ONLY RULE IS NO RULE

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-08-27T06:27:00.005+10:00

F IS FOR........FLIES

Ah yes, the great Aussie salute....the graceful swish of the hand across the face, to deter those pesky bush flies!

From our 2003 adventure, across northern Australia, three beautiful places loom large in the pantheon of bush fly-plagued camp-sites - Limestone Gorge (in Litchfield NP, Northern Territory), Bell Gorge ( along the Gibb River Rd, Western Aust) & Walcott Inlet ( also WA).

In the photo above is Ian ( yes, one of the 3 great cooks from last week) baking at the Limestone Gorge camp....if the flies have settled on your back, DO NOT disturb them. If they're on your back, then they're not buzzing round your eyes, nose & mouth!!

The must-have accessory is your fly-net, which automatically goes on at sunrise ,when the flies arrive, and doesn't come off till sunset, when they all miraculously disappear.

For other equally-rivetting F posts, buzz on over to Mrs Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday blog & click on the links.

STAMPHAPPY 1-4-1 SWAP

2008-08-25T14:33:00.007+10:00

It's been a bit remiss of me not displaying the ATCs I've received in the StampHappy 1-4-1 swap that is currently running. Time to put things to rights. Hope you enjoy looking at the art made by others in the StampHappy group. These Artist Trading Cards are all 6.4cm X 8.9cm.

Opening the show, above, is an ATC by Carolyn Weiss. Those below are by Dorothy Leach & Danielle D'Onofrio.

The next three are by Roz Veevers, Barb Dare & Lynn Gosney.

Below are ATCs by Melanie Smith, Julie Price & Kaeren Sutherland.

The next three are by Janet Hamblin, Vikki Whittington & Linda Aldred, who's organised the on-going swap.

The final three are by Dorothy Leach, Diane Whatford & Dorothy again.

Thank you everyone for playing with me, & looking forward to more swaps.

NEW-ISH JEWELLERY

2008-08-23T11:34:00.007+10:00

It's been ages since I've put up any of the jewellery I've been making, so thought it was about time.

The charm bracelet above I actually made for myself. It uses little mille fiore beads & Swarovski crystals which have been attached by wire-wrapping. I love it...it's really colourful & musical as the charms ting into each other.

Bracelets seem to have been on my list recently. Above are some made from Swarovski crystals & either Japanese or Czech seed beads. The sea-green bracelet below is made from resin beads & the other one from semi-precious stones....hmm,maybe carnelian?

Lastly, two necklaces .The first one uses pearl shell, agate, Czech glass & brass. The second one is made from clear quartz chips & nuggets.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-08-20T06:00:00.006+10:00

E IS FOR ..........EATING and drinking

A huge part of our 2003 adventure across northern & north western Australia was eating & drinking. Heather, Rob & Ian are all incredible cooks & my then 15 y/o nephew Tim a very willing apprentice. My role....kitchen aid, & Peter's...bar attendant.

We ate the most amazing meals, and truly, there is nothing those 3 can't cook in a cast-iron camp oven.....Turkish bread, friandes, 40-cloves chicken, Moroccan lamb, apple crumble, Old Cork pork, Black Forest cake, bread loaves & rolls!

At Darwin's Mindil markets, there is an eye-popping choice in satays & burgers when you check the selection available.

We ate meals in the most incredible and mundane locations....empty beaches in a tiny patch of shade & car parks with picnic benches.

If you munch your way over to Mrs Nesbitt's, you'll find links to more ABC Wednesday posts.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

2008-08-18T08:49:00.001+10:00

Our special girl turns FOUR today!! Happy happy birthday Darling Caitlyn.

2008 Telstra National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Art Award

2008-08-17T12:19:00.010+10:00

The winner of this year's award is Makinti Napananka, a Pintupi woman from the tiny western desert community of Kintore in the Northern Territory. Kintore is one of the communities in the Papunya Tula Art Movement.

Although Mikinti is probably in her late 70s, she has only been painting for about 12 years.

Her untitled picture depicts a rockhole near Kintore.

MOVIE TIME

2008-08-16T16:03:00.004+10:00

Thanks to Julie's gentle encouragement, once more I embark on my plan to visit the cinema more regularly. If visiting monthly was too difficult, why on earth have I decided on a fortnightly visit?? Am I setting myself up once more for failure??

"The Band's Visit" is a gentle little film that tells of the unplanned visit of a Police band from Egypt to an Israeli town out in the middle of nowhere. It's one of those quiet films where not a lot happens, but it completely absorbs you into the telling of the story. The messages of tolerance, friendship & commonality are very subtly imparted & at times, I also found myself laughing out loud at the droll humour.

A terrific film.

SKY WATCH FRIDAY

2008-08-15T08:52:00.005+10:00

SNAPPER ROCKS

It was a wild and stormy day at Snapper Rocks.

What are these blokes looking at?

You make your own judgement about the wisdom of their behaviour. In the picture below, you can see that 2 of them are holding glass stubbies of beer.

For other thought-provoking SWF posts, visit the home of SkyWatch Friday.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-08-12T20:19:00.011+10:00

D IS FOR..........DIAMANTINA RIVER

The Diamantina River flows through central Queensland, in a SW direction, through the Channel Country, becomes the Warburton River, journeys on into South Australia, and, if there is enough flow, eventually into Lake Eyre.

We first glimpsed the Diamantina in 2002 and returned in 2003, to camp on her banks at Old Cork Station, on our way to The Kimberley. I'll quote from my diary...

"Sitting in peace & solitude, high on the banks, overlooking the coffee-brown waters of the Diamantina...budgerigars feed nearby, gorging on grass seeds...this place is so beautiful,peaceful, redolent of history in the abandoned homestead."

Breaking that peace, above, are Tim & Peter, zipping around the river in the tinny.

Most of the country along the Diamantina is flat & rough, and is used for grazing cattle. The photo below was taken in 2002, along the Diamantina Road, when the country was in the firm grip of drought.

Old Cork Station was featured in my post "Loo With A View", just below the Divas' post, and will appear again later in ABC Wednesday.

Mrs Nesbitt does a wonderful job hosting ABC Wednesday and in this link,you'll find links to loads of great D posts.

Duo Divas

2008-08-12T14:23:00.004+10:00

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about our Northern Rivers Symphony Orchestra, mentioning soprano Liza Beamish. That's Liza on our right in the picture above.

Liza has joined up with Kathleen Procter-Moore and they are performing together under the name Duo Divas. About 100 fortunate people gathered together in the Tweed River Art Gallery, at Murwillumbah, this morning, to listen to a fabulous program of duets, with a couple of solos thrown in for variety. Such a bewitching combination....soprano, mezzo and the backdrop of the magnificent Tweed Valley!

If you visit here, you'll be able to listen to the Duo Divas signing the Flower Duet from "Lakme" while reading a little more about them.

LOO WITH A VIEW!

2008-08-11T08:47:00.006+10:00

In her Daily Rabaul Photo blog today, Jules post a photo of some gorgeous outdoor dunnies near Goroka.

This is a 'sister' post...of our fantastic loo with a view, built by Peter & Tim high above Cork Waterhole, at Old Cork Station, in western Queensland. Below, is the view from 'the throne'.

Old Cork Station is one of my favourite places in the universe.

PS In answer to a query, all waste is collected in a tin drum and then thoughtfully buried well away from water-courses.

SKY WATCH FRIDAY

2008-08-08T06:36:00.003+10:00

CASUARINA SCULPTURE WALK

An outdoor sculpture competition is held every two years at Casuarina, just along the beach from the coastal village where I live. Artists are invited to submit work which is then installed along the board walk & in the parks. This piece really grabbed my attention in 2006, & ,actually, really unsettled me. Sorry, no idea who the artist is.

If you go to Casuarina Domain & click on "sculpture walk" in the drop-down "Activities " menu, you can see some more past winners.

To see more SWF pictures, & read a very thoughtful post about 'taking time', visit the home page for SkyWatch Friday.

A WEEK IN TOWNSVILLE

2008-08-04T12:43:00.009+10:00

If you're visiting to see SkyWatch Friday, it's not here this week....and ABC Wednesday will be late!

I'm spending this week in Townsville, the regional capital of North Queensland. My sister has just be appointed to a position here, & so she and her husband have moved from Bundaberg.
These photos are just a quick trip around the city. Above is the view from their balcony.

Townsville was originally settled to provide services for the the farming industry of NQ in the mid 1800s, and quickly developed into a busy port. There are some beautiful historic buildings dating from the 1880-90s, though bizarrely many of them are now nightclubs & bars! Above is the magestic old Victorian railway station, while below is the HM Customs.

Around the port area of South Townsville, where the wharfies live, there still exists some of the gorgeous original workingmens's pubs. Below is the Commonwealth Hotel.

