STREET THEATRE PROTEST ABOUT TO PAY THE MP A VISIT TODAY

CITROEN TRACTION - ILLUSTRIOUS SUPERNOVA !

BIODIVERSITY BEES AND POLLINATION

Bee Hives in Winter.
Humanity is dependent on a number of things and one of them is bees but a predator destroyer mite has emerged and by covering the bee's body is halving the bee's life span.
Loss of habitat and pestacide use is another threat as well as use of gratuitous antibiotic treatments.
Monoculture (broad single cropping) and absence of wild flowers and weeds adds to their search for food and they are left overworked and below par. Bee colony collapse has occured and is entrenched in some countries.
Crops etc are dependent on bees. All these issues are getting attention from the experts according to an ABC radio program.
Beautiful, creepy, remnant of rain forest beside Maria(h) River.

KOALA

The furry Koala Bear enjoys sleeping in a tree as well as some activity (whichever way is up)
If you are game enough have your photo taken with a Koala from Blackbutt Reserve as part of the coming week: your city and your council celebrate.
A program of free events is planned for the Civic Precinct and is probably on the council website. (The Herald)
Afterall, the city council has an impact on our lifestyle despite the fact that the federal government is constantly in the limelight and is largly redundant.

REBERTH

Life goes on with the ship, the Pasha Bulker, in the far background, yesterday, fleeing to her transformation and rebirth, following her grounding last month.
Two metal 'braces' are on both sides of the ship to keep her in shape (underwired!) and can be seen in the photo.

MACDONALDS GALLEY V1. NOT FAR FROM NEWCASTLE

VIEW FROM ABOVE

FAREWELL

Leaving Newcastle today was this ship which was patched up after running aground. A very large tug will take it to an Asian shipyard.
When a person is around long enough they may see such as a massive ship runaground, floods, earthquake, Bicentenary, Aboriginal Reconcilation, the Berlin wall come down, the end of apartheid, Martin Luther King, Commets, Eclipses and even a change of government.

CITROEN SAFARI WAGON GENRE: UNSURPASSED

SUNDAY ARVO

Group of cyclists-cum-drinkers enjoying drinks at Sunnyside Tavern, Broadmeadow.
Vocab: arvo: afternoon

ASSERTIVE BIRD

RENAULT CAR

This new Renault has some claim to fame over other Meganes and is currently the only one in the country. Where is the baby elephant (that is seen in the ads)?

LYING DOWN ON THE JOB !

I looked around for the antique post box I had posted here before and, lo and behold, there it was in a most undignified situation whilst renovations were being carried out at Central Station.

PEUGEOT CARS RELIVING THE RALLY DAYS

Peugeot found success thru dirt, rivers and desert, in the round Australia car rallies, last centuary before the days of four wheel drives.

NEWCASTLE AIRPORT GOES BAT-LIKE

RENAULT 750

DIE GOTTERDAMMERUNG

Sorcerey and musical rites by flame were performed as candles lit a mid winter gathering. Brunnhilde lept and was just stopped short of immolation.
Last night was amongst the coldest nights this winter - by our standards. Some winters are warmer than others and this isn't one of them.

BASTILLE DAY and TENUOUS FRENCH CONNECTION

The CSIRO Energy Centre for research into ecologically sustainable energy at Mayfield West is on a former estate where a large colonial house was used as an orphanage by the Filles-de-la-Charite - The Daughters of Charity who were founded in France. Well, I said it was only a tenuous French connection!
These women were haute couture with a blue-grey dress and a fetching starched cornette - a type of wimple starched so it folded upwards (a la Flying Nun).
The French founders of the order were Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac with the poor and the marginalized in mind and their work has gone global. Here voluteers, largly, are involved in welfare work and run Op Shops (opportunity) and Doss houses and pick up the tab where the welfare state fails.
Back at the Mayfield West estate the first settler was John Platt and his lands extended from the river over to the Waratah, Mayfield, Callaghan and Sandgate areas. Since the time of his premature death in 1836, vast changes have occured in the area. (Ports And People A social history of the Hunter River)

MARRIAGE

Old Man Lincoln (Brookville Daily photo) is married over fifty years and is congratulated!
It's photograph time here, on that special day, for these Novocastrians, some months ago, in the city.
Monogyny is the more usual choice. Several spouses at the one time is said to be a factor in some very old traditions and in some more recent Western belief systems. Is our mobile lifesyle likely to allow for polygamy these days? Who can say?

WHITSUNDAY ISLANDS QUEENSLAND

Midwinter dreaming of the delightful Whitsundays. I think this is Airlie (Beach), I havn't been there lately.
Update: this is probably Long Island.

CAMPING

Mid Year Holiday time. Goin' feral!

ITS NOT PLAIN SAILING

Once more unto the breech, dear friends (Henry V)
Lake Macquarie once again in warmer weather. Sixteen footers go so close to the edge.

The chautauqua: Keep the Prime Minister and his wannabes in perspective. State government and council are the ones closely involved in our day to day life.

NAIDOC WEEK

We have a national week to mark the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with information at the link: NAIDOC Week.
This work is in a sculpture park on the shore of Lake Macquarie near the Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery. A mosaic pathway depicts Aboriginal Dreamtime stories.

MOSSIES

Sometimes the Mossies are bad after summer rain. The Hexham Grey is a very very large mosquito. I was lucky to get this conventional shot because a gale was blowing and it's wintertime.
Jim and Tim were camping and in the middle of the night came a shout from Jim. "Ouch a mosquito is biting me" ...... "Well, why don't you swat it?"
"I can't get my arms free, it's on my chest"

For more about the tradition of big things visit this site to see examples from all round the country.

