Five things Friday

How is everyone on this Friday afternoon, ok it may not be Friday afternoon were you are but it is here, well since it is Friday it is five things Friday.

Too tired to move but have to do so anyway (boys to get from school)

Owls (on fingers, in ears, on wrist and around the neck) jewellery

Wearing slippers to go get the boys from school (would never have dreamt it when I was 20)

Clothes driers (need them in this weather)

Aching neck and shoulders (would love a massage )

Motivation Thursday

I would like to say I have never died on the inside, but that would be a lie as I have as have pretty much any human, am I stronger and wiser, I hope I am but at times I wonder. 

History Tuesday................Len Waters

Have you heard of Len Waters?

I bet you haven't a clue who he was, I know until I watched an episode of

http://h100.tv/Tony-Robinsons-Tour-of-Duty

So I decided to write a post and tell others about him he was born Leonard Victor Waters on the 20^th June 1924 at the Euraba Mission in northern New South Wales.

He was the first Australian Aboriginal military aviator, and the only one to serve as a fighter pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II. Aborigines at the time suffered significant discrimination and disadvantages in Australian society, such as restrictions on movement, residence, employment, and access to services and citizenship. Waters was working as a shearer when he joined the RAAF in 1942.

Training initially as a mechanic, he volunteered for flying duties and graduated as a sergeant pilot in 1944. He flew P-40 Kittyhawks in the South West Pacific, where he completed 95 missions. By the end of the war he had risen to the rank of warrant officer.

Although the military had officially barred or restricted the recruitment of Aborigines in earlier periods, these impediments were significantly relaxed after Japan entered the war and Australia came under direct attack. He volunteered for service in the RAAF on 24 August 1942 and was accepted. He began training as an aircraft mechanic, but later volunteered for flying service, and commenced initial training in Victoria, in December 1943.

The interviewer thought he looked "a bit rough" but "should make a fighter", he believed his lack of education would be a disadvantage, and studied nights to make up for it. Keen to be a pilot, he was concerned that he would be allocated to duty as a wireless operator because he showed an aptitude for Morse code early on.

The first aircraft to which he was assigned had already been named Black Magic even before he took over its controls.

He grew up at Nindigully, near St George in Queensland, and was educated to the seventh grade at Nindigilly State School. Hearing tales of pioneering aviators Charles Kingsford Smith, Amy Johnson and Charles Lindbergh, and reading stories of Biggles, Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers, he had, as he put it, his "head in the clouds" from an early age.

After leaving school when he was 14 to support his family, working alongside his father as a ring barker and being pain 10 shillings a week for seven days work, this was about 1/6^th of the average way at the time. He later worked as a shearer.

Following his discharge from the RAAF in 1946, he attempted to start a regional airline but was unable to secure financial backing and government approval, he went back to shearing and died in 1993 at the age of 69.

In 1995–96, Waters was commemorated in several ways: Australia Post depicted his portrait on a stamp and that of his P-40 Kittyhawk fighter "Black Magic" on an aérogramme, Black Magic Port was named after his personal Kittyhawk; Len Waters Place, a park in Inala, was opened; Moree Plans Shire Council dedicated Leonard Waters Park in Boggabilla, New South Wales; and Len Waters Street in Ngunnawal, Australian Capital Territory, was named after him.

Not much on this Monday, I am too sick to bother much

Just a quick post today to let everyone know that I feel like shit today, ok during the day I felt ok but as it has gotten darker and colder I am feeling more like shit.

Yesterday Tim, Jessica, Leo, Blain and I went to Australia Reptile Park and it was a great day out we stopped at Macca's for lunch and took drinks for while we where at the park because we all know that food in these places cost a bloody lot.

I have Leo here tonight, I have started having him on Monday nights when I don't have Blain as Leo likes to be here without Blain just as Blain likes being here without Leo.

You know I didn't check my emails on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and this morning I had a total of $442 emails to got through, well I read today's emails and picked some out of the other days but most I just deleted as it would have taken me most of the day to go through them all and most were blog posts, so this morning I only read 26 blog posts and moved onto answering some mail. 

