Swan Magazine February 2019

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IN THIS ISSUE FEATURES

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Books and Writing

Books and Writing Death in the Sea of Grass KSP News On Your Marks, Get Set, Go South West Shorts 2019

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Business Card Board

Finance with Steve Networking

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Business

Community

Front Page Photograph: Lucky Hell of La Soiree Photograph courtesy of La Soirée See review on page 26.

Animal Foster Pioneer Honoured 13 Edna Turns a Hundred 10 Federal Notes 9 Miss Galaxy Australia 2019 11 Perth Pinup Community 12 SAFE 50 Shark Numbers Recover 8 SVRN 46 The Allanson Bushfire 48 The Compassionate Friends 51 Vulnerable Families in Midland 9 What’s On 14 Leisure

House and Garden

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Sport and Leisure Entertainment

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Cinefest Oz Film Festival 41 Footnote People in History 16 Perth Fringe World Reviews 6056 33 #Blessed 29 A National Park 27 A Very Good Variety Show 26 Baking Demonstration 30 Best of Edinburgh Comedy 29 Cabaret of Curiosities 30 Comedy Striptease 34 Comedy Superstars 34 Dancing in the Driveway 28 Daniel Conlan is Typing 31 Divalicious 35 Fuego Carnal 37 La Soirée 26 MissCast 37 Phoebe’s Fond Farewells 36 Raymond Mearns 36 Taming of the Brew 32 The Best of British 31 Salonika at Garrick 8 DISCLAIMER The information in this publication is of a general nature. The articles contained herein are not intended to provide a complete discussion on each subject and or issues canvassed. Swan Magazine does not accept any liability for any statements or any opinion, or for any errors or omissions contained herein.

SWAN MAGAZINE WEBSITE:

www.swanmagazine.com.au

Email: editor@swanmagazine.com.au Registered Address: 18 Tokay Lane, The Vines, Western Australia 6069 MARCH DEADLINES: Advertisements: 1st March Editorial: 1st March Copyright: Swan Magazine 2019 2

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BOOKS AND WRITING TALKING BOOKS

hen she retired after running her own successful financial planning business, Lesley Dewar, returned to her first love - writing. Always a prolific writer, she had been The Idler columnist for Swan Magazine for several years.

Passionate about the West Australian wildlife she decided to centre her stories for children around the endangered and threatened species whose natural habitat is being eroded so swiftly.

Setting up her website at Stories My Nana Tells, featuring her iconic little red helicopter, Lesley writes bright and breezy adventure stories personalised for her young readers.

Every book has wow! moments to entrance and surprise her readers. Stories for children between three and twelve years of age, and every story has something which will have your child turn to you and say “Wow, I didn’t know that!”

Her personalised stories engage the child, help them understand their environment, improve literacy, and trigger discussions which educate with fun.

A passionate storyteller and skilled researcher, Lesley teases out extraordinary facts to make things of ordinary life become an inspiration and wonder.

A published writer since the 1980’s, she also writes regularly for the print media on business topics, lifestyle ideas and is a guest blogger on various websites.

Lesley lives in Busselton, Western Australia, has over forty years full time in business, and travels extensively. She is a cancer survivor, an active campaigner on conservation issues,

and is a grandparent and great-grandparent with a diverse blended family.

She can often be found giving public readings surrounded by enthralled children.

As well as individualised books, Lesley has a range of stand-alone books - Hey Dude, Whp Moved My Gumnuts?; Scarlet Robin; Ulla Bird and The Pit Ponies; Where’s the Spiky Echidna?; Grrk The Motorbike Frog and more.

Available in hard copies as well as digital, her website www.storiesmynantells.com - is well worth a visit, not only for her books, but her blog.

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BOOKS AND WRITING KSP WRITERS’ CENTRE NEWS ON YOUR MARKS, GET SET, GO! SHANNON COYLE

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ow fast can the words flow from your pen? Do you need inspiration to ignite your creativity? Kick start your imagination by booking a place in the Marathon Writing Competition run by the Society of Women Writers WA on Saturday 23 March 2019 in the Midwest Room at the State Library of WA in Northbridge, from 10.15am to 5.15pm.

Can you beat our reigning champion, teenager Amber Berriman of Gidgegannup who has won the trophy four times in a row?

Helen Iles, author of Bitter Comes the Storm, Fire in the Heartland, and The Horse Keepers, will give you a series of writing prompts: a word, a phrase, an image or a song to spark your imagination and generate ideas for writing stories, poetry or articles.

There will be ten challenges, each lasting twenty-five minutes. The winner will receive a trophy and certificate. There are also prizes for second and third places.

Helen, the Chairperson of The Society of Women Writers WA, says “The aim is to produce first drafts, fresh new material for future writing projects. Don’t worry about grammar, punctuation or spelling. Let the words spill out onto the paper.

You will be amazed at how much writing you can produce.”

Bring your favourite pens. Notepaper will be supplied.

The cost of the marathon is $25 and it is open to all writers, men and women, young and old.

Bookings are essential due to limited seating in a smaller venue than usual. To book, call 0429 116 395 or email swwwabookingofficer@gmail.com

For more information, visit the Society’s website: www. swwofwa.com.au

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ver thought about writing a short story but don’t know where to start? In our frantic, content-saturated world, people's attention spans are getting shorter than ever.

To hold their attention, you'll need land the first punch on the first line of your story and keep on punching until the final bell.

On Saturday 16 February from 1-4pm, join local awardwinning author Guy Salvidge who will show you how in an informative workshop. Tickets from $35.

COMPETITION

A reminder that submissions for the KSP commemorative anthology competition, inviting submissions of prose, poetry and non-fiction, closes Friday 22 February – check our website for details. Don’t miss your chance to become a published author.

Finally, our 2019 sundowner series kicks off this month on Friday 22 February from 6.30pm with a special guest talk on the Australian publishing industry, self-publishing howto’s and mentoring options with Serenity Press founder Karen McDermott.

This will be followed by a Serenity book launch with local author Carolyn Wren. Tickets just $5 at the door for KSP members ($10 others). Complimentary wine on arrival.

To book or for more details on any of these activities please visit the KSP website www.kspwriterscentre.com or phone the office on 9294 1872.

Marathon Writing Competition Venue: Midwest Room, Mezzanine Floor State Library of WA, 25 Francis Street, Perth Saturday 23 March 2019 10.15am to 5.15pm

Helen Iles Helen Iles, author of Bitter Comes the Storm, Fire in the Heartland, and The Horse Keepers, will give you a series of writing prompts: a word, a phrase, an image or a song to spark your creativity and generate ideas for writing stories, poetry or articles.

There will be ten challenges, each lasting 25 minutes. The winner will receive a trophy and certificate. There are also prizes for second and third places. The aim is to produce first drafts, fresh new material for future writing projects. Don’t worry about grammar, punctuation or spelling. Let the words spill out onto the paper. You will be amazed at how much writing you can produce.

DISCLAIMER The information in this publication is of a general nature.

The articles contained herein are not intended to provide a complete discussion on each subject and/or issues canvassed.

Swan Magazine does not accept any liability for any statements or any opinion, or for any errors or omissions contained herein.

Bring your favourite pens. Notepaper will be supplied.

The cost of the marathon $25 and it is open to all writers, men and women, young and old.

To book, call 0429 116 395 or email swwwabookingofficer@gmail.com For more information, visit the Society’s website: www.swwofwa.com.au

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BOOKS AND WRITING SOUTH WEST SHORTS 2019 THERESE EDMONDS

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FINALISTS’ WORKSHOP

he 2019 South West Shorts competition is now open.

Perth and WA’s South-West writers are invited to submit a monologue or duologue about life in WA’s south-west. A panel of independent judges will choose the best three scripts from Perth plus the best three from the South-West region.

The six winning authors will have the opportunity to develop their scripts with the director in Dunsborough on Saturday 6th April 2019.

PERFORMANCE

THEME

All six plays will be performed by local actors at the new HEART black box theatre in Margaret River on Saturday 18th May 2018.

This years theme is Changing Landscapes. You are welcome to write on any subject, in any setting and with any character/s you choose but your play must make reference to this theme and include something about life in the south-west of Western Australia.

That can be about our history, a current topic, our quirks, an in joke only people from this region will get, a place setting let your imagination run. Just make sure you include an aspect of life that’s particular to this region. Entries that meet these themes will be favoured.

AWARDS

Judge's Award:

The script chosen by the three judges prior to the performance

People's Choice Award:

The audience will be invited to vote for their favourite play after the performance.

DURATION

PUBLICATION

Entries in the South West Shorts competition should run for no more than ten minutes maximum.

All six plays will be published in the South-West Shorts 2019 anthology.

CLOSING DATE

CONDITIONS

9.00am Monday 18th March 2019 No entries will be accepted after this time.

Entry is restricted to writers living in Perth and in the southwest region of Western Australia. Writers must be a permanent resident of Perth or the South-West.

For this competition, the South-West region is defined as the area that includes the shires of Augusta-Margaret River, Boyup Brook, BridgetownGreenbushes, Capel, Collie, Dardanup, DonnybrookBalingup, Harvey, Manjimup and Nannup and the cities of Bunbury and Busselton.

Please read the Terms and Conditions (www. edgeperdormancewriters.com/au/south-westshorts/) All plays submitted must accept these conditions for entry.

Entry Is free.

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ENTERTAINMENT SALONIKA AT GARRICK DOUGLAS SUTHERLAND-BRUCE

Strange, strange encounters on a beach

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harlotte and her daughter Enid come to Greece, to Salonika, searching for the grave of their husband and father, Ben, killed in action so long ago.

As they emerge on to the beach, at waters’ edge lies a bronzed, naked youth – alive or dead? Sleeping or awake?

Apollo fallen from the azure skies or washed ashore from Homer’s wine-dark sea?

There are no footprints in the sand.

Mysterious, beautiful, lyrical, often hilarious and mocking, Salonika is always involving and thoroughly compelling.

Salonika was written by the prizewinning playwright, Louise Page in 1982 at the age of twenty-seven and although she has written many others, it is this that has caught the theatre-going public’s notice.

Siobhan Vincent and Kerry Goode in rehearsal for Salonika

Salonika wonPthe highly prestigious r o u d ly P r e s e n t s s e a s o n o n e 2 0 1 9 (Photograph by Michael McAllen) George Devine Award for the16most Meadow Street Guildford ▪ Ph: of 9378 1990 or bookings@garricktheatre.asn.au ▪ www.trybooking.com promisingBOOKINGS playwright 1982.

Licensed by arrangement with The Agency, London. people which would successfully handle images…Old age gets

At that time shePresented wrote: “I wanted to write a play about old in association with RDO Productions such a shoddy deal. Having done all that hard P r o u d ly P r e s e n t s s e a s o n o n e 2 0 1 9 physical labour people deserve to be feted…I’ve 16 Meadow Street Guildford BOOKINGS ▪ Ph: 9378 1990 or bookings@garricktheatre.asn.au ▪ www.trybooking.com tried to write about old age with passion and Licensed by arrangement with The Agency, London. feeling.”

Presented in association with RDO Productions Following the huge success at Garrick of The P r o u d ly P r e s e n t s s e a s o n o n e 2 0 1 9 16 Meadow Street Guildford Way of the World last year, Raymond Omodei is BOOKINGS ▪ Ph: 9378 1990 or bookings@garricktheatre.asn.au ▪ www.trybooking.com making a welcome return with Salonika. He first Licensed by arrangement with The Agency, London. directed this play at the Hole in the Wall Theatre Presented in association with RDO Productions in Subiaco in 1985, starring Nita Pannell.

Now it is the Garrick Theatre audience’s turn to enjoy this fascinating work set on one of the forgotten battlegrounds of the First World War, the blood-soaked shores of Thessalonika, site of armed conflict for nearly three thousand years.

Raymond, together with co-director Jake Newby, has attracted a most experienced cast in Siobhan Vincent, Douglas Sutherland-Bruce and Kerry Goode, adding in Garrick newcomers Rhett Clarke and Jaxon Barclay.

Salonika opens on the 28th February at Garrick Theatre, 10 Meadow Street, Guildford and runs until March 16th. Tickets cost $25 ($22 concession) and may be booked by ringing Elaine on 9378n1990 or online at Trybooking.com Remember that tickets are discounted to $15 each for the opening night only.

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‘There is, in this strange and beautiful play, a moment when the author crosses the boundaries of naturalism and the seaside sands of Salonika are literally parted and the dead past rises to life’ The Guardian

HOUSE AND GARDEN BARE ROOT TREES TIM EVA

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t’s that time of the year when you need to start planning for bare root trees to plant in winter.

Before purchasing your ornamental or fruit tree please ask the staff of your nursery if it is suitable for your intended location.

This is especially important for fruit trees.

If possible, prepare holes preferably before you buy your trees. A one metre wide by one metre deep is ideal. Depending on your soil type, mix soil conditioner and/or aged manure with the existing soil to back-fill (approximately 1/3 manure/soil conditioner to existing soil).

When transporting the tree home - Never let the bare roots of the tree dry out (wind or sun), protect them on the way home.

This means bagging the roots with damp sawdust or soil. Bring along a tarp or two to wrap the trees in if you intend to put them on the back of ute. Ideally trees should be transported inside the car, even on a short trip.

At home, if you are not able to plant immediately, cover roots with damp soil or saw-dust and do not leave in full sun.

Check the saw dust or soil is kept moist.

Prune off any damaged parts of the roots and for best results it’s very important to give the top of the tree a prune also, follow the label diagram or about 1/3 off all branches. Cut off lower branches too for a nice clear trunk. Our staff can prune the top of the tree for you, please ask.

Soak roots for ten minutes in a weak seaweed solution or water prior to planting but never leave soaking for longer...the tree will drown!

When planting make the hole and the improved soil for back filling moist. Place one or two slow release fertiliser tablets in the bottom of the hole. Create a mound of improved soil to spread the roots of the tree over. The surrounding soil level should be just above where the roots finish. Never bury the grafted part below soil, this is too deep. If you are unsure on where the graft point is, please ask the staff to show you.

Back fill around the roots with the improved soil. It is handy to have a trickling hose going as you back fill. This will help firmly pack the soil, removing air pockets as well as ensure the soil and roots are kept moist. Do not use your feet to stomp the soil in around the roots as this will damage the fragile root system. Create a shallow basin or well around the tree hole area.

Soak the back filled area thoroughly.

Mulch the around the tree keeping mulch away from the trunk. Be generous with your layer of mulch 100mm is ideal.

Always water after mulching.

Watering is vital, too much and the tree will die, not enough and it will die. The signs and symptoms for under and over watering are very similar to look at. It is most important to check the soil. In the first year, good, deep watering is essential.

Usually during spring, twice a week is sufficient but this will depend on the weather conditions, wind as well as temperature!

As summer comes and temperatures rise, monitor the soil (not the mulch) and increase to three times a week.

Have some idea of how much water you are putting on your trees. The best way to do that is to measure it. Time how long it takes you to fill a nine litre bucket if you water by hand so you know how many buckets of water you are putting on your trees.

If you have an irrigation system, measure the output of your dripper or sprinkler and adjust your run time accordingly. Add extra drippers to get a better watering pattern, one dripper is never enough!

Your trees will require more than twice a week in their second year. Again monitoring the soil and weather conditions will help you look after your investment.

For bare root trees, if they show no signs of sprouting by the second week of September, contact the nursery. Experience has shown that in most cases it is cultural conditions that causes a tree to die. Nursery trees come from reputable growers who grow and transport trees Australia wide, it is not in their interest to have failing trees.

Courtesy of Tim Eva’s Nursery

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COMMUNITY SHARK NUMBERS RECOVER EMMA CHADWICK

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hile shark populations around the world are in decline, groundbreaking research has revealed why reef shark numbers are returning to a coral reef off Australia.

Marine scientists seeking answers as part of the Global FinPrint Project are using underwater cameras around the world to investigate shark numbers in Marine Protected Areas.

Global FinPrint is a three-year project funded by philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Paul G Allen, supporting teams of marine researchers across the world to document the abundance of sharks and rays on reefs.

In the first research paper to be published from the project, led by Australian Institute of Marine Science researchers Dr Conrad Speed, Dr Mark Meekan and Dr Mike Cappo, the study provided compelling evidence that enforced marine protected areas could help rebuild reef shark populations.

Dr Speed said when they first assessed shark communities at Ashmore Reef off Western Australia’s north-west coast in 2004, they found low numbers of grey reef sharks, while larger species such as the tiger shark were completely absent.

“When we returned in 2016 as part of the Global FinPrint Project to repeat the survey, eight years after enforcement of the marine protected area, we found there were more than four times as many grey reef sharks present, as well as tiger sharks ADVERTISEMENT

Ashmore Reef

and other species that were also absent from the 2004 survey,” Dr Speed said.

“Applying existing demographic recovery models to grey reef shark abundance indicated the rate at which recovery occurred at Ashmore Reef, was much faster than anticipated,” Dr Speed said.

Global FinPrint lead scientist and Florida International University associate professor Dr Demian Chapman said the research indicated marked conservation benefits for sharks.

“We thought this was the case but we didn't have a great deal of data to really back it up,” Dr Chapman said.

AIMS lead researcher Dr Mark Meekan said the shark population at Ashmore Reef now resembled the Rowley Shoals off north-western Australia, a marine protected area for the past twenty-five years.

“The similarities between the two reefs suggests that Ashmore Reef has now recovered to a near pristine level in the absence of fishing and the key thing is that it has done so much faster than anyone has predicted” Dr Meekan said.

Metropolitan Region

Dr Meekan said sharks played an important role on reefs, with increasing evidence healthy shark populations may even assist coral reef recovery from mass coral bleaching and cyclones.

“We found the proportion of reef sharks increased from 28.6% to 57.6% between surveys, while large mobile sharks that prey on other shark and ray species also increased slightly from 7.1% to 11.9% of the community,” Dr Contact Donna Meekan said.

9379 0840 | faragher.eastmetro@mp.wa.gov.au Continued on page 56 ... donnafaragher.com.au DonnaFaragherMLC

Donna Faragher JP MLC Member for East

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Here to help!

Ground Floor 108 Swan Street, Guildford WA 6055

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Authorised by S.Calabrese, Liberal Party, 2/12 Parliament Place, West Perth WA 6005.

FEDERAL NOTES GRANTS NEWS

HON KEN WYATT AM, MP Member for Hasluck , Minister for Aged Care and Minister for Indigenous Health

O

ver the last few weeks it has been my pleasure to announce grants to worthy local community groups looking for small pots of funding for big dreams.

At the same time, I have had the honour to continue to advocate for senior Australians, and just this January launched ‘Life Checks’, a website designed to help Australians over the age of forty-five get a snapshot of their lives across their health, work, finance and social life.

It continues to be the great joy of my life to work to make people’s lives better, to put into practical outcomes heartfelt concepts such as compassion for others, support for the lonely and distressed, funding for healthier kids and facilities to live local lives.

We are at our best when we put others first.

As we head into an election year, and prepare to deliver our first budget surplus, I wanted to start the year by putting the spotlight on Hasluck’s local community and sporting groups, to start by putting others first.

These groups work tirelessly to improve health for young people, to build inclusive social networks, and to positively shape the fabric of our homes. As I have said when speak with many of our fellow Hasluckians, quite often it is in the little things that we find connection with one another.

These groups are master builders of our local community, and deserve far more recognition than they would want if you ask them.

Billions of dollars for new defence capabilities and millions for new roads can be a little abstract, but $10,000 for a new basketball court surface in Parkerville means kids don’t come home from school with grazes. $3,000 in Sawyers Valley honours volunteer fire fighters who run into fires so that others can flee, and $15,000 in Kalamunda upgrades an oval’s lighting so more girls teams can play.

You can’t really put a price on this.

And whilst Australians should and do expect us to take care of the big things like jobs for their kids, welfare for the vulnerable and security for our borders, they call me with tears of joy when we focus on the little things too.

Let’s put others first this year, not just in the easy times, but perhaps especially in the hard times.

I wish you all a wonderful year.

VULNERABLE FAMILIES AND CHILDREN IN MIDLAND

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ederal Member for Hasluck, Ken Wyatt MP, has announced that he had secured $100,000 of Commonwealth funding for the group ‘we the people’ to work with vulnerable families of children in Midland facing adversity to identify service needs and barriers to access to mental health and wellbeing supports.

We the people, based in Midland, will work with St John of God Midland Public Hospital, Midvale Hub and local community stakeholders to support families facing significant adversity and develop practical individual plans for access to local service providers.

Helen Dullard OAM, Chairperson of we the people, said today whilst touring the hospital with Mr Wyatt that we the people played an important role in the local community by working to transform the lives of children and youth facing adversity, increasing opportunities and ensuring gaps in key social and community services are addressed.

“Our recently released report, Supporting Children and their Families in the Midland Region, detailed the findings of a research study that looked at the developmental status of children 0-17 years in the Midland region and the services that support them and their families.

“The study found that the population of the region includes a higher proportion of Aboriginal people (4%), and a higher proportion of single parent families than other areas of Perth.

Approximately 160-180 children in the Midland region meet the AEDC criteria for substantial developmental vulnerability,” Ms Dullard said.

Mr Wyatt confirmed today that the group had come to him after being knocked back in a series of funding requests.

“This funding will allow the group to develop cultural awareness communication training modules through engagement and consultation with local aboriginal families based on personal experiences.

