Special thanks to all those bots out there!

And now a very special thanks to all those people and bots who send me junkmail! I've noticed that the latest trend is to send messages from jibberish email addresses like uioasdbhfyu@gimp.com . This wonderful new trend has made it so much easier for me to find messages from my friends that somehow manage to end up in junk mail . So to all those bots; thanks very much. All one needs now is a filter to send anything with SEXUALLY EXPLICIT, Viagra or University to their junk mail and spam is almost a thing of the past...


well at least sifting through it with ease anyway...

Jury duty hopefully is soon coming to an end for me in time for Adelaide and the Garden of Unearthly Delights!

Hunter Gathering...

The hunter gatherer traditions are alive and well in Darwin. Andy, Gehan and myself went on a mission last Friday afternoon to collect coconuts from the Nightcliff foreshore. This was done both as a community service and for the healthy implications of drinking coconut juice...

I am actually not sure if this is illegal. I daresay it wouldn't be as nowadays the legal implications of GP being struck on the head and killed by coconuts is seeing a stupendous culling of their palms throughout Australia. I am not sure why Darwin seems to have missed this trend. Maybe it's to maintain that :survival of the fittest mentality here...

It all began really, because Gehan brought home a hole cutter for coconuts from Brazil and as a result wanted to test it out. This was our first attempt so we began in earnest undersupplied in basic tools. All we had was a very long handled cutter. This was fine for reaching coconuts up to 18 feet off the ground; however a drop from this height was not always taken well by coconuts especially in bunches. Attrition was high and Gehan and I bathed in coconut juice trying to drink it from heavily split coconuts.

We ended up heading home with around 18 coconuts deciding that attrition was too high and that we should try again later with jugs and bottle to immediately bottle these damaged vessels.

It was fun watching people watching us collect the coconuts; we even left one for a couple who asked us to. Hope they got it...

Jury duty starts to hurt...

Jury duty is an integral part of the Australian Criminal Justice system...


unfortunately it needs to change to change to suit 2007's marketplace...

When i sit in the Jury Panel room i see a wonderful representation of the Darwin general populace. There are men and women rom cultural backgrounds as diverse as Darwin and varying in teh full spectrum of ages. As a true representation of the Darwin and indeed greater Australian workplace there are among these; Freelancers, Sole traders, small business people and casual workers. I would estimate that at least 10 % of this sample of maybe 60 people fit into these categories...

The Jury Act prevents an employer from making the attendance of Jury service difficult for an employee, indeed there are fines for doing so. Too, juries are paid an honorarium of $60/day when selected. What is not covered however, is people like me who work for various organisations on a short term basis; being booked from week to week as early as a month in advance. Jury service for me equals no earnings for six weeks...

Interesting quandary. I am tryign to find day/day jobs in town schools; but having not been in that pool for over three years; it's difficult to get a guernsey. Anyway I am enjoying seeing the process of the Criminal Justice System up close. And hopefully i will be able to be excused in the final week so i can earn some dosh...

Beware the llama spits....

...and he was.


It's true! I am actually in Darwin! In truth it has ended up that I am indeed compelled to remain in this town by the Law! I have been called for Jury duty and after deferring it last year because of work I have been called back and decided to forgo work to undertake it. Easy for full timers, but for freelancers like myself it's madness really.

But it's my civic duty and let's face it; if I don't do it now they will kep chasing me. Amazingly demanding stuff, but an important part of our judicial system. Kinda disturbing too though as you have 12 people from all different walks of life of varying education and background essentially "judging" a person or event.

To their credit; the 11 others on this particular case stayed very focussed and disciplined on the witnesses and gave the court their full attention. I took copious notes, but at the end of day came to realise that i wish i had taken more. Of course I cannot make any mention of the case or anything suffice to say that I found the process very stressful and hope dearly that me or anyone dear to me ever has to stand accused and face a "jury of my peers". Both for the jury and the accuseds' sakes.

I've been told that the beauty of Jurys is that they quite simply tend to get things right more often than not. It just disturbs me that it sometimes relies on 11 angry people and one who believes something and has to face their wrath. At least I am thankful I have not seen 12 Angry Men. Must see it after this is all over.