A few days ago, my feminist ideals were put to the test and found wanting. I was having lunch in a restaurant whose main clientele were migrants to Australia. I think I was the only Australian-born customer at that point in time. In that nice, quiet haven, I witnessed an extraordinarily vile verbal attack by one diner on his female dining companion. As he was speaking loudly enough (just below shouting volume) for all of us to hear, we were clearly meant to be complicit in the drama. Or maybe it was just a tactic to embarrass and intimidate his companion. Probably the latter. It was horrible. Read more
Back On The Food Chain Gang
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
All My Trials – Ama Barks Again
About this time last year, my niggling concerns about the health of my little dog, Ama, were vindicated. I knew my girl and I knew the Finnish Spitz breed, so I knew there was something wrong. I think we should trust our instincts. Read more
Outfoxed
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
Bluey The Fly
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
Horse Tales
A long time ago in a land far away, my True Love and I had a big adventure. It was on our European backpacking tour of ’91. While we were in Ireland, we decided we would lash out (spend up big) and take an organised day tour of Killarney National Park. Our mode of transport was horse and cart, and then dinghy for the return across Loch Léin to Ross Castle (I hope I’ve got that right. It was such a long time ago). For the more intrepid traveler, there was the option of riding a horse. Now I’m not that intrepid but I used to be a good rider, so I chose to ride. My True Love wisely chose to travel by cart. Read more
The F World
A fissure has emerged in our household, ladies and gentlemen. Or at least it has for the purposes of this post. My True Love has told me in no uncertain terms that he is sick of my virtue signalling. Well, that was my interpretation of what he said. He actually said that he didn’t want to retire and spend the rest of his getting shorter life with me if I was going to be so hysterical ALL THE TIME about climate change. I need to stop being so anthropocentric. Read more
Everything Is Just Fine
In just under an hour, my Saturday will begin. I am thinking of instituting a Friday song on my blog as way of celebrating the end of the working week (but of course, many people also work on the weekend and don’t get paid any, or very little, extra for this convenience). Since the Ragtag Daily Prompt is sardonic, I might as well kill two birds with one post.
No one does sardonic better than Alanis Morissette. I dedicate this pick to all the underpaid shift workers out there. Everything will be fine, fine, fine. At least it will be for me.
Sing it with me.
Happy weekend.
Regards.
Tracy
On The Straight And Narrow
Last night, I thought I might write a very important post. Then I chickened out. But now …. oh well, here goes.
I don’t do drugs. Never have. I have had too many “hypos” (low blood glucose episodes), which are themselves quite trippy. Some good. Some bad. So I stay well clear of them — drugs, not hypos, which is somewhat harder to “do”. I don’t even drink alcohol anymore. The most I’ve ever drunk was three glasses of wine. You know, when in France … as you do. Read more
What’s Your Beef?
Would it surprise you to learn, ladies and gentlemen, that Australia has the highest rate of deforestation in the developed world and that, although direct comparisons cannot be made. rates of land-clearing are on a par with Brazil? Land-clearing is accelerating the growth in Australia’s carbon emissions. Read more
