VolaciousNet

What a busy day!

Started off this morning by our second session of swimming down at Victoria Park. Am starting to enjoy it!
Went around to 5 different open house inspections afterwards… the first one we saw was by far the best.
It was huge, with large polished floor rooms, a granite-topped kitchen with stainless steel appliances, not to mention quiet and very secure. Oh, and air conditioning!!!
Only thing… it’s in Dulwich Hill. Transport from there doesn’t seem too bad, at least to uni. I’m willing to put up with it for the quality of apartment.
The other nice place we saw was in Surry Hills. Not polished floors, a bit more cosy, but still nice.

I love househunting!!!! I’m getting all clucky again :p heh heh heh

Wow!!! For the first time I feel like I’ve earnt my day.

Started off by actually getting off my ass and doing some exercise… took Adam to Victoria Park pool and did a few laps there. Yay !!!! Some more exercise in the afternoon too, but will not go into the details for the sake of the kiddies. Did some househunting and went for a drive to check them out, made a list of properties to inspect tomorrow, and just finished watching True Lies, one of Jamie Lee Curtis’s best movies. I told my flatmate that there were only 3 women in my life who I’ve ever been attracted to: Her, Piper Perabo in Coyote Ugly (when she performs at the Bowery Ballroom) , and Jamie Lee Curtis in True Lies when she dances by the bed for her husband. Hawt hawt hawwwwt!!! heh heh heh

In other news, I have a few little irritants that I’m finding on LiveJournal. I’ll admit my english is very simple and to-the-point.. I don’t have the same excellent command of english as or . I blame it on being an engineering student. But posts that follow “ohyes i did like stuf today and thort it cool and my freind thort it was cool 2 like” are finally getting on my goat. I said it in my last post… I cannot handle stupidity, and whilst I realise that the posters may not be stupid, it sure doesn’t seem like that.
I also cannot handle people who only post comments when I post pictures of cute boys. I mean… I’m not always the best in commenting but I do try, especially when I think there is something worthwhile that I can add.
I think I might trim up my friends list… for the first time that I ever have on LiveJournal. I have already gotten the shits with , who deleted me then complained about something completely incorrect. But no more about that… I love 99% of the people on my list and read their posts way too often to be healthy :p

Well… more swimming tomorrow, 4 house inspections within 90 minutes, then down to Moss Vale for a party! Yay!!

Theatre Review
“The Sapphires” , Belvoir St Theatre

Belvoir St Theatre seems from the outset to be a bohemian-style low-budget artistic community theatre, but once again it has proved that Australia has a huge resource of talented artists waiting in the wings. The Sapphires, a moving story about a band of sisters who form a singing group that performs in Vietnam, has reminded me why I love Musical Theatre so much. When 5′5″ Ursula Yovich, playing the part of Julie, arrived onstage singing Aretha Franklin’s “Respect”, I couldn’t help but wonder why she hadn’t auditioned in “Australian Idol”. I have not heard such wonderful singing from a relatively untrained singer in a long time… she, along with the other three main singers, could have put most professional groups to absolute shame. Yet their main passion is acting. The music was rousing and inclusive… not one audience member could claim to be unmoved at the end of it.

I would highly recommend seeing “The Sapphires” to all, not just for the brilliant production but also the atmosphere that Belvoir provides. The price (dirt cheap) is just the ticket for students too.

Anyway… that concludes my complimentary community service announcement. There are other things that I’ve had on my mind lately which may require some airing.

I figured out today an important thing about myself… I absolutely loathe the words “I can’t”. It shits me more than anything in the world, and makes me unusually frustrated when I hear it from others. Having a think about it today, I can probably trace it back to my mother, who used to quote those two words so often in reference to me that I grew rebellious of it. I think it goes hand-in-hand with my extreme intolerance of stupidity… I have never suffered fools gladly nor will I.

I’m not sure whether this is a good thing or a bad thing however. People may argue that loathing “I can’t” is a sign of an enduring spirit and a never-say-die attitude, but it is also the sign of a perfectionist who cannot realise their limits nor ever be satisfied with an outcome.

Ponder over this I shall ….

Yay!!!! I’m baaaaaaaaaack!

