Vintage Christmas

Christmas cards circa 1973

Starfish Syndrome

I have noticed while rock-pooling (another favourite pastime) that I can look into dozens of rock pools and not see anything especially fabulous. Until suddenly I see a starfish. Then, I notice dozens of them, including in the pools I had already looked in. I guess my eye just tunes in. I call this Starfish Syndrome. This condition has enabled me to find the smallest starfish in the world with ease!

Too cute! Anyway, I have recently become obsessed with abandoned band-aids and am using the methodologies of Starfish Syndrome to locate them. So now I see them everywhere. Something about fleshy band-aids* on concrete footpaths^ is working especially well for me...these are just a few of my recent finds.

* = plasters

^ = sidewalk

Shady lanes

Lurking in laneways sounds pretty dodgy. But they are great places to chance upon quiet beauties like this rope 'drawing' with its accidental lyricism, or the half brick totem with its essence of machismo.

A few pegs

I took a forensic stroll through the local alleys and laneways this afternoon. A theme soon emerged.....plastic pegs. Since people's backyards flank the alleys, the abundance of pegs came as no great surprise. These pegs and peg fragments are faded and incredibly brittle, just picking them up caused many to crumble in my fingers. Others are rusted shut. Exposure to the elements has rendered them unusable. Engaging in this sort of urban archeology is strangely rewarding. Unfortunately it tends to unsettle the neighbours.

Talking rubbish

Never, in all my years of perusing the hard rubbish, have I been threatened with legal action...until last weekend. Two men in light blue shirts informed me that the penalty for removing hard rubbish is $500 PER ITEM. Gee, that adds up pretty quickly. Does each dinner plate count as a single item or is a complete set one item? Do I get a discount because it's a bit dirty? Where can I get a refund if this record player is faulty? Yes, even our own rubbish has been privatised. But I ask the question...landfill or loungeroom? Case dismissed.

Not Sandals

What's

inside

the sky chief hard rubbish case?

Nothing but the simple packing list of a very light traveller.

Forget about gadgets. Remember a book.

Bon Ami, Mi Amore

Iconic design, complete with the kitchen sink. With Vinium* That must be the magical compound that cleans vinyl! There's still a bit left in the container, I shall sprinkle it liberally over my floors and wait for a 1950's housewife to appear to do the rest.

*I googled Vinium, it's so magical I can't find any information on it at all.

Everybody loves string

Strung out in the park.

Bin so long

Why oh why would anyone throw out such a magnificent modernist bin? When I unearthed this bin in the hard rubbish it contained a large glass bottle full of some hazardous chemical (the name of which I've forgotten, being so distracted by the beauty of the bin). Council hard rubbish workers do not collect such chemicals. I advise people not to hide dodgy things inside attractive containers - such containers will definitely be coming home with me, thereby exposing their simple subterfuge.

Protection, etc.

Images taken at Cockatoo Island. If you like industrial decay, it's more than worth the short ferry trip from Sydney's Circular Quay. Thanks Wendy for lending me your camera!

Warm Hard Truths

The absurd

tragic

undeniable

narrative poetry

of hard rubbish

is everywhere

I look

Mission - brown

I an attempt to erase tagging and reinstate the glory that is 'mission brown' ( a colour parents of the 70's loved a little too well) this brick wall gets a half-hearted touch up. Fascinatingly hideous.

Lay me down

I have become a little obsessed with photographing abandoned mattresses.These tired old beds and the stories they could tell....out in the rain, slumped against trees, I can feel their pain!There are all sorts of design styles, but mattress fabrics are dominated by floral motifs. Presumably we all want to lie down in a bed of roses or a field of gold. The mattress below was a highlight, quite radiant, almost lyrical. My camera insisted I take this shot in 'sunset' mode. Who am I to argue?

So convincing was this scene, a hopeful bee landed to gather pollen from the flowers. Poor little sucker.

Blue-ish

Some blue things from the Hard Rubbish trawl this afternoon, compliments of the City of Monash. The 'chiller' fridge tray design rivals the 'meatkeeper' find from March this year.

Beds In Space

Mattress size lozenges, launching into the Hard Rubbish zone (HR according to Paul and his cousins).

Street-combing

A little walk around the block, finding flotsam on the footpath.

Awwww...still not cool!

Firstly, rubbishing the planet is uncool! Secondly, don't these bags look like cute fluffy white rabbits nibbling away at the grass?

Hanging onto the telephone

iPhone? Who needs an iPhone? Certainly not this lady. She's more than happy with her beige handset, although the yellow kimono (dressing gown?) might also be lifting her mood. This poster was found bundled with rolls of silverfish-nibbled wallpaper in an op-shop barrel. No, you can't buy it from me.

Phone bills a little high? Why not time them? You can even cook an egg at the same time. This was one of today's Camberwell Market trinkets, and a nice counterpoint to the above poster.

Worst-case scenario

I've always had an uneasy feeling that I may end up becoming a bag lady. Well at least I'll have some nice bags...

(suitcase linings)

Student's World

Yet more op shop books bought solely for their covers...will I ever learn?

(L > R; Volume 8 - Early Development of Australia, Volume 1 - First Steps in Learning, Volume 10 - Manufacturing Industry & National Traditions)

Avant-lard

A relic from the old days, pre-cholesterol concerns, when animal fat was stored & used for toast, fry-ups & pastries . These days some people seem far more afraid of fat than drugs. C'mon folks, try some experiments with lard!

Don't Go Changing

Some things change, like the weather and fashion. Some things persist, like wallpaper, clinging on through the decades. It’s always Autumn inside my mum’s neighbours house, where these scenic backdrops have survived the taunts of dismissive citizens for over 35 years. Yes sir, and it's not going anywhere! This reminds me of a unwound clock, which will always be right twice a day, whereas a slow or fast clock never hits the mark. The neighbours have found an moment they want to live in, and I applaud their choice.