Five things Friday............it's bloody cold and wet and windy

Here are at Friday again and what a cold and wet Friday it has been, and yes I was out and about it's Friday and that is shopping day, anyway here are this weeks five things.

Long sleeve singlets

A little boy in tears (missing his mum)

Riding a motorbike in wet and windy weather (not me)

Another little boy wanting to stay with nan not mum and nan saying no, yes I do say no at times.

Leo here so Blain now laughing ( no Leo is not staying, just here while his mum does something)

Motivational Thursday.........Life's too short

I have said for a long time “life's too short to be miserable” and I stand by that, yes sometimes we can't help but be sad and depressed things happen in life to make one both of those but over all we have to chose to try and be happy, to enjoy life.

There are many things in life that cause us upset but dwelling on them achieves nothing but sorrow and/or a headache so why bother and yes I know it is easy to say chose to be happy but often choosing to be happy is the first step to a happy life, maybe not always but isn't it worth a shot, why do you have to lose. 

Wordless Wednesday

History Tuesday............Letter from Schindler's Jews

"Brothers!

We, the undersigned Jews from Krakow, inmates of Plaszow concentration camp, have, since 1942,worked in Director Schindler’s business. Since Schindler took over management of the business,it was his exclusive goal to protect us from resettlement, which would have meant our ultimate liquidation. During the entire period in which we worked for Director Schindlerhe did everything possible to save the lives of the greatest possible number of Jews, in spite of the tremendous difficulties; especially during a time when receiving Jewish workers caused great difficulties with the authorities. Director Schindler took care of our sustenance, and as a result, during the whole period of our employment by him there was not a single case of unnatural death. All in all he employed more than 1,000 Jews in Krakow. As the Russian frontline approached and it became necessary to transfer us to a different concentration camp, Director Schindler relocated his business to Bruennlitz near Zwittau.

There were huge difficulties connected with the implementation of Director Schindler’s business, and he took great pains to introduce this plan. The fact that he attained permission to create a camp, in which not only women and men, but also families could stay together, is unique within the territory of the Reich. Special mention must be given to the fact that our resettlement to Bruennlitz was carried out by way of a list of names, put together in Krakow and approved by the Central Administration of all concentration camps in Oranienburg (a unique case). After the men had been interned in Gross-Rosen concentration camp for no more than a couple of days and the women for 3 weeks in Auschwitz concentration camp, we may claim with assertiveness that with our arrival in Bruennlitz we owe our lives solely to the efforts of Director Schindler and his humane treatment of his workers. Director Schindler took care of the improvement of our living standards by providing us with extra food and clothing. No money was spared and his one and only goal was the humanistic ideal of saving our lives from inevitable death.

It is only thanks to the ceaseless efforts and interventions of Director Schindler with the authorities in question, that we stayed in Bruennlitz, in spite of the existing danger, as, with the approaching frontline we would all have been moved away by the leaders of the camp, which would have meant our ultimate end. This we declare today, on this day of the declaration of the end of the war, as we await our official liberation and the opportunity to return to our destroyed families and homes. Here we are, a gathering of 1100 people, 800 men and 300 women.

All Jewish workers, that were inmates in the Gross-Rosen and Auschwitz concentration camps respectively declare wholeheartedly their gratitude towards Director Schindler, and we herewith state that it is exclusively due to his efforts, that we were permitted to witness this moment, the end of the war.

Concerning Director Schindler's treatment of the Jews,one event that took place during our internment in Bruennlitz in January of this year which deserves special mention was coincidentally a transport of Jewish inmates, that had been evacuated from the Auschwitz concentration camp, Goleschow outpost, and ended up near us. This transport consisted exclusively of more than 100 sick people from a hospital which had been cleared during the liquidation of the camp. These people reached us frozen and almost unable to carry on living after having wandered for weeks. No other camp was willing to accept this transport and it was Director Schindler alone who personally took care of these people, while giving them shelter on his factory premises; even though there was not the slightest chance of them ever being employed. He gave considerable sums out of his own private funds, to enable their recovery as quick as possible. He organised medical aid and established a special hospital room for those people who were bedridden. It was only because of his personal care that it was possible to save 80 of these people from their inevitable death and to restore them to life.

