For those that fear coming to Australia!

[Gwiwer]

8 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

I think it was the dunny...

I have made use of more than one Australiam dunny which only had three walls and none of them were brick 

 

The “bush dunny” which blesses many a rural home to this day might well have one side (that facing away from the home) totally open. 
 

Once you have completed the spider check (never sit before doing that!) it’s dacks down, face the open bush and let go. 
 

There is nothing conducive about a quiet morning dunny meditation when the local roo mob hop by and stare you down!!! 
 

And the rule is always “If it reaches the mark it’s your turn with the shovel”. 
 

 

Edited November 2, 2022 by Gwiwer

[Ozexpatriate]

28 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

Once you have completed the spider check (never sit before doing that!)

My little sister was shocked to see a monumentally large green frog in the outhouse bowl (this was actually a plumbed porcelain bowl) in the northern rivers of NSW. (It was an exceptionally beautiful frog.)

[SHMD]

22 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

 

And the rule is always “If it reaches the mark it’s your turn with the shovel”. 
 

 

 

"shovel!"

We were more "civilised" in the suburbs. I can still remember the ... and words fail me here ... the truck that came round and gave you a new "empty" big bucket, for the dunny, whilst taking away the "fuller" used one.

 

I also remember everyone giving the "truck" tons of respect, and loads of space, when driving - especially if you were behind it !

 

 

Kev.

[Ozexpatriate]

32 minutes ago, SHMD said:

We were more "civilised" in the suburbs. I can still remember the ... and words fail me here ... the truck that came round and gave you a new "empty" big bucket, for the dunny, whilst taking away the "fuller" used one.

 

I also remember everyone giving the "truck" tons of respect, and loads of space, when driving - especially if you were behind it !

My grandmother's (suburban) house had a thunderbox. I remember being startled by a big strapping bloke (the dunny man) hurdling the fence with a full tray of "night soil" balanced on his shoulder on his way back to the truck from Grandma's dunny.

 

The 'old' term was night soil cart and then night soil truck. I don't remember that the more vulgar version was.

[Gwiwer]

"Night Soil" was removed from homes in the UK until at least the mid 20th Century.  Fewer and fewer , of course, as those lacking the "new-fangled" flush-away systems also became fewer.  

 

Today there are still businesses in the UK - and possibly in Oz as well - which had been established  back in the days when night-soil removal was a normal thing.  Down in deepest west Cornwall, based in St. Erth, is the firm of Pellows (Pellow also being a local family name thereabouts) whose trucks these days remove animal slurry fro farms but are still branded for all to see as "Pellows - the Sh -- -- ifters"  

 

Out in, or rather near-ish to, St. Arnaud there was no dunny man.  It was a shovel job.  The same at Hattah in the desert.  And the same at a holiday house we once stayed in near Bega on the NSW coast - Bega being famed more for its cheese than its bush dunnies.  

[monkeysarefun]

One of my mates places in WEstern Sydney still had a dunny man come around that I can remember  - I was  there after school when he turned up once so would have been 1974 or 75. 

 

Theres still a few pump-out septics around my parts, where a truck with a giant vacuum hose pulls up every couple of weeks to suck out the smelly stuff. Most have been replaced with biocycle style

systems though  that use micro-organisms to turn the stuff to irrigation water. You can tell these places because they have the sprinklers going when its raining for some reason.

 

The pub at the Oaks used to have an old-style outside dunny for the blokes. Painted blue  - it was called The Turdis.

Edited November 2, 2022 by monkeysarefun

[SRman]

5 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

My little sister was shocked to see a monumentally large green frog in the outhouse bowl (this was actually a plumbed porcelain bowl) in the northern rivers of NSW. (It was an exceptionally beautiful frog.)

 

That was quite common in parts of Queensland north of Brisbane: green tree frogs could grow to be quite large and like the moist porcelain. They are completely harmless, but it is surprising how many people (more usually female people!) will scream and insist on the offending amphibian being removed before using the loo. There's no danger to the frog in flushing the toilet as the sticky pads on their feet are able to withstand quite strong currents.

[kevinlms]

Paying the rent on a property can be a real problem for many, but if you have plenty of cash, rent is going to be easy - right?

 

https://www.theage.com.au/property/news/only-in-sydney-15-000-a-week-rent-to-find-cockroaches-and-the-landlady-on-arrival-20221101-p5buqf.html

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, kevinlms said:

Paying the rent on a property can be a real problem for many, but if you have plenty of cash, rent is going to be easy - right?

 

https://www.theage.com.au/property/news/only-in-sydney-15-000-a-week-rent-to-find-cockroaches-and-the-landlady-on-arrival-20221101-p5buqf.html

Talk about the filthy rich.

[Ozexpatriate]

12 hours ago, kevinlms said:

Paying the rent on a property can be a real problem for many, but if you have plenty of cash, rent is going to be easy - right?

Maybe Oz is not the best place for him. 😉

Quote

Novelly has a phobia of spiders.

 

[J. S. Bach]

I'll sing him a hymn:

 

Him, him, ............. him.

[Ozexpatriate]

Weird timing* for this CNN article (now that 'winter is coming'), and they teased it with a link saying: "Don't wear this while swimming if you want to avoid sharks"

 

CNN: How to survive a shark attack -- or better yet, avoid one entirely

 

* There was a shark attack in Del Mar, California a couple of days ago.

 

I don't recall, in my formative days, advice on not wearing bling. Is this advice given in Australia today?

Quote

Don't wear shiny objects in the water

"Be careful with jewelry, anything that flashes because sharks are always looking for fish." Lowe said.

