The Local Issue 165 December 30, 2019

The Local

TL

December 30, 2019 Issue 166 Looking back...

The Local

TL

December 30, 2019 Issue 166 Looking back...

The Local - The Heart of the Highlands

2 About Us

www.tlnews.com.au

TL The Local

Front cover: It's been a busy year at The Local - and cartoonist Glenn Robinson has captured some of our favourite front pages!

December 30, 2019 Issue 166 Looking back...

ly did make me a Copywriting probab ad Nobody wants to re commercial writer. it ep ke to you have advertising copy, so to have trick them in t os punchy; you alm Moriarty reading it. - Liane

The Local

TL

December 30, 2019 Issue 166 Looking back...

The Local - The Heart of the Highlands

The Local is a registered trademark of The Local Publishing Group Pty Ltd. The Local is a member of the Victorian Country Press Association.

The content expressed within this publication does not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of The Local Publishing Group Pty Ltd. The Local is a fortnightly community publication covering the Central Highlands. The next edition is out on Monday, January 13, 2020.

Or online on Sunday, January 12 at www.tlnews.com.au Advertising deadlines for the next edition of The Local: Space bookings: Wednesday, January 8 Copy deadline: Thursday, January 9 Editorial deadline: Thursday, January 9 Managing editor | Donna Kelly General manager | Kyle Barnes Sub-editors | Nick Bunning and Lindsay Smith Sales | Charl Parris on 5348 7883 or sales@tlnews.com.au Writers | Kevin Childs, Kate Taylor, Anthony Sawrey, Peter Young, Barbara Curzon-Siggers and Donna Kelly Photographers | Kyle Barnes and David White Graphic designer & HLH coordinator | Dianne Caithness Cartoonist | Glenn Robinson Columnists | Glen Heyne (gardening), Indre Kisonas (design), Sam Redlich (wellbeing), Matthew Richardson (money) and Tanya Loos (nature) Business Development | Charl Parris Accounts | Julie Hanson

Delivery | Anthony Sawrey

Call us for news and advertising on 5348 7883 or 0416 104 283 Email: news@tlnews.com.au or sales@tlnews.com.au See all our e-editions at www.tlnews.com.au See a photo you like? Photos are just $22 each, or $55 for commercial use, and will be emailed at high resolution. You can print as many as you like...

Wishing all our clients and readers a happy and healthy 2020!

www.tlnews.com.au

News 3

Ready or not, here comes 2020...

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NE year and 26 editions have flown by since we did our last retrospective edition, created by Dianne Caithness and pictured right.

And in another two days 2020 will have arrived. Wow. I still remember looking for that "special" outfit for 1999 and wondered if we would have a world that worked on January 1, 2000. And we did.

This has been a busy year for the crew of The Local. There are always plenty of people to chat to, stories to write, copy to proof, photos to take, adverts to make sing, copies to deliver and accounts to keep on top of. We also welcomed business development officer Charl Parris and cartoonist Glenn Robinson to the team this year.

We originally talked to cartoonist George Haddon, who many people would remember from The Herald Sun and the RACV RoyalAuto magazine, and he was keen. But then he remembered he had retired and introduced us to Glenn, who is an honorary local, spending a fair bit of time around the region.

Charl is a Trentham resident, involved in lots of local organisations there, and already making her mark with some really terrific sales campaigns - and imbuing our office with some great energy.

Meanwhile, in this December 30 edition, we have done a bit of a look back at 2019, choosing a range of stories which you may or may not remember, but which do offer a glimpse of what we have been up to.

It's always hard choosing just a handful of stories from five or six features running every edition. The geese, of course, were always going to get a guernsey, but then we added in a touch of history with the Woodend Race Course, characters with Peter Stripes, roadside stalls with Hillcrest Farm, LGBTIQ with Gay and Pray, okonomiyaki (just trust us on this), crafters with Trentham's Helen McRae and musos Cookin' on 3 Burners.

Then there's the best photos of the year. Kyle offered to go searching but I was pretty sure he would never have been able to cut the field down to even 200. We only had two pages so if you have been photographed by one of our wonderful snappers, and aren't on those pages, it was purely space and time. We do pride ourselves on our quirky photos and Kyle and Anthony Sawrey's photos received highly commended in this year's Victorian Country Press Association Awards.

Oh, I also found myself voted in as a director of the VCPA in November which I think says a lot about The Local and its quality. And maybe a little about my 30+ years in the game. I do think it's great for a small independent news magazine to be given a voice at the big table.

And despite having a great year we are not resting on our laurels. Next year we are looking at a huge website revamp and will be upping our social media to the next level. Print is still the name of the game for us, and we think our clients and readers as well, but digital is well and truly here and we are investing big time in this space.

Having said that, after all these years in the industry, I really believe that successful publications are all about good journalism, engaging advertising and great people. And we have that in spades at The Local.

I would like to thank all our advertisers and readers, and our crew.

You make this "work" a wonderful thing. I have written for, and edited, many publications, but nothing has given me the satisfaction of being a part of something bigger, of connecting the community as we like to say, as The Local.

Wishing you a wonderful, happy and healthy 2020!

Cheers, Donna

December 31, 2018 Issue 140 The year that was...

The Local - The Heart of the Highlands

"I would like to thank all our advertisers and readers, and our crew.

You make this 'work a wonderful thing.

I have written for, and edited, many publications, but nothing has given me the satisfaction of being a part of something bigger, of connecting the community."

4 Words

www.tlnews.com.au

Local Lines

Vale Tristan

ASH WEDNESDAY WINDOWS

Tristan Aaron Varga-Miller

Delivered early, waiting for walls, they lay on their backs beside charred brickwork.

Born December 24, 1966 - Died December 13, 2019

They had been blasted dark at the edges.

Glass sagged in the frames.

He looked down at the only views he’d ever see through them, vistas of soil, weeds fused into the panes.

When he knelt beside one and tried the latch I thought he was about to raise the warped sash.

But he wiped scorched dust from the powder coated metal and stood to inspect the next burnt earth outlook.

He pointed to singed grass pressed beneath waves of double glazing.

I left him patrolling the melted windows, checking the shifts in perspective, the small distortions.

- Ross Gillett Ross Gillett lives in Daylesford. His latest book The Mirror Hurlers has just been published by Puncher and Wattmann (www.puncherandwattmann.com/books/ recent/).

On Ash Wednesday in 1983 his father was working on the construction of a house at Moggs Creek on the Great Ocean Road.

Poems for Local Lines come predominantly from a group of poets. However, other locals who would like a poem considered for publication can contact Bill Wootton - cottlesbreedge@gmail.com

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RISTAN Varga-Miller lived among us in Daylesford and Ballarat for some 20 years, and we knew him as an easy-going friendly bloke, with a ready smile and honest laugh who worked in journalism and also played a mean guitar at Dooley’s, the Farmers, Radio Springs and the Glenlyon General.

But it might surprise many to learn that when Tristan died, on December 13, people around the world were shocked and saddened.

Tristan passed away in the Footscray Hospital after a sudden and brief illness, and as soon as word of his death got out, messages of condolence and grief began to pour in to his friends and family: from New York, San Francisco, Detroit, New Zealand, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, and the Central Highlands.

