This will hurt me...

I thought that I would play it safe today and post a picture of a sheepish-looking Henry outside a hall in Newtown. He was dancing on the grate underneath the tap, and seemed to enjoy the noise that it made. Many people seem unaware that this is the origin of the term 'tap dancing'.

I was very disturbed by the tale from Antarctica that came across my desk this morning. The headline from the BBC says it all really: 'Sex pest' seal attacks penguin This seal refused to comment on the Antarctic incident All that I can say is that I sincerely hope that counselling has been offered to all parties, and that this obviously sick and confused seal is brought to justice.

I've gone with another evening photo, this time of the traffic as I was walking up Davey Street on Tuesday evening. I am sort of annoyed that I've gone with this one, as I had another thing in mind today, but didn't take the shot. You know that it is a sad state of affairs when you see what could be a great photo of a bunch of little kids mucking around in the park, but stop yourself because you're worried that someone will 'get the wrong idea'. The world really is stupid sometimes.

As a lover of reading, and a regular user of the Tasmanian public library system , I have been fascinated by this post “ Do Pakistanis Read? (and the missing libraries of Pakistan) ” on the excellent All Things Pakistan website. It got me thinking, what is the state of public libraries in other countries? I really don’t know. Similarly, I am not really aware of the varieties of cultural attitudes to reading. So I decided to ask anyone visiting this blog to let me know, do you personally use libraries? Do you think that there is an easily defined attitude towards reading in your particular country? I would love to know.

Here is a tree in St Davids Park, not far from my office. I had a nice stroll through the park to and from a meeting. I saw the tree and experimented with perspective. The meeting went well, for those of you concerned about such things.

Here is a photograph that Henry and I took on Sunday afternoon during our long walk. This one is of the brig The Lady Nelson sailing down the Derwent River. Henry was terribly disappointed that no cannons were fired, and I didn't have the heart to tell him that perhaps there weren't pirates on board.

As I have banged on about of late, I've been in attendance at a conference for the past three days. Over the course, I've had the privilege of seeing some world class brains on a variety of issues do excellent and engaging presentations, and then there were others who maybe were something less. No different from any conference then! I began jotting a few questions that I would suggest future presenters read and think about before they get around to deliver the talk. In part, this began as a bit of a venting process during poor presentations, but upon reflection, I actually think that each point is actually quite valid. Even (especially) the ones written in frustration. So here they are, my list of things to think about when preparing a presentation: What are you trying to say? Is it worth saying? Have you actually thought about what it is that you will say? Is there anything new or original in what it is that you have to say? Are you attempting to construct an argument? If so...

Without a shadow of a doubt, this is the worst photo that I am ever likely to post! But hey, I promised a 'conference action photo', and I endeavour to be a man of my word. This was a quick snap taken in the hallway just off the main room, and shows some of the punters having morning tea. I was pretty busy most of the day, so didn't have to much time to line up anything better, so I apologise for today's crime against photography. Yet all is not lost. I thought that because this pic was so dire, I'd offer a special bonus, and revisit yesterday's subject in (slightly) better light, and a different angle. So here is a pic of the GPO building as seen coming up towards it from the direction of the Grand Chancellor.

Continuing with the alcohol, tobacco (and other drug) theme that is the background to my week , I have gone with an ad that I admire very much aesthetically. Although I do find the image itself mildly amusing, it is not a ‘funny ad’ per se . What I love most about this advertisement is the overall design and symmetry of it. The colours, the lines and even the typeface all work so well together. It does hark back to a time when poster ads like this one were well and truly ‘art’. Now, I think that it is advertising a brand or beer, but I am not 100 percent certain. Perhaps a reader may know more? [As an aside, is it just me or does this bloke resemble an older, more laid back Australian PM Kevin Rudd ?]

I had grand plans for today's photo. As I have previously mentioned, I was scheduled to present at a conference today. My thinking had been that I could take a photo from the lectern, and share with you a presenters-eye-view. Alas, by the time I took the stage, the light in the room was all on me, thus rendering any photograph very poor. Despite a throbbing headache and intense tiredness, I'd like to think that I offered a solid performance, with a rising crescendo to end. In cricketing terms, think of a number five coming in after a few quick wickets, constructing a solid half century, followed by some lusty hitting off a tired attack to take me to 85 not out by the close of play! But all of this self-aggrandisement had left me no closer to having a photo ready for you today. Thus, I was left with one last task as I dragged myself from the conference venue back to the bus mall. Despite the darkness, I felt that I owed the world a photograph from today. Thus you get this. The ...

I will admit that today's photograph is not the most technically impressive, however I could not resist posting it. I can't say that I've ever seen four magpies all chatting happily together before (three maybe, but not four), so I was impressed enough to snap away. Henry and I took a long stroll today along the river this afternoon and found ourselves taking a well-earned rest watching the seagulls squabble at ANZAC Park, the home ground of the mighty Lindisfarne Two Blues football club. Now, I took a few shots of their splendid grandstand, and a couple more of Henry booting torpedo punts through the middle of the sticks from 60-70 metres out, but they couldn't compete with the four magpies. Now, you have to understand that here in Tasmania, we have a sub-species of the typical Australian magpie . Not only is the Tasmanian magpie slightly smaller than its mainland counterparts, it has a far more advanced inquisitive nature. Unlike their dim, obnoxious Collingwood bret...