The Sunday Roast

My Pleasure To Introduce The Oxford Scholar

This week's interview is with Brian,
who writes the blog Brian In Oxford.

1. The first of the standard weekly questions: Why do you blog?

It seems like a good idea to put ideas "on paper", without submitting a manuscript to a publisher who's got no idea who I am. Plus, it's amusing to stir reactions on utterly random topics from people.

2. What's the story behind your blog name?

Name and location, sir.

3. What is the best thing about being a blogger?

The interesting comments you can get from people you never heard of, who might chime in on a particular story.

4. What key advice would you give to a newbie blogger?

Make sure you don't skip number five. I can't stress this enough.

6. Thanks for pointing out so humorously that I accidentally left out question #5. I'll take your advice and never do it again! But here is question # 6 .... What is the most significant blog post you've ever read?

Probably the first one I ever read ..... it was a guy whose contract with ESPN had run out, so he ported his daily format to blogland. It made blogging seem like something anyone can do.

7. What is the most significant blog post you've ever written?

Probably the details of my hyperglycemic episode last summer. I try to steer away from sounding too much like this is just an online diary. This *is* writing for at least some sort of audience .... so if it's going to be personal, it should at least be somewhat informative or amusing.

Today's Sunday Roast with Brian is the twelfth in a weekly series of interviews with bloggers from around the world.

Post Of The Day

Today's winner is Brian In Oxford with the post What Would Happen If. The other posts that caught my eye were John-Michael's Love Storm; Sandy Carlson's A Blue-Eyed Day; Celebration of Life with Titbits From San Francisco; Josie's Is It Friday?; Shrinky's The Cowboy; Lin's Whimsical Dreams And Schemes; Fat Hairy Bastard with Takin’ Dad Out; Mushy's Days Of Bonding Part Three and Valley Girl's Lofty Aspirations. Do pay them a visit and leave them a comment ifyou have time.

A lot of people asked about my post Stag Parity a few hours ago, for the Wordless Wednesday theme. The little coloured objects on the hat brim are sheep tags; the larger ones are cattle tags.

Open Invitation

Never Let Your Spirits Flag

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

January in Melbourne is synonymous with the Australian Open tennis tournament, the first grand slam title of the calendar year. Last year, world number one Roger Federer famously called the Aussie Open the "happy Open" and the name - naturally - has stuck.

Of the many sports-crazy bloggers around the world, Brian in Oxford has been following the tennis action closely and we've been exchanging emails about some key matches. If you've been watching the action on our new blue Plexicushion courts, do leave me a comment to let me know what you think of the action.

The signature flags with the striking, colourful Aussie Open symbol can be seen all round the city. These particular flags were fluttering in a strong breeze a couple of days ago at Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport. They've been there for weeks, welcoming visitors, officials and players alike.

Our Open is a mix of everything - morning sessions, night sessions, open courts, retractable-roof stadiums, scorching hot weather, cool breezes and (thankfully) some rain as well. One thing's for sure in this sports-mad city. When it comes to tennis, you can't fault our service.

Sudden Debt Playoff

Smells Like Team Spirit

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

One of my American buddies, Brian in Oxford, recently asked me a question on his post The Bitter End.

He mentioned an NFL-related contest where everyone chooses one team to win a game each week. ``If the team you pick wins its game, you keep playing. If they lose, you're out,'' explained Brian. He then asked, ``David, is there anything comparable in Aussie Rules?''

Yes, Brian. There sure is. It's called a Tontine - and it runs parallel to the universally popular Aussie ``footy tipping'' contest. This is akin to religion in the Aussie Rules season, where tipsters try and predict as many winners in the eight-game round each weekend. Every office has a footy tipping contest and so do most homes.

But the Tontine? Ah, the Tontine is sudden death like never before. As in the NFL, we have to nominate just one team we think is certain to win each week. It's mayhem, because the competition, unlike the English Premier League soccer, is so evenly balanced that there are always form reversals. Nothing is a sure thing.

But why is it called a Tontine? I asked several erudite work colleagues yesterday, and even the resident oracles shook their heads. But I found the answer in the Macquarie Dictionary.

Basically, a Tontine is an ancient financial scheme. Subscribers to a common fund share an annuity. The longer you live, the greater your chances of becoming rich because as each subscriber dies, his or her share goes to the others, with the lump sum going to the last survivor.

Finally, the word Tontine derives from the French language and refers to the name of Lorenzo Tonti, a Neapolitan banker who started the scheme in France in the mid seventeenth century.

Wonder if he knew anything about football .....

Post Of The Day

Okay, so I'll just stop dreaming that I own a ute (see previous post) and that I have cattle to muster. Instead, I'll get down to business and tell you that the winner today is Brian in Oxford with What would happen if ….. Cue the applause, please, maestro. And the other posts that really stood out today were Old Guy's He’s home again; Jo Beaufoix's Do you believe in ghosts?; Camikaos's The house we didn’t buy and the searing post Untitled by Ramblings from the Outside of Nowhere.

If you'd like to nominate a post, just leave me the url.

One Single Greeting To Cherish

Treasuring The Spoken Word



Sometimes we treasure one spoken word more than any other. Permit me to digress for a moment. The feedback I had when I wrote the Alzheimer's post In Memory last week included some wonderful comments from around the world.

One of the comments was, ``I'm amazed at how some things draw blanks and yet other things stay fresh and ready for recall'' from Brian in Oxford.

That is so true, Brian. Alzheimer's is a roulette wheel of random loss. My mother, who was also fluent in Latin and French, had her effervescent personality slowly eroded by the disease. When she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, we were told that the one, inescapable fact is that Alzheimer's patients or those who suffer with dementia never get better. Never.

So we watched as our mother slowly lost many of her powers. Most poignant of all was the way she lost the power to communicate. Having written letters, immaculately constructed and presented, to family and friends for decades, this great communicator found herself unable to remember simple words. Spoken sentences were suddenly punctuated with silent gaps when she could not remember words like ``clouds'' or ``cars''.

Our son, now a strapping teenager who is built like a quarterback, was never blessed with a real conversation with my mother, simply because she could no longer speak by the time he was a toddler.

He was kindergarten-age when we drove home one evening after celebrating Mum's birthday at the aged care home. He asked his older sister, ``How come Granny never answers when I speak to her?''

Our daughter explained gently that Granny had an illness which meant she could not speak. But she pointed out to her younger brother that Granny showed her love by stroking his cheek, kissing him and hugging him in those strong arms of hers.

``I wish I could hear her speak just once,'' he said solemnly.

Three months later, against all odds, his wish came true. We all walked into a room and my mother fixed her eyes on him, held out her arms to put him on her knee and said, loudly, strongly and clearly, ``Hello''.

He has never forgotten that, and probably never will. It was 25 December and a woman who gave so many people of so many generations so many meaningful Yuletide gifts, had kept the most memorable of them all for her tiny grandson.

It was a Christmas gift he will never forget. Even though it did not come gift-wrapped, in the traditional sense.

Keeping Mum

A Wonderful Memory Stays Alive

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

This morning when I checked my blog, there was a comment from Brian in Oxford, asking if my garden was full of roses. It's mid-winter here in Australia, which is why he asked. The short answer is no, there are probably less than two dozen blooms on the rose bushes. But as soon as I'd answered his question, I took the camera out into the garden as the heavy frost began to melt in the sun. This rose is called Apricot Nectar and there is a very strange annual occurrence. It is always bare by the middle of May, but a single bud appears and, right on cue, blooms on the same day every year - on my mother's death anniversary.

Standing Tall

Winter Silhouette On A Sunny Afternoon

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

This shot was taken at lunchtime, for Brian In Oxford, who wanted to see Melbourne in winter. It was a balmy day, about 15 Celsius after a chilly start, and I was lucky enough to capture some beautiful colour down by the Yarra. There was hardly any cloud and plenty of sunshine. Then I suddenly saw this sight on Sturt Street in South Melbourne. The sun was just in the perfect position to give me part of the city skyline in silhouette. Interestingly enough, because of the configuration of the buildings on the left and their relative heights, it gives the shot a slight fisheye effect.

Oxford Decree

Brian Thought It Was Casino Royale

What’s not to love about the humour of fellow blogger Brian In Oxford? I love the way he’s blogrolled me. Most people just link to Authorblog or David McMahon (Bart has me linked as ``Irreverence Down Under) but Brian’s got me pegged as ``Down Under David (DUD?)’’ and I love it, I think it’s very funny. Brian also made an interesting remark about the picture I posted a few hours ago of glass bangles at No Tangles, Just Bangles. One viewer and I agreed that the reds looked like salami in a delicatessen, but Brian’s comment was ``I thought perhaps you'd taken a photograph of chips from a casino. Perhaps the pinks are worth $5, the greens $25, etc. Very nice shot, though.’’