Tuesday, July 30, 2002

Rugby union
Crikey. I think I may have cancelled my gym membership prematurely...

Some members of the NSW Waratahs were training at the gym yesterday afternoon, sans shirts. They were doing some stretching exercises, with what looked like long elastic bands (that one usually finds on undies and jockstraps).

By the look of their bodies, it must be true that rugby is the game they play in heaven.

Monday, July 29, 2002

Campaign to save the brief!
While perusing through the photos in the Sports Illustrated Women Swimsuit Issue, I became quite concerned when I realised that not one of the models/athletes was wearing a Speedo cossie. I was saddened to see that despite having such fabulously toned bodies on display, the beloved tight Speedos were foresaken for the baggy, oh-so-unsexy boardshorts. *bleech* In my opinion, this stylistic decision not to display Speedos was simply another indication of one of the world's greatest fashion tragedies - the demise of the male brief!

Consider the fact that many a gay (and female) swim fan was left in a state of anguish when competitive swimmers replaced their tight tiny togs for those hideously unflattering neck-to-ankle body suits. (Thankfully, such voyeuristic opportunities have not been denied to those who watch diving, as the recent diving compeitions in the Commonewealth Games attest.) Or the fact that many a male now has a summer tan that end unattractively mid-thigh!

I blame the trend to the bland homogenised fashion tastes of Middle America. Not only have they marginalized the brief to the tacky and tasteless bargin bin, they have sinisterly branded them unpatriotic - an un-American Euro-fashion fetish.

I concede that briefs can be abused by certain wearers. They can be a danger in the wrong hands (or buttocks). But such reasoning can be used on hot pants and G-strings as well, yet there is no mass movement to see the demise of these items of clothing. The un-godly sight of a Speedo-abuser is not enough reason for seeing the complete eradication of their use.

A growing number of straight male youth have been white-washed to see briefs with disdain. Young women have been particularly vocal in their disapproval. Case in point: the female reader who complained to Dan Savage in his "Savage Love" column on her boyf's predilection for wearing Tighty Whities. As an advocate of the humble (and on some occassion, the not so humble) brief, Dan replied that if her boyf was "slim, boyish and hairless", wearing Tighty Whities should not be discouraged, but condoned. Furthermore, he encouraged his readers with "slim, boyish, hairless" boyfriends to send pictures of them in their TWs via e-mail...

...and the "My Boyfriend Sure Looks Hot in His Tighty Whities" Contest was created. Exercise your right to vote at www.tightywhitiesarehot.com and tell those underwear/swimwear fascists that they will never drive our beloved briefs to extinction! (Polls close at 5 pm EST on Tuesday August 6, folks.)

In order to enter a vote, one must go through all 72 contestants (which is no mean feat, when you consider I only have a 56K dial-up). After short-listing Contestants 73, 63, 56, 43, 20, 9 and 1, I decided to vote for Contestant 46. Exceptionally tasty.

Friday, July 26, 2002

Going digital

I have finally purchased a digital camera. After months of thorough research, I disposed of all rational thought and judgement and chose a camera purely on emotion and aesthetics. I love the Lumix television commercial, I think the camera looks cute and I was drawn in by the Leica name attached to its lens. I'm shallow like that...

Be warned, expect some mediocre amateur photography on this site in the near future.

Thursday, July 25, 2002

Commonwealth Games
I think I have reached my annual quota of television sports-viewing already... and it's only the end of July.

Firstly, there was the World Cup, then there was Wimbledon. Now, there's the Commonwealth Games. At the moment, I have absolutely zero interest in them, but somehow I know that when the Opening Ceremony begins tomorrow, I will be in the midst of another sports frenzy. I can imagine the Commonwealth Games becoming quite addictive (even though they will be broadcast at an atrocious hour), since Australia seems to win everything.
The lucky country
I can't help it; I have a curious obsession with lists, rankings and indexes. Maybe it's my inner mathematics nerd seeking out some quantitative analysis...

The United Nations has published its Human Development Index (HDI) for 2002.The index ranks countries based on "a composite measure" of life expectancy, education and income per person, and provides a more accurate snapshot of a nation's status than the traditional GDP per capita:
  1. Norway
  2. Sweden
  3. Canada
  4. Belgium
  5. Australia
  6. USA
  7. Iceland
  8. Netherlands
  9. Japan
  10. Finland

Britain came 13th. Although Australia has risen nine places since 1990, the country has dropped from second, last year.
Hollywood epic
I'm v. interested in how Hollywood is prepared to portray Alexander the Great in the numerous green-lighted film projects about the historic figure.

