This will hurt me...

Freckles? When did they arrive?

Lieutenant Thomas Burnett arrived at Hobart Town, Van Diemen’s Land on 6 January 1837 aboard the barque Fairlie , accompanying Captain Sir John Franklin who was taking up his appointment as Lieutenant-Governor of the colony. Unfortunately for Burnett, his stay in Tasmania was but a brief one. He drowned on 21 May 1837 when his whaler ran into a spot of weather Bruny Island in D’Entrecasteaux Channel. The photo above is the monument to Burnett, utilising the stone plinth imported from England which was to have been the main stand for an observatory for the man. Bummer. He was thirty-one. History , by Robert Lowell History has to live with what was here, clutching and close to fumbling all we had-- it is so dull and gruesome how we die, unlike writing, life never finishes. Abel was finished; death is not remote, a flash-in-the-pan electrifies the skeptic, his cows crowding like skulls against high-voltage wire, his baby crying all night like a new machine. As in our Bibles, white-faced,

Lately, Henry has taken to telling me how much he'd like to be in a wheelchair. I keep telling him that life in a wheelchair isn't a barrel of monkeys, and definitely isn't something to aspire to (with all due respect to those of you in wheelchairs). Anyway, to prove the point, Ezra spent the day in a little cart like a bloke with no legs.

Castles in the air sandpit, Geilston Bay. April 2010. We're now getting to the point where Ezra will leave the castles up long enough for me to photograph them before demolishing them in a Godzilla-like frenzy of rightious anger. I like to call this bottom one " The firebombing of Dresden ". Fortunately, neither Ezra nor Henry have discovered fire yet...

You might be forgiven for thinking that Henry and Ezra are fiddling about with some cushions here, but you'd be wrong . They are, in fact, small islands. Small islands that one perches oneself upon in order to avoid the crocodiles . Or sharks . Or crabs . Or death adders .

Theme Thursday today, and leaving the post again to the last minute has me striving to think outside the BOX . This is a - hopefully - moody little photograph of what I believe is Earth's most unpopular bird feeder . We have no cats, no dogs, plenty of birds about, lots of healthy and nutritious bird seed, and a beautiful BOX feeder right there waiting to be visited; but not one . None. Zero. Keiner. Neviens. Absolutamente ninguna!

Ez does his best Janet Leigh impression. Question for you: colour or black and white?

Tasmanian seagulls and spiders show their appreciation to John Franklin's statue, April 2010. It is one of the [many] downsides to being immortalised in statue, the birds' appreciation. If I am going to be worshipped long after my death, I'd want something a little more classy than a bit of iron for the seagulls to crap on. Maybe a pyramid? The Taj Mahal? A day of the week? How would you want to be remembered?

I'm saying all the things that I know you'll like, making good conversation. I gotta handle you just right, You know what I mean. I took you to an intimate restaurant, then to a suggestive movie. There's nothing left to talk about, unless it's horizontally. Got it yet?

Fat? Short of breath? Unable to clear hurdles neatly and efficiently? Have you thought about taking up smoking? Actually, this ad is typical of one of the easiest selling techniques around: vanity. If you are hungry, smoke , not eat . Sure, it'll give you cancer, but at least you won't get puffed running laps... ...oh.

Bellerive Oval, Home of the 2009/10 Vehicle & General Australasian Knock-out Competition Coca-Cola Australasian Knock-out Competition Gillette Cup McDonald's Cup FAI Cup Mercantile Mutual Cup ING Cup Ford Ranger Cup champions, the Tasmanian Tigers! March, 2010. The Tasmanian Tigers cricket team were once considered the easybeats of the Australian cricket scene. Ever since Henry arrived, they've had a hard edge to them that has seen them win a couple of Vehicle & General Australasian Knock-out Competition Coca-Cola Australasian Knock-out Competition Gillette Cup McDonald's Cup FAI Cup Mercantile Mutual Cup ING Cup Ford Ranger Cups and one Sheffield Shield Pura Cup Sheffield Shield. He should be getting a commission. By the by, I'm having two wisdom teeth out this morning. That should be fun!

Gold medal winner in the thousand yard stare, New Delhi 2010 .

Drowned trees on the Don River Railway line, January 2010 . ...at least I think that they're drowned. I'm not really a tree man. I know people that love trees. They love trees a lot more than they love people. They love trees more than they love cats and dogs. Some of them love trees more than they love whales and dolphins. Some love trees about the same as they love whales and dolphins. Some love whales and dolphins more than they love trees, but they probably would never admit that. Trees are okay, but they're not high on my love list. I love pizza way more than trees.

You've heard of the "naked chef"? This is the "naked architect". He's working on the scale model of his planned '100% organic eco-residence'.

I miss the sunshine, but there is something to be said for a grey old morning to get the odd interesting shot. Plus, it keeps the tourists down and affords me a better chance at framing an image without gawking. Time for the Sunday Top Five . Today, my Top Five Team Names For A Possible Tasmanian AFL Team ! • The Tasmanian Wombats • The Tasmanian Great White Sharks • The Tasmanian Filthy Rotten Convicts • The Tasmanian Jurassic Dolerite Intrusions • The Tasmanian Vertical Fiscal Imbalance If you can think of something better, or want to endorse one of the above, leave your thoughts over the fold!