flowing downstream along the Brisbane River - with the floodgates of one of our main dams open - Brisbane was in for one of its biggest floods since 1974!  This flood destroyed, displaced and took with it plenty of homes, businesses, cars, boats and anything else that happened to be in the way; this included a popular restaurant which was - ironically - called 'Drift'... because that's exactly what it did down the river on its barge and pontoons; coming to rest where everything else did at Luggage Point.

This flood peaked at 4.6 metres and the clean-up began; and as I write this, is still going on.  People are still trying to piece together their lives and finding it harder as a lot of them lost everything except what clothes they had on their backs; while others had time to pack precious belonging and move them to higher ground.

Well, on a lighter note, we celebrated my cousin's daughter's first birthday at Mott Park, Holland Park and everyone had a great time.  The day was hot, sunny and windy and the kids were enjoying all the home-cooked food.  A pinyata was there to be smashed open by the kids as lollies fell out onto the ground... lots of fun by them.  The birthday girl enjoyed meeting new people and eventually got that glassy, tired look all kids do when it's nap time; and her Mum took her home while the rest of us tidied up the shelter; putting it back to its former boring best for the next lot of people.

On the same day, I went off to Rockaways and scored myself two vinyls that I had been looking for: The Eurythmics 'Revenge' album and INXS KICK in limited edition red.  Very cool; and both in vinyl!  I got home and had baked beans on toast for dinner as I had eaten way too much food that day.

Australia Day was very much a special day for all of us Aussie this year; especially Queenslanders due to the flood.  I spent a day and a half at Thornside with some friends celebrating a Pre-Australia Day... a bbq by the pool there and some drinks and staying up late chilling out.  It was great.  I had a lovely swim in the huge saltwater pool and loved every minute of it.  Then, the next day, I had an allergic reaction to Hot'n'Spicy Pringles and that was the end of me for about two days... I actually suffered a full-blown hangover; something I've never had in my entire life of partying.  I was dizzy, nauseous and very off-colour for about half the day.  I really didn't feel good at all.  But then, at dinner, I made myself a good pasta dish and pushed myself to eat as much of it as I could and the next day I felt good.  The one main problem was that I forgot I had a morning shift at that the Logan Art Gallery; and I had to call in and apologise for not showing up due to my ills that morning.  They said it was just as well I didn't show.  

And now this brings up to this weekend.  Just last Friday, I went out to the chiropractor and he put all my 'usual bones' back into place; and I went to Rockaways again and found myself two more vinyls to play on my turntable.  'So' by Peter Gabriel and 'Good Vibrations' by The Beach Boys.  Both great bands/artists and I can't wait to play them on my stereo.  Then, I dropped off to Mum's house and she gave me a book to review (a request really by a family friend to help get her son's name out there; I was more than happy to do this for him).  Then, Mum showed me three more books she was going to toss out and I picked up another two of them; yep I added to my collection when I vowed to keep my collecting under control this year... to read only what I've got in this room.  

Well, this is what I've been getting up to this month.  So, what have you been doing that's regarded as something totally different to your usual routine?  Feel free to leave a comment and let us know.  Until my next post, keep safe and stay dry.

Friday Hot Friday!

After Australia Day, I woke the next day feeling as though I was going to be sick; physically ill.  It was the first time ever that I had a hangover from something; but I wasn't quite sure what.  So, I made a list of what I had eaten and - with Mum - we put it down to the Pringles I had scoffed into; mainly the Hot'n'Spicy ones I had grabbed in the morning.  They were so morish and delicious, but so very bad for me; and now I definitely won't be going near them again!  And it took all day for that stuff to get out of my system.

So, then, once the day had passed and I had tried to keep my eyes open, I finally turned off the computer and air-conditioner and had a cool shower and headed downstairs; feeling better for it, but still stuffed.  I made myself some pasta and watched television, wrote in my journal and tried to keep awake until around 9:30pm - after 'Big Bang Theory' and then I went off to bed; I was so tired and falling asleep in my lounge chair.

This morning, I woke to my alarm and felt so much better!  I had had a great night's sleep and didn't feel as seedy as I did yesterday.  Just before I got out of bed, Mum called me and asked if I'd like to go to the movies, but I've got an appointment with the chiropractor... not my favourite person in the world, but at least I sleep well after he fixes my back, shoulders and hips.  I've been going to a chiro since I began working at aged 18 to help with my back seeing I was a mail clerk for a good part of my time at RACQ.  Seeing I sit a lot now as well when I write my books or read them, I still need to go to one.  

Anyway, there's clouds outside and rain isn't that far off.  I'll have to have a shower soon to go out and catch the bus to Springwood to take a wander around Rockaways to look at their $4.00 range of vinyls; seeing I bought two expensive ones last week.  Well, until I next post, take care and keep positive.  I'll still be here.

Happy Australia Day!

Well, I only got home about forty minutes ago from Thornside and I feel pretty tired and wasted.  This is normal for me when I go to a party at Geoff and Viv's place; friends of mine who used to live here at my unit complex.  They held a Pre-Australia Day Party and I was invited.  So, I took them up and went; sending Little Miss Stevie off to Mum and Dad's for the night so she wasn't left here in the heat.  

Viv picked me up at around 2pm yesterday and took me out for coffee; as we had another person to pick up but his bus had been late, thus making him miss his train from Robina to Beenleigh.  So, we had half an hour to kill; and went off to 'The Coffee Club' at Springwood to have a lovely coffee and something to eat in gorgeous surroundings.  I hadn't been there for years.

Anyway, we picked up Geoff's mate, Jeremy, and drove the scenic round to their house at Thornside; near the Bay, where Geoff was just getting home to.  We hung out after the initial tidy-up was done and settling in where we put some of our drinks in the freezer to cool them down quickly.  Geoff took off to pick up ingredients for dinner and we began on the nibblies as the sun went down and the stars came out... and one of the neighbours - Ralph - dropped by to hang out too.

By around 8:30pm or so, our bbq had been and gone with a great salad, veggie sausages, meat sausages, a cheese platter and plenty of food to go around; with more than enough leftovers for today and tonight.  Stories were swapped and we all had great laughs at a gecko that fell from the ceiling of the bbq area, onto our table, dodged around the plates, onto the seat I stood next to, clambered onto and around my leg, then made very quick tracks to the bbq plate (which was still quite warm) and bolted onto the bricks of the wall nearby.  That was either one very clumsy and stupid lizard, or one gutsy one; either way, we all thought he was really cute and he managed to terrify himself in more ways than one.

Afterwards, I took a lovely dip in the saltwater pool.  this inground pool is in the middle of the complex, well-cared for and has a large fence around it; and at this time of the year, everyone swims in it at night as it's nice and warm and just wonderful to look up at the stars overhead.  And that's just what I did.

After that, I had a quick shower and found that the shirt I used to cover up my very old togs and swim in was the only shirt I had brought with me!  So, I had to borrow a shirt off Vivienne for the night; and thankfully we're similar sizes.  I hung out my wet gear on the clothes line over night to dry and had to wear it home today.

We stayed up talking and taking weird photos, laughing at funny jokes and anecdotes and stories about all kinds of thing until around 1am and then I hit the pillow.  Before I knew it, my alarm went off at 6am... blech!  But I wasn't the only one up; in fact, Stu hadn't even been to bed!  He was wondering around the place sipping on some German beer and smoking all night and he was the first one who greeted me when I came downstairs.  I said that once the alarm went off, there's a slim chance of me getting back to sleep; and it's been like that since I was around 18 or so... especially since I'm on medication I have to be up at that time.  He said it's not good when I don't have a choice.

Well, the morning progressed as each person rose from their slumber and greeted the day in their own unique way.  I had some cereal and a coffee, then we all shared some hot'n'spicy Pringles, French Vanilla Peanuts (which tasted like Cocoa Pops) and German Beer... yep, a crazy, weird kinda breakfast to have, but it seem to suit our feeling of wanting to get rid of the seediness we all woke up with (well, okay, except Stu).  Then, Stu went home, got onto Facebook and told us that Obama was doing his State Union Speech and we all watched channel 24 until it finished 2 hours later!  Wow... talk about somebody who repeats himself over and over... but that's how it all goes I guess.

Next thing I know, it's almost time to leave.  And so, we all pack our stuff, check and double check we've got our stuff and then pile into the car and I was dropped off home.  It's been a mild 24 hours; but fun too.  Until my next post, I hope you enjoy your Australia Day - whatever you happen to get up to - as I'll be snoozing the afternoon away, no matter what, I'll still be here.

