Cerberus1

Lorikeets and bees on a palm tree in the back garden

The last time invitations were issued for 489 @ 60 points was the 04th Oct invitation round. Since Nov, 80 or 85 points has been required to get an invite.

Hi We used a backloading company at the end of 2016 when we moved from Townsville to Lockyer Valley. Pretty sure we used http://www.thebackloadingcompany.com.au/ cost just over $1k No complaints, everything was fine. Didn't move everything with the backloader, we had a storage locker in Townsville (Storage King in Hyde Park), price for storage is pretty cheap. Moved the rest of the stuff over the course of a couple of months ourselves.

Hi Maureen This thread (topic) began in 2010. It's over 600 pages long. Page 1 is from 2010, comments from 2018 start around page 606. If you look at the top of this topic, you can jump to the start or end using the arrows << >> or where is says page xxx of 621 click on the down arrow and enter a page number and click go.

After seeking clarification this morning from the LEGENDcom Help Desk at the Dept of Home Affairs, I've removed content from this thread in accordance with the guidance issued below:

Click on the messages icon at the top of the page to the left of your username. Then choose the 'Disable my messenger' option as shown below.

106 today in old money & 'feels like' 110.5 Almost shorts & T-shirt weather

Just adding a few more ravenswood photos. Ravenswood, circa 1909. The tall building on the left hand side of the street is the Imperial Hotel (see post above). Ravenswood School Swimming Pool - Then & Now. The Head Teacher instucted the students to bring a brick to school every day. When he deemed there were enough bricks, the parents dug a big hole, lined it with the bricks and then cemented it. Browne's Hotel - Then & Now There's a little less of it now, just the steps to be specific. Post Office - 1906 & Now Thorp's Buildings - Then & Now Thorp's Buildings circa 1903 (on the right hand side of the street). It housed businesses which supplied miners with everything from household goods to mining machinery and is the only two storey shop still standing in Ravenswood

Bit of a scorchio this coming week

Found a few more photos we took at Kuridala a few years ago so will tack them onto this thread.

Some photos from down the road in Tenterfield All photos below of 'Stannum House' in Tenterfield

It's up for sale at the moment, but couldn't see how much it is.

A few more photos from this morning

Not had chance to do much/any sightseeing, but have been driving through Glen Innes - Gloucester area last couple of days so a few photos below.

Maybe try worldnomads.com

https://www.humanservices.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/su631-1411en.pdf ?

Spring Bluff in 1907 As

Wen't out for Breakfast this morning to the Dutch Pancake Cottage at Spring Bluff Railway Station with @The Pom Queen. The station is around 40 minutes from where we live, just North of Toowoomba. The station was opened in 1867 and lies on the Ipswich-Toowoomba line. Construction on the line began in 1864 with the project being tackled in five stages, culminating in the sixteen mile section from Murphy’s Creek to Toowoomba known as the “Main Range”. The Main Range was regarded as a notoriously difficult section of rail to construct, given the steepness of the area. Approximately 1,600 men were involved in the project. On April 12 1867, the first train from Ipswich reached Toowoomba, (The journey from Ipswich to Toowoomba took 5 hours). Highfields Station, commonly known as the Main Range Station in its early days, was the principal crossing and watering station because of its suitable gradient and abundant water supply. It was renamed to Spring Bluff in 1890. The station served as an outlet for timber, dairy and other produce for the Highfields area. It played an integral role in community life and after the construction of a dance hall in 1907 was an important centre for social activities. The station was decommissioned in August 1992. and it's a big for the pancakes, top quality

Hope all goes well on the visa front, keep us updated on your progress. It's good to see that there's been several projects over the last couple of years in the area. I think the foreshore redevelopment should be finished now, they're doing some work on the airport, solar/battery storage project south of Cooktown etc. Unfortunately, we're further away now having moved from Cairns -> Townsville -> Lockyer Valley, so what was a 3.5 hour drive is now a 24 hour drive. Don't know if I'll manage to get back up there this year or not, but definitely planning to be there for Cooktown 2020 for the 250th Anniversary celebrations.

The Australian Medical Association has released a paper outlining ways to get more doctors into the bush. The ‘Position Statement – Rural Workforce Initiatives’ outlines what the AMA says is a comprehensive five-point plan to encourage more doctors to work in rural and remote locations and improve patient access to health care. It says at least one-third of all new medical students should be from rural backgrounds, and more medical students should be required to do at least one year of training in a rural area to encourage graduates to live and work in regional Australia. The plan also proposes initiatives in education and training, work environments, support for doctors and their families, and financial incentives. “About seven million Australians live in regional, rural, and remote areas,” said AMA President Dr Michael Gannon, announcing the initiative. They often have more difficulty accessing health services than their city cousins. “They often have to travel long distances for care, and rural hospital closures and downgrades are seriously affecting the future delivery of health care in rural areas. For example, more than 50 percent of small rural maternity units have been closed in the past two decades. “Australia does not need more medical schools or more medical school places. Workforce projections suggest that Australia is heading for an oversupply of doctors,” said Dr Gannon. “What is required are targeted initiatives to increase the size of the rural medical, nursing, and allied health workforce. There has been a considerable increase in the number of medical graduates in recent years, but more than three-quarters of locally trained graduates live in capital cities. “International medical graduates make up more than 40 percent of the rural medical workforce and while they do excellent work, we must reduce this reliance and build a more sustainable system.” The AMA Rural Workforce Initiatives plan outlines five key areas where it believes governments and other stakeholders should focus their policy efforts: Encourage students from rural areas to enroll in medical school, and provide medical students with opportunities for positive and continuing exposure to regional and rural medical training. Provide a dedicated and quality training pathway with the right skill mix to ensure doctors are adequately trained to work in rural areas. Provide a rewarding and sustainable work environment with adequate facilities, professional support and education, and flexible work arrangements, including locum relief. Provide family support that includes spousal opportunities/employment, educational opportunities for children’s education, subsidies for housing/relocation and/or tax relief. Provide financial incentives to ensure competitive remuneration. “Rural workforce policy must reflect the evidence. Doctors who come from a rural background, or who spend time training in a rural area, are more likely to take up long-term practice in a rural location,” Dr Gannon said. “Selecting a greater proportion of medical students with a rural background, and giving medical students and graduates an early taste of rural practice, can have a profound effect on medical workforce distribution. “Our proposals to lift both the targeted intake of rural medical students and the proportion of medical students required to undertake at least one year of clinical training in a rural area from 25 percent to 33 percent are built on this approach. “All Australians deserve equitable access to high-speed broadband, and rural doctors and their families should not miss out on the benefits that the growing use of the internet is bringing.”

TASMANIA Population Growth CommSec's latest State of the States report showed Tasmania had jumped on top of the relative population rankings with its 0.64 per cent annual population growth rate. A decade ago the rate of growth was 0.55 per cent. The fastest population growth in six years helped boost Tasmania's overall ranking from the fifth to the fourth-best performing economy, ahead of South Australia and Queensland. The Liberal Government has set a target to grow the population to 650,000 people by 2050 (the population is about 520,000). Property Market A recent CoreLogic report showed Hobart was by far the strongest housing market in the country for the month, quarter and year — rising by 1.5, 3.1 and 12.3 per cent respectively. The main reason for capital appreciation in the city's housing market was its affordability, compared to other capital cities. The median dwelling price in Hobart (including houses and apartments) was about $404,000 — compared to $895,000 in Sydney and $720,000 in Melbourne. Jobs Market According to the Deloitte report, Tasmania's job market has improved, which helped to reduce the unemployment rate. "Subject to the important caveat that the numbers for smaller states should be taken with a grain of salt, job gains over the past year are very strong, at over 3 per cent," the report stated. "That's helped reduce the unemployment rate from its level of a year ago, although at just over 6 per cent still, Tasmania is now the recipient of the unwanted title of highest unemployment rate jurisdiction [with South Australia carving chunks out of its previously highest unemployment rate]." The report also showed Tasmania's engineering construction sector improved over the last year, with the value of work done now back above the levels seen during the last peak in 2013-14. Business investment picked up and small business confidence was higher than the national average. Tourism The number of interstate and international visitors to Tasmania is booming, helping to boost the state's tourism sector. According to Deloitte, international visitors increased by 16 per cent in 2016-17, with their spending up by 24 per cent. In 2016-2017, Tasmania attracted nearly 1.27 million visitors, that spent a total of $2.26 billion throughout the state during their stay.

If you're moving to Australia and haven't decided where to want to live yet, it may be worthwhile keeping an eye on CommSec's 'State of the States' reports. The quarterly report attempts to find out how Australia’s states and territories performing by analysing eight key indicators: economic growth retail spending equipment investment unemployment construction work done population growth housing finance dwelling commencements. Just as the Reserve Bank uses long-term averages to determine the level of “normal” interest rates; CommSec do the same with the economic indicators. For each state and territory, latest readings for the key indicators were compared with decade averages – that is, against the “normal” performance. The latest State of the States report also includes a section comparing annual growth rates for the eight key indicators across the states and territories as well as Australia as a whole. This enables another point of comparison – in terms of economic momentum. FIRST - New South Wales SECOND - Victoria THIRD - Australian Capital Territory FOURTH - Tasmania FIFTH - South Australia SIXTH - Queensland SEVENTH - Northern Territory EIGHTH - Western Australia NSW has secured top rankings on five of the eight economic indicators: retail trade, dwelling starts, equipment investment, construction work and unemployment. NSW is second on economic growth and in third spot on population growth and housing finance. Victoria is second on the economic performance rankings for five of the eight indicators: retail trade, housing finance, population growth, construction work done and equipment investment. The lowest ranking is fifth on the unemployment rate. The ACT held on to third spot on the rankings. The biggest improvement has been the job market, with annual employment growth now the strongest in almost a decade. The ACT is top-ranked on housing finance. Tasmania has lifted from fifth to fourth position. Tasmania now is top-ranked on relative population growth and is third-placed on equipment investment and unemployment. Population growth is the strongest in 6½ years. South Australia has eased from fourth to fifth on the performance rankings. South Australia is ranked fourth on four of the eight indicators. Queensland remains in sixth position. But the outlook is promising with annual employment growth the fastest in the nation and just off the fastest for the state in over a decade. The Northern Territory retains its seventh position on the economic performance rankings. The Territory is top ranked on economic growth but now lags all other economies on six of the eight indicators. Employment is now lower than a year ago in trend terms. The good news is that exports are growing strongly, up 35 per cent on a year ago. The economic performance of Western Australia continues to reflect the ending of the mining construction boom. But employment growth was just off the strongest levels seen in five years. And annual population growth has lifted for the past four quarters. Download the full report: CommSec_State_of_the_States_January2018.pdf

Some photos below from when we've been to Cooktown

We've been to Cooktown numerous times over the years, I absolutely love it and if I could afford a second property somewhere, it would be at the end of Webber Esplanade overlooking the ocean. As for living there. Yes, it is very rural and a small town. There's no department stores, cinemas etc, there's no large supermarket (Coles/Woolworths). There's an IGA supermarket, but it's not huge. It's a good road all the way there, so no problems on that front. - the Mulligan highway was fully sealed by 2006 Cyclones - a possibility but a rarity, before the 2014 Cyclone, Cooktown hadn't been hit for 60 years. I'd research important things such as school/medical facilities etc (It's a long way to travel if you need a specialist, probably Cairns or Townsville). Look at myschool.edu.au to see how the schools perform. I know Endeavour Christian College is quite a new school and I believe has quite a good reputation If you like getting out and exploring, 4wd tracks etc and are adventurous, there's enjoyment to be had there. I think from a personal point of view, if I were living there, I'd be looking to break things up a little. Maybe head down to Cairns a couple of times a month for the weekend. Stop the night there, stock up on shopping, do some of the things in Cairns that you wouldn't be able to do in Cooktown.