Visitors and Wool

G'day to you all,

It is the end of a most glorious winter day.   It almost reached 70 today with a nice light breeze. 

A lot has happened since the last post.  There were many activities at the end of term including Phineas' return from his 17 day community service trip to the Northern Territories.

The first week of break was quite low key and uneventful - a very nice way to start out a school vacation.  

The second week, the visitors arrived!  Margaret's sister and her family (Jane, Tom, Katie, Bo, and Maggie) came as did Kirsti and Danny Morse (good friends - Mom and Lincoln's classmate - from Freeport).  It was wonderful to see everyone and they were all amazing sports to jump right into Australian culture and ignore jet lag.

They arrived on a Friday and Saturday afternoon we were already at an Australian Rules Football Game at the Melbourne Cricket Grounds.  It was a good game that was hard fought between two teams desperately fighting to stay out of the cellar in the standings.  Saturday night we had "take away" fish and chips.  As Jane pointed out ... "fish and chips" could really be titled, "Everything Fried".  Yummy.

Monday we all went to the Healesville Sanctuary to see the many different and unique Australian animal species.  Yet, our visitors found that many of the unique animal species are right here in our front yard including an enormous number of kangaroos.  It seems that the kangaroos wanted to visit the new Americans as well.

Wednesday we went to Phillip Island to see the water and the penguins.  It was an amazing day and a glorious trip.  The evening arrived with a gorgeous moonrise and the penguins scampering across the beach.  The winter time brings fewer crowds and allows the visitors to see so much more.  It was very fun.

Unfortunately Tom and Bo had to leave early but Jane, Katie and Maggie were able to stay and enjoy a trip into Melbourne and the National Gallery.  And then on Monday Katie and Maggie were able to join Skyler and Kipling at school!  Even though it was their summer vacation, I think they still enjoyed the day at school

On Tuesday morning at 3am, Jane, Katie, and Maggie left on their long trek back to the States.  They were all such troopers for making the trip.

Later that day, Danny and Lincoln went with me to the most exciting garage a 6th grade boy could ever imagine.  It is a museum of cars owned by a very rich Australian named Linsay Fox (www.foxcollection.org.au).  It is a two story building in downtown Melbourne that is stuffed full of Ferraris, Mercedes, Porsches, Roll Royces ... and Volkswagen Beetles.  It was a wonderful day.  Lincoln decided it was the best place he has been in Australia.

Then on Saturday Kirsti, Danny, Margaret, Skyler, Lincoln, Kipling, and I (Phineas was at a running race) went to one of Margaret's favorite places in Australia - The Bendigo Wool Festival.  For those of you keeping score at home ... The Bendigo Wool festival is the largest wool festival in the world.

In fact, it is so large that this conversation actually happened:

[Nord walks into the Information Centre in the middle of Bendigo]

Nord: Good morning

Man: G'day, how you going?

Nord: Well thank you and yourself

Man: Very well

Nord: I was wondering how to get to the Wool Festival

Man: The War Festival?  I am sorry sir, but I don't believe Bendigo has a War Festival

Nord: No, the Woooool Festival

Man: The Wall Festival?

[At this point I am very worried that either there is not such a thing or we have the wrong weekend]

Nord: I am meaning to say "wool", "w" "o" "o" "l"

Man: [has a good long laugh] I you mean the "wuuul" festival.

It actually was a quite an event.  Lots and lots of wool, sheep, crafters, sheepdog trial, and sheep shearing contests.  The sheep shearing was quite exciting.  It is pretty amazing to watch a person shear a sheep in under two minutes.

Lincoln then informed us that this was rather slow - despite the fact that we saw the Australian National Champion in one of the heats.   He said that an Australian legend named Jacky Howe was able to shear 321 sheep in approximately 7 .5 hours.  He then proceeded to sing a song he learned at school called the Lachlan Tigers - that memorializes this feat.

For those of you who are wondering how the song goes (and looking to remember what people used to wear in 1984) here is a YouTube version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isTC_6rL2R8

Be well,

Nord

Camps

Dear all,

Happy Fall to you all.  It is very funny to see references to Memorial Day and the Indy 500 and have colored leaves blowing across the yard.

The Fall here has been nothing short of spectacular.  The weather continues to be beautiful with crisp mornings and warm sunny days.  There are a handful of trees with yellow and red leaves.  Those are the rogue European / American trees versus the gum trees that are evergreens.  

The hills around us appeared to have changed color as the Fall sun makes them a darker blue, versus the reddish green of the summer months.  It is all very beautiful.

This Fall season is the season of Australian Rules Football (Footy) and Camps.  As I have discovered Australians really do like shortening words.  For example, it is not "mathematics" here, it is "maths."  And it is not a "camping trip", it is "camps."

Lincoln just returned from a week long horseback riding camps.  It was an amazing experience.  I have not had a child who has ever come back from a camping experience and have been so taken by it.  Lincoln has been teaching us campfire songs, telling jokes (some of which are in good taste), and sharing his amazing experiences.  One of the highlights was riding the horse with no hands and closing his eyes - the result of much confidence gained throughout the week.

Skyler is currently out on her third camp.  This one is over a week long and involves a long canoe trip and a long hike.  It will be a wonderful way for Skyler to see Australia and gain a real appreciation for its outdoors.  

Phineas is about to embark on a two week trip to the center of Australia that will involve both a study of native culture and a community service element.  It should be quite a trip.  I am not sure if I personally could be with a large group of 10th and 11th graders for 14 days but I am sure they will all learn a lot.

Kipling has not yet started camps but did take a trip to the local mall to get some new shoes.  Some "Pumas" which are very fast and allowed him to make the bike trip to school in record time today.

We have also been entertained by a lot of music recently.  Skyler played with the RAah Project a couple weeks ago.  It was very fun - a real listening adventure (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=et6M1WUoxuw).  This weekend Lincoln and his class is going to play music for a bush dance at the local community hall.

Margaret has been enjoying classes and last week she spent the week touring businesses and meeting people who were inspired by Waldorf Education - ranging from farmers to architects to health clinics.  Some very interesting discussions.

Be well,

Nord

A little bit of America

Dear all,

A belated Happy Easter to everyone.  Easter here in Australia was incredibly nice.  It was a day spent with friends outside enjoying the amazing weather.  If you wonder why I keep talking about the weather it is because the weather is truly stunning.  Take one of those gorgeous late August / early September Maine days and repeat for about two months.

We have had a few experiences over the last few weeks that have reminded us of our home in Maine.

First, we had visitors!  The first since we arrived in Australia.  Margaret's Mother's cousin, Martha, came to visit.  She lives in Maine and New Zealand and came to visit Yarra Junction along with her friend Donna.  It was great to see them both and have them experience a bit of "the bush."  Martha even brought some Starbucks coffee to make us really feel back in the States.

Then on Easter Sunday we had a baseball game with a very sporting Australian family.  It was great fun.  We fortunately brought our uniforms from the States.  Lincoln would like to tell everyone that we won 14 to 6.

We also spent a few days this past week at Philip Island.  It is an island just outside of Melbourne.  It is famous for its Grand Prix races and for its penguins.  It was quite a treat to see penguins in the wild.  The coastline looked surprisingly like Maine and even had the cold water to go along with it.

 Be well,

Nord

 

Opening Day

Dear all,

How funny it is to be speaking about Autumn (not “Fall”) and have the opening day of baseball.  The miracles of modern technology allowed us to watch the opening day baseball game with some Aussie friends, while eating a Boston Bun.

A Boston Bun is not necessarily the height of culinary genius but it is certainly tasty with about 2 inches of butter cream frosting heaped atop a soft cake-like roll.  I cannot figure how the name “Boston” figures into this gooey treat, but its there.

The Autumn has provided us with some of the most beautiful weather imaginable.  The nights are cool but certainly not cold and the days are warm but not hot.  We have had a bit of rain to make the landscape wonderfully green.

Now all the super hot and fire-ridden weather is gone and it is no longer in the news, we are finally starting to realize how many things are great about Australia.  Here is a sampling:

“No Worries” - The phrase “no worries” is used many ways, often in place of “you are welcome.”  What a wonderful phrase that reminds us to not sweat the small stuff.  

School Funding / Education - Education appears to be a real priority here.  It seems to be well funded and most people appear to be well educated and well spoken.

