Canberra CityNews May 19-25, 2011

Why Shayla thanks God for the Salvos

Beset by personal and drug and alcohol-related problems, troubled teenager Shayla Holder was heading for poverty and crime until the Salvation Army’s Oasis program came to her rescue. But Shayla is one of the lucky ones, as ELERI HARRIS uncovers the dreadful truth of youth homelessness in Canberra GRINNING for the camera and holding up baby Bohdie, Shayla Holder looks to be the poster girl for young motherhood, boasting about her five-week-old son and enthusiastically outlining their plans for the future.

But it wasn’t always so.

The pretty 19-year-old cafe manager was released from Quamby Youth Detention Centre on bail to the Salvation Army’s Oasis Youth Residential Service, Waramanga, in the winter of 2007, struggling with personal and drug and alcohol-related problems.

“I first came here when I was 14,” Shalya told “CityNews”.

“I was just in a lot of trouble, no one else would take me except Oasis. Then I moved into one of the flats that they have, got a job and was working full time in a childcare centre with my cert three in children’s services, just was out of trouble completely.”

Unfortunately, Shayla’s first clean break didn’t last. “I just had a lot of things go wrong there,” she says.

“Came back here [Oasis], stayed here for six months, got my own place,

was working full time. Then I fell pregnant, worked my little butt off.

“Now I’m on no services, I’m not even in the outreach program anymore, I’m just on my own with my little boy. I’m here now drug-free and alcohol-free.”

Shayla is a success story for Oasis, which provided a variety of services including personal case management, outreach and crisis accommodation for 142 young Canberrans in 2010.

Manager Carolyn Bradley says they have an open-door policy for 15 to 21year-olds in trouble, but last year they had to turn away 252 kids because they couldn’t provide beds or assistance.

“Youth homelessness is pretty hidden in Canberra,” Carolyn says.

“They’re couch surfing, it’s not in the park, people are in their cars.

“We have case management here, we have a social worker who works with each young person to address whatever their issues may be; a lot of mental-health issues, drug and alcohol problems, criminal behaviours, things like that. They work in partnership with other services in the community

to get them out of those situations and move forward.

“There’s a big criminal social network in Canberra and homelessness is their peer group and that’s one of the hardest things to get through, especially when romantic relationships form. Often pregnancies aren’t a positive experience like we’ve seen with Shayla; often it perpetuates the cycle of homelessness and poverty, addiction, things like that.”

In their familiar white shirts and caps the Aussie Salvo’s have provided shelter for the homeless, drug, alcohol

and gambling counselling, aged care and chaplains for 125 years.

But the Salvation Army’s Capt Dale Murray says Oasis couldn’t do their work without the financial support of the community.

“The Red Shield Appeal funds a vast network of social services, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, counselling service, chaplain service to the prisons, rural areas, Oasis is just one of those services,” Dale says.

Shayla says her experiences at Oasis turned her life around.

“This was the only place that took

care of me completely, was a second home to me and made really great lifelong friends here,” Shayla says.

“Without Oasis I’d probably still be in and out of the jail system.

“There are other youth refuges, but nothing like this. It’s more supportive than the other places.

“I’ve said some horrible things to everybody that worked here, but no matter what I did, I was welcomed with open arms and they never held a grudge.

“Staying here gave me the motivation to stay home at night, because when I lived in other places I didn’t want to go home, I wanted to stay out drinking and doing drugs. I’ve been into Civic, but I haven’t touched drugs in a year and a half now and I just feel really good in myself. I’ve gotten rid of all my bad friends and influences.

“I just can’t speak more highly of Oasis, it’s just amazing here. Getting out of Bimberi and coming here is the best opportunity they’ll get.”

Since 1965 the annual Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal has helped fund charitable social services across the country, helping one million Australians in need every year, many of them like Shayla.

To volunteer for the door knock appeal on May 28-29 or to donate call 13 SALVOS (137258) or visit salvos.org.au

Katy sits tight with her ‘gang of four’

Barr gets Treasury, Corbell gets TAMS, Burch gets Arts and Labor’s backbenchers get overlooked in Gallagher’s tighter Cabinet.

ANDREW BARR will be appointed Treasurer once the ACT Budget passes through the Assembly, incoming Chief Minister Katy Gallagher has announced.

In her ministerial reshuffle following the sudden resignation of Jon Stanhope as Chief Minister on May 9, Ms Gallagher has resisted promoting either of her Labor backbenchers, opting to share the ministerial workload among the current four members of Cabinet.

Former minister John Hargreaves and Mary Porter, who represents the seat of Ginninderra, have been left on the backbench.

With Mr Stanhope’s formal departure from the Assembly on Monday, it means Ginninderra is without representation in the Cabinet. The

decision to maintain the “gang of four” is described by the Chief Minister as “transitional” and aligns the Cabinet with the accepted recommendations of the recent Hawke report into the structure of the ACT public service.

Ms Gallagher has also created the report’s nine public service directorates: Chief Minister and Cabinet, Treasury, Community Services, Economic Development, Education and Train-

Gallagher promises hard work

“I KNOW that I have a considerable job to do for the wonderful people of the ACT and I don’t take any of this for granted,” vowed Katy Gallagher on accepting the majority support of the Legislative Assembly to become Chief Minister on Monday.

Nominated by outgoing Chief Minister Jon Stanhope, who then retired from the Assembly, Ms Gallagher relied on the support of the four Greens to secure the top job.

The Greens and the Government had earlier that morning agreed to continue their Parliamentary Agreement.

The Chief Minister outlined her priorities for the Gallagher Government in the lead up to the October 2012 election.

“The Government will be focused on its priorities of delivering in health, education, tackling housing affordability and cost of living pressures, providing the most sustainable community that we can for our children and their children to enjoy, enhancing our transport systems and preparing Canberra for the celebration of our centenary in 2013,” she said.

“Today is yet another political chapter in the history of the ACT. My challenge here today is to ensure that it is a chapter that is remembered, respected and revered by our community, and one that creates successes and opportunities for all future Canberrans to enjoy.”

In congratulating Ms Gallagher, Opposition Leader Zed Seselja cautioned her that there was a lot of work yet to be done and “we will

May 19-25, 2011

Since 1993: Volume 17, Number 18

Arts&Entertainment 18-21

Body 24

Cinema 20

Crosswords 18

Dining 21

Fashion 23

Home&Garden 25-27

Horoscope 18

Letters 8

News 2-9

Politics 7 Property 28-48

Social Scene 16-17

Sudoku 18

work on behalf of the community to keep her and her government accountable.”

“There are major challenges that the community is demanding action on and this government hasn’t been providing. There are major concerns around easing cost of living pressures for families, fixing the ACT’s ailing health system, addressing housing affordability and focusing on the delivery of core services,” he said. “The ultimate judgment on their performance will be that of the community at the next election and it won’t be based just on the next 18 months, but their 11 years in government.”

Greens leader Meredith Hunter also congratulated Ms Gallagher with a warning that the Government had significant challenges ahead of it.

“A climate target is meaningless without policy measures to make it happen, and yet the government has dragged the chain on a whole range of sustainability policies for transport, waste and emissions reductions,” she said.

“The changes we need to build a sustainable transport network are bigger than a few extra buses – we must see a real prioritisation of alternative transport options for the people of Canberra to move efficiently around this city.

“In re-signing the agreement we received a commitment from Ms Gallagher to increase public housing and support for mental health, improve bus frequency and build a more sustainable Molonglo Valley.”

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ing, Environment and Sustainable Development, Health, Justice and Community Safety and Territory and Municipal Services.

The transition of the public service to a single agency will be completed following passage of the Public Sector Management (One ACT Public Service) Amendment Bill 2011 that is currently before the Assembly.

Ms Gallagher will continue to hold the portfolios of Health, Treasury and Industrial Relations. Her deputy, Mr Barr, has been assigned Economic Development, Tourism, Sport and

Recreation, and Education and Training with the Treasury to come.

Attorney General Simon Corbell has been assigned Mr Stanhope’s portfolio of TAMS as well as holding his role as Minister for Police and Emergency Services, and for the Environment and Sustainable Development.

Joy Burch has picked up Mr Stanhope’s arts portfolio and is also Minister for Community Services, Multicultural Affairs, Ageing, Women and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs.

Political reporter: Eleri Harris, 0414 618493 eleri@citynews.com.au

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Distribution and circulation: Richard Watson, circulation@citynews.com.au

Contributing photographer: Andrew Finch

Sick researcher seeks marrow

By Kathryn Vukovljak

A WALK-IN patient drive will be held at the ANU to find a bone marrow donor for researcher Dr David Robinson, whose case is complicated by a particularly aggressive cancer and a rare bone marrow type.

Sara Rawlinson, a friend and colleague of David’s who’s promoting his plight, says it’s incredibly difficult to find a good match.

“It’s not like finding a blood type – there are many different types and of the 14 million people currently on the register, none are a good match for David,” she says.

“The testing process is like donating blood – they take two phials of blood and it takes five minutes. Then you go on the list and see what happens.

“It’s not set in stone though; there could be personal reasons why you might back out and that’s fine.

“The actual donation is surgery, and involves extracting a little from the hip under a general anaesthetic, so you’ll need 24 hours in hospital to recover,” she says. “Then you’re sore for a couple of days but then back to normal – it far outweighs what it means for a recipient.

“We’re calling out for as many people as possible to come along and be tested. David’s not alone in being unable to find a good match.”

The patient drive will be held on campus on Friday, May 27, from 9-5pm on campus.

Originally diagnosed in December 2008, David, 33, was in remission but relapsed in January.

“This particular type of cancer is known for coming back, so it was always a high possibility,” he told “CityNews”. “This time a bone marrow transplant is my best chance for long-term survival.”

Having just finished his second round of inten-

sive chemotherapy for leukaemia, he says that cancer has turned his life around and become the primary focus.

