Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Back

How was your Chrissy?

Mine was bloody nice. Spent most of it laying about in the altogether at a mate's place in Tumbi. Lovely spot out the back. Nice flat paddock going down into a valley and a capacious beer fridge on the veranda. What more could a person want in a mate?


Brisbane Water Drive Koolewong

Derelict old cottage squeezed in between the railway and the road on Brisbane Water Drive at Murphys Bay (Koolewong), just opposite Sheathers. It might've been there before the railway.

It's gone now. Demolished recently.


Derelict houses cnr of Ocean Beach Road & Pioneer Road

Gone now. Demolished recently. Ten bucks says there's a dozen villas on there before you can say development approval.

Gone


The UFO AKA St John's Blackwall Road Woy Woy

The UFO AKA St John's Blackwall Road Woy Woy. Rumour has it late arrivals to services are locked out and have to buzz to be let in. Seems a bizarre way of dealing with worshippers in these times of shrinking congregations.

Rumour also has it this church is a Pope-lure. Il Papa is visiting this wide brown land later this year and is holding some sort of shindig at Randwick Racecourse. Gosford's racegoers have successfully had him banned from their racecourse.


Old St John's Blackwall Road Woy Woy

Old St John's Blackwall Road Woy Woy. It's a bastard to photograph due to being on a busy intersection.

The large building is the old 1914 St John's church. To the right of it are the villas built about a year ago. They are in a very sympathetic style, using an almost identical brick colour and even have flat arches (bricks arranged vertically on across the top of the windows).

They replaced the eccentric collection of old school buildings and sheds that were on the church grounds.


Yacht moored off Ettalong Beach

Yacht moored off Ettalong Beach on a warm day. Looking out between Wagstaffe (left) and the knob of Ettalong (right) to Lion Island (behind yacht), Barrenjoey Head and Pittwater. Taken a dozen yards from the house above.


Ocean View Road Ettalong

Ocean View Road Ettalong. Lovely old place with a large tangled backyard. From the veranda it's perhaps 50 steps to the water. I am suffering terribly from envy.


Messing about in boats at Ettalong Beach

Messing about in boats at Ettalong Beach. Looking out between Wagstaffe (left) and the knob of Ettalong (right) to Lion Island, Barrenjoey Head and Pittwater. Taken a dozen yards from the house above.


Odds and sods

Lisa and Derrick's Wobbly Pole House at Umina


Jack Randall's email wants to know "how did you find out all that infomation also where all the heratage houses are." I take photos on my walkies and look them up in architecture books, online and in old local photos. I'm just another keen amateur.


The comments on Palm Beach again are a rich seam of local info, including more support for wooden boats, a Freo connection, a flash flooding report and news of "a gateway to the fabled lost Egyptian civilisation at Kariong". Thank yer and a belated Merry Hogswatch to all who participated.

On other posts Woy Woy Steve reveals himself as a fellow map geek and Greg avails himself of Dr Spike's Woy Wegian Family History & Ferry Tours Service.


And Dr Annona Pearse of the Uni of Newcastle wants you.

She's after info on and photos of the old Ocean Beach Aquarium. "The Aquarium, owned by the late Eric Worrell, operated in the late 1940s and early 1950s on the corner of West and Augusta Streets Umina ... Many Peninsula residents may have memories of visiting the aquarium or supplying Eric Worrell with funnel web spiders for his early work in the supply of venom."

Read the rest of the article at the local rag or ring Dr Pearse on (02) 4382 6514.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

welcome back spike i'm so jealous you got to lay around in the nude at your friends place!!!! I had a good christmas and new year (christmas day was spent with the family wish it was a few degrees warmer so i could have gone for a swim in the their pool) wasnt going to go out new years eve but changed my mind at the last minute ended up around at another cousins house down near the back of umina having a few drinks
re the pope: as i mentioned in one of my other comments he is bringing the popemobile up here so he can do burnouts in the car park at umina surf club!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Spike, welcome back as well. Lucky bastard having fun up at Tumbi. Chrissy was good to all here, had my ex-flatmate from Darwin visit (now living in Sydney)so was nice to catch up with him for half a day in between his women chasing escapades. Back at work too so plans to skive another week of leave looking dim, such is life. Thanks for the pre Xmas blog on ferries, it's focused me to plan a trip from Ettalong to Palm Beach, and then on the Myra to go and have a look at the holiday rental houses over at Currawong or Mackerel beaches and around Palm Beach in general. Hope you have a great 2008 and a vast improve on the trials and tribulations you had to get thru in '07.. as always, I look fwd to a laugh or some visual feast of photos from walkies when I periodically scan your blog via my Netvibes page. C ur round !

Inexplicable DeVice said...

Wheeeeee!! You're back!

Christmas was spent at Inexcuseable's with the rest of the family. Surprisingly it was quite enjoyable. Certainly no venturing outside in the alltogether in bitter Blighty!

New Year was just me (and the SubC's of course). I needed a break!

I hope you're all relaxed and raring to go again?

Spike said...

Michael, thank yer, would it help if I said I was wearing a sock?

New Year's is a funny bugger. To my way of thinking you either cram yerself into the harbour foreshore to watch the fireworks over the Coathanger or stay home and forget about it.

LOL re burn-outs. As long as he doesn't cause too many traffic jams and shit.

Trainspotty, thank yer. Tell 'em you need another week for religious observance, ie, gazing at trains.

Yer welcome re ferries posts. Send us a coupla photos from Currawong and Mackeral.

Thank yer very kindly re the best wishes. I'm hanging onto the thought it can't be much worse than 2007 :)

Device dear, a non-violent family Xmas is an great achievement!

Re cold, take one Gentleman Caller, a broom and a Woy Woy beach photo and call me in the morning.

I am indeed feeling quite relaxed and raring to go. The weather is thwarting me but not for long!

Anonymous said...

I felt I had to get out and celebrate this new years eve I stayed at home the last 2 before that

Anonymous said...

Re: Runway Bitumens - the gooey black stuff wasn't on the runway but just off to the side as land fill , just a memory hope it wasn't toxic ! The red gravel used came from a quarry at Kulnura I believe I may have found it on Google Earth , I will be uploading some kmz. files which will take you on a virtual tour of Woy Woy olden days soon , speaking of Google Earth I have also knocked up an artists ( me ) impression of the old airfield in 1945 using Google Earth images and photoshop check the Woy Woy Files at www.woy-woy.com for the updated story ( and more stories underway ) my new blog is at www.woy-woy.net ( when I get a break from my other sites )
Diggin the stories on old Woy Woy welcome back
cheers

Spike said...

Device dear, by a broom I meant Broom.

*note to self: concentrate when answering comments!*

Michael, I like the idea of tottering down to the ones here on NYE but I'm usually too drunk or I fall asleep :(

Steve, sounds rather fun. Will be popping over very soon to see it.

Anonymous said...

I remember falling asleep one year and missed midnight altogether and no I wasnt drunk I remember waking up around 2am or so
There nothing official around here to celebrate new years eve but doesnt really matter anyway as there are fireworks going off right through the night

Spike said...

Not drunk huh? We believe yer :)

Are they on here on Australia Day? The last one seems so long ago I can't remember.

Anonymous said...

I believe the fireworks are on at woy woy sometime between 9 and 9.30pm on saturday night out festivities are on between 3pm and 10pm in the usual spot