Hi Rob,
welcome to IIS, and hopefully soon, we can welcome you to ASSA. My application took a few weeks before i got any answers. You can still attend the monthly meetings at Adelaide University before being a member.
ASSA has a monthly members viewing at Tooperang hall, which is not far from you. Each month around new moon, they have a scheduled meeting. Anywhere up to 20 members with scopes, with most friendly enough to ask questions and give all sorts of advice. Even if it is cloudy, some members go for chat and coffee - in case the clouds disappear.
I suggest looking through scopes and talking to people before spending. Each person has different idea of best scope, so talk to plenty of people first.
All the best.
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