This checks to see if a file exists in a directory:
Set objFSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
If objFSO.FileExists("C:\scripts\book.ps2") Then
Wscript.Echo "file exists!!"
Else
Wscript.Echo "File doesn't exist"
End If
So, the first line binds to the FileSystemObject object, then the second passes a value to the FileExists method, and the last bit determines the output.
If the current Labour administration’s policies regarding immigration can lead to an increase in votes for the BNP, does it follow that their decision to help to overthrow Saddam led to actions of the bombers on 7/7?
Auckland was raining when I arrived, which is fairly usual at this time of year. It was still warm enough to keep my “jandals” on though. That evening I had enough energy to eat Burger King (now back to its normal name) and fall asleep.
Auckland is a little big city according to tourist posters. It didn’t leave much of an impression on me but I had a chance to meet up with my friend Kim who lives in a suburb there. She and her boyfriend Adam live in a cosy ground-floor flat in what looked to me like a fairly rich area. Kim and Adam were quite interested in my stay in Australia and sounded like they wanted to move there. Neither of them said anything negative about NZ but the impression they gave me was that they were simply waiting for their passports before they could go to the “Lucky Country”.
On my third day there I went to Devonport on the ferry.
Maybe because of the weather the harbour didn’t look as striking as Sydney’s. Queen Street, Auckland’s main street, runs down a hill towards the water and the ferry terminal. Next to the terminal is a cargo port, which I liked because I haven’t seen much of that sort of thing before.
When I arrived in Devonport the rain stopped and the sun peeked through the clouds. As the ferry pulled away a rainbow crossed the sky over the port.
Somebody told me (or I read) that Auckland is like a teenager’s face: eruptions can occur randomly throughout the area. The last one was hundreds of years ago and may have been in Devonport but I forget exactly. There are two there and I went to both, which look no different to any other hill in the world.
The British were quick to make military bases out of them.
Devonport is very pretty architecturally and has the feel of a village. After my bus ride I had coffee and spent an hour or so looking for books in the two used-book shops on the high street. The first one I went into didn’t have any Greene or Hemingway so I went to the next one and found Travels with Charley and Farewell to Arms. I was getting slightly apprehensive about my up-and-coming sojourn in America and thought it would be enlightening to re-read Steinbeck’s tale.
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After Taupo and Rotarua I returned to Auckland and spent another night with Kim. During the day before my flight I got stoned and wondered along the beach where I encountered some odd rock formations.
The cliff facing the sea was at least fifty foot and was comprised of perfectly formed layers which set me off wondering about the geology of the place. Some of the layers were soft and seemed to be made out of crushed shells.
Some of the rocks on the beach looked as if they were were forged by men because of their symmetry.
It’s too soon to say now whether I will miss Australia. I got used to the country, just as I got used to living in Britain, and grew comfortable there but I don’t know if I’ll ever have the urge to try and live there again. I may never get the opportunity to live there again, in fact. In that respect, that I’ve only half used my working holiday visa, it is a shame to have left the place.
That I’ve forged a great friendship with Peter and left, that Jess and I parted under such unnecessary circumstances, that I never found a good job and missed the experience of the Australian workplace; these are all potential regrets. Then again, I’ve done Australia my way – bumbled through it, made errors through lack of attention and planning, but ultimately had a very enjoyable time. Who can really ask for more?
I will go back, I’ve promised myself. Next time will be a great road trip spanning thousands of miles through the vast and barren outback and avoiding the beaten track that the backpackers inhabit. Places like the Cape Yorke Peninsula, Arnhem Land and the Simpson Desert will be on my route; places that in the 21st century are still not manicured by man. That’s the Australia I like best.
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On Monday, a week before my flight, I walked through the Botanic Gardens for the second time. Peter and I missed the bats the first time and this time I was equipped with my Kodak EasyShare ZD710. The city, viewed from gardens and the harbour, is the most impressive urban scene that I saw in Australia.
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I was lucky to have a few people really care that I was leaving – it’s a nice feeling. Probably nothing more than vanity. I was also lucky to spend it in the Rocks – my favourite part of Sydney. Altogether, it was a perfect last week and I was quite glum when I reached Auckland and realised that I really did like Australia and the bloody place was gone.
A new study in the Journal of Anthropological Sciences by a man named Fernando Rozzi suggests that “Neanderthals met a violent end at our hands and in some cases we ate them”.
Rozzi’s team found a Neanderthal jawbone in amongst human bones with cut marks on it similar to those found on deer and other animal bones which have been stripped of flesh.
“Rozzi believes the jawbone provides crucial evidence that humans attacked Neanderthals, and sometimes killed them, bringing back their bodies to caves to eat or to use their skulls or teeth as trophies,” said the New Zealand Herald.
It’s always sad and often disturbing to learn of the nuances of Palestinian plight, but this was completely unexpected. In yesterday’s SMH:
Of the 4.6 million Palestinian refugees spread across 58 camps in five location – Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip – conditions for the 422,000 living in the Lebanese camps are considered the worst.
Palestinians living in Lebanon have no right to citizenship, no right to vote and are explicitly banned from buying private property. To move from one camp to another, Palestinians require a special permit.
Apart from menial labour and some clerical jobs, Palestinians are barred entry to a list of 74 professions including law, medicine, engineering, teaching and journalism.
A Lebanese woman who marries a Palestinian will lose the right to pass on Lebanese citizenship to her children.
