Something So Strong

"It is stupid comparing us to the Beatles. There were four of them. There are only three of us."

- Paul Hester

It wasn't my plan to be so worn out by 5pm today, but I suppose it makes sense. Would I have done it any differently if I had known I would be here, there and everywhere? I've travelled from Glen Waverley, to Prahran. Prahran to the city. The city to Fitzroy. Fitzroy to Collingwood. And just recently, back into the city. Right now I'm at the State Library, enjoying some down time. In about an hour I'll be on a tram to North Melbourne - and then, finally, I'll be making the trip back home to Glen Waverley. What does it all mean, what's it all for? Well, that's precisely the point of this post. Check out my day...

I bailed on the idea of waking at 6am for another two-hour world of Managing Design 'fun', so I got up at 9am instead. Unfortunately, I'd have to go into uni anyway, into the bowels of the PA building to do a little DVD Authoring. I mostly made changes to the project I had already submitted, adding excerpts of The Good China's latest music video (which will hit the web sometime soon, I imagine). It was for the sake of an interview I had scheduled at 2pm - funnily enough, a DVD Authoring position. The company wanted my showreel, and I was happy to oblige. I finished my work, and began to make my way to Fitzroy.

I thought the interview went well. I fielded the questions with particular ease, and although I initially felt a degree of pressure, I found myself, mid-interview, rather optimistic of my first impressions. It was a little nerve racking when the chief interviewer decided to insert the showreel I had just burnt for a quick glimpse. My mind raced with all these ghastly outcomes: the disc isn't actually in the right region, none of the hyperlinks actually link to anything, the DVD player could simply explode and proves a match for even the most adept Fire Department. Overall, though, things went smoothly. I opted to show them what I had of All Nothing (the aforementioned clip) and they were both amused and impressed. It made me feel good for myself and the band. Inevitably, I noticed one particular fail concerning a menu - a daft mistake I knew I could rectify within seconds if given the chance - but hopefully they don't shift unnecessary focus onto what's a tiny mistake. So, anyway, I was satisfied. And it had finished sooner than I thought. So what was I to do with my time?

I should avoid Dixons. Its just too awesome. I can't really afford to go there anymore - hell, I never could. Anyway, for a decent price, I ended up buying Noah And The Whale's Peaceful The World Lays Me Down, Pet Shop Boys' Fundemental and Cajun Dance Party's The Colorful Life. Its unusual, as two of those three albums I haven't really heard much of. This defies my usual pattern of download, love, buy. My purchase of Fundemental was purely based on recommendation; El assures me I'll come to enjoy it much more than Yes (which I've had on high rotation for sometime now - good stuff). I promised myself I wouldn't spend anymore money after that venture. Typically, it took me all of five minutes to begin to see other things I'd love to buy. A brand-new, not-so-bright-red ukulele case was up there. But its probably a good thing I saved my money, and walked just a bit further to The Searchers. Its a record / bookshop on Smith St, and one I've been meaning to go to for months. Today I finally put myself out to go there, and boy, did it pay off...

Zomg.

This is a Crowded House rarity. For a start, as far as I know, its out of print. I remember this one time, years ago, I found a record of it on the Monash Public Library database. When I followed it up, however, I was told the only copy of the book, however, had gone missing, and there was no explanation for its disappearance. Bummer, huh? So I pretty much acknowledged - much like I did with Shaun Micallef's hilarious Smithereens - that I'd never own a copy for myself. Fortunately though, also like Smithereens, a copy of this book is now mine, and mine forever, and for just $14. Not bad, considering the chances of finding this anywhere were, to my knowledge, pretty much zero. This is pretty much the single greatest experience I've had with a record store, ever. Zomg indeed.

Everything is fantastically Finn in my world at the moment, actually. I could be off to New Zealand to see Neil and Tim Finn team up for a Samoan Relief concert. As far as wins go, I'm checking the boxes: I've wanted to go to New Zealand for a while, and now it looks like I might... whilst I'm there, I could see my idols, live in concert... and the proceeds for said concert will be distributed in ways that actually make a difference to people who really, really need all the help they can get at the moment. Win. Win. Win.

Time for me to leave the State Library. As I mentioned, I'm in North Melbourne tonight. Its the last thing I have to do today, and its to cover the last of the Fringe shows I was assigned: Josh Thomas. Not really sure what to expect. He's hardly hilarious or anything from what I've seen (mostly his role on Talkin Bout Your Generation), but I have to admit, I'm curious to see what he's got. I'm still quite chuffed that my reviews have made appearances - yes, two now, amazingly - in Beat. The novelty hasn't worn off. Maybe my call is writing. Maybe that's what I should be doing with my time. Hard to argue against that notion when its exactly what I'm doing now. I hope you've enjoyed this account of my giant, awesomely enjoyable day, and fingers crossed about the job, and the evening to come. I've travelled from Glen Waverley, to Prahran. Prahran to the city. The city to Fitzroy. Fitzroy to Collingwood. And just recently, back into the city. Soon I'll be on a tram to North Melbourne.

So just why the hell am I still living in Glen Waverley? 'Til next post.

Distraction 9

"If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun."

- Katharine Hepburn

As I expected, my week off really didn't feel like a holiday at all. Which is far from a complaint, because keeping busy meant that when I did return to uni this past Monday, it felt like I had been gone a month. Which was a good feeling, because I had accomplished a lot: a few Fringe Festival shows reviewed (the articles can be found here), as well as getting together with the ol' crew and making headway on our gumwall documentary. Anyway, when I got back into the swing of things and arrived at Swinburne on Monday morning, it really felt like a new beginning - not so much the second part of semester two, but a brand new semester.

Of course, my cycnicism and general restlessness soon crept in and ruined the whole experience. Predictable, really. Today's probably been the best example. Screening Series offered up a Roman Polanski film, Cul De Sac, and for most of the film I found myself daydreaming about all sorts of things - inlcuding a delicious blueberry-choc muffin I had enjoyed prior to the class. Is that wrong? Surely that's a sign that, psychologically at least, I'm not exactly in tune with my course. To be fair, it was only that the movie conjured so much apathy in me that such a situation occured.
Later, in my 12:30pm Editing class, we were warned fairly explicitly that mid-class use of Facebook would result in an instant dismissal for the day. Unsurprisingly (and I can even bring up my chat logs calling this outcome), I was caught within the first ten minutes of the lesson and promptly asked to leave. I'd feel bad, but - and this is probably another danger sign - I've come to learn that I can miss classes without any repercussion whatsoever. I know I won't have missed crucial education, and I know I won't have to catch up on anything. Again, I can't help but wonder if this is how it ought to be.

So, having left class, I had a lot of time on my hands. The first thing I did was find another computer. Then I logged onto the Village Cinemas website. Then I walked to Jam Factory, and saw this film.

Not quite Mars Attacks.

And you know what? You can forget all of the above - you know, any hint of my disillusionment with my career path - because there's nothing wrong here. I see things like these, and I'm again instantly awash with my love for film and television. Its just over an hour since I saw this film, and I still very much admire its creativity, originality - its entertainment factor alone proved fantastic. No, there's nothing wrong with me. I still love what I do. I'm just doomed to disagree with Swinburne. I'm doomed because I only want to do what I want to do. Always. I want to see the films that I want to see, and study what I want to study. Anything that doesn't peak my interest I don't have - no, want - to make time for. Unfortunately, this is not how any University course has or ever will operate.

I'm a lot of things when it comes to this issue - stubborn, self-centred, you name it. But it only stems from my absolute, unrestrained desire to achieve great things. So maybe all this frustration with my course ain't so bad after all.

Peace out.