At last I was on my way .A great adventure was in front of me, heading into NSW to fly along the Blue Ranges in a light aircraft across high ridges and foggy valleys, the pilot said no one flies this way as there are only sketchy maps, but you wanted a spine tingling adventure he said as we suddenly dived into a deep ravine, my blood pressure nearly made me pass out when with a blood curdling laugh the pilot banked to the left nearly touching the tree tops and then levelled out above the craggy mountain top, civilisation had disappeared, no roads or houses were visible. I started to become scared, the pilot was no doubt an odd ball, he laughed again and started to do a barrel roll as we entered into a cloud bank. Visibility was like zero. Suddenly the motor started to cough and splutter, we must have been upside down because I fell out and started to tumble towards earth. I could see the ground now rushing toward me only the sound of the wind in my ears made me realise I was still alive, what to do now before it’s to late; luckily the mad pilot insisted I wear a parachute – all you have to do if you fall out is pull this cord, I never found out what happened to him or the plane but thank the lord the parachute worked and I landed on the mountain side all in one piece except for a bruised bum, it was about two pm and further along the ridge I could see the sun reflecting off some metal, thinking this was the plane or a building I hurried towards it. It was getting cold and I hoped to find shelter there.

Upon arrival I firstly found a cave and nearby was a cigar shaped long metal object with its door or hatch wide open. I was really scared and alarmed by now, but proceeded to inspect the cave and found signs of activity, but no body was there , although there appeared to be radios or radar equipment and other unfamiliar stuff, it was very eerie so so I went back to the cigar shaped object, inside was more equipment with lights flashing and buzzing still no one to be seen.
Deeper into the vessel it was obvious that it was occupied there were seats, beds and Control panels and windows. At that moment I felt my shoulder being gripped firmly. I was immobilised and laid on a bed with wires attached  to my brain area, the figures were grotesque but inquisitive.

They started to control my brain and were downloading all my knowledge and language, my biological structure and ability to reproduce.

Suddenly they were talking in English to me about knowledge gained from their download,

They explained they are here to help our survival, they told of what happened to their world, they had searched the Galaxy to find a uninhabited planet where they could stay to no avail. They would help and guide wherever they could but would be staying out of sight, deep in the sea in the mountains and on the dark side of the moon. Their civilisation is doomed as they can’t reproduce.They will capture some one from all countries so they could learn all spoken languages and cultures they would be trying to avoid our self destruction.

With that they put me into their drone and flew me back across the mountain range asking that I tell people about what all those mystery sky lights were doing for our world and they should not be afraid. We do look spooky but they will do us no harm.

When I walked up to the small farm house circled by police , fire brigades and SES personal and people on horseback and told them who I was, there  was shouting and cheering amongst the rescuers, hugging and even some tears.

 Bursting with excitement I quickly started to tell my incredible story but the Ambulance Doctor gave me a sedative and I remember him saying, look he’s has had a traumatic experience and is delirious – some people never recover and continuously tell stories of extra terrestial fantasies , I guess we will never know what happened to him out there.

Whilst in isolation there has been time to explore the messy areas of my garden

This day the Blue tongue was in the same patch. About 6″ long and quiet timid. Birds were diving on him and he was using his tongue to fight back.

He or she was happy to stay but has largely hibernate under pavers or in the leafy areas of my garden. Apples, pieces of meat and other fruit seem to interest him.

I have not got a name for him yet. If he stays it will be good. He enjoys lying in the sun but hides in the cold and usually is not visible of a night.

Phillip D

In

Sometimes when digging the garden soil preparing for the next crop of veggies
you turn over a clod to see a brown prehistoric style insect about 15 cms 
long scurry away and quickly bury itself again.

I have never been able to photograph one of these beautiful characters,
however I have managed to photograph a distant relative, the elusive Preying
Mantis.

The mystery of the insect world always fascinates me - what was he doing.
There was no apparent damage and so onwards I go, preparing and planting my
winter cabbages.
The weather had been very dry and lots of plants were starting to suffer.
I never sighted the Cricket again, thinking he may have perished. I thought
it strange how he got called a cricket. He didn't look like a bat nor like 
a ball or cricket stumps, somethings are lost in the transit of time and one
can only ponder.
Then In Autumn when the rains broke late in the afternoon I heard a high
pitched chorus of noise coming from ever corner of the veggie garden and also
from the lawn and flower patches. After listening for some time it began to
make sense; it was a symphony of music coming from under the ground. These
invisible crickets being in great numbers were giving thanks for the rain.

