Interesting read...

Just thought I would share this great website I came across tonight while reading about linguistics in the Centre (..did I hear someone say Geek??)  I am trying to organise my own communication board of sorts as I cant seem to find anything like this in my work place or online.  Short of taking a course- which I am interested in...but dont have the time to make such a commitment after hours at the moment- and wanting to communicate better with some of my outstation clients, I thought this might be the best option...or at least a starting point.  It has occurred to me that throughout my travels I have always come at least prepared with a few basic words and phrases, if for no reason other than to at least demonstrate my respect...and yet I am unprepared here. 

Picture from the Araluen Art Centre's amazing outdoor sculpture...

 

 

Anyway, after stumbling upon this site I realise it is a wealth of information for the area and may be of interest to anyone wanting to benefit from a richer travelling experience in this region.
http://www.clc.org.au/articles/cat/Sacred-sites-and-objects/

The 'essence' of Alice...

Today I confess I had a lazy day.  I started with a delicious sleep in until 8.30 (yes, clearly I have squids!) and then a quick snuggle with the husband when he got home from night duty....before being torn out of the covers by two hungry kids.....and then proceeded to explode porridge throughout the microwave and kitchen...dont ask, but be aware, it can be done!

I was really looking forward to today as I was catching up with a friend who I haven't seen in a few weeks & we decided to try out Page 27 Cafe...I had read good things about it here in the very entertaining blog Not quite Nigella and wanted to give it a go.  I wasnt disappointed.   It is down a side alley off Todd Mall and it has an almost  atrium feel to it as you lose yourself down the laneway filled with pot plants .... and I loved the quirky almost Melbournian atmosphere of the cafe, the mismatching retro tables and chairs and the coffee was G.O.O.D!  and the food, well I didnt eat today but let me tell you I am STILL thinking about the Eggs Benedict I sauntered past when I went to order our second cup...or maybe I will have to try the mountainous plate of fresh tomato and basil bruschetta I spied on my way back....decisions decisions.  I decided at that point that I will make it my quest to try out all the cafes in town and rank them in order of a) coffee that puts hair on your chest & b) atmosphere.  Call it a coffee bean challenge lol

I love how the businesses here embrace community endeavours...& lets just call this next one an action shot.....I was trying to sneakily take a shot of the laneway and got caught.  Probably close to how I was seeing out of my eyes before my coffee lol

 

 

But I digress. Seeing a pattern here anyone? lol just wait til you get to know me. s.c.a.t.t.e.r.e.d

My friend & I were discussing the wonderful essence of Alice Springs, both being relatively new here...having moved at the start of the year.  Both of us work in Community Services of sorts, but in different capacities.  We have both noticed an overwhelming majority of women in this community and we came to the conclusion that this is the crux of the liberal and tolerant feel of this place, the almost hippy vibe it gives off must be also due to the high proportion of bleeding hearts in the town at any given time.  It seems every second person you meet is a Social Worker or Community Worker.  We chatted about the intervention and social and cultural issues and how we now feel about them after being here for a wee bit and our eyes not bulging quite as much.  A little grittier you might say. 

I will not go into detail just yet about the prevalence of social issues here, however I will say that perception is reality.  My reaction when we rolled into town and stumbled through drunks to get into the airconditioned plaza and get our bearings was of shock....yet I have lived and worked in the Territory for nearly two decades on and off.  My kids on the other hand commented that it was lovely how so many people were sitting under trees Meditating.  And I remember thinking Who am I to ruin their eyes?  In my capacity of a support worker in the community I have since come to understand that there was a funeral on that day for a much loved & respected person in the indigenous community which accounts for the numbers and also possibly the innebriation.  I will say though, that we did not experience and still have not experienced any negative behaviours directed to us.  And we feel safe.  A little sad sometimes, but safe.  Alice is a place where you really get to practise what you preach and my friend and I agree that teaching our children tolerance and embracing diversity is the only real way forward. 

Culturally Alice is a rich tapestry, and it is quite amazing to see such diversity in such a comparatively small community.  The tolerance and acceptance of cultural differences here is on the whole humbling and inspiring  This and the transient nature of the Territory in general gives it a fresh vibrant feel.  The work is here in abundance and you could literally walk into any job you imagine....and this is even more true in any Human Service/Community positions.  The potential for career development is huge, and employers are open to providing training opportunities.  With a transient town comes a buyers market when it comes to jobs.  With so many jobs Alice boasts a kind of humble affluence. People here aren't flashy, yet many of us openly admit to acheiving our best earning potential here.  And there is no shame in openly admitting that you fell on your bum and largely came here under duress.  They will laugh it off in good nature....because that is the nature of the beast.  They also know the powerful forces at play here which will see many of us never leave....I will be interested to see who of my friends and colleagues are still here when our 'time is up'.

Alice still has that Frontier feel to it, a bit like an old spaghetti western, and you can really sense that bubbling excitement of travellers who are here to explore its delights.  And while I think that the gifts of nature in this region are stunning, the true riches of this community are its people....to sum them up I would say open, friendly & welcoming. 

