Life, life, life!!

Life is all go, go, go!

I suppose it almost always is. I have the sort of mind that even when things are not so busy, I'm in a panic regardless. Being busy can be good that way - you can pour your anguish into activity.

I signed on to doing production design for a music video at the last minute, but it should be good fun. I've only met one of the band mates so far, but she had such a lovely energy exuding from her that I feel okay about the rest of the band too. It's an all girl punk band, and in their notes for the video they kept referencing songs by Sleater-Kinney and other amazing female musicians. Not to mention that it'll be a mostly female crew on set. Pretty sweet deal! The band is called The Girl Fridas and when I looked them up online I saw an interview where the bandmate I met the other day mentioned she was loving this other girl band called Honeyblood. I gave them a listen and I am hooked! The Girl Fridas don't have a proper version of the song we're filming up online yet, but when the music video is finished I'll post it here.
We film this Saturday, and I think we'll be fine getting everything ready by then (well, we have to be, so it will be!). After that, the very next day in fact... we take off to Bali!

Very exciting, this will be the first time going overseas in a LONG time. Since 2009... wow! I can't wait, it also happens to fall in the middle of Winter. To be fair, I planned it so that it would fall then because I am so sick of Melbourne grey skies and chilling winds. So we are outta here!!

(Okay, so here it looks like it gets sunny right as we are on our way out, but it'll get worse, I promise you! Or at least it better get worse.)

Dave and I will fly out of Melbourne at around 9am, and into Denpasar, Bali at 1:30pm. We then travel a little more into Ubud and check into this beautiful looking place. This will be my first time in Bali, but it will be my mum's fourth... fifth...? Because after we have checked in we'll meet up with my parents who we'll be travelling with! Mum first went to Bali about 30 or 35 years ago, and has been back a few times since with lots of time in between each trip. Every time it gets more and more hectic, which I think is a bit scary and probably a bit sad for her, but she's figured out a plan of where to go and where to avoid. We'll see how it goes!

Back in 2009 I got the amazing opportunity to go to Vietnam with my dad, Kim (the mother of my little sister, and basically my step-mum for years), and her two boys Andre and Matthew. Even though we stayed with family along the trip (Kim is originally from Vietnam) I was so shocked at how touristy the place was.  I feel like Bali will be similar in this way. Travelling can be weird like that; wanting to explore, but not wanting to exploit. Not wanting to just further the problem.

In the meantime I am juggling getting everything ready for the trip, getting everything ready for the music video, and getting ready for uni to start as soon as I return! Thankfully I can say that I have my reading sorted for the holiday! Phew! A most essential task. I am taking Dragonfly in Amber, the second book in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. I just finished watching the latest season of Outlander, which was based on this book. I am more emotionally driven by the tv show than I am by the books so I like to be told the story by the show initially. I do enjoy the books and all of the details they add though; all the bits and pieces not able to be included in the series. So my plan is that I watch the tv show, and then read the accompanying book after the season has aired. I did the same with The Hunger Games, but the last two movies were so bad that I think the book will be much better. Splitting the last book into two also means that I haven't read it yet because it took so long to be able to and haven't been as motivated to read on. I am still looking forward to it though. Maybe I'll bring it with me too... This latest season of Outlander I wasn't nearly as impressed by as I was with the first, and I think that was a lot to do with the format of the narrative. To be fair, I think they actually did a better job with the layout of the story than the book does. I have to say though, I thought the last episode to air was the best of the season... and I bawled the whole way through. Haha! Not going to lie, this is not hard to make me do. The other book I am bringing is Bossypants by Tina Fey. I've been wanting to read this for ages, but it's always out at the library and it costs money to reserve items, so it's withheld my grasp. Luckily, today Dave picked up a copy at the op-shop that's attached to his work, it's even travel sized! I've never seen a copy of it so small, I said to him, 'are you sure it's not abridged or something hideous like that?'. He assures me that it's not.

I'll leave you with some photos that represent the ongoings in my life right now:

You can decide what the things I want to buy are, and what the things I have to buy are. Outlander is obviously Outlander is obviously Outlander is obviously me obsessed with true love / Scotland.

Also this is a video of Honeyblood, it's a kind of a whatever video, but, you know... whatever! I guess it's pretty cute in it's funny little way. Just turn it up loud I reckon. :)

Honeyblood also happen to be Scottish, which is obvs a sign. Oh! Also, if Jamie Fraser was a real person I'd be related to him, 'cause my ancestor is the last guy to have his head cut off in Great Britain for rising up against the King of England, i.e. Simon Fraser (the fox), i.e. Jamie's paternal Grandfather. Cool stuff ey?!