Do you Henry Charles Albert David take Rachel Meghan?

Vanity Fair

There are many who probably wished that Henry Charles Albert David took Rachel Meghan as far away as possible from our televisions, radios, newspapers and social media sites. Their nuptials certainly took over the media waves to a degree rarely matched except by the most distressing of universal disasters or malevolent activity.

I joined my close friends for a curry night - that menu item was to prove strangely prophetic before the night was over - to watch the preliminaries, the ceremonies and the pageantry. After all, my Republican leanings notwithstanding, the British stage these Royal events so impressively.

Predictably just about everything was achieved with the reliability of Swiss clockwork. The one standout exception and the most impressive element were both contributed by the lost colony of those pesky United States.

The exception was the Most Reverend Michael B Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church. In front of six hundred mostly British guests, by definition therefore staid impassive and unemotional, Bishop Curry departed from his prepared remarks and became...well...flamboyant. And he spent a long time doing it.

In our private, in front of the television, party this proved too much for both I and C who began to hurl insults at the screen. Unsurprisingly these insults had no impact upon the faraway Bishop; no doubt as uncaring as he was unknowing of his impact in Sydney suburban Seaforth.

Bishop Curry continued to wave his arms, modulate his excitable delivery and generally chew up precious celebrity spotting time which proved too much for I and C who both fled from the television room refusing to return until confirmation that his sermon was at ended. During that self imposed banishment C consoled himself with a second, and if I may say so greedy, helping of curry (of the chicken variety). Too much of (Bishop) Curry meant too much curry for C.

And the most impressive element? Without question or equal that award goes to Doria Ragland, the mother of the bride. Dignified and stylish, Ms Ragland stole the show without uttering a word; flamboyant or otherwise.

Good Housekeeping

Bride Wars?

It is not unusual to see wedding ceremonies occurring in Sydney's magnificent Centennial Park. Indeed the Park's website has an entire section on reserving space in the Park for a wedding ceremony, scheduling wedding photographs in the Park and even on staying in the Park in connection with a wedding.

So when I was driving through the Park yesterday and saw this sight at the Belvedere Amphitheatre in the Park my first thought was that a wedding was about to occur.

How fancy. An orchestra in place!

But then I took a closer look.

A lovely setting. Sweeping views towards the South where upper right you see the upper levels of the main Grandstand at Randwick Racecourse. The buildings upper middle belong to the University of New South Wales. The domed building in the centre is Federation Pavilion constructed in 1988 to mark the place where the Proclamation of the Commonwealth of Australia occurred in 1901.

But back to the wedding. The orchestra appeared to be a youth orchestra. Unless the wedding party involved teachers and/or students a Youth Orchestra seemed an odd choice for a wedding. And then the Orchestra started to perform; apparently in rehearsal. The first few notes were very much the sounds of young musicians. Not only that but the first few bars of music also clearly were the Star Wars movie theme.

Now, that is an odd choice for a wedding.

When I returned home hours later I checked the What's On section in Park's website. My more considered reactions proved justified. The orchestra was not preparing for a wedding yesterday. They were rehearsing for Classics in the Park; an outdoor family concert performed by 'Sydney Youth Orchestras'.

Interestingly the website advertises the price for this event as $20. I could see and hear the Orchestra perfectly well from my vantage point beyond the loosely roped off area which surrounded the white plastic chairs. Had I attended the concert I think would have joined the early gathering hoi polloi on their blankets and fold up chairs beyond the rope.

A touch of Versailles

The second exhibition we visited whist in Canberra was Versailles: Treasures from the Palace at the National Gallery of Australia. The marketing of the exhibition states it is the first time the treasures have been displayed outside of France. If so, it is an honour for the Gallery and Australia.

It is a spectacular display, highly recommended for those who can make the trip to view it.

Some photos I took;

The King instructs La Perouse on his forthcoming journey to the great south land, Australia

Madame du Pompadour

Marie-Antoinette

Menu from 21 June 1751

Trick? Treat?

Halloween seems to be a thing now; at least in Sydney's eastern suburbs where I live. Ghoulish house decorations are increasingly the go and parents/guardians are taking to the streets before sunset with their little darlings in tow each holding a bucket for all those treats they hope to collect. I gather that is the aim.

I don't know why parents would feel that extorting loads of lollies from neighbours and strangers is a desirable activity for their children but there you go. Commercialism and marketing trump sense.

Here is one of my neighbourhood residences dressed to kill for the evening.

