Tag: Australia

Australia · daughter · freedom · photography

Pigs, Cockatoos?…..No, Koalas!!

Joanne10 Comments
A lazy Sunday afternoon, just the right day to hang around in a tree.
A lazy Sunday afternoon, just the right day to hang around in a tree.

As promised, here is the follow-up to my story and photos of the kangaroos I saw at South West Rocks. But be warned, you may not hear what you expected to about our cute little koalas!

Early in August my daughter and her boyfriend moved out of the house they had rented for the last year and of course, mum and dad’s assistance didn’t go astray in helping them move! It was a long, exhausting weekend, but by Sunday afternoon we could see that we had the biggest part of the task behind us.

Just after lunchtime, Ryan went out onto the balcony and when he came back inside he asked me, “Did you hear that bird screeching just then?” I told him that I had, then he said to me, “I think it was attacking a koala!”

“What?! Why didn’t you yell out to me; I could have taken a photo!”, amid thinking “they have koalas around here?!”

And here's a back view, see its fluffy ears?
And here’s a back view, see its fluffy ears?

Throughout the afternoon we continued to hear the screeching bird, which sounded like a cockatoo. But the weird thing was, we could also hear a pig snorting! Emma wasn’t at all surprised by the pig snort sounds though; apparently at a house nearly, they had a pet pig! (hmm, of course, a pet pig in suburban Gold Coast….why not a dog like everyone else?)

After a while it got the better of me and I told Emma that it was time for us to take a break from the packing and cleaning. Armed with my camera we went on a search for this pig, or cockatoo, or koala….whatever it was, I was determined to get photos!

It didn’t take too long for Emma to spot two koalas up in a tree, just across the road from where they lived. I asked had she ever seen koalas here before, seeing as they had lived here for a whole year I suspected there may have been a good chance they had.

The male koala chasing the female up the tree.
The male koala chasing the female up the tree.

“No, never”, Emma told me. How incredible that their final day living there (when I happened to be there with my camera!) was the day we saw them. This was my lucky day!

Suddenly the pig grunting started again, then the cockatoo screeched! And just at the same time as one koala chased the other up a tree!

Chin up exercises?
Chin up exercises?

What I have since learned is that during the mating season, a male koala will often make a loud grunting sound! Did you know that? No? It was news to me too! And if the female is playing hard to get, or not appreciating the males advances, she will screech like a bird! And here you were all thinking that koalas were quiet little cuddly creatures, weren’t you?

Well, that’s what I thought about them. I didn’t know they even made a sound at all! But they are very cute, rather bulky and fury as can be. These photos are a tad fuzzy as the tree they were playing chaseys in was a distance away from me and with other trees in front of the koalas it was difficult to get a good clear shot of them. I hope you can see them clearly enough though to appreciate just how adorable they are.

They move surprisingly fast when they climb the trees.
They move surprisingly fast when they climb the trees.

So there you are, both kangaroos and koalas do live in the wild in Australia! We may not see them every day, but what a treat it is when we do. 🙂

A typical image of a cute and cuddly koala, just what we imagine they should look like. :)
A typical image of a cute and cuddly koala, just what we imagine they should look like. 🙂
Australia · blessings · enchanting · freedom

Ask and it is Given ~ Kangaroos in the Wild.

Joanne9 Comments

What a treat to see a kangaroo coming up so close to my car!
What a treat to see a kangaroo coming up so close to my car!

Around the end of January this year you may remember that I did a series of posts on all things Australian. With Australia Day being celebrated on January 26th each year, it is a great time to take a look at Australian icons, and I really enjoyed sharing some of them here on my blog.

Karma asked if I would be showing you photos of any kangaroos or koalas. I told her at the time that I would see what I could come up with, having in mind that I could take a trip to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, about twenty minutes drive from my home, to take a few photos to show you some of our native animals.

Look, a whole little family!
Look, a whole little family!

Well, my trip to the wildlife sanctuary didn’t go to plan at that time, Mother Nature had other ideas for the people of the Tweed and Gold Coast areas. We spent weeks avoiding venturing outdoors, due to the tail end of a tropical cyclone hitting us!

