If you’re out to impress
Take the Orient Express
And mull over marriage
In a luxury carriage
Take the Orient Express
And mull over marriage
In a luxury carriage
Friday, November 21, 2008
The Wild Blue Wander
Just Before The Clouds Came Rolling In
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
When I returned to Haines Junction in the Yukon a couple of months ago, after a nine-year absence, I was fairly tired after a long highway drive and an Icefields Discovery flight that took me, in part, over Mount Logan, Canada's highest peak.
I seriously considered just chilling in my hotel room at The Raven for an hour or so, but discarded the idea immediately. The last time I was here was in May, in very cloudy weather. This time, I knew the weather was going to deteriorate, so I wanted to get in as much photography as possible.
This clump of about two dozen aspens was right across the Alaska Highway from the front of the hotel, so I headed across the road to get as many shots as I could. Let me tell you something, mate - it ain’t an easy task shooting aspen leaves on a windy day.
You know how they’re called "trembling aspens"? Well, there is good reason for that. Even the slightest breeze sends the leaves a-flutter. For someone like me, who has not grown up or lived in the vicinity of aspen (Darjeeling had birch and pine, but not aspen, to the best of my knowledge) just standing there and listening to the rustling of the leaves was a rewarding gift from Nature.
It was, and I’m concentrating very hard here to paint a word-picture for you, akin to listening to someone rubbing tiny pieces of parchment together. It was a middle-range sound, akin to what Beethoven might have called The Leaf Symphony.
I was blessed, because the incredible blue sky was the perfect backdrop for this sequence of shots. And just a few minutes after I’d finished, the light had already changed and the mountains that form a half-necklace around Haines Junction were already fringed with low cloud.
For other participants in Dot’s concept, go to Sky Watch HQ.
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
When I returned to Haines Junction in the Yukon a couple of months ago, after a nine-year absence, I was fairly tired after a long highway drive and an Icefields Discovery flight that took me, in part, over Mount Logan, Canada's highest peak.
I seriously considered just chilling in my hotel room at The Raven for an hour or so, but discarded the idea immediately. The last time I was here was in May, in very cloudy weather. This time, I knew the weather was going to deteriorate, so I wanted to get in as much photography as possible.
This clump of about two dozen aspens was right across the Alaska Highway from the front of the hotel, so I headed across the road to get as many shots as I could. Let me tell you something, mate - it ain’t an easy task shooting aspen leaves on a windy day.
You know how they’re called "trembling aspens"? Well, there is good reason for that. Even the slightest breeze sends the leaves a-flutter. For someone like me, who has not grown up or lived in the vicinity of aspen (Darjeeling had birch and pine, but not aspen, to the best of my knowledge) just standing there and listening to the rustling of the leaves was a rewarding gift from Nature.
It was, and I’m concentrating very hard here to paint a word-picture for you, akin to listening to someone rubbing tiny pieces of parchment together. It was a middle-range sound, akin to what Beethoven might have called The Leaf Symphony.
I was blessed, because the incredible blue sky was the perfect backdrop for this sequence of shots. And just a few minutes after I’d finished, the light had already changed and the mountains that form a half-necklace around Haines Junction were already fringed with low cloud.
For other participants in Dot’s concept, go to Sky Watch HQ.
Nagging Doubt
Married To The Mob
A hen-pecked husband has been granted a divorce in Italy because his mother-in-law keeps nagging him. He told the court in Salerno that his wife's mother had not left him alone through four months of marriage. The man said he would consider marriage again - but only if he did not have to deal with a mother-in-law.
FOOTNOTE: Mother in lore.
A hen-pecked husband has been granted a divorce in Italy because his mother-in-law keeps nagging him. He told the court in Salerno that his wife's mother had not left him alone through four months of marriage. The man said he would consider marriage again - but only if he did not have to deal with a mother-in-law.
