Monday, I was officially
in my new home and still pretty under the weather. Decided to take a sick day
and recuperate a bit. Used the day to rest after a few nights of sleeplessness
(which were further exacerbated by X-Factor reruns) and took a really nice walk
on the beach with Martha to get some movement in my bones. That night, we saw
Martha's friend (and now, luckily enough, my friend) Rhys and his band Mouth
Tooth perform live with the Teskey Brothers. They played at The Toffe, which is
this especially cool venue that overlooks the city center. Mouth Tooth was very
impressive, the band itself seemed to transcend the stage with Rhys’
combination of airy and gutteral vocals over a funky guitar. The Teskey
Brothers were also unreal, playing the highest pedigree of blues and paying
homage to B.B King in a variety of well-played covers.
Tuesday was back to work
but today had a performance-based twist. My boss asked the team to “role play”,
which involved one of us assuming the role of the client and the other assuming
the role of web guru. Apparently, the fear in my eyes upon being asked to come
out of my Spotify coma suggested I would love to act as the web guru. The
partner in the company (also known
as the man that created the website) approached me as “the client” and I had to
input his information as if I created the website. The interaction went as
follows:
Alex: Ok, I’m your client.
Me: Ok.
Alex: So put my
information in.
Me: Right. Ok. Here?
Alex: You tell me.
Me: Sure. Yep. Alrighty,
just finding it (awkward exhale because I absolutely cannot find it). Yep. Have
a good weekend? (this was my well-thought out attempt at distraction)
Alex: Yep.
Me: Ah, great. So glad to
hear it. Sounds like you did a lot. Hm. Yep (pressing random buttons and search
bars at this point). Aha. Here we go, right here.
Me (in web guru form): Hello.
Thank you for using our product. What is your name?
Alex: It’s Alex.
Me (in web guru form): No
pretend name?
Alex: No.
And you can only imagine
the progress from there. This was a very one-sided practice in improvisation.
Tuesday night, I had a
huge dinner with the Noone family (as per usual with Mrs. Noone's tremendous
talent for cooking) and in the only way I know how, I baked for the family to
show them my affection. Sophie and I baked chocolate chip cookies and danced
around the kitchen singing to Frank Ocean with as much soul as we could muster.
Also because Sophie is 15 years old and can eat anything she wants, and I’m 22
and still think I can, we mixed the chocolate chip cookies with meringue and Nutella
and created the ultimate 3-in-1 sweet that everyone should have the pleasure of
experiencing.
I chose to forego the hump
day greeting this Wednesday but smiled when I thought about it. Which probably
made me look even crazier, sitting there cackling to myself. I was excited to
get back to the Noone’s house for another beautiful dinner and the promise of
qualifying rounds of X-Factor. We all gathered to watch Australia’s talent
compete for a top spot, their future decided by the will of a very bitter
ex-Spice Girl. Just as a side note, the family has a television watching
practice where they fast-forward it if it gets too uncomfortable. The
fast-forwarding is accompanied by exasperated sighs, fearful eye covering and
vocalized despair. I’ve personally never experienced such interactive
television viewership in my life.
Thursday was uneventful at
work but as Brett said “lunchtime then its all about Nandos”. If one can
survive lunch, the prospect of 5 o’clock becomes tangible and by extension, so
do evening plans. We convened at Nandos, knowing excitedly that our post-Nandos
plans were even more enthralling than the meal. After dinner, Matty, Bretts and
I ventured to a local theatre for their production of Rent. Though the actor
playing Mark was unsure of whether of not he was committing to an American
accent and the strangled effort that ensued was an odd German dialect, once
that monologue was over, the rest of the show was excellent. What was even more
excellent was the talent per capita in the car ride home, where we expertly
sang the entire score out loud.
Friday demanded no
socialization at work, which was positive given my Rent-induced exhaustion. I
went straight to Brett’s house after work and he met me at the train station
with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, heavy on the jelly. Isn’t he the best
friend! And the best sympathizer to the American pb-n-j cause! We caught a
quick Louis Theroux documentary (amazing!) before going to his sister’s house for Shabbat
dinner. Tracy’s family is hosting a French student, so between all of us,
four continents were represented, given Brett’s family’s African affiliation
and all. Afterwards, I met up with
Martha for an outing at The George. The George is the place “to see and be
seen”, apparently. Many unexpected reunions as well as expected reunions
occurred, from a dance with Emma to a run-in with Daniel’s crew, most notably
Zach Sammy Landy (there you go, Zachy boy). What the night was for me, other
than an experiment in socializing, was an opportunity for me to inform the D.J.
about “what is hot” on American turntables and berate him for not having
“Mercy”.
Saturday was so sunny and
bright and Daniel and I went for a happy stroll down Chapel Street, only stopping
our basking in the sun for a very satisfying breakfast. The next part of the
afternoon was spent at the Mitchell’s house, Rhys’ family home. What a place!
Each one of Rhys’ family members has an artistic or creative talent that has
been nurtured and encouraged since their youth. Their house buzzes with
creative energy, from the wall size abstract pieces expertly painted by his
brother to the coiled sculptures cluttering the corners, a product of their
dad’s aluminum phase. Music floats through the house and the kids emerged from
their rooms to meet me and sit on the beautiful porch, discussing “Lolita” and
etymology. Martha, Rhys and I then dropped in to see Bretts and go for a stroll
in Caulfield, ending up in “Warm Kitchen”, noting the effectiveness of adjectives
in product placement. The place was such a dive but the service was nonpareil-
as we waited for our meal, we were brought free sodas, free desserts and an egg
baked in soy sauce. After this, we strolled in the sunset and proceeded to get
ready for a night out with Jacqui and John-o.
With The xx as our
soundtrack, we headed to “Bimbos” for four dollar pizzas and lemon, lime and
bitters. Facing a table full of pizza and beers, we reminisced about and made
plans for Thanksgiving here in Australia. Everyone perfected their best
American accent and we got ready for the “ideal time” to be at the Night Cat,
our next destination. At the Night Cat, a live jazz band takes the center of
the floor and plays everything from Otis Redding to the Isley Brothers to
afrobeat. We twisted, shouted and monkey-armed through the night.
Sunday was Father’s Day in
Australia and I celebrated two of my surrogate Australian dads. Prior to this,
I went for a coffee with Leon, who detailed his recent accounts of freezing his
keys, working extra long hours and acquisition of black eyes. I then went to
Ellie’s family’s house to celebrate Peter and Ellie's Zaida. The afternoon roast
was unbelievable and Zaida spent the lunch informing me about his recent
investment in the red wine on the table, timed perfectly after I had refused a
glass. I then headed back to the Noone’s house to help prepare for the massive
celebration there. The party was two-fold: celebrating Mr. Noone and his
fathership and also celebrating Sophie, who is heading off to Italy for 5
months on exchange. The fare ranged from beef and Guinness stew to meatballs,
topped off with beautiful strawberry meringues with fresh cream and apple pie.
We sat at the “kids table”, which because of the size of the families attending
(4-6 kids on average), became the kid’s floor. We laughed all night, ending the
night with a listen and sing-along to the One Direction album.
Loving you and sending you hugs xoxo
As always, tunes tunes tunes!
The Harpoons: Keep You Around
Foxygen: Abandon My Toys
Jacqueline Taieb: Bientot Tu L'Oublieras
Angel Olsen: Acrobat
Sam Cooke: A Change is Gonna Come
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