octave

A positive thing I did yesterday and most weeks is some flight sim. In about 2010 I took my brother-in-law flying. He loved it so much that he at my suggestion booked himself in for a flying lesson. Although he lives interstate, in the years after he became qualified he would visit us a couple of times a year and we would go on many cross-country adventures. We both drifted out of flying during the Covid years. Now about once a week we get together on the flight sim server and fly together. We have a project of flying around Australia in around one-hour hops. We started at his home airfield in Gawler SA and have covered the east coast including Tas and next week should get to Darwin. Then it is down through central Australia back to our starting point, and then we are thinking of flying to NZ. We usually use the live weather at the time and also different navigation methods. We do occasionally fail to find some of the smaller dirt strips. I enjoy the challenge of remembering how to navigate old school. Also because we have a voice channel we get to chat one-on-one for for an hour or so a week, sometimes about aviation but not necessarily.

I'll drink to that! 🍷

No tracking number just a link which is always suspicious.

I had a text message saying my parcel was unable to be delivered and to click on the link to provide my details. I get many of these and the clever thing is that I am waiting for a parcel. I think these days there is a high likelihood that any random person a text is being sent to actually is waiting for something. Even if they are not it is a little intriguing to think that something is about to be delivered. The thing is not to click on a link. Anything I order, if it is coming from Austpost I can track through my app. A parcel from other sources can be tracked through various tracking sites without giving anything more than the tracking number. I haven't been caught .... yet

I am as responsible for the drift as anyone else😁

I think we should try and prevent drift on this particular thread. We are supposed to be celebrating the positives. Other downbeat subjects could perhaps find a home in a new thread.

If I mention your name will I get a discount?🙂

I don't see how this relates to drug testing as it operates at an event. Again the important thing is not our gut feeling on whether something is "right" or "wrong" but whether the results are more positive than negative. If someone close to me tried drugs because of peer pressure or whatever I would prefer that the drugs had been tested for contaminants. Harm minimization may not be perfect but neither is the alternative. I certainly do not believe it is a panacea and it has to be used alongside other strategies. Pill testing systems have been used in many countries and many studies have been done. I have no interest in changing anyone's mind. Public opinion seems to be for pill testing at events. Two-thirds of Australians support pill testing at festivals: Survey Pill testing really does reduce the risk of harm for drug users

I believe that in a pill-testing trial in Canberra 18% of people after testing decided to dispose of the drug, this must surely be a good thing. It brings drug users into contact with people who can also subtly deliver a health message. It may erode the user's faith in the quality of the drugs that are being sold. A test that detects a particularly bad drug circulating at an event could have important implications for others who may have bought the same drug. The old-fashioned methods of dealing with drugs have not worked and are unlikely to suddenly start working. We need to try other methods and rigorously evaluate the evidence and not just make decisions on emotion. Pending further information I am for drug testing with rigorous evaluation of the results. Should anyone want to change my my, don't tell me your gut feeling but link me up hard evidence.

I certainly understand that and that is my point , we need to do better with our infrastructure

Notice that the Dutch don't wear helmets. that is another advantage of well-planned bike infrastructure/ Modern helmets are very good, they don't cover your ears.

I bought a reasonable lightweight helmet and it is so comfortable that the other day I put it on to go to the shops and then went back to the house and took it off to do something. When I got to the shop I reached up to take it ff only to realize i had forgotten to put it on. The thing about bike/pedestrian-friendly cities is they are also good for people with limited mobility. Here is a picture from Amsterdam. Note the great facilities for mobility scooters/ Also, they have these

I want both.🙂

I am 62 with a dodgy heart but my e-bike allows me to ride even in the steepest hills, Terrain is not really a problem these days.

Sure, i understand but perhaps it is a bit early to comment. 🙂

https://reneweconomy.com.au/another-big-battery-joins-south-australia-pipeline-in-race-to-energy-storage/?fbclid=IwAR2ngXV4CWTxb1CfloatT0WWTL87_H5hKhiX_nQo4tpvgy3_JC9cbLLu9hY

You seemed to comment within a time that suggests you did not watch the videos.

I am going to be controversial and say I am all in favour of tipping the balance away from the car and toward pedestrians, bike riders, mobility scooters, and wheelchairs. The balance for many years has been towards allowing cars unimpeded right of way. I know many here may not agree but I do think we have sacrificed a lot at the altar of the motor car. The car is still essential but the problem is there has been a vicious cycle of making things better for cars and therefore worse for all other forms of travel this causing more cars and more congestion and the cycle continues. Multi-billion dollar road projects tend to just move the congestion elsewhere. Other countries have done better. Motorists bitch about cycling infrastructure being built because they may lose a lane here or there and yet countries like the Netherlands place a higher priority on pedestrians, bike riders, etc. are also better counties to drive a car in. "In March 2017, bicycles made up 16 percent of all vehicle movements into the city in the morning peak period (between 7 am and 10 am). In March 2008 the figure was nine percent." https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/parking-and-transport/cycling/Pages/cycling-data.aspx These figures are 7 years old and the numbers have only increased since then. If as a motorist you have a slightly narrower lane or a road now has 1 less lane, isn't this preferable to all of those cyclists abandoning their bikes and driving their cars and contributing to traffic jams? We lament the fact that our children are too inactive yet our infrastructure is designed to favour the car. I can understand why parents drive their kids to school. In the Netherlands, I believe around 75% of kids ride to school. This seems pretty good and wholesome to me. I know people here probably don't watch video links however, these 2 videos give a good overview of how other countries have different and I would argue better priorities.

A bun is the lowest form of wheat

There is often resistance to any change in the balance between car and all other modes of transport. Here in Geelong, the forward-looking council has narrowed one road that goes through town to have trees more pedestrian areas, and a bike lane. This has massively improved this road. people have come back to it because it is now pleasant. Parking has been built on the side streets. I remember in Adelaide many many years ago to resistance to Rundle Mall. Now of course no one would advocate tearing it up. The thing is making cities better for people also improves the situation for motorists. The Netherlands is considered to be the best country for driving.

I think if you look a cities like Amsterdam and Utrecht they have been extremely successful with micro and bike use. I am all for making some city streets pedestrian and bike/scooter-friendly. In the Netherland kids and old people are just as likely to be out cycling together and that cant be a bad thing.

Do you mean me? The majority of riders do not fall into this category. I find riding around daily that the majority of motorists are pretty kind and respectful. I have had the odd person pull out of a driveway in front of me and one near "dooring" but I don't cast aspersions on a whole group of people. There are a small percentage of stupid and arrogant people among car drivers, bike riders, mobility scooter users, and pedestrians.

We need to facilitate the use of "micro transport" It does have great potential. Some other countries are way ahead on this.

Yep inter suburb is nearly always a more difficult proposition. On that trip, I would go by car. On my trip from Geelong to the city driving by car is massively inconvenient and time-consuming taking up to 40 minutes longer by car without considering searching for a park. It will never be possible to provide mass transit to every point in a city from any other point. Imagine if the 450000 passengers transported per day by metro rail suddenly decided to drive, it would be traffic chaos.

I think over the past few years things have changed in that craft beer pubs have become more popular. Craft beer pubs tend not to be full of blokes drinking VB. In the craft pubs/breweries we regularly visit there seems to be a more even gender mix. There are still many old-school pubs around but I think there is a definite trend. The figures suggest that Australians are drinking less beer overall but craft beer is taking a growing proportion of the beer market. Craft beer consumption up according to latest report