Long Day Saturday

What a day it was yesterday; and I mean it felt like it went for a few days and not only for one day.  From around 10am, I was out with my whole family at Mott Park at Holland Park here in Brisbane celebrating the first birthday of of Arrabella; my cousin's daughter.  Everyone showed up with food, chairs, their kids and cameras galore!  I had bought the birthday girl a card from the Logan Art Gallery and Natalie, my cousin, loved it.  She said she loves stuff like this; and was amazed at how much work went into it.  I told her about Rosa - the German lady who makes the cards at the LAG - and said that this one was the most lovely and best one I thought Arrabella would most suit.  

Well, the day was just lovely.  The sun shone hot and brilliant from the gorgeous blue sky, a strong wind blew all our recyclable plates off the table; as well as our plastic cups too, and sent our table clothes flapping like flags.  There was a Dora the Explorer Pinyata and all the young kids had a go at it; including my niece, Riley, who bent the metal spoon when she had a bash at it.  It was fun to see them all have a go as everyone took photos and films; and the kids dove for the lollies as they hit the grass.

There was plenty of food of home-made biscuits, cupcakes and butterfly biscuits too.  Then, out came the birthday cake; a carrot cake with a yellow cream cheese icing with flowers; made by Natalie.  It was a lovely cake; very moist and delicious!  Before long, a few hours had passed and all the kiddies were getting that glassy-eyed look of tiredness where it was past nap-time; and so we began packing up.  At around 1:30pm, we had a quick cup of coffee and helped Uncle Iain and Aunty Narelle with all the gear and we took off too.

But I didn't go home.  I asked Dad to drive me to Centro at Springwood.  I needed to go to Rockaways to look for a few vinyls; namely a 'Eurythmics' and 'Eagles' vinyl... one or the other; or both.  Well, I found the former and there were no 'Eagles' vinyls at all.  And the songs I wanted on this particular vinyl were all on side one for $10.  What a bargain.  Then, I decided to look for INXS' KICK album; and found one better!  I found their limited edition of KICK and bought that instead.  What a great day out we had.  A birthday party of a lovely little girl; who enjoyed jumping up and down and giggling her head off on my lap and two vinyls I've always wanted of two bands I've loved all my life!  A great day out indeed!  But boy, am I tired from it all! 

Interesting Week

Well, it's late and I thought it would be a good time to get my weekly blog out.  This week has been slow but interesting.  I've gotten my shopping done and wondered - beforehand - if I was going to get all my groceries seeing how the Rocklea Markets had gone under in the Brisbane Floods.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that all the shelves between Woolworths and Coles were fully stocked.  Can't say the same for Aldi though.

I found a great piece of old kitchenware for Mum at Life Line; it was a sugar bowl that looked exactly like my late-Grandma's.  It was in better condition and so I got it for Mum to use.  After washing it, and wrapping it in fresh paper, I gave it to her on Thursday night, and she loved it.  I also bought a Buddha statue for my home.  It looks very cool by the door.

Last night, the family got together at Gabe and Kat's place for dinner.  Riley was there and Gabe made sushi; and Mum took along baked custard; which we all nearly scoffed down in one sitting!  Gabe reckoned his sushi wasn't his best, but I disagree.  I loved it; as Gabe's always getting better at making it Riley and me talked about witchcraft, God and the hows, whys and wheres of the craft.  I was careful about what I said; but made it clear that there's a lot of reading, research and there's an initiation she must go through to be a witch.  The last bit put her off a little... but she was still curious as I mentioned the history of it was gory.

Well, today, I was off to the Logan Art Gallery; and I almost forgot about it... silly me.  I was asked to come in an hour early as our trainee was being taken out to lunch for her last day of work.  So, I said sure and took off to catch the bus in a hurry. After a shower and a change of clothes, I got to the bus stop in plenty of time and found I waited almost 40 minutes for the bus to show... it really bad as I was about 10 minutes late for my roster; which made everyone late for lunch with Poppy.  Anyway, Linda Starkey and I hung around for an hour chatting and tallying up the people coming in.  However the afternoon shift was really dull.  Only four high school kids came in claiming they were bored, touched everything and then messed up the Children's Gallery.  Then, while I was at the toilet, they took off; leaving us to clean up after them.  Now, that frustrates me to no end; that kids of that age should know better, but they don't do anything to put anything away... I mean this place wasn't their bedroom.  I had to tidy up and put all pencils, scissors, lids on pens, putting the clipboards back and throwing out paper scraps and mainly just straightening up... it was a pigsty.  And I thought my house was messy!

