Boating For Beginners

Believe it or not, Edwardes Lake was something of a boating destination back in the day. Formerly home to the Preston Yacht Club, the lake once boasted a traditional weatherboard boat shed, and was quite the locale for tacking about and stealing kisses of an afternoon. The original boat shed somewhat unsurprisingly "burnt down" in the 1970's. Shortly thereafter it was faithfully rebuilt in the preferred medium of the day: chocolate brick. 

For some reason Edwardes Lake never regained its former status as a boating destination from that point; some blame the flashy choice of linoleum in the interior, others blame the rising heavy metal and toxic algae counts in the lake. Either way it's a shame. As a local councillor said recently: "Why can't we offer the same sort of recreational opportunities as Albert Park Lake, like boating? Why can't residents in the northern suburbs have a thriving lake?"

Probably because they'd have trouble shutting down the weekend trolley derby in the car park. And of course there's the toxic water thing. People are funny about that.

With thanks to C for the evocative image.

Light a Match

If you're wondering: no it's not hard waste week. It's not even hard waste month, or quarter. This might well be an illegal extension. My money says it's either gone or utilised within 24 hours though. Forgive me if I don't follow up on that.

It's a Way of Life

If I was presented with the opportunity to leave a message for generations to come, that's probably exactly what I'd say too.

Lust for Life

Link: Darebin Relay for Life cancelled

"DAREBIN's inaugural Relay for Life, which was due to be held in Reservoir this month, has been cancelled.

The relay was scheduled for November 10 and 11 at Edwardes Lake to raise money for the Cancer Council.

It's believed the event's committee wasn't able to raise enough support in time for the event."

You Can't Miss It

Upcycling

I see what you were doing here. You had a bunch of barely useful crap that you didn't want anymore, and your conscience wouldn't allow you to pitch it directly into landfill. So you drove around the block for roughly three minutes looking for a Vinnie's bin and found a mailbox instead, promptly concluding that parking your crap beside any large metal box with a handle is obviously an ethically and logically superior course of action to just chucking it in your bin. 

What amazes me is that this bunch of barely useful crap was actually gone the very next day, while similar piles of crap all over Rezza have lain in situ on kerbsides for months. Maybe this person is onto something.

Beauty is where you find it

Happy Australia Day From The 'Voir!

Rezza is awash with the smell of charred flesh and national pride today. The excitement began to build late last night with the sound of distant neighbours testing out their stocks of illegal fireworks. 

I have been led to understand that when Australia Day falls on a Saturday, creating a public holiday on Monday, it takes on a similar significance to a leap year or a Chisel tour, in that it hardly ever happens, but when it does you get to stay pissed for a whole extra day. 

I get the feeling that tonight is going to be amazing.

Anthem

This is the theme song of the Mustangs (Reservoir Football Club). It is sung to the tune of "The Road to Gundagai", sometimes suddenly and without warning. 

We're a team with guts galore
We're the boys from Reservoir
We are the boys from Reservoir
From back to the forward line
Our system is divine
For courage we're we're renowned
We are wearing our colours
The mighty two blues
To the finals they take us
We're premiers through and through
Every game we're on the ball
All for one and one for all
We are the boys from Reservoir
We are the boys from Reservoir

Trust me, I want to know what the "divine system" is as much as you do, though my gut tells me it's probably just one or two variations on the classic "thump, grab and run like hell" play. I'd also really like the RGB scale of the "mighty two blues" before I go shopping on Broadway again in lavender.

But then we have this: an early 1950's Reservoir Football Club theme song, sung to the tune of "Bless 'em all".

There is a fair suburb 10 miles north of town,

Reservoir's township by name.

They have a great football team of red and white.

The premiership can be foreseen.

They play at Crispe Park as opponents well know.

They never do envy the match.

When they start a 'bashing',

We give them a thrashing,

And send them away for dispatch.

Chorus

Thash 'em all, kick a score,

We've never been out of the four,

Foes chances are thinner

We'd eat them for dinner 

They can't beat the old Reservoir

I know. It's unsettling until you get to the last verse.

Our team's premiership history can be viewed here.
You can't say we don't participate.

Reservoir Gothic

I'm a big fan of follies. Be it Kryal Castle or the Brighton Royal Pavilion, I say if you've got a dream so crazy that it's improbable you'll succeed and you'll leave people baffled for years to come, then go for it!
This is my favourite house in all of Reservoir, even including the Resbian house, the Graceland house and the Christmas house. I'm sure you can see why. Its greatness is compounded by its location, wedged in a backstreet behind the waste exchange centre, down by a toxic tributary, in a street where none of the other houses are exactly standing on ceremony, if they're standing at all.

You can just tell that this house was built by someone with a dream, someone who knew what they wanted (layers of grandness, a wrap-around driveway with a twin garage at each end, impressive tilework, private vinyard, gratuitous title), and who at various points was probably overheard saying "I don't give a fuck if it looks odd. This is what I want." 
I salute you!