Thoughts on Spring Equinox in Oz

This morning, I ran in the dimness before good light, the pavement damp from rain, the air thick with humidity, the Australian dawn chorus strong with voices of figbirds, oriole, magpies, and lorikeet...

Aussie Doves and Pigeons

This morning while striding briskly alongside the golf course, I noted peaceful doves foraging on the ground and crested pigeons perched on overhead wires, the former species one of the most common bi...

The Ill-fated Burke and Wills Expedition

In Sarah Murgatroyd’s book The Dig Tree: The Story of Burke & Wills1, a black-and-white photograph taken around 1911 shows the sprawling trunks of a coolibah tree. A section of the tree̵...

Alice in the Rain

In the darkness before dawn, rain like none Vilis and I had heard since the depths of the Wet pounded down onto the metal roof of our rental house. In first light, I saw flooded raised beds and patios...