There’s finally some relief for Australia shoppers as sky-high prices for fruit and vegetables start settling back down to earth.
Shortages of products such as iceberg lettuce, caused by heavy flooding and supply chain disruptions, saw prices soar in recent months, to the point where fast food giants such as KFC and Subway were substituting cabbage in their products instead.
But Fred Harrison of Ritchies IGA in Melbourne said things were looking up.
The price of some fresh produce is finally tipped to fall after weeks of record-breaking ticket prices. (Supplied)
“I think the weather has got a lot to do with it,” he said.
“We have seen a moderation from the rain, and the crops are in and growing, and bring on the warm weather because that’s going to continue to help.”
He said red and green capsicums were down to a couple of dollars a kilogram, as were zucchinis.
Iceberg lettuce is retreating from previous price highs. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
“Lettuce prices are coming back. We remember the story about lettuce getting to $12, it is getting back to $7, and broccoli is down a couple of dollars a kilo,” Harrison told Today.
But he admitted some products would remain stubbornly high-priced, including tomatoes and green beans – the latter of which had reached about $30-$40 a kilogram.
He said sweet corn was also “very hard to get.”
Green beans, though, remain expensive. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)
“That will improve as the weather maintains and the crops come through,” he said.
“The new season of pumpkins coming through, it will become cheaper over the next few weeks.”
Harrison said shoppers had reason to feel a little optimism after a horror year at the checkout.
Top 10 most expensive cities to live in 2022
“Barring any major disasters with rain, we should look and see produce prices continue to fall through to Christmas,” he said.
“Every week they’re coming down maybe $1 a box, $2 a box. It is not a lot but hopefully by the time we get to October or November, pricing will be a lot sharper.”
Apple could significantly expand its smart home product line within the next two years, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. In his latest Gurman reports the company has “at least four new smart home devices in its labs.”
Included in that list is the model Gurman first wrote about back in June, in addition to a refreshed . The former will reportedly look and sound like the . Apple without announcing a direct replacement. The two other devices represent entirely new products for the company.
According to Gurman, one is a kitchen accessory that combines an iPad with a speaker. Meanwhile, the other reportedly brings together the functionality of an Apple TV, camera and HomePod into a living room device. He says Apple could release one of those two products by the end of next year or early 2024 but warns that “not all will see the light of the day.”
A kitchen device would see Apple competing more closely with Amazon and Google. The two are most closely associated with the smart display category thanks to releases like the and . It would be interesting to see what Apple thinks it can bring to the field since most smart displays don’t feel essential.
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New health fears for Queen, 96, as her traditional welcome to Balmoral Castle ‘is axed and replaced with small, private event’
Queen arrived at Balmoral in late July and had been planning to attend the event
But the event was yesterday canceled and replaced with a smaller gathering
Sources suggest the late alteration is ‘a sign of things to come’ for Her Majesty
But Buckingham Palace has played down growing concerns over her health
By Jamie Phillips For Mailonline
Published: | Updated:
The Queen has ‘cancelled her traditional welcome to Balmoral Castle’ and will instead host a ‘small, private event’ amid growing concerns about her health.
The monarch, 96, arrived at the Aberdeenshire estate in late July and had been planning to attend the event up until just a few days ago.
But the event was yesterday canceled and replaced with the smaller gathering, marking the first time, aside from the pandemic, that she will not take part in the small ceremony outside the Castle gates.
A royal source told The Mirror: ‘The traditional welcome to Balmoral is normally cemented in the Queen’s calendar and something Her Majesty really enjoys, being able to greet locals who travel to see her.
‘It’s a bitter disappointment the ceremony will not take place in its traditional form.’
Other sources said the alteration was ‘a sign of things to come’ amid Her Majesty’s episodic mobility problems.
But Buckingham Palace has played down concerns over her health, instead saying the private event was ‘in line with adapting Her Majesty’s schedule for her comfort’.
