Togatus. Feb 2009
. O Week Guide . Hobart Graffiti . Birds Of Tokyo . Interview with a Drug Dealer .
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Published by the Students’ Representative Council on behalf of the Tasmania University Union Inc. and the Journalism, Media and Communications program of the University of Tasmania (hf. “the publishers”). The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of Togatus staff or the publishers. The copyright in each piece of work remains with the contributor however the publishers reserve the right to reproduce material on the Togatus website (www.togatus.com.au). The copyright in this magazine remains with the publishers.
Editor:
Damian McIver editor.togatus@utas.edu.au
Sub-editor:
Simon McCulloch
Design, Layout and Photography:
Nadiah Abdulrahim, Alice Agnew, Hayley Bell, Rosie Hastie, Sophie Machin
Cover:
Hayley Bell
Adervertising:
please contact editor.togatus@utas.edu.au
Contributors:
Bradley Almond, Sophie Kuryl, Jeff Donne, Selina Bryan, Samuel Burnett, Julien Lepoix, Vivien Mason, Whittney Jago, James Reynolds, David Jensen, Rob Meredith, Shantelle Rodman, Scott Faulkner, Nicola Goc Printed on 100% recycled paper by Monotone Art Printers 61 Argyle St. Hobart 7000 www.togatus.com.au Togatus PO Box 950 Sandy Bay, Tas 7006 Email: editor.togatus@utas.edu.au Togatus welcomes all contributions. Please email your work or ideas to editor.togatus@utas.edu.au. It is understood that any contribution sent to Togatus may be used for publication in either the magazine or the website, and that the final decision on whether to publish resides with the editor and the publishers. The editor reserves the right to make changes to submitted material as required. Togatus is published quarterly. Deadline for next issue is 20 April. 1
From The Publishers Rob Meredith President, TUU Welcome to, or welcome back, to UTAS in ’09! I trust that everyone has enjoyed their summer and is taking their first few excited, but hesitant, steps into university life or, for those people who have been here a while, taking reluctant steps into their return to classes, essays and assignments. It is with great pleasure that we present you with this issue of Togatus. After almost 80 years of publication, Togatus is finally moving into the 21st century. After a year of planning, negotiating, wrangling and deal-making, the TUU has joined forces with JMC (UTAS Journalism, Media and Communications) to re-launch a magazine (and interactive website), that is a dynamic forum for students to interact and get more involved with their university life. It’s also a shining example of how the TUU and UTAS can co-operate on projects that are of a world-standard in quality, directly benefit students, and help bring life and culture to our university campuses. The new Togatus is controlled by an Editorial Board made up of three senior members of JMC who between them bring extensive experience and knowledge in journalism and publishing, and the three TUU SRC Vice-Presidents from each region (Launceston, Hobart and the Cradle Coast), ensuring that the publication remains independent, honest and relevant to your lives. The day to day operations of the magazine are carried out by an editor employed by the Editorial Board, however the magazine itself is really controlled by YOU, the students. It’s your articles, your photos, videos, songs, poems and opinion pieces that make up the content of this magazine, so make sure YOU get involved. Phone: (03) 6226 2853 Email: President@tuu.utas.edu.au http://www.tuu.com.au
Nicola Goc JMC representative on Togatus Editorial Board The relaunch of Togatus after more than a year in recess is an important moment in the life of UTAS. The absence of a publication in which you, the students, can have a voice—can share in the educational, cultural, social and political life of your university—made this university a poorer place. The relaunch of Togatus offers each of you the opportunity to have a voice, to publicise your interests and talents and concerns. The Journalism, Media and Communications discipline at UTAS is delighted to be involved in the relaunch of Togatus—especially in the launch of Tog into cyberspace through its online edition. This important and necessary initiative will allow not just the students at UTAS, but the whole world, to know about the vibrant student life at the University of Tasmania. The challenge is for the student body to provide a publication that reflects that vibrant university culture.. Togatus is looking for journalists, photographers, subeditors, sports reporters, art critics, music reviewers, lifestyle journalists, book reviewers, graphic designers— and more. I encourage all students – particularly those aspiring journalists or editors among you - to grasp the opportunity to be published. Wickham Steed, editor at the London Times in the 1920s, once said, “The absence of informed criticism or agreement, and the restrictions of public knowledge tend to breed the corruption and other forms of inefficiency to which dictatorial systems are peculiarly liable.” Steed makes an important point, the freedom to access knowledge—the freedom to know, the freedom to be informed, the freedom to agree or to disagree, is at the heart of the democratic way of life. Make the student life at the University of Tasmania one that reflects these freedoms. Dr Nicola Goc Togatus Editorial Board Member Lecturer and Postgraduate Masters by Coursework Coordinator, Journalism, Media and Communications
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From The Editor Damian McIver Well, after those welcomes, there’s probably not much more for me to say and, of course, there’s plenty more for you guys to read. Let me just briefly mention how thrilled and thankful I am for the opportunity to play a part in bringing Togatus back to life here at UTAS. It has been hard work pulling this edition together and it would not have happened without the diligence and creativity of a number of very special people. I can’t list them all here, but they are all acknowledged in our list of contributors, and they are all shining examples of how students can contribute in a unique and distinctive way to the cultural life of our university. In a similar vein to both Rob and Nicola, I urge all students to get involved in Togatus – whether it be the magazine or the website – because this is your chance to speak up and be heard. In that same spirit, we also make ourselves accountable to you. We’d like to think we’ve cobbled together something pretty special in this issue: whether it be the heart-breaking story on online confession forums, our fun and informative O-Week guide, or our interview with the hard rocking Birds of Tokyo. Nevertheless, such judgements belong to you dear readers, and they are judgements that we are eager to hear. So get in touch and let us know what you liked, what you didn’t like and what you’d like to see in the future. Togatus, after all, belongs to each and every one of you. Cheers Damian McIver Editor editor.togatus@utas.edu.au
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Firstly
Fiction
07 Predictions 09 Upcoming
36 The Story of Richard Wendell and his Love
O Week
Reviews 41 A beginner’s guide to Hobart comedy 42 Movie Reviews 44 Music Reviews
10 First Year Guide 12 Giving Tips 14 O-Week Calendar
Features 16 Guerrilla Therapy 19 Vandalism or Art? 23 Your Dealer is Not your Friend 26 Champagne Region
End Notes 46 Taking back the Toga 48 Event Guide
Interviews 30 Little Horrors, interview with Dominic Lennard 32 Native Birds, interview with Birds of Tokyo
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5
. . . F IRSTLY tions Predic
rages scribes which encou ar ye ew n a n of ing months. rst publicatio over the com fi e en p th t ap h ou ot ab n months” mething or might the “quieter g n Yep, there’s so at what they think might ri u d e ac ll sp ertheless hots ent need to fi iday), we nev ol rg h u e to take pot-s on th p u of s it g If any of the issin ctice reek le, tradition. lation is off p u ab op on W hile this pra p ti e es th u q of gh uent editions majority timeless, thou ’s” in subseq is so th u (i.e. when the to yo ld te u to ib “I es of y were you? ht to contr g us seriousl ire expect pag in k sp claim our rig ta an ly tr al ly re al en’t ld actu oes, you wer following shou if none of it d e, rs u co f O of Togatus.
March 2009
ile ents after a nasty fall wh dd ruptures ankle ligam Ru ama. vin Ob Ke k ter rac nis Ba th Mi wi me s Australian Pri early photo-op ure sec to r ge ea rs de other lea all-comers to jostling with seventeen t, Serzh Sargsian, beats en sid Pre n nia me Ar s gnaciou Not surprisingly, the pu new US president. r photographed with the de lea n eig be the first for
April 2009 “haemorrhage”, “rescue”, “terminal”, “resuscita te”, “ailing”, “bruised”, “battered”, “sick”, “injection”, “seizure” – medical professionals across the country strike in protest of their vocabulary being raided by the Australian medi a eager to illustrate the depth of the financial crisis. In a less elegant turn of phrase, Treasurer Wayne Swan accidentally quips, “she’s rooted,” in relation to the nation’s strug gling economy.
May 2009
er of headlines featuring nthly record for the numb mo … w ne a s ak bre ss Drug, Youth, Fear, Hoon The Tasmanian pre uth, Booze, Crime, Fear, Yo : rds wo ing low fol combinations of the and Youth.
June 2009 The pulp mill finally gets approved and, after a period of angry protest, our political relevance for the rest of country gradually beco mes obsolete. Realising this, the State Government intervenes and halts construction, ensuring that so long as this debate continues, at least the rest of the nation will know we’re still here. 6
Firstly.
July 2009
introduce new measures dia Authority (ACM A) Me d an the ns tio ica un mm Inflation and the rest of The Australian Co advertising. Goodbye Mr it llsh bu of t en ym plo to outlaw the de ase, please, please… bye Tim Franklin. Oh ple Chickenfeed crew, good
August 2009 In another unprec edented move, AC M A steps in to ou updates on Facebo tlaw pointless an ok. No longer will d superfluous stat it be acceptable to lunch”. C’mon Ba us say “Barry McBar rry! No one cares… ry is eating (a pologies on two fro actually called Ba nts to anyone out rry McBarry). there who is
September 2009
s t at least some good new L premiership, proving tha AF the n wi b Clu ll tba The Geelong Foo dreaded ‘GFC”. can be associated with the
October 2009 “Paw Power,” a herbal supplement boos ting endurance in the hands and fingers, experiences a dramatic upsurge in sale s as students battle hand-cramps over the exam period. Seriously, the only times most of us use handwriting now is for signing tran sactions, making shopping lists and… writing frigg ing exams! They should be a test of intel lect and critical engagement – not an endurance test for the fingers.
