CityNews 190207

TRUDY’S GARDEN OF

EX-GOVERNMENT FURNITURE

NEWS / gift of life walk

Gift of kidney gives Kim a new lease of life

By Kate MEIKLE

AFTER 10 years of renal dialysis, Kim Wilesmith took a longawaited phone call in the middle of the night from the transplant co-ordinator at Westmead Hospital in Sydney.

A compatible kidney had been do nated.

“The first thing I said was ‘are you serious?’ I cried and felt so awestruck,” says 52-year-old Kim, of Kambah. She recalls her excitement when her 24-year-old daughter, Renee woke up to hear the news and helped her to pack a bag, alerting family and friends and driving together to Sydney at three o’clock in the morning.

They were joined at the hospital by her 28-year-old son, Adrian, later that day.

The June operation took almost nine hours and Kim’s recovery took several weeks. She said she was humbled by the love and support of her children, family and friends during that time.

“It was a miracle. I came home after three weeks and still couldn’t quite believe what had happened. I didn’t realise how unwell I was until after my

transplant. I was so tired before but now I have so much time and energy,” she says.

She’ll be applying some of that ener-

gy to taking part in the annual Gift of Life’s DonateLife Walk on Wednesday, February 13, which is again expected to see up to 5000 participants walking

Since 1993: Volume 25, Number 4

Arts & Entertainment 15-17

Cinema 17

Crossword 18

Garden 22-23

Horoscopes 18

Letters 12

News 3-13

Sport 10

Wine 16

Yesterdays 6 Ph

6189 0777

02 6189 0778 9b/189 Flemington Rd, Mitchell 2911

Ian Meikle, 9b/189 Flemington Road, Mitchell. Cover: Trudy Yogini in her Ainslie garden. Photo: Holly Treadaway. Story Page 22.

Managing Director: James Anderson, 0404 077605, james@citynews.com.au

Director: Kate Meikle, kate@citynews.com.au

Senior advertising account executive: David Cusack, 0435 380656

Advertising account executives: Daniel Clayton, 0451 232129; Damien Klemke, 0439 139001

Editor: Ian Meikle, editor@citynews.com.au

Assistant editor: Danielle Nohra, danielle@citynews.com.au

Journalist: Kathryn Vukovljak, kathryn@citynews.com.au

Arts editor: Helen Musa, 0400 043764, helen@citynews.com.au

Production manager / graphic design: Janet Ewen

Graphic designer: Karl Speller

Proof reader: Glenda Anderson

Accounts manager: Bethany Freeman-Chandler accounts@citynews.com.au

around Lake Burley Griffin.

Kim was born with renal reflux and received a kidney transplant from her mother in 2000. After complications, the kidney failed in 2008 and Kim had been on the transplant list, waiting for a suitable match and having overnight dialysis on a machine at her home.

While Kim says she continued to work full time as a public servant and enjoy her social and family life, having to be on dialysis for 10 hours every second night took up a lot of time and

She says she used to call the dialysis machine “my boyfriend”.

“I tried to always make the best out of a bad situation, but everything I did I had to think about dialysis and work

“Just like you would consult a boyfriend on plans, my first thought was

Now in its 13th year, Gift of Life president David O’Leary says the lake walk is to increase awareness and encourage people to sign up to the Australian Organ Donation Register.

In 2018, according to the organ and tissue authority’s recent report, more Canberrans said “yes” to organ donation than ever before, with 21 people from the ACT donating their organs and giving the gift of life to 67 people.

He says there have been significant increases in numbers of people prepared to donate and registrations have gone up 50 per cent since the government started the Donate Life program in 2008.

“At the moment, the consent rate is at 60 per cent but we would like it to be at 70-75 per cent. It is possible but it doesn’t happen without registration,” he says.

David says that registration is important so families are made aware of their loved one’s wishes to donate their organs.

“In cases where people have registered and they are suitable donors, 90 per cent of cases proceed in organ donation,” says David.

Kim encourages everyone to join the Australian Organ Donation Register.

“The gift of organ donation is like no other you will ever give. It is a miraculous, life-changing gift,” she says.

David says progress has been made over recent years, but with 1400 people at any one time waiting on the national transplant list, more can be done to make sure people register their intention to become an organ donor, should they be in the situation to become one.

Gift of Life’s DonateLife Walk, Wednesday, February 13, starting from Regatta Point at 7am. Register at giftoflife.asn.au Register consent to be an organ or tissue donor at donatelife.gov.au

WHEN IT MATTERS

DON’T MISS THESE FEATURED EVENTS

CHIEF MINISTER’S CONCERT

TueSday 19 March, 11am and 1pm

Join the Band of the Royal Military College for an unforgettable show.

Albert Hall, Commonwealth Ave, Yarralumla. ENTRY BY GOLD COIN DONATION

Bookings via www. cmc19.eventbrite.com.au or 6282 37677

ACT SENIORS WEEK EXPO

ThursDAY 21 March,10am-3pm

One big day – entertainment and info on retirement, aged care, community and government services, legal, finance, travel and more!

Exhibition Park in Canberra. ENTRY BY GOLD COIN DONATION

Positive Ageing Awards

Friday 22 March, 2:30pm

Recognise and celebrate the groups and individuals that contribute to the older Canberra community.

Weston Ck Labor Club, Teesdale Cl, Stirling.

Bookings required - call 6282 3777

Biker Jeremy sees a looming bikie massacre

THE growing number of outlaw motorcycle gangs in the ACT (five at last count) could lead to a Milperrastyle massacre, according to the shadow attorney-general.

Seven people died and 28 were injured in the infamous 1984 shoot-out, when rival motorcycle gang members clashed at Milperra in south-west Sydney. When asked on local radio if a similar shoot-out could erupt here Jeremy Hanson said “it’s only a matter of time”. The Liberal frontbencher, himself the proud owner of a legendary Triumph Bonneville motorcycle, first attempted to introduce anti-consorting laws almost a decade ago and says legislation is the only way to “fight bikies and curb criminal activity and violent behaviour now existing in Canberra’s suburbs”.

THE Canberra Libs kicked off the year with a political stunt guaranteed to attract attention. Leader Alistair Coe and fellow MLA Mark Parton hope to get traction by bashing big oil companies and spruiking a real-time, petrol-pricing scanning system. Posting: “We’re sick of being ripped off at the petrol pump” on Twitter, accompanied by a catchy video, the pair knows full well in a small jurisdiction such as ours they have no hope of making a difference to petrol prices. However, they do know the value of the sizzle over the sausage.

ALMOST 20 years ago an impressive sounding petrol summit, hosted by the then member for Port Macquarie Robert Oakeshott , made zero difference to the “highway robbery” imposed on motorists. It was a time when service stations were forced to add space to their signs to accommodate prices leaping into the new

Liberal Jeremy Hanson astride his Triumph Bonneville… keen to “fight bikies and curb criminal activity and violent behaviour now existing in Canberra’s suburbs”.

stratosphere of 100.1 from 99.9 and Oakeshott invited all stakeholders to town for a talkfest. The same town was flogging fuel at $161.9 a month ago.

AND the man who awkwardly and needlessly teased a nation for 17 excruciating minutes in 2010 before backing Julia Gillard’s minority government, hopes

to head back to Canberra. Oakeshott is contesting the NSW Mid North Coast seat of Cowper, a safe coalition seat for decades.

THE annual quarrel over an acceptable date and name for Australia Day rages on but a respected Bundjalung elder says there will come a time soon when it will be known as Healing Day. Visiting the tent embassy for the Invasion Day rally, Lewis Walker from the mid-north coast town of Tabulam says a day of remembrance is a day that can change “this traumatised day into a healing of the people and the land”.

FORMER Canberra public servant Ian De Landelles feels cheated after a racehorse in which he has a share was beaten by a horse trained by recently charged trainer Darren Weir. De Landelles, married to former Labor MLA Mary Porter, says: “Last Friday (January 25) I shook hands with Darren Weir on Whispering Brook beating our Fell Swoop in a Group 2 at Moonee Valley. Can’t help feeling our horse and trainer Matt Dale have been robbed”

CANBERRANS’ love of saving a condemned tree is legendary. On May 27, 2005, as the nation was transfixed by broadcasts of drug mule Schapelle Corby being sentenced to 20 years by the Denpasar District Court, Canberra ABC radio was covering a protest to save a condemned tree in Braddon. Now inner-south citizens are alleging “skullduggery” around a “sick” tree in Manuka. The 18-metre plane tree’s health is at the centre of a dispute between locals and the Capitol Theatre’s owner who wants the tree in Franklin Street felled to make way for a hotel development.

TUITION BY KUMON

60 YEARS OF PROVEN RESULTS

When Tom first started to attend Kumon classes he was in year 5 at school. He was two years behind his peers according to his parents. They were in desperate need of help. Soon after their Kumon Parent Orientation where Tom was assessed, a personalised study plan was designed for him. The following week, he began his daily routine either practising what he had learnt the previous day or tackling the next concept. Every day was bringing him closer to his grade level. Within one year Tom was ahead of his class.

CANBERRA is not known for its love of country music but may have played a small part in the rise of the genre’s newest star. Last September alt American artist Andrew Swift performed on Stage 88 at Floriade to fewer than 50 people. Swift now has two golden guitars including the 2019 CMA New Talent of the Year title.

AND a correction to last week’s column: Kay Malone is the proud handler of champion Canberra obedience dog Jamie.

