Memories...

Sunday morning here and I'm reliving some old memories of time spent in Australia. This recounting of experiences has been brought on by the discovery that I can link to the BBC website and listen to the cricket live. Hopefully the BBC will provide this service for the 2007 World Cup coming out of the West Indies.

Here in the USA, there's a distinct lack of interest in cricket, which means no live coverage of any matches. Occasionally Fox SportsWorld will show a one day game (usually some years old); the last one I remember seeing was back from the heydays of Lillee and Thommo. It's probably just as well that the locals aren't interested in cricket, because it would be extremely painful having to try and explain the finer points of the game. Mid off...backward square leg...silly mid off...I can't imagine trying to explain those. Funny, whenever I happen to mention the game, the usual comment goes something like "...oh, it's just like baseball...". I guess it is, both have a bat and a ball and are played outside. At that point the similarity disappears. :-)

So right now the Aussies are batting in the NatWest Challenge one day against England at Lords. It appears that the Aussies might win this one, cruising toward the paltry target of 224 (thanks to Brett Lee's brilliant bowling spell of 5-41, the best one-day bowling figures for an Australian at Lords). If that does occur, the series will be squared.

Ok...back to the coverage, which means time to finish off here.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi.... (if you're an Aussie reading this you'll understand)...if not, then I guess you'll have to read this. :-)

Publishing via email...

Good evening...

Hopefully this email will end up as a post on my blog. If it does, I'll be amazed once more. I seem to experience that feeling a lot lately, thanks to the advances in technology. Crossing my fingers and toes.

Before I send it off into cyberspace, a little about where it's being sent from. It's a beautiful evening here and I've got my iBook propped up on the small table out on our deck. We've worked hard on our garden this year and the results can be seen, with splashes of all colours wherever one looks. Testament to the success is also the large number of various birds frequenting all day long. I'm particularly intrigued by the hummingbirds which come at different times to feed on the solution we make and set out in the feeders. I've not seen this kind of bird before, used more to the parrots and kookaburras etc of Australia where I moved from a few years ago. The hummingbirds are aptly named, as they make that kind of sound as they flap their wings so quickly to be able to make quick changes in their flight, often to dip down to a feeder or flower for a sweet drink.

We live in suburbia, but thankfully, it's fairly quiet, the peace broken occasionally by a loud stereo in a passing car, a mower in the distance, or children playing outside in the clear air. Tonight it's particularly peaceful, and there's more birdlife sound than anything else. Also present tonight is the smell of a bbq being enjoyed next door...yum!! It sure smells good, though I doubt I could eat anything right now, as we just got back from a meal at the local Indian restaurant.

The sun's starting to go behind the trees, and the last of its rays are peaking through. Soon the stars will begin to take over as they prepare for their nightly show. Well, I need to get this off to the blog and get back to reading my current favourite book...and one I highly recommend: Riding the Bus With My Sister, by Rachel Simon.

More at another time...

Back to blogging....

Well, it's been a long time since I posted anything to this blog!!

In fact I last used it in the Fall of 2004, as an example of a resource I would incorporate into an online learning class, which was a project for a class I took in my Masters program. I deleted all of that and this will now serve as my personal blog. Who knows what it will contain, only the future will tell I suppose.

I just recently returned from the beach...I stayed in a beautiful old B & B, the Pecan Tree Inn, in Beaufort, NC. The photo gives an idea of the Inn. Beaufort is a small coastal town with many beautiful historical houses, many dating back to the 1700's.








One of the most historic graveyards in the area is the "Old Burying Ground". Enshrouded in the shade created by a thicket of majestic hundred-year-old live oak trees, the Old Burying Ground is a fascinating place. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the cemetery was deeded to the town in 1731 by Nathaniel Taylor. The weathered tombstones chronicle the heritage of Beaufort and the surrounding coast with graves of soldiers from the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Civil War, star-crossed lovers, and famous privateers. Historians will relish finding Captain Otway Burns' grave, complete with the cannon from his privateer, in the Old Burying Ground. Nearby rests a salt works, which was established by order of the Provincial Congress in 1776 for Revolutionary War use.