Quel dommage! I’m thinking about Australian-French relations in the light of the latest ‘spat’ over nuclear submarines. It would be a shame to sabotage (French word) our relationship with La Belle France over a few petite boats. I’ve been wondering how I can help. Firstly my mind drifts towards French cuisine. For example I’ve alreadyContinue reading "Australia France: la solution"
Eyebrows
Have you noticed young women’s eyebrows lately? A good percentage of millennials seem to have a permanent expression of surprise on their faces. Their eyebrows are enhanced and shaped to look like large, sleek caterpillars. There are even people who call themselves eyebrow technicians for goodness’ sake! I was pondering the weighty issue of eyebrowsContinue reading "Eyebrows"
Who needs the arts?
AN OPEN LETTER TO PRIME MINISTER MORRISON: Imagine a world without music. To get personal, Mr Morrison … imagine your charismatic church without the fabulous music that so inspires you and the congregation, and according to you, brings you closer to the divine? Birthdays, weddings, funerals. What do we agonise over, apart from the presentsContinue reading "Who needs the arts?"
My Mother’s Kitchen
‘No matter where I serve my guests, it seems they like my kitchen best’. This is the saying I stitched into a sampler, which is framed and now hangs in my renovated kitchen. Ah needlepoint. Yet another short-lived unfulfilled hobby, along with flute playing and stand up paddle boarding. I’d always aspired to have aContinue reading "My Mother’s Kitchen"
ANZAC DAY
ANZAC Day. I guess it means different things to different people. But we all continue to be touched by war down the generations. I note that the contingent of soldiers who march gets smaller every year and I wonder if the tradition will continue. There are now no surviving veterans of the Great War (WorldContinue reading "ANZAC DAY"
Have yourself a COVID little Christmas
Christmas 2020 will be a Christmas like no other. Come with me for a visit to Santa’s household in lockdown. With toys and supplies increasingly hard to come by, cranky, bored elves are playing mean little tricks on each other. Imagine the indignant howls ... ‘He started it!’ ‘Ouch! Stop pulling my hair!’ Then thereContinue reading "Have yourself a COVID little Christmas"
Covidupois Begone
Covidiot. Iso. The ‘Rona. Zoom. These are just some of the terms, along with ‘social distancing’ and ‘contact tracing’ which have marched unbidden into our lexicon in 2020 – this year of the great pandemic. And I’ve coined another word. Covidupois. I like to think of it as part French, part medical. It sounds importantContinue reading "Covidupois Begone"
Letter to Mother Nature
You’re probably wondering why I’m writing to you. To be honest, after your behaviour in what was known as the Black Summer of 2019 and 2020, I was ready to turn my back on you forever. That you could be so coldly cruel, so indiscriminately destructive. I know you’re just doing what comes naturally, butContinue reading "Letter to Mother Nature"
Life hacks a sticky problem
Do you get those annoying ads that come up on your Facebook feed? I seem to get loads of unsolicited information including the dreaded ‘life hacks’! A ‘life hack’ is a handy hint that shortcuts those boring bits of life, thus freeing you up to do the more enjoyable things – like hang gliding, partnerContinue reading "Life hacks a sticky problem"
Hugs
When COVID19 is just a bad memory, what will we remember? Will there be a legacy? I’m thinking here of constant hand washing, sneezing into our elbows and maintaining a ‘cassowary’ distance from our fellow humans. One thing I won’t be sorry to see return is the random, inappropriate, too-long hug. This form of socialContinue reading "Hugs"
Sue Wighton 