NYC trip with Jem, October 2009

 

I was honoured to have such a beautiful travelling companion and had an absolute ball.

Click on the photo collage to see some of the images in detail.

Arrived at the Pod

The view of, and from, our hotel room

Walkley nomination

Holy cow!

Sexual Warfare in the Democratic Republic of Congo is up for a Walkley award, Australia's top journalism prize, for Best Online Journalism. Winners announced on November 26.

And my very clever tomcat is up for the Best Non-Fiction Book award for Firepower.

What others have said about Sexual Warfare:

• Duckrabbit: Multimedia -Sexual Warfare, Rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo, July 7


• New York Times Lens: Must See: Compelling Web Sites, July 20


• Innovative Interactivity: Sydney Morning Herald knows great multimedia design, July 27

Celebrating over Lebanese takeaway and Mumm

League's annus horribilis

Because I didn't get my fix of bad boys with the biker story: presenting Rugby League's Annus Horribilis. It's the football code that keeps on giving.

The Bikie Wars

Our uber-labour-intensive project on Australia's bikie wars. Lotsa cool graphics. Even did the music for this one! www.smh.com.au/bikies

Something to herald spring ... and to close winter

Springtime. Star jasmine is scenting the night air through open windows and cars are already filling up the beach suburbs on weekends.

Here are a couple of meals perfect for the change of season: a sprightly, green soup to awaken the tastebuds and cheer in spring, and a slow-cooked veal ragu to serve over pasta, for a final taste of winter. And to eat alongside an episode of The Sopranos.

I dreamt up this soup in April after a long North American winter of starch, processed food and wizened root vegetables. On a day when the muddy snow had finally melted away and new buds were unfurling on bare branches, I spied some baby zucchini in the produce market. Tucked up in rows like newborns: tender little mites no longer than my fingers.

Never before had the arrival of spring seemed as exhilarating! I turned them into a lively green soup of fresh new vegies with a burst of lemon – new life in a bowl. The end result is a light broth made creamy from the addition of fresh ricotta cheese: rich and sweet and utterly delectable. Once you try it you'll never go back to the pre-packaged kind.

Any young, fresh spring greens will do; apart from the ones used here you could also try asparagus, sorrel, pea shoots and nettles. Leeks aside, the vegies should be barely cooked, retaining a bit of crunch.

It's also an incredibly quick dinner, especially if you use peas straight out of the freezer. I find it satisfying enough for a main meal, especially if you serve it with slices of sourdough to add ballast.

What about something for those rainy nights when spring loses its flimsy hold on September? How about the slow-cooked veal ragu I mentioned last week but cruelly didn't provide a recipe for.

Sexual Warfare

My latest project is live on The Sydney Morning Herald website: Sexual Warfare: rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo. My ode to MediaStorm's style of multimedia. With superb photojournalism from Kate Geraghty.

Melbourne weekend

Saturday morning: Best-selling author at a Sydney Airport bookstore


Saturday night: Min and Seamus at Pizza Meine Liebe, Northcote (try the potato and white truffle pizza)


Sunday brunch: Working the corner at Mitte, Fitzroy North (have the cinnamon poached pear and apple macadamia crumble and marscapone)


Sunday night: Catching the tram to Cutler & co, Fitzroy


Tanqueray 10, tonic and pink grapefruit


The salad Lyonnaise with cubes of smoked tongue, garlic sausage, pig's ear, confit duck gizzards and bruléed duck yolk


Chocolate dessert with "soil"


Min makes short work of hers


Honourable food mentions go to Degraves Espresso off Flinders Lane for Saturday brunch (espresso, eggs benedict and the Saturday Age) and Cafe Vue for Monday breakfast (croque monsieur, latte, John Bracks review).

My brave, brilliant friend

Professor Chris O'Brien "fundamentally changed lives" and left a lasting national legacy in fighting cancer, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told mourners at the renowned surgeon's state funeral today.

After decades of battling other people's cancer as a head and neck surgeon, Professor O'Brien succumbed to the disease himself late last week.

Saturday night, Balmoral

Petaluma Croser with Maggie Beer's Pheasant Farm paté and other goodies. Love your new beach pad Jem!

Wives of War: Heroism at Home

Here's my latest project, launched in time for Anzac Day. Women from three generations talk of the price they paid and are still paying for Australia's defence contribution: Wives of War: Heroism at Home

I'm physically wrecked after this! Editing the stories took so much time and emotional energy, but I'm very pleased with the result.

It's the first multimedia production produced by The Sydney Morning Herald (or Fairfax Media for that matter) where the video and stills were all shot by a member of the newsroom staff, photographer Brendan Esposito, and the first production where all video editing was done inside the newsroom, by yours truly. Everything was shot on the same camera as well: the Canon 5D.

Me, visualised

Word cloud of my LinkedIn profile. Isn't it pretty?

Gourmet Queenstown

Green lip mussels and Chard Farm Pinot Gris at Fishbone


Breakie (eggs, hollandaise, smoked salmon) at at Joe's Garage




Discovering some funky local pinot gris


Loading up on carbs on the eve of the Routeburn Track


Pikelets at Joe's before embarking on the tramp


Venison pie at a pitstop on the post-tramp bus ride back to Queenstown


French onion soup with Sam Neill's wine at Solera Vino


Long lunch in the sun at Amisfield winery











Quick visit to Eichardt's en route to the airport for the world's best seafood chowder

Routeburn Track

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