Month: May 2022

CCMC: Abstract Head of Henry Moore

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We happened up this spectacular sculpture by accident. It can be found be the side of the road in the outback New South Wales town of Yeoval. Population under 300 people.

Yeoval was the childhood home of Banjo Patterson, a famous Australian poet. In an effort to attract more visitors to the town, the curator of the Banjo Patterson Museum went in search of a special piece of public artwork. In 2010, Robbie Waterhouse (Australian racing identity) donated the sculpture to the town.

The sculpture titled Abstract Head of Henry Moore was created by his protégé Drago Marin Cherina. Henry Moore was said to be the greatest sculpture of the 20th century. He created large scale abstract bronze sculptures that can be found all around the world. To honour his mentor Drago created a similar abstract sculpture of Henry’s head. This became as part of his art collection that he lost to Robbie after a failed business venture. It is reported that Drago thinks that Henry would have enjoyed his final home as he loved the country side.

The six tonne sculpture is one of the largest in Australia.

Thanks to Cee for this week’s inspiration of the letter H.

The Great Aussie Beer Shed

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Most Australians love to escape with a beer or two. However Neil Thomas has taken this to a new level. He is the owner of the Great Aussie Beer Shed filled with over 20,000 cans from Australia and around the world he claims to have drunk over the last 45 years. It is a true Aladdin’s cave of wonder. Also in the mix are 4000 beer steins, beer bottles, beer holders, barrels, signs and other beer or alcohol related objects.

To get his guests in the mood, a drink is included with admission. I chose a Mexican beer and my husband a Stout. For anyone who didn’t drink alcohol there were soft drinks available. The Australian and world history we gained listening to Neil’s passion was memorable.

I hope you enjoy sharing our escape. If you every get the chance to travel to Echuca don’t miss this amazing museum.

The Yak used to advertise Yak Ales
The original Carlton Draught Clydesdales Carriage

This post was inspired by Weekly Prompts Weekend Challenge – Escape.

Coffee Catch-Up # 42

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If we were having coffee I would tell you that it has been very quiet over the last month as our family has recovered from covid. For me getting healthy has taken a lot longer than most people. The upside is that I have had a month to consider my options for my twilight years. Oh and I have been able to binge watch Desperate housewives on Disney +. With 8 sessions it got me through the brain fog and required no thinking. It also make me laugh.

If we were having coffee I would ask you if you saw the 4 planets lined up in the night sky late in April. Just before sunrise was the best time to view them. From the end of our driveway we got a good view on the Saturday and Monday mornings. On the best viewing day Sunday however the sky was full of cloud and they were not visible.

The 4 planets that lined up were Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. It is said to have been 1000 years since these planets had aligned. I was grateful to have seen them.

If we were having coffee I would tell you last weekend was my mother-in-law’s 92nd birthday. Most family members traveled to Newcastle to surprise her on this special day. She had no idea and seeing the grandchildren in particular put a smile on her face, something that is rare these days.

If we were having coffee I would tell you last weekend was both Mother’s Day and the 8th anniversary of Inspiring Max. I can’t believe it has been so long. Blogging is the gift that keeps on giving. I find I have learnt a lot about myself, my community and the world. After reviewing my anniversary yesterday I wrote a blogpost about planning for fun where I make a plan to be more proactive in the next 2 years.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I nearly completed this years Blogging From A-Z challenge. I missed Y and Z as my brain fog was too much. I enjoyed it although I would have liked to have blog hopped more. Next year I will start my planning early particularly for the back end of the alphabet.

If we were having coffee I would ask you what is happening in your world.

Planning For Fun

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This week is Inspiring Max’s 8th birthday. When I started blogging on Mother’s Day 2014 I didn’t have a plan. I learnt as I went and took each new experience as it came. Like my life really. During the first few years I found inspiration easily. The older I am however the more distracted I get. As I am nearing 60 I am looking to the future. Retirement is coming so work needs to give way to fun. What changes do I want to make and how will I achieve them. Now is the time to start planning. This will ensure I achieve what I what and not have hours lost to distraction. To help my motivation I found the perfect quote.

To give this quote even more power I have added it to a sunrise photo I took from my drive way only weeks ago. For me this will mean starting with a weekly plan that is then dividing it into a daily one. This week I am going to start with a blogging plan. This will ensure that Inspiring Max has direction and over the next two years I can aim for 1000 posts. I am currently sitting on 665 which was only increased by 90 since my 6th anniversary blogpost, due to a lack of planning. Having a plan for the A-Z challenge this year made blogging fun and doable again. Blogging is fun. And I want more fun in my life. To do so I will stop overthinking things and start making them happen.

CMMC: A True Work Of Art

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Today I am returning to my pre A-Z challenge blog posts. One that I was just beginning to enjoy was Cee’s Midweek Madness Challenge (CMMC.) Each week Cee gives us inspiration to help expand our photography skills. Our theme this week is macro or close -up photography.

This amazing antique wall unit is from Royal Hotel St Arnaud. It is truly exquisite and just called out for some macro photography. Without getting up close and personal I wouldn’t have seen the detail. We ate our meal in front of this beauty and I was very excited when those sitting in front of us left so I could get better photos. If you get up close with the mirrors you can see my reflection in the image.

Thanks to Cee for hosting this weekly photography challenge and encouraging us to think differently about what we see.

X: Xtremely Amazing Coastline

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To begin to round off this year’s A-Z challenge I thought I would share with you more of the amazing coastline. Torquay to Port Fairy is 299 kilometres via the Great Ocean Road. This journey runs along the south western coast of Victoria. And can I say that none of it is the same. Around every bend the views were constantly changes, often taking away one’s breath. The other very interesting variant was the weather and the season. For this reason I am sure that the next time we visit, the experience will be different again.