Sunday, January 28, 2007

Bayswater Roller City nine years on.....

Eug spoke about letting all those ex-roller skaters know about our excursion to Baywater Roller City. I offered, however I seem to have turned a brief rundown into a short essay. Skim if you feel the need!

Baywater Roller City nine years on……

Turning left into the car park bought back memories of quickly brushing my hair and reapplying my lip-gloss, while Mum tells me she’ll be waiting in the car park after the last speed skate to pick me up. It reminds me of getting a pass out, sneaking behind the back and having a cigarette from one of the boys from school, of Tully – yuck! Of Dwyan – yuck (spelling?)! Of excitingly looking out the car window to see who was there and hoping that the queue to get in wasn’t too big.

We walked through the front door, for two of us child-like excitement filled us to the brim while for the other a mixture of slight embarrassment and ‘what happens if someone sees us’ surrounded eagerness (Rob met us there. Can you guess who was who?)

The place still smells the way it always did. I can’t actually pin point what it smells like – a mixture of sweat, rink polish and leather perhaps?

I put my hired roller skates after visiting the Boot Room for a pair of size 10. I skated around feeling not as easy as a thought I would. After about 10 mins I was going around a corner when I felt that one wheels was loose. I quickly rolled off the rink and I sat down next to Eug. I put my skate up onto the seat and said to Eug ‘I feel like my wheel is going to come off’. I gave my wheel a weak push and it caused the whole front metal piece holding both wheels on to completely come off. Eug and I could do nothing but laugh! The screw holding the whole front part of the boot had actually snapped! Yes snapped not unscrewed. If half of my left skate had come off while I was on the rink I would possibly be writing this from a hospital bed. …About 10 minutes later Luke realised his front wheel was loose as well.

Part of the ‘want’ to re-expereince our Roller City days was the food and games – Killer Pythons (Luke shouted us all one, ‘cheers’-ing our snakes to ‘old times’), Slurpys and Sundaes. About half way though the night came the game Corners. When the music stops you all have to skate into a corner and one person throws a Frisbee towards a witches hat in the middle of the rink. The corner with the one the furtherest away looses. After about 3 rounds I found myself in a corner alone until a ‘cool dude’ skates over from another corner and tells me to give him the Frisbee and he’ll throw it. I said ‘No – go back to your own corner’. Anyway….in the end I win and instead of a first prize sundae (which I would have won going back 9 years ago) I get a small crappy souvenir koala bear which I give away to a small kid.

The greasy haired DJ/ Boot Room Attendant, his black inline skates so loose around his rather large legs that I’d thought he’d be able to just step out of them did dim the lights low and spin the disco ball slowly, however he did not call a couple skate. While Luke and I did hold hands for about a quarter of a song but it certainly didn’t hold the romance that is would have if ‘Because you love me’ played over the speaker.

While speaking of this greasy haired DJ / Boot Room Attendant I feel I need to add a short ‘add-on’ story. One young, long blonde haired girl about the age of 16 (so I thought anyway) was wearing a corset, pink and black lace which tied up at the back with ribbon. This greasy haired guy says ‘its like a French kiss down under’. YYYUUUUCCCCKKKKK!!!!!!!

I realise looking back that I certainly wasn’t in the cool group at the rink. I noticed this time round that most of the girls just hung around up near the DJ Box chatting, not once coming on to the rink. These girls looked very ‘cool’. Personally I couldn’t be bothered spending $10 and not skating.

The second realisation from Friday night was the fact that I will certainly be one of those ‘You’re not going out in that!’ kinds of mothers. I have to admit I was a little shocked at the attire of some of the girls….Eug and I both agreed that the worst we ever came in was jeans and a tight singlet tops (…although in second thoughts these were before the days of wearing black tops which just covered my not-so-there-yet boobs at Baby Jooce). Still I think I’d be slightly concerned if my teenage daughter went out in clothes I saw Friday night.

Mobile phones are also a new experience at Bayswater Roller City for us ‘old’ ones. Luke and Rob both has concerns of phones falling out of pockets and smashing over the rink. The ‘young’ ones however seemed to embrace this technology and smsed while skating, one girl even holding a conversation while on the rink with someone not within Roller City.

Apple Carting doesn’t seem to be any longer, they were all hanging up at the back of the boot room and when I went up to the Food Bar to collect my ‘fabulous’ prize for winning Frisbees I asked a teenage boy beside me if they still do the Bus Stop. He looked at me blankly. I decided I’d leave that conversation right there. And this is where I will leave my reminiscence of Bayswater Roller City….still way much better than the Caribbean Rollarama!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

'See you later' / 'Early Birthday' bash.

I invite you all to join me
on:
27th of January @ 9pm
at:
the Night Cat - 141 Johnson St Fitzroy

to kick back a few drinks and shake our groove thangs till we can’t stand up no more! Hope to see you all there!

- ROB -

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

St Kilda Festival Returns

An orange poster caught her eye: 'Bringing the festival back!' it proclaimed, but as to the line-up, the poster had naught to tell about it.

