December 10th, 2022Just Sayin’

By Donna Kelly

THERE’S been a lot of Black Friday sales going on, online. And that’s OK, but with Christmas fast approaching spare a thought for your local businesses.
It’s been tough, believe me we know, over the past few years, and you can bet there has been plenty of blood, sweat and tears involved. So this column is a real shout out to Shop Local! if you can. And especially Shop Local! with the wonderful advertisers who have kept your very local paper going over this time.
People sometimes ask us how we stay afloat – advertising dollars. In this edition alone, without our advertisers, you would not be reading about a potential gold mine, a real one, the Dogs of Trentham fund-raising calendar, ceramicists in Clunes, magicians in Daylesford, Christmassy things, churchy things, Glen’s wonderful garden tips, gig guides, recipes, Local Lines, horoscopes, letters to the ed, Just briefly, Pick Me, or, God forbid, Kyle’s Rant.
They are all here because someone chose to advertise locally. To locals. To you. So please, if you would like to say thanks to The Local for another year of news, views, features and photos, Shop Local! with at least one of our advertisers. Or more.
Now I am not keen on lists but I am going to give you just a few ideas of where to head to spend your hard-earned cash. And I reckon I am going to run out of room so it might be one of those two-part columns. Stay tuned for the next edition sort of thing. (And keep in mind these are just the advertisers in this one edition.)
So, in no particular order, first up is The Amazing Mill Markets. If you can’t find something to buy there, you just aren’t looking hard enough. And owner Mark continued advertising even through lockdowns because he loves local papers. Nice.Next, Daylesford Trading Co for fun, quirky and affordable. Energy prices causing you grief, call the Tin Can Collective. Cellarbrations is a no-brainer at this time of the year – say hi to Matt and the team. And what better for a night off cooking, yep, takeaway from Pizzeria La Luna. Love the Full Moon. Also on the food track, Daylesford Bowling Club for its food, drinks at genuine 1970’s prices and the best view in town. Or if you do want to cook, Daylesford Meat Co is more than your average butcher with plenty of ideas for quick, easy or more challenging meals. And back to not cooking, why not make a Christmas/New Year booking at the Daylesford Steakhouse? Great food and ambience.
Who else? Oh, Herbal Lore Liqueurs offers beautiful beverages which also make stunning gifts. And who can forget Roger and Sue handing out endless free sanitiser when it couldn’t be found for love nor money. God I love this community.
Music. What could be a better gift than a few tickets to CresFest in Creswick – a way off but it will be here before you know it. An earlier event is the Glenlyon Community BBQ/Picnic which has been an annual event since the 1970s. Glenlyon is such a cool little village with very nice people, if I do say so myself.
House stuff. I may fit everyone in here after all. Sanae Services for septic things, Skip Hire for a cleanup, Palmer, Stevens & Rennick if you need a lawyer son (quirky music reference), Onsite Flyscreens for screens and more, Carpet Flooring for all things flooring, not just carpet, and for the farmers out there, Macedon Ranges Ag Machinery. And if you need to fuel up, Trentham Petrol.
Whew, nearly there. Money burning a hole in your pocket and you want to donate to a good cause? Central Highlands Rural Health and Cafs are your go-to and your money stays local.
Hmmm. Now the hard ones. Not really sure how you spend your money on these at a particular time. Verey Funeral Directors. I really hope you don’t need them any time soon but Andrew and Alicia are lovely, kind people. That’s enough to know.
Daylesford Agricultural Show is another hard one. Maybe just plan to head there next year because if you didn’t go, you just missed their first one in three years. A really hard-working committee and a big call out to president Don Harvey and his president, wife Mary. Well done.
Hepburn Shire Council? I guess you could pay your rates on time? Or tell them the Daylesford roundabouts have been looking amazing. I did that. Credit where it’s due and all that. MPs Mary-Anne Thomas and Catherine King. Maybe you voted for them both so that is enough. But maybe you are more conservative, a Liberal voter or Nationals. Maybe Greens. Hard one. Christmas card saying thanks for supporting the paper? Daylesford Trading Co has Christmas cards. Two birds with one stone.
And lastly, I can’t believe I made it and I did have to move Max from here to page 25, Hepburn House. A really wonderful aged care facility in our community. I know, buy one of their Ageing DisGracefully calendars. Just $20, lots of fun, and will help kit out their bus. Done. But wait, there’s more, make sure you put the trade pages on the fridge – you are going to need them one day.
Really done. Go Shop Local! And tell them Donna sent you. Just sayin’…