OFFICIALLY WINTER...

“In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy.” - William Blake

The first day of winter Downunder started frostily this morning with a brisk 3˚C, as I was reaching the train station to catch the 6:31 a.m. train into the City. As I was climbing the stairs of the overpass to cross the tracks, I could see the crystals of ice on the steps, shining like strewn diamond dust under the spotlights. The sky was clear of clouds and the stars shone brightly, with the bright sparks of Jupiter and Venus coruscating in the eastern sky. As the sun came up the day turned out to be cool, but beautiful and sunny. Crisp air and bright sunshine lasted the whole day long, warming the air to about 17˚C and feeling very pleasant as one walked out and about.

Here is a poem I wrote a few years ago inspired by the season, but the difference is that I have now evicted the winter from within me and enjoy a warm summer inside of me while the cold winds may howl outside:

Winter Walks

Winter sun for silver sunshine
And a cold, hard, stony-blue sky.
Denuded trees that clutch at sunbeams
With a myriad twigs weaving like spinnerets
Intricate lace of light and shade
On soft, sweet-smelling carpet
Of fallen leaves.

Winter snow for roaring blazes
And steamed up window panes.
Rain that falls in glum, melancholy gardens,
The drizzle like a fine gauze,
Imprisoning butterfly-leaves of bright evergreens.
Silence and advancing dusk
Suffocate a soul’s scream.

Winter winds for soft rich furs
And the smug caress of many layered warmth.
Icy breaths that chill the heart
Cutting like razors made of sharp icicles.
Deep iceberg green and rainy blue mingle
Keeping me company with the whistling of the wind
In winter’s frozen solitude.

SAY HELLO!

“There is no friend like an old friend who has shared our morning days, no greeting like his welcome, no homage like his praise.” - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

If you are visiting this page for the first time, welcome!

If you are returning, welcome back!

Take some time to leave a comment and say “Hello”, in your own language if you like!

It seems that there is a lot of traffic on this page, but people rarely say anything.

Don't be shy, say hello!

WORLD NO TOBACCO DAY 2011

 “A custom loathsome to the eye, hateful to the nose, harmful to the brain, dangerous to the lungs, and in the black, stinking fume thereof nearest resembling the horrible Stygian smoke of the pit that is bottomless.” - James I of England

Today is World No Tobacco Day, which is celebrated around the world on the last day of May every year. In 1987, the World Health Assembly of the WHO passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for April 7, 1988 to be “a world no-smoking day”. This date was chosen as it was the 40th anniversary of the WHO. The aim of the day was to urge tobacco users worldwide to stop using tobacco products for 24 hours, an action they hoped would help those trying to quit. In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed by the World Health Assembly, calling for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, every year on May 31. Since then, the WHO has supported World No Tobacco Day every year, linking each year to a different tobacco-related theme.

This year, the WHO celebrates the successes of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) in the fight against the epidemic of tobacco use. At the same time, WHO recognises that challenges remain for the public health treaty to reach its full potential as the world’s most powerful tobacco control tool. Since the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control was adopted by the World Health Assembly in 2003, 172 countries and the European Union have become Parties to the WHO FCTC. Among other measures, the Parties are obliged over time to:
•    Protect people from exposure to tobacco smoke
•    Ban tobacco advertising and sales to minors
•    Put large health warnings on packages of tobacco
•    Ban or limit additives to tobacco products
•    Increase tobacco taxes
•    Create a national co-ordinating mechanism for tobacco control.

These initiatives may seem extreme, especially in developing countries that are facing what most people think are much more serious heath problems. However, it is useful to keep in mind some basic statistics regarding tobacco use. Tobacco kills nearly 6 million people each year, of whom:
•    More than 5 million are users and ex-users
•    More than 600 000 are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke
•    After high blood pressure, tobacco use is the biggest contributor to the epidemic of non-communicable diseases (such as heart attack, stroke, cancer and emphysema), which accounts for 63% of deaths
•    Smokers are more susceptible to certain communicable diseases, such as tuberculosis and pneumonia

No consumer product kills as many people and as needlessly as does tobacco. It killed 100 million people in the 20th century. Unless we act, it could kill up to 1 billion people in the 21st century. All of these deaths will have been entirely preventable. It is also sobering to realise that as most Western nations are beginning to drastically reduce their tobacco consumption, developing countries are the largest users of tobacco products, with use increasing rather than decreasing in many of these. In India, about 20% of the population (about 241 million people) use tobacco products and usage is increasing.

The WHO says the following countries have the highest use of tobacco:

And just in case you were wondering, Ethiopia has the lowest reported rate, with only 52 cigarettes/adult/year being reported.

There are more than 4000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, of which at least 250 are known to be harmful and more than 50 are known to cause cancer. Tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world, after cardiovascular disease, and is directly responsible for about one in ten adult deaths worldwide, equating to about 6 million deaths each year. Cigarettes kill half of all lifetime users. Half die in middle age - between 35 and 69 years old. No other consumer product is as dangerous, or kills as many people. Tobacco kills more than AIDS, legal drugs, illegal drugs, road accidents, murder, and suicide combined…

It’s time we quit!

MOVIE MONDAY - VANITY FAIR

Society bristles with enigmas which look hard to solve. It is a perfect maze of intrigue.” - Honoré De Balzac

At the weekend we watched Mira Nair’s 2004 film, “Vanity Fair” starring Reese Witherspoon, James Purefoy, Romola Garai, Bob Hoskins, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Gabriel Byrne and Tony Maudsley. The film is from the classic novel of the same name by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863), the famous English 19th century novelist. “Vanity Fair” is Thackeray’s satirical masterpiece of contemporary English society and manners. In it he creates the unforgettable portrait of the roguish upstart Becky Sharp, who although is quite amoral, one cannot but defer to in terms of her being a survivor by virtue of her wits. Another famous novel of his transferred to a now classic film is “Barry Lyndon” directed by Stanley Kubrick in 1975.

The director Mira Nair one may remember from her 2001 film “Monsoon Wedding”, which was quite popular and very enjoyable. She also has other films to her credit, including the wonderful “The Namesake” of 2006, and the confronting debut film “Salaam Bombay!” of 1988. She is an accomplished Film Director/Writer/Producer who was born in India in 1957 and educated at Delhi University and then at Harvard. She began her film career as an actor and then turned to directing and writing. Her films if not about India and Indians are often full of references to her homeland, evident even in “Vanity Fair”.

