Thousands of people are expected to turn out for the opening of the Toowoomba Bypass this weekend.

A marathon will be held on the highway tomorrow before an official ceremony on Sunday.

It's been a very long time coming... and the staff and students of St Joseph's School have been patiently waiting for the trucks driving along James street to be reduced in number.

Belinda Sanders spoke to Paul Canning and Bruce Cook ... teachers at the school to find out why.

Strange Smells to Disappear this Weekend

It's coming. 

Today marks seven days till the start of Carnival of Flowers, 2019.   

Ten glorious days of celebration, featuring over 1,100 hectares of public parks and private gardens shining with over 180,000 bulbs and seedlings in full bloom, a record 77 events, internationally-acclaimed music acts and some of the best food and wine experiences in the state! 

But Toowoomba Regional Council's Senior Gardener Julie Stoddart doesn't have time to worry abpouyt the "non-gardening" aspects of this year's carnival. 

She and the rest of the gardening team are in the middle of their busiest time of year and she explained why to the ABC's David Iliffe.

Julie Stoddardt - COF 2019

Farmer Graeme Berry and his wife Dal are moving off their Clifton property Roselawn after more than half a century. 

But before they can downsize, they’ll need to hold a clearing sale so massive, it can only be held in cyberspace.  

An avid collector of antique machinery, Graeme has more than 300 vintage tractors and engines in several large sheds on his property.

They range from some of the first farm machines he ever drove when he began farming at fourteen, through to a host of other classic and antique pieces that have caught his eye at some stage or another in the past fifty years.

He spoke with the ABC's David Iliffe about how he accrued the collection and how he feels about letting it all go.

Everything Must Go: Selling off one of the country's biggest collections of vintage farm machinery

Have you heard of Polyethylene Teraphthalete? Also known as PETE. 

It's one of the many globally recognised packing materials.

What if someone could tell you there were multiple mixed plastics just like PETE that can't be recycled, adding to the massive plastic issue impacting on the environment.

There is even plastic in many of the clothes you are probably wearing right now

Scientists at the University of Southern Queensland are trying to find a way to keep them out of land fill.

Andreas Helwig, Senior Lecturer of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering from USQ spoke to Belinda Sanders.

Scientists Solving the Plastics Problem

The Australian Rail Track Corporation could resume houses and entire properties as part of the final route for the Inland Rail Project. 

The group this week contacted affected landholders to confirm the route through parts of Southern Queensland.

The independent chair of the Inland Rail Inner Darling Downs Community Consultative Committee Bill Armagnacq spoke to Belinda Sanders

Final Inland Rail Alignment Revealed

The Australian Cultural Library opened in Toowoomba in 2012.. but at the end of this month it will move out of the Garden City and set up in Rosewood near Ipswich.

If you don't know much about the library.. it is a volunteer organisation.. that aims to gather and preserve as much of Australia's culture as possible. 

It currently holds over 50,000 items including books, sheet music, music recordings, DVDs, film, posters, t-shirts and paintings; from the well-known to the rare and obscure.

It won't leave the garden city without an impressive curtain call.

The final exhibition at the Australian Cultural library base in Toowoomba's CBD is called "On the Wings of Love they Danced"

There are racks and racks of the hand sewn ball gowns by the late Thelma Buetel for the late Dulcie Mason.

The exquisite dresses showcase the fashion the 1950s through to the 1990's

I had a sneak peak at the dresses.. you can have a look at the photos on the ABC Southern Queensland facebook page.

While I was drifting away to hall dances.. I chatted to the Australian Cultural Library's Steve Towsen.

On the Wings of Love they Danced

You are about to meet a man who literally eats oysters for breakfast .

He is surrounded by seafood everyday... about 200 kilometres away from the ocean and 700 metres above sea level .. in Toowoomba.

Robert Stone will be spending his entire weekend shucking fresh oysters for the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers

Belinda Sanders went to find out how many.

Oyster Shucking in the Bush!

The Toowoomba Clubhouse has completely restructured it's operation to survive the introduction of National Disability Insurance Scheme funding model.

To maintain free access to the mental health support service, the clubhouse is now only partly funded by the NDIS with the rest coming from private donations.

Toowoomba Clubhouse CEO Debbie Bailey told Belinda Sanders the NDIS money goes to certain people participating in new very specific mental health recovery programs.

Toowoomba Clubhouse restructures to survive NDIS

Jason Hately has been a Toowoomba Clubhouse member for not quite a year.

Jason told Belinda Sanders it is a place he could go where he wouldn't be judged.

Jason Hately on recovery from mental illness.

The Toowoomba Clubhouse has completely restructured it's operation to survive the introduction of National Disability Insurance Scheme funding model.

The restructure is working.. at least for Kamie Barlett .. who told  Belinda Sanders she was diagnosed with multiple mental illnesses from the age of four.

Breakfast with David and Belinda