November 2009
nt vel 2009 and a subseque nely Planet’s Best in Tra Lo in tween g be cin gle pla ug h str hig of its Following s the latest arena me co be ion reg es Fir y of there. Yep, we boom in tourism, the Ba ls to build a luxury resort sa po pro ing low fol ers velop conservationists and de ace. this one. Watch this sp t ou ab s iou ser are kinda
December 2009 Alvin and the Chip munks: The Squeak el eclipses Big Mom worst one-two co ma’s House II as co mbo in cinema hi mfortably the story. Watch for its the parents whose release on Christm children make them as Day and pity go.
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F I R S T LY. . . UPCOMING TEN DAYS ON
TALKING POINT:
90s KIDS
THE ISLAND The Tasmanian arts scene will come alive in late March with the launch of the international arts festival, Ten Days on the Island. The event, which runs from 27 March to 5 April, features over 200 performances and exhibitions held throughout the state. It is the fifth time it is being held and is structured around the theme “My Island Home,” and features performers from islands as far-flung as Scotland, New Caledonia and Mauritius. For more info visit www.tendaysontheisland.com/
FORTH VALLEY
BLU E S F E ST I VA L The sleepy riverside town of Forth will once again play host to the Jack Daniel’s Forth Valley Blues Festival. The event, being held for the twelfth time, is on 21 March and features local, national and international blues artists. For more info visit www.forthvalleyblues.com/
The year 2009 is a momentous one. And no, we’re not saying that in reference to the Obama Presidency. No, something much more fundamental has changed, although perhaps many of you are unaware of it. Statistics show (don’t ask us to produce them – they’re out there somewhere) that the majority of new university students arrive entering their 19th year. You know what that means don’t you? It means that many of these newbies were born in 1990 or later and their numbers are only going to increase. And so, what fate awaits the dwindling 1980s generation? More importantly, will 80s parties become obsolete as a new era of 90s-themed parties, replete with grunge or 90210 paraphernalia, is ushered in? Stay alert, forget the financial crisis and climate change, this is the issue to watch in 2009.
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Firstly.
W or dsmi t h Egregious
STEW’S PESTO PASTA This one comes from a bloke called Stew who reckons this dish scores well in the effort versus goodness tradeoff. Serves: 4 Prep time: 20 mins (if that) Ingredients:
n be applied , although it ca be h ic h w e iv ct An adje en descri are good or ev ally applied to to things that ualities, is usu q e u iq n u ’s se weren’t just someone ly sucks. Tho al re at th g in ere egregious someth nment, they w suit with g si as r u yo errors on lycra jump er, oice of a pink fashion blund errors. Her ch was not just a s u ng yo ki re oc he st nder. T tartan us fashion blu io g re y, eg el lik an it was s (or, most ss your friend go – go impre ). it out of them annoy the sh
3 chicken breast fillets 500g pasta 1 punnet of cherry tomatoes 1 small jar of pesto 1 tsp minced garlic 1 pinch of salt 3tbsp crumbed feta Directions: Boil some water in a large pot, add a pinch of salt, and then add pasta to cook Cut cherry tomatoes in half and set aside. Meanwhile, dice chicken (2cm pieces) and cook in wok/frying pan till lightly brown. Depending on size of wok/frying pan, stir cooked chicken through cooked pasta. Add cherry tomatoes (option: you can lightly fry the cherry tomatoes first in some oil and garlic if you so desire). 5.Stir through pesto, garlic and feta. Done! 1. 2. 3. 4.
Simple - but a winner. Got a sweet recipe? Send it through to editor.togatus@utas.edu.au (subject: recipe).
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es ieti d c o , an e, s her yeah text e w d ry oh eve eet – nd an , but w your s m et rtie at tte tch . Pa ds to s to a y stre fo to g ping s. e tim in ien an ure hop pu ing old fr , lect e by ough ain s cam t n id e, au ise en barg Bay a d o mak organ ive gu than y o d t e b t an st o de re can riends rials t exhau e mo a gui the S k e e on ts, vid uto an wf O-W in, ne got t isn’t es pro f even to life e o … o o is g to j you’v y. Th g pa ndar al intr head n a i u e i n l the s to b follow a ca n-offic week – k a e boo on the a flyer ss-th for th e l k The rec off to nd a kle up a r c yea hops, d bu n s ////Sand n, a tip o y d a Re b
Truth
about th e Bay Camp us y Samuel Burnett
Uni is a big place and it’s easy to get lost among the enormous buildings and throngs of ugly, ugly people. It happens. I spent the first three months of my first year attending engineering classes and the second following people around asking if they knew where I was meant to be.
Unibar: Here’s where you go to drink. Well, until you read Bukowski as a second year English student and realise that drinking with other people is for losers. It’s also the place to live out all your Good Will Hunting “How do you like them apples?” fantasies.
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Those sad days are over now (well, I still follow people around a lot, but that’s an unrelated matter). So let me guide you through the halls of Tasmania’s leading educational facility. Who knows, maybe you’ll learn a couple of things along the way. (stay tuned for our guide to the Launceston and Cradle Coast campuses, if there’s anyone out there who wants to write one for us – ed.)
Morris Miller Library: Back in simpler times, a library is where you would go to study and look at cute girls or boys. Today it’s easier to just go on the internet where you study on Wikipedia and look at good sorts on Facebook. School of Government: Keep your head down and avoid eye contact. Under no circumstances should you mention Israel or America unless preceded by “The problem with…” for any reason.
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School of Medicine: Since UTAS doesn’t have a secret society like the Skull and Bones (well, not one that you’ll ever be a part of), this is probably the best place to try and make connections with people who’ll actually achieve something in their lives. Computer Lab: Facebook rules the university! Prepare to spend four hours a day planning weekends, tagging photos and wondering why that cute/boy/girl/lecturer hasn’t added you as a friend yet. If you don’t have a Facebook profile (like me!), prepare to spend much of your time crying softly into your jumper and vowing to overthrow technology (like me!). Postgrad Students: You may have seen these folks flittering about campus like so many Peter Pans in Neverland. They’re easily recognisable - just look for the people who look five years older than everybody else and reek of false superiority. It’s the only place where they’re respected and loved for their smarts and ability to recite facts nobody really cares about. God bless them. School of Journalism: Hey! This ship’s sinking. Let’s climb aboard! School of Business: Now with a “Practice your suicide dive from the 76th floor when the recession hits and your stocks go to shit!” course. Too soon? Sorry. School of Philosophy: People say that a philosophy degree is useless. I disagree - they give screen studies students someone to make fun of (and trust me, once you’ve seen those people you’ll agree, they need someone to make fun of). Law Faculty: There are two kinds of law students at UTAS: there are the law students who’re going to end up filthy rich and defending people who make me seem well adjusted, and there are the arts/law students who throw the “law” on the end to make themselves feel better about doing an arts degree. Lecture Theatres: The action happens here. Well, kind of. There are a whole bunch of these on campus and you need to attend them sometimes in order to get your degree. My advice is to sit down and nod intently while mentally undressing members of the opposite sex (or the same - hey, it’s university!) Chancellor’s Office: Here’s where all those crazy pranks you learnt from Animal House are going to pay off. What?! You haven’t seen Animal House? And you call yourself a university student?
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Lazenby’s: In Europe coffee shops are the domain of the cultured and classy. At Lazenby’s you can see rattily dressed and slovenly looking arts students debating things that nobody cares about. Also, if my UTAS based spin-off of Gossip Girls ever gets picked up, this is where most of the action will take place.
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Still setting up your uni house? Need something for your college room? If you’re living on a budget (and let’s face it – you’re a uni student, you bloody well should be) then tip shops might just be the answer for setting up your pad exactly how you want it. From a prosthetic leg to a Rolling Stones LP, tip shops are treasure troves of unwanted objects and lurking collectables. Found in McRobies Gully in South Hobart, on the Channel Highway past Margate, in the backblocks of Glenorchy or perched on a hill in Mornington, these places surrounded by swarming crows and seagulls offer an alternative to a $10,000 suite from Harvey Norman, at prices barely reaching $50. “We bought three couches, and three armchairs for 30 bucks!” says Owen Perry, former president of the St. John Fisher College Student Club, an affiliate of the University of Tasmania. “We needed to deck out our college’s bar, but we didn’t have much money, so we went to the tip shop in South Hobart.” These shops provide a cheap and affordable way of setting up a house for people on low incomes. You might need some furniture, books, clothing, a bike, or anything else you can think of. Chances are you will find it all at the tipshop. Not only is it affordable, but also interesting through the character and the history that the objects in these places seem to have. In turn, this helps you create and decorate a home with its own personality. As they say, one person’s rubbish can become another person’s treasure. “I keep all the dentures and I also have 170 rubber duckies that I’ve collected,” says Mitchell, a worker of The Recovery Shop, “I washed them in the bath tub the other day, and then I put them into assorted species specific groups out on the lawn.” Mitchell also describes some of the more obscure things that have turned up on the tip site, from prosthetic limbs, to hand bags of marital aids, to urns of human ashes.
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O-Week.
“We have also found Aboriginal shell necklaces, which we’ve taken to the museum” he says. Looking around this shed, I can see plenty of objects which could be the start of a collection: teapots, roller skates, tazo cards or matchbox cars. Mitchell is a collector of many things that have come off the tip face and, looking around his house,, I can see a range of collections - from can pulls, to salt and pepper shakers, to hats and bottles. “I attach emotional value to inanimate objects,” he says. “They have feelings, I couldn’t leave them up there on the tip face to get bulldozed.” A strong sense of homeliness and eccentricity emanate from this house through the clutter and presence of strange objects. When looking around the tip shop though, a similar feeling of eccentricity is conveyed in the types shopping there; a medley of patrons from the oddballs of society to your everyday Joe Bloggs. One says to me “It’s worth it if you look,” baring a mouthful of gold teeth. Some flaunt heads of dreadlocked hair beneath top hats while others are more conventionally dressed. As they rummage through old crockery and skim through records, they all seem to have something in mind; perhaps they are collectors or perhaps they are just bargain hunters. An ordinary day at the Recovery Shop requires Mitchell to carry out a range of tasks from salvaging recyclables from the tip face, to processing, pricing and putting things out for sale in the shop. Other tasks require dealing with scrap metals, providing customer services and managing ‘hazardous waste’. Brad Mashman, the director of The Recovery Shop, describes how these organisations try to minimise the amount of waste entering landfills, through educating the community on aspects of waste management and through recycling goods that turn up on the tip face itself. The sites are scattered with unusual sculptures, from decorated shop mannequins, to miniature figurines made from metal offcuts, to displays of record covered fences.
