True Blue Aussie

This is now gone.

Free Bedroom Suite Furniture (No Beds) Large Timber Headboard, Dressing Table and two Bedside Tables. Timber is veneer in good condition, although some wear. Pickup from Rosslyn Park

This is no longer available. Thanks, TBA

We have a ramp for racing toy cars (eg matchbox size). It is 2.4m long and 1.2m wide. It is made from 3mm MDF and while it is painted, it is not suitable to leave out in the weather, so will need to be under verandah or carport. It will need to be supported by table, chair or similar. Pick up from Rosslyn Park and will likely need trailer to carry.

I especially like the photo with the pelican. Beautiful!

Couldn't let this one go without a comment. I was brought up on a farm in Victoria, but have lived in the city since adulthood. Living in the rural areas, when you're driving around, you are likely to know the person you are passing, so it is a friendly greeting, and easier than lifting your entire hand off the wheel to wave. Even if you don't know the person, it is still a gesture of hello. Still, when we go back to the rural areas, usually the older people and farmers 'lift the finger' to acknowledge us and say hello. I must admit I don't tend to myself, although will 'reply' if someone else does first. I was reminded of this last night, when I was driving home (in the city) and saw a neighbor outside. We always acknowledge our neighbours, whether driving or walking, if we see them on our travels. Although, if in the car, it will be a proper wave. I believe it is just a courtesy to say hello, rather than saying you are in the bush, or watch out for anything. (That's when you flash your lights.) Cheers, TBA

Not a silly question, and you are correct, people generally look for north facing living areas to get the winter sun during the day. South facing here gets no sun at all.

I love reading comments on this topic. Always lots of fun! As a born and bred Aussie (My first 18 years on a farm.), I never knew there was a problen till i started reading these forums. When it's always been that way you rarely even think about it. I never shake out my shoes, altho i did recently wonder what i could feel in my walking shoes and discovered a dead and squashed cockroach! Snake and red back spider bites are rare. If you come across a spider in the home, just stomp on it ( if small), or spray or whatever.

Hi Tyke. I'm fine, thanks. Had a busy couple of years so didn't get on here much. Still lurk a bit, then log on if I have something relevant to say. Still find it interesting to see what people are thinking.

Well said Tyke. sounds like a good explanation .

Like Ally says, good idea for project and would make interesting reading. i'm an Aussie, so can't help.Hoping some others of the kind people on here will contribute as well. Good luck with your project!

I prefer two story. Downstairs is cooler in the summer because upstairs acts as insulation. If your bedroom is upstairs you can leave windows open at night without having to worry about intruders. Climbing stairs is good for the heart! Sometimes I do a run up and down the stairs just for some exercise. To me, vacuuming stairs is not much more difficult than any vacuuming. And definitely go for underfloor heating! Also, if there is any view, it's better from upstairs!

It appears that you learnt a lesson today! I don't quite understand what you did. Did you drive onto the other side of the road and then park in the opposite direction? (Parallel parking?) Or did you just reverse into an angled parking spot and face the traffic? If it was the first, then I can see why it would be dangerous, and wonder why the rest of the parked traffic wasn't a clue for you. As others have said, rudeness does not belong to any particular nationality, although some can tend to be ruder than others, especially those that are used to fighting their way through many many more people, and think that they still need to push and shove even when there aren't as many people. I visited the UK about five years ago, and remember being shocked at the rudeness of a check-out girl in a supermarket, when we had unknowingly omitted to weigh our goods before arriving at the checkout. (It is not a requirement here, and we obviously didn't see any sign saying that is what we should do.) Then she just stood there and watched as we flustered around trying to pack all our goods and pay at the same time! I had never experienced any rudeness like that at a checkout in Australia. So, do I label all Brits as being rude? Far from it. I remembered fondly an earlier visit about twenty years beforehand, where every Brit I came across extended the hand of friendship and helpfulness and extreme kindness. Maybe times have changed somewhat since that first visit, and I do think people these days, are more impatient and stand-offish, but I certainly don't see it as belonging to a particular nationality. Driving does tend to bring out the worst in people, and I have found myself being annoyed at people when I'm either in a hurry or not in a good mood, and at other times I will be very polite and helpful towards other drivers. (But I would NEVER, EVER key another person's car, no matter what happened!) Maybe you were stressed and feeling vulnerable at the time, and it seemed harsher than it actually was, although I do not doubt your story. Whatever, I am sure it could just as easily have been someone of any nationality. (Are you sure it wasn't a Kiwi? I do hear some of you say you can't tell the difference in the accent, even though it's very clear to an Aussie!) I hope this doesn't muddy your view of Aussies. If you look for rudeness you will surely find it.

