Sunday, December 12, 2010

O dear


Yesterday, in one of those moments when you feel lucky to be alive, I steered a crew in an OC6 through the harbour. The sun was shining, the wind was in our hair, and the eggshell of the Opera House was gleaming in the distance. There were ferries and yachts and pleasure craft everywhere, and our little boat boldly made its way though all of the chaos. The wind was behind us, the crew's timing was perfect, and we rode gentle rolling waves in towards the harbour bridge.

Today, I looked out of the window at another beautiful sky, only to be assaulted by this statement. Is it a smoke ring? Is it the second letter of a cry for help? No, it's a sign, desecrating the beautiful blue Sydney sky, that an American mega-celebrity and "world's most influential person" is in town. (Watch out for terrible puns about "the Oprah House".) Apparently they have also, cravenly, allowed a neon "O" to appear on the harbour bridge - I was spared this sight yesterday; it might have taken the sheen off the day. I'm happy that she is female, and black, and ascended from a terribly impoverished background to her current heights, but I don't want her to have the sky too.

2 comments:

Mancsoulsister said...

This even made it onto kiwi news! Mancsoulhusband asked 'who gives a s**t about Oprah Winfrey being in Sydney?' With everything else that is going on in the world at the moment, I am inclined to agreed.

Beautiful picture!

LottieP said...

Agreed. I think believing in Oprah Winfrey (whatever/whoever she is) allows people to stop doing a bit more about problems in their own lives.