As part of the Kings Cross Festival, a selection of retro dresses from the 40s and 50s.
Sunday was such a great day.
After waking mid-morning, I dropped Sam a text message to make arrangements to head off to the Kings Cross Festival.
As I went last year and really enjoyed it, and as Sam lives locally, I suggested the festival asa fun excuse for us to catch up.
The weather really delivered with a bright sunny day, with just enough chill in the air to make a light jacket necessary.
A wine or two, some nice food, some good company (a friend of his from uni days also came along), and a nice vibe in the air made for a very pleasant day.
One of the highlights of the festival was a “Retro Fashion Parade” which featured some of the clothing styles women would have worn in the 1940s-1960s.
For just a moment I was transported back to my childhood and to the clothes I remember my mum used to keep in her “good wardrobe”. I still remember the clothes and their distinctive moth-ball smell. I suspect they were the dresses mum would have worn to weddings and other important occasions. I don’t know what happened to mum’s clothes after her death, though I suspect they were probably burned, as was the custom in those days.
After a brief trip home to refresh myself, I headed into town to catch up with Graeme for a Sunday night retro music evening at The Shift which was loads of fun.
I’m one of those people who often walks around singing my favourite song, even at work.
According to those who’ve told me, it’s quite refreshing and usually brings a smile to their face.
Others, of course, probably think I’m just crazy.
But music has always been an important part of my life. And as I traveled over the last few weeks, I had a musical soundtrack to accompany me.
My favourite songs, the ones which accompanied me, were ones I heard/saw in real life and then got stuck in my head.
These were my five favourites… (in no particular order)
Keep On Walking – Salem Al Fakir
First, and foremost, I LOVE this song from Salem Al Fakir from Melodifestivalen. It’s a great song, and provided me with a great soundtrack as I walked around Stockholm.
I was aiming for the sky and ended up flat on the ground But once again the sun is rising I better keep on walking…
Since arriving back, it’s remained my favourite song.
The video clip also features the fantastic Swedish comedian, Björn Gustafsson
Manboy – Eric Saade
Also from Melodifestivalen was this very catchy song. It was a favourite to win for a while, but never quite made it.
Manboy, manboy, you can call me manboy….
It it gets a little repetitive after a while for you, skip up to the final 30 seconds for the “shower scene”.
Unstoppable – Ola
One final songs from Melodifestivalen has been this one… Unstoppable (the return of Natalie) by Ola Svensson.
Håll Om Mig – Nanne
This song was featured in Melodifestivalen a few years ago. I loved seeing it LIVE, and especially when the audience sang along. Magic moment.
Stockholm By Morning – Sarah Dawn Finer
And finally, a sentimental favourite. I saw Sarah Dawn Finer perform live, and I love this song, mostly for the lyrical content, and her wonderful performance.
From LA to New York To London to our front door Soon I’ll be in your arms Where I belong, babe Stockholm by morning It’s just a million miles When I’m away from your smile But it won’t be long ‘Til I’ll be home in your arms Stockholm by morning
I got excited yesterday morning. I heard on the radio there were going to be a bunch of late night parties around Sydney to celebrate the end of the “lock-out”.
The lock-out was introduced six years ago, in response to a series of alcohol-related violent attacks. As I recall, those attacks occured much earlier in the night, but the response was to restrict alcohol and trading hours around the city. Essentially, from 1.30am, you were “locked out” from entering bars in central parts of Sydney.
I won’t go into the pros and cons, and details, but it’s true to say, the general feeling is the response was an “over-response”, and that’s why they’ve decided to re-introduce later trading and to drop many of the restrictions.
With today being a day where I wasn’t working, I was tempted to head out, have a drink and enjoy some of the parties. I headed up to Oxford Street at about 10.30pm.
There was karaoke at Stonewall Hotel.Other venues, like The Oxford (pictured), The Columbian and Universal were pretty empty.
It seemed like a fairly normal night to me.
As @bjornhund pointed out to me on Twitter. Tuesday night is and has always been the dead night in the hotel/club/bar industry no matter what part of Sydney (or Australia for that matter) you are in. It’s also usually the quietest trading day in retail too.
It looks like I peaked too early. Maybe the weekend will be busier?
Nonetheless, there was a news crew from Channel 10, who I spotted doing some vox-pops on the street. Vox-pops are when you go up to random people in the street and ask them what they think about a particular issue, and then you string them together as a news item.
Last weekend, I spotted a crew from Channel 9 covering the light-rail interruption on George Street, beginning with the leading question, “Is this an inconvenience?”.
I didn’t hear the opening question from the Channel 10 crew last night, but I saw the look on their faces when they realised they’d stopped someone to interview, only to discover he was very drunk and highly abusive. “Don’t touch by f…. dog…” he said to one of the journalists. Classic! Having done a lot of vox-pops in my radio career, I felt their pain.
Last Friday Night
Some bikers, hooning it off at Taylor SquareAfter attending Harbour City Bears, I thought I’d check out some other local bars. They were all too busy, with too many impossibly young people, so I ended up watching a 50-something covers guy at The Courty intead.
There was a wonderful moment at the First Nations Media Conference (Converge) when Miriam Corowa was presented with an award for her achievements in journalism.
You might know Miriam from her appearances on the ABC News channel, or from other work she has done in the media, including at SBS. It’s been quite a journey from her time doing Year 11 work experience at the ABC in Lismore!
She had just been on a panel of Indigenous journalists talking about the joys and challenges of working on stories about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islands. In the midst of important stories about deaths in custody and closing the gap, they also spoke about the joy that comes from seeing positive stories, too.
Miriam spoke with passion and emotion about covering these stories, and about being “back home in Lismore”. Though born in Adelaide, she grew up here, and her mum still lives locally.
Miriam Corowa at Converge, the First Nations Media Conference
The other woman in the photograph above is also from Lismore, the renowned broadcaster and arts worker, Rhoda Roberts.
Rhoda was one of two key-note speakers at the conference, along with Pat Turner. Rhoda also spoke with passion and emotion about her career in the media and the arts. And with humour, too.
“Does anyone here know what a candy-striper was”, she asked the audience. I put my hand up. “Ah just the old people with glasses”, she replied with a laugh.
I’m pretty sure my aunty, Meg Webb worked with the candy stripers (domestic assistants) at Lismore Base Hospital. My dad also worked at the hospital as a plumber/boilermaker. Their sister-in-law Eileen (Crummy) O’Brien (my aunty) was a Widgabal/Bundjalung elder.
So I had a bit of an understanding of the story as Rhoda talked about her “expectations” as a young Aboriginal woman growing up in Lismore during the 60s/70s. “You were quite good as a candy striper, so you could become a nurses’ aid”, she told the audience she was told. As an FYI, my own careers adviser at the same school Rhoda attended told me I would never have a chance of getting a job at ABC Radio, and that maybe I should become a librarian :)
Rhoda spoke with passion about her father, Pastor Frank Roberts who encouraged her throughout her life and career. With passion, she spoke about how proud he was when she hosted the first anniversary of The Koori Mail. “He died the next day”, she told us.
But you get the idea Frank has always been on her mind throughout her career, as she has gone on to great achievements, including the Sydney Olympic Games, her work at the Sydney Opera House, etc. And now she’s back home, “back on country” and working at NORPA.
It was so terrific to be able to attend part of Converge. There were so many interesting discussions, and it was awesome to catch up with some current and former colleagues. But, being local and parochial for just a moment, the highlight was seeing these two great Bundjalung women being recognised for their work.
