A Day In The Life

I decided to participate in the A Day In The Life Of (DILO) project on Flickr. I didn't have a lot planned for the day, a haircut in the morning was my only commitment. Even by early morning it was already hot, so I threw on a polo shirt & shorts and headed out with my camera to record the day.

Here's a quick run down of my Saturday the 23rd of September in pictures.









Click each pic to go to the picture's page on Flickr, or view my full set.

1. A hot morning. Walking up the street to my hairdresser, and this house is at the top of my street. I think it was once a corner shop of some sorts, and I've always loved this shell motif.
2. The lime green vinyl sofa at my hairdresser's salon. I'm on time for my 9.00am appointment but no sign of her yet.
3. My hairdresser rang to say she overslept, be here in a half hour. I kill time with the latest Harpers Bazaar and a coffee.

4. A little after 10am, post haircut retail therapy at my favourite bookstore on King St.
5. Around 11. taking photos of amazing houses in the back streets of Newtown.
6. Rustic charm in Newtown. Just as I took this pic a security guard from the Synagogue 3 doors away came to have a 'chat'. He made me feel like I had done something wrong, and I felt quite intimidated.

7. Noonish. Housework. I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at the dirt.
8. Always seperate your whites.
9. 4pm onwards. At the pub. Bernard gives me his blog address. I didn't have paper, so I wrote it on his hand and took a picture.

10. Bernard and Kate make nice for the photo.
11. Addicts out on the street having a ciggie. I love the look in Kate's eye, she's very comfortable with the camera and make a great model.
12. The lovely Ian. Funny and very likeable.

Afterwards (early evening) I went home and watched tv, and then turned in for an early(ish) night. A fantastic and very fun day!

Red Hot & Blue

I just took this picture about 20 minutes ago, when I left the office to buy lunch. The entire plant was naked, except for this one bright red flower and solitary leaf at the top, framed against a hot summery sky.



There's a beauty and drama to this that I love. Not just the visual punch of the hot red against the big blue sky, but the last hurrah this plant is having before it puts itself to sleep for the summer. A grand gesture.

Last one out, please turn off the lights - and the mirrorball.

Get Fresh On The Weekend

It's Friday morning here in OZ, and I've just stood outside in the baking 'Spring' sun (hey, wha'sup Global Warming?) with one thought on my mind If this verchacte Fire Drill means my espresso has gone cold there will be hell to pay.

I don't like Fire Drills. I understand why they are necessary, and I don't mind the opportunity to get away from my desk, but they are inevitably kind of lame don't you think? People seem to be divided into two camps during fire drills. The oddly jolly, those people who have grabbed their coffee cup and packet of smokes and treat the whole thing as if they are gathering to sing happy birthday to Debbie The Receptionist, or say farewell to Dave Fom The Mailroom after 25 years of service. The other camp, are the listless and somewhat jaded, like 15 year olds that have been forced to make nice for a photo with their 9 year old cousin. I kind of fall into the latter group, only in this instance with a serious need for some sunglasses and a layer of desperation for the first coffee of the morning. Not pretty.

Anyhoo, that fact that it's Friday means it's only one sleep to the weekend. Not just any weekend but a Haircut Day weekend. Woot! I love getting my hair cut, it's like a short cut to improved self-esteem, with a complimentary espresso. Aside from that my weekend is almost plan free, which seems kind of delicious and self-indulgent after the business of the past bunch of weeks.

The weather forecast is HOT, so it'll be a shorts & slides kind of weekend. I might try and catch up with some of the friends I neglected over the winter, maybe even grab out the little black book and make a booty call or two.

Tides

I'm starting to think that my genetic make-up has changed to be part lizard, or sunflower, or something else that tracks the sun. Just in time to add gravitas to Al Gore's promo tour for his Global Warming documentary, our weather flipped from a blast of drenching Winter straight to Summer. Without passing Spring, Go, or collecting $200.

It's all I can do to stop myself from singing the Hallelujah Chorus out loud. (If you've heard me sing, give thanks.) What it has made me want to do is grab my camera and be outdoors all the time. To throw open the doors and windows of my house and let the Winter fug out. To throw open the doors and windows of my 'internal house' and let the Winter fug out. Dance. Scream. Be a cheeky monkey. Get laid.



It's not all the weather of course, probably only a small percentage in truth. It's a feeling of change. Seasons cycling, tides turning, stars reaching apogee or perogee. I like stability but I love change. If I could I would try new things and new places all the time, maybe grab a backpack and my camera and just wing it for a while like did in my 20s.

I think my current feeling also comes from taking inventory and realising that the shelves are better stocked than I thought. You know? Taking off the blinkers and have a good look around. Having fun, being positive, mixing metaphors like a madman and realising that there is a lot that makes the Good List.

Of course tides turn, and some days are overcast, but if I'm really going to push out this boatload of metaphors, then the choppy seas can be navigated with the right compass and a craft made sturdy. Why not? Calm seas and clear skies are a certainty, they might just seem to take their sweet time getting here, but they will get here.

Emotional Architecture

I'm starting to think of 2006 as the Year Of The Exhibition. If this keeps up I am seriously going to have to buy a new wardrobe and some more 'directional' eyewear.

