Paint the Tiger, Carve the Swan

I’ve had my Mum’s laptop for the last little while, as I prepare a multimedia display for my Grandfather’s 80th birthday party, and I happened to have it with me today as I stopped for a cup of coffee in Illy on King William Road, Hyde Park.

When I turned it on, it complained about not being able to find it’s normal networks, so I looked at what networks were available. One of the unsecured networks is Internode, who apparently provide free wireless hotspots around the CBD and inner suburbs. It is limited to web pages only, and apparently session limits apply. So no monster 8 hour WoW sessions over wireless, but that’s a moot point anyway, as this laptop doesn’t seem to have the guts to run it…

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I don’t understand who makes the decisions as to what gets into the newspaper in the city in which I live. For instance, on page 4 today:

Cigarettes sold, no questions asked.

Yesterday, Megan Wilsdon, of North Adelaide, was able to buy a packet of cigarettes from a city convenience store, despite having only recently turned 18.

So, what is the issue? The girl is over 18, hence is allowed to buy cigarettes. Get some real news.

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I hate the growing trend in Urban areas for zones that are not pedestrian friendly. For instance, not having paved footpaths in residential streets makes it much harder for people to walk around their local community. This is especially evident in places like West Lakes, where everyone has a car. Hell, in Adelaide, everyone has a car.

However, today after dropping my car off for a service, I began the long walk into town. I initially waited for the bus, but decided I’d wander into Bunnings first. So, I did. First bad point of Adelaide Roads, which is not a pedestrian issue, but rather a car issue. Where they’ve made the new connector between Deakin Terrace and Burbridge Road, or rather Don Bradman Drive, they’ve totally fucked things up. If you head South-West down the connector, you cannot go down Deakin Terrace, only South Road when you reach the end. Similarly, coming up from Deakin Terrace, you cannot head up the connector, but still only go North up South Road. Why the hell build a big expensive connector, and then don’t connect it up properly? But I digress.

There is no footpath anywhere along said connector. I had to walk through garden beds, treading carefully around bark chips. And then into Bunnings, which is another notoriously unfriendly pedestrian area. I’m not sure if it’s so people cannot walk into the carpark and store, or if it’s so people cannot park there and go somewhere else. I guess as far as they are concerned, if people haven’t come in their cars, they aren’t going to be buying enough…

Finally, I headed off from Bunnings and into town. And this was where things got worse. Not only was there no path on the northern side of the Hilton Bridges, but you cannot actually get through. I had to hike up and down a couple of hills, jump across safety barriers, and cross a road on a blind corner. By this stage, I was rather angry.

Finally, to make my morning complete, I was attacked by a crazy little bird as I wandered through the parklands. I had to protect myself with the laptop case I was carrying.

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