• Venison for dinner again? Oh, deer ! • How does Moses make tea? Hebrews it. • England has no kidney bank, but it does have a Liverpool. • I tried to catch some fog, but I mist. • I changed my iPod's name to Titanic. It's syncing now. • Jokes about German sausage are the wurst. • I know a guy who's addicted to brake fluid, but he says he can stop any time. • I stayed up all night to see where the sun went, and then it dawned on me. • This girl said she recognized me from the vegetarian club, but I'd never met herbivore. • When chemists die, they barium. • I'm reading a book about anti-gravity. I just can't put it down. • I did a theatrical performance about puns. It was a play on words. • Did you hear about the cross-eyed teacher who lost her job because she couldn't control her pupils? • When you get a bladder infection, urine trouble.
We were oversubscribed for both the $10 & $2 Sweeps - but well short of enough to do two of each. As I said on Tuesday evening, I have now introduced a third Sweep ($5) and have filled all three by:
Limiting the last two applications to the $5 Sweep only;
Taking account of the flexibility offered by some applicants;
Converting a number of the $10 entries to two each in the $5 Sweep (ie double the opportunity for half the prizemoney) - but, with a couple of exceptions, I have avoided touching any entry where there were different individual names for each entry eg Ted H with 6 X$10 in individually different names is preserved, while Ted C with multiple entries in the same two names has had a couple converted to double $5 entries; and
Converting a small number of $2 entries in the same manner ie two $2 entries converting to a single $5 entry.
Overall, however, you will be invoiced to pay the $ you committed to, or less.
While I have based everything on the fact that 65 horses were 2nd Acceptances, there are three withdrawals as at 2.45pm today, since those declarations were made. The Draw is being made at 3pm today (with Ted Haydon & John Dean on Zoom) so, to be fair to everyone, all 65 horses will be included, but the 3 withdrawn will result in a reduced invoice for those drawing them.
I will send out the draws for each Sweep within the next 24 hours as well as provide our Treasurer details for invoicing.
Third Acceptances are due to be made on Monday - so quite a few will disappear from the field (and those drawing them will be down the drain at thsat point - bad luck).
I will update the still "live" entries mid next week.
I hope everyone is satisfied with the approach I have taken. If not, I will be available for public flogging - just make appointments.
was the topic of the presentation at our last Tuesday Zoom meeting This meeting had great appeal and we had a large attendance of 28 persons . This included 4 visitors who showed their interest by participating in the question session at the end of the meeting
The Speakers ,The leadings speaker was Kathryn Norton ( seen in the attached photo with colleague Jack in front of the tunnel boring machine ) She was assisted with Hilary van Herwaarden , Henry Graves and Christopher McKenna, (Senior Project Engineer),
They presented an update on the construction of the West Gate Tunnel Project.
The tunnel is 5 km long and is scheduled to open in 2023 .This Tunnel is a Victorian Government $6.7 billion major road project, being delivered in partnership with Transurban. The West Gate Tunnel Authority (formerly the Western Distributor Authority) is the government body responsible for the management and delivery of the project.
There will be Twin tunnels under Yarraville between the West Gate Freeway and the Maribyrnong River. New Bridge over Maribyrnong River.
Entry and exit portals where the tunnels connect with surface roads
Ventilation structures at each tunnel exit to remove air from inside the tunnels. They will be over 20 m in height and currently subject to discussion due to the visual impact.
Walking and cycling paths on Hyde Street, Harris Street, Maribyrnong Street and a bridge over Whitehall Street.
New landscaped open space in Altona North and Footscray
Freeway Management System to support good traffic flow and safety
Tunnel safety features for smooth operation of the tunnel, including automatic detection for over-height trucks, fire systems and emergency access and exits.
There will be alignment comprising twin tunnels, a new bridge over the Maribyrnong river and an impressive veloway that will take cyclists through a safer, elevated route from Footscray Road to Docklands – The West Gate Tunnel project will see thousands of trucks taken off local roads and enhance Melbourne’s famous livability – all while improving safety and connectivity on cross-city routes, and to and from the rapidly developing west.
