Talk about a long romance!
When I can be dragged away from my computer I'm a Funeral Celebrant, produce a syndicated talkback radio programme, direct and perform in community theatrical productions and blog a lot. The rest of the time I run a small business from home, Virtual P.A.
I enjoy the company of animals and grandchildren, traditional Irish music and walking along the river each evening.
In squidoo I am No Angel
Please allow me to show you the lenses I have so thoroughly enjoyed creating..
My hometown, Melbourne
One river is the Maribyrnong, the name is said to be from 'Mirring-gnai-birr-nong' - 'I can hear a ringtail possum'. You can still hear the ringtail possums along the Maribyrnong, they're incredibly noisy creatures.The other river is the Yarra, once called Birrarung in the Woiwurrung language meaning 'The River of Mists'.
The word, Yarra Yarra, just means "waterfall" or "flow", and is descriptive of any river or creek in the area. The early European settlers misunderstood what the Aboriginal people were telling them. Perhaps the noise of the local possums deafened them.
Melbourne, on the Bay
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Port Phillip Bay : Travel Victoria
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Port Phillip Bay is Australia's largest tidal lagoon covering around two thousand square kilometres and having a maximum depth of over 30 metres. It's surprisingly shallow, almost an inland sea, and it has only a narrow 3 and 1/2 kilometre-wide entr...
Living on the Merri
The Aboriginal name is Merri Merri meaning "very rocky" and rocky it certainly is! The back of my house overlooks the area where the Wurundjeri people held their large gatherings - the location for one of the earliest land treaties in Australia between Indigenous Australians and Europeans.
My great grandmother, Mary Humphries, was the first white child born here.
I knew her well, she lived a long life and I spent a lot of time with her. She told me wonderful stories about the early days of her childhood and of her father, a miner from Ballarat.
After the Eureka Rebellion he came down to Melbourne and was one of the quarry workers who achieved the Eight Hour day in 1856.
You can see by the photo how the 13 long years of drought have affected the creek. Yes, that's Melbourne on the close horizon, I'm within walking distance of the CBD.
"Looking out my Back Door"
I have the best of two worlds, the capital city is just the kick of a football away (an Aussie Rules torpedo punt) and the creek is home to echidnas, kookaburras, black cockatoos, rakali (native water rats), diving egrets (there must be plenty of fish in there) tawny frogmouths, lots and lots of flying foxes and a thriving population of possums!
Every evening, just on dusk, the fruitbats come up in a rustling cloud from the other side of the river, pause to nibble a little on my quince tree or bush lemons, then continue to fly northwest to some unknown fruitbat destination. I love to see them. They mark the end of the day, every day.
Australian Lensography
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Australia : Lensography of My Place
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G'day from Melbourne, Australia, where I put these pages together while looking out the window at the kookaburras. I have a number of lenses on Australia, some dealing with the creatures who bound across this land, some highlighting the different pl...
My Companion
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Vladimir the Cultured Cat
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Please allow me the honour of introducing myself to you. In brief, I am a domestic short hair, fully black with no hint of grey, 18 years old and in prime condition although prone to recurring bouts of yech breath. Recently, due to circumstances bey...
Vladimir's Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byMy current favourite
Treat yourself to a Roman Meal
Salvete! I really enjoyed making this!-
Ancient Roman Recipes
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When we think of the food of Ancient Rome, it's usually images of huge banquets which come to mind. But there was a lot more to Roman food than exotic dishes served by slaves at orgies. Lavish feasts there were, but also perfectly ordinary meals,...
What's in my Top Ten?
The list changes daily
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byArthur, Lensography of the Once and Future King
I've loved the story of Arthur all of my life.-
Arthur and Britain : Lensography of Legends
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Who was King Arthur? Well, to begin with, there was not one Arthur, but many. There was an historical Arthur, or, if you prefer, a folkloric or mythological Arthur who came to be mistaken for a living person. Christopher Snyder : The World of King A...
In My Kitchen - Lensography of Wine and Dine
I just love to cook and I love eating even more. In this lensography I have listed the classic roast collection, the classic casseroles, various features on fruits including exotic tropical varieties, honey, cheese, olives, yoghurt and plenty more.-
I love Food : Lensography of the Kitchen
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I seem to have a lot of lenses on food. Probably because I enjoy it so much. Once I cooked all the time for my growing children and grow they did .. they grew so big that they all left. Now they can cook for themselves, and I can cook just for the...
On the Menu at Cafe Porridge
My foodie blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byFantasy and Fairy
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Menagerie : Lensography of Mythical, Magical and Legendary Creatures
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A fantastical menagerie of mythical and magical creatures. Some of the beasties are real and legendary animals, such as Bucephalos the war horse of Alexander the Great, some are disputed like the Monster of Loch Ness and some spring straight from my...
I am a Woman of a "Certain Age"!
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Menopause Matters
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Your family wears you down, your work suffers, your body won't obey you, your temper is on a short leash and tears are just around the corner. Things seem to just get out of control nowadays and what are you told? It's that dreaded "M&qu...
Mind over Menopause Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byMy Groups
(If you write on these subjects, you're more than welcome to submit your lens)
- Wander Downunder
- All the delights of Downunder, food, places, wildlife, celebrities, the bold, bizarre and beautiful. Antipodean activities from down under, anything and everything Australian.
- Epicure
- A collection of lenses for culinary adventures. Inspiration for gourmet menus, drinks, entertaining advice and recipes for breakfast, luncheon, dinner and beautiful banquets for discerning palates.
- All About Arthur
- For everything related to the Legend of Arthur
- Goddess Group
- The Goddess Group, for everything related to the Goddess, in all of her names, all of her faces and all of her aspects.
- Bookworms
- A Group of people who read and recommend their favourite authors, books and lists for other people who like to read.
- Legends and Lore
- World mythology, ancient beliefs, tall tales and true, folklore, fairy, fable and the lost and forgotten stories from our legendary past
- Feline Friends : Our Cat Companions
- Fabulous Felines to the Fortunate, featuring the furballs who deign to share our homes with us.
I love trains
During the 1930s Depression, Railways Victoria was the largest employer of men in the State. One of them was my father, a man who genuinely loved locomotives. And so do I.-
Three Great Train Journeys of the World
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You just can't beat a train holiday. The romance and sheer relaxation of it all is superb. Why go through the hassles involved with driving your car around when you can sit back in comfort and gaze out the window at the scenery unfolding before you?...
Love is in the air .......
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Tristan and Isolde : Legendary Love Stories
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The story of Tristan and Isolde is often held up as an example of true and perfect love. All the ingredients for a satisfactory narrative are present; the lightning bolt of desire, the inevitable tragedy, ritual sacrifice, the denial of satisfaction...
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Pyramus and Thisbe : Legendary Love Stories
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Two, by themselves, each other, love and fear, Slain, cruel friends, by parting have join'd here. Pyramus and Thisbe is the oldest love story in the world - and it's a tragedy. This is a familiar tale to all of us although we may not instantly reco...
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Diarmuid and Grainne : Legendary Love Stories
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The tale of the Pursuit of Diarmuid and Grainne is an epic story of wilful love, broken trust, relentless passion and ultimate tragedy. Like all such stories which live a long life,and this story is at least seventeen centuries old, it concerns a lo...
A Second Life of my very own .......
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My Second Life in Second Life
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So many people have jobs in Second Life, jazz musicians, artists, 3D builders, creators of virtual goods such as jewellery, clothing and shoes. It takes a special talent to design these amazing objects, a talent which I lack. Instead of trying to ke...
Second Life Blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byWhat's on my Bookshelf
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What to Read : Library Lensography
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Whether we're reading a novel, a biography or a book on goldfish, we seek an elusive combination of pleasure, utility and intellectual stimulation, something to pique our curiosity and engage our minds. Reading is like physical exercise. You could c...
I love mythology!
This lensography is getting very long!I've broken up some of it into smaller pieces for easier digesting and, instead of giving you long lists of lenses, offer a few lensographies.
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I love Greek Mythology : Lensography of Legends
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In the isles of the Aegean, and of the Ionian, there is no river, no mountain ridge, no rocky crag, that is untouched by the tales of the Ancients. Philosophically, artistically, scientifically and politically, the Greeks reached an astonishing leve...
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Mythic Tales, Lensography of Legends
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Myths are metaphors. If you read a myth literally you will miss the point. You will miss its higher truth. Mythological narratives may or may not be based in fact. But is that really important? Tales of gods and monsters may seem as fairy tale to us...
Mythology
Mythology is very real in my life. My Great Aunt Nell gave me Bullfinch : The Age of Fable for my 9th birthday and I hurried home from school every day for weeks to finish reading it all before Mum called me to set the table for tea.Those fantastical stories of fabulous gods and fearsome monsters stirred my imagination and summoned me to discover more. Bullfinch also blessed me with a deep love of beautiful language, a love which still thrills me today.
Years later, when I began to study Behavioural Sciences, I discovered Jung.
Myths are public dreams. Dreams are private myths : Joseph Campbell
Jung constructed his concepts linking the world of outer events and the inner realm of fantasies, dreams, and symbols - symbols which appear again and again throughout history in mythology, religion, fairy tales, alchemical texts, and other forms of creative expression.
The source, he said, of this symbolic material was the collective unconscious, a pool of experience accessible to all humans through history.
So when I first found Joseph Campbell I swooned! The journey of the hero is the one we all make, and I make mine accompanied by the faces of the Goddess I found in Bullfinch.
Mythology of Skandinavia
I was getting a lot of these - and I didn't want my personal lensography to be so long - so I put them into a lensography of their own-
Lure of the North : Lensography of Legends
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The Gods of the Norse pantheon are red-blooded and unbending. They didn't waste their time lying around on silken couches in the balmy air of Mt Olympus with their Greek counterparts. They traveled far from their icy shores and snow-shrouded woods t...
A Mixed Bag of Mythology
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Apples in Mythology : Tales from the Ancient World
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Eve is reported to have bitten into one, or perhaps it was a quince. Hera gave some to her husband for a wedding gift, or maybe they were lemons. Golden Apples are a familiar element in legends and folk tales. Usually, a hero has to retrieve them to...
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Dogs in Mythology : Tales from the Ancient World
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Psychopomps are Guides of Souls, Ushers of the Dead, particular spirits, angels, animals or deities whose responsibility is to escort the newly-deceased souls to the afterlife. Psychopomps appear in many and diverse forms, but no form has more impre...
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Bast the Beloved : Tales of Ancient Egypt
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She is the protector of cats, women and children and holds the mysteries of the cat in her power - those magnetic animals with such strong power to fascinate or repel. For the cat is identified with Bast and she is most recognised for her portrayal...
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Mars the Military God : Tales of the Ancient Romans
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Mars, the Roman warrior god, son of Juno and Jupiter, husband of Bellona, lover of Venus, was the most prominent of the military gods worshipped by the Roman legions. He is a soldier's god, bold and brave. In the great golden city of Rome, Mars...
Stories of the Ancients
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The Significant Hat : Historical Tales
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Hats are not merely to keep off the sun and the rain, but to mark a social rite, portray a religious belief, define the status and occupation of the user and to announce the extent of authority. Kings and Heroes wear hats, as do the Gods.
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Vortigern, worst King of the Britons : Historical Tales
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Vortigern is remembered in legend as one of the worst Kings of the Britons. He has been called the man responsible for the demise of the Britons in the 5th century by inviting the Saxons to settle in Britain as mercenaries. We hear about Vortigern...
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Bucephalos the Bad Tempered : Historical Tales
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Was there ever a horse like Bucephalos? This magnificent creature, the war horse of Alexander the Great, carried his owner across the known world from victory to victory. Bucephalos was as black as a crow's wing at midnight in mid-winter. He was eig...
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G'day there, leave me a comment
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Reply
- divacratus divacratus Nov 4, 2009 @ 3:25 pm
- You're an inspiration! So many lenses of different topics. Keep squidoo'ing! :)
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Reply
- mulberry mulberry Sep 16, 2009 @ 7:31 pm
- My what a diverse set of topics, an impressive collection of lenses. Australia, and Melbourne of course, sound wonderful.
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Reply
- Sep 1, 2009 @ 10:56 pm
- Hi there, what a joyful commentary, a pleasure to come across, as if I were witness to a proud tigress pouncing between the lines. With great love, Darcie
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Susanna's updates
My Worst Photofit ID
Can you recognise me from this Photo ID? Can the police identify and arrest me based on this uncanny likeness? If you reckon that couldn't happen it's obvious you aren't in Bolivia. Bolivian police ma...
Nov 29, 2009 @ 7:52 pm rss
Thaila Thai
I've heard a lot about Thaila Thai. It's one of Brunswick's most popular haunts and has a reputation for great food and great prices. The price is certainly right. Perhaps the popularity is a Brunsw...
Nov 25, 2009 @ 6:36 pm rss
Home Made Facials make you feel better
One of the most annoying things I find about menopause is the tired, dry, drab complexion that's appeared without warning. I've never been a fanatic with beauty routines, took little care of my skin a...
Nov 24, 2009 @ 3:55 pm rssRoux
A roux is a cooked mixture of butter and flour. It helps to thicken a sauce but is incorporated at the beginning of the recipe rather than just before serving. Pre-cooking flour allows the starch gra...
Nov 15, 2009 @ 6:07 am rssShoulder of Pork
This is an old fashioned pork dinner. Roasting the shoulder for five and a half hours leaves you with meat that you don't really need to carve with a knife. Instead, you could take a couple of forks...
Nov 14, 2009 @ 11:15 pm rssFake Buddha Visitations
I wasn't fooled for one moment by this cheap attempt to cash in on the Virgin Mary on Feta craze. What with people seeing holy images and experiencing uplifting visitations on toasted cheese, chocola...
Nov 8, 2009 @ 2:56 pm rssThe Devil in Marge Simpson
The Devil in Marge Marge Simpson is a church-going woman. She's respectable, polite and proper, a virtuous woman, worthy and well thought of in her community. She's always tried her best to get some m...
Oct 10, 2009 @ 5:26 am rss
Squids Downunder
Just how many Antipodean lensmasters are there? In a mad moment I squid-searched for lenses on Australia and New Zealand hoping to track down southern lensmasters that way. I found a few. From that fe...
Oct 9, 2009 @ 8:50 pm rssBlessings in October
Another new month! I'm unsure as to when the Angel period finishes, they are set times after all and I've been doing it for a while. A new round will be coming up soon so I'm madly finding good conte...
Oct 1, 2009 @ 1:09 am rssBottom Feeder Case Study part 4
My poor old Scott Cunningham has gone from almost 250,000 to be in the 70,000 group. Still an absolute zero to all intents and purposes. I'm going to throw it into the arena in the Critique Me Forums...
Sep 16, 2009 @ 8:24 pm rss
10% of my income goes to continue the work of Fred Hollows in treating avoidable blindness and improving indigenous health.Photo : Khim Rath, who can now see after a successful cataract operation, Kampong Chhnang province, Cambodia.
Blindness is a significant public health issue in Cambodia. Over 160,000 people are blind and an additional 20,000 become blind each year. The main cause of blindness is cataract, which can be treated by a simple 15 minute operation at an average cost of $25 (AUD$35).
Thanks for dropping by ......
Thanks very much for dropping by to read my lensography. You're more than welcome to leave a note in the guest book above and, if you're a member of Squidoo, you can also rate this lens :)It's all much appreciated, Susanna
For more pages like this, my lens collection is at Susanna's Lensography
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