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Snowed in on the Central Highlands

It's tempting to go for a walk around the lake, drive 23 km down the road for a coffee at the Hungry Wombat Cafe or hike around Lake St. Claire rather than write BUT we're snowed in. Kel who visited for the weekend can't get back to Hobart to catch a plane to Melbourne. The roads are closed. It's snowed for 24 hours off and on. The world outside is white and magical and the fire inside is glowing. Nothing to do but eat chocolate cake and write! I should be productive. Monday 8 pm - still snowed in - road closed between Derwent Bridge and Tarraleah - so Kel has borrowed the laptop so she can work!

Cold Conference but some hot tips

T he Australian History Association Conference in the amazing UTAS (University of Tasmania) Academy of Arts building: machinery and space but very cold. Definitely a 'coat' Conference, though the food was definitely warming (soup, hot muffins) - a bit lonely as I am used to people chatting in queues or after leaving presentations. Networking happens in the breaks but I felt a little wallflowerish (Yes, unusual for me!) and probably missed the opportunity to kick start some new thinking patterns. Great artworks on the wall by students and my favorite was 'Berliner Dom' (I was warmer there last winter) and the Teapot style adult 'Polly Pockets'. A couple of good contacts: Research about the movement between Hobart and Dunedin which clarifies why Beatrice Wilcken was there for a couple of years. (exciting!) Research that precipitated thinking about the purpose, motive, impact of writing in margins Research about the use of court records and building individ

Principal or Princess

Trooper Floyd, tired from a 'Day on the Diggings' (1850)  relaxes in a 21st Century Principal's Office. After a term as Acting Principal with the non-stop plethora of challenges that are part of the job: dead rats to bury; technology hiccups - dead photocopiers, dropped laptops; the worry of purchasing furniture/ shelving for our new library-technology space when my degrees are in education NOT design; trucks that smash the water meter 2 hours before 400 children descend on the school and want to use the toilet; dealing with student learning issues to maximise outcomes and coaching staff;  the opportunity to escape to our favourite J & J house in the Great Lakes area of Tassie and do some writing is my idea of bliss. Nestled amongst the gumtrees First I am attending The Australian Historical Society's Conference:  History At The Edge Conference   ash cloud and the demise of Tiger airlines permitting with a paper exploring the similarities between the fair

Another Grimm year!

                                  Olga Ernst wrote Fairytales from the land of the Wattle in 1904 at the age of sixteen. Ernst cleverly placed the old world faerie folk of Europe that she knew from listening to the Grimm brothers fairytales and placed them into the new Australian landscape delighting Australian children. Ernst created a fairyland that Australian children could relate to and she says in her book introduction, "These are written in the hope that they will... win approval of those to whom a loving study of tree and flower, bird and insect, and the association of familiar elements of old world fairy-lore with Australian surroundings, commend themselves. I remember watching videos of Snow White (1937) (Too scary for children when released. My grandparents left my mother with a babysitter), Cinderella (1950)and Sleeping Beauty (1959) but haven't seen The Princess and the Frog (2009), an adapta

Once upon a time, mate.

These are the stories I have defined as the first Australian fairytales. My choice is open to interpretation.  The definition of fairytales for analytical research in my thesis is that a fairytale is usually a short and simple story that features folkloric characters such as elves, trolls, goblins, giants, fairies, witches or other magical beings and the results of their interactions with humans. Talking animals or inanimate objects that speak may also be included. A happy ending is never guaranteed and there may be a moral message. 1.      187 0 Roland, Sarah Anne Charlotte (pseud. Gumsucker), Rosalie's Reward; or The Fairy Treasure, Wreford, Ballarat, Vic. 15 p. 2.      1871 Desda (pseud.), The Rival Fairies, Turner, Sydney, NSW. [From Mason's The Australian Christmas Story Book] 24 p. ; 17 cm. 3.      1871 Lockeyear, J. R, Mr. Bunyip; or Mary Somerville's Ramble: An Australian Story for Child

Judged by the audience.

I started this blog as a way to reflect on intriguing aspects of my research. I wonder about who is reading this blog? It is nice to get emails and the occasional comment.  I ponder about  the regular visitor from Slovenia  and am delighted that I was discovered by Heyne family members quite by accident.   The most visited posts are: A PhD! What's in it for me?  Sept 12,2010 Teaching in the blood   Oct 19, 2010 Rosalie's Reward    Oct 16, 2010 Tassie Tales    Aug 15, 2010 Toxic Friendships    Jun 19, 2010 Producing a poster - AARE Conference   Oct 24, 2010 So... how popular are the Grimms?  March 6 2011

