All Hallows Eve
Posted: October 31, 2013 Filed under: Thought For the Day | Tags: All hallows Eve, ancestors, Beetlejuice Day-O (Banana Boat song), ghosts, ghouls, halloween, Halloween traditions, I see dead people, messages from the other side, spirit world, Tim Burton films, trick or treat 2 CommentsThe veil between our realm and the spirit world is very thin tonight. So we can all dress up like ghouls and blow a kiss to our ancestors.
I think children like to be scared a little in childhood to help them learn to manage their fears and develop the strength they will need in adulthood. My youngest daughter loves cemeteries like me. We often wander through our local grave yard talking about the families buried there and how children her age frequently died 150 years ago. We’ll go trick or treating in the same street as our local cemetery. Call me crazy, but I’ll be looking out for signs from my dad tonight. I think he may drop by.
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Miley, the latest version of the Virus
Posted: October 30, 2013 Filed under: SONGS | Tags: allegedly provocative music videos, don't feed the charlatans they may go away, feminism, How to make a feminist's flesh crawl, manipulation, Miley Cyrus - Wrecking Ball parody by Jay-Jay Mike & Dom, Miley Cyrus sounds like a virus, Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball clip, no story, old men and young girls style of creepy, pop culture, X spawn of Billy Ray must be stopped 2 CommentsI’ve come to this pop culture party very late, but I want to weigh in on the debate about what is wrong with Miley Cyrus’ Wrecking Ball mini fillum. It sucks. And not because she’s writhing around licking a hammer, although that is wrong because she’s not at a hardware store. No, it’s because it’s all been done. To death. At the risk of sounding like an old ‘back in my day, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and Madonna got her boobs out for the 24th time’ fart, it’s tired. I’m from the if you’ve seen one pair of boobs you’ve seen ’em all school of feminism so I couldn’t give a rat’s arse about Miley’s naked body, but Miley’s clip is creepy.
Old, balding tosser dribbles over young girl and tells her the storyline for her clip is provocative, original and daring. My flesh crawled when I googled the man’s name. He is 48 and a know pervert according to Doctor Wikipedia. Women 40 + are used to this kind of boring; male directors who don’t think they have to push their female star to actually act or perform or take us on an emotional journey because she is pretty, this style of ‘directing’ has been around as long as film (watch Rose Byrne in Two Hands or Angelina Jolie in most of her movies if you don’t believe me). No Miley, as cute as you are, flashing flesh is not enough, I want a storyline too. Copying Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing Compares To You video and faking the tears shames you as an actor, and the fact that a director’s cut exists says it all. I think you’ve been manipulated by a wanker who thinks he’s an artist. And that is very sad.
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10 Single Mother Truths
Posted: October 26, 2013 Filed under: Single Motherhood | Tags: budget parenting, cheapskate parenting, it's all for love, love, making ends meet, penny pinching, S-S-S-Single Bed Noosha Fox Film Clip Countdown Australia, single mother partying, single mother sanity, single mother truths, Single mothers, stretching parenting to fit the number of children you have, tips for single mothers, tired doesn't begin to describe it Leave a comment1. You hear the words ‘insufficient funds’ on a daily basis and it doesn’t freak you out; and the words ‘transaction approved’ make you jump for joy
2. The word you use most when talking to your girlfriends is ‘overwhelmed’
3. Parenting is all about selling options to your child. Single parenting is begging for the sale for your sanity
4. After wondering why your shopping seems a bit cheaper than usual, your day is made when you get home and discover the checkout person hasn’t swiped five of your most expensive grocery items
5. You lie awake at 3am wondering if you should go back to the shop so you don’t get charged with shoplifting. The thought that your children only have one parent weighs heavily on your mind
6. If your children go to their father’s every second weekend, your house is clean 26 times per year
7. Your children develop a sudden fondness for whichever fruit costs $28 per kilo (because it has to be airlifted from Belize) and be invited to four different children’s dress up parties around the time that your hours at work get cut back
8. Disneyland Dad suddenly has money for fancy restaurants with his new girlfriend while you struggle to find ‘imaginative’ recipes in the ‘700 Ways With Baked Beans cook book for dinner every night
9. The words tax refund cause you the same excitement as the words ‘Saturday night and it’s time to partay, get your disco boots on’ did a few short years ago
10. You have to be physically restrained from strangling your 20 something male stoner neighbour when he tells you he’s exhausted because he woke up early to get a surf in before he took his girlfriend out for a late brunch
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One Hit Wonders Part Two
Posted: October 22, 2013 Filed under: ART, SONGS | Tags: 80s disco, favourite songs, hit songs, one hit wonders, Player - Baby Come Back, radio friendly 70s songs, S-S-S-Single Bed Noosha Fox Film Clip Countdown Australia, sexy songs, the golden age of disco music, tragic 70s and 80s music Leave a commentI forgot so much fabulous music in my original post I could’t live with myself if I didn’t highlight other neglected 70s classics like Pussyfoot’s 1976 hit The Way That You Do It, Noosha Fox’s S-S-S-Single Bed and Lene Lovich’s Lucky Number. Or what about Patrick Hernandez’ Born To Be Alive or Player’s Baby Come Back from the golden age of smooth disco? My current favourite is Divine’s 80s hit You Think You’re A Man? My list of wonder hits is so very, very long if I read it out loud the accompanying soundtrack would be the Bee Gees’ song Tragedy (except they were no one hit wonders). What are your favourite 70s and 80s tragic tunes? Or 50s, 60s, 90s or current one hit wonders?
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Count your blessings
Posted: October 21, 2013 Filed under: Clown Doctors, LOVE | Tags: attitude, beautiful girls, count your blessings, feisty teenagers, gratitude, happy memories, Laughter, Laughter therapy, life is so unfair, Pink fans, RIP princess, thank you, Who Knew by Pink Leave a commentIf your kids are healthy, hug them and hold them tight. You have won the lottery as a parent.
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Ooooh Jasmine
Posted: October 18, 2013 Filed under: ART, D.I.V.O.R.C.E, WRITERS | Tags: Alec Baldwin, Andrew Dice Clay, anxiety, Australian actresses, Bobby Cannavale, Carly Simon - You're So Vain, Cate Blanchett, divorce aftermath, divorce films, emotional abuse, films set in San Francisco, living with a narcissist, Louis CK, Michael Stuhlbarg, NPD, personality disorders, Peter Sarsgaad, Sally Hawkins, self medicating, self-absorption, trigger warnings, Woody Allen films 2 CommentsThis week I went to the movies to see Blue Jasmine with a fellow gay divorcee, and I think this Woody Allen film should come with a trigger warning. If you’ve ever been in a long term relationship which turned out to be a total lie, Jasmine may freak with your head. Every time Jasmine’s anxiety made her pop a Xanax, I kept looking at the audience before I could decide whether to laugh, cry or yell out, ‘Yes! This is what a relationship with a narcissist will do to you.’ Cate Blanchett is brilliant as Jasmine but I didn’t laugh much as it was so close to home. I was reminded of my own hospitalisations and escape four years ago. I left the theatre feeling very anxious and I’m glad my friend and I had a chance to ‘debrief’ afterwards. When she remarked, “That was just like our relationships, except on a grander scale,” I finally felt like I could laugh.
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Sorrow Comes Unsent For
Posted: October 15, 2013 Filed under: LOVE, Parenting, WRITERS, WRITING | Tags: 1 in 3 pregnancies end in miscarriage, babies we'll never know, Irma Gold Editor, Journeys Through Miscarriage, personal stories of loss, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, stories about miscarriage and pregnancy loss, the loss of a child, The Sound of Silence Book, The Sound of Silence book trailer Leave a commentToday is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, time to remember the babies I will never know. I wrote a story about one of them entitled Sorrow Comes Unsent For for an anthology of miscarriage stories called The Sound Of Silence.
This extract is taken from the blog of the book’s editor Irma Gold when the book won the Non Fiction award at the ACT Writing and Publishing Awards:
“An anthology about miscarriage seemed an unlikely winner, but win it did. The judges said:
‘The Sound of Silence was the stand-out winner on every level. This book proved to be compellingly readable, boasted good production design and evidenced careful, respectful editing. Although neither of the judges initially expected to be taken by this volume, both ultimately found it absorbing and uplifting. The writing was of the highest quality and deserves a readership well beyond its niche market. In short: An inspirational book and a clear winner.’
Their assessment recognises so many aspects of the book. For me, editing The Sound of Silence was a privilege. Many of the 22 writers had not previously been published, but they worked with me through the lengthy editing process with such grace and enthusiasm. This award acknowledges their strength and courage in telling stories that will help others affected by miscarriage.”
To buy the book click here:
The Sound of Silence Book
This is the trailer for the book:
