smokers-where do they go?

Today, May 31st, is World No Tobacco Day. Wonder how many participated? I sold just as many packets this morning as I always do....

May 31st also sees a new era beginning for smokers. From May 31st, smokers will no longer be allowed to smoke in the grounds of Public Hospitals and Health Clinics. Smokers must leave the grounds and go out to the footpaths. I don't know if any of you readers have seen, or been to, our Royal Adelaide Hospital, (RAH), but the main footpath there on North Terrace, is quite narrow in places due to large trees and numerous bus stops along its length. There are always people crowding or queueing to catch a bus, to have this area now be more crowded with visitors and patients alike, some in wheelchairs, would make this footpath impossible to walk along. What happens in the future when smokers are no longer allowed on the footpaths? Where do they go? What of those who are ill at home and have health workers come in daily or weekly to assist them? From May 31st, these people are no longer allowed to smoke in their own home or garden while the aide is there. What if the health worker is a smoker too? Do they both ignore the rules and enjoy a smoke together in the garden and hope no-one dobs?
Futuristically speaking, as more and more places ban smoking, will we at some point be such a divided society that whole towns become non-smoking areas? Leading to those who can't or won't quit packing up and moving to towns where smoking is allowed? What would happen to families where some members smoke (parents)and others don't (children)? Will they have to live in separate accomodation? Let's not forget that not all children will follow in their parents footsteps here. Both of my parents smoked from an early age. I have a sister and three brothers, none of us smoke. I married a smoker. Of my four children, bth boys smoke, the girls don't.
None of these isolating (discriminating) measures addressses the added problem of the stale smoke which clings to the clothes, skin and hair of heavy smokers. (Not to mention the foul breath). Sometimes, at the checkout, this is bad enough to make me stand as far back as possible from my customer, once the situation was so bad as to bring on a coughing fit so bad that I had to leave my position and get my inhaler from upstairs. In my experience it's this stale smoke that is so much worse than a little smoke drifting around. The old smoke tends to hang around in doorways and around seats, under trees where people from any particular workplace congregate to have their cigarettes. These places must be avoided by people such as me, with allergic reactions, when out walking. Easy enough for me, but if too many people complain to councils, the smokers will be made to move on. Where to? There are few enough places left. There surely must be a better (probably more expensive) solution. Perhaps buildings could have dedicated smokers rooms, with superman strength extraction fans to remove the smoke and smell from their clothing before they come back to work?
It's a very touchy situation for sure and there will be no easy solution.

photography.....

....is not something I'm good at. My hands aren't steady, so people tend to have their heads chopped off, or things are blurred. But now and again, I surprise myself. This is a single flower from a native frangipani tree. The leaves were deeply shadowed and this one blossom was highlighted by the sun.

borrowing the borrowed meme

I took this from kelly at www.kelly.pegasuscreations.co/nz
Since she borrowed it herself, I knew she wouldn't mind.

1. What's your middle name?
Emma Maria; (one for each grandma)

2. How old are you?
Ageless-as a river should be

3. Where are you from? Are you living there right now?
Originally from Germany, have been Australian since I got here.
I've lived in several states, but home is Adelaide and yes, I'm living here right now.

4. Is it cold where you are?
Define cold. If you mean snow and ice, then no, it isn't cold here. But it is very late in our
autumn (fall) and most people are now wearing jackets, gloves etc, so yes it's cold(ish) by
Australian standards.

5. What's the time?
Hot chocolate time. Oh, you mean look at the clock? 5.20pm

6. What are you wearing?
An old worn out tracksuit that now doubles as pj's and a sleeveless polar fleece vest.

7. What was the last thing you listened to?
Trisha Yearwood on my i-pod.

8. What was the last thing you ate?
A tiny lemon tart from the local gourmet deli. It was a bit stale, so not worth the $2.20 I paid
for it.

9. What was the last thing you watched on TV?
CSI amd CSI Miami last night. Everything since then has been dvd's

10. What's your favourite TV show? Why?
The Big Bang Theory. Because it makes me laugh. I do love to laugh.

11. Quick. Find a book, or something with text on it. Flip to a random page and post the second
paragraph's first sentence.
"Mann could see by Riley's face that guilt was eating him up."

12. What was the last movie you saw? How was it?
Avatar. It's the same old "you've got something we want so we'll just take it" story, but it's
so very pretty to watch.

13. Do you think you have an accent? Where do people in your country speak with strong
accents?
No, I don't have an accent. But lots of people here do, from whatever country they've come
from.

Feel free to borrow this, or not, your choice.

fun with food

Broccoli trees
grow mainly on Mashed Potato Island
often found surrounded by Carrot Sharks
which only swim in the Beef Casserole Ocean.

ouch!

