Opinion Australia

Just been watching a programme on the ABC about ‘The Maze’ prison in Northern Ireland. Least said soonest mended no doubt but some comment needs to be made.

For me *the* most telling part was the interview right at the end with the sister a murdered prison officer who was shot and killed in front of his wife and young daughter.

Most of the atrocities committed by the terrorists from both republicans and loyalist colours were utterly disgusting… this was just one… but it came at the end of an hour of bleating by the ex-prisoners about the problems they had within the prison walls.

What problems *they* had were of their own making… the majority of the people they murdered were innocents… what choice were *they* given?

There are times I *really* hope there is a god who will judge these animals for their crimes.

As you’ll have noticed if you drop by with any regularity, posts have dropped off a bit over the last week or two. This is as you also know, because my folks are here for Xmas and taking up loads of time.

Well of course we don’t sit indoors doing nothing all day or I’d have more chance of writing… so out we go.

If we get out before lunch we need to recharge the batteries so often drop in on small cafe’s to get a quick snack. The ‘in’ chain at the moment seems to be called ‘The Coffee Club’ and the menus are adequate if never exactly spectacular.

So why write about them? Well we dropped into the one at Westpoint in Blacktown the other day. We all ordered… and the wife asked for Eggs Benedict. No worries… you’d think. But then the waitress arrived to declare the kitchen “had run out of poached eggs“. The wife could have eggs fried, scrambled or boiled… but not poached… they’d run out.

She sheer idiocy of this statement took us *totally* by surprise and we sat there incredulous as the wife ordered “Scrambled Eggs Benedict”. In fact I was so totally gobsmacked I was completely unable to ask *how* they could run out of poached eggs… and that isn’t me at all!!

It’s entirely possible of course I’ve missed something that explains this (to me) totally surreal exchange… but I fail to see just what. If anyone has an acceptable explanation… please pass it on!!!

By the way – it hasn’t stopped us patronising the chain when we need a quick meal , we dropped into the Coffee Club at Chatswood Mall this lunchtime… had a very nice (if basic) Greek Salad thank you very much, and the oldies finally got a decent Eggs Benedict with properly poached eggs.

Ok… got the lights done. Got another chair painted… only two more to do then I can mow the lawn then move the furniture off the patio back onto it. Then I have to use some cleaner on the stone tiles and hose them down, and the outside will be good enough for the summer.

All I have to do then is settle down and sort out the menu for Xmas, do the shopping, cook the food, clean up and relax… I could be finished by 2010 if I organise myself properly… groan.

Of course in the middle of this is’s damn hot. Temps were over 37 degrees today and humidity nicely hovering at around 70%… summer in Australia… could there *be* anything better??

Calling it a concert because in most ways that’s what it was. The kids of the school turned up in the local shopping mall and sang and played their hearts out.

Some of them are just *so* damn good!! From the kindy choir onwards they all did wonderful things. The kindy to year twos put on a medley of songs from Disney along with hand actions… so good.

The eldest daughter played was in the flute ensemble playing her own instrument but also popped up playing an alto flute… which we’d never seen or heard her play before. Pretty good. She also played in the violin ensmble, and sang in two choral groups!

The ‘seniors’ also played and sang and they in their turn were just great. Bearing in mind this isn’t a specialist music or entertainment school they do a wonderful job pushing the kids along. I wish I’d had that chance when I was their age!!
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We reported on the demise of our mattress at the end of November and the trouble we’d had with the insurance company but I forgot to mention that the ‘new’ name for NRMA insurance is IAG… no idea why they changed it, but they did.

Anyway… just pointing out that despite them now knowing we have a mattress to sleep on we *still* haven’t heard from them about our being allowed to buy a new one after nearly a fornight!!

Well ok we did already buy a mattress… but *they* don’t know that and it serves to highlight the utter disdain with which these people treat their customers. The longer they take the more likely it is that they will lose a long term… *and* low claim… customer. It’s disgraceful!