Hanging out in the fog

Brandenburg Gate, January 2011 With few customers a hot coffee is  always a consolation.  This is my favourite holiday snap. I am drawn to the incongruity of the seemingly NQR (not quite right) character (it's a German historical precinct not the North Pole) with a coffee. At the Brandenburg Gate, performers, dressed as WW2 soliders, stand in prime positions and expect payment from tourists who feel the need for a photo opportunity.  This has been feedback week:   1. Monday feedback on Thesis 2. Tuesday feedback on Staff Attitudes to School Survey 3. Wednesday feedback at gym. I feel empathy with the reindeer - will he learn the hard way that he's got it wrong?  But, like the coffe-break reindeer, I also see the sense in reflecting over coffee and ... coffee at Seven Seeds, Carlton is very good.  Feedback question: So, how do you think I’m progressing? In response to feedback here are my SMART goals: 1. writing to a timeline/structure before next meeting with supp

Capturing the essence of 'Fairytales' for German translation

This week I revamped my poster, attempting to simplify it to send to Prof. Dr. Achim Barsch who has a student who is willing to translate it for me. It's difficult to know what to put in or leave out. An exercise in succinctly capturing the essence for another market.

Australian Society of Authors

The Experimedia room in the State Library of Victoria was a surprise. Most of my time at the SLV has been spent hunched over microfiche readers in dark corrals persistently trying to unearth tiny deposits of information on Ernst.  The light-filled bluestone lined courtyard  (once a carpark between buildings) with its modern atrium ceiling and digital tools is an intriguing blend of past and future.  Last night I was delighted that Hazel Edwards invited me to be part of the celebration of the ASA 's 'rebirth' in Victoria, with the opportunity to meet other writers and gain a compelling insight into the future of books and authorship in the digital age. 

Letter to the Editor (but not in German)

  I was fortunate to be in Kassel researching the influence of the Brothers Grimm on the writing of one of Australia's first fairytale writers, Olga Ernst. When I attended the Opening Ceremony of the temporary Bruder-Grimm-Museum, I  was impressed with the quality of the exhibits. The visual imagery of the clothes line, hung with strips of text from the most loved fairytales in the world, drew me into the world of Grimm -  the installation seemed to have been plucked from a peasant's backyard. Being able to see the editorial changes in some of the text will be particularly interesting to those visitors who have only read the later edition of their works. With my very limited German I appreciated that the text is also being provided in English. My friends Thomas and Gerlinde sent me the text of the article 'Im schlauraffenland' 22 jan 2011 and I was pleased to discover that there is an English version as I am only able to read a little of the German edition I was able

Bruder Grimm Centre -visually appealing

A temporary, but visually appealing, home for the Brothers Grimm. I was fortunate to be in Kassel researching the influence of the Brothers Grimm on the writing of one of Australia's first fairytale writers, Olga Ernst, arriving the day before the Opening of the  interm Bruder Grimm Centre (the original is being renovated and will be completed in 2014) . strips of shredded text Although my German is very limited, the passion of the speakers for 'their fairytales' was obvious and the audience was as devoted. Two large rooms are lined with exhibits that carefully and sequentially will take the visitor through the lives and work of the Grimms.   I  was impressed with the quality of the exhibits. The visual imagery of the clothes line, hung with strips of text from the most loved fairytales in the world, drew me into the world of Grimm -  the installation seemed to have been plucked from a peasant's backyard.  Being able to see the editorial changes in s

Exploring the influence of the Grimm Brothers

Rothenburg ob Tauber used in Grimm film. I was intrigued to learn there is high interest around the world about the influence of the Grimms on writing.  Olga Ernst's admittance that she was influenced in her fairytale writing by the Grimms makes her one of this select group. I intend to contact the  group in Canada doing similar work to me.  Since my return I have been in contact with  Dr. Vanessa Joosen (Antwerp University) on who is editing a book on the   translation and reception of Grimm's fairy tales around the world believing that    'A systematic history of the translation of these tales and their reception outside of Germany still needs to be written, and parallels between the reception in different countries or parts of the world are yet largely unexplored. With this volume, the editors hope to gain insight into the afterlife of the Grimm tales in translation, and how they merged with the fairy-tale traditions of other countries and inspired new writin

Das Hildebrandslied - January 18th

Professor Dr.  Barsch arrange for a student guide Annika to accompany us to view some of the oldest manuscripts in Kassel at the Library. The jewel for us was the first scholarly edition produced by the Brothers Grimm (1812) in pride of place next to the two pieces of famous manuscript, The Lay of Hildebrand (800).  A heroic lay that is one of the earliest   literacy work in German written in Old High German alliterative verse. It tells of the tragic encounter in battle between a son and the father he does not recognise. It is written on the first and last pages of a theological manuscript.    There was also an early Gutenburg Bible which was amazing. I think what we have that is comparable in Australia.  Annika Berressem, a student at Kassel University offered to be our guide  and with our friend  Thomas translated much of the notes beside the rare books.