FOOTNOTE: Mother in lore.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Post Of The Day
Today's winner is Hadriana’s Treasures with Can’t See The Wood For The Rainforest Fog. The other top contenders were Mom Or Mum Wars with Material Girl; A Confused Take That Fan with Other People’s Children; Merisi with Duck Tales. A Riddle In Pictures; Ramblings Around Texas with Cado Lake In The Fall; Fat, Frumpy and Fifty with My Nana; Nota Bene with Wake Up; Cheshire Wife with On Reflection; Mojo with Warmth; Lisa’s Chaos with Birds Of Prey and Daryl with Wordless Wednesday. Do pay them a visit and leave a comment if you have time.You can nominate a post too. Just leave a comment here with the URL or link - and tell us the name of the blogger you are nominating. Righty-o, then, it's over to you ....
Verse And Worse
Random Wit, Errant Rhyme. Not A Literary Crime
Are you ready to tell me how in tarnation
You managed to breed a striped carnation
It has a shape like a daisy’s and a scent like a rose’s
And it looks like it might have been grown by Moses
You managed to breed a striped carnation
It has a shape like a daisy’s and a scent like a rose’s
And it looks like it might have been grown by Moses
Fall McCartney
I Was (Literally) On Top Of The World
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
It’s not often I’m a passenger in a vehicle, so it ain’t often I get the chance to use my camera in a moving car or SUV. Just before Christmas last year I had to go to northern India for five days and that was probably the first time I was able to work on the (considerably challenging) art of photography at high speed.
On that trip, we did the long northern highway from New Delhi to Dehra Dun and then back again - so I got a fair bit of practice. Then a couple of months ago I was in the Yukon and the lessons I learnt in India stood me in very good stead.
We travelled to a very tight schedule in the Yukon, covering just under two thousand kilometres in five days of serious travel. In that time, I shot hundreds of images through the window of an SUV travelling at high speed.
Crikey, it’s not every day you get to drive the Alaska Highway or the rugged Dempster Highway or even the awe-inspiring Top Of The World Highway. These shots were actually taken on American soil, in the US loop of the Top Of The World Highway that takes you from Dawson City in the Yukon, through Alaska and then back into Canadian territory just before Beaver Creek.
It was early fall and I was engrossed in the colours when I suddenly noticed this narrow patch of hillside coming up very quickly to my right. Fortunately we were in a left-hand-drive vehicle (which is crucial to a clear view on the right-hand side!) and I was able to train my lens on this scene.
Even though I spent a lot of time in Indian forests and conservation parks when I was very young, I don’t think I’ve ever seen foliage as dense as this in my life. Honestly, looking at this solitary clump of trees was like looking at the woven pattern on a woollen carpet.
There has been quite in increase in the number of new readers to this blog, so I’d just like to reiterate something that most people know - these images are not edited or enhanced in any way. What you see here is exactly what I saw through my viewfinder.
When you shoot a scene as memorable as this, in terms of sheer density of foliage and the concentration of colour, you don’t need to improve it using electronic means.
When I shot the last image (below) I had the immediate thought that the dark-green treetops, visible at random intervals through the fall colours, looked like asparagus spears. No, they weren’t Britney’s spears.
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHONIt’s not often I’m a passenger in a vehicle, so it ain’t often I get the chance to use my camera in a moving car or SUV. Just before Christmas last year I had to go to northern India for five days and that was probably the first time I was able to work on the (considerably challenging) art of photography at high speed.
On that trip, we did the long northern highway from New Delhi to Dehra Dun and then back again - so I got a fair bit of practice. Then a couple of months ago I was in the Yukon and the lessons I learnt in India stood me in very good stead.
We travelled to a very tight schedule in the Yukon, covering just under two thousand kilometres in five days of serious travel. In that time, I shot hundreds of images through the window of an SUV travelling at high speed.
Crikey, it’s not every day you get to drive the Alaska Highway or the rugged Dempster Highway or even the awe-inspiring Top Of The World Highway. These shots were actually taken on American soil, in the US loop of the Top Of The World Highway that takes you from Dawson City in the Yukon, through Alaska and then back into Canadian territory just before Beaver Creek.
