Happy Birthday Luke!!!

Jay

El Birthday-Boy Loco! There’s something you need to know:
1987; the year you were born: 1+9+8-7 = 11
May; the month you were born: allocating each letter in the alphabet to its corresponding number, M=13, A=1 & Y=25, so Y-A-M = 11
29; the day of the month you were born: 2+9 = 11
L.A.B; your initials, again, with their corresponding numbers, L=12, A=1 & B=2, so L+A-B = 11
I’m just saying… Think about it. You are eleven. That’s got to help your theory… whatever it is.
All jokes aside, I love you like a brother.
No, seriously, you’re a loving, funny, generous and selfless brother and you’ve taught me much throughout my 21 years, not in the traditional teacher/student way, but through admiration. You give me confidence I didn’t know I had, and I know a lot of people could say the same thing. We get along famously and I treasure our closeness and unique sense of humour. I mean, who else could understand the hilarity of “Got my bean in a coffee cu~rp”, or even, “Yeah, go on then…”. Our memories speak for themselves and I look forward to making countless more with you.
May the road rise up to meet you.
Happy Birthday!

Oh, and according to Mark Hoppus of Blink 182, nobody likes you when you’re 23… so that’s unfortunate for you.

Helly

In Castle Hill, lives a guy named Luke Bovino

He is of Italian descent, as we all know

Enthusiastic and animated, he is always the life of the party

He also has another side which is sensitive, soulful and arty


He enjoys rap battles, and can always hit us with some cool rhymes

And if he had one wish, it would be to travel through time

He has a feisty Italian temperament, but becomes as gentle as a lamb

After he watches one of his favourite actors, Jean Claude Van Damn


It’s no secret that he’s a bit of a Cassanova

A pretty girl just has to smile at him and he’s completely bowled over

He seems to fall in love with every girl he meets

But one day he’ll decide that it’s time to play for keeps


Acting is his chosen career

Which requires him to put himself out there and show no fear

A unique, creative point of view and I suspect

That this will serve him well when he decides to direct


With this last line, I swear I’m not trying to make you puke

But we really do love you, our dear friend Luke




Lee


No epic blog about Luke could continue without at least one story of him being a dick. I remember being floored by Rocky the first time I saw it. Arriving at school the next day, I knew I had to find Luke as he was a huge fan of the movie and of course the whole series. He was the only other person I knew that had seen it, plus he called himself The Italian Stallion as an ode to one of his favourite movies. But when I finally found Luke, ready to discuss all the great moments of my new favourite movie ever, he stopped me after only a few words.

"I saw that way before you did."

"But Bov" I replied, "Nobody has seen this movie but us, you finally have someone to talk about it with!"

With a look of ego-fueled dickheadedness all he said was, "I'm a bigger fan than you."

And he walked away. To top it off, I learned only a little while later that he had never seen the film. Let me repeat that. Never. Seen. The. Film. Dick!



The person that Luke has revealed to me in recent times has turned out to be a great friend and someone that I have shared thousands of laughs with. NOT a dick, but with an ego the size of Kansas, he is one of my best friends and I love him like a brother.

The most awesome thing, from my perspective, to happen to Luke as of late is his discovery of the wealth of talent within himself in areas he didn't realize existed. I specifically mean his drawing. If someone were to look at a drawing by Luke, one would assume he has been doing this for a long time, but amazingly, he has only very recently found this side of himself, this unique talent. I say unique not because drawing is unique, but because Luke's personal artwork is. Works of abstract beauty are flowing from his heart to paper, and he's still a little shy about it, which is hard to believe. Two months ago, after watching Van Dam, The Trilogy was sitting at my dining table and Luke started drawing on this flimsy little napkin. After a few minutes, he had drawn a simple, yet amazingly complete piece of abstract art. We kept the napkin for prosperity.

Happy birthday Luke, I may be one of your fifty friends, but you're one of my five, so consider yourself very lucky. I know I do.