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“There’s a missing link in the consumer brain,” says Brad, former president of the Tasmania branch of the Waste Management Association, “Some of the stuff that people regard as rubbish stuns me.” Recovery was established in 2000, but was formerly operated by Resource, established in 1992.
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I went to the South Hobart Tipshop and left with a smoke machine under one arm, and a pair of retro chairs under the other, all for under $10.
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SANDY
BAY SANDY
Party Beach 6pm ps | 3Ref Ste ya a e not r ll y. Well it’s art p a t it is u b h c a people be h all the mmer. it w p u u Catch n over s ats, en’t see v be a t h o h u o g y layin p s J D l izza. Loca d free p n a ge r e e b na loun ur bana o . y y t p r u a p Pull ready to and get
ESTON LAUNC
on Re-Uni |3-6pm Garden cold r e e B r h Uni Ba ek, wit f O We nd the best Kick of aa ee pizz cal DJs. beer, fr lo m o r beats f
BAY
Student L ifestyle Activities Centre | 1 Expo 0.30am – 2pm Get all the info on th e latest g laptops an adgets: fr d mo om The Lifesty biles to debit cards and trave le Expo is l your first you will n stop for all eed to get you throu you’re the gh uni. W re, g hile bag. There rab a free TUU diary will also b and show e lo ads of giv and prizes eaways . NOT TO BE MISSE D! Free Movie Night | U ni Bar 8pm start $10 pot an d parma (f rom 5-8pm ) Grab your bean bag and head bar for Ge to the t Smart on the big sc reen. Free fairy floss too!
LAUNCE
STON
Student li festyle Ex po Uni Cafe | 10.30am – 2pm Get all the info on th e latest g laptops an ad d mobiles to debit ca gets: from The Lifesty rds and tr le Expo is avel, your first will need stop for all to get you you th ro there grab u a free TUU gh uni. While you’r e d There wil iary and s l also be lo how bag. a d s of give prizes. NO T TO BE M aways and ISSED!
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G
BAY SANDY kfast
a Jazz bre 10am en | 8 – d r a G f o o Uni Bar R ange of ight. A r r y a d e and the Start th t options artet. s fa k a e r healthy b a jazz qu ounds of s g e! in x la re letely fre All comp l Café rts Schoo A | t s fa Break 8 -10am t to trek on’t wan Arts d o h w e For thos in to the Bay, call y d kfast is n a S to free brea a e r e h w School for you. waiting
SANDY BAY Clubs and Societies Day TUU Carpark | 3-6pm Join all the fun at one of UTAS’s longest traditions. With over 130 clubs and societies that you can join this is one hectic afternoon.
LAUNCESTON Cup Day Breakfast Library Courtyard 8.30 - 9.30am
SANDY BAY Australia Day Ref Steps | 12- 2pm
Get ready for a big day at the races. Start the day with something healthy at our free breakfast. Our mates at Pura have provided all you need to last the day. Located in the library courtyard opposite the Co-op.
Come along and meet our native Australian animals, try real Australian billy tea and freshly made bush damper.
CRADLE COAST
Sign up your table at the Contact Centre ($5 for table of 6). Cash prizes up for grabs. Register early as this always sells out!
11am – 1pm Info café Courtyard Student Lifestyle Expo The travelling Expo is coming your way!
Rock Quiz | Uni Bar | 7pm
i Bar ight |Un Collide n y a id r F ildren dia | Ch British In l support act + loca en 8pm Doors op
STON LAUNCUEni Bar | 7pm iz |
Rock Qu
at the ur table o y p u n Sig Centre Contact ble of 6). ($5 for ta for grabs. es up d. Cash priz tables are limite s a arly Sign up e
LAUNCESTON Free Movie Night | Uni Bar 8pm start $10 pot and Parma (from 5-8pm) Grab your bean bag and head to the bar for a movie on the big screen.
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Features.
The Post Secrets Community by Jeff Donne “Thirty seconds ago I was visitor 140,292,361. By the end of this sentence there are 1476 more.”
Before you I confess. I lock my children in their rooms so I can go back to sleep until noon. I dream of hitting my Sunday School teacher with a baseball bat. I was sexually abused by several family members for ten years, so this summer I prank called a family who seemed to have a perfect life, and I’m very sorry. Yes, I confess. I tell the secrets of others. By rights I should feel shamed. But these secrets posted on an award-winning website are different. No phantom contract of confidence exists. Instead they are sent willingly under the cloak of anonymity, scribbled onto grubby postcards and sent to Frank Warren for an airing on his grossly popular website, Post Secrets. Thirty seconds ago I was visitor 140,292,361. By the end of this sentence there are 1476 more. Here, there is no shame in sharing the outings of bad parents, violent Christians and victims of abuse, because according to Warren, to share is to be free. “Sometimes just the act of sharing a painful secret can relieve some of the pain,” says Warren on his site. Others agree. The Post Secrets Community is an online forum with a content wailing like the interior of a torture chamber. They are the “attention whores” as they call themselves, the lonely, the sad and vulnerable. Loveless hopefuls wander aimlessly from thread to thread where honesty and acceptance is key, and self-mutilators hold hands with victims of rape. 17
an t
Awalter1210 was raped when she was 12. I contact her through a dedicated thread called ‘Rape Secret’. In it, the content is understandably dark, yet, surprisingly, the mood is not without hope. “Having been raped before, and being able to share it and talk to others going through the same thing is helpful,” she says. Lostatsea23, raped in her first year of university, believes that sharing secrets not only grants an easier life, but the gift of life itself. “Rape is the same as murder,” she reveals, “as [the rapist] killed who I was.”
“She confesses a forum led her to bond with troubled souls and razorblades.”
All that remains she attributes to the empathy of the Post Secret Community. “Knowing other people are out there is…the only reason I am able to keep breathing,” she says. I ask her if “other people” include family, friends, support groups or the police. “I did not go to the police then and probably never will,” she says, stating a fear of disbelief from the authorities. She admits to telling a limited circle of friends, but on Post Secrets she has the freedom of being another person. “I…find it easier to write on the community than to tell people, as on here I don’t need to see people’s reactions,” she says. But unseen dangers reveal a darker side to the Post Secrets Community where a tide of troubled strangers often feeds a feeling of despair. SmileAndNod believes the site has hurt more than helped, claiming his depression has worsened through interactions with the community. “All this pain and sorrow has made me feel worse,” he says. A photograph of Burnedrose shows a girl with deeply saddened eyes. Depression has taken hold and she confesses a forum led her to bond with troubled souls and razorblades. “I never would have cut myself if I hadn’t read the cutters thread,” she says. Soon after, her messages, username and photograph disappear from the community. Connie Alomes runs suicide prevention programs for Lifeline Hobart. She values online communities for counselling on minor issues, but is concerned the more vulnerable are missing out on the help they need. “It’s an outlet that legitimises unqualified help,” she says, but admits that “it’s the kind of thing people are attracted to these days”.
bat tle
“It does worry me that there is such a lack of community that the only way some people can communicate is to sit there and do it electronically,” she says.
wit h
But Post Secret aficionados call it guerrilla therapy, and its insurgent mob of advisors seem likely to grow by the second, so post that secret now and wallow among the crowd. The choice to listen is yours.
my
Images by Sophie Machin (inspired by images found on www.postsecrets.com)
lif e.
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Features.
or Exploring Graffiti in Hobart by Sophie Kuryl “Graffiti such as that found on Aurora poles in the suburbs is hated by the public. People see graffiti as degrading to their area.”
I meet Tim* and Michael* at a car park in Goulburn Street. Tim has shaggy hair and wears a loose fitting hoodie. Michael is well dressed, articulate and not what I was expecting. They’re here to show me some of the street art and tags on display down in the rivulet and small alley ways scattered throughout Hobart. Everyone seems to have an opinion on graffiti. Some see graffiti as art or worthwhile self-expression others see it as vandalism - something that degrades their street or neighbourhood. Graffiti comes in many different forms, the biggest distinction being what is known as tagging and what is referred to as street art or pieces. Tagging is somewhat like a signature, usually a combination of letters or numbers that identify the tagger to their peers. Street art consits of stencils and murals that are usually larger and more intricate. Tim and Michael have different opinions on whether tagging and street art are the same. “I see tagging as an advertisement for my pieces, it’s like those bits of advertising you get shoved in your mail box. Some people find it annoying whereas others are interested,” says Tim. “With tagging there is more of an element of competition - who can get their name up the most, in the most public areas, without getting caught. Pieces are less aggressively competitive, but more stylistically competitive,” says Michael. Leyon Parker Group Manager of Road and Traffic Engineering at Hobart City Council agrees that graffiti comes in different forms. However he says that any form of graffiti can be seen as vandalism by the public. 19
20
Features. “Graffiti such as that found on Aurora poles in the suburbs is hated by the public. People see graffiti as degrading to their area,” he says. Michael says that some graffiti can definitely be vandalism, “I think damaging private property is unethical. I think most taggers are teenagers who think it’s cool to go… round damaging other people’s stuff and just generally making the whole place look like crap. In my experience, graf artists are usually from a slightly older demographic, who’ve gotten over their teen angst and want to try to create original and beautiful pieces of street art,” he says. Parker says that not only is the graffiti on private property degrading, it is also potentially damaging. “If graffiti is on a house wall or an office block there are problems in just cleaning it off. We don’t want to damage the property. Sometimes it is not easy to get off and you need highly specialised people such as with sandstone,” he says. When asked why he thinks people practise graffiti, Michael says “Tagging is about being seen by your peers, with no real consideration given to the consequences. I think most graf art is done because the artists enjoy what they do and consider the end result to be more pleasing to the eye than a blank wall.” We walk through the Hobart rivulet, which winds around underneath the streets of Hobart. There are some less visible areas, such as this, where graffiti is not legal but is not usually worried about unless it is particularly offensive. Legal graffiti walls and projects have been provided throughout different councils and communities in Australia in an attempt to prevent illegal and offensive graffiti. Warringah Council in New South Wales provides legal graffiti walls and free weekly ‘spray in’ sessions with successful graffiti artists to members of the community.
