International Year of

I am excited to learn that 2029 will be the International Year of Asteroid Awareness.

 Here's my working list for future IYs.

• Clouds
• Adhesives
• Zircon
• White Goods
• Puppetry
• Spreads & Preserves
• Ears & Noses
• Oats
• Soil
• Flotsam
• Toggles, Buttons & Zips
• Chutneys & Tapenades
• Primates
• Accordions
• Snacks
• Trumpets
• Traffic Calming Measures
• Bone & Cartilage
• Natural Fabrics
• Synthetic Fabrics

Point to Pinnacle 2025

On Sunday Michael, Robbie and I walked 21km uphill, in the Point to Pinnacle Race. We are not racers, we just enjoy the annual chance to walk up the cordoned-off road. Last year Rob and I planned to do it together but he was double booked so we gave his ticket to Michael; and this year all three of us did it.

However; this is the only pic you'll see of all three of us as Michael put the foot down after about 5km and did the rest at his natural 21yo pace; getting to the top in 3hrs 31 minutes. He placed 231 of 1186. Last year we stayed together and just squeaked in under four hours.

Here's some of the official photos documenting his casual style; about 9km in and then in the final stretch to the finish.

Robbie and I went at a pace more reasonable for people who can remember the Whitlam dismissal.

In the photo above we (on the right) are just going past the Derwent Scottish Pipe Band (out of sight to the left). They are magnificent, and brought a tear to the eye. Here's a pic from their website.

At The Springs the taiko drummers also gave everyone a lot of energy and positivity.

As we ascended Robbie and I worked through the full agenda we'd prepared; covering recent events, historical events, the best West Indian cricketers, ideal ingredients for sandwiches, prospects for solving perpetual motion, diseases of the horse, Tasmania's greatest opposition leaders, Futurism v Scuola Metafisica and the eternal debate: Cortina v Torana.

There was no view this year. We were in a tight little room of fog for the last 6km or so. It tended to flatten out the walk because although that stretch rises steadily; at any time the stretch you actually could see appeared fairly level. On the other hand it's always nice to see the target and orient yourself as the road winds about; and we couldn't do that.

Michael finished fresh as a daisy, and went off to work mere hours later. 

Robbie had sore hamstrings and a possible blister developing; my left hip had started to creak a bit. But we lunged for the finish line all the same. We finished in 4 hours 19 minutes. Training for 2026 starts now!

Beach

Note to self. Don't forget how the first mouthful of fresh water tastes when you've just come out of the sea. And warming up your cold feet on the cement footpath before driving home.

Goal diary for 26 October

I love to score but I also love to play just the right pass, or use a bit of skill to buy some space and time in a tight spot in defence. All of these give me material for my mental highlight reel, which I use whenever I need to go to sleep or just take my mind off something.

I don't score a lot of goals, but I netted three in the first half of Sunday kickabout soccer, and another after the drinks break.

1. I was put clean through with a vertical pass, good touch to control, one touch to wrong-foot Scott in goals then slotted it to his left. I might have been offside if we played offside.
2. I similarly lurking up front, got a good pass with young Kevin (wears an Arsenal shirt) close behind me. I had it ready to shoot on my right as he closed me down, so I chopped it back through his legs onto my left then just tapped it back to my right to put it past Scott. He got a lot on it, but it bobbled up over him and stayed under the bar. Messi was mentioned. Kevin said I ought to buy a lottery ticket.
3. Brogi chased a lost cause over in the left corner; beat two men and managed to get in a cross as I arrived in front of goal. I was pleased with my first time toe-prod finish which caught the defence cold as it often will. I got the angles just right. I looked to Brogi to share the success but he was wrapped up in his own celebration which is his way.
4. Brogi and I were 2 on 2 with a defender and keeper. I slid it through for him to shoot on his left; he sent it back to me. I sent it back to him; he indignantly sent it back to me. By then we'd run out of room and I had a bit to do, but got it in past Dean.

Andy suffered a sudden calf injury which ended his game. It was the type old players call "shot by a sniper". In the group chat after the game I observed that the ground where we play does in fact have a grassy knoll.

Teams: Me, Brogi, Ratar, Lochie, Andy Bowie  v Dean, Scott, Kevin, Raf, Lochie

Running up steps

My usual run around the soccer ground is on hiatus because I have physio exercises for my right shoulder that occupy the morning.

I am giving myself a week off since my Theraband snapped. And I'm back running up the stone steps.

About two years ago the council installed beautiful stone steps to replace a goat track. They are right behind out house, and a good running alternative in wet weather or when time is short.

I have just run up 28x16=448 steps.

Favourite song, early spring 2025

This song comes from a new TRIPLE album. After a few months playing the album over and over on YouTube, I have now bought it. 

We use time tracking software at work and it's been annoying me with a pop up saying WRITE A REVIEW FOR A US$25 GIFT CARD. So I did, which turned out to be a palaver but I earned A$35 worth of Apple credit, which I spent on iTunes buying this Jeff Tweedy masterpiece.

AFL Grand Final Brisbane 18.14.122 d Geelong 11.9.75

Note: I use 'AFL' to refer to the Australian Football League and not the game of Australian Rules football; although other people increasingly use the term 'AFL' to refer to the sport.

I went to the Southern Football League Premier division grand final here in Hobart last weekend. Clarence upset Lauderdale (Clarence are coached by Grant Fagan, brother of Brisbane Lions' coach Chris). It was a great occasion, a packed crowd at North Hobart Oval, Tasmania's traditional "league headquarters". I should write a post about that instead, really.

I realised during this week, the lead up to the AFL Grand Final, that I am pretty fed up with the AFL. Every week here there is another twist in the saga of the new Hobart stadium which has been mandated by the AFL. We don't need it, can't afford it.

There was so much that was great about the local 'granny' that AFL just doesn't provide. Affordable tickets, food and drinks. The freedom to move around the ground to different vantage points. A PA system that was feeble and only in action when there was actually an announcement, so you could chat to your mates. And a program of three games; colts, womens and then mens.

AFL is a big business in Australia, yet pays no tax. It is a loud voice on social issues of countering racism, fostering respect for women, condemning use of illegal drugs and acceptance of all sexual preferences and gender identities. But it fails its own proclaimed standards constantly (eg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr.was paid between 2 and 5 million A$ to play at yesterday's grand final).

The league dominates news reporting, and has made an art form of dropping distracting news tidbits any time another sport gets a bit of traction. Once all newspapers in footy states (WA, SA, Vic and Tas especially) had big rosters of football journos. Now the AFL itself employs a lot of those people; which means criticism of the league tends not to come from the mainstream.

Anyway, back to me. I was feeling shirty and when people asked if I had big grand final plans I said no not really. I had a lot of negativity and didn't want to impose it on anyone else. So I dodged the entertainment and breathless excitement of the lead up; and switched on for the first bounce with the TV on mute and ABC radio synced up. the ABC panel were unanimous tipping Geelong.

I have a natural dislike of this Geelong team so I was backing Brisbane. Coco sat on my chest and started chewing her blanket. And… I slept through the first half. Scores were low and level at half time, seems it was an old fashioned arm-wrestle with pressure through the roof and no-one able to break free. Which is great for the purists but my unconscious brain said very clearly to me "you do not need or want to watch this".

I watched the third quarter, which was again very even for most of it, until Brisbane kicked a few unanswered to get out to 19 points up at the last break. I took the radio off for a run; in that time Brisbane kicked more goals and by the time I got back in front of the TV; Geelong were gone. There is nothing in sport like a massive occasion that is dead as a contest yet must roll on because it's on the clock. Brisbane were ecstatic, Geelong were pathetic.

Bailey Smith is a flashy young Geelong player who left the Bulldogs last year to play in a better team. He appeared to love the limelight then had a mental health crisis where he hated the limelight but now again seems pretty keen on the limelight. He has limelight issues. Anyway he's a star of the side and played badly and his team lost – and I am not proud of this but it made me happy. Get a haircut son.

Seeing the handshakes after a game, especially a big one, is really important to me. As soon as they cut away to an interview the TV was off.

I'm happy for Chris Fagan the coach, he seems to be a good guy and he's from Queenstown in Tasmania like two of my best mates. It’s nice that the brothers both won against the odds.

That's it for male footy until next season. But AFLW (womens) has been going for the last six weeks and continues today. I feel much more positive about it. Go Tiges.

Suburban footy grounds of Tasmania

 A companion piece to the Country Footy Grounds collection. The text links take you to Google Street View, and the images are captured from there too. If you enjoy roaming around Google Maps like I do you might enjoy this.

Claremont (SFL Community League)

Pontville Oval (home of Brighton Robins)
(SFL Community League)

Anzac Park, Lindisfarne Two Blues
(SFL Community League)

Geilston Bay Oval, OHA Football Club

(Old Scholars Football Association)

Cadbury factory at Claremont

This film from 1966 was part of a series, on Australia's cities, designed to entice mostly Brits and other northern Europeans to come and raise a family in sunny Australia.

There is a section about the Cadbury factory, which shows the workforce arriving on a red suburban train. I was dimly aware that there was a train line out to the factory but seeing the train go right past the entrance is quite arresting (at 6 mins 17sec).

I did some research to work out where the line was; as it's not the there now. The arrow points to the white building the train is passing in the film. This is late 1940s.

And this is what's there now. The train line and the smaller buildings on that side are gone. The next scene in the film shows staff walking towards the building; that seems like they are coming from the train on the south side of the factory. But they are actually approaching the north side of the factory. This facade is all built in now but I think you can see it in the satellite image.

 

Here's some beautiful images I found in Tas Archives from 100 years ago. The story of the chocolate factory is pretty interesting but although I like chocolate I haven't paid much attention to it ever.