Preview to Verse

Verse Titles Click title to open verse text and illustrations		Introduction to the verse of Rodd Sherwin Click on verse title to open text and illustrations Back to Rodd's Gallery Home Page
The Price of Carbon		Written while struggling to come to terms with, or make any sense of the proposed tax on carbon. Motivated in the absence of and the reluctance by, its exponent,s to provide us with any reasonable explanation, this is only the second verse written by Rodd Sherwin on a politic theme since writing his first piece of verse 20 years ago.( See The Lament of the Economic Goose at the end of the list of titles). Sadly little has changed!
At Home in - The Planet of the Ants		Everyone is familiar with them, from the scurrying little black ants that sometimes invade your home to the various garden varieties. They go about their business and are usually cause for only minor irritation around the home. Not many would be so aware of the common coastal brown ant, a little fellow you never see. He lives quietly underground - until the earth is softened with steady rain, then - Oh my goodness! His industry and earth moving capacity is truly amazing, transforming level mown lawns into a cratered alien landscape overnight. It is a regular unsightly occurrence that is truly as depressing as it is inevitable.
Cyclone 'Larry' Youtube narration		On 20th March 2006 Cyclone 'Larry' crossed the North Queensland Coast, the first category 5 cyclone in living memory to make landfall over urban areas. It developed in the Coral Sea on 17th March and tracked west towards the coast. Despite widespread destruction it arrived on a low tide which limited the impact of the storm surge and miraculousely no lives were lost. Spare a thought for those who lost homes and livelihoods and imagine the horror, trapped for hours in winds that reached 280 kilimeters per hour.
Of Drought and Flooding Rain		January 2011 will be ever remembered for the disastrous floods that swept down from the Toowoomba Range and the Wivenhoe catchment, sweeping away smaller communities and inundating large areas of Ipswich and of Brisbane. This verse is in memory of those who lost their lives and an irony of the conflicting weather patterns of our State. Cyclone Yasi followed soon after causing havoc to the North and further flooding across the breadth of the continent. The previous verse written after 'Cyclone Larry' in 2006 but for the title, reflects equally this event.
The Porcelain Throne - A Frog Story (Image by Aiden Jones)		Have you ever had a large green tree frog at home in an upstairs toilet? One that could somehow return from wherever it was taken. Yes! well this verse was written in response to a notice in the local paper that read - Does anyone have a frog story to tell?
Amanda - The Little Dolphin Youtube Narration		The story of a little dolphin, intended when written for the very young, but which evolved with an appeal for all ages. Amanda, was the first in a series of three illustrated stories written by Rodd Sherwin and was also where his use of verse naturally emerged in lieu of prose. The story describes daily events in the life of a young dolphin, and developing within the theme, an over-riding environmental moral.
Dayboro - The Town of Yester-Year		A short promotional verse for the little old town called Dayboro situated in the ranges north west of Brisbane.
Scarborough Fair		Written in a time when the Redciffe Peninsula was a forgotten poor cousin of neighbouring Brisbane suburbs, this descriptive verse has proved to have been a prophetic account of the history of Scarborough.
The Artist in Us All		Recognising that a latent talent, in some form or another, resides within us all. This verse was written at the time of the inauguration of the Scarborough Fair Arts Association
The Ghost - of Scarborough Fair		During the conversion of the old, disused waterfront cinema to an art gallery and through the ensuing years, I have been told various accounts of the ghost of an old sea-dog. More recent encounters by several artists warranted this record for posterity.
Charlie - Come Home to Roost		Charlie, is the subject of a large painting by Rodd Sherwin, of a pelican preening his tail feathers. It was mounted in a glass cabinet on the sidewalk by the entrance to the Scarborough Fair Art Gallery. Charlie was stolen one night, but clues as to his movements and whereabouts filtered back. Ultimately he was noticed at a picture framer's shop. The whole story emerged when related by a lady who had seen and bought the painting at a garage sale. The back of the painting had been utilised as the notice board announcing the sale and the painting itself was in a fairly poor state. Back at Scarborough Fair, Charlie was restored and framed complete with the sign on the reverse side.
Ode to Sidney P.		In memory of my friend Sid, whose energy and enthusiasm within the Scarborough Fair Art Gallery inspired us all - 'He worked a theme, we had not seen and his colours, were the best'.
A World Apart Youtube narration		Second of the illustrated stories by Rodd Sherwin, A World Apart is a nostalgic account of daily life in a coastal village in Papua New Guinea. Described through the person of a village youth, it is a recollection of the impressions of the author of an idylic lifestyle in stark contrast with the hustle and bustle of city life. But even in a carefree and laid-back environment, this story highlights that in the lives of mortal men, drama is always close at hand.
