I'm old enough to know that I don't have any answers, but that won't stop me talking
According to one of the historical plaques along Barkly Street, in the 1950s the Footscray Shopping Centre was the second largest shopping district after the Melbourne CBD. As a child in the 1970s, the Nicholson Street Mall (a new experiment then) was a vibrant place. There was Forges of Footscray on the north side, and …
Continue reading “Footscray Shopping Centre Goes Retro – In A Bad Way”
Not discounting time spent in Canberra or interstate, I worked for almost twenty seven years at the eastern end of Lonsdale Street, about two city blocks away from what we call the Greek Precinct of Melbourne. For those not aware, it is mostly the southern stretch of Lonsdale Street between Swanston and Russell, opposite QV. …
Continue reading “Can Lonsdale Street Still Be Considered The Greek Precinct Of Melbourne?”
One of my quirks is that I sometimes self-identify as British, despite my ethnic origins being Italian and having never actually visited the UK. The basis for this is that until late 1985 when the Australian Citizenship Act was amended, all Australian Citizens were automatically considered British Subjects. As I never consented to give up …
Continue reading “Bilton School, Rugby – An Infestation Of Treasonous Karens”
I regularly take the bus route that runs past my street to Highpoint West, so I know a lot of the other frequent bus passengers. One is an elderly chap who is always friendly and chatty, and who has lived in Avondale Heights his whole life (ie since the early 1950s). He knows a lot …
A couple of months ago, I decided to record my mobile number on the DO NOT CALL register through the ACMA website. This is not the first time I had recorded my number on this service, but as it was several years (sometime before COVID I think), I felt that it was probably wise to …
You see lots of crazy stuff on social media. My Facebook feed (and I am a relative newcomer to FB) alternates between regaling me with AI generated stories of family conflict which approach Greek tragedy in their proportions (who would have thought spending one kid’s college fund on another or wearing white to your stepsister’s …
I suppose my first exposure to the writings of James Joyce was similar to that of most other people of my generation, through the 1986 Rodney Dangerfield comedy Back To School. In it, the hot English professor played by Annette Kellerman walks into the lecture theatre on the first day and starts reciting from Molly …
I have now listened to Flying With Angels, the current and newly released Suzanne Vega several times. That is the benefit of deciding to rediscover the use of a CD player after several years and to start playing the albums of my favourite singers again in full. There is a song which is quite thought …
Frequently, when I talk about music, I am showing my age. The title to this blog is borrowed from Stand and Deliver, an early 80s song from English group Adam and the Ants. They were very big in 1981 – I recall Ant Music spending about 10 weeks on top of the Australian singles chart …
Continue reading “The Devil Take Your Stereo And Your Record Collection!”
As the few readers of this blog would know, I enjoy wine, particularly red wine. I also own shares in Treasury Wine Estate, the main (virtually sole) wine company publicly listed on the ASX. Last week, I went to a winery dinner at a pub in South Melbourne. The convenor of the Bottle Club I …
Continue reading “Wine Industry Conditions The Worst In 40 Years?”
Lost For Words!