another step closer...

the compliance certificate for the plumbing and sewerage works is got – the paperwork has exchanged hands... it’s now 'full steam ahead' for irene to be able to sell the land at Malmsbury... it's been valued at $100,000 - it's in a superb spot - as they say 'location, location, location'!! - it's fully serviced and fenced on three boundaries - it's 5 mins from the train station and the shops - it's in a street that has no traffic because it goes nowhere and there are only a couple of houses - and if you're artistically inclined, it's in the 'heart' of a burgeoning 'artists' colony' - it'll be advertised online in the next couple of weeks - i'm going there new years eve and we'll be working on the ad and taking photos - they'll be online new years day hopefully... and for me it means i'm one step closer to reuniting with my wee louie boy (and that'll be good for irene - one less dog to have to share her bed with - he's the smallest, but he takes up the most room!!!!) - getting my own space out of the city (and escaping the claustrophobic horror of flat-dwelling) - it will be my home, my retreat, my sanctuary – and security for old(er) age... (the top pic is of the malmsbury mill - right opposite the block - and the bottom is the 'older persons retreat' being considered - similar in style to the existing house, in the right price range and perfect for the spot chosen...)

it also means peace of mind and a sense of safety from the ever expanding tourist and pub area encroaching on my home and (fast disappearing) comfort zone for so many decades (i was 'born'n bred' in st. kilda but it's a different 'world' now)... there's that ever present undercurrent of anger, hostility and violence... very noticeable last night when irene and the gang came for a visit and we decided to go for a lovely, leisurely stroll around the streets - and they are beautiful streets to wander - so many amazing old buildings and houses and such wide, green streets - it was about 9 pm and there was just something unnerving about the groups of young people (mostly male) just hanging around the streets drinking - so many groups, so much booze, so much ego and testosterone - a volatile combination - a time bomb waiting to happen...

there’s also the on-going ‘gentrification’ of st. kilda which has forced so many of the long time residents and lifeblood of the area further and further into obscurity if not oblivion with the cost of rental accommodation being so very expensive... take this house for example - it's a single fronted, 1 of 4 (not even semi-detached) 3 bedroom townhouse being advertised around the corner in cowderoy street for $690 per week ($2,998 per month!!!!) yeah, ordinary people can really afford that!!!!

anyway, in case you're not aware, it's the longest day today - the southern hemisphere summer solstice - or midsummer, or lithia - there are so many ancient cultures that celebrated these astrological events... so many interpretations and varying beliefs - and of course it was something else the christian invasion could exploit, claim and change...

"The Summer Solstice was incorporated into the Christian calendar during the spread of Christianity, and like so many of the old festivals, was given new meaning which was considered less Paganistic and more suited to the Christian festival. The Summer Solstice became the feast day of 'St. John the Baptist'.

Several hundred years ago, across Europe, healers were usually women who carried out healing using a mixture of herbs. Hildegard of Bingen put together a book recording many of these herbs and what they could be used for. In time, it became the foundation of herbalism and medicine in the western world. Shortly after its' publication, the Spanish Inquisition was established and it is believed over nine-million women were persecuted and then executed for what was termed as the practice of witchcraft. Witchcraft at this time had many definitions, one of which was "The knowledge and practice of the traditional ways of healing".

The connection of herbs and healing to witchcraft is that many of the herbs used for healing were believed to hold more healing power if they were gathered at significant times of the year such as Summer Solstice. During this time, it is believed by some, the feminine earth energies are at their most powerful. " (read more at the mystical world wide web)

