General Chat

There doesn't seem to be anyone around right now, so I'll just 'report in' and hope I might catch you tomorrow morning. Outside temperature forecast to be 5c tonight - so I won't mind sleeping late!

Hi there Berona,

I'm here, how are you? Its freezing down here too. Roll on Summer!!!!!

CC, thank you again for all your help, I think I will do as you suggest and contact the GRO in regards to the certificate being so unreadable, have you ever seen one so hard to read as that one?

We have just come home, I took the family out for a lovely meal in town - such a treat not having to cook, the meal was delicious:-))

Carole xx

Hi Carole

Hope your son and you have got over his frightening experience?
I am very fed up with this mindless crime - which in most cases is down to them trying to get money for drugs. It seems to get worse - I don't think I am imagining it.
If I am out late walking, whilst I feel safe in our suburb I still carry my keys in my hand so that the keys stick out between my fingers so I can take a swing and hopefully do some damage.

Take care and you too Berona - look after yourself.

Persey

Hi Persey

That was my deletion above, half way through typing something strange happened.

My son is ok. He has a black eye, a sore jaw and some scratches where he climbed a fence trying to escape the ratbags.
I hope it makes him more careful in future. Its just not safe anymore no matter where you live. Those boys could have been watching him all evening and followed him home.
He didn't want to contact the police to report the attack, so I'll just wait and see what my OH says when he comes home.

Carole xx

I am so glad that your son is relatively unscathed Carole. It is a sad state of affairs when you can't be safe to walk around.

CC the bus pass is valid all over the country, you don't have to pay anything any more. I have one and have used it all over the place, even in London, but just on the buses, it isn't valid on the tube

Hello again all,

Carole, where do you live? I'm north west of Cairns, in far north Queensland and we have the same problems here. Magnified somewhat by the fact they we are a major international tourist area and it's not good for business. A lot of the problems come from the tourists themselves. They get out here to backpack, try to work to earn some money to fund their stay, and find it hard in the current economic climate to find work. Ergo, rob someone to get money, esp. the Japanese and Koreans, they seem to get targeted for some reason. The other perpetrators are often our indigenous who, because of strict non-alcohol laws within their own communities, have been ejected for breaking their rules and come to the cities and misbehave. I don't know what we can do about that. Even for saying this, I would be branded as racist, but the facts are the facts and anyone who spends any time down around Cairns Central Shopping Centre and Railway Station will back it up.

Even kids in school are being targeted and bullied or beaten into giving up their mobile phone and money. It's about time more people got stricter about rules and respect for other people.

Pam

Hello everyone:-)) I'm just popping on for a couple of minutes as we're going to the markets. OH has been up since 4.30am watching the England v USA football game.

We look like having another cold but sunny day. The nights are freezing and our little dog refuses to go outside once the sun goes down. I don't blame her.

Carole - it's worrying when things like that happen. My eldest son was put in an awkward position by a girlfriend who was drunk and flirting with a group of men. A couple of the men followed her when she went outside for a smoke and my son noticed and went after her. He was given a bloody nose for his trouble. He put the girl into a taxi home and broke off the relationship the next day. Her parents rang me and told me that they appreciated that he looked after her and that they were sorry that he was no longer her boyfriend.

Sue xx

Hello all,

CC: We’ve had a phasing in process here in Australia for women to increase the age to 65. I had planned my life around retiring and getting the pension at 60. So, at 60 I quit my job, moved north and had to start looking for a job because I wasn’t going to be eligible for the pension until 62 ½.. Now I think it’s up to about 64 before you qualify. I reckon once they get the women up to 65 they’ll then phase men in to 70.

Haha, I understand what you mean about the ‘state’ situation. But yes, that sort of problem is happening here now, as said by SueMaid. People save and contribute to a private scheme for their retirement years only to find that the person who did nothing ends up better off income wise then the savers. Mind you, most of those who haven’t contributed don’t usually own their homes so are paying rent – whilst rent is high they do get a subsidy but it isn’t a great deal. However, they still get the free medical, subsidized scripts and travel etc. Which the self funded retirees often don’t get. This is one area that I think should be changed. The self funded retirees should get those freebies as well. After all, many of them are actually having to pay tax on the income they’re getting from their retirement funds. They’re entitled, I say.

Pam

Hi Pam - the only thing we have is a senior's card for my OH. We don't get any government subsidies such as a health card, free travel etc. We won't until the end of next year. On top of that I also won't get a pension until I'm 63 I think. I know the financial person worked it out and I think I just scraped in. As I'm 57 this year I have a long wait. We do have a scheme where we can claim benefits after the age of 55 if we do so much volunteer work a week but they count my OH's money as mine also I'm still not eligible. Bad luck if I had a husband who didn't allow me any money.

Sue xx

Sue I know exactly what you mean. I have a friend who has that very problem. Her husband is still working past the age of 65 so that he can get the extra tax benefit for working past retirement age. She's the same age as me, 66 and because he's still working she's not entitled to anything. And he won't give her any money. Told her to go out and get a job too but at her age up here in area where unemployment is over double digit figures and employers are only interested in employing dolly birds under the age of 20, what chance has she got? So, at her age, she goes out and cleans other peoples houses to get enough money to survive. So, what does he do? He makes her pay half the electricity, rates and phone plus pay for half the cost of food each week.

I told her she's be better off if she left him at least then she'd get the pension and rent assistance until such time that a property settlement was reached, but I can't convince her that she can get a property settlement without getting a divorce - (you can do that in Aust., I know, because I did it). I really feel sorry for her but she seems to be held back by her daughter who says that if she does that there'll be nothing left for her (daughter) to inherit.

Pam

Pam - I really feel for your friend. I'm lucky in that my OH sees us as both working hard through our life together. Our children have told us that they don't expect there to be any money to inherit and we agree:-))

Sue xx

Sue, I'm glad that your children have that attitude. Mine do too.

Joan, I agree with you too. But how do you deal with the situation that she's confronted with. She has such low self esteem, doesn't believe in her own ability to survive on her own and has the classic psychological symptoms of making excuses for why she can't leave, such as leaving fairly inconsequential belongings behind.

All I can do is be there for her whatever her decision is. After all, in the final analysis, it's her decision to make.

Pam xx

Pam - you can only support you can't rescue. Of course it doesn't help when her daughter lays the guilt trip on her.

The way I see it hopefully by the time we're gone our children will be fully settled financially. As it is now with my mum. We encourage her to enjoy her money - which she does:-)) My brother, sister and I are all settled with our own homes so we don't feel we "need" mum's money.

We've spent a lovely lazy sunny Sunday. Not one phone call or visitor - we just sat on the verandah reading and chatting. Doesn't happen often enough.

Sue xx

You could be right, Joan. I thought I may have just made it. In that case I really have a long wait - OH has four years to go but we'll be fine. We love to travel but day to day we lead a fairly simple life. As you say - you don't need much to live a comfortable life.

Sue xx

Our phasing of pensions from 60 to 65 started in the nineties - so we both knew we would have to be 65 before we got a pension. Prior to that it was 60 for the age pension which was means tested and if they thought you were getting enough to get by on you had to wait till 65.

My in-laws did a lot of travel after they retired and nearly every year saw them going on trips and we always thought it was great. They sailed around the Cook Islands on a sailing ship and they shared the deck with the chickens and pigs etc. They did a walkabout across Australia - which meant bus trip and tent pitching. Went right up to Alaska and Iceland and had a great time in China plus other trips. But OH's sister didn't think they should be traveling at their age - they were spending her inheritance. She really objected quite strongly.

We are planning on doing the same sort of thing - our girls are happy with whatever we do - though the eldest was worried when the grandchildren were little that we might want to stay in Oz and they would lose a baby sitter.

You say you have about 20 books to read Sue - you should see how many I have got - and I still get them out of the library. I bought a book at the second hand shop a couple of days ago which interested me: Titled: Spreading their Wings - about NZ WAAFs in Wartime.
One of the women in the book is OH's Aunt's sister-in-law - she was a spitfire pilot. I read a lot of NZ history - we have a bookshelf jam packed full of NZ fiction and non-fiction - it is also a very good reference section of our library.
I have recently lent a book about early NZ to a friend of mine - she is of Maori descent as is her husband - she said to me the other day that he had obviously been having a look at the book as well. She heard him say to someone - if you said that to me in the old days I would've burnt your house down. During a lot of the tribal conflicts and if the Maori took exception to what the white man said the Maoris would burn your house down.

Cheers Persey xx

commiseration for the 4-0 defeat in the World Cup!
Hi CC

£325,000 CC

Oh did Germany win????? What a shame

Oh rub it in Pat and Linda. We got up at 4:20 am to watch the game. I'm sorry to say it was a waste of time. Not only because they lost - I can accept that. They just didn't play well and one of our stars - Tim Cahill - got a red card for being an idiot. Now he's out of the next game:-(

So I went back to bed and slept for another hour or so before getting up. Ah well - another day another game:-))

Sue xx

Hello all,

Lots of stuff on TV etc about Aust. being beaten by Germany at Soccer/football. Not a lot about Leighton Hewitt beating Roger Federer though. Wow, what a great thing for Leighton. I'm wondering if Federer might retire from tennis at some time in the near future? I think since he got married and had children his focus has shifted. What do you people think?

My friend: Yes, I realise I can't make her decisions for her and I"m not trying. I have offered her a place to go to (with me) if she wants it plus a place to store her 'treasures', even if she doesn't want to come to me to stay until she gets sorted out. Her daughter is a lot like the father. Enough said there.

It's hard when it comes to what to leave to the kids. I have a couple who are really struggling still, due to downturns in the labour market etc. but others are doing OK and very well. What to do there? I can only think that even though I might feel inclined to favour those with a greater need more, that it's unfair to the others. Anyway, I don't think kids should expect much from parents.

and LInda, yes, they won. 4 - 0

Pam

Hi, Pam. I used to have a friend whose husband stopped our friendship and her friendship with two other friends because he said we "put ideas into her head". We didn't - she just saw that life could be better. She is the most creative person I know and does wonderful embroidery, patchwork and quilting. We ran a stall together and she would make a lot of money which she was saving for a holiday in the UK. He took the lot one day and bought some tools for the garage. Shortly after she said she couldn't do the stall anymore. She's still there but now it's worse because the eldest son is there and like father like son.

Sue xx