According to Variety, Baz Luhrmann has joined up with producer Dino de Laurentis in the Universal Pictures/Twentieth Century Fox production of the Macedonian king's life, to be shot in Morocco next year. (Apparently, the King of Morocco has offered to contribute 1,500 men from his army as extras.) Oliver Stone has upped the ante, by announcing plans to shoot his own version in October, with Charlie B's "Most Beautiful Man for July 2002" Colin Farrell *swoon* (who I think is a way better choice than the originally cast Heath Ledger). In what can only be perceived as "the battle of the mega-directors", Martin Scorsese has also announced an Alexander movie with Leonardo DiCaprio! Wisely, Mel Gibson's mini-series for HBO has been postponed.

Apart from eagerly awaiting for pictures of Colin Farrell in a short Grecian "skirt", I wonder whether Hollywood will honestly portray the love affair between Hephaestion and Alexander or will movie-goers see a "sanitized" version, edited to be more easily consumed by the conservative folks of middle America?

Tuesday, July 23, 2002

SinoDisney
Even before the first brick has been laid on the site of Hong Kong Disneyland, the Walt Disney Company has signed a letter of intent with the Shanghai Government to build a Disneyland theme park in Pudong.

Naturally, this move has upset the Hong Kong Government tremendously. Disney chose Hong Kong as its third international theme park destination in late 1999, with the Government promising the American company HK$22 billion (A$5.1 billion) to ensure that the park did not go to Shanghai.

HK Disneyland is expected to open in 2005 or 2006 and will provide only a couple of years head-start. The Shanghai opening is expected to coincide with the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

The Government's decision to invest in a Disneyland was hardly the wisest decision. Although, I can understand the park's appeal, with many Hong Kongers seeing it as international validation, saying to the former colony: "You've finally made it. You're developed!"

Nevertheless, if the Government was sensible in their policies on creating future economic growth, they should not have placed so much public funds in, what many consider to be, an easy cash-cow project. Surely investment into the Special Administrative Region's poor education system would have been a better investment in its future. Alternatively, if the Government wanted more tourists in the city, putting a billion or five in environmental projects would entice more visitors to the once Fragrant Harbour, than any glamourised rat. Keep a lung or ride on the Tea Cups? I know what I would rather pick...
Sex sells
It seems the oldest profession in the world is finally getting corporatised. In what is believed to be a world first, The Daily Planet Ltd in Melbourne announced it would go public, with plans to eventually list on the Australian Stock Exchange. The brothel hopes to raise an initial $12 milion, by issuing 12,000 shares, worth $1,000 each, to private investors . In the company's prospectus, the directors seek the capital to expand to Sydney, become a broader adult products company and move into overseas markets.

In many respects, with any moral objections aside, it looks like a v. good deal. Most indicators show that such an investment would be financially sound, as well as potentially v. lucrative. The adult industry makes an incredible profit of around 60 per cent annually. The Daily Planet has been profitable since opening in 1975, with annual gross proft of $2 million. In addition, the company is forecasting a secure fully franked return of 5.6 per cent a year, over the next 10 years. Unfortunately, I have no money to invest...

To the chagrin of some potential investors, there will be no shareholder discounts.

Monday, July 22, 2002

Plus ça change...
Wednesday, 25 March 1992, D Day at School:
Bludged. Had Sport (life saving) at the Sydney University pool. Swam freestyle, backstroke, backskulling and breaststroke. Had a fantastic encounter with the male sexual organ in the change rooms.1 Never will forget. It was beautiful. Aunty Grizzle bought a chocolate mousse cake for us. Marked Science test. Beat [HongKongPhooey]2. Came 8th in English. Transformer-ism has swept 2D, blame it on Mustafa.


I had an amazingly good laugh, reading some of my old diary entries... 13 years old and already fully homosexualised. Wasn't I the little pervet?

I was both amused and horrified to rediscover that I agonise over many of the same things now as I did during my early adolescence. Apart from the usual money issues and family hassles, I am still pondering the mundanity of my life. I continue to lose various belongings, it seems. (It used to be school diaries, text books, rulers and unmbrella covers in 1992. I found out I lost my Medicare card today.)

There are, of course, a few things that have changed. Although I still maintain a terribly anti-social addiction to the tube, my television diet has changed somewhat. During those days, after-school tellie consisted of repeats of the fabulously kitsch (yet philosophically deep) Monkey Magic and the v. informative Degrassi Junior High. It was even cool to watch Beverly Hills 90210 then. (It's not where you live your life, but how you live it. 90210, more than just an address!)

