SEPTEMBER ROUND UP

September - where did you go!?!

September was a blur of so much busy I cannot believe I got through it in one piece.

Work was huge, we opened SEEN@Swansea, an exhibition space adjacent to the library. My role is managing the volunteers who oversee the space. This including recruiting, and training them which was a huge undertaking. And working on events to go with each exhibition, openings, school holiday activities, school visits, and other events. This was initially like taking on a second job on top of my usual work. Then once that settled I had to play catch up. But you know what, I wouldn't have it any other way. 

My health, mental and otherwise withstood the month splendidly too, I am still anemic and still don't have any answers, but I have not been as exhausted as I was so that is good.

The month actually started with Shakespeare, Merchant of Venice at the Civic. It was an excellent production, and I got to christen my lovely silk scarf with Shakespeare's Sonnets on it.

My nephew's soccer team won their grand final, in a nail biting match which was fabulous and exciting. We followed up the next day with family celebrations for Father's Day. And later in the month my niece's special all girls soccer team participated in the Matildas Vs Brazil game. What a great night, I got quite teary seeing all these young girls marching around the stadium, our future!!!! And the game was a great one.

Our choir joined One Song Sing again, this month singing Bic Runga's Sway. probably our best song to date.

French Friday came around again, and we had some yummy delicacies from the French markets before the film, which was a very dramatic one.

My lovely niece turned 10 towards the end of the month and we celebrated at her place of choice, Billabongs all you can eat at East Maitland, lol!

I also spent a day wandering around Newcastle, which was a sheer delight. So many boats going in and out of the harbour that day, and a yummy lunch at Nobbys.

I also had breakfast at Empire Cafe, the Star Wars cafe on Honeysuckle prior to a conference at Newcastle Museum.

The month ended with a great night of cocktails and tapas with my lovely friend D at Serhapdim. We've been friend since Kindy, and truly there is nothing better than these lovely long friendships.

As you can imagine my reviews were minor this month due to being so busy at work, you can read about them here.

And here are some extra pics.

SEPTEMBER REVIEWS

What I Have Been Watching

The Wrong Girl S1 – this is a fun, light series with a good cast. I am not a huge fan of Australian television, but this is not bad. Having said that, I get a bit over the main heroine being an intelligent girl who comes across dipsy.

Hap and Leonard S2 – this is a great, fun series about two best friends causing trouble and helping those that need helping in the South. The arc of this series (infinitely better than S1) is trying to track a bunch of black children who have disappeared over many years. The subject matter and fun actually work, there is great darkness in this series but there is also a healthy dose of humour, which is why i think the series is so good.

Delicious – Fun series about a chef, Leo (Iain Glen), who is having an affair with his first wife (Dawn French) and his second wife (Emilia Fox) finds out. Just as things are getting messy, he has a heart attack and dies leaving his large fortune split between the women. They find out secrets about Leo, and mystery ensues, add in family drama, a lot of humour, and amazing food. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

Capture – fabulous series on photography that pairs up a classic photographer and an amateur (usually someone famous) and they discuss photos they have taken, why, circumstances behind etc. Amazing and insightful!

Travel Man – great premise, Richard Ayoade (IT Crowd) and another comedian spend 48 hours zipping through a major city. Richard is phobia ridden and a great straight man. Adam Hills and Istanbul, Noel Fielding and Copenhagen, Rob Delaney and Seville, Jo Brand and Venice were particularly good.

United Kingdom – a British woman marries the King of Botswana. This is based on a real story and could have been great, but I found it clunky and long.

Lone Star –  Been years since I saw this glorious film. I remember loving it but things were hazy. Re-watching it was as glorious as I remember. Dual timelines and dual murders, Lone  Star

Guardians of the Galaxy |Vol 2 – always fun, great cast, great music. What’s not to love?

Alone in Berlin – this sounded great on paper, Emma Thompson and Brendan Gleeson are a German couple who decide to take on the Nazis after their son is killed in WWII. I found it too dreary and long, maybe I was having a bad day. I wanted to love this, has anyone seen it ? Thoughts?

Paterson – the latest  film by Jim Jarmusch is an utter delight. One of the best new films I have seen in ages. Paterson (The brilliant Adam Driver) is a poet and a bus driver. It shows his lovely relationship with his wife, dog and his very repetitive life and yet he has this lovely lust for life which shows through in his poetry. Utterly mesmerising, this is my must see of the month!

