29 Day Giveaway Challenge

Yeah, puppies, I'm wondering too what I can give away next.  I'm not even half way through the 29 days and I've run out of things to easily give away.  I guess I'll have to go through the closets AGAIN!   Maybe this is when it starts getting fun?  Giving away stuff that isn't so easy?  Coming up with things that I may not want to let go of?  I'm going to have to give this some more thought......hm.m.m.m?  

Countown to

It's now about two hours until midnight and ...  Looking through last year's journal, I see that I only read 65 books.  For many years now, I've been keeping a list of books read each year.  One year it was over 100.  Usually it's around 80 or so.  I think this year's decline is due to two things: 1.  I began this blog and spend less time reading books and more time on my own blog and reading others; and 2. I've been reading thicker books and more  non-fiction.  
Here are a few photos of some of my books.  These are just a few places I keep books.  My collection of 600+ fiction is out in my art studio.  I ran out of room in the main house for them all.
The next two hours will be spent reading last year's journal, drinking hot chocolate, taking a long, hot bath while finishing Miss Buncle's Book, and watching the ball drop in  Times Square.
And Laurel, I'm NOT a flake.  I'm exactly where I want to be doing exactly what I want to be doing.  So there!

Words are inadequate

For a number of years, Springbrook has been one of my favourite destinations for getting away, be it for a few hours, or the whole day. It was a big challenge in my earlier years as a serious cyclist. As I improved it became a quick ride to fill in on days when I didn't have time to do 200km+ efforts. I've even described it as "only" Springbrook at times recently -- this is clearly a mistake. Firstly, because the climb is still a challenging one, and secondly, because it can turn on days like this one at any time. Even before the climb started, it was "on" today.





As I got higher on the mountain, I encountered a cow who would only move when a camera was pointed in his (her) direction.



And ran into hills that might well be green, given that this place claims the second highest rainfall on mainland Australia.



However, it was up at Goomoolahra where things got really interesting. Here, mere words are inadequate, I'll just let what I saw speak for itself...













However, not everything today was pristine and beautiful. It seems the developers have discovered the place -- an old farm has been subdivided and covered in trailer parks. There are other dwellings that weren't there on my last visit. While the National Park is protected, the surrounding areas on the escarpment are vulnerable, and South Queensland has the fastest rate of land clearing in the world -- which isn't a promising fact. It also seems that the new arrivals on the mountain have brought all of the anti-cyclist bigotry up from the coast.

For all of that though, I was still smiling on the descent. Springbrook remains capable of turning on days like this one at anytime, it's power remains. While I have plans to leave the Gold Coast at the end of 2006, I will still treasure my time on this mountain, and it will be one of the things that I genuinely miss when I move on. I'm sure I'll shed tears on my last ride of the mountain.

A Stand Out

One leaf stands out amongst the others.

More Images from the Balcony

The cherry tree is in full leaf now; blossoms are gone. The Mermaid rose on the arbor is beginning to put on its thousands of yellow blooms. It's so heavy that the arbor is about four inches off the ground in the front. We tried straightening it up, but it was useless. I guess when the whole thing comes crashing to the ground, we'll pick up the pieces, cut the rose bush to the ground, and start over. I had no idea that it would get so big. It's even trailing into the cherry tree.
The little table was once painted all white, but rust and birds have done their work. Yes, birds. I kept hearing a strange pecking sound on the balcony. When I looked out, I saw a bluejay peeling off sections of paint! I don't know if he ate them or made his nest waterproof, but he took off almost the whole top. Craziness!
We've got the sweetest little bluebird couple nesting on the front porch, but I'll save that for another day.

Devil's walking stick

Devil's walking stick, Aralia spinosa.
I grabbed onto one of these on a steep trail once, and really wished I hadn't. Floridata calls it "one of the most viciously spiny things in the vegetable kingdom".
Since then I've been a lot more aware of them. But until I looked up the latin name just now, I didn't realize that this was the same plant I'd been trying to identify since the spring.
Before the leaves fell off, and also when in bloom, it reminded me of an oversized elderberry. (But prettier, really -- click the top link.)
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Edited to correct a typo. Too anal to let it stand once I'd noticed it. Sorry sorry sorry.

The calm after the storm

It is very rare that I write about mid week rides on this blog these days. It seems I can't write anything without adding a picture, and I often don't bother to carry the camera on a quick 45km jaunt before work. For all that, however, I try to remember the camera if I'm going on a pre-work ride to Little Nerang Dam after a storm the previous night. On those occasions, there's probably a 90% chance that something spectacular will appear.

These pictures were taken at 5am, before public access to the area was even officially "open" that day. It makes me wonder just how many people are even aware of what happens out here at these times, but I also wonder how many people even care. I really believe that people are losing touch with nature, and that it's generally to their own detriment. Just take a look at the number of people living in large cities who rely on alcohol or various drugs (whether they be hard drugs, legal drugs or even anti-depressants) to get through life and you'll see what I mean. If these people put the same effort into escaping concrete as they do into obtaining their "fix", I think many of their problems would be rendered inconsequential by the sense of perspective they would gain.

On days like this, however, I have little concern for what other people are doing. I'm more interested in beholding the sight before me. On this particular day, I thought about the perspective I might get from a post-storm ride to the summit of Mt Nimmel. With the storm season in its infancy, I may get that opportunity in the future. On this day, however, I was more concerned with the beauty before me. The world is an amazing place.