Well, tomorrow, the family off to help celebrate my cousin's daughter's first birthday at Holland Park.  I'll upload photos on here to show how cute she is... she looks like her Mum. After the party - as it will only go for a few hours - I'll be off to Rockaways to look for a couple of vinyls.  One I'm into is The Eurythmics and the other is 'Hotel California' by The Eagles.  I hope I find one or both.  Until my next post, stay safe and I hope you're all recovering from the floods.  Until then, I'm still here. 

Drying Out

Well, at last, Brisbane, Ipswich and the Lockyer Valley are all drying out from the most dreadful floods South-East Queensland has ever seen.  We've had the most rainfall since 1974 and a week on, the clean-up goes on.  Volunteers Queensland has been inundated with people who are showing up in Wellingtons with brooms, buckets dressed in hats smothered in sunscreen and ready to work from dawn til dusk to get Brisbane and Ipswich back to the way it was.  This flood has taken away to much and killed up to 20 people; with many more still missing.  But there's still hope in the air.  

The CBD is beginning to work again as the surrounding area of Southbank, Milton, Auchenflower and other inner-Brisbane suburbs are being cleaned up.  Schools are being cleaned up; getting ready for school to start next week.  And for the ones that can't open until a few weeks for now?  Well, they Education Department will place the students with sister schools until their schools are up to scratch.  But it will take up to year for this flood to be clean up and a lot of money; along with much more planning to make sure a flood like this doesn't destroy this much so quickly again.

Meanwhile, for the people who didn't have their houses taken by the flood, there are the problems of wondering if the shopping centres will have enough food to go around.  Will my next shopping day be like my last one?  Or will I have to go without some things?  Will Coles and Woolworths' shelves be half-empty, or will they be fully-stocked?  Who knows until I get there.  

This has been a really stressful time for not just people here in Brisbane; but anyone who has been affected by the floods all over Queensland.  And now, they're being affected by floods in Victoria; and my heart and prayers go to those people who are being displaced there by them.

The one place I find it's most distressing is in Rockhampton.  I received a phone call from a friend of mine the other day who lives out in Gracemere.  He told me that they weren't getting any food from Rockhampton; nor were any of the other regional centres.  Rockhampton got all the food drops and is inundated with so much food that its shops are too full from it all.. so they're selling food for less than a dollar; not thinking that there's people who are cut off from the town centre who can't get to them.  I really wish I could get onto somebody who can help get through to their mayor so they can get some food before they run out.  

Well, this is all from me.  This week hasn't been all that exciting personally.  I'm getting into reading two books, my laundry again and playing the piano is more enjoyable as it's dried out enough to play it now; and it doesn't sound horrible from the wet weather.  Otherwise, the citizens of Queensland and Brisbane are all taking each day as it comes... good things keep happening to us as we face our city going from a place of disaster to a place of beauty again.  Until my next post, keep safe and I'll still be here.

During this Week

This week has been trying for a lot of people with the floods all around, from up north to the inland Tsunami that ravaged the Lockyer Valley; and the massive flood that has devastated Brisbane City.  

While I live around 20 minutes drive outside the CBd, I also had my problems.  My house still has knocking pipes; but I'm getting that fixed soon.  We have had two really hot fine days where everyone around the place did all their laundry - and that was all of it!  I even washed my mattress protector and turned my mattress over; not that I don't do that anyway.  It's just that with all the rain that's been around, I haven't had the opportunity to get any of that done.  

Then, yesterday, I went to check the mail at the Post Office and around four or five of the Business-sized boxes had been vandalised.  I don't just mean spray-paint like last year where it can be taken off; I mean some destructive little gnat has gone there and kicked the doors in and tried to rip them off their hinges.  I gotta say, they tried really hard, and failed.  What was left of the doors were hanging off by one hinge; but still it was dreadful that this has happened.  This kind of thing always go one at this time of the year; just when kids are about to go back to school.  This is the time when they get very bored because everything they've been offered to do has been done by them over the holidays; however this time, it was different.  This time, all it did was rain.  This time, Brisbane City flooded and the kids didn't have the luxury of going in there to run around for the last week; and this time, kids on holidays have been stuck inside all week either watching television, surfing the net or bugging their parents.  But vandalising something as important and expensive as PO Boxes is just low.  Australia Post has to fix those boxes; and the rent on those boxes aren't cheap either - I should know, I have one - so why go around and destroy them?  The answer would be:  because they're bored.  Really?  Honestly?  If I said that when I was young, I was given something around the house to do; then I never said I was bored again.

