Parra News March 12 2024

parra
news
PO BOX W107
Parramatta Westfield, NSW 2150
P (02) 9168 8094
parranews.com.au
facebook.com/theparranews
@theparranews
@theparranews
Issue 164
Editor’s Note
troy.dodds@parranews.com.au
Troy Dodds
@troydodds
We must always celebrate seniors
As the annual Seniors Festival (previously
Seniors Week) lands in New South Wales, it’s
an important time to reflect on those who
have contributed so much to society throughout
their lives.
Our seniors are such integral members of the
community, and this month’s celebrations are
well deserved.
These are people who have lived through extraordinary
times. They have forgotten more
than most of us have learned, given their
worldly experience and length of life lived.
And they still have so much to offer, whether
that is to the family unit, to the workforce or
as volunteers, which is something I know so
many of them do.
It can be so easy to dismiss older generations;
to consider their opinions and thoughts
out-dated.
But we would be far better off listening and
learning than we would dismissing.
To all the seniors out there, enjoy this month;
which is very much about you, and thank you
for all you have done.
There’s many ways to get your
copy of Parra News. Visit
www.parranews.com.au/getapaper
for details.
Parra Matters
alanmascarenhas09@gmail.com
Alan Mascarenhas
@alanmasc
Advertising:
Editorial:
sales@parranews.com.au
news@parranews.com.au
Distribution/delivery queries:
distribution@parranews.com.au
Published by: Western Sydney Publishing Group
Managing Editor:
Troy Dodds | troy.dodds@parranews.com.au
@troydodds
Journalists:
Senior Journalist: Ellie Busby |
Sports & TV Journalist: Nathan Taylor |
@elliecbusby
Entertainment Journalist: Cassidy Pearce |
Photographer: Angie Way
If you have a story suggestion or news tip,
email news@parranews.com.au
Sales Director:
Chris Pennisi | chris.pennisi@parranews.com.au
@natetaylor87
Sales Executives: Chris Middleton, Andrew Harris,
Angela Jevdich, Megan Dunn
@cass_pearce
To receive a copy of our media kit and advertising prices,
email sales@parranews.com.au
Production: Ian Beard, Zoe Merrick, Kacey Wilson
Administration: Amanda Coskerie, Madeline Dantier
Parra News is bound by the Standards
of Practice of the Australian Press
Council. If you believe the Standards
may have been breached, you may
approach the newspaper itself or
contact the Council by email
(info@presscouncil.org.au) or by phone
([02] 9261 1930).
For further information see
www.presscouncil.org.au.
Is Parramatta the roach capital?
The cockroach capital.
At first, they were microscopic – and manageable.
It was usually just one or two per day,
scurrying around the sink as I returned home
in the evenings and switched on the lights. Invariably,
you had to have a thick book or rolled
up newspaper handy.
Then they grew slightly bigger. Feasting on
crumbs along the kitchen benchtop or around
the stove. You might see one in the bathroom
at night, inching up the shower walls or appearing
from behind the cupboard.
A couple of weeks ago, they became more
audacious. No longer limited to the witching
hours, it became common to see a flicker
across the walls as I ate breakfast.
One morning I awoke to find a near-corpse
on the floor, probably reeling from having ingested
the remains of some old poison. It was
jet black, the size of one of those old matchbox
cars, turned on its back with legs writhing. Absent-mindedly
I left it there, thinking it wasn’t
long for this world.
To my horror, upon returning home it had
vanished from the spot entirely, only to suddenly
re-emerge flipped over and reenergised
as I was tucking into dinner. It crawled into a
shoe in the living area. I threw the shoe onto
the balcony and smashed it there.
“Don’t you find there are a lot of cockroaches
inside our building at the moment?” a resident
on the same floor inquired of me casually
in the lift one day. “I find I’m killing them all
the time.”
Ruefully, I had to admit our apartment block
Index
News...........................................................1-14
Business.......................................................15
Celebrating Seniors....................16-17
has a problem. Right now, roaches are all over
the bin room. Back inside the unit, each swish
of my morning toothbrush comes with trepidation.
I don’t dare pull out the dishwasher or
look behind the fridge.
In a way, it’s a peculiarly Sydney curse. A
report in 2020 found Sydney to be the “cockroach
capital” of Australia, with household
incidence more than 19 per cent higher than
the national average. Last year, an inner-city
renter claimed that roaches fell on his face as
he slept.
But if Sydney is the cockroach capital, Parramatta
could be the primary operating headquarters.
Whenever I exit the station at night,
I see ones that are simply enormous on the
ground that would have you tempted to dial
triple-0 if they appeared in your house or
apartment.
It’s not surprising given our city has endured
one of the muggiest summers in living memory.
One of consistently high temperatures,
where clusters of buildings reverberate and
absorb heat during the day, while airborne
moisture provides a perfect breeding ground.
This is particularly so for German cockroaches,
which have a short reproduction cycle,
mating prolifically in a matter of weeks. In fact,
I have read that a single female cockroach can
lay up to one million eggs a year.
The density of apartment living across Parramatta
and Cumberland only accentuates
the problem. Having so many kitchens, bathrooms
and communal waste facilities close
together – moist environments with scraps
Horoscopes..............................................18
Entertainment................................19-29
Business Directory.....................30-31
of food – promotes proliferation and ensures
that any infestation affects large numbers of
people.
Perhaps the next-door neighbours, or those
in the unit above or below, are not putting the
bins out, or otherwise unhygienic and gross. It
is an externality of apartment life, impossible
to quantify. And obtaining action from landlords
is infinitely tougher for tenants and subtenants,
unsure of their rights.
Cockroaches are adept at hiding in small
cracks and crevices. They are capable of morphing
and resisting against the harshest pesticides.
So, pre-emption is the best defence.
Store food in sealed containers. Avoid leaving
dirty dishes in the sink. Clean homes regularly
and empty rubbish bins. Crack down on
clutter. Seal gaps around sink areas and check
kitchen tiles. Clean underneath the fridge,
stove and toaster.
Try not to leave stacks of paper lying around
like newspapers, boxes and mountains of supermarket
bags.
One other rule of thumb. Seeing one cockroach
always indicates multiple. Seeing multiple
means there are nests to be zapped and an
epic infestation at hand.
The other day I found a small roach resting
among my kitchen plates.
Now I rinse every utensil twice over before
having a meal. With the humidity likely to last
well into autumn I’ve had enough and contacted
strata.
The pest controller is coming Friday. It’s going
to be a long couple of days.
Sport..............................................................32
52904
Whatever you are looking for you will find it at
WENTWORTHVILLE SHOPPING PLAZA . . .
At the Plaza you can shop for groceries,
fruit & vegetables and enjoy the café and
restaurant special menus. Woolworths
and BWS both are situated in the Plaza
providing our local public easy access
to daily needs. We have hair & beauty
salons as well in the Plaza. We
also have a mobile phone shop
operating at our centre.
The Plaza also accommodates a bakery and a real
estate agency. There is plenty of car space in the
car park and under cover parking available with
easy access to the shops!
AVESTA
TAYLORING
OPEN 7 DAYS
7:00AM TO 12:00AM
wentworthvilleshoppingplaza.com.au
336 GREAT WESTERN HIGHWAY, WENTWORTHVILLE
WW52904 WW49934
4 parra news » Tuesday, March 12, 2024