It was early fall and I was engrossed in the colours when I suddenly noticed this narrow patch of hillside coming up very quickly to my right. Fortunately we were in a left-hand-drive vehicle (which is crucial to a clear view on the right-hand side!) and I was able to train my lens on this scene.
Even though I spent a lot of time in Indian forests and conservation parks when I was very young, I don’t think I’ve ever seen foliage as dense as this in my life. Honestly, looking at this solitary clump of trees was like looking at the woven pattern on a woollen carpet.
There has been quite in increase in the number of new readers to this blog, so I’d just like to reiterate something that most people know - these images are not edited or enhanced in any way. What you see here is exactly what I saw through my viewfinder.
When you shoot a scene as memorable as this, in terms of sheer density of foliage and the concentration of colour, you don’t need to improve it using electronic means.
When I shot the last image (below) I had the immediate thought that the dark-green treetops, visible at random intervals through the fall colours, looked like asparagus spears. No, they weren’t Britney’s spears.
Falling For You
Where Were Vat-Man And Robin?
A Ukrainian woman survived a 100-foot plunge from her ninth floor flat - into a giant vat of grapes. A police spokesman explained: " She saved the winemakers a bit of work as well in the process because she crushed most of the grapes when she landed on them."
FOOTNOTE: Crushing remark.
A Ukrainian woman survived a 100-foot plunge from her ninth floor flat - into a giant vat of grapes. A police spokesman explained: " She saved the winemakers a bit of work as well in the process because she crushed most of the grapes when she landed on them."
FOOTNOTE: Crushing remark.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Post Of The Day
Today's joint winners are Liz with Generation Gap – Part 1 and Jennifer Harvey with Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Stars. The other top contenders were Shrinky with Sheep With Attitude; Sandi McBride with Lady Of The Lake; Chewy with Haiku Tuesday; Deborah Gamble with Choosing The Wrong Stinks; Hilary with Mental Snapshots; Lousie with Extinct Volcanoes; Brit Gal Sarah with Windmills - My World Tuesday; Abraham Lincoln with My White Oak Trees; Cheshire Wife with On Reflection and French Fancy with Chef Whites. Do pay them a visit and leave a comment if you have time.You can nominate a post too. Just leave a comment here with the URL or link - and tell us the name of the blogger you are nominating. Righty-o, then, it's over to you ....
Verse And Worse
Random Wit, Errant Rhyme. Not A Literary Crime
My next-door-neighbour William Carey
Used to train a dromedary
While on his desk, in carved enamel
He treasured a statue of a camel
Used to train a dromedary
While on his desk, in carved enamel
He treasured a statue of a camel
R Is For Religion
Pray Tell, This Is No Papal Bull
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
A friend of mine once touched the Pope's hand - and swore he wouldn't ever wash his hands again, because he was so overcome by the experience. His mother and his siblings said it wouldn't matter, because he never washed his hands anyway.
These shots of the famous statue of Pope John Paul II were taken some months ago, in the grounds of the Cathedral Of The Good Shepherd in Singapore.
But yes, I have a Pope story too. Back in the days when Mrs Authorblog flew around the world as a flight attendant with an international airline, she found herself in Rome on a wonderfully appropriate day. It was the day that Pope John Paul II was due to celebrate Mass.
For any good Catholic, this was (and still is) a no-brainer. As in, throw out all your plans, toss your appointment book aside, forget about ringing the boyfriend (er, that was me, or more grammatically, it was I) and just concentrate on getting to Mass on time.
But one of the crew members accompanying the beautiful Mrs Authorblog on that Boeing 747 to Rome was our best friend. Her best friend. And my best friend. So the two women who were closest and dearest to me got into a serious discussion about their options for the auspicious day.
They could do the right thing and go to the Pope’s Mass. Or they could kick up their heels and head off in the other direction, to the local flea markets.
The way I’ve heard the story told, the discussion didn’t take too long.
At the end of the day, they caught up with the other members of the crew at their hotel. Their colleagues had stars in their eyes, a hymn on their lips and renewed faith in their hearts.
