I for one, welcome our new alien overlords

Giant insect roams German country side!

(Actually the bug probably got caught under the glass when the satellite image was scanned.)

R.I.P. Steve Irwin

One unfortunate event which has coincided with my trip to Australia is the death of the "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin. This would appear to be a nation in mourning, with funerals, memorial services and interviews with friends and family dominating the media.

Find a San Antonio Church - Christian Online Magazine saWorship.com:
On September 4, Australian conservationist and celebrity Steve Irwin died. Irwin, also known as the "Crocodile Hunter" and for his catch phrase "Crikey!", was tragically killed while filming a documentary called Ocean's Deadliest. He was swimming near a stingray in Australia's Great Barrier Reef when the stingray's poisonous tail barb pierced Irwin's heart. Irwin was able to remove the barb but, unfortunately, nothing could be done to save his life. Marine biologists say that these stingrays normally are very placid creatures; it is extremely rare for them to attack or kill humans.

Some people have dealt with their grief in unusual ways:

Surf With Us, Steve Irwin || Jaunted:
A small bunch of Tasmanians who're missing Steve Irwin thought it might be a good idea to go surfing with a crocodile as some sort of tribute. Rest easy, they weren't too crazy--they took a big rubber inflatable crocodile out to catch some waves.

Some people would appear to be dealing with it in less healthy ways:

Public attacking stingray fish in Australia - Irish Independent:
AUSTRALIAN authorities said yesterday that at least 10 stingrays had been found dead in Queensland waters, in what they feared were revenge attacks for the death of Steve Irwin, the popular television naturalist.

An finally some people have been dealing with it in tasteless, but - I must admit - strangely amusing ways:

Two Kinds of Physical Chess

I'm currently fencing at UTS Fencing Club in Sydney. The club would actually really remind you of Pembroke in Dublin. It's located in the UTS Sydney Boys High Gym, and has a really informal atmosphere, where people just turn up and fence. There are coaches there, but they only seem to do private lessons.

The foil is of an exceptionally high standard - at least compared to what I'm used to. I go down twice night to get my ass kicked by the lads - and lasses - there.

One fencer in particular was a Olympian in Sydney 2004, here's an article on him:

Deaf Sports Australia - News Articles:
[Frank] Bartolillo believes the fact that he is deaf means he can concentrate to a greater extent than his opponents.

It cuts out the distractions that noises in the crowd might create and means there is nothing to focus on except the 14-metre-long, two-metre-wide strip on which he competes.

Unfortunately there's not much sabre going on in the club. There's plenty of epee, but haven't got much involved with that so I can't say much about the standard.

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I'm slightly ashamed to say that I found myself watching Dancing with the Stars last night, it's the Aussie version of Celebrity Come Dancing - I was working out at the time, does that balance out the manliness of it? No?

Anyway! One of the celebrities caught my attention.

Arianne Caoili is the no 3 ranked chess player in Australia; she shot to fame this year, not because of her chess skills, or even her stunning good looks - although they probably played a part. Nope, she's the centre of attention because she ended up in the middle of a punchup between 2 grand masters at a tournament in Turin! Classic! You couldn't make this stuff up!

The Ladies of Grace Adieu

I've just read in Neil Gaiman's Journal, that there's a new book out by Susanna Clark, the author of the most wonderful Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.

Amazon.com: The Ladies of Grace Adieu And Other Stories: Books: Susanna Clarke:

Following the enormous success of 2004 bestseller and critics’ favorite Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke delivers a delicious collection of ten stories set in the same fairy-crossed world of 19th-century England. With Clarke’s characteristic historical detail and diction, these dark, enchanting tales unfold in a slightly distorted version of our own world, where people are bedeviled by mischievous interventions from the fairies. With appearances from beloved characters from her novel, including Jonathan Strange and Childermass, and an entirely new spin on certain historical figures, including Mary, Queen of Scots, this is a must-have for fans of Susanna Clarke’s and an enticing introduction to her work for new readers. Some of these stories have never before been published; others have appeared in the New York Times or in highly regarded anthologies. In this collection, they come together to expand the reach of Clarke’s land of enchantment—and anticipate her next novel (Fall 2008).

Back from the Dead

Now that i'm stuck out here in Oz I figure it might to time to resurect this Blog. I dunno exactly what I'll put in it, but it doesn't really matter. Anyone interested in what I'm up to, or just in my random thoughts can check it out.

Just to get things started, it's just quick round-up from the papers today -just some random thoughts really.

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I'll start with the bad news

Dublin property prices falling by up to 20 per cent - Sunday Independent:
The extraordinary glut of houses coming on the market this month has led to widespread falls in the prices being demanded by estate agents.

This is the type of news, I don't need first thing in the morning. The only way I can stomach my massive mortgage is by thinking of it as a good investment. 20% house proces decreases is not what I want to hear. Of course, the headline is a bit misleading. It's not that the house prices have gone down by 20%, it's just that the Estate agents have put houses on teh market for big proces, failed to sell them, and been forced to re-list them at lower prices. Still it could be a ominous sign of things to come.

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This made me laugh:

Thailand in Dubai? A perfect Irish coup in a wonderful World - Sunday Independent:

HAVE you ever wondered what sort of country we might live in if the Irish Defence Forces ever tried to stage some sort of a coup? Hard isn't it? We'd all be laughing so much they might just get very angry and smack us with their bayonets. There's something about the Irish Army that's just-well not very scary. In any event since all members of the defence forces are required to be short and suffer from weight issues I suspect they'd never make it up to the Dail - probably just pop into Burdochs Fish & Chip Emporium on the way and give up.

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Excellent win by europe in the Ryder cup. They don't seem to be into golf so much in Austrailia. I spent the weekend watching Rugby League and AFL.

Irish Times Article - Clarke's tears and joy the highlight of victory: "The foundations for the winning score of 18½ to 9 ½ points was laid on Friday and Saturday but yesterday's session of mano a mano singles play produced unimagined humiliation for the American visitors who picked up just 3½ points out of a possible 12."

As an aside, isn't "The Melbourne Storm" the best name for a rugby team ever? You can hear the TV previews and news headliens now: "There's a Storm coming", "Storm Warning in Sydney!", "Storm blows away opposition". You could go on forever! (or at least I could...)

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It was a really hot day in Sydney over the weekend - 33 degress if this article is to be believed. Some people have asked my why I didn't head down the beach. Well here's why(certain California girls may want to look away now) :

Hundreds flee Bondi shark scare | | The Australian:
HUNDREDS of swimmers were called out of the water at Sydney's Bondi beach today after two sharks were spotted close to shore.
[...]
'People slowly went back in. Some said they were never coming to the beach again,' Mr Gladstone said.