“The structure and expectations of Kumon established great time management skills for Tom. It gave him back his self-confidence that almost disappeared three years ago”, his mother said. Tom finished Year 6 ranked in the top three students in his class.

There are four Kumon Education Centres in Canberra. They have collectively helped thousands of students, like Tom, improve their Maths and English skills and in turn their school results. Kumon achieves this by assigning carefully prepared work that is designed in a way to help students learn to solve problems on their own. The Kumon Instructor guides, instructs and encourages students to become confident and capable learners.

Goodbye war, hello to flu ‘holocaust’

THE patient writhed fitfully in the narrow bed of the primitive if picturesque Queanbeyan District Hospital of 1861 with its two wards and no electricity.

As she retched up a frothy, bloody mucus, long-serving local doctor Patrick Blackall had done all he could. Admitted only five days earlier, 45-year-old Marion Dunlop was displaying symptoms of a respiratory infection, but her condition was deteriorating rapidly.

A fever, rasping cough and a sharp headache, to be expected in the circumstances. So, too, the onset of enervating aches and nausea. More concerning: delirium, black spots blooming on the cheeks and the lips taking on a bruised hue. Indications of literally drowning in her own bodily fluids.

It was January 13, 1919, and the war they said would end at Christmas four years before had reached the climax of its catastrophic throes just two months earlier.

Millions from around the globe were dead and as those left made their way back to landscapes and populations forever scarred, on their heels was a fresh terror that would wreak even greater carnage than all just witnessed.

Marion’s death notice declared she died of double pneumonia. Her family though, still living in the Canberra region, have long held the culprit to be the infamous Spanish Flu that a century ago potentially claimed as many as six times the lives lost to the Great War.

The Influenza Pandemic of 191819 came to be labelled a “medical holocaust”; a serial killer on an unimagined scale that couldn’t be seen, let alone escaped. It remains the most lethal and mysterious incarnations of the disease ever to plague humankind, just one unusual aspect, its effect on the young and healthy.

One hundred years on, where it came from and when, the level of virulence of this strain, and the full scale of its impact continue to mystify: all seen in the singular instance of a middle-aged woman’s untimely death in a place far removed from the potential “Ground Zero” of the battlefields of Europe.

The beginning of 1918 saw the first of three “waves”, but to the chagrin of the kingdom for which it was named, it

Kansas army camp, all have been considered suspects in inflicting it on the world. There’s also a theory it was first seen in a frontline French hospital as early as 1916. Certainly it was the sheer volume of troop movements that resulted in its unprecedented spread.

Like something out of a sciencefiction novel or an apocalyptic TV series, in less than a year, from the largest cities to the most remote hamlets, hundreds of millions were infected and tens of millions died, often very quickly and quite painfully: “One of the most striking of the complications was haemorrhage from mucous membranes, especially from the nose, stomach, and intestine. Bleeding from the ears and… haemorrhages in the skin also occurred.”

However, one of the most touted inaccuracies is the 50 million victims of the pandemic (it can vary from 20 million to as high as 100 million). In Australia, it’s generally stated between 12,000 and 15,000 succumbed. The actual number worldwide can never be known with certainty, and for a variety of reasons, including its murky origins.

In the early stages, the disease was also both regularly misdiagnosed –

war effort or negatively affect morale. Accordingly, the severity remained unacknowledged or unknown in many afflicted areas until undertakers literally began to run out of coffins.

By October, 1918, the most severe stage of the outbreak, Australia had quarantined itself. Its first “detected” case was reported just three days before Marion’s death – a soldier in Melbourne. Nonetheless, there were opportunities for it to have arrived in the antipodes earlier, particularly with returning wounded servicemen.

As late as March, 1919, “The Queanbeyan Age” was still questioning the exact nature of the situation and how to deal with it: “This obvious danger seems to have been entirely lost sight of through hysterical dread of a hypothetical ‘germ’ which may exist or not exist, but which, if it did exist, would have every opportunity of making its way through the [protective] masks.”

Perhaps the most compelling evidence in support of the idea its

poems of World War I, “In Flanders Fields”. On January 28, 1918, he died in France – not combat, but pneumonia. Today, virologists say this most certainly was a result of the Spanish Flu. Given all of these factors, along with many still unanswered questions, could Marion, daughter of John and Jane Dunlop, of Bungendore, have indeed fallen victim to the “plague of the Spanish Lady” before the Australian experience became clear? If so, how many others may have suffered a similarly undocumented fate?

For more on the regional and wider aspects of this mystery plague, see anoverallview.wixsite.com/blog

Reader JENNIFER HOLMES,

of Weston, is grumpy about dogs and cyclists.

I DO a timed walk in the morning on the same path that I have been using since 2010. It may not be perceptible but I am walking against the clock. I encounter many walkers, with or without dogs, and many cyclists. Many of the cyclists think it’s sissy to have a bell and ring it before they overtake me from behind.

Sometimes I have been scared out of my wits. If they do ring their bell, I acknowledge it by raising my hand, finger pointing up (not the rude sign). I have mentioned this before but nothing much has changed. At other times, dogs and puppies which are not on a leash (and in this section of the path they are permitted to be off the leash), come bounding towards me for a pat.

I have no intention of stopping and patting them and often the dog or pup’s legs get entangled with mine as I attempt to maintain pace. This morning a pup scratched my legs with its claws but fortunately, no blood was shed. I really resent the way many dogs are not receiving education. They should be trained to be polite and respect people. At least their handlers should teach them how. Contrary to this, in some cases pups and dogs are actually encouraged to jump up! Don’t get me wrong. I like patting dogs, but I just have a job to do on my walk.

Grumpy is an occasional column dedicated to things that get up your nose. Readers are invited to vent (no more than 300 words, please) at editor@ citynews.com.au

Upselling hearing loss: retail hearing aids

Recently, I was approached by a patient looking for a second opinion. The week prior she had been to a retail hearing aid store in her local shopping centre, hoping to get some advice regarding her hearing loss. As a pensioner, she should have been able to claim free hearing aids as part of the Australian Government’s hearing loss scheme under the Office of Hearing Services, but when she inquired about the program she was told by the salesperson that the governmentissued hearing aids were of poor quality and inadequate for her needs.

”We need to speak out and about what is going on in the hearing aid industry if we want change.”

– Dr Vass

The salesperson insisted what she needed was one of their more expensive hearing aids, priced at over $7,000 for a pair. Anxious about not being able to afford what seemed to be a necessity, she reached out to a friend who suggested she make an appointment with me for a second opinion.

After consulting with the patient and looking over her results, it became

clear to me that the assessment from the shopping centre was completely wrong. The patient had had surgery on one ear 20 years ago which had resulted in worse hearing loss in that ear and not the other. Yet the “hearing test” from the shopping centre showed that her hearing was equal in both ears. Was this because the tester was incompetent or the equipment was faulty? Or was it just an attempt to cover up a medical condition that would have required the patient to be seen by a doctor before hearing aids could even be considered for her? It is likely we’ll never know the answer, but any of the above explanations would be unacceptable.

We need to speak out and about what is going on in the hearing aid industry if we want change. Anyone who has a similar story can report it to the ACCC.

If you would like to have a complimentary second opinion with Dr Vass please phone 02 6282 2717 to make an appointment.

Adam’s back in the saddle to fight cancer

By Kathryn VUKOVLJAK

ADAM Visser is starting conversations about early testing for prostate cancer.

Following his own diagnosis in May, the 67-yearold created an initiative called Ask Your Father to encourage men to get checked, and has been ap proaching people while on his daily walks and cycle rides around Lake Burley Griffin.

“I thought, I’m seeing all these old guys while I’m out. So I started to go up to them and tell them my story, and ask them, ‘are you getting yours checked?,” Adam says.

“People think prostate cancer is an old-man’s disease but it’s not always the case. We should be get ting checked from 50 up, or younger if there’s cancer in the family.

“Ask Your Father is about raising awareness of early warnings and getting checks done.”

Adam wants everyone to know about the PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test that can be an early detector of the disease.

“In chatting to people I’ve found that many men are all over it but there are just as many who haven’t been checked,” he says.

“I’ve had a mainly positive response, there’s only been about four people who haven’t wanted to talk to me and they’ve had their reasons, which they’ve been polite about!

“I give people a printed flyer with a QR code link ing to information and ask them to look at the Face book page and share with friends. The further it goes the more people we can reach.”

Adam says the PSA test is controversial because

was when he started approaching people.

The idea for Ask Your Father came when he chatted to a man he thought was in his target age range of 50-65, who was actually under 30.

“He had early grey hair so he was a bit put off by my assumption!” says Adam.

“But then I asked how old his father was, and I got the idea to get younger people to ask their fathers, uncles and brothers if they’re getting checked.”

Adam was diagnosed with prostate cancer in May and had a prostatectomy in August.

“I had no symptoms at all so it was a shock,” he says.

“I had a PSA done in 2010 when I was 59, as part of a regular blood test and it came back on the high end of normal. I had bloods done when I was 62 and 63, neither of which included the PSA, and I had just assumed it was on there.”

When Adam had a routine blood test earlier this year, he asked for the PSA to be included and it came back with a high score of 10.5.

Scans then showed an “anomaly”, which turned out to be a large and aggressive tumour and he was booked in for surgery immediately.

