My Life In Pictures

Mediation

Medication
Meditation

You're Soaking In It

Just booked a session at the Japanese Bath House in Collingwood. My neck is out and my housemate swears by the place when he's achy.

26 fat ones for a bath. It better be bloody good.

I'm staying in till I prune... I'll let you know how I go.

Pets Sounds,Brian Wilson and Moi

Monday morning and feeling a bit introspective.

Woke up this morning feeling very uninspired. If it wasn't for Louie practically clawing my face to be fed, I may have made that phone call so that I could remain in bed doing nothing until midday. Decided Louie shouldn't suffer for my malaise so I got up and made a coffee after placating my cat with dead roo.

I got dressed then sat down to enjoy my coffee and began thinking of everything that's going on at the moment. The panic I was feeling is beginning to subside. I'm still angry and hurt but it's simmering rather than boiling. My pot does not runneth over. I feel as if I'm glimpsing a universe that has possibilities and opportunities, rather than the usual feeling that life is against me and full of booby traps.

I finally got myself out the door and strapped on the iPod for company. Flicking through the selections I settled on 'Pet Sounds' by The Beach Boys. Loving the twee beauty of 'Wouldn't It Be Nice' and 'Dont Talk-Put Your Head On My Shoulder' and the sublime 'God Only Knows', I really listened to the lyrics of 'I Know There's An Answer or Hang On To Your Ego;

"I know there's an answer/I know but I have to find it for myself"

Hardly a revelation I know, but it just seems fitting for my life at the moment. I know I could never compare my little life to that of Brian Wilson but I can relate to his opting out of life and just wanting to stay in his PJ's and not leaving his bed. I've spent time off work, staying in my jim jams and hardly moving off the couch due to a combination of fear and self loathing. Brian Wilson at least spent that time creating great music and it was during this time that he created the musical genius we know as the Pet Sounds album.

I guess I've always hoped that someone would come along and solve all my problems for me. The older I get, the worse the problems get and it's become evident that that 'someone else' just isn't going to happen. I have a long road to travel and I'm taking no prisoners, just myself. I've set up the support system and it's all going to work out.

This is my song at the moment... this song really speaks to me..

I keep looking for a place to fit
Where I can speak my mind
I've been trying hard to find the people
That I won't leave behind
They say I got brains
But they ain't doing me no good
I wish they could
Each time things start to happen again
I think I got something good goin' for myself
But what goes wrong
Sometimes I feel very sad
Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)
Sometimes I feel very sad
(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)
I guess I just wasn't made for these times

Every time I get the inspiration
To go change things around
No one wants to help me look for places
Where new things might be found

Where can I turn when my fair weather friends cop out
What's it all about
Each time things start to happen again
I think I got something good goin' for myself
But what goes wrong
Sometimes I feel very sad
Sometimes I feel very sad(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)
Sometimes I feel very sad(Can't find nothin' I can put my heart and soul into)

I guess I just wasn't made for these times

Conundrum

Call me elitist but I don't think I like the idea of a Ramones/Quiksilver merger. Saw this as I got off the tram yesterday;



Hey Ho... let's not go. Jetty Surf and the Ramones taste clumsy on my palate. Joey would be turning in his grave.
However, Dee Dee would be grateful for the extra money for smack- if he hadn't already OD'd.

Louie's Latest Obsession

Evidently, one pink furry cushion is not enough. He goes at those things like John Shaft.

"He's a complicated cat and no-one understands him like his pillows..".

Death By Chocolate

Found this story on the Hun website. What a way to go.


DESPERATE workers battled in vain to save a 29-year-old man who died after falling into a vat of molten chocolate at a factory.

Vincent Smith II was with three workers dumping chunks of chocolate into the simmering liquid when he somehow lost his balance and fell in. TV pictures showed one of his distraught colleagues standing outside the factory in Camden, New Jersey, his clothes covered in chocolate. He had apparently tried to rescue the man who had died by the time emergency services arrived at the scene ten minutes later.

Jason Laughlin, spokesman for the Camden County Prosecutor's Office, said an investigation has been launched into the incident. "He somehow slipped and fell into the vat," he said. "Inside the vat, he was hit by a piece of equipment called the agitator that's used to stir, and that killed him." Mr Laughlin said the vat at the Cocoa Services Inc plant was around 8ft deep.

"At this point there's no suggestion of foul play," he added. "It appears to be an accident. "This man unfortunately fell into this hole and passed away before anyone could rescue him." Cocoa Services employs another company - Lyons and Sons - to do the mixing at the factory.

A Month From Today....

Wow I can't believe that this time next month, I'll be in Buenos Aires. That's just too much for me to contemplate at the moment! Instead of becoming overwhelmed by what I need to do before I get on the plane, I'm allowing myself to think of the things I want to do and might actually do whilst I'm there;

• Tango tango and more tango


• Milongas most evenings


• Private lessons during the day


• Spending the days walking through all the different neighbourhoods


• Cafe con leche and cake at Cafe Tortoni


• Op shopping and hoping I'll snaffle great things like a faux leopard print coat in my size!


• Shopping for the perfect pair(s) of tango shoes (comme il fait, Gretaflora,neotango,whatever!).


• Meeting all sorts of people


• Street tango in Camanito and San Telmo


• Mass beef consumption


• Sharing mate (pr MAH TAY) with porteños


• Late lunches followed by a siesta


• Spending a day at Recoleta Cemetary


• Seeing a soccer match and embracing the chaos


• Getting piropas in the street


• Go to Uruguay or Mendoza for a couple of days

Above all, I'm looking forward to arriving there with no expectations and soaking in everything Buenos Aires has to offer. It will be good to be able to put this month behind me and enjoy the 3 weeks I'll have there.

May it give me the strength and inspiration I need.

It's Automatic When I Talk To Old Friends

Miguel y Margarita

Yesterday afternoon I was at my desk at work contemplating what I might do with myself for the evening when I checked my phone and saw I had a missed call and a message.
Checked the message- a number I didn't know. Opened the message and it said;
"Guess who? I'll be at the Dickens between 5 and 8 if you want to catch up for a drink'
I let out an audible WOO HOO! My dear old friend, Michael has finally moved back to Melbourne after many years living in Prague. Evening sorted!

I caught the tram down as far as Elizabeth & Collins and walked the short distance to ye olde Charles Dickens Tavern and went downstairs. Nothing ever changes in that place and it's like sliding backwards in time whenever I go there. Incidently, I only ever go there when I'm catching up with Michael- he and the boys would always go there to watch the soccer. I used to go with them to perv on the English backpackers until I realised they had an IQ the same as their shoe size.

Anyhoo, I wandered around the crowded room looking for my Mikey boy and couldn't see him or any of the group I assumed he had also contacted for a catch up when I felt a hand on my shoulder and there he was! We hugged for ages as we couldn't believe we were finally seeing one another again. Mikey is one of the most good hearted people I have ever met. There is no edge or meanness to him whatsoever. I've never seen him lose his temper or shout at anyone. I've seen him brooding and ruminating over things that have upset him, but have never witnessed him losing the plot.Mikey smokes a lot-perhaps he's found his peace and centre of the universe in nicotine. His version of 'in with love, out with anger'.

Mikey is smart. He can speak on most subjects and is never boring. He has an amazing knowledge of history and can discuss most areas regarding this topic. His university asked him to do honors in history but he declined because 'he couldn't be arsed'.
Hardworking,generous,kind and relaxed. I think deep down he's always been a great hero of mine. We met in 1988 at a club called the Beehive which was held at the Carron Tavern in West Melbourne and initially bonded over our love of independant music, mainly the Smiths and eventually a plethora of other bands which generally all hailed from the UK. Mikey's true musical love is Northern Soul and I lost him for about six months whilst he was trying to infiltrate the mod scene in Melbourne After purchasing an old Vespa, a tailor made Italian mohair suit,expensive shirts,shoes and pants, he gave up trying because "most of them were fucking tossers". He does look rather fetching in his mohair suit although I'm pretty sure his Vespa is probably still rusting away in his parents' backyard.

He's now back here in Melbourne after a long time and I for one, am extremely happy. Knowing full well he's a man with wheels on his feet, it won't be long before he's thinking of where he wants to be next. He's talking about Africa and the work he's been involved with in the last year working with non government groups. He wants to go there and help start a school and teach english there. I can't help feeling a bit selfish and secretly wishing he'd find something here but you can't fault or deny his ambition and desire to go elsewhere. It's a good way to think and I hope his self belief and enthusiasm for higher places rubs off on me.

A good night was had, drinking beers and catching up on what's been happening although it feels as if no time has passed and it had only been a couple of weeks rather than a couple of years. A few weeks ago, I caught up with another old friend, Jim and had the same experience. I guess that is one of the meanings of true friendship; time can pass and things happen but you can come together and pick up where you left off.

I'm finding a great comfort in that.

Roll The Dice

If you’re going to try, go all the
way.
Otherwise, don’t even start.

If you’re going to try, go all the
way.
This could mean losing girlfriends,
wives, relatives, jobs and
maybe your mind.

Go all the way.
It could mean not eating for 3 or 4 days.
It could mean freezing on a
park bench.
It could mean jail;
it could mean derision,
mockery,
isolation.
Isolation is the gift;
all the others are a test of your
endurance, of
how much you really want to
do it.
And you’ll do it
despite rejection and the worst odds
and it will be better than
anything else
you can imagine.

If you’re going to try,
go all the way.
There is no other feeling like
that.
You will be alone with the gods
and the nights will flame with
fire.

Do it, do it, do it.
Do it.

All the way
all the way.

You will ride life straight to
perfect laughter, it’s
the only good fight
there is.

- Charles Bukowski

Broooooooooce!

Snaps to Bruce Springsteen, who at the latest Glastonbury Festival,performed a cover of Joe Strummer's song 'Coma Girl' and dedicated it to Joe and his love of music festivals.
Besitos mucho Brucie and Joe.. I will love you forever.

Here are the lyrics in case you're not familiar with the song;

I was crawling through a festival way out west
i was thinking about love and the acid test
but first i got real dizzy with a real rockin' gang
then i saw the coma girl, and the excitement gang

and the rain came in from the wide blue yonder
through all the stages, i wandered

oh coma girl, and the excitment gang
mona lisa, on a motorcylce gang
coma girl, coma girl

The coma girl was beating with the oil drum gang
some fast food fanatic was burning down a burger van
somebody was waling off their head
oh!
Nobody was rippin the teen scene dead

and the rain, came in from the wide blue yonder
i thought you and me might wander...

oh coma girl, and the excitement gang
mona lisa, on a motorcycle gang
coma girl, coma girl, on a motorcycle gang


And then the nineteenth hour was falling upon desolation row
some outlaw band, had the last drop on the go
lets siphon up some gas!! lets get this show on the road!!
said the coma girl, to the excitement gang
Into action , everybody sprang
and the oil drums were beating out, doolang, doolang

coma girl and the excitment gang
mona lisa on a motorcycle gang

"Have You Seen My Pussy?".. Farewell Mrs Slocombe..

Logged in to The Age when I got into work this morning - as you do- and noticed the latest in the line of deaths of famous people.

Mollie Sugden, who is known mainly for her role as the fabulous Betty Slocombe in 'Are You Being Served'has died at the age of 86 after a long illness.

I could copy and paste the whole article here but I won't. Vale Mollie-thanks for the memories. You were a bloody legend.