Famous for Sixteen Minutes: Archive

The Life and Times of Peter Green
Archive: 4 October - 16 October 2011

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Coming Soon- Bic Runga's new album "Belle"!

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October 4th

I hear from Sharon Finn in the UK today, the Finns sound very relaxed, enjoying their stay in England. Sharon admits to loving Suzi Quatro as well which is no surprise. I guess ol' Suzi is a bit of a roll model to many.

I hear from EMI and lock in a mail out around their THEY WILL HAVE THEIR WAY (2) cd release for Australia which is October 28th so not too far away. The first two releases are heading towards the half a million sold here which is healthy for such a project. I've noticed they've added a lot of extra shows to the Australian tour too. I guess it's an album that will sell over the upcoming Christmas period. So Finn music still on the charts even if it is being sung by other artists. I always prefer brand 'x' but obviously many are happy to take a punt and hear different versions .

October 5th

Steve Jobs dies, age 56. I know he's been ill but it still seemed to happen quickly. A man of vision, and thank god we have these wonderful Mac's to use instead of daggy old PC's. Bless you Steve!

I book our hire car for Christmas and it's such an epic thing to try and do. Hertz no longer have Qantas as a frequent flyer which sucks so I start to change over my portfolio so US Air get my points and it was pages and pages on the net to wade through, all for a handful of flight points. Geez! But all done and booked in.

We get our next batch of Tim Finn View Is Worth The Climb cds in a week, it's ended up being 6 times as many as we offered, and most were late orders, so that is our next project to get out of the road. It drives me nuts when people order late, really throws a spanner into the system- thankfully fans are patient and they know we've been working on a hundred and one other things. I try to be nice but the 11th hour thing is killing us and causes quite a lot of delays.

October 6th

I start addressing envelopes for an Aussie mail out for later this month. I have a huge box of old lick and stick envelopes that we got for free so will save the company some money and use those. The cold moist weasther has stuck quite a few together so I grumble out loud.

Tim Finn's manager gives me a call, chat and bring work up to speed, he's great always keeping us updated. We have some Tim New Zealand dates to release soon.

October 7th

Bek is the first call of the morning, we three are off to see The Church at The Forum, on Dec 30th, which means they'll be my last gig for 2011. She moves into her new digs a few weeks before so it's a busy month for the Bexster. It means it will be a year since we 3 have seen the Church play so we'll all be vibey for the band. They put on such a cool show and Steve Kilbey is fantastic.

It's Friday already and I spend part of the day rushing about making sure funds are available to cover a big cheque. It's ends with a quick dash in the afternoon and (phew) got to the bank before it closed and all good. So many costs lately, but we still stay a float , just. Again postage try's to kill us. I had this nice letter today, just with a a note that read "I was at work today and found these few postage stamps so thought of you and mailed them". I like how I am on peoples mind or our postal situation, just felt like such a nice gesture, there is good in the world, I think music fans appreciate what we do.

Australia Post though prove to be hopeless (again), after my complaint that paying for a next day envelope should mean it arrives next day, they sent me a (free) replacement next day envelope. They must of liked my complaint call because another "next day envelope" arrived today, so we now seem to be getting free next day envelopes every week! Oh well I'll consider it 'interest' on all the times they have messed up and quite a few lately.

I grab Mark a small present from JB at Eastlands, he is my rock and I appreciate all his efforts.

I drive back up to our home in the national park and huge grey clouds are hanging nearby, rain is on the way. Stan and Mr Bunny are fed nearby and I herd the chickens in so they are warm and dry and happily eating, they reward me with an egg. I have a feeling they have a secret nest nearby as the egg laying seems less this month.

I'm in the office and the small storm hits, a wet weekend for us.

October 8th

What a nice start to the day. State Labor (Victoria) has said that Federal Labor should take a stand and support Gay Marriage and make it happen. It's small steps still but all in the right direction. The old homophobic Tony Abbott will get all bitter and twisted over this, how dare gay people have equal rights! Who says dinosaurs don't exist still!

I see an article on line that the amount of Australians heading to Peru has nearly doubled in the last few years, it's one of our favourite destinations. With the 100th anniversary of the re-discovery of Machu Pichu now on, the place is probably over the top with tourists so go next year when it's less intense. At least the media have mentioned that other explorers had 'found' Machu Pichu before Hiram Bingham - so that's kind of nice, it was always one of my big moans.... when Hiram located it again about 1000 people were living their... but he was the one who helped publicize it and clear a lot of the jungle away. It's such a magical place and just a stones throw from Cuzco which I can spend time and time again wandering down those stone streets. If you want an adventure head to Peru, everyone should go their at least once in their life time.

I call Rosemaree and see if she wants to have dinner at our place tonight, so she's into it, and supplies desert-yum.

Last Dr Who for the current season on Aussie TV tonight, I've enjoyed the last 3 episodes but it is a bit patchy this season, a few almost boring episodes which I rarely ever say about the good Dr. I'm just happy it's still running, and even if it's only every 2nd episode that is great I'll enjoy them.

October 9th

I see Australia Post have their mythical creatures stamp series out in Australia this week. How cool is the Gryphon stamp..... fantastic! It's actually quite a nice design.

