Failure To Launch

This "baby" brushtail possum in Mount Nebo was almost as big as it's mum but she still managed to haul it up and down trees and along balconies in search of any food scraps from our table. Poor old mum!

Pillared Pathway

Orleigh Park, West End.

Roadside Waterfall

When Brisbane gets a big downpour, like we did on Saturday night, you get little roadside waterfalls happening. There are plenty of hills and rock-faces around the city to help the water on its merry way down hill. This one on Mount Coot-tha then flows onto the nearby road...which can add a bit of a thrill to the drive.

Traffic Stopping Art (number 40)

Welcome back to the traffic signal box series! This is one of two boxes by artist Mark Makhoul that adorn the outside of the fire station on Roma Street. (See the other one here.)

Shiny Happy Purple

Plants in Brisbane seem to grow right infront of your eyes at this time of year. When the sun shines after the warm summer rain, colours and brightness is exaggerated and everything sparkles!

Moon Aura Skywatch

The full moon on Saturday night lit up the Brisbane sky with a giant aura surrounding it. So big that my lens, a foot off the ground at 18mm, could only just fit it in. I've never really noticed these auras before so went online to try and find out more about them but nothing concrete came up. Does anyone have any ideas on what causes this to happen?

See more skies posted today from around the world at Skywatch Friday.

Places of Worship

Side by side, Christ Church and Suncorp Stadium.

The little memorial garden that I featured a couple of days ago is just behind this church.

The One, The Only...

...imposters beware!

Curiosity got the better of me so I googled this interesting old building on Charlotte Street in the CBD. I Love Brisbane supplied me with an explanation. It seems the "HIMSELF" bit was because John Mills, a printer, had previously been part of a business partnership. When it dissolved, he went out on his own and advertised accordingly.

City Moon Rise

Did you see the moon on Saturday night? It was big and full. It lit up the clouds around it in Brisbane and occasionally peeped out from behind them.

February Theme Day: Wood

There's this beautiful old house in Milton. It's got a wood frame, wood gables, a wood balcony and these rustic looking wood shingles all over it. It stands stoically on one of the busiest intersections in Brisbane braving the weather, pollution, thundering trucks and stadium crowds who file past regularly in their thousands.

This picture is part of the City Daily Photo theme day which happens on the first of every month.
Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Rest And Play

The site of the Suncorp Stadium (or Lang Park as it is also known), " The Home of Rugby League", is built on a big old graveyard. The little Anglican church is still in use and sits in the shadow of the enormous venue. The memorial garden with grave stones in it stands right next to the stadium with big plate glass windows walling one side of the garden and offering a view of the seats inside. It's a strange combination...

Thirsty Work

XXXX Brewery, Milton

Promises, Promises... Skywatch Friday

It's pretty muggy and humid here in Brisbane at the moment. We're waiting for a nice storm to clear the air and the weathermen keep predicting one but so far, nothing. This ominous looking cloud crept over Bardon on Wednesday just after 6pm. It hung around looking threatening for a few minutes and then just sort of disappeared. Maybe today will be the day...

ps I've just got up, it's 5.30am and it's been raining since 2.45am....bliss!

Steam

Dotted around Brisbane Square at the bottom of Queen Street are some big metal balls, made from copies of World War Two steamers welded together. Collectively, the installation is known as "Steam" by Aussie artist Donna Marcus. You get people pushing them around, posing infront of them and on top of them and peering into them. At night they light up in different colours and brighten the place up quite nicely, I reckon.

Looking Up On Elizabeth Street

There's a lot to see when you look up in Brisbane's CBD (central business district). Nestled in amongst the towers of steel, elaborate cornices and mouldings, buildings with curious names, dates and crests.

Talking Turkey

I have to admit this shot is a bit of a cop-out on my part. Brush (or Scrub) Turkeys roam the streets and gardens on Brisbane. They are wild creatures and are usually found scavenging for food in people's gardens. When I first moved here I couldn't believe these big birds were just wandering around the suburban streets. Last year I got the idea for a photo of one crossing the road which is a fairly common occurence ... and the title of the blog post being "why did the brush turkey cross the road?" with the answer being something like..."because there were some gardens on the other side that it hadn't ruined yet". I have been stalking these scrawny things with my camera for the best part of a year but they sense you near them and they just run around all over the place, often into the middle of the road. Sometimes they can't make up their mind what they're doing and go side to side trying desperately to get out of your way. I promise you I haven't gone out to traumatise them - they're just not very bright. Anyway, the numerous resulting photos are pretty bad. Nothing is in focus because I've been doing it in low(ish) light in the mornings and of course because I've got an erratically moving target. On the weekend, I was sitting in my back garden when one hopped on the fence. It sat eyeing me warily and kept a mindful distance until the neighbour's kids came out to play on the other side. You could see the indecision and panic rising. It got up and started pacing a up and down the length of the fence. getting dangerously close to me... which is when I snapped it. Sorry, no suburban street context. No crossing-the-road gag. This is about as good as it gets for me. I'm copping out.

When it could take no more, mustering up some primal urge, it flapped its ragged wings furiously and threw itself into the lowest bough of a nearby tree.

If you like turkeys, read a turkey poem by Benjamin Zephaniah here.

Oh and by the way.... Happy Australia Day!

Finger-licking good!

This is a finger lime, something I didn't know existed until a year or two after I moved here. They are quite difficult to grow and take a long time to fruit so you don't see them much around. Mostly in posh restaurants. Looking at the photo, I should have put something in there to give it some scale. It's about the size of a man's finger (funnily enough). They are an Australian rain-forest native fruit containing caviar-like beads that explode with a sharp limey tartness when you bite down on them. Great with fish... even greater with a gin and tonic.

Vehicles Will Be Towed Away

Brisbane City Council are impounding shopping trolleys and holding them to ransom, asking the supermarkets to pay $107 per trolley for their release. It's made me notice them around a lot more, often a long way from home, lonely... but with a nice view.

They were the envy of all the other vegetables at the market...

West End Markets, this morning.

Do You See The Light?

The rainclouds of recent weeks have finally cleared leaving gardens bursting with life, calf-high grass and plants I thought I had killed back in July suddenly and miraculously poking through the soil. As someone said to me the other day "nothing like rain to make the plants grow". Too true!

For other sky-gazing participants, visit the Skywatch Friday portal.

A Contradiction in Terms

This is Brisbane's big casino all lit up. It's called the Treasury Casino as the beautiful colonial building it's housed in used to contain Brisbane's Treasury. Humourous, no?

"Too Much Of Good Thing Can Be Wonderful" (Mae West)

There's an over-supply of mangoes at the moment in Brisbane. They're literally falling off the trees and lying in the streets. There are some very well-fed birds and insects wandering around.

Anyone know a good mango daiquiri recipe?

Traffic Stopping Art (number 39)

Here's one of the painted traffic signal boxes outside the fire station on Roma Street. Many of the boxes around Brisbane are site-specific, particularly if they are near a landmark. This one was painted by Mark Makhoul.

If you are interested in Brisbane's painted traffic signal boxes there's an interesting 5 minute film about them here.

Stars and Stripes

Alright you can't see too many stars in this shot - they were there, I promise you!... will the star-bursts around the street lights do?

William Jolly Bridge dressed in its stripey blazer.

Fancy Bridge Ahoy!

This is a night time view of one of the lighthouses that projects several patterns a week onto the William Jolly Bridge. Tomorrow, come back and see it in its stripey skin.

Friday Night Boogie

I had an extremely rare Friday night by myself so decided to stroll around town with my camera. This is Brisbane Square where last night there was a dj and sound system set up and people getting down to salsa music. I thought maybe it was a special event but one guy told me it's run by Brisbane City Council and is on every Friday night. I really should get out more.

Theme Day: Best of 2009 (and Skywatch Friday)

Today is City Daily Photo's "Best Photo Of 2009" theme day.

Here's the view looking directly down Charlotte Street to the casino. It's taken from a third of the way up the Riparian Plaza building during Brisbane's annual Riverfire celebrations in September. I've cropped it from the original photo posted here. The Brisbane sky lit up in a frenzy of fireworks which lasted 30 minutes, turning it a smoky indigo colour. Click on the picture for a detailed view.

Before the night that I took this picture, I had never taken photos of fireworks before. I went on the internet that afternoon and got a few handy hints and when the time came, I just couldn't believe the results - it was a real confidence booster. It helped also that I had access to the 16th floor of a building right in the middle of things. I didn't notice until afterwards how the lights of the fireworks behind me were reflected on the closest buildings in the picture.

For other skies around the world, visit Skywatch Friday

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants in the best of 2009 daily photo event.

Longland Street Art 3

This is part of a long wall in Newstead with striking paintings all down it. I don't have much information on it but the huge amount of work gone into it suggest it might have been commissioned.

Art Deco Lecco

Part of the electricity substation on Montague Road in South Brisbane. I love this style with name and number rendered onto the building.

Postcard from the Mary Valley

I'm back from a week in the Mary Valley, about 2 hours' drive north of Brisbane so I realise here I am encroaching on Sunshine Coast Daily Photo territory but... well... I just had to share the view from my deck early yesterday morning. The air was warm for 5.15am - probably about 22-23 degrees celcius. Occasionally you would hear the odd bird echoing over the hills and there was no wind at all - just this low-lying mist. It was almost like the valley was holding its breath.

Brolly on the Jolly

Another shower passes over the William Jolly Bridge with a poinciana tree in bloom in the foreground.


Thanks for visiting! I'm away at the moment... back tomorrow!