We should be wishing him a happy birthday; Tristan was born in a Detroit suburb on December 24, 1966, and raised in the Dandenongs. His parents, Ross and Gina Miller, are retired school administrators and art teachers. He also leaves his sisters, Danielle and Sascha, a daughter, Rosa, a son, Niko, an ex-wife, Abbie, and hundreds of friends.

In the 1980s and 1990s he was Mr Everywhere on the St Kilda music scene. He played in bands and led his own groups - too many to list here. He loved the music and loved the people, and everyone, it seemed, loved him, because he was kind, passionate and honest.

Somehow, he also managed to sustain a career as a fine graphic designer at The Age and Ballarat Courier, where he was one of the most successful art directors in that paper’s history.

I met Tristan in 1986 and we began a friendship that continued right up to today. We had so many adventures, and could talk for hours, but we could also sit and listen to music and not say a word, just exchange knowing looks. He was special.

I’m better for having known him.

Above, Tristan plays at the Radio Springs Hotel in Lyonville Words & image: Jeff Glorfeld

#goosegate

It was one of the biggest stories of the year for Hepburn Shire. The council, after what most people described as very little consultation, rounded up a flock of 29 geese from Lake Daylesford and removed them to a place unknown in July. There was outrage by the many who loved the waterfowl and believed they gave life to the lake. In October they advocated for a community flock to be returned. This article ran in Edition 160.

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GROUP of Hepburn Shire residents is advocating for a small, “community” flock of geese to be returned to Lake Daylesford.

“Veterinary advice is that there is a certain amount of natural selection from predation and that applies in any environment in which geese live. A flock of 10 or more doesn’t suffer fatigue or high risk as they each naturally take turns on ‘watch’ and they do this for the whole flock. They do not require an enclosure as they have a large body of water,” she said.

“The geese require worm treatment once every three months. That is a matter of a person wrapping a treat and ensuring each bird gets a treat. It is not hard or costly.

We could involve kids from the primary school in helping with this, they would have fun interacting with the geese and it could be used as an opportunity to educate them about geese and other waterfowl.”

Ms Le Long said to stop the geese making their way up to King Street, the road down to the car park could be modified with a cattle grid and a low fence on each side of the road.

“It would require crowdfunding, but it could be achieved without too much expense, and there are many people who would be more than happy to help make something like that happen,” she said.

“I have spoken to a lot of people about the idea of a community flock and have received lots of offers to help. With passionate people and with such a great body of water, we can make this happen! We are all committed to raising the funds for the worming treatment, installation of the cattle grid and signs. We just need the community to get on board to persuade the council to support this idea.”

The call comes after Hepburn Shire Council removed a flock of 29 geese and six ducks in July citing biodiversity and animal cruelty issues.

One of the group, Ballarat Poultry Society member, Di Le Long, said since the removal of the geese, Lake Daylesford had been lifeless.

Ms Le Long said the geese were a vital part of the ecosystem of the lake, the protectors of other waterbirds, particularly from foxes, and since their removal many other birds had also left the area.

“Other councils, such as Macedon Ranges and Port Phillip, value what geese bring to their lakes in Riddells Creek and Albert Park and I believe our council now understands the depth of feeling people have for the Daylesford geese.

“We are advocating for a small community flock to bring back the diversity of waterbirds to the lake, and to restore the creatures who gave such delight to locals and visitors alike.

“We have a community garden, a community cinema – why not a community Image: Kyle Barnes flock?” Ms Le Long said the group proposed a small flock of 10 or 11 geese.

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VERY year our photographers get out and about amongst it all to bring some great photos to the pages of The Local and 2019 was no exception. It's hard to choose just a few but these are some of our favourites for the year.

Opposite page: clockwise from top, Pink Muesli founder Marita Valenzuela gets her pink on, Ruby Wilson-Pierce launches her jewellery collection, Simone and Scott Hovey and their roadside stall at Dean, and Dharma School principal Jen Willis with her students This page: Chris Olver aka Mick Taylor from Wolf Creek, and left, the huge crowd at ChillOut 2019 Images: Kyle Barnes Many thanks to our photographers over the year - David White, Anthony Sawrey, Beck Walker, Helen Greenwood, Ethan Brown, Charl Parris and Richard Ryan.

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Conservation Corps help at Cornish Hill

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ELPING the Friends of Cornish Hill with clearing and brush cutting the walking tracks recently was a team of nine California Conservation Corps volunteers.

Friends spokesperson Margie Thomas said recent rain and warmer temperatures had seen a massive growth of grasses and fire risk had been a worry.

"With the main tracks clear of high grass, those enjoying a walk on the reserve can be reassured that the way is clear again for them to enjoy the ambience of this wonderful reserve in the heart of Daylesford," she said.

Words & image: Contributed

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Gay and Pray

This article was published in Edition 154 and was a great tick to what is happening locally and further afield with the Anglican Diocese of Bendigo.

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AY and Pray, an initiative started at St Mary’s in Woodend by Father Neil Fitzgerald, and now headquartered in Daylesford, has been accepted as a formal mission by the Anglican Diocese of Bendigo.

Daylesford Christ Church congregation member Jenny Jordan, pictured with Father Neil, took the motion to the recent annual Bendigo Synod, as a representative, where it was voted in, 47 to 21.

Jenny said she started out questioning what the Anglican church was doing about last year’s marriage equality laws but realised after research and talking to clergy that would be a “bridge too far” at the moment.

Instead her motion was for the Synod to commend to parishes, both Gay and Pray and Held Together in the Love of Christ, a pastoral resource published by the Church of England, “as they develop a welcoming attitude toward, and grow in understanding of the difficulties faced by LGBTIQ church members”.

The motion also included: “That we affirm that all people are created in the image and likeness of God and are accorded equal dignity, regardless of their gender or sexuality.

“We acknowledge the reality of the recent change in Australian marriage law to include same-sex couples. That the Synod commends the importance of developing robust pastoral relationships with all of those who desire to be married.

“I felt it was really, in the end, the only thing that could be usefully done to encourage churches to open their doors to LGBTIQ members. When I spoke to the motion, I wanted to underline the fact we had spent two days talking of Jesus’ message of compassion and love thy neighbour and ministry to refugees and prisoners, and it just seemed logical to include this.

“I was just really sad and angry and I wanted to push that issue forward. Another really powerful thing for me is that I have had gay friends say to me it has been wonderful to come to Daylesford because they can be themselves and breathe a sigh of relief and be accepted. If you are straight, you never have to deal with that.

“There were even people in the (Synod) room who have to fly under the radar and live a lie, and that should be anathema to Christians who believe in love.

“We need to move forward. I just hope it is a step in the right direction and there were definitely people with a real light in their eyes saying, ‘thank you’.

“Marriage equality (in the Anglican church) will happen, it will be a long time because of the conservative element, but it will happen. We just need to keep pushing.”

Father Neil, who moved to Christ Church Daylesford in 2017, said he started Gay and Pray in Woodend in 2015 in response to the bad publicity the churches were receiving when talking about the gay community.

“We decided we would openly welcome the gay community, put signage up and put the word out we were a safe place for gay people to come and worship.

