The White Cockatoo, the Work

I gathered my gear (house and office) again and flipped them on my back and de-boarded the train in Cairns. Back at Munmurra Park Belinda found a White Cockatoo feather at the Koolah Tops and gave it to me. I have proudly displayed it on my Backpack ever since. So when I lined up my stay at the next property the fact that it was The White Cockatoo seemed to just fit. Tony and Lenore are the owners of this beautiful 3.5 star resort. They operate as a nudist resort from October to April and as a family resort from May to September. My accommodations are in a private chalet', of which there are twenty four, with a generous food budget for meals I cook for myself. Upon my arrival in Cairns I was picked up at the train station by Tony. The White Cockatoo is located about forty five minutes North in Mossman. Tony had a scheduled guest pick up at the airport and luckily for me it was close to the same time as my arrival. He was a great tour guide of the area as we traveled up the coast to the property. Upon arriving, Lenore took care of the guests and Tony took me to get settled in. I was a bit concerned of my choice after only the first few minutes with Tony. On the website for The White Cockatoo, the information for HelpXers is that a two week minimum was required and longer stays OK if we all get along. No problem there. It also stated, as I understood it, that credit card details and passport information would also be required. Again No problem there. When Tony asked for my Passport and said he would be keeping it until my departure, I got a little bent out of shape. I have heard horror stories of people taking passports and essentially holding you until they saw fit to let you leave. I also didn't want to be traveling in the area without proof that I legally entered the country. Or even worse, as accident prone as I am , getting involved in a situation where I would be hurt and unable to communicate who I am and where I am from and what I am doing here. We got in a bit of an argument and I tried to explain that I had no problem with him making a copy of my details but I would prefer to keep the original on my person. He hesitantly agreed and made the copy; but he reiterated the point that it clearly stated it differently on the website. Due to some undesirable helpers in the past he had to do this to protect himself and his property. I told him I understood, and that I would not be one of those helpers. In good faith and as proof of my intention I allowed him to keep my passport as long as I could have the copy. I checked into my chalet' for the night somewhat concerned what the next few weeks would hold.

I am happy to say that the next four weeks turned out just fine. Once showing Tony that I was honest and forthright he warmed up to me. I consider both Tony and Lenore to be my friends. Oh, and I eventually did get my passport back.

Now,

THE WORK.

It was Work by the way. Some of it was quite physical. Some not as physical but still work. My first week I was Bleaching the Ceilings in the chalet's. Mind you, being in the "Wet Tropics" makes ceilings vulnerable to MOLD. My job...Mold Eradication! This was not my favorite task on the property. I think Tony was testing me. Yeah, I am pretty sure he was; but the bleaching needed to be done. My responsibilities became easier as the weeks went by. Maybe it was more that I enjoyed the other responsibilities more so than Bleaching Ceilings. I guess it doesn't really matter either way. The good news was, in my opinion, the worse was done first! The funny thing is I really enjoyed bleaching the car park curbs and walking paths. That must of had something to do with the gurney (High Power Washer).

I did some landscaping and mowing. I even had the chance to do a little slashing around some of the buildings that were susceptible to white ants (termites, to all you "YANKS" Up Over). One of my landscaping/white ant prevention jobs had me trimming back a huge variegated Pandannus Tree. It had grown onto the roof of one of the guest chalets. My first reaction to Tony was, "You better hire a professional to tackle that beast." He told me that it is not as heavy of a plant as it seems. He was right. Actually I don't really recall him ever being wrong. Well maybe once or twice but I am sure I signed a confidentiality agreement somewhere. Hehehehe!

I talked Tony and Lenore into letting me plant some of what I cut down. As you can see by the photos this plant drops roots down from its branches.

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Before After

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Unfortunately I am fearful they are not going to take. They are similar to a Yucca Plant in their structure. Except they are very pulpy and full of water. Before leaving I noticed the new growth that stems from the center of the plant was beginning to lose its strength. The good news is there will be a fresh bed for a new garden if they must go. Oh, and I managed not to hurt myself cutting them off that roof. That's good news too! After staying at the White Cockatoo for almost a month to the day, I had plenty of chances to do quite a few other jobs too. I was in charge of the pool cleaning. What a marvelous pool it is too! Basic property up keep, picking up fallem palm frons, blowing the car park and foot paths, helping Lenore with the cleaning and servicing of the chalet's. I think our record during my stay was 17 in one day total. 10 checkouts and 7 services. Not too bad for a 2 person team. Of course that occurred on my last day. I think I managed to finally perfect those hospital corners on the sheets that day too! Hmmmmmm. All and all, another great WORK experience with some more Great Ozzy's (well actually Tony is a Kiwi by birth)!

