Eleventy's Dreaming

Citizen Shane

G’day Possums,

Now that the dust in the burrow has settled on “the trip” and even though much less was shot than last time, I'm well into what seems an interminable “post-process” and able to reflect on what are becoming the salient memories of those six weeks.

Jardin de Plantes, Paris The Inspiration for Saint Sa'ens', "Carnival of the Animals"

The Cathedrals seen in Britain; Wells, Exeter, Southwark and the local churches all had a liveliness probably because they are used extensively and are not dank, damp spaces. Also the fact that the architecture being a century or so later in most cases and “English Perpendicular” has found its soaring, full formal restraint which is so different from the “Flamboyant” of French Gothic.

Wells Cathedral Chapter House Stairs

At Wells Cathedral I was hard pressed not to attempt to channel the spirit of Frederick Evans when confronted with the stairs going up to the Chapter House and had a twinge of regret that I wasn't lugging around a Field Camera with tilt and shift movements. It was only a twinge, as the gear I had bagged weighed in at 7 Kg and most was often left in the car for discretions sake. I had wrist straps for both cameras and they proved very useful in that the camera was always “at hand” and not flailing around your neck or protruding a lens in front like some priapic tourist in Fellini’s “La Dolce Vita.”

Scotney Castle

The gardenswere beautiful: Sissinghurst, Scotney, Trebah and the delightfully warm Lacock Abbey and even the walk to Petworth House but then nearly every French Village is a picture in itself and Versailles (apart from the selfie-hordes) has that expansive dignity and a singular charm in the Petit Trianon.

Versaille

Sissinghurst, Petworth, the Wallace collection, now administered by the State were all from immense private wealth, whereas wandering through the castle at Vitre or the ramparts of Dinan you’re conscious of a formidable awareness of Nation and region and even though The Victoria and Albert in London has a large Artwork Neon sign in its foyer telling the masses “This belongs to You” the Opera Garnier in Paris seems more publicly owned.

Petworth

Perhaps it was because the British renounced their Commonwealth, returning to a forelock tugging monarchical system whereas the French embraced Republican Liberty, Egalite’ and Fraternity that restaurant food and service is generally so much better in France?

Sissinghurst

Jardin des Plantes, Staircase

Wombat Droppings

A chronicle of the demise of Egalitarian Oz and its embrace of Fascism.

Rabid-the-Hun, leader of the ruling rabble, this week refused to deny that when he said, “…we are open for business,…” he meant the business of people smuggling.

It has come to light that in the free enterprise spirit some refugee boats have returned to Indonesia after thousands of dollars have been given by Oz Immigration to the captains of those vessels. This is irritating to those Military and Police in Indonesia who are complicit with this trade, as it will force them to lower the prices for the asylum seekers and pay their captains more. A real win-win for people smugglers.. ahhh, the talent of the ruling rabble.

Coming at the same time as Rabid was floating the idea of sending more troops to the hell-holes from where many of these refugees originate and mounting another four pronged assault on the Human Rights Commissioner Gillian Triggs for suggesting that the Indonesians might stop listening to us on other matters if we continue violating their territory, his Treasurer Joe “Eleventy-Toyota-Killer” Hockey had us all “in the aisles” with his profoundly original observation that we will all need a good job if we wish to buy a house.

Eleventy ignored the fact that there are five people for every job at the moment and that self-employed and contract workers are not welcomed by the banks for home mortgages and that $100,000.00 university debts and a privatised health system and lower wages were not really a recipe for community building.

Pryor Cartoon, The Saturday Paper 13-6-2015

The $390,000.00 a year Free Speech Commissioner and ex Liarbril, ex “Coot-With-Queer-Ideas-From-a-Parallel-Universe” (aka IPA), Timmy “Twat-Freedom-Man” Wilson popped his head up this week, too. At the Sydney Geriatric Institute he apparently opined that the judiciary should not be the ones dealing with human rights as this could be left to his mentor George “Bookshelves” Brandis or even “Dodo” Dutton but only after they’ve finished assaulting his boss, Gillian Triggs. Timmy didn’t see much use for any thing like a Magna Carta either… other than as a tourist attraction for lefty wimps.

It has yet to be ascertained what proportion of his $390,000.00 remuneration this thought- bubble was worth.