The next morning on inspecting the still soft soil, evidence showed the 
crickets had tunnelled just under the surface making patterns going this way
and that way, keeping out of sight searching for the mysteries of the insect
world.
This chorus of music went on day and night for days, the high pitch when
standing between the contestants was hard to endure, however if you stomped
on the ground those closest stopped only to start again when you moved on.
As the season progresses crickets seem too hard to find and the music stops.
With the large number in the garden in Autumn one could be excused for 
expecting to see many crickets when tending the various crops but rarely is
it so.
People are so busy in their walks of life they miss the mysteries of the
other world.
Remember that spiders had the first Web pages.

 Daryl Morrow
0418 376 863

Screeching Cockatoos             By Daryl Morrow

The birds gathered overhead as dawn broke and formed a rowdy flock, then headed north.

Buses and Trains

Silence now as Ken, Lee, Kaye and Daryl studied the timetables for a mystery day on the buses and trains.  The weather looked promising after the heavy rains of the last two days.

Whilst we waited for bus 902 from Eltham a Vietnamese lady took our group photos, she was visiting her son, but could hardly speak English.

The bus arrived and the journey had started. Later we caught bus 280 and stopped at the Pines Shopping centre, boarding bus 906 to Warrandyte, there was evidence of last night’s large hailstone storm, wind and rain, the tree leaves were stripped and lifeless on the ground and roadway.

Here we boarded bus 364 to Ringwood and gazed at the high rise apartment buildings near the new railway station which is elevated like a sky rail with a bus terminus on both sides at ground level.  Then we boarded bus 380 to Croydon, then the 670 to Lilydale, which is on the outskirts of Melbourne.

Here we decided to walk the long main street, marvelling at the earl architecture, some as early as 1850.  We had lunch at a noodle shop, very large serving, and then walked down Chapple St, passing an old brick church with a weatherboard chapel still in great condition.

Nearing one o’clock now, we decided to travel by train to Box Hill, waiting at the Lilydale Station.  The train pulled up and the driver alighted and locked the train up.  We were surprised to note the driver was a lovely female; we engaged in conversation and were surprised to learn Rachael was previously the local Postie and delivered the mail on her motor bike for years, how her life has changed, now she is the Lilydale electric train driver.

The train was a much better ride than the buses, through Mooroolbark to the high rise apartment blocks of Box Hill.  What a culture experience stepping out of the train down stairs one level to a very large food market.  Box Hill seems to be the love child of China.  Kaye, who had taught in China for 6 years, explained this is a carbon copy of Chinese homes, transport, shopping and employment; perhaps this is the answer to future development.

Well, what a great day of adventure and comradeship, nearing the end of the day now, but wait there is more – onto bus 293through and past Doncaster across the Yarra River stopping at Montmorency where Lee and Kaye live, Ken and I walked down Were St Monty to the train and I disembarked at Eltham whilst Ken journeyed alone on to Diamond Creek.

In the morning, we gathered together us four and enjoyed our time together, but as the day ended we dispersed and disappeared separately as shadows do in the night.

Written and photographed by Daryl Morrow, 23 January 2020 and still going.

darylmorrow@hotmail.com

An important event occurred on 11 June last year. Ken Ramplin turned 80 and some of his friends gathered for lunch at the Diamond Creek Tavern to help him celebrate this major milestone.

Over the last decade, Ken has been a major force in creating three OM:NI groups in the Diamond Valley area, namely Diamond Creek, Eltham and Hurstbridge. People from these groups joined him, along with members of Banyule and Greensborough groups, plus staff from the Bendigo Bank and local council, plus a few more friends he has gathered in a long life.

The lunch was good, (the usual senior’s meal, but good value), there were drinks to be consumed, there was a massive birthday cake with candles, plus more sweets. Daryl  made a touching speech outlining Ken’s life and local achievements.

Ken received a long waited for birthday present – a brand spanking super duper new electric bike, something he had wanted for a long time, so after furiously saving and with his family chipping in, the bike finally arrived.

Everyone had a great time enjoying celebrating with Ken, because along the way in his caring and kindly manner touched the lives of quite a few people.

Ken was last seen on the day, mounting his bike, complete with balloons streaming out the back.

Below is an interesting article written by Ron Wright, telling a story about a trip to Merimbula he and wife Bron took over the holidays.

To read, left click on the links below.

Merinbula.-1