Hair today…
Shelley is giving me a lesson in blow-drying my hair. I tell her I just normally blast it and it looks fine. She asks about what…
Sailing: the art of slow travel
A turtle pops its head up as I glance across the water. As quickly, it is gone again…but I know there’ll be another along sometime, for…
Swell sculpture
Sand between my toes, a soft-serve ice-cream covered in sprinkles in my hand, and a feast of seashore, surf and some stunning sculpture before me. That’s how I…
Words from the heart
Writers weren’t the only creative souls at the annual Brisbane Writers Festival last weekend. Greeting festival-goers at the entrance to the wonderful State Library of Queensland was…
Raising a glass to Merle and Ro
On a Wednesday afternoon in March 1965, Merle Thornton and her friend and fellow feminist Rosalie “Ro” Bognor walked into the public bar of a Brisbane pub and…
Winking at the moon
There was a lot of “do you remember where you were?” talk this week, with the death of astronaut Neil Armstrong bringing back memories for those…
Snagging a snap with Kevin 07
It’s not every day that I receive an invitation to a barbecue hosted by a former Prime Minister. But so it was last week, when a…
A story of loss, and love, and hope
My sister Anne died of cancer when she was 54. It was a sudden and devastating blow for all who loved her. Anne was the oldest…
My name is Lee
Travelling in Asia can be problematic at times if you are a Western woman and your name is Lee. Your first name, I mean. Lee is one…
Cocktails and comfort in Saigon
Mid-afternoon in Saigon. From the rooftop bar of the iconic Rex Hotel, we see the monsoonal clouds gathering. It’s the kind of day when your shirt sticks…
A Glass Half Full 