The most distinctive feature of Townsville is Castle Hill, quite literally in the middle of the city. In the early mornings & late afternoons, it seems that almost everyone is walking up or down the hill! Here's the view from the top, out towards Magnetic Island.

We walked it on Sunday morning before breakfast.

Just a 20minute ferry ride away is gorgeous Magetic Island, named by Capt. Cook in 1770. We spent the day over there yesterday, doing a bit of bushwalking and relaxing! Here's the view from the ferry, back to Townsville.

Below is Alma Bay.

Some of the beautiful lichen-covered boulders scattered through the hilly interior of Magnetic Is. is pictured above.

Townsville also played a significant role in World War 2. A post about that history is 'coming soon'!

As always, if you click on the highlighted words in my text, you'll be taken to more information.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-07-30T07:25:00.004+10:00

B IS FOR ..........BOAB TREES

Boabs, or adansonia gregorii, belongs to same family of trees as does the boabab. It is the only variety of boabab found in Australia and is thought to have derived from the boababs found in Madagascar.

In Australia, they are native to the Kimberley area in the NW, and in some parts of the Northern Territory. The majestic boab above sits on the north coast of Western Australia at Murragurra, and has withstood countless summer cyclones.

They also grow in little groups too, of 2 or 3 trees, & many clumps look like friends having a communal hug! Boabs are deciduous & bear white flowers in summer, then huge woody seed pods. Juicy, young boab roots can be chopped up & used in a stir-fry too!

The above boab we camped near in the Gregory National Park in the Northern Territory. In the pre-dawn it filled with Little Corellas, all squawking & carrying-on an awful treat.

On my 'B' list were 13 different things from our 2003 adventure, but , following the 'KISS' principle, just one will do!

However, to see what others came up with, wander over to Mrs Nesbitt's ABC WEdnesday site & click away!

A HIJACKING & THE NRSO!

2008-07-28T07:40:00.008+10:00

My life has been hijacked! But...wait, that puts a rather 'violent' slant on things. Appropriated perhaps, though that sounds like something the pollies in the national capital do!

MUSIC is running away with my life, making off with little portions & giving them over to music. In this last week, when I wasn't tap-dancing, I was listening to the Sydney Piano Competition or practising piano , at choir practice or singing along with CDs of Handel or William James.

Yesterday, it was our 'local' Northern Rivers Symphony Orchestra's turn to spirit away my afternoon.As an unashamed crowd-pleaser, they did a "People's Choice Top Ten Countdown", based on votes lodged on the internet or snail mail for orchestral repertoire performed in the last 15 years. The results were fairly predictable favourites...but here's what the NRSO played.

10. Symphony no. 6 by Beethoven ....1st movement only.
9. Medley from "Phantom of the Opera"
8. William Tell overture by Rossini, and Romance from the 'Gadfly' by Shostakovich
7. Waltz of the Flowers by Tchaikovsky
6. Finlandia by Sibelius and Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov ....Sinbad's tale only
5. Blue Danube Waltz by J Strauss
4. Symphony no. 9 by Dvorak....4th movement only
3. Barcarole by Offenbach
2. Morning from Peer Gynt by Grieg and Radetsky March by J Strauss and Adagio from
"Spartacus" by Katchachurian
1. 1812 overture by Tchaikovsky....disappointingly without canons and church bells....

Yes, very much orchestral pops, but then this is one of the retirement capitals of Australia. More importantly for the NRSO, it put 'bums on seats'. The orchestra receives no funding or sponsorship, and survives on ticket, program & CD sales, donations & Friends contributions.

Below, is maestro Barry Singh. His conductor's choice was the Medley from Jurassic Park by John Williams.

If you'd like to listen to the NRSO Cammerata with local Murwillumbah soprano Liza Beamish perform 'Let The Bright Seraphim', you can click here.

My life has been hijacked, but who's complaining?

SKY WATCH FRIDAY

2008-07-25T09:24:00.003+10:00

We had bushfires on the eastern edges of our village in October,2004 that threatened homes before thankfully being brought under control by the wonderful volunteers of the Rural Fire Service and a couple of helicopters carrying those big 'buckets' of water. The sun & the light cast through the smoke were very eery.

If you waft over to the SkyWatch home page, you'll find a gorgeous photo & poem, & links to a host of other SkyWatch Friday posts.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-07-22T20:25:00.006+10:00

ABC WEDNESDAY

ABC Wednesday kicks off on its third trip through the alphabet. To try & link all my posts, I'm going to attempt to choose each week's post from the wonders I saw in northern Australia in 2003.

First off.........
A IS FOR ...........
AVIATION HERITAGE CENTRE, DARWIN

The Australian Aviation Heritage Centre was opened in Darwin in 1990. The photo above shows the B-52 (on permanent loan from the USAF & one of only two on display outside the US) dwarfing a Tiger Moth. Below is a Sabrejet Fighter, first used in combat in the Korean war, and later as the main training jet for the RAAF.

Below is a B-25 Mitchell bomber, used by Allied air forces in every theatre of conflict in WW2, including the Pacific war.

The Heritage Centre shares a huge parcel of land with both the RAAF base & Darwin Airport.It was a lovely juxtapositon to be looking at the Sabrejet while watching the Air Force's F/A-18 Hornet fighters practising landings & take-offs on the other side of the airfield.

Zoom over to Mrs Nesbitt's, and check out the other A postings for this week, and maybe even think about joining this group.

SIPCA

2008-07-17T10:01:00.002+10:00

If you love virtuosic piano-playing, then the Sydney International Piano Competition of Australia is something you may want to listen to, or , if you are in Sydney, attend.

Thirty-six young adults, ranging in age from 17 to 30 & from many countries, today begin the rigours of the competition. For twenty-seven of them, it began badly even before they had arrived in Australia, as many international flights were severely delayed.

Competitors can choose to play either a Steinway, Kawai or Yamaha piano, and it can all be heard live on ABC CLassic FM.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-07-15T15:41:00.006+10:00

Z IS FOR..................
ZINC CREAM

Growing up near the coast in Sydney, back at the dawn of time, almost the only kind of sun protection available was zinc cream. It is able to absorb both UVA & UVB rays from sunlight, and is almost insoluble in water.

"Traditionally", it was worn smeared across your nose & cheeks, and on your lips, & came in white only. A high profile wearer of zinc cream is Aussie cricketer, Andrew Symonds, below.

As you can see from my zinc stick , it is available in these modern times in "skin tone " (though I'm not sure whose skin tone it matches), and also a rainbowed variety of fluro colours.

Wearing zinc on your nose is considered a very "Aussie" thing to do!

I'm sorry I didn't visit many ABC Wednesday blogs, last week, as I basically posted my Y item, immediately before going away for a week. I will try to catch up this week.

If you waltz over to Mrs Nesbitt's, you'll find other posts for Z. It should be fascinating this week!

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-07-09T07:26:00.007+10:00

Y IS FOR .............
YELLOW WATER BILLABONG

Kakadu National Park, in Australia's Northern Territory, is where you'll find Yellow Water Billabong, & is home to a huge number of bird species, as well as the saltwater crocodile.These are pink lotus lilies, below.

A billabong forms where a creek or river changes it's course, leaving part of the river as a kind of dead end. In the iconic & perhaps 'unofficial' Australian national anthem, "Waltzing Matilda", the sheep-stealing swagman throws himself into a billabong to escape capture by the trooper, or police.

If you click here, you be able to listen to a very different version of the song, played on the throttle of a V8 Supercar....TRUE!!

Visit Mrs Nesbitt and find out what else in the world begins with Y.

BRAIN EXPLOSION

2008-07-04T15:08:00.004+10:00

This is what a brain explosion looks like!!!!!!!!

The kind that happens when you've laboured to connect cords, cables etc of an electronic gadget of sorts , & when you turn the bloody thing on...there is zip, zilch, zero!

My mum gave me her keyboard as she doesn't play any more. I 've never really played, but proper lessons have been enthusiastically arranged.

When I originally set it up, I connected everything, & BINGO...sweet tones.

My first piano lesson was yesterday, & of course, raced home from it, mad for more practice. But when I turned the bloody thing on, yep, that's it....zip, zero, zilch....not a peep! Have connected/reconnected it twenty-twelve times, power on/off & through the Troubleshooting points a similar number of times, but STILL NOTHING!!

Tapping away on silent keys doesn't really do it for me!

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-07-02T07:24:00.002+10:00

X IS FOR ............
......XANTHORRHOEA

An xanthorrhoea is an extremely slow-growing Australian grass tree. They are often the first plant to reappear after a bushfire has gone through an area.

I took these pictures last Sunday, about a month after a fire burnt through bush next to our local school, & already the new growth was apparent.

Bushfires ,in the wild, are part of the natural cycle of growth & regeneration in the Aussie bush.

