Spring has Sprung

Well... Downunder in Australia it has.  (Our Spring lasts from the 1st of September until the last day of November)

Some of the trees are now blooming and we are heading towards my favourite time of the year - when the Jacaranda trees bloom, coating the streets below them with a layer of purple petals.

Photo found HERE

Jacaranda time coincides with University exams so it is not anticipated by all.  For the Horticulturists amongst us - this is NOT a tree native to Australia, however it became very popular in the 1920's as an ornamental tree for street verges and gardens.

And despite the official decree that "Spring Has Arrived" - the Weather is still a bit nippy, with a forecast of down to 12 degrees celsius tonight (53.6F). So for we delicate sub-tropic dwellers it is still jumper (aka pullover / sweater), extra blankets and electric heater time.

Oh and you may recall I'm in the midst of renovations at my place (segueing slightly from the topic but still weather related - honest!)

These are my new (replacement) veranda doors.  And as soon as they went in I (with the help of Cozzles) gleefully ripped out the rest of the inbuilt sections of the veranda behind them, and had all the junk carted away. The Veranda balcony is now open to the elements and will - in time - become host to a small BBQ (Barbie!) and pots of climbing roses that I will endeavour to keep alive  (Pax does not a green-thumb possess).

I have since discovered a wee bit of a problem with painting the doors - necessitating that the installer returns and lifts both sliding ones OFF until I can varnish the raw areas; and will then return a day or two or more later to put them back up.

So guess who's going to be whining about the cold to you all?  [I have plans to tack up a blanket or two to the outside top facing to block the worst of the chilly breeze; and security-wise none shall pass the partial aluminum siding and shutters]. Luckily I am still on leave from work so I can get the varnishing done super quickly and then beg and plead and whine (no - I have no shame where frozen tootsies are involved) at the installer until he returns and replaces them.

In other news :-

Milsupport for my four adopted troopers is going fairly well.  I managed to send off one of THESE to all my guys. Hopefully it will make them smile whenever they use it.

R.A.K parcel of some Aussie sweeties (aka candy) went off to a new acquaintance.  It was a gesture of Good Will and Troop Support and (sorry... having to pause sligthly so I can have a giggling fit..) Kindness, however it caused a bit of a stir  and therefore Musk Sticks are back on the "Pax must NOT" list [along with various 'Miss Manners' notes like "do not use the word 'sweet' when referring to Marines - it makes them grumpy"; and "do not send Drakkar Noir to anyone that doesn't like Musk Sticks" (however I'm a bit puzzled as to why & how research on that last rule occurred)]

My monthly donation of Coffee vouchers via the Green Beans "Cup of Joe" has been made. This is a really worthwhile and affordable Troop support program and you can find details on how to participate HERE.

And lastly the Competition for the Australian Army insignia hat is still open to entries until this Saturday.  Just please remember to include your name on the entries for them to be valid.

Liechtenstein for Pax?

Now here is an amusing competition - the Mellowest Jihadi - has suggested an "Achievement Unlocked" prize (or something like that :D) for the first blogger of his acquaintance to either register a Viewer stats hit / or be sent a real postcard - from a resident of the wonderful European country of Liechtenstein.

Read all about it HERE

So do any of my regular readers have friends or family or business acquaintances in that zone?

I humbly promise NOT to offer any strange Australian Sweeties if you can assist (that's rather zen don't you think - not offering you a gift of something that you'll probably not like)

Pax offers a Prize

About a fortnight ago I asked if anyone was interested in winning a woolen Australian Army hat.

Well the answer appears to be yes, however there was only one suggestion on how to judge the competition (rhyming Aussie slang contest).

Unfortunately that idea, while it is amusing, would mean I have to wade through the attempts (with possibly one too many references to Pax having "Kangaroos loose in the top paddock") so how about we try the old standby method of:-

You post a reply to this blog entry saying "YES I WANT TO ENTER" - or words to that effect, and then I will have my BFF Cozzles draw out one name from a hat in a weeks time.  Making it fair to all.

Rules

You can be from anywhere in the world. All that I ask is that you respect that this hat represents my Country's military, and is to be treated as a prized possession.

If you win - you will need to supply me with a mailing address.  I promise to hold the information safely and never share it beyond my Post Office.

If you leave your entry under the "Anonymous" tag - please be sure to add your name or nickname at the bottom.

The Winner will need to contact me by September 20th at the latest with their mailing address or there will be a redraw.

And...... GO!

Pink Stuff - Naval Gazing

You might recall from this post that I had enlisted the willing aid of a Naval person of my acquaintance - to assist in the acquisition of scientific knowledge on:- "The Candy Eating Habits of the Greater American Service Person" (aka G.A.S.P)

He's just updated his blog with his data and it seems that he's begun channeling Herman Melville - perhaps he's been sniffing the pinkness a little too much?

http://themellowjihadi.com/2011/08/31/the-dreaded-australian-curse/

I should point out that although he writes - "Yet, I was powerless. She insisted. I did not say no. She insisted again. I did not fight" - that's not quite accurate.  I mean... that much work to someone uniform clad over candy?**  So not my style (*gives sweet innocent look at the universe* *ruins it by laughing wickedly*) But he's a nice guy so lets not destroy his viewpoint of the encounter.

However I am glad that he took the Musk Sticks off to his work and shared with his fellow Navy bods.

My data is now almost complete - missing only the input from the (how *did* Navyone put it... oh yes... "The Marine Corps is the Men’s Dept of the Department of the Navy")  So once I've heard back from A1S on *his* encounter with the pinkness I'll be able to formulate just why some people are affected, and others enfeebled by the wondrous Pinkness of Musk Sticks

Oh and Navyone - Digs said to expect that AusCam clad teddy bear in the post shortly... It should be bear-ing (heh.. bear pun!) an "extra special gift" just for you

**having just received a rather odd email I feel I should clarify.  My interest in any male requires him to be 36 or older - witty, intelligent and genuinely funny.  His liking Australian sweets is not a requirement.

Wounded Warrior Project

Suz over at Shining Pearls of Something blog advises how to support the very good work of the Wounded Warrior Project

A Cup of Kaboom!

I have just found something new that I must must MUST send to all my adoptees

Found it HERE

It's a coffee cup!

Think they will get a laugh from it?

Pax'ing the Pinkness

The Suggestion has been made to me (by persons who shall remain unnamed) that I seem to take an unholy delight in the tormenting of bewildered Americans via the insidious pinkness of the Musk Stick sweetie.

In my defence I must protest that my very first sending of the infamous MS – back in mid 2010 – was as simply another odd Australian candy (aka sweet / lolly) to send to my adopted soldiers.  It was reported back to me by the nice young Military Police trooper “C” as

 "I finally know what the colour pink would taste like - let's never do THAT again!"

Wondering if this was a simple aberration of taste (after all He IS from the same nation that thinks combining Jam and Peanut paste is a delicacy), I sent off some more MS’s in the next troop treat parcel to go out (to Pv2 J of the USA Army).  J's response to it made me laugh so much that I made THIS blog post.  J never did explain what he meant by the “priceless reaction” from his battle buddies – but it marked the real start of the “supply to as many of my unsuspecting American friends / Soldiers’ Angels adoptees as possible” plot.

Wait! Did I say Plot? 

No no – NOT a plot!

It is a scientific experiment I swear! 

And I now have hard data from my research that 9 out of 10 USA troops have THIS reaction

Airforce guinea pig... lovely lad!

There is of course that 1 in 10 that is obviously a misplaced Australian at heart (happy beaming smile at the thought) – these brave souls are then moved on to the Vegemite part of the taste experiment and the Hard data compiling begins all over again.

Oh and notice that I pinpointed mid 2010 as the start date of my MS generosity? – well it seems that Izzy (one of my very first 2009 adopted soldiers via Soldiers’ Angels) is feeling left out of the fun.  We’ve remained friends over the years and as he has a birthday very soon (next week even) one of the items in his “Fun Aussie treats” birthday box are a pack of the Pinkness.  I’m rather hoping there are action shots as he “shares” his bounty with his family and friends.

Why yes... I AM a sharing caring sort – thank you for noticing! 

(Hmm... maybe I should drop Minnesota OFF the “places I plan to visit” list?)

Sadly, however, my research is incomplete – so far I have only received scientific data from troops of the USA Army; the USA National Guard, and the USA Airforce.   Can you name the two USA Military Forces missing from this list?

However all is not lost - there are still two “experimental’ Packets of the Pink out in the wild – and so far uneaten (I believe). 

One pack is held by our illustrious America’s First Sergeant of the United States Marine Corp.  I begin to suspect that A1S may be hoping that the Pinkness will succumb to his steely-eyed stare of doom before he is required to taste any (Hah!).

The other is in the possession of Navyone who has been kind enough to offer up his sea-going taste buds for the test .

The fate of my experiment is now in your hands, Oh Gentle Readers, – So just drop over to their web-blogs and “encourage” them to participate.

Just a simple remark left on their latest blogs - something polite and to the point would work...

"Hey *insert blog name* so what about those Musk sticks?"

Do it for SCIENCE! 

Do it for the Pink Stuff! 

Do it for Queen and Country!.. .whoops.. you USA guys are a Republic, right?... okay do it for MY Queen and Country!  

Oh and don’t forget to tell them that PAX sent you (sweet angelic smile)

*** If you would like your very own Military person to send treats and friendship to,  then please consider becoming a member of Soldiers’ Angels 

For the cost of one parcel a month; one letter a week and the opening of your heart to a person deployed – you too can reap the benefits of knowing that you CAN make a difference in another persons’ life.