15.6.07

Requesting: reasons why the Howard Govt should go



Getting a little political today - I'm looking at putting a top 50 countdown list together (maybe to run over a week) of the reasons we need a little regime change in this country.

So far I'm thinking in broad brushstrokes but want to get more specific

I'm looking at:

  • Toadying (to big business and Dubya)

  • Divisiveness

  • Too little too late on Climate change

  • Meanness of spirit

  • Excessive nationalism

  • Racism

  • Politicisation of public bodies - the public service in particular

  • Lack of vision

  • Anti-union fanaticism

  • Attacks on education

  • Making Australia an international embarrassment

  • Woeful broadband

  • Luck rather than skill with the economy

  • Bloated foreign debt

  • Supporting the payment of bribes to Saddam Hussein by the AWB

  • Alexander Downer

  • Tony Abbott

  • That tracksuit

  • Making Australia a terrorist target



All thoughts are welcome

Experiencing: the roundabout perfect storm

Driving to work this morning I came up against a situation I'd never before experienced on the roads - arriving at a roundabout at exactly the same time as cars coming from each direction.

This put me and the other drivers in the position of all having to give way to the driver on our right but also having the right of way over the drivers on our left.

I was happy to see that there was a moment where everybody waited instead of some jerk just barging through regardless and ignoring the right of way principle (which seems to be the case increasingly here I'm noticing).

After an awkward half-moment, my gaming honed twitch reflexes kicked in, I summed it up the situation and made my way through. This might seem like a minor thing perhaps but I've often been a bit backwards in asserting myself and it felt like I was making some kind of progress. So, you know, yay for me I guess :)

14.6.07

Playing: music for Lost Highway tonight

Here's a selection of some of the tunes that I'll be playing on Lost Highway tonight on 2XXfm (98.3) between 9.30pm and 11. (Hope you didn't miss it :)

The Rooster Moans Iron & Wine 3:24 The Creek Drank The Cradle
I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow The Soggy Bottom Boys 4:17 O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Up Against The Wall Redneck Mothers Cracker 4:09 Countrysides
No place to fall (Townes Van Zandt) Lisa Miller 3:19 Car tape
Wedding vows Sam Evans 2:53 Brown Couch Soundtrack
Tale Of The Bull The Spoils 3:48 Hurtsville
Trip To Kalu-Ki-Bar Louis Tillett & Charlie Owen 3:45 The Ugly Truth
Dirty Water Randall Blair And The Wedded Bliss 4:46 Tattoos And Taillights
One Cowboy Junkies 5:11 Early 21st Century Blues
California Jay Farrar 4:46 Stone, Steel & Bright Lights
Quick Way To Hell The Fuelers 3:42 Hot Dang
Make it Count Barb Waters & Kim Salmon 3:35 Rosa Duets
Way Over Yonder In The Minor Key Billy Bragg & Wilco 4:06 Mermaid Avenue
Postcards Goldentone 4:33 Blood Red Earth
Not Even Stevie Nicks... Calexico 2:43 Feast Of Wire
This Is Not The Way Home The Cruel Sea 4:06 This Is Not The Way Home
Talking Talking Lion Blues Mick Thomas 3:45 Under Starter's Orders - Live At The Continental
I see a darkness Johnny Cash 3:42 American III : Solitary Man
A Good Soundtrack (Pushin' Fear) Ed Kuepper 3:36 Death To The Howdy-Doody Brigade
Roscoe Midlake 4:49 The Trials Of Van Occupanther

Loving: Twin Peaks Season 2



The second season of Twin Peaks was released on DVD a couple of months ago, smack dab in the middle of my studies (why they couldn't just ask me when to release it I'll never know) so I've only now been able to revisit one of my favourite shows of all time.

Given the mysterious lag between the release of the first season (around 2003) and this baby, it's been quite a wait but as soon as I flicked it on last night I knew that it had been worth it.

For those who came in late, Twin Peaks was a David Lynch tv series in the early 1990s which earned something of a cult following for it's style, playful reinterpretation of the soap opera genre and moments of out and out surreality.

It was set in smallish logging town in the middle of a something's-not-right forest and (initially) centred around an FBI led investigation into the killing of a local girl, Laura Palmer.

Of course, being grounded in the soap genre, this was far from all that was going on in town and a diverse cohort of locals added interwoven tales of crime, love, treachery and all the other good things you would expect in Lynch's idealised 50's looking town.

Season two kicks off with a bang, following up from a massive cliffhanger episode that saw show hero Special Agent Cooper shot, local thug Leo Johnson shot, town beauty Shelley Johnson and mill owner Catherine Martell trapped in a burning sawmill and Laura's shrink Dr Jacoby attacked in a park.

As the show centres around Cooper and this first episode back was written and directed by David Lynch himself, there is some amazingly surreal stuff with Cooper lying shot on the ground in his hotel room dealing with visitations from the worlds most oblivious and decrepit room-service waiter and then a mystical giant.

Here's a glimpse - even though the quality is no match for the beautiful film clarity of the dvd, you'll get the gist.



Everything about this dvd worked for me - the image quality and sound were spectacular, the writing and performances brilliant and my concerns that the show might have been better in memory than reality were blown away within moments.

Whether you've never seen the show before or you've seen it a dozen times, do yourself a favour and make the time to check it out.

13.6.07

Plugging: shamelessly


(Click on image for full sized version)

Yep, no points for subtlety today - two of my favourite things (trivia and 2XXfm) are coming together and by golly I'm going to let you know.

Actually, most of the details are in the flyer itself - just know that 2XXfm (98.3) is a fantastic radio station that lets you hear the music, ideas and voices that you don't get anywhere else on the airwaves and we rely on your support to keep running.

If you believe in independent media (or even if you don't, I guess), come along and have some fun.

When: 7pm Friday 29th June
Where: Theo Notaras Multicultural Centre, Civic Square (opposite Legislative Assembly), Civic (Canberra)
How much: $25 per person (tables of 10) - ($20 for 2XXfm subscribers)

Bookings: email trivia(at)2xxfm.org.au or call 62 300 100 (10-3 Mon-Fri)

/plug

12.6.07

Blowing: shit up

Canberra is known in Australia for the three p's - politics, porn and pyrotechnics.



While I (reluctantly) admit that a political career is somewhat unlikely at this point (you generally have to be able to pretend to like people who suck) and my porn career is limited to applying for a job copying videos for a distributor in Fyshwick (my uni hours didn't quite suit their needs), I have at least now managed to indulge a little in the third.

Fireworks are legal in Canberra over the Queen's Birthday long weekend and this year I decided to put aside my feelings that it was all a bit juvenile or bogany/chav/white-trash or something and embrace the whole thing.

I'm really not sure what my problem was, it was great. (Possibly still slightly juvenile but what the hey.)

Step 1 was buying them - it's an odd little cottage industry that seems to spring up around Canberra at this time of year - empty shops, scout halls, pretty much any space you can think of gets rented out and there are (generally) hand-made signs all over the place advertising FIREWORKS!!!

Fyshwick is one of Canberra's industrial areas (as well as the home of porn and brothels) and the place to go for pyrotechnics.

Pussycat (who was a little dubious about the whole excursion and was heard to mutter from time to time about people blowing their hands off) came along with me and before long we found out that the leading adult shops were doing half price fireworks.

Given that everyone seemed to have sourced their gear from the same location (the packs were exactly the same everywhere you went), this seemed the logical option. (They turned out to be cheaper but I wouldn't say 50% cheaper on the whole).

Unsurprisingly, these places were crammed to the rafters - and there did seem to be a lot of the "oh well, we're here now - strictly for fireworks mind you - so we might as well browse the strap-ons, blow-ups, extenders, expanders, vibrators, mags and other things that I couldn't actually figure out."

People were walking out with armfuls of packs that would have put them out hundreds of dollars (which of course would all be used this weekend and not at any other time) and they ranged in size from suitcase-ish to the somewhat more handbag sized pack that I picked up. (It was also coloured a particularly garish and girly pink, as if to say - "no real man would be seen dead with such a small (fireworks) package").

Thriftiness (and a slight apprehension at hand-blowing-up) won out though and we exited with our pack.

Step 2 was, well basically, blowing them up. After seeing how it was done at a friend's party (hey - they were basically just tubes from what I could see) and wanting the house to share the joy, we headed out to the local park.

Here are some of the results - being the cheap pack, there were a few big bang in the sky ones but photographing those didn't quite pan out. (Although there is a pretty cool shot of one sky firework launching)

There were a few slightly scary moments - such as when the rocket type fireworks fell over half way through their burst and started shooting them horizontally instead of up into the air - and we didn't work out until half way that the stick of incense that was included was actually meant to be used as a lighter but all in all it was a bunch of good blowing stuff up fun.

No major injuries I'm happy to say although (some might say slightly ironically) the Pussycat's hand was slightly scorched by a few sparks from one of the fuses. (She's ok.)

Click on the pics for the full sized view.










(Not entirely sure what this one is but it looks kind of cool anyway)



11.6.07

Uploading: The Launch

Update: Apparently this has now been posted on The RiotACT, a Canberra news blog. G'day RiotACTers (Rioters?)

This is a short film I made in 2005 for the Lights Canberra Action film competition - it pays affectionate tribute to the Public Service culture of Canberra, Australia's capital.



The competition is set up so that you have 10 days to make a film up to 7 minutes long which incorporates 10 events and/or locations that are given to you on the first day, kind of a treasure hunt in some ways.

This was my first attempt at animation and all things considered, it came up reasonably well. (imho)

Yes, it falls out of sync a little as it goes - this I can put down as much to the difficulties of converting something from Flash to a format of video suitable for YouTube.

Many thanks once again to the stars of the show - Leonard Low as Oliver le Grad, Kate Thomas as Millie Tante, Matt Thornton for the artwork and, well, me as Syd Cardigan.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it - cheers

Tomorrow - blowing shit up - Canberra and fireworks