October/November 2017

To get up-to-date with my blogs I have decided to make this one an October/ November combined summary. These two months have been dominated by three events; the raising of a now pet crow, my trip to Darwin and Kakadu and Nikki’s working visit to Penang. The first two events have been documented in two videos and a separate photographic blog, respectively. 

http://malaysianwildlifephotography.blogspot.my/2017/11/nature-photography-around-darwin-and.html

Cullen Bay sunset

In a recent blog I feature some flooding on Penang Island. Worse was to come when I was in Kakadu. A typhoon hit Vietnam and Penang caught the tail. Where our house is located is pretty immune from flooding. There were however some angry winds...but Helen said she slept through it and only one pot plant was overturned. The rest of the island however had a lot of flooding and a landslide killed a number of workers on a building site. The ferry that Lyn and David were on earlier in the year parked itself on the wharf.

We are in the longitudinal part below the Tanjung Bungah label.

It is reassuring that emergency services have the best modern rescue equipment.

Just an update on the progress of the crow. Helen and then Nikki fed him while I was away. I wondered how his memory was when I returned…..of course they are intelligent birds. I was greeted by tail wagging…such as a dog would do. Maybe this was his close connection with Coco. He has done well since I came back and we have a close session each morning where he feeds and has a ‘chat’. He likes his head gently rubbed but is forever on the alert…..a helicopter freaked him out a bit this morning. He does have a bit of a temper and when scolded one day…the voice and attitude changed completely.

Last week for two days I had a sick bird. He was mostly off his food and his poop was different. Crows clearly have a rugged constitution and he was back with a vengeance. Nikki said he visited her on the balcony outside he bedroom and landed on her arm. He can be rather demanding but I missed him when he was sick. There is something about getting to understand  a quasi-wild bird up close and personal. It is always a great sight when he puts on the airbrakes when coming to land on your outstretched arm.

It has been great for Helen and I to have Nikki be with us for 6 weeks. Helen organised the work she will do with a South African born plastic surgeon. So far the experience has been both an eye-opener and a very good learning opportunity. My admiration for what Nikki has achieved has gone up a few quanta when you realize the hard work and dedication needed to achieve desirable levels in medicine. The rest of your life takes a back seat for many years. Nikki’s time in the hospital is divided up into 3 lots of two weeks each. She spent the first two weeks with a general surgeon and assisted in a number of operations. Currently she is with a Neuro-surgeon and took part in a four-hour operation yesterday. She will spend the final two weeks with the plastic surgeon.

Helen has been busy with her teaching and has joined a Boot Camp group as an addition to her hiking in the exercise department. She is currently organizing the Christmas party for the orphan kids at Healy Mac’s in December. This is all on top of book group, pub quiz and attending live shows where she can.

On the greater family front Nathan has now left school and ponders his future. The whole family are off to the USA for a trip next week. Haley has a new camera and we will see some nice shots from the trip.

I had a buzz in the photography department when I was told I was short-listed for the Comedy Wildlife international competition. The final result was to be announced by the end of November and so far I have not had a phone call…but no ‘Dear John’ email either. I have seen most of the final selection and was not super impressed.

I am itching to get out and start the season locally but like most of the year rain and bad light is the order of the day.

There is two more subjects to comment on: politics and rugby. In politics New Zealand's ridiculous choice of the MMP election system was rudely exposed and earned headlines like the following from our antipodean neighbours.

Not counting the personalities involved or how Jacinda may run the show it is a lesson that some things are too important to trust to a referendum where the uninformed vote for the misunderstood....NB the Brexit vote. Germany........one of three other countries to retain the MMP system ......is in a greater mess as a coalition failed to eventuate.

In rugby there has been much analysis and stupid headlines about the All Blacks performance in 2017. They almost lost half of the team to injury or sabbatical but still only lost two games. They mostly likely would have won the Lions series but for a ridiculous decision by a misguided French referee. In my observation the team has been both superb and ordinary....even in the same match. If all injuries are overcome they may be embarrassed with riches in 2018.

We have had a good record in the Pub Quiz through the two months. 5 straight victories (including when I was away). We finished out of the money last week with a depleted team and last night clawed back to third plus a share of the money for answering the jackpot question correctly.

Lastly, I must make a comment about our other resident. Coco’s patience with being pestered by the feathered one has expired and she now chases her feathered sibling…. which the crow thinks is a great game. It is funny to watch Coco greeting her mates with her barking and the crow standing two feet away joining in in his own way. One thing I can’t fathom with certain dog reasoning is that Coco knows who is family……and often scratches on Nikki’s door to have a morning cuddle. AirBnB guests, despite being attentive do not get the same request.