Die young Stay pretty

Oh gosh golly...

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 11:56:43 GMT

I am cleaning out my room.

This evening I pulled out all the boxes and piles of papers from all the cupboards and drawers and started sorting through them, filing what I need and shedding all the crap like the skin of a snake, or the fat of a contestant on The Biggest Loser. I have to do this because my family are moving house, and the removalists are coming to take our stuff on the 27th. Of DECEMBER.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH

So in the midst of throwing out the junk that doesn't need to go with me to Hurstville (and beyond) I find treasures that I cannot part with. Some things are priceless, like the Game Boy Colour and accompanying Pokémon games I found in a box, which will no doubt prove a wonderful distraction to packing when I find some new AA batteries.

Others are of questionable value, like the stacks of film and fashion magazines that I bought in the first year out of high school. I think of the potential for cutting out pretty pictures and doing wonderful things with them. But I haven't done that in the past three years, so would I start now? Any knowledge they impart will be dated, and could be sourced on the Internets. But still! It will require deliberation. Until a decision is reached they sit on my floor, dusty and crumpled. Although I found the copy I saved of SX Magazine with David on the cover, that's one to show the grandchildren.

Other things are just absolute trash, but which I have held onto for sheer sentimentality. Sitting on my desk for the past five months are an empty Blistex tube that I got in Berlin, and an empty tissue packet from Carrefour. I think I will keep them until David gets home.

Speaking of which, OMG! David will be home in three days, nine hours, 48 minutes and 16 seconds. It feels strange that the one thing I have spent a year looking forward to, waiting for, distracting myself until... is finally going to happen this week. It's going to be so weird! And good. And relieving. And too many other feelings to articulate at this stage.

In the meantime, I've gotta find me some AA batteries.

Madness

Tue, 11 Sep 2007 01:43:04 GMT

Haha! I have my own entry in IMDb now!

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2713290/

Freaky

Tue, 14 Aug 2007 18:15:29 GMT

I just woke from a dream where Arq nightclub and Bethesda nursing home were one in the same.

I think I'm too frightened to go back to sleep.

Online Petition

Sun, 05 Aug 2007 18:48:42 GMT

Dear Friends,

I have just read and signed the online petition:

"Please Labor, Don’t Preference Family First"

hosted on the web by PetitionOnline.com, the free online petition
service, at:

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/padpff/

I personally agree with what this petition says, and I think you might
agree, too. If you can spare a moment, please take a look, and consider
signing yourself.

Best wishes,

Curtis

Harry Potter madness

Sat, 21 Jul 2007 17:42:22 GMT

Last night at around 8pm we went to the Harry Potter launch at one of the large stores in London... where the mad fans had been waiting for days in their robes and pointy hats... some of the teenagers look so authentic, as if they'd bought their robes from Diagon Alley itself. And the line was at least seven blocks long. We came back at 11.30pm after the movie finished to see the doors open... people were screaming and taking photos and news crews were there. At the stroke of midnight the door opened and a man dressed as Dumbledore walked out and waved his hands in front of the cameras. The lines began slowly moving and we left. We wandered through the city looking for a tube that was open and we passed four or five other bookshops with people crowded outside to get a copy.

In our travels today we bought a copy for £10 at Tesco.

We also went to the Tate Modern which had a cool exhibition on cities, density, urban planning etc. and the Natural History Museum which had skeletons and many taxidermied animals. Tomorrow we are going to the Globe Theatre to see Love's Labours Lost - the tickets were only £5! (albeit in the groundling section... yes we will be standing for two hours and forty minutes).

Sun, 15 Jul 2007 21:15:03 GMT

Today we climbed up to the dome of Sacre Coeur.
We sunbaked in the Jardins de Luxembourg and took photos of sculptures.
We got more felafel from the shop in the Marais (third visit).

A perfect day really.

PS. I failed Stats but got an HD for Social Sciences. Whoo!

Bastille Day

Sat, 14 Jul 2007 12:46:53 GMT

Well we couldn't find the Gay Ball, either our directions weren't good enough or the French gays and lesbians were too lazy to organise anything. So we walked down to the Bastille at midnight only to find the party already over and hundreds of drunk off their faces French staggered and hollering around the place. It was, in a word, disappointing. We did however find some awesome icecream which tasted like it was made from real ingredients (we got vanilla, bananna and pistachio) which made up for it. So we went home to sleep so we could at least wake up early for the parade today.