The flower of an xanthorrhoea is born on a long vertical spike. You can see 2 flower spikes from last season in the picture below, from an area not burnt out.

If you want to see what others came up with for X, check out Mrs Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday list.

LIFE'S A CIRCUS!

2008-07-01T09:04:00.002+10:00

On 24th June, I wrote a little comment called "Life's A Balancing Act" ( just scroll back a few posts). Honour who has a wonderfully thoughtful blog here, wrote a pithy comment that her friend whose 2nd language is English, prefers to say "life is a circus".

.....and I'm loving that! Life really is a circus when you think about it!

So, if that's the case, what's your act in the circus of life, if I'm the balancing act?

The high diving act above is performed by either my brother-in-law or my nephew, at Manning Gorge in the Kimberley area of Western Australia.

SUNDAY ON THE BEACH WITH ........

2008-06-29T14:00:00.012+10:00

......George, his dog, & others....

.....plus a watch washed up on the beach, stopped at 12.05....what happened at 12.05 I wonder?

SOME DAYS ARE DIAMONDS!

2008-06-26T11:45:00.004+10:00

....just like today! Just arrived back home from my ( almost) daily walk with my friend Robin down to Hastings Pt via the cycle track & return via the beach. It's a BRILLIANT day, warm-ish & calm, & Robin & I picked 3, yes THREE, top pieces of beach glass, 2 clear/frosted & the other GREEN!! No daggy beer bottle beach glass like my photo above!

Dolphins surfing in the waves, having the time of their lives, AND THEN....

...out to sea, leaping out of the water, humpback whales, on their annual winter migration north,from Antarctica to the Coral Sea, where the females give birth. We walked up to the headland ,lay back on the grass in the sun & watched 3 different pods of whales for about 45 minutes.

Yep, some days are diamonds!

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-06-25T07:20:00.008+10:00

W is for.............................
WHISPER THE WONDER CAT!!

Whisper the Wonder Cat was adopted from the RSPCA four years ago, at 10 weeks of age. Her name then was Ariel but she loudly complained that , really, her name was Whisper, so that's what she became.

Like most cats, she loves boxes......

...and like other living creatures, she does naughty things when she doesn't get her own way!

Her second best friend is Casper Domingo who decided he wanted to live with us 3 years ago. Together, they get up to all kinds of shenanigans, like fighting over shelves in the linen cupboard!

But , in the end, there's nothing they like better than curling up together on the best seat in the house!

If you romp on over to Mrs Nesbitt's, you'll find links to other ABC Wednesday posts, and also see Mrs Nesbitt's own W post, which is along the same lines as mine.

LIFE'S A BALANCING ACT

2008-06-24T16:33:00.002+10:00

I reckon life's a balancing act.....try & maintain a bit of equilibrium....tread the path that brings the greatest rewards, whatever they may be!

For me, the great reward of the balancing act, above, was reaching the other side of Lawn Hill Creek dry. Hmmm...Lawn Hill National Park , now known as Boodjamulla NP, could be my next 'favourite places' post...out-of-this-world amazing!

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-06-18T07:57:00.003+10:00

V is for...............................

My gorgeous zippy pocket-rocket VW Polo is what's referred to, here in Oz, a Euro-diesel. It's a whole new generation of high-tech. diesel vehicles that are classy and SO-O much fun to drive. They run on the smell of an oily rag and ooze that special VW vibe! Just a shame that diesel prices here have spiralled more out of control than unleaded, and nobody except diesel drivers seems to care a fig!

Visit Mrs Nesbitt and click on others who have posted V items.

FROMELLES 1916

2008-06-15T17:27:00.005+10:00

In July,1916, Australian soldiers fought a pointless bloodbath of a battle alongside British soldiers, near the small French village of Fromelles. In a 24-hour period, Australia lost over 5000 soldiers killed, wounded or missing. The Australian War Memorial in Canberra calls it "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history." Many of those missing, presumed dead, have no known grave.

Last year, a geophysical survey revealed the location of what was believed to be one of the mass graves supposedly dug by German soldiers for the burial of unknown Australian and British soldiers killed at Fromelles.

In May and June of this year, an extensive archaeological dig positively identified the remains as those of some of these soldiers. This week a official ceremony was conducted at the site after the pit had been resealed. The owner of the land has generously donated the site to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

The governments of France, Australia and Britain have to decide now whether to exhume and attempt to identify each of the bodies in this pit, and then provide individual graves for each soldier at the site, or to leave the bodies as they are and provide a memorial.

EARLY MORNING DEWDROPS

2008-06-14T17:32:00.005+10:00

We've had quite a lot of heavy dews over the past week or so, and early morning is always a wonderful time to be out with a camera. Unfortunately,my camera doesn't really cope too well with ultra close-ups. You can see the 'velvety' covering of dew on the grass in the next picture,

and this was the best I could do, and maintain focus.

MY BIG EFFORT!

2008-06-12T17:13:00.003+10:00

Ok!Ok! Time to bite the bullet...this Sunday I am taking a spot at a local car boot sale/market day and will make my first public attempt to sell some jewellery and mail art. Spent today pricing new work and cutting prices on pieces from last year, which proved to be quite a difficult thing to do. Obviously I want to sell my work, but I don't want to undercharge either, because that devalues it.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-06-11T12:38:00.006+10:00

U is for...................

ULTRAMARINE

Ultramarine is the blue colour pigment obtained from ground-down lapis lazuli and has been a valued rock and pigment for thousands of years. Traditionally, lapis comes from Afganistan, but it is also found in Egypt and Chile, and, in smaller quantities, in parts of the former USSR & Asia. Its primary metaphysical property is as a bringer of peace.

Genuine lapis is very expensive, and as I only have lapis chips, my photo below is not wonderful. However, it gives you an idea of the ultramarine pigment, which is classified as a 'warm blue'. In painting, it is often used to symbolise royalty.

We're getting to the tricky end of the alphabet...what a challenging time for me to have joined! If you're wondering what else in our world starts with U, please go to Mrs Nesbitt's and you'll find a whole list of blogs featuring U!

MUSIC MONDAY

2008-06-09T09:43:00.004+10:00

Having only come to the music of kd lang in the last couple of years, I am still very much in her thrall, and there is so much of her past recordings still for me to discover.

"Watershed" is her recently-released record...it seems very personal, with her songs of love, both good love and bad, feeling to me to come from her own experiences. As a listener, I feel quite privileged that she is telling me these stories from her life.

It's music to really listen to, in quiet moments, not 'something playing in the background'.

If you go to YouTube, you'll be able to watch and listen to a trailer about "Watershed."

MOST ROADS LEAD TO......

2008-06-06T08:55:00.003+10:00

It's the Queen's Birthday Long Weekend in Australia this weekend which is such an anachronism, considering her real birthday is in April and probably a majority of Australians are keen for our country to become a republic.

However, everybody loves a long weekend and round here most roads lead to Caba this weekend. The Greenback is not a display of an ailing foreign currency but a beach fishing competition, where most of the fish caught are Greenback Tailor. All fish caught are auctioned for charity, but the feeling is that catches should be weighed, then thrown back.

The V8 Superboats race at a specially constructed inland venue at Round Mountain, just down the road, where they also race jetboats.

BUT, if all this sounds like too much excitement for one weekend, you could head down to Ballina instead, where you can fish in less crowded environs and putt about at leisure in your tinny on the Richmond River.

ABC WEDNESDAY

2008-06-04T08:39:00.005+10:00

T IS FOR......
........TICKET

The year I lived in London, my friend and I were lucky enough to get tickets for the Men's Final at Wimbledon. It was the year Boris Becker , as an 18 year-old I think, won his first title.

If you visit Mrs Nesbitt's, you will find links to others who participate in this activity, so you can check out what others have posted for T.

MUSIC MONDAY

2008-06-02T07:21:00.002+10:00

Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu is a Gumatj man from Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory. Blind since birth, he has the voice of an angel, and writes and sings incredibly moving songs about his country. He was once a member of Yothu Yindi and now fronts his own band, the Saltwater Band.

On his record,"Gurrumul", he sings his stories accompanying himself on his guitar.

If you click here, you can hear Geoffrey, and here, you can listen to the Saltwater Band.

For a true blast from the past, listen to Yothu Yindi sing Treaty while watching a former Australian Prime Minister make himself look like a goose!

BEWARE!!

2008-06-01T09:58:00.003+10:00

These signs are on the side of the road as your drive west out of our little village. When I first moved here 12 years ago, most weeks you would see a koala wandering around on the roadside, as there is what is called a koala corridor in the bush west of the Tweed coast. However, since the construction of a new section of Pacific Highway west of the koala corridor, about four years ago, I have only seen one koala. This is what we all feared.....their disappearance.

