This will hurt me...

The oddest thing about Henry's insistence to get out and about among these rocks is the fact that he refused to wear his shoes to do so.

The real end of summer. Hobart as seen from Little Howrah Beach. March 2012. People who find breastfeeding offensive are idiots. Hope is the thing... , Emily Dickinson Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea; Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me.

Only love can break your heart.

A sign from somebody, or something. Franklin Wharf, Hobart waterfront. May 2012. Being Dead by Jim Crace really is unlike any book I have read before. It begins with a straightforward, albeit shocking, image; the bodies of a middle-aged couple lying in the dunes of the seacoast where they met as students. A frenzied stranger has battered them to death them with a chunk of granite for no reason other than the few valuables they have with them. Yet this is no murder mystery. Less about murder and more about death, to be more precise. The reader is than taken on a [very] graphic account of what happens as their corpses lie undiscovered and rotting for a week. We learn of the effects of putrefaction, the role of crabs, flies, and gulls in processing decaying organic matter. The narrative then abruptly shifts backward to the [again, incredibly graphic] moment of their deaths. It’s fair to say that the opening third of the book is not for the faint hearted. The narrative then alternat...

Look at them go. Where? I dunno.

Seen better days #976. Lindisfarne North Primary School, Lindisfarne. May 2012. Theme Thursday again and the place is like a ZOO. Well, if you knew where I worked, 'madhouse' would be inappropriate (if somewhat more precise). I've been busy. So very busy. I apologise. Not good enough, I know.

Drink from thine regal chalice...

Show caution, in the name of love... The corner of St Georges Terrace and Sandy Bay Road. May 2012. Wordless Wednesday.

We had our first parent-teacher meeting with Henry's Prep teacher yesterday evening, and were delighted with the news that the lad is doing very well in all areas! Of course, like his father, the one area that he perhaps might need to work on a little bit is understanding the correct time and place for 'a joke'. Well done Henry!

Spindly dongers (at least that's what Henry calls them) on trees. Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart. April 2012. In the absence of another reader contribution (reader?), I am back to stealing from Sunday Stealing this week. Thus, I present to you Part Two of the Semi Charmed Meme 21. A better name for me would be: something German. Jürgen Grüßer or some such. 22. I have a hard time understanding: why people don’t ask more questions. 23. If I ever go back to school, I’d: enjoy myself more than the first few runs at it. 24. You know I like you if: you see me again. 25. If I ever won an award, the first person I’d thank would be: my lovely wife and children. 26. If I could bring back a TV show for a reunion it would be: Deadwood . 27. Take my advice, never: think that merit on its own will get you anywhere. 28. My ideal breakfast is: porridge with fresh raspberries. 29. A song I love, but do not own is: I honestly cannot think of one. If I ‘l...

It really wasn't that long ago that we were decked out in singlets and hanging out at the beach. It's all snow on the mountain and frigid southerlies at the moment. Beanie weather, with no space for singlets (unless it's underneath a shirt, jacket and raincoat).

Hen and Jen search for treasure. Little Howrah Beach. March 2012. The Internet is a wonderful place filled with the rich and varied treasures of the world holds (as well as a refuge for many, many sad and lonely people.) The following are some things that I've had a look at in the last week. I call this: a Compendium of Click-throughs for Monday Morning.. Let's start with one that gets me fired up. On the topic of the current trend of middle class entitlement here in Australia, it is no very clear that current funding policies of Australian schools aggravate the widening social gap in achievement . Grants to non-government schools encourage social selectivity and policies promoting 'choice' lead parents with cultural and financial advantage to pool their resources in schools of choice, both public and private. The key point is of course, that the winners of our education system are the best off and the losers are the worst off, and that dynamic is self-reinforcing...

A smiling Jen and grumpy Ezra celebrate the fine weather delivered on my birthday last Monday!

Nymphéas (avec mes excuses à Monet). Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart. April 2012. Today's Sunday Top Five is a new one for me, but probably replicated fourteen thousand times on teh Internets. Yes, it is My Top Five 'Secret' Health And Lifestyle Tips To Reaching My Ideal Weight! Back story, Jen had been complaining for a while that it was hard finding the time to do regular exercise with two small kids always hanging about (well, exercise beyond chasing and punishing two small kids that are always hanging about). So, last Christmas, Santa, his elves, Henry, Ezra and I determined that a Wii Fit package might go some way to filling the gap. On Christmas morning, Jen's little eyes lit up when she saw the balance board and realised that we had all gone some way to making her dreams of an international modelling career come true. If you're not familiar with the Wii Fit, it gets you to plug in your relevant details (name, age, height et cetera , and then measures you...