The Queen inspects Pipes and Drums of 4 SCOTS Royal Regiment of Scotland at the gates at Balmoral in 2018
The monarch has been staying at Craigowan Lodge (pictured) since departing Windsor Castle for Scotland on July 21
A furniture lorry arriving at Balmoral Castle on Saturday, having traveled from Windsor Castle
Last year, the Queen looked radiant in a pink ensemble as she inspected a Guard of Honor and met The Royal Regiment of Scotland’s Mascot, Shetland Pony Lance Corporal Cruachan IV.
The monarch typically remains at Balmoral until early October, with the ceremony formally marking the start of her stay.
But this year, she will attend a private event on lawns within the castle’s grounds.
The Queen will inspect troops as normal, but no television camera, photographers or reporters will be present at the event.
It comes as the monarch plans to interrupt her Scottish holiday to travel to England and invite her 15th Prime Minister to form a government, The Mail on Sunday understands.
Boris Johnson has announced he will step down on September 6, when he will formally tender his resignation to the Queen.
The Monarch will then ‘invite’ the winning Tory candidate to become Prime Minister and announce their name.
They are expected to meet the Queen to officially accept the invitation.
The Queen does not usually return from her Balmoral break until early October but is believed to have told aides she will make an exception this year and travel to London.
The Queen pictured departing Aberdeen on July 21 as she was driven towards her official Scottish residence of Balmoral Castle for her annual summer stay
Two Range Rovers are escorted by a police motorcycle as the Queen left her Windsor home to travel to her estate in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on July 21
A source said: ‘Her Majesty does not expect the new Prime Minister to travel to Scotland, so the plan is that the Queen will travel down to see them.
Balmoral is understood to be a favorite stay for Her Majesty, who welcomes her family to the castle throughout the summer months.
She has been staying at Craigowan Lodge since departing Windsor Castle for Scotland on July 21.
It comes after a lorry with furniture was pictured outside Balmoral on Saturday after bringing furniture from Windsor.
Balmoral has had a number of adaptations in recent years, including Craigowan Lodge being fitted with a wheelchair-friendly lift last year.
A new security gate, a state-of-the-art intercom system and a string of new CCTV cameras were also installed.
Nick Kyrgios has claimed his seventh ATP title, and first in three years, with a straight sets win over Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka in Washington.
Remarkably, Kyrgios didn’t drop his serve all week as he continued his outstanding recent form. Since April he’s made the semi finals or better in five of the six tournaments he’s played, including the Wimbledon final.
The 6-4 6-3 win moves the Australian to number 37 in the world rankings, up from 63 a week ago, and on the verge of an all-important seeding for the US Open later this month.
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Had rankings points been awarded at Wimbledon, Kyrgios would have been number 15 in the world.
The Australian had Nishioka under pressure immediately, breaking serve in the opening game of both sets.
It was the first time since the tournament began in 1969 that two unseeded players had met in the final.
Nick Kyrgios has won the seventh ATP title of his career, winning in Washington. (kayo)
“It’s just very emotional for me, to see where I was that last year to now, it’s just an incredible transformation,” Kyrgios said.
“I’ve been in some really dark places.
“I’ve shown some serious strength to continue and persevere and get through those times and win tournaments like this one.”
It’s the second time Kyrgios has won the Washington title, having previously lifted the trophy in 2019.
I have faced just one break point in the final, meaning he won all 64 service games for the week. He sat down 12 aces in the final, winning 22 of 25 points on his first serve.
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The backstories and controversies that have ignited feuds involving athletes
For governments of a long duration, probity in office can often seep away and its members find themselves accused of a lack of integrity or mired in political scandal. It often doesn’t manifest itself in large rackets or kickbacks and bribes – it could also be a culture of spending public money for political ends or misusing taxpayer-funded positions for cronies and pals.
How do I know that? Because as a member of the New South Wales Labor Party I have seen with my own eyes – inside my own party – what happens when a government loses the will to place integrity at the center of everything they do.
I have seen the drift and the grift, the dramas and the scandals, the self-obsession and self-aggrandising that consumes a government from within when they decide to put their own political hopes and dreams ahead of the public good.