Eden

11 Reasons why I love Luke

1. You are an amplifier of life: I think the best way to explain you as a person is someone who amplifies life. There are moments that I experience in everyday life, like a funny joke or a cool story and I’m usually glad to have experienced it. However, if I get to share that moment with you, your enthusiasm and passion makes the moment something greater. You may not be as funny as Lee or Hamish or Burrtank but your laugh is always genuine and insanely infectious, which makes any of their jokes infinitely better.
2. Your confidence: As someone who has struggled with my own confidence at times, it has always been inspiring to have such a confident friend around to lead as an example and challenge me to confront fears.
3. Your Integrity: If someone loved shows like Ghost Whisperer and movies like The Count of Monte Cristo* were their all time favourites, they might be afraid to admit it, but you not only admit it, you are proud of it and defend your love. I love how you are unyielding in knowing what is true to you.
4. The memories: “Remember when we used to…” This is how some of my favourite conversations start. "...sit in English and I said all the answers under my breath, and Dean said all the funny jokes under his breath, and you yelled them all out to the class. You were the smartest, funniest guy out!"
5. The future: I can see us being friends for a long time, and the memories are just going to keep growing. Lucky you always have a camera with you to make sure we capture at least a few of the countless special moments.
6. Your Family: From Tones all the way to Cousin Frank, you have an amazing family which has to be a big reason why you are who you are.
7. Your ‘heaps funny’ jokes: Nothing like having your best friend swear to you that he didn’t take your wallet 50 times until you believe him, and then he reveals that he had it the whole time.
8. Your Birthday Messages: You were born to be an actor, but you can always fall back on being a Hallmark birthday card writer. I love how you come up with them on the spot. They are always special even if you write them in October, cos Facebook told you it was my birthday.
9. HELD, BAJ, SEALD**, Dr Hell: Doesn’t matter what the abbreviation is, it always has an E and an L. Maybe we should be called EL Friendship Loco.
10. Our friendship: Some of the conversations we have are deep and personal and I couldn’t have them with many other people and still feel comfortable having them. There is an obvious chemistry between us, and we understand each other so well.
11. Your Friendships: It says a lot about a person when, while most people have around 5 close friends at best, you have about 20. I’m just glad to be one of them…officially number 3 on Facebook! Sucked in Lee, you’re not even on there.

*It's not a bad movie, just not the best in the world
**I don't think this abbreviation ever officially existed, there was BTNH but that didn't have EL in it

The Legend Of Luke Bovino Part 1 – The Early Years

Luke Bovino, son of an extremely attractive mother and mega-cool father, was a young man working his way towards fame and stardom via acting. Not even he could possibly imagine the amazing deeds he would go on to accomplish in life.

He started life just like any other unassuming individual. He worked part-time at channel 9, hung out full-time with his friend Van Dam and wondered the lands looking for the answers to the questions that plagued his mind such as; do aliens really exist? If a guy came up to me and said he was me from the future, would I believe him?

It was during his high-school years that he began acquiring some of the legendary skills he would utilise later in life. Be it making his friends laugh at his insanely entertaining stories, making humorous observations or stealing jokes/answers, Luke was somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades.

Also during these times he became a member of the powerful organisation HELD. HELD went on to make several amazing films with Luke often starring as the lead. It was his powerful performance in the critically acclaimed Around House Beatings, which led to his first Oscar nomination.

Once he travelled to the great-untamed snowy lands of Canada for the better part of a year where he stumbled upon a small mountain town by the name of Vancouver. So great was his impact in this snowy little town that I hear the townspeople erected a statue of him in the town square in his honour. Now once a year, Canadians travel far and wide to Vancouver to trade stories and sing songs of his amazing feats. But if you try to locate Vancouver on a map now days you may have a little trouble finding it, as now days it goes by the name Bovcouver (or maybe Vanvino).

Luke came back from Bovcouver a changed man. He was twice as knowledgeable and was now wise beyond his years. He was kind enough to share his knowledge with his friends as well as his stories involving his encounters with UFOs.

Luke Bovino is a good man whom I’ve had the pleasure of knowing personally. He’s always upbeat and his positive nature is infectious. He was always kind enough to laugh at my jokes no matter how poor of quality they may be and he just seems happy to be here in general.

Later in life, he finally discovered the secret to time travel and became the first man to travel through time. This would lead to chain reaction of disastrous consequences, which would take Luke several journeys through time before he could manage to stop a hole in the space time continuum destroying the world. But as they say, that’s a story for another day.

To Be Continued…

-Unidentified scholar circa 2010


Russell

I'll keep this brief because A) I am extremely late in providing BOTM with my portion of this super blog; and B) I'm nowhere near as artistic and funny as those who have written before me.

