Jessica Watson

The young sheilah from Queensland has done it... 'You Little Beauty', Jessica Watson has become the youngest neville at 16 to sail around the world, non-stop and unassisted. So after crossing the finishing line in Sydney, she had passed 210 days in the ocean strewth and had covered a friggin' 23,000 nautical miles (or in aussie terms 38,000 kilometers mate!)






10m yacht 'Elle's Pink Lady'



At her welcome home Party she told the world, 'I don't consider myself a hero, I'm just an ordinary girl who believed in a dream'. She said that to the mob of thousands who 'chucked a sickie', and turned up at the Sydney Opera House to watch her end her epic journey. Talking about dreams I'm an ordinary bloke and I believe in a dream, so all I have to do now is win lotto!


Crikey









Jessica doing some fishing during her sail around the world, but fairdinkum it's only really a friggin' fishfinger!











Watson's journey will not be registered as a record because — in a bid to discourage some ambitious parents pushing their four-year-old off from a wharf with a "good luck" and a prayer — they no longer list world records for people under 18.... bugger but they still have a beaut point hay.




A photo Jessica took while she was up the mast doing some work, now that looks like fun hay.







So after months (well almost a year) of me and the kiddies following her blog, and keeping a track of her trip we have come to an end. It's a pity that it's all over, but at least she didn't end up as a shark biscuit! Now were keeping and eye on that American sheilah Abby Sutherland, who's doing the same thing but it's not a non-stop run. So if you keep an eye on our little map, you'll see her trip on the aussie yacht Wild eyes.... you go girl.

Swan Districts matchday

On a barmy saturday arvo I poped four of the nevilles into the commodore, and it was time to hit our second Swan Districts match this year. For anyone who doesn't know Swan Districts is our local Aussie Rules footy side, and we try to get to as many matches that we can. See when you get a average crowd of two and a half thousand swanies supporters to each match, then you can see that all the moolah the club can get will come in handy. Now they mightn't get much money off me at the gate, as it only costs me $10 to get in (as nevilles under 16 get in free..... you little beauty). But when you add up a few hotdogs, some hot chips and an ice-cream each then STREWTH! But it all goes to the club so you don't mind supporting your local mob hay, and our local mob are called THE SWANIES and two weekends back they played last years minor premiers SUBIACO LIONS.






When it comes to the end of a Quarter you and the kiddies can come onto the field, and muck around kicking and passing about. Here is Sarah about to give the burley a boot!







What ya reckon a future Swanie in the making, well he does have the head of a footballer!








During the second Quarter we were winning but just by a kick (six points), and not looking to flash with a few players looking worse for wear. The kiddies got out on the field and mucked around, heres Harrison going down in a beaut textbook tackle by the notsolittle Oscar. Then it was back off the field for the third Quarter, heres Oscar watching from behind the old picket fence that surrounds the ground.The Swanies had a 'Barry Crocker' and fell behind by six straight goals, and it didn't get any better then that.










I have a little deal with the kiddies that if there not mucking about to much during the game, then they can have an ice-cream in the fourth Quarter. And as you can see they must of been okay as they got one, you'd think between a few snacks (sneaked in) and a hotdog, chips and a few drinks that they couldn't fit another thing in hay..... wrong!












As for the match the Swans went down quicker then a pie at a butchers picnic, the Lions went on to win by four goals with a score of
Subiaco Lions 18 10 (110)
Swan Disticts 13 18 (96)
If only the swans could of kicked a bit more straight, but theres always another match coming up hay.

Oh well theres always next week hay.
By the way since then the Swanies have lifted themselves up the ladder. And now are coming second with six wins and two loses, with a ripper win last weekend beating Peel Thunder by 106 points... crikey!

Anzac Day (Part2)

After Anzac Day Dawn service as you know we went into Kings Park for a picnic, at a place called 'Synergy Parkland' which is an outdoor recreation area, and a great space for children to explore, learn, and play. It has a two-tiered island fort some large-scaled replicas of local dinosaurs, and a timber boardwalk for the kiddies to run wild across.



As I said there are some local Aussie Dinosaurs that the kiddies get to play on, and also learn about at the same time. Like this little aussie fella called Muttaburrasaurus, which was about 7 to 9 meters long and its mass was 4 tons. It had very powerful jaws equipped with shearing teeth, these were probably an adaptation for eating tough vegetation such as cycads. Here are the little nevilles with mums eggs, and if you look closer theres a little Muttaburrasaurusneville!












Here is Lycopod Island it’s surrounded by a ring of ancient lycopods, replicas of the world's first trees that existed awhile back.... about 1,200 million years ago. Strewth!


Then we come to this little fella a Phytosaur, the name 'Phytosaur' (plant reptile) is very misleading, and their friggin' snapping jaws clearly show that phytosaurs were predators. Although Phytosaurs were not true crocs themselves, they were related to the crocodilians, as both phytosaurs and proto-crocodiles share a common ancestor among the early Crurotarsi. Crocodiles did not become 'Phytosaur'- like until the Early Jurassic... clear as mud! But even if it's not really a croc, I wouldn't like to bump into it down a dark ally. Fairdinkum I reckon it wouldn't take much to eat these little kiddiebites!



Next we bump into a family of Bullockornis, they are an extinct flightless bird that appeared to have lived approximately 15 million years ago, in what is now Australia. This birdie stood approximately 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in) tall, and it may have weighed up to 250 kg (550 lb) now that is one fat bird. Many believe that these big

birds were related to Geese and Ducks, and with three veggies on the side of a plate I reckon they would be a beaut feed. But with it's tremendous size and carnivorous habits, theres always the possibility that you might end up as the main meal at dinner time!

Then we come to our last Dinosaur in the Park, which was called a Diprotodon also known as the

Rhinoceros Wombat was the largest known marsupial that ever lived. They existed from 1.6 million years ago until about 40,000 years ago,They inhabited open forest and grasslands, they loved eating leaves, shrubs, and some grasses. They were about three meters(10 feet long) from nose to tail, standing two meters tall at the shoulder and weighing up to 2,786 kg....strewth thats one friggin big wombat mate.

And thats about it for the Park so on the way back to the commodore, we stopped to pay respect to the diggers as it was Anzac Day. This memorial is dedicated to the fallen soldiers from the Vietnam War, and that was our Anzac weekend Picnic.