Time to Par-tay

I'm officially on summer break after turning in my last assignment today. So time to party- though hopefully not like this. My celebration will probably involve a good dinner and a film, or if I get really motivated, perhaps a club with live music. And if this afternoon is any indication, I'll be spending my more of my free time reading books like this or this one. And, or course, continuing to explore Melbourne. Hooray for summer! (which is actually winter here...)

What I'm Learning in Library School

I don't usually share what I'm doing in library school beyond just complaining about the workload, or telling people what courses I'm taking and how long it is before the quarter ends, but I thought I'd post something about my "Information in Social Context" course because it's full of really cool, thought-provoking topics. We've been discussing intellectual property issues such as copyright, liability, intellectual freedom and censorship, as well as ethics, privacy, and scholarly communication. Whew! One of my classmates posted this hilarious take on copyright basics using Disney clips. And not only is it funny, its informative and accurate.

I just finished writing a paper on the Lawrence Lessig's The Future of Ideas: The Fate of the Commons in a Connected World. I had to read it for a book report assignment in this same course, but am really glad- it was a thought-provoking book about increasing control of the Internet and how this affects its original development as an open resource. Lessig argues that strict control creates a loss of creativity and innovation, therefore negatively impacting its quality and the ultimately hurting the public good. I recommend it, especially if you're interested in intellectual property issues in the digital world, or just learning about some ways the Internet is controlled that the average person may not be aware of. For more information on the author or other books he's written, you can check out his website. If you'd like to read my paper on the topic, email me at bookey13@juno.com.

Cataract Gorge

Walk through Launceston

Tasmania, pt.3

Top of Children's Fountain

Dome View
Children's Fountain Autumn Dahlias

Fountain Swan

Japanese Snow Monkeys

Getting Checked Out

Huge Ferns
Entrance to Park

Mark and I did a walk around Launceston last Sunday morning after a fabulous breakfast (brekkie) of fresh fruit and muesli, toast, coffee, etc. at the Metz in downtown. The walk took us through City Park, where I was delighted to find Monkey Island, a large enclosure of Japanese snow monkeys. Mark had to tear me away from watching them. I can't tell you why exactly they were there, but we read that the park has a long history of having monkeys. We admired the children's fountain, and mix of beautiful fall foliage and bright flowers. We went to the Queen Victoria museum and art gallery at Inveresk and enjoyed some cool art exhibits, including 20th century Chinese prints, vivid art by Tim Burns, and a collection of John Glover's books (he was one of Australia's most well-known landscape painters and very well-read). They also had an interesting exhibit on Tasmanian Aboriginal shell necklaces- very striking and intricate.

We walked along the marina and decided to hike around the Cataract Gorge area. It was steep uphill at first but then went downhill- breathtakingly scenic and worth the sweat. We walked through the gorge and took a break at an outdoor cafe where a resident peacock was wandering around. This hike made me really love Launceston and Mark and I joked about moving there and becoming Tasmanians. It is such a beautiful place. We spent the rest of the afternoon soaking in the pools at the Aquarius Roman Baths, a group of therapeutic pools and saunas. What a great way to enjoy our last few hours in Tasmania. After an hour flight from Launceston on Sunday evening, we were back in Melbourne.

More Devil Photos

Visiting the Devils in Tasmania

Malaga and his warm handler
Petting Malaga

Close-up of Malaga

One of the highlights of Saturday in Tasmania was touring the Tasmanian Devil Conservation Facility at Cradle Mountain. It is a small center, open just a year now, with a space for educating the public about Tasmanian Devils and outdoor habitats where seven of them actually live. We learned it is an "insurance population", meaning that they want to preserve and hopefully increase the number of healthy animals in the area. Devils are in danger of extinction in Tasmania because of a facial tumor disease which has rapidly spread (by facial contact) and has reduced the population in half over the past ten years. They have a field monitoring program there, and basically offer talks and tours to support the care of the Devils and the conservation research they're doing.

As you can see, we got to pet a Tasmanian Devil named Malaga, a two year old male. It was an experience I never expected to have. He was held by the worker for quite some time to keep him calm before she brought him over to us. He liked the warmth of being indoors and up against her and stayed fairly still. He was very soft but we could only touch his back so he wouldn't freak out and bite. We had to keep our movements slow and our voices lowered. They have fairly poor eyesight, but a great sense of smell. Follow this link to see the other Devils living at the center. Parks and Wildlife offers good basic info about them here, including an audio clip of what they sound like. Or maybe you'd prefer the animated version.

Tasmania, pt.2

Path around Dove Lake

Dove Lake
Beginning, Dove Lake Hike

Cradle Mountain area

Having some brekkie
Our Tassie License Plate

We got off the Spirit in Devonport, Tasmania on Saturday morning after passing through customs and found the rental car office. Mark and I were a bit anxious about driving around an unfamiliar area on the opposite side of the road and steering from the right of the vehicle, but he'd gotten a chance to practice in Melbourne once so we hoped it would be okay (and it was- especially since I didn't drive). The Thrifty rep warned us the forecast called for rain, and when we told her we were headed to Cradle Mountain, she told me, "pull your beanie (hat) down a bit more" and "when the weather in Devonport is dreadful, it's shocking on Cradle Mountain". Everything sounds more serious with a British or Aussie accent....we decided to continue with our plans. We went into Devonport for brekkie and found an unusual spot decorated with old records and and album covers. (Sadly, a McDonalds was the first landmark we saw when entering the city). Then we drove South to Cradle Mountain, in Lake St Clair National Park which is a designated Wilderness World Heritage area, meaning it is protected due to its diversity of features. The drive was beautiful. Lots of open, green areas with cows, horses, and sheep grazing. There was little traffic because it was Saturday and still early.

We started the hike about 11 a.m. and it was cool but dry. We decided on the Dove Lake Circuit, a 1-2 hour hike around Dove Lake and were rewarded with beautiful views of Cradle Mountain spires surrounded by fog. It felt like we were in a scene from 'Lord of the Rings'. The landscape was interesting- rainforest with bush grasses, moss, ferns, and buttongrass, a cool bushy plant with bulbs sticking up off the ends. About halfway through the hike, it rained, but we had worn layers with raincoats and hats so although we were a little soaked by the end, it wasn't a big deal. We dried off in a little cabin and shared some trail mix and water. It had taken us an hour and a half to do the hike. After stopping by a local supermarket for some bread and cheese, we headed to Launceston, a two hour drive from the park, and the second largest city in Tasmania. We got there with 'no worries', checked into our hotel, and celebrated Mark's birthday with dinner at the Cock 'n' Bull, a British pub in downtown. Mark had fish and chips, and I had a lovely plate of bangers and mash. The bartender asked where my "accent came from", and seemed to know where Oregon was, which was nice. Although we saw one nightclub, we decided to head back to the room. Instead of dancing the night away, we did the next best thing- watched a tv show called RocKwiz, filmed in Melbourne, in which well-known musicians and members of the pub crowd team up to answer trivia questions about rock music. They have a rockin' house band that plays excerpts from songs and the contestants have to press a buzzer to answer...then we watched a weird, sweet little Swedish film, 'Music for One Apartment and Six Drummers' where a group of six friends go into each room of an elderly couple's apartment while they're out walking the dog and play music with ordinary household stuff they find. I recommend it. I never would have considered a book or electric mixer a musical instrument but this is proof.

Weekend in Tasmania- Pt.1

View from departing ship
Bunk, sweet Bunk

Getting ready to board the Spirit

Mark and I decided to go to Tasmania for the weekend to celebrate his birthday. We left on Friday evening, boarding the Spirit of Tasmania I about 7:00 p.m. We had a small private cabin with two bunks, a bathroom, and a porthole. The ship left port about 8:00 p.m. and we explored the different floors. We went outside onto a deck and were surrounded by blackness. You couldn't see any horizon line- it was surreal. The ship travels at 27 knots, and takes about 10 hours to reach Devonport, on the nothern border of Tasmania. (By plane, it is only an hour from Melbourne). We watched a very bad romantic comedy called Music and Lyrics with Drew Barrymore and Hugh Grant (like Drew, but hate Hugh). Like most less-than-average romantic comedies, it seemed okay at first, presenting an intriguing storyline, but got more ridiculous as it went along, until you think- okay, I did not want to see Hugh Grant writing bad music and kissing anyone, let alone singing a tune I will now have stuck in my head for the next 48 hours....anyway...after enjoying some cappuchino, seeing the movie, watching people who'd had too many beers trying to walk straight on a moving vessel at sea, and browsing the ship's gift shop, we called it a night, knowing that we'd land bright and early at 7:00 the next morning in Devonport, Tasmania. I felt a little sea-sick, but found that lying down on my back and closing my eyes helped. But I found it a bit hard to get to sleep in my little bunk, with the movement and the strange noises of the ship. I thought of all the different ways we could die (yep, most involve drowning at some point). Then I wondered whether I would do what the elderly couple in the Titanic movie did, and bravely, lovingly clutch Mark in his twin bunk while the violins wail above as we are quickly covered by water, sinking peacefully into the ocean...no....I'd probably panic- screaming and crying and shouting. Then I thought about all the military servicepeople, including my Grandpa Simmons, who had to be on one of these ships for lengthy periods of time and could not only drown but be blown up as well. Then I felt silly and fell asleep. Fortunately, by morning, we had arrived safely in Tasmania.