Simulated flyover of Asteroid Vesta

And now for something completely different! A simulated flyover of the most intriguing landmarks on giant asteroid Vesta, as seen by NASA's Dawn spacecraft. The Dawn spacecraft is planned leave Vesta around Sept. 4 after a 14-month stay at the 530km long asteroid. The journey to Ceres should take around 2.5 years, with Dawn reaching the dwarf planet in early 2015.

The Talking Dog

A guy is driving around the back blocks of  Cape York and he sees a sign in front of a broken down shanty-style house:-
'Talking Dog For Sale'

He rings the bell and the owner appears and tells him the dog is in the backyard.

The guy goes into the backyard and sees a nice looking Labrador retriever sitting there.

'You talk?' he asks.

'Yep,' the Lab replies.

After the guy recovers from the shock of hearing a dog talk, he says 'So, what's your story?'

The Lab looks up and says, 'Well, I discovered that I could talk when I was pretty young. I wanted to help the government, so I told ASIO.

In no time at all they had me jetting from country to country, sitting in rooms with spies and world leaders, because no one figured a dog would be eavesdropping.'

'I was one of their most valuable spies for eight years running...

But the jetting around really tired me out, and I knew I wasn't getting any younger so I decided to settle down. I signed up for a job at the airport to do some undercover security, wandering near suspicious characters and listening in. I uncovered some incredible dealings and was awarded a batch of medals.'
'I got married, had a lot of puppies, and now I'm just retired.'

The guy is amazed. He goes back in and asks the owner what he wants for the dog.

'Ten dollars,' the guy says.

'Ten dollars? This dog is amazing!



Why on earth are you selling him so cheap?'

'Because he's such a Bullshitter.

He's never been out of the yard'

Seaman Dan embraces Nat King Cole - ABC Far North Qld - Australian Broadcasting Corporation

From ABC Far North: Seaman Dan embraces Nat King Cole - ABC Far North Qld - Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Seaman Dan in 2009 talks about his life and music career.

BBC: Cassowaries - documentary narrated by Sir David Attenborough

Weddings Parties Anything

A Tale They Won't Believe  tells of an historical event of the 1820s. Alexander Pearce, a poorly behaved convict prone to escape attempts, was sent to Sarah Island for his transgressions. Located on the remote west coast of Tasmania, it was one of colonial Australia's worst penal settlements - and it wasn't long before the austere conditions and brutal workload drove Pearce to organise an escape with seven other convicts. As they moved inward through the thick and hostile mountain wilderness, unable to find or hunt food they resorted to murder and cannibalism, the weakest of the gang always falling prey to the others. Pearce was the last man standing and survived 'on the run' for some time - however he was recaptured, sent back to Sarah Island and once again participated in the cannibalisation of a fellow inmate. He was eventually hung in 1824.

Jason Hagen - How to hand feed a crocodile

Garden Bugs

As usual at this time of the year there is the daily patrol of the vegie patch looking for not so friendly insects. It's always a good idea to take the camera.

This birdwing chrysalis has finally hatched!

Looking very serious!

 Not sure if I should be worried about these guys.

 This fellow has a taste for white wine.

How many spots do the good ones have?

Views of the Earth like you've never seen!

Cairns 50 - 60+ years ago

I have seen this photograph before but I'm unable to acknowledge its source or the year it was taken (possibly pre World War 2) but it shows the area along the base of Mt Whitfield which is now of course the sprawling suburbs of Edge Hill and Whitfield. Redlynch Valley can be seen in the background.  I remember reading somewhere that there were large army camps established around this area during WW2.

More photographs can be found on The Pteropus  page.

Movie - Bimblebox

Movie Viewing today Sunday 22 July 5.30-7.30pm Urchins Rooms 2 and 3 Reef Hotel Casino, 35-41 Wharf Street, Cairns $10 cash donation at the door ($8 concession) [which will go to the campaign and costs of event] Bimblebox, the documentary, explores the huge Australian coal export industry from the grassroots up. The film features many prominent members of the debate against coal expansion in Australia including Guy Pearse (Global Change Institute), Ove Hoegh-Guldberg (University of Queensland) and Matthew Wright (Beyond Zero Emissions) and the music of Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. More from http://bimblebox.org/

From the Vault - Hunters and Collectors

Creek beautification update

As can be seen here the creek easement beautification project is moving along nicely.

Also a great way to cut home reno costs by saving on Council dumping fees and creating a stunning view at the same time.

The CRC's contribution?

On the upside it is much quieter now since the kookaburras' ten year old termite nesting site was destroyed. There was however a faint call in the distance last night from an orange footed scrub fowl somewhere further down from ground zero. Your turn is coming.