Spirit of Tassie V

 Keeping track of these Tassie boats is quite a process. I spied something new yesterday as Spirit of Tassie V made its first appearance in Geelong after a seven week trip from Scotland where it was parked for 6 months. If I look out I can see it now bobbing across the way. Meanwhile Tassie IV is in Williamstown where it is also parked.  It seems that both need a final fitout before they takeover from Tassie I and Tassie II which are also nearby as they criss cross each other during the night.  Just for the record Tassie III was the one that was built for the new route to Sydney in 2003 but those Sydneysiders were not that much interested in taking a car directly down south.  These latest two boats will start in November, That's the Spirit.

three boats

Smoke Column

 I have been walking through areas of smoldering bush in the past and also driven through them soon after recent fire as well. These are places you do not want to be caught in. I unloaded some video that I captured from my deck, so this scene is close.  It is controlled burning however at it's height you might not think so. It would not take much to escape and these minders of fire must study wind directions intensely.  The smoke was the thing this time and you would not want it coming your way. There are houses so close. I get that aiming it away over the water is OK just don't be on a boat.

AI Comms Traffic

 I have made Blog posts on readership and statistics previously. This time it is about communications traffic skyrocketing again and it is all about AI to AI generated comms. AIs are scanning, talking and requesting information amongst themselves. I can see it myself in this Blog.  Whilst the human readership has gone up markedly, the overall views went passed 100,000 in a single month for the first time. It took 10 years of daily posts to get the first 100,000 views and now that number racks up in 30 days.  If I was to turn on adsense, this traffic would not help contribute to a payment, as Google knows human readership from webbot and AI generated stuff.   OK so I won't be a billionaire from this Blog.

Last Devil to Die

 There has not been a lot of reading time lately with a two week burst of continuous sunshine but we are not complaining. I did finish the fourth book in the series of the Thursday Murder Club.  There are quite a few bodies piling up in this one and as usual the octogenarians seem to be able to keep one step out of the way. There was a lot of time spent on dementia and euthanasia which came from Richard Osman's experience with his grandfather.  It is a topic for a retirement village but I am not sure if it is a topic for a murder mystery.  The fox on the cover gets a mention as well.

Scratchy tree

 This year seems to be more scratchy in the tree than I can remember. Then again you are always getting jabbed but maybe the previous pruning has left some gnarly bits in the way.  My totals seem to be getting smaller as I go. This time it was 5kg but I was filling a different sized container more suitable for the drink fridge as now I have to get creative to find refrigeration. This was a particularly green lot. I eased the scratches by going for a short dip across the road. I wasn't intending to but it was calm again and it did help the sore spots. 

Olive harvest continues

 I spent an hour in the tree again getting another 6 kg or so of olives.  It has been in a more inaccessible higher region of the branches so I am happy with the 13 kg so far in two mornings. Once I start I need to keep at it . Your mind wanders about the most efficient way of doing this stuff. I know about the tree shakers. Sometimes you think if I spread a tarp down there and just shake the tree with my hands will that work. It is a sturdy tree. What about having a concertina type hose with a funnel at the top and you let the olives roll down that into a bucket. Maybe not.

Late Beach

 Not sure what the record is for the latest beach day in Autumn but we gave it a go today. Originally they were saying 28° but when we arrived they were saying 25° and then it was actually more like 22°.  The clouds were starting to build so we retreated. Nevertheless we had a good lunch, which I made, if I don't say so myself.  I should mention the sausage rolls which I did not make.  Truth is, the bakery did most of the work but these cheesy rolls are good value, just add a bit of crunchy salad and some ham and there you have it. Everyone is happy. Except the Sun went away.

cheesy mites