Adam says he now needs further checks to see if the cancer has been successfully removed or if he’ll need more treatment.

Ask Your Father is a way of channelling his energy into something positive. He reckons he’s spoken to more than 500 people so far and is trying to get to 13,500, which was the cost of his surgery.

“I’m trepidatious about what’s next, of course,” he

“Ultimately, I’m trying to help people catch this earlier so they can avoid my situation.”

Visit the Ask Your Father Facebook page at facebook.com/prostateworrier/

A word from Zoya

YOUNG author Zoya Patel is the guest speaker at the Soroptimist International (SI) ACT and Monaro celebration of International Women’s Day, at The Deck, Regatta Point, in Commonwealth Park on Friday, March 8. In her book “No Country Woman”, Patel gives voice to her thoughts about growing up in Australia with an Indian-Fijian background. Soroptimist International is a politically independent, global women’s group working to improve the lives and status of women and girls through education, empowerment or enabling opportunities. Book at eventbrite.com.au until February 21. Tickets are $50.

Star cyclist speaks

BLIND Paralympic cyclist Lindy Hou will speak to the ladies of the Tuggeranong Evening VIEW Club at their next dinner meeting at the Town Centre Vikings, Greenway, on Wednesday, February 27. Visitors welcome. The cost is $27 and enquiries to 6291 7716 or tuggeven@gmail.com

Talking history

HISTORIAN and author Dr. Peter Dowling will talk to the ladies of the Gungahlin Day VIEW Club at their lunch meeting in Nicholls on February 27. Lunch cost, $35, visitors are welcome and bookings to 6262 2556 before 9pm, Sunday, February 24.

Local greats who guide the new stars

By Tim Gavel

SPEND more than 10 minutes talking to former Canberra tennis player Alun Jones and local hockey legend Glenn Turner and you get the impression they derive as much pleasure from the success of those in their charge as was the case when they were at the peak as players in their chosen sports.

Alun retired from the pro-tennis circuit in 2008 at the age of 28 after achieving a career-high ranking of 123 in the world while Glenn played more than 120 games for the Austral ian men’s hockey team including two Olympic Games.

Since retiring from full-time sport both have thrown themselves into guiding the next generation. Alun is employed by Tennis Australia as a talent manager working with young players aged 15 and below. Glenn oper ates the gym at the Lyneham Hockey Centre coupled with establishing coaching academies across the ACT and southern NSW.

Glenn says he has never been busier and he is still a hockey player with the Goulburn team in the local competition.

“The gym in Canberra is going really well and what I am passionate about is helping young hockey players trying to achieve their dreams,” he says.

“I think there is a bit of a gap in hockey when you compare it to other sports, so that is where the academy comes in.”

He says he knew, in 2016, it was time to step back and focus on the next part of his life.

“After the Rio Olympics I got the call that they were going with the young guys, which was probably the perfect time for me as well,” he says.

“I actually had thought after the 2012 London Olympics that I would hang up the boots but I kept playing. I’m happy. I don’t have to train six or seven days a week.”

He says that as a player you are always chasing the next challenge with little time to reflect.

Alun says he knew when he retired from playing in 2008 that he wanted to coach younger players.

“In my final year I was putting plans in place to set up an academy in Canberra, so I did plan it out and it’s something that I knew I wanted to do,” he says.

“We are fortunate in Canberra to have a great facility at Lyneham and we have got plenty of young talent coming through.”

Given they have encountered the highs and lows of sport, both are ideal to guide the next generation.

Glenn says he now looks at players he is playing against locally in a different way. In the past they were his rivals.

“I look at it differently, I look at players and I think I could help them with aspects of their game,” he says.

“I am still competitive but I definitely have a different approach. I play centrehalf forward and so I am spot marked

every week of the competition, which is good and presents its own challenges.”

In the case of Alun, he can speak from experience about the joys of travel on the circuit.

“When I stopped playing it was because of the travel and it got to the point where I had just had enough, I was happy to stay in one spot for a while,” he says.

“It is not easy out there that’s for sure. It’s an individual sport, it’s quite lonely. In the top ranks players form a support team around them so they have always got company. When I was playing I wasn’t at a stage where I could afford to have a support team around me.”

Helping young players achieve their goals presents its own challenges and it is different for each sport.

Tennis has a history of players and

parents struggling with unreasonable expectations. It is something as a coach of high-achieving players in the 15 and under age group that Alun deals with on a regular basis.

“Constantly I’m dealing with players 15 years and under, some of these players are 10 or 11 years of age and they have got such a long journey in front of them,” he says.

“So the big message I tell the parents is they have to be patient and it’s a matter of ticking off the boxes and not getting too far ahead of themselves and trying to put in quality sessions each day.”

Having met up with both Alun and Glenn many times over the years as players and now mentors and coaches, I can clearly see that Canberra is richer for having them still involved in sport.

Allan Ewing.

Former bishop among Friends

THE former Bishop of Bunbury, the reverend Allan Ewing, will argue for an approach to life where all difference needs to be avoided, whether of nation, ethnicity, political view, gender or religion, in his presentation “The Church’s One Foundation” at the Friends of St John’s service, on Sunday, February 10. Mr Ewing will give particular focus to his ministry as rector of St John’s (1996-2004) and subsequently assistant bishop of Canberra Goulburn. The 11.15am choral service at St John’s, 45 Constitution Avenue, Reid, is followed by lunch. All welcome.

New northside market

A NEW northside, Saturday farmers’ market will open at Thoroughbred Park, 9.30am-4.30pm, from February 16. The Northside Family Farmers Market is a sister to the Southside Farmers Market and organisers say it will feature a wide range of growers and producers, artisan bakers and coffee brewers.

Walking the talk

A FAMILY-friendly walk across Kings Avenue Bridge will celebrate International Mother Language Day and the many languages and cultures of the ACT area. Participants are urged to wear something traditional or colourful. There will be songs from around the world at the National Carillon. The walk starts at the International Flags Display behind Questacon, 11am, Sunday, February 24. Bring a picnic for the end of the walk in King’s Park. More details at imlm.21feb@ gmail.com or 0411 031942.

THE GADFLY / Gilmore

What the bloody hell is he thinking?

THE real Scott Morrison peeped out from behind his “goofy dad” façade last month and the punters didn’t like it one bit.

His mad idea to parachute Warren Mundine into Gilmore as the Liberal Party’s candidate in the Federal elec tion over the locally endorsed Grant Schultz was a “captain’s call” worthy of Tony Abbott at his most idiosyncratic.

In fact Tony was the only Liberal on the day to publicly support it!

But in Morrison’s case it only confirmed the judgement his board of directors made when he headed the Austral ian Tourist Commission.

“No one can work with him,” they declared. “He just won’t listen.”

His personal modus operandi then was “take charge” and nothing, it seems, has changed except the ad-man’s mask behind which he has played the political game.

And before we get all gooey about his choosing an Aboriginal chap as his preferred candidate, let’s remind ourselves that in the same week the Prime Minister proudly announced the gift of $6.7 million towards a roundAustralia voyage of Cook’s “Endeavour” to celebrate his claim of the entire east coast of “New Holland” for the British crown, thus setting in train the events that would devastate Mr Mundine’s indigenous compatriots and leave a permanent scar on the face of modern Australia. Not the action, you might think, of a sensitive supporter of the Aboriginal cause.

However, he could hardly have found a more willing pick than Mr Mundine. This is the same Warren Mundine who sought nomination for a seat by the Labor Party and when that was unsuccessful flirted with the right-wing rump, the Liberal Democrats in quest of a place in the Senate. Indeed, when tapped by Morrison for

PM Scott Morrison. Cartoon: Paul Dorin

member of the Liberal Party. His claim to have ancestral links to the south coast seat that runs from Kiama to Tuross might well be true.

But he has shown so little interest in the area that only after the Morrison pick did he start looking for a residence anywhere in the Eurobodalla Shire. In fact, as a successful businessman, he says he bought a place on the same day he began his search.

It’s not as though Gilmore is one of those safe seats that could afford to drop a couple of points to bring a star candidate into the parliament. The incumbent, Ann Sudmalis, held it on a margin of only 1.6 per cent. And with Grant Schultz threatening to run as an independent and the Nationals in search of a woman to carry their tattered flag, the Morrison intervention makes no sense at any level. Labor leader Bill Shorten must be wondering what in blazes he did to earn such luck!

Little wonder that Liberal officeholders in the area showed their disgust by resigning from the party. And with them goes many of the foot soldiers who knock on doors, put up signs and man the booths on polling day. In fact, the way things are going, as Morrison surveys the Liberal voting queues on election day, perhaps he’ll recall an earlier triumph of his “take charge” persona with that immortal campaign phrase: “Where the bloody hell are you?”

robert@robertmacklin.com

CANBERRA MATTERS / Dickson development

How does the planning minister keep his job?

UNDER our systems of government when things go seriously wrong and continue to unnecessarily cost the taxpayer heaps, the relevant minister should step aside or resign. For reasons unknown to anyone outside the ACT government, ACT ministers do not follow this protocol.

The latest case concerns the disgraceful, long-running mess created by planning ministers and bureaucrats about the establishment of a second supermarket in Dickson. This mess is typical of how business is carried out under this planning minister.

The latest chapter was the announcement of a development application (DA) for a revised design for the supermarket and apartment complex on the carpark next to Woolworths in Dickson.

This recent DA has not surfaced because of sensible actions by the government. It was residents who thought that it was a waste of time and money for any further court

The disgraceful, long-running mess around the establishment of a second supermarket in Dickson is typical of how business is carried out under this planning minister.

actions, who went to see the developers and then negotiated a way forward – without lawyers.

The people who have caused this decade-long mess include the ACT planning minister and planning bureaucrats who consistently fail to properly assess such DAs, agencies who could assist such as the City Renewal Authority who pointed fingers at the planning directorate, and let’s not forget the chief minister and his formerly compliant Land Development Authority.

When the ACT’s Administrative Appeals Tribunal handed down its mid-2018 damning report on how the former supermarket DA had breached a huge number of the government’s own rules, it should have been shockingly clear to the planning minister that something was seriously wrong with how DAs are handled.

We heard nothing along the lines of how they were shocked. Instead, this

was taken as normal and that it would be business as usual. This has since been confirmed when residents raised the issue of how often DAs were being approved despite the very obvious non-compliance. The response was that it is up to residents to take their challenges to the appeals tribunal.

In the case of the Dickson supermarket appeal, this meant that having failed to properly assess the previous DA, the government then doubled down to defend its questionable approval by throwing hundreds of thousands of ratepayers’ dollars at the exercise. This mean-spirited action meant that others had to allocate similar resources through legal fees or, in the case of residents, an extraordinary amount of time and energy to slog painfully through the complex legal processes. A big public thanks to the few who did that work.

There’s a heap more that went wrong with this significant DA. Sadly for residents who care about the city, so many of these faults continue to be played out through the processes for other DAs.

There are also issues that the chief

minister and planning minister are neglecting and for which they deserve to be shown the door. When this development goes ahead it will take over a main parking area. Knowing the effect it will have on the present shops, the government is doing nothing to prepare for this. Nothing.

Given that within the planning directorate there are mountains of learned reports on climate change, heat islands, urban health, green spaces, green infrastructure etcetera, what has this Greens/Labor government done to mitigate the flow-on effects of removing another 70 trees from the area. Nothing. And I could go on but there’s a word limit here.

Given the extraordinary costs to the Canberra ratepayer caused by the

LETTERS

Jewel in the crown

IT’S not only the ACT government playing the role of “poacher and gamekeeper” for the “Ginninderry urban development” (CN, December 20) but it also applies to those cross-border entities, the Yass Valley Council and NSW government.

The Ginninderra Gorge and its Falls are in NSW and await proper recognition from local jurisdictions; the whole area including the adjacent Murrumbidgee Gorge, must be set aside as a national park for the fast-growing population of ACT and region; it is a place of unique beauty, unique (and endangered) flora and fauna, as well as providing vital recreational and tourist needs.

serious mismanagement of so many aspects of the planning regimes, how is it that Planning Minister Mick Gentleman and Chief Minister and former Urban Renewal Minister Andrew Barr keep their well-paid jobs?

The solution is to see off those responsible and to reallocate the equivalent of funds previously used for lawyers and appeals to employ new, expert planning staff to deal with DAs including to seek through transparent negotiations solutions on any objections.

Paul Costigan is an independent commentator and consultant on the visual arts, photography, urban design, environmental issues and everyday matters.

to editor@citynews.com.au

Moreover, the area includes numerous Aboriginal heritage sites, eg the Upper Ginninderra Falls is the classified ceremonial area. Sadly, quarrying continues alongside, together with proposals for urban subdivision!

It is time, indeed, for both the ACT and NSW governments to organise funding and legislation for a national park, covering both sides of these two grand gorges and their waterfalls. They must certainly say “NO” to the current push for the area’s rural urban rezoning in one of ACT/NSW’s bushfire-prone locations.

Dr Chris Watson, Latham

Everyone should have a say

COLUMNISTS Paul Costigan and Michael Moore (CN, December 13) both opine about how planning (for a city of the future we want to live in) is not being delivered by our current planning system and government. The Canberra Alliance for Participatory Democracy has been hearing the same thing for over two years now.

How to “change the culture” (Costigan) and develop a “change in approach” (Moore) we think can be achieved by institutionalising more robust ways to bring citizen experience and knowledge into the planning process.

One element of this is to expand the resources for and build the capacity of the Community Councils and Residents ’ Associations who could be one avenue for this input.

Citizen consultations without predetermined outcomes and adequately facilitated and resourced is another. There are more.

The point is that we all live here and so we all should be able to have a say in what this place is going to be like for the next century.

Peter Tait, Canberra Alliance for Participatory Democracy

Mike’s lovely salute to Missy

MIKE Welsh’s summer edition column was one for us dog lovers (“Months on, we’re all still missing Missy Higgins”, CN, January 3). I laughed at the story of why dogs sniff each other’s bums, but was sorry to hear of his loss of rescue dog, Missy Higgins. A lovely obituary honouring her.

Cathleen Timbs, Latham Let loose to: editor@citynews.com.au or write to the editor at: 9b / 189 Flemington Road, Mitchell 2911 Write to us

find us on

Hands on hips, here comes the boss baby

Watching a one-year-old attempt to dress herself is excruciating, made worse by the fact that if I even touched the clothes or tried to assist she would scream, take off the clothes and start all over again.

“I’M the boss,” shouted my two-yearold daughter, as she put her hands on her hips and stomped her feet, mid-tantrum.

Ah, oh. Can someone tell me exactly how did the youngest person in the house end up being our ruler? Am I not meant to be the boss?

When my second child, a beautiful miracle of a baby girl, came into the world she was such a perfect newborn. I felt euphoric, kept humming Stevie Wonder’s 1976 hit single “Isn’t She Lovely” and wondered if I had lucked out and somehow I was being rewarded by the universe with a much-mythologised but elusive “unicorn” baby this time (see right for definition).

But now it seems to me that the boss

baby was just storing up her energies in those first few weeks to lull me into a false place of security before the fun and games really started.

Baby boss never wanted to be a baby. Her babyhood was fleeting as she raced through the milestones. In a blink of an eye she was a miniature person, walking confidently around and talking at her first birthday. No more highchairs, prams weren’t too far behind, then came the insisting that she dress herself. Watching a one-year-old attempt to dress herself is excruciating, made worse by the fact that if I even touched the clothes or tried to assist she would scream, take off the clothes and start all over again.

“I do it myself,” was her first full sentence at about 18 months when she decided she wanted to take a shower on her own rather than have a bath.

People give me knowing smiles, they laugh at the anecdotes but their

KATE MEIKLE

faces start to wince as I describe the full impact of the baby boss’ tyranny. How I had to carry her into day care screaming as she decided at the tender age of two that she would like to buckle up her own seatbelt. “I do it myself!” she screamed. How I put her in time out in the corner of the shopping centre and her screams

Stay in touch with the names making news on Sundays from 10am as 2CC and “CityNews” present Canberra’s only local weekend news and current affairs program. It’s a revolving panel show that brings to the microphone great “CityNews” commentators and 2CC personalities.

Be part of the conversation and call 6255 1206 between 10am and noon.

echoed far and wide. Kind folks came past, tried to cajole and distract her but she wouldn’t have a bar of that. She never lets things go or forgets.

“Whoa, she’ll be a great future leader someday,” people sweetly say to me. “She’s adorable but it’s clear she’s got you all wrapped around her little finger,” my colleague told me. “You

Definition of the Unicorn Baby

• Sleeps well. All night long, leaving parents refreshed and energised.

• Seamlessly fits into family life, is easy-going, adaptable and never cries for no reason.

• Enjoys long naps in the pram while mum shops, exercises and chats on the phone with friends. Will happily be passed around to others for cuddles and smiles.

• Fictitious character, invented by desperately exhausted mums!

were never like this,” says my mum. I admire my daughter’s strength and determination. May it serve her well and I can’t wait to see where this tenacious little girl goes in her life. Nothing will stand in her way. But right now it’s time that baby boss relinquishes her power. Mummy needs to lead the family. Gulp. Wish me luck!

safe and stylish, Acorn Stairlifts give people the chance to enjoy their own homes once again.

For straight or curved staircases

Indoor and outdoor lifts

Fast installation

Things slow down in China for a very good reason

By DAVID WEI, of Canberra’s English-

STAR AM

IS the US trade war against China starting to affect the Chinese economy?

This week China is showing many signs of an economic downturn. Workers in the vast factories around China that fuelled the export and economy are off work for almost one month. Lots of shops and markets are closed. The prices for many living essentials have soared. Hundreds of millions of people are abandoning the big cities and rushing to the countryside. Once jammed and crowded roads in the major cities are becoming easy to pass through. People have stopped working and are staying home.

Is that an economic recession? I doubt it. It is called the Chinese New Year!

I was asked once about the differences between the Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival and Lunar New Year. In a sense, they have very similar meaning to Chinese. The lunar calendar is the

traditional Chinese calendar based on the complete cycles of phases of the moon. Basically, the Chinese New Year is the start of a new lunar year. And because that is the time when the early spring is starting in China, people also call the celebration the Spring Festival.

That is why the Chinese New Year is different each year because the moon cycle is changing year by year.

Between the end of January and the end of February the almost invisible slender crescent moon marks the start of Lunar New Year.

The preparation for the celebrations starts around two weeks before the New Year and lasts for 15 days until the full moon arrives. It traditionally concludes with the lighting of Chinese lanterns.

