CityNews 220310

NEWS / pets in retirement villages

By Lily PASS

SUE Officer, 84, moved into Tuggeranong retirement village Greenway Views two years ago with her poodle-spaniel cross, Connor, 14.

“Connor seems to be the ideal pet when living in an aged-care village environment. He’s very calm and friendly to both people and animals and he’s kept clean and vaccinated,” said Sue.

The village is home to its 160 residents, as well as 16 dogs, two cats, a few budgerigars and a canary.

Greenway Views adds to a growing list of aged-care living facilities in the ACT that allows pets to come along with their owners.

Community group Pets and Positive Ageing was fighting to get more facilities to do the same, said president Dr Eloise Bright.

“It’s a loneliness issue. With having a pet, many people have said it gives them a reason to get out of bed. It’s a social thing too, and good for mental and physical health,” she said.

“People tend to be healthier and have lower blood pressure if they have pets with them. It’d be interesting to

see if people are living longer with their pets, too.”

Pets and Positive Ageing had listed more than 21 pet-friendly aged-living facilities in Canberra, and was con tinuing to advocate for pets to be welcomed in more aged-care living environments.

Greenway Views opened in Janu ary, 2020, with a focus on feeling like an extension of the resident’s home, which means pets were welcome, too, said general manager Michelle Ben nett.

“I think having the option of being able to bring your loved one, your pet, with you and to have that companion ship and stability, it has a great impact and you can really see people thrive,” she said.

Moving out of a home that people may have been in for 20 or 40 years was a “big and hard enough decision as it is”, Michelle said.

Greenway Views considered all pets, so long as they were up to date on vaccinations and had a proper care plan in place, in case of an emergency.

“The care plan outlines what the pet would require in an emergency; pets have dietary requirements and we can do the walking,” said Michelle.

a pet here enjoy petting Connor, and that’s what he does, he just loves pats,” she said.

after Connor while she was away.

“But I so missed his company and I became tearful and depressed,” she

“The staff noticed and arranged for my Connor to be returned and my mood and general health improved

Sue said she also had a cat and finches in Greenway Views, but they didn’t improve her mood like “her

“You just have a friendly face, it just makes life easier when you’ve got a friendly personality like that with

Manager Michelle said part of the move-in process was an assessment for both the resident and pet, to make sure they were able to be fully supported at Greenway Views.

Sometimes the pet might not be appropriate for an aged-care environment, or unable to safely socialise with other residents and their pets, so the resident was supported by staff through a transition period while they

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Other residents often were “quite happy” to volunteer to walk the pet, or look after it if necessary.

Sue said Connor was “absolutely fabulous” and residents enjoyed see -

“You take your dog for a walk around Greenway Views, you meet other residents and conversations crop up, which is good for your mood and your health.”

Sue has had a few hospital visits

Streaming 29 Cover: “Ed Sheeran” 2016, by Colin Davidson, oil on linen. Story Page 26.

“I got a different understanding for myself about how important Connor was when we got locked down with covid,” said Sue.

To help out the staff when their workload increased during the pandemic, Sue gave Connor to her daughter for care.

“The residents’ families come in and bring their pets to visit. We make arrangements to make sure that can happen, too.”

Michelle says she understood why a lot of aged-care villages didn’t allow pets, “but the benefits to the residents themselves is worth all of the challenges, to be able to have them all in and let them have that extra love and care.”

Since 1993: Volume 28, Number: 10

Managing director: Kate Meikle, kate@citynews.com.au

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

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SEVEN DAYS

Clever Emma calls out Housing’s shabby ploy

IT’S hard not to admire Emma Campbell . I’m a total fanboy and can’t help but cheer on her courage, her compassion and her tireless commitment to battlers, the homeless and the underprivileged people of

“The fact that properties are built on high-value land that the ACT government wishes to sell should not be a reason to order public housing tenants out of their homes,” she said.

“Many of the individuals involved are highly vulnerable, including people with dementia or complex mental health issues.

with chronic health issues and people with disability – for what?

Reader Klaus commenting on citynews. com.au had no qualms, accusing the government of “evicting over 300 social housing tenants at the same time to indulge their developer mates”.

Dr Campbell was more nuanced, saying: “We do note that many of the properties happen to be located on high-value land,” at the same time pasting the government as “heartless”.

“Some of these tenants have lived in their homes for more than 50 years and have invested significant amounts in upkeep and renovation.

“Some residents are elderly or are people with disabilities and are located close to family and support networks.”

The unwitting tenants received a letter from ACT Housing alerting them to their impending move but, as I understand it, offering no clue as to where they would be going or when. What kind of people write this kind of stuff in our name?

“To send these types of letters, without adequate support in place for tenants, is incredibly callous and cruel,” Emma said, reasonably calling on Housing Minister Yvette Berry and ACT Housing to immediately review the program and resource independent legal and advocacy services to represent impacted tenants.

AS one digests the gobsmacking cost of $2 million and rising for the local plod to keep watch over the anti-vaccine mandate marchers of last month, one’s thoughts might drift to camping.

ACT chief officer Neil Gaughan says policing efforts had cost $1.9 million so far

He says there are 500 flag wavers still in and around Canberra. Given their propensity for camping (moved on from the Parliamentary Triangle, evicted from EPIC, arrested at Cotter), I’m loath to share the following information, but if I use enough big words the secret should stay safe.

I got this sardonic missive from an innernorth snout, given to rambling (walking, not talking): “Gosh, just think how exciting it would be if the Convoy to Canberra nutters decided not to make the long trek to Caloola Farm and instead opted to establish at this little known, free southside spot.”

Attached was the map to and photo of an official brown sign from the “Yarralumla campsite area”. Who knew? “Another Canberra sign left to rot from a past era,” he sniffed. A website check revealed none of its history.

But how could the Convoyers resist an inner-city campsite? He tells me there’s free parking and plenty of opportunity for our distant visitors to forage for blackberries (giant clumps abound) and wild fennel, then bag a “wraskally rabbit” (so many

hopping about) for dinner. As nature calls, a dusk skinny dip in the nearby Molonglo, while netting a big carp for breakfast. Hell’s bells, they’ll never want to leave. Meantime, on behalf of the weary taxpayers of Canberra, chief officer Gaughan is going to arm wrestle the feds for some financial contribution to summer’s neverending story.

COLUMNIST Robert Macklin couldn’t resist: “ Putin’s cretinous behaviour obviously runs in the family – who could forget Uncle Ras?” Boom-tish.

TO finish, another gem via columnist Clive Williams: The grand old Duke of York, He had 12 million quid. He gave it to someone he never met For something he never did.

Ian Meikle is the editor of “CityNews” and can be heard on the “CityNews Sunday Roast” news and interview program, 2CC, 9am-noon. There are more of his columns on citynews. com.au

Keeping an Eye on people with vision problems

By Lily PASS

SOMEONE newly diagnosed with an eye condition can be in denial or doesn’t identify themselves with the word “blind”, so they don’t believe they need the support of the Canberra Blind Society, says president Heather Fitzpatrick.

That’s why the society recently launched Eyes for Life Canberra, to help people with acute or ongoing eyesight problems.

“Eyes for Life is trying to get people in the door, to say we’re here for them and we’re going to help them,” says Heather, who became aware of her condition, retinitis pigmentosa, in her 30s.

“We realise that they’ve had this change and perhaps technically are blind but we won’t use that word, we’ll help you without using that word.

“It’s a bit about how stubborn

you are, how long it takes you to admit to yourself that you re ally do need some help, and it’s a whole grief continuum.”

Her diagnosis was made more difficult when the special ist was intolerant to the fact that she was going through a grieving process, and in denial.

“Their reaction was to be fairly hard-nosed about it. They just said I was going to be blind and to live with it and get over it. It just broke me down, and they were a specialist in eye conditions,” she says.

Because Heather had never been forced to access services or deal with a similar situation before, she was left with ques tions, but no answers.

“I didn’t know what things to access, what kind of conces sions were available, and I didn’t know what was happen ing,” she says.

Once people figure out that being vision impaired or blind isn’t just an on and off condi tion, but is more of a spectrum, then there’s a relaxation and a realisation that it’s not as bad as originally thought, she says.

Natalie Kerr, 59, has been a client of the Canberra Blind Society since 2013, after also being diagnosed with retinitis

pigmentosa, making her legally blind.

“It is a shock when you first find out, but the Canberra Blind Society ran programs and

they’re excellent, because I met other people who had a vision impairment and I didn’t feel so alone,” said Natalie.

Eyes for Life provides digital

once a month (“it’s a fun way of interacting with people”) and her top tip is to put vegetables and ingredients in a bowl and cut them up with scissors, as

opposed to using a knife, “much

Eyes for Life is a not-for-profit. Heather says it has received some government funding to establish the program and donations are “generously ac -

“What Eyes for Life is trying to do is support the people who need the support. We’re trying to build it up so that we can offer the best we can to the citizens of the ACT and surrounds who need help,” says Heather.

“Eyes for Life has people who have been through it before who you can talk to, people who can help aside from qualified therapists and OTs. There’s a lot more support here, just walk

When Heather first walked into the Canberra Blind Society, she was told about the facilities and while she didn’t need as much formal help in the end, “the informal help was invaluable, and it’s just great knowing somebody else is there with you”. And Natalie agrees.

“You learn it’s not the end of the road, you can do other things and it’s been absolutely useful,” said Natalie.

Call Eyes for Life at 6176 3470.

CORKHILL BROS

CANBERRA MATTERS

Tram gives developers a free infrastructure ride

THROUGHOUT history, the growth in government propaganda is linked to increasing authoritarianism. The more they lie, the more they concoct alternative facts to justify dubious actions and to distract from real intentions.

While this is happening big time nationally, it has been increasingly happening within the ACT Labor/ Greens government over the last decade.

Being respectful of others is rarely a performance criterion used by this coalition government. They operate as if it is painful to have to deal with residents who, for mysterious reasons, insist that this government should be maintaining and increasing liveable urban environments and biodiverse-rich habits.

This ACT government’s handling of planning and development is well accepted as being not about the residents. The government pays far more attention to favoured lobbyists, a cohort of developers friendly to individuals within the government.

One of the most obvious examples of this government’s bad behaviour is its handling of the introduction of the tram. The provocative nature of the debates about the tram allowed the government to use propaganda to condemn those opposed to the tram as

The blue shaded area indicates the government’s development focus… “the greenery along Adelaide Avenue and Yarra Glen is part of what makes this city wonderful and shouldn’t be bulldozed to throw profits to developers.”

being old timers opposed to modern public-transport initiatives.

These noisy debates, especially the previous screaming campaigns by the ACT Liberals, while raising what may have been legitimate matters about the financing and relevance of the tram as a form of 21st century transport, kept the focus away from the reality of what this issue has been about. This applies today with the roll out of the Commonwealth Avenue tram and, eventually,

The tram is a publicfinanced benefit for the city’s developers – thank you, ACT Greens, for the idea. The naivety of this once-credible political group is stunning.

Building this tram network will have some benefits as a public transport system. But the prime purpose for the introduction of trams is about providing infrastructure to assist with developments alongside the tram routes. The tram is a public-financed benefit for the city’s developers –thank you, ACT Greens, for the idea.

The Gungahlin-Civic tram was heralded by the ACT Greens as a win for public transport. The naivety of this once-credible political group is stunning. It may have been a good idea to start with, but the Barr developerfriendly politicians and bureaucrats seized the opportunity to use the tram routes as development bonanzas.

The developments that happen alongside the tram going south will upturn the lives of many owner-occupiers (developers speak for residents). What’s a few discomforts for silly people living in their homes when the developer lobby, assisted by this ACT government, can use these

established and liveable suburbs for development opportunities.

It is a simple logic that the tram going south is unnecessary. There is already an efficient express bus system – and with some road improvements, this could be changed over to electric buses and be even more efficient; the Woden community has been desperately seeking improvements to the cycleways into Civic, and not have to divert to the lakeside to avoid being dangerously close to speeding traffic (often doing 80km/h plus); the greenery along Adelaide Avenue and Yarra Glen is part of Canberra’s ambience and heritage that makes this city wonderful. These should be kept, not bulldozed to throw profits to developers.

The tram going south, as with the Commonwealth Avenue tram, has become an unstoppable fundamentalist ideology of the ACT Labor/Green politicians. They know it is about development of the foreshores (West Basin) and then mass suburban developments along the corridor on any lands that can be seized and handed over for developer investment (profits guaranteed).

They “consult” when necessary,

but do so as little as possible. They sideline any logical evidence-based arguments. The notion that planning decisions need to involve the affected residents is laughable to this cohort of authoritarian politicians. This lot have become accustomed to having their way despite polite and passionate opposition from residents. Sadly, the ACT Liberals are yet to function as a viable alternative government. To those who care for the city and to those who live along the corridor for the tram going south, keep focused on what the government is already spending huge bucks on. Engineers, planners and consultants are laying the groundwork for the transformation that is almost guaranteed to happen to the inner-south greenery, open spaces and suburbs. The clock is very quietly ticking on this.

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

MEET OUR PAIN MANAGEMENT EXPERTS

Gwen Estigoy - Exercise Physiologist

Gwen instructs Tai Chi for our Falls Prevention program and also supports people to meet their exercise goals within our gym or hydrotherapy program.

Gwen works with individuals, groups, and also leads our LGBTI program.

Gwen has a four-year degree as well as extensive industry experience working with people with chronic pain conditions.

Sophie Bullock - Exercise Physiologist

Sophie has post graduate qualifications in hydrotherapy, and as a non-sports centred Exercise Physiologist-helps clients who struggle with engaging in exercise due to a lack of sports participation. Sophies goal is to improve clients health via our hydrotherapy program, gym instruction and in-home visits. Sophie also is known for her passion for working with children.

Richard Costin - Physiotherapist

At Build a Better Me we see many people who are struggling to manage their chronic conditions. Richard is passionate about helping people to live better and more comfortable livesachieving their goals through exercise, education and manual therapies.

Richard is fully trained in the GLAD program.

Blake Dean - Exercise Physiologist

Blake has expertise in improving clients mobility and decreasing their pain through appropriate exercise. Blake delivers our ‘My Exercise’ program, targeting the relief of lower back and sciatic pain, shoulder and upper body concerns as well as leg, hip and and ankle interventions – for those who do not qualify for physiotherapy-led GLAD programs.

Blake provides individual & group exercise for younger people with a disability. Blake treats clients in-clinic or via our hydrotherapy program as well as attending your gym with you.

Jacqui Couldrick - Physiotherapist

Jacqui has a particular interest in hip and knee osteoarthritis. Jacqui delivers the GLAD program designed to reduce the need for joint replacements, or if a joint replacement is unavoidable, to prepare you thoroughly for surgery and recovery for day to day tasks. Jacqui is studying towards a PhD in the outcomes of the GLAD program.

Kwong yan Cheung - Physiotherapist

Kwong is trained as a GLAD instructor, his focus is in treating sports injuries early to avoid arthritis forming later. Kwong is a passionate sportsman, playing both Aussie Rules and Soccer. Kwong will assist you with maintenance of your sports injuries, back pain and all general musculoskeletal issues.

DON’T FORGET ABOUT ACCESSING OUR OCCUPATIONAL THERAPISTS WHO HELP MAKE YOUR EVERY DAY TASKS EASIER

PILATES GROUP CLASSES ON NOW – NORTHSIDE & SOUTHSIDE

• Occupational Therapy - Assistance with the planning and modification of your home, workplace or car. Applications for NDIS, the Disability and Housing Support Pension, and also driving assessments.

• Physiotherapy – including the GLAD program for knee and hip osteoarthritis, sports injury prevention and rehabilitation, and pain condition support.

• Exercise Physiology – Individual exercise prescriptions, small group classes to increase strength and improve rehabilitation, strength and balance classes, hydrotherapy support.

• Dietetics – meal planning, weight management support, food intolerance support.

“You do not need to have any particular condition to utilise our services, just a desire to ‘Build a Better You.’

Self-centred ‘freedumb’ fighters are costing us

A FURORE arose in response to the news that ACT police had already spent $1.9 million on maintaining law and order during the “anti-vax/freedom” protests. Canberrans had already had enough. Then this announcement rubbed salt into the wound.

And there is more expenditure on the horizon, according to Chief Police Officer Neil Gaughan. He indicated that around 500 of the protesters are still camping in and around Canberra and further protests are expected each weekend leading up to the Federal government’s Budget on March 29.

The first source of anger for Canberrans was about local taxes/ money/rates being used to maintain order on issues that are of a federal nature. The objection is that the majority of protesters came from interstate in order to influence the federal government. As such it is the federal government that ought to be paying the bills.

As reported at citynews.com.au, there are discussions with the federal government as to whether it is appropriate for some of the costs to be met by the Commonwealth. So far, we have the costs of policing.

The anger was also levelled at those who have encouraged the so-called “Freedom Convoys” and “Freedom Protests”. Of particular irritation were politicians encouraging the protesters for their own political ends. Those named include Craig Kelly, Clive Palmer and Pauline Hanson. I think George Christensen could be added to the list.

Whipping up anti-vax sentiment and building up the need to fight for freedom comes directly from the Trump-inspired protests in the US. The appearance of Confederate flags at the protests might look good on American televisions and please the

Since the Vietnam War there have been innumerable protests in Canberra. However, these protesters are simply way out of step with the vast, vast majority of Canberrans.

international organisers – but they undermine the cause in Australia.

At least the more common “upside-down” Red Ensign and the Eureka Flag evoke emotions for some Australians, although I imagine most do not even know how the Red Ensign fits and what it stands for.

The second source of anger has been the treatment of locals by some of the protesters. Being called a “sheep” and other names simply because of wearing a mask seems reasonably harmless. However, the tone of such comments, especially when coming from a group decorated in slogans is threatening. It is also,

of course, extraordinarily ironic. Freedom if you think my way and do it my way!

Local staff at several supermarkets and other shops were in a quandary when the ACT government had mandated masks and the “freedom fighters” refused to wear them. Their simple belief is that their own beliefs trumped the health of others. That the terms and conditions for entering a supermarket are set by the shop itself and the government did not seem to deter some.

The anger was not about protesting per se. Since the Vietnam War there have been innumerable protests in Canberra. However, as set out in this column earlier this year, these protesters are simply way out of step with the vast, vast majority of Canberrans. After all, over 98 per cent have had at least two jabs!

Another response was summarised in a response to a story on the ABC.

David Jenkins wrote: “Doesn’t this whole self-absorbed and fake ‘freedom’ thing seem even more puerile in the face of events in Ukraine? That’s a real struggle for freedom”. Another comment used the word “freedumb” and went on to add, “it’s just embar-

rassing… and shameful”.

There were those who sought to justify their actions. They blamed the government, accused the ABC of failing to tell the truth and argued in some twisted logic that Canberrans ought “not worry about the cost of helping the people’s lives you have destroyed”. It may be assumed this refers to all those who have no freedom in Australia, or wear a mask, or who were vaccinated!

There were inconveniences. However, Canberrans understand this and have always accepted that in the national capital we may have to make allowances. The underlying anger at the self-centred approach of these protesters, however, fuels much less tolerance.

Michael Moore is a former member of the ACT Legislative Assembly and an independent minister for health. He has been a political columnist with “CityNews” since 2006. There are more of his columns at citynews.com.au

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST OPPORTUNITIES FOR LAND, PROPERTIES OR DEVELOPMENT PURCHASE

To support the delivery of the Growing and Renewing Public Housing program, Housing ACT has issued an open Expression of Interest (EOI) for the purchase of suitable land or properties for public housing from the private market and the building sector. Through the EOI, the government is looking to purchase throughout Canberra:

• house and land packages (established dwellings, under construction or in design/to be built)

• multi-unit developments where the proposal is for the sale of individual units in a larger development

• multi-unit developments, generally of no more than 30 dwellings (established complexes, under construction or in design/to be built)

• residential zoned land

A second opinion on hearing loss

An elderly woman with hearing loss came to my clinic for a second opinion, after she had recently been to a hearing aid sales person. I found the cause of her hearing loss was simply the fact that she had build-up of wax in her ears, the salesperson had failed to inspect them. You might be surprised how often this happens!

Here are some things to do to avoid getting ripped off:

1. A visit to the GP may save you from being ‘sold’ something when your only problem is wax in your ears.

Recently I was told by two different patients that they were quoted $16,000 for a pair of hearing aids. This seems a ridiculous amount of money to pay and is most likely not appropriate for the majority of people (or possibly anyone).

5. If you are a pensioner or partpensioner, or a DVA gold or white card holder, you should carefully consider if you want to use the free-to-client government hearing aids or if you’d like to top-up to a different hearing aid.

“In an unregulated market there is a lot of opportunity to take advantage of people. Yes you have read correctly, there is no licensing of people who sell hearing aids.”

2. Look for someone who is independent and can offer you unbiased advice, not just give you a sales pitch.

– Dr Vass

3. There are a range of hearing aid prices. Finding the right hearing aid might save you money and it will also give you the best chance of success.

4. Hearing aids can be expensive.

The free-to-client hearing aids are appropriate for many people, however if you have great difficulty hearing background noise (for example in restaurants) then you might trial the top-up hearing aids, but only if you can afford them. There are a range of top up options and prices, if you are disappointed after a trial, you should return them and trial the free-toclient hearing aids.

If you get the feeling the person you’re dealing with is just trying to sell you something, then take a step back and get a second opinion.

THE GADFLY

Pop goes Scomo’s ‘bubble’ to lies and deceit

THE Morrison government is so grievously wounded – by its own hand – it would be an act of simple decency to put it out of its misery. With a landslide.

And given the walloping the Libs took in the recent NSW byelections, it does seem that a big chunk of unaligned voters is about to break off the cliff face and sweep them from the mountainside.

There will, of course, be lots of survivors. And first out of the wreckage will emerge the shiny pate of Peter Dutton to lead his battered followers in Opposition. It will be a long way back.