The gallery show "Emotional Architecture" opened last night at Tap Gallery with glass art and drawings by my friend Jeffrey Hamilton and black & white photos with text by Jenn Tao. Mikey (the lovely ex), his friend Linda and myself went along, to what turned out to be a large exhibition and very busy opening. (Is it just me, or does a busy opening have a nice ring to it?....)

Anyhoo, I digress.

Jeffrey's work is always glorious. This exhibition had some of his wonderful big abstract pieces that I love, as well as some of the drawings he does in preparation for these pieces and for the restoration work that forms a large part of his business. I'm fortunate enough to have a beautifull smaller piece of Jeffrey's hanging in my home, a mirror he gave me as a birthday gift one year.



I ran into quite a few people that I knew, my friends Stil and 'Pong, and Rod. Jeffrey and Jenn are both very out and proud queer artists, so a large chunk of the Sydney gay glitterati were in attendance too. Noted gay photographer William Yang gave a moving opening address to the exhibition, and the show was closed in uproarious style by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.



The gallery was hot, as was some of the crowd, but the free Chardonnay was cool. As were some of the crowd. I love gallery shows for the eccentrics they bring out into the light, one man who looked like he was wearing his pyjamas was a particular source of amusement.

After the show Mikey, Linda and I had a spectular dinner at a new restaurant called The Bentley. The decor was warm and modern, the food sublime and the service excellent. A fabulous night, with lots of laughs and good company.

A snapshot of my own "emotional architecture" on the evening would have shown a wonderful jumble of happiness and delight.

Been Around The World...

Ever had one of those days where things aren't working out as planned and you kind of want to bang your head against the nearest really hard surface, really hard, but then an opportunity presents itself and it sort of turns out alright after all? That was my yesterday.

I kind of started off poorly with a bijou little hang-over. Yes, I have been partaking in the demon drink a little of late. Yes, it is fair to say that I have no stamina anymore and am an exceptionally cheap date. Yes, when out with Mikey it is not exactly inevitable, but certainly likely, that a hang-over will ensue.

I was slated to go to another office yesterday to help train a new admin staff member, and the office was located on the northern beaches area of Sydney. Door to door about one and a half hours of travel time, first on a train and then a bus. Anyhoo, given that it was a beautiful day and I had my book to read and my camera with me, the trip wasn't so bad. Pleasant even.

So I arrive at the office to find that my boss wasn't going to meet me there after all - so there will be no lift back into the city at the end of the day. O-kay, positive frame of mind only slightly dented. I can manage the bus and train back - no biggie. Then the admin staff member I am to train is sick, and wants to go home. Then the software I was sent to install and train her on isn't even there anyway, it's sitting on someone's desk at head office. Then they don't have any of the other network accesses or log-ins set up for me to do any of the other training I was supposed to do anyway, and by this time she really wants to go home.

So, $16 in fares and a three hour round trip to be there for around two hours. Nothing much of anything achieved. Good mood crumbling a bit at this point. I rang my boss and as it would take me around two hours to get back into the office I normally work in (other side of the city) my instructions were to call it a day at 12.30. Normally I would say "Yippee" but as a contractor I only get paid for the time I work, and last week I took a few days off sick. Things are a wee bit lean.

Deciding to take these lemons I had been given and make some lemonade I wandered around in the sun for a while, had lunch and did some window shopping in a fabulous (and largely empty) shopping mall and oggled a group of shirtless rugby players who I passed jogging along the street to their club. Turns out it was a nice afternoon after all. I'm going to ask to be recompensed for the fares and ask that they also compensate me for the lost hours.

I think that's only fair compensation for an afternoon spent cruising the mall and oggling shirtless guys, don't you?

Lazy Afternoons On The Terrace

I spent a really pleasant afternoon with Mikey (the lovely ex) on Sunday, after I had spent much of the day wandering the city trying to find a birthday present for my sister. (In the end I settled on a couple of books, both about writing and one specifically about travel writing - hopefully they'll be usefull for her as she re-tells the highs and lows of her recent travel experiences.) After hanging out in Mikey's luxury city pad, high atop Metropolis, for a little while we headed down the street to the Green Park Hotel where packs of Darlinghurst gay boys gather on a Sunday afternoon. A warm Spring afternoon especially.


The Green Park have recently added an outdoor terrace drinking area which is kind of fabulous. I hesitate to refer to it by the usual 'beer garden' name that outdoor drinking areas in Aussie pubs normally have, because as you can see there isn't a single green growing thing in sight.


What there was though was a curious mix of well groomed but carefully dressed down gay boys, soaring walls, hard surfaces and tactile plastic furniture and a sausage sizzle. Oddly enough - the mix works.


Mikey and I hung out for a few hours, and played "Who's Hot? Who's Not?" and "Spot the Demi-Celebrity" (one of the dancers from "Dancing With The Stars", who I knew vaguely from Adelaide and he was an extra in "Moulin Rouge") and discussed the dangers of cross-genre clothing - that which attempts to mix camo and denim in the same item. (Verdict: wrong.)

Also on the agenda for discussion was the unique mix of emotions that the first true blast of warm weather brings; on one hand envy at all the pretty boys with their t-shirt ready pecs and flat tummies, and on the other hand the lust that said items produce. Sort of a unique blend of melancholy and horniness.


