Meus Parem Locus

Touch trolley...

It's with 2 Hip's in quick succession and a jolly big Hurrah that I finished my first assignment this afternoon (actually only about an hour ago).   The rope that has been hanging around my neck has been lifted away, at least until I hear of my result.  If I don't get the 80% pass mark then it's a re-do for me, which will result in much angst and disgruntlement.    The day now stretches before me and I see all too clearly the normal weekend domesticities that I have neglected over the period.   How did that fridge get so packed with leftovers?  What are those clothes still doing in the laundry basket etc.  But f*ck it all - it can wait!  I sit here listening to the nauseating sounds of pre teen girlies screeching and yelling at the swimming pool in the lovely sunny weather, wondering what to do, what to do....

On Friday night I went to see Pam Ann at the Lyric theatre with John and Nenif plus a few other friends.  It was very funny indeed but in reality a mere re-hash of the same material I saw her perform at mardi-Gras about 5 years ago.  If you haven't seen her before I would definately recomend it, but it's not the sort of thing you would see time and time again.  There is so much material to work with - I don't know why she doesn't expand a little (except around the waistline where she has had no problems in that department).

Yes the season of Mardi Gras is upon us and tourists descend on the city an collectively remark on how disappointing Oxford Street is compared to their expectations.   And it's true, the gay scene on the strip is dire, with so little opportunities between the booze barns as to which to meet and laugh.  With Newtown in a drought of venues (Newtown Hotel gone and Imperial closed for "renovations" which are remarkably discreet considering the total lack of life inside) there are fewer and fewer options for an (early) thirties attached male to meet up with mates for a few social beers in a friendly environment.   I lament the options of old - oh Albury, Newtown, Caesers (or Seizure's as it was better termed) - where have they all gone?

Anyhoo.

No one is to blame...

Sometime in, ooh I would think about 1991, I earned enough of a wage to buy myself a little stereo.  That is to say, I had the potential to pay my parents back IF they bought one for me upfront.   Which I managed to charm my dear mother into doing so, at the ESB shop in the Stillorgan shopping centre, with promises of regular repayments.   I am quite convinced I honoured them to last IR₤ (no comments mother, please :o)

Anyhoo, this little stereo was about ₤200 at the time - very pricey considering it was only 5w per speaker and made (dubiously) by Sanyo.  But it had a CD player, a digital display and a remote control - and I just HAD to HAVE one as soon as I could (our family hi-fi, though fairly schmick, was limited to vinyl and cassettes, and had an annoying tendency to produce arguments between myself and my brothers about playing time, and indeed what "crap" each other was playing). 

So I took this home, bursting with excitement, and immediately set it up in my room, only to realise that, of course, I had no CD's to play in it, so I had to make do with the radio and the tape deck that first night. The next morning I was out the door with my limited funds to see what CDs I could buy.  After a bargain bin raid, I managed to find 2 compilation CDs - "With love from the stars" and "The greatest love album in the world... EVER" (no hardened loyalty to any specific artist at this stage) and proceeded to play them continuously for weeks after that (I'm convinced I didn't buy any more as I was paying off my dear parents with any spare cash). 

Every song on those albums has been etched in my head forever.  And when I hear one, as I did last night on a late night 80's Countdown repeat on ABC (Howard Jones "No one is to blame") I am swept back to those strange young days listening in isolation to my music in my room, hairbrush in hand (actually I preferred a can of deodorant) happily singing in earnest in ranges I could not reach (generally only when I had the house to myself).   So last night I leapt to my computer and started to download every song on the CDs that I could remember (Three times a lady, Damn - I wish I was your lover, I wonder why, Constant craving, The crying game, No one is to blame etc) and repeated the listening and singing experience, the fun of which has never left me.  How wonderful it was...

Incidentally, I so vividly remember the first song I heard on CD "It's a kind of magic- Queen" in my auntie's house when I was babysitting her kids one evening.  The hi-fi was a super duper deluxe one with wonderful headphones, so when the kids were safely bedded down, I would creep into the "good room" and marvel at the sound experience.   *sigh* sitting on the floor in darkness silently mouthing the words, I must have looked a bit like a pale Stevie Wonder without the glasses...

only 150 minutes to go

Sitting at my desk in work, with the undeniable urge to blog it out.  My day has been made up (so far) of listening to corporate strategy presentations followed by an "urgent need" to review three "critical" projects for compliance with some obscure strategic objective.   How has it come to this.... 

I have noticed recently how I completely wind down and tune out on a Friday.  I never used to be like this, except perhaps in the last hour. Nowadays I grapple with the clock ticking from the moment I hit my desk with my bland coffee and overly sweet muffin (gawd it's a stuggle to get good product in North Sydney - they need more ethnics like myself).    Perhaps it may also be due to the hectic pace of things since the year began - last night I recommenced my Spanish classes which were two solid hours of saying "what?", thinking.... "what?" and looking for all the world like the veritable deer in the headlights when confronted with "¿Cómo usted diría este Kevin?" upon entering the room.   I immediately wanted to turn and run away from the cold and disparaging eyes waiting to see if I'll end up sitting beside them(serves me right for arriving 5 minutes late I suppose).

So after a horrendous lunch of lemon chicken and fried rice, I am desperately trying to wind myself back up to function with relative normality for the afternoon.  Making secret promises to myself that I'll leave at 4 anyway provide little solace. It's still 2 and a half bloody hours away.   My weekend of assignment work looms before me...   I'll be back here again very soon I think

Wow-wow-wow-wow! ARGH!

Creativity is not encouraged at this time.   Working feverishly to complete my assignment before the Feb 26th deadline, my head is filled with numbers and factoids relating to financial markets, regulations and policy statements, and investment portfolio strategies.  It's a hard topic to get excited about, and it reminds me all too well of dragging my arse through my Commerce degree over 10 years ago.   I avoided studying like the plague only to panic in the last few days prior to the exam and crammed my tits off.  Getting up at 4am on the morning of the exam to work intensely on neglected topics.    What do you know? It worked (mostly).   But a practice and experience that I was generally happy to consign to history - OK I have the piece of paper now so give me a job.   

On top of all that, the latest Kylie song just will not give my head peace.  It's catchy in a viral way - I only have to hear a nearby person utter a syllable that vaguely resembles the sound of "wow" and it's on loop in my brain.  Why hasn't anyone invented a mute button for this?  On the plus side, I have finally booked my tickets to Europe for June. Hurrah hurrah!

Caught up with an old friend from the UK on Thursday night - when I first came to Australia in 1999 we both started working as temps in AMP at the same time.    My extraordinary inferiority complex of the time was diminished so much by this outgoing, cheeky, confident and accepting soul.   And when we caught up, I was so happy  not to feel like that anymore.   

let's do it

I have two weeks to finish (and I've hardly even started) the first assignment for my Financial Planning diploma.  There are a million reasons why I have left it this late - none of which are satisfactory it has to be said - but this weekend and next (the last before submission) will need to be highly studious.  What am I doing on here I wonder.

Well I just wanted to share an all time favourite clip from one of the masters of British comedy....