“I’m confined to hospital, with a few hours at home each week,” he says. “I have to be in a clean environment, and I can’t do anything but rest and watch TV. I can’t work, can’t help around the house, can’t drop my daughter off at school.”

Bone marrow matches are best when the donor and patient share the same ethnic background, says David, and there is some suggestion that the rare portion of his bone marrow may be of Italian origin – and the number of Italians on the current list is small.

“For this reason we’re hoping for donors of Adelaide-Italian/Mediterranean background like myself,” he says.

“If we don’t find a strong match, I may have to accept a sub-optimal match, which carries more risks – such as not making it through the period after the transplant, when I’ll be immuno-suppressed and a simple bacteria could kill me. It’s also possible that it won’t take.”

ANU Patient Drive for the Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry, OHS Training Room, Building 3H, McDonald Place, ANU, 9am to 5pm. You must be between 18-45 yrs old, willing to donate blood in the future and cannot have lived in the UK for more than six months cumulatively between 1980-1996.

Signs of the times

MARK PARTON, breakfast announcer at CC, discovers a netherworld of stolen road signs

I’M not much of a rebel. In my 44 years on the planet, I’ve never stolen a street sign (and I don’t intend to), but according to my radio listeners, people do it often.

Why?

Well, it seems, mainly as trophies; they target street signs that they put up on the wall in the bedroom or the bar at home.

I was inspired to bring it up on air after a drive through Kaleen, where the streets are all named after rivers.

That’s wonderful when it comes to Maribyrnong Avenue or Nambucca Street, but not so good when it comes to the street named after Queensland’s Bogan River. How’d you be living on Bogan Place at Kaleen? It’s clear that the Bogan Place street sign has a different bracket on it than the surrounding streets. I’d love to know how many times it’s been lifted.

Friends of mine once lived on Lovely Close at Dunlop and told me that their street sign was often absent. I daresay the same applies to Love Street at Flynn.

Callers reported to me that Holden Crescent, Wanniassa, and Holden Place, Flynn, are often signless, as is Ford Place at Gordon.

Joel reported that the Corona Place sign at Palmerston has now had its “nuts shaved off” to make it more secure.

Anthony called to say that he’d been looking for Furphy Place at Garran for a while, but that it didn’t seem to exist and the sign for Nimbin Street, Narrabundah, has apparently gone missing on a number of occasions.

A spokesperson for the Department of Territory and Community Services confirmed that vandalism and theft of street signs remain constant in Canberra with an upward spike around school holiday periods. Roads ACT is constantly experimenting with new mounting and installation methods to curb theft. Around town you’ll see signs that are welded to the post, as well as quite a few that are a wee bit higher than regular signs.

One of my listeners suggested that after a number of thefts of the Holden Place sign, the authorities conceded and just painted the street name on the curb.

Fair’s fair, says new trade collective

HOW often do you think about where your tea comes from? Where it was made? Who made it? How much that person was paid for their work?

The ACT Fair Trade Collective has launched and landed in a store near you to make you think about exactly those things.

Aiming to raise awareness of the availability of fair trade products and where you can get them, the collective comprises a crew of volunteers from all walks of life from all around Canberra, all wanting to ensure just commercialism in the capital.

“We want to raise the profile of the Fair Trade principle and awareness of the availability of Fairtrade Certified products within the ACT,” ACT Fair Trade Collective co-ordinator Jennifer Taylor says.

“We’re a group of volunteers from across Australia including students, academics and fair trade retailers partnered with organisations like Oxfam and the Fair Trade Association of Australia.

“We want to engage various sectors of the community like schools and workplaces to swap their existing products to fair trade certified models.

By Eleri Harris

“The label guarantees that the producers, often in developing countries, receive a price that covers their production cost. It supports sustainable business practices as well as guaranteeing an additional premium to invest in local infrastructure projects.”

Collective member Mandy Nearhos says the premium goes to the community rather than individual farmers.

“The certification makes sure that right through the supply chain it is a fair trade product and they have to meet certain criteria to get that,” Nearhos said.

“The focus is mainly coffee, tea, chocolate, but you can buy fair trade cotton clothes and sports balls.

“There’s a national fair trade association and World Fair Trade Organisation, they would visit and certify co-operatives, communities or producers.”

“They are regularly audited to make sure that farmers are businesses continue to comply with the standards,” Taylor said.

The collective aim to see Canberra achieve status as a free trade city; Adelaide is so far the only Australian capital to reach that level.

“It means the city meets cer-

tain standards of availability and knowledge of fair trade products and continue to support fair trade,” Nearhos told “CityNews”.

Partnering with local businesses, including cafes and shops, the Collective kicked off community engagement at the Fair Trade Fortnight from May 7 to 22.

“We’re organising a range of activities for Fair Trade Fortnight in May,” Taylor said.

“One is a school’s workshop for Year 9 and 10 students, teaching them about the fair trade principle and how to identify fair trade prod-

ucts by looking for the fair trade label.

“We’re producing a fair trade shopping guide for Canberra so consumers in the ACT know where they can go to buy fair trade products.

“We’re partnering with businesses to promote fair trade.”

Canberra’s Fair Trade Fortnight will also feature appearances from Peruvian craft producer Cecilia Granadino of Minka Fair Trade, who will talk about how the initiative has benefited her community.

More information at www.fairtradefortnight.com/

briefly

Paper still sliding

“THE Canberra Times” is struggling still to contain circulation slides across every publication day with the latest audit figures for the March quarter showing significant continuing losses. Compared with the same period last year, the daily paper’s flagship Saturday edition has fallen 4.67 per cent to 53,561 copies. Monday-toFriday the picture is similarly bleak with a fall of another four per cent to 31,521 average copies a day. Sunday also fell a further 3.83 per cent.

Looking for clues

ACT Region Crime Stoppers chairman Bryan Roach hopes an online competition will lead to young people taking more responsibility in their local community. Canberrans who follow ACT Region Crime Stoppers on facebook can look for clues leading to a Canberra business’ website and locate the Crime Stoppers logo. Prizes include shopping vouchers, free meals and electronics. Crime Stoppers is a community based, not-for-profit organisation. Entries to the competition at www.facebook.com/actcrimestoppers

Cool for school

O’CONNOR Co-operative School has insulated the ceiling of the original wing of the school, built in 1948, along with the hot water service thanks to a $10,000 ActewAGL environmental grant. It is estimated that this will save more than 15 per cent on heating, ventilation and air-conditioning costs. Principal Margaret May said: “The grant from ActewAGL means a great deal to our school as our annual budget and fundraising alone could not have covered the cost of this urgent upgrade to our building. It also gives the children the opportunity to see a practical way in which we can reduce our impact on the environment by monitoring the difference this makes to our energy use.”

I read the news today, oh boy!

DON AITKIN is getting increasingly grumpy about what passes as “news” these days. Is he right to be?

OVER the last few months, I have become increasingly grumpy about what passes for “news” today.

The feeling has been growing for some time, but the day I ground my teeth was the day that someone thought it was “news” that Princess Mary (indeed, “our” Princess Mary) had been “snubbed” by not being invited to the recent royal wedding of Kate and Wills.

By implication, all Australia had been snubbed, and we were entitled to feel peeved. I would have to go on to say that the previewed details of Kate’s wedding dress didn’t seem to me to be news, either. And that made me think of another dressy news item last year, which was the garment that the Pope would wear at the sainting of Mary McKillop.

And that made me think of the whole Mary McKillop bit. It seemed to go on for months, and then in the final week, almost every hour.

On the day itself, someone said breathlessly, on television, that

the sainting would put Penola permanently on the map. Now, it is true that Sister McKillop started her order and her school there.

But Penola, for anyone who enjoys Coonawarra wine, has been on the map for at least the last 50 years. And I’m willing to hazard a small bet that the young woman has been pictured as recently.

The Commonwealth Games had just preceded the sainting, and I felt that some of the hoo-haa had simply flowed over from the Games: Mary McKillop had just won Gold in the religious games, and all Australia needed to celebrate. Well, I found it hard to do more than nod. Roman Catholics, the group most affected, make up about a quarter of all Australians, but the real ones, who go to Mass each week, represent about one in seven of them — say four per cent of the whole population.

And dare I say it, what passes for the private life of footballers seems hardly more newsworthy to me.

What ought to be “news”, anyway? Maximilian Walsh, a most distinguished journalist, once told me that “news is what people don’t want you to print”, and if he’s right then none of the news stories I’ve mentioned would qualify.

But I think that the Japanese tsunami and the consequent collapse of the nuclear reactors certainly were news. So was the Christchurch earthquake series. So was the release of the Chilean miners. So is the outcome of any major sporting event. So is the crash of an airliner, or an awful multi-death road crash. They are, at least in detail, unexpected. But a great deal of what is called “the political cut and thrust”, in my mind, is not. And since I’m not fan of the increasing tendency to presidentialise our politics, nor is the daily battle between the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. What do you think?

Don Aitkin, political scientist and historian, served as vice-chancellor of the University of Canberra from 1991 to 2002.

Steve’s new mission

SOUTHCARE rescue helicopter general manager Stephen Gregory (pictured) has been appointed CEO of CBD Limited. “Stephen has the credentials and experience to tackle this exciting job, especially as we move towards 2013 and the Centenary of Canberra,” said chairman Manny Notaras. Mr Gregory starts on May 30.

Picture of success

THE National Portrait Gallery of Australia has won the John Holland Award for Best Public Building at the 2011 Property Council of Australia/Rider Levett Bucknall Innovation and Excellence Awards. Property Council of Australia CEO Peter Verwer said: “The building holds dual educative and artistic roles whilst encapsulating and using to great advantage, the distinctive light and landscape of our nation’s capital.”

Fast starter

TRAINING company Transformed Pty Ltd is the only ACT organisation on this year’s “BRW Fast Starter” list. The company

offers training, coaching, consulting and professional advice.

