The Life and Times of Peter Green
Archive: 8 February - 21 February 2010
February 8thDespite what the Boomtown Rats had to say, I LIKE Mondays... we seem to get a lot done at the start of the week, it kind of bottle necks towards Friday. It's one of those marvelous days outside, a great day to be alive. In the afternoon I take a load of work out and sit under a tree and get it done. I'm aware that I am being watched by these tiny birds-there must be a nest nearby. No sign of there mum , but they seem to trust me and I just watch them out of the corner of my eye. Banshee the cat is sitting next to me, she just ignores them- the cat killer instinct hidden deeply today. I also spot a Bee and she shows more interest in that. I haven't checked on the net to see if they know the reason why so many bee's have disappeared, sometimes it has been whole colonies. It would be like waking up in LA and finding 3/4 of the city gone. In the 1980s half the Bee's were wiped out in the USA from fungal blights..... I wonder if this time it could be from pesticides...who knows. This one lone Bee sure was busy though! Life is cheap if you are a bee.February 9thI hear from Carin in the USA and we chat about Whitely Market on Highland Ave...I tell her about the HAIRBALL WAS HERE in the cement on Highland near that area. Hairball being our cool cat from years back- we looked last time and think it's long faded or been paved over by progress. It's such a famous sort of area, Crowdies used to shop around that part when they lived in the first 'crowded house' on the hill. I still sneak down and have a coffee plus a small post office is out back of the Kodak Theater where the Academy Awards are now held. Hardly ever any people in that post office- it's great..no gun men no people swearing about the service or over counter attitude... dig it!I send Greg Skyhook our accommodation details for Kathmandu in case he crosses over from India to Nepal and needs somewhere to stay. He probably won't as the border restrictions around entry visa's has changed.... but he's so close to Kathmandu would be a shame not to venture and go visit Freak Street! I hear from Mark Hart and he has donated his purple shirt that he wore at the Crowded House Opera House Farewell show so a piece of history will be on the block- such a kind soul Mark H, always plenty of time for him. So did Hessie, long after he left Crowded House Paul stayed in contact and always spoke lovingly of Mark. Will be good to see him again and his wife when they arrive in Australia late March. February 10thLOST returns tonight and it was great.... so I was right about the evil dark smoke monster..... that just leaves 99 more things to work out about Lost! It's nice to have it back on Australian TV even if it is the last season. I think Sons Of Anarchy returns to Foxtel soon too-excellent.We are worried about Banshee still, so I call the Vet and lock her in with Sam our 2nd Vet up here. She is still acting weird and I have been a bit worried. I know in my head she will be ok, but she now seems to be sleeping a lot- maybe her body is fighting some illness and needs sleep time to do so. I'm not use to this new relaxed chilled out model of Banshee... she just bit me so she can't be too chilled. I spend 2 hours writing today for the Ghost Cars Book, it's a lot of work but hopefully people will enjoy it. February 11thI noticed the diary figures show that an extra 400 people have been reading this each month- are you insane? Go away! No stay- am amazed after 14 years that people still check this out- FOURTEEN YEARS am I insane! I guess it's almost become a habit, like cringing at Tom Cruise or picking ones nose....every few weeks THE DIARY! (2001 movie music can be played here).I drive Miss Banshee back to the vets, dark storm clouds roll in and we dash inside before the heavens open up. The power is causing the lights in the vets to blink on and off, a few people with cats look worried. I think it's funny like it has become a disco for Moggys. Some cats start meowing, Banshee ignores them, I open her cage and she curls up next to my arm. There is lightening now and the rain is really flooding in. There seem to be several clusters of gay men bringing their animals in. It's now Gay Men Moggy Disco!!!! What's next! An emergency case comes in so we all let them go first, costs the guy about $3500.00, I will never moan about Banshee's $100 bill ever-not that I have, she is never sick. Moss isn't on today so Sam is, Banshee likes her too so all is well. No cat hysterics. She gives Banshee another needle, 'hold her this one will sting'... Banshee