Regional Extra 060923

Leo’s going to Japan

By CHLOE JAENICKE

AFTER years of immersing himself in Japanese culture, year 11 Wangaratta High School student, Leo Harwood, is getting the opportunity to spend a year in Japan thanks to the Rotary Club of Milawa Oxley Student Youth Exchange Program.

Leo learnt about the program through a friend who is currently in Japan on the Rotary Youth Exchange.

“I’ve always been interested in Japanese culture, and always wanted to travel there and after talking to my friend I discovered it was a possibility,” he said.

After the discussion with his friend, Leo began to immediately research the exchange program to find out more.

Leo then completed the application process and recently was told that he had been accepted by a Rotary club in Kanazawa while at a Rotary weekend event in Corowa where inbound, outbound and rebound students met to discuss their experiences and learn more about the exchange program.

Leo was initially introduced to Japanese culture through the Studio Ghibli films and was fascinated by the language.

■ Continued page 6

How to communicate with your dog

BODY language is one of a dog’s main ways they communicate with us, so it’s important we learn how to understand them.

Many people know that if a dog’s ears are flat against their head, it means they’re not comfortable or happy.

However, there are many different ear positions that, in conjunction with the tail position and movement, will tell you how your dog is feeling.

Staring directly into a dog’s eyes can be threatening – brief eye contact is fine, but you should avoid staring.

The other parts of the body to check are the tail, mouth, face and general body stance.

The overall picture of the dog will reveal a great deal about how they are feeling.

Common signs of stress or fear include yawning, frequent blinking, lip licking, panting, turning their head away and showing the white part of their eye.

If you see these signs (whether you

with RSPCA

are interacting with them or just observing), your dog is uncomfortable and needs your help and understanding to resolve the situation, so they feel comfortable again.

When interacting with your animal physically, watch their body language to see if they give consent for the interaction.

This means understanding the signs that show they would prefer you stop the interaction or want it to continue.

Remember; never punish your dog when they growl as this is intended as a warning.

If it’s suppressed due to punishment, then they may not give a warning next time.

Your dog may need time to get used to strangers and children.

Children must be taught how to behave safely around dogs and should never be left unsupervised around them.

Trout are on the bite, yabbies a spring surprise

TROUT season is well underway in local rivers and streams throughout the North East.

The season opened on Saturday morning and many keen anglers headed out in search of a wild brown or rainbow trout.

I didn’t get out trout fishing on the weekend myself, but I know a few people that did - and all of them reported quite good fishing.

From the handful of reports I have received, worms accounted for a lot of fish in the Ovens River near Harrietville and bladed spinners worked well in the Buckland River.

I have been told that both rivers are running quite high and wading is difficult so care needs to be taken.

If this spell of dry weather continues as it is forecast to, wading will get easier by the day.

I have not heard of any big trout being caught, but

pan sized trout seem to be quite abundant.

I put some yabby nets in a small dam on Friday night in the hope of catching a few bait sized yabbies.

To my surprise I caught a magnificent feed of very large yabbies.

All up I caught about a dozen big yabbies and one bait sized yabby.

I put the small one back into the dam as its life was in great danger in the bucket with the monsters. I caught my yabbies in two Collapsible Bait Traps baited with dry dog food.

I was not expecting to catch this many big yabbies so early on in the spring time with the water being so cold.

I have a feeling that we may be in for a great yabbying season this year.

There is no official yabbying season, but they are generally more active during the warmer months.

This Day In History, 1973

A SPECIAL dinner was held in Wangaratta to celebrate 50 years of yarn production.

It was an important step forward for Wangaratta at the time, particularly as the founders of the new industry chose to take a different direction from other woollen mills operating in Victoria.

It was decided that rather than concentrating on the blanket manufacturer, the new mill would make knitting yarns, which were at the time being imported.

◆

DOGS: It’s important to know how to communicate with dogs so we can understand them.

As well as providing much needed employment opportunities for Wangaratta youth, the mill also was able to generate enough electricity to supply the town as well as the mill.

COMMUNICATING WITH

◆ YUMMY YABBIES: A meal fit for a king. At 8am on trout opening I found myself cooking up a great feed of early season yabbies. I am looking forward to hitting the trout streams this week.

with Rob Alexander WANGARATTA

Wonderful lemonade scones

GET ready to embrace the beauty of spring with Beechworth Bakery’s freshly baked treats that are perfect for recharging after a hike, enjoying a picnic, or taking some me-time.

Their seasonal delights, including Red Curry Chicken Pies and Nutella Loaded Cookies, are sure to satisfy your cravings.

You can also indulge in their classic lemonade scones with jam and cream, which are available daily at Beechworth Bakery or can be made at home.

Makes: 16

Oven temperature: 175ºC

Baking Time: 15-18 minutes

Ingredients:

6 ½ cups plain flour

3 ½ tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

½ cup caster sugar

1 ¾ cups or 375ml lemonade

1 ¾ cups cream

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 175ºC.

2. Mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

3. Add lemonade and cream.

4. Knead together to form a soft dough. Don’t over-knead.

5. Turn out into slightly floured board.

6. Roll out to 2cm thick (30cm by 30cm).

7. Cut 16 squares.

8. Place on greased oven tray.

9. Brush top with milk,

10. Bake at 175ºC for 15–18 minutes.

◆ FRESH PRODUCE: Spring is the perfect time to grow your own produce.

Spring jobs in the vegie garden

GROWING your own produce is one of the most rewarding things to do in the garden.

As I pull out the last of the winter carrots, remove grassy weeds and pick the rocket leaves from plants that are rapidly going to seed, my focus turns to what is next.

With the recent rain and mild sunny days now is the perfect time to get out into the vegie patch.

It’s the season to refresh and renew.

The first thing to consider is the soil.

Edible plants are hungrier than non-edibles so we need to add organic matter and nutrients to replenish what’s been taken out.

Also, no matter what sort of garden soil you have, it will always be improved by adding organic matter.

I usually dig in a layer of homemade compost to my vegie beds, but well rotted manure or blood and bone would also be great.

After this, small seeds such as salad greens can be sown directly on top for a quick crop.

My favourites are baby spinach and rocket. Otherwise, you could top the beds with straw or leaves and let mother nature work her magic while you make up your mind what to plant.

Don’t be tempted to plant summer crops such as capsicums, tomatoes, eggplants and corn too early.

There is still a risk of frost around, and the soil is unlikely to be warm enough for a decent germination.

Local wisdom suggests after Cup Day in the cooler areas.

If you’ve got a greenhouse, however, you

can grow these crops out of season.

If you’re really keen, sow the seeds indoors and plant out later.

For our area, a terrific resource is the “North East Planting Guide”.

This poster has been developed with the expertise of passionate local gardeners.

It lists what seeds to sow in each month, and what seedlings to plant.

There are two sides to the poster – one for the hill country (e.g. Beechworth, Bright) and one for the lower valleys and plains (e.g. Wangaratta, Wodonga).

You can pick up a copy from the North East CMA office in Wodonga, or download it from https://www.necma.vic.gov.au/ Solutions/Sustainable-Agriculture/PlantingGuide

Recommended seedlings for planting in September are Asian greens, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, leeks, lettuce, salad greens, peas, snow peas and spring onions.

If you are more patient, all of the above are also suitable for growing from seed now, as well as beetroot, coriander, carrots, leeks, potatoes, radishes and silverbeet.

It is always better (and cheaper) to grow root crops from seed directly into the vegie garden.

Think carrots, parsnip and beetroot.

There are plenty of options, so why not get out into your patch this weekend?

Remember to keep feeding the soil. Most vegies will benefit from a liquid fertiliser such as fish emulsion or worm ‘juice’ at the time of planting plus regularly throughout the growing season.

with Natalie O’Connell part-time gardener, Yackandandah

Leo’s going to Japan

■ From page 1

“I become fascinated in watching shows and movies in Japanese, despite not being able to understand much of the language” he said.

From there, he continued to learn about Japanese culture and history which led to him picking up the language in order to learn more.

“It felt like this infinite rabbit hole that just gets more and more interesting as you continue learning, but I wasn’t really getting anywhere because I didn’t know the language very well, so I began formally learning it through the Victorian School of Languages,” Leo said.

Since then, Leo has immersed himself in the language through reading Manga in Japanese and changing all of his devices into Japanese.

Leo even has friends over in Japan who he said have been helping him

grasp the language and improve his Japanese conversational skills.

“My friends in Japan are really supportive and extremely helpful in improving my conversational skills in Japanese,” he said.

“Overall, just having that constant immersion of the language has been one of the best ways for me to improve my Japanese.”

Leo leaves for his year-long exchange to Japan in January 2024 and said what he was looking forward to most will be experiencing school in Japan.

“I am very excited the differences between school here and over in Japan,” he said.

“I am also very excited to meet new friends and live with different families from another culture.”

He is also excited to be able to fully immerse himself in the culture and see

FEATURE STORY

a new side of the world.

“If you only live in one spot, you only see one side of the picture whereas if you travel somewhere that speaks a completely different language, has different customs and traditions, you get to experience so much more, and I find that extremely interesting” he said.

Leo said he is extremely grateful to the Rotary Club of Milawa Oxley for all their help and highly recommends the youth exchange program to anyone considering it.

“The youth exchange with Rotary has been great, everyone is really nice and you learn so much and you meet so many amazing people through the travels and the time you spend with it,” he said.

For more information on the Rotary Club of Milawa Oxley Youth Exchange program visit www.rotaryclubofmilawaoxley.org.

◆ YOUTH EXCHANGE: After years of appreciating Japanese culture, Leo is excited to get the chance to visit.

NorthEast JOBS

JOBS AT INDIGO

Municipal Building Surveyor

Yackandandah

Visitor Information Centre

Employment opportunity!

We are currently looking for an enthusiastic person to join our team.

While we are looking for a person with some experience in the pump or outdoor power equipment industry. Even If you have provided.

Key Responsibilities: of pumps

equipment

To be successful in this role, you will need to: your feet

With

To

This an immediate start Full Time position.

If you think this is for you, phone or drop a resume into

Wangaratta Pump Shop, 71 Greta Road Wangaratta

Phone: 57221955, ask for Brendan

Email: wangpump@bigpond.net.au

ABORIGINAL CHILD CARE AGENCY

Senior Payroll Coordinator

Permanent

About Us: Brown Family Wine Group, an innovative, family-owned, multi brand wine business, is one of Australia’s most trusted and successful wine companies. We are in an exciting period of growth having recently expanded to five brands - Brown Brothers, Devil’s Corner, Pirie, Tamar Ridge and Innocent Bystander. We are a proud and passionate business who are strong on values and culture. Most recently we have been certified as “A Great Place to Work” and are committed to honouring this recognition throughout all aspects of the business.

The Opportunity: Reporting to the Head of HR, Risk & Safety, the Senior Payroll Coordinator will be responsible for administering, coordinating, and maintaining all payroll related functions for 250+ employees. This exciting opportunity will see you manage and coordinate our payroll process including but not limited to:

What’s Required:

What’s on Offer:

discounts on all products

More Information: Further information and a position description may be obtained by emailing Allyce Henwood at careers@brownfwg.com.au.

Applications close September 22, 2023.

EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Exciting opportunity for high performing, multi-skilled candidate to join Benalla’s Tomorrow Today Foundation.

This innovative community foundation is working to help build strength and resilience in our community, with a focus on improving future outcomes for local children and young people. Building on current success, the Executive Officer will provide strategic leadership and support to the Board and staff to achieve the Foundation’s purpose.

Permanent part-time position (0.6 EFT).

Position Description at www.tomorrowtoday.com.au

For confidential discussion regarding this position, please contact Louise Pearce, Chair, 0459 810 057. Applications close October 2, 2023.

Project Engineer

About Us: Brown Family Wine Group is one of Australia’s most loved and respected wine companies built on over 130 years’ experience in quality winemaking, market leading innovation and family values that are at the heart of everything we do as a business.

Our portfolio has grown over time to now include market leading wine brands such as: Devil’s Corner from the East Coast of Tasmania, Tamar Ridge and Pirie from Tamar Valley Tasmania, Innocent Bystander from the Yarra Valley and of course Brown Brothers from Milawa Victoria the spiritual home of our business.

About the role: Reporting to the Infrastructure and Reliability Manager the main responsibilities of this role include:

Lead capital and improvement projects, including developing business case proposals, managing project implementation, and integrating new and upgraded assets within the existing operating environment.

Lead engineering activities in relation to plant and equipment upgrades, new installations, and optimization of existing equipment. Develop clear project scoping including project initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and closure.

Interact with a variety of internal and external stakeholders to optimise effective and successful project delivery.

About you: The successful candidate will be highly motivated and have proven project management skills and experience. You will have a bachelors degree in a relevant engineering field, ideally, chemical/ process, mechanical Mechatronics or electrical. You will also have:

Able to develop concepts, define project scope and interpret engineering drawings and documents.

Uses rigorous logic and methods to solve problems with effective solutions in a team environment.

High level written and interpersonal communication skills that can be applied across a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders. Strong negotiation skills across all aspects or project development and delivery

More Information:  Further information and a position description may be obtained by emailing Allyce Henwood at careers@brownfwg.com.au .

Applications will close on September 22, 2023.

VICTORIAN

Minimise headaches with a Milwaukee lawn mower

SPRINGTIME is here and it’s the perfect time to tend to landscape the garden.

At North East Fasteners, we have the perfect lawn mower for you.

The M18 FUEL Self Propelled Lawn Mower meets the performance, durability and ergonomic needs of landscape professionals.

This lawn mower delivers the ultimate cut quality in mulching, bagging and side discharge applications thanks to the optimised steel deck design paired with a high-speed blade designed to achieve maximum airflow and increased lift. It also comes equipped with front and side LED lights allowing users 180-degree visibility in low light scenarios.

The REDLINK PLUS intelligence also allows for total system communication between the tool and battery to maximise performance, pro-

tection and productivity.

The lawn mower also eliminates all headaches due to the push button start, removing all frustrations that come with a pull start and no engine maintenance or emissions while in use making it an easy-to-use lawn mower for everyone.

INFLAMMATION is something we as university qualified naturopaths see in pathology markers, in nutritional deficiencies, hear from our clients, and observe in our community.

Now the good kind of inflammation, the one that happens acutely when we have injured ourselves to make us stop what we are doing and rest is great.

We love it.

It brings cells to the area to cause swelling to stop you moving and aids in repair.

The type that we are concerned about as preventative disease educators is the type that is chronic and worsened by smoking, chemical usage, poor dietary choices, abdominal weight, disease states or reactions to viruses.

I have seen clients present to the clinic with body aches, sleep disturbances, headaches, hormonal changes, digestive issues and fatigue following a virus and or the diagnosis of diseases such as arthritis, diabetes,

long COVID/ post viral syndrome and autoimmune diseases etc.

After assessment of their diet and lifestyle and some well-chosen supplements, these clients are seeing a great improvement in their energy, sense of wellbeing, sleep quality, exercise endurance and digestion.

Here are some simple tips to get you started on reducing your inflammation load.

• Eat the rainbow- the more the better. If it has been picked or grown in the ground- eat it.

• Drink at least 30 ml per kg of body weight.

• Move gently daily, start slow and build as your body allows.

• Reduce stressors and overwhelm.

• Reduce the amount of packets, numbers and manufactured “food” you are consuming. Need help to get started?

Visit our website at https://www.nenaturalhealthcentre.com/.

◆ GET MOVING: Moving your body can help reduce inflammation.

◆ SPRING INTO ACTION: The M18 FUEL Self Propelled Lawn Mower is the perfect tool to help you landscape the garden this spring.

with Dean Ackerly NORTH EAST FASTENERS

with North East Natural Health Centre