Isn’t that the beauty of life, ever evolving as we weave our own tapestry; a mosaic of our lives taking turns that one could not even imagine just a few years ago…
This week I am heading down to Scottsdale Reserve, a property owned by the conservation group Bush Heritage Australia to assist in a scientific study. Situated about 80 kilometres south of Canberra, Scottsdale borders Australia’s Alpine region and the mighty Murrumbidgee River runs through the reserve.
Each year a count is undertaken of the platypus population on this stretch of the river and involves sitting on the riverbank at dawn and dusk to “spy” this shy and unique mammal. And yes, it will be cold with minimum temperatures forecast to be as low as -7 degrees next week so I’ll be sure to pack my Driz-a-bone to keep me warm and the frost at bay…
So what took me from currency trader to counting platypus?
Well a love of the bush, the outdoors has always been my thing so it is no surprise that like a vortex the bush sucked me in once I “graduated from work”.
And hey, you’ll hear no complaints from me on how my tapestry; my mosaic is working out.
Sitting on a river bank counting platypus is timeless and without a doubt better for the soul than sitting in a trading room where fortunes are won and lost in the blink of an eye as currencies flirt with each other on world markets.
That isn’t to say trading currencies wasn’t fun, after all I did it with some great people who have become lifelong friends, but counting platypus is more appealing and far less stressful than staring at a computer monitor with one eye on the clock, counting down the hours, minutes to the end of the trading session.
By the way, what day did you say it was…?
(Just kidding, of course I know what day it is – a great one!)
Cheers, Baz – The Landy
Xplore 
I once knew a man who went up on a mountain to spend several months counting marmots out here in the west. Enjoy your time with the platypus! As my brother reminded me this morning, our greatest wealth is time and energy. Without those, we are nothing. I am glad to see you still have both!
The summer drought, gophers and voles were hard on the Landy Memorial garden here this year, but it will be beautiful again in spring. I am adjusting the plantings to better match conditions, which are headed for hotter and drier.
Give our best to Janet and TomO.
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Hi Lavinia, glad to hear from you. And yes, our greatest wealth is time and energy, and may we always “spend” it wisely! Had a great week monitoring the platypus, although sightings were down. The scientists’ will analyse the findings, but there is a thought that the drought has had an impact. We are experiencing drought conditions with little end in sight. Whilst down at Scottsdale, a conservation reserve, we watered newly planted trees, approximately 5,000 litres of water, but it is still a drop in ocean.
Janet and TomO are well, and we will be tendering our garden now we are into spring. Take care, Baz
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Baz
Trust you and Janet are both well.
I have to ask what¹s the exchange rate on platypus?
We are travelling and the daily competition is how much wildlife do we see emus versus kangaroos versus echidnas versus dugongs, etc.
In our market birds and vermin (rabbits, cats, etc.) don¹t count although I have a huge soft spot for the wedge tails.
Ask my wife and the going rate is one echidna is equal to about 20 emus or kangaroos one platypus probably equals three echidnas.
We are currently in Canarvon heading to Exmouth.
After that east and south the Coolgardie then east via the great central road.
You can see or blog at http://outinozblog.com/blog/
Cheers
Gwyn
From: XPLORE Reply-To: XPLORE Date: Sunday, 26 August 2018 at 7:01 am To: Gwyn Morgan Subject: [New post] From Currency Trader to Counting Platypus
WordPress.com Baz – The Landy posted: ” Isn¹t that the beauty of life, ever evolving as we weave our own tapestry; a mosaic of our lives taking turns that one could not even imagine just a few years ago This week I am heading down to Scottsdale Reserve, a property owned by the conservation “
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Hi Gwyn & Leakhena…well they would be worth a lot! Funny you mention echidnas, they are similar in many ways to platypus. Glad you are enjoying your trip and will catch a read of your blog this weekend, Cheers, Baz…
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Count well, and sit up straight!!
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Howdy Greg…I did count well and sat up straight! Cheers, Baz
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It’s a great day for the platypus that you still have a head for figures. Enjoy!
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Happy counting!
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Thanks Maureen…
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thanks for taking me along on all of your adventures :}
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Always a pleasure BG…
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