A little bit sunburnt, but back safe and sound.

&nbspThe Myall Camp Campers&nbsp

So on friday, 6 very gay campers left behind the glitter and charm of Oxford St and headed north, to the middle of nowhere….

Well, not EXACTLY the middle of nowhere… about an hour north of Newcastle in fact. Simon ( ) and I had been there before, and knew what it was like. We arrived up there about 11:30 pm, well after dark. I scraped together a lot of camping gear, including 3 tents, but when we got up there, we discovered that one of the tents, which I hadn’t used in 12 years, had no tent pegs with it! Never fear… the engineering boys (Simon and myself) were on the job! We rigged up the tents and secured them using trees, rope, screwdrivers and a socket extension bar. Worked like a dream! Went for a walk along the beach at about 2 in the morning… just as the others have mentioned, it was beautiful, serene, and sandy. We had camped just behind a sand dune, were there were few others.

Saturday was quite nice… started off by a dip in the surf. As mentioned, the surf was quite rough, with very strong currents. Crystal clear water though! That was what I always remembered about that beach… beautiful water. Of course… the other boys decided to find shells and make shell jewellry. (*bites tongue and avoids gay joke*) Simon and I decided that we’d take the boys up to Seal Rocks for lunch, and take the “off-road” option. With my Laser, and Simon’s Charade. Two little city-hopper front-wheel drives. On a road designed for Landcruisers and Pajero’s. Last time I took my Laser down there, she blew a tyre as soon as I hit the open road and shook the wheel alignment out 3 degrees. This time not so bad… just blew a tyre. Simon and I managed to get it all sorted pretty quickly… except when we tried to use my 12V air compressor to pump up the tyres.. blew a 30 amp fuse instantly. Impressive!

Saturday night involved much drinking… decided to revert back to the old teenager game “I have never”. It’s always a good way to find out things about your friends that you didn’t know… unfortunately I had to try a lot to find things I hadn’t done!!! And of course… I drank to nearly everything! Found out Adam wasn’t such an angel though… heh heh heh I KNEW IT! After that, Adam and I went to the beach *smiles innocently* and on our way back managed to bump into some other young ppl who had just set up camp near us. 3 good looking boys were amongst them, but they were all str8 ! Oh well….had a good chat to the girls and watched huge thunderstorms over the ocean… very pweddy.

Here are a few photos for y’all !!!
I have placed Ron’s photos on my server, available at

http://volacious.net.au/photo_gallery.php?gallery=Myall_Lakes_ron

Be nice if the photos are slow… it’s being hosted off my website which is attracting a lot of attention lately. 120 unique users today, and a large amount of people viewing my journal in its entirety. WHO ARE YOU PPL?? I love the attention, don’t get me wrong, but I like to know who y’all are!

Bewdiful Boys A-Plenty!	I’m … uh…. Stuck
China’s here somewhere!	Sorry Nick… I couldn’t help but post this!
Go you mighty thing!	Go go go Goanna!

For other recollections, see or for their entries!

There’s lots of other things going on atm.. but the details of which will have to wait until another time.

Big things are in the works. The Life of Gusâ„¢ is an ever-changing drama, but at least it’s exciting!

So here goes.

&nbspThe Big Debate&nbsp

Readers of my journal will know that on Tuesday night my Mum and Dad finally sat down and talked out an agreement that would settle things once and for all, and not require 2 years of financial hardship before shelling out on legal fees for court. An initial proposal was made, and it went from there. There were some good points and bad points to the night, but for the purpose of tact I will not discuss them in a public post. A number of emails were passed between the whole family today, and it seems as though an agreement has been reached! Although certain parties had to bend more than they liked, it’s now been agreed to and James and I are going to do our best to make it stick. I have been on the phone quite often to my brother making sure I’m up to date, and offering any advice. I’ve tried not to influence my parents directly, but I’ve still been there.

So here it goes… some light at the end of the tunnel. It needs to be passed by the solicitors and have the court stamp it.. then it is binding. I pray that it is over soon.