“It has been picked up by St John’s at Malmsbury, St Paul’s at Kyneton and St George’s at Trentham and now the headquarters are at Daylesford. And it was always a ministry of our parish and the diocese but now it has been formalised so that every parish within the Bendigo Diocese will have information on how to welcome the gay community, or people struggling with their sexuality.

"They will be able to give them information about what they need, what the right things to say are, what the wrong things to say are, where they can be referred if they feel they are in danger, or simply to educate their congregation on how difficult it is for gay people of faith to step into a church.

“We are at the cusp of the new dawn of this era and it is a massive tick from the Diocese. I am so proud of the Diocese and the support of not just our clergy but Woodend and Kyneton and Bishop Matt Brain. To have that sort of calibre standing up for this…”

Father Neil said Jenny, along with the united Daylesford congregation, also found support at the Synod with deacons and priests standing behind her as she stood at the microphone showing their solidarity.

“And with the same sex marriage situation, which will probably never change in my lifetime as a vicar, it will give parishes tools on how to handle people who are married and what their needs are and try not to alienate them from church life. Even knowing the church has a different stand on performing marriages doesn’t mean we can’t accept and embrace them.”

Father Neil said while it would be a “tough climb” he was hoping the initiative would one day be rolled out to at least neighbouring Ballarat and Melbourne but would love to hear from any parishes throughout the country keen to take part.

“Here, we are all onboard and enthused and energised with this. The Daylesford congregation is one in a million, to stand behind Jenny, and then to have other clergy stand behind her on the day, it’s a TV midday movie in the making.”

Alcohol misuse group for women

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ARTNERING with SMART Recovery Australia, Cobaw Community Health will be running a free weekly meeting for women to explore their misuse of alcohol.

SMART Recovery is a group program guided by trained peers and professionals where participants help themselves and each other to change problem behaviours using a combination of cognitive behaviour therapy and motivational tools and techniques.

The program starts on Thursday, January 16 and meetings will be held during the day in Kyneton.

More details on the program and how to register can be found on Cobaw’s website or call Linda or Julie on 5421 1666.

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Hepburn House Every month The Local's Kate Taylor talks to a resident or staffer at Hepburn House while photographer Kyle Barnes heads over to snap their photo.

Here are a few pics from 2019.

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Woof!

Woodend racing The Local's journalist Anthony Sawrey has dug up some fabulous historical articles over the years - with generous help from the region's historic and heritage societies. Many are about the area's mining history but this is all about racing. This first ran in Edition 148.

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S YOU drive into Woodend from Tylden, a great portion of Forest Street is dominated by the Woodend Racecourse and Recreation Reserve. There are all types of buildings and facilities scattered around the site ranging from netball courts and the Buffalo Sports Stadium to jumps and sand covered training arenas for the local pony club.

But the reserve also has a very interesting history as the former site of the Woodend Race Club competition track. During its many years of operation Woodend was one of the most popular thoroughbred racing venues outside of Melbourne and it was not poor crowd attendance that forced its closure in 1982.

The Woodend Race Club was founded in 1860, barely eight years after the first land sales led to development in the fledgling village, and the first meetings were held at nearby Golf Course Hill. By the 1890s the club was looking at relocating to the Forest Street site which had originally been established as a military training reserve.

The first public race event took place there in January 1903 and by 1924 the site had grown to 26 hectares and boasted a track length of eight and a half furlongs (1.7 kilometres). It proved to be a very popular venue for locals and visitors alike with meetings held on Wednesdays and Saturdays and by the 1940s, harness racing and greyhound sprints were also held there.

However, by the early 1980s and despite its popularity, the Victorian Racecourse Licenses Board moved to close the track. The Victorian Government had decreed that there should only be one major racecourse in the area and so the Woodend Race Club, after 122 years in existence, was amalgamated with Kyneton Racing Club. The last meeting was conducted on Thursday, March 18, 1982 and the final race was the Chinka Steel Progressive Handicap. The last ever horse over the Woodend finish line, several lengths behind the rest of the field, was the six-year-old gelding Storm Relic.

“Many of the big crowd present,” noted an article in The Telegraph, “had a lump in their throat and a tear in their eyes”. “The two clerks of the course (Mrs. Chris Turnbull and Mr. Ron McKenzie) had appropriately donned black coats to replace their traditional red to lead the horses into the final race.”

In large urban areas when similar sporting and community reserves are closed, development tends to quickly flatten everything and build over what remains. This is not so common with rural sites where memories are not promptly erased but simply shifted, added to and choked with gorse and blackberries. This is certainly the case with the Woodend Racecourse and even today, nearly 40 years on, much remains to look at and wonder about.

The track itself is relatively complete, though the back straight now serves as part of the Five Mile Creek walking track, there is also a photo finish and race caller’s tower, vet’s room, jockey weigh-in shed and the 45-metre long covered spectator stand built in the 1940s. Unfortunately, it is in poor condition and surrounded by temporary fencing to keep the curious at bay.

Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s Planning and Environment director Angela Hughes said the council’s heritage consultants had identified that the Woodend Racecourse was potentially of local heritage significance.

“The site demonstrates the importance of this form of sport as a recreational activity within the rural community of Woodend and the broader Macedon Ranges Shire community for a long period. At the upcoming ordinary council meeting, on April 24, council will consider exhibiting an amendment to protect the site through the Macedon Ranges Planning Scheme.

“Should council endorse the heritage documentation, the community will have the opportunity to make submissions on this proposal through the planning scheme amendment exhibition process.”

(Many thanks to the Woodend and District Heritage Society for its assistance with this article.)

Above: The Woodend Cup 1979 won by Tree Fella Image: courtesy of the Woodend and District Heritage Society Inset: The stand today Words: Anthony Sawrey

House.Land.Home.

Plants aren’t just for Christmas

From above:

So, you’ve scored some new and attractive plant life in your swag of Christmas goodies! Now you have to decide where they are going to live in your house or garden, but more importantly, how to care from them, especially if you’re not going to be around for the holidays to look after them.

Violet - an unlikely duo, the delicate, free-flowering favourite, African violet and a hardy rhoeo discolor, commonly known as ‘Moses in the cradle’ for its cockle-like flowers which cluster around the base of its stems

Indoor plants With most indoor plants the task is relatively easy. They generally suffer from over-watering rather than from too little, so if your laundry or bathroom is relatively dark and cool, give each of the plants a good slow, soaking drink - waiting for any bubbles to finish coming up from the potting mix. Then place the pot(s) in either the trough/bath, or even a large bucket, and then either fill the container with several centimetres of water, or thoroughly soak and wrap a newspaper around each pot, to increase humidity and slow the drying out of the soil.

Alternatively, in the case of such plants as the very popular phalaenopsis, or moth orchids, which grow in spaghnum or peat moss rather than soil, and thrive on moisture provided by a slow-melting ice cube, simply place either a larger ice block or several cubes in the pot before you leave.

Most of your indoor plants will prefer to be kept in a well-lit spot away from direct sunlight and draughts, they are usually content to be in a darkened spot for a short time.

In the good old days when all flower pots were made of porous terracotta it was simply a case of putting all the pots together in the laundry trough and filling it halfway up the sides of the pots to let the pots themselves absorb the water.

If, on the other hand, you are going to be around most days to care for the new plants, it’s merely a matter of deciding on the a place for them that best suits you and the plant in question and I think the plant’s needs should win out in that.

