WARNING: This page is M-rated (Maximum naughtiness, Minimum sleaze)
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THIS GIRL'S NOT TO BE MESSED WITH. One of the Chinese-Australian performers at the Hamilton Multicultural Fiesta in 1997. All the Chinese women and girls wore very colourful costumes with lots of purple and yellow - and those nails! I'm sure the nails are only decorative and the young lady is a very nice person who is not preparing to attack someone! In any event some of the nails worn as a fashion statement are almost as long! |
THE LURE OF THE FORBIDDEN. I thought this was am amusing scene, snapped on the beach at Maroochydore, Queensland, during a 1990 visit to that state before I moved there permanently. I guess we all get attracted to investigate and find out what is so dangerous? Gophers? An old mine shaft? Or the site of buried treasure? I never did find out what was lurking those depths. |
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DYSLEXIC SIGNWRITER? Either the signwriter was dyslexic or was he trying to do one of those reverse signs you see on an ambulance? Must be hundreds of puzzled drivers arriving at this mysterious message. One can imagine them quickly working over the possibilities in their mind - 'slow or take . . . no...' Perhaps 'save our traffic police?' By the time they've worked out the real meaning it is probably too late to STOP! |
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GIRL IN CLOCHE HAT. Another beautiful antique French postcard, this one featuring a little girl wearing one of the popular cloche hats. The picture is on a greetings-type postcard carrying a message. (Some work with Photoshop could remove the writing but I thought it was interesting to leave it there.) The message is a birthday greeting. That fount of all knowledge in our era, the Web, tells me the cloche hats with their distinctive bell shape (cloche is French for bell) flourished from the early part of the 20th century and by the end of the Great War were a well established fashion style. The details changed a bit over the years, and by the 1920s the cloche hat was even closer fitting than it had been. Later the brims were reduced and by the 1930s the style was fading into obscurity. However, in recent years new versions of the cloche have been developed. Everything old is new again!! |
TRIBULATIONS OF AN ACTOR. Actors undergo many ordeals while playing parts in movies. The movie THE MISSING (2003) made great demands on the teenage girls who played the captives sold to Indians, as they were tightly bound and gagged for long periods. Evan Rachel Wood (left), who was 16, commented on her experiences while making the movie. Being tied was painful she said. 'Once you were tied up, it was such a pain to undo all the ties that basically you were there for the rest of the day unless it was lunch or you had to go to the bathroom.' She and other girls 'were just hanging out tied up,' she added, 'learning to talk with the gags in our mouth; it was all good. We really just made the best of it and ended up laughing at ourselves.' See further: THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF ACTORS IN BONDAGE SCENES |
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ONE OF MY YOUNG FRIENDS. Many moons ago my family had a shop in Sydney's eastern suburbs that sold all things of interest to young girls - stuff like pop star posters, stickers, and every latest craze that came along. And I had the pleasure of photographing many of the customers. An opportunist! Well, why not? The girls enjoyed being in front of a camera lens, their parents knew what they were doing, and there was definitely no hanky-panky (I am anticipating any evil thoughts you may have!). This is one of my amateur models, V--- who, as can clearly be seen has an Asian heritage - and a beautiful smile. I just love that jet black hair Asian females are blessed with. Yes, I know blondes are all the go with many men but - each to his own. All this happened about 25 years ago in the mid-1980s so I imagine V--- is, well, somewhat grown-up by now. I am sure she won't mind if she happens to come across this photo; she was a person with a friendly personality. |
A HOME-MADE MEMORIAL. I often find interesting graffiti on walls and fences and record the messages for posterity. Although I deplore the destruction of public and private property by graffiti 'artists' it is hard to pass up an opportunity for an interesting photo. I have no idea who Andrew was but he seems to have had a very short life. At least there was one person who cared. Photographed in Redfern, NSW in 1988. |
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LADY WITH A BIG LOAD OF TOYS. I have no idea what this lady was doing. I just spotted her during a festival in a park at Glebe NSW around the year 1988. Was she selling teddies and other soft toys (I see a panda there as well) or did she have a collecting mania? Or maybe she had a lot of children! |
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SECRET TAX DEPARTMENT* TORTURE CHAMBER? An old steel engraving from a 19th century book depicting a torture chamber, said to be run by the notorious Holy Inquisition (love that adjective!). But it might have been such as was operated by some monstrous ruler. Extracting taxes? Well, history records many instances of rulers extracting huge and unjust taxes from the pockets of their subjects. The famous ride of Lady Godiva [see next item] came about as a protest staged against the heavy taxes the Lady's husband, Leofric, Earl of Mercia, imposed upon his subjects. However, like so much 'history' the story may or may not be true. But it is a good story and Lady Godiva's ride has been re-enacted hundreds of times through the centuries, with the lady sometimes more naked, at other times less so. I must assure you that the accompanying image definitely does not depict activities of today's tax officials. It was a piece of Protestant propaganda. But sad to report, all the tortures depicted were in fact employed against the dissidents. * IRS in American English. |
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LADY GODIVA DEPICTED IN ART There have been innumerable depictions of Lady Godiva (see item above) - both in art and in real-life processions and festivals. The Lady has captured the imagination of the world. Well, let's face it, a beautiful naked lady riding a fine horse through the streets - this is certainly an erotic turn-on for many of us (although I suspect if there really was such a ride the Lady was not quite as lithe and seductive as portrayed in the first portrait). Top illustration: A portrait of Lady Godiva as imagined (for she lived in an earlier era) by the English artist John Collier (1850-1934). Collier was a prolific painter of portraits and did his painting of Godiva in 1898. Collier was also a writer and in one of his books, The Religion of an Artist (1926), Collier remarked, 'I am looking forward to a time when ethics will have taken the place of religion... [The benefits of religion] can be attained by other means which are less conducive to strife and which put less strain on upon the reasoning faculties.' Lower illustration:
Lady Godiva as
played in a modern English romance movie of
that name (2008) by Phoebe Thomas, one of
the stars of Holby City.
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CHAMPION SWIMMER ON POSTCARD Antique postcard signed by Beatrice Kerr, dated 1911. She was a champion Australian swimmer who gave many displays of diving and swimming in Britain, swimming a new record of 82 seconds for 100 yards in 1906. |
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MEDIEVAL GAME - BOB APPLE Another interesting engraving from the 19th century. The engraving depicts an activity of an earlier era - and shows men, who appear to be monks or members of a religious order, playing the game called bob apple. The game went back centuries but is still played in some form or other today. |
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HAPPY YOUNG CHURCH MEMBERS. These two very happy young girls were sitting on a float sponsored by the local Lutheran Church during a procession in Nambour, Queensland, in mid-1990. Another photo taken by me during a visit to Queensland while I was still living in NSW. The girls are wearing period costumes. |
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SOME BEAUTIFUL BACKS. The contrast of the bare backs of these girls set against the black clothing struck me as particularly attractive. The girls were involved in a display in Martin Place (Martin Plaza now) in central Sydney and were watching their friends at the time. |
DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU! Not a pretty sight! Seen too often on our roads although this wreck has long since been towed from the road where it was mangled to its resting place in a junk yard. That's where I found it and decided a photo was not amiss. |
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ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL FRENCH POSTCARD The original, produced in France probably around 1920, is finished in a sepia tone, commonly used for photos in times past. The sepia provided a little 'lift' to the otherwise bland black and white images (monochrome if you prefer). An additional chemical bath was required to produce the sepia tone. Fancy vase! Yes, I know, you are not looking at the vase. Neither am I! |
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SUBSTITUTE SERMON? I was amused while driving past this church one day to see this sign. Did it really say 'State of Origin'? (For those who are unfamiliar with Australian sport this is some sort of competition between state football teams.) Presumably the church was screening the match. Nice to note that this useful additional to the usual roster of services was being supplied at 'No Cost'. Probably more exciting that the sermon too! Photo taken in 1994. |
KIDS AND WATER - A GREAT COMBINATION. Great opportunities for photos at swimming carnivals. These enthusiasts were watching swimming races at Ashbury Swimming Pool in NSW. They came from Ashbury Primary School. I think the year was 1990. |
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KIDS AND WATER IN AN EARLIER ERA. An antique Australian postcard titled Water Nymphs, depicting three children skinny-dipping off a boat. The card is one of a series produced locally in black-and-white. The printing quality is rather limited but it provides a glimpse of outdoor life in the year it was produced - 1912. |
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THE EVER POPULAR ICE CREAM. Couldn't resist including one photo of children eating ice creams. Kids and ice creams go together but I have to admit I love ice cream myself. Perhaps I am still a kid at heart. This photo taken on the Newcastle Foreshore in April 1995. |
SAILOR BOY WITH A SENSE OF HUMOUR. Photo taken on Lake Macquarie, near Newcastle, NSW, where yacht-mad people congregate. The boy was taking part in the NSW High School Yachting Championships held in April 1995. |
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