Aussie Wendell

OK, so I have had this premonition my entire life, due in part I'm sure to the movie "Jaws" back in the 70's, that I'd probably die from a shark attack. It could also be due to the fact that when I do go swimming in the ocean, I have a tendency to go a bit too far out and stay out a bit too long....yes, I feel like I must have been a fish in my past life. (Pictures of Bondi Beach)
Anyway, this past weekend was my wake-up call. There were about 30,000 people at Bondi Beach, many in the water, when the alarms sounded and everyone had to evacuate the water..."Hundreds of swimmers were called out of the water at Sydney's Bondi beach today after three sharks were spotted close to shore." Again, like a scene from "Jaws," but it won't stop me from my ocean swims...here's the video.
http://media.smh.com.au/?sy=smh&category=bulletin&rid=22155&source=smh.com.au%2F&t=09Q5E6&ie=1&player=wm7&rate=704&flash=1


It was another beautiful weekend here in Sydney, but on Sunday, we suddenly got these "gale-force" winds that came out of nowhere. I was walking to Woolworths (yes, Woolworths is still alive and well here in Australia...in fact, it is one of the largest companies/grocery store chains in the country), when suddenly the winds picked up. I had to stop in my tracks because the air became clouded with dust & debris, falling branches, etc. I know I'm being a bit dramatic today with falling trees and sharks in the ocean, but it's true. Anyway, combined with the drastic drought conditions Australia has had recently, a few fires broke out in the suburbs, destroying 7 homes. The bad news is that it is not even summer yet.

I would be remiss if I did not mention Steve Irwin in this entry. Love him or hate him, he represented a lot of what Americans think of Australia and was considered a modern-day hero here. A state funeral was held last week, he was on the cover of every newspaper and magazine and you can almost hear the tourism industry racking their brains trying to find the next Steve Irwin or Paul Hogan....I'm not sure if he can be replaced, but there's a lot riding on his daughter Bindi.

Speaking of daughters...and/or nephews...not exactly the smoothest of transitions...here's another picture of my nephew Cooper with his mom...my sister, Kappi...