All of the above, I happily admit, is more hope than prognostication. That’s the way of all political commentary: the wish, as they say, is father of the thought.

It’s why pollsters ask their selected “swinging” voters: “Who do you think will win the election?” They know that Jill and Joe Bloggs have no special insight, but their answers reveal their secret wish, and their votes will probably be cast in its favour.

For example, when pressed to explain why they think the government will get back, Jill and Joe will

find a way to sound middle of the road-ish. “It will be a khaki election,” they’ll say, “and you know what the Australian people are like – they’re scared of China.” Or, with a heavy sigh: “Anthony Albanese just doesn’t seem to stand for anything.”

They willingly concede that the Morrison government has bungled the aged care system, the vaccine rollout, a federal ICAC, climate change, the religious discrimination Bill, pork barrelling, rejection

of the “Uluru Statement from the Heart”, the domestic violence crisis and justice for women, to name but a few. But still, they’ll say: “People forget. The Coalition is better on the economy and everyone wrote Scomo off last time…”

Well, some did. I was among those who thought it was insupportable to reward Bill Shorten for a career of political backstabbing with an elevation to The Lodge.

But they’re certainly right that

The ‘bubble’ that Morrison likes to call his Canberra workplace has popped. All the clever marketing devices have scattered into the public arena as lies, hypocrisies, bullying and deceit.

Morrison wants a khaki election. He set the scene with his demand for an inquiry into the “real” source of coronavirus suggesting it “escaped” from a Wuhan chemical warfare unit. He ramped up the Uighur mass “re-education” to an accusation of “genocide”.

He damned Chinese “aggression” in the South China Sea without a single interference to any commercial shipping. And somehow, he misplaced our long-term One China policy, thoroughly offended the French with AUKUS and joined a Quad that is about as schoolboyish as it sounds.

No wonder Pretend Emperor Xi

stopped buying bulk barley and Barossa’s best (though kept the Australian dollar afloat with massive iron-ore imports). Undeterred, Morrison has been anti-China buzzing like a blowfly in a bottle. And the Russia/Ukraine imbroglio is providing the pictorial backdrop with big tanks and missile launchers in splendid array.

Meanwhile, the “bubble” that Morrison likes to call his Canberra workplace has popped. All the clever marketing devices have scattered into the public arena as lies, hypocrisies, bullying and deceit. It’s a bit like the “Wizard of Oz” – when young Dorothy got up close, she discovered he was really just a silly old white man pretending to make “miracles”. But that doesn’t mean Labor is a shoo-in. The “Four Corners” program had one unmistakable message from Jill and Joe Bloggs: “What does Anthony Albanese really stand for?”

robert@robertmacklin.com

fun, food and entertainment advertising

Canberra’s big day, everyone’s invited to the party

COMMONWEALTH Park will host Canberra Day celebrations on Monday, March 14, and everyone’s invited, says Events ACT’s Ross Triffitt.

“From 11am to 8pm, we welcome people to Commonwealth Park to celebrate everything that’s great about Canberra,” says Ross, the executive branch manager.

Canberra Day is a public holiday to celebrate the official naming of the city by Lady Denman, the wife of the then Governor-General Lord Denman, at a ceremony on March 12, 1913 .

With three entertainment stages and more than 40 stalls, this year’s celebrations focus on the multicultural communities that make up Canberra, with food, beverages and entertainment from around the globe.

huge range of food vendors and community groups that will showcase the best that the city has to offer,” says Ross.

Stalls and food vendors

A wide range of food vendors and community organisation stalls will be at the Canberra Day celebrations at Commonwealth Park. Stalls include:

Pacific Island Bar – experience the flavours of Pacific Islands with refreshing drinks.

Canberra India Council – Clothing, henna and a vegetarian food stall.

Federation of Chinese Associations ACT – Chinese art, calligraphy, games and books.

Australian Colombian Association – Showcasing the flavours of Latin American cuisine.

Workshops

Kung Fu Wushu

Enjoy an energetic and fun Kung Fu Wushu Workshop, held at Commonwealth Park throughout the day. The classes will be a mix of kung fu, tai chi, lion-dragon dancing and women’s self defence.

Canberra in Colour

Book into the two afternoon sessions to participate in the Canberra in Colour Art Workshop, hosted by the Tuggeranong Arts Centre. Join awardwinning artist Lily Platts and learn visual art skills to create an artwork responding to the Canberra community.

The program includes performances celebrating cultural diversity and vibrancy, local community group activities, games for the kids, roving and family entertainment, making it a great family day out.

“With the cancellation of the Multicultural Festival (due to covid), we wanted to deliver the great experiences that we all missed out on with a

Stage 88

He says it’s never been a better time to feel proud to be a Canberran and support local businesses who have been doing it tough, with community organisations and vendors at the Canberra Day festivities benefitting from the trade on the day.

“Come along, buy some great food and enjoy the wonderful collective experience of Canberra Day,” says Ross.

11:00 - 11:15 Welcome to Country – Wally Bell

11:15 - 11:35 Brindabella Chorus

11:35 - 11:50 Dragon Boat Presentation

11:50 - 12:15 Art Song for All

12:30 - 12:50 Segalise Mauritian Dance Performance

1:00 - 1:05 Minister’s Welcome (Minister Tara Cheyne)

1:15 - 1:40 Canberra Celtic Pipe Band

2:00 - 2:45 John Mackey Improvisation Project [ANU School of Music]

3:05 - 3:25 Koko Loco Dancers

3:45 - 4:30 Mi Hermano y Yo

4:50 - 5:35 Nyash

5:55 - 6:40 Funky Trop

7:00 - 8:00 African Band

My Island Kitchen ACT – A small, family-run food truck selling Pacific Island cuisine.

Canberra Academy of Languages – Providing information about language learning, bilingualism, multilingualism, community languages, the diversity of languages in the Canberra area, and their benefits.

Multilingual Story Walk for Canberra Day – Story boards across the site, each in different languages.

Stage Two (Parkes Way Stage)

11:00 - 11:20 ACT Chinese Association Cultural performance group

11:30 - 11:50 Canberra Celtic Dance School & The Joy Reiher School of Scottish Dancing

11:50 - 12:30 Canberra in Poem workshops

12:30 - 1:30 China on Stage

1:45 - 2:15 Mother Tongue from the Balkans

3:15 - 3:30 Raio de Sol drummers rove in front of stage

3:30 - 4:00 A Stellar Line Up

4:20 - 4:40 ACT Maori Performing Arts/ Tumanako Maori Cultural Group

5:00 - 5:20 Ukranian Folkloric Dance

5:30 - 5:50 Escola do Samba

6:10 - 6:55 Super Rats

7:15 - 8:00 Los Chavos

at: enlightencanberra.com/program/canberra-day/

Taking inspiration from a work created by Lily during the class, participants will be guided through the process of painting an iconic Canberra bus stop, receiving step-by-step demonstrations along the way. The program pace and structure will ensure you create a work you love, even if you are a complete beginner.

Bookings are essential, visit enlightencanberra.com/program/canberra-day/

Stage Three (Dance Stage)

11:30 - 11:50 Merici College Dance Troupe

12:00 - 12:20 Bronwyn Buasavanh with Bedazzled

12:30 - 12:50 Ukranian Folkloric Dance

1:00 - 1:20 Canberra Palestinian Community: Palestinian Wedding

1:30 - 1:50 Tibetan Farming Dance

2:00 - 2:20 Bellyup Bellydance

2:30 - 2:50 Dancers Without Borders

2:50 - 3:00 Raio de Sol drummers rove in front of stage

3:00 - 3:20 Danza de los Diablos (Baila Chile)

3:30 - 3:50 Serbian Folklore Canberra

4:00 - 4:20 Australia School of Contemporary Chinese

4:30 - 4:50 Kung Fu Wushu (inc. brick smashing)

5:00 - 5:20 Mosaic Bellydance

5:30 - 5:50 Canberra Burns Club / Canberra City Combined Pipe & Drum Band

6:00 - 6:20 Obsidian Bellydance with Quake

6:30 - 6:50 Salvadorian Dance

7:00 - 7:20 Momposina Colombian Dance

By Jon STANHOPE

I ATTENDED the recent screening by ANU Law and Social Justice of the documentary “Incarceration Nation” and the subsequent panel discussion.

The event was held in the Kambri Cultural Centre on the ANU campus. The welcome to country, which was led by Ngambri Elder Paul Girrawah House, was both poetic and moving and delivered in English and the language of his ancestors.

The name Canberra is derived from the word Kambri which is, of course, the name by which the land on which Canberra is built was known by Aboriginal peoples for eons before their forcible displacement by white settlers in the early nineteenth century.

The word Ngambri, by which Paul and his extended family choose to be recognised, is derived from the same word.

Also there were two ACT government ministers, one Labor and one Green. Since neither Labor nor the Greens recognise the Ngambri as traditional custodians, their presence at an event organised by Australia’s leading

university at which the welcome was delivered by a highly regarded Aboriginal leader whom they, unlike the ANU, neither recognise nor respect as a traditional custodian, provided some context for the horrors revealed in “Incarceration Nation” and the discussion that followed its screening.

The film contains the most distressing footage imaginable of “interactions” between Aboriginal peoples, including children, across Australia with different arms of the justice system – most particularly police and prison officers.

Almost as distressing are interviews with the family and loved ones of Aboriginal peoples in custody who had been beaten and brutalised. There is in addition heartbreaking footage of Aboriginal peoples filmed dying in custody and the reaction of their families to their deaths.

It is ironic that “Incarceration Nation” features footage and interviews from across the whole of Australia with the notable exception of the ACT. I say “ironic” because as Julie Tongs, CEO of Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Service, is wont to say: “When it comes to locking up black people, no government in Australia does it with the gusto or regularity of the ACT government.”

In the last 10 years the number of Aboriginal peoples incarcerated

in the ACT has increased by 279 per cent compared to an average across Australia of 51 per cent.

It is understandable then that for the Aboriginal community of Canberra the regular omission in documentaries such as “Incarceration Nation” and by the national media, including the ABC, of any mention of the circumstances under which Aboriginal residents of the ACT are living or that they experience among the worst life outcomes in the nation must be extremely disappointing and deeply frustrating.

It is an omission I often ponder and the most logical, albeit concerning, explanation seems to me to be the pervasive but mistaken view which I believe the rest of Australia has of the ACT of a mostly white, upper middle-class, wealthy, educated leftie elite that would simply not tolerate the existence in their community of disadvantage let alone the mistreatment of Aboriginal peoples. Assuming, of course, that they believe that there are any Aboriginal people living in Canberra.

The rest of Australia sees the ACT as a mostly white, upper middle-class, wealthy, educated leftie elite that wouldn’t tolerate the existence in their community of disadvantage let alone the mistreatment of Aboriginal peoples.

The facts are that somewhere in the order of 10,000 people who identify as Aboriginal live in Canberra and that against almost every measure, for many of them, their life outcomes are, on average, as bad or worse than the Aboriginal community in every other state or territory. Notably this is the case in relation to incarceration where, over recent years, the ACT has had both the highest rates of indigenous incarceration and the highest recidivism rates in Australia.

