Please do drop by and visit my other blog: My Dry Tropics Garden ... it provides a more informative look at what's going on in my garden out in the bush.
Today, January 26th, is known as our official national day ... Australia Day. It's an official public holiday, so we enjoy a long three-day weekend and celebrate what makes this country of ours so fantastic.
Just for the occasion, I thought I'd share some of the wonderful natives that either grow or live around my place. I'm so very privileged to live here.
In all corners of Oz, people will be throwing lamb chops and snags on the barbie, downing a stubby or vino, cracking jokes and spinning yarns while we wait for the lamingtons and pavlova to come out for dessert.
If there was ever a song that I think gives a fair, clear and concise picture of just how our nation has grown and developed over time, it would have to be the song written by a fellow named Bruce Woodley. It tells our story so beautifully.
Just click on the play button below to listen to this wonderful tribute to this great country of ours.
I've also added a link to a video clip of a famous Australian poet, Dorothea Mackellar, narrating her iconic Australian poem. She wrote this poem when she was only 19, which just seems like such a marvellous accomplishment to me.
Dorothea was a third generation Australian, whose grandparents migrated here from Scotland in the 1830s. Dorothea was born in 1885. She travelled extensively with her parents whilst growing up, and wrote what is arguably Australian's most well-known poem while she was living in England. She was obviously very homesick for her sunburnt country.
Have you got a few moments to spare? Because I'm about to go on and on and on about my great homeland. You should grab a cuppa and make yourself comfy!
Yes today, January 26th, is our Australia Day. It's a time when we stop to appreciate just exactly what it means to be an Aussie and to appreciate just how privileged we are to live in this great country. This place is unique, and I think we sometimes fail to really appreciate all that. Today is the perfect day to stop, remember, and celebrate.
I'm the first to admit it may not be paradise for all. We do have our failings, and there is still room for change. In spite of all this though, I truly believe we live in a place that's pretty darn close to paradise, and I'm so very proud to be able to call myself an Aussie. There's a lot that's fantastic about this country.
What makes it such a fantastic place ... hmmm, let's see!
It's the the lifestyle, the unique scenery, the fauna, the natural wonders, the sport, the vibrant, changing culture ... but most of all, I think, it's the people.
I think Aussies are rather unique, and what I love most about Australians is their laconic sense of humour, and their larrikin sense of fun. In the spirit of that unusual sense of humour, I just had to share this list.
You know you’re Australian when…
1. You’re familiar with Neighbours, Home and Away, Playschool, Hi-5, The Wiggles, A
Country Practice, Norman Gunston, Barry Humphries, Blue Heelers, Ray
Martin, Bert Newton, Lisa McCune, Jon Burgess, Number 96, Molly Meldrum,
Kerry O’Brien, and of course, Kerry Packer and Rupert Murdoch.
2. You know all the words for Khe Sanh, Shuddupa Your Face, or Gangajang’s ‘This is Australia’! Then there’s The Angels'
classic ‘Am I ever Gonna See Your Face Again’, many AC/DC tunes, the odd
Rose Tattoo number and the happy-pop wonders of the HooDoo Gurus! .
3. You know that snow is a memorable and freakish occurrence. Sometimes it’s even fake, especially at Christmas time.
4. You know the difference between thongs and a G-string.
5. You know that “stubbies” are either short shorts or small beer
bottles. You know a “bogan” is a person who's not 'with it', a “hoon” is an idiot who likes fast cars, someone in
trouble is in “strife” and you’re liable to burst out laughing whenever
you hear of Americans “rooting” for something.
4. You know how to abbreviate every word, all of which usually end in
-o: arvo, combo, garbo, kero, metho, milko, muso, rego, servo,
smoko, speedo, righto etc.
5. You know that some people pronounce Australia like “Strayla” and that’s ok.
6. You know that there is a universal place called “Woop Woop”
located in the middle of nowhere… no matter where you actually are.
7. You know that while we call our friends ‘mates’, we don’t use
terms like ‘bewdy’ and ‘shrimp on the barbie’, contrary to popular
belief.
8. You also know that kangaroos don’t live in most Aussie's backyards, but we will
happily pretend they do just to feel superior to people from foreign countries who think they do.
9. You’ve seen Gallipoli, Mad Max, Crocodile Dundee, Picnic At Hanging Rock, Young Einstein, Muriel’s
Wedding, The Castle, Strictly Ballroom, Babe,
Priscilla, and maybe even Wolf Creek.
10. It makes you happy when a world famous Hollywood celebrity is actually
Australian… Mel Gibson, Geoffrey Rush, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett,
Baz Luhrman, Olivia Newton-John, Naomi Watts, Heath Ledger, Guy Pierce, Eric Bana, Toni Collette ...
11. You know this word: Skippy.
12. You know that Sydney 2000 was one of our proudest moments in history. We rocked!
13. When you believe it makes sense for the $1 coin to be twice the size of the $2 coin.
14. You know you’re Aussie when the month comes after the day when writing the date.
15. We know that the metric system will always be better than anything inches, feet, pounds.
16. You drive on the left-hand side of the road.
17. If you’re a pedestrian and cars are stopped at a red light, you
will fearlessly cross the street in front of them, and know you're safe. ‘Hit and runs’ just
aren’t cricket.
18. You know that New Zealanders are basically our naive country
cousins, who have a weird fush-and-chups accent and, for some bizarre
reason, think that they invented pavlova. They are to be pitied. They
have no hope of gaining the upper hand in the endless sporting rivalry
between our two nations.
19. You know that you can’t eat Fantales alone… Otherwise who will
you play the ‘Who am I…’ game with when you’re reading the wrapper?
20. You know that Sydney should be the capital, because Canberra is a hole.
21. You know that Americans think we’re all Steve Irwin clones. And crikey, they couldn’t be more wrong.
22. You know that lawyers wear wigs and gowns. And we make it look good.
23. You have, at some point in your life, slept with Aeroguard on in the summer. Maybe even as perfume.
24. You feel obliged to spread salty black stuff that looks like
congealed motor oil on bread… and actually grow to like it. You’ve also
squeeze Vegemite through Vita Wheats to make little Vegemite worms.
25. You believe that democracy means the freedom to draw caricatures of good ol’ Tony Abbott and crew.
26. You have the ability to compress several words into one – ie ‘g’day’ and ‘d’reckn?’. This allows more space for profanities.
27. You’ve ever used the words – tops, ripper, sick, mad, rad, sweet –
to mean good. And then you place ‘bloody’ in front of it when you
REALLY mean it.
28. You know that the barbeque is a political arena; the person
holding the tongs is always the boss and usually a man. He turns the steak ... and the women do everything else.
29. You say ‘no worries’ quite often, whether you realise it or not.
30. You know what fairy bread tastes like, and you can’t imagine your childhood without it.
31. You know the first verse to the national anthem, but still not exactly sure what “girt” means. And you’re ok with that.
32. You’ve drank your tea/coffee/milo through a Tim Tam.
33. You know that backyard cricket is a nice way to bond with family
and the rubbish bin. And the ‘one bounce, one hand’ rule always applies.
34. You know that we are home to the just about all of the world’s
deadliest of animals. That’s why if anybody messes with us we’ll get
some funnel webs on their arses. (Oh yeah, you know that an ass is a donkey and a backside is an arse!)
35. You see people walking bare-foot on the footpath and don’t scorn…. because you’re doing it too. (Note: You don’t use a sidewalk, because it’s called a footpath.)
36. You know that in summer a seat belt buckle becomes a pretty good branding iron.
36. You know what Trop-Fest is, and it makes you happy.
37. Sausage rolls and meat pies. End of story.
38. You firmly believe that in the end, everything will be okay and
have offered advice that included the words, “she’ll be right, mate”.
39. You have a story that somehow involves an excessive consumption of booze… but you can’t remember all the details.
40. If you're a bloke, you own a Bond’s chesty, in several different colours. If you're a bird, you probably have a tank top stashed somewhere in a drawer.
41. You’ve ordered a steak the size as your head and only paid $5 at your local RSL.
42. You know it's 'Macca's' not 'McDonald's', and you know it's OK to have beetroot on a burger.
43. You know how to slip, slop, slap like it’s nobody’s business.
44. You’ve heard the Prime Minister dismiss anyone who disagrees with
him simply as ‘un-Australian’, and that’s enough to make us sit down
and shut up.
45. You know that the value of a public holiday is measured in terms of alcohol. God bless the Queen and her 4-day birthday.
46. You refer to someone you like as “an old bastard”, but call someone you don’t like “a bit of a bastard”.
47. You know there’s no LBW in backyard cricket, and over the fence is out.
48. You know Drop Bears exist. Positively.
49. You know you that roo meat tastes pretty good, but not as good as barra, or a meat pie.
50.You know Australia IS the best bloody place on earth. Bar none.
If you still want a bit of a laugh, here's a few more:
Today is our special day of celebration known as Australia Day. It's the official national day for our country, and a time to come together and celebrate all that's great about this enormous country of ours ... the diverse society, the varied and incredible landscape, the achievements and the challenges ... but above all, it's a day to celebrate what's great about being Australian.
So to all the other Aussies out there, I hope you have a fabulous day. We're putting some prawns on the barbie, having a few coldies and listening to some iconic Aussie songs.
Here's my favourite .... "I Am, You Are, We Are Australian".
January 26th is Australia Day here in Oz and it's a national holiday. It's our official national day when we celebrate everything that is great and good about living in this lucky country of ours.
In our nation's capital city of Canberra, Australia's Federation Guard raise the Australian National Flag in the presence of the Governor-General, the Prime Minister and other distinguished guests. The Prime Minister then conducts the Australian Citizenship Ceremony and welcomes Canberra's newest Australian citizens.
A similar ceremony happens in towns and cities all across our country ... and then it's time to celebrate in our uniquely Aussie way. Usually this involves cooking snags on the barbie, throwing down a few tallies or stubbies, and chomping on some pav!
Part of the celebration is the presentation of the Australian of the Year Awards during a ceremony on the lawns of our Parliament House in our nation's capital city of Canberra. Our Prime Minister, Julia Gillard presented the awards yesterday, on the eve of Australia Day. Our Prime Minister stated the Australians of the Year represent our nation's best qualities.
Australian of the Year this year is the acclaimed actor Geoffrey Rush, known around the world for his roles in movies like 'Shine' and 'Pirates Of The Caribbean'. He was recognised for his distinguished 40-year acting career and award-winning performances, having achieved the rather rare distinction of winning an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony! Aside from all that, he was lauded for his role in mentoring young Australian actors, for his work as an ambassador for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and UNICEF
Australia, as well as his work as patron of the Melbourne International Film Festival.
Rush says he hopes to encourage more people to enjoy Australian-made cinema
and theatre. "We live on an island that boasts the oldest nation on Earth. There is
inspiration right there, where performance rituals are at the heart of its being
- our dreaming," he said. "The stories we tell ourselves as adults and to our children, in the communal
dark, have a serious importance." (Of course, we Queenslanders are extra proud as Geoffrey was Queensland born.)
Senior Australian of the Year was awarded to an Aboriginal elder, Laurie Baymarrwangga. Ms Baymarrwangga was described as an "extraordinary elder", from the
Murrungga, in the Northern Territory's East Arnhem Land. She is now in her 90s and unfortunately was unable to attend the ceremony in Canberra.
She has dedicated her life to preserving her culture and environment through the
Crocodile Islands Rangers and an online Yan-nhuangu dictionary project. In the 1960s, Ms Baymarrwanga established a housing project on her homelands and started a bilingual school under a tree to educate her people.
In 2010 she donated back-payments from rent owed to her in order to establish a 1000 sq km
turtle sanctuary on her estate and establish the Crocodile Islands Rangers Program that created jobs for her own people.
While Laurie was unable to attend the award ceremony, she did share some of her thoughts on video for the occasion. She stated, "My name, the names of these places, the languages of islands and the
seas were given to us. These were given to us by the Ancestors when
they made the world,'' she said. "These are the places and the things I have taught generations of young people."
The Australian Day Council judges said, "Laurie has shown extraordinary commitment to maintaining
her culture, the environment of her beloved Crocodile Islands, and ensuring
younger generations continue to keep their heritage alive."
Young Australian of the Year went to engineer Marita Cheng. She was recognised for her role in encouraging women to pursue careers in engineering having founded 'Robogals Global' in 2008, which is a group
that teaches secondary school girls about science and technology. By 2010, her organisation had run workshops for 3000 girls in Australia, and
has since expanded with branches in New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Australian Local Hero of the Year was awarded to foster mother and carer, Lynne Sawyers. The judges said Ms Sawyers has shared her home for 15 years with over 200 lost, abused
and heartbroken children. "Having experienced a happy childhood herself, she wanted to give back," the
Australia Day Council said.
These winners were chosen from more than 5,000 nominations across the
country.
There are other awards presented on Australia Day too, known as the Australia Day Honours. 439 people have been recognised for their diverse contributions and service to their fellow citizens and for the international community in this year's honours list. This list included civic leaders, scientists, sportsmen and women, artists, and
Defence Force personnel.
A High Court judge, Justice Virginia Bell; the former head of the Federal public service, Terry Moran; a
conductor, Richard Bonynge; and the governor of Victoria, Alex Chernov; were among those receiving the nation's top honour appointed as Companions of the Order of Australia in the 2012 Australia Day.
Sitting on the verandah ... rain drumming on the corrugated iron roof ...
.... Wallabies munching on the grass while sheltering from the rain ....
... Kookaburra sitting in an old gum tree, a little damp and disgruntled ....
It's a rainy Australia Day here in north-eastern Oz ... and these words from Dorothea Mackeller's famous poem come to mind:
Core of my heart, my country!
Her pitiless blue sky,
When sick at heart, around us,
We see the cattle die -
But then the grey clouds gather,
And we can bless again
The drumming of an army,
The steady, soaking rain.
A opal-hearted country,
A wilful, lavish land -
All you who have not loved her,
You will not understand -
Though earth holds many splendours,
Wherever I may die,
I know to what brown country
My homing thoughts will fly.
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