Yellow Bird Up High in Banana Tree

Just for fun!

  1. Roger Whittaker – Yellow Bird

    This is quite a rare song by Roger which only appeared on a children’s album released in 1975 titled: The Magical World of RogerĀ ..

And here are the lyrics to Yellow Bird…

Yellow bird, up high in banana tree
Yellow bird, you sit all alone like me
Did your lady friend leave the nest again?
That is very bad, Makes me feel so sad
You can fly away, In the sky away
You more lucky than me

I also have a handsome friend,
(he not with me today)
They all the same, the handsome friends
Make ’em the nest. Then they fly away

Yellow bird, up high in banana tree
Yellow bird, you sit all alone like me
Better fly away, In the sky away,
Picker coming soon, Pick from night to noon
Black and yellow you, Like banana too
They may pick you some day

Wish that I was a yellow bird,
I fly away with you
But I am not a yellow bird
So I sit, nothing else to do

Yellow bird Yellow bird Yellow bird Yellow bird

Yellow Bird

Jessica Mauboy & Lou Bennett Lyrics

Footsteps in the Sand

Come with me for a walk on the beach at Buddina on the Sunshine Coast!

Blue Tiger Butterflies by the Thousands

 

AsĀ I came off the beach on my way back to Lorelle’s place this morning I met an American couple and, while we chatted about the beauty of the area, the husband drew our attention to the sky.

“Just look at those butterflies!” he said, amazed.

Sure enough the air was full of blue and black butterflies coming along Pacific Boulevard then veering off over the rooftops. The couple had to go home to Budderim but I stayed for another ten to fifteen minutes watching the thousands – perhaps hundreds of thousands – flying in a continuous flow along the same route. I went overĀ to the shade of a driveway in order to get a better spot for photography, although I doubted if my little mobile camera would have enough pixels to make sense of the butterflies in flight. Whilst I was stood there the owner of the house came outside with a wheelbarrow.

“I hope you don’t mind,” I said, “but I stopped here to take photos of the butterflies.”

“That’s quite alright,” he smiled. “There have been loads of them in the last two weeks!”

“Not like this for two weeks?” I asked incredulous.

“Not all the time, but they’ve been around in large numbers. I reckon they’ve just come out of church!” he joked.

Well it was Sunday morning! However (as I have discovered on the Internet), the blue tiger butterflies are migratory, but there’s no need for me to tell you about them – I’ll copy and paste the information for your interest….

 

Critters of Calamvale Creek, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

calamvalecreek.awardspace.com/

Hello. I’m Belinda the blue tiger butterfly.

 

You are lucky to see me in Calamvale Creek in Brisbane, Australia. Blue tiger butterflies don’t often visit Brisbane, but when we do there are usually massive numbers of us travelling either south or north during our migration.

Where do I live?

I’m a tropical migratory butterfly, and generally live in northern Queensland. I have been south and have stopped off to check out Calamvale Creek on my way back north.

In a couple of weeks, large numbers of us will pass through the Sunshine Coast, and in May we will be passing Townsville as we follow the east coast.

In summer I like to visit creek areas near the coast, and in winter, when food plants for our larvae are in short supply, we often mass together in huge numbers in mangroves, gullies, or around shady moist creeks. We rest on stems, dead branches, and twigs, in shade near the ground. I love mangrove milkweed.

 

I like the warm tropical north of Queensland. A large number of us make our home in the rainforest patch of James Cook University. Our group often breaks up if there is any rain in the dry season, then we re-form when the habitat dries out.

Best time to see us

Thousands of us can cluster together on trees and vines, even out on the Barrier Reef islands, giving the vegetation a beautiful blue-black appearance.

You are more likely to see us during very hot summers or when there are very hot days, because we are not biologically suited to cold climates.

We occasionally reach Victoria, but never South Australia. A number of us were reported near Broken Hill in February and March of 1974 during an abnormally humid summer.

Poisonous plants are important to us

The whole life cycle of blue tiger butterflies revolves around poison to various degrees.

The milkweed plants we feed on contain poisons, but our larvae are able to absorb this and keep it in their bodies to protect them from being picked off by birds.

The poisons get passed on to the pupa and then to the adult butterflies.

Of course we don’t want to kill birds ā€” we just want to make them sick so they won’t eat us. Once they’ve tasted us, they’ll never try it again. Some vomit almost immediately.

I do prefer certain types of plants, such as milkweed and milk vines, as Monarch butterflies do too. For my young caterpillars to feed on I like to find jungle vines from the family Asclepiadaceae.

Captain Cook’s butterfly

Captain James Cook reported seeing masses of blue tiger butterflies as he sailed up the coast of Queensland in 1770.

We still accumulate in that area ā€” such as on Magnetic Island, Brampton Island, and Cape Cleveland.

We are also found throughout tropical south-east Asia, in the Philippines, and in Sri Lanka.

We may live for 5 months or more, and make a spectacular addition to any butterfly collection.

ā€” Belinda the blue tiger butterfly

The Necklace

The necklace is not made of lapis lazuli, aquamarine or opal – it’s just a trinket, worthless and so old that the marbled aqua-green paint is gradually wearing off the white ceramic beads. But the string of beadsĀ was shiny andĀ pretty when, many years ago in Australia (well before Chris),Ā it was given to me by Joseph.

During our love affairĀ I used to wear the necklace almost every day; and when we parted finally I put it away in a jewellery box, which I rarely opened. WithĀ the passage of time I would Ā look in the jewel case occasionally and even select the necklace to wear with outfits of matching aqua-green or complementary orange. When the clasp broke several years back I didn’t have the heart to throw away the aging beads; instead I hungĀ them over the top edge of my dressing table mirror so that they becameĀ duplicated on the front surface of the mirror; and many times I forgot the broken clasp and felt disappointed when I found I couldn’t wear them.

Last JuneĀ a well-wishing stranger contacted me through my website.

“IĀ have news of Joseph Gyorffy,” it read, “please get in touchĀ if you’re interested.”

Shortly after making contact I restrung the beads and put on a new clasp. I wore the necklace on the plane. I wore itĀ last week on my visit to seeĀ our mutual friend. I was about to take theĀ beadsĀ off as I prepared to go out shopping this afternoonĀ but something prevented me. You know it’s only a trinket, quite worthless, and yet…

Arrivederci Roma

Roma, Qld

Today it was “Arrivederci Roma” and “Hello Buddina” (and Lorelle and Sally) for three pretty German girls who are working their way around Australia. TheĀ FrƤuleins, whoĀ had been working the last month in a pub in the outback town of Roma (famous for oil, gas and cattle stations, andĀ situatedĀ four hundred and seventy kilometres west of Brisbane) seemed very pleased to turn up at Lorelle’s place (Airbnb), just a stone’s throw from the beautiful white sandy Kawana Beach and a short walk to shops and restaurants. After a rest, a dip in the pool andĀ dinner out, the girls came back laughing and happy to chat with Lorelle, me and one other guest, Angus originally from Adelaide (not Scotland).

“So what was it like in Roma?” asked Lorelle.

“Well,” said Katarina, “it was good for a month but that was long enough.” (And the other two acquiesced with vigorous nodding of their heads and laughing.)

“I bet there were about six people there,” I joked.

“No,” said Katarina, straight-faced, “thirteen!”

The girls, Angus and I burst out laughing.

“But,” Lorelle felt obliged to find something positive to say, “I imagine Roma would be a good place to find a husband…”

“What do you think Angus?” I asked.

“I think the interestingĀ ones probably left at an early age,” Angus smiled at me.

“I expect there are some nice farm boys there…?” Lorelle turned to the German girls.

The girls giggled uproariously and Katarina explained:

“Let’s just say that,” she said (in extraordinarily good English), “after a while,Ā our expectations were somewhat lowered – we thought things were looking upĀ ifĀ they had hair and teeth!”

 

And for those of you who may have been hoping to find out more about the song “Arrivederci Roma” – the lyrics and other interesting snippets, including a rendition of the song sung by Dean Martin (with weird lip movements – suggesting jiggery-pokery) are below.

 

  • Arrivederci Roma-Dean Martin. – YouTube

    www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsLdxCg1aZM

    May 2, 2010 – Uploaded by OPELEB

    Arrivederci Roma” by Dean Martin (Google Play ā€¢ iTunes …. If you go to the site and type in “Arrivederci Roma

    Arrivederci Roma

    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    “Arrivederci Roma”
    (“Arrivederci Darling”)
    Song
    English title Goodbye Rome
    Published 1955
    Composer Renato Rascel
    Lyricist Pietro Garinei
    Sandro Giovannini
    Carl Sigman (English)

    Another version of the song, with the same melody but a new set of English lyrics by Jack Fishman, was published in 1955 with the title Arrivederci Darling. Both versions of the song, in Italian and English, enjoyed lasting and widespread success in the following years.”Arrivederci Roma” (English: “Goodbye, Rome“) is the title and refrain of a popular Italian song, composed by Renato Rascel, with lyrics by Pietro Garinei and Sandro Giovannini. It was published in 1955 as part of the soundtrack of the Italo-American musical filmwith the same title, released as Seven Hills of Rome in English.[1] In the movie, the song is interpreted by the leading character, played by the American actor and singer Mario Lanza. Carl Sigman wrote the lyrics for the English language version of the movie.

    The lyrics[edit]

    Arrivederci (or a rivederci), which literally means “until we see each other again”, is a common Italian equivalent of “goodbye”. The original lyrics express the nostalgia of a Roman man for the dinners and short-lived love affairs he had with foreign tourists who came to Rome. It recalls the popular legend associated with the Trevi Fountain:[2]

    T’invidio turista che arrivi, “I envy you, tourist, you come,
    t’imbevi de fori e de scavi you feast on forums and ruins,
    poi tutto d’un colpo te trovi then suddenly you discover
    fontana de Trevi ch’ĆØ tutta pe’ te! the fountain of Trevi, which is there all for you.
    Ce sta ‘na leggenda romana There’s a Roman legend
    legata a ‘sta vecchia fontana attached to this old fountain
    per cui se ce butti un soldino by which if you throw in a penny
    costringi er destino a fatte tornĆ  then you’ll bind Fate to make you come back.
    Arrivederci Roma, Goodbye, Au Revoir… “Goodbye Rome, Goodbye, Au Revoir…
    Mentre l’inglesina s’allontana While the English girl departs
    un ragazzinetto s’avvicina a little kid comes by
    va nella fontana, pesca un soldo, se ne va! goes into the fountain, picks a penny, goes away!
    Arrivederci Roma! Goodbye Rome!”

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall…

“Who is the fairest of us all?” Do we all wonder that as we sit in the hairdresser’s chair? I use the word “we” very loosely becauseĀ I never go to a hairdresser and not everyone else does either, at least not to a ladies’ hairdresser – takeĀ Roland, for example. This is his experience as related to me over the telephone earlier.

“I went to the hairdresser’s today,” Roly began. “It was my first time in a ladies’ hairdressing salon. What IĀ mean is that I’ve been to unisex salons before but only where the sign for men’s hair cuts comes first. On this occasion the sign was definitely for ladies, and the “We also cut men’s hair” bit was an add on at the end.”

“That’s nice,” I replied (but I had a feeling he had something more to tell), “how did it go?”

“The hair looks alright but… I wasn’t too crazy on the wall of mirror – floor to ceiling – full frontal me!” he said.

“Oh dear! HowĀ close?”

“No more than five feet, and there was nowhere else to look but at myself,” his voice sounded anguished, “And the light…”

“Neon, was it?”

“Oh yes, full blast harsh neon. I could hardly bear to look at my reflection and all the lines,” he bemoaned.

“You shouldn’t have worn your glasses,” I suggested.

“I didn’t. Oh Sally, I had no ideaĀ that I looked so old. Luckily, I was on the middle chair and there was only one other customer, to my left.”

“Nonsense, you are quite handsome… for a man of your age,” IĀ comforted.

“But that’s just because you never wear your glasses,” he rebutted.

“Anyway, why were you lucky to be on the middle chair?” I wasĀ bemused.

“Because, had it been busy, there would have been a whole line of faces looking at me in the middle. I remembered what you told me – that I should smile more often – so I tried a sneaky half-smile and hoped that the lady to my left wouldn’t notice…”

“And did she?”

“I don’t know, I was too busy smiling at myself in the mirror,” Roland replied. “Anyway, then I saw my neck and I tried stretching it like a tortoise to get rid of the line below my Adam’s apple.”

“What line? I never noticed a line…”

“And you won’t do. In future I’m going to go around stretching my neck like a tortoise!” Roly paused while I laughed then continued. “By the way, the lady to the left and her hairdresser, and my hairdresser had a really strange conversation about waxing.”

“What kind of waxing?”

“How should I know? Apparently the old method of heating wax is very painful and out of date – now they use sugar. They heat sugar and rip it off. IĀ said it sounded painful and they said it was… but not quite so painful as hot wax. Then I suggested they might like to try using a blow torch…”

Methinks the ladies were having a bit of fun with Roland. And I daresay they had noticed all his strange antics in front of the wall to wall and floor to ceiling mirror; They may even have thought he looked quite handsome, if a bitĀ over-pleased with himself andĀ tortoise-like, especially for a man of his age.

 

One More Day… and the Painting of Cabbage Tree Point Will be Finished!

Now back on the mainland I have been painting again. I’d like to finish my painting of Cabbage Tree Point by tomorrow for I shall be going up to the Sunshine Coast on Wednesday (paintings always take longer than I anticipate). It’s surprising how fiddly it is to paint small figures and boats in theĀ background. And here are some more photos of the work in progress…

Posted in Art

Eh?

I’m writing my blog and suddenly a cup of coffee turns up on my deskĀ but I’m so engrossed trying to download photographs (of about 20 pixels) whichĀ will notĀ appear that I haven’t said a thank you to the coffee-maker and bringer.

“Thank you for the coffee,” I call out from my office at the rear of the house.

“Eh?” comes a voice from somewhere.

“Thank you for the coffee, Roland!” I say very distinctly and a much louder.

“Eh?” comes the voice again (through several walls).

“Crikey, he’s a bit deaf (like Chris),” I think to myself but I don’t say it out loud for fear of offending him (I don’t mind telling Chris but he’s my husband!). Instead, I try again, even louder and with perfect enunciation:

“Thanks a lot Roland!”

“That’s OKAY!” Roland calls out very clearly and he pops his smiling face around the door.

“Is that what you said on each of the previous occasions?” I ask laughing.

He just grins. He’s too polite to call me a deaf bat.

 

Back on Terra Firma

Okay, okay, Coochiemudlo Island isn’t exactly floating – not yet, but it has beenĀ raining very hardĀ over the last two days (shall we call it Terra Mudlo?). Thankfully, the bad weather didn’t deter my visitors today, all eight of them (family and almost family), because, despite the fact that I had only crackers, cheese and fruit left in the larder, lunch turned out to be akin to the miraculous feast for five thousand; we had barbecued steak, sausages, chicken, potato chips and other snacks, and delights too numerous to mention (as well as cheese, crackers and fruit salad!).

Now I’m back at Belivah and it feels as though I have been away for three weeks (that’s island life for you!). I had a great time looking after Cheese Cake (the sweet little terrier). What of the donkey, the goat, the sheep, the ducks, geese, chooks, cats and the guinea pigs? Well the less said about the antics of the first three, the better (let’s call it a learning curve), but something marvellous happened yesterday morning in the guinea pig and baby chick area… I became aware that Cheese Cake was fascinated by something – I thought it might be a snake in the pen – and when I followed his eyes I saw that he had been watching the birth of a guinea pig. The tiny mite was wet and still, and the motherĀ hadĀ left it to its own devices.

I miss Cream Cake – I got used to him being around (especially after his bath) – but now he is back with Hayley, and the rest of the animals are there with Hayley, I’m not sad to be back on terra firma… with no red mud or mosquitoes!

A Small Mason and his “Worshipful Master”

In this instance the “Worshipful Master” is none other than our friend Roland (who is a tad macho or bossy, if you prefer)Ā and the “small Mason” is his adorable two-year old grandson (who is always charming and agreeable – in spite of his difficult age). They came to visit on Coochiemudlo Island yesterday and Mason helped me feed the many animals on Hayley’s property (while his Worshipful Master looked on).

Lollipop, the clever donkey, behaved disgracefully; she managed to let herself into the chook enclosure and ate all the grain I had put out especially for the birds. SheĀ was adamant that she was a chook! And who could prevent a chook of such proportions from doing exactly as she wants? Not me or little Mason. No amount of pushing from behind or brushing with the yard broom would stop her. At length we just stood there and tutted; and later, when the giant chook opened the bolted and roped door that leads to Hayley’s private garden, Mason cried with alarm; and brave little CheeseĀ Cake gave chase (as did I with another broom)… all to no avail.

While the Worshipful Master rested in the cool of indoors Mason and I cut a basket of seedy grass which we fed to the guinea pigs. But as the day drew on and we were out for a walk around the island (in temperatures of about thirty-five degrees) IĀ noticed that the Master turned the stroller to face away from sun and, instead of pushing it, he pulled it behind him… very caringly.