In 8th grade, I had a burgeoning obsession with X-Men comics and trading cards. I stopped collecting a long time ago, but it is not surprising how this addiction has developed into one with glossy magazines. I'm exchanging one medium with pictures of hunky, square-jawed men in muscle-hugging clothing for another, so to speak.

Sadly, I have lost that voyeuristic thrill of taking sneak peeks at naked men in change rooms. These days, I strictly deter my eyes (unless the guys are clearly displaying themselves for others to admire...).

1I know how it reads, but I did not have sexual relations of any kind (Bill Clinton's definition or otherwise) in those change rooms that day (although that place is notorious for that sort of thing).
2Name withheld. HKP remains a close friend and shall be moving to HK for the same purpose as me.

Friday, July 19, 2002

Always look on the bright side of life...
Some simple things I am currently enjoying, adoring or completely exhultant about:
  1. David Sedaris. I absolutely love him. Why did it take so long for me to discover this guy?
  2. Norah Jones. The Texan songbird has such exquisite voice. Mellifluous.
  3. Tuna melts. I've been eating these toasted sandwiches everyday this week. Tasty.
  4. Warm, sunny and dry weather. You'ld think it was Spring.
  5. The mesmerising Calvin Klein Truth model. Whenever I walk past one of the Chemist's windows on Oxford St, I stare at the advertisement. People must think I'm mad. He is also plastered on the wall, in front of the urinals, at the gym in St Leonards. It is sheer will power that prevents me from stealing one of the posters.
  6. Frances Conroy as Ruth in Six Feet Under. She always cracks me up. The Emmy nomination is well deserved. Hilarious.
  7. Ashtanga Yoga. It has been three weeks and it's still going strong. My glutes have never been so perky.
  8. Queer as Folk, the American version on SBS. Hal Sparks (Michael Novotny) is so adorable. He definitely rates well in my books. But why did Ted have to die?
  9. Stonewall Hotel. Three times during a week...

One blog entry without any cynicism, depressing commentary or whining. Sweet.

Thursday, July 18, 2002

General update
It is only within the last week that I have felt this way, but why does the idea moving to Hong Kong fill me with such dread? With the mindset I have at the moment, you'ld think I'm actually heading to gaol for 3-5 years without parole. I have this terrible fear that I'll have the most miserable time over there and that I won't be able to find any good friends. (Yes, I shall change my name to Nigel.) Intellectually, I try to convince myself that it is an opportunity of a lifetime - something I have been wanting for years - but my negative emotions always seem to overrule. Sometimes I think my perpetual state of neurosis will require me to be introduced to that lil' pink pill and finally get medicated...

An idle mind does lead to unhealthy thoughts, so I've been trying to keep "productive". I've been doing some "Spring" cleaning (yes, in the middle of Winter). As a self-confessed pack rat, I have accumulated a hella lotta crap over the years. Most of which I have no need for here, let alone consider taking with me overseas. So, in order to prepare myself for such a difficult exercise, I had to whipp myself into a throw-away frenzy. In the end, I quickly disposed of, without much rethinking:

  1. My collection of movie stubs since 1997. What on Earth was I keeping these for? So I can produce an alibi for 14 August 2000?
  2. Some past exam papers and assignments from high school and university. Yes, I am such a nerd.
  3. Old book and clothing receipts, which only remind me of how much money I have spent on clothes I do not wear and books I have not read.
  4. An assortment of old magazines, mainly non-fashion. I archive my fashion periodicals.
  5. A box of old used stamps from the primary school days, when I actually collected stamps.
  6. Various miscellaneous items.

There's still plenty of things to discard; I just need to be more discerning in what I want to keep.

In related news, I contacted the Universtiy of Hong Kong on my application status. They mentioned that the University will not be handing out offers until mid-August! How shitty is that? Do they expect people to have a nice opinion of their administration? That gives people less than two weeks between the offer and the beginning of classes. I'm looking into changing my preferences to City Universtiy now (although it seems l may be too late).

Monday, July 15, 2002

Coming to America 2
CreatineMonster flew out on his much belated trip to America the other day. His previously planned holiday to the States was unexpectedly delayed by unforseen circumstances. Things are fine this time round, but this revised version of his overseas trip has been edited down to a bit more than a week. Due to the time constraints, his itinerary consists of only two cities - San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Of particular interest, CM will be staying with his brother's friend in Los Angeles (the previously mentioned Aussie Falcon pornstar). As expected, I shall be eagerly awaiting the news and highlights of his adventures in the Wild Wild West (Hollywood).

