You are reading this an hour early thanks to the wonders of daylight savings. Anth is of recovering from an international conference in Geelong, and Bron has command of the good ship Marinara. Cath was the Panel Godess for the day.

Is daylight saving really linked to saving the whales ?

Step 1: George Bush (2005) and Richard Nixon (1973) both extended daylight saving in order to reduce the energy usage of the USA.

Step 2: When daylight saving was first introduced into the US after WW1, the baseball league had record crowds and retailers had a bonanza from an hours extra trading.

Sidebar: Daylight saving was first introduced in Germany in 1915, a year after the death of the first crusader for daylight saving in the UK - William Willett.

Step 3: The first person to suggest that changing the operating hours of a city (Paris) would save a fortune in lamp oil was Benjamin Franklin (the America) in a satirical essay "An Economical Project" in 1784.

Step 4: The oil for the good lamps in his time was from whales. In the early 1800's it cost $2/gallon and in 1850 the usage was estimated at 5 million gallons per year for lighting and another 10 million gallons for train oil.

Step 5: In 1849 a Canadian chemist, Dr Abraham Gesner, distilled kerosene for the first time.

Step 6: In 1857 the German Michael Deitz invented a clean burning kerosene lamp, based on the whale oil lamp.

On September 3rd 1860, the California Fireside Journal printed the following note:

"Had it not been for the discovery of coal oil (kerosene), the race of whales would soon have become extinct. It is estimated that 10 years would have used up the whole family"

By 1895, whale oil was still worth 40c/gallon, but was not able to compete with kerosene at 7c/gallon

and Gesner and Deitz saved the whales.

Diamond Bay is at the end on Diamond Bay Rd, and it is about a 100 m walk to a wineglass shaped bay. Entry is off the sand, and as it drops away you find yourself in a kelp forest (in 2.5 - 5 m).

Heading south you find drop-offs to 9 m or head to the west for shelves to explore. Watch out for schools of trumpeter.

Round to the left you will find a spot called Melways, as the rocks look like a page from the famous publication.

The eagle and bat rays are also great.

Northerlies and no swell is the best time.

If you get there and it turns out to be bad, just go into Port Phillip Bay !

It started in 1982 in Ballarat and now has 24 branches around Australia. They have 4 Banskia awards, a Prime Ministers Award, a couple of UN awards and they keep coming.

One of the key projects at the moment is Montague Island (southern NSW) which has an amazing history of indigenous and European settlement - along with the chance to visit an operating lighthouse.

To stay overnight on the island you have to work - and the current focus is on seabird habitat. Rabbits and goats were introduced to feed shipwreck survivors, and they spread the kaikuia grass. You might be pulling weeks, counting penguins or seabird monitoring.

The original lighthousekeepers residence has been restored to accommodate up to 10 volunteers, with guides and local experts.

There is a 2 night/3 day program and a 1 night/2day program if you want to take part.

There is a 6 day/5 night program over summer in Tasmania, and watch out for the new program that will be linked into the Commonwealth Games.

Contact on 1800 032 501 or head to the website

"When the Ship comes in"

" shuffle your feet"

" Kiss Moi "

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

St Tropez

Blue skies, light winds, clear water and gravity is reduced which works well for Brett. Diving is great - just go. It is getting more fabulous as the days go on, and Brett will be an exhausted wreck. The water temperature is about 15 C.