Halfway through the year? How is this possible. And yet here we are.
READ I am getting rid of books on ebay and in the street library - I have thousands. I had recently read About Eve by Ariel Gore and noticed that she had got me through my first child years with Hip Mama Survival Guide and The Mother Trip, and now is writing about the death of a parent, while I too have been in that stage of life. I feel I've travelled my life in a parallel time line - though with a very different lived expereince. As I came across these Mama books, I started flicking through the Mother Trip and have decided to reread it before passing it on. Less on raising children and more on being a person who raises children. I'm finding a lot of it is good reminders, not just through the lens of being a mum, and more on just every day life.
WATCHED We are still getting through The Bear, and just started the new seasons of Sugar and The Agency. I get very scared of things and don't watch horror at all, so while I enjoyed the comedy of Widow's Bay and found it hilarious, I did get scarded and have to keep my eyes shut which provided my husband with no end of amusement as apparently it wasn't scary at all. I did also ring him and crossly tell him I got scared in the hotel in Hobart that the clown was coming for me...and THIS is why I can't watch scary movies! Something Scary (dance) at the Opera House and Izzard's Hamlet were both excellent and the theatre highlights of the month.
HEARD I am getting less new music without daily drive feeding me songs. So I need away to rectify that. I've been listening to terms & condtions for a quick pick me up (saw Bless at Field Day this year) and Alle Farben who I'm countng down the days until I see - thought the news of the cancelation of Defcon1 is making me nervous...
MADE Dinners. I'm kind of sick of it.
WORE My heavy coat and beanie while stomping around Hobart. It's fun to rug up when we usually never need to...
Also, while at Hotdub I got hit in the head with a beach ball and it sent my glasses flying. I am blind without them and it was terrifying, worring how I would walk home without them, even guided by friends. So now in the most un-rock'n'roll move I now wear them with a Nana necklace attached. Hopefully that will prevent it ever happening again....
No longer wearing: - this tee shirt. It breaks my heart I'm just too big. Boo hiss menopause body shape change. I need to say, it's about 37 years old so I really can't complain too much.
Wish I was wearing: These divine hats and fascinators in the hat shop in Salamanca. I did purchase hairclips there and some bracelets but would love to get round in some of the hats...
MY TOP THREE MOMENTS FROM THE MONTH GONE BY
My first Dark Mofo. I was only three 2 nights. I will go for longer next year. Already getting a crew together!
Going to the University open day and seeing my youngest see her life there next year. It also reminded my husband and I of our Unidays. It was a really fun real time reminisence.
Lastly, the World Cup! All of it, but watching in the pub and getting through was great, though stressful fun!
I'm off the blog now until the end of July. My Insta should be interesting, if all goes to plan. You can follow along here.
Have a good break and see you all on the flip side.
I can't believe how fast this month has flown. And then we are almost half way thru the year, less than 50 days until my trip. I don't know how the wheels keep spinning so fast. And yet they do.
Terrifyingly large fungus
I get a lot of benefit from these monthly summaries. It's like a gratitude post for all that I've not acknowledge in the last 30 days. I often feel I've done nothing but when I look back, I'm always struggling to find my top 3, to narrow down the field.
The pictures for the most part this month are just things that made me happy when I saw them.
READMy husband sent me an article about going to live music keeps you younger - that reseach show it reudces biological ageing by 4 years. I don't know about that, and it definitely takes a toll on hearing so wear earplugs (ONE BILLION people are suffering hearing loss from going to festivals apparently). Apparently going to gigs fortnightly could boost life expectancy by up to nine years. I'm not sure how this can all really be true, and the article was a little lose on it's explanations. I will say for me, it definitely helps with my well being (and mental health). Some of the reasons are because it reduces cortisol and boosts endorphins, I would also add certain gigs for me are the equivalent of 10kms or a festival up to 30 kms (I've got bounce...mad jumper!) so there is heart health and general fitness (but by the end I feel every bit of my age and hobble home). Apparently listening to music stimulates the auditory pathways and encourages neuroplasticity - but surely the same would happen if you listened to new music (unfamilliar music) at home? Singing and dancing in a crowd creates collective effervescence and according to the article reduces loneliness and increases self worth. Again, I'm not sure about the loneliness and self worth however these is something in the collective effervescence. I definitely find myself smiling at people like we're sharing something, or when we all move together in unison, there is something unifying in that. There are studies that say The Arts do this - and I would agree there's something very nourishing in theatre or galleries. Reducing aging though? I'm really not sure that's possible. No matter how much we wish for it!