Extra funding delight

THE Canberra Multicultural Community Forum chair Sam Wong says the forum is delighted that the ACT Government is investing an additional $200,000 into the 2012 and 2013 National Multicultural Festivals. “I look forward to the restoration of talented overseas artists and groups performing alongside Australia’s many high-quality performers from diverse backgrounds,” he said.

All hail the trail

THE Heart Foundation has welcomed the ACT Government’s announcement of $3.3m funding for the construction of the Canberra Centenary walking and cycling trails with ACT CEO Tony Stubbs saying: “Commitment to construction projects such as these are not only more sustainable but also provide quality infrastructure to invite people to walk or cycle, which assists a person’s motivation, opportunity and ability to be physically active”.

Eli safe and sound

MARCIA Malone’s six-month-old puppy Eli has been found, after being missing for a month and a day, as reported in last week’s “CityNews” (“…and a lost dog”, page 9). “I received a call from a lad in Scullin, claiming he had Eli… and sure enough they had him,” says Marcia. “ELI reacted very excitedly… he almost jumped through the roof, did six somersaults and just went crazy when he knew he was home. He had cut paws and has been stitched up, but is safe and sound back home.”

Developers’ knickers in a knot

A $  million building project that the ACT Government announced in the Budget has got the developers’ knickers in a knot.

And, dear me, there is a change-of-use charge exemption announced for childcare centres, but not for units. And, there is more. The Government also proposes to send 500 ACT public servants to Gungahlin.

Balancing the community interest against the developers’ profits is one of the key land-management tasks that the Government has to deliver. Actually, the interests align most of the time. This is because the developers generally accept the parameters that are set by government and work within an even playing field when they compete with other developers. However, they are not used to competing with governments and they do not like it.

None of the business interests are arguing about the need for a large, $432 million office block to be located in Civic.

Chris Faulks, of the Canberra Business Council, argued that “the new building will help consolidate the workforce and improve cohesion. In addition, a number of the buildings that currently house public servants are of poor quality and do not meet the Government’s environmental requirements”.

The developers are getting themselves in a state again, says MICHAEL MOORE

Although she did seem to confuse her argument when she added the concern that “the ACT is currently experiencing relatively high office-vacancy rates and this project will obviously add additional space”.

The Property Council is screaming about the Government’s proposal.

It is not the building or the location that they object to but the Government’s determination to build and own it themselves.

Catherine Carter, of the Property Council, said: “It is unusual for governments to seek to construct and own their own buildings. For at least the past decade the Commonwealth has sought to divest itself of property (other than buildings with particular security sensitivity) and look to the private sector from which to lease back general office buildings, as well as the actual construction and delivery”.

Former Chief Minister, Jon Stanhope, told Alex Sloane on ABC radio that owning the building will save the Government around $30 million a year in rent, that the business case has been done and that this will mean substantial savings for the Government in the housing of their own public servants. He even agreed to make the business case available for public scrutiny – something that no developer would ever dream of doing!

To explain the Government’s position he

drew a comparison between someone owning their own home or renting. Clearly the capital gain in this case is better to remain with the people than with the developer making the decision in the broad public interest.

The reason that the Commonwealth over the last decade divested itself of property and changed to a lease-back process was to use the Government’s capital assets to reduce the holy cow that is the Budget deficit.

The argument is irrelevant with the ACT on track to have the deficit under control by 2014. It is simply not in the same situation as the Commonwealth was when the original decision was made to begin the sell-and-lease-back system.

When there is demand developers will build and people will pay the price. The windfall gain that comes from allowing a lease to change from a single residential site to multiple units belongs with the owners of the land. In this case, those landlords are the people of the ACT represented by the government that we elect.

Proper scrutiny of all government expenditure is appropriate. However, in these cases the Government does have the principle right.

Michael Moore is a former member of the ACT Legislative Assembly and an independent minister for health in the Carnell government.

… and we’re not happy with this new tax, Katy

THE property sector is unhappy with the proposed the modified change of use charge, now called a lease variation charge, outlined in the ACT Budget.

While the sector does not object to contributing its fair share to the community in which we live, that does not translate to accepting the new lease variation in its current form, and certainly not to the increasing burden this charge will bring to all property owners in the ACT over coming years.

The Government’s own consultant made it clear that the new system, when implemented, would have several adverse

c atherine c arter

impacts, including a reduction in land values and an increase in the price of residential units.

Author of the 2011-12 budget Katy Gallagher told a recent Property Council lunch that the tax was a firm Government commitment, but she was willing to discuss the implementation schedule further. She said the tax would be introduced in stages over five years, starting with what was represented as 25 per cent of the government’s fee, determined by land values, and then gradually rising annually until, after five years, it amounted to 75 per cent of that amount.

Katy Gallagher.

While the proportion of tax the Government will receive in the overall scheme of things is relatively small, the impact will be great if the Government proceeds without amending its proposals.

Catherine Carter is the ACT executive director of the Property Council of Australia.

IN his usual opinionated way, [columnist] Robert Macklin has nailed why Afghanistan and America don’t matter (“Time Rudd admitted another wrong”, CN, April 21).

The Americans deserve the Afghanis – as did the Soviet Union. Why? Because Afghanistan is a terrible place where men rest their hands on their daggers in the marketplace and America has become a Christian stronghold.

Which probably makes America worse. Not for Macklin the idea of nation building, or the value of free market democracy, with the rule of law, separation of powers and freedom of speech.

No, we Australians should nick off, and leave these two appalling nations to each other. The Taliban couldn’t be worse. Can’t argue with that, can you?

John c leland, Latham Peters is wrong

THE May 5 edition of “CityNews” includes comment on the ACT Budget by a number of prominent people in the ACT community. Most of the comments offered includes some thoughtful analysis by the people interviewed.

to state that Stanhope leaves the job with ACT having the highest level of taxes and charges in the nation, the worst public transport and amongst the most expensive rental housing.

I think the Chamber of Commerce and Industry needs a new chief executive who knows something about economics and not someone who is an apologist for the current ACT Government.

colin Lyons, Weetangera

What’s Alex thinking?

Game signal for parents

PROVIDING an R18+ rating for video games will not make it any harder or easier for children to get their hands on video games with content of questionable artistic value. They already obtain copies of these games in clear violation of copyright by borrowing from their best friends who happen to live overseas and have no names.

What an R18+ rating for video games will provide is a means for parents to decide whether they will buy a given game for their children, or allow a game to be played in their house.

Classification labels don’t magically stop children watching horror movies at the cinema. Similarly, classification labels don’t magically stop cassettes being recorded, CDs being copied or games being downloaded. What classifications do provide (and this is indeed their only purpose) is a means for parents or other people in positions of responsibility (carers, babysitters, sales staff) to make decisions about whether to grant their charges legitimate access to certain material.

This can not be said for Chris Peters’ woeful effort. There is absolutely no analysis here, merely a lame summary of what good things there are in the Budget from a business angle. Similarly, when interviewed on ABC radio about the legacy of Jon Stanhope for Canberra, Peters said he left the ACT economy in the best shape of any in the country. What nonsense to suggest that Stanhope can claim any credit for the alleged healthy state of the ACT economy. The Federal Government is the only significant public sector player in this economy as far as employment, housing starts and investment are concerned. They pull virtually all the levers. Chris Peters would be spot on if he were

WHERE on earth did Alex Strappa (letters, CN May 12) get the idea that I would suggest that anyone should invest in the sub-prime mortgage market, especially as I am on record in the media expressly counselling against any involvement in the property bubble? I even told my grown-up children not to get sucked into the overheated property market via the first home-owners loan scheme.

I was in Ireland during the peak of its property boom and saw nothing but danger, a fact I mentioned at a Senate Occasional Lecture at Parliament House on March 11. No, my investments have been in the big resource companies, silver, gold, lithium, platinum, metallurgical coal and coal-seam gas; all of which did very well during the GFC.

It would have been wonderful if public servants’ super had been similarly invested and they would not have had to suffer negative returns over the past few years.

Ric Hingee, Duffy

‘Stupid’ suggestion

ROBERT Macklin – terrorist? How stupid for Robert Macklin to propose the poisoning of water supplies (“Assasination – all in the timing”, CN May 12).

Jas Hugonne via email Leave them to it

Some parents might let their 16-year-old children watch MA movies with adult supervision, but they certainly wouldn’t let their children watch R18+ or XXX movies. Why should it be any different for computer games?

Remember, the classification system is not magic. Refusing to classify a game in Australia doesn’t magically make that game cease to exist. Your children will simply download that game from various sources and play it without your permission. At least with a box carrying an R18+ label, you as the parent will be aware that the game exists, and have the ability to look up the classification board web site and explain to your children why they’re not allowed to play it.

Refusing to provide an R18+ classification for computer games is burying your head in the sand and pretending that because you don’t see the bad thing, the bad thing ceases to exist.

a lex s atrapa, Isabella Plains

opinion

Careful what you wish for!

“IT does get easier” – at least that’s what I told the harassed mum ahead of me in the checkout queue as her fourmonth-old totally melted down.

It is true that life does get easier as one’s children get a bit older. But just as you think you’ve finally got a grip on the whole parenting thing, you discover new challenges that demand whole new skill sets.

A few days later, I had my own supermarketqueue incident. There was a terrible shriek. I turned around to find my eight-year-old boy reeling in agony on the floor.

Despite my repeated admonishments that he not swing on the end of the shopping trolley, he had slipped and fallen and, in doing so, injured a most delicate part of his anatomy.

There were loud sobs as he curled up in the feotal position. To add to the general uproar, his vocal five-year-old sister was shouting at the top of her voice: “Look Mum, look he’s broken his wee-wee!”

Suddenly I felt everyone in the store was looking at us – and they were. One concerned lady helpfully suggested that “you can’t very well rub it better”, while the girl at the cash register suggested a lollipop could help.

