Now Is The Moment Now Is Exactly The Moment
Upside down and inside out and on all eights
You're like a funnel-web
Like a black fly on the ceiling
Skinny, white haunches high and skyward
And a black oily gash crawling backwards across the carpet to smash all over everything
Wet, black fur against the sun going down
Over the shops and the cars and the crowds in the town
And this is the moment, this is exactly where she is born to be
Now this is what she does and this is what she is
And this is the moment, this is exactly where she is born to be
This is what she does and this is what she is
And now she's jumping up with her leaping brain
Stepping over heaps of sleeping children
Disappearing and further up and spinning out again
Up and further up she goes, up and out of the bed
Up and out of the bed and down the hall where she stops for moment and turns and says
"Are you still here?"
And then reaches high and dangles herself like a child's dream from the rings of Saturn
Nick Cave.
Our birthright, they said, and he was determined now, men of action, the men of action coming down, the horned priests, the disturbances in the field, voices on the wind, satellites overhead. They held hands around the kitchen table and his brother said a prayer. He was quiet inside himself as they accustomed themselves to the light. We were here, here. And the drunken dribble of the evening table, he was tired of it now, tired of never being able to have an ordinary conversation; fed up with the slow moving nature of everything.
He heard them in the fields.
"This is the way the wind blows."
And he heard, once again, there could be citadels at sea, that the time distortions, too, would grow more intense with every waking hour. "It's becoming increasingly obvious." He listened out for the falling cadence, he could feel that thrummm from a very great distance, he crossed these legacies to get to you, he embraced uncertainty and quantum mechanics, and argued, over this extraordinary distance, that what they wanted to do was not possible, that they had achieved something no one else had, that they had bridged a gap between galaxies not as if it was an easy task, but as if it was at the frontiers of science, at the edge of the possible, even for them.
They would be arriving soon, in all their wonder, and they were here, too, in many senses. He watched the flux of the air. He saw the glistening shapes that danced and darted through the liquid air. He felt their wonder at air on skin and their utter fascination with forests.
He was staggered by the beauty, awe struck by the power.
Craig, as always, never drew breath, and challenged him.
"I am an augmented intelligence," he said. "I could dodge before you were born."
They were coming here, for all to see, no, not all, for some.
He was staggered by the stupidity with which he was surrounded, tried to harbour affection for those he had once loved, reared high, these voices, these hooded priests, as the air distorted around them.
"A blizzard of bullshit," he repeated, over and over again, frustrated by the slowness of the passages, the inherent demons which stood in his path, the rapacious nature of the government, the idiocy of bewildered operatives, the malignancy of those who wanted to gain from something they would never understand.
Rub shoulders.
Rub shoulders with history and see where it will get you.
Carried to a grave. Thrown in like dirt. Eminently, totally disposable.
These rivers, eddies, currents, these things that made us great and proud and human and extraordinary, these things that made him both lonely and a subject of gossip, or curiosity.
The light dappled across lawns and crawled up and through him, and he could feel the voices resonating up through his spine, through the channels which we would take to show you: show you.
Come hither. Listen to me. Take the embrace.
There is no god but God would never hold true again.
Their religious fervour, including the fervour of the Watchers on the Watch and the Neighbourhood Watch types who hoped desperately to be scandlised.
They watched. He gathered in power every single day.
And the arc was drawing to a close above them. And the great things, the things that had threaded down through the history of this peculiar, troubled species.... "We will wait and see," they said.
But he could already see.
THE HEADLINES
Coronavirus Australia live news: COVID-19 social distancing will remain for 'the next few months' even with vaccinations, Paul Kelly warns.
Covid restrictions here to stay, Aussies warned As Brisbane enters day two of a snap COVID-19 lockdown, quarantine rules have been rewritten to combat UK, SA variants. SUBSCRIBE NOW for live updates on the nation's coroanvirus response.
