OUR WORLD, World Bird Wednesday & Nature Notes

I don't like lumping a number of memes together but since I am

off again tomorrow to be with my sister for a couple of days plus

two days travel, this is the best I can manage.

Last week's bird post (two posts down) showed Horsefield's Cuckoo

and my consternation at the appearance of this bird on our farm.

Here is precisely what I was afraid of : - a begging cuckoo baby,

more than twice the size of it's host parent, a tiny superb blue

wren hen working her butt of to rear this monster in her nest.

I don't hold with irresponsible parents inflicting their young

on others and am concerned at the prospect of our Superb Blue

Wren population taking a backward step just when they had

managed to build up their numbers a little.

On a happier note, on my walk across our cows' favourite

paddock last night, three Quail lifted into their low lumbering

flight at my approach. I was pleased to see them as I had not

spied any for a few years and feared they had fallen to the

imported foxes to this country that have been the bane of native

ground-nesting birds.

If you see this, please leave a sign of life as I appreciate your

comments so very much and my own visits will be even more

restricted than usual this week.

My thanks to the hosts of all three memes which can be accessed

through the relevant Logos on my side bar.

SkyWatch ~ On the Road Come Rain or Shine

In the inimitable words of Ogden Nash:

"Home is heaven

and orgies are vile,

but I like an orgy once in a while."

We were travelling for 30 days through three states and over

3,000 kilometers and have just come home again for a while.

Whew!!!

Leaving Sydney we were engulfed by these great rolling clouds

betokening wild weather to come.

They did not quite live up to their expectations for a few hundred

miles yet

but were definitely flexing their muscles.

A little further on they came down with a vengeance, the

windscreen wiper on my side jammed permanently so there are

no pikkies of the deluge.

You will get more travel impressions a little later in the week.

Meanwhile, all pictures enlarge as usual.

Thanks to our great SkyWatch Team we can share and enjoy

each other's skies. Keep it up guys!

TODAY'S FLOWERS ~ Flowers of a Warmer Climate

Arriving at our son's house in Sydney NSW, we were greeted

by a carpet of pink and white petals. Sydney was a-wash with

Camellias in every possible shape,

here as a hedge. At other places as large trees or even topiaries.

Everywhere these exquisite blooms in pink and white!

I will disappear off the radar again from dawn tomorrow until I

can find another connection so please leave some comments even

though I cannot visit until we get home in a few days time I hope.

All photos enlarge as usual.

Thank you Luiz for this great meme, I hope any visitors here will also

join in through the Logo on my side bar.

SkyWatch ~ On the Road

Sorry I have been flying rather low below the radar recently.

My mobile internet connection ran out and without grand-

daughterial assistance I could not manage to cash up my

account again.

These few pics are from two days ago on our way from

Albury/Wodonga to Sydney. The trip was rather too long

for me to cover in one day so it was wonderful to have this

guardian angel watching over us for much of the way.

All too soon daylight started to fade but the glow in my side

mirror made me wind down the window and shoot backwards

towards the blazing sky. Pardon the slight blur but we were

doing 110kph.

We briefly stopped so I could get a more direct shot at that

glorious sky before hurrying on to Wollongong and a friend's

wonderful welcome, delicious and companionable dinner and

a bed to dream about. Hooray for friendship!!

My photos are straight off the camera and have not been

tampered with in any way and can of course be enlarged.

We are at the moment at our son's house in Sydney where our

granddaughter is playing violin at a soiree tonight and I have

access to wireless internet. I may be able to post more tomorrow

before we again vanish into internet shadowland.

I do hope you keep me in the loop and send a few comments my way.

Thanks to everyone at SkyWatch for this smashing meme!

TODAY'S FLOWERS ~ Desert Flowers, Heading North

Heading north for the desert floriade lots of little flowers showed
their pretty faces as soon as we reached the southern Flinder's
Ranges. A sprig of blue near Hawker,



and the first of the tiny, 6"high, Statice in the palest of blue
against the red desert soil.



There I was, about to be erudite and tell you all the botanical
names and the great big tome on native plants I just bought
turned out to be a dud!



This one I know without a book, Solanum petrophilum.



This is one I know all too well since it is a common weed on
our farm and is the flower in my header, Echium plantagenium.
The really exciting flowers will start next week.



All photos enlarge as usual.

Our trip to the drylands in a wet season was amazing in many
ways among the high points were the flowers.

Thanks to TODAY'S FLOWERS we can all share our floral experiences.

SkyWatch ~ Somewhere Along the Way...

Most of our road trips are accompanied by dramatic
skies to which this was no exception. For the six or so
hours we travelled, my eyes and shutter finger were
very well entertained.



Rapidly banking and changing clouds promising
thunder and downpours surrounded us on all sides,
yet our drive remained dry.
Now and again the clouds gave way to patches of
bright light and glimpses of blue.



This is a group of afternoon lit trees on a bare hill
which I have always loved. It is opposite 'Pink Lake'
which at present is still sleeping in my Nikon. My
computer is down to its last 5% of space, mainly
because I have stored 22,000 photos on it in less
than one year!



Although we could see the rain in the distance, the
road remained dry,



but just before the flaming sun sought shelter beyond
the holizon, the humidity increased as though we had
just landed in the tropics after a downpour. I had never
driven in a sauna before, the air was saturated. The
day had been a very hot one and the downpours on the
hot earth evaporated like a steaming kettle.



Next week, God willing, I shall post the next exciting
episode of the weather as the day ends and the
moon turns pink with excitement.

All photos enlarge with a click as always.

To fly around the skies, click on the SkyWatch Logo.

Thanks to Klaus and our great SkyWatch team, we
can all join in with this great fun meme.

MY WORLD ~ 45 The Boring Part of the Road

A long, flat, boring part of our way to Sydney. To
get there in a reasonable time, this is the way to take.
The road is straight ahead all the way across the state
of Victoria. This time it was spring and if one bothered
to stop, this dry dry country produced some lovely
surprises like these tiny straw flowers.



The golden ones were even more spectacular against
the red sany soil.



Like someone had thrown a king's ransom across
the road verges.


Even the stunted Acacias glowed gold.

Crossing another state border we came to a little sleepy

hollow called Weethalle in New South Wales. To call

it a one horse town is to give it more life than it has.

No matter, we like to support little shrinking communities

so we stopped to have some scones and tea at the old

railway carriage tea room at the restored station next to
the silent tracks.

These beautiful Gazanias are a proclaimed weed in

sandy areas of Australia but aren't they splendid.
From the platform, across the rusty tracks there
we saw this beautiful mural of the old town the way

it used to be.

There is still wheat farming in the district as the

silo testifies.

Unfortunately the tea room was closed although the
sign said open.

The little old ladies who run the little shop and tea room
maintain the gardens beautifully.

I did take some photos of the beautiful station but

my computer ate them, so for today, this is all you

are getting.

Click on the Logo and fly around the world that Klaus

and his Team have so kindly opened to us.

MY WORLD ~ 44 On the Road Again

All photos enlarge for better viewing with more detail.

Two weeks ago we set off on a long haul to Sydney,
New South Wales. After many delays and tired before
we started, we were off at 5p.m. and made it rather
the worse for wear to this once grand hotel, the Victoria
Hotel at Ouyen in the almost never-never country.



The town was crammed to the rafters, not only had it
just had its centennary but also the grand Vanilla Slice
competition!!! We were lucky to secure the last available
bed...unfortunately only a double not a queen size.



We were on the first floor with 12'6" ceiling and this
Banksia Rose smiled at me through the fly-wire in the
morning. When I investigated the fire exit, I came face
to face with the head of this Palm tree lit up by the rising
sun. How often does one see a mature palm at this height?



Investigating in the other direction, the sun streamed in
through the door to the front verandah

the original iron lace cast perfect shadows across

its 12' width.



Breakfast called and the old Commercial Travellers' Room

converted as a breakfast parlour still boasted the holes for

the ink wells and pens in the divided desks, although now

there was an array of breakfast cereals and toasting

paraphenalia there. The 1950's wallpaper with its lurid gleaming

gold roses caught my eye. Do enlarge it for the stunning effect!

A glimpse into the residential lounge showed an

assortment of none too comfortable furnishings, not at

all like the leather armchairs we remembered from some
30 years before .

Heading downstairs was a lovely solid old wooden

staircase positively reeking of respectability.

Unfortunately I had no call to investigate the Ladies Room
and the once imposing room for business transactions had

now been turned into a restaurant and securely fastened

against inquisitive morning intruders.

The sataircase sweeping down to Reception and Lobby,

and from below, a couple of armchairs quaintly flanking

an old treadle sewing machine surmounted by an old
photo of the front of the hotel in the days of its glory.



The photo was rather faded and warped behind its glass
shield, but at least you can see the lovely old cars.

Here is the tiled front and Entrance as we left on our

next day's journey.

Grandeur always comes at a price but faded grandeur

often comes at half price, so we could not complain of

having the bathrooms in the hallway at $50 a double

room with continental breafast!

More adventures of our two weeks on the foad to follow....

For other tales, click on the Logo and look.

MY WORLD ~ 43 Away with the Faeries

With these two pictures of the Prof's park I leave
you for a little while. Tomorrow we depart for Sydney,
a round trip of some 2,000 miles. The object of our
pilgrimage is our youngest g-daughter's 3rd concert
for the year playing violin in the Australian Junior Youth
Orchestra. The first two we missed for unforseen reasons
and are now all the more determined to put in a statutory
grandparental appearance.

Since it is inadvisable for me to take to the skies, it will
take a number of days for us to drive the distance in easy
stages. Again, my health is the prime reason for our tardy
progress. Although I will be equiped not only with my trusty
Nikon but my computer as well, signals for internet will seldom
be available and posts will be few if any.
Apologies to those of you who expected the next exciting episode
of my water pollution post, it will make an appearance on the
first available occasion.
Please feel free to leave comments which I do enjoy so very much.

Until we meet again, stay well, stay happy and God bless you all!

All photos enlarge with a simple click.

To visit other worlds, click on the Logo

Thanks to Klaus and the MY WORLD team we can all

join in with this wonderful meme.

Cheer from the Shadehouse

Waterlilies, Rockhampton Bot. Gdns from our holiday in Queensland

Sunrise on the farm

Calendula

Zygopetalum

Frosts threaten and most of my orchids are ailing except, oh wonder of wonders, my Zygopetalums. Wish I could share the intoxicating perfume. One plant fills a whole room to overflowing with scent of tropical sunsets and large pina coladas, perfect sandy beaches and the obligatory orchestra playing. In winter one becomes nostalgic for Queensland, Noumea, Fiji - no, not Fiji with the present political situation, or Tahiti. Sadly only Queensland is accessible to this earthbound blogger. Large aircraft play havoc with the balance of bionics in my ticker. Fortunately memory still holds true and the many places on our planet I call home walk with me still in this little slice of paradise in the driest state in the driest continent.

Back to my Zygopetalum of which I have three pots flowering concurrently as well as a solitary Cymbidium. I am happy to report that my Calendulas are a picture and the broccoli is in full bloom due to neglect of picking. Must remember to chop it back for a fourth crop. The grandchildrens' bunnies will be ever so happy! Where did the time go? Yesterday they slipped a tiny hand into mine as we wandered the paddocks or explored the creek in the wild wood and now they tower above me in time honoured role reversal and pat me on the head.....Tempus fugit....time to post blog.