the last days of freedom (if only we knew)

Thanks to Paintergirl for this one.

First go here. Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the year you graduated high school. Bold the songs you loved to hear, italise the ones you hated and red the ones you don't remember.

Oh god, this doesn't really work for me. I hated almost all commercial music.

1. Physical, Olivia Newton-John
2. Eye Of The Tiger, Survivor
3. I Love Rock N' Roll, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts
4. Ebony And Ivory, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
5. Centerfold, J. Geils Band
6. Don't You Want M, Human League
7. Jack And Diane, John Cougar (hated it but knew all the words)
8. Hurts So Good, John Cougar
9. Abracadabra, Steve Miller Band
10. Hard To Say I'm Sorry, Chicago
11. Tainted Love, Soft Cell
12. Chariots Of Fire, Vangelis
13. Harden My Heart, Quarterflash
14. Rosanna, Toto
15. I Can't Go For That, Daryl Hall and John Oates
16. 867-5309 (Jenny), Tommy Tutone
17. Key Largo, Bertie Higgins
18. You Should Hear How She Talks About You, Melissa Manchester
19. Waiting For A Girl Like You, Foreigner (I had a soft spot for Foreigner even though they were totally bogan)
20. Don't Talk To Strangers, Rick Springfield
21. The Sweetest Thing, Juice Newton
22. Always On My Mind, Willie Nelson
23. Shake It Up, Cars
24. Let It Whip, Dazz Band
25. We Got The Beat, Go-Go's
26. The Other Woman, Ray Parker Jr.
27. Turn Your Love Around, George Benson
28. Sweet Dreams, Air Supply
29. Only The Lonely, Motels
30. Who Can It Be Now?, Men At Work
31. Hold Me, Fleetwood Mac
32. Eye In The Sky, Alan Parsons Project
33. Let's Groove, Earth, Wind and Fire
34. Open Arms, Journey
35. Leader Of The Band, Dan Fogelberg
36. Leather And Lace, Stevie Nicks and Don Henley
37. Even The Nights Are Better, Air Supply
38. I've Never Been To Me, Charlene
39. '65 Love Affair, Paul Davis
40. Heat Of The Moment, Asia
41. Take It Easy On Me, Little River Band
42. Pac-man Fever, Buckner and Garcia
43. That Girl, Stevie Wonder
44. Private Eyes, Daryl Hall and John Oates
45. Trouble, Lindsey Buckingham
46. Making Love, Roberta Flack
47. Love's Been A Little Bit Hard On Me, Juice Newton
48. Young Turks, Rod Stewart
49. Freeze-frame, J. Geils Band
50. Keep The Fire Burnin', REO Speedwagon
51. Do You Believe In Love, Huey Lewis and The News
52. Cool Night, Paul Davis
53. Caught Up In You, 38 Special
54. Why Do Fools Fall In Love?, Diana Ross
55. Love In The First Degree, Alabama
56. Hooked On Classics, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (I REALLY hated this one)
57. Wasted On The Way, Crosby, Stills and Nash
58. Think I'm In Love, Eddie Money
59. Love Is In Control, Donna Summer
60. Personally, Karla Bonoff
61. One Hundred Ways, Quincy Jones
62. Blue Eyes, Elton John
63. Our Lips Are Sealed, Go-Go's
64. You Could Have Been Wih Me, Sheena Easton
65. You Can Do Magic, America
66. Did It In A Minute, Daryl Hall and John Oates
67. I Ran, A Flock Of Seagulls
68. Somebody's Baby, Jackson Browne
69. Oh No, Commodores
70. Take It Away, Paul McCartney
71. It's Gonna Take A Miracle, Deneice Williams
72. Love Will Turn You Around, Kenny Rogers
73. Don't Stop Bellevin', Journey
74. Comin' In And Out Of Your Life, Barbra Streisand
75. Gloria, Laura Branigan
76. Empty Garden, Elton John
77. Yesterday's Songs, Neil Diamond
78. Crimson And Clover, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts
79. Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Police
80. Here I Am, Air Supply
81. I Keep Forgettin', Michael Mcdonald
82. Get Down On It, Kool and The Gang
83. Any Day Now, Ronnie Milsap
84. Make A Move On Me, Olivia Newton-John
85. Take My Heart, Kool and The Gang
86. Mirror Mirror, Diana Ross
87. Vacation, Go-Go's
88. (Oh) Pretty Woman, Van Halen
89. Should I Do It, Pointer Sisters
90. Hot In The City, Billy Idol
91. Kids In America, Kim Wilde
92. Man On Your Mind, Little River Band
93. What's Forever For, Michael Murphy
94. Waiting On A Friend, Rolling Stones
95. Do I Do, Stevie Wonder
96. Working For The Weekend, Loverboy
97. Goin' Down, Greg Guidry
98. Arthur's Theme, Christopher Cross
99. Through The Years, Kenny Rogers
100. Edge Of Seventeen, Stevie Nicks

I AM NOT DEAD

Okay, it's been over a MONTH since my last confession, I mean, blog. Really, it's pretty sad, but my excuse is that I've been almost continuously working since I got back from holiday. Truly! I know that as a self-employed person I should be pleased about the fact that I am so busy - lots of other people in business would be over the moon. But I would be pleased to have just a little less work. Working till one last night did not have me in raptures going "gosh business is going so well!". I can tell you.

So, has there been anything of interest in my life that I feel like sharing? Let me see. I did have people commenting last week about what a socialite I was. It seems that my photo managed to appear twice on the social pages of the local free rag, the Capital Times. Which ius kinda funny cos I've been too busy to go out much. The two nights I go out I manage to get in the papers. Very amusing. To me anyway.

The holiday was great. Not long enough and way too much driving. SOD doesn't drive and I like to drive very much but there was probably too much time behind the wheel and not enough time doing other things. But it was fun. We had a great night with my brother drinking wine. We ended up putting on all the old records of our childhood which Greg still had stashed away in a big trunk. Was that ever great. Nostalgia is a strange thing. Especially under the influence of copious amounts of wine. (Very good wine too.) SOD and I couldn't remember going off to bed. Smoked too many cigarettes and felt rough doing the trip from Christchurch to Dunners.

And so, what else. Went to Fly My Pretties - only relevant to NZ readers. It was so very very good. It was the Saturday night - the final night - so the vibe was great. The only problem was how much people were drinking which made everyone a bit loud. I had to put on my scary authoritarian voice and told the giggling tittering bimbos in front of us to "shut the fuck up". Wow, rather than turn around and give me the finger they were actually really apologetic. It was pretty funny. I hope it wasn't a respect to an elder. If it was then I should also have slapped them. Hopefully it was just human decency - which makes me feel bad for swearing at them. But at least it shut them up and we happily enjoyed the remainder of the gig.

Sadly that is about all I have to impart. Except that I just bought some new CDs. Oh, and I recently managed to finish a book. But that was mainly read just before going on holiday. Debut novel by Louise Wareham, American writer living in NZ, called Since You Ask, published in NY. Really enjoyed it. A writer to look out for. Back into NZ fiction now for a while with Elizabeth Knox's Dreamhunter.

Listening to: Ivy, assorted downloaded files

blog interrupted

The Mountain Goats were so great. Really great. Astonishingly great. Just as much storytellers as musicians. Chatting between songs. I laughed a great deal. Music reviewers are funny people. I met one of them last night. There was another music reviewer there that we were laughing at. I'm not naming names. I drank more than I should and today has been a bit rough. But it was worth it. Had lots of fun and caught up with a few friends. One thing I didn't point out is that the Mountain Goats featured on the soundtrack of Campbell Walker's film Little Bits of Light which I raved on about in another blog post. In fact, they were the soundtrack. And it was a perfect match to the film.

Anyway - heading off in the morning so won't be posting for a while.

Got to remember to:
charge the camera
charge the phone
make a thermos of coffee for the trip
collect together phone numbers of southern friends
make sure I've got the hotel info
get up in time for the ferry
make sure there's enough food so the teenagers don't starve (yes, I'm escaping sans enfants)

Later.

Smoke and Mirrors

SOD's brother Ben has a major show of his work at Aratoi Museum, and the opening is tonight. We've timed our holiday rather badly - we don't have time to head over the hill to Masterton to get to it as we are booked for the early ferry in the morning. How disorganised is that? Anyway, I designed his catalogue for the show and thought I'd get it up online. Here's the link. It's about 1Mb. The cover looks great. The title in the printed version is done in UV overgloss (printing/design geeks will get this). Looks pretty cool. Hopefully we'll get to check out the show the weekend we get back.

O O O I'm so Excited!

Yes indeed I am. I've been dabbling in the downloading lately. Just picking up a bit of new music here and there. I was doing a search for Dntel (essentially Jimmy Tamborello, who put out the fantastic Life is Full of Possibilities a few years back and who is also half of Postal Service together with Death Cab for Cutie's Benjamin Gibbard) and found an album with a Dntel mix. It's called Monika Force. Celebrates 40 releases under the german label of the same name. This is the first time in ages I've listened to something and just immediately loved it. It's got some chocolatey smooth synth but with that slightly dark germanic edge at times. Nice electronica, slightly glitchy. European sensibilities. What fucking topped it all off with a cherry was a cover of Brian Eno's "I'll Come Running" off Another Green World. In a German accent. Loving it. Hey, and there's a song called "Burka Blue" by an Afghani all-girl band. First listen only so far, but I can see this being on heavy rotation for a few weeks at least.

