Vale, Steve Irwin

I was shocked today to hear of the passing of Steve Irwin, otherwise known as The Crocodile Hunter. I got an e-mail at work, which I first thought was a hoax. How could he be killed by a stingray? That's not a crocodile! This was then followed by a phone call from Anth, where she left a message asking me if I had heard it or not. There was a buzz around the office at work as most people heard the news, and with most people commenting on how they thought he was indestructible, given all the things we'd known and seen he'd done. Just last week there was a representative from Australia Zoo, at our worksite giving an environmental lecture on the work the zoo does with injured animals, even bringing in a koala.

Some people in Australia thought Steve was too loud and too brash. Sometimes, we suffer from a cultural cringe. I liked him because he was loud and passionate. At first, I must admit I thought he was too much of a larikin, but once you scratched below the surface of the media face, you found an amazing human being. I think that is why most Australian's are so shocked. My views were mostly set by Andrew Denton's interviews with him, and separately with his wife Terri. From these I realised that here was a man who not only was passionate about wildlife, he obviously loved his wife and family dearly.

Steve was not without controversy. The infamous incident he had holding baby Bob in a crocodile pen whilst feeding a crocodile knocked him down a peg or too. I'm sure in that instance the baby was safe, although I didn't agree with everything he did. He did, however, share his passion with the world. His TV series, and the Australia Zoo are testament to that. I've only been once, but Anth and the kids have been many times as whenever people come to visit, they want to go to his Zoo. It's only 50km up the road from where I live, so its not too far, and it really is magnificent. He also had bought up thousands of acres in Australia and around the world as sanctuaries for wildlife. One can only hope his legacy will remain and be continued by those that knew him. My condolences, along with many Australians, are passed to his family.

Ciao for Now, Saddened Angry Dad.