Saturday 13 December 2008

12 days of Christmas

I heard this on Sonshine FM the other day, and thought it was hilarious. If you get a chance, buy the album Let it Snow Baby, Let it Reindeer

Watch it on YouTube


"12 Days Of Christmas"

On the first day of christmas
my true love gave to me
a Partridge in a Pear Tree

On the second day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the third day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree

On the fourth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the fifth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

whats a partridge?
and whats a pear tree?
I don't know so please don't ask me
But I can bet those are terrible gifts to get.

On the sixth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the seventh day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the eighth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Eight Maids-a-Milking,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the ninth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Nine Ladies Dancing,
Eight Maids-a-Milking,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
ohhh, awww-e-awww,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

whats a partridge?
and whats a pear tree?
I don't know so please don't ask me
But I can bet those are terrible gifts to get.

On the tenth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Ten Lords-a-Leaping,
Nine Ladies Dancing,
Eight Maids-a-Milking,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four
Three French
Two Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the eleventh day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Eleven Pipers Piping,
Ten Lords-a-Leaping,
Nine Ladies Dancing,
Eight Maids-a-Milking,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

On the twelvth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me,
Twelve Drummers Drumming,
Eleven Pipers Piping,
Ten Lords-a-Leaping,
Nine Ladies Dancing,
Eight Maids-a-Milking,
Seven Swans-a-Swimming,
Six Geese-a-Laying,
Five Golden Rings,
Four Calling Birds,
Three French Hens,
Two Turtle Doves,
And a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

Sunday 12 October 2008

WotUSeek Launch


Wot U Seek is finally launched. Here is the press release below:


http://wotuseek.com/
Family and Business Friendly Search Engine

What’s your family looking at?

The Internet transmits straight into our family homes. What is being let into your home?

Wotuseek.com is a free search engine. It aims to be a competitive alternative to the major search engines on the internet. What distinguishes Wotuseek.com from any other search engine is that it filters out Adult content and hate content. This is a permanent feature that is regularly updated, welcoming feedback if inappropriate sites are missed by the filter (so they can be filtered out for future families). Unlike most of the major search engines, Wotuseek.com does not profit, promote or advertise pornography. We have already removed approximately 200,000,000 inappropriate sites!!! (That is not a misprint!)

Hi my name is Simon Clayson, I am one of the Directors of Wotuseek.com. I am married and a father to a little girl and a little boy. Wotuseek.com was born out of frustration with the major search engines returning random and inappropriate Adult sites when I was searching for business purposes. This was more evident when I was searching for children’s sites for my daughter, (such as nursery rhymes) with adult sites produced in the search. I did not want to see those images and I definitely do not want my son or my daughter to see such degrading and inappropriate images. What if I was not there while my daughter was searching?

Wotuseek.com has been designed to search the internet like any other search engine. You will be able to find anything BUT Adult content. It is very useful for Educational or Business use. We are also removing gambling sites as part of our ongoing filtering activities.

Wotuseek.com is providing an additional service to its users. There is a link for anyone who has problems with addiction (internet/pornography/sexual) and would like assistance to overcome this addiction.

We would love your support. You can access Wotuseek.com and make Wotuseek.com your permanent search engine. You will not only be supporting a search engine with family friendly beliefs but sending a message to the other search engines to clean up their act!


We appreciate your time and attention. Please forward this to everyone you know.
From the team at Wotuseek.com

http://wotuseek.com/
Family and Business Friendly Search Engine

Tuesday 30 September 2008

WotUSeek.com

The same friend of mine that started WotUThink.com has now started WotUSeek.com, a Family and Business Friendly search engine that blocks adult content, gambling and hate sites from the search results.