City to Surf 2016

This annual fun run is underway as I key in this post. The run is from the Central Business District to Bondi Beach; something like 14 kilometres from memory. The elite athletes complete the course in about 45 minutes but others run or walk the course (which includes some horrendous hills) over a period of 2/3 hours.


This year the field is expected to be about 80,000.

Early runners in the field passing through Edgecliff, where I live;



The same runners (possibly) moments later passing through Double Bay to my east:

The abominable count

Five years ago one other volunteer and myself acted as Census Field Officers for patients in the hospital. Despite receiving some training from the local area representative for the Census we were totally unprepared for the effort involved in distributing these forms to some 270 patients and collecting their completed responses. It took us something like six hours to distribute these forms, answering questions along the way, and when we finished around 10pm on the night I was exhausted. The follow up work continued for the following couple of mornings. I was adamant I would never perform this function again.

Fast forward five years to 2016 and tonight was once again Census night. A week ago my arm was (figuratively) twisted and despite my previous adamance I agreed to perform this work again. My reluctant change of heart was based on the fact that this time eight volunteers would be involved in the distribution and collection of forms and that someone else would manage the project.

Given events that saw the online facility for returns shut down under some form of technical attack it is somewhat ironic that the marketing for Census night included a 'Pause' symbol logo and message.

Census 'fail'

Even with four times the number of volunteers involved compared with the previous Census, distribution of forms took almost as long as in 2011. However, preparation based on our previous experience made the distribution more streamlined and the collection of the completed forms was considerably more efficient and speedy than on the earlier occasion.

It is still a tiring exercise. Once again I am determined not to repeat the work.

Vivid

The brilliant annual event that is Vivid Sydney gets underway tomorrow night. This self styled light, music and ideas festival has grown into an event that is almost too large.

(Image: Daniel Boud)

The crowds around the Circular Quay area are so huge, especially late in the week an on weekends, that movement around the displays can be difficult. However, it is such a spectacular display that it is worth battling those crowds at least once in your life.

This year's festival has been extended to 23 days which may help diffuse the crowds; if ever so slightly.

Brisbane

Yes, once again I am in Brisbane. A belated Christmas come New Year reunion with good friends dating back from our days on posting together in Beijing. A friendship now more than thirty five years old.

One of the main events organised for this gathering was a couple of nights attending the Brisbane International tennis tournament. For some years MT has wanted us to spend time in Melbourne at the Australian Open tournament but this always looked too expensive for some of our Brisbane based friends. Having caucused unsuccessfully about a Melbourne visit MT last year suggested the Brisbane alternative and this was agreed to and organised.

In one of life's ironies MT fell quite ill and was hospitalised last weekend on the eve of our gathering. She has missed out entirely on this visit of which she was the principal architect. She has been discharged from hospital and appears to be on the mend but her doctor vetoed her travel and so she has ended up watching the tennis from home on television instead. At her insistence we've had to describe the colour of the clothes we are wearing so she can pick us out in the crowd scenes. Unsurprisingly she has not seen us on either night.

It was of some little consolation to MT that the seats she booked for us were excellent. Here is the view we had on the first night;

We saw Bernard Tomic play Radek Stepanek. Local 'boy' Tomic won but his performance was not exactly stellar. However the play was very close and the likely outcome looked uncertain until the final points.

RS, who ate sushi purchased at the courts, fell violently ill the next day with food poisoning. Our reunion was starting to look jinxed!

The next night - and with a substitute attendee for the recovering RS - we had these seats. Just a little to the right of where we had sat the previous night and still a very good view.

This time we watched Roger Federer play Tobias Kamke. The quality of play - especially from Federer - was a class above what was on show the earlier night but the match itself was less interesting simply because the tension of wondering who would win was absent. Nonetheless it was a treat to see a champion player performing in the flesh.

None of us purchased sushi for dinner this night.

I'm returning to Sydney tomorrow.

The clean up

The final laundry load

The post party, post visitors' laundry and kitchen clean up.

Three lots of queen size bed linen, four bath towels, six face towels, eight tea towels, one dining table table cloth and three loads of my personal laundry in addition to two loads in the dishwasher.

All done.

Chuck Close

I have to admit I didn't know of Chuck Close until we heard about the exhibition of his work currently in Sydney.

Mt and I saw the exhibition today and we were blown away by the unusual and skilful nature of his range of art. His work is extraordinary and achieved despite considerable physical and mental health disadvantages. His is a remarkable story.

Some photos from the exhibition;

This is a tapestry

I've experienced better weeks

It has been an unhappy week.

The untimely death, days before his 26th birthday, of cricketer Phillip Hughes following an awful injury whilst playing cricket has shocked and gripped many Australians in a way rarely seen. It might be difficult for overseas readers who have heard this news and who are not in cricket playing countries to understand the extent of the general distress being expressed but Hughes somehow embodied so much of how Australians see themselves and see their heroes. The news of his passing upset me as it did so many others.

Phillip Hughes

The outpouring of grief around the world has been astonishing. This claim is not just hyperbole. On radio just minutes ago I heard that there have been 98,000,000 'views' around the world of photos on Instagram of cricket bats being displayed to mark Hughes passing. That's NINETY-EIGHT MILLION clicks on the internet in ONE day. Amazing.

Perhaps my emotion is amplified by another awful loss virtually simultaneous with that of Hughes. My volunteer co-worker of eight years at the Nursing Home, Da, passed away this morning little more than 12 hours later than Hughes after suffering a massive stroke on Wednesday morning also only a little more than 12 hours following Hughes' injury.

Da had been in good health, was only 67, ate healthily, exercised daily and simply was the last person I would imagine to be near the end of her days.

Both deaths reinforce the point; make the most of every day. Don't take life for granted, don't procrastinate about following your dreams and don't put off to another day telling your loved ones how much they mean to you. You may never get that chance.

At the movies Cirque du Soleil style

What we didn't see from the Academy Awards ceremony I'm told;

Plus 1

I was Ae's 'plus one' tonight at a 60th birthday. The celebrating sextagenarian was a teacher with Ae years ago and there was a fair sprinkling of school and higher learning teachers in attendance. Most of these teacher friends brought their spouses/partners to the party and Ae was keen to have me there as a sort of 'beard' in reverse. Apart from Ae I knew only one other person at the party and that was not the birthday 'girl'.

On what was by Sydney's standards a very cold night and in their home near to the ocean our hosts had set up a marquee in the back terrace; a totally tiled area. There was recorded music playing loudly when we arrived so that conversation was difficult to follow. I was in for a night smiling and nodding affirmations to conversations I could not hear.

All the trappings for a live band including microphones were set up at one end of the terrace awaiting a live performance but when it came for the speeches, one each by the birthday girl's husband and the birthday girl herself, for some reason they chose to deliver these from the other end of terrace minus any amplification. I strained to hear their words.

The live band performance followed. This was from a group of four retirees, amateurs all. The birthday girl's husband and three of his mates delivered a concert of about six songs from 'our' era (The Beatles, Eric Burdon, etc) at a decibel level which another partygoer commented to me (shouting at top level) 'artfully concealed that they were singing completely out of tune'.

At a pre arranged moment some guests threw their spare underwear at the band in a vaguely Tom Jones memorial moment. I did not participate although when I made to remove my jacket Ae looked at me horrified thinking I was about to undress to remove my underpants. There was never any chance of that.

Finger food was in abundance as was the range and quantity of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. It was a generous evening and despite the noise levels I did enjoy myself even if I had little idea of any of the conversation around me.

But my days of standing on solid tiles for hours on end are well and truly over.

Scenes from the festival

Some snaps from the Sydney Writers Festival 2014.

Waiting for a session to commence

Moderator Tom Tilley introducing 'Back Story'

Awaiting 'Exceptional Television'

Richard Glover broadcasting for ABC 702 Local Radio

Audience assembling for Malcolm Fraser/Bob Carr conversation

Queuing for the next session

Movement between venues and sessions

Men in love

Andrew is cruising through Europe with his long term partner and this week he wrote how he couldn't bring himself to join the fun on the dance floor because of a silent sense of disapproval of displays of same sex relationships amongst fellow cruisers.

Gays of our generation, and I am a few years older than Andrew, know this feeling well.

Andrew's timing was exquisite, his post falling as it did between two public displays of man to man affection.

The first was ESPN televising Michael Sam's reaction at the moment he was notified that he been drafted into the National Football League. The interest in this event was that Sam is the first out gay man to be drafted to play in USA's most popular sporting competition.



Sam's reaction was first publicised on Twitter as a still shot from the video in which he was kissing and embracing his partner. As the photograph of a single moment in time that picture suggested a very passionate, almost sexual, moment. Seeing that moment in context the video reveals an emotional Sam sharing his joy - and probably relief - with presumably family, friends and his loved one in just the same manner as we view heterosexuals doing without any disapproval.

Whist the majority of published comments about Sam and his partner celebrating his selection have been supportive there were still a number of high profile highly negative reactions. The fact that people feel any need to comment at all about the situation indicates that GLBT individuals still have a long way to go for complete acceptance.

