Tag: photography

I say, is it time for tea?

I went to my first ever cricket match yesterday. The scene for this milestone event was day 3 of the Boxing Day Test Match, Australia versus South Africa.

I went with Kate (also a cricket match virgin) and her boyfriend, Avi. Avi was my patient guide through the cricket maze.

“Avi, what does R/M/B stand for? What are ‘extras’? Under what circumstances do they swap batspeople? Was that a ‘six’? How come all the rowdy people are over there (in Bay 13)? Why is everyone getting up?”

Everyone was getting up because it was time for ‘drinks’. The strangest thing about the game was this oddly regimented series of intervals throughout the match. There was drinks (I think at 11:30 AM), lunch (12:30 PM), drinks (again, at 2:30 PM) and tea. It was all very civilised.

It was hot and I was losing interest. I kept missing the exciting bits, which happened maybe every 10 minutes. I would be talking to Kate, eating or staring into space, then suddenly there would be a collective stadium gasp or cheer. I ended up watching more of the match on the replay screen than on the pitch.

That night, I met Joel and Vera for some salsa dancing. Joel said, “I heard you went to the cricket, Joan. What was the score when you left?”

I looked at him blankly.

“How many wickets and runs?” he added, helpfully.

“Erm. There are 11 batspeople, right? They were up to Mister 8 or 9. I think they had about 275 runs. Something like that.”

Joel nodded kindly.

Fifteen minutes later when Tony and Karen arrived, Joel said, “You’re probably a more reliable source, Tony. What was the cricket score?”

“It was 175 for 2 last I heard.”

Joel looked perplexed. “What did Joan say?”

I realised the source of confusion. “That was South Africa’s score,” I explained.

“You left before Australia batted? You must have left before tea!” Tony was incredulous.

I shrugged. “I left a bit after Drinks Part 2, actually. Didn’t get to find out what time tea was.”

Tony says that next time I should go to a One Day Match. They are reputedly more exciting — although Vera tells me that she fell asleep at one once.


Crowd swarms towards the MCG on a hot day.


Great Southern Land, er, I mean, Stand.


Escaping the heat.

Photo safari

My family is more a New Years family than a Christmas family, which is why I had a quiet Christmas Eve. I went on my first photo safari for the break and spent most of the time at a primary school playground. There were some kids playing there. They would have made good photos but I didn’t want to be “a scary woman”.

My photos are in my Flickr album, ‘Around the neighbourhood‘.

The only one I wanted to put up here is ‘326‘. I’ve wanted to take this photo for a long time. There is something diverting about an empty block still guarded by its letterbox.


Who would post letters to an empty block?

Brisvegas

I’ve just come home from a week in Brisbane — my first business trip!

It was a really good week. I went with a colleague, Nuno. Nuno looked after me: he trained me while we tramped around military bases; he navigated our car through the obstacle course that was the hotel carpark; he made me go to the doctor when my toe had a severe reaction to the bandage. Nuno and I became good friends after the week.

Brisbane is a lovely city, cleaner than Melbourne, a bit quieter. It is a city of bridges. I like the way the Brisbane River snakes through the city. The one-way streets are sometimes frustrating, though.

I spent most of the week working so I didn’t get to be a tourist. We did, however, get a daily allowance for food, so Nuno and I ate our way around the city. Hot breakfasts were the highlight.

(I also saw a salsa class being conducted in a community hall. It’s funny how beginner salsa classes look the same everywhere you go.)

On the flight to Brisbane. As you can tell, I sat on the right side of the plane.

Nuno is silly.

Joan in the car.

Joan takes drugs in an Indian restaurant.

The view from my hotel room on the 20th floor. I was in room 2005.

Flying home. I was on the left side this time.

Joan is terribly daring

On Friday night, I went to a Christmas dance social. One of the boys I danced with was a good lead but his rumba basics were circular. I like to think of rumba as a dance of right angles so the roundness of it all began to unnerve me.

I should learn how to foxtrot. I suppose I have learned it before but my teacher taught it as a series of steps to memorise. It never felt like a dance. As a result, I haven’t been able to retain it.

I had a dance competition on Saturday. I usually compete in the troupe events, where you dance in a group. This Saturday, at the last minute, we decided to enter a trio in the duos/trios hip hop section. That’s when all the competitors are on the dancefloor dancing to the same music at the same time. The judges then pick their favourite combinations. I don’t like these sorts of events (which are much like dancesport competitions). The reason is that the combination that wins is the one with the most energy and biggest moves. There is no opportunity to do anything subtle, creative, or technically correct. We did get into the finals, though.

As usual, I didn’t stay for the results. That’s mostly because I never go to competitions with the aim to win. I go to competitions to support my team mates.

On Saturday night, I helped run a 1920s murder mystery party. I had fun dressing up to the theme. I felt terribly daring, defying the Prohibition by drinking a glass of wine.

Ms Suzie Pantsoffyou at the Tracy Speakeasy.

Ms Vera Totheleft was accompanied by Mr Dee Pinthort.

Ms Jess Kidding is a Chinese triad member on gangster exchange with the Tracy Gang in Chicago.

Where in the World is Joanium?

Joanium, international jewel thief, is on the run again!

She was spotted in France…

…before heading east to Italy.

Her accomplice is tall, Caucasian with brown hair, in his early 20s.

Joanium was almost captured while disrupting vital communications infrastructure…

But managed to escape on her getaway wombat.