Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Hello 2014

There have been far too many losses in 2013. I'm ready for the New Year.

Good luck and good health, everyone. Happy New Year.

Jagger



Jagger was the first dog we got to know when we first moved here. He was a stand-out, not just because almost every other dog was something white and fluffy, or a mini-Schnauzer. Then, we only had one dog, a mini-Schnauzer, and still I couldn't tell the other mini-Schnauzers apart.


Jagger was a Jack Russell. But not just any JRT. He was the tallest JRT I've ever met. When eventually we had Rupert, Jagger towered over our fox terrier. (He humped him too. But then Roop gets humped a lot, even by Queeni.)

And after getting to know Jagger, we got to know his human. She was still in secondary school then, a quiet teenager. But a responsible one. You had to be when you're in charge of feeding, walking and looking after a JRT who knows what he wants. And so when a dogsitter bailed on us when we were about to leave for a holiday, she came over, stayed over and looked after our two.

We saw her grow up, finish school, go through polytechnic, graduate, and start working. Oh, and there was a boyfriend along the way. He lived in the next block, and they used to walk their dogs together, and then come up and play with ours. And then the boyfriend became an ex-boyfriend, and then there was another boyfriend.

And Jagger got old, got cancer and has passed on. We feel like we've lost a dog too. Soon, his markings on the grass, the lamp posts and pillars will fade. And Queeni and Rupert will no longer smell him. I'm sure they will remember him though. We are honoured that they are two of only three dogs (the third one being the ex-boyfriend's dog, that fluffy brown one in the picture) that Jagger never barked at, never tried to bite. Because we were all friends.

Goodbye, friend.

Saturday, December 07, 2013

Home cooked

Nothing says welcome home like breakfast at dinner time.

Friday, December 06, 2013

Melbourne

St Paul's Cathedral and Federation Square. Melbourne mixes the old and new so well.




Webb Bridge




Luna Park, St Kilda

The beach bits














The green bits

Yarra Valley





The Botanic Gardens




A couple and their dog walked into the frame as I snapped the shot of the bamboo grove.  They needn't have apologised, they really did improve the shot.















The quirky bits

Saw this print at a gallery window and couldn't resist getting it. Lugged it back, and now I'm going to have to get it framed.
Artwork at Yering winery


The welcome sign at The Innocent Bystander in Healsville, a winery/eatery in the Yarra Valley. 

Here be (little) dragons.






I love how they set out chairs in public spaces. You're invited to have a seat.  Rest and relax. Leave chairs out like this at home, and people will literally take a seat. 

What not to call the in-laws.

Sculpture of three commuters.

Wonder what he saw.

Pigs might fly on top of lamp posts.

The getaway suitcase