Farewell to Albany

Its time to move on after 6 of the most lethargic (and enjoyable ) weeks of our lives. We drifted aimlessly from cappuccino to hot chocolate, from cafe to restaurant, but especially from whale to whale. When yesterday, after a particularly successful session of whale watching, we dragged ourselves away from the sea, we both found ourselves stopping on the path and gazing back out to sea, hungry for just one last sighting. I can't really understand the fascination, is it because we know they are intelligent animals ? Is it because until recently we were complicit in their slaughter ? Is it because they have a perhaps unearned reputation for gentleness ? All I know is that adopting one, and building a very big pool in Daylesford is my next project.

Albany has been a delightful town to stay in, very attractively nestled in the coastal hills, with a good stock of old buildings, creating streetscapes full of character. The Porongurup and Stirling Ranges national parks have given us a bit of a work out in the bushwalking stakes. There are many places that I have visited on this trip which have been full of interest, but only a couple which I could honestly say I might be happy to live in, and Albany is one of those.

As you know, I am addicted to Roy Zimmerman, and I found him singing a particularly apposite song on youtube the other day (Youtube has also been getting a workout while we've been in Albany) the lyrics of the chorus are-

I ain't afraid of your yahweh,

I ain't afraid of your allah,
I ain't afraid of your jesus,

I'm afraid of what you do in the name of your god !

While on the subject, I am afraid that I am going to have to spoil a perfectly anodyne, and hopefully inoffensive scribbling by the following observation-

I ain't going to vote for anybody that doesn't end the live meat export trade, now and forever.

I ain't going to vote for anybody that doesn't take concrete and effective measures to combat global warming.

I ain't going to vote for anybody that won't legalise gay marriage.

I ain't going to vote for anybody that promises me further deregulation. (Deregulation is like beer, a little is a good idea apparently, lubricating the old social inhibitions, but too much makes you puke, and leaves you with a headache the day after. )

I've just been reading about Harry Triguboff, the CEO of Meriton, Australia's biggest property developer. He told the ABC earlier this year that the real problem with our cities is that there are just too many parks and gardens. He said that if anybody living in Sydney wanted to see a tree, they should go to the Blue Mountains, where there were plenty of them. He also thinks that a projected Australian population of 100 million would not be enough.

Did I mention that I am going to go and live on another planet ?