Verse and worse

Jack fell down and broke his crown

And Jill came tumbling after

The lawyer’s face revealed a frown

As he sued for a broken rafter

Gym Ruling
A California court has ruled that parents can sue if their kids' schools cut back on gym classes. But if they cut back on math and science classes, we just have to keep buying all their technology from China and India.



Reading Scores
A new report shows that 25% of 8th graders are functionally illiterate. And the other 75% are getting beaten up by the illiterate kids.



Deficit Panel Findings
The Deficit Reduction Commission will release its full report on how to cut government waste this morning. It's first recommendation will be not to waste money by funding useless things like the Deficit Reduction Commission.



Police Union Stance
The Los Angeles police union wants the city to stop hiring new cops. It turns out hazing the new guys is really interfering with the veteran cops' daily naps.



Wikileaks B of A
Bank of America is probably the target of the next expose from Wikileaks. Most of the leaks are coming from 2-3 disgruntled ATM's.




December 1st



1975: Lambda Theta Phi, the first Latino fraternity, is established at Rutgers University… but it is better known on campus as “the men’s soccer team.”


1982: At the University of Utah, Barney Clark becomes the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart… but the world is much more interested in Clark’s incredibly life-like artificial hair.


1991: Ukrainian voters overwhelmingly approve a referendum for independence from the Soviet Union. The nation has spent the last 19 years unsuccessfully trying to join the Pac-10.

So they roped you in as well?

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID: Sydney2010-7235)

It's not your normal view of a retired naval cruiser, but who wants a normal view for any photographic image? I stopped to admire the symmetry of the vessel's graceful bow, accentuated by the curvature of the number 11 on either side.

Really the only thing that was not symmetrical was the jetty rope - but that didn't worry me. This was shot at the Australian Maritime Museum in Sydney.

Peachtree Garden Club Christmas Home Tour December 9

Halcyon Oaks, above, is on the National Register of Historic Places and was built in 1921.

Don't miss the Peachtree Garden Club Christmas Home Tour on December 9 from 10am-3pm. Four beautiful houses will be featured. All proceeds go the Peachtree Garden Club Community Fund (a non-profit 501C-3) and all donations are tax deductible. The tour is sponsored by Balentine and Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby's Realty.


This house was built in 1940 and was designed by Pringle and Smith and has been renovated by Bill Litchfield, interiors by Carolyn Malone.


An all time Atlanta favorite, this house was designed by Philip Shutze and built in 1939. Yong Pak renovations and additions.


Filled with beautiful antiques and art, this house was renovated by Norman Askins, interiors by Charlotte Cahoon of Herndon Interiors. Gardens by John Howard Designs.


Tickets, which are $20 in advance and $25 the day of the tour, are available at any house the day of the tour and also may be purchased at the following stores beginning December 1:

Boxwood Garden and Gifts
100 E. Andrews Drive
Atlanta, GA 30305

Nadeau/Furniture with a soul
2349 Peachtree Road/Peachtree Battle Shopping Center
Atlanta, GA 30305

Erika Reade Ltd.
3732 Roswell Road
Atlanta, GA 30342

Tootsie’s, Inc.
3400 Around Lenox Rd NE # 219
Atlanta, GA 30326-1408

The Mercantile
1430 Dresden Drive, Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30319

All images via Whitehaven

T is for Trying To Take off

Taking off - This Time!

Almost off!

I'm... flying!!!???

SCREECH!!!

SPLASH!!!

Oh, well - another Time...

Today's post is an Entry in round SEVEN of ABC Wednesday, the meme initiated by Denise Nesbitt. For more, you can log on via the ABC site.

Verse and worse

The master builder taught his daughter

How to lay bricks and prepare the mortar

Her skills and talents could not be finer

Now she's cloning the Great Wall of China

Fed Pay Freeze
President Obama has proposed freezing salaries for all federal workers. He's already helped freeze everyone else's salary for the last two years.



Graduation Rates Rise
American high school graduation rates are rising again... mostly because of the new math skills requirements you need to play Grand Theft Auto.



Con Jobs
A new study shows people with criminal records are having the toughest time finding a job right now... which is terrible news for all those members of Congress who were voted out of office this month.



Playboy Release
Playboy Magazine has released every issue from 1953 to 2010 on a hard drive... but you still can only find that hard drive hidden in your dad's night table.



Inmate Outsourcing
California is shipping 5,800 prison inmates out of the state. Hundreds of small businessmen in California are now trying to disguise themselves as inmates.





November 30th


1783: A 5.3 magnitude earthquake strikes New Jersey. That’s the last time New Jersey ever shook and didn’t shed millions of gallons of hair gel.


1916: Costa Rica becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty. Ironically, the dignitaries signing the treaty just copied the Argentines’ signatures.


1994: The National Football League announces that the Jacksonville Jaguars will become the league's 30th franchise. 16 years later, most of the people in the Jacksonville area have still not heard this announcement.

Identify this mystery object

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID: 7323)

OK, so it's not the most common viewpoint. That's because I stood with my back to the object, bent over as far as I could, and shot it upwards to get the most unconventional angle. Yes, I must have looked like the Hunchback of Notre Dame in reverse!

But can you guess what I've shot? Feel free to post your guesses as comments - and yes, you can guess as many times as you want. I'll reveal the answer in 24 hours, but if you just cannot wait that long, you can check the high-resolution image here on my Red Bubble site to see what the answer is.

House of the Week

I used to drive by this house several times a week when we were building our house. I like the fact that it is pretty but humble. It is well done, but not over the top. The roof is not slate, the detail is simple, it's not fussy. It has good lines, is pleasing to the eye and looks like a wonderful family house - exactly what I was trying to accomplish in my own house. When I photographed it I got that warm and fuzzy feeling of home. If the owner reads this blog, I would love to see the inside!






In this picture above you can see the tight lap of the siding (don't know if it's wood or hardieplank). It looks like a 3-4 inch reveal, which is similar to mine. It's a nice look for clapboard, a little different than a wide reveal of 9 inches -which is more common. Below is my house from the south side - you can see the tight reveal of the siding similar to the picture above.










Click on any image to enlarge. All images via Whitehaven

Verse and worse

The new lighthouse keeper

Is such a heavy sleeper

That he sets eight alarms to rise every morning

And take on his duties even while he's still yawning

Today's frost

Gull on ice

Dune not disturb

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID: 122-3368)

I love a decent abstract as much as the next photographer, so I found this simple sight really arresting. Why? Simply because of the strong shapes and the bold colours - and I guess the unusual view as well.

This was a temporary outdoor stall at Melbourne's Docklands precinct, shot on a very warm summer's day on 10 January this year. The central pole swept the canvas upwards sharply, which was perfect for the way I "saw" the image, contrasting that bright yellow against the strong shadow and the flawless blue Australian sky.

Verse and worse

William Spode bought "Abbey Road"

But his credit card began to implode

Downloading the Beatles brought him so much delight

That he logged into iTunes right through the night

Never yawn, from dusk to morn

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID: USA2010-8530)

It's not often you get to photograph dusk over your own country and then, scant hours later, dawn over the Pacific. But here's the tricky bit, right? The first image shows dusk on 23rd June 2010 and the next one shows dawn on - that's right, the same day!

The shot above was taken a couple of hours into the long haul from Sydney to San Francisco aboard a United Boeing 747. Then some hours later, I gazed through my window as I tried to sleep - and sat there transfixed by the colours that began to develop on the horizon, from my vantage point more than 30,000 feet up.

I was really tired, but I got to my feet, walked back a couple of rows, took my camera from the overhead locker - and then made my way to the rear of the plane, to shoot some frames through the tiny observation porthole in the last emergency door.

It was well worth the effort. I can now claim to have photographed dawn AFTER shooting dusk on the same day.

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID: USA2010-8533)

Greek Debt Extension
Greece is getting four more years to pay back its bailout debts… but how do you add four years to “never?”



California CaseThe Supreme Court will hear a arguments tomorrow on whether California has to release tens of thousands of prisoners from its jails. Right now, the only people getting out of California are business owners who are actually still hiring people.



Spider-Man Screw-Up
Previews for the Broadway show "Spider-Man" have been a disaster, with actors falling, sets missing, and audio problems destroying the performances. It turns out it's mostly because co-producer Bono donated 10% of the stage crew to Africa.



Jobless Benefit Deadline
Unemployment benefits will run out for two million Americans unless Congress acts before midnight Tuesday. Most Congressmen are expected to vote to extend the benefits, especially since they're all used to getting paid for decades not to work.



Wikileaks Shocker
The Wikileaks reports show that most Arab leaders are begging the U.S. to bomb Iran. They would do it themselves, but they only know how to kill Jews.




November 29th


1807: The Portuguese Royal Family leaves Lisbon to escape from Napoleonic troops… and all the annoying Black Friday shoppers.


1922: Howard Carter opens the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun to the public. Unfortunately he didn’t bring any air freshener.


1934: The Chicago Bears defeat the Detroit Lions 19-16 in the first nationally broadcast game. The Lions haven’t won since.

November 28th


1095: On the last day of the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II appoints Bishop Adhemar of Le Puy and Count Raymond IV of Toulouse to lead the First Crusade. Everyone else gets’ a year’s supply of Turtle Wax.


1975: As the World Turns and The Edge of Night, the final two American soap operas that had resisted going to pre-taped broadcasts, air their last live episodes… thus killing the hopes of millions of teenage boys who had been praying to see some accidental nudity.


1984: Over 250 years after their deaths, William Penn and his wife Hannah Callowhill Penn are made Honorary Citizens of the United States. They receive their 1040’s a week later.

November 27th


1839: The American Statistical Association is founded… and determines it’s 100% full of losers.


1901: The U.S. Army War College is established… meaning their frat parties feature drunk guys with tanks!


2004: Pope John Paul II returns the relics of Saint John Chrysostom to the Eastern Orthodox Church. He forgets to get a receipt.

Verse and worse

It was terribly sad to see Angus McCracken

Get his new grey trousers ripped by the bracken

So he patched the holes and sold them for a shilling

To Raggedy Fred, who was ever so willing

Slow waves

The fjord is covered in a soft carpet.

This is my contribution to Dragonstar's The weekend in Black and White.

Some drivers are so ... pig-headed

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON (Image ID:USA2010-Long Island-8645)

We were in a hurry, catching up with close friends for dinner in Long Island. It was late evening and the light was fading quickly. But after we'd parked and were on our way to the restaurant (Smokin Al's, a rib joint) I noticed this mural on a wall.

I didn't even need to tell Mrs Authorblog and the Authorbloglets that I was stopping to take the photo. They had seen the mural too - and turned around because they kinda KNEW what I was going to do next.

By the way, during the meal, one of our friends, whom we've known for many years, told me that she used to read my blog regularly and asked why I had suddenly shut it down. Now that I've resumed the blog, I'd better get in touch with her so that she resumes her reading habit ....

Fresh Start for a Beautiful Piece of Furniture

This settee was in my husband's entrance hall growing up in Boston (he doesn't like the word settee either -calls it the little french sofa). It sat in the curve of a stair just like it does in my house. I have been itching to recover it since we moved in to our house in 2008. It's finally done!

Before:



After:



It looks great with my Thanksgiving flowers. I have orange in my living room too and orangey red in my family room, so it pulls everything together. Color continuity. I bought the fabric at my favorite fabric selling blog - Designer's Attic.