Peta "Bloody-Idiot" Credlin

Full of this spirit of Democracy, Rabid-the-Hun’s advisor, Peta ”Bloody-Idiot” Credlin was reported as telling a press photographer to delete the files she had shot of her. Having of late been less visible monstering her ruling rabble colleagues, this was a welcome return to form that we have missed appreciating in person; although if Rabid’s pronouncements on housing prices, wind farms, marriage equality, security and environmental matters are anything to go by, she is still showing equivalent acumen in her advisory role.

“Dodo” Dutton was at his rollicking charming best, too when the bullying Sydney radio noise Ray Hadley played him a song about Green’s Senator Sarah Hansen-Young’s adventures of being spied on by Wilson Security when she visited the refugee concentration camp on Manus Island.  Hadley has to be congratulated in getting a laugh from the dour faced Dodo even if it was, as another of Hansen-Young’s colleagues Larissa Waters said, “Sexist claptrap!”

It is interesting to note that with all the expensive Royal Commissions going on and nothing of import coming from them that in Queensland and Victoria the new governments are uncovering some very interesting messes that were allowed or were fostered by the previous Liarbril regimes in transport, education, sport and law… and I suspect that the vicious attacks on Gillian Triggs or anyone else who contradicts or opposes this ruling rabble will have similar treatment meted out like that of Hansen-Young; after all, look at the way Gillard was treated by these “adults”.

Much as I said there was a stench in Victoria which is now emerging…. this federal rabble are so  “on-the-nose” in so many areas and the corrupt stink is coming from the very top.

Hoo-roo Petals,

Shane.

Versailles, Petit Trianon

Watts Chapel

….once more

Shane travelling

G’day Possums,

It’s time for a change of scene.

With the little Wombats looking after the burrow, Mrs W and I are off to France again.

After some time in Paris we perambulate to Rouen then across Normandy into Brittany following a sort of reverse ‘44 Invasion route. 

From there we waddle onto a boat to visit one of Mrs W’s “rellies” in Cornwall for a few days, wend our way to London and on the way, probably see every English garden ever planted.

The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the “must’s” listed, as is Caen, Camembert and Calvados.

 It will be interesting too, to compare the solid spatial harmonies of the French Romanesque to English Norman







and some of the Parisienne Art Nouveau architecture of Jules Lavirotte


with buildings like






the Watt Chapel in Kent and to visit the village in Kent that allegedly my C17th Wombat ancestors came from.

 ....and one more from the last shoot….

Dancer: Naomi S.

Wombat Droppings..

Or

the demise of Egalitarian Oz and its morphing into Fascism.

On the listing rust-bucket SS Liarbril, Captain Rabid-the-Hun has become 3.5% more popular.

Rarely venturing from the newly fortified bunker of his parliamentary cabin, Rabid’s lack of sightings has seemingly pleased the crew no end. This and the bonus of “Cereal-Toyota-Killer” Eleventy Hockey speaking positively about the worsening economic forecasts has lulled the Aspirational Bogan crew into a comfortably dull miasma with words like "... it's better to make a profit than to make a loss because ultimately you make more money out of a profit than you do out of a loss".... just like an anaesthetic.

Content at no longer having to think, the crew of SS Liarbril drowsily ignore the sounds of the bashing of the President of the Human Rights Commission, Gillian Triggs emanating from the engine room. Captain Rabid, “The-Drone” Morrison (he with blood on his hands), “Bookshelves” Brandis and Neanderthal Senators various, are bullying her over her recommendation that a refugee from Indonesian occupied West Papua who has spent nearly eight years incarcerated after completing his seven (?) year sentence on being convicted for manslaughter, be compensated.

It was felt that because of his involvement in the “Free West Papua” movement he couldn’t be repatriated back to West Papua without fear for his life and Triggs has recommended that compensation at a rate equivalent to $50,000 per year of his incarceration be offered.

Inconveniently coming at the same time as the Moss report which showed that “Bloody” Morrison lied about his allegations that aid workers assisted concentration camp inhabitants on Manus Island in self harm methods and that the sexual abuse of refugee children in the camps is other than he said and rife and also at being so obviously at odds with the prevailing ethics of the ruling rabble, Triggs needs to be shown the error of her thinking.

Bloody Morrison then “turned some stomachs” when seen cavorting with children in the SS Liarbril’s crèche. It is understood that after fumigation and washing the children suffered no real harm but will only have bad dreams for a few weeks.