They say this on their website:

About WotUSeek.com
Our mission is to be the Number One Family friendly search Engine along being a competitive alternative to the Major Search Engines.
What seperates WotUSeek.com from the other major search engines is that it filters out Adult and Hate Content. Unlike many other search engines THIS IS a PERMANENT filter that cannot be switched off. WotUSeek.com regularly updates this filter and welcomes feedback from individuals that may discover inappropriate sites. WotUSeek.com unlike other major search engines does not profit, promote or advertise pornography and have already removed over 200,000,000 inappropriate sites.

History of WotUSeek.com
WotUSeek.com was started by its Directors Jermayn Parker and Simon Clayson. It was created out of a frustration with the major search engines returning random and inappropriate adult sites when searching.
Jermayn and Simon are both happily married business men who are passionate about strengthening families and promoting ethical businesses that change the world.


Check it out!

Tuesday 17 June 2008

Worship

A friend sent me this link today:

Friday 13 June 2008

CamSpace creates a Wii for everyone

I saw this article on TechCrunch

It’s a Wii without the $250 console. It’s virtual Pong and so much more. Any object is now an input device, even your fingers. Bang, bang! But there’s no better way to introduce you to CamSpace than by letting you watch the demo video below:


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In the comments for the entry, there was a link to this cool site, where someone has figured out how to use a Wii remote connected to a PC as a multi-touch input device. How about a low-cost multi-touch interactive whiteboard using a Wii remote?



That is very cool.

Saturday 7 June 2008

Rodney Olsen on Being Five

I'm a fan of the Being Five cartoon, and I check in from time to time. Today, I saw a reference to Rodney Olsen, who is an announcer for Sonshine FM. Being Five asked for reader questions, and Rodney posted his question.

Very cool to see a West Aussie on the web.

Thursday 5 June 2008

Wot U Think.com

A friend of mine has setup a website to allow people to post their own reviews of movies, music and books. From their website:

WotUThink.com is a collection of Australian Popular entertainment and were you can give your opinion of it. Not only can you comment and express your views but you can also buy and watch/ listen to samples of it so you can give your view.
All sponsors and links presented are guaranteed and used by the team of WotUThink.com. All money that is made by the advertising, buying through us and sponsorships is accounted for with 10% given to the Jubilee World Harvest church and 10% given to Compassion Australia. The other 80% goes towards the maintenance of this website and to the team who keep it running.


Check it out!

Saturday 31 May 2008

From the Inside Out

I've been listening to a lot of Hillsong United recently, since our church has been doing some of their songs. This particular song touches my heart.



From The Inside Out

by Hillsong United
album: United We Stand (2006)

A thousand times I've failed
Still your mercy remains
And should I stumble again
Still I'm caught in your grace

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
In my heart, in my soul, Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out Lord
Let justice and praise become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

Your will above all else, my purpose remains
The art of losing myself in bringing you praise

Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
In my heart, in my soul, Lord I give you control
Consume me from the inside out Lord
Let justice and praise become my embrace
To love You from the inside out

Chorus 2x
Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades
Never ending, Your glory goes beyond all fame
And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise
From the inside out Lord, my soul cries out

Tuesday 20 May 2008

Multi-touch

Apple's iPhone has a multi-touch display that allows you to do some amazing things. This is what someone else has done, with inexpensive gear. Very cool.


Tuesday 22 April 2008

Turn To You

I wrote this song a long time ago. When I first started my blog, I was going to record another one I wrote around the same time. Somehow, this one came out first. A year later on from then, and I still haven't done as much music as I thought.

I still don't understand God. I'm probably naive to think that life gets easier as you get older, maybe that's why every day's a struggle. However, God's in control, and He knows what he's doing, even if I don't.


