Retired now but worked as a tradie, a teacher and manager. Left leaning voter with a green hue. Union man since 1974. Two kids, Six grandkids, one dog, two degrees. Born at 314.3ppm CO2.
Public Key
npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj Profile Code
nprofile1qqsqt5wc009w3hyvdqpckvxrve35f4pmt7au0q2va8hptf77srf7l5cprpmhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumt0d4hhxarj9ecxjmntaq0ndd
Show more details
Published at
2026-08-01T15:03:04Z Event JSON
{
"id": "9e0c36220ceccd3ed43988a7878f5365e98b2c4f20ad9114a736270b60b3da26" ,
"pubkey": "05d1d87bcae8dc8c68038b30c3666344d43b5fbbc7814ce9ee15a7de80d3efd3" ,
"created_at": 1785596584 ,
"kind": 0 ,
"tags": [
[
"t",
"auspol"
],
[
"t",
"canberra"
],
[
"t",
"dogsofmastodon"
],
[
"proxy",
"https://mastodon.au/users/smitjo",
"activitypub"
],
[
"L",
"pink.momostr"
],
[
"l",
"pink.momostr.activitypub:https://mastodon.au/users/smitjo",
"pink.momostr"
],
[
"-"
]
],
"content": "{\"name\":\"John Smith\",\"about\":\"Retired now but worked as a tradie, a teacher and manager. Left leaning voter with a green hue. Union man since 1974. Two kids, Six grandkids, one dog, two degrees. Born at 314.3ppm CO2. \\n#auspol #DogsOfMastodon #canberra\",\"website\":\"https://mastodon.au/@smitjo\",\"picture\":\"https://o.mastodon.au/accounts/avatars/109/594/148/194/241/526/original/15b5cbc5f0bf8622.jpg\",\"banner\":\"https://o.mastodon.au/accounts/headers/109/594/148/194/241/526/original/9a01f2e46e2e3231.jpg\",\"nip05\":\"[email protected] \"}" ,
"sig": "89d20f32cfd1f2f8aa0d0f4bfa57bedfedeff5f1b7671a4e1f79e2eae449b56beaa210eaee2ce7763233c2531f21bdd648a4b6263a921abb75bfc2689ad7e356"
}
Last Notes npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith That's about the time that I have to start telling Monty that it's too early to go to the dog park. Then he asks for updates every 20 or 30 minutes. We generally get up at 5.30 but, being a Sunday, stayed under the covers until 6.20. Then we went for a walk for an hour or so and now we're back home and having breakfast. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith She could always go back to her old job. She was pretty good at it. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I'm a happy old bugger but I'm not sure that I'm happier than when I was younger. Happy is my default setting but has occasionally been disturbed by malfeasants (Thatcher, Howard, Abbott, Morrison, Trump Netanyahu to name a few). npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yep. All the performative outrage BS from the Coalition and Labor pandering to racists is nothing short of depraved. At least it makes it easy to know who to put last next time we get to vote. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Agreed. I worry a fair bit that government will be off target in identifying those who are 'not doing it tough' though. Much of the commentary seems to suggest that rather than lift up folk who are doing it tough we'll be dragging down those who are a little better off. It's the corporate tax dodging and the super wealthy that should be contributing more. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith yep, I struggle to see how the RBA is making the right decisions on this. If the economy is overheating, and that seems highly questionable, Government should be applying the brakes in a more equitable way. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith my place is pretty well insulated too. Rock wool in the walls, batts in the ceiling, floating floors, double glazed windows and doors. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I had the heater on from about 3.30 yesterday afternoon. I aim to turn it on before the temperature drops too much so it doesn't have to work as hard to bring it back up. I'm not sure if that saves electricity or not. Generally I have the temperature set to 20 degrees which some people think is not warm enough but it seems comfortable to me. I turn the heating off when I go to bed. The battery dropped to 52% of it's 16kwh capacity overnight and is charging happily this morning starting from a bit after 7.30 am. It's just charging from the solar panels. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I replaced my solar panels and added a battery last September. Since then I've powered the house (100% electric) and my EV totally without drawing anything from the grid. It handled running the aircon ok through summer but maybe now that it's in heating mode I'll need to be a bit more careful about what appliances I use and when. I've got a solarhart hot water system and get enough hot water from the sun so it's not usually using any power although I need the booster occasionally in the depths of Winter. I don't get enough feed in credits to cover the power company's fixed connection fee so I'm paying about $50 per qtr for that. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith old whiskey Pete certainly puts the "nut job" in RWNJ. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Hope it comes good sooner rather than later Jude. 🤞😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I love it too. I've been tracking back from my DNA matches lately and that's been really fascinating. I even found a first cousin, once removed, that no one in the family knew about. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith the NSW BMD certificates are expensive compared to the UK ones and much slower. But still bring great satisfaction when the missing grand aunt, who disappeared from UK records in the early 1900s but then reappeared in Portland, Oregon in 1914 is found getting married in Sydney in 1913. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith And that reminds me of a joke: npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith And more of the philosophical npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith A class struggle npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Here's a couple more. An Easter one. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Netanyahu is and always has been the fly in the ointment. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith And this one. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith This is one of my favourites. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yes they are. Platforming a propagandist representing a criminal regime that has murdered about 300 journalists and media workers. And they have the nerve to call themselves a 'Press Club'. Reprehensible. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith it's really good Josh. One of my friends is helping a young refugee with her English. The youngster is very interested in the Artemis mission so my friend is going to use your story with her this week. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith He was Mark of Cornwall in Arthur of the Britons on tv in the early 70s. Always does a good job whatever he's in. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I built a deck on the back of my place close to 40 years ago and it needs replacing. I don't think I'll do it myself this time although I might change my mind when I get quotes. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith thanks Caity. All done and results are good. The doc says nothing to worry about. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith All good. Had it done under a local so no hanging around in recovery. He says there's nothing to worry about. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith well done Rosie. I can sympathize as I'm currently on the gurney waiting to go into theatre for a cystoscopy. 😬 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith let's call it neolaborism then. Same thing, different colour suit. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Thought I'd put my feet up for five minutes. The resident opportunist was quick to join the endeavour. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith the last time Israel invaded and occupied Lebanon it resulted in development of a resistance movement. It's called Hezbollah. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Don't quit. I can see in the replies that you've already got some good suggestions. I would definitely talk to someone more senior and your student union. You've got some difficult days ahead so 🫂 ✊💪 from Monty and me. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith bugger. Hope getting onto it early means it won't be a problem for too long. 🤞 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I get out early with Monty so that we don't get trampled by the park runners at Umbagong and my backyard thermometer said it was 3.7 degrees at a bit after 6. 🥶 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith 😄 BBQ chicken gets Monty's attention better than most things and I've tried heaps of different treats. He's really not motivated by food. It's a challenge that I haven't faced with any of my previous dogs. He's good natured, enjoys human company and loves playing with other dogs so there are no real problems. He doesn't like to be left alone though and has tried to dig through the front door while I'm out grocery shopping. I'm trying different toys and treats to discourage that. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Pocock's right, it is shameful. Albanese's servile response to the gambling industry marks him as a total loser who has let Australians down badly. Again. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith the clickers are mostly just to signal that they've done good and a reward is on the way. It's a way of getting the positive message very close to the behaviour you want to reward. You need Rosie to make the connection between click and treat though. Maybe you'd have more luck with your voice - a quick 'good girl' and then a treat. Not all dogs take to training as enthusiastically as others though. I'm currently finding that Monty Loco's resistance is getting the upper hand over my persistence 😄😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Entrenched behaviours can be hard to correct but I think it's possible. I reckon what you're doing - removing the 'threat' by closing the door and then getting her focused on something else - is good. As long as she doesn't think the attention is a reward for the bad behaviour. Maybe try getting her used to doing something that can be rewarded when you have the door open (something other than barking at the passers by 😄). Stick at it Caity. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith it's 100% at my place and that includes the car. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I think f**k-up is his middle name Jude. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I put in a 'Flower of Kent' last year. It's the apple that is credited with prompting Isaac Newton's ideas. It'll be a few more years before it becomes a reliable fruiter. It's a cooking apple. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I've got a Cox's Orange Pippin in my backyard, espaliered against the fence, but haven't yet succeeded in keeping the possums at bay. Some years I get one or two apples but most years the possums get the lot. I'm going to have to build a cage around the tree. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Now would be an excellent time to get more people driving electric vehicles. Any loss of fuel excise can be recouped by winding back the exemptions gifted to miners et al. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Labor sees its job as keeping the mainstreet media and the billionaires happy. They've lost the plot and their moral compass. They're worse than useless. They're destructive. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith people are dying to get in there. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith the dead centre of Woden. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith we've had them land in the paddock next to the dog park a few times. Some of the dogs become quivering wrecks while others are totally incensed by the interloper. I don't know which category Monty Loco is in yet as he's not had sufficient exposure. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith yep. Some days the balloons come our way and some days not. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Monty and I have just got back home from about an hour or so strolling around our beloved West Belconnen and didn't catch even a glimpse of a balloon. One flew over the dog park yesterday morning though and that caused a bit of a ruckus. 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yep. The road is much improved from years past. It really is driver competence that needs to be addressed. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith yep. With Pauline and Mad Mal in the Senate he'd be aiming to flip his Maranoa seat in the reps to ON. Not sure what the mood of that electorate is. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I wonder if there's a switch to ON coming? I know he says he'll always be a National but we all know what a bloody liar he is. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Very good of the powers that be to arrange the 29 gun salute to welcome you to Canberra Caity. 😜 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith it's a waste of time. And you could replace the opposition with a bunch of 12 year olds and they'd do a better job. In fact, the reason Labor get away with being such a bunch of disappointments is because there's a completely incompetent opposition. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I'm due to fly to Singapore tonight. 🤞 there's no trouble. I imagine it'll be a full flight given flights that go via the Middle East are being cancelled. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith My feelings of disappointment with the man that Albanese has become have deepened over the last few years. Now, all I have for him is contempt. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith sounds awful Heather. Happy for you that it didn't last too long. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith they accepted a colour photo copy of my Australian passport (all pages, even the blank/unused ones) along with the original expired UK one. The old one was returned when they'd finished with it. I thought they could have accepted photographs of my Aussie one but they didn't. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith nice photo 😀 If you do need to get a UK passport it's a bit time consuming with some nuisance steps but nothing unexpected for such an important document. It takes a bit of time though. I was able to renew mine last year and it was a smooth process. Quite a bit less expensive than our Aussie ones too. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith When his Party is recognised as a harrowing cadaverous beast, in late stage decay, what better mascot than the odious Erica Betz. Exhumed from his federal grave to torment the poor folk of Lutruwita. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I've had good experiences with Aussie Housesitters in the past. Now Grandson number 1 looks after things for me when I'm away. The dogs, past and present, know him so that reduces any worries I might have on that front. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I've been in the UK for three weeks now and have only had two days without rain. More of the same today. It's not heavy but it is quite persistent. There's flooding in some parts of the country but nothing to speak of where I am. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I'm still in touch with a mate who I became friends with in the year before we started school. His parents ran the corner shop. We were 4. I was best man at his wedding. We've lived on opposite sides of the world for close to 50 years now but still chat online a few times a year and if I'm in the UK we usually manage to catch up in person. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith If it goes the way that often happens for me you'll get a blood sucker who can't find a vein and asks you to go home and try again another day 🤬 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith When they asked if I wanted a beer I said 'That one's got my name on it'. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith It's yet another instance of shameful behaviour by the government. I think you're right about the women being there due to their husbands choices. I think there might be some who were still children when their parents took them. The only excuse Albanese has for leaving these Australians stranded is that he wants to placate racists and bigots. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith that's a nuisance. Have you tried earplugs? My former partner found they helped and used them a lot when she was working nights. I didn't find they helped that much. Nowadays I've got the luxury of being hard of hearing so I can just take my hearing aids out and the world is much more peaceful. 🙉 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yes, fresh bay leaves are much better. My Grandmother always put them in her rice pudding. It's a taste and smell that has stayed with me through the years. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith sounds as though you've been busy today Heather. Keeping the Bay in a pot is a good idea. I recently had to get my son to come and cut my in-ground one back as it had got to a height and spread that wasn't compatible with power lines. It's height was approaching 10metres 😬 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith The mainstreet media, Newscorpse especially, are very good at selling a lie. They won't tell people about the high cost, the time to build, the dangerous waste, etc. There will be a lot of $$ poured in to mislead. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I think that's got a fair bit to do with who's able to take advantage of rooftop solar and home batteries. If you're renting it's difficult or impossible to take advantage of that so you'd be looking for alternatives. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith we'd have to assume that he's learnt nothing from last election's results. Has he or Jane Hume announced a sacking of the Public Service yet? npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Clearly, Trish, what we need now is a nuclear powered tram. Then there'd be no need for those unsightly overhead cables above the tracks. 