Melbourne Vs Toronto

      This website > http://torontostrife.tumblr.com/ < go to it study it and when it makes no sense to you, move to Toronto and the penny will drop.


        Having lived in Belleville for most of my life, Toronto for the past several years and Melbourne for the last few months I have developed a very interesting propective on what each place is in relation to each other. The strongest and most well formed opinions are about T.O.This has a lot to do with its great contrast to Belleville and Melbourne and its similarities to other places I've visited or have strong perceptions about. 

         Toronto is a consumer's city to life into Toronto you have to want to intake things. You don't really have a choice not to. If you are the kind of person who just wants to go to work, go home, stay in and love your family then Toronto is very unlikely for you. Rather you are going to have to desire to see things, meet new people, do something interesting on a regular basis and consume many of the things that are placed before you. Toronto enjoys the newest thing there is. It is very much at the front of the wave seeing and passing everything first and its this that makes is disposable. Toronto values the things they can use up and throw away as soon as the the next thing comes up.  This makes for a fast pace and exciting lifestyle. But there is very little history in Toronto. Torontoinas are not particualy intrested in what can before the, rather they are much more intrested in what is coming next. They're actually rather futurist in their beliefs that what came before is irrelvant to what is happeneing now (wow, thanks theatre theory history). The analogy of Toronto being like Sydney is appearing rather accurate. 

(Yay! One of my own pictures!)

           The other half of this is the Melbourne is like Montreal. And this I feel is rather true. There is a history here that is held on to, you can see culture here. You can see what Melbourne is built on rather then having it have been torn down and replaced as the history would be in Toronto. There are cultural museums, an aquarium and a casino all right downtown. Federation Square  is actually more about the celebration of Federation and culture then about the biggest brightest adds on the buildings facing inward (like Dundas Square). There is a river running though the center of the city and there is a lot of culture based around it. There is a cultural center and a botanical gardens right in the heart of the city. I say with pride that Melbourne is a much nicer city then T.O.


     But the public transit sucks.


     I honestly never thought I would miss the T.T.C but I will weep for joy from here on out every time I have to wait 15 min for a bus because Metlink is SO MUCH WORSE. How Melbourne got voted as the worlds most livable city with a transit city like this I will never know because I feel it really knocks back my quality of life.

There's no place like...

The Countdown Begins

     My mom just brought it to my attention that I have something like (depending on which part of the world you are from at the time that I write this) 35 days left in Oz until I come home.

     I don't know how I feel about this. Please make it stop.

    There's no place like...

Mail Time! Featuring a Chimpmunk!

     My lovely Dessa Bell (aka. Katherine Noyes) sent me my first Canada themed postcard which I got last night after nerding at Kevin's house. In the same bunch of mail I learned that I am O Positive which means I can donate blood to anyone, yay! But saving lives is not as exciting as receiving a postcard from someone you love and miss as much as I do my little Kanadian Koala as I am her Australian Chipmunk. See?

     This is what Chipmunks look like to me- always a little angry, tell me you can't see the family resemblance. 

     I'm always ever so thankful for every piece of mail I get and am always thrilled to hear from wonderful people like K-Tron.


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May 19th - Ros & Guil Closes

       The show has closed. By the final two night the show had really found its groove and set off. It was a shame it took this long to find the best show in the final nights but we have learned a lesson. Regardless, it was a blast and I am thrilled to have been involved. This is a taste of what we did with our final night warm up. Every time I watch this I just want to get back to those moments.

       So very drunk, so very fun.


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My Little Australian Home

      A video tour of my room on campus. I swear my room being this clean is not a rare as you think though you couldn't tell by looking at it now...

      ...the thumbnail keeps going back and forth between a screen grab of my postcard wall or the line up of wine bottles (Which one will you get?!). I'm a classy broad.

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Who Doesn't Love a Good Package?

   
     Now imagine that but "I gotta package! I gotta package! I gotta package! Hey hey hey hey!" because that was what I was doing after I pranced, PRANCED, to the MRS office with my notice slip.

     I've been waiting for this for so long! I have been promised by Mr Evan Armstrong for months that I was getting a care package and I squeeeeed with joy when I got it. Its perfect (its seems mst of the things that get mailed to me are perfect... maybe its because they are mailed) and I love all the contents and no you don't get to know whats in it - just like you didn't get to read the postcards.  I really hope this keeps up, I am going to keep sending people postcards and letter even when I get home because they are wonderful things and people should do it more often. I am so fortunate to have to love and affection coming from Canada that I do and it always makes me feel amazing to receive it in such wonderful, thoughtful and personal means.


      Yes I know I owe you a real post soon, but things have been so busy with the show and all my papers due. I promise I'll do a real entry soon.


      Hurray for fun filled packages! (Get your mind out of the gutter).


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Thursday May 10th - Saturday May 12th: Ros & Guil Are Dead

       The show opened this week to a sold out house. I think we did okay. Its hard to say at this point how things are going with only three shows. All the stuff that was hilarious in rehearsals that the directors decided about my character is not flying with audiences. I've not changed anything and maybe I just got used to hearing them laugh at it and so not hearing the audience do it is disheartening but we carry on. I don't mean to pass the buck here on this matter but I didn't, and wouldn't, have made this choice for Gertrude but I do see why its entertaining. Perhaps I'm thinking too much of the original from Hamlet and need to think more about the comedic one in Ros and Guil.

        Regardless here are some awesome pictures taken by one of our techs!

      We have 5 more shows to go and then a kick ass closing night party where afterwards it will be a good thing that these people won't have to see me again because I expect I'm going to scare them.


There's no place like..