Paul Mulroney 1997
Father, hallowed be Thy name
At the end of this long day
Help me find a way to speak of the fear
That’s hidden in the cares of the day

Lord my heart is breaking
I don’t know what to do
In agony I’m waiting for the dawn
A new sunrise, gentle light
My soul reborn

I turn to You, the Author of my faith
I turn to You, the One who holds my fate in His hands
I turn to You, and sometimes I just don’t understand
Yet I’m trusting You, we will see this through

Desperations waking in me
A yearning now for more
Of what He has in store for me
And trust that He who made the seas
Will steer me to that shore

And though the waves are fearsome
I’m tossed about the seas
I know that standing right here with me
Is the captain who from distant shores
Will steer me safely home

Lord I’m trusting You, we will see this through
I put my trust in You, we will see this through

Come, Lord, Fill This Place

This is another song we did on the worship team. You can also find these songs, and others written by other Australian worship leaders, on the Vineyard Worship website.


Listen to it here: Come, Lord, Fill This Place

Come Lord Fill This Place
Words & Music: Paul Mulroney 2004

(verse 1)
Waiting in your presence Lord
Hungry for your touch
Crying out for your direction
Want to hear from you so much

(chorus)
So come Lord, fill this place
Let your spirit fall on us
May grace descend to rescue us

(verse 2)
Lord our eyes are fixed on you
Leave the past behind
Lead us onto new horizons
Want to hear from you so much

Tuesday 15 April 2008

Bow

In my old church I was on the music team. I really wanted to be creative and write songs. I finally got my chance. Some time after we had written and performed it at church, I recorded it on my Apple iBook G4 using Garage Band. I've finally figured out how to put it up here on my blog, so for your listening pleasure, find my song "Bow".

(chorus)
Bow before the King of Kings
Bow before the Ruler of everything
Bow before the King of Kings
Bow before the Ruler of everything

(verse 1)
I love to worship You
I love to praise Your name
I love to make You Lord
I love to glorify Your name

(chorus)

(verse 2)
I want to worship You
I want to praise Your name
I want to make You Lord
I want to glorify Your name

(bridge)
Come before Him in worship
Come before Him with praise
Come before Him with thanksgiving
Come to glorify His name

(verse 3)
I come to worship You
I come to praise Your name
I come to make You Lord
I come to glorify Your name

Snapshots

Introducing Snap Shots from Snap.com


I just installed a nice little tool on this site called Snap Shots that enhances links with visual previews of the destination site, interactive excerpts of Wikipedia articles, MySpace profiles, IMDb profiles and Amazon products, display inline videos, RSS, MP3s, photos, stock charts and more.

Sometimes Snap Shots bring you the information you need, without your having to leave the site, while other times it lets you "look ahead," before deciding if you want to follow a link or not.


Should you decide this is not for you, just click the Options icon in the upper right corner of the Snap Shot and opt-out.

Sunday 16 March 2008

Larry Norman - End of an era

I heard the other day that Larry Norman passed away. The press release is below:

Larry Norman, the so called “father of Christian Rock Music” has passed away, aged 60.

The man who was featured in a couple of Simpsons comics leaves a string of Christian hits including Why Should the Devil Have all the Good Music, Sweet Sweet Song of Salvation, and I Wish We'd All Been Ready.

Always a controversial figure, his songs spoke about politics, (The Great American Novel), witchcraft and the occult (Forget Your Hexagram), religious hypocrisy (Right Here In America) and free love (Pardon Me).

Norman stated in 1969 that he “wanted to push aside the traditional gospel quartet music, break down the church doors, and let the hippies and the prostitutes, and other unwashed rabble into the sanctuary”.

He added that most modern music was “anaemic and needed a transfusion”.

More than 300 artists have recorded his music including Sir Cliff Richard, Sammy Davis Jnr, Rebecca St James, and dc Talk.

Van Morrison, John Mellencamp and members of U2 are reportedly fans of his music, and Larry is often cited for influencing Keith Green and Randy Stonehill in their conversions.

In Larry’s farewell message to fans from his death bed, he said (in part):

I feel like a prize in a box of cracker jacks with God's hand reaching down to pick me up. I have been under medical care for months. My wounds are getting bigger. I have trouble breathing. I am ready to fly home.

