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 Weekly Mailbag
Your mission, should you choose to accept it ....
Whoaaah! You guys are good! In last week’s Mailbag I called for a quick-as-possible pic of one of you underneath the Big Meat Ant in Augathella and before I could say “actually-it’s-not-really-a-big-thing-as-much-as-an-arty-sculpture," my in-box was bulging with ... well ... a stack more junk mail!
And buried beneath it all was a shot of the wonderful Wendy underneath the aforementioned giant meat ant. Hooray! People read this column. Hooray! I am not alone. Hooray! People will do any silly thing I ask them to do. Yippeee! Keep reading to the bottom of this column for details of your next mad mission. Operation ‘Grey Nomads Behaving Badly’ is about to swing into full operation.
Well, actually standing underneath a giant ant structure isn’t that silly ... even if it does look like it’s about to eat you! Standing a safe distance away was photographer John who is to be commended for his fine lensmanship.
Incidentally, John and any other budding photographers should consider entering our ‘Seeing Red’ photo competition. The first prize of a satellite phone should get everyone snapping away and get everyone pretty excited. Having said that, John and Wendy were pretty excited to be receiving a copy of the Grey Nomad’s Guidebook as their prize for their efforts.
“Wow! Can't believe it, I thought there'd be heaps of nomads up this way at this time of year,” they wrote. “Looking forward immensely to your book.”
Well done again to a lovely couple.
 You can bet your bottom dollar that Myra will be another one of those ‘Seeing Red’ in the quest for an amazing free satellite phone. Inspired by news of our new competition (click here to find out how to enter), she wrote to tell us that taking photographs is what she really likes to do when she and her husband are away on trips in their caravan.
“I started out with a normal digital camera but, just over a year ago, I made the transition to a Canon DSLR (digital single lens reflex) camera because I wanted more manual control with my photos - especially lighting and focus,” she writes. “After the initial expense, you save heaps with the features a DSLR offers.”
Hmmm! Sounds good.
“My speciality is macro photography - close ups,” writes Myra. “So I have to carry more than one lens, but I love to take photos of other things that catch my eye as well.”
Okay, what might Myra snap that’s small and red that might snare her the winning photo accolade? A flower, a butterfly, a tiny harmless insect that looks really terrifying when it’s photographed up close? Can’t wait to find out. Get snapping, Myra.
 Of course, other things have been happening this last little while besides the unveiling of our photo competition. We mentioned in passing that a little old thing like Royal Wedding was happening over in England ... and some of you took more than a passing interest. There was a great deal of excitement that William and Kate chose the Royal Australian Flying Doctor Service as one of the charities that people could donate to in lieu of a wedding present. Ron even suggested that we donate cash to the RFDS instead of giving a prize in one of our competitions. Worth a thought, Ron.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing debate of the merits or otherwise of free camping, Ben was quick to spot something of an irony.
“Funny , you can camp on the footpath at Buck House, but just try it over here down town,” he wrote.
And a very good point, Ben.
Now then, before I run out of space, I think it’s about time we returned to the 'get grey nomads to do silly things' theme. Hmmm! First, a venue. Well, most of you should be heading north now so something iconically north.
Crocodiles!
Perfect.
Right then first of you to ...... nah, a bit too silly and way too dangerous.
 How about a crocodile warning sign instead? Easy!
The first one of you to send a pic of themselves or their compadre next to a crocodile warning sign will win an amazing mystery prize. However, to make sure there are no old ‘ripped-from-the-album’ pics submitted, you must be photographed with one hand placed on your head. Quick. Get to it! But please be careful! I don’t want to belittle our own competition but this prize ain’t worth getting gobbled up by a croc for.
See you next week, everyone.
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