Hello .. anyone remaining alive out there?

Am guessing, as the days, months, years pass by; there comes the slow realization that we are (i am) no longer young. While the mind remembers the days when our close friends never died, and therefore neither would we - these days, every time i turn on the radio or TV - someone, or a name, that i knew, from my youth ... 'passed away', departed this earthly life ... or simply; died.
(vale; Terry Pratchett. If genius means an early passing; then am guessing that i have many more boring years).

However, i have to inform the one or two readers of this blog that this 'writer' and 'originator' of the drivel depicted here is, actually, alive; well, and if not exactly fit enough to run the New York Marathon, apparently remains breathing.

For those who remember back that far - I did visit a rather beautiful "lost valley" near this location, some time ago, and sort of promised more images of it.

The 'lost valley' is actually a misnomer. While access by 4WD is extremely difficult and rare - access by "trail bike" is easier - but; do not own a trail bike. However, last Monday, 9th March 2015, arranged with a friend to deliver me and some camping gear halfway to the location. Would walk the rest of the way; camp for a few days; and be picked up on Wednesday 11th March.

That happened.

There is, of course, a detailed account - much more to explore, many photographs to process - as well as video from the three cameras that i 'hiked in'; so, be patient.

[orange - 4WD access. yellow - hiking track. blue - campsite and exploration area.]

How perfect can simplicity be?

what is this?

Have no reason to believe that i will Kark it, anytime soon.

annoyances

OK, will post this link
http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/images/stories/manning/manning-berkres.pdf

Now hey, am oldish. Retired. Not really something that I want to get overly het heated up about.

Let's go back a bit.

Once upon a long time ago, was one year too old for the Australian "Vietnam War" lottery callup. Should i 'volunteer" . Had access to University libraries at the time; looked up the history. NO way.  It began as a local difficulty between north and south - the French were  already in difficulty as "colonisers".

Somewhere in there the "Americans" became terrified of "communists".

It wasn't necessarily so.  And yes, there will be some who argue against me. 'Oh, retrospect'; perhaps, but can give a very long list of "erronious" (and failed) American troop deployments.

Ah, where was i .. oh, Bradley Manning.

Hang about .. am collecting a long list of "witches burnt at the stake".

suffer the children ...

mm, has been a long (but mostly quiet) whinge of mine .. the challenge of trying to explain the difference between the teachings of Yeshua ben Yoseph - one of the original "philosopher activists" against oppression and suppression  in so called 'christian' teachings - and the 'winner take all' attitudes of the Imperial Roman church.

So, am doing another  (probably irrelevant)  'cut 'n' paste .. in case nobody noticed.

Dear David, 
We saw last week how to get children out of detention. Seena, a nine year old boy who lost both his parents in the Christmas Island boat tragedy, was going to be sent back into detention directly after his parents' funeral. Less than 48 hours after an outraged Australian community spoke out, the Government agreed to release Seena to the care of family members in Australia.¹ 
But Seena is literally one child in a thousand -- that's how many refugee children are still languishing in detention. 
Not every child has a camera to capture their tragedy. We don't witness the anguish on the face of every forsaken boy and girl. Yet they are no less deserving of the Government's compassion. 
Next week, as the cameras move on, we must be the movement that continues to hold the Government to account, not just for Seena, but for each and every child still in detention. Click below to tell the Government that it's time to deliver on the promise to truly release refugee children from detention. 
https://www.getup.org.au/campaign/NoChildrenInDetention 
At the moral low point of the Howard Government, over 800 refugee children were in detention. Today that number has swelled to a shameful 1027 children.²Moreover, when the Howard Government began releasing children, they worked to place them within communities --whereas the Labor Government have coined the phrase 'alternative temporary detention'. 
Under alternative detention, the vast majority of refugee children are still behind fences, under 24 hour guard. There is little to no freedom of movement or access to play areas. It's gotten so bad that last September a refugee advocate sounded the alarm about 150 Afghan boys held in the Darwin Lodge that hadn't left the complex since their arrival in April and 'pace the walkways like caged animals'³. The head psychologist advising the government argues that some of the much-touted 'community detention' facilities are so dilapidated that they may actually be worse for children's mental health than mainstream detention centres. ⁴ 
Let's end this tragedy. Join our campaign (in partnership with the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre) and call for an end to this inhumane policy: 
https://www.getup.org.au/campaign/NoChildrenInDetention 
Late last year Immigration Minister Chris Bowen committed to getting the majority of children out of detention altogether by June, but since then numbers have only gone up -- and without public outcry, this promise will most likely be broken. Add your name now. 
Australia is better than this. Our compassion extends beyond the tragedy of one orphan. It's time to get children out of detention once and for all. 
Thanks for seeing this through,The GetUp Team
PS -- Right now, in partnership with the efforts of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, we are organising a delegation of young adult refugees, along with their guardians, to meet with the Immigration Minister and senior politicians in Canberra. Each one was once a child in detention -- and no political leader with a conscience will be able to ignore their stories or their pleas for compassion. Sign the petition and then donate to help fund the delegation. 
¹ http://www.smh.com.au/national/survivors-to-visit-boat-tragedy-site-20110218-1azm6.html ² http://www.immi.gov.au/managing-australias-borders/detention/_pdf/immigration-detention-statistics-20110204.pdf³ http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2010/s3015469.htm ⁴ http://www.crikey.com.au/2010/09/13/next-stop-the-darwin-airport-motel-home-to-150-asylum-seeker-teens/ 

---

GetUp is an independent, not-for-profit community campaigning group. We use new technology to empower Australians to have their say on important national issues. We receive no political party or government funding, and every campaign we run is entirely supported by voluntary donations. If you'd like to contribute to help fund GetUp's work, please donate now! If you have trouble with any links in this email, please go directly to www.getup.org.au. To unsubscribe from GetUp, please click here.Authorised by Simon Sheikh, Level 5, 116 Kippax St, Surry Hills NSW 2010

..and yep, seems that it has yet to filter through to the "powers that be" 
.. but  could make the wry point that every such child held "in detention" could well develop hatred. 
This policy could - 'in absentia' - create a 'breeding ground' for the next round of local 'terrorists'.


