"Take a chance, you just might grow... Take a chance you stupid ho" (Gwen Stefani)

In her debut solo single (much maligned for sounding "exactly like a No Doubt track", but with a very funky Alice-inspired vid), Ms Gwen Stefani is squawking at me, "What You Waitin' For?" It is, frankly, starting to piss me off (not the song -- which is actually quite catchy :) -- but the question, which I've been askin' myself more and more of late). Well here it comes -- a list of things I'm "waitin'" for...


for a certain someone's approval

for someone else to make the first move

for the muse to strike

to have enough spare cash to get my car serviced

for Australians to get sick of John Howard

to hear whether I still have a job after Christmas

to have certainty


Question: What You Waitin' For?

"I've been feeling so much older, frame me and hang me on the wall..." (Crowded House)

Ahhh. There's nothing like a good live gig. Ab-so-lutely nuthin'.

Tonight I caught the brothers Finn in an intimate performance at Melbourne's Arts Centre which was filmed for MusicMAX on Foxtel. Was chuffed to see the irrepressible Paul Hester as MC -- not only is he the quintessential Aussie smart-arse, but it was a reunion of sorts for the former Crowdies. There was so much love and respect on that stage it almost made ya feel queasy...

Paul intro'd the gig saying, "...we've got Neil and Tim, and their band: two brothers from Bournemouth and some poor American who doesn't even have a brother in the band..." It truly was a family affair. Neil's son -- and Betchadupa member -- Liam was in the audience to cheer his Dad on and suffer embarassing stories about how his p's got him to sleep as a baby.

The audience was made up of industry types and competition winners and on the faces of all, along with the reflected light of the mad paper lanterns onstage, was pure admiration. And why not? These boys still rock. And their easy relationship with each other and genuine sense of humour made the show even more fun. Hessie opened by apologising for any funny smells drifting in from the dressing rooms, confessing he and the boys had had a traditional pre-show toke, adding a yelled apology to Neil off-stage, "don't worry, Neil, it's pre-recorded: they can edit that out!"

If you're blessed with cable TV, turn your dials to MusicMAX on Chrissy Day to catch the gig, and my scripted quessie to Neil. I know I will be, I was so relieved to have gotten the question out (and so blissed out by the whole live show) that I tuned out most of his answer the first time round!

The prize that keeps on deliverin'...

As readers of this blog will know (heh heh, I always wanted to type that :)), not too long ago I received a phone call from the good people at Arena TV on Foxtel, telling me to pack some sunscreen and ear plugs pronto, 'cos I was off to Miami to see Usher live (hence the ear plugs). Now, I and my sis had a sensational time in South Beach: supping on shrimp, sipping mojitos and eyeing the eye candy on and off the beach, but the trip was not without mishap. We never got to meet Usher (sigh) and Hurricane Jeanne proved to be a rather bitchy land-lady, evicting us about 36 hours early. This news so devastated the lovely people at Arena that they sent us a box full of goodies on our return. Then BMG -- Usher's label -- sent us a box full of tunes (which I'm sure they'll find good use for down at Cash Converters). And it seems it ain't over yet, yesterday I received an email from Arena inviting I and a friend to an live and intimate Neil and Tim Finn gig in a couple of weeks, which is being filmed for MusicMAX on Foxtel. Remember the Crowdies? They rocked. That Neil is one of the best things we ever stole from New Zealand, next to lamingtons. This, I wanna listen to (Usher, take notes).

Wahey! is all I can say. I'd like to thank Arena and some seriously bad weather for this unexpected string of freebies.

I could get used to this.

100 random things about me...

First of all, kudos to <Mel>. I stole the idea for this list from her blog.

Here's mine...