We've been enjoying the current season of Breaking Bad on Foxtel, it's starting to take a few new twists and turns... excellent.

In bed by 1.00 , poor old Banshee cat must be tired, as she starts cat snoring within minutes. A restless night which relates more to what I had to eat and drink for dinner and one too many green teas.

October 10th

BAS arrives for our company so I pay a few bills. Nice to have them out of the way. Even Amex is wiped down to zero, and no I just didn't start spending again, I am being good.

A fine misty rain is falling in the hills, so before it starts to bucket down, I thought I'd plant our various types of tomatoes, and cucumber (good for kidney stones) and silverbeet (keeps chickens happy) in the vegie patch. I was going to wait but i thought some wet weather might be good for them. I also splurged on Dahlias. About 12 different types, my favourite flower, so I'm hoping by Summer they will be popping up everywhere... I was a bit worried might of planted a few upside down!!! God I hope not, what a twit I am. The side garden is looking pretty damn fine with lillys and a hundred and one other things growing. Some have doubled in height in a week. Imagine what summer will do.

I sent a friend some reports on the Great Barrier Reef and the recent floods dumping massive amounts of pesticides from the rivers onto the Reef. One of the really bad sides of climate change, watch Queensland get more and more floods and extreme weather. All that warm water in the Coral sea doesn't help. It may pay to live south in Victoria...and high up on a mountain in a national park, we keep joking the day will come when we rent out the gardeners shed to city friends who are washed away!!!

The South Australian premier has put his hand up in support of gay marriage, so I've spent the afternoon asking mates to vote in polls and letters pages and all that. Of course some Church group is obsessed about stopping it and getting their dinosaurs by voting NO. Good will conquer evil, they will fail-sad that the Church (overall) is so fucked about gay marriage, how dare they stick their beaks in- no wonder numbers are falling worldwide for many religious orders. Not all churches are bad, some do great work, some are total hypocrites though- evil really.

October 11th

I see The Age EG awards are on again, we've won a few awards previously for Crowded House at the EG's... it would be nice if the Pajama Club could secure some nominations in Best New Group & Album category. So if you are reading this cast a vote, takes just a few seconds to do. Head to The Age and the "EG Awards" is near the top of the main page in small writing: http://www.theage.com.au/ Thank you everyone!!!

The Bic Runga NZ tour poster image arrived it's really nice, so I've decided to send it to all the Bic fans as a 2 gb attachment, that way they can use it for screen savers etc Of course it takes forever, bring on the NBN we need optic fibre here soooo badly! I'm just happy that we have some action in the land of Bic Runga..now waiting for an Aussie release. World tour dates, a pay rise... hmm what else, a hit song! All would be nice.

I carry the huge cardboard box that the 65 inch tv came in, over to our neighbours place and manage to rip it into small pieces and stuff it in their recycle bins. It's huge, I could only just carry it. But gone now so more space in the garage and art area. I'm determined for it to be clean and tidier. I've also got to air some of the Crowdies and Skyhook backdrops when we have a nice sunny day. So up on the trees they go, it does add a new freaky side to our property when you sea a massive hand painted 2 story kitchen fan or a burning building. I'm still pissed at myself for donating the Fall At Your Feet forest back drop to the arts museum, imagine a painted backdrop of trees amongst real trees... surreal!

It's my once in 10 years meltdown this evening, was in a very weird spot. Big thanks to Miss R and whoever 'invented' chocolate. It happens so rarely but it does. Think I was trying to deal with way too many peoples problems and not think about my own mental health. In some ways it did me the world of good, but the oddness lingered for a few days...life is strange. I did not cry, I went close but I didn't, tough old bitch that I am.

October 12th

It's funny when you are working away on a project and you stop and think and wonder when your work will be done. Not work on the project itself , all the work you do. Working with artists, is it like a 'normal' job? Do you retire gracefully and collect your super. Do you think about what you have done, both fun and what you have worked on and also left behind. Then again does a shoe sales person think like that? It is strange when such thoughts hit you out of the blue. Maybe it's something that happens when you are older? Or when you are older do you start questioning if you have squeezed life by the throat and gotten everything out of every day. It's hard to do that, we humans are a fickle lot and emotions, moods etc seem to dictate what sort of day we have. I love working in the office with Mark, I sometimes sneak a peep to see what he is working on. I occasionally dump some work on his lap, and on occasions he does look to the stars for divine intervention - none turns up!!!! It's still enjoyable, like many jobs it has it's moments-the hours are long, sometimes very long and these days the words 'thank you' seem to be missing in action. Maybe when someone says that you actually want to work harder on a project... food for thought.

Australia's Carbon Tax was passed in parliament today, a huge applause from the public gallery and then protesters later on. Mostly bogans, go and get a job! So much fear and spin from Abbott over this, I notice how he keeps very quiet about his useless "Direct Action" lame arse climate plan. Silly old cow Sophie Mirabella got herself suspended and wasn't allowed to vote, the most important vote of the year and the dumb cow does that, what an ego.... one of the worst politicians Australia has ever known, so full of her own bullshit it's amazing! Her stupidity just made me laugh out loud.

