Deep contemplation? Maybe, maybe not.....!!

I was a bit taken aback when I looked up to see a monk standing staring out towards the water, immediately I thought 'can it be!' he looked about the right height and weight. The Dalai Lama (Dalai meaning Ocean and Lama, teacher or guru) has visited Perth on a few occasions and I was furiously trying to remember if I'd read anywhere that he was here right now.  Once my excitement was replaced by common sense (yeh right!) I realized that even from the back you could tell he was much younger, and that the Dalai Lama probably wouldn't be strolling around the marina by himself.. or maybe he would!! I'm thinking that perhaps this monk was gazing over at the Wind Rose and contemplating... 'Ommmmmmm! what a 'divine' sculpture, could it be used to fathom the path of the winds... !'  Or, he could be looking over at Jetty's and wondering what to have for brekkie!! It's going to be a beautiful 32C day in Perth today, it's amazing the difference 5 degrees makes. Hope your day moves along the way you'd like it to.....

When is a rose not a rose.....!

When it's a Wind Rose. I walk past this sculpture near the ocean at least twice a week and for the first time yesterday I actually 'looked' at it and wondered a) what it was called and b) who created it! The words read: 'THIS WIND ROSE REPRESENTS AVERAGE WIND VELOCITY RECORDED DAILY AT 3PM' and around the base are the compass points N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, N, NW.   I'm guessing that the positioning and the curve and size of the centre opening of the sculpture is vitally important, but even reading the working description in the above link it's as clear as 'mud' to me (come on, it's nothing at all to do with being blonde haha!). I was wondering if anyone has seen a Wind Rose (not necessarily in  this particular design) and can perhaps in 'non technical' terms make it all a little clearer! I hope you have a less puzzling day than mine was trying to figure this out.....!

Hanging balls in Green & Co(ck).....!!

Yesterday I went with Bill to the camera market held in the Leederville Town Hall, it's an every three months event where you can find everything from antique camera's right up to modern SLR's. It's a great opportunity if you're looking for a different sized lens, filters, tripods etc. I was seriously tempted by a limited edition white Pentax complete with 18-55mm and 28-200 lens' in matching white, it was just so 'pretty', but I really couldn't justify spending $600 on something that I really didn't need! I did come away with a great book full of tips on how to take better portrait shots for $10 and was very happy with that (easily pleased, that's moi). On the way home we stopped in Leederville to have a cup of coffee in Green & Co, someone regularly adds a 'ck' onto the end of the Co which is slightly amusing, described as 'bohemian' but actually pretty 'shabby' looking from the outside, it's pretty funky inside with walls covered in old music concert posters and light balls hanging from the ceiling, the main thing is that the coffee is good and the cake even better!! Hope you have a great start to the new week.....

Can it be true what they say about blondes.....!!

Yesterday I was making a comment on Linda's The Road Awaits  blog and she mentioned that she was experimenting in black and white images as a challenge for her photography club, she was hoping to get some feed back on subjects that translate well into this genre. For me I think you can't go past either portraits or street scenes, I took this one in the city this week and as I had more than enough time to take the shot, it seems what they say about 'blondes' getting  just that wee bit more attention may be true, the waiter definitely 'loitered' haha!! I hope you have a fabulous Sunday.....

Wonderful women.....!!

I had lunch with a friend in Cottesloe yesterday, with the intention of taking some shots of The Indiana Tearooms to show you, which I did and I will, but along the way I got a wee bit distracted by not one, but four 'wonder women' posing for pictures on the beach.. The beach front was being prepared for the annual Rottnest Channel Swim (a short video of the 2010 swim). Thousands of swimmers set off early in the morning to swim over to Rottnest Island which is 20klms off the WA coast near Perth, to be honest with all the shark sightings we've had this summer, you couldn't pay me to do it! The race can be swum by singles, pairs, fours etc. and I'm thinking that perhaps these four ladies were a team having some shots taken before the race which is today. I'm going to have to check the news tonight to see if I can spot this colourful group among the masses that took off from the beach this morning. Personally, I'm going out to dinner and take in a movie with my family, how about you, are you doing something exciting this weekend.....?

End of the day.....

It was 37C in Perth on Tuesday, is there any better way to end such a day than with a dip in the ocean as the sun is setting.....!

Battling 'the doctor'.....!!

A few days ago after lunch at the Trigg Island Cafe with my two sisters-in-law, heading back to the car I was sidetracked for a while watching this guy wrestling with the Fremantle Doctor (you'll have to look to see what that's all about haha!) to get his board and kite into the water, check out this short video showing a kite boarding lesson, looks fun, but to be honest it exhausted me just watching him fighting the elements. Like anywhere in the world where there's a beach and strong winds, kite boarding is hugely popular, there is a spot just a few kilometers up the coast where there would probably have been ten instead of this one lone kite boarder....

Then eventually he was off and flying through the water, it looks like it would be excellent fun, if you were not 'multi phobia' challenged like moi!! Where to even begin.....!!

Och aye the noo.....!!

Like any big city Perth has it's fair share of  fabulous buskers and this super cool guy is one of my favorites, here he is doing his thing in Forest Chase. He rocks those bagpipes with traditional Scottish music played in a very different way, I remember we saw him once when my Mum was along too, being a true Scot she wasn't terribly impressed with his rendition of  'The Bonnie Banks O' Loch Lomond' and especially not 'Amazing Grace' haha! I've never spoken to him so I don't know if he actually is a Scot, next time. Hope you have  rockin' day.....!!

What's in a name.....

A few of my favorite signs on Market Street in Fremantle.. Firstly, very clever and very Aussie is shock & oar everything nautical that you might need to wear when you set off on the high seas in your yacht....

Or you might like to stay the night and have a wee dram in Rosie O'Grady's Irish Pub, I've heard it has 'great craic' , pronounced 'crack', meaning a fantastic time, which I'm sure I didn't need to clarify!

Princess Chambers is a suite of offices, what a lovely address to have on your business card oui!!

You can tell by the signage that this isn't any old corner store selling fruit and veg. Inside is a haven of gorgeous homewares, beautifully made although just a tad pricey.....and below we have my personal favourite, let's just say Jayne is not the only one addicted  to chocolate, a little everyday keeps a smile on my dial.....!!  Start the week off well enjoy some chocolate today.....

Mothers and daughters.....

There's an old saying that if you want to know what your future bride may look like, look to her mother...this adorable little joey (baby kangaroo) above, that could be mistaken for a baby deer minus it's spots and is cute as can be, will one day be a powerful mamma like 'herself 'below..check out the claws on those back feet..oh la they could do some damage if you stay out late drinking with the boys....!!

Fortunately if you have to make a hasty getaway, you are well equipped to bound out of reach pronto, unfortunately she is equally equipped and will be right behind you haha! Bit scary huh.....!! This is my entry for the 'silly Sunday' theme...what do you mean there isn't one!! Hope you have a fab Sunday....

Ol' Blue Eyes.....

It always amazes me how the same subject for an image can look totally different depending on the  angle or light. This Little Black Cormorant sitting quietly gazing out at the comings and goings of the marina through his startlingly blue/green eyes (click on photo below to see this unusual colour) ignored me taking his picture from the pier looking inwards towards the cafes. I must say I did enjoy the rusty reflections from the steel girders in the water.....

The same bird, not having moved one gleaming feather was totally unaware that I was still clicking when I was sitting having a skinny cappuccino (minus pastry!!) in one of the above mentioned cafes, but this time looking out towards sea, the light and reflections became so much more defined....I hope that you enjoy a café et pâtisserie at your favorite cafe this weekend.....

Skyscrapers and laundry baskets.....!

