Photo Hunt: Family

This is posted very late, but busy busy busy with family stuff. Yesterday and today was garden renovation central, parties, friend visiting, shopping and a Number One Buzz for my hair. That is the shortest I have ever had it. Other than the convict look, I quite like it. Oh and it was 33 degrees. Pretty hot.  

Today is my 49th Birthday, complete with party hat and it was Little Athletics with Hannah in the morning, climbing onto the roof to fiddle with the air conditioner, a  visit to the Australian Native Plant Show, baking a cake with the kids, more gardening and some dinner cooking. No days off for me. We got some nice Kangaroo Paws for the front garden. I learned that my lack of success in the past with them was likely overwatering. That is not much of an issue now with water restrictions. Perhaps they will
actually flower.

The cake was good too and the kids enjoyed blowing it out with me. Nothing like a family weekend. 

photohunt

Vegetarian Cannibal Shop

Thanks the always entertaining Telegraph Sign Language Series

Financial Crisis Hits Home in Japan

Following the problems in the sub-prime lending market in America and
the run on Northern Rock in the UK, uncertainty has now hit Japan.

In the last 7 days Origami Bank has folded, Sumo Bank has gone belly up
and Bonsai Bank announced plans to cut some of its branches.

Yesterday, it was announced that Karaoke Bank is up for sale and will
likely go for a song, while today shares in Kamikaze Bank were suspended
after they nose-dived.

While Samurai Bank is soldiering on following sharp cutbacks, Ninja Bank
is reported to have taken a hit, but they remain in the black.

Furthermore, 500 staff at Karate Bank got the chop and analysts report
that there is something fishy going on at Sushi Bank where it is feared
that staff may get a raw deal.

Bankzai?

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Skywatch Friday

Spring colours looking over our neighbours garden looking towards the Adelaide Hills. The Ceanothus was in its prime at that time. The photograph reminds me of fall colours in America.

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Bankers Wait for Bailout Cash before going Home

My wife always wanted one of those. I am sure that you can get them for a knock down " global bank bail out" special price.

Snake Charmer Rudd to the Rescue

President Kevin Rudd today announced the Department of Economic Stimulus with massive handouts to Labor core voters to see them through until he goes to the vote in a couple of years. The blame game has started early and it is probably a sound plan to shore up the Labor vote before the economy tanks.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today blamed "extreme capitalism" for the global crisis and said the seed for the economic meltdown was sewn in the United States' reaction to the bursting of the dotcom bubble at the beginning of the decade.

An mystic economic forecaster, who will be taking an office next to Rudd, has been appointed to divine the path of the economy going forward. We believe that it is a prudent measure to keep control of the snakes who got us into this mess in the first place, the PM said.

The Member for Wentworth and former extreme capitalist, supported the government, pending a change in public perception on the World Economic Collapse. We are evaluating whether water diviners would be able to foresee the future better, he said.

Cheeta Cheats Death

Johnny Weissmullers best monkey buddy, Cheeta is alive and well aged 76, spending his retirement painting and eating bananas in Palm Springs California. He has recently published a book revealing all about his battle with alcohol and cigars and other of lifes travails. As they said on the radio last night, he and Elizabeth Taylor are the last of the contract actors from the golden age of Hollywood.

He is almost as old as my Dad, who is also an artist, who got over alcohol and tobacco but way more cool. He has a MySpace.

But will he get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?

Onya Cheeta, Carry On

Photo Hunt: Lazy

There is a very fine line between relaxing and being lazy. Whatever it is Hannah, Ben and Daisy like to hang out in the sun. Spotty is also a sun worshipper. He is a master at finding that little area of reflected sunlight in the house. Of course it moves throughout the day, but you can be fairly sure that he will be there. As I write this he has just set himself up on the square foot of sunlight in the room. That or on somewhere comfortable like his bed or the couch or the cushion that Ryan is copying him with. Nothing like something comfortable to be lazy on..

photohunt

UK Siezes Strategic Assets in Iceland Bank Collapses

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling said the UK depositors should not worry about the collapse of Iceland's Banks. We have siezed a strategic stake in Iceland's Icebergs. Despite global warming, we should be good until the next election, he said.

Skywatch Friday

Early morning rainbow in the Adelaide Southern Suburbs as I walked to the bus earlier this week.

New Australian Tourism Campaign

Would you want to get on a plane for 24 hours just to swim in a Billabong?

Australia's new tourism campaign is aimed at stressed and depressed Northern Hemisphere types who can afford to buy some carbon credits and jet off to the sun. Doubt it will work. Personally I liked the last campaign, even if it did have some naughty words. The days of long haul tourism seem to be behind us and Australia is going to have to work hard to get some of those visitors.

So Where the Bloody Hell Are You?

Traffic Sign Sex

Click on the image to get a clearer image.

Global Warming set to do in Haggis

Image via WikipediaThe mighty Scottish Haggis is fighting for its life with lung creepy crawlies lasting the winter better with the warmer weather, reports Scottish Culinary Correspondent, Matt Wardmann.

Bugger. Just toss in a few more spices and cook it a bit longer I say.

We may end up having to move to porridge and whiskey for our Burns nights.

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Up the wicket with no paddle

Canoe Paddle

Cricket Paddle?

Fraternity Paddle

Baseball Paddle

It seems that Forbes, American journalists need to do some background checking before diving in to the world of cricket. Their ignorance speaks volumes of the chance of selling cricket to the Yanks. Not much hope I would say, despite the enthusiasm of Allen Stanford a billionaire developer trying to sell cricket to Americans.

Twenty years ago Stanford, 58, who grew up in Fort Worth, Tex., couldn't tell a cricket paddle from a baseball bat.

I'll bet he still doesn't. Unfortunately, yes it looks like a paddle, but it is a bat.

This speaks volumes of the cultural divide. Nobody in America has ever heard of cricket. When I lived there in the 1980s and 90s, it was one gigantic cricket free zone. It was like it didn't exist. The Twilight Zone of Cricket. Fair enough there were plenty of American sports and football (soccer) was barely on the radar screen. Both football and rugby have done a much better job of promoting themselves and are now quite established. Cricket on the other hand seems to be taking a whiz bang approach with big ticket events, rather like the original Major League Soccer with big stars and no real grass roots support.

Whether cricket will take in the U.S. remains to be seen. In February Stanford dispatched a marketing group, armed with instruction manuals and broadcasts of the Stanford 20/20 tournament, to Fort Collins, Colo., with orders to turn the town, picked for its lack of exposure to the sport, "cricket crazy." The $3.5 million mission was a qualified success: After five weeks of being bombarded with ads and promotions, 6% of those surveyed said they would be willing to order cricket on pay-per-view. Fort Collins has a population of 125,700, implying that Stanford spent around $464 on each convert.

Based on this calculation it would take about a billion dollars to make a small inroad into the saturated US sports watching market. Why would you bother?

Cricket is a very small sport outside enthusiastic support in a small number of countries. Even here in Australia, only test matches and other international matches are well supported. Who has the time to sit and watch cricket. All the national matches are staged for pay tv with about a hundred people in to watch.

So cricket and your stuffy administrators in Dubai, get out your bats and get paddling if you want to make some inroads into some other markets. I think that the American one is a bit too hard.

Shock Horror as Republicans prepare Negative Ads

In a major campaign shift to counter dismal polling, Honest John McCain's Shit Kicker in Chiefs have ordered more cod liver oil for the voters stuck in their castles of negative equity and defaulting credit cards.

Senator McCain said he intended to press Senator Obama on a variety of familiar Republican themes during this week's debate, accusing the Democrat once again of getting ready to raise taxes and increase government spending.

What was that mercy flight to Washington about again?
What was that jaunt to the Middle East all about again?

Ha Ha Ha

How stupid do they think swing voters are?

Photo Hunt: Sad

Although Spotty is a very happy and contented dog, some of the things that we do to him make him sad. He is very patient and waits until the photographs are taken with his doleful face. He is most sad when we leave for the day and puts on his mopey face and pulls in his tail and sulks behind the gate. When we come back he leaps up and down behind the gate wagging his tale furiously. He has obviously forgiven us for our earlier fashion transgressions. 

photohunt

Homer Proofing Election 08

Wouldn't want niggers and the ignorant to make the wrong choice, would we?
If it was Florida and Homer was black, the votes would be doubled.

Thanks for the Free American Democracy Lesson Mr Eugenides

Thanks Sol See You Later

Sol Trujillo, saviour of Aussie telecommunications is on his swansong tour of the world searching out his next job and expounding his role in Saving Telstra.

Perhaps he is just looking for a payout so that the Labor Government can get on with fixing some of the third world telecommunications systems currently in place and much of the upgrade being stonewalled by Moses Trujillo.

See Ya Sol.

Eat Kangaroo and Save the World

Australians are being encouraged to eat Skippy in a bid to reduce the all farting all greenhous gas belching bovines so popular on Aussie Barbies, by Kevin Rudds Chief Greenhouse Gas Spinmeister, Professor Garnaut.

"Sheep and cattle production is highly vulnerable to the biophysical impacts of climate change, such as water scarcity," he says.
"Australian marsupials emit negligible amounts of methane from enteric fermentation. This could be a source of international comparative advantage for Australia in livestock production.

Australian Endangered Species?

"For most of Australia's human history of around 60,000 years, kangaroo was the main source of meat. It could again become important."

In a poll in the Australian, 85 percent of respondents seemed open to this. I quite like Kangaroo meat. You just have to cook it with a delicate touch. No stewing and no well done steaks. It is easily available in the Supermarket and very popular in Russia, which is one of the largest export markets for Skippy Steaks and Minced Skippy.

I loved the use of the term biophysical impacts of climate change or what you or I may say, where has all the water gone? Why can't people just use plain English?

I mean I could walk down the road on a day like today (clear, sunny, blue sky and 25 degrees) and comment on the positive biophysical impact of climate change to anyone who would listen.

RIP JB Jeyeratnum

Saddened by the passing of the tormentor of the PAP in Singapore and crusader for democracy in that most autocratic of countries, JB Jeyeratnum. Despite being hounded out of parliament numerous times using the favourite PAP tactic of fear, intimidation, libel and bankruptcy of those who dare to oppose, he fought for what he believed right to the end. Having cleared his bankruptcy, he had established a new political party and was seeking to reenter parliament.

Most Singaporeans are too scared to say anything or do anything for fear of retaliation. This is a country where the government really does control everything. JB Jeyeratnum showed that it was possible, despite many obstacles to do something.

"It would be terribly funny if it weren't tragic for me," he said in an interview at the time. "A lot of people tell me: 'Why do you carry on? It's hopeless in this place. Why do you sacrifice yourself, suffering all this pain?' Not that I suffer that much."

"Funnily enough, I enjoy the fight," he said. "It's true. And if I had to give it up, I wouldn't know what to do."

During my last few months in Singapore I saw him sitting quietly in a bar in Bugis just after being declared bankrupt and kicked out of parliament. I wanted to say something, but left him to his thoughts.

It takes a lot of inner and moral strength to take on an entrenched autocracy like that. Not unlike Morgan Tsangari in Zimbabwe.

He may not be featured much in the government controlled press or in history books, but his memory and what he stood for will be difficult to forget for most Singaporeans.