“The key aim of the program is to allow young people the opportunity to express themselves through art and to facilitate exposure of youth art and culture to the broader community.”
Currently in Hobart, no such legal graffiti walls exist, however local youth service provider Youth Arc run projects including painting murals throughout the city and holding art exhibitions for pieces painted on washing machines and clothes dryers. These projects are run by the Youth Centre Arts Team (YCAT) which is a group of young people that develop opportunities for other young people. Simon Duffy, Youth Arc’s Youth Centre Manager says that these projects enable young people to express their work legally. “The key aim of the program is to allow young people the opportunity to express themselves through art and to facilitate exposure of youth art and culture to the broader community,” he says. Michael thinks projects such as these are good opportunities for young people. “Programs like these encourage kids to improve their art and think about what they’re actually doing instead of running around with a spray can vandalising everything in sight on a Saturday night,” he says. 21
“I think most graf art is done because the artists enjoy what they do and consider the end result to be more pleasing to the eye than a blank wall.”
Duffy says that these projects not only allow young people to express themselves legally, “but also the program teaches artists techniques that can potentially open up professional opportunities.” Certainly, there is much evidence to suggest that graffiti is becoming a modern art form. The city of Melbourne sees their Laneway Commissions as a public attraction. According to the Visit Victoria website these commissions have allowed local and international artists to temporarily display their work in alley ways throughout Melbourne. As Parker says, where the public is unhappy with the way their neighbourhood looks because of graffiti, there is vandalism. However graffiti is also becoming a legitimate form of art in today’s culture. Projects and walls that promote legal graffiti enable people to become artists. “In my experience artists generally have a desire to both create and to share their creativity with others,” says Duffy. “It is my hope that we are part of making this possible in a constructive way.” *These individuals have requested their names be changed to protect their identity in relation to their involvement in graffiti.
Images by Rosie Hastie
22
your . de ale r . is . not . your . frie nd by Bradley Almond “I was on E and doing 115km up the Brooker. I never would have fucking done it if I wasn’t off my nut.”
I admit to Bob-E (not his real name) that I’m nervous about interviewing him. He laughs and tries to put me at ease. But it’s not every night that a well-entrenched ecstasy dealer of four years agrees to talk to you about how and why he sells illegal drugs in Hobart. By his own admission, Bob-E ‘accidentally fell’ into dealing. He began sourcing pills for himself, then his friends, and eventually moved onto dealing for other people. The money was originally used to cover his own debts, and since then he uses it purchase electronic goods, computers and more pills. But after four years, he has recently stopped because he lost his driver’s licence due to speeding “I was on E and doing 115 up the Brooker. I never would have fucking done it if I wasn’t off my nut.” I begin asking some hard questions - Where do you get them? How many do you normally get? Is it difficult to source them? Bob-E’s stony silence indicates he’s not going to answer any questions about the why’s and wherefore’s. I ask him how he approaches a potential client. “Simple. I just say g’day. Ask them if they’re having a good night. After chatting, they’ll either tell me to bugger off or they’ll invite me for a drink. That’s when I say: ‘Nope, I’m on the pills tonight cobber, I don’t drink on them’. When I say I’m on them, they generally ask if I have any they could have.”
Easy Pickings He begins to loosen up and laughs when I ask how difficult it is to find a sale. “Not fucking hard at all. Everybody wants to chill, dance and pick up. E gives 23
you that confidence. I might be only one of two or three dealers in a nightclub at any given time. That’s why it’s important to have fucking good pills and regular customers.” When he heads out to deal, Bob-E starts at a bar at about 10 pm after having a couple of drinks at home. First of all he ‘walks the line’ - selling outside a nightclub, in public, to people waiting for entry. “It was sad when they closed [another nightclub that] couple of years back. The line there was always huge and on private property.” “The only major line left in Hobart is in full view of the street and [a pub] across the road. That’s the most dangerous part of the night and I could get caught very fucking easy.” He complains. With police always a vigilant presence, Bob-E has had a couple of close calls. After a co-dealer he knew got arrested and charged, police tracked down his number. “I got a very severe ‘we’re watching you’. I pulled my head in for a couple of months and then I ended up only doing small deals.”
“ I might be only one of two or three dealers in a nightclub at any given time. That’s why it’s important to have fucking good pills and regular customers.”
When pushed about how small ‘small’ is, Bob-E is quiet for a few moments. “About 50 a night.” The going street price for a single tablet of ecstasy in Hobart is about $40. After some mental calculation, I reach a number of $2,000 total income for a night. Bob-E disagrees with this figure - with discounts to regular buyers, giving some tablets to his friends and his own four tablet per night allocation, he would walk away on a given night with about $1,500. His highest profit in one night was $4,200. “But I had about 300 tablets strapped to my forearm and Christ, I just wasn’t comfortable. That many tablets you can’t use the defence of ‘I’m a user who deals to cover my debt’.” 24
Features.
No Remorse What many, including Bob-E, doesn’t know is that E is almost never pure MDMA. To make the costly chemicals go further, the ecstasy cooks tend to place other chemicals – including bleach – into the tablets as well. I mention a couple and Bob-E laughs again. “Well, it does what it’s fucking supposed to, so what’s the problem?”
“ They won’t stop using it because of one bad time, not against ten, twenty good times.”
When on business, Bob-E never stops to enjoy himself or make friends. He constantly rotates throughout nightclubs, sometimes visiting them three times a night. Once a deal has gone down, he never waits around to look after the user, even if they are alone or have bought a dangerous amount. Many times he has received a message on his phone telling him how somebody took badly to his pills. So does he feel remorse? “Nope. Not at all. It helped me when I didn’t have much money and it’s not like dealing ice or heroin. I wouldn’t push that shit on anybody. This stuff is safe-ish, it’s not addictive, it’s cheaper than hitting the fucking sauce of a weekend. And people take poorly to grog as well, so what’s the deal? If people have a bad trip, they can just fucking go to somebody else. They won’t stop using it because of one bad time, not against ten, twenty good times.” As he begins to leave I ask who, exactly, buys off him. “People. Just people wanting a good time. Bogans, Uni students, footballers. Just people. I frankly don’t give a shit who they are, as long as they pay.” Images by Rosie Hastie 25
26
Features.
Tasting the tourist route by Selina Bryan “Troyes transports you back in time, featuring amazing examples of medieval and Renaissance era houses.”
Sparkling wine cannot earn the champagne label unless it is made in France’s Champagne region. Likewise, a road trip in France should not earn its title unless some time is spent on the fascinating and beautiful Champagne Tourist Route. The Champagne Tourist Route (La Route Touristique du Champagne) is made up of five routes in the region, each offering magnificent views of vines, churches and villages. Four of the meandering routes, Messif de Saint-Thierry, Montagne de Reims, Vallée de la Marne and Côte des Blancs, are all connected while Côte des Bar is separate and further south. Travelling east from Paris, the muggy and oppressive summer heat of the city slowly gives way to the clear air of Champagne’s countryside, fragrant with grape-laden vines. Champagne is France’s northern-most wine region and its cool climate results in wines with high levels of natural acidity which adds to the distinctive taste. Touring Champagne takes you through many tiny villages, or crus, that are dwarfed by the seemingly endless vineyards surrounding them. In some of the smallest villages you can walk from one end to another without passing another person. Only the sound of a train rumbling past or the church bells ringing out to break the silence. Spread among the rows of old stone houses, complete with flowerpots adorning the windows, are the champagne houses. Each champagne house uses the traditional methods of combining particular types of grapes from particular vineyards and particular years to make their sparkling wine. The champagne is produced from only three types of grapes: pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay. Different wines are mixed to produce a specific blend, or cuvee, to create a distinctive taste for each house. 27
All house tours end with champagne tastings, and how many you are invited to taste generally depends on the ticket option chosen before the tour commenced. Most houses have a few ticket options ranging from, for example, the cheapest offering one tasting and the most expensive offering three. The entry price also depends on the popularity and reputation of the house itself. In the commercial centres of Champagne, such as Reims and Epernay, what is underground can be far more interesting than what’s above it. The caves of the champagne houses run for kilometres underneath the towns, and these subterranean cellars are filled with millions of bottles of fermenting champagne. In Reims, G.H. Mumm alone has 25 million bottles stored in their cellars dating back to 1827. Polished men and women lead tours from the grand old houses down to the dank air of the underground caves. The tour leaders educate the visitors about the history of the house and its champagne, and about the champagne making process, with their storytelling evoking images of workers deftly turning thousands of bottles each day to disgorge the sediment. At least one visite de cave is a must while in the Champagne region to enhance your understanding and respect for the wine whose production is heavily steeped in tradition. One of the must-see towns in Champagne is the charming cork-shaped Troyes, 100 kilometres south of Epernay. Troyes transports you back in time, featuring amazing examples of medieval and Renaissance-era houses. Many of the brightly coloured wooden houses are on precarious angles, as if threatening to tumble at any moment. Troyes is known as the town with ten churches, but the churches and houses are not the town’s only attractions. An eighteenth century apothecary, Apothicairerie de l’Hotel-Dieu-le-Comte, offers insight to the prescriptions of the past, which included ingredients such as oil of dog and oil of worm. The small museum has just two rooms, one with shelved walls holding 300 intricately painted medicine boxes.
“GH Mumm alone has 25 million bottles stored in their cellars dating back to 1827. ”
Another highlight, the Musée d’Art Moderne (Museum of Modern Art), is housed in Troyes’ beautiful former Episcopal Palace. The collection was a bequest from a local businessman and his wife, Pierre and Denise Lévy, in 1976 and the two thousand works of French art include Degas and Rodin sculptures and Picasso and Derain paintings. The museum also features a beautiful sculpture garden and an attic for temporary exhibitions. Camping is the best way to sleep in the region and, with more than a hundred campsites, Champagne is perfect for sleeping outside. Having a tent and sleeping bags in the boot provides a sense of freedom and experience that staying in a hotel cannot. The atmosphere in most of the campsites is inviting and relaxed, often run by families wanting to befriend everyone who stays. The sites in or close to towns are generally more crowded and less attractive than the inviting countryside campsites set in beautiful surroundings. A word of warning while camping: if you hear a car horn blaring early in the morning, don’t make the mistake of ignoring it. The horn will most likely belong to a bread van selling freshly baked breadsticks, croissants and other mouth-watering French pastries. You have to get yourself out of your tent quickly because the van only hangs around for a few minutes before 28
Features. it goes to sell its goods to other lucky campers. An early morning pain au chocolat, fresh from the bread van, is a must for any French camping experience. The Champagne Tourist Route is clearly signposted and maps are easily available from tourist offices in every town. The roads along the route are scenic and generally problem-free, although it is not uncommon to get stuck behind an odd-looking vehicle whose function is a mystery to the uninitiated tourist. Care must also be taken navigating the incredibly tiny roads of some of the small villages and of course there is the challenge of driving on the ‘wrong’ side of the road. Nevertheless, a road trip through Champagne offers a fascinating range of experiences that should be a part of any French holiday. Images by Selina Bryan
29
Little Horrors
Most of the children Dominic Lennard spends his time with are cold-blooded killers. They don’t really scare him he studies them and tries to help us understand them. Ok, so the children aren’t exactly real but they are the principal subjects of Lennard’s soon-to-becompleted PhD thesis “Little Terrors: The Child Antagonist in the Horror Film.” Lennard was kind enough to leave the books and films behind for a moment to talk to Togatus about living with these little horrors. Interview by Damian McIver
T: What is it about children in horror films that make them worth studying? DL: Well firstly I guess there are just so many of them, so many terrible children over the last fifty years. I think they’re one of the most popular antagonists in those kinds of films… I think it’s worth exploring the way the representations put forward in a horror film or any kind of film reproduce the cultural attitudes of the society that produces that text. In the case of children: I want to know what it is about the relationship between children and adults or about adult attitudes to children that makes children such effective and enduring villains over the last fifty years. 30
Interviews. T: So is there a particular film or a particular example you can give us which illustrates how these horror children might reflect aspects of our culture more broadly? DL: Well one thing about child antagonists in horror films is that they are almost always from wealthy socio-economic backgrounds. They’re never raised badly, they’re always just bad. It’s very unusual to have a lower class terrible child in a horror film… So, when a child is represented visibly, they’re wearing a little miniature suit or something that’s coming from a wealthy background and they victimise another child who is from a poorer family, or lower socio-economic background – as it is in the first film featuring an evil child, The Bad Seed from 1956 – not only is this about the destruction of innocence, it’s also about class and how we expect children to reflect notions of class.
T: Do you enjoy watching horror films? Is studying these films a pleasurable experience? DL: I’m not a horror fan as such but there are a number of films that I think are really terrific. I think The Exorcist is a terrific film. I’ve never found it particularly frightening so you might say that it fails in some respect as a horror film for me but that doesn’t matter to me and I still think it’s a beautifully put together film…
the way it’s seen culturally and the way representations of different groups in society reflect back on us. This idea of respectability is very interesting to me in that I’m also concerned with what seems to me to be a paradox between this idea of horror films being childish and watching horror films being a childish pleasure, and the idea that we don’t let children watch horror films at all… There’s also been some research to suggest that the clichés of the horror film, that they’re born evil, or they’re sons of the devil, or whatever, have found their way into journalism and journalistic writing on child criminals and the fact that we’re willing to take the representations of the horror film seriously in society suggests that they’re worth studying.
T: A source tells me that a high-school teacher of yours once told you that English wasn’t really your thing and you might be better off forgetting about pre-tertiary English and doing something else. Now – with only a month or so to go before you complete your PhD within the English discipline (Screen Studies) – is there anything you’d like to say to that particular teacher?
T:Are there any that have managed, or still manage, to scare the shit out of you?
DL: (Laughs)… well she was actually a good teacher! I think it was more that I was not one of those students who, as teachers like to put it, took responsibility for their own learning. And also, I think that the classroom environment is not necessarily the ideal learning environment for all students but really, I’m just glad I pulled my socks up I guess, and I wish that teacher nothing but happiness.
DL: I always find The Fly – I think it’s a wonderful film – but I have trouble watching it at times, it’s fairly gory…
T: …very diplomatic of you, how do you plan to celebrate completing your PhD?
T: And Jeff Goldblum is in it…
DL: By not watching horror films for a while (laughs)… and I’m a bit of a scotch guy, so I’ll probably have one or two scotches. Chivas Regal. - because it’s the scotch they drink in The Exorcist…
DL: Ha ha yeah. No I always find it hard to watch even though it’s a great film. Also, Deep Red, not so much for its violence even though it is quite a violent film, but the visual style of that film is quite uniquely uncanny and I find it quite unnerving.
T: How do people react when you tell them that you are studying horror films? It seems to be one of those genres which doesn’t get treated with the same respect or reverence as others… DL: You’re right… there is a conception that this is not a respected domain of study. From my point of view – well firstly I should say that I’m not one of those people who go around talking about what they study a lot, I tend not to bring it up – but from my point of view these are questions about horror’s artistic merit I think whereas I’m more interested in
T: Finally, to all our readers, if you had to send them down to the DVD store and tell them to get one horror film featuring a particularly villainous child, what would you recommend? DL: Oh… well The Bad Seed is certainly worth seeing. It’s an older film… but it’s significant if only because that’s where we get the expression “bad seed” from to describe a terrible child which you hear all the time. More recently, Hard Candy, from 2006 [offers] a bit of a twist on the evil child theme but very much worth watching. Images by Nadiah Abdulrahim 31
native birds
Perth band Birds of Tokyo enjoyed a momentous year in 2008. Their second album, Universes, debuted at number three on the ARIA charts, collected a stack of rave reviews and allowed the band to play sell-out gigs across the country. Togatus spoke to Adam Spark, the band’s songwriter, guitarist and producer, while the band was on the road for the 2009 Big Day Out. He spoke to us about the successes of the past year, life on the road and why they love coming down here to play. Interview by Whittney Jago.
T: You guys come down here quite a bit – how do you find playing in Tasmania? AS: … It’s pretty cool, last time we were down there it was bloody insane – it was a crazy show with lots of sweat and drunk people. But yeah, it’s beautiful, w…e love coming down there and hanging out and having days off. I enjoy that almost as much as I do playing down there actually. It’s gorgeous.
T: So you do get to see a bit of the state instead of just playing down here? AS: Yeah, yeah for sure. I think the last couple of times we’ve been down there we’ve had a couple of days off down in Hobart and Launceston so it’s been really good. 32
Interviews. T: Does Tassie support you guys well? AS: Totally, yeah. I think we’ve sold out every show down there so there’s definitely plenty of kids pretty eager to check out rock n roll down there.
T: A lot of bands skip Tassie as part of their touring route – why do you guys make the effort to get down here? AS: It’s just, you know, we’re all human beings sharing the same country here, so we figure if its good enough to go to some outback town in WA, or… Sydney or whatever, we’ll play anywhere where people will have us really.
T: How have you found the response to your second album Universes? AS: Awesome. It’s just grown exponentially. It’s still selling really, really well and people are really enjoying it and there’s been pretty positive feedback on everything. We couldn’t ask for a better result really.
T: …and it debuted at number 3 on the ARIA charts – were you surprised at all? AS: Yeah we were, especially in this day and age where people are buying less and less and downloading more – you know the fact that there’s all these people that go out and buy it – it’s a real coup. We’re really stoked about that. It’s awesome you know, things like that are indicators to us that people are supporting it and it keeps bands like us, who are independent bands, going for a long time so it’s very unexpected and very awesome at the same time.
T: Reviews of the album described it as a darker, more moodier piece – is that something you guys were consciously seeking or did it just come out like that? AS: I think it just sort of came out like that. We’re taking it a little bit more seriously and we’re a little bit older and seen and done a bit more and gotten better as a band – writing more interesting, moody little bits of music I think. It’s just a product of the time we’re in…
T: As a songwriter – what is the process like? AS: It sort of starts out as a singular thing and then it grows into two people working on something then it goes to the whole band and everyone sort of throws in ideas and shapes shit up… it depends on the song really – they’re always slightly different.
T: You’ve got a pretty hectic touring schedule so how do you find life on the road – is it hard being away from family and friends? AS: It can be… but most of my friends, well some of them, are in this band – the ones that actually like me (laughs)… so it’s not too bad at all. Everyone gets along really well here and there’s a whole bunch of us touring together all the time so it’s pretty cool…
T: And you all get along? AS: Yeah, I mean we’ve been together for nearly five years now, so every now and then there’s little trials and tribulations and there’s some little arguments here and there but it’s all for the greater good.
T: During the Big Day Out you’re touring with rock icon Neil Young – have you had the chance to meet him or enjoy his music? AS: Neither yet. We’ve only done one so far and he’s a bit of an elusive man apparently. I didn’t even see his set the other night because we’d left before that so we could go to the after-party! (laughs) We’ll try and see him tomorrow night [Sydney, Jan 23].
T: Why does WA tend to breed such talented and influential musicians? AS: I dunno, I think it’s cause it’s far away from the actual industry side of things. I think people can just do their thing on the other side of the country and just grow without cool bloody music industry people checking out everything that’s going on.