And I was right about my "Masochistic Tendencies" post. Three hits a day at least for specific searches. I wonder if many of them stick around.

holiday highlight

One of the highlights of our little southern tour is the opening of Matt Couper's show Arbroath Devotional in Christchurch on the night before we head home. Looking good, Mr Couper!

bloc party

Got my ticket for Mountain Goats. Picked up a ticket for Fly My Pretties while I was there. And, of course, there had to be the obligatory CD purchase while I was there. Picked up Bloc Party, Silent Alarm. Not bad. Still on the first listen. Very Brit-pop.

Holiday countdown: five days to go.

Polanksi No. 2

Listening to: Department of Eagles, Whitey on the Moon UK LP

I just LOVE these guys. Favourite song on the album: Piano in the Bathtub.

Here's a nice little quote about them.

***"A curiously charming, genre-jumping music that carries trace echoes of the Beta Band, Beck, and (on occasion) Blur at their most whimsical. Eclecticism can often seem forced, but Department of Eagles' magpie instincts are waggish, beguiling, and natural." - Record Collector

Okay, we watched Repulsion this afternoon and I was suitably impressed. I'm glad we saw it soon after his first film – I could spot a few recurring character traits in his characters that I wouldn't have noticed if I'd left more time between viewing. His detached women. His nervous strained men. The cigarettes smoked when under duress. The draped bodies. He likes to film women undressing. The casual disrobing. The only thing that annoyed me was her false eyelashes. Really Roman, they just don't stay on after a rough night of insomnia. And your hair doesn't stay that pretty. But hey, it's only recently that we have come to expect some naturalistic fashioning to our films. But fuck, I loved it. The shot composition was something to be wondered at. You just don't get that nowadays.

Polanski trio

Went to the vid store last night and got out three Polanski films: Knife in the Water, Repulsion, and Cul-de-sac.

I realised that I've only seen one Polanski film. Good lord. I've only seen Rosemary's Baby. How slack of me.

We've decided to watch the films chronologically, so we watched Knife in the Water (1963) last night. This was his feature debut, made in his native Poland. The next two films made were UK productions: Repulsion and Cul-de-Sac.

I enjoyed Knife in the Water. It's great to see a psychological drama that doesn't stoop to sensational plot devices. Set on a yacht over a period of two days, with only three characters, it was still totally engaging. I'm looking forward to watching the other two films.

Goats

Hey hey! The Mountain Goats are coming to Wellington. Thursday 8 Sept at Bodega. Gonna be there. Woohoo.

nostalgia

A night of red wine and an old friend = nostalgia.

First the music. We remember the two records (vinyl, of course) that SOD and I had in common when we got together (1997). The Fall, I Am Curious Oranj and the 12" of New Order's Blue Monday. Actually not that inidicative of our musical tastes, but an interesting cross-section nonetheless.

We are right now listening to our pick of the bunch, and presently we are listening to one of my Cilla Black records (whom I adore). Paul has fixed our turntable connection. Listening to What the World Needs Now (Bacharach). Romantic childhood music.

Have also been trawling through some old digital snaps. Bought my first digital camera in December 2001 just before heading off to East Timor on a three-month contract for the UN.

Going to Timor was pretty mind blowing. The only time I had been overseas before this was going to Brisbane, Australia with my Nana at age 13. Doesn't really count, eh? So heading off to war-torn East Timor was a bit of a shock. Here are some pics. Beautiful country. Beautiful people. I met some people I will never forget.. Viva Timor Lorosae!

Here's some pics. Maubisse at dawn (the most magnificent view I've seen in my life - the pic doesn't do it justice).



Timorese family at Maubisse.




Grave sites at Maubisse. There are many pre-1999 grave sites. Casualties during the Indonesian occupation were large.




I really want to go back to Timor one day. I know I haven't travelled much, so don't have much to go by. But hey, they is one beautiful country.

Indoctrination at an early age

Listening to: Autechre, Draft



If you're going to indoctrinate your kids you've got to start at 'em early. So say these lovely folk who have put out such a useful book. If you vote don't like paying taxes to look after the poor and disadvantaged then here's the book to convince your kids in a really simplistic way that being greedy and self-centred is not just okay, but admirable. "Help! Mom! There Are Liberals Under My Bed combines an ingenious story with hilarious illustrations to teach kids about the value of hard work and the threat that taxes pose to the American Dream." – Grover Norquist, president, Americans for Tax Reform.

It just wrong!

tripping around in the red rover

Had a nice afternoon up the coast today. I had organised a photo shoot up in Otaki so most of the afternoon was spent kicking around on the sand. Warm and sunny and made me want summer to hurry the fuck up. Heres' a photo of the beach. Otaki Beach.



Headed over the big hill to Masterton in the weekend. It was so sunny over there - not like cloudy old Wellington. Shiny sun. Kids in the car. Off to see their dad. Caught up with Ben and Ang on the way home and checked out their kitchen-supreme and newly painted Persimmon Lounge. They are my DIY heros. Did the usual buy-up of fresh veg and some yummy manuka honey. Blah blah, boring incidentals.

It's nice to get out of Welly - just don't do it often enough. I love to drive the red rover. Can't wait for my trip down south in a couple of weeks. vroom vroom go red rover.

Kicking around home tonight. Should be doing some work - I'm such a slavedriver of a boss to myself. Always making myself work weekends and evenings. I'm a crap boss. Although I did just let myself lay around on the couch watching John Safran vs God on DVD. The final episode devoted to his exorcism was creepy. John was making some scary demon noises. John, I didn't think you were that kind of boy. Anyway, it was a great series. I just hope the next series he makes isn't him teaming up with that freaking exorcist roaming around Australia casting out the devil. But really, he did seem to be taking the casting-out-satan thing a bit seriously. And so did the camera guys.

Okay, on to the work now. Sadly so.

My Big Fat Film List

Okay, I said I was gonna do it, so here it is: all the movies I saw at this year's film festival. No links - feeling lazy. Some ratings added where I can remember if I really liked the film or really hated it.

9 Songs (yep, it was okay really)
Hidden
Cinévardaphoto (excellent)
Délamu
Le Pont des Arts (gorgeous)
Decasia (excellent)
Little Sky
Little Bits of Light (yay, so good)
The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
The Future of Food
It's All Gone Pete Tong (good for a laugh)
World Mirror Cinema (made me fall asleep - and I like slow films...)
Tony Takitani (stylish and beautiful)
3-Iron
Pin Boy
Mysterious Skin
Late Bloomer (one of the very best)
Fiction Artists (up there with Decasia for experimental film)
Bombón - El Perro
2046 (over-rated - I never really got In The Mood for Love either)
Godzilla Final Wars (crazy and fun)
A Decent Factory
Grizzly Man (excellent)
In the Realms of the Unreal
Yes
Sorceress of the New Piano
The White Diamond (excellent)
The Devil and Daniel Johnston (excellent)
Forty Shades of Blue
Kings and Queen
The Wayward Cloud (I did not enjoy this much at all, but can't say it's a bad film - I just found it disturbing)
Czech Dream (excellent)
Kekexili: Mountain Patrol (excellent)
Occupation: Dreamland (great)
Rize (woohoo! loved it so much)
Bill Morrison Short Films (very cool)
Inside\Out (great)
Broken Flowers (not Jarmucsh's best, but good)
Duck Season (beautiful and funny)
Dig! (good music doco)
The Edukators (great)
Look Both Ways
Darwin's Nightmare (great but frightening doco)
Monster Road
Tarnation (great! but a little morally repugnant in a way)

taking the piss out of art

Got sent links to some extremely funny piss-take songs by The Histrionics.

Check out:

From their album Never Mind the Pollocks (I just love that title)
Hip to Paint Squares
Me and My Third Hand

From their album The Histrionics
Tracey (as in Tracey Emin)
I Shot Andy Warhol (I imagined this was going to be to the tune of I Shot the Sheriff, but no, it's to I Love Rock'n'Roll)

Thanks for the links Ben and Ange!

masochistic tendencies

Not only did I join WeightWatchers today, I also joined the fricking gym. I already had the idea of joining the gym but it became a little more obvious that I needed it when I did the weigh-in at WeightWatchers - I hadn't weighed myself in ages and it was a little alarming. Soooo, I'm off to the gym tomorrow for the first time. Need to get some of those silly gym clothes. I don't have any of that kind of stuff cos I'm just not that kind of person. I think my body is in for a rude shock. I'm not going to divulge my weight here, but I will update the blog on how much I lose.

