The absence of an update.
So, how is Sydney life going? Well, there isn’t much to say about it. Nothing of note has happened since last time I mentioned that nothing of note had happened. I think I would be pissed off at this if it weren’t that some of the non-noteworthy stuff has been pretty good, like:
keeping fit on the bike
working smarter *and* harder on the thesis
Firefly box set director’s commentaries
new music downloads
Most importantly, I live in a big, sunny flat with neighbours I’m not scared of. I haven’t been going out much, except for hanging with James occasionally, but I don’t see the point in doing cool stuff if there’s nobody around to enjoy it with. Plus, Melbourne and Canada trips will be awesome enough to make up for dullness now.
The point anyway, is that Sydney Life v2.0 isn’t sustainable but it isn’t really a drag either. I don’t quite get how the single face-to-face supervision meeting I’ve had so far has justified moving away and sending all that money, but philosophy ain’t about asking questions, is it?* The one thing that really annoys me is not starting a band. Between a lack of wheels, a lack of contacts and a lack of motivation, it just isn’t happening and there are itches that need to be scratched. Looking at guitar pron in music store brochures and making bluegrass ditties on the ukelele isn’t helping either. Ah, one day there will be rock. And it will be so much better for cellaring. So anyway, back to the point: I miss my old home out there on the far edge of the world, but things could be worse where I am. To paraphrase the great J.W.: that ain’t much, but it’s enough.
*Someone once said to me, ‘Philosophy isn’t about the answers, it’s about asking the right questions.’ In practice, however, it’s the publications that everyone really cares about. We invented the ego, and now we’re busy feeding it.
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Oh god, I feel all bad for you now.
Quiet desperation and all that..
Comment by nailpolishblues — Sunday June 10 2007 @ 4:25 pm
Guitar pron? Hott.
ONE meeting? ONE!!?
Comment by Tomás Ford — Monday June 11 2007 @ 3:12 am
We just finished watching ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’……
Julai: Whaaaaa???
Becky: So is it because we’re Americans?
Julia: I got everything I didn’t want, and nothing that I wanted.
Becky: I feel very unfulfilled and cofused right now. Should we read the book now?
Julia: I wish that there was director’s commentary.
Becky: Weird.
Julia: I hope Mark doesn’t call us stupidheads.
Comment by Becky & Julia — Monday June 11 2007 @ 12:20 pm
*snort*
I can’t believe you encouraged them to watch that bloody movie.
Becky & Julia, I’m Australian, I’ve seen it, and I can’t advise you on anything. The book is just as bad.
I think I spent most of my [multiple partial] viewings just wanting to suffocate that little fat girl.
Comment by nailpolishblues — Monday June 11 2007 @ 1:23 pm
Nails - is my quiet desperation worse than your loud desperation?
Tom - It was a whole hour long tho! :P
Becky/Julia - I don’t think you *have* to be Australian to get it - Picnic at Hanging Rock was one of Australia’s first internationally popular films - but it does help if you already know that, in real life, they found some and didn’t find others. That way you wouldn’t expect a resolution.
The film is supposed to be about the landscape, which is peaceful and idyllic in some ways (the girls are like fairies, right?), but can become dangerous at any moment. That’s part of the European-Australian way of thinking about the land - the tension between beauty and danger. In the 70’s there was more awareness of that particulary ‘white’ way of relating to the land, and the film probably plays on it (cf: The Proposition, contrast with Rabbit Proof Fence) Apart from that, it’s all symbolism like 2001 or something. Obsession, sex, death, ghosts and what-have-you.
Maybe if there had been more explosions you would have liked it better? Actually, I’ll trade you disappointments - Constantine wasn’t my thing. The mix of religion and action just felt a bit wrong. At least End of Days was lame enough to be funny.
Comment by Mark — Monday June 11 2007 @ 5:53 pm
Not at all. I think mine has more booze though - and fewer people actually care.
Comment by nailpolishblues — Monday June 11 2007 @ 7:00 pm
Yeah. Constantine was below average. Picnic at hanging rock was just shit.
Comment by Tomás Ford — Monday June 11 2007 @ 11:57 pm
I was expecting a little more about what had happened to be revealed I guess. Not so much a spelled out “this is what happened” sort of thing, but perhaps a few more details so I could draw my own conclusions at the end.
We did do some research after watching it to see what other people thought/had to say about it, and I didn’t realize that the directors cut is shorter than the original. Apparently there were some scenes cut out that would’ve shed some light on a few things.
A few questions though. What was the symbolism of the swan? And the use of red throughout the movie?
I’m not really into explosions. Although if the fat girl would’ve spontaneously combusted, I would’ve totally dug that! =)
Comment by Julia — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 3:39 am
Tomas - You hated Garden State, so your opinion about movies is way off anyway.
Julia - I can’t remember which one I saw, but I don’t remember having trouble with the plot. Then again, I like the anime so I’m used to not knowing what’s going on.
I haven’t seen the film for a while, so I can’t remember swans or red. If the swan is white you can assume it’s introduced rather than native (the native ones are black) so it might be symbolic in that way.
Comment by Mark — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 11:05 am
No, reading a bit about the film and mulling it over really helped, as did knowing about the missing scenes and their content. My initial reaction was to not like the film, I felt like all the pieces were there but nothing was done with them.
I totally understand about the tension between the beauty and the danger of the landscape. I loved all the shots of the rock itself. It looked simple, but was full of all those convoluted passages, you know? And the opening shots where the rock appeared out of the mist? Very neat.
Now I get it: the symbology, that it’s more about how the people react (or don’t since it’s victorian era), and sometimes we just never know what happened no matter how vexing that may be, etc.
…
So what are you trying to say about me and explosions here? ;)
Comment by Becky — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 11:30 am
I’m just saying that Americans can’t understand things with subtlety. Come on, I have deeply-rooted cultural assumptions that need to be confirmed!
Comment by Mark — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 12:08 pm
Having said that, pls don’t expect that I have a tan and know how to surf. You will be *so* disappointed.
Comment by Mark — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 12:14 pm
We’re more interested in hearing what your accent sounds like. :)
Unfortunately it seems with most americans that a movie that lacks either explosions or bruce willis is considered crap.
Although this comes from a nation obsessed with watching men drive racecars in circles for hours, so what can you expect?
Comment by Julia — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 12:53 pm
Oooo, this will be so much fun. A great big cultural learning experience for everybody! :D
And Bruce Willis is pretty much synonymous with explosions, it’s like, a redundancy.
Comment by Becky — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 2:22 pm
Hey, the next post can be an audio post so you can laugh at my accent. Fun :)
Comment by Mark — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 6:29 pm
Cool! Your accent is WAY stupid!
Comment by Tomás Ford — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 8:30 pm
Do those from WA have a particular accent? Aside from ’stupid’, of course.
Comment by nailpolishblues — Tuesday June 12 2007 @ 9:26 pm
Yes, it has a slight Indonesian lilt to it and harder consonants.
Comment by Tomás Ford — Wednesday June 13 2007 @ 2:05 pm
I always try to spit on people a lot. Is that an accent?
Comment by Mark — Wednesday June 13 2007 @ 4:51 pm
Hopefully, more of an accident.
Ah, Tomas, I must just get the east coast imports cause all the WA-esties that I’ve spoken to just sound like bogans.
Comment by nailpolishblues — Wednesday June 13 2007 @ 9:48 pm