The tunnel will be 4 kilometre outbound tunnel first, closely followed by the 2.8 kilometre inbound tunnel. The longer tunnel will take around 18 months to bore
The project will include:
two, three-lane tunnels, including Victoria’s longest road tunnel (4 km)
widening the West Gate Freeway from 8 to 12 lanes between the M80 and the West Gate Bridge
a new bridge over the Maribyrnong River and an elevated motorway connection to a new interchange at CityLink
over 14 km of new and upgraded cycling and walking paths including a new 2.5 km raised veloway
We will have nearly 9 ha of new open space and wetlands, and over 17 500 trees planted
The $6.7 billion West Gate Tunnel project was due to start in July last year and finish by 2022, but was delayed after Transurban, its builders and the State Government could not agree on how to treat and dump contaminated soil.
This contaminant is a byproduct of fire retardant foam that has apparently leeched it's way through the soil all along Footscray Road area.
Key benefits:
•Giving people a choice -the tunnel or the bridge- •Getting 9,000 trucks off local streets in the inner west- •Enabling 24 hour truck banson six local roads
•Better connecting Melbourne's freeway network, to help people and goods move around- •Better managing traffic flows and incidents through smart technology- •Over 14 kilometres of new and upgraded walking and cycling paths
•A bridge over the Maribyrnong River to connect the tunnels with an elevated road above Footscray Road
•Ramps to the port at MacKenzieRoad and Appleton Dock Road for direct freeway access
•Elevated roadway connecting to CityLink, Dynon Road and FootscrayRoad, running above the centre of Footscray Road
Like many other things we do, the Gathering of Kindness has adapted to the Pandemic and this year’s celebrations will be digital, and accessible on-line. On World Kindness Day (Friday 13 November) this year’s program features 3 live-streamed online sessions featuring:
Scotland's social researcher Simon Anderson,
Civility Saves Lives founder Dr Chris Turner, and
An Expert Panel (Julia Harper (CEO of College of Intensive Care Medicine), David Clarke (CEO of the Australian Institute for Health and Safety) and Dr Carmel Crock (Director for Emergency Medicine at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital))
These 3 sessions are paid events, but there is a host of material available free of charge to learn more about the importance of kindness in Healthcare systems and its importance. We are delighted that Rotary Melbourne is sharing media in the event on two important R100 Projects: Trauma Recovery, and Rotary Safe Families.
Rotary has a keen interest in helping the community be more sustainable and efficient in its energy and water use
Importance of Trees and Gardens
Trees
Tree planting by sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere reduces carbon emissions which improves the health of our planet.
A tree can absorb as much as 48 pounds of carbon dioxide per year and can sequester 1 tonne of CO2 by the time it reaches 40 years.
For every 15 trees planted, 1 tonne of carbon is taken from the atmosphere.
Whether surrounded by bushland, or in a built-up urban environment, planting trees improves the quality of land, and creates a flourishing habitat that attracts native wildlife.
Trees help cleanse our water systems, prevent soil erosion and combat salinity in the soil.
Planted in areas that help block the sun, trees are incredibly efficient in keeping living spaces cooler.
Trees help to reduce noise pollution by absorbing sound.
A community effort that involves a tree planting on degraded land can be a great way of harnessing resources, and bringing people together, while improving the habitat and biodiversity in their area.
Gardens
Plants are considered a critical resource because of the many ways that they support life on Earth.
They release oxygen into the atmosphere and absorb carbon dioxide. The result is cleaner air that is exactly what we need to survive.
Scientific evidence proves that the colour and beauty in gardens, connects with nature and creates a biodiversity that has enormous personal health and wellbeing benefits - a real positive in this challenging time of the global pandemic.
Plants encourage insects, butterflies, birds, bees and other pollinators, essential in the reproduction of plant life.
Plants can be grown in front or back gardens, on balconies, rooftops or pots and in community reserves.
The roots of plants help bind soil together thus preventing soil erosion.
Plants help to filter chemicals and bacteria from the water in the ground and water regulation is improved as about 10% of the moisture in the atmosphere is released by plants.
In planning and preparing for a healthy garden it’s recommended to use fully composted yard waste, apply the correct fertiliser, water properly and choose appropriate sites to plant.
Growing food for your family decreases the pollution that is put into the atmosphere, by reducing the amount of fruit and vegetables that need to be transported and delivered to stores and markets.
What is Biodiversity?
Biodiversity is the amount of variety of life on Earth. It is the number of different species of plants, animals, and microorganisms. Biodiversity supports a larger number of plant species and, therefore, a greater variety of crops providing a crucial role in food nutrition as well as protecting freshwater resources.
