Making Friends With The Neighbours

You can check even more of Lia Melia's beautiful work at her website . (Images via  but does it float? )

Deadline, 28th September!

Yesterday afternoon, I took myself along to see El Mar, Mi Alma , a film I have been hearing about for some time now. El Mar, Mi Alma from Rebel Waltz Films on Vimeo . From the El Mar, Mi Alma , website ; With a long and diverse coastline Chile is a country not only shaped by its geography; the sea occupies a mystical and poetic conscious and unconscious place within the cultural fabris of the nation. The film is a visual tone poem, a blend of images and music featuring cinematic surfing sequences, coastal landscapes, insightful commentary and the movements of the cast on a unique surfing journey. With environmental themes and political undercurrent, the film paints a picture of Chile's beauty and association with the sea, centered around the intimate act of surfing. It was funny to read that this film is a 'visual poem' in the 'About' from the website this morning, because as I watched it that was the thing that kept popping into my head. There was no cle...

As previously described at EBNY

In the more than four years that I have lived in Brisbane, I have never once overheard a conversation between strangers that was about surfing. But this morning, at the inner-city markets, I was stood next to two women at the 'I Love Sprouts' stall who were chatting about the surf (Note: I was waiting for coffee at the stall next door. Not for sprouts. Not that I have anything against sprouts [except alfalfa, ugh], I'm just saying that I wasn't buying them is all). The conversation went on and on - they were talking about water temperature and what wetsuits they were wearing and waves and all the things that I never fail to overhear in conversations when I'm by the coast. But in Brisbane! This was an oddity. And then there's the sky from Thursday.    I think the city is might be trying to make a subtle suggestion... *A nod to NYC .

Sometimes I read an online story about women and surfing that is so stupid and pointless and obviously sexist that I don't point it out or talk about it, because to highlight it only brings it traffic. But this morning I read one that is even more irritating than usual, because it's written by a woman and published on a website that situates itself as being for 'thinking surfers' and as promoting diversity.* So the sexist story? This morning I clicked on a link to The Inertia , which was promoting an article called 'Shit Surfer Girls Say' . This article was one of four highlighted in their regular bulk-email promotion, so the editor (or someone) had chosen it to be included. I guess they had decided it would draw traffic to their site (which is why I don't usually re-post this stuff). The article was a suggested script for one of those 'Shit _ Say' videos that were so popular following the 'Shit Girls Say' ones, which were, by the way hi...

As it plays, try to imagine how many times I have watched this clip since my friend, Katie, sent it to me...

So I was recently made aware of this film, 'First Point', by Richard Phillips and Taylor Steele. (You can find more and varied clips here at Richard Phillips's vimeo channel .) The director labels the film 'surf noir' in that it pushes against the usually upbeat and positive vibe of most surf films - an interesting idea. The film also stars Lindsay Lohan, who is something of a muse for Phillips. But beyond that, and despite my attempts at finding more information, there is little I understand about this film - I don't know what it's trying to do or say. And while I  in no way think that art always has to say something, I really like work that does . I like it when art makes me think, and unfortunately, the celebrity-induced preconceptions I have around Lohan are ultimately distracting. Maybe that's the point? Maybe I'm getting confused and this film is actually about celebrity. Some of the first links that are offered through a google search a...

Yesterday, I was walking home across the William Jolly Bridge from West End to Paddington. The bridge spans the Brisbane River, linking the north and south banks and walking across it gives lovely views of the city skyline, the Gallery of Modern Art and back across the green hills to the west. It was very late afternoon and rush-hour traffic meant that cars were moving slowly. As I crossed the bridge I thought about the new/old car I'm picking up on the weekend. It's a hatchback, so I was imagining how my longboard is going to look strapped to the roof! Could be amusing. As I neared the north end of the bridge, I looked at the road cutting underneath me. Immediately I noticed a small, white car with a single-fin log in a home-made cover on the roof. I'm used to seeing boards on cars in my small home-town, but the sight of a log on any car in Brisbane - let alone a familiar white Mirage - always stands out. I recognised the board-cover immediately - Huon! The traffic ...

And amazed. View from the ISS at Night from Knate Myers on Vimeo .

Sorry for going missing. Sometimes the unexpected just continues to happen/knock the wind out of you. You know? Anyway, I just came across these images by  Helena Almeida  and thought they did a pretty good job of explaining things. (via But does it float ) See you soon.

My friend Gary saw this postcard in Bretagne,  and it made him think of me. I can't tell you how much this made my day. Also, I have pretty great friends.

Three surfing moments from my week so far... Huon and I went down the coast on a mission on Tuesday. It included on-shore winds and felafel, and was a lot of fun.  I saw this t-shirt on sale in a department store yesterday.   Dodgy at-my-desk lunch. This is happening as I type.

Could Katharine Hepburn get any cooler? Apparently, yes. (Image via Tomboy Style , via Jessica Williams )

        Blogging is a funny thing. On the surface, it could appear like this totally self-indulgent and highly individual thing to do. Blogs can seem like a form of public journal-keeping, and at their worst, they are. But over the years that I have been keeping this little 'self-indulgent, public journal' operating, I have found blogs to be so very much more than that. I have, in fact, found that they are all about relationships and community.          You could flick though this blog and see me writing about women and surfing, which I do. But from my perspective, writing the blog, it is all about who is reading it, how they comment, the ways my interests connect with other bloggers, and seeing your ideas and experiences turning up in the most unlikely places from around the world. Although companies have jumped on blogging to promote their brands, products and surfers in seemingly unobtrusive ways, my experience of blogging has been ...

Today, and for very different reasons, this song is dedicated to two of my best lady-friends: Katie (who I miss and who really is a great dancer) and Izzy (I'm so proud of you!). Also, it's Friday and I'm off for a cocktail.

Izzy and Ryan are driving and camping down the coast to Sydney, where the winter is somewhat less kind than it has been in Byron. With a lack of surf-able waves to amuse them, t exts flew fast and thick from Izzy, as her and Ryan surf-checked their morning away. As you can tell from the picture she sent me, they had little success . Izzy: No waves just whitewater.

Much Better Now from Salon Alpin on Vimeo . (Apologies for the way the videos keep getting cut off. I'll do something about that sometime soon...)

Look what I've got - hot off the press! You can subscribe for yourself over at Kurungabaa .