All the talk was about the Pope. At the end of the evening, one of the crew members realised that Mrs Authorblog and her best friend, normally very animated human beings, had not really said much about seeing the head of the Catholic church.
So one of them asked what the Daring Duo had thought of the Mass.
Mass? No, they hadn’t gone to the Mass. They had gone to the flea market instead.
Well, the reaction was of pure, unadultered horror. It was one of those situations where the smelling salts are called for. But the story doesn't end there. After the Daring Duo were eventually forgiven for their transgression, they were quizzed about what they had bought.
Among the purchases, they had each bought matching black skirts. The manufacturer's label on each skirt said it all. The label said: "Jesus".
Maybe the Pontiff would have approved.
For the home of ABC Wednesday, go to Mrs Nesbitt's Place.
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHONA friend of mine once touched the Pope's hand - and swore he wouldn't ever wash his hands again, because he was so overcome by the experience. His mother and his siblings said it wouldn't matter, because he never washed his hands anyway.
These shots of the famous statue of Pope John Paul II were taken some months ago, in the grounds of the Cathedral Of The Good Shepherd in Singapore.
But yes, I have a Pope story too. Back in the days when Mrs Authorblog flew around the world as a flight attendant with an international airline, she found herself in Rome on a wonderfully appropriate day. It was the day that Pope John Paul II was due to celebrate Mass.
For any good Catholic, this was (and still is) a no-brainer. As in, throw out all your plans, toss your appointment book aside, forget about ringing the boyfriend (er, that was me, or more grammatically, it was I) and just concentrate on getting to Mass on time.
But one of the crew members accompanying the beautiful Mrs Authorblog on that Boeing 747 to Rome was our best friend. Her best friend. And my best friend. So the two women who were closest and dearest to me got into a serious discussion about their options for the auspicious day.
They could do the right thing and go to the Pope’s Mass. Or they could kick up their heels and head off in the other direction, to the local flea markets.
The way I’ve heard the story told, the discussion didn’t take too long.
At the end of the day, they caught up with the other members of the crew at their hotel. Their colleagues had stars in their eyes, a hymn on their lips and renewed faith in their hearts.
All the talk was about the Pope. At the end of the evening, one of the crew members realised that Mrs Authorblog and her best friend, normally very animated human beings, had not really said much about seeing the head of the Catholic church.
So one of them asked what the Daring Duo had thought of the Mass.
Mass? No, they hadn’t gone to the Mass. They had gone to the flea market instead.
Well, the reaction was of pure, unadultered horror. It was one of those situations where the smelling salts are called for. But the story doesn't end there. After the Daring Duo were eventually forgiven for their transgression, they were quizzed about what they had bought.
Among the purchases, they had each bought matching black skirts. The manufacturer's label on each skirt said it all. The label said: "Jesus".
Maybe the Pontiff would have approved.
For the home of ABC Wednesday, go to Mrs Nesbitt's Place.
Saw Point
Is That What You Use To Pick Your Teeth, Mate?
Miner's pick and saw. Moose Creek, Yukon, Canada. August 2008.
Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Miner's pick and saw. Moose Creek, Yukon, Canada. August 2008. Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Has Anyone Seen Our Church?
Normal Service Will Be Resumed Soon
A church has vanished from the Russian village where it stood for almost 200 years. The Church of Christ's Resurrection, in the central Russian village of Komarovo, was built in 1809 but in early October someone reportedly took it away brick by brick. The church was not in use but clergy had been considering resuming services there.
FOOTNOTE: Dearer, my God, to thee.
A church has vanished from the Russian village where it stood for almost 200 years. The Church of Christ's Resurrection, in the central Russian village of Komarovo, was built in 1809 but in early October someone reportedly took it away brick by brick. The church was not in use but clergy had been considering resuming services there.
