Skip to main content

Smile like a Crocodile ...


Here I am in Townsville, in North Queensland. You may have heard the news that a large crocodile was spotted on the Strand ( the foreshores) in Townsville this week. How did I happen to be here still smiling with this huge reptile. Well .... We came up here on Wednesday morning, 4 March to surprise my mother on her 84th birthday. This is a special birthday as this is her year  in the Chinese calendar - the Year of the Ox.  My sister invited our mum  to lunch at a coffee shop near her home, and we "gatecrashed " their lunch. I think she is still getting over the shock, and can't believe that she didn't have any idea that we were coming. Her first words were "How did you get here?" The simple answer, " By plane, Mum."  Amazing that no one else in the family who were all in on the surprise didn't drop any hints whatsoever.  We have had a few lovely days up here - eating out, shopping and gathering more information to help Jim write our family history. Yesterday, we went to Ayr, a small town south of Townsville , where my grandfather used to own a shop.  Coincidentally we  met a woman in the Court House who remembered going to the shop as a child, and also picking potatoes from my grandfather's market garden.  This has been a great break, but  are hoping to return home after the weekend, if the cyclone warnings don't ground air traffic.  I also attended an International Women's Day function with my sister - Happy International Women's Day to the very special women and girls in my life  - friends, colleagues, and my family. 
Now back to the crocodile ... I can't claim to be the female version of Crocodile Dundee even though we are celebrating the achievements of women on this International Women's Day.  - This "concrete" monster was about to be placed in the lobby of a new hotel. Jim ( my husband) and I happened to be walking past as it was being unpacked on the street. Great photo to show the grandchildren, though . 
Labels:

Comments

  1. JudithMarch 8, 2009 at 8:15 AM

    you are having a wonderful time with your mother and family!
    Keen to know what you shopped for..beads?...fabric....he,he,he!!!
    Judith

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks for reading my blog and please share your thoughts about my blog post by leaving a comment.Your comment won't appear immediately as comments are verified before publication in an effort to reduce the amount of spam appearing. Anonymous comments will not be published.

Popular posts from this blog

Christmas Countdown 15 : Christmas Tree #11 - Disposable

Plastic cups  https://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/christmas-stem-ideas-kids/ Advent Blog : Day 11 - Disposable  We are all so much more conscious about ridding our landfills and oceans of plastic waste. For Christmas, here is a way to use up some of those disposable items which seem to multiply at holiday parties and celebrations, or perhaps you have just been saving them up for a creative use.... Who would have thought coffee pods would make such stylish Christmas trees ? ... Add caption If you don't have one of those machines, then perhaps you have coffee on the run - Starbucks or Nescafe ?  from  https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/369858188126737920/ Nescafe cups https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/72761350208620530/ The disposable cups don' t have to be brand names to work well as materials for Christmas trees. Taking an engineering approach to plastic cup trees seems to be the answer for a more ornate result.  from  https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin
1 comment
Read more

Countdown to Christmas 20 - Fruitcake song!

There are many songs about fruit cakes  - not all of them referring to the Christmas cake we know and love.It is really surprising to learn via Google that there are 89 listed songs with references to Christmas cake or fruit cake - not all of them complimentary.   Probably one of the most famous folk songs about Christmas cake is Miss Fogarty's  Christmas Cake (a favourite sung by The Irish Rovers).  This first recorded comical Christmas song was written by C Frank Horn in 1883 in Pennsylania, as a variation of an Irish folk song, 'Miss Mulligan's Christmas Cake' . The chorus might give you the hint that Miss Fogarty's cake was not for the faint hearted or those who suffered from a weak stomach.    Chorus : There were plums and prunes and cherries, There were citrons and raisins and cinnamon, too There was nutmeg, cloves and berries And a crust that was nailed on with glue There were caraway seeds in abundance Such that work up
Post a Comment
Read more

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks ....  The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and  message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or  my husband or from off cuts gifted to us  from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks.   Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt  or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as wrapping str
3 comments
Read more