Opinion Australia

The wife is back riding the Bullet Bus. I’ve mentioned this bus before, because in the absence of a sensible public service these private operators have stepped into the breach and created a service that is both cheap and convenient… surely a first for commuters?

Yet there is one small quibble.

To contact the bus company you have to ring their telephone number which is 1300 307 442… so why is the number on the bus (as seen on the picture) different I wonder??

Perhaps someone should ring and ask??

Earth Hour had a lot of support this year in Australia.. and it seems around the world! I hope you all sat around in darkness for an hour wondering what to do with yourselves… as we did.

The youngest had gone for a sleepover at a friends so there were just the three of us here sitting and chatting in the darkness until we felt able to switch the lights on again. Made a nice change to have a conversation… tho admittedly I fell asleep half way through. To be fair I’d been up since 4:45 a.m. and hadn’t eaten much all day so I felt ok about it.

Still hungry this morning… it’ll pass. Now looking at the news to see who else around the world followed the example of Oz and switched off for a short while. Maybe it won’t make a whole heap of difference, but if it raises awareness and changes perceptions a little… it’ll have been worth doing.

While there has been no sign of a frost… it hardly ever gets cold enough even in the depths of winter to claim we’ve been ‘freezing’… I think we might claim the last week or two to represent an ‘Indian Summer, albeit with an Australian edge to it!

The weather has been very warm, especially compared to the last few months when the rain has created a blanket of cloud preventing the sun’s warming rays from penetrating the murk. In fact, overnight temperatures in NSW have ranged between 20ºC – 24ºC… rivalling those found on a warm summers day in Wales if I recall correctly! The evenings and nights have been pleasant… even balmy. In these parts it’s been that comfortable, that even with the air conditioning maintaining an equable temperature, nobody has needed bedding!

Today’s temperature rose as high as 35ºC and even now as I write at 6:30 p.m. the thermometer reads 34ºC. Unfortunately, as usual around holiday periods, a change in the weather is on the cards. And hard as it is to believe with the temperature so high, we’ve been warned that we might expect overnight storms. As if we’d not had more than enough storms lately!

Obviously we’ve no idea how serious these particular storms may be but there is nothing emanating from the Bureau of Meteorology as yet to indicate these will be severe enough to cause damage. Still, best to be prepared I suppose and we’ll be keeping a ‘weather eye’ out just in case.

Either way we still need the rain. The dams aren’t yet sufficiently filled to ward off that sense of imminent doom generated by those insisting that we still need to ration usage. Maybe a few months more soggy misery would help… but on balance I could do without it thanks.

Edit:
Seems the storm has moved out to sea and won’t be causing any damage though winds of 90kph were recorded in parts of southern Sydney! The time is 9:45 p.m. and the temperature is 26ºC. Looks like it’ll be another in a long line of warm nights.

As part of an ongoing thread in another place someone brought up the question “What do adult cuckoo’s do while their young are being raised by others?”. I had to admit I had *no* idea. Of course not all cuckoos act by dumping their eggs in another birds nest and fly off. Most actually look after their young and teach them the ways of the world before they fly off to seek fame and fortune.

I assumed the question referred to breeds of parasitic cuckoo such as the Common European Cuckoo so tried doing a little research but couldn’t find any answers. I know there are a few amateur ornithologists out there (e.g. The Phantom!) so if someone can come up with an answer I’d appreciate it. Actually, ‘The Phantom’ hasn’t been seen online since late February so may not be able to respond to this.

Still, I’d assume (again) the females simply fly off and lay eggs in as many other nests as possible.

So at least the female is productive occasionally. The males on the other hand would appear do nothing at all other than bonk eat and sleep and enjoy life.

Must be a good life to be a male cuckoo!!