Burning of the Vines

I've always wanted to go to an event like Burning Man, but I don't like deserts, heat, sweating like a pig, camping and being covered in sand.

So, I figured the next best thing was to go to the 'Burning of the Vines', which was held at my local winery on August 13th, 2017.

"Originating in France, the Burning of the Vines marks the end of harvest and the Winter pruning. Tradition involves collecting grapevine cuttings then burning them to cleanse the vineyards and celebrate the coming of the new bud bursts; a symbolism of death and rebirth by fire.
Sirromet’s Inaugural Burning of the Vines Festival, will be an evening celebrating fine wines, entertainment and food around the blaze of burning vines and bonfire and FIREWORKS!"

It didn't seem to have the Burning Man vibe going for it, but there was food, wine, music and fire, so that was good enough for me.

This winery is the home to the 'Day on the Green' shows, which they have a few times a year here with some pretty big acts, as their 'wall of fame' at the winery displays.

I've seen a few shows here myself over the years -
A Day on the Green under the White?

I didn't get to see Tom Jones play here though, but I did see him play the Byron Bay Bluesfest not long ago.

The last 'Day on the Green' I saw here was at the beginning of the year when Don Henley headlined -
Don's Dirty Laundry Downunder

There's nothing on the cards that grabs me for the rest of the year.

I could have got Stevie Nicks tickets, but I'm not into her music ... and now the show is sold out anyway.

But I'm kind of burnt out coming to this venue at the moment.

That was a bonfire joke, as I doubt I could ever get burned out coming here, even if I stumbled into the fire accidentally:-)

It's always been a debate ... usually around campfires ... as to what draws people to fire.
Why are humans still drawn to fire after thousands of years?
"Humans have long been drawn to fire; our ancient ancestors used it for warmth, protection and cooking.
In fact, fire was critical for our evolution.
But thousands of years later, with all our modern electric lighting and cooking facilities, fire has become a comfort rather than a necessity in the developed world.
So why then are humans still fascinated by fire?
One suggestion is that humans are born with an instinct to learn how to build and control fire, and if we don't get the chance to master it, we remain attracted to it as adults.
"If you were a child born 10,000 or 50,000 or 100,000 years ago you needed fire to survive — you had to learn how to master fire," Daniel Fessler, professor of anthropology at the University of California in Los Angeles, said."

I think I'd rather learn how to make a good bottle of wine and control my drinking, rather than a fire;-)

Actually, I was my own designated driver on the day, so I wasn't drinking any wine throughout the day and night of the burning of the vines, just the odd mid-strength beer and strong cups of black coffee.

There were even fire dancers roaming around the bonfire on the other side of the fence, so I guess I don't need to tell you that I thought they looked hot;-)

Who needs to look at the stars when you have flickering embers floating up into the night sky in front of you?

I spotted a couple of pushers selling syringes and donuts, so I wandered up and said to them,"what's up Homers, can you slip me a mainline treat?"

I paid for my score then got away from the van fast, as I thought that an operation like that couldn't help but attract the cops;-)

The donuts seemed to be a big hit with the crowd, too ... lame pun intended;-)

Once the fire had almost burned itself out the fireworks began.

Turned out to be a pretty good day down Sirromet way that Sunday, but if they couldn't have a burning man, they should have at least had a hot chook;-)

UPDATE: August 25th, 2017

I've got a stack of old newspapers piling up on my kitchen table, which I'm yet to flick through, but I'm working my way through them at the moment in what seems to me like some nightmarish "in-box" on the office desk of my life, which I'm trying to work my way out of ... if that makes any figurative sense to you, dear reader.

I love popular newspaper stories, as it's like taking the pulse of the "collective unconsciousness" to see just what is welling up into the current timeframe at the moment.

I thought it was interesting that this story appeared in my August 16th, 2017 newspaper right after the weekend of the Burning of the Vines at my local winery.

Cane farmers in my home state it seems are bringing back the burn after Cyclone Debbie did so much damage to the crops this season, that it isn't practical to do green harvesting with a lot of the cane being pushed over by the cyclone.

Kind of puts my sugar fixing donut into synchronistic perspective in hindsight don't you think?-)

Kind of ironic that Queenslanders are known as cane toads, which are an introduced pest that has run rampant throughout Australia and that people from New South Wales are known as cockroaches, another pest.

Kinda sounds like a Tricksterish shananic totem animal designation from the "collective unconscious" in many ways if you think about it, that is.

ADELE-Aid, Skyfall, Cyclone Debbie and Synchromysticism?

 My Brisbane Lions
 indigenous jersey

Tripping with Lions/Shamanism and Football?