I'd like to thank Squib again for all her Chrissy-gift ideas. So, um, thank you, Squib. They were excellent.
In related news, the niece who cracked a shit last Christmas because she got a nice Android tablet instead of an iPad ... got an iPad. Not from me, obviously. I dunno how I feel about this, but everyone else seemed happy about it, so I guess I should be happy too. I guess.
In a shock twist of events, I got a Chrissy present for the first time in a long time this year (apart from the hand-drawn cards I normally get from the kiddies). The whole family chipped in and bought me a milkshake-maker-thingy and a sack of body-builder's weight-gain formula stuff. Why? Because, "Ya still lookin' bloody anorexic, girl". They may not be a subtle or tactful bunch, but at least they care, 'ey?
Spent most of my time at my brother's place, with a semi-rotating accompaniment of other brothers, their families, our parents, in-laws, and cousins from W.A. At times, mattresses had to be brought in to cover sleeping arrangements. Also, at some point, my sister-in-law came to the devious conclusion that having a house full of free labour with nothing else to do presented a perfect opportunity to get some home-renos done. So, in the end, my "holiday" season didn't have as much festive cheer in the air as it did sawdust and paint-fumes.
It wasn't as bad as it probably sounds though. In truth, it probably bought us together more than anything. We measured, sawed, hammered, screwed, and painted, while we sipped luke-warm tea and listened to classic-hits from the 60s to the 90s and chatted about how hot it was, whether or not it'd rain, what different rellies had been up to, the cricket, the state of the world, the state of the country, how much of a cunt Tony Abbott is, the education system, how much of a cunt Campbell Newman is, the cost of living, how much of a cunt Colin Barnett is ...
For the most part, the other women-folk stayed away. Instead they cooked, washed, brewed tea, and made sure the kids didn't spend all their time glued to screens. In some ways, I guess it surprises me a little bit, that even in this day and age, it's so easy and natural for people to just fall into their "appropriate" gender roles. I suppose there's an aspect to it where blokes would rather chat with blokes and sheilas would rather chat with sheilas, which adds resistance to mixing. And I suppose I probably woulda followed suit too, if all the brothers weren't teachers, and I didn't happen to be the most experienced with that sort of work. I dunno; I should be well and truly used to that sorta stuff, but this time it just got me thinkin' for some reason, y'know. Maybe all of a sudden I'm worried about the queues we're giving the youngsters on how adults are supposed to behave, or something. ... Not that ANY of them (boys or girls) seem that interested in developing practical skills anyway. They can ALL play the fuck out of Minecraft, though. So, hooray for next-gen gender equality, 'ey?
***
Speaking of kids and gender roles, the kids' room at my brother's place ran an endless loop of "How To Train Your Dragon" parts 1, 2, and the animated series, during the whole time I was there. Despite being a fairly mixed bag, the kids absolutely adored it. I sat down and watched little bits here and there. It didn't look terrible, but it was a bit disheartening to see that the show only seemed to have two girls in it: one being one half of a backgrounded comedy-relief pairing -- with a twin brother who seemingly got all the good lines; and the other being the hero's girlfriend. ... Boooo. I retract my earlier celebrations.
Watched a lot of cricket. My brothers, who are keen punters, even got me into trying to predict outcomes. But having recorded and analysed said predictions in a cold and objective fashion, I've concluded that it's a mugs' game, and I'd do just as well flipping a fucking coin. So would they.
Also caught part of an episode of "That '70s Show", which is on the ABC now for some reason. Looked crap, but it was interesting to see a young, red-haired Alex from "Orange Is The New Black".
And speaking of OITNB, that brings us to the big catch of the week; which is what we watched on SBS two night ago ...
***PRISON SONGS***
Dunno if you'd call this a documentary, as it's not particularly informative or educational, but it's still the best piece of Aussie film-making I've seen in a while. Basically, it's a musical that tells the stories of a handful of inmates in a Darwin correctional facility. It sounds weird trying to describe it, but it's very cleverly written, beautifully shot, and slickly edited. The second segment, where "Uncle Shivsy" tells us about how good prison life is compared to being outside in a sea of crime and drugs, and then gives a holiday-resort style promotional spiel to music, while female inmates dance and sing backup -- it gave me shivers. Do yourself a favour and check it out while it's still up.
http://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/video/375788611866/prison-songs
2 comments :
I hate that gender segregation thing. I get sucked into it all the time. Menfolk conversations are usually more interesting (apart from sport), and more down my alley but no, I end up talking about husbands, children, and er shopping.
Unless it's a writerly social event. Women writers are great to talk to and you don't get that segregation thing anyway
Conversation segregation can be hard to avoid Squib; especially when the two groups drift off to different physical locations. I have to agree that menfolk conversations tend to be a bit more interesting a lot of the time, which is a bit sad really, isn't it? Of course, in my family, education tends to feature pretty strongly in both camps.
I think I know what you mean about women writers. The ones that I hang out with on the internet always have interesting things to say.
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