mysterbey

Oh, Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick died a few days ago.

List of interesting Wikipedia articles that have appeared when I clicked 'Random Article'.

• Revolutionary movement for Indian independence
• Thunder Perfect Mind (Nurse with Wound album)
• History of the Venezuelan oil industry
• The Topography of the Lungs
• Australia-Bulgaria relations
• List of gnostic terms
• Porky in Wackyland
• Santa's workshop
• Religion in Nepal
• Neapolitan sauce
• Baby Jesus theft
• Sultana's Dream
• Klopfzeichen
• Infonomicon
• Jaga Jazzist
• Metacrap
• Parzival
• Noss

Everyone else is doing it. I have prepared an Insane Journal account: http://mysterbey.insanejournal.com/

If the ship goes down, you can find me there.

From Patrick Luciano, Them or Us: Archetypal Interpretations of Fifties Alien Invasion Films (Indiana University Press, 1987), pg. 7.

The most important characteristic of the horror film is its emphasis on an alternate state of the actual world. In the horror films produced over the past fifty years one finds a exotic, often European setting and equally exotic characters, which coalesce to form as alternate world. Moreover, the monster/villain of the horror film represents what the film presumes to be absolute evil: am incarnation, as it were, of the devil. Set against this evil is the hero/protagonist, who represents what the film’s value system insists upon as absolute good; the hero, if not a representation of Christ, is at least an angel sent to combat evil through an apocalyptic confrontation.

…and from pp. 8-9...

Generally, the horror film offers two extremes of characterization, the embodiment of pure good and the embodiment of pure evil, the virtuous and the villainous. And traditionally, these extremes have been manifested, quite naturally, in the protagonist, or hero, and the monster/villain. Any examination of the horror film reveals such characters; notable are Dr. Van Helsing and Count Dracula in Fishers Horror of Dracula. It is important to note, moreover, that the heroes are not the youthful heroes of myth. They are often men of knowledge and experience; as David Pirie observed in the films of Terence Fisher, they are “Renaissance scholars, scientists and doctors”. Consequently the heroes and their nemeses approach the conflict as equals. The confrontation is often one of “wills” – the will of good against the will of evil – and not one that leads to the growth and understanding in the hero. Hence, the hero of the horror film emerges as the opposite (good/Christ) of the villain (evil/Satan).

From Vivian Carol Sobchack, The Limits of Infinity (A. S. Barnes & Co., 1980), pp. 29-30.

One major difference between the genres lies in their sphere of exploration, their emphasis. The horror film is primarily concerned with the individual in conflict with society or with some extension of himself, the SF film with society and its institutions in conflict with each other or with some alien other. Therefore, the arena for conflict in the horror film is usually as small as a minute town tucked in the Carpathians, an old castle, or an English village, while the arena for the SF film is most often the large city, the planet Earth itself. If one genre is as large as the human soul, the other is as large as the cosmos. Both genres deal with chaos, with the disruption of order, but the horror film deals with moral chaos, the disruption of natural order (assumed the be God’s order), and the threat to the harmony of hearth and home; the SF film, on the other hand, is concerned with social chaos, the disruption of the social order (manmade), and the threat to the harmony of civilized society going about its business

Nice little vignette on fishing, via the White Hat newsletter.

“G’day. How’s it going?” All around Victoria you will find people quietly dangling a line in the water in the process of drowning a worm. You look in their bucket and they haven’t caught a thing, but the air of serenity on their face indicates they are not too stressed by that. “Not too bad, not too bad.” You see, with fishing it’s not what’s happening but what’s not happening. Back home every little thing becomes a drama, but out here if you don’t catch anything there’s no drama. “Look’s like a nice day.” When fishing you shouldn’t focus too much attention on the floater or the line. Gaze into the middle distance and let your eyes unfocus a little. “Yup”. Fishing isn’t about what equipment you have. It’s about what equipment you don’t have. No radio. No mobile phone. Just you and your thoughts, “Nice talking to you.”

I should write a full update soon. Briefly - I've finished my first week of official rounds. It's been fantastic. I actually can't wait for Monday.

In the meantime, here's a beautiful hauntological short film made by Julian House for the Ghost Box label.

Some more thinks I dislike (which everyone else seems to like):

1. the beach
   
2. Arrested Development
3. hot weather
4. Microsoft Windows

Why is the Yellow Pages not considered junk mail? It's just advertising, after all.

If I were given the choice, I wouldn't have the Yellow Pages. It takes up too much room in our small house, and with our broadband access, we never "let our fingers do the walking" anymore. But it arrives once a year on our doorstep all the same. In my opinion, the 'No Junk Mail' sticker on our letterbox should apply to the Yellow Pages.

Things I dislike (that everyone else seems to like) (part 1);

1. Pixies
2. Family Guy
3. Zoolander
4. sport
   

Some LJ-related links:

• Tools to Spiff Up Your LJ Browsing Experience. And Part 2
• Signs you might not be from LJ originally. 
• The Compleat (sic) Guide to LiveJournal Stardome And Fame. (a few years old now).
  

A meme. Taken from mckeekee 

1. Pick 15 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDb or Wikiquote and find one a quote from each movie.
3. Post them here for everyone to guess.
4. Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, and put who guessed it correctly and the name of the movie.
5. No Googling/using IMDb/Wikiquote search functions.

1. I can't relate to 99% of humanity.
2. These are my children, and I will protect them from myself even if I have to.
3. The secret, I don't know... I guess you've just gotta find something you love to do and then... do it for the rest of your life. For me, it's going to Rushmore.
4. Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.
5. I want to be swept off my feet, you know? I want my children to have magical powers. I am prepared for amazing things to happen. I can handle it.
6. I didn't think so much of him at first. But now I get it, he's everything that I'm not.
7. Maybe it was a dream, you know, a very weird, bizarre, vivid, erotic, wet, detailed dream. Maybe we have malaria.
8. There was abuse in my family, but it was mostly musical in nature.
9. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go on an overnight drunk, and in 10 days I'm going to set out to find the shark that ate my friend and destroy it. Anyone who wants to tag along is more than welcome.
10. I can't believe I gave my panties to a geek.
11. Just because I like ballet doesn't mean I'm a poof, you know.
12. Some people are just born with tragedy in their blood.
13. I wonder if the three of us would've been friends in real life. Not as brothers, but as people.
14. I loved it when you nuked Las Vegas. Suitably biblical ending to the place, don't you think?
15. I'm being postmodern, before it's fashionable.

The 32nd International Committee of the History of Art is currently being held in Melbourne. There are around 700 attendees, including museum directors, curators, academics, and art historians from all over the world. The Herald Sun asked 15 of them for their opinions on Melbourne. The response seems to be fairly mixed. The fact that quite a few make comparisons to Berlin, Paris, and London implies that the Herald Sun asked them that as a direct question - "How would you compare Melbourne's culture with that of Berlin, Paris, or London?". Of course, Melbourne doesn't compare favourably with those cities - it's too small - it's not a fair comparison to make in the first place. The article is then given the headline "Critics blast city as art wasteland" which prompts the usual angry comments from readers.

• Melbourne is an awesome city to live. I dont care about the art s@#$.
• What would those fake-stuck-up snobs know about life, seriously look at how stuck up and UGLY they are and there cloths are circa 2005 how lame
• WHAT A LOAD OF ELITIST CLAP TRAP. PROBABLY NEVER WORKED A DAY IN THEIR LIVES ANY ONE OF THEM. WHO CARES? I'M HAPPY.
• to all you art critics....if you dont like our beloved city then get out!!!
• What can you say to these so-called Art Academics, other than "Get a real job"?
• Thankfully such tossers live overseas, they can stay there too in their cultural elitist society.
• What a bunch of up-themselves twats! Here is my artistic advice to you - B****r off and go home. We do not want or need a bunch of supposed-intellectual tossers telling us anything about our city.

The Herald Sun sets it up, and the readers knock it down.

We will soon be visiting Sydney for a few days (I haven't been there for over a decade). I've been looking for ideas of things to do. If anyone has any suggestions, feel free to offer them. Here are some tours I've been looking into:

The Weird Sydney Ghost and History Tour

Ghosts, history, crime scenes, sites of suicide, suffering, scandal, sex, drugs and rock n roll, we cover it all, relinquishing every dirty detail with an informative and entertaining commentary. So come and join us on Sydney's most unusual and fun filled tour experience, and your first ride in a hearse won't be your last! Wearing of fancy dress (a dead celebrity perhaps?) or just plain black is encouraged, and don't forget your camera!

The Weird Sydney Ghost and History tour includes an adults-only tour of a bondage parlour, a souvenir DVD of the hearses, facts sheets and a complimentary drink in the cellars of a haunted hotel.

Ghost Tour of Historic Sydney

On your ghost tour of historic Sydney, you can expect to hear stories of murder, suicide, hangings, hauntings! These ghostly tales will be told whilst you are taken on a lantern-lit, two hour walking tour around The Rocks area - the birthplace of Australia. Walk along cobblestone lanes and alleyways into the hidden part of The Rocks and discover how a haunted past has created the spirits that still linger here today!

Your ghost host will enthral you with the horrific story of the mutilated body and the gruesome tales of The Rocks 'Dead House'. Hear the tales of the ghosts who haunt the Opera House and the ghost of 'George' who stakes his place on the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Enjoy the scenery whilst you search for the ghost of the cabin boy and discover why Mrs Greenfield was chased by her knife wielding husband. You'll also visit a haunted house site built in 1822 where the apparition of Amelia still lingers.

Crimes & Passions (Kings Cross)

Kings Cross is traditionally the home of Sydney's artistic, bohemian, criminal, passionate and deviant lifestyles. From sophisticated society beginnings, the area has transformed itself again and again to become the lively, vibrant and controversial hotspot it is today.

This tour guides you through Kings Cross and its speckled history of fame, fortunes, murders, drug-obsessions, mysteries, crimes & romances. Stand on the site of one of Sydney's greatest unsolved mysteries, hear of the sly grog and razor gang days, visit the heart of old Sydney bohemia... and more. Don't miss this rare opportunity for a taste of Sydney's colourful underbelly!

And there's a couple more here.

Time Warner have started trialling a new 'tiered internet pricing' system. Instead of unlimited downloads, customers will be given a choice of plans based on how much data they download. Some Digg users are acting like it's the end of the world. Is Australia, for once, ahead of the game? We've had this system ever we've had broadband (and before that dial-up was charged by the hour). Or is the US taking a step backwards?

The American 60 Minutes recently ran a story on Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. Zuckerberg showed his own profile to interviewer Lesley Stahl. Stahl noted that Zuckerberg listed himself as a "Harvard alum" and then pointed out "...but you're not a Harvard alum", to which Zuckerberg replied "That's true. We don't have a setting for drop-out". If anyone could amend this problem it would be Zuckerberg, but instead he chose to falsely present himself as being a Harvard graduate.

I've been thinking about getting a paid account. I'm particularly interested in the friends-of-friends feature.

Any advice? Is it worth it? Should I wait to see how the SUP plans work out?

Time for bed. Tomorrow is a red-letter day for me.

I am back from my holidays. I was relieved to find that the internet is still here.

Updates soon.

I will be offline until 3 January. I'm not yet sure how I'll cope!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.