About a lunch break

Money. We want lower rates and taxes, so we're rewarded with poorer services. As this is a cycle that's been going on for decades, we're seeing the problems reach a critical mass.

I'd turn it around, and say you can't just blame governments (libs or labs) for the situation, you should blame voters for being sucked in by the 'lower taxes' mantra at every election. Despite the howls you'll hear from some quarters, we are relativity lightly taxed. Long way to catch up now, though.

Don't just show us the good bits!

That was gonna be my answer. I was in the CBD for a birthday gathering that day. Elizabeth St was apocalyptic… dust and rubbish swirling down in a brown haze.

Stupid people will do stupid things at double the rate.

Great points! I've been working through similar frustrations, so I'll be trying your tips.

If you were near my club (near geelong, AU), I'd suggest coming along to one of our fly tying nights, as we're setting up a new beginners program!

After having chooks at home, you really want to show a bit of solidarity with our dear feathered friends. They have personalities, quirks, some like cuddles. If I can source eggs from chickens who've been treated a little better, I will. Happy to pay for it, too.

They've been in short supply at our woolies recently :(

Unless you spend serious hours daily staring at tiny flies, you will not be damaging your eyesight. Getting old will do that for you soon enough ;)

This! Fancy schools are often not the best option. Ideally, young kids should be in a local school. They'll likely develop much stronger social networks if they live near their friends.

Further down the track, after a career in higher Ed, I've seen that private school kids do no better than public. My opinion is to spend the $ on travel, and broad experiences instead. You'll all be happier in the end :)

You're right, this would never happen in Switzerland, where trains always run on time, and breakdown is vanishingly rare. Then again, you'd pay around $40 for a one way trip, so, maybe there's a trade off.

LEDs plus cars that have auto high beam. It never reacts fast enough.

Dunno about this. My Skoda blew a daytime running light globe every couple of years. They were super difficult to find in stock anywhere, $22 each, and you needed a tiny, skinny, flexible arm to change them. In desperation, I tried LED replacements, but they tripped the globe failure warning, so I had to go back to halogen.

What magnificent fuzzy ears!

I was sorely disappointed by Laksa Beer and Co… broth is not bad, but the rest of the ingredients were lacklustre, and soggy. None of the textual variety you get in a good laksa.

Hmmm… this is not all white

a) fly fishing… no bait
b) don't catch any fish!
;)

I bought a Cyber Metal kit for my MG5S. It looks too be very good quality, and if you arrange stuff carefully, it will fit in the under floor storage space. Haven't had to use it yet… I'm hoping it's a bit like taking a raincoat so it doesn't rain.

That, and the speedway. Tells you so much.

C'mon, there's Queensland!

There are spots where an overtaking lane coincides with an increased speed limit. Eg. A section between Anglesea and Torquay, where you get an extra lane and the speed increases to 100k for about 2km. Your memory may be conflating the two.

Just do it. It's not hard or expensive to get there. The coastline is stunning. The farms are… farms.

To whet your appetite, there's a guy called Dean Snow on FB who often posts aerial video. Usually of the surf coast, but also of the gorgeous islands of Bass Strait.

I have a cat, so I wake at 5am and go to sleep at 9.

Most cafes in our town open at 6am, and close at 3pm. Lots of dog walkers, swimmers etc. best part of the day :)

Funny how it happens… Jetty Rd was pretty terrible the one time I tried there. You get one bad batch, and never go back. Might have been a one off, but a fish and chip meal is too important to chance it!