And The Year That Was ‘busy – hot – dry’
It’s been another interesting year as we proceed with our quiet retirement home lifestyle plans that never ever worked out from the very first day of our arrival here! But as busy as we are, we still – well 99% of the time – get a great deal of enjoyment from what we are doing, with no regrets.
Earlier on this year I had to do a trip to Brisbane where I had to spend a few days being prodded and examined to confirm to some worried medicos that there was nothing wrong with me. The nice part about the trip was that whilst awaiting results there was little else for me to do which allowed me to do some navel gazing over city life compared to our lifestyle out here.
Here in Australia we have two well known ‘Belts,’ the Granite Belt and the Wheat Belt, but I have added a new one – for myself – and it’s called the Stress Belt. My definition of the Stress Belt is simplistic; the Australian Coastline extending three hundred kilometres inland. I used to say it was a hundred kilometres inland but times have changed. I’m not saying that we, in these isolated areas, do not experience stress; we do. But different types of stress. We don’t experience road rage – we don’t experience parking stress, we don’t have house breaking problems as most of the dwellings are unlockable anyway, we don’t have traffic jams, we don’t hear police and fire sirens.
As I sat on the train taking me into the city I was reminded of the RSPCA advertisement about the cruelty that Battery hens suffer. The train was passing blocks and blocks of ‘Battery’ type apartments, rectangles of sliding glass doors opening onto rectangular ‘battery’ balconies with the mandatory railing, some being used as a washing line.
And the more high rises I saw as the scenery passed by, passing the banked up traffic snarls, watching an ambulance with sirens wailing and multi lights flashing, attempting to get obstinate vehicles to part, I reflected on the wonderful service the RFDS gives to the outback. A life threatening situation out here in Yaraka can have the patient in intensive care within an hour and half of the emergency phone call being made.
I was driven through new high end architect designed housing estates where the homes appeared to cover the whole block – just a narrow strip left on either side of the home, a pocket of garden adjoining the double driveway and it appeared to me that these new developments are designed to turn the inhabitants into cave dwellers.
My perception.
My thoughts turned to the travellers who arrive in Yaraka to stay and their perception of the place. I must say here that the high majority of our visitors truly enjoy their stays here and they become regulars, some coming back two or three times during the winter season.
Then there are others who find their experience here horrifying. The usual questions are – ‘what’s there to do out here?’ – ‘there’s nothing to see except nothingness’. The most amusing comment we’ve had was by a gentleman who declared that obviously everyone living in these areas just vegetate and become brain dead. He was furious that he couldn’t get a proper internet connection to do his share trading (he told me that he makes $3000.00 a day on the Chicago exchange). I’d say this was true as he was displaying a heavy gold necklace and gold wrist bracelet, a number of gold rings which sort of matched his 18k yellow gold Rolex GMT Master which he told me he’d just paid $30,000.00 for – cash of course.
He didn’t like Yaraka.
Each to his/her own.
Yes, it’s true that ‘the tyranny of distance’ means that we do miss out on cultural pursuits, the arts, theatre, ballet, sports etc.
But we have different types of ‘cultural’ events out here; our ‘arts’ are watching our spectacular colour radiant sunrises and sunsets; the changing colours through the day of the Mesa Hills and ranges; our ‘theatre’ is watching the Galahs doing acrobatics on the phone and power lines, and the Apostle birds marching through the hotel premises together with the Goannas who enjoy wandering through on trips of discovery. Our ‘ballet’ is the delight of watching the Brolgas doing their routines with the grace of Margot Fonteyn. And sport? Well, I don’t need to sit in uncomfortable crammed seating which cost a fortune after having spent a few hours of ‘stress’ getting to the event when I can sit comfortable at home and watch it on the box.
Anyway that aside there are positive things happening in the area.
The highlight of the year is that many properties have now erected Wild Dog netting fences around their properties and sheep are coming back into the region. This region was a wonderful sheep area where the Merino sheep thrived and produced beautiful wool and was very much part of the old expression that ‘Australia grew on the sheep’s back’. Their return will be an economic lift for the whole region and all we now need is some drought breaking rain – another day closer!
From the new enquiries we are getting and contact from the regular visitors it would appear we will have a busy year in 2018 – especially now that we have the road – at long last – sealed between Blackall and Yaraka.
And to cap things off the Yaraka Store is just about open for business again.
Does it get any better out here?!
We are looking forward to meeting up again with old friends and making new ones!
2018 Highlights
Some of the highlights for next year is, of course, our ANZAC Day ceremony starting with the Dawn Service atop Mt Slowcombe with indications that there will be a large number of people attending.
On the 20th May we have 500 people arriving to stay overnight in Yaraka! This is the Boxcar Car Rally who are huge fund raisers for the Cancer Council. The planning and preparation for this has already started!
We have the Dubbo Rotary Club with another Rally arriving midyear numbering 150 people.
And Hummingbird House – a hospice for children – are holding an Octoberfest here which is a fund raising Plane Safari with a few dozen planes arriving. Yaraka will be turned into a tiny ‘Germany’ with appropriate food and drinks and decorations.
We have a few other, yet to be confirmed, happenings and when we know we’ll let you know.
And in the meantime we are another day closer to drought breaking rain arriving!