Patriot Realm

Many eons ago, millions in fact, what is now Victoria was a cauldron of volcanic activity, particularly to the north and west. Mt.Macedon, the prominent feature about 50kms north of Melbourne is reputed to have been the largest volcano that ever existed on this planet.

At the time Tasmania was part of the Australian mainland. Along with what is now the Mornington Peninsular a series of granite upthrusts formed a ridge which now features Mt. Eliza, Mt.Martha and Arthur’s Seat. Some millions of years ago Mt. Macedon erupted and sent a gigantic flow of lava to its southeast. This lava flow was restricted to the eastern side of the granite ridge which is about 100 miles from the crater. The lava flowed right across the land and ended at what is now the north-east tip of Tasmania. The rocks in that area have been confirmed as the same rocks that exist in the cliffs at Flinders. This is over 300 miles from the source. You can follow its path from the rich red soil that abounds in the Dandenong Ranges, Berwick, and Red Hill to the east of Arthur’s Seat. It emerges again in the form of the black cliffs of Flinders before disappearing under Bass Strait.

Commercial camping grounds anywhere in this great country during Christmas summer holidays downunder look awfully like those wretched railway lost and found sales of yore. Tents, boats, barbecues, golf clubs, surfboards, cars and trailers, and overflowing garbage bins all jammed together in abject disarray. It is a wonderful attraction for the curious.

However, this overly jaded curmudgeon wonders why people flee the city in search of the great outdoors and a little privacy to happily set up camp amongst hoards of strangers, close enough that family disputes can be followed word-by-un-Christian-word during a time of supposed spiritual reflection?

Yesterday, I went to see my Mum, Redhead. She needed a haircut. You see, her hair grows very, very quickly. My blonde hair takes months to grow as enthusiastically as hers does. Why does some hair grow quicker than others?

I will get onto that later in this article, but for the moment, what is it about hair colour? Really? Why do people prefer blondes? Brunettes? Redheads?

Before you think you are going to read about the ultimate answer to this puzzling question, well, nah.  It ain't gonna happen. 

OK. The lead photo is a bit misleading but if I had put a photo up of my Mum having a haircut, I doubt I would get many readers. 

In the closing stages of WW2 the Australian Army was given a role that offended the higher echelons of the defense forces.

While MacArthur and Nimitz were doing their island hopping towards the Japan, the Australian forces were given the task of mopping up areas already by-passed. This angered the likes of Blamey who saw it as a deliberate snub to Australia by not including them in the inevitable defeat of Japan.

I reject that notion completely.

My father's small failed mission and its members will never be mentioned anywhere.

Just blips in history.

Z Special Unit His small group 'Platypus VII' of four " Commandos"  sent off in a botched raid at almost the end of the War, to help with an invasion that was mostly for vanity whether for Australia's or for General MacArthur's benefit I'm not sure.

The Japanese in Borneo in July 45 should have been a 'mopping up' operation rather than an invasion from what I've read. The US had broken their fighting forces in the Pacific and sent most back to Japan, where the possibility of a long, difficult fight still looked very likely, before the Atomic bomb was dropped.