&nbspIt’s not dead&nbsp

Although we suffered a setback with Adam’s inability to claim Centrelink payments, the plans to co-habitate are not dead! There have been a few emotional discussions, and we’ve talked to some people, and there’s no reason we can’t make it work. I ran into Andrew at work the other day, and he mentioned that he and Mikey will be using a “budget book” so they can keep track of payments. I think this is a top idea. The other idea is that Adam gets a part-time job that can guarantee him income, rather than rely on flaky casual work that could dry up at any time. After all, this is going to be as much of his venture as it is mine. It’s only for a few months too, until he earns the $17k required to qualify as independent for Centrelink. I’m definately excited by all of this, to say the least!

Love conquers all, people!

And on the money side of things… we’ve managed to secure a shift on Australia Day next week! $42 / hour, for a breakfast function. Will also be working at the Tom Jones / John Farnham concert behind the bar! Nooooooooice!

&nbspCamp Camping Ahoy!!&nbsp

Yay! Less than 24 hours before we go caaaaaamping!!! I’m excited by it all.. will be a nice relaxing weekend away from everything. I’ve gotta do some planning tomorrow as well as get all my equipment ready, as I think only Simon and I have all the necessary camping gear! I need to go and see mum early tomorrow to get the gear, which will be good as I get to see her too. I’m taking the big camera.. so be prepared for LOTS of very compromising shots! *grins evilly*

&nbspGus’s Political Worryings&nbsp

Is it just me, or are other people just not too worried about America’s interests in Iran? I’ve been reading recently, in as reliable news sources as I could find, of initial American espionage missions and airborne reconnaisance missions into Iran. Then guess what… I hear that immortal catch-phrase “Weapons of Mass Destruction”.

Are people going to fall for this another time? I can barely even believe it’s being mentioned. Forget North Korea and its blatant nuclear weapons program. No no.. we want Iran, they say. What’s next… Saudi Arabia? Is no-one else disturbed by this?

All in the name of “terrorism” ??

I swear they are like little children, stomping on an ant’s nest then crying when they get bitten.

If this goes ahead, I fear it may herald the end of the US’s superpower status through civil war. All superpowers to date have only existed for short periods of time. France, then Britain, then Germany, then Russia, now finally America. I only hope that the European Union have the foresight to put their differences aside so that they can provide a suitable replacement. I’m not anti-American… I just can’t understand why their government lacks the foresight to understand the repercussions of their foreign policy. I’m once again glad we live on our own continent on the opposite side of the world from where all this crap is going on. It’s truly an interesting world we live in.

Well that’s all the comments I have for the time being people… be sure to tune in next week when I publish the photos from this weekend!

And my apologies for no photos… I think I have actually run out of good original photographs to publish… I haven’t taken any for some time, and I don’t like to display photos twice in the same journal. Too-roo!

Bye Bye Latham !!

http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Back-to-Beazley-Latham-quits-blames-health/2005/01/18/1105810890022.html

Oh, didn’t we all see this coming a mile away. I remember a friend of mine remarking to me soon after the election “Oh… I bet Latham pulls up this sickness issue again and uses it as an excuse to leave the party”. As much as I take pity for him being unwell, I have no pity whatsoever for him not being up to the task of leading the struggling Labor Party.

I was more amused to see who is rearing his ugly head for a second try in the leadership… Kim Beazely! Now, I’ll admit he has a passion for it, but I will be blunt… he has a … large factor against him. It sounds discriminatory, and it sounds bitchy and mean… but Australia has never elected an overweight leader, regardless of their political qualities. Many punters argue that it was the reason he lost the election when he ran last time.

With the Labor party in such a state of disarray, with internal power struggles and restlessness, there is nothing to stop the Liberal party from achieving even more time in power. Whilst it is fairly certain Johnny may not stand for the next election, there are a number of viable contenders for the top job who do not squabble and bitch as much as their Labor counterparts. Sure they squabble, but it doesn’t seem nearly as public.

Those of you who know my political affiliations know that I’m more or less pleased by this, however I wouldn’t mind someone to keep them in check. It seems that the Labor party is fast losing credibility and political power. Interesting times are set for Australia.

Your comments, please.

Bugger.

Yes, that’s the word for today.

Bugger.