However, I do have a few things to say about a special man named Luke Bovino:

• Encouragable: I don't know any other person that is more encouraging than El Ino. My mood can go from mediocre to extremely happy in an instant with one strategically placed sentence from the mouth of the Italian Stallion. Furthermore to this point, his very presence at a party or a small social gathering is intoxicating - I think Hamish said it well in his famous Dr Hell article "If you're having a party, you need Luke".
• Laughter: Some of my greatest "laughter moments" from High School come from hanging out with Luke, especially in drama class. I recall a time when we had to read amongst ourselves from a play entitled "The Club", and it was Luke's jokes that made the task impossible to complete. 
• Movies: This guy Luke loves movies, and so do I. The funny thing is though, is that my taste in film is pretty different I have to say to his - but also very similar at the same time. With variety being the spice of life, this provides for some excellent conversation on films past and present.
• Generosity: Luke is extremely giving and generous. I travelled to Bovcouver last year and he was kind enough to provide me with a lodging, food, Van Dam, and the sights and smells of his newly-conquered town. 
• Friendship: I feel honoured to have Luke as a friend. We have shared some great times together, and I'm looking forward to keeping the good times rollin. I think all you need to do is to read the warm-hearted, genuine comments from his mates above to see just how much of an effect he has on peoples lives. 

Keep being you, Luke. I hope to one-day travel time with you, maybe to the year 11?

Excuses, Excuses

I was driving to work the other day, trying to turn out onto a main road from a difficult side street. There isn’t the best visibility of what is coming so you have to be a little aggressive to make the turn. But on this occasion I found myself not looking for a good gap in traffic to take advantage of, instead I was looking to make sure another car was coming so I didn't have to go. I realised instead of finding opportunities to go I was just finding excuses to justify my lack of action.

I know this is a deep concept drawn out of a trivial moment but I think it relates to many things that I do in life. Last night I had planned to go to yoga.

“Oh but I haven’t been for a month…”
“Oh but it’s pretty cold…”
“Oh but I smoked last night and I feel lazy…”

So much of me concentrated on the negatives in an attempt to thwart my proactive desires that it was hard for me not to accept their awesome logic. And if I allowed myself to believe my own bullshitt then I could miss yoga and play Xbox guilt free! The positive side of me still had some life and a little voice in my head was heard.

“Yeah but yoga is good for me.”
“Yeah but yoga builds resistance to weaknesses like cold.”
“Yeah but if I got time to smoke, I got time to do yoga.”

I decided to go against my will and got in my car. Petrol tank? Full, damnit. I came up to the difficult turn - No cars :( As I parked and got out of my car my laziness had one more trump card - I forgot to bring water.

“Maybe I should just go home…”
“Just buy some water!”
“I don’t like to buy plastic bottles…”

Now even my hippie self was arguing with itself, but I sit here writing this today with pain in my legs and back so good triumphed over evil.

Anyways I think I will continue to make excuses whenever I come up to something challenging. The key is to try and view the excuses objectively for a moment and see the pettiness of them. Or better yet just focus on the positives when opportunities show themselves. Deep down we know what is right and wrong and excuses are generally bred from laziness or fear. Next time I drive to work I won’t be afraid to pull out, even if there is a semi trailer speeding towards me!

- Eden (while listening to Pablo Honey - Radiohead)

Wait Your Turn

I wrote this song when I was 17, and it's interesting to see what I was feeling back then. This song was written for the first incarnation of Vienna Circus in January 2005. I've always been proud of this song.

WAIT YOUR TURN

I can feel it (I can feel it)

Pumping though my veins

I know this feeling I know this feeling

Makes me fire and fire again

Get me noticed (get me noticed)

Because I don't think that I

Would be the lowest man to ever walk 

The lowest man to ever walk 

The lowest man to ever walk the earth

I can't find my way

To what I want to say

I just think that I 

Will be the one to cry

I'm just thinking of me

As who I want to be 

And maybe I will learn

To never wait my turn

I think I mess up (I think I mess up)

Because I don't love myself

Am I no better (am I no better)

Than the ones I never help

Didn't get the memo (get the memo)

Of how everything should be

Do I not listen or am I

Just the one who understands

Just the one who understands

The only one who understands my way to be

I can't find my way

To what I want to say

And now I know that I

I won't live to die

And if you're thinking of me

As who I want to be 

I know that I will learn

So you just wait your turn

Helly's Video View- The Apartment

I had wanted to see this movie for a long time, considering that it is written and directed by Billy Wilder. I’m a big fan of some other Billy Wilder films including Sunset Boulevard and Some like it hot (especially the latter as it’s one of my all time favourite movies.) It came up in a conversation with Jay this week and it gave me the impetus to finally watch it. I was not disappointed!

Most movies of this era are all lightness and frivolity which is what makes them so much fun to watch (and is what I really like about Some like it hot). The first part of the film cracks along at a great pace and is exactly what you would expect from a 50’s era film but then the film takes an unexpected turn and presents us with a new layer of depth. Wilder has been praised by some as a master of structure and that is definitely evident in this film. On reflection, it does follow the traditional three act structure but when you’re watching the film it is in no way predictable and the acts flow seamlessly into one another.

