Keeping Up

November 26, 2001-Seasonal Anomalies

Only in Australia would there be a full-page ad with a red banner headline that says, FIRE ANTS. The page is covered with a map in shades of red & gray showing where the treatment areas are. An explanation of the nature & severity of the problem is cited stating,” …fire ants can easily be mistaken for our local ants. Fire ants are very aggressive and when they’re disturbed they will swarm and sting en masse.” There follows three sketches of the various sizes of fire ants & an emergency toll free number to call if you’ve seen any. Queensland Government Department of Primary Industries sponsors the ad. At the bottom of the page is a website: www.dpi.qld.gov.au.

It must be the rainy season. There have been a few showers that haven’t bothered anyone very much since it has stayed in the high 70’s-low 80’s. It’s been overcast, which is OK with me. Even with sun screen & a hat, I feel less vulnerable if the sun isn’t beating down on me as well. We tried to walk on the beach the other day & it was so windy we gave up. Our hats were blowing off, any exposed skin was covered with sand granules that stuck to our sunscreen, & David’s glasses were coated with grit. We just went from the beach to the path that parallels the shore & it was fine. We could still see the ocean.

David has been telling people here what they need to make Australia great are two things: good kosher hot dogs & Krispie Kreme Donuts. People understand about the hot dogs since most have been to the States & have eaten them. But Krispie Kreme is an enigma. The other day, David was talking to a man who’d just returned from a trip to the U.S. He marveled at his new find. He’d been to Chicago, L.A., & Las Vegas and had fallen in love with Krispie Kreme. We’ll probably go on line to see what it takes to get a franchise. Anyone interested?

Not only do they have tall & short coffee here, but they also have long & short soup. We went to a Chinese restaurant & were surprised we were having trouble reading the menu. Short soup is wonton & long soup has long noodles in it. I’d also never seen emu satay or moo shu roo before. True to Aussie cuisine, the kung pao chicken was mild, but flavorful. The Mongolian beef was great.

November 27, 2001-Adaptation

I know I’ve told you that everyone here has a mobile phone. There’s no such thing as unlimited phone service on landlines, so they tend to use their mobiles a lot. Text messaging is also popular. It’s a source of a lot of inane communication & contributes to road hazards. People aren’t only dialing their phones & talking while driving, they’re also reading text messages. I haven’t yet seen anyone drive & send a text message. I’m sure it happens. Now there’s something new. A soap opera has been written solely for use on mobile phones. If you subscribe, you’ll get daily scripts text messaged to your phone. Has this caught on in the U.S? What next? I’ll keep you posted.

I really wanted to reciprocate & invite the Bruces for dinner, so I bit the bullet. They’re coming for Shabbat dinner this Friday. I’m madly cooking brisket in my trusty electric skillet. I got one brisket yesterday & have to buy another today. My freezer has limited space. I was toying with the idea of having everyone go down to the IGA & get ice-cream bars for dessert. I have no baking pans or recipes. If their kids come, we’ll have to move the table in from the balcony. Needless to say, with only service for four, we’ll use paper & plastic.

Just got a call from the young couple visitng from the States saying we’re on for tomorrow. They’re the son & daughter-in-law of friends. We’re really excited to be able to take them into the Hinterlands & rainforest and spending the day with them. I’m kind of flattered they’d want to spend time with the old folks. I guess they survived the flight to the Reef.

If any of you can find the web site for Krispy (Krispie) Kreme Donuts, I’d appreciate it. I’ve been unsuccessful in my search, although I did find an article that said cheerleaders at Brigham Young Univ. love them.

Toby