AN ALPINE SYMPHONY

2008-05-29T11:40:00.004+10:00

On other pages of this blog, I've admitted to my passion for the operas and music of Richard Wagner. In grave fear of being accused of having a 'thing' for German Romantic composers, here, today, in fact right now, I will also own up to a love of Richard Strauss' music. ( And no, not the waltzing Strausses) My favourite music of the moment is his tone poem , An Alpine Symphony, completed in 1915, which depicts a day excursion in the Bavarian Alps, a memory from Strauss' adolescence.

I first heard it in concert with my beloved Sydney Symphony Orchestra, maybe 15 years ago. The orchestral colour blew me away, that plus the monumental musical forces Strauss employs....an orchestra of 123 players including a huge brass section on and off the stage, a wind machine, a thunder machine and a pipe organ. I was completely swept off my feet by the music that night,almost in a swoon...I have a really vivid recollection of it.

Such is the nature of passion.

On Saturday, 31st May, you'll be able to watch a live video stream of the Sydney Symphony, conducted by Charles Dutoit, from the concert hall of the Sydney Opera House, perform this astonishing symphonic work.

Below is the Syd. Symph. with current conductor Maestro Gelmetti, and man who'll do the arm-waving from next year, Maestro Ashkenazy.

FIRST FLOWERS ON THE WATTLE

2008-05-28T13:48:00.004+10:00

This beautiful wattle tree in my front yard rated a mention last year as well, but I was surprised to find that it is beginning to burst into flower. It doesn't normally flower until late June, but after experiencing very little summer this year , an early autumn and already many days and nights of what passes for "winter" here, it's very much ahead of itself.

It's called Acacia Macradenia or Zig-zag Wattle, as it has zig-zagging branches and it's perfume is absolutely heavenly! Many people are allergic to wattle pollen unfortunately.

MUSIC MONDAY

2008-05-26T07:44:00.005+10:00

This is just a hook to hang today's post on...Music Monday.

There's a great music venue, about 30 minutes drive from here, overlooking Currumbin Creek, called The Soundlounge. One of my current fave bands, The Audreys, performed there last week, supported by J Walker aka Machine Translations ( that's him below). TOP night!

RECENT ATCS

2008-05-24T11:58:00.004+10:00

Because of the ATC group I'm in, and all the swapping we do, there are lots of new ATCs I've made recently.

The two above were for made What Inspires Me and Art Mediums swaps, while the 2 below were for Black Cat and Pink swaps.

This little hobby is very addictive...so many ideas, so little time to devote to making them! If you are interested in swapping ATCs, please just let me know.

SET OFF THE FIREWORKS!!

2008-05-19T16:38:00.003+10:00

STRIKE UP THE BAND! DECLARE A PUBLIC HOLIDAY!

Time to put the toe back into the BlogWorld water! A bit of a new look to the blog, but the same old rabbitting-on......I don't like too much change!

MARCH MOVIE....errr, running late!

2008-04-06T07:56:00.005+10:00

Yes,yes...I know. No need to remind me. Computer /internet problems haven't help either.

The important thing is that I did get to the cinema in March, to see the documentary "In The Shadow Of The Moon". As an Apollo 11 tragic, I was so keen to see it before it disappeared to the small screen where most of the impact of the glorious images would be lost.

What came across so clearly was how normal the Apollo astronauts are. They just seemed like Everyone's Grandpa, just with super-intelligence! Neil Armstrong doesn't give interviews but most of the other astronauts from the Apollo programme spoke candidly about their experiences. What I'd forgotten was that there were 6 ....yes, SIX ....manned missions to the Moon between Apollo 11 in July 1969 and Apollo 17, in December 1972, though Apollo 13 was aborted prior to the lunar landing.

HAPPY EASTER ......and DRAGONFLIES

2008-03-24T09:13:00.005+11:00

to have

HAPPY EASTER....hope it's been a safe and relaxing one!

This photo was one of those "aim and shoot while hoping for the best" type of photos! Casper the Cat was eyeing off this dragonfly which concerned me so I followed them around with camera in hand not expecting much at all. When the dragonfly landed on the strelitzia momentarily, I just well, aimed and shot, and hoped the camera 'knew' what I wanted in focus. And...yes it did.

Here's the dragonfly up close.

Wreck of HMAS Sydney discovered.

2008-03-17T14:05:00.003+11:00

The photo above is of some of the crew of the Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney.

The Sydney was sunk in November ,1941, by the German raider HSK Kormoran, after they had engaged in a sea battle off the Western Australian coast. The Kormoran subsequently sank and lost about 60 of its crew of approximately 380 sailors. All 645 crewmen of the Sydney went down with the ship, and the location of both ships has eluded searchers and historians ever since.

It was announced today that the wreckage of HMAS Sydney was located overnight. This ended a genuine mystery that had puzzled historians and others for over 65 years....the location of both ships had been the subject of over 20 search projects. It was announced yesterday that the wreckage of the Kormoran had been located, so it wasn't a surprise when today's announcement was made.

The area has been designated a war graves site, and I believe neither of the shipwrecks will be interfered with.It has provided some degree of closure for families of the lost crewmen.

If you are interested in reading more, Wikipedia is a good place to go.

QUICK POST ON NEW DISCOVERY

2008-03-16T08:33:00.005+11:00

Happy happy Sunday, and I have a whole day at home after being out nearly all day, every day, last week.

Lots I'd like to do today...mow the lawns, be down on the beach at low tide to trawl through a lovely drift of shells and stones there at the moment, make some more bookmarks and bag beads, catch up with people via the phone ,practise my tap-dancing before class tomorrow and catch up on some reading.

BUT.....I just wanted to point you in the direction of this blog. I love this idea, all aspects of it such as wanting to ask people what they're reading, connecting with fellow human beings, being a natural sticky-beak etc etc. I urge you just to take a peek at it, and if you know of a similar blog, based in Australia, I'd love to know about it!

This week's show-and-tell!

2008-03-13T08:44:00.004+11:00

Yes, Thursday is my show-and-tell day... something I've made this week that I feel very happy with.

First up, is the card I did for Harry and Barbara's 60th wedding anniversary. Because my mum and dad have recently celebrated theirs, I know just how special this is occasion is. Even more so for their family, as Harry has spent a large part of the last 4 months in hospital and has been home for a couple of weeks. Harry, Barbara and I share a love of the operas of Richard Wagner. The performance we went to of 'Tristan and Isolde' at the Sydney Opera House in 1990 was one of the greatest afternoons/nights of my life! (Wagner's operas are very long)

These are 2 cards and matching jewelled bookmarks I made at class yesterday. The Indian Ocean blue card is for my friend Louise's 50th birthday. They are the colours I seem to gravitate to all the time!

KAKADU NATIONAL PARK

2008-03-08T15:33:00.005+11:00

This is the first in a series of occasional posts about places I've visited that are important to me.

Kakadu National Park, which is part of Arnhem Land , is in the Northern Territory of Australia and I was there in July 2003(...was it that long ago?...sigh). It is on the United Nations' World Heritage List for its cultural and natural significance and its wetlands are recognised as significant under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance.

This is yours-truly taking a photo at Ubirr, which is breath-taking! Photos don't do the scale and scope of this spot justice at all.

People have continuously lived in Arnhem Land for at least 50,000 years and Kakadu NP is rich in archaeological sites detailing this history.

The gallery above is at Nourlangie Rock.

Arnhem Land has one of the greatest concentrations of rock art in the world,with over 5,000 sites catalogued and an estimated 10,000 gelleries still to be recorded.The rock art is found on the sandstone walls of rock overhangs that are part of the Arnhem Land Escarpment and generally date from about 25,000 years ago, up until fairly recent times.

These 2 galleries are at Ubirr. Most Art from Arnhem Land is of the X-ray type.

The wetlands and billabongs are inundated in the Wet Season, usually from about December through to March/April, and then gradually dry out during the Dry Season, which ends with The Build-up (to the next Wet). The Indigenous people for whom Kakadu has been home for thousands of years, actually recognise 7 distinct seasons.

Below is Anbangbang Billabong, with Noulangie Rock in the background.

About one third of Australia's bird species are found in Kakadu NP, especially around the billabongs. When we were there, the billabongs were drying up but we still saw an amazing number of birds.

Below is the death-throws of sunset at Yellow Water Billabong. Witnessing sunset here is a particularly 'touristy' thing to do...little mini-buses from the 2 resort-type venues in the park, plus campers like us in our dusty 4WDs, descend on this little jetty to watch sunset over the water each evening, weather-permitting.We got there very early and grabbed the front-row seats, and , just because we are campers, doesn't mean we lack class!! In the photo, the basket next to my sister held our chilled beer and champagne,smoked salmon ,sour cream, capers and crackers, cheese and our glasses.

Family Time

2008-02-29T17:25:00.004+11:00

Family is something that matters a lot to me....there are others as well, such as friends, similarities shared by people and the vast open spaces and big blue sky of inland Australia, just to name a few off the top of my head.