                                                                                                  Timmy ”Twat-Freedom-Man” Wilson again, is nowhere of importance to be seen but his fellow “Coot-With-Queer-Ideas-From-a-Parallel-Universe” (aka IPA) “Bunter” Berg is, bobbing around regularly obfuscating debates on ABC”s “The Drum.”

Chris "Bunter" Berg, IPA

In his latest Libertarian-lite, poppy-cock, and playing the most current popular game of the Ruling Rabble: “Shoot-the-Messenger,” “Bunter” was opining that the Government’s Statutory Sports Drug watchdog, ASADA should be investigated by a Royal Commission because it couldn't definitively prove that the Essendon FC injected 34 of its players with banned substances and it was all Labor's fault anyway.

Unfortunately for “Bunter” his arguments generally have all the force of a ball of vapid vapour thrown at low speed; you watch it dissipate as it meanders toward you, then you exhale and “Puff”…… gone!

Perhaps a Royal Commission into the football club, its “sports-scientist-drug-supplier”, the coach, management team and the board might be the proper target but the rules on board SS Liarbril are Orwellian/Kafka-esque at present.

Which is a bit like Captain Rabid’s newest thought-bubble (probably courtesy of his bosses at the IPA?) of limiting the chances and opportunity for independent senators being elected.

All in the name of strengthening democracy mind you.

Sort of like the old aphorism so beloved of Senator “Vichy” Abetz, “Freedom through Work!” Or how 800,000 unemployed can disappear in filling 150,000 vacancies.

Hoo-roo Petals,

Shane

Liarbril La-La Land

G'day petals...

It's that time of year again, Ballan Autumn Festival time that is...

 Don't ask.....

 Third year in a row for this little doggie

 Allison on Guitar

 Ms.Catherine King, Member for Ballarat and our next Federal Health Minister ...

 Lou C always dresses down for the Festival...

 Salvatore feeding the masses...,

 Light Horse re-enactors...

and a couple from the most recent ballet shoot 

For the techie-minded, f16 @ 1/2 sec. 200 ISO. Tungsten light....x2 

                                           Wombat Droppings

     or the chronicle of Australia's slide from egalitarianism into fascism

There has been another poll  suggesting that Captain Rabid-the-Hun and the ruling rabble of SS Lirarbril are on a comeback. I say suggests, for it was in "The Ugly American's" propaganda sheet, Da Oz and being much more positive than any of the other polls it might be best to treat it's "results" with caution.

It's hard to imagine how this poll could show improvement when for the past week the economic incompetence and  tawdry nature of Rabid's rabble has again been on full display.

First, with the risible Pyne-the-Whyne, Minister for Education calling himself "the Fixer" as his apology for an education policy is shredded in the senate, then Treasury effectively calling Joe Cereal/Toyota Killer Hockey a liar as to whom was really responsible for the dodgy graphs in his IGR, to Rabid-the-Hun tangling himself up over The Tardis State's East-West link (and perhaps shielding ex-treasurer Collins and Ex Planning minister Guy from jail) and being reminded that a 60% debt to GDP ratio is actually cause for more concern than the "Debt Crisis" of Labor's 16% debt, followed by  "Murderer" Morrison's being shown up as a liar over his allegations of aid workers coaching our concentration camp victims in self harm.When this was announced it transpired that the rabble had been sitting the report at the same time it was  trying to destroy Gillian Triggs and only released it under the cover of ex-Liarbril Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser's death.
Georgie "BookShelves" Brandis has put every decent journalist in the country off-side with his fascist Meta-Data laws which are effectively there to silence whistle-blowers and other critics of the ruling rabble.
That the News Poll had Rabid 's Rabble improving after all this, beggars belief.  One realistic Liarbril opined that it didn't matter what they said any more, no-one is listening; and Nikki Savva, arch Liarbril journo was laughing at them on "Insiders." This program ran a montage skit more akin to Clarke and Dawe's satire or Micaleff's"Mad as Hell" than a straight political discussion show.
The Liarbril  "narrative" or script if written for a film production character would be rejected as impossible... unbelievable.  Perhaps not for a "Python" or "Goon Show sketch or even Milligan's Q8 but that it is real and is happening now is incredible.