I wonder how many hits I'll get for people searching for "masochistic tendencies". Well they won't find much of interest here unless they have a strange fetish for weight loss and excercise...

blogger block

Listening to: Elliot Smith from a basement on the hill

Haven't blogged for a while and all my most recent blogs have been about films. Seeing shitloads of films all in one go does something weird to my brain. I still haven't quite recovered. It's like my brain got all filled up with images and ideas from the films and my grey matter is still sorting and deciphering on the fly and there isn't any room for anything else yet. I get mental images from the films every now and then jumping into other thoughts. Sometimes when I try to think about some of the films they get jumbled up with other ones. I'm thinking that something about the way my brain works now is not as sharp as it used to be. I used to have a real sharp brain (I like to think) but at times I go to pluck for a word from my brain and I get a blank. Like, I don't even smoke weed so I can't used that as an excuse, so I guess I have to put it down to being over 40 now. It all sucks. And then there's the effect of ageing on my body which I don't want to think about at all. I noticed the other day that I have the beginnings of an "old lady neck" where gravity is starting to do it's nasty nasty work and there's no holding it back. Fuck I hate it. I don't feel at all like a 41-year-old but I'm sure starting to look it. The old metabolism is slowing down and I'm even sending myself off to Weightwatchers next week. Yuck yuck yuck! It makes me feel shabby and it's such a boring thing to be doing. I have way better things to do with my time.

Anyway, cheered myself up with some music purchases. First a big bunch of stuff at Real Groovy along with some new CD shelves to replace the big messy piles of CDs that my office usually full of. Which made me realise how few CDs I actually have - they looked a lot more impressive in their wonky piles, but a bit hard to sift through. So of course I had to buy more so I went off to the Big Smoke sale at Smoke CDs. Was served my lovely friend Jules which was very nice. My favourite buy was Venetian Snares.

I'm really procrastinating right now cos I'm meant to be doing stinky old work. I have a couple of deadlines at the moment. Also, I can't invoice these jobs till they are done and I need the money rolling in. SOD and I are off to the South Island for a short road trip. Taking the little Red Rover rather than flying. Will be down in Christchurch for the opening of Mr Couper's show so hanging with Matt and Jo that night will be sweet. BUT we are going to miss Ben's show at Aratoi in Masterton. Most annoyed, but just didn't check the goddamn dates before organising our trip.

Okay gotta do some stinky work.

I'm pooped

It's all over. I saw 43 films this year. Yay! Will post a list soon. But for now, it catching-up-on-work time. Boo hiss.

Almost halfway

It's just after 11.00pm and I just got back from Late Bloomer. I bet there'll be a few people doing searches for world's end girlfriend when they get home. They did the freakily sublime soundtrack. This is a bit of an outsider debut for Shibata Go, who was a guest of the festival and who stayed after the screening for a Q&A, assisted by a translator. It was the story of a handicapped guy in a wheelchair who turned mean when his crush on his cute new college girl caregiver turned sour - firstly killing his other (male) caregiver (who was started to cosy up to his colleague), and then going on to knife total strangers in the street. It was shot in grainy black and white digital and was edited with mad genius, sometimes with sudden explosive frenzies of chopped up images echoed by mad rushes of distorted electronic music, courtesy of the aforementioned soundtrack artists. This has been one of the highlights. What a shame the audience wasn't bigger.

I can't say the same for the film I saw last night - Pin Boy. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was no good - for what it was, it was quite lovely. It's just that what it was wasn't really very much! A quiet, sparse story teamed with some authentic characters with little dialogue and long long shots. A young man from the sticks who has moved to the city to stay with his cousin and work as a "pin boy" in a blowling alley. SOD slept through it and really I could have missed this one. Still, as I say, I didn't really dislike it, it just didn't move me much.

Wednesday night was 3-Iron, a Korean film about a young guy who broke into people's houses while they were on holiday, ate their food, watched their TVs and generally made himself at home for a day or two and... washed their clothes, tidied up and fixed broken appliances. One of the houses isn't empty though and he meets a young battered wife of a rich bastard of a husband... and we have a quirky little love story. I enjoyed the quiet humour of this film and the minimal use of dialogue. Nice.

Today I went to see Mysterious Skin. I feel uncomfortable about this film. I guess it's thhe one that David Lane (Society for the Promotion of Community Standards) should have gone for if he had any brains. 9 Songs may have included explicit sex, but it was straightforward sex between consenting adults, unlike Mysterious Skin which included descriptions of a paedophile instructing an 8-year-old to fist him. I get what the filmmaker is trying to say. There are two kids, each sexually abused at the age of 8 by their Little League coach. One is a sensitive little guy who is emotionally scarred by the event, the other is a sexually precocious little boy who is already finding something attractive about grown-up men and who looks back with a strange fondness towards the man who abused him. He sees the summer of his abuse as a defining time in his life, and in a positive way. The other boy blanks out his experience and concludes from the bits he can recall that he was abducted by aliens. The film culminates in his realisation of the truth. So, different people are affected differently by their childhood experiences. But what bothers me by this film is that when a paedophile sees it they may feel somehow vindicated by it - that maybe their victims really enjoy it and that an 8-year-old can participate willingly and enjoy the experience. I don't know the statistics, but I can't imagine that very many 8-year-old molestation victims would fit into this category. I dunno, I have to think about that one some more. It was a good film, and having had conversations in the past with gay guys, I know that they came to the realisation of their sexuality early, and also had sexual feelings really early, but I just feel uncomfortable about the message that the film could be giving to sexual predators.

Well, that's me for now. I'm off to four films tomorrow. Still nine days to go!

Six days in...

Well, it was the sixth day of the Film Festival today and I only managed one film, although I had planned for three. I missed the Uruguyan sock factory movie, Whisky, and that's a damned shame. And I was meant to see Claire Denis' L'intrus (The Intruder), but after sitting through ninety minutes of very repetitive found footage going under the name of World Mirror Cinema, I just flagged. What I had thought was going to be captivating cutting edge cinema turned out to be a sadly miscontrued effort at reconstruction with a thematic approach. I was pretty bummed and ended up sleeping through long spells. It was just not worth the effort of trying to stay awake (although embarassingly I woke myself twice with the sound of my own snoring).

Fabulous though, was much of my Sunday viewing. I started the day with the marvellous Decasia by Bill Morrison. He takes found footage, but not just any old stuff, it has to be decaying. It's amazing the forms this took - from milky opalescence to crackling edged eye-popping bacterial scourges. There were pulsating shimmering halos around dark black shadows. From the midst of the decay were the remnants of the original images, at times emerging from amorphous blobs, at others being swallowed up by melting milkyness. The old footage in itself was gratifyingly gorgeous - a whirling dervish spins into decay; two nuns stand with their backs to us like forboding black sentinels while little children run in a line (at an orphange?) while the film decay causes apocalyptic light effects; a kimono-clad Japanese woman merges in and out of intricate organic blobs; planes fly through a decaying sky dropping little parachutists. This was a gorgeous eye-fest and anyone who can only handle narrative should go along to film like this and think "art gallery" - this isn't a story, don;t expect a story, just love the images. Meditate upon the beauty. This is the stuff that feeds my soul.

My next film on Sunday was Little Sky. Had quite a cry at this one. Delicately shot social realism in Argentina. Harrowing but inevitable ending.

Oh, and then Campbell Walker's latest, Little Bits of Light. I understand people walking out - I heard a few behind me not too far into the film - as this is not fare for the everyday festival-goer. It's not an easy experience: it's not entertaining, it's discomforting, it makes you feel claustrophobic in its closeness to the characters. Just one couple, just one weekend, and we're up close and personal with them all the way. 9 Songs has the intimacy of a quiet afternoon tea next to this, and I'm not talking sex. Helen is depressed and Alex tries all he can to help her through the darkness of it all - the days are bad but the nights are hellish. Now, I've been in the place she findshttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif herself, and I must commend Nia Robyn on her amazing portrayal of the depressed pysche. It was a rewarding and emotionally satisfying film and the soundtrack of the Mountain Goats went so well with the Taranaki landscape.

To top off the day I got along to League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse. Light relief it was, which is just what I was after since it had been a full-on day.

Monday was good too - The Future of Food - made by Gerry Garcia's wife, nonetheless. US patenting laws are totally scary. Anyone who saw The Corporation last year should get along to this. I sincerely hope this gets general release. People need to know about this shit. Then a bit of fun - - what I would call a Spinal Tap movie for the rave generation. Some great moments and a total pisstake of the Ibiza scene.

Got to try to make it to Tony Takitani in the morning. Let's see if I can get up early and get all my work done!

Le Pont des Arts

It's 11.30pm and I just got back from Les Pont des Arts. I'm glad I took my daughter Chloe to this rather than SOD as I'm not sure he would have enjoyed it at all. The final scene was a little on the metaphysical side and some of the acting was a little theatrically inclined. Anyway, I rather liked it. The only thing I found a bit pissy was the way the gay men were portrayed, but it was fairly integral to the story and also gave some light relief. I'm gonna have to go out and get some baroque music now. The main piece of music in the film was sublime - Monteverdi's Lamento della ninfa.

Spending all day at the movies

The Film Festival has started. I'm about to exhaust myself with a two-and-a-half week movie marathon. Fun. Thursday night was Gala Opening with then copius amounts of bubbly and beer. Movie was okay. Anime not really my thing.