and while i'm talking 'this time of the year' - if you have the need for 'last minute' gifts, why not make a donation to petrescue in someone's name, or victorian dog rescue - a donation would be greatly appreciated from any of the myriad animal rescue agencies.. maybe donate to help feed a rescued farm animal through animal liberation or "help bring emergency vet care to abandoned and neglected pets, new life for orphaned bear cubs or an end to the cruel hunting of seal pups" through ifaw or help wspa build a sanctuary for bears in pakistan, survivors of the barbaric "sport" of bear baiting - fuck, there are just so many animals and agencies needing help - how about purchasing the puppy mill documentary about the changing face of our relationship with dogs - i watched it today - it's thought provoking, heart-wrenching and informative - people need to start acknowledging the cruelty behind the pet shop puppies and take a stand, at least by getting the message out there and making others aware it's happening, otherwise the industry continues - it's extremely interesting and does show the positive action some ethical pet suppliers have instigated in america to 'thwart' the profit-at-any-cost and totally inhumane industry (australia is lagging behind but there are some ethical independent suppliers here taking their own stand) - it's well worth giving to someone as a gift... maybe you'd prefer to buy a toilet or a water supply for a village here...

HAPPY, PEACEFUL SUMMER SOLSTICE

sites and sounds...

The Palais Theatre - such a grand old building, an icon of St Kilda. i used to spend a lot of time there when i was young and saw some incredible shows - i guess it helped that me mum was the head cashier when i was growing up!!

Originally starting life as Palais Pictures in 1927, it was hailed as "one of the largest theaters in the southern hemisphere" and was one of the "first suburban cinemas to screen talkies on 3 July 1929, five months after their first Australian exhibition at the Athenaeum. Until the fifties, it was the place to go to the movies. You saw two full-length films, preceded by Harry Jacobs and his Band with 30 minutes of singers, music, dancers or other variety performers." ... you can read more here if you're interested in 'its-story'.

amazing that here it is, still surviving in the 21st century as a venue for home-grown and international performers, providing luxurious - although somewhat shabbier than I remember from my childhood - surroundings for the comfort of appreciative audiences.

I went to a Jimmy Barnes concert at the Palais on friday night with my brother and we had a great time, although it had the potential to be disastrous with the mixing quality being appalling for the first few songs. Elly-May, youngest of the 'Barnsie clan' was suppporting her father, but the sound was so bad - it seemed like there'd been no 'front of house' sound check (either that or the sound engineer hadn't turned up!!) - everything was distorted - you had to feel sorry for her because she was just getting no audience appreciation - Darrell and i were starting to wonder if we'd be better off out in the foyer - or just going home!!!

Luckily, by the time she got to the song "Gone, gone, gone" that Alison Krauss & Robert Plant have recently released (and one of my favourite from their Raising Sand album) you realised she did have a good voice - she could sing, and do it well... obviously the 'soundie' had either turned up or finally worked out there were problems!!! ... and then the lead guitarist could have toned it down a bit - her voice isn't as raw and powerful as Jimmy's (although she can do the "Barnsie screech" - you could really tell she was her father's daughter when she hit some notes!!) - she needs a less 'blasting' band where she doesn't have to compete with the loudness i think...

of course, Barnsie was grouse!!!! although i could have lived without hearing 'working class man' (twice!!! never has been a favourite song - he started and finished with it!!!!)

He did perform one of my favourites - Flame trees - and it was one of the best versions i've heard... he's playing around with different music styles and had incorporated the Mexican "mariachi harp" - also known as the jelisco harp - ooooh, there appears to be a lot of variations and names - played by Victor Valdes - the performance was stunning - it added such a different quality to the song... beautiful...

he's not doing too bad for an 'old man' of my era... he's still 'making a living' out of his music and his new album "the rhythm and the blues" has gone into the aria charts at #1 - he did a few tracks and he does the style really well... have to say though that after all these years he still can't boogie!!!!

it was an enjoyable evening... after a couple of hours of Barnsie we got pizza on the walk home and sat, smoked, talked and laughed about 'the old days' until around 5 am ... it was a pity i had to work the next day though - luckily i was able to swap my first half and only had to start at 1 pm - it was busy though and today i feel exhausted - everything aches...

the ABC website has a really interesting interview of Jimmy by Fran Kelly - you can either listen to it or watch it... it's about his influences for this album - and he does encourage everyone to listen to the original versions of all of the songs if possible - he does some wonderful covers (tributes) of great rhythm, blues and gospel artists and talks about the evolution of the music...

and of course i couldn't do a post about Barnsie without adding some of his music...

st kilda - where classes collide...

i've mostly lived around Balaclava and East St Kilda - West St Kilda is a 'new' experience - such incredibly wide streets, beautiful grand mansions, stunning architecture...

i'm surrounded by wealth, but also by extreme poverty... i'm definitely not wealthy, nor am i extremely poor - i own nothing, i have no savings, i have debts, i work 4 days per week and earn around $25 per hour - some weeks i can afford to buy 'extras', some weeks i live frugally, depends on what bills need to be paid and whether they can be juggled (have i had the 'red' one yet?) - but i never cease to be amazed by what some possess, and saddened by what others lack.

the Gatwick is just around the corner from me... it's a magnificent old building, built in 1938, with walls that no doubt resonate with energy from bygone days - from the affluent and extravagant residents, to the desperately impoverished...

"History (from City of Port Phillip Heritage Review)

The Gatwick Private Hotel was constructed by 1938. It replaced a nineteenth century house known as 'Lockings’ that was occupied by members of the O’Donnell family in the early decades of the twentieth century. The O’Donnells owned both this property and the adjoining lot to the south-west.

In May of 1936 the subject property was sold to Margaret Carter who later that month transferred the property to ‘Maribeale Pty Ltd’ of 34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda (Land Victoria 1). Sands & McDougall Directories show that in 1936 the house on this site was still listed as being occupied by the ‘Misses O’Donnell’.

In 1937 the notation is ‘Flats being built’ and by 1938 the Gatwick Private Hotel is listed at 34 Fitzroy Street along with Mrs L.M. Beale who presumably was the manager. As noted above, the Gatwick Private Hotel was one of the last of the substantial private hotels erected in St Kilda during the inter-war period that catered for a more up-market clientele.

During World War Two it provided accommodation for the U.S. armed forces when officers from Base Section Four headquarters at Port Melbourne, under the command of Colonel Galloway were billeted at the Prince of Wales Hotel (where an officer’s club was established), and at the Gatwick Hotel, which were both owned or managed at that stage by Edwin Jewell. According to Longmire (1989:122) both hotels were ‘highly regarded for the facilities they provided’. The Gatwick Hotel lacked a dining room so officers and their ‘female friends’ dined at the Prince of Wales where ‘the freezer was stacked with ice-cream and the pantry full of unprocurable goods’.

After WWII, standards at the Gatwick Private Hotel and other guest houses declined."


the Gatwick's popularity flourished and fluctuated along with the fortunes of the era and tenants - from private hotel ("highly regarded for the facilities they provided") to guest house, to boarding-house, which it still is, populated by vulnerable people with limited resources these days.

i see such desperation and sadness when i walk past on my way to and from work - it's a confronting, depressing way to start or finish the day... and in an area renowned for it's restaurants and eateries, inequity is glaringly obvious on a Wednesday night when you can find the St Kilda Food Van outside handing out much needed and appreciated sustenance...


such extremes... so many people with nowhere to go... such sadness... such desperation...

so many alcohol and drug affected people - such easy access to both - i was saddened to watch a young man sniffing glue the other day while i was waiting for a tram - the police arrived and spoke to him, then threw his bag and crap away, and when they left he just went and got it out of the rubbish bin and started all over again...

and then there's the very palpable violent undercurrent that inhabits the streets around here - some days the street 'vibe' is really threatening - it can be a frightening place...

i don't get that welcoming, 'homey' feel here - i feel vulnerable, unsafe, uncomfortable, and i don't want to live like that... will anywhere ever feel like home again... oooh, i'm possibly a bit melancholic at the moment... got an email from Brann friday, saw Louie saturday - trying to keep painful memories at bay... my life feels fragmented - my family is fragmented...

and here's another alison krauss and robert plant song...