Been a while since I did one of these (June) but I figure it's about time...
GRATITUDE: I am working on this with my #OneSmallThing linky. It's a way to try and shift my mindset, as discussed here. I'm not sure if it's working but I am enjoying the process. So I am grateful I got my friend that journal and sneaked a peak at it before sending it off.
LOVE: My daughter found a 20 cent coin which is one of those weird coins that is worth more than it's currency value. It's worth $11. So I am off on an adventure to mix with a sub culture (she is very disappointed I won't just list it on ebay). There is a big coin fair in October, or I might go to a deal in town (but I suspect it's not rare enough for those with a shop front to want it). The prospect of this filled me with such a charge of excitement. I love visiting these strange lands of subcultures, discovering there's a whole world you didn't know existed. A friend said "You know you aren't going to meet pirates" when I was enthusiastically telling her the story and may've said I felt like I'd discovered a doubloon. Party Pooper. This sounds like something for the Torschluspanik list....
HEALTH: I am tired and irritable (or maybe less resilient?). I have to see a plastic surgeon to get a thing cut out of my head, so I'll get to spend a lot of money to look worse. Yay.
CONNECTION: I went out with a friend I don't do much one on one with, I usually see her in a big group. It was nice to hear a lot more of what she had to say. Good reminder that sometimes we need to give more space to hear the stories. My reminder that I need to organise more one on one's with people, not just always amass a crew for fun....
APPRECIATION:Two more restaurants we love are closing. I had learnt my lesson and just booked farewell dinners and THEN found the people to go with, rather than wait a day and miss out completely as we did for Stanbulli and others. For those that don't know, Pazar and LP Quality Meats are going. Get in quick. And a warning to all, use it or lose it. Get out and support your beloved bars and restaurants because the post COVID world is really tough on them.
CARE: Trying to increase my exercise as my creaky old body seems to be getting less flexible by the day. Managed to get in stretching and dance class as well as walking this week...now to keep up the momentum.
The drink is from Blossom Bar in Spice Alley - it comes with lights and music, and was hilarious.
The other photos are just rainbows (or colours of the rainbow) and reflections around town...
I wasn't a huge Kate Bush fan, and I don't watch Stranger Things so when people started talking about Running Up That Hill, I'd start banging on about how I loved the film clip and it always made me cry and how I couldn't see Donald Sutherland without thinking about it. Then after much confusion I realised I meant Cloudbursting, which was on the same album.
This week I'm looking at strange light in clouds. In the top picture there's a shine on the fringe of the cloud. And the last photo is the moon through settled rain (or condensation) on the skylight.
Not sure if it's seasonal, but Kate Bush is definitely back in season. Hehehe. It's short and sweet this week.
I had yet another plan collapse when my lunch with friends at the MCA clashed with a tradie's visit. At about 11am I got the message that he would now arrive 2 hours later so I texted my friends that I would tear in, look at the art but have to skip lunch. Of course, when I jumped out of my car in the Rocks, there was a text saying that they'd cancelled altogether.
As I was in town, I went to Ultra Unreal anyway. I really enjoyed it (but you do need to allow more time to watch all the videos).
One of the works includes the actual Thai TV news footage of the cave rescue. It was mesmerising and elating. With the words along the lines of 'it's surprising what can be achieved if you believe' the images flash past woven into the artwork, but from a very Thai perspective, which was good to finally see. In both movies you don't get any idea of the true darkness in the cave, nor the distance they had to cover with those hoses. The anguish of the parents yelling to their children and the sad loss of life ofSaman Gunan. It is worth noting that Petty Officer Beirut Pakbara also died after a year long blood infection he contracted during the rescue).
By coincidence, we had watched Thirteen Lives last week so it was all very fresh. It was great to see the real footage and really understand what a miracle it was, and how amazing humans can be. 13 Lives lacks a lot of what The Rescue has. If you only watch one of them, watch The Rescue (on Disney). If you intend to watch both, watch The Rescue first. I saw The Rescue at the cinema and assumed it would be a snoozefest but came back so elated from it that I posted this recommendation to friends.
So while I was disappointed to miss my friends, I was revitalised with the art, and even more so by the real life images to remind me of just what is possible.
And that is the #OneSmallThing that made me very happy this week.
What about you? What's made you happy or what are you grateful for?
The Grounds has transformed into Wonderland! If you haven't been, there's only a few weeks left until it's gone (31st August). I had planned to go back and see it all lit up at night but that has yet to happen and I have a pretty full dance card the next few weeks. So fingers crossed I somehow swing it.
“I suppose I ought to eat or drink something or other; but the great question is ‘What?’”
You can potter about and grab takeaway or book a table for lunch or dinner (or a Mad Hatter High Tea) - there's plenty of options.
Whatever you do, don't forget the most important lesson from Alice in Wonderland....
As we hit our last month of winter, the skies are getting a little lighter for longer. Just ever so slightly. I was picking up something in the city and leaving at quarter past five when the hues of sunset started to streak across the sky. Because I was late I couldn't run down to the water and make the most of it.
The morning view is always worth checking out at the moment.
My morning walks are brighter now before I hit the water front, but still lovely and make me feel lucky to be able to walk to a water front.
It really is the most wonderful way to start my week!
It's been an extraordinarily difficult week and I had to cancel Melbourne for a second time. I miss Lightscape completely so other than extra dollars on the airfares and now the 2 x Lightscape tickets I had to give away, everything else was moveable - some out of kindness rather than policy.
So I am grateful for the kindness of strangers. I am grateful that I still get to go. I am grateful I could make some other people happy by giving them a chance to see the installation.