I am such the vicarious traveller...
Readership
How exciting! On an ordinary day, this site gets less traffic than a whorehouse on the Nullarbor (as my sitemeter readings will attest), so I was v. pleasantly surprised to find that I received an email from a fellow blogger.

Jezka Petals of Pennsylvania, wrote me an extensive email regarding many things, but pertaining particularly to my "About Me" page (and from the comments she made, she actually read it all). She even forwarned me that her opinions should not be construed as hate mail (which is always a good sign). In the email, she expressed how she actually found my writing amusing (and no, I didn't pay her to say that), although she did criticise me for my profound ignorance of 14 year old girls. It seems that teenage girls these days do not have the same tastes in music, television, etc... as me, so the comparison is a bad stereotype. In addition, she queried on why I wanted to be a solicitor, since lawyers and politicians don't go to heaven.

Well, I earnestly replied to her email and apologised profusely for using that poor stereotype. Regarding the heaven bit, I stated that such a statement relied on a similar bad stereotype. Not all lawyers are immoral and have Luciferian motives. (Although I do know many that do.)

Anyway, that lil' email exchange led me to initiate a rereading of my "About Me" page. All I can say is: Yikes! Even I was offended by all the meaningless drivel that had been spewed out. Needless to say, I plan to upload a new "About Me" page with an extra shot of ego by the end of the month. (I'm giving myself a loose deadline.) By that time, methinks there will be a picture or two of yours truly attached. I wonder if readership will drop or improve after that?

Sunday, July 14, 2002

Gucci
I'm always looking out for a great slogan on a T-shirt. Now, there's something to look forward to next summer:

According to those bitches (I use the term oh so affectionately) at Chic Happens, Tom Ford has decreed that the summer look for the Gucci guy next season will be T-shirts with the slogans "Suck Me", "F*** Me" and "Boy Box."

Lovely.
Swallowing Beck's
You don't have to be posh to swallow Beck's.


Advertising campaign for Beck's beer featuring you-know-who.

Now, I wonder which market they are aiming at?
Postgraduate Certificate in Laws
I'm getting quite anxious about the status of my PCLL applications. Within the last week and a half, several people I know have received offers from one of the universities. I haven't heard a peek from the either the University of Hong Kong or the City University of Hong Kong, which has made me slightly concerned. Even Julia, from the Big City Legal Firm's HR Department sent an email (which is v. rare) regarding whether I had received an offer or not.

So, I'm just wishing and hoping, praying and waiting...
Out at work
It is a dilemma that most gay people will inevitably have to face in the workplace: whether to be "out" to work colleagues or not?

For me, that time is still quite a while away. Nevertheless, it was an issue that was clearly raised last night, when I dined with some friends and a future work colleague. I have been open about my sexuality to those at the table, except for this particular person. During dinner, he made his homophobic opinions clear, which made me start to worry. What if others held the same sentiments? Would remaining "in the closet" at work be better?

Law is hardly the most liberal profession. Even though the legal industry in Australia and London has made great progress in being more "gay-friendly" in recent times (it is even rumoured that at one City firm, 10% of its trainees are "out"), working in Hong Kong is a different matter. Cultural differences definitely inhibit people from coming out and being accepted.

But shouldn't this not be an excuse? Maybe I should be giving myself a lecture on pride, since I'm continully raving on about being true to oneself. It's a hypocritical backturn and I hate being a hypocrite. I absolutely cannot imagine being closeted amongst my close friends, so shouldn't I just take the same steps in my professional life as I have done with my personal?

Friday, July 12, 2002

At the movies
Far out! If somebody gave me something valuable to mind, I know I'll surely lose it...

Yesterday, I purchased a pack of 10 cinema cash vouchers, as I often do. But due to my complete absent-mindedness (or was it due to fantasing about Olivier Martinez?), I accidently left them on my seat in the theatre after Unfaithful. Predictably, some evil person took the vouchers before I realised 10 minutes later that I did not have them with me.

Oh well, that's $80 down the gurgler. It shits me how I lose things all the time!

Alas, my whole day didn't go down the toilet. I went with TJ to Stonewall for the first time. It's amazing how, for the five years that I have been "out" and about town, I have never been there – it's like going to Disneyland and not riding on Space Mountain! (To tell you the truth, I actually live like an old man and rarely go out to the "scene". The last time I went to a gay bar/club was during Mardi Gras in March. That's the tragedy of having mostly straight friends and being too spineless to go anywhere by myself!) Anyway, it's a nice place, and I quickly forgot about losing the mo'.
Where does your Political Compass point?
There's a v. interesting political survey here. It uses a quadrant map to expand on the traditional (and, as they mention, inadequate) linear mapping of politics on a left-right line.

So, my stance on the political spectrum is:
Economic Left/Right: -2.75
Authoritarian/Libertarian: -3.23

Link courtesy of neurotik.

Wednesday, July 10, 2002

Hilton heiress hijinks
My parents went through a phase where they told me they wanted me to appreciate money. They were like, “You’re taking the subway. Deal with it.”


Nicky Hilton, the younger of the two Hilton sisters, in a rip-snorting interview in the latest Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterly.

Neighbours
I must be losing my mind. I'm starting to talk about Neighbours...

I think I shall catch an episode of the soap this week. It is Holly Valance's last week on show. As expected, now that she has had a Number 1 single in both the UK and Australia, she is giving her Neighbours character the "flick" to concentrate on her budding singing career in London. Good riddance, now she's England's problem...

Could it be any more bizarre? Holly's Neighbours castmate Madeleine West was hit by a bus on Oxford Street in Sydney! And while lying bloody and injured on the pavement, she had the contents of her wallet stolen. According to Ms West in a hilarious guest interview on Rove, it was lucky that the thieft left her library card, thereby allowing the medics to identify her unconsious body. (Now that's Australian generosity for ya!)

Nevertheless, it all ended well. She has made a full recovery and is back at work on the Neighbours set. It gives added meaning to the term, "You could be hit by a bus..."
Om...Vande Gurunam charanaravinde
It is traditional for Mysore classes to begin with the Opening Mantra. (It is to help the practitioner regulate his breathing and maintain focus.) The instructor proceeds to guide the class through Mantra: "Ommmm....".

It all sounds v. similar. I've heard the mantra before, but where?

Track 8 on Madonna's Ray of Light...

Tuesday, July 09, 2002

Linkity link
My new link page is up. Same ol' links, with a few additions.

I think I took the "tasty" thing a bit too far...

Monday, July 08, 2002

Boys
Check out the music video to Britney's latest single Boys. As previously mentioned, Mike Myers makes a cameo appearance as Austin Powers.
Ashtanga yoga
My God, do I feel bloody buggered! Over the weekend, I attended an intensive introductory course in Ashtanga yoga (the principal contributor to Madonna's freakishly defined biceps and Sting's sexy lithe body). For more than five hours (not all at once, but spread over three days, thankfully), I sweated through THE most incredibly intense workout ever – and all we went through were just the basics.

It sounds funny, but even learning the proper breathing technique requires a lot of skill and timing. Ashtanga requires long uniform breaths through the nose (which definitely takes a lot of effort when it's almost natural for me to exhale through the mouth during exercise). Every inhale and exhale coordinates with a different asana (Hey, I'm talking the lingo!) and the fluid movement from pose to pose sometimes requires a quick jump. (Almost too much physical coordination needed for this gay guy!) So, during the three lessons, we went through the Sun Salutations A & B, as well as some standing pose sequences.

I'm hoping I'll be able to maintain the practice for the long-term or for the next month, at least. In addition to my regular gym sessions, I've decided to attend the Mysore classes twice a week. (There's no going back on that, since I've already paid upfront for eight more classes!)

Friday, July 05, 2002

College of Law results
I got an email from the Collaw IT Support stating that I sent a virus to my group instructor! That teaches him for not giving me adequate feedback! Hey, I'm just kidding...

Anyway, everything is fine and dandy now. They sent me an anti-virus application, so the little bugger has been cleared from my (and his) computer.

So, on to more exciting news: most of the Practical Legal Training results have been posted on the net. Looking at my marks, I am genuinely quite amazed at my performance. I didn't fail any assessments (touch wood that I didn't in any of the rest), although I did get a scraping pass of 31/60 in my Civil Litigation Practice exam. (Well, that one was expected, since I hardly corrected anything for a redrafting of particulars question that was worth 30%.) What were definitely surprising were my Federal Court Hearing and Family Practice marks. Apart from having quite a lot of "room to spare", I got 34/40 for the Civil Hearing (which is way too generous for a Notice of Motion that had no genuine legal argument). I guess it's always favourable to make submissions first. Then again, all those sexual favours must have helped too.
Another new bookstore
Kinokuniya Books opened at Galeries Victoria yesterday. It's another foreign megabookstore chain that has entