Wallaby watching from Ken Roberts on Vimeo.
Ken tracks down Wallace the Wallaby. For those not familiar with marsupials, these critters are vertically challenged kangaroos. Indigenous. Which means that somewhere in the undergrowth lurks a whole army of well-intentioned, but wholly misguided, rights advocates.
Crocodilus domesticus. Happy hunting. Up there with the loneliness monkeys. And the cyclone slip knot. Product of a furtive imagination. And a leather saddle.
I’d toyed with not owning up to a bit of creative writing. After all, if someone had fallen for a domesticated man-eating predator or a ludicrously implausible seaman’s knot, I’d not stand in their way. If only to get them out of the gene pool. Quickly.
But this is an increasingly litigious world. You know the sort. Reason they write "Caution Hot" on cups of steaming coffee.
Cycling in Tropical Queensland. During the wet season. About once an hour. Stop. Bus shelters ideal. Off boots. Pour water out. Remove socks. Wring out. Replace. Pedal away.
Dates from the days of Captain Cook. Cyclone slip knot. Devised to allow sailing ships to proceed from their moorings during tropical storms. Without the need for buoy jumpers. Rather, the ordinarily very secure knot slipping itself once winds reach something roughly equating to a Category One Cyclone. And just as effective for camping.
Estuarine. Saltwater. All different species of crocodilus. Crocodiles. To which, quite a few million years later, has been added crocodilus domesticus. Rarely growing to more than a metre in length, this genetically engineered critter makes for a very robust, if unusual, pet.
Like a parrot, its longevity – it’s very likely to outlive you – means you’d be wise to provide for it in your Will. Chlorine tolerant, any need for a specially constructed habitat is avoided. A small outdoor swimming pool being more than sufficient. And its passive, if playful, nature makes it ideal for small children. Always a favourite for pool parties.
They mean it. Wettest wet season in a decade. Mostly, it seems, on my head. Trust me on this one. Even if I’m not a doctor. Rocket scientist actually….
Difficult to comprehend. Over half a metre – something like twenty inches – of rain in just a few days. Flash floods. Local woman swept to her death. To the south, Cardwell. Devastated recently by Cyclone Yasi. Now submerged by swollen rivers. The Barron reaching a thirty year high. Main highway south closed. Trains disrupted. Far north Queensland cut off. Yet more extreme weather. Another example to add to my ever growing list. Tick.
I’d headed out of Cairns. Up into the Atherton Tablelands. Cooler than the coast. But, being over a thousand feet above sea level, invariably wetter. Frequently lost in cloud. There’d been talk of a storm as I’d left. An emotional departure. Leaving friends behind at the hostel. Assuring them I’d keep in touch. Their concerns about the weather seemed unfounded. Until later. Lightening. Torrential rain. Fortunate to be staying under cover.
In flood from Ken Roberts on Vimeo.
It’d take a brave soul to kayak over these falls. The river supposedly at its highest level for over three decades.
After the storm from Ken Roberts on Vimeo.
Ken ventures into proper, wild rainforest. After a spot of rain the previous night. About six inches. Sadly, sweeping one local resident to her death.
Story so far…. Struggling what to make of Aborigines. The indigenous people. Encounters haven’t exactly been encouraging. Sitting around. Often drunk. Not infrequently rude and abusive. But not stupid. Collectively very capable at playing the system. Knowing which buttons to press. And how hard.
Formulaic. Start with the premise that the wider society owes you something. Stick doggedly with this. Doesn’t matter if the injustices you rely on to assert your case for positive discrimination are now just historical footnotes. Actually, it helps. Much easier to distort faded memories in your favour than fresh recollections.
Dissenting voices are easily dealt with. Play the Race card. Or, better still, recruit a "do-gooder" from the same ethnic group as the opposition. A misguided apologist. Get them to do it for you. Gives accusations of racial discrimination, of prejudice, much more credence. No matter how unfounded.
Tongue-in-cheek? A little. But if there’s one place you can be sure of finding those harbouring prejudice based on race, then it’s amongst race relations practitioners or supposedly dispossessed minorities. Usually so blinkered they’re unable to see the irony…
For my own part, I’m sticking to some simple principles in my efforts to understand the Aborigines. Everyone an individual. To be judged on their own merit. But not a soft touch. Hard facts rather than emotional fiction. And never an apologist for history. The search continues…
