Perth

Rob Palmer in Perth for Garden Week 2012

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Rob Palmer started in the construction industry as a nine year old working at his Dad’s company during school holidays. In 2000, while he was working as a carpenter in his own business, Rob was approached to be a presenter on a lifestyle programme on Channel 10. That program only lasted until 2001 but by then he was on his way in the media industry.

He then started on Channel 7’s Better Homes and Gardens where he’s still a popular presenter.

In 2010 he showed the world he’s multi-talented by winning Dancing with the Stars. This weekend he’s in Perth for Garden Week at Perry Lakes Reserve in Floreat, but I spoke to him on the phone this morning during the Morning Cafe on 98.5 Sonshine FM. You can hear our conversation by clicking the play button on the audio player at the bottom of this post.

From 19-23 April Perry Lakes Reserve in Floreat will be transformed from tranquil parkland to a bustling hub of activity featuring all things gardening and much more.

Bursting with colour, Garden Week will delight visitors with the huge array of roses, waterwise plants, trees, indoor and outdoor plants, herbs and vegies.

Open daily from 9.30am, the Show is growing in popularity with visitors treated to the best WA has to offer with all things gardening and outdoor living.

Rob Palmer, the ever-popular DIY expert from Better Homes and Gardens will be on the Total Eden Celebrity stage from Thursday to Sunday to charm the crowds with his wit, humour and talent.

Also on the Celebrity Stage will be Chris Ferreira and the team from Great Gardens who will be holding presentations with topics ranging from sustainability and how to grow your own produce.

Great Gardens will also be working closely with Garden Week’s official Charity Partner Therapy Focus on the hugely popular Scarecrow Competition with over 40 scarecrows from WA primary schools on display.

Rob will be appearing at the Garden Show across the weekend.

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We Apologise for the Delay

Feb 11th, 2012

by Rodney Olsen.

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I love flying but I also like being on time. Those two concepts don’t always coexist.

Our family was up bright and early this morning. Well maybe a lot more of the early and a little less of the bright. Today my adventure begins. I’m flying to Melbourne, taking a coach trip to Geelong, then getting ready for another early start tomorrow as I begin the 25000Spins Great Ocean Road Challenge. I’ll be cycling to release children from poverty through Compassion Australia. It’s not too late to support the ride. Just go to my Everyday Hero fundraising page.

We were all out of bed around 3:00 a.m. so that I could be at the airport early enough to check in my ‘oversize baggage’ for the 5:30 a.m. flight. Well, it was meant to be a 5:30 flight. The oversize baggage is my bike, expertly boxed up by the wonderful Phil at Cyclebuzz Canning Vale.

With the bike checked in we headed to the departure gate for the usual wait. Once the call came over the P.A., one of the only announcements we could actually understand, I said goodbye to Pauline, Emily and James and headed on through. It was all going like clockwork.

I boarded the plane on time with the other passengers and got ready for take off. We taxied out to the runway …. and that’s when it all went pear shaped. A passenger three or four rows behind me had some kind of medical issue. If I heard the banter correctly he may have had a hard night last night but I’m not sure. What I do know is that the flight attendants headed his way with the oxygen bottle and started shifting passengers to other seats.

One of the flight attendants had obviously practiced her “everything’s alright” smile well. She was moving between the passenger and the flight deck a number of times, each time wandering down the aisle with a confident, happy look. She didn’t look this happy before the ‘incident’.

And so we headed back to the gate.

Five or six medicos headed on board and attended the patient … er passenger. After a long while they helped him into a wheelchair and left the aircraft.

Finally, once the paperwork was updated and the ambulance drove away from the plane we pushed out and headed for the runway again. Then, almost an hour late, we took to the skies.

The passengers who were near the incident noticed that the bloke had left a bag with some food in it and a choc milk. Oddly enough no one put their hand up for it so it was binned … and maybe incinerated.

So that’s where things are right now. I’m in the air on Virgin Flight DJ 678, winging my way to Melbourne and my 12:00 p.m. arrival is looking like a 1:00 p.m. arrival. Of course I won’t get to publish this post until we touch down. Until then I’ll keep listening to my iPod and enjoying a rather quiet flight. It’s amazing how dazed most passengers look but I suppose that’s to be expected on a 5:30, make that 6:30 flight.

