Contradictory Reality

A supermarket chain offers you petrol discounts at its associated network of stations, provided you buy more liquor from them. Does it mean we get to drive more for our petrol expense budget, only after getting more alcohol?

Binge drinking is currently perceived as a serious problem amongst Aussie youth. It should not come as a surprise to anyone in the community. Liquor store outlets are as accessible as fast food retail chains, are easier to get into by car than gyms and fitness shops and are often adjuncts to family-orientated grocery supermarkets. Sporting events are liberally littered with intense alcohol-related advertising and promotions - try finding big time salad and fitness banners in sporting venues. The urge to fulfill high levels of alcohol consumption cannot be left to market pricing alone. Chilling out after exams or having life's celebrations mean the compulsory dosage of drinking - and let's not worry about having food during the same social occasion.

Gambling is an ingrained habit offering many opportunities for training and reinforcement in Australia. Starting with the innocent act of buying a lotto ticket at the neighbourhood newsagent, it culminates in the obsession one feels - and sees -amongst punters in casinos in each capital city. In between, any adult can drop in to play the pokies - addictive machines that lure potential players with one cent games that thrive on turnover and staying power. Games of chance mock as entertainment, with lots of hype of possible financial return and reality of no or negative returns. In the worst interpretation of an observer friend, the banking circles employ the best gamblers in currency , hedge and options trading. Counselling, after the fact and the damage, is always not as effective as not allowing the problem to begin in the first place.

It may make good business and tax revenue sense to have a captive and recurring market, but more sectors of responsible society have to ensure their impact on family and personal lives. If we have every adult, or teenager in that sense, contribute willingly to spend moderate amounts every day on a specific service or product which they have remote chances of giving up, we surely have a revenue spinner. Call it a mug of cappuccino, a schooner of dry or gigabytes of broadband, they do lead to a personal satisfaction level - but what is the collective impact on the health and social order of society as a whole?

Wintry Windsor

An American visitor remarked that it suggested to her of a small town in Oklahoma. The wind was bitingly chilly, but people moved about in a purposeful manner all rugged up, especially in the central pedestrian mall which happened to host a craft market. The outer approaches to the suburb heralded farming country, and I was not surprised that we saw signs of trucks, tractors and other agricultural machinery - real sized or in the displayed craft - as a possible main stay of the economy. Welcome to Windsor, New South Wales.

It was not the best of weather we had to put up with that middling Sunday in June.

However, there was a crispiness in the air in Windsor that afternoon, which made the camellias, hibiscus and other blooms even more of a sight. We were fortunate to come across a couple displaying their rather healthy nursery plants for sale - and I could not resist obtaining their parsley, mint and succulent jade. Hand painted plates, wooden receptacles and household knick knacks in other stalls were also irresistible. Located at the foothills of the NSW Blue Mountains, Windsor exudes an atmosphere of the old Australia, and so we were delightfully amazed to find a shop selling Egyptian wares, fabric and icons. I was given the impression that it is also a lifestyle place, where migrants from over crowded parts of the greater Sydney area have found refuge - hey not dissimilar to Wollongong and the South Coast. Large punnets of freshly picked strawberries were sold for ten dollars for two.

Will the march of mass housing inevitably overcome the present charms of Windsor? Maybe it already has. However I still take comfort in admiring the sandstone and the architecture that remains in this essential village community, and you sense that every resident knows everybody else, and can pick out a stranger like poppies sticking out in the field. Windsor was settled in 1810, very soon after Captain Cook landed, even if it is located relatively distant inland from the coast. How it has kept its charm in these past 200 years can be a most interesting secret. The Big Smoke of Sydney city centre can be reached by car in under 90 minutes.

A Place in Our Hearts

1230am, middle of a long weekend. I was taking another route back to Wollongong after a long day in the Sydney suburbs. The Hungry Jacks joint beside the road jolted my memory - that was where Dule first arranged for me to pick him up when we first went out after work. The Cabramatta Golf Club was across diagonally at the set of lights. The surroundings to me were like flat plains, but the Cumnberland Highway was undulating and meandering. These suburbs were like in middle America, but we were far removed from that. Two Olympics ago, through Dule, I had learnt to appreciate life growing up in Sydney's sprawling residential corridors.

I thought that maybe I was in a time warp. A holiday night, and I passed by two sets of police patrols checking for breath analyser tests. Most of the drivers still on the streets were Gen Y. Things have not changed much on such evenings when Dule was still working in Sydney. I saw the miniature Sydney Harbour Bridge facade of an overhead pedestrian bridge and knew instinctively that was my cue to turn right into the road leading to Dule's family home. Dule's Mum cooked up a tasty feast and his Dad is so good to chat with. I am always thrilled to meet Ned, his other, who has a young family of his own. Dule had taught me a route of inner roads to use from my place to his house - and I had absorbed the route to a T.

The winter evening was nippy, but maybe not as cold as where Dule now is, across two oceans and another two continents away. I had talked with Dule about Europe, and he has now totally embraced it. Before, we had drinks in a Croatian or Serbian club or had eatouts in a fast food place. These outlets are still there, catering for another generation. Dule's career propelled him from university in the Big Smoke of Oz to banking and on to London. As I drove past last night the iconic landmarks of his teenage hood and young adult life, I felt both melancholy and pride for him. We who know him miss him, and that means his family, little dog and mates. Yet one cannot but admire Dule's continuing passion for his dreams.

Dule's parents keep a very tidy house and lawn. The full moon is very bright and clear overlooking this neighbourhood. We all ponder of this same moon shining on Dule far away but still in our hearts. And there is Nina to take care of him.

Two Gems in the Meadow

I pass by them most days and yet have not fully realized their shine.

Just a twenty minute walk from my house north of the Wollongong cbd is the Jam Shop Cafe. It has red coloured wooden tables outside on the pavement, and more seats inside, but more importantly it is reminiscent of a Parisian scene with a touch of NSW Southern Highland countryside charm. It has an eye for detail, in the way it has delightful surprises on its shelves and walls, and in unexpected corners. The shiny red radio seems out of step with souvenirs from an enchanted past. Standing out in this cornucopia are Julia's home made and lovingly crafted preserves and jams, which are the anchor of this ambient cafe's offerings. Julia has a delightful boisterous personality and whose passion for her cooking shines through her offered menu selections. Add to all these is a view straight towards the hills of Mount Pleasant and Mount Ousley.

I was introduced to this gem of a place by Wendy - and we had a light lunch of mains graced with fresh salads and a soul rendering risotto. I had a rich tasty veg patty while Wendy relished in her sausage roll. These were garnished with dollops of Julia's specially made jams. For dessert, we chose the intense choc fudge with ice cream. The sun broke out from a week long cloudiness when we arrived at the cafe and after the meal, the sun receded.

Across the road, five minutes walk away from Julia's place is a boutique cake shop, Zweefers, which has captured my attention through its flourless chocolate cake. When I bite through a piece, the sensation of fine hazel nuts and agreeable chocolate combine to create a rare experience - neither too sweet nor overwhelmingly rich. I am also partial to its mango and coconut offering, followed by the coffee and kahlua cake.

I am thankful to live so near such creative outlets, and not just think it's only in Sydney that I can get such specialities.