Author: Columnist

From Ocean Nash to Bormio Snow: Rain, Work, Emus and the Cost of Living

The first morning of March began, as it often does, with weather.

Not forecasts.

Reports from the road.

“I’ve Never Seen It Rain Out Here”

Leroy was driving through South Australia when he rang. Eight years running freight across that country and he’d never seen rain like this near Morgan and Renmark.

“Torrential.”

The kind of rain that makes truck drivers slow down. The kind that turns dry paddocks into sheet water in hours.

Around Lake Nash in the Northern Territory, 550 millimetres had reportedly fallen in a weekend. Three hundred and fifty in a single night. Not Lake Nash anymore, Macca quipped — Ocean Nash.

And then, half an hour later, Lyndon called from Wellington East near Tailem Bend.

Bone dry.

Three feet down with a post-hole digger and nothing but powder. Tumby Bay had 30 millimetres. Snowtown too. His place missed it entirely.

That’s Australia in one program — flood and drought separated by a few hundred kilometres.

Moreton Bay to Holbrook

Andrew was driving home through Holbrook after competing in the International Finn Class World Championships on Moreton Bay.

108 boats. 16 countries. The Finn — a single-handed Olympic class since 1952 — still pulling serious sailors from Europe and beyond, even after being dropped from the Paris Games.

He sounded tired, but satisfied. Weeks on the water, now long kilometres of highway back to Melbourne.

Macca lingered on the value of those gatherings — rowing regattas, sailing titles, surf carnivals. People from different lives converging briefly, then dispersing again.

Red Skies and Ancient Boats

Tracey rang from near Bairnsdale, below the silt jetties on the morass. Red sky in the morning. Spectacular light. Magpies and kookaburras providing the soundtrack.

She photographs the sunrise most days. Some mornings feel sent, she said.

In nearby Paynesville, the boat show was on — ancient boats, good food, impossible parking. Regional Australia still turns out for timber hulls and community sausage sizzles.

The Worker on the Pedestal

Guy from Swan Point shifted the tone.

April 28 is Workers’ Remembrance Day — three days after Anzac Day. He helped establish the Workers’ Commemorative Park in Launceston near Aurora Stadium.

There have already been 188 workplace deaths this year.

“We don’t lift the worker high enough,” he said.

It wasn’t an argument against military remembrance. It was an addition to it. Armed forces defend freedoms. Workers build the world in which those freedoms are lived.

The call sat heavily — no theatrics, just numbers and conviction.

Dolphins at Solomontown

Lucy from Port Pirie brought the temperature back up.

Morning swimmers at Solomontown Beach noticed a ripple. A dolphin calf surfaced two feet away. Then the mother arched between the swimmers and splashed.

“They were just hanging around us.”

No one reached out. They just watched.

You don’t have to fly to Antarctica for wildlife, Lucy said. Sometimes it swims past your knees.

From Ushuaia to Antarctica

Speaking of Antarctica — Chris rang from Ushuaia in Argentina, boarding a small cruise ship heading south.

Safety briefing horn sounding in the background. Survival suits to be demonstrated. Ten nights at sea ahead.

The cycling correspondent from Flying Fish Point, now on the edge of the Antarctic Peninsula.

Live radio rarely gets closer to the planet’s edges than that.

An Emu in a Banana Box

Then came Alan Hale’s letter.

He found the emu chick on his Snowy River property with a dislocated leg. Scooped it up. Jacket. Cardboard box. Hot water bottle.

The chick recovered.

And stayed.

Edward — named because he was third in line — followed him like a kelpie. Slept on his stomach. Travelled in the ute to Cooma Woolworths. Played with a retired guide dog during a house sit. By five months he was four feet tall and invisible when buried in sawdust.

Male emus raise the chicks in the wild. Edward simply reassigned the role.

It was the kind of story that can only unfold slowly on radio — detailed, funny, domestic, absurd and entirely believable.

Driving While Dying

Dr John Gillette rang while jogging in Toowoomba’s Peak to Park run.

His PhD research examined women with advanced breast cancer on opioid medication who still drive.

Ten women followed over a year. Two died during the study. All were conscious of risk. None had clear guidance.

They wanted to do school pick-ups. Groceries. Maintain some control.

The policy gap, he argued, is large. Doctors lack consistent advice to give. The conversation isn’t about recklessness — it’s about independence.

It was one of the morning’s most substantial discussions.

Grain, Pride and the Royal Easter Show

Rodney from Coolamon was collecting grain samples across the Riverina — Coleambally, Finley, Tocumwal, Corowa — for the Sydney Royal Easter Show district exhibits.

The colour in the dome comes from cleaned barley, wheat, pulses and seeds gathered by volunteers. Months of coordination for displays most city visitors walk past in minutes.

Agriculture still underwrites the spectacle.

Italian Golf and Measles Advice

Bruno phoned while driving to Victor Harbor for the South Australia Italian Golf Club’s monthly event — one of several Italian golf clubs across the country that hold interstate tournaments.

He is a GP. He casually confirmed measles cases are reappearing and vaccinations still matter.

Between jokes about handicaps and brothers, he delivered public health advice.

Bormio and the Price of Breakfast

Georgina Topp had just returned from Bormio in northern Italy, host town for men’s alpine skiing events.

Food, she said, was about 30 per cent cheaper than Australia. High quality. Local production. Wood-fired pizzas with big puffy borders. Pastries made on site.

The town square is more than a thousand years old.

The comparison with Australia’s cost-of-living pressures was unavoidable. Mechanic rates at $188 an hour. Insurance climbing. Groceries rising. Inflation spoken about in abstract terms until someone mentions the price of bread.

Marinus Link and State Debt

From Latrobe in Tasmania, Malcolm was driving to a rally against the proposed $5 billion Marinus Link power cable.

He fears rising state debt, stretched hospitals and long-term financial strain.

Energy infrastructure, like rainfall, depends on where you stand.

The Morning in Full

By the time the program closed, we had travelled:

Flooded highways near Morgan.
Dry paddocks near Tailem Bend.
Sailing courses on Moreton Bay.
A dolphin pod at Port Pirie.
An emu in a lounge room.
A thousand-year-old square in Bormio.
A protest in Burnie.
A fun run in Toowoomba.
A grain shed in Coolamon.
A ship leaving Ushuaia for Antarctica.

No grand theme.

Just the country speaking, one call at a time.

Listen to the podcast episode here.

Disclaimer: ‘Australia All Over’ is a program produced and broadcast by the ABC Local Radio Network and hosted by Ian McNamara. Brisbane Suburbs Online News has no affiliation with Ian McNamara, the ABC, or the ‘Australia All Over’ program. This weekly review is an independent summary based on publicly available episodes. All original content and recordings remain the property of the ABC. Our summaries are written in our own words and are intended for commentary and review purposes only. Readers can listen to the full episodes via the official ABC platforms.