The road above is the one I use to get to and from work. Not today though.
The next day someone came back to find their car had been written off in the flood. 800 cars suffered the same fate across Brisbane.
The bridge above is near the 'leash off' dog area. The park is beside us.
A car at the Gold Coast was washed off the car park and into the sea by heavy waves.
There's a cycle track under the water here. The sign says "Warning: car park subject to flooding".
This was the scene near Aviation High, Hendra. It only lasted one day though.
This is the entrance to Aldi at Toombul Shopping Town, our local shopping centre. All this water passed our house.
Taken from the deck at home. People came from everywhere to watch the waters.
The pedestrian bridge at Toombul Terrace at the height of the flood. This street is behind us.
From the ground level at home.
This was at the very beginning of the heavy rains. There has been some erosion of the banks.
The Eurovision Song Contest was much better this year with slicker scoring, but the usual bunch of tragic score presenters who wanted to make their 30 seconds of fame last and last. When will they realise we just want the scores, forget the dramatic pauses and sound delays. Does anyone still remember Katie Boyle slipping whilst descending the staircase at the contest held in London around 1963/64? It was live, black and white, and she regained composure and proceeded like nothing had happened. That was style, not like the Tragics who present today yelling and joking and just being terribly, terribly unsophisticated. Yes, I know, I sound like that grumpy old man again. Sorry.
A car at the Gold Coast was washed off the car park and into the sea by heavy waves.
There's a cycle track under the water here. The sign says "Warning: car park subject to flooding".This was the scene near Aviation High, Hendra. It only lasted one day though.
This is the entrance to Aldi at Toombul Shopping Town, our local shopping centre. All this water passed our house.
Taken from the deck at home. People came from everywhere to watch the waters.
The pedestrian bridge at Toombul Terrace at the height of the flood. This street is behind us.
From the ground level at home.
This was at the very beginning of the heavy rains. There has been some erosion of the banks.As a headline this post, I stated that winter has arrived. Well, let's not get too dramatic - winter in Brisbane has been so far down to 13 and tomorrow it'll be a maximum of 22. Delightfully nice weather warranting a sweater at night and first thing in the morning, but that's all.
We had two major events 10 days ago, firstly a really big flood event, then my 59th birthday the next day. The birthday was lovely with a dinner with friends at a local restaurant on the day, a night at the casino the following night with Rene and the third day we helped an American friend celebrate his birthday at his home with family and friends. Throw in two morning teas at my two schools and so on, a very nice time was had by me, myself and I. Rene had already given me a Tom Tom a month before, so that was really fabulous, and I received many lovely cards and prezzies over a few days.
Now, to the floods. We escaped any inundation, but it did come close to the bottom of the retaining wall below the driveway. Rene even saw a fridge float by during the day. I rang home in the middle of the day out of curiosity rather than worry about the house, and Rene assured me all was well. Many schools and businesses closed after the middle of the day when there were issues developing about people getting back home. Even the following day some people were still trapped or otherwise prevented from moving around easily.
It was the heaviest rain for 17 years. The speed of the rushing water was impressive and scary all at the same time. We had fences bolted into concrete along the newly built footpath around the airport tunnel site completely pushed over and ripped out of the concrete with sections of concrete attached.
I'm off to the airport next Friday for my orientation program as an Airport Ambassador - the volunteers who staff the booths in arrival halls offering advice and details for visitors. We live only one stop on the Air Train away from the terminals, therefore it's easy to reach with the free rail pass you are given. It should be fun and very interesting (I love meeting and helping people).
There's so much hysteria in the media and government circles about the H1N1 (Swine Flu) cases that it is getting out of hand. I had a regular flu shot last Friday to protect me from the school kids (nicknamed Super Spreaders) I see every day, but that is just regular influenza. The carrying on regarding a cruise ship this week with three cases on board (all crew) was pathetic. I'm off in three weeks on my little weekend cruise to Sydney and I sincerely hope the fuss has died down by then.
My surprise trip to the US in September is booked and I'm going on my own to join friends in Lafayette in Indiana who are house swapping for two months. I'll be away for 19 days, the first 4 in Las Vegas and the remaining days in Indiana. It's a chance to see the Mid West, an area I've never been to before. This will be the eighth time I've entered the US, and finally I am getting to see the Mid West (including Chicago - just 2.5 hours drive north of Lafayette). This will be my third trip to Vegas, but this time over 4 nights I can be not so exhausted. Friends Merle and Ian from Portland OR will join me there for much fun, fun, fun.
The Eurovision Song Contest was much better this year with slicker scoring, but the usual bunch of tragic score presenters who wanted to make their 30 seconds of fame last and last. When will they realise we just want the scores, forget the dramatic pauses and sound delays. Does anyone still remember Katie Boyle slipping whilst descending the staircase at the contest held in London around 1963/64? It was live, black and white, and she regained composure and proceeded like nothing had happened. That was style, not like the Tragics who present today yelling and joking and just being terribly, terribly unsophisticated. Yes, I know, I sound like that grumpy old man again. Sorry.
Oh, nearly forgot, I loved the winning Norwegian entry; both the song and especially the singer. Suffice to say by this stage Rene had left the living room muttering something to himself - it's just NOT his cup of tea.
The venerable Mini was 50 during the last month. I've only ever been in one once, and it was SO small, SO low, SO close to the ground that I felt very vulnerable in it, especially at speed on the open road. The German reincarnation of the Mini is certainly more to my taste, but sadly I'll never ever be able to get in and out of one elegantly ever again.
A couple of Tuesday's ago our team came equal first in trivia at our pub, but last week we were back in 6th place. It's a variable thing for our team. We saw Dame Edna a fortnight ago and had an enjoyable time, and next week we are seeing Judith Lucy (an Australian comedienne) performing live - she is very, very funny. We also have an exhibition opening this coming week and a Dutch Alumni dinner meeting the following week, so we are continuing to be socially busy. I of course haven't included dinner and outings with family and friends - we just do them on a regular basis. Last night we had dinner at my brother Stephen's home along with his lovely wife Adele. The two of them talked excitedly about their upcoming trip to Britain and France, their first together overseas. It was a lot of fun talking about things to do and places to see over there.
Rene has received notification of his success in applying for citizenship. He now has to go through a ceremony swearing an Oath in order to officially be recognized as an Australian citizen. I'm looking forward to that day.
It has been lovely to receive emails, cards and even post cards, from friends both here and abroad. Thanks, and please note that all communication is greatly appreciated and enjoyed.
The venerable Mini was 50 during the last month. I've only ever been in one once, and it was SO small, SO low, SO close to the ground that I felt very vulnerable in it, especially at speed on the open road. The German reincarnation of the Mini is certainly more to my taste, but sadly I'll never ever be able to get in and out of one elegantly ever again.
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