Quick trip

I managed to spend Friday and Saturday in Melbourne.   As part of our move to Tasmania  I had packed my garage onto a large tandem trailer attached to our landcruiser.    My intention had been to take it across on the ship in December of last year,   but for a number of reasons I ended up storing it at my brother in laws.  I had thought that I would retrieve it about 2 weeks after we moved but again this took much longer than anticipated.   Tassie time is different to Melbourne time.    Getting my work roster sorted took longer and organising availability on the Spirit of Tasmania took longer still. 


parked at Port Melbourne.  Heavy

  I flew over on JetStar on Thursday.   Apparently the weather in Melbourne had caused disruptions,   pushing my flight back to 2145.      Having squeezed my self into 14c,    the Hostie was very kind and asked me if I was comfortable and if I would like to sit up front.   I  was very pleased and managed to un wedge myself and scooted up to row 1a,  opposite the Hostie's seats.    Anyone over 6'3" needs to be prepared to firstly hit their head on the way through the door and then jam them selves in tight,  apologising to the others  in their row for using their leg room.   I felt like a smug bastard as I walked to the front of the plane.

I had a good two days in Melbourne.    I was nervous and worried about the car.   I had parked it 2 months ago,  knowing the battery was dodgy and radiator leaking.    I visited MoParts in Croydon to get a new battery.  It struck me that the old guy who runs it is still there,   20 years after I first bought
parts for the Datto and the Chev.   

Toyota make great Cars.     New battery in,  more water in the radiator,  check the oil and crank it over.   It started and ran perfectly.   I tested it by taking a 6x4 trailer or building rubble to the Tip for my mother.     It was fine.    I was starting to worry about just how much weight I had on board.   I needed to use low range to get the trailer up Christoph's driveway and at times the rubber mudflaps were scraping on the road.   It is hard to estimate just how much weight I had on.   Here's a list of some of the things that were in the Car.

2lt Datsun engine
6 bottle jacks
2 chain hoists
2 trolley jacks,  one small one large.
Hydraulic pipe bender and Dies.
6 metal tool boxes (full)
2 5mt herc Alloy Chains
tirfor winch with 25mt Stainless Cable
full set fibre glass poles for springfree trampoline
2 wooden 8 ft oars
overnight bag,  sleeping bag for on the ship
other stuff to fill the spaces,   jars of jam, 
On the roof an extension ladder and 15ft Row boat.  


Looking at the picture I suspect I was over loaded.   It towed OK if you kept your speed under 85 and didn't try to stop quickly. 

I was hoping for a smooth trip across.  

mid afternoon.  waiting to board

clearing sky at 2000

 Getting on the ship was quick this time,  only 150 cars to go on so it only took 1.5hrs instead of the usual 2.    It was a quiet trip,  there were not many people on the ship.  I had taken a cold bag with snacks but I decided to grace the Captains table with my presence.   No bowtie was required,  it is a self serve buffet,  almost as good as the Moe Racing Club Carvery.

Roast Beef with Vegies
 

I figured that if it tasted good on the way down it would be okay  if it came up again.
The trip was okay,  pretty smooth really.

I managed to catch a film on the way across.    Argo .     I had heard from a friend that it was good.  I really enjoyed it.    I remember when I was a kid,  watching the news and seeing blindfolded people being paraded by crazys with guns chanting Death to America.  It didn't make much sense then but I have a greater appreciation of American Foreign policy now.
I had  booked a recliner chair for the crossing,  knowing that I wouldn't be able to sleep in it.  After the film I took my bag, sleeping bag and pillow up to deck 10.   The forward bar was completely empty so I stretched out on a comfortable bench seat and went to sleep.   I woke each hour with a start,  leaping to my feet and looking around.   I laughed at my self the third time I  did it,   it got less funny after that.   I was kept company by the ghosts of passengers past.

Back in Tassie  the trip down to Kettering proved mostly uneventful.     There were gale force winds and rain,   not ideal for towing.   I got blown around a lot and had a few moments,  but mostly managed to stay in my lane.    A couple of the hills slowed me and everyone behind me down,  the Southern Outlet from Hobart was particularly bad.    Flat to the floor in 1st gear,   crawling along at about 20kmh and wondering if I was going to need low range to get to the top.  

