Re: Bankrupt Victoria - Labor can't manage money

[Jasin]

Well that's pretty smart for city living.

The down-side of country living is isolation - mainly in regards to when you can no longer drive. If you are too far from such services, even for one of those oldie scooter-mobiles, things are tough indeed. You need to be in walking or bus service distance from such services. A friend of mine is moving to Victoria (Gippsland) and has bought a place that is walking distance to town, bus service just 100m away as well. He's a retiree and knows one day, he'll have to give up his driving licence too. So he's planned ahead.

Other than this, country or regional living seems to offer far more than city living these days. Less stress, no pollution, no noise pollution. Less idiots. No moslems. Like me, I've had for a few years - a nice million dollar view of the ocean and bush environment (all for free) in a large accommodation. Speared or line-fished my own seafood. Driven to the next mob's territory for a fresh roo or wallaby for fat-free meat, etc. Plenty of duck and chicken roaming around, though I enjoyed wild duck more, as the chickens gave me dark-golden eggsies. Alas, all that is really gone now. But it was great for the time I had.

When I moved back to Sydney, I only lasted 2 years, before heading south away from it again. Despite earning great money in Construction - it just wasn't worth the poor quality of existence. Grid-lock traffic that could keep me on the road up to 3 hours just for 50kms. High rent, cost of living high. Everyone miserable, stressed, unfriendly, violent, etc. Moslem neighbours. Pollution, the relentless traffic noise. The 'hassle' of going to the ocean and no parking... no parking anywhere. In construction - had to wake at 3:30am, be on the road at least by 4am to get a quick drive into the inner city jobs and get a parking spot. Have my breakfast in the car. Sleep for the time before I started on-site. No breeze during the hot days and Western Sydney sites were HOT with a typical 40C+ in summer with no breeze. Hate to say it also, but if you're White - you cop a lot of racism from the Yellows, Browns and Blacks who now see you as a 'minority' to push around. Overall - it was like swimming against the current and unless you are like Gordon in Real Estate and living in a small fantasy-land affluent little 'burb' on a Sydney Harbour peninsula, its best to get as far from Sydney as you can get.

[Bobby]

Hi JaSin,
I couldn't have put up with that.
I was so lucky that for at least 26 years I had a place to live close to work -
only 10 minutes drive and a parking space out the front in their car park.
That was with a few different jobs I had.
I couldn't have coped with a long commute and working outdoors on 40 degree days - stuff that.
No company pays enough to go through that torture.
Even when I moved for a few years for work way out of Melbourne I rented a small granny flat
so I could be close to work and lived in my house on the weekends -
also so I could mow the lawns and maintain the place.

I hate the idea of centralised cities where people are expected to take the train
every morning to work in the big city.
I prefer to live in the suburbs and live close to work.
Employers should have their premises in the suburbs.

[Jasin]

Melbourne is better designed than Sydney. That helps Melbournians a lot. Everyone has equal access from many directions towards the City Hub (and with a good public transport system of Train, Bus and Tram. I remember one spot in Melbourne where I could just walk 20m from Train, Bus and Tram spots. Very efficient.
Sydney's curse is that it was originally a 'Port', not a city and the majority of population has the come from the western directions and squeeze into a little 'bottleneck' in the east. Even those from the North and South now have to squeeze in with that influx when approaching the Hub area. I actually spoke to a person in charge of trying to rectify this problem. I mentioned 'centralising' everything by making Parramatta the 'centralised hub' - but the answer was "too much money" to which I responded "Well, may the Force be with you - because Sydney was built for Ships and Boats, not Cars and Buses." Sydney is a lost cause, it can't be 'fixed'... except by a Nuke, but then it would be looking like Port Phillip Bay.

