Blooming

This lovely daffodil has just opened, and there are a few more on the way.

This what I planted in the mystery pot for a friend in March. I'll have to ask her if hers are open yet.

Elephant Safari

I was meeting some friends in the city, so took the opportunity to go looking for some more elephants on the way.

Who could resist "Wooly Mali" by Mini Goss?

She's the cuddliest elephant of all!

The city seemed full of school groups, and the children were really enjoying the elephants.

"Jimbo" by Janie Fearon above, and "Bromley One" by David Bromley below, in Federation Square.

Beside St Paul's Cathedral artist Graeme Base's "Night and Day" leopard-spotted Mali, accompanying the commercially-produced "Mali Turns the City Pink":

Roped off for some reason in the city square, is "City in Mali" by Ralf Kempken:

Outside the Town Hall, two more:

"Endangered Asia" by Kelly Just, above, and "Mali, Protector of all Animals" by Deborah Halpern, below.

I love that someone has garlanded her! I think she is the most beautiful of the elephants I've seen so far.

Busy Busy Busy!

I'm nearly as busy as these bees!

Lots of coming and going today, with full pollen bags. Yes, there are weeds beside the hive, but it's not an easy place to get to. Later in the day an extra storey was added to the bees' home. Here's hoping that with lots of space to grow they won't feel the need to swarm the way they did last year.

In the city this afternoon, I bumped into a few more elephants. I loved this one's elephant slippers!

Mali's Winter Wonderland by Pat Minahan.

I was heading to my lecture and barely had time to snap a quick shot of this one on my way past:

Enceladus by Ghostpatrol. I'll have to go back and read its plaque to understand that, but there was no time today.

After the lecture I snapped Baroque Baby by Robert Hague on my way to the tram:

So I've survived 4 lectures. (Seven to go...)

I was happy to find the latest Ottobre Design magazine had arrived when I got home. I think it has a lot more potential than the Burda I bought a week or two back. Not that can see much sewing happening in the near future.

Beautiful

The stunning flower of Magnolia "Vulcan":

Attracting lots of attention today at what is apparently Australia's best large garden centre. Amazing to see such a huge flower on a relatively small plant. Unfortunately it had no discernible perfume.

Four Elephants

Four more elephants spotted today:

Clockwise from top left:
Forest Rides on the Elephant's Back by Pamela Conder
Mali is Listening to the Earth by Victor Holder

Elephas Maximus by Sharon Muir
Eltham Copper Butterfly Story by Karen Rawady

Patchwork Elephant

This is the first of the "Mali in the City" elephants I've seen since they were installed last week:

She is "Patch" by Amy Robinson, and she is at Victoria Market. An appropriate one to see first!
I wish they had an Android app for the location of the 50 Malis, not just an iPhone one. I think I'll probably try and visit them all, anyway.

Desirable

Poisonouslessness is a very good characteristic in a food storage container!

It's also interesting that although their English is "not quite right", the writer does seem to know the difference between "it's" and "its".