(To clarify, I don't have any facts to argue it's not true, I'd need to see more of the study details. I'm not dismissing science outright, I'm just saying my personal expereince, as someone who by their outlines should be reducing ageing.)
WATCHED I've been to so many great plays this month. A young playwright, Ruby Blinkhorn had her first play produced and it was so clever (and funny). Yet it's left me thinking about things, about how no one is incorruptible and how power corrupts for it's own end (benenfit). Tickets to Cadaver Synod are here until next Saturday. (Based on a historical event). If this is her first place, it's safe to assume she'll go onto great success.
Guttenberg at Hayes Street theatre was hilarious (mentioned here) and the Illiad at STC was excellent. Both superb staging and acting. If you don't have tickets, make sure you go. This show is worth every cent. It's incredible.
Lastly I saw Savior (on until 14 June). It's something I think about when giving money to charity. Who decides who gets what? How is it delivered? How do they treat the on the ground workers? Does government or local power brokers corrupt the process? This is a very funny show but will leave you thinking about the issue.
I also had a great time at the Comedy Festival and the Writer's Festival. Sydney is in full festival mode and I do love to be part of it all.
MADE The most of my husband being away by having a gaggle of friends for dinner before Hot Dub and the Mah Jong ladies over for dinner and mah jong. Not that he minds if I have people over but you don't like to be taking over the dining room and lounge all the time. All that open plan living becomes in convenient at times...
WORE More in the giving away dresses. Another from Paris that is just a little too tight. And my friend gave me these socks, and as I'm part Moomin, I absolutely adore them and have been wearing them non stop! Sparkes and Moomin themed - what more could you want?!
In the street library
MY TOP THREE MOMENTS FROM THE MONTH GONE BY Now the tricky part. I'm not sure I can narrow it down to three. I laughed so hard with Takashi Wakasugi and Gutenberg (so I will tie them for that post show moment where you are a little giddy from laughing and feel your cheeks hurting from smiling so hard). I spent time with so many different friends this month. That was really lovely, to catch up with so many different people. While I will admit I accidently overbooked myself this month, as I'm at the end of it, I will also admit it was really wonderful and I feel lucky I got to engage in so many different aspects of the arts. As I've said before, I find it stimulating and nourishing. (I also had a family get together for my mother for Mother's Day and my MIL for her birthday, so it was lovely to see all the extended family together too).
READ When I was pregnant with my first child, I discovered Ariel Gore. I read The Mama Trip and the Hip Mama Survival Guide (I thought it was called something about Pregnancy but it's been renamed?). Over the years I would read her essays whenever I found them. Then not long ago I read her book on Happiness. Last week I stumbled across End of Eve, about the death (and drawn out dying) of her Mother. It's interesting to have read as both she and I evolved in our life journey at the same pace. I feel a strange connection to someone I don't know but know so much intimate detail about.
I thought The Rest of Our Lives had a 'voice' very simillar to Lawrence Naumoff. I loved him in my late teens and early 20's, and there are 2 books written since I stopped devouring his work, so I've ordered them.
I've also ordered a Sparke Hayter book - I read all her books - such fun - back in the 90s. I've ordered Last Girl Standing because the website said it was published in 2017 but according to Wiki it was 2005, so there's a good chance I already have it and already read it...c'est la vie.
I'm trying to find out what Vicki Iovine is up to at the moment, as she and Gore were intertwined in my reading in that period. Matching pace with babies and toddlers etc. If anyone knows, please let me know. It appears maybe she's just retired...
