A Bigger Splash

Todays swim
Limbs stretched into acquamarine

Ripples of water top the surface

It's the end of January when the water temperature is the same as the ambient temperature of the day. The humidity is holding but into the water around us rather than against it. I have always been inspired by David Hockney's "A Bigger Splash" and try to create my own photographs in homage to his series of swimming pool portraits.

Australian of the Year 2010

This year the Australian of the Year is Professor Patrick McGorry a leading academic and practitioner of Mental Health. In his first press release he highlighted the mental health of immigrant detainees in Australia. This is an issue that has been well documented by the Psychiatrists who are treating and in contact with detainees, but has been denied by both the Government and the Opposition in national politics. McGorry favours living in the community for detainees while they await the processing of their visas. This is an issue that deserves reporting.

Prof McGorry is also a supporter of early intervention for young people in the field of mental health. He has led the techniques and academic research in this field.

There is greater hope from those of us who contribute to mental health advocacy with his award. He will continue to voice the issues that have been ignored and not given as much health funding as is needed.

Writing

I have always have several writing projects on the go. There is the blog of course and those of you who are familiar with my life know that I also write poems and more recently plays. This February I am enrolled at The Griffin Theatre as part of their playwriting course. This will give me some writing buddies and a kick along for my manuscripts that need a dramaturg.
While writing is a solitary activity I like to get out and about while I am thinking about new material and characters. Today I went for a walk to the village and back. Surrounding myself with the suburban history of the Crag and listening to its vibe.

Explosives Reserve

Looking at termite wood

Scribbly Bark Gum

Flowers

Seed pods

Visit to the Rocks

Sydney from the water as beautiful as watery scenery of Venice

This is what we did at the Rocks
1. visited Sticky to watch them pull sugar candy
2. Found the new Rocks Discovery Museum with its artifacts and interactive displays
3. Checked out Cadman's Cottage
4. Walked through the old buildings searching for the sight lines of the past
5. caught the ferry from Hayes St, Neutral Bay

The Ferry Race

This is my second year viewing this event from Dawes Point under the Harbour Bridge in Sydney. It is a spectacle of cheering ferry participants and the flotilla of spectator craft that run under the bridge after the finish.

HC Press Park

Walking down into HC Press Park



Innisfallen Castle Cove

Back in the 1920s and 30s this was the foreshore of Press's Picnic Grounds, accessible only by boat. There was a dance hall and even a 100 metre running track. Ëxcept for the three month's of Winter, music from the semi-open-air dance hall at Press's would pound and resound across the water, all around Sugarloaf Bay" (The Crag - Wanda Spathopoulos 2007)

Computer Virus

I have had a computer virus for a while and have been unable to post. Luckilly J has fixed the problem and now things are back to normal.
What have we been doing - getting ready for the beginning of the school term. Buying uniform items and new school shoes. I always remember that as the defining moment of the end of the holidays turning up at school in my new shoes feeling different to the bare feet of Summer. The loss of the waves and the sand from the time away at the end of January. There is only one new school to start at with the three kids this year. I'm hoping for a smoother transition. I am still working casually so am at the whim of employers.
This year we need to do more structural work on the eastern side of our garden and hopefully repaint the house. This will transform what our home looks like. Particularly from the perspective of our neighbours - less so us as we are terraced into the hillside a bit like a roman villa. Burley Griffin and Mahoney Griffin designed this suburb to be in a landscape of native bush without fences. Backing on to Retreat Reserve we can uphold this ideal.
In March I am organising the Clean Up Australia Day effort for the local bush carers and neighbours. This will be our third year.
My fingers are crossed that February is a positive month for Tom and I know that your thoughts will be with him as he begins High School again.

Le Grand Cirque

Grandma took us to see Le Grand Cirque a truly fabulous event featuring human acrobatics and gynastic spectacles. Here is one of the feats that is part of the performance, a dancer standing on pointe on top of the supporting partners head the troupes take on Swan Lake.

Contemporary Art Gallery

While we waited for the afternoon matinee of Le Grande Cirque at the Lyric Theatre we visited the Contemporary Art Gallery which was showing the 6th Triennial of Asian Art.

In the Museums and Art Galleries

There was a few funny photo opportunities that we found on our tour of museums and art galleries.

Northern Rivers

There were lots of beautiful scenery to capture in the week away here are some of those moments.

Happy New Year 2010

At 8.30pm the kids and I ascended the Crag to its highest point at Castle Tower Rock and waited. We saw flares go up into the sky. Then at 9pm on the dot the first fireworks started. The head torch had been dropped twice but we managed to retrieve it. The balls of colour were gorgeous, this year in two then four colours. In fifteen minutes it was over for another year and we carefully made our way down off the rock. Tom and Jon and I managed to see in the New Year with the midnight fireworks on TV. This is what they looked like.