Wildlife - The wildlife here is quite incredible.  The variety of species is amazing and it is all so close.  For some reason animals just don’t seem as fearful of humans.  For example, the birds will stay in the tree eating fruit while you are picking the fruit.  The sounds are also quite striking.  Nighttime here sounds like a rainforest.  You would swear there are monkeys outside your house and then you realize they are just the kookaburras. 

Music & The Arts  - Our community here and the city of Melbourne values the arts.  The National Gallery Victoria spans two sizable buildings - both of which are free.  The school put on an amazing Bach concert where all the students (7-12) and faculty participated.  And Melbourne hosts the Grand Prix every year.  Uh ... I guess that doesn’t really fall into The Arts but it certainly was entertaining.

Public Transportation - The public transportation is really good.  It has allowed us to live quite comfortably without a car for these first few months ... which leads me to my next point ... the car.

We have finally purchased a car!  

To quote Margaret, “What more could I possibly wish for?  I have been dreaming ab

out a car like this for a long time.  Talk about exciting!”

Uh no.

To really quote Margaret, “Uh Nord, is that our car?  We bought that?”.  You see Margaret had not seen the car before it arrived in our driveway.  It is a 1992 Diesel Toyota Van.  No veggie oil :-)

The good news is that we have it registered, insured, and it has an official “road worthy” certification!

So you can all come visit now.  It seats 11 and even has room for bikes.

Happy Easter to you all!

Be well,

Nord

Happy Fall!

Dear all,

It has been a couple weeks of relative calm.  A couple earth tremors but aside from that it has been very calm in a very good way.

After a few good rainstorms and some amazing late summer weather, everything is green and beautiful.  Now is the time to come to Yarra Junction!

This picture both shows the green grass and green trees and that Skyler got her crushed cello fixed!  Things are very peaceful at the house.

Today's theme is "Kangaroo Stories".  The first is from our ride to school on Wednesday of this week.  We headed out on our bicycles on the way to school.  Two kangaroos were near the road and decided to panic - when seeing the Partridge Family on bicycles heading towards them.  They bounded off down the road and then decided to come back towards us.  When they were about 10 feet away (uh sorry, 3 metres) they headed toward the fences and proceeded to jump into them.  After a few more minutes of jumping around they just headed away from the direction we came.  It was certainly the closest we have come to a jumping kangaroo.

Phineas, Lincoln, and I went to Chum Creek today - one of the sites of the bushfires.  It was quite an incredible sight to see so many burned trees, mile after mile.  We volunteered at a animal sanctuary by rebuilding fences and habitats.  We actually got to pet a baby kangaroo (a "Joey") who was injured and being nursed back to health.  It quite an experience.   

Be well.

Nord

p.s. - in case anyone at home is counting or calling we are now 15 hours ahead of Eastern time.  In a couple weeks we will be 14 hours ahead.

Singing and biking in the rain

Dear all,

School was cancelled again on Tuesday as the forecast was for high winds and warmer temperatures.  By evening the winds were still quite high and we were wondering whether to head back to Yarra Junction or stay in Melbourne.  We went into the grocery store for a few items and came out to a downpour!

It really was a wonderful sight ... people were out dancing in the rain and quite literally screaming for joy.  Then we realized that our car was about a mile and half away and the rain wasn't going to let up.  Hmmmm.

The rain put out the fires and has made our community green again, it is really wonderful.  The green crops have also pulled the kangaroos from the hills into our front yard.  They bound in front of us as we cycle to school - it is very neat.  It is also very interesting to watch the kangaroos go between the farmers' fields.  You would think that an animal that can jump so high and far would leap right over a fence.  Instead they crawl under the fences and get through surprisingly small holes.

Wednesday was our first day we actually had to ride our bicycles in the rain.  Margaret and I were downtown and kept waiting for the rain to let up before we headed home (about 2.5 miles).    We decided that it wasn't going to let up so we left and the skies really opened up.  Then minutes after we arrived home, it stopped raining and the skies started to clear.

We are now scanning the classifieds for a a car.

Be well,

Nord

Exciting news of the week

Dear all,

On the 24th of February, Lindsey and Will (Margaret's brother) Heron were blessed with a baby daughter Lucy.  It is very exciting news.  Today, Margaret got a chance to speak to Lindsey and Will.  Lincoln and Kipling also got a chance to talk to their Uncle Will ... and they did talk to him ... about Legos.  Uncle Will is a very understanding uncle.