October 13th

The weather is now great again, I take a lot of stuff up to the decking and work in the sunshine today, such a nice time of year. I get a lot of our Bic stuff in, tour dates and images. Love the cover shot for 'Belle" the upcoming album. It will probably end up on the main diary page because I like it so much. What a fine hair day Bic Runga is having on the cover, we are hair envious! Anyway will be nice to have a new Runga release, NZ will get it first, I'm still waiting for news on the Australian release...and other territories.

I had a few emails from Bic and now management so that is good, I just need the 'parts' to work with and they are now starting to arrive so I'm a happy worker bee. It's great Bic will soon be releasing the new album , and there seems to be some vibe in the air after what seems like forever without some new Runga music. Could be a fun few months.

True Blood is on again tonight, 4 episodes left to go here, and I've been good and avoided checking it out on the Net, unlike Miss Foxycroft who just had to peep!!!!

I see unemployment dropped here today to 5.2% and twice the number of jobs were created to what economists predicted- not a bad country to live in after all.

We both walked back to the office tonight, I had some final Bic Runga stuff to do, Mark is editing on final cut pro. Now I've finished and he is still editing, I kind of really want to go. So readers do I selfishly just say that, or do I yawn really loud and pretend to go to sleep in the hope I am carried home, or do I scream out "chocolate break"- only problem is there is no chocolate in the office. I know that we have a pre-record of the new aussie show "The Slap" upstairs and it's almost midnight so I wonder if we will see it tonight?. Maybe he doesn't know the witching hour is upon us? I could take careful aim with an elastic band and take out the main power box in the office...knowing my luck he hasn't backed up his work and he'll hate me all week. OK I'll be patient.... I'm a Taurean c'mon get real!!!!

October 14th

We had a late dinner of Indian last night, and some ginger beer so yours truly had very little sleep. The old brain was ticking over to the wee hours of the morning, mostly stupid stuff. Woke up to a fine Spring day, I think the weather has turned again and it really is a fantastic time of year here. My first chunk of Bic 'stuff' is out of the way, it took days and it was may main focus. Our next big batch of work happens Tuesday and Wednesday so I've pencilled it in for those days, I'm expecting two very long days. The annoying thing is that it has kept me from my Crowdies book, I was hoping to get another segment done next week so now it's the week later. It drives me crazy having delays but with books they happen , all the time. Sometimes I wonder why we even have deadlines?

It's getting pretty close to 5.00 on Friday and it has been a long week. We were thinking of finishing at some decent time when the security cameras pick up some movement, hmm Mr Courier with a parcel for us. We were trying to think what it is and as soon as he hands it to me I know. The THEY WILL HAVE THEIR WAY postcards for Australia. 2500 have arrived from EMI Sydney- they must of really pushed for these to make the flight. We open the box and the cards are actually still warm from the printers.

So apart from dinner and wild sex (ok making that up) we are back in the office. I'm typing this at midnight, finished the first 1000, so close to half way. I guess there goes most of our weekend. It's worth doing as it helps our mates at EMI, and some young Aussie bands, plus the Finns publishing gets a kick financially....so yep we'll invest our time.

Before we left the office I was trying to find a small prize for tonights "100 days of the frenz".... I was also packing some of the poster prizes and grabbed a recycled poster tube that the delightful Helen Eccles sent us ages ago for '7 Worlds Collide'..I opened the end and out fell my show laminate plus a spare.... so hey presto the spare was the prize for tonight. I do love fate and of course you too "hell on wheels"! (Helen) . Now if it was a wad of $50 notes I would of really danced... but hey this will make some collector happy.

October 15th

I was up and about early this morning, wanted to snare 3 tickets for The Church when they play Melbourne's Forum on December 30th. After much stuffing about and calling one of the ticketmaster private numbers, it's obvious the gig is not on sale today-despite it being in the newspaper, and still on the bands website. Grrrr hate that, I could of slept in. I emailed the band and eventually found out that there were some problems with contracts not arriving so the tickets will go on sale further down the track. You'd think they would of changed their website!!

A really good article on Bob Brown in The Age GW magazine. Seems like a decent guy especially for a politician!! Love the snap of him and his boyfriend on their farm. Sounds like he is a bit of an old romantic too. The Greens (not me) do well in Australia, in 1996 350,000 voted for them, last election it was 1.7 million.

October 16th

Finally the stained glass window is up, just as the clouds evaporate and some shafts of light burst through-excellent! Looks pretty good.

Bek tuns up at 1.30 and we have some passionfruit cheesecake and we walk for nearly 5 hours!!!!!!!!! Fun, we like her new hairstyle.

A big thank you to the many people who have voted for the Pajama Club (Best new band and best album) in the EG Awards. I get about 100 emails a day saying people have voted- fantastic. Voting is still on- so every vote helps. Great so many people have made the effort.

As I go to bed I check our ARIA charts and Crowded House seem to be selling again, The Very, Very Best Of Crowded House is now #49 in the National Top 50 here- and gold status, so life in the old girl yet!

Take care

Peter