Next day had 9 Songs on a hangover. Too many grotty old pervy men who didn't look like they belonged at a festival film. Managed to block their presence out for most of the film. The sex scenes to Michael Nyman's piano was by turns erotic and sweet. It was better than I expected. I had read a bit about it and knew it was essentially sex interspersed by rock gigs all the way through, but the sex marked points in the relationship until the end when she left. You could see the relationship faltering towards the end when they started getting into sex toys and domination. At the beginning all they needed was each other. Interesting film. I can see why some people don't like it, but my thinking is that sex is mostly portrayed in our cullture through pornography, and it was enlightening to see a mature film deal with it as pure subject matter instead of titillation. In the context of the film I didn't find the explicit portrayal of intercourse at all degrading or offputting. I wonder if the raincoat brigade got anything out of it?

Last night was the public opening with Hidden, a film that still has me thinking.

Today started with Cinevardaphoto, three films by Agnes Varda. Exquisite. Had moments of overwhelming sense of wonder and joy contemplating how much humans can express with their art. I know there will be films I will see during the festival that will have me crying tears for the other end of the spectrum of life as a human being. That's what the festival is all about.

Now off to Delamu, then tonight to Les Pont des Arts. Four films tommorrow!

just call me Xuxa

Your Sexy Brazilian Name Is

Xuxa Coelho

What's Your Sexy Brazilian Name?

Old school remedies

Listening to: my HP printer at 12.43 at night. The end of my working day.

I had a weird moment tonight. I came home and found that a couple of embers had left some nasty burned marks on the carpet in front of the fire. We rent our house, so these kind of things make me gasp. (I guess if you own your own home, you might also gasp a smidgen.) Anyway, from the depths of some part of my brain came the memory of reading something about rubbing a silver coin on the burned spot. And it worked. Where had I heard this from? My mother? Some old magazine from back in the day? (They used to have handy tips for the housewife back in the old times you know, not the latest on Brad and Angelina.) Memories are so strange like that. You remember something but you have no idea where the hell it came from. I just DO NOT know where that came from, but it surfaced when needed. God, I think I'm getting old.

too much chocolate

Listening to: Bailter Space, Wammo

We have a few chocolate goodies left here at the Festival office after our programme launch (they were from the goodies bags given out to the invited guests). I just ate an Enduro bar (thoroughly recommended) and then a Toffee Pops bar. I feel sick. Unsurprisingly. Why do we do these things to ourselves.

Busily working at the moment on the Updated Schedules. These include late confirmation films and visiting guests. And hey! We have finally confirmed the latest Jim Jarmusch film, Broken Flowers. It's gonna be good.

It's my birthday and I'll work if I want to.

Yes, it's my birthday, but it doesn't slow down the machine that is my working life. I've had lots of nice phone calls this morning and a couple of texts to remind me that it's a celebratory occasion today and I'm meant to be going out for dinner with SOD tonight, although I haven't booked anywhere. Hopefully I don't end up having to go somewhere crap because I haven't got it organised...

Anyway, back to work. I also really need to do some invoicing this month if I want to get paid. Still some May work I haven't invoiced for.

Oh and yeah, the Film Festival programme for Wellington is now out on the streets. Get your tickets booked, everyone! I've now got to work out what I'm going to get along to. Already watched five on tape, so still around 135 to choose from!

Flagging

I was meant to be working tonight and getting some of my projects underway, but I made the mistake of buying one of those little half bottles of wine at the supermarket on the way home. It was Chianti and my reasoning was that if I had just a couple of glasses then I would be fine and I could do all my work. But no - SOD and I drank the little bottle and then wanted more. SOD went down to the diary (they sell wine!). So here I am, with a tiny bit of work done and a little on the drunk side. If feels nice - it's been a while. But how will I feel about it in the morning?

Anyway - on the work side - the film festival programme goes to print on Friday - the files need to be off in the ether around 5 in the afternoon. It's still in the process of being scheduled - and one film in particular is still being waited on - will we get it or won't we. And I can't tell you what it is, but I CAN tell you that it's very important in the scheme of things. All in good time.

Have been listening to the latest Boom Bip - Blue Eyed in the Red Room. I downloaded it with the wonderful SoulSeek, but really really want the real thing. I think Boom Bip is my musique du jour, but am experiencing a wondrous rebirth of Bailter Space. What does Bailter mean?

Fucking with signs

This a sign SOD and I saw on our holiday travels not so long ago on the back road along Queen Charlotte Sound.



And here's another example of creative sign additions I was emailed today.

Bridget Riley

Anyone living in Wellington should definitely try to get along to the Bridget Riley show at the City Gallery.

Here's a taste:



Eye-assualting genius. Take some dark glasses and panadol.

Actually, make an evening of it, like I'm going to do and catch the sublime music of Seht at one of the City Gallery's Late Night Sessions (god, aren't they getting so hip at the gallery!?).

My street art blog

Just updated the old ARTONTHESTREETS, and it's been quite some time since I did that. Nice to put some new stuff up.

I've just spent Mothers Day working, but did manage to crack open a bottle of bubbles tonight. A nice celebration because a.) it was Mothers Day and I'm a mother, and b.) SOD has just moved back in with me so it is all Happy Families. Hurrah!! It wasn't just any old bubble either, it was a bottle of Veuve Cliquot that my printer gave me a while back because he hadn't managed to take me out for a Christmas lunch.

Been working most of the weekend. It's been kinda nice 'cos I'm feeling as though I am almost caught up with my work. And I've been happy with my creative levels - not something I can always say, but at the moment the ideas are flowing. Thankfully.

I'm now at the beginnnig of my film festival work - I received the first bunch of film blurbs for layout on Thursday. The next two months are going to be scary and crazy. But strangely I look forward to this time of year. What the hell is wrong with me? Do I have some freakish masochistic tendencies? Let's not go there.

Gingerbread yum yum

Inspired by Stephen's latest kitchen craftery, I have been busy this evening whipping up a quick Old-fashioned Gingerbread. It's bloody nice. (I wonder what it would be like with a little quince jam?) It's made with molasses and treacle, ginger, cloves and cinnamon. Still another forty minutes in the oven. Looking forward to scoffing some tonight with a nice cup of tea. Ah, homely pleasures.

Watched the Metallica doco last night. Managed to sleep through quite a bit of it unfortunately due to imbibing a few glasses of red wine. Proved to be quite soporific combined with a nice blazing fire. Stupidly we started watching the movie at 11pm, and it was quite long. Very amusing - heavy metal musicians going through new age therapy, and using it to aid in the making of their album, St. Anger. There were some great lines.

Tomorrow is not going to be much fun. I'm not looking forward to spending the day doing my GST, but that's what I have in store. It should have been done last week, but I find it really hard to concentrate on a week day when the phone keeps ringing, so the weekend is the best time to tackle the job. I haven't input anything into my accounting system for yonks, so it's not going to be much fun. Crap. Being self-employed is fun most of the time, but the tax side of things is truly boring and vexatious.

Shake it up baby

Yes, I'm afraid it's back to quizzes again.

What Beatles album are you? This is me...


Revolver


Which Beatles Album Are You?
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An up close look at life

Did you ever wonder what velcro looks like up close up? Well this is it.



And there's more...

Short film successes

Just as I love reading short stories when I'm in the mood, a short film is rewarding to watch in the same way. With little chance to portray a complex narrative, I find they rely more on connecting with the viewer in a more intense emotional way than a feature film. You could never sit and watch a completely abstract film for 6o minutes, but three or four minutes of experimental film can be a totally enveloping experience. A story can be open-ended. There is no need for resolution or closure as there is in a feature. It would be nice to have a DVD of a short film collection, much the same as a collected book of short stories. I guess they could be available. If not, it's a good idea. I'd buy them! Nice to sit down and watch a couple of short films as you would read a short story, especially if you don't have the time to sit down to a feature.

It's wonderful to see New Zealanders being able to find a voice in this medium. It's not an easy one to make any money from - the only way to get them out in the public sphere seems to be through festivals. But, similar to the music industry, the changes in production technology means that much of the work can be done by the filmmaker themselves. First there was the wonderful Two cars, One Night and now there's Boy winning acclaim overseas. It's going to be screened in Out Takes Gay and Lesbian Film Festival shortly.

Eek

Listening to: various recent downloads

It's half past midnight. I've just made a list of all current projects. They amass to the shocking total of fourteen and that doesn't count the Film Festival which will I'll be starting on in a couple of weeks (possibly less). This is going to be taxing. I'm trying very hard not to get stressed, but to just attack the workload a chunk at a time, while also staying supremely organised. And keeping up with the housework as much as possible and making sure my kids get fed. In the meantime, my admin is getting soooo behind. I need a maid. I need an accounts assistant. Oh, and I need a life outside work, but that ain't gonna happen. I hate it when I bump into people at this time of year (always my busiest) and they ask me how I am and what I've been up to and it's always zippo. Oh, you know... working. Oh, it's so very dull, and at the end of these few months (around Sept) I come out like a wrung out dishrag. Still, I always enjoy a challenge. The blogs are gonna get dull. There'll be no nice little links or pics - there just won't be time, so I'm afraid it's gonna be my constant moaning, and maybe the occasional exclamation when I see what films have been confirmed for the festival. Oh, except that's probably confidential and I can't mention it!

Anyway, my jobs at present are a varied bunch. Two branding/identity jobs (fun); one brand implementation for a new store opening in town (not so fun, but interesting); some arts promotional work (Circa - always nice to work for); a magazine (almost gone to the printers - woohoo); a couple of publishing jobs (two educational books and a newsletter); a book for an NGO; promo stuff for Out Takes Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (lots of fun and nice folks); a poster for an NGO... and of course there's more due to come in over the next few weeks.

Have been downloading some stuff on Limewire lately - really like Iron and Wine - ahve been meaning to check them out for some time. And got some more Broken Social Scene who I adore, and as soon as I'm up to spending some money on music (a long way off..) I'll be getting some of their albums. Got some old stuff too - Desmond Dekker, The Israelites; Nancy Sinatra - Bang Bang; Prince - Let's go Crazy; Al Green - Let's Stay Together. Oh, too weird - Ryan Adams singing Wonderwall! Limewire is fun. Oh yeah.

I still exist

For anyone who thinks I have expired or am incapacitated, I thought I had better let you know that I am still alive and well. Hmm, perhaps less of the well if you count stress factors. I have a huge glut of work on at the moment which is likely to last for some time. Perhaps if I just do some little tiny wee blogs every now and then, although the fact that I am working nearly ALL the time means they will be dull little entries.

I hope to try and find the time soon to put up some pics from my recent trip to the Marlborough Sounds with SOD. It really was pretty bloody nice. Eating, sleeping, a bit of playing around in boats (well a small dinghy), and lying about reading on the beach and in our little room which looked out onto the beach. And a little bit of drinking which lubricated the whole weekend into a state of satiated bliss. Oh my, I wish I could go back right now, but no! I have a weekend of work ahead and no end in sight. Wish me well.

Searching for Daryl

For any of those with Site Meter on their blogs, having the occasional review of how people have got to their blogs can be amusing, especially when they've found your blog through a search. I just found that someone got to my blog through a search for "Daryl Hannah and horses". Just don't think about it...

Family visit

Oh, I'm excited! I have my sister, Jen and her partner and kids coming to stay over Easter. Of course, being the stupid perfectionist that I am means I will have to clean the house from top to bottom. I started clearing stuff out of my son's room this morning, mainly a huge stack of dishes that he somehow manages to squirrel away in there. I found a dinner plate from two nights ago and various glasses and cups. On my way down the stairs with these I manage to trip near the bottom and let the lot fly - shattered glass everywhere, but fortunately I didn't end up colliding with it all - I managed to fall backwards rather than forwards. I guess I was pretty lucky, but that didn't make clearing the lot up much fun at all.

Productive day

Just to carry on my recent obsession with domesticity, I have been getting busy in the newly created vege patch and now have cauliflower, brocolli and cabbage plants settling into the soil. I felt ever so virtuous after that. Now I just have to stop the dog from trampling them. I can see that this is going to be an ongoing battle. Oh, and fighting the weeds of course. But it'll all be worth it when we get to eat the end result.

It was the end of daylight saving today. Another summer over.

Just one more, then it's off to bed.

I must stop this insanity! This is the last quiz. I'll be seeing multiple choice tick boxes in my sleep.

You scored as Hinduism. Your views are most similar to those of... Hinduism! Do some research on Hinduism and possibly consider becoming Hindu, if you aren't already. Hinduism 83% Buddhism 79% agnosticism 71% Christianity 54% Paganism 42% Islam 38% Satanism 38% atheism 17% Judaism 13% Which religion is the right one for you? (new version) created with QuizFarm.com

MP3s on Blogs

The MP3Blogs Aggregator. A handy RSS feed aggregator of blogs harbouring MP3 files - a treasure trove of audio files - updated every hour.

Everything Reviewed

... and the night wears on. Still bloody blogging.

Listening to: Merzbow, Amlux

I just found this blog and I rather like it.

It gets worse

What Classic Movie Are You?
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I'm not this nice.

There's something wrong with these fucking tests. I mean, really! I'm just not that nice!

What Famous Leader Are You?
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Pavlova (just like my mother used to make)

I have been going through a Pavlova Renaissance. My mum used to make these for "occasions" - birthdays (we got to request the dessert we wanted, and we mostly opted for the good old pav) and of course Christmas. I think at Christmas there was the usual trifle as well, but Nana poured half a bloody bottle of sherry in there and it was a bit strong for the kids. Anyway, I have now made pavlova two weekends in a row. I now have 12 egg yolks in the fridge and need to now think of something to do with them besides feeding them to the dog (canine coronary material, I would think). My pavs have both been perfection. It all comes down to the recipe I reckon, and I have my mum's recipe - it always works. Oh, and your oven. Gas just doesn't do it.

Here's the recipe, if you're game to try. Really, it's very easy, but you'll probably need an electric beater or cake mixer.

Pavlova
Ingredients:
4 large or 5 small egg whites
2 tablespoons of cold water
2 teaspoons of vinegar
vanilla essence

Beat all of the above till stiff peaks form.

Next, fold together 2 teaspoons of cornflour with 2 cups of white sugar.

Slowly add this mixture to the egg whites while beating all the time.

Now pile this mixture onto an oven tray in and using a spatula shape into a circular mound (approx 25cm in diameter).

Cook in a preheated low oven (125 degrees centrigrade) for one hour. The outside should be crunchy and the inside marshmallowy and light.

When cool, spread liberally with whipped cream. Typically, New Zealanders will top with slice kiwifruit. I prefer a crumbled Flake or chocolate chips.

Pavlova and beer

Listening to: Boards of Canada, Geogaddi

Last Saturday night was SOD's 35th. We celebrated it at my place with friends. Beer, wine, pizza (home made naturally), and various other food stuffs were consumed. Dave received a nice bottle of single malt whiskey which was almost polished off by the end of the night. Oh, and there was pavlova too, but more on that later (or earlier, depending on the order you read these postings). This is after the whiskey drinking.

Pointless and Absurd

Woohoo! On Monday, SOD's exhibition at 91 Aro Street Gallery opened. We drank wine. We ate food. We stood around on the street outside the gallery smoking cigarettes and talking about pointless and absurd things, just to keep to the theme of the evening. No, really. I never usually talk about pointless and absurd things. Skeleton Guy looked excellent en masse, lining the white walls of the gallery with his bony grinning presence. We followed with dinner a cheapo Malaysian Curry House and then on for some celebratory beers, of course. A night is never complete if you don't get to swill some beer. Or so it seems. Here's Dave hanging out with the SGs.

Is this me?

Just took one of those personality tests. Am I really that much of a perfectionist? How scary. Other than that, I look kinda dull. Nothing weird here.

Cattell's 16 Factor Test Results Warmth ||||||||||||||||||||| 62% Intellect |||||||||||||||||| 54% Emotional Stability ||||||||||||||| 46% Aggressiveness |||||||||||||||||| 54% Liveliness ||||||||||||||| 42% Dutifulness ||||||||| 30% Social Assertiveness ||||||||||||||||||||| 62% Sensitivity |||||||||||||||||| 54% Paranoia |||||||||||| 34% Abstractness ||||||||||||||| 42% Introversion ||||||||| 30% Anxiety ||||||||||||||| 42% Openmindedness |||||||||||||||||| 54% Independence ||||||||| 26% Perfectionism |||||||||||||||||||||||| 74% Tension ||||||||||||||| 46%

Take Cattell 16 Factor Test (similar to 16pf)
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Busy old day

Listening to: Can, Tago Mago

Drinking: Whiskey, neat.

Just been to see a play tonight. I do some design work for Circa Theatre, so I get comps for whatever play I've done promo work for. I find most of the plays a bit dry, Their target market is considerably older than me though, so it's not surprising. I enjoy getting out to a play though, and hey, it's free! The play I went to tonight was "An Inspector Calls" - J.B. Priestley.

I've been a busy little woman today. I have a load of firewood arriving on Monday (yay! I still think it's totally exciting that I will be sitting by an open fire this winter) and I had to make room in my little garden shed for the cord and a half of pine and mixed gum. It'll be a bit gruelling getting the wood from the street down to the shed, which is by the back door so I've offered my 17-year-old son and his friends some money to do the job. Fuck, I hope they say yes, otherwise I don't know how I'll get it done. So yeah, cleared out the shed - lots of sneezing in the dusty mess, but it's done now.

Tomorrow I might be making tomato relish. That's the plan anyway. Okay, I'm sounding scary and domestic. Fun takes many forms, okay?!

Destiny

In case you can't read this, it says "www.happyclappinghomo.com Brian Tamaki says he's liberal"

There was a Destiny Church march in Auckland today. Gone are the black t-shirts - now they don't want to look too right wing. Now Brian Tamaki is going public on his desire to entire the political arena (like we didn't see that coming). He says that since no MPs appear to believe in God, then Destiny needs to involve itself in political matters. Oh, so the previous march in Wellington had nothing to do with politics? Puh-lease. I wonder where the 10% tithe is going? What's scary is that Brian could possibly do quite well. Just look at the States.

