Dust storm in Australia - The Big Picture - Boston.com

A huge outback dust storm - 500 km (310 mi) wide by 1,000 km (620 mi) long - swept across eastern Australia and blanketed Sydney on Wednesday, September 23rd, disrupting flights and ground transportation and forcing people indoors for shelter from the hazardous air, gale-force winds, and in some places hailstorms. Those few who ventured outside, especially at dawn, were greeted by a Martian sky, familiar landmarks blotted out by the heavy red dust blowing by. Collected here are a few photos of the worst dust storm Sydney has seen in 70 years, three of which you can click to see a before/after fade effect.

Dust storm in Australia - The Big Picture - Boston.com

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Cricket or Yachting for Boxing Day?

One of the great Ocean Races, the annual Sydney to Hobart, which always starts on Boxing Day is under way in perfect conditions. The winner for the last two years, Wild Oats XI leads the field and is favourite to win again, but weather conditions are likely to preclude a new record. The race includes a wide variety of yachts from the Super Maxi's which complete the trip in less than two days to smaller yachts which can take a week or more depending on weather conditions.

There is an excellent web site where you can track the yachts, read updates and see some excellent photographs if you are nautically inclined. I know James is.

Here in Australia, the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race vies with the Boxing Day Cricket Test Match held annually in Melbourne as the major sporting events for this part of the year. For the record over 60,000 people and a huge television audience saw Matthew Hayden hit his 28th test century as India fought back to be marginally ahead after day one with Anil Kumble getting five wickets. Everywhere you go for the next few days, people will be watching and listening to the cricket. Even my mother in law set aside today to just watch the cricket and sew. Many are hopeful of a more competitive series than the Poms last year and it looks like they may get one.

As for me, I prefer the cricket.

Photos from the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Official Site and Cricinfo

Cross Posted at Nourishing Obscurity

Flying Castle Makes it to Sydney

After nearly bankrupting its manufacturer , with billions of dollars in overruns and after years of delay, the A380 finally made a commercial flight from Singapore to Sydney. People were paying up to $50,000 for a ticket. A regularly scheduled service starts this weekend. It reminded me that most of my flying days are over. Even the so called benefits don't outweigh cattle class, crap food and crying kids. And then there is jet lag.

Impressive engineering all the same to get that much weight into the air.

George travels light to Apec

Captain Greenhouse Gas and his band of merry men and all required equipment make the trek from Washington DC to Sydney to discuss carbon credits and the like at APEC. Unbelievable. Better go and buy some carbon credits.

Next week
1

man, US President, George W Bush will visit Sydney, Australia, for
5

days. He will travel in Air Force One which will be one of
3

747 Jumbo jets his entourage will fly in. A further
5

transport aircraft will accompany the Jumbos, carrying
2

helicopters (including Marine One, his official chopper), more than
20

motor vehicles including
1

ambulance
2

Presidential limousines, and
18

secret service and other vehicles, which will convey
50

White House staff and advisers. A
250

strong security detail is also on the way. All up there will be
525

people in the Presidential entourage, and it will cost over
$200,000,000

to bring them here. Despite the cost, planning, and hype, there is approximately
0

chance any of us will get to see him!

It's OK I'll live with it. I think they will need a bit more of this if they try this loony stunt. What is it with these guys. Not content with screwing up one country, they are planning to annihilate another. Nutballs, loony tunes, liminey snickets....And now on with the regularly scheduled broadcasting.

Fantastic insight from and humble thanks to Dissociated

International Fashion Terrorist Alert! State of Emergency Planned in Sydney

FASHION TERRORISM ALERT CONSIDERED EXTREME!






Sydney Under Seige

• Water Cannons
• No Bail
• 3 metre fences
• Detention Buses
• New Laws...

All to control people like these from scaring Georgie Porgie and his International Fashion Terrorist Buddies.


AUSTRALIANS UNITE TO SAY NO TO FASHION TERRORISM!

You can't buy happines. Can you?

From The Age

Sydney's culture of the relentless pursuit of property, perfect bodies and status has British psychologist and author Oliver James worried. As part of research for his recently released book, Affluenza, he travelled to seven countries to research the effect of consumerism on happiness.

He found the obsessive pursuit of money and possessions was not buying happiness. The affluenza virus was worst in Sydney, where he found interviewing locals a depressing experience. It was, he said, "the most vacuous of cities. The Dolly Parton of cities in Australia."

Adelaide and Melbourne had a "different vibe" and did not strike James as being as materialistic as Sydney. He had not been to Sydney before and expected a "philistine nation" of "jolly, uncomplicated fun-seekers". Instead, he found a city in thrall to American values and a puritan work ethic that robbed life of joy and meaning. Middle-class Sydney, he writes, is "packed with career-obsessed workaholics". When they are not working the longest hours in the developed world, they pursue perfect bodies through joyless fitness regimes, or obsess about property prices. Always, they are looking around anxiously, in the hope that others aren't doing better than them.