TET.Life (The Extraordinary Tourist Life)

The new, all electric, Atlas Robot. B oston Dynamics recently announced the retirement of their famous Atlas humanoid robot . The very next day they introduced us to the all new Atlas with a short, somewhat creepy video that seems to be saying to all those other companies working on electric, humanoid robots, "Hold my beer!"  Watch their video below. The All New Atlas As you can see the new Atlas is all electric, with no hydraulic assisted movement. While it certainly can walk like a human, right from the get go, we see that the new Atlas has degrees of limb motion that would even cause our best human contortionists to tap out on even trying. There in, we see why Boston Dynamics is a leader in humanoid robots (and robots in general). They're not just thinking about a robot that mimics what a human can do, they're thinking ahead and building in the kind of movement only a robot can do. It's a fascinating, if somewhat jarring, synergy the first time you see it but

One day I'm going to write my own remarkable guide to happiness and this will be the cover image (but don't hold me to that). I 'm a big fan of Bill Bailey's comedy stand up, as well as his acting (mainly in the TV series Black Books that I mostly know him from). Generally he is laugh out loud funny. As such I was probably expecting similar, laugh out loud humor from his book, Bill Bailey's Remarkable Guide to Happiness , but what I got, while still humorous, was more of an introspection on Bill's life and moments he feels represent happiness for him. Which is fine, I guess, but to call the book a guide (and a remarkable one at that) is something of a stretch. Not that I was expecting an actual guide book on happiness, but the book is more of a collection of thoughts, retelling of moments, and Bailey's own drawings (additional images by Joe Magee), centered around the theme of happiness. It's more of a things that make Bill happy kind of a read. Bill s

TET and Mary Roach's Book, Gulp . I 'm the kind of person who only reads one physical book at a time. For context I consider a 'book' to be anything over 100 pages of mostly text. Basically your typical work of fiction novel or factual biography. It's not that I can't read more than one book at a time, I just choose not to because I don't set a lot of time aside for reading. Maybe 30 minutes a day when I'm on a good run with a really engaging text. Little did I know that Mary Roach's Gulp: Travels Around the Gut *, a book of 317 pages (minus the Acknowledgments and Bibliography) would become a bottle neck for my reading for the next three and a half years. As such, I'm calling it the worst book I have ever read. Despite how long it took me to read, it is not a bad book in the slightest, and is in fact, quite light, somewhat entertaining, reading for a book that explores the science, and the resilience of the human digestive system.  I'm no st

TET: Front Side Ollie to Tail Stall on a Curb. I t's been just over a year since I made my last YouTube Skateboard, update video and then didn't post anything further to the channel until now. Back then I had been off my skateboard for nearly two years because both my feet were sore from the impact of skating (just from flat ground ollies). Thankfully the time off my board did allow for my feet to recover and I've been skating on softer wheels ever since (95a - none of this 100a+ that was killing my feet). In the last year I've mostly skated my driveway, purposely not filming because I just wanted to get back to skateboarding for fun, and to unwind from being at my desk all day. Once you start filming anything for content you're adding a layer of pressure and expectation that you're going to do something worthy of sharing. If you compare the clips from my latest video (below - filmed Good Friday 2024), particularly comparing the two sections where I'm skati

I 'm not entirely sure if I've seen the original 1989 Road House . I feel like I probably saw it on home video but I don't really remember it, and, just watching that movie's trailer, Patrick Swayze seems too pretty to be a bouncer. I mean, he has such great hair in that film! All this to say, I don't have any attachment to the original film that Road House (2024) is based upon. I will say this isn't really my kind of movie but I enjoyed the trailer, particularly the opening fight sequence, where Dalton (Jake Gyllenhaal) asks if any of the guys have health insurance. I was so glad to see this sequence has so much more to it, and is a real highlight in terms of both action, humor and really setting the tone for who Dalton is. The story is pretty straight forward. Road House owner, Frankie (Jessica Williams), is having some serious problems with a motorcycle gang terrorizing her establishment. After going through several bouncers, she casts her net a bit wider an

The Amanda Rose.  F inal full day of our trip to Perth. Enigma and I headed over to my sister's house, to pick her up, and then meet my brother and Mum at Amanda's Garden Fete in Gosnells (not far from Southern River road). Luckily we got parking right opposite the gate when another car pulled out at just the opportune moment. About 5 or so minutes later my brother and Mum arrived, also managing to find parking not far from the gate. Amanda's Garden Fete is an annual charity event that takes place on a weekend, toward the end of October, raising funds for meningococcal disease awareness, support and research. Aside from being able to explore a beautifully maintained private garden there are Devonshire teas, a sausage sizzle, musical entertainment, seek and find game for kids, and stalls selling plants and other bric-a-brac. Entry is $5 per person. Overview of the plant buyers section with many flower varieties on offer. If you're particularly about buying plants then y

Doctor Who Police Box at Dr Russell's Imaginarium. This one wasn't bigger on the inside. T he second last day of our Perth trip was a Saturday, and turned out to be another day my partner, Enigma, and I could spend doing our own thing. Dr Russell's Imaginarium Museum Since it wasn't too far away we headed out to Guildford in the morning to visit Dr Russell's Imaginarium Museum and Toy Museum that had been closed when we attempted to visit with my family a few days earlier .  We were a little surprised to discover there was actually $2 entry fee, for which you get two penny coins to use in the old style Peep show machine (mostly vintage photos of topless ladies), and moviola machine, which is a giant flip book type affair using photos to create a movie scene. I think it had a story but I wasn't able to follow it very well. Also, if you make a purchase your entry fee is deducted from the price. Entrance to Dr Russell's Imaginarium. You can see the Police Box