“The group will also train the local workforce to build trusting relationships with families and encourage help seeking behaviours,”

“These services are crucial for the health and welfare of people living in disadvantage in Midland, and I am grateful to for the opportunity to support the fabulous work ‘we the people’ does,” Mr Wyatt said.

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KEN WYATT MP Federal Member for Hasluck 9359 0322

ken.wyatt.mp@aph.gov.au

kenwyatt.com.au

kenwyattmp

Authorised by K.Wyatt MP, Shop 10-12 Forrestfield Marketplace, 80 Hale Road, Forrestfield WA 6058.

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COMMUNITY EDNA TURNS A HUNDRED GRETA JASIAK

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he City of Swan’s Community Care Services (CCS) club in Midland recently celebrated a very special occasion.

Edna Jones, a Midland resident and longtime client of CCS, celebrated her 100th birthday.

She celebrated with family and friends followed by a visit from Mayor David Lucas and City of Swan staff.

Edna was born in 1919 and lived with her family in Wanneroo before settling in the Swan Valley in 1923.

Her greatgrandfather, James Cockman was one of the founding settlers of the Swan River Colony, arriving in 1829.

range of services she receives so she can remain living in her own home with our assistance.”

Edna receives a gardening service at home as well as transport to and from her medical appointments.

Edna said she used the City’s transport service for shopping for many years, where she made friends with other local ladies who looked forward to a shared shopping trip each week.

“This was our outing and opportunity to socialise with friends; the volunteer drivers made us all laugh and helped carry the groceries inside for us,” she said.

“One of the CCS support workers has been visiting Centenarian Edna Jones with City of Swan Mayor, David Lucas and helping me since 2013, and in that time we’ve

When she was seventeen, Edna gotten to know each other and enjoy met her husband-to-be in a road many friendly conversations. accident. As she rode her bicycle

“When the support worker is here MLA along West Swan Road in the Swan I keep my independence and feel more Valley, Edna was knocked off by a LOCAL MEMBER FOR SWAN HILLS confident that I’m not likely to risk a fall.” motorcycle ridden by the late Mr

For more information about the Geoffrey Jones. @JessicaShawMLA support services available at the City This chance encounter led to a of Swan, visit www.swan.wa.gov.au/ Jessica.Shaw@mp.wa.gov.au four-year-long distant courtship, Services-support/Community-Care after which Edna and Geoffrey 9296 7688 were married at All Saints Church HERE TO HELP in Henley Brook.

Aveley, Bailup, Belhus, Brigadoon, City of Swan Mayor David Lucas, Bullsbrook, Chidlow, Ellenbrook, who was pleased to meet Edna Gidgegannup, Melaleuca, as part of these special birthday Mount Helena, Sawyers Valley, celebrations, said it was amazing The Vines, Upper Swan, and Wooroloo. to hear Edna’s stories of life in the Swan Valley.

Office Address Postal Address “It’s truly fascinating to hear the 8/31 Egerton Drive PO Box 2265 stories of those who have lived in Aveley WA 6069 Ellenbrook WA 6069 the area for many years, and have watched it transform and grow over time,” he said.

“Mrs Jones has a wonderful memory and was able to share stories of her childhood and living in West Swan, when Great Northern Highway was all but a dirt road.

“Mrs Jones commenced with the City’s CCS in 2003, seeking transport for shopping and appointments.

Edna in 1920 with her brothers Standing up for Swan Hills Henry and Donald (Family Archives) “She has since changed the

Jessica Shaw

Authorised by Jessica Shaw, 8/31 Egerton Drive, Aveley, WA 6069

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COMMUNITY MISS GALAXY AUSTRALIA 2019 HANNAH SWART

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his is my second time representing Western Australia Nationally in Miss Galaxy Australia, however it is my third time entering the pageant system I previously entered back in 2015 as a Teen.

I will be flying to the Gold Coast in the first week of May and competing against all the other girls from around the country.

Throughout the few days that we are in Queensland we will be judged on four categories; Swimwear, Fashion Wear, Evening Wear and Interview, with a winner picked in each one.

There are also awards such as; Miss Congeniality, Most Photogenic and Miss Charity.

A couple of years ago, I placed in the top five for Miss Galaxy Australia 2017 and won the fashion wear segment.

This year I’m proud to be sponsored by Don Benson Photography and Ergoworx. Two amazing local businesses with which I will be working with for a whole year.

During my pageant journey, I once again will be fundraising for Make A Wish Australia as well as volunteering for various other charities.

Over the last two years I have worked with over twenty charities and intend on working with many more. Australia Galaxy Pageants, and specifically director Lucinda Ferguson, encourage contestants to become role models within their community and provides the motivation to be the best version of yourself.

The experience is truly lifechanging and has given me a different outlook on life and what I want from it. I have gained so much confidence and drive to do better and be better and motivation to reach my goals - in and out of the pageant.

It is such a rewarding experience and that is why I and many other girls continue coming back to this system over the years. I can’t wait to meet the other contestants, make some more beautiful friendships and have the best time on the Gold Coast!

Photographs Courtesy Don Benson Photography 11

COMMUNITY PERTH PINUP COMMUNITY CHRIS MCRAE

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intage culture is as popular as ever in society today. Nostalgia is at an all time high when it comes to fashion, music and culture.

A community right here in Perth is taking vintage fashion, culture and lifestyle and providing Perth vintage lovers with the opportunity to express themselves in a way that is truly unique.

Established in 2013 by Perth based multi-award winning international pinup model, burlesque artist, vintage blogger, producer & MC, Miss Lady Lace, the Perth Pinup Community is a group for all vintage lovers.

The term ‘pinup’ has its origins in the nineteenth century when it was used as a theatrical term for actresses and burlesque performers who would promote their work in the form of glamourous photographic advertisements which could be found ‘pinned up’ in theatres and green rooms.

For Miss Lady Lace, the founding of the community came from her own love of vintage culture. “There was no-one to share my passions with at that time” she said.

Thus the community was founded nearly six years ago to bring together the pinups of Western Australia. The community now boasts over 1000 local members and monthly meet up’s are held alongside community events as well as involvement in charity work.

Close to six years after the community was founded, this year will see the launch of the Pinup Society Magazine. Created

by Miss Lady Lace along with fellow community members Miss Lillian Rose, Miss Mon Mon and Miss Veronica Lily, the magazine

will allow vintage and pinup lovers to engage with content related to all things vintage provided by those who live and love it.

The unique aspect of the magazine will be that it is the only Australian publication created by pinups for pinups. For the ladies behind the magazine, the pinup lifestyle is a journey of self discovery and confidence building. “We hope to help those on their own pinup journeys and share our collective knowledge with the world” they said.

So what is it about vintage and retro fashion and lifestyle that makes it so popular in the 21st century? “Lots of aspects attract people to vintage fashion” the ladies said. “It's such a beautiful style that suits every age, body shape and size and for a lot of people is helps them be who they want to be unapologetically. Dressing up can take courage but it gives you the gift of confidence” they continued.

Like any publication associated with a specific topic or lifestyle, the Pinup Society Magazine will include photos of pinups from the community and a large array of articles based on confidence, beauty, lifestyle and more.

The magazine launch will occur on February 23rd and will feature a glamourous afternoon of live music, pinup and burlesque entertainment within the aesthetically unique surrounds of Defectors Bar in Mt Lawley. The first issue of the magazine itself will be available the same day in both digital and hard copy formats.

Copies can be ordered from the MagCloud website.

Continued on page 56 ...

The Misses Lady Lace, Lillian Rose, Mon Mon and Veronica Lily ~ The Perth Pinup Community (Photograph by Feather and Sage Portrait) 12

COMMUNITY ANIMAL FOSTER PIONEER HONOURED

W

hile Sue Hedley was working in the Pilbara more than twenty years ago, she noticed an extraordinary number of homeless animals.

She’d always had a strong connection with animals but never suspected that the confronting situation she found herself in would lead her to establish an organisation which has now saved more than 23,000 companion animals.

Sue’s remarkable achievements have now been recognised by being awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) (General Division) for service to animal welfare.

Sue identified the need to establish a rescue organisation, and in 2003 founded Saving Animals From Euthanasia Inc (SAFE).

SAFE is now Western Australia’s largest volunteer-based animal rescue and rehoming organisation, operating with the help of hundreds of volunteers nation-wide.

It has eleven regional branches and a Perth-based branch, SAFE Metro. SAFE is dedicated to saving companion animals from unnecessary euthanasia through community education, fostering, desexing and placing them in suitable homes. This wholistic approach has seen a noticeable reduction in the amount of homeless animals. SAFE was awarded Outstanding Rescue Group in the 2018 national Jetpets Companion Animal Rescue Awards.

Prior to founding SAFE, Sue worked extensively in the deinstitutionalisation of people’s care, so it was natural for her to arrange for the animals she rescued to be cared for in peoples’ homes while awaiting adoption. This use of home-based care differentiated SAFE’s approach to animal rescue, and Sue is delighted to see that foster care of homeless animals is now being more widely used throughout Australia.

It's not just the animals who benefit.

SueHedley OAM and Biscuit the Guinea Pig Our foster carers and volunteers tell us they (Photograph by Emilie Cowell) experience a strong sense of connection to community, and satisfaction in working towards a shared goal. country and transported to their new homes, even from remote

And many adopters tell us that it’s their animal who saved areas”, says Sue. them, not the other way around.

What keeps Sue going after two decades of saving animals? “I am truly honoured to be receiving this award. The acknowledgement will also assist to bring attention to our She explains, “I experience such mission in saving all rehomable animals and ending caged care an incredible feeling of joy to as the main way of rescue. see animals come from difficult

It’s important to acknowledge that SAFE could not exist situations and have their lives without the dedication and hard work of all those who contribute transformed.” along the way - past, present and into the future. I can’t thank “Social media has opened them enough for joining me on this life saving journey and up enormous possibilities for making it all happen.” rehoming animals and brought

Sue’s vision is that in years to come, the need for shelters yet another positive shift will no longer be necessary, with home-based foster care being animals can now be viewed by ‘the norm’ for homeless animals. prospective adopters across the 13

WHAT’S ON IF YOU WOULD LIKE AN EVENT LISTED IN THIS COLUMN RING our office on 0418 934 850 Entries for non-profit entities are free.

MORRIS DANCING

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS - Glen Forrest Group Every Monday evening We meet at 7.00pm at the Glen Forrest Uniting Church, Mc Glew Rd, Glen Forrest. Call Dermot 0488 905 211 or John 0448 074 536 or the Perth Office (all hours) 9325 3566.

All welcome. It’s like bush dancing, with sticks and bells. It’s aerobic exercise and great fun!

Tuesdays 7-9pm practice, Guildford Town Hall, cnr James St and Meadow St, Guildford. And drinks later at the Woodbridge Hotel with live Irish music For more information please contact: Christine Hogan: 9279 8778 Email: madtattersmorris@iinet.Net.Au Website: madtattersmorris.myclub.org.au

AUSTRALIAN BREASTFEEDING ASSOC. Discussion groups, guest speakers, morning tea. Free breastfeeding counselling. Expectant mothers, mothers, babies and children welcome. National Breastfeeding Helpline 1800 686 2686 is a 24 hour 7 days a week service.

SWAN WOODTURNERS GROUP

The group meets in the rear hall of The Senior Citizens’ Centre, The Avenue, Midland, at 1-00pm. on 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Tuesday, and at 7-00pm. on 2nd Tuesday of each month. A demonstration and cuppa are the norm. Men and Women are welcome. Enquiries to Ted 9295 4438.

Swan/Mundaring Group meets every Monday, 9:30-11:30am at the Gumnuts Family Centre, 8 Mudalla Way, Koongamia. A qualified ABA counsellor is present at each meeting to give confidential information and support on breastfeeding issues.

Contact Natalie 9572 4971.

SWAN VALLEY COMMUNITY CENTRE

Monday Mornings The Art Group meets at Baskerville Hall from 9am – 12pm for just $5.00 per session.

Group leader Gilly can help and advise with most media. Feel free to come and have a look and meet our local artists – they are a very friendly lot, new members welcome!

For more information call 9296 1976 or enquiries@swanvalleycommunitycentre.com www.swanvalleycommunitycentre.com

Kalamunda Group meets fortnighly on a Thursday, 9:3011:30am at the Maida Vale Baptist Church, Edney Road, High Wycombe. Contact Jenny 9252 1996.

Northam Group meets each second Tuesday of the month at the Bridgeley Community Centre, Wellington Street, Northam 10am to Noon.

Fourth Tuesday each month at Toodyay Playgroup, Stirling Terrace, Toodyay. Noon to 2pm. Please phone Louisa 9574 0229.

EASTERN DISTRICTS MACHINE KNITTERS

THE HILLS CHOIR

Friday - second and fourth We meet from 9:00am to noon at 10 Brockman Road, Midland.

Feel welcome to join us for morning tea and see how easy it is to make your own garments.

For more information contact Pat 9309 3260; Liz 9572 7074 or Pat 9295 2793.

Monday Evenings Do you enjoy singing and joining with others to make beautiful music? Come and join the Hills Choir. We meet from 7.30 to 9.30pm at the Uniting Church on Stoneville Road, Mundaring.

Contact Margie on 9295 6103 for further information.

SWAN HARMONY SINGERS

ELLENBROOK COMMUNITY WEIGHT LOSS CLUB

Wednesdays Come and sing with us! Swan Harmony Singers is a community choir that meets, 7-9pm, to sing music ranging from jazz to pop, plus the occasional classic. No auditions.

Every Tuesday evening We meet from 6.45pm to 8.00pm at the Woodlake Community Hall, Meeting room 1 Highpoint Blvd, Ellenbrook. Friendly support group at low cost. Male and females of all ages welcome.

Contact Shirley 9276 7938 shirleysardelich@aapt.net.au.

HILLS CHRONIC PAIN SUPPORT GROUP

1st Wednesday of each month Hilltop Grove Estate, 1645 Jacoby Street, Mahogany Creek.

Morning tea provided, between 10.30 - 12.00 noon.

Enquiries Terina 9572 1655.

14

WHAT’S ON Join us at the Salvation Army Church Hall, 371 Morrison Rd, (opposite Swan View Primary School), Swan View. Enquiries: call Anna on 9299 7249, or Chris on 9298 9529 or 0435 062 728.

ELLENBROOK AND DISTRICT MENS SHED INC.

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday We are open at 4 Transit Way Ellenbrook from 10.00am to 3.00pm. Potential members can turn up on those days and there will be someone to explain what we do and give membership details. Annual fees are low and members can do their own thing, participate in projects for the community or simply just come in for a chat and a cuppa.

We are considering extending our days to include Saturdays or evenings if there is enough interest.

MUSTARD SEED - DISCOVERING COMPUTERS

Mustard Seed is a nineteen year old non-profit organisation and teaches all aspects of everyday computing. Ability levels from beginners onwards.

Want help with Windows 10? In need of instruction with your Mac computer? Have an iPad or Android tablet and don’t know what it will do? We can help. Cost is $2 per session.

Classes are held at 56 McGlew Road, Glen Forrest. To gain a place enrol now by phoning 0478 604 163 or emailing: mustardcomputers@gmail.com W: noodlebytes.com

TALKING HORSES

Wednesday evenings 6:00pm The WA Horse Council equestrian radio program is now in its

seventh year. The programme is broadcast on the Community Radio Station 91.3 SportFM. To ensure that your club, event, breed or business gets coverage, call Diane Bennit 0409 083 617.

SWAN VALLEY COMMUNITY CENTRE SWAN VALLEY HOMESCHOOL FAMILY PLAYGROUP

Thursday mornings 9:15am to 11:15am Older siblings welcome to join playgroup in a rural setting in the Swan Valley. Normal playgroup guidelines apply for children zero to five years old.

Baskerville Hall, 129 Memorial Drive, Baskerville. For more information ring 0419 922 792 or email enquiries@ swanvalleycommunitycentre.com

MIDLAND MEN’S SHED

Every Tuesday morning We meet socially every Tuesday morning from 9.30am to 11.30am in the Bellevue Baptist Church Hall and our usual attendance is around fifty-five. At least once a month we have a guest speaker on a range of topics.

We also go on excursions to various places of interest (e.g.

HMAS Stirling, Aviation Museum, Fremantle Ports, ALCOA, etc.).

Our workshop with wood working and metal working is in Midvale and for the opening hours and further details please contact Rob Cutter on 0419 967 873. Also in operation is our music group – the Rockin’ Shedders which is going from strength to strength and their repertoire of songs increases each week.

For more information on the Shed please contact Kevin Buckland on 0417 961 971 or email: kebinsv@tpg.com.au.

MUNCHKINSMUZIC A BRAND NEW MUSIC PROGRAM FOR 2-4 YEAR OLDS AND THEIR CAREGIVERS IN THE SWAN VALLEY Grubb Run by Margaret ialist ec Primary Music Sp

$100 Per Term 9.30am -10.10am or 10.30-11.10am Thursday

Email now to secure you r place

129 Memorial Drive Baskerville www.swanvalleycommunitycentre.com enquiries@swanvalleycommunitycentre.com 9296 1976 (leave a message) 15

I

FOOTNOTE PEOPLE IN HISTORY BESSIE COLEMAN

n the 1920s and 30s aviators were the Rock Star Royalty of the age. John Alcock and Arthur Brown (first to fly the Atlantic non-stop, 1919); Howard Hughes (round-the-world record holder, 1938); Charles Kingsford-Smith (first trans-pacific flight to Australia, 1928); Charles Lindburg (first solo non-stop transatlantic flight, 1927) and more.

There were very few men that were aviators, even fewer women - Amelia Earhart, Amy Johnson, Beryl Markham and the number of black or Native American female aviators (aviatrix then) was precisely none. That is, until Bessie Coleman.

Bessie Coleman was born in a one-room shack in Texas in 1892, eleven years before the Wright Brothers historic twelve second flight. She was born the tenth of thirteen children to sharecroppers George Coleman, who was mostly Cherokee and part African-American, and Susan Coleman, who was mostly African-American.

She began attending school at the age of six, walking four miles each day to her segregated, one-room school, where she established herself as an outstanding math student.

She worked as a laundress to save money to attend college in Oklahoma, but her money ran out after only one semester.

In 1916 at the age of twenty-four, she moved to Chicago. She worked as a manicurist at the White Sox Barber Shop. There she heard some stories from pilots returning home from World War I about flying during the war.

Bessie Coleman

Bessie Coleman in about 1922 (Photograph in the Public Domain)

She made up her mind to become a pilot, however American flight schools of the time admitted neither women nor blacks, Robert S. Abbott, founder and publisher of the Chicago Defender, hearing of her woes, encouraged her to go to France to learn how to fly.

He financed a trip to Paris in 1920, and for seven months, Coleman trained with some of the best pilots in Europe. Despite being the only black person in her class, she was treated with respect.

On June 15, 1921, Coleman became the first woman of African-American and Native American descent to earn an aviation pilot’s license and the first person of African-American and Native American descent to earn an international aviation license from the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale.

In the early 20s, commercial aviation was still in its infancy,

so most active fliers were stunt fliers who performed at air shows. Coleman took to the air show circuit, where she was a big hit. Nicknamed “Queen Bess,” Coleman was known for her daredevil aerial tricks, and her race and her gender became a selling point instead of a liability. Invited to important events and often interviewed by newspapers, she was admired by both blacks and whites.

She made her first appearance in an American airshow in 1922 at an event honoring veterans of the all-black 369th Infantry Regiment of World War I. Sponsored by her friend Abbott and the Chicago Defender, the show billed Coleman as “the world’s greatest woman flier” The air is the only place free from prejudices.

I knew we had no aviators, neither men nor women, and I knew the Race needed to be represented along this most important line, so I thought it my duty to risk my life to learn aviation...

– Bessie Coleman

For five years, she barnstormed around the country, making a good living. It was a hard living, however, filled with risks.

But the thrill of stunt flying and the admiration of cheering crowds were only part of Coleman’s dream. Coleman never lost sight of her childhood vow to one day “amount to something.”

Her dream was to establish a flying school that would be open to all.

Concluded on page 56 ...

16

FICTION DEATH IN THE SEA OF GRASS KAREN R W TREANOR

TSHANILAND, 1935

A

CHAPTER EIGHT

fter the initial yell, Harcourt’s mouth was too full of dirt to make much of a noise. Down he went, rolling over and over, small stones slithering out from underneath him as every projecting limb was scraped or thumped as he progressed further into the darkness.

Far below at the campfire, Claire jumped up and said, “Listen!” The three of them went to the water’s edge and heard the rattling of rock on rock as something heavy slithered toward them.

Above, halfway to the invisible ceiling of the cave, a ray of light shone down like the proverbial good deed in a naughty world.

“Oh, I sure hope that’s not a leopard; that’s all we’d need,” moaned Claire, wondering what else could possibly go wrong this week.

“Leopards do not fall. They are very goodfooted,” Puli said, with the air of an expert.

“Sure-footed is the word you want,” Claire said. “It means they are very sure where to put their feet. And I hope it’s not in our cave.”

“That does not sound like a leopard, it sounds like a man,” Elspeth said. From the darkness on the opposite bank came words that even an anaesthetist might be surprised to hear, never mind a general practitioner.

“I’ll go. You stay here; he might be dangerous.” Claire took off her shoes for the, what was it? thousandth time? and waded across the icy current yet again.

Puli scampered after her. “You will need the lamp,” he said, holding it high. The two of them walked up the opposite bank to where groans were now coming from the darkness.

“Professor Harcourt. I might have known if there was a way to make my life even more complicated, you’d find it!”

Claire looked at the pitiful object at her feet. It was dirty and scraped from head to toe, and in between spitting out mud, swore a blue streak.

She knelt down and said, “Hold still. Let’s see what damage you’ve done this time.” A cursory examination proved nothing broken except skin.

“Come down to the water and wash out your eyes and mouth,” Claire said, heaving the man to his feet and pulling one arm across her shoulders to support him.

At the stream, Harcourt didn’t need any encouragement to wash, although he grumbled about the temperature.

“I’m sorry, the bath attendants are on strike today. We only have cold water,” Claire said, pushing his head under again and scruffing his hair briefly. “There, that will do for now. You’d better wash off your arms so I can see how bad the scrapes are; luckily I’ve got my medical bag. Puli, stay here and bring him across when he’s clean. Don’t forget his shoes.”

Leaving the little boy to act as valet, Claire waded back and helped Elspeth stoke up the fire again. “Well, we didn’t really need another prisoner, but at least we’ve got a fourth for bridge now. We don’t have a deck of cards, but he probably cheats anyway.”

“You don’t like him?” Elspeth asked.

“It’s hard to say: every time I’ve seen him he’s been a patient. What he’s like as a person I have no idea. Where’s the iodine? Did we use it all?”

“No, it is here.” Elspeth handed over the bottle and said, “What will you do for bandages?”

“I’m hoping he won’t need any, but I have a few gauze pads left and half a roll of adhesive tape, so I guess we can make do.

Ah, Professor, sit down on my examining rock,” she said as he came into the firelight, Puli trotting behind with his shoes.

With a groan, Harcourt sat down.

“Very good of you to drop in to keep us company; care to tell me why you did it?” Claire said conversationally as she dabbed iodine on the worst of the scrapes.

“Very funny. When I heard of the disaster, I came over here with my men to see if we could help. Your buddy Trevelyan seemed to think I was worse than useless, but he made use of my men. He told me to watch the pool, but I thought I could look for how the rock rabbits were getting in and out of the cave. I found their hole, and I was trying to make it bigger when everything gave way and down I came.”

“Well, at least you found the way in. We were afraid they were going to have to blast us out of here. Now that they know about the dassie hole, they’ll come down with ropes and ladders and we’ll be home for supper.” Claire tilted his face toward the light to clean a fairly deep graze on his cheek, and she couldn’t miss the evasiveness in the blue eyes.

“They do know where you were going and they will be here to rescue us soon, won’t they?”

Harcourt winced as the iodine hit his cheek.

“Well, maybe not very soon. You see, I was waiting with Rivka, and she was drawing, and I said I was going to search and she called me a fool and, well, I went off alone. I followed a trail and I found the hole and then it all went wrong. Do you have to hurt me like that?” He ducked his head away as Claire attacked a

17

crouched down and tried to estimate the height of where the water was coming into the cave, reasoning that it would only flow until it reached the level of the original cave, then it would start to fall over the edge of the plateau. She hoped she was right. She remembered all those boring math problems in eighth grade about pipes and tanks and out-falls, but nothing useful came with the memory.

“Well, we have to go somewhere. Let’s move your grandmother and the supplies up here and keep an eye on the water. We will have to take turns sleeping from now on.”

“Perhaps I could get out the same way the man got in,” Puli suggested. “I am a good climber.”

“We’ll see. I hope the rescuers will figure out where Dr. Harcourt went and find the hole, but it’s getting late and the sun will go down in a few hours. We had better prepare for another night in here.”

They went back to their companions and began moving things. “Puli and I will take the wood and start a fire up there.

Then we can shift everything else. We’re running low on wood, and there’s only about one refill left in the lamp oil bottle, so we’d best be prepared to be in the dark before morning,” Claire said, feeling very weary.

“I think we can do something about the wood,” Harcourt said, pointing. Something gleamed in the darkness downstream.

“It’s the rest of the tree!” Claire said. “But it’s too big to move.”

“I think the water is going to help,” Harcourt said. “Give me the rope.”

He went cautiously to the water’s edge, Claire at his side with the lamp. He made a loop in the rope and, tossing it toward the root ball, snagged one of the projecting pieces, surprising both himself and Claire.

“It’s starting to float. The water’s raising it!” he exclaimed.

“If we can pull it back somehow, we’ll have wood to burn, so to speak.”

“Half-hitch the rope here,” Claire said, indicating a substantial boulder. “We can use it as a pulley.”

The idea was easier proposed than accomplished, but with a lot of effort and four skinned palms, the bleached remnants of the tree were moored at the boulder. Harcourt, now calfdeep in water, began trying to break off roots.

“These are very tough. The larger ones are too strong to break,” he said, giving Claire a handful of small pieces.

“I’ve got a saw. Let’s get the fire started and then come back,” she said.

Back at the new camp, they got a fire going, and while Elspeth nursed it, the others ferried their remaining supplies from below.

“There, everything’s safe. Elspeth, why don’t you fix a meal, and the professor and I will try and get the rest of the wood?”

Claire suggested, taking her beloved bone saw from her medical bag with a pang of regret. She thought of Uncle Orren, who had given her the saw. He’d laugh at her and say, “Young woman, when it’s a matter of survival, you do what you must.”

With Puli holding the lamp and Harcourt putting tension on the projecting roots, Claire doggedly sawed, trying not to think what the gnarled wood was doing to the saw teeth. It took a lot of effort, because the saw was meant for living bone, but once she got into the rhythm, Claire made progress.

Harcourt had the good sense to see that she was more experienced with the tool than he was, and kept his peace for once.

“Uncle Orren took this all the way through the Great War,” she said, sweat beginning to trickle down her face. “There are seventeen little ‘X’ marks on the handle, standing for young men who are today walking around on two legs who might have lost one if they’d been brought to another surgeon. He still teaches, but he gave me this saw when he couldn’t use it any longer himself.”

“He sounds like a top-notch doctor,” Harcourt said, staggering as the root he was holding suddenly parted from the

small cut on his scalp.

“Why, no, I could let your cuts go septic and kill you, I suppose. Come to think of it…” Claire put the cork back in the iodine bottle with a firm smack.

“Rivka’s right, you’re a fool. But I suppose you meant well.”

She was about to go on when there was a tremendous explosion somewhere under their feet. A lot of dust swirled in the air, and three of the stalactites came crashing down, to break into a million mirrored shards all around the cave floor.

“Oh, lord love a duck! They don’t know you’ve found a way in, so they’re trying to blast the whirlpool tunnel, I suppose,” Claire said. “What a waste of time and effort. Well, we’ll just have to sit and wait, won’t we?”

Puli, who had galloped down to the water’s edge to see what he could see, called, “Look, look, something is happening!”

Claire and Elspeth joined him. There were all sorts of little eddies forming in the stream.

“Whatever can it mean?” Claire wondered.

Harcourt limped up beside her. “It means they didn’t succeed in blowing out the tunnel, they just jammed it shut. Now the water can’t get out at all and it’s backing up, like a plugged bath.”

“Puli, quick, start taking things across to the other side. The hole up there is possibly our last hope, so we need to be on that side before the water gets too high. Harcourt, take Elspeth over.

I’ll get the medical kit and the food basket,” Claire ordered.

Puli grabbed the lamp and the last remaining jug of oil and scampered through the water, which was now up to his bony knees. Claire pushed Elspeth at Harcourt and raced back to the camp to get her bag and the food basket. As she entered the water, it reached her own knees, and she realised she had only a few minutes to salvage the rest of their meagre possessions.

“Harcourt, find a safe place for Elspeth then come stand in the middle so I can pass things to you,” she called, dumping her load and heading back across.

“Puli, you move everything to higher ground as Harcourt dumps it on the bank.”

Working furiously, Claire got the blankets to Harcourt and went back for the firewood. She had transferred two armloads to him when the water was up to mid-thigh on her. She had to make one more trip, to get the other food basket. It was heavy going and she was wet almost to the waist on the return trip.

“Claire, give up. Whatever is left will have to stay there.

Come on, come back!” Harcourt said, grabbing at her. “If you go back again, you may not be able to return. Come on!” He made for the other bank, holding her wrist in a strong grip.

Puli had piled up the blankets and wood next to his grandmother, but the water was already lapping at the bottom of the ledge on which she sat.

“Now would be a good time for someone to announce they have a hundred yards of good rope,” said Harcourt, “or better yet, a Nantucket Whaler.”

“I don’t know if it’s a hundred yards, but I’ve got rope,” Claire said. “That’s why I wanted the other food basket. There wasn’t any food in it, but it’s where I put the rope. Now if we only had a tame gibbon to send up to tie the rope to a tree outside, we’d be just fine.”

“For the moment, we had better get all this stuff moved as high as we can, because the water’s still rising.” Harcourt got to his feet with a groan and began gathering things.

“Let’s locate a good spot first. You stay put. Puli and I will reconnoitre,” Claire said, fearing another disaster if he went wandering off in the dark.

Taking the lamp and the boy, she went up the slope toward the hole in the ceiling. About twenty feet away there was a substantial shelf.

“What do you think, Puli?” she asked.

“There is enough space for everyone. But we do not know how much water is coming.”

“No. It’s too much to hope that they can block the water coming in at the other end. Let me think for a minute.” Claire 18

parent trunk.

“Here, Puli, put this above the water line.” Claire attacked the next root. Her strength was flagging but she wasn’t about to give up.

“If you ever have one of your accidents in Boston, be sure to get Unc to consult on your case.” She sawed away in silence for another minute. This piece came away easier than the previous one, as did the next. “I think I’m getting the hang of it. Maybe there’s a whole new career for me if medicine ever palls. Gosh, I wish the light was better; I can barely see what I’m sawing.”

Harcourt looked up at the hole in the roof. “That may be because it’s getting dark out there. Odd, it’s not that late yet.”

He fumbled his pocket watch out one-handed and looked at it.

“Fourthirty.”

Claire stopped sawing and said, “Great! That means there’s probably another storm rolling up. What next, a plague of locusts? Let’s hope the people outside have figured out how to get us. Life in a cave is beginning to lose its charm for me.”

Outside, the people on the rescue team were thinking the same thing. “Unless they’ve caught another rock-rabbit, they’ll be running out of food soon,” Trevelyan said to Winstanley as they stood looking at the now completely blocked crevice from which Rivka had been removed.

“That’s the least of their troubles. The water isn’t running out, so it’s in there backing up. God knows how much manoeuvring room they have. Let’s go and talk to Miss Lerner, perhaps she can draw a more detailed map of the interior for us.”

Surrounded by pencils and pastels, Rivka was still perched on her al fresco studio.

“Hello. I take it the controlled explosion was too controlled?” she asked.

“I was too stingy with the dynamite. The Queen made it clear there was to be no damage to the Cave of the Winds, so I erred on the side of caution. I should have taken my chances and used more,” said Winstanley, taking off his hardhat and mopping his forehead with a far from clean handkerchief.

“We wondered if you could do a more detailed map, with estimated elevations, so we can get an idea of how the water may be lying,” said Trevelyan.

“Claire would have been alerted by the explosion, and would be ready to move camp to higher ground, but we haven’t any idea which way she would have gone.”

“That’s assuming the stalactites didn’t kill them all,” said Rivka with a frown. “Would the explosion have dislodged them, do you think?”

“Kee-rist!” exploded Winstanley. “We considered everything but that. I know, I know, you drew them in on your original map but they just didn’t register. I was too focused on getting just the right amount of explosive packed around the outfall. Bloody hell!”

“Easy, now,” said Trevelyan, who had no patience with bad manners, no matter what the excuse.

“Sorry. About that map?” Rivka had already flipped over the page to a clean sheet. “Right, this is the best I can remember.

Here’s the plateau and the original entry. On the same level is the little cave. Then the tunnel goes like so, around and down, I’d estimate maybe it falls away about ten feet over a run of twentyfive feet—there’s level places and then fairly steep slopes, like a waterfall.”

She drew rapidly, then said, “Then you come to the big cave.

It was impossible to tell how high it is, the light didn’t reach, but we could see things sparkling in the darkness. We stopped here first, about three feet lower than the tunnel opening.” She put an ‘X’ on the map.

“Then the stream began to run into the cave and we moved here, up about seven or eight feet higher, and about thirty, maybe forty feet further into the cave. The stream stabilised at knee-deep on the little boy, say here on me.” She indicated two-thirds of the way up her calf.

“It stayed like that, but there was a current running from the tunnel into the darkness. We explored and found a huge boulder and a lot of rubble blocking the way. On the other side was a

fallen tree. It may have come in through the roof, but it was long dead and very dry. Behind that was a small cliff that cut us off from going further on that side.”

Rivka looked at what she’d drawn so far. “I’d say it was sixty or seventy feet to the big boulder, more or less on the level. Then we wormed our way through a hole that became a tunnel. It seemed endless, but was probably twelve feet, maybe fifteen.

Then a sort of little beach, and the whirlpool. We waded across here, to the shelf on the other side. Puli thought he saw daylight through the water here. So I lay on the shelf and poked with my pole, and the rest you know.”

“What about the opposite shore, the one with the dead tree?”

“We didn’t explore that much, but it had stone terraces or shelves, the same as the bank where we camped. I have the impression that it went up higher than the side we were on, but we had no real reason to investigate it. Claire may have done so by now, of course. They’d have had to get more wood.”

Rivka looked at the map again, and added in a few more estimated heights and widths. “That’s about all I can tell you.”

“Thank you. I’ll take this and see what I can figure out,” Winstanley said, heading back to where his workers waited.

“I thought they were bringing in a machine of some sort to help,” Rivka said.

“Couldn’t get it through the narrow defile into this valley,” Trevelyan said, stuffing his pipe and wondering if his tobacco would hold out until he got home.

“Where’s your gimpy friend?”

“Dr. Harcourt? I forgot all about him. He went off mumbling something about feeling useless. He said if the dassies could get in, there must be a hole somewhere. He’s been gone quite a while. I hope he hasn’t hurt himself again.”

“That’s all we need, another problem!” snorted Trevelyan, puffing furiously. Then he said, “Although it’s not as lamebrained an idea as it looks at first glance. We know the animals are getting into the cave. Which way did he go?”

“There, between those bushes. I lost sight of him when he went around that square rock.” Rivka pointed.

“Perhaps we’d better have a look.”

“It will have to be quick; look at what’s coming now,” Trevelyan said, pointing his pipe stem toward the purple billows rolling up out of the east.

“I’ll come with you. I want to do something to help.” Rivka bundled all her paper and pencils into the carry bag and put a rock on it.

Following the direction she’d seen Harcourt take, Rivka led off. Once they passed the large square rock they found the same small path.

“Here, look, there’s a mark of his cane where he stopped to look. I’ll bet he took this path,” Rivka said, pointing out a round indentation in the soil.

“All right, but let me lead,” said Trevelyan.

“There are still a few wild leopards around.”

“I’ll just tell them I know Shaka and Sindi,” Rivka laughed.

Because they were both fit, it only took them ten minutes to reach the place Harcourt had laboured so long to reach.

“Well, I guess that explains why you haven’t seen him in the past few hours,” Trevelyan said, pointing to the raw hole in the hillside. “Stay back, in case you have to run for help. I’m going to see what’s in there.”

Edging up to the side of the hold, Trevelyan crouched and peered in. Far below he could see a point of light. “Ho, khaiya!” he called.

Far below, four heads turned toward the roof. “Thank God!” Claire called. “When are you going to get us out?”

“Soon. I’ll be right back, hang on!” Backing away carefully, Trevelyan joined Rivka on the path. “They are all alive. We must get back and tell Winstanley and the Queen. With some ropes we should be able to get them out before the storm breaks.”

“Go on, I’ll stay here and keep talking to them,” Rivka said.

Trevelyan didn’t argue.

Climbing to the edge of the hole, Rivka called down, “Claire, 19

are you all well? How’s Elspeth?”

“We’re all fine. Dirty, but fine. Elspeth’s just toasted the last of the bread for us, so we’re having toast and apples and cold water.” Claire’s voice was faint but reassuring.

“There’s another storm coming, but we hope to get you out before it hits,” Rivka called. As she said it an ominous rumble rattled the hillside.

“Never mind us, how are you? Were you hurt?” Claire called.

“Battered a bit, but Redmond rescued me just in time. How is Dr. Harcourt?”

“Bloody but unbowed,” Claire laughed. “Puli is the real hero; he caught food for us.”

“I think I hear the men coming now. I’ll get out of the way.”

Rivka slithered back down to a convenient rock where she wouldn’t impede Winstanley and his crew. Shortly the hillside was covered with men, all offering to go down into the cave by one means or another.

“Silence! Tulani yeena!” roared Trevelyan.

“Let us make a plan before we do anything. Let Mr. Winstanley look at the ground to see where it is safe. Get back, everyone!” This command wasn’t a moment too soon. The milling men had already started a small avalanche and two of them had tumbled down the hill to lie winded at Rivka’s feet.

Everyone backed off and the voices fell away to whispered exchanges. Winstanley and his chief assistant went carefully to the mouth of the hole and conferred, poking sticks into the ground and crumbling bits of dirt in their fingers.

“This is very unstable,” he said, standing up at last and addressing the crowd.

“We need to be careful. I want everyone to keep away from the edge of the hole. If it breaks away, it may take tons of earth into the cave and suffocate the people down there. What we need is to set up a framework and a pulley. I have the material in the truck and I’m sending Rodrigues to get it. You three men,” he said, pointing politely with his little finger, “will go with him to get the wood and tools. Someone else—you and you—go and find some hot tea and food which we can lower down in a pail.

Everyone else, keep back.”

The sky darkened further, causing Winstanley to shake his head as he came back to speak to Trevelyan.

“This isn’t good; if it rains, this loose earth will turn into a giant mudslide.”

“Can’t you just tie a rope to something and throw it down to them?” Rivka asked.

“No, too dangerous. As long as no one down there is badly injured, it’s not worth taking the chance. If worse comes to worst, we can peg a tarpaulin down over the hole and return in the morning.”

Rivka’s heart sank. She’d thought this would all be over in another hour, and now it might go on another day.

“They’ll be all right,” Trevelyan said, patting her shoulder.

“We know where they are now and we can get food to them. Don’t worry.”

Rodrigues returned from the truck with a tool sack that sounded as if it had half of Pittsburgh in it. He threw it to the ground and began removing wrenches and hammers and enormous steel pins.

The other men came in with timbers and metal poles and chains and ropes. At least someone’s doing something, Rivka thought. She kept well back, and when the path was clear, slipped away to get her drawing gear. No artist could ignore so dramatic an event. Settling on a rock well away from the work area, she began putting the scene down in sweeping strokes.

Beside her, Trevelyan marvelled. His life to date had not embraced any of the arts except literature, and to see a picture forming on the paper even as it was played out on the hill was a revelation.

“I don’t know how you do it,” he said.

“Training, like anything else, just training. And perhaps an eye that is predisposed to imagine a frame around a scene.” Rivka made her words nonchalant, but was pleased by Trevelyan’s interest.

Under Winstanley’s guidance, a large wooden frame was soon erected around the hole in the ground, and the crossmembers had been set in place for the pulley and rope to run on.

Trevelyan went carefully to the edge of the cave mouth.

“Hello, below. We’re ready. Stand back.”

Winstanley had fastened a sort of canvas vest around himself and now clipped it onto the end of the rope that ran over the pulley.

“I’ll send the old lady up first; she’s the most likely to need attention. Is that doctor here?”

“Yes, Dr. Patel’s waiting in the clearing by the pool; I’ll get him up here now. Good luck.”

Trevelyan stood back and the men lowered their supervisor down into the cave. Above, thunder rumbled and there was a distant flash of lightning. Winstanley made the trip to the bottom without incident. Claire and Harcourt had brought Elspeth as close as possible, but there was a lot of loose scree to negotiate. Over her protests, Elspeth was buckled into the canvas vest and Winstanley called up, “Pull away, slowly.”

At the top, Rodrigues and his men pulled Elspeth to stable ground and released her to Dr. Patel’s attention. The sling went back down for Puli, who found the experience the most exciting thing that had happened so far.

In the cave, Winstanley was looking at the two remaining prisoners. “You next—you look pretty rough,” he said to Harcourt.

“Claire should be next,” he protested.

“This is no time to play the gent. You’re in worse shape than she is. Up you go,” Winstanley ordered, wrestling the unwilling professor into the canvas contraption. “Haul away!”

As Alan Harcourt sailed up into the gloom, Claire felt a quite irrational sense of loss. Looking up, she realised that the rain had begun again.

“Oh, lord, not more rain!” she moaned.

“Don’t worry, it will blow over quickly,” said Winstanley.

“How long will it be, do you think?”

“Hard to say. While the rain is falling, it won’t be safe to use the pulley because the frame is on unstable ground. It’s better to wait for the ground to dry off. Sorry, but you don’t want to die while you’re being rescued, do you? Not after all you’ve been through.”

“I guess not. Well, at least I can offer you some refreshment; they sent supplies down to us.” Claire led the way to the campsite.

“We’ve got wood, food and—heaven knows—plenty of water.

We can sit here and tell ghost stories.” She pulled the cork from a stoneware jug and poured out a mug of tea for each of them.

“It was lucky for us the Queen thought of sending for you and your men. There wouldn’t be many people around who’d have your knowledge of rocks and holes in the ground, Mr. Winstanley. It must be a very hard life, doing what you do.”

“Mining’s a tough game; you can spend years looking for a good deposit of gold-bearing reef, or a vein of silver. Of all those people who came out to the Rand during the gold rush, not one in a hundred made any money on it. And most of the poor fools who made a quid or two blew it just as fast.”

He took a glowing branch-end from the fire and lit his pipe.

At once a spicy smell filled the air.

“Oh, that smells nice,” Claire said, surprised.

“It’s not ordinary tobacco, is it?”

“No, it’s scented with cloves, a habit I picked up in Malaya when I was there.”

“Were you in mining out there also?”

“Yes, the company was looking for a new source of rubies, hoping to find something as rich as the Burmese fields, but it didn’t work out. When this post came up, I thought it would be a nice change. Better weather, for one thing.”

“It must be handy to have the monarch being so wellinformed about geology. You wouldn’t have to explain as much to her as you would to an amateur like me.”

Claire pulled a tea towel from the food basket and said, “Here are some sandwiches. Would you like one? I don’t suppose you have had much time to eat while you were planning how to 20

get us out of here.”

“It was pretty busy, all right, what with her Majesty threatening to have all of our guts for garters, and Trevelyan storming around, and thirty-odd men milling about not sure what to do. On top of that, we had to be careful not to do anything to injure the Cave of the Winds, which is just up the hill on the north side, you know.”

“Well, I appreciate everything you have done. At least Elspeth got out and is on her way to hospital.” Claire ate half of the enormous ham sandwich and decided she’d better save the rest for breakfast.

“I heard some strange stories about what went on down here. They said you had to perform brain surgery on her, is that true?” Winstanley asked.

“Well, not quite brain surgery, but I had to remove bone splinters that were pressing on her brain, which was bad enough.

I think someone must have hit her. It was a very odd place for an accidental injury.”

“Who would do that? I thought there was only one way into the little cave, and only slender people were able to wiggle through it.”

“Elspeth might have poked her head out and seen someone or something, and been hit to keep her quiet. Head injuries are apt to have odd results; people can walk for yards or even miles before they collapse. Or she might have been in the big cave.

We don’t know, and we may never know if she doesn’t regain her memory of the event.”

“Hard to believe anyone would wish to harm an old woman,” Winstanley said, finishing his sandwich and brushing off the crumbs. “A child’s prank, do you think?”

“It seems unlikely. Any child in Tshaniland would know maThemba is the Queen’s foster mother and therefore almost royal, by association.”

Above them, lightning tore across the dark clouds and thunder growled on its heels. Something pattered on the stretched tarpaulin and bounced down the sharp incline into the cave.

“What is it?” Claire cried, jumping up.

“Hail, I think. That’s rather unfortunate; I was hoping this would be a quick storm, over and done in fifteen minutes. If there’s a cold front moving in, we could be in for a lot of weather.

As long as the ground is slick, there’s no way the workmen can safely get us out. The whole trestle that the pulley’s rigged on could fall in on us.”

“Hell’s bells and tarnation! as my great-grandmother would have said. What else could possibly go wrong? I’m so sorry you got drawn into this, Mr. Winstanley. Will someone send word to your family not to worry?”

“No family. As far as worry goes, don’t waste time on it.

You’ve survived two days in a cave; another night won’t matter.”

“I suppose not. I don’t have any family to worry about me either—well, not here anyway. Tell me, Mr. Winstanley, don’t you find it lonely sometimes, living here? Unless you belong to the Club, there isn’t much social life. But I suppose for a man there are things to do, like sports and hunting.”

“Used to do a bit of archery at the Club. Gave it up when all those silly women got involved and started complaining about the bows being too heavy, wanting handicaps and foolishness.

Don’t know why they bother: you either do a sport or you don’t: no point in trying to change it so you can win.”

“I know just what you mean. I joined the walking club, just for a bit of exercise, and then someone said we should have uniforms and someone else wanted to ban the wearing of slacks, and pretty soon it wasn’t fun anymore.”

“Speaking of walks,” Winstanley said, knocking out his pipe and picking up the lamp, “if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be taking a short one.”

Claire started to tell him taking a walk wasn’t a good idea, then recognised it for the euphemism it was. “I’ll just shake out the blankets and stoke up the fire,” she said.

With four blankets two people should be reasonably comfortable, Claire thought. She folded the two largest into thirds to make rudimentary mattresses.

What was the etiquette of sleeping arrangements with a stranger in a cave? Emily Post would no doubt have the answer.

Lacking her assistance, Claire put one mattress on the shelf above the fire and one off to the side a bit.

She checked the woodpile. Should she try to get more wood? While she was considering this, her foot brushed against the lump of burned tobacco Winstanley had knocked out of his pipe. She picked it up to throw it in the fire—every bit of extra fuel was welcome.

As the storm broke on the workers above, Rodrigues yelled to Trevelyan through the noise of the first thunder, “It’s too dangerous! We can’t get them out until the storm stops. The trestle is slipping, and I don’t think the edge of the hole will hold.”

“Let’s get those tarpaulins tied down, and dig a ditch around the top of the hole, back where the soil is solid. If we can lead the water around the hole and have the tarp above it, that should prevent too much erosion. I’ll have to tell them they’re stuck down there for a while.”

“No, don’t even try that, the edge is much too fragile.

Winstanley will take care of Dr. Winter. We sent a basket of food and tea down earlier, so they won’t go hungry. Better not to take chances going to the edge; they’ll understand we’ll start again as soon as we can.”

Trevelyan was not happy about this, but he had to give way to common sense. Finding Rivka sheltering in the lee of a bush with Harcourt, he said, “Come on, we’ll sit this out at Enkalovu.”

“I don’t want to leave Claire down there!” Rivka protested.

“Rodrigues says if we try to get her out now, chances are the edges would give way, taking the trestle and half the hillside into the cave. She’s got company, she’s out of the weather, and we’ll come back as soon as this blows over. Half an hour, an hour perhaps, then we’ll get her out.”

Harcourt said nothing, but he looked at the sky with a frown. He was new to Tshaniland, but he’d spent time in nearby South Africa and knew a bit about African storms. This one didn’t look like passing drizzle. His suspicions were reinforced when 21

the hail started.

“Run for the truck!” he yelled to Obed. “Go, go before we get hit!” he said to Trevelyan and Rivka, who were still arguing as nut-sized hailstones crashed around them.

“Harcourt, you go home before something else happens to you. I’ll send for you if you’re needed,” Trevelyan said, holding his hat over Rivka’s head with one hand as he held her shoulder with the other. Without waiting for an answer, he hurried her down the path to his Land Rover.

“What about your men?” Rivka said.

“They’ll have taken the truck; they’ll be all right,” Trevelyan yelled, bundling her into the passenger seat and slamming the door.

“Couldn’t we just wait out the storm here?”

“No, you need to get dry and warm. We’ll come back as soon as it eases, no matter what time it is.” Throwing the vehicle into reverse, he backed around and eased down the rugged track toward Enkalovu.

At the royal village, Trevelyan and Rivka were greeted by Mr. Molapo, who stood on the Queen’s front steps under a rusty black umbrella that looked like it might have belonged to a Dickens character.

“I am commanded to wait for you and escort you to the Queen’s sitting room,” he said.

“We are honoured, Ear of the Queen, and apologise for putting you to this trouble,” Trevelyan said solemnly. No matter what upheavals went on, the formal niceties must be observed with the old man.

The fire had been built up in the sitting room, giving light and warmth to the suddenly uncomfortable afternoon. Hot coffee and tea were being dispensed from a table creaking under the weight of plates and bowls containing putu, roast meat, fruit

and fried dough balls.

The room was half filled with people who had been involved in the rescue attempt, all of them crumpled and wearylooking. Arguments about the best way to complete the job ebbed and flowed on a tide of tea.

“I suggest we have some food; there’s no telling when we might get a proper sit-down meal.”

Trevelyan took a wooden bowl from a pile at the end of the table and put meat and fruit in it. He led Rivka to a window-seat.

Once she started eating, Rivka realised she was ravenous. They ate in silence, listening to the conversations going on in the room, or at least those that were in English.

“I wonder where the Queen is,” Rivka said, finishing the last of the fruit with a satisfied sigh.

“Right there,” said Trevelyan, wiping his hands and getting to his feet. “And she looks angry.”

Across the room the tall figure of the Great She-leopard stood in the doorway, her eyes raking the room. Spotting Trevelyan, she motioned imperiously. Rivka following, he went to her side.

“I have just read the notebook Claire found in the tobacco tin. I would have done it before, but it went out of my thoughts when we were so busy. It’s very bad; we were all wrong about the killer and now Claire is in great danger.”

“What did the book say?” Trevelyan demanded as the Queen called Themba and Sipo and gave orders in a spate of rapid Sitshana.

“It identified the man who took the diamonds,” she said, scanning the room and calling sharply, “Rodrigues, come here!”

The assistant mine manager came quickly to her side. “Your Majesty?”

“Rodrigues, is it possible to get those people out of the cave, right now? Failing that, is it possible to put someone else into the cave?”

“Majesty, the mud makes things extremely dangerous. Only an animal would go out in this weather,” he said with a nervous laugh.

“So be it.” The Queen snatched a cape from the coat stand by the door and strode out to the veranda, calling Trevelyan to follow. Wondering what in the world was going on, he went, Themba and Sipo at his side.

Outside a truck was parked, its motor running. The driver handed the Queen into the cab and she pulled Trevelyan in after her, another spate of rapid Sitshana directed at the driver. “We have some passengers to pick up, then we are going back to the cave,” the Queen said to Trevelyan.

Themba and Sipo leaped in the back of the truck as it pulled away.

In the cave, Claire stopped dead and stared at the little clump of pipe dottle in her hand. Putting it down on a stone very gently, she felt in her pockets and found the envelope she had

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She lived in Mundaring with many visiting bandicoots, possums, bobtail lizards, and magpies; plus some resident chickens, cats and a very tolerant husband until 2014, when she packed up the cats and husband, and moved to Tasmania where she spends her time wallaby wrangling, making sourdough bread, and writing.

22

put there during the search for Elspeth.

She opened the envelope and tipped the contents into her hand. Picking up the other piece of dottle, she looked from one to the other.

They looked the same. Sniffing each in turn, she realised they both smelled the same—they both smelled of cloves.

Slipping both fragments back into the envelope, she hastily put it back into her pocket.

Her brain began putting pieces together with almost audible clicks. Who was most likely to know about diamonds?

A mining expert. Who was in the best position to ensure the explosion of the whirlpool tunnel didn’t work? The man who set the charges. Who had the freedom to go about taking pot-shots and setting fires and blowing things up? A European with a vehicle, who had no supervisor to report to, who was often on the road on legitimate business, who lived alone, who had easy access to dynamite, who used to do archery: Winstanley.

The light of the lamp came through the gloom, accompanied by a cheerful whistle.

“This cave is quite wonderful. What a tourist attraction one could make of it,” he said, sitting down beside the fire.

“I don’t know what Her Majesty would think of that,” Claire said. “But you’re right about it being wonderful. I once went to Carlsbad Caverns and this is very like them, just not so big.” She was desperate to keep up an easy conversation, lest he hear in her silence the knowledge that had just come to her.

“I’m going to get some more wood, we might need it. No, don’t get up; I can manage. I’ve got a saw.” She picked up the lamp.

“I’ll just fill this before is gets too low on oil.”

Fiddling with the lamp, she wondered what to do. How long could she keep up casual chitchat, pretend she suspected nothing? And what was he likely to do? Was she safe as long as she didn’t tip her hand? No, said a voice in her mind, the very fact he botched the first rescue attempt shows he doesn’t want you to leave this cave.

“I’ll be right back,” she said, screwing the lamp together and picking up her saw. Surprisingly, he made no argument.

Probably wants time to think about what to do with me, Claire thought, surprised she was so calm. Well, what can you do, scream for help? The only hope I have is to stay calm and alert and pray the storm passes and the rescuers return. Meanwhile, do nothing to make him suspicious.

“It was Winstanley all along,” the Queen said as the truck bounced over the rough road.

“Khonzi noticed him poking around and followed him. He should have come straight to Molapo, or to me, but he chose to investigate by himself. No doubt he expected to be a hero when he finally presented all the evidence. Instead he’s dead.”

“I never even considered Winstanley,” Trevelyan said. “But when you look at all the facts, they fit. He’s a crack shot. Last year when we went after that rogue hippo he came along and brought it down with one shot. He can get dynamite any time he wants from the mine stores. And he’d certainly have the knowledge to recognise uncut diamonds. But why would he want to kill Claire?”

“I don’t know. We’ll ask him when we catch him. Right now, Claire’s safety is more important, and our passengers are the only ones who can get to her and protect her.” The Queen looked over her shoulder.

“I think it’s a crazy idea—forgive my bluntness.”

“Give me a better idea, then.”

Trevelyan couldn’t. Staring into the storm, he willed the truck to move faster.

In the cave, Claire also was wondering why Winstanley had tried to kill her. Anyone so sure of himself certainly had nothing to fear from an amateur detective. What should she do? Playing dumb or hiding somewhere seemed the only choices.

Faking a huge yawn, she said, “I think I’ll turn in; it’s been a long day.”

“I’ll sit up and tend the fire,” he said, dashing her hopes that she could sneak away and hide while he slept.

Claire went to the shelf where she’d prepared the makeshift bed. Lying down, she pulled the blanket up and lay facing the fire. If he believed she was asleep, he might let his guard down.

What good that might do she wasn’t sure, but her only edge at the moment was that she knew what he was and he didn’t know she knew. How could she use this information?

By the fire, Winstanley stared into the flames and felt his anger reflected in them. Rage for the wrecking of his plans had consumed him for days now. It was all her fault, this meddling woman. If she hadn’t found the diamond in Khonzi’s body, if she hadn’t gone to the Queen with it, he’d have been over the border and safely away on a boat to England. Ever since the meddling bitch had alerted the Queen, men had been up and down this hill, poking and prying and watching.

The cache of diamonds was still safe, but he couldn’t retrieve it in daylight lest he be seen, and it was too hazardous a hiding place to go to at night. He’d have to wait for months, if not years, for the interest to die down. Years! The thought of even another month here made the bile boil up in his throat. And it was all her fault, all hers!

In the shadows Claire lay tense and anxious. There must be something she could do; there must! She ran the contents of her medical bag through her mind. A couple of scalpels, the bone saw, her stethoscope, a bit of iodine, a bit of adhesive tape, some codeine tablets, some aspirin—what she needed was a gun, and what she had was a first aid kit. Think, Claire, think!

Codeine, aspirin, iodine and phenobarbital. She always had a small bottle of that in her bag since the day she’d been called to the home of a mentally disturbed man who’d required four people to hold him down. How could she get to it? And how could she get him to take it? Throwing back her blanket, she moaned softly and got up.

“Problems?” Winstanley asked, still very alert.

“Headache. I’ll take a tablet for it. How are you? Can I get you anything?” Claire went to her bag and made a big show of tipping an aspirin into her hand. She poured half a cup of cold tea and took the tablet.

“Ugh, bitter,” she said, “but it works. The Africans prize medicine all the more the worse it tastes, which I’ve never understood. They have some funny ideas. Are you sure you don’t need one?”

“No, thank you. I’ll have some of that tea, though, I’m thirsty and I don’t think that water’s fit to drink.”

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Turning away, Claire made a fuss about getting a clean cup, dropping the palmed phenobarbital into the tea jug as she did so. “Let me give this a wash I don’t want you catching something before we’re rescued.” She went down to the water’s edge and scoured the mug carefully, rinsing it well, hoping the tablets would dissolve if given time.

“There, that’s better. I hate using a cup that might have other people’s germs on it—must be my medical training.”

She shook the cup over the fire, inspecting it closely. Taking up the stoneware bottle, she gave it a swish as she brought it to Winstanley. She gave him the empty cup and poured the tea into it, praying there would be no telltale white fragments of medicine.

“It’s a bit stewed, and it’s not hot, but at least we know it’s safe to drink. You’re probably right about the water, it looks pretty muddy. I think I’ll try to sleep now.

You should lie down, too; you’ve been working hard all day.” Giving him what she hoped was a sincere smile, she went back to her blankets.

Alone by the fire, Winstanley gulped down some of the tepid tea. The girl was right, it was stewed and bitter, but it was wet and it soothed his throat, which had had more than its usual daily allowance of dust. What he needed to do now was come up with a plan to get rid of her before the rescuers came back. It had to be

something plausible, something no one would think was his fault.

Perhaps an accident with the big root ball from the dead tree? If she were to try to cut more wood, if the root ball came loose from its rope, if the mass rolled over on her, if he fell and knocked himself out while trying to help her…yes, yes, that had possibilities. Think it through, think it through. There may be only one chance, so it has to work the first time.

As he thought, he began to doze. The snap of his relaxing neck woke him with a jerk. He started to take another sip of tea, then something caught his eye at the bottom of the blue enamel cup. Little grains of something white.

Dust? No!

Springing to his feet he reached the shelf of rock in three strides.

“Bitch, stupid bitch! You tried to drug me,” he screamed, all caution gone.

Grabbing Claire by the neck, Winstanley struggled toward the water’s edge. In the darkness behind him, a leather shoe rolled gently down the muddy slope into the firelight. Close behind it first one and then another spotted shadow loped silently, intent on play until they spotted a more interesting game.

With one movement they sailed through the air and knocked Winstanley off his feet. Coughing and crying, Claire rolled away and staggered to her feet, clawing her way up the rocks, desperate to get away. She didn’t know why he had let her go; she only knew she had to escape, find a defendable position, hide.

Gaining the comparative safety of the upper rock shelf, Claire turned and looked back at he would-be killer.

A scream came from the shadows, as Winstanley suddenly appeared, crawling, clutching at the rocky ground as something in the dark tried to pull him back. Snarls and coughs echoed in the cavernous space.

Winstanley grabbed the edge of a crevice in the rock and pulled himself closer to the fire. Blood dripped from his hand and hissed on the embers at the fire’s edge. He screamed again, his scream counterpointed by another snarl.

“Don’t, don’t let them eat me!”

Winstanley cried, looking desperately for help.

Above, on the edge of panic, Claire’s own scream turned to laughter. Beside her on the shelf a large spotted animal pushed its head against her and made a rumbling noise. “Shaka!” she quavered as the big leopard rasped a large tongue up her arm. Her hand went to his ears and began rubbing them. As long as his ears were being massaged, Shaka would stay with her.

And as long as Winstanley had a shred of leather on him, Sindi would stay with him.

“The perfect end to a perfect day,” Claire said aloud, laughing again, almost limp with relief.

Below, Winstanley cowered under the weight of a full-grown she-leopard.

She had hooked two claws of one paw ever so lightly into the flesh of his thigh.

Every time he tried to wriggle away, the claws tightened. She seemed more interested in his boots than his flesh, but every so often he felt the hot tongue rasping away the skin on his ankle.

The bootlaces had already been chewed to mush, and he had no idea if she’d stop chewing once she ran out of leather. A tooth grazed his anklebone and he twitched uncontrollably. Sindi rounded on him with a snarling roar that made the ceiling ring.

Winstanley shrieked, and his bowels convulsed and emptied. Sindi returned to the boots as if to a culinary delicacy.

“If you lie very, very still, she may only eat your shoes. But I’d be careful, really careful, about any sudden movements,” Claire called down to the suddenly pitiable man.

Above in the darkness, a light suddenly shone out. “Claire, Claire, are you all right? Did the cats find you?”

Trevelyan’s big voice boomed out like Zeus from the clouds.

“I’m fine, Redmond. Sindi’s eating Winstanley’s boots and Shaka’s with me.

Take your time. We’re all cosy down here.”

Hugging the spotted lifesaver, Claire said, “Shaka, you’ve got free doctoring from me any time you want, for the rest of your life. Good boy, noble beast!”

She continued her ear massage, listening happily to the sounds of the rescuers above.

Chapter nine next month ...

Death in the Sea of Grass With Karen Treanor’s kind permission, Swan Magazine will be serialising Death in the Sea of Grass over the coming year - but if you can’t wait to find out who dunnit or why they didit, you can buy the whole book as a downloadable ebook from Fido Publishing for the bargain price of only $4.99 from their website on www.fidopublishing.com.

While there you might like to browse her other books which are all available through Barnes and Noble (www.barnesandnoble.com.) or Amazon on www.amazon.com.

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ENTERTAINMENT REVIEWS Title: Reviewer:

A Very Good Variety Show Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

The A Very Good Variety Show is only on for three performances, and you’ve missed two and the third is sold out, so look out for this talented crew’s other shows.

Jessie can be seen in Fairly Average Dance Band; with Lucky Oceans in The Piano Has Been Drinking and The Western Swing Hour. Mark Turner and Jessie are together in Best Friends and she and the lovely Ali Bodycoat perform together in Peggy and Judy.

The best place to see (and hear) the Perth Cabaret Collective is in Glamourpuss, which also features the superb Cougar Morrison.

Very, Very Highly Recommended Indeed. ~oOo~

And all that jazz he clue to the quality of the show is in the name - A Very Good Variety Show is exactly that – a very good variety show starring the delectable Jessie Gordon, the suave Mark Turner, the exciting Cougar Morrison, the waif-like Mia Matthiessen, voluptuous burlesque dancers Lucy Lovegun and Veruca Sour, as well as The Sugar Duchess and Amelia Kisses plus the incomparable Perth Cabaret Collective.

