William Kamkwamba

When he was just 14 years old, Malawian inventor William Kamkwamba built his family an electricity-generating windmill from spare parts, working from rough plans he found in a library book. See his interview on the right hand side of this site. If this does not move you stone your heart is.

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Taxi Story - The Iraqi (II)

(Slunk down in his seat, a quiet night on Macquarie Street). Hey, where do you want to go? St Leonards eh? Strange place. You had a long day? 5.30 in the morning start? You are crazy. It is  long enough for me starting to drive at 3pm.  I finish at 11pm. That is respectable. But not respectable enough Follow the white rabbit»

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Transcending Cultures

I was pleasantly, and genuinely surprised on my first visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to have a police car speed past me on the road from the airport - the surprise came from the familiarity of the car. It looked awfully like an Australian production vehicle. Sure enough, after a few days and plenty more sightings that indeed proved to be the case. The export of V6 and V8 Holden sedans to the house of Saud is an export success story, albeit an unsung one. On a subsequent visit I was amused to be caught in a traffic jam created by a broken down truck which was being shunted out of the way by one of those Holdens. The police car was not equipped with any bull bar with which to do this but had carefully nudged up then proceeded to carefully propel the truck off the freeway. It made me laugh - the Holden has been treated like this for decades back home but it did not require an Australian farmer with his Holden hack to show our Saudi friends how this car can can be treated. It was one of the few photos I felt safe taking of the police - shootings and killings of foreigners in the city (Riyadh) had everyone on edge and pointing a camera at law enforcement in that environment is not a good way of keeping a low profile!

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I am Bulletproof Until the Lord Determines Otherwise

These words leapt off the page when I was reading this week an article on those from Vermont who have died in the current mid East conflict (Article here, titled Home of the Brave). Apparently Vermont, with a tradition of military sacrifice going back to the Revolution, has recorded more combat deaths per head of population than any other state. Follow the white rabbit»

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Le Tour or Blue Label?

I have to confess to some disappointment with our press. And ourselves perhaps. Cadel Evans slogs his heart out for three weeks to finish the Tour De France in second place, within seconds of being the first Australian to win the race outright, and all our front page press here gives itself over to is the child of some media baron who apparently toasted his first child’s arrival with a drop or two of Johnie Walker Blue Label. Surname “Packer” helps no doubt. Perhaps we all would have been paying more attention if it was an Olympic silver medal Cadel had won but I do think three weeks of spotlight work (and months of preparation no doubt) is worth more than a back page mention, especially given the world stage on which he performed. No, I am not a cyclist but would like to think we recognise our achievers better than we have recognised Cadel. Or is it that our fatal flaw of loving the ratbag has gotten in the way, what with Sonny Bill Williams departing the NRL and kicking off to France to play union and abandoning his 5 year multimillion dollar football contract? Photo AFP: Joe Klamar

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Victorian Invercargill

My childhood recollections of Invercargill include a bullock being shot, and burning my feet in a mound of white ash - the logs had long since stopped smoking and the pile of talcum soft ash in the middle of Don’s paddock was too much to resist. It hid orange hot coals underneath. Follow the white rabbit»

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Sanaa Forge

When your jambiya (dagger)  becomes blunt from whatever it is that blunts it (cutting up qat?), or if it cracks from the weight of far too many admiring glances, drop down to the local forge in the heart of Sanaa and have it beaten back into shape by barefoot smithys who don’t seem to notice the molten blobs of metal bouncing off their feet, or the bounding hammer that swings down past their head to smash into the white hot metal held down by only a pair of old tin snips.  They put on a good show for their client who anxiously waits the outcome of the panel beating on his jambiya and who hopes the foreigner with the camera will just bug off since he does not need these two artisans showing off at the potential expense of his pride and joy thankyou very much!!

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Hear Ye, Hear Ye…

Larking about Trafalgar Square in hot woolen get up is not all it is cracked up to be. Especially in July when it is so terribly hot. Well, at least hot for London. Follow the white rabbit»

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Sunday At Collaroy

On a day like today we are not in any winter thrall to speak of. Wave after flat wave softly slushes into the sand and dies in a sigh, to be gently gathered up again and returned to the white hot glitter of blue sea diamonds which are spread out today under a clear sky and bright sun. Follow the white rabbit»

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Emanuel Ax LipSync

The third row in the main hall of the Sydney Opera House is a good place to be if you want the music, in this case Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.22 in E Flat, K482 to wash over you. It does so literally and figuratively and the sound cocoons  you up, inviting you to close your eyes and to be lost in it. And, if you are not careful, to start nodding off. It is 34 minutes of relaxation, through the seats prevent you from completely slipping away. The third row is also a good place from which to be distracted by all the movement happening in the violins and  cellos (you can’t see much orchestra beyond that)  and to watch the disheveled Emanuel Ax, Ukrainian (now American) piano magician run his fingers over the Steinway. But it was his mouth that caught my attention. For a moment I thought he was counting time and maybe he was. But it was pretty clear he had something else he was singing to the concerto as he got lost in his own music. I gave up trying to work it out and closed my eyes in order to enjoy it all the more, and did so hoping he was not simply running doh re me scales in his head.

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Top Secret Travel via Google Earth

In another life I was an imagery analyst in the military. Locked away in a bunker somewhere looking at images of all sorts from a myriad of sources. I enjoyed the stereoscopic work most of all, handling and caressing one dimensional data in a three dimensional illusion. It is an entirely convincing world - gamers understand the inclination to twist your head to look under a bridge - when there is nothing to look under. There is none of that adventure with Google Earth (regrettably) but I can easily find myself distracted by it nonetheless, taking myself on travels to places I have been, and others I have not - except in that three dimensional illusionary world. Let’s take a little journey to places that hint of that world. Follow the white rabbit»

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EV Lacertae Shows Off

Display Courtesy of God, Text Courtesy of NASA

“For many years scientists have known that our sun gives off powerful explosions, known as flares, that contain millions of times more energy than atomic bombs. Follow the white rabbit»

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