#great keppel island

[medjoul]

[rattyexplores]

There's a lot happening in this big mess of bugs. Firstly, it seems the palm tree already had a problem with scale insects, there's probably thousands just on this part of the tree alone. Despite the large amount of scale insects, some mealybugs decided to join the party also, bringing along their protective ant colony, which milk the mealies for honeydew. With the ants protecting their honeydew source, the mealybugs should be safe right? Well no, the larvae of the Mealybug Destroyer ladybug is also present. You may have noticed that some of the mealybugs are much larger than they should be. That's because, of course, these are not mealybugs at all, but predatory lady beetle larvae, mimicking the appearance of their food source: the mealybugs. I don't know why there's a huge, layered ecosystem on a decorative palm tree outside the conference room, but here we are.

Here's a list of the insects present (there's also the fat maggot-looking things in the first photo, but I don't know what they could be):

Technomyrmex sp. - large black ants

Pseudococcidae sp. - mealybugs (white, dusty bugs)

Cryptolaemus montrouzieri - suspiciously large mealybugs

Coccoidea sp. - weird speckes and round shapes on the bark (literally layers upon layers of scale insects)

14/09/23

QLD:CQC - Woppa (Great Keppel Island)

[micewithknives]

Top 5 places you have visited or want to visit.

Idk i have any specific order for this - so consider it "top 5 general". Also theyre all Australia, bc as much as theres places i think would be cool to visit overseas, i think theres a lot of places in Australia that are super underrated, and I want to visit them first. (Also I've literally never left the country, so...)

Want to: The Kimberley

I've been to WA, but only to the bottom part, and I'd love to see more of it. Plus, my parents have photos from like the 90s and some of the places they went were GORGEOUS and I'd love to visit some day.

2. Been to: Narriearra Caryapundy Swamp National Park

VERY cool place. May hold the record for the prettiest sunrises I've seen in the last little while. I'm sad i didnt get to explore more around the wider area. Worlds cutest budgies (and insanely sized flocks of them at that). 10/10 would go again.

3. Want to: Tasmania (general)

I've been to Tasmania exactly once (it made me technically have been to every state) but it was for a university trip, and we only got three exploration days. So I've been to Port Arthur, Maria Island, and Hobart. All very cool, but I'd love to see more of it, especially the western side. Also to revisit a bakery that i got literally the best vanilla slice i've ever tasted from.

4. Been to: The (various) Keppel Islands

Theyre just SO pretty. Theyre also the traditional lands of the Woppaburra people and have some VERY cool archaeology and culture (including carved shell fish hooks). Also somewhere i saw a dugong once, so bonus points for that. (Still mad they keep trying to redevelop Great Keppel Island. pls. it doesnt need a resort).

5. Want to: Norfolk Island

TECHNICALLY part of Australia, but also like... a long trip. I feel like I might like to visit Norfolk Island at least once in my life. Especially after having had to do research on it for an archaeology assessment once. Its kinda fascinating

[tomorrowsunrise]

i would LOVE to hear you infodump about any of the things on your list :)

OH MY GOD I LOVE YOU

The impacts of foraging on ecosystems:

so I just listened to this really interesting podcast about white sage in California and how the people who like sell it for pagan rituals are not only appropriating Native American culture but also decimating the landscapes the sage comes from (shoutout to ologies!) and like human demands for food and fish meal are in many cases in direct competition with forage needs of marine mammals, birds and piscivorous harvested fish. Globally, harvest of forage species such as sardines, anchovy, herring and euphausiids (or krill) total approximately 30 million tonnes and account for sbout 30% of global fisheries landings which is crazy

scuba diving

I just went Scuba Diving for my dive master certificate which was really cool! I really enjoyed exploring the underwater wonders of Great Keppel Island, and I got to see fish, turtles, pelagics, rays, and some awesome kelps!!!! There was a really cool seagrass meadows that I got to explore

books of any sort

my to-read:

The four humors

71/2 deaths of Evelyn hardcastle

Conversations with RBG

The water dancer

The reign of wolf 21

The Promised Land

A Separate Peace

Anger Is A Gift

Blood Water Paint

Every Day

Homecoming- Cynthia Voigt

Long Way Down

My Sister’s Keeper 

Sadie

Scythe 

The Clay Lion

The Hate U Give

The Marrow Thieves

The Raven Boys

This Savage Song

Elatsoe

Belle revolte

summer bird blue

Sawkill girls

bioethics (omg designer babies??? chickens with teeth??? eliminating genetic disorders???)

omg George church post recall

bread

I love bread

[yu-jihukuda]

Boats Floating In The Sea Near The Great Keppel Island At Sunset In The ...

[wholesomebellies]

The Paradox of Slowing Down to Speed Up

Holy shit!  I don’t know what is happening this year, but it is moving at lighting speed!  And to be honest I’ve never felt so busy. 

Be honest:  are you busy?  And is it working for you?

In today’s world so many of us wear busy like badge of honor.  If you’re not busy, it may mean that you are lazy or not successful.  It’s an evil trap we all fall in to.  I know I’m guilty sometimes. 

So here I am, in this photo – lying in the crystal, clear waters of Great Keppel Island.  What a stunning place!  I took a week off with my family and we travelled in a motorhome up the Queensland Coast.  The timing was terrible! 

Wholesome Bellies has totally ramped up, the other business I’m a part of just launched a new division and to be honest, taking time off really wasn’t ideal.  But hey, is there ever a perfect time to take a break?  So, I did it, I took eight days off, I didn’t work, I unplugged from social media, I read a book or two, I played with my kids, I talked with my husband and I connected to nature.

I’m learning (and it’s a constant work in progress) that grinding and churning only leads to burnout, anxiety and stress.  My tolerance for stress is extremely high.  I am a freak like that.  Mentally I cope well under pressure and when I’ve got a lot going on, in fact I thrive when I’m busy!  The truth is that this strength can be my downfall.  Anyone relate?  My mind may be strong but eventually my body shuts down.  It’s happened before, more than once. 

Now, I force myself to slow down, even though my head says “keep going Fi, you’ve got this”.  Until recently, I worried that if I worked less, or took time off I wouldn’t achieve my goals.  I was constantly pushing myself.

LIGHT BULB MOMENT:  What if the solution to being productive and achieving success lies in the very thing we fear will inhibit it:  slowing down?

Believe it or not, there are benefits of doing nothing.  Slowing down can be a great productivity tool.  When we give ourselves the time to unwind and re-fuel, we are better placed to achieve greatness when our energy is restored.  You’ve all heard the saying “re-charge your batteries”.  Well, I think it’s time we took this more seriously. 

The last 12 months has been a huge period of transformation for me.  I’ve had more going on that ever before and yet I feel more at ease and calmer than ever before.  

My one valuable lesson….

WE HAVE MORE TIME THAN WE THINK!

I remind myself every day that there is no rush, I am not in a race!  I’ve got nowhere I need to be.  And when I sit in that mindset, my days are filled with joy, my work has purpose, I feel relaxed and I breath more deeply. 

Some perspective though – I’m human, which means every day I struggle to be present.  I have not mastered it.  What I have access to now is awareness, and that’s the first step towards change.  I catch myself, and remind myself that slowing down makes so much sense.  And that I can achieve more than I could ever imagine possible if I slow down more often.

[charlesandmartine]

Tuesday 7th March 2023

Our apartment could hardly be called roughing it. The Motels can only be regarded as adequate in most cases and we only used them in the Outback when no Airbnb solution was available. This place is total luxury with the covered area containing the BBQ (with sink), bar style seating, sofas, Netflix and hot tub allow the perceived outdoor Aussie lifestyle become an absolute reality and is extremely desirable. Martine is most pleased because she once more has a cafetiere. I think I want to live here. Thing is, if you go past our superbly appointed apartment around a corner of the outside space, there is what one might describe as a well appointed shed. Perhaps that was where we were supposed to be? The first thing on the agenda was to go down to the station to check arrangements for the train journey on Thursday on the tilt train to Brisbane. We popped into the station at about 5 o'clock yesterday and it was completely deserted and locked apart from a couple of girls who appeared to be living in the waiting room. Well at least the bedrolls were laid out. Perhaps they were Matilda's?

After so much travelling we thought a quiet day was required and the best place to find a quiet day is on a deserted beach. We asked our host, Deborah, where we would find such a place. Well she said you don't need to be in woop woop! Yes they really do say this! Aussie for middle of nowhere! Anyway on her advice we pointed the Nissan towards Yeppoon. Well that is after we had another go at the station. The staff were all there this morning and we made arrangements to dump our cases there tomorrow evening. I think the itinerant girls had moved out of the waiting room. Yeppoon was 35 mins drive away but we were soon to be getting our first glimpse of the Pacific again after what seems ages. We were heading for Cooee Bay, Wreck Point Lookout, and Lammermoor Beach. James Cook had called here in 1770, but it was in 1802 that the famous Navigator and Cartographer Matthew Flinders arrived as part of his renowned circumnavigation of Australia mapping the country for the first time. Some of his maps are still in use today apparently. Aussies love Flinders and his cat Trim. There are monuments, roads, stations, statues to his and Trim's memory all over. He returned to England and soon after died aged 40 in 1814. Big hero, gone. Not only that but he was buried in St James cemetery near to Euston station but even in 1852 the exact location was lost. Some people were convinced he was buried under platform 4. However when clearing the old cemetery for HS2, they found him! He was in one of 40,000 graves. I heard he is likely to be reburied with his father in Lincoln. Wreck Point recognised the loss of the good ship Salina in 1848. She was due into Sydney in July 1847 but she failed to arrive. Instead she washed up at Wreck Point 15 months later with no explanation. Well life is full of mysteries. We had no hope of solving this so we moved on to Lammermoor Beach for the quiet time. And quiet it was too. We had the beach to ourselves. Luncheon came and went, the sun baked down in a cloudless sky and moved over to the other side of the tree but still 33 degrees. Whilst on the beach we thought we should keep an eye out for the latest fellon; Tilapia. Apparently it is an offence to have one dead or alive. Well we didn't come across any. The beach started to fill as the kids came out of school so we moved on to Emu Park. Now we could do with seeing a few more Emus but it turns out Emu Park is a small township with no Emus apart from an artist's depiction of some and great views of the Keppel Islands. Disappointed, we had a Magnum and repaired to Woolworths and Liquorland for some beers and ingredients for tonight's BBQ. Tomorrow promises to be full of excitement at the Botanical Gardens around the corner.

[oceaniatropics]

Keppel bay islands, Queensland, Australia

[davidstanleytravel]

Mount Kanute on Great Keppel Island in South Queensland, Australia, offers views of Lecks Beach and Middle Island. Great Keppel is a favorite of bird-watchers.

[maddygoestravelling]

Great Keppel Island.

[h33idi]

When in Australia

[rattyexplores]

Washed up Echinoderm, currently identified as a sea lilly.

13/09/23 - Comasterini sp.

QLD:CQC - Woppa (Great Keppel Island), ocean shore

[samhelsby]

Day 2219.

[nixieofthenorth]

Rainbow lorikeets on Great Keppel Island in Queensland, Australia by @elisaparkranger

[just-me-youll-see]

Bring back the warmer weather already! . . . #winterblues #snorkeling #fishies #australia #qld (at Great Keppel Island Capricorn Coast) https://www.instagram.com/p/CgoX8mHpjrtw4g8DUCa91cULv6vjxO8vWLHtgs0/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[gravesdiggers]

Courtesy of a very kind person on Twitter...

(Will add transcript later when I get a moment!)

ETA: Transcript below... (any typos mine!)

I grew up in Weston-super-Mare, and the first time I went on a plane was on a family trip to Mallorca aged ten. It took me many years to appreciate that holidays could be even more glamorous than a few days in Magaluf. Before my acting career took off I'd spend my free time hitchhiking around France with friends. On occasion it got hairy, including the times we got stuck in a lorry and rode in a van full of chickens.

Since then, acting has granted me access to many different experiences. I shot a film called The Sheltering Desert in Namibia in the early 1990s, a few months after the country gained independence, and you could still feel the simmering tension. We visited Swakopmund, on the coast, one of the few old towns that used to be part of the colony of German South West Africa. There were still people driving around with SS number plates and antique shops full of Nazi memorabilia.

Filming often means working 14 hours for six days a week, so exploring can be a luxury. But when I do get to look around I can sometimes see places through a different lens. We shot some of the TV drama Riviera in Venice, mainly at night, and when we finished at 5am it was still dark and the streets were deserted. We got to see the beauty of all the little alleyways and canals, sumptuously lit by ancient sodium streetlights. And I managed to catch a football match, too, complete with chainting away fans arriving by gondola.

I had more time off in Buenos Aires, a magnificent, slightly faded city with incredibly beautiful public buildings that sit cheek by jowl with the crushing poverty of barrios such as La Boca and Villa 31. The restaurants were sensational and music was everywhere. I was lucky enough to attend the Bomba de Tiempo, which is essentially a drumming rave in a huge courtyard.

Actors tend to hang out together after filming, and I've certainly done that in some interesting places over the years. Perhaps the most memorable occasion was on a beach in Dorset during the filming of The Madness of King George. Nigel Hawthorne (who played the lead role) and I ended up smoking there with about 20 other people and indulging in a bit of night swimming.

There was also an apparent incident at Orly airport in Paris, where I bumped into a friend who said that the last time he'd seen me I had just arrived there after a particularly big night in Mexico City and was "going round on the luggage carousel", of which I have absolutely no recollection. Thank God it was before the age of camera phones.

Mexico, where I worked on the film Silencio, was a destination I will never forget, not least because of the country's very unusual bar snacks, including salted smoked locusts and grasshoppers. They might not be everyone's cup of tea, but they were tastier than they sound.

I have five children, so family holidays tend to be a challenging experience -- at times they can be hellishly difficult. My wife is from Australia, so when the seven of us travel there it can be a logistical nightmare, but it's well worth it when we arrive. The last time we visited we had an amazing holiday at Great Keppel Island, which is on the southern fringe of the Great Barrier Reef. It was going to be a resort island and the development was built, but for some reason it never opened, so it's been reclaimed by jungle. It's odd yet eerily beautiful -- the only signs of life are a few little guesthouses in the would-be resort's shadow, There are also a couple of bewitching woodlands in the interior of the island and you can walk through a glade that comes alive with butterflies.

Japan and Ethiopia top my holiday bucket list, but for different reasons. I'm interested in Ethiopia's natural beauty and ancient history; Japan has compelling art and I'm intrigued by the country's novelists. I'm just fascinated by the two cultures.