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123 Records broken this summer
(1 Celsius equals 33.8 Fahrenheit)
It's been a weird experience living in Australia this summer.
You remember those science fiction stories where the people live in glass bubbles, and exposure to the outside elements leads to asphyxiation or melting temperatures?
That's kind of what life is like in Australia right now.
The population stays indoors. Stands next to the air conditioners that receive their power from coal deposits that we burn inexorably in power generators that were considered obsolete in the 1980s.
Cars, in gridlock, most consuming unleaded fuel, pump their air conditioners at full bore and yet everyone's back and armpits is still drenched in sweat.
We're now in Autumn and it's still hot. The heat is not going away.
Queensland and sections of Victoria are just... always flooded. As soon as the poor bastards replace their carpets another drenching comes down to destroy everything.
I don't know what a level 2 commoner like myself can do. I don't think humanity has the intellect to discover that they are the proverbial frog in the boiling pot. Drop us suddenly in the boil, and we'll demand action - anything else isn't worth arguing about. She'll be right.
The next leader of our nation, with consistently popular polls is Tony Abbott. A man who kicked out the previous leader (Malcolm Turnbull) of his party because he demanded too much action on climate change. A man who declared that 'climate change was crap'. He's the most likely to lead us over the next four years if the polls are correct.
I just wish a brave Pathfinder could teleport to Government and forcibly enact a ban on major sources of carbon pollution. Someone needs to save the realm, because us commoners certainly are too stupid to manage it ourselves. There's a dragon called Denial destroying the realm and all the people can do is just burn to death.
That's heart-breaking.
Thank you for your report from the front.
Makes me sort of glad I didn't get that job and emigrate to Melbourne a few years back...
Sounds like Arizona or Florida.
Australia had a heatwave for like a week... shrugs, no big deal.
As a fellow Australian, I have no idea what you're talking about. But then again, I'm a city-softened Sydneysider (I hate that word) whose perpetual smog cloud blocks out the sun. There were some really cold days towards the end of summer too. It was weird.
But yeah, people will ignore it because we don't feel it in the suburbs.
Edit: I am the ignorant populace.
The next leader of our nation, with consistently popular polls is Tony Abbott. A man who kicked out the previous leader (Malcolm Turnbull) of his party because he demanded too much action on climate change. A man who declared that 'climate change was crap'. He's the most likely to lead us over the next four years if the polls are correct.
Sorry - how is Tony Abbott a consistently popular poller?
In November 2012 - his approval rating was 27% and disapproval rating was 63%
Sure the coalition is marginally ahead (though within error bands this far out from an election) - but it's a long bow to pull to say that Tony Abbott is popular...
Tony Abbott is NOT popular, he's just lucky that Gillard is just more unpopular than him. You are right though, he will be leading the place shortly.
It was hot this Summer, but the last bunch of Summers sucked so it was about time we had a 'good' one.
'STRAYA MATE.
It's all politics, when it's not sport.
How did this become Australian politics?
OP didn't do his homework... so he can't play for the Australian Cricket team... or something.
On the original topic, a google search and five minutes research will show that Australia's dependency on coal is gradually diminishing and alternative power generation sources is on the rise.
Looks out of office window in Scotland at the blizzard in March... wishing for some heat... any heat...
You can always come back to Auld Scotia should Oz get a wee bitty too hot... the prodigal sons and daughters return! :)
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I liked Scotland.
Hmm, I live in Sydney don't have air-conditioning, and catch the train to work..
Yes it has been hotter, but not intolerably so... Then again I grew up near subtropical Byron Bay and Summer was no different then summer up that way.
Its Australia - if its not in drought, it either on fire, under water, or being eaten by a plague of rabbits, mice, or locusts.
A poem
SAID HANRAHAN
"We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
In accents most forlorn,
Outside the church, ere Mass began,
One frosty Sunday morn.
The congregation stood about,
Coat-collars to the ears,
And talked of stock, and crops, and drought,
As it had done for years.
"It's lookin' crook," said Daniel Croke;
"Bedad, it's cruke, me lad,
For never since the banks went broke
Has seasons been so bad."
"It's dry, all right," said young O'Neil,
With which astute remark
He squatted down upon his heel
And chewed a piece of bark.
And so around the chorus ran
"It's keepin' dry, no doubt."
"We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out.
"The crops are done; ye'll have your work
To save one bag of grain;
From here way out to Back-o'-Bourke
They're singin' out for rain.
"They're singin' out for rain," he said,
"And all the tanks are dry."
The congregation scratched its head,
And gazed around the sky.
"There won't be grass, in any case,
Enough to feed an ass;
There's not a blade on Casey's place
As I came down to Mass."
"If rain don't come this month," said Dan,
And cleared his throat to speak--
"We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"If rain don't come this week."
A heavy silence seemed to steal
On all at this remark;
And each man squatted on his heel,
And chewed a piece of bark.
"We want a inch of rain, we do,"
O'Neil observed at last;
But Croke "maintained" we wanted two
To put the danger past.
"If we don't get three inches, man,
Or four to break this drought,
We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out."
In God's good time down came the rain;
And all the afternoon
On iron roof and window-pane
It drummed a homely tune.
And through the night it pattered still,
And lightsome, gladsome elves
On dripping spout and window-sill
Kept talking to themselves.
It pelted, pelted all day long,
A-singing at its work,
Till every heart took up the song
Way out to Back-o'Bourke.
And every creek a banker ran,
And dams filled overtop;
"We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"If this rain doesn't stop."
And stop it did, in God's good time;
And spring came in to fold
A mantle o'er the hills sublime
Of green and pink and gold.
And days went by on dancing feet,
With harvest-hopes immense,
And laughing eyes beheld the wheat
Nid-nodding o'er the fence.
And, oh, the smiles on every face,
As happy lad and lass
Through grass knee-deep on Casey's place
Went riding down to Mass.
While round the church in clothes genteel
Discoursed the men of mark,
And each man squatted on his heel,
And chewed his piece of bark.
"There'll be bush-fires for sure, me man,
There will, without a doubt;
We'll all be rooned," said Hanrahan,
"Before the year is out."
John O'Brien
Well, it looks like the last blast has finished here in Adelaide (fingers crossed) now that the mercury's back under thirty, perhaps we can get back to Autumn.
Or we'll all be rooned!
=)
Reggie
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I liked Scotland.
Psst, Shifty. You can still like Scotland, even if you aren't there. ;)
There is a reason the UK is called Ol' Blighty.
Oh, and I also have been told that it is a requirement to Like Ireland this upcoming Sunday, no matter where you are.
It's hard not to like Ireland on any given day.
Btw: as far as I know, Ireland experienced unusually heavy snowfalls in the past four winters at least.
Thus far this has not been a rainy season. Hasn't been one in a few years.
This entire season we've had about as much rain as we're supposed to get in a single good storm. The weatherman is getting jumping-up-and-down excited by the prospects of a quarter inch.
Converting to Celcius, this season we've swung from 10 degrees to 30 over the course of a few days. And then right back down again. And up again... And this is "winter"?
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Good news: Australia gets enough sunlight that solar is essentially at 'grid parity' with fossil fuels now. You'll easily be able to convert over to less expensive and less polluting power.
Bad news: By the time the world gets carbon emissions under control this past year will just be an average summer.
Yikes... That sure is bad :(
I can't help but ride the electric train to work everyday ... I'm not high level enough to teleport and help with the wacking!
Looks out of office window in Scotland at the blizzard in March... wishing for some heat... any heat...
You can always come back to Auld Scotia should Oz get a wee bitty too hot... the prodigal sons and daughters return! :)
Ach come on Man it wisn't that bad.
I seem to recall tha most of the Scottish Emigrants to Australasia went to NZ not Australia..
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I love that old 'We'll be rooned' poem. It sums up a lot of Australian sentiment for the last 70 years. Funny how it's spread from the country to the cities now :)
As for the Abbott being popular line, he's popular enough to look increasingly likely to be elected leader of the nation. At some point we have to say that the democratic mandate constitutes popularity, right?
I spent the last summer in Western Australia and Melbourne.
There is a lot of good news about the parity in pricing of renewable energy (I highly recommend reneweconomy.com.au for its email bulletin) but there is so little political passion and action behind this game-changing work that it's hard not to get up every morning and scream 'We'll all be rooned!' at the air conditioner.
May I have a ticket to Scotland?
Well, on a positive, China is bringing in a 'price on carbon' and also ramping up their transition to nuclear power, so at least that will be one less pollution issue.
'STRAYA has many options for sustainable energy, but the Govt skirts around pulling the trigger because the Aussie public go into a shrill scream any time the Govt even sneezes in the direction of running a defecit, even if it is a short term one for infrastructure build.
Reckon we'd re-run the Snowy River scheme these days? Not bloody likely.
Ach come on Man it wisn't that bad.Looks out of office window in Scotland at the blizzard in March... wishing for some heat... any heat...
You can always come back to Auld Scotia should Oz get a wee bitty too hot... the prodigal sons and daughters return! :)
I wouldnae be a true Scot if I'd been upbeat about it ;)
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There is a lot of good news about the parity in pricing of renewable energy (I highly recommend reneweconomy.com.au for its email bulletin) but there is so little political passion and action behind this game-changing work that it's hard not to get up every morning and scream 'We'll all be rooned!' at the air conditioner.
Actually, at this point I think 'political action' is irrelevant.
If politicians had been merely NEUTRAL on renewable energy for the past thirty years then we'd be at zero atmospheric CO2 growth by now. If there had been active support for renewable power then we'd only be using fossil fuels for a few niche applications by now.
However, it doesn't matter... because, as you note, unsubsidized renewable power is now falling below the cost of highly subsidized fossil fuel power. For obvious reasons it is happening in sunny and windy areas far from major fossil fuel producing areas first, but over 20% of the planet's population already live in areas where renewable power is cheaper and by 2020 (barring some massive unforeseen change) it will be over 95%.
Thus, there is very little which political opposition can do to stop a transition to renewable power at this point. Development by private firms will make it more and more obvious that renewable power just costs less... even without taking health and environmental costs of fossil fuels into account.
I live in the blue mountains, I noticed it rained a lot. Put the air con on maybe three days. Those figures from the link are pretty scary lookin though?
Blue Mountains, awesome place :)
Reckon there would be some good spots for some outdoor gaming! Almost LARP territory.
Yeah I've done a bit of charging around the bush wacking my friends with wooden swords in my time. Camped in caves around Springwood... I've never played in the bush though everyone's to worried about losing their dice.
Just did the Easter Egg hunt up at Leura Everglades, that'd be a nice location for a gaming picnic too.
Just did the Easter Egg hunt up at Leura Everglades, that'd be a nice location for a gaming picnic too.
Our daughters loved the Easter Egg hunt at the Everglades... that was a few years ago now.
Mrs 8th Dwarf and I got married at the Manor House at Mt Victoria and had our honeymoon at a cottage in Leura.
Ach come on Man it wisn't that bad.Looks out of office window in Scotland at the blizzard in March... wishing for some heat... any heat...
You can always come back to Auld Scotia should Oz get a wee bitty too hot... the prodigal sons and daughters return! :)
I wouldnae be a true Scot if I'd been upbeat about it ;)
Frasier has to be one of my favorites, actually all of them are especially Jones.... lets fix bayonets...they don't like it up em, they don't like it up em.
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Hey, if you are looking for a less warm and pollution-free place, welcome to Scandinavia! We have plenty of clean air and nature, and our winters are long, dark and cold (especially when the wind blows from Siberia; wind chill can bring the temperature down to -35 or even -40).
Occasionally we get hot summers, but at best it's about +30 celcius on a few days. Last summer the hottest days were probably what Australians consider to be chilly, i.e. +20 or so (and I was glad, because I feel extremely uncomfortable when the temperature is any warmer than that).
Now that the spring is here, we have +4 celcius during the day, but it drops a few degrees below zero for the night. :)