And there it is.  The essence of Alice as  understood so far by me.  Told you that coffee was G.O.O.D lol. 

Rainy Day rambles....



Desert Jewels

Well todays promise of exploration was almost halted....but a delicious sleep in and then a quick rethink and we were off.  First stop....a cafe for a much needed charge up.  Then some mace to break up the siblings (probably should have bypassed the sugar laden milkshakes). Then...as the rain eased, we headed out to the edge of town to visit Flynn's memorium...I have driven past this nearly every day since I got here when visiting clients out of town and now finally have paid tribute to a great man (he was the founder of the Royal Flying Doctors service).  Interestingly, the great stone on top was originally taken (some may say misappropriated...) from the Devils marbles or Karlu Karlu....the ancestors of this region were highly offended and rightly so...they lobbied for the return of their sacred rock and finally won.  This rock is an offering of from the local Arrente (pronounced Arrunda) people.  Dont ask me what year lol.  I read this in a random snippet at the library.  Told you, Geek.
Here is some more info if you are interested: http://www.nt.gov.au/westmacs/places/flynns-grave

If the clouds had not been threatening to break open at any given moment we may have gone for a hike....but this gave the motivation to go and check out the small but informative Central Australian Museum.  Okay, I will admit here to being a bit of a history buff and LOVE museums, I love the look, the way you can be transported to another time, another place, god, I even love the smell.  I have always loved museums and in my great nerdiness I also hope to visit some of the biggest in the world.  Incidentally, this may be one of the smallest lol.  But it was still interesting and fun. 

We then returned to town to amble through Todd mall on our way to the library for some quiet reading time for us all.  Well, for me anyway...I read all the magazines I cant be bothered buying, and dream as I leaf my way through several Lonely Planets (and become self conscious of sighing loudly)....the kids play computer games and watch videos of skateboarding tricks lol.  But all in our own zen zones.  Hope you like the pics x

 

Flynn's Grave

Yeee Haaaw!  Howdy Cowdy...secretly wanting a pair lol

 

SNAP!  OMG, imagine the size of this beast!

 

 

A long way from anywhere.....

PS.  *disclaimer* I swear I did not secretly plot to booby trap that crocs head a la cartoon style with a string...SNAP!  ba ha ha.  And then realise that it would be a bit tricky to replace as it was apparently 1.5 million years old...... (and yet the cynic in me says surely another mould cant be too hard to rustle up)

Desert Irony...

When we arrived in Alice late January, it was a week of 40 plus temperatures which knocked the socks off us literally (it had been raining and we left on a flood watch in NSW).   It also proved to be a good reminder that organising a rental interstate is not always the best decision...we dont have aircon *insert audible GASP here* we have only an ancient 'swampy' or evaporative cooler in the roof...which spits rust when turned on and doesnt always even do that much.  This despite being assured in several emails that indeed we do, and also ceiling fans in every room....well the lounge is large but it is not every room.  SO, we made do....by having lots of cold drinks, wet flannels and drawing the blinds to keep the sun out.  It worked, well we survived but not sure I want to do it again.....

That week we made best friends with the pool attendants at the local swimming centre, and we also rediscovered that sardonic NT humour, or what we now have dubiously titled 'desert irony'.  A well meaning (I like to think) local mentioned the swimming hole at Simpsons Gap.  SO, being a short drive we packed a rustled up a small picnic and cool drinks and headed out ready for some splashing....only to find this and my sweaty, irritable children at this point did not at all see why my husband and I started to giggle slightly hysterically....

 
We somewhat wisely did not endure 3rd degree burns attempting to make 'creek sand angels'.  And the kids got over it and found their own fun.  Rocks to climb and puddles to splash = lots of fun.  So the day was saved and having gotten over our initial disappointment at not being able to swim (yes I am still sitting here chuckling to myself at our gullible selves lol) we had a lovely day and it is really a beautiful place.  There was indeed some water after all in the crevices...and even ducks, which given the stark baked land all around us I found quite amazing. 

For more info have a look a this link, just so I dont lead YOU up the garden path...
http://www.nt.gov.au/westmacs/places/simpsons-gap

 

 

 

 

My 'office'.  Pictures of a wild brumby at Jay creek & the Community turnoff on the Tanami Track

 

 

I think I might just have to pinch myself.  I found my true calling in Alice Springs....  I am a Community Support Worker.  I am blessed to be able to share in my clients lives and hope I am somewhat helpful to them in return.  I cant believe after all my tears at having to give up nursing that it took me this long in life to find my true calling,  the perfect job for a big fat bleeding heart lol.  And this is my office.  I hope you enjoy your job as much as I do xx

I simply must get myself a decent camera.....not sure where to start but please endure these mobile pics for the meantime.  They dont even get close to capturing the beauty of the landscape we drove through on the weekend to Ormiston Gorge.  This is Namatjira country.  I have stared at and loved one his paintings since I was a little girl.  My Grandma, such an enigmatic woman, had an original painting of his, it was only small, and I am not even sure of how she came to have such a work of art as I am sure she had never been to Central Australia.  But she was full of wonderful stories waiting to be told.  I only wish I was old enough to hear them then, and had given more time to hear them when I was a teenager, before she left us.  But I digress.  That picture was amazing.  So subtle yet so full of life and colour.  I loved it.  Then driving through this countryside on the weekend my eyes were wide with excitement.  Ever corner we turned offered a new jewel to behold.  I couldnt possibly capture it's essence.  I wish I was artistic.  I wish I could paint, or draw...or even take a decent photograph.  I am working on it lol.  But here is the best I have.  I love the clarity of the sky and how those mountains in the background look almost superimposed on the landscape.  As we rounded the bend where this beauty revealed itself it took my breath away. 
I cant help thinking that painting has something to do with why we are here....