I have started unpacking the car and trailer.    the shed is quite large and it is starting to resemble my shed in Montrose minus the concrete floor.   Its  a bit like Christmas really,  looking into boxes and discovering lost treasures.  I thought I had been quite brutal cleaning out junk prior to the move,  but it is evident that some junk/treasure made its way aboard.   I am really pleased to have my tools now as I have missed them the  last 3 months. 


 gaz














 

drive

I have been at work the last couple of nights.  It has been over five years since I did proper nightshift.    It's funny the things you forget,    the early morning windy nausea,  eyes that feel red raw,  the slightly scary drive home and  the pleasure of trying to sleep in the daylight.   It actually hasn't been too bad,   I only need to do 3 ND a month.   The first night on is okay because you are rested before hand.   The second night is okay because you have slept and are halfway through.   The last night is okay because it is the last night.   Last night I had my break at 0330 and attempted to sleep  in a dark waiting room on the floor.   The sheet I had spread out to lie on did little to cushion the concrete floor.   At any other time you would not contemplate sleeping on a hard floor,   but having incurred a sleep debt,  I slept.    I was a bit stiff when I got up.
It is very easy to get obsessed with how many hours sleep you have had and how many interruptions to sleep have occurred.   I have actively decided to not obsess. 

Night shift has corresponded with the guys from Channel Earthmoving coming to do the drive way.  It has been nice to get up in the afternoon and go to the block and see what progress has been made.   Barry the operator is doing a great job interpreting my slightly vague instructions/suggestions about what I want done.  

It has been rolled and will be dressed with fines tomorrow.    It will be nice to be able to get my car up and down the drive without it behaving like a plough.



gaz

Wet day Gardening

It has been very dry  the last two months and I have been putting off doing any planting on the block.  Finally today we had some decent rain.  It pretty much rained all day,  varying between heavy drizzle to heavy rain.  This morning we went to a nursery in Cradoc.  By the time we got there it was raining pretty heavily.   Corinna and the kids stayed in the car  whilst I traipsed around in the rain.   I wanted to get some big trees  for the boundary's of the block.    I ended up with a total of 42 tubes.   I managed to get some Spotted Gum,  Blue Gum,  Dwarf Blue gum and Silver Gum.   I wanted to get some Swamp Gums for the area near the creek but the Nursery had none.

I had planned to do some planting this afternoon but the rain did not let up.  Instead I lit the Coonara for the first time and spent the afternoon reading on the couch.  Not a bad day really.

Orientation

I have been working  for three weeks now in Hobart.  It is a good unit.     Yesterday and today I attended orientation training.  This is a tiresome program,   covering such riveting topics as hand washing,  manual handling,  smartmoves/manutension and the like.   It is also an opportunity to be welcomed by the executive management of RHH,  although unfortunately all of the scheduled persons were unavailable or on leave or interstate.   We were allocated 1 hr for Medication Calculations.   My table was finished in 5 minutes.    It has been a long time since I have had to calculate drip rates and I suspect that it is not a practise that is undertaken very often.    It is  a technique that is unreliable as it fails to take into consideration the quality of the IV access.   If the patient moves their  canulated hand/arm,   the flow rate is likely to change/ or stop.  

It was Hot in Hobart yesterday,  36 degrees in fact.    Tasmania doesn't  tend to get these hot days very often.   Consequently the building we were in had no airconditioning.  Its hard to concentrate on anything  when its 30 degrees inside,   especially if  the subject matter is not very interesting in the first place.   I managed to get quite a headache.

The high light of today was the view over Hobart harbour .    Parking in Hobart is difficult,  most staff park in Queens Domain.   It means a 14 minute walk down the hill to the hospital and the view is delightful.   The down side is the 15 minute uphill walk back to the car after work.

view from Queens Domain over Hobart Harbour

Richmond

Visited Historic Richmond today. Its about half hour from Hobart.

 It is a lovely stone bridge.  It is apparently the oldest bridge in Australia.   The town is full of  convict built Georgian houses and buildings some of which are quite grand.    I don't think you would be able to build them like that now.   They have no eaves, poor solar orientation,  they lack north facing windows  and are probably a bit drafty.   They do have a high level of thermal mass,  but I think you would struggle to warm it sufficiently gain any diurnal advantage.

 We had a look at the Richmond Gaol.    It must have been a  horrid place in it's day,   the punishments metered out were most severe.

 I  think James Wheeler had the right idea.  

Drunk in church = 6 months road Partay.   I love a road trip.

 

The kids were quite circumspect  inspecting the solitary confinement cells.   They seem to recall  a minor incident when we were visiting Port Arthur involving a cell door that was apparently stuck.

