Appears in the weekly Toxic Custard newsletter
A short trip coming up soon. Two nights away. Up on a Saturday at lunchtime, back on Monday evening. Options for getting to Melbourne airport and back, for the three of us: Train plus Skybus. About 70 minutes each way. Train fares each way $3.76 + 2 x $1.88. Skybus fares each way 3 x ... [More]
Here is about 70 people on a freeway. It was running at more-or-less full speed, though on the verge of getting congested. It was a Saturday, so vehicle occupancies were probably higher than average. And here’s about 70 people in a single train carriage. It wasn’t crowded, though certainly getting there. (The same number would ... [More]
Another in my series of photos from ten years ago: October 2005. This time around, they’re pretty much all personal. Ten years ago this month I moved into the house I bought in Bentleigh. Day 1 was friends and cars moving little stuff. Thank you sincerely, friends. All the computer gear, ready to leave the ... [More]
I’d love to post an awe-inspiring blog post this morning, but I haven’t got one. (There are some in the works). Instead I’ll just note some quick things: I’m speaking, with some others, at Idea Bombing Melbourne this Thursday night, the topic being: “Tapestry of a City”. Facebook event / EventBrite — it’s free, but ... [More]
This is an update of a 2010 post where I quickly compared the different types of trains then in service. Since then the Hitachi trains have been taken out of service, and I also thought I’d briefly describe where the names come from. (The Hitachi trains got their name because the design was by Hitachi, ... [More]
Once a year, the planets align, and I get hit by heaps of bills — often all three utilities, plus car rego and home insurance… It’s pretty much a consequence of having bought a house mid-year (in 2005) and bought a car mid-year (in 2008) as well. Plus other, quarterly, bills seem to arrive around ... [More]
Obviously the best camera you have is the one you have with you. Normally that’s my phone. Sometimes I’ll also have my ~4 year old Canon IXUS 115, which is compact, but takes some great photos. But for my birthday I treated myself to a DSLR, a Canon 700D (spotted on sale + cashback offer ... [More]
Another in my series of photos from ten years ago. Bourke Street (at Swanston Street) tram platform stops just being completed, it looks like. Note the old “The Met” tram stop sign — in a mix of brands with the then-new Metlink and Yarra Trams. The realtime display must have been pretty new. And of ... [More]
Back at uni, in one of my subjects we read a great book called The Design Of Everyday Things. In it, author Donald Norman highlights bad designs, often noting: “It probably won a prize”. One of the hallmarks of good design at railway stations is being able to see the information that you need to ... [More]
Just on five years ago my dishwasher door spring broke. In that instance a secondary fault also affected the actual washing of dishes. Now another door spring has broken. It hasn’t affected the washing – it’s just the door is heavy, and needs to be opened very carefully. Repair from Fisher And Paykel is expected ... [More]
Sorry, few updates this week due to general busy-ness and a web hosting issue that prevented posting. Last year I dipped my toe in the sharemarket: I bought shares in Xero, the cloud accounting service. They were about $25 at the time. Since then they have dropped in price by about half. If only I’d ... [More]
I for one welcome our new public-transport-loving overlord. As recently as Friday, new Prime Minister-designate Malcolm Turnbull was riding trams in Melbourne: And here comes today's tram – the number 70 to take us to Hawthorn and a morning with @JoshFrydenberg pic.twitter.com/zeGCmct6nj — Malcolm Turnbull (@TurnbullMalcolm) September 10, 2015 It’s great that — unlike Tony ... [More]
I don’t know if anybody’s done this before, but… It’s from The West Wing, the finale of season 1, a signal the staff work out to indicate that the Space Shuttle has resolved an issue while on a mission. The show is known for infusing humour into the drama — in this case, the Shuttle ... [More]
Grade separating level crossings has numerous benefits: it allows more trains to run without impacting on others, it cuts delays to motorists, bus/tram passengers, pedestrians (including train users) and cyclists. And emergency services. Clayton is particularly bad for this, because it’s so close to Monash Medical Centre, but it’s not uncommon to see ambulances or ... [More]
I’m all for al fresco dining. It can be lovely sitting in the sun on the street enjoying food and drink — and will be doubly so once the smoking ban comes in, in 2017. And it helps make our streets more interesting and interactive. But getting off a bus in Brighton the other day, ... [More]
As someone who can do a lot of my travel by foot or on public transport, I drive fewer kilometres than the average. But sometimes I have to drive. I was thinking about the things one can do to be a considerate driver with regard to more vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, ... [More]