Mayor4Unley

Unley Cr Mike Hudson posted the following on his blog ... It may be drawing a long bow, as the saying goes, but …in this current climate of alleged  graft and corruption at third-tier Government level…could not complimentary tickets to (say) footy matches hold an inherent threat? Or are they regarded as a necessary aid for  Councillors to mix and mingle? Where do you draw the line? Sounds crazy? It isn’t. In the current burgeoning, over-zealous bureaucracy, anything goes!!! I posted the following comment ... Mike, this also bothers me. Freebies always get paid by someone. Invariably it’s those who can least afford it. At Council functions including lunch before the football, it’s paid for by the ratepayers. Free tickets for the football are paid for by either the Council or the Club; ultimately paid for by ratepayers or Club members. It’s a personal dilemma that we all need to resolve. Surely if we go to the football then we can buy...

Maybe it’s time to stop drinking bottled water and just drink tap water. Let’s face it, with average bottled water, it’s not much more than filtered tap water. Do yourself a favour and buy a good quality plastic (or metal) drink bottle and use tap water; preferably filtered. Why? To save money. To stop drinking high concentrations of plastic particles. A recent report from the World Health Organisation exposes that after analysis of water samples, more than 90% of the samples contained high concentrations of tiny plastic particles; aka. microplastics. One brand had concentrations as high as 10,000 plastic pieces per litre of water. This is absolutely appalling. Downstream this ends up in the oceans and rivers and in fish that we eat. Just so sad. All due to our buying bottled water. Make the change to tap water and a good quality drink bottle. The cheaper the drink bottle the more likely it is to contaminate. Read the story

Fringe festival event The Love Shack is being held at the Showgrounds at Wayville. Lots of activity and entertainment. The highlight is looking for love ❤️ via speed dating on the Ferris Wheel 🎡 A novel idea. The Ferris Wheel has always been popular with couples; the spin just injects romance. On the down side: if the dating chemistry doesn't bond, it will be awkward waiting together for many long minutes before you can get off. Read the story ... #Unley #Wayville #Love #GoodyRoad

It's best to add a dash of water to a whisky to get that extra flavour and taste, according to the dedicated research of two Swedish chemists. A Scottish whisky expert advocates reducing the alcohol content to 20% to hit the sweet spot for enhanced flavour, aroma and taste. There is no mention, but I suspect that the same findings would also apply to good brandy or cognac and other wood cask matured liquors. It's worth experimenting at home to validate the findings 🍷💧 Read the story ...

The food trucks are coming in huge numbers to Goodwood. Starting next year the initiative (known as the Food Truck Movement) will see dozens of food trucks setup inside Goydner Plaza (at the Showground) on Thursday to Sunday, 11am to midnight. This will be a weekly event. A liquor licence will help to lure people to consume the burgers. Goydner Plaza holds 800 people so it will be huge. The plan is to have live music or family-themed days with children’s activities. No Council permit or licence is required. It will be great to pop in late at night for that burger or other food truck delight on the way home from a big night out; at a time when other food joints are closed. This initiative has happened due to the State Government recently declaring that there be no limit to food trucks. Read the story ...

I've had a bit of a rough week or so. My home espresso coffee machine had to go in for repair; it had a bit of a leak. It had done just over 3 years, making about 10 coffees a day; that's about 11,000 coffees. That's about 220,000 beans I ground. Fortunately I had a backup Nespresso capsule machine (used when I travel). That was better than instant coffee, but even the top quality capsules only rate a maximum of 6/10 compared with 10/10 for an espresso using quality coffee beans. I collected the machine today and life is back to normal. I'm just a bit twitchy from the quick succession of a few short blacks whilst I calibrated and reset the settings to my preferences. ☕️☕️☕️

Koalas are cute and cuddly love a cuddle. Actually, they will tolerate a cuddle, but they do dislike people. However, in times of stress like fire, floods and heatwave they tolerate being helped; especially getting a drink from bowl or a water bottle; they will sit next to you, clasp the bottle and take a drink. They are one of the few Australian native animals that can't be domesticated. After being rescued and cared for, even for months, when released back into the bush they take off up a tree and don't look back. During tough times, we need to rescue them and look after them until it is time to release them. It's important to know just what to do. An organisation called Fauna Rescue Team (telephone 08-72260017) has released a document on what to do; and what not to do. The document is called Koala Important Summer Survival (KISS). There are several important KISS tips: Water. Definitely Yes, they do need a drink; preferably from a shallow tray. Swimming Pools. ...

This year my small pomegranate tree had a huge crop; the fruit was so large and juicy. Yesterday I used a hand press to squeeze out the juice. Hard and slow work. I ended up splattered with pink juice; it's a task that you do outside. Tip: wear old clothes. The juice is in the fridge and some has been frozen to enjoy over the year. Fresh seeds were used in a couscous salad; a nice touch.

Life is a long trail with some easy paths and some more challenging. I thought of this when I discovered a mountain trail in China, up Mt. Hua Shan. The trail starts with a gigantic set of stone stairs, called "the Heavenly Stairs." These stairs go so high up the mountainside, it's hard to see where they end. Click on the link for a pictorial view and discover what is at the top. http://www.viralnova.com/dangerous-trail-huashan/

You will know one; hey, you might even be one. It’s the water gurgler. What is a water gurgler? A person who is obsessed with hydrating frequently and often with a lot of noise; it is difficult to drink quietly and elegantly from a plastic bottle with a restricted outlet; usually it’s a long and noisy slurp. Women outscore men as offenders. I have no problem with people keeping up their fluids; but I do have a problem with people who carry their bottle everywhere including to meetings. No matter how long or short the meeting, they arrive and with great fanfare have a noisy slurp from the bottle. Then, every 10 minutes they slurp noisily; it is as though they are totally dehydrated. I’ve watched a bloke at work. Over lunch in the communal eating area, he guzzles noisily every 5 minutes during his meal. I’ve even seem him do this whilst having soup. It gets to the point of being disgusting. Just like people wearing headphones (or ear buds) on public transport and they ...

Down in the South East, @ Coonawarra, there are SA Government plans to build a bypass road around Penola. A good idea. This will divert high speed traffic and heavy trucks away from the slower paced road used to visit wineries on the famed terra rossa soil. Locals are angry because a proposed diversion cuts directly across vineyards on terra rossa soil that produce premium wines that sell for $100 a bottle. The local anger is led by Jonathon Hesketh of Parker Coonawarra Estate Wines. His proposal is that the bypass be shifted and lengthened so that it skirts to the east around the 15km x 1km region of coveted terra rossa soil. This is a sensible alternative proposal. I hope that the SA Government reviews the alternative and settles on a solution that has zero impact on the famed terra rossa soil. It’s just common sense. If you care (and you should) then contact your local MP and object to this unnecessary destruction. It’s bad for business, bad for the economy, bad for touri...

There has always been debate about a glass being with half full or half empty. Which is correct? Researcher Malcolm Smith has recently completed research with many half full glasses of water and beer. His finding was that when people were left alone in a room with just half a glass of water for hours on end, they drank the water. In 90% of cases the result was an empty glass and he saw a pattern. He claims that "you're far more likely to drink half a glass of water than you are to refill it". Smith claimed over another beer that his research proved that a half filled glass is considered to be half empty. Despite this claim it will probably not truly settle the question of a glass being half full or half empty. He does deserve credit for his dedicated research.

On Sunday 25 January I participated in the Crush Festival in the Adelaide Hills – a multitude of venues with local food and wines. I selected Uraidla and was enticed by the food on offer and the associated wines. The late breakfast was green eggs and ham at the Owl & Elephant Café . Sounded good. Sounded fantastic. I was thinking of Dr Seuss and green eggs and ham. It was described as an uber cool café. The food was crap. Very disappointing. It was an overcooked egg with a green/grey mix (and supposedly ham) in a bread base, curled at the edges. It was cold and served with a cold fried tomato half. I’d rate it at 1/10 . The waitress was surprised that I didn’t enjoy. (She did ask how I found it.) There was no offer to redress my concern. I should have selected the rhubarb and quince on rye toast. That did look appealing. The coffee, a latte, scored slightly better (at 4/10 ). The milk was good, but the coffee had no depth or finish. There was no lingering after...

It’s on again – the French Christmas Market – over 2 days and 2 nights . Presented by Alliance Française d'Adelaide at Unley Soldiers' Memorial Gardens, Unley Road. Councillor Peter Hughes and I were the drivers to make this happen last year. The advertising promotion reads … This will be a great opportunity to celebrate the Franco-Australian friendship, and pay a very special tribute to the Australian soldiers who gave their lives during the First World War, with an aerial parade and a cine-concert ceremony on Friday. On Saturday, children and adults will be able to enjoy a large choice of fun festivities, as well as the yearly launching of the Beaujolais Nouveau and a concert under the stars in the evening. The market will feature a great panel of French specialties: from wine and cheese to delicious croissants, traditional handcrafts and gifts. This special cultural experience will showcase over 40 South Australian businesses bringing their French inspired p...

