By an Australian, for Australians, in search of our culture...

I forgot how much I loved this album. Dave Warners- From the Suburbs

I love what the lyrics in this song say about Australia and Australians. That is, Australia and Australians as I remember us. None of this flag waving, chest thumping nationalism bullshit that you see nowadays. It's almost un-Australian to fly the Australian flag inside the country, outside of ceremonies etc. I have no problems proclaiming my Australianism overseas, but here, it seems unnecessary.

I think that's what the organisers of the Big Day Out were getting at.



CONVICT STREAK

Maybe it's because of our Convict Streak
We wanna fight everyone we meet
Anzac Day is our day of the year
We march our march, we drink our beer

We don't like Slopes, we don't like Yanks
I'd personally like to blow up
every Commie tank
We're only few but we fought in 'Nam
Packed our guns alongside Uncle Sam
Ask any of us, it were no sin
The only crime was that we didn't win

(chorus)
And ... The Poms are weak as piss
The French are queer
The Germans are wankers,
but they make good beer
Don't criticise what you don't understand
If you think I'm talking shit
you don't belong in this land

I'm Australian, we all are
We watch the telly and we drive our car
But don't you ever SAY WE'RE WEAK
Or you'll learn all about our Convict Streak

The world began with Adam and Eve
But Australia started at Gallipolli
Our fathers put the Desert into Desert Rats
Their uncles slipped the boot in,
up in Lambing Flats

Don't criticise what you don't understand
It's not that we're behind the times,
we're in a different land
We might be slobs but WE'RE NOT WEAK
Maybe it's because of our Convict Streak

(chorus)

I'm Australian, so are you
It doesn't matter if you're Ding or Jew
Just remember, while you're here
You march our march and you drink our beer

Lyrics Dave Warner

Old School Valentines Day

I found this picture by accident and thought it appropriate for Valentine's Day. It really is beautiful. You can read the story of their discovery here or by clicking on the picture

The Happy Planet

I thought this was interesting.I also thought it must be wrong until I read the way it is calculated. It's basically :

(Life Expectancy * Life Satisfaction)

_______________________

Ecological footprint

We do have a pretty big impact on the environment, but I still can't work out if the index is how happy we are on the planet or how happy the planet is with us. Maybe a combination of both. Still....90 places below Palestine??

Should have picked that

I don't know why, but i keep running in to these "You are the...." tests recently.

Here's the latest

You are The Fool

The Fool is the card of infinite possibilities. The bag on the staff indicates that he has all he need to do or be anything he wants, he has only to stop and unpack. He is on his way to a brand new beginning. But the card carries a little bark of warning as well. Stop daydreaming and fantasising and watch your step, lest you fall and end up looking the fool.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Crash and Burn

OOOOH! Found more scribblings

I see the train coming,
And I put my foot to the floor
I can feel my brain humming
But my body doesn’t know the score

The voice in my head and the fire in my heart
Scream at me to let them out
Grip the wheel tighter, push the pedal harder
Close my eyes and shout

Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn

The voice in my head puts a gun in my hand
Saying give the barrel a spin
You’ve just gotta jump and not care where you land
You can only lose if you win

Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
(I'm gonna) Crash and Burn

Draft 1

It's more than the parts that make the whole
Sometimes questions outweigh the answers
It's not always easy to discover your role
Amongst the myriad of dancers

When you think you're fighting a losing cause,
Or someone, to you, is lost
You cast about and clutch at straws
No matter what the cost

Be who you are, be what you are
Do all that you can do,
Anyone can be a star,
Only you can be you

With an open heart and open mind
Let song burst from your soul
Do not fear for the things you’ll find
Just let yourself be whole

Though many join us on this path
At the end we’ll be alone
Then say, looking at the aftermath
That life, it was my own.

I partially scribble song lyrics some times, and then lose them, so i thought this is as good a place as any to keep them. Who knows, i may actually get around to polishing and putting a tune to one. One day.

Pigs on the Wing

I may never have seen Pink Floyd as a band, but after a nearly 19 year wait I can now say I have seen them all live.

The first half (or should that be three quarters) was as a callow 23-year old in February of 1988 at East Fremantle Oval. Extremely drunk and drugged up I saw the group in what was their first post Roger Waters world tour. I loved it but couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that he wasn't there. Fast forward to last Friday night when, fuelled by two mid-strength beers, I rounded out the quartet when I saw Roger Waters at Members Equity Stadium in Perth. And it was awesome, in the true definition of the word. The first part of the concert (which was my favourite part) was made up of songs from "The Wall", "Wish You Were Here", the (IMHO) under-rated "The Final Cut", "Amused To Death", "Animals" and the excellent "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" from "Saucerful of Secrets". Some reviews I had read leading up to the show criticized the strength of Rogers vocals, but we must have got him on a good day, because he just blew me away. The set finished with "Sheep" from "Animals" complete with inflatable pig. And yes (thank you bella) I was one of the sheep staring and taking poxy phone camera photos of it (see above).

After a 20 minute break (during which the full moon projected onto the screen behind the stage grew steadily larger) the band launched into the concert's title piece "Dark Side of the Moon". It was an excellent rendition. My only disappointment (again) was that it was not Pink Floyd the entity. Snowy White and Dave Kilmeister were superb on guitar, but couldn't quite carry off Dave Gilmour's vocal parts, which to me are a highlight of the album. Other than that I could have been sitting at home (in a really uncomfortable platic chair in the backyard crushed up againslt my mate Norm) listening to the album. Even P.P. Arnold's vocal on "The Great Gig in the Sky" was almost indistinguishable from the original.

After a rousing standing ovation, Waters then returned to introduce the band (interestingly, keyboard player Jon Carin toured in 1988 with Pink Floyd) and finish off with a collection of songs from "The Wall".

Members Equity Stadium may not have been the most comfortable place to see a concert and I'm never keen to sit through live music (no-one stood until the encore) but I'd gladly cough up $250 to do it all again.

Lazy, I know, but fun

It definitely sounds like me

You're The Poisonwood Bible!

by Barbara Kingsolver

Deeply rooted in a religious background, you have since become both
isolated and schizophrenic. You were naively sure that your actions would help people,
but of course they were resistant to your message and ultimately disaster ensued. Since
you can see so many sides of the same issue, you are both wise beyond your years and
tied to worthless perspectives. If you were a type of waffle, it would be
Belgian.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.