I'm backkkk!

We had a nice trip out west, Rhonda, myself and Denny-the-Dog.

We headed out to Cowra and stayed the night in a lovely cabin at Cowra Van Park

We provided our own linen and had an 80 litre Fridge/freezer in the back of the truck with basic foodstuffs. Denny had to sleep outside, tied up, but as it was mild he did not mind too much. We made sure he got lots of 'relief' strolls.

The old 'low level' wooden road bridge is still in place over the Lachlan River and now serves as a pedestrian bridge.

We cooked our own breakfast - bacon, eggs and toast - with the utensils provided and did some sight seeing. We went to the Japanese Memorial Gardens  (Cowra was a Japanese POW camp during WWII and the scene of a notorious 'break out') and also the Cowra Rose Gardens.

We found a little Chinese restaurant in town that had a 'buffet' ("all-you-can-eat") lunch for $AUS9.50 and we also had a glass of wine and a bottle of ice water with our lunch. Very nice and all-up $AUS29.00.

We drove up to Canowindra (pronounced Kan-noun-dra) and re-visited the "Age of Fishes" museum. In the Devonian period, some 410-360 million years ago, the eastern coastline of Australia lay much further west. An extensive river and lake system covered large parts of the continent, draining into shallow seas. What is now Canowindra would then have been a wide flood plain, dotted with lakes and billabongs. It was the 'Age of Fishes', and they abounded in the area. Scientists have been able to reconstruct the fishes found at Canowindra on the basis of the fossil evidence found there. The fauna appears to have been dominated by two kinds of strange armoured fishes, Bothriolepis and Remigolepis , which belong to a long-extinct group called the antiarchs. A third, less common, armoured fish known as Groenlandaspis was also present .

Canowindra is also known as "The Ballooning Capital of Australia"

Its a pretty town, nice wide street and lots of covered verandahs over the shop fronts to protect one from the heat of the day - 32C. We had a counter lunch in one of the local pubs and a cold ale!

From there we drove to Bathurst, The home of the Mount Panorama Race Circuit and the Bathurst 1000 klm race.

It also the home of St Stanislaus Boy's Boarding College (St Stannies) one of the best known rural boarding colleges in Australia and produced many fine rugby players, scientists, artists, poets and doctors.

We stayed at the local Caravan and Camping Park. They allowed 'small dogs' but were hesitent about Denny. They agreed to let us 'camp' in a tent we had with us. It's a truly magnificant park - very posh and 'up-market'.

The swimming pool.

The next day we headed down the road to Wyangala and "The Camp" where we felt more relaxed, comfortable and 'at home'. We stayed two nights and arrived back home tonight!

We purchased a kilo of Tiger prawns (shrimps to my Amerian friends) and some fresh baked bread rolls and are about to sit outside in the twilight hours and enjoy our dinner.

Oh!  In case you are wondering, 'Yes!" I broke the news to Rhonda about the broken camera and its possible replcement ($AUS1,500) and she said go ahead! You little beauty!



Going away for a few days

Rhonda is on days off and then goes to annual leave for two weeks so we are going touring for four or five days!

C'ya later!

Drat!

Dropped my camera this morning and looks like the motor is stuffeed!

Bugger!

Will have to price a replacement!

Some Aussie terms

We've had a bit of Welsh, so how about some dinkum Aussie speak? Now, this list is not conclusive as many Aussie terms are very dependent upon the inflexion and direction in which they are used - e.g. 'bastard' is the most confusing, 'cos "You bastard!" can be an abusive term or a term of endearment dependent uopn how its used and towards whom. Rozza's, Pommies, and the Tax Department are always "Bastards!" and that's no joke. LOL!

Ace! : Excellent! Very good!

Arvo : afternoon

Amber fluid : beer (also known as "A drop of the amber.")

Aussie : Australian

Back door discount : something possibly stolen and being offered cheaper than normal.

(Off the) Back of a truck - as in "Fell of the back of a truck!": Something that's been obtained cheaply - so don't ask questions!

Beaut, beaudy : great, fantastic

Big Mobs : loads, a lot of

Bloody : very

Blood oath! : that's certainly true

Blue : argument/mistake, a fight

Bodgy : poor quality

Bonzer : great, ripper

Bottler : something excellent

Bottling : his blood's worth: He's an excellent, helpful, bloke

Buckley's : (See "Yours and ...)

Buggered : worn out, had it, no good any more!

Bull dust : rubbish

Cactus : dead, broken

Cark it : to die, stop working

Cha! : cup of tea

Cheap : Nasty

Chocka : full up

Click : kilometre - "it's 20 clicks away"

Come a gutser : a bad mistake or have an accident

Coldie : a cold beer, as in "Letscrackacoldieorto" ( translated - Lets-crack-a-coldie-or-two!)

Come good : turn out ok

Cooee, not within : figuratively a long way away

Cost big bikkies : expensive

Cream, to : defeat by a large margin

Cuppa : A cup of cha! (or tea)

Cut snake (mad as a) : either very angry, or, someone with sever mental problems

Dead dingo's donger : (as dry as a) dry

Deadset : true/the truth, 'honest injun

Dingo's breakfast : no breakfast

Dinkum/fair dinkum : true, real, genuine

Dinky-di : the real thing, genuine

Docket : a bill, receipt

Doco : documentary

Donger: male appendage

Drink with the flies : to drink alone

Dunny rat (Cunning as a) : very cunning

Exy/'X' : expensive

Fair dinkum : true, genuine

Fair go : a chance / break

Fair suck of the sav! : exclamation of wonder, awe, disbelief  - refers to a "Savaloy sausage"!

Furphy : rumour

G'Day/gidday : hello!

Give it a burl : try it, have a go

Give it away : give up

Give it up!: Go away, Lay off it, unbelievable!

Going off : good fun, or, Very crazy, as in "Going off one's head", or  'turned' as in that meat's gorn off!

Good oil : useful information, a good idea, the truth

Good onya : well done (Often abbreviated to simply 'Onya'! which is highly complimentary.

Grog (get on the) : To go out on a drinking binge
Grouse : great, terrific

Heaps : a lot of

Iffy : dodgy - as in 'Gorn off', or 'Sus'!

(Gone) Walkabout : it's lost, can't be found (see also "Walkabout")

Kangaroos loose in the top paddock : Intellectually inadequate

Kick the bucket : to die

Knock back : refuse

London to a brick : absolute certainty

Lunch (who opened their?) : OK, who farted?

Macca's : Golden Arches takeaway with Ronald McDonald

Mate's rate : cheaper than usual for a friend

Moree Handbag : A cardboard carton with a (4-5 litres) bladder of wine
No worries! : no problem / its okay

Nun's nasty : (as dry as a) very dry

Onya!: Well done, great effort!

Piece of piss : easy task

Pig's arse! : I don't agree (vehemently)

Piss off : get lost! get out of here! no way!

Plate, bring a : Instruction to bring a plate of food to a party

Pommie : anyone remotely suspected of being a new chum from Mother England - until proven to be otherwise - then you're probably a Taffy (Welsh), a Mick (Irish), or, a Macca (Scot)

Pozzy/possie : position, to secure a good position to listen to or view something.

Quid, make a : earn a living

Rack off : get lost! get out of here!

Reckon! : for sure

Reckon?: Don't think so!

Ridgy-didge : original, genuine

Right : okay

Ripper : Great

Rooted : ruined, broken

Rozza : Policeman, a copper and, collectively, the "Traps"!

She'll be apples : It'll be alright

She'll be right : it'll be okay

Shout : To pay your turn in a round as in "It's my shout and I'm buying!"

Smoko : morning tea time - a sacrosamct period and you interupt an Aussie on his smoko at your own peril!

Sparrows fart : dawn

Strewth : exclamation, usually of amazement or disbelief

Stoked : very pleased

Stuffed, I'm : buggered, worn out!

Too right : definitely

Turps, hit the : go on a drinking binge

Walkabout : to disappear when wanted, as in "Looked for him but he'd gone walkabout!"

Yours and Buckley's : (you've got) no chance

Zack, not worth a : not worth anything


Now! That orta keep you lot out of mischief for a while!

My pumkin plot

Denny-the-Dog has an annoying habit of snacking on compost - whew!  Dogs breath! LOL!

I 'brew' my compost in bottomless drums, so when I want to use it I just lift the drum off and mound it up, give it a good watering with liquid fertiliser - seweed concentrate - and when I plant my pumkin seeds (or whatever) in the compost heap I made up a surround from some old left-over plastic mesh and a few stakes.

Barbara, at the 3 Acre Homestead was having a problem growing comfrey, as her chickens ate it to the ground. this is what I did to keep Denny from the compost and I'm sure it will work for Barabara's comfrey.

When the pumkins start to grow and spread I'll just pull out the stakes and the frame and let them ramble!
I've also got my tomatoes growing in tubs which have staked frames - a convenient way to grow them and be able to move them around for protection from the elements.

That's strawberries growing in the pot in between the tomatoes and climbing beans in the foam box over in the top left corner.



