THE AVOCADO EDITION
ISSUE 04, VOLUME 05 JULY 2019 EDITORIAL TEAM Bec Marshallsay - Editor in Chief Caitlin Burnett - Content Editor Bren Domingo - Communication Coordinator (Visual) Mary Jo Dowsett - Content Editor Courtney Kruk - Content Editor PUBLISHER Jordan Jansen TALENTED CONTRIBUTORS Cover artwork Sophie O’Brien Editorial Tom Bartlett-Swales - Caitlin Burnett Mary Jo Dowsett - Ashleigh Hartley Jordan Jansen - Sapphire Jones Bec Marshallsay - Eloise O’Brien Paige Townsend Creative Nitrixflare Androxlus - Rachele Andrews Bren Domingo - Lisa (Shan) Hu Jessie Kemp - Tim Klingenstein Regan Leong - Renee Robinson Jessica Thompson. DESIGN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
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DISCLAIMER
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The opinions expressed in this publication may not reflect those of the Griffith University Gold Coast Student Guild. The information contained within this edition of Getamungstit was correct at the time of printing but could be subject to change. If any article, document and/ or publication is inaccessible and you require copies and/or more information, contact the Student Guild where staff will ensure your requests and needs are met.
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Contents Editorial note
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Message from the President
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Geta Writers’ Award
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Geta giveaways
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Avocado facts
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When did we all become avocado snobs?
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The chemistry of cados… and why they’re not overrated
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Green isn’t always good
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Writing Gold Coast: Symposium and Smallroom
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The ocean’s death
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Millennials: Houses, avocados and STDs
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It’s a guac off
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How to plant an avocado seed
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Cult classics on film
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Snapped on campus
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What’s on
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Feature artist: Hot Coffee
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Online 46 Entertainment 48
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Being creative
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Get the hell outta here
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EDITORIAL NOTE
Welcome to our fourth edition of Getamungstit for 2019. It’s the Avocado Edition! We have had this theme on the backburner for a couple of years now and we are pleased to deliver it to you in all its green, leathery glory. Unbeknownst to many, the avocado is in fact one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. His arrival signifies the end of economic prosperity and an eternity of living with your parents or in rental purgatory (never able to commit to buying that coffee table you really like because it might not fit in the new place if you have to move). We are of course referring to the public shaming of the smashed avo on toast… destroyer of the Australian dream and kryptonite to the Millennial. Hope might not be lost though. This edition, a new contributor, Sapphire, shares her story of saving for a house deposit (spoiler alert: you don’t have to give up breakfast for the next twenty years).
All about avocados… Mary Jo has done some sleuthing into the infamous Hass vs. Shepard rivalry, Caitlin considers the impact of ill-considered consumption, and Eloise breaks it down to tell us exactly what we are getting in our green. Heading off theme, we have curated a list of cult classic films for your viewing pleasure and are excited about our interview with Hot Coffee, our feature artist this edition. Paige provides us with some highlights from a recent writing symposium that focused on the Gold Coast, and as always we have some talented contributors sharing their creative work. Welcome to Trimester 2 and enjoy the magazine.
The Geta Editorial Team
ITE R W US! R FO
Editorial note
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT Hey Everyone! We did it! We survived another trimester jam-packed full of exam crams, midnight study sessions, late night snacks, and 11.59 pm assignment submissions. For those new-comers who are wondering what I’m talking about, check back in with me at the end of this trimester. On that note, welcome to Griffith University, and more importantly, to your Student magazine! We understand that university can be a trying experience for some of us, which is why the Student Guild strives to be your go-to student organisation for fun, support, and success. Trimester 1 brought us tonnes of fun events, including our Beach Party, Toga Party, Guild Ball, Paint & Sips, Wellness Days, and other creative workshops catered to your every need! The fun isn’t over yet, with more of these events planned for Trimester 2 to make sure you don’t get too caught up in your studies.
I can’t wait to see you all there! To find an event that suits your interests, you can jump on our website or socials to keep up to date with the many events we have on campus. We really hope this latest edition of Getamungstit is all you’ve avo wanted, and that you learn a new recipe or two that guacs your world. I can’t wait to see some new faces around campus stepping into this new trimester, as well as catch up with those of you who are still going strong. Good luck!! Jordan Jansen GUGC Student Guild President
This is your chance to tell us what you love, what you want to see more of or suggest new ideas. Maybe there is an issue you think we should be covering or you want to weigh in on the best coffee debate... whatever you need to get off your chest, we’d love to hear from you. Connect with us and stay up to date! - facebook.com/Getamungstit - facebook.com/groups/getamungstit.contributors/ - getamungstit@griffith.ed.au - gugcstudentguild.com.au/getamungstit
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CREATIVE CONCEPTS | GRAPHIC DESIGN PHOTOGRAPHY | ILLUSTRATION IMAGE RETOUCHING | PRINT & WEB SOCIAL MEDIA | BRANDING Liveworm Gold Coast is staffed with a collection of skilled multidisciplinary design students, guided by a highly experienced team of industry professionals. The studio is also a creative incubator for student industry concepts, supporting the local business and cultural community. The studio opened its doors in 2008 after being converted from a grungy fine art and sculpture workshop into a creative studio and incubator space — under the wing of the 130 year old Queensland College of Art.
Liveworm Gold Coast designers are the future experts of their field. They know what’s current, enjoy predicting future trends and utilising classic design strategies. In the midst of a new studio image and direction— Liveworm Gold Coast is working towards a stronger position within the evolving creative Gold Coast culture. The team of students and staff embrace the changes that are occurring locally and globally and enjoy creating design outcomes that reflect this unique approach.
The avocado is a food without a rival among the fruits, the veritable fruit of pardise. David Fairchild
GETAMUNGSTIT WRITERS’ AWARD
Obsession is beautiful. It’s what makes art. Joss Whedon
Do you have something to say about avocados or food in popular culture? Do you think we missed a great article opportunity on this theme? This is your chance to have your ideas published. You can’t sow an apple seed and expect to get an avocado tree. The consequences of your life are sown in what you do and how you behave.
You are invited to submit articles or creative writing on the current edition theme for your chance to win and be published. Submissions must be the writer’s original work and must not have been published elsewhere. Theme: Avocado, food in popular culture, sustainable consumption
Tom Shadyac
Closes: 11.59pm 5 August, 2019 Prize: Publication in the subsequent issue of Getamungstit magazine + $50 Campus Cash.
Win! $50 Campus Cash + your article published in a future edition.
Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food. Hippocrates
Conditions Entries are open to current Griffith University Gold Coast students - student number must be provided with entry. Entries must be under 1000 words and must be submitted by email with the heading ‘Geta Writers’ Award’ to getamungstit@griffith.edu.au by the closing date. Entrants grant Getamungstit non-exclusive rights to publish the work in Getamungstit (in print and/or online).The winning entry/entries will be selected by the Geta editorial team and/or appointees based on quality of writing and fit with the magazine. If there are insufficient entries or the team cannot determine a winner, the editorial team may decide not to award a prize. All decisions are final, no correspondence will be entered into.
I suppose there are people who can pass up free guacamole, but they’re either allergic to avocado or too joyless to live. Frank Bruni 5
GETA GIVEAWAYS Because who doesn’t love free stuff? Each edition we’ll have loads of goodies up for grabs for our wonderful Geta readers. All you need to do is email us at getamungstit@griffith.edu.au with your name, email, mobile, the prize you’d like to win and ‘Give me Geta goodies’ as your subject line.
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WIN ME
Smashed avo date for two Win Village Café’s special smashed avocado + a coffee of your choice for you and your friend. This is only valid at Village Café until 30 September 2019.
Avo sockies & cup Win 2 x avocado designed socks and 1 x avocado coffee cup!
Geta giveaways
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ition pet m Com 11.50p 019. 2 s t e s s u ld. clo Aug entgui t 1 3 d ti T AES ugcstu mungs g a t t Visi .au/ge s and com or term ons. f diti con
$100 worth of GYG goodness Win a $100 gift voucher to Guzman y Gomez and shout your mates lunch! Only redeemable in one sitting at GYG Griffith University Gold Coast. No part redemptions are permitted. Valid until 01/12/2019. Not for sale or transferrable, not redeemable for cash, can not be used in conjunction with any other offer or meal deal.
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AVOCADO FACTS
The heaviest avocado on record was grown in Hawaii, and weighed in at 2.95 kg, according to the Guinness World Records.
2.95 kg
Between 2007 and 2017, avocados’ export value in Australia has climbed from $4.2 million AUD to $11.6 million AUD.
Avocados contain more potassium than bananas. They are also high in vitamins C, E, K and are popular as a source of healthy fat.
MEXICO
The avocado originated in Central America between 7,000 - 5,000 B.C.
Indulge your love of avocados when you travel at one of the many avocado themed restaurants around the world… you can visit the Avobar in London, The Avocado Show in Amsterdam, Avocaderia in New York or The Hass Bistro in Thailand.
Avocado facts
The first avocado trees were planted in Sydney’s Royal Botanical Gardens in 1840.
Don’t forget the seed! The avocado seed can be used to make red and pink ink or fabric dyes, natural shampoo, traditional enchilada sauce, face scrubs, and tea.
Australia produced 77,000 tonnes of avocados in 2017/18 with 62% grown in Queensland.
62%
Avocado is believed to have been considered the fruit of love by the Aztecs. The Aztec name, ‘ahuácatl’, translates to ‘testicles’.
The avocado used to be nicknamed the alligator pear.
Stop your left over avocado from browning by rubbing it with olive oil or lemon juice and wrapping it in plastic wrap or an eco-friendly beeswax wrap.
It’s not all about the Hass and Shepard; there are almost 500 different types of avocado plants. Other varieties in Australia include the Reed, Sharwil, Gwen, Pinkerton, Fuerte, Wurtz, Hazzard and Edranol.
Archaeologists have discovered avocado seeds buried with Incan mummies from 750 B.C. 9
WHEN DID WE ALL BECOME AVOCADO SNOBS? SERIOUSLY!!! Mary Jo Dowsett
According to Avocados Australia, Australians consumed almost 86,000 tonnes of avocados between 2016 and 2017. A statistic that can be traced back to the smashed avo obsession that swept the nation a few years ago. Although the dish has left baby boomers scratching their heads, for many millennials and Gen Zers it has become the go-to breakfast. Thanks to the younger generations, avocados have blossomed into a common household food. However, with an increase in the fruit’s popularity comes higher expectations along with consumers who are far more selective (and protective for that matter). After seeing numerous debates online, I decided to start asking friends, family and basically anyone I had a conversation with what variety of avocado they bough and why.
For those reading this who may be completely unaware of the differences, the Shepard avocado has a green glossy skin and nuttier flavour, whereas the Hass avocado has a bumpier outer layer and is much darker in colour with a creamier taste. But surely an avocado is an avocado, no matter the variety, right? Not so fast. After speaking to a few people, I soon realised this was definitely not the case and avocado lovers are just as passionate as a football fan supporting their favourite team. Some shoppers have even eliminated avocado from their diet completely during this changeover, claiming they would rather avoid the fruit entirely than eat Shepard. One person I spoke to even admitted that ‘the only thing Shepard avocados are good for is to sit in the fruit bowl and make you look like you’re rich enough to afford them, they’re not worth the hassle, avocados need to be creamy’. I decided to broaden my research and create a social media poll in an attempt to gauge what the general consensus was. However, soon after publishing the post I received several messages in disapproval and confusion, questioning how people could even vote for Shepard or vice versa.
When did we all become avocado snobs?
One avocado enthusiast claimed that Shepard are undoubtedly superior due to their longevity, explaining that ‘the flexibility of Shepard skin makes it super easy to scoop all of the goodness out and there’s rarely ever a Shepard avocado with brown spots’. Despite encountering some passionate Shepard fans, the end result revealed that 84 percent were in favour of the bumpy skinned Hass.
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84% were in favour of the bumpy skinned Hass.
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If you are a lover of avocados and have been for quite some time, you may have noticed different avocados filling your local supermarket shelves since February. It’s an annual occurrence that sees the changeover of the beloved Hass avocado with the not-soloved Shepard avocados, and generally speaking, this exchange creates quite a stir.
However, for a nation that loves its smashed avo, having a variety that cannot spread or smash, such as Shepard, pretty much defeats the purpose. According to Coles spokesperson, Craig Little, the Shepard avocado unquestionably sells less than its creamy textured relative but their popularity is gradually improving. Perhaps this is a sign that people are finally starting to realise they aren’t that different after all, both are green, both are tasty and both are avocados.
Through writing this story I realised that avocado fans are protective, passionate and just downright stubborn (in the best way possible). Being one of the highest consumers of avocados in the world, it was only a matter of time before we would become avocado snobs. If you are ever bored at a party, maybe go ask the next person what variety of avocado they prefer, it will be a question sure to stir up discussion…or an argument.
why can’t we be friends?
But if you cannot bear the thought of consuming anything other than Hass then I have some good news for you the Shepard season is only around for a short three months, starting from February through until May. It is clear Australia has an obsession, whether this obsession is healthy or not is another question.
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All I know is that it is a dangerous world out there for a person with an avocado opinion, so on second thought, maybe keep your opinion under wraps.
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It is clear Australia has an obession, whether this obsession is healthy or not is another question.
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Of all the avocado lovers I spoke to, only one proved to be a fence sitter explaining the good and bad elements of each variety, a rare response in this day and age. ‘Shepard avocados can hold their shape in a salad and have a more desirable texture for longer whereas Hass avocado spreads really well on a sandwich and is more flavoursome’.
THE CHEMISTRY OF CADOS …AND WHY THEY’RE NOT OVERRATED! Eloise O’Brien
ri O’B en
The chemistry of cados …and why they’re not overrated!
e lois by E
According to Australian Avocados, 100 grams of avocado contains monounsaturated fatty acids (12.8g), saturated fatty acids (4.8g), polyunsaturated fatty acids (2.7g), dietary fibre (5.0g), potassium (509mg), polyphenols (142mg), vitamin C (11mg), sodium (4mg), vitamin E (2mg), lutein and zeaxanthin (271mm), cryptoxanthin (117mm), folate (59mm) and Beta carotene (27mm).
ated e cre Imag
Have you ever been to magic show and sat wide-eyed in the audience as a magician performs logic-defying acts? Well, I am not the type to accept magic at face value. I like to lift the curtain and see what happens behind the scenes. So, pull up a chair and whip out your avocado toast because things are about to get scientifically explained!
So what does this all mean? Let’s start with the ‘fatty acids’ these guys help maintain healthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels which have been shown to improve heart health. Fatty acids also help your body absorb certain vitamins found in avocados and other fruits and vegetables. So, when you put avocado in a salad it can make certain fruits and vegetables even healthier - Now that’s the mark of a true superfood! Fatty acids also make up what we know as avocado oil - that special ingredient skincare companies love to exploit. According to NHANES, avocado oil contains 71% monounsaturated fatty acids, 16% saturated fatty acids and 13% polyunsaturated fatty acids. It also naturally contains vitamin E and lecithin which, when applied directly to the skin, have been shown to nourish and moisturise. While this all sounds amazing, there are some things to note. Fresh avocados have multiple tested and proven health benefits but the use of avocado in cosmetics are not held to the same
standards of testing. Just because a product contains avocado, this does not mean you will get all the benefits you would from simply eating one. In the words of my favourite lecturer ‘throwing a brick at a house does not make it any stronger’. Avocados also contain sodium and potassium which are naturally occurring chemical elements, needed for countless bodily processes. Perhaps one of the most noteworthy is the role they play in activating electrical signals within the nervous system. Ever burnt yourself on a hotplate and immediately recoiled? That’s your body using potassium and sodium, signalling your muscles to retract. The resultant burn is a sore reminder to wear oven-mitts next time. Finally, we have dietary fibre. We all know we should be eating more fibre but WHY? Fibre is a plant based carbohydrate and its key difference from other carbohydrates is where it is broken
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down. Fibre is digested by the large intestine and fermented in the colon... ew, I know. But this process plays a key role in improving our gut health and our microbiome. It boosts the mucus layer which helps propel intestinal content through the GI tract. To quote The Big Bang Theory, ‘A clean colon is one less thing to worry about’. While there is plenty more to be said on the scientific benefits of avocados, I am sure you get the idea. Avocados are more than just smoke and mirrors; they taste good and your body loves them too.
GREEN ISN’T ALWAYS GOOD! Caitlin Burnett
“AS A GENERAL RULE, I SUBSCRIBE TO THE IDEA THAT GREEN IS GOOD”
Good for me and good for the environment. So even though avocados are one of the more expensive fruits on the market, I justify their purchase with the knowledge that my body will thank me later. However, I began to wonder if the same could be said of the environment?
ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS AVOCADOS ARE SO EXPENSIVE IS THAT THEY ARE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT AND TIME CONSUMING TO GROW. One of the main reasons avocados are so expensive is that they are extremely difficult and time consuming to grow. All varieties of avocado tree take between 2 and 13 years to bear fruit and they have a tendency towards alternate bearing, producing a large crop one year and a small crop the next. Avocados are a tropically grown fruit and require specific temperatures to thrive, ranging from 15-30 degrees. This imposes a limitation on where avocados can be grown, leading to higher rates of importation
and exportation. However, one of the more expensive aspects of growing avocados is their water consumption. Avocados are greedy drinkers, requiring a minimum of 70 litres of water per avocado in ideal growing environments. In Petorca, where over 60% of Chile’s avocados are grown, conditions are not ideal. Due to prolonged drought periods, the soil in Petorca is too dry to grow avocados naturally. To counteract these undesirable conditions, avocados trees require over 400% more applied water. On average, it takes 320 litres of water to grow one avocado; to put that number into perspective, it takes approximately 22 litres to grow one orange. Although smashed orange on toast doesn’t have quite the same appeal. This level of water consumption is particularly detrimental in Chile, where water is a privatised resource. This means that people are not guaranteed access to clean, running water; while those who do have access to water are subject to increased prices. The United Nations recognises access to water and sanitation as a basic human right. However, in Chile, water is also regarded as a ‘market asset’, creating a blurred line around the ethics of
Green isn’t always good!
supply and demand. In the same region where avocado plantations are thriving, internationally significant businesses, locals can go for days without water. Agricultural businesses contribute to 81% of Chile’s annual water consumption, while locals have access to a meagre 10%. The strain on water supply has been further compromised by illegal pipelines, directing the remaining water to avocado plantations. In the long term, this level of water consumption is unsustainable and plantations will need to adjust their practices accordingly. However, in the short term, locals, small businesses and the environment are paying the price. Fortunately, in Australia, there are many areas with ideal avocado growing conditions. Unlike some countries that rely almost entirely on importation, Australia produces the majority of its avocado supply locally. Even so, we happen to be a particularly avocadocrazed bunch, so we also import avocados from New Zealand to keep up with demand. According to the Australian Government, Department of Agriculture, we imported between 13,000 and 20,000 tones of avocados every year from 2013 to 2016. In case you were wondering, that’s up to a billion avocados each year.
Although there has been discussion in both Australia and New Zealand regarding water privatisation, water is currently a publicly owned resource. Ultimately, this means that public access to water is considered a main priority. Therefore, avocado plantations do not infringe upon our right to water. This is not to say that publicly owned water cannot also be mismanaged. In recent years, some Australian agricultural businesses have been accused of illegally siphoning water from the Murray-Darling Basin and general mismanagement by the MDBA. These issues have been cited as possible contributors towards the mass fish deaths of 2018-19, in which millions of native fish suddenly died in the low-flowing waters of the Menindee lakes system. Since 2018 the Australian Department of Agriculture has been conducting a biosecurity risk analysis of avocados imported
from Chile. If successful, we may begin to see Chilean grown avocados in Australian grocery stores, particularly in off-seasons. International importation of goods is not a new phenomenon in Australia and we also take part in the exportation of our own goods. However, it is important to be aware of the industries we are supporting, regardless of their origin. There are many ways you can become a more environmentally conscious consumer. First and foremost, research is key! If you are ever unsure about where your groceries are coming from, talk to the supplier or do a quick search online. As a general rule locally grown produce is the best way to go. Another great step is avoiding off-season produce. I know, I know! Avocados are deliciously irresistible. But as demonstrated in Chile, they can also be environmentally detrimental.
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WRITING GOLD COAST: SYMPOSIUM AND SMALLROOM Paige Townsend
How do we capture a place in words? How do reality and fiction intersect, and what liminal, imaginative space is born between them?
Held at the Vibe Hotel in Surfers’ Paradise, Writing Gold Coast featured speakers Sally Breen, Stuart Cooke, Nigel Krauth, Philip Edmonds, and Tory Jones. Stuart Cooke read from his creative nonfiction, Echoes of Gondwana. In part, he elucidates Gondwanan trees as a kind of symbolic connective tissue between Australia, South America, and the South Pacific long after their physical severance. A defiant melancholy in the trees’ almost secretive, enduring connection permeated the rainy morning, the blurred skyscrapers and ragged eucalypts behind the hotel window’s glass. The creeping roots, interlacing through time and space even as the continents separated and drifted, seemed to trace the trajectories of Breen, Krauth, and Edmonds’s presentations on writing the Gold Coast.
Nigel spoke of the Gold Coast’s looming absence in fiction, showing us the sparse list, compiled by Frank Moorhouse, of novels with the city as their setting, pointing to a gap for writers to fill. Under discussion was the Gold Coast’s arriviste flavour, the shining newness and ever-shifting topography, the patchwork and parochial nature of the opposing suburbs, the seaside versus the hinterland. Fertile ground for invoking that outsider tension, that notion of volatility in the titan skyscrapers teetering over the sand.
In response, Edmonds said all writers are outsiders. This brought to mind that wavering liminality of a shared imaginative space where outsiders weave a kind of belonging, maybe as pop-up and (seemingly) superficial as the Gold Coast, but ours all the same, more precious for its quasi-flimsy, nebulous state. Krauth also talked about how few of his students used to claim the GC as their hometown, but now that’s shifting – now it’s a place for folks to put down roots rather than to just pass through. But the reputation of hedonistic emptiness, in some respects, holds strong.
When the floor was opened for discussion, a writer from the Sunshine Coast said she always feels like an outsider here, as though that Australian parochial attitude Breen and Edmonds spoke of (the eternal Melbourne-versusSydney as a prime example) is prominent when entering this city as a non-local.
Writing Gold Coast: Article Symposium Title and Smallroom
Wavering liminality of a shared imaginative space where outsiders weave a kind of belonging.
Tory Jones, whose history as a city planner informs her new projects involving how we narrativise the Gold Coast, how we escape its commodified, homogenised packaging, began her presentation with an image of the “Man Carving His Own Destiny”, by Albin Polasek. Disappearing soon after she snapped the photo, the statue stood on Sickle Avenue, Hope Island. The figure, arm raised in a pose of defiance, is chiselling his own form from the stone. In her photo he wore a Chelsea grin and a V for Vendetta emblem on his chest, just one more manifestation, a palimpsest of graffiti art, before the statue was subsumed by time. This ouroboros-like self-creation, and photos becoming the sole remnants and artefacts of an ever-changing land, reminded me of Graham Burstow’s body of work, Flesh. The exhibit was comprised of photos taken between the ’60s – ’80s on the Gold Coast, revealing the tumultuous landscape as it took shape, skyscrapers conjured as if from thin air, the city coming to embody the interstices between its kaleidoscopic iterations.
Jones writes what she calls micro-essays to accompany her Instagram photos, wherein she gathers artefacts, fragments of history, to weave new stories for the city. Jones believes a kaleidoscopic narrative, with many perspectives acting as crucibles for the city’s skin-deep sunshine persona, is how we recreate ourselves and our city. Her presentation was reminiscent of Roth’s rumination on recordkeeping; he writes that ‘narrative memory, which is at the core of historical representation on paper or on film, transforms the past as a condition of retaining it”’. This transformation, with all its poignancy, runs deep in this city, which is bursting with so many avenues for storytelling, for new and varied perspectives to add to the patchwork landscape.
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Cooke spoke of the hoop pines, their disappearance in both Australia and New Guinea by logging. Jones linked his presentation to her loving documentation of the Gold Coast’s Norfolk pines, speaking of how they’re the only parts of our horizon that can challenge the high-rises. The key-note speeches by Krauth and Edmonds zoomed in on where the real and the unreal converge in fiction. Krauth furnished the room with an anecdote of going too far into reality to plumb the depths for novel-writing, beginning with the levity of a surfer/detective protagonist (a writer in Hawaii had already done it; Krauth bought his merchandise and everything) and ending with the unsettling realisation that he was finding out too much about the Gold Coast’s rather more gritty, shadowy realm of surface-presentable main players.
