COMMUNAL kitchens are the battlegrounds in houses, offices, share houses, hostels and university dorms throughout Australia.
Walking into one can trigger a rise in blood pressure within some people as they scan the stack of plates still stained from leftover Indian a colleague brought from home, or the Ovaltine tin that's been left with the lid off.
There would be few communal kitchens which wouldn't have a sign stuck to the wall (often hand-written in very large and angry letters) warning users not to leave it as a pigsty. This particular kitchen in a Brisbane hostel almost invites the kitchen users to take part in a new dawn of communal kitchen use, one where everyone washes up their coffee cup instead of just rinsing it and placing it upside down in the sink. You know it's serious by the fact the signage is professionally engraved sign, not a scrap from the bin beside the photocopier scrawled with Nikko pen.
Sure, there are some busy people who work in offices and while it may seem like he/she doesn't have time to do the washing up, the fact they've stopped for a tea, coffee or to steal a slice of birthday cake, indicates they aren't busy enough.
That's Dr JT, thank-you.
SOMEONE should just go ahead and make Johnathan Thurston the Premier of Queensland. Last December, James Cook University topped off a memorable year for the North Queensland rugby league icon by giving Thurston one of the University’s highest honours – an Honorary Doctor of Letters. Thurston was recognised for his outstanding service and exceptional contributions to the northern Queensland community.
James Cook University chancellor Lieutenant General John Grey AC (retired) said Thurston has had a tremendous, positive influence that goes far beyond the football field. “He is a mentor to so many in north Queensland and beyond. The qualities he displays – humility, sportsmanship, leadership, mateship, and loyalty to his community – are widely respected. Johnathan Thurston is an inspiration to youth and the broader community," he said.
So that's Dr JT, from now on.
A long walk to lunch
WHILE enjoying a sausage roll in Longreach a while back, the Ringer overheard a mother and her young son walk out of the bakery. Nothing must have taken the young bloke's fancy because he immediately said: "I want Maccas". To her credit, the mother replied: "Maccas? This is the bush, mate." She kept walking and the lad was forced to catch up. The internet suggests the nearest McDonald's is 416km away from Longreach. It's unlikely the kid would have been willing to navigate his push scooter that far for a cheeseburger.
AGFORCE's central Queensland regional manager Sharon Howard sent in a photo she found on Facebook.
The picture is of a scrap of paper cut from the Queensland Country Life in 1957, advertising a potential worker's position in Longreach. Sharon said the advertisement's author, Walter Alick Purcell, is her grandfather.
The wording of the ad probably wouldn't make the cut in today's sensitive age but it's a great look insight into a more innocent time.
The ad reads:
"I require a young, single, active man with common sense and ability to take charge outside stock work and general station work.
“Must be good horseman and bushman, able shoe horses, and if necessary break in.
“Essential that he be able handle men and see that cattle and sheep are handled in the correct manner.
"A knowledge of mills, engines and station machinery desirable, but not essential. Must be used large area and able handle touchy cattle.
“No drunks, drongoes, synthetic Yanks, Queen street ringers, Pommies, New Australians, or other foreigners need apply.
“Wages 18lbds per week and keep. Apply WA Purcell, Tonkoro, Longreach."
Old mate's lucky streak
IT isn't uncommon to hear of people who have a string of luck. For a particular prominent businessman in a certain regional Queensland town, both of which should probably remain nameless, things have been going very nicely.
Firstly, he was a part of the syndicate ownership of Melbourne Cup winner Prince of Penzance, so that put a healthy smile on his face in November. A month later he won one of the major prizes in an Art Union raffle - a $20,000 Harley Davidson. Ironically, he rides neither horses nor motorbikes.