A Massive Week

Well biggish at least.

First of all Slug Boy got a place in his chosen course for next year (a cause for much celebration seeing he has not got off our couch in the last year). He will be doing Live Theater Production which will translate into us supporting him for the rest of his life until he finds a career that actually pays for his lifestyle but we are taking this one step at a time. This first step gets him out the front door.

Monday – kicked some big goals at work. Always good to do as the year heads towards a close. Very satisfying. Of course, it was all subversive and subjective meaning that some idiot from higher up will come along and tell us that we have it all wrong but until that happens we will ride on a little euphoric ‘didn’t we do well’ high. This is one of those projects where someone in authority is throwing stupid money on something that we don’t know if we either want or need but we feel obliged to play the game BECAUSE there is money attached to it. I could come up with a thousand ways they could spend the money that are better than this but when one is low on the academic food chain there is a realization that all you are likely to get is your butt chomped unless you learn how to swim really fast (or hide). Hint No 1 that they are spending too much money on this: called to a planning meeting where there are three academics and sixteen ‘professional’ (assorted computer nerds and marketing) staff. Methinks there was just a little bit of overkill.

Tuesday – Mini Me had her first official class at Senior Campus. My baby is not a baby any more. She’s heading in the same direction as SuperGeek which means that she is doing a math subject that is two years ahead of her year level. I don’t get, I don’t want to get it but she does and that is all that counts. Luckily she balances this out by being a history/literature nerd, a music nerd, a media/arts nerd. Damn academic high achievers (no idea where she gets it from).

Also receive cryptic message from Associate PVC that went – “you may be thinking about NOT attending the Faculty End of Year Meeting tomorrow. May I urge you to reconsider.” This puts the fear of God into us and we all rally around changing our plans. This meeting usually involves three hours of our lives that we can’t get back but being summoned is not something we can ignore. See note about food chain and butt chomping above.

Wednesday – Grudgingly attend said meeting, sit for the requisite three hours (writing more Creating Kate and hoping that no one checks over my shoulder) and receive an Excellence in Team Teaching award with my team of four colleagues. Big surprise!? – well no not really. Seems that we were the only team that got nominated. But hey, a win is a win. Of course, two of the team couldn’t make the meeting because ironically they were out teaching.

Thursday – Finally get to catch up with an old friend who was visiting Melbourne. First time we have seen her in 12 years. Lovely evening celebrating her birthday. But you know when you haven’t seen someone for a long time and you hit that moment when you have caught up on their news and then suddenly in an effort to keep the conversation going they start to tell you every aspect of their family dynamic that you didn’t want or need to know? Well, I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes another 12 years to see her again but fun all the same.

Friday – Mini Me, SuperGeek and I go to the Palais (major rock venue in Melbourne and our first time going there even though we have lived here for 11 years!) to see The Church (who?), Devo (Are we not men? No, we are fabulous!) and Simple Minds (turn that damn strobe off and could we hear the vocals please). The concert seemed to be populated with men of a certain age and physical profile some of whom really should have rethought their outfits. I was a little concerned when they all stood to jump up and down at one point – limited access to the balcony seating so not easy to get the coronary victims down the stairs to the waiting ambulance and the Palais is an old venue that may or may not have been able to withstand the collective weight of the crowd (you know that old hypothetical about everyone in China jumping and causing a tidal wave that could take out North America? I think the concert crowd could have take out the City of Geelong). Plus 40 something year old men wearing Flower Pots and Boiler Suits is not a good look.

Saturday – SuperGeek took me to SEXpo, purely for research purposes of course (can’t wait to have that discussion with my accountant) and our first time attending. I expected more sleaze but it was actually a very civilized event. Spent too much money on toys – for research purposes only – and resisted the urge to pick up a little something, something for joke Christmas presents. Although the carved wooden sculpture of a life size naked male with a glass table top supported on an enormous erect penis was more than a little tempting. I thought it could go in my office to serve as a muse. SuperGeek was less than enthusiastic about that one.

Sunday: This week is capped off with celebration of my **th birthday. A day of rest after the week that has been, although I still had to clean, run Slug Boy to and from rehearsals for Hairspray etc. I do, however, get to spend my afternoon indulging in blogging and Creating Kate!

Now, about the concert;

Yes, we bought the silly hat and DEVO apparently haven’t changed much in the past 3o years, just older, greyer and rounder like most of us. SuperGeek lived in Cleveland for a year as an exchange student and had got to dress up in the orange boiler suits to see the boys in Akron back in the 80s. Good back then and great last night.

Simple Minds were very loud, so loud that I have no idea what he was singing most of the time (I am so old). It was all very arena sound and lights spectacular in a little bitty rock theater, so kind of over done. What really floored me is that I have never realized how much Hugh Grant was channeling Jim Kerr in the movie, Music and Lyrics. Jim seemed to be one shimmy shy of a Pop Goes My Heart moment all night.