White Rabbits facing the Year of the Snake

In 2023 the Rabbit ruled the roost, 

2025 it’s the turn of the Snake.

The rabbits now know they gotta gettalong

 with a snake in charge.

WHITE RABBIT 

WHITE RABBIT 

WHITE RABBIT

How we gonna handle this?

People-watching Game

On the steps…
Shirley: That woman with a shopping bag. What’s in it?
Louisa: Maybe some pastries or a cake.
Shirley: Oh, look! She's got a baguette. You were close with the pastries. 
Louisa: Okay, your turn. That guy with the headphones. What’s he listening to?
Shirley: Looks like a podcast kind of guy. Maybe something about history or true crime.
Louisa: Nah. Music. Look at the rhythm in his walk.
_________
Voice-over
People-watching activities… Fashion Forecast: Predict the outfit the next person who walks by. Or items like hats or scarves. Destination Guessing: Are they going to work, meeting friends, or just out for a stroll? Conversation Context: Guess the topic of their conversation based on their body language and expressions. Shopping Bag Bingo: What kind of items people might have in their shopping bags. Mood Matcher: Predict how people are feeling from their facial expressions and body language.

Lichens on Tasmanian rocks

Arriving at The Bay of Fires…
Veronica: It was named by Tobias Furneaux. He saw the fires of Aboriginal people burning on the beaches. But I think these red rocks could also be a reason. They look like they're on fire.
Rebecca: The red color comes from lichen. Do you know much about lichen?
Veronica: Do you know much about lichen?
Rebecca: They can survive in challenging environments, like rocks or even colorsteel roofs.
Veronica: Ah, the lichen that grows on your roof you’re talking about?
Rebecca: Yep. Grows slowly, so the lichen here is probably pretty ancient.
______________
Voice-over
Lichens are a partnership, a symbiotic relationship between fungi and algae or cyanobacteria. The fungi provide structure and protection, while the algae or cyanobacteria produce food through photosynthesis. Thriving in a clean air environment, they are a useful bioindicator.

Panettone

Chiostro Panettone

Heard on a train to Milano…
Antonio: Maybe I’ll try making panettone this Christmas.
Ferruccio: Bravo! It can be tricky. There are secrets, you know.
Antonio: Secrets?
Ferruccio: The yeast is special. It's a closely guarded secret among bakers.
Antonio: I heard it’s not made with yeast but a sourdough starter.
Ferruccio: Which is a wild yeast. Gives panettone its unique texture and flavor. And the process is long and requires patience. You need to let the dough rise multiple times. And hang it upside down after baking.
Antonio: Sounds like a lot of work. But the taste, right? 
Ferruccio: Oh, it also helps to soak the fruit some days before baking, it plumps up the fruit. Use the best ingredients and don’t rush the rising.
Antonio: Maybe I’ll buy one this year and start earlier next year.
Ferruccio: Buona fortuna!
_________
Voice-over
The history dates back to the Roman Empire, is mentioned as being in Milan in the 15th century, but the modern Christmassy version comes from the 20th century.

Oatlands

Coffee in a stone café…
Ronald: We nearly drove right past.
Andrew: Historical gem isn’t it. Impressive stone buildings. And many of them built by convict labor.
Ronald: True, but they got built and are here today as a historical reminder and how far we've come. It's important to remember the past, even the difficult parts.
Andrew: Look at this. Oatlands has the largest collection of Georgian sandstone buildings in the Southern Hemisphere. Over 150, with 87 of them along the main street. And the Callington Mill, for example, not only produced flour but also had an illegal distillery on the side.
Ronald: Nice to have pleasant historical spots to drop into on a journey. A chance to learn something new along the way. Reminds me, I must send a donation to Wikipedia.
_________
Voice-over
A lot of history is packed into this Tasmanian village. The name can be traced back to a village in England founded in the time of Henry VIII.

Callington Mill, Oatlands TAS, Wiki.

Philip the Parrot

The parrot greets Antonio with a “Hello”
Antonio: Hello Philip. Charming fellow. What else can he say?
Jerome: "How are you?", "I'm hungry," "What's your name?", "Goodbye," and "See you later."
Antonio: Impressivo! How do you teach him?
Jerome: Repetition, reward, and lots of patience.
Antonio: A satisfying companion.
Jerome: And sometimes demanding. Loves attention.
_________
Voice-over
Some parrots are said to have the cognitive ability of a two-year-old human child. And the needs.

White December Rabbit

---

WHITE RABBIT, WHITE RABBIT, WHITE RABBIT

Good luck for December projects.

After such a year, and perhaps the ones that lie ahead, 

we may as well end it with a song.

The Nenes singing Kogane no hana.

A melodic caution about travelling far away to seek gold flowers…

Listening to it I departed Koganei (a near homonym).

Beginner's luck at Poohsticks

Ashdown Bridge. Wikipedia

Crossing a bridge…
Vivian: This reminds me of when I was a kid. My friends and I used to play Poohsticks on bridges like this.
Morgan: Poohsticks?
Vivian: A game from Winnie the Pooh. You drop sticks on one side of the bridge and see whose stick comes out first on the other side.
Morgan: Sounds... thrilling.
Vivian: It's more fun than it sounds. How about we try it? I'll bet you a dollar my stick will win.
Morgan: OK. I still don't get how this is can be fun.
Vivian: You'll see. Drop sticks… NOW.
Morgan: There! Is that mine?
Vivian: Looks like it.
Morgan: Pay up!
Vivian:  OK, you win this one. A rematch.
___________
Voice-over
In the original story, Poohsticks was played by Winnie the Pooh, Christopher Robin, Tigger, and Eeyore. Pooh accidentally dropped a pine cone into the river, and after seeing it appear on the other side of the bridge, he came up with the idea for the game (Wikipedia).

Stick Library

Out walking in the wetlands…
Antonia: Stick Library? What’s that supposed to mean?
Gelsomina: Sticks you can borrow for hiking? For those who forget to bring their fancy walking sticks.
Antonia: Pooh sticks? 
Gelsomina: Possibly. There’s a bridge.
Antonia: Or maybe for a game like a scavenger hunt?
Gelsomina: Na. I got it. Listen. It’s for dogs. Owners can borrow sticks to throw for their dogs.
Antonia: For play fetch. Makes sense. A stick library for dogs!
__________
Voice-over

There are such places. Word is spreading.

Factors at an Accident

Two friends run into each other out walking… 
Janine: I didn’t see the actual accident.
Winifred: The car hit the bollards lining the road, flipped in the air several times, and just missed the palm trees. It finally came to rest here, a hundred meters away.
Janine: I arrived just as the ambulances arrived. That one looks seriously hurt.
Winifred: So reckless.
Janine: I wouldn’t be surprised if speed and drugs were involved. 
Winifred: Not at all unlikely in this area. Fourth such accident in this street this year. All the usual victims.
Janine: Usual?
Winifred: Ones whose age, race, tattoos and gender media are not allowed to report.
Janine: They need guidance, maybe from tribal elders or community leaders.
Winifred: Better road safety education, yes, but accidents will still occur.
__________
Voice-over
A fine line between letting the young learn from their mistakes and giving them guidance. In a walking society, you pick yourself up when you fall. A car society is different.

Costume, Posture, Gibberish

Politics as circus…

Katherine: The rallies. Venue always looked like a circus tent.
Gabriel: Fitting, isn't it? Complete with clowns and all. I half expected a trapeze act.
Katherine: Striding out like he's in a Wild West showdown, like some gunslinger about to “save t
he town” from... I don’t even know what.
Gabriel: Right? It’s all costume and swagger. Add in the red hats and it's like some dystopian dress code.
Katherine: And the speeches—if you can call them that. Just a stream of sound bites, strung together like a fortune teller reading a broken crystal ball.
Gabriel: Never about policies. Just posturing and proclamations, like a ringmaster announcing the next act.
Katherine: And keeping the crowd entertained. Who cares about facts, it’s fireworks, right?
Gabriel: Fireworks, or flames? The real issue is watching the country burn while he’s up there stoking it for effect.
Katherine: Perfecting the art of saying nothing and everything at the same time. The ultimate gibberish guru.
Gabriel: It’s almost impressive, in a twisted way. Managing to rile people up without a coherent point, like a magician with words that mean nothing.
Katherine: But somehow, he still fires up his followers, as if they’ve been told something profound.
Gabriel: The power of suggestion, I suppose. Or maybe just the power of spectacle over substance. Politics as circus, plain and simple.
_____________
Voice-over
The anguish may be even greater outside the Untied States. The U.S. sneezes, the world catches a cold.

Gunpowder, Treason and Plot

Bonfire Night…
George: What’s Guy Fawkes all about?
Bruce: He was part of a group that tried to blow up the English Houses of Parliament in 1605. They wanted to overthrow the government.
George: Was Grandpa named after Guy Fawkes?
Bruce: No. But my brothers and I used to chant this rhyme: “Guy, Guy, Guy, stick him up high, hang him on a lamp post til he die…”
George: Really? How did Grandpa Guy feel about that?
Bruce: He didn’t like it. He’d say “That’s not nice.”  We just thought it was funny.
George: Funny? Sounds a bit disrespectful to me.
Bruce: Yeah, it was. We didn’t realize how much it bothered him. But we were kids. And kids sometimes don’t think too much.
George: So, was Grandpa Guy sympathetic to Guy Fawkes’ cause?
Bruce: I don’t think so. Even though he was a bit anti-government, he didn’t condone violence. He just didn’t appreciate us making fun of his name.
George: Well, having your name chanted in a rhyme about hanging isn’t fun. Did you ever stop chanting it and apologize?
Bruce: Eventually, yes. We realized it upset him. But we never got around to apologizing. Just one of those things that slid by.
__________
Voice-over
Respecting people’s feelings is important. Shame that Bruce and his brothers couldn’t have apologized. Now more obedient souls see Bonfire Night as celebrating the triumph of plots being foiled and order over chaos.

Guido jumped from the scaffold

White Rabbits and a Cuckoo Clock

Immigration: What is your reason for visiting a small town in Germany?
Max Kitsch: A Royal Hunt for a Cuckoo Clock. And maybe throw in a nutcracker soldier and a gnome. WHITE RABBIT, WHITE RABBIT, WHITE RABBIT.
Immigration: Try the shop in the Hauptbahnhof. Same password.

Loosely following a Le Carré operation, this was a Max Kitsch cover for (1) revisiting the town he had left 250 years ago. And (2) for finding a long-lost childhood friend he never knew.

Mission Accomplished.
A suitable clock and a nutcracker were found.
The gnome refused any advances and would neither defect nor migrate.

Reading the Encyclopedia Britannica (2)

Podcast it...

The add-ons…
Ursula: It’s wacky enough to do a podcast or a blog.
George: Where will I get the time? I’ll be buried in reading. And the point being?
Ursula: Keep track of your progress.
George: I could just use a checklist. Less hassle.
Ursula: Think about it this way. Writing or talking about what you’re learning could help you actually remember it. Plus, you’d get to show off how smart you are.
George: This is not the Big Bang show. And it sounds like extra work.
Ursula: Yeah, but like Sheldon, you could extend your social contacts. You might even inspire other geeks to start their own quirky quests.
George: Inspiring others… nice. But what if I run out of things to say?
Ursula: With the Encyclopedia Britannica? Not a chance! And you could always bring in guest stars or interview experts to keep things fresh.
George: Interviews could be cool. But I’m still not sure it’s worth the effort.
__________
Voice-over
Ursula further urges George saying he could pick up skills like interviewing or media design and George has no quarrel with this. But Ursula wryly wonders if George as a podcaster could be comedic.

Reading the Encyclopedia Britannica

A cluttered study…

Ursula: You could free up some shelves by giving away those Encyclopedia Britannicas.
George: But that’s my project. To read the Encyclopedia Britannica, not all the articles, say half of them. Before, you know… end of life.
Ursula: That’s  a challenge.
George: There’s a plan. Restricting myself mainly to the Micropedia for starters.
Ursula: Do you think you can finish this… this mission?
George: There’s an existentialist element. The focus is on the journey rather than the destination.
_________
Voice-over
The discussion goes on to cover creating a reading schedule, setting goals, prioritzing articles, taking notes and taking breaks, tracking progress. And the intrinsic value and enjoyment of the undertaking. Ursula asks if George intends to include the Macropedia but he replies he’s saving that for the afterlife.