T: Your website mentions that progress is already being made towards a third album – can you give us any details about that? AS: Not yet (laughs). We never stop writing really so we’re always kicking around jamming a few ideas and playing acoustics in the hotel room and working stuff out so we’re not quite there yet. I’m not sure where that quote came from, none of us really know, but we are working on it but it’s really just starting out now. Birds of Tokyo will be playing at the Uni Bar (Hobart) on Friday 13 March. Image provided by Staple Marketing 33
NO DICE, SUPERSONIC, NOVA & MYSPACE PRESENT
with
THURSDAY 5 MARCH - THE ARENA, BRISBANE 210 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley :: Tickets from www.oztix.com.au, Skinny’s, Rocking Horse, Butterbeats or Tel 1300 762 545
FRIDAY 6 MARCH - NEWCASTLE PANTHERS, NEWCASTLE King St, Newcastle :: Tickets from www.moshtix.com.au, the venue, Moshtix outlets or Tel 1300 43 88 49
SATURDAY 7 MARCH - ENMORE THEATRE, SYDNEY 118 Enmore Rd, Newtown :: Tickets from www.enmoretheatre.com.au, venu box office, Ticketek outlets or Tel 9550 3666
SUNDAY 8 MARCH - ROCK-IT, PERTH
with Kings of Leon & more :: Tickets from www.heatseeker.com.au, Star Surf Perth, Mills Fremantle, Planet Mt Lawley & Beat Karrinyup
THURSDAY 12 MARCH - PALACE THEATRE, MELBOURNE 20-30 Bourke St, Melbourne :: Tickets from www.oztix.com.au, Missing Link, Polyester Records (City & Fitzroy), Greville Records or Tel 1300 762 545
FRIDAY 13 MARCH - HOBART UNI BAR, HOBART Churchill Ave, Sandy Bay :: Tickets from www.ruffcut-records.com, TUU contact centre, Ruffcut Records or Tel 6226 2495)
SATURDAY 14 MARCH - THEBARTON THEATRE, ADELAIDE 112-114 Henley Beach Rd Torrensville :: Tickets from www.thebartontheatre.com.au, all VENUETIX outlets or Tel 8225 8888
THE ALBUM “UNIVERSES” FEATURING SILHOUETTIC, BROKEN BONES & WILD EYED BOY AVAILABLE IN ALL GOOD RECORD STORES www.myspace.com/birdsoftokyo || www.birdsoftokyo.com
34
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Needs You!
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Journalists, Photographers, Artists, Designers, Editors
Get Around It and Get In it www.togatus.com.au contact editor.togatus@utas.edu.au
35
The Story of Richard Wendell and His Love
by Hannah Parker
He was standing at the lights. Early thirties. Tall. Not unattractive, but his face was hard. Full of anger and sadness and wounded pride. He was long nosed and sharp chinned. Fit, but in a schoolboy kind of way. He began to walk. Shoulders back, determined. Adamant. And with the same deliberate movement his mouth opened, gaped, deformed, and three shattering barks of phlegm and mucus and whatever he had recently eaten, erupted from his gut into my face. A cough like none other. My heart shrivelled. My eyes burst with disbelief. He hadn’t covered his mouth, the disgusting shit of a man. A baby cried. I imagined tiny green and mustard coloured particles floating around my face, sticking to my teeth and waltzing down my throat, hanging on to my uvula. Swinging from it like a pendulum. He was a Woman Hater, clearly. I realised with a strange feeling of familiarity his name was Richard Wendell. And though it can’t be known for sure, I surmised his life, at least up until this point, had been a self-imposed misery.
(
He was the boy that other little boys rejected. Not for any particular reason. It was just one of those things. His big bottomed mother would collect him from the school gate in the afternoon, scooping him into her arms and showering wet kisses on his face. They reminded him of octopus tentacles, suckering on to his cheeks. “Dicky darling, mummy missed you,” she would coo. And he would glower at her resentfully, chest puffed out, socks tall and proud at his knees, but she never noticed. He was just so precious. He would blame her for most of his life. Anything that went wrong, everything that was unfair. She made him inadequate. She was never good enough. She never had enough money, never took him on holiday. Never listened when he told her he hated brussel sprouts. She was trying to sabotage his happiness. And so he blamed her. He chose to ignore the obvious. That she, Virginia Jones, aged twenty nine, had fallen in love with a man named Louis Wendell, who died of influenza when she was three months pregnant. She was just a big bottomed lady who loved her only child, Richard Louis Wendell, very, very, very much.
(
Penny’s father had lots of special lady friends. Her mother was dead. She loved her dad, and he loved her in equal proportion. But there were just so many beautiful women, and there was just so little time to acquaint oneself properly in such situations, and Penny was a big girl. She could look after herself. The other little girls wouldn’t let Penny use the skipping ropes at school. Their mother’s talked about her father disapprovingly, only because he wasn’t interested in them. The girls would guard the sporting cupboard dutifully at recess and lunch, hoping that just once she would try and break in, so they could laugh at her, shoo her away. But she never tried. Not once.
36
Fiction.
The boys were all in love with Penny. Lovely, secret, clumsy ten-year-old love that exposes itself through kicked shins and pulled hair. But Penny ignored all of them, except Richard. Penny sat next to Richard every day, making sure not to put her elbow over the line of their two desks in case it made him angry, even though sometimes she imagined how it would feel, to brush his arm. It was a special thought. She decided it would feel good. He didn’t like Penny sitting next to him, she knew. She was embarrassing. Awkward. She had beautiful hands. She smelt good. He hated her with a violent rage that made him squeeze his eyelids shut, ball his fists and scrunch his shoulders around his neck up to his cheeks with anger. And he loved her, with a proud, adult heart. Poor kid.
(
One spring, in high school, Richard met James. Richard was taller, not so angry, but he still disliked his mother. Penny still sat next to him when she could, but he rarely spoke to her, preferring to ignore her swelling chest and rosebud lips, the way she held her pen perfectly in those beautiful hands, or how she crossed her feet sometimes and swung them together during silent reading. She was a distraction. An unfathomable irritation. He was miserably in love with her. James wasn’t a Woman Hater, he had a girlfriend called Rosie, who he took to the movies and invited over for dinner with his parents. Rosie went to a private girl’s school that Richard didn’t know the name of. James liked Richard. Simple. Richard was silently ecstatic. Penny had been sick for a fortnight while Richard and James’s relationship was blossoming, when one day her father (with a knowing smile) handed her a squashed rose he’d found in the letterbox with a bit of paper torn out of an exercise book: Get well. Armed with Richard’s secret note, Penny convinced her father to let her go back to school a little sooner than the doctor advised. Flushed with the unexpected token of Richard’s love, she walked into the classroom with the squashed flower pinned to her blazer, to find another in her seat. Richard didn’t look up, didn’t see her. Not at recess, not at lunch, not during silent reading time as she crossed her feet and swung them together sadly. The rose had fallen to the floor. Forgotten.
(
Richard’s mother died when he was eighteen, not so big bottomed anymore. Cancer ate it away. He didn’t visit the cemetery. He had her buried beside his father, if you can call a ghost a father. This was what Virginia had wanted, she told Richard. It was what she had always wanted, to be with Louis. Richard respected his mother enough to fulfil this wish, but he could not understand it. They were, after all, only bones. In class sometimes, when James wasn’t looking, he’d sneak glances over his shoulder to where Penny sat at the back of the room by herself. Taller, longer brown hair, lovelier. Maybe he wouldn’t mind having his bones turn into compost with hers.
37
Richard had moved out of home a year before his mother died. He lived with James. They shared a decrepit flat in the city and their lonely mothers paid the rent. Richard didn’t visit his mother very much and she never forced him to, only ever ringing him to ask if he needed any washing done and to tell him she loved him. Because he hadn’t visited her for five months, he didn’t know she was in hospital. He only rang her one Sunday after being abused by his landlord for not paying the rent. Was she going senile? How could she do this to him? It was then he found out about the cancer. So he visited her for Christmas. When it came time to go, he kissed her goodbye on the cheek and wished her a Happy Christmas. He wasn’t angry anymore. He felt like he had cheated himself and had lost, sorely. She patted his arm and said “I love you.” He started crying before he could tell her he was sorry. And that he loved her, too. Richard didn’t visit Virginia very often alive, and now he doesn’t know how to visit her dead. On Richard’s twentieth birthday, he and James went to the pub round the corner from the University. In a small booth with three other friends, Rosie was nursing a broken heart. Richard nodded his head towards her and smiled. James pretended he didn’t see her. They sat at the bar, on cracked vinyl stools. “Do you miss her?” Richard asked, looking at his hands. “Nah, she went all weird when her dad was put away last year. Embezzlement, remember? Too bad he got caught. Rosie was going to take me to Fiji in the summer.” Richard realised he had misunderstood James. He really was a true Woman Hater. Richard felt glum. “I need to piss.” James said, gesturing to the bartender for another round. “Happy birthday, mate. Back in a sec.” When James left, Penny came in. She wore red shoes and red lips. Her hair was short and scruffy. Richard clutched the edge of his stool grimly. She was so beautiful. Penny alighted beside him at the bar, leaning in on tip-toes to ask the barman for a gin. Richard cleared his throat. “Hi Penny,” she blinked at the sound of her name. “Richard! I didn’t see you there, happy birthday!” She kissed him quickly on the cheek. It left a small red heart. Richard and Penny had begun talking properly at university. James had introduced them at a party. They had both burnt pink and become very interested in their drinks. They talked while everyone else was asleep, that night. And he told her he was in love with her. She had whispered in his ear, I love you, too. But the next day, something changed. She laced her fingers through his and suddenly it felt like a large stopper was rammed down his throat. He realised, anguished, for some unknown reason he couldn’t talk to her. James reappeared from the toilet. “Hey gorgeous,” he kissed Penny full on her red lips.
38
Fiction.