My brother Charles is right, I won't be here much longer. I can't do anything about it. My heart is too weak. I want to say goodbye to everyone… My plan is to be buried in a simple pine box with some flowers inside....

Goodbye, farewell, we'll meet again somewhere beyond the sky.
I pray that you will stay with God. Goodbye, my friends, goodbye.

Our sincerest condolences to Larry’s family in America, and Australia. You are in our thoughts.

Larry Norman born 8 April 1947, died 24 February 2008.

I first heard about Larry when the lead singer of our band started teaching us his songs. Our first gig was mainly Larry Norman songs, and when we started playing all our friends started chanting "Larry, Larry". We sang his songs - Wish We'd All Been Ready, Forget Your Hexagram, Look Into Jesus, The Outlaw, and one of my favourites Out of My System. It was a fantastic time.

I found some clips of Larry performing on You Tube.



It's the end of an era.

Saturday 16 February 2008

Road Trip - Homeward Bound

On the last day, I got up at sunrise to catch the sun as it rose over the water. In Western Australia, it's a little strange to see the sun rising over the water.

On the road out from Monkey Mia, we passed the Golf Club. We thought the "green" was interesting.

We also passed this sign on the way out.


On a stretch before we reached Geraldton, there was a series of sculptures in the paddocks. By the looks of it, there must have been some sort of competition to see who could make the best Christmas display. Here was one of the entries.

Tuesday 12 February 2008

Olympic Torch

I received this from a friend of mine today:

You should be alert during the next days:

Do not open any message with an attached file called 'Invitation' regardless of who sent it, It is a virus that opens an Olympic Torch which 'burns' the whole hard disc C of your computer.

This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list, that is why you should send this e-mail to all your contacts. It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called 'invitation' , though sent by a friend, do not open it and shut down your computer immediately. This is the worst virus announced by CNN, it has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever.

This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept

SEND THIS E-MAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW

This is a hoax.

A quick Google search of the first paragraph reveals the following links:
The entry on Snopes says it the best:

The bottom line is that this same basic hoax has been circulating in various languages since at least 2000, with occasional changes along the way. No such (incurable) virus exists, has been identified by McAfee, or was reported on by CNN.


Before forwarding anything onto anyone, a quick check on Google will tell you if it's a hoax and if you're wasting your time.

Saturday 2 February 2008

Road Trip - Denham

We took a day trip around the Shark Bay region. We drove through Denham, and saw the mix of old "tin shed" buildings next to modern brick/colorbond buildings, giving a wide contrast in the change in building styles over the years. At the jetty we saw the deep channel which comes right up to the shore. We were there are low tide, and spotted this catamaran "moored" (or is it "beached"?) near the shore.

We drove in to look at Ocean Park, which is a huge working aquarium just outside Denham. On the road leading into the park, there were all these road signs that had sea creatures like shark, jelly fish, etc. Then a little further in there were signs for Mrs Mac's pies, icecream, and coffee. I can just picture the roadsign now: Cappucino's for the next 5 kms.


We drove into Eagle Bluff. At the bluff there is a boardwalk which overlooks the bay. Apparently during high tide you can see marine life from the lookout, but we were there at low tide. Around the boardwalk there's a number of signs talking about different aspects of the region. Things like the reason why there's a high salt content in Shark Bay. An early aboriginal fish trap. European settlers mined for guano.

That one was an interesting story. The plaque read:
Guano Rush

Guano from migratory birds has built up on Shark Bay's small islands over thousands of years.

Most of Shark Bay's small islands have flat tops where the guano was scraped and shoveled off 150 years ago.

In the mid-1800's, phossphate-rich bird guano was worth a small fortune as fertilizer. Ships from all over the world came to Shark Bay to fill their hulls with guano destined for European farms.