So I am reaching out through the years to authors that filled my life with vibrancy. I am seeing how they are now, though my current lens, of course, which is older and maybe wiser than it was.
Do you go back to long forgotten authors who you adored in a period in your life?
WATCHED Been going to a lot of comedy - Daniel Kitson, Daniel Schloss and He Huang were all great (note she still has dates in Sydney, Brisbane and New Zealand on sale). It's great to catch up regularly with a girlfriend I don't see often, and it's really great to laugh - cheap laughs too (so to speak) for the most part. Get out and take a punt on someone! Went to The River - it's an interesting play. I enjoyed it a lot. Also Sistren and Drive your plow over the bodies of dead animals. No movies at the cinema - try as we might there's just nothing on....
HEARD Been listening to the solo albums of Chimano since I discovered he's moved here and has a show on in Sydney this June. Alas I'm in Hobart that weekend but details here.
MADE Not much of a hole in clearing out. The book library is constantly full, working on finding homes for some CDs we will never listen to again (which honestly is all of them as we don't have a CD player except in my car which we are about to sell...)
WORE Not so much what I wore, but what I would wear, if I could get my hands on it, from the Vivienne Westwood exhibition at the NGV. I was amazed at how current she is, from back in the 1980s. She foresaw a lot of current trends, but was just incredibly early to create them! All the pics are dresses I would love to wear, and/or similar to my current styles.
I did get this bag in Melbourne from a fabulous social enterprise, Beekeeper Parade, which will have it's debut outing tonight....
MY TOP THREE MOMENTS FROM THE MONTH GONE BY I love doing this each month, and I really love that it's so hard to narrow down to three.
1. My Mother's Day celebration. We went bowling and played laser tag and arcade games. I love laughing and playing with the kids like we used to and I love watching them play together. It's so special, as I wrote in this post in 2024.
2. Ultra weekend - it's always such a vibe. Great food and fun dancing and being in the festival crowd.
3. Visiting Universities with my youngest was pretty special. Lovely to see what excites her and where she might be living. Miles stone moments for sure!
I can not believe this month has flown past! I've done a bit less than normal because of commitments at the school but still been a pretty great month!
ReadI read this book and learnt a few brilliant terms and phrases. My favourite being:
Kummerspeck - the German for Grief Bacon - excess weight gained by emotional eating
Huftgold - Hip Gold - love handles (weight on hips)
and one that takes on a more powerful meaning in Australia, though still meaning the same thing:
Ej bekot - Latvian for Go pick mushrooms! - to mean Leave me alone!
I came across this wholesome post on Instagram and learnt that sharks are older than trees! They predate fire (Fire requires a minimum of 16% oxygen to burn and Earth only got that 350-400 million years ago - I guess because of the lack of trees. Apparently they were also around before the North Star - not before it's discovery, but before it came into being! Sharks are older than Saturn's rings!Sharks have existed long enough that the solar system has completed a galactic orbit twice! They also mentioned grasshoppers are older than grass and wait for it, whales and dolphins were once land animals! Seriously, I have no idea how I didn't know any of this - and I did biology for the HSC. I've no idea what we learnt but nothing memorable!
I'm also enjoying reading my fortune whenever I have a sweet treat - left overs from the Lunar New Year lunch...still going strong. I felt this one was a push to get me back into the Torschlusspanik list....
Watched Hail Mary which I enjoyed and Wuthering Heights which I really don't understand the pushback against. I think it's because Margot Robbie has a very successful production company AND is ageing but staying beautiful enough to star in lead roles. THe film is sumptuous and grotesque, there's a lot of money hiding the bad behaviour, or people with money behaving badly - reminded me at times of Epstien and that crew of wealthy people keeping their perversions secret behind a facade of wealthy dignity. I think she managed to shock a fairly unshockable audience, as the book did at the time too. There's a really touching bit at the end that I'm so surpirsed no one has mentioned it. I really FELT it. Anyway, I say ignore the naysayers and give it a go. Even my sister who is older and more conservative than me, asked at the end "Why does everyone hate it? I thought it was really good."