“How come you cut your hair? I liked it better long.” Penny lowered her eyes and bit her lip, she looked annoyed. Richard tried to hide his confusion, drained his beer and wobblylegged got up from his stool. “I’ve got an assignment due tomorrow. I’d better go.” James waved his hand and shrugged. “Suit yourself.” He grinned at Penny’s mortified expression. “Looks like I’m all yours, sweetheart.” As Richard stumbled out blindly, Penny’s fierce knee met James’s over-keen crotch with a violent crunch. Outside, the little red heart on Richard’s cheek burned.
(
Richard Wendell, age thirty-something, has paused. He’s heard the crying baby. He’s looking at the woman holding it, with the long brown hair and the warm hazel eyes. She’s shorter than him, with perfect hands and beautiful teeth. She’s wearing a red dress. She’s looking straight at him. She’s leaning forward to hear what he’s saying. “I’m sorry,” he speaks softly. “What a horrible thing to do. I hope she doesn’t get sick.” He indicates to the baby in Penny’s arms. She nods. “B-baby girl?” he offers. “How old is she?” Penny doesn’t answer, shifting the weight of the baby to her other hip. Sad frustration fills Richard, he feels like an idiot. She’s happily married. She has a baby. He’s going to turn around and run now. He’s running. Richard sits outside a small café with a scowl. He doesn’t see Penny walking towards him, childless. She’s going to explain the baby isn’t hers. She’s going to tell him it belongs to the taller woman with the blonde hair who was standing beside her. An old friend. He looks up and reads it on her face before she opens her rosebud lips. So she asks instead, if he would like to drink a coffee with her. They walk into the café behind them. It’s packed. The only table left is a large one at the back of the room, with two tables pushed together. The sixteen year old waitress grins at them, waving her hand to the table, telling them they can have it. Penny and Richard sit, side by side, at the two joined tables. A line between them. Their coffee arrives. Their elbows are rested on their respective tables. He slides his arm across the barrier. Their elbows brush. She crosses her feet and swings them together delightedly under the table. … Skin to skin they smile. …
39
A Notice from the TUU Your Union: Beauty or the Beast? Togatus is just one of the many services and projects driven by your student organisation, the TUU, which represents ALL students enrolled at UTAS. Grab a TUU Student Diary and Survival Guide to find out more about what the TUU does for you. The Union is comprised of the State Council and three regional SRCs (Student Representative Councils) in Launceston, the Cradle Coast and Hobart. The State Council and SRCs are responsible primarily for student advocacy and representation and we sit and have representation on every facet and level of university decision making. The Board of Management (BoM) controls the many services and commercial outlets that the union provides. As a full-time elected president, I take responsibility for the union’s commitment to good service and representation for all UTAS students. Like most large organisations, we have a Customer Charter that sets out the standards we expect to meet when serving you. If we’re failing in any of these areas, I want to hear from you. If you have useful suggestions, please let us know. If you want to become involved, get in touch, it’s easier than you think.
101 years of service It has been a long journey from the union’s original small tin shed in 1899 to our current organisation representing 12,000 students, 31 active office-bearers state-wide, and more than 80 staff offering a services turnover of nine million dollars. Yet the union has never lost sight of its central commitment to supporting students and encouraging an active student culture. This commitment has never been more important. The dream of free and equitable access to education is rapidly fading under the assault of an uncertain world economy, severe budget cutbacks, Voluntary Student Unionism (which has crippled most student organisations around the country), decreasing student incomes, and increasing living expenses. Tertiary education is rapidly becoming the preserve of those who can afford it, entrenching a social system based not upon merit but upon accident of birth. More than ever, students need a collective voice. Student representatives play a key role in their contributions to University Council, Academic Senate, University Teaching and Learning and many other committees. The TUU also funds catering outlets across the campuses, sports clubs and societies, a post office, newsagency, shop, housing scheme, bar and art galleries - just a small example of the many services we provide.
Union? Many students are suspicious of the word ‘Union’. The TUU is not an industrial organisation, but the union of all its disparate members, and it strives to serve and represent them throughout their university lives. The union is the backbone of the university’s cultural life; the result of the dreams and hard work of a century of students, their representatives and staff; and the emblem of the indomitable spirit of students. I hope you will enjoy this year. As always, the TUU is here to help! Mr. Robert J. Meredith State President Tasmania University Union Inc. Phone: (03) 6226 2853 Email: President@tuu.utas.edu.au http://www.tuu.com.au 40
Comedy. Reviews.
A beginner’s guide to Hobart Comedy
The Hobart comedy scene has, for a long time, remained unknown to many - even underground - some might say. But nowadays, Hobart comedy is on the rise, and it is right at your doorstep. So, where does one go for a good chuckle? The most prominent hot spot in town is The Loft, located on Liverpool Street. The Loft delivers live comedy every Thursday evening from 7.30pm, hosting shows The Playground and Impro Vice, which alternate each week. The Playground is a stand-up comedy room where performers experiment with their new material. The stage is ‘playground-themed’ with swings and the like, and even features its very own Playground Bully who “constructively criticises” comics on stage and diffuses any awkwardness in the room caused by the performer. The Playground’s MC, Matt Burton, believes that the show can be considered among the most successful comedy rooms in Australia. Part of its appeal is that it features new material every night so no show is the same. Impro Vice, on the other hand, is a spontaneous comedy show made up by participants on the spot. Performers are given a random scenario which they have to “improvise”, similar to the television show “Thank God You’re Here.” The audience is left to decide if this has been achieved or failed. Like The Playground, Impro Vice is a unique show that always offers something different. The Short Back and Sideshow is another comedy option returning in February at the Backspace, Theatre Royal. The Short Back and Sideshow occurs once a month and combines a variety of comedy styles such as musical, standup, sketches and more.
by Shantelle Rodman
So why should you go and see these shows? Well, you don’t need to know anything about comedy to enjoy them, and they appeal to a broad audience. You can expect jokes, anecdotes, mimes and even musical acts at The Playground, while Impro Vice is a touch weirder, more unexpected, and sometimes just ridiculous. The Short Back and Sideshow is reminiscent of cabarets and sideshows, being likened to a “Live Muppet Show” by comedian Gavin Baskerville. As well as being funny, these shows are also cheap with The Playground and Impro Vice costing only $5, and The Short Back and Sideshow $9. There will also be more upcoming comedy, in particular at the New Sydney, so keep a look out. Image by Scott Faulkner
UPCOMING show dates: impro vice
February 26 The Loft , Liverpool St
The Playground March 5 The Loft, Liverpool St
41
Movie. Reviews.
A period
drama and a
coming-of-age
surfie flick
are just two of the tales you can catch
on DVD over the next month.
Vivien Mason gives them the
once over
The Duchess
Newcastle
Before reality TV stars there were aristocrats according to The Duchess, the latest period film starring Keira Knightley. A stifling marriage sent ‘her grace’, Lady Georgiana Spencer (ancestor of Lady Diana), straight out of the house to be a muse for playwrights, politicians and society columnists. Despite having no formal political rights, Lady Georgiana influenced politics by using her fashion to attract punters to the aptly named Whig Party. A lavish film with an excellent cast, The Duchess offers costume and drama with unusual intelligence.
Sun, surf and blue sky in Australia are well-worn subjects on the small screen but in Newcastle surf culture gets a grittier treatment. Seventeen-year-old Jesse hopes to surf his way out of a job on the Newcastle coal barges, if he can just get past his hothead tendencies. His brother has already made the transition to a more destructive path after injury took him out of surfing. A haunting soundtrack and bleak urban scenery provide Newcastle with an intensity that makes it a worth watching, whether you check the surf forecast or not.
The Duchess. Dir. Saul Dibb. Perf. Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling. 2008. DVD. Paramount, 2008.
Newcastle. Dir. Dan Castle. Perf. Lachlan Buchanan, Shane Jacobson, Reshad Strik, Barry Otto. DVD. Magna, 2008.
2008
2008
42
Classic. Movie. Reviews.
Blade Runner (1982)
The Final Cut Los Angeles 2019: a metropolitan dystopia darkened by pollution and illuminated by neon lights. This was the futuristic vision of director Ridley Scott in his follow up to Alien, the blockbuster of 1979. Initially a commercial failure, Blade Runner has since earned cult status, offering a bleak yet compassionate story of artificial intelligence. Synthesised music, shoulder pads and permed hair may appear unlikely ingredients in a timeless cinematic classic of the science fiction genre, but add a complex exploration of consciousness, umbrellas with glowing neon handles, Harrison Ford in an acclaimed performance and, through the dry ice, Blade Runner emerges. Ex-cop Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) is forced to return to his work as a “blade runner” when a group of replicants escape to earth from “off world colonies”. Designed by genetic engineers, replicants are identical to humans in appearance and intelligence, but superior in strength. Sold as slaves to off-world colonies by the powerful Tyrell Corporation, replicants are banned from earth after a bloody rebellion. To prevent emotional development they’re designed with a four-year life span, motivating a small group of replicants led by Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) to escape to earth in search of their maker and the possibility of a longer life. The group are tracked down by Deckard who, as a blade runner, is employed to “retire” (kill) replicants. However, Deckard is increasingly aware that he is killing beings almost identical to himself, a conflict heightened when he meets Rachael (Sean Young), a replicant implanted with memories so she actually believes she is human. Heavily influenced by film noir, Blade Runner combines spectacular special effects with classic cinematography. Shot mostly at night, in thick smoke and constant rain, the shooting of the film was reportedly extremely gruelling.
