Stock Water Race

This race carries water from the foothills out across the (usually) dry central Canterbury Plains to farms for the animals to drink. The impediments are to check the flow in the steeper parts.

Taken from Sheffield this shot also shows, on the left, the Great Alpine Highway, and on the right, the Midland Line, which carries the famous Trans Alpine Express.





Yesterday a person whose work I admire and whose comments I value referred to my country as being "down under." This is not something that can go unchallenged.

I had this "down under" business figured out when I was 6 or 7 years old. As soon as I was shown New Zealand's position on a globe I knew they had it wrong. I looked up at the sky, not down. Furthermore, no matter how high I managed to jump I always came back down. A bit later I noticed that top-heavy things are likely to topple, the heavy part always wants to be below the light part. Now, back to the globe. Which part is the heaviest? To me it was obvious.

So, all you people down under in the Northern Hemisphere-

I'm on top of the world!