In murky water, a shark may think that flash is a sign of a meal. "And you don't want your hand or foot to get confused with that."

Of course, back in the day there was precisely zero chance that I would be wearing any bling in the ocean.

[monkeysarefun]

11 hours ago, Ozexpatriate said:

 

 

I don't recall, in my formative days, advice on not wearing bling. Is this advice given in Australia today?

.

Not so far but it's one to add to the list.

 

Which as far as I'm aware is:

Don't swim when  it's rainy or maybe it's in  a thunderstorm (  I think its because rain annoys them)

 

Don't swim at night time ( I think the moon or something annoys them)

 

Don't wear a dark wetsuit cos they'll think you're a seal. (Seals annoy them)

 

Don't splash around cos they'll think your wounded and easy prey, (or maybe it just annnoys them)

 

Recently someone decided that you  don't wear bright or contrasting colours ( apparently this really annoys them).

Edited November 7, 2022 by monkeysarefun

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Not so far but it's one to add to the list.

 

Which as far as I'm aware is:

Don't swim when  it's rainy or maybe it's in  a thunderstorm (  I think its because rain annoys them)

 

Don't swim at night time ( I think the moon or something annoys them)

 

Don't wear a dark wetsuit cos they'll think you're a seal. (Seals annoy them)

 

Don't splash around cos they'll think your wounded and easy prey, (or maybe it just annnoys them)

 

Recently someone decided that you  don't wear bright or contrasting colours ( apparently this really annoys them).

In the film 'Jaws' the first victim wasn't wearing anything, but she was swimming in moonlight.

[Sidecar Racer]

6 hours ago, monkeysarefun said:

Not so far but it's one to add to the list.

 

Which as far as I'm aware is:

Don't swim when  it's rainy or maybe it's in  a thunderstorm (  I think its because rain annoys them)

 

Don't swim at night time ( I think the moon or something annoys them)

 

Don't wear a dark wetsuit cos they'll think you're a seal. (Seals annoy them)

 

Don't splash around cos they'll think your wounded and easy prey, (or maybe it just annnoys them)

 

Recently someone decided that you  don't wear bright or contrasting colours ( apparently this really annoys them).

 

So sharks are just grumpy bas8ards all the time .    😲

Edited November 7, 2022 by Sidecar Racer
Missed letter.

[Gwiwer]

6 minutes ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 

So shark are just grumpy bas8ards all the time .    😲

Unless they're fried in batter in which case they are called "flake" and are a bit past being grumpy.  

[Classsix T]

2 hours ago, Sidecar Racer said:

 

So sharks are just grumpy bas8ards all the time .    😲

Not surprising given all the bad press they get. Maybe they just need a hug?

 

C6T.

[Ozexpatriate]

2 hours ago, Classsix T said:

Maybe they just need a hug?

You first. We'll be watching from shore to see how it goes.

[Stevie]

Ok who's first for a hug!

 

https://www.stuff.co.nz/bay-of-plenty/300733147/crazy-moment-huge-shark-leaps-on-board-fishing-boat

[kevinlms]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-11/sa-arcade-game-theft-averted/101646188

[PhilJ W]

On 07/11/2022 at 12:58, Gwiwer said:

Unless they're fried in batter in which case they are called "flake" and are a bit past being grumpy.  

Is that the same as rock eel?

[faulcon1]

This little chap/girl lives under my house and is very frightened of me as I'm so much bigger and usually only pops it's head out from under the house. Today however feeling brave it came right out although I only have to move near it and it immediately scurries back under the house. 

 

 

[faulcon1]

On 03/11/2022 at 06:37, Ozexpatriate said:

My grandmother's (suburban) house had a thunderbox. I remember being startled by a big strapping bloke (the dunny man) hurdling the fence with a full tray of "night soil" balanced on his shoulder on his way back to the truck from Grandma's dunny.

 

The 'old' term was night soil cart and then night soil truck. I don't remember that the more vulgar version was.

The late Clive James said that growing up in Kogarah they had a pan dunny and one summers day the dunny can man arrived with a new empty clean can and ran down their driveway to the dunny. They heard the full can being removed and the dunny can lid being put on the full can. The also heard the dunny can man running back up the driveway to his truck with the full can over his shoulder. Clive however had left his push bike on the driveway and the dunny can man tripped over it on his way back to the truck. Clive and his mother heard the lid coming off the can followed by a lot of foul language from the dunny can man as he fell onto the driveway whilst being cover with the contents from the now rapidly emptying dunny can. Clive said his mother put her hands to her face and that being summer time over a billion flies headed for their driveway and the dunny can man.

At Christmas time many people would leave a bottle or two of beer in their dunny for the dunny can man who must have had a very boozy Christmas.  

[Ozexpatriate]

Snake invades model railway layout in Bli Bli, QLD.

 

Posted elsewhere in Wheeltappers, but needed a shout out here.

[monkeysarefun]

On 14/11/2022 at 15:22, faulcon1 said:

This little chap/girl lives under my house and is very frightened of me as I'm so much bigger and usually only pops it's head out from under the house. Today however feeling brave it came right out although I only have to move near it and it immediately scurries back under the house. 

 

 

 

On the weekend I moved a tray of seedlings to sweep around them and disturbed a frog that started hopping across the pavers to a safe hiding spot about a metre away. It got about a third of the way across when a Butcherbird divebombed it from out of nowhere  and carted it away struggling in its beak , I suppose to spike it  on a stick somewhere. I felt pretty bad for a bit!

Edited November 15, 2022 by monkeysarefun