Heard I went to a silent disco at the Museum so heard some 80s-00s songs, went to Alok so heard some Brazillian songs, and went to a jazz club and a Frank Sinatra night so heard some old songs, went to a drop in choir at the Opera House and sang some African songs (from different countries)....otherwise musically, didn't get out so much this month. Which is sad for me, especially as 4 of my gigs in April cancelled - 3 for Bluesfest and 1 for personal reasons...must remedy! So I'm going to share a song that popped up in my iTunes (I've decided to work thru my collection and listen to all the songs I've forgotten about in the car). I used to have this on high rotation....
There is nothing better than getting out dancing with friends!
MadeMe so happy to see the Mardi Gras decorations at Spice Alley. I was complaining to people that I thought they were missing around the city (though they do have to compete with Lunar New Year and Valentine's Day) and was wondering if we are broke as a country (that Aukus deal and the COVID hangover) or if that Anti LBGT campaign funded out of another country was gaining ground. So when we went out in Spice Alley, I smiled and thought "This is my Sydney that I love!". I know it's tokenism, for just 3 weeks but I think it's important that we show we are Allies. Sadly now more than ever. I did think it was funny the reuse of the Valentine's Day decorations - environmental to boot!
Wore My friend gave me this beautiful turquoise purse. It's so lovely and weirdly turquiose reminds me of my day - he really liked it and got me a necklace as a child. So it really fills me with a warmth.
I also got the white ikea bag because I need a waterproof crossbody handbag for Parookaville, incase it rains and I need my passport with me....I've been testing it out and I think it will work fine. From a groovy shop in Newtown, not Ikea...
My Top Three Moments from the Month Gone By I wrote 2 stories - they weren't great but they were written and submitted, which is the first in a long time so very happy with that. Had a lovely lunch at Lumi with good friends (all the food pics are from there) and our very lovely anniversary celebration. But as always, there's really too much good to narrow it down....
As an aside, it was the first time I'd been to Lumi with the doors all opened. It's so lovely with the outdoor vibe. If you haven't been, it's the best restuarant in Sydney, if not the country. Everything is equisite. And delicious.
And a quick downer for me - but not for you!I've been waiting and waiting for Jeremy Loops to announce his tour - he finally does, he's playing up the road from me BUT on the night I fly out! I tried to see if I could change my flight and fly out of Brisbane to see him up there the night before, but no go! So now I need to madely get enough Qantas points so I can watch him in Auckland and great inconvenience to all my family. As I just spent ALL my points booking Dark Mofo, this is unlikely. SO you should all go, you lucky people and tag me in clips. He's sooo good live!
Hope April is as good for everyone - for Australians on School Holidays, have a great time, take care and may the petrol prices keep you safe from double demerits - and for everyone else, as the Germans say 'Auf einem Bein kann man nicht stehen' (there's no standing on one leg), or 'One drink is not enough - you need to have two!
I'm also linking with #GardenAffair because there's flowers on the food and in the drinks, and leaves as well as garnish. I thought this was an interesting use of garden items....the garlic flowers on the pasta were so strong - I loved them, my Italian husband found them too strong to eat, which I found interesting.
I am getting rid of books on ebay and in the street library - I have thousands. I had recently read About Eve by Ariel Gore and noticed that she had got me through my first child years with Hip Mama Survival Guide and The Mother Trip, and now is writing about the death of a parent, while I too have been in that stage of life. I feel I've travelled my life in a parallel time line - though with a very different lived expereince. As I came across these Mama books, I started flicking through the Mother Trip and have decided to reread it before passing it on. Less on raising children and more on being a person who raises children. I'm finding a lot of it is good reminders, not just through the lens of being a mum, and more on just every day life.
WORE My heavy coat and beanie while stomping around Hobart. It's fun to rug up when we usually never need to...
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