Queensland

Flow freely

/ Robert / 4 Comments
subtropic autumn

This week’s watercolour and ink painting is inspired by the autumnal colours of nature in the garden.

The following poem recounts the words that flooded my mind this morning as I made coffee; before starting to paint.

Flow freely

Refreshingly delicious fragrance

of freshly cut green blades springing back

after an autumnal shower

flow freely upon the softly caressing eastern breeze

wafting from bay to shore

drenched with less intense intermittent rays

between fast floating fluffy whites

illuminating tropical greens pinks purples reds oranges

and curling fronds swish as they wave

turning towards swaying saplings

with tantalising glimpses of ancient gargantuan branches

frantically rustling in their dance further inland

Sun sea sand

/ Robert / 7 Comments

I was unsurprised this morning when we awoke to a gloomy sky soon to be followed by rain. The forecasters advise this is a wet patch in the otherwise dryish El Nino weather pattern. As South East Queensland is subtropical, we catch a bit of Far North Queensland’s wet season around February anyway.

Faced with continued inclement weather, I decided to paint an abstract watercolour picture to brighten our day. Overall I’m pleased with the intensity of colours and the way the washes ran into each other.

The photograph is more blue than the turquoise of the actual picture even after adjusting the colour balance.

Crepe myrtle

/ Robert / 4 Comments


I am pretty certain I read about crepe myrtle in Anne Rice novels, set in New Orleans, Louisiana. The first time I saw crepe myrtle trees in red, pink, purple, lilac, and white was when we moved from New South Wales to Queensland in 2018. Since then I have been fascinated by the council planted trees along the streets of Morningside.

I was heartened to see our next door neighbour has a hot pink one in the corner of their garden. It proudly displays its dark green deciduous foliage and cerise blooms above the dividing slatted timber fence.

With my watercolour painting, I am attempting to find my groove. I appear to be in an ovoid phase. Given I am at the start of a journey, an egg shape is perhaps apt.

The picture at the top of the post has seven elements signifying research analysis and deeper understanding. I cannot see the point for myself to paint reality as I can take a photograph. I wanted to paint a representation of next door’s myrtle tree. Working on the basis of the approximate proportional amounts of each of the colours, I light touch painted three ovals in pink, three tear drops in dark green and a surrounding oval merging the three colours.

The next step is to try a painting including the pale blue of the sky.

Cool Yule

/ Robert / 12 Comments
Quinkan* and tree

That’s it work is all done
Neither you nor I did freak
Soon will be Christmas Day hon’
Seems like the longest week

Shots side effects fasting
No need to count to ten
Rain BOM forecasting
Okay stay inside then

Commutes done ‘til new year
Blah impending rail works
Stay home plenty of cheer
Share love and food what perks

Relish every second
Supplies enough to last
Of a cool Yule air conned
‘Twill be over too fast

To dear readers I call
Wishes of joy to all

*Quinkan, First Nations Peoples spirit figure

Wiped out

/ Robert / 10 Comments
Cheery colours to lighten the mood

We had the latest COVID-19 booster on Monday. Alas my body continues to battle against the vaccine. After a restless night’s sleep of hot and hold and ruminating about getting something perfect, Tuesday’s aches and pains bring on listless pathos.

Knowing the side effects will subside, we opt for feeling wiped out in the air conditioned living room. It is just as well I made chicken bolognaise for dinner last night as today, I barely have energy to munch a finger of KitKat.

We usually have the shot on a Friday so that it does not impact the working week. No such luck on this occasion, I’m in no fit state for an hour each way commute for the weekly ‘contact day’.

I wonder if the overlords have made a decision about being able to work from home for the first two weeks in January. The new cross river rail service needs to be connected to the line I use. Adding an extra thirty minutes each way as the train terminates at Northgate then a bus service fills in the gap. I guess I will find out tomorrow.

Vive la révolution

/ Robert / 7 Comments
View through the bedroom shutters, Noosa River Retreat

Last Saturday evening we enjoyed a pleasant pre-dinner hour watching a cute dark haired, tattooed young bar person making cocktails. They appeared to be shy; glancing and rapidly snatching their deep blue eyes away from our vampiric gazes.

While seated at the bar, a waitperson wafted past asking if someone was wearing Égoïste. I threw myself on my sword, proclaiming, ‘tis I’.

They asked, ‘do you know what it means?’ ‘No’, I responded. ‘Selfish’ they said with a French accent. I looked into those dark harried les misérable eyes, unsure whether to take offence or not. My tendency to catastrophise had me questioning if I was being labelled a self centred person by association with a perfume.

‘It’s Chanel’, I mumbled. Then becoming defensive, I shared, it was the only fragrance I had managed to find that my skin did not cause to disappear or turn into something foul smelling.

Égoïste Platinum is the only eau de toilette I have worn since 1993. Considering it an extravagance, I seldom put it on and only to go out. A bottle lasts around ten years. As we were on a celebratory vacation marking thirty years together, I had atomised precisely three squirts from collarbone to collarbone.

Eh bien, vive la révolution!

Garden closeups

/ Robert / 2 Comments
Back garden

Encouraged by our trip to Noosaville last month, we are now actively watering the poor man’s cruciform orchids (epidendrum) in the front and back gardens.

Front garden

The blooming bottle brush tree next to our covered patio plays host to rainbow lorikeets.

Wispy old man’s beard hanging from the same bottlebrush tree.

Coddled and cosseted

/ Robert / 8 Comments
Epidendrums, cruciform orchids, poolside

On Saturday, we drove about one and a half hours north from home to arrive at our holiday destination, Noosa River Retreat. This was our self catering, home away from home for the next five days. We previously checked out the accommodation in June.

Planting in a nearby Noosaville street

Noosa River Retreat is conveniently located less than 15 minutes walking distance from shops, cafés, restaurants, bars, and the Noosa river.

View from no.7’s balcony

We were joined by family and friends for a festival of my 60th birthday. The line up of dining experiences include, Bandita Mexican restaurant and bar, Frenchies brasserie, Seasons restaurant and bar, Mr Jones and Me restaurant, and Whiskey Boy bar and grill.

View from no.13’s balcony

Being the centre of attention of a group of fifteen has been an exhilarating experience. I count myself fortunate to be surrounded by so much love and feel thoroughly coddled and cosseted.

60 today

Cloud self portrait sketch

/ Robert / 9 Comments

It is less than a month until family members arrive from the UK for a five weeks holiday. I’m taking a month off from work to coincide with our relatives’ arrival. Both were postponed due to COVID.

My husband has repainted most of the interior of the house and is busy reinventing the covered patio. Fingers crossed, the insulated ceiling panels will have been installed to help shield us from the heat of the Queensland sun in Spring, Summer, and Autumn. Spring officially sprang in Australia on 1 September.

Winter is tax time. Usually a time of extreme procrastination, we knocked off one lot last weekend, it’s now with the accountant. Just the personal returns to complete next weekend.

My enthusiasm for things, like the phases of the moon waxes and wanes. The poet authoring part of my brain has already downed tools. It may make a grab for them again soon, one never knows. With this in mind, I’m taking a break from podcasting and creating audio files.

I aim to continue weekly blogging with the odd picture thrown in for good measure. This week’s is a cloud self portrait sketch.

Enjoying the elements

/ Robert / 4 Comments
Winter lunchtime, Deception Bay

The pandemic resulted in an increase in the uptake of technology enabling working from home.

While some organisations are dragging employers back to corporate headquarters, my employer allows an average of two and a half days’ working from home per week.

Most days at lunchtime, we go outside to enjoy the fire generated sunshine, earth and the air. Occasionally, we add water to the experience.