Boatshed

Estuary 5

This wood has its moments: triumph and (mild) despair in about equal measure…..

Getting there.
The hardest task in the Boatshed is knowing when to stop.
I have an idea it is almost time to stop….

 

 

The first patch of  seedlings has endured many challenges over the years: rabbits, deer, kangaroos, drought….and (just for the record) sabotage. I could write a novel about it, if I felt inclined. This year I have piled sticks around  each plant – a strategy that seems to be working. Note the rare Coast Bitter Bush (Adriana quadripartita), propagated from cuttings collected just south of the shack. The silvery bushes are Olearia axillaris, whose leaves when crushed give off an intoxicating scent. I have offered up a wee little bitty prayer (as Dad used to say) for summer rain….

still they drift across
sun moon in search of
kindly faces

 flying south flying north
what is it
the gulls know

 looking out
seems like
looking in

 a gathering of terns
they must have heard
good news

 this rare shell
too beautiful
to keep

 old boots old hat
anchor stowed up for’ard
I’m ready

State of the Boatshed 1

There is a system in the chaos – so I tell myself….

A perfect shack….

 

Jill Pearse (1942 – 2024)
Pencil drawing

Leaves –  one of a series –  recently arrived in the  Boatshed Gallery. It is a delicate still-life: beautifully observed. Jill had a sharp eye for detail. That was her great strength – and she used it well….

 

Chiyo-ni (1703 – 1775)

clear water
no front
no back

 

From: The Poetry of Chiyo-ni
Translated by Patricia Donegan and Yoshie Ishibashi
Tuttle Publishing: 2025

This beautiful Vihuela is now in my care. It comes from the workshop of a  South Australian luthier, Tim Guster.
The soundboard is European Spruce; the finger-board Macassar Ebony; the side and bottom American Rock Maple. Note the striking ‘fiddleback’ grain, and the fine Rose decoration.
Tim makes Harps, Renaissance and Baroque Lutes, Theorbos, Baroque Guitars, Vihuelas, 19th century Guitars and Hurdy Gurdies – these last, in particular, requiring a level of skill well above my level….