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Handy Contacts and Kitchen Conversions for the New Year

Forestwood

A fridge magnet with handy reference numbers appeared on my fridge recently.

I wasn’t miffed. It sure is handy to have helpline phone numbers handy. Especially in an emergency.

No one wants to be rifling through drawers of miscellaneous paperwork where a child has swallowed something awful.

And I have to admit that occasionally, I need to reference the Council number to report an overflowing public bin or other public nuisance matter. But well, there’s the internet for that.

The kitchen conversions listed on the magnet are actually very handy.

I just need to remember to look at the fridge door, rather than my ready reckoner on the back page of my well-used Women’s Weekly cookbook, which I have been consulting for 45 years. A hard habit to break in one’s older years.

But,

I seriously question the need to have the phone number for Defence Force recruiting at my fingertips.

Okay!

I think a little and ponder: In what possible scenario could knowing the number of the defence force recruitment team even be necessary?

Perhaps whilst cooking my morning eggs or sipping a cuppa, I need to grab the phone, and dial the recruiting office to have a chat about enlisting in the defence forces? How would I apply? Was I too old?

Photo by Tyler Lastovich on Pexels.com

No member of my household will claim responsibility for the appearance of the fridge magnet so its source remains a mystery. On closer inspection, I spotted a clue.

There was a federal Government logo in the top right corner and a severed balding head at the bottom left.

On consideration, it’s a bit creepy and a tad unprofessional.

Did the graphic design department stuff up?

Was it a misfire with the office guillotine?

So many questions!

After examining the fridge magnet closely, I suspect it was complimentary – from a local federal politician doing a bit of advertising.

I believe he is losing hair.

sun rising over water at the baech

New Year Greetings for 2023

Where ever you find yourself this New Year’s Eve, I wish you a Happy New Year. May 2023 be a year of peace, friendship, altruism and thoughtfulness.

Here are some alternate ways to say it:

Godt Nyttår – Norwegian

Szczęśliwego nowego roku – Polish

Frohes Neues Jahr – German

नयाँ बर्षको शुभकामना or Nayām̐ barṣakō śubhakāmanā – Nepali

Buon anno – Italian

Hyvää uutta vuotta – Finnish

สวัสดีปีใหม่ or S̄wạs̄dī pī h̄ım̀ – Thai

Selamat tahun Baru – Malay

Head uut aastat – Estonian

щасливого Нового року or Shchaslyvoho Novoho roku – Ukrainian

明けましておめでとうございますor Akemashiteomedetōgozaimasu – Japanese

नए साल की शुभकामनाएँ or Nae saal kee shubhakaamanaen – Hindi

night

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Published by Forestwood

A philosophic Aussie writes here at StPA, one who will readily admit to loving Scandinavia. I'm interested in global politics and what drives us to be who we are. Scratch the surface and you'll find a practical Environmentalist with an egalitarian bent, trying to unleash a little creativity via the written word. Scandinavian culture, literature and traditions are close to my heart, even though I'm Australian. Travel and courteous discussions greatly broaden the mind, so I travel if I can and am always up for a vigorous, respectful discussion. I'm an avid reader, a writer and I enjoy photography and crafts, particularly traditional art forms. I hope you'll find 'Something to Ponder About,' in my WordPress Community.

85 thoughts on “Handy Contacts and Kitchen Conversions for the New Year”

  3. Good fun, Amanda !! 😀 If it IS from your local pollie, his head’s being hacked in half is possibly A Good Thing !!
    Happy Noo Yurr to you, m’dear !

    Liked by 2 people

  4. It does seem like an odd collection of numbers. Once again, I’m reminded that the Australian measures are slightly different … according to Google, one cup of flour in US,UK & Canada is between 120 – 125g and 1 cup of butter is 225g 😉 Not that it matters. It only means that your cakes and pavlovas will be 10% bigger & tastier than ours!

    Have a Happy New Year’s Eve Amanda. Wishing you all the best of the New Year 2023!

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Head uut aastat Sulle ka – tervist ning rahulikku elu !
    in a teaching mode – here ‘Sulle’ means ‘to you’ (sing) in a familial mode I freely use here in Oz which might be considered ‘forward’ in Europe . . . as in many European languages I have used a capital letter as an honorific ! Manners and mores . . .

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The Scandi languages no longer use formal or polite forms of language, Eha. Informal is in regular use unless you are speaking with the Queen.

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      1. Amanda, as usual I guess it depends on your friends and the crowds in which you move . . . I can only speak for Estonians here and the ones I know and deal with in Estonia . . . .mostly government, law, banking, Tart uni etc . . . correct manners are still hugely important as they are amongst the Danish govt, the royals etc . . . and most of my many Swedish friends . . . I have been in embarrassing situations more than once for being ‘inappropriate’ . . . 😉 !!!

        Liked by 1 person

  14. Conversions on the fridge and a well worn Womans Weekly Cookbook, a present from Mum and Dad when I left home, as well as a less than worn looking Vol2 all live in my kitchen.
    You sure it is actually the Defense Dept not some blokes in military uniforms doing stripping for a living 👀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You never know, Brian.
      Especially with the way the federal politicians had about and act! Glad to hear you are still guided by the Australian WW cookbooks. It is the pavlova recipe I use every year. Never fail! Mine was a gift from my parents and close to the best gift in terms of use and longevity. Do you have a favorite recipe?

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      1. Not really. I use them now for more inspiration than cook recipes. I think Chili Con Carn got a work out.
        I also use Mrs Beetsons but my main one I used when share living was Charmaine Solomons Complete Asian Cookbook
        Now I have lots of books to pick and choose a meal mainly when I have guests or to try a new cut of meat or new vegetable I’ve not used before

        Liked by 2 people

      2. Cookbooks are a great inspiration for me too. Especially when you feel bored with cooking the same meals week in week out. I think anyone who ours lived in our era has cooked chill con carne in a share house! Memories!

        Liked by 1 person

      3. I use the Charmaine Solomon books all the time never mind all my new ones ! She has a vegetarian book – West and East that is absolutely priceless !

        Liked by 2 people

  18. Some fridge magnets are weird.

    By the way, the image in the upper right is not a government logo. It’s the Australian coat of arms. Back in the 1990s, John Howard specified that it be used on government departmental/agency materials instead of a logo. From a printing point of view, it’s a pity that he chose the most intricate of all of the Australian coats of arms.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. That’s interesting, Peggy and thanks for the clarification. I guess I should have thought about how to describe it better when I wrote the post. I did know its origin was federal government but if choose it is the coat of arms. Was the logo more simplified and I now wonder when that would have dated from. Do you know?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Back in the 1990s every federal department and agency had its own logo. Every time there was name change and/or a change of government, there was a new logo. The expense and waste of starting over was huge.
        There are several versions of the coat of arms. Howard decided to use the most intricate one. The coat of arms is set beside the name of the department or agency to form a rather standardised logo across the federal government.
        Back then it was extremely hard to work digitally with this version. I worked in publishing then and remember the headaches it caused. Given advances in technology, it doesn’t matter so much now.
        This website explains more about the coat of arms. https://www.pmc.gov.au/government/commonwealth-coat-arms

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      2. Excellent, Peggy. Thank for illuminating me on the history of the coat of arms. I remember working in the state government and the re-printing of huge volumes of stationery every time the Minister or Government changed.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Happy New Year, Dorothy. The fridge magnet had already created a few laughs and is in a good position to create mirth for some time yet. All the best for the coming year.

      Liked by 1 person

      2. We had a busy Christmas so I was glad of a break. Although we did walk along the beachfront in the evening. We missed the fireworks but still rang into hordes of people. We didn’t stay long.

        Liked by 1 person

  26. Frohes Neues Jahr, Amanda. Hope you had a good holiday. I found the magnet interesting. I have many on my fridge but none so useful. I feel like the recruiting office may have been a paying sponsor for this magnetic advertising. They missed quality control somewhere at the end. Kind of funny if you look at it as a whole.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hey you are probably right, Marlene. They might have paid something towards production.
      I hope you have a wonderful year, my dear friend. Did you celebrate with the other residents?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Only celebrated with one of them. A new widow came down for soup and snacks along with my son and partner. When they left, we chatted until the late hour of 7;30! :)) We have good wet snow today, Working on getting the tree down and life back to normal. Three days of snow may slow that down a bit. Hope you had a good celebration too.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Happy New Year, Carol. I could remove the numbers. I hadn’t thought about just keeping the more useful part. There are several numbers that are handy to have, so it will probably stay on the fridge, but perhaps on the side wall! Lol! I will focus on the bald head otherwise…..

      Liked by 1 person

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