Clearing my plate & getting ready to Go

Hmmmmm, Its several months since Madi and I biked around the top of the south.

I learned quite a few things there, and from recent "Warm Showers" people.

One couple from America (Dick (72) and Susan  Rogers(70) biking around on a tandam.

A solo yorkshire man Tim, who will revisit, hopefully to give me real native info on biking in England. he had a Hewett hand made bike with brooks saddle, very tidy bloke, his bike looked brand new too!

Another American Couple from Vermont (Rick very active in the political area & Sally a keen cello player) came through also in there 60's, it's amazing just how active, us "wrinkleys" are these days!

Things have been "Moving On"

In the workshop I'm finishing off some commissions, two Jewellery boxes and a large Japanese style sideboard. Mike had bought these Sterling silver handles 30 years ago, which were made in England in 1856.

NZ Matai box with Tawhia, Kauri and Rewarewa details. The centre section fits a glass inkwell

NZ Totara carcase,Kauri doors, rippled Tawhai panels

I will be making more for Mike and Julie when I return in November and have to make sure I have suitable wood kept back from my auction for this purpose.

I have yet to finish another two special boxes for a local woman who has three daughers. I made daughter #1's box, a couple of years ago and, when they heard of my upcoming travels ordered the other daughters  boxes to be completed before May!

On the the clown front things have also been developing with me joining my music teachers group at Nelson's yearly "Masked Parade"
I also approached the Nelson Childrens Library and gave a talk/performance to 60 kids and adults.

So far: my best kokopelli gig was performing at Street Beats on two occasion, where I simply ran riot  in Nelson's Trafalger street, playing my sax, riding the unicycle, even both at the same time, luckily everybody seemed to avoid being run over. Best thing about being a clown is, you can fall off, muck things up, and everybody thinks you did it on purpose,.....you don't have to be good, just funny!

Oh I love being spontanious....I joined a que, at the Eftpos banking machine while dressed as a clown, playing my sax and then shouted out "Is this where you get the notes"

Just up our road out in rural Nelson our neighbor, an englishman, (Kev) whose a little on the eccentric side, sings Sussex folk songs while he milks his goats. I went up for a visit and spent a pleasant evening milking and singing along with him.........so now I'm learning some NZ folk songs, so I can share them while I'm travelling.

Recent purchases in the form of an iphone and a busking amp are opening doors to lots more fun and these will be great tools for travel.
Next week I have the wood auction and managed to get the Nelson Evening Mail, to do this article on me which had Saturday night front page coverage, exactly one week before the auction.
Couldn't be better!

Fine wood worker Jimu Grimmett is selling his stock of wood and plans to travel to Europe to busk as a saxophone-playing clown.

Ever wanted to send a clown on his way? Now is your chance.

Neudorf fine wood worker Jimu Grimmett is taking his saxophone-playing, unicycling, big shoe-wearing alter-ego Kokopelli on the road.
After 25 years in the workshop, Mr Grimmett said it was time to go and meet people and he thought what better way to do that than dress up as a clown, jump on a bicycle and travel to Europe.
He has created his clown, Kokopelli, over the last six months when he was inspired to expand his busking repertoire into street theatre.
"It is just a magical experience. It teaches you to be right in the moment and to become someone else. It is just wonderful."
He plans to make his way across Europe into Spain, Germany, Switzerland and France before heading to Britain and Ireland.
Mr Grimmett is holding an auction on March 6 of much of his wood that he has collected over the years to help finance the trip. And yes, Kokopelli will make an appearance spraying water and getting up to similar antics.
Asked whether he thought that sort of carry-on might put off potential buyers, Mr Grimmett said: "I think it will make people want to buy. I hope it doesn't put anybody off, then I might be in trouble."

I'll let you know how the auction went.......
Cheers and caio
Jimu
Alias Kokopelli

Aussie Adventures Blog #3

I’ve added some audio (which should be playing now)
To stop it continually looping, click the little grey square below the D in the word AUDIO at the top of the audio player.
(took me ages to find it & I'm a big boy!)

Recently I visited Surfers Paradise, I was struck by its skyscrapers & the general lack of charm this famous tourist trap had on this day. It all looked rather seedy to me with tourists and locals, filling in the school holidays on this rainy afternoon. Shopping for the classic Aussie kitsch gifts of t-shirts, didgeridoos, beer mugs and boomerangs.

Walked around checking the area out, plenty of women with the Arabian face shawls on, and lots of different languages being spoken. I wandered into a gaming arcade, not somewhere that I usually frequent. Allot of people, on noisey games, shooting things, bashing things, father and son, both shooting people on the same game, I thinks, yeah this is where people get their mass shooting ideas (Columbine and others), The only games I could relate too was the drum game (below), and a modern version of kids hopscotch.

Another 10 year old boy hitting fake rabbits, with a wooden mallet as they come out of their burrows, with a face full of anger! Oh what a crazy society some of us live in! I ended up taking movies and photo’s of the people and reflections in the various distorted mirrors around this arcade.

