Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Chau Por Siempre

When a (now ex) friend suggested I begin writing a blog back in 2004, I was a different person. I was troubled and doing a lot of tango-hence the title 'Tango and Madness'.

Nearly seven years on, I'm older-a bit wiser and a lot more relaxed. I don't do that much tango anymore. This blog isn't really a good fit for me.

So,this is it. I've decided to keep blogging on my 'Can Madam Burn' blog about food and perhaps a bit about my regular life.

So for those who have supported me a bit along my way-thank you. I've made friends and shared ideas with people from different parts of the globe and that has been wonderful. I hope to continue to do so as a burning madam.

To quote Cheap Trick from their 'Heaven Tonight' album;

"See you later, see you later. Buenos Noches, Bye Bye"...

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Down In The Mouth

I decided about a month or so ago that I was going to get my teeth repaired. I'm sick of worrying about how much things 'cost' so I thought, "fuck it, I'm just gonna live on air and water in order to have the perfect smile".

I made the appointment and headed on over to the dentist for the first time in nearly 3 years. I was gung ho about getting it all done then but my lady factory threw all that out the window. After all that palavar, I couldn't handle the thought of any form of surgery for awhile and it's taken me this long to get my head around it again.
I had to complete a form in which they needed to know my medical history. In the time that had elapsed between dental visits, I'd been diagnosed with a thyroid condition and had a mental relapse along with dodgy lady bits that needed to be removed. My lovely new dentist, Dr Jun Hu,read my file and then informed me that I was eligible to have all this work covered by Medicare! Yay for my dodgy thyroid and my spazzy disposition!
All I needed was a letter from my GP stating this was true plus the name of my specialist (of which I have one for each) and I was in free dental heaven.

That visit was paid for by me but mainly covered by my health insurance. My last 2 visits were covered by Medicare. The first visit entailed a full check up, 4 X Rays and a full scale and clean.
The second visit, she drilled and filled my top front teeth and gave one of them a temporary filling. The third visit she drilled the teeth on my right side and gave me six fillings; 4 are for new cavities, 2 were old fillings that she drilled out and replaced with white ones. Prior to that, they were the old silver amalgam types. No more silver flash the rare times I do smile. She gave me LOTS of anaesthetic for that job. My mouth on that side was numb for hours and so was my tongue. I was due to go out that night and hoped that putting makeup on and getting gussied up would cover it. This was the result;


I swear I'm not putting this face on. It is purely anaesthetic face!
This almost looks like the cover of the Rocky Horror record.."Margarita Milonguita- a new set of jaws!"

Thursday, January 13, 2011

The Crunch

too much too little



too fat

too thin

or nobody.



laughter or

tears



haters

lovers



strangers with faces like

the backs of

thumb tacks



armies running through

streets of blood

waving winebottles

bayoneting and fucking

virgins.



an old guy in a cheap room

with a photograph of M. Monroe.



there is a loneliness in this world so great

that you can see it in the slow movement of

the hands of a clock



people so tired

mutilated

either by love or no love.



people just are not good to each other

one on one.



the rich are not good to the rich

the poor are not good to the poor.



we are afraid.



our educational system tells us

that we can all be

big-ass winners



it hasn't told us

about the gutters

or the suicides.



or the terror of one person

aching in one place

alone



untouched

unspoken to



watering a plant.



people are not good to each other.

people are not good to each other.

people are not good to each other.



I suppose they never will be.

I don't ask them to be.



but sometimes I think about

it.



the beads will swing

the clouds will cloud

and the killer will behead the child

like taking a bite out of an ice cream cone.



too much

too little



too fat

too thin

or nobody



more haters than lovers.



people are not good to each other.

perhaps if they were

our deaths would not be so sad.



meanwhile I look at young girls

stems

flowers of chance.



there must be a way.



surely there must be a way that we have not yet

though of.



who put this brain inside of me?



it cries

it demands

it says that there is a chance.



it will not say

"no."

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Por Memorias y Jucticia


When I was in Buenos Aires last year, I became a bit obsessed with 'Los Desaparecidos' (the disappeared). These are people who,during the dictatorship in Argentina,were taken away. Most were children and in some cases,their parents were killed. Every Thursday, a large group of women known as AsociaciĆ³n Madres de Plaza de Mayo, fight for justice and to find the children that were taken away from them.

The marker in the footpath below, are located all around San Telmo. Each one represent one of 'The disappeared' and is put there 'for memory and justice'. Thank God the man responsible for this horror has been found guilty and will spend the rest of his short,hideous life behind bars.

Former Argentine dictator jailed for life


Former Argentine dictator General Jorge Videla has been sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes against humanity.
A court in the central city of Cordoba found Videla criminally responsible for the torture and killing of at least 31 political prisoners during his rule.