I was busy trying to offer some reassurance while sorting through the groceries for any frozen goods such as a bag of peas that might ease his suffering, but sadly I’d only stocked up with fish fingers and a litre of ice cream.

I managed to heave all 30 sobbing kilos of him into the trolley, quieten his sister down and, as quickly as possible, wheel him somewhere semiprivate to assess the damage.

Thank goodness my daughter appears less

mum in the city

sonya Fladun

prone to physical damage through risk taking. However, she presents her own challenges. She has recently adopted a log. That’s right – a log: Four kilos of solid wood that turns up all over the place. The other day I nearly broke my neck falling over the log and down the back steps where she had put it for safe keeping as I’d (cruelly) banned it from the house.

My girl’s attachment to her log combined with her desire to only wear black and draw pictures of storm clouds, monsters and poisonous fish has opened up a whole new set of concerns. She assures me I have nothing to worry about. It’s just that “black’s really cool”, storm clouds are so much more interesting than rainbows, and the fascination with poisonous fish thing apparently arises from her new motto: “Know your enemies”. But she admits her relationship with the log defies explanation.

So if you’re the mother of a small bundle of joy who doesn’t sleep and melts down in public places, and find yourself casting a wistful eye in the direction of parents with older children, be forewarned: When it comes to children, be careful what you wish for.

Stacey’s gentle passion for skin care

SKIN concerns such as acne, dullness, ageing or pigmentation can leave you feeling self-conscious and affect your condence, but there are many ways to help improve the look and feel of your skin, according to therapist Stacey Rolfe, who has just opened a new clinic, Dening Features in Deakin.

Having been in the beauty industry for 10 years, Stacey says she’s passionate about what she does and that she particularly loves helping people improve their skin, because she knows  rst-hand what it feels like to have a skin problem.

“I used to suffer from chloasma, a skin discolouration, and did extensive research until I found a product called GlyMed, which signi  cantly reduced my pigmentation and which I now use and sell in my salon,” she says.

“I love working with people, building a good relationship with my clients and helping to improve their skin.

“I can also see that sometimes they’re stressed out from work, or life in general, and I can help them to relax, to really take time out for themselves.

“Delivering real results also helps them feel more con dent.”

Having trained in the ACT at Elleebana School of Beauty Therapy

in Phillip, and worked with Jeunesse Advanced Care in Civic for six years, Stacey says she loves the beauty business. “It’s an amazing industry, there’s always something new happening and it’s important to keep on top of that,” she says.

The salon has a homely feel, with two naturally-lit treatment rooms, luxurious carpet and paintings by Stacey’s mother. Three-hour free parking is available opposite the salon building, and it’s a private location – “After a facial or a peel, the last thing you want is to walk back to your car through a shopping centre or eateries!” she says.

Among the treatments offered at De  ning Features are chemical peels, microhydrabrasion and cosmetic tattooing, which Stacey specialises in.

Stacey says she is extremely passionate about cosmetic tattooing, loves the art of it as well the happiness and con  dence the treatment brings to her clients. She completed her training at Australia’s leading cosmetic tattoo college and furthers her knowledge in this with seminars and courses annually.

Stacey is a member of the Association of Cosmetic Tattoo, and has performed more than 1000 cosmetic tattoos.

“The treatment, for eyeliner, lip liner or eyebrow de  nition, has come a long way in recent years,” she says.

“When it  rst came out, therapists used the same ink as body tattoos, which

Stacey Rolfe, owner of De  ning Features... “I can help clients decide what would work best for them and tailor an individual treatment.”

could be a bit harsh. Now we use more natural inks with softer colours and can create a really natural look.

“The tattoos fade within three to  ve years, depending on the ink used, so while it’s a long-term result it’s not totally permanent.”

Stacey says that she recommends new clients come in for an initial consultation to discuss their skin concerns.

“There are so many excellent treatments available that it can be overwhelming, but I can help clients decide what would work best for them and tailor individual treatments,” she says. “I can even adjust the speci  c treatments to suit someone’s skin, because so much depends on the

person and the result they’re after.

“I know the products out there, I’ve done extensive research and I work with the brands that I believe to be the absolute best,” says Stacey. “I can distinguish what will work for you.”

Dening Features, 8/2 King Street, Deakin. Call 6282 0090, email contact@deningfeatures.com.au or visit www.deningfeatures.com.au.

all about Conferences & training

Gaining from training and conferences

The best conference venues, the most delicious catering options and some fantastic training opportunities within Canberra and the region are all here in this wide-ranging special feature, where we highlight the venues, resources and businesses that will tempt you to come to a conference...

Beach-side business

WITH a dedicated conference and events team and an on-site, audio-visual and event-staging company Novotel Wollongong Northbeach can cater to a wide variety of business needs from exhibitions and seminars, to product launches and annual dinners, according to the hotel’s marketing executive Tess Hadley.

“We’re located three hours’ drive from Canberra in the beautiful Illawarra, providing the perfect beachside venue,” she says.

“The hotel is opposite North Wollongong Beach with spectacular ocean and mountain views.”

The 4.5-star hotel has 204 rooms, a range of facilities and services including a swimming pool, spa, sauna, fitness centre, day spa, restaurant and two bars, says Tess.

“Our superb function facilities make it a popular venue for meetings, residential conferences and events,” she says. “Facilities include 14 meeting rooms – 10 with natural light; a pillar-less grand ballroom that can seat 600 theatre-style; indoor and outdoor function spaces and extensive pre-function and exhibition space.

“We also have a new outdoor function space – the Illawarra Deck. It’s a decked rooftop terrace with breathtaking views over the beach and along the coast.

“Catering for up 400 guests, the Illawarra Deck is the perfect venue for pre-dinner drinks, cocktail parties or team-building activities.”

More information at 4224 3154 or email H1654-sb3@accor.com

Progress in the health industry

THE nationally accredited Certificate III Health Administration is open to anyone in the health industry, says Ros Williams, director of Capital Careers in Belconnen.

“The course is subsidised by the ACT Department of Education and Training, so it costs just $350 for existing workers with a Certificate II level qualification or below, which is amazing for a full qualification,” she says.

There is also the option to study online, with workshops to complement that, says Ros. “If you can’t get away from the office it’s a good way to train,” she says.

New facilities, top service

LOCATED in Moore Street, Civic, and with every conference need catered for, the newly refurbished Hellenic in the City function rooms are now available, says Sean Smith, conference and event co-ordinator.

“We provide a high level of service and catering, with a wide variety of events covered,” he says. “As well as professional conferences and meeting rooms, we can also provide canapes, buffets, three-course dinners, special occasions and much more.”

Sean says that Hellenic in the City has experienced and professional staff who are always on hand to assist with

“The course might appeal to allied or alternative health professionals as well as workers with a Certificate ll.” Core and elective units of the course can include medical terminology, infection control policies, effective communication within the industry and records management, according to Ros.

“Other elective choice are also available – we can customise the course to suit your needs,” she says. Enrolments will close on June 7. Call 6253 0682 or email info@capitalcareers.com.au

every detail required for a conference or meeting.

“From the preliminary inspection and quotation, right through to the conference itself, our staff will ensure your work event is a complete success,” he says.

“The two meeting rooms – the 122-capacity Atlas Room and the 266-capacity Poseidon Room – have surround sound, inbuilt data projectors, wireless internet, teleconference facilities, whiteboards, DVD players, microphones and visual aids.”

Hellenic in the City will be holding an open day on Friday, June 3 from 2pm-6pm, demonstrating the new function and event facilities and putting the club on show. Functions packages will be available online shortly, says Sean. More information on 6162 6707 or email cityfunctions@hellenicclub.com.au

Conferences and training

Learning to power share

ABC TV and radio broadcaster Peter Thompson is the facilitator of this year’s IPAA National Conference, “Learning to Power Share” at the Hotel Grand Chancellor, Hobart, August 25-26.

The conference explores minority government under its theme: “Hanging Our Parliaments or Changing Administrative Paradigms – Minority Governments in Practice”.

Peter hosted the weekly program “Talking Heads”, a series of conversations about the lives of prominent Australians. He also presented Radio National’s breakfast show for eight years, and the flagship current affairs program “AM” for six – and is passionate about governance and public administration.

This year’s conference will consider key issues such as new modes of governance; decentralisation and regionalisation; and ethical leadership. Participants will examine the challenges and opportunities that minority governments present for public administrators, and minority government will be put on trial – with the audience determining whether it stifles decision-making or provides fertile ground for new approaches.

Says Peter: “At all levels of Australian politics, minority governments are a growing presence. Our local experience builds on the international examples of this type of power structure within parliamentary democracies (such as the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany and Britain).”

Bringing a wealth of local, national and international speakers to Tasmania, the conference will help define the Australian public sector’s approach to a challenging new paradigm of governance for decades to come.

“It’s important to stay on top of the big issues – what’s happening ‘out there’,” says Peter. “This conference will deliver ideas, insight and inspiration, and it’s the perfect opportunity to network with peers in other Government sectors and agencies. It’s also designed for academics, professionals, students… basically, if you’ve got an interest in the future of public administration in Australia, it’s an opportunity not to be missed.”

IPAA National Conference For more info, go to www.ipaanationalconference.org.au

Personal and professional catering

YARRALUMLA’S Sitting Ducks Catering offers a service that is personal and professional, and food that reflects the freshness and imagination of the season, says Herman Posthuma, director of Sitting Ducks Catering.

“We aim to make your catering experience an event to remember,” he says. “We have menus ranging from lunches for your office meeting and all-day conference catering, through to corporate lunches and cocktail parties as well as private parties and weddings. We can cater from 20-200 people.

“Our menus are seasonal and contemporary, innovative in taste, style and presentation and we can work with you to design a menu that will exceed your expectations.”

From the simple catering requirement to the extravagant indulgence, Herman says the professional team can create a memorable event, from set-up to clean-up.

