This will hurt me...

Here is an old photo of a fresh faced Henry in awe of the bubbles at his second birthday party. Oh how things have changes in but a single year!

Between you and I, I can't be bothered with work today. Already at the beginning of the day, and I am sick and tired of it. I'd much rather be at Seven Mile Beach, looking at the seagulls hovering and listening to the waves rolling in...

Sometimes all a man needs is to sit back, relax, and eat his squid.

Here is a little bloke in a little boat down at Kingston Beach the other weekend. Normally, such little boats are confined to in-shore racing, but I am currently training Henry up to be the world's youngest solo global circumnavigation in one of these babies!

Time for Sunday Top Five!

Today, I am featuring my Top Five Charlie and Lola Books!

5: I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato

4: I Completely Know About Guinea Pigs

3: I Can Do Anything That's Everything All on My Own

2: Look After Your Planet

1: I've Won, No I've Won, No I've Won!

"Skirts, eh?"

...

"And these are blokes, right?"

People in Tasmania store all manner of things in their front yards: cars, broken washing machines, unwanted children et cetera. In Battery Point, however, things are quite different. Ever since the suburb threw out the prostitutes and drunks was gentrified, the front gardens have assumed an air of little England circa 1907. Roses, violets and stiff upper lips reign supreme. Houses named "Charlesworth", "Heathcliffe" and "Edgar" abound, and one assumes that the abodes simmer with firm manners, forced smiles and repressed sexuality.

Occasionally though, one bucks the trend. This little split terrace features an old weather beaten plough shear not fashioned into a tank, rather a novel little perch for a concrete cockatoo. This household better be careful, I suspect that the neighbours are already preparing the giant wicker man to burn them in, lest they continue to bring down the tone of the neighbourhood....

What could be a better post-tooth brushing exercise than a nibble on a container full of dry white rice and silver glitter?

That's the explanation behind the smile people, rice and glitter.

Afternoon sunlight piercing through the trees always makes for an arresting photograph. Ezra took this one from our front door step.

I am now scouting out a new camera to replace the dearly departed one. Any suggestions?

Cranky Hanky turns his back on the camera to check out the play equipment in the notorious derelict park in North Hobart. Be careful Henry, there's hungry homeless about!

Imagine for a second that you have a best FRIEND. He is a good FRIEND. A solid FRIEND. A FRIEND that has seen you through the good times and the bad. Imagine chaining that FRIEND up to the back of your ute, and driving down to South Hobart.

Some FRIEND.

It’s Theme Thursday you see, and today’s theme is FRIEND.

Some people reckon that dogs are man’s best FRIEND. I reckon that this photo proves otherwise.

Technically, this photo isn't the best that I've ever taken, that I will concede. That said, I defy anybody to say that the smile that Ezra flashed atop Mount Wellington is anything but first class.

It isn't every morning that you see a [however small] warship parked out in the middle of the Derwent River!

On war - segue like a pro there - I am enjoying what has proven to be a challenging read at the moment: Heinrich Böll's Billiards at Half-past Nine. Like many German novels, conflict lays at it heart. The novel itself is structured beautifully (if a little obliquely). The plot itself emerges through the use of flashbacks by multiple characters, and there are a number of things going on. Being German, there's a central dialectic happening. Loaded with Catholicism, there's another dialectic happening. The tale of father, son, mother, son ensures that there's at least another couple of dialectics happening too.

I haven't finished yet, but if you're after a challenging, but rewarding read, I can heartily recommend it!

We're desperately searching through the genealogical milieu, trying to find some Grenadian heritage. If we can find it by Thursday night, expect Henry to make his debut for the West Indies this Friday in the second test!

Here is one of the many interesting features that can be found atop Mount Wellington.

Yes, more rocks.

I am reasonably certain that these rocks are Dolerite, which is an intrusive igneous rock. If my hazy memory of Year Eight science is anything to go by, igneous rock is formed by magma (or molten rock) being cooled and becoming solid. Thus, at some point things must have been a little hot 'n hairy up here on Mount Wellington!

On that, there was a guy in my Year Eight science class who wasn't allowed to sit in on lessons that talked Geology (or Biology for that matter). He belonged to that extreme set of weirdos cult religious sect, the Exclusive Brethren. Obviously their faith is such that the mere exposure to false idols such as rocks, microscopes and girls in short skirts sitting on stools can have a disastrous effect!