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Cockies Attack !
Having lived here for 22 years, we have heard a
few stories of cockatoos tearing up patios, garden furniture, window sills and anything else they can get their
beaks into. We never had that problem - until now !!
And talk about sneaky. Cockies are usually rowdy
customers, but they have been ultra-quiet while destroying some of our own patio barrier top, and some old (fortunately) garden
furniture. They have never before been
so voracious in their appetite for personal property, nor as destructive as they are being now.
I personally attribute most unusual things these days to the weather,
and wonder if that is causing this carnage. Speaking of weather, it is the cockatoos and currawongs that always tell
us of impending rain. The cockies seem to have dropped that public service in favour of rebellion.
!!
The Shire has been helped by people from the Department
of Agriculture, ornothologists, and flora & fauna experts, and some measures are being taken, but exactly what I am not
sure at this time. Cockatoos are a protected species in this country, so we can't do anything that is unlawful
or horrid. We can go out and shoo them away if we catch them, but have to be careful doing that, as their
flock mood is not known at this time, and no one would want a bite from one - that's for sure.
It's one thing for them to strip bark from eucalypts looking for
spiders to eat. It's a different situation when they become so destructive that they can tear into cut, solid
painted timber and gouge great pieces out of them. The strength of those beaks is unbelievable. I
took a photo of the damage they have done to the patio railings which you can see here below. And now I hope
that's the end of that story !
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| Click on photo for a closer look at the damage. |
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A look at our Mahony Street being
clothed in Autumns colours.
A TRULY "FEEL GOOD" STORY
*****
Can't let the opportunity go by without telling you
of the remarkable race the Melbourne Cup turned out to be this year - on the first Tuesday in November (as always).
There was some doubt as to whether it would be run at all because of an outbreak of equine flu in this country, but very strict
measures were taken for Victoria, and we were fortunate to be able to go ahead with our Spring Racing Carnival.
The race was won in blistering speed and style (at the end of
2 miles), by a horse named Efficient. He motored home and in my many years of Cup viewing I have not seen a performance
quite like it. Brilliant. The Cup had prize money this year of AU $5.2 million. But in
some ways the great event was almost if not absolutely upstaged ...
On the last day of the Spring Carnival there is the running
of the Emirates Stakes worth a cool $1 million in prize money. It was won this year by a horse called "Tears I Cry"
... owned by a lady from the Western District in Victoria - a farmer. In her excited acceptance speech she related the story of how the name had been given to this horse.
She had helped him into the world at 3 o'clock on the morning of his birth, and the way she spoke the mare had some difficulties.
Because this lady was so relieved to help this little foal to be born safely, she cried many
tears ... and so he was named, Tears I Cry. It is a wonderful story of a woman who so loves these beautiful animals. She
also had enlisted the help of, and given the chance to, a very young trainer - 26 years of age who choked on his
own tears in front of the microphone. Their efforts took endless patience with the horse as apparently he was a
bit of a slow learner.
This lady farmer was not from the ranks of the rich
and famous. There wasn't a person in Australia who would have begrudged this lovely lady the
win, including all the other horses' connections I would think, and the punters who had lost money on the favourites.
This horse came in at long odds. Below is a photograph of Tears I Cry passing the post. The excitement and
amazement for the owner and trainer as her beloved horse passed the post first, was something to see.
There wasn't a face anywhere that didn't have the broadest of smiles and yes - a few tears on the cheeks.
Photograph "borrowed" from the
official Melbourne Cup Website
The great triple Melbourne Cup winning mare
Makybe Diva featured on a page here last year, has given birth to her first foal - a little colt. She is
a wonderful Mum and is so proud of her new baby. And of course, being a sticky beak into everything, the
'Diva' won't let her little one stray too far without checking why.
This is the first picture of the most valuable foal in the southern hemisphere.
Melbourne Cup champion Makybe Diva's first-born, a bay colt
with a white blaze, is estimated to be worth $3 million already.
If he happens to inherit some of his famous mother's racetrack ability, then his value will
increase 10-fold.
(thank you to the Makybe Diva website)
Click on the above snowflake to
refresh your memory about the "Diva"
One of my grand-daughter, Astrid's latest works of art.
Note the initials on it !
She's very much the budding artist.
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