More information on 6282 1631, email mail@ sittingducks.com.au, or visit www.sittingducks. com.au

advertising feature

High-tech and heritage charm

UNIVERSITY House, located in the ANU, at the corner of Balmain Crescent and Liversidge Street, Acton, has embraced the latest in stateof-the-art technology to assist in conducting a completely flawless conference or seminar, according to general manager Walter Sauer.

“From a highly technical, multi-media presentation to a basic workshop, we have a range of audio-visual tools available for you,” he says.

“Our hotel rooms provide the perfect venue for residential training courses and conferences and feature high-speed, wireless internet access, large desks and plenty of natural light.

“The success of any event hinges on three key elements: an outstanding venue, meticulous attention to detail and the ability to provide every guest or attendee with a satisfy-

Think outside the CBD

SET against the backdrop of the Brindabella Ranges, with nature and wildlife at its doorstep, the Country Comfort Greenway, at 46 Rowland Rees Crescent, offers conference facilities and a professional team who will co-ordinate conference, meetings, planning days or workshops to ensure everything runs smoothly, says Danielle Koerber, assistant manager of Country Comfort Greenway.

“The hotel is 20 minutes from the airport, it’s within walking distance to the Hyperdome shopping centre,Tuggeranong office park, Centrelink, FaHCSIA, Defence and Medicare offices,” she says. “A shuttle service operates during the winter months to the local offices for guests staying in house.”

The conference facilities cater for groups of 10 to 150, according to Danielle. “All conference rooms have natural light with glass doors

ing and memorable experience. University House can provide all three.

“Heritage, award-winning architecture, tranquil gardens and classic décor make University House a charming setting for any occasion, from a three-day conference for 200 delegates to an al fresco cocktail wedding for up to 1000 guests.

“Our experienced and qualified team is dedicated to making your event a huge success and can work with you to ensure that every detail is attended to. The charm of University House, combined with our quality, affordable function packages, range of unique venue choices and impeccable service will leave guests with an unforgettable experience and a reason to return again.”

More information at 6125 5270.

opening to a private deck for breaks, lunch or just some fresh air,” she says.

Conference packages, from $55 per person, include venue hire, coffee and tea on arrival, chef-prepared morning and afternoon tea, chef-prepared buffet lunch or working lunch, note pads, pens, iced water and mints, standard audio visual equipment, dedicated conference host; and free parking.

Country Comfort Greenway is a 100-room hotel featuring a variety of guest rooms, fully licensed restaurant and bar, indoor heated swimming pool, sauna, spa and gym, says Danielle.

“Further discounts apply to half-day packages and conferences above 50 delegates,” she says. “Residential conference packages and special accommodation rates are available on request.”

More information on 6293 3666, or email functions.greenway@countrycomforthotels.com.

Win a ‘Doc Martin’ boxset

The award-winning and top-rating ABC television series, “Doc Martin” has been released as a beautifully packaged nine-disc set. The “Doc Martin Comedy Cure” includes series one to four and “On The Edge”. And “CityNews” has four boxed sets, valued at $99.95 each, to give away.

Entry details at citynews.com.au/win

Conferences and training

Training for sustainable procurement

A TRAINING program for Government agencies about sustainable procurement has been developed by green graphic design studio Papercut, to assist communications personnel in making environmentally informed decisions about their design and print products and the potential impact on the planet, according to Claire Connelly, creative director.

“The ‘Sustainable Procurement Training Program’ will provide skills and technical knowledge to enhance performance and confidence in specifying projects, with the main focus on environmental considerations through seeking to better utilise resources,” she says.

Course outcomes will be to gain a clear understanding of environmental paper stocks and their use, how to develop concise project

briefs that consider materials and resources, how to deliver correct inputs to designers, how to supply correctly edited files to reduce author revisions, gain knowledge of print processes promoting reductions in materials and waste, timeline knowledge for design and print work, measurable environmental procurement knowledge promoting changes in project scoping and print outcomes.

Claire has combined research with industry experience to develop the training program, which will be launched on June 15 at Canprint, in the form of snapshot sessions. Registrations for the full program will be taken at the launch.

More information or to book a seat at the launch on 6162 4045 or email claire@ papercut.net.au

Alternative dispute resolution

PROMOTING, encouraging and facilitating dispute settlement through arbitration, mediation and other alternative dispute resolution (ADR) processes is the focus for the Institute of Arbitrators and Mediators Australia (IAMA), says Rosemary Dupont, ACT Chapter Chair.

“The IAMA prepares and delivers training courses in ADR processes including adjudication, arbitration, expert determination, mediation and probity,” she says.

The institute has approximately 1400 members with chapters/offices in all states and mainland territories, and members include some of Australia’s most eminent and experienced ADR professionals from a diverse range of sectors including commercial, legal, industry, education and government.

“The use of ADR processes, rather than protracted and expensive litigation processes, can be very effective in reducing the cost and stress associated with resolving disputes.”

As an independent, national and multidisciplinary body IAMA is able to advise on the most suitable ADR process; and nominate appropriately qualified practitioners to enable parties to resolve disputes.

“IAMA can assist organisations in the drafting of dispute resolution clauses for agreements between contracting parties and those that are experiencing workplace disputes,” says Rosemary.

To register your interest contact the ACT Chapter office email act.chapter@iama.org.au, call 6260 7117 or visit www.iama.org.au.

‘Sexy’ new venue

CHIFLEY Hotel Wollongong is offering great deals on conferences, according to Madeline Harris, conference and events sales manager.

Function bookings from now until August will receive 10 per cent off, and the chance to win an Apple iPad.

“We’re located on the south coast of NSW, and we provide extensive facilities for conferences, meetings, seminars, special events, gala dinners and weddings,” she says. “We’re the newest and sexiest function and events venue in Wollongong!”

The ultra-modern hotel features nine purpose-built conference and function rooms, available with the latest technology and sound-proof, retractable doors, two separate pre-function areas located on the dedicated function floor.

The largest room, the Grand Pacific Ballroom, has the capacity for 300 people banquet-style and 500 people theatre-style, says Madeline.

“On-site event specialists show absolute attention to detail to ensure your event requirements are met and your guests or colleagues have a memorable experience,” she says.

More information at www. chifleywollongong.com.au, email functions.wollongong@chifleyhotels.com, or call 4201 2111.

Refurbished and state-of-the art

LOCATED at 150 Northbourne Avenue, the newly refurbished Rex Hotel will be operational from July 1, offering 10 flexible function rooms and catering from 16 up to 750 people.

It is an ideal location for meetings, conferences, theatre shows, team building or personal development retreats, says John Russell, director of the Rex Hotel.

“The hotel looks fantastic, we have 4.5m-high ceilings, state-of-the-art AV equipment and five drop-down screens,” he says.

Being centrally located and easily accessible from the airport, north or south

Canberra with complimentary on-site parking, The Rex Hotel is moments away from the CBD, shopping, theatres, galleries, museums, restaurants and popular national attractions.

“We have 20 menus to choose from, but we’re also happy to design meals for individual needs for everything from breakfast to afternoon teas and main meals,” says John.

“There’s plenty of free parking, and we also have the benefit of 157 hotel rooms that are looked after 24 hours a day.”

The Rex Hotel is taking bookings now. More information at 6248 5311.

Carbon course leads the way

CIT HAS released Canberra’s first accredited course in carbon accounting, according to Velinka Vecchi, course co-ordinator.

The short course will give employees the skills to be able to produce an accurate account of their organisation’s carbon emissions, which is a vital first step towards seeing emissions reduced by 40 per cent by 2020 and 80 per cent by 2050, based on 1990 levels, which are the targets set down in the ACT’s Climate Change and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act 2010.

The only accredited carbon-accounting course in the ACT will be offered for the first time at CIT in June and will be delivered over three days, says Velinka.

Velinka says the statement of

attainment in carbon accounting takes on a new importance after the Federal Government’s proposed carbon tax.

‘’It gives businesses the opportunity to see where they can make savings in terms of energy emissions and reduce costs,” she says. “It’s twofold and businesses need to be able to calculate the increases they will incur with the implementation of the carbon tax.

“The tools and resources that participants will have access to, and the guidelines and practices they will learn, are all internationally recognised. Supplying these resources and information helps to raise the level of awareness and education with regard to sustainability in the future.”

More information at www.cit.edu.au

Close escape to a scenic setting

KAMBERRA Wine Company provides a scenic winery setting with a unique ambiance and rural charm – the perfect venue for a corporate event, says functions sales manager Anna Tampipi.

“Located only 10 minutes from the heart of Canberra in Lyneham, the venue provides the perfect city escape combined with geographical convenience,” she says.

The venue offers three modern rooms with full-length windows, covered verandas, open fireplace, rose gardens and a reflection pond, according to Anna. Catering for functions as small as 10 and up to 500, Kamberra Wine Company is extremely diverse and can tailor a package to suit specific requirements.

First impressions last

THE Lizzie Wagner Group conducts training for major organisations and corporations nationally and internationally, according to principal Lizzie Wagner, and it recently conducted sessions in every major city, including regional Australia.

“Our highly successful programs assist in team building, esteem and empowerment, first impressions, appropriate grooming, uniform presentation, telephone techniques, dealing with difficult customers and customer service,” says Ms Wagner.

“Communication skills, body language, handshaking, networking, business and social etiquette, professional conduct and speech protocol are just as important as your professional dress code.

“Be it for specialist rooms, small business, or the everyday individual, everyone can benefit from these sessions.”

The Lizzie Wagner Group’s training and coaching sessions are personalised for each organisation, and can also include face-to-face meetings, negotiation skills, image and style, presentation skills for media or boardroom, business and social etiquette, developing self awareness, self esteem initiatives and more.

The Lizzie Wagner Group can arrange training and coaching to suit the busiest executive, office or team, in half day, full day or the convenience of a one-and-a-half hour session, says Ms Wagner.

More information at 6299 8328 or 0412 098 435, email info@lizziewagner.com.au or visit www.lizziewagner.com.au

Day delegate packages start from $55 a person and include continuous tea and coffee, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea options, room hire, standard audio visual equipment, ample free parking, free wireless internet and a dedicated conference host.

“Our executive chef Jordan Rosmulder has designed our menu to ensure the best use of fresh seasonal local produce,” says Anna. “Our two wine labels, Meeting Place and Kamberra, complement the menu perfectly. Dietary requirements can be catered for individually or as a group.”

More information on 6262 2333 or email function@kamberra. com.au

Win a sizzling night out

The sizzling “Bar at Buena Vista – The Grandfathers of Cuban Music”, returns to Canberra Theatre on Friday, June 10 and Saturday, June 11 – and “CityNews” has six doubles to the opening night to give away.

The tickets are valued at $89.90 each and they’re waiting to be won at citynews.com.au/win

At Charity Fashion Show, Hotel Realm

your week in the stars

With Joanne Madeline Moore

May 23-29

ARIES (Mar  – Apr 0)

Rams will feel extra rash on Friday, as the Moon moves into your sign and joins up with Uranus. Slow your motor and cool your heels, otherwise you’re headed for a headache, argument or accident. Blow off steam with some vigorous exercise instead. It’s one step forwards and two steps back on Saturday, especially when it comes to relationships.

TAURUS (Apr  – May 0)

Partnerships and passion are highlighted, as Venus teams up with mighty Mars in your sign. You’ll feel more vivacious and enthusiastic than usual, so make the most of it and tackle challenges with confidence and plenty of class. Be inspired by birthday great Ralph Waldo Emerson: “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”

GEMINI (May  – June )

Don’t let self-doubts drag you down. Stressing about something that may (or may not) happen is not the sensible way to go. Work on practical projects so you can move forwards in a positive direction. If you have to make a big decision, let your intuition be your guide. Sunday favours networking with a wide range of friends and acquaintances.

CANCER (June  – July )

Your career is in a state of flux. Keep things in perspective and don’t sweat the small stuff. Take a broad view as you focus on opportunities to network and expand your world via professional colleagues, local friends and international contacts. Friday favours a fun and flexible approach at work. Tired of being a single Crab? It’s time to look for love online.

LEO (July  – Aug )

With Mercury, Venus and Mars all activating your career zone, you’re in the mood to improve communication with colleagues and be more professionally proactive. Don’t spend so much time weighing up options and worrying about work that you lose motivation and momentum. Put aside time to nurture your overseas connections.

VIRGO (Aug  – Sept )

Avoid complaining about the past and learn to live in the present. Take on board the advice of John Wayne (born on May 26): “Quit your belly-aching and saddle-up!” Money matters look messy on Saturday, especially if joint finances are involved. Sunday is all about love, lust and laughter as you let your hair down and have fun with family and friends.

LIBRA (Sept  – Oct )

Saturn is teaching you to be more persistent, as you hurtle over hurdles with calm confidence and steely determination. Don’t give up too easily. Your quote for the week is from birthday babe Kylie Minogue: “I don’t want to fizzle out. I have to keep going, like a little Shetland pony.” Share the good times with your nearest and dearest on Sunday.

SCORPIO (Oct  – Nov )

Prepare to be at your sensual, sexy Scorpio best as Venus and Mars hook up in your partnership zone. It’s time to up the sizzle factor and make your (neglected?) spouse feel extra special. Singles – don’t sit around passively waiting for your soul mate to magically appear. Be passionately proactive as you go out on the prowl looking for lasting love.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov  – Dec )

Sagittarians are spontaneous folk but don’t overdo it or you’ll suffer (again!) from ‘foot-in-mouth syndrome’. Think carefully before you speak, otherwise you will upset family or friends with your unique brand of truth serum. With Venus and Mars linking up in your wellbeing zone, it’s time to be proactive about improving your health and fitness.

CAPRICORN (Dec  – Jan )

Don’t get stuck in a depressing domestic rut! Jupiter and Uranus urge you to shake things up as you move, renovate, redecorate, change who you live with or welcome some unexpected guests. Serious Saturn amps up your perfectionist side on Saturday and it will be hard for anyone (including yourself) to live up to your impossibly high standards.

AQUARIUS (Jan 0 – Feb )

Are you fed up with being one of the crowd? This week you’re in the mood to break free from your usual routine as you explore new options plus read, write and converse about a wide range of controversial subjects. Be inspired by avantgarde Aquarians (like Mozart, James Dean and Yoko Ono) as you express your individuality in uniquely wonderful ways.

PISCES (Feb  – Mar 0)

With Venus and Mars connecting in your neighborhood zone, there are many benefits to be gained through contacts within your local community. So your motto for the moment is ‘Think global, act local’. There’ll be opportunities to exchange nail-biting news but be careful about passing on information that was given to you in the strictest of confidence.

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2011

all about the arts

Mary to hairy, enter the musicals

WITH a jam-packed theatre scene in Canberra, it’s easy to forget that in Sydney, it’s the season for musicals, writes arts editor HELEN MUSA

The new version of “Mary Poppins” has no Julie Andrews’ saccharin as the world’s favourite nanny finds herself on a tough assignment in the Banks household.

The brainchild of Australian writer Pamela Lyndon Travers, the character of Mary has a darker side, seen in this stage version adapted from the Travers book and the 1964 Disney film.

Of course, all the favourite songs are there, including the amazing “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”.

And there’s at least one song not in the movie, “Playing the Game”.

Two stars of the show whizzed into Canberra to tell us about it.

Sally-Anne Upton is Mrs Brill, the cook/housekeeper. Christopher Rickerby, is the henpecked butler Robertson Ay. The pair join luminaries such as Philip Quast and Marina Prior as George and Winifred Banks, Judi Connelli as fearsome Miss Andrew, and Verity Hunt-Ballard, who won the part of Mary Poppins from hundreds.

“Poppins” is the rage right now, but soon there’ll be “Hairspray, The Musical,” directed by David Atkins. It’s about the perennial subject of peer group pressure, with ‘60s hairstyles that would put Marge Simpson to shame, and two of its stars also romped through town recently to let us know what to expect.

Jas Flowers, a girl from Gippsland, took out a BA in musical theatre at Ballarat and went straight on stage with roles in “Shane Warne

the Musical” and “Fame”. She plays 16-year-old Tracy, the bubbly but bulky star of “Hairspray”. Flowers wears a padded suit to play a role she says is all about “what’s on the inside”.

Tevin Campbell, who played his role on Broadway for three years, is from Texas and really an R&B singer once mentored by Quincy Jones.

Campbell plays “a cool nerd who falls in love with the nerdy girl”.

And is there a moral to the show? Yes indeed: “It’s okay to be

different”. Just like “Mary Poppins”, really.

“Mary Poppins”, Capitol Theatre, Sydney, until August 28. For Coralie Wood’s bus trip to the July 16 show call 6281 0250. General bookings to 1300 558878 or www.marypoppinsthemusical.com.au

“Hairspray”, Lyric Theatre, Star City, Sydney, opens June 23. Bookings to www.hairspraythemusical. com.au

Bright start to old Albert’s new musical life

MUSIC lovers may lament the loss of the Fitters Workshop, but the grand Albert Hall will fill some of the void, especially if we can be allowed to enjoy its new-found acoustic, grander ambiance and the visual joy of the elegant windows without those ghastly, moth-eaten drapes.

And these two quite special concerts delighted the large audiences.

Dark depths juxtaposed sparkling high spirits in Stravinksi’s “Petrushka”. Richard McIntyre’s arrangement for wind ensemble and piano was a tour de force.

Harrison’s “Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra” was at once fascinating and entertaining.

The Albert Hall’s Compton organ seemed at home with the crashing, banging, scraping, plinking and plonking of the kitchenware with

MUSIC

“Bach to Didj” Canberra International Music Festival Albert Hall, May 13 Reviewed by Clinton White

musicians running from drum to cymbal to xylophone.

A string orchestra replaced the organ for Bizet’s “Carmen Suite”, but still the sport of percussion was a crowd-pleaser.

The Danish String Quartet comprises four young, sporty musicians, introduced by the ambassador. They played a beautiful, long, lyrical work by their countryman composer, Carl Nielsen.

An accordion joined the quartet for “Three Tango Sensations” by Argentinian composer, Astor Piazzolla and then they all made way for just a violin and a didgeridoo for a Chaconne by JS Bach. “Huh?” I hear you wonder. Yes, well, it worked. Magnificently.

Danish “minimalist” composer, Hans Abrahamsen’s “3rd String Quartet”, had the audience straining forward to hear the subtleties and nuances of an incredibly quiet and finely textured piece.

Finally, Elena Katz-Chernin introduced her piece, “Torque”, inspired by a broken gearbox. She and the audience were pleased with the premiere of the version performed. She was exuberant in her congratulations.

Never a dull moment in these concerts; just like the rest of the Festival program.

Festival with a Spanish accent

By Helen Musa

DIRECTED by Natalia Ortiz, the 14th Spanish Film Festival is a joint tribute to the Spanish zest for life and the third most widely-spoken language on earth.

Though its main focus is on contemporary Spanish cinema, it also has films in Spanish from Latin America. The festival festival screens at Greater Union, Manuka from May 26-29. With 36 features including prizewinners at Cannes, Berlin, Toronto and San Sebastian, the highlight will be the Australian premiere of 2010 Venice Film Festival dazzler, the “Tarantinoesque” film “The Last Circus”, in which two clowns compete for the love of a beautiful woman.

That’s just one movie about the world of performance. “Lope” is a lavish historical adventure about the “Shakespeare” of Spain, Lope De Vega, and “Paper Birds” tells of a vaudeville troupe travelling in the aftermath of the Civil War. In the comedy “One World Square,” a local rock band decides to take justice into their own hands after a boy is murdered.