From Eagle Bluff we went to Shell Beach. Bivalves get swept into the bay, and the waves, wind and tides deposit them on this beach. Over the years the shells have built up, and are approx 5 metres deep. We decided to walk out to the water. Because it was low tide, the water was a long way out. When you stop at the water and look back you can see how the shells have built up over time. It feels very strange walking out on shells to the water - very little sand.


Monday 28 January 2008

Road Trip - Monkey Mia

We left Dongara, and continued our trek north. Stopped for lunch at 440 roadhouse. There was food, groceries, fishing gear, auto parts; a bit of everything really.

This is where Western Australia starts changing. There's lots of red dirt. We saw wild goats beside the road. Along the way there were 24hr stopover sites - a huge parking bay off the main road with a toilet, bins, and BBQ.

Stopped at Billabong Roadhouse, noticed they had internet access. Just outside Billabong we spotted a lone cyclist on the road. I'm amazed that anyone could ride such distances in the middle of the Australian summer.

We turned off at the Overland Roadhouse, and headed toward Denham. We drove through the Electric vermin-proof fence. A sign beside the fence says that it was erected to keep livestock out of the marine park. There are speakers on each side of the road with recorded barking dogs, to scare off the animals. My wife called it "dog in a can".



We arrived Denham.


Water in Denham is produced from a desalination plant, so there are 3 grades of water available: potable (desalinated), bore water, salt water. There's a sign near the entrance of the town which reads:

Attention Visitors to Denham

Potable water in denham is supplied from a desalination plant operated by the Water Corporation. Desalination of water on such a scale is still a relatively new and expensive technology but a supply adequate for normal potable uses is made available at a greatly subsidised price ...

Each property has an annual allowance of this highly subsidised water. Usage in excess of the allowance is charged at a penalty price which reflects the true cost ...

In order to remain with the allowance desalinated water should only be used for drinking, kitchen, bathroom and laundry purposes and not for other uses such as toilet and garden. A separate connection of artesian water is made to each property for these purposes

Please use desalinated water sparingly to conserve the subsidised supply and to avoid severe penalty charges.

Outside the Water Coporation depot there's a coin operated water dispenser. For $1.00, we got 10l of water. I guess at home we're so used to just turning on the tap, without giving another thought to the cost...

We arrived at Monkey Mia. Its much different to how I remember it 24 years ago (1984) when I visited here with my parents. Back then it was just a tin shed, a couple of caravans, salt water showers, and shell beach. Now it's a full-blown resort: hotel, cabins, caravans, camping, pool, store, pub, restaurant, internet access! Eco tours. Canoes, small boats for hire. Very civilised.


Only grassed site available. Shared with lots of others. Tent city! Grass is nice – no sand, only shell grit.

Sunday 27 January 2008

Road Trip - Dongara

This is the entry statement to Dongara. The plaque on the sculpture reads:

This entry statement was unveiled by Mr Shane Hill, JP MLA in the presence of Cr Robyn Parsons JP, Shire President, on 5 September 2005 and was jointly funded by the the Midwest Development Commission and the Shire of Irwin.



We went swimming at Dongara the next day. There's a huge amount of seaweed between the sand dunes and the beach. We didn't realise how deep it was until we got to the edge of it as you can see in the photo below. It's a bit like quicksand - you don't know if you're going to sink up to your knees with your next step.

While we were at Dongara we had a look around, and found this monument, an obelisk to commemorate shipwreck Leander in 1853. The plaque says that the captain made a mistake and thought he was in Geraldton, and as a result struck a reef and sank. The Obelisk now serves to warn other sailors. Perhaps it's a monument to stupidity?

To commemorate the loss of the brigantine leander near this point on 11 November 1853. Due to a fault in it's chronometer, Leander under captain R Johnston on route from Fremantle to Singapore via Champion Bay turned for it's run into Geraldton too soon and collided with South Leander Reef. As an aid to navigation this obelisk was erected in 1869.


Because of the seaweed, we tried another beach in Dongara, and came across this sign for the skate park. The fine print describes the permitted activities on the skate park (supposedly) behind the sign.

Just behind the sign, there's a cliff drop onto beach. If there was a skate park there, it ain't there no more …

We took a day trip into Geraldton, and passed through Greenough. At Greenough there is what I regard as a modern-day Aussie homestead, with the classic roof and a verandah that goes all the way around the house. The triple garage doesn't look too bad either.

Near Greenough are the classic leaning trees. There's one beside the road, with a parking area so you can take a photo. There's a sign nearby that reads:

The "Leaning Trees" of Greenough belong to a native Western Australian species of River Gum. Their characteristic "lean" is caused by constant strong southerly winds that burn off growth on the windward side (flagging).

This eucalypt is known to be a hardy grower, though it has weak branches.



Just outside Geraldton there was a sign that made me laugh. Some real estate agent would have a field day with this one. I can just read the headlines now "classic fixer-upper". In the background is the remains of an old homestead, with only one corner of one wall remaining upright. The fine print in the ad "some attention required - renovators dream!"

Wednesday 23 January 2008

Road Trip - Cervantes/Dongara

The day we left Cervantes, we stopped at lake Thetis, just outside Cervantes, to look at the Stromatolites.


The sign by the lake reads:

Lake Thetis is one of the few sites in the world where living Stromatolites are found. Occurring as domes of limestone around the edge of the lake, stromatolites are formed by the activity of microbial communities trapping and binding sediment and precipitating calcium carbonate from teh ater. The dominant microbes are photosynthetic bacteria called cyanobacteria (formerly known as "blue-green algae")

Stromatolites are very slow growing, and those at Lake Thetis are more than 1200 years old. Fossil stromatolites similar to these that have been found in 3500 million year old rocks in the Pilbarra represent the earliest evidence of life on earth.

We stopped at Thirsty Point at the edge of cervantes, and walked to a lookup at the point. The panoramic view was beautiful


From Cervantes, we drove through Jurien. Stopped at a camping shop there, and found they had a sale on. We purchased a bigger tent, and a shade tent for a camp kitchen. Driving past the caravan park , it looked like nice place to stay. We'll put that on our list of places to stay in the future.

From Jurien, we drove through Green Head, then Leeman. The roadhouse/cafe had a great menu to choose from.

From Leeman we took the turnoff to Lake Indoon. This is a camping site is patrolled by the local ranger, and it has a good setup - rain water tank, toilet block, gas hot water showers, BBQs. Normally the lake is used for water skiing, but when we got there it was more like big mud flat. I'd say we were there at the wrong time of year. Maybe winter time ...

We arrived in Dongara and stayed at the Top Tourist Park. There are four caravan parks in town, but I think the first one (Top Tourist park) is best for tent camping. Well setup. Shadecloth on the ground. Kitchen, Laundry, BBQ area, playground. Lots of things to check out.We loved the shaded areas. We were able to setup our (new) tents in a protected corner of the park. Since we had the extra gear, we decided to stay an extra day. No flies! Humid, gentle breeze.

Monday 21 January 2008

Road Trip - Cervantes

We left Lancelin and and headed for Badgingarra, where the parents of friends of ours live. We stopped for a cuppa and a chat, and from there headed over to Cervantes. Along the way we crossed over the Dampier/Bunbury gas pipeline which is in the process of being built.

The caravan park at Cervantes was busy. They have a "camp kitchen", with a stove, kettle (coffee!), sinks and a fridge, which made it much easier for us.

We went shopping for supplies, and went past the real-estate agents. The house prices there are quite expensive - $750,000! It reminded me of Augusta, which seemed to be a strange mix of "shacks", and massive modern houses.

Just outside Cervantes is the Pinnacles Desert. This is a forest of limestone pillars that makes it look like some ancient civilization. No-one is really sure how they came to exist. There's a lookout platform in the middle, and you can look out over the edge of the desert to the sand dunes. Very impressive.