At the round-table literary lunch that day, I’d sat with a writer who told me he’d invited acquaintances addicted to ice to live in his house so he could write a more authentic take on the drug in his new novel. “Tumultuous” was the word he’d used to describe both the methodexperiment and his acquaintances’ lifestyles. This convergence of fact with fiction is reminiscent of paper and film’s transformative effect on the past, and it’s one, I think, to be embraced, a space of alchemy and exploration, fresh perspectives and changeability. As the light outside faded autumn-fast and the city lit up, the symposium closed with Sally Breen’s workshop, “How to Catch an Idea”. As we sat grouped around tables in the fluorescent hum, she directed us in writing exercises hinging on “drilling down”: pick up and hone in on details to give stories that layered sense of place. Tactile, visceral, engaged with the moment and its furnishings rather than hovering on the surface. Our burgeoning arts scene sometimes emerges in dribs and drabs, in tucked-away bursts of
expression. The idea of a liminal, imaginative space, curated by and for outsiders, comes alive in the dark theatre at Smallroom. A sense of unreality descends, the fierce stage bulbs throwing the backdrop into pitch black until the speakers, as lit up and uncanny as photo exhibits, seem to hover suspended in a vast nothing, an insular silence humming out around every magnified word. When the house lights go down and the speakers approach the lectern, shoes clacking on the polished concrete, this secretive, hushed room always feels transcendent, the shadowy figures in the auditorium paying their solicitude to the snippets of stories and poems booming out across the hard floors. That night was no exception. The ambience felt crystallised with David Malouf in the room, in conversation with Stuart Cooke. Rain lashed the theatre while Malouf read an excerpt from Fly Away Peter, one of the books on Moorhouse’s sparse list of novels with a Gold Coast setting. A quote from his short story, “Jacko’s
Writing Gold Coast: Article Symposium Title and Smallroom
Reach” summed up the day for me, with the idea of place as both symbolic and liminal or concrete:
“If there is no such place we will invent it. That’s the way we are.”
‘The possibility of building over it was forestalled the moment it got inside us. As a code-word for something so intimate it can never be revealed, […] where we still move in groups together. […] There has to be some place where that is possible. If there is only one wild acre somewhere we will make that the place. If they take it away we will preserve it in our head. If there is no such place we will invent it. That’s the way we are’.
BOWLS & SMOOTHIES Now available! 19
THE OCEAN’S DEATH Ashleigh Hartley
The ancient Greek’s believed the god Poseidon controlled the ocean. He was famously known for he is ill temper and caused earthquakes, tidal waves and dangerous tides. He was known as the Earthshaker and caused misfortune to many who dared to travel across his seas. I think of Poseidon each time I visit the ocean. I have walked on the beach during a hurricane. The dunes were degraded into steep cliffs and the waves, wild and large, swept onto shore before pulling far back into the recedes of the ocean. On that day, the wind whipped my face and the sand stung my legs as it blew hazardously down the beach. Despite its resistance, I stood my ground and let the wind blow past me, howling in my ears as it screamed at me to leave.
The sun burns my skin, and the crashing of the waves sound like a lullaby sung by Poseidon himself. I have seen the effects of a large storm on the beach. The large lumps of decaying seaweed it washed onto shore reeks like a rotting corpse, and the dark, menacing sky lashes wind against the water causing waves of monstrous sizes. The waves chase me around the shore, and if I am not paying attention, soak my shoes with sea water. I will walk the rest of way with squelching shoes and heavy socks. I have seen Poseidon illustrate his emotions through the various states of my beach. He can dress it in any way. He can communicate as effectively as the sky before a storm. I remember watching a documentary in high school.
Most days I go to the beach are bright sunny days with lazy waves that roll into small barrels. I think the dolphins like these days best, when they get to ride the slow, gentle waves into shore before swimming back out to catch the next ride.
The ocean’s death
My biology teacher had called in sick and our substitute had decided a YouTube documentary was enough strain required for the last period of a putrid summer day. The documentary was titled Garbage Island: An Ocean Full of Plastic. The haunting commentary of the state of our ocean illustrated the danger I face in my lifetime.
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...ocean filled with pollution so thick marine life struggled to exist and water could not be seen from the ocean’s surface. It shows that the ocean has become sick with humanities waste.
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Some days, when I walk along my beach, I can see the rubbish the ocean has tried to expel from its body. I have seen the plastic wrappings of a Mars Bar, half degraded, washed onto shore, broken glass beer bottles buried into the sand with only its sharp edges sticking out, and plastic containers covered in limpets.
Yet, I have never seen the floating plastic island off the shores of my quite little beach. I have never smelt the wretched scent of a decaying landmine made of waste. No seagulls scream from the pain of being trapped in plastic on my beach. When I look out to the shore line, I am never faced with anything, but a clear blue ocean filled with healthy animals.
are two heroes that have always interested me. They are heroes because of the difference they helped make, not just in their fictional worlds, but also in real life. In the first comics, Batman was a champion of the people who were silenced by the mafia and a corrupt police force. Then there was Captain America, who fought in World War II against the Nazis. In 2018, a relatively less popular superhero was given screen time to voice a new issue. Aquaman (Arthur Curry) resembles the Greek God to god Poseidon in many ways with his ability to control marine life and the tides, but he does not warrant near as much respect as the god did. When I first watched Aquaman, I had to admit the main villain King Orm had good reason to attack surface dwellers. The movie addressed several complaints from the fictional city of Atlanta, including the pollution of waste and toxic material in the ocean, and over fishing which is becoming detrimental to marine life. The retaliation from the people of Atlantis was to repel all of humanity’s warships and waste back onto land. The commentary of the movie was clear; this was a declaration of war. Yet, I watched this scene and I thought, fair enough.
I have always loved superheroes; ever since I watched the first Iron Man film in 2008 when I was just 10 years old.
It is our waste we have dumped into their home. Do they not have every right to be disgusted and return it to our shores? Truthfully, I think we are biased against our own flaws, to see this fictional action as a declaration of war.
Batman and Captain America
When I am quiet, I can hear the 21
ocean waves crash from my house. I do not hear it cry from the pain of human pollution or scream from the agony it surely feels from the toxic chemicals coursing through its body. Instead, the waves, though wild, crash methodically before pulling back to sea, just as they have done all my life. These days, it is not just human waste that threatens my ocean. Climate change is currently rising the waters temperature and acidifying the ocean, killing marine life. During the past 100 years, the average temperature of the oceans upper layers has risen 0.6 degrees. By 2100, it is estimated the sea level will rise 0.5-1.2 metres and as early as 2037 the Arctic summer sea ice will disappear.
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By 2100, it is estimated the sea level will rise 0.5-1.2 metres and as early as 2037 the Artic summer sea ice will disappear.
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It showed images of an ocean filled with pollution so thick that life struggled to exist and water could not be seen from the ocean’s surface. It showed the ocean, sick with humanity’s waste.
I sometimes watch the 6 o’clock news with my parents while eating dinner. We eat gathered around the television, commenting on whatever made the headlines or, more often, what the presenter is wearing. ‘I don’t think that blouse does anything for her.’ ‘Her dress and his tie are matching! So cute. ‘Who let him wear that colour shirt on air?’ The subject of climate change was recently highlighted by student strikes around the world. These children protested politician’s inaction against climate change by walking out on school. ‘I don’t believe climate change is real,’ my mother commented as the students chanted protests on the television. ‘Neither. The kids probably just wanted to skip school,’ my dad agreed. I do not begrudge my parents for their beliefs. Their perception of the world is filled with beautiful blue oceans and clear skies. Ocean Shores has never witnessed an oil spill like that of the Gulf War which caused thousands of marine animals and bird’s deaths. Nor has our marine life begun dying at an alarming rate like the Great Barrier Reef which over the past 30 years has seen 50% of its coral die.
However, unlike my parents I cannot deny, if we continue to mine and pollute the Earth, we are trapping ourselves to a planet incapable of surviving. The 2009 film Avatar speculates where this will lead us, by depicting a world where humanity must mine the planet Pandora of its resource ‘unobtanium’ to rescue Earth from the energy crisis it has been plunged into. Without ‘unobtanium’ humanity will not survive, allowing the humans to justify their actions of violence against the inhabitants of the planet, the Na’vi. Unlike humans, the Na’vi believe each life on Pandora is sacred. This is shown best through the Kill Prayer Neytiri and Jake speak at separate parts in the film. I see you, brother, and I thank you. Your spirit will run with Eywa, while your body will remain and become part of the People. This interaction of a peaceful kill illustrates humanity’s guilt regarding overkilling and lack of respect for other lifeforms. Not only is humanity responsible for littering the ocean with waste, we also face the issue of overfishing the ocean. 55% of our oceans are currently industrially fished, which has led to dramatic population crash for some marine animals. When I stand at the top of the dunes at South Golden Beach, I know I will smell clear air laced with sea salt. The reflection of the sun on the sand will hurt my eyes, but eventually my gaze will adjust to the brightness. No matter the surf’s emotions, dangerous and warning, or
The ocean’s death
smooth and playful, I can enjoy the inimitable melody it sings. If I am lucky, dolphins or whales will breach the water’s surface, blissful in their playful state. On these days, I will look out at my ocean, still a vibrant, unbridled blue, and remember a threat that many deny. It is these days that I wonder to myself, is humanity powerful enough to kill god?
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Despite never seeing ice on my beach, let alone in summer time, this frightens me.
...is humanity powerful enough to kill a god?
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MILLENNIALS: HOUSES, AVOCADOS AND STDS Sapphire Jones
There’s also this idea that millennials can’t buy houses. There’s some speculation going around as to why, but my favourite is that it’s because of avocado toast.
My partner and I began the process of buying a house this time last year. I’d like to note, that I was nineteen at the time, I’m a full time student and I only work on a casual basis as a check out chick. Yuck. Buying a house isn’t easy, especially in this economy. I’m sure we’ve all had at least one family member say that they owned a house at our age. We clap back with the cost of buying a house now, then they claim the minimum wage was like $3. But listen here Uncle Matt, I’ve got some hard facts for you now. Nineteen years ago a standard family home (four bedrooms, two bathrooms) in the centre of Brisbane only cost $170,000 according to a 2004 study by Macquarie University. We’ve just bought a house in Bahrs Scrub (approximately half way between Brissy and the Gold Coast) for $350,000. Can you spot the difference? Granted minimum wages have gone up, in 2000 the minimum wage was $15 an hour according to the Australian Fair Work Commission, now in 2019 it’s $18.93 an hour according to Australian Fair Work Ombudsman. Now, I’m not great at math, but I’m pretty sure the rise in cost of
purchasing a house does not match the rise in income on a minimum wage. But if I’m wrong, let me know. There’s also this idea that millennials can’t buy houses. There’s some speculation going around as to why, but my favourite is that it’s because of avocado toast. Tim Gurner, an Australian millionaire, felt the need to comment on our entire generation’s consumption of avocado. When interviewed by 60 Minutes, he commented: ‘When I was trying to buy my first home, I wasn’t buying smashed avocados for 19 bucks’. For starters, I don’t know where he’s eating that a smashed avo costs $19, but I get mine from Zarraffa’s for $5. Sometimes I don’t even have to leave the car to get it, what a world we live in. However, I’d like to note that if you stop spending money on avocado toast, you won’t save enough money for a deposit on a home anytime soon. Assuming you bought a smashed avo at $5 twice a week, and you started saving that money, it would still take you nearly 60 years to get a measly deposit of 10% on a $300,000 home.
Millennials: Houses, avocados and STDs
Something else I learnt when buying a house, is that people feel the need to voice their opinions. People started asking if I was pregnant, and my boyfriend’s mum was concerned that we hadn’t been together long enough to buy a house. We disagreed (obviously), but prior to deciding to move ahead with the house we did have some serious discussions about the future. In my opinion, buying a house is more commitment than getting married. It definitely takes more time, effort, money and communication to be able to buy a house with someone. Only, instead of a diamond ring I get a new key chain and a life-long investment. My mum always warned me of STDs… Sexually Transmitted Debts. And now I have the biggest of them all: a shared mortgage.
(sexually transmitted debt)
It was a big step, but it’s worked well for us. We had some ups and downs. One of the challenges we faced was spending money. I’m quite frugal when it comes to spending, for example, I’d rather pack my lunch than buy it. But it took some time to get my partner on the same wave length. Because I only work part time, we have an income and a half to work with. So that means making small sacrifices in order to make ends meet. For example, we only have takeout once a fortnight and date night once a month. This also meant cutting out daily coffees and energy drinks.
He wasn’t overly happy with that one, but we came to a compromise, he gets two energy drinks a week, and I’m not stressed about money. Win-win. Being mindful of these things means we pay off our mortgage quickly. We’ve got one house, I’m now working towards saving for the next as an investment property. It’s going to take a while, but we’ll get there eventually. So, it’s not impossible to buy a house as a millennial. It just takes time, savings and hard work. You don’t need to skip that avocado toast you’ve been craving, but 25
you do need to be aware of how often you’re indulging in these small ‘extra spends’. It’s important to know how to save and spend money properly. For more information on budgeting, consider attending Griffith University’s free ‘Budgeting 101’ workshop on campus. If you’re looking at purchasing a home and don’t know where to start, there are a number of financial institutions offering tailored advice to first home buyers.
There are few culinary powers greater than the ability to make a great guacamole. On offer at any party or BBQ worth leaving the couch for, guacamole is designed to be enjoyed by all and it is subject to a level of scrutiny more intense than any other share platter (save perhaps for the glorious spinach cob loaf). Developing a killer guac is social capital more valuable than being the only kid in year 7 with a backyard pool. If you deliver on the goods, fame and accolades await… every social event on the calendar
will see people eagerly waiting, corn chip in hand, for your arrival. There is no greater satisfaction in life than having a stranger sidle up to you at a party and whisper ‘I’ve heard you make a good guac’. A sad bowl of smooshy avo drowned in a tub of sour cream is not going to cut it. So to that end, my friends, Geta has complied four killer guac recipes to help you develop your own signature guacamole to delight all and sundry.
THE CLASSIC No fuss, no frills just a clean, simple crowd pleaser 3 large avocados Juice from 1 lemon 1 spring onion, finely chopped 1 clove of garlic, crushed Pinch of paprika ½ teaspoon pepper ¼ teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon sour cream 1. Place the spring onions and garlic in a bowl with the lemon juice. Allow this to sit while you prepare the other ingredients (this will make sure you are not left with breath that could ward off vampires for a week). 2. Seed and skin the avocados. Mash the flesh to desired consistency. For the perfect texture, blend half the avocado in a small food processor and combine it with the rest of the hand-mashed avocado. 3. Combine all ingredients and enjoy.
It’s a guac off
GUAKALEMOLE Double your green goodness and add a fun pun into your diet by adding kale to your guac 3 large avocados ¾ cup of kale leaves (raw, destemmed) ½ Spanish onion, finely chopped ¾ cup coriander Juice from 1 lemon 2 tablespoons lime juice
2 cloves garlic 1 green chilli ½ teaspoon cumin 1 small tomato, finely chopped ½ teaspoon pepper ½ teaspoon salt
1. Place the chopped onion and lime juice into the bowl together while you prepare the rest of your ingredients. 2. Food process the garlic, kale, green chilli and lemon juice together. 3. Seed and skin the avocados and mash flesh well with a fork. 4. Combine all ingredients. Mix well and enjoy.
FRUITY FIESTA Guacamole purists might shudder at the thought but stock up on some sweet, soft stone fruits for a guac that is heavy on the summer.
3 large avocados Juice of 1 lime ¼ cup Spanish onion, finely chopped 1 cup of sweet stone fruit (such as peaches or nectarines), chopped into small cubes 1 teaspoon chipotle sauce or paste ½ cup coriander, finely chopped 1 teaspoon pepper ½ teaspoon salt
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1. Seed and skin the avocados and use fork to mash flesh to a chunky consistency. 2. Combine all ingredients and mix well. Add more salt to taste if needed, and enjoy.
THE G-BANGER This guac is everything… Spicy. Intense. And the secret ingredient is tequila. 3 large avocados Juice of 1 lime Juice of ½ lemon 1 clove garlic ½ Spanish onion. finely chopped Pinch cumin Hot chilli such as a habanero or Carolina Reaper (fresh or jar, quantity to taste) 30 ml tequila 3 slices of jalapeno from the jar (chopped small) 2 tsp liquid from jalapeno jar ½ cup coriander, finely chopped 2 teaspoon pepper ½ - 1 teaspoon salt 1. Food process or crush the garlic and mix with lemon juice. 2. On a medium heat, fry the onion, cumin and chilli together until the onion is translucent with just a touch of brown. You can food process the chilli beforehand or finely chop. 3. Leave the onion to cool and seed, skin and mash the avocados well with a fork. 4. Combine ingredients, mix well and enjoy.
It’s Article a guac Title off
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HOW TO PLANT AN Lisa (Shan) Hu
STEP ONE Once you’ve finished your avocado, wash and dry the pit STEP TWO Fill a jar with water, almost to the brim. STEP THREE Locate the broad end of the pit. This is the end that will point down into the water.
STEP FOUR Press three toothpicks around the pit. These will suspend the pit from the rim of the jar. Place the toothpicks so about one inch of the avocado pit is in water.
How to plant an avocado seed
AVOCADO SEED STEP FIVE Place the jar in a warm, sunny spot, but out of direct sunlight. STEP SIX Replenish water as needed.
HANDY TIPS • Your pit should start to sprout roots and a stem in two to six weeks. • Once the stem reaches six to seven inches tall, cut it back by half. • When the roots have grown thick and the stem has leaves again, plant in soil in a pot about ten inches in diameter, leaving half the seed still exposed above the soil.
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CULT CLASSICS ON FILM This edition, Geta revisited some cult classics to give you a selection of films that are just as popular as smashed avo on toast. Cult classics are films that have grown in popularity after their initial release. Some bombed at the box office, some were surprise hits and some were just so bad that they became good.
