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Today's quote:

Tuesday, July 28, 2026

The Good Life

 

 

Hugh Clifford Mackay, born in 1938, is an Australian psychologist, social researcher and writer of many books, including "The Good Life", from which I have taken the following quote:

"I actually attack the concept of happiness. The idea that—I don't mind people being happy—but the idea that everything we do is part of the pursuit of happiness seems to me a really dangerous idea and has led to a contemporary disease in Western society, which is fear of sadness. It's a really odd thing that we're now seeing people saying "write down three things that made you happy today before you go to sleep" and "cheer up" and "happiness is our birthright" and so on. We're kind of teaching our kids that happiness is the default position. It's rubbish. Wholeness is what we ought to be striving for and part of that is sadness, disappointment, frustration, failure; all of those things which make us who we are. Happiness and victory and fulfillment are nice little things that also happen to us, but they don't teach us much. Everyone says we grow through pain and then as soon as they experience pain they say, "Quick! Move on! Cheer up!" I'd like just for a year to have a moratorium on the word "happiness" and to replace it with the word "wholeness." Ask yourself, "Is this contributing to my wholeness?" and if you're having a bad day, it is."

 

 

"The Good Life" is a welcome and much needed reminder to make the most of life not from seeking happiness or fulfilment as goals in themselves, but pursuing goodness and concern for others. Its valuable analysis draws on Mackay’s wide reading but more importantly his extensive social research and interviews with thousands of average Australians and how they grapple with living a good life.

 


Googlemap Riverbend

 

Monday, July 27, 2026

Amrum

 

For a trailer with English subtitles, click here
For the location of the island, click here

 

Set against the stark beauty of the windswept German island of Amrum in the final days of World War II, "Amrum" is a haunting and lyrical coming-of-age story that examines the collapse of the Third Reich through the eyes of a boy caught between innocence and ideology.

It is nearing the end of World War II and Nazi Germany’s quest to rule the world. Hitler is dead but these residents don’t really get the actual truth of what happened, and at this point it doesn’t matter as much as simply trying to survive with need for bread, food and other necessities. The main industry is growing potatoes and fishing, two things young Nanning, the star of this movie, helps with at the neighboring farm.

He learns how to skin a rabbit and lure an unsuspecting seal to his death among other unsavoury duties. He runs errands to try and get his mother, a Hitler apologist, bread, butter, sugar and other necessities all the while still wearing his Hitler Youth uniform, but not really engaged in the political aspects. We never see him project hate or toe the Nazi line. It is just something young boys were expected to wear.

The film’s focus is on these people who live far from the action, basically clueless to the Holocaust and other atrocities by Germany during the war that will now cast shame on the country. The war may have been very ugly, but Amrum is a beautiful place to grow up, seemingly a million miles away as life goes on, the future unsure, its inhabitants searching for some sort of happiness, and Nanning on the cusp of adolescence.

 

 

I heard about this movie from an internet-friend in my old hometown Braunschweig who thought it was "berührend", and so I started looking for its DVD on ebay.de. However, as much as I would like to see the scene of that symbolic burning of Hitler's portrait on the kitchen stove, an extra €16.99, or $27.70, for postage from Germany to Australia is far from "berührend" and makes me hesitate to place the order.

 

 

Maybe a friendly YouTuber in Germany will upload the full-length movie.

 


Googlemap Riverbend

 

Sunday, July 26, 2026

Come In Spinner

 

Audiobook Preview

 

Es gab eine Zeit in der ich immer an dieses Buch dachte wenn ich das Wort "Spinner" hörte. Aber seit September 2025 erinnert es mich immer daran dass ich das dysfunktionale Resultat einer dysfunktionalen Familie bin. Es geschah so:

Ich bin das fünfte Kind, das "fünfte Rad" sozusagen, und unerwünscht denn es war schon schwer genug am Ende des Krieges vier Kinder zu ernähren ohne dann noch ein Fünftes zu bekommen. Vielleicht ebenso unerwünscht wie der Erstgeborene, meinen viel älteren Bruder, dessen Geburtstag im Dezember 1932 war, nur zwei Monate nach der Hochzeit unserer Eltern. Unter den damaligen Zeiten wohl eher eine Mussehe.

Alles was ich über unsere dysfunktionale Familie weiß habe ich selbst zusammengebastelt von den Angaben dieses Bruders, der heute noch in Deutschland wohnt und jetzt in dem Alter ist in dem Mozart schon sechzig Jahre tot war. Er spricht kein English und verweigert sich auch es zu lernen und zu lesen, weshalb er mich bat ihm keine weiteren 'blog posts' zu schicken. Also hörte ich damit auf, wunderte mich aber ob er noch am Leben ist und schickte somit seinem Sohn meine Anfrage. Die Antwort kam ganz schnell, war aber nicht was ich erwartet hatte:

 


"Ja, danke. Ich nehme an, das war Deine Antwort auf meinen Brief, den ich Dir vor 50 Jahren als kleiner Junge geschrieben habe. Dann sprechen wir uns also etwa 2075 wieder. Bis dann."

 

Was hatte er mir vor fünfzig Jahren geschrieben? Und dann erinnerte ich mich an diesen Brief, anscheinend von einem Halbstarken geschrieben, der so blöd war dass ich ihn gleich in den Papierkorb warf. Eine Email kann man nicht in den Papierkorb schmeissen, also schrieb ich zurück:

 


"Ja, aber am naechsten Mal ist es dann "Sie". Das "Du" ist nur fuer Freunde! :-) P.S. Der Brief vor 50 Jahren war so bloed gewesen, dass ich mir gar nicht vorstellen konnte, dass das von einem Goermann geschrieben sein konnte. Ich hoffte Sie haetten sich inzwischen ein bisschen verbessert aber anscheinend nicht."

