Summer is y cumen in

. . . Sing cuckoo!

Well summer has well and truly arrived, here in Perth, Western Australia.  WA doesn’t really do the seasonal change thing;  there’s no autumn or spring, it’s straight from winter into summer and back again, with a couple of weeks of weird freakish weather in between.  You change your winter -> summer wardrobe and bedding etc over one weekend. 

Summer in Western Australia = Hot.  Dry.  Humid.  Water Restrictions.  Fire Warnings.  Smog And Smoke Filled Air.  Inversion From Wildfires.  Did I mention Hot?  During January and February it’s pretty much over 35C every day and for a couple of weeks in February / March it hits 40C+ every day.  The humidity is absolutely gross, and is definitely getting worse despite the prevailing attitude of “oh no, no environmental impact HERE”.  The air conditioners can’t cope with it all and everyone walks around like zombies, totally enervated and fatigued. 

But for all that it’s my favourite season; I love the warm and the day-after-day-after-day of blazing blue-white skies.  Even though I’ve never been a beach-bunny and am incapable of tanning [I burn and freckle; eventually they all join up] but I love soaking up the sun.  Whilst wearing SPF 30+++, a long sleeve shirt and a ridiculously-large brimmed hat.

Apologia on whinging

Regardless of the impression you may get reading my bloggy-thing, I really, truly, honestly, don’t whinge much about health stuff In Real Life!  Mostly it’s just to Tuxedo and he’s aware of what’s going on before I properly vocalise it, due to whimpering and crying during sleep, and the involuntary moans and grunts when I wake up / get out of bed in the morning.  I might catalogue the various aches and pains if asked but he knows me well enough to know what’s going on, without the details.

Then again I sometimes do feel the need to report “well my head is killing me, my neck muscles are in major spasm so I can’t see let alone think properly, I want to scream, my back is totally screwed, even my fecking toenails hurt and I wish I were DEAD”, but it’s more to explain my general demeanour than a whinge about how terrible my life is.

ALP the new Stalinists

/rant mode on

Today’s rant is unusual as it’s not about the USA election, USAn attitudes on sex and education [lack thereof], creationists being morons, or sporting broadcasts.  Today I’m frothing at the mouth about something that’s going on here in Australia, that the population is not getting upset enough about – but that’s the berloody apathetic Aussies for ya – and is not being brought to attention what with all media focus on global financial crisis and the fact that Sarah Palin has a vagina [one presumes].

Australian Labour Party IT Minister Stephen Conroy [oops sorry, Minister For Broadband And The Digital Economy] has long been talking up his new “Plan For Cyber-Safety”, which will cost the government at least $ 125.8 million, and is a nationwide internet filtering system.  Yep just like the one China has about which Australia and other “First World” nations have been criticising and bleating stuff about “human rights abuses”. 

Apparently it’s to make the internet safe, “to provide greater protection to children from online pornography and violent websites”.  Okay, fair enough, you may say – child porn is nasty.   But let me ask you, how much of the transactions, information searches and knowledge gained on a daily basis with this marvel of modern times is done by five year olds?

Back in the saddle

After a two week break for school holidays and a nice rest for the gee-gees, RDA commenced Term 4 this week.  Wheeeeeeee.  The two week horsey-less hiatus was hellish, health-wise [but gee can I ever alliterate] so I was incredibly happy and bouncy to get out there for my first lesson on Tuesday afternoon.

Yay;  horsies!  I was so pleased to see my cranky pony again.  I gave him an extra-long grooming and he positively gleamed!  He’s lost the last of his winter fuzz and is sporting a sleek summer outfit.  Well, except for the thick 50 cm long mane and ground-brushing tailio … He went beautifully for me, so responsive and very full of zip.  Heaven.  Sue [coach] kept the lesson very slow and steady, so I wouldn’t over-do things after the break, but I was champing at the bit as much as L. 

Lucky me, though;  Marie – the other coach – let me stay on for another 15 minutes or so after the lesson, while getting the other riders off and the next class on, so I sneaked in some extended trot and serpentines, whee!  L. was just waiting for me to ask for a canter but I didn’t want to push my luck . . . After that Marie got me to help hose down L. and a couple of the other horses, it being a very hot day and everyone sweating. 

Hosing the horses down was fun; one of them really loved it and was bending his head into the spray and slurping out of the nozzle; L. being a big girl’s blouse danced around on his toes going “nooooo! Am a delicate princess!  Don’t let that scary water-snakey-thing near me aaiiieeeee” before giving up and standing with his head down like a fat old cart-horse.  And of course Marie and I did not get into a water fight, with hoses and buckets of water and sponges flying, I deny the mere suggestion!