ClubMaster Posts

  • ClubMaster

  • Introducing Valoury

    By ClubMaster

    ClubMaster’s touring camper van has been completed.

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    Since buying this second hand Toyota Coaster in January 2021, we spent a few months repairing and improving her before embarking on the first of many journeys throughout Australia.

  • ClubMaster 1.1 is re..

    By ClubMaster

    ClubMaster’s first release - CM 1.1 is here....!!!

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    The ClubMaster Team are delighted to announce the release of CM 1.1, which provides a number of features for both Members and guests.

    At ClubMaster, we're working hard to ensure your content is under your control.

  • Accommodation

  • Molloy Hideaway Cara..

    By Michael Reid

    A paradise by the river - tell no-one....

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    The initial reason for selecting Molloy's over the two caravan parks in Augusta was the wind - the forecast was for continuing very high winds during our stay in the region. The winds proved a godsend, as we discovered an amazin facility.

  • Rivermouth Caravan P..

    By Michael Reid

    So much to do, so take your time….

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    A very attractive waterfront hideaway in the south-east of Western Australia.

  • Welcome to The Duke

    By Michael Reid

    The Duke of Orleans Bay Caravan Park

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    What a location this is. 

  • Salvation at Cockleb..

    By Michael Reid

    Cocklebiddy Roadhouse Caravan Park

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    After a mechanical malfunction to our Coaster, we found ourselves calling the minimalist town of Cocklebiddy home for a little while. By town, we mean the Cocklebiddy Roadhouse, as this place constitutes the entire town.

    We were 'fortunate' to break down on the highway immediately after lunching here (I recommend the chips with gravy), and the bus failed us next to a Telstra tower where the amazing Pete and Abby were working to improve the area's internet reception. They not only towed us back to the Roadhouse, but Pete then installed our replacement belts (which were still a little loose, and we all feared were the wrong Toyota belts).

    So a night at the Cocklebiddy Caravan Park was to follow. Whilst the toilets and showers are basic (showers $4 for 7 minutes), they were fully functional and surprisingly clean. A powered site was $30 per night, or $25 unpowered. The gravel sites are fully level, and turned out to be extremely popular with numerous overnight visitors.

    Other benefits are the adjacent service station and shop, a kiosk serving hot food and many food supplies, a bar with pool table, and a dining room. Local celebrities are Sammy and Bruce, two magnificent rescue wedge-tailed eagles. Most importantly the team were a delight, in the servo, behind the bar, and in other support roles. Special mention to Dave, Troy and Jack for helping us resolve our mechanical issues.

  • Eucla Caravan Park

    By Michael Reid

    A great stopover as you enter Western Australia.

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    Only 12km down the road from the WA/SA border, after you've passed your quarantine inspection.

    Showers are $A1 coins for 4-5 mins, plenty of time for most.

    The amenities were spotless when we visited. Camp kitchen is basic.

    The view is terrific if you choose one of the limited easterly spots.

    Rates were $30 per night for both powered and unpowered.

    Visit the Old Telegraph Station down the road, and the memorials adjacent to the camp ground.

  • Dining

  • Ocean Pantry, August..

    By Michael Reid

    The headquarters of Augusta’s artificial abalone farm

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    An interesting visit, where we learned of the 10,000 artificial structures situated 1.5km offshore from this venue. Abalone prepared or in natural state, including thin slices ready for a gentle 30 seconds per side over the grill, a delightful luxury for that special occasion. At around $180 per kg, you might want to limit your guests at that dinner party...!! You can grab a coffee and a snack here, and buy your abalone to prepare at home.

  • Samson’s Paddock, ..

    By Michael Reid

    The ultimate dining ambience

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    What a warm and fuzzy feel when you walk into this place? Open fireplaces, sandstock brickwork, very nice indeed.

  • Drift Restaurant, St..

    By Michael Reid

    The waterfront restaurant to visit in Streaky Bay.

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    Drift is a quality restaurant with a casual beach vibe, situated in a fantastic waterfront location adjacent to the Streaky Bay Wharf. The food and service were boith excellent on our visit.

    Opening hours are limited, so best to check.

    Menus and prices are as at 8th March 2023.

  • Literature

  • A Dream

    By Michael Reid

    Written when I should have been studying for my HSC....

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    A Dream

     

    I see the light, I feel the fire,
    Piously burning as the souls of tired
    Adventurers search for the valleyʼs heaven -
    Mystical, avenging, uneventful mode,
    Still fearing callousness of heart yet
    Hoping then, as now, but even fonder
    For the tireless stream of memories to come.

    I cry for time, I know the signs,
    Hindering all mortal, meaningless thought,
    All frigid dying sanctities of mind;
    For those who overthrow shall be divine,
    But not as this, for now they are dry
    As dusty bread, and shall remain only
    To feed the soberly judged, the captive soul.

    I wish to rise, in death of mind,
    To be the hinge on the prophetʼs door,
    And as such to ponder on the wise
    And smile, as a child, at the blind.
    Clarity in death of fostered fears,
    Flowing like a hundred intermingled loves,
    As one, free for life, in beautyʼs web.

     

    Michael Reid
    Woollahra, NSW Australia
    October 1976 (as amended)

    © Michael G Reid 1976-2011, all rights reserved.

  • Corridors Lost

    By Michael Reid

    I wrote this poem shortly after finishing high school, around the time of my 18th birthday.

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    Corridors Lost

     

    We left the cries to find the heart,
    And headed north to pillars new:
    Then found the place we hoped would be,
    But never thought, could never see.

    We rang the bell and crawled inside
    To lovers high on nightly gin,
    Of skies and breathing honey beds
    In snow of old, yet newly fed.

    The turkish camel coat addressed
    As if to speak, or clear its throat,
    And love returned in dripping burns
    As stifled memories to learn.

    Night shining over wandʼring eyes
    As clever owls fought natureʼs minds -
    Yet silent, fearing grassy tombs
    Of clouds coersed by butter-wombs.

    Together praying into webs
    Of mothball eggs on pillow heads,
    We cried aloud to desert ears
    In barking cracked and willow tears:

    Please let us leap into that mound,
    And be devoured by deathʼs delights,
    By Natureʼs past, where love the song
    As manʼs dry fear, in graves belong.

    The beacon, as a lover, turned to dust,
    Yet spoke in language without sound
    To say, you may return to love or lust,
    But never to your wishes - all was still.

     

    Michael Reid
    February 1977 (as amended)

    © Michael G Reid 1977-2011, all rights reserved

  • In Our Time

    By Michael Reid

    A poetic, cynical analysis of politics, unfortunately timeless….

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    In Our Time


    Old people asleep under yesterday's news
    A freezing denial of Capital views
    Wrapped from the winter in hopeless desertion
    While oil heaters soothe our leader inertia
    The Ministers gag until Parliament stands
    No solvent like recess for washing the hands.

    Carousel fever, polepidemic
    Power the plague, and glory symptonic
    Good men and true have succumbed to the curse
    Humanity's syphillis dressed as nurse
    More power prescribed as cure for the ill 
    Sinecure sanctity, smoothest of pills.

    Ignorant rhetoric will always appease
    A ravenous thirst for mass marketing sleaze
    Confidence, colour and loads of compassion
    Offering silk from pork auricle rations 
    Bidding for destiny's role of Messiah 
    A flourishing specie, Earnest Pariah.

    Barely beneath this posturing swagger
    Is hidden a sheathed amorphous dagger
    Policies hacked from pre-polling-booth crass
    Poverty, pestilence, pain for the mass 
    Tear-streaked appeals or national fervour 
    Fail to dissuade the starving from murder.

    Enter the honest man seeking endorsement
    Shouting the truth from podium and pavement
    But truth lacks conviction and wreaks of decline
    So parasites push for the cosy sublime
    Exit the honest man broken and bloody
    Onward the bureaucrat smiling and ruddy.

     

    MICHAEL REID
    July 1992

    © Michael Geoffrey Reid 1992, all rights reserved

  • Salted Lips of Time

    By Michael Reid

    Written at Moruya Heads in 1978 during a road trip with my old school mate Harry. I added the chorus in 2019.

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    Salted Lips of Time (Song)

     

    Reaching from a wind-swept dream, oh yeah
    A silent pleasure-ground
    Of smiling sun
    And dancing seas, eternity above,
    A fire within,
    A fire within.

    Sailing, gliding, sifting promises
    Of love-dried sand through answered cries;
    A seagull diving, I above, unclothed
    And free, licking salted lips of time -
    And life, a fresh-blown memory
    On morning’s eyes.

    Oh the wind-swept dream
    Oh the smiling sun
    Moruya memories
    When the world was one

    Oh the wind-swept dream
    And the smiling sun
    Fading memories
    One by one

    Alive, enchanted, feeling with the sky
    And for a world apart, a past denied
    A dream embraced, my wind-swept dream,
    My sailing, silent carousel of love,
    This freshness draining tears to sighs,
    And pleasure to our Mother’s mastery.

    Oh the wind-swept dream
    Oh the smiling sun
    Moruya memories
    When the world was one

    Oh the wind-swept dream
    And the smiling sun
    Fading memories
    One by one

    Fading memories
    One by one
    Fading memories
    One by one

    Moruya Heads, November 1978 (as amended)

    © Michael G Reid 1978-2019, all rights reserved

  • The Crackenback Wind..

    By Michael Reid

    This poem was written during a wild and sleepless night at Lake Crackenback in New South Wales.

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    The Crackenback Winds


    It’s roaring outside now at forty-two knots
    Like a thousand beasts on a rampage
    We’re bunkering down in an effort to sleep
    But I know that the battle is lost.


    The ending of this I can’t fathom or gauge
    With windows and walls being battered
    While the neighbouring trees sway, scream, crack and fall
    Their valorous roots yielding to rage.


    Another sound beats all to test our fettle
    As the wind swings the chimney cap round
    The poorly-set copper is grinding its teeth
    An incessant screeching of metal.


    I’m thinking of creatures in fear in the wild
    And hoping that none come to grief
    It’s likely this onslaught will take something’s child
    Before this night’s madness should cease.

     

    April 2019
    Lake Crackenback, NSW Australia

    © Michael Reid 2019, all rights reserved

  • Recipes

  • Honey soy garlic sal..

    By Samantha Reid

    A simple stir fry meal for four.

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    Honey soy garlic salmon stir fry 

    • 4 salmon filet skinless, cut into bite-sized cubes
    • 1 pinch salt
    • 1 pinch black pepper
    • 1/4 chopped cabbage
    • 1 red capsicum seeded, sliced
    • 1 onion large, peeled, cut into bite-sized wedges
    • 3 carrots, sliced
    • 4 bok choy, sliced and washed thoroughly 
    • 6 cloves garlic finely minced
    • 1 tablespoon chopped ginger
    • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    • ¼ cup soy sauce
    • ¼ cup water plus 1 tablespoon
    • 3 tablespoons honey
    • 2 teaspoons cornstarch

     

    INSTRUCTIONS 

    • First, prepare the salmon. Start with a fresh, boneless, skinless fillet. Cut it into bite-sized cubes. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper.
    • Next, prepare the vegetables. The capsicum should be seeded and sliced, then cut into bite size strips. Peel the onion and cut into bite-sided wedges. Peel and mince the garlic cloves.
    • In a wok or large skillet, heat the oil over medium high to high heat. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the salmon to the wok. Cook for 3 minutes, shaking the wok and flipping the salmon GENTLY to cook on all sides. Transfer the salmon to a bowl, pour 1/2 of the honey and 1/2 of the soy over the salmon. Cover with foil, and keep warm.
    • Then in the same wok, add the  onions. Cook and stir quickly for about 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.
    • Add the cabbage and cook for 3 mins. 
    • Stir in the garlic and cook until you can smell the garlic, about 1 minute.
    • Carefully add the water, soy sauce, honey, and ginger to the vegetables. Reduce heat to a simmer, and stir to combine.
    • Add remaining vegetables and cook for 3 minutes. 
    • In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of cold water. Pour this mixture into the wok and stir well.
    • Increase heat to a low boil and cook for a minute or two until the sauce has thickened.
    • Return the salmon to the pan, toss to coat well.
    • Remove from heat and serve immediately. Garnish with sesame seeds if desired.

    ENJOY 😊 

  • Best Gluten Free Spo..

    By Samantha Reid

    Gluten Intolerance and Birthday Cakes...the struggle is real.

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    Recently my mother-in-law (MIL) celebrated her 80 something a few years off 90th birthday and we were tasked with finding a birthday cake. There aren't too many places to buy a cake in South West Rocks so our options would be very limited.....One bakery, IGA and Coles.  The bakery didn't sell any birthday cakes (is a bakery even a bakery if it doesn't bake cakes), so off to IGA it was. If you've ever been to SWR you'll know that there is a cute cafe opposite IGA so we thought perhaps they might have cakes.  We walk in and there are two, yes 2 giant cakes that look divine. We ask if they will sell the whole cake (sorry if you went for coffee and cake that day and had slim pickings but we were desperate) .....and yes they would for a price.  SOLD!! My husband asks which one I prefer, and I reply it doesn't bother me as it's not gluten free so I won't be eating it.  Since having 3/4 of my bowel removed due to Cancer, I've become very Gluten intolerant so I normally don't get to enjoy the birthday cake. The lady responds, this one is Gluten Free as I made it. Happy days kids I get to enjoy cake with my MIL.

    Other family members who participated in the ritual of birthday cake eating had no idea it was Gluten Free and it was the best....so far... Sponge and Gluten Free cake I've ever had.

    I wonder whose Birthday is next ?

  • Visual Art

  • Indigenous Art for S..

    By Michael Reid

    An exceptional selection of Australian art is now for sale from my private collection.

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    For the benefit of any Members who collect indigenous art, I've loaded on the CMX Marketplace a selection of works for sale. At present they're listed with fixed prices, however once CMX has released its Auctions module, I'm proposing to create an auction sometime in 2023 for any unsold works.

    These works are all quality works, and the indigenous works were purchased between 2005 and 2012 from the highly respected Fireworks Gallery in Brisbane, Australia.

    You will note in the Listings that I will accept select fiat currency and/or Bitcoin in full consideration.

    To view the various works simply go to the Painting section within the Art, Artifacts & Collectibles portfolio.

     

     

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