Gosnells City Council has always been supportive of the arts to the point where you can see many examples of public art throughout the town centre. G osnells the suburb, or even the City of Gosnells , isn't really a destination at the forefront of anyone's mind when visiting Perth. Even now, after so much money has been spent on making pleasing community spaces and facilities, in the 24 years since I moved back to South Australia. It's certainly a much more pleasant looking place to live now than it was during the years I grew up there, from the age of eight. My family moved there from South Australia (after a brief eight month stay in Kelmscott while we waited for our house in Gosnells to be built) at the beginning of 1978. Today's plans were for my mum and I to catch up for lunch and do a bit of a walk around Gosnells - where she still lives - though not in the original house we had built, which was sold years ago. Usually it's a chance for me to see what's ch

Dr Russell's Imaginarium  Sign. T oday's plan was another family outing with Enigma and I along with my brother, sister, and Mum. My brother had suggested we all meet up in Guilford , a suburb (and historical town) of Perth, which was around 15 to 20 minutes up the road from our apartment. In particular he suggested browsing the many antique, arts, and craft stores in the main part of the town. There was one in particular he wanted us to visit called Dr Russell's Imaginarium , which specializes in old movie memorabilia. Sadly the physical store closed at the end of 2023 (see link for more info). Our meet up point was Alfred's Kitchen , a train car out door burger café that opens after 5pm that is the longest running roadside kitchen in Perth. My brother suggested it because he knew it would be closed and we could use the carpark which was virtually across the road from the antique store strip. Enigma and I arrived just as my brother texted to say he, my sister, and Mum

Eric Bana returns as Detective Aaron Falk in Force of Nature - The Dry 2 , and that's the only real connection between this and 2020's  The Dry . This is an all new mystery set in a new location. I will say, given that it's either wet or rainy, with the incoming threat of a major storm for most of the movie, the filmmakers really missed a trick in not renaming the film, The Wet. Back when I reviewed the first film I noted that I would love to see the second book made into a movie too, and here it is. This time Aaron and his detective partner, Carmen (Jacqueline Mackenzie), head into the mountains to investigate the whereabouts of a missing informant, who disappears on a workplace, team bonding retreat. All the performances in this film are easily on par with the first, though I do think some pretty outstanding actors really didn't have a lot to do here. In terms of mystery the first movie was better constructed as a who dunnit film you could play along with. Here you mo

Mandurah foreshore train and playground. The train is not usually this spooky it was still decorated for Halloween. M y Dad's Partner took Enigma and I on a trip down to the city of Mandurah for the morning. Mandurah is just under an hours drive from Perth, with a very nice foreshore area that has plenty to see and do beyond visiting the beach. Stingray? Photo: Enigma The plan was for my Dad's partner to keep an appointment she had with a friend in Mandurah, long before we even booked our trip, while Enigma and I checked out the foreshore area. After which we would meet up for lunch, and then go visit one of my step sisters and her family. At the foreshore we were dropped off at the 30 minute parking bays just up from the enclosed Kwillena Gabi Pool, which is a safe swimming area that is fed water from the sea (although I don't think this area is looking directly out to sea, it's more of an inland water way. However Enigma did get a photo of a small stingray swimming by

Pre movie at the Barossa Valley Chocolate Company outdoor cinema. This is the view from the VIP seats. You're a bit further back but you get a slightly higher chair and a small coffee table. W hile it may not be as big as the Chocolate Shop Enigma and I recently visited on our trip to Perth, Western Australia,  The Barossa Valley Chocolate Company  has a good range of chocolates in it's own, onsite store, and a pretty decent size café that's open seven days, from 10am-5pm for gelati, coffee, and cake, and 11am to 3pm for lunch. They do encourage you to book for lunch. We had no idea this place existed despite on living around a 30 minute car drive away. To be fair, as near as I can tell, from their website, they've only been open since around 2018-19 and have been winning awards for their chocolate ever since. The main shop area. The wall on the left is where you can select your complimentary 250g chocolate box if you purchase a VIP ticket. The Barossa Valley Chocolate

1938, 150th Celebration of European Settlement. President Patten (right) reads resolution, "We, representing the ABORIGINES OF AUSTRALIA ... on the 150th Anniversary of the whitemen's seizure of our country, HEREBY MAKE PROTEST against the callous treatment of our people ... AND WE APPEAL to the Australian Nation of to-day ... for FULL CITIZEN STATUS and EQUALITY WITHIN THE COMMUNITY" . ..This image is part of the collections of the State Library of NSW . January 26th is recognized as Australia Day in Australia (obviously). It marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet and raising of the Union Flag of Great Britain by Arthur Phillip at Sydney Cove, a small bay on the southern shore of Sydney Harbour. For modern Australia it's a holiday and a day of celebration, with the Federal, State, and even Local Councils, handing out awards for achievement at various events. Quite often citizenship ceremonies for new Aussies are performed too. However, over the last few decades,

London Court Mall, Perth WA. Day eight of our trip to Perth, WA, and my partner, Enigma, had made plans to go on a solo mission into the city, on public transport, while I went off to visit my sister for the afternoon. Public Transport Inconveniences (Always Have Change) Turns out buying public transport tickets in Perth is not as straight forward as it is in Adelaide, SA. For buses you need exact change cash fare (drivers don't give change) or a prepaid travel card (similar to SA's metro card). Enigma had used up most of her coins on parking, when we went to the Swan View foreshore, and only had a $20 note. I only had a $5 note. For trains it is possible to use credit/debit cards if you buy a ticket on the platform, so devised a plan to drive Enigma to the nearest train station at Victoria Park.  Perth City Train Station, WA. Since I hadn't planned to go to my sister's until nearly 2:30pm we decided to both catch the train from Victoria Park, I could then head to back