The Banal Chew

Go with God, Crispy!

 

Today is the feast day of Saints Crispin and Crispinian. I am not a religious man, but I like this day for a few reasons.

First, I like the names very much. I especially love to say them with extra ssssssibilance. It's a gay thang.

And they are the patron saints of cobblers, something I always wanted to be...a cobbler, not a patron saint.

 

I also like the connection the day has with the Battle of Agincourt, which took place on 25 October, 1415. The Agincourt Carol is one of my favorite pieces of historical music. 

 
The Agincourt Carol, performed by Telynor 

 

And then there's the remarkable St. Crispin's Day Speech from Shakespeare's Henry V. 

 
Kenneth Branagh at his very best

Oh, did I mention I really like the name?

 

 

In a Word

A friend recently posted to Facebook an article from The Guardian that reports how Imogen Stubbs and Edward Kemp of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London find themselves incredibly aggrieved at the mumbling of the current breed of actors trying to study the art and ply their craft. It is a read that is at once infuriating, the intensity of which is mitigated by a couple of interesting points relating the demise of grammar studies in modern education practices to this dreaded mumbling phenomenon. I have to admit I am appalled at the number of Australians I have met who do not know what a noun is. A gerund I could understand. But a NOUN? And most of these people have been people of certain prominence, for example, a university lecturer in Law.

I encourage you to read the Guardian article (hyperlink above), but here's a quote from the article:

[Imogen] Stubbs, who has appeared in scores of stage roles, including the part of Sally Bowles in Cabaret and Desdemona in Othello as well as film and television dramas, added that muttering – with its lack of variety and tonal interest – was perhaps a misguided attempt to imitate American film stars. 'It was so drummed into us at drama school that 'it's unforgiveable not to be clear and heard'," she said.

First of all, I am offended by the blame placed upon American film stars.

Second of all, bullsh!t! May I remind Ms Stubbs and all others who feel the way she describes so condescendingly, that the American film stars from the early part of the 20th century all the way through the time of, say, Katherine Hepburn and later, had impeccable diction. Yes, it is different from much of what we hear today, but it not the fault of American actors. It is highly unfair of Stubbs to claim this, and it is mean.

In a more covert style of blame-shifting, Stubbs later cites the direction by Baz Luhrmann that led his actors to ignore punctuation as another cause for alarm. She is not being mean and spiteful here, at least not as callously as she lambasted her generalized notion of American actors. She's finding exception to the fact that Luhrmann may have chosen to engender in his cast the delivery of dialog that fell on her flat ears. My assumption is that Luhrmann was employing his directorial assets, like them or not, to portray a concept. I am not a fan of Luhrmann, but I try to respect his choices as an artist.

 

Bizzy

It is mid-winter here in the Southern Hemisphere.  Since I've been back in Sydney the days have been fairly sunny and not too terribly cold.  Still, after caramelizing in the southwestern U.S. desert for three months, I'm constantly chilly now.  I am more rugged up than I have been in years.  And spring does not officially begin until the 1st of October September (thanks for the correction, Kev).

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It's been a whirlwind of activities since my return to Sydney, as I expected.  So great to see everyone again, especially Mark & Zane.

Zane played hooky on Thursday, so we could spend the day together.  It was one of those sunny and warm days.  We walked over to the Entertainment Quarter to grab lunch and catch a movie, Forbidden Kingdom.  Nice to spend time with Zane.  He's growing up so quickly, it sometimes takes my breath away.

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Mark was out of town on a work assignment when I arrived in Sydney and didn't get back until Friday night.  But when he finally got home, the reunion was as joyful and teary as you can imagine.  He is looking GREAT! 

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On Saturday, there was a joint birthday party at a local pub for a few of our friends.  It was an 80's theme, and folks outdid themselves with the costumes.  Mark and I hit the opp shops on Saturday afternoon and came up with some 80's-inspired athletic wear.  Tragic, but it was fun cutting and styling the cheap wigs.  I didn't do too badly.  I wish they'd let me tackle Zane's hair now.

Oddly, there was no 80's music played at the party itself.  Come on now, would it have hurt ya to play a little Culture Club? 

(I put some pictures in a Facebook photo album, for those of you who are my FB pals.) 

Wanna get physical?

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Yesterday, I met with a man who needs a part-time personal assistant for a couple of months to help with the closing of his business and other matters.  Looks like I've been hired. 

