i’m not there? no i am there
well, back in sydney its been for a few days now. with lovely christmas times and family and food and fone calls and cricket, and food and drink and leeches and cabins and walk and talk and food and drink and bread and smh’s and food and drink and walk and talk and swim and play and read and im not there 2 times and talking about im not there more than two times and wondering if three times is a bit like the extravangance we get upset about. still, doing nuthin in sydney with the people i know is pretty bloody fantastic.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)Like a storm in the desert….
Well, it’s seriously raining in the Centre with storms and heavy showers coming and going. The earth smells amazing after a shower. And there are these things I had nearly forgotten about called puddles. This morning I had breakfast on our verandah (with no mozzies!) watching a couple of Port Linclon parrots (green, blue and yellow) first standing on the edge of the puddle delicately drinking and then walking into the puddle and then positively rolling around in it and fluffing up their feathers. They were just delighting in it and were there for the while duration of my meusli consumption. There were also a whole bunch of babblers around… these funny birds who hop on the ground and climb up the sides of tree trunks pecking at insects and make this noisy chattering sound. Then throw in a couple of Major Mitchell cockatoos. All the birds are out in force with a bit of water. The place is coming to life. You can really feel it. Down side is the humidity.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (1)Monday in Alice
Yesterday felt like one of those days it felt right being here. I had some good conversations with clients at work. I even connected a bit to my old life when I was asked to see a man who was just diagnosed with HIV. It’s hard stuff but I am always fascinated by how moments like these can have people relfecting so much on life and what is most important. I always feel very priveleged to be able to be with people at such times. In the evening Keith and I came home and chased a cow off the property because they sometimes knock the taps over. This took us over to where our neighbours were sitting beside a couple of broken down cars and staring at the clouds in the sky. We actually had rain yesterday and then it became humid. Any way, they were sitting around with a visiting brother who had his guitar and before too long Keith got his guitar and we were all sittng around creating and listening to a crazy concoction of music, mostly Slim Dusty songs. They also sang some Arrerente love songs that sounded so wonderful and romantic until we were given the translation them and they were just as corny as most English ones. We could sit out all evening without a single mozzie because we now have really solved our mozzie problem… so Keith made up a song about missing the mozzies. We probably are going to need to brush up on Slim Dusty.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)not doing
I’ve really been missing Sydney this week. Dont really know why but it comes in waves. We’ll be back in Sydney in few weeks and that will be grand to catch up with people but it is the just being there that i think i miss. Somehow when you add up all of the things you DONT do other than just being it adds up to something special. Cara’s Leunig blog (hello Cara i dont think I have met you if I have it was in one of those moments of not doing) made me wonder if leunig has a contribution on such things. I am sure he does.
In short I would like to be doing much more not doing in my old not doing stronghold. It a place where you can, not do things together.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (6)mosquitos, tomatoes and pipes
We have been having a few issues with Mossies and at the weekend after going to our neighbours place where they didnt have any we resolved to address the issue. We looked around and discovered a whole range of open pipes and water holding devices nurturing no downright encouraging the little critters.
After buying some bits and pieces at the plumbing shop which is always fun I came home to rectify said unholy mossy strongholds. Bronya and Frank (from our Indigenous family John, Marilyn, Frank and the kids Seraphina and Magrida in the second house) joined in. As I muddled around from pipe to ditch with guaze here and pipe repairs there i could see Bronya and frank doing their bits. I looked over to the second house where John was watering his newly planted bush tomatoes. Marilyn his wife was on the front porch reading and their kids were in the pool splashing and screaming with laughter. I actually think the pool is another mossy stronghold - pretty tacky little pool but it does hold water)
Then i walked in the other direction and saw Stella raking the new vegetable patch that John and Bronya had made during the day.
It all felt like just a wonderful little community quietly but joyuosly going about simple things. Alot of very nice people we live with. I eventually went back to the house but I’m not sure the mossies are beat yet.
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