new year greetings

Subject: new year greetings
From:
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 02:31 PM

New Years greetings to all, especially all my friends in Australia.

Last years new year was the best ever, at the Gulgong festival in New South Wales.

For those not familiar with this event, on new years eve they close the main street, install a bush band, and have a full blown bush dance in the street.

I was lucky enough to be invited to guest with the Wongawilli band last year, and when we had finished playing for the dance, we went down the road and sat in the back yard of one of the pubs, playing music till day break. Now that is what I call a good time. If I remenber rightly I was wearing shorts and a T shirt, just the right sort of weather for a good new year.

Back in the UK this year, and although the celebrations are over in Oz, we are just off down the pub to start ours, and its very, very wet.

Happy new year to all at Mudcat

Alan

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Selene
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 04:07 PM

HI all

Happy New Year all!

Oh, and I know this isn't music or new year related, but I'm considering going down Under next year, is there anybody willing to help me out on some nitty-gritty little details that I don't know? Just things like on which side of the road to drive, that kind of thing.

Selene [e-mail]

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Alan of Australia
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 06:16 PM

Happy New Year from Oz,
Alan (Mandola Man), you're dead right about the street dance at Gulgong, it's one the great cultural events. Unfortunately it will be all over before I get there. As I write the folkies up there will be trying to recover & get into the street concert. I'll be getting there a bit late this year but there's still plenty of entertainment & playing to be done before it's over for another year.

Selene, I'll be away for a few days but I'll fill you in on details when I get back if some of the other Aussies don't beat me to it. We have all sorts of funny customs such as a tendancy to drive on the left.

Cheers,
Alan

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: alison
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 06:21 PM

Hi

Happy New Year to you too Alan & Liz. I'm off to Gulgong tomorrow. I have to admit, staying in a tent in 40+ degrees is not something I do often. But it should be fun.

Slainte

Alison

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Helen
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 08:10 PM

Happy New Year everyone

Don't forget, Alison, it *always* rains cats & dogs at least one day at Gulgong. I'm not going this year, but now that I know I could have met up with some mudcatters I wish I was.

Selene, what exactly do you want to know about Oz?

I think that Rule No. 1 is that every straight faced comment is more likely to be a joke than to be serious - as Shula once put it, it's the Australian "drop dead" humour. Maybe brushing up on some Australian humourous music might help, like Eric Bogle's "Nobody's Moggy Now" or Judy Small's "IPD", among others, all sung with dead serious faces, but secretly the singer is rolling around the floor laughing.

Helen

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: rosebrook
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 09:23 PM

Oh! So THAT'S where Oz is!

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From:
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 10:56 PM

And if you think 40 degrees doesn't sound hot it's 104 in the old Fahrenheit scale.

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 31 Dec 97 - 10:57 PM

Bah! Humbug! If you think this year was good, wait 'til you see next year.

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Sir
Date: 01 Jan 98 - 12:22 PM

...And a Happy New Year to all from the Hearland of the U.S.

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Alice
Date: 01 Jan 98 - 12:32 PM

Happy 1998 to all of you from the Montana Rockies. I envy your Oz weather. We are heading for below zero temps. Time to stay inside and play music. Alice in Montana

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Bert
Date: 02 Jan 98 - 04:06 PM

Which side of the road?? I don't know, but we drive on the top side here so I guess they use the underside down there.

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Whippoorwill
Date: 02 Jan 98 - 04:13 PM

Best New Year's wishes from the muggy Ohio River Valley. No climate, just weather. If you don't like it, wait a couple of hours, it'll change. Snow yesterday and -5 wind chill, drizzle today, 60 degrees tomorrow. I lawve deese country!

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: judy
Date: 03 Jan 98 - 01:46 PM

Happy New Year all from temperate Southern California. We intersperse a little rain with 70 degrees. No one knows what to wear. When we get winds from the north it can get to 40 degrees (Not cold to many, I know). Then the next day a Santa Ana (wind from the desert) may come along and it's short sleeves again.

Ahhhhh such problems :)

I have really enjoyed this last year. Hope to have more great times this next year

judy

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From:
Date: 04 Jan 98 - 03:01 PM

Hi all

What do I want to know about Oz? well, I knew you drive on the left, but how about getting driving licencses? are there queues, of months, years days, what? what are drinking rules like? etc. If you want', I 'can send a whole questionare! along with personal, medical seasonal, regional and every other sort of question! How does one open a bank account? does one need a permenant address for this? what if one does not have a permanant address? is it possible to get mail forwarded? is flying expensive (lessons, this is very important, I want to be a pilot, though we're not getting good publicity. That kind of thing. Helen? Alan? Anybody?

Selene

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From:
Date: 04 Jan 98 - 03:04 PM

Hi all

What do I want to know about Oz? well, I knew you drive on the left, but how about getting driving licencses? are there queues, of months, years days, what? what are drinking rules like? etc. If you want', I 'can send a whole questionare! along with personal, medical seasonal, regional and every other sort of question! How does one open a bank account? does one need a permenant address for this? what if one does not have a permanant address? is it possible to get mail forwarded? is flying expensive (lessons, this is very important, I want to be a pilot, though we're not getting good publicity. That kind of thing. Helen? Alan? Anybody?

Selene

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: John in Brisbane
Date: 04 Jan 98 - 06:40 PM

Happy New Year to all,

The best advice I can provide for Selene's questions is to refer to you to the Lonely Planet Guide for Australia - this will cover a huge range of issues related to travel, health, alcohol, climate, banking etc. If you need a better library reference number please ask again as I have a copy at home. As to the cost of flying lessons here I have no real knowledge, but will chase up some contacts if someone else cannot provide earlier details.

Have just spent a very enjoyable week at the Woodford Folk Festival (about an hour North of Brisbane) from 27 Dec to 2 Jan. With 22 different stages, almost all under canvas, a 150 hectare site, and a mind boggling range of music, dance, spoken word and craft activities, it is an amazing annual event. Managed to reach the Grand Final of the Great Band Competition held over five days with 3 or 4 fellow musicians you've never met before whose names are pulled out of a hat on the first day. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys living on a musical knife edge, or to anyone involved in running music festivals/camps who enjoys inflicting pressure on others.

Regards John

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: alison
Date: 04 Jan 98 - 10:59 PM

Hi

Helen you were right it did rain one night. However that was a pleasant relief after a day of 38 degrees.... much too hot to be living in a tent.

Slainte

Alison

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Selene
Date: 05 Jan 98 - 07:01 PM

Thanks! I'll try that. Oh,and are there any known folk festivals (well, known to you) after say, april?

Selene

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: alison
Date: 06 Jan 98 - 05:51 PM

Hi Selene,

There are heaps. Here is the link to the new and improved Sydney folk page.

http://www.pnc.com.au/~tracks/

Sorry, I haven't mastered how to put the hyperlinks in yet.

You'll find everything you need to know there.

Slainte

Alison

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: judy
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 01:07 AM

Wow! John, it looks like you enjoyed it quite a few times!

judy

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Selene
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 12:35 PM

HI all

I've checked out the Lonely planet, good idea, and it answeres a heap, but not yet everything, Like do you cook on gas or electric (as a general, not in specific!)

Selene

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: Jerry Friedman
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 04:04 PM

Can you wish people a happy New Year after Epiphany? Happy New Year!

I'd like to point out that 1998 is the 400th anniversary of the founding of San Gabriel, which was the FIRST European settlement in what is now the U.S. (except for St. Augustine and maybe one or two others), and which ACTUALLY became (or at least was probably quite close to) the town of Espanola, where I live.

Subject: RE: new year greetings
From: alison
Date: 07 Jan 98 - 05:53 PM

hi

Electric usually, although some people have gas (insert own wise cracks here.)

I found Lonely Planet very helpful when i first came here. I still use it if I'm on holidays.

Slainte

Alison