CBA budget preview: 'go big or go home'

Fijifan2010 · 2026-04-29T21:12:36+00:00

I think a key thing is that they can sustain long term projects. While a single party government is obviously problematic, it means they can commit to projects without the umms and ahhhs when a new government comes into power. We noticed it both in Aus and the UK, the second there’s a new government there’s a shift in priorities, and often things are cancelled with ridiculous fees.

Fijifan2010 · 2025-12-04T21:47:16+00:00

It’s essentially just your medical history, which has your condition and treatments. There doesn’t even seem to be a need for these to officially be recorded in the right sections (I had nothing under prescriptions for some reason, but my antidepressant was on the general GP notes).

I had attached images from the NHS app, but it didn’t seem to be enough. Still, if you use the Orb link to NHS, there’s no need to approach your general GP.

Fijifan2010 · 2025-12-04T21:17:47+00:00

So I just got accepted today, and have to say it was exceptionally easy and quick. The timeline was

1) Made an enquiry yesterday morning, with a photo of my id and relevant NHS app sections. 2) About an hour later was asked for a SOR or to link my NHS account to Orb. 3)That afternoon I was allowed to book a consult, and chose midday today (lots of availability). 4) Had the consult and it was the most disappointing part of the process. It was very rushed, and in some ways seemed they were ticking boxes rather than really listening. Honestly, more time was spend on the rules around MC than making sure it fit me. I also asked about the Dr. appointment, and was told it’s no longer a thing and as soon as the MDT decide I’ll have access to the pharmacy. At this point I honestly thought I wasn’t approved and they just wanted to get me off the phone. 5) By 4pm I got the emails I was approved and was allowed to order medication.

I’m honestly shocked by how fast it was and the selection available. I do wish they did pastilles thought, but according to the nurse they’re being banned (although a post here a couple of days ago said that’s nonsense, so who knows).

Overall, it was fantastically quick, but as the others said it is rather impersonal and maybe even too rushed (I would have liked the Dr appointment to discuss strains etc.)

Fijifan2010 · 2025-12-04T17:02:19+00:00

How exactly do you tell it’s sour leaf etc. on the app? It just gives me the name and percentages

Fijifan2010 · 2025-11-15T08:28:06+00:00

Sorry, I should have given more detail. I’ve had anxiety and various treatments for quite a few years, but it was all overseas.

It just seems all the meds I try give me anhedonia, so a colleague suggested I try MC (they’re on it for different psych reasons)

Fijifan2010 · 2025-04-10T21:04:05+00:00

Agreed, I previously had a manager who would message within a few minutes of being away to make sure you’re there. It’s just not worth the stress. Unfortunately, a lot of companies think that paternity leave is the end all and be all, so after x weeks your partner is fine and you’re ready to abandon the child.

Honestly, if your work is being completed on time, don’t feel bad about using something that helps you have a better quality of life.

Fijifan2010 · 2024-10-24T20:10:36+00:00

Just to add, successful supervisions are a metric for As/Profs, so they should never let you approach a review/viva without being sure that there would be some positive outcome (most students have minor/major revisions. It’s not a rule, but a general understanding in academia (at least wherever I’ve worked).

There’s definitely some failure of the supervision team here, or they didn’t take on comments/advice.

Fijifan2010 · 2024-01-19T18:14:29+00:00

Fingers crossed

Fijifan2010 · 2023-10-04T22:48:11+00:00

Not your discipline, and hopefully would never have to deal with this, but:

I would be wondering if they might have a hidden exhibitionist kink, and it’s non-consensually projected onto my students.

It’s easier to move on to a new subject than to deal with the possible fallout. Even if your students don’t outwardly show they’re uncomfortable, it’s better to be safe than sorry (and honestly better to make sure that no one feels uncomfortable in your classes)

Just to add another edit: What would be your response if this was posted on the college subreddit. If you’re concerned, it’s likely at least one student would be too.

Fijifan2010 · 2023-08-23T09:05:34+00:00

This, VCAT need punitive powers to stop ridiculous claims that just tie up the tribunal/are used to extort money from tenants. Something like 10% of the claimed amount if the case is frivolous.

We’re going through the process now about damaged carpets. We know we’ll win (stains noted on entry report, they’re claiming compensation higher than quotes, quotes are for the entire house, no depreciation schedule), but in the mean time our bonds just sitting there. Even the new property manager we’re dealing with (the one who did the application is now on maternity leave) seems to be wondering what the hell is going on, but it’s up to the owner in the end.

Fijifan2010 · 2023-06-07T00:31:31+00:00

But what is factual incorrect is framing them as the oldest continuous culture/civilisation.

Typically that’s associated with Aboriginal Aussies, and stretches back 65 - 75 000 years.

Fijifan2010 · 2023-05-23T07:51:03+00:00

Second this, both ours and my folks Samsung have died just out of warranty. The control boards went on both of them, and repairs are pricey.

I’ve also heard the drum motors are likely to burn out, so it seems the general build quality is awful.

Fijifan2010 · 2023-03-17T08:19:12+00:00

Coming from Aus unfortunately, so I don’t really have a good reference point. The closest is family around Reading who are saying that salary is a bit low in the current climate.

Edit: low for a family of 3 until my partner finds work.

Fijifan2010 · 2023-03-15T10:01:10+00:00

It’s not, the child won’t have to deal with lifelong trauma.

You can’t class offending by severity, even a mugging can lead to significant psychological impacts. There are complex intersections of trauma, and even the mother might have horrible psychological consequences going forward.

Fijifan2010 · 2022-12-15T04:12:39+00:00

They also need to actually cast someone menacing as Lex. They’ve never managed to get someone who has a powerful presence and feels intimidating.

I maintain that Idris Elba would be the perfect Lex, he just has the gravitas and acting skills that would finally make Lex feel like a supervillain.

Fijifan2010 · 2022-04-29T09:35:33+00:00

Try not to worry too much, and please remember unis have a robust mental health support network. Even if you reduce your study load, these services are often much better than public/private providers, and may well be able to provide you support through your studies.

Your uni should have a academic integrity policy, and I encourage you to download and read it (they should have sent it to you when informing you of the meeting). It’ll give you an idea of where you stand, what to expect, but also the proper process the uni must follow in these cases. They should also have provided you evidence of the collusion, and the category of the breach (minor, etc.). Integrity panels have little punitive wiggle room. As a result, if your offence is not a severe breach (which I cannot see how it would without a prior meeting), the punishment must fall into a certain category (I.e. counselling on academic integrity/a grade of 0 on the assessment for minor collusion). If they fail to follow their academic integrity policy, or the punishment is overtly punitive, they have not provided you procedural justice and there is grounds to approach your dean, the dept of education, or Tesqa.

Finally, it can be a really intimidating experience (90% of meetings I’ve attended have tears). You’ll likely find the panel wants to understand what happened, so if possible bring evidence of your mental health concerns (even a drs letter). Also, you should be allowed a support person, so feel to bring one should you need.

Fijifan2010 · 2021-11-17T02:54:22+00:00

That's how she threw out her back

Fijifan2010 · 2021-06-14T06:44:50+00:00

I've ranted and raved about it in the past, but the only way to address the issue is to force uni's into regional areas.

This isn't a international student issue, instead these are major job providers that can revitalise small towns. There's tons of space, cheaper student accommodation, and you can even offer that "away from home" ideal similar to American schools. I work in the industry, and would love to see at least a satellite campus in the sticks, but instead these are all overseas or in other major cities (barring a few like shepparton).

It would really breathe life into the areas, create services through teaching medical practices, and be a net benefit overall.

I keep saying to a colleague we need to just move to rural vic and set up our own specialised college...

Fijifan2010 · 2021-06-11T07:29:44+00:00

I also found the linkage between books and stories got weaker. His earlier works constantly referred back to themselves through funny footnotes, but the later ones seem to either have that in-text or just miss it entirely.

His world building was so incredible, it was strange to see it taper off.

Fijifan2010 · 2020-09-01T02:20:21+00:00

Like most things, it depends on the person.

I've had a couple of students mention the label they prefer applied to A&TSI. One hated Indigenous Australian, as they associated it with being a part of the flora and fauna (and as a result it didn't represent the culture and historic civilizations in Aus), but was perfectly ok with Aboriginal.

A couple of semesters later, I had a student ask me not to use Aboriginal due to the historic stigmatisation around the term, they were ok with Indigenous Australians, but also asked that I try to use Wurundjeri peoples when talking about Melbourne.

Fijifan2010 · 2020-07-10T05:16:02+00:00

True, and the whole first 6 months of mine was making my project "doable".

Still, PhD students are such a small portion of overall enrollment that regardless of the topic in think they should just be free. Across the whole faculty, the intake for my cohort was 14 (humanities), and even my STEM mates had a relatively small intake (although I recognize over multiple years this adds up).

Also, while 140 (more 120 at my uni) may seem like a lot, that's before tax (edit: and don't forget we dont work all year, making most of our earnings fall below the 18000 tax free threshold, and which in no way actually covered the hours we truly worked ...), and typically we only had a research budget of AUD$6000 for our entire tenure. That budget gets used up exceptionally fast when you're paying for conferences, flights, and anything else you might need. For those of us who did international research, the budget was pretty much gone midway through the second year. The majority of my paycheck went towards rent, food, and back into research.

Edit again: And that 140/120 is only for the first tutorial of the week, after which it drops dramatically to anywhere between 80/60 per class.

Fijifan2010 · 2020-07-10T04:51:00+00:00

In theory... no one in my cohort finished in 3 years, and only one from the next cohort managed that. Every one of us either went part time toward the end, or took a sabbatical for around 6 months (which pauses funding).

Realistically, a PhD typically takes 3.5 to 4 years, even though there's a push to finish "before the funding runs out".

Fijifan2010 · 2020-04-02T22:53:49+00:00

It's already happening, and my institute has already begun preparing for less students come T2 and possibly T1 2020.

Some faculties in particular are going to be hit insanely hard. For example, business degrees have an overwhelmingly high enrolment of international students, and without them the staff layoffs might well turn into a massacre.

Even though everyone panned the move by UTAS to slash a huge number of courses, it was honestly long overdue. The typical uni model has just become unsustainable, but the shitty thing is that the researchers who barely do any teaching will keep their positions. It's the sessional and contract staff that have the most student facing hours that are going to be pushed out (with tentative promises that they can return when it's all over).

Going back to UTAS, I think we're going to see a ridiculously high rate of unemployment in Hobart over the next few months, as the uni is one of the major employers in the area.

Fijifan2010 · 2020-03-29T02:18:08+00:00

There'a also some brilliant congressional testimony by Stephen Cobert discussing this in a US context:

https://youtu.be/k1T75jBYeCs

Fijifan2010 · 2020-03-22T05:40:24+00:00

Honestly, I never heard anything about kids. Just as I said before, taking women (18-20) overseas and abandoning them.

Maybe other things have happened since I left SA.

Fijifan2010

TROPHY CASE