Golf course in town of Orange gave me a lovely sample of a muted forest floor thick with leaves over my feet and light showers of leaves all around. A magical scene like this is not familiar to us in Newcastle.  Nor the chilly air and occasional snow.  
.  

Autumn colours seen on the climb over the Blue Mountains.  Too short of time to stop for a more fitting image. Chilly overcast weather was a welcome change.

Group of grand old Bunya Pines in Beechworth, Vic, no doubt growing since colonial days and the local gold rush. .
 The town is a great place for trees and full grown beech trees. 

Puri and Bunyan tree.  The Bunyan tree is often a focus of Balinese Hinduism as far as I can see.
  The rainy season is not very rainy just now in Bali.  Gardens could do with rain.  At least there is no flooding.
  The traveller might be prepared for floods in Jakarta but flooding is possible even in York in the UK. 

 A grand flock of cockies is usually based a few ks from this point but the tasty fast food trees drew them in.  The birds are terrific even when they give the trees a pruning. If you must plant conifers.

Do something grand

and join the crowds in Sydney on Sunday 29.  Join the cm train leaving 8.30.
  People's Climate March.

Bamboo is a very interesting, appealing and useful material yet is very alien in our bushland.

We are surrounded by windy stormy rainy weather.
 Never before have I heard of as much destruction in the Hunter as regards uprooted trees, downed power lines, loss of power supply, loss of phone services, roof and fences, schools and institutions closing their doors but no real flooding in the suburbs but flooding of the towns and roads of the hinterland.  
A dreaded east coast low, a Pasha Bulka storm, quite a change from the benign.
Council workers and chain saws soon opened the road again.

Axe - timber - Kew!

Called in at iKew, that is Kew, off the Pacific Highway, where reminders of the days of logging are in the park near the pleasant and well stocked tourist centre.  Local weaving and confectionary are among the items on sale. 
It also acts as a driver reviver which is very worthwhile service.

Strangler! Townsville.

Flinders Highway A6 Queensland has urban legends about unsolved crimes.
The Burdekin River which the A6 crosses near Macrossan is featured at http://www.bonzle.com .... rail lines were warped and helpless when hit by floodwaters. But I can't make a link to these specific historical photos.

Townsville in the deep north has colonial vestiges and this tree of the tropics. And humidity plus. 
SBS TV aired The Tree of Life and whatever else it is hughly nostalgic. Just what is nostalgia? 
Is also in tune with Kurri Kurri's retro weekend locally.

...beneath the trees where nobody sees they'll hide and seek as long as they please.....

If you go down in the woods today....

Tranquil. How long will it last? Unprecedented cyclone in Asia and extreme hardship for the people. Take the safer option and prepare for climate change with carbon trading and sustainability.

 

ODE TO AN AUSSIE

A tree living in the bush at Camooweal.

But just not an ordinary tree.

This is a Swampy Gum tree - another old man swampy!

You may note he is growing on rock.

Super hard country and very warm in summer.

 One also knows by the black scars he wears

that he has endured several ordeals by fire

yet he still has his own hair (leaves), white bark and aura of strength.

He is home to vast numbers of ants, beetles, spiders, lizards and birds

and shade to 'roos, catlle and man - he does not discriminate.

He provides excellent firewood to boil up, cook and heat.

He shines like the richest cedar when polished,

He is an Aussie through and through!

He is an astounding free gift from the universe!

photo: Carmel from Camooweal. writer: Starman  2013

Windswept tree. Up and over it goes. Hat Head NSW.

Newspapers are provided to read at some locations and the choice can be limited.  Their bias screams out or is it my imagination.  Well, Miranda D, what exactly did you discover when you went in disguise to the mosque?  Very little it seems.  What was the point of all that?

Spring is in the air despite the expectation of a touch of snow to other parts of the state.  It is probably rare to see blossoming fruit trees in our city but these are going strong and were humming with bees 

In the middle of winter these trees make a very welcome appearance.

Splendid record breaking competitors are winning at the games.
So go Aussies -go for Silver!
http://thisuntidycity.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/stop-honeysuckling-and-think-big/  where a local blogger is promoting Pittsburgh as a source of ideas to help change a city like ours.

Four and twenty black birds and a reflection at The Junction.

 Regulatory photos from Civic park towards Laman Street.

 Surely this is the architectural style that is enjoying a reappearance.  This type of entrance with the rectangular structure to the fore is seen everywhere.

Towards Laman Street post fig trees, today.  Seems ok without trees planted as an avenue  The division of Laman street from the park below, by a line of trees, may be undesirable, when the area could be continuous using wide, broad, cleared steppes sweeping up to Laman street.  Would that mean more use of perpendicular lines?
  

Mighty trees line one side of Maitland Road, Islington, while on the other side much younger trees grow in a shape that nicely suits the situation.  With leaves that fall in summer along the edge of the park the trees make an impressive line up although all that litter is probably a bit of a problem for some people nearby.

Apart from this, the giant mature red cedar tree is buttressed like these when seen in the few specimens that remain and is one of the few indigenous trees that are deciduous. Aparently cedars can be grown easily enough.