On my recent week off work , my girlfriend Denise and I , hitched up the caravan and motored down to the northern part of New South Wales , our neighbour state . The beaches are large and uninhabited in non holiday times , so for a relaxing spell , this is where to go .

Pottsville Beach in far Distance

One night , we heard a crashing noise outside the van , and being the brave male I am , I ventured outside to have a look . I had left the light off , so all I could see was a small dark shape , nosing around in a container , in which we  had left some scraps of food . I went back inside , grabbed my camera , and took some shots . I didn’t have a clue what the creature was , until we returned home and consulted some books .

Long Nosed Bandicoot

It was a long nosed bandicoot , common along the east coast of Australia . These creatures are harmless , usually only coming out at night . This is one of the joys of camping close to some bush land , as you don’t know what little critters are going to pay you a visit .

Map of Bandicoot Habitat

Who would have thought , an innocent looking hat , could be dangerous ! I believe a hat was used in a James Bond film , that  inflicted life threatening injuries on people . In this case I am talking about my school hat .

School Hat

When I attended High School , it was compulsory to wear your school hat , to and from school . No problem , I had no issues with that . One morning I was peddling my bike to school into a stiff head wind , so I had my head tilted slightly downward with my hat on my head . Next minute , “whack ” , I came to an abrupt stop and flew off the seat , into the air , and then back down again onto the frame of the bike , just missing crushing ” the boys ” .

Turns out , I ran into the back of a parked car . I bent the frame of the bike to an extent , I couldn’t turn the handlebars , but luckily was close to one of the school gates , so didn’t have far to walk the bike and park it . Mum was at school that day , a volunteer worker at the school Tuckshop , where us kids could buy salad rolls , cakes and other food . Worked out perfectly , as the bike was loaded into the car , and I walked home that afternoon .

And that is why hats are dangerous .

I notice in the press where daylight saving has ended in the USA . Did anyone have a problem getting to work an hour early ?

Two Timing Clock Face

Denise and I have just tinkered with Oz daylight saving , as we skipped over the Queensland border into New South Wales for a week off work . We like the beach , not the swimming , so we went to a small hamlet called North Pottsville on the coast , and only 30 minutes drive from the Queensland border . It is a fabulous area for simply chilling out , no big shops within a bulls roar , which suits us retailer workers fine .

Denise and Set-Up

It is only a three and a bit hours drive from home , including towing the van , and the area has very wide uninhabited beaches . I will do some follow up stories , so to start things off a glimpse of the set-up at the caravan park , and a glimpse of a small portion of the very long beach .

North Pottsville Beach

House Brick

I think sometimes I must be as thick as a brick , ’cause I don’t know who this person is . I have seen the name appear a couple of times in my Alexa Toolbar , but I haven’t seen any other mention of her . I saw on TV at work , a huge media scrum at Sydney Airport , so obviously she must be one of these , famous for nothing at all , people who exist in the media these days . For once in my life , I can’t be bothered to even Google her name , just to see who she is . I reckon that if she is actually famous for something decent , I would know her name . Sorry , Kim Kardashian , but I don’t .

It’s funny how something makes sense , twenty years after the event . I was having a meal recently with friends , when the subject of playground equipment came up in conversation ……, as it does . Now one of my friends shares my name of John , and he happens to be the Manager of our local Parks and Gardens section , at the local council . He designs and orders the equipment layouts for the local district parks . He tries to give each park a  theme with different swing sets , so the local kids get to play on  varying equipment .

Modern Playground Equipment

To keep the kids safe , a rubberised compound has to be installed underneath the swings , to minimise damage when falls inevitably take place . It was during this conversation , that a startling fact came out . Slippery slides have to be made as non-slippery as possible , to make it impossible to slide at too fast a pace . This makes it near impossible for kids to hurt themselves when they get to the end of the slide .

Old swing set

Well I dunno , but I think some fun is being taken out of playground gear . What is wrong with grazed knees , and other assorted scratches and abrasions ? Didn’t hurt me much over the years . Most of the scars have all but disappeared , you can hardly see my limp , my arm is at a funny angle , and half my teeth are missing . Apart from that , I am as fit as a fiddle .

But do I complain of playground accidents when I was a kid , no way .. bloody modern youth, they will never experience the thrills of massive falls off swing sets . Nothing wrong with a bit of spilt blood .