shows no sign of even caring that she has a needle...damn junkie cat. We both love that her pain levels are so high. Once more we run through the lists of possibles. I leave feeling more confident, Banshee is curled up under her blanket away from the cat disco world, thunder and rain. I so don't want to cook so call into the Rolling Stones Pizza man and he creates some healthy Pizza (yes they do exist). I hassle the crappy Digital Centre people at St Albans, we have lodged in a complaint with consumer affairs- they are appalling and have zero customer assistance ....... in the end they give us a refund. I have to say of all the stores we have dealt with over the years Digital Centre at St Albans, now moving to Keilor East is the worst service ever. Truly horrible in every aspect. We found endless complaints about them on the Net, we should of really checked into them at the start. A waste of time but at least we got our dollars back. We strong urge people not to support these scum bags. A friend sent me an article on the Net Debt of various countries around the world. Australia's net debt is around 9% of the GDF. In contrast the USA is 85% of GDP, UK is 92%, Japan is 143.5% and most other major advanced economies it's 93%. 9% is incredible in comparison, I never knew the others were so high. February 12thI sat on the bed for an hour today and went through my Vali artbook. The ol' gal has been dead 7 years today and I miss her heaps. Her spirit and love for life. There are so many people stumbling about miserable and dark hearted , it was like the lights came on when she walked down the street. Her bright red hair and tattoed face....freaked many out too- going for a coffee with Vali was probably one of the most enjoyable experiences in my life. I'm sure she is giving them hell wherever she is and foxy would be by her side snapping at the heels of heals! Long live Vali Myers.February 13thI have an email chat with Craig Hooper, who was in the Mullanes with Paul, Nick and Neil, almost locked in a date to fly in and interview him for the Ghost Cars book. I don't think he's been interviewed since leaving the Mullanes so it will be cool to see him. It's been so long I wasn't sure if he even remembered me. (He did...I must freak people so much they never forget me!). I'm hoping to sneak home and surprise my Mum for her birthday around the same time. Craig was also part of The Reels but fairly sure he didn't play in the reunion tour of 2008. Anyway it will be good to catch up after all this time and nice to have him in the book.I log into the VEG Tally Room for the By-Election tonight for the seat of Altona. It's a safe Labor seat but they have to go to preferences. I notice Family First didn't run this time so I'd say their voters would all vote Liberal, hence the swing to the LIbs. Jill Hennessy got in which is great, I think the politicians on either side of her electorate are all women too! The Greens scored their usual 10% of the vote. It was fun to watch the votes come in tonight. February 14thValentines Day.Well I was spoilt, felt the love (that sounds rude!)..... a day for flowers and chocolate and LURVE! Hope you all scored high on the love chart! I did my washing- how romantic is that? Watched ROME on Blu Ray, and it's great, well the english accents were a bit full on.....and huge points to James Purefoy for his amazing full frontal. I know at the time it titilated people around the globe-well he was playing Mark Antony (Marcus Antonius). James Purefoy is far better looking then the horrid statue of Antony in the vatican Museum...(urgh). In October 41 BC he had that famous meeting with Cleopatra (I think it was at Tarsus- Turkey?) where things heated up and they became lovers...plus all that Egyptian money helped his career and invasions *GRIN*. Anyway ROME was a nice surprise so thanks to Greg Skyhook for giving us the brilliant Blu Rays of this show. February 15thA buddy of ours Jan is going to Sydney to have 2 major brain tumours removed by Dr Charlie Teo. There is a fundraiser for her at the wonderful Palace Theatre on Friday March 5th. Supper at 8pm, and the excellent Alice in Wonderland (in 3D). Plus loads of other fun stuff. Tickets are $20 each which is a bargain for such a great cause. To reserve tickets email- Jan - janmcq@hotmail.com or Fiona at: macleod_dw@aanet.com.au My Mums birthday on that night so I will be surprising her in Sydney but for anyone in Melbourne, this will be a really fun night..... drop the girls a line, lovely people.I'm having one of those days where I think the Kalorama fog has entered my brain..feeling a bit