Surprisingly, aside from Mikey there was only one other guy I had dated there. I must be slipping. After the Green Park we headed to a local restaurant for a fantastic meal together and then popped into Mikey's friend Steve's house to say 'Hi' and continue the alcohol odyssey. Hanging out with Mikey is always wonderfull, we have such a comfortable groove with each other, but this was an especially good afternoon and evening.

Bring on Summer!

Welcome To Barcelona!

I like to think I'm pretty hard to shock. I have a pretty good grasp on how things work, a very liberal attitude that understands that even good people sometimes do bad things (or ill thought out ones at least), and a belief that people are fundamentally good despite the occasional indicators to the contrary. However, I was talking to my sister the other night, and she told me something that really stopped me dead cold in my tracks.

First a little back story. My sister had a massive stroke in her very late 40s and is now considerably incapacitated. Problems with her rehabilitation over the past few years have meant that she now prefers to spend most of her time at home, and when she does venture out it is in a wheelchair and with a carer in tow. So I was very surprised, pleasantly so (although a little trepidatious) when my other sister told me that she had gone to Italy and Spain for 4 weeks, taking one of her carers with her.

Long story short, I was chatting to her about Spain, Gaudi, Pedro Almodovar and my desire to see Barcelona and Madrid when she told me something that absolutely floored me. On her first day in Barcelona she was robbed. In the hustle and bustle of trying to get out of a cab, while her carer went to get the wheelchair out of the trunk of the taxi, two women offered to help her out of the cab, and in the process helped themselves to her purse.

Spain, I still think you are beautifull but some of your gloss has gone.

Recaplet

Sorry about the short unexpected hiatus. After the stresses of the past few weeks I started to get a scratchy throat last weekend, which then turned into some sort of really nasty bug. Fevers, swollen glands and a killer scratchy throat. I judged it and found it to be Not Fun. A short visit to the doc, and some antibiotics later, and I'm on the mend.

This always seems to happen to me these days, get too busy and too stressed and then something comes along to say Just Slow The Fuck Down, M'Kay? Eh, whatevs. So I went with it instead of fighting it. A couple of days at home either in bed, welded to the couch with the DVD remote in hand, or sitting in the sunshine reading, did wonders.

If only I could claim that on Medicare.

Not a lot was accomplished, very few amusing anecdotes were collected, even very little web surfing was done. After a solid week of wintery weather and constant rain here in Sydney, the days I was home sick turned out to be beautiful, warm and sunny. A perfect time to disconnect myself for a couple of days, grab my book and sit in the sun.

I'm seriously considering becoming a hypochondriac, I mean, I don't want to get sick and all but the lifestyle rocks.

Urban Archeology

Near my house is a vacant theatre building, and the walls are one of the favourite spots for bill posters. Every so often someone comes along and rips them all down, probably not someone from the council because they tend to leave them lying all over the street to blow around and get mushy underfoot if it rains.



What is left behind though are these wonderful colourful layers, an archeological dig of posters past.



Look to the skies Darren.

C.R.A.Z.Y. For You

Late last week Morgan and I went to see the fantastic Canadian film C.R.A.Z.Y. It's quite a unique film, but in some ways it reminded me a little bit of Breakfast On Pluto. Similar in it's themes of societal outsiders and sexuality, and also in the importance of the music in the storyline. Especially the music and gender-bending style of the 1970's to Zac, and of crooner Patsy Cline to his father.



The two actors that play the main character of Zac both turn in fantastic performances. Émile Vallée plays Zac between the ages of 6 and 8, and Marc-André Grondin plays Zac from ages 15 to 21. Grondin's portrayal of Zac walks that fine line between being endearing and portraying Zac as a bit of a shit at times, but ultimately he kept me on his side with his nuanced performance of the struggle Zac has with his sexuality, growing up in a very macho French Canadian family.



It's quite a long film at 2 hours and 7 minutes, and one sub-plot I found a bit long and unnecessary, but I was really entranced by the film and enjoyed it immensely. Two big thumbs up from me.

No Bad Guy

On Sunday afternoon, after dancing around the edges of the topic for weeks and weeks, Morgan and I had a chat about our relationship and decided to call it quits as boyfriends. It's very sad and not how I would have liked things to go, but it's really more of a case of two people who are just at different places in their lives rather than anything overly negative or dramatic. I sort of alluded to the fact that I had worked my way through some of the expectations and disappointments in my life in a recent post, and I was alluding to this quite heavily. The important thing is that we are staying friends and there is no Bad Guy in this scenario. We're still very close and intend to stay that way.

I was kind of at odds with whether I should mention this, out of respect for Morgan's privacy. It's something that is important to me though and which has been colouring my behaviour, and what I have chosen to share (and sometimes omit) on this blog. Also, we started this relationship under the gaze of our respective blog audiences and the Flickr-ites, and so it ends the same way I guess. It seems to have a certain symmetry to it.

We're both feeling ok about it, which is the most important thing. The friendship aspect of the relationship is important to both of us and is pretty solid I think, so that hopefully gives us a foundation to move forward. These things always take some adjusting and renegotiating, changing gears, but I like to think of it as a way forward.

