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Tag Archive
WA election result
Western Australia voted last weekend and the result is still unknown. I’ve avoided commenting until now, even though I have much to say. I voted for Tony Crook (Nationals) in Kalgoorlie. He lost on preferences, but the state Nationals are almost certain to hold the balance of power and decide the next government. I have no... »
Cost of living
It’s very expensive to live in remote towns such as Kalgoorlie. It’s worse in the Pilbara, from what I can tell, but Kalgoorlie certainly isn’t cheap. We had subsidised housing there, which made it reasonably affordable. When considering a move to Mount Gambier we calculated the impact of losing the housing assistance against lower costs for... »
Crossing the Nullarbor
We successfully crossed the Nullarbor in two cars with four kids and arrived safely today in Moonta Bay on Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. We’re resting here a couple of days while waiting for our furniture to catch up. We’ll head to Mount Gambier on Thursday and unpack on Friday. We bought a house in Moonta... »
Don’t wee in the bush
Just browsing the Kalgoorlie Miner web site and gained a reminder about this story. An 11-year-old boy on a camping trip discovered a skeleton when he went for a pee. I received a message from the boy’s mother following a similar story we reported a week earlier. That involved a tradesman finding bones while having a... »
Subiaco team of the century
It was good to see both Haydyn Buntons honored in Subiaco Football Club’s team of the century. The senior Bunton (pictured) was an automatic selection, winning three Brownlow medals and three Sandovers. He is arguably the greatest player ever. His son was a good player too. He coached with success and was selected as coach of... »
Local government reform
I don’t understand why the West Australian Government doesn’t just get on with the job of local government reform. It’s another example of indecision and lack of leadership. Add it to the list with daylight saving and retail trading hours. There are too many councils in WA, no argument. »
WAFL game in Boulder
I watched part of the WAFL game at Boulder yesterday between Subiaco and Peel. It’s probably the only WAFL game I will ever see. For those who don’t know, WAFL is the West Australian Football League; it’s the premier Aussie rules competition in the state and arguably the fourth best in the country after the... »
The dyslexic postman
That’s a picture of our letterbox. The number 5 is fairly prominent. There are only four houses in our court, but for some reason we keep getting letters for number 3 delivered to our box. We think many of our letters are being delivered to number 7, because every so often a bundle of mail... »
Hoon problem
Western Australia has a hoon problem. It exists everywhere to some extent, I suppose, but I never encountered it in the parts of Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia I lived in previously. Hoon activity can be doing a burnout; dangerous or reckless driving; racing another vehicle, speeding, and accelerating or braking and skidding... »
Airport security
The CIA and ASIO must think Osama bin Laden is hiding in Western Australia. That might explain why airport security at Kalgoorlie is so stringent. With so many miners wearing steel-capped boots, it’s inevitable that every second person who passes through the magic arch (the one that beeps) warrants further scrutiny from the people with... »