Nair’s “Vanity Fair” is very English and very 19th century, however, India was very English at that time as well. Thackeray was actually born in Calcutta to parents associated with the British East India Company. When his father died, young William was sent back to England at the tender age of 5 years to be confined in a boarding school. His childhood memories of India surface in his books, “Vanity Fair” not being an exception. The novel “Vanity Fair”, first appeared in serialised instalments beginning in January 1847. Even before Vanity Fair completed its serial run, Thackeray had become a celebrity, sought after by the very lords and ladies he satirized, who hailed him as the equal of Charles Dickens.

The plot concerns itself with the life and times of Becky Sharp, the poor daughter of a French “opera singer” and a starving English artist. Her mother’s abandonment and her father’s death leave the young girl at the mercy of the principal of a home for orphaned girls. She manages to work her way into a governess’s position in the home of a shabby aristocrat. As new opportunities arise, she hastily abandons her post to become the companion to a wealthy relative, Miss Crawley. Much to Miss Crawley’s displeasure, Becky wastes no time to climb the social ladder by secretly marrying Miss Crawley’s nephew. He is sent off to war and on his return, their marriage is rocky due to his gambling debts, her living beyond their means, and her never-ending quest to raise their status. When Becky meets a nobleman who collects her late father’s paintings, she uses his money and his influence to continue her rise in the social hierarchy, causing more stress in her marriage.

Thackeray’s novel is a panoramic cavalcade rich in detail, full of remarkable characters and many plot twists and turns, as well as numerous sub-plots. Nair has tried to cover the expansive novel, but by necessity must distil the essence and leaves the characters somewhat undeveloped. Becky is portrayed by Nair rather sympathetically as a victim of the social system who by her razor-sharp wit and keen mind is merely taking advantage of opportunities that present themselves to her while allowing circumstances and events to benefit her grand plans. This contradicts with Thackeray’s Becky, who is less likeable: She is a vicious, manipulative and cunning woman, who turns events into anything that will benefit her rise up the social ladder. Nair has changed the essential features of the character and has robbed the plot of its cutting satire.

The film more than makes up for this in the richness of its visual splendour, authentic period detail. Declan Quinn’s beautiful cinematography is a feast for the eyes and the Indian touches are quite sumptuous (although Becky’s Indian dance is a bit questionable). There is quite good acting (even with Witherspoon doing an English accent, which fails every now and then, but we forgive her that!). Bob Hoskins has such a whole lot of fun in his role as the scungy nobleman, as does Eileen Atkins as Miss Crawley. James Purefoy and Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the male leads do a good enough job and Romola Garai as the gentle Amelia is contrast enough to Becky.

The film is not a true distillation of Thackeray’s novel. Its spirit and biting satire have been lost, Becky Sharp has become laundered into a victim of circumstance rather than the heartless and calculating vixen Thackeray describes her as. For someone who has not read the novel, Nair’s film would be quite satisfying and enjoyable, perhaps. However, if you have read Thackeray’s “Vanity Fair” this film disappoints.

There have been numerous other translations of this novel to the screen, notable being Rouben Mamoulian’s 1935
“Becky Sharp”, which also has the distinction of being the first, full-length Technicolour film with Miriam Hopkins in the title role. One of the better adaptations is the BBC mini-series from 1987, which at eight hours can afford to be more faithful to the original.

Nair’s “Vanity Fair” is worth seeing, but do judge it on its own merits and divorce yourself from Thackeray’s novel. It is a modernisation, an adaptation, a derivative artwork. Just as we admire both the original “Mona Lisa” and Marcel’s Duchamp’s irreverent L.H.O.O.Q. so we should enjoy reading both the novel and Nair’s interpretation of it. Let’s just call Nair’s “Vanity Fair” by the name: “Becky Sharp with a Moustache”…

THE ART OF STILL LIFE

“Man will begin to recover the moment he takes art as seriously as physics, chemistry or money.” - Ernst Levy

A still life is a work of art that typically shows inanimate subject matter, either natural (flowers, plants, rocks, food, shells, etc) or manufactured (books, vases, drinking glasses, jewellery, coins, pipes, etc). The origins of this type of art is to be found in Ancient Greece with many extant examples, but also numerous descriptions of (now lost) art works in literature. In the Middle Ages, a rich trove of still life painting can be found in illuminated manuscripts, while with the advent of the popularity of the panel painting, Flemish, Dutch and German exemplars were soon imitated across Europe.

Still life paintings give the artist freedom of expression, as well as allowing much leeway in selection of subject matter, colours, composition and technique than do most other genres of painting (e.g. portraits). Still life paintings before 1700 often contained religious and allegorical symbolism relating to the objects depicted. For example, a common example of still life with an obvious meaning is the “Vanitas” type, where the mortality of human beings is highlighted by the depiction of ephemeral beauty (e.g. a flower), an example of death (e.g. a skull) and a reference to the passage of time (e.g. an hourglass).

Other types of thematic still life paintings especially popular in the baroque period were flowerpieces, usually of very ornate vases filled with a profusion of flowers of every kind; the four seasons, with reference to objects typical of each one; the four continents, the four elements and so on. Other types of still life painting chose as their theme various occupations (butcher, fishmonger, cook, man of letters, etc) and the objects depicted were appropriate to the métier illustrated.

Another common example of allegorical still life was the depiction of the five senses: Sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste. This allowed the artist free rein to pick subjects that illustrated the five senses, but there was also a formulaic association of certain objects with the senses. Musical instruments were always a good choice for the sense of hearing, flowers for the sense of smell, items of food for taste, rich cloth like velvet for touch and a mirror for the sense of sight. The contemplation of such paintings could be the source of much reflection and philosophising, especially if one considered the deterioration of the acuity of the senses with advancing age. Similarly, the artist could introduce much contrast in the objects depicted, giving a didactic indication of “good versus evil” where the senses are concerned.

Illustrated here is a typical such still life depicting the five senses. It is by Frenchman Jacques Linard, who had many such thematic works in his oeuvre. Still life paintings have always been popular as they are highly decorative and appeal to a wide variety of tastes. Artists could make a decent living from still life paintings if the public found their work appealing.

