Dear all,

As I've said previously I'll be traveling a lot this year.

Since I sent out the last "New Posts" note I've returned from the States, spent a couple of days at home, went into Alice Springs for the annual Northern Territory Writer's Festival, spent a few more days at home, then spent a couple of weeks in South Australia doing research for my book on Australian Aboriginal Bird Knowledge for publication sometime in 2010.

Then home for a few precious days and now I'm back on the road again - this time around the Katherine region.

I'm in Katherine now and will be heading of westwards later today.

I'll try my best to keep you posted on movements and interesting things I see along the way!

Meanwhile, here is a summary of my recent posts to The Northern Myth over the past few weeks:

- Eye of the Storm Writers Festival, Alice Springs, May 1 - 4 - an introductory note to this wonderful event - I chaired a session titled "Roadkill"...

- Penny Olsen & François le Vaillant’s Histoire Naturelle des Perroquets - a post about my friend Penny Olsen's research into an early French naturalist and a (now sadly) lost parrot;

- The NT’s new Folk Devils - 12 Hells Angels and a Fink - Part 1 of my look at the latest moral panic to be stirred up by the forces of good (?) in the NT;

- The Natural History of Selborne - Gilbert White and a dead Moose - a brief look at one of my favourite books - always a good source for information and inspiration;

- Police powers and bikers in the NT - “Trust me I’m a Policeman” - Part 2 of the story on Police, Bikers and the stupidity that prevails in the law and order debate in the NT;

- Me and Andrew McMillan - In Conversation at Red Kangaroo Books, Alice Springs - a short note about one of the side events at the Alice Springs Writer's Festival;

- Outback Stores takes a dump on confidential Centrelink data at Yuendumu - monopolies, negligence and who not to trust with "private information" - particularly if you are a blackfella!;

- Bird of the week - Kanpanparlala - Crested Bellbird, Oreoica gutturalis - one of my favourite songbirds of arid Australia - and a very important bird for many Aboriginal language groups right across Australia;

- Eye of the Storm - Alice Springs Writers’ Festival - first two days - 1 & 2 May 2009 - some pictures and notes from this years Festival;

- Roadkill of the week - Kangaroos & Wallabies of the NT - a selection of photos of dead marsupials and some thoughts...

- Eye of the Storm - Alice Springs Writers’ Festival - 3 & 4 May 2009 - no words - only photos!

- NT’s Keystone Cops trash the Finks MC clubhouse - Part 3 of my look at Police - Biker - Politics in the NT and beyond;

- Five days on the road and I’m gonna be in the Coorong tonight… - a short note from a cold, soggy town in South Australia;

- El Ritual del Hombre-Pajaro - the bird-man cult of Rapa Nui - from my presentation to this years Society of Ethnobiology Conference at Tulane University in New Orleans;

- Art Centre of the week - Iwantja Arts - Indulkana, South Australia - one of the many small Aboriginal Art Centres dotted across the central Australian landscape - unfortunately it was closed when I came past on the way back to Alice Springs;

- If an MIS fell in the forest…the Timbercorp & Great Southern “industry of greed” in the NT - a story about the collapse of hopes, dreams and flawed forestry schemes on the Tiwi Islands north of Darwin;

- The NT Government’s “Growth towns” - the desperation of a failed government in a failed state - pride before the fall - a look at a flawed policy announcement by a dying government;

- ROADKILL the book: Rule # 1 - DO NOT SWERVE! - a brief look at a book by Len Zell on a subject close to my heart!;

- A Letter from Darwin - Sue Stanton’s view of the NT Intervention…and more - some thoughts from a long-time friend published in an e-journal called Borderlands;

- Great Southern on the Tiwi Islands - Timber, Fear, Intimidation and a great tax dodge - more about failed forestry schemes on the Tiwi Islands;

- The NT Intervention, “Working Future” and the myth of evidence-based policy in the NT - my thoughts about recent trends in policy development and implementation in the NT and beyond;

- How Scrymgour and homelands might undo NT Labor - my early thoughts on an unfolding political crisis;

- Nicolas Rothwell, The Red Highway launch and “implausible nonsense” - has Nicolas Rothwell come up with a new form of writing?

- Roll up, roll up and watch NT Labor eat itself alive - some more thoughts on the train-wreck that is NT Labor politics right now!;

- Roadkill of the week - Red Fox Vulpes vulpes - they may be a pest species but they sure are beautiful!.

OK - that's all for now - as ever ENJOY, have a laugh and please, please - register and leave a comment if you have some thoughts...

Best to you all,

Bob


Robert Gosford
Crikey.com
The Northern Myth blog
http://blogs.crikey.com.au/northern/
Yuendumu, NT
Australia