Maggi Barnard

The Federal Budget tabled on Tuesday night focused on supporting businesses according to Business NSW, the state’s peak business organisation.

The budget will help businesses to hire new staff, and put money back into the pockets of business owners, to turbo charge the economy as it recovers from the ravages of COVID-19. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced an underlying deficit of $213.7 billion, with this expected to improve over the forward estimates to a $66.9 billion deficit.

“This budget will be warmly supported by the business community as we look forward to a more optimistic operating environment in coming months,” said Vicki Seccombe, Regional Manager – Western NSW, Business NSW.

“A suite of job creation and investment measures have been announced. These include investment incentives, an apprentice and trainee subsidy, a wage rebate for employers hiring young people, business tax concessions and ongoing financial support until the unemployment rate reaches six per cent.”

“The focus on job creation and investment is the right one for these times and the government should be commended for listening to the legitimate concerns of the business community when preparing this financial blueprint.”

“The circumstances around this budget are unlike any other since WWII. It’s also easy to forget the huge impact of drought and bushfires which had a jarring impact on our local economy long before the pandemic took hold,” Vicki said.

After the long wait, we will reopen in our newly refurbished premises on Bogan Street on Monday, 12th October. We are looking forward to welcoming you back! Due to COVID-19 restrictions we are un- able to hold an opening party, but we invite you to come in and see what is new! There will be free showbags for the first 100 visitors and all members who borrow will go into the draw to win a fabulous prize.

DURING OUR FIRST WEEK

• join us for a tour of the new space (including behind the scenes)
• visit our information showcases of library programs and services  and unravel the mysteries of our history!
New Parkes Library Hours: 9:30am to 5:30pm Monday to Friday and 9:30 to noon on Saturdays.

HEATHER MORRIS AUTHOR TALK

Thursday, 15th October, 6pm
As part of our opening celebrations we are proud to present an author talk with Heather Morris, bestselling author of ‘The Tattooist of Auschwitz’, ‘Cilka’s Journey’ and most recently ‘Stories of Hope’. Heather is a fascinating storyteller so come along and hear the stories behind her bestselling novels. Limited spaces, bookings required. You can also join in from home, ask library staff for more information. RSVP: 6861 2309, library@parkes.nsw.gov.au

SCHOOL HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES

Join in our fun activities this school holiday:
• BINGO! Get to know My Online Library with eLibrary Family Bingo. A fun game for the whole family! Download from the Library website https://www.parkes.nsw.gov.au/things-to-do/parkes-shire-libraries/whats-happening
• WORD WOK! What do words and a wok have in common? Join us on our Facebook page to find out. All you need is your imagination!

My husband arrived home one day with a tiny speckled wild pig, its legs taped together with electrical tape. He was released into the house yard and a couple of days later, when Ian tried to catch him, he had other ideas.

All of six inches tall, as Ian closed in on him in the corner of the yard, the pig charged at him, teeth bared and snarling viciously. Ian jumped in the air, all 193cm of him and let the pig go. After he’d been caught, de-loused, put in a small cage and fed for a few days, he was easy to handle. We called him Smedley and he became a family pet.

He thought he was a dog and spent time sitting on the back step, waiting for me to come out so he could follow me to the fowl yard to help the chooks eat their tucker, or down the back yard to the long drop toilet. The day I walked into the laundry to find him, for the second time that day, rolling around in a basket of what had been clean wet nappies, he could consider himself a very lucky pig because all I did was yell at him.

As a full-grown pig he was great company and no risk to anyone, but he presented a problem when we were to leave that place. We couldn’t release him into the wild as he wouldn’t have survived, so we took him to Sydney as hams and bacon, much to the disgust of our children. I didn’t know what else to do, and once he was dead he was just meat, wasn’t he? The hams and bacon surely stood us in good stead through some tough times and no-one complained.

By Margaret Irwin