At the Fair.

Woah - a trip back in time the other day as I stumbled across one of my first artworks.

I did this when I was about (I think) seven years old, on one of those spinning thingies at the fun fair.  I was totally blown away at how easy it was to create a wondrous piece of art.  Of course, it was never that easy again, mostly because my definition of art has changed to require a decent period of time in the making.  But before I get caught up in referencing Dick Frizzell, Denis Dutton or Damiein Hirst, or the fascinating but fraught area of 'what is art?', let's head back to the fun fair.

Pee-making excitement.  Candy floss.  Wooden ducks being shot, toffee apples, clowns,  horses on roundabouts, and, the most scary of all (except the ferris wheel and rollercoaster, which I will never ever go on), the GHOST TRAIN!  Brrr.  I was so scared but not quite enough to not want to go on it -  ie, good scared.

The Ghost train at the Hawkes Bay A and P Show fun fair looked something like this.

But to me, even in daytime, it looked like this:

Absolutely wonderful!  Of course once you get on the little trains and go inside, it's a bit of a let-down, but never mind.  Anticipation is everything, especially if parents prolong it by making you wait four years before you're allowed a go.

Candy floss was the other thing:  When you first get it it's interesting in an academic sort of visual soft-focus way:

But once you've eaten half the wad and have a cerise tongue and a sugar hit as high as the Hawkes Bay sun, you feel more like this:

The other thing indelibly etched on my memory from the fun fair was the Negative Clowns.  There was a row of them, mouths open, slowly shaking their heads from side to side.

This isn't me.  I was in black and white when I was young.

If your three ping-pong balls slid into slots that totaled a high enough amount, you got a Prize. I think I must have been three.  And I still have the prize I won.  Dad held me up and I randomly popped the balls in one after the other, quite quickly.  Suddenly the man said I'd won! and could choose anything from the shelf he was pointing to.  What a thrill!  I chose a dog, because I adored dogs.
It wasn't until some years afterwards that I realised that it held a limp pheasant in its mouth.
It sat on my shelf, diligently dusted every Saturday morning until I left home.  I have it packed away, but it looks like this, only taller.

Through the Panama Canal

When I was 10 my parents took my sister and me to England.  We went by ship and had a wonderful time enjoying the freedom of swimming, playing and eating what we liked for six weeks.  The only rules were that we did our daily study from the Correspondence School, never stood more than one rung up on the rails around the sides of the ship, and were in bed by a certain time. I think my parents asked one of the stewards to check we were there, so it was a nice holiday for them too!

Going to England, we went on the S.S Oronsay via the Suez canal.  I think the route was Auckland - Sydney - Manilla - Hong Kong - Singapore - Bombay (as it was then) - Aden - Port Said - Naples - Palma de Majorca - Tilbury.*
The return voyage on RMV Rangitoto was the other way:  Colon - Panama - Tahiti - Auckland.

Unfortunately I got a bleeding nose due to the heat just as we were about to start through the Panama, and so missed most of it as I was sitting in the doctor's surgery having my snoz packed with bandages.  So for my edification, and for any readers who have also not travelled through the Panama Canal, here it is.

In 75 seconds.





* Correct me in the comments Dad, if I got it wrong.

Reasons my son is crying.

Not my son.  The father's site that I've been visiting here.
I know I shouldn't have laughed so much at photos a father took of a little boy crying but it brought back so many memories ... I bet he's between two and four.

Here are three from the list:

I wouldn't let him drink bath water.

His brother's boots don't fit.

I closed the refrigerator door.

More reasons.

Thanks for the link James.

Being Happy 1

I don't know why, but there's something about looking at detailed natural patterns, tiny stones, shells, minute plants, insects, and other baby bits and pieces that seems to make me smile.  Perhaps it's because so many marvels can fit into a small place that seems to concentrate the preciousness.  

Todays' reflection was inspired by Jay of The Depp Effect.

BioBlitz - All Things

At the Miranda Shorebird Centre on 28th February a whole lot of people got together with nets and buckets and plastic bags and what-not, and, over the course of a day, tried to see how many living species they could find.  This BIOBLITZ has to date resulted in approximately (it keeps going up) 1115 different species being identified.  This includes everything living in the area ~ plant, animal, bird, insect, spider, lichen, fungi, diatom, plankton, bacteria, etc.  If there had not been a severe drought in the area at the time, the total might have been even higher.

Here's ecologist David Riddell with a flock of homeschoolers looking in the stilt ponds.

http://www.number8network.co.nz/news/?p=3951

It's been an amazingly massive undertaking involving thousands of man-hours before, during and after the day itself.

I drew a diagrammatic map of the Taramarie/Miranda area so that species could be located and cross-linked to create an energy web.  Here it is mid-morning.  You can see the coloured bits of paper.  Each is a species identified and located.  Each colour indicated a 'type' of creature.

Key to colours of the Miranda BioBlitz Energy web.

I think Phlegm has summed The BioBlitz up beautifully in his drawing 'All Things That Lived:*

http://phlegmcomicnews.blogspot.co.nz/2013/02/all-things-that-lived.html

The much more modest contribution of the Artist-in-Residence-at-the-BioBlitz consisted of the map, a watercolour of Karo (Pittosporum crassifolium) and some sketches of a katydid that was slowed down enough to paint by a brief, harmless spell in the freezer.
2 species down, only 1113 to go...

*Phlegm wasn't actually at the BioBlitz, but he could have been.

A Duo of Beethoven's Fifths

Sing - or even just say - 'Na na na naaah!' and many would know exactly what Beethoven Symphony you were talking about.

Beethoven is my favourite composer.  I hope you like this version of the Fifth.

And here is another interpretation, only with the addition of two more instruments - two humans.

Dinosaur Copro Lights

I so want one of these awesome lamps!

They are available through James Gurney's website - he's the wonderful artist that wrote the 'Dinotopia' books.


Go HERE to find out more.