lost, vague, like I'm watching the world from inside a snow dome! (Will you please stop that shaking!). February 16thGreg Skyhook leaves for India today, hopefully he will avoid any terrorists.I have this list which has maybe 50 'things to do on it'. I wipe a few off every day but it seems more get added. Will my list never end? I turn on the computer and find some fucked up nasty Email from Phil Judd. It's so boring and who would of guessed his jealous tirade finishes by slagging off Neil and Tim Finn. What a dickhead. We end up watching Broken Arrow on Blu Ray. It holds up OK, John Travola is great when he is a nasty....and how can you not love Christian Slater? It was on special at Kmart so grabbed it. Called into JB and said hello to Wendy, it seemed quiet in JB. We bought the last of their Tim Finn 'Anthology' CDS, they've re ordered a few times, it's ticking over. February 17thI make a promise to read more books- the pyramid of books by my bed is getting higher, this weekend I will be having the PG read-athon! I take the lawn mowers apart and give them a good clean, I even sharpen the blades, tomorrow I'll use them on the front nature strip- it's huge but looks good when it's freshly mown. Very blokey of me...to pull the mower apart.Cast some votes for the name of the new baby elephant, you can win a trip to Thailand so I have Jen in QLD on it as well, we are all voting away, desperate for a free trip. We all vote for MALI for it's name. It seems the less confusing of the ones on offer. I am amazed that one baby elephant can capture a cities heart..but she is way too cute and full of energy. I have a look at some photos of myself with the baby elephant at Tiger Tops, seems so long ago, she's probably full size by now, they grow so fast. The Zoo is doing well thousands turning up every day to see this hairy fun baby. February 18thI get a call from Noel from the Enz. He's donating one of his Enz drawings to the Club Auction. It's the Old Mill House where the band rehearsed during 1978. For those with the wonderful Rootin Tootin Luton Tapes CDs the drawing is in the centre pages of the booklet. Noel has signed it and tagged it- it is one of those Enz objects that true collectors will love....artwork like this never comes up so a fine piece. It will fit in a A4 frame so quite a decent size too. So that will go out in the Club Auction. Noel is great you can rely on him when it comes to stuff like this- so appreciate it. It's also good to chat, see what they are all up to and have a laugh.I replace Mark's Bubbly Chocolate that I stole last night- had the munchies during the movie! What did humans do before chocolate? Jason next door fixed up the final 2 security lights, so Ailsa Craig is operating at 100% and our friends won't break their necks on the walking track. I see that Clean Up Australia day is coming up again on March 7th. I'm going to grabs some bags and get some mates active around the Dandenongs-well hopefully. It's a great idea and it seems to grow and grow and grow. So write that date down, March 7th. Imagine if everyone in Oz made an effort. I was in the office really early today so I leave early. Decide to do some mowing, get a big chunk done but it's hard work... i'll do the rest over the next few days. Nature sure takes a stranglehold up here. I pick some wild blackberries, I spot the parrots stealing the remainder so let them enjoy themselves, it's Ron and his girlfriend, I haven't seen them for a few weeks. The final show of Dexter for this season tonight, you just know it will be a good one. It's getting great reviews here, 5 stars every episode. February 19thI see our Frenz Com Twitter area is a mere 8 people short of 1000. It's a free thing and anyone can sign up... handy for small bursts of information from Neil and the gang. Easy to do too: Go to http://twitter.com/frenzdotcom and choose FOLLOW. You will need a Twitter account. which is easy to do.We head to Morrisons for some breakfast well brunch by the time we arrive. Sheridan is on and spoils us with her healthy sandwiches, other diners look on in envy. We feel special, they just taste great. She's wearing this big chunky studded wristband... no one will argue with her today. Love it. The blue rinse old ladies will not complain....they looked scared as she flashes her studs! Bon Scott has been dead 30 years today. I still remember when we heard this-Mark and myself and some mates were picking grapes at Mildura to make some extra money to pay the rent. I was losing count of how many times Mark had nearly fallen off the back of the tractor driver by the owner Darryl. We had the radio on and it came over, felt very sad as AC/DC were just starting to make huge waves overseas and their following was growing VERY fast. Mark and myself had first seen them when we were both at school, they played Wollongong Town Hall and we had excellent seats. The Year 12's spotted us and suddenly we were cool..it only last a month but hey that was still fine. We don't get a crap about the current AC/DC, though it is great to see Angus doing what he does best but Bon Scott just an amazing front man and we loved his voice. Maybe like all the other rock and roll casualties they have to die young? We play a LOT of AC/ DC... today, turned up to 11 of course...all Bon era. Watch some South Park and love the episode where the Internet becomes extinct. It has some extreme moments especially the Porn scene! Yieks! Cartoon Cum shot! February 20thI sleep in this Saturday. Well I let Banshee out at 7.30 and stumble back to bed, wake up 2 hours later. I knew I was sleeping in and just succumbed to it. Sometimes you do just that.Head down to Viewpoint for a coffee and take our Lonely Planet Guide for Kenya. I'm making notes for the June escape. Trying to work out the best accommodation for Lake Naivasha when we have our bikes and ride through Hells Gate. I have been looking at peoples Hells Gate footage on the Net... it's great. Sometimes you just have to leave those wildlife park vehicles and connect with nature. Simba Lodge looks pretty cool.... quite a few of the other places are a bit suss, a few complaints about rooms being broken into. I want Africa to be amazing and not too stressful especially in Nairobbery (opps Nairobi). Even Simba is a bit expensive, but sometimes you wear the cost..how often are we going to go to Kenya I ask myself! I found a really cool shot that someone took from the Simba boat, when a giraffe decided to short cut across the lake through the shallows.....just brilliant. Simba has a private jetty so you can take a boat out on the lake. Lots of Hippo's so I'll be careful, as they kill more people then Lions. Africa will be excellent. February 21stI had some emails from Enz fans happy to see the Suzuki Split Ends advert turn up on the internet. It looks to be the same quality as our copy, still always fun to see such things..... made me grin.I drive to the bakery, Pearl Jam playing rather loud in the car, today I picked the 'Avocado' album, you know the PJ album that doesn't have a title but an avocado on the front. Good album it has grown on me over the years. I read an article on the upcoming Sydney Mardi Gra. Some insane amount of people turn up to watch the parade on Oxford Street, Sydney parties on till the sun comes up. It's on next Saturday Feb 27th at 7.45pm. The theme for this years Mardi Gra is History Of The World, a very gay history... about 500,000 people turn out for the parade so we hope it's a great night weather wise Sydney, though some of the rained on parades have been extremely passionate because of the rain. In 1978 the first Sydney Mardi Gra was really a protest and a commemoration of the Stonewall Riots. (Stonewall Inn-Greenwich Village). originally the Sydney March had obtained permission but this was revoked and the police moved in, 53 marchers arrested. The Sydney Morning Herald shamefully posted the names of those arrested, outing people and in many ways making them lose their jobs etc (Homosexuality laws wern't really changed in NSW till 1984!!!) Anyway that was the basis of Mardi Gra in Sydney. Of course you get sad fucks like Rev Fred Nile each year protesting and being the homophobic bigot that he is.... he's in his late seventies now so I think everyone tolerates his bullshit because he hasn't long to go. He almost adds to Mardi Gra in a bitter religious hateful sort of way (urgh!). Maybe God will send a Mardi Gra float to run over him, this year?! Party on Sydney! Alarming piece in The Age that Kalorama is one of the 14 towns in the high risk area nominated by bushfire experts. Nothing we probably didn't already know but you never like to read it. saying that a fire could break out anywhere and kill you sometimes it's just bad luck or bad timing wrong place at the wrong time. It's mostly due to the ridge of the mountain here, fires run so fats up those mountainsides. In the end you just be sensible and stay alert.,... otherwise you live in fear. Places like Eltham and Warrandyte are always on the list as well. In fact half the people we know probably live in fire risk areas in Melbourne ! So far the fire season has been small, and we all hope it stays that way. That's it for another diary. take care Peter |