Lord knows I can use the cash. 
Lord knows I've done my share of admin work in the past. 
Lord knows I really need to get out of the house now and again.

All good.

You Tell 'Em, Mr. Lynch!

Jesus, I love candor.

David Lynch briefly commenting on, um, alternative movie-watching

Banalité du jour

My question to you for the day is this:

Where are the wardrobe consultants for Australian anchorwomen?  On permanent lunchbreak?  Honestly, if I see any more dowdy, lemon yellow ruffles or oversized magenta scarf-bows I will seek out these people and demand to see their credentials.  Yowza. 

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Yesterday, Mark and I went to Jason's birthday barbecue.  Jason's partner, Kevin, braved the heavy smoke from their balcony grill and cooked us up a feast. Yum!

The birthday boy in his kitchen

For his birthday, Mark and I got Jase a DVD of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and the CD, Permanent: Joy Division 1995.  There's currently a movie showing about Ian Curtis, Joy Division's late lead-singer, that I'd very much like to go and see.  I hear it's fantastic, especially the performance by Sam Riley, the actor who plays Curtis.  Might be a Two for Tuesday night at the Dendy!

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Because I missed Affable YouTube Monday, here's a little something by Adele.  I just got turned on to this singer after seeing a bit of one of her music videos this weekend.  She's fantastic.  Have a listen.  You won't be sorry.

 

Chasing Pavements, Adele

Oh, stuff

Have you ever had a weekend that lumbered along peaceful and contented, like a big, gentle bear making its way through a meadow of fresh berries?  I just did.  It was both eventful and restful at the same time. While there were certainly errands on the agenda, there was no mad rushing about, no pressing appointments that either traffic or puttering about made difficult to make.

Once again, Zane preferred to spend his summer holiday with his grandmother and cousins out in the western suburbs, but I suppose I can't fault him for that. Who wouldn't choose unlimited video games, DVDs, swimming and lollies over chores, television curfews and normal bedtimes? While it would be nice to have him around on non-workdays to do things with, like any parents, we are enjoying the downtime.

Saturday, while Mark was assisting Zane's mum with the search for an apartment, now that she has moved to Sydney, I took the opportunity to catch up with Mykel for lunch in Randwick. He's had a tough run the past few weeks, but he seems well. As always, it was good to see him.

That evening, as Mark and I were headed out for a beverage, we noticed a vintage Citroën (2CV?) parked in our visitor carspace. What a fantastic car! I admit that I don't know much about the old Citroëns. They're probably a nightmare to keep in shape, but I covet this one, especially the detachable canvas top.

On Sunday, one of those infamous muggy summer days in Sydney, we spent the day in a/c watching DVDs. My favorite was Snow Cake. Alan Rickman is mesmerizing in this film, and it was good to see him and Sigourney Weaver together again in something a little less inane than Galaxy Quest.

What I didn't realize until late in the evening was that Mark had turned down multiple offers from friends to join them with this activity or that sport, in order to spend time with me. Ever the pleaser, that has always been a challenge for him. He hates saying "no" to people, but I have to admit a selfish part of me enjoyed reaping the benefit of this new resolve.

Lots to say...

By now, saying that I have been fairly inconsistent with the routine of my blog posting would be annoyingly apparent, kind of like my use of alliteration at times. As I sit down to quickly compose a post, I feel like I have too little time to say all that I'd like to. I will touch on a few things though. And in a way, I suppose that leaving a little up to the imagination isn't such a bad thing in reality.

It was a busier week than usual for me. Seems I was on the go just about all the time. It brought me to realize that when life finally presents me with the opportunity to work away from home, the shock will be fairly challenging at first. No doubt I'll fall into some kind of routine, but I wonder how long it will take.

Between working, compiling and posting academic job applications, taking care of Ralph (happily!) for Dean & Brad, a guest conducting gig, and all kinds of errands, I hardly had time for coffee. When Sandy can't have his coffee, it ain't pretty. But I survived.

Guest conducting gig. Sounds so glamorous. Actually I filled in for the director of the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir for their weekly rehearsal. It felt great finally to be doing music again, especially as I am going through the process of applying for conducting and teaching jobs. The group are preparing for a World AIDS Day concert, on which they will perform works by Morten Lauridsen and John Tavener, two very fine choral composers. The choir will also sing another work, this one written by a contemporary Australian composer as a gift to the choir. It should be a great program. If you're in Sydney, here are more details.

