Grace Notes @ Snarkattack

Soupir means ’sigh’ in French and I think I might already have a blog post with that title, alas. I know I just blogged before but I totally forgot to blog about the fact that my dear Canadian relatives have now well and truly left Australia to return to their homeland. Apparently, my cousins saw a slideshow of photos my uncle took and everyone seems to have determined that I have cute fists (when bunched up, hadouken-style). Apparently, I don’t look menacing at all! Pout.

It was really lovely to have family over here…the house seemed so empty after they all left and the room they were staying in didn’t feel like my room again (Uncle and Auntie were staying in my old room at my parents’ place). The good news is that I’ll get to see them in a year’s time.

But my goodness, didn’t we eat an awful lot of food in the time they were here! We ate out so much! Gosh, I can’t remember having so many good meals. We didn’t go to too many fantastic touristy-type places - it just seemed nicer to spend time with them chatting and often watching TV. Geez, we’re so lame, as if they can’t do that in Canada!

One of the nicest things they said to me was that if I were to get married and the wedding was next month, they’d drop everything all over again and come over for my marriage. Now, that’s seriously unlikely to happen (ever, actually!) but the fact that they said it…it made me feel loved.

Sigh, ’cause life is back to normal now. Even my pussycat loved them and he’s usually so damn stand-offish with…everyone.

I’ve just been reading lifehack.org and learnt about something called Rico clusters. It’s an interesting way of ‘mindmapping’ and seeing as I’m strapped for ideas in the poetry sphere, I decided to do one on my life in the hope that it inspires me to write something, anything! It didn’t really inspire any ideas that I can make a poem out of but I do think I might benefit by showing my psychologist next week at my regular therapy session.

I wish I could show yout my Rico cluster, but I don’t have a scanner otherwise I’d happily scan it up so you could see. It’s quite revealing - according to it I’m obsessed with (surprise, surprise) writing, love and its relatives, and things to do with the senses - in particular sense of hearing and smell and what these can do to relax me. Sickness featured but I don’t think it was anywhere near as dominant as my concerns on writing and love.

Anyway, I recommend you try it out, it’s pretty interesting. My first word was ‘writing’ and my last word was ’self-harm’.

Last night, I invited my family and my relatives to come and have a meal at a nearby pub that I love (Town Hall Hotel in North Melbourne) after they returned from their trip to Queensland. They were running quite late so the pub was packed by the time we got there.

Mum and Dad had salmon with capers, spinach and mash, I had a beef burger, Auntie had the vegie burger, and Uncle had the ribeye steak with mushroom sauce, vegetables and mash. Everyone seemed to enjoy their meals which was good. Uncle was a good sport and decided to drink some of the local beer with me (Carlton Draught, it ain’t flash, but it’s okay) while Auntie nursed her beloved run and cokes. Thankfully this time she didn’t seem quite so intent on announcing my single status to all and sundry, much to my relief.

Afterwards, we headed back to my place for some tea and chatting and my housemate Frosty had just returned from his business trip in Perth. I hadn’t seen him for ages seeing as I’d been staying at my parents’ place so often and as soon as I came back he was gone. I introduced him to my relatives and we all had a nice chat. All in all, it was a lovely evening, I was sad to see them go, but they were exhausted. Plus it was nice to actually take them out, made me feel nice and grown up for once in my pathetic existence!

I couldn’t sleep after they left so I curled up with a good book - having finished Eragon this left me with the dilemma of what new book to start. I eventually chose The Night Watch by Sarah Waters (probably one of my favourite contemporary authors) and am already almost one hundred pages in!

Just survived two phone interviews, one gruelling, one not so but I don’t think I did particularly flashy, but it was very off-the-cuff. I find out in the next few days whether I move onto the next stages for these jobs. I really hope I’m offered a position as it’ll be nice to be in the workforce proper again. I want to work, study and have a normal life. Is that too much to ask? I think not. Anyway, wish me luck, I really need it at the moment. Life has been sucking for far too long.

Today overall has been the first good day I’ve had in the week - I actually slept normal hours and rose at a half-decent hour. I’ve also progressed through Eragon, and expect to finish it soon. The last two hundred pages are finally starting to go somewhere! I think I might want to read the sequel after all.

Oh yeah, this post is entitled beer o’clock because…naturally after the phone interviews beer had to be consumed. The kegs were DRY (Rob, I shake my fist at you! kidding) so am drinking an (Australian) Kilkenny clone from the fridge. Hmm, what to have for lunch? Dammit if I weren’t still in my pyjamas (well, okay, so it’s not a perfect day) I could head down to the local and get some nori rolls. I guess miso shiro and mushrooms are a compromise, mmm.

Jean-Paul Sartre once remarked in his La nausée (Nausea) that three in the afternoon is a very nothing time of day. At the moment I’m very much feeling that to be true. I’m sort of stranded at my parents’ place and don’t quite know what to do with myself - have dutifully fetched the paper and mail, and my mother’s Avon order and trying not to be so mopey.

Yesterday I read an awesome graphic novel called God Save the Queen by Mike Carey and John Bolton (illustrator) so I’ve run out of funstuff to read. God Save the Queen is okay, the artwork is just stunning but the storyline wasn’t quite what I expected. Though I can’t resist a good fairy story - it’s about Queen Mab stealing the throne from Queen Titania in the land of Faerie. Some fairies escape to our world and assimilate by shooting up. Yea, rejoice. I don’t care what anyone says, shooting up ain’t cool.

I’m actually considering giving up on Eragon even though I’m over halfway through it. I don’t know, it’s just not doing anything for me. Anyone read it? Seen the film? Please tell me it gets better, I hate to give up books (I’ve only officially done it to two books, one in high school and one that I am still harbouring delusions of finishing).

I’m waiting for my bimbo to finish her time at the gym and hurry up and lose weight so I can progress to the next level and found this as I logged into my feed reader. Quiz time!

Pinched from Dee. Supposed to be one-word answers.

Where is your mobile phone? Bag
Describe your boyfriend/girlfriend? Imaginary
Your hair? Curled
Your mother? Controlling
Your father? Amusing
Your favourite item? Lunchbox (a very specific one)
Your dream last night? Odd
Your favourite drink? Martini
Your dream car? Jaguar
The room you are in? Bedroom
Your ex? Estranged
Your fear? Eternity
What do you want to be in 10 years? Well
Who did you hang out with last night? Family
What you’re not? Energetic
The last thing you did? Played
What are you wearing? Clothes
Your favourite book? Gah! (too hard in one word!)
Last thing you ate? Cake
Your life? Dystopic
Your mood? Exhausted
Your friends? Few
What are you thinking about right now? Sleep
Your car? Working
What are you doing at the moment? Typing
Your summer? Hot
Your relationship status? Single
What is on your TV? Nil
When is the last time you laughed? Today
Last time you cried? Weeks
School? Non-existent

As if life wasn’t specific enough…I’ve recently discovered that I apparently like post-punk or art punk. I discovered this thanks to Last.fm and an amazing box set of punk I’ve been listening to courtesy of work. The set is called Babylon’s Burning.

I’ve really been digging the Gang of Four Entertainment! album (it’s so damn catchy even if Rob does think punk doesn’t sound like music, hehe). So this box set I was listening to introduced me to a bunch of artists I’ve never ever heard of and I thought “cor blimey, some of this stuff’s alright!”. Turns out that a lot of these artists are actually similar to Gang of Four (maybe that’s why I liked them? Who knows!). Anyway, these artists are Wire, The Fall, Alternative TV and more obviously Joy Division (I think I’ve already mentioned them previously).

If anyone has any suggestions as to any other acts I might like, I’d love to hear about them! I can only listen to Gang of Four and Joy Division so many times!

Some people have way too much spare time or way too much spare creativity (hand it over to meeeee damn it!) - I present to you the LOLcat Bible translation!

I promised my next blog post would be not about the big blue. I of course found out about this link via Boing Boing which seems to feature all manner of cool, weird and wonderful things.

I’m feeling much better now - got more stuff done today (booked an appointment to deuglify ie. go to the beautician’s before my brother’s engagement, called up a psychologist) but didn’t make it to the social security office. So tomorrow will be tres tricky - beautician appointment, social security visit, then appointment to see psychiatrist. Yea! Hijinks will ensue surely.

And I have to leave you with an excerpt of Matthew 1: 18-25…

18. Now, teh burth of teh Christ was liek dis: After Marry and Joseph were all “We’s gonna get marrieded, kthnx”, but before dey could had PENIS GOES WHERE?, Mary was all preggy from the Holey Ghosty.

19. Joseph was all liek “Oh snap, dis embarrassin. I’s gonna hide mah wife”.

20. But when he was tihnkin, zomg, angel frm Ceiling Cat was in his dreems! Angel sayed “Hai, don’t be fraided to has Mary for ur wife, cuz her baby be frm Holey Ghosty.

21. “And she gonna made a son, and you gonna call him Jesus, cuz he gonna save ppl and pwn dere sinz. Kthxbye.”

22. So all dis was all did so it’d be all liek Ceiling Cat sayed it was gonna be. His profet was all liek:

23. “Hay guise, look at dis, teh virgin iz all preggers, and dey gonna call him Immanuel”, dat be joospeek for “Ceiling Cat wit us”

24. Then Joseph woked up, done wat teh angel frm Ceiling Cat tolded him to, and was all liek “U wit me now lol” at Mary.

25. And dey didnt has teh PENIS GOES WHERE? til affer dey gets a son and calleded him Jesus. Ktnx.

I don’t blog for ages then I get all sorts of things I need to write about!

The day started off pretty badly - back to my usual antics of needing twelve hours sleep as I took my medication when I was supposed to this time. But I ventured into the city centre and got some important crap done then bought some comics! Now that I’m back at home I do feel much better than I did when I first woke up.

Rob, my housemate, and I have decided to conduct an amusing social experiment involving third housemate who goes by the nickname of Frosty (his last name being Frost and all). It has come to our attention that Frosty never buys toilet paper. Ever. It’s always Rob and I buying it when we run out (and I frequently fret about our running out, being a girl and all, I kind of use more than they do).

So we devised a cunning plan. Rob kindly bought some more toilet paper and we shared the packet and stashed it in our bedrooms. There is one communal roll left before we begin our BYO toilet paper experiment. We want to see what Frosty will get up to - will he a) finish up the tissue boxes (apparently this is what he resorts to) b) burst into our rooms and commandeer our own supplies or c) actually go out and get some? Also, will he cotton on to what’s going on or will he blissfully ignore? Will he ask us what the hell is going on? Serious metaphysical hijinks will ensue.

Yesterday evening I caught the Guggenheim exhibition with my pal Mark. We got to see some of this bizarre film cycle called The Cremaster Cycle and witness spectacles of pop art and much more contemporary art. It wasn’t quite as long as we both hoped and Mark felt it a bit abbreviated. I went in expecting to buy the catalogue and was so non-plussed by the exhibition that I held off and saved myself some dough. We were both totally drained after the exhibition and consoled ourselves by gorging on fast food burgers. It amazes me how much boys eat - Mark had two burgers. He needed a chaser after his first one, hahahaha.

Oh and according to Mark I whistle like a man. I throw darts like a girl according to Rob (well, duh, I am one) but I whistle like a man. Cool.