This is my response to the Ragtag Daily Prompt — Manufacture. I’ve finally come up with the an idea for my next mosaic. After my last huge effort, I am looking to do something small, literally. I like to make mosaics from my own photos, but in this case I won’t be able to. I should be so lucky to see an endangered mountain pygmy possum! Read more
Today’s post will introduce two very strange aquatic creatures found at one of Canberra’s nature reserves — the first, one very odd looking duck, and the second, quite duck-like.
Australia’s musk duck looks half-fish, half duck. It must be the oddest looking duck I’ve ever come across. It is so named because it is very smelly, emitting a musky smell from scent glands on its rump. Musk ducks spend most of their time in the water. They even sleep on the water. They can fly, but launching from the water or ground is hard work, so they do so infrequently. When fleeing predators, they choose a watery escape rather than take to the wing. Read more
Today I have some clandestine photos to share with you, dear Readers. Provided on a need-to-know basis. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink. The subjects are well camouflaged.
I recently went on a short walk with my son for the purpose of some online activity. Suddenly I heard the unmistakable sound of a bird of prey. “What was that?” I exclaimed. “Oh yeah,” my son said, “two sparrow-hawks nest in those pine trees over there.” To say I was indignant, Ladies and Gentlemen, was a total understatement. I demanded to know why this information had been withheld from me. Was the information top-secret, only to be disclosed to those who ‘need-to-know’? Well, no. He just forgot. Can you really believe that? Read more
This is my response to the Ragtag Daily Prompt — Forecast. To join in, click on the link.
It seems that this month, there is a new temperature record broken every other day. Another scorcher is forecast tomorrow. When the temperature dropped below 35c yesterday, I quickly hightailed it out to the surrounding bush. Due to my mosaic project and hot weather, I’ve been terribly inactive and was afraid my legs would no longer work, but I can report that they are still in walking order.
This is what happens when water becomes a commodity. I predict that the former federal water minister will lose his seat at the next election over this debacle.
My thoughts are with Vanda from Our Other Blog: Two Sisters and Two Points of View, whose town has been evacuated due to the bushfire emergency in Tasmania.
Stay safe and look out for your neighbours.
Regards
Tracy
A little poetry to mark my Monday. Because not everything has to be serious.
Marbled Mélange
sunshine and water
secrets of the universe
gourdjalicious Read more
I’ve been talking about my current mosaic project for about six months now. Now finally, it is finished. Read more
Fairy and features.
Dear readers and fairy enthusiasts, a while ago I decided to make a mosaic of a fairy. Every garden needs a fairy, right? I had never made a mosaic of a human-like form before, so I expected it to be quite challenging. And indeed, it was. It turns out it is difficult to mosaic a tiny face, all of 2sq centimetres, and I made rather a mess of it. Nevertheless, as imperfect as it was, my friend decided she would buy it for her grand-daughter. Read more
I’m determined to get some flower photos onto my blog. They seem to need a little poetry to go with them. Nature to zing by. Not that I would know. Read more
I come from a long line of procrastinators. It is kind of genetic. There is always a tension about what constitutes over-sharing and yet it is apparently important to speak up about mental health issues, despite the discrimination this induces. I’ve always had problems concentrating and getting started. Organisation is not my forté. I’m not sure whether anyone noticed. Girls are good at hiding that stuff. Plus I was kind of smart and I had compensation strategies that got me by. I got through my first degree somehow (burning the midnight oil and eating a lot of chocolate). I got a job in the government and worked my way through some of the ranks (burning the midnight oil and eating a lot of chocolate).
I was the Taskforce queen. I could pull it out of a hat when deadlines were tight (it takes a lot of adrenaline to get my mind out of first gear). Routine jobs? Tedious and stressful (probably because they involved organisational skills that I did not possess). I live in nuance, and that is often an uncomfortable place to be for a policy adviser. (I do have some sympathy for our former prime minister who was constantly being criticised because he couldn’t give a simple answer.) It is hard to sum up complex policy considerations in three talking points. Still I managed, because you know, hard work. It is the solution to everything, right? At least that is what I thought.
Trigger warning. This post contains material that may distress some readers. Read more
In my previous post, I mentioned that my love and I had gone out to the river for a sticky beak. It soon became apparent that not everyone understood this strange Aussie/Kiwi colloquialism, with a number of readers requiring a translation. In response, I thought I should provide a general explanation for those too polite to ask for a translation. Which is completely fitting as the explanation links in so perfectly with today’s post (unintended) about one of our most weird and wonderful mammals, the short-beaked echidna — a real sticky beak. Read more
Reflections of An Untidy Mind 