Australian Defence Minister Brendan Nelson has publicly admitted that oil is one of the reasons for Australia's continued troop presence in Iraq. This is the first time such an admission has been made, although his boss, John Howard, denies it. read more

We had Foxtel fitted yesterday. Foxtel is basically the same as Sky in the UK (both owned by Rupert Murdoch). The biggest revelation (they didn't tell us this when we ordered it) is that we can't get Channels Seven or Ten through Foxtel, which is a bit of a bummer because Seven and Ten are two of … read more

The aussies like to say 'drama' a lot. Everything's a drama. If something's a bit of bother, it's a drama. I had a 'drama' of my own today. A woman fainted on me in the lift today at work, although I don't think it was because she mistook me for Brad Pitt. As I was travelling down to the ground … read more

This photo doesn't really do it justice. I'm going to have to invest in a camera with a decent flash. This is the view I get of the Brisbane CBD from the CityCat every night leaving work. read more

After constantly being busy with one thing and another since arriving in Oz it was really nice to be able to relax this weekend. Sunday in particular was lovely. We spent the afternoon relaxing in the garden reading whilst basking in the warmth of the sun. I keep having to remind myself it's the … read more

Not sure what this was about. I came out of work yesterday (Monday) and this yacht was on the jetty surrounded by film crews. The helicopter onboard had its rotors running and there was what looked like a butler standing at the top of the gangway. I couldn't work out whether they were waiting for … read more

How bizarre. According to Wikipedia, a fainting goat is a breed of domestic goat whose external muscles freeze for roughly 10 seconds when the goat is startled. This is hilarious... [youtube [www.youtube.com/watch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we9_CdNPuJg&w=425&h=350]) You have to wonder how … read more

The weekend is here! I can't believe I've just completed my first full week of work in Oz and I've done absolutely nothing! The client I'm working for still hasn't sorted me out a PC or account to access the systems. Nor do I have a swipe card yet to get physical access to the building. I have to … read more

We nearly bought an house in Auckley. Even so, this is very close to where we used to live... Even Meadowhall, OMG!.. read more

I don't envy Alistair Darling. Will Gordon be able to let go of the Treasury? [youtube [www.youtube.com/watch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GzDsCWCRLs&w=425&h=350]) read more

I really don't understand this obsession with Paris Hilton in Australia. She's constantly all over the news here, much worse than in the UK. At least one US newsreader agrees with me - Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC in the US.... [youtube … read more

It seems ironic to me that the man who has done very little for peace in the Middle East in his 10 years in power, worst still, the man who helped start a war in the Middle East which has decreased stability, not increased it, is now set to become the Middle East envoy for the US, Russia, the UN and … read more

I'm glad we've moved. By the looks of it our old house in Doncaster could be under 4ft of water now! We've been looking at the photo's on the UK news sites and we're flabbergasted - we've never seen anything like it in South Yorkshire. It was particularly strange seeing the picture of the fish lying … read more

I must remember next time I move into a new house not to tell anyone that I work in IT. When someone asks me what I do I'll have to say Business Analyst or something - nobody knows what they do! Already I've had knocks on the door from 2 different neighbours to help them out with their PC. Our next … read more

Lauren visited The Gabba today while some of us had to work. The Gabba is Brisbane's cricket ground and home to the Brisbane Lions AFL (Aussie Rules) team. We're into the school Winter Holidays now and as we're both working we've had to put Lauren into Vacation Care with her school. It costs money … read more

We're all looking forward to this new Wii game when it's released. Looks like fun.. [youtube [www.youtube.com/watch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5qJRewiUjQ&w=425&h=350]) read more

It seems Google are not content with just 'organising the world's information'. They're now branching into developing clean energy technology to help address climate change. They're taking the Toyota Prius hybrid car as a start and further developing this by plugging them into solar charging … read more

People often tell me that I'm lucky. I'm starting to believe it may be true. Things just kind of work out for me. I have a completely laid back attitude to life - I very rarely get stressed or worry about things. I take the odd risk now and again and it near enough always works out well. Take this … read more

We finally returned the hire car tonight. The company we're buying the car off have gave us a loan car until we return with the bankers cheque and pick up the car which we plan to do tomorrow. In fact we've been surprised how good they've been. The car we're buying is only cheap, yet they've been … read more

I've got a job! On Monday I received a phone call from an agent I've been dealing with telling me that while the Security Consultancy he's been speaking to about me are impressed with my CV, they don't have any work for me at the moment. 24 hours later I received another phone call saying that … read more