The Choir of Hard Knocks, made up entirely of homeless or disadvantaged people, played the Town Hall last night. But on Friday night they were singing in the Campbell Arcade (Degraves Street Subway), evidently opening an exhibit down there of portraits of the choir members. You could barely see or hear them amongst the big ... [More]
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Is the week over yet?
What a week. I already mentioned a colleague’s mother-in-law and an ex-colleague of mine passing away last weekend. I went to the latter funeral today. The family are understandably very upset at his unexpected death at 63. They had a nice booklet with a eulogy that talked in detail about his life. Nice touch. Just ... [More]
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How to get rich (maybe)
Most days I take my own lunch into work. But if I’ve forgotten or not had time, and I’m not going out to lunch with anybody else, I’ll buy something. Sometimes it’ll be a burger. But most of the other times, I’ll go to a place in the Australia On Collins foodcourt which makes rather ... [More]
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Note to self
My car is dark grey. A recent study found that dark-coloured cars are more prone to accidents. In the rain, like this morning, I drive with my lights on, for visibility. It’s like my friend Merlin, who rides a motorcycle. Where he lives in Canberra, you apparently don’t have to ride with your motorcycle headlight ... [More]
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What did you do today, daddy?
It’s Priscilla, Queen of Collins Street Pictured on Monday, workmen putting a giant shoe on top of a bus in Collins Street, for the launch of the Priscilla musical.
A shooting yesterday morning in the city (a few blocks from where I work) left one dead and two injured. Quite an unusual event, which had police and media swarming over the area. A Channel 10 cameraman I spoke to said it was pandemonium in their newsroom. (But no, despite what you might have read, ... [More]
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Jack’s back
The Doctor Who spinoff series Torchwood starts tonight on Channel 10. I’ve seen a few episodes — at first it seems to revel in its adult timeslot, with (arguably gratuitous) use of sex, swearing and violence. Then it settles down a bit and starts telling some good stories, though none seem as deep or well ... [More]
A few pictures from Friday. Bentleigh station, 9am. Collins Place, 9:30am — The fog had lifted a bit in the city, but it was still evident a few hundred metres up. Swanston Street, 1:30pm — By lunchtime it was quite hazy. Swanston Street, entrance to Chinatown, 7pm — In the evening it got cold and ... [More]
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Poor craftsmanship
Wanted fugitive Tony Mokbel got busted in Greece last week. Did you see his fake driver’s licence in the newspaper? Take a look. A licence supposedly for NSW has a VicRoads logo on it. That’s sloppy, that’s what it is. How and why would you fake an ID that was so obviously flawed, such that ... [More]
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C-c-c-cold
Last night was the coldest of the year so far, and I certainly felt it. The BOM weather monitoring station closest to me would be Moorabbin, and apparently it got down to 0.0 at 3:35am. Not as cold as Scoresby though, -1.3 at 7:32am. Certainly it was the first time this year I’ve found ice ... [More]
In my years of blogging, I have so far managed to avoid mentioning Paris Hilton. Because up until now, I’d considered her to be nothing more than a waste of oxygen and newsprint. Seriously, I’d hoped that her incarceration would mean she’d be out of the news for a few weeks. I should have known ... [More]
From the 1st of July, pubs and clubs will be smoke-free. No more stinky hair after a night out. No more washing all your clothes the next day. So! Who’s for a drink? Let’s hit the pubs! (In preparation, the local RSL built a smoking area, which looks like an outdoor courtyard, but is almost ... [More]
Shrek the Third — was okay I suppose, a few amusing moments, but nothing outstanding. The first Shrek is still the best one… egads they have a Shrek 4 planned — I hope it’s better than the Third, though I bet they’re all successful. I suppose worth watching if someone else is paying, but fails ... [More]
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Someone else’s bin
Next in the suburban moral dilemmas: I’m walking down the street, and I have some litter to get rid of, say a food packet or something else that’s small. Is it okay to put it in someone’s rubbish bin? I reckon it barely makes a difference to their bin load, and it’s better off in ... [More]
Should I feel guilty for buying my kids secondhand school clothes? They’re in very good condition — no doubt donated by kids who have legitimately had no use for them anymore because they’ve grown or left the school. $2 per item, about 90% cheaper than buying new. Reduce, re-use, recycle, right? So I’m covering 2 ... [More]
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The 17:09 from Swan Hill
The 17:09 from Swan Hill didn’t arrive tonight. I was upset to read about the Kerang train crash. For all my bitching, I love travelling by train. When it works, it’s clean, cheap, quick, comfortable. And safe — rail travel has a deserved reputation for being one of the safest ways of getting around: about ... [More]