by Vivien Mason
Nevertheless, the aesthetic of the images produced is that of a new and distinctive world, characterised by strong chiaroscuro silhouettes against subdued blue or brown tones. Shot prior to the era of CG effects, the “spinners” and roaming futuristic skylines were produced using stop motion, models and optical effects. They create a textured edge deficient in most computerised effects seen even today. Influenced by Metropolis (1927), and “high tech and low life” proto-cyberpunk, fine arts graduate Ridley Scott achieved rare contemporary success with Academy Award nominations for visual effects and art direction. Composer Vangelis’ heavy use of synthesisers, while initially overwhelming, is also one of the film’s strongest elements. Evident decay and brutality, contrasted with the replicants’ fervent desire to live, is poignant because of the affecting and distinctive sound track. Blade Runner transcends its time. The distinctive style and idiosyncratic realisation of complex themes allows it to maintain its cult status. Though graphic in its violence and less than progressive in portraying each female character as a femme fatale, the film has undoubtedly influenced a stream of recent movies with similar themes (iRobot, AI, The Island), while computer games are dominated by Scott’s brand of cityscape. Placed among the best 100 films of all time by the American Film Institute and Time magazine, the film’s exploration of morality, genetic engineering, corporate power and environmental degradation are now more relevant than ever. A gem amon…gst the science fiction genre, completely devoid of brightly shined ships, Blade Runner remains a galaxy apart. Blade Runner. Dir. Ridley Scott. Perf. Harri…son Ford and Rutger Hauer. 1982. DVD. Warner Bros,2007. 43
Here’s a selection of
2008’s finest
albums that
might have
slipped under your musical
radar from
Sam Burnett &
Julien Lepoix
Jenny Lewis
Drive-By Truckers
Lewis’ music- be it coked out Rilo Kiley rock or barnstomping solo countryhas always had an attitude that sat somewhere between sexy exuberance and a maudlin understanding of the world. After trying to sellout in her day job (Rilo Kiley) with last year’s Under the Blacklight, Acid Tongue finds Lewis still shifting her time between the two perspectives. Less of a traditionalist than on the religious talk fest Rabbit Fur Coat, her sound is as eclectic as it is consistent. “Black Sand” is a solo approximation of last years Blacklight sound, while the shit kicking “Carpetbaggers” features an ever-rambling Elvis Costello and a “hey boy” vocal that makes knees go weak. The album’s highlight is the Americana soaked title track, a tale of drug use, love and regret that perfectly encapsulates the two sides of Lewis’ music. (SB)
Nobody expects a southern rock album to be moody. They want to know what kind of alcohol to drink (moonshine) and to be reassured that you know, sometimes a jive talkin’ woman has it coming. But then a song like “Two Daughters and a Beautiful Wife” –which, if you’ll excuse my lack of purple prose, is absolutely beautiful comes along. While the southern standards are still upheld, the album preaches as hard as it rocks- “The Man I Shot” is one of the first songs to actually discuss the Iraq War, while “Bob” humanises the crazy guy in your neighbourhood who talks to dogs. (SB)
Acid Tongue
Brighter than Creation’s Dark
44
Music. Reviews.
The ‘59 Sound
Keny Arkana
Desobéissance
Sporto Kantes
The sophomore album by the Jersey punk rockers sits somewhere between loving tributeand hard-rocking copyright infringement. The fact that the opening bars of “Great Expectations” are almost a retelling of the Bruce Springsteen’s “Thunder Road” doesn’t detract- if anything it adds an extra level of sadness to an already bleak and hopeless song that yearns of breaking free from the same Jersey hopelessness that plagued The Boss. The guitars rumble like an Oldsmobile’s engine and lead singer Brian Fallon’s voice is powered by a thousand shattered white trash dreams. As delicate as they are volatile, his retellings make the album something special- along with the band’s uncanny knack for making choruses that would be inspirational if they didn’t tell such melancholy stories. (SB)
If you ever wondered how hip-hop sounds in a different language, you should try to listen to Keny Arkana. A young French woman from Marseille, she blew away the French hip-hop scene about two years ago with her first album Entre ciment et belle étoile.. This follow-up album is a pure concentration of energy and rebellion. Arkana tackles every current issue from political and environmental to social – whether it be drug addiction or simple everyday anxieties. Desobéissance follows the themes of Arkana’s first album, although it is more politically engaged with a strong anti-capitalist streak that is unquestionably revolutionary in both musical and lyrical aspects. Hip-hop in France is most likely one of the last facets of contemporary society which advocates the old French ideal of faith in humanity and a revolt against the prevailing order. “Call me La Marseillaise, more revolutionary than your bloody hymn…” yes indeed. (JL)
Sporto Kantes is an electronic duo unique in its genre and 3 at last is their third album. Composed by two men, they are perhaps one of the most cosmopolitan and eclectic bands around right now. Songs like “Whistle” are irresistibly catchy. The chorus goes: “And I got whistle when the weather coloured bee,” and even if you can’t really understand the lyrics, the music carries you away and you will probably end up humming this anthem anyway. The vocals are in English, Spanish and French, allowing them to navigate through the different genres of those cultures simply and ingeniously. Don’t be deceived if you think you have heard their songs before because you haven’t, they are old samples refashioned to create refreshing and instant classics. (JL)
The Gaslight Anthem
3 at Last
45
Taking B ack The Toga by David Jensen “Knowledge is covert on our campus; knowledge once celebrated now hides nakedly behind closed doors.”
It reflects the state of the wider world well when we find an environment of learning such as our own fractured between faculties, fortressed between schools and re-forming the shallow old ponds of knowledge that think themselves seas. A great rain must come to break these proud ponds, these billabongs, for it is through sharing our knowledge that we will truly realise how stagnant our wisdom once was. Knowledge is covert on our campus; knowledge once celebrated now hides nakedly behind closed doors. The Greeks would have called it kalyptos – ‘concealed’; its nakedness hides it from us like Odysseus taken prisoner on Calypso’s island. Like new life caged inside the dry eucalypts around campus an equally revealing apocalypse is overdue [from GK apokalypsis – ‘uncovering’]. The Old English called this concealment helan – ‘hell’ to us – but such a hellish Dark Age or winter of learning is nothing that a renaissance does not perpetually overturn. Undergrads doze underground but when the spring comes will they surface? Will the rewards of rhetoric, interaction and initiative be realised by an apocalypse on the way we treat our time at university? Learning needs a metaphorical cloak for all to see it, a cloak of different colours that will float among us for knowledge to be shared or at least shown to be scared and in hiding. Togtus – adj. ‘wearing the toga’ (Latin), denotes citizenship and peace. If we were all in a sense under the cover of this toga could we not dis-cover the great opportunities of university community? By discussing our own colours – the knowledge of our varied disciplines and vocations – we would illuminate not only the true power and understanding that universities offer but also hidden 46
Opinion. End Notes.
truths of the very disciplines over which we thought we had omnipotence. Advocating this sincere suggestion of a movement to mingle is a person proud of learning and hungry for knowledge. I know that we can not long grow unchecked as a university. If we do we will fracture and fall before realising with the rest of the world that maybe it is not growth that must be sustained, but our brains. If we can not inspire each other to greatness we cease to be students and become merely shadows of students, smoking behind the bike sheds. There is no illusion of grandeur that you could entertain, only blindness to the bequest of this university and our forebears. If we forget, for example, the origins and – interestingly here – the commercial foundations of our language as they wish to be forgotten by those threatening to cut Medieval Literature from the English curriculum, our university will take another step towards business, further from thought. Remember, remember, I cry, so we do not forget these Dark Age times or this unjustified attempt to demolish one avenue of our learning. Medieval Literature may inform us in passing that Avalon, the mystic island of King Arthur, means ‘apple isle,’ and I am enthralled by the connection with Tasmania when I behold the brave students riding out in their shining armour to defeat those who wish to destroy Avalon, who wish to forsake Chaucer and who wish to see dark history repeated. For once such knowledge is lost in a university it is near impossible to bring it back.
“Our pursuit sees us searching out the same truths, sees us learning the same facts and the same laws of our nature, only it sees us go about these in completely different ways.”
My grandfather was of the opinion that ‘if you can’t do: teach.’ Possibly because I fail to do, I might teach you that although our disciplines have different names our aims are one and the same. Our pursuit sees us searching out the same truths, sees us learning the same facts and the same laws of our nature, only it sees us go about these in completely different ways. If we have the boldness to take back the toga that has been lost in recent years we will realise that by sharing our knowledge we gain understanding and wisdom. Maybe our Classicists need our Geologists – maybe our Geologists need our Plant Scientists – and maybe our Plant Scientists need our Classicists. Maybe our radio needs some talk-back. Maybe we need more societies. Maybe we need a campus community. But it is for the very needs that I can not think of that I call on you. For heaven forfend that if we have not prudence we neither live now nor are fit to be students. So let us live now and not follow the trend or our season of learning slowly, but surely, will end. 47
Shows and Stuff...
Here’s a small but tasty sample of some gigs and events you can catch over the next month or so. Contact the venue for further information. Feb 27
Eugene ‘Hideaway’ Bridges Republic Bar and Cafe Sandy Bay
Feb 28
Koolism Republic Bar and Café North Hobart My Disco with the Native Cats and Ivy Street Brisbane Hotel Hobart
M ar 8 u n d s
feat. nd en So d r bers a a m G y Cha e Royal s a K lson u r r a y, l Nicho Pete M tanica Shane n a Bo i n a m Tas ns Royal Garde t Hobar
Mar 1n1d i a
h I Britis Café ar and B c i l b t u Rep Hobar North
Mar 13o k y o
of T Birds r Uni Ba y a B y d San
Mar 21 nies
M ar 1 o ’ s
o N The N at Bar C y e l Al t Hobar North
Mar 4i f s
a The W int Po t s e r W Bay Sandy
eidke iller-H Kate M s Saloon Spur port Devon TS O e th Lov sia wi ll s a u H R t r m Fro Conce n o i t a Feder
Mar 5i f s
a The W Bar n o o l a S ton s e c n Lau
ea The M tel ne Ho a b s i r B t r Hoba
2 Mar 2m pire
at E The C tate lla Es i Moor e l a d Berri
Mar 2a6y
– Apr 4a l
Festiv al Pl n o i ide t a N Statew
2009
– Apr 5 Mar 27o n t h e I s l a n d
ays ide Ten D Statew
Apr 15l l e r
we Ben K Cafe ar and B c i l b u p e R
48
Next issue coming in May‌
100% recycled paper