To answer Patsy's question in a previous comment, Zirkus! (Sleaze Ball 2007) was good fun. There were three dance floors.  There was the mammoth, main floor in the Hordern Pavilion with international DJs playing some very sensational music. The shows were amazing, too. What's not to love about 15 or so entertainers on stage and stationed on tall columns around the dance floor twirling flaming nunchuks to awesome music? Another floor was in The Dome. The music has a harder edge and the crowd tends more to the leather and fetish side. What a hoot. The third dance area, The Forum, was my least favorite, primarily because it was so crowded you honestly couldn't find a place to perch or dance that wasn't nut to butt. I suppose it would be better if I were more into the 80s remixes. But I'm not. Anyway, folks were having fun, and that's what matters.

In addition, there was the costume competition outside in the massive courtyard. With a theme of a 1930s Berlin circus, you can imagine how outrageously some people were dressed. When I first entered the area after arriving, I walked past a crowd of merry 20-somethings standing and talking. The guy closest to me, an attractive man dressed only in harlequin tights did a standing splits as I drew near, lifting his foot all the way above his head so that I could pass. I laughed and did my Jane Russell, "Honey, you'll hurt yourself" as I walked by him. (O come on, he'd never heard it before!) Anyway, then I thought to myself, "And this is part of what makes living in Sydney so much fun."

On Sunday, Mark came back from Wollongong, where he'd been visiting with his siblings who had gathered from all over to celebrate their mother's 60th birthday with a surprise party. She, on the other hand, had informed them only recently that her boss had already booked the two of them for a long weekend at a 5-star resort in Phuket. But that's another story.

Yesterday, Mark and I finished off a beautiful long weekend by taking advantage of the incredible weather and took Roger over to Clovelly Beach for lunch and some ocean air. (Zane is on school holidays and has flown up to Townsville to hang out with both his paternal cousins and maternal grandmother for 10 days.)

It was another one of those this-is-what-makes-living-here-fun moments.

Six Men, a Mixed Grill and Some Hairspray

Last night, after shipping Zaney off to a school-buddy's house for a birthday sleepover, I had one of the best movie nights ever.  Dean, Luke, Rio and Will came over for a barbeque, and then we all rushed off to catch Hairspray. 

First of all, what a great show this film is!  For the first time in ages, my expectations were exceeded.  Take a work from cult movie to Broadway musical to mainstream "movical", and you can imagine the recipe for potent disaster.  Add to that the drama surrounding the proposed boycott of the movie by homosessuals, concisely discussed by Joe a few months ago, and my trepidation increased.  Boy was I ever surprised. 

Although I really couldn't stand John Travolta's portrayal of Mrs. Turnblad in the opening minutes of her first scene [sidebar: is it just me, or does anyone else think he sounds disturbingly like the late Charles Pierce as Carol Channing?], he grew on me enormously, and by the end of the movie I found Edna incredibly charming.  Sure, I miss the macabre grotesqueness that Divine brought to the original character, but this is a movie based on the musical, and I am willing to let go of those expectations.  At any rate, this is a movie that is pure fun, and of course the underlying message(s) will never lose its appeal. 

As for Queen Latifah, well, this woman makes me giddy with respect and devotion every time I see her, regardless what it is.  Her character and singing in this movie will make you want to slap your mama!

Oh, and Mark cooked up one fine mixed grill before the show, too.  Slurp.

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Oh, I forgot to mention:

My blogbud, Patrick, has shaken his moneymaker in a fun contest held by BrettCajun. 

Go thou here, see, and vote.  But hurry.

HP, DC, PD and BG

Okay.  Today, c'est un mish-mash de la banalité.

First off, Bonnee is feeling much better and has stopped hacking away at her chin and neck.  Poor thing is still on Prednisone for another week to control the itching caused by the allergic dermatitis (the 3rd possible diagnosis, and seemingly the correct one this time), but she has finished her course of antibiotics and is now readily chowing down on her new, over-the-top-expensive kibble.  And she's actually playing again.  Getting back to her wonderful old self, thankfully, as this little video shows.

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In another escapade, this one not involving our creamy Scottish Fold, many of us went to see the new Harry Potter film at the IMAX cinema last night.  In a word, wow.  The 20 minutes of 3D were a nice balm to soothe the sting of the ticket prices.  Seriously, despite the occasional corniness (after all, it is a Harry Potter movie) and the "chaste kiss" that has enjoyed celebrity gossip status even in undeveloped countries, this was a treat to watch.  If you have a chance to see it in IMAX glory, I'd certainly encourage you to.  Otherwise, find the biggest screen around, hunker down, and enjoy.

By the way, y'all know Daniel Radcliffe recently starred in a London revival of Peter Shaffer's Equus, right?

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Tonight Mark and I are joining many Convicts for a production of Christopher Shinn's Dying City, presented by Gaiety Theatre.  Tonight's performance is, in part, a fundraiser to help finance the Convicts' trip to Dublin next year for the Bingham Cup competition.  From what I understand, a few of the players are presenting a short sketch before the play.  That will be fun, to be sure, but I am also looking forward to the play.  It has received very fine reviews during its London, New York, and Sydney runs.

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Finally, please remind me to stay out of rural Western Australia.  I found this image while blogtrekking.  Apparently, the folks running the Royal Mail Hotel in Meekatharra find it funny to refer to those who drink Bacardi Breezers in a derogatory way.  Funny, most of the fellow light-steppers I hang out with drink beer.

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ps -- A hearty gift from the Blow a Kiss Foundation goes to the lucky person who gets the initials in this post's header correct!

The Man in the Machine (...our washing machine!)

In a very Stephen King way, our laundry room has become the place of mystery, fantasy and horror over the past few days.  Yesterday, I was having a particularly bored geniously creative moment, and I began snapping photos of our washing machine in action.  I got more than I expected...like a picture of the rarely seen Man in the Machine.   

The Man in the Machine

I noticed something strange on the floor at the bottom of the washing machine.  In the corner, where it was situated next to a wall, there was what looked like dried flowers poking out of the space between the machine and the wall.  Around the flowers was a black mark, as if carbon from a flame had crept out around the dead foliage.  I ran my finger through the sooty black mark and sniffed it.  I didn't smell much like anything burnt.  I grabbed a few of the flowers and pulled them out of the space.  They were odd looking, brown and black with pansy-like blossoms on the end of exceedingly skinny stems.  But there was something wrong.  Wait a minute, I thought, these aren't flowers.  Then it hit me.  They were fungi.  The black soot was a huge spore trail.  We had mushrooms growing under our washing machine.  When I regained consciousness, I made a point to ask Mark where we could find some HazMat suits for the decontamination process.  I'll let you know it went.

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Last night we joined Jason and Kevin for dinner at Kevin's home.  Zane loved the Wii set-up that Kevin has.  And he rocked at tennis.

Zane shows off his backhand

Hanging with Jase while Kevin cooks

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Today we decided to go see a movie, but there weren't really any family oriented movies showing at our regular cinemas, so we decided to splurge and go to Sydney's IMAX theatre.  Reportedly, it is the largest IMAX screen in the world.  I can't verify that, but I can say it is massive.  We saw Deep Sea 3D.
 

The Eastern Distributor tunnel on the way to the IMAX at Darling Harbour

Darling Harbour

Patiently waiting for our 3D adventure into the ocean deep

Can you guess which mainstream movie is showing at the IMAX theatre?

A statue at Darling Harbour.  Funny...a man feeling up a woman in an open display of foreplay is called art, but if this were two men, can you imagine the controversy?

After the movie we went to Lavender Bay, which is situated just across the Harbour Bridge from the city.  I got to know Lavender Bay, because it is where the Early Dance Consort holds its classes, some of which I took last year. LB is a charming little neighborhood that offers great views of the city from the "other side" of the Harbour, especially on the boardwalk that goes over to Milson's Point, where Luna Park is located.

Views from the Lavender Bay boardwalk

Sydney's Luna Park (a popular funfair)

As we walked up to a Kirribilli cafe for lunch, we passed the pool where Mark won the NSW state swimming championships while in high-school.  It's housed in a terrific old deco building and is still operating as a local pool.

After we got home, I had a rest on the bed while I began typing this blog post.  Our bedroom is situated on the third floor of the townhouse, and we have a small balcony. The view isn't all that spectacular, unless there's a good sunset.  This evening there certainly was that.  It was nice lying in bed with the colors to gaze at.

So, yeah, it was a good weekend.