Posted by Bel. The time is 5.21pm here in Wellington NZ

Your favorite song

"Glory Box" by Portishead, from their debut album Dummy.

This live version is pretty chill-giving:



I first heard the song in the movie When The Cat's Away, which is directed by Cédric Klapisch. When I was young, my mum used to take me along to the movies with her whenever something interesting was screening. The 'film festival' proper never made it to our hick town, but some arthouse releases did occasionally, and it felt like such a treat to 1) be chosen by my mum to go along with her to such a distinctly adult event and 2) watch films that I was pretty darn sure were Not Appropriate For My Age.

When The Cat's Away is one such example. I didn't realise it at the time, but it was my introduction to a French director whose work I would come to love (The Spanish Apartment, Paris, etc - sorry, Lou, I know you don't care) and an actor who I was one day destined to marry and have super cute Frenchie babies with...

He will be mine... Oh, yes - he will be mine...

Less than a few years later, my longest-known friend Jane, who had been and gone and lived in England and returned, was very much established as the understated bastion of cool. She disappeared off to Wellington (THE FAR AND DISTANT LAND OF) one weekend for a "gig". This was not something we did. I've already covered how one of the subversive acts of my younger years was going to the cinema with my mother, right??

Anyway, Jane is back at school on Monday morning, cooler than ever and still not aware of it, and she is nice enough to lend me the CD of the band she went to see. It is, of course, Portishead, and I do, of course, spend the rest of my life kicking myself for never again having the chance to see them live.*

She also did pretty much the same thing with Radiohead. I have not felt such shame until I found out my "beloved" (I hated him for quite a while for this) saw Nirvana live.


*Portishead are infamous for being wary of performing live and toured minimally before breaking up. They reformed like 10 years later, just recently, releasing what has to be one of the most hyped and most disappointed albums I have ever experienced.

Posted by Lou. The time is 9.00am here in London UK.

Your favorite song

Yikes! As if I can answer that singularly... Instead here are a few songs I love:


A Day in the Life - by John Lennon and Paul McCartney
If pushed I would probably have to name this as my favourite song. It says so much about The Beatles, about John and Paul specifically, and about fantastic song-writing.


Falling Slowly - by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová (from the film Once)
Not only do I looooove this song, but I love that these two totally unexpectedly won an Oscar for it in one of the best decisions against the commercialisation of film music ever.

Here is them performing it on Irish TV after the victory - even sitting on a talk show sofa they manage to infuse it with beauty and emotion:




Moon River - by Frank Sinatra
I adore Sinatra's version of this song - his voice is like heaven.


While My Guitar Gently Weeps - by George Harrison
The version of this song on the Beatles Love album is stunning.


On My Own - from Les Miserables
I had to have a song from a musical on this list, and this one wins for being the one I most covet having the talent to be able to perform.

This version by Lea Salonga at the Les Miserables 10th Anniversary concert is hands-down the best version out there:

Posted by Lou. The time is 3.30pm here in London UK.

In this past month, what have you learned

• That Roger Sterling - aka John Slattery - also directs for Mad Men. Talented guy.



• That my HR file contains absolutely nothing about the additional responsibility I've been doing for the past 2 years and I am thus fucked if/ when I find myself out of a job.
• I am thus also a total walk-over who has let myself be shat on repeatedly by this company.
• But that have a Partner-in-a-law-firm amongst your list of friends is very handy indeed for such situations.
• Will Shuester - aka Matthew Morrison - from Glee is dating Kelly Brook.
• Seeing Colm Wilkinson sing Bring Him Home in person is even more emotional than you would have imagine.


• Lea Salonga singing I Dreamed A Dream can stun 20,000 people into complete silence.
• The weekend bar-staff at Concrete make the cocktails a lot more potently than the weeknight staff.
• TVNZ is despicably and inexcusably crap at dealing with racism.

Posted by Bel. The time is 4.20pm here in Wellington NZ

In this past month, what have you learned

• Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty are brother and sister.

• That the leading cause of death worldwide for women aged 15 - 19 years is pregnancy and childbirth.
• Tasty Cheese Corn Thins actually taste like tasty cheese. Or, you know, tasty cheese flavoured flavouring. But it's one of those authentic flavouring flavours. Not like the way that banana flavouring ever is.
• That a group of protesters starting up chanting "Hey mister mister - keep your laws - off my sister" will successfully get rid of a man who has been persistently haranguing women holding placards, despite them insisting there's no point in "talking" if he's not interested in listening to their point of view. More photos here.
 

• At my gym assessment, they told me I had lost 1kg this month. But don't worry! I lost my hairdryer and it turned out it was just in the bag with all the cleaning products that we hadn't unpacked, so chances are it won't stay lost.
• 60% of purchases made at Hallensteins are made by women.
• Boardwalk Empire was created by the guy who wrote pretty much my favourite episode of The Sopranos (other than the pilot), the one when they fuck up killing the guy and get stuck in the snow and have to eat the ketchup sachets and Paulie moans for like an hour.
• I'm married to someone who doesn't like spring onion.
• Internet Explorer now has less than 50% of the market share for internet browsers for the first time; gaining ground is Chrome and Firefox apparently.
• Babies get born when they wanna. This is not usually on a schedule convenient to anyone else. I know the whole 'too posh to push' 'calendared caesarean' thing has copped a lot of flack, but SHEESH what else are we supposed to do?? Just sit around and WAIT for those little tyrants?!
• The Coen Brothers' new movie looks awesome:
• My 10 year old stepdaughter googles me.
• Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings are playing the Opera House in December. I will BE! THERE! BABY! Second row from the front even. (Then I will run out of my seat to right in front of the stage and block the view of those suckas in the front row MUAHAHAHAAA)
• "You don't have to keep something just because someone gave it to you". So liberating.

Posted by Lou. The time is 9.00am here in London UK.

Day 28- A picture of you last year and now, how have you changed since then?

Candid pub pic from about a year ago:




Candid pub pic from a couple of weeks ago:




Difference #1: hair colour

Difference #2: I seemed to have gotten a bit more of a tan during this summer just past

Difference #3: the deer dress is gone from my life [Lotte, when are we going to see the wee Rata version?]

Posted by Bel. The time is 4.51pm here in Wellington NZ

A picture of you last year and now, how have you changed since then?

My sister-in-law got married almost exactly one year ago. Her anniversary present was a newborn baby - WHAT A HARDOUT!! haha. Here are some pics of me from back then, October 2009, and also her looking like a super glam classic bride:

I toned my fushia dress with yellow tights and a polka dot fascinator. I did my hair in a bouffant in the LITERAL 2 MINUTES I had to get ready and threw on my biggest, sparkliest earrings for good measure.

Here is a photo of me from approximately 355 days later:

A year later and I am still determined to not so much 'colour block' as colourfuck. Teal cardigan with green tee-shirt and a blue scarf. And oooh how long did it take you to style up that puffy fringe, Bel? Bet you managed to stay focussed for all of 1x iTunes track.

Funnily enough, when both those photos were taken, I was living in the same house, working the same job, doing pretty much the same thing with my life. Somewhat unheard of for the last decade or so.

Posted by Lou. The time is 12.06pm here in London UK.

Why are you doing this 30 day challenge

She made me *points at Bel*

Posted by Bel. The time is 3.50pm here in Wellington NZ

Why are you doing this 30 day challenge

"30 Days of Me" was just a really appealing topic.

Posted by Lou. The time is 11.27pm here in London UK.

What you think about your friends

They're fun, funny, smart, kind-hearted, and generally well-dressed.

:D

Posted by Bel. The time is 3.47pm here in Wellington NZ

What you think about your friends

I know, without a doubt, that the friends I have are my true friends.

Posted by Lou. The time is 2.45pm here in London UK.

What I would find in your bag

I think Bel and I have actually done this by email twice... Shame!

Okay here we go - this is the contents of the purple leather shoulder-bag I've been using the last couple of weeks:

• A massive collection of keys connected to my "cat of glory" key ring. Hmm one of the big fat keys is for the rubbish repository of my apartment complex - do I really need to be carrying this around??
• Eye-drops
• Oyster card in an Institute of Contemporary Arts oyster card holder
• My work pass - which I can assure you is not hanging on a lanyard despite repeated and futile attempts by security to get me to use one
• iPod nano - red with my name on it, FYI (in a crusty cheap red rubber holder as I love the actual iPod so much I didn't want to get it scratched... but doesn't this kind of defeat the purpose of having a lovely red iPod?)
• My Nokia brick phone
• An umbrella with a toon of Shakespeare and many of his quotable quotes printed on it
• Sunglasses in case - incidentally I complained to Fiorella about how shit the sunglasses are a few weeks ago (they do not stay on your head when you swish them up into your hair - hence several scratches from concrete landings, and a couple of near misses with toilet bowls)
• Kitty change purse
• Red little wallet with Maori design
• Pocket mirror with NZ map imprinted (gift from mum when I left NZ)
• Pen from what appears to be a German hotel
• Red spotty zip-up purse thing containing:
• compact
• kleenex travel pack
• sticking plasters in Hello Kitty plaster case
• Japanese good luck pouch with a blessed wish thing inside (I assume)
• pink lip-gloss (which was free in a No.7 gift bag)
• tiny notepad with a stilleto-heeled boot print on it
• Kiehl's lip balm
• nail file
• 3 hair ties
• Boots tinted lip balm
• Carmex
• 2 throat lozenges
• a tampon
• 2 ibruprofen
• a little black lip-pot sized container with body butter in it

There would usually be a book too but I am just finished one.

No crumpled receipts or used tissues hidden in the dark depths - woop woop!

Posted by Bel. The time is 3.03pm here in Wellington NZ

What I would find in your bag

Funny, I am sure that Lou and I did this via email at some stage?? Fuck we must've been procastinating something chronic!! Haha.

Currently I am rocking a backpack, not a handbag, as I am doggedly walking to and from work, which is a nearly two hour round-trip. (Yes I am exceedingly proud of myself, and did I mention it is all uphill on the way home? Because IT IS.)

And to top it off, my backpack is a castoff from my stepdaughter, who got it free when she signed up to her gym. So it is emblazoned with a "City Fitness" logo. Shaaaaame! I would use my own backpack, which is a perfectly lovely red Kathmandu one, but it was purloined by my husband, who used it to transport paint and - well, you can imagine.

Anyway, inside my (shame) backpack is:

• iPod Nano (silver, ancient)
• keys with Eiffel Tower keyring bought at the Eiffel Tower and Snowy keyring, exactly like this:

• Misery mirror compact (gift when I left a workplace, chosen by Lou and Hayley I'm willing to bet!)
• Maybelline "Royal Red" lipstick my mum gave me that her partner didn't want
• Chanel "Rouge Coco - Gabrielle" lipstick I splurged on and always hold conspicuously

• Nutrimetics "Strawberry Cream" lipstick (actually a hot pink colour)
• Business cards for my fulltime job
• Business cards for my freelance job
• Snapper card
• Gym swipe card
• Wallet (from Iko Iko so long ago the pattern is almost worn off!)
• Shoes: nice looking work shoes OR shaaaaame trainers, depending on whether I am at work or on my way there (Walking. Two hours round-trip. Uphill all the way home. Did I mention?)
• Water bottle. ALWAYS.
• Hair brush, the round barrell variety. To keep my FRINGE!! in check
• Travel size Fudge hair product. Ooh this exact one:

• Journal
• Assorted biros, Sharpies, etc
• Recycled plastic shopping bag, for my lunch

My "proper" handbag is still containing most of my usual essentials (i.e. useless crap and pointless kept receipts), in the wistful hopes that the backpack will be spurned and rejected for a more fashionable alternative. We'll see. I may yet get sick of my current routine. (I walk to and from work at the moment, did I mention?)

Posted by Lou. The time is 2.00pm here in London UK.

A letter to your parents

To mum and dad,

Why oh why didn't you make me get braces on my teeth? Yes, I know that you are right when you respond "well, there was no making you do anything!" - I am a stubborn person and yes I would have (okay, did) kick up an almighty fuss - but couldn't you have made me?

Now I'm stuck with wonky teeth for life when all it would have taken was a few dozen tantrums, lots of tears, and 2 years of being miserable when I was in my mid-teens. (I was miserable anyway!)

Kthnxbye,
Lou

Posted by Bel. The time is 2.26pm here in Wellington NZ

A letter to your parents


To my mum and to my dad:
 
Thank you that your genetics combined nicely when it came to my hair. I've inherited Mum's fine texture, but a wave from Dad's curly mop. I avoided bottle-brush straight hair like Eddy or uncontrollable ringlets like Davy, instead coming out with the winning combination of thick, manageable and easy to colour hair, which has provided me with ample self-indulgent blog content.
 
Cheers!!
 

Demonstrating great hair even before curls kicked in during teen years

 
PS One thing though: pity about the mousy blonde colour, would have preferred to be naturally dark but can't complain too much.

Posted by Lou. The time is 11.59pm here in London UK.

Something you crave for a lot

Lie-ins! I live for days when I can put on an eye-mask, put in some ear-plugs, turn off my alarm and my phone and sleep until I wake up, and then get up when I feel like it.

Posted by Bel. The time is 10.35am here in Wellington NZ.

Something you crave for a lot

Sleep. I love to sleep.

Posted by Lou. The time is 4.00pm here in London UK.

What makes you different from everyone else

Umm...

To be honest I think the overriding uniqueness in my life is the fact that I sort of have a weird set of interests and sub-cultures to which I subscribe that all kind of contradict each other, and add up to an existence in which I never feel completely comfortable of part of anything, but also without ever feeling entirely uncomfortable or removed from something.

This runs from the fact that I'd be just as comfortable at a fantasy board game afternoon as I would be at a theatre after-party; which is just as comfortable as I'd be at a Cuba St retro-chic crafternoon or a wanky television event; which is just as comfortable as I'd be amongst the old ladies at a Michael Ball concert or dancing along to Gogol Bordello in a sweaty Camden venue; which is just as comfortable as I'd be passionately discussing my beliefs at a feminist meet-up or drunkenly chanting "youfuckedup! youfuckedup!" a rugby match; which is just as comfortable as I'd be at a barn-dance or a drinking champagne at a film premiere.

Okay when I write it down like that it just seems quite normal and much like everyone else - but sometimes I feel very aware of how disparate my interests, hobbies and tastes are and how none of them entirely seem fully like me but how as a summation they sort of add up to something that works relatively coherently towards describing me as a person. And I guess that's what goes for all of us, right?

Oh, and there's that whole "irrational fear of bicycles" thing.

{I was going to insert an image here of a comically
smashed up bicycle... but it turns out that googling
"bike crash" is not an advisable thing to do. At all.}

Posted by Bel. The time is 10.10am here in Wellington NZ

What makes you different from everyone else


Often, it is being vegetarian. I am that annoying one at dinner who has to double check everything and refuses to have a taste of your delicious bacon and egg pie, even though you're offering a "non-bacon-y" bit.
 
Other times, it's that I believe in God. Christians these days do a lot of dumb shit, so chalking your name up on that list generally means the rest of society is a bit bemused and concerned about your need for a "crutch" or obvious lack of knowledge about Science. I find it an awkward fit, because I don't go to church and can't stand so much of what is done "in God's name", but still look for somewhere on that spectrum for my faith.
 
Most obviously, it is that I am overly tall with ridiculously big feet and orangutan arms. Shoe shopping is a nightmare. Finding cardigans that don't expose my wrists is near impossible. And all of those cute flirty short skirts look positively obscene once I get them up over my hips. It's also problematic in group photos, where I either have to choose between killing my quads by crouching down to normal height while people snap away, or risk looming over everybody else like Godzilla in the Tokyo streets.
 
More subtle is my unique propensity for mispronunciating the word "wary" no matter how many times I am corrected. (I think my way is better.)

Posted by Lou. The time is 9.00am here in London UK.

A picture of something that makes you happy


Rather than boring you with pictures of kittens or Les Miserables or The Beatles or cupcakes, here is something that always makes me laugh:

Monty Python's Ministry of Silly Walks

Michelle does a cracking good Silly Walk and is generally willing to give me a burst if I beg hard enough. Mine has unfortunately never quite managed to be silly enough, but maybe one day I'll gain certification.

Here is the skit for anyone who has been deprived of having it in their lives:

Monty Python's Ministry of Silly Walks

Posted by Bel. The time is 10.07am here in Wellington NZ

A picture of something that makes you happy

Wow that took me like 0.000003 seconds to decide upon.