Category: General

One of the hundreds of scenes of devastation emerging from North Queensland, but as of now there have been no indications that lives have been lost.   Let’s hope it stays that way.

The theme was Contrasts.

Thank you to all who entered the competition for their wondrous and very varied interpretations of the theme.  Whilst I very much enjoyed seeing all your photographs, including those which you chose not to put forward for consideration, it made choosing the winner extremely difficult.

Continue reading “Results of Third Photographic Competition”

Winds up to 300 kph, one of the largest and most potentially destructive cyclones ever seen in Australia.

No pictures today, just prayers and good wishes for all those Queenslanders who live in its path; I sincerely hope there are no fatalities, but with a weather event on this scale I fear some are inevitable.

The effect on Australia’s economic future pales into insignificance when compared with the ruin that will be made of many people’s lives and livelihoods.

We ended up with five entries, well down on previous competitions in terms of quantity, but well up to or above standard in quality, in my opinion.

Continue reading “January CW Competition – Result”

This is were it always started, Victoria Coach Station, usually in August and always early in the morning, I’m talking about the Annual holiday to Ramsgate for the family, Mum, Dad, little Sister and a young OMG, short trousers, school cap and best blazer. We would journey up to Victoria by bus as Dad worked for London Transport putting up bus stops and shelters so he had what was known as a ‘sticky’, a staff pass for free travel on the buses and tube. Suitcases were not a problem as we only used to take one or two, unlike today when I and MrsOMG require a few coolies and pack elephant just for a dodgy weekend in Brighton. Upon arrival Mum would take us kids to the cafeteria, a place full of gleaming machines, hissing and belching steam into an atmosphere already full of smoke fom cigarettes, pipes, cigars and  from griddles burning industrial amounts of lard as the bangers and rashers sizzled their calories and cholesterol into a public blissfully unaware of the terrors to come once the funsuckers got their claws into the nations favourite start to the day. While we kids were being squeezed between large ladies all wearing their best frocks and coats, together with the obligatory hat, Dad was away sorting out the tickets for the coach that would take us to, what was to me, was an exotic location on the Kent coast, Ramsgate. When we were ready, Dad would bang his empty tea cup down and with the words, ‘Right, let’s get weaving,’ would march us out to join the queue for the East Kent coach to the seaside and paradise.
Continue reading “Portal to Paradise”

Cyclone Yasi, described by a local Bureau of Meteorology spokesman on breakfast TV this morning as “One of the biggest buggers ever“, is going to hit Queensland late Wednesday night, or early Thursday morning (GMT + 10).

Current aiming for North Queensland, it’s so large that it could have some effect on all coastal areas of the State.   Cyclones can change direction without warning, so it’s quite possible it could actually hit 22 kms north of Brisbane, in South East Queensland.

A category 4 cyclone will destroy everything in its path until it gets sufficiently inland, where it dissipates.

If we had a bunker, we’d be in it; as it is, we’ll keep our fingers crossed.

Money won’t buy happiness, but it will pay the salaries of a large research staff to study the problem.
Bill Vaughan Continue reading “Madness”