Blue Mountains – latest article

  • BLACKHEATH POND; WOOD DUCKS AND RAILS
    BLACKHEATH POND; WOOD DUCKS AND RAILS
    The other day two strange little, big footed birds came tumbling down the steps outside my kitchen window at Blackheath. When I described them to my partner he said, ‘Oh yes, I’m sure I’ve seen them too, down by the duck pond.‘ We live close by the...
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History – latest article

  • THE RYAN MURDER AT WYCHEPROOF
    THE RYAN MURDER AT WYCHEPROOF
    Martin Ryan  owned  a grazing property at Thalia, a few miles from Wycheproof in the region of Victoria known as the Wimmera. Ryan had originally purchased a modest holding at just 30 shillings per acre.  Over the years  he increased  his property to 3,000 acres. By 1928...
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Humour – latest article

  • 'BAD SANTA' AT BLACKHEATH
    ‘BAD SANTA’ AT BLACKHEATH
    Revenge on ‘Bad Santa’ by Editor Des. Warning, there is a degree of violence depicted in this story. Every Christmas there is a confrontation at our Blue Mountains home between an elderly, battery powered walking Santa and my young associate Editor Des. Santa marches straight up to...
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Travel – latest article

  • Collage of Blue Mountains Birds.
    ‘THE STUDIO’ AT ACER CORNER
    The Studio was home for myself and my partner Rob  while we built our new house at Blackheath, in the beautiful Blue Mountains. Now that we have moved out we have decided to let the detached property to birdwatchers, bushwalkers and nature lovers on a short stay...
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Latest Blog Posts

  • Lichens on rock
    BLACKHEATH ROCKS! 😎
    Blackheath rocks  in their giant, natural form are a tourist’s delight. On  a domestic scale, they are a wonderful resource for property owners.  Sometimes  I think I could turn our entire Blue Mountains  garden into a  commercial quarry. The rocks that come  out the ground here  are...
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  • WEDDING WOES!
    WEDDING WOES!
    Reflecting on a 1970s wedding. This piece was prompted by finding one of my sticky old photo albums, and is why many of the images  used leave a lot to be desired. They are now impossible to remove.   OK, so my partner Rob and I first ...
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  • MURDER UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE 🎄
    MURDER UNDER THE CHRISTMAS TREE 🎄
    What a delight Murder  Under the Christmas Tree  turned out to be.  This book really was under my Christmas tree, a perfect gift  to myself. It was first published in 2016, by Profile Books. As the title suggests, it is an anthology of ten short stories  with a...
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  • GOOSEBERRY PIE - WORST DESSERT IN THE WORLD?
    GOOSEBERRY PIE – WORST DESSERT IN THE WORLD?
    There were very few things that my darling mother did just  to please herself rather than everyone else in the family. However,  the exception was her  making of ghastly gooseberry pies. She loved those horrible, sour little fruits. Our Tasmanian orchard was a bit of a disaster...
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