TV and Movies – Page 2 – helenthura.com

February 14, 2010February 14, 2010

The weeks goes round and round

Bringing the 365 photos up to date and a few links that I’ve collected.

This is cracking me up – Angry Norwegians

I adore the ability to JFGI or the more polite JGI, if I want to know something, it’s just a matter of tying in a few words and seeing what I get in return. This Google ad makes me smile.

I like this news. Really not at all liking this news. As much as I love this “urban wasteland” as it is for want of a better term, it could do with some developing. This proposal though is soooo not the answer. A scaled down version perhaps, I would like to see something like the Kelvin Grove Urban Village, a mix of public affordable and private housing, a vast green space and without the grocery store – so many options around here already.

When I first saw this on Mad Men, it really irked me but the more I see it, the more it makes me smile.
[youtube 2wKoVAQkGLc]

The last *few* 365 photos.
About time, 210/365

I’ve been thinking about a better way to store my shoes for awhile, mainly to free up some more space in my wardrobe. Went to Indro yesterday and picked up a rack. Love it!

Not my train, 209/365

After work on Friday, I caught up with Georgie for a browse of the shops and a movie, saw Valentine’s Day. Lots of laughs and a teary moment or two ie *that scene with Julia Roberts*.

Waiting, 208/365

QR to say the least is having a *few* problems with the trains and signals at the moment.

Mr Pelican, 207/365

From my Origami a day

Breakfast partners, 206/365

I’m subscribing to The Australian again and wondering why I stopped!

Back in the Orange, 205/365

SES went back last week after the summer break. Monday nights now mean orange overalls again.

It has rained, 204/365

Not even one bite pears, 203/365

Found at the Kelvin Grove Markets

Matching Nails, 202/365

All of a sudden noticing that your nails match the binding tape on a PM004? pretty funny, nails are Changeling Midnight by Kit.

Oh Toowong Library, 201/365

The feeling when all your holds come in at once? Overwhelmed at which book to read first.

Dude, that ain’t a car park, 200/365

This ning-nong, couldn’t be f’ed finding a car park, so decided to just park on the footpath instead.

What a view, 199/365

They are doing a fit out on the ground floor of our building and the plans are spread out on this bankers desk. I have a feeling if I sat at the desk doing my work I wouldn’t get much done!

Such a lovley colour car, 198/365

I adore this shade of blue

rain, rain, rain, 197/365

Care to bowl? 196/365

A set of lawn bowls with very lovely markings for sale at the Salvos at Alderley.

a drop, 195/365

Starting Friday we have had on and off rain.

Knit Graffiti in Stones Corner, 194/365

Wilted, 193/365

Summer is here and the plants show how I feel.

I want to say, 192/365

There has been some stencil poetry popping up round Auchenflower/Toowong in the last month or so. I quite like this one.

Breakfast, Dinner, Desert, 191/365

Breakfast/Dinner – fruit salad, yoghurt and toasted muesli.
Desert – replace the yoghurt with frozen yoghurt!

Puzzling about, 190/365

At the bookfest I picked up a few puzzles to occupy my time instead of bumming round the net. Since I don’t have a space where I can keep a puzzle out, I picked up a puzzle mat as well 😀 This puzzle is just about all done now too, I only have the sky left to finish.

Fishing Cake, 189/365

Grandad wanted a plain fruit cake with no icing for his cake. I couldn’t leave it undecorated though! We used to play with this fishing set when we were kids at the farm..

Gorgeous Sky, 188/365

Last Friday we had a gorgeous sunset, this however was the view to the east which I much preferred.

And that’s a wrap!

February 7, 2010

the family I’m from

We’ve had a lot of rain this morning. It started bucketing round 2am and kept bucketing till round 5am, since then we have had showers on and off.

My phone just rang, it was Matthew, my younger brother does not typically call me so I was a little concerned at first as to what might have happened. However, Mums voice came over the speaker wanting to know what my back yard looked like. After I gave her the run down she told me that her and Matthew were at the Toombul car park observing it in all its flooded glory. Matthew must have gone out last night as Mum had picked him up from the bus stop due to the rain. He had told her that Kedron Brook was over the banks. They then proceeded to check out Kedron Brook at as many vantages as they could to watch the flooding. They are now headed on to Downfall Creek to see what it looked like.

Mum was telling me they were taking photos on Matthews phone of the flooding. I didn’t comment then but I will now since I know Mum will see this fairly shortly, that is why I take my camera with me wherever I go!

Yep, that’s my family, well really the Stephenson part of us, straight down the line from Grandad, a man who has kept weather records dating back to the war. The family for which the first thought when it buckets, is “mmmm I wonder how high the creek is?” or Mum’s favourite idea when it has rained is to go waterfall chasing. Yeah, we like our weather.

I got up close to 5, thinking there must be a fair amount of water in our backyard by now, sure enough there was. (A fact of life when living at a bottom of a hill on three sides, is when it rains our backyard will fill with water.) Our street is more convex than most streets to help the street drain in such events. There was probably about 10-20cm over the “top” of the road and about 30cm at the kerb. In our backyard, the water was over the retaining wall. I took a few photos but was not in the mood to get the tripod out so they have been pushed a little bit in Lightroom.

204/365

I went back to bed for a little while but wasn’t in a mood to sleep, instead I took my book (it seemed quite fitting to be reading a tales of Brisbane, whilst watching the water drain off the street) and my quilt and cozied up on the couch on the deck, watching the taxi drivers trying to decide whether or not to drive the street. By 6ish I was ready to go back to sleep and returned to my bed to doze to the sound of the drizzling rain for you know, oh 45mins or so. I’m not one to sleep in!

The street now just has a little bit of water in the gutter and the water in our backyard has gone down a wee bit, it’s no longer over the retaining wall. I won’t have to water the veggies for a while….

The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain, as a child when I first saw My Fair Lady, I thought they were referring to a plane not a plain and could not for the life of me figure out why the rain would stay in the plane!

The rain in ‘Bris stays mainly in our yard!

February 2, 2010

Today is a Bran Nue Dae

Yes, it most certainly is.

I went to see Bran Nue Dae tonight and it has been a long time since I have heard so many laughs in a cinema. The movie is a total crack-up, the songs are fantastic and oh the landscape! The film is an adaptation of the stage production that toured Aus during the 90’s and the movie reflects that, in that there is very defined scenes and of course the musical numbers and dancing. Tap dancing in a church??? oh yes!

This scene had me cracking up, such a hoot to see Deb Mailman in this role.

I’m hoping to buy the soundtrack on the way home tomorrow. The film has had some very mixed reviews, a lot of the “real reviewers” have given it a very lukewarm response in regards to the story line, the acting, the production etc but have missed the magical musical fun it contains. Margaret and David both gave it four starts though. The “general population” reviews though are the complete opposite to the “real reviewers”, more in line with my joy at seeing it.

Nothing I Would Rather Be
There’s nothing I would rather be
Than to be an Aborigine
and watch you take my precious land away.
For nothing gives me greater joy
than to watch you fill each girl and boy
with superficial existential shit.

Now you may think I’m cheeky
But I’d be satisfied
to rebuild your convict ships
and sail them on the tide.

I love the way you give me God
and of course the mining board,
for this of course I thank the Lord each day.
I’m glad you say that land rights wrong.
Then you should go where you belong
and leave me to just keep on keeping on.

I can not tell you enough how much you must go see this movie! I’m hoping to see it again in the next week or so and will be buying the DVD.

You can read parts of the the stage play here on Google Books
Some really interesting clips on the Australian Screen Office site, which include interviews with Jimmy Chi.
Wikipedia entry

January 31, 2010January 31, 2010

the sound of rain

It’s 2120 currently and I’m kicking back with a cup of tea and listening to the rain. The rain sounds different at night to it does during the day, have you noticed that?

In tribute to the rain we have had on and off this weekend, today we have a video instead of a photo.
[flickr 4318532724 640 368]

Unless you are reading this via the RSS feed, you might (well should) have noticed that I’ve changed up the design a little bit. Swapped some new colours in, changed the photos in the header and made it a bit more 24 something me instead of 22 something me. Not 100% settled on the background colour yet but we will see. I’ve also been thinking of renaming the blog most probably just changing the words round a little but who knows.

Mum and I went to see Bright Star this afternoon, it was slightly sad as expected but gorgeous nonetheless. I have some questions regarding the historical accuracy of a few aspects of the costuming, mainly the earrings that Fanny wears and the machine knitted jackets/cardigans. I did adore however the ledge that ran at waist level round Fannys room in the house that the Brawnes shared with Mr Brown and Mr Keats. I loved the shots in the fields of wild flowers and in the orchard, all those flowers! Oh to be able to bask in a field of flowers like that.

June 13, 2009

a saturday

At the moment I am watching Dr Rosemary Stanton on Ethical Eating. Over the past few years I have enjoyed reading editorials by Stanton and she is a very very good presenter. If I see a public lecture from her in Brisbane I will be going! I have to add again how much I love ABC Fora, I have listened to some very interesting presentations over the last year or so.

Today, I woke up at 6ish but dozed in bed till 8ish, so luxurious! I popped into work for a while to pick some stuff up/drop some stuff off and say hello to the reservists I don’t normally get to see during the week. I also visited the RSPCA opshop at New Farm and picked up a Le Parfait jar and some crochet doilies for the grand total of $3. Then it off to Flannerys to stock up on rolled oats. Then Ikea called.

I have had a clothes rail for my wardrobe for the last 7 mths or so which I have kept covered with a dark doona cover to keep my clothes dust free and stop fading. I said enough is enough today. I had been umming and ahhing between a few different ones the last few nights on the net. Looking at them today I decided on the Aneboda. I also picked myself up a bookcase, a Billy of course. Looking at them now in my room, I love how they melt into the white walls. I also bought my first Ikea fabric, this nice orange one, which I am going to use to make curtains for my book case. Tomorrow I will have to take some photos. I still have bits and pieces to put away but it looks a lot more roomier now. Also tomorrow I have an SES fund raiser to attend, washing to do and family to visit!

Two photos to share.
I took this photo back in April one rainy afternoon at The Farm. I love how the rain drops.

And sharing my Food Connect box from last week, I had fun this time arranging the fruit and vege for the photo.

On a sad note, I finished watching The West Wing the other night. It has taken me about 6 or so weeks to watch all 7 seasons and I have enjoyed every minute of it. I have laughed my head off at times, wept at times, shaken my head at others and at others just absorbed the drama, the wit, the speeches. And this quote from In the Shadow of Two Gunmen, Part II

Margaret: Can I – can I just say something for the future?
Leo: Yeah.
Margaret: I can sign the President’s name. I have his signature down pretty good.
Leo: You can sign the President’s name?
Margaret: Yeah.
Leo: On a document removing him from power and handing it to someone else?
Margaret: Yeah. Or… do you think the White House Counsel would say that was a bad idea?
Leo: I think the White House Counsel would say it was a coup d’Ã©tat!
Margaret: Well. I’d probably end up doing some time for that.
Leo: I would think. And what the hell were you doing practising the President’s signature?
Margaret: It was just for fun.
Leo: We’ve got separation of powers, checks and balances, and Margaret, vetoing things and sending them back to the Hill.

March 24, 2009

Suddenly Single

A couple of weeks ago whilst browsing the QPAC website to see what was upcoming, I stumbled across Suddenly Single on the events calendar. It was billed as a new musical from two Brisbane writers. Tickets were $15. Straight away it ticked three boxes in the reasons why to go column. Last Friday, I had a bite to eat and headed off to QPAC for a night of song and comedic drama about the single life.

What the QPAC website didn’t mention is that that the performance was actually a workshop performance. Whilst I loved the show and will go see it again when it is in full production. I was relatively disappointed when I started reading the program and was advised that it was a workshop performance. I still would have gone if it had been advertised as that but these expectations I had for the show had to be quickly taken down a few levels. Those expectations were most certainly exceeded. From how the program read, rehearsals had only begun the week prior to the performance and that there will be a final script rewrite before the “real” production is staged.

The cast of six (three ladies and three gentlemen) arrived on stage in their blacks with script books in hand and burst into the title song Workin’ Out Your Life and for the next X hours and Y minutes they developed as characters and became seemingly more “at home” in their roles. It was also interesting to see how their voices changed as well, in the first act the ladies sitting beside me had picked one of the men as the better singer of the men but then come the second half, one of the others seemed the better singer. That was interesting. The role of Mary was played by Judy Hainsworth and oh her voice was just gorgeous, it was sweet and deep at the same time. If in the semi-distant future a musical called Suddenly Single comes your way, go check it out!