I Feel Love

Just a quickie–I have to get to bed so unlike every other Australian blogger I won’t be giving you my thoughts on l’affaire Philippoussis–but I have some BIG NEWS–I’ve going to give categories the flick! Told you it was big! I’ve been using the category function on TypePad ever since I moved here, under the assumption that there were people who would find it useful to read my musings on, say, film, while not having to be subjected to, for example, my critiques of the current Young People’s music scene. But are there such people? My hunch is no. And if there are, well frankly what’s their problem, why can’t they just read whatever I bloody well feel like writing, or go elsewhere if they don’t like it, hmm?

So this is your chance to object if you really do feel the need to have every post meticulously categorised. Be honest, though, before you read this post you’d never even noticed that there were categories, had you?

Off to Sydney tomorrow, so if past experience is anything to go by the blogging might be roused from its post-election, Idol-is-all-I-can-bear-to-write-about-(and-even-that-has-its-own-agonies) slumber. Speaking of slumbers, though, whither Fop? Nothing since 15/9!

Topics I’ve thought about blogging about: Visconti’s Death in Venice which I’ve just seen and didn’t much like (I watched it over several days on DVD; my refrain every time my flatmate came back into the room and looked quizzically at the screen was “still in Venice, still not dead”); how liberating it is to realise once and for all that you’re never going to be as interested as certain friends in some things (eg WINE! SO boring! I mean I’ll drink it obviously, preferably champagne, but don’t make me talk about it or even worse THINK about it); the low standard of scriptwriting on “quality” Australian TV drama compared with the high standard of scriptwriting on “trashy” Australian TV drama (my point of comparison was going to be The Cooks vs Neighbours, but I couldn’t, er, stomach the idea of actually watching the premiere episode of the former); the excellent crop of young Australian bloggers and how they should mount a coup at Fairfax and make our broadsheets readable again; and yes, it’s another new messageboard but this one’s run by “people like us”! (still feel a bit shy about posting here, I think they need an “idle chatter” category)

So we had an election in Australia today. Some notes:

• I care about this stuff, really I do, but recently I’ve been having temporary bouts of TOTAL AMNESIA about the election. When Tim Finney commented in t’other place that Daniel’s eviction gave him “hope for this Saturday”, I was completely on the level when I replied “what’s happening on Saturday Tim?” And then this morning, I woke up, chatted with my flatmate about the election, said “don’t forget to vote!” when she walked out the door, and then…well, I did my washing, washed the dishes, and at about 3.30 pm I was idly web-surfing to see if there was a film I could find that I wanted to see (there wasn’t; why is every second movie at the moment a bloody documentary? It’s beginning to piss me off!), meanwhile I was checking out some blogs and happened to click on Symposiasts who of course were all over this election thing, which I swear I had completely forgotten! “Oh, yeah, THAT!” I thought, and made my way to the Errol St Primary School booth forthwith. So if it hadn’t been for Elanor and Guy I might not have voted! (Note to foreigners: voting is compulsory in Aus. so as well as not exercising my right to participate in the democratic process I would have been fined!) I’m convinced this amnesia is stress-related, it’s that whole post-Sept. 11 head-in-the-sand thing I’ve been doing for the past 3 years. Pathetic really, I’ve become a serial avoider of potential trauma. I’ll even avoid going to football matches, not because I don’t care but because I care too much!

• Having thus dodged a bullet I arrived at the booth to run the regular how-to-vote gauntlet. I actually enjoy everything from now on, I should say! First to approach me were ALP people including teenagers (which is always great to see), so I took one of theirs, then someone from the Greens who I vaguely recognised said “Greens…for the Senate?” which I thought was a bit defeatist (Melbourne is supposed to be their big chance after all) but I took his card and he said “thanks a lot, mate!” A very pleasant chap, it wasn’t until later that I realised who he was: the Greens candidate who almost defeated Bronwyn Pike at the state election! I wondered why they hadn’t given him another go this time round. Then I walked straight past the Democrats and Family First (always fun, one gets so few chances to snub without retribution) and was about to do the same to the Liberals when I realised that the people handing out their cards were my downstairs neighbours! Who incidentally are friends and very lovely people. So that was a bit embarrassing but we had a chat and they did have the tact not to try to give me a how-to-vote card.
• On how-to-vote cards: one of Pauline Hanson’s few moments of wisdom was when she said that parties that print how-to-vote cards should be required to print a statement on them to the effect that they’re only suggestions, and that voters can if they wish vote for their preferred candidate and then make up their own mind how to order their preferences. Of course it was Pauline’s suggestion so no-one took it seriously, but still, good idea I reckon. (Note to foreigners: this palaver is because in Australia we have preferential voting.)
• I joined the queue which was quite long, and some nice AEC lady approached me and gave me a little slip of paper, telling me to give it back to her when I’d reached the front of the queue, as they were measuring how much time people had to wait (to what end, I’m not sure). Good idea, but unfortunately the time she had written on the piece of paper was several minutes earlier, so presumably the eventual calculation was not as accurate as it could have been.
• Got inside, got my ballot papers (NB the guy forgot to ask me whether I’d voted previously today! Shocking!), then got to the booth to find…GRAFFITI! Now, the polling booths are made of cardboard and they give you a little pencil, so there’s ample opportunity to be creative, but I’ve never actually seen anyone take advantage of this before. Better still, I found an entire conversation, it went something like this:
  -Remember the lies.
  -Oh, be quiet. At least there’s a sausage sizzle!
  -Yeah, but the snags taste crap.
  -Remember high interest rates!
  -Remember truth and accountability!
  -REMEMBER YOU ALL SUX.
  Admittedly that last contribution represented something of a downturn in eloquence; still, democracy in action eh?

• So I know you’re all dying to know who I voted for after my recent bout of Very Public Soul-Searching…well, I did vote ALP, although in the House of Reps I changed the prefs. to put the Greens 2nd and Family First last. In the Senate I confess I voted above the line, because (1) it really doesn’t make any difference except in your conscience, and I’m comfortable with a slightly soiled conscience; and (2) I suspect the scrutineers in this booth probably already have to deal with more than their fair share of smart-arses who fill in the entire Senate ballot paper. How they must groan when they open one!
• The fucking Liberals are going to win again aren’t they? It’s that cunting interest rates commercial, what an evil little work of genius that is! “If Gough Whitlam was still in power today Australia would be Bangladesh!” or whatever it is; obviously complete bollocks but how do you counter it? Saying “Bernie Fraser sez you’re talking out of your arses” doesn’t really do the trick, no matter how much of a cult figure Bernie Fraser is.
• NOTHING in the world would make be happier then being proved wrong. NOTHING. I was wrong about Daniel Belle after all…

[Update: I was right.

FUCK IT!!!!

Three more years? Can it be?]

I’ve always been rather disdainful of the friend who gave up eating fish after seeing Finding Nemo. But now I’ve finally seen it myself and I retract my disdain entirely. It’s one of the best movies I’ve ever seen! Fish are friends, not food!

I know what you’re all wondering, but no, I wasn’t approached.