Back at the lake today and Nyimarak the Australian Shelduck—the biggest duck in these parts—is in no mood for wardong the crow, or even for feisty little kidjibroon the Eurasian coot, shooing both off, then flying away.
Category Archives: Shoreline Poetics
Dragonfly-Sized Mosquitos
Cliff Head campground after driving the Indian Ocean Drive from Mingenew, and Mullewa and Tenindewa before that: the whole Northern (wildflower) Loop done with most of the southern in one day, and now seeing how far the road is open before it’s closed for roadwords ahead. And just before we can go no further we turn into Cliff Head and down to an almost empty campground bar a couple of caravans. We set up and eat dinner on the beach just before sunset, all alone except for a whole swarm of dragonfly-sized mosquitos getting blown in the wind south to north. Maybe there are no other campers because they’ve been carried away by these things. They fly, dopily, into the side of our heads. They are giant mosquitos, and somewhat slow. To keep them from feeding on us we are forced to kill those that land on our skin. We keep them and later throw them on the fire, hoping they and the smoke will keep others away.
The next morning they are still around, even in the daylight. While above the cirrus are also appearing in long streaks, like the tracks of mosquito wings. More heat approaching.
Upper Swan Water and Trees
Drive out to Bells Rapids at the top of the Swan and walk up to where it becomes the Avon. The water levels are way up on last time, with actual rapids and improvised trails where the river has flooded the banks and walkways. The main water is brown, as are most side puddles, but there are also little streams that tickle down valleys from the side, at right angels to the river, with water more clear. And yet, there are still many dead trees right by the river’s bank—like kwell(ilul) the skeoak, with its shallow roots. I guess many didn’t make it through the long, dry summer, and stand now dead, in or near the water.
Yellow and Purple
Late August lakeside and noticing the appearance of both yellow and purple flowers— yellow wattle, prickly moses, parrot bush; purple wisteria, guichenotia, other things—so often together; more because of the other; complementary.
Limestone and Volcanos
Departing Bali in the plane: Mt. Agung. Lembongan and Penida—all limestone. Volcano to east—Lombok?
Upsurging liquid rock. And broken down coastal bits, reformed, broken down, reformed.
Lake Beratan Cloud
Driving south past Lake Beratan, northern Bali, and a cumulus cloud rolls in over the lake, coming the other way. It rolls and rolls and bends down close enough to kiss the surface of the water.
Water Falling Northern Bali
Water falls
in northern Bali
between plants.
Other Side of the Ridge
Up beyond the lakes of Bali—especially Beratan—there is a ridge line where you can look back down upon the lakes, or keep going down from there on the other side to the ocean on the north side beyond. It’s like the lip at the top of a crater. And here, on the north side of the ridge, there is water that still flows; from where exactly, I don’t know—on first glance it seems higher than the lake below. But it flows down none the less, through the narrow valleys in little rivulets and waterfalls. People use it to irrigate hydrangeas—they’re also growing bananas, coffee, pineapples, bamboo. And further down—on the slightly wider, flatter lands—they’re growing rice: the Subak system here, or so I’m told, too.
One island organism.
Offerings to the Gods/Dogs
The offerings with rice and flowers given to the Balinese gods is so often eaten up by birds and cats and dogs.
Dipping Green
Sunset scene on Bali west coast with orange and yellow above the horizon line, and then, below a cloud, there is green dipping down into the orange-yellow section. Above this it is bluer, with Venus shining bright.
John Stubley 