We sincerely plead with you to help Director Schindler in any way possible, and especially to enable him to establish a new life, because of all he did for us both in Krakow and in Bruennlitz he sacrificed his entire fortune.

Bruennlitz, May 8, 1945."

Translated from the original document in German

Hello Monday

Hello Monday, and what a lovely Monday you are too, ok that's a lie it is cold and wet and all round not a lovely day at all, just saying.

Ok everyone wonder how my weekend was, well it was pretty good, wet but good, I went out on Saturday morning to buy a new vacuum cleaner Kmart had them for only $49, it's bagless and does the job. I also managed to get myself two lots of socks each lot having 7 socks in them for only $1 each so that is 14 pairs of socks for only $2 and I bought both Jessica and Kathy-Lee a new bra each for only $3 very good indeed.

I had breakfast here yesterday or brunch if you prefer, it was at 10.30am I did bacon, eggs, hash browns and croissants. I decided to have breakfast because I had 22 eggs that were on their way out, I tested them all before using them and had to toss 2 of them as they had gone off, by the time breakfast was over I had none left, I scrambled 18 eggs and fried up two all the eggs got eaten and all but half a slice of bacon went and there was 1 hash brown left out of the 8 I cooked up. I asked the girls if I should do breakfast again instead of lunch and they all said yes, so I will be having breakfast here a couple of times a month. I will just have to make sure I have lots of eggs...........

Yesterday afternoon I felt like making some muffins and then remembered I had used all the eggs so no muffins. I also liked that by 12.30pm all the girls and grandchildren had gone home and I had a quiet house, Tim was at work.

I am starting a new thing for Monday nights since I don't have Blain on Monday's (he goes to his dad) I will be having Leo instead so that way I don't have to have both boys on the same night, although mostly they are ok when I have them both they can and do fight on and off during the night and Leo has said he wants nanna to himself and not have to share with Blain all the time, but that is ok Blain doesn't like sharing me with Leo either.

On Saturday night Jessica asked me if I would pick her up from the mechanic, she had to drop her car off again this morning and I said I would, so I go out there to get her at 9am ok I was a few minutes late, but when I get there she is no longer there, I ring her she said she wanted me to get her if her sister couldn't and that she said she would let me know, she didn't say that at all she said she thought if I did it she wouldn't have to worry about Natasha doing it. Anyway as it turned out Jono picked her up, I was a little annoyed that I went out there for nothing.

I am getting annoyed that I can't get my morning BGL down this morning it was 10.8 most morning is it between 9-11 and they have increased my insulin from 16 to 20 to 24 units although I often take 25 units instead of 24 I take it at night before going to bed prior to taking it my BGL is between 12-15 at night, this I would understand if I ate junk food at night or had sweet sugary things but I don't often it is between 2-3 hours after I have had tea that I go to bed, yes I go to bed early that is just the way it is nowadays. I am also fed up with testing my blood all the bloody time but I know it has to be done. I don't want my diabetes to get out of hand as I know that is dangerous.

Ok I am signing off for this post, I am looking forward to your comments because I am human and normal and like comments/feedback................just saying..............

Five things Friday

Welcome to this weeks Five Things Friday, yes I know I have been pretty slack the last few weeks could promise things will change but can't because who knows what each week will bring, so anyway here is this weeks five things.

Jeggings..................that don't fit

Searching for a receipt.............and failing to find it

A cold snap.............

Working daughters and crying grandsons

Feeling bubbly inside.................for no reason

Motivation Thursday

Wordless Wednesday

History Tuesday

Dhurrinaile Mansion 

Today let us talk about the camps in Victoria

There were at least eight camps in the state during World War II which held between 4000 to 8000 people. Most were located in the Goulburn Valley because food was plentiful and there was a good supply of water.

Four of the camps were for enemy servicemen who had been captured from around the world and then transported to Australia. These camps were at Dhurringile Mansion, Camp 13 near Murchison, Camp 6 near Graytown and Camp 5 near Myrtleford.

The other four camps built near Tatura were for civilians considered a security risk because of their nationality.

The 65-room Dhurringile mansion was used as a POW camp for German officers. One of the most successful escapes from the camp happened in 1945 when 17 officers and three batmen tunnelled 14 feet down from a large crockery room, and under a perimeter fence.

The mansion was later used by the Presbyterian Church as a training camp for orphans before the Victorian Government turned it into a minimum security prison.

View from a tower

The first purpose-built internment camp for World War II was located about 167 kilometres north of Melbourne at Tatura. It consisted of four camps, two at Tatura and two at Rushworth, a couple of kilometres away. The lands where the camps are situated has since been sold and is now in private hands, however, the German War Cemetery was built next to the Tatura cemetery a few years after the war ended. It was the first war cemetery to be established in Australia.

The camps at Tatura were opened in 1940 and held German and Italian internees. Conditions were tough, the mess halls were the only heated rooms in Camp 1 and only one section of Camp 2 had hot showers.

But internees were able to develop tennis courts, workshops, a newspaper, flower and vegetable gardens and start small businesses such as haircutting and tailoring.

A Kosher kitchen was established for Jewish internees and one hut was also converted to a Jewish synagogue.

Camp 3 at Rushworth was used exclusively for family groups and hot water was available in all the wash rooms. It also featured a camp school taught by German teachers.

However, internees at Camp 4 lived in corrugated iron huts, which were very hot in summer and freezing in winter as the windows had no glass. This camp was used initially for Europeans who had been living in Australia at the outbreak of the war. They included Germans Italians, Hungarians, Finns and Romanians. Once Japan entered the war, they had to make way for Japanese internees as well as some Chinese from Formosa, now known as Taiwan.

Escape tunnel dug by the Germans 

Monday's Ramblings

Good morning world, yes it has been ages since I have posted been bloody busy or to tired to bother, please forgive me. So now to update everyone on what has been happening in my life the last few days.............nothing much............lol

Ok yesterday was Mother's Day and Tim & I went over to my parents place for breakfast, my brother Dave cooked breakfast for us all. He did this because he cancelled on the Saturday night we were suppose to go out for dinner on the Saturday night but Dave cancelled, Sue cancelled and so there ended up only being mum & dad, Dawson and me. So Dave said he would do breakfast on Mother's Day to make it up to mum.

After breakfast Tim and I went shopping for a new laptop for him, then we went to Kathy's for lunch which consisted of roast pork and some roast spuds, with a cauliflower bake and beans. I don't as a rule eat pork, not a big fan of it and I don't eat cauliflower or beans, really does the girl no me at all. I did, however, appreciate the effort and the thought.

After lunch we went and looked some more for a laptop for Tim when he bought the last laptop he didn't take me with him and pretty much bought the first one he looked at, this time I made sure we shopped around and good thing we did the first place we went they stared at $750, by shopping around he managed to get one like mine for only $496 well that was the advertised price he talked them into adding the extended warranty for only $50 so he paid all up $546 for the laptop with 3yr warranty.

I am a shop around person, I prefer to check out the main retailers before buying something that costs a few hundred dollars or more. Tim does too most of the time but he has moments when he just goes to the first place and buys whatever and then regrets paying too much later.

Damn I am feeling like shit today been sneezing a lot and have a stinking headache and I am oh so tired, in short I think I am coming down with something, but since I have to take children to school and pick them up in the afternoon I don't have time to be sick.

Tim is off work today and tomorrow he has a couple of “rdos” (roster days off), so of course today he wanted to go to the shops at first we decided we would go to Lake Fair shopping centre but they didn't have what we wanted so he said how about we go to Charlestown Square, this was fine with me but I had to come home and change my pants. I know you are wondering why I had to come home to change well think of it like this the pants I had on are ok for Lake Fair but not nice enough for Charlestown Square, or if I was in America you could say they were ok for Walmart but not Target..................anyway we came home I changed and we went to Charlestown Square so he could get some track pants and a jacket and a new remote for the Foxtel which stopped working the other day and it wasn't till Tim had to try using it that he decided to go get another one, it would work if you pressed really hard and waved it around.