It was not surprising then that the panellists engaged to critique “Incarceration Nation”, namely Ms Leah House, magistrate Louise Taylor and University of Canberra chancellor Tom Calma, and to explore its relevance to the situation in the ACT were unrestrained in their concern and frustration at how far we have yet to travel.

They each focused at some length on our failure to address the consequences of the colonisation of Australia, including most pertinently the settlement without agreement or compensation of the land now comprising the ACT and from which Aborigi-

nal peoples were displaced and have in the time since then been routinely and grievously mistreated and their needs misunderstood and ignored.

Interestingly, but unsurprisingly the panellists were unanimous in the view that it was imperative if progress was to be made in the ACT in addressing Aboriginal disadvantage generally and Aboriginal incarceration rates that Aboriginal peoples must be front and centre in decision making, program design and in the delivery of services.

The clear message from them was that the ACT government and its instrumentalities need to get out of the way and allow the Aboriginal community, which has the answers, to do what it knows needs to be done to address the dire outcomes currently being experienced by far too many of the Aboriginal residents of Canberra.

In support of the views expressed by the panel, the event concluded following a blunt and unsanitised summary from Ms Tongs of the reality and extent of the disadvantage and discrimination endured by members of the Aboriginal community of Canberra and which she and her staff at Winnunga Nimmityjah face daily.

Ms Tongs concluded by challenging the ACT government and the ministers present to listen to what the Aboriginal community is saying and accept its wisdom.

BRIEFLY Brass on the grass

THE Hall School Museum and Heritage Centre is presenting its annual, free brass-band concert, “Brass on the Grass”, from 4pm on Sunday, March 27. The concert, featuring Canberra Brass, Victoria Street Brass and Queanbeyan Junior Brass, will be held on the lawns of the Hall School Museum.

A view of resin art

ROBYN Cooper will talk about resin art at the next meeting of the new Yerrabi VIEW Club at Eastlake Gungahlin, from 11.30am, March 17. Visitors welcome. Call 0412 617085 or email june3@iinet.net.au by March 14.

Free rock show

THE Canberra Lapidary Club is hosting a free-entry “Rock Swap” at Parrot Park, EPIC, 8.30am-5pm each day of the Canberra Day long weekend, March 12-14. Visitors can buy minerals, crystals, jewellery, rough and cut gemstones, opals and fossils. More from 6258 6631 or visit canberralapidary.org.au

Prize for family story

FAMILY History ACT is encouraging entries for the best short story on a family history/ genealogy theme with a first prize of $1000. The 2022 EM Fletcher Writing Competition is open for entries of up to 2000 words lodged before July 15. Information about the competition is at familyhistoryact.org.au

to one of the world’s most stunning natural playgrounds right here in Australia Surrounded by the spectacular Snowy Mountains with a host of activities, experiences and boutique accommodation choices, unforgettable memories are

NEWS FEATURE / Kenrick Winchester

New Mayor Kenrick has a hell of a lot going on

By Belinda STRAHORN

FOR the first time in more than a decade Queanbeyan has a new mayor.

Following the retirement of Tim Overall late last year, the newly elected QueanbeyanPalerang Regional Council (QPRC) recently voted Kenrick Winchester into the top job.

Having taken on the role in recent weeks, Cr Winchester is still adjusting to the competing demands of the position, along side his job as a fleet manager and raising a young family.

But the 39-year-old Canberra Raiders fan who has lived in Queanbeyan his entire life is excited about the challenge that lies ahead.

“I’m still learning in terms of my role as mayor on how to run an effective meeting,” Cr Winchester said.

“We had an amendment to an amendment on a motion that we shouldn’t have had at a recent meeting, but I now know. I’ve got another training course on how to chair meetings coming

We have two regional sports complexes coming at Bungendore and Jerrabomberra, so let’s get them off the ground,

Queanbeyan-Palerang Council, and we now have no-one on council from Braidwood and no-one from Captains Flat.”

In 2004 I got offered a job with Surf Lifesaving Australia, but I wasn’t ready to leave Queanbeyan and move to Bondi, so moving into sport just never happened.”

footy club.

“I always wanted to work for a rugby league club and did work experience for the Roosters, Bulldogs, Manly, and the Raiders,” Cr Winchester said.

“In 2004 I got offered a job with Surf Lifesaving Australia, but I wasn’t ready to leave Queanbeyan and move to Bondi, so moving into sport just never happened.”

Although the mantle of leadership has passed to a new council, Cr Winchester acknowledges the significant contribution former mayor Tim Overall had made in shaping the city, and is keen to build on that legacy moving forward.

“The council over the last 10 years under Tim’s stewardship has done a good job, and I want to keep the town moving in the general direction that we have been pointed,” said Cr Winchester.

Tell your super fund to get out of Russian assets

I FIND those silly industry super advertisements irritating and a waste of money. It’s worse though when the same super funds invest in Russia.

It has come to light that a fund that I am a member of – namely Australian Super – has more than $200 million invested in Russian oil and gas and banking investments. After a long struggle by fund members they ceased investing in tobacco.

Perhaps they might see their way clear to exit morally bankrupt holdings in a corrupt and despotic country such as Russia? Perhaps they should never have invested there in the first place?

I am a company director, and have worked as an auditor and tax official (amongst other things). I am amazed that for all the environmental, social and governance posturing, some sanity check is not applied to investments that might be financially fine, but raise ethical and appearance questions because of tax havens, invading peaceful democratic neighbours or other unprincipled issues. And to make it worse, even Sweden has swung into action and helped out with weapons, and even the Swiss are drawing the line on Russian exposures. It’s pretty sad when our own supposedly moral and ethical superannuation funds are actually immoral and unethical and have to be shamed into action.

Please find out what your superannuation fund is up to as regards Russia and badger them to change tack.

Martin Gordon, Dunlop

Restore our local ABC station

AS a rusted-on ABC listener, having listened to a range of stations in different regions, I believe “Keeping Up The Act “ (CN March 3) has nailed it. Our once erudite, substantive and relevant ABC is too frequently characterised by vacuous drivel at the expense of engaging content.

The change in managerial priorities since the retirement of Alex Sloan and the axing of the wonderful Genevieve Jacobs has left potentially capable presenters with too much trite trivial dross, as depicted in your cartoon, masquerading as quality infotainment. One wonders why?

Before the change, the rich, textured and thoughtful local programming made

666 a credit to Canberra, an exemplary ABC station. I urge them to treat their listeners with more respect, abandon this lazy programming and restore our local station.

In the meantime, I will continue to switch to Radio National when they dish up the tripe.

Peter Morgan, Ainslie

Sick of being told abnormal is normal

GREG Cornwell (Letters, CN February 24) uses too many words on the problem of bureaucrats and none on the remedy.

Our bureaucrats are managers who measure their performance with statistics.

When the Snowy Mountains Scheme was built in the ‘50s and ‘60s, the head of the Snowy Mountains Hydro Electric Authority was an engineer, William Hudson. His management style “stressed co-operation between management and labour and scientific knowledge (facts) over opinion”, according to Wikipedia.

Which leads me to my main complaint. I am sick of being told that the abnormal is normal. I want one of the basic freedoms of a modern democracy returned – to be able to argue my case in the media.

Our culture (if it’s worth saving) will not survive unless we start having more children. You cannot legislate the family, nor can technology replace it. Society needs the traditional family to survive, so it should be recognised accordingly. The dignity of any person should not be denigrated because there are truths in this world.

John L Smith, Farrer

Do we really need noisy drones?

DRONE deliveries are being rolled out to selected Canberra suburbs in a partnership between Coles and service provider Wing. I am not looking forward to this development, which has the potential to become Canberra wide in time.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell people who have been subjected to the noise created by drones during trial periods over the last several years that they make a heck of a noise.

The noise really carries.

I’m all for technology advancements and, of course during times of emergency (such as the floods we are seeing), delivery of emergency supplies is an excellent deployment of this technology, which has many other legitimate applications, too (checking power lines/infrastructure, search and rescue, law enforcement and the list goes on). But is this something we really need on a day-to-day basis for delivery of general shopping items?

Other than genuine uses similar to those listed above, I object to the use of drones on the following basis: noise pollution, safety (deliberate misuse to cause harm or just plain malfunction), security risk (around airports/prisons etcetera), illegal use (spying/ privacy invasion), impact on pets and wildlife (similar to fireworks) and too many more to list here.

Let’s hope the ACT government says: “This ain’t gonna happen here” – but I doubt it.

A great feedback comment I read: “Will be interesting one day when the Coles drone hovers to wait for the Woollies drone to depart and the Amazon drone is in a holding pattern while the customer tries to give a landing clearance for the Aldi drone via the app on his mobile.”

Bjorn Moore, Gowrie

Locked up like ‘caged animals’

I THANK Jon Stanhope for raising the issues that he has over our prison, the Alexander Maconochie Centre.

In his most recent article (“Why a young man’s death in prison matters”, CN February 17), he talks about a young man who took his life on the first day of his imprisonment despite being under close observation.

This is a terrible situation which should not have happened. As part of the ACT community I want to express my sadness and sympathy to the family of this young man.

As a community we can’t shut our eyes to the fact that these things are happening within what is supposed to be a humanrights prison. I, for one, know that this is not the case, despite the fact that there are some good people working there and some good programs that help detainees.

that they made and are serving their time. Some of them are our relatives.

But there is lots of research that tells us detainees need some help to turn their lives around, that their lives matter and that we need some empathy for those that can be helped.

I know there have been endless lock-ins because of staff shortages and covid issues – but not only are the detainees serving their time locked away from their family and friends, but they are locked up like caged animals for up to 20 hours a day for days on end in some periods of time.

The Transitional Release Centre, which helps detainees reintegrate into the community, has been out of action for nearly two years. Not good enough.

Heather McLeod, via email

Planning contributes to gang gang stress

THE ACT government is to lead a national working group to help conserve the beloved gang gang cockatoo, which has now been included on the national endangered list of threatened species.

It has also received about $250,000 to monitor these birds and find out what is causing their decline. Canberra is the only city where this bird is found yet we persist with poorly managed urban renewal planning processes that are known to impact this important species.

The working group or our environment minister may wish to set up a longitudinal study that reviews, initiates and monitors specific actions to counteract the significant and ongoing loss of extensive and wellknown gang gang habitat across Canberra including in central Downer.

On one large section in this suburb, dozens of mature trees, including many 70+ year-old, heritage-listed ones, were felled more than two years ago and dozens more will be lost when more multi-storey complexes and swathes of hard surfacing appear next to what were well-established public treescape corridors for gang gangs and other birds.

provide evidence of how and when more of these birds will be enticed back to this suburb.

Sue Dyer, Downer

Facts about the polluting bus fleet

CANBERRA’S growing fleet of governmentsubsidised, fossil-fuelled buses continues to add to the territory’s already excessive greenhouse emissions.

