Happy Australia Day!

Australia Day, I found out, is basically a day to celebrate being Australian. There was no breaking away from England or communing with the Natives for food and blessings. It is just a good day to be happy to be from Oz. The date was picked because it was on January 26, 1788 that Captain Arthur Phillip brought ship loads of convicts here to live. That's what we celebrated today. And we did so in the typical way--carnival rides that cost a ton of money and made my children whine and scream because they didn't get enough, food stand food that didn't look as though any health organization had dropped by in a while, low budget ethnic dancing on the portable stage, and a whole lot of people. Here's a picture of what the Goodman's thought of all that:










We left that scene relatively quickly and drove to the beach to spend the rest of the day. Much more our speed. However, we had visitors at the beach today whom we hadn't met yet. They are called Blue Bottle Jellies and they are not friendly. Here's what they look like:

They are not deadly but apparently, their sting hurts like the dickens. They are very tricky in their stinging approach. They are small--the round, jelly part is about the size of a marshmellow or a bit larger. But their stinging threads are as thin as hair and can hang several feet from their bodies, essentially invisible in the water. These little guys are no strangers to Australians but we Americans were having a heck of a time trying to come to terms with who they are and where we stand in relation to them.

Here's what we found out: They usually come with the nor-eastern winds (offshore), when it is warm and when the tide is coming in. Although today the tide was going out. They hurt really bad but won't kill you. If you get stung, you will cry, especially if you are young, and you will go to the life guards who will alternate putting heat and cold on the sting and it will hurt for a few hours and then itch for a few days. If you are young and/or panicky, you will try to get it off you and then you'll get stung on your hands too. The lifeguards do alert the swimmers of their presence and some people get out of the water. But many people don't. And this was what confused us. They were saying that if you keep an eye out for them, you can see them in the ocean and just avoid them. But, they added, it's the ones you don't see that get you. Right. We saw them lining the beach at the water's edge as they were washed up. You couldn't go for a leisurely beach walk with them there because there were enough that you had to commit to watching your step as you walked. So we had a hard time imagining how all these people were swimming if we were having a hard time walking. And the swimmers weren't watching for anything. They were just swimming and surfing like normal. Maybe, we surmised, the sting isn't that bad. But when we asked about it, people said, Oh, yes, it hurts really bad. Maybe, there aren't that many out there. But yes, we were told, there were many out there. Maybe these people just don't care? Maybe they don't get it? Maybe getting stung by jellies is just part of life. Maybe it's just us.

So now, my sweet weather-man husband not only has to check for temperatures, humidity, and cloud patterns but also the direction of the wind. For when the nor-easterns come our way, we may just have to stay in bed.

Oh, one other thing. We have been seeing these Lawn Bowling clubs around and have wondered what that is all about. Well, today we got to see one in full attendance and the men playing with great vigor and celebration. Here, for those of you who are unfamiliar, is lawn bowling. Sadly, you have to be, it looked like, at least 65 before you can join them so we were not able to partake.