Peace Out Y'all

I always have really mixed emotions about the graffiti I see and admire around Newtown. I mean, I like this combination of text, angel stencil, church spire and cemetary wall, but I can't escape the fact that the lovely old sandstone wall has been defaced.



Having said that, I do think this makes for a pretty cool visual collage.

Satisfaction

One big truth that I know is that satisfaction, contentment, comes from within. From working your way through the minefields of desire, frustration, disappointment (and it's first cousin, expectation) and arriving at a place where you are open to seeing the truth of things. To seeing the way that the stories we tell ourselves overlay the truth, change it and sometimes obscure it.

It struck me today that I'm in a comparatively contented place at present. I've mentally let go of a bunch of things that were upsetting and disappointing to me, and turned the bright lamp of analysis onto a bunch of my expectations. Pulled them apart with tweezers under the harsh incandescent glare, only to find they were filled with straw, faulty tick-tock parts and broken springs. It's a work in progress, but even dismantling some of this stuff is a good feeling. It feels like an achievement.

I've been really happy with the results of things I've been working towards. The bookshop at the conference was a success, especially in the feedback we received from customers, in the goodwill it creates towards our centre, and in the way that it might have made helpful texts available to people. I've been enjoying taking photographs, participating in an exhibition, and working towards putting on an exhibition at my Buddhist centre's open day in October. Contributing. Creating.

My New Career Is Assured

I sold my picture last night! Let this herald the beginning of my new career as this decade's Helmut Newton - although I'd probably rather be this decade's Robert Mapplethorpe (without the poor health, but with the talent and all the hot sex). Mikey (the lovely ex) bought 4 pictures, including mine and Morgan's. He assures me it was on the basis of artistic merit, not just because he's an absolute sweetheart with deep pockets.


Note the sticker on my picture, top right in the picture on the left. Sold, baby! Some of the handsome Flickr boys on the right.

It was a really fun night. Packed with people, and with lots of yummy food and an open bar! I met some really cool new folk, caught up with my Flickr buddies and some Flickrazzi I hadn't seen for a while, and rounded the evening off with a late supper at BBQ King in Chinatown while a thunderstorm raged outside. Dramatic!



Check out Morgan's entry about last night. He got some lovely pictures from the evening with his new lens, which is ideal for portraits and low light conditions. ::envy::

How To Panic Me

Hand me a meeting agenda where the first item is listed as "Devotions".*

Ask the assembled room "Who would like to read the Devotions?" and shoot me, the sole Heathen in the room, an imploring glance.

(* Not an uncommon way to kick things off with a bang at the Christian Charity Organisation where I currently work.)

Dietary Advice

Just in case you were considering it, I would suggest to you that four days in a row of eating birthday cake is a little excessive. Morgan's birthday, my birthday, leftovers and then a joint celebration for myself and another worker in my office... and then holy shit, with the exception of a few savoury interludes I have eaten birthday cake for 4 days running.

The good news, when they have to rip out all of my cavity riddled rotten teeth I'll already be in a diabetic coma so, you know, that saves on anaesthesia at least.

(BTW, I just typo'd "diabetic" as "dianetic" - so maybe my thetans are sick of chocolate cake too. Stupid thetans.)

Let's Hope It's Just A Phase

It suddenly struck me today, while in the bathroom during a reflective moment, that I have become what you could call "High Maintenance". Bloody minded. Recalcitrant.

Example 1:
My steadfast avoidance of replacing my lost mobile phone. It's inconvenient. It means using grubby, accoustically ineffective, and worst of all pee smelling public telephones. It means I don't get to entertain my fellow commuters with my witty choice of ringtone. Shit, it's one less accessory.

Example 2:
Pissing and moaning about having my photo taken, whilst hanging out with a huge group of photographers. Hell I'm even dating one, yet of late I've been getting a touch of the rock star "No Pictures" preciousness. Giving it some serious bershon action, like these guys.

I think I might 13 all over again.

Birthday: The Review

I had a lovely birthday yesterday.

After the craziness and hectic...ness of the previous week or two it was nice to just relax yesterday and not have to do much of anything. Except eat, there was lots of eating.

It was a beautiful mild Spring day and my friend Stephen and I started the day in perfect style with breakfast at VargaBar and then a stroll through Newtown shops. I only harrangued Stephen a little bit about moving back to Sydney from Brisneyland, normally I'm like a broken record. I've missed him terribly over the past few years since he moved to Brisbane, but at least he comes back every 3 or 4 months for a dose of sanity visit.

In the afternoon he had to visit other friends before heading back to the airport, so I went home and hung out with Quinn and Bodhi for a while, then napped. See! A lazy day. In the evening we were joined by Morgan and the four of us went to dinner at my beloved Thai Pothong. If I could marry their Tamarind Tofu I would.

I had a quick phone call from my sister interstate just before we left for the restaurant, to say Happy Birthday and that something was making its way to me from one of the online retailers. I had a couple of emails and phone messages waiting for me when I got back into the office this morning, lots of sweet comments on my previous blog entry from y'all, and my good mates on Flickr posted Happy Birthday wishes.

Spoilt.

