[lost] pictures of you

i left my phone on the tram a few weeks ago. within minutes, it was disconnected, presumably stolen for personal use, as it wouldn't have been worth much to anyone. it was valuable to me though, not because it held numbers or performed certain functions, but because it had hundreds of photos on it that i dearly loved.

so i've decided to memorialise them here, to paint you a picture that you'll never see but also so i don't forget the feelings they gave me.

there were magical pictures of madge and mskp's excellent adventure up the west coast of australia. several of us drinking wine from crystal glasses on the beach at cervantes, right before a couple of dolphins appeared at the water's edge. still others of us at the pub after eating some spectacular surf and turf and sharing a bottle of fine champagne. overlooking the water of course. another waterfront marvel was the oysters at the fremantle docks, under the little huts in a glass beer garden. we had pictures of that too. my favourite though, was a picture of mads in her shiny new dress, laughing it up at the scotto - in her element, surrounded by friends, and love and hilarity, and i was there.

i had alot of pictures of me and toby, which i treasured. it would be too easy for me to remember only the terrible end but i don't. i try very hard to remember the excitement and love and joy, and i looked at those pictures often. they were so intimate, lounging around with frank, sharing food, wrapped up in the warmth of unfashionable house clothes and blankets and each other. so many happy moments captured at arm's length. there was good, and that's how i made peace with myself. i know the truth about love [that it exists and is real and can then be gone].

i lost all my documentary coverage of my favourite graffiti and stencil art. brunswick was such a hotspot for this, and i photographed a lot of anti-howard ephemera, with a view to publishing it here one day. i also had shots of some fantastic graffiti responses to the nt intervention, that were both incendiary and eloquent. a few other little gems too, that can't be recaptured - a tree branch casting a long shadow as it protruded through the fence pickets, a nonna putting flowers in her hat after pinching them from someone's garden.

my lady day, at ray, years ago now. it was one of those photos that just lined up perfectly and showed something of its subject that largely remains hidden. i was proud of taking it, and i love that woman so. it was one of the first pictures i ever took that i thought was not only special to me, but actually good.

frank. some wonderfully amusing and awww-inducing photos of frank, sitting in a pot of dirt, wearing all manner of comedic accessories, a particularly successful round of stuff on my dog. good times, good times...luckily he's still around, tickling the proverbial funny bone, ready for his close-up.

and finally, my two-headed gay husband on the day i got the keys to my new house. it was during a time of such relentless despair, that the little victory of securing a home was enough to send us all a bit silly. i was joyous at all my hard work and hopes paying off, and they were right there with me, all the way. that day was a burst of sunshine in an otherwise dark time. i lost a picture of them, sun-kissed and singleted, squeezed together on the windowsill, swinging their legs, smiling like fools. god, i loved that picture.

so there you have it. obviously, the sensible among us will take this as a timely reminder to download, save and backup precious photographs. the rest of us might remember an image that means the world to them, and finally put it in a frame where it can be admired every day.

me, i'm going to start again.

imagining the opposite

walkin' on sunshine?

maybe you can help me out - do you have a song you like to sing when you're happy? you know, when an unexpectedly lovely interaction brightens your day, or when you have yourself a little thrill, or things just inexplicably go your way?

can i pre-emptively exclude this one?

the best i could come up with was this:




not bad.


but i think we can do better.

when worlds collide

i was asked out on a date today. i couldn't say yes but i was so excited and flattered and happy. i thought he was a total honey and i absolutely would've said yes if he didn't work for a company that i'll probably be at serious odds with for the next wee while. quel dommage.

in other news, how do you like the overlap in this little venn diagram?

that's me in the middle there, beaming.

some boys

it's only just occurred to me that my love affair with tina turner was cemented by a phenomenon that southern staters may not know about: the relationship between la turner and the national rugby league. in 1989, 'what you get is what you see' was used for a stunningly successful campaign to promote the nrl. this collaboration lasted well into the next decade and culminated in 'the best' becoming synonymous with the winfield cup. there were a series of commercials made over the years and the arrangement eventually spawned that duet with our very own working class hero, jimmy barnes. if you have a couple of minutes, it's worth watching this one through to the end, if only to remember that the rabbitohs can score tries.*



this is the later one, which is one of the coolest things i've ever seen.



there are more, should you care to explore the matter further. they make me so happy, and i can't tell if it's her general awesomeness or my sense-memory of being that young and hepped up. i remember my friends and i being so scandalised [read: titillated] by the open sexuality of these ads. i know the guys mostly look funny and dated now but they gave me the chills back then.

okay, maybe they still do.




*rugby league joke inserted despite low likelihood of anyone getting it.

if you wanna love a woman like me...

...it takes a man to do it.

food for thought

finally...something to share. a weekend of gastronomic indulgence stretches out behind me, and i can scarcely believe how well i've eaten in just a couple of days. what a treat! so if you live in melbourne-town, you can try these out for yourself, and if you don't, i can always take you there when next you bowl into town.

friday pm: mexicali rose on swan street, richmond.

charmingly low-rent outfit boasting huge servings of authentic mexican food, fairly cheap jugs of frozen margarita, and exceptionally good-looking wait staff. i adore this place, and the burrito colorado is highly recommended. oh, and CHURROS.

saturday am: cavallini on queens parade, clifton hill.

artisan bakery with an italian bent, and you know what that means? bombolini. and espresso. and ciabatta. and...a gorgeous little library full of italian classics to peruse when you're not looking at the dozens of old photographs covering the walls. they warmed our selection, they played swinging jazz and they whisked away the evidence when we were done - marvellous. being a new local for the baby doc, we were mightily impressed.

saturday pm: kanpai on chapel street, south yarra.

lunch at one of my favourite japanese joints in the city. my delightful companion and i split some ebi maki, beef tataki and gyoza. the food is always perfect at kanpai, and the outside tables proved an excellent vantage point to watch the passing parade, before promenading away ourselves.

saturday pm [later]: la maison de tracteurs à chenilles on a street, collingwood.

dinner with some very fine folk - i took bread from cavallini and we made a truly excellent carbonara. upon arrival i was offered a glass of french champagne, which was creamy and luscious and gone in a flash. many glasses of wine, a chocolate viennetta, and four episodes of flight of the conchords later, we called it a night.

sunday am: birdman eating on gertrude street, fitzroy.

is there anything more wonderful than having strong coffee and welsh rarebit delivered to your table in the sunshine by an exquisitely beautiful french waitress? okay, i'm sure everyone has a different idea of heaven but, for today, that's mine. the food at this place is bonkers good, but be prepared to wait for a table.

so there you have it, a magical mystery dining tour of the inner suburbs. i thoroughly recommend all of these places [though my friends a + a may be reticent to throw open their doors for paying customers, but you never know] and i also think that there's a lot to be said for the completely decadent decision to let other people bring you food all weekend [occasionally]. it feels like going away on holiday and, for me, it was worth every cent.

but it's beans on toast tonight, i reckon.