This will hurt me...

Fair dinkum, once you wander in amongst the yachts you could very well get lost for days on end. Thankfully, the last time we did we found more than enough chilled prawns, Beluga caviar and bottles of '71 Grange to keep us going!

Only limbs. St Johns Park, New Town. June 2011. My word for the week? flat [ adj. ] ... 7. Lacking interest or excitement ; dull: a flat scenario. 8. a. Lacking in flavor: a flat stew that needs salt. b. Having lost effervescence or sparkle : flat beer. Hard-time blue s, William Waring Cuney Went down home ’bout a year ago things so bad, Lord, my heart was sore. Folks had nothing was a sin and shame every-body said hard time was the blame. Great-God-a-mighty folks feeling bad lost every thing they ever had. Sun was shining fourteen days and no rain hoeing and planting was all in vain. Hard hard times, Lord, all around meal barrels empty crops burnt to the ground. Great-God-a-mighty folks feeling bad lost every thing they ever had. Skinny looking children bellies poking out that old pellagra without a doubt. Old folks hanging ’round the cabin door ain’t seen times this hard before. Great-God-a-mighty folks feeling bad lost every thing they ever had. I wen...

Don't look back in anger.

Trees. The Hastings Caves State Reserve. The Huon Valley. June 2011. I feel a little cruel to this week’s first book, Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck. Eking out snippets and snatches of reading at a time does not really do justice to a novel that seeks to engage with the epic trajectory of Germany’s troubling twentieth-century The central ‘character’ of this novel is actually a place. A majestic house and its grounds by a lake in Brandenburg (once upon a time best buddy of Prussia, and then for a spell part of the German Democratic Republic) is witness to a succession of occupants that displace each other through the political turmoil of the twentieth century. Like Erpenbeck’s other work, nothing is ever straightforward. The story does not progress through momentous occasions, and there are no grand scenes that progress the action. Indeed, we experience change only in shades, shadows or echoes. As such, it is probably not the best book to be reading in scraps of time. I think that it wo...

Here is a demonstration of maternal cruelty . Despite the fact that Henry is a fan of the Essendon Football Club, she has forced him to sport a dastardly Sydney Swans pancho-towel. There ought to be a law...

Do you need a parasol to qualify? Bellerive Wharf, June 2011. All GAMBLERS and FANCY WOMEN must sign up with captain? Who decides? What if you change you mind mid-voyage? Will there be a test? I must say, this seems a little heavy-handed in that rollicking hotbed of libertarianism New Orleans! Does it have something to do with their hurricane? How did they end up in Bellerive? So many questions, so little time...

In his best John Inman... I'M FREE!

Spread your wings. Bellerive Wharf, Bellerive. May 2011. Too much to do, too little time to do them. That is our theme for the year.

Henry makes a startling find at the bottom of the cliffs on Clifton Beach. A rock !

Babel Two? The Living Room, Geilston Bay. June 2011. Another day, another job. By the time this post appears I shall be ensconced down in main street Sandy Bay, not far from my humble abode of a good four or five years. That shall no doubt prompt some interesting moments of deja vu . Nonetheless, a whole new adventure with a whole new set of potential photographs on the way to and from work (not to mention lunch breaks)!

Ezra arrives early to see the big game at Victoria Stadium Docklands Stadium Colonial Stadium Telstra Dome Etihad Stadium. Jen and Henry are up further along in the shot. I suspect that they are responsible for the big screen not working...

Looking down! Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Also, when in a cave, don't forget to look down ! Whose feet? Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011.

Croquembouche? Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Like most caves, there are a bunch of odd animals. Over forty species live in the cave, allegedly . I'd like to taste it. Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Troglodytes,

Melting moments. Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Now these caves started to form around forty million years ago, but seemed to be unseen until 1917, when forest workers knocked down a bloody great big tree and knocked a great big hole in the ground to reveal an entrance. As usual, they named the bugger after the governor of the time who never bothered to visit. Mud from the mid-1960s. Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. The cave itself is a decent size with a bit of light. There are a bunch of stairs that can get pretty steep, but Ezra managed to them just fine. Formed in dolomite, this cave is a bit different from the usual limestone around these parts. Despite being the middle of winter, underground is pretty nice, with the temperature a comfortable nine degrees Celsius.

Stalactites? We've got a few... Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Hastings Caves - deep down in the south of Tasmania - was our destination last Saturday. Henry was initially reticent, but once assured that there are no bears in this state (koala's included), he ventured into the subterranean depths... Stalagmites? Them too... Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. Newdegate Cave is the largest of the Hastings set. in terms of a cavern, it's a big-un! As today is my last day of freedom, we're heading to the east coast for the beach. Don't fret, because I have plenty of cave pics to savour through the day. Spooky? Absolutely! Hastings Cave, Huon Valley. June 2011. We spent an hour in Newdegate's massive and varied cavern. Everywhere you turn there's something to look at: flowstone, stalactites, columns, shawls, straws, stalagmites and the unusual helictites that grow in all directions!

She says: One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman. Henry and Jennifer discuss the relative merits of de Beauvoir's The Second Sex and Friedan's The Feminine Mystique . He says: Man is not the enemy here, but the fellow victim. She says: Man is defined as a human being and a woman as a female - whenever she behaves as a human being she is said to imitate the male. He says: It is ridiculous to tell girls to be quiet when they enter a new field, or an old one, so the men will not notice they are there. A girl should not expect special privileges, because of her sex, but neither should she "adjust" to prejudice and discrimination.

Something happened. Experiment involving water, Geilston Bay, June 2011. Crikey Moses, Sunday already! Another top five? How about Five Songs With A Nice And Distinctive Australian Accent In The Vocal? My Heart is a Drummer , Allo Darlin' Heavy Heart , You Am I I Was Only 19 , Redgum To Her Door , Paul Kelly Bizarre Love Triangle , Frente! If you're not familiar with the tunes, click on the link and give 'em a run. Help us shift some units!