Red Green Blue

Morgan created this lovely image for the RGB exhibition that we are participating in, using thumbnails of a bunch of the pictures from the exhibition.


Please drop by, have a peek, grab a nibble and a drink, and say "Hi" if you're a local. It promises to be a fun night!

Date: Wednesday, 6th September
Venue: Cafe Giulia
Location: 92 Abbercrombie Street, Chippendale, Sydney.
Time: 6.30 - 8pm

Q & A

A wise man once discovered that the "...answer to the question of Life, the Universe, and Everything." was 42.


However, what wasn't understood - was the question.

Maybe 42 is an answer to a poorly understood question, and that idea appeals to me. The search for the right question rather than the right answer. Turning 42 doesn't particularly feel like it is the answer to anything, but it sure as hell raises new questions.

Like "Why does my knee click when I do this?" "This haircut - mutton or lamb?" and "What next?"

My dear friend Steve is down from Brisbane, and I've given myself the day off to enjoy my birthday and recover from the stress of the conference over the weekend. First order of the day is breakfast with Steve at a Newtown cafe, and then this afternoon I'll spend some time with Quinn and have dinner with Morgan, Quinn and Bodhi this evening. Low key and enjoyable. There has been too much on this week to have any sort of extravaganza planned, but spending time with friends is what I feel like today. Sharing my birthday with the friends I've made on Das Internetz included.

Speaking of birthdays. Last night we celebrated the lovely Morgan's 40th birthday with drinkies at a stylish old pub in one of the older parts of Sydney called The Rocks. Tucked just under the entrance to the Harbour Bridge, down by the Harbour, it turned out to be a mild Spring night to stand on the terrace and a great venue. Our photogeek friends and myself bought him a bunch of fab camera equipment, much to his delight. It was a really fun night for all of us.

So, a big thanks all for the birthday wishes, and a big shout out to Michael for the fabulous gift! Just what I always wanted.

Time To Lower Your Expectations

...because if you lower your expectations, you're never disappointed, right?

Posting here will be patchy or non-existant over the next couple of days. I know, I know. Just writing this makes me cringe, but it's the best I can do this week, my loves.

I'm working at a conference Friday-Sunday, which means a 7.30am start tomorrow and it'll be basically go-go-go until I collapse at the lovely Morgan's birthday drinks on Sunday night. All this week I not only started a new job, one which has meant getting up early to trek out to the asscrack of nowhere, but I've been going into the centre and pricing books and packing boxes around 9.30 or 10pm.

Right now I'm very, very stressed and very, very tired. I could use a back rub, actually any kind of rub would be good. I haven't even seen Morgan this week, even though we've chatted and emailed. It's not exactly what you would call relationship enhancing doing these conferences.

On the upside, I have Monday off.

Further upsides:

• Quinn is in town, and even though it sucks that I'm busy most of the weekend, she's staying at my place and I'll get to hang out with her some, especially early next week
  
• my good friend (and ex) Stephen is in town too and we're going out on Monday for lunch to celebrate my birthday
  
• oh, did I mention it's my birthday on Monday?

Oh Look! A Bandwagon!

I could not stand by and watch one, two, three (and probably more) of my peeps play this meme without me... so here goes.

Your Life Path Number is 6

Your purpose in life is to help others You are very compassionate, and you offer comfort to those around you. It pains you to see other people hurting, and you do all in your power to help them. You take on responsibility, and don't mind personal sacrifice. You are the ultimate giver. In love, you offer warmth and protection to your partner. You often give too much of yourself, and you rarely put your own needs first. Emotions tend to rule your decisions too much, especially when it comes to love. And while taking care of people is great, make sure to give them room to grow on their own.

What Is Your Life Path Number?

This thing works off your birthdate, so it must be based on some highly scientific numerology magic, or perhaps the casting and reading of entrails. Whatevs. According to this I'm lovely and compassionate and absolutely dynamite in the sack.

Well, that's what it should have said.

Exciting New Projects

It's probably no surprise to you, given how picture heavy it's been of late around here, that photography has really become my one major hobby these days. I've been taking lots of pics over the past few years, but that has really increased this year with getting a better camera and participating in Flickr.

So I have a couple of photography projects I'm really excited about. Remember the other day when I posted a quick poll to see which picture I should choose? Well that exhibition starts next Wednesday here in Sydney.

Date: Wednesday, 6th September
Venue: Cafe Giulia
Location: 92 Abbercrombie Street, Chippendale, Sydney.
Time: 6.30 - 8pm

If you're a Sydney local, please consider coming along to say "Hi" and check out all the pretty pictures. I know all the photographers involved, and there will be some great looking pics. It's a little scary, the concept of hanging one of your babies on the wall for all to see. By now I've fallen in love, out of love, back in love (rinse, repeat) with the picture I've chosen to submit. Aaargh. Anyhoo I'm very much looking forward to the event.

Project number two is something I just decided on last night. The Buddhist centre I attend is having an open day in early October, part of the celebration of the completion of our new centre. We had a committee meeting last night and I suggested that we have a Buddhist themed art & photography exhibition as part of the open day event. So now I've started to organise that, and send out the word to people who might be interested. The room we have set aside is lovely, part of the old Victorian part of the building. White walls, high moulded ceilings, picture rails and directional downlights - all perfect for this purpose. If anyone reading this is a Sydney local and might be interested in participating, hit me up with an email!

Catching A Breath And Catching Up

I started a new job yesterday, still with the same Christian charity I've been working at for the past few months and only a temp assignment, but a new job nonetheless. What I should have done, bright and early, was blog about what a fantastic weekend I had and tell you all that it was Morgan's birthday yesterday. My bad, as the young people say.

Instead I was deep in learning the new job, and reeling from the realisation that my future for the next few months is a loooong morning commute to way out in the 'burbs. Way. Out. There are only three of us in the office, in part of an lovely old building set in beautiful grounds, and yesterday I dropped a pin and I actually heard it. On carpet.

So. The weekend was fabulous, the higlight being the 50's Fair on Sunday.



Set in the grounds of a fabulous modernist house built in 1950, the fair was chock full of market stalls, entertainers and people in 50's gear.



I challenged myself by conquering my shyness and asking people if I could take their picture. It was a fun event, and everyone who was dressed up was very amenable to having their picture taken. There are more pics over on my Flickr photo stream.



Afterwards a bunch of the Sydney Photobloggers, plus Morgan and myself, headed to Kate and Sam's house for a barbeque.



With yummy bickies! It was a fab way to spend the day, and I wouldn't have changed any of it for the world. Great fun.

I Heart Eccentrics

I love this sort of thing. It makes my veins thrum with excitement to see someone expressing themselves, some who not only dances to the beat of a different drummer but IS the drummer.



I passed this house while walking around Summer Hill the other day, and once I copped a look at the front of this house I just had to get pictures of it.



There are gnomes, giant candy canes, Snow White, beaded garlands - you name it. The whole box and dice. I'm guessing this house belongs to an old retired couple, a couple who love kids maybe, and for whom every day would be Christmas if they could.



This is why it always pays to carry a camera. You never know when the magic will strike.

[Click the pics for larger versions.]

The Man In The Mirror

I discovered the most amazing tiled mural in "Little Portugal" in Petersham, here in Sydney, while I was out walking the other day. It goes for hundreds of feet and is made up of glazed tiles, predominantly blue and yellow in colour.



Dotted througout are mirror tiles that make the viewer, or photographer, part of the mural.



It commemorates a visit by the President of Portugal, or some such malarky. I didn't even realise that Sydney had a "Little Portugal" as such, but a short walk up the street and I was surrounded by Portugese delis, cafes and restaurants. Quite the pleasant surprise.



I love this city!

Hedwig Revisited

I saw it again last night...



...and it was just as fucking fabulous the second time around.

5 Important Facts Of Life I Discovered By Re-watching Pedro Almodovar's Movie "Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown"

1. Hysteria is funnier in Spanish
   
2. In 1988 Antonio Banderas was very, very beautiful
   
3. Spanish police will happily enter your house and question you with only a modicum of explanation and without showing any ID, and you will accept this as perfectly normal
   
4. When guests arrive at your house, cold tomato soup (gazpacho) is a perfectly suitable beverage to offer them
   
5. Spanish women can cry, attempt to throw themselves off a balcony, pull a gun on you, throw a telephone/answering machine/shoe through a window (or all of the above) and still appear stylish

No idea what I'm talking about? Then see the film, it's fabulous!

5 Contradictions About Me

• I'm a complicated person with simple needs
  
• I cherish kindness and compassion and can be an acid tongued bitch if I think it'll be funny
  
• I'm 100% inner urbanite who loves wide open spaces
  
• I'm quite shy when I'm not being an extrovert
  
• I'm a private person who likes to share things with people

Now your turn.

Breakfast on Pluto

First up, we're talking Pluto the planet - not the dog. Just so we're clear.

On Tuesday night Morgan and I went to see Neil "The Crying Game" Jordan's latest film Breakfast on Pluto. (imdb info, vaguely annoying Flash-tastic official site, Sony Pictures Classics site)

It will be hard for Jordan to escape comparisons with "The Crying Game", because both films deal with themes of intrigue, life changing secrets, marginalised people, gender and sexuality. Oh, and Stephen Rhea is in both, so there's that too. It has only just been released here in Oz, but it isn't really a new film as it was made in late 2005.



The film stars Cillian Murphy as Patrick "Kitten" Braden, an abandoned child in a small 1960s Irish town who grows up as an outsider, not only within his foster family, but within the town itself. He escapes into dreams about glamour, his mysterious and beautiful biological mother, frocks and boys, supported by his friendships with a small band of fellow outsiders. Leaving home to search for his mother also allows Kitten to search for himself, to cobble together an identity that fits. The later setting of glam rock 1970s London also allows Kitten to experiment with androgyny and to revel in his sexuality and gender identity.



It's a long film at 2 hours plus, but an enjoyable one. There's a few kooky plot devices I was unsure about at first, and I think you have to suspend belief to a degree to believe that someone can sail through the adversities that Kitten encounters and still arrive relatively unscathed. Having said that, the film does work and is enhanced by some great perfomances, funky costume design and a killer soundtrack of 60s and 70s music. Enough to make me want to go out and find Patrick McCabe's book on which the film is based, and which according to the Sony site was #1 on Irish "Best Seller" lists when it was published.