Of course I have to mention the fantastic dialogue! When people say (usually whimsically with a far off look in their eye) ‘They don’t make them like they used to’ I think what they really mean to say is ‘They don’t write characters and dialogue the way they used to’ because that seems to be the crucial difference between films then and now. Don’t get me wrong I’m still a fan of a more naturalistic style of dialogue and Tarrantino’s penchant for pop culture references, but there is something about the way films from this time period were written that I am instantly drawn to. Every character in these worlds has a razor sharp wit and always knows exactly the right thing to say at the right time, you gotta admit that’s an enviable quality! I wouldn’t normally do this but I feel like I need a quote here to show you an example (don’t worry this doesn’t give anything away!) C.C. Baxter is played by Jack Lemmon and Fran Kubelik is played by Shirley Maclaine.


Fran Kubelik: I never catch colds.
C.C. Baxter: Really? I was reading some figures from the Sickness and Accident Claims Division. You know that the average New Yorker between the ages of twenty and fifty has two and a half colds a year?
Fran Kubelik: That makes me feel just terrible.
C.C. Baxter: Why?
Fran Kubelik: Well, to make the figures come out even, if I have no colds a year, some poor slob must have five colds a year.
C.C. Baxter: [sheepishly] Yeah... it's me.

Onto the performances- I have always loved Jack Lemmon as the ‘loveable underdog’ and his character C.C. Baxter is the epitome of that in this film but Lemmon also has moments of such subtle poignancy which are heart breakingly beautiful. Shirley Maclaine also turns in a stellar performance as the charming yet sensitive Fran Kubelik. I strongly empathized with this character, as would anyone who has ever had their heart broken.

I can almost guarantee that the writers of the show Madmen would have used this film as a reference point at some stage. Particularly in regards to the treatment of women and the struggle for men trying to climb higher in the office hierarchy.

If I had to criticize this film about something (and bare in mind this a minute criticism, look at the glowing review I’ve given it!) it would be the last line. In the two other Wilder movies I’ve seen the last lines have been some of the most memorable and quotable lines in movie history. In Sunset Boulevard it’s ‘Okay Mr Demille, I’m ready for my close up’ (often misquoted as the other way around) and in Some like it hot it’s ‘Nobody’s Perfect’ (which is more of a punch line in context.) I guess that those are big things to live up to but I was eagerly anticipating what the last line was going to be and I was a teensy bit disappointed. It seems like the line is a wink to the audience somehow (like ‘nobody’s perfect) except it’s not referencing anything. Anyway a trivial criticism of what truly is an amazing film and is vastly becoming one of my favourites.

-Helly

Death

Eden's blog got me thinking about death. I've often thought about it, generally I think about it after a close shave on the roads. From what I understand, a "conventional" fear of death is to be afraid of dying a violent death (getting shot, car crash etc)... or so pop culture/the innernettes tells me.

It's not a car crash I'm afraid of, it's leaving behind all those I love and how they'd feel. A fatal car crash is momentary physical pain, but your memory lingers on for decades. If you die in a way that could have been prevented, like making stupid decisions on the road, that's what I fear.

I'm not advocating living a safe life where you don't take any risks or have any adventures. That's probably worse than dying.

The idea of my mortality has impact on my daily life. It makes me happy when I'm feeling like shit at work. Recently at work we've (me and the guys on the helpdesk) have been getting worked really hard, and had some little perks taken away from us. I thought to myself, fuck this - I'm going to do whatever I like, I'll stick it to management, I'll refuse to do work that I don't believe I should be doing and I'll do what's right. In one year I wont care about anything that happen in the last two weeks at work, in five years I'll be in a different job and in eighty years I'll be dead.

Thinking about death brings you closer to how you truly feel about life.

- Dogman

Eden's 50th

Counting all my blogs, Albums of the Weeks, my homepage and the one time only Weekend Special I have 49 contributions to this website. So in celebration of my 50th, I came up with 50 reasons why Beatles On The Moon is Awesome!

