Building fences, showtime and birdsong.
Sue Brooks May 23rd, 2010
Firstly a huge thank you to Kristy Martin from the Chronicle. It was Christy that single handedly organised a group of small business owners and volunteers to build a fence. Craigs’ fencing, Dundowran Demolitions, Byrne Bros concreting, The Howard Sawmill, Dale and Meyers Hardware and Sunrise Rotary all combined their products and services to do a very good deed. They built a back fence for the lovely Marie. Marie lives adjacent our mobility corridor in Hervey Bay and while this corridor makes it easier for many of us to get around it also attracts the odd undesirable member of our community who thinks breaking into an elderly ladies home to steal her belongings while she is asleep in bed, is somehow an OK thing to do! I can’t express my gratitude to Kristy and to the workers who have helped build a new fence for Marie so she can now sleep much more securely and peacefully. Times are tough right now for any small business owner so I’m sure I’m not alone in appreciating the contribution that these business owners have made. We really do live live in a caring and happy community.
I spent 2 hours helping out on the Council stall at the Show yesterday. The sun was shining the weather was superb but the lack of crowds was disappointing. Maybe everyone that wanted to go to the show did so on Friday as there weren’t many people around yesterday. However everyone I spoke to was pleasant and positive and even the odd complaint was made in a cheerful and positive manner. It was such a relief to have happy chats with families and elderly folk who were out and about enjoying themselves. The day was a timely reminder that just because I read a daily paper that reports on a lot of bad news, blogs that are often a forum for complaints and personally receive many complaints about Council activities, that there are many, many other people living a quiet and contented life, They take the ups and downs of daily life in their stride and get on with things with a smile. My hat, if I wore won, is lifted and tilted in your direction.
But.. I would also like to support Maryborough State Member Chris Foley in his grumbles about QBuild and the cost to change a light globe in his office. In a previous life I worked for TAFE. The thought of having to use QBuild to get anything of a building nature done at Wide Bay TAFE used to send shivers of fear into all the staff. Quite simply the prices quoted to fix anything or paint anything etc were astronomical. There is definitely something wrong with this system. Either it is is bureacracy gone mad or some local suppliers are making a killing at the expense of their fellow community members who pay for their windfalls via taxes. I do believe every layer of Government needs to closely examine how they procure services and ensure that costs are competitive and not a rip off!
While the nights and mornings are turning chilly the prolific bird numbers in our neck of the woods are amazing. Lorikeets fill the air with their noisy chattering and feast on the blossom prevalent in our gum trees. My native bees are busy as ever as soon as the sun starts to shine and we have a new friend visiting. Bruce the butcherbird has decided to spend enough time on our pool fence or our BBQ to warrant a treat or two of minced turkey. The cats are already used to him and simply ignore him now but he has visited for the last 4 days perching quite happily near us and letting us hand feed him. I wonder if he will find a mate or if in fact he is a she! While I don’t usually feed the native wildlife he is so persistent that we simply can’t resist.
- General News
- Comments(6)
I should like to raise the subject of fruit bats. We have a lot of them in and around Hervey Bay and I know the role they play in pollinating native trees. The fact is they also fertilise our roofs and footpaths and cars . But,more importantly, there are horses around the Bay too, and Hendra has raised its ugly head again not too far away, and bats mingle on Fraser Island. Just because the fruit bat is ‘native’ it seems to be immune to control. Were it an ordinary rat instead of an airborne one we would be racing to exterminate it. Does the health of human horse handlers, vets, and horses, matter less than the welfare of this creature ? I would be surprised if it evolved on our shores, Torres Strait being reasonably narrow and the bats being good over-water fliers. Is it any more native than rabbits, rats, cane toads, and other pests ? Do we have to wait for the first cases of Hendra in the Bay area before we cull 95% of them and relocate the remainder ? Horses and humans should take precedence over bats.
In relation to Mr Foley’s light bulb – if it really was just a fluro tube that needed replacement (though I’ve been led to believe it was a more serious electrical fault) – then why didn’t he just do what you, me, and nearly everyone else in Queensland would do, and simply replace it himself? Surely he doesn’t call the Xerox contractor every time his photocopier runs out of paper? Does he also employ someone to turn on his computer each morning and someone else to lick his postage stamps? I surely hope not. So why can’t he change a fluro tube himself? Fluro tubes and normal energy efficient bulbs can be purchases through the normal suppliers who supply his current stationery. I quite like Chis Foley, but I think he might be beating up this story a little.
On a more serious note, I certainly hope we don’t ever get daylight savings in Queensland. If we did, imagine the expense because Chris would expect the State Government horologist to fly up from his Spring Hill office in Brisbane to Chris’ office to wind the clock forward at the beginning of daylight saving, and travel up once again to wind it back at the end of daylight saving. And don’t get me started on those little batteries that need replacing every year in the smoke detectors.
Emily you certainly get stuck into people…! Why not simply ask some questions instead? But to correct you if I may. State owned buildings and possibly leased buildings are totally controlled by the State Government. If you want to do anything to the building you have to obtain approval. I expect that this applies to Mr Foley’s office otherwise he would have done exactly as you suggest and had the work done himself. I beg to be corrected but to my knowledge all State schools and all state buildings are maintained and altered and otherwise attended to via QBuild! When you receive a quote from QBuild it always appears expensive but all public servants are not allowed to speak out about such things so these processes just seem to continue on regardless…..
I can assure you that this does NOT apply to the changing of light bulbs – as it is not an alteration, repair or maintenance issue. As I said, I’ve been led to believe that this case was much more than simply a fluro tube needing replacement. I just looked at the Chronicle report, and even they say that it also involved the repair of a light switch as well (which definitely requires an electrician) – so it appears that my informant was correct – and that Mr Foley is “spinning” this story just a little.
Point taken Emily. I still wish QBuild could be compared with local providers however.
Today while doing some work out at Dundowran Beach, I saw two workers from Wide Bay Water turn up across the road in a truck, trailer and excavator and use the excavator to dig a hole to connect water to the vacant block. Now this hole was in sand, and the maximum depth was 60cm. It took them longer to unload and load the excavator than it would have taken me to dig that small hole by hand (especially in sand). Adding the wages of the two men, the cost of the truck, trailer and excavator, this job must have cost hundreds of dollars – just to dig a small hole. Now I know that Wide Bay Water is not technically council, but I’m sure you see the point that perhaps we need to look at wastage in our own backyards before pointing the finger at the State Govt run Qbuild.