I've just spent more time up in Bundaberg, on the central coast of Queensland, with my sister and her family. Whilst fiddling with photos today, I discovered the 'collage' function on Picasa, and had such fun!! So, for you, a collage of some of my wonderfully exhausting times in Bundy.

February Movie

2008-02-19T16:44:00.005+11:00

Stuck for choice as I was today, having to fill in a couple of hours while my car was being serviced at the dealer's, I opted for "Dan In Real Life", which had received reasonable reviews from people I generally 'trust' with these things.

I'll cut a long whinge short and say for me, it was a waste of time and money. The movie poster above basically says it all... stupid, predictable and I really didn't care about the guy. OK, there were a couple of redeeming qualities to the movie, but, no, it left me cold.

Recent work

2008-02-17T14:51:00.003+11:00

Thought it was about time I added a little of my newest pieces I've worked on. Above are 2 ATCs for a Dragonfly/Butterfly swap I'm in and are based on a dragonfly I saw in a cave in Kakadu N.P.

Below are ATCs made for other swaps. I really love making my own backgrounds too, and having been having lots of fun playing with paint, ink and other goodies.

Kev Carmody

2008-02-15T08:06:00.005+11:00

This was my CD of 2007. It was seldom off my CD player for more than one day...I kid you not. I had known about Kev Carmody,an Indigenous singer/song-writer for ages, and had always valued his skills in opening up this white-fella's eyes to the Aboriginal perspective of life's experiences. But, to hear his songs re-interpreted by a broad collection of other Australian singers, was a further revelation.

When my sister and I were in Sydney for Mum and Dad's 60th, we just about knocked everyone over in our rush to get tickets for the concert performance of the CD, as part of the Sydney Festival. Not everyone on the album was able to be there...missing,disappointingly, were the John Butler Trio, The Waifs, Bernard Fanning and Troy Cassar-Daley. Despite this ,we swooned all evening, danced in our seats( after being sternly advised there was to be NO dancing in the section of the theatre we were in), sang along with everything, and even our least-favourite tracks are now firmly placed 'up-there' with the rest.

Kev Carmody's webite is here, and you can also watch and listen to Kev and Paul Kelly via links on that site.

POSTSCRIPT to Wednesday's post about the Sorry speech......
Sally's blog has a wonderfully comprehensive post with links to various aspects of the day, as well as an astonishing photo montage. I urge you to visit her blog for Wednesday,13th February.

WE SAY SORRY

2008-02-13T07:45:00.000+11:00

These are the words Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will speak today on this momentous day in our history......

Today we honour the Indigenous peoples of this land, the oldest continuing cultures in human history.

We reflect on their past mistreatment.

We reflect in particular on the mistreatment of those who were Stolen Generations - this blemished chapter in our nation's history.

The time has now come for the nation to turn a new page in Australia's history by righting the wrongs of the past and so moving forward with confidence to the future.

We apologise for the laws and policies of successive Parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians.

We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.

For the pain, suffering and hurt of these Stolen Generations, their descendants and for their families left behind, we say sorry.

To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, for the breaking up of families and communities, we say sorry.

And for the indignity and degradation thus inflicted on a proud people and a proud culture, we say sorry.

We the Parliament of Australia respectfully request that this apology be received in the spirit in which it is offered as part of the healing of the nation.

For the future we take heart; resolving that this new page in the history of our great continent can now be written.

We today take this first step by acknowledging the past and laying claim to a future that embraces all Australians.

A future where this Parliament resolves that the injustices of the past must never, never happen again.

A future where we harness the determination of all Australians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to close the gap that lies between us in life expectancy, educational achievement and economic opportunity.

A future where we embrace the possibility of new solutions to enduring problems where old approaches have failed.

A future based on mutual respect, mutual resolve and mutual responsibility.

A future where all Australians, whatever their origins, are truly equal partners, with equal opportunities and with an equal stake in shaping the next chapter in the history of this great country, Australia."

Stolen or Removed??

2008-02-09T18:10:00.001+11:00

The following rant is something I feel very strongly about, and need to get off my chest!

The Federal Government wants to say "Sorry" to the Stolen Generation of Indigenous Australians. At last!

BUT....it is almost unbelievable that the Federal Opposition is, in February 2008, still debating the point . At the moment, many in Opposition are arguing against the use of the word 'stolen' in regards to Government or Church representatives who went into Aboriginal communities and took the children against the wishes of the parents or carers, last century. They would rather the word 'removed' was used, arguing that often this was done with the welfare of the children in mind, and that many children benefitted from it!! Oh Yes!!! They argue also that the officials believed they were doing the right thing. Yes!! I'm sure they did!! Please feel free to insert pedophilia, persecution on gender or sexual grounds and and removal of cultural artifacts and even body parts in here also!!

History is sadly littered with countless incidences of the Church or Government doing the right thing, when they thought they had the moral high ground automatically, because of their position. We know how WRONG they really were!

I made the collage-y thing above as a response.

SOMETHING NEW

2008-02-04T17:06:00.000+11:00

Learning to cope with new situations is something I find extremely difficult. HOWEVER, learning new skills or new areas of knowledge is fundamental to my well-being and happiness. For example, I had my first tap dancing lesson today, and that's something I've always longed to do.

A couple of weeks ago, I spent a day with my friend Di at Joan Ajala's place at Brunswick Heads, making marbled paper. Joan's website is here. What a fabulous way to spend time, creating the most amazing patterns on paper. Joan follows and teaches very specific and traditional marbling techniques, and the patterns formed have particular names.I'm showing you some of the beautiful papers I made that day.

The pattern above is called Stones, and is the most free-form of the patterns. Below, in order, are Non-Pariel, Bouquet and lastly, one I made for fun, manipulating the paint by drawing with a bamboo skewer.

Juno

2008-02-02T10:43:00.000+11:00

When people see a movie at the cinema, I guess they have different criteria by which they judge whether they liked the movie or not, or whether it made some sort of impression on them.

For me, a 'good' movie keeps ticking away in my mind for days, revealing different aspects of itself. If I get back to the car, and I have to think....."now what did I just see??"...well, I've just pretty-well wasted a couple of hours.

'Juno' is still vibrating 5 days after seeing it...I laughed out loud at times but had a silent little weep too.

PS Last year I was decidedly 'shabby' about seeing a movie regularly.For 2008,I've made a bargain with myself to see one movie a month at least.Let's just see shall we?

Sydney,Sydney and Sydney!

2008-01-30T17:37:00.000+11:00

I have just returned from my 3rd trip to Sydney in 5 weeks, and now look forward to NOT going again till at least September, for Fathers' Day. It's fantastic catching up with friends and family, and this is always the reason for my visits, BUT the crush of people generally,and the noise and pace of city life, is something I have left way,way behind.

The occasion of my 2nd visit was to celebrate my parents' 60th wedding anniversary. They were married at Arncliffe Methodist Church( now St Mark's Coptic Church) on 10th January,1948. The first picture shows the wedding party on that happy day, and the picture below shows the same wedding party on January 12th,2008. The only person missing from the photo is my dad's elder brother, Arthur, who died several years ago. We were so thrilled to have so many friends of Mum and Dad's able to come and celebrate with them.

Woodford Folk Festival

2008-01-23T09:49:00.000+11:00

Woodford Folk Festival is held over 6 days every year, starting on 27th December, in a beautiful valley in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, in Queensland. For years, I've been saying.."...I really MUST get to Woodford one year!!!". And this year....BINGO!!!

Now the historical truth of it is that it is either bucketting with rain or baking hot, and seldom anything in between....and so it proved to be in 07/08. But the festival was such an uplifting experience, the music and workshops so eclectic and everybody so inclusive and respectful of everybody else....well,as Dennis Denuto articulately puts it in the movie "The Castle".....'it's the vibe'!

We were there for 2 days and nights only, but they were full-on.Most people camp at the venue, and here are Ian, Heather and Rob having breakfast.

Highlights for me......Taikoz (pictured below), Archie Roach and Rita Hunter,Totally Gourdgeous, the Indian Music Emporium, the Serbian dance workshop(above) and Hugh MacDonald singing "Diamantina Drover", with John Schumann and his band.

And , yes, we plan to be back this December and hopefully pull a few more friends in with us.

Above is the totally awesome Gourdgeous and below,the crowd going off at the Abba Singalong on New Year's Eve!

Something Stirs!

2008-01-21T16:18:00.000+11:00

A new day dawns........

Yes, something stirs in the depths of a giant puddle of humidity....ah, the delights of summer, a WET summer I hasten to add, on the north coast of NSW.

Yes, it's moi...back from Lapsed-Bloggers Land.... and time to resume my occasional postings.