 

Danach kam dann noch kurz und bündig eine zweite Antwort von ihm:

 

 

Vielleicht sollte ich ihm die DVD schicken von dem Film den man von dem Buch "Come In Spinner" machte. Oder vielleicht fiel der Apfel nicht weit vom Baum und wie sein Vater würde er sich weigern einen Film ohne deutsche Untertitel anzusehen. ("Come in spinner" is a traditional Australian phrase that originates from the game of two-up, meaning an invitation to begin, an expression of welcome, or to go ahead.)

 

 

Oder vielleicht warte ich bin zum Jahre 2075 wenn die Deutschen schon alle Arabisch sprechen müssen und sich wünschten es wäre Englisch! 😄

 


Googlemap Riverbend

 

P.S. Die Anschrift des Sohnes meines Bruders ist "Hauptstr. 99, Borgdorf-Seedorf". Da habe ich 'mal schnell nachgeschaut wo er so gutbürgerlich wohnt, und stellte fest daß das ein Zeltplatz ist - siehe hier und hier. Da ist der Apfel doch ganz schön weit weg vom elterlichen Baum gefallen!

Und dann fand ich noch viel mehr Erstaunliches auf der Webseite vom Zeltplatz: eine Dusche zu nehmen kostet €0.30 PRO MINUTE. Das macht €18 oder etwa $30 pro Stunde. Daran werde ich denken wenn ich am Donnerstag in unserem Hallenbad eine stundenlange Dusche nehme.

Aber es wurde noch verrückter: anscheinend sucht dieser Zeltplatz noch Arbeitskräfte - siehe hier. Die dürfen nicht nur "m" (männlich) oder "w" (weiblich) sein, sondern auch "d". Was ist "d"? Doof? Armes Deutschland! Nachdem sie nicht mehr wissen welche Sprache sie sprechen sollen, wissen sie jetzt auch nicht mehr welchem Geschlecht sie zugehören.

Da bin ich früh genug ausgewandert denn die haben doch jetzt alle einen Vogel, oder? Das sieht man schon an den vorgeschlagenen neuen €-Banknoten - siehe hier - deren 'designs' B, D, H, I und J voller Vögel sind. Die obige Banknote reicht gerade für eine 15-Minuten Dusche.

Das sollte dann aber eine kalte Dusche sein damit man nicht wie das HB-Männchen gleich in die Luft geht wenn man diese Banknotenvorschläge oder dieses neue Straßenschild sieht! Wer die Wahl hat, hat die Qual!

Sieh den ganzen Film hier

Selbst das HB-Männchen hat jetzt arabische Untertitel. Also behalte das Schlauchboot damit du losfahren kannst wenn es soweit ist - siehe hier.

 

Friday, July 24, 2026

These days even the club I belong to is younger than me!

 

Ulladulla Bowlo 1953 - "These days even the club I belong to is younger than me!"

 

True happiness is embracing the little joys in life: the sunrise on a cold winter morning, the first cup of tea, or a truly amazing book. It is being grateful not only for when big things happen, but also for the small satisfactions that you can find every day. Real joy is finding happiness where you are and how you are.

I had all three, the sunrise on a cold winter morning, the first cup of tea, and I even found time to start on a truly amazing book before we drove into the Bay to spend a couple of hours in the warm-water pool, after which we went to Ulladulla for lunch at our favourite bowlo. Even discovering that that club was younger than me couldn't spoil my day!

It was almost spoilt in the warm-water pool when two "disabled" men, covered from head to toe in tattoos which would've branded them as unemployable long before they became "disabled", showed up with their highly-paid NDIS carers. Their only "disability" was the fact that they couldnt see their own feet because of their gross obesity, no doubt caused by an indolent life and too much booze. They lolled in the pool while their carers scrolled their smartphones. That NDIS needs a really good clean-up! Still, I was please to see my tax dollars hard at work.

 

Listen to the podcast here

 

Now that the on-again/off-again 'prospective' buyer is prospective no more and we're staying at "Riverbend", I indulged in a bit more book-buying and picked up "The Philosopher and the Wolf". The 'prospective' buyer's last email read, "Just wanted to stay in touch so you know I have not lost interest. Also I would love to come for another stroll around the property whenever it suits you both." I didn't even bother to reply.

 

 

Instead, I bought some more trees which I will plant this weekend. With a bit of luck, I will still be around to see them grow to their full height.

 


Googlemap Riverbend

 

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

The Pentagon is the biggest polluter on the planet

 

Listen to an interview with ABC Late Night Live here

 

Journalist Abby Martin and her husband Mike Prysner – a US war veteran - have spent years drawing attention to the wrongdoings of the US military. But when they had kids they turned their attention towards climate change, and just how much pollution the Pentagon is pumping into the planet.

 

 

The result is their latest film “Earth’s Greatest Enemy” and Abby Martin is in Australia for screenings around the country, and to take part in the national IPAN conference happening in Adelaide.

The theme of the conference is Time to Break Free From the USA - Cancel AUKUS and the Force Posture Agreement.

 


Googlemap Riverbend

 

While you're feeling depressed, you may as well watch "Why We Fight":