The Roaming Stevens

ART.  Alison Mitchell's art is NOT ONLY GOOD FOR THE SOUL during a pandemic... it is good for the soul any day ~ EVERY DAY.   If you enjoy still life - or as I refer to Alison's paintings - 'REAL LIFE', then you simply must go.  GO and visit the Santos Museum of Economic Botany at the Botanical Gardens of Adelaide South Australia. The title of this exhibition is: Unlemon: A meandering tale of citrus .  Prepare to be drawn into the paintings and to feel a sense of calm and pure pleasure.  It is a gentle exhibition and a beautiful one, too ~ SPLENDED in every way imaginable.  PERFECT for these uneasy times.  PERFECT when you have a desire to view some astoundingly strong work.  The exhibition is running now through the 10th of January 2021.   Some of you may wish to purchase a Christmas present - a present that will thrive throughout the generations.  Since there is now a relaxing of some borders, when you have loved ones or friends v...

Could not wait to share these pics with you.  THIS WAS ANOTHER VERY SPECIAL SPOT and I felt privileged to be there.  Tinto and I did not know anything about the sculptures, but I began digging and did a little research.  MIND-BOGGLING - MAGNIFICENT.  LARGER (in life) THAN YOU COULD IMAGINE!   Ted Egan calls himself a 'Bush man'.  He was born in Melbourne, but moved to the Northern Territory at age 16 and fell in love with the place.  Ted is a song-writer, singer, and has made 13 one hour documentary films titled 'This Land Australia'.  His son, Mark Egan, is the sculptor of these figures featured below and took the love his father had of the Northern Territory a step further by creating and sculpting these monumental figures representing Australia's First Peoples.  I was in awe. Tinto and I could not believe we had not been told about this spot before our trip!   Located on the Stuart Highway, north (135 kilometres) of Alice Springs...

For those wanting something private, special, and REMOTE - all you need to do is visit www.kingscreekstation.com.au and YOU SHALL FIND WHAT YOUR HEART DESIRES. We had no clue what we were in for - we were only visiting, stopping by Kings Creek Station in Kings Canyon because Tinto remembered the area to be beautiful.  But, when someone as fabulous as Mel invites you in - starts chatting away about how special this station is...you listen.  Tinto and I were out and about at the perfect time of this year - school was not out - yet - and very few visitors about.  Mel advised us to find a nice table outside and she would bring us two glasses of Sauvignon Blanc.  Tinto said he just didn't feel like a glass of tinto - too warm!  We follow orders fairly well and exited the roadhouse to find the perfect lunch table. Once outside and settled, sipping on the cool, crisp wine - Mel delivered lunch and a woman by the name of Julie POPS by our table to introduce herself and ...

Tinto and I had a most unexpected and splendid time travelling through our back yard AND crossing over the border into the Northern Territory.  Tinto planned the trip AS SOON AS I FINISHED university studies - WE WERE READY to 'HIT THE ROAD'.  So, this post is for any Aussies looking for wide-open spaces and for those who may not have been to the NT...for a while.  Most everyone has already been captivated by the mere sight of Uluru, but it is the 'stops' along the way, the places you stay where you meet the MOST amazing people which transforms you, too! When you arrive in Anangu land ~ PALYA! - TRY the newly renovated Sails in the Desert ~ LOVELY.  Yes, they were originally built in the late 60s, early 70s, but renovations began pre-COVID and are still going strong.  We had NO booking.  The woman behind the desk looked shocked, but that's the way we rolled this time!  Within a few minutes and standing inside a gorgeous, wide, bright lobby - huge, high...

With university finished (for now), Tinto had been making plans for us to head off to the Northern Territory, travelling through Alice Springs, literally the centre of Australia, for quite some time now. I made no bookings; Tinto took care of it all or rather, made one or two bookings for the beginning of the trip, then...everything else was left to chance. And, I realized I prefer it that way!  We genuinely did not know where we would 'land' next.  Tinto had an idea, but the beautiful catch was NOTHING was written in stone. So, travel we did.  We 'ooooooogghhhhed and aaaaagggghhhhed' at the wide, open spaces and I felt just like one of the Dixie Chicks.  I have never wanted to see 'wide, open' spaces as much after this last stent with university.  This last study period was climbing a mountain of facts and new knowledge and I did just that and thanked my brain appropriately! The first night at William Creek Hotel, the staff had huge smiles for us and apologised...

If we look around us and consider deeply how COVID-19 has impacted our lives...it is not all bad. The worst aspect is the separation of families and loved ones; intolerable in most instances - not knowing WHEN we will see the faces of those we love enormously - physically hurts and causes great distress.  The best part is people are genuinely getting out and about and discovering their own back yards.  Australia has VAST and MIGHTY 'back yards' and Tinto and I were fortunate to experience some of Australia's true gems in a relatively short period of time - just a little under two weeks! So, for my American mates - once international borders open, I plead with you to travel the great distance and come and see for yourselves.  You'll need some time OR you simply choose a couple of states to tour instead of the entire country - either way, Australia is a splendid experience. I have been to quite a few places already, but I had never travelled to the center of the country (...

What IS IT you want to 'DO' in your life?  Is there something you think of often and imagine and when you do...you find yourself smiling?  Well, JUST DO IT.  Nike (whatever you think of the company ~ marketed those words first!)...but, they ring true.  No matter the age.  WHAT IS AGE?  I have recently discovered that it IS scientifically true - you ARE as old as you feel - the way YOU consider yourself to be can make a huge difference in how you manage your life!  That's the good news.  And, well, although it may be true that there is some 'withering of the myelination coating on neurotransmitters' (when one reaches 'Late Adulthood'!)-Haaaaaa!; it's not ALL BAD because we can strengthen some of our older grey cells, too, by LEARNING NEW SKILLS and performing actions we have never performed before.  HOW GOOD IS THAT NEWS?    Do you want to learn how to play guitar, or sing, paint a glorious golden moon or a stunning, shimmering sunse...

How many of you lie awake at night with a hundred questions burning your mind? My mind won't stop. The dearest 'study buddy' a gal could ever ask for - far away in Perth, Western Australia - is grappling with many of the same subject matters racing through my head.  We've been studying British economist, John Maynard Keynes (1883 - 1946) and watching his economic theories literally LEAP from the pages of text - mind-boggling that his predictions and theories resonate in contemporary life and he, no doubt, is looking down, arms-crossed, smiling like a Cheshire cat. We wonder - we are intrigued by the economics and politics in play at present in Australia and with each day a new policy is developed...more questions arise. I am also astonished by the fact that money can so easily trickle down - when needed.  We (Australia AND the world) most certainly did not NEED a pandemic to alert us to the fact that domestic abuse is rampant and communities/shelters/individuals...

It is indeed! This is a time like no other ~ my grand-daughter wants to know 'what will happen' and I explain that no one knows and even though I am much older and very wise (Ha! - YES!)...I have no clue what is around the corner nor does...anyone...else. I suspect after COVID19 another virus will appear ~ immediately?  No, but - I think this is the new World War and viruses are the new enemy.   Mother Earth is tired - tired of being beaten, raped, intruded upon, plundered and pillaged, suffocated, losing one species after another - sick to death of MAN thinking 'he' is the MOST important being on the planet.  Do your own research ~ start with frogs and bees - that's a really good beginning.   So, in the meantime - it IS nice for families to be spending more time together, but if children are now 'adult' children, they don't live at home anymore, do they?  (Well, hmmmm - SOME don't).   And, some families are really distant from one another...

Our hearts go out to all families whom have lost loved ones, livestock, homes, and we are desperately sad over the devastating loss to wildlife, too. Masses of people have been donating; we donated while we were in Eltham, Victoria...even though South Australia is our home because Victoria and New South Wales need our help, too. Kangaroo Island's people have a great and strong spirit ~ we cannot imagine what you are going through, but we know you will prevail. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been on board with assistance to countries whom have had natural disasters for decades and they not only go IN and help with the harmed wildlife, but they commit to clearing and restoring, replanting forest areas that have virtually disappeared.  THEY are experts in this process because, no doubt, they have seen numerous horrors throughout this Earth.  So, if or when you have a moment and would like to help the exotic and special indigenous animals to Australia - you may want to vi...