tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338968877925075892024-03-19T08:46:33.366+11:00Kate's BlogKate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.comBlogger1198125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-6158249431537233972024-02-13T16:41:00.000+11:002024-02-13T17:01:40.320+11:00A Refusal to Die of White History: ModewarreModewarre by Patricia SykesSpinifexPp. 90Modewarre is the indigenous word
for musk duck, a creature at home on land, water and air. Through her poetry, Patricia
Sykes explores various histories and the boundaries between them which blur and
blend. She splits the poems into three sections: House of the Bird, House of
Water, and House of Detention, examining words and their connotations, Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-78698063776880916732024-02-09T08:35:00.004+11:002024-02-11T14:21:39.565+11:00Friday Five: Books in SongOne of the books I read last month was by Richard Brautigan. I read it because of the song, Have You Ever Heard a Digital Accordion by the fabulously bonkers band, The Lovely Eggs. And it made me think how much I have learned from music, as lyrics have frequently piqued my interest to learn more about historical, political and literary facts and figures. So here are five authors referred to Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-37520792189375562722024-02-02T09:39:00.001+11:002024-02-08T18:48:45.378+11:00Friday Five: Books Read in JanuaryThe Chimney Sweeper's Boy by Barbara Vine (Viking) - When
Gerald Candless, a critically acclaimed author dies, his daughter, Sarah, is
asked to write a memoir of her beloved father. As she starts to research his
childhood and origins – i.e. his life before she was born – she soon discovers
multiple discrepancies in the narrative. There follows a domestic investigation
into family Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-87621925631391806422024-01-26T11:11:00.001+11:002024-01-27T11:36:29.834+11:00Friday Five: Curiouser and CuriouserI have signed up to a monthly cross-stitch subscription through Spruce Craft. Each month I get a tidy package delivered to my door containing fabric, threads and designs for four themed cross-stitches. The first one I did was in October and the theme was from Alice in Wonderland. The December collection was sparkling hearts and unicorns. I turned some of them into cards and sent them to Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-72859174287931898712024-01-23T12:43:00.001+11:002024-01-23T13:17:53.049+11:00What Lies Beneath? The Opal DesertThe Opal Desert by Di MorrisseyMacmillanPp. 406Di
Morrissey sets place extremely well. In her dozens of novels, the scenery and
landscape are immediate and infinitely better drawn than her characters or
plotlines. The Opal Desert is,
unsurprisingly, set in Lightning Ridge, Broken Hill, Opal Lake, and White
Cliffs, where most people are exceptionally friendly and we learn about the
precious Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-55593540088657705422024-01-19T06:08:00.000+11:002024-01-19T13:45:28.827+11:00Friday Five: TV I've Been WatchingHere is the latest in the sporadic round-up of TV programs I've been watching. I've got a running list for the past 18 months or so, so here is a list of a few of them over in alphabetical order. Five TV Shows I've Been Watching:Beckham (Netflix) - You simply couldn't avoid the hype for this Netflix documentary about the golden couple. As it was aimed at an American audience, I wasKate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-62860693596597419522024-01-16T13:46:00.001+11:002024-01-17T12:35:10.376+11:00Entry-Level Feminism by the Book: A Month of SundaysFour people who
have met as part of an on-line book group take a month to go to a cottage in
the Blue Mountains to talk about books – what bliss! When the club set out ten
years ago, there were more members, but over the years the numbers decreased,
leaving these four women who still had their regular meeting via Skype. Although
they have been part of the book club for ten years, they have never Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-24623542112536211462024-01-05T09:22:00.001+11:002024-01-06T09:27:08.940+11:00Friday Five: Top 10 Films of 2023On the back of last week's Friday Five, which was actually a top ten, I am doing another for the first Friday of the year. These are my favourite films I have seen in 2023 that were released in 2023 in the country in which I am living. The films are listed in alphabetical order.Asteroid City: Wes Anderson creates another post-modern take on post-modern films. Full of sharp lines (visual and Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-75267593979273998332023-12-29T14:42:00.003+11:002024-01-06T09:18:22.555+11:00Top Ten: Favourite Theatre in 2023Michael Sheen in Amadeus at Sydney Opera HouseI realise it's a Friday and that's usually a Friday Five, but as it's the end of the year, I give you a double episode, so here are my ten favourite theatre productions that I have seen this year (in alphabetical order):Amadeus - Sydney Opera House, Red Line Productions, and the Metropolitan Orchestra, Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House: Let'sKate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-19555348975943229882023-07-28T11:22:00.001+10:002023-12-22T18:04:21.290+11:00Friday Five: Books Read in July Books read in July:Quichotte by Salman Rushdie - Shortlisted for the 2019, Quichotte, is a breathtakingly sophisticated novel of postmodern genius, featuring a picaresque style and a desperately ordinary protagonist. Sam DuChamp is an Indian-born writer living in America, who has written a number of unsuccessful spy thrillers. Hoping to write a book "radically unlike any other he Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-40053394189888445502023-07-25T11:27:00.001+10:002023-12-01T11:00:48.074+11:00You Keep It All In: A Clear ConscienceA Clear Conscience by Frances FyfieldCorgiPp. 284Helen West is a prosecutor in
domestic violence cases, and this is her fifth outing in novels by Frances
Fyfield, although that is not obviously apparent from this edition. The fast-paced
and bleak thriller is set in the world of back-street boozers, wife abusers, ex-boxers,
and knock-off perfume. The crime is both petty and serious, as Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-28687974673165232362023-07-21T18:08:00.002+10:002023-11-29T10:02:14.594+11:00Friday Five: More TVI haven't done this for a while, which means there is a whole lot to catch up on. So without further ado...Five TV Shows I've Watched Since the Last Time I Did This, in Alphabetical Order:Death in Paradise (ABC iView, BINGE, Foxtel) - I love this utterly preposterous series. It is total comfort TV, of the 'cosy murders' trope, and I, along with many others I'm sure, binge-watched it through COVIDKate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-61486438285417031312023-07-18T12:36:00.001+10:002023-11-15T09:55:57.334+11:00Gardeners' Sexist Time: Mr. MacgregorMr. Macgregor by Alan TitchmarshPocket BooksPp. 341English
gardener, broadcaster, TV presenter, poet and journalist, Alan Titchmarsh, has
written a novel. Sticking to the advice of ‘write what you know’, he has set it
in the glamorous world of TV gardening shows, and the stereotypical gender roles
of the 1980s. Apparently
gardeners are sexy these days and a valued staple of any TV station’s Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-87702886512188718782023-07-14T20:05:00.001+10:002023-11-14T16:29:52.945+11:00Friday Five: Next on StageAt Dinner - ACT Hub Development Initiative, ACT Hub: In this new piece of writing by Rebecca Duke, we witness a date between two diners (Thea Jade and Timothy Cusack) and their interaction with the third actor (Nakiya Xyrakis), a server in the restaurant. The audience, served by the waiter and given a program in the form of a menu, are included as patrons into the proceedings. Director, Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-62523284813750047162023-07-11T18:04:00.001+10:002023-09-21T09:34:18.789+10:00Fine Print: Terms & ConditionsTerms and Conditions by Robert GlancyBloomsburyPp. 258Waking
up after a car accident with amnesia, Frank starts to piece together his memories
only to recall that he doesn’t like his job, his wife (Alice), his brother
(Oscar) or even himself very much. As a business lawyer who specialises in
terms and conditions, he reminds us with wry humour that it’s always important
to check the fine Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-5446273759521409622023-07-07T10:41:00.002+10:002023-09-21T09:32:21.420+10:00Friday Five: Vermouth Before we went to Barcelona, we read our Lonely Planet guide thoroughly, and were particularly taken with this nugget;"Having become a favourite of Barcelona's working class in the run-up to the civil war, vermouth then fell out of favour (though certainly didn't disappear), but has experienced a dazzling revival over the last decade. New vermouth bars are opening all over town; historical Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-73330284652294363842023-07-04T16:58:00.001+10:002023-09-13T09:24:06.388+10:00World Press Photo ContestOn a recent trip to Sydney, we went to the World Press Photo Exhibition 2023 at the State Library of New South Wales. The annual exhibition presents the results of the 2023 World Press Photo Contest - the best and most important photojournalism and documentary photography of the last year. The winners were chosen by an independent jury that reviewed more than 60,448 photographs entered Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-42493819459166333862023-06-30T11:26:00.001+10:002023-08-19T17:21:39.698+10:00Friday Five: Books read in June Books read in June:A Month of Sundays by Liz Byrski - it was left in my street library so I read it. Four people who
have met as part of an on-line book group meet in person at a cottage in the
Blue Mountains to take a month to talk about books – what bliss! The books they choose are supposed to “tell us all something significant about you”. They will then discuss the book, but ofKate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-81532577535437841732023-06-27T08:40:00.001+10:002023-08-13T21:07:36.024+10:00My Newest Favourite Thing: Stirling CastleIt's not strictly true to say that Stirling Castle is a newest favourite thing because I went there about four years ago, but I liked it very much and, although I have posted about the monarchs who lived there, and the Dos and Don'ts of Kingship, I have not yet posted about the castle itself, so here we are. Perched atop a cliff, it is an imposing structure along the lines of Edinburgh Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-87424810098091779222023-06-23T16:06:00.001+10:002023-08-04T13:12:37.079+10:00Friday Five: Boaty McBoatface or why we can't have nice thingsRRS Sir David AttenboroughIn March 2016 the Natural Environment Research Council asked the people of the internet to name its newest research ship. The ship was due to study the effects of climate change for the British Antarctic Survey, an institute dedicated to researching polar regions, and would be part of the most advanced floating research fleet in the world The United Kingdom's Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-43492780891035469692023-06-21T16:43:00.001+10:002023-08-03T14:44:02.074+10:00Warts and All: FlawsomeFlawsome by Georgia MurchMcPherson's Printing GroupPp. 212No one’s perfect, and the sooner we accept ourselves with all
our flaws, the happier we will be. That’s according to feedback expert, Georgia
Murch, who has written a comprehensive guide to becoming more self-aware and
acknowledging that how we behave affects both ourselves and others around us.
It’s delivered in a punchy, positive Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-73619302857530799852023-06-16T09:31:00.001+10:002023-07-31T10:44:22.883+10:00Friday Five: Superyachts!Port Vell, BarcelonaIn no way should this be taken as a continuation on last week's Friday Five, but that did make me think of the time we were in Barcelona and we went to Port Vell and had a vermouth overlooking the harbour and stalking the superyachts, as you do. Also, I am aware that there are only three listed here, but last week was a bumper issue with six (or even seven), so I reckon that Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-67536236290429987162023-06-13T15:05:00.001+10:002023-07-28T17:24:23.877+10:00Who's Using Who?: The MuseThe Muse by Jessie BurtonEccoPp. 390The parallel stories in this
novel lead the reader to wonder just exactly who is whose muse? It begins in
London in 1967 when aspiring Caribbean writer, Odelle Bastien, finds employment
at an art gallery, falls under the tutelage of the enigmatic co-director Marjorie
Quick, and is seduced by the charms of Lawrie Scott who appears to have a
valuable Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-20411928158511578802023-06-09T18:22:00.001+10:002023-07-27T01:56:51.086+10:00Friday Five: Brick WrecksThe Australian National Maritime Museum has a fantastic exhibition of shipwrecks, recreated in Lego with information about the ships, the disasters and the recovery missions. We went earlier in the year when we visited Sydney, and really enjoyed it from a number of perspectives; scientific, historic, educational and entertaining. Here are six of the best for the Friday Five.1. Vasa: Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333896887792507589.post-79210603750927391352023-06-06T19:08:00.001+10:002023-07-14T13:08:37.374+10:00Word of the weekMalaphor - (rare) an idiom blend: an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result.The portmanteau word is a result of blending malapropism and metaphor. A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes an object or action in a way that isn't literally true, but helps explain an idea or make a comparison. You may remember learning at school in Kate Blackhursthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04867877860473075947noreply@blogger.com0