Highlander (1986) ‘There can be only one’ is the motto of Highlander, where a race of immortals live among us and battle to decapitate each other until there is only one remaining to receive ‘the prize’ of unlimited knowledge of the universe. Unfortunately the film franchise did not follow its own advice with the 1986 original spawning half a dozen other films and a TV series. The original is worth a watch though, featuring a very awkward Christopher Lambert and Bond hero, Sean Connery. Did we mention that the 80s action is set to a selection of great Queen songs?
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Empire Records (1995)
Pulp Fiction (1994)
The film that launched a thousand (or a few hundred thousand) sing-a-long screenings and just as many inebriated performances of the ‘Time Warp’ on wedding dancefloors, Rocky Horror is the definition of a cult classic. Newly engaged, Brad and Janet, find themselves seeking refuge in a stranger’s home when their car breaks down during a storm. Their oh-so-wholesome morals will be tested by their host, Dr Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry) who is seductively resplendent in a corset and heels as he unveils his latest scientific creation, the Adonis like Rocky, and entices his guests to give themselves over to absolute pleasure.
Every day is Rex Manning day when you watch Empire Records. A collection of free-spirited, dysfunctional, and wise beyond their years teens staff the eclectic record store, Empire Records. When night manager, Lucas, discovers that their indie haven is going to be sold to a chain store he gambles the daily takings at Atlantic City to try and stop the buyout. Empire Records charts the following 24 hours as the staff try to save the store, resolve romantic entanglements, and get high, all while hosting the infamous pop sensation, Rex Manning.
Pulp Fiction is packed with iconic moments from the opening diner hold up kicked off with the touching sentiment, ‘I love you Honey Bunny’ to Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) waxing lyrical about the metric system and cheese burgers. Arguably the most popular of Quentin Tarantino’s films, Pulp Fiction makes clever use of a nonlinear narrative to present a series of vignettes that eventually come together in a compelling pay off. This is a cult classic in part because the audience’s experience changes over multiple viewings as they gain a better understanding of how the individual characters and scenes all fit together.
Cult classics on film
The Endless Summer (1966)
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
Cabin in the Woods (2012)
It’s probably fair to say that no matter how many hours you’ve logged in the water, if you’ve never seen The Endless Summer then you’ve never surfed. The premise is simple, travel around the world to miss winter and spend the year chasing the perfect wave. Filmed in the sixties, The Endless Summer has an all-American feel that is amplified by the cheesy narration of legendary surf film-maker, Bruce Brown. You’ve definitely seen the poster so now it’s time to check out what is arguably the greatest surf movie of all time.
When you meet a girl, it’s only natural that you have to battle her seven evil exes in highly stylised video game-esque battles before you can even think about getting serious. Scott Pilgrim stars Michael Cera and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, supported by more than a handful of great cameos. Adapted from a Brian Lee O’Malley comic and directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Baby Driver) was initially a box office flop but the witty, weird and high voltage comedy has attracted a cult following since its release.
Five college friends (including Chris Hemsworth) head away to a cabin in the woods for the weekend, but things quickly begin to take a turn for the creepy. This is a teen slasher flick that is much smarter than it looks and like most good cult classics, it gets better on subsequent viewings. Cabin in the Woods is written by Joss Whedon, and has the heavy dose of quirky humour that you would expect from the Buffy director. There are more than a couple of twists, and it is worth going with the flow and leaning into the WTF moments.
What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
Flash Gordon (1980)
Labyrinth (1986)
What do you get when you send a documentary film crew in to capture the lives of four vampires living in a Wellington share house? You get the twisted, hilarious and highly rewatchable What We Do in the Shadows. Starring Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) as Vladislav the Poker and Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok) as a 19th century dandy, Viago, What We Do in the Shadows follows the housemates as they go about their everyday lives. The eternal pursuit of virgin blood is tempered by the challenges of arguing over whose turn it is to do the dishes, vampire hunters, and selecting the right outfit to wear without the benefit of a mirror reflection.
Another 80s cult classic made all the more memorable for a Queen heavy soundtrack, Flash Gordon is everything you want in a kitschy, action escape. NFL super star, Flash Gordon, becomes saviour of the universe, when he and a sassy (heavily permed) travel agent, Dale, are kidnapped and sent into space to do battle with Emperor Ming the Merciless. Ming is hell bent on destroying Earth for his own pleasure. Robots, seductive space princesses, Hawkmen, rocket cycles, and a good old fashioned sense of American superiority… nothing is too cheesy for Flash Gordon.
Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) longs for a more adventurous life away from her mundane suburban home. Her wish comes true when her baby brother, Toby, is kidnapped by the Goblin King (David Bowie) and hidden at the centre of a complicated labyrinth full of monsters, tricks and traps. Bowie is undoubtedly a scene stealer with big hair, very firmly fitted tights and a commanding presence that makes you wonder if it would be such a bad thing to set up home in the labyrinth. Sarah does her best to resist his charms and teams up with an array of Muppet companions to rescue Toby before he is turned into a goblin forever.
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COMEDY NIGHT
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FEATURE ARTIST HOT COFFEE: MATT HANSFORD Bec Marshallsay
Hot Coffee is a Gold Coast based, four piece hip-hop, funk and dance band. Starting with Matt Hansford (singer/ front man) and Wade De Souza (production, keys and drums) two and a half years, Hot Coffee has recently expanded to include Callum Hughes (bass) and Jacob Fisher (guitar).
Tell us a little bit about Hot Coffee… We started out just doing electronic and real hip-hop beats and stuff like that for the first year. It was a bit experimental at the time and we were doing a show here and there but nothing concrete. And then Callum jumped on board he does a lot of bass guitar stuff and more rhythmic writing and it turned into more of a funky, jam style hip-hop more along the lines of Goldlink or Anderson Paak. It was really cool to see that [style] come in and its development. And then we brought Jacob and he brings a cool little melody to it and that’s what we are today. So it was only about four months that we brought these two
guitarists on board. The sound of what we are has changed a lot in the past year or so but it’s starting to come together really, really well.
You studied at Griffith Gold Coast I believe? What did you study?
We all work full time. We all love what we do but we got together at the start of the year and decided ‘Do we want to give this music thing a real crack?’ and everyone decided ‘Yeah, let’s do it’.
I’m alumni from Griffith I only finished at the very end of last year – I did a double degree in business and exercise science and I did my postgraduate in exercise physiology. I work as an exercise physiologist. Callum, who’s the bass player, he finished his paramed degree at Griffith last year.
So instead, of just being a hobby, we treat it as being a real business. As soon as we get home from work we get straight into the music if we’ve got time for it that night. I would say a couple of hours every night is spent doing something surrounding the band. Cos it’s not just music and jamming and things like that. There’s so much that goes on marketing wise.
How much time per week would you spend making music or performing?
You’re dealing with distribution companies, video people, photographers and all that kind
Feature artist
of stuff (stuff that we’re so bad at by the way but we’re getting better as time goes on). You need to present yourself with an image and you need to make sure that people are interacting with you. They say music is only half the work or even thirty percent of the work. The rest of it is how you get the stuff across. It’s a lot of hours spent every week. But we love it.
Making music is what it’s all about but what other things are essential to get your music out into the world? The making of the music is the easiest thing for us. It’s easy for us because we’ve been doing it for 10-15 years so when we want to write a song we can just pop one out in an afternoon. The
post production takes a long time. Wade does all the beats and production, he does all the mixing himself because he goes to a sound college and does that for a degree. The marketing is a big thing. We‘ve got a new single coming out next month and we’ve put so many hours into the distribution - that’s photos, media, press kit releases, contacting agencies, magazines, and organising gigs. When you’re at a local level, you do get some people coming to you but if you want to get to that next step you need to go out there and grab it yourself. So as far as getting as many gigs as possible and getting all this promo, you’ve really got to put in the hard yards.
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Any tips for aspiring musos hoping to get people listening and build up a following? Any advice on getting started? Don’t get disheartened when you’re not ‘making it’. Everyone’s on their own trajectory. There are people who can overnight make a cool song and then there are people who will take years and years, and then they’ll get big and famous. Everyone’s on their own trajectory. The thing is not to give up on it just because you feel like you’re not getting anywhere.
Before we brought two new guys into the band, Wade and I were feeling a bit of a slump and it was like ’Oh, we keep doing this but we’re not getting as far as we can’ but we just flipped it on its head when we realised that we just need to do a little bit more work and that’s happening. There’s a lot more things happening to us and a lot more people contacting us and it just shows that if you keep putting it in, you’ll get more out.
It might be like asking a parent to pick a favourite child, but do you have a favourite track or any particular work that you are particularly proud of? The new track that we’ve got coming out (11 July) called ‘Golden’. We’ve just done our first video for that which was a super professional video. It came out so so cool and we’re super stoked on it. We’ve always been a bit of a demo-y kind of band. We throw up heaps and heaps of content. We’ve got heaps of songs on Soundcloud that are not super polished -because first and foremost we want to have fun with the music – so we do a lot of demos and throw it up there. This new track ‘Golden’ is the first one where all four of us in the band wrote it together. And you can tell that there’s four different musicians from different areas working on it because it’s just… the guitars are immense, the bass line’s real funky, the
drums are cool, there’s such a cool rhythm to it and we’re super stoked on the final product. We’re stoked for everyone to hear it.
In a similar vein... any performance or career highlights? We love playing live. We try to bring a high energy as much as possible because that’s what people enjoy. We loved playing at Shark Bar before it shut down. Every single show is its own lesson and you get to have fun at every single show.
Who are you listening to at the moment? Me specifically… I’m from that hip-hop type background and I’m absolutely loving Anderson Paak’s latest stuff at the moment - really really loving it. He manages to blend that groove of really good lyricism with funky drums and funky guitar and it’s such a positive vibe when you listen to it. Also Hayden James’ new album was really really sick. I’m really enjoying that as well. You can check out Hot Coffee at: @HotCoffeeOffical Soundcloud soundcloud.com/hot-coffeeofficial Images courtesy of Oscar B Gunn
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ARMCHAIR EXPERT Podcast
SPLITWISE App Available for iPhone, Android and online, Splitwise is designed to make it easy to split bills and keep track of IOUs. This is perfect for group dinners, holidays and most of all, shared housing. You can keep track of what you spend, who owes you money and who you owe money to easily, and you can even start groups for your household, family or friends to keep track of who paid for what and when. Helping you avoid awkward conversations, the app will also send reminders when a bill is due. Best of all, the basic version of the app is free. You can pay to upgrade if you want extra features such as up to date currency exchange for converting bills to different currencies (might come in handy for your summer Eurotrip) or advanced budgeting tools. splitwise.com
Hosted by Dax Shepard and Monica Padman, Armchair Expert is a weekly podcast that hosts conversations with celebrities and public intellectuals over one to two hours. Dax Shepard got his start in Punk’d and has featured in films such as Chips and Without a Paddle, but don’t let this fool you into thinking that this podcast will be a light hearted, flimsy bit of fun. Shepard is someone born to chat, and he is passionate about pursuing ‘real’ conversations that have substance and foster human connection. Having spent almost 15 years sober, Shepard is self-reportedly fascinated with human messiness. While the podcast offers you a more detailed insight into celebrities you might admire, it also has some universal themes that make you consider how you can foster connection in your own life, embracing mistakes, and making time to continually improve the way we perceive ourselves and interact with those around us. Guest include Kristen Bell, Will Ferrell, Gwyneth Paltrow, Stephen Merchant, and Elizabeth Gilbert just to name a few. armchairexpertpod.com
DOT App Dot is a free app that lets you chart your period so that you are not caught unawares. You can add symptoms and updates to the calendar for a clearer picture of your cycle. To get started you simply need to add the first day of your last period, the app will make predictions based on a standard cycle but as you continue it will begin to adapt to your personal cycle. Dot will also tell you when you are likely to be ovulating and will let you know each day if you are at low, medium or high risk of pregnancy. This is a handy feature if you are looking at starting a family. You should definitely have a chat to your doctor if you are thinking of using Dot as a contraceptive – we are not in a position to foster any Geta-babies! And in case we need to clarify, an app will not keep you safe from STIs. dottheapp.com Online
JAMES CLEAR Website Author of the New York Times best-seller, atomic habits, James Clear is a blogger who is passionate about productivity, efficiency and about building good habits to help you achieve your goals and live a better life. The website includes a range of articles on topics such as motivation and taking action, better thinking for creativity and productivity, and why habits are one of the most powerful forces in your life. Clear also shares his curated lists of best books in different fields and genres (history, fitness, writing, business and more) in case you want to read further. While there are tie ins to paid content, you can access most of Clear’s work for free and can even sign up to his newsletter to get his interesting articles delivered to your inbox on a regular basis.
jamesclear.com
REIGNS: GAME OF THRONES Game If you are suffering from Game of Thrones withdrawal then Reign: Game of Thrones gives you a chance to try and do better on the Iron Throne. Put your Tinder fingers to good use as you swipe left and right to make decisions to try and keep your ruler on the throne for as many moons as possible. It is difficult to balance the competing needs of the Seven Kingdoms and if you’re not careful you could end up meeting an unceremonious end in a walk of shame or bath of wildfire. This GoT themed game is adapted from the original Reigns where you play as a medieval king or queen trying to balance the demands of the people, church, treasury and the army. In the GoT specialty you will play as Cersei Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion Lannister, Jon Snow and more. The game play is simple and surprisingly addictive. The only downside is that it will cost you $3.99$5.99 as a once off. reignsgame.com 47
Entertainment
Rocketman (2019) 121 Minutes Drama, Musical Director: Dexter Fletcher Capturing the showmanship, the flair and the out of this world spectacle that is Elton John is no easy feat but Rocketman has well and truly done justice to the performer’s life to date. If you are feeling biopic weary or sceptical that anything could live up to the highly impressive Bohemian Rhapsody, then rest assured that Rocketman is worth the price of admission and then some. Director, Dexter Fletcher has previously been known for his on-screen roles in films such as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and, for kids of the 80s, as the iconic hard hitting student journalist Spike, in Press Gang.
Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent Lewis Capaldi Mary Jo Dowsett
However Fletcher is emerging as a director to watch, having worked Eddie the Eagle and the final stages of Bohemian Rhapsody, before making his mark with Rocketman.
World), is Taron Egerton. Egerton has already proved himself to be highly charming in the Kingsman franchise, and a chameleonic character actor in Eddie the Eagle. In Rocketman he brings these two skills together Fletcher’s vision is a smart one. The to perfection as Elton John. What film is not intended in anyway to be may be a surprise is that unlike a true to life, chronological telling Rhapsody, the singing is all completed of John’s rise to stardom. Instead it by Egerton and it has not been is deliberately designed as a broad digitally mixed with any of John’s brush stroke tribute that captures key performances to make it work. moments and delivers them in a way that is both magical, dramatic and Even if Elton John is not a performer quintessentially Elton John. From an you have ever gone out of your way audience perspective this approach to listen to, his contribution to music skirts around the discomfort and and performance in the twentieth disappointment that tarnishes so century cannot be understated. For many biopics when you find out that this reason alone you should make a key moment or favourite scene sure to add Rocketman to your never happened. watchlist. The bonus is that it also happens to be a highly entertaining Anchoring a brilliant cast that piece of theatre on film. includes Jamie Bell (Billy Elliott), Richard Madden (Bodyguard) and Verdict: Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic Sure to get you Crocodile Rock-ing. Lewis Capaldi has just released his debut album, Divinely Uninspired to A Hellish Extent, an album filled with themes of love, heartache and self-reflection.The album comes after the release of Capaldi’s smash hit, ‘Someone you Loved’ and has already topped charts around the world. Capaldi opens the album with the line ‘I’m not ready to be just another of your mistakes’, a lyric that really sets the tone for the rest of the album. Divinely Uninspired to A Hellish Extent oozes feelings of melancholy through slow ballads and deeply personal song writing. The album is definitely sonically cohesive, with almost every track using a gentle piano to juxtapose Capaldi’s raspy and thick vocals, Entertainment
a perfect recipe for a love song. ‘Hollywood’ is the most upbeat track on the album and has a slight folkrock sound yet still stays on the theme of heartache. His voice becomes an instrument in itself on this album, and with no expectations to live up to, Capaldi had the freedom to explore his sound comfortably. The lead single, ‘Someone you Loved’ is definitely a clear indication of what the album has to offer with little to no surprises along the way. Overall, you could say that Divinely Uninspired to A Hellish Extent is a mixture of Dean Lewis and Adele, high quality song writing and powerful vocals that is sure to cure a broken heart.
Fishing for Fishies King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard Tomas Bartlett-Swales
This is a funny kind of happening - fans of Aussie psych rockers, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, were shocked to discover the new-found sobriety of their latest album, Fishing for Fishies. No doubt there is the odd spike of acid in the fragmented rhythm of Acarine and the… well, the whole premise of Cyboogie. For the most part, Fishing for Fishies takes some of the defining sounds from their previous albums and puts them on a conveyor belt, culminating in a typically strange album. However, it doesn’t have quite the same psychedelic spice, particularly when listening to certain tracks in isolation. Whether this is good or bad, critics will disagree. Some will say boring; others will say fresh. The album doesn’t possess the same cohesion of their previous works but there are still leitmotifs that reward you for listening to the whole album.
The Land Before Avocado Richard Glover
The Land Before Avocado is the story of a different Australia; the Australia of the 60s and 70s that still regarded the avocado as an usual vegetable for which there was little culinary enthusiasm. This wasn’t the only cultural attitude that is hard to imagine in 2019. Attitudes to parenting, women, fashion and culture were all very different. Author, Richard Glover, takes great pains to disabuse the reader of the blinkered nostalgia that is responsible for so many Facebook posts beginning with ‘When I was a kid…’ This makes the book highly accessible for readers of any generation. For younger readers it is a colourful insight into the Australia in which their parents and grandparents 49
There is a blues harmonica riff that shows up slightly different in ‘Boogieman Sam’, ‘Plastic Boogie’ and ‘This Thing’. As for individual tracks, Boogieman Sam, ‘Real’s not Real’ and ‘Cyboogie’ are undeniable treasures, each bringing their own unique merits to the table. Boogieman Sam perfectly introduces the blues theme of the album with its fuzzy guitar tone, evocative of Norman Greenbaum’s never duplicated ‘Spirit in the Sky’. ‘Real’s not Real’ says to hell with dreamy ‘doowop’ drums and plunges 6/8 timing into a fiery pit of molten metal. ‘Cyboogie’ picks up an ancient blues riff and beams it into the future with synthesised voice processing, fully realising its doomily prophetic lyrics regarding the human spirit. Perhaps King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have fragmented the style of their album as a meta statement on the gradual fragmentation of the environment? I don’t know. You never know with this band…
grew up, while for people who lived it, the book offers a friendly reminder of some of the quirks and idiosyncrasies unique to the era (both good and bad). The Land Before Avocado is not an autobiography per say but Glover does use anecdotes from his childhood to frame and guide much of the novel. This adds a charm to the novel that makes it incredibly easy to read. It is akin to sitting down with someone’ s photo album from 30 years ago and having them talk you through the highlights – assuming your narrator has the wit, humour and irreverence of Glover.
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$5 lunches - Fashion - Bargains Live Acoustic Music Library Lawn 10am – 3pm fortnightly Wednesdays starting Week 1 Weeks 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11
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BEING CREATIVE TIM KLINGENSTEIN - Bachelor of Industrial Design This is my Hempcrete project, I was looking at different materials that could be visually similar to concrete and I came across Hempcrete which is a mixture of hemp shivs and hydraulic lime and water making it 100% biodegradable and can be easily recycled back to its base materials.
As the ‘aggregate’ for this concrete like material is hemp, products like this pendant can be up to 70% lighter. Other products like the decorative bowl can be made with many different colours and finishes which makes the material a dream to work with.
Being creative
NITRIXFLARE ANDROXLUS - Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Design
Glacius Emergency Body Cooler System (EBCS) A compact instant refrigeration unit designed to chill gel pads that cool the body during heat injuries using canisters of compressed air.
Hydraline Automatic IntraVenous System (AIV) The system is an electric press for IV bags, removing the need for gravity to work. The unit is also packed in a small form factor which allows for use in disaster relief, in areas with space constraints where the casualty needs to be stabilised before being extracted from rubble.
Verino Early Warning System (EWS) Verino is designed for the Singapore Armed Forces, as a wearable device that monitors core body temperature during training and exercise, sending an alert to the user and those nearby when body temperature reaches dangerous levels.
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BREN DOMINGO - Bachelor of Industrial Design
Being creative
RENEE ROBINSON - Bachelor of Arts
Experimental Writing Project This project is a hybrid of two experimental writing forms; exquisite corpse and redaction. Exquisite corpse is a creative activity wherein multiple individuals contribute to a larger creative project, with minimal interaction, often resulting in a Frankenstein-like creation. In this instance, I employed the exquisite corpse method to alter the narrative of a pre-existing literary work, Sebastian Stewart’s The Mentor. Multiple contributors selected pages from the novel and circled words that stood out to them. Sometimes their chosen words formed sentences, phrases, poems or complete nonsense.
To further the experimental nature of the work, I also drew inspiration from Tom Phillips’ creative work, A Humament, in which he takes a page from a book and redacts all but a few words and turns the page into an artwork. In a similar manner, I redacted everything from the original text, except words chosen by my contributors. I then decorated the pages using a combination of collage, paint and various other artistic mediums. The final project is a multimodal, fragmented, typographic artwork.
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ON CAMPUS O’WEEK 2016 Illustrator: Rachele Andrews GUGCSTUDENTGUILD.COM/GETAMUNGSTIT @racheandrews.design Article Title
Illustrator: Jessie Kemp 57
GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE Wholesome activities This edition we have found a selection of activities that are just as wholesome as snacking on the exalted avocado. They are all about produce, sunshine and exploring all that south east Queensland has to offer.
TROPICAL FRUIT WORLD Located just south of the border in Duranbah, Tropical Fruit World is a working farm that claims to have the world’s largest selection of tropical fruits. Tropical Fruit World runs tours from 10 am everyday (apart from Christmas Day). Set several hours aside to check out everything on offer. The highlight of the tour is the tractor safari around the farm where you will view many of the 500 fruit varieties growing on the farm, from rows and rows of avocados, to dragonfruit, bananas, carambola, soursop and more.
As if this wasn’t enough, the tour includes a boat ride, fruit tasting, and a visit to their petting zoo. If you don’t want to take the tour you can simply stop by to pick up some harder to come by produce like black sapote or finger limes to jazz up your lunchbox. The Plantation Café is also worth a visit in its own right, offering a constantly changing menu that uses the local produce in exciting ways… you could feast on jackfruit nachos followed by a banana split topped with macadamias straight from the farm.
Tropical Fruit World has a locals discount to make your visit even more student friendly; purchase your tickets onsite, provide your email and residents of the Tweed, Gold Coast or Byron shire (with photo ID) for half price entry for yourself and visiting friends or family.
tropicalfruitworld.com.au
Get the hell outta here
BUNDALL FARMERS’ MARKET Tucked away behind the Home of the Arts (HOTA), the Bundall Farmers’ Market is on every Sunday from 6.00 am – 11.00 am. Living in south east Queensland, we are close to an abundance of farms producing some of the best quality produce in the country. Start the week right and pick up your fresh produce selecting from organic, conventionally grown and bio-dynamic options. Or if you are looking for something gourmet, there are a range of stalls selling beautiful breads, cheese, tapas
and condiments that will make you drool. The market follows Queensland’s plastic bag ban so don’t forget to bring your own shopping bags or purchase paper or reusable bags once you arrive. If your pantry is full you can make the market your Sunday breakfast destination with great coffee and ready to eat cakes, snacks and full breakfast available at a range of stalls.
It’s not all about the food though. Once you are satiated you can take a look at the latest exhibitions in HOTA’s galleries or catch a movie – HOTA often offers some great films that are not shown regularly at mainstream cinemas. On the first Sunday of each month, you can kick your shoes off and relax with free Yoga on the Green at 9.00 am followed by a fun, free chance to shake your tail feather at Dancing on the Green from 10.00 am. hota.com.au/events/farmersmarket/
CATCH SOME SUN...FLOWERS Did you know that we have sunflowers in our back garden? December to March is sunflower season and there are a number of farms between the Gold Coast and Byron Bay that allow you to wander through the fields and enjoy their golden glow up close. Farm & Co in Cudgen offer farm visits for just $5 with an added option to pick your own sunflowers. There is a lovely café and farm stall on site featuring their home grown produce. The Farm at Byron Bay also has a sunflower field, produce store and restaurant. You can take a free self-guided tour of the farm or pay for a walking or horseback tour (bookings required). Sunflowers bloom for 3-4 weeks at a time so it is worth keeping an eye on the locations’ socials or ringing ahead even in season.
If you want a bigger adventure you can hit the road and head out to Allora and Warwick to traverse the sunflower lined roads, also known as the Sunflower Route. This is almost 2.5 hours from the Gold Coast so plan your drive carefully and consider making an overnight so that you can explore the region in depth. Warwick is a larger regional centre that has a number of interesting buildings such as the Abbey of the Roses and Glengallen Homestead and Heritage Centre, while Allora is a smaller town with some quaint shops and beautiful old architecture. If you’re feeling active, the area is also close to some nice day hikes around Cunningham and Spicers Gap. While a field full of sunflowers might be an Instagrammers paradise, be respectful. If fields are not open to the public then don’t 59
jump fences or enter property just to get the perfect shot. The space is someone’s livelihood and you risk damaging their crops. thefarm.com.au farmandco.com.au
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