Somewhere over the rainbow …

By Dr Sue Saunders - Vice President

City residents tired of lockdown need to look ahead. Spring is on its way and with it, the thought of winning the COVID battle – one day soon.

In the meantime, there is lots to do. Become productive at home. Why not engage in a decluttering exercise? One person’s junk is another one’s treasure. Make donations to recycling bins such as the Brotherhood of St Lawrence, Salvation Army or the Sacred Heart Mission. Recycle electronics and spent printer cartridges at Officeworks.

Spring brings warmer weather, great for (allotted two hours) walks in the park (mask on please!). Then there is the annual spring clean. Get into it now, while you can. It is good for the psyche to feel the pride of a lovely clean, tidy home. Some people tell me that it does wonders to simply rearrange the furniture and tend the pot plants. 

Go on, don’t be shy, visit your friends via Zoom or Facetime. It is not the same as the real thing, but it is better than nothing.  

How is your yoga coming along? Regardless of your prowess at this activity, it is a great way to keep fit indoors, in your home. There are wonderful apps to download with excellent 20- to 30-minute sessions. Keeping in good shape helps you weather the lockdown blues.

Residents 3000 – annual general meeting (by Zoom) – Thursday September 2, 6pm

As in past years we welcome the Lord Mayor Sally Capp, who will tell us about the City of Melbourne’s plans to help bring back the old city life with flourishing businesses, plenty of tourists, a vibrant arts scene and plenty of enthusiastic students bringing their ideas to inspire good dialogue and thoughtful communication. No doubt it will take time, but with good leadership and community support, the city will recover.

Members of our community welcome the moves to provide a safe housing facility for rough sleepers at 602 Little Bourke St as reported recently in CBD News. It is a story of how collaboration and donations from the private sector in conjunction with the city is making things happen to alleviate the pressing homelessness problem.

Along with the concept that housing is the first step in assisting people overcome their particular life challenges, residents in our group have expressed the importance of doctors, mental health professionals, councillors and other social support services to be available.  Such services are planned as part of the 602 Little Bourke St project, but in our view, these need to be provided more broadly throughout the city to ensure no-one is left alone to cope with extreme life problems. Early and consistent response to people in need is the most effective means to solving begging, drugs and homelessness.  

Residents have also been pressing for more dedicated police patrols for city streets. People generally will feel much safer and police can initiate early professional response services for people in trouble.

City of Melbourne libraries

At our last monthly meeting, residents were introduced to the wide range of services available through our local libraries. 

It is not just about books. There are many online services. “eLibrary” has something for everyone such as eBooks, eAudiobooks, eFilms and eMusic, newspaper and journal subscriptions, not to mention eKids. There are tutorial videos, language courses, search your ancestry and many more things to discover. 

Go online and search for City of Melbourne libraries. You will be amazed •