Day 8 of 2012

Apologies for the delay. I am away on a short holiday, and will publish today's full post ASAP.

Just about everybody at least over the age of 30 in Australia have heard of 'Kodak'. We are now living in the 'digital age' where the famous Kodak brand will not survive. The Los Angeles Times writes: This digital age is now on the verge of claiming its most iconic victim: Kodak, itself one of America's great innovators and the erstwhile king of film and photographs. The real tragedy, though, is that Kodak helped invent the technology that gradually wiped out the demand for its main products, but couldn't capitalize on it. And much of the entertainment industry is facing the same dilemma. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Kodak was trying to sell patents in an effort to stave off filing for bankruptcy. It's conceivable that the company could rebound, but its fundamental problem is that it was built around the practice of physically capturing, storing and copying images. Digital cameras and online photo albums don't just threaten Kodak's raison d'etre; they render it obsolete. Clive James makes no bones about the fact that he believes  the most beautiful sight in the world is a beautiful woman.   These are some of the thoughts that prompted this poem. 25 June 2011  For a Fleeting Moment For a fleeting moment their paths cross as the city comes  to life. Her deft fingers play freely over the compact screen as she toys with worlds of trivial fascination; his gnarled hands reach deep into the pockets of his overcoat, a threadbare fortress against the chill air. She jogs lightly on the spot maintaining the momentum of her morning workout,  tongue of blonde hair gently teasing the hollow of her arched neck; he grasps the street sign to anchor against the giddy rush of   early traffic, his haunted face gaunt and grey. Her smooth shoulders curve and glisten in the early light; he bows beneath the burden of another day. She does not notice him, and when the lights turn green she bursts into the full rhythm of her stride, a silent symphony of ease and grace. He watches her disappear across the aching years. Tim Murray

This is a roll of film used in the famous Kodak Brownie Camera. All these pre-digital technologies will now be placed in museums. This "Fire Alarm" is on the wall of the Balmain Fire Station on Darling Street.