I am a new student of German Longsword. It's been mentioned before in dispatches, but it's a bit like boxing, or dancing. Cuts and parries (movements) are in response to those of your sparring partner and vice versa. Thus, sometimes sword fighting is a waltz, other times it is jazz ballet. But since English is … Continue reading Not imagining war
Month: March 2018
Review: Bec went a viking
The word Viking was a verb. Norse people didn't call themselves Vikings, they did it - they went out and traded and raided. I was reminded of that when I too went a viking to recover some knowledge from Melbourne Museum's new, temporary exhibit Vikings: Beyond the Legend. While there, as it was the opening … Continue reading Review: Bec went a viking
Elsewhere: a dream
Melbourne's central business district is served by the City Loop, a ring of (mostly) underground rail lines and their stations. The iconic station, the one on the postcards, is that of Flinders Street, because of its classic facade, the clocks, and its steps. Around the corner, Southern Cross Station serves both the city, and trains … Continue reading Elsewhere: a dream
Rewatch: The Day After Tomorrow
And now for something completely different, at least compared to recent posts here. Like the people who watch hash tagged programs such as Married At First Sight (#MAFS), I too can have thoughts about what I watch and then list them for people to mock, I mean enjoy. Thusly, I present twenty-seven and a bit … Continue reading Rewatch: The Day After Tomorrow
They call it Moomba
I'm not from Melbourne, not even from Victoria. All I knew about the Moomba Festival was from television coverage of the Bird Man Rally each year where people attempt to fly cardboard contraptions by jumping off a pontoon into the Yarra River for charity. Except for the charity, I never got it. There's a party, … Continue reading They call it Moomba
Another International Women’s Day
It's International Women's Day...but all I have are questions and recollections. Why would anyone notice I have been tone policed when women are being murdered as they flee violence? Do political leaders care about when I was stalked by a man with a psychiatric illness (a year after my classmate was murdered) when they continue … Continue reading Another International Women’s Day
Lessons from kittens
My household volunteers for an animal rescue charity, fostering kittens and cats when possible. The organisation takes surrendered animals, and rescues kittens, cats, dogs and rabbits from death row shelters across Victoria. Fostering means preparing kittens and cats for permanent homes by getting them through medical assessments and treatments (including neutering). Fostering often entails ensuring … Continue reading Lessons from kittens
Patchwork heart
You won't be surprised if you learned I have a collector's tendency. A bit. Not in a massively life cramplingly problematic hoarding way, yet I do keep things. Maybe it's because stuff is comforting, like when I was a child. My room in one house was barely wider than my bed, in which was stuffed … Continue reading Patchwork heart
Am always and none
Thoughts arising like bubbles in lemonade upon reading about Anatta (anatman). I am not who I was, and yet I am, always. Who I am is not work I am paid to do - as it changes. Will this I stop when work slows like an unwound clock? Who I am is not who I … Continue reading Am always and none
Writing Bec 