Other than avoiding a few dislikes, such as hot, or cold draughts, being in the path of, or too near, air conditioners or gas heaters, or scorching sunlight through glass, the general rule of thumb is that ornamental foliage plants are content in darker spots and flowering ones need plenty of sunlight to be encouraged to “strut their stuff”.

Trees or shrubs for the great outdoors If you receive something for the garden and you don’t intend to plant it now, or are going to be away for a short time, other than recruiting a “carer” in your absence, do your best to prevent them drying out.

Find a protected, shady corner under the eaves or among shrubs or overhanging trees and clump the pots as closely together as possible away from direct sunlight and pack either wet, scrunched-up newspaper, straw or similar between them and wrap wet sacking around the pack. If a corner of the bag is poked into a bucket or deep tray full of water the old “wet waterbag” effect will make a lot of difference - especially if wet newspaper is packed across the tops of the pots.

If you are going to be away for a while, don’t pot or plant them out until your return, they will survive better undisturbed in the containers than having their roots disturbed and left to become established in a probably exposed and dry garden bed.

Besides, unless you already have a place, or large pot in mind, you will have time to really consider the perfect position for them.

Cyclamen - the all-time favourite potted bulb for the windowsill, shade-house and even under trees in a shady garden Moth orchid - the almost foolproof phalaenopsis blume or moth orchid has taken over as the go-to gift plant, sweeping, cyclamen, fuchsias, begonias and all in its path

Snake plant another almost unkillable pot plant, sansevieria variegata or variegated snake plant, which almost comes undone whenever it gets into the hands of overzealous waterers.

Before you go When you think a It’s always a good idea to check on and summer-proof your most vulnerable drink is overdue plants and beds before going away for an extended period, even if you have acquired it probably isn’t. the aid of a friendly neighbour or friend to keep an eye on things.

Loves the sunshine Give your beds and lawns a good long soaking, preferably not with a sprinkler, and make sure the beds and shrubbery are covered with a thick layer of organic mulch and porous sandlike soil to eliminate evaporation and keep young surface feeding roots cool. Not only will that help your plants, it will reduce your water bills.

It is even better if your garden is watered via a slow-release watering system such as the brown polypipe with internal drippers.

REIV regional update

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HE Victorian auction market has shown no signs of slowing down this summer.

Over the December 14 and 15 weekend alone there were 993 auctions reported to the Real Estate Institute Victoria, with 748 selling and 245 being passed in, 115 of those being vendor bids.

December’s strong property sales in Victoria continued from the momentum built over a very prosperous spring.

Auctioneers got into the festive spirit with many donning Santa hats, playing carols and providing Christmas food at auctions across the state.

Listings have picked up this December with many property owners taking advantage of great economic conditions placing their homes on the market.

Buyers are hungry to purchase local property with low interest rates and easier lending conditions leading to higher demand for housing and properties prices are growing.

An auction clearance rate of 75 per cent was recorded across Victoria in the week leading to December 13, keeping pace with the 76 per cent rate achieved the previous week and much higher than the 50 per cent clearance rate recorded in 2018.

The market has shown consistently strong results since late August, with auction clearance rates staying over 70 per cent every week.

The fact that so many families are selling their homes, during what is traditionally a busy time of the year indicates the great amount of confidence local sellers have in the real estate market. Investors are looking at Victoria after seeing the strong growth over the past five years.

Meanwhile, REIV president Leah Calnan, has called on the Victorian Government to be mindful of the low vacancy rates across Victoria when it goes through the next stage of rental law reform.

The REIV has had a working committee analyse the proposed Residential Tenancies Regulation in great detail and has made an official submission to the State Government.

Ms Calnan said the REIV was committed to working with the state government to achieve the best outcomes for all parties.

“The state government is intent on putting the reforms through. The REIV has had a team looking at the changes and has made a submission that focusses on getting the best result for landlords, tenants and agencies,” Ms Calnan said.

Link: www.reiv.com.au

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Kyneton exhibition

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ULTI-MEDIA artist, photographer and published author of eight books, Penny Reilly is holding her second gallery exhibition, at The Old Auction House in Kyneton from January 3 to 20.

Still Scapes at Cosmo

Her first exhibition was In Stillness in February 2018, when she launched her own Daylesford gallery, Beyond the Gate.

Penny lives near Daylesford, where she works from her home studio on a rural, eight-hectare property. A full-time artist, she works with multi-media, ink, water colour, charcoal and mixed media/fine art.

She studied art and art history in the UK and completed a visual arts and professional photography course in Ballarat. All her work is inspired by her natural surrounds and nature. Her current collection, Water, Stone, Spirit and Bone, speaks to the fragility of the planet and the rapid loss of species and natural habitats. Seven pieces will be shown of this collection at Kyneton exhibition.

Right: The Last Butterfly

P

HOTOGRAPHER Mike Rutherford is holding an exhibition, Still Scapes, at The Cosmopolitan Hotel in Trentham from January 4 to March 31.

More than 30 images portray the Macedon Ranges and Hepburn shires areas in ways that are both dark and moody, and inspiring.

Mike is a former international advertising photographer who bought the Lying In Hospital (for new mums) in Trentham. It was built in the late 1800s and he is busy renovating when not out and about doing photography.

In 2019 Mike took two trips to India for photography and many of those images are also in the exhibition. He will be exhibiting in Delhi next year and Mumbai in 2021.

Mike has lived in Trentham for more than 15 years and is passionate about showing a side to the region that is beyond the usual tourism shots. For example, he has done a set of images on the old pool in Kyneton as part of a series on climate change.

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18 Markets

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To market, to market, to buy some New Year treats

Y

OU can find everything you need at weekend markets, from fresh fruit and veg to handmade jewellery and wares, throughout the Central Highlands and surrounds. Here are just a few.

Daylesford Sunday Market – every Sunday Wesley Hill Market - every Saturday Daylesford Farmers Market – first Saturday Trentham Neighbourhood Centre Makers Market - first Saturday Golden Plains Farmers Market - first Saturday Woodend Farmers Market - first Saturday Castlemaine Artists’ Market – first Sunday Trentham Community Group Market - second Saturday Kyneton Farmers Market - second Saturday Ballan Farmers Market - second Saturday Kyneton Rotary Community Market – second Saturday Maldon Market – second Sunday Clunes Farmers Market - second Sunday Trentham Farmers Market and Makers Market - third Saturday Glenlyon Farmers Market – third Saturday Leonards Hill Market - third Saturday Creswick Market - third Saturday Talbot Farmers Market – third Sunday Woodend Lions Market - third Sunday Malmsbury Village Farmers Market - third Sunday Trentham Station Sunday Market - fourth Sunday Buninyong Village Market - fourth Sunday

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Dine review 21

Okonomiyaki 'oishii' at Boathouse Restaurant One of the many fabulous parts of working on The Local is going out and doing dine reviews. And let's face it, we live in an amazing part of the world with beautiful food that is fresh and local and delicious. And we love it when people say they have read our reviews, headed to the restaurant and been impressed by the food, service and atmosphere. Apparently the wonderful Boathouse Restaurant had quite a few requests for okonomiyaki, pictured right, after this review ran in Edition 161. It was delicious!