In another foam box I have more climbing beans and to utilise space and to add a 'complementary plant' I've sown radish seeds across the centre area.



More of Helfgott and "Shine"

Shine is a 1996 Australian film based on the life of pianist David Helfgott, who suffered a mental breakdown and spent years in institutions.

It stars Geoffrey Rush, Lynn Redgrave, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Noah Taylor, John Gielgud, Googie Withers, Justin Braine, Sonia Todd, Nicholas Bell, Chris Haywood and Alex Rafalowicz. The screenplay was written by Jan Sardi, and Scott Hicks directed the film. The degree to which the film's plot reflects the true story of Helfgott's life is disputed.



Part Plot: As a teenager, David (played by Noah Taylor) wins the state musical championship and is invited to study in America. Although plans are made to raise money to send David and his family is initially supportive, Peter eventually forbids David to leave, thinking this will destroy the family. Crushed, David continues to study and befriends local novelist and co-founder of the Communist Party of Australia, Katharine Susannah Prichard (Googie Withers). David's talent grows until he is offered a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London, England. David's father again forbids him to go but with the encouragement of Katharine, David leaves and is disowned by his father.

In London, David enters a Concerto competition, choosing to play Rachmaninoff's difficult 3rd Concerto, a piece he had attempted to learn as a young child to make his father proud. As David practises, he increasingly becomes manic in his behaviour. David wins the competition, but suffers a mental breakdown and is admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where he receives electric shock therapy.

Shine won the Academy Award for Best Actor (Geoffrey Rush), and was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Armin Mueller-Stahl), Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Original Dramatic Score, Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen.

It also won a BAFTA and Golden Globe Award for "Best Actor". The AFIs gave it significant recognition as well, with nine nominations total. Interestingly, several different academies recognized multiple actors in the film for a "Best Supporting Actor" award nomination. There was, of course, Stahl's Academy Award nomination (he also won the AFI Award for Best Supporting Actor), but the BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominated John Gielgud and Noah Taylor (adolescent David Helfgott) for Best Supporting Actor, respectively.

The film was not without criticism. Notably Critics claim that Helfgott's pianistic ability is grossly exaggerated. In a journal article, the New Zealand philosopher Denis Dutton speaks for many critics who claim that Helfgott's piano playing during his comeback in the last decade [of the 1990's] has severe technical and aesthetic deficiencies which would be unacceptable in any musician whose reputation had not been inflated beyond recognition. Dutton claims that, while listening to the movie, he covered his eyes during the parts where Helfgott's playing was used in order to concentrate entirely on the music, and not be distracted by the acting. He felt that the musicianship, when perceived in isolation, was not of a particularly high standard. Despite being widely panned by professional piano critics, Helfgott's recent tours have been well attended because, according to Dutton, Shine's irresponsible glamorisation of Helfgott's ability has attracted a new audience who are not deeply involved in the sound of Helfgott's playing, thereby drawing deserved public attention away from pianists who are more talented and disciplined.

To my way of thinking, "Shine" was about David Rush's acting (supported by a first rate, top line cast) and to pan the film on the basis of Helfgott's musical abilities is pedantic, to say the least, and smacks of churlishness. Helfgott DID play Rach 3, in a London competition and won! That achievement is something few others will do, particularly some ex-patriate Los Angeles professor of philosophy at the University of Canterbury sitting in the 'Shakey Isles' of New Zealand!

David Helfgott

Pianist David Helfgott, whose life story

 was the subject of the film Shine,

will perform at the Canberra Theatre

tonight. Photo: ANDREW SHEARGOLD

"... Yesterday afternoon at the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra, Australia's most eccentric pianist, David Helfgott, had just flooded the bathroom. A few hours later it wasn't difficult to see why.

Helfgott, as usual, was full of energy. He makes it his mission to say hello to everyone that crosses his path and it's often impossible to capture his full attention. Luckily, there was a piano in the room.

''What do you want to hear? What do you want to hear?'' he asked.

Helfgott then launched into the final movements of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No3, the famous concerto featured in Shine, the film which made Helfgott famous.

''I love the piano, I love the piano, can't imagine life without it,'' he said.

His wife of 26 years, Gillian Helfgott, then took over the conversation, Helfgott clearly engaged with the piano.

''He's always got to play some Rachmaninov wherever we go,'' she said.

Helfgott will play Rachmaninov Prelude in C# minor Opus 3 No2 and Prelude in G minor Opus 23 No5 at the Canberra Theatre tonight, among other works; one from Mendelssohn, many pieces from one of Helfgott's favourite composers, Liszt, and Chopin. ..."

Courtesy of  The Canberra Times