1. I can show off my awesome awesome awesome writing skills
2. I cann learned form pefrect being suc has Jason howto type a blog witout a singal tipo or gramaticle faux pa.
3. Cock College
4. The Cottage
5. It has become an extension of the already amazing friendships that I have
6. Using it to impress my lady
7. Album of the Week
8. Having an outlet that encourages my creativity
9. And increases my productivity on the blog and in life in general
10. It has given me more purpose in life and helped me see what truly matters
11. nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve nevele si gnihtyreve
12. Reliving some amazing moments of my South American adventure by writing about them
13. Guest Blogs
14. Helly’s Video View finally giving this site a movie edge
15. Marquee Moon – Television
16. The ability to read back on old blogs from almost a year ago
17. The power trip relating to being one of three dictators on this glorious site
18. Envisioning flamboyant formations of pompous prose, and transforming those enlightened entities into dazzling displays of poetic prowess
19. Getting lots of praise for blogs that I thought were shit, and barely any for my favourite
20. Having pockets of my personal philosophies forever saved to give me a clear picture of what I believed and how I may or may not differ now
21. The Rabbitron 3000
22. Lee’s Comedy College…until it got shit
23. Pretending to get annoyed at late or non existent blogs
24. Pretending like I am only pretending to be annoyed
25. Pretending to pretend that as I pretended to tend to my first pretention
    I tended to depend on a false pretence of intended tension
    Presenting an end to offend any pretended angst and languid intention
    And in the end depending again that my  friends pretend to resent my pretentious convention
26. Getting new comments
27. The freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeedom to blog about whatever I want, however I want, whoever I want and whenever I want…every Wednesday
28. The humble feeling of seeing someone’s first blog stand out in a sea of experienced bloggers
29. The bare honesty that this blog inspires
30. Roy
31. The feeling of writing a blog that I thought would be shit, but ends up being awesome
32. The feeling of writing a blog I thought would be awesome but turns out shit
33. Are You Experienced – The Jimi Hendrix Experience
34. The Story of the naming of BOTM
35. The pressure of making sure I have something to write about each week
36. Top 10 week
37. Feeling in the moment
38. The lessons in proactivity
39. Learning new things about some of my closest friends
40. Funny comments sections
41. Our number 1 fan
42. Having something new to share with my friends almost every day
43. The comfort of knowing Tones has “read the lot”
44. Being inspired by someone else’s blog to change something in my life
45. Me encanta dejar mensajes de amor para mi querida quesita
46. Feeling like a philosopher
47. Writing my musical influence at the bottom of each blog
48. The fact that I could think up 50 reasons for loving this site without breaking a sweat (although some are kind of repeated)
49. The fact that not many people know or care about it
50. The fact that I love all of those who do

- Eden (while listening to Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd)

Rhythm Guitar. Fuck Yeh.

I love playing guitar. I love the power I wield. Although I am in the process of becoming a better lead player (solos, riffs etc), I am first and foremost a rhythm guitarist and I get most satisfaction out of playing chords in my own unique (cough..Townshend..cough) way.

My style of playing is sort of like waves. I will strum a chord, letting it open itself to the fullest sound. And just at the peak of the wave, another strum will come crashing down on top of it. And sometimes, I like to have multiple strums crashing down in quick succession, once again like a bunch of heavy waves toppling over each other. It's a beautiful feeling. This is different in that it is not always on the beat, and almost always not repetitive. Often, right before my next strum, I will cut the sound off for a split second, leading to that much more of a powerful sound when the next chord hits. That's awesome.

I love my guitar, and I hope to build a collection over my lifetime. I am very picky about my picks. I like soft-medium picks that you can bend fairly easily, because they offer the chance to strum really fast when need be. But the pick still needs to be hard enough to really give me that FUCK YEH power I was talking about before.

I used to play bass, and that holds a different kind of power. As I play more lead guitar I find that holds something else beautiful and strong. Lead and rhythm each hold a unique kind of power. I'll leave it up to the current wielders of those swords to explain someday, but for now all I can say is that being a rhythm guitarist gives me a kind of catharsis I can't find anywhere else, where I am the ruler of a kingdom inhabited by six strings willing to surrender to my command.

- Lee from Vienna Circus

Helly's Video View- The Informant

I first heard Mark Whitacre’s story on the This American Life’ Podcast (definitely recommended as a side note).  Apparently a screenwriter also heard that particular podcast and thought it would make an interesting screenplay and that's how the movie The Informant came to be. So I was very familiar with the original source material before going into the film, which is important to know from the outset.

I don’t want to give to many of the plot twists away but for those of you who don’t know ‘The Informant’ is about a high powered executive, Mark Whitacre who knows about some highly illegal activity going on inside the company he works for and he subsequently  becomes an informant for the FBI for 2 and a half years in order to (ask Mark puts it ) ‘Catch the bad guys.’ 

To be completely honest I found listening to the podcast of the true story a lot more interesting than the film interpretation. I think the film could have been a lot better if they had not decided to make it a comedy and just focused on telling the true story of Mark Whitacre. Instead the film is layered with quirk and funny lines which distract from the main story.  In the podcast they went into detail explaining some of the business terms that were used in the story such as 'price fixing' and what they mean. The film works from the point of view that the average person already knows what these things are and if I didn't already know the back story I would have been very confused by not only the jargon that was being used but also the entire plot. But Maybe that's just because I'm not very business savvy! 