I Heart Huckabees

Not often do I recommend films to all and sundry. Normally I might recommend a particular film to a particular person, knowing that it might suit their sensibilities, but I just saw a film tonight that I think most of the people I know would like. I haven't laughed so much in ages. It's got the dirtiest sex scene of any film I've ever seen. If you've seen it, you'll know what I mean. I checked out Rotten Tomatoes and they didn't even have anything bad to say. Well, not so far anyway. Some crap reviewer will find something bad to say about it at some point I'm sure.

hedgies

I didn't know anyone actually kept these little beasts as pets. I wonder if you can train them...

I've been pretty busy with work. Hence the lack of blogging. Going to try to get out tonight to catch a flick. Would like to catch the new Mike Leigh film (always been a bit of a fan) but SOD thinks his films are depressing. Hmmm, will report back later.

I got all enthusiastic today about setting up a vege garden, but the part that requires hard work and lots of time is what puts me off. The upkeep is fun, but digging it up in the first place is a bit of a mission. I've rung a local handyman/gardener who put a flyer in my letterbox and he's coming round tomorrow to quote me on the work. Exciting!

Pumpkin

I flagged going to the outdoor NZ short film screening, Frugal Pleasures, last night. Instead, went to Aro Video and got out Pumpkin. Man, what a waste of time. I don't often push the stop button part way through a film - but really, there just was no choice. It was that or vomit. I just checked the listing on Rotten Tomoatoes to see what other people thought. It definitely get the Rotten rating, but I must take note of the reviewers who liked it and never never trust their judgement. I wonder why the hell Christina Ricci took the part. I imagine her career is taking a dive.

The Shins

Listening to: The Shins, Chutes too narrow

Oh, well, what can I say? It was head-swimmingly wonderful. Shame about Julia Deans who supported. I never really liked her in Fur Patrol, and I definitely disliked her solo. I think it is usual to match a support act to the main act. Like John White with Cat Power. What a shame I didn't time it so we missed her. But it didn't ruin the night - all was forgotten when The Shins started up with their big jangly chords and the beatific tones of James Mercer. I'm really crap at writing any sort of music reviews, so I won't try - Stephen does a good one if you wanna read about the gig. Suffice to say, a very good night was had and my ears sure rung a lot when I got home. Gigs like that though, remind me of how old I'm getting. It's not 'cos there were young people everywhere - of course there were going to be - it was an Orientation gig for the uni students. I couldn't give a shit about my age - it's just that your body doesn't put up with quite as much punishment as it once did. Standing in one spot for three to four hours in the sweltering heat now takes its toll. Aching ankles, sore lower back. It's not like it used to be... Will I still be able to do it at 50? I hope so. Maybe it's a sign I need to do some exercise...

Anyway, next on the music calendar is this:

I realised today that I'm bloody not going to be able to go - one of my kids has glandular fever and I'm having to do her office cleaning job for her. Grrr. Oh well, I really have been going out way too much lately and tomorrow night I want to go to CafeX the MediaTheatre at the Film Archive which will be fun.

Bad eighties decorating

I really do love this new house I'm renting, but it's such a pity about the bad wallpaper. Probably the height of suburban sophistication in the 80s, it's not really stood the test of time. No, when I sat on the stairs while I was on the phone the other day and noticed that I could see three different wallpapers all in one go, I knew it was really too much. Especially the matching friezes. They suck. But I've kinda got attached to the big dark rosy floral number. I almost like it. In the upstairs bathroom they got into the entire matching gig - the tiles have a matching motif to the blinds. Eugh!

Yay, The Shins

Listening: Low, The Great Destroyer

Got my Shins ticket - very happy about that. Of course, since I was in Real Groovy, I just HAD to buy a CD. I had a $20 voucher and was gonna buy one CD, but then I found three that I liked and just couldn't decide. Got Low, The Great Destoyer, The Handsome Family, singing bones and Bonnie Prince Billy, I see a darkness.

Fatso

Listening to: Postal Service, Give Up

Recently I subscribed to Fatso - an online DVD library. I bought Hell Pizza over the net for the kids one night and received a trial offer for a three week subscription. Of course, it's one of those subscriptions where, if you don't get around to cancelling, it will continue on a basis where you are charged. But I reckon I will keep it up, maybe not at the trial rate of three disks, but maybe two at at time. So far I've watched Truffaut's 400 Blows and The Son's Room. 400 Blows was great. Truffaut is on my list of directors whose films I need to see more of. SOD got me 1001 Movies you must see before you die last christmas (another one marked down) and it says that Truffaut revealed some time after the film was made that "he boosted the intensity of the 15-year-old's performance by joining him in a private conspiracy against the rest of the cast and crew". All in the name of art eh, François?

Cat Power

Had the best Valentine's Day - not that I really go for that kind of crap, but hey, it was nice to actually do something authentically celebratory. None of those red roses... but we did eat a couple of heart-shaped chocolates on our picnic. Yes, a picnic with some nice bubbly by the sea and then on to see Cat Power. She was much as I imagined she'd be - shy and nervous and odd, and the music was exquisite. It was great to see it in a theatre. I can't imagine how she would manage singing in a bar situation. The support act of John White was really sympathetic to her music. I've just found out he has a new album that came out in 2004 - definitely got to lay my hands on that.

And still, no Shins tickets! Victoria University is organising this and they are obviously woefully disorganised. The gig is less than a week away and no tickets are yet available through Real Groovy. Grrr! I hope they still have some for the general public - I'm worried that they'll sell out really fast since they'll only have a limited amount available after the students get theirs.

Holly Golightly is coming to NZ soon - could be worth a look, although I only know of her through that song she did with the White Stripes. Must do some research.

Such abundance!

I'm feeling a music glut is going on. Just saw The Handsome Family, and have The Shins coming up (very very excited about that), and today I just spotted a poster telling me that Cat Power will be here on Monday! How good is that!? So I got myself tickets for CP on Monday night - Valentines Day, so am heading off to the gig with SOD. Should be a goodie. It's on at the Paramount Theatre. I saw Kristin Hersch there and really like it. The fact that it isn't a pub means that I'll actually get to hear the music instead of people's chatter.

Got loads and loads of work on at the moment. Missed out on the contract for the Consumer magazine, but it was down to five people, so I did pretty well. Not too worries - I think if I had won the contract I would have go myself in the poop. Too much work, not enough time. I already find that most days anyway, so it would have been pretty scary. Probably would have had to hire someone and I'm really not into being an employer. Boring.

Myers-Briggs types

I've been spending some time again looking at my Myers-Briggs personality type. For anyone who's never looked into this, try this online test. I'm an ENFJ - about 5% of the population. We're nice, but I reckon we must have a bit of a martyr thing going on - always trying to help other people. I'd really like to get a book about it and maybe do a more comprehensive test - 72 questions doesn't seem enough. For a personality quiz, though, it's pretty spot-on, but I'd just like to know more. Last time I took it I think my results were a bit more extreme. I must be mellowing with age. Or having an off day. Being moderate sounds awfully dull.

My other blog

I seem to be spending more time updating my Wellington Street Art blog than this one lately. It's fun finding little treasures of art down alleyways. There have been a few on the footpath lately too.

Had to happen

Just couldn't help myself. Went in to Real Groovy to get tickets for tomorrow night to hear The Handsome Family and just HAD to buy a couple of CDs. I've had a credit note slowly getting more and more crumpled at the bottom of my purse and thought it was high time it was used. (At the end of last year I'd had a bit of a cleanout of the CD collection and took a few items in to get rid of. Real Groovy is handy like that. Of course, it has to be in okay condition and something that someone might wanna buy.) Because Handsome Family are playing at Indigo I thought about the last time I went to a great gig there, and that has to be Will Oldham, so I bought Bonnie Prince Billie - "master and everyone" and "ease down the road". Got the first one on the player now. mmm mmm. so good. You'll note there's no hyper links here. Can't be bothered. If it interests you, then Google!!

getting back to the music

Yay. Live music feeds my soul. Went out with my friend Michael on Friday night for a night of music and beer. Such a good combination. Oh, and one cigarette which I bludged off my busker friend Simon on Cuba St. Started with a a couple of beers down Courtenay Place (nasty nasty street on a Friday night) and then on to Happy where there was live electronica with Delete! - improvised I'm guessing. Very small crowd - well, I guess you couldn't even call it a crowd. Eight people I'd say. Next to Bodega to see The Inkling. They were great - reminded me of Mogwai in a way. I've decided that I've lost touch with the Wellington live music scene and it must be remedied! It just feels so good to hear live music - when it's good music that is. On Saturday I dropped Michael off to the airport - he's off to Rotterdam, Berlin and then Paris, working for the Film Festival, spending days on end watching movies. Oh, what a hard job! Actually, I would say it would be very hard to stay focused and objective, making judgment calls on what audiences back here would like to see in the Film Festival. He's lent me a bunch of CDs while he's gone. He is the biggest buyer of music that I know. Lucky me - twelve new CDs to listen to. Mainly hiphop imports. Yay.

A very big insect

This very big insect was sitting on my path this morning. I'd never seen anything like it before and freaked out and rang the Ministry of Ag and Fisheries, thinking it might be some foreign invasive species that you hear about every now and then in the news. The guy on the phone first said I should look up the protectnz site, and then suggested I put the insect in the freezer overnight and then send it in to MAF for identification. Well, I'm glad I didn't go along with that advice, cos it turns out it's a lovely harmless native dragonfly, or kapokapowai. It's so pretty! And so fucking huge! It normally hangs out in wetlands, so I'm not sure what it was doing hanging out in suburban Wadestown. Maybe the horrendous winds we are having at the moment blew it off course. Check it out - these guys mature in the mud for five to six years in their larval state.

postal service

Postal Service sound quite a lot like the Pet Shop Boys. I like Postal Service. This does not compute.

I couldn't help myself

The lure of the fireplace was just too much. I know it's summer (well, it's fucking meant to be innit) but it really was slightly nippy this morning. And I really really love open fires. The warm glow. The crackel. You know the stuff. And the people that vacated had left some chunks of macrocarpa. Nice and dry. Oh yeah! I kept it burning for a couple of hours just cos I could. It made the early morning start behind the computer seem quite okay.

old houses are nicer than new ones

This old house I'm now living in feels like a comfy old cardigan. There's a funny smell in places that hints at mould. It's only a hint, mind, and I think with some open windows and sun it'll probably disappear. There's some really bad wallpaper. Sitting on the stairs the other night talking to Ang on the phone I could see three different floral wallpapers. I think there was a major attempt at redecorating in the mid-eighties when there were all those matching friezes available. A bit naff, but the house itself was built in 1914 and has the sweetest layout. Loads of room - three living areas that open onto each other through double doors, so you can close the areas off if you wanna. Nice. Oh, and an open fireplace. Marshmallow toasting! Oh yeah. I've been trying to get some paintings up on the walls, but haven't got many up there yet. Still got boxes to unpack yet, so that takes precedence. All I want to do all weekend is unpack and settle in, but no! I have to do stinky work, and that's exactly what I should be doing right now, but instead I'm procrasting by blogging. Think I might go to bed soon and procrastinate some more by sleeping and then try and make it an early start in the morning.

...and life goes on

Hmm, looks like 2005 is going to be a trying year if the first couple of weeks is anything to go by. Firstly, SOD and I are having a break, so have moved out of what my friend aptly called "Camborne 90210", and good riddance (to the house that is, not SOD). I'm not entirely sure that moving there was a good move at all. It was too far from the city and was not at all my style of house. It was like being in a big ritzy holiday home all the time. Might sound nice to some, but it's not conducive to normal living and working. Anyway, now in an old house in town - just me and the kids. Next, found out late last year that I have an almighty amount to pay back to the tax department. Nasty. Then, just before Christmas, my little red Rover crapped out. It's been in for repairs now for almost a month because of the holiday break and they are now telling me that it is going to cost $3,600 to get fixed and my warranty won't cover it! And of course, this house shifting has cost me both in downtime and moving costs. Oh boy, is it going to get any worse? I had this feeling on New Year's Eve that there was a little to celebrate the coming of 2005 - something tells me this is a year to consolidate and work as hard as possible. How incredibly dull.

Are we all glad it's over?

Yay, another Christmas bites the dust. It's taken me a week to get the strength back to blog. And now it's almost time to start back into some work. The crap thing about being self-employed (and I'm sure this isn't the first time I've moaned about this) is NO PAID HOLIDAYS! All you lucky lucky lucky people out there being paid to swan around at the beach by your employer - well, I guess I should stop moaning and remember that I can swan off to the movies or shopping any old day I want to and not have to think up some lame excuse for my boss...

Anyway, I've decided that next year I will have to change the name of this blog, because I'm going to get an office again. Woohoo! This is making me happy now even just typing these words. It's been a weird year working from home. In fact, it hasn't even been a year yet. I've decided I'm just not suited to working in the confines of my living space. I need the feeling of "coming home" at the end of the day and also the feeling of entering my creative office space at the beginning of my day - somewhere near a busy cafe! So, in the New Year I'll be looking for a place with some friends in the city. Looking forward to it.

Ugly Blogs Make Me Vomit

And this one wins the biggest pool yet.

Does anyone really enjoy xmas?

Dunno about this - of course, we all loved it as kids, but a) we got presents (usually lots of 'em) b) we could escape the adults after the big lunch when they'd get drunk or nap - then we could go play with our new toys and c) we didn't have to do all the work and spend all the goddamn money. Right? So this year it's just me and my three kids. We're chilling by ourselves - no pressure from relatives, no huge meal to cook, not small talk to be made. Just better prepare ourselves with some movies - can't possibly risk having to watch xmas television. Even SOD's not gonna be here - house sitting for some friends so he can get some painting done. Lucky old him. He can even ignore the entire 25th of December.

Madness!

Just got an email from a friend of mine who is spending an interesting two weeks driving through the Sahara. She's going as part of the Hoggar. Check it out - it's mad.

Evil Paisley!!

Okay, just stay away from paisley. That's what they tell me on this site. I think my sister has a paisley shirt - I'd better tell her not to wear it any more!

got a new look

Just got my hair cut. Lots of hair fell on the floor. It was freaky. Got it cut at Buoy.



Am now at home and listening to cLOUDDEAD. On my headphones cos the kids are watching the box. Going to see Garden State tonight. Went to see two plays this week. Upping the culture content of my life.

I've started a new blog

Not a replacement one, no, but an extra one, purely to document a bit of Wellington Street Art. Go check it out.

retail therapy

Just got a nice chunk of money from a job, so decided it was time to buy a few new clothes. Got three nice tops from Artikel, one of them by some great Wellington guys by the name of The Stitches. Also a cute little Lisa Ho skirt and an Italian paisley muslin shirt with odd little bits of embroidery on the yoke and cuffs. Very happy!

RED-LIGHT VORORTROMANTIK ARCHITECTURE DEATH

Four of our friends had a show out at One Eye Gallery in Paekakariki last weekend. Here's some pics of some of their work.

These two are from the lovely Jo Russ.





Sandra Schmidt's little plastic houses:



Stephen Clover's drawings and photocollage





And from Matt Couper, a couple of large works on paper.

Underland and more

Nick Cave music with ballet. Who would have thought, eh? Well, they did it with The Fall (I Am Curious Oranj) - I would have loved to have seen that one - dancers in Doc Martens... Anyway, went to see the Sydney Dance Co dance to the music of Nick Cave in Underland last week and it was pretty stupendous. Some glorious moments. And what else have I done of interest lately - oh, yes - went to see the director's cut of Donnie Darko. Great to see it on the big screen again and all those little extra bits that fleshed out the story were worth seeing but I'm not sure if it made it any better than the original. Just worth seeing cos I'm such a Darko fan.

american art in nz

Harry from Tennessee asked me in a rare comment if we see much in the way of US art in NZ. Well, Harry, I had to really think about that one and try to dredge up what would be the last piece of American art I have seen in a local gallery and I'm guessing it would be an exhibition of Tony Oursler installations. We get a bit of UK stuff here - saw a Tracey Emin exhibition not so long ago. But we are far away from anywhere so we don't get a lot from overseas really. But the local art scene is pretty strong so who cares!!! And also, I guess, it's why NZers like to travel...

cafenet

This is cool. I'm sitting working in a cafe in town and can check my mail.I've just hooked myself with a cafenet account - there's a big list of places about town (mainly cafes, but other spots as well) where I can connect to the net with my wi-fi card. Sweet. Got my car in being fixed so I'm hanging out in town trying to get some work done. Just thought I'd blog, just because I can!

and much blood was spilt

Anyone been to see Zatoichi? Man, how was all that blood. Started to make me feel a bit queasy, and that's saying a lot because I have a pretty strong stomach. Very entertaining nonetheless. Of course, it was one of those films I missed during the festival that I am now trying to catch up on before the onslaught of the next festival (which comes round only too quickly).

my brand new brand

Well, I've finally done it! After much deliberation (getting votes from family and friends) I've come up with the brand to represent my design business. I do miss my old logo, but it really was time for a change after three years with my old pink victorian version. This is a bit fresher. I've gone all out on stationery - letterhead, compliments slip, envelopes and business cards. Now I just have to get the website designed to complete it all. That's the work for this weekend.


I've started up a bit of a health regime for the summer - a daily swim or walk (or both if I can manage it). Let's see how I get on. I'm pretty unfit at the moment, so it's a bit of a struggle.


SOD's bro, Ben Cauchi, has an exhibition on at the moment - Ghosting - I think he's already sold quite a few of the works. The opening was fun as usual - a chance to catch up with people and to down a few wines and scoff some bread/cheese/olives. Check out the pdf of the catalogue. I helped him out with designing the invites and catalogue - always a nice job cos I love his work.

look mum, no wires!

Yep, I got airport, and it's cool. This is my first post in quite some time and I'm doing it with a wireless connection. Yes, I'm bragging. Sorry. I just can't help it. And SOD (Significant Other Dave, for initiates to my blog) is also connected wirelessly upstairs as I type this. Oh happy days.

I've been managing some swimming over the last month - woohoo, it's been up to 25 degrees. Still a bit chilly on first entry, but once you get your head under, it's really rather nice. I've been doing a lot of backstroke and a bit of floating around with my eyes closed and one of those flotation stick things behind my neck, which is fun if you're in the pool on your own. I like to imagine it's what a flotation tank is like, without the claustrophobic sensations.

I'm about to rebrand my design business. Been thinking about it for a while and now that it's kinda quiet I thought it would be a good time to give it a go. Of course, that means getting my website (well, let's be honest, webpage) revamped as well. Better get busy!

And why have I been so remiss with my postings? Well, a little slump really. I just haven't been feeling like it. Work has become a drag and life has been a little on the dull side. Now that the weather is starting to perk up and become springlike (as it bloody should now that September is almost over), I'm feeling a little more chatty. So hi to anyone who is still bothering to visit this wasteland of a blog.

accounting work sux

I've just spent the last two days getting up to date with my business accounts. I use Mind Your Own Business accounting software which makes it all pretty simple, but the trouble is I've been so busy that I haven't been entering in any transactions for months and was really behind on my GST (Goods and Services Tax, for those outside this country) - a ridiculous system that taxes almost everything you buy and causes most people in business to have to spend vast amount of time tallying up everything coming in and out of your business. The only advantage that I can see, from my point of view, is that it makes me keep up with all my accounting which is very handy for when it comes to sort out income tax (which is next on my list and is waaaay overdue). The New Zealand Inland Revenue department is a little more understanding these days about late payments and penalties since they copped a great deal of flack over a spate of suicides after business people were charged so many penalties that they just plain couldn't cope any longer. IRD have a lot to answer for. Hearing about some cases at the time was heart-breaking. Bureacracy gone mad. So, it's all done for now and I can go to bed with a clear conscience (and a couple of red wines under my belt).

Oh! Just remembered - I had my very first swim today. The waters's still only 20 degrees celcius - not all that warm - but once I was in for a while it was fine. It's about up to my neck which is a nice depth - the same depth for the whole length. Fun, fun, fun! I'm planning on a daily swim. Good exercise for someone who spends almost their entire day on an office chair. My morning dog walks down to the beach have come to a quick standstill.

A new sexy look?

No, not really, I'm just kidding myself. Trying to make myself feel okay about the fact that I now have to wear glasses. Just for computer work and reading, but still... it's gonna be weird. I tried on a few different frames and found some pretty quickly that looked okay. The trouble is, I don't have much of a bridge to my nose. It's one of those button noses that dips right in between the eyes, so there's not much to hang the glasses off. Lots of frames slip down and then I end up peering over the top of them, sot the heavy-framed secretary look is totally out of the question, which is a shame cos I kinda like it. I've chosen some rimless ones - a contemporary sort of design. Gotta wait 3 weeks though. In the meantime I'm meant to be doing eye exercises. Like I have the time!

Still haven't tried out the pool! Had problems with the heat pumps which is now sorted out, but has been a bit of a setback in getting the water up to a reasonable temperature.

street art

Saw this yesterday - great to have the camera on the phone when you want to record a visual moment.

Finally starting to catch up on all my work. Got a tasty job coming up that I'm putting in a proposal for. Fingers crossed that I get it! Going to have to collaborate though cos it involves doing some TVC work which I've never been invloved in before. It's only between me and one other company. Worth a shot.

It's all over

Oh, so sad! The film festival is over for another year. It always goes so quickly. SOD and I have been bemoaning all the films we managed to miss, mainly Screaming Men and Guerilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst. The Anatomy of Hell was one that we had tickets to but still managed to miss. That's SOD's story, which I will leave him to tell if he feels like it. Suffice to say, I was pretty disappointed since that was a film on my initial "must not miss" list.

Anyway, I have managed to see 31 films - not nearly as many as I would have liked - mainly cos the daytime screenings that I planned to attend were pretty impossible to get to cos of my workload. It would be so nice to take the two weeks completely off, but it's too hard to do that when you are self employed. You'd think it would be easier, but no - essentially the equation is "no work = no money". Just doesn't work out.

Films I saw (in the order I saw them):
Hero (martial arts eye candy)
Old Boy (over-rated Korean shock-fest, Tarantino-style - morally queasy)
Super Size Me (30 days on Mackers - should be obligatory viewing for all western teens)
The Motorcycle Diaries (Che-the-man in his formative years, on a craZy roadtrip across the Andes)
Touching the Void (True story of grit and sheer dogged determination - if a little nuts)
Aaltra (Belgian road movie in wheelchairs - superb black comedy)
The Saddest Music in the World (genius Canadian Guy Maddin with a tale of a legless woman and the quest to find the most melancholy music. This film was indescribably gorgeous)
Father and Son (Vaguely disturbing offering from Russian Ark director - tale of an obsessive father and son relationship. Homoerotic and gorgeously shot)
The Yes Men (Anti-globalisation hi-jinx - lots of fun and thought provoking)
Control Room (Inside Al-Jazeera - the news we never bloody hear)
Our Music (my only dud film - Jean Luc Godard has lost the plot - overtly intellectual nonsense)
A Page of Madness (huh! Whoever went to Fahrenheit 9/11 missed this gem - 1920s silent era Japanese avant-garde accompanied by twin british duo In The Nursery. My number one film from 2004 festival. I was gobsmacked)
In Your Hands (This year's Dogme film. Made me cry bucketloads. Gutwrenching tale of a spiritual event in a women's prison and the aftermath. Excellent. I think the guy beside me was crying. On ya mate)
Dias de Santiago (Peruvian film - as depressing as they come, but very worthwhile. Saw this straight after In Your hands and was an emotional wreck by the end of the night. Tale of ex-soldiers attempts to make sense of life after four years of jungle warfare. he couldn't)
Tropical Malady (Not for everyone, but I was glad I gave it a go. Sexy boy-love between a worldy Thai soldier and a village boy. Big surreal jungle sequence during the last half. Weird and wonderful. Wish I'd seen his other films)
Intimate Strangers (Quiet french comedy of mistaken identity. Okay, but nothing special)
Any Way the Wind Blows (Cool Belgian film - think Magnolia in it's structure, but add some hipster Belgians, a plot that culminates in one big groovy party and a wicked soundtrack. I wanna see this one again and I'll be buying the soundtrack for sure. I wish I had been at that party...)
Bukowski: Born Into This (What a foul-mouthed sod, but what a poet. Good doco on the life and times of american writer Charles Bukowski)
In My Father's Den (Forecast to be the next "The Piano" or "Heavenly Creatures". I concur. Superb acting, an emotional rollercoaster of a movie. Hope it does well in the international marketplace - it deserves to. Based on a novel by Maurice Gee who was there at the screening)
The Corporation (Two and a half hours of corporate exposé. Conclusion? Corporations are unhealthy for humankind. They need to be disbanded. People need to see this film!)
The Return (Another Russian gem. Creepy father comes back after twelve years to take his kids on a "holiday". Great cinematography)
Coffee and Cigarettes (Jim Jarmusch as wonderful as ever with this series of vignettes all involving coffee and cigarettes. Wellingtonians will love this take on cafe life. Lots of fabulous faces including Iggy Pop, Steve Coogan and the boyz from Wu Tang Clan telling Bill Murray to stop drinking so much coffee as we watch him swigging straight from the filter jug. Loved it. Oh, and Jack and Meg White are in there too. It's all good)
Vibrator (Dark but beautiful story of the meeting of two lonely people - alcohol-dependent early 30s woman who is spinning out and spunky late 20s trucker bloke hit the road in his truck after chance meeting in a late-night store. Neuroses abound. Raw camera work and raw emotions. One of my faves)
Cowards Bend the Knee (More craziness from Guy Maddin - it's hard to describe his films. This one contained ice hockey, amputation, incest, murder, and a breast made of ice. Freaky fun)
Shaun of the Dead (Took two of my kids to this UK zombie spoof. Plenty of gore and laughs. Starring Dawn from The Office and Bernard from Black Books)
The Stroll (I didn't know Russian film could be so bubbly. I heard some people didn't like this - I loved it. Sexy Russian girl and two young men-about-town walk through the streets of St Petersburg flirting. She's a bit crazy and the boys fall in love with her and who wouldn't. Sexy fun)
Ramones: End of the Century (Never been a big fan of the Ramones, but great music history. There's no denying the influence these guys have had on other bands and of course, they were the main influence on the punk movement in the UK. The doco highlighted their early years through to their final demise and the death of Joey. A thoroughly disfunctional bunch of guys)
The Battle of Algiers (1965 classic dramatising the struggle of the Algerian Liberation Front against the french colonialists. Gripping realism, and still entirely relevant)
Hollywood Respliced (My shot of experimental film - small audience, and some that walked out. But for those that stayed, a treasure trove of decontructed/reconstructed short films. Who needs drugs when you can watch film like that?)
Ong-Bak (What's the boy's version of a chick-flick? Whatever it's called, that's the genre for this film. Great Muay Thai fighting scenes and lots of action. I liked it, but it's not really my kinda flick, but it was closing night film, so I wanted to see it)
And the last one, which was this morning's viewing:
Checkpoint (This film had my friend Steve clenching his fists and sweating profusely with anger. We all took a while to calm down afterwards as the four of us sat over coffee and vented. Simple footage of checkpoints on the Gaza Strip, filmed between 2001 and 2003. Makes you understand the reason for Palestinian suicide bombers)

Well, that wraps it up for another year. I'll try and watch some of the stuff I missed on tape if I can.