😜 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith He's an idiot. Being led by the nose by the big money lobby groups. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith 11.6 - sheer luxury. 😉 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith probably fair to say that the only thing that can keep Labor in power is the Coalition. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Some of the old buildings in the town centre with the jettied upper floors and fancy pargeting. 17th century I think. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith A couple of the local swans. The one in the foreground was just moving towards me to let me know I'd taken enough photos and should move along 😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Here's a view of a church. It's build was finished in 1398. There's a sundial on the wall that, given the current weather, is about as useful as t*ts on a bull. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith A couple of photos from my current tooting spot. These old stone buildings date from the late 1300s and are still in use today. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith it's a great walk isn't it. I've only done the bit where dogs are allowed but friends and family have been all over the tracks, old and new, and tell me it's wonderful. One of my grandsons did some work experience/training building the new tracks a year or two back. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I've been worrying about Monty Loco regarding thunder but grandson who is dog and house sitting while I'm away says he wasn't too bothered by it. I imagine Monty was comforted by having a house full of computer gaming twentyish year olds. Pizza may also have been involved. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith 9 degrees and raining here in the UK and I'm just finishing Wednesday. Miserable weather but I'm enjoying my time here. 😀 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith The water company has closed the road outside my mum's place while they set about replacing water pipes. We're not too happy about it as in some nearby sites houses had their water cut off for several days. Plus we're anticipating a lot of noise. 🤬 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith my flight to Singapore was delayed and I missed my connection. The airline put me up in Singapore and fed me. Now I'm back at Changi waiting for the replacement flight. I'll be about 9 hours later arriving in London than planned. Just in time to catch all the commuters on the train to mum's. 🤪 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Clearly on the side of genocide. Albanese, Wong and co. are on the wrong side. Shameful. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I'm looking forward to playing around with it with my grandkids. We often work together on creative stuff and did have a go at woodblock prints but not very successfully (wrong wood, wrong tools and limited know-how). Lino or potato would, in hindsight, have been a better starting point for relief printing with them. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Procol Harum are on my regular play list too. Also the Kinks. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith inspired by a Johann Sebastian Bach piece of even earlier times. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I think there are quite a few songs from the 60s that straddle the years very well. But maybe we're both preserved in amber. 😄😄 npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Summer in the City (1966) npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yep, it's a bit sticky indoors this morning. I went out for a walk with Monty just before 7. It was fresher than in the house but even then the gentle stroll was sweat inducing. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith That's an interesting method. It's like a fork of lithography - oil and water don't mix. Do you know the story about the invention of Lithography? Alois Senefelder, the 'inventor', wrote his laundry list on a piece of smooth limestone with a wax crayon and when he tried to clean it off discovered that the limestone held water while the wax crayon repelled the water. The wet limestone repelled oily ink but the wax crayon accepted it. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I made this little box for my grandkids to keep their geliplate printing gear in Caity. We haven't printed anything yet but they're keen to get started. ;? ) npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Of all the stupid things that Albanese has done this takes the cake. When he's saying he wants to protect and build social cohesion he rolls out the red carpet for a bloke who was signing his name on the bombs that were used to slaughter Palestinians, many of whom were family members of Australians. A man who incites hatred towards Palestinians. A likely war criminal. Un-bloody-believably stupid Albo. Australia is better than this. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Paul Kennedy. Not sure where he is now but he was the best on the ABC breakfast tv. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I haven't got to it yet. I looked at it first thing this morning but the gambling ads were beyond what I could bear so gave up. Hopefully it'll be on The Point at some stage. The New Daily has become unreadable due to the ads (I mostly used my phone and can't get ad blockers to work). npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith not sure why they're described as 'influencers' rather than 'shitstirrers'. ABC style manual I guess. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith I think Chris Minns is every bit as deserving of a 'McCarthy' label as Malinauskas. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Ronnie Salt nails it. Again. npub1qhgas772arwgc6qr3vcvxenrgn2rkhamc7q5e60wzknaaqxnalfsp4w4jj John Smith Yes, if we saw this happening in other parts of the world we'd be calling it an authoritarian crackdown. It's a shameful episode in Australian history.
