This will hurt me...

I came across this photograph of a sign while browsing through teh Internets today. I do love an image that can be terribly grusome, yet rather cute at the same time. It reminds me of an image in one of my all-time favourite ads that has been previously featured on this site. Regular commentator and all round good guy the Political Ump mentioned on the original post how the pig with the samurai spirit reminded him of the sickeningly pleasant bovine bred to willingly and happily suicide in order to feed the guests in Douglas Adams's Restaurant at the End of the Universe . He's right, and now there is a whole website dedicated to such animals, the aptly titled Suicide Food , for hundreds of grisly yet happy pictures, pop on over and have a look. [Tip of the hat to Boing Boing for alerting me to this one.]

I'm not sure who took these two today, Jen or Henry. Jen is claiming them, and Henry is keeping quiet about it, but they do have his touch of class about them. Anyway, it was taken on their belated trip to the Steenholt Ranch in the deep south of Tasmania near Geeveston , which is about sixty kilometers south of Hobart, right into the southern part of the Huon Valley . They stopped along the gorgeous Huon River to take a few snaps for me to share with the world. Now, I would never be so cruel to cast aspersions on any region of the state - because I'm just not that sort of fellow - but I have heard other, less considerate folk say that they hear the faint echo of dueling banjos each time they head down this way. Yet Henry and Jenry emerged intact from their journey, well stocked with banana passionfruit and choc-chip cookies. This tells me that what other people say about the strange goings-on amongst the reclusive, anti-one world government crowd that seem to gather in th...

I've been insulted many, many times. I've been called all the names under the sun. And I will be blunt with you all, I've called people a few nasty things myself (yes, it's true, please don't look so shocked ). But do you know what? I can honestly say that I have never, ever stooped to the depths of inhumanity, perversion and downright rudeness of the parrot in todays ad. Seriously, the fainthearted should not click on the picture and read it in all its horror, it will turn your hair grey.

Just to emphasise how flat I am feeling today, here is a photo taken just after being decked by my eighteen month old son. He so convincingly won the tussle that he turned his back on me with utter contempt the moment I hit the canvas! Neither of us displayed the ANZAC spirit today. The fact that he currently sits in the 97th percentile in height (that is, taller than all but 3% of littlies) and the 90th percentile in weight (heavier than all but 10%), is impressive, but doesn't make me feel any better about the dismal loss.

Another photograph taken during late afternoon in the city. This one is of an old flour mill that used to overlook Franklin wharf, until they built some bigger buildings in front of it (as is usually the way). A special bonus as well today, as I've managed to dig up an old cartoon of the flour mill building from 1893. I can't think of anything pithy or witty to say today though. I've missed my first ever day from work due to illness. Now it's not that I never get sick, rather I usually get sick on weekends or holidays! I think that I've managed to pick up whatever young Henry was suffering from. It's a great time to be sick, as I still haven't written the presentation that I will be making for a Conference on Monday. Oh well, we'll see how that one goes in due time!

I snapped this picture yesterday afternoon on the journey from work into town to meet Jen and Henry. The ship that you can see here is the Aurora Australis , which spends most winters in port here in Hobart. This fine vessel belongs to the Australian Antarctic Division , which bases itself in Hobart for two primary reasons: i) because of our location as ‘last stop before Antarctica’ over summer; and ii) the quality of Tasmania’s beautiful women. P & O occasionally charter the ship for other ‘bits and pieces’ work during winter. It may or may not be true that the winter penguin-harvest that provides fresh penguin meat for the tremendously popular ‘penguin nuggets’ is shipped in by P & O in this period.

I know that this has been doing the rounds over the past few days, but I just can't help myself! This was apparently snapped at a pro-Tibet rally in San Francisco: What would Leni Riefenstahl say? [With a very generous nod to Andrew Sullivan's always interesting blog, The Daily Dish .]