I

LIVED in Japan for three years, and have returned many times, but I just had the best okonomiyaki of my life, right here, at The Boathouse Restaurant at Lake Daylesford.

I love The Boathouse. Owners Claire and Susanne used to have the Farmers Arms Hotel and that's where we first met over beers and wine at the bar - and great food.

Then they had some time out and it was fantastic to hear they were taking over The Boathouse - with its spectacular lake views from pretty much every seat.

There's always a friendly greeting waiting and we generally choose the long table in the front room to catch up on a bit of gossip. The restaurant is open for lunch from Wednesdays to Sundays and then for dinner on the weekends. With the warmer weather on the way the deck is going to be the place for kicking back and watching the world go by. But back to the food.

The okonomiyaki was fabulous. A squash and cabbage savoury pancake topped with Japanese mayo, deliciously oozy okonomiyaki sauce, salad greens, peanuts and pickled ginger ($25). This one is a real winner and I think it will be my go-to from now on. There is also a slight hit of heat which I have never had in Japan. Quick Japanese lesson. Yaki usually means "grilled" and okonomiyaki means "what you want". And believe me, you want this!

Our other entree was the vitello tonnato, slow poached girello beef with creamy tuna mayo, fresh herbs, capers, red onion and cornichons ($20). I rolled the beef around to capture all those other flavours and each piece was just divine with the beef melting away in the mouth.

These two entrees, and the mains we had last Friday, are staying on the new menu which will be out in time for the Cup Day long weekend - if you are lucky enough to get the Monday off! There are some really great new offerings though - the crispy pork belly will entice Kyle while I reckon I will be trying the noodle salad. But on to the mains.

We shared both. The roasted lemon and garlic chicken with warm rice, du puy lentils, almonds, feta, spinach and dill salad ($30) and the steamed mussels with tomato, chilli, garlic and coriander with crusty bread ($27).

The chicken is amazing with crispy skin, a hint of preserved lemon, and all the goodness of that warm rice salad. A really beautiful dish which would please anyone.

And the mussels are always perfect. I probably order them every second time we dine at The Boathouse Restaurant and they never disappoint. The broth under them, and they are always a really generous serve, is delicious and just right for dunking the slices of crusty buttered bread. Or just grab a spoon and dive in.

Oh, drinks. There's plenty to choose from. Loads of wine by the glass, I had the Xanadu chardonnay from the Margaret River ($10 a glass) and then there's beers, ciders, spirits and some amazing cocktails - always nice as the sun dips!

We are pretty much done but we are lucky and getting two of the new desserts on offer from that long weekend. OMG! They are both fabulous. Pistachio and Turkish delight parfait with raspberry coulis, and chocolate fondant with drunken golden raisins, toasted flaked almonds and vanilla ice cream ($14 each). The first is light and fluffy with chewy Turkish delight, while the second is rich and decadent and so, so chocolatey.

And now we really are done. Time to walk it all off with a stroll around the lake.

Or maybe just a nanna nap.

Words: Donna Kelly | Images: Kyle Barnes

ON THE BANKS OF LAKE DAYLESFORD

Exquisite water views from any vantage point, The Boathouse Restaurant offers a sophisticated dining venue for lunch and dinner. You can take in the beautiful views from our warm and cosy indoor dining area for winter catch ups and our outdoor deck and seating area during the warmer months.

The Boathouse Restaurant provides year-round comfort with stylish food and a relaxed yet professional style of service, making it the perfect place to enjoy a glass of wine over a meal with family and friends.

REGULAR DINING HOURS

HOLIDAY HOURS

LUNCH

Sun 29 Dec – Mon 30 Dec New Year’s Eve Wed 1 Jan - Sun 5 Jan Mon 6 Jan Tues 7 – Sat 11 Jan Sun 12 Jan Mon 13 - Tues 14th Jan Wed 15 – Sat 18 Jan Sun 19 Jan Mon 20 - Tues 21 Jan Wed 22 Jan Thurs 23 Jan Fri 24 – Sun 26 Jan Mon 27 Jan

Wed - Sun 11.30am - 2.30pm (last main course orders) DINNER

Fri & Sat

5.30pm - 8.30pm (last main course orders)

Lunch & Dinner Lunch & Dinner Lunch & Dinner Closed Lunch & Dinner Lunch Closed Lunch & Dinner Lunch Closed Lunch Lunch Lunch & Dinner Closed

The Boathouse Restaurant does not take bookings for lunch but welcomes guests on a walk in basis. Reservations are available for dinner.

2 Leggatt Street, Daylesford | 03 5348 2199

Open 7 days Lunch & Dinner

NEW $25 EXPRESS LUNCH MENU

THE COSMO, YOUR LOCAL WEDNESDAY - LOCALS NIGHT $18 Cosmo Classics Mains, $9 kids meals

ThursDAY - Wood Fired Pizza SPecial

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buy 2 and the 2nd is half price (dine in & takeaway)

FriDAY - Happy hour 5 – 7pm

Upstairs 74 Vincent Street Come on up, relax on the terrace Local Grass Fed Black Angus

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$4 Carlton Draught pots / $1.50 off all other drinks Complimentary bar snacks Meat tray raffle - proceeds to community organisations

Saturday & Sunday Complimentary wine tastings in the Cellar & Store Sample our region’s finest

FRESH NEW SPRING /SUMMER MENU Delicious Mexican, spuds, salads, vegan options loaded fries & more, dine in, takeaway & delivery www.casaelrey.com.au 03 5348 3888

D AY L E S F O R D B O W L I N G C L U B BISTRO Morning Melodies

WHAT’S ON? Tuesday & Wednesday SPIN THE WHEEL FROM 5PM - 6PM

EVERY THURSDAY MEAT RAFFLE Profit from ticket sales goes to charity

1st thURsday of the month morning melodies 11am - 12pm Dolly will be hosting Morning Melodies with her fun Disco Bingo Show at the Daylesford Bowling Club.

Songs will be from the 50's, 60's, 70's Disco Bingo is musical Bingo.

Take a dance down memory lane with Dolly Thursday - January 2, Feb 6, 2020 from 11am-12pm Free with prizes. Ph.03 5348 2130 www.discobingo.xyz

2nd thursday of the month

GREAT FOOD GREAT ATMOSPHERE GREAT VIEWS ENTERTAINMENT FUNCTIONS

Disco bingo 6.30pm - 8.30pm

friday night weekly raffle & members draw happy hour 6pm - 7pm

sunday happy hour 3pm - 5pm rewards member draw 5pm

YOUR COMMUNITY CLUB COME AND MAKE IT

YOUR CLUB

8 Camp St - Daylesford | 03 5348 2130 | www.daylesfordbowlingclub.com.au Stay updated on the latest events by visiting our website or Facebook page

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Thursday, Sunday, Monday 5pm - 9pm Friday and Saturday 5pm - 10pm Tuesday & Wednesday CLOSED

HOME DELIVERIES FRIDAY TO SUNDAY 5348 4123 t "MCFSU 4U %BZMFTGPSE 7JDUPSJB

Pig and Whistle Iconic pub in the paddock

Family dining room and bistro Bar with pool table and big screen TV Guinness on tap Local wine list Country-style meals 705 James Lane, Trentham East 5424 1213 pigandwhistletrentham@gmail.com Meal opening hours Monday - Friday: 5pm-8pm Saturday & Sunday: noon-3pm & 5pm-8pm

www.mineralspringshotel.com.au Bookings Essential: 03 5348 2202 124 Main Rd Hepburn Springs

Locals Night at The Argus Every Monday $45 per person “feed me”.

Local seasonal food prepared by our chefs in a shared banquet style for two or more.

Includes a glass of local house wine or beer.

24 Meals & Music

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Meal deals!

Gig Guide

Monday:

Bellinzona Grange, Hepburn

Peppers Mineral Springs, Hepburn - Feed me - & a glass of beer or wine - $45pp

Tuesday:

Pig & Whistle, Trentham East - entrees from $8, mains from $20, all desserts $8

Wednesday:

Bellinzona, Hepburn - two/three courses & a glass of wine - $40/$50 Cosmopolitan Hotel, Trentham - $18 Cosmo classics mains, $9 kids' meals

Thursday:

Daylesford Hotel, Daylesford – Steak Night - $25

Sunday:

Daylesford Hotel, Daylesford - Roast, a pot or glass of wine or soft drink - $25

Raffles:

Fundraising raffles are held on Friday evenings at the Farmers Arms Hotel, Daylesford, the Daylesford Bowling Club and the Cosmopolitan Hotel, Trentham.

Every day:

Steakhouse, Daylesford - Kids under 12 eat free with any main meal. New $25 express lunch menu, with loads to choose from, 7 days a week.

Community Lunch

The 5000 Club, Daylesford offers a three-course lunch most Fridays at Victoria Park, Daylesford. The first lunch for the New Year is January 17.

The Capo (Duo) - Saturday, January 4, 8pm-10pm Jarrod Shaw - Saturday, January 11, 8pm-10pm Brent Shirley - Saturday, January 18, 8pm-10pm Crazy Antz - Saturday, January 25, 8pm-10pm

Palais-Hepburn, Hepburn Springs

New Year’s Eve with burlesque dancers Camilla Cream and Lord Lovat and DJs Nicko, Sallie Harvey, EZC Live, Sassta, Pancho Combo, Clay Ravin and Heath Myers (Rainbow Serpent) – Tuesday, December 31, 7.30pm Front bar dance night - Friday, January 3, 9pm-12am Team Love - Saturday, January 4, 8pm-10pm Front bar dance night with DJ Daniel Bayonas - Friday, January 10, 9pm-12am Floyd Thursby - Saturday, January 11, 8pm-10pm Front bar dance night with DJ Clay Ravin - Friday, January 17, 9pm-12am

The Grande Hotel, Hepburn Springs

2019 NYE Party with Terry & Gilly - Tuesday, December 31, 7.30pm

Daylesford Cidery, Daylesford

Live music - Saturday, January 4, 4pm-7pm Live music - Saturday, January 11, 4pm-7pm

Blue Bean Love Cafe, Hepburn

Lunar Dust - Friday, January 3, 6pm-8pm The Lefties - Saturday, January 4 North East - Sunday, January 5 The Crumpled Suits - Friday, January 10 Next Episode - Saturday, January 11

Got a gig coming up?

Email news@tlnews.com.au It's free...

Cookin' on 3 Burners The Local loves music. We run a gig guide each edition and feature local musos as often as possible. And who could not run this great photo? Cookin' on 3 Burners first ran in Edition 156.

J

ake Mason, pictured far left with Cookin' on 3 Burners members (special guest) Stella Angelico, Dan West and Ivan Khatchoyan, grew up just outside of Glenlyon in a five-sided mud-brick house and attended the local Glenlyon Primary School. After his secondary school years, he headed down to Melbourne and studied music at the Victorian College of the Arts. He chatted with Donna Kelly.

Donna: When did you get into the muso world?

Jake: From a young age I was interested in being part of the muso world, whether it was hanging at out backstage as a five-year-old at the Maldon Folk Festival with Hans Poulsen or watching the Rolling Stones perform at the Tennis Centre a few years later.

Donna: What do you play/do?

Jake: For me all roads lead to playing music. Along the way there are many twists and turns in the journey such as writing songs, producing, recording, having a record label, the list goes on and I quite like all of them. My main instruments are saxophone and Hammond organ and I find myself mostly in jazz and soul worlds.

Donna: What do you love about performing?

Jake: Converting the experience of playing music, the emotions, adrenalin and performing headspace into words doesn’t really do it justice. It’s a constant challenge with yourself, sometimes you succeed with your intentions and sometimes not but most of the time it is about the fantastic journey.

Donna: Who do you do that with?

Jake: I’m one of the founding members of Cookin’ On 3 Burners which is a funk Donna: Where have you performed around the world? and soul trio that has been performing together for over 20 years. Imagine what Jake: I have been incredibly lucky to have played in lots of exciting places around James Brown would have listened to on his Sony cassette walkman while on holidays, the world like an ancient theatre in Rome and The Roundhouse in London but and that’s our sound. I also write songs with Eric McCusker, get my 60s jazz on in the Australia has an exceptional live scene especially Melbourne. Some of the best gigs I Jake Mason Trio, run a small record label and play the odd gig with Richard Clapton. have done or been in the audience for have been right here.

Donna: What do you hope your audience takes home?

Jake: The energy of us playing on the stage, the never-to-be repeated moment, a piece of mystery and sore feet from dancing.

Cookin' on 3 Burners can be found on Spotify and Apple Music.

Image: Contributed

Celebrating 34 years in Trentham

There really is something in the water in the Central Highlands region. There are so many creative people doing amazing things - writers, artists, crafters...

It is always such a pleasure to catch up with these people and let others see what they do. Amazingly, the incredibly talented Helen McRae said this was her first interview in 34 years. So we thought we should run it again. It first ran in Edition 153.

Donna: You are known for amazing window dressings - what is your inspiration?

Helen: I’m always pleased when I hear that people get a buzz from my window displays. I can begin in different ways. An idea can pop into my head and I start with the products themselves, supporting them with colours and textures. I have all sorts of props but often ad lib with what comes to hand. Alternatively, I start with the window space and take a more sculptural approach, mixing structural elements with flowing fabrics. If I get stuck I allow my intuition to do the hard work.

H

Donna: Are textiles/sewing a lost art these days?

Helen: Nearly…well, in some areas! There are lots of people still pursuing patchwork and quilting, however, I have a sense that many others are no longer sewing clothes for themselves. The indicators are that more people are following the trend towards ‘fast fashion’ - which in essence could be described as ‘buy for today and tomorrow throw away’. This is the opposite to my philosophy. I believe in the ethical approach of the ‘slow movement’. I design and make my garments and other creations to last. I have always sourced and used quality fabrics.

ELEN McRae, the owner and creator of Jargon, first arrived in Trentham in the early 1980s. She found the town and the rural environment inspiring, and purchased a small cottage as a weekender and visited regularly. Helen chatted with Donna Kelly.

Donna: What's your background?

Helen: As a child I always dabbled in sewing which I continued into my teenage years. When I began my tertiary education, I realised that the academic subjects I had studied at secondary school would not lead to a career that nourished my creative needs. I changed direction and pursued a course to become a primary school art teacher.

