Mind Lost

Gender adjusted - so sick of the majority of memes being addressed to men.

The Curate's Egg

Lately life has been a lot like the Curate's Egg. For anyone who doesn't know, a curate's egg is something that is both good and bad. The phrase was first used in a Punch cartoon (1895) depicting "a meek curate who, given a stale egg at the bishop's table, assures his host that ‘parts of it are excellent.’" I think of it as something you might say if you didn't want to sound like a total whinger and were trying to find something positive in amongst all the bad shit. It strikes me that since COVID came on the scene - life is a lot like the Curate's Egg.

Something good: the WA government agreed to stop logging native forests in our state. This is a milestone and a huge victory for environmental activists who have been fighting hard for decades - chaining themselves to bulldozers, protesting, engaging politicians. These people deserve our gratitude. They have done a truly wonderful thing. 

Something bad: there's always the fine print. Logging doesn't cease until 2024, so I guess a lot more damage can be done by then. But that's not the worst part. Exemptions for mining will remain in place. The cynic in me knows that the decision to end logging was a sensible economic one that just happened to win the government some Brownie points. The industry has been propped up with tax payers money for decades so it's basically unviable. What really worries me is that there are already approvals for mining exploration and several are ongoing.

This bloody country only ever makes money from ripping up the earth and selling off raw materials. So the fight isn't over. Not by a long shot - especially when you look at how they are burning the crap out of the bush. The paranoid part of my brain thinks the burning is the precursor to the mining. If they wreck the environment so it looks bad, nobody will care about a few big holes.

Something good: my boss has allowed me to make up the 3 days I missed when I had to stay home with a cold. I'm a casual so if I don't work, I don't get paid. Missing 3 days is a big hit to my small income so it is very kind of him. I'm not blowing my own trumpet but I think he also wants to keep me. Not a week goes by that I don't think of leaving and I think he knows. Like all the education staff I do a bloody good job in very difficult circumstances.

Something bad: I will be working 3 days a week for 3 weeks. I'm already knackered and I have 2 more weeks of that regime to get through. The sinus issue that forced me take the time off is hanging around and I still get terrible headaches.

I'll finish off with something good. No bad.

Images: 

1. Author. New FaBWA header

2. 'Captain Scratchy' on Instagram (screen shot)

'Pretty' stuff

I promised I would do a more positive post so I've included some 'pretty' things. The deadline for our petition calling for a review into prescribed burning expired on 2 September. I created this meme to remind people to send them in by snail mail so we can submit to parliament in time. Although our small team of 5-6 people is pretty exhausted, we are making headway. Members of parliament and possibly even the government agencies we are scrutinising are starting to take note. Our Facebook group is becoming more widely known in cyberspace and the local community. 

I am now a committee member for the Denmark Environment Centre as well. I guess being involved with FaBWA and designing the flyer below for DEC it was inevitable I would get roped in. I went to my first meeting last Monday and it was 3 hours long! I spend a lot of time in meetings lately but unfortunately there are processes we have to engage in to get results. 

The DEC has grown in membership lately too - seems a lot of the city folk moving here to escape the rat race are environmentally minded. This is a positive and unexpected consolation for having my small coastal town invaded by sea-changers. Many local farmers, tradies and rednecks don't give a toss for the environment and work actively against it. If city people want to preserve the environment - I mean that's probably why they are moving here - I'm more than happy to have them on board. They are interested (and cashed up too). The DEC organised a nocturnal fauna spotting excursion last week and 100 people turned up! That's unheard of.

The next pretty image was taken by Terry Dunham. Terry is the admin. of the Stirling Range National Park Recovery Group. I met Terry 20 years ago when I was living in a caravan at a beachside park. He popped up again recently on Facebook when he became a member of our Fire & Biodiversity group.

This is a tricky photo because although it was taken onsite in an undisclosed location, the background is actually a poster of another of Terry's photos. He explained that he did this because he wanted to hide the location. Pretty clever and makes for a stunning pic. The plant is Darwinia meeboldii (Cranbrook Bell). 

I'll finish off with a cute fluffy marsupial. This is a Mardo (Antechinus). I showcased this little guy in another Facebook post. The photographer is Lyn Alcock and she takes some of the most amazing photos of Numbats, Echidnas and Mardos in the Dryandra forest. I can't believe she got this shot - these guys are quick!

Australia has some of the most unusual and stunning species of flora and fauna, and we are fighting really hard to preserve them.