We would have liked to report that our exciting news was a huge rainstorm ... but no such luck.  We had another school day cancelled on Friday and will likely have another on Tuesday.  We did go into Melbourne on Friday to visit another museum and have some amazing Italian food.  

The people here could not be nicer through this whole stretch and clearly take a lot of pride in their home communities.  Numerous people have gone out of their way to apologize for the weather / fires and reassure us that it is never like this. 

It was reported in the paper the other day that Melbourne has received between 0.1" and 0.2" of rain so far this year and last year it had received over two inches by this time - which was still under the average.  So we are all doing our rain dances and hoping that the skies will start to send rain our way.

Be well,

Nord

No School Tomorrow

Dear all,

I hope you are all well.

There are snow days.  There are days when the day is too hot to have school.  I even remember a day with too much wind.  Yet, tomorrow is a first for the children.  Tomorrow school is cancelled because of the fire danger.

Tomorrow the wind is supposed to shift to come from the North.  It has the danger of pushing the fire in our direction.  Given that this particular fire has already burned 350,000 acres we probably want to stay out of its way.

Over the past couple of weeks we have felt like we were reliving the Clash song, "should I stay or should I go?"  Yet, I think tomorrow we will once again head out to downtown Melbourne and out of the woods and the hills.

Be well,

Nord

Footy

Dear all,

By Thursday evening we were all pretty worn out.  It had been almost a week of trying decipher the warnings, the weather forecasts, the departure of friends / neighbors to other locations, and even the clouds (smoke or water?).  The good news was that the weather seemed to be holding and the early predictions of dangerous shifting winds appeared to be incorrect.  Yet, for our sanity and peace of mind we decided to take Helen and Guy's (the homeowners) incredibly generous offer to stay with their son in the city for the weekend.  

Then, just to prove what sports Australians really are, Helen and Guy joined us for an Australian Rules Football (aka, "Footy") game in downtown Melbourne on Friday evening..  

The evening was wonderful.   The weather was beautiful, a cool breeze, clear sky, and a red moon shining overhead (a reminder of the smoke we had left behind in the hills).  The seats were great and the game was fast paced and exciting.  Essendon beat the Western Bulldogs in the last minute of play.  And, fortunately, Helen avoided being showered in beer during a wild scramble for the ball that landed in the stands near us.

The next day we went to a cafe where one of Margaret's school friends works and then to the Art Museum.  The Art Museum (National Gallery of Victoria) was really quite incredible and free (!!!).  I can honestly say that all the family enjoyed it ... and that says a lot about an art museum.

By the end of the afternoon we felt like we had had a real vacation from our last week and had a much more positive attitude as we headed back to Yarra Junction.

Good progress continued to be made against the fires over the weekend and it looks like next week will allow us to breathe easier - in multiple ways.

I will leave you with a few photos from the past week.  First ones from our house, then a few from the local area that have been sent around.

Be well,

Nord

This photo was taken early in the afternoon on the first day of the fires (Saturday) as the smoke started coming in from the surrounding hills.

This is a bit later in the afternoon - when there is still supposed to be full sunlight.  The sky above Lincoln and Margaret is black from the smoke coming from the hills behind the house. 

 

The final three are pictures of some of the fires - it certainly gives you a sense of how incredibly fortunate we are.

The Fires

Dear all,

We are now into day four of the bushfires.  While the story has left the US headlines, unfortunately the fires burn on.

This is such a strange part of this journey.  This event is traumatic for so many communities here and has brought into question many issues ranging from fire fighting strategies to forestry practices to climate change.  When the fires first started, we had assumed, as newcomers, that this was a pretty common situation.  Yet, we are realizing that this is highly unusual and really presents a major challenge for the years ahead.  The question now is, "how can this not become an annual event?"

The last 24 hours have seen relative calm and at least there have not been any major changes for the worst.  The great hope is that the winds do not pick up.  Optimistically we hope that the major fires will be controlled by the end of the week.  

School is somewhat trying for the children right now.  Many of the children and faculty members have left to live with relatives elsewhere.  The pervasive smell of smoke and the reddish clouds provide an ongoing reminder of the fires.  Not a lot of work is getting done.

Margaret started school yesterday and had a wonderfully funny travel story - more on that in the next posting.

Be well,

Nord

A lot more than we bargained for

Dear all,

A short post today as we lost our internet connection on Thursday / Friday and I am using the school's computer.

It has been a very surreal last couple of days.  The forecast for Saturday looked miserable and the reality turned out even worse.  The temperature topped out at 117 degrees (highest ever recorded) and howling winds.  This brought on the wildfires to a devastating degree.  We had embers / ashes falling on our house on Saturday evening / night.  Thank goodness the homeowners were well prepared.

We have been very lucky both as a family and school and town community - yet surrounding towns have not been so lucky.

The weather appears to be cooperating which is a huge break.

More later.

Be well,

Nord

Endings and Beginnings

Dear all,

It is only about 100 degrees outside as I write this.  Last evening at 8pm it was 109 degrees.  It will likely get there again today.  This is supposedly the most severe heatwave to hit the Melbourne area since 1908.  I am not sure whether we should count ourselves as lucky to witness this kind of history.

The children started school yesterday.  There was lots of excitement and nerves.  The school community was very welcoming and made each of the students feel at home.  At dinner, Lincoln announced that after a full day at school he has concluded that it is ok to stay.  So I guess things went well.

On Monday, my father passed away (http://www.timesrecord.com/website/main.nsf/news.nsf/0/144298AFD2E15B7A8525754B00610009?Opendocument).  While this was not totally unexpected, it still trying for family and all who knew him.  As the obituary says, "In his memory, people are encouraged to do something for a person in need of kindness."

God Bless and be well,

Nord

Life Without A Car

Dear all,

It is the end of a rather long day.  Up "early" (that is a relative word, here on summer vacation) and out the door - on the bike, to the bus, to the train to downtown Melbourne to run a few errands and back again.  The errands included signing up the family for a year of healthcare and dental care ($490 USD), seeing whether we could salvage Sky's cello (uh ... no), and picking up a vacuum cleaner (to suck up spiders more rapidly).

The transportation has become an adventure unto itself - and certainly the talk of many locals.  The other day my tag-a-long cart flipped in the middle of the road leading up to our house sending groceries all across the road.  I was particularly upset that our desserts from the local pie shop got a bit mangled.  The local pie shop is really quite special and their desserts are quite beautiful - not something you like seeing fly across the road.  It was sort of like having ice cream fall off a cone.

Yet, my wife wrote up a piece that I thought you would all enjoy to truly capture the essence of our no car existence.  Here goes from Margaret ...

This was my day today ...

My errand was to pick up my new bike at the bike shop.

Please keep in mind that it was 102 degrees today.

Leave the house at 9am.  Walk to the bus station.  It is already blazing hot.  This takes 45 minutes.  The bus station is "just around the corner" according to the original reports.  Get on the bus with lots of teenagers and tourists.  Ride for 45 minutes.  Get to mall, change buses, take another bus ride / route, and ultimately arrive at bike shop.  

Total time since I left the house ... 2 hours ... total accomplished so far ... nothing.

Get lovely new bike.  Go back to bus stop and attempt to ride the bus with the bike and get denied by bus driver ... despite the fact that the first bus driver of the day assured me that I am allowed to put my bike underneath the bus in a special compartment.

I realize now that I must walk the bike along a highway back to bus number one and hope that another bus driver will be nicer.  Please keep in mind it is almost noon and it has gone from blazing hot to ridiculous.  It is not an insignificant walk back to bus number one.

Walk for 45 minutes ... dripping with sweat hoping that a snowstorm will blow through at any minute.  Arrive at bus stop.  Thank goodness, this bus driver allows me to put my bike underneath the bus and I get on the bus towards home and pass out.  I, of course, have no water or anything at all to drink.

Back at bus stop "near" house.  Get on bike and attempt to ride home.  Did I mention it was REALLY hot?  Get attacked by bugs (monster swarming flies) that live here in the Yarra Valley.  Try to ride bugs and swat flies at the same time, realize that I am swerving wildly, and decide to give up swatting flies in favor of safety on the road.

Finally arrive back home.

Sunburned, bug bitten, exhausted with new bike in tow.

Total time away from house ... 5 hours ... number of errands completed ... one.

hmmm .....

I hope you appreciate your car next time you toot off to do an errand.

Margaret.

There are a couple of items of note ....

