Ladybird (bug) is Aposematic..yeah..getout!

Under a myriad of sap sucking aphids and a profusion of new plant growth...a true predator arrived. She would be well rewarded for her arrival as the new spring has ushered in a flush of new growth not seen for many seasons.
Dont you just love bugs....it reinforces your faith in the web of life and its marvellous adaptability...and I'm only a casual voyuer...but I liiiiike it!

Craggles

Fruit from Flower

About 4 weeks ago I told you I'd keep you updated on the fruit from my Prunus Plum Tree.
Well today I was finally able to show you the developing fruit.
I suspect that the birds and I will be in competition for the tasty morsels which are probably another 4 weeks away from my taste preference.

Craggles

Xena and Gabrielle....

Well its true Xena has a moon....yet to be validated by the planet trustees

Gabrielle was seen by Hawaiian sky watchers...Pluto has its Moon too about same size

LONG LIVE THE GALAXY!!!

Craggles

Dandelion Clocks

This yellow flowers seed bundle which fascinates all children with its expiratory seed dispersal appears just as Spring gets a hold...do all these seeds land seed head first after beinf blown by wind or disrupted by passing creatures
We used to call them robbers? when we were kids
Dandelion ....another plant marvel.

Craggles

A Day in Spiritual Transition

My hiatus from work..a time to disengage from my frenetic fractile career
..stand back and smell the roses!!!!
Somewhat reflective but joyous...will I red Dylan Thomas (Under Milkwood) again or will I slip into to the time warp that Manning Clark describes in The Puzzles of Childhood....all of this whilst conjuring the most magnificent Chicken Broth and Celeriac brew for lunch...and being audibly seduced by the haunting lyrics of Sufjan Stevens (pron Soofyan)
I LOVE SATURDAYS...xxxxxx
Craggles

Orchids Conference in my garden

This is just a small collection of the cymbidiums
now featuring in my garden

Craggles

Orchids in September Flush

Words are inadequate to describe the colour, shape and attraction
My Cymbidiums are uplifting..with their freckly faces and their sticky stamens

Craggles

Blue Iris...pulchritudinous

Early this morning at 6.20 am I scanned my garden and found a sole single
Blue Iris had erupted in my Parsley patch
It is such a magnificent flower...yellow tongue and blue blue petals

Who needs money to make you feel so elated....visual enrichment does me fine

Craggles

What a Swan Song it is....GF 2005 goes to Sydney

Without starting a conspiracy theory to rival the brown Da Vinci Code
the AFL has just signed itself a blank sponsor cheque in A$$$$$...

Sydney Swans prevail in titanic hand wrestle to snatch the 2005 AFL Granny

Congrats to all their supporters
Craggles

All roads lead to the "G"

Once again its that oneday in September....
the quiet of Yarra Park will be broken by ...AUSSIE RULES.

Opposing teams from Perth and Sydney will fight to the death
for the AFL 2005 Premiership Cup.

People love any chance to get onto the hallowed turf...where Bradman and Ponsford and Cuthbert and Zatopek performed like deities and where Plugger ,Hirdy , Aka and Skilts all stove for glory...and the seagulllooking for an odd morsel left from the hungry hord.

Smells like September
Craggles

Rural Rollerbales

Last years meagre pasture growth produced these quiescent Rollerbales.
They will be distributed to livestock in next few months as the young are weaned
They look so restful..will only take a few days for their beautiful form to be disfigured by rampant ruminants

Craggles

Like ROYKSOPP..

Have a listen to this visual cornucopia....49 days by ROYKSOPP (can you listen to a visual???)..you know what I mean anyow.
The clip is interesting

CRAGGLES

Low Slung for GUYS...erhh?

Had hoped we were over the low cut jean thing....always feel sorry for those fashion victims[you know the yng girls and boys bw 14-18]
Well now thanks to Dulce [spelt incorrectly..heck whats a vowel between folks] we have PUBIC PANTS

Scream you may do...butt crack rearing its shadowy depths again in the name of fashion

But for those of us who thanks to genetic allocation have no butt they are so not de rigueur.
At least Joe can show off BOADICEA's chariot wheels and those furious horses' hooves..hehehe

Craggles..another fashion refugee

The Broadsheet is 30 m tall

On your travels you may have passed this rather unique artwork that adorns the grounds of the AGE in Melbourne at Tullamarine

You can see it clearly on your LHS as you travel from Melbourne Airport Tullamarine towards the city

It looks even better of an evening...

Craggles

Nature is the Architect that nears PERFECTION

For 3 weeks from mid to last week in August , my home is host to this floral display.
As I pass by this tree every evening, prunus scent wafts delightfully around me
And in 6 weeks we will eat her tart fruit..cant wait
Craggles

They Hissed at me until...

