Still on the subject of flying :)

I took this shot at around 6.30am yesterday morning as the Rainbow Lorikeets flew in for breakfast and as I'll be flying off to Sydney before breakfast tomorrow morning I thought I'd take this opportunity to say au revoir until the 10th. While I'm totally terrified at the prospect of flying, the thought of spending time with my granddaughter is sooo exciting I can't wait! I'm not taking my laptop or my iPad.. just looking forward to lots of cuddle/play time no technology involved :) So take care of yourselves, stay safe and à bientôt! P.s. Looking forward to seeing you also Dave and Courtney :)

Flying is scary whichever way you do it!

 

Halloween is not the big deal over here as it is in other parts of the world, so a sight like this is much more uncommon than it would be in the US. Here's my question.. does 'texting while flying witch' usually come dressed in high heeled leather boots and studded gloves, or has this stylish hag been jzeushed? I'm guessing the latter :) Meanwhile my son flew in yesterday for a few days from Sydney in the more conventional way (still eeek!). Happy new week, take care and stay safe.. p.s. slasher Jack was present also, it seems some do take Halloween seriously, give me a pumpkin any day!

Bottlebrushes en masse!

I didn't get out and about with my camera at all yesterday so I thought you might like to see what I look at while writing the blog, this and the 'rustic' birdbath you've seen here. Pull it in and see all those vibrant red flowers and you can see why they're called Bottlebrushes :) The parrots love this tree and do they make a mess.. I'll say they do, but I still love it when they fly in! What do you look at while you're preparing your posts? Hope that you are enjoying your weekend, bit cloudy and a few showers here in Perth, nice! Take care and stay safe.. p.s. these trees are used a lot for roadside planting and look amazing en masse when they're flowering towards the end of summer and all through spring.

Facades v frontages!

Two very different shots to show the diversity of architecture along St. Georges Terrace. Above the reflection of Central Park, the tallest building in Perth, in the all glass facade of Brookfield Place and below the frontage of Newspaper House, a prominent feature on the terrace back in the 1930's and the former domain of The West Australian until they vacated in the mid 1980's, now home to the Heritage Brasserie, so happy the clock survived. You could spend all day exploring the terrace, from the Barracks Arch all the way down to Government House and gardens and everything in-between! Whatever you're up to this weekend, enjoy.. take care and most of all stay safe. p.s. is this a record number of links? p.p.s. is it just moi who thinks frontage sounds so much more appealing than facade :)

 Visit James here to view all participants of Weekend Reflections

Undercover information!

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The new i-City Information Booth is up and running and it's so good to see Forrest Place looking ship shape once more. Above, early on Monday morning looking down towards the train station I couldn't help thinking that the new organic shape of the info booth was the perfect foil for the sculpture now fondly (?) known as the Green Cactus or 'the organism' (you might have to enlarge the shot to see it back there).

Above looking up Murray St. The new booth is so much more user-friendly than it's predecessor with seating and an undercover area, much appreciated on a 40C summer day.. and look, it has the seal of approval from the city gulls, I can see that pristine white top is going to need an occasional clean-up :) Have a fab Friday, take care and stay safe.. p.s. only five more sleeps till I head over to Sydney, woohoo!

Clean Drains = River Gains..

We make a point of looking up now and again so as not miss anything but personally I need to start looking down also.. can't believe after all the times I've walked the pavements of Perth this is the first time I've noticed the bright blue buttons of the Swan River Trust's Clean Drains, River Gains campaign highlighting 'the link between drains and rivers' and hopefully 'educating the community on the impact of allowing rubbish and contaminants to enter Perth's storm-water drains'. There are always going to be those who treat the streets as their own private rubbish bin.. grrr my pet hate, especially as there are rubbish bins everywhere! Well, that was a bit more serious than yesterday's post :) Happy new day, take care and stay safe.. p.s. do you have something that makes you go grrrr?

Angel in a business suit!

They do say one way to spot a vampire :) is if they have no reflection in a mirror.. I wonder, does it work the same way for angels. When in the city on Monday I caught the reflection of a business man, but in the reflection he is minus his wings! I inverted the colours to protect his identity, angels must remain anonymous to carry out their good work. I actually do believe there are people in this world who through their compassion and good-will can rightly be called angels and this man may well be one of those people but the explanation for his angel wings is a little more simple. The work of US artist Colette Miller, you can read about her 'angel wings' concept here.. must get Aimee to do a bit of posing for me :)  Happy Wednesday, take care..p.s. just a little ironic, or perhaps planned, that the wings are within sight of the Basilica :)

Serenade in the city..

After a cold wet and windy weekend yesterday was the perfect spring day. In the city to check out 'this and that' I had an encounter of the delightful kind :) Walking along Hay St..  what was that I could hear?  An accordion, and a trumpet! Yes it was.. a one handed trumpet at that! One man band extraordinaire Reef was entertaining passers-by with a mix of French, Italian, South American music with a bit of Beatles thrown in for good luck. Naturellement I put in a request for something français, it was a lovely moment on a spring day in the city, merci beaucoup Monsieur Reef! Happy Tuesday, take care and stay safe.. p.s. doesn't the lady in the orange dress look amazing!  

MEW around town!

Multi-talented Perth artist and freelance illustrator Martin E Wills aka MEW has been adorning walls around the city and suburbs for quite a while now and I must admit it makes me happy whenever  I come across a work I haven't seen before. Above in Wolfe Lane painted during the FORMPublic project earlier this year a collaboration with James Cooper and below, spotted this work.. 'enjoying a restless beach in space' in the inner suburb of Highgate.. transforming the once drab wall of a dry-cleaners building with weirdly wonderful alien beings sporting height defying, multi-coloured bouffant coifs!

Even if you're not a fan of street art surely these fantastical murals inspired by 'science fiction and improbable hairstyles' would bring a smile to your dial :) Hope that you had /are still having a wonderful weekend, take care and stay safe..

 See more marvelous Monday Murals here..

'Spending the Kids' Inheritance'..

Spending the Kids' Inheritance Driving 'Round Oz'! This made me smile and is apparently happening more and more these days, that's quite a rig you have there Mr & Mrs Grey Nomad! If that's your thing why not I say, with a bit of luck when most people retire their kids are hopefully able to look after themselves. I took the above shots on Friday when the skies were blue, not so yesterday! Below, the 'only appointed carrier for Steinway pianos in WA'.. would that be a royal appointment :) Those black clouds developed into a wild storm.. the full package hail stones and all, thus causing my computer line to drop out more than it dropped in! So I gave up and went to bed with my book.. no one can say I don't live the high-life :) big catch up today. Happy Sunday, take care and stay safe..p.s. hopefully this posts!

Octopode reflections..

Does this octopus make my derrière look big :) Smooth, shiny, sensuous sculptures seen in the Linton & Kay Galleries on St. Georges Terrace.. these were taken on my last visit to the gallery a few months ago..

Must try and get back there before the Black Swan Prize for Portraiture exhibition closes on Sunday.. Sunday is shaping up to be a busy day! This was my amazingly talented niece Jessica's portrait of her father, the likeness is brilliant.. do you remember the mural she painted for me, still looking gorgeous. I would hate to be a judge in a competition like this.. well any competition really :) I simply would not be able to make the decision, what can I say I'm a Libra! Have a good weekend, take care and stay safe.. 

 Visit James here to see more Weekend Reflections

The Apothecaries' House...

As a lover of all things old I really look forward to and enjoy my trips to Guildford one of the earliest settlements on the Swan River. I like to imagine what James St., now home to Guildford's antique strip would have looked like in 1894. In particular it would have been fascinating to peruse the shelves in Apothecaries Hall above which would have been lined with lotions, potions and herbs for every ailment, dispensed by Mr. J.H.Tindale the apothecary, who at the end of a long day would close up shop and step next door, below.. now home to Hoang Kim Vietnamese Restaurant and most  likely the polar opposite to what his good wife would have had waiting on the table for him :) How do you feel about 'old' things? Have a fab Friday, take care and stay safe..

Three hours later..!

Yesterday Sydney awoke after a night of wild storms.. three hours later, yes we are now officially three hours behind the eastern states as AEDT (Australian Eastern Daylight Time) came into effect from the first week of October through to the first week in April 2015.. Perth awoke to clear blue skies with the temp rising to 35C. I took these shots around 2pm, the heat haze steaming off the pristine white sand.. from the many footprints it was clear that only the hardy sun-worshipers remained. Thankfully it was an uncommonly hot day, it's much too early, we're still in spring after all :) Happy Thursday, take care and stay safe.. p.s. does your city participate in summer daylight saving? Perth declined!

