The Hall of Fire

Tony Abbott is something of a fitness fanatic, and his trademark is a pair of red speedos. He's been very keen to push the notion that he has the stamina to be PM. As opposed to Julia Gillard who appears to have gone for style. Whether or not either of these succeeds over substance is yet to be seen...

I’m watching the election coverage, and it’s not making comfortable viewing. On the ABC’s coverage Stephen Smith (Foreign Minister in the Rudd/Gillard governments) is sounding severely downbeat, to the point of being downtrodden. There has been a strong swing against Labor in most seats. At this poi...

...Your dog is never "just a dog" and your cat is never "just a cat", know what I'm saying?... Absolutely. Our little cat - practically the last thing he did was gently push his face against my arm and purr. I was holding him, waiting for my husband to come home so that we could...

Has anyone seen this? http://www.youtube.com/lifeinaday Life in a Day is a historic global experiment to create a feature film, shot in a single day, by you. On July 24, you have 24 hours to capture a glimpse of your life on camera. The most compelling and distinctive footage will be edited into an ...

Character assassination, tall poppies, call it what you will, it’s due in part to poor or deceitful journalism, part to time pressures to fill airtime, part to peer-pressure ... networks have to out-horrify each other to attract audiences and be ‘first with the news’ ... part to the over-reliance on...

The look on the poor dog's face!

The situation with the election is deemed so interesting that a debate between Gillard and Abbott has been bumped on Sunday night so that it doesn't clash with Master Chef. Reality TV wins out, apparently. To be honest, to date it has all been fairly non-remarkable. Gillard called the election predi...

Very interesting article River. I am not in any way a scientist, but it seems to me that having two populations of finch in such a confined location is a little like having a test tube case of nature pushing a species inexorably into extinction.

Thanks for posting.

I obviously picked a bad week for no internet and no TV! It has been the most weird couple of months in Labor politics, with this past 24 hours (as Lord M says) being the most shocking. Rudd's performance over so many recent matters has been controversial, to say the least that it was inevitable tha...

The other day I was in a family restaurant which had TV screens up on the wall. It was sitting on a sports channel, and when the cricket ended the next program was one of those wrestling programs. You know the sort, the completely staged, ones where the wrestlers posture and grimace and have fabulou...

Jack Thompson is good - and has been in just about every major Australian film since the industry was reinvented in the mid 70s. If you want a fine example of his work try Breaker Morant.

That being said, he's not the first one I'd think of for Thorin. But I'm sure I could get used to the idea.

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e271/aramonrose/postcard.jpg Hi Everyone, I’m currently sitting on a rock. : ) J and his team are playing football at the oval at Callan Park this morning, and he’s graciously given me permission to go for a walk instead of playing spectator. So I have wandered hap...

I am too Rodia, though the occasion was so sad.Thank you for sharing your memories, impressions and images with us.

Rodia, my thoughts are with you and the people of Poland. This is such a tragedy, so very sad.

The ABC is taking the unpredecedented step and 'broadcasting' this episode via its iplayer on 16 April at midnight. I'll definitely be up and watching, and hoping the server doesn't collapse under the strain.

I'm a little puzzled that 'human rights' are Orwellian. :scratch: Solictr, for all its rhetoric, the article simply seems to be stating that the Council is investigating a submission made to it. Which, in fact, they are compelled to do even if the allegations subsequently prove to be false. The subm...

I stayed up too late to watch the (very delayed) telecast of Academy Awards for films I hadn't seen - some of which haven't even been released here yet, some of which I'd never heard of! I still enjoy it, in a slightly cynical way. I'm up there with best of the when it comes to critiquing the frocks...

This is such a beautiful post, Sassafras, it has brought tears to my eyes. You have caught it exactly - Sam's intuitive understanding of what is real, what is important, what is the correct order of things. I'd always thought this was a sign of his connection to the earth. He knows things, or unders...

Lovely performances in the women's figure skating, and Joannie Rochette's -well, so sad for her. :( I'd like to mention Cheltzie Lee, a 16 year old from the outer western suburbs of Sydney, who has made it in to the finals. She was only included in the Australian squad 3 weeks ago when a spot unexpe...

Alatar wrote:...
"They're all about teenagers and bitching. There's enough of that in real life. I like reading books about different worlds and things that can't happen in real life. What's that called?"

"Fantasy, honey. Its called Fantasy."

Best.Answer.Ever.