Making Friends With The Neighbours

Julian Wilson has been promoting breast cancer awareness by surfing a pink surfboard, which is great. I've read many articles where he has discussed the issue and his attachment to it through his mum's experience and I think it's great that he's been trying to do the awareness thing in such a fun and public way. Yay for Julian! However, the much loved and admired glamour boy of pro surfing might just have gone just a little further to the dark side (aka, trying to impress Stab writers and readers so he can remain their 2 nd favourite little surfer in the world after Dane Reynolds) with his latest quoted offering that was published in this story in The Courier Mail * about the Quicksilver Pro... Meanwhile, the quote of day went to Sunshine Coast grommet Julian Wilson, who has won a wildcard into the Quiksilver Pro. Asked about his decision to ride a pink surfboard to promote breast cancer checks, Wilson told the media he was "just raising awareness for the yo...

A few weeks ago, I was at the beautician's getting my waxing done... As I lay there with my legs splayed, I asked the women waxing me if she ever waxes any men? "Oh NO! I'd never do that!" she shuddered. "And anyway, it's not natural!" I looked at her as she pasted the thick, hot wax down the inside of my groin, pushed a cotton strip on top of it and winced as she painfully tore it back off again. "This isn't natural either," I suggested. She blushed, "Yes, but, well, you know... It's different." Whatever. Lots of girls I know hate their body hair, saying that they just don't feel like a woman if they have it. I don't feel like that. Having hair on my legs isn't really an issue for me, but I do know that other people judge me by it and are repulsed by it, so I keep it all in check more for them than for me. With surfing it's an even bigger issue - imagine paddling out in swimmers when you've been lax with...

I’m a longboarder, so quite often I find myself surrounded in the water by, well, umm, older gents. And it’s interesting because they often tend to get all paternal on me! I don’t know if there’s something about me in particular that lends people towards a kind of encouraging protectiveness, but when I paddle out, I often end up with several new dads. They give me advice, call me into waves and, in one particularly excessive display, PUSH MY BOARD INTO WAVES THAT I’M MORE THAN CAPABLE OF PADDLING INTO ON MY OWN! Which is nice. I suppose. Kind of. In theory. I mean, it’s nice that they’re so encouraging. But what would be even nicer would be if it didn’t feel so patronising. I have one girlfriend in particular who is a pretty accomplished surfer, but even so, she's just stoked if she can go for a wave, get back to her car, pack up and leave without some old guy offering her advice for how to be better. She just wants to go for a surf! For all the ti...

It was summer. It was holidays. It was busy. Everyone was competing for waves. Everyone was bitching and moaning about tourists. But one guy in particular, who clearly thought himself quite important and some kind of general surf-break ‘authority’, was surfing with a very particular brand of heroic arrogance, sitting with his chest puffed out and loudly bitching and moaning and carrying on and swearing at people, so that everyone around him could hear how much he hated “this”. He was a total downer. I couldn’t help myself and had to ask, Me: “What are you taking about? What’s ‘this’? Him: “All these people in the water! It’s shit.” Me: “People? You hate people?” Him: “Ohh, well, you know, when it’s busy like this. I hate it.” Me: “Well, it’s Saturday morning at Wategos, so what did you expect?” His friend laughed and shook his head conspiratorially with me as I paddled away... Busy surf breaks are a real...

Yesterday, in the rain, I went out into the city and saw a beautiful exhibition of photographs by George Caddy at the State Library of NSW . The highlights of the collection include a series that show ' Beachobatics ', which were an impressive show of health, fitness, strength, balance and beauty. The picture below is my favourite from the whole exhibition. I imagine how it would feel to be that woman in mid-flight, completely trusting and relying upon the arms reaching out to catch her. She looks joyful . Another aspect of the exhibition that got me rather excited (and clapping my hands) was the pictures of Jitterbugging. George Caddy was an enthusiastic and prize-winning Jitterbug dancer, which was a form of Swing. The exhibition even held three short reels of film that show Jitterbugging in all it's jittery glory! I wish I could tell you just how enthralled I was by these films, but looking at this picture below you might be able to get an idea why... The clothes and the...

Sic. I found this clip over at Curl Magazine ... Interestingly, it also provides a comprehensive list of things that I am not!

I don't know if this says something morbid about my personality, but I have been reading this blog from the curators of the Justice and Police Museum in Sydney and it is fascinating. The focus on the people, crimes and personalities, as opposed to skewed thoughts on policing and justice has sucked me right in, and the accompanying photos are both terrible and so interesting.

After a long afternoon spent trawling around YouTube looking at some fantastic moments of musical performance (such as those posted below**), I very suddenly and painfully missed the water and so started looking for something other than Dolly Parton film clips... Amongst other things, I came across Bodysurf - a beautiful collection of photos that satiated my aqueous needs for the time being (even if it did make me ache a little in the process). **As well as the piece of musical magic below, my search provided me with my new favourite karaoke duet . Joy. (And it really is worth watching the entire clip because the attempts Kiki makes at dancing further down the line are off the hook, which is probably a consequence of her being off her head. Sic.)

A few days ago, I finished reading Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates (yeah, I know, so the fashion right now, but I once heard Marieke Hardy say it was very good and I trust her - and she was right) and it's only this afternoon that I can even bring myself to really think about it. I travelled along Revolutionary Road with Yates, certain of what the outcome was going to be from the beginning and not wanting to have to endure it. But his words are so beautifully crafted and without pretension and honest , even though honest was the one thing his characters could never be with each other, nor themselves. They head to inevitable disappointment and ruin, and reach it through their own egotistical belief in their own goodness and selflessness, when all along they're the most blindly selfish people in a myriad of ways. That book, that damn book, has made a kind of fear rise up inside me and tap against the back of my throat like an unwelcome visitor walking up the driveway. It...

The always delightful Lorelei V is not only a very good writer, but she loves music and is funny as well (not funny in a cheap one-liner kind of way, but funny in a thoughtful and sometimes incidental way). And she lives in Brisbane. That makes her my favourite kind of new-person-to-meet. And I have met her. And I wouldn't have had to use any of my back-up conversation starters because she is much too interesting for that (also, we shared, at the time, a common frustration with Brisbane).

I am generally terrible at making small-talk. In fact, I really hate it but since I find myself in small-talk situations a lot lately, I've considered some topics to talk about when an interaction requires polite, but genuine conversation... 1. The heat. EVERYONE is onto this one at the moment. It's inoffensive and not-at-all political, which makes it a winner for any situation. It also allows you to segue into some other topics too. For example, I went to the fruit and veg shop this morning and raised the heat in terms of whether it affects their fruit and veg? It led to an engaged and personalised discussion of the owner's business and allowed him to assure me of the quality of his produce. Innovative, no? In another exchange, it enabled my conversational partner to bring up the fact he used to live in Dubai. Also, it gives people a chance to whinge, which we all love. 2. The tennis. Now, as someone who finds tennis unutterably boring (and this from a lady who loves cric...

P.S. The Cardinals were A-MA-ZING! Ryan's voice is so incredible and clear and poignant and the Cardinals are a tight-sounding band and such talented musicians. Their renditions of Cold Roses and Mockingbird and Dear John and Let it Ride were especially memorable for me. I DO wish he'd have played 29 though... Admittedly, Ryan continues to be hilarious. At one point he forgot his words and stopped and quickly assured the audience that, "It's ok! It's no-one's fault! I'm not in a bad mood or anything, and it's not your fault." Glad you cleared that up, Ryan. He also appears to dislike standing on the soles of his feet, opting instead for the outsides or the arches. Really. I know it sounds weird, but you should see how it looks!! Bless him though - it is endearing. Finally... Dear Neil Casal , Will you marry me? Best wishes, Rebecca

So yesterday I was on one of my massive walks around my 'hood, when a car load of boys drove past, tooting their horn and screamed out, "Yeeeeeaaaah!! Pussy time! and waved. At me! Someone remind me why I don't get out and socialise more in this city?

Only one more sleep til I get to see RYAN ADAMS AND THE CARDINALS LIVE!! This one is certainly a sad old country ballad but the man can rock too, don't you worry about that! And he can also throw some kind of tantrum. Going to see one of his shows can be a slightly anxious experience as you can never be quite certain that he's not going to have a hissy fit and walk off stage (he did last time I saw him, but he came back. Eventually.). Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnd, he doesn't deal well with criticism. This sound clip is amazing! At the end of it all though, anybody who can work double denim is a winner in my book!

Getting stung for DUI seems to be a rather sobering experience. The people I know who have been done tend to explain how ashamed they felt, to say that it was "an easy way to learn a difficult lesson", " a stupid thing to do" or "a wakeup call". Maybe it's not that way for everyone, but these are the kinds of things I hear when my friends talk about it. Drink driving has come to be a socially unacceptable behaviour that is little encouraged and rarely condoned. The main line of reasoning that I hear made against those who do it, goes along the lines of; "I don't care if you want to go out and kill yourself, that's your choice, but what if you hit me, or if you hit a kid? If you killed someone that way, you'd go to gaol. You'd be a criminal. Do you want to end up in Grafton?" And I agree wholeheartedly. I was talking to another friend about drink-driving over Xmas. I was telling her how unacceptable it is amongst my friends ...

Jono Ware took these pictures when we went surfing together a few years ago. I still like them a lot. It was a pretty day and we had fun. We were both working nights in a restaurant then, so we could surf as long as we wanted and then, to warm up, we would get a coffee and sit in the sun. Gracious - it really was small though!! I also like this photograph that he took, which I think is beautiful and still and quiet. He's quite a clever man. And he is still taking beautiful photographs.

Ok, ok, ok!! I've been on a slightly verbose trip the past few days, so let me lighten the atmosphere by sharing this very particular aspiration of mine... If all I achieve this year is to learn and replicate this routine * in it's entirety, I will be beyond satisfied with myself. If you are not a particular fan of Mrs Jay-Z (and I count myself amongst this number) then you may be quick to navigate away from this page. Don't. Give the dance a chance my friend. Give it two perhaps. There is truly something for everyone in here. I would like to point out that the moves displayed at 1:32 are particularly spectacular and impressive. Sometimes, just sometimes, pop music is all that will really do. *Clearly I could go on at some length about my conflicted feelings regarding the lyrics - commodified version of commitment and so on and so forth - but in this case, I'm just going to let it all go and DANCE. And if you think for a moment that I am not going to be bopping around t...

A couple of nights ago I went and saw Under the Sun (you might just be able to see it here if you're in time). The film sells itself as an exploration of the interesting dichotomy of approaches to surfing that exist between the Gold Coast and Byron Bay, which, geographically, lie so close together. Certainly, an interesting premise. The film was a joy to watch - the production was beautiful, the images hypnotic and the editing created a strong and spirited story that was easy to travel with. Truly I enjoyed the film. However... As a passionate local of Byron Bay, I was disappointed with the liberties that Cyrus Sutton felt he was able to make in his representation of the town and the community, especially in contrast to the way he represented the Gold Coast. Let's begin with his 'local'* surfers. Neither Dave Rastovich, Beau Young nor Nat Young could be called local to Byron. OK, Rastovich I'll give you at a stretch, but allocating them as spokespeople for the t...

Yesterday I (and some more than delightful company) went to see Optimism at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane. It's an exhibition of contemporary Australian artists and is generally viewed as being timely in these economic climes. The exhibition certainly lives up to its mandate, with a majority of pieces that are big and bright. Indeed, the overwhelming feeling for me as I walked around was one of colour and size and the pieces are easily consumed and appreciated. They are challenging in their own ways, but on the whole they were easy to connect with and showed an outlook that was delightful to be a part of. Despite this, I left feeling a little hollow and unsure of what this exhibition actually had to say. The use of colour seemed trite and repetitive and I thought that there were few pieces that explored the way we can be optimistic even when we are unhappy. Optimism should not be associated only with progression and development and positive outcomes. Optimism can in ...

Can it be? And what does this mean? From SBS World News site: Susan Crawford, the Bush administration official in charge of deciding whether to bring Guantanamo detainees to trial, told the Post that the suspect cannot be tried because he was tortured. US military interrogators subjected Mohammed al-Qahtani, 30, to sustained isolation, sleep deprivation, nudity and prolonged exposure to cold, leaving him in a "life-threatening condition," Crawford said. ... "You think of torture, you think of some horrendous physical act done to an individual. This was not any one particular act; this was just a combination of things that had a medical impact on him, that hurt his health. It was abusive and uncalled for. And coercive. Clearly coercive. It was that medical impact that pushed me over the edge" to call it torture, she said.