OR, 10 good reasons NOT to stay at Possum Valley.
- It rains most of the time. I average 210 days of rain a year. Take the hint that if you come to ‘rainforest’ in the ‘wet tropics’ especially during the ‘wet season’ there is a very good chance of rain. The “sunshine state” is somewhere else.
- Even at the best of times there is high humidity which promotes mold. Mold was the first life form and likely to be the last in a billion years time as earth becomes increasingly hostile due to the sun heating up. Or perhaps in the next 50 years if we don’t curb burning fossil fuels. Molds have been found on the windows of space lab …. on the outside. Also in the sarcophagus of the Chernobyl reactor and actually feeding on very high radiation as an energy source. Here in a very humid environment I can’t kill it, just deter it a bit.
- I don’t do new. Everything here has to last until it is non-functional. I don’t trash things because of appearance, but when they don’t work anymore. This gives Possum Valley a well worn, homely, and well… seedy appearance. The world can’t afford to throw stuff away anymore. There is no ‘away’ now that our waste is in our face, and ‘new’ takes resources and energy to produce. Use it to destruction before you toss it.
- Most of the year there are leeches who want to bite your arse. Actually, more like ankles or other thin-skinned and blood-rich tender parts, but they will give anywhere a go. I have a page “Rainforest Hazards” to discuss these tribulations.
- Mud. I enjoy about 2100 mm of rain a year. I have 65 hectares of dirt. So I get about 4 million tons of rain mixed with that dirt and it sometimes turns to mud. Mud has been eliminated from urban areas by concreting over, but that is not feasible here. Expect mud. It is possible to enjoy mud, just ask children.
- Though I try my best, your genial host has deficiencies in cleaning. My ex-wife (don’t ask) remarked that I had the capacity to not see things I don’t want to see. She thought it a male trait possibly transmitted on the Y chromosome. A guest rather gently said “you’re not a corner person are you Paul”. Though I had never heard that expression, I understood immediately and had to laugh. Cleaning exactly follows the ‘Law of diminishing returns’ and life’s too short.
- Many people love Possum Valley and return many times (30 the record so far). I have seen generations grow up. And some people hate it as it didn’t meet their expectations. The difference is the limits of the ‘comfort zone’ that people have. Recent guests departed abruptly having discovered mold on a bath mat. I feel sorry for them as they will never explore their limits of sensual experience, run naked through a forest, or lie upon soft moss or feel the sun’s kiss on a cool morning.
- Expect to be robbed by the local wildlife. Possums will be in your face, but other critters will sneak up behind. Mice, rats and melomys will try to scrounge a part of your ample supplies and sneak in the house. Snakes don’t want your food but fancy the aforementioned rodents. Snakes mostly found in the roof.
Maple rodent control officer. Probably a children’s python on the prowl.
- The last 200m of the track is dreadful, being very steep and bumpy. When dry, the binding clay turns to dust and the gravel is like driving on marbles. The newer the car, the worse it is getting up the hill. For many people, especially those with a hire car, panic can set in, male egos can be trampled as they fail this driving test, then I turn up after hearing the desperate scrabbling on the hill and further humiliate the male driver in front of his loved ones, by driving his car up. Can be traumatic for tender egos.
- You must have a sense of humour. I live in dread of guests lacking the ability to see the wry side of life. To be able to turn a difficulty into a learning experience, a disaster into a joke and perhaps into an after dinner anecdote you can dine out on. See an old blog “Heavy Metal Ensemble” where guests were imprisoned for 3 days.
I could easily add 10 more reasons Possum Valley is not for you, but I have to cater for the modern world’s dwindling attention span. Choose to come to Possum Valley after careful consideration. You have to value environment over creature comfort. Surprise over dependability. Having an experience over having an indulgence. I don’t need bums in beds. I needs the right bums in my beds. You don’t have to be totally mad to stay at Possum Valley, but it helps.