I just went with Adam to Centrelink, only to find out that they will not class him as Independent, and they will pay him nothing if he claims as a dependent. And his parents are unlikely to support him moving out of home, despite the 3 hour travel time to the closest uni via public transport. This means that unless we pull off a miracle of budgeting, living together is going to be unaffordable. I feel like I have my heart torn out.

Tonight is the Big Debateâ„¢ between my parents, taking place at my brother’s place. Basically what I have found out is this: Unless Dad agrees to all of Mum’s demands, she will take him to court, charge him with fraud, and try to remove both him from his own company. Whilst doing this, she claims that she may be unable to pay for my living expenses. This pisses me off something fierce. By wasting many tens of thousands of dollars on legal fees in order to screw Dad over, and Dad having to spend the same to defend himself, they are leaving themselves in a position where they can’t afford to support their youngest child. I will be able to make ends meet, but I sure as hell won’t be very happy with either of them. What’s left of our family will turn extremely hostile, and well I don’t want to think about what happens after that. So tonight James and I have convinced them to sit down together and discuss as much as possible without letting emotions get in the way. This is going to get nasty.

On a brighter note…. am looking forward to going camping this weekend!
Myself, Adam, Ron, Simon, Nick and Dave, (,,,,, respectively) are going camping!!! Yes, a bunch of fags going bush! Sounds like good fun, doesn’t it? YAYAYAYAY!
I’m pretty experienced when it comes to camping, and have lots of equipment, but I think some of the others might prefer more… civilized facilities. So we will be camping with the cars, near the beach! Yay! So I’m really looking forward to it… up near Myall Lakes just north of Newcastle. Definately need a little bit of time away…

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Reflections ©2004 A Stewart

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I’ve been thinking for what to write in here for some time…
I always wanted to use a blog as a way to improve my writing… for sure it doesn’t get much exercise as an engineering student! But where to start? I have tried my hand at some political writing, and enjoyed the debate there.. but let’s face it: I don’t care enough about politics to make it viable. Should I turn to social commentary? Fiction, even? Who knows. I always had a strong flair for creative writing… maybe fiction is a way I can turn. Suggestions, anyone?

I have a lot of ideas running around my mind at present… choosing which ones to act on is difficult. I have been very crochety over the past two days… felt like throwing things around a little. I felt sorry for Adam… even though I don’t normally mean to snap at him, sometimes it just happens. We are getting past that though… he is being such a steadying force in my life.
We have looked on the internet and found a really nice place out near St. Peter’s, which looks really good. It’s far enough away from uni so that I *have* to make a day out of it (i.e. I can’t go home for lunch and then decide not to return for afternoon classes like I could in Alexandria), but close enough so that I’m still close to everything important. So, this week will bring a lot of planning from both Adam and my part.

The antics on the home front have of course become more complicated, and I’m being pressured into taking sides, which is something I refuse to do. I am taking a measured approach to this, and so far I think I’m handling it well. The shrink seems to want me to come back every 3 or so weeks now… stuff that. I don’t need to spend any more money there. So yay for that!

I’m not sure whether I’m happy or sad or relaxed or stressed at the moment… I think I’m a mixture of everything. I’m looking forward to when the lease runs out here… I get a chance to break free and make a fresh start to the year. I can’t believe it’s the middle of January already!

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NYE Disco Ball ©2004 A Stewart

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Welcome back, LiveJournal!

Ahhhh! Some good old-fashioned geekiness!!!
It’s been some time.

I now have a guestbook where people can leave messages! I noticed from my web logs that a few people had been trying to access the “comments” page on my site… so I decided to actually put something there !!! There are still a few pages to go, namely writing a “Gliding” , “About Me” and a “Funny Stuff” page, and there are a few ideas to synchronize LiveJournal to a local mySQL database. I have spent almost 3 hours fighting with mySQL, which did not feel like working when requested, but now I have it under control. I’m told that the server is nice and slow for the first page, but apparently works nicely after the first page has loaded. I’m not sure how to fix that… must be a configuration option somewhere…

I have also given my Journal a bit of an aesthetic touch-up, but I’m not sure if I like it. In any case, I can only afford a few hours of geekiness every week when the boy’s in Picton, so I had better enjoy it whilst I can!