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Australia Day 2012

Jan 25th, 2012

by Rodney Olsen.

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Are you ready for Australia Day tomorrow?

We celebrate Australia Day on the 26th of January each year because it was that day in 1788 that Captain Arthur Phillip took formal possession of the colony of New South Wales and became its first Governor. The first official celebrations were held in 1818 to mark the 30th anniversary of white settlement.

If you want to find out more about Australia Day you can go to the official website here.

Watching fireworks on Australia Day has become a solid tradition in Perth but over the past several years many people have started looking for ways to avoid the parking hassles and find a family friendly event. Answering the call is the 98.5 Sonshine FM Town of Bassendean Australia Day Celebrations and Fireworks event which has built a reputation as a safe place to spend Australia Day with friends and family as well as providing a spectacular show.

If you’re in the Perth area it’d be great to catch up with you at Ashfield Reserve, Guildford Road, Ashfield, for the evening. It’s a great event that culminates in a massive fireworks display away from the big and sometimes rowdy crowds of the city fireworks. 98.5 Sonshine FM is proud to be providing the soundtrack and we’ll be broadcasting live from the venue.

I’ll be joined on stage by my friend and colleague, Arthur Muhl, to MC the live entertainment which starts from 5:00 p.m. There’ll also be an awards ceremony. The fireworks will begin lighting up the skies later in the evening with the whole event finishing at 9:00 p.m.

If you want to enjoy some great entertainment in a more relaxed family atmosphere, without having to wait hours in traffic on the way home, come on down.

Either way, make sure that you’ve got some plans in place to celebrate.

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Hopman Cup Revisited

Jan 7th, 2012

by Rodney Olsen.

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Around 21 years after my first trip to the Hopman Cup I made a return visit this week. Pauline and I spent Wednesday watching some fantastic tennis amongst great company.

The first time I went to the Burswood Dome to see a Hopman Cup session was in late December 1990 and I watched the Italian team of Paolo Canè and Raffaella Reggi beaten by the Yugosalvian duo of Goran Prpic and Monica Seles, who then went on to conquer the US team for the 1991 title. To cut a long story short I was seated in the Italian team’s private box enjoying some generous hospitality and the company of the Italian players when they weren’t on court.

All these years later, Pauline and I were invited to share a court-side box to watch Bulgaria’s team of Grigor Dimitrov and Tsvetana Pironkova defeat Denmark’s Frederik Nielsen and Caroline Wozniacki.

The Hopman Cup is a mixed competition where male and female players are together on combined teams and represent their country. Players are invited to attend.

Eight nations are selected annually to compete in the Hopman Cup. Each team consists of one male player and one female player. Each match-up between two teams at the championships consists of:

One women’s singles match
One men’s singles match
One mixed doubles match

Each year the eight competing teams are separated into two groups of four (with two teams being seeded) and face-off against each of the other three teams in their group in a round-robin format. These seedings ensure that each group has approximately similar strength. The top team in each group then meet in a final to decide the champions. – Wiki

Caroline Wozniacki is the current women’s world number one player so we were assured of some great tennis right from the start. The women’s match went for around two and a half hours, the longest match of the cup. Wozniacki won the match for Denmark but Bulgaria won both the men’s and nixed doubles matches. The program told us that sessions could last for around five hours. This Session lasted seven hours with a lot of hard fought games throughout a rather warm day.

I’m hoping that it won’t be another 21 years before I get to enjoy the Hopman Cup again.

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Heading Home

Nov 5th, 2011

by Rodney Olsen.

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The Morning Café Cancer Ride has seen a group of thirteen cyclists riding from Albany to Perth to raise funds for Cancer Council WA.

The team will arrive back at 98.5 Sonshine FM at 4:00 p.m. today, Saturday the 5th of November. We’d like to see as many people as possible joining us to welcome the team home.

If you’re in the Perth area please arrive at 98.5 Sonshine FM, Murray Street, Como, just before 4:00 p.m. and be ready to make a lot of noise.

We’re about to tackle our toughest day with a big climb out of York. 100 kilometres later we’ll be home after riding over 500 kilometres.

It’s not too late to donate. Just click the link in my sidebar. It’d be wonderful to see our tally climb as much as we’ll be climbing today.