The weird docco “Fake Orgasm” follows Lazlo Pearlman as he asks why most women say they’re sexually dissatisfied, while “18 Meals” stars 18 fabulous meals served up in the pilgrimage capital Santiago de Compostela.

That 21st century favourite horror is not forgotten. “Kidnapped” is a home-invasion horror and the closing-night movie, “Julia’s Eyes,” stars the queen of Spanish horror, Belen Rueda. Here’s my favourite, though it’s really for kids – “The Adventures of Don Quixote,” is an animation in which Cervantes’ story is reinterpreted by his pet mouse.

The 14th Spanish Film Festival, Greater Union, Manuka, May 26-29. For program and ticketing information visit www.spanishfilmfestival.com

arts&entertainment

Creative high amid the gore

JUSTIN Kurzel’s uncompromising drama inspired by the “bodies in the barrels” murders in SA in 1999 tells both the back story and the crimes.

There were numerous walkouts from last week’s preview. But enough of a nearly full cinema stayed for the closing credits to confirm my optimism about quality film.

In the restroom afterward, two blokes not reflecting your average notion of cineastes commented robustly about it.

Kurzel spent several months absorbing the feel of the area where the murders happened. On the screen, the resultant screenplay, coarse-mouthed, unrestrained in its gory delivery, reflects high creative skill, building a dreadful anticipation that doesn’t pander to delicate sensibilities.

As John Bunting, a truly evil man evoking Hitler’s oratorical skill in spreading his loathing of homosexuals, pedophiles and intellectually-impaired people among

Dougal Macdonald

working-class families whose agreement boosted his ego, Daniel Henshall’s performance is exemplary.

The film suggests that Bunting was bisexual – Elizabeth Harvey (Louise Harris) let him behave towards her youngest son in a potentially disturbing way.

Newcomer Lucas Pittaway plays Elizabeth’s son Jamie, tipped over the edge when Bunting involved him in the killing of his half-brother Troy who had raped him on the floor of the family home.

Kurzel’s unabashed explicitness in filming several of the killings, while visually alarming, underscores Bunting’s aberrant persona. He will die in prison. Which is no consolation for his victims’ families but perhaps a mote of comfort for those watching a film with “Snowtown”’s impressive artistic values.

At Greater Union

“WATER FOR E LEPHANTS” (M)

THIS melodramatic romance in a 1930s circus setting delivers a not-uncomfortable mix of sentimentality and incredibility. Better circus films have been made. Better romantic melodramas have been made. Circus is a lifestyle and professional environment that young folk often dream of running away to join. From time to time, I read Gary Jenkins’s “Spangle” to refresh the taste it conveys of working and living in a mobile community with its own culture, society and ethos.

Jacob (Robert Pattinson) is about to take his final exam at Cornell University Veterinary School when he gets news of his parents’ death. The family wealth has funded his education. He jumps into an open box-car on a passing train and discovers that he has fallen in with a circus owned by August (Christoph Waltz) whose pretty wife Marlena (Reese Witherspoon) is the headline act with her liberty horses.

The film’s biggest star is Rosie the elephant that August buys from another failed circus.

The plot is pure vanilla. August is a mercurial

Pattinson and

showman obsessed with his wife’s beauty. Marlena knows which side her bread is buttered until this handsome young educated man enters her life. Figure it out. The circus passages are merely a backdrop.

At all cinemas

IT’S a week for reviews of films based on authentic serial murder events, this time early in the 19th century when medicine was starting to be scientific rather than quackery.

In Edinburgh, Dr Knox (Tom Wilkinson) dissects cadavers to show his students what they will be dealing with if they stay the course. The King is coming to the city and will award a prize for the best medical demonstration. Knox needs dead people, lots of them.

William Burke (Simon Pegg) and William Hare (Andy Serkis) frequent rooms rented out by Hare’s paramour Lucky (Jessica Hynes). It’s rent day and they’re in the money. Ah, no. The tenant upstairs is dead. So begins a new career, supplying Knox with materia medica while running the gauntlet of the militia’s preventionof-grave-robbing detachment led by Capt McLintock (Ronnie Corbett). Isla Fisher plays Ginny, a sex-worker wanting to go straight by producing an all-female “Macbeth” while fending off Burke’s advances.

The Burke and Hare story has been filmed often enough. John Landis’s version sets out to be comedy sprinkled with modern allusions. Piers Ashworth’s screenplay tries to be farce but isn’t sharp enough.

At Dendy

A little at sea by the lake

dining

Wendy Johnson

IT sounds so Sydney: “I’m going to the yacht club for lunch”. Well, you can say that in Canberra, too – at the Lotus Bay Restaurant, Southern Cross Yacht Club, Yarralumla.

We grabbed a table in the sun on the patio at water level, down the stairs from the large, well-protected outdoor balcony. There is no staff service on the patio, so you need a buzzer that goes off when your food is ready – more on this later.

The extensive lunch menu has something for everyone with entrees starting at around $9 and topping at $27.50 for a dozen oysters Kilpatrick, and mains from $16.50 for risotto Parmagiano to just over $29 for “surf ‘n turf”.

The beer-battered flathead with chips ($19.20) hit the spot – a generous serve and the batter not too heavy. The pan-seared Tasmanian salmon fillet ($26) was okay, although I wasn’t asked how I would like the salmon cooked and ended up with it being slightly overdone for my liking (not too dry, though). It came with a red capsicum couli, which proudly held its own with flavour.

The Southern Cross Club operates the restaurant so I expected, and got, club systems. But I found these chaotic and couldn’t determine if it was the way the place is set up or how staff where handling

matters on our visit, or a bit of both. You order meals at a cash register and then go to the bar for drinks. Sounds straightforward. I ordered our food and was given a number. Then I saw that another customer from the patio had a buzzer in his hand so I asked the cashier if I should have one, too. The response was a sigh and she informed me she “forgot to ask” where I was sitting. Since all orders are automatically sent into the kitchen, the cashier now had a problem. Why did I feel it was my fault?

Once the matter was resolved, I toddled over to the bar where I wasn’t served for an uncomfortable length of time. Eventually, I was able to order a bottle of wine and I asked for two glasses. Got the bottle, but no glasses. Another wait. Then I asked for water with two glasses. Got the glasses, but not the water.

Do I need to go on? No I don’t. Would I go back? Yes, but primarily for the view.

Lotus Bay Restaurant, open for lunch from noon to 2pm, dinner 6pm to 9pm and breakfast 9am to 11am. Call 6273 1784.

To sucketh or not, that’s the question

SHAKE & Stir Theatre Co will be at the Q, Queanbeyan from May 23 with “Shakespeare: Studying Shakespeare Suckeths”. Year 12 drama students Lachlan and Nerys join two of the cool guys, Jay and Rob, to discover if the Bard is still relevant. Bet you know the answer. Bookings to www.theq.net.au

ON May 27 at 7.30pm in Albert Hall, Salut! Baroque presents music by Sanz, Ortiz, de Araujo, Falconieri and de Victoria, the kind of music patronised by connoisseur Fernando de Aragón. Tickets at the door or by subscription to www.baroque.com.au

MORE than 100 groups from the local region, Melbourne, Sydney, Central

arts in the city

Helen Musa

Coast, Wollongong and Young will perform from May 19 to 22 in the Australian National Eisteddfod’s annual bands and orchestras round at Llewellyn Hall, Lyneham High School and Canberra Institute of Technology. Tickets at the door and on 132849. Details at www. nationaleisteddfod.org.au

MUSIC for Everyone is auditioning 11 to 18-year-olds for “The Snow Queen”, directed by Dianna Nixon, on May 28 and 29. Inquiries and bookings to 6230 7190.

QUEENIE van de Zandt is the

Canberran-raised comedian who has been astonishing Sydney audiences as the Bearded Lady in “Smoke & Mirrors”. She’ll be at Teatro Vivaldi on May 26 & 27 with “Cabaret in 12 Easy Steps”. Bookings to 6257 2718.

PAINTER Judi Power Thompson’s new exhibition includes her 2011 Archibald entry portrait of Pru Goward. It’s at South Hill Gallery, 3 Garroorigang Road, Goulburn until May 29 (Friday to Sunday). Visit info@ southhillgoulburn.com.au

IMPRO Theatre ACT is hosting the Theatresports short-form competition “North v South” on May 22, May 29 and June 5 at The Street Theatre. Aficionados will be pleased to hear it is in the original fast-moving Keith Johnstone format. Bookings to 6247 1223.

NEW Musicals Australia is accepting submissions for its second round of workshops until May 31. All submissions are made via the website www. newmusicals.com.au.

Drawing the drapes

NEUTRAL colours and soft, feminine, flowing fabrics will never go out of style, says Roxanne Baker, from Yu in Manuka – and this year these investment pieces are more in focus than ever.

“Neutral colours work nicely with other colours of the season – and they don’t date, so they’re a good staple in the wardrobe,” Roxanne says.

“They’re easy to accessorise: gold jewellery, for example, always looks nice against a neutral colour.”

Combine these wearable shades with a delicately draped fabric for a look that flatters everyone, she advises. “These fabrics aren’t figure-hugging, so they don’t cling. You can still accentuate different parts of your body, and hide parts; but it’s very flattering.”

Wish Kayla maxi dress, $179.95 from Ellory Lane. All that Glitters rose belt, $24.95 from Ellory Lane. Caparrini Firenze suede Sabbia shoes, $335 from Furla.

Mela Purdie tie front swing camel jacket, $299.99 from Yu. Lupo Vison bag, $860 from Escala.

Mela Purdie Lotus Lace drop front cardi in camel, $249.99 from Yu.

The pitfalls of purple

THERE are pitfalls to wearing purple, but they’re easily avoided with a little care, says Elissa Gia, from the newly launched Ellie Cosmetics – so there’s no excuse not to wear this very in-vogue colour!

