Season Greetings

Our Australian Snowman people are already lining up early for Christmas this year - I can even see them from my backyard! 

Happy Christmas and New Year to all!

Can you spot the three wise men?

 

Unicorns in Australia

Crystal's Gallant Adventures

The Mountain Pass Back to Valley Flats

Ursula A. Ciller

A fantastic childrens book available on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Crystal%27s+Gallant+Adventures

...and on eBay currently (listed for another 9 days):

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Crystals-Gallant-Adventures-Mountain-Pass-Back-Valley-Flats-/120830260962?pt=AU_Books_Childrens_New&hash=item1c220b76e2

This book is a major achievement for me. The product of a year's labour of love, the illustrations unfolded with the story of this noble spirited unicorn called Crystal. This tale combines the beauty of nature with rich fantasy and teaches children that kindness returns in often unexpected ways. For a backpage description please see my Children's Books page.

The coolest beetle add!

I scanned this add from a magazine years ago (c. late 1990s -early 2000s). Even though I much prefer the old fashioned VW bugs this is a great image!
I think they still made the old style beetle chassis in Mexico untill fairly recently. That must be the longest standing genuine chassis production of any make or model.

Beautiful Rabbits

It is presently raining which I really enjoy. Rain is soothing and refreshing providing you’re not working in the rain in the middle of winter. The air becomes buoyant prior to rain fall and the forest ground smells earthy when it drops.

A fantastic children’s story written by Stephen Cosgrove and illustrated by Robin James is Leo the Lop. A 1977 gem, this story lets kids know that individual differences are the beauty of being oneself and that conformity is not always a good idea if you deny yourself your personality and who you are. The pictures are absolutely breathtaking. I’ll have to check out other books written by this author.

The Ring wants to be found

It was a fine sunny day with a few clouds floating about the blue sky. My partner and I had gone for a walk in a nature reserve for an outing that day. We were both getting hungry and I couldn’t understand why we kept on walking. My legs were starting to ache and we were getting a bit tired! Finally we reached a lookout overlooking a steep decline into the ravines below. There I was given a very special ring. “What is this... cut glass?” I mused. It was a sparkling crystalline diamond of course. It was so very beautiful so we decided maybe I should take it off. It would be so awful to get it scratched or damaged on passing a large bolder or gnarled tree trunk. Carefully I pulled it off (it was a close fit) but the smooth ring accidentally slipped out of my fingers and dropped onto the deck. Bounce, Bounce, Bounce the ring neared the ledge and Plop, over the edge! I bounded to the railings and saw it bouncing three more times before finally settling at the base of a tree (partner’s heart must have been sinking pretty low by now...a small fortune gone in the blink of an eyelid). I made a mental note of where it landed and scrabbling down the steep incline, retrieved the ring and put it in a safe place – I think I might leave it on next time!

Golden Legends

I just read the most wonderful kids book called, "The Legend of the Golden Snail." Its a fantastic tale with very nice illustrations and story line. Next time I pass a bookstore I'll be gravitating towards it! It is very new and just got published last year. It's not very often I take to picture books like this. I usually either like the story line or the illustrations, seldom both. As with everything, I am very particular about what I like. My sister is currently working on a book which is a series in parallel to my own  book series "Crystal's Gallant Adventures," the first of which will be out shortly. Another  great picture book is called, "The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses," that is another outstanding book with beautiful illustrations which is a fair few years old now.

A life well-lived

Tim, one of my supervisors, passed away today. I had been meaning to give him a pen I had collected from my last conference for some time now... He was a true old-fashioned gentleman and I am going to really miss him around. Hardly ever did he speak critically of others (he did make a little joke once!) or curse when things got tricky. He did call a sheep that had kicked him a bitch once, and it was so funny to hear him say that I just had to laugh. Especially because he was such a calm person and also an exceptionally good animal handler and vet. Tim had a great attitude to work, social and family life. He travelled a fair bit with family/friends and saw the Great Wall of China, the Terra Cotta Soldiers and so many other fascinating sights and places. He made the most of his life. Tim was also a great teacher and I am most honoured to have had him as my supervisor. I will always remember his great sense of humour and tempered manner with much fondness. Tim – one of a few.

Crystal's prancing

The unicorns are getting restless. Clawing the ground with their hooves and tossing their heads impatiently. Soon they will be meeting Crystal! Thoughout my childhood, especially on rainy days, the world of the Australian unicorns unfolded. Until now however, they were invisible but noisy friar birds are spreading the words. Out of my dreams of a magical natural world I awoke, arching his neck Crystal stood before me and spoke.

All about LAB !

There is a highly misunderstood and confused concept called love. Love is the strongest force on earth. Most achievements in my life are driven by it. Life is to be lived and treasured. The past is after all the perfect (even if somewhat ironic) preparation for the present. The tides of time will unravel the future – it is so good not to know about what the future holds. Strong emotions and feelings such as love, loss, motivation, and hope give me artistic impressions which manifest themselves in fine artworks (often with dragons, unicorns and horses) or children and fantasy stories.