SPOTLIGHT

I guess this could be found in any city when the real idea is to present a picture of Newcastle, however, this store has everything for handicrafts - quilting, sewing, knitting, scrapbooking etc.
Pins. Pins were manufactured in England but all that finished up and now, on revisiting sewing, all these little items don't have the same quality. However, choice has grown enormously and wonderous goods adorn every shelf!
The treasure trove is upstairs in this Hunter Street store. The ground floor was flooded out in a downpour a month ago.

THE FOURTH OF JULY

Independence Day USA. I won't try to add to the outstanding natural beauty and achievement of the US but have this 'assemblage' namely National Tractor Pulling Championships, Ohio by Catherine and Jennifer Strutt (local musicians who travel)

Then at the showing we go to The Annual Betty Picnic, Oregon and the World Wildfowl Carving Championships, Maryland. We celebrate the celebrations.

AMERICAN CONNECTION

The US military were here when our north was threatened in WW2. I heard an urban myth to explain the origins of Whisky Grass hereabouts. The servicemen travelled by train and had supplies of whisky that were packed in straw, and disposal of this, along the journey, meant the straw, which held the grass seeds, grew and spread. I guess, it is found far and wide.

Fields look nice enough but as cattle food it is poor. It is one of the few weeds that can invade undisturbed bushland. It invades forest etc by growing along the paths. Andropogon virginicus is perennial, tufted with solid stems growing to one metre tall, orange brown fading to straw coloured during winter.

The sight of the fields is a change to be in and time spent out of town leads to doses of renewal.

ONCE IN A BLUE MOON

There's a ship and the moon there, it takes imagination!
The crowd cheered as the stranded bulk cargo Pasha Bulker was pulled free of the beach tonight. The tugs pulled and pulled and the ship suddenly moved out quickly to the open sea towed beyond the Ocean Baths attended by a group of tugs all by the light of a full moon on a calm mild winter's night. The ship will be checked for damage before moving anywhere else. See previous posts.
Locals have celebrated this red ship in songs. We are very fortunate it was a new ship and not a rusty old thing that could have easily broken up as well as being a risk to every sailor's life as many of them are we are told.

RED AND BLUE

Creativity in Civic Park, Newcastle.

ARACHNOMANIA

Beware, these little Red Back Spiders have been known to leave their native shores and one has been found as far away as Hamburg, probably hitching a ride there on a freighter.
The Red Back Spider, can give a dangerous sting and is a native of Australia and resembles the Black Widow spider.
The female looks very attractrive and usually has a red stripe which can be seen here when the photo is enlarged, and her bite can result in localised symptoms, or more seriously, systemic symptoms but death is rare. An antivenom is available.
This particular little spider was found under a sheet of wood, was photographed and then encourage to leave. This is why I take care out in the garden. The spider can be found in dry sheltered sites such as among rocks, in logs, in sheds, outhouses or under rubbish. They are even immortalized in song.
This spider is only one of two animals to date where the male has been found to actively assist the female in cannibalism. In the process of mating, the much smaller male spider moves near the females mouth. In about two out of three cases, the female consumes the male while mating continues. Males who are not eaten die soon after. Well, I never! (Wikipedia)

For more lighthearted views about the monthly theme of the colour RED look at these other splendid City Daily Sites.
Shanghai, China - Mumbai, India - New York City (NY), USA - Manila, Philippines - Albuquerque (NM), USA - Hamburg, Germany - Stayton (OR), USA - Los Angeles (CA), USA - Hyde, UK - Oslo, Norway - Brookville (OH), USA - Melbourne, Australia - Stavanger, Norway - Bellefonte (PA), USA - Bucaramanga (Santander), Colombia - Joplin (MO), USA - Singapore, Singapore - Selma (AL), USA - Cleveland (OH), USA - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Chandler (AZ), USA - Stockholm, Sweden - Seattle (WA), USA - Boston (MA), USA - Arradon, France - Evry, France - Baton Rouge (LA), USA - Maple Ridge (BC), Canada - Boston (MA), USA - Grenoble, France - Cottage Grove (MN), USA - Greenville (SC), USA - Hilo (HI), USA - Nelson, New Zealand - La Antigua, Guatemala - Brisbane (QLD), Australia - Singapore, Singapore - Tel Aviv, Israel - Hong Kong, China - Sequim (WA), USA - Paderborn, Germany - Saarbrücken, Germany - Rotterdam, Netherlands - Tenerife, Spain - Kyoto, Japan - Tokyo, Japan - Sydney, Australia - Naples (FL), USA - Cologne (NRW), Germany - Wassenaar (ZH), Netherlands - Saint Louis (MO), USA - Cypress (TX), USA - Ocean Township (NJ), USA - Mainz, Germany - Toruń, Poland - Menton, France - Monte Carlo, Monaco - Singapore, Singapore - North Bay (ON), Canada - Jakarta, Indonesia - Montréal (QC), Canada - Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina - Minneapolis (MN), USA - Baziège, France - San Diego (CA), USA - Prague, Czech Republic - Ampang (Selangor), Malaysia - New York (NY), USA - Kajang (Selangor), Malaysia - Sharon (CT), USA - Port Angeles (WA), USA - Nottingham, UK - Villigen, Switzerland - Chicago (IL), USA - Torquay, UK - Brussels, Belgium - San Diego (CA), USA - Mexico (DF), Mexico - Saint Paul (MN), USA - Cape Town, South Africa - Paris, France - Seoul, Korea - Manila, Philippines - Milano, Italy - Chennai (Tamil Nadu), India