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Title: Reviewer:

La Soirée Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

Super, stupendous, stellar, splendid La Soiree aking its triumphant return to Perth Fringe World is La Soirée, filling in for the cancelled Club Swizzle.

Having played to capacity crowds on its previous outings it wouldn’t be

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Jessie Gordon

Put them all in the Ellington Jazz Club, throw in some songs from the forties, Cabaret, torch songs, some old songs and some new ones and you have a show that’s worth a hell of a lot more than the actual price of admission.

I have huge admiration for Miss Gordon, her glorious voice, shimmering personality and persona are solid gold quality. If she looked like a Silverback Mountain Gorilla she’d still be worth listening to, but as it is, she’s also gorgeous to look at, a distinct bonus.

The show runs for an hour, a packed hour of entertainment from Perth’s finest – for me the standouts were Mark and Jessie singing I Won’t Dance and Jessie and Cougar’s Money Money, from Cabaret, although Jessie’s take on Mein Herr from the same show was truly spectacular.

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unreasonable to assume they would repeat the previous, successful, cast and programme. But no, it is almost entirely different – just as brilliant, just as entertaining, but new stars, new acts and the same format.

The returning acts are the delectable Lily Martinez and her famous disappearing red hanky and the amazingly talented Cabaret Decadanse, whose huge, larger than life, puppets are imaginative and have a charm and pizzazz few people possess. The number they performed in the second half (Let Me Entertain You) is nothing short of superb.

The new acts come from all over the world – a spectacular Indian Pole duo from Mumbai – Mallakhamb India; Cabaret Decadanse hail from Montreal; Canada, the Fratelli Rossi (incredible acrobats) from Italy; Irina Bessanova and Vladimir Todorashko from the Ukraine and more.

There is one home-grown star – from Fremantle originally, before becoming an international performer – Lucky Hell (I’m not entirely sure that’s her real name), a renowned sword swallowing act.

Entirely mesmerising, she is gorgeous and swallowed a light sabre to thunderous applause (see photo on the front page.)

There was one act that was entirely novel – Will Meager came on with what looked like a hula hoop grown big and performed an act I have never seen – spinning around in it, creating balancing Michaelanglo pictures all on a tiny round stage, to gasps from the crowd.

Actually, there were a lot of hands to the mouth, suppressing gasps, moments – when Will Underwood fell out of the sky, stopping scant inches from the floor, Lucky Hell’s double swords, Ben Lewis spinning on straps high in the tent and many more.

After two hours one leaves sated with excitement, hands sore from clapping and return to our mundane lives.

If you have been before, you know the quality of the acts, if you haven’t been, give yourself a treat and go.

La Soiree runs at The Ice Cream Factory until the 3rd March. Tickets cost between $30 to $95 and are available here.

Very Highly Recommended Indeed. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

A National Park James Forte

A modern tale of love in troubled times he Black Swan Emerging Writers Group, The Blue Room and the Perth Fringe Festival all have a common purpose – to provide opportunities and exposure for new theatre writing.

Andrea Fernandez has gained the aid of all three organisations and grasped the opportunities with both hands.

She has shown that she has the potential to be an eminent playwright in the WA theatre scene.

A National Park is a one-act two-hander which runs for just under sixty minutes. On the poster, it asks the question “Is there a price tag on culture?”

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Jessie Ward as Akasha in A National Park

According to Andrea’s Facebook page, she was unhappy with the original theme and rewrote the play after the publicity had been finalized. The result is an intriguing mixture of a love for aboriginal traditions, the connection with the land, the horror of the impact of mining and a multi-cultural romance.

It is 2030 and the Noongar country is a barren wasteland, devastated by industry (did I hear loads of bird calls in the bush sound-scape?). Fracking, in particular, has polluted the land and the ground water.

Akasha (well portrayed by Jessie Ward) is a young aboriginal woman who relies on her culture as a modern carer of the land. She links that to her work as a park ranger. As a part of her training, she has to complete a solo survival exercise in the bush at night.

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But waiting for her is a white-fella with a guitar and a hidden agenda (amorous, sure, but other things too). This is Casey (a strong support role from Killian Harty). He is wanting to explore the local cave-system with her. They spend the night together - not made any easier by their fear of spiders.

The set is minimalist. There are a few boxes as seats. It is not too difficult to imagine the dead trees all around them.

Director Amy Smith does an excellent job of maintaining our interest with a script which could have done with more polishing.

Does it answer the question on the poster? Like many publicity quotations, it is left hanging.

A National Park has themes which are so relevant to Australia today. If you are concerned about what is happening to the land, go and see it. If you are not, you should be, go and see it.

Hold on. Apparently, every night has been sold out. Watch out for reruns and for more plays by Andrea Fernandez.

Some cautionary words for the producers. Whoever is looking after publicity needs a nudge.

First, if you look on the web or on Facebook, there is a good chance you will get the much larger Black Sapphire Productions of London – with absolutely no information about the Perth show.

Second, if someone is going by the Fringe World book – the catalogue of what’s on – or The Blue Room’s Summer Nights booklet, one will look in vain for the names of the writer, director, actors or backstage people.

This is not a criticism of either of those two publications my guess is that they did not have the information to hand when they went to press.

Third, there is no programme available for audience members. Should someone wish to know who was responsible for the set, soundscape or the well-designed and executed lighting, then they are in for a long search. Why no credit for the actors and technicians?

It might be Fringe – young and wild and spontaneous - but it should be professional in giving credit to those who have earned it. We need a programme – paper or online!

It ran for five nights from the 29th January at The Blue Room but is now booked out.

Highly Recommended. ~oOo~ Title:

Reviewer:

dancing, like a veteran. She is ably supported on stage by Be Gosper playing guitar and singing a number of her own compositions.

The small theatre has an alcove as a stage and seating for twenty-eight. As befits the subject matter and style of presentation it is very intimate. To one side, projected on the wall are movies of Evelyn’s actual childhood and some glove puppetry. At the rear of the stage is a table being used as a couch, a table for tea and a car in the driveway.

Across the proscenium arch are strings of paper cranes.

Stage management and film projection were by Noemie Huttner-Koros and Daniel Dosek. Gita Bezard and Maddie Godfrey provided the mentoring which took the production from a simple story to a professional piece of theatre.

If, during this Fringe season, you should feel that you have

over-dosed on circus and stand-up comedy, then try this as an antidote. An interval of reality before diving back into the fantastic.

Dancing in the Driveway is at the Lady Beaufort, at the rear of the Community Centre, 715 Beaufort Street, Mount Lawley, until the 10th February.

Highly Recommended. ~oOo~

Dancing in the Driveway James Forte

A show about puppies and mental illness he Fringe World programme states that this forty-minute show is about puppies and mental illness. That is not quite accurate.

There is very little about puppies.

There is a great deal about ballet, but mostly it is about mental health. In fact, it is a very personal account of a twentyone-year-old girl’s journey through a number of psychological problems.

If you think that that does not sound like a particularly entertaining evening, you’re right. Instead, it is a courageous, honest and vivid attempt to portray life with chronic unhappiness. And there are laughs. And at the end of the show, we all emerge feeling slightly better equipped to deal with our not-so-good days.

The monologue was written, directed, performed and produced by Evelyn Snook. Much of art is therapeutic and that must be a significant part of the motivation for the development of this drama.

She holds the attention of the audience, yarning and

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Title: Reviewer:

Djuki Mala James Sutherland-Bruce

Joy enhancing, inspiring, thrilling, intoxicating juki Mala is an indigenous dance group from North East Arnhem island.

Never have I seen four young men with such energy. Djuki Mala’s dancers give off exactly what they set out to give, pure joy and happiness to the crowd.

Years ago, I had seen the original YouTube video that went viral Zorba the Greek Yolngu style when the group were known as the Chooky Dancers, and twelve years later here they still are with the same joy and enthusiasm that I had seen on the screen.

The production that I was fortunate to watch included; Yalyalwuy Gondarra, Baykali Ganambarr, Watjarr Garmu and Tibian Cristopher Wyles as the amazing dancers.

The show started with some wonderful banter between the lead and the audience, but we were soon to see several

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traditional indigenous dances, that then broke into their viral hit to much crowd stomping applause and laughter.

The show then morphed into their take on many different genres, with thrilling and infectious enthusiasm. The Djuki Mala (roughly ‘Chooky Dancers’ in Yolngu) danced their way through covers of Singing in the Rain, Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) to Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Bollywood and many more.

Every dance was professional and polished, but through every move, you could see the personality and feel-good waves just emanating from the group. Which on a 42-degree day was no mean feat.

If you are going to see anything at Perth Fringe World this year, this should definitely be high on your list. It was a privilege to see the fusion between pop culture and the traditional culture of Djuki Mala.

It is rare to see those so talented, doing what they love, with such obvious joy to such amazing laughter and happiness all around.

Very highly recommended Indeed. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

Best of Edinburgh Comedy Tony Jackson

A Mick, Mac, Paddy and Wack Walk Into a Bar here is one thing you can be absolutely sure of in any Festival and that will be lots of stand-up comedy. It’s incredibly popular, looks easy, costs almost nothing to mount and gives instant gratification in the form of applause and laughter.

The concept of one person standing in front of an audience and making them laugh by telling stories, jokes and truths well disguised, along with observations on life may seem a recent one, but actually dates back to about 400BCE in ancient Greece, a place called Parresia – a name now used in formal rhetoric which means ‘to speak candidly’.

More recently it grew out of the English Music Hall and American Vaudeville traditions, getting huge boosts out of the advent of radio and television. The great names in stand up – Bob Newhart, Ken Dodd, Jimmy Carr, Billy Connelly, Jerry Seinfeld, Tommy Cooper, Don Rickles, Max Miller and so on all have entirely different presentations and methods but within the fairly restrictive structure produce vastly differing shows.

Some, like Don Rickles, use abuse; some a different persona, some use purely scripted jokes (Bob Hope) and some employ observational insight to talk about everyday things and

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point out the inherent absurdity and humour in them. A few, like Billy Connelly, have no idea what they’re going to say when they step on stage and begin to talk, taking their direction and topics from the audience.

Perth Fringe World is no exception with literally dozens of shows using the very best of the available stand-up talent. Many use the format of the ‘Best of … ‘ format, such as the Best of British show at The Court.

Another such is the Best of Edinburgh Comedy also at the Red Room of The Court, another hour of four stand-up comedians and MC. This particular show (and it will be different each show) the performers were three Scots, a Greek and an Aussie. Each was completely different and the strong Scots and Greek accents sometimes made it difficult to follow, especially when the delivery was fast.

The subject matter was varied and mostly delivered really well. The Aussie made a lot of fun of Qantas and Jetstar and the MC made a really good case for why Cherry Ripe is a health food.

There were some wonderful laugh-out-loud moments and the crowd enjoyed it. Highly recommended.

The Best of Edinburgh Comedy runs at two venues, both Red Rooms – at the Brass Monkey Hotel and The Court until the end of the festival. Book now online here. Tickets cost $15 to $25. ~oOo~ Title:

Reviewer:

#Blessed - Happy Are The People Lisa Callahan

Count your blessings and give thanks ospel Music has a huge and glorious history, much, much older than what is usually thought of as ‘Gospel Songs’ a term coined in the late 1800s.

Gospel music is composed and performed for many reasons, religious, ceremonial, or as pure entertainment. It is heavily influenced by the culture and context but widely believed to be a product of the American South, coming out of the African-American religious experience.

The choir of local Providence City Church of Wembley, the Providence Gospel Choir, made its third appearance at this year’s Perth Fringe World with a strong showing of the twenty-strong choir, accompanied by a combo of drums, keyboard and guitar.

They had two performances only at this year’s Fringe, and half the profits will be donated to Homeless Healthcare, an amazing organisation that specialises in the complex medical and social problems that homeless people face and are raising money to start a new women’s clinic.

The Providence Gospel Choir gave a very enjoyable hour

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lead to the development of the modern museum.

The curiosity of humankind for the unusual, odd or bizarre is well recognised. It is the basis for the huge worldwide success of Ripley’s Believe it or Not and Frater XV’s (Daddy 15) Fringe World show.

The premise is simple. Part improv, part audience driven, Frater XV chats about a wide variety of curiosities brought to the stage that includes (on this occasion) things like a Ouija board, empty bottles of gin and absinthe, a burnt human hand in a box, magic wands and a variety of other knick-knacks.

The item which did not appear on this occasion, but which is the show’s totem is the Hand of Glory – the dried and pickled left hand of a hanged man combined with a candle made from the fat of the same hanged man. This, when lit and put in the Hand, causes any person presented with it to become motionless. It seems like quite a lot of work.

The hour’s entertainment was highly varied and included an attempt at a seance using a letter board and a detailed discussion on the history of the Snakes and Ladders board game.

Other subjects explored were gin as an anaesthetic, how to make absinthe, how a magic wand can be made to appear magic (spoiler alert) by the use of ivory ends, Jack the Ripper, the skull and crossbones, water divining and much more.

The curiosities vary with each performance and the discussions will always vary with the audience.

The show’s tickets cost $25 and may be seen at a number of venues – the Fair Ground at Ibis Perth, the Big Top at Sunset Veranda and Stevenson Theatre – check with the Fringe World Website for dates and venues.

Highly Recommended. ~oOo~

Constanza Herrero Parada and the Choir (Photograph courtesy of Providence Gospel Choir’s Facebook)

of song. As you would expect there was a good deal of praising God with music with a few better-known numbers included such as You’ve Got a Friend by James Taylor. They were well led by the conductor who also did a great solo.

The choir encouraged audience participation although not always with success.

The season has now ended but keep an eye out for their fairly frequent public performances. Generally, it was a fun, feel-good show that I would recommend highly.

Title: Reviewer:

Cabaret of Curiosities Tony Jackson

Hear amazing stories, see the power of humankind eturning to Perth Fringe World is Timothy McDougall in the persona of Frater XV’s Cabaret of Curiosities.

Obviously taken from a Cabinet of Curiosities, the Cabaret of Curiosities is a verbal creation of an antique ideal.

The original meaning of ‘cabinet’ in this sense is ‘room’ and the concept which arose in the 1500s of collections of oddities of the natural world, paintings and geological specimens which

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Reviewer:

Baking Demonstration - Iluma Fine Foods Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

Decorate your cake and eat it too e certainly see a good deal of variety at the Perth Fringe World, but it is more usually focused on performance, theatre, stand-up comedy, cabaret, singing and dancing than cake baking.

But I am delighted that Iluma Fine Foods chose the Fringe to showcase the undoubted skills of their pastry chef in a demonstration of her cake-decorating skills.

Iluma Fine Foods, who has a charming little café at 138 Cambridge Street, Leederville, run pop-up shops and are in the process of creating a cake caravan for weddings and other celebrations are masters of the imaginative bake.

Their Baking Demonstration is limited in numbers to watch and be involved in with Iluma’s charming pastry chef, who hails from Venezuela and has a lovely attitude and accent. She also has the gift of making what I know to be very difficult tasks look easy.

For the one I attended she showed us how to coat a sponge with buttercream icing perfectly, decorate it and then mirror glaze a frozen mousse. Mirror glazing is incredibly difficult, not the pouring of it on the cake, which we all did – but creating the glaze itself, in this case, a white chocolate glaze prepared to perfection.

We all took a hand at small tasks, listened to chef’s wise words intently, then sampled a wide range of their delectable delicacies, accompanied by truly excellent coffee.

I had not previously known of Iluma’s existence, they opened just over a year ago but shall recommend them in future. The largely female management and staff are not only

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work with the audience, which she made work effortlessly.

Then came Milo McCabe in the persona of Troy Hawke, an upper-class 1930’s lounge lizard with an ever so slightly gay glaze and a Ronald Coleman moustache. His Mr Men routine was hilarious and his one-man show would be well worth seeing (Milo McCabe: 1001 Moments With Troy Hawke!).

about flogging cake, but also about empowering women and contribute a good deal to the Perth Children’s Hospital for purely private reasons.

The demonstrations continue throughout the whole Fringe twice each Saturday morning – but unless you have already bought your tickets as the whole season is sold out. However, do not despair – hie yourself down to Iluma and try their wares, washed down with some of their excellent tea or coffee.

Very Highly Recommended Indeed. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

The Best of British Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

An Englishman, A Scot and an Irishman walk into a Pub It’s in all the advertising for the Fringe – ‘A mix of new and old favourites’. Well, The Best of British is an old favourite. Dan Willis and Best of British Productions have been presenting this format for fourteen years.

The premise is simple, collect four of the best stand up comedians, usually from their own one-person show, give them twenty minutes or so, tied loosely together by a highly professional MC (Dan Willis) and see what happens.

It makes a reviewer’s job a bit hard because the four I saw may never be back in that combination ever again – but I can say the level was very, very high indeed the night I saw the show.

Willis was his usual smooth, funny self, both entertaining us and warming up the crowd for the rest of the program, each individually introduced.

First up was Scot Leo Kearse, Scottish Comedian of the Year, who has his own show (Right Wing Comedian) and who was very funny although his finale was an excellent re-telling of quite an old internet joke about passwords.

He was followed Mandy Knight. I would have loved to see more of her work – she was just hysterically funny, although relying on UK humour, which doesn’t always translate – jokes about Croydon Pikeys may go over the heads of some Aussies.

But I loved her and the image she created. Also, she did a lot of

Milo McCabe as Troy Hawke

Heading the bill was old Fringe favourite Carey Marx – presumably, the unknown Marx Brother no one talks about. His one-man show is Grumpy Pom and his lugubrious delivery gives his routine a slant seldom seen, but much appreciated.

Overall a wonderful evening and show – but as I say, you may not get to see that one, but I would seek out their individual shows.

Best of British runs at The Verdict upstairs at The Court until the 16th February. Adult themes and coarse language.

Just as an aside, I’d recommend getting there early and have one of The Court’s burgers – absolutely delicious.

Very Highly Recommended. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

Daniel Conlan is Typing Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

Beginners, please One of the better things about Perth Fringe World is that, for younger or less experienced performers it provides a proving ground for the necessary apprenticeship to become a star.

The Working Men’s Clubs and Bars that provided a stage years ago have all gone now and TV, ever greedy of talent, makes new material old very quickly.

Musical Hall artists of the Edwardian era could work on a routine for decades – think Harry Tate and the Motoring sketch – and even pass it along to their children as a bequest whereas now TV, even more so, YouTube and social media makes a bottomless pit into which one chuck one’s best material.

The Craft, a small, rather nice pub alongside Outback 31

Although he couldn’t have got a better audience than us, he certainly deserves a bigger audience, and I think they will come with time.

Coarse language.

Recommended. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

Taming of the Brew Douglas Sutherland-Bruce

One drunk actor, four others, assassinate Shakespeare reaking news! Shakespeare and the 16th Century were sexist and to a large extent misogynistic. And probably the play most at fault for this 21st century crime is The Taming of the Shrew, widely regarded as his least approachable from a modern mindset.

This is obvious in this year’s Fringe with two shows devoted to its commentary – 10 things I Hate About the Taming of the Shrew and The Taming of the Brew. This last is brought to you by the fine folks that brought you A Midsummer Night’s Drink, the Grapevine Theatre Co.

Shakespeare’s plot has been used before – Kiss Me Kate and 10 Things I Hate About You owe quite a lot to The Taming of the Shrew.

The focus of The Grapevine Theatre company is obviously alcohol-fuelled and the five actors that present the thirty-

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Daniel Conlan

Jacks in James Street is offering such a stage for emerging artists and standup comedians. Comedians such as Daniel Conlan, originally from Glasgow, although with an intelligible accent fortunately.

The show is entitled Daniel Conlan is Typing, although judging from his material I would say it more stereotyping than any actual keyboard work.

Theoretically, the show runs for an hour, although that depends how the show goes, the material he chooses to run and the general feel of the evening.

He was warmed up by a local lad whose The cast of Taming of the Brew having fun name I unfortunately didn’t catch – a pleasant enough lad with original, if not some roles in The Taming of the Shrew do it as improvisation, hilarious, material. swapping the roles and costumes between them, interspersed

Daniel himself is a good-looking, charming young man with theatre sports, drinking games and a good deal of who relies heavily on audience interaction and his own natural undergraduate fun amongst themselves. charm. Unfortunately for him the audience at the 5:30pm show

For example, Bianca doesn’t have many lines, so it’s OK for consisted of ten – in a performance space designed for at least her to be portrayed by a standard lamp – with a nice lacy bra.

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As though this wasn’t enough before the show starts the

His material was original, but his lack of experience rest of the cast ply one cast member with drinks so they, in this showed and personally I wouldn’t have risked calling his largely case, he, start three sheets in the wind with rather less control Australian audiences racist and bringing up Manus Island and than usual.

Nauru until one was absolutely sure one had them on side.

Let me say I am most certainly not the target audience

Also, it was perhaps not the best idea not to prepare better. for this production. I know the original play quite well, have I know Billy Connelly walks on stage with no idea what he’s going not seen 10 Things I Hate About You and strongly dislike selfto use, but believe me, son, he has quite a lot of experience and, indulgent amateurism in theatre. I like to hear the actors’ trust me on this, you’re not Billy Connelly also he doesn’t take a dialogue and feel that if you’re going to charge $29 for a ticket written list of topics with him. It is disrespectful of the audience you should offer something more than drunken undergraduates not to prepare even for an audience of ten, perhaps even more making each other laugh. importantly, especially for an audience of ten.

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However, the audience at the opening night at The Loungeroom at The Moon, a marvellous venue, seemed to appreciate it. Spinning the wheel to determine what accent one actor would use for the rest of the play brought howls of laughter, followed by comic slapstick involving the props, more drinks and the occasional aside to tell us how funny it all is, along with commentary about the more than four hundred year old mores.

I certainly didn’t care for it, but you might well enjoy it – decide for yourself. It runs at the new venue, Studio Startup Basement, Grand Lane, 143 Barrack Street, Perth until the 26th January.

If you like this company’s work they have several other shows in the Fringe – a repeat of A Midsummer Night’s Drink, A Trois and Strung.

Not really recommended. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

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6056 Chris McRae

f there is one thing that Australian comedians are good at and comedy audiences appreciate it’s self-deprecating humour.

Perth comedian Cameron McLaren returned to Fringe World riding a wave of previous success. McLaren won the WA Comedy Award in the 2017 Festival for his show 6056 which put a comedic spin on the stereotypical and cultural aspects of living in the suburb of Midland.

Fellow comedian Simone Springer (who is performing her own show Silence of the Labia at Fringe World) warmed up the capacity crowd with several anecdotes which revolved around relationships (or at least what she considered to be the negative aspects) such as divorce, children and sexual frustration.

Although taking a while to warm into her set, Springer proved comfortable on stage and inter-acted well with the audience and her content.

McLaren then took to the stage and was quick to identify a child in the audience. “You’re going to learn some things tonight kid” he quipped. With a very energetic and likeable presence, McLaren launched into his observational humour which revolved around his days spent at Middle Swan Primary School and Swan View High School and the tags associated with living in the 6056 postcode in Midland.

He explored the ‘reputation’ or other Perth suburbs with a particularly funny anecdote about a news report claiming that a fire in Armadale had caused a million dollars damage. “What did the whole suburb burn down?” he fired off.

What followed was an hour or so of some humourous anecdotes including school yard bust ups and drug induced shenanigans. Some jokes fired and others were a little on the edge, possibly proving a little too close to the line. For the majority McLaren had the audience in the palm of his hand, covering everything from his upbringing and punches to the head on the Midland train line through to his own health journey which included a particularly funny gym story.

The humour itself would not be everyone’s cup of tea with plenty of crude moments and some aspects proving a little too self-deprecating. McLaren found comedy in things such as Parkinsons and Anzac Day and some laughs fell by the wayside there.

However, overall, McLaren’s high energy and likeable style was humerous and allowed the audience to laugh at his (and their own) expense. His observational humour was quick fire and the audience most certainly appreciated the relatable and local nature of his comedic style. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

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All Around the World Glen Hunting

ith so many comedians and comediennes gracing the various stages of Fringe World 2019, it makes sense for some of them to pool their resources periodically into showcases. This affords the performers further stage time with which to attract more punters to their standalone shows, and allows audiences to sample a range of styles and personalities within the one sitting.

Some of these showcases, such as Laugh Mob’s Comedy Striptease, are themed; this introduces not only additional spice and dash, but also a welcome cohesion to the individuals’ comic offerings. But without this sort of focus to the proceedings, the showcase relies on high calibre performances and charismatic curation to really hold and mould a crowd.

According to this brief, then, All Around the World: The International Comedy Show, which plays upstairs at the Aberdeen Hotel, must be regarded as only a partial success.

Firstly, there is no unifying theme beyond the players all hailing from the British Isles.

Secondly, master of ceremonies Terry North tried gamely to gather the audience to him, but seemed tired or lacking in inspiration for much of the show. Adding to this were the innumerable passages of people through an access door with loudly squeaking hinges, and an insufficient number of seats in the room, which were then supplemented by bar staff while the performers were trying to be heard.

Admittedly, North and Co. may have had to accept a lower standard of venue than they would have preferred. But such a small performance space should never present such gross distractions for paying patrons.

Such circumstances are hardly conducive to ‘showcasing’ comedic talent, in terms of the output and receptivity on both sides of the microphone. So I feel that I only saw a measure of what the four participating comics can do in better surroundings, though they all tried their hardest.

Martin Mor (Blocked, Ireland) attempted some hackneyed send-ups of Australian mores, but he made up for this with his genial irreverence and some delightfully lurid observations.

Christian Elderfield (Suited and Rooted, U.K.) melded

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bemusement and slick cynicism with some solid material, but he had a much better run later the same evening in Comedy Striptease.

Donal Vaughan (Ireland) managed a fine rapport with the crowd, with a self-deprecation and a linguistic and physical playfulness that was simultaneously ridiculous and defiant.

But the real sad clown of the evening was Mary Bourke (I Can Make You Irish), whose clever skewerings and wry knowingness couldn’t clear the mirthful fog left over from Vaughan, though they well deserved to.

Nobody ever accused comedy of Fair Trading. But if you want to redress the balance at all, catch any or all of this quartet in their own shows, where they’ll have a clearer conception of the terrain and be better able to control the outcome of their efforts.

After all, even smart-alecks with dirty minds need a supportive environment. Perhaps they need it more than anyone else. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

Comedy Superstars Glennys Marsdon

just a male domain. Callaghan delighted us with the ‘hotness’ exchange rate between French and Australian men. Meanwhile Conway was on a roll having just finished her show Walk Of Shame. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Conway for moving my online stalking to a higher level.

Rounding out the night was Brett Blake. Festooned in his quintessentially Australian mullet, he proved to be both a bogan and a genius, which is handy given it’s the name of his show.

While I’d love to catch all their shows my time is limited, as I’m already booked for ten more events.

So, if I had to really narrow it down I’d say Simon Taylor and Brett Blake. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

Comedy Striptease Glen Hunting

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omedy and nudity are natural companions, and have been, I suspect, ever since early humans began wearing clothes (and then shedding them at inappropriate moments).

But when I was sent to view and review Comedy Striptease, appearing at the Universal Bar as part of Fringe World 2019, I wondered if the connection wasn’t being stretched beyond the bounds of credibility, or even comedic potential.

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eld at Rosie O’Grady’s Comedy Hub, I must start by saying a huge thank you to the staff who helped secure my transport and escorted me through the back way into the lounge. Inside, the room was the perfect intimate size for stand-up and the coloured lights helped cement the party mood.

It’s always a good idea to attend a “Best Of” show at the beginning of a festival. The evening provides a snippet of what’s to come, which helps you decide where to invest your money.

O’Grady’s will be running a series of these nights with the acts changing each week. You could just go to each of these shows and not bother with the full shows. However, from what I saw last night several of the acts will be seeing my face again in their audience.

Simon Taylor launched on stage as MC and instantly set about expertly working the enthusiastic audience, whilst providing insights into his own musings about Australian life. He set the perfect tone for the evening.

Sam Kissajukian continued the exploration of Australian culture, from Fremantle hipsters to black market gold stars and sleeping positions.

The two female comedians Rose Callaghan and Sarah, or is it Eleanor Conway, showed that stand-up comedy is not

I needn’t have worried. The upstairs room at the Universal is an intimate, friendly space, which is a little unseemly for dubiously intimate undertakings like disrobing suggestively in front of rowdy strangers.

But the frisson of the show is the ongoing promise of at least a goodly portion of usually-hidden flesh being uncovered.

Kitting-off is celebrated in gags throughout the routines, and then undertaken with mischievous abandon at the end.

Kyle Legacy is one of the lynchpins of comedy outfit Laugh Mob, who are responsible for Comedy Striptease and a suite of other acts, and who are proudly proclaiming five years of sellout shows at Perth Fringe.

By the time Legacy (a very funny man in his own right) takes to the stage to kick off proceedings at 10:30 pm, the audience energy has built into a late-night, lubed-up frenzy, and both host 34

and participants soak it up and spit it back out with relish.

Four comedians (presumably different ones each night) then get ten minutes each to wow the crowd enough for them to keep their clothes on come curtain-call—the least two funny mikejockeys (as voted by audience applause) thereby receiving the dubious honour of performing the cabaret-style striptease.

It hardly matters that full-frontal was a no-no and that I was only told this part-way through the show. The real meat is the four-way comedy showcase, slowly building to the concluding titular raunchiness. Christian Elderfield (Suited and Rooted) sparkled with his smooth sass and sarcasm, expertly playing up the incongruities of his looks, his profession, and peoples’ expectations of both.

Dion Arnold (My Grandmother’s M.A.I.D.), a great, gangly Bruce Spence lookalike (sorry if you’re too young to Penny Shaw and Fiona Cooper Smyth - Divalicious remember!) was astonishingly witty, to getting older and becoming ‘midults’. They take everything engaging, and physically inventive. from modern Broadway classics to operatic favourites and pop

Sian Choyce delighted with her experiences of hits and blend in their unique style of comedy to create smile eavesdropping and drawing parallels between housework and inducing parodies. “getting your groove on.”

The performance under the De Parel Spiegeltent in the

Perhaps the only slight ‘dip’ was Colin Hemsworth, whose Woodside Pleasure Gardens was a fun choice of location for the high energy couldn’t quite distract from a too-rehearsed performance, although the capacity crowd did get rather cosy. delivery style and less outright comedic cleverness than the That was exactly what the Divas wanted as they rolled into

others. their performance, climbing into a double bed, sporting animal

For me, the two comics who ended up baring their not-quite onesies and soon opening with Wicked’s Defying Gravity, which, all were not the least funny. Exuberance and (yes) physique thanks to some clever lyric changes, took on a whole new meaning probably won (or lost) the night, slyly aided and abetted by MC from the perspective of the ‘midult’ woman. It was clear from Legacy. the outset that vocal quality would not be compromised by the

But one of the pair may have guessed at his fate comedy as the harmonies and power of both voices was stunning. beforehand; his slowly-revealed, personalised, under-shorts

As the show continued, the audience was delighted by ‘covering’ sent the crowd (and the man himself) into an uproar of light hearted renditions of everything from When I Grow Old (an naughty hilarity. ageing spin on When I Grow Up from Matilda) to the hilarious

With the promise of the evening finally fulfilled, we were Idle Face, a botox inspired ballad which was a send up of The all sent on our way, thoroughly enervated and titillated. And Sound of Music’s Eidelweiss. nobody broke any licencing or decency laws.

There were some moments of grandeur as well with the ~oOo~ Divas taking on the iconic Pearl Fisher’s Duet from Bizet’s Les Pecheurs De Perles opera as they reached a conversation of the Title: Divalicious - Defying Gravity challenging nature of relationships.

Reviewer: Chris McRae

There were also some humorous moments of audience participation with one unsuspecting man being brought up onto art comedy, part musical theatre and all the bed and cheekily serenaded, complete with a peck on the attitude, this two woman showstopper was cheek after admitting to never needing viagra. a highly entertaining and relatable hour of

This being said, the show also included some racy moments cabaret fun. including Shaw’s serenade to ‘making love on your own’ (much

Trained classical and opera singers Penny to the embarrassment of her son who was playing guitar for the Shaw and Fiona Cooper Smyth (collectively show) and Lloyd Webber’s Don’t Cry For Me Argentina taking on known as Divalicious) are well known on the Australian music a whole new meaning as Cooper Smyth cried for her ‘dry vagina’ and Cabaret circuit, having appeared as finalists on Australia’s instead.

Got Talent in 2012 as well as performing at prestigious events

All in all, the comedy was amusing and the songs were such as the Ashes, the 2016 Premier’s Olympian Dinner and spectacular. Divalicious possessed an infectious energy and appearing on Channel 7’s The Morning Show. the musical trio of piano, guitar and drums, despite a few tempo

With such pedigree to their name, they now bring their and rhythmic slips, were tight. It was impossible to leave without Broadway and Opera inspired Cabaret show Defying Gravity to a smile on your face (not due to botox injections) as the Divas Fringe World 2019, after being nominated for Best Cabaret Act at entertained young (and I was one of the youngest there), old and the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Fringe World Festival. the ‘midults’ in-between.

Described by the festival as ‘the comic cougars of ~oOo~ coloratura’, the divas tackle everything and anything related

P

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Title:

Reviewer:

Raymond Mearns - Confessions of a Control Freak Sharron Attwood

to enquire about their relationship status, jobs and even kids. All the while having a laugh at their expense but in such a way I’m sure they enjoyed it.

You could soon tell this was his style. Working his way around the room interacting with the audience and sharing his own experiences as they seemingly just came to mind.

I also realised Raymond is a very smart guy.

He seemed chuffed to prove this as he shared his insights on nuclear power, the economy and recycling. I’m a fan of clever comedy.

Interacting with your audience for laughs can go so very wrong, but I got the feeling many in this audience were eagerly awaiting their turn. Not my guest however, who having heard his comments to a fellow accountant worried he may have used up his best material.

I am sure he would have had something left for her – though he never did ask me what I did or what brought me there.

I considered confessing to being a reviewer– wonder what he would have made of that? ~oOo~

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eading off to see a Scottish stand up comedian on a Monday night – I had my reservations. I had pictured him having a mic in one hand and beer in the other. I was half right.

Previous reviews had been quite generous in their praise of Raymond Mearns –‘An Improvisational Genius’ according to Frankie Boyle and he even quotes Billy Connolly as saying he is a ‘Man who knows how to swear properly’. Quotes from his ex wife however, are not so generous, though not disputed.

Having never been to the venue before I was excited to check it out. As we headed up stairs – well up the wrong stairs to start with, then back down stairs to find the right stairs – we were greeted with a lovely roof top bar area right outside the Red Room venue. I highly recommend a drink there first, to enjoy the ambience – then grabbing one to take in because it feels appropriate for stand up.

We started of in true Fringe Festival style with Raymond doing his own introduction off stage – then walking on stage to thank himself for the intro. It really set the tone for a solid one man show.

Starting off with a bit about the weather – drawing the obvious comparisons to Scottish weather as we had just experienced near heat wave conditions – he got laughs right off the bat, and not just from his fellow countrymen and women.

The audience was a blend of punters around his ilk and of a similar European heritage – ready for this brand of hometown humour. They weren’t disappointed – and neither were the others in the room, including one particular young, loved up couple who just didn’t see it coming ...

“Aw you to look in love” Raymond asked them. He went on

Title: Reviewer:

Phoebe’s Fond Farewells James Forte

Funerals as Cabaret he subtitle for this entertainment is: “Everything you wanted to know about funeral songs but were afraid to ask!”

One tends to think of funerals and cabarets as being in non-overlapping domains. Audiences will be going along with some rather uncertain expectations. What they will get is forty minutes of familiar music sung by a classically trained professional. This is Fringe. Expect the unexpected.

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Phoebe Deklerk

Melbourne’s Phoebe Deklerk spends her time singing at funerals and lamenting that her kind of work does not get the status or fame of wedding singers. She is doing a fine job to rectify that. Helped by an inspiring accompanist on keyboards in

Raymond Mearns 36

Johannes with support at the soundboard from Joel.

The unexpected came at the end of the first song when Phoebe started removing her formal suit. Not that I am complaining. Phoebe is very watchable with any amount of clothing. It is just that one doesn’t expect that when hearing funeral songs. This is cabaret.

Opening night nerves may have affected the first items (Stairway to Heaven and Somewhere over the Rainbow) but the audience was on her side. She does not have a strong voice for belting out showstoppers but it is great for Ave Maria or a Victor Herbert operetta (The Prima Donna Song from The Enchantress).

Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera and Ringo Starr’s’ Octopus’s Garden were nicely contrasting pieces.

However I feel she excelled in her choice of foreign language songs. From Studio Ghibli we had the song of Princess Mononoke, sung in Japanese. Then my personal favourite, La Mer by Charles Trenet, sung in French. The closing item was Time to say Goodbye – made famous by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman – sung in Italian.

Phoebe’s Fond Farewells is at the Cheeky Sparrow – in Wolf Lane off Murray Street - until the 9th February.

Recommended. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

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MissCast Glen Hunting

very performer recognises that physicality is crucial, and unavoidably (even unfairly) specific in regards to certain dramatic or musical roles. For instance, you might have all the passion and talent in the world, but you’ll never get a job playing Falstaff if you’re twenty-two years old and weigh fifty kilograms.

Zealous Productions’ MissCast, offered as part of Fringe World 2019, is about the restrictions and assumptions placed upon performers who look or sound certain way when what’s wanted is something quite different.

But both the title and the program blurb, while accurate, tend to mislead a little (or perhaps tantalise) by omission.

The show is an upbeat romp which attempts to buck gender stereotypes in musical theatre and beyond, all to a soundtrack of recognisable and eminently sing-able show tunes.

The narrative (such as it is) involves two performers (Vincent Hooper and Dixie Johnstone) remembering their childhood selves and their burgeoning delight in musical film and theatre. But Vincent wants to be Mary Poppins and Fanny Brice, while Dixie prefers Danny Zuko.

These problematic enthusiasms are portrayed and dissected via swift costume changes, classy singing and dancing, and the liberal use of hand puppets (“Mini-Vinnie” and “Little Dix”) to stand in for the children they once were. The audience is propelled through musical standards from Grease, Funny Girl, Beaches, and Avenue Q, the latter of which provides the stylistic blueprint for both the puppets themselves and their hilarious Dirty Dancing segment, with the two cloth cuties entwined and sailing on air without legs or feet.

Johnstone, Hooper, and director Nicole Stinton have made excellent use of a very small stage, a third of which is taken up by a drum kit, a keyboard, and a virtuoso called Mason who acquits himself with aplomb throughout.

There are witty multimedia interventions satirising global calamities and the near-extinct teenage girl magazine culture, as well cameos from former prime ministers Gillard and Abbott (complete with budgie smugglers and Aussie-flag bikini), and a cluelessly saucy fit-all housewife called Multiple Task Barbie, Who Can Cook Too (except she can’t).

This last character performs the Bernstein tune from On the Town while flirting with a member of the crowd and slopping him with the dubious contents of her mixing bowl.

Johnstone and Hooper convey more than enough enthusiasm to captivate an audience, and their individual skills and collective verve are readily accessible.

Hooper does reveal an occasional tendency to shout when he should be singing, and a couple of the more serious musical numbers threaten to subdue the mood too much. But by the finale the audience was clapping along with unfettered appreciation, high on the splendour and inanity of butch-andcamp performative tropes. Shows of this kind rely on snappily rendered song-and-dance, coupled with easy laughs and a healthy dollop of the unexpected.

For the most part, these two troupers fit the bill splendidly. ~oOo~ Title: Fuego Carnal Reviewer: Sharron Attwood

I

was excited to see Fuego Carnal – the posters promised glitz, glam, flames and stunts to make my hair stand on end.

But then it was the middle of the week. I was cold and it was raining. It was a stark contrast to the weekend highs in the mid 40’s.

But the show must go on – and so must I. Amusingly a wrong turn on the way saw me come face to face with an electronic billboard storeys high advertising Fuego Carnal – and I was excited once again!

Having played to sell out audiences at the Adelaide Fringe Festival for the past three years, this multi award winning show – a spectacle of risk, humour and passion – provided a real punch in the Perth Fringe line up.

As promised…. “Fuego Carnal is performed by an eclectic mix of globally renowned artists and is presented by husband and wife team Dream State Entertainment. The

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This combined with the earlier start meant the audience was less primed and the comedians had to work harder. None the less they did a great job, especially with a tricky sound issue for those seated up the back. No doubt these issues will have already been ironed out.

The line-up featured Englishman Christian Elderfield who has devised an intriguing way of tricking his computer into thinking it’s still back home, thereby allowing him to watch BBC programs.

Elderfield was followed by true blue middle-aged Aussie Mick, who had an entirely different take on ball tampering and motivational speaking.

Last up Terry North who introduced us to hipster rats and outdoor toilets. Incidentally North was also running the comedy venue, a busy man indeed. ~oOo~ Title: Reviewer:

The Booklovers Comedy is straightforward; it’s comedy for all those in love with books. The stage is set by George Dimarelos, the MC and creator of the evening, who reinforces his street credibility as a book nerd.

Dimarelos sets up a disjointed feel to the comedy show by jumping between his love of books and reading (including the judgement and shaming of the non-readers among us), to some audience participation, of the favourited books of that night’s audience.

Typical answers arose, The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy, Jayne Eyre, The Catcher in the Rye and On the Road were some of the beloved books of the audience – we were apparently a very literate bunch.

Dimarelos was setting up for the three hilarious female comedians to grace the stage, presenting a variety of different comedic styles that were guaranteed to have you caught in their thrall, even if you’ve only ever casually cracked open the spine of a book.

Comic number one, the ever-beautiful Louisa Fitzhardinge, who, within minutes, had the audience chanting in tandem with her, ‘We are Nerds! We are Nerds!’ to the backing of the Australian National Anthem, while singing ‘We are Grammarians’.

She followed the performance up, with an audience participation based, multilingual, choose-your-own-language rendition of the Stevie Wonder classic, What a Wonderful World.

In her allocated ten minutes, Fitzhardinge was delightful, charming and very funny.

Next in the line up was Gillian English, who took us through a romp of social commentary of Shakespeare and the ages of Disney princesses, and was both energetic and engaging with a healthy dose of comedic timing.

English asked for a little more audience participation and about which Shakespeare plays the audience liked, heavily judged some of the others (Romeo and Juliet, she’s looking at you!) and dug a little deeper into the perceived and actual ages of some (most) of the female characters, picking Juliet in her youthful thirteenth year, with her mother, Lady Capulet at the ripe old age of twenty-six, as a source of outrage.

This, of course, transcended into the shuddering ages of the Disney princesses, far more under the age of fifteen than should be comfortable – but delivered with such down to earth humour that the audience was in the palm of her hand.

Closing the show was persona, Pamela DeMenthe, played

W.A. farm boy and his fiery northern English partner teamed up at the beginning of this century. Nineteen huge years later, with over 4,000 performances in almost forty countries, their art has taken them to some of the biggest festivals on the planet including Glastonbury, Edinburgh and Toronto, gathering international awards and recognition as they go. “

The purpose built Empyrean – a tent like structure built for Fuego Carnal on the Ice Cream Factory site – saw the audience nicely under cover whilst the central performance area was open air – a great idea for the high flying stunts and fire – but it also made for an added element of danger on a rainy Wednesday night.

A humorous opening by their ‘Ring Mistress’ gave us an inkling of what was to come as she delivered their unique ‘housekeeping’ message complete with safety instructions – and a communal feeling of relief that we were in a tent should anything go wrong as she pointed out that every panel was an emergency exit!

The crew then lit chains on fire as she was swung around the Empyrean to the tunes of the resident DJ - also suspended above the stage.

Music featured heavily but the real surprise here was a kilt wearing bagpipe-playing gent who also managed to shoot flames into the air as ACDC belted out from the pipes. As a final hurrah – and to answer the age-old question regarding what one wears under a quilt – he was also hoisted into the air for a high wire lap of the venue. My guest and I had never craned our necks so far so fast – but alas the view from our seats left us none the wiser.

Knife throwing, sword swallowing, acrobats and contortionists – all had me on the edge of my seat, and just as I thought they’d provided us all with enough excitement – they lit something else on fire! ~oOo~ Title:

Reviewer:

The Booklovers Comedy James Sutherland-Bruce

Two Englishmen and an Aussie Glennys Marsdon

For my first Fringe event I started off at the Aberdeen Hotel. Thanks go out to the staff for looking after my transport.

With a similar sized audience to that of the show later in the evening, but in a larger venue, the feeling of intimacy was lost a little.

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The bill included four top flight comedians, all hailing from the UK as it turned out. Working through a handful of scenarios, they melded their thoughts to birth some delicious outcomes, based on shameless ideas that had been suggested by the audience.

In fact the show was better than a couple of the scripted comedy acts I’d seen.

While the audience was fairly small, it being a Thursday night, it made up for its size with ideas that tested the comedians, followed by waves of unbridled loud laughter at the result.

One of the best ways to sum up the night is to say that on the way out I took a flyer for each of the comedians’ individual shows on offer.

Of note was the talented Tom Skelton who has a number of shows in Fringe, including Tom Skelton’s MacBeth. Look out for that one.

In the meantime, get along to the Lazy Susan’s Comedy Den for an evening of unscripted, mind-expanding fun. ~oOo~ Title: The Western Swing Hour Reviewer: Chris McRae

Gillian English

by Jenny May Morgan. Pamela is a mundane 9-5 workhorse of a woman, given the chance via a redundancy payout – to peruse her career and interest in writing.

Writing erotic fiction that is. After some hilarious banter and exposition on her career to date, we were graced with a reading of her latest work, Sticky Digits.

While the content of the novel is not for youthful ears, she performs an excerpt from her novel, involving a Spanish Coles delivery man, salami and eggs and a delivery with perfect comedic timing and commitment to the parody.

Wonderful closer to the evening. ~oOo~ Title:

Reviewer:

Improv All Stars Up Late Night Glennys Marsdon

Improv nights can be tricky. Aside from being highly dependent on the talent on stage, it’s imperative that the audience arrives openminded and primed to laugh.

Thankfully both were in attendance on the night I went to see Improv All Stars Up Late.

The evening started well thanks to the bar staff at the Brisbane Hotel. Not only did they point me in the right direction to the Lazy Susan’s Comedy Den, they carried my drink up the steep stairs. Big shout out to them.

I must admit the prospect of spending a hot night crowded into a small dark room with fifty strangers was not ideal. But this was rectified by some air conditioning, frantic door waving (to let the cool air in) and highly entertaining comedy.

The intimate and atmospheric surrounds of Perth music scene favourite the Ellington Jazz Club traded late night jazz for a rollicking hoedown as the sounds of Grammy Award winning legend Lucky Oceans and soulful WA favourite Jessie Gordon hit the stage for the Western Swing Hour.

With Gordon on Vocals and Ukulele and Oceans on Vocals and Pedal Steel Guitar, the pair donned cowboy hats (and a pair of lucky boots…pun intended) and lined up alongside local musicians Karl Florisson (Bass), Jon Matthews (Guitar) and Mike Perkins (Drums) for an hour of songs which blended driving rhythms, the soul of swing jazz and the sunburnt heart of the wild west.

From the outset, the sound of the western swing fueled quintet transported the audience back to a saloon on the American frontier as Ocean’s trademark and highly impressive Pedal Steel Guitar playing providing a melodic painting of landscape and lifestyle.

Gordon’s soulful and powerful vocals were versatile to the point where she was able to transition from the smooth and cruisy Patsy Cline classic Crazy to the frenetic and scat-laden frivolity of a western swing jazz arrangements with ease.

The hour long show was a wonderful mix of slower, mood setting western classics such as I Fall to Pieces and toe tapping rollicking numbers such as Take Me Back to Tulsa. The musicianship of all performers was highly impressive with Jon Matthews travelling across his fretboard with style and even demonstrating some impressive yodeling abilities in a Jimmy Rogers inspired tune.

Karl Florisson and Mike Perkins provided a tight rhythm section and also had moments to shine with solo efforts which was great to see.

Lucky Oceans was his ever charismatic self and his flawless playing, cheeky grin and rapport with the enthusiastic capacity crowd was a delight to behold. He was matched

by Jessie Gordon’s effervescent personality and musicality.

The music, the atmosphere and the fun associated with the style of Western Swing made for one fun evening at the Western Swing Hour. A fantastic tribute to songs of yesteryear mixed with modern jazz and style.

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TV WITH CHRIS YOU - SEASON 1 Starring: Penn Badgley and Elizabeth Lail Network: Netflix

interesting. Joe becomes increasingly more dangerous as time goes on and events take a terrifying turn as Beck’s ex boyfriend, best friends and therapist become involved in the increasingly expanding web of lies and intrigue.

A fantastically crafted thriller which keeps you guessing and sets up an intriguing second season.

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he psychological thriller is a popular genre in TV at the moment and new Netflix series You takes the concept of obsession and blends it with romance and violence to create a unique thriller which is impossible to look away from.

The story follows young bookstore manager Joe (Badgley) who develops an obsession with Beck (Elizabeth Lail) after an encounter with her as a customer in the book store.

BLACK MIRROR: BANDERSNATCH Starring: Fionn Whitehead, Will Poulter and Alice Lowe Network: Netflix

Unlike anything you have seen before, the special feature length event from the minds behind Black Mirror entitled Bandersnatch is a revolutionary step forward for home entertainment viewing.

The story follows video game designer Stefan (Whitehead) who is working in 1984 on adapting the popular novel Bandersnatch into a video game.

Along the way he becomes obsessed with the world of the game, bent on designing the perfect gameplay experience, whatever the cost.

What makes Bandersnatch utterly unique is the fact that the film’s path is controlled by the viewer. All throughout the film, choices are displayed which allow the viewer to ‘choose their own adventure’.

Once a selection has been made, the film seamlessly continues down the path that has been selected.

As a result, Bandersnatch has approximately six separate endings and every one provides a Penn Badgley and Elizabeth Lail in You different outcome for Stefan and those around him. Some of the endings are uneventful and

Joe’s thought processes are soon revealed as Beck’s life others are shockingly surprising. Therefore, you may find consumes his every moment and the people she encounters yourself reversing through the film and selecting different come under threat. The question is soon asked, how far will Joe options in order to arrive at an alternate ending. go for love?

The first of its kind, Bandersnatch puts the viewer in control

The concept is not a new one but what makes You unique and it is a fantastically entertaining novelty. is the fact that obsession does turn into love and soon the lines

Whether this will become something which other films between obsession and attraction begin to blur. adopt remains to be seen but Bandersnatch is a fantastic story

When obsession then turns to Beck, things become really woven into a highly entertaining interactive concept.

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch - a new and innovative approach to storytelling in a visual medium from Netflix starring Fionn Whitehead and Alice Lowe 40

SICK NOTE - SEASON 1 and 2 Starring: Rupert Grint, Nick Frost and Pippa Bennett-Warner Network: Netflix

From Director Matt Lipney (Little Britain and Big School) and starring familar British film and TV favourites Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz) and Rupert Grint (Harry Potter and The ABC Murders) comes the charming, irreverent and often hilarious comedy ‘Sick Note’. Daniel Glass (Grint) lives a mundane life which is turned upside down when Dr Iain Glennis (Frost) diagnoses him with cancer.

His world changes and people treat him differently.

However, soon after, his diagnosis is reversed but Daniel, along with the help of Dr Glennis, maintains the act with hysterical results as a series of mishaps follow.

The comedy in Sick Note is very much of the black variety, finding its laughs in illness, death, injury and misadventure. As such, it may not be everyone’s cup of tea.

However it is distinctly British with moments of awkwardness and ‘face palm’ moments. Frost and Grint make a wonderful comedic team and there are plenty of laugh out loud moments as the two scramble to keep Daniel’s lack of illness a secret.

The supporting cast is also excellent with Don Johnson making a teriffic turn as Daniel’s loud and foul mouthed boss Kenny West with Lindsay Lohan making an appearance as his daughter Katerina. Pippa Bennett-Warner plays the increasingly unlikeable Becca, Daniel’s girlfriend and Daniel Rigby is hilariously dry as the clueless Officer Hayward, who attempts to unravel the whole mystery.

Sick Note will have you laughing and cringing and ultimately it is a great unknown series worth the watch.

ENTERTAINMENT CINEFESTOZ FILM FESTIVAL LUCY GIBSON

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inefestOZ film festival provides the ultimate integrated film culture experience by showcasing an exciting curation of new Australian films, paired with the region’s celebrated local produce, beverages and hospitality.

Australia's richest film prize of $100,000 is awarded for excellence in filmmaking to an Australian feature at the festival.

Celebratory Western Australian premiere screenings of films vying for the Film Prize, followed by In-Conversation events at exceptional South West locations, are festival highlights, with the winner announced at a gala evening on 31 August.

The short film program is an exciting opportunity for Australian filmmakers to showcase their short form productions and offer further diversity to the festival audience.

Short film categories are Australian Open and WA Filmmakers of the Future (open to those 18 – 25 years of age).

Indigenous filmmakers are encouraged to submit in all film categories.

Short films are screened at CinefestOZ as a part of its popular Side Bar program held in wineries, restaurants and bars throughout the South West.

In 2018, CinefestOZ presented more than 200 film and film related events making it a truly diverse and very Australian destination film festival.

Submissions in all categories are now open and close on Monday 3 June 2019.

Online submission forms and entry rules and regulations can be found at www.cinefestoz.com

Enquiries are welcomed for submissions of new film mediums, including augmented and virtual reality. Contact film@cinefestoz.com

41

SPORT AND LEISURE SO WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL? CHRIS MCRAE

household names and the Flying V made you stand up and cheer.

Come Primary School, I had a field hockey stick in hand and played in a premiership in early high school. Field hockey was fast, it was fun but there was a whole new discovery awaiting me as a young adult.

When I finished university, the Mighty Ducks happened to be on TV one night and the overwhelming urge to revisit my childhood hit me. I asked myself, could I put into action what had long been a dream. The next thing I knew, I rocked up to Perth Ice Arena with a bicycle helmet for the Learn to Play hockey sessions.

Continued on page 54 ...

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sport like Ice Hockey is traditionally associated with colder climates. This, the fastest sport in the world is not only Canada’s national game but highly popular in the United States as well as European countries such as Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and the Czech Republic.

The sport was born out of simple stick and ball games in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

When the sport landed on the shores of North America, it evolved with the winter climates into forms such as shinny and ice polo.

Montreal, Canada is credited with the first indoor Ice Hockey game in 1875 and the Stanley Cup (now the trophy of the National Hockey League) was first awarded to Canada’s amateur champion in 1893.

Since it’s humble origins in pond hockey and outdoor shinny, the game has evolved into a beloved and respected sport. However, it does not end at a simple sport. A culture has built around hockey which has spread far and wide to every corner of the globe.

Hockey is now played and loved in both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere’s and hockey leagues (including amateur, professional and the ever popular beer league) stretch as far as countries such as Kenya, Jamaica and Australia.

The latter is my home. So how does a slightly nerdy school teacher from the most isolated capital city in the world come to love the game of hockey.

My experience with hockey began at a young age with a film series known as the Mighty Ducks. Every nineties kid grew up knowing (and potentially attempting) the knuckle puck. The Bash Brothers were 42

SPORT AND LEISURE CAPS DOWN UNDER

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CHRIS MCRAE

hen it comes to American sports teams, the Washington Capitals lie close to the hearts of many Australians due to the fact that they drafted the first Australian to play in the National Hockey League, North America and Canada’s elite level professional ice hockey league.

Walker was lucky enough to reach the pinnacle with the Capitals last season, winning the Stanley Cup with the team in 2018. Walker is currently playing back with the Hershey Bears, the Capitals’ minor league affiliate team in the American Hockey League, remaining on the Capitals roster. The Australian connection to the Capitals remains as strong as ever.

Capitals fans stretch far and wide across the world and in the Southern Hemisphere, and fans from Australia are making some noise, establishing the first Australian-based Capitals fan group.

The group consists of members right across the country from Perth on the west coast to Melbourne, Sydney and the Gold Coast on the east and even the nation’s capital, Canberra. As time goes on and the group grows, watch parties, catch up’s and Aussie-themed Caps goings on will spring up.

Perth based members of the club met at Cockburn Ice Arena’s North American themed restaurant Cabin 401 Bar and Grill last month for a watch breakfast during which west

coast fans were able to share their passion for the sport and the Capitals from nearly 19,000km away.

A fan since 2006, Melbourne based club admin Toby Sutton said that following the NHL and the Capitals from Australia is a unique experience. With hockey season being during the peak of the Australian summer, “There’s no better feeling than wearing a Caps jersey when it’s stinking hot outside’ he said. The fact that games are usually played at night in the northern hemisphere means that games are broadcast through the NHL TV streaming network in the morning. “Games being on in the morning at a reasonable time is good” Sutton said.

The club is now exploring partnerships with US and DC based companies and has already linked up with the ‘Sports on the Hill Podcast’, dedicated to Washington DC based sports.

The ‘summer hockey’ aspect of Australian hockey fans has also drawn the attention of US company ‘Bench Clearers’, who produce hockey jersey designs in the shape of basketball singlets and are generously sponsoring the ever growing fan group.

To keep up with all the going’s on, join ‘Caps Down Under’ on Facebook or search for them @capsdownunder18 on Instagram. The club can be contacted at capsdownunder18@ gmail.com for any enquiries.

43

FINANCE NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION REHAB STEVE BLIZARD

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f you have already broken your New Year’s Resolutions, you’re probably in good company.

Given there are 365 days in a year, there are bound to be slip-ups. Unfortunately, slip-ups turn into abandoned commitments too easily.

Drastic overnight change is rare, whereas the true secret to a good resolution is a well-thought-out plan, in particular in setting a goal you can actually reach.

According to James Clear, author of the best-selling book Atomic Habits, habits are hard to quit because they fill a specific function in your life.

So, quitting isn’t so much about stopping something entirely as it is about replacing it with something new and better into which one can channel that energy.

“And with a lot of people, the implicit assumption behind the question is, 'How long do I need to work until it's easy'?

“But habits are not a finish line to be crossed. They're lifestyle to be lived."

IDENTITY-BASED HABITS

One of the central ideas in the book is the concept of building “identity-based habits”, which essentially recommends focusing on the type of person you wish to become rather than the outcome you wish to achieve.

One reader, Roland, used the idea to improve his eating habits.

“I stopped eating unhealthy food via identity change,” he wrote. “I tried many times in the past, but it became easy — natural — only after I had made the conscious decision that I want to be someone who eats healthy.

“Instead of aiming for I want to stop eating bad food, I tried changing the mindset to I am someone that eats healthy and lives a healthy life. It changes how you approach things.”

Another reader, Robert, employed this idea to help him quit smoking.

He wrote, “I recently stopped smoking and the difference between I don't smoke and I can't smoke is a powerful trainer of my brain.

“The positive message of I don't smoke is that I have not “given up” anything - I am not sacrificing a pleasure.

“I am investing in my future happiness and wellbeing.”

Like most strategies in the book, the concept of identitybased habits can be combined with other habit building tactics.

THINK SMALL

If you’re set on making big changes, first you have to think small. In his book, Clear zeroes in on the idea that small adjustments add up to larger changes over time. He’s likened it to what happens when you shift the nose of an airplane by just a few degrees.

You won't notice the shift on the runway but a plane leaving Los Angeles bound for New York will actually end up in Washington D.C. The same goes for habits.

"I like to say habits are the compound interest of selfimprovement," Clear writes.

ATOMIC HABITS

Clear chose to title his book, Atomic Habits, because of three similarities he sees between atoms and habits.

Firstly, atom means small; secondly, atoms are units within a larger system and thirdly, atomic can mean a source of immense power.

"One of the core philosophies of the book is we do not rise to the level of our goals, we fall to the level of our systems.

“So often we're ambitious and set these lofty goals for ourselves and wonder why it doesn't work out.

“It's because we don't have a system behind it.

“We don't have the habits behind the goal.”

Whatever you want to accomplish, Clear says, scale it down to the smallest unit you can, to something that can be accomplished in a few minutes.

Want to write a book? Start with one sentence.

Want to read thirty books per year? Start with one page.

How long it takes to lock a habit in isn't so easy.

"The honest answer to how long it takes to build a habit is forever because once you stop doing it, it's no longer a habit,” he says.

DOUBLE YOUR SAVINGS

One simple method of automatically increasing your savings is setting up a separate savings account at a different bank from your regular bank.

James Clear champions this strategy of adding “friction” to bad habits, so as to make them impractical, while automating good habits to make them stick.

He discusses the concept of the power of the environment and the importance of “choice architecture” in the past.

In other words, our environment often shapes our behaviour. He mentions Chris, who utilized both environment design and “habit stacking” to stop sleeping in.

He wrote, “I have a bad habit: Hitting snooze - so to eliminate it, I “made it hard” and put my phone in the bathroom.

“The phone then became a habit stack - then the first thing I do when I wake up is to turn off alarm, go to bathroom, brush teeth, etc.”

SALARY PACKAGING SUPER

Using the same concept, it is possible to boost your retirement savings.

By arranging with your employer (or your financial adviser) a pre-tax contribution from your pay each fortnight, in addition to your normal employer 9.5% super, your retirement savings will grow without even realising it.

At a recent review, one Roxburgh Securities client, who has always followed this savings technique, was surprised to discover that his fund was now valued at well over $500,000.

For more winning habit-building ideas, log onto www.jamesclear.com/ articles 44

BUSINESS - NETWORKING HEALTHY BOUNDRIES SHARRON ATTWOOD

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he phone pings at 6.30pm (or even 6.30am for that matter) across multiple social media platforms – blurring the line and you see a client query. Better to answer it now than let it between a friendly chat and a conversation that should have stay on your mind overnight right? been reserved for ‘work time’.

But then a full-scale conversation starts and they have built I am not against connecting with people outside your up the expectation that you are available outside of traditional blood relatives on social media – you just need to be aware hours. You also end up giving away too much value in a series of the implications. It can also be a wonderful opportunity to of messages better suited to a scheduled appointment. It’s a build your brand, strengthen your connection and share your challenge all business owners – and their teams – tackle. message.

A lack mentality tells us if we don’t interact now they will go You can certainly be connected and have boundaries elsewhere. Explains a lot about of my enthusiasm for Personal though – by making full use of the technology built in to the Branding – it makes you less generic. They will wait for you when platforms. they get the value of working with you. It also allows you to

Facebook allows you to place your ‘friends’ into lists. share your values – which will include the boundaries you set.

You can then choose who sees what you post or share. You can

We have become so accessible – it’s hard to switch off. We also select what you look at. There is also the ability to control are seeing a rise in events, lectures and retreats designed to who tags you in things. With a little bit of set up you will certainly help us digitally disconnect. It should be as simple as turning quiet the noise. the phone off – but its not is it? We see Ignoring requests to connect with the messages about how it affects our clients and colleagues is not a strategy. mental health and our relationships.

There are some industries where it’s not

We become less present for the appropriate – for safety as an example ones in the room. (still consider if lists may work) – or

I remember in the ‘olden days’ maybe you just don’t use the platform diverting my desk phone to the and feel you’d be ignoring them. If this is night switch when I left for the day. A genuinely the issue – let people know. delightful message letting callers know However, avoiding social media all we had closed for the day. together is not a long-term solution as

So they called back the next day – people strive to connect. I’ve worked often apologetic for calling after hours with clients who prefer LinkedIn to in the first place. There was no email Facebook for example. If that’s your Those were the days! to try either. We had a fax, but that was demographic – let people know where mostly just for orders, rates and jokes. the party is. If your ideal client is

I miss Friday arvo funnies streaming in on the fax machine. women aged 35 – 49 however – they are having a party of there Now we get this stuff every minute of the day it’s just not as funny. own on Facebook – so you better get over there!

So much more eye rolling and scrolling.

On asking, I have often discovered that clients or potential

Now we are also connected to our clients and colleagues customers don’t expect an immediate answer – they are just asking as they think to do it.

Maybe the problem is ours?

There is a lot to support the assertion that the market wants everything now – the quote, the product, the outcome – you!

You can certainly automate a lot of the fulfilment process, but the smaller the business, the smaller the gap between them and us.

I’m not offering the solution or even telling you what to do. It’s something we all need to think about though – and perhaps start as we intend to go on as my Dad would say.

The lines have never been more blurred – offline, online, client, colleague, friend and foe. Consider healthy ways to benefit from the connection as you put boundaries in place.

If you build some kind of wall – just make sure it has a door.

Courtesy of Brand Ettiquette

45

SWAN VALLEY AND REGIONAL NETWORK

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GET READY TO VOTE IN SWAN

ollowing the resignation of Councillor Peter Lyndon-James, an Extraordinary Election will be held on April 11 for one Councillor vacancy in the City of Swan Altone Ward.

“I put my hand up to run for local council with the intention to serve the local community, to be a voice for those who didn’t have one and to try and help anyone experiencing the red-tape and bureaucracy issues like I was,” Mr Lyndon-James said in a statement.

“It’s not until you are in that position that you can fully understand what it’s like.

“I fought for honesty, transparency and accountability.”

City of Swan CEO Mike Foley says the election is an opportunity for eligible residents and ratepayers to have their say by voting for their preferred candidate.

"By voting in your local government election, you are having a voice on who may best represent your community’s issues and interests.

"It is also important to check that you are enrolled to vote so you can ensure you can be part of this democratic process.”

Ratepayers and residents have until 5pm, February 20 to register their enrolments with the Western Australian Electoral Commission.

The Extraordinary Election will be conducted by post and administered by the WA Electoral Commissioner.

Eligible electors will automatically receive their ballot papers in the mail in March.

For more information, visit www.aec.gov.au/enrol

KATOS @3000 REOPENS

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eetbox, Grapeheart and Grime might sound like characters from a sci-fi production of Oliver!, but they’re just three of the amazing ice cream flavours created by the friendly mixologists at Kato's @3000.

Matt and Marlene Katich specialise in growing around fifteen varieties of seedless eating grapes, which they pick fresh off the vine and sell from their farm gate from January to the end of March.

But from September to March, the duo produces a changing array of original and experimental ice cream flavours made from local produce grown either by themselves or their neighbours.

The result: a range of delicious ice creams that will surprise and delight. And if beetroot with chocolate, grape with blueberry and yoghurt with grape and lime aren’t your thing, there’s always the Lamington, made with chocolate and coconut.

The farm shop also offers fresh melons in season, along with a selection of home-made fruit products to taste before you buy.

YOUR COMMUNITY

Meet Your Council – Swan Valley/ Gidgegannup Ward Get to know your Mayor and Monday, February 18 Councillors at the Baskerville Hall 6.30pm and Gidgegannup Hall this February. Baskerville Hall,

For further details on this event, please contact the Rural Place Team by telephone on 9207 8653 or email swan@swan.wa.gov.au

129 Memorial Avenue Monday, February 25 6.30pm Gidgegannup Hall, 2171 Old Toodyay Road

CoS1943

It’s a great opportunity to learn about what’s going on in your community and meet with your Mayor, local Councillors and City staff.

Light refreshments will be provided.

www.swan.wa.gov.au

46

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SWAN VALLEY AND REGIONAL NETWORK SWAN SETTLERS MARKET OPENS

wan Settlers Market is a new market and shopping concept in the Swan Valley, primarily with fresh produce and artisan stall holders.

The Market officially opened on Saturday 9th February, opening from 9am to 5pm and thereafter all weekends and all Public Holidays either Monday or Friday.

If you don’t know where Swan Settler Markets is in the Swan Valley, from the Great Northern Highway turn into Lennard Street over the railway line and on to number 124.

The building is nearly a hundred years old and is the historic Swan Settlers Co-operative dried fruit packing shed - built in 1923.

The new market will have stallholders offering art, coffee, bread and pastries, confectionary and cakes, crafts, fruit and vegetables, gourmet food, home and lifestyle, mead and wine, meat and seafood, pantry, pet food plus plants and flowers.

The specific stallholders are Red Gill Fish; Swan Valley Flower Farm; Miriams Kitchen Magic; Truffles

by Trish; Funnel Cakes; Southern Raw Pet Meats; Beekeepers Hoard; Persian Pantry; Swan Valley fresh; Anton’s Bratwurst; Genevive Copland; MR Connolo; Perth Bells; Emma’s Cup Cakes n More; Casella Kitchen; Satay WA; The Odd Bottle; Gryphon Smokehouse; The House of Honey; Koojedda Country; Gabriele; Craft by Chrissy; Monet Soap; Crepes; Avon Valley Nursery;

Kisama Creations; D’Ange Arts & Crafts; Settlers Wildflower Australia; Paul Dowe Gallery; Squishes & Squiggles; Mystique Glass Creations; The Copper Bowl; Frames of the Forest; Timbacraft; Dottie Ceramics; Munchin Macarons; Waxing Lyrical; Treetops Farm; The Country Fresh Butcher; Ladybird Vintage Inspirations; The Highland Gallery and more.

SWAN VALLEY SHOWCASE

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he City of Swan is seeking expressions of interest from Swan Valley Tourism operators to participate in its upcoming Showcase Swan Valley event which will take place in Singapore on 4th April 2019.

This exciting event will give Swan Valley tourism operators an opportunity to showcase product on an international stage, promoting the Swan Valley and its visitation and export prospects to a substantial emerging market.

An exclusive, invitation only dinner will be hosted by the City of Swan and will boast a guest list of media, travel buyers and distributors.

Swan Valley wines will be matched to Asian cuisine, while other products will be showcased as part of pre-dinner refreshments and product tastings throughout the evening.

Additional B2B promotional opportunities will be facilitated by the City of Swan for participating businesses during the visit.

A consumer campaign will run in conjunction with the showcase to maximise opportunities in order to generate visitation and drive traffic to www.swanvalley.com.au.

Swan Valley businesses who would like to be involved in this unique promotional event are encouraged to submit their expression of interest by completing the online form.

Participation in the Swan Valley Showcase is strictly limited to products and businesses produced and based in the Swan Valley, Western Australia.

Participating businesses attending the event must have their own public liability insurance cover.

Expressions of Interest will close 5pm on Wednesday 13 February 2019. Please note that due to project timelines, no late expressions of interest will be accepted.

For more information on the Showcase Swan Valley event or to submit your expression of interest, visit

www.swan.wa.gov.au/showcaseswanvalley.

47

COMMUNITY THE ALLANSON BUSHFIRE STEPHEN THE SHEEP

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et me tell you a great story. My name is Stephen and I am a sheep. In the photo below you can also see my brother, Pup the Dog, and we survived the Allanson Bushfires. So let me tell you a little story about the firefighters that saved both of us and our home.

On Sunday the 20th January out at Allanson. It was a scorching hot day, the temperature soared above 40 degrees.

But we knew something wasn’t right.

With our noses up in the air we could smell the smoke.

Our animal instincts kicked in, we were in danger and we started to be afraid. A bushfire had started.

Both Pup and I, we knew it was near. But then from the track in the bush, in the blink of an eye these two gigantic fire trucks turned up they pulled up near the house!

Out came seven firefighters! They smiled at us, then quick as they could, they got busy and rolled out big hoses. They knew they had a big job to do.

Both Pup and I were scared. We ran to the lady firefighter who greeted us with welcoming arms, with lots of love and care.

Everything was happening so fast that Pup and I didn’t have time to think. The smoke got thicker, it was getting hotter.

We followed the firefighters from South 32 - around the house we went . We watched as the firefighters used their big new red truck (TATRA) and sprayed water from their hoses all around the house.

Then we saw the fire. All of the trees lit up a bright red and orange and the heat radiated from the fire like nothing we have ever experienced before. It was approaching fast.

We were terrified and in a panicked state Pup and I moved away from the South 32 guys and the flames, but stayed close to the lady firefighter, me pressed against one of her legs and Pup on her other side. He is missing an eye and can’t see very well.

Then quite suddenly, we couldn’t see where we were going at all as the smoke came in so quickly. Day turned to night. Everything went black right in front of us. But our friend; she knew what to do! She knew the way back .She dropped to the ground and followed the firehose back .

Pup and I watched the sky turn red and a million shooting stars fell across our heads. But it was not shooting stars ... it was hot embers falling from the fire. I could feel them falling on my wool. Pup said he could smell lamb roast cooking ... but it wasn’t lamb roast, it was me and my wool!

Our lady firefighter friend grabbed her drink bottle and put water on me to save me from the embers reaching my skin and thank God for my wool .

Pup and I were so thirsty she even gave us a drink of water and put us next to the fire truck so she could help her friends.

The next minute our new friend grabbed the fire crew as she could hear the smoke alarms going off in the house right near the guys from South 32.

Pup and I watched with fear seeing our house starting to catch alight. With embers blowing everywhere, burning leaves had fallen on our roof and it was starting to ignite.

There were no ladders close by. We watched as the firefighters grabbed the truck ramps and used them as ladders to climb up.

The bloody peacocks had taken shelter on the roof flapping their feathers everywhere and getting in the way of the fire crew.

Pup and I watched the firefighters giving it all their strength, blood, sweat and tears to save our house and put the fire out. As each second passed the flames got hotter and the smoke got so thick it was getting harder to breath as the massive fire sucked the oxygen out of the air.

Pup and I noticed one of the fighters struggle to breathe.

Our lady firefighter friend picked her up and sat her down next to me, their captain grabbed the oxygen and a mask was placed on her face to help her breathe.

Next thing, another firefighter almost fell to his knees. The heat and smoke was so bad, we watched as their Captain called for everyone to get in the truck as the fire was near, up in the trees and moving all around us.

The lady firefighter, Captain and crew helped lift their other members into the truck. Pup and I lined up too, but there was no room.

Our lady firefighter friend looked us in the eyes and put us to the side of the fire truck on the green grass where we would be as safe as possible from the flames and smoke they protected us using fire truck. She told us to stay and she would be back.

Everything got so loud but we could see her looking at us from inside the truck. We were safe and so were they, and as soon as she could when the big red glow died down and the deafening noises stopped she got out of the truck and checked on us.

48

COMMUNITY lot of new friends and guess what? Pup and I are new members for the Collie Bush Fire Brigade!

Now, please, from reading my story there is one thing we can all do from this close call is to give back to the firefighters and their crew.

Now it’s our time to act - let’s stand together and help our firefighter friends out. Together we can spread the word about being bush fire ready.

Prepare, act and how to survive.

Let’s do this for them as they would save us in the blink of an eye.

All our love, Stephen the Sheep (Pup helped) xxxxxx Reprinted from their Facebook page by permission of the Collie Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service

More water and cuddles. She told us ‘everything was going to be ok now, more help is on its way.’

Pup and I watched as she was struggling to breathe and wasn’t moving as fast - she was losing energy, we knew she needed to leave this time, she needed some help.

Pup and I gave her cuddles and watched her telling her captain and crew that she wanted to take us with her, but we were safe now. She had gotten us the through the danger and we had survived.

More fire trucks and firefighters came to look after me and Pup and they started mopping up. What a mess the fire had made around our house.

One last time our lady firefighter friend bent down looked at both Pup and I said ‘everything going to be alright now’ one more cuddle and a few tears in all our eyes she told us she would be back soon. Both Pup and I kissed her goodbye and as her captain and crew drove out the gate she waved goodbye.

The captain took her back to the Allanson station as she and another crew member were suffering from smoke inhalation, but the wonderful people from St John’s Ambulance and a few firemen were there to help.

A quick trip to Collie Hospital to see Dr Lee for a check-up and they were fine.

And the first phone calls she made was to find out how Pup and I were doing. The Collie Ranger told her we were great. ~oOo~

POSTSCRIPT Captain Shane Hickson of the Collie Volunteer Fire and Rescue service reported that no life or dwellings were lost in the bushfire near Allanson, although a number of residents evacuated the area.

There were twenty-six appliances on site and a number of water-bombing helicopters to deal with the blaze. A number of firefighters had been affected by heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation.

Although no lives or property were lost this time, Australians must be vigilant at all times and be ready to assist the Fire Services at any time.

West Australians in rural and pastoral areas rely heavily on Bush Fire Brigades for protection against the threat and devastation of fire.

Over 19.500 bush fire service volunteers protect WA from bushfires through fire prevention and risk management, fire suppression and fire safety education.

These volunteers operate through 566 BFB’s, which are administered and trained by respective Local Governments.

BFB volunteer firefighters are trained to operate equipment, vehicles and appliances used in fire suppression operations.

Not all of the volunteer work involves active fire containment or rescue activities. DFES provides training for fire education programs that involve volunteers visiting schools, service groups, seniors’ homes and local businesses to promote safety messages.

There are many dimensions to being a BFB volunteer. DFES strongly supports the recruitment of both male and female volunteers representing a wide diversity of ages, cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

If you would like more information about becoming a Bush Fire Brigade Volunteer, please visit their website: www. dfes.wa.gov.au/aboutus.

I’ll never forget that day and the brave people we met and Pup and I are so very grateful to the people who made sure we were safe.

Two days after our fire adventure both Pup and I got the biggest surprise. Our lady firefighter friend came out to see us and we greeted her this time with cuddles and kisses as we are now all best friends.

A special thanks to everyone involved, there are a lot of amazing people out there we made a 49

PHOTOGRAPHS: REVERIE PHOTOGRAPHY

KREIGER

GINGER NINJAS

RULE!

With the hot weather, we’re well into the kitten season, so SAFE has lots of adorable kittens that are ready and waiting to be adopted.

SAFE kittens are all cared for in loving home-based foster care while waiting to be adopted - being nurtured, getting cuddles, playing, exploring and generally getting up to mischief!

These gorgeous Ginger Ninjas are from SAFE Metro who are offering a special at the moment - of two kittens for the price of one! Double the love!

#AdoptLove

Krieger is outgoing, snuggly and gentle with the children he’s met. Sweet Tim Minchin would love a quiet home.

Mischievious Mieczyslaw loves cuddles, human company and being with other animals. Beau is laid back, likes pats and enjoys having a kitty friend.

If gingers aren’t your flavour, SAFE Avon Valley has incoming - lots of different colours, tiny ones, older ones, super snugglers, very cheeky, extra playful and a couple of fraidy ones who’d be lovely company in a calm home.

SAFE adoption fees include the first vaccination, microchip and a voucher for desexing to be redeemed when they’re old enough.

Are you ready for some kitten fun and cuddles in your life? Contact SAFE Metro on 0475 346 545 to adopt love.

SAFE Inc. is Western Australia’s largest volunteer-based animal rescue organisation using the foster care model. Founded in 2003, we currently have 12 branches state-wide and have successfully rehomed more than 23,000 homeless animals. More than 80% of money donated goes directly to animal care. We are aligned with a wide network of Australia’s most respected welfare organisations and are the Western Australian arm of Animal Welfare League Australia (AWLA). SAFE Inc is also the 2018 national winner in the category Outstanding Rescue Group in the Jetpets Companion Animal Rescue Awards.

FOSTER CARE keeps animals out of cages and is the key difference between SAFE and other organisations that utilise shelters. Fostering ensures animals are socialised with other pets and children (where appropriate) and greatly improves an animal’s chance of adoption. To become a foster carer, the first step is to contact either our SAFE Avon Valley branch on 0409 000 259 or our Perth-based branch, SAFE Metro on 0475 346 545 or 0448 893 033.

VOLUNTEER: https://safe.org.au/volunteer/

DONATE: https://safe.org.au/donate 50

ADOPT: https://safe.org.au/find-a-pet/

COMMUNITY he Compassionate Friends of Western Australia Tregardless strives to support families who have lost a child, of that child’s age throughout WA.

We are a non-profit, non-government funded charity that provide peer call support, group meetings, a drop in centre, sending out quarterly newsletters, Anniversary Cards, we hold Walk of remembrance and a candlelight service (non-religious) at Christmas.

We are run by volunteers and bereaved parents that are further along in their grief and wish to help others who have suffered this tragedy.

Although everybody’s grief is different it helps to talk to someone who has actually had this tragedy happen to them.

They WON”T say “I know how you feel” as no one can, but they will say “I don’t know exactly what you are feeling but this is how I felt when my child died”.

WALK OF REMEMBRANCE HELD IN MARCH EACH YEAR Events like these above give the bereaved some hope of a life after the death of their child. They connect with others that have been through the same tragic experience.

In doing so its helps them to feel that they are not alone in their grief, that there is a worldwide connection to other suffering the same.

DONATIONS Donations allow us to purchase stamps so we can send our booklets and other information to the newly bereaved, community groups, doctors surgeries and hospital throughout Western Australia.

They help us cover advertising cost in newspapers throughout Western Australia, pay for our office and utilities allowing us to have Peer Support Workers come in and contact to bereaved that wish to have contact.

The Compassionate Friends of WA Inc. receives no Government funding in any way.

We raise funds by holding events, charity drives and donation from our members and outside bodies.

Although this is fantastic, we still struggle with the cost of keeping our doors open so any suggestion on fundraising or donations are gratefully accepted.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED We are always looking for volunteers to help man Sausage Sizzles, Charity Shopping Centre Drives and other events along with peer support volunteers (bereaved parents) for telephone support and group meeting facilitation.

54 Simpson Street, Ardross 6107 6257

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Concluded from page 8 ...

“This is one of the only accounts of recovery in reef shark populations around the world that we know of, which might act as a working timeframe for other marine protected areas that have been previously exploited by fishing.”

Dr Meekan said the findings on recovery time would also assist in the development and management of marine protected areas and shark sanctuaries throughout the world.

Director of biodiversity conservation at Paul G. Allen Philanthropies James Deutsch said this first glimpse of FinPrint data was exactly what they had hoped for in supporting the research effort.

“Paul Allen applies technology and data to drive better decision making in ocean conservation,” Mr Deutsch said.

The paper entitled; Evidence For Rapid Recovery Of Shark Populations Within A Coral Reef Marine Protected Area has been published in the journal Biological Conservation and may be read on line at www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ S0006320717311771

Concluded from page 44 ...

That was in 2012. Since then, I have played in seven summer league seasons, (including five championships), four winter league seasons, have volunteered as a media and radio announcer for four seasons with the Perth Thunder, had articles published for Hockey Writers, NHL 365, the Australian Ice Hockey League, Ice Hockey Australia, Hockey Clan and Capitals Outsider and coordinated the Perth charity Hockeython in 2018 and 2019.

This is in addition to a growing jersey and memorabilia collection from local leagues, NHL, AHL and AIHL along with running the social media for the Perth Summer League. Nearly seven years and a lot of hockey!

So what is it about the game and culture that makes it so special. For me, watching and following hockey in North America and Australia is unlike any other sport. The sense of community, belonging and camaraderie is second to none.

From beers in the carpark in Beer League to seeing NHL superstars such as Alex Ovechkin or Jonathan Toews giving up their time to bring a smile to the faces of sick kids. The hockey community is one which shares memories, moments and thrills, both on or off the ice. The players, fans, media personnel and all others involved in the game are connected by that special feeling associated with the game of hockey.

This now stretches far beyond the ponds in Canada or the great barns of North America. It has people playing and talking passionately about their teams in a country on the other side of the world, one which is usually associated with Footy and Meat Pies. Hockey is endeared and it has a special place for me as a player, fan and media enthusiast.

My involvement in hockey is constantly growing and getting more exciting every day. There will come a day where I can no longer play the game but my passion for it will not go away. I will continue to watch, cheer, coach and do what I can to continue to keep hockey alive down under!

Concluded from page 16 ...

As a professional aviator, Coleman would often be criticized by the press for her opportunistic nature and the flamboyant style she brought to her exhibition flying.

However, she also quickly gained a reputation as a skilled and daring pilot who would stop at nothing to complete a difficult stunt. In 1923 she broke a leg and three ribs when her plane stalled and crashed.

In 1926 she purchased a replacement plane for the one she’d lost and her mechanic and publicity agent, William D. Wills, flew the Curtiss JN-4 to Florida, the location of the next air show.

The plane had mechanical problems during the journey and was in desperate need of an overhaul, but Wills and Coleman unwisely and against the advice of family and firends took it up on April 30th, 1926.

On take-off, Wills was flying the plane with Coleman in the other seat. She had not put on her seat belt because she was planning a parachute jump for the next day and wanted to look over the cockpit sill to examine the terrain.

About ten minutes into the flight the plane went into a dive and then a spin. Coleman was thrown from the plane at 2,000 ft (600 metres) and died instantly when she hit the ground.

Wills was unable to regain control of the plane and it plummeted to the ground. Wills died upon impact. Coleman was thirty-four years old.

Coleman would not live long enough to establish a school for young black aviators but her pioneering achievements served as an inspiration for a generation of African-American men and women.

Concluded from page 12 ....

This is set to be a very exciting time for both the community and all lovers of vintage culture.

The Pinup Society Magazine is set to be a fantastic platform for vintage fashion, beauty and more to be showcased from right here on our doorstep.

There will be opportunities to be featured in the magazine in the form of pictorials, editorials, artwork and more. The creative team behind Pinup Society Magazine can be contacted at pinupsocietymagazine@ mail.com or the below links can be accessed for information about involvement and/or details regarding future issues.

More information regarding the Perth Pinup Community can be found at: facebook.com/ theperthpinupcommunity.

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