The Supreme Court judgment was met with cheers by activists and relatives of victims, many of whom brandished photographs of their murdered loved ones.


This is the second time he has been sentenced for human rights abuses, having been pardoned from his first sentence 20 years ago.

That amnesty was overturned in 2007 and there are dozens of cases pending against the 85-year-old and other military leaders.



Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Muchas Gracias a Todos

Another birthday has come and gone. This year I decided to low tone it celebration wise and I throughly enjoyed it.

I spent the weekend quietly- retiring to my bed/lounge early to watch the footy and eat my dinner in bed.
Sunday I woke up,had 3 coffees and an almond croissant and readied myself for my drinks arvo at Yorkshire Stingo's in Abbotsford. A small group of lovely friends joined me for drinks and a bit of food.

When we were done there, we picked up Stacey and went to St Kilda Bowls Club to see one of our favorite Melbourne bands, Firebird and they did not disappoint. After that, we drove to Bimbo's for pizza and then dropped in to Night Cat for one set of Rumberos, a latin band. They were good but we were tired by then and all the ladies went to our respective homes for a well earned sleep!

I just want to thank all my lovely friends for your support and your birthday wishes. As I get older, I realise more and more that it's the people you surround yourself that matters. I liken friends to a game of cricket; do you want the sort that will go out to bat for you or the ones that run you out?

Thanks again good people...x

Monday, September 13, 2010

Wristcutters- A Love Story

Mikal,Zia and Eugene from a scene in 'Wristcutters- A Love Story'.



After a long emotional and crappy week, Friday finally came and went. It was definatly the weekend to spend in Cinema Margarita.

About 3 years ago, someone posted a clip on My Space for a film called 'Wristcutters' which I thought was a documentary about self harming. I pressed play and realised very quickly that this was not the case.

Last Friday night, I was at my video store deciding what else to watch when for some reason, this title came to mind. I asked the attendant if they stocked it and they did. I am a huge fan of the black comedy genre-as long as it's done well and this film did not disappoint.

The film begins with Zia, a guy who has been dumped by the love of his life,Desiree. Unable to deal with the pain of losing her, he suicides by cutting his wrists and bleeding out in a full sink. He crosses over to an afterlife where 'everythings the same,just a little bit worse'. He works at Kamikaze Pizza and befriends Eugene, a Russian immigrant rocker who 'offs' himself on stage- very rock and roll. 

One night whilst Zia and Eugene are at the bar, he runs into an old friend who advises Zia that Desiree had killed herself a month after his suicide. Zia encourages Eugene to go on a road trip in search of her so they can be reunited. In a car that has no lights and a black hole, they hit the road. On the way,they encounter a hitch hiker, Mikal who is looking for 'the people in charge' as she has been sent there by accident. They stumble across Kneller (the amazingly fabulously wonderful Tom Waits) who has lost his dog. He takes them back to a camp where miracles occur. In the search for Kneller's dog, Mikal and Zia's relationship develops on a beach they find (they spend an intimate night on a condom and syringe littered sandbank).
Kneller finds his dog but ends up being someone entirely different to what you first think, Zia locates Desiree and Mikal finds the people in charge.

To say I loved this film would be a huge understatement. It was imaginative,creative and highly original. I have this film for a week and I am definatly going to watch it again before I return it. If you feel so inclined, get it and if you can't find it, try downloading it! Great performances and music too. I need to get me some Gogol Bordello music....

'Ooh ooh ooh-through the roof,underground'........

Wednesday, September 08, 2010

Memo To The World

Just because I say it and I write it, it isn't always so.
To paraphase a quote by JC (and I don't mean Jarvis Cocker);
'Ask me and I'll tell you. Knock and I'll open up to you'

From now on, I will be known as Ms Under Stood- because I totally am.

To those who may be offended by my words I am sorry BUT if you want to know what I mean-ask me.
If you could hear my voice now, it is gentle and concise, not shouty and angry.

To those who think I have some sort of agenda, I don't. Perhaps you feel that by blogging this,
the lady doth protest too much. I'm not protesting, I'm blogging. Which is something I haven't done in a long time.

To those who feel I have wronged them, come forward and tell me so I have a right of reply and the chance to apologise. As far as I was aware, the Salem witch trials ended a long time ago. Please advise if they have started again so I can re apply my lippy before I'm burnt at the stake.

Freedom is blogging. Freedom is the right to say you hate me and my blog, go to your settings and deleting me.

I don't hate anyone and I am an open book. Be it embarrassing,drunken,all singing,all dancing- this is me for better or worse.

That's it.

Peace,love and sticky date pudding...x