Big Blue Sky Magnolias

I feel a little guilty, posting yet more Magnolia pictures... but c'mon, look at that sky! Vast. Clear. Cerulean even.



This exists in our world. Doesn't that encourage you? To think that there is so much beauty in this world, so much gorgeousness.

Of course to make the same point I could just as easily have posted a pic of the early thirty-something in the tight white t, low rider jeans and some chin scruff I saw earlier today, but that would have cheapened it, don't you think?

The Phantom Stinker

Where I'm currently working is situated in quite an old building, which is largely unrenovated. One of the downsides to this is that the entire ground floor of the building shares one bathroom, or more accurately one stall. Can you see where this is going? Yup, this morning someone did something in there which defies description. A stench so foul that it could only come from the fetid breath of The Beast Himself. Tiles lost their glaze, small children and women fainted and the horses were not just spooked but keeled over, dead.

Well, the witch hunt is on. Emails have been circulated, the tar heated and feathers collected, the open wagon prepared for its journey through the centre of the village. My current office is a very short distance from the bathroom and once I made it through Decon I realised that I had no eyebrows or nasal hair left. Not surprisingly nobody has owned up to the deed, but you can be assured they'll use the air freshner next time.

Of Morrisey, Nuns, Pricing Guns And The Risk Of Diabetic Coma

I normally like to recap the weekend's events on a Monday morning, it's sort of like my thing you know? My ouevre, if you will. My one semi-constant in an otherwise chaotic off-the-cuff life.

I'm a bit late today on account of I've been spending all morning teaching someone how to use a software package. To her credit she's picking it up pretty fast, given that it's an accounting software package and she has no background in bookkeeping or accounting. You know what? I'm actually pretty good at this. I worked as a software trainer some years back, doing one-on-one tutoring and training in bookkeeping software. I discovered that I enjoy it, even though it can be exhausting, and that I always got positive feedback from my clients. I think standing up in fron of a class would be daunting, but one-on-one I like. So, that's a long-hand way of saying I've had a busy morning sitting with her in her office showing her the ropes.

Anyhoo. I've already blogged about Friday evening, about going to see the fantastic live version of Hedwig & The Angry Inch, acting like a complete fan-boy and then having a fab Japanese dinner afterwards. I was really pleased to discover on Saturday morning that the season of Hedwig has been extended, which gives me the opportunity to go see it with Mikey (the lovely ex) and Bodhi, who both want to see it.

Saturday dawned bright and sunny, and so did I because it was... Haircut Day! I heart Haircut Day. Haircut Day is sort of like Birthdays and Christmas all rolled into one, only more frequent and with only one gift. The gift of Improved Self-Esteem. My, my, what a gift that is! I was a little trepidatious this time around because my regular hairdresser of about 5 years was unavailable. Some trivial thing about giving birth or something. Anyhoo, it all worked out fantastically well and I'm very pleased with the end result.

Saturday was also Bodhi's birthday and so Morgan, myself, Bodhi's daughter Ashley and his friend Rabbit all went out for a delicious Thai dinner to celebrate/commiserate. Highlight of the evening? A near fatal sugar rush (and risk of a diabetic coma) from being introduced by Ashley to the very wrong (but oh so right) trick of dunking Lindor Balls into Hot Chocolate. That's right, dipping Lindt chocolate into something else that is chocolate. ::passes out::

The rest of Saturday wasn't so pleasant unfortunately, my next door neighbours had a party that was possibly one of the loudest I have ever heard. My bedroom shares a common wall with their living room, so to paraphrase Puccini None Shall Sleep. On the upside, I discovered a few Morrisey songs I hadn't heard before. Given that they played the entire Morrisey songbook at least a few times over. On the downside, when you call the police to lodge a noise complaint at 1.15am and by 3.00am they still haven't arrived - then there really is little else you can do than settle in with a good book and enjoy The Smiths.

I was still up early Sunday morning, despite getting to sleep well after 3, and headed in to the Buddhist centre to do some more book pricing before our conference in a few week's time. I got a lot done, and as I had my camera with me I even had the opportunity to take some portrait shots of my friend who recently became a Buddhist nun. About 3pm I decided to call it a day, and the afternoon was still was so warm and sunny and delicious that I decided to walk the 4.5kms from Summer Hill to my house. I wandered, dawdled, made little side trips and took heaps of photos. It was glorious.

5 Good Things About August 19th

1. Bodhi's birthday. Happy birthday Bodes!
   
2. Haircut day! Short, sharp and rock-star tousled.
   
3. Sunshine, clear skies and gentle breezes.
   
4. Puppy dogs everywhere.
   
5. Everyone has dusted off their spring wardrobes, suddenly everyone has legs and arms again!
   

Snapshots of Spring

[Click the pics to see larger versions.]

"I Look Up From My Vermouth On The Rocks..."

"...a gift wrapped wig still in a box,
of towering velveteen."

iOTA as Hedwig Robinson (nee Schmidt)
Photo by "Yitzak", from iOTA's photo page.