Well I went out looking for a bit of fun, and I think I found it sitting looking very much out of place in the Supreme Court Gardens, trouble is I can't tell you very much about it!! I've searched Google under every combination of key words I can think of to no avail. All I can tell you is that it's a sculpture, three actually, made entirely out of what looks like plastic laundry baskets (please click to enlarge, it's too weird) all tied together with plastic snap locks. At first I thought it might be one of the visual art projects included in the Fringe World Festival but then realized that the Perth Festival is on at the same time (it's all happening in Perth!!), so if anyone from Perth is reading this and can enlighten me, feel free! I kind of liked in the first image the combination of 'laundry' baskets and big business, banking...get it , laundry, banking... nah!! that would never happen in Perth haha! I know I say this every week, but surely it can't be Friday already again!! Hope you have a great weekend.....

Fire update.....

The bush fires south east of Northcliffe are 'contained but not yet under control'..according to the fire updates, as long as the containment lines hold the fires shouldn't run into rural land. The fires weren't started deliberately this time, they were caused by a series of lightning strikes! The air over Perth (and in my head) is even smokier this morning and it's expected to continue right up until the weekend. Despite the haze I'm going out on the scout today looking for a bit of fun haha! Hope you have a good day in your part of the world.....

Fire .....

Perthites awoke yesterday morning to find the city and suburbs blanketed by a smoke haze blown up the coast by the southerly winds from a fire burning out of control in the karri forests in the South West.  15,500ha have burned through already with the expectation of double that by the time the fire is brought under control. It was only at the beginning of this month that I did a post about the Koalas and other native animals that suffer and worse in situations like this and it makes me unbelievably sad to think about it happening again now. I took these pictures last night on Sorrento beach, you can see the smoke haze being blown in by the strong sea breeze! The bittersweet irony is that I love the images, but the price to pay for them is too high.....

Then and Now..St. Georges Terrace.....

Yesterday I had an appointment in the city and while walking through one of the arcades afterwards I spied a group of very old photo's of Perth circa 1900, fascinating stuff! So amazing to see dirt roads and horse and carriages where there are now wide avenues and queues of traffic. I think I've mentioned before that my favorite street in the city is St. Georges Terrace, the heritage buildings nestled amongst the skyscrapers make a great contrast, so I chose this old photo of St. Georges Terrace to do my 'then and now' comparison, there were two pictures of the Terrace, unfortunately the one with all the horse and carriage action going on was directly under a light and impossible to get a shot without a flare, this one is pretty quiet, maybe a weekend, I wish it was a little clearer and minus the dribbles of goodness knows what, but we are talking one hundred and twelve years ago, you can see that even way back then this wide road was destined for great things! I like the sky, makes me wonder if whoever took this shot all those many years ago, didn't do a little bit of tweaking haha!

Oh and btw...Happy Valentine's Day.....!

Put up your dukes.....!!

I was pretty excited last night as Aimee and I were having our walk through Pinnaroo, to spot these two big fellas having a bit of a sparring match. The boxing kangaroo is an Australian national symbol which you will have seen at the Olympic Games and other big sporting events, but to see it occurring before your eyes is quite a spectacle!  I loved this shot above because you can see that they have both feet up and are totally balancing on their tails, how cool is that! The other thing that impressed me is their height, you don't realize until they stand full upright just how tall they are. Let me assure you here that this was not a serious fight, they were just 'monkeying' around haha! and letting off a little steam.We watched until they got bored and then they just hunkered down and carried on with diner. Here we are again at the start of a new week, more than anything else let it be a peaceful one.....

You're late, you're late.....!!

Like Alice through the looking glass, if you step through a door that magically appears on the beach, you never know what you'll find on the other side..a pretty girl lying in the sun, a golden ball floating on the ocean... probably not a rabbit with long white ears!  Beach art at  Cottesloe.  We are talking 'wonderland' here, so a bit of tweaking has been done. I hope you find something exciting on the other side of a door this weekend.....

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