While Matt Damon, did create an interesting character in Mark Whitacre, when they interviewed the real Mark he was nothing like the character presented in the film. I know that you could probably use the argument of artistic license, but if I wonder how the real Mark Whitacre feels about how he was portrayed in this film. The real Mark is very intelligent, he has bi-polar disorder and I suspect he's also a compulsive liar but to the outside observer he appears to be just a regular guy. Matt Damon's Whitacre is a bit of a buffoon and has a child like innocence about him. 

I also found the art direction slightly odd. The film is set in the 90's but based on the look of the film you would think it was either the 60's or the 80's. If this was an intentional choice by the film maker to show that Mark is quite out of date with the rest of the world*, then it should have been just Mark and possibly his wife styled this way, and the rest of the film styled in a very identifiably 90's look to show the contrast. Maybe I'm being nit picky here but I think that the visual is also a very relevant component to the overall film.

* An example of this being done well is in the film The Castle, The film was made and set in the late 90's (and looks like it is) but the Kerrigan family all still dress like it is the mid 80's to show how out of touch they are.

Most great films could arguably be described as a good story, well told. I would describe this film as a good story, badly told. 

-Helly

Keep looking up

"And I’m there
Looking up at the sky
And I’m scared
Thinking ‘bout the way that I

I don’t understand
Anything at all
How it overtakes me
And I’m just so small
Do I stand a chance?"
 - The Flaming Lips





The other week I was on my way home from work walking from the bus stop to my building, and was listening to "It Overtakes Me" by The Flaming Lips, and just as it got to the change where Wayne sings the part that I quoted above, I tilted my head towards the night sky and looked at the Universe. A calm washed over me, I forgot about my job, my bills, something stupid I said that day; nothing mattered because I knew that nothing I do will ever matter in the grand scheme of things, that my existence on this planet is way bigger than I am… I felt good.

That was just one example of how the stars were successful in soothing my soul, but no matter how I’m feeling they always deliver. I’m not sure what it is that I subconsciously associate looking at the sky with… it may be I think about the times sitting at Canoelands on that piece of rock attached to the cottage, discussing the stars with losers; or it may be that when I look up it reminds me of all the times I’ve thought about the Universe and how it blows my mind; OR it may be that the very act of looking up at the sky and being lost in the moment is what it’s all about, and the stars physically have the same effect on me when I’m looking at them as when I’m thinking about them… who knows!

What I do know is that whenever I stop and realise that it’s a beautiful night, I make sure to look up and check out the artwork. Eden wrote an awesome blog on Wednesday 14 April 2010, entitled Life Imagery, in which he discussed among other things the beauty of a metaphor and how you can use it to seek out the “truths of life and love”. Well looking up at the sky to me is a metaphor for looking up in life; but not the conventional “you can achieve anything” crap… it’s a simple philosophy – just relax, clear your mind, love in the now, feel good.

Oh… and listen to the Flaming Lips.

- Russell

This is a list of the things I like

This list is a list of the things I like

• I like a pencil with an eraser on it’s end
• I like old jazz
• I like a ninety-percent-used tube of toothpaste
• I like my mum’s banana cake
• I like Christmas movies
• I like beaches but not swimming in them… or the sand
• I like black bonds tops
• I like Dean’s modesty (especially when you tell him his arms are massive)
• I like Hamish’s beard
• I like Eden’s soft-spoken voice (especially when we are in a car with the music up)
• I like Brooke’s disposition
• I like Lee’s mouth-drumming (especially when I’m talking to him)
• I like Luke’s use of obscure Tekken players
• I like Russell’s scarf-wearing
• I like Helly
• I like white bonds tops
• I like a comb with the heads of the pins removed
• I like almonds
• I like sleeping as close to the floor as possible
• I like Woody Allen
• I like that feeling when I’ve just been proven wrong
• I like walking with an umbrella under light rain
• I like sunsets, but prefer sunrises
• I like how I think no new pair of jeans will ever be better than the best pair I have now
• I like the comfort of the passenger seat

 - Jay

Why Speaking Spanish is Awesome

Uno: Es muy bueno para mantener una mente intelligente y alerta.
Dos: Te da respecto a la gente que habla muchos lenguas. Es super dificil . Tambien es muy interesante para ver los cosas similares y diferentes entre las dos lenguas. Te da mas idea de la origen de su propia lengua.
Tres: Si conoces a alguien que puede hablar español, puedes hablar con el o ella sobre otra personas, no importa si las personas estén en lo mismo lugar!
Cuatro: Para viajar con dos lenguas es perfecto para conocer un pais o muchos y encontrar a muchos amigos de paises diferentes.
Cinco: Puedes escribir tu diario y leer Harry Potter en español.
Six: You can write pretentious blogs on your website that only your friends read, even though your friends don’t speak spanish.
Siete: Puedes crear tatuajes y estados de facebook en español para impresionar a todos.
Ocho: Puedes ver peliculas de paises diferentes sin subtitulos...pero es poco dificil y no vas a entenderla muy bien...probablemente es mejor que usas subtitulos...
Nueve: Puedes ser casi tanto awesome como yo.
Diez: Puedes conocer a una Peruana bonita de trabajo para practicar la lengua, y despúes de conocerla, encuentras que te gusta y quieres conocerla mas. Y si tienes mucho suerte puedes besarla y ser mas feliz!!!

- Eden

2 (separate) Poems

In keeping from the giver, have you ever fully known
What the world inside you looks like when you let your fire glow
Because I feel a sense of change here, a desire to misconstrue
All the the things I've ever known about me and about you

Love is not the answer, just a question to avoid
I dream of many patterns, too fragile to enjoy
Nothing there above me as I fall asleep tonight
Learning from a doctor how to truly unwind

Helly's Video View- The September Issue

As I am the only female, regular contributer to BOTM, I can imagine how my choice of film this week may illicit some groans from some of you but the only things I saw this week were this and Iron Man 2 and I thought I could get more mileage out of this, as this is my two word review of Iron Man 2 - 'It Rocked!. Besides I think we all have learnt that documentaries can still be very interesting even if you are not interested in or know very little about the subject matter eg. Anvil, Grey Gardens, Capturing the Friedmans...although not many people have an avid interest in paedophilia...except paedophiles I guess...

I digress, on to the main point- For those of you unfamiliar with this film The September Issue is a fashion documentary which primarily focuses on the editor-in-chief of American Vogue, Anna Wintour and her extreme perfectionism when it comes to putting together The September Issue , the largest and most notorious edition of Vogue magazine. Anna Wintour has been dubbed 'the ice queen' by some press and Meryl Streep's character in The Devil Wears Prada was based on her.

On the blurb of the dvd it says something to the effect of 'For many years Anna Wintourn has kept the process of putting together American Vogue a closely guarded secret..until now! The Doors of American Vogue are flown open and the film makers are given unlimited access to the inner workings of Vogue. This is the fashion industry, like you've never seen before!' That's not verbatim clearly and sorry Lee I know you hate it when I read the blurbs! Now I know that the people who write the blurbs are probably the distribution companies and not the film makers, but even still I was very excited by this premise and then inevitably let down as it failed to deliver on this front. There were no 'secrets exposed' as such and it didn't reveal anything new about the fashion industry.

I think the crucial flaw in this film, is lack of vision. Documentaries are still films and even though there is no written narrative, the film maker should still have an idea of the story they are trying to tell or the message they are trying to convey. In other words documentaries may seem objective, but they really are still subjective as the film maker can interpret the footage they shot in any way they like. In this documentary, it really seems as if they just let the cameras roll and cut it together without having a clear story in mind. There is the occasional scene with Anna supposedly 'letting her guard down' but if that was the intention of the director- to show that Anna Wintourn is not the cold, oppressor that many people believe she is, than there should have been more of these scenes. In fact it would have made for a more interesting film if they had just scrapped the whole September Issue element and just focused on Wintour and her life story. There is one paticular poignant scene when Wintour talks about how the rest of her family all work for charitable organisations, or in politics and that they are 'amused' by what she does. In this one scene you can see that even someone extremely powerful and successful can still have their own insecurities.

Another interesting character in this film was the creative director and head stylist Grace. She is pitted against Wintour as the 'good guy' of the film. An ex-model, Grace is responsible for the majority of the fashion shoots and produces amazingly beautiful work. She takes enormous pride in what she does and is genuinely hurt when her some of her work is cut from the issue. In one photo shoot she uses the camera man from the documentary and Wintourn proclaims that she wants the camera man's stomach retouched in the final photo. Grace puts her foot down and insists that she doesn't want him retouched as the point of the photo is that he is a real person and is not perfect and adds to this by saying 'it's bad enough that the models are perfect.' She also refers to herself as a romantic and it's hard to believe that somebody this warm hearted exists in the cold,bitchy fashion industry.

