East Meets West

An example of framing available for prints and posters at www.youbeaut.com.

Snakes Alive!

Now, that's a snake! Love this picture of a python passing by a house at Cardwell in Queensland.

Cardwell was devastated by the cyclone that hit the region earlier this year.

We also heard that two four metre snakes were recently removed from the ceiling of a house in Yorkey's Knob.

Why did the pheasant cross the road?

Yes ... that's right. A pheasant crosses the road a couple of kilometres before Newstead on the Newstead - Castlemaine road. Symes Road was the nearest corner although you would never really know as there is not a sign to name it. And yes ... the picture is lousy.

Speculation ... why is this bird - probably a Chinese Ringneck (Phasianus colchicus torquatus) (or a mutant cross?) wandering around our region?

One immediately thinks 'escaped' and this is almost certainly the case. And I cannot help wondering if the recent heavy rains might have contributed to the situation. Rains that flooded caravan parks and houses might also have flooded aviaries and animal pens.  If we find out more, we'll add it here.

Country images: Spring

Drought breaking rains have given us the best start possible spring in 14 years. Here we see the Muckelford Creek and the blue iris around the historic Corriedale Cottage, both on the Castlemaine road.

A time away ...

People say that travel broadens the mind. Well, lets live in hope. Travelling abroad would need to do something useful considering how many folk are dashing about the planet. The urge to buy an authentic baguette in a village in Bordeaux or pick up a little something from Hammacher Schlemmer on 57th Street is somewhat akin to the sea-change movement of the nineteen seventies and eighties but without the investment of the energy it required to create a new and different life-style. This grumpy old man says take their passports away! Let common sense prevail over the “because I can I will” attitude of the overpaid and/or credit card addicted.

But that is not really what I wanted to talk about.

I’ve been travelling around our fair country enjoying the rain everywhere. In particular, I spent a few weeks in the Illawarra region on the coast north of Wollongong and below the forested escarpment that rises up so dramatically from the coast and links up with the Royal National Park that extends all the way to Botany Bay.

Soggy

Soggy sheep, soaking ‘roos, squelchy paddocks, slippery bush tracks, joyful swimming creatures and luckless ducks have brought spring vividly into my focus this year.

Observing and enjoying nature properly requires that we slow down and tune in. Sitting on the river bank which runs alongside the car park below the weir at Laanecoorie recently, I deliberated on the state of our waterways as I gazed slowly up and down the barely moving dark green stream, looking for signs of life. Slowly the heads of water tortoises began to appear and disappear, bobbing gently in the green algae saturated soup. A swamphen called a couple of times from the reed bed on the far bank, and then all was quiet. Suddenly the water swirled a short distance in front of me and I wondered what it could be!  A large carp maybe, or even one of the big Murray Cod the locals say still survive in the Loddon river around here? A platypus maybe? Suddenly, a furred creature appeared, quite  large; it was a water rat - or rather two water rats!