Red Dog True blue – Australian, sequel, animal, saccharine...everything I hate about movies...and yet this was ok, not as good as the first one, but ok.

What I Have Been Reading

Letterman: the last giant of late night by Jasons Zinoman – This was a great read about Letterman, the good, the bad, and the ugly. It was a fascinating journey down memory lane.

Lincoln in the Bardo – George Saunders – you can see why this won the Booker (though I still stand by my choice of Exit West), so very different and out there. The story of Lincoln’s son who died young and his journey in the afterlife. I listened to this on talking book and I think that helped, I’ve heard the book is a struggle. There are a lot of characters and it does take a while to acclimatise to who is who and what is happening. The talking book had a cast of hundreds reading each part which really helped. David Sedaris and Nick Offerman played the main characters and is worth the price of admission itself. Once I got the rhythm I really enjoyed the story, and I really appreciate it’s authenticity, but this is not for everyone. It can be a little bit too clever for it’s own good. I have always enjoyed Saunders’ short stories, but his style and dry humour need some acclimatising, and even so I struggled initially with this. having said that it was a triumph to get through and understand, it paid off well!.

What I Have Been Listening To

Everything Now – Arcade Fire – a bit more laid back than you’d expect, not bad but not great.

Silver Eye – Goldfrapp – brilliant and upbeat!

Turn Up The Quiet – Diana Krall – perfection as always.

Lust for Life – Lana Del Ray -  lovely and lush, great voice.

AUGUST ROUND UP

Well, things started to get hectic in August. Work became increasingly busy with my various projects heating up AND an exhibition space near to the library coming together very quickly. This has taken up a lot of my time, recruiting volunteers, helping with the set up and looking towards the next few exhibits. It's a really exciting time and whilst it is a lot of extra work I am loving every minute of it.

We also had book week, and the girls did a great job working on a show that about 10 classes saw. The week prior was Science Week and my bestie brought her best Science to Storytime and of course was a hit.

On top of this, I still had anemia and headed in for some exploratory surgery to get to the bottom of it. They found nothing sinister which was great but no real reason why which is annoying. 

My choir participated in the One Song Sing at The Edwards again, this time attempting Sia's Chandelier, and it was glorious.

Earlier in the month I saw The Trip To Spain with the hilarious Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan, it is pretty much the same at the other movies they have done, but I do not mind. I love the travel stuff, the food, and their odd friendship. They truly make me laugh.

Mid month as part of L's birthday celebrations we headed to the Sunset Studios to see Keegan Joyce sing. Keegan will be known to most as Arnold from Please Like Me or Fuzz from Rake. He is a blues/roots singer, and was a utter delight, musically and in person.

My friend V has been getting out and about and performing his original material at open mic gigs, so I headed along to support him at the Lass and it was great.

Bookclub this month read the latest Haruki Murakami, this time short stories and they were great.

I also popped briefly into C's art exhibition which was amazing as usual.

Spent a bit of time with the family, my nephew's soccer team got into the semi's and A had her birthday celebrations.

The month ended with a massage, which I really needed!!!

Here are my reviews of music, books and film.

And some pics:

AUGUST REVIEWS

What I’ve Been Reading

East West by Mohsin Hamid - this is one of the best books I have recently read. A young man and woman meet and try to strike up a relationship in an unnamed city overrun by war. Hamid paints a vivid picture of an ever changing world where things are not always as they seem. When the couple are given a chance to escape we are taken on a extraordinary journey that makes you stop and think. Nominted for the Booker this year, Hamid's refugee story is more than we could ever imagine. 

Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami is the latest from the Japanese master. It is short stories with similar themes of men and how they cope without women in their lives. At first i wasn't so sure as they felt a little misogynistic which is unlike Murakami. Possibly it was the translation.  But once i warmed to the premise I really warmed to it. 

Frank/Them/Out of the Ordinary/What I Do – Jon Ronson  I am a huge fan of Ronson and our bookclub is featuring him next month so I have been reading the titles I have yet to read. Frank is a short essay about his time in a avant garde band with a lead singer who wore a large plastic animated head over his own head. The story was turned into a great indie film with Michael Fassbender. Them is a collection of his encounters with extremists. The other two are collections from his various columns and other articles. Most are earlier work and I found him a little grating at times.  You can see his evolution over time in his work. 

Ghost Empire by Richard Fidler – I listened to Richard read his magnificent book on talking book in the car over a few weeks and what a delight it was. It is the history of the Byzantium Empire, a period in history he is fascinated in and one I knew pretty much nothing about. What a story it was!!! But it was more than that as Fidler interweaves a father/son discovery throughout the book. As he tells the history of this amazing period he is sharing the stories with his son and then takes him on a holiday to discover the places they were reading and learning about. So whilst he has showcased this history in the most easiest ways to learn about and understand, there is his underlying plot of his relationship with his then 14 year old son. It is truly a thing of beauty. I loved this book and never wanted it to end.
  

The Dry by Jane Harper – this is Australian Author, Harper’s debut novel and is a crime novel. Crime is a genre I rarely read, I find them too formulaic. But this has been winning awards everywhere and the talking book came through at work so i gave it a go. A small town is broken apart when a farmer kills his young son and wife and then commits suicide. But did he, because some things just don’t add up. An old friend returns home for the funeral and gets caught up in the investigation, that not only looks at this tragedy but at the death of a childhood friend from their teen years. The story moves in time and is beautifully constructed. Great characterisation and a believable story that has you guessing until the very end.

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent - I really struggled with this one. I found it slow and boring and i just didn't care about the characters. It's won loads of awards so I guess it just wasn't for me.

After by Nikki Gemmell - I love Gemmell's first book,  Shiver, but have found her subsequent titles narcissistic and vacuous. This non-fiction title about the death of her mother exposed a lot of herself and quite possibly why her works came across as they did.  After tells of a strained mother/daughter relationship with a particularly narcissistic mother. It's a very open book and I found it a fascinating read.

NIght Circus by Erin Morgenstern was a work bookclub title and was an utter delight. The story commences in the late 1890s with a magical travelling circus. Initially we meet key players in and behind the circus and the story moves back and forth through the decades. As we get to know the characters we realise there is more then meets the eye with the circus and it is part of an elaborate and dangerous game. 

Are you Anybody by Jeffrey Tambor - Jeffrey Tambor has been in two of my all time favourite shows, The Larry Sanders Show and Arrested Development. I also love him in the beautifully melancholy, Transparent. This is a well written memoir about his late start as an actor and all he has learnt. I particularly loved the parts where he describes his lovely relationship with Garry Shandling. It made me smile. 

Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham - Graham is not a great writer, she's a great talker but that doesn't quite translate to the page. She was at her best describing her Gilmore Girls time but even then I wanted more. 

The Secrets of My Life by Caitlin Jenner – Bruce Jenner was always my favourite character when I chanced upon The Kardashians, so this book intrigued me. What she had done is rather impressive and it is interesting to see her own take on her life and it’s impact on those around her. This isn’t the best written book around and at times a little trashy, but it was interesting.

What I’ve Been Watching

Embrace the Serpent is a magnificent black and white film, shot in the Amazon about the last Amazonian Shaman and two scientists over a period of time who have his help to find a special healing plant within the Amazon. Show in two timelines it feels like a documentary but these are indeed actors playing out a real life story based on the diaries of the scientists involved. It was a zen-like film where things loved slowly with some action here and there. It was sad to see how the Shaman’s tribe met their end, but there still felt like hope within the movie. I guess this is not for everyone, but I really loved this.

Truman is a Spanish film about a dying man who is unsure what to do with his beloved dog. An unexpected visit from an old friend, helps him start to put his life in order. Now this sounds rather dreary but in fact it was not, it was quite funny in parts, the actors are superb and the dog gorgeous.A few unexpected plot twists and a movie I thoroughly enjoyed.

Les Biches - is a new wave 60s film by Claude Chabrol. Not much of a story, about a younger and older woman and a man and their affairs. More sensuous than sexy, stylised than substance. It was a bit light.

La Belle Saison - is a French film set in the 1970s. Delphine is a farmers daughter who ends up in Paris studying and falls in love with abeautiful feminist.  When her father has a stroke she returns to look after the farm and her lover follows her.  But this is rural France in the 70s, will their love survive. This was a beautiful film. 

Pawno is a low budget but quite good Australian film, set around a Pawn shop in the suburbs of Melbourne. An ensemble cast including Kerry Armstrong, Maeve Dermody, Malcolm Kennard and many more, all the characters intertwine around the Pawn Shop. It is funny, dark, sad, and romantic. An underdog film that is worth seeking out.

The Family Fang is an odd film about a very eccentric family. Camille and Caleb Fang (played deliciously by Maryann Plunkett and Christopher Walken) are performance artists and at young ages include their very young and very precocious children, Annie and Baxter in the contrived performances. The Family fang become quite infamous, for their performances of course and the fact the children participate. The children, now adults, (played with conviction by Nicole Kidman and Jason Bateman) are estranged from their parents. Both are obviously still affected by their crazy upbringing, Annie is an actress with a bad reputation and Baxter wrote a best selling book but is struggling to follow it up. After a bizarre accident, Baxter winds up in hospital and the family is reunited against the children’s better wishes. From here pathos and black comedy ensues, with weird twists and turns. I really enjoyed this very different film.

Edge of Seventeen - was a fun but really good coming of age film. Highly recommend.

Crazy About Tiffanys - wonderful documentary about the legendary New York flagship. It's history, the designers, the jewels, Tiffany blue, and the celebrities.

Joan Baez Concert - was simply wonderful. Celebrating her 75th birthday with fellow musicians like Paul Simon, David Crosby, Emmylou Harris, and Judy Collins. But the highlight for me was the flawless cover of Dylan's Don't Think Twice with The Indigo Girls. If folk or quality music is your thing, this is a must.

Game of Thrones - what can I say without too many spoilers. Best season ever and easily one of the best episodes within it. Everything is coming together, much quicker than I anticipated. Let's just say it's all about the dragons.

Peaky Blinders - got  off to a blinding start with Tommy marrying Grace in a very posh society wedding. And you know things aren't going to remain so posh and perfect, especially with The Russians involved. What happens next turns Tommy more feral than he's ever been.  This was a great series.

Orphan Black - the final season was a bit boring. It seemed to lose it's edge as things unravel for our clones.  I will miss it's kick arse feminism but was disappointed with this season.

Twin Peaks - this has been without precedence THE BEST television I have ever seen.  Did I understand it all? No. Was everything resolved? No. But that didn't matter. The journey was a Lynchian mix of mind-fuck and sheer joy. And Kyle McLachlan was a revelation. Playing multiple versions of Cooper, he was having the time of his life, playing the role/s of his life.  I'm going to blog more about this in time. 

OJ Made in America - this is the Oscar winning 8 hour documentary about OJ Simpson and it's an outstanding masterpiece. It traces his history before and after tree infamous trial. With unprecedented access to people and footage this had me completely and utterly entranced. Horrifying in parts too. This is a must see.

What I've Been Listening To

Cannot recall. 

JULY ROUND UP

July started with a dash into Cooks Hill Books to secure a rare copy of Nirvana's Nevermind with blue vinyl!

The following weekend, C and I had a girlie day at Olive Tree markets, brunch on Darby, Art Gallery exhibit, a little shop, then drive around the beaches whale watching. We saw some, but too far away to photograph.

Work was busy with school holidays, staff on leave, many extra projects, and a special staff planning day.

We celebrated Bastille day with French Cuisine, and a screening of Contempt at the Towers.

Our Annual Kate Bush Wuthering Heights Day came around again, and with a new red dress and very tight red tights, I tried my very best to dance like Kate with many others at King Edward Park.

Game of Thrones returned mid month, so along with Twin Peaks, Mondays have become mind bending days, thank goodness I get every second Monday off!

I did something rotten to my neck at the beginning of the month and have been seemingly living at the Osteo and Remedial Massage. Getting there, but not a quick fix, getting old sucks!

At Bookclub we discussed Stan Grant's amazing, Talking to my Country.

J and I had a lovely meal at The Clarendon before seeing the play, The Age of Consent. This was a wonderful production, two characters doing 10ish minute monologues, about 4 or 5 each. The woman, a stage mother who may or may not be inadvertedly putting her child at harms way. The man, in jail since 12 for murder and about to be released as an adult. Both gave upbeat stories but sinister and murky lay beneath the surface. Compelling and chilling.

I ended the month with a long weekend - between my anemia and neck/knee issues - I needed rest. I started by heading up to Lochinvar for a Kinesiology session, had a drive through the vineyards and finished with a massage. In between I napped, read, daydreamed, caught up with friends for lunch at Awaba House and visited the amazing Diane Arbus exhibit at Lake Macquarie Art Gallery. Hence I started August feeling rather zen!

Here are my usual reviews.

And some pics: