Beyond The Fringe

Last year, the smartest cockatoo ever passed away of natural causes at the age of 29. Charlie was much beloved by her human family and fans across the Australian continent over which she roamed with her performing mate, Pirate Pete.

We caught up with the Pirate recently and obtained this video of some of the lovely Charlie’s antics. The charismatic female sulphur-crested cockatoo was highly intelligent, affectionate and good humoured, more so than many humans.

Cockatoo is a Malaysian word meaning pincher or old father.

In which direction is the girl spinning, anti-clockwise or clockwise?

Can you make her spin in both directions?

Find out more here.

This dichotomous animation seems analogous to the shameful assassination of Benazir Bhutto yesterday. Depending on the observer, she either died from banging her head on the car sunroof, or she was shot, whilst depending on the mouthpiece, her assassins were either Al Qaeda fanatics or Musharraf supporters.

Pakistan is certainly reeling at present. Benazir’s calm resolute attitude and determination to steer the country toward democracy in the midst of impoverishment and ignorance was an inspiration. Her sainthood just might do the trick.

Addendum:

Bilawal takes up the cudgels on behalf of his mum - ‘democracy is the best revenge’. Take that, you dictator Musharraf. Yet in a country with minimal availability of decent education unsoaked in religious twaddle, democracy has poor soil in which to flourish. Religious madrassahs are often the only option for non-city Pakistani youth to obtain any education whatsoever. The other essential components for democracy … a free parliament and judiciary are lacking, whilst the last, a free press, like education, is limited to city areas. Musharraf has kept an iron lid on the god botherers whilst benefiting from their implementation of primitive teachings to keep the people ignorant and impotent, and the country destabilised.

“I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.”

- Stephen Roberts

Horror of horrors, the ague has struck. The mind wanders, the brow heats, the chest heaves, the throat drowns in nasty chunky phlegm and what is left of the voice curses the miserable infant nephew who transmitted his filthy lurgy. Fringe saw him touch the bloody pizza, and had no more after that, so the vile invaders must have projected surreptitiously through the air to her unsuspecting nostrils.

It’s not often Fringe is sick enough to actually take to her bed, and this is one such occasion. Husband is solicitous, makes lots of cups of lemon tea, soup, brings cough medicine, pounds one’s back and sympathises delightfully. The little toady nephew and his doting father will pay for this! The damages will increase exponentially for every extra day Fringe is laid up.

Taking to one’s bed does NOT stop clients’ phone calls or emails, which if anything increase in volume and completely unrealistic demands. It makes recovery unwanted as work will be annoying dense. Neither does one, like in a cushy paid job, receive compo or sickness benefits. Grrrrrrrr.

As some sort of mitigating compensation, Fringe has learnt that one of her stories has been published in the March 07 Skive Magazine Quarterly. More cred stashed into the literary saddle bag. In celebration, the next post will be another story from last year by Fringe, featuring the now demoted Amanda.

Welcome to Fringedweller’s blog where the veil is withdrawn and arcane mysteries revealed.