Australian Tourism Board

Would you consider visiting country that can be depicted as if an outbreak of measles has overtaken the eastern half?

Now that my Australian Twitter pal has established contact again through Bluesky (@jenking.bsky.social) she can't stop thinking of me when she comes across another spider or snake story, which I suspect in Australia is most of the time. It's got to be like waking up to news and daily traffic and weather reports.

The above map is of course not depicting an outbreak of measles in Australia. It is however depicting where the invasive, pesky brown snakes can be found in abundant numbers.

Jen's latest Bluesky posting leads me to an Australian site that actually lets you type in a critter and get a narrative all about them. Great photos as well.

Jen's posting goes like this:

"Anytime I see a snake story I think of you.
@jdemet.bsky.social

...and I know you'll appreciate it too. This photo strikes terror—and awe—into my heart. The eastern brown is one of our deadliest snakes."
https://australian.museum/learn/animals/reptiles/eastern-brown-snake/

I've got to say, they look like a bucket full of eels. And there are people who eat eels. But I doubt there are people who eat snakes.

Jen gets a kick out of how I feel for Australians who have to put up with such slimy and sneaky critters. Jen once sent me a photo of a python—yes, a python!—that took up residence in her yard. She lives in the suburbs, and not on some dusty Outback cattle station. I had no choice but do a posting on it.

Greenland has been in the news lately here in the United  States. President-elect Donald Trump has expressed a strong desire to buy the place from Denmark. He is as serious as a heart attack. This too got a posting.

When Greenland became a news item they told us it was the world's largest island. I thought to myself, what about Australia?

Turns out since Australia, although surrounded by water, is considered a continent, and a continent cannot be an island. Continent trumps island. Or, if President-elect Trump as President gets Greenland, it will be Trump trumps Greenland. Stay tuned. We always live in interesting times.

I remember as a kid visiting the Bronx Zoo and seeing the snakes behind the glass in the Snake House. I don't even know if they still exhibit them, but I do remember I didn't like them, even behind glass.

Jen of course reminded me of snakes just last week when she kinked a story from The Guardian that made her think it was time to check her medicine chest for snake bandages. Another posting followed.

Spiders of course are another Australian distraction. Not like the ones we get here who spin webs on the side of your house that you walk into on summer evenings and have to wipe from your face. No, they have the kind that can literally kill you.

It's summertime Down Under, and they're having lots of fun.

They used to say of New York two things: One was, "it might turn out to be a nice place when they finish it". The other, not that complimentary: "It's a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there."

Yeah?

http://www.onofframp.blogspot.com