Transport Canberra’s annual reports have not included public transport greenhouse emissions since 2015, or public transport passenger journeys since 2020.

From a freedom of information request, I learned that Transport Canberra provided 11 million bus and/or light rail passenger journeys in 2020-21.

I have estimated greenhouse emissions from published diesel and CNG consumption figures. Transport Canberra’s buses caused record-high emissions in 2020-21, equivalent to 37 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Transport Canberra’s greenhouse emissions were equivalent to 3.5 kilograms of carbon dioxide per passenger journey. If patronage returns to pre-covid levels, Transport Canberra’s emissions will fall below 2.5 kilograms per passenger journey. That is 20 per cent more than per-person emissions for an equivalent journey in a car that carries Canberra’s average of 1.5 people.

The ACT government’s plan for a zero emissions bus fleet was postponed in 2019 when it bought 40 new diesel buses, and is now being further delayed by the lease of an additional 26 new diesel buses.

Leon Arundell, Downer

Albo’s suffering from amnesia

OPPOSITION Leader Anthony Albanese is being hypocritical by saying “it’s not the job of the PM to scare people, it is to look after the interests of the nation”.

A recent property sale nearby had the realtor use a drone to take pictures of the house/views – it was very loud and you couldn’t escape it, the noise just cut through my house walls and it wasn’t that close by.

Yes, they have done the wrong thing, which is why they are there and I’m sure there are some detainees who have done atrocious things to others and I don’t condone any of that. But the majority are there because of stupid mistakes and decisions

Luke Clews

A well-co-ordinated, time-critical tree replacement, management and maintenance plan is required to ensure that the expected, yet slow, regeneration of publicly-owned habitat in central Downer does not receive set-backs or suffer losses over the next few decades.

The new gang gang project should aim to

Albo and the ALP appear to be suffering from amnesia, as they have conveniently forgotten about “Mediscare”, the mother of all scare campaigns.

Mario Stivala, Belconnen

LOOKING west are two districts with a strong sense of community.

One, Weston Creek, was named after Capt George Edward Weston, a former officer of the East India company, who came to Australia in 1829.

The other, Molonglo Valley, derives its name from an Aboriginal expression meaning “the sound of thunder”.

Today, both of these districts are home to some of Canberra’s best businesses.

“CityNews” speaks with a few.

CREEK AND MOLONGLO

Retirement village offers convenience

ADRIA Village combines access to important facilities with a feel of privacy, making it the perfect place for retirement, says CEO Stephanie Tyrrell.

“There’s close access to Cooleman Court and Woden Westfield, but we are surrounded by reserves and parklands making it a very peaceful atmosphere for residents,” she says.

Located in the heart of Weston Creek, Adria Village, which has two dedicated respite rooms and a special care unit, offers residential care for 42 residents. The village also contains 36 independent living units.

Stephanie says the village offers residents a wide range of things to do, and that they can get involved as little or as much as they’d like.

“We have an active residents’

committee who organise lots of get-togethers. Residents can play cards, go to morning teas and happy hours, enjoy exercise, and much more,” she says.

Established in 1994 by volunteers of the Croatian community of Canberra and Queanbeyan, Stephanie also says the village is home to a greatly multicultural group of people.

“We have residents [from] Australia, Croatia, China, France, Macedonia, Hungary and more,” she says.

“There are great residents and great staff committed to the best outcomes for the community.”

Adria Village, 89 Fremantle Drive, Stirling. Call 6288 0198, email admin@ adria.org.au or visit adria.org.au

Optometrists highlight importance of early eye exams

WITH kids back at school now’s an important time to get their eyes checked, says optometrist and orthoptist Juliet Menakaya, of Junic Eye Care.

“Vision is our most important sense and children learn more from vision than all other senses combined,” says Juliet.

“We like to say that before children have their first assessment at school, make sure their eye test is the first test they’ve done for the year.”

Juliet says many parents wait until their children are older before getting an eye test, however having an examination while young is crucial in preventing potential issues before they arise.

“Children can often think their vision is completely fine without knowing any better,” she says.

“An eye examination can help detect macular degeneration, glaucoma and other issues that can get progressively worse.

“At Junic Eye Care, we offer a comprehensive eye check that tests visual acuity, eye movement, how eye muscles work together, colour vision and more.”

Juliet says there are key indicators parents should be on the lookout for when it comes to their child’s vision.

“Kids rubbing their eyes, tilting their heads, holding books close to their eyes or sitting close to the TV, these are things I encourage parents to pay

Set amongst landscaped grounds, Adria Care in Stirling is a warm and welcoming community of people from all around the world. We pride ourselves on cultural diversity and celebration, and offer a wide range of activities to cater for all interests. We provide care for Croatian and all other nationalities.

Adria Care fosters individuality and independence, providing support and assistance to enable residents to live in a comfortable and secure environment. It offers residential care for 42 residents, incorporating 2 respite rooms and special care. All rooms are single rooms with ensuite.

The village also contains 36 independent living villas. All villas have 2 bedrooms, a courtyard and a garden, and residents enjoy a peaceful and welcoming community lifestyle.

Our aim is to provide a caring, safe, home-like atmosphere, reflecting your rights to dignity, respect, privacy, safety and the best quality of life.

Contact our friendly staff today to arrange a personal tour.

Starting conversations about epilepsy

“EVERY 33 minutes, someone in Australia is diagnosed with epilepsy,” says Epilepsy ACT CEO Fiona Allardyce.

“It’s a life-changing event. Some will be diagnosed as adults, some will be as children. It can happen at any time.”

The condition, which causes disruptions in the brain and seizures, will affect around 16,000 Canberrans in their lifetime, but Fiona says Epilepsy ACT is doing all it can to support those touched by it.

The charity organisation offers training at schools and workplaces, online resources, referrals, and support groups, or even just a phone call with information to help those who need it.

“Epilepsy comes in many different ways, not just what we see in the movies,” says Fiona.

That was certainly the case for Max, a young boy who was experiencing epilepsy in the form of blank stares and not responding when his parents called and nudged him.

“The team at Epilepsy ACT was a tremendous help,” said Max’s mother, Jemma.

“There were many calls, emails and conversations with them during the period of not knowing what was going on with our son.

“They provided us with information, explained to us the different tests and introduced us to other families who were going through the same journey.

“They were an amazing and understanding resource when we really needed it.”

Epilepsy ACT. Call 6287 4555 or visit epilepsyact.org.au

Nic’s the key to a great village life

LJ HOOKER real estate agent Nic Salter-Harding says registering your interest with him will give you “the best shot” of getting into Araluen retirement village in Fisher.

“It’s a really close-knit, vibrant community. There’s a lot to do and the activities are all resident run,” says Nic.

The facilities include an indoor “beautifully heated” pool, a leisure centre that’s “undergoing refurbishment at the moment,” activities such as board games, cards, mahjong, puzzles and a pool table.

“There are interest groups ranging from art to walking, and music.”

Nic says residents have the freedom to live how they like.

“It’s very common for retirement villages to really treat people more like tenants than owners, and that’s certainly not the case here.

“You own your property, you can renovate it, you can reimagine it to your liking and that goes from changing the colour of paint to doing a complete remodel if that’s what you’re after.”

For enquiries call Nic on 0412 600085 or email nic.salter-harding@ljhdickson.com.au

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MARCH INTO BUSINESS

Friendly businesses to March into this month

MASKS are off and business is back. Throughout Canberra there are plenty of passionate people excited to welcome the community through their doors.

Whether it’s improving the home or having some fun, “CityNews” speaks with a selection of Canberra businesses about their specialties.

Offering a large range of quality flooring

of top-quality floor coverings in Canberra and Queanbeyan, with options that help keep the home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, says co-owner Taylor O’Brien.

Established in 1970, and still a family run business, Taylor says the business has maintained its original objective of displaying exceptional choices of carpet, timber, laminate and hybrid flooring, vinyl, vinyl planks and rugs.

Taylor describes their Fyshwick-based showroom as Canberra’s “greatest floor show” with thousands of samples on display, and an experienced team of flooring specialists to make the customer’s experience as easy as possible.

“Our showroom is so great that other retailers send their customers to view our huge range of

top-quality floor coverings,” she says.

“As a family business, Endeavour Carpets appreciates that customers are spoilt for choice in a competitive market place, and so maintain an objective to offer the best service and products available and for the best possible price,” she says.

When customers visit Endeavour Carpets, Taylor says they experience a good, old-fashioned service from a long-standing, local family business.

“This is what really sets Endeavour Carpets apart from any regular carpet store,” she says.

“At Endeavour Carpets, we don’t just endeavour, we do.”

Endeavour Carpets, 33 Isa Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 6132, email info@endeavourcarpets.com.au or visit endeavourcarpets.com.au

‘Beautiful’ furniture for the home

OWNER of Timberland Furniture Tony Purdy says he has a range of beautiful furniture that includes almost anything the home needs: bedding, dining suites, TV units, coffee tables, buffets and more.

Included is a range of Tasmanian Blackwood, says Tony, one of Australia’s most beautiful and sought after timbers.

“Tasmanian Blackwood is a prestigious hardwood with a warm and natural colour,” he says.

“It can adorn different rooms of the house, and can be complemented by any piece of furniture. You can’t beat it as far as I’m concerned.”

Tony says size is often an issue for clients, so whether it’s a TV unit, bookcase or buffet table, Timberland Furniture can custom-make furniture to fit the space. “We customise the size of a particular piece to meet the customer’s requirements and they choose the timber,” he says.

Timberland Furniture, 100 Barrier Street, Fyshwick. Call 6280 7411, email timberlandfyshwick@gmail.com or visit timberlandfurniture.com

Experts in all things water

WHETHER it’s moving it, storing it, pumping it, applying it or getting rid of it, Aquaflo are experts when it comes to water management, says director Michael Corcoran.

“Think of us as the all-in-one solution for your next irrigation project. We’re specialists in pumps and water tanks,” he says.

Michael says that Aquaflo’s industry trained team can manage irrigation projects, big or small, from start right until finish.

“We give you the right advice from the beginning,” he says.

“We can steer you in the right direction, let you know what you need, all the components, and do everything from go to whoa so that you’re not spending unnecessary money.

“We design systems that are water efficient so you’re not wasting water and

make sure that whatever water is being used, it’s being used effectively and you’re getting the best out of it.”

Aquaflo also has a store in Mitchell that Michael says features all the most up-to-date irrigation products. Particularly popular at the moment, he says, is their selection of wicking beds.

“As irrigators, we are artificial rain makers. We try to mimic rainfall,” says Michael.

“Wicking beds have a reservoir at the bottom of the bed which water can be drawn up from and then is used to water the plants.

“They’re changing the way people are thinking about growing your own at home.”

Aquaflo Irrigation, 4/23 Essington Street, Mitchell. Call 6179 3977 or visit aquafloirrigation.com.au

All kinds of bikes for all kinds of people

DAVID Cook, owner of Cookies Cycles, opened the store in 2015, “to cater for the families of Gungahlin”. He stocks bikes, scooters and skateboards in both manual and electric models.

“In 2018, Cookies Cycles partnered with Sydney Electric Bikes to open Canberra Electric Bikes,” says

In 2021, “we expanded into the shop next door to give us another 75 metres of showroom so that we could expand our range of electric bikes.”

David has been in the bicycle trade for more than 35 years, and says he finds it very rewarding.

“One of the things I like at the moment with the increase in popularity of electric vehicles is seeing a lot of seniors who probably thought their riding days were over, getting back out and enjoying the outdoors.”

‘Turbo charge’ your walk

A NEW, scientifically studied exercise technique called Nordic Walking is more effective than jogging but as gentle as walking, and is the perfect way to get in some regular exercise this year, says Capital Nordic Walking

reducing strain on leg joints.”

during their off season, uses specially

along using the power of the upper “It doubles the number of muscles compared to walking and running, intensity cardiovascular workout,”

“It strengthens arms, shoulders, back and core while also massively

Kristen says Nordic Walking is quickly growing in Canberra, beneficial to those who need some low-impact exercise and for those with a competitive spark.

“The great thing about Nordic walking is you don’t have to go very fast to get a good workout but competitive Nordic walkers can get up to speeds similar to running,” she says.

“For people who like walking, it can turbo charge your walk and for people who are really fit like runners and crossfitters, it’s a really good cross activity to build muscle because it is so low impact.”

Capital Nordic Walking, email hello@ capitalnordicwalking.com.au or visit capitalnordicwalking.com.au

Nordic Walking turbo-charges your walk, turning it into a total-body workout!

PROVEN to be far more effective, and gets better results, than just walking, jogging, running, cyucling and swimming!

Doubles the muscles actively used, gets your heart pumping, burns more calories, and is much easier on your joints!

London shares its portrait icons with Canberra ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

By Helen Musa

IN a significant coup for our own National Portrait Gallery, more than 80 treasures from London’s National Portrait Gallery are about to go on show in Canberra.

It’s our good luck that the gallery in St Martin’s Place is closed until 2023 while building works take place.

But it’s not the first time our gallery has borrowed from the “Mothership”, as I found when I caught up with exhibition curator Joanna Gilmour.

“There are very few National Portrait Galleries around the world and London is the mothership,” she says.

“It was first opened in the 1850s and we share a lot of its DNA… our friendship goes back to the early days of the NPG in Canberra when Gordon and Marilyn Darling were working on the connections.”

But lest readers confuse this show with the previously-planned “Love Stories”, also from the London gallery but thwarted by covid, Gilmour is quick to stress: “This is a very different exhibition than the one we planned, but couldn’t go ahead with.

“A slightly different opportunity arose

and we grabbed it with both hands… it’s a great opportunity for us.”

For a few years in our early days, from the ‘90s to 2003, our gallery got a lot of shows from London, so we are rebooting the relationship.”

“What we will be seeing are really the icons of the National Portrait Gallery London’s collection, the sort of thing that

KING

a visitor to London would expect to see – I know when I go to London, the first thing I do is to go and seek out that 1834 portrait of the Brontë sisters [Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë and Charlotte Brontë] – I love them and I love that work,” says Gilmour.

“Normally all these pictures, especially the Brontës and Shakespeare, would be permanent fixtures, a part of intrinsic

English and British history, and these are the sort of faces you’d expect to see.

“The largest work that we are getting is of a 17th-century portrait of the royalist, Lord Capel and his family, a stunning work of 2.4 x 1.4 metres in size.

“It took about 10 hours to get it out of its crates – we have a lot of things like that which don’t travel easily.

“It’s all been a real joy. The curators in London have done it in a really fantastic, challenging way, not chronological, not the way you would normally see it.

“They’ve created a kind of trans-historical look across the centuries by putting portraits side by side, raising essential questions of portraiture.”

The exhibition is focused on six themes of Fame, Loss, Love, Identity, Innovation, Self and Power, showing how portraits can share the same language.

A self-portrait by famous portraitist

Sir Anthony van Dyck, for instance, is set alongside a portrait of radical artist Tracey Emin.

There are works in all different media and with different levels of energy, Gilmour says.

One of the most powerful ones is a huge life-size of designer Vivienne Westwood, put alongside a portrait of the Queen.

“The way these two very different women convey the same sense of selfconfident power by virtue of the intensity of the gaze in both cases,” she says.

“Then there’s that portrait of Shakespeare, the first to enter NPG London’s collection on its founding in 1856 and next to him, the pop singer Ed Sheeran… it’s weird, but somehow it works to have them side by side.

“We didn’t get to choose the works, but we’ve had a little bit of leeway with our in-house designer, Aaron de Smet, able to choose the layout and the colour scheme.

“They gave us the six themes and the paintings, then we wrote the introductory text panels to each section while London supplied the labels, which made it easy for us, but it still left us a lot of creativity and a lot of joy.”

There’s a smattering of famous people – think the Beatles, David Bowie, Kate Moss, Mick Jagger and Princess Diana – but Gilmour is adamant that it’s not what the show is about.

And her own favourite?

Not as hard as you’d think, as she believes within the portrait of Afghan heroine Malala Yousafzai, with poetry inscribed across her face by artist Shirin Neshat, we can see “wisdom and integrity. It really comes out in this inspiring work, especially considering what’s been going on in Afghanistan.”

“Shakespeare to Winehouse: Icons from the National Portrait Gallery London”, National Portrait Gallery, Canberra, March 12-July 17, book at portrait.gov.au

OF PIGS 24 - 26 Mar Powerful, visceral storytelling that speaks to the urgent issues of our time.

OPERA

Music of the night has moments

By Helen Musa

WHEN “The Phantom of the Opera” takes to the floating stage on Sydney Harbour Bridge complete with fireworks, one thing you can be sure of is that there’ll be a very large chandelier involved.

As director Simon Phillips observes, when I catch up with him to talk about the latest iteration of Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour, “when you’re using two cranes, you’ve got no excuse for not dropping the chandelier down.”

Although operatic eyebrows were raised at OA’s decision to stage a Lloyd-Webber musical rather than an opera from the standard repertoire, there’s a certain serendipity about the choice since “The Phantom”, which descended from Gaston Leroux’s lurid 1910 novel and three famous films, is set in the Paris Opera House, where a beautiful young singer becomes the obsession of a disfigured genius.

certain challenge to it.”

It’s a challenge he and star designer Gabriela Tylesova have risen to with gusto, bringing a new level of spectacle to the mirror, the journey to the Phantom’s lair, and to that chandelier.

reckons he’s got the perfect cast.

Tenor Joshua Robson, who plays the Phantom, has been the groomsman, never the groom, playing support roles since graduating from the Victorian College of the Arts in 2011.

But as Phillips says: “Now it’s his time to shine…I’ve loved finding someone in that world who could really sing ‘The Music of the Night’.

“He can make the music a little bit more thrilling and create the atmosphere that we’re looking for, while Raoul, played by Callum Francis, has to have a more lyrical voice.”

Georgina Hopson as Christine gets her big chance to star, too.

“She has to be able to sing like Sarah Brightman for whom the role was originally written and she has an extraordinary range in a Broadway sort of way,” Phillips says.

The show features fictitious operas with titles “Hannibal” and “Il Muto” and, as Phillips concedes: “There’s a lot of sending up of opera and some of it’s cheesy, but what I see through the music is that it captures those large human emotional moments and turns them into something quite lyrical and quite transcendent in spite of the Grand Guignol aspects of its plot.

“Of course, the joke is that the show is set inside a theatre, with flying systems and wings, none of which we have available, so there was a

“Let there be light!”

“On the upside,‘The Music of the Night’ song comes alive in an exterior sitting more potently than ever before,” he says.

It’s a fair bet that’s when the fireworks will burst into life.

Central to the novel, the three films and the musical is the relationship between the tormented Phantom and his protégé, the fledgling opera singer Christine Daaé.

After an exhaustive audition process which took place under covid restrictions, Phillips

And there’s history in this show. The key role of Madame Giry is played by a former Christine, Maree Johnson, while Monsieur Firmin is played by Michael Cormick, who has played Raoul on the professional stage and the Phantom for Free Rain Theatre in Canberra. Assistant director Shaun Rennie directed “Wicked”, also for Free Rain.

“The Phantom” played for 35 years on the West End, and 34 years on Broadway, meaning that it’s likely to be money in the bank for OA, and with the crashing chords of the title song, the big show-stopping numbers and the fireworks, probably even more so outdoors.

“The Phantom of the Opera”, Opera Australia. At Fleet Steps, Mrs Macquarie’s Point, Sydney, March 25-April 24. Book at opera.org.au

The thunderous joy of Haydn’s greatest oratorio opens the Festival. Cast with the finest voices from Australia and New Zealand, this Creation is in the hands of our period specialists: The Australian Haydn Ensemble.

Presented by Luminescence Chamber Singers and Orava String Quartet, Spain’s medieval cantigas contrast with the sumptuous polyphony of Portugal’s Golden Age. Steve Reich’s New York eighties vibe provides the perfect foil for Shostakovich’s sixth quartet. The Great Divide The Creation

| 6293 4677 | songland.com.au Would you like to watch those old family videos once again, or listen to your favourite records on CD? We can take your vinyl records or cassette tapes and put them onto CD and we transfer VHS tapes onto DVD.

Restorations - Repairs - Remakes - Re-Setting Ring Re-sizing - 48hr Service

Custom Design - for something Special Pearl and Bead Re-Threading and Knotting

2022

DINING / L’Americano

Espresso Bar

and Restaurant

Prawn pizza steals the show

THE interior is based on the iconic ‘90s movie, “The Talented Mr Ripley”, and the restaurant chic Italian inspired – L’Americano Espresso Bar and Restaurant is clear about its place in the market and delivers.

Part of the Canberra Centre’s design precinct, with an entrance from Bunda Street, L’Americano is a unique offering in the city.

A new pizza menu has been launched, inspired by the food heritage of the Italian Riviera (combined with some Aussie faves).

Our L’Americano adventure started with superb Wagyu carpaccio ($22) with peppery rocket, confit garlic, fennel and parmesan. The beef was thinly sliced, a lovely light pink, and served with a strongish creamy dressing. We were careful not to overload the beef with the dressing given its delicate nature. It was a mouth-watering start to our Sunday lunch.

Next up was the Arancini ($14). They were crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside with mozzarella oozing out

Star of the show… Bianco King Prawn pizza enhanced with chilli, yellow and green zucchini and ripe cherry tomatoes.

of the centre. The intense and vibrant salsa rossa, created with red capsicum, chilli and capers, was excellent and the dish featured aromatic saffron and basil. The arancini balls were topped with shavings of salty parmesan on top.

We’ve heard that the duck liver pate, with pickled cherries and black pepper, is to-die-for ($18), but could only fit so much in so moved to mains.

The star of the show was the Bianco

King Prawn pizza ($28), one of six on the menu. It’s a light pizza but don’t take that to mean it isn’t high on taste.

The prawns, split in half lengthways, were cooked to perfection and the pizza enhanced with chilli (thin, fresh slices and flakes), yellow and green zucchini (to add colour and boost the flavour profile), and ripe cherry tomatoes halved. The white base of Fior di Latte and Mascarpone was

For a side salad we selected the rocket and parmesan with aged balsamic vinegar ($10). The rocket was super fresh, but the dish was overly salty (and we’re salt fans).

We dined with a fresh, bright and inviting pinot grigio – Dal Zotto from King Valley ($58 a bottle and $12 by the glass). Overall, L’Americano’s wine list is well-presented and well-priced.

L’Americano has a concise “addition menu”, and on our visit included a Fraser Coast spanner crab risotto ($34), Caesar salad croquettes ($20) and seafood spaghetti ($36).

Desserts sounded amazing, but sadly there was no room for the Basque burnt cheesecake ($14), which we definitely wanted to indulge in. Perhaps next time, although this dolce might have to fight to be selected over the tiramisu.

It was attentive service with a smile at L’Americano until the end when we had to flag someone to get our bill. We were impressed there was no Sunday surcharge.

Sunday 3 April 2022

Beginners Bird Watching Walk

Two hour local Canberra bird walk guided by Neil Hermes

Sunday 1 May 2022

Beginners Bird Watching Walk

Two hour local Canberra bird walk guided by Neil Hermes

Sunday 5 June 2022

Beginners Bird Watching Walk

Two hour local Canberra bird walk guided by Neil Hermes

anniversary concert

By Helen Musa

THE Gadflys, whose permanent members grew up and went to school in Canberra, are returning to town with their 40th anniversary show. A staple of inner-city pubs, unis and art schools in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne right through the ‘80s and ‘90s, brothers Phil and Mick Moriarty will be joined by Kathryn Brownhill and Gemma Clare on violin and cello, with Penny McBride and Nick Keeling on horns. The Playhouse, March 17. Book at canberratheatrecentre.com.au

CANBERRA glass artist Mel Douglas is a finalist in the 2022 Loewe Foundation Craft Prize with her work, “Deviation”, where the glass has been cut and the kiln formed into two distinct forms that are then cold worked, hand sanded and positioned so that they partially overlap. The prize received more than 3100 works from 116 countries.

PRODUCER Megan

is staging

book at eventbrite.com.au

THE 2022 Furphy Literary Awards are open. Named in honour of Australian writer Joseph Furphy, who wrote the classic “Such is Life” under the pen name Tom Collins, the award offers $20,000 in total prize money and publication in the annual “Furphy Anthology”. Writers have until April 30 to enter their story of up to 5000 words on the theme “Australian life in all its diversity” to furphystory.com.au

FANS of the TV sitcom will be pleased to hear that “Friends: the Parody” is coming to The Playhouse, July 13-15. Ross, Rachel, Chandler, Monica, Joey and Phoebe navigate life and friendship, while reliving favourite moments from the show. Book at canberratheatrecentre.com.au

For these and other walks, tours and safaris check out www.neilhermes.com.au

STREAMING

The lingering ‘Walking Dead’ hobbles into history

IN its final season, “The Walking Dead” has come to resemble something of a hobbling corpse itself.

At its height, the zombie apocalypse horror drama was pulling in more than 14 million viewers every week. Fans from around the world were eager to see if their favourites in an ensemble of survivors would make it through another episode alive.

Now, in its eleventh and final season streaming weekly on Binge, the show can’t even crack the two-million viewer mark. Fewer people are watching it than there were during the first season.

How has “The Walking Dead” fallen so far from grace and, as it wraps things up this year, will this once television phenomenon still be able to leave some kind of legacy?

Rewind to 2010, and one of the best television pilots of all time hit TV screens.

The first episode of “The Walking Dead” dropped viewers into Atlanta, Georgia, with Rick Grimes, a police sheriff who awakens from a coma to a world overrun by walking corpses and who goes on a desperate search for his family.

Adapted from a compendium of comic books, the show struck a balance between pulpy action and character drama that immediately hooked audiences and kicked off a decade that would see television enter a new golden age.

“The Walking Dead”... Now, in its eleventh and final season the show can’t even crack the two-million viewer mark.

By the fourth season, with a cast of characters well entrenched in the plot and an unpredictable villain thrown in the mix, “The Walking Dead” was receiving record-breaking ratings and inspired the ambitions of many other TV blockbusters that would follow.

So where did it go wrong?

While some argue it’s zombie fatigue setting in, it’s clear that the appetite for the subgenre is certainly still out there.

Just recently Netflix has proven that to be the case with its South Korean hit “All of Us Are Dead”, which sets a high school as ground zero for an undead outbreak. The show quickly hit the streaming platform’s number one spot last month.

CINEMA / reviews

But trace the popularity of the subgenre backwards and one can find it has an almost timeless presence in pop culture.

Nearly a decade before “The Walking Dead” was the British horror hit “28 Days Later”, which saw its protagonist awaken in a hospital in London to find the world overrun by the undead.

Sound familiar? Try this.

In 1951 British novelist John Wyndham wrote “The Day of the Triffids”, which yet again was about a man who awakens in a hospital to find his city overgrown with man-eating plants and which also spawned a popular 1962 film.

Come 1968, George Romero dropped the

When Ruby ‘loses’ her car…

By Dougal MACDONALD

“Ruby’s Choice” (PG)

ONCE you’ve got it, there’s no pill or potion that you can take to cure dementia.

It’s not a disease that you can get from another person. It’s a condition to which about 10,000 Australians fall prey each year. How did they get it? They’ve grown old, predominantly beyond 60. Most of them will be women.

“Ruby’s Choice” shines a light on recognising and explaining dementia.

Meet Sharon and Doug (Jacqueline McKenzie and Stephen Hunter) and their adolescent daughter Tash (Coco Jack Gillies), living suburban Australian lives. Sharon’s mother Ruby (Jane Seymour) is about to loom even larger in their lives from the morning when she parks her yellow MGB and that afternoon decides that it must have been stolen ‘cos it’s not where she left it.

That heralds nearly two hours during which the film delivers a story about a middle-class family’s normal comings and goings as they gradually become subordinate to grandma Ruby’s needs and problems. The principal adults are confronting new and difficult issues. Tash, who at first objects to having to share her bedroom with granny, undergoes a sea change that turns into a joyous companionship that gradually dominates the film.

I quickly recognised director Michael Budd and writer Paul Mahoney’s shared solution of the problem of combining a complex emotional and behavioural structure with the need to reflect the human condition in recognisable form.

Those creative talents delivered a special frisson of frustration in me. I knew from the outset where it was taking me. And I understood why it was making me wait for the denouement.

I’m glad I did. I came out knowing that I had watched a talented collaboration of cinematic departments, from acting to environmental explanation. Do yourself a useful favour. Go see it.

At all cinema centres

“Blind Ambition” (M)

MANY movies and TV series have sailed under the flag of “Blind Ambition”. This one, directed by Australians Robert Coe and Warwick Ross, is, well, a bit different.

To begin with, it’s a doco. Winning last year’s Tribeca Film Festival at its international premiere, it’s about a team of four Zimbabwean sommeliers competing at the World Wine Tasting Championships. Zimbabwean? Sommeliers? World Wine Tasting Championships? An unusual collection of themes, perhaps. Worth a look.

With Zimbabwe’s economy collapsing and millions facing starvation, Joseph, Tinashe, Marlvin and Pardon travelled to South Africa seeking a fresh start to support their families. They individually found waiting jobs in Cape Town restaurants, sparking their interest in wine. Not just drinking it and feeling intoxication’s euphoria but rather, the intricacies of the winemaking craft.

In time, the four men, still unknown to each other, became sommeliers and head sommeliers. Eventually meeting and discovering their shared nationality, they decided to compete in the Tasting Championships – 24 teams tasting 12 unknown wines (six red, six white) and identifying five categories in each: variety, country, region, producer, and vintage. That’s no doddle; it takes real skill and experience.

The film educates its viewers about wine tasting in a way that is entertaining and eye-opening and observes Zimbabwe’s humanitarian crisis and the four men’s journeys as they learn more about wine than merely the subjective competition between vignerons. Enjoy.

At Palace Electric and Dendy

first movie of his famous cult zombie trilogy that spanned three decades. Today, “Night of the Living Dead”, “Dawn of the Dead” and “Day of the Dead” all hold pride of place on Amazon Prime Video, Binge and Netflix respectively.

“The Walking Dead” took the consistent cult popularity of this subgenre and plugged it into an extended television format, for the first time giving viewers more time to soak in an apocalyptic setting over multiple seasons.

But while exciting at the start, it would unfortunately turn out to be a case of too much of a good thing.

Excited by the record-breaking ratings, the producers went on to make not one, but two separate spin-offs of the show that have aired all while the original is still running.

There was “Fear the Walking Dead”, about another set of survivors from Los Angeles, but it was the second spin-off “The Walking Dead: World Beyond” where the franchise really shot itself in the foot.

This one followed a group of teenagers who are living in the apocalypse 10 years after the events of the main show. That’s right, 10 years after. What that did was outright tell viewers they weren’t getting a resolution to the main series that they had already been watching for 10 years.

Part of “The Walking Dead’s” bite was also the unpredictable shelf life of its main characters. Anyone could die in any episode kept audiences stuck to their screens.

However, in its final seasons, the show has been too frightened to lose any more of its fan favourites out of fear of losing room to expand the franchise even further. Unsurprisingly, there’s already talk of movie spin-offs.

And that’s the problem that plagues this franchise. When people invest in a story, they need an end in sight and much like one of its walkers, “The Walking Dead” just won’t die.

While it’s yet to be seen how well the final episode will “wrap things up” there’s not much meat left on the bones to make it worth the wait.

Despite this, there is some kind of legacy

“The Walking Dead” will hold on to. It’s a series with the ambitions that helped kickstart the golden age of television we’re in now, and one that would ultimately inspire many far better television shows we have the selection of today.

For that, it deserves its spot in TV history, even if it’s one series that at this point is better left buried.

FRI & SAT FROM 7PM SUN FROM 3PM

GARDENING

Get the hang of green manure

By Jackie WARBURTON

NOW the weather is starting to cool, it’s a perfect time to sow a green manure crop in the

garden.

Green manure crops are specifically grown with certain seeds and, when grown, are dug back into the soil to add nutrients and organic matter for growing veggies in the spring.

This process replenishes the soil from veggies that draw a lot of nutrients when growing. There are ready-made packets of green manure crop for sale at local nurseries, online or rural suppliers have a really good variety and can be bought in bulk. The advantage with rural suppliers is that you can pick your own choice of seed you want to grow.

When choosing seeds for green manure, it’s important to have some legume seeds to fix nitrogen to the soil and non-legumes to add the bulk of organic matter to the soil.

Some seeds to try for in our climate would be legume seeds

such as field peas, lupins and broad beans, and non-legumes such as barley, oats and rye will all work well. It’s important to get seeds sprouted and good growth before the night temperatures fall.

It’s also important not to let the green manure crop flower as it will then take nutrients from the soil, the opposite of what you intended it to do.

By late winter to early spring, chop the plants down with a spade and dig them into the soil.

Green manure crops are also a way of interrupting pests and diseases in the soil and, in turn,

reduces the use of pesticides and insecticides in the vegetable garden. It also uses fallow soil and keeps weeds down through winter.

Dig over the area where the crop is to be grown, cover the seed about two to three times the width of the seed, and water well. Water again when growth appears.

IN the ornamental garden, if irises weren’t divided in spring they can be done now as they’ll be looking a little scrappy from summer and will start their growing period now and through winter. Remove any old leaves that have brown markings or are yellow in colour and spent flowers. They multiply quickly and can fill a space in the garden that is hot and dry that has full sun.

ornamental plant in the garden with sweet, pale-pink, scented flowers in spring. They are self-fertile, but will fruit better with others close by and can take up to six years to fruit. They have a high pectin content and are terrific for preserving or making jams. The fruit is ready for picking when golden yellow and has a honey sweet aroma.

An Iris rhizome only flowers once and it will take several years for the new rhizome to bud and branch, form and grow into new flowers. Break off old rhizomes and throw them away and plant new smaller rhizomes that have white fleshy roots.

AUTUMN bulbs are starting to put on a show. One of my favourites would be Nerines. They are dormant in summer and, as the weather cools, their colour range is from white to deep pink and red.

The foliage and flowers are not bothered by our frosts and can be a good filler in a bare garden

There are a few different varieties to try, and different varieties have different harvesting periods. I grow the Smyrna variety (Cydonia oblonga) of quince, as it flowers a little later than the others in spring and minimises the risk of losing flowers to the frost in spring.

With the wet season we’ve had, there have been issues with quince fleck, which can defoliate leaves and crack the fruit. Spray with a fungicide as soon as the brown marks appear.

Other issues that can affect quinces are pear and cherry slug. Try to keep the leaves dry to minimise this issue.

Jackwar@home.netspeed.com.au

PUZZLES PAGE FREE PUZZLES EVERY DAY AT citynews.com.au

By Joanne Madeline Moore

ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 20)

With the Full Moon lighting up your daily routine zone, it’s time to prioritise, organise and stabilise. And avoid being too blasé about a complicated issue (especially involving values, morals, possessions or finances). The Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune encourage you to dream BIG dreams for the future. Be inspired by fellow Aries, pioneer feminist Gloria Steinem: “Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities.”

TAURUS (Apr 21 – May 21)

Bulls can blunder around being (unintentionally) insensitive. This week you need to be extra responsive to the needs of children, teenagers and friends, otherwise Friday’s Full Moon could trigger a misunderstanding or an emotional meltdown. With Venus visiting your career zone, professional relationships are set to improve – as long as you don’t blurt out something inappropriate. The more flexible and understanding you are, the more quickly things will improve.

GEMINI (May 22 – June 21)

The Full Moon (in earthy Virgo) falls in your home zone. So, this week, get your house in order and tackle domestic chores with extra Gemini gusto. But, if you spread gossip or jump to hasty conclusions, then you’ll end up in hot water. And avoid the temptation to take shortcuts. A slap-dash attitude will only mean you have to do everything twice. With a more methodical and practical approach, you can accomplish tasks and still have plenty of time to play.

CANCER (June 22 – July 23)

This week the Full Moon lights up your conversation and social media zone. So, communicating with other people will be turbo-charged (in person and online) and a close partnership should prosper. The Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune also bring good fortune in the form of an international friend, a wise mentor, an educational milestone or a travel opportunity. So crawl out of your Crab cave and get moving, mixing and mingling ASAP!

LEO (July 24 – Aug 23)

Regal Lions love to live in the lap of luxury! Friday’s Full Moon fires up your finance zones and encourages your tendency to be hasty with cash and careless with credit. Then Saturday’s Venus/Uranus square also activates your impulsive, extravagant streak. Clever Cats will resist the temptation to blow the budget with a spontaneous spending spree. Big binge buys now will just lead to major money headaches later on, so slow down and try to shop prudently.

VIRGO (Aug 24 – Sept 23)

Partnerships – of the romantic and platonic variety – are highlighted, as the planets activate your relationship zone. Friday’s Full Moon lights up your sign, so confidence and self-belief are the keys to satisfaction and success. Don’t let annoying disruptions and minor matters rattle you! If something unsettles you, be inspired by this month’s Piscean birthday great, Elizabeth Taylor: “Pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.”

LIBRA (Sept 24 – Oct 23)

The Full Moon illuminates your solitude/self-knowledge zone and Venus is visiting your creativity zone. So spend some quality time on your own, where you can let your imagination percolate. Activities like reading, writing, painting, drawing, dancing, playing music, meditation and contemplation are favoured as you make room for your inner world. Be inspired by fellow Libran, John Lennon: “Creativity is a gift. It doesn’t come through if the air is cluttered.”

SCORPIO (Oct 24 – Nov 22)

Friday’s Full Moon (in practical Virgo) lights up your hopes-and-wishes zone, which signals it’s time to turn your abstract goals and dreams into something solid and tangible. Then there’s a lovely link between the Sun and Pluto (your patron planet). So lucky opportunities are waiting for you – especially involving social media, education, creative projects and community connections. But you must find them and activate them, or they will just pass you by.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23 – Dec 21)

Lady Luck smiles on you, as long as you can keep your tendency to exaggerate under control. When it comes to work, the Full Moon’s in efficient, no-nonsense Virgo, so people don’t care how fabulous, funny and friendly you are. They just want to know that you can do your job promptly and competently. With the Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune transiting through your domestic zone, don’t neglect the needs of your home, your family and your inner life.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 20)

Money matters should start to improve, as Venus moves through your finance zone (until April 5). The Sun and Pluto send a confidence boost your way (especially involving a personal project or a social media connection) and Friday’s Full Moon activates your aspirations zone. So be on the lookout for a lucky opportunity when it appears. It’s time to turn an abstract dream into a rock-solid reality! If you hesitate or procrastinate then you’ll miss the boat.

AQUARIUS (Jan 21 – Feb 19)

You’re feeling lively as Venus, Mars and Saturn visit your sign. But don’t get side-tracked and lose sight of where you are heading. The earthy Virgo Full Moon encourages you to make plans and put them into practice with discipline and dedication. Be inspired by fellow Aquarian, Oprah Winfrey: “Whatever your goal, you can get there if you’re willing to work.” Saturday’s Venus/Uranus square could exacerbate a domestic drama so watch what you say!

PISCES (Feb 20 – Mar 20)

The Sun, Mercury, Jupiter and Neptune are all transiting through Pisces. Which encourages intuitive insights, creativity and compassion … but also some confusion! Friday’s Full Moon is in earthy Virgo, which will help you be more grounded, disciplined and discriminating. If you spend too much time in fantasy land, then you’ll miss early warning signals about a personal problem or a relationship issue you need to address. So keep your wits about you.

Copyright Joanne Madeline Moore 2022

General knowledge crossword No. 820

Across

4 Name the largest planet, fifth in order from the sun. (7)

8 What is an altar attendant of minor rank? (7)

9 To have retransmitted a signal, is to have done what? (7)

10 Name the premier of NSW 1932-39, Sir Bertram ... (7)

11 What describes the balanced interrelationship of organisms and their environment? (7)

12 Who might advocate or practise naturism? (6)

14 What is a workroom of an artist, or the like? (6)

18 What is a cushioned footstool? (7)

21 Name a particular smooth type of cheese. (7)

22 Which tropical American fruit is green to black in colour, and commonly pear-shaped? (7)

23 What is a large-scale search for a criminal? (7)

24 To surfeit, is to do what? (7)

Down

1 Name a double-reed woodwind instrument. (7)

2 Who was supposed to be the most stupid of the seven dwarfs? (5)

3 What are buildings or halls, devoted to instruction by lectures? (7)

4 Name the largest of the Channel Islands. (6)

5 What is infantile paralysis also known as? (5)

6 Which gland is important in body growth? (7)

7 To have a fresh, healthy, red colour, is to look what? (5)

13 Which US port is renowned as a car manufacturing centre? (7)

15 What are premises where food and alcoholic drinks are served? (7)

16 To perform surgery, is to do what? (7)

17 What is the money that comes from one’s work? (6)

18 Which gems are found in Coober Pedy? (5)

19 Name a NSW/Vic border area, north of Echuca, postcode 2731. (5)

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CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT

DOWNSIZING HAS SOME UPSIZING SUPER BENEFITS

Lucy and Paul came to see me about the advisability of Lucy’s retired parents selling their home and moving to a smaller place while real estate prices are so high.

"It looks as if they could have about $700,000 left after a sale and we were wondering what investments would be best for them,” said Paul.

I said: "The thing that comes to mind is making downsizer contributions to superannuation.

"Provided your in-laws are older than 65 or if they do it after July 1 this year, they can access the downsizer contribution from age 60. "Of course, there are a few conditions. Your in-laws must have lived in their main residence for at least 10 years before they sell it. The contribution must come from the sale proceeds and the maximum amount that they can contribute is $300,000 each.

"In addition, the property being sold must have been their main residence at some time during ownership and must be either exempt or partially exempt from capital gains tax on sale.

“The great thing about this contribution is that the normal superannuation caps do not apply. So it doesn't matter how much your parents each have in their super funds at the time they make the contributions, they can each make a contribution of up to $300,000."

Most public funds could accept downsizer contributions, I said. However, CSS and PSS can't accept them, whereas PSSap could. They could also make contributions to a self-managed superannuation fund.

"Also the fund’s earnings are likely to be higher than your parents could get by investing the funds directly themselves,” I told them. “The contributions are categorised as after-tax contributions, so no tax is charged when they go into the fund. If they are paid out after your parents’ deaths there will be no tax paid by the beneficiaries who are not dependants.

"These payments could be subject to tax in the hands of nondependent beneficiaries. The other good thing is that if the downsizer contributions are left in accumulation phase the tax is charged at 15 per cent on the earnings compared with personal tax rates, which are likely to be 34.5 per cent or 39 per cent depending on their individual incomes.”

Lucy said she had no idea that downsizer contributions were even possible and that she was sure they would appeal to her parents.

I agreed, saying: “Yes, downsizer contributions are really good for most people who sell a house and have excess proceeds.

"You will need to make sure that they each have a suitable fund to contribute to and, of course, there are the forms to fill in so that the super fund can verify that the contributions fit all the relevant criteria. "However, there could also be a downside. The downsizer contributions count for assessment for the Centrelink income and assets tests and they also are used to assess their eligibility for agedcare and home-care services. "Any downsizer contributions must be made within 90 days of receiving the sale proceeds. The downsizer contribution can only be made once from the sale of their main residence. They can’t do it again in the future. So it is a once-only opportunity.

Paul was pleased, saying the downsizer contribution seemed totally appropriate for his in-laws.

If you want to know more about downsizer contributions or any other superannuation related matter contact the friendly team at Gail Freeman & Co Pty Ltd on 6295 2844.

Disclaimer

This column contains general advice, please do not rely on it. If you require specific advice on this topic

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