So, there you have it.  The things that happened this week - besides the floods.  I know it sounds like a boring week.  But really it's not.  I'm up to reading my third book, began following a few other blogs on different subjects and have begun a new game on Bookcrossing called: 'Who Wants...' and I name a book title and the first person to e-mail me their address gets the book.  The following pay, I post it off to them.  I do it once a fortnight; and so I don't have the problem of having to post off too many items this year.  I've also begun saving up for a holiday in a few years' time.  I can't wait until I have the money up; but until then, I'll keep where I want to go a secret until the time comes closer.

So, there you have it, my week all caught up.  So, until my next post, take care, keep dry and I hope you all have avoided the floods.

Brisbane River Flood Peak

The flood marker at the Power House, New Farm

At 4am this morning, the Brisbane River peaked at 4.4m.  I was awake at around 3:30 am and felt a little concerned about what was going on before in the city before going back to sleep.

However on waking up, the sun was shining again; however things were still going on in the river.  The Riverwalk that runs along the Botanical Gardens has had large 300 tonne chunks break away and float down the river; running into the pylons of the Gateway Bridge.  The good thing is that the pylons didn't move and the bridge wasn't damaged; seeing how heavy these chunks are and how fast they were traveling. 

'Drift' the famous restaurant was seen being taken by the currents of the Brisbane River by the Triple M Morning Crew (The Cage) watched it go as they sat out on their balcony and debriefed from the show that day.  They were said that it was a spectacular view seeing it going by; doing exactly what its name suggested.

This morning, 'The Cage' crew on Triple M asked the owner of 'Drift' if he was okay about it taking off down the river.  He said not really; but he couldn't really do much about it; and seeing he didn't have flood insurance didn't really help.  Anyway, he said, 'Drift' will be reopening at some point in the future somewhere around Stradbroke Island or Tangalooma.  First, though, they have to get the water out of the barge the restaurant sits on.

One of my friends has started up a group on Facebook for anyone who is without accommodation.  He and his wife live at Thorneside and are willing to take in people who need a place to stay until their houses are good to live in again.  If you're on facebook, and you're in one of the crisis centres look up Geoff Treagus on the search box and go to his groups; it'll be there.

A lot of people are still missing out in the Lockyer Valley.  There's 12 dead and a number of families missing.  150,000 homes and businesses around Brisbane and Ipswich are still without power.  But the good thing out of this is that the drinking water is still okay to drink; however the Brisbane City Council has said to use the water sparingly in case that changes.  The crisis accommodation is at the RNA Showgrounds, QE2 Stadium at Nathan (where the 1982 Commonwealth Games were held); and three more emergency accommodation places have opened:

• St Catherine Anglican Church, McFarlane Street, Middle Park
• Good New Lutheran Church, Horizon Drive, Jamboree Heights
• Salvation Army Church, Lalian Street, Middle Park

Residents are urged to bring their own supplies to these centres; or as much as they can.  The flood levels will stay around Brisbane for the next 14 - 18 hours before they recede; then the clean up will begin.  I hope you have all stayed safe during this time; and have found the centres you've needed to be.  Otherwise until my next post, stay safe and dry; and I'll still be here.

Today's Update

This morning, I woke to strange blue skies and the sun.  After so long having nothing but wet days and dull clouds, it felt really weird to have to grab the sunglasses to go outside.  But really, I got up early to go and get the paper before they were sold out; I bought two, one for Mum and Dad and one for me.  The front page alone spoke volumes as did the inside; all about how many people had been evacuated, how had suffered and who had died.

So far, 19,700 properties have been flooded, there are 50,000 homes without electricity and around 3,000 businesses are underwater in Brisbane.  And that's before High Tide has arrived today at around 3:15pm; where the Brisbane River will rise to 4.5m.

There's isn't much more I tell you.  We're thankful that the rain has eased for now; but we're in for more (as they tell us) over the next few days.  People have been stocking up on food and others have been volunteering to help with whatever they can.  Aussies are being Aussies, if we're not in the danger zone of the flood (or even if we are), we're all trying to help.

Triple M Brisbane (a major rock'n'roll station here in Australia) was broadcast nationally today in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and anywhere else they could to let people in other states know, who have relative here in Brisbane, that they're okay; and how the city is doing.  They even put out their phone number so they could all get in and phone to see which suburbs were evacuated.  So, that's all for now.  Until my next post, stay dry, keep safe and I'll still be here.