Among other traditions one of the most significant things to the Chinese is family reunions. People gather with family elders, host family feasts, and formally meet and greet neighbours and friends during this period. This is the most important family time in China and people travel thousands of kilometres and spend days on the roads for sometimes short but precise reunions.

During the reunions people prepare the best food for the family and there are so many fairytales and best wishes going along with the special food.

In the past, some of the delicacies are only prepared for the Spring Festival and people do not leave their home town. But nowadays the Chinese New Year is

the peak tourism time for lots of families. This is why in Australia we see the large influx of Chinese tourists during the Chinese New Year.

Dumpling, or jiaozi in Chinese, is THE most important food for Chinese New Year. It means the reunion, the happiness and the delicious food. Each family has its own recipe and taste for the dumpling and I would never be bored for eating them.

In Canberra you don’t need to go to China to experience Chinese New Year and try the authentic Chinese food now.

The Chinese restaurant Yat Bun Tong at Braddon and Westfield Belconnen has what I think are the best dumplings in Canberra and they have a special promotion for the Chinese New Year edition readers.

Lots of Western people have heard about the Chinese zodiac. It has 12 animals rotating every 12 years as part of the Chinese sexagenary cycle. The full Chinese sexagenary cycle is 60 years as used for official historical recording in Chinese history. This is the Year of the Pig in the Chinese Lunar Calendar. In China when people ask or compare their ages, they often ask for the person’s animal sign to start with. The Chinese year of the animal sign is culturally important and no wonder Australia Post and the Royal Australian Mint will never miss the chance to feature it.

If my Chinese zodiac sign is pig and I say I am turning 46 in 2019, am I right?

We care about the

and you more than the politicians! Install the

and

Call Nathan on 0424 088650 or 1300 616126 aussolarenergygroup.com.au

Listen to our English program in every second half hour, from 7am to 7pm. You can listen to “CityNews” stories and columns; The Conversation and classic books about China, such as “The Problem of China” by Bertrand Russell… and much more. Stay tuned with STAR AM 1323KHz

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Julia shines as troubled Ben comes back DOUGAL MACDONALD

Taking the Bard into some gender bending

By Helen Musa

“HEY, ho, the wind and the rain” goes the refrain of Feste’s famous song in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night”, about to be seen in the second edition of “Shakespeare by the Lakes” – or “Lakespeare II”, as it is being branded.

Director and Shakespearean actor Christopher Stollery will be hoping that the equally famous line in the song: “For the rain it raineth every day,” will not come true during the company’s series of free shows running by Lakes Tuggeranong and Burley Griffin.

“Lakespeare II” will actually begin inland, at Lanyon Homestead on Friday, February 15, to a ticketed audience, giving the cast a chance to test their outdoor performance skills, for the vagaries of the climate being what they are, anything could happen.

“CityNews” caught up with Stollery on a break from rehearsals at an office in Tuggeranong and found that acting, not weather, was on his mind, although his London-trained Australian costume designer Fiona Hopkins, whom he praises for “how she looks at costuming – more into Vivienne Westwood than naturalism”, is certainly taking into consideration the February heat factor.

“But most of my concentration is on motivating the actors to deliver this play with as much direction and clarity as

THE SAPPHIRES ARE ONE OF THE AUSTRALIA’S BEST-LOVED STORIES

Winning multiple awards as a play, film and soundtrack album, there was one challenge left, and that was to undertake a national tour of Australia. Bringing the raw energy, fun and emotion of this story directly to stages like The Q and across the nation, writer Tony Briggs will direct his work in a version he promises will be the most intimate telling of The Sapphires story yet.

possible,” he says.

“At the heart of ‘Twelfth Night’ is the matter of how insane loves makes us all… for however we try to impose control, as Cupid’s shaft flies, people do stupid things for love.”

Love makes the respected Duke Orsino (Duncan Driver) mad, the frigid Lady Olivia (Ylaria Rogers) frenzied for a boy who is really a girl in disguise, and the canny sea captain Antonio loose with his money – most of the principals are on the edge of insanity for most of the play.

All the characters are clearly delineated, with the eccentric secondary figures such as Sir Toby Belch (P J Williams), Sir Andrew Aguecheek (Cameron Thomas), Malvolio (Christopher Samuel Carroll) and Feste the Clown (Lloyd Allison-Young) providing roles to die for.

As for the gender bending in “Twelfth Night”, it is something the audience simply has to play along with, says Stollery. It is his personal suspicion that Shakespeare had a couple of identical twins in his company, since this motif pops up in other plays, but the likeness of twins Viola and Sebastian, played respectively by the not-verysimilar Sekuless and Joel Hutchings, will be suggested by a painted moustache – “the audience plays along with it and willingly suspends its disbelief.”

But he’s not about to buy into the bold claim by management that this is the English language’s first “non-gender-specific trans comedy”.

As a director Stollery is much more excited

by the way the outdoor location allows the possibility of give and take between the actors and audience, and he will be encouraging that. Stollery cut his teeth directing for Bell Shakespeare’s schools’ company. His 15-year history with the company was prefaced by a

role in “Cymbeline” when John Bell directed him at NIDA, followed by the offer to play Hamlet in BSC’s second year. In all, he acted in 19 productions for the company, including the preposterous “Comedy of Errors” (more identical twins) which they took on a coalsto-Newcastle tour to England.

While he was performing with the Sydney Theatre Company’s “Gross und Klein” in London, he met Sekuless, who was there studying at the Central School of Speech and Drama. They had lunch together, realised they had the same take on theatre and got in touch back in Australia, by which time Sekuless was artistic director of “Lakespeare”.

Last year‘s play, “Much Ado About Nothing”, though it played to crowds of 4230, was directed by its architects Sekuless and Duncan Driver, who also played the leads Beatrice and Benedick but it had become clear that, as Stollery says, “really, you need an outside eye”, so he agreed to come on board.

He was impressed by the local actors who turned up at the audition. He knew some of them, such as PJ Williams and Lloyd AllisonYoung, and considered them receptive to his views that Shakespeare is best done with “a pretty out-there sort of style” combined with strong “inner” performances.

Literary master Shakespeare may have been, says Stollery, but first and foremost he wrote his plays for theatres where the heavens often opened on to shows.

“Shakespeare by the Lakes II”, “Twelfth Night” in four Canberra locations: ticketed performance, Lanyon Homestead, 6.30pm, February 15, then free performances at: Tuggeranong Town Park, 6pm, February 21 and 22; Glebe Park, noon and 6pm, February 23; and Patrick White Lawns, National Library, 4.30pm, February 24. Book at eventbrite.com.au

"A gem of a play. Briggs mixes fact and fiction to lay bare and flesh out his celebratory tale which, though political in patches, is focused on the personal. The Sapphires is heartfelt and joyous. Superb."

Bryce Hallett Sydney Morning Herald

"The Sapphires is a play fulfilling dreams and challenging stereotypes. It is a story about hope."

Kate Herbert The Age

‘Candlelight’

calls Serbian singing star

By Helen Musa

SERBIAN mezzo soprano Jana Momirovic will sing arias from Bizet’s “Carmen”, Donizetti’s “La Favorita” and Franz Lehár’s “Giuditta” at the upcoming “Opera By Candlelight” at Albert Hall.

“When I first heard Jana in Vienna in 2014, I was thrilled by her wonder ful voice and stage presence,” says organiser Carl Rafferty who says he tried unsuccessfully to bring her to Canberra last year. However, he was able to snaf fle her up this year because she’s on her way to perform in China.

Another visitor will be Polish coloratura soprano Marta Nowicka, who was here two years ago.

Rafferty is also bringing young Australian singers from Canberra, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne to the stage, including bass-baritone Matthew Phillips, of Blaxland, NSW, winner of the Fairleigh Vocal Scholarship in 2018, who will sing Dario’s aria “Ombra Fedele anch’io” from Riccardo Broschi’s “Idaspe”. Phillips, says Rafferty, is possessed of “one of the rarest of voices – a genuine basso-profundo capable of dropping to the bottom of the operatic registers with a rich velvety resonance.”

The show itself, Rafferty boasts happily, has “no boring bits” and is already great value at $80 a seat, with candelabra, white tablecloths and a gift

of wine included.

Guests are invited to feed themselves by bringing a “picnic”, but in a new venture, he’s asked the former proprietor of Vivaldi’s at ANU, Mark Santos, to cater for tables (not individuals) if patrons prefer not to bring their own banquet.

“Opera By Candlelight” will now be a once-a-year operation, Rafferty says.

“But we’ve been doing cocktail concerts and other performances at the ANU Drill Hall Gallery and will continue that, starting again in March,” he says.

Rafferty has pretty well solved the problem of how to tolerate Canberra winters by spending every May, June

and July in Vienna. His soprano daughter Kate, now married, lives and performs there while Carl, a formidable pianist himself, accompanies Kate and other young singers, also seeking out talent to bring here.

As part of his regular collaborations with established singers, he’s travelling to Europe this year with soprano Cheryl Barker and her baritone husband Peter Coleman-Wright on a grand tour of master classes and recitals.

“Opera by Candlelight”, Albert Hall, February 15, 16 and 17. Book at operabycandlelight.net

Drama academy gets a new name

THE Canberra Academy of Dramatic Art will now be known as Perform Australia.

The new name, CEO Elizabeth Avery Scott says, will reflect the school’s increasing national presence beyond Canberra as a performing arts education provider reaching into NSW and also Queensland, where it has several actor

training programs running, with partners in other states delivering accredited courses. In 2017, she says, CADA acquired the Australian School of Performing Arts, Film and Television so the change of name united both schools.

Perform Australia’s new logo represents both performance on stage and screen in the form of a camera lens and a theatre and is executed in “red,

CONVERSION SERVICE

Would

We

the colour of passion, and blue, the colour of truth”.

Over the next few days, a new website will go live as perform.edu.au and the academy’s old address, cada. net.au will point web searchers there in future.

Studio headquarters are still at 11 Whyalla Street, Fyshwick. Call 1300 908905. – Helen Musa

Near miss from the wheel of fortune

A RECENT bike ride with two friends around the wineries in Marlborough, NZ, brought my day job into unwanted complementarity with my wine hobby.

At the National Road Transport Association there is a large focus on improving road safety. One of the best ways to ensure the safety of cyclists is to separate them from other traffic: bike paths rule.

And when is a bicycle not a bicycle? When it turns into a winery. Which we did a lot of, responsibly, sadly spitting out a lot of the wine once tasted. True, officer! Anyway, unfortunately, the bike lane on most of the wine trails in Marlborough is an extended road shoulder with no separation from other traffic.

On the first day we did some bush walking so only visited two wineries: Forrest Wines and Framingham. Forrest expresses the heart of what Marlborough is famous for: floral sauvignon blancs with terroir-induced acid on the finish. Despite this varietal being the life blood of Kiwi wines, it is not my favourite tipple. In contrast, Forrest had excellent rieslings on taste, with the 2018 lower-alcohol Select being memorable for its crisp, citrusy finish.

The second day was when we were to get serious and visit more wineries and get a feel for the Wairau Valley where the flat valley floor makes the wineries accessible by bike. The plan was to bike to the furthest winery from the accommodation where we stayed (which also supplied the bikes as part of the tariff) and make our way back to the small town of Renwick.

The St Clair winery was 45 minutes’ ride from where we stayed and was the first winery tackled where maybe the hour (11ish) suited coffee more than wine but I just didn’t warm to anything on taste. We then sampled the product of Lake Chalice Wines, Hunters (where there is an artist in residence – big pat on the back) and then to Allan Scott’s for tasting and lunch of an unctuous seafood chowder and a chilled glass of the sparkling Cecilia Vintage Méthode Traditionnelle.

After lunch the wind became strong and we were very slow in biking into its face, heading for Giesen Wines. The traffic had also increased and we were feeling vulnerable to passing trucks and

When is a bicycle not a bicycle? When it turns into a winery. Which we did a lot of, responsibly, sadly spitting out a lot of the wine once tasted.

True, officer!

cars, keeping as far to the left as we could.

Not far from the Hans Herzog Estate, a courier van travelling in the opposite direction to us, tried to overtake a tractor pulling a spray rig. There was a misjudgement and the van and the back of the rig collided.

As if in some staged Hollywood movie, the rear tyre of the struck vehicle rose in the air and bounced towards us and then, thankfully, missed all three bikes.

The courier van, out-of-control, had veered worryingly close but settled on the opposite grass verge. Everything slowed and there was debris and pieces of the spray unit all over the road. Traffic stopped. We looked at each other and were incredibly relieved that a near miss had remained just that: I want my cause of death to be too many birthdays, nothing else.

It’s trite that the holiday will be spoken about because of this incident. We have already shared the story with friends and family because you still see everything in slow motion when you shut your eyes. You don’t see the tasting glasses on the counters of the cellar doors rear up before you because that is pleasant and certainly not traumatic.

The incident got me thinking even more empathetically towards those 1200 people who die on our roads every year. So for 2019, an aphorism for both drinking wine and driving:

“Enjoy without injury, live without loss.” – Amit Kalantri

Julia shines as troubled son Ben heads home

“Ben is Back” (M)

WRITER/director Peter Hedges may be disappointed that his film, co-starring his son Lucas and Hollywood big-name Julia Roberts, has to the end of January since opening in the US early in December earned only 28 per cent of its production cost.

US critics were mixed about the film. But there was great praise for Julia Roberts as Holly, twice-married mother of four, two by a white first husband, two by a black husband Neal (Courtney B Vance).

In a long and lustrous career, Roberts is perhaps best remembered for “Pretty Woman” (1990) and Oscar-winning “Erin Brockovich” (2000). If “Ben is Back” gets up for any Oscars in 2020, I envisage its best chance will be for her performance as Holly.

Perhaps not such a high expectation for the film as a whole, although Hedges has constructed a deft screenplay about the 24 hours that begin with Holly and the two younger children arriving home from shopping on Christmas Eve to find her oldest child Ben (Hedges’ son Lucas) waiting to get into the house.

Ben was still supposed to be in rehab for cocaine addiction. Ben’s teenaged sister Ivy (Kathryn Newton) has reservations about the wisdom of his release. Holly is delighted, although she makes it clear that if he wants to stay it will be on terms that she spells out succinctly and forcefully.

A bitter-sweet passage dallying over resolution just long enough to wear out its welcome. Pity.

At Dendy, Palace Electric and Capitol 6

“The Front Runner” (M)

IN a week when all three movies opening their local seasons tell stories about family issues, the least effective is director Jason Reitman’s filming of Matt Bai’s book about the three weeks when Gary Hart’s bid for Democrat Party nomination in the 1988 Presidential election went pear-shaped. Hugh Jackman is impressive as Hart. Reitman regulars Vera Farmiga as Hart’s wife Lee and JK Simmons as campaign manager Bill Dixon are impressive without being flamboyant. Briton Alfred Molina is “Washington Post” editor Ben Bradlee. But the film’s most influential character is collectively the men and women of the US news media who, for

ARTS IN THE CITY

the first time in history, concentrated not on the aspiring candidate’s political platform but on an early morning moment on the steps of Hart’s Washington townhouse, when somebody saw Hart emerging to start the working day and saying goodbye to a handsome young blonde woman who was not his wife.

The film gives an impression of too much enjoying remembering the frenzy that followed the story in the “Miami Herald” that swelled to national proportions in print

and electronic media, while Hart struggled valiantly to stem the tide by denying that anything untoward had happened, that the woman was an out-of-town member of his campaign team and the media should listen to his policy statements.

It is reasonable to ask, what is there about “The Front Runner” that might endear it to filmgoers in this country where political aspirations and shenanigans are swelling around Australian matters? There’s no point in conjecturing how things now might be if Hart had won the nomination and the election.

The film’s only currently-relevant message is that the after-hours peccadilloes of men in positions of power have become factors in how they get there and what they do once there. Hart’s marriage survived; the woman in question refused to tell all at the time but late last year announced her intention to write a book about it. A bit late.

At Dendy and Palace Electric

“The Hate U Give” (M)

AT the movies, in the beginning is always the word. And the word forming the foundation of director George Tillman Jr’s film is the debut novel by Angie Thomas.

The film is a homage to Audrey Wells, who adapted the novel into the screenplay for

this 133-minute film and died shortly after completing it.

Amandla Stenberg plays 16-year-old Starr Carter, whose father Mav runs a small grocery in a black quarter of Atlanta. From an essentially middle-class family, Starr is the only black student at high school. Mav has trained his family about what they must do if the police ever pull over a car in which they are driving. Starr is in Khalil’s car on the night when it gets pulled over. They haven’t done drugs or drunk alcohol. But the cop shoots Khalil.

The screenplay focuses on the Carter family and Starr’s classmates. With her cornrow hair-do, Amandla Stenberg dominates the majority of the film’s shots. It’s a profoundly moving performance in a film with the chops to find itself under consideration this time next year as an Oscar nominee. It’s relevant, it’s credible and it’s an act of courage by the filmmakers and the community in which they made it. I wonder what Angie Thomas will write next.

At Dendy

Kalms’ exciting art win

By Helen Musa

CANBERRA artist Margaret Kalms’ photomedia image “Lots of Blood” won an award of excellence in Manhattan Arts International’s “The Healing Power of ART” in New York. Taken from her “Life with Endometriosis” collection, it depicts women suffering for the condition in a series of “visual screams”.

MIKELANGELO, joined by siren Anushka, instrumentalist Happy Axe/Emma Kelly and Aussie-US sensation Wendy Rule, plan to transport audiences into the world of the Pre-Raphaelites in the “Love & Desire: Valentine’s Dinner and Concert” at Gandel Hall, 6pm10.30pm, Friday, February 15. Book at nga.giv.au

THE Australian Haydn Ensemble will perform four string-quartet pieces by Haydn, concluding with the “Sunrise” String Quartet Op. 76 No. 4. At Wesley Uniting Church, Forrest, 7pm, Thursday, February 14. Book at australianhaydn.com.au or 1800 334388.

ZAHATORTE are a Kyoto trio that blends old-world European cafe sounds with Japanese perfectionism. Hosted by Aussie expat entrepreneur Vaughan, who has written a book on coffee culture in Tokyo, the group will perform its own brand of bossa nova-inspired

Award winner… “Lots of Blood” by Margaret Kalms.

gypsy-swing at Smith’s Alternative, Civic, 7pm, February 10. Book at smithsalternative.com

ELIZABETH Minchin, who heads up the Friends of the ANU Classics Museum, has received the Chancellor’s Award for Distinguished Service to the University. The next Friends lecture, preceded by a short AGM, will see Prof Tim Parkin, from the University of Melbourne, speaking about the ruins at Ephesus. At the Band Room, Peter Karmel Building, ANU School of Music at 6.15pm, Wednesday, February 13.

“THE Sapphires”, not the film but the original stage show written and directed by Tony Briggs, is kicking off the 2019 season at

The Q, February 13-18, bookings to theq.net.au or 6285 6290.

CANBERRA comedian Greg Kimball, who hosted the Canberra Comedy Festival’s 2018 “Clean Comedy Spectacular” will perform a one-off, live, stand-up comedy show, to be recorded for the internet. Belconnen Community Theatre, 8.30pm, Saturday, February 16. Book at trybooking.com

THE Grigoryan Brothers, Slava and Leonard, will join German jazz guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel to play on different guitars including classical, baritone, 12-string and electric at The Street Theatre, Thursday, February 14. Book at thestreet.org.au or 6247 1223.

PUZZLES PAGE HEALTHY EATING

Change your food environment

IN Australia we live in an “obesogenic society”.

The structure of our food systems and lifestyles make it very easy to gain weight and very difficult to lose weight.

For example, modern work environments require you to sit down at a computer for most of the day and our major forms of entertainment are sedentary (watching TV and being on devices). Add to that, a high volume and availability of calorie-dense foods such as takeaways, chips, chocolate and soft drink just to name a few. Stepping back and seeing all these structural elements of life it becomes clear how easy it is to make a poor food choice or not move. Willpower alone is not enough to eat healthily and manage weight. The New Year is a great opportunity to reflect on our food environments and how we can make healthier choices easier for ourselves in 2019.

Home

Think about how you store and consume food; are there tempting treats in the pantry that you keep snacking on after dinner? Are there unhealthy kids’ snacks sitting there whenever you open the fridge? If you find you are grazing at home, try these strategies to reduce the temptation:

• Throw out any food that you don’t want to be eating (harsh but effective).

• Put unhealthy snacks in a non-clear container on the very top or very bottom shelf of the pantry/ fridge.

• Pre-chop fruits and vegetables and store them at eye level.

• Experiment with using side plates for meals.

• Keep mineral or still water chilled in the fridge rather than juice, beer, wine or soft drink

• Store soft drink in the pantry. If it’s not cold you are less likely to drink it.

• Have a household rule of only eating at the table (even snacks) or no screens while eating.

• Shop online a week ahead. You avoid impulse buys and make good decisions for your future self.

Work

Morning teas, social-club treats, vending machine and charity chocolates are all there at work to try and make the workplace feel more free and fun. But, if you feel frustrated that you keep eating chocolate at 3pm every day, I guarantee there are others in your office who feel the same way. Ask your colleagues about making some changes to make life a little easier for all.

• Put the charity or social-club treats in a cupboard.

• Run challenges to raise money, e.g. a swear (or other unwanted habit) jar.

• Reduce the frequency of morning teas (e.g. one a month for all the people’s birthdays within that month).

• Leave your wallet or credit card at home.

• Have a meeting outside or while walking instead of at a café.

• Pack your lunch and snacks and keep them on your desk.

Social

Food is at the centre of most of our social interactions and we are often out of the house when many poor food choices are made. Changing patterns with these strategies can have a big impact over time:

• Catch up with friends for a walk or activity instead of a meal or snack. Invite friends around for dinner rather than going out. Make it a potluck so you aren’t doing all the work. Pack snacks for shopping trips and when going out for coffee.

Have a meal before you go out shopping to avoid the tempting food courts.

Joanne Madeline Moore

Your week in the stars – February 11-17, 2019

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

Expect the sparks to fly on Wednesday, when Mars and Uranus stir up your fiery feelings. Don’t over-react – or do something you later regret! Your quote for Valentine’s Day is from Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu: “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” Are money matters on your mind? Mars encourages you to be more proactive about your finances. So find bold new ways to curb spending and boost cash flow.

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)

This week it’s time to make close relationships a major priority in your world. So your mantra for Valentine’s Day is from writer George Sand: “There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved.” Action-planet Mars moves through your sign from February 14 until March 31. So it’s time to stop snoozing and be much more motivated and proactive as you initiate ideas, launch projects and zoom ahead. Sunday favours friendship, romance, creativity and compassion.

GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)

Don’t become complacent and take your partner (or potential partner) for granted Gemini! Relationships require constant work and daily attention. Ursula Le Guin: “Love doesn’t just sit there, like a stone. It has to be made like bread, remade all the time, made new”. With Mars moving through your mystery zone until March 31, your imaginative, intuitive and introspective sides are highlighted. So make sure you channel your energy into creative and/or spiritual pursuits.

CANCER (June 22 – July 23)

With Venus, Saturn and Pluto visiting your relationship zone, your love life is a serious business. So your quote for Valentine’s Day is from writer William Barclay. “Love always involves responsibility and love always involves sacrifice.” Under the influence of Mars, group activities and joint ventures are favoured, as you connect with like-minded people who are going places. Be proactive as you share your dreams with your extended peer group, in person and online.

LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)

Valentine’s Day is an appropriate time to reflect on the fact that love really does make the world go round. Single Cats… sparks are set to fly with someone who is creative and spontaneous. Dynamic Mars charges through your career zone until March 31. So you need to be a brave Lion, take the professional initiative and make exciting things happen. Be inspired by birthday great Michael Jordan: “Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”

VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

Avoid being overly fussy Virgo! You’ll have a wonderful week, as long as you don’t expect everything to be 100% perfect. So your quote for Valentine’s Day is from Taylor Swift: “The perfection of love is that it’s not perfect.” Dynamic Mars activates your travel and adventure zone from February 14 until March 31. So start thinking about where you’ll go for your next heavenly holiday. And don’t just discuss ideas. It’s time to walk your talk and take some firm action.

LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

Attached Libra… make sure you focus your attention on your lover, as you give them the right royal romantic treatment this Valentine’s Day. Unhappily single? You could meet your soul mate via an introduction from a family member. But don’t jump to conclusions and make assumptions about what loved ones are thinking and feeling. Instead, take the time to look beyond outer appearances, as you examine things in a much deeper and more complex way.

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

Happy Valentine’s Day Scorpio! You’re feeling super romantic as you lavish attention (and money) on your partner; wear your heart on your sleeve or play out a secret fantasy with your lover. Proactive Mars encourages you to spend much more quality time nurturing close relationships in practical ways. If you are attached, add some extra passion and pizzazz to the partnership. Plus do your best to foster new friendships with like-minded people, both in person and online.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

When it comes to your love life, maintain your spontaneity and sparkle. Singles… a platonic relationship could take a surprisingly romantic detour. As actress Loretta Young said: “Love isn’t something you find. Love is something that finds you.” Gung-ho Mars motivates you to be proactive about improving your health and fitness via a more nutritious diet and a more dynamic exercise routine. And make sure you are up-to-date with your medical and dental checks.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

Love planet Venus is vamping through your sign on Valentine’s Day. So – whether you are attached or single – it’s the perfect time to flutter your eyelashes (or flex your pecs) and ask for what you want. Then sit back and reap the romantic rewards. Then mighty Mars transits through fellow earth sign Taurus from February 14 until March 31. Which suits work that requires persistence, a disciplined mind, good concentration and close attention to detail. Capricorn heaven!

AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

Romance is in the air but the energy is behind the scenes suggesting a private, magical Valentine’s Day. Singles – amazing signs and unexpected synchronicities could lead you to your soul mate. When it comes to your Aquarian aspirations for the future, be proactive. Travel and education are particularly favoured, as you expand your mind to include adventurous new activities. But don’t just sit there and watch a domestic situation simmer. It’s time to take some firm action!

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

Coupled Pisces… with Venus visiting your aspirations zone on Valentine’s Day, find a dream you can share together. Antoine de St Exupery: “Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but of looking outward together in the same direction”. Unhappily single? You could feel a special connection with someone who is connected with your wider peer group. But avoid jumping to conclusions, especially about a neighbour or relative. You just don’t have all the facts at hand.

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2018

Across

1 Which horse won the Melbourne Cup in 1987? (6)

8 Who was defeated in the Battle of Waterloo? (8)

9 What is a graceful classical form of dancing? (6)

10 What is the outer side of something? (8)

11 Name a course used temporarily, instead of the main route. (6)

13 When one disappears, one does what? (8)

16 What is an unmarried man called? (8)

19 Name the wagon attached to a steam locomotive. (6)

22 To hand down in one's will, is to do what? (8)

24 To secure someone for employment, is to do what? (6)

25 What do we call one who runs naked through crowded streets, matches, etc? (8)

26 What, colloquially, is a crazy or foolish person? (6) Down

2 To rub out, is to do what? (5)

3 What is a discharge of artillery, in regular succession? (5)

4 What is a break, as between acts of a play, movies, or the like? (8)

5 Which sharply pointed device is used for roasting meat over a fire? (4)

6 What are office workers employed to keep records, etc? (6)

7 Name a North American wild, wolf-like animal. (6)

12 Which soft mineral is used as a base for powder? (4)

14 In which hemisphere does England lie? (8)

15 Name the Australian tennis player, winner of many Wimbledon singles and doubles, Lew ... (4)

17 What do we call those fully skilled in things? (6)

18 What are places of residence known as? (6)

20 Which word describes the hours of darkness? (5)

21 Which golf term implies a score of two under par? (5)

23 What are certain short-winged, three-toed diving birds? (4)

BluePackets offer a range of support services and tailor our support agreements to suit your business. The broad skill set of our team means we can provide you with a total IT solution or complement your existing IT resources.

