Cool weather surprise
I mentally prepared myself for Kalgoorlie to have an unrelenting hot summer, so the 45 degrees I struck upon arrival came as no surprise.
What has surprised me is the cool weather of the past few days. Yesterday’s maximum was just 18 degrees, which is 15 below the January average. We also had drizzle for much of the previous night and showers during the day.
It’s the same again this morning and the forecast is for temperatures in the 20s throughout this week.
Vale the Nationals
The future of the National Party in Australia is under a cloud following the defection of Victorian Senator Julian McGauran to the Liberals.
Most analysts seem to think the party is in terminal decline. The evidence certainly supports that.
Three-cornered contests after a sitting member retires are invariably won by the Liberal Party.
The question has to be asked: What does the National Party stand for? Read more
New bicycle
I bought a new bike today. I’m not exactly flush with cash, so it’s something of a luxury, but my old bike is just about ready for the scrapheap.
The retired model is an old Repco, which Juliet bought secondhand several years ago when she thought I should work on my fitness.
It took me a couple more years before I embraced that challenge and I’ve worked the bike pretty hard since. Read more
The Miner building
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This is my office: the historic Kalgoorlie Miner building in Hannan Street. It’s the only three-storey building in the street. I don’t know the full history yet, but hope to add some more detail here later when I do. |
First day on the job
Here’s a picture of me that was taken on Monday for Tuesday’s paper.
National Australia Day launch
The national launch for 2006 Australia Day celebrations happened in Kalgoorlie on Monday. It was the second such occasion following a successful inaugural event last year at Ayers Rock.
It was a great honor for the city, accorded in recognition of significant local efforts towards achieving reconciliation with indigenous people. Kalgoorlie was also seen as reflecting a national character of adventure and exploration, with an historical emphasis on prospecting.
The Governor-General, Michael Jeffery, attended and I was fortunate to see him at a civic reception on Sunday evening.
There were many media celebrities and other prominent figures in town for the “Kalgoorlie Dawn” event on Monday, which featured in my first issue as editor today.
Good walking and cycling trails
There are some great walking and cycling trails in Kalgoorlie. I thought I’d miss the rail trail around Porepunkah, but the tracks here are just as interesting.
There’s one that starts close to my home, goes around the edge of the golf course and skirts several parks.
The weather was much cooler today, so I ran 5km this morning and rode about 15km this evening.
Great Australian Bight
Here’s a picture taken from the Nullarbor Plain overlooking the Great Australian Bight. There are several places where you can drive a few hundred metres from the Eyre Highway to gain such a vantage point.
Beware of camels
I finally got to download some photos that I took while driving from Victoria to Western Australia.
Here’s one I mentioned earlier, warning about camels! Wombats and kangaroos I could handle, but a camel through the windscreen is not a welcome prospect.
Great people in Kalgoorlie
I’ve lived in a lot of places, but I can’t think of anywhere friendlier upon arrival than Kalgoorlie.
I think the transient nature of the population means that everyone has empathy for newcomers. They’ve been there and done that themselves, so they know what it’s like.
Rural towns are sometimes wary of new residents. Tourist towns can be superficial in their friendliness. Here, I feel it’s genuine.
The city itself has tremendous character. There are historical buildings and long, wide streets with a surprising amount of greenery and vegetation considering the climate.
The heat is to be expected and I have no complaints in that regard.
The newspaper office is an absolute gem; a traditional rabbit warren in the centre of Hannan Street (albeit three storeys) where you can breathe and sense the history.
Tomorrow I move into our new home, which is in a quiet court near the golf course. I’ll describe it more later.
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