The carnivores have moved into the neighbourhood. Over the last couple of years, we have had the occasional grey butcherbird visit but they don’t normally stick around. February has been the exception. The butcherbirds must have a nest nearby because a juvenile has been practising its maniacal cackle. It is very endearing. On the other hand, there have been few smaller birds around. Too tasty, I guess. 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 