Jacques Linard (1597-1645) was baptised on the 6th of September, 1597. The first record of being an artist was in the 1620’s. He was in Paris by 1626, and his first securely attributed still-life work is dated the following year. He was married in 1626 to the daughter of a Parisian Master Painter. He lived in the Saint-Germain-des-Prés district, where a number of French still-life painters such as Louise Moillon and Lubin Baugin worked alongside Flemish artists specialising in this genre.

In 1631 he was created Peintre et Valet de Chambre du Roi, a post that guaranteed him a degree of financial independence. Linard’s works of 1627-44 were mainly of fruit and flowers; with Louise Moillon, however, he was among the first French artists to combine successfully the female form with still-life elements. A painting such as Basket of Flowers (Paris, Louvre) owes something to Flemish prototypes in the anachronistic grouping of flowers that span several months. Patiently recording the flowers as they bloomed, and working on the picture from a series of drawings and sketches, Linard demonstrated his commitment to working from nature. However, this work also has a distinctively French elegance and economy of composition.

In the painting above, “The Five Senses”, Linard follows the well-established successful formula of this type of still life painting, with numerous references not only to the senses, but also with acknowledgement of the moralisation common in other types of still life like the “Vanitas”. There is a sumptuous blue velvet purse illustrating touch, but next to it are cards and silver coins. The moral there is: “Beware! Lovely to hold, but easy to lose if you succumb to the evil of gambling…” A landscape painting within this painting and a mirror refer to sight, as does the vase of multi-coloured blooms. The flowers of course refer to the sense of smell, as does the fruit, which pays homage to both smell and taste. The open music manuscript book is a reference to the sense of hearing. The contents of the two boxes are perhaps to add fuel to our sense of curiosity, but maybe not!

TELEMANN ON A SATURDAY

“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music” - Sergei Rachmaninov

A very restful day today, with a relatively late awakening and breakfast at 7:30 a.m. Then some household chores and shopping, culminating with a visit to the library. I love visiting the public library and spending some time there looking at the new arrivals, new CDs and DVDs. We always manage to borrow something despite the huge number of books, CDs and DVDs at home…

Today, it was a CD of Telemann’s music that attracted my attention. Georg Philipp Telemann (born March 14, 1681, Magdeburg, Brandenburg; died June 25, 1767, Hamburg), was a German composer of the late Baroque period, who wrote both sacred and secular music but was most admired for his church compositions, which ranged from small cantatas to large-scale works for soloists, chorus, and orchestra.

Telemann was the son of a Protestant minister and was given a good general education but never actually received music lessons. Though he showed great musical gifts at an early age, he was discouraged by his family from becoming a professional musician, which at that time was neither an attractive nor a highly remunerative occupation. He taught himself music, however, and he acquired great facility in composing and in playing such diverse musical instruments as the violin, recorder, oboe, viola da gamba, chalumeau, and clavier. In 1701 he enrolled at the University of Leipzig as a law student, but his musical activities won over his undivided attention and were to engross him for the rest of his life.

For his 18th-century contemporaries, Georg Philipp Telemann was the greatest living composer. The dreaded critic Johann Mattheson wrote of him: “Corelli and Lully may be justly honoured but Telemann is above all praise.” Through his public concerts Telemann introduced to the general public music previously reserved for the court, the aristocracy, or a limited number of burghers. His enormous output of publications provided instrumental and vocal material for Protestant churches throughout Germany, for orchestras, and for a great variety of amateur and professional musicians.

Telemann’s multiple musical activities and the prodigious number of his compositions are remarkable. In his lifetime he was most admired for his church compositions. These vary from small cantatas, suitable for domestic use or for use in churches with limited means, to large-scale works for soloists, chorus, and orchestra. His secular music also has a wide range, from simple strophic songs to the dramatic cantata “Ino”, written at the age of 84. Many of his operas were successful, particularly “Pimpinone”. His orchestral works consist of suites (called ouvertures), and concerti. His chamber works are remarkable for their quantity, the great variety of instrumental combinations, and the expert writing for each instrument.

Here is his Concerto in A minor, TWV 21:25, played by Collegium Musicum 90 with Simon Standage.

YOU EAT WHAT YOU VOTE...

“If you’re not a liberal at twenty you have no heart, if you’re not a conservative at forty you have no brain.” - Winston Churchill

Tell me what you eat and I’ll tell you how you vote! The results of a survey by www.hunch.com (a site that makes recommendations based on preferences, ranging from which car you should drive to which holiday destination or college choice is best for you) indicates that your political views say a lot about the food choices you make. For example, people who lean to the political left prefer thin-crust pizza, fancy shaped pastas, such as fusilli, and a glass of wine with dinner, while right wing conservatives enjoy deep-dish pizza, McDonald’s French fries and a can of coke with their meal.

Hunch used 80 million answers to questions that it asked its 700,000 members, in order to predict particular demographics, personality and other characteristics based on their food choices. They then compared all that against the political views the survey takers associated themselves with. Overall, 43% of participants said they tended to support liberal (leftist) politicians, 17% indicated they supported conservative (rightist) politicians, and 23% said they were middle of the road. It should be noted, however, that the web-based survey is not as scientific as truly objective polls because, among other factors, it was not based on a representative sample of the population.

Nevertheless, one is fascinated by some of the results, some of which are summarised here:

•    Liberals are 28% more likely than conservatives to eat fresh fruit daily, and 17% more likely to eat toast or a bagel in the morning, while conservatives are 20% more likely to skip breakfast.
•    10% of liberals surveyed indicated they are vegetarians, compared with 3% of conservatives.
•    Liberals are 28% more likely than conservatives to enjoy beer, with 60% of liberals indicating they like beer.
•    The majority of both liberals and conservatives agreed there’s a significant difference between organic and processed food.
•    Liberals are more likely to like seafood, but dislike fast food.
•    Conservatives like meatloaf, beans, mashed potatoes, gravy and a can of soft drink, indicating they often eat fast food.
•    Left wingers are likely to describe a bacon cheeseburger as “disgusting”, while right wingers describe it as “delicious”.
•    Liberals are more likely to eat ethnic foods, often cooking up a lamb coconut curry with rice as a typical home-cooked meal. Conservatives on the other hand describe ordinary Chinese take-away food as “exotic ethnic food”.
•    Everybody loves lasagne!

