A Good Decision
Had an appointment with my Counsellor Margaret this morning. After discussing my assessment of my current state of mind, ie exhibiting many of the symptoms of depression without actually feeling depressed, Margaret suggested I complete a DASS test just to see how I scored.
A score of 3 for depression says I got that pretty right and a 25 for stress, not to put too fine a point on it suggests that I've obviously been fairly severely impacted by the second police search. This will come as no surprise even if you've only been skimming the blog.
Margaret also suggested that I'm trying to protect and contain Ros & Cait's anxiety and stress as well as being driven to try and get things back to some sort of "normal" back on the farm. Not to mention trying to create a coherent picture of the multiplicity of constantly changing levels of information and co-operation from the various government and council agencies. In short I'm stressed out of my brain and trying to work as if this was normal. Not the smartest response.
I explained that Ros had suggested a week away several days ago but my initial response had been that there was too much basic stuff to get sorted before that made any real sense. I had nevertheless scheduled an appointment with my GP for Monday evening to arrange some sick leave to deal with my mental state and was now able to see that some time away would be a very sensible idea. Margaret hastily endorsed the notion and suggested that I waste no time in arranging it. Kapunda here we come!
More Discussions with Council
Later in the morning I had some more dealings with Council staff but except for some very useful advice on a forthcoming seminar by the Building Commission I cannot recollect whether I left with more questions than had been answered. It seems a likely outcome
Another Good Decision!
In one or more of the earlier posts, I'm pretty sure I've mentioned the degree of uncertainty which appears to surround my operation status in the CFA. This has been dragging on for a long time. On Friday of last week, I had received a call offering me an opportunity to meet with CFA's Medical Adviser on the following Monday evening. Of course I accepted.
We had a long and discursive conversation, at the end of which it became apparent that there was not going to be any more delay in resolving my operational status. A brief note from my GP regarding my capability and the matter would be swiftly addressed. I left very pleased to have made his acquaintance, obtained his support and with one less issue to be managed.
Tuesday Evening - Lifting the Lid on the New Building Requirements.
The Victorian Building Commission appear to be a bunch of people who have their act together. They are very keen to ensure that there are is maximum education opportunities across as wide a spectrum of interested parties as possible.
Their roadshow was information packed, succinct, well presented and there were lots of useful takeaways. Not only that, they were prepared to stay until the last question had been answered or written down for subsequent response.
In summary - AS3959-2009 sets out the new building standards across Victoria.
- It is available from Standards Australia or SAI Global as they are currently known at a cost of $80. It can be obtained via their website - http://www.standards.org.au/
- The Vic Building Commission is negotiating to get this cost down to $30. for Bushfire Rebuilders.
- They are also working to obtain an extract of the Site Assessment Criteria (short form - stay away from the long form!!) and make it available on their website (see **below) as soon as possible. Particular emphasis was placed on the fact that the Site Assessment document had been designed and tested to ensure that home-owners could successfully complete it without needing a qualification as a Building Surveyor - Remember this point.
- If the only local govt overlay on the property had formerly been a WMO (Wildfire Management) then a Council Planning permit would not be required.
Publications: The Building and Plumbing Industry Commissions have released Rebuilding after the devastation -Bushfire Bulletin Magazine (5.12MB) that lifts the lid on the new building standard. You can also view the
I hope other agencies, departments and councils and will aspire to achieve the same levels of engagement and service.
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