Yer, i know, didn't argue that point all that well. 

A poem

Was actually going to write a much longer post about ANZAC day and what it means - to me, anyway - but it's been wet and overcast for the past few days, and the little generator is having canniptions - so battery power is quite low.

.. and yes, I did make it to the local dawn service at 6am last Sunday .. a very small gathering, the rain actually briefly ceased for it as well .. will try to write more about it later. My father never came back to give me much instruction as to how I should behave in these situations.

In the meantime, will publish this poem- author unknown .. but was sent to me by Vest, at Daily gaggle

There is always a longish discussion about "wars" and "armies", and "what ANZAC day means".

Won't go into detail .. but from my point of view .. the disaster at Gallipoli was when Australian and NZ militaries which, until then, were happy to let incompetent "BRITISH" commanders run the show .. began to argue for, and won the right to command their own armies.

Says much

He was getting old and paunchy
And his hair was falling fast,
And he sat around the RSL,
Telling stories of the past.

Of a war that he once fought in
And the deeds that he had done,
In his exploits with his buddies;
They were heroes, every one.

And 'tho sometimes to his neighbors
His tales became a joke,
All his buddies listened quietly
For they knew where of he spoke.

But we'll hear his tales no longer,
For ol' Bob has passed away,
And the world's a little poorer
For a Soldier died today.

He won't be mourned by many,
Just his children and his wife..
For he lived an ordinary,
Very quiet sort of life.

He held a job and raised a family,
Going quietly on his way;
And the world won't note his passing,
'Tho a Soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth,
Their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing,
And proclaim that they were great.

Papers tell of their life stories
From the time that they were young
But the passing of a Soldier
Goes unnoticed, and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution
To the welfare of our land,
Some jerk who breaks his promise
And cons his fellow man?

Or the ordinary fellow
Who in times of war and strife,
Goes off to serve his country
And offers up his life?

The politician's stipend
And the style in which he lives,
Are often disproportionate,
To the service that he gives.

While the ordinary Soldier,
Who offered up his all,
Is paid off with a medal
And perhaps a pension, small.

It's so easy to forget them,
For it is so many times
That our Bobs and Jims and Johnnys,
Went to battle, but we know,

It is not the politicians
With their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom
That our country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger,
With your enemies at hand,
Would you really want some cop-out,
With his ever waffling stand?

Or would you want a Soldier--
His home, his country, his kin,
Just a common Soldier,
Who would fight until the end.

He was just a common Soldier,
And his ranks are growing thin,
But his presence should remind us
We may need his like again.

For when countries are in conflict,
We find the Soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles
That the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor
While he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage
At the ending of his days..

Perhaps just a simple headline
In the paper that might say:
"OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING,
A SOLDIER or a SAILOR DIED TODAY."

(author unknown)

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to 'Australia', 'New Zealand', 'Canada', 'The United States' or any other country for an amount "up to and including my life".

That is Honour, and there are way too many people in this WORLD who no longer understand it.

(edited by an Australian)

Postscript 30 april 2010 - was having a chat with a Vet from the Vietnam conflict about all this .. he tells me that we haven't learnt much, yet. Just transferred 'allegiances' to incompetent AMERICAN commanders .. heh.

Long walks are cheap.

Not a lot of anything major has been happening. Poverty is beginning to become a way of life. Long walks are cheap.

Go away, am sleeping.
Oh, we ain't got a barrel o' moneeee ..

but we travel along, singin' a song ..

side by siiiide ... heh.

Crinkle cut ...
Damn, that'll teach me to trust air traffic control.
Well, we tried to make a go of it ..
.. but there's always the next bit of road less travelled ..

we all gotta go

one day this year, next year, sometime ..
I did not live a life as rich as this one --

Old Hoss‏ RIP

From:	Caroline)
Sent:	Monday, 23 March 2009 6:01:01 PM
To:	David H. (jaxpax99@hotmail.com)

Lowell Gene Maudlin

Born Oct. 1 and 2, 1930

Died March 7, 2009

Gene died today utilizing Oregon’s Death with Dignity plan. He was tuckered out from trying to breathe. His Scamp was with him at Hospice Hopewell House.

Lowell Gene Maudlin died too soon for me but I’m glad he’s resting and breathing easy with his Big Ernie. I met Gene the summer after we each began blo**ing in Spring of 2005. He was still in the home for Old Folks then, with his wife, Betty. Betty subsequently died of Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, choosing to use Oregon’s Death with Dignity program. Sad but not beat, Gene, always resourceful, reconnected via his blog, with his Scamp (Sylvia)- previous wife and mother of his children. She was the angel of Gene’s final 3 years, letting bygones be bygones and falling in love anew with an amazingly smart, funny, and loving rapscallion of a man.

Found here.

He made me laugh. He did.

And yes .. he also made me laugh .. when i had time and resource to listen.
--