Experts help turn empty spaces into a home

A CHANGING Canberra has made way for a rise in apartment living and for some, pod living. But no matter what “home” is, there’s nothing better than making it a place for its residents to enjoy.

So whether it’s finally fixing that leak, changing the furniture or repurposing that TV cabinet, “CityNews” showcases the goods and services of local experts who can help achieve those objectives…

Designer furniture at a no-nonsense price

CANBERRA’s leading dealer in surplus office furniture is making home improvement dreams affordable, says the owner of Ex-Government Furniture, James

“Everybody wants designer stuff but nobody wants to pay the price,” he says.

“One of the best reasons to come to us is because we have secondhand stock at great prices from some of the best quality Australian and global brands such as Schiavello, Herman Miller and Wilkhahn.”

But that’s not the only positive of going to ExGovernment Furniture and James says there’s obvious environmental benefits from buying secondhand such

And, he says, they also get a lot of people coming in who want to repurpose furniture for their home.

“We have a lot of people buying up the vintage

industrial trolleys, with some people converting them for kitchen storage,” he says.

“We’re seeing a lot of people going mobile. Traditional filing cabinets are out and mobile storage is in.”

At the moment Ex-Government Furniture has a lot of electronic sit-stand desks, high-quality designer chairs and sliding door storage units coming in.

Ex-Government Furniture gets weekly shipments of furniture, with everything from the vintage to the modern, so James says there’s always something interesting coming through the doors.

“We charge fair prices and are often able to source the best, no-nonsense, quality furniture available, always with an eye for good quality,” he says.

Ex-Government Furniture, 6 Yallourn Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 6490 or visit exgovfurniture.com

Duncan delivers quality plumbing

OWNER Jason Duncan, of Duncan’s Plumbing, and his passionate team of office and trades staff promise to deliver the best plumbing in Canberra.

Boasting a skilled team, a range of top-of-the-line equipment, dedicated vehicles and a workshop test bay customised for fault testing, Duncan’s Plumbing offers a huge array of services for the region.

“We are licensed for both the ACT and NSW, and our tradesmen in the field are in constant contact via mobile and an internet-based SMS service, providing you with flexible, reliable assistance at need,” says Duncan’s Plumbing.

“Our maintenance services include all plumbing and draining.

“We also install all manner of appliances (gas, electrical, tapware, hot water systems, toilets and more), perform backflow prevention testing, service thermostatic mixing valves, and certify, fix, install and repair all gas units.

Duncan’s Plumbing has been in business for more than 40 years and has been servicing the region for more than 20.

Duncan’s Plumbing, 1/9 Page Place, Page. Call 6254 5678, email office@duncansplumbing.com.au or visit duncansplumbing.com.au

Family business modernises pod-living

FAMILY-run business, The Pod Canberra, is changing living spaces for people of all ages and all abilities with their modern, secondary residences – or “pods”.

Operations manager Jacki Valk says the idea behind The Pod Canberra came about when her grandparents were looking into aged-care accommodation.

“We didn’t want them to go into a home so we thought of a better solution,” she says.

Policy changes around secondary residences in Canberra have also meant The Canberra Pod makes every pod accessible, which Jacki says means disability friendly.

But Jacki says their pods are also popular with young adults because they are more modern than the house.

“Or people use the house as an investment property while living in the pod,” she says.

“It’s [also] about half the price of buying a brand new apartment in Canberra and it’s even bigger than most of the brand new apartments in Canberra.

“All of the pods are built on site and we stick to the

R R A

same designs so we can build them faster – within eight to 10 weeks.”

Designed by Robert Valk, The Pod Canberra offers one-room pods to two-bedroom, two-bathroom residences.

“All of which have lots of double-glazed windows and doors,” she says.

The Pod Canberra opens a two-bedroom, onebathroom pod in Giralang once a month for people to take a look.

The Pod Canberra, 34 Enderby Street, Mawson. Call 6101 5917 or visit thepodcanberra.com.au

Trudy’s year-round, edible garden

OVERFLOWING with veggies and vines, fruit trees, pots of herbs and fragrant flowers, Trudy Yogini’s densely packed, productive garden has evolved through hard work and research.

The lush Ainslie garden will be open to the public on the weekend of February 9-10 through Open Gardens Canberra.

Trudy’s focus on sustainability, composting, water collection and year-round produce has created a space that envelops the house with climbers, shade and foliage, with hidden paths to follow and edibles at every turn.

“I want to eat organic food with no food miles if possible,” she says.

“I’ve created a microclimate which benefits urban life, improves the air and is my small contribution to a cleaner planet.”

Having learned the principles of permaculture, renewable resources and producing no waste through study, observation, interaction and trial and error, Trudy says the garden ties in with her sustainable lifestyle.

“I nurse my plants carefully. I’m out there every day so I’m very much in touch with what they need.

“Gardening gives me peace and satisfaction, and I love being in touch with the rhythms of nature.”

The courtyard near the house is abundant with herbs and citrus, and is a favourite spot that Trudy uses for meditating and her yoga practice.

Trudy harvests veggies year-round, thanks to under-

Words: Kathryn Vukovljak

Photos: Holly Treadaway

planting varieties that might otherwise suffer in extreme heat or frost, with salad greens available any time, beans and peas in spring and masses of summer veg including sweetcorn, tomato, zucchini, carrot, beetroot, ginger and asparagus.

Her fruit trees include cherry, mulberry, apricot, pomegranate and persimmon, and the herb garden has coriander, lemongrass, basil, chives, rosemary and more.

“Everything has been chosen to thrive in the Canberra climate, as well as providing food every season,” she says. Native plants create boundary hedging, trees provide shade to the house and courtyard, and protection from wind as well as sun. Roses and camellias provide biodiversity, colour and perfume, and bring in the bees.

“The more you get into the sustainable lifestyle the more you find you can do,” Trudy says.

“I collect all my household water for the garden, as well as using rainwater tanks. I cycle everywhere and try to be a healthy member of society.

“I love to inspire people to garden. It’s truly a joy to me.”

18 Hawdon Street, Ainslie, open 10am-4pm, Saturday, February 9, and Sunday, February 10. Admission $8; free to under-18s and Open Gardens Canberra members. It costs $25 to join Open Gardens Canberra and gain free entry to all open gardens until August 31, 2019. More information at opengardenscanberra.org.au/members

GARDENING

A stinker, but not for perennials

By Cedric BRYANT

WHAT a stinker! That’s the only way to describe the relentless heat we have experienced and it’s likely to continue for some time yet.

Gardens have been sustained, to a minor degree, by the recent storm activity. Unfortunately, most storm rain simply runs off.

On the bright side, many hardy plants from the hottest areas of the globe almost revel in the heat. As I have preached before, many perennials will survive very well on an absolute minimum of water. Plus they provide super late-summer and autumn colour.

WITH watering potted plants in this heat, you may believe that by flooding the top of the container the plant has been watered. You see it flow from the bottom of the pot and mistakenly think that’s sufficient. No so. With plastic and fiberglass pots, the potting mix often shrinks from the sides of the pot and the water simply flows between the potting mix and the space between the edges of the pot. The actual potting mix itself remains dry! Use a stick to pack in new potting mix to fill that void before watering.

I AM looking out over the garden at a mini forest of greenery with flower heads rapidly developing, namely salvias. This is a large family of more than 500 species of both annuals and perennials of the mint family.

These perennials have the great advantage of being easy to divide in winter and spring. Perfect for filling in vacant spots in the garden by simply digging up a clump and dividing the roots with secateurs. Before I suggest the ornamental varieties, we should consider the culinary Salvia officinalis or common sage often used as a stuffing combined with thyme and rosemary.

Lower-growing salvias (up to 40cm high) include Salvia “Impact Purple”, “Marcus” and “Aztec Blue”. The spectacular “Heatwave” series (to 70cm) is a must in any garden. Two examples are “Heatwave Brilliance” and “Heatwave Sizzle”, just two out of 10 varieties. The tall varieties for the back of the garden bed (up to 1.4m) include “Love and Wishes” and “Limelight” to name just a couple. Over the next few weeks check them out at a local garden centre.

THERE are some plants, namely the fungi family, picked in the wild that are a favourite for adding flavour to sundry dishes and yet the same family can be killers.

One of the only plants to survive the great Ice Age several million

Salvias… colourful perennials with the advantage of being easy to divide in winter and spring.

years ago was fungi, a web of diverse species underpinning life on earth.

A team of mycological researchers from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, reveals the influence of fungi in almost every sphere of life with 90 per cent of wild plants dependent on associations with fungi to survive.

In 2017, almost 2000 new species were described. Possibly 93 per cent of all fungi may still be unknown to science.

However, a dire warning: locally this time of the year is the main growth period for fungi or

mushrooms. With warmth and dampness, especially around oak trees, they multiply rapidly, including Amanita phalloides or death cap mushrooms. In relatively recent times, four people in Canberra have died from eating them.

The ACT government website on mushrooms recommends you do not pick any mushrooms in the wild . Many migrants from overseas don’t realise the danger in our mushrooms. It is recommended to buy mushrooms only from a supermarket or farmers’ market.