Thursday 17 January 2008

Road Trip - Lancelin

We headed into Lancelin from Gingin, and took the Indian Ocean Drive. Our map book says that the road was due to be complete by 2005, and when complete connects all the coastal towns together, but when we got to Lancelin there were big road blocks and lots of machinery. The Mid West Development Corporation say that the road will be completed in 3 years.

We stayed at North End Caravan Park in Lancelin. One of the things we liked about the caravan park was that the tent sites had shadecloth pegged into the ground. It made it much easier to setup the tents and keep the sand out.

Over the sand dunes from the caravan park was the water. The kids loved getting dumped by the waves. There was lots of seaweed, and my youngest gave a most dramatic rendition of "man eaten alive by seaweed" - a real academy performance.


There was a lookout platform up in the sand dunes. I went up there to capture the sunset, and met some kids that were there. They saw my camera, and thought I was a professional photographer, and hopped up on the rail for a photo opportunity. The whole place gave me a feeling of Home and Away. They were disappointed that I only did this as a hobby. I don't know if these kids have internet access, but if they do, "Hi Callan and Aiden!"

On the way out from Lancelin, we saw power lines crossing the country side. There were two sets of lines, little ones and big ones. It was like "when I grow up, I want to be like you".

Tuesday 15 January 2008

Road Trip - Gingin

After we left Willowbrook, we stopped to have a look at Gingin. In the center of town there is a park. The archway on the edge of the park comes from one of the original homesteads in the area. The sign reads

The first house on "Ginginup Station", later called "Cheriton" was built by the owner W. L Brockman, about 1854. The front entrance to the house was through an archway which is reproduced here using some of the original limestone blocks. Rebuilt in 1987 by Gingin Shire Council with assistance from the Australian Bicentennial Authority.


There is a nearby water fountain with a plaque which reads

The Granville Scenic Pool officially named and opened by the shire president N T Fewster JP on Saturday 17th April 1976.


The waterfall reads:

This waterwheel is a replicate of one used to drive Cheriton Flour Mill. This mill was established in 1855 and was situated 2kms further upstream on this brook on Swan Location 101.

The axle is the original one from the mill. The wheel was remade by Mr Frank Butler of Gingin for the Gingin Shire Council in 1978. The pump being drive by the water wheel was designed by installed by Mr Neil Butcher of Beermullah in 1984. This pump operates the fountain in the centre of Granville Pool.


Across the road from the park is a picnic and BBQ area with a nature walk. By the picnic tables are a series of displays detailing the early settler's life in and around Gingin.



Later on in the day we stopped at a parking bay by the Moore River for Lunch. It was a very busy site, with lots of people stopping for a break. At the park they had a Composting eco-toilet, maybe that's the drawcard ...


Monday 14 January 2008

Road Trip - Willowbrook/Lancelin

Waking up at Willowbrook was peaceful, with the air full of bird calls. There were the sounds of peacocks, kookaburras, cockatoos that made a racket in the early morning. As we were making breakfast, Ozzie the Jack Russell dog come and sniffed us out, hoping for a tidbit.

Harry and Kaye have a tradition of "Meet and Greet" on Sunday mornings, where they supply hot scones and an opportunity to meet the other travellers. The Geese came along to check out all the action.

We met a couple who had retired, sold their home and bought a caravan, and they just travel constantly around Australia. I'm told that they are part of the group known as Grey Nomads.

One of the other travellers who was staying at the farm had converted an old army truck into a campervan. There's a tow hitch on the back, and a special A-fram adaptor that allows him to tow a small 4WD behind. It's quite tall, so you need a ladder to climb up into the back. I wouldn't want to stumble out at night to go to the loo...


We had a look around the farm, and saw some gravestones. These were memorials to the original settlers of this farm. Below are the inscriptions.

In memory of James Browne, who died July 21, 1900, aged 86 years. Immaculate heart of Mary, your prayers for him extol. In Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on his soul.