FOOTNOTE: Dearer, my God, to thee.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Post Of The Day
Today's joint winners are Life – Or A Reasonable Facsimile Thereof with Girls and Les Becker with Guess What I Found On The Dance Floor. The other top contenders were Moannie with Papa, Can You Hear Me?; Denise with Today’s Flowers; Leslie with Sunshine Coast Adventure Part 3; Kym with Please Stop Blogging; Corey with Strength; Sandy Carlson with Fog; Terri Terri Quite Contrary with No Pressure; Bee Drunken with Novemberish. Do pay them a visit and leave a comment if you have time.You can nominate a post too. Just leave a comment here with the URL or link - and tell us the name of the blogger you are nominating. Righty-o, then, it's over to you ....
Verse And Worse
Random Wit, Errant Rhyme. Not A Literary Crime
Let me inform you about Dora Clouseau
The blushing bride who misplaced her trousseau
She lost her dress, she lost her veil
So it was no surprise she began to wail
The blushing bride who misplaced her trousseau
She lost her dress, she lost her veil
So it was no surprise she began to wail
Cruise, Tom
Just The Ticket For A View Of Melbourne
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
With the weather warming up, the cruise vessels down the Yarra River get proportionally busier. When we first came to live in Melbourne 20 years ago, there were four months of daylight saving every year, from the last weekend of October to the first weekend of March.
Things have changed now. It was decided a few years ago to extend daylight saving until the end of March. And this year, for the first time, daylight saving began on the first weekend of October so we now have long daylight hours for exactly half the year.
Back in 2000, when Sydney hosted the Olympics, we actually went into daylight saving at the start of September, specifically because of the Games. So there's an interesting piece of Olympic trivia that you might not have known.
Oh, and here's another Olympic story - when Melbourne hosted the 1956 Games, the equestrian events were actually held in Stockholm, Sweden, because of Australia's strict quarantine laws.
The move towards longer daylight hours is good news for tour operators and for the restaurants that make this city famous. It was a warm, sunny afternoon when I took these shots. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll just go and grab a ticket for myself …..
By the way, if you're wondering about the huge silver figures that grace the diagonal bridge in the background of this shot (above) let me tell you they are an integral part of this city's multicultural background. The figures pay homage to those who left their homelands to live here, in this sunburnt country.
The story of the huge figures that actually move up and down the length of the disused Sandridge Rail Bridge is detailed in a previous post I wrote, and can be found at Action Figures.
Visit the creative team behind That's MyWorld Tuesday.
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
With the weather warming up, the cruise vessels down the Yarra River get proportionally busier. When we first came to live in Melbourne 20 years ago, there were four months of daylight saving every year, from the last weekend of October to the first weekend of March.
Things have changed now. It was decided a few years ago to extend daylight saving until the end of March. And this year, for the first time, daylight saving began on the first weekend of October so we now have long daylight hours for exactly half the year.
Back in 2000, when Sydney hosted the Olympics, we actually went into daylight saving at the start of September, specifically because of the Games. So there's an interesting piece of Olympic trivia that you might not have known.
Oh, and here's another Olympic story - when Melbourne hosted the 1956 Games, the equestrian events were actually held in Stockholm, Sweden, because of Australia's strict quarantine laws.
The move towards longer daylight hours is good news for tour operators and for the restaurants that make this city famous. It was a warm, sunny afternoon when I took these shots. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll just go and grab a ticket for myself …..
By the way, if you're wondering about the huge silver figures that grace the diagonal bridge in the background of this shot (above) let me tell you they are an integral part of this city's multicultural background. The figures pay homage to those who left their homelands to live here, in this sunburnt country.
The story of the huge figures that actually move up and down the length of the disused Sandridge Rail Bridge is detailed in a previous post I wrote, and can be found at Action Figures.
Visit the creative team behind That's MyWorld Tuesday.
Bumpy Road For Newlyweds
They Were Swamped - Literally
A newlywed German couple got stuck halfway up a mountain when their sat-nav went wrong on their honeymoon. Instead of arriving at a luxury hotel in the remote village of Willingen, they went up a bumpy, unpaved forest road before getting stuck for hours in a muddy swamp.
FOOTNOTE: Sat knave.