Fingers made for playing baritone Sax.

In the late afternoon with the weather clearing after heavy rain, I spent the rest of the afternoon wandering and taking photo’s of buildings



Spotted these high rise buildings, joined by this massive video screen.



I could sense this amazing sunset coming, I enjoy watching nature unfold its beauty, with time to drink it in! This is my version of bliss.


Speaking to the people at the bloggers “meetup” meeting, I found that most of them are "twittering"....I’d looked at it before, and decided to re-try it ….so far, I find it a total waste of time! ..... already a master in this area anyway.......

The Brisbane Arts Festival 08 had a street party. I took in the Racecourse Road event, where I had some raw sugar cane juice with ginger & lime & also a Hungarian “Langos” fried bread. The bloke selling them was a real character with a hat from Thailand. A real multi national event.

Would you buy food from this guy, I did!

Come to think of it, he reminds me of my father!

Took a Tai Chi class in Brisbane, well attended, its great to be able travel and relax doing exactly the same 108 moves of the Tai Chi set with a whole bunch of people I've never met before. A visiting American practioner told us all, how Tai Chi had prevented surgery on his neck bones...its amazing how soft yet powerful things like Tai Chi can be!

Visited a very small saxophone shop and tested some mouthpieces, none of which were overall, any better than my current set up, he had no Soprano's for me to try and although helpful, nothing I tried had any magic and screamed, yes this I gotta have! I tested only three, one metal (an Otto Link, which felt soft and dead, hard to blow on the bottom range) I quickly put that one aside. The other two had parts of there sounds better than my existing set up, but my current set up, especially the ease and full sound of the bottom notes, I couldn't improve on. I tried a Meyer Richie Cole, Medium, tip opening 5, face length 5 (this was good up top, fat sound on the high notes), but hard work and no volume down the bottom, I also tried a Shanty Runyon custom mouthpiece.

A very small, dark mouthpiece, interesting sound very sharp and slightly raspy, good volume right through the range, didn't care for the edge in it. This one had what was called a splitter, a thin steel insert allot like a spark plug feeler gauge, that fitted into the actual chamber facing away from the reed, a bit of a gimmick I thought & the sound sort of electronic, not my cup of tea!

I took my naked lady Conn into the repair shop 2 doors down from the sax shop, for an opinion on her current playing condition, he said, she's in good condition, although a repad would be worth doing.....he quoted $750-800 Aus. My last repad was $250 in NZ, so I'll stick with NZ prices and wait till she really needs a refresh.

Stopped to busk at Roma Street Station. Nice tile floors and walls, a real echo chamber, so I went past the ticket clerks and set up in a clear area, after about 10 minutes one of the Queensland Rail officials came and told me (in a friendly manner) to go outside the area, which I did, & busked for another 15 minutes, then the police came.... (same friendly manner) & told me to move outside onto the street, so I packed up for the day, after only 30 minutes playing, I netted $21.55 which was my best ever. I need to find a good patch and develop my busking chops!

Later in the week I revisited and stopped to have another chat with Graham Pawling the blind Saxophone busker in the Queens street Mall. Finding out how he cut his own lawns and uses his computer. His advice was to busk outside the Commonwealth bank, I'll let you know how I go with this one!

The Queensland State library, very impressive building & complex, I went to the Talbot Family exhibition "Just Gorgeous Sheet Music"
http://www.slq.qld.gov.au/whats-on/exhibit/online/tw/displays/200708/just_gorgeous_sheet_music


I spent the rest of the time, till closing in the Music Library on level 3. Found the Saxophone section...and time dissappeared!

I will have to return another day, I asked about there CD collection..... only having to register (which is free then, can view, even printing & listen to anything in the catalogue) This is a huge resource. (I may not get out alive)

I haven’t even looked at the Museum and Art gallery’s yet, still to visit the "Picasso and His Collection" exhibition. http://www.qag.qld.gov.au/home
Will report on this in the next "Aussie Adventures Blog"

I also attended an exhibition and symposium at the QSL, discussing Artists books, which was brilliant.... http://www.slq.qld.gov.au/whats-on/exhibit/cur/freestyle_books
Reminding me how unusual and fabulous my fathers collection of Artist books is....here is one of em!

Leaving the Libray, outside the Museum, is a huge corridor, a concrete passageway with massive whales suspended from the ceiling & whale song being broadcast in the space…..

What else could I do.......got the sax out and blew some sounds. A few people came thru, tossing coins into my case. An official came by and said "Your not Busking are you, ....I’d shut the case”!.......


& off I heads into the night........



Must thank Dom & Cathy for this house sitting opportunity, he's even letting me use his brand new Rode Podcaster mic.

Ah ...it's a tough life...being a busker, house sitter, and pets guardian.......

But....someone's gotta do it!

Stay safe, till the next blog B good!

Cheers from the land of limitless opportunities....

As the Wallaby rugby team showed us last weekend.

