I am not a curious person, ladies and gentlemen, so it is well that I ended up sharing my life with my True Love and that we had two lovely, inquisitive boys. It is a truism, but without them, I would be the lesser.
There is much to be learnt from the curiosity of children. Read more
It’s summer in the southern hemisphere. In southeast Australia, it has been a shocker. In Canberra (the nation’s capital), we have had drought, a huge hailstorm and now fire in the Namadgi National Park to the south and west.
We also had a small colony of Little Red Flying Foxes take up residence in one of our town parks. When we first discovered the colony, we asked our son whether we should report it in. He told us that the ACT Government (that’s our local government) most likely already knew about it. They didn’t. Turns out the Little Reds haven’t been seen in Canberra for 23 years. Imagine that! Read more
There is not a lot of leading the way happening in Australia at the moment. So rather than throw up my hands in disgust, I thought I would participate in this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge — Leading Lines. I don’t want to lead you astray so I’m going to try to follow the brief and let the lines take you on the journey. Read more
Speaking of calendars, my husband (aka my True Love) bought one the other day. It’s a long story. 495 words to be exact-ish. We didn’t buy a calendar last year and by mid year, regretted that decision. Anyway, my husband has ordered one. From a Danish vlogger of all people! I am as surprised as you, ladies and gentlemen. Read more
Wherever you may be, tread lightly, make haste slowly and be kind. Read more
It is Friday, so it is time for a song. But first, a couple of photos and a story about the one that got away. There are some photos, ladies and gentlemen, that should never be cropped and enlarged, so of course, I couldn’t resist.
(This post contains content that may gross out some readers.) Read more
Yesterday (Thursday) was International Mental Health Day, so I am having a belated mental health day. Won’t you join me? What better way to do this than to chill out with a few of my favourite friends and some relaxing music. Read more
In Australia, it is quite unusual to observe a fox going about its nefarious business, but we did indeed see one and have the photographs to prove it. One day, as my True Love and I approached the river, we heard a duck making a great cacophony. It was clearly very agitated. Perhaps this noise, and the fact that we were upwind of the duck and fox, masked our approach. The duck made its escape, much to the disappointment of the young fox. Read more
I was astonished, ladies and gentlemen, to learn of the investigation by the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) into the origin of the idiom — to run around like a blue-arsed fly; an idiom that means to be very busy. In particular, I was surprised by the OED’s initial proposition that the origin of the phrase could be traced to a 1970 quote by HRH Prince Phillip, the Duke of Edinburgh. As many older Aussies can tell you, the phrase has been around at least as far back as the 1950s and probably longer. I was also surprised to learn that the phrase may actually have its genesis in another country – America. I’ll be blowed! (Word nerds can read about it here and here.) Read more
Reflections of An Untidy Mind 