Hoo-roo Possums,
Shane

Being hung out to dry

being hung out to dry

G’Day  Possums,

Mrs Wombat and daughters 1 and 2 went to a concert t’other night at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl. The Bowl is a nice open air venue where we and many hundreds of others picnicked and thoroughly enjoyed Smetena’s Overture “The Bartered Bride”, Dvorak’s Symphony No.8 and Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D all encored with The Polonaise from Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin” beautifully played by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.

 

It’s been quite a while since I’d been to a live performance and much, much longer since I’d been to one at the Music Bowl and had forgotten the density of the sound produced and its wonderful clarity in this humid Summer’s night setting.

On the way back to the burrow there were fireworks going off over the city. It was either Chinese New Year, a Chinese invasion, the start of the revolution…or perhaps, all three.

And just one more Ballet Pic from Ballet Theatre Australia… their Group shot.

BTA Group

Wombat Droppings

Or the Sad Chronicle of Oz’s slide from Egalitarianism into Fascism.

Rabid-the-Hun, Australia’s Prime Miniature received, unusually, some good news for once. His propaganda pamphlet in Sydney run by “The Ugly American”, Murdoch, informed the Captain that although SS Liarbril was still sinking, it wasn’t going down as fast.

In material that read more like “Push-Polling” than a real survey and which made some odd assertions from the figures given; this news has cheered the Captain who recently had been strongly advised to abandon ship.

It remains to be seen whether “the-storm-in-a-teacup” over his Party’s federal treasurer threatening to jump ship over concerns about fundraising and the malignant cabal of Rabid’s Chief of Staff, “Bloody-Idiot” Credlin and her hubby, federal director,  “Brain” Loughnane will cause the becalmed vessel to ship more water.

Hmmm... sailing too far to the right, to right? 

Larger waves have appeared though.

News that Captain Rabid was wanting to unilaterally invade not only Iraq but Ukraine, too have been followed by the botched character assassination attempt on Gillian Triggs, 

Human Rights Commissioner by “Bookshelves” Brandis our Blimp of Attorney General. The complete bastardry of this ruling rabble has been on displayfor 8 hours with their disgusting behaviour toward Triggs. Their total lack of humanity, their total lack of morality and the baseness of their characters is now fully exposed. They have elevated the putridness of their treatment of Gillard to a different plane in this star chamber which looks more like a Stalinist Show trial than an enquiry. These Liarbril are the scum of the earth and are not fit to hold the positions they do.  Then there are revelations that job agencies are rorting taxpayers money; something which the ruling rabble knew but chose to do nothing about.  Another example of the nation being sold down the drain... but let's not forget how Mrs Rudd made her Millions.

And that “Horse-shite” Cormann ignored advice that the National Australia Bank was as incompetent and as bad as Commonwealth Bank in its mis-handling of superannuants funds and did what Liarbrils do best…nothing 

These waves just might be enough to swamp such a dodgy vessel and send it to the bottom particularly if the AFP investigation into Triggs' attempted forced resignation is found to be a criminal "inducement" of a statutory officer.

Attempting to inspire his tattered forces with a call to the Flag of National Security, Rabid-the-Hun, in a mini Nuremburg Rally setting, insulted all the Muslims in Australia to keep the Bogans happy.

picture courtesy Peter Grace.

In an abundance of sometimes rhyming rhetoric containing little substance, Rabid said we’d been too nice for too long and that dual citizens must split their personalities and become “one-of-us”.

Sadly he missed the opportunity to settle the rumours concerning his own dual citizenship.

This occurred just after he’s insulted the Swedes’ capacity to build submarines.

STOP PRESS: Chinese announce collapse of Aussie Flag production due to peak demand by Rabid-the-Hun. Looms caught fire and cheap nylon melted as overload on computerised spinning machines halted production. Chinese Government has announced a reverse 457 deal where 800,000 unemployed Australians will be granted visa's to finish production quota before 2016 election.

Pay rates & conditions will be assured at normal Chinese ones.

Those not accepting this generous offer will be re-educated on Manus Island once the asylum seeker "Illegals" have been sold to Cambodia.

And if Rabid’s Rabble think it’s safe to go back in the water, there’s always the details of the Pacific trade deals, their attempted dismembering of Medibank and the possible tsunami of response to $100,000.00 uni fees…there’s some rough weather ahead.

Hoo-roo Petals,

Shane.