1. I love making lists
2. I just registered to receive my Uni results via SMS
3. I am something of a techno-phobe, but I am learning
4. I don't own a DVD player or a digital camera (see what I mean?)
5. I like the pickles in hamburgers
6. My diet is 60% carbs... and at least 30% chocolate
7. I am looking forward to graduating from Uni
8. I am freaking out about graduating from Uni
9. Choosing kooky electives is what has gotten me through an Arts degree
10. The best thing I ever did was visit Jamaica
11. I have wanted to go to Jamaica since I was 11 years old, and first saw Cool Runnings in a tiny, two-theatre cinema
12. Curried goat does not taste like chicken
13. I still have half a bag of the Blue Mountain coffee that I bought in Montego Bay in 2002 in my freezer (I'm not much of a coffee drinker)
14. I prefer tea
15. American sitcoms and Robbie Williams are among my guilty pleasures (although I feel less guilty about Robbie these days)
16. I am almost always convinced I'm going to be late
17. I used to want to be a reporter on Wonderworld
18. I think Michael Parkinson is god's gift to interviewing
19. I don't actually believe in god, that's just a figure of speech
20. I love figures of speech, and speculating where they come from and how far back they go (like the phrase "heads will roll", which dates back to the French Revolution, and the millions of phrases Shakespeare introduced into modern English)
21. I love the boundless energy and irrepressible optimism of dogs, but am more of a cat person
22. I love working at Borders
23. The coolest job I ever had was the gig as Recovery's book review chick, but I was nervous a lot of the time
24. The Recovery house had pink shagpile carpet which people used as a giant ash tray at the farewell party because, as producer Jane said, "it's (the house) going to be demolished anyway".
25. I hate it when beautiful, historic houses are demolished to make way for flats
26. I used to want to live in St Kilda, and still think it's a pretty cool place
27. I love carnivals and festivals and I went to the Melbourne Show last year for the first time in a decade and had a blast
28. I get annoyed when noone will go on the rides with me
29. I'm sick and tired of living in Australia
30. I often fantasise about bold, change-your-life moves, but I'd miss my friends and fam too much
31. I want to live overseas at least once in my life
32. I want to go sky-diving, but not bungee-jumping
33. I think Oprah is cool
34. I've checked the clock on my mobile phone about five times since I started this (see no. 16: I am almost always convinced I'm going to be late)
35. All the best experiences in my life -- work, or travel -- have been because of the people I've met there
36. I'm still friends with three girls I met in year 8, and I hope we're all still friends when we're fifty
37. I'm looking forward to being 30
38. I'm afraid of being 60
39. I've just recently made up my mind to write continuosly for at least half an hour each day
40. I can't be bothered exercising
41. I can never remember whether its "its" or "it's"
42. I was genuinely depressed when John Howard won the recent federal election -- the first time I've ever felt that strongly about an election
43. I love reggae and so-called "chill out" music
44. I like Powderfinger's old stuff better than their new stuff, but I like Regurgitator's "middle" stuff, like "Unit" and "Art"
45. I think Quan looks spunky with facial hair
46. I was in the city for some birthdays recently and I checked out Regurgitator's Band in a Bubble experiment and found it simultaneously bizarre and boring. I caught myself standing in front of the bubble, but watching the action on the TV above(!) and marvelled at the post-modern paradox
47. The other day I caught my reflection in a train window on a too-bright day and noticed lines around my eyes and thought, "this is how it starts..."
48. When I get into arguments, I often say really nasty unfair things I regret later
49. I am -- mostly -- proud of myself
50. I watch too much TV
51. The smell of the disinfectant they use to cleanse your skin before an injection still makes my gut constrict with fear
52. The other day I was flicking through The Travel Book by Lonely Planet and I realised that there are more countries in the world than I could visit in two lifetimes, and felt sad
53. Travel -- even the idea of it -- inspires me
54. I think patriotism is a lot of what is wrong with the world
55. I am a republican, and can't bring myself to do anything but scoff when I see/ hear anything to do with Australia's beloved Princess Mary, but I usually keep it to myself because everyone else thinks I should lighten up
56. I care more about what other people think than I should
57. I sometimes have nightmares for no good reason, and the only cure is to turn the light on and read something funny -- like Nick Earls' short stories -- for hours
58. I love baths so hot you can only just stand them, scented with essential oils and lit by candlelight
59. I love the feel of sand on my feet
60. I love to sit by the ocean, but hate swimming in it
61. Chlorine makes my skin dry and itchy and my hair feel like a Barbie doll's
62. I carry all my tension in my neck and shoulders, or my stomach
63. I wish Charlie Kaufman would write another film as blissful as Eternal Sunshine
64. I love the smell of popcorn at the movies, far more than the taste
65. When I was a kid, I used to read those tragic horse books series' and even tried to write one once, although I don't think I'd ever done more than a trail ride at the time
66. On Year 9 camp a horse kicked me in the leg, it hurt so much it made my eyes water, but it barely left a bruise and I think everyone thought I was a big baby
67. Jeff Buckley songs always make me melancholy
68. I feel self-concious at parties that are just for me
69. I can't wait to have something to celebrate that is worthy of a three hundred dollar bottle of French champagne... like a first novel publication deal, maybe.
70. The first time I got drunk was at my cousin's 21st
71. I was in Florida in late September and I still haven't cleaned out my wallet. Yesterday I tried to pay for bananas with a handful of dimes.
72. The last pair of jeans I bought is the only pair I've ever had that I really like
73. In my more accepting moments I know that everything happens in cycles and that the world will change, America will fall, and we will move away from conservatism (and probably back again) in time, but that this generation may not be around to see it
74. Mostly I just rant and rave about the state of the world like everybody else
75. I've never been to Venice
76. I've been to Paris: I wouldn't go again
77. I'm convinced that Hell is a shopping centre around Christmas-time
78. I know someone who's met the Dalai Lama
79. When the Dalai Lama was out here on a promo tour a year or two ago, I couldn't go because I was working
80. I want to take up kick-boxing
81. I took yoga classes for 3 1/2 years, but I don't any more
82. I sleep way too late on Saturdays
83. I don't trust artificial sweetener, I'd rather the real thing
84. I love a man who can play guitar
85. I'm hungry
86. This blog started out as a Uni assignment
87. I have a fireman calendar on my wall, but the last couple of months of the year are prawns (good without the head)
88. I wish that I could speak at least one other language fluently (my Italian has always involved far too much pointing for my liking)
89. I went through a salsa phase last year, but I wasn't much good and the guys in the classes were all either sleazy or old or both (the girl from work I went with still goes, though. But she's a better dancer than me)
90. The band from adolescence that I loved the most and for the longest time was Blur. I own every album they released, but I never saw them live
91. I suffer from snail mail nostalgia
92. I think Jai from Queer Eye is so cute I could just eat him up
93. My favourite colour is, and almost always has been, purple
94. In my years in customer service, I have observed the following; a) middle aged women are the rudest when pissed off, followed closely by old men, b) the creepy ones are usually guys in their 30s and 40s, c) teenagers can be total tools when they travel in packs, d) I don't wanna do this forever!
95. I hate it when people pre-empt your response in an invitation. For example, if you're trying to set a day to catch up for coffee and they just name a time and place and say "hope to see you there!" Its like saying "I can't be bothered negotiating, be there or don't bother coming, my work is done." Fucking rude.
96. I'm almost finished this damned list!
97. I climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge once: it was pretty cool, but expensive
98. My favourite accents are Scottish and Jamaican
99. We used to have two cats called Buddy and Holly, but Buddy ran away
100. I once had a goldfish that lived for over seven years