When next I post, I'll write about the 07/08Woodford Folk Festival. Here's a photo to tempt you into returning to read about it.

7 Weeks Later!

2007-12-19T16:01:00.000+11:00

Yes, 7 weeks have passed since I last added something to my blog. To be honest, I have actually enjoyed the freedom of not writing to it every day or every few days. However, I freely acknowledge that it was a good way for anyone who was vaguely interested to catch up with me, or look at what I may have been making recently. Also a couple of Sydney people have expressed an interest in maybe purchasing some of my jewellery , so it's a way for them to see it, and have some idea of what I'm making.

NEW JEWELLERY

2007-10-30T16:05:00.000+11:00

It's been positively ages since I showed off some of my recent pieces of jewellery. Above is the resin and lampwork necklace I was asked to make for a friend. I made a similar one for my sister's birthday.

Below, is a mother of pearl and Swarovski crystal necklace, with some earrings.

AND...saved my favourite to last. This is one I made for me, using resin, semi-precious fluorite, freshwater pearls ,Thai silver and a beautiful shell.

I'm really going to have to bite the bullet and start to try and sell some of my jewllery. I really enjoy the process of creating, especially the decision-making...colours, type/combination of beads, symmetrical/ pattern or not, but if I don't attempt to sell it, there really is no point except that it's sending me broke !! Just a bit lacking in confidence in 'pushing'...hmmm...not really the best word...my jewellery on to others.

2007-10-29T10:04:00.001+11:00

The photo above is not a recent one...it comes from 30th June,2005, when we had an amazing rain event at Caba. However, it is a fairly accurate depiction of last Friday night, when we had 97mm of rain in about 45 minutes. It was very very scary as our street once more filled to overflowing, yet drivers still tried to find a way through. Because I live near a corner,and because maybe someone had to do it, I went out with my torch and attempted to warn any drivers reckless enough to attempt it.

It is still raining here....and I can't believe how ungrateful I sound in saying that we've had enough.There are many more areas in our wide, brown land that are far more needy.

CLASSIC COUNTDOWN

2007-10-28T11:20:00.000+11:00

My favourite radio station is ABC Classic FM, part of the public broadcasting network here in Australia. Every year, for the past four years, they have invited listeners to vote for their favourite pieces of music. In previous years, the station has compiled The Classic 100, The Classic Piano 100, The Classic Opera 100 and The Classic Mozart 100.

This year it's the turn of the Classic Concerto 100.

As I type, we're currently listening to number 66, so perhaps, if you choose to click on the Classic Concerto 100 link, you'll get an update on the countdown. Also, you can listen online here.

My vote, after in-depth consideration, was for the Beethoven Violin, but I expect other favourites to be in the top 10. These include the Mendelssohn Violin, Rachmaninov's 3rd Piano , Mozart's 27th Piano and Bach's Brandenburg 3. It goes without saying the whole world loves Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, but as it has topped 2 of the previous charts, there has probably been a bit of sabotage going on, methinks!

DOLPHINS

2007-10-26T07:15:00.000+10:00

My friend Paul and I had a wonderfully relaxing day on the Tweed River the other day, swimming at our favourite little spot. That's it in the photo above...at an almost full tide, the water is magnificent, and the sandy beach is perfect for collapsing onto!

On the way back to the boat ramp, several pods of dolphins swam past us. This was the absolute icing on the cake!! My attempts to photograph them were a joke...as soon as they saw my camera aimed at them, they'd stay submerged, till it was pointed elsewhere! Tricky things!

New ATCs

2007-10-24T08:35:00.000+10:00

My muse has been busy recently, creating both new jewellery and Artist Trading Cards for swaps I'm in, in 2 Aussie groups I belong to.

Above are the 2 ATCs I did for a Childhood swap. The 3 blondies are my nieces and nephew, in a photo I took about, maybe, 14 years ago.

Below are the 2 I made for a swap where we had to use wax crayons. I used them in the background, by ironing shavings from the crayons, using baking paper.

And finally an ATC for a Halloween swap and for a Blue swap.

If you are interested in trading ATCs, please leave me a message by clicking on 'comments' below.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2007-10-21T08:20:00.000+10:00

Today is my sister Robyn's birthday....happy birthday Rob! I'm sure it will be a special day, shared with family and friends, and with lots of smoked salmon and bubbles! I wish I was there to celebrate with you! Have a fabulous day!

Creepy Crawleys!

2007-10-20T08:47:00.000+10:00

Like many people I know, I enjoy being out in the garden in the early morning. The camera came with me today (I don't always take it...it kind of seems to change the way I look at the world) and what a good thing. On the underside of leaves on both a grevillea and a banksia,I found spectacular ants' nests.

**WARNING** If you don't like creepy crawleys, look away now!**

My blood still goes cold even uploading these photos...they were big ants, about 8mm, long. They had built the nests from what looked like sawdust or something similar, and the nests were quite solid. I tried to poke into them with a stick ( eeerrggghhh) , but the stick didn't make any impression.

The curled-up leaf below, closest to the camera, is about 22cm long, and the nest on the underside is about 12cm long.

The photo below shows the underside of the same leaf....the nest was about 5cm wide, and about 4 cm high. There was a little tunnel down one side of it, so the ants could come and go.

OOOOOooo..my skin is still crawling.!!!

TAGGED!

2007-10-18T08:32:00.000+10:00

My fellow blogger Marie, at Montpellier Daily Photo, has tagged me...many thanks, Marie.

As with all things these days, there are rules :-
1. Link to your tagger and list the rules.
2. List 8 random facts about yourself.
3. Tag 8 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving them a comment on their blogs.

However, as the name of my blog implies, the only rule is there are no rules! Rules are there to be broken, as long as nobody or nobody is harmed.

OK...ummmmm.....8 random facts about me....

1. I was at the Wimbledon men's final in 1985 when Boris Becker won his 1st championship, aged 18 ( I think). Check out the Beaut Aussie Sheila, above, sitting in a stand on an outside court that day.
2. Hated reading all through school...the day I left school, I started reading and haven't stopped.
3. I love drinking Eden Valley or Clare Valley riesling.
4. I love being in very isolated places, especially with vast distant views.
5. I am a chronic procrastinator.
6. I used to play the French Horn quite well, but my trumpet playing was truly awful.
7. Christmas is the best time of the year...my opinion only.

Yes, I know..only 7 facts, but 7 is more interesting that 8 I reckon.

Now...to tag some fellow bloggers.....

1. Sewcilla
2. Cat
3. Irina

OH...that'll do for now...yep, nowhere near 8, but too bad!

Corellas

2007-10-17T16:06:00.000+10:00

There are many reasons for planting wattles. Apart from the fact it is our national floral emblem, they are very quick growing, even if a little short-lived. For me, the number one reason is that parrots love to eat the wattle seeds. This poor wattle has taken a battering in the last 2 years, with storms breaking branches and borers as big as your index finger munching into it. However, it put on a great flowering show about 2 months ago, and these corellas, above, have been visiting every day for both breakfast and dinner, as have plenty of galahs.

I wasn't quick enough yesterday...no...it was more that my excitement was the problem! Having a munch on the seeds was a pair of Eastern Rosellas.

But it then became more amazing, because also eating the seeds was a magnificent male King Parrot.

Voice-to-Voice!

2007-10-13T11:41:00.000+10:00

Having re-emerged from my little break away from the all-consuming world of blogging, I must acknowledge Jules' role in enticing me back. We spoke on the phone this morning, voice-to-voice, as real people, not just names on a blog page! It was amazing...we talked about other bloggers we have in common, so there should have been some ears burning in different parts of the world! We talked about her holiday in Vietnam, about our own lives and the role blogging has in our lives. I am still gob-smacked by it! Thanks Jules.

The above photo places me in a dreamily isolated place, on the Dampier Peninsular, in Western Aust., back in 2003...I really wish I could say that's where I've been for the last 2 weeks or so!

Camping

2007-09-30T14:44:00.001+10:00

The little blond poppet is Caitlyn, my 3 year-old great-niece, and she had her first camping trip this weekend with her grandparents and our friends, Peter and Heather. It was for one night only but the bush telegraph reports it was great fun. Of course, she had to have her own camp chair! Wanting more photos?

A NEW IDEA ( for moi at least!)

2007-09-30T10:12:00.000+10:00

The early mornings have been stunning the last few days...calm, clear...the early morning colours always have a coolness to them, even the oranges and golds of sunrise.

I thought I would do a series of posts about colour and randomly choose a different colour for each post. The posts could take any form. I'll write some colour words on little cards and then draw one out each day and that will be the subject for that day's post. BUT...then....remember, the only rule is no rule! The thought of 'randomness' is intriguing......

.....Noosa....you love it!