The Dugongs - of MacArthur Bay		A themed over-view for the radio serial 'The Dugongs of MacArthur Bay'. Produced and directed by Richard Lancaster, Redcliff's very own culture vulture, the serial tells his story of the conflict within a mythical coastal town, somewhere along the Southern Queensland coast. The old town, established by one, Fergus MacArthur, is now struggling for survival and two factions are at odds over a major development project and its potential effect on the welfare of the endangered dugong.
Andrew MacArthur - and Doctor Kelly Snow		A principal character in the radio serial, Andrew MacArthur who is a probable descendant of pioneering Fergus, returns to MacArthur Bay to trace his roots.
Melissa Miller - and Her Son Douglas		Melissa, another character from the radio serial, also claims to be descended from Fergus. Excluded from the MacArthur inheritance she is caught in the middle of the town's struggle for survival.
The Coming of Tiata		n ambitious project to fulfil a dream. This story was characterised and written for my friend Captain Pumpkin (Kevin Baldwin) on his fiftieth birthday. Tiata is a specialised diving expedition vessel expertly crafted here in Brisbane by two guys known in the industry as 'Heckle and Jeckle'. The keel had been laid and the hull planked years earlier for another party, but left incomplete alongside the railway line at Thornside, where she was watched over by a cantankerous hound called Reebock. Kevin and I fell foul of a shipbroker when negotiating her purchase and were disparaged as two 'wood ducks' from New Guinea. But once on track, I visited Tiata on a weekly basis, acting as liason with the builders and Kevin in Port Moresby and we laboured long and hard to achieve optimum style and functionalty. In the team was a bearded 'bikie', by the name of Baker, who of course came to work on his Harley, and he fashioned exquisite fittings in stainless steel. Launching the land-locked vessel was a major project in itself, it required the heaviest mobile cranes, the removal of overhead cables and road medium strips. The launch could only be achieved at the highest tide in Lota Creek were a narrow channel had been marked to the bay. The name Tiata is after a mythical little dolphin and nearing completion I fashioned a little dolphin figurehead so that - 'By this, she'd remember me'.
The Legend of Tiata - the Little White Dolphin Youtube narration		Following the launch of Tiata, I was asked by Kevin Baldwin if I would write the story of Tiata. Of a legend from the south coast of Papua New Guinea about a little white dolphin who kept sailors safe at sea and led them to all the wonders hidden in the ocean. The legend of Tiata is the third of the illustrated stories by Rodd Sherwin, written in two parts - First on how the legend came about and the second part, a first hand inter-action with the legend through his eyes and subsequently, of the coming of the vessel Tiata.
The Lament - of the Economic Goose		Where the verse began, disenchantment with our politicians that just had to be put into words. Written in 1991, nothing has really changed, successive Government budgets are set on what they want to spend and revenues raised accordingly. It is of course a reverse philosophy of what sustains private enterprise. It explains, I guess, why overall taxes, in whatever guise, are always increased and never reduced. How an overriding goods and services tax, has not relieved individuals from personal tax on incomes well below the poverty line and why? despite initial assurances, many inefficient secondary taxes have not been repealed despite assurances that are now conveniently forgotten.
	Lyrical Verse List
Mad Dog Morgan	Spotify – Mad Dog Morgan - Single by Rodd Sherwin	The Story of the Australian Bushranger Daniel Morgan - When interred on a prison hulk, you were said to be 'Down the River' and let out on parole a convict became known as a 'Ticket Man'.
Our World of Music		Often taken forgranted, music is with us all the days of our lives.
The Grass is Greener		The Grass is always greener on the other side of the fence - Written as lyrics for a song
The Old Paddle Steamer		Who among us, has taken a cruise on an old Paddle Steamer on the Murray River?
The Power of One		The faithful around the world believe their God is the only one - and so He is!
The Price of Progress		Musing through the City of Brisbane - Written as lyrics for a song
The Highwayman The Rime of the Ancient Mariner	YOUTUBE { click on title	THE RETURN OF THE TROUBADOUR a free style composition and the original recital of the classic English poems - The Highwayman - by Alfred Noyes and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner - by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Playing card games Golf Cricket Football	Click Game Selection to open	Card Games have been a popular pastime for centuries. This trilogy of playing card games was developed years ago by Rodd Sherwin and has since laid dormant in a bottom drawer. Now the medium of the Internet provides the opportunity to circulate this novel entertainment. The three games, developed around our favourite sports are played closely around the format and rules of the respective games. An ideal way to fill in time on a rainy day when the real game has been washed out. A set of precise instructions for each game, together with the necessary scoring sheets and forms are included and can be downloaded and stored on your home computer. The sets of instructions can be printed and retained while the relevant score sheets required for each game are designed to be printed on A4 sheets and or copied for use at any time. (select portrait or landscape as appropriate.)
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