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Eungella National Park

We ended up spending three nights in Eungella and not once did we utilise the QPWS campsites that we had booked before leaving. The reason you ask? We were prepped and ready to attack the Mackay Highlands Great Walk. We had been looking forward to it for months now. Mackay is in the tropics. That means they have a Wet Season and a Dry Season. It is meant to be the Dry Season at the moment. Well as a further example of the really weird weather we are having in Australia at the moment. It decided to pour for the first couple of days that we were up there. We are talking constant rain for days. Rain that made it impossible to complete the walk as planned. Instead we walked parts of it and the final two days will have to wait for another time.

I think I have mentioned before how much I love backlit foilage, so here is another healthy dose of it.
mmm backlit goodness Fern
Palm Green is Life

The stinging tree aka Gympie Gympie (Dendrocnide moroides) is one beastly plant. Yes in Australia, we don’t only have animals that attack, we have plants that attack. There are six Dendrocnides in Australia ranging from 40m trees to shrubs. Native animals are not harmed by the stinging tree but humans and introduced animals are. In having a closer look at the plant and picking a few of the berries so that Mum could have a closer look, I brushed my hand on the stem and by boy did my hand feel like fire when it got cold in the week following my attack. Touch wood that it doesn’t flare up again.
Looks are deceiving

These are just some general snaps from the walk.

Crossing a stream
Crossing Broken River
Broken River
Lunch on Broken River
The trio at the river crossing

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big weekend

This past weekend has been the Queen’s Birthday long weekend and what a weekend I have had. Saturday I worked as usual. Sunday, Mum and I did a 22km kayak round Coomera River and Sanctuary Cove with NPAQ. Sunday night, I went to the Wallflower Records launch at Bar Soma. Monday morning, I went to work as usual at 5am and then met up with the POTN Brisbane photographers in the City for a day of camera filled fun. When I went to bed on Monday night at about 8ish, I had had just 4 hours sleep in the previous 38hrs so I was buggered and I have about 350 photos to go through. That would be fine in terms of processing them all if I hadn’t spent the last 19 hours in bed, I have come down with some sort of bug which has really not been kind to me. I woke up in the middle of the night with a really sore stomach and a headache and I am very lucky that I decided to get out of bed and go to the toilet as I then proceeded to be quite sick. Luckily though I haven’t vomited since then and am slowly starting to feel a little bit better.

Lots of posts to come in the next couple of days hopefully.

Here is one photo from yesterday I processed last night before I went to bed, one of the guys lent me his Sigma 105mm macro for the day yesterday I had a ball with it 🙂 There was actually lots of lens swapping yesterday and on my part camera stealing where when a few people were not looking I would pick up their camera and take a few random photos for them :p.

A cimbing vine

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On the Street

On the Street

A determined boy on a scooter, a younger brother moving as fast as he can, a mother watching her two boys with pride and a wee bit of concern.

On Friday, Leanne and I made a trip to a scrapbooking shop that was having 30% off to celebrate their second birthday. I came home with a nice little stack of Bazzill and some lettering. After a play in the playground at Maccas, it was home time for little boys to nap and for Helen to go home and have her own nap before going to work that night. Just as we arrived back at the house, Ethan begged to show me his scooter skills and the speed at which he can ride his scooter. Luckily they live on a pretty quiet street which meant that Ethan was able to race up and down the street, whilst I rolled round on the bitumen having a ball taking photos. Joshua was more than happy to to race up and down the street following Ethan as fast as his hands and knees can take him. Leanne got to act as mother and shepard Joshua from not racing too far away 🙂

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Two precious little boys

My nieces and nephews are 15 900km away on the other side of the world or the better part of AU$3000 in travel costs. Which kind of makes it hard when you want to go over and have a play. One of my friends, Leanne has two little boys and they are not 15 900km away in fact they are only 10 mins or so away. Ethan and Joshua are always up for a play and it is always nice to spend some time with Leanne. Ethan is always ready to show me what he has been doing and to play trains or build blocks.

I popped over yesterday for a visit and Leanne grabbed my camera and took a few photos of the boys and I. Well mainly Ethan and I, Joshua is 14mths old and much prefers crawling round to sitting still for very long. Then before I knew it was time for me to go to work and for the boys to have a nap.

I grabbed this one of Joshua whilst he was strapped in the high chair and not going anywhere 🙂
Joshua

These ones Leanne took. Aren’t the boys cute?
Who's that on my back? giggle fest an attempt at all three of us in a photo

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Today is Tuesday.

We had a big lunch at work today to celebrate 1000 working days without a lost time injury. Not many stores reach 1000, some stores have trouble getting to 50 days. Not one to miss a free lunch and my boss not one either we re-arranged my shift for today so that it would mean that I would get the lunch 🙂 They put on a nice spread for us with a mini BBQ grill in the tearoom which made the storeroom smell like a BBQ mmm. It made it mighty hard to work though, I was writing up milk credits and this smell was wafting through and making my stomach grumble.

More importantly though today is Tuesday and in two sleeps I will be heading off into the big Blue yonder which is the East Coast Blues and Roots Festival which is held in Byron Bay over the Easter long weekend. I have wanted to go to the Blues Fest year for years now and I am finally making the trip. I am making the trip alone though. I am heading 2.5hrs south of Brisbane to a town which I barely know, to a festival where I know no one for the lesser part of six days.

There is one thing I know I am looking forward to and that is Byron Bay Organic Doughnuts. Sigh those were so good at Woodford. I am also looking forward to spending some time at the beach. I haven’t gone to the beach in so long.

Matthew doesn’t see why I am slightly daunted over the whole shebang. That was till Mum pointed out the fact that Matthew could find and make friends with a broomstick (ok so she didn’t use those words, but Matthew is way more extroverted than I am). We can be walking through the shopping centre or in the city and people will randomly come up and say “Hey Palsson” and start chatting to him.

I may be slightly daunted about the trip but I am also extremely excited. I can’t wait to discover new bands and see old faves for the first time live or for the x time. I mean seeing Bo Diddley will be so cool. We have a compilation CD called Rock Around the Clock that Pabbi picked up for $9.95 at Brashs back in the day (early 90’s) that has Hey Bo Diddley on it. Such a rockin’ song. Closer to home, I am really extremely looking forward to finally finally seeing The Waifs and Paul Kelly and the list goes on and on.

Tomorrow is Wednesday and Andrea turns 21.99726 on Wednesday so we are celebrating. She is taking the off work and we will have fun, till I have to go work in the arvo. Andrea turns 22 on Thursday but I won’t be there, hence the celebration of her turning 21.99726.