HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY

26th JANUARY - HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY!!!

Typically Australian - floods up northern Queensland and bushfires in all three southern States.
Sweltering heat at The Rock where we are too!  Would we live anywhere else?  NO NO NO
I hope you are celebrating Australia Day in some way or another.

Delighted, absolutely perfect, that Ita Buttrose has been named Australian of the Year for 2013.  Never a more deserved person who has represented all of us in some way or another - as WOMEN, both in the workforce and in our personal lives.  Loved by all, admired by both male and female and respected by people at all levels of society or political persuasions.

OUR HERO.  Simply known as ITA.

So much to be read about her, but you may be interested to read the following from Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ita_Buttrose

As you know, I live in the Riverina Region of NSW and The Rock is part of the Lockhart Shire.  Each year during October, Lockhart holds the Spirit of the Land Festival and part of that is an art competition which commenced in 2007 during the grips of the worst drought in the Shire's history in an effort of keeping the community with hope and discouraging the excalating rural suicides.  

It took shape to encourage farmers determined to survive living and working on the land to use country ingenuity and create sculptures using old farm machinery, recycled scrap metal and elements of the land.

The Farm Art attracted national and international media and major corporate sponsors enabling a $10,000 first prize. In three years it became a finalist in the NSW Inland Tourism award and is fast becoming the “Farm Art” capital of Australia. It continues to expand supporting the best of Country Australia experiences in a three day Festival held on the second weekend of October each year.

Our community is very proud of the ongoing achievement.

The 2012 Winner of the National Farm Sculpture Award was won by a Deniliquin Farmer Stuart Taylor (who won this award in 2011 also) for his metal sculpture of his pet dog Bonnie.

WOOF WOOF:  BONNIE DOG

Mr. Taylor created the life-size sculpture from mostly exhaust brackets he got at a clearing sale.  He said it was based on his labrador dog and had to chase her around the yard to get the measurements right. He added that he didn't expect to win because is was such a small sculpture and only took a few weeks to make. He also entered a metal Brolga and a smaller replica of a cow's skull.  Last year's winning entry was a horse!  Bonnie Dog has earned him another $10,000 though!

Image with the courtesy of Isabella Torissi who attended the Festival

Trevor Beckwith from Mangoplah created "The Ram-Beau Affair", dubbed "Long Shank" and "Lamb Chop" and this sculpture was inspired by the concept of introducing rams to a flock of ewes, but with the courtship developing into a duo-dance!

Here are some more amazing sculptures.

NOW, I ASK YOU, HOW MORE AUSTRALIAN CAN YOU GET?

WELL, MAYBE LIKE THIS LITTLE PIECE PRESENTLY DOING THE FACEBOOK CIRCUIT.

YOU KNOW YOU'RE AN AUSTRALIAN WHEN:

You believe that stubbies can either be drunk or worn.  You pronounce Melbourne as 'Mel-bin'.  You believe that the letter 'l' in Australia is optional and it's perfectly okay to call it 'Straya'.  You think 'Wooloomooloo' is a perfectly reasonable name for a place.  You're secretly proud of our killer wildlife.  You believe it makes perfect sense for a country to have a $1 coin that is twice as big as a $2 coin.  You understand that 'Wagga Wagga' can be abbreviated to 'Wagga' but 'Woy Woy' cannot be just 'Woy'.  Beetroot with your hamburger....of course!  You wear ugg boots outside the house.  You believe that the more you shorten someone's name, the more you like them.  You understand that 'excuse me' can sound rude, but 'scuse me' is always polite.  You know what it's like to swallow a fly, on occasion via your nose.  You know that it's not summer until the steering wheel is too hot to handle and a seat belt buckle becomes a pretty good branding iron.  You know how to abbreviate every word, all of which usually end in 'o'; arvo, convo, garbo, lezzo, metho, milko, muso, servo, smoko, rego, speedo, righto, etc.  You know that there is a universal place called 'Woop Woop' located in the middle of nowhere, no matter where you actually are!  You can understand all of this!  So, have a giggle and telll your Aussie and International friends.  

I LOVE AUSTRALIA!

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY