Australia says 'Yes'!

So...earlier this year the Australian Government decided to hold a plebiscite to ask the Australian people if same sex couples should be allowed to marry. It was always a non binding poll and it is estimated that the cost of this was $122 million.Voting papers started to be sent out to every registered Australian Citizen on the 13th September this year and had to be returned by November 7th.I was unable to vote even though I am a permanent resident as I am not a Citizen.As you would expect many of the people I know and encounter regularly were all firmly on the 'Yes' side of the debate but social media was full of people against it and quite a lot of the 'No' campaign clouded the issue by linking it to Safe Schools and gender issues.Since 'Brexit' and 'President Trump' I dare not hope anymore or trust in people to see sense but the results were finally announced today.62% voted 'Yes'. (7.82 million responses)38% voted 'No'. (4.87 million responses)79.5 % of eligible voters took part, over 12.7 million people.In Queensland 61% of the votes received were 'Yes' and 39% 'No'. The Australian Capital Territory had the highest 'Yes' vote at 74%  and 26% 'No'. New South Wales had the lowest percentage 'Yes' vote at '58%' and 42% 'No'.Our electorate here in Queensland is Maranoa and it is one of the biggest electorates in the country. 44% of the votes in our region were 'Yes' and 56% were 'No'. It is no surprise. It was the tenth lowest 'Yes' vote in the country. The lowest was Blaxland in New South Wales where 26% of votes were 'Yes' and 74% were 'No'.The Prime Minister has promised to act on the vote by Christmas. He said the vote was a " yes for fairness, yes for commitment, yes for love."

Women in Voice #25

So...last night we were at the Powerhouse in Brisbane for the 25th Women in Voice show. It is always a great night out and so it was last night. The overall theme appeared to be 'Love'. It is always a treat to listen to another bunch of talented ladies singing familiar songs and ones that you have never heard before  and that you now want to hunt out and hear again. Ellen Reed's set was my favourite bit and particularly her version of George Michael's 'Fastlove'. I have never seen her before but apparently she was on 'The Voice' here in Australia. She has an amazing voice and is definitely someone to look out for. The MC Bridget Boyle as her alter ego 'Anna Slack' from Rockhampton was very funny as was Carita Farrer Spencer as 'The Fabulous Dame Farrer' who ended up marrying the audience. I can't wait for Women in Voice #26.

Remembering.

So...we are in Brisbane this weekend for the 25th Women in Voice.Yesterday we went to Ikea for a few things and to check out some ideas for Blue Moon House. Halfway through the maze that is the Ikea experience a voice on the tannoy asked everyone to observe a minutes silence at 11.00 am. The store was very busy and everyone stopped what they were doing and the place was silent for a full minute. It was the most moving and memorable one minute's silence I think I have ever been part of.

Taking more care.

So...Hecate is still with us and after a day inside yesterday she spent today outside and has been drinking and eating a little. She is still very subdued and spends a lot of time just standing still and keeping to herself.The 'chooks' are confined to their pen once again and last night we had to go in after dark and clip Pacha and Wang's wings as they are serial escapees despite the higher netting fence. It worked and they have all stayed in their pen today. The chicks, however, are a law unto themselves.We have discovered that we still have 10 chicks and not 9 as we thought immediately after the attack. So we have only lost one. After very close supervision for weeks by the mother's (Arke and Hecate) they are now wandering off independently though all 10 stick close together in a group. The mothers are no longer protective and Arke has even started laying again.The chicks get out easily and have been wandering off into the bush though not too far from the pen. They are growing but are still able to squeeze out through gaps in the wire and fencing.Yudisthira, who was initially sold to us as a hen has turned out to be a very good rooster. He is very protective and they all listen carefully to his warnings. He is ever watchful for danger from the sky and lurking in the bush and selflessly clucks when he finds food for the others to come and share it. He has recovered fully from his ordeal of being carried off in the jaws of a fox and now that Odin has gone to another home and the evil black one went in the pot, he only has competition from Wang and does not seem that bothered by him.He has been suffering for awhile from scaly leg mites and so we have been smothering his legs and feet a few times with Vaseline to suffocate the mites and his feet are looking so much better. He was very resigned last night to our interference as if he knew we were trying to help him.

Return of the Fox.

So...there was a great commotion at 6.00 am today with the ' chooks' sounding the alarm. I had heard it at about 4. 30 too but went back to sleep.There has been no sight of a fox for weeks now and the ' chooks' have been coming out most days to wander freely and we have all been lulled into a false sense of security.The 6.00 am alarm like the 4.30 am went unheeded until we heard, above the noise, the terrified clucking of a hen being chased. We rushed out and Will saw the Fox before it disappeared.We couldn't see Hecate so Will went off to search for her. She and Arke have been doing a great job of protecting our 11 chicks. The chicks were all sticking close to Arke and I could only count 9 of them.Will Soon returned. Amazingly he found the injured Hecate a short way from the house. The Brazen Fox had taken her, left her injured and had come back for another when Will rushed out and scared it off.We bathed Hecate's wounds with disinfectant and left her to rest in the nesting boxes. I hope she will recover. After the Quoll attack when Keket was hurt, she recovered after a few days and seemed fine for a short while but then suddenly dropped dead. Hopefully Hecate's chicks, what's left of them, will help her pull through.