I was also very grateful that I got to go for my walk with a friend (as I'd told her I'd be in Melbourne) so I'm really lucky she was available to switch plans last minute, as it really buoyed my mood.
A few more difficult and stressful things to attend to tomorrow but I am hoping by Friday I can relax and enjoy the weekend.
The One Small Thing that made me smile this week was my box of Goodies from the Moomin store. Even though I knew what was inside, the box made me smile when it turned up. I now have a Little My eco bag that folds up so tiny it fits comfortably in my pocket. That makes me smile every time I get it out and use it. So as I've said before, when the big things are too much, just focus on the little things.
What's the one small thing that made you happy this week?
Been quite sometime since I did one of these. and this will be quite short. However, we went to Elvis on the weekend, and while I'm not an Elvis fan, I am a Baz fan and it's a great film. I learnt quite a lot and was engaged the whole time (and it's long, so that's commendable).
1. One thing I did learn is Australians can be appallingly rude and selfish. One person was very sick and coughed the whole time - big hacking coughs, constantly. I was in a mask but I'm guessing they weren't so they have risked infecting everyone with whatever they have. Don't be that guy. It makes you a total jerk.
2. Tom Parker has a line early on 'It doesn't matter how many dumb things you do, as long as you do one good thing'. Now while that's not the best advice, I do think it's a good frame for your failures. If you keep trying success might erase all the times you failed.
3. Elvis and Segregation. It is clear in the movie, and with a little googling afterwards, that it was not so much the sexiness that was the problem, but that Elvis was a risk to push the de-segregation and civil rights movement forward and 'dismantle the fabric of society'. To say that, however, would not be as persuasive as to wind up the ire of the ultra conservative and make it about morals. Interesting we did the same thing with same sex marriage. People would argue that they weren't homophobic but Same Sex Marriage would somehow ruin their marriage or take away something from marriage, when really it had no relevance or impact on their marriage at all (the daft argument 'we have no issue with you people, you can still have a thing, just not our thing'. Segregation, much?). When people argue against something, we need to make sure the thing they're talking about is actually the real thing they have issue with. The author of Maus discussed this at the Sydney Writers Festival - the school boards were arguing that it wasn't the Holocaust they had issue with, it wasn't antisemitism, it was the naked lady picture that made them need to ban the book for. He, like me, couldn't remember a naked lady and had to go looking for it. It's his dead mother. Hardly a saucy image at all. In the Elvis film, I would have liked them to really hammer that home, as I think a lot of people fall for that kind of manipulation, and we need to be more aware of it when it happens, to not be duped in the same way.
4. Elvis wore a lot of pink, and eye make up. It didn't seem to really raise eyebrows. I googled and Priscilla said that he copied the eye make up from Tony Curtis and it wasn't that unusual for men to wear some eye make up at the time. Which I found odd, as I'd never heard of this. So if men could merrily get around in pink and eye make up in the 50's, when did we become so gendered on these issues? It did make me think of the Kanye quote: “Society has put up so many boundaries, so many limitations on what’s right and wrong that it’s almost impossible to get a pure thought out. It’s like a little kid, a little boy, looking at colors, and no one told him what colors are good, before somebody tells you you shouldn’t like pink because that’s for girls, or you’d instantly become a gay two-year-old. Why would anyone pick blue over pink? Pink is obviously a better color. Everyone’s born confident, and everything’s taken away from you”.
5. There is a line by Elvis's mother, when he is coming under the ire of the powers that be "God put that in you, how can it be bad?" She's referring to the way he sings and dances, his talent. I did think for all those young kids, scared to be who they are in our weirdly homophobic society (for those OS there's been the most ridiculous carry on over a football jersey - it's too embarrassing to go into). But maybe that's what those kids need to be reminded of. The thing that makes you different often becomes your strength later in life.
Lastly, but I'm not making it 6. because that would muck up my symmetry. While I am not a big Elvis fan, I am a huge Baz fan. He can make great movies. I expected the visuals to be enough to entertainment but I was surprised at how interesting he made it, how intellectually thought provoking it was. Also how relevant it was in reflecting the dynamics still in action today. I learnt a lot, I needed to google a lot after the fact but I was also entertained. I liked how he had enough other music (modern takes on Elvis style songs) for the non fan to still enjoy it.
So two thumbs up from me. Worth checking out even if you can't stand Elvis music. But take a mask incase there are jerks in the audience, because it's a long time to be sucking in other people's germs.
Not in the movie, but this is my favourite Elvis song (and the most under-rated in my opinion).
GRATITUDE: I am working on this with my #OneSmallThing linky. It's a way to try and shift my mindset, as discussed here. I'm not sure if it's working but I am enjoying the process. So I am grateful I got my friend that journal and sneaked a peak at it before sending it off.
LOVE: My daughter found a 20 cent coin which is one of those weird coins that is worth more than it's currency value. It's worth $11. So I am off on an adventure to mix with a sub culture (she is very disappointed I won't just list it on ebay). There is a big coin fair in October, or I might go to a deal in town (but I suspect it's not rare enough for those with a shop front to want it). The prospect of this filled me with such a charge of excitement. I love visiting these strange lands of subcultures, discovering there's a whole world you didn't know existed. A friend said "You know you aren't going to meet pirates" when I was enthusiastically telling her the story and may've said I felt like I'd discovered a doubloon. Party Pooper. This sounds like something for the Torschluspanik list....
HEALTH: I am tired and irritable (or maybe less resilient?). I have to see a plastic surgeon to get a thing cut out of my head, so I'll get to spend a lot of money to look worse. Yay.
CARE: Trying to increase my exercise as my creaky old body seems to be getting less flexible by the day. Managed to get in stretching and dance class as well as walking this week...now to keep up the momentum.