Rock-Wallabies at the Gap.  A wonderful free event you can attend any night of the week when visiting Alice.  Food pellets for sale at $1 a bag.  The joy on my kids faces says it all, it was magical to be so close to such endearing little guys who simply loved the attention...and are wild animals and free to come and go.  Awesome!

For more info: http://www.auroraresorts.com.au/it-it/attractions/handfeedrockwallabiesalicesprings.aspx

 

Just Gorgeous...pardon the pun!

 

Last weekend was pure bliss...and it was something of an anomoly for us as a family.  we had the weekend off.  Together.  And it was Magic!

We explored Ormiston Gorge together...we walked and sang and played and just absorbed privately the surrounding beauty of the ochre coloured walls and the azure blue sky.  We ate our picnic of salad sandwiches and winter fresh mandarins and chatted to the cheeky magpies that hopefully darted in between our legs trying to find crumbs.  We made it home in time for a special treat...rock wallaby feeding at sunset at the Gap.  The kids beamed with delight at the close encounter with such delightful teddy bear like creatures.  They held their hands with their little chubby paws and nibbled the food out of their palms greedily.  I looked over to my husband and we shared a moment.  Our family felt really connected....& it made me realise what we had been missing all these years, and how it was meant to be.

 

You see, like many others we have been through a sort of hell in the last few years and realised sadly that if we stayed and clung to the dream that was not to be, we would lose so much more than our finances.  Our long dreamed of 'treechange' went horribly wrong.  It was so close and yet so far....we would work and work and work at it but it still didnt fit.  It was like trying to push a square peg into a round hole.  Things kept going wrong.  I suffered a back injury at work and hubby's job contract at the uni came to an end and he was not even formally advised...just a whisper on the grapevine.....and it hurt like hell.   We fell into a black hole and it felt like we were all slowly being pulled apart.  What the hell were we going to do...this droned on and on in our minds like an evil mantra, consuming our every thought and taking over our precious family time.  The black dog ended up eating our cheque book and left us with all the bills, and he barked at the kids.  We growled at each other.  It was a horrible, scary, bleak time...and I never want to revisit it.

But one rare night while we enjoying each others company over a glass of wine, we managed to move past that ugly defeating mantra and we shared our innermost scary thoughts with each other.  Then we cried, we hugged and then when the tears slowed we dared to dream together again.

 

You know when you have that AHA moment, where suddenly everything is clarified?  Well, we realised our dream wasn't our dream at all.  Nice as it was, we finally came to admit that the conventional life was not for us and we began to embrace our inner Gypsies and dreamt of heading off around Australia with the kids.  But we hadn't won lotto...and so it was not to be.  I am not sure about you but I have a lot of faith in Mother Universe and while I am prone to forgetting and fits of anxiety (ok ok.... bordering hysteria) as we handle the daily battleground...a few months later she answered us.  Hubby had been offered his dream job.....in Alice Springs. 

*SCREEEEEECH* tyres halting. 

Hold up there Buddy...WHAT THE HELL?  But Hubby had a few words to say too, hadn't we both pored over the pictures and dreamed of exploring the outback together as a family?  Sure sure, but I thought we were going to be footloose and fancy free..and what about my family...are all within Cooee here now, and we are so close.  I cant imagine living without them.  BUT he countered with a low blow.  We aren't really living.  My heart ached.  I couldn't argue.  Stay and continue to fight this losing battle...or regroup and take a family adventure together...give ourselves time to heal and listen to our hearts.  Time to absorb the ageless beauty of the Central Australian Outback. 

A few short days in between and I was sold.

The kids.....lets just say were less than enthusiastic, "we're not moving to the Desert!!!"

And so we began the hard sell.

And then even I began to get excited about the idea...and started hunting for information about the area.  There wasn't much and most of it left me wondering desperately if we were mad moving our family to such a 'wild' and 'dangerous' town. 

And then the crushing moment when I broke the news to my parents...my Mum still healing from emergency heart surgery a few months before....and I am sure we both felt that karate blow to the chest as we looked into each others eyes and realised there was no other answer.

 

But...fast forward to today, we have lived here for 4 months and while I am homesick for family (and the beaches in Mid North Coast NSW) I know after moments like the past weekend that we are where we need to be.  So please join us on our healing journey, I will share what I learn as we travel through this beautiful country...