Once more unto the breech... (or somethin' like it :))

Wahey! 1 exam down, 1 to go. And the worst is over: the next one's a whole week away and open-book(!) What a relief.

I know I shouldn't whinge (but I'm an Arts student, it's what we do: work little, and whinge when we do... :)) I struggled to find motivation for this one, I tell ya. My only studying consisted of about forty minutes last night when I harangued Mum with what little I remembered from Islamic Politics classes this semester. This morning I forgot my student ID today and two pens fell out of my pocket on my way into the exam, so I faced it with one -- one! -- lonely blue biro and the hope that it wouldn't run out. (Oh, do I live on the edge... ;)) Ever since a nightmare I had during VCE when I brought half a dozen pens into an exam and, one by one, they all ran out, I've been a walking stationary store during exam time, but not today. Ah well, its over now. (For me, anyway, some poor saps are still scribbling away madly).

'Tis a gorgeous sunny Cup Day outside and the post exam euphoria means that I'm not even feeling too bad about the fact that I have to work till 11 tonight. Not yet, anyway. Still bummed that my Cup Day consists of an early morning, an exam and the infamous dead shift at work, especially since Cup Eve in Melbourne is a sanctioned piss-up.

I'm OK now, but this morning I wished was that I was in bed nursing a hangover like everyone else... ;)