A newlywed German couple got stuck halfway up a mountain when their sat-nav went wrong on their honeymoon. Instead of arriving at a luxury hotel in the remote village of Willingen, they went up a bumpy, unpaved forest road before getting stuck for hours in a muddy swamp.
FOOTNOTE: Sat knave.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Post Of The Day
Today's joint winners are An Arkie's Musings with Hammered Dulcimer and Rhea with They're Baaaaack. The other to contenders were See Kori Rant with Loving Good And Bad; Jeff B with For My Brother Part II; April with Weird Spooky Thought; In The Pink with Sky Watch Friday 24; Mielikki with Friday Mieography; Big Blue Barn West with The Concert; Daryl with My Sky; Maggie May with To Cycle Or Not To Cycle; Regina In Pictures with Fog; Dirty Socks And Pizza with What Lies Beneath and Jules Stones with I Haven't Been Around Much. Do pay them a visit and leave a comment if you have time.You can nominate a post too. Just leave a comment here with the URL or link - and tell us the name of the blogger you are nominating. Righty-o, then, it's over to you.
Verse And Worse
Random Wit, Errant Rhyme. Not A Literary Crime
So who demolished this strawberry punnet?
It sounds like a Sherlock Holmes whodunnit
Even the platters of mangoes are history
It sounds to me like The Great Fruit Mystery
It sounds like a Sherlock Holmes whodunnit
Even the platters of mangoes are history
It sounds to me like The Great Fruit Mystery
Show 'Em The Drill, Sergeant
You Want The Truce? You Can't Handle The Truce
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Our gardens are awash with colour now, as daylight bathes the shores of this nation-continent for what seems like most of the day. So while I shot these images, I imagined an invisible drill sergeant grilling these tall, proud stems ....
"Come on, you lot. Stand up straight down the back there, or I'll have you doing push-ups in the mud or doing an extra march with a full load just when you think you can't take another step. At least you look good, even if you can't march.
"You're in the army now, not on Civvy Street any more. Nice haircuts. Nice uniforms. The government pays for your food and your barracks and you'll do well to remember that.
"Who's the joker in the middle there? You think you're funny? What on earth possessed you to wear your yellow beret?"
Visit Luiz Santilli Jr for the home of Today's Flowers.
Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Our gardens are awash with colour now, as daylight bathes the shores of this nation-continent for what seems like most of the day. So while I shot these images, I imagined an invisible drill sergeant grilling these tall, proud stems ....
"Come on, you lot. Stand up straight down the back there, or I'll have you doing push-ups in the mud or doing an extra march with a full load just when you think you can't take another step. At least you look good, even if you can't march.
"You're in the army now, not on Civvy Street any more. Nice haircuts. Nice uniforms. The government pays for your food and your barracks and you'll do well to remember that.
"Who's the joker in the middle there? You think you're funny? What on earth possessed you to wear your yellow beret?"
Visit Luiz Santilli Jr for the home of Today's Flowers.
Construction Sight
Mary Poppins Is Joining Us Today, Fellas
Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Sometimes you see an incongruous sight that just brings you to a dead halt. This shot was taken more than a year ago, during the middle stage of construction of the new Melbourne Recital Centre on the corner of Sturt Street here in South Melbourne.
I had just taken some shots from the roadside and I entered the site office to ask the supervisor if I could take some more photographs, when I noticed this red umbrella hanging from a hook beside the hard hats.
Now you know why we’re always encouraged to take the umbrella view.
(The Odd Shots concept came from Katney. Say "G'day" to her.)
Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON
Sometimes you see an incongruous sight that just brings you to a dead halt. This shot was taken more than a year ago, during the middle stage of construction of the new Melbourne Recital Centre on the corner of Sturt Street here in South Melbourne.
I had just taken some shots from the roadside and I entered the site office to ask the supervisor if I could take some more photographs, when I noticed this red umbrella hanging from a hook beside the hard hats.
Now you know why we’re always encouraged to take the umbrella view.
(The Odd Shots concept came from Katney. Say "G'day" to her.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)