We got up and went to the Champs Elyseé, and stood on the fence of the Champs Elyseé Gucci store to try and see the parade. We decided to move along and walk up the route - we saw the French soldiers walking around, we saw tanks and horses, we saw President Sarkozy, we saw jets fly over the Arc de Triomphe and release tricoleur smoke. We saw lots of hot soldiers in their uniforms and David took lots of photos of them. Then retiring to the warm afternoon glow of the computer screen in the netcafe across the road. All in all a pleasant day.

Vendredi

Fri, 13 Jul 2007 19:34:55 GMT

So today we got falafel for lunch again because they are awesome, and fill you up for the whole day. We got up at &é again which meant that breakfast was lunch. It was the first sunny day in a week so David taught me to say "Il fait soleil!"

We went and strolled through the Jardin des Plantes with ice blocks... there was a zoo there but you had to pay to enter. Then we went to the Jeu de Paume where there had an exhibition of Pierre et Gilles, which was fantastic. Lots of pretty naked boys on offer.

Then we came home to rest because tonight we are going to a huge open air Gay Ball in celebration of Bastille Day... which means we're probably going to be out until the Metro starts running again. Or if we can suffer to walk across Paris in the middle of the night maybe...

Sleep

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 21:39:18 GMT

Today we slept in until midday.

Looks like I have succeeded in infecting David with my laziness again.

We also got awesome falafel for lunch and saw Harry Potter et l'Ordre du Phénix... the film started and there was no audio, which caused an uproar from the enourmous French cinema audience. Good times. Also everyone applauded when Harry kissed Cho.

Modern art and all that

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 18:54:15 GMT

Today after a grande sleep in David and I emerged from our hotel room and headed to the Centre Pompidou (modern art). It was all right... we wandered through some galleries of recent artworks - disembowled stuffed toys strung up from the ceiling and the like (a father explained to his young daughter "They're just asleep").

So it was all fine and dandy until we walked into a room to see a bicycle wheel sitting on a stool... it took me a moment to realise "OMG it's Duchamp!" On the walls were Man Ray, in the next rooms were Dali, and then on to Mondrian, Matisse, Picasso, Kandinsky... it was très exciting to see all this art that existed previously in textbooks in real life.

Also, the view at the top of the building was really cool... you could see Notre Dame, Eiffel Tower, Sacre Coeur... and a sea of beige and white buildings. We also could see this church we randomly visited yesterday called St. Eustache... apparently it was once the parish of St. Vincent de Paul.

Meanwhile I have this weird feeling in my legs and a sore back... David's father's diagnosis is sciatica... :S

Anyway tonight we're going to try and find a vegetarian restaurant in Paris. Ha!

Frqnce1

Tue, 10 Jul 2007 20:14:22 GMT

I am in Paris! It is good!

Last night we went to an Irish bar next to the Moulin Rouge!

Tonight we went to the movies and watched Shrek le Troiseme!

French keyboards are annoying though.

Life in Caen

Sun, 08 Jul 2007 09:46:26 GMT

Well I am in Caen, sitting in the downstairs kitchen in Batiment I - the only place in the building that gets reception.

The last few days in Paris were fun, we went and watched Pirates des Caraïbes 3 (which didn't seem to translate too well into French... everything in the vein of 'Blimey!' and 'Crikey!' just turned out as 'Sacrebleu!') ... after that we then went in search of a vegetarian restuarant... but when we got there they had only about 5 tables in the whole restuarant and were about to close, so we wandered around the gay Marais district and found a restaurant with bright pink and tacky glitter decor, Barbie dolls tied to the lights, snooty hot gay bartenders and friendly lesbian waitresses. It felt uncannily like eating on Oxford St. it was surreal. We manged to get bruschetta and risotto for dinner - hurrah for real food!

Friday morning we came to Caen, which was somewhat of a trial with the ticket sellers on strike and none of the machines taking our card. David got so wound up after an old French lady pushed through to the front of the line that he demanded to speak to the union representative to voice his frustration... I, meanwhile, went and hid with some pastry and coffee.

On Friday night we went to dinner with some of the teachers from David's school - there was no common language between all the guests so the evening's conversation was conducted in French, English and Italian. I find it fairly easy to understand the gist of what people are talking about - I just can't participate myself. Anyway this English teacher friend of David's, Carol, lived out in the Norman countryside in a cottage with her husband, two crazy French children, a dog, a cat and a rabbit. It was unbelievably green and alive and picturesque.