From an Aussie who hates the heat - February can be REALLY hot! It is a time of year when I like to stay home in an air-conditioned house and not have to be out and about if I can help it. There could very well be days of extreme heat, such as in the low 40's. Then again, you can be lucky, as temperatures can be variable as well, but I have never liked the heat of February, and even March. A few years ago we had about 15 consecutive days of over 35C, and most of those were in the high 30's, low 40's. (I think that was in March.) It can be really tiring. Especially if you are arriving from a British winter straight into the hottest part of our summer, it could be very uncomfortable. On the contrary, if I remember correctly, last year we had quite a pleasant summer, so you just never know. The east coast could very well be more comfortable, depending on where you go. (If south of about Sydney - too far north and besides the heat you also get the humidity. Also, if you go too far inland it could be very hot.) I don't really want to put a dampener on it and say it will definitely be too hot, but if you are prepared for the worst, then it won't seem so bad. Besides, you may enjoy the heat, especially for a short time, and you're younger than me, so you may also cope better! The best weather times for Adelaide, in my opinion, are April/May and August to October. And definitely, no heading inland to Wilpena Pound this time of year, as has already been stated.

Thanks Snifter. i figured someone else might be able to do that.

I read an interesting article from The Australian yesterday while waiting for a plane. I tried to put in the web address after googling it, but didn't work. If you are interested, google, 'John Carroll, Fear Spreads as Society of Spoilt Brats Runs Riot', and it should come up. Some interesting comments re UK schools, and schools in general.

Yes, there are plenty of sites you can google, but sometimes it is just good to get a personal perspective from a local. If it has been a very dry year, and we get very extreme heat, there can be a threat of bushfires in the summer months. Usually they are smaller fires, which are contained with no lives lost. There have, however, been a few occasions when there has been a lot more damage and loss of life. I think Ash Wednesday 1980 and 1983 were bad fires. In 1983 a number of people died both here and in Victoria on the same day. Then, sometime within the last decade, there were some bad fires in Port Lincoln, where there was also loss of life. Generally, though, you are usually pretty well okay if you live in suburbs that are not in bushland, and if you do live in bushland, then you take the necessary precautions. There are rules and regulations that you can find out when you're here, but if you're concerned about the likelihood of being caught in a bushfire, then that is quite rare. Australia is a land that does experience bushfires, but they are usually in bushland and not so much in the cities. Since the bad bushfires, there have been a lot more precautions taken by authorities, such as better warning systems, etc. I've lived in Adelaide since the early 70's, and have never personally been threatened by bushfires, but the 1983 fires were not all that far from where I lived.

My husband and I were discussing that ad in the paper yesterday. Thought it was an interesting ad, in that it had a little dig at NAPLAN, and saying that there's more to schooling than just passing a heap of tests set by someone else.

Thanks for the practice sheets website, Janine. I had been wondering how cursive was taught in the UK, and this has given me the information. Having looked at it, the lower case letters are not all that different from what is taught here, however the upper case letters are quite different, and, unless the little six year old has already mastered the alphabet, then she is not going to be able to learn it very easily in a South Australian school. I could see, that it may become even more of an issue if she continues to write in that way, as cursive is not taught until Year 3, and so she would have two more years, and two more teachers, where her writing may be illegible for others to read. (If that is the case at the moment.) I really do think that she would be better off to go back to print, and then learn with the other children when the time comes. The sooner she is able to work on this, the better. If she was going to get worksheets from the internet, then it would be better to get them in S.A. print, rather than continuing to try to improve on a writing style that is not used here. I found a website where the letters are shown, but my computer skills are not as good as my handwriting skills, and so I cannot just say something like, 'Click HERE', and have it appear, LOL! The website is: www.sacsa.sa.edu.au. When you get to it, click on 'Click to enter', then under Handwriting heading it says, 'The book and parent brochure can be downloaded from here, and if you click on that, you can see the printing style used.' Maybe someone with more computer expertise than myself, can find an easier way to do it. If I lived in Glenelg, I would say to send your daughter in to me, and I'd help her with it, but I live a 30 minute drive away, and I'm going to be away for a couple of weeks from next week. However, I do feel for you, as I gather you are in those first weeks, and I'm sure everything must be happening at once, and things that don't seem such a big deal to others, can seem like a big deal to you. I haven't emigrated, and don't know how I would cope with all of that, so I'm sure you're doing a great job. I sincerely hope it sorts itself out soon, but I really wouldn't be insisting on going against the grain with this one, as some short term angst may save long term difficulty, especially if your daughter is still in the early stages of learning to write legibly. It really is an important skill to learn, I feel, as messy handwriting is very difficult to read.

Yikes! I hope you get on well with your in-laws! I'd be trying to find a place to rent. Living with in-laws for a year (!). Wow, that would be difficult I would think, on both sides. Good luck!

If she is only in Year 1, then, if her cursive is unreadable, then she is going to have three teachers before cursive is actually taught. It may have changed, but I always thought cursive was taught at around Year 3 level. What is she going to be doing in handwriting lessons for the next three years? I think she is young enough to go with the flow, and save hassles for the next three years. As a (retired) teacher, there is nothing more frustrating than not being able to read a child's handwriting, and no, you can't always ask the child to come up and read it for you. You may need to be helping other children with something, or marking writing at home. I don't believe that children can't cope with a little change in their lives at times. I believe a lot of the problem these days, is that children are not allowed (By their parents) to cope with any stresses in life, and it makes them more vulnerable later in life. If every time there is an issue, the parent tries to 'fix it' for them, then when will they learn coping skills. There is a name for that, being 'Helicopter Parents', who hover around trying to smooth the way and make sure their children never have to learn how to face a hurdle. I don't think it works for the best in the long term. (I'm also not accusing the OP of doing that at this stage, as it's more a question and not a statement of intent.) I would just be following the opinion of the teacher in this case, and see how it goes. I think we are too ready to fight with the teachers before even trying things to see how they pan out. Anyway, that's just my old-fashioned opinion. Everyone has their own views. Start by taking away the authority of a teacher, then it will be the parents, then the police and anyone else in authority, and where does society end up?

Tyke probably wants to wait, and go out with Mike Rann, so that would make it, ahh, ???

There are a couple of bus routes that go along The Parade from St Bernards road. (H20 & H22) In peak times it is every 15mins.

Where in Switzerland are you from? It's one of my favourite countries to visit- mainly the Bernese Oberland area. Stayed in Iseltwald for about a month many years ago and loved it. Returned about six years ago for a short visit. Can't really help you with work issues or even immigration, but I'm sure others will.

Thanks for clearing up the misunderstanding, HeatherandPip. Yes, I did read it as a general criticism of older (nearing retirement) teachers, and even though I am not one of those, my gentle chiding was in support of teachers who would have been colleagues of mine in my teaching days. I am glad to read what you really meant, and yes, there would be underperforming teachers nearing retirement, the same as there would be underperforming teachers who are new to the job. In your defence, as you stated your age, I will say that, in my training days, the older trainees (We used to call them the 'Old Cheeses'!), usually did much better both in their studies and in their teaching, due to the extra life experience that they had. I was only six months out of school, but could see that those who already had been in the workforce, and experiencing life after school, were generally superior to those of us who basically went straight from school to college. All the best for the rest of your training, and I hope you can get a permanent job when you finish. It seems to be more difficult these days to get that permanency.