1 - Teenagers - they do ride public transportation a lot.  The driving age is 18 and the teenagers see public transportation as incredibly freeing and affordable.  With gas at over $4.00 per gallon over here, car travel is rather expensive.  It is always entertaining to watch the teenagers on the bus ... but it certainly is comforting to know they are doing it on the bus rather than driving and acting the way they do.

2 - Ride Through The Country - Guy and Helen who own our home here have been extraordinarily nice and have been our own personal Australian Ambassadors.  They took us up into the hills yesterday - realizing our limited transportation options.  The tour through the hills was breathtaking.  The eucalyptus trees are massive.  It felt very much like a drive through the redwood forests in California

Stay warm / cool.

Cheers,

Nord

Nature

Greetings from Yarra Junction.

First, Happy Birthday to my sister Shawn.  She is turning 39 again today.

It has certainly been a week that makes one contemplate the concept of distance.  We finally got our phone hooked up, which made many family 

members and friends just a phone call away.  In fact, I could swear that our phone sounds better from Yarra Junction than from Freeport.  Yet news that a few family members and friends made hospital visits this past week, made us feel every single one of those 11,000 or so miles away from Maine.

To help bring you all a bit closer to Yarra Junction, I have included a few photos from our yard / house that Skyler took this evening.

There is much to report as we are starting to get settled in.  Everything from finding a wonderful organization nearby called the Gawler Foundation to Phin and Sky's trip to Melbourne with very welcoming classmates.

Yet, for today, I am going to focus in on Nature.

I consider myself a nature "enthusiast."  I like to be outdoors, I like to hike, garden, etc.  I am a big fan of Thoreau - enjoying those contemplative moments looking over a serene pond with birds chirping in the background.

I had felt the same calm fascination when I first saw a few kangaroos out the back window the first morning I awoke in Yarra Junction.  They watched our family closely and eventually bounded off across the field - a picture of grace and beauty.

Fast forward a couple of days and Lincoln comes running into our room and wakes Margaret and me up.  He yells, "Mom, Dad you have to see this.  Two kangaroos are fighting in the driveway!"

Huh?

Lincoln was right.  Sure enough, two sizable kangaroos were going at it at the end of the driveway.  It was quite a display of kick-boxing.  Right there and then, Lincoln stopped all discussion of capturing a kangaroo.

Fast forward another few days.  We are all about to go to bed after a long day of travel in and out of the city.  I say goodnight to Sky and walk toward my bedroom when Sky screeches, "Dad come HERE!"

Now for those of you who don't know her well, Skyler is as tough as they come and loves nature.  She was the one nominated to remove a spider from the shower earlier in the week and did so while proclaiming our collective wimpyness.

I knew I was in trouble when Sky said, "Dad you NEED to get IT!"  I walked into the bathroom to come face to face with a hairy spider approximately the size of my hand.

At that particular moment, I did not take time to contemplate exactly what Henry David Thoreau would do but it certainly didn't feel like a Walden Pond sort of experience.

I did finally subdue the man-eating beast with a combination of tools no shorter than four feet.  I later relayed my story to the wonderful folks who own our house, Helen and Guy.  They had a good laugh at my expense and said, "Naaay, they wouldn't hurt ya ... but let me tell you about the ones that will ..."

Clearly nature should be revered whether in Freeport, Maine or Yarra Junction, Victoria.  Yet, for the time being, I am not sure whether I want to choose a front row seat.

Cheers,

Nord

  

We're Here

Dear all,

Happy New Year to all!

The news of today is that we finally secured internet access at our house so we are able to communicate with the outside world once again.

There is much to report but short summary is ...

We got here pretty much all in once piece - all but the cello that ended up arriving in a few more pieces than one.  We have been sleeping a lot to catch up on all the sleep we didn't get on the ride over.

Our home is beautiful, especially the surrounding land.  It is filled with beautiful trees and flowers and many kangaroos.  Skyler reported back that she saw 23 on her first walk around the grounds.

We are just starting to get settled and used to the many cultural differences between Maine and Yarra Junction.  The Australians have been amazingly pleasant and patient with our (my) American blunders. 

We are on our third day as a car free family and I think we are becoming the talk of Yarra Junction.  We biked / jogged past a nursery school on our way home from the store today.   The children out front could not stop giggling as they watched our group pass.

Cheers,

Nord