The Man from Snowy River

In my comments about the riding trip, both here on the blog and in my book, I mention “The Man from Snowy River.” This may not have a huge amount of significance for readers outside Australia, so I thought a little additional information might be helpful.
First it was a poem written in the late 1800s [...]

Australia’s Gold Rush

The discovery of gold in Australia had, in many ways, a similar effect to the discovery of gold in the United States—a stampede of hopeful fortune seekers. Victoria is not the only place where gold was discovered, but it most closely parallels the explosive growth and ostentatious wealth of California’s great Gold Rush. In fact, [...]

Heading Out

Open Road

The road.
Again, the road.
It always comes to claim me, and I go,
Each time with less resistance than before,
I hardly know why it still draws me back,
its pull so strong,
or why I long for its embrace.
It is not always love, for now I find
That leaving gets more difficult with time.
And yet, I’m always faithful [...]

Moving On

Those of you reading my book may have guessed that, when I said in the Oct. 24 post I was leaving Queensland, I meant literarily, not physically. I’m not actually in Australia at the moment. I’m simply following the journey recounted in Waltzing Australia.
So I am leaving writing about Queensland behind for the time being, [...]

North Woods

At the beginning of my book, I mention that even during my corporate days, I found solace in writing. Even in the midst of the corporate whirl, “I would dash off poems filled with bits of dreams and memories and burdened with longing for beauty and a different life.” Elsewhere I speak of fond memories [...]

Australia Calling

The long climb from out-of-work adventurer to successful freelance writer is outlined, though briefly, in the epilogue to Waltzing Australia. The long “second step” may seem short in the rear-view mirror, but it seemed very long indeed at the beginning, before I had really succeeded—and before I had managed to get back to Australia. I [...]

Outback

From time to time, I write poetry, either when needed for an occasion or simply when something moves me deeply. Not entirely surprisingly, I’ve written a bit of poetry about Australia. I love all of Australia, but the outback, particularly the Red Center, really makes my heart sing. So I thought I’d share a bit [...]