You'll be glad to know I have very little news for you this month. It won't stop me writing a load of blather on here, but nothing, as usual, will be of any great revelation.

Well its winter here and by buggery it's cold. Not only is it cold but we are having some weather, proper weather with clouds and rain and stuff. I quite like it, it makes me feel homesick. But then I remember it reminds me of home as we had nothing else but rain for months on end there, and it ‘s not so much fun when it never bloody stops raining. So that's ok then. And I must add this just to annoy my UK friends, you can have too much of clear blue skies for weeks on end, and nothing but warm sunny days can get a little tedious after a while. A very long while.

This turnabout in the weather, if you're one of those kind people who takes the time and trouble to peruse my galleries, you will note, has led to some rather dramatic skies. Oh, and lots of rainbows. Sunsets have been spectacular, and the morning sunrise view from our porch has been gobsmacking at times. My landscape images are coming on a treat and have been compared to Turner and Constable. As in;" they're nothing fucking like a Turner or Constable landscape, no matter how much you lie that they are, you Welsh git". I must at this point give our Robbie big thanks for being the first person to actually leave comments in my gallery, and Andy who informed the denizens of a forum we use; "That latest gallery is truly spectacular Taff, in all honesty your photography has gone from very good "me and my mates' travelogue" level to some remarkably artistic, gallery-worthy stuff."

Gosh, I'm all pink with embarrassment.

Lately I've been using a camera which Glenn, Bethy's dad, bought. As he isn't into photography, he left at our house, so I can get acquainted with it and educate him on it's use. It's not bad, not too different to mine, a basic compact, but with the advantage of having a 10x zoom on it. (mine has a 5 x). I thought this would be a great chance to get some photos of the small and multicoloured birds at the local nature parks, the ones which I've been unable to get close enough too to get a good shot of with my own camera. That's why, if you look carefully through this months gallery, you will see absolutely bloody none of them. As soon as I had the ability to get a close up of them, they migrated north for the winter.

The mornings now are icy, which normally sees me out at 5.45 am to de-ice the windscreen of our car so we can see to drive to the gym. As I do this in a dressing gown and knickers, it's a bloody good job that there's no one around at that time in the morning to see me. Good job for them that is. As Lee-Anne says; it's the sort of weather that reminds you you have ear-lobes and a nose end, or, in my case, a bell end.

Bethy's skiing trip. After spending a fortune on her kit, and getting up at 4.30 am to transport her to the scout hall and see her off to the snowfields in the bus,. Alone and lonely we awaited her return with bated breath, and anticipated her tales of daring do and high adventure. (Actually the waiting mainly consisted of Lee-Anne chasing me about the house for a couple of days, trying to have her wicked way with me.)

Oh her return we cooked a celebratory pizza feast and listened with rapt attention as she told us; "it was good," and "I forgot to take any photos," before falling asleep on us. And that's all we know about it to this day. Kids eh?

The Virgin fiasco (see last month) is finally over. They gave me a free get out, waiving the $300 fee that I would normally have had to pay. They did this as I had the industry ombudsman on the case, a stack of e-mails from me to them saved to disc, their fantastical replies saved on the same disc, (these made them look like incompetent oafs indeed.) Oh, and I told them I'd been spending hours on the premier Australian Broadband forum, Whirlpool, posting messages like ;

I would rather nail my scrotum to a plank of wood, pour petrol over it, set it alight, and beat the flames out with barbed wire, than rejoin Virgin.

So we're out. We're now with a company called "Internode," and boy are they FAST! So fast in fact I've had to install a new, and bigger, hard drive for all the music and rubbish I'm downloading. Great support too, but after being with Virgin the technical support of a blind, three-legged, donkey, or even Nicol, would have been considered good.

Oh and after the Virgin fiasco we've decided to keep our e-mail based at this domain, so fatbeetle(at)fatbeetle.com if you want to get hold of us, and bethany(at)fatbeetle.com if you want to get hold of Bethy. (Don't expect an instant reply from her, will you?)

Don't forget to replace (at) with @ you dozy buggers!

Lee-Anne is keeping up her "Mother Theresa" act, and is still feeding the local "beak and feather" sufferers on bread which would normally be wasted on breakfast toast for me. One of our regulars has started regenerating head feathers, so she may be doing some good after all.

T'were the Queen's birthday day here the other day, and much like Guy Fawkes night in the UK, many fireworks were let off in celebration. I still find it odd that the Aussies celebrate the Queens birthday while the Brits do not. Still it's a day's holiday for some, or in my case a day at work at a very nice pay rate, thank you very much.