Last night Morgan, Gadgetgirl, Kris, Kris's husband The Snook, and I went to see a live performance of Hedwig And The Angry Inch at @ Newtown. What an amazing night, and an fantastic show! Kris has posted her comments about the show, and I have to agree with her sentiments about the star iOTA. So talented! To carry an entire show for an hour and a half, rock it out, make the slow numbers tender and sad, and keep up the energy is amazing. Very, very talented. iOTA's co-star Blazey Best and the band were incredible as well. One of the most fun live performances I've been to.

I'm a massive tragic for the film, after having been introduced to it by Mikey (the lovely ex) some years back. The stage performance is something special though, the energy of the rock music really comes to the fore. You know that I couldn't help myself but sing along like the fan-boy I am, right? There's something about live theatre that I really love, and I think it's that two-way communication with the cast on stage. The audience last night was very responsive and burst into a spontaneous standing ovation at the end. A well deserved one.

Afterwards we went for Japanese food, debriefed about the show and had some nice food and laughs in excellent company. A really fun night. The best news is the the show which was supposed to finish tomorrow night has just been extended by another 7 performances, and now finishes on the 27th of August. Woot! I've already made a date with Mikey (the lovely ex) to go see it. Maybe this time I'll be lucky enough to get the "car wash"...

[Here's an informative Wikipedia entry, but Warning - it contains spoilers!]

On The Getting Of One's Groove Back

Ever get that feeling that things are on the upswing? I kind of feel like that at the moment. Maybe it's biorhythms (which I don't believe in). Maybe it's my moon ascendant Uranus (which sounds fun, but I also don't believe in). Maybe it's the change in the weather for the sunnier (now that I believe in).


Graffiti, Summer Hill. [Click to see bigger]

Whatever it is, it feels good. There's a pep in my step, some zip in my dip, some zing in my schwing you might say. The sleeper awakes!

It's kind of a horrible feeling being out of step with yourself, let alone the world. I'm not sure if I had a visit from the Black Dog (probably its lesser cousin the Dark Grey Puppy) but I have been kind of flat the past few months. Beaten down by our admittedly mildish winter. Tired. Lazy. Prone to colds and stuff. The frustrating thing about having a period of feeling like that, is that it's hard to see it for what it is at the time, to say to yourself this too shall pass.

But pass it does. Just don't call me Stella.

You Oughtta Be In Pictures

I had the most awesomely awesome of all awesome nights last night with the Flickr Sydney Photobloggers crew. 27 of us fronted up for dinner and a Q&A session with professional photographer and editor of Capture magazine the very delightful Phillipe Ruttens.

The venue, Giotto Art Cafe in East Sydney, is also a gallery and was showing an exhibition of photos from the red centre of Australia by Ruttens and fellow photographer Felix Hug. The gallery owner Robert McGrath and Phillipe were very generous and entertaining, and Phillipe showed hundreds of his photographs projected onto a big screen, with a running commentary and questions & answers.

As an enthusiastic amateur it was wonderful to have such up close access to a professional, and for the couple of professional photographers we already have in the group I would imagine it was a nice way to socialise and compare notes with a peer. Although I don't ever plan to make photography into a business, it was interesting to hear about how he plans and executes his shots. I know I mention the Sydney Photobloggers quite a lot on this blog, but they are such a great group of people, many of whom I'm pleased to call friends. Last night was sort of like sitting at a dinner party with 26 friends. Phillipe was impressed with how friendly and fun the atmosphere was and has since joined us on Flickr.

Of course, as usual the night ended up at the pub... and as usual it was a great night.

A Quick Poll

I'm exhibiting in a group photo show in about 3 week's time and I'm stuck on which pic to show. The theme of the show is RGB - Red Green Blue. I chose Green. As I have commitment issuesI'm now all indecisive about which green pic...

Which of these do you love more, or hate less?

A


B

Magnolia Time

This week is completely kicking my ass. I'm currently pulling full days in the office, before heading to the Buddhist centre to price carton after carton of books for our next conference. This week has been that x 3 so far. You know what, that even made me think I'm dull just reading that...

So, if you've read this blog for a while you know that I resort to putting up the pretty when I haven't much else to say. I took these pics at lunch the other day, just around the corner from the office. The fun part? I had to lean out over about a 15 foot (nearly 5 metre) drop to get these shots. I'm an artiste, we think nothing of such peril.





Spring, well it's just around the corner!

Tell-It-Like-It-Is Tuesday

A few years back, around the time I started this blog actually, I was having my soul slowly sucked out through my ears (between the hours of 9 and 5) at an Accounting Firm. Do you have any idea what it is like to be, if not the bottom rung on the ladder then maybe one or two rungs up from the bottom of the ladder, of a business where your employers are as charisma free as that tax accountant you dread seeing each year? Only I saw them daily. One of the surprising truths of this world is that boring low status jobs can actually be very stressfull. Consider that before you decide to pack in your perks for something less challenging.

Anyhoo, I digress. At said workplace I was friends with a young guy who was actually pretty cool and had a great sense of humour. My Saviour of a sorts. He pointed out one day that a certain fiestiness frequently descended upon me, as if I had been drinking from the fountain of The Truth, As I See It Anyway. Hence Tell-It-Like-It-Is Tuesday was born. Meek, mild mannered me morphed into The Office Big-Mouth. Can you even imagine?

Try it some time, it's very liberating.