“Always combine purples with neutrals like gold, taupe and earthy, pale browns, to avoid looking overdone,” she suggests. “Team purple eye shadows with neutral lips and cheeks, and bold berry toned lips with a natural face.

“If you’re a little dark under the eyes, prepare your skin with a bit of concealer to ensure your eyes don’t look bruised. Take any redness out of eyes with eye drops, as some purple shades can highlight redness.

“For a sultry, smoky eye, choose deep purple or mauve shadows that suit your skin tone, and blend your way to the right intensity.

“For a pretty purple day look, team a soft amethyst shade with peachy/ pink blush, and a nude lip colour.

“And for a seductive night look, team purple eye colours with lightly bronzed cheeks and a pinky/nude lip.”

Keep an eye on those moles

MELANOMA is the third-most common diagnosed cancer among men and women in the ACT – yet it’s one of the few almost totally preventable cancers, says David Wild, SunSmart Services co-ordinator at the Cancer Council ACT.

“Cancer Council ACT encourages everybody to get into the habit of knowing their skin,” David says. “People should be aware of any changes to their skin including those areas of skin not normally exposed to the sun. Look for any change in shape, colour or size of a spot or mole, the development of a new spot or mole, or a ‘sore’ that will not heal.”

The most dangerous form of skin cancer – melanoma – occurs most frequently on

the trunk and upper limbs in men, and the upper and lower limbs in women, he says, “areas of the body that are generally exposed and get sunburned due to a more recreational pattern of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure.

“However, melanomas can also occur on parts of the body that are not exposed to UVR.

“Non-melanoma skin cancers, on the other hand, generally occur on those areas of the body that receive an ongoing pattern of accumulative exposure to the sun’s UVR such as the face, lips, ears, scalp, back of the hands and even the lower legs.”

Mr Wild says the majority of melanomas are first detected by patients, so it’s a good idea for us to get to know what’s normal for our skin, and talk to our GP if we have any concerns or notice one of the warning signs.

“Men and women, indoor and outdoor workers, should be diligent when it comes to knowing or recognising any changes to their skin, because skin cancer can affect anybody.

“It is really important that men, say those over 40 years old, take these precautions very seriously because when we view current melanoma statistics we see that approximately two-thirds of melanoma deaths occur in men and, of these, approximately 97 per cent occur in men over 40 years old.”

However, melanoma is the most common diagnosed cancer in Australians aged between 15 and 44, making up almost a quarter of all cancers in this age group.

“The vast majority of Australians are at risk of developing skin cancer due to predominantly fair skin type and our high UV levels, even in the winter months.

“Good sun protection habits when UV levels reach three and above start early in life and increased protection against sun exposure will prevent skin cancer at whatever age it is applied – so no excuses for parents and grandparents.”

More information from the Cancer Council Helpline on 131120

all about home&garden

When roses are red, fingers are blue... Rose garden with a history

By Kathryn Vukovljak

A LOVE of roses is the driving force behind a small and dedicated group of gardening volunteers, who think nothing of getting up early in the morning to prune, weed and deadhead the flowers of the five beautifully scented and colourful rose gardens at Old Parliament House.

“We always start on whichever bed has the sun, because it’s pretty cold at 8am,” says volunteer Fred Knowler. “We tried coming later but it’s impossible to find a car park.

“We usually work from 8am-10am, then go for a tea or a coffee afterwards together at the Pork Barrel. All the volunteers have become friends; it’s pretty much the same team that’s been doing this for a while.”

Greg Cornwell, president of the new Friends of Old Parliament House Rose Garden – a 118-strong group that’s risen from the ashes of the original Friends of the Old Parliament House Gardens, which was shut down in 2007 because of the National Capital Authority’s financial restraints – says that the maintenance of the gardens would be impossible without the volunteers.

“We’re here to keep an interest in the gardens for people who love roses,” he says. “The NCA is still maintaining the gardens with the help of horticultural staff and volunteers, and many of the original ‘Friends’ have rejoined and are supporting our fundraising activities – such as publications, concerts and events.

“It’s about maintaining the connection of the Canberra community with the gardens.

“These would be the greatest collection of roses in Australia, so we have a responsibility to the rest of the nation to protect the gardens. I’m pleased to be a part of it and to be president of the organisation.”

Fred says every volunteer at the rose gardens attends a training session to begin with, with OPH Rose Gardens team leader, Graham Evans, to give practical instruction, and the rules, regulations and responsibilities of working in the garden.

“Most of the volunteers have a basic idea of gardening, and a love of roses, but we have to work together and make sure we’re all doing the same thing,” he says.

“You get the bug for this. It’s a beautiful spot to work in.”

A collection of poetry called “There’s Something About a Rose” is for sale through the Friends of the Old Parliament House Rose Gardens, for $15 plus $3 for postage. Email friendsophrosegardens@gmail.com for more information.

I N 1933, Robert Broinowski (Secretary of the Joint House Department and Usher of the Black Rod) asked Dame Mary Hughes, Dame Enid Lyons and other wives of parliamentarians to support the Ladies Rose Garden. They agreed, and soon commenced gathering donations of one shilling and four pence per rose. Many women contributed roses for the garden, in particular Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses, which were popular as cut flowers.

When Parliament was in session, thousands of roses and other flowers were cut from the parliamentary gardens and used in Parliament House for floral displays.

Throughout the 1930s and after World War II, Members and Senators would also take boxes of flowers cut from the gardens back to their homes, once Parliament had adjourned.

The roses are arranged by colour in quadrants of white, yellow, red and pink shades. To provide a unifying effect, companion planting of perennial plants in blue shades has been placed amongst the roses. Information from www.nationalcapital.gov.au

Correa rings out its bells

gardening

cedric Bryant

RING out the bells, winter is upon us!

You must be joking?

My reply is: “Would you rather a frost overnight, usually gone by mid-morning followed by a beautiful clear sky and warm day or 38C temperatures when it is too hot to do anything?”

Have a look as you drive around at the weekend and see how many folk are in their gardens. “Ring out the bells” refers to that wonderful winter flowering Aussie shrub, the correa, starting with the rusty colours of Correa reflexa “Dusky Bells”. For indeed, as can be seen from the photograph, the flowers of the correa do resemble bells. They are a truly winterflowering shrub, drought-hardy, frosthardy and perfect for every garden with their delicate yet prolific flowers. There are correas suitable for growing in the ground or in containers. Also the correa will be Canberra’s Centenary plant in 2013.

When we owned a nursery 25 years ago, the variety of correas was limited. Today, I did my regular nursery walk, which included the Yarralumla Nursery and the Heritage Nursery, sitting side by side as they do. I started counting correas between the two and came up with an amazing list of 17 varieties, most just starting to come into flower.

The correa was named after Jose Correia da Serra (1750-1823), from Portugal, a diplomat and scientist with a special interest in botany. He fled his own country due to religious persecution and went to England where he came under the influence of Sir Joseph Banks.

book review

Here are just a few correas to tempt you. Firstly, Correa “Jezabell” with prolific red flowers from now until well into the winter. Bred by a local wholesale nursery makes it ideal for our local conditions. Growing 1m x 57cm it is loved by nectar-feeding birds. Next in line with brilliant orange flowers is C. “Autumn Blaze”, so called because of its rich autumnal flower colour, in bloom

from now until spring. This is a low-growing, spreading correa 30cm x 1.5m spread, perfect for a ground cover or rockery. Our third one is C. Alba with white flowers more open than the traditional bell shape. Considered one of the hardiest of Australian plants, growing 1.5m x 1.5m. Check out your local garden centre for correas as they come into flower.

Book’s fond look at a horticultural friend

CHRISTOPHER Lloyd has been variously described as the greatest horticultural celebrity (by Mary Keen, of the UK’s “Daily Telegraph”, in his obituary) to the “ill-tempered gardener”, a play on his book “The Well-Tempered Garden”.

Lloyd was gardening correspondent for “Country Life” magazine for an amazing 42 years until his death in 2007 aged 84. He was also the garden writer for “The Guardian” newspaper.

He did not suffer fools gladly who were not really interested in gardening. You knew you had been accepted when allowed to call him Christo. I visited him in his garden Great Dixter in East Sussex (UK) several times and also renewed acquaintances when he gave talks in Canberra.

On one occasion he incurred the wrath of one local journalist (from “The Canberra Times”) for his comments on Anzac Parade.

His legacy lives on with a delightful new book “The View from Great Dixter” (Timber Press Dist. CapricornLink H’cover, RRP $34.99) providing glimpses of “Christopher Lloyd’s Garden Legacy”. Testimonials,

amazing gardener who loved good company as much as his garden.

This week’s reminders:

If you are moving shrubs do not cut back too hard, moving is stressful enough.

It is preferable to dig weeds out than the overuse of glyphosate herbicide.

If perennials are now in too much shade it is time to move them into a sunny spot.

Move indoor plants away from heating ducts or near draughty windows.

Plant Yates winter lettuce “Triumph Iceberg”.

Let the sun shine in

BRINGING in as much natural light to the home can enhance well-being and boost energy levels, according to Mark Peall, general manager of Solatube Australia.

“Our products are not skylights,” he says. “They use advanced optics to significantly improve the way daylight is harnessed, and the light output is incredible, providing as much light as you would expect from a skylight many times its size.”

Mark says the tubes are an inexpensive, leak-proof, energyefficient solution for bringing the benefits of natural lighting

into a home or just about any interior space.

“Tubular Daylighting Devices cost considerably less than other daylighting options, such as windows and skylights, including both product and installation costs,” he says.

“They require no structural reframing, tunneling, drywalling or painting. A professional can install them in less than two hours and most DIY-ers could finish the project in one day.

“The devices allow you to switch off lights during the day, which provides savings on energy bills and also reduces environmental pollution,” says Mark.

Ben and Danielle Potter, of Canberra Natural Lighting and Ventilation, are the new local Solatube dealers.

Visit www.solatube.com.au or call 6280 9901

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