We're now big fans of these guys, get into them ;

 

 

NOT one of the Chooky Dancers owns a computer. But their foot-shuffling, pelvis-thrusting moves have made them internet stars. As of yesterday, 867,573 people had viewed the Aboriginal teenagers' video on YouTube, a jerky dance to a techno version of Zorba's Dance, from the film Zorba The Greek. The group from Elcho Island, off Arnhem Land, are visiting Sydney for the first time. They will perform at the Art Gallery of New South Wales today, dressed in traditional loincloths, grass skirts and white body paint. The lead dancer, Lionel Djirrimbilpilwuy, came up with the idea of fusing Yolngu dance with modern music. "I just dance the way I like," he said. "It's my own style." Djirrimbilpilwuy's father, Frank, posted the video using one of Elcho Island's few computers. "Nobody has computers at home," Djirrimbilpilwuy said. "We have to go to the offices and use the computers there." Before they started dancing, some of the boys had never been to Darwin. Since their dance hit the internet, they have performed all over the country and have appeared on Channel Seven's Australia's Got Talent.

As you may or may not know, as my team is an intensive treatment team, specialising in early psychosis, we have to do a fair bit of emergency work. Today, I'm on on my own, call comes in…

"We've got a young lad in A&E we think he's psychotic, can you come and assess, Prof H is in attendance…" Prof H is a wonderful old guy, with a central casting perfect image for the 'bonkers psychiatrist".

We turn up, and it's a young (21yrs) Vietnamese guy with his mother and another Vietnamese lady. Turns out that son is electively mute, and mother speaks no English. Just to add to the fun, Prof H has a very broad Scots accent, and I have a very very broad Welsh one, neither of which the interpretor, (for that is the role of the other lady we find out,) has a good grounding in or understanding of.

We attempt an MSE it goes something like this;

Prof H; (to mother via interpreter) "What have you noticed your son doing that has caused you concern?

Interpreter: "Pardon?"

Prof H; "What have you noticed your son doing that has caused you concern?

Interpreter: "Pardon?"

Prof H; "What have you noticed your son doing that has caused you concern?

Interpreter:

總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席 吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦 說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後 表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資 訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董 事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行 政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至 於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨 主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁 琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。

Mother:

高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就 不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。 次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學 業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」， 但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通 過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產 假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案， 預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過 二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的 假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷 孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部 指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級 中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在 …

Interpreter: "He's been acting strangely".

Me: (to mother via interpretor) "In what way would you say he's been acting "strangely""

Interpreter: "Pardon"?

Me: "In what way would you say he's been acting "strangely""

Interpreter: "Pardon"?

Me: "In what way would you say he's been acting "strangely""

Interpreter:

總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席 吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦 說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後 表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資 訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董 事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行 政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至 於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨 主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁 琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會 後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資 訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董 事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行 政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至 於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨 主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁 琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資訊。總統馬英九9日與副總統蕭萬長、行政院長劉兆玄、立法院長王金平、國民黨主席吳伯雄餐敘，總統府發言人王郁琦會 後表示，餐敘內容針對海峽交流基金會董事長江丙坤訪問大陸，廣泛交換意見。至於會中是否討論閣員擁有綠卡事件，王郁琦說，他沒有會中是否討論綠卡的相關資 訊。

Mother:

在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一， 就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括 男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。 教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高 中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成 績考查辦」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學 期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實 施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦 休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的 「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上 周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在在高中生也 可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查 辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。 此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在 高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生 成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在 高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生 成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。 此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休 學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的 「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上 周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在高中生也可 請產前假、產假、育嬰假，只要學期內的請假時數不超過二分之一，就不用辦休學，學業也不必因懷孕而中斷。教育部上周部務會報通過「高級中學學生成績考查辦 法」修正案，預計3周內可公布實施。 此次高中生新增的假別不包括男生請的「陪產假」，但教育部指出，在

Interpreter: "Many ways."

Repeat for the best part of two hours….

I needed an aspirin and a lie down after that.

Talking of health matters. Lee-Anne's minister was taken poorly not so long back, and ended up in hospital getting a shunt inserted. He recovered quickly, and we wish him the best of health. Lee-Anne asked me the other day; "If you knew someone had recently been into hospital and had a shunt inserted, and they started complaining of chest pain, and pain in their arm, what would you do?"

"Well as a first aider I'd sit them down, and keep an eye on them while phoning an ambulance, letting them know the details, and asking for an emergency response, possible MI. Why what happened?"

"His PA took him home for a lie down."

"What????"

"When they got him home he was so gray they phoned an ambulance.."

"Someone after his job?"

So that's about it, all very boring I know, but at least you cannot say I don't keep in touch. (Well Wynn can as I've been sending stuff to his next-door neighbours by mistake.) Later this month we're going down the coast for a winter break, we're staying at Helen's Beach House" the same place we stayed when we went whale watching last year. If past trips to the coast are anything to go by I should have a catalogue of misery to enthral you with in next months episode. Oh, and some pictures which aren't of the same bloody views you get every month.

TTFN.

Taff