Holiday & 'Sin', but not at the same time

 Has anybody been watching It's a Sin on Stan? I finished  my binge last night and I must say the series was really, really, amazingly good. For the uninitiated, it's set during the Eighties in London, telling of a group of disparate young gay men who move to that city and become friends. Their friendships and new lives are tainted by the spectre of AIDS, then a new and largely misunderstood disease. The show brought back many unpleasant memories for me because I was a twenty-something during the series setting, and remember, with disgust and anger, the ignorance and prejudice surrounding HIV and gay men, mainly from contemporaries in the workplace whose idea of the height of wit was this joke: 'What's the difference between an AIDS patient and a cancer patient? The cancer patient gets visitors'. Yeah, real knee-slapper, that one *does eye roll*.  I recall an incident from the early Nineties when I encountered one of my former colleagues at Martin Place Station, and without going into too much detail, the conversation segued to me stating I had had to stay away from cancer patients and HIV-positive people during a recent nasty flu. I said I had told my doctor my mother had cancer and I also knew a person with HIV, so I would keep my distance. This dickwad of a guy asked, 'So you know someone with AIDS?' I said this particular person was not suffering full-blown AIDS, but did have HIV. The guy then did a camp theatrical step away from me, ironically not realising I didn't like his company much, anyway; he was the laziest bludger with whom I have ever had the misfortune to work. If you happen to be reading this, turkey, I hope you've acquired an education and a work ethic. I thought of him as Hurricane Lamp because he was not too bright and had to be carried. 

But back to It's a Sin. The sets and soundtrack really achieved an Eighties ambience. The acting was stellar from all the cast. The show's creator, Russell T Davies, apparently believes only gay actors should tell this story, and therefore the show was cast accordingly. It's up to Russell how he casts his productions, but this theory could prove problematic should he decide to make a series about zombies. But no matter, this series had me laughing and crying, as cliched as that sounds. Highly recommended.

Oh well, all good things come to an end. I am typing this post in the final hours of my leave. I return to work tomorrow. So, what did I do on my break?

1. Purchased and assigned ISBNs to my books for paperback version and will hopefully garner a few sales at the Maitland Indie Festival in May. 

2. Purchased a new car, which some scraping of diseased goat smegma scratched yesterday. I didn't see it happen, and the paintwork can be fixed, but this is so infuriating.

3. Made some major decisions and commenced some work on my dining room - it should be painted over the next few weeks - yippee and yahoo! 

4. Went on two separate getaways to the Port Stephens area, and had an utterly wonderful time on each trip. 

5. Registered a business, and the link is here. 

6. Did lots of yoga, but I'm still about as graceful as an elephant on a skateboard. 

7. Meditated a lot. 

8. Did some uni work. 

Well, must get onto dinner. Chat soon. 

Intoxicating Aroma: Eau de Noo Cah

 Happy greetings, Gentle Reader. It has been a few weeks since I last sat here at my blog. In any event, the world hasn't changed - well, I guess it will for the better on 20 January, if  you get my drift - in that we're still chopping and changing the State border rules and Channel 7 is still using Reddit as a major news source. 

So, what have I been doing? Well, I had a brief holiday in Port Stephens with an old school friend, which was lovely and relaxing.  I also received a pass mark of 69% in Teaching and Learning in the Digital World, which was surprising and gratifying, given my apprehension in this field. 

But, my reeeeeaaaaaaaalllllllllly exciting news is that Mr Bingells and I bought a new car! Some of you mightn't find this exciting, but I have NEVER owned a car that was brand new. Every vehicle in which I have claimed ownership has been second-hand, so therefore, this is very big bikkies to me, and Mr Bingells because it's his first new car, as well. We travelled on the train to the dealership, our nineteen-year-old son in tow.  We drove home breathing in the hitherto-unknown aroma of Brand New Car. I'm thinking of investing some coin into an aftershave with this scent, and retiring next year.

From the back seat, Mr Nineteen asked could he tuck into his doggy bag of leftover chips and chicken from Henny Penny, a request that was met with a resounding 'NOOOOOO!!!!!!!'  For the rest of the trip, Mr Bingells and I exchanged quick delighted glances, reveling in the euphoria of this purchase. Being mature, we had the radio tuned to the local AM station, and what should come on but TMG's Jump in my Car? Serendipity at its finest. I must admit to liking this daggy offering, and had the joy of seeing the Ted Mulry Gang in concert many yonks ago, but truly, how awful is the narrator of this ditty? As soon as he finds out the lass lives miles away, he refuses the lift, and resorts to the weak argument of attacking her appearance ('But you look a mess!'). Still, I guess this obnoxious narrator is still nowhere near as bad as the poisonous and delusional incel of The J Geils Band's Centerfold. 

The other big thing I have achieved since last checking in is to upload another assessment, wherein one of the questions was how I would use a corrective strategy in a Positive Learning Framework. It was very tempting to just submit the YouTube link to Kevin Bloody Wilson's The Kid, He Swears a Bit. If you're wondering, check it out. It tells of how a first year teacher used the best strategy she could to bring into line a kindergartner who had shown up fresh from the shearing shed and was somewhat troublesome. Hint: there's a length of four-by-two involved.

Ciao for now.

It's A Wonder, Wonder Woman

 Happy New Year, reader, and may 2021 not suck donkeys' balls to the extent 2020 has. As I guessed, the virus did not magically dissipate as the clock struck midnight. The kindest way one can describe this latest New Year's Eve is 'weird'.  I hadn't even planned to see in the New Year, but I found myself watching Netflix and before I knew it, it was almost midnight. My sixteen-year-old (the David Cassidy lookalike) was still up because he had wanted to see in the New Year. We live not far from a pub and could hear some racket and chanting. I walked out the front door, and could hear the raucous countdown from the pub: 'Ten...nine...eight...seven...six...five...four...three...two...one...HAPPY NEW YEAR!' And then the fireworks commenced. Seriously. Some local guys set off fireworks in the beer garden of the pub. So I called my son to come outside, where we watched the display together. There was a light drizzle (which made my hair frizz) and a pong of gunpowder. I said to my son, 'Happy New Year, my darling.' And I felt a little bit sooky.

There's something about this day that makes me a bit mawkish. I always resolve some kind of self-improvement, but whether I adhere to that resolution is something else. And I always take a moment to remember New Year's Day, 1993 when, surrounded by those closest, my mother took her last breath. I lost both my parents in the Christmas/New Year period, and I do feel a bit of a pang, but you are allowed to be happy, too. 

Tonight, the youngest son is at the movies with a friend. I am glad our cinema is still operating; I was worried Covid would see the business fold.  They are watching Wonder Woman 1984. From what I can tell, as the title suggests, the Amazonian princess is kicking butt in the year 1984. This makes me wonder will she be adding killer shoulder pads to her weaponry, which from memory comprised a tiara with boomerang properties, a rope that compelled those it tied to tell the truth, and those awesome feminium bracelets. She could really do a super shoulder-charge if she was decked out in some Eighties shoulder pads. 

I'm not sure if tonight's show will feature any of the characters from the Seventies television series I used to watch. If anybody else remembers it, did you ever sit there thinking Major Steve Trevor must surely have been one of the dumbest carbon lifeforms to ever walk the planet? How could he not see Wonder Woman and Diana Prince were the same person (if not a mortal person)? How many women did he know who (1) stood about six feet tall; (2) were built like a brick shithouse; and (3) were genuinely stunningly beautiful?

Again, Happy New Year.