TAKING the TRAIN

THIS IS A NON-PHOTO POST

(I promise it will be an easy read)

So I left Baffle Creek on the 6th of June and again traveled by train.

This train ride started in Miriam Vale on the Sunlander. I was on board for 24 hours and my destination was Cairns. A word of advice to all you Yanks(like me)...Cairns is pronounced "Cans". Luckily I was able to hear it spoken before attempting to speak it myself. I would have made a fool of myself for sure. Trust me I have learned to not speak the obvious Down Under for fear of mis-pronouncing many words. Having said that, I have made a fool of myself anyway. I am glad most people are gracious enough to correct me politely. Even if it becomes a standard dig later. I love Ozzy's, they don't mind dishing it out and expect you to dish it back and respect you for doing it well. No Worries , Mate! You just gotta love that.

Every long Distance train ride I have taken has been in excess of 24 hours per ride. This allows for a great opportunity to watch all types of people. If you leave your seat and go into the dining car or bar car you will have an opportunity to actually meet some of them. I chose to do exactly that on this train. I went to the dining car and order the "Barramundi " dinner. Barramundi is a good eating sport fish from the rivers and seas in the more tropical regions of Australia, Asia, and New Guinea. Apparently people pay thousands of dollars to hunt this valuable fighting fish. Even though the local kids in Port Douglass land some good sizers fishing from the bank at the local golf course. I sat next to two women. I don't remember both of their names but Joan was the name of the lady that would become my travel partner for the next 18 hours or so. We had a lot of interesting conversations about life, family, spirituality, and the plight of indigenous people of Australia. The latter is what sparked the following events. The conversation started innocently enough. Joan had asked about racial divides in the United States. I told her that there are still some places in the US and some people in the US who practice bigotry. This practice is not exclusive to White on Black. It exists in all Races, Religions, Orientations, and Classes. I would like to think that in today's culture, that at the very minimum, the practice should be "Tolerance." In the United States I believe that is even the Law. I would love to say "Acceptance;" but I fear that it just isn't realistic. Hell, I have witnessed with my own eyes, in today's American Culture its unrealistic to even label it as "Tolerant."

So Joan started telling me about the Indigenous People of Australia. She explained that the traditional aboriginal tribes were hunters and gatherers. They used the land for what they could and if it could not sustain the community they would then move on. For centuries this is how they have lived. In the years more recently they have been exposed to the industrial world. Rounded up into communities built by the white man for them on there own traditional land. I told Joan that the comparison would be more accurate to the United States and the Tribes of the American Indians. Not to the racial division between white and black. The key word I believe being indigenous. Now keep in mind I am no expert and this blog is not meant to inflame any ill will. I began to explain however horrible the past has been, the wrongs have occurred. It is my observation, that in the United States, the different tribes of American Indians have begun to prosper under their tribal laws. The United States Government doesn't have jurisdiction on tribal lands. Thus allowing the different Tribal Councils to lease their property back to the government or develop it as they choose under Tribal Laws. A perfect example are the numerous casinos in the Phoenix metropolitan area and many other parts of the US. It is not a perfect system and poverty still exists. Honestly poverty exists in every corner of the United States. It is not racially specific.

Joan began to explain to me that the Australian Government has thrown millions of millions of dollars at the aboriginal people. They have built them homes and communities. They have not developed an educational program that teaches them about managing money. Traditionally aboriginals prefer to live an aboriginal life, not in homes. She told it to me like this, "The indigenous people of Australia use wood to burn in a fire. If you build a house out of wood, furnish it with wood furniture and put wood on the floors...The first traditional indigenous person you give this house to will pull up the floor first to burn it in the fire.Then the furniture, then the walls, and so on." This is a narrative of the misunderstanding of one culture trying to "help" another culture to be more like them and less like themselves. Now keep in mind it doesn't necessarily happen like that today. Imagine a similar scenario but utilizing millions of dollars? You can't. Money is concept, not actually a substance that can be eaten , burned , or woven. Sure the paper its printed on can be burned or woven, hell, it can even be eaten for that matter. But come on folks, I can guarantee no Australian government Official has been traveling the continent with briefcases full of cash handing it out to each person in each community. So the complexity of the situation is very difficult to wrap your mind around, at least it is for me. As you can see the conversation was very interesting. Between two open minded individuals, trying to discuss a major issue that crosses so many different divides. It was at about that time when we where interrupted by ...

"THE THREE FINGERED CANADIAN!"

Now when I say interrupted I don't mean, "Excuse me, I hate to interrupt, but could you please pass the salt?" No! This woman plops her card on our table and says, " Hi, I was listening to your conversation and I just thought I should force my self upon you!!!!" Ok, well she didn't exactly say that, but essentially, that is what she did. Being the polite and intelligent people that Joan and myself are, we quietly sat and listened to her view of our conversation. She began to tell us of the injustice that has occurred and that she was studying to be a lawyer. Sixteen years she has been working on the side of Australia's indigenous People. She referred to Canada's approach towards land rights and how the world should model after them. Not being from this area and learning as I go, I must say she almost had me. I was five minutes away from getting off the train where ever she was getting off . Ready to go fight the fight. Apparently there has been some mis-appropriation of funds and it all is centered around a single lighter skinned aboriginal who s taking advantage of his own people and the Australian government.For lack of a better analogy it reminds me somewhat of TV evangelists living the high life while the money (admittedly not government money) doesn't go to help those in the community that need it and deserve it. Like I said not the best analogy, but I hope you get the point. At least that was the point that I was getting. So through out this conversation I noticed our Canadian kept making a fist. Then I realized she only had a thumb, an index finger, and a pinky finger.

"The Three Fingered CANADIAN!"

OK, all is seemingly going well. Joan has challenged her on a couple of things and she has answered Joan accurately enough. Until...She makes the comment, "I am unable to complete my course study because the Australian Government is fearful of the information I have. They fear I will make it public. I can't get any of my professors to grade my work. I have been blacklisted." I asked her, "What type of college refuses a student an education? What type of information do you have that is so powerful?" Then the Three Fingered Canadian said,"Well the government has been doing human testing on the Aboriginal People." WHAT!?, Did I hear her correctly? I asked her , "Really? Where? When?" At this point Joan has backed out of the conversation and she is looking at me as if the Canadian just grew two new heads to match her hand. The CRAZY Three Fingered Canadian then replied," Yeah, in Western Australia, within the past five years." What!? Are you kidding me? Now correct me if I am wrong but has anyone heard about any human testing going on anywhere in the past 5 years?My voice started to rise, my face started to turn red. I tried to gain my composure and asked her, "What type of testing?" Suddenly fearing she could possibly be speaking the truth, I waited with baited breathe. The thought, in this day and age, in a democratic country, that these outrageous accusations could possibly be true ,had changed my mind...I am going to head West! Her reply was,"Reproductive testing." "Are you sure?" I asked again.She paused ,as if searching her head for proof. It was becoming painfully clear she was blowing smoke. Lying to get her point across. Misrepresenting facts to heighten my emotions. Well she succeeded in that for sure. But she lost me as a possible advocate in her cause, whatever that cause truly is. I couldn't stand it much longer. I started angrily tapping my finger on the table as I said, " What the hell are you doing on a train headed North on the Eastern coast of Australia? To fight a financial battle with a bad aboriginal? When the government is doing human testing in Western Australia? Shouldn't you be on a train headed West!!!!!!!?She then made the comment,"Well it was more like 15 or 20 years ago that it was occurring." I stood up. I slapped my hand down on the table. I said Firmly...,"I have had enough! I will not sit here and have you waste my time if you can't even present accurate facts. You have lost all credibility, Good Day!"

I then leaned over to Joan and apologized to her for losing my temper; but this had reach the point of ridiculous.

The WHACKED Crazy Three Fingered CANADIAN

then began to say something derogatory about Americans as I left the dining car. I chose not to even engage her any longer. It wasn't worth spoiling my train ride.

An hour or so later Joan came looking for me. I immediately apologized again for leaving her with the crazy women. She told me not to worry about it. Joan said it didn't take to long until she knew the woman was missing her medication. We both laughed about the experience after that.

My spin on Taking the Train...Do It! Just beware of

"The Three Fingered CANADIAN!"

Deepwater/Rules Beach

I hopped a train and headed North into Queensland. Thirty hours later I was at my next host property. Ray and Glen own a parcel of land in Baffle Creek. It's about a 15 minute drive from Rules Beach. Having been raised in Florida I am no stranger to beaches. Although I can say I have never experienced the awesome feeling I felt of seeing no one else's footprints (yep, those are my footie prints) on a completely unspoiled beach. No sign of man, no buildings, roads, lights, or sound. Just me and the Southern Pacific Ocean.

I have had quite a few chances here to explore and even do some fishing. Of course I have been working too. Lets start with the exploring and fishing. Ron took Glen and I out onto the river to do some night fishing as the tide turned. The sunset pictures I took just before we launched the boat. Our catch included 1 pike eel each. Nasty Buggas! Glen caught a grunter but he wasn't a keeper. Ron managed to be the fisherman of the night, being the skipper it was appropriate. He landed a few bream, catfish, and a huge "buck" mud crab and a "jenny"close to the same size. What did I catch besides a pike eel? Hmmmm... A Koala (yes into the trees), a log fish (yes an underwater tree), oh, and a bream too. One of Glen and Rays' other neighbors took me out to do a bit of deep sea fishing. His name is Glen too. We put the boat in at 1770 and went out about nine miles. This is the channel out, looking down from the cliff side. 1770 is to the left around the corner. The water to right side of the sand bar is Bustard Bay.

Straight out on to the horizon somewhere is where we actually went fishing. We were in about 120 feet of water. The catch for that day included 2 dolphin, 1 for the skipper(Glen) and 1 for Shawn another boat mate. We took a half dozen mackerel, 3 red emperor, and a huge sweet lip. My catch, no koala's (they were safe on the mainland), the sweet lip, 2 red emperors and a mackerel. I didn't get a chance to try the dolphin but the others were all extremely tasty. It was a beautiful day. The water was a deep blue and clear. The dolphin kept circling the boat in pairs of two. I think there were at least four at one time. The mackerel were snapping up the bait as soon as it was in the water. We kept seeing sea snakes popping up here and there to catch their breath. Glen actually caught one on his line once. Given that they are venomous we just cut the line on that guy. We also caught a few iodine bream. Apparently they get that name from they scent they have when cut into. Not good to eat!

On the way back in we were approached by a pod of Bottle Nose Dolphins. They gave us a pretty good escort back towards 1770. I think there were eight to ten of them total.

So now the work... I helped Glen build Apples' romp area.

Closed in a door to the pantry and used the opportunity to create a shadow box, per Ray and Glen's request. Glen said he didn't know how to hang gyprock and plaster. In hind-sight, I think he knew because he sure picked it up quickly.

He filled in the hole above the bathroom door and down each side. Oh and he was also responsible for the doorway itself. The wood hasn't been stained yet but its Beautiful! I wish I had some pictures of the shelves we built using the same type of "flitchers." Some of the other Jobs I helped Ray and Glen with included...Working with Ray clearing the Teak Paddock (Ray I never did get that photo of you on the tractor), organizing the shed/garage, feeding the creatures, doing some "feng shuiing and space maximizing, and watching Big Brother. Oh wait, that wasn't a job it was a requirement, and yes Glen I am now hooked.

" This is Big Brother, Glen and Ray to the Diary room. Glen and Ray, Big Brother wants you to stay in touch with Allen. If you fail You will be immediately sent to the punishment room. If you succeed You will gain entry into the rewards room. That is all." Ok enough silliness! I must say I don't enjoy it nearly as much without being able to discuss it with you guys.

After an injury or two I had the chance to be a bit creative. I took a few walks and gathered some of the grass tree blooms(old ones of course) This is the fruits of that effort. I hope the guys have stabilized it though. At this stage if you touched it they would spin out of position. It some what reminded me of working on the fountains in my pond. For those of you that know, well you know!

The Guys also plan on using the grass tree as an icon for their property. I took a piece of smoked glass and created a silhouette of one of the grass trees from the property using black paint. The photo isn't the best given the fact that the painting is on glass. I hope you can still appreciate it. If you look really close you can see me taking the photo.

Well I have already introduced you to Apples. Here are a few photos of my bed buddies(actually Little was the first, then Sharna, and close to my last night I had to ask Mac to make some room for me, as all three had taken up residence before I even made it to the bed)...

Almost daily we would let the turkeys, ducks, geese, and one very lucky rooster out for a pick , scratch and a stretch. This is Barley and Cinnamon obviously doing the stretch segment of their outing. I can't wait to return to Brokeback Ridge to visit all my new mates. I miss you guys!(and Gals)

Munmurra Park, The Upper Hunter Valley

Well I finally took the plunge and headed inland to my first host property. The decision to stop being a tourist and start the true adventure was welcome. I wanted to meet and learn about life in Australia. The best way to do that is to live and work with the people of this marvelous country. I couldn't have asked for a better introduction than the one I got @Munmurra Park by my hostess Belinda. Belinda is the proprietor of a 4000 acre beef cattle property. I spent two weeks with her helping with various jobs. The main house was built in the 1920's and completely renovated to include the veranda that essentially encompasses the entire building. Belinda is a horticulturist as you can see by her gardens.

There was quite a lot that we tackled while I was there, from preparing the fruit trees for the cold, planting rose bushes, installing a garden path and gate, and beautifying the approach to the house by removing some weeds and replanted flowering plants along the drive.

Even though that was work, I found it very rewarding. But the most rewarding thing was the relationships that I formed while I was there. So First let me show you two of my new best friends, Toby and Ella:
Toby is being cute! Smile Tobes!
There were are things I chose to do as my daily responsibilities. Those included feeding the chooks (chickens) and gather the eggs. Feed Shorty, that's Riley's calf.










I also took on the responsibility of eating well and making the expressos'. Mind you not every meal looked this pretty. Ok well actually it did, and Belinda's talent in the kitchen was only surpassed by the quality of the food from her garden.







Belinda gave me the opportunity to share a good old southern dish...Fried Green tomatoes! They taste the same Down Under -GOOD. Let me say you can't get very much more South than Australia.

There were quite a few wines I had the opportunity to sample with her. It is safe to safe I have finally developed my red wine pallet. Don't worry, I know this a picture of a white wine. It's pretty though, huh?





Later in my stay I did a bit of painting to hide where Belinda had a Monster of a fireplace removed. This also gave me the opportunity to do a bit of decorating. Following the principles (loosely) of Feng Shui I challenged her Chi and helped it flow and circulate. I also kept with in the guidelines Belinda suggested...This was the reveal-

One afternoon Belinda took me to Koolah Tops National Park. We made it there in the late afternoon just before the sunset. This park is home to a very interesting plant called a Grass Tree. It is also known as a Black Boy. It gets its name Black Boy from its trunk which is fire retardant but does char black. This particular Grass Tree Forest is home to trees they believe are about 600 years old. Once a year they shoot out a spear like flower that seems to appear overnight. On the way back to the car Belinda found a White Cockatoo feather which she gave me. It now proudly hangs off my back pack.

At the top of Koolah Tops is another forest of a type of eucalyptus with tree trunks as white as I have ever seen.

Yet again another glorious Sunset! This one a top the Koolah Tops.

NOW FOR THE PICTURE EVERYONE HAS BEEN WAITING FOR!!!!....

Kangaroos!!! They are cute but in all honesty they are everywhere. Somewhat like alligators in Florida, wildebeest in Africa, and cactus in Arizona.



I have to take a moment and share a painful lesson I realized while posting this blog. Earlier I mentioned the relationships that I formed at
Munmurra Park. When I said that they were the most rewarding aspect of my Journey. The painful lesson is that I never took the opportunity to capture any photos of Riley, Troy, Sonya, Aaron or Barbara. So folks That just means there will be a Munmurra Park 2. I hope each of you know that I really enjoyed your company, your laughter, and your kindness. I hope to see you again soon.