Sacred to the memory of Edmund Dooling, died Jan 26, 1894 aged 67 years. Also Edmund Joseph, the beloved son of Edmund and Mary Dooling, aged 3 years.

Precious ones from us has gone. The voices we love have stilled ... (the rest of the inscription is unreadable)

Our Dear Mother Mary Dooling who departed this left 25th Sept 1912 aged 77 years and 6 months.

For days and nights she bore her pain
To wait for cure was all in vain;
But God alone, who thought it best
Did ease her pain and give her rest
My children dear my time is past
I loved you all while life did last
Weep not for me nor sorrow take
But love each other for my sake.


Also on the property was the original shearing shed, although it looks like it hasn't been used for shearing for some time now.


On the way out, spotted this figurine:

We did some sight-seeing at Gingin, and then continued our trek up north. We stopped at Lancelin and setup camp for the night.

Sunday 13 January 2008

Road Trip - Guilderton/Willowbrook

Two Rocks did not have anywhere to stay, so onto the next town on the way - Guilderton.

On the way to Guilderton we passed by the Gravity Discovery Centre. Once again, passed by too late in the day to have a look. Next trip ...

Guilderton is at the mouth of the Moore River. The wind there was fairly constant, as you can see by the trees below.

Unfortunately the caravan park was full. It was getting close to sunset, and I really didn't want to be putting up tents in the dark. We saw a brochure at the caravan park for Willowbrook Farm, which is near Gingin.

Harry and Kaye White, the owners of Willowbrook, were very helpful in getting us settled in. It is a beautiful place, an old farm which is now turned into a caravan park. There were grassed bays, power, water and drainage throughout the park, and clean ablutions blocks.

Road Trip - Yanchep/Two Rocks

It's time for a holiday. We wanted to get away from the office, the distractions, so we could have a real break. Somewhere different, somewhere we haven't been before as a family. How about a road trip! All we had to do was pick a direction, load up the car with camping gear, and we'd be off.

A stressful lead-up to the trip, trying to finish all the urgent work-related projects before we left.

Took the cat to the vet. She hasn't been well for some time. When we first took her to the vet, they said it was either an infected jaw, or cancer. The prescribed antibiotics weren't making a difference, and she was getting worse. It turned out to be cancer, so sadly we had to have her put down.

Sent my oldest son out for a shopping trip to buy batteries for torches etc. $40 for batteries. He won't let me forget just how much it cost ... $40!

The house-sitter lost the house keys. Finally found them in a biscuit box where they had fallen in.

First attempt at packing the car failed. We obviously had too much stuff to fit in the car. So, quick trip to the relatives for a box trailer. We packed the trailer, loaded up the car, and started off. Before we got to the end of the street we thought we'd better check the trailer lights. Sure enough, no lights on the trailer. U-turn, then back to home to fix the problem. Half an hour later, we're off.

We had a simple agenda: head north. Stop at the nearest town when we're ready to stop. Look at whatever takes our interest. Take photos.

After quite a few wrong turns, we finally headed north to Bullsbrook, then turned left to head toward the coast. We passed by The Maze, but because we got away so late it was closed by the time we got there.

First stop: Yanchep. When we got there, the only place to stay was completely full. Onto the next town: Two Rocks. At Two Rocks, at the top of a hill near the town was this sculpture:



Nearby there were these amazing sandstone sculptures. The inscription with the sculptures reads, in part:

Waugal Monoliths Legend

The Waugals, legendary spirits with supernatural powers living deep within the Yanchep waters for thousands of years, featured in mythical rites and were regarded with fear and awe by the local natives.

Aboriginal folklore handed down for generations tells how the waugal dragged its victims down into the depths of the lake to imprison them there forever.

The legend, recreated here in limestone by WA Sculptor Mark Le Buse, provides a valuable link with our WA heritage.








Nowhere to stay at Two Rocks, either, so we had to press on.