Queensland floods continued

The footage of the Queensland floods is heartbreaking. Maybe it's because the news is more immediate now. People are filming and tweeting their experiences. We're seeing the disaster unfold.

It's the worst flood in a century.

75 percent of Queensland has been declared a disaster zone.

Nine people have been confirmed dead. Dozens are missing.

The army is now flying supplies to disaster zones.

Yesterday Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley were obliterated by the floods. Today that water has made its way to Brisbane. The worst days are set to be tomorrow and Thursday.

Brisbane airport has closed tonight.

People are in panic mode stocking up on groceries. I've read a tweet that ATMs are out of money.

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And crocodiles are looking for food.

Even if we're fortunate enough not to physically experience them, these floods will affect so many facets of our lives for months to come, maybe years. The economy. Food prices. Fuel prices. Tourism. The workforce. Everything. Today also made me consider how important it is to shop locally to stimulate the Australian economy, and also to maintain the GST so the government can continue supporting the community.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said:

"We are facing one of our toughest ever tests,"
"We will only pass this test if we are calm, if we are patient with each other ... and if we listen carefully to the instructions we are being given.
"Now is not a time for panic, now is the time for us to stick together."

The floods are two states away from where I live in Victoria. Australia is a huge country and at times it feels like we are oblivious to what's happening in another state. But in times of disaster and tragedy, Australians band together. I saw Kinglake, the town destroyed by the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires, is rallying together to assist the people of Queensland. They want to repay Queensland for their support in 2009. There's also this man saving roos in a boat in NSW last year.

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People are big hearted. Australia united makes me proud.

My thoughts are with the people of Queensland - friends, colleagues and strangers. Faux Fuschia, Rick Morton, Nikki Hassett and Bern Morley are bloggers I love that live in Queensland. I send my love to you all. Stay safe.

You can donate to the QLD Premier's flood appeal here.

Edit: this is a useful blog entry about what to do in an emergency. And this is a Facebook page about pet rescue.

Queensland floods

Another Australian summer, another devastating natural disaster. Mother nature is so destructive.

The Australian state Queensland is under water, with floods destroying homes, livestock and land.

There are reports of houses and cars floating away, and unknown lives lost. People have lost everything. People are missing. There is little communication from the affected areas. And there doesn't seem to be any respite. The state has been flooded since late December. Premier Anna Bligh said last night that 'the situation in Queensland is grim and desperate'

The news footage is heartbreaking, and certainly puts my life into perspective. I watched some horrific scenes on the news last night.

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ABC news.

This on Channel 7 news.

If you are in Queensland, stay safe. If you know an elderly or disabled person affected by the floods and can help them to safety, please do so.

You can donate to the QLD Premier's flood appeal here.

For updates, visit qld.gov.au.

A sausage for the nation

It's election day in Australia today.

The Age predicts it's going to be close.

I think we live in a lucky country, and I appreciate being given the freedom to vote, because there are so many countries who don't allow women or minority groups, or anyone at all, to vote.

But I have found it hard to differentiate between party policies when most of the media and advertising from both Labor and Liberal has been slagging off the opposition. I did like this profile on Julia Gillard by Mia Freedman last week.

It may be unAustralian of me not to know much about politics. I am proud to have a female PM. But other than that, I'm disinterested and uninformed.

The other day work friends and I had a coffee, and they were discussing the election. I honestly had nothing intelligent to contribute to the conversation, and I emphasised this by saying 'if all I'm worried about is the lack of picture on my hot chocolate froth, I clearly have no intellect regarding the election'. A friend of mine wrote on her Facebook that she is very excited to be able to vote for the first time today - this was a nice thing to see, I thought, despite my ignorance to it all.

It is very Australian of me, however, to be excited about sausage sizzles on election day.

I have a lot on today, so I chose to vote in the city on Thursday. My main concern about casting an early vote was whether I could still have a sausage today.

I put it to Twitter. @snagvotes said 'Yes. It's your democratic right! ;)'. @daisystreet said: Oh, absolutely! In fact, I think you should get *two sausages simply for being so organised. ;)

So today, after breakfast with the lovely Jentopia, belly dance and a spot of shopping, I went to my local primary school to get a sausage. I bypassed the queue to get my sausage. 'I've already voted, I'm just here for a sausage', I told the voters. 

Sausages were categorised by party leaders. Mr Abbott (or Mr Rabbit, as Gillard says) sausages were plain. It would have been great if they were rabbit sausages.

 

Julia Gillard, our first female and red haired PM was represented by Red Hot Rangas.

 When I was a kid, Mum would tell me she could never tell me who she voted for. It was a highly confidential and personal thing. My sausage choice didn't represent my vote. Can you guess?

One step aside from a man, one giant leap for women

I am incredibly proud to be Australian today.

Australia has a female Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, after Kevin Rudd stood aside.

What a day for Australia and Australian women. We are a lucky country, with freedom incomparable to many parts of the world. But Julia Gillard's appointment as Prime Minister is great progression, for us and the rest of the world. It shows us as women, we can aspire to anything.

Though I do not profess to have knowledge in, or feign interest in politics, the events of today moved me greatly. I don't entirely understand what happened to cause Kevin Rudd's ouststing. I acknowledge that not all Australians agree with the way Julia Gillard was appointed Prime Minister - many call it execution, betrayal or divorce. It was interesting and exciting to watch the TV coverage and read the tweets of the rapidly unfolding events, even for a non politically savvy person like me.

It was particularly interesting to see what a role twitter played in the coverage. Journalists were tweeting observations and photos from the press gallery which them made it to media, and on one TV station, Mia Freedman was appointed 'Reporter of the Tweets', and tweeting herself. I saw a tweet from Yumi Stynes saying 'All the news coverage about the leadership spill is about tweets. Get over it! And get news the old fashioned way, schelppers!'

Another thing I found amusing, and slightly patronising, was that so much opinion about Julia Gillard is about her dress sense, hairstyle and colour (she had fabulous hair today!) and marital status. Call it a point of interest for women, and perhaps a 'human' part of her for them to grab onto, but would women be getting so interested in these aspects of her life if she was male?

I was on my way to the doctor, thinking I'd miss outgoing Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's speech. But I tuned into ABC radio and sat in the car listening to his emotional speech. I had tears in my eyes.

Considering he'd just been ousted by his own party, he spoke with such dignity, and from the heart. You can also view his speech at The Age.

He spoke of the achievements of the Labor Party in the time he was Prime Minister. When it came to talking about cancer treatment, organ donation and the stolen generation, he broke down. It was moving. The support from his family, particularly his wife Therese Rein, was strong

As Clem Bastow and many others tweeted, 'I am proud of the fact that Kevin Rudd is a human being'.

Despite the perceived failings of the Labor Party under Kevin Rudd's leadership, I believe he's shown great leadership in his exit speech. It was heartfelt, honest, huourous and apologetic at times. It would be pretty awful to be the leader of a country and turned on by your supposed allies in your party. I can't imagine how he couldn't take criticism personally in his role as Prime Minister.

The values that Kevin and Julia espoused today make me proud.

There were a few words in Julia Gillard's gorgeous strine-laden acceptance address that resonated with me. I believe these words are true resolve of great leadership and values:

'Can I say to the Australian people there will be some days I delight you; there may be some days I disappoint you.

On every day, I will be working my absolute hardest for you'.