A few weeks back, I was the keynote speaker at a youth gathering in Everard Park. Actually, I'm romancing a bit. It was my son's 21st birthday and I had to give a speech. We had 70-80 youths around to celebrate the event. I was instructed what beverages to buy. On the list was Passion Pop, a sparkling fizzy sweet wine based drink. When trying buy some, the local bottle shop informed me that the manager had banned it because they didn't want to tarnish their reputation. After some negotiation, it was agreed that they would order in a dozen. 21 years ago I bought a case of vintage port to keep until my son was 'of age'. That was what we did back then. It was traditional. Times have changed. I opened a bottle to try on the night. Surprisingly, the cork was in very good condition. The vintage port was absolutely superb. I would say that it has many years to go. At a 21st it is tradition for the father/parents to give a speech. I prepared some speaking note...

Last night I visited an old friend, an old codger who lives nearby. Before continuing with the story, I think the term old codger is a wonderful Australian term for an older man. I won’t get into comparing dictionary definitions, but in my mind, old and codger must go together. You simply don’t say that he is a codger. He must be an old codger. Yeah, the dictionaries disagree, but I dispute their comprehension. This leads me to wonder why there are no young codgers. Codgers simply appear as old codgers. Also, I am curious that there is no female equivalent of an old codger. Back to the story ... Last night I visited an old friend, Peter, an old codger who lives nearby. He is in his 90s and is always up for a visit. I take a bottle of brandy – St. Agnes VSOP. Actually I take a bottle of brandy every second visit. Peter likes to natter and is curious about what’s happening in the community and on Council. In the past he was heavily involved in local volunteer work. ...

The Carnevale Coffee Cafe on East Avenue, Clarence Park is hugely popular and the coffee is pretty good. I've noticed that passing Police patrols regularly stop for a beverage - that's a good sign. They roast and blend beans for purchase. After 2 years of research they have developed a green pod which contains no chemicals, pesticides, enhancers or artificial flavours - it makes you wonder exactly what is in the other commercial coffee pods. These new green pods fit Nespresso machines - a good marketing ploy. Carnevale owners, masterminds Chris Hoskin and Paolo Scidone, have developed 4 single varieties from Ethiopia, Indonesia, East Timor and Mexico. I prefer the Ethiopian. A great effort! If you want a big breakfast and excellent coffee (especially on the weekend) then pop it.

A friend sent me a link to the latest 10 memorable Australian food trends. It seems that I have not been keeping up with the trendy ones at the head of the queue. I am a simple person and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. One of those pleasures is a strong European style short black coffee aka. espresso. Some days I opt for a short macchiato (an espresso with a thin layer of rich frothy milk). Then along comes information about what’s new and trendy. One of the latest trends is to use butter instead of milk in coffee. I write blog this before I try it, and yes I will try it. Knowing little about Tibetan food, it does sound rather Tibetan in style; they would use yak butter. The question is, should I use salted or unsalted butter? For a review of the latest food trends, visit the Australia Food Blog via   this link. Following my query about whether or not to use unsalted butter, my friend has sent me another link that expands on this topic. The recomme...

Great news ... The Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) at Ridge Park is now in operation. This is one of the water saving schemes initiated by Unley Council. What is a MAR? Basically, during wet periods you collect water and inject it into the water table below and then in the summer months pump it out there or elsewhere to help with irrigation. Benefits are: Potential to supply 60ML (megalitres) pa - that's enough water to fill 24 Olympic sized swimming pools Reduced risk of flooding Cheap supply of good water during peak watering season Reliable supply for Council's water trucks Here is information re the MAR @ Ridge Park Here is a map of the water retention scheme @ Ridge Park ps Why do people always compare large volumes of stuff to an Olympic pool? I couldn't help myself - it's easy to visualise.

Last night I went to see Luminous , a Fringe show at Gluttony (@ east end). Absolutely fantastic. A bonus because it was half price. Checkout the half price specials - makes the festival more affordable. Sipped on a Tanqueray number 10 G&T. Someone had a panic (perhaps epileptic) attack, probably due to the strobe effect and tried to escape through the tent entrance. Luminous is a black (UV) light illuminating body art, juggling and circus sensation. Fantastic painted body artwork. Loud, very loud music to pump you up. Get along and see Luminous. Look for a half price special ...  Luminous @ Gluttony Tip: sign up as a Fringe member and get quick access to what's on and specials.