The GEM - 16 February 2024 - Edition 94

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Where Community Matters 94TH EDITION FEBRUARY 16, 2024

POWEROUT

... AND A SHOUT-OUT TO THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND CLEAN-UP CREWS FOR SUCH PROMPT ACTION POST-DEVASTATION

LOCALS LOOK TO GET BACK ON THEIR FEET AFTER ANOTHER DISASTER HITS THE REGION

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ANY towns in East Gippsland have seen freak thunderstorms wreak havoc as the changing weather saw a break to the blistering heatwave of last week. Footage on social media confirmed squalling winds that reportedly reached over 120 kilometres per hour.

Weatherzone reported that within a 600km radius of Melbourne, 544,000 lightning strikes were recorded between 9am and 9pm alone, and the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action said the storms tripped an entire power station in Gippsland.

Reports also suggested that at

its peak, up to 620,000 (530,000 through power outages and 90,000 via load shedding) homes and businesses were thrust into darkness, many with all means of communication cut off due to mobile phone towers ceasing to work, in what is believed to be one of the state’s largest ever blackouts.

Around 50 per cent of those

affected had their power restored by the morning, but at the time of writing, those who remained without were still unsure as to exactly how long it will be before the situation is fully rectified.

Residents who require emergency assistance should call 000 or SES on 132 500.

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FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

Let’s clean up Australia!

THE GREAT EASTERN

BAIRNSDALE • PAYNESVILLE • LAKES ENTRANCE • METUNG • SALE

Where Community Matters

Delivery throughout: Bairnsdale, Paynesville, Metung, Lakes Entrance and surrounds. Includes selected businesses and depot drops. Now in Sale.

Also find us at: Local newsagents, shops and businesses.

You can also view our latest publication FREE online at: www.holstadvertising.com/The-Gem along with previous editions.

Publisher: Holst Advertising Display Advertising: Jason: 0428 366 651 Rick: 0413 278 422 Office: (03) 9686 0858 Editorial Material: news@holstadvertising.com rick@holstadvertising.com Advertising Material: matt@holstadvertising.com Publisher’s Note: The views and opinions expressed by advertisers and opinion-writers in this publication are those of the advertiser/writer and do not necessarily reflect that of the publisher and its policies.

Editorial Note: The Great Eastern Mail encourages readers to send in their opinions and views on any matter relating to the region. If you have a story you would like to put forward, please contact our staff (above), and you may have your own piece published.

Advertising: Advertising material created by the publisher is not to be reproduced or distributed to third parties unless given written consent by the publisher or author.

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Got a story you think needs telling?

Call or SMS Jason on 0428 366 651

C

LEAN Up Australia Day will be held on Sunday, March 3 and East Gippsland Shire Council is encouraging communities in East Gippsland to join in this national day of collective action to combat litter and pollution.

Registrations for Clean Up Australia Day 2024 are now open. To register a site or find an existing one, visit the official Clean Up Australia Day website at www.cleanup.org.au. All volunteers receive a free Clean Up kit containing gloves and bags, with packs for individuals, families, and community groups available (businesses are asked to pay a small fee to cover costs).

East Gippsland Shire Mayor

Cr Tom Crook said people in East Gippsland value the natural beauty of the environment.

“During consultation for our Council Plan, our residents were very clear that the environment was important to them. By rolling up our sleeves, we can work together to help maintain the natural beauty of our region," Cr Crook said.

The event is more than just picking up litter; it serves as a reminder of our environmental responsibilities.

Commonly reported items collected by volunteers include cigarette butts, coffee cups, and soft plastics.

"Seeing the types of litter lining our streets, bushlands, and

waterways, it encourages each of us to consider practical ways we can prevent that litter in the first place. Clean Up Australia Day not only addresses the issue of litter but also raises awareness around waste reduction, recycling, and sustainable living,” Cr Crook said.

East Gippsland Shire Council supports community Clean Up Australia Day events by accepting the collected waste free at its waste sites. (The waste must be in Clean Up Australia Day branded bags.) ‘’As we come together for Clean Up Australia Day, it's important to recognise that waste is a community responsibility.

The community can all contribute to the health of our

environment. By actively taking part in events like this, we can demonstrate our commitment to preserving the natural beauty of our communities for future generations. Let's work hand in hand to keep East Gippsland clean and beautiful.’’

Cr Crook added.

Register now at cleanup.org.au for Clean Up Australia Day. Businesses and schools can also run their own clean up events on Tuesday, February 27 and Friday, March 1, respectively.

For illegal dumpling you can contact Council on 51539500, Environment Protection Agency on 1300 372 842 or report it via the Snap Send Solve app on your smartphone.

Chester slams Roads Ministers

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EDERAL Member for Gippsland Darren Chester has challenged the state and federal Ministers responsible for roads to drive through his electorate and understand the dangerous conditions endured by locals and visitors.

Mr Chester said both Ministers were hiding behind the bureaucracy and failing to take seriously his repeated efforts to secure funding for road safety on the Princes Highway.

“One stretch of highway between Swan Reach and Lakes Entrance has been the scene of multiple crashes, including fatalities, and the State Minister for Roads Melissa Horne has written to me saying her Department has ‘found no defects’, despite dozens of potholes,” Mr Chester said.

“It’s a farcical situation. We held a community meeting prior to Christmas and asked the Minister to send a representative but no-

one turned up and now we are being told the Princes Highway is in good condition and the crashes are all the drivers’ faults.

“But at least Minister Horne bothers to respond to letters… the Federal Minister Catherine King has constantly ignored requests to fund Princes Highway safety upgrades and hasn’t replied to a letter sent to her in November last year.”

Mr Chester said he would continue to campaign for funding and had written again to Minister Horne to clarify her claims.

“Apart from the roadside safety barriers which remain in a state of disrepair eight weeks after a series of crashes, there are significant potholes and surface failures between Lakes Entrance and Swan Reach which remain a safety hazard,” Mr Chester wrote.

“Your Department has incomplete data on the number of crashes along this section of road because the majority are

not reported to Victoria Police.

The information I have received from tow truck drivers, the CFA and SES would indicate a much higher incident rate than you are aware of and I can only reiterate my concern that the road surface is at least a contributing factor in some crashes.

“The suggestion that the road surface and drainage is functioning as expected and the road is in an acceptable condition is an insult to my intelligence and shows no respect for the local emergency service crews who are traumatised by repeatedly attending serious crashes, including fatalities, along this section of the Princes Highway.”

Mr Chester said both Ministers should stop relying on advice from bureaucrats and actually drive from Sale to the New South Wales border and experience the conditions first hand.

“The State Government has cut road maintenance funding

Federal Member for Gippsland Darren Chester says poor conditions on the Princes Highway have been a contributing factor in a spate of recent crashes and damage to vehicles.

and the Federal Government has not provided any new money for capital works so the Princes Highway is falling into disrepair,” Mr Chester said.

“At a time when road deaths and trauma are increasing across Victoria, it is staggering that we are not seeing a focus on improving the condition of the road network work to save lives and reduce serious injuries.”

THE LITTLE THINGS THAT CAN IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH Schedule these simple yet effective activities throughout your day.

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ATING a plant-based diet, exercising, controlling weight, not smoking, limiting alcohol intake, and getting enough sleep are all pillars of a healthy lifestyle. They’re linked to lower risks of chronic disease and a longer life.

Many other activities contribute to good health, too. Some seem so minor that it’s easy to forget about them, especially when you’re focused on the big goals of exercising and eating nutritious meals. Use this guide to help you fit more “little things” into your day.

Every half-hour Set a timer and take a break every 30 minutes to do the following activities.

Get up and move. Too much sitting is associated with increased risks for obesity, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and early death. On the flip side, moving — even just a little — is linked with reduced risks for chronic disease.

Just standing up helps improve how your body uses blood sugar. Try this

routine a try every 30 minutes: Stand up, reach your arms to the sky, stretch, and twist your trunk to the left and right. Then walk around to get your heart and lungs working a little harder.

You might do a quick household chore (unload a dishwasher, fold a load of laundry), climb up and down the stairs, get the mail.

Drink a little water. Staying hydrated keeps every cell in your body functioning well. And it takes a concerted effort to make sure you’re getting enough fluids (which can come from water, juice, or watery foods like berries or soup).

Every few hours It’s important to practice some habits every few hours. Schedule them at times when it makes the most sense for your day.

Have a snack. Smaller, more frequent meals can help you keep up your energy, keep your blood sugar levels stable, and increase the variety of foods in your diet. Have a small snack between a light breakfast and lunch, and then another between a light lunch

and dinner. It needs to be nutritious.

Combine protein and carbohydrates to keep it filling and well balanced. You can try half a cup of non-fat yoghurt with berries, a handful of nuts, an apple or banana with a spoonful of peanut butter, half a cup of whole-grain cereal with milk, a hard-boiled egg with whole-grain crackers.

Be mindful. Being mindful is being present in the moment and taking in the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings you’re experiencing. Practice mindfulness by simply stopping what you’re doing and focusing on what your senses pick up. Or go on a brief mindful walk outside. The process of being mindful is associated with reduced stress and anxiety; improvements in sleep, mood, focus, and concentration; and better management of pain and chronic disease.

Use eye drops. It takes only the blink of an eye to keep your eyes moist — literally. Blinking stimulates the production of tears and oils that lubricate the eye surface. Aging slows tear production, and when you add

a lot of electronic screen time to your day — watching TV or looking at a smartphone or computer, which makes us stare more and blink less — we can get dry eyes. The fix is using artificial tears periodically throughout day. The drops don’t have to be preservative-free unless you use them more than six times per day.

Once a day Some activities bring rewards just by doing them once a day. Make time for the following.

Learn something new. Learning strengthens existing brain cell connections (synapses) and makes new ones, which helps keep thinking and memory sharp. The more synapses you build, the better shape you’ll be in later, as you start to lose synapses naturally with age. Schedule a time each day to learn something new, whether you watch part of a documentary, listen to a new type of music, or read a non-fiction book.

Chat with someone outside your household. Social connection thoroughly engages the brain. And

when you have an enjoyable or meaningful interaction with someone, it increases brain cell connections, boosts mood, reduces isolation and loneliness, and may play a role in reducing the risk for chronic disease and premature death. Try to schedule some sort of social connection at least once per day. It may just be a phone visit with a friend or a chat with a neighbour.

Meditate. Meditating activates the relaxation response, the antidote to the body’s stress response. In the short term, stress temporarily triggers a cascade of physiological changes that prepare us for “fight or flight.” If we’re always stressed, however, those effects can lead to chronic inflammation, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, and more. Eliciting the relaxation response at least once a day, by meditating for example, helps reduce stress and makes you better at coping with it.

There are lots of ways to meditate, such as doing 10 or 15 minutes of deep breathing, yoga, mindfulness, or transcendental meditation.

03

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Squeaky Beach. Picture by Zac Porter

Squeaky Beach. Picture by Mark Watson

Squeaky Beach – Australia’s No.1

WEATHERINGNoTHE STORM G fee Green Power-effected food in your fridge Waste and WHEN the fridge turns off during an extended power outage, food may not be safe to eat.

Cold food remains safe to eat while it’s still cool to touch (less than 5 degrees Celsius) and for up to four hours after this. It should then be cooked and eaten or thrown away.

Keep your food cold and fresh by: • Keeping fridge and freezer doors closed and only opening them when necessary • Moving refrigerated food to the freezer • Covering cold and frozen food with an insulating blanket • Checking the internal

temperature of food items with a food thermometer before eating • If in doubt, throw it out.

If you are impacted by extended power outages, you may be entitled to compensation. See your distribution business’s website for details of customer rights and to access compensation forms.

For more information on how to stay safe during a power outage, including food safety, please visit energy. vic.gov.au/safety/poweroutages/staying-safeduring-a-power-outage You can also call the Food Safety Unit for more information on 1300 364 352.

Spoiled Food disposal available TO assist community clean up and recovery efforts following last night’s storm event which impacted large parts of our community — residents can currently dispose of green waste and spoiled food waste that is a result of the 13 February storm event and power failure for FREE at all East Gippsland Shire Council

waste transfer stations.

This is in place until Wednesday 21 February, but may be extended. Check the Shire’s Facebook page or website for details.

Please note, residents will be asked to provide their name and address to assist Council in recovering costs via relief and recovery funding.

SOMETHINGTOTHINK ABOUT...

CHARGE your devices in the car — if you have an in-car charger, you may be able to charge your devices from there; just be sure not to drain the car battery!

IPPSLAND’S very own Squeaky Beach has just been named at No.1 in Tourism Australia’s annual list of Australia’s Top 10 Beaches!

This is the first time a Victorian beach has been named at No.1 - with the top spot usually going to NSW or Queensland.

Situated in the glorious Wilsons Promontory National Park and enclosed by massive granite boulders at both ends, Squeaky Beach earns its distinctive name thanks to the famous white quartz sand that squeaks beneath your feet as you stroll along.

Squeaky Beach can be easily accessed on foot from the carpark but, if you’re after the full experience, walk from Tidal River to take in some epic views across Tidal River, Norman Bay and Squeaky (6.34 km / 1.5-hour walk).

The Federal Tourism Minister, Senator Don Farrell

has announced Brad Farmer’s Best Australian Beaches of 2023, with Squeaky Beach ranking up there with The Farm (NSW) and Cockle Creek (Tasmania).

Destination Gippsland CEO Terry Robinson said “To be named as Australia’s Best Beach is a fantastic, and very well-deserved, accolade for Squeaky Beach, in the Wilsons Promontory National Park. Our region has an abundance of beautiful, unspoilt coastline to be discovered and we hope that this will encourage beachlovers to visit and enjoy all that we have to offer.”

It turns out Lonely Planet has also got in on the act Squeaky Beach has been included in their newly released book — ‘Lonely Planet’s Best Beaches: 100 of the world’s best beaches.’

Squeaky Beach was 1 of only 9 Australian beaches named in the top 100!

Darren Chester Darren Chester Darren Che Putting Locals First Putting Locals Chester First Darren Putting Locals First #lovegippsland

Putting Locals First #lovegippsland www.darrenchester.com.au #lovegippsland #lovegippsland www.darrenchester.com.au

Authorised by Darren Chester, The National Party of Australia, Level 13, 30 Collins Street, Melbourne.

Authorised by Darren Chester, The National Party of Australia, Level 13, 30 Collins Street, Melbourne.

Authorised by Darren Chester, The National Party of Australia, Level 13, 30 Collins Street, Melbourne.

www.darrenchester.com.au

Authorised by Darren Chester, The National Party of Australia, Level 13, 30 Collins Street, Melbourne.

www.darre

04

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

Medical imaging woes need addressing

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HE State Government has been asked to step in and address the major issue of medical imaging delays at Bairnsdale Regional Health Service and other country hospitals, by State Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull.

Speaking in Parliament last week with the Health Minister in the Chamber, Mr Bull said “Minister, we need your help” before outlining examples of the horrendous delays being experienced.

“One patient had a sevenweek wait for scan results required after his surgery, only to be told that due to the age of the results he had to go back for another scan, with no guarantee this would not happen again,” Mr Bull told Parliament.

“Another, a cancer patient, had an oncologist

Nationals State MP, Tim Bull, is calling for help in fixing medical delays for patients in East Gippsland.

appointment 20 days after her scan to discuss the course of action for her treatment.

However, when she turned up at the appointment, the oncologist had not received the scans, so the treatment

plan could not proceed. Can you imagine how that poor woman was feeling about that?

“Another gentleman travelled to Melbourne for a specialist appointment, but

on arrival, 15 days after the scan was done, the specialist did not have the results, so the appointment could not take place, further delaying his treatment.

“This is frustrating GPs,

impacting the health of patients and delaying critical treatments, and I know it is the same at other country health services,” he said.

“We know that the thirdparty provider IMED is suffering from staff shortages, but it is more of a problem in the country than the city and severely impacts the health outcomes of country people, and it could potentially cost lives.”

In her answer, Minister Thomas said, “I thank the Member for Gippsland East, who raised with me the concerns that his constituents are experiencing getting their imaging done in a timely way – particularly at Bairnsdale, but at other health services in the Gippsland region. It really points to the need for us to think perhaps a little differently about the way in

which we can ensure that people in rural and regional Victoria are not disadvantaged by the tyranny of distance, which sometimes plays into the difficulties that we have in getting the right people at the right place in terms of the healthcare workforce”.

“I very much look forward to looking into that and trying to resolve that issue with you, so I thank you very much for that question.”

Mr Bull said he was pleased the Minister then followed him up for a personal discussion on the topic and is hopeful alternate options are being looked at, including one suggestion of partnering country hospitals with city hospitals for a quicker turnaround time.

“However, at the end of the day words only go so far, we need it fixed,” he said.

Recycling solutions turn Victoria’s trash into treasure

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HE Allan Labor Government is building a more sustainable and thriving circular economy with the help of everyday Victorians who are stepping up to reduce waste – with more than 220 million containers already recycled through the Container Deposit Scheme (CDS).

Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos recently opened Visy’s upgraded glass recycling facility in

Laverton — which will process up to 200,000 tonnes of glass each year, including bottle and glass recycled from the CDS. “It’s incredible to see so many Victorians getting involved in recycling — returning over 220 million containers to be recycled into new products instead of going to landfill or polluting our precious environment,” Mr Dimopoulos said.

Now with the capacity to recycle about 150 glass bottles per Victorian each year — the $50 million upgrade has doubled the facilities glass recycling capacity, delivering 20 new optical sorters that will process glass as small as 3 millimetres in size.

This new facility will recycle materials collected through CDS and the roll out of Victoria’s new kerbside glass bins, transforming used glass

into high quality food and beverage containers while improving glass-toglass recycling capacity across the state.

Victoria’s CDS is currently processing an average of around 10 million cans a week and with 220 million containers processed since the scheme begun — it’s put more than $22 million back in the pockets of Victorians.

Victoria is working to divert 80 per cent of all material away from landfill by 2030 — this will create thousands of new jobs and boost our state’s economy by up to $6.7 billion.

The Labor Government has invested $515 million to transform the Victoria’s waste and recycling system, helping us achieve our target of diverting 80 per cent of all material away from landfill by 2030.

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The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

05

WHEN YOU NEED IT DONE RIGHT ‘TRUSTED PERSONAL CARE WHEN EXCELLENCE COUNTS’

Mr Adrian Aitken M.B.B.S., Ph.D., F.R.A.C.S.

SPECIALIST GENERAL SURGEON

INGImage

YOUDON’TSAY?THESMELLOFLOVE

P

HEROMONES are often called “love chemicals.” The substances are produced by many animals and insects to attract the opposite sex.

For example, a male moth senses chemicals secreted by a distant fertile female, drops what he’s doing, and seeks her out to mate.

Experts disagree on whether pheromones exist in humans and, if they do, whether they actually influence behaviour. Yet, some small studies suggest that the smells of certain

chemicals can stimulate sexual responses in both men and women.

There are hundreds of potential pheromones in humans. Their exact chemical makeup and specific actions remain a mystery. Scientists can’t yet identify one (if there is only one) that stimulates sexual interest.

Humans may sense pheromones like other animals. Animals that clearly respond to pheromones have what is known as the vomeronasal organ in their

nose, which is separate from scent detection.

In humans, tiny crevices in the nose act as vomeronasal organs. It is believed that these are able to sense pheromones from other humans, send signals to the brain that are relayed to the body’s complex hormonal system, and trigger the various biologic processes involved in sexual behaviour.

So, the next time you feel attracted to someone, it could be love — or it could be pheromones.

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06

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

opinion - across the table

advice - ask Emma

Pesutto must slice and dice Getting Generally speaking, with Will Bedggood

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PARE a thought for Victoria’s Coalition Opposition Leader, John Pesutto. The state is a basket case, still crippled after Daniel Andrews’ extreme lockdowns on one hand and by Andrews’ overspending on public servants and Government infrastructure on the other.

All this should be gold for a hungry Opposition leader. But Pesutto is stuck, failing to manage a maverick backbencher and finding himself in court instead, trying to smooth over a split Party room, attempting to be all things to all people but winding up representing nothing much to anybody.

Meanwhile the arrogant government we all knew under the authoritarian Andrews is currently morphing into a bankrupt Government led by a rather nice, if ineffectual, new Premier in Jacinta Allen. But in Parliament the Pesutto Opposition is still knee-jerk jumping onto the issue of the day, mindlessly calling for the new Premier’s resignation over this or that, ignoring the weak ministers, lacking a consistent narrative, and always failing to score a hit.

On social media, Pesutto himself runs around electorates shaking hands and smiling a lot. It’s awful!

What should Pesutto be doing instead of this current waste of effort?

The two key things an Opposition should do is to identify and explain the Government’s chief weaknesses and then personalise the responsibility for them. At present the Allen Government’s blindingly obvious weakness is its financial management.

Victoria’s state debt is higher than that of any other state and is rising faster than the debt of any other state.

To fund the debt, the Allen Government is beginning to raise taxes way beyond levels people pay in other states.

As interest rates remain high the situation is likely

T

John Pesutto

to deteriorate more quickly than even the commentators are warning. This is not complicated stuff and is exactly the content that wins elections for Oppositions.

However, if financial management is the main weakness, it doesn’t follow that Premier Allan is to blame, or even if she is, it doesn’t follow that a smart Opposition should attempt to lay the blame exclusively on the most powerful and competent politician on the other side. It makes much more sense to start with the minister holding genuine, Westminster system portfolio responsibility. In this case, the obvious minister is the Treasurer, Tim Pallas.

In Victorian state political history there are clear precedents from the late 1980s where the financial mismanagement narrative was uppermost. Victoria was broke then just like it is now. The place was unattractive to business.

Young people were heading off to Queensland. The state budget was collapsing under serious and growing debt while the Labor Government was unable and unwilling to make the necessary spending cuts. Now it’s all about the economy again — this current Labor Government has the same fatal weakness as forebears did in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

People look back and remember only the Labor Premiers who resigned in disgrace or lost elections — John Cain and Joan Kirner.

But they forget that the then Coalition Opposition didn’t start by targeting the leaders.

The state Opposition focused on the second and third line of ministers, highlighting their basic incompetence as things went wrong in various portfolios

under the financial stress.

The main criticisms the Opposition made of the respective Labor Premiers were for being too slow to sack each responsible minister.

Pallas has already started cranking up taxes on anything he can, starting last budget on holiday houses, vacant land, and Airbnb’s.

He’s now taxing payroll of medical practices for the first time, unlike anywhere in Australia. This is on top of the unprecedented tax on private school payrolls. Then there is that extraordinary rise in the fees for cruise ships docking at Station Pier, so large that the Carnival line has given notice it won’t stop in Port Phillip Bay any longer. This is just the beginning of the tax blow-out to come before this Government will finally have to sell more assets and seriously cut public service numbers and functions.

Pallas has been an articulate minister. He even had the gall to blame the Reserve Bank Governor for the state debt, pretending common cause with the punters who geared up on expensive houses because the RBA told them interest rates would remain lower longer than they did. Coming from a state Treasurer, this could have been funny if it wasn’t so tragic and is proof positive that not only is financial mismanagement the right theme, but that Pallas is the right target.

All Pesutto has to do is shape the theme and use it. Ignore Jacinta Allen for the time being: history will see her in the fluro vest and hard-hat, smiling beside the Premier who bankrupted Victoria.

The target is the Treasurer, and the rest of the second-line Ministers whose portfolios all spent the money while it lasted. It was easy to be a state government minister when interest rates were zero — now most of them will have to make hard decisions and that’s when they will move into the sights of a smart Opposition. In the meantime the Pesutto Opposition should start thinking about who’s next after Pallas.

back into the workforce Emma Woodcock Counsellor Q: I recently started my first full-time job after being a stay-at-home for the last seven years and feel like I’m struggling with the adjustment. I’ve had the usual ups and downs as a mum with little ones and managing my ADHD. But now that I’m working, my tendency toward perfectionism has become overwhelming. Worst of all, I don’t think my work is any better as a result of all the extra effort I put into it.

Do you have any advice on how I can get unstuck from the perfectionism trap?

A: Thank you for writing in and sharing your concerns about adjusting to your new full-time job and grappling with perfectionism, especially while managing ADHD. Firstly, congratulations on taking on this new role after dedicating seven years to being a stay-at-home mum.

This transition can indeed be challenging, and it's okay to feel a range of emotions during this adjustment period.

Perfectionism is a common challenge that many individuals face, and, understandably, you may be feeling overwhelmed by it in your professional life.

Here are a few suggestions that might help you navigate the perfectionism trap: • Set Realistic Expectations: Understand that perfection is unattainable, and setting overly high standards can lead to stress and burnout.

Establish realistic and achievable goals for yourself, considering the demands of your job and personal responsibilities.

ADHD can make estimating time a bit tricky, but you can do this with a few strategies in place. Start each day with one to three doable goals. Finish them?

Awesome! If not, break them down into simpler ones. Try to avoid critical self-talk if you don’t. You are more than good enough, and that "compare and despair" game doesn’t work for anyone. Focus on your accomplishments and achievements instead.

• Check in with yourself often: Think of it as a friendly check-in with yourself. Pause, reflect, and ask yourself some questions: 1. Am I making progress on this task?

2. Is this detail crucial, or just a "nice to have"?

3. How does this step help me reach my goal?

4. Is it good enough for now?

Consider trying a daily checklist with deadlines and some fun stuff thrown in.

Keep it short and sweet — less than five items. If it's too long, this will only overwhelm and demotivate you.

• Embrace Mistakes as Learning Opportunities: Perfectionism often stems from a fear of making mistakes. Remember that making mistakes is a natural part of the learning process.

View them as opportunities for growth and improvement rather than failures.

Heard of the saying progress over perfection?

Progress is your best friend here. Try to adopt the mindset and belief that making any kind of progress is better than being stuck. Even if you end up heading in an unhelpful direction, it’s still better than doing nothing at all. This is how we grow and adapt.

We learn from our stumbles.

Nobody figured out how to ride a bicycle without a few falls and bruises. When you see you’re on a path that isn’t working, don’t beat yourself up but pause, regroup, and head in another direction.

• Seek Feedback: It can also be helpful to identify someone you trust to ask for help when you catch yourself getting stuck.

A friend or colleague can not only help gain much-needed perspective but can also flag when you’re falling into the perfectionism trap.

• Practice SelfCompassion: Try to avoid critical self-talk.

Pushing yourself harder just leads to more stress and lower self-esteem long term.

You are more than good enough, and that "compare and despair" game doesn’t work for anyone. Focus on your accomplishments and achievements instead.

Be kind to yourself and recognize that you are in a period of adjustment. Treat yourself with the same kindness and understanding that you would offer to a friend facing similar challenges.

Your best tool for being kinder to yourself? A growth mindset. It's not just about being nice; it's about accepting yourself, learning, and growing. Remember, mistakes prove you are trying.

Mistakes are part of life but they don't define you. Forget perfection; aim for steadiness, consistency, and loads of selfcompassion.

If this is particularly challenging for you, consider working with a therapist who can help you understand your thinking and where your self-criticism comes from and guide you towards a more balanced inner dialogue.

Remember, perfectionism can be especially challenging for individuals with ADHD. Adjusting to a new job takes time, and it's okay to experience ups and downs.

Be patient with yourself and allow room for growth and adaptation. If you have any further concerns or questions, feel free to reach out.

Hope that helps, Emma

‘Ask Emma’ is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your GP, mental-health professional, or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have. By submitting a question, you are agreeing to let The Great Eastern Mail use it and we may edit it for length and/or clarity.

You can find Emma on Instagram @emmawoodcockcounsellor and Facebook at https://www.facebook. com/emmawoodcockcounselling

Emma Woodcock is a Registered Counsellor working with adolescents and adults with a broad range of difficulties, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, stress, self-esteem difficulties, amongst many others. With experience in several evidence-based therapy modalities, Emma utilises skills from CBT, ACT, DBT, motivational interviewing, polyvagal therapy and more. Emma offers a practical approach to therapy, helping clients develop a personal 'toolkit’ of strategies and skills, so that they feel empowered to deal with life’s challenges everyday.

More kids to embrace nature with expanded bush kinders

HOUSANDS of Victorian children will have the chance to learn and play in the great outdoors, thanks to an expansion of bush kinder programs by the Allan Labor Government.

Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn yesterday announced 150 kindergartens across the state will receive one-off grants of $6,000 to offer a bush kinder program in 2024.

Bush kinder programs are delivered

outdoors at places including parks, bushland and beaches — giving children a unique opportunity and freedom to learn through play with natural materials in outdoors.

The programs are educational and exciting — with a significant positive impact on a child’s development, as well as on their physical and mental health and wellbeing.

The $6,000 grants will help kindergartens buy the equipment

they need to run programs that focus on getting outside, playing with natural materials, and learning through activities such as climbing trees and watching wildlife.

Kindergartens without access to a suitable off-site location can use their grant funding to enhance the biodiversity of their existing outdoor environment.

The Labor Government is investing $3.6 million over four years to expand

bush kinder programs in up to 600 kindergarten services across Victoria.

Through our nation-leading $14 billion Best Start, Best Life reforms over the next decade, the Labor Government is transforming kindergartens to give every Victorian child the best start to life, save families time and money, and support parents to return to work or study if they choose.

The 2024 expansion will see new

bush kinder programs established in 52 local government areas, including 25 regional locations. Of the 150 kinders receiving one-off grants, 100 are in Melbourne.

Applications for the 2025 round of another 150 bush kinder grants will open in the second half of 2024.

To find out which kindergartens are receiving a bush kinder grant, visit vic.gov.au/bush-kinder-grantsprogram

07

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Search has started for next CEO

T

HE search for East Gippsland Shire Council’s next Chief Executive Officer (CEO) has started.

Mayor Cr Tom Crook said the appointment is a critical leadership role in our community.

“The new CEO will lead a large organisation working in and for community across our shire, with both the current and new Council,” Cr Crook said.

“Council is looking for a CEO who will enable the community to thrive, through holding community engagement and

environmental sustainability as paramount and fostering the conditions for long term financial sustainability and a thriving regional economy.

They will have proven experience leading a high performing and customer centric culture to ensure the organisation can meet the future needs of the community,” Cr Crook said.

Cr Crook said the Council group has worked diligently since former CEO Anthony Basford’s resignation in December to set up a robust recruitment process within the obligations of the Local Government Act and has

Yacht champs CONGRATULATIONS to the crew of Wicked II — Fred Haes, Adrian France, Will Crooke and Sabrina Murphy — who won the International Dragons Victorian Championship 2024, recently contested at Royal Brighton Yacht Club.

Congratulations also to the crew of Tarakona — Hugh Howard and James Harland, for placing second and runners-up in the Championships.

Both boats are registered with Metung Yacht Club and Hugh is also a member of Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club at Paynesville.

selected experienced executive recruitment agency Davidson to undertake the executive recruitment.

“Councillors have been engaged in developing the success profile for the new CEO and we have set a timeline that targets a preferred candidate selection

by April,” Cr Crook said.

“This is an important appointment for the organisation and community, so we can all continue to build on the great work happening in East Gippsland.

We look forward to making an appointment and will keep the community updated.”

Council’s General Manager Assets and Environment Fiona Weigall has been Acting CEO since mid-January.

At its meeting on Tuesday night, Council determined to extend Ms Weigall’s tenure as Acting CEO until 27 March 2024. General Manager Place and Community Stuart McConnell will be Acting CEO from 28 March until 30 June 2024.

“We are fortunate to have great depth in our organisation.

This will ensure we continue to deliver for our community during the recruitment of a new CEO and well into the future,” Cr Crook said.

From left: Principal Doug Doherty, Mrs Hilary Arnold, Mrs Gabrielle Costin

Congratulations to Mrs. Hilary Arnold: Recipient of HEIA Teacher of the Year Commendation Nagle College

O

Picture: Cosette Murphy

UR heartfelt congratulations go to Mrs. Hilary Arnold who received a commendation in the Home Economics Institute of Australia (HEIA Inc.) Teacher of the Year Awards.

The nominees were evaluated based on their exceptional contributions to teaching Home Economics, and HEIA recognized and acknowledged those who have truly excelled in their dedication to the profession.

Hilary is certainly a worthy recipient of this award.

HEIA thanked all the exceptional educators

for their dedication and commitment to HEIA and the Home Economics Profession. Their efforts have not only enriched the learning experience for students but have also contributed significantly to the broader Home Economics community.

Please join us in celebrating Hilary’s achievements and acknowledging the positive impact she has made in the field of Home Economics.

The Nagle community thanks Hilary for her ongoing support of Home Economics education and her mentorship and encouraging guidance of our students for over 15 years at the College.

21 - 24 MARCH

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GP24_001_OOH_and_Advertising_Onsale_Press_380x262.indd 3

22/1/2024 2:56 pm

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

09

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Bull flags concerns on animal welfare bill

G

IPPSLAND East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, has urged farmers and rural communities to provide feedback on a new Animal Care and Protection Bill being proposed by the Allan Labor Government that would see farmers face big fines and jail time if they fail proposed new minimum care requirements.

“While I support sensible and reasonable animal welfare improvements, we need to make sure this legislation is not imbalanced and serves the extreme views of animal activists.

“Requirements (with little detail) include ensuring animals enjoy ‘appropriate’ exercise, ambient temperatures, correct noise levels, lighting, air quality, shade and shelter. It also states that animals should not be stressed when ‘loading’.

“In addition, it demands animals have opportunities for appropriate interactions with humans and other animals, including ensuring interactions are conducted in a manner that minimises

anxiety, fear, pain or distress.

“Failure to meet an appropriate care requirement puts owners at risk of fines in excess of $20,000 or six months imprisonment, or both.”

Mr Bull said that one of his major concerns is that in a briefing on the Bill, he asked some basic questions that could not be answered by the bureaucracy.

“For instance, I asked if a herd was placed into a paddock to eat out a harvested crop area (common practice), could the farmer be fined for not providing shade.

The answer was ‘we will have to get back to you’.

“I then asked why a person can be sentenced to jail for using a jigger on a horse, but it was okay on cattle — and I got the same answer.

“Guidelines issued by the Allan Government also use words like ‘reasonable’ and ‘unreasonable’. My concern is, who decides what constitutes this?

“I then asked what constituted the offence of

causing harm or distress when loading an animal, and there was no clear response to that either.”

Mr Bull said he was concerned who would determine what was ‘appropriate’ or ‘inappropriate’.

“We have seen some of the sentences handed down by animal activist sympathising judges in the past.

“It is clear the government has also done little consultation with farmers and farming groups in the preparation of this. These men and women should have been given a much greater say in the preparation of the draft legislation.

The public has until March 8 to provide a response to this draft legislation and can do so on https://engage.vic.gov. au/new-animal-welfareact-victoria.

“I urge everyone who has an interest — and that should be all of us — to take some time to read the draft bill and consultation documents on the above website and make a submission,” he said.

3 DAYS ONLY 23-25TH FEB 2024

Month-long festival to celebrate young Victorians

T

HE skills and achievements of Victoria’s young people will be on show right across the state later this year at a month-long festival supported by the Allan Labor Government.

Minister for Youth Natalie Suleyman this month announced an investment of $220,000 to deliver up to 110 events across the state for and by young Victorians.

Grants of $2,000 are available for youth organisations, local government and schools to partner with Victorians aged 12 to 25 to create a wide

variety of events for young people in their communities.

Youth Fest kicks off in September and this investment will support young people to organise and deliver events, showcase their skills, share ideas, build social connections, and expand their networks.

In 2023, the Youth Fest program delivered 111 activities focused on art, music, sport and theatre, as well as recreational and community festivals, giving young Victorians the chance to have their voices heard.

Previous grant recipients include the Victorian Afghan

Students Association for an Afghanistan's Got Talent event that included an art exhibition, short story competition and singing contest.

In regional Victoria, Campaspe Cohuna Local Learning and Employment Network hosted the Kyabram Youth Expo, which included an art exhibition and music performances, along with stalls providing information on local health, welfare, sports organisations, and youth services.

Applications are open until 15 March. To apply and find out more visit youthfest.vic. gov.au.

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FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

Victoria leading the Here's a thought nation in jobs creation Time to put your thinking caps on W

VICTORIA’S robust economy has once again seen the state record the Australia’s strongest jobs growth over the past year — delivering the lowest unemployment rate of all the states.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures released today confirmed 2,100 Victorians started new jobs in January, bumping the total number of Victorians in work to a near record 3.68 million.

Victoria’s strong annual jobs creation is nation-leading, with almost 150,000 Victorians securing employment — recording the largest increase of all the states.

Since the Labor Government came to office in 2014, more than 760,000 new Victorian jobs have been created, while the 6.7 per cent unemployment rate left by the former coalition government

has been driven down to 3.9 per cent.

Victoria’s labour force participation rate remains high, at 67.2 per cent, reflecting jobseekers’ confidence, and our youth unemployment rate is low 9.0 per cent.

A robust regional economy continues to drive strong jobs growth and support communities, with a record 826,000 Victorians employed in regional and rural areas, an increase of more than 25 per cent under the Labor Government.

Demonstrating the strength of the recovery, ABS figures show that Victoria’s economy has grown by a cumulative 9.1 per cent over the past two years, ahead of NSW, Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania.

Victoria has also led all other states in generating jobs since

the September 2020 pandemic peak, both in absolute and percentage terms, with almost 530,000 new jobs created across the state.

Positive January NAB business survey results saw a slight increase in Victorian business confidence, while business conditions rose to eight points, higher than the long-term average.

Recent ABS data showed Victoria’s State Final Demand — a key measure of the economy, combining public and private investment and spending — grew by 2.1 per cent in the 12 months to September 2023, and 0.4 per cent in the September quarter.

Independent analyst, Deloitte Access Economics, predicts Victoria’s strong economic prospects and employment growth will outpace all other states over the next five years.

ORLD Thinking Day, formerly Thinking Day, is celebrated annually on 22 February by all Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. It is also celebrated by Scout and Guide organisations around the world. It is a day when they think about their “sisters” (and “brothers”) in all the countries of the world, the meaning of Guiding, and its global impact.

Most recently, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts has selected an important international issue as the theme for each year’s World Thinking Day, and selected a focus country from each of their five world regions. Girl Guides

and Girl Scouts use these as an opportunity to study and appreciate other countries and cultures, and equally increase awareness and sensitivity on global concerns.

Donations are collected for the Thinking Day Fund which supports projects

to help Girl Guides and Scouts around the world.

22 February was chosen as it was the birthday of Scouting and Guiding founder Lord Robert Baden-Powell and of Lady Olave Baden-Powell, his wife and World Chief Guide.

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11

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

viewpoint

Why does the taxpayer or ratepayer carry the risk on infrastructure projects?

Dear Editor; EGRRA writes in response to the “blow-out” on major infrastructure projects conducted by the Victoria State Government.

May we say, this experience is not restricted to any one State Government, but Federal (Snowy No2) and Local Councils (incl. East Gippsland Shire) have many such examples. In all cases the taxpayer or ratepayer carries the financial risk.

Any corporate/commercial entity wishing to embrace a major infrastructure project, has a feasibility study undertaken, and based on construction materials, labour and profit, which will outline its benefits and defines an overall cost.

Based on this if a favourable result is the outcome, then the entity (Shire) will seek suitably qualified contractors to competitive tender for the “job”. The contractor will build into its pricing, profit, a margin for increase in material/labour

costs over the term of the contract.

A critical criterion in this process should be a completion date! A process all levels of government should embrace?

Will new State regulations with a $15 million cap on project costs affect this is yet to be finalised.

The contractor would submit a total project cost based on construction materials, labour and its profit, and in the competitive environment could be successful in capturing the contract. The lowest price may not be deemed the best outcome.

Within commercial contracts there is also a penalty clause stating that if the contractor runs beyond the completion date, it is liable to pay agreed penalties to the sponsoring entity. If the contractor completes early then it pockets a greater profit!

On the above noted procedure the price is fixed and known by both parties, materials to be used are costed and

agreed, a completion date and penalties recognised. Any changes to the project and thereby cost changes should be agreed under a separate agreement/ contract.

Under the above scenario blowouts should be minimal and are the responsibility of the contractor not us the ratepayers and taxpayers.

Project risk must be carried by the experienced contractor and might be offset with an insurance policy. Surely as with driver/car insurance premiums being a reflection of driver experience similarly choice of contractor will reflect its past performance in delivering projects on time and within budget!

Why does the taxpayer/ratepayer have to dig into its coffers/resources to meet inadequacies in the ranks of government in comprehensively preparing project plans?

— P. Jones, LAKES ENTRANCE

World Day of Social Justice WORLD Day of Social Justice is an international day recognising the need to promote social justice, which includes efforts to tackle issues such as poverty, exclusion, gender inequality, unemployment, human rights, and social protections.

Many organisations, including the UN, American Library Association (ALA), and the International Labour Organisation, make statements on the importance of social justice for people. Many organisations also present plans for greater social justice

by tackling poverty, social and economic exclusion and unemployment.

The United Nations General Assembly has decided to observe 20 February annually, approved on 26 November 2007 and starting in 2009, as the World Day of Social Justice.

hot and cold ineastgippsland

What is being said on the socials

So grateful for the help of our SES Volunteers, you are amazing.

To the people taking photos of everyone’s damaged houses and placing them all over facebook, think of the owners, times are hard enough.

Shout-out to ABC Radio Gippsland for keeping us updated during the storms.

To the staff at Bunnings, you are amazing. Your patience and help during this difficult time was incredible.

Telstra not having enough redundancies in a disastrous time, you have a lot to learn.

Thank you to all of our emergency services workers.

Lack of transparency from Big Business... You would not be there without us customers.

Thank you to all Tim Bull and his team for the facebook updates, we would not know what was going on without you.

Contact us via our Facebook page to submit your hot or not in 30 words or less

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13

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

crossword

Dangerous trees must go

ACROSS

Drivers put at risk for past three years

1. Accept 7. Incursion 10. Minor quake (5,6) 11. Nights & ...

12. Small tick 13. Church song 15. Adversaries 17. August zodiac sign 18. Science room 20. Poorly 21. Straggle 23. Hotshot 24. Decimal number 26. Judge 27. Additional 29. Hideous 31. Boxing session 32. Nobleman 33. Astute 35. Shy 37. Foreboding 39. Meddle 41. Scam 42. Typist's ailment (1,1,1) 43. Exclamation, ... whiz!

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THE Roads Minister has been asked to remove bushfire damaged dangerous trees from the 2020 fires that remain on Gelantipy Road roadsides.

Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, said the trees have been identified for removal for around three years, and continue to pose a risk to drivers.

“I raised this matter halfway through last year and they remain, without any action having taken place.

“Alarmingly, two have fallen across the road since last June 2023, blocking the road and risking the lives of motorists. It has only been good luck that has avoided a disaster.

“So last week in the Chamber I asked the

DOWN

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a completion date so the community is aware of when it will be done,” he said.

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Minister not only why these hazardous trees have not been removed, but also to provide

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Nationals State MP, Tim Bull, is calling for the removal of identified hazardous trees along Gelantipy Road

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15

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

food & wine PREP: 15 MINS | COOK: 30 MINS | SERVES: 4

m o o r h s u M , n e k ic h C h it w Penne e c u a S m a e r C li o c c o r B d an

Shiraz –The Australian workhorse

I

A delicious and tasty alternative to carbonara

ingredients

• 500 g penne • 4 chicken thigh fillets (cubed) • 250 g button mushrooms (slice) • 1 onion chopped

• 1 clove garlic (crushed) • 1 pinch ground black pepper • 2 cups broccoli florets • 1 handful baby spinach optional

• 1 cup white wine • 250 ml Bulla Cooking Cream • 3 cups Chicken Style Liquid Stock

method 1. Fry mushrooms with a small amount of olive oil in large frying pan. Remove mushrooms and wipe frying pan clean with a paper towel. Place pasta in boiling, salted water and cook as per instructions on packet.

2. Meanwhile, brown chicken, add black pepper, onion and garlic and fry until onion is soft and translucent. Return the cooked mushrooms to the pan and add white wine. Reduce and add the cooking cream. Stir to mix and add approximately

PREP: 10 MINS | COOK: 25 MINS | SERVES: 4

half the chicken stock and broccoli florets.

Check the seasoning. If sauce becomes too thick, add more stock as necessary.

Add spinach, if using and stir. Turn off heat. When pasta is cooked, drain and combine well with sauce in the frying pan.

PREP: 5 MINS | COOK: 10 MINS | SERVES: 4

Potato Gem-Topped Tuna Bake Transform a traditional family tuna pasta bake and take it to the next level by adding a crispy potato gem topping ingredients • 400g spiral pasta • 1 tbs oil • 30g butter • 1 brown onion, finely (diced)

• 3 tbs plain flour • 3 cups milk • 1 cup grated tasty cheese, plus extra • 500g potato gems

• 425g tin tuna in oil, drained • pinch of salt and pepper, to taste

method 1. Cook pasta according to packet instructions. Drain and set aside. Preheat oven to 200C. Grease a large casserole dish. Heat oil and butter in a large saucepan. Add onion and cook over medium heat for 4 minutes until soft. Stir though flour and allow to cook for 1 minute. Gradually add milk, whisking to create a smooth sauce.

Simmer for 2 - 3 minutes to thicken slightly. Season well with salt and pepper, then stir through cheese. Add tuna and cooked pasta, and stir to combine.

2. Pour pasta mix into prepared casserole dish. Top with potato gems and sprinkle over a little extra cheese.

3. Bake for 20 minutes or until potato gems are golden and crispy.

N the past I've mentioned how Ian Hollick Sangiovese is the workhorse of Wine Maker the Italian wine industry — this time I will talk about the Aussie workhorse, Shiraz. Grown from Alice Springs to Hobart (very hot to very cool viticultural climates) this variety has been expected to flourish in an enormous range of climatic situations, and it has done very well. Next month we will talk about its blending with Grenache, but arguably its best blending partner in Australia has been Cabernet.

Some of the benchmark wines of the 60s, such as Mildara Bin series and Penfolds Bin 389 are a couple which spring to mind.

But for today we will concentrate on the varietal wines. I detect, that Australian winemakers have at last reacted to international trends, and have stopped exposing Shiraz to so much new and American oak, have stopped making Shiraz wines with so much alcohol one has to limit ones consumption, and have stopped over extracting their wines in order to attract attention of various wine scribes around the world — especially in the USA. At last we seem to be making great drinks from the variety, a beverage which can be consumed with a wide variety of food styles and in a variety of occasions. Yes, the time of the day or weather conditions can make a difference to how one appreciates a wine, and I hope no one would argue with me that certain food styles do suit some wine styles better than others.

Imagine drinking 16 per cent alcohol Shiraz north of Sydney from October to May, or the same extracted wine with a delicate cheese soufflé. The lower alcohol and less extracted version has a chance of being acceptable but not the former in my opinion.

The more elegant styles generally come for our cooler climate regions such as Adelaide Hills, Coonawarra or The Clare Valley, but even the Barossa producers seem to have toned down their wines recently.

One that continues to shine through is the Peter Lehmann 2020 ‘The Barossan’ Shiraz ($23) — like the 2016 varietal, it was a pleasant surprise. Subtle and complex, but smooth and very approachable, and yet still showing the great spicy characters for which the variety and the region are famous.

The Red Knot 2016 Shiraz ($17) from McLaren Vale was a little on the overripe side for my liking but settled into a pleasant drink once airing for a while. It was not relying on oak at all, but did show signs of maturation in barrels of some kind I presume, and was a pleasant drink with my predinner nibbles.

Santé.

Beef Rissoles Beef rissoles are great for a barbecue and terrific on sandwiches the next day ingredients • 500 g beef mince • 1 carrot grated • 1 onion grated small • 1 egg beaten • 1/4 cup fresh breadcrumbs • 1 tbs tomato sauce

• 1 tbs barbecue sauce • 1 tbs curry powder • 1 tbs honey • 1 tbs dried mixed herb

method 1. Combine all ingredients together and mix well.

Divide mixture into rissoles and pan fry or BBQ.

Vineyards in the Adelaide Hills of South Australia make for elegant Shiraz varieties.

16

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

Tea-riffic new business in Sale

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ASTEBUDS in Sale are rejoicing at the news that the township is about to welcome its first dedicated bubble tea store, thanks to Tyrone and Marifel Palaganas and his new business, Teaser Bubble Tea. “We came to East Gippsland 16 years ago from New Zealand. For the past 12+ months, I’ve actually been managing the dairy farm that was owned by Jacob Malmo, in Tinamba.”

Tyrone says he and his family used to travel to Traralgon to satisfy their bubble tea urges, which ultimately led them to decide to bring the popular beverage to East Gippsland.

The Teaser Bubble Tea menu includes tantalising hot and cold drinks such as fruity flavours (Orange Obsession, Grateful Grape, Pineapple Passion, Watermelon Teaser); classic milk teas (with pearls and taro mousse included); matcha and specialty brews; fusion drinks; and smoothies containing delicious creamy flavoured mousses (Paradise Punch, Mango Morpha, Grape Quencher). There are even 1L cup varieties that are bound to satisfy even the largest of bubble tea appetites!

All going to plan, Tyrone says the grand opening of Teaser Bubble Tea, which is located inside the Gippsland Centre in Sale, will be on 24 February.

“We're very excited and we hear that a lot of people are also

very excited for us to open! Lots of people are like my family and I — travelling to Traralgon for their bubble tea — so we believe this will be a welcome new offering in Sale.”

Locals locked out of flood clean-up funding C The Nationals Member for Gippsland South Danny O’Brien with volunteers cleaning up at the Welshpool Opportunity Shop following the 2023 Boxing Day flooding.

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HANGES should be made to disaster recovery funding arrangements to prevent flood-impacted locals missing out on support in times of localised natural disaster such as the 2023 Boxing Day floods.

That’s the view of The Nationals Member for Gippsland South, Danny O’Brien who took the matter to State Parliament this week, asking the Minister for Emergency Services to advocate for changes to the disaster funding arrangements that operate between state and federal governments.

“The current funding arrangements have a threshold which requires a certain percentage of a region to be directly affected by the natural disaster before there will be clean-up assistance from the state and federal governments,” Mr O’Brien said.

“Such clean up grants were widely available after the big storms of June 2021.

“Following last year’s Boxing Day flood event I was contacted by several impacted farmers and locals asking whether there would be any assistance from the state government for clean-up.

“The early morning Boxing Day storm and rain event caused rapid flooding in places like Welshpool and Woodside that led to significant localised damage – fences and crops destroyed, buildings and homes inundated, trees and other debris left across paddocks and creeks and land eroded.

Mr O’Brien highlighted that land and homeowners are impacted exactly the same in a natural disaster, whether there are 300 of them or 10 of them.

“The government will jump in and provide assistance when there

is a big event, but when there is a very localised event with exactly the same impacts on individuals no help is available. I think it’s a flawed argument.

“All property owners should seek to prepare for the worst with their own resources and insurance in the first instance, but there are some events that can’t be managed or insured against.

“While I appreciate that governments have these thresholds for generally good reasons, I am calling for more flexibility in these arrangements.”

Council takes proactive measures to address flood risk in Port Albert

ELLINGTON Shire Council has endorsed new updated measures under the Building Regulations to manage floor levels in floodprone urban areas within Port Albert. The decision underlines Council's commitment to effective flood risk management,

despite certain urban areas being excluded from flood control planning provisions by the state government back in 2014.

In the absence of flood management provision within the urban areas of Port Albert, a robust approach remains necessary to address potential flood

impacts, particularly with the threat of sea-level rise predicted by current modelling.

Under the updated measures, new development proposals within designated urban areas of Port Albert must now maintain finished floor levels at a minimum of 0.8 metres AHD (Australian

Height Datum) above sea level, to align with both West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (WGCMA) guidelines and state government planning policy.

Building in a flood-prone area is a ‘non-sitting matter’ that requires Report and Consent under the Victorian

Building Regulations, however Council has decided to continue to waive the Report and Consent fee for building within flood-prone urban zones. This measure aims to encourage compliance and alleviate financial burden on developers committed to flood risk management.

Wellington Shire Council Mayor Ian Bye highlighted the importance of mitigating flooding risk when developing coastal areas.

“We welcome these proactive measures to ensure a safe, sustainable and resilient urban environment for all residents in our coastal communities,” Cr Bye said.

17

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Wellington Shire Council supporting communities affected by ongoing power outage

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N response to the ongoing power outage emergencies affecting our region, Wellington Shire Council is committed to supporting the community's recovery efforts.

Council is working closely with Yarram Neighbourhood House and Yarram Community Emergency Planning Group to coordinate and deliver this support, providing essential services to those in need, particularly in impacted areas including Yarram, Port Albert, Binginwarri, Woodside and Devon North.

Thanks to coordinated efforts, communities impacted by prolonged power outages in the south of Wellington Shire now have access to free community meals, 24-hour access to toilet and shower facilities and connected locations to charge phones and devices.

Key support available includes: • Free community dinners in Yarram, Port Albert, Binginwarri, Woodside, and Devon North • 24/7 access to showers and toilets at Yarram Recreation Reserve • Phone charging facilities in Yarram, Port Albert, Binginwarri, and Devon North.

Some communities in affected areas are facing the challenge of disposing of spoiled food and green waste due to extended power outages. To support these communities, Council will be accepting spoiled food and green waste at the Yarram and Dargo Transfer Stations for no-fee as follows: • Yarram and surrounding areas: spoiled food and green waste will be accepted at the Yarram Transfer Station on Friday 16, Saturday 17, Sunday 18, and Monday 19 February from 9am to 5pm.

• Dargo and surrounding areas: spoiled food only will be

accepted at the Dargo Transfer Station. This transfer station does not accept green waste. The transfer station will operate on Friday 16 February from 11am to 3pm, Saturday 17 February from 1pm to 5pm and Sunday 18 February from 10am to 3pm.

Support available as of Thursday 15 February 2024: • Yarram Community House - free meal provided between 6pm to 7.30pm. Phone and device charging available today until 7.30pm.

• Yarram Recreation Reserve 24/7 access to bathrooms and showers, and areas to charge your phone or digital devices.

• Port Albert Watersports and Safety Centre - free community meal Thursday at 6pm.

• Binginwarri Hall – generator available with the ability to charge phones and devices.

There is a free meal Thursday at 6pm.

• Woodside Recreation Reserve free BBQ run by the Lions Club Thursday from 6pm.

• Devon North Church Hall - free meal at 6pm on Thursday with phone and device charging available during dinner period.

Similar arrangements will continue in some capacity if the power outage continues overnight.

Full customer service functionality is currently available at the Yarram Hub, this includes card and electronic payments.

Council will continue to provide updates as the situation changes or improves. Residents who have phone connectivity and need to contact Council are advised to contact 1300 366 244.

Council extends a heartfelt thank you to everyone in these communities who are helping others to recover from the impact of emergencies.

music & theatre THE SMEDS AND THE SMOOS TUESDAY 12 March 2024, 6:00pm - Forge Theatre Auditorium.

PERFORMANCE DURATION: 55 Minutes (No Interval) TICKET PRICES: Full: $12

Get set for a space adventure

S

OAR into space with this exciting adaptation of the award-winning book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler (also seen in the TV animation on ABC Kids) On a far-off planet, Smeds and Smoos can't be friends. So when a young Smed and Smoo fall in love and zoom off into

space together, how will their families get them back?

Music, laughs and interplanetary adventures for everyone aged 3 and up, from the team that brought you The Gruffalo and Room on the Broom live on stage.

We look forward to seeing you there!

POP SQUAD WEDNESDAY 10 April 2024, 2:00pm - Forge Theatre Auditorium.

PERFORMANCE DURATION: 1 Hour10 Minutes (No Interval) TICKET PRICES: Adult: $20 Student/Child: $15

Get up and dance the day away

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OP Squad is a brand new, uplifting kids show paying tribute to three of the world's most loved Pop Music icons: Katy Perry, Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa.

The 70 minute live show brings the hit music, flamboyant performances and outrageous costumes of these global superstars to local stages around the country.

Sydney-based Pop Squad has all the glamour of these chart-dominating popstars, with astonishing live vocal and choreographed performances of their biggest songs, along with an impressive light and visual display.

Katy, Taylor and Dua are well known for their strong positive attitudes and our Squad shares messages of self-respect and confidence in an interactive show that is perfect for kids from 3 to 93. Featured hit singles include Road, Firework, Hot N Cold from Katy; Shake it Off, Blank Space and AntiHero from Taylor; Levitating, Physical and Dance the Night (Barbie the Movie) from Dua in an event to get all ages dancing in their seats.

There might even be some surprise Special Guest appearances....and there will be a chance to meet the girls after the show, to ensure the experience stays with you long after the school holidays have finished!

Forge Theatre and Arts Hub presents Tall Stories’ production of

‘Perfect family viewing’ BEYONDTHECURTAIN.CO.UK

‘Enchanting and incredibly engaging’ EDINBURGH FESTIVALS FOR KIDS

A stellar new show based on the book by JULIA DONALDSON and AXEL SCHEFFLER

Tuesday 12 March, 6:00 pm

The Smeds and the Smoos

TAYLOR SWIFT KATY PERRY & DUA LIPA

Wednesday 10 April, 2:00 pm 80 McKean Street BAIRNSDALE

18

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

viewpoint

Remote Indigenous communities pay the health price for low stock and high prices 'If people are really, really hungry, and there's no food. You know what quenches food craving? Chewing tobacco and smoking.'

Julia Bergin Crikey

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HE bottled water fridge is empty, the freezer is void and there is limited stock lining the shelves. Outback Stores Imanpa store manager John Prunty explains that it’s day 13 of a 14-day delivery cycle and Sorry Business has exacerbated dwindling supplies: “A funeral wiped us out. We’re running on empty at the moment.”

When there’s no food in-store, Imanpa community members travel 50 minutes (73km) by car to Erldunda, two hours (186km) up the highway to Yulara, or three hours (273km) to Mparntwe (Alice Springs). You can’t buy petrol in community, and where residents can fill up, the Alice Springs return trip generally costs them about $200.

“I should be buying an extra $200 of food here,” Imanpa woman Anne Luckey tells Crikey and reporting partner Indigenous Community Television (ICTV). She makes the commute into town every 14 days. “At least we’ve got a store and it’s open. Kardiya [whitefella] is helping but they need to stock up. Smokes run out, drinks run out, bread, butter, it all runs out.”

The small Northern Territory Indigenous community of Imanpa is 6km off the main Lasseter Highway. It’s home to a population of about 130 Indigenous people and has a single general store — a one-stop shop for food, goods and supplies that maintains complete control over the availability, affordability and quality of food in community.

The message from Michael Borg, CEO of Outback Stores (the Commonwealth company that manages remote general stores nationwide) was that fresh produce was plenty, food deliveries were regular (notwithstanding environmental hold-ups), and prices were competitive with big supermarket retailers.

But a four-day Crikey/ICTV on-the-road-reporting trip through six NT and South Australian remote Indigenous communities and an equal number of general stores (both Outback Stores and Aboriginal-owned and controlled Mai Wiru) found stock was low, prices high, healthy options scarce and

unhealthy food and habits marked up.

In Imanpa, a packet of 20 cigarettes costs $61. Luckey says she has paid $98 for a pack of 25, and when the store runs out she’d rather spend the money on petrol to get to Erldunda than go without: “It’s the same amount of money to get the car to Erldunda as it is to buy smokes. And you need a jerry can to get from here to there because we got no petrol, only diesel. No-one has diesel cars.”

The cost of a 20-litre jerry can is $71 in Imanpa. In other communities, they are as much as $100. These go for $21 at Bunnings.

White goods costs are also exorbitant — we found a washing machine that was $1,334 and a second-hand clothes dryer for $763 — and staple Indigenous food items such as kangaroo tail are sold by weight for as much as $27.

In town at IGA, these are priced between $12 and $13, but Luckey’s sister Kathleen says that not long ago you could buy them for $5.

Cross-border problem More than 1,000kms from Imanpa across the Western Australia border lies the remote Indigenous community of Wirrimanu (Balgo). Last month, Outback Stores took over management of the general store (for a second time) in a bid to quell the community’s dire levels of food insecurity and its acute cost-of-living crisis. Its first round of management terminated abruptly in 2019 when Outback Stores was evicted from Balgo by community members over alleged financial misconduct and breaches of contract.

Community art centre manager and long-term resident Poppy Lever says the locks were “changed overnight”. The case went to court, Outback Stores denied all wrongdoing, and it was eventually settled in September 2020.

Although the communityled overhaul paved the way for an era of local ownership, this came directly before the biggest wet season in years (cutting off road access into community) and the COVID-19 pandemic, which further sliced supply chains and affected food on shelves.

For three years, Lever says food and management were “completely irregular” and Balgo cycled through about 30 store managers.

In short: the community descended into chaos

Selection of kangaroo tails (Image: Julia Bergin/Zennie/Private Media)

courtesy of a dysfunctional general store and dire food insecurity. Tensions flared, break-ins were rife (“People would literally just walk in and go shopping at night. Take all the tobacco, take all the cash, take all the TVs, night after night,” Lever says), prices were “jacked-up” to match, and the business became increasingly untenable.

“They even had signs up saying, ‘Because there’s so much stealing going on, we’re going to have to put up prices,’ ” Lever says. “People that are already financially poorer, all of a sudden have to pay more not only for remote allowances, but theft allowances, which then causes more theft and more disadvantage because people can’t afford the food.”

The hope is Outback Stores 2.0 will play a stabilising role in Balgo, but Lever says it’s no easy feat to reinstate four years of damaged social cohesion, eroded trust and entrenched feelings of complete and utter powerlessness: “I’ve been in Balgo five and half years and I’ve never seen the community so apathetic.”

She says the chop and change of “whitefella ways” has had a whiplash effect on Indigenous communities. Be it a change of mind or change of rules, the constant overhaul of systems and governance every few years is at odds with the tens of thousands of years of continuous relationships and rules Indigenous people have abided by.

“For Blackfellas, shit didn’t change, it was banked on.

It was a known. It was a guarantee,” Lever says, adding that this is why stand-alone monetary policies punishing unhealthy eating and habits only deepen disadvantage.

“What people still live on is ration food. It is sugar, tobacco and flour. This is what people in community were given for 50 years by the whitefella and all of a sudden they’re being

told they shouldn’t have it … If people are really, really hungry and there’s no food, you know what quenches food craving? Chewing tobacco and smoking.”

In Balgo, the cost of tobacco was $105.

Keeping tabs on remote general stores Since 1999, there have been many iterations of federal, state and territory inquiries into the availability, nutritional value, pricing and security of food in remote Indigenous communities.

These reports and subsequent recommendations have consistently looked into the role and set-up of the companies that manage the provision and price settings of food, with recommendations focused on environmental and “remote” roadblocks, regulation, licensing agreements, top-down vs bottom-up governance structures and overwhelmingly how to improve health outcomes for Indigenous people by promoting healthy foods.

The latest inquiry was commissioned in 2020 by former minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt. The government response came in 2021 — of the 16 recommendations to bolster infrastructure, training, communications, food and nutrition standards, and price monitoring mechanisms, only two were supported, eight were supported “in principle”, five were noted, and one was not supported.

The two recommendations the government signed off on were a commitment to “encourage” wholesalers to set up more local distribution centres in major regional centres, and for the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) to “consult” with stakeholders to streamline deliveries.

Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (NPY)

Women’s Council CEO Liza Balmer — involved in monitoring food availability, price and nutrition in community stores — is clear: “Food security’s a bit of a topic at the moment, but there’s a real risk that remote communities get swept up in the national conversation and don’t get what they need.

“It’s not just about money, which is what it is for people in the cities. In remote communities, there’s only one place to buy food. If there’s bad weather and the truck can’t get in, there’s no food in the store. That’s real food insecurity.”

She tells Crikey and ICTV that general store models need to start being classed as essential services, not profitable businesses that serve as the only source of income for a particular community. She says that would open stores up to subsidies — “not necessarily direct food subsidies”, but funding for store managers or infrastructure to support food delivery, such as road maintenance, freight services and mechanical maintenance.

All these supply chain improvements would help reduce the cost of food.

Short of the work done by NPY Women’s Council, there’s little monitoring of remote in-store price settings. Borg says Outback Stores products are calculated by “landed cost price”, freight and necessary store margin. He says the company doesn’t have its own transport fleet so delivery costs (distance travelled and frequency of dispatch — either weekly or fortnightly) also affect shelf price. Apart from a line of staples, this means the cost of goods is not consistent across stores.

For Mai Wiru stores, prices were uniform company-wide, with each store absorbing the freight costs of all stores.

CEO Dennis Bate says it costs “tens of thousands of dollars” a week to transport goods and that “obviously” has to be covered by in-store pricing.

According to Mai Wiru’s 2022 financial report, the company spent $1.82 million on freight in the year to June 2022.

Neither company adjusts prices to align with Australia’s consumer price index (CPI).

In terms of nutritional value, Bate says certain Mai Wiru foods are subsidised — baby foods and products, lean meat, mince, chops and sausages — and it, in return, receives $25,000 in rebates from store partner Coca-Cola Amatil.

Borg (a former NT regional manager for Coca-Cola Amatil) says Outback Stores’ fresh fruit and vegetables are priced “as close as possible to major metropolitan retailers, or sometimes lower” and many stores have “sugar-free” days in place (in Imanpa, for example, soft drink is not sold on Tuesdays). But what Crikey and ICTV learnt is that fruit and veg is not generally what people in community purchase.

Disconnects with remote Indigenous communities Balmer tells Crikey and ICTV that although a healthy basket of food is far cheaper than an unhealthy basket of food, most people in community opt for the latter due to nutritional knowledge deficits (through no fault of their own) and the inability to store and prepare food at home — fresh foods require a fridge, freezer, power and gas to keep and cook.

“They’re often going for either pre-prepared things which are more expensive or takeaway,” Balmer says, adding that takeout menus are entirely contingent on store managers who are neither nutrition-trained nor employed to offer an educational service day-inday-out on good eating.

The result is that although prices on certain goods have gone down, community does not reap the rewards because the products they eat — meat in particular — are up.

Across all the stores — both Outback Stores and Mai Wiru — there’s a big disconnect between pricing, diets and what constitutes appropriate stock. In Imanpa, Luckey’s sister Kathleen says community had recently asked for tents and tarps for Sorry Business but Prunty wasn’t able to assist because the “big boss said no”: “We will have Sorry Business again.

Visitors come and people move out. We need these things.”

Community is meant to have a say in Outback Stores store operations, and while Kathleen says Imanpa’s local board of directors has good communications with Prunty — “John is a kind-hearted person and he tries to help.

It’s not his fault” — a lot of information and store-related decision-making never reaches community.

Julia Bergin Crikey Northern Territory Correspondent, Alice Springs

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The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

GEM Kids

E C A P S

www.facebook.com/TheGreatEasternMail

JOKES 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

WHY DID THE TOMATO TURN RED? BECAUSE IT SAW THE SALAD DRESSING! WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU CROSS A SNOWMAN AND A SHARK? FROSTBITE! WHY DID THE MATH BOOK LOOK SO SAD? BECAUSE IT HAD TOO MANY PROBLEMS. WHAT DO YOU CALL A BEAR WITH NO TEETH? A GUMMY BEAR. WHAT DID THE GRAPE SAY WHEN IT GOT STEPPED ON? NOTHING, IT JUST

LET OUT A LITTLE WINE. WHY DID THE COOKIE GO TO THE DOCTOR? BECAUSE IT FELT CRUMMY. 7. WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE PLAYGROUND? TO GET TO THE OTHER SLIDE. 8. WHAT DO YOU CALL A DINOSAUR WITH AN EXTENSIVE VOCABULARY? A THESAURUS. 9. WHAT DID THE DUCK SAY WHEN IT BOUGHT LIPSTICK? "PUT IT ON MY BILL." 10. WHAT KIND OF SHOES DO NINJAS WEAR? SNEAKERS. 6.

GEM KIDS GA M E R EVIEWS

SUPERSTARS

ADVANCED WARS 1 AND 2

[PLAYED ON NINTENDO SWITCH] WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE GAME? I LIKE THAT YOU LEARN MORE AS THE GAME GOES ON WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CHARACTER AND WHY? THE ORANGE TEAM IS THE BEST

THIS FORTNIGHT IN AUSSIE HISTORY February 16th: 1930: Inauguration of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, an iconic landmark known as "The Coathanger."

February 17th: 1788: Arrival of the First Fleet at Botany Bay, marking the beginning of British colonization.

February 18th: 1803: Matthew Flinders charts the Bass Strait, separating Tasmania from mainland Australia.

February 19th: 1851: Discovery of gold at Ballarat, Victoria, sparking a major gold rush that significantly impacts the colony's population and economy.

February 20th: 1830: Founding of the Swan River Colony, now known as Perth, Western Australia.

February 21st: 1788: Governor Phillip proclaims British sovereignty over the eastern coast of Australia.

February 22nd: 2018: Same-sex marriage becomes legal in Australia after a national postal vote.

February 23rd: 1975: Whitlam government is dismissed by Governor-General John Kerr, sparking a major constitutional crisis.

February 24th: 1803: First newspaper in Australia, the Sydney Gazette, is published.

February 25th: 1856: Eureka Stockade rebellion takes place in Ballarat, Victoria, protesting high gold license fees.

February 26th: 2014: Tony Abbott becomes Prime Minister, leading the Liberal Party after six years of Labor rule.

February 27th: 2015: Malcolm Turnbull becomes Prime Minister after a leadership spill within the Liberal Party.

February 28th: 1973: Voting age in Australia is lowered from 21 to 18, granting young adults a greater voice in the political process.

puzzle answers SOLUTIONS: FROM PAGE 13

SUDOKU: 4000

WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS GAME? YES

BLAKE AGED 10

WHAT RATING WOULD YOU GIVE IT OUT OF 10?

I WOULD GIVE IT A 8 OUT OF 10

CALL OF DUTY VANGUARD [PLAYED ON PLAYSTATION 5]

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE GAME? IT’S THE LATEST IN MY FAVOURITE SERIES WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CHARACTER AND WHY? I ENJOY FIRST PERSON PERSPECTIVE GAMES

JOR DAN AGED 15

WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS GAME? YES WHAT RATING WOULD YOU GIVE IT OUT OF 10?

I WOULD GIVE IT A 8 OUT OF 10

LET'S SING ABBA - GAME + 2-MIC PACK [PLAYED ON XBOX SERIES X]

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE GAME? I REALLY ENJOY SINGING GAMES, THE MICS MAKE IT SO REAL WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CHARACTER AND WHY? MY FAVOURITE SONG IS MONEY, MONEY, MONEY

C HAR LI AGED 12

WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS GAME? YES, IT’S A GREAT PLATFORM GAME WHAT RATING WOULD YOU GIVE IT OUT OF 10?

I WOULD GIVE IT 8 OUT OF 10

NEW STOCK JUST ARRIVED

4001

Puzzles supplied by Lovatts Publications Pty Ltd www.puzzlexperts.com

172 Main St, S Bairnsdale B i d le VIC 3875 3 Phone: (03) 5152 3369 | www.toyworld.com.au/pages/toyworld-bairnsdale

20

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

BIOLUMINESCENCEEXTRAVAGANZA

Johnos Opportunity Shop image: Shopping at one of the many opportunity shops, such as Johnos in Bairnsdale or donating good condition used items reduce carbon emissions.

Photo: Judy Blion Photography

THIS image was captured by Judy Blion on a Canon camera on the night 30 January at Lake Tyers Beach around 10.45pm. Judy says, “Once the skies went dark and prior to the rise of the moon, the Bioluminescence twinkles in the ocean on the incoming waves. With cloudless skies I was able to capture the Milky Way above this beautiful phenomenon.

Bioluminescence is often seen as the conditions in our ocean have all aligned. Calm and warm seas, combined with an algae bloom of plankton will create the Bioluminescence in the breaking waves.”

Reducing your carbon footprint - on a budget

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HAT action can the average person take to help mitigate climate change?

It is a minority of our population who can afford to invest in rooftop solar, batteries, heat pump technology and electric vehicles.

Converting homes to be energy efficient with insulation, appropriate blinds, double glazing and sealing draughts is costly. Buying food that is organically or locally grown can be expensive options.

It is clear that many people cannot afford to make these big changes. In this era of especially high costs of living, many will be challenged to find extra dollars to make climate friendly upgrades. Casual workers, those on unemployment benefits or a pension, homeless people, renters and those paying a mortgage, as well as those on or on an average income will be stretched. Even with subsidies many of these paths to reduce our carbon footprint are way out of reach. Rent, mortgage, food, vehicle, medical and utilities will generally consume most incomes. Daily living expenses and occasional treats take priority over the longer term investments required by households for climate mitigation, even when subsidies are available.

However, there are some things that we can all do. No matter how small or large your contribution, every little step helps. Whether it is tweaking your diet, changing your mode of transport or rethinking consumer choices, your efforts all make a difference. Here is my list :~ • Ride a bike or walk, when possible, if you have a bike that is.

Repair Cafe proves free repairs and/advice on items you take to them.

• The local tip shop recycles many items and is a great source of second-hand furniture and household items.

Other things helpful in making carbon emissions reductions are also within your control and don’t cost a lot of cash. Here is my list :~ • Educate yourself on the facts and science of climate change from trustworthy sourcesyou can use local libraries which are open for everyone • Write letters to those who have the capacity to implement changes, Local Councils and State and Federal Governments.

• Vote for those whose policies take substantial action for the climate • Speak out against new fossil fuel use.

• Take part in peaceful demonstrations.

• Join a landcare group and help plant trees when and if you can.

These are all ideas that will help and require little extra financial burden, and best of all you will be amongst the millions of people acting for a safer future for our children.

Composting kitchen scraps reduces waste to landfill, reduces methane emissions and creates wonderful composthat can be used in the garden. Composting can include just digging a hole and putting scraps in, or using a lease bin like this one.

Riding a bike instead of driving has two benefits - its great exercise and it is a clean alternative to driving.

Perfect in a town like Bairnsdale and many other East Gippsland towns.

Photo: James Sotirakis - JS Photography

THIS breathtaking image was taken just after 11pm on 4 February at the main beach in Lakes Entrance. The warm and calm weather saw the bioluminescence come right up to the shoreline, which made it worth the three hours it took for James to capture this shot. “I could of stayed longer but it was just after midnight; it's the most beautiful phenomenon that someone can experience. I had the camera around 10cm off the sand in order to capture that perspective from a low angle,” James said.

• Share vehicle travel, use trains and public transport when you can.

• Avoid plastics when you can and take your own bags shopping.

• Turn your food waste into compost.

• Shop at opp shops, they have a broad range of items and clothing. The fashion industry is one of the highest polluters • Buy less new • Buy locally grown food if possible.

• Eat less meat and processed foods.

• Recycle or repair old items. The Bairnsdale

Bairnsdale Repair Cafe: The repair cafe in Bairnsdale gives us a chance to get broken items back in use rather than buying a new item. This again saves both money and reduces carbon emissions.

21

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

Easy ways to shop for healthful, cost-conscious foods

A

LMOST three months into the year now, is a good time to recalculate if you’ve been slacking on your resolution to eat healthy. And if you’ll be leaving home base or school soon and foraging for yourself (plus or minus roommates), it’s a great time to learn about healthy, low-cost choices for your grocery list.

The basics: A weekly shop A healthy diet is rich in vegetables, fruits, legumes (beans or lentils), whole grains, nuts, seeds, lean proteins, and low-fat dairy products.

Trying to fill your cart with all of those goodies can feel overwhelming.

But just think in terms of twos.

Aim to get two fruits and two vegetables of different colours, and two types of lean protein — such as fresh, frozen, or canned fish, chicken or lean ground turkey, or plant-based options.

Also recommended getting two foods in each of these categories on your weekly shopping trip: Plant proteins: such as canned or dried beans, tofu, tempeh, veggie burgers, or unsalted nuts or seeds

Whole grains: such as whole-grain bread, whole-grain pasta, brown or black rice, quinoa, or farro Dairy or non-dairy milk items: such as non-fat Greek yogurt or cheese.

Buying cost-conscious fresh food and staples Healthy food, especially organic produce, has a reputation for being expensive. But it doesn’t have to be.

Just do a little comparison shopping, here are some tips to save money on a grocery run: • Shop in a smaller store with fewer

choices.

• Carry a shopping list and stick to it.

• Go directly to the aisles you need.

Avoid browsing elsewhere, which may lead to extra purchases.

• Be flexible, have several options within your food categories, and go with sale items.

• Wait for sales of healthy nonperishable staples like quinoa, brown rice, whole-grain pasta, and high-fibre cereals.

Easy healthy snacks to reach for Move on from easy grab-n-go snacks, which are typically processed

foods. They often contain unhealthy ingredients and promote overeating.

Instead try some of these such as: • unsalted mixed nuts • string cheese • grapes and berries (rinse before eating) • clementines, bananas, or other fruits that don’t need washing • a rice cake with nut butter or hummus • fat-free Greek yogurt • a peeled hard-boiled egg.

To save money, buy certain foods in larger amounts when possible.

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22

FEBRUARY 16, 2024 The Great Eastern Mail

boating and fishing

racing & sport

East Gippsland Fishing Report

WITH TWO IT'S MORE EFFICIENT I

Lakes Entrance Along the rock wall for leatherjacket, using pipis. On the incoming tide for tailor, which are heading up towards Metung and around the islands, chasing metal lures.

Surf beaches have salmon and tailor, offshore at the Pipeline has snapper, flathead, gummies, and the odd Striped marlin.

Lake Tyers Mill Point and Fisherman’s Landing has garfish, some King Fish are also about. Over at the surf beach for tailor and salmon.

Mitchell River The Cut on the Mitchell River as it enters Lake King is a prime spot to catch bream, perch and the odd mullet, also try Eagle Point using softshell, cut crab and plastics.

Tambo River For bream give The Cliffs, Burns Flat down to Punt House Point all the way to the river mouth and The Snags a go with local prawn, shrimp, glassy’s and lures.

Nicholson Club day was a big success.

Bream, mullet and perch are about, best results on local or drifting prawn and soft plastics.

Metung Tailor are around Chinamans Creek, Shaving Point and into Lake King, preferred

baits being soft plastics, local prawn, worm and softshell.

Paynesville Town jetties and Newlands Arm for bream, Sunset Flats on the lake has tailor taking silver lures. Wollaston Bay for whiting on pipis, mussels and worm.

Holland's Landing Whiting may be found around Blonde Bay; bream are in the Straits.

Marlo Bream are around the islands and the odd perch taking local prawn. Salmon and tailor are being landed on the incoming tide chasing metal lures.

Bemm River The entrance is still closed.

In the lake and channel for flathead and bream, biting on local prawn and soft plastics.

Tamboon Inlet Salmon and tailor can be found at Pelican Point. Best bait for flathead is pilchards and the entrance is open.

Mallacoota Best spots for flathead and bream are around the top and bottom lakes and Harrisons Channel using soft plastics and local prawn. Offshore has a mixed bag.

Omeo High Country Fishing has returned to normal, for best results use dry fly, patterns, spinners, wobblers and drifting baits.

N the long history of the Victorian Derby and Melbourne Cup only two horses have won the blue riband event as a 3yo and then backed up the following year and taken the Cup. No prizes for guessing Phar Lap, but give yourselves a big pat on the back if you came up with the great grey, Efficient.

And here is the brilliant news. The 2007 Melbourne Cup winner will be the travelling mate for Prince Of Penzance when he attends the Bairnsdale Cup meeting on March 24th.

Wow, how's that? Two Melbourne Cup winners at Bairnsdale on the one day.

Oldtimers still talk about the day local champ, Family Of Man drew a crowd of around four thousand

Picture courtesy Racing Victoria

people to the January Hibernian Cup meeting.

So come on Bairnsdale, get behind our local racing club and come and get up-close to two of the most popular Melbourne Cup winners in history.

Bring the kids for a great

family day with the excellent playground facilities and plenty of activities and entertainment as well as meeting our equine celebrities. Admission for children under seventeen is free. That's an opportunity too good to miss.

A couple of sports shorts THE Whelan family of Metung proudly announced the arrival of nine puppies.

They are by their Silver Chief champion, Lakeview Walter out of the mother of Mac's Damage who recently ran third and collected $100 thousand in the Melbourne

Cup final. Valuable pups indeed.

And finally, plenty of Redlegs supporters will remember one of Bairnsdale's greatest players in John Gallus. John won the LVFL Rodda-Trood Medal three times during his career. Proud

Sunday 24th March

grandpa Jack was thrilled with the news that granddaughter, Olivia East has been included in Racing Victoria's apprentice inductee program for this year.

Brilliant news and we will follow Olivia's career closely, hoping to see her riding at Bairnsdale in the future.

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Come and support the local community and enjoy the up-close racing action that you’ll only get in the country. Whether you are looking for country casual or a catered experience, there are packages to suit everybody!

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23

The Great Eastern Mail FEBRUARY 16, 2024

racing & sport

THE BACH IS BACK CUPS IMPORT BREAKS THROUGH

T

Mikaela Lawrence returns to the mounting yard aboard Wiesenbach (GB) after winning the S&&S Equipment Hire 0 - 58 Handicap at Moe. Picture: George Sal/ Racing Photos.

Right: Connections of Weisenbach after winning the Buchan-Gelantipy Cup. Picture: Racing Victoria

Doctor Coto ridden

by Campbell Rawiller returns after winning the Monacellars Wine && Spirits BM64 Handicap at Sale. Picture: Leonie Grbic/Racing Photos Right Inset: Trainer, Rob Gilliland and beaming jockey, Caitlin King after winning with Doctor Coto.

Picture: Racing Victoria

HE Derby Italiano, first run in 1884, is 139 years old, just two years older than the Buchan/Gelantipy Cup with 137 runnings.

There is probably only one horse that has run in both; that would be the Sale trained grey, Wiesenbach.

The journeyman race horse, bred in Ireland, raced in Italy (Derby Italiano), had a racing stopover in Hong Kong (when given a German name), before joining the Gai Waterhouse stable in Australia on a major Cups campaign.

Struggling with the Irish/ Italian/Chinese/German/ English expectations, the quinlingual equine, the winner of only one race, found himself in the Sale stables of legendary Gippsland trainer, Mario Farrugia. Mario of course, fluent in Italian, sorted Wiesenbach out before handing the reins to daughter, Kerry, a former top Gippsland rider.

Sadly we lost Mario last year after more than 50 years in the Gippsland training ranks, but he did see Kerry train her first winner with Wiesenbach at Moe. It took 18 more starts before he would break through again, but it just happened to be in the time honoured, Buchan Cup. It was a benchmark win for horse, trainer and apprentice jockey, Sophie Clayfield, as it was the first Cup win for all three.

Sophie has had an injury ridden, chequered career, but

has finally grabbed her opportunity on the picnic circuit with six winners from 30 rides. She has come a long way since she kicked off her career as a 14 year old in Port Lincoln. She will be keen to retain the ride in the upcoming Hinnomunjie and Tambo Valley Cups.

Wonder in which language Sophie speaks to Wiesenbach?

It's a little reminiscent of the time a young female reporter asked Bart: "Mr Cummings, how do you think your horse will go in the Cup?" Bart looked up at horse and said: "Well I can't really tell you. He's from Germany.

I can't speak German and he can't speak English."

Another great training performance at Canni Creek was the turnaround in form of Doctor Coto.

Beaten 58 lengths at Mansfield (heavy 8) at his previous start and with a stewards warning hanging over him, the Rob Gilliland veteran

galloper relished getting back on to a firm track and landed his eighth win. The Doc will certainly have his eyes set firmly on further victories with rider Caitlin King on the picnic circuit.

Doctor Coto beat the Bairnsdale trained Black Banjo, who also earnt the wrath of stewards at Stoney Creek one day after getting beaten 32 lengths. Next start?

Won at Buchan!

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BAIRNSDALE • PAYNESVILLE • LAKES ENTRANCE • METUNG • SALE

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