I just had a phone call from Tasha she wants me to get Blain this afternoon and bring him back here till his father arrives to pick him up, he will stay at Tasha's tonight with Blain, I wonder if he will drive Blain to school in the morning or if I will have to take him if I have to take him then he maybe a little late as I will take Leo first then Blain as Blain's school is only a couple of minutes from my place.

Oh yeah I also have to watch Summer tomorrow afternoon for a while not sure why but Kathy asked me too so I will of course.

Ok so I have rambled on enough for this post.  

Oh yeah I started writing this in the morning and now it is afternoon. 

Birthday Cards for Nanna

On the 31^st of May so this month, my grandmother will be turning 94 I would love for her to have a room full of cards and as such have asked on Facebook if the family members would send her a card, but thought I would also ask here on my blog if anyone would like to send her a car. If so the cards can be sent to

Flo James

Koombahla Nursing Home,

Room 119

138 Lake Road

Elermore Vale

NSW 2287

Australia

Wordless Wednesday

What do you think this looks like?

Here is a shot of it at night

Tuesdays thoughts

Good morning, it is going to be a lovely warm Tuesday here, but right now I don't see it but it is only early here in Newcastle and the temp will increase and the warm weather will happen around 10ish.

Have you ever wondered how much your poo weighs, this morning I stepped onto the scales to weigh myself but then thought I need to go to the toilet, so I do and after going to the toilet I go back and re-weigh myself and guess what I was a full kilo lighter.............what the hell my poo weighed a full kilo, who would have thought.

I am going out this morning to help mum with some clothes shopping, what I would love to help her with is to sort out her wardrobe, saying that I know how my daughters feel when they think they need to sort out my wardrobe. In fact on Sunday Natasha did indeed sort through my wardrobe and tossed out a number of pieces of clothes, I was ok with this more or less, although on Sunday night I couldn't find my purple singlet but thought she had tossed it in the wash so wasn't worried, however, yesterday when I emptied the box of rubbish she had created I found my singlet in with the rubbish, so yes I claimed it back and tossed it into the laundry basket. Yes she did want to throw out some of my clothes that I still wear around the house, I was ok with some of them being tossed but some of the them didn't need to be tossed they are still pretty good. I ended up with a small bag of things that are too small for me that I will give to my sister to go through as well.

Now that Jessica is home and back to work I am no longer having Leo during the week, but I still have Blain a few nights during the week, not Monday night as thankfully his dad didn't work Monday night so he had him and but I will have him tonight and tomorrow night and Friday night, at this stage Natasha is saying she things Jessica will have both boys on Thursday night.

I am picking the boys up from school, but Natasha is driving them to school in the mornings which is a big help for me, ok just got a text from Natasha and I have to pick the boys up and take them to school on Tuesday and Thursday.........what the hell..............

So I guess I had better go in and find some clothes to wear and test my blood so I can go and get the boys, I will drop Blain off first and then Leo and then go to Charlestown to meet mum and I wish I had some money to get a few things this morning but alas I don't. 

The POW camp in South Australia

Today I want to tell you about the POW camp in South Australia

South Australia consisted of one main internment camp at Loveday, near Barmera on the River Murray. Opened in 1941, it was supported by centres at Bordertown, Clare, Lameroo, Maitland, Mount Gambier, Mount Pleasant, Morgan, Murray Bridge, Naracoorte, Tumby Bay, Willunga and Woodside from 1943—45 and a transit camp at Sandy Creek near Adelaide from 1944—46.

The Loveday Internment Group accommodated German, Italian and Japanese internees from various states of Australia, and international internees and POWs from the Netherlands, East Indies, the Pacific Islands, New Zealand, Britain and the Middle East. It consisted of six compounds and accommodation for personnel of the 25/33 Garrison Battalion who kept guard.

During its peak, the camp held over 5000 internees who produced goods and cultivated crops for the Australian war effort.

Some Italians were deployed to work as farmhands, while other Italian and Japanese internees were separated and even paid to harvest wood at Katarapko, Woolenook and Moorook West. 300 Italian internees were employed as railway workers at Cook on the Trans — Australia line.

One POW and 134 internees died at Loveday, while another two POWs were killed during an escape attempt while en route to Loveday.

Cause of death varied from illness and fragility brought on by old age, suicide, and at least one homicide.

Loveday Internment Camp closed in December 1946.

Cowra POW Camp

How many people have heard of Cowra POW camp?

Cowra is in New South Wales, near Bathurst during the second world war it was the site of a prisoner of war camp. It housed mostly Japanese and Italian prisoners, with some Korean and Indonesian civilians detained at the request of the Dutch East Indies government. It began operating in June, 1941, specially built to house POWs brought to Australia from overseas.

It was divided into four areas, each surrounded by barbed wire fences, the prisoners first lived in huts, but eventually included its own store, kitchen, mess huts, showers and vegetable gardens.

There were other POW camps in Australia in fact most states had prisoner of war camps as well as interment camps.

On 5 August 1944, Japanese prisoners of war housed in the detention camp in Cowra, New South Wales staged a breakout. Armed with improvised weapons including baseball bats and sharpened mess knives, they stormed the perimeter fences and overcame the machine gun posts. Never likely to be successful, the breakout resulted in the death of 231 Japanese prisoners with a further 108 wounded. All survivors were recaptured in the surrounding countryside in the days that followed. It is widely believed the goal of the breakout was for the Australian's to kill the Japanese, as they felt it brought shame to themselves and their families to be POWs.

Four Australians were killed in the breakout – Privates Benjamin Gower Hardy, Ralph Jones and Charles Henry Shepherd. Lieutenant Harry Doncaster was killed when ambushed during the recapture of the prisoners. Hardy and Jones were posthumously awarded the George Cross.

A Military Court of Inquiry investigated the incident, and a summary of its findings was read to the House of Representatives by Prime Minister John Curtin on 8 September 1944.

The summary indicated the following:

• that conditions at the camp were fully in accordance with the International Convention;
• that no complaints regarding treatment had been made by or on behalf of the Japanese prior to the incident, which appeared to have been a premeditated and concerted plan of the prisoners;
• that the actions of the Australian garrison in resisting the attack averted greater loss of life, and that firing ceased as soon as control was assured; and
• that many of the dead had died by suicide or by the hand of other prisoners, and that many of the wounded had suffered self-inflicted wounds.

Five things Friday...............on Saturday and more

Didn't get around to doing a post yesterday was far too busy to do so, so here I am on a wet Saturday afternoon at last getting around to doing a post so what am I going to post about well I am going to give you my five things Friday.

Sad..............me................never

Recovering from surgery...............nicely

Two little boys here for the night (Friday night)

Watching YouTube clips, then throwing punches, then back to watching video clips again

Bloody cordless phone

Now let us move onto Saturday what a lovely wet cool Saturday it is, Tasha turned up early to pick up the boys while Tim and I went out to do some shopping, I had to find something for my mum for Mother's Day anyway when it was time to go to the checkout Tim says to me that he will go threw first and pay for his stuff, I tell him you will have to pay for everything as I have no money I could tell he was annoyed but what the hell I didn't have any money.

As said it has been a cool/cold wet day, about half an hour ago Tim left for work so I am home alone for the night which is nice. It isn't going to happen very often now as I will be having Blain most nights a week while his mum is at work.

Thankfully most mornings Natasha will be able to drive the boys to school and I will be the one picking them up in the afternoon. I have decided to have one of the boys stay at the office till I get there so I don't have to get one out early. I did this on Friday, I rang and asked for Blain to wait at the office for me, however, when I arrived he was standing out the front of the school waiting for me and two office staff came running out looking for him. They see him getting into my car and freak out, I had to wind the window down and yell out “I'm his grandmother, I'm the one who rang”.

So I had Natasha have a talk to both boys about waiting in the office when told to do so, I don't want them waiting on the side of the road for me as I feel it is not safe, thankfully both my girls and Tim all understand this and agree with me.

Ok that is all I have for today, I will be back with another post tomorrow.