Oh and the clothes were pretty :)

-Helly

Phisopholy

“Everything is defined by what we leave behind” - Lee Sullivan

The other night Lee and I were talking some deep philosophy. Usually when this happens we both have our own trains of thought and it is rare that we can truly understand eachother. It seems as if we feel an emotion attached to an idea in our heads but any attempt to articulate it results in confusion. At least that's what happens to me.

But on this occasion we struck a nerve when the concept of existence came up, and more specifically the idea that one day we will not exist anymore. It seemed almost impossible to grasp the idea that I wont exist. To deal with anything in life we react to it, so I kept trying to put myself in a hypothetical position to react to the moment when I don’t exist. But how can I react to it if I don’t exist. It was a unique contradiction to feel so close to grasping something that is impossible to grasp.

My next step was to apply some twisted logic to the situation. The only things that exist, to me, are what I experience, but I can’t experience death cos I’m dead…so death doesn’t exist? So there should be no reason to fear it, or worry about it.

Lee took the thought further. He started discussing the legacy that we leave behind. Although our immediate conscious will not live forever, our spark, our influence will be forever carried on by the chain of cause and effect. Our existence right now is the effect of an infinite causal chain, and we are just another link in that chain.

- Eden (while listening to Lee)

Electric Cars

I may be naive when I say this, but wouldn't it be cool if we lived in a world where people did what was best for everyone, themselves included.

We can absolutely have electric cars on the roads. If starting now, every car manufactured was electric, then it would probably still take decades before everyone was driving electric cars because nobody is going to just abandon their current one. But still, there has to be a starting point, and the car and gas companies are stopping it from happening.

Just imagine if all these people meditated everyday and wanted what was best for everything. The heads of these industries would say, "well, looks like something has arrived that trumps what we've been doing. Now that we know, we'll have to stop. I'll have to find another job, but that's worth it for the sake of efficiency and the health of the planet I live on."

Sounds naive, but someone's got to think it.

Helly's Video View- The Brothers Bloom

Sorry for this delayed post, I had some technical difficulties last week! Anywho, The Brothers Bloom is the second film from writer/director Rian Johnson, which is the follow up to his first critically acclaimed film Brick. I remember not being extremely taken with Brick but it was years ago that I saw it, so I am thinking of giving it another look now that I am older and wiser!

But on to The Brothers Bloom- I really love the opening sequence in this film, it's very stylistic with the dialogue in rhyming couplets and the two protagonists dressed like 40's mobsters, which really makes them standout against the other pastel clad children and emphasise the fact that these children are definitely odd. Max Records plays young Stephen and delivers some genuinely funny lines. His character seems bitter and disenchanted with the world (think Marc Maron) even at the tender age of 12. A great metaphor is presented at the beginning of the film (which is echoed later) about illusion and reality which is the film's major theme which is what I think makes this film so interesting and when some of you guys see it we might be able to talk about that more (I am just working out that it's very hard to talk about this film without giving too much away.)

The cast is faultless with Rachel Weisz in particular turning in an exceptional performance as the eccentric shut-in Penelope. Most actresses would probably really over play the oddities of the character and make her in to a caricature, But Weisz is very restrained and instead the character just comes across as a little odd and socially awkward, which makes her a more realistic character. I'm also going to go out on a limb here and say that this is Mark Ruffalo's best performance to date. He is pitch perfect as the uber confident, manipulatively clever Stephen, which is the juxtaposition to his brother Bloom (Adrien Brody) who is passive and melancholic.

I only wish that the film held on to some of the stylistic choices that were presented in the first scene (maybe occasionally referring back to the rhyming dialogue for example.) However the plot keeps you guessing throughout and I even audibly gasped a few times when watching it. An interesting little film that is definitely worth a look. I will definitely be staying tuned for what Rian Johnson does next.

-Helly

Public Toilets

I don’t like public toilets, even if they’re really private I still don’t like them. You know why? It’s other people. Other people are the worst, sometimes I feel like I’m the only one who knows how to use a toilet properly. Lifting a seat before you piss is a good idea if you don’t want to leave piss all over it. Flushing after doing a piss (or anything for that matter!) is a good idea too.

Recently I went into a public toilet to take a wiz, to my disgust there was a deep-yellow bowl of piss waiting for me, with droplets sprinkled all around the seat. It’s the height of rudeness and disrespect toward your fellow man to leave a toilet in this state. Normally in this situation I’d begrudgingly clean the seat after doing my business so the next person didn’t think it was me who made the mess. But this time I thought, fuck it - this is the last time I clean up after someone else. Never again will I wipe up the piss of some poorly potty trained piss fiend. I kicked the seat up with my foot, pissed, flushed and left.

/rant

- Dogman