A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies.

Not the most comfortable place you will ever find yourself sunbathing.

Excellent skipping stone fodder, however.

Did they send me away from my cat and my wife

A close finish. The River Derwent, as seen from the Bellerive boardwalk. December 2011.

This poem depresses me very much.

I like it.

Gunner, Randall Jarrell

Did they send me away from my cat and my wife
To a doctor who poked me and counted my teeth,
To a line on a plain, to a stove in a tent?
Did I nod in the flies of the schools?
And the fighters rolled into the tracer like rabbits,
The blood froze over my splints like a scab --
Did I snore, all still and grey in the turret,
Till the palms rose out of the sea with my death?
And the world ends here, in the sand of a grave,
All my wars over? How easy it was to die!
Has my wife a pension of so many mice?
Did the medals go home to my cat?

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning.

Here is Henry and his good friend Scarlet engrossed in the harrowing tale of the three little pigs on the last [ever] day of kindergarten.

[Note: it ended well (for the pigs).]

It is a strange trade that of advocacy. Your intellect, your highest heavenly gift is hung up in the shop window like a loaded pistol for sale.

Through a fence (mildly). Just off Sandy Bay Road. December 2011.

Just the one book this week, and not one in the holiday spirit. Time's Arrow is a rather controversial novel by Martin Amis from 1991. Essentially, the story recounts the life of a German Holocaust doctor in reverse chronology. That is, the narrator - some kind of disembodied secondary consciousness - together with the reader, experiences time passing in reverse, with the central protagonist becoming younger and younger during the course of the novel. The narrator is not exactly the protagonist himself but somehow living within him, feeling his feelings but with no access to his thoughts no control over events and somehow experiencing everything in reverse.

Confused?

Obviously the point is to unsettle the reader as we confront the now familiar tale of the Holocaust (although familiarity does not itself entail understanding). Amis messes about with reverse dialogue, reverse narrative, and reverse explanation which all contribute to the narrator's persistent misinterpretation of events.

In the reversed world, not only is chronology reversed (people 'die'/'are born'), become younger, and eventually become children, then babies, and then re-enter their mothers' wombs, where they finally cease to exist ('are born'/ 'die') but so is morality. Violences heals, doctors cause harm. Theft is donation. This is a confusing world, so when the protagonist reaches Auschwitz the world begins to make sense. Good is done. Doctors help. Indeed, a whole new race is created and healed.

I wouldn't say that the book is 100% successful, but it is an interesting attempt at looking at something that doesn't make much sense from a different angle. Mildly recommended.

Kids. They're not easy. But there has to be some penalty for sex.

Alles klar!

The world is a republic of mediocrities, and always was.

Guess what happens next? Little Howrah Beach, Howrah. December 2011.

Theme Thursday already and it seems that I've lost most of my X-mas break to the flu.

This was not supposed to be the FUTURE (this time last week).

Inevitably, the FUTURE disappoints. The FUTURE rarely delivers. The FUTURE is usually much like the present, only we are more tired, have more aches and pains and more irritable.

The FUTURE, to put it bluntly, ain't what it used to be.

Experts say you should never hit your children in anger. When is a good time? When you're feeling festive?

He's not dead, he's only sleeping.

We have prepared a grave just in case.

No violent extreme endures.

Hobart in the summer. Our front yard, Geilston Bay. December 2011.

Today's photograph is an appropriately wet one for Watery Wednesday. Taken last Monday at (about) 4:04 pm, you can see how a sudden deluge saw our front lawn flooded. For a while there - as the waters rose and Henry and I were hustling as many animals as we could find (which amounted to some grasshoppers and a bunch of ants) onto a makeshift raft - we were quite worried.

Then the rain stopped.

Aside from a bit of pine bark that floated away and a bunch of rocks that were pushed downhill by the stream of water, there was not much to show of the whole affair,

I figure if my kids are alive at the end of the day, I've done my job.

"Yes!"

Since we cannot know all that there is to be known about anything, we ought to know a little about everything.

Chains of love. Marieville Esplanade, Sandy Bay. December 2011.

This week's Q and A has been filched from many years ago on Sunday Stealing: The Final Week of 20092011 Meme

1. What did you do in 20092011 that you'd never done before?
I took Henry and Ezra to Melbourne.

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't really do them. I'm trying to be a little more healthy next year.

3. How will you be spending New Year's Eve?
In bed.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No.

5. What countries did you visit?
Just Australia.

6. What would you like to have in 20102012 that you lacked in 20092011?
A little more peace and quiet.

7. What date from 20092011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
Henry's first day of Kindergarten, because it was... well.... Henry's first day at Kindergarten.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Not killing anybody.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not killing anybody.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nothing worth mentioning.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
I got some lovely sorbet the other day...

12. Where did most of your money go?
Food, mortgage and power bills.

13. What song will always remind you of 20092011?
I Sell Comics by Courage My Love.

14. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Running.

15. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Sitting.

16. What was your favourite TV program?
I can't say I've watched much at all. I did like World's Filthiest Cities and am enjoying Impractical Jokers.

17. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
There is probably someone out there.

18. What was the best book you read?
I really enjoyed Götz and Meyer by David Albahari

19. What was your greatest musical discovery?
I rediscovered Chopin. That was nice.

20. What was your favourite film of this year?
I'm not sure that I saw a film this year. When did I see Toy Story 3?

21. What did you do on your birthday?
I honestly can't recall. I might have went to work.

22. What kept you sane?
Did it?

23. Who did you miss?
Peace and quiet.

24. Who was the best new person you met?
Ummmmm....

25. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 20092011.
“It doesn't get any easier.”

The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any.

Salut!

On another note, I sincerely hate have a bad cold over a week's leave period. Christmas or no Christmas.

People are usually more convinced by reasons they discovered themselves than by those found by others.

STOP! Sandy Bay Road, Sandy Bay. December 2011.

I am having Boxing Day off.

I hope all is well with you and yours.

I hope that I may always desire more than I can accomplish.

Christmas is kind of like this great big kick arse slide.

You spent an eternity toiling away to get to the top, look around you and think about how great it's going to be. Then you hop on, and WHOOOSH, you're done.

You dust the pine bark off, wonder what all the fuss was about, sigh and set about climbing back up.

Make yourself an honest man, and then you may be sure there is one less rascal in the world.

MERRY CHRISTMAS (flower). Royal Botanical Gardens. October 2011.

While I am busy keeping a lid on proceedings in the real world, I will let the robot take care of business on the blog front. Today, the robot gets the great privilege of drafting A Very Special Sunday Top Five. Well, robot...?


Today I present to you The Very Top Five Things That I Like To Do On December 25 That Does Not Involve The [Alleged] Birth Of A Baby Of [Alleged] Uncertain Parentage Or A Fat Bloke In A Red Jump Suit!

Eating chocolate mousse!

Visiting the beach!

Having My Feet Rubbed!

Vacuuming!

Quietly rocking in a dark corner gently hitting my forehead onto the ground!

If I can be bothered, I'll post some pictures of children with presents 'n stuff later on...