The worst of the cyclone was over by the end of January, but the wet weather conditions continued for weeks. And what I really wanted you to see was kangaroos and koalas in their natural habitat and not in captivity.  I’ve heard that many of the people in other countries believe that Australians see koalas and kangaroos regularly, but the fact of the matter is that we don’t. Seeing our iconic marsupial mammals, which is what koalas and kangaroos are, in the wild is a huge treat for us too!

I didn’t forget Karma’s request, although I really wanted to see some native animals in the wild! As usual, The Universe responded to my request, and during the space of just one month I have had the privilege to see firstly kangaroos, then koalas, both in the wild!

I could see they were about to jump away and thought I wouldn't be seeing them again.
I could see they were about to jump away and thought I wouldn’t be seeing them again.

The kangaroos I found at a place called South West Rocks, where my son and I stayed a night at a motel on our way home from our trip down south in early July. Adam had been to South West Rocks with his father a couple of years ago when my husband took him there for a surf carnival. Adam loved the area and wanted us to spend a night there, telling me I would find heaps of very cool things to take photos of. I don’t think even Adam expected to see the kangaroos!

It was late afternoon when we arrived and by the time we had booked into our motel and headed out for a drive it was beginning to get dark, so the top photo, as you can see, has been taken at night-time. Regardless, I was thrilled to bits to actually see these kangaroos hopping around near my car!

Kangaroos legs are incredibly strong as you can see here by the way they jump.
Kangaroos legs are incredibly strong as you can see here by the way they jump.

The next morning Adam and I booked out of the motel early, to make the most of our time at South West Rocks before we headed home. First of all we drove to the lighthouse, where I took some photos of the lighthouse and the surrounding ocean. It is indeed an area of great beauty and Adam was right, I found plenty of photo opportunities there.

Next we went to Trial Bay Gaol. I won’t tell you about the gaol or the lighthouse now, but all will be revealed in a future blog post. I will tell you though that the gaol is no longer in use as a gaol!

As it was so early in the day we were the only car in the parking lot and all was quiet around the gaol, as I walked around snap, snap, snapping away with my camera. I walked up to the main entrance of the gaol and as I continued to take photos a movement caught my eye.

They jumped right up to me! Aren't they beautiful?
They jumped right up to me! Aren’t they beautiful?

At first I thought I was imagining things, but no, there they were, a mama, papa and little baby kangaroo ~ a whole family! All three looked very alert and I knew that they had heard the click of the camera and had seen me there, so I stayed still. Low and behold, suddenly, all three of them decided to come over and say hello to me!

I can’t begin to tell you how beautiful they were, with their big black-brown eyes, and the softest of fur. Well, I couldn’t touch them, they were behind the gate of the gaol, but I have touched kangaroo fur before and believe me, it’s very soft. I think it was all too much for the little joey tough as it quickly scurried into mama’s pouch once they had come over to me. The funny little thing, it didn’t right itself in the pouch though, so if you look carefully you will see one long, thin, black joey paw, peeking out of her pouch!

You can see here the little joeys long black hind leg sticking out of mama's pouch.
You can see here the little joeys long black hind leg sticking out of mama’s pouch.

The kangaroos stayed with me for a few minutes. I don’t know if they were expecting food, but I had nothing to give them, so after a short while they jumped away, out of sight.

Talk about magical moments. Anyone would have thought I was a visitor from overseas seeing kangaroos for the first time! It wasn’t just the joy of seeing them though and taking their photo. They were living freely in a wild habitat and not an animal sanctuary, and they trusted me enough to come right up close to me. What a privilege that was.

In my next post I will show you the koalas I saw. There is a funny story to the koalas, and I learnt a lot about them too! 🙂

And here's a close up photo of mama and papa.
And here’s a close up photo of mama and papa.

Australia · Changes · gardening · happiness · new beginnings

Allowing the Magic to Happen

Joanne12 Comments

???????????????????????????????

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” ~ Lao Tzu.

???????????????????????????????The days have flowed naturally forward for me this past month, in fact they have flowed with so much ease that I am wondering where the last month has disappeared to. It’s not a complaint, but more of a learning process than anything. I’m actually having difficulty in finding the words here to describe how I feel.

???????????????????????????????Resistance is subsiding. I would love to be able to declare that resistance has disappeared from my life completely, but there are still occasions when I will bristle slightly, catch myself and tell myself all is well. I have learnt how to calm any adverse feelings very quickly.

???????????????????????????????I’ll be the first to admit that the recent anesthetic I had for a small hospital procedure has played its part. For two weeks I floated through each day with my feelings wrapped in cotton wool. Without the thought stresses of everyday living my household chores were completed with ease, a raised voice didn’t bring any feelings of tension, so my world just wafted along on the late winter breezes.

???????????????????????????????In realising that my anxieties over any given situation would neither make nor break the outcome I could see the benefit in letting go, giving up resistance, staying calm, letting what will be ~ be. I would even go as far as saying that my calmness may have even neutralised situations where other family members were involved.

???????????????????????????????During my time of still being under the peaceful spell of an anesthetic I made the choice to continue this gentle life after the chemical cushioning had left me, to allow the magic of life to just happen.

???????????????????????????????Situations are what they are, people do not change unless they choose to do so themselves, the world continues to spin, night becomes day and day becomes night again. The sun continues to rise, the tides ebb and flow. Birds build their nests and look out for juicy worms to catch. A baby is born, someone loses a loved one. And these events will continue, day after day, whether I am stressing, or not.

???????????????????????????????This must be why there are people who become hooked on drugs or alcohol, I contemplate. When the cushioning is felt, it’s a feeling you want to have stay around forever. How sad it is though, when the addicts don’t realise that chemical substances will wear off, needing to be replaced time and time again. I wish for those people that they eventually can find the magic within themselves, without the chemicals.

???????????????????????????????Life experience has brought me to the place where I’m now at. The difficulties of life are our greatest teachers. If you have read my last two posts, you will know what I’m talking about, how resistance can take us to an unhappy place. Talking, honestly, the kind of talk in which we wear our heart on our sleeve to our loved ones is a great remedy.

???????????????????????????????Imaging the worst case scenario, which I did before my bliss-giving anesthetic, only to learn that there was nothing wrong with me in the first place was a real eye opener for me. Worry didn’t change the reality of the situation, but worry may, and probably would have, caused a major health issue. Who needs that?

???????????????????????????????We will always experience human feelings so long as we are alive. Joy, pain, happiness, sadness, we want to feel emotions, but what is worry, is it even a real emotion? I know it can be destructive, so I am working towards banishing it from my life completely. I hope you can do the same. Show worry, resistance and stress out the door; flow with the tides of life, accept and enjoy what is.

???????????????????????????????These beautiful kookaburras who came to my garden when we were digging around in the earth, waiting patiently for a worm or some other grub to show itself for them to swoop down and enjoy for their dinner don’t seem to have a care in the world. We have so much to learn from animals and birds. They stay calm, remain patient, don’t complain about the sun or the rain, cold or heat, and they don’t hold any grudges against that dratted bird next to them who catches the worm before they do!

???????????????????????????????We have the choice, we can choose to put our busy minds into neutral and allow the magic to happen. It takes practise, but it can be done. How cool is that? 🙂

???????????????????????????????

Australia · autumn · blessings · gardening · photography

Three Hours of Gardening Bliss ~ Part 1.

Joanne15 Comments
A Noisy Miner bird, watching me gardening from the safety of the lemon tree branches.
A Noisy Miner bird, watching me gardening from the safety of the lemon tree branches.

“Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of grace.” ~ May Sarton.

Mother Nature has waved her magic wand over our autumn days here in the Tweed Valley during the past week and today I have spent three hours in the garden, achieving much, yet feeling more energised at the end of the toil than I did before I began.

Miss Tibbs adds even more meaning to my time spent in the garden.
Miss Tibbs adds even more meaning to my time spent in the garden.

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” ~ Marcus Tullius Cicero.

I would change the above quote slightly, to read, “If you have a garden to share with a fury friend or two, along with a few feathered friends, you have everything you need. If you also have a library, where you can sit quietly with a book whilst your aches and pains disappear after the gardening, with a hot cup of coffee, you are doubly blessed.”

Another recent regular visitor to the skies above my home, a Brahminy Kite.
Another recent regular visitor to the skies above my home, a Brahminy Kite.

The blue skies were dotted with clouds of a million-and-one shades of white and grey today. A pair of Brahminy Kites flew silently overhead, but I could only get one at a time in a photo. You’ll have to take my word for it, there were definitely two Kites here today.

Massive balls of cotton wool, floating overhead.
Massive balls of cotton wool, floating overhead.