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TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS NSW
Face masks are mandatory in Greater Sydney (including Wollongong, Central Coast and Blue Mountains) in the following indoor settings:
shops, supermarkets and shopping centres
bank branches, post offices and Service NSW centres
public and shared transport, including waiting areas
indoor entertainment venues, including cinemas and theatres
gaming areas in licensed premises and betting agencies
premises used for public worship, including places of worship
hair and beauty premises
aged-care facilities — if you’re a visitor or staff
hospitality venues — if you’re staff and have a customer-facing role
Children aged 12 and under, and those who can’t for health reasons, do not have to wear a mask.
On-the-spot fines of $200 will be given to individuals for non-compliance. For more information, visit nsw.gov.au/covid-19.
Border restrictions
New South Wales doesn't restrict entry to any state or territory, except in limited circumstances.
People can also enter NSW from New Zealand without having to quarantine.
Greater Brisbane, Queensland
Queensland has declared the Brisbane City, Ipswich, Logan, Moreton Bay and Redland City local government areas as COVID-19 hotspots.
If you’re already in, or travelling to New South Wales, and you’ve visited one of these areas on or after Saturday 2 January, you must comply with the stay-at-home rules until 6pm on Monday 11 January.
The stay-at-home rules mean you can only leave home if you have a reasonable excuse. A reasonable excuse includes:
shopping for food or other goods and services
travelling for work or education, if you can’t do so from home
exercise
to get medical care or supplies
to fulfil carer's responsibilities
If children alternate between 2 households because there is a shared-care arrangement in place, the existing arrangement can continue.
To learn the other reasons you can leave your home and for more information, visit nsw.gov.au/covid-19. Select ‘Interstate hotspots’ then ‘Stay at home rules’.
You need to complete a self-declaration form if you enter NSW via an airport and have been in an affected area on or after 2 January 2021.
These rules do not apply if you:
transited through Brisbane Airport on or after 2 January to get on another flight, but you did not leave the airport
are transiting through NSW by road, and you are not stopping except for fuel, an emergency or to take an overnight rest stop or meal break, or are transiting by rail or air, and you self-quarantine in suitable accommodation while you wait to transit out of NSW
For more information about the Greater Brisbane lockdown, including FAQs and a map of
affected areas, visit covid19.qld.gov.au.
Travelling within NSW
The following travel restrictions currently apply.
Northern Beaches (northern area)
The northern and southern areas of the Northern Beaches are now under the same restrictions as Greater Sydney.
Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Wollongong
The following information applies to residents of the Greater Sydney region (including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong).
There are no restrictions on travelling to and from regional or rural NSW, or other areas of NSW. However, the NSW Government recommends delaying non-essential travel within NSW — especially between Greater Sydney and regional areas.
Local government areas in Greater Sydney, the Central Coast and Wollongong include.
Bayside
Blacktown
Blue Mountains
Burwood
Camden
Campbelltown
Canada Bay
Canterbury-Bankstown
Central Coast
Cumberland
Fairfield
Georges River
Hawkesbury
The Hills Shire
Hornsby
Hunter's Hill
Inner West
Ku–ring–gai
Lane Cove
Liverpool
Mosman
North Sydney
Northern Beaches
Paramatta
Penrith
Randwick
Ryde
Strathfield
Sutherland Shire
Sydney
Waverly
Willoughby
Wollondilly
Wollongong
Woollahra
To find the local council for your suburb, visit olg.nsw.gov.au. Then click on ‘For public’ and ‘Find your local council’.
For a map of Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Wollongong, visit nsw.gov.au/covid-19. Select ‘Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Wollongong’ and click on ‘Map of Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Wollongong’.
For the latest updates and information, visit nsw.gov.au/covid-19.
The rest of NSW
There are no restrictions on travelling to or from the rest of NSW. However, the NSW Government recommends delaying non-essential travel within NSW, especially between Greater Sydney and regional areas.
While it’s not mandatory outside the Greater Sydney, Central Coast and Wollongong areas, the NSW Government strongly recommends you wear a face mask at indoor premises or anywhere you can’t keep 1.5 metres from others — unless you can’t for health reasons or you’re a child under 12.
You should also wear a mask if you’re seeking medical advice, to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.
Avoid using public transport if you can. Consider walking, cycling or driving instead. If you use public transport, you should wear a mask.
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