Monday, January 15, 2018

Was it better when we only heard the news?

One cup of coffee, watch the news for how many weathers we will get for the day and I might as well be watching a disaster movie.  Volcano blows in New Guinea, 7.1 earthquake in Peru and a plane skids off the landing strip and falls over a cliff.  I couldn't believe it was just stuck on the cliff and didn't go further and crunch into the sea.  Everyone was saved, even with my dodgy knees I'd have been up that cliff in a rush.  And a fish sank one of the yatchs coming home from Tassie.  
They think it might have been one of these, a Sunfish or Mola Mola. Not only is the sunfish the world's heaviest bony fish, with some individuals weighing in at a staggering 2.3 tonnes, but it also possesses a truly bizarre body shape, likened to a gigantic 'swimming head'. The sunfish has no tail, with the caudal fin reduced to a rudder-like structure, called the clavus. 
With a head like that it could run and win for Parliament.  I was watching the Great Barrier Reef last night, might as well while we still have it and this object likes to swim up to the warm waters and have smaller fish chew off its parasites then swims down to the colder waters again.
See, I told you, Parliament.  The Front benchers crawl after the back benchers when they want a vote then piss them off  when they don't need them.

Anybody watch the 17 hours of the Ghan?  I could only suffer that from inside the train with unlimited booze and food and a good book.  The night before I watched the last five minutes which was absolutely riveting.  Driver's voice and a mile back down the track, another voice, counting off the carriages as they drew into the station, right down to the last 6 feet.  I tried another channel and got the cricket and near died of excitement.

Do try and watch the news tonight and do not switch off when Barmy Joyce rattles on about the inland rail which he talks about as though he is going to personally lay every block of wood along the entire length while carrying a rail on each shoulder.   Just keep your eyes on the 'tit fer tat', it is hilarious.  A giant orange pumpkin sitting on a smaller beady eyed pumpkin, nay not so much orange as neon glow orange or maybe it was yellow, my eyes were beginning to glaze over.
Now he's involved in the usual bunfight about Australia Day, honestly the man is a multi-tasking mouth.  I'm sorry I couldn't find a photo but I think the Mola Mola deserves its moment in the sun, alone.
 



7 comments:

Elephant's Child said...

I CAN'T watch the news. I start to froth at the mouth and gibber. And quite a lot of our pollies have that effect. Barnaby, Dutton, Abbot, Pyne and more.
You are right, the sunfish does indeed deserve its moment in the sun.

River said...

That is a weird looking fish. I missed the news tonight, I was in bed having a nap with Lola curled up against my ribs.

Beth Waltz said...

A sunfish sank a yacht? Looked up mola mola in Wikipedia and found it indeed worthy of study, preferably in a well-maintained public aquarium. The logistics of capturing and caring for this creature are beyond the ability (and budget) of individuals, and even a professional operation had to release one that outgrew its tank.

Plastic Mancunian said...

Hi JT,

I watch the news when I need something to rant about.

:o)

Cheers

PM

Jayne said...

Had the Ghan choo-chooing in the background for 3 hours, twas very soothing.
Barmy Barnaby is pictured in the obligatory high vis gear with the caption -
"Exciting times: Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce was on hand on Monday to see the first steel be unloaded at Peak Hill."
Possibly more excitement than either of us could take!

Anonymous said...

Wasn't that interesting about the little fish eating the parasites off....was it a mantaray? We had the Ghan on in the background during in the morning, then we were out for a few hours and it was still running when we returned, but in our absence, it had travelled from desert to the tropics.

JahTeh said...

Andrew, you have to watch more Attenborough. All the big fish go in for a parasite polish, some even stay attached to their favourites and keep swimming. Haven't you seen those ads for health spas where you put your feet in a warm bath for the fish to nibble the old skin off?

Jayne, you didn't mention the hat, surely you didn't miss the hat? I'll have to find a photo, it's too good to miss.

Plasman, Your ranting posts are natural treasures. You're quite welcome to come to Oz and joint the rant about changing Invasion day from the 26th of January to some other time. Nobody cares about the date but take the holiday away and there would be a revolution.

Beth, it wasn't a big yacht as far as the race goes but it was a big fish, the sea was pretty rough so it was lucky they were all rescued. It's a rough race from Sydney to Hobart but usually calm homeward bound but not always.

River, you've been doing far too much work lately and in so much heat. Am I crazy or has Adelaide's weather gone to far into climate change?

El Chi, it seems to have gone very quiet on the "Who's your father" front. I'm afraid that the news sometimes takes a back seat to the talking head, so I'm with Andrew, we need a Justin Trudeau in triplicate.