Although there’s a correlation between views and food choices, the study doesn’t say that one influences the other, as demographics could also play a role. This isn’t the first study to show behavioural and other differences between conservatives and liberals. For instance, a study published in 2008 in the journal “Political Psychology” revealed a person’s office or bedroom holds tell-tale signs of whether that person is a conservative or a liberal. For instance, while political conservatives tend to keep a tidy, organised office, political liberals favour colourful, more stylish but cluttered spaces.

Also, if you look at a person, check out their gaze. Liberals are more likely than conservatives to follow other people’s eye movements, according to research published in the journal “Attention, Perception & Psychophysics”. Such political ideology seems to run deep, with another study published in the April 7, 2011 issue of the journal “Current Biology”, finding participants who indicated a liberal ideology tended to have a larger anterior cingulated cortex, a brain region linked to monitoring uncertainty, while conservatives showed a larger amygdala, an area linked with greater sensitivity to fear and disgust.

It seems amazing that not only our political views seem to hard-wired into our brains, but they also influence our behaviour, lifestyle and choices, such as the food we eat. One would now think twice about organising a large dinner party with guests across a wide range of the political spectrum. It would be tough to negotiate a menu that pleases all and is politically “neutral”!

SORRY DAY

“The ability of a person to atone has always been the most remarkable of human features.” - Leon Uris

Today is National Sorry Day, which is an Australia-wide anniversary held on May 26th every year since 1998. The day gives people the opportunity to come together and share the steps towards healing for the Stolen Generations of indigenous children, their families and communities. Stolen Generations refer to Indigenous Australians who were forcibly removed from their families and communities in order to assimilate them into white society.

The first National Sorry Day was held on May 26, 1998, which was one year after the tabling of a report about the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their blood families and communities. The report, known as “Bringing Them Home”, at last acknowledged that Indigenous children were forcibly separated from their families and communities since the early days of European occupation in Australia. Governments and missionaries were responsible for this forced separation, which created miserable conditions and psychological problems for whole generations.

Various “assimilation” and “protection” policies were implemented by the late 19th century. However, the most systematic and widespread forcible removal of Indigenous children from their families occurred during the 1950s and 1960s in the name of assimilation. These children are now known as the “Stolen Generations”. They were brought up in institutions or fostered to non-Indigenous families. This removal was official government policy in Australia until 1969.

In the 1980s welfare and community groups spoke out against such government and social welfare practices that were clearly discriminatory against Indigenous people. This forced a reappraisal of removal and placement practice during the 1980s. In 1980 the family tracing and reunion agency Link-Up (NSW) Aboriginal Corporation was established. Similar services now exist throughout Australia.

Kevin Rudd, Australia’s Prime Minister at the time, tabled a motion in Parliament on February 13, 2008, apologising to Australia’s Indigenous people, particularly the Stolen Generations and their families and communities, for the laws and policies that inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss. This formal parliamentary apology included a proposal for a policy commission to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in matters such as life expectancy, educational achievement, and economic opportunity. This event was regarded by many as a step forward in reconciliation.

On Sorry Day, one is more likely to see the Aboriginal flag and the Torres Strait Islander flags flying. The Aboriginal flag is horizontally divided into two equal halves of black and red with a yellow circle in the centre. The black symbolises Australia’s Aboriginal people and the yellow circle represents the sun. The red represents the earth and people’s relationship with the land. It also represents ochre, which is used in Aboriginal ceremonies in Australia. Harold Joseph Thomas designed the flag, which was first flown at Victoria Square in Adelaide on July 12, 1971.

The Torres Strait Islander flag stands for Torres Strait Islanders’ unity and identity. It features three horizontal stripes, with green at the top and bottom of the flag and blue in between, divided by thin black lines. A white dharri (a type of headdress) sits in the centre, with a five-point star underneath it. The color green represents the land. The dharri symbolises all Torres Strait Islanders. The black represents the people and the blue represents the sea. The five-point star symbolizes the island groups. The star is white, which symbolises peace in this case. Bernard Namok designed the flag.

The Stolen Generations represent one of the most reprehensible and callous policies that have ever been realized in Australia’s history. Formally apologising for this and trying to redeem for the mistakes of the past is the least that we as Australians can do to try and redress some of the wrongs that were committed. Sorry Day is a symbol of the reconciling nature and the all-inclusiveness of our present-day Australian society.

AS AUTUMN TURNS TO WINTER

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” - Anne Bradstreet

The day was gray and moist, cool and wintry today. The last few days of May will yield to June the sceptre of the changing seasons, and Winter will officially arrive dressed in his furs and woollens. I walked a little in the park this afternoon and before I returned home, it started drizzling. The sky was dark and the trees bare, the leaves on the ground a thick, crackly carpet. My nose was cold and I hurried to get home. The lights were on, the sight a welcoming one. The heater would be already be on and soon a hot dinner on the table! How lucky I am!

As Autumn Turns to Winter

Swirling brightly, falling, twisting,
The leaves dance gracefully
As the wind blows and the twigs shiver.

Chirping mournfully, fluffing feathers,
The birds cluster on the fence posts
As the raindrops start to fall.

Clouds rolling, massing gray and moist;
No trace of blue, the sun has disappeared,
As dun, woollen blankets hide the sky.

Moving gently, lonely playground swing creaks
In the deserted parklands of ashen afternoon,
As I brave the cold and rain, walking alone.

Mushrooms sprouting, pumpkins ripening;
Flowers fade, summer a distant memory
As garden settles into a dying pose.

The lights shining through welcoming window,
The house warm and a hot dinner smelling savoury,
As autumn turns to winter.

ON DISASTERS AND BELIEF

“I beg you take courage; the brave soul can mend even disaster.” - Catherine II

The USA has been having a hard time lately, what with the economic woes, the unemployment, the falling dollar, the rising fuel prices, foreclosures, business failures, increased homelessness, rising crime rate and most importantly the natural disasters that are taking their toll, it is not the best of times. The most recent of the disasters that hit the small town of Joplin in Missouri was one of the deadliest single tornadoes that struck the USA in almost 60 years. The twister wrought its terrible work over a distance of 6.5 km and left just under 120 people dead and many hundreds injured. There are still so many more buried under wreckage, hopefully some of them alive and able to be rescued. The death toll from 2011 tornadoes until now, stands at 455, the deadliest year for tornados since 1953.

Looking at the pictures published makes one feel awe, terror, pity and compassion. Wreckage everywhere, homes and businesses reduced to rubble, cars that have become just piles of twisted metal and big trucks crushed and bent over themselves as if they were made of tinfoil. There are reports of heavy rain, strong winds, lightning and during the peak of the freak weather phenomenon, flying debris that was hurled with might through the air only to crush anything in its path. Some video footage of the disaster leaves one speechless. More than 2,000 buildings (about a third of the city of 50,000 people) were damaged or destroyed.

My heart goes out to everyone affected by the disaster, but also to the courageous rescue workers who continue to work relentlessly in the aftermath. In their exhaustion they continue to pick their way through rubble, gingerly moving debris, listening carefully for sounds of terrified people buried in the wreckage. It takes a special person to be a rescue worker, a firefighter, an ambulance worker, a police officer, a search and rescue worker. Their lives are dedicated altruistically to helping others and everyday they prove through their actions their love for their fellow human beings. Who needs more proof of one human’s care and love of another than in the face of these workers who risk their own lives daily to help save the lives of others.

Which brings me to Harold Camping, who predicted the unrealised Doomsday and subsequent Rapture for believers on May 21, 2011. This pernicious man exemplifies all that is dangerous in someone who professes to be a man of God. Through his influence and wide ranging media powers, this man convinced thousands that the end of the world was indeed coming on the 21st of May and they, in their blind belief gave everything away, and waited for the end that never came.

This preacher shows all what is treacherous in such preachifying. The point of preaching is to inform or convince the hearer of a certain world-view or belief. Many non-religious people shun preachers and accuse them of forcing their own beliefs on people. But preaching can also serve as an inflammatory encouragement to people who already subscribe to the preacher’s beliefs. A preacher can light great fires by fanning small embers in the hearts of people. For many, the term “preacher” is derogatory, while some consider it an honour. It all depends what the preacher is preaching, I think. Camping’s preaching has caused immense damage and he continues to preach, now having modified his Doomsday prediction for October 21st this year. I dread to think how many people will once again be misled and beguiled…

I guess we should be grateful that Harold Camping confined his activities to preaching only. Do you remember three decades ago the events that resulted in the deaths of more than 900 people in the middle of a South American jungle? Though called a “massacre”, what happened at Jonestown on November 18, 1978, was to some extent done willingly, making the mass suicide all the more disturbing.  The Jonestown cult (the “People’s Temple”) was founded in 1955 by Indianapolis preacher James Warren Jones. Jones, who had no formal theological training, based his liberal ministry on a combination of religious and socialist philosophies. His followers lost their lives in their belief of Jones’ Doomsday prophecies. Just as well Camping did not advocate mass suicides in the advent of the May 21st “Rapture”.

Look at the picture above. It is a photograph by Roger Nomer of “The Joplin Globe”. A rescue worker is carrying a young girl to safety. Here is a man who is putting the word of God into action. He doesn’t preach, he doesn’t want to convert anyone to his faith, his belief is strong and sure enough to compel him to work everyday miracles. He doesn’t have to wait for Doomsday to experience “Rapture”; his rapture comes every evening when he goes home exhausted, content in the knowledge that his daily work has given the gift of life to many of his fellow humans who otherwise may not have lived. Here is a man of God, preaching through his actions and making a difference, making the world a better place. Harold Camping, look at this picture and be ashamed…

NON-MOVIE MONDAY

“There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.” - Jane Austen

This is going to be another non-movie Monday as we spent the day travelling from Perth back home to Melbourne. If you read this blog, you may remember I dislike watching movies on planes and this time was no exception. Usually, until the plane takes off and the seat belt sign goes off, I do the cryptic crossword from the day’s paper. This is a good way to start off the flight and gets my mind working. Although I am a good flier, I do like staying awake and alert during flights, especially the sort to medium length ones. The flight from Perth to Melbourne is about three-and-a-half hours long so it is not too long at all.

Once the use of electronic devices is allowed, I take out my computer and work on that for the majority of the flight. There is always something to do on the laptop, both work and leisure, so that keeps me occupied. Afterwards, when we approach our destination and I turn the computer off, I finish the crossword or do few more word puzzles in the paper while the plane lands.

On today’s flight, I was distracted by a movie that a passenger sitting in the seat ahead of me had chosen to see and I was able to look at, through the gap in between the seats. The movie (as it turned out from the end credits, since I had not seen the starting sequence) was “Country Strong”, directed and written by Shana Feste and starring Gwynneth Paltrow, Tim McGraw, Garrett Hedlund and Leighton Meester. I investigated it on IMDB once back home to see whether in fact I would search the movie out to watch.

During the flight, I looked up several times (“eavesrising”? Is that we call eavesdropping for the eyes? ;-) and it seemed whenever I looked up someone was singing on the screen. The film was clearly a musical. As a genre, musicals don’t really attract me, especially the biographical type, which this movie seemed to be as well. Further along the film it was also obvious that the music in question was country – not my favourite genre, either. It is amazing what one can tell about a movie by simply looking at the pictures and not listening to the soundtrack at all – even if the movie in question is a musical.

Just by looking, it appeared that the story was about an ageing country singer with an alcohol problem and a young singer who admires her and want to become like her. Superficially it reminded me of (now, in retrospect, after reading the IMDB plot summary) the classic Bette Davis 1950 film, “All About Eve”. Gwynneth Paltrow is the Bette Davis equivalent and Leighton Meester is the Anne Baxter equivalent. There appeared to be several relationships all going on at the same time and overall “Country Strong” seemed to be just an excuse for stringing together a clutch of country songs for the fans.

The IMDB discussion about the film seems to be polarised. Half the reviews are positive and they are generally by self-disclosed country music fans, while the negative reviews are written by the critics and the non-fans of country music. The plot line according to IMDB is:

A drama centered on a rising country-music songwriter (Hedlund) who sparks with a fallen star (Paltrow). Together, they mount his ascent and her comeback, which leads to romantic complications involving her husband/manager (McGraw) and a beauty queen-turned-singer (Meester).

Now the verdict. Would I seek out and watch this movie on DVD? No. If caught it on TV or the DVD fell into my lap, I would probably watch it while doing something else. If anybody has seen it, enjoyed it and would like to convince me otherwise, please leave a comment.

FREMANTLE POSTCARD

“I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.” - Mark Twain

I had a full morning at the conference again today, but fortunately the afternoon was spent having some respite. It was good to go out and relax and forget about work for a while. Decided to go to Fremantle for the afternoon, which proved to be an excellent idea, as the weather was good. We took the train (at $9 for a family return ticket was excellent value) and in 30 minutes we were there. Initially the train was packed as the football was on in the Subiaco Oval and the West Coast Eagles, the home team, was playing.

Fremantle or “Freo” as the locals call it, has a character all of its own and it is so different from that of Perth. There are many fine old buildings that are well preserved and restored to their former glory and one can sense history pervading every street corner when one walks around. The town boasts the best preserved example of a 19th century port streetscape in the world with its world-famous heritage buildings and a fascinating maritime and convict history. Fremantle is a still a busy port and for many people, their first experience of Australia.

The back streets are dotted with dockworkers’ cottages, warehouses converted into trendy apartments and off-the-beaten track local haunts.  Essential stops on the Fremantle WA history trail include WA’s earliest convict jail, the “Roundhouse”, the more substantial Fremantle Prison and the WA Maritime Museum. The Town Hall is a fine example of civic architecture and there are also a number of beautiful old churches.

Supporting this rich history is a strong creative streak that can be sampled in the local arts, crafts, jewellery and hearty food available in the renowned Fremantle Markets. High Street for fashion from local designers, art galleries and Aboriginal crafts and homewares. Most of all, Freo is about soaking up the laid-back ambience; chilling out in a street cafe; enjoying fish and chips fresh off the boat at Fishing Boat Harbour; or enjoying a pale ale at an award winning microbrewery.  Once one is finished relaxing, the town is transformed at night when the street cafes, bars and nightclubs crank up.

The picture is St John’s Anglican Church in Fremantle, a beautiful 130 year-old church with wonderful architecture, magnificent stained glass windows and numerous sculptures both inside and outside the church.

POSTCARD FROM PERTH

“A good traveller has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” - Lao Tzu

A very busy day at the conference today, with many interesting presentations and lots of attendees. My presentation went well and generated some good discussion. It was particularly gratifying to see some of ex-students from many years back there, now as seasoned practitioners, but still remembering me and coming to say hello and how they still remembered my classes. This is something that is really special for a teacher… To know that what you have taught people has been learned, well used, has been built upon and is now going forward in time, making the world a better place.

The weather today has been beautiful, fine and sunny, although not too warm. While walking back to the hotel this evening it started to become very cool and a little blowy. No doubt, at night the temperature will drop further. It is late autumn, even in Perth! The conference dinner is on tonight and then more talks tomorrow.


The picture above is of St Mary's Cathedral in Perth.

A little keyboard piece by Domenico Cimarosa (17 December 1749, Aversa, Province of Caserta – Venice 11 January 1801), who is best known as an Opera composer. However, this Largo alla siciliana from his Sonata no.4 in A minor is quite elegant and graceful.

NON-FOOD FRIDAY

“I support any initiative designed to make healthy food more affordable and junk food less appealing.” - Susan Burke

A long day of travelling today as I had to be in Brisbane in the afternoon and then travel to Perth. We had our last graduation ceremony in Brisbane this afternoon and then tonight fly to Perth to be at a conference where I shall be presenting as an invited speaker.

Food for this Friday is going to be about conference, convention and special occasion food. This has to do especially with little tidbits and finger food, savouries, hors d’ oeuvres and small pastry offerings that are as much non-food as they are food. One can nibble quite a lot of these small delicacies and consume an inordinate number of calories (aided and abetted by the alcohol one washes them down with).

So as you could well imagine this not particularly healthful or nutritious food, however, it is generally gourmet food that tastes very nice. It is food that one does not consume often and may represent an occasional exception to the good rules of nutrition that one lives by.

EXOPLANETS

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.” – William Shakespeare; Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 5

It seems recently that we are gazing up at the skies a lot more and we are seeing much more than we have ever seen in the past. New technology of course, is helping with better telescopes, electronics and image enhancers, radio-astronomy, computer modelling, x-ray detection, etc, etc. However we now also have a whole new armamentarium to help astronomers with their investigations. The International Space Station, the Hubble telescope, rockets that carry unmanned exploratory space modules that send back data ceaselessly all contribute to the masses of new information that is available nowadays. And the discoveries are startling, with the “big one” not too far away it seems (the big one of course being extraterrestrial life).

The latest news concerns what astronomers considered before an inconceivable state of affairs. Planets that do not orbit around a star like a sun, but rather wandering hither and thither in deep space. Scientists that have been scanning the heavens for the past two years have found about ten planets with roughly the mass of Jupiter (the largest planet in our solar system with a diameter of 143,000 km), at such huge distances from the nearest star that they seem to float freely through the galaxy! This was published recently in the prestigious scientific journal “Nature” and breaks new ground in the study of “exoplanets” – planets that exist beyond our solar system.

More than 500 exoplanets have been identified since 1995, but this is the first time that discovered planets show such baffling behaviour. The paper suggests that these planets became displaced from their orbit around their sun at a very early stage of the formation of solar systems. There appear to be a lot of these rogue planets, seemingly even more common than main sequence stars.  Numerous questions are now being asked: Did these planets from near a star only to be ejected from its solar system? If they truly have never been bound to any stars, do these planets represent a new planetary formation process, unlike the one that formed our own solar system? Do they represent failed suns that never attracted enough material around them to form solar systems of their own?

To find a planet that is not associated with a star is quite difficult, especially as many of these objects are hundreds of light years away from us. In this latest reported search, a technique called gravitational microlensing was used. Essentially, this is based on the following principle: As you look at a background field of stars, if an object passes between you and one of the stars, there will be a temporary brightening of that star. This occurs as the gravity of the object bends light around itself, which acts as a lens for light from the background star, hence “gravitational lensing”. Microlensing occurs when the foreground object is too small to create measurable distortion of the background star and only a brightening is observed. This makes it an ideal detector for small, dim objects.

The mass of the lensing object determines the duration of the brightening event, with the longer the duration, the more massive being the object. A Jupiter-sized object would produce lensing event with a duration of around one day.  The odds of a microlensing event occurring are exceedingly small, as the lensing object has to line up exactly between the observer and the background star. To compensate for these slim chances, astronomers looked at 50 millions of stars over several years, which yielded 474 microlensing events. Out of those 474, 10 had durations of less than two days, consistent with a Jupiter mass object. No host stars were observed within 10 astronomical units of these lensing objects. Hence the rogue planet discovery…

planet |ˈplanit| noun
A celestial body moving in an elliptical orbit around a star.
• (The planet) the earth: No generation has the right to pollute the planet.
• chiefly Astrology, historical a celestial body distinguished from the fixed stars by having an apparent motion of its own (including the moon and sun), esp. with reference to its supposed influence on people and events.
The nine planets of the solar system are either gas giants—Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune—or smaller rocky bodies—Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, and Pluto. The minor planets, or asteroids, orbit mainly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
DERIVATIVES
planetology |ˌplaniˈtäləjē| noun
exoplanet |ˈeksōˌplanit| noun
A planet that orbits a star outside the solar system: Most of the 100 known exoplanets are comparable in mass to Jupiter.

ORIGIN Middle English: From Old French planete, from late Latin planeta, planetes, from Greek planētēs ‘wanderer, planet,’ from planan ‘wander.’

LOVE'S SWEET LIES

“I prithee send me back my heart,
Since I cannot have thine;
For if from yours you will not part,
Why, then, shouldst thou have mine?” - John Suckling

Today was a “catch-up day” as usually happens after one has been away. Numerous loose ends to tie off, emails to answer, meetings to attend, people to see. The day just flew by and I barely made a dint in my in-tray. One more day of catch-up tomorrow and then I’m off again travelling on Friday.

For Poetry Wednesday today, I raided my old journals and found this poem. Written in the aftermath of a broken relationship…

Your Sweetest Lie

Let your lips curl into their most beguiling smile
And save your sweetest lie to whisper, just for me.
Tell your eyes to wear their fanciest dress
While they look duplicitously at me.
Touch me with your pale, cool fingers
In semblance of a warm caress,
While they drain away my lifeblood.
Speak to me, promise me eternal love
While you leave, nevermore to return.

I’ll curl up on the bed, smelling your fragrance on the sheets,
Deceiving myself that you’ll be back tomorrow.
I’ll ignore my ring that you abandoned on the table,
While I keep on wearing yours on my finger,
Deluding myself that your vows engraved in it are still all true.
The taste of your kiss remembered is sweet,
But in your absence its hidden poison
Gradually spreads within, slowly killing me.

How can I forget you, when everything around me
Reminds me constantly of you?
How can I let your image disappear when new dreams are denied me
In my endless sleepless nights?
How can I abandon you when in the darkness of my white night
The remembered bright fireworks of your sparkling eyes
Are my only illumination?
How can I keep living since you left?
My life has turned to a false imitation of existence…

WTISD

“I have seen that technology has contributed to improved communication, that it’s contributed to better health care, that it’s contributed to better food supplies, that it has contributed to all the basic human needs.” - John Warnock

Today is the anniversary of the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention and the creation of the International Telecommunication Union. The day has been marked as the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (WTISD), the purpose of which is to help raise awareness of the possibilities that the use of the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies, as well as of ways to bridge the digital divide.

The theme for this year’s, World Telecommunication and Information Society Day is “Better life in rural communities with ICTs”, which was adopted by ITU Council in 2009 and follows up on the theme for 2010: “Better city, better life with ICTs”.  ICTs are increasingly in demand to meet the Millennium Development Goals. In the rural context, ICTs provide enhanced opportunities to generate income and combat poverty, hunger, ill health and illiteracy.

Half of the world’s population lives in rural districts and far-flung communities. These three billion people represent the poorer, less educated, and more deprived people of the world. As many as 70 per cent of the developing world’s 1.4 billion extremely poor people live in rural areas. They are also among the least connected to the benefits of ICTs. It is no surprise that their poverty, ill health and illiteracy are connected to a lack of ICTs.

The Internet began in 1969 as a small though initially costly project backed by the United States Government. It was then called the ARPANET because the agency that developed the system was called the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA). The original network began with four users. By 1994, the Internet had 4 million hosts.  By September 2009 there were 1.73 billion Internet users worldwide, with 1.4 billion e-mail users worldwide, and on average they collectively sent 247 billion e-mails per day. Unfortunately 200 billion of those were spam e-mails! As of December 2009, there were 234 million websites. It is estimated that in May 2011, the estimated number of unique individuals who will use the Internet, in all countries combined, is 2.06 billion.

Most people find it impossible to imagine their daily lives without the internet, as in recent years, the internet has become an integral part of our existence. We use it to communicate, to search for information, to interact socially through networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. It is hard to imagine a world without the internet as a means of doing business, or without using the net in education and in entertainment.

Its combination with other means of telecommunication is changing the way we utilise other ICT technology. The use of the Voice-Over-Internet-Protocol is altering we use landlines and most mobile smartphones now, are in many cases used to access the internet more than they are to talk on! Someone asked me for my fax number the other day and I had to restrain myself from laughing – obviously someone was still using that dinosaur! Is there such a thing as a telegram anymore? Do kids nowadays know what the Morse code is? When was the last time you took a piece of paper and actually wrote a letter to someone?

It’s a brave new world of ICTs out there and we have to work harder in making it accessible to those people who do not use it at the present time and those who wish to and cannot.

NON-MOVIE MONDAY FROM BRISBANE

“The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” - G.K. Chesterton

I am in Brisbane for work today, and catching the early morning flight leaving at 6:00 a.m. is always a bit of a challenge, even for an early bird like me. It generally means having to get up at about 3:45 a.m. so as to get ready by 4:45 am, to then catch a taxi to the airport and finally to reach Brisbane at about 8:30 a.m. ready for a full day’s work. As I always try and have day trips away rather than spending the night away from home, it means a late night as well when I come back home. However, I get to sleep in my own bed!

The day was perfect in the morning, with fine, warm and sunny conditions in Brisbane. I got great enjoyment during the walk from the train station to the Campus, after I alighted from the Airport train (an excellent service, although a tad expensive). Then it was work, work, work at the Campus until it was time to go my appointment at the Department of Education. I enjoyed the glorious weather some more, and as the Department of Education is in the centre of the City, the hustle and bustle of the CBD reminded how Brisbane is becoming a large, populous, cosmopolitan urban area in Australia’s north.

Brisbane is a major port and the capital of Queensland. It is Australia’s third largest city. It lies astride the Brisbane River on the southern slopes of the Taylor Range, 19 km above the river’s mouth at Moreton Bay. The site was first explored in 1823 by John Oxley and the next year was occupied by a penal colony, which had moved from Redcliffe 35 km northeast. The early name of the settlement, Edenglassie, was changed to honour Sir Thomas Brisbane, former governor of New South Wales, when the convict settlement was declared a town in 1834.

Officially, freemen could not settle within 80 km of the colony until its penal function was abandoned in 1839, but this ban proved ineffective. A short-lived rivalry for eminence with the town of Cleveland was ended when the latter’s wharves burned in 1854, allowing Brisbane to become the leading port. Proclaimed a municipality in 1859, it became the capital of newly independent Queensland that same year. Gazetted a city in 1902, it was joined during the 1920s with South Brisbane to form the City of Greater Brisbane. Its municipal government, headed by a lord mayor, holds very broad powers. The Brisbane statistical division, including the cities of Ipswich and Redcliffe, has close economic and social ties to the city.

Brisbane is the hub of many rail lines and highways, which bring produce from a vast agricultural hinterland stretching west to the Eastern Highlands, the Darling Downs, and beyond. The city’s port, which can accommodate ships of 34,000 tons, exports wool, grains, dairy products, meat, sugar, preserved foods, and mineral sands. The metropolitan area, also industrialised with more than half of the state’s manufacturing capacity, has heavy and light engineering works, food-processing plants, shipyards, oil refineries, sawmills, and factories producing rubber goods, automobiles, cement, and fertiliser.

The city is bisected by the meandering Brisbane River and its halves are connected by several bridges and ferries. The city is home to the University of Queensland at St. Lucia (1909), Griffith University (1971), Parliament House (1869), the state museum (1855) and art gallery (1895), Anglican and Roman Catholic cathedrals, and many parks and gardens. Water is supplied from Lake Manchester, the Mount Crosby Weir, and the Somerset Dam. Oil is piped from wells at Moonie (west) and at Roma (northwest), which also supplies natural gas. The population of the greater Brisbane is now in excess of two million people.

Now, as it is Movie Monday, I cannot neglect mentioning something to do with movies, even though I shall forego the customary review. Inflight movies and other programs are shown on board the planes of the long hauls, however, for the life of me I cannot watch these on the small and poor quality screens with the all-pervasive noise on board the plane. I have tried ineffectually on a number of occasions, but even if I have suffered the whole length of the program, it has been a bit of a torture and I then have to watch the movie again “properly” at home (if it looked as though it was an interesting one). So there! This is the Movie Monday without a movie as I did not watch it on board!

ART SUNDAY - AGSA

“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God’s handwriting.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I was in Adelaide all day today and although the weather was hardly something to write home about, at least it was not raining and it was not too cold. However, gray skies and coolish temperatures meant that a brisk walk was good to get one’s blood circulating and the feet warm! Our graduation was in the afternoon so I had time to pop into the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) and admire some of my favourite paintings there.

The Art Gallery of South Australia is home to one of Australia’s finest collections of art, both Australian and International. The permanent display of Australian art in this gallery is outstanding, and as one walks through the exhibition spaces, one becomes aware of the development of Australian art from the colonial period to the present day. Its collection of 19th century colonial art contains fine examples of early oil painting, watercolours, sculpture, silver and furniture.

The gallery also has a comprehensive collection of Aboriginal desert dot paintings from Central Australia, dating from the beginning of the painting movement in the early 1970s. One can also trace the history of European art from the 15th to 20th century, particularly the development of landscape and portrait painting. The highlight of the gallery’s Asian collection is its holdings of South East Asian ceramics that is the finest museum collection of such material in the world.

One of joys of the collection that I always spend much time admiring is the clutch of tableaux by Hans Heysen. Sir Wilhelm Ernst Hans Franz Heysen was born in Hamburg on the 8th October 1877 and died in Hahndorf, near Adelaide, 2nd July 1968. His family settled in South Australia in 1884. Heysen attended the Norwood Art School under James Ashton (1859–1935), and then moved to Paris to study at the Académie Julian, Colarossi’s academy and the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. His travels took him all over Europe where he absorbed the European tradition of painting.

Heysen was much influenced by Constable, the Barbizon school, George Clausen, Ernest Atkinson Hornel and Frank Brangwyn. In 1904, after returning to Adelaide, he sold major oils to the National Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney (“Coming Home”), and the National Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide (“Mystic Morn” - seen above). In 1908 he moved to Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills. Heysen recorded the labours of the German farmers who had settled in the area, in oils, watercolours, drawings and (occasionally) etchings. Heysen saw the rural labourers of Hahndorf much as Millet regarded the Fontainebleau peasants. This aspect of his work reached its peak in “Red Gold” (1913).

Heysen managed to capture the essence of the Australian landscape. His paintings are rich in colour, display a magnificent sense of light and drama, while at the same time being highly satisfying in terms of composition, subject matter and technique.

BACH FOR SATURDAY

“The flesh endures the storms of the present alone, the mind those of the past and future as well as the present” - Epicurus

Saturday is a pleasant interlude between what will prove to be some very taxing weeks. Tomorrow I have to attend the graduation ceremony in Adelaide and then on Monday, I’m off to Brisbane for an appointment in the Government Department involved with regulation of the tertiary education sector. Then some important meetings back in Melbourne next week, before I fly up to Brisbane again on Friday for the graduation ceremony there, and then form there flying to directly to Perth to present at national conference. Busy times indeed!

This evening was very special as we went out to dinner with some friends. Good company made up for the overly pretentious food so overall we enjoyed it much. As Epicurus says, “We should look for someone to eat and drink with before looking for something to eat and drink, for dining alone is leading the life of a lion or wolf.”

I am in an ebullient mood, so for music Saturday, one of the most ebullient of pieces by the great Johann Sebastian Bach. Here is the first movement from the Brandenburg Concerto No.3 (BWV 1048), Allegro Moderato. It is wonderfully performed by the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra.