The Calvary Memorial
The Calvary Memorial DM 31st May 2025 A hundred years ago, Edwin Markham wrote a poem to celebrate the life of Abraham Lincoln, which was chosen from 250 entries to be read at the opening of the Lincoln Memorial. In it he eulogized warmly and well; and among the choice lines are these: “His words […]
The Woodman
The Woodman DM 24th May 2025 The winter firewood arrived this week, and right on time to meet the drop in temperature. Pilliga wood, which burns well and long and without excessive smoking. While stacking it, I was reminded of the tragic story of a travelling-man who offered to chop some firewood for a poor […]
Dune erosion
Dune erosion DM 17th May 2025 Some sixty years ago, Frank Herbert, author of the enormously popular Dune series, wrote the following conversation in the first book of his famous trilogy: ‘Why do you test for humans?’ / ‘To set you free.’ / ‘Free?’ / ‘Once men turned their thinking over to machines in the […]
Please Stop
Please Stop? DM 10th May 2025 I think it was during Hans Zimmer’s Absurdity that I went into cardiac arrest. Well nearly. He’s always one for the big movie sound, and thought instead of having one bass guitar, he’d have three. The stadium shook. My body shook. My heart was experiencing rhythms it had never […]
Nitpicking
Nitpicking DM 3rd May 2025 Former editor of the Sydney Morning Herald, John D Pringle once reminisced about one of his former bosses, A P Wadsworth, a short man whom he intellectually respected and sincerely admired, but who was deemed by some young journalists to be a micro-manager, nitpicker and interferer. For Pringle reports a […]
The Bunker
The Bunker DM 26th April 2025 In my preferred version of football, Rugby League – the greatest game of all – there is an umpiring unit called “The Bunker”. It’s a place where a second referee sits in front of many TV monitors, to handle calls for the review of on-field decisions. But not a […]
And Peter
And Peter DM 19th April 2025 Peter must have been a blubbering mess on that late Thursday night preceding Jesus’ crucifixion. The brave man had lost his nerve in a moment of trial, and denied three times that he had any association with Jesus the Nazarene; even making his protestations with an oath. When the […]
That’s not a knife
That’s not a knife DM 12th April 2025 It’s now nearly forty years since that iconic scene in Crocodile Dundee, when an American gangster threatens Mick Dundee with a knife, only for Mick to look condescendingly at the weapon, and say, “That’s not a knife!” – then to draw out his own blade, wave it […]
A Purple Paradise
A Purple Paradise DM 5th April 2025 I wonder if anyone in the history of the world has ever combined all their so-called special (‘purple’) days into one. For instance, they celebrated their birthday in the morning, their wedding in the afternoon; in the evening they received their statement of clearance from university debt, and […]
Navigating life
Navigating life DM 29th March 2025 We were doing a complex cross-city journey. My wife was driving and decided to turn on maps. I hadn’t heard the nav-man for a while, and it was good to hear his voice again. But sad to say, some of his instructions were not followed. Yet he remained patient. […]