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    • Base Basics…

    2022 - 09.15

    Category Film, Games, Health, House, Photography, Relationships | No Comments »

    Well I may not have got to a blog entry the next day, but it seems I’m managing one today.

    Overall Monday was not a bad day as far as getting some things done that had been holding me back. I got a 6km walk in with my friend Tony and followed that up with coffee and potato wedges, sour cream & sweet chilli sauce. What a treat!

    Tuesday I spent time cleaning up that car & house a bit and catching up on some reading. Sorted out the mortgage for the month with the bank since that had looked a bit dicey on Monday but thanks to the help of a friend and my dad I’ve limped over the month given that I’d not been able to work as much as I would normally.

    Wednesday I went over to dad’s prior to a bit of Menulogging and had coffee, brunch and a good chat. I’m quite happy that my relationship with him has continued to improve over the years and I can tell he’s been making a considerable effort over the last year to be more positive about the things I do or try. Last week I took him out to dinner for my birthday and he really enjoyed himself which heartened me immensely. We’ve been discussing Elizabeth II’s death a bit the last few days and the feelings and thought’s it’s brought up for us both. He’s seen 3 Monarchs over his life so far, whereas I’ve only ever known Elizabeth II, but she’s definitely had the longest and largest influence over both of us. We’re both sure we won’t see her like again in our lifetimes. Charles III will no doubt do well and I think William will follow on well too.

    Forthcoming house related projects will be some woodchipping and mulching over the coming weeks, as well as some more wood collection, since the cold weather’s not finished yet. Once the weather picks up it will be time to strip the varnish and revarnish the doors and windows externally.

    As far as entertainment goes I’ve been focussing on reacquanting myself with some RPG’s and seeking out new ones, some for Solo play, as well as hopefully enlisting a few people into testing a couple of them out. I’m also trying to keep at least one boardgame going solo upstairs now to reduce the amount of Youtube time, additionally working on getting the miniatures for my copy of War of the Ring (1st edition) painted. Down the track once I’ve improved my painting skills I’ll do the 2nd Edition copy.

    I’m also aiming for at least one book a week read to catch up on my flagging reading list I assembled 2 years ago.

    I’m just waiting on a couple of purchases on Amazon and then I’ll be cancelling that subscription until I need some more free shipping. I have little to no use for Amazon Prime outside of the free shipping. Streaming is not really an entertainment option for me these days, it really hasn’t been for years. Those who know me know my attitude towards contemporary entertainment coming out of Hollywood & the large media conglomerates these days. I don’t ever really see me returning to either source for visual entertainment while I’m of sound mind. My friend Julie & I have been watching the Peter Jackson LoTR Trilogy recently because she’s never seen the extended editions. For me it’s also a small protest of no consequence to anyone against Amazon’s “Anus of Power: Bezos’ Folly”. I’m not giving it a single click that they can count as a view from me. There is now NO Intellectual Property that I’ve ever really thought significant in my life that hasn’t been polluted and denigrated by the modern media monsters. I’m over watching the relentless Bushfires that were those IP’s. There is no entertainment for me in their new material now. I have hard media for anything I’ve thought worth watching multiple times, that I’ve collected over the years. My entertainment now resides in board gaming, RPG’s, PC gaming (mostly old), books (mostly old), my Art and my family and friends.

    Focus of Gratitude for the day: Despite the Health Issues I do have, I’m still able bodied and have options than many in this world unfortunately do not.

    Emerging from the Fog…

    2022 - 09.12

    Category Art, Depression, Furbag, General, Photography, Work | No Comments »

    Yes it’s been a couple of years since I have updated this blog, I’ve been trying to get started again several times over the last 12 months but just haven’t been able to make it happen. Emotionally last year wasn’t a particularly bad year for me, probably upon reflection a better one than this year. Chemoux died around March this year, probably snakebite, putting me back to a single cat household again. Tiggakat has definitely stepped up the interactions since but I still miss my “shadow” and Supervisor.

    The last couple of months have seen me drop down mood wise quite a bit, still being connected to Centrelink really is a pair of psychological concrete boots now. This new system is even worse than the previous and I didn’t really think that was possible. It seems that the cost of having that small amount of financial assistance to fall back on is now no longer worth the psychological and emotional weight it brings with it. I’m just hanging on until car registration is due and I can pay it, then I think I’ll just have to drop off for my mental health. If I can manage to get through 25 hours per week with either Menulog or Uber then truly my need to have anything to do with Centrelink will evaporate and I feel sure there will be a substantial positive impact with regard to my Depressive Bouts.

    In some ways this year has been much better for me financially with the addition of extra income provided by Menulog. However it’s definitely reminded me about how quickly my mental health is influenced by the number of hours I work. It seems that the reality for me after my last full time position is that I deteriorate rapidly once hitting about 25 hours in a week. Sure, I can make it to up to 40 hours in a single week, but to repeat that for more than a couple of weeks will bring me unstuck withing the month. What is postive is that I know that something like Menulog or Uber can work for me as far as bringing in regular income in a way that nothing else in the last 7 years has been able to do. The flexibility of this type of work allows me to actually get income coming in on a regular basis without exacerbating bouts of Depression, provided I don’t get myself in a position where I feel compelled to overdo it. This has helped me get through financially without sinking too far down over the winter which has been the most difficult time over the last half decade.

    I hope to get a regular blogging habit back over the next month, aiming for at least one entry a week over the next month. I’m hoping to get a list of several things that need to be reinstated as good habits done over the next day or so, including my walking, since much has fallen off over the last couple of months.

    There are also a couple of tasks that need to be taken care of such as submitting my tax for the last financial year and getting organised around a new exhibition for next year. I’ve let my Art suffer this year in pursuit of income but without really achieving the baseline to allow the time for my Photography.

    Focus of Gratitude for the Day: I am very fortunate that I still have people in my life who do care about me and wish me well.

    Apple Exodus…

    2020 - 10.01

    Category General | No Comments »

    Well this year has been trundling along despite an inconvenient (to some) Pandemic. Since the decision to drop Apple products late last year, the Exodus has been proceeding in dribs and drabs. At this stage I would say I’m 85% of the way if not more. Yes I’m still using some of their products, but there’s no replacements of an Apple device with another Apple device.

    Most of this year has consisted of preparing, from a software perspective, picking up Windows versions of my regularly used software when they’ve been on sale. It’s fair to say that’s 95% complete: I can move over completely anytime now with no down time. All that’s keeping me in the Apple Ecosystem now is my iMac (Late 2013). The older Apple gear was fine, not a single issue with any of the hardware that I’ve ever purchased: it’s all still working as it did the day I bought it. But I’d not replace ANY of it with ANYTHING from the last three to four years of product lines. Unfortunately I can’t say the same about the software side of things. Apple OS / OS X / iOS has been a mess of botched updates and removal of features.

    The iPhone 6 has been replaced with a Samsung Galaxy 10. This is probably the single most important replacement based on the fact that it’s the most significant tie to the Apple Ecosystem. As a friend of mine pointed out, once you change your phone you’re no longer invested (from a data management commitment) in their system. The Apple TV (ver. 3) has been replaced with a Chromecast. An excellent Benq Monitor specifically designed for Photography was purchased earlier this year in preparation and the laptop and possibly a windows PC will replace the iMac when it dies.

    My MacBook Pro (2014) is still going great guns, but it’s being moved on to be replaced by a Lenovo X1G2 and to be honest I’m not sad. It’s got the best keyboard I’ve ever experienced on a laptop and I’ve had a few over the decades.

    It’s been so long, I know…

    2020 - 10.01

    Category Games, General, House | No Comments »

    I’m very pleased to hear about a new expansion for Twilight Imperium IV has just been announced: https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/news/2020/8/2/prophecy-of-kings/ which has me very interested in chasing it down once released.

    For My Mother…

    2020 - 08.12

    Category General | No Comments »

    Menzies, Laurel May.
    Died 11th August aged 81.

    Loved wife of Jim, loved mother of Craig & Sharon, loved grandmother of Geena & Carly.

    “Thank you for your unwavering faith in me. I’m forever grateful for the gift of a curious and open mind”. Your loving son, Craig.

    She died peacefully at Gandarra. Much gratitude to the staff at Gandarra Palliative Care Unit & the staff of Hospice for their care and support to our family over the last month. Thank you to all my friends and family for their support during this time.

    Creativity versus Art…

    2019 - 08.08

    Category Art, Film, General, Goals, Philosophy, Photography | No Comments »

    I was commenting in a photography blog earlier in response to the question, “is an Artist born?” I think it’s quite a nuanced answer. Some of the conversation mirrored what I seem to be hearing a lot today: that creatives are artists. I am of the opinion that there’s a difference between being creative and being an Artist (although Artists are certainly creatives).

    In my experience almost all people are creative given opportunities, resources and encouragement. Even without encouragement people will still be creative from time to time to get through a situation etc. Hobbies are often an expression of creativity. But, the Artist is a different beast. There is an obsession with theme and process, determination, and long-term conscious and unconscious observation being melded with an insight. All of this manifests in a pursuit of expressing and representing a vision or perspective. Often through alternative processes and mediums.

    I posit that for the Artist there is no other path that is not a living death. There is an interesting documentary called “David Lynch: The Art Life” about David Lynch, often known for his surreal filmmaking but is an extremely prolific sculptor, photographer, painter and practitioner of assemblage. It’s very enlightening around this idea without being overly political.

    Goodbye Old Friend…

    2019 - 07.27

    Category Art, Music, Philosophy, Photography, Relationships | No Comments »

    As is so often the case with the significant and profound relationships or events in a life, the conception is difficult to identify with certainty. The instant in time where Steve first entered my life is lost to my memory now because the impact that he had on my life has been so profound and overshadowed whence it began some 40 plus years ago. What I can say on reflection is that my time with Steve contained the most enjoyable and wonderful experiences I have had in my life to this very day.

    I met Steve through music. As I said I don’t remember those initial specifics anymore, but what did matter was that when Steve, Gary and I played together that first time, it was a case of the whole was greater than the sum of the parts. We immediately knew that there was a special connection between us that operated at a level of consciousness that was beyond speech. Our creative processes complimented each other. Over the years of our playing together other band members or guests came and went but the nucleus was always the three of us. No one else we played with offered the same experience of being able to either preempt or immediately respond to a creative choice while playing or composing. The musicians out there will know what I mean when I say it’s a unique find. The ability to collaborate unconsciously, bounce off one another creatively with respect, assuredness and with consistency is an aspiration few bands achieve.

    We played gigs together, split briefly, realized that what we had together was not to be had easily then rejoined. We recorded together, but it was performing live that we really enjoyed the most. In fact we didn’t record it if we couldn’t repeat it live. At that time we had dreams, hopes, a lust for life and friendship that I recall with envy now as the passage of time has eroded my dreams, hopes and life of lust.

    As our twenties hit, life pulled Steve, Gary and myself along different journeys, but Steve would reach out to me every so often over the years and attempt to recapture that musical magic. Unfortunately my journey kept steering me away from people who cared for me and burned my musical bridges. In the 1990’s Gary died and along with him so did a little bit of Steve and myself. At that point we both realised that we’d lost something unique in our lives. Still it was not until the 2000’s that our friendship flourished again. What is amazing is that we could just pick right up again even after some years apart. But that’s true friendship: with solid honest foundations and respect, friendship will survive a drought. Interestingly we had yet another creative cross over, independently we’d both become interested in photography. So kindred spirits are kindred spirits in more ways than one.

    When I think of Steve these are the words that come to mind. Genuine, authentic, loyal, extraordinary, creative, enthusiastic, respectful, kind, loving, paternal, dedicated, perfectionist, passionate, audacious, effervescent and absolutely a man of integrity.

    Dear Steve, I think of thee with kindness, with kindness I think of thee.

    Until later “big buddy”, ever your friend, Craig.

    Delving into Unexplored Spaces…

    2019 - 05.04

    Category Art, General, Philosophy, Photography, Relationships | No Comments »

    Lately I’ve been experiencing a renewed motivation in my photography. Much of this is with the encouragement and support of an artist friend for which I’m very grateful. She’s encouraging some collaborative projects and regularly suggesting trips and subject matter that she thinks will inspire me to create more works.

    Much of her work has been either in Sculpture / Assemblage or Charcoal, rather than in photography. So it may seem there’s not much overlap; but the cross pollination and discussions around the ideas and inspirations for the subject matter and interpretation is stoking the fires of my creativity.

    Knowledge is both the Parent & the Child.
    I Will Not Be Swayed.

    Above are two of the works that came out of a project earlier in the week. Human Portraits are not my usual fare, but we were both very happy with what we came away with from the afternoon’s session.

    The Art Life…

    2019 - 02.03

    Category Art, Film, General, Work | No Comments »

    I’ve been watching The Art Life, a documentary about David Lynch and “The Art Life”. It’s such a different picture of David Lynch than I’ve previously had, so much so that I was wondering if there are two David Lynch artists, the Director and the Artist. By that I mean literally separate human beings. But it’s one & the same. That aside it’s provoked some interesting thoughts. So food for thought.

    Some of his inspirational “mottos”:

    • Coffee, food & art (work).
    • Compartmentalising life and those others in it.
    • Keep making “bad art” until you find your good art.
    • We’re deeply and constantly influenced by others all our lives. Keep making until you find your own art.

    I’m so glad he’s refused to be part of the “hollywood establishment” because it’s inspirational to know that people can make it in their own way.

    Raindrops keep fallin’…

    2019 - 02.03

    Category Dreams, General, Health | No Comments »

    Lately I’ve been pondering the origins of my love for the rain. Just when I started to be come enamoured of listening, being caught in, going out in, and generally just experiencing rain is something I’m unable to put my finger on, although some of my earliest memories are of enjoying rain.

    Memories such as looking out the window on a rainy winter day and enjoying just listening to it and watching it fall. Others are of being out in it under a tree, waiting for it to lessen enough for me to be able to walk in it without getting drenched through. Or dashing through it when I was only 10 or 20 metres from my destination and the excitement of getting out of it, yet not. For me the rain seems only to have positive memories.

    Rain just revitalises plant and animal alive.

    During the day or during the night, inside or outside walking in it. Yes there are times it’s cold and miserable if there’s a howling wind, but despite all else it still tells you that you’re alive.

    Beautiful and mysterious.

    I really do love rain.

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