so much water so close to home

I reluctantly trimmed my beard and I think I did an okay job! Before

I just watched a fascinating short (52 minute) documentary on iView called Contact:

“In 1964 a film crew captured footage of the last remnant Aboriginal mob still living traditionally, without any contact with or knowledge of modern Australia or white men”

Basically it’s about a clan of Martu people in the Western Desert cultural region of WA being “brought in” from their country to make way for the Blue Streak missile tests which were designed to dump there. It’s amazing to see the footage, and to hear first hand what the women thought white men were. Well made documentary, worth watching!

Somehow I have found myself listening to ’00s Craig David, looking at photos of him from the time and coming to the realisation that 8-year old Jon’s obsession was more like a massive ~*cRuSh*~

Cupar Way peace wall, Belfast by Melanie L. On Google street view.

“The peace walls are a series of barriers in Northern Ireland that separate Catholic and Protestant neighbourhoods. They have been built at urban interface areas in Belfast, Derry, Portadown and elsewhere. The stated purpose of the Peace lines is to minimise inter-communal violence between Catholics (most of whom are Irish nationalists who self-identify as Irish) and Protestants (most of whom are unionists who self-identify as British).The Peace lines range in length from a few hundred yards to over three miles (5 km). Some have gates in them (sometimes staffed by police) that allow passage during daylight but are closed at night”

I had no idea these walls existed, let alone still existed in 2013. The ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland is something which I really struggle to understand, but am completely fascinated by. Read Wikipedia articles on The Troubles and Segregation in Northern Ireland. See also these two articles responding to a government plan to remove all barriers over the next 10 years.

I found this note scribbled on a folded up piece of paper wedged between two seats on a bus a few weeks ago:

“No affence, your will get an average to your multimedia assiment”

So jealous of the person who gets to live in this house. Does anyone have a spare $5 million?

Vic Taurewa Biddle by David K. Shields for Dazed & Confused Magazine

Biddle was an original presenter (along with Tania Simon and transgender singer Ramon Te Wake) on New Zealand’s 2004 series Takatāpui - the world’s first indigenous gay, lesbian and transgender television series. Read more about the meaning behind the word Takatāpui here.
“I get people who are really ugly, and say ‘You can’t be a homo and have a moko on your face’. But who cares about them, you know? They’re just idiots” - (short interview on Youtube)

The Launceston Synagogue is a heritage-listed building located in St. John’s Street, Launceston, Tasmania.
Built in 1846, it is Australia’s second-oldest synagogue and is a rare example of Egyptian revival architecture in Australia. The building features a distinctly trapezoidal facade and main window bearing the Star of David with a single balcony on the inside accessed via the rear of the building. The synagogue closed as a house of worship in 1871 (re-opening again in the 1930s for a period), and today the building is in the care of the National Trust of Australia.

Google Street View

Holy moly I just found a photo of me from June last year. I miss the feeling of sandpapery rough stubble. Making me so tempted to trim my beard much shorter……..