Things I saw last week

Things I saw in March

This is a bit of a catch up post about “things I saw”. March has been a busy month with work and recovery, a 21st birthday for a precious niece, and a holiday and a training course!

Some of the things I saw were intriguing and beautiful, and some I thought hilarious (it doesn’t take much for me to find things funny!). I was walking along the beach one day and I thought I saw a shark in the grass (see featured picture). As I drew closer I realised it was a surfboard. It had a note on it saying people could borrow it but to please return it to this spot. How nice is that?  Here are a few other things I saw:

a murder of crowsIs this a Murder of Crows or a Coven of Currawongs? They took absolutely no notice of me as a I walked past; there must have been something pretty interesting under that tree.

shortcut shortcut2

I love the way we take shortcuts and here are two I saw this month on the walk from home to work. The first one shows the bike/pedestrian path curving ever so slightly, but no, we will not follow the road we shall create our own path; one that is straight not curved, thank you very much!  The second one makes a beautiful triangular slice from bike path to street. When I was younger a friend lived on a corner block and every day schoolkids would walk across her front yard instead of along the path to turn into the next street. Her oldies were cross and got hot under the collar about this. “There’s a perfectly good footpath for them to use”, fumed her dad. “Yairs”, agreed her mum. Dad constantly threatened to string wire across so their grass would have a chance to come back; but they never did and I’ll bet kids are still cutting that corner.

donateSpotted at the Wesley centre in Sydney. Say no more.

In Mid-March I went on a short crusie to New Caledonia. Here is an example of the towel art found in my cabin on the first day. I think it’s meant to be a seal…

Towel art Sostice March 2015  wake and sunset and this…every morning when I woke and every evening I was so thankful for the opportunity to see the world, or a bit of it anyway, while others cooked for me, cleaned for me, and made it possible for me to be present and enjoying all that my holiday offered.

In Sydney, I happened on Martin Place and I was reminded that just a few months ago three people were killed and more than a dozen people will live with the horror of the Lindt cafe siege for the rest of their days. There was a humble note taped to a post outside the cafe in protest to the despicable comments that Fred Nile, self-described “Christian”, made about some of the hostages who escaped the cafe before the siege ended.

martin plce         martin place 2The note says “Fred Nile keep his mouth shut. Not a threat, a plea from decent Aussies”.

 And spotted in Brisbane this month, the smallest red carpet in the world, and in no uncertain terms, a sign that says “Dogs on skateboards who smoke and drink wine are not permitted in this area”.

no skateboarding dogs                   

Photo credit: me and my iPhone

Things I saw in February

I love to look around me in this gorgeous world of ours and I am lucky to live in a beautiful part of it. Sometimes I see things that strike me as hilarious, or stunning and amazing, or just plain wtf?  Here are a few things I saw in February 2015:

Near where I live is a lovely walk around a wetlands area, home to an enormous number of creatures and birds. There’s always something to see on this walk but  I was struck one day by two pieces of spraycan writing on the path.F abbottabbot did this

You can just see the absolute inarticulate rage here can’t you? The first was on the footpath, the second on a lovely little spot where people sit and contemplate the ducks and the frogs.  There wasn’t quite enough room for the “s” in “THIS”, but it looks quite arty like it is. But there was certainly enough room to add the extra “T” to our PM’s name. If Abbott really did do this he may have spelled his name correctly.  Get it right angry spray painter!!

I well remember reading “Snugglepot and CuddlepIe” when I was a little tacker and I read it to my own child as well. We loved the fierce “Banksia Men”, and the delicate flower dress of Little Ragged Blossom. These reminded me of those times.

gum nut flowersBanksia man

When my daughter was little, she asked “Are the Banksia Men real”? And when she recognised a tree full of them for the first time she was delighted. “They are real!! Mummy, I thought that was just a made up story”.  We delighted in examining each one very closely, marvelling at how different they all were, and how spot on May Gibbs’ illustrations were.

gumnut blossoms

Kidnapper and Banksia lout

Kidnapper and Banksia lout

The banksia men were pretty fierce in May Gibbs’ story – a lot of angry kidnappers and louts, and in real life they can look fierce too. The one I photographed looks rather benign though – all big lips and kind of friendly.  Maybe this particular one is a peaceful and relaxed Banksia person without kidnapping and mayhem in their background.

In February I was lucky enough to walk along a track, (accompanied of course, by the Frequent Urinator – see featured picture), with million dollar views at the South Coast. Some savvy South coasters have parked picnic tables and chairs alongside the track or out the back of their homes, to take advantage of said views, while they share an ale or a meal with family and friends. The dining furniture ranges in quality and ingenuity, but here are a few of my favourites:

This one’s definitely seen better days…table 5

Who table 1cares what’s on the menu when you can look out at this?

Might get a few splinters with this one:table4

Fancy pants and well-maintained!table3

A few old besser bricks and a bit of wood and we are all set for a Chardy at sunset!

table2

The world is a funny and beautiful place isn’t it?  I look forward to sharing more things “”I saw last week” with you.

Photo credit: me and my iphone; May Gibbs’ illustrations from “Snugglepot and Cuddllepie”.