2007-09-24T08:16:00.000+10:00

The things to love about Noosa?Because I am a water/bush/beach/river/boat type of person, the things I love about Noosa generally centre around the water and the national park. Perhaps that's also because it's slightly less crowded out on the water or walking in the national park.

Above, sitting on the little ferry that plies the Noosa River between Tewantin and Noosa is wonderfully relaxing. Below is the Noosa Sailing and Rowing Club which, from it's wide and completely open verandah, has great views up and down the river, and to the distant hills. It is a stunning place to sit with a glass of bubbles and good company, and solve the world's problems.

Noosa National Park is the perfect cure for the crass, extravagant side of Noosa. The walking tracks goes all the way round the coast to the beach at Perigian, and also explores the hills and more forested areas. A few years ago, I walked straight past a tree here where a koala was sleeping! Thank goodness my walking companion was more alert!Below, a lone surfer paddles round the point. The water was not as clear as usual due to recent very heavy rain.

This photo shows some of the typical coastal vegetation of pandanus, cotton trees, palms and eucalypts, and looks towards Cooloola national Park.

Noosa....you either hate it or......

2007-09-22T12:50:00.000+10:00

Ah, Noosa. I think it would be fair to say that anyone who's been to Noosa, on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, has a definite opinion about the place and it tends to be either black or white, and not much grey. Visiting the area again, last week, when I was staying at nearby Tewantin, it was easy to see both sides of the argument.

So...today the black side. The beach, above, reminds me of one of the crowded French Riviera beaches, where all the 'beautiful' people lie side by side, in the latest resort gear. The main street, Hastings Street, is home to restaurants, cafes that look like something on the Champs Elysee, expensive resort wear boutiques or cheap, imported souvenir shops. Below,houses lining the river or the man-made canal estates sell for up to $8 million.

Enough! Next...the things to love about Noosa.

The Three of Us, 1985 - 2007

2007-09-21T09:19:00.000+10:00

My two special friends in the photo above are Veronica, on the left, and Tricia, on the right. We first met in a pub in London, in early February 1985, when we were Australian exchange teachers with the League For Exchange of Commonwealth Teachers. The three of us quickly became great friends and did many amazing and memorable things that year. Even though they both live in Queensland, our friendship has remained precious to the three of us, and we try to get together at least once a year.

Below is the three of us, in a photo taken in Jerusalem, in April, '85.

New ATCs

2007-09-15T08:19:00.000+10:00

Today, a bit of show and tell about some recent work I've been doing with Artist Trading Cards, and in particular,different techniques for backgrounds.

Above, are cards I made for an insect swap. I just love dragonflies, and believe they are my totem. Below are the cards made for a Dream swap I'm hosting. Amazingly, they are nothing like my original idea, and I'm not quite sure where that idea disappeared to. The original thought was characteristically dark and obscure, so the final result couldn't be more different.

These last two were done using a technique from the fabulous book by Bernie Berlin, "Artist Trading Card Workshop". 'Confronting ' is something I think I strive for in my work.

I'll be away for a few days.....I'm heading up to Tewantin, on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, to spend four days with my two special friends from our exchange year in London, wa-ay back in 1985.

Recent Jewellery

2007-09-14T08:51:00.000+10:00

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It's been a while since I've had a show and tell with some of my recent creative output. So, I'll devote the next few posts to both jewellery and ATCs, and then I thought I might take you on a brief zip around northern Australia, aka the Top End. We'll visit some of my favourite places from 2003.

But for now...of course, I had to lead off with a charm bracelet...I just LOVE them! Below is a necklace made with moonstone, and three red-pink coloured gemstones( the names escape me, but one of them is probably rose quartz)

And finally, a necklace and earrings made from rose quartz and polished onyx.

Now , a plea for help! I would be grateful for anyone who can explain to me , in words of one syllable or less, how to post larger images on my blog. Thanks in advance.

ELEMENTS : earth

2007-09-11T07:57:00.000+10:00

earth....earth with a small 'e'......today's picture is of a rock map we came upon in an extremely isolated part of the Kimberley area in N.W. Australia in 2003. Made by a local mob of Aboriginal people, it is a map or picture of their country. It's not difficult to see the connection between a rock map and Aboriginal 'dot paintings'.

Vale Pavarotti

2007-09-07T08:32:00.001+10:00

On last night's 7.30 Report, Kerry O'Brien replayed part of an interview he did with Pavarotti when he visited Australia for the last time, in 2005. O'Brien asked Pavarotti about his most- loved memories of his career. This was his reply:

"There is a phrase in Italy. We say, 'The first love you never forget,' so let's say that La Boheme is my first love. "

The photo above is of Pavarotti in the role of Rodolfo, in Puccini's 'La Boheme', in 1988.

Vale Pavarotti....thanks for the memories.

ELEMENTS : Air

2007-09-06T10:11:00.000+10:00

"What is it about a beautiful sunny afternoon, with the birds singing and the wind rustling through the [grass]"? - Jack Handey

Fingal Head is one of my favourite places on the coast. It's usually always really blowing a gale, especially if the wind is from the south, as it was this day. This patch of leathery grasses was so bent over because of the wind, and made such a wonderful wild rustling sound.

Thank you for your concern regarding the collapsed guttering. Hopefully it will be replaced soon.

Wild Weather Warning!

2007-09-05T09:18:00.000+10:00

Sending another Wild Weather Warning! While I deal with the insurance assessor and roof plumber, after my guttering collapsed in last night's storm( yes more water!), please do yourself many favours and lose yourself in this amazing blog.

There are breathtaking and miraculous photos of the nature and landscapes of Finland. If you care to follow the water theme, then February, July and August are sure to thrill you.

ELEMENTS : water

2007-09-04T08:25:00.001+10:00

"In the sweetness of friendship, let there be laughter and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things, the heart finds it morning and is refreshed. " Kahlil Gibran

Elements: FIRE

2007-09-03T08:55:00.001+10:00

Fire that's closest kept burns most of all. - Shakespeare

Wattle Day

2007-09-01T10:50:00.001+10:00

1st September is Wattle Day, the day on which we acknowledge the wattle tree which is Australia's floral emblem.Most Australian sporting teams are decked out in the green and gold of the wattle.Sadly, many people are allergic to wattles, which can bring on hay fever and other respiratory complaints. Happily for me, I'm not one of them, and have 4 in my garden. In case you missed it, there was another wattle pictured with Vivian, the cheeky beach babe featured in yesterday's posting!

The first of the four elements will appear in my next post.

And check this out, to see an awesome photo of this week's lunar eclipse.

Natural Elements

2007-08-31T17:08:00.000+10:00

There's just the teensiest empty space in my daily life, because I'm not posting every day. Jeez, I just can't make up my mind on this one, can I!! BUT...as it says above, the only rule here is that there are no rules. So, I can bloody do as I like!

Anyway, I came across this little 'theme', on a new blog I was led to, The Glass Doorknob. She has a l-o-n-g list of other blogs that also reflected on the four natural elements of fire, water, earth and wind.

So, tomorrow I'll post a photo of my first element, taken in my handkerchief-sized backyard.

Lunar Eclipse

2007-08-29T09:01:00.001+10:00

If you live in our wide brown land, I hope you were able to watch last night's total eclipse of the moon. It was called a 'Blood Moon', because at its maximum effect, the eclipse gave the moon a russet colour.Initially, we had a cover of light cloud here, but as the moon rose, and the eclipse began, the cloud did the right thing, and buggered off somewhere else! Up and down my street, people would come outside every 10-15 minutes and see what it was up to. Conveniently, it occurred between about 7pm and 9.30-ish, and so meant many more people saw it.

The photo above was taken in Brisbane by Beau Chenery. If you are interested in more images, my Local ABC has a page of links and information, including a time lapse movie.

SUNSHINE

2007-08-27T08:48:00.000+10:00

One whole day of sunshine.Yes.I can't believe I'm rejoicing but...we've had one whole,complete day without rain. So, now we start to dry things out, wash the mildew off the walls, and cut back the trees and shrubs that Nature has done a rough pruning job on, during last week's wild weather.

Between having a friend stay ( which I LOVE happening), life-in-general catching up and almost terminal exhaustion, Blogger has been very much neglected. Most people I know like their routines ,well, to some extent at least. However this little black duck likes her's more than most, and when routine goes out the window....I'll spare you the details.

Hopefully, this week will be slower, more ordered even, and I can dip my toe back into the blogging and artistic oceans.

Wild Weather NO.2

2007-08-23T08:50:00.000+10:00

There's a bumper sticker that says "Respect the ocean", or something like that. I took these photos at Snapper Rocks yesterday, marvelling at the power of the ocean and the stupidity of brainless blokes.

Cheers mate!

This final photo captures the beautiful colours, in the sea and the sky, looking north from Snapper( one of the world's top 10 surfing breaks when it's pumping).