...So she scoured the shops of Ackland St* for a brochure with the line-up. Then, finding naught, she delved into Inpress thinking, 'surely there'll be at least a page add with the line-up in here...'. but after perusing every page, again she found naught.

After such a naughty experience, she had almost lost hope. However, she realised there was one avenue left open to her which she had not yet explored: The Internet. And to her delight, found the gold she had been panning for:


St Kilda Festival 2007

So who's in? It's running from 3rd-11th Feb, I'll be endeavouring to attend several days (my priorities being the first and the last).

The line-up includes the Spiegel-experienced Martin Martini and the bone palace ochestra, deadly award nominee Dan Sultan, oldtimers Four Play, and that's just the World Music Stage! There's also: Custom Kings, The Audreys, The Gurge and Dallas Crane on the Max stage; And jjj-airplayed SSPecker on the New Music stage. That's just a taste of what's in store!

There's heaps of other cool stuff, and it's much more community base this year: with lots of vouchers and discounts that can be used in the local shops, pubs and food outlets. Let's round off our summer with a bang ppl, this is where it's at!

Yours in enthusiam,
Hooch

*I can't believe Wiki has an Ackland St entry! - thanks Crazy Carl! :P

Sunday, January 14, 2007

A roll down memory lane.

Ah, good ol' Roller City Bayswater!

NEW DATE

Like Homer has Moes, Jerry has the Diner and the Dude has the bowling alley, we once had Roller City. We were still in High School and it was the time of techno music, the Nutbush, the Bus stop, the Macarena, speed skates, couples skates, sweaty used hire skates and girlfriends from Aquinas College. It was fun, memorable and kinda odd times for all and all who joined in!

It's been talked about for a while now and as I may not get another chance, I invite you to join me on Friday the 26th at 7:30pm @ 37 Scoresby Road Bayswater, to rip up the rink once more. It's only $9 each with skate hire $1/$2 extra. It'd be great to see you all there even if you weren't a roller City regular...

...and who knows, there might even be a song dedication or two.

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Queen Vic Night Market

I wondered if anyone would be keen to hang out with me at the Queen Vic Night Market in the evening of Wednesday 24 January? The night market runs Wednesdays from 5:30pm til 10pm until February 28 2007. More info about it can be found here.

I believe they have some cool stalls and food and it sounds like fun. I've never been before and would be keen to, so please comment away with your expressions of interest or not!

Oh, did I mention it's FREE!

In other news, I made a post on my blog. Wow.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

The Vulpine !!!

The Vulpine have another gig...


10pm this Friday at the Grand Central in Richmond 293 Swan Street Richmond. Only 5-10 minute walk from Burnley Station. Walk up Burnley St to Swan St and turn left. Grand Central is one block down. - $6 at door

Come and see us...and bring all your good for nothing friends!

Cheers

Luke

Go to www.thevulpine.com.au

DVD night: What a dreadful movie....

Hi guys,

It's back! I'm having a DVD night this Wednesday. That's right - Tomorrow night!

I have many DVD's to choose from, and hopefully you'll bring the cream of your collections as well. If all else fails, we can watch the Young Ones or listen to the Goon Show (hmm....thinks to herself, "am I going to end up all alone on Wednesday?").

I do have a request to make of you fine film buffs: Would you please be so kind as to dread my hair? I have four dreads on the go, and I know it's just going to take ages to do a whole head of hair if I don't get a little help from my friends.

So:

My place, 7pm, we can order Pizza or something, Wed 10th Jan.

Let me know if you're coming. pls bring nibblature as the cupboard is bare since Mum cleaned it out on her way to the beach.


C'mon, you wouldn't want to miss the first DVD night of 2007, would you?

Sunday, January 07, 2007

The Vulpine - Tell me what you think.

onlycoolppl

Hi there:


Go to www.thevulpine.com.au and then to the 'Audio' section for a complete recording of the live set we did the other day. Each track has been cut up and put in order. It is under the section called "Live Tracks" All the other recodings there are just crappy rehearsal recordings.

Have a listen to the live set and let me know what you think!


Cheers

Luke

Friday, January 05, 2007

The Vulpine

onlycoolppl

Come and check out my band 'The Vulpine' Tonight (Friday) at the Barley Corn in Fitzroy. We are on at 9.

Also check out : www.thevulpine.com.au and sign up to our mailing list...or I will sign you up anyway!


Hope all is well!

Luke.

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Moonlight Cinema on a Saturday night and Erica Ordinary on a Sunday afternoon

Hello all, two marvellous events are happening this weekend. They are:

Moonlight Cinema - Little Miss Sunshine
Saturday 6th January
Botanic Gardens
Starts at dusk, but meeting earlier - we'll work that out when I know who's coming.
Bring picnic blankets, wine, nibbles and your smiles!

Erica Ordinary
Sunday 7th January
Wesley Anne, 250 High Street, Northcote Hill
4.00pm start
Free entry
with Billy Joe Buffalo

Hope to see you at one, or even better, both!