[Bobby]

Melbourne is better designed than Sydney. That helps Melbournians a lot. Everyone has equal access from many directions towards the City Hub (and with a good public transport system of Train, Bus and Tram. I remember one spot in Melbourne where I could just walk 20m from Train, Bus and Tram spots. Very efficient.
Sydney's curse is that it was originally a 'Port', not a city and the majority of population has the come from the western directions and squeeze into a little 'bottleneck' in the east. Even those from the North and South now have to squeeze in with that influx when approaching the Hub area. I actually spoke to a person in charge of trying to rectify this problem. I mentioned 'centralising' everything by making Parramatta the 'centralised hub' - but the answer was "too much money" to which I responded "Well, may the Force be with you - because Sydney was built for Ships and Boats, not Cars and Buses." Sydney is a lost cause, it can't be 'fixed'... except by a Nuke, but then it would be looking like Port Phillip Bay.

The point is that employers refuse to decentralize by having their workplaces in affordable suburbs -
yet they are not paying workers for spending 2 or more hours traveling every day to get to and from their lousy jobs.
(Traveling expenses are not tax deductible either.)
I already declined to apply for many such jobs in the last 4 years.
They can go and get stuffed.

[Bobby]

The same will happen here or is already happening:


The Hidden Financial Black Hole Waiting The Next Government

Economics Help UK

[Jasin]

I agree. Excessive travel is only worth a very well paid job or a 'career' which dedication is needed to get to the next level, etc.
Sadly, Construction or Agency Nursing was all over the entire Sydney Basin - so I didn't really have a choice. Sometimes nice and close, sometimes far flung across to the other side of the city.
Living just 4 doors down from Paul Keating at the Lodge right in the city was handy - just walked across the harbour bridge for a 30min brisk to work.
Sadly, crossing to and fro across the Bridge - you're forced to pass some idiots and some idiots just can't leave other people alone.

It's good that you kept things nice and compact travel wise. Even parking for a bike would have been easy for you. Something I should have learned to ride in hindsight. In Sydney, you see many women riding small motorbikes, vespers, etc to/from work mainly for cost and parking.

Living Regional is much better. Even if I have to travel 90mins to a job, then its pure enjoyment of scenic travel, no 'gridlocks', speed limit all the way.
When I lived in the Riverina. I could walk to work in the town easy, but sometimes needed my car for the job and would just drive in 1st gear just to get at least one song in on the radio.

[Jasin]

The same will happen here or is already happening:


The Hidden Financial Black Hole Waiting The Next Government

Economics Help UK

Things are stretching for many nations to extremes where a small minority is far richer than the minority of just 15 years ago and the population has increased its heavy load of poverty by 35% and accelerating, as over-population does.

...something has to break.
...which nation will break first?

[Bobby]

I agree. Excessive travel is only worth a very well paid job or a 'career' which dedication is needed to get to the next level, etc.
Sadly, Construction or Agency Nursing was all over the entire Sydney Basin - so I didn't really have a choice. Sometimes nice and close, sometimes far flung across to the other side of the city.
Living just 4 doors down from Paul Keating at the Lodge right in the city was handy - just walked across the harbour bridge for a 30min brisk to work.
Sadly, crossing to and fro across the Bridge - you're forced to pass some idiots and some idiots just can't leave other people alone.

It's good that you kept things nice and compact travel wise. Even parking for a bike would have been easy for you. Something I should have learned to ride in hindsight. In Sydney, you see many women riding small motorbikes, vespers, etc to/from work mainly for cost and parking.

Living Regional is much better. Even if I have to travel 90mins to a job, then its pure enjoyment of scenic travel, no 'gridlocks', speed limit all the way.
When I lived in the Riverina. I could walk to work in the town easy, but sometimes needed my car for the job and would just drive in 1st gear just to get at least one song in on the radio.

A bike - you mean a bicycle?
No - the traffic was too dangerous for a push bike.
I did have a motorbike at one stage and that was good but it took
too long to put on all the safety gear and then take it all off again for a 10 minute ride.
It was simpler to jump in my car.

[Jasin]

Yes. I meant 'motor'bike. Only idiots 'push'bike around the city like those crazed Couriers.