Wild Weather

2007-08-21T15:43:00.001+10:00

Jamaica and Mexico are having Hurricane Dean pass through, but this nameless intense low pressure system is causing havoc on the NSW north coast. Gale force winds and heavy rain have made it a good day to be inside!This is the view out my front window, as the palms copped a battering.The seas are pretty huge apparently, but I haven't ventured out.However, you can easily hear the roaring of the ocean above the wind.

2007-08-18T13:57:00.000+10:00

It was quite late, yesterday arvo, when Steve, my neighbour from over the back fence, called out to me. I'd been aware that he'd been using lots of 'toys' in his back yard nearly all day....mower, whipper-snipper, chain saw. He apologised for the fact that his yard had been invading mine, in the guise of passionfruit vine, alamanda and some other thriving vine or creeper. I am ashamed and embarrassed to say I hadn't even noticed that they had taken possession of the back fence and the roofs of my pergola and shed!! So, it goes without saying that I also hadn't noticed that he had removed this jungle whilst playing with said power toys!

After he'd basked for a while in the glow of my grateful thanks and mutterings about the great job he'd done, he said something along the lines of " Oh, I love your eclectic taste in music".

Now, I proudly admit I've always had a fiercesome and well-deserved reputation for "sharing' my music with anyone living within a two kilometre radius of my place. But I don't really know Steve all that well and, frankly, I wondered if he was having a go at me! That got me thinking as to what I'd just been listening to.Then I realised.....it was my Most Best Favourite piece of music, OF ALL TIME and FOREVER. Something I've listened to, heard and seen in performance loads of times, but which still completely reduces me to a sobbing, heaving wreck with an breaking heart on each and every occasion. Perhaps it would also be close to the top of most people's most loathed music, and no doubt has caused many of my neighbours over the years to slam shut all doors and windows, and insert industrial-strength ear-plugs.

It's the Liebastood sung by Isolde in the final minutes of Richard Wagner's opera, "Tristan und Isolde". As she is dying, she sings over the body of her dead lover, Tristan.( That's the loving couple in healthier times in the title picture.) Yes, yes, I know, not everyone's musical cup of tea. But it is mine.

So, it then got me to wondering what is your special piece of music or song, that always has an extraordinary effect on you, that provokes that "tingle factor" each time you hear it?

ORANGE Tangent

2007-08-17T14:40:00.000+10:00

After having not really made much jewellery in the last few weeks, I thought I'd put up here what I've made in last 2 days, in between severely cutting back my biggest wattle tree and an out-of-control grevillea! You may observe I've gone off on a bit of a colour tangent!

Firstly a necklace with two pairs of co-ordinating earrings.

Next is another charm bracelet ( I LOVE making them) and two pairs of earrings.

If only I had the confidence to try and sell some of my jewellery....sigh.

Bundaberg Pubs No. 3

2007-08-17T09:06:00.000+10:00

For the time being,this is my last Bundy pub, and in the same "grand" style as the previous two. Not all pubs in Bundy are in this style and later on, I'll post others that are very different.

But this, the appropriately-named Grand Hotel, is on the corner of Bourbong and Targo Streets. It was begun in 1884 and opened in 1885., although work on the building continued again in 1893.

These two photos (above and below) , from "The Queenslander", were taken in 1907. The photo below shows the dining room, set for dinner.

An article on the Grand Hotel, written in 1894, describes it as being one of the finest in the land.

"think of the joy of a dolce far niente on a verandah over 12 feet wide, and of the sweetness of slumber in rooms where the minor details of comfort are studied - as they should be. In all things the comfort of the guest is the first consideration."

[Queenslander, 23/6/1894]

This information came from the Queensland State Library.

Recent work

2007-08-15T08:18:00.000+10:00

I thought it was time to upload a selection of what I've made lately, and to have a little break from the Bundy photos. These are all Artist Trading Cards , known as ATCs, which you make and then swap with people from all over the world. It is HIGHLY addictive, believe me!

The two above were for swaps in the ATCoZ group, a penguin swap and Famous People. Of the next two, the first one was made for the My Corner of the World swap.

As in all areas of creative work, for the work to be 'authentic', the creator needs to invest something of themselves in the piece. In ATCs, as in most crafts and styles of art, there are fashions, styles and fads, and these are very hard to avoid, as the influences are everywhere. However, for me, there is absolutely no satisfaction or release in the creation of the work , if I haven't invested something of my own heart and mind.

The next two were also done as part of swaps, the first was an In Love swap and the second was an international money swap ATCoZ players did with artists from the Netherlands.

The last two were experiments with backgrounds. In the case of swaps, multiple cards need to be made, mostly three, but sometimes nine, and once, I had to make 12 cards! They are supposed to be roughly identical, but it is something I struggle with, as the creation of multiples doesn't sit comfortably with me at all. I really like to make one-offs, though I guess I find a compromise with doing variations on a theme.

Bundaberg Pubs no. 2

2007-08-11T09:54:00.001+10:00

This is the Old Bundy Tavern on the corner of Quay and Tantitha Streets, opposite the Burnett River. The original pub, the Customs House Hotel, was built in 1870, but destroyed by fire in 1915. A new pub was built in 1917 and was called the Hotel Bundaberg. The photo below is of the function room ( date unknown).

The name was changed to the Old Bundy Tavern in 1991.

Bundaberg Pubs no. 1

2007-08-10T08:55:00.000+10:00

I've just returned from visiting the Queensland branch of my family, in Bundaberg. Bundy is probably most famous for its rum and its ginger beer. Each is wonderful on its own, but mix them together and you have a 'Dark and Stormy'. Quite an apt name for the impact Bundy rum can have on some drinkers!

For the next few days, I'll post pictures of some of the more 'picturesque' watering holes in Bundy. Today, the Club Hotel, built in 1890., on the corner of Bourbong and Tantitha Streets, Bundaberg.

Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri

2007-07-26T08:57:00.000+10:00

The painting , above, was made by Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri in 1977. The photo of it comes from Racism No Way.

On Monday night, at the Sotherby's auction, this picture , Warlugalong 1977, set a new world record for the sale of Australian indigenous art, when it was sold for $AUS2.4million.

Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri started painting in the early 1970s and was part of the Papunya Tula movement, initiated by Geoffrey Barden when he went to teach at Papunya , a small Aboriginal community west of Alice Springs.

You might like to read a bit more about it here.

Trying Something New

2007-07-22T08:51:00.000+10:00

One of the Seven Deadly Sins is ENVY and yes, OK, I'll own up to it here, for all to see. I am so-o envious of those clever clogs of bloggers who are able to include links to other sites in their text.
I have tried before and just made a mess of it. BUT...today's the day to try again.... and if I've succeeded, you will be able to click on 'Seven Deadly Sins' above, in the pink writing, and go to the Wikipedia entry. Go on...please give it a try.

YES!!! It works!

Now , my reason for persevering this wet Sunday morning, is because I wanted to put in a link to this fabulous panorama picture, which follows up my Apollo 11 post.

Do You Remember?

2007-07-20T17:15:00.001+10:00

Do you remember where you were 38 years ago, on the 21st of July 1969 , if you were in Australia, or 20th July 1969, the official recorded date?
Where were you when Aldrin and Armstrong walked on the Moon?
I was in 5th year high school, and we all went to the assembly hall, all 900 of us or however many there were. They scattered all the TVs the school owned throughout the hall and we sat, in our formal rows of chairs, rivetted to the flickering grey images... of a man climbing down a ladder, stepping on the Moon's surface....the MOON'S surface...and speaking those famous words we all remember, if we were there.

I also clearly remember that night, as I put the garbage bin out onto the footpath for collection early next morning, looking up at the luminous Moon in the night sky, and marvelling to myself ..." Wow, there're human beings up there...NOW... people.. up there, on the Moon!"
So...do you remember where you were?

New Jewellery

2007-07-17T13:29:00.000+10:00

Eventually I'd like to use pieces of my beach glass in the jewellery I'm making, but the main obstacle is finding a way to drill through the glass shards. Drilling is the obvious technique, but I've been told it's not as simple as that.
Meanwhile, here are a few more bits'n'pieces I've made over the last 2-3 weeks. Above is a copper charm bracelet with matching earrings, and below, 2 necklaces with matching earrings.

Beach Glass

2007-07-16T14:41:00.001+10:00

Sometimes known as sea glass, beach glass collecting has been a past-time of mine for about 12 years. Beach glass is a shard of glass that has been naturally tumbled by the action of the waves, rolling the glass against the sand or rocks. When they are wet, and in the early morning or late afternoon sun, they really do resemble jewels. At the moment , I don't do anything with them, apart from have dishes and bowls of beach glass around my place.
However, a whole new world has been opened up to me by a chance visit to a fellow Blogger's site. HA....but you'll have to wait! I took both of these photos down on Caba beach a year or so ago.