Fast forward a week or so to the Europa Cup Final (soccer) between Sevilla (Spain) and Benfica (Portugal) a match played in Italy and viewed by hundreds of millions around the world. Here adult men, presumably heterosexual, hugged, danced with excitement and even kissed each with joy.



Did anyone complain? Did anyone see the end of human civilisation through such public displays? Were Christianity, family values and the like threatened? Not that I am aware. But they were straight men and, of course, European. Enough said.

After the 'ball is over......

Football, that is. The crowds filling Platform 1 to the city at Olympic Park station after the Good Friday National Rugby League fixture this afternoon between South Sydney (the Rabbitohs) and Canterbury (the Bulldogs).

One train was about to arrive. I made it onto the following train.

A clockwork butterfly

Butterfly is married

Tonight, as regular as clockwork, a couple of minutes after 8pm I heard through my closed windows, the dull thud, thud, thud of fireworks going off. For the past three weeks, Tuesday to Sunday inclusive, those fireworks have sounded at virtually the same time. It is the moment that Butterfly marries her Pinkerton.

Opera on the Harbour is being staged adjacent to the Botanic Gardens about four kilometres from my home, I guess, as the crow flies. Each of the three outdoor opera seasons has had fireworks as an added inducement. In the first year the fireworks concluded the performance of La Traviata. The second year the fireworks came early in the final act of Carmen. This year the fireworks come at the earliest time of the evening; that point in Act 1 of Madama Butterfly when Butterfly has married Lieutenant Pinkerton.

This year the season has been marred by rain. It rained the night I attended and it rained tonight and it has rained on many of the nights. I wondered whether the performance could continue the night I attended and marvelled that it did and I have marvelled on subsequent nights that the performance was going ahead in even heavier, steadier rain. The sound of the fireworks told me so. Regularly at a couple of minutes past 8pm.

Tomorrow night is the final scheduled night. More rain is forecast. I won't be home at 8pm to hear that thud, thud, thud as I have a play to attend. I may have heard my last Opera on the Harbour fireworks as the gossip is that the seasons will not continue. If so, I will miss those fireworks but the compensation is that there seem so many marketing and special occasion excuses for fireworks on other nights of the year.

Queenly delicious

As promise earlier, a closer photograph of Queen Elizabeth, still dressed in the Mardi Gras outfit donned in the morning, berthed at Circular Quay as viewed in the rain from the forecourt of the Sydney Opera House.

(Click on photos to enlarge)

The berth had been vacated just prior to dawn by Costa Deliziosa which moved to anchor mid harbour off Athol Bay. I snapped the following photograph of Costa Deliziosa at anchor through the glass of the North Bar of the Sydney Opera House during interval of the matinee performance of 'Carmen' earlier this afternoon.

Large groups of passengers from both the vessels were on escorted tours throughout the Opera House during the day.

Costa Deliziosa sails from Sydney tomorrow evening at 6pm followed by Queen Elizabeth at 9pm. That allows passengers from both vessels to view tonight's Mardi Gras Parade if they wish to brave the rain and the crowds. Judging by the age and looks of the passengers I saw around the Opera House today I suspect their participation in the Parade, even as observers, will be most unlikely.

Ricky Martin at the NRL Grand Final

Here is a far better photograph of Ricky Martin performing at the NRL Grand Final than my distant pin prick of a photograph in the earlier post; taken from Mr Martin's Twitter account @ricky_martin

@ricky_martin

Reach for the sky

Between 2pm and 5.30pm yesterday, a series of aeronautical displays bridged the gap between the formal International Fleet Review earlier and the evening fireworks and light display.

Here are some photos; click on them to enlarge.

An F18 I think; very noisy, very fast

Something older, slower and quieter

A quartet of little things

An oddball pair

At 4pm the Rhapsody of the Sea departed for a cruise winding its way down harbour around the warships with the aeronautical display continuing overhead.

Rhapsody of the Sea with the Manly Ferry passing by

A Constellation

The Roulettes performed amazing acrobatics.

The Roulettes over the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House

The Roulettes with Rhapsody of the Sea passing out to the Pacific Ocean

The Roulettes back over the city

Going my way?

One Roulette went off on his own way doing loop the loops whilst the other four continued doing 'lazy' circles in the distance.

Plunging

Bottom of the loop; the other Roulettes in the background

Top of the loop; flying upside down

Spectators watching the Roulettes from Beare Park, Double Bay