Yesterday we went to lunch in an Italian resaturant and later to the beach with some of the Texans who are studying here for a short while. The beach was nice, we didn't swim, just sunbaked and lay on the sand until evening - the sun doesn't set until 10pm! Then we came back and watched a DVD: 40 Ans, Toujours Puceau (in English with French subtitles). C'est tres drole! Watching English movies with French subtitles is expanding my French vocubulary daily.

Today we are off to a picnic at another beach with David's Korean friends. My suntan is also improving. Hurrah!

France

Wed, 04 Jul 2007 17:24:33 GMT

Well, I am in Paris.

I have 5 minutes left on the computer so I will be brief.

The flight was pretty uncomfortable, but I watched The Queen, Arrested Development, Extras and Family Guy.

Finally arriving was fantastique, David waiting at the airport with roses, public displays of affection and then taxi ride into the city.

Day one spent in bed, napping and other activities, went to the Bastille, walked around, dinner with David's famaily, fun time.

Day two was the Louvre (so many Americans!), walking around a lot and tiredness.

The hotel is small but nice.

I am living off bread and cheese and it is delicious.

I am picking up many phrases already.

Time is up!

Tue, 22 May 2007 13:08:39 GMT

Haiku² for mangelbojangel
do i even have my passport yet feeling a bit sleepy i think
@

Created by Grahame

And now for some flagrant self-promotion

Thu, 17 May 2007 00:35:56 GMT

The Quartet from Rigoletto by Nick Enright
Directed by Andrew Dowling and Pierce Wilcox
Starring Carmen Culina, Curtis Dickson, Lauren Hendry-Parsons, Naveen Krishnasamy, Brydie Lee-Kennedy, Dom Mercer, Andrew Notman, Lily Schreider and Ash Vlahos.

A light romantic comedy from the author of Blackrock and Daylight Saving.

"Here at Rigoletto, we are devoted to the proposition that the greatest talent in life is the ability to make the perfect short black."

Rigoletto, its staff of four and some of its clientele, a multi-cultural, multi-purpose, multi-neurotic bunch, are united in their need for company. And caffeine.

Performing, Weeks 10 and 11, 8pm

Wednesday May 16th ~ Thursday May 17th
Friday May 18th ~ Saturday May 19th

Wednesday May 23rd ~ Thursday May 24th
Friday May 25th ~ Saturday May 26th

Cellar Theatre, Science Rd
Underneath the Holme Building
The University of Sydney

$2/$3/$4/$5

Come see it everyone! We had opening last night and it didn't turn out too bad!

Adventures of David in Paris

Mon, 07 May 2007 13:36:43 GMT

This morning was perhaps the greatest wake-up call I've ever had...

I woke at about 8:30 to the cacophony of my blaring alarm and my grating ring tone. The number was 'Withheld', which nowadays generally means David is calling from France. I answered while my panicked brain regained consciousness.

"..Hello?"
"Curtis! I just got tear-gassed at the Bastille!"
"What!?" It took a few seconds for me to register the glee in his voice.
"I got tear-gassed at the Bastille! Quick, call me back!"
*click*
...

Yes, David was at the anti-Sarkozy riots in Paris, loving every minute of it.

Tue, 01 May 2007 15:03:03 GMT

Shit.

Only two months until I go to France.

This is probably time to commence a period of total frugality.

And maybe get a passport.

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 11:02:23 GMT

Damn it! My 1G card in my camera has decided to stop functioning! How the hell am I meant to fix it?

Word count

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 17:16:47 GMT

Introduction to Sociology: 822/1,500 words

That's more than halfway!

I might just get it finished in time! (And by 'in time' I mean by 3pm today so that I only get a 6% penalty for being late.)

And then I begin Exploring the Social Sciences' 2,000 words, probably on knowledge being split up into various disciplines in universities.

I'm thinking about auditioning for a SUDS play... gosh, do I even have time?!

I don't know if I've already written this here, but I've come to the sad realisation that I'm probably going to fail Statistics.

73 days until I head off to Europe... won't it be grand for colonial me to return to where it all began? The dream of modernism! Then I'll try to convince Dickie Greenleaf to come home and then I'll kill him and steal his identity.

Yikes! I don't even have my passport yet...

Feeling a bit sleepy... I think that means there's a can of Mother in the fridge with my name on it!

General Craptastical Methods 1

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:20:33 GMT

I read this:

"average = Σ (value) x (Rel.freq.) =

Variance = Σ (value - ave)² x Rel.freq. =

= Σ (value)² x (Rel.freq) - (average)²

SD = √Variance"

And it means SHIT ALL to me.

I'm an arts student, I mean WHAT THE FUCK?

Word counts

Sat, 14 Apr 2007 10:11:24 GMT

Current essay word counts:
Fiction Film & Power: 1,038 words
Introduction to Sociology: 14 words.
Total needed: 1,500 words each.
Date due: Monday 16/4

So I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that Sociology must be handed in late. It's only 2% penalty per day, so I figure it's better to write something decent and get a bit of the mark sliced off than write a whole lot of shite. The only question is: how late can it be before becoming ridiculous? Five days? More? Also mustn't forget I've 2,000 Social Sciences words due on the 27th.

I'm annoyed, because this could have been avoided if I'd had time to see the doctor at all in the last three weeks I've been sick.

All of this has prompted me even further to consider resigning at the nursing home. The hours are really getting in the way of trying to do any meaningful study, and the pay in aged care is really not worth bothering myself over (I get $14.60 an hour). I know holiday leave and sick leave are cool, but I'm probably better off just living off Centrelink until I can find something else. I'm still trying to save more for France, but I will get all my holidays paid out if I resign. Also, the home is closing and moving to Bass Hill next year, so I would be out of a job anyway when that happens.

If I quit what job should I do?

Failure

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:29:38 GMT

So far my essay writing is consisting of me writing the first couple of lines of a paragraph then "WRITE MORE ON THIS" and moving on to my next point. This is just the English essay, which is basically making stuff up... I haven't even started my Sociology essay which actually requires things such as research.

I feel like I'm failing at life at the moment. Six days in Queensland was enough to screw me up and forget what I'm meant to be doing.

I think I want to quit my job at the nursing home as well. Can I hold out another 11 weeks until France time? Because I need another $1000 before I go.

If David was here he'd be making sure I did my assignments... Waa!

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 17:49:44 GMT

So I am going to Brisbane for my uncle wedding in an hour... I am spending the day driving with my parents. The wedding is on Good Friday. On a boat.

I stayed up late writing stuff for an online tutorial, and seeing as I hadn't packed any bags I figured I may as well stay awake until 5am when we're leaving, and then sleep for a long time in the car.

So I won't be around until Tuesday night, when we return. And I get to write three essays while we're gone... Fun times!

Meanwhile, I love David Barrow! Only 87 days to go!! :D

My Humps - Alanis Morissette

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 09:42:13 GMT

This is excellent!

I'm not bad... I'm just drawn that way.

Wed, 21 Mar 2007 11:28:31 GMT

So today I became the self-titled Rev. Dr. Curtis Dickson as I lead the Bible study at UTS on The Call to Discipleship. Admittedly I was regurgitating a lot from the Bible study earlier today at USyd (during which I had luckily taken notes) but it was all done on the wing without any preparation, so I think I did pretty awesomely! Picked up a few homiletical tips from John also.

Uni so far is pretty fantastic. I'm enjoying most of my subjects (Statistics is death). Fiction, Film & Power is pretty good, but I think some of the people in my class don't get it. Statistics is so boring, but I know the less attention I pay to it my marks will get exponentially worse. Bleh. I haven't really befriended many people from my courses yet, but I can't walk through uni without running into at least 3 people I know. So I probably don't have much room for more friends. (Although I haven't seen any Central Coast bogans yet!)

It's currently just under 15 weeks until I leave Sydney to visit David... I can't wait for it, but time seems to be flying past pretty quickly. I think I only need about $1000 to be sweet, so I'm still hanging around work at the nursing home, even though I feel as though I'm wasting my time there. I could probably find a job that would pay better, maybe have better hours and even smell less! I am attached to some of the residents and staff though. Maybe France can be my way out? I'm still waiting to see how my Youth Allowance application has gone. I don't think I gave them all the documentation they require. Oh well.

I was trawling through the MySpace profiles of Sydney drag queens and found this pretty cool gem on Vanity Faire's MySpace, of her last performance:

Yes, that's right. It's drag Jessica Rabbit!
I think that's pretty darn nifty.