Jimu

Aussie Adventures Blog #2

The first 2 weeks of any trip is often the most interesting, everything is new and the differences in culture and accents are at there most pronounced. This was highlighted when I went for a haircut.....
I found a mans hairdresser in Main Street, two chairs, one was full so I got into the other. The customers cell phone rang, with the tune of Ravels Bolero (the Torvill and Dean’s skating tune), after he answered, we all had a bit of joke and banter about the tune…. A couple of minutes later, his cell rang again, this time the tune played was a woman’s heavy breathing, as if during sex, moaning…..the bloke said “I put that one on for when my wife rings, it stops her ringing!!!!”

Geeezzz. A perfect example of culture shock!

I’ve spent a bit of time arranging my next house sits after this one finishes and have two more, both 3 week sits, lined up after this first one. Moving to another near Brisbane, the other 1800 klms north near Cairns. House sitting is great, not at all like being a tourist, you have the comforts of home, your looking after peoples pets and homes and if you have the technology, links to home and the world are easier than ever.
This last couple of weeks, with the weather in Brisbane being (for the locals) cooler than normal, was still much warmer than NZ. Now here we have warmer weather after much needed rain.

My daily walking of the kelpie dog, Jaya past other dogs behind fences, they come and growl at us, makes me wonder why there is all these guard dogs in society today!
Vasu the Abyssynian Cat, is a real attention grabber, never far away, it’s amazing how animals check out new objects in their environment.

Winter time in Brisbane is still warm enough for banana’s to set, these are growing in the garden.



At the local supermarket, I was quite amazed at the veggies section various fruits and veggies from outside Aussie, like Shallots from the Netherlands, Coconuts from Samoa, Mangoes for Mexico, Persimmons from New Zealand, weird when they can obviously grow these themselves. These one's are from Australia.

Coming out of the Supermarket, I noticed an older guy in wheelchair, with a parrot on his knee, heading for his car, I thought, wonder how he’s going to get into that car, I was putting all my supplies into my backpack and struggling to get it on my back and getting onto my bike, the wheelchair guy, says “Gidday mate, I have the same problem”, and wheels on back into the supermarket...... Makes me appreciate, what I do have!
Last week I listened to a music show from back home “World of Leopold Bloom” on http://www.freshfm.net/ streaming live on the internet, connecting me back to NZ. I got my wife to ring into the studio, telling him I was listening. Later in his show he played a tune for me, which was really neat!

Heading into town, on the train I wrongly assumed that the Enoggera train station would be close to Enogerra Terrace, where I intended to visit a saxophone shop, however it was 4 klms away and I ran out of time and went into town looking for busking opportunities. Walking down Queens Street Mall, lunchtime on a Saturday afternoon the place was buzzing, hearing a sax playing busker......


I recorded him with the mini disc player, when he stopped, I had a good chat with him, (Graham Pampling) only realizing after a few minutes that he was blind, as he started fumbling in his case to check his busking earnings. I will return to have a jam and another chat later and record him and do an interview for my new upcoming “The SaxMan Podcast”. I enquired, later about getting a permit to Jam in the Mall, getting a permit is free, although you also need to pass an audition...next audition date 30th Aug, which canceled me out! (we may have a Jam outside the mall)

After leaving Graham the blind busker I took off for the Queensland State Library on the South Bank. I decided not to busk on the Bridge, the walkway was quite narrow and competing with noisey traffic as well as playing out in the open, not a good option. Found a great place to busk near the Museum on the super flash covered walk way above the road and Bus Station. A great view across town to the city sky scrapers, only few meters away from two lifts, which is good for people traffic passing a busker. (ATM machines are also good)


Many sweet connections and conversations with passers by, people generally are appreciate of buskers and are supportive with coins.
Returning home on the train this was the view.

The trains are very organized with special ramps laid down by hand to get mobility scooters onto the trains, and people are very easy to chat too (if you start a conversation).

Came across a local pet shop, which was interesting, with a range of dogs (pups) in Rotwheelers, Mastiffs, and little terrier types. kittens at $85, bird eating Spiders at $95, rats at $12, assorted types of lizards and a special small Childrens Python at $380 (need a permit for these)


Bought some Kanga Banga Sausages, (kangaroo) can hardly believe the blurb 98% fat free, low in saturated fat (that must be the 2%) high in iron and Gluten free, & National heart foundation approved. All this lead me onto the range of people I see in Australia, allot of severely overweight people, kids as well, I hate seeing kids this tubby it’s bad news all round for everyone! Reminds me of America and similar excess with food and junk foods in particular!

Now, I'll be leaving this house sit and straight onto the next, still in the Brisbane area. There is plenty to see and do with many Museums and a 19day Arts Festival just about to start, so there is always plenty to blog about.

Oh nearly forgot…. The sax playing, and play learning are all going well. With time to play and think, and play some more, doors start to open………

Tomorrow evening I go to the Gold Coast Web Bloggers Meet up out at the Hog’s Breath Café, might have to chew some garlic......should be fun!

Till the next post, B good and stay safe.

Namaste
Jimu.