Whilst in Nubeena (Tasmania) we stayed at the Fairway Resort.  Apparently some people stay there for several nights but one was enough for us.  After we’d gone to bed for the night the wind started to build up outside and we could hear the trees and leaves blowing about.  It didn’t seem particularly windy (we’d had a large storm which knocked over trees and powerlines in the town earlier in the day) so we easily went to sleep.

 About 3am though, the wind changed direction and flung the screen door on the room wide open with an enormous bang guaranteed to wake everyone in three rooms either side.  Not content with that though, Mother Nature then flung the door closed again with a thunderous din and made sure we were all awake.  We immediately got out of bed to secure the door so it wouldn’t do it again and that’s when we discovered that the screen doors didn’t fit the doorframes and were designed to blow open in any wind.  Who knows what use they are in summer since they don’t close enough to keep out the bugs?

Finally, after several attempts to jam the door open using a park bench outside the room and to pin it closed by tying it from the inside we had to get help from the hotel owners.  To their credit, they not only answered the phone at 3am but also came out within minutes to help us solve the problem.  The only catch was that the solution was to jam the door closed from the outside by wedging the park bench against it.  Not the wisest move in the event of a fire - locking your tenants inside the room through the placement of obstacles.

Okay, so I exaggerate - in the event of a fire you could put an elephant on the outside of the door and we’d still manage to escape somehow.  However, for the faulty design of the screen door unable to latch thereby being caught in the wind we had to award the SPOTD very early today.

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At the Port Arthur historic site, I visited the bathroom not long after we arrived. As I strolled into the facilities I had to choose between the full-length wall urinal or one of the cubicles opposite. It appeared the entire room was empty since all cubicle doors were open and nobody else was visible. However, as I passed the first cubicle I realised there was a fellow sitting in it, doing his business with the door wide open. “Ah,” you say, “this is where he slammed the door shut in a fit of embarassment”. I’d agree with you, but you’re wrong. No, this fellow wanted conversation.

SPOTD: Hello!

Me: (silence)

SPOTD: Nice day, isn’t it?

Me: (silence)

SPOTD: Hello? How are you?

Me: (silence)

I quickly finished why I’d gone in there in the first place and walked toward the door knowing I’d have to pass his cubicle again. As I neared this time though, I could see he’d gotten the message that perhaps displaying himself legs akimbo and producing foul odours was not assisting his conversational efforts so had pushed the door shut though not latched it. I assume this was so that if someone else came into the room he could re-open the door and try again.

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Today we checked out Port Arthur on a day tour and returned for a ghost tour at night. Heading down from Hobart we checked out sites of natural beauty such as the Tesselated Pavement rocks, Tasman Arch, and Devil’s Kitchen. Because of the layout of these natural sites en route to the ‘main’ attraction we kept running into the same people at each site so the tip de jour is that you’d better not annoy someone at one site because you’ll see them again in a few minutes. Not a problem for me, of course, since I have a lovely personality that everyone wants more of but if you’re not as good as me, well, it’s worth bearing in mind…*grin*

We went on a guided walking tour which was not particularly exciting since we didn’t walk particularly far and the speech was a bit repetitive on the concept of “good behaviour =reward, bad behaviour = punishment” but we learned a couple of things that weren’t in the other literature or on-site signage. The cruise around the bay was part of the entry tour but the weather was not particularly encouraging for anyone to want to get off at Point Puir for a tour. It was pretty clear that a huge storm was coming and sitting on an isolated headland for an hour was a daft move so we headed back in without stopping, much to the potential guide’s relief.

The storm hit the site with gale force winds and teeming rain about 45 minutes later and everyone was sent scurrying for cover as the tempest raged. We later found out that the storm managed to uproot power lines and trees in the town we were staying in, as well as knocking out all analog television signals from 2pm - 9pm as a result of a lightning strike to the tower on Mt Wellington. WinTV (Channel Nine’s regional version) got good ratings apparently, being the only station still on air

Almost immediately the storm ceased the sun came out and as the remaining visitors came out of the various roofed buildings it was clear that 90% of people had raced to their cars and gone because the site was almost deserted. In the glorious sunshine and with the backdrop of birds chittering the only evidence of the recent storm was a few puddles on the ground and muddy footprints through the site.

Categories: Travel, Tasmania 2006
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On the way home tonight I went to pull the cord for the tram driver to stop at my designated stop so I could get off the tram. Just before I touched the cord, a family of four pulled the cord since they were also getting off at the same stop. Fair enough, the driver has now been alerted as evidenced by the light turning on and the “next stop” tone playing. Neither of which was particularly useful in the long run as we sailed past the stop and kept going through another stop without pausing.

It was easier to go to the end of the line and come back than it was to walk back all the distance we’d covered by that stage so I sat back down as did the family and we waited. At the end of the line the SPOTD driver came out of the cabin and walked to the other end of the tram so he could return along the line from whence we came. As he approached the following conversation took place.

SPOTD: This is the last stop.

Me: Is there something wrong with the tram?

SPOTD: No, it’s the last stop.

Me: I realise it’s the last stop. Are the brakes working?

SPOTD: Uh, yes. Why?

Me: Because the five of us wanted to get off the damn tram two stops ago, you cretin! The cord was pushed, the signal was received, and apparently you’re too stupid to comprehend that means you’re required to halt the vehicle so people can get off.

SPOTD: I didn’t hear any tone! You mustn’t have pulled the cord properly.

Me: Let me explain this very simply to you because I can see you are a simple man. There’s no “wrong” way to pull a cord. You pull the cord and the light comes on and the tone sounds. That’s it. Nothing complex about it. Like your job, for example. You drive a tram on rails so there’s no turning involved. You only have to do a couple of things - stop to pick people up when they’re at the stop and drop them off when they want to be dropped off. If you can’t do those simple things perhaps you’re too simple for the job?

SPOTD: Well, I didn’t hear anything! (says the driver now subtly removing the Walkman headphone from his right ear)

Gee, I wonder why he didn’t hear anything…

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