French Lace, Seduction & a bit of a laugh!

With the warmer weather approaching.. 30C yesterday, 35C today.. roses are flourishing everywhere with gay abandon :) Here in my garden my favourite Floribunda Seduction below is experiencing a bit of stiff competition from my newest standard also a Floribunda French Lace above. The delicate French Lace wins as far perfume goes, but oh la! the colours of Seduction, c'est très très beau oui!

I couldn't resist sharing one of my funniest birthday cards..one of my best buds, possibly tired of my constant lament 'I have to lose that 5 kilos' decided she'd give me a solution, I just have to increase my height, hilarious :) Hope that you're having a good week, take care..

'Love letters to the Navajo Nation'..

Oh how I wish I'd seen USA artist Jetsonorama at work on this piece during the FORMPublic project earlier this year. Described thus 'Jetsonorama sports a trim, frosty beard and often a jaunty fedora and sunglasses, looking unassailably hip for his 55 years'.. very cool, but it's not his appearance that would have been the draw-card. If you click on his link above (please do) you will learn so much more about the man who trained as a doctor, is now living on the 'rez'  and is described as a 'latter-day medicine man'. Would love to know if my Arizona blog buddies already know about and have seen any of Jetsonorama's work. If he comes back next year I'm so there :) Happy Tuesday, take care..

 Click here to see more murals from around the world..

The Accordionist...

Thanks so much for all the lovely birthday wishes yesterday. We spent the day at Aimee's new house transforming her front door from très ordinaire into a warm yellow welcome, suits Aimee's sunny personality perfectly.. then out for dinner in the evening.  On Saturday we went to a local bi-monthly farmers market just five minutes from home and were really impressed with the quality and prices of the produce.. while Aimee was buying up big :) I enjoyed the français feel ambiance (franbiance) created by the accordionist. Hope you had or are still having a super weekend, take care and stay safe..

Here's to surprises!

I had a lovely surprise when I was in the city a few days ago, well three surprises really.. firstly the door to the Wesley Church on the cnr Hay and William St. was open.. allowing for a squizzy inside and secondly, I'm not sure what I was expecting because from the outside it is quite grand looking, not in a European kind of way, more of a solid down to earth way.. the surprise being that the nave of the church and upper gallery was charmingly simple. Turning to leave, the third surprise, the stained glass window above about which I cannot find details but am thinking it may pertain to the arrival by ship of the first Christians back in the early 1800's.. I could be wrong :) c'est très joli though don't you think? Happy and peaceful Sunday, take care and stay safe... p.s. did I mention it's my birthday today, blimey I'm getting old :)

Ducky Divas & Goosey Lucy!

There was much preening and fluffing of feathers amongst this group of Pacific Black Ducks as they prepared themselves for the photo shoot :) the iridescent speculum and bright blue beaks were star features. The goose below looks as if he/she is testing the temperature of the water, deciding perhaps he/she might fly instead of swim! Taken in Neil Hawkins Park. Busy day in the jungle yesterday, catch up today.. Bon Weekend, take care and stay safe...

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Red in the city VI.. Getting around..

Usually preferring to explore by walking when traveling, the only time I've ever taken a city cruise bus was when Aimee and I were in London, thinking that the best vantage spot for taking photos and experiencing the sights would be up top in the open. Oh la! We were unaccustomed and unprepared for the weather, it was soo cold our teeth were actually chattering :) Not likely to happen aboard the City Sight Seeing bus or tram in Perth where even in winter the temps are pleasantly mild. Below a travel triple!

Or if you're more into train travel.. Andrew,  you'll enjoy getting around and about from Perth Central Train Station in the city..

Don't forget these fab London look-alike taxis, every time I see them around the city and suburbs I think I'd like to investigate more, maybe one day I'll catch the train into the city and one of these little lovelies home :) Happy travels, take care and stay safe..

Mooning around!

I joined thousands of photographers around Australia last night tripods at the ready to record the 2nd total eclipse this year.There was a fair bit of cloud to contend with and even a little bit of rain, but I managed to get a few shots before giving up and retiring indoors. If the Blood Moon Prophecy  is anything to go by the end is nigh.. better get cracking on that 'bucket list' :) I prefer to have faith that mankind will eventually sort themselves out.. I've always been an unrealistic optimist, but what's the alternative oui! Happy Thursday, take care and stay safe...