Lunch is dangerous...

...particularly when attended by brother and son1. All I said was, 'I don't think it'll come down that easily, or quickly...' and they disappeared out the front door to prove me wrong.

And they did.

This took less than ten minutes. And they had way too much fun.


And no, I don't know when the new one is coming. But it's not looking like before Christmas.

I never know where ideas are going to come from. They arrive at opportune and inopportune times. I've learnt to relax and just be ready to harvest them when they do appear.

It's a bit the same with photos. It's hard to know where the photo opportunities will be, until they happen. While in North Queensland last weekend we went to see the Burdekin River in almost flood.

It's not been this full for a while. Last time I saw it, there the whole expanse from the bridge was sand, with a couple of little trickles meandering their way seaward.


It's harvest time and the cane is rolling in to the mills via cane trains.

'Mind the spiders' was the only advice we were given as we set out to make our way along the narrow walkway set lower than the bridge. Not 'It's a narrow bridge and the cars might dislocate your shoulder', or 'the bridge wobbles A LOT'. Both would have been relevant.

The spider warning was a good one though. There are sooo many spiders and webs there. With the wind and the wobbling, it must be tough to work out when anything lands in the web, but apparently it's worth it. Cane beetles abound (afly) at this time of year and we saw many a spider feasting.

The Story Space

Yesterday was the final Newport Substation Art Market for the year and Jackie, Dharma, Dagmara and I were there telling, singing and reading stories for children.

We are all differently involved in story, with many overlaps. Jackie is a storyteller and author; Dharma owns a bookshop and runs storytime for local children and sings beautifully; Dagmara last year made 100 copies of a story she'd written and illustrated which is now to be published commercially. She also tells stories using her own made puppets. She also makes lovely brooch people who come with their own alternative outfits!

We swapped roles all day, from storyteller to singer, to rhymer and back again. It was great to watch other people working and to work with them. Our children visitors ranged from infants to preteens and we had stories for them all.

Bright days

Just back from 5 lovely days at Bright. Weather was variable but always mild, no matter the rain.


View from a winery.


This is a sluice handcut into the rock bank of the Ovens River in Bright. Hand cut! It's about 2 m deep and who knows how long. The sluice allowed goldminers to clean rocks and mud away from any potential gold find.

View from Mt Buffalo toward Mt Bogong and beyond. We did see one huge Bogong moth.

From the Gorge on Mt Buffalo.

The Chalet. It's been empty since the last tenants left in 2007 but you'd not know it by this gorgeous garden. A gardener of the former tenant was asked by Parks Vic to stay on until a tenant could be found...and he's still there.

The Chalet from the Gorge.

This bridge, at Wandiligong was under repair. Must have been the last rains. Oh wait, read the sign...

This Chinese bridge is a memorial to the local Chinese miners who lived here during the gold rush. It was an unusual sight to appear in the middle of the bush. But a lovely memorial.

Could that be the view from another winery? Possibly.

Ladies bath falls, part of Eurobin Falls at the base of Mt Buffalo

Bikes! Bikes! Bikes! Enough for everyone