Fancy seeing these little darlings on my travels....
but down by the ornamental lakes near home
there they were preening their feathers
whilst one stood gaurd
They greeted me with a collective HIIIISSSSSSS!.....Hisssy Fit no doubt
What with their neck stretched out and all the noise they took on reptilian
disguise...very intimidating ..partic now I am lying on my side next to them

They can be awful ..but I like them

Craggles

Floral Theme Continues

Maybe its just the overpowering waxy smell or the brilliant display of golden wonder ..whatever it is the flowering Acacia with its waxy leathery leaves and its myriad of yellow pom poms never ceases to attract me to it
Its short but brilliant expose announces Spring is soon to arrive

Craggles

A Tree ..a very old Tree...Alone

This Tree is alone on a windswept bucolic landscape

It screamed to be photographed against a cloudless sky

So I DID!

Craggles

Spring ....and the Flush of Color Begins

The Garden was awash with this spectacular colourama this wonderful morning..BEHOLD

CRAGGLES

TICK tock TICK tock?????

ON MY JOURNIES I ENCOUNTER SOME NEAT AND CURIOUS THINGS
TODAY I DISPLAY FOR YOUR EDIFICATION....

An alluring, resprospective, analogue timepiece

My only clue to you finding out its Melways will be ...3041

It should be easy to discover its location mostly by its art.

ENJOY
CRAGGLES

Due to spam I have activated WORD VERIFICATION OPTION ...sorry...no automated comments will be registered

New Contraceptive Device hits the Shelves

Awoke to find my sweet wee succulent is lookin more devilish than ever

And his/her kids are growing well at her feet

This is one spikey dude of a plant..with his own occupants of little arachnids with their silky webs

Craggles

To Late For BOTOX

Test for you....is it stone or wood
Weathered, wrinkled and aged.....hoping you are not so affected hehe

This was found on one of my little bushwalks

Craggles

Daffodils at Rusticania

Travelling past Old Farmhouse today , I was delighted to sight the flush of Jonquils and Daffodils
They may have had an ornamental pond out front of the House me thiks..there is a kind of circle in that position

So tranquil
Craggles

Melbourne's SKYLINE from North

It is loverly in the extreme to view the skyline of your hometown when you are away

I love the way Melbourne appears like a set of scales with 5-6 BIG Buildings in the East and 3-4 Larger buildings to the WEST and a smattering of smaller ones in the middle

Its so Archetypal

As you travel on the Hume Hwy towards Melbourne you make your first sighting as you pass over Mt Ridley....NEARLY HOME PEOPLE

I Love Melbourne...THE GREATEST SOUTHERN MOST CITY in the world

Craggles

Horse ,my kingdom for a horse!

A horse is a horse, of course, of course, And no one can talk to a horse of course That is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mister Ed
Go right to the source and ask the horse He'll give you the answer that you'll endorse. He's always on a steady course. Talk to Mr. Ed.
People yakkity yak a streak and waste your time of day But Mister Ed will never speak unless he has something to say.
A horse is a horse, of course, of course, And this one'll talk 'til his voice is hoarse. You never heard of a talking horse?
Well listen to this. I am Mister Ed.

Just singing that tune makes me happy...I loved palaminos.
This time of the year they still have their hairy wintercoats but they love the flush of juicy new grass shoots that begin from August...and horses are gregarious...the brown ones ..the black ones ..the bay ones... the chesnut ones
All with their noble heads and flowing manes and their big soft eyes

I love animals and photographing them.

Craggles

Woodlands Windmill

Windmill, Windmill for the land
Learn forever hand in hand
Take it all in on your stride
It is sticking,falling down
Love forever, Love is free
Let's turn forever you and me
Windmill, windmillfor the land
Is everybody in

I so love this tune ...i happened by chance to pass one on my way to work
So blissfully serene and bucolic
shimmering in noon sunshine on a even more beautiful day

Have you guessed the tune yet?

Craggles

ALPACAS ..cute but?

Travelling along the road that transects Crow Hill , I spotted these large woolly critters..members of the camelid family and much esteemed for their fleece/wool.
They appear to me to be novel yuppy sheep ....but I am sure their tax deductibility and their economic use of acreage make them much loved.
Personally I dont trust anything that expectorates at you....so DISrespectful!!!!
CRAGGLES

Spring is nigh....ya can smell it!

I am consistently elated ..relieved when the sun does a left turn wheelie on 21st June and our daytime hours lengthen
One of first things I see is plants and trees like wattle start to blossom and flower
I love wattle and its little balls of yellow with its waxy smell
This is from Woodlands Homestead north of Tullamarine Airport

Craggles

Southern Cross Station

I have always wondered what the significance of the uneven arches was at the New Spencer St Station renamed SOUTHERN CROSS STATION

It appears the uneven pattern of the modulated domes prevents the released air from being pushed back into the building...and as a result no mechanical fan extraction is required.. thus energy saving.

I am an admirer of the architecure of Domes...eg Melbourne Exhibition Buildings and numerous cathedrals in Europe , particularly the Domo in Florence Italy

Craggles

XENA...#10 in our Solar System

XENA ....she exists
NASA has found the 10th planet beyond PLUTO
Aaaah but is she a real planet you may ask

Now what are the female planets named...VENUS, EARTH and XENA.....

Life will never be the same ...now for the pop song ....

Craggles

The BIG AD

Open yr eyes for this extravaganza...THE BIG AD
Released by the Fosters Group for their beer Carlton Draught

And oh so classically overpowering....Filmed in the Plains that lead from Twizel and Lake Pukaki into Mt Cook National Park in NZ...So Majestic
Click on the link and ENJOY
Craggles

Rusticania

This early farmhouse has fascinated me for many years
It is situated adjacent to OAKLANDS RIDING CLUB , just North of Tullamarine Airport.
Its unique diminutive structure stands in abject contrast to more contemporary architectural creations that adorn suburbia....where would they put the plasma TV and jacuzzi here ?
Joe and Dino may like the early settler appearance that existed here soon after early rural settlement
I will show it to you again in Spring when daffodils decorate its surrounds

CRAGGLES

What to do in your spare time...

Just one of the more unique art works I have seen recently on the net
At the recent Venicia Bienniale 2005...A TAMPON CHANDELIER

Now just where to place it ....in JOE AND DINOS OPEN PLAN DWELLING...

WHAT WOULD TONY SAY?????????????????????

Craggles

My Pods

My Pods
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

These little critters ran down the aisle of the supermarket and JUMPED into my trolley!!!!!!!!!!

Mmmmmm....sl addictive..small seductive morsels
Craggles

Oh dont forget to LOOK for MARS in East in early morning just before sunrise...with a telescope you can see the ICE CAPS...cool!

Hello Dino
My name is Teddy and Craggles thought
you might like to see my hansdsome face
I am so cute and friendly
I love everyone
I am just about to have my operation...(sobs)
they told me it wont hurt a bit
Yeh , thats what they always say
I 'd better go now the nurse is waiting for me
to finish my interview for some website

Yours ever so cutely
Teddy

Matters of the HEART

Never give all the heart
W.B.Yeats

Never give all the heart, for love
Will hardly seem worth thinking of
To passionate women if it seem
Certain, and they never dream
That it fades out from kiss to kiss;
For everything that's lovely is
But a brief , dreamy , kind delight.

O never give the heart outright,
For they, for all smooth lips can say
Have given their hearts up to the play.
And who could play it well enough
If deaf and dumb and blind with love?
He that made this knows all the cost,
For he gave all his heart and lost.

Sheep1

Sheep1
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

On My Way to Work
The sheeps.....they looked so happy grazing in the afternoon mist with their little babies close by
So typically Orstalian

Craggles
Check out the TRANS SIBERIAN RAIL Trip by ABC correspondent Emma Griffiths

This is a Camelia my mother brought to her last home 30 yrs ago
It is in its full flowering beauty at end of June each year.
Nature is the master architect..such shape ,colour, and illusion....naturally seductive.
Hard to believe that tea comes from these plants
CRAGGLES
Mrs George Davies Camelia

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Many Happy Returns for 26/06/2005 JOE

May your day be full of Carlin Pinschers and Party Animals

Craggles

Winter Solstice Comfort

Winter Solstice Comfort
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Godddam that 23.5degree Earth Tilt..partic this time of year...We Are at our shortest day with the SOUTHERN WINTER SOLSTICE June 21
But hark there is salvation...after dancing around the hills clothesline [part of the pagan ritual] , I;m just about to tuck into my Dessert from Heaven..Passionfruit {LARGE SWEET] ,Bananas and King Island Dairy Honey and Cinnamon Yoghurt...you've gotta taste it ..it is the best on Earth believe me..sweet sl sour and creamy...a Taste like something your senses find overwhelming..and you still survive to do it again and again
Craggles

The Moon and Jupiter

The Moon and Jupiter
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Today the Moon and Jupiter in Grazing Occultation.

Macedon Cross

Macedon Cross
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Cold day called for a country journey. What better place than Mt Macedon Nth West of Melbourne, Vic, Australia.
Braving the chilling winds I captured this image of the Memorial Cross .
The last time I was there it was just a mass of cinders..having been the victim of a bushfire.
All the snow gums were regenerated and the avenue of rhododendrons were growing well

Craggles

Lets Drink

Lets Drink
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Once again my journey to work took me past this elevated dam on Crow Hill Mickleham.
These steers ALWAYS walk in the dam to drink..strange thing...no crocs I 'spose

This same dam can occasionally have its banks covered in wild ducks basking in early morning sun

What do you see on your way to your job?

Craggles

Craigieburn VC Autostitch

Craigieburn VC Autostitch
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

This is where I work
It is a new Hospital/Clinic built 3 yrs ago
It is a companion animal hospital and treats many greyhounds and specialist breeder dogs as well as kitties and dogs and pocket pets...and puggers [4 dino]
Great workplace
Craggles

My One Stop Shop for FREE RANGE EGGS

Going to and from work I pass some interesting places.

Crow Hill Pano 1

Crow Hill Pano 1
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Took this pic atop Crow Hill (aptly named for the numerous murders of crows that live here...thousands! and used autostitch to panoramacise it

HK Pano 1

HK Pano 1
Originally uploaded by allotropee.

Just downloaded autostitch .exe and pasted some harbor views together
I was there 30 April 2005
It really is quiet a breathtaking panoramalooking from Kowloon over to HK island