Donna: When did you open Jargon and why?

Helen: This is a timely question because this week Jargon celebrated its 34th birthday. Back in 1985 I was looking for a lifestyle change and decided to explore the possibility of earning a living doing something creative. The shop at 34 High Street was available to rent so, encouraged by the words of Mark Twain: “The secret of success is making your vocation your vacation” I took the plunge and opened Jargon.

Hmm…winter in Trentham…is this really a good idea?

Donna: What do you do?

Helen: I explore my creativity using textiles as the medium. I use an extensive range of different fabrics because it is the fabric that initially inspires me. Basically, I sew! Using various techniques such as felting, quilting and machine embroidery I am able to create an ever-evolving body of new work. I design and create seasonal garments. For the cooler weather, mainly coats and jackets using fabric treatments that can include nuno felting, silk embellishment, random pin tucking, hand-dyeing, or just combining fabrics of differing texture. And, for warmer weather, lightweight garments of various types specialising in the use of randomly dyed silks. Cushions and bags offer the ideal canvas for spontaneous expression. I also design and make collector teddy bears using high quality German mohair. And the list goes on. The work I create reflects my wide-ranging interests and eclectic tastes.

Donna: Is there something in the water at Trentham? There seems to be a huge amount of talent.

Helen: Yes, there is definitely something in the water - it is fine quality coffee prepared by some very talented alchemists, aka baristas. This raises the age-old question: What came first, the artist or the cafe? Artists have always been part of the Trentham community - painters, sculptors, writers, poets, musicians - not forgetting the farmers whose creativity was expressed through innovative solutions to the challenges they faced from day to day. There is a certain vibe that attracts ‘creatives’ to the town. Tourists notice it and often make comment.

Donna: How has Trentham changed over the years? Has it been a good change?

Helen: It is said that the only constant in life is change! So, yes, Trentham has changed. On the weekend in the 'early days’, there could have been as few as four or five cars in the main street at any one time - invariably locals. Of course, now Trentham is a busy tourist destination. Whether this is considered to be a good or bad thing would depend upon who you asked. There has been an increase in the population over the last decade and the pace is a lot faster but for me it is still a great place to live.

Donna: Anything else you would like to add?

Helen: I am very pleased to have chosen Trentham as the place to establish Jargon.

I am grateful to the ‘old’ locals who supported and encouraged me in the beginning.

Now, 34 years later I am indeed fortunate that the Trentham community continues to support my creative endeavours.

26 News

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Meet the Hoveys of Hillcrest Farm at Dean Back in February, The Local ran a couple of pages featuring roadside stalls. And met Scott and Simone Hovey. The couple has now started a Roadside Conversations piece which runs every Monday night on their Facebook page. Simone said the concept was in its infancy but was all about what they hoped for - people talking, reminiscing and sharing. This was first published in Edition 144.

S

COTT and Simone Hovey, pictured right, and their children, Tabitha and Jamison, are originally from the Gold Coast and arrived in Dean in 2011 with their pets - including the chickens, all in the car. Their fur family has grown considerably over the years, with off the track racehorses, orphan lambs, street cats and kittens, orphan calves and displaced dogs all joining them, but they wouldn't have it any other way.

"Our farm came with some well established fruit and nut trees and this is how the roadside stall was started there was far more produce than we could ever use and as we both have a background in hospitality, we became creative with our produce, we stepped back in time a little, sourced the oldest recipes we could find and started preserving," Simone said.

"We scour second-hand bookshops and find the oldest, most well-loved books we can find. There is nearly always one page which the book naturally opens to, is covered in spills and has frayed corners - these are the best recipes, because they have been well tested and work.

"Most of our recipes follow a three-day process - they are from a time when people had more disposable time, but we adhere to this and don’t rush the process. It's nice. The house was built in 1895 and a lot of our recipes are from the same era.

"We are very aware of the fast-paced world we live in and the roadside stall encourages people to stop for a moment, reflect on a time when life wasn’t quite so busy and appreciate food for what it is. People love to stop for a chat and are taken back to a time when their grandparents used to cook and preserve. We are completely preservative-free and natural.

"We try to grow as much as possible ourselves and have developed a great market garden, but we are not opposed to climbing a tree or sourcing local produce to make our jams, chutneys or pickles.

"We are so enthusiastic about sharing our passion for real food and the amazing area we live in, we are in the process of creating a market shop at the back of the property - Hillcrest 1895 'The Farmacy'.

"There are so many amazing producers in the area, who are equally as passionate about their produce and products; we are hoping to showcase them all. Walking into The Farmacy will be like stepping back in time - real food as nature intended."

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The amazing world of Peter Stripes

The Melbourne City Council fined him for opening House of Stripes at 1pm on a Saturday, Gallery A in South Yarra threatened to sue him for calling his place Gallery B, the six-man Drug Squad raided his shop at the corner of Bourke and Elizabeth streets after he made the interior too dark to see in, handed out flowers, burnt incense and had The Doors blasting out. The council fined him for painting the scaffolding on his building.

When a council officer came to complain, Peter put a Members Only sign on the F PETER Stripes didn’t exist, someone would probably invent him. shop door and closed it.

How else would you find a pioneer rock promoter turned designer of He encouraged Hare Krishnas to drum and chant nearby. His future wife, Jenny, plastic mini-skirts, coats, fabrics galore, an Australiana merchant turned was the one person to open an account with him.

Buddhist, with the fan of his restored 1974 orange Porsche painted like a His clothes sold in Sydney. “You could buy hundreds of metres of denim and Tibetan prayer wheel? restyle it into fashion. Everything was Australian-made.”

“The faster you go,” he says, “the more merit you gain.”

His Art Nouveau Bazaar in Toorak Road, South Yarra came and went.

Oh, and its interior has a stunning digitised print lining featuring stars and more.

Three clothing shops in Chapel Street were opened by him before he helped start Sitting among Tibetan symbols, peace signs, fabric and paintings galore in a the first vegetarian restaurant, Shakahari in Carlton, and got into Tibetan Buddhism. studio fringed by waving prayer flags handset in a Glenlyon garden bursting with Along the way, he set up an Australiana shop in Armadale, moving into making gift vegetables, fruit and flowers, this exuberant, irreverent and at times hilarious character wrapping paper from recycled paper. riffs on aspects of his 77 years.

Throughout all this, he says, “I was above greed and money”.

His parents were Jewish refugees from the Nazis, who escaped to England, only Then he met the Dalai Lama. He left fashion and helped establish Tibetan to be interned in Canada. They were in the rag trade in Melbourne, he says, while he Buddhism in Australia and around the world. places himself in the late 1960s hippy psychedelic era.

Moving to Daylesford “30 or 40 years ago”, he helped establish the Dharma Hippy it may have been, but his scene burst with energy. He made cufflinks by School. Now, he says, “You need a million dollars to go to Daylesford to have a bad gluing on stones. Earrings were made from ping pong balls dipped into fluorescent cup of coffee”. colours. Fabrics were turned into belts and braces, which boomed when Graham Peter Stripes beams as he talks of his seven children and 14 grandchildren. “That Kennedy promoted him on TV as Mr Stripes. means I have an Italian family, a Greek family and a Japanese family.”

He had a trendy In Gear shop in the grande dame of Collins Street, Georges.

We walk out to his sign-covered van at the roadside. One sign says Porsche, A-shaped men’s coats raced out the door, some with fluoro stripes. He hurled paint others, Not my war, Mindness not Blindness, Corroboree, Welcome to Country, against canvas, Jackson Pollock-style, eventually having to charge for entry to his Gondwana, Uluru, Walkabout, Human Rights, Integrity and Free Tibet. Signs of all South Yarra gallery. stripes.

He wore a batik sarong to business meetings and drove a Porsche.

“Billy Thorpe, Max Merritt and Margret Roadknight were among the stars at Words: Kevin Childs | Images: Kyle Barnes & contributed our first rock festival, The Miracle at Launching Place, before Sunbury.” He bursts into song, “Some day I’ll have money, money isn’t easy,” written for the festival (by Spectrum, I later find).

Now some of his clothes from The House of Stripes are in the National Gallery of Victoria collection. Back then, he says, “I was always in trouble. Every couple of weeks I was on the front page.”

Everyone has a story and veteran journalist Kevin Childs is adept at getting them onto the page - especially characters like Peter Stripes. It's rollicking reads like this that keep The Local front and centre of not just what's happening in the Central Highlands but who. And Peter is happening. This first appeared in Edition 147.

I

28 Trades

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30 Opinion

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Just sayin’...

A cat's survival story

By Donna Kelly

W

E HAD a call last week. Well, a phone message anyway.

It was from a woman who simply said she and her husband love The Local and she hoped we all had a wonderful and happy New Year. How nice is that? And a first in more than 30 years in the game!

So right back at you lovely woman and your husband, and to all our clients and readers. It's been a great year - busy but a lot of fun and it is always a privilege to get to chat to people and hear their stories and share them in the pages of The Local.

It's also nice to get to know people over the years and build up a rapport. I do it mostly through emails - after this long in journalism I am not a great fan of the phone. So I am talking to you Sue and John and Ruby, Vanessa, Tania, Richard, Maria, Rachel, the geese girls...well, if you keep in touch you know who you are - too many to list here.

I also love it when we find out our Pick Me pet has found their forever home - and most of them do. Although Muddy, opposite, will be living her life out at the Mt Alexander Animal Welfare shelter where she has found secure employment after a rocky start. (Who does that to a living being?)

We have also run our free not-for-profit adverts in each edition and helped out lots of organisations that just don't have the funds for advertising. I figured it's to the value of about $7500 and all thanks to the support of our advertisers and readers. Without one we don't have the other - and then we don't have any free adverts either. It really is all about connecting the community.

Then there's our great crew. Journalists, photographers, sub-editors, distributors, graphic designers, accounts people - and then there are those doing regular columns - Glen, Indre, Sam, Tanya and Matt. Everyone has come into the life of The Local in different ways and they all make such a wonderful contribution. We all work pretty much remotely so every year we gather around for Christmas and it really feels more like an extended family than workmates. (Without the family squabbles about who got a new bike versus a second-hand bike in 1972!)

It's also fun doing this column. I pretty much get to write whatever is in my head - and hope that it makes sense on paper. There's also a bit of friendly rivalry with Kyle's Rant. I knew Kyle had hit his straps when a group of women mobbed him in the street saying "we love your Rant".

They looked briefly at me saying "what you do is OK" but then quickly turned their attention back to the man of the hour. Well, minute. And that's all fine because, being the editor, at any moment I can pull Kyle's Rant off the page and turn the space into a golf report. He's lucky I have left it alone this time - I think the piece at the end about my mum is a bit mean...

Anyway, wishing everyone a happy, safe and fun New Year. See you in 2020! Just sayin'...

Hello, I am Muddy. In March, I was found barely alive in a yabby trap at the edge of a dam by a man walking his dog. I think I was deliberately thrown in but somehow managed to survive. When the ranger brought me to the shelter, I was wet, caked in mud and hypothermic. No-one thought I would make it but they cleaned, dried and warmed me up and I pulled through.

However the trauma of my experience means it has taken months of loving care and gradual confidence-building for me to begin to trust people again. Now I am a beautiful, healthy, playful boy who has touched the hearts of everyone at the shelter. And so I don't get disappointed by people again I am going to spend my life at the shelter, living in its brand new cattery and working full-time to help newly arrived, frightened cats settle in. If you would like to donate to the cattery, or just to the shelter for the work they do, please go to the website and click on the link - www.maaw.org.au

Mount Alexander Animal Welfare is at 24 Langslow Street, Castlemaine.

Phone 5472 5277.

(Pick me, pick me is run in memory of Rosie and Curly - we picked them!)

The Local - Connecting the Community The Local is all about Connecting the Community.

And to help out we offer two, sometimes three, community adverts in each edition at no cost.

Organisations need to be not-forprofit and must not be running paid advertising in other media at the same time - that wouldn't be fair.

If you are keen to take up one of these spots just email donna@ tlnews.com.au and keep an eye out for call-outs on The Local's Facebook page.

Let's all keep connected!

www.tlnews.com.au

Opinion 31

Kyle’s Rant

A

S ANOTHER year lumbers into the station, and we bin all the wrapping paper and tinsel, I wonder if the hype before Christmas was all worth it.

I mean, apart from the mother-in-law, the wife’s relatives have all gone after ingesting what would feed a small country worth of food, and guzzling down half a water dam worth of my wine.

Mind you, I can’t really talk. I managed to get not so quietly inebriated trying to blot out the sights and sounds of the day.

I guess I like the idea of Christmas, it's just the waste that gets my goat. It started when we all sat down at the table. Most waited for everyone to get their plate of Christmas goodness, but I glanced towards the end of the table and noticed a few of “the guests” snorting for breath as their open mouths agitated together potato salad, ham, turkey and gravy into one mushy concoction.

Then it was time for the cracker pull, which was an improvement on a few years ago when some bright spark decided to put unwrapped sweets into used toilet rolls.

OMG! Some wore the party hats and read the jokes, for me it was about time I dialled up the alcohol intake akin to a V8 engine drinking petrol.

The present exchanging for me isn’t a particularly thrilling time either, although I did OK this year. In previous years, after investing what seemed like thousands of dollars on the relos, I add up my scorecard. As low as a small bottle of whisky and one shot glass to share between me and wifey, and judging by the squashed packaging, a blatantly obvious regift.

"It is the thought that counts," I hear you say. But I retort I have never drunk whisky and have no need to share a shot glass with my wife. My cupboards are chock-full of glass and crockery, thanks to Donna’s eye for shiny reflective things and a curious need to overstuff the kitchen shelves. For me, one cup, one plate and a knife and fork would do the trick.

But back to my yuletide reflections. It was nice I suppose to see the family get together with no blood spilt, apart from a bit of awkwardness as I sank further into my merry alcohol-fuelled abyss and decided that I should give my career up as a photographer and start a new one as a dancer - I was pretty much like the bloke pictured above right...

Anyway, the dust has now settled and all that’s left are some blurry memories and the old piece of meat hanging around for a few more days until I get sick of its space invasion and throw it out. (Of course I’m talking about the ham, not the mother-inlaw...)

So that was Christmas, rant over…

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Happy New Year!