Every house or workplace  should have one.

On a different note we bought water this week as the tank was down to 1/4 capacity.   This of course resulted  in drizzle and rain over the last few days. I can't  really whinge though,  it has been very dry.   The Tasmanians I work with keep telling me that is has been a really unusual summer,   and to enjoy it because when it does start to rain,  it does not stop.

gaz

scrubs

Went to work today in scrubs.   navy coloured.   About half the staff in the unit  seem to wear them,  the other half wear a mix of old and new RHH uniforms.    Apparently the current new uniforms were rolled out in august,   and people are just starting to receive them now.   Everything,  it seems,  is slower in Tasmania.

Scrubs have become popular  in Australia,  perhaps due to pop culture with shows like ER showing hard working dedicated health professionals,  slumming around in scrubs.
When you look at marketing for scrubs they show pictures like the one below.

 Young dedicated and hardworking.    reality?   I am pretty sure I don't look like either of these two.


The real benefit of wearing scrubs are as follows.

*   Patients and their relatives clearly recognise that you are their nurse.  I think the move to 'corporate'  uniforms for nurses in the 90's   often left patients looking at  all the clerical staff and  wondering  where are the nurses?

*  They are Very comfortable to wear.   Given that nursing involves working in close contact with patients in areas often designed for 1 bed but containing 2,   it is good to have clothing that allows you to climb over furniture and crawl on the floor.    

*  They are Very Comfortable to wear.   It is a bit like wearing comfy pyjamas to work but nobody seems to mind or notice.

*   They wash and dry quickly,   which is important because no workplace will ever provide you with enough uniform to prevent mid week over night washes.

*  They never need Ironing.


Am  I Happy in Scrubs?   yes I am

Do I look like a slob in them?    Yes I do.

Do I Care?   No I don't.

gaz   

It has been a delightful summer in Tasmania this year,    for the most part temps in the low 20s and clear sunny days.  I found my self  gazing at the moon today.  Not sure why,  I took a picture of it.

Turns out to be a pretty crap photo,    the moon it the tiny white spec above the car.

Things are a bit different in Tassie.   We were in Cygnet last week and I saw first hand just how resourceful people can be.    Saw a small black car,  maybe a yaris,  that the owner had needed a roof rack  on for a ladder or surfboard.  obviously couldn't get one,  decided to make one.

I particularly liked the use of sikaflex as the bonding agent,  no squeaks or leaks.  Not sure about the colour though.

Progress on the block,  still cleaning up.   I have pushed up a number of piles to burn.   It has been pretty dry in  tassie this summer,   they seem to be a bit nervous about bushfires.   We have had quite a few days of total fire ban.

We had a bbq last Saturday night on the block.  took the opportunity to burn one pile.   kids had a lovely time,  much smoke in their eyes.   the cardboard tube made a great chimney.

Started at RHH last week.   It has been a bit of a shock going back into an acute care setting.  The staff there seem nice and the work is challenging.  I seem to spend a lot of my time either looking for something or wondering where it could be.   I must say I am often surprised at the actual location of things.   The New unit was due to open this week,   but due to an accident by the builder involving a hose and a tap left on over the weekend,   there is water damage to be rectified.  Perhaps 2 weeks and it will be open.  Like units everywhere  the staff are drawn from across Australia and the world.   

The Tassie locals seem surprised that anyone from elsewhere would want to come to Tassie.   I guess that this is a reflection of the view of the economy down here,   it is fairly negatively portrayed in the media.  To be fair the economy down here is performing badly,   holding the mantle for highest unemployment rate and Oldest population in Australia.     I guess the real issue is whether the belief that economic growth at all cost is the best outlook to have.    Recent Liberal politicking are promoting that population growth of about 50% will save tassie's economy.    They also support  Mining in World Heritage listed areas and increased timber felling.  ( it will provide jobs and the timber and mining companies will do the  right thing won't they?)     It is not a view that I support.   Instead of measuring GDP and Unemployment,  perhaps we could focus on things like Air quality and natural beauty,   provision of quality education services and worlds best practise  in health care.   Yes I know everything costs money and I am not suggesting that social and political revolution is necessary (maybe a bit).   I would like to be able to watch the news without it being a whinge and moan session about how bad life is.

Despite the clouds it hasn't rained much the last 2 months,    sure could do with some.  still a nice outlook.