Cirrus@Austlit

'There’s a purple-flowered, climbing weed somewhere in my yard at all times. We call it the ‘alien vine’ for its powerful and persistent occupation of our space, and its otherworldly ability to wind its way through walls, under the deck, up through the roof, or into the windows of the shed. Earlier this year, it twirled its way around cables towards the power pole that feeds our house. I’m not sure what it was after up there, but it unsettled me. My husband climbed into the roof cavity and found it lurking in the dark.' (Claire Albrecht : Editorial introduction)