End of Mid Semester break to Monday May 7th- Rehearsals, Milan's Birthday & Fire Twirling

     Since my trips nothing much has been going on; I've been settling back into my Melbourne home and getting down to work. I owe you a video about ANZAC Day if I got any footage worth showing.
      Rehearsals have been going okay. I have been blended back into the cast well enough after my time away. We finally got to do my stuff last weekend and I feel more confident about it, however I still tend to pause awkwardly in the middle of my speech as I don't trust myself to say it correctly. I continue to get the feeling that only one of the directors actually wanted me on this show but I think I'm getting the other one to warm up. Hopefully. I have lots of opinions of the work and how it's going but I think there is a cultural difference here preventing anything I say from being valid. Also I am adjusting to being a vessel again. It reminds me why I am a deviser and not an actor. At this point we have yet to do a full run through, we open this May 10th. Eek.

       Milan's birthday was a couple of weeks ago, I had a blast. Danced on Chapel Street and drank and pulled pranks and had  a damn good time. Many of the pictures that are now on facebook are ones I don't remember being taken and there are many not on facebook that I hope others have forgotten.

(L to R: Luigi, Rachel, Alan, Kirsten & Allie)

(Birthday girl Milan and Boyfirned Harm)

(Jaydin & E-Jaz)

(Myself & Josh/J-Mac)

(E-Jaz, Alex, Della, ??? :S, Frankie & Tim)

       Last week I went to my second burn with MCJAF and my first after switching to poi. It went better than I had expected but it reminded me that I still have SO MUCH to learn. I can really only do a couple of tricks well enough to be confident enough to do the with fire and not just my poi socks. I have heaps that I need to work on and plenty I need to keep practising to get confident enough to do while on fire. That being said I hit myself several times and didn't die, so my fear about being caught alight has greatly diminished so that is one hurdle overcome. 

(Jeremy doing contact fire juggling)

(Julien & fire staff, which was what I was learning originally)

(Jeremy with his hand on fire, metholated spirits I believe. He could do that for about 3 seconds after which he yelped and shook his hand violently)

(Rhys, my teacher with poi)

(Me with poi)

        Over the next couple weeks I have 2 major essays to write, the show opens and closes, I've got high tea and birthday celebrations to attend, and what promises to be a revealing cast party (or at least it will prove for everyone else, this group has a lot to learn about me), a real Aussie Footy match. I'm going to try to stay sane and not starve and keep trying to get a job and celebrate the semester being over with a weekend away. This will hopefully keep things interesting.


There's no place like...

Mail Time: 3in1

     Today (and all days really... and the fact that I got these a few days ago) I am a spoilt little girl. Gordo sent me a package of 3 little letters from himself, Matt and Rochelle who wrote them all together on a infamous evening and as always, it made my day. How I adore these three and the love they send me. Rochelle and Gordo shared one piece of red card which included affection, the fulfillment of promises and naughty drawings and Matt's postcard was a perfect representation of our adoration and adventures to come.

     Receiving mail is just so fantastic. Truth be told these three we in the first category from the last "Mail Time" post and, Gordo excluded because be was the first to send me anything, there were moments I feared that the crushing feeling of let down expectations was to come. Often you forget to show the people you're closest to the love you assume they know you feel for them and your attention wanders to other things but in reality they need it most. I've concluded the joy of receiving mail from anyone is delivered regardless if you were expecting it or not. Mail is just a wonderful thing. Blue Clues really caught on to something.



There's no place like...

Friday May 4th - Surprise Mail Time!

     Friday night after a long rehearsal (at which I fell ill) I returned home to receive a surprise postcard from Katy. I say surprise because this is the first mail I've received I didn't have prior notice that I was to expect and it certainly was unexpected. 
     
     Honestly there are some people you expect are going to send you stuff, some you really hope will, others that just tell you they have and some that you would never anticipate them to think of you to send  you anything. When the first two categories send you something its essential, heartwarming and wonderful, if don't send you things its crushing. Those in the third are usually one of the first two who just decide to tell you it's coming and you get the anticipation for days, maybe weeks, on end that ends with a burst of relief and joy. But  when the fourth group sends you something its dizzying, you get an amazing feeling thinking that someone who you didn't think would think about you did and it makes you feel fantastic and ever so thankful.

Also - Pixar Monsters! =D

There's no place like...

Videos That Make Me Choke Up These Days

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Mail Time! Canadian Edition!

          Last night when I got home from rehearsal I found I had received my first piece of overseas mail (again, that was not my mother, not that her mail is not valued, because it is SO MUCH, but you understand). This was from Gordo, who I have often described as my spirit guide. He makes me feel perfect just the way I am, like I don't have to change a thing, accepted even when disagreed with or misunderstood. The card is simple and small and perfect for our friendship. It makes me feel like wonderful and thought of and I'm extremely thankful. 

Also, you cannot see it but the envelope is sealed with a wax stamped V (for his last name). I tore open the envelope in a way that I didn't have to break the seal. Its amazing and I want one.

There's no place like...

Brand Names

     Snap! Crackle! Pop! Kellogg's Rice... Bubbles?

      I'm confused about this. Why did someone think that they had to change the names of a product between countries? I mean I understand between languages but North America and Australia can't be so different as to need to change the names of cereals... are they?

Kellogg's Rice Bubbles (Okay, this does make a bit of sense, what the heck is a crispy?)

100's and 1000's (Hundreds and Thousands) aka Sprinkles

Creaming Soda (why is the 'ing' necessary?) 

Where's Wally? Who the hell is Wally? That's not even a shorter wold to Waldo! Who is Waldo in Australia  that its not okay to call him by his full name?

      Also, there are no stick deodorant here. Its all aerosol. Well there is stick but its expensive. Everything is, but that is a different story.

There's no place like...