NSW Opposition Leader Chris Minns.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
If I have learned anything about integrity from my time in politics, it’s that even though integrity is a noun, as a politician – and as the leader of a party – you are better off thinking of it as a verb. It’s not an outcome you reach, it is a continuous and relentless determination to place integrity at the heart of all your decisions and actions, and that’s precisely what all sides of politics in New South Wales need to do.
That’s why from opposition we have introduced a private members bill that makes the grants process fairer and more accountable by imposing new reporting requirements on ministers and agencies; conferring new powers on the auditor-general to follow the money; and introducing new grant guidelines.
We can’t afford to wait for the next election to start acting on integrity. We need to begin that work today. I have not hesitated to back Gladys Berejiklian or Dom Perrottet when I thought they were on the right path, and I called on the premier to do the same thing and back this important, considered, and urgently needed bill.
At the end of the day, public funds are not the government’s own piggy bank. We want to work with the premier and the government to carry out these reforms now.
We all know this money could be better spent and the public has the right to know that if Labor does form government we won’t turn around and appoint our own former MPs to jobs that pay more than the premier.
I’ve said before and I’ll keep saying it – NSW Labor supports the Independent Commission Against Corruption not because it investigates our opponents but because it investigates us. Knowing ICAC is watching helps people have faith and trust in their government and political leaders. I believe in many cases its presence stops corruption before it even begins.
Milwaukee police are looking for shooters in five separate shootings that happened within 75 minutes of each other Saturday evening. Police said the first shooting happened near 16th and Mitchell streets at about 7:40 pm A 23-year-old man was taken to an area hospital with serious injuries. Ten minutes later, Milwaukee police were called out to the corner of 17th and Clarke streets. A 24-year-old woman was injured. The third shooting happened at 24th and Monroe streets, where a 34-year-old man was shot just before 8:25 pmThen less than 20 minutes later a 27-year-old man was shot at 27th Street and Lisbon Avenue.Just before 9 pm, there was another shooting. A 43-year-old man was shot near 14th and Nash streets. Later in the evening, at 11:50 pm, a 25-year-old man was shot near 15th and Washington streets. Early Sunday morning, a 40-year-old Milwaukee man was shot near 22nd Street and National Avenue at 12:40 am All of the victims are expected to survive.Anyone with any information is asked to contact Milwaukee police at 414-935-7360 or to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 414-224-Tips or P3 Tips.
MILWAUKEE—
Milwaukee police are looking for shooters in five separate shootings that happened within 75 minutes of each other Saturday evening.
Police said the first shooting happened near 16th and Mitchell streets at about 7:40 pm A 23-year-old man was taken to an area hospital with serious injuries.
Ten minutes later, Milwaukee police were called out to the corner of 17th and Clarke streets. A 24-year-old woman was injured.
The third shooting happened at 24th and Monroe streets, where a 34-year-old man was shot just before 8:25 pm
Then less than 20 minutes later a 27-year-old man was shot at 27th Street and Lisbon Avenue.
Just before 9 pm, there was another shooting. A 43-year-old man was shot near 14th and Nash streets.
Later in the evening, at 11:50 pm, a 25-year-old man was shot near 15th and Washington streets.
Early Sunday morning, a 40-year-old Milwaukee man was shot near 22nd Street and National Avenue at 12:40 am
All of the victims are expected to survive.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact Milwaukee police at 414-935-7360 or to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 414-224-Tips or P3 Tips.
Planespotters get a prime view from the bar at ‘The House’ in Melbourne Airport’s international terminal.
Air travel is a horror show at the moment. Staff shortages mean long queues at the check-in desk, bag drop and security. Terminals are heaving at peak periods, which can be 10am on a Monday, flight delays and cancellations are the order of the day. Aircraft are packed and at the end of your flight you might have to wait 10 or 15 minutes before an airbridge is connected to your aircraft.
Unless you’re flying business class, you just might be tempted to shell out for a pay-for-use lounge. Inside is a sanctuary of calm and comfort, where the food and drink are there for the taking and the loudest noise is the hiss of the espresso machine. In these turbulent times, they bring a soft edge to air travel. If you’re traveling at the pointy end, you’re likely to have access included, but there are other ways to get into these privileged domains and they mostly involve your wallet.
The bad news is that most pay-for-use lounges in Australia are located in our international terminals. Even there, a number have yet to open after closing during the pandemic. Adjust your expectations. Like every other aspect of airport operations, lounges are struggling with shortages of experienced staff. If you judge these lounges by the business-class havens of the pre-pandemic era, you might be disappointed.
Melbourne Airport
The House, international departures
With seating for 144, this crisp, stylish lounge has decent food and beverage offerings with an a la carte menu that makes a feature of regional Victorian produce while planespotters get a prime view from the bar. Opening hours are from midday to 4pm most days, 5:30pm to 11:30pm on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, calculated to chime with Etihad departures. A Priority Pass gets you in, or you can book and pay on the pay on the Executive Lounges website. Charge is £34.69 ($60.60).
Marhaba Lounge, international departures
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Located on level three of the international terminal, some airlines use this as their business lounge so it probably won’t be quiet, but seating and staff get a general tick. Meat pies and sausage rolls loom large among the food selections but there’s an a la carte menu with a few Asian options. The Hudsons’ coffee cart is often out of action but there’s a fair selection of beers, wines and spirits. A Priority Pass membership will get you through the door or you can pay for entry, $64 for four hours.
Sydney Airport
Rex Lounge, domestic departures
Located in T2, it’s a small haven away from this busy domestic terminal, which hosts Virgin Australia and Jetstar as well as Rex Airlines. There’s a selection of wraps, sandwiches and salads and wine with beer available from mid-afternoon. Anyone traveling with Rex can enter, business class free of charge while those on a saver fare pay $33 and flex fare passengers pay just $16.50, but entry is subject to space availability and it’s not large. The lounge is also open to Priority Pass members.
Plaza Premium Lounge, international departures
Located on Level 1 of the international departures terminal, several airlines are using this as their business class lounge. It’s struggling to get back on its feet with food, ambience and seating generally getting the thumbs down, although staff are trying hard. Booking on the Plaza Premium website gives you five hours’ access for $64.
The House, international departures
Generally regarded as the better of the two pay-for-use lounges at Sydney’s international terminal, The House is reasonably spacious. Food selections at the buffet are limited but overall quality is good and the drinks selection gets a tick. Opening hours are 7am to 9:30pm except on Tuesdays and Thursdays when the lounge opens at 11:45am. A Priority Pass gets you in but you can also book and pay, £34.69 ($60.60) at the Executive Lounges website.
Perth Airport
Aspire Lounge Terminal 2 domestic departures
This is another sassy offering from Aspire, the lounge division of Swiss aviation services company Swissport. Formerly a Virgin Australia lounge, it’s bright and comfortable with an open-plan design but space constraints mean no bathrooms. Wi-Fi is fast and power outlets are plentiful but there are no USB ports, so BYO plug. FIFO workers make up a large percentage of the clientele and the buffet selection is designed for appetites honed on a mine site. So too the opening hours – 4am to 4pm weekdays. A Platinum Pass or an Amex Platinum card will get you in, and so will $11, but for a limited time only.
Aspire Lounge Terminal 1 International departures
If only all pay-for-use lounges were this great. This sleek, newly opened lounge in Perth’s international terminal has been re-created from the airport’s former control center and it’s a cut about the terminal’s Singapore Airlines and Qantas business class lounges. The muted blue and earthy color scheme is soothing and the design is tasty. There’s even a circular observation area with wraparound windows. Opening hours are synched with international departures, 6:30pm to 10:30pm on Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:30pm to 10:30pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, 12:30pm to midnight on Saturdays. A Platinum Pass opens the door, so will an Amex Platinum card but for others it’s worth the $66 entry fee.
BrisbaneAirport
Plaza Premium Lounge, international departures
It’s plenty spacious, there are showers and private workstations, staff are pleasant and helpful and the Wifi is decent but it feels tired and in need of refurb. The decor is chaotic and food tries too hard to cover too many bases. The overall impression is a lounge still getting back on its feet after a long lie-down, and the present time table doesn’t make for a smooth operation. Opening hours are just 8-11pm daily. Admission cost is $56.92.
The passes that get you in
With more than 1300 lounges around the world, Priority Pass is the great white whale of airport lounges. As a general rule, PP membership gets you into lounges under such brand names as Plaza Premium and Marhaba and in a few cases, the lounges that premier-league airlines operate for the benefit of their business-class elite.
Standard membership is currently discounted to an annual $US49 ($70), on top of which you’ll pay $US32 ($46) for each lounge visit. Standard Plus costs $US254 ($365) pa and gives you 10 free visits with a fee of $US32 for each subsequent visit. Prestige membership costs $US429 ($616) for unlimited access. Priority Pass members can bring a guest for a fee of $US32.
The American Express Platinum Card gets you free entry to The Global Lounge Collection. That’s more than 1500 lounges under such brand names as Centurion Lounges, International American Express Lounges, Escape Lounges, Delta Sky Lounges, Plaza Premium and Air Space lounges plus any one of the lounges open to Priority Pass members. Most of those lounges allow Amex Platinum cardholders to bring in two travel companions, no charge. Annual card fee is a stiff $1450, but that does come with an annual travel credit of $450 and plenty more perks.
See also: Sneak peek inside Virgin’s new exclusive, invites-only lounge
See also: Airport review: This is one airport you’ll gladly wait around in
Back in the ’90s, a point-and-click adventure game taken on warcraft was in development, and though it was cancelled, a fan has remastered a build of the game that was leaked years ago.
The leak of the canceled game, Warcraft: Lord of the Clans, appeared online back in 2016, though while very playable, cutscenes were very crunchy and low-resolution, with audio not quite synced, and some cutscenes were simply missing. However, as reported by PC Gamer and first spotted by IndieRetroNews, a fan has spent the past six years remastering all of the cutscenes to make it a bit more enjoyable to experience.
This particular project was led by modder DerSilver83, who paired the release of the mini-remaster with a blog post discussing it. “I have been working on it for the last 6 years and in that time I have done almost all I can do within a reasonable timeframe to complete and enhance the cutscenes,” wrote DerSilver83. “For me the game is very much enjoyable now and I see no real use in enhancing the cutscenes any further.”
As part of the remaster, all of the low-resolution cutscenes that would have originally been drawn by hand had compression artefacts removed by DerSilver83. And some frames and assets had to be redrawn entirely in Photoshop, a significant undertaking.
Some new transitional scenes have been created from the ground up too to make things flow a bit better, and all audio is properly synced up too. Missing voice lines were also created by using text to speech software, based on the original script too. And any continuity errors in the cutscenes have been removed too.
It should be noted that if you want to actually play the remaster, you’ll need the original files, which aren’t easily available due to a DMCA filing from Blizzard back when the leak took place. But you can download the remastered files here if you do have the original rummaging around somewhere, conveniently.
England has been stripped of the gold medal in the 4x400m relay in high drama on Monday morning (AEST).
It appeared England had pulled off one of the headline moments of the entire Games when Jessie Knight held off Canada’s fast-finishing Kyra Constantine down the final straight to cross the line just 0.01 seconds ahead.
England appeared to have won by a thousandth of a second. Photo: BBC.Source: Supplied
Fans inside Alexander Stadium went berserk when the replays showed Knight had just done enough for a famous victory. Or so they thought.
As the final event on the final day of athletics for the entire Games, it is enough to leave a sour taste in the mouths of the English fans — and many of them had already left the stadium before the disqualification was announced.
The England team wasn’t even told the news until after they had completed a victory lap.
They had no idea they were about to be hit a bus. Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images.Source: Getty ImagesAma Pipi, Victoria Ohuruogu, Jessie Knight and Jodie Williams celebrate. Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images.Source: Getty Images
However, there can be no doubting that the officials got the call right. It was announced that England had committed an infringement at the end of the first leg during the first baton change.
Replays showed English runner Jodie Williams had drifted to the inside lane (Lane 2) as she positioned herself to receive the baton and take off from that position.
England launched an immediate appeal, but 20 minutes later it was announced that the appeal had been tossed out.
As a result of the disqualification Canada took gold, Jamaica silver and Scotland was promoted to the bronze medal.
It finished off an incredible night at the track, which included Peter Bol’s silver medal win in the men’s 800m.
Scotland’s Laura Muir ended her Commonwealth Games campaign with a flourish by winning gold in the 1500m.
The 29-year-old’s teammate, 10,000m champion Eilish McColgan, just failed to make it a memorable double, finishing second behind Kenya’s impressive world silver medalist Beatrice Chebet in the 5,000m.
Muir, who won bronze in the 800m on Sunday (AEST), kicked for glory before the bell and ran a fairly moderate field — lacking two-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon — ragged, timing 4min 02.75sec.
The Olympic silver medallist was overjoyed, having failed to medal in 2014 and missing the 2018 Games due to veterinary exams.
“You learn from it and your time will come,” said Muir, who will bid for more gold medals in the upcoming European Championships.
“It sounds cheesy but it’s true. Eight years of Commonwealths and it’s been bugging me so this means a lot.”
India have also had an excellent athletics competition — Eldhose Paul won their first-ever men’s triple jump gold earlier on Sunday — but bitter rivals Pakistan also had a taste of glory.
Arshad Nadeem, wearing strapping around his right arm, gave the Asian nation their first javelin gold with a Games record mark of 90.18 meters.
Nigeria’s Ese Brume won the women’s long jump competition, leaping 7.00m. Despite the fierce competition, though there was still room for sentiment between rivals.
Recently crowned world champion Kelsey-Lee Barber earlier won the women’s javelin with a throw of 64.43m while Canada’s Evan Dunfee won the men’s 10,000 race walk.
Once the handful of tourists heads back to the mainland this patch of land feels even more isolated.
French Island is little more than 60 kilometers south of Melbourne and yet most Melburnians would never have heard of it.
Residents live off the grid here and love the seclusion.
Car headlights sporadically light up the back roads and on a clear night the stars sparkle.
It made the fire that burned on the morning of April 2 this year, it seemed even brighter. The flames leapt from the kitchen of the Eco Inn as the smoke alarm let out its constant shrill.
French Island Eco Inn in its former glory before the fire.(Supplied: Phil Bock)
Phil and Yuko Bock stumbled from their bedroom where they slept, but the smoke pushed them back. They jumped from a second-floor window to escape.
Their beloved dog Sammy never made it out.
Four accommodation cottages just meters from the main homestead also burned to the ground. The guests escaped uninjured, but everything was gone.
Phil and Yuko had struggled during the endless Victorian COVID lockdowns with no paying visitors, and they had suspended their insurance.
They’d spent a decade building up their business and in one night it was all gone.
Eco Inn owners Phil and Yuko Bock and their beloved dog, Sammy, who they lost in the fire.(Supplied: Phil Bock)
“Losing our home, business, and beloved dog to a fire is a tragedy that we will remember forever,” Phil says.
“But the thoughtfulness of our small local community and past guests has kept us hopeful. It really is appreciated and reminds us how lucky we are to live here.
“We may be geographically isolated and considered socially disadvantaged, but being part of a small community is like no other when it matters the most.”
Phil and Yuko have moved into a small holiday cottage that remains on the property, the only building spared by the fire.
Our Back Roads team stayed at the Eco Inn during our shoot just a few months earlier.
You won’t see them in our program on air, but they were our welcoming hosts, our companions, and our snooker challengers late into the evenings, and I wanted to share their story.
The fire not only gutted their livelihoods but left a community reeling. A Go Fund Me page has been set up to help them.
A close-knit and resourceful community
When a Back Roads team arrives in small-town destinations, we’re immediately welcomed.
French Island was no different, although some were anxious that the spotlight of a Back Roads TV crew might spoil the privacy they clung to.
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The island is twice the size of its neighbour, Phillip Island, but happily dodges the daily tourist-enticing penguin parades to the south.
Unlike Phillip Island, French Island has no bitumen, no council, no rates, and no bridge.
The barge fits just two cars for the 15-minute trip from Corinella on the Victorian mainland to the landmass north of Phillip Island.
Terry, the barge pilot, calls us “Bituminites”, just like all the other visitors who take for granted the sealed motorways of our daily drives.
The permanent population numbers not much more than 100: an idiosyncratic mix of rich and poor, famous and anonymous, worldly and parochial.
But they are inextricably linked by a chosen lifestyle that has one foot in the past and one eye on the future.
An environmental vineyard is gaining a name for itself among wine connoisseurs.
Locals live self-sufficiently with the help of wind and solar power and banks of batteries to keep their homes and small businesses thriving.
More than two-thirds of the island is a national park.
There are more koalas on French Island than people.(ABC Back Roads: Campbell Miller)
What’s missing here is what makes this place so special — no foxes, black rats, or kangaroos. No possums or wallabies.
That enables many other species to thrive, almost too well, judging by the koala population under the active control of Parks Victoria.
One of everything is enough for French Islanders
One tiny school attracts five or six children depending on other family demands and a one-stop shop provides locals with fuel and food to tide them over until they make a grocery trip across the water.
Mail and packages are delivered by boat to one very compact post office.
There’s mostly horror at the thought of a bridge being built to allow any of this daily existence to become a little easier. No-one wants an onslaught of “foreigners” as visitors are called.
They consider this place a paradise and they’re doing what they can to keep it that way.
There was a reason pop princess Kylie Minogue sought solitude here after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005.
The lack of easy access makes it a panacea for those seeking to hide away. But don’t think time has stopped still here.
The community is a living, working, microscopic example of what a group of like-minded people can do when armed with determination.
Like the tip committee, which deals with the fact that landfill is limited and reducing the amount of rubbish removed from the island is critical. Their solution is ingenious as well as practical.
Ninety per cent of the glass processed through the crushing machine is turned into useful sand for creative residents.(ABC Back Roads: Campbell Miller)
Transporting waste to the mainland is both costly and time-consuming. Instead, the community acquired a grant for a glass-crushing machine, which creates sand that residents use in their gardens, for potholes on their driveways, and for building jobs.
Protecting an unspoiled paradise
At the center of the community is a woman whose family ties go back to the very beginning — Lois Airs.
Lois Airs has a sustainable life on French Island, from her wind and solar-powered home to her productive chickens.(ABC Back Roads: Campbell Miller)
Her forebears, the Thompsons, were the original free settlers and the generations that have come since have created a forward-thinking recycling and re-using environmental haven.
Survival is key. Not only do the residents embrace modern methods for renewable energy sources like wind and solar, but they also grow their own food, keep livestock, maintain original dirt roads, bake bread, and chop wood as the early pioneers did.
Lois, like other French Islanders, wears many different hats: a farmer, former tour bus driver, crusader for recycling, and member of the CFA.
She was part of the team that fought the fire at the Eco Inn that night.
The CFA on French Island routinely practices fire drills to keep resident volunteers prepared for fires. Lois Airs is one of their willing volunteers.(ABC Back Roads: Campbell Miller)
“Seeing Phil and Yuko, sitting on the grass watching the last of their home and business burn to the ground, and without Sammy their dog, who was always with them, is something I’ll never forget,” Lois says.
French Islanders accept they’ve made the choice to live in isolation and they don’t want that to change.
But they’re also aware that means it is up to them to protect their unspoilt piece of paradise from the ravages of an outside world.
Tragically for Phil and Yuko, those ravages in the form of an inferno in the early hours of the morning saw paradise lost to them, but they will re-build with their good health intact and the help of a supportive community unlike any other.
Watch Lisa Millar as guest presenter on Back Roads in French Island on Monday at 8pm on ABC TV or catch up any time on ABC iview.
