dogpossum

ok, so i’m back ‘at work’. i’m sitting in front of the computer, notes open in front of me, most pressing of procrastination activities completed (blogs read, discussion boards perused, laundry flapping on the line), stomach full and kettle on.

do you think i have even any clue as to what my thesis is actually about? it’s been so long, i can’t even remember what i was writing about.

right now i’m looking at these notes on the dance act itself, ready to hoe into an argument about afro-american vernacular dance and what that actually means to a bunch of middle class white kids in melbourne, and i just can’t seem to remember what it was that made all this so important.

i think i need to re-read past chapters.
surprisingly, though, i’ve found writing about my work on this blog is actually conducive to good thesising. don’t have a postgrad community to discuss readings with? why not crap on to an imaginary audience on the internet. kewl.

i know it’s been a long time since i last posted, but things have been busy. i was in tasmania for around 6 weeks – 2 months, christmas happened, then new years and now. well. there was mlx in the middle, which was far funner than expected, probably owing to the fact that i was thrilled just to be in melbourne and having a break, as well as being gleefully responsibility-free, as a non-volunteer and non-hoster. ah, me-first. what bliss.

then i did some workshops in tasmania with bill and julee and the tasmanian dancers. the tasmanians do truly rock. i am also enjoying something of an extended dance epiphany. the secret? dancing is simpler than you’d think. phew.

now i’m back in melbourne, and will start work on the thesis again on monday. or perhaps tuesday, as i’m slotted in for an appointment at the gym. max has left the wick baths, but i’m settling for disco-moustache man. hopefully he’ll be as good as max. hopefully.

this year sees me thinking about taking up tap (still), african dance (possibly), hiphop (again, possibly), yoga more intensively (as it rawks), more swimming, and most interesting of all, sword fighting for the stage. i’m facinated. but not sure where to begin.

but in celebration of the new year, i’ve added an ordinary-quality photo of crin and i being pirates at the mlx ball. there were other pirates in our gang, but they were either taking the photo or in the hall already doing performances.

for all those who’ve asked, here’s an update on my mum’s progress…

oh, if you haven’t heard, my mother went into hospital last sunday night, with suspected chicken pox. by the following evening, when i arrived in hobart on the first plane i could get, she was unconcsious, incubated (that means they had her sedated, with a tubey thing breathign for her), in severe respiratory distress, had a weirdo rash, was on dialisis and had scary low blood pressure. they knew she had an infection, but no idea where it started or what it was. they still don’t know.
but unlike that monday, this monday, a week later, she’s out of danger and doing much better.
she’s now doing some breathing for herself, has some good colour, her blood pressure is returning to normal, so her temperature is much better. she is being taken off sedatives, so beginning to make involuntary movement on her own. we are vastly relieved, and no longer nuts with worry. the doctor expects her to be in hospital for a few weeks more, then home for months of recuperation.

so thank you so much for all the kind thoughts and phone calls from all the jillions of people who’ve gotten in contact. our friends have given us invaluable, hell WONDERFUL support, hosting my brother in melbourne at short notice, holding me while i bawled like a baby in the hospital while i waited for the other family to arrive, sleeping cuddled up with me like puppies every nap time and every bed time this week, calling me with kind words, bringing round cakes, strudel, biscuits cherries and so on, giving me information about hobart’s yoga (rock on the hobart yoga room – go there for ACE iyengar yoga), offering generous favours, and generally being kind. we really couldn’t have managed without you all.

on tuesday i was watching the melbourne cup with The Squeeze (not my telly choice – i have no interest) while killing some time on the couch.
the one thing i remember about this ‘race that stops a nation’, after the rain and the way they put their arms around the horses’ bums to get them into the gate, was the winning jockey’s triumphant lap of honour in front of the crowd.

and you know what i remember about that ride? saying out loud “MAN that guy has a strong center – look at THAT!”. i am obsessed. it’s just facinating. if your core is stable – your belly/torso, etc – you waste less energy and your movement is better.
seeing as how that jockey won, i bet strong centers are important to him. or to his horse.

i’m doing a lecture on my work in the researching media audiences subject the supervisor takes. next week. i have done nothing except think about some clips i’d like to show.
i have only 20 minutes. which is nothing when you add in clips.
sheesh.
but i’m getting paid. and this is the first time i’ve been asked to lecture on my own research (rather than to speak about other people’s stuff). excellent.
time for me to do another paper, though…

otherwise, i’m rocking through the media/diaspora stuff. it’s really interesting and wonderfully complementary to the fan studies stuff. i have a couple of articles by stuart hall to follow up, which will no doubt raaaawk, because he raaaawks.
NB: my first supervisor, frances, was supervised by stuart hall for her phd at the birmingham open university. that’s very exciting.

i love researching. i love this stuff i’m working on. i just wish i was more disciplined.

today has been a slack day. i’ve only got two books left to work through from my latest library trawl. i’m pretty sure i want to take on stuart hall’s work on globalisation and diaspora. now i need to find more of his stuff and of stuff by people who also dig his work.
so of course i’ve procrastinated all day.
a late start, a little time over breakfast. some internet play.
the of course, i had to go to the gym to go for my first ever swim in my new togs, in melbourne, at the gym.
i was brave about what is, essentially, semi nudity in a public place. if i was a gay man i’d have some anxiety issues. but seeing as how i’m not, no one was looking at me, so i’m cool… not that the baths are anywhere near as popular with the gay blokes as the valley pool in brisbane was. but still. a pear-shaped chick in modest black togs (even if they do have a particularly spiffy zip up the back. note to self: attach string to zip for easier escapes) is really not even a blip on most people’s radar.

at any rate, it was quite lovely. the water was a little warm for my liking. this was outside, so i’m a bit concerned about the summer temperatures. and i did 30 laps of the 50m pool. so i’m now, officially, an athlete.
ok, so i’m still not hugely speedy. but i’m fitter than i was last time i was doing laps (in brisbane). and i still have a decent stroke, so i’m not shaming myself.
the whole strong-in-your-center thing is very useful in swimming (is there any physical activity for which it’s not useful?): a more stable center makes for less wasted energy in the pool. hence the 30 laps, rather than, say 20 or 25.
i am also interested in the kick boards, as they make we work my legs a whole lot more. and it’s harder to stay centered. i do so much upper body work in the gym i figure it’s time to pound my lower body.
between that and dancing i figure it’ll all be good.

other than that, i’ve not done much. i did wash my light quilt. hoorah. and i ate a nice sandwhich for lunch. home made. and i watched 2 episodes of angel, from season 4 or 5 or whatever it was.

yes, it has been a busy day, hasn’t it.
i will try to do better tomorrow.

meanwhile, i would like to get through this second last book. there’s stuart hall in there. and he’s my man.