This bursitis I've got is a right royal pain in the....well, in the shoulder actually. After waiting 3 months for what I thought was a strained muscle to settle down and stop hurting, I finally was persuaded by my supervisor to see a doctor. Her exact words were "Go! Today!" So I have bursitis, an inflammation of the lining between the shoulder joints. A cortisone injection in the back of the shoulder, (ouch), followed by another in the front of the shoulder, (oh my god he's killing me!). Doc then told me to take things easy, don't do too much, this sometimes can take up to a year to fix itself. Ha Ha. Think about this for just a moment. How many times do you move your shoulders every single day? Showering, dressing, general housework, (oh wait, there's one I can stop doing). Plus my job requires a lot of arm/hand actions. So for a while there, I was eating panadols like they were smarties. But I did wise up and start taking things easier and working slower. I still have limited shoulder movement (no underarm shaving is possible), and if I forget and move the arm suddenly or in the wrong direction there is pain that makes me swear, but it is beginning to settle down. The most annoying thing of all though, is having to shampoo my hair with only one hand. Thank goodness I had it cut short.
Is there a point to this story? No. None. Just putting it out there.

cafe society

My suburb, Norwood, is a cafe society. Stand in the middle of The Parade (the main street), and you're practically surrounded by cafes. Gloria Jeans. Uncle Alberts. Cafe Bravo. Cafe Primo. Cibo's. And more. All with seating. Indoor seating. Outdoor seating. Plenty of places to park your bum and enjoy the hot beverage of your choice. With or without a snack or meal. So there really is no reason, none at all, to bring your takeaway cup of coffee into the supermarket, wedge it into your trolley, then wander around shopping, not noticing that you've knocked the cup over and are now leaving a trail of coffee around several aisles.

homemade burgers.....

...are so much tastier than fast food ones, in my opinion.

seniors exercising

In our Saturday Advertiser I read a small piece on a "seniors playground".

Here's a quote: "London: A "seniors' playground has opened in Hyde Park- and it has the over-60s lining up to have a turn. The playground - with six low-impact fitness machines, including a stationary bicycle and a sit-up bench - was installed after residents campaigned for more facilities to help older people get fit. Organisers said older people were lining up from early in the mornings to try out the newly installed exercise machines."

I think this is a fantastic idea which should be adopted world-wide.
Now, who do I speak to about such a thing being installed in various parts of Australia.........

The Blue Bowl

Pretty yes?

In a bowl

Anyone who watches The Big Bang Theory knows that Leonard and Sheldon keep their keys in a bowl by the door.
I've done this myself for as long as I can remember. Except my "bowl" has been and old chinese takeaway container.
While browsing a homewares shop earlier today, I spotted a small square bowl in a lovely shade of blue. Almost a denim blue. Well, more accurately, the bowl spotted me! It practically jumped off the shelf into my hands and insisted I bring it home. So I did. Who am I to argue with a bowl?
Now my keys reside in a sweet little Portugese stoneware bowl from the French Country Collection.

Guilty

I know I live in the driest state in the driest continent. I know we're all supposed to be saving water. Short showers, redirect the washing machine rinse water on to the garden etc.
But sometimes....now and again....once in a blue moon....I step into that shower and run the water fast and hot. And I stay under there! For at least 5 minutes, sometimes 10.
I don't do it often and I tell myself it's okay because I only wash one or two loads a week, dishes are only washed up once a day, the garden is watered according to regulations imposed by our government. Plus I don't grow plants that need lots of water.
I figure the guilt is worth it when my achy old bones and muscles relax under the hot spray and when I get out of the shower I feel renewed.

"Ranch" nights

When I was a small girl, (not that I'm much taller now), I lived alone with my Dad. Thursdays were paydays and coincidentally Thursdays were also "Ranch" nights at the local B grade cinema. This meant a double feature of two cowboy movies. Plus of course a newsreel and cartoons. Dad loved westerns, especially if Audie Murphy or John Wayne was in them. So every Thursday night at 5pm, we'd set off walking into town for our weekly outing. First stop was the fish'n'chip shop where we'd sit in the cafe section and have dinner. Dad would always get a "mixed grill" plate, which had steak, sausages, chips, grilled tomato and a fried egg. I'd get the fish'n'chips, junior sized meal. Then we'd walk around town a bit, window shopping, choosing what we'd buy if we could have anything we wanted, until it was almost 7.30. Time to head for the cinema. Dad would buy Maltesers for me and Fruchocs for himself, then we'd choose our seats. Not so close to the front that I couldn't see the screen without cricking my neck, not so far into the back rows where the couples would be cuddling. We always chose aisle seats. The excitement when the lights went off and the cartoons began stayed with me for all the years that we kept this routine. I enjoyed the westerns as much as dad, but the newsreels I found boring. When the cinema closed down we discovered that westerns would only be shown occasionally on the Saturday afternoon matinee program at the big Hoyts cinema in the middle of town. This meant I was able to go by myself or with friends, (friends? Hah! I was a shy loner), while dad went to the soccer instead. Life was never quite the same once the old Austral theatre closed forever.

floating on a tide of ignorance

Hmmm, not sure how long this blog will last.
Rivers sometimes dry up you know.
Take a look at our famous Murray River.
Well, "our" end of it anyway.


I've been reading others blogs for quite some time now, and several people have mentioned that I should have my own blog. Being a lazy person, I kept saying no. Blogs involve thinking. And typing. Neither of which I'm very good at.
So this is it. River's blog. Post number one.