“A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.” ~ Gertrude Jekyll.

There were a few grey clouds among the white balls of fluffy cotton clouds, yet the sun continued to shine all day long.

Look at that intense shade of blue in the sky!
Look at that intense shade of blue in the sky!

Looking up at the expanse of blue sky with the explosions of white clouds can be absolutely breath-taking on a day like today.

Miss Tibbs so enjoys her time in the garden.
Miss Tibbs so enjoys her time in the garden.

“What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have never been discovered.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Miss Tibbs and I are totally on the same page when we are in the garden together. I can completely relate to the way she rolls and rolls over the grass, with the sun shining and warm on her silky fur, showing her absolute delight in the garden.

A touch of striking red.
A touch of striking red.

When I crawled under my Tibouchina tree to remove a few weeds (and as my hands were playfully grabbed by Miss Tibbs), I came across this magnificent red flower. Actually, there were more than one of these flowers on the plant. It may be a Bromeliad, but I’m not absolutely sure.

Pink carpet.
Pink carpet.

My Camellia is covered in precious pink flowers this autumn, so delicate and beautiful. Even the fallen petals still look absolutely glorious.

The overseer of all things garden related.
The overseer of all things garden related.

“What a man needs in gardening is a cast-iron back, with a hinge in it.” ~ Charles Dudley Warner, My Summer in a Garden, 1871.

My only complaint about gardening is the aches and pains I feel in my body when I return indoors. If the discomfort is there whilst I’m gardening, it wasn’t noticed today, although I have become familiar with a few previously unknown muscles tonight! But it isn’t really a bad complaint. Gardening wouldn’t be gardening without the excercise.

Another fury helper.
Another fury helper.

My beautiful Tess came down to the garden with me today too. She’s ten now and she hurt her front paw a couple of years ago, which has left her walking with a limp. Tess doesn’t venture too far from the house nowadays, but she did enjoy her time in the sun today.

Did I hear something?

Always alert, always the Protector of Family and Home, Tess doesn’t rest for too long, but a word of reassurance had her enjoying her place in the sun again before long.

Is there any Chai tea left for Miss Tibbs to share?
Is there any Chai tea left for Miss Tibbs to share?

As I headed back towards the house, Miss Tibbs sat on my garden seat, next to my empty mug. Was she telling me it was time for another coffee break?

My little friend, the Butcher Bird.

“There can be no other occupation like gardening in which, if you were to creep up behind someone at their work, you would find them smiling.” ~ Mirabel Osler.

I don’t know if I smile when I am spending time in the garden. I’m not conscious of physically smiling, but I’m always aware of smiling on the inside!

“In the garden I tend to drop my thoughts here and there.  To the flowers I whisper the secrets I keep and the hopes I breathe.  I know they are there to eavesdrop for the angels.” ~ Dodinsky.

I have more photos to share of my time in the garden today and will add those here next time, but for now I will end today with a photo of the beautiful moon I saw tonight, smiling down at the front door of my home. 🙂

Do you see the face of the man in the moon? :)
Do you see the face of the man in the moon? 🙂
Australia · blessings · ducks · enchanting · gratitude

In January ~ An absurdly beautiful sight.

Joanne12 Comments

???????????????????????????????

“There was no sign of anybody, no sound of voices or feet. Tubs of arum lilies stood about on the stone floor, and on a table flamed a huge bunch of fierce nasturtiums. Spacious, flowery, silent, with the wide window at the end opening into the garden, and the Judas tree absurdly beautiful in the sunshine, it seemed….too good to be true.” ~ The Enchanted April.

On the last day of January I wanted, no, needed, to remember the joys of this month, as this, the middle month of the most harsh season of the year draws to a close.

I had spent the day alone, at home, with not a soul in sight; no sound of voices or feet. I don’t know why I looked outside when I did. I am so glad I did though, for there, just outside the door of my home, were my two old friends the Australian Wood Ducks, regular visitors to my garden who I haven’t seen since early September.

In that moment, all of the heat, rain, floods and cyclones of January didn’t seem to matter any more. Seeing these two creatures, so absurdly beautiful, having returned to my garden at long last, was truly enchanting. I had almost forgotten how beautiful they are, but only almost.

January is the month the ducks returned; January will remain in my memory as being an enchanting month.

???????????????????????????????