Still clearing plates.

 

Posted via web from jimuthesaxman's posterous

Well still clearing my plate.

All of this lovely breakfast, above (apart from the mushrooms), was grown or made on the property right here in Rosedale,  Home made bread, our own free range eggs, and tomatoes fresh out of the glass house.
So no carbon credits went into the production of this meal, however there was a fair bit of ozone depletion from other healthy gases afterwards.

As you can read, the photo above was sent direct from my iphone via the posterous app straight to this blog page and was a trial for posting from the hip from cafe's bars, and any rogue wi-fi spots I find on the road.
Don't worry I will be composing my blog on my laptop having recently purchased a secondhand Mac G4 and will not be posting too frequently! Also this is my first mac, which will be interesting!

Some of my wood collection, ......never to be seen again!

The last month has been full on! Finally getting the wood auction completed. With such a glut of good woods to choose from, there was some very good bargains. Still the log jam of 25 years of collecting does take some clearing, and now I'm on my way.

There's Trev the Auctioneer and Kokopelli sitting on the gate!

A few little stories about the auction,......... a friend who shall remain nameless (Bernie) asked if I had any wood suitable for a banjo neck. I said yes I have this beautifull piece of 5X2 american rock maple 4 foot long, which would be perfect for you!  He came back to me just before the auction got underway saying, "I've tested that peice of wood, it has a lovely ring to it" (he had held it up between fingers and knocked with his knuckles) It was early in the auction so I mentally noted that it sold for only $5.  So excitedly I said to Bernie, "did you get it!" No he said "I hadn't registered and didn't bid!

"

Exotic wood went for chicken feed,,,,well to my eyes anyway!

.........Another story after the auction I helped an older fella (once again nameless, Ross) load up a huge pile of wood turning blanks and little scraps of unusual woods. Ross said, "I used to have my own business, employing 5 people, "but it took toll on my health"  and is now on 24 pain killers a day, he now wood turns, making spoons and salad servers and can stop for a rest when the pain is too severe! And here he was loading all this wood onto his pick up!

This wood was so nice I kept most of it for making some beautiful tables upon my return.

My Sax practise recently has been going much better getting 90 minutes in most days, even my teacher is impressed, still gotta keep practicing though! Then I have practise for a Jazz workshop with Pete Canter in Toddington, Devon in June. Still to finish modifying an older sax case to fit both my alto & soprano.

We also had a visit from another "Warm Showers" cyclist. Caroline the Marathon runner from NYC, oh to be young again, and super fit. Holidaying with out much training, she just breezed our local half marathon and walked in the National park after the run!

I will do another blog after my Birthday/Bon Voyage party on the 17th....Oh didn't I tell you....I'm going to be 60 years young......what a privelege....many people don't get the chance!

Down to the final month now and quite a few more plates to clear!

Cheers and Ciao

Jimu/Kokopelli

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 #6

Aussie Adventures Blog #6

Well I’m now sitting at home in Nelson, I had a great trip in Queensland. The last couple of weeks were in the far north around Cairns. In the Mossman area I visited my glass blowing friends Ola and Marie Hoglund, thanks so much guys for the hospitality, such an interesting area for plants and animals.
I thoroughly recommend house sitting, those last 2 weeks mixing it with the tourists and backpackers in Cairns is not really my scene any more!
Still a little weird for me to see people having a beer outside the pubs at 9.30am!

Mark Culleton, with the Qoull on the esplande, surrounded by tourists, a fair dinkum Australian ...Mate! Both of them!

Going out to the great Barrier Reef has quite a few different options…… you can go the fast way.....

or the slow way…….



Guess which I chose?
Yup..... the slow way, on a Chinese Junk
The Low Isles is formed by the coral, making it one of the few like this and therefore unique in its structure. Snorkeling out there amongst the turtles, fish coral and other tourists, was a lot of fun! Apparently crocodiles sometimes do make it out to the reef & sharks are also fairly common! I swam in unison for 30 seconds with a 2 foot long turtle, but mostly in awe, with my nose on the Coral.
With all the tourist activity the fish are pretty tame, although they do have strict rules around no feeding and no standing on the living reef!

This one's called Elephant ear coral (obviously)

Back in Cairns shifting backpackers regularly in search of sleep, there’s heaps of em, I attended a barbeque which had Crocodile, Kangaroo and Emu on the Barbie..... Mate, but I chose the vegetarian option, preferring not to eat something that could eat me!

Cairns's first International Busking festival, was well attended, although in talking to the buskers afterwards, their feedback was, that it was hard working up the crowd to participate. I particularly liked the Irishman Patrick (in chains) and Wacky Chad (Pogo stick, unicycle) both slick operators, who improvised a lot on the spot!

On the Cairns Esplanade, a great place for walking, viewing the local birds feathered and otherwise, and the signs like below.
Achtung… Crocodiles inhabit this area, Attacks may cause injury or Death.......so you've been warned!!! Also watch out for ferocious skateboarders, scooter fanatics and practicing cocktail waiters (tricks with the shakers).
Walking past all the ultra modern and huge tourist boats, I spotted a replica of the Duyfken, The Dutch ship that landed on Cape York Peninsula in 1606.
Looked really authentic….apart from its location in the Cairns Marina!
As a budding muso , it’s not everyday I come across a three story music shop full of goodies.
This is part of the range of drum symbols at Buzz Music!
A guitarists dream on two floors, not sure if they had a sound proof room……probably! Oh to visit such a shop with an unlimited budget and time to indulge!
Back on the Waterfront, the Cairns Festival certainly went out with a Fizz and a Bang, out over the lagoon.

Well 3 months in Queensland comes to a close, I hope you enjoyed reading my blogs half as much as I did, because, you would have had a “Ripper of a time” Mate’s…..........Now it’s back to normality….whatever that is……..

Already planning the next one.....is Orebro next to Cortona?

Live like there's no tomorrow, if you don't wake up...it's happened!

Cheers
Jimu

Aussie Adventures Blog #5

Aussie Adventures Travel Blog #5

Well I’ve been slow in getting this next Blog up, difficulty in getting a good regular internet connection didn’t help. However I’ve been in some great places and met allot of amazing people. Once again I’ve added an audio file (this time shortened down to a more listenable length)
Yungaburra is 1 hour inland from Cairns on the Atherton Table lands at 820m above sea level. I stayed right on the edge of the rainforest which was teaming with wildlife, many birds, insects, frogs, butterflies, wallabies, kangaroos and snakes. Australia is full of poisonous creatures and plants, so I was rather wary keeping to the roads and regular walkways.

This is maybe why I seemed to be fascinated by some of the road signs like the ones below!

The wild life on my daily dog walks around Yungaburra is fantastic, with many recordings of birds, frogs, always something to see, or to listen to.
Mareeba only 40 minutes away by car, had its 10th Multi Cultural Festival, while I was there, the variety in foods and music impressive. For a small country area, this event was mostly very good quality.

This area (the Tablelands), is a plateau about 800m high & grows everything from wine, sugar cane to go with the coffee & tea. Tropical fruits and abundant wildlife including all manner of snakes, spiders and wonderful creepy crawlies, even the winters around here never get frosts with some days pushing 27 deg in September.

With the odd bike ride around the district Madi & I found these tame Brahman cattle, with skin like velvet.
I managed to find the beautiful Wrights Road Creek within easy walking distance (a little known track down to the river), spending lovely afternoons playing my sax down there in the rainforest. Pretty sure I saw a Platypus down there....the photos don’t do it justice!
Many highlights of my time on the tablelands, and it will be the sights and sounds of the environment. Interestingly the people in the tropics seem to retire for the day around 8-9pm.

The "Weather Board" below I spotted at the local Mareebra market.

I'm told the Kookaburras can take little chickens and are as bold as the sounds they make!

After nearly three weeks in the Rainforest, I went inland from Herberton looking for a flavour of the outback and found something like it (although I think I would have needed to go a further 100 klms to really sample the outback). I only saw one other car on this road and managed to chat to the occupants, a couple of NZ dairy farmers on holiday in their off season!


Colourful sunrises and sunsets are not (in my opinion) as common as in NZ, infact the light is very soft and clarity is hazy.

I enrolled in Cairn's first Busking Competition and within 10 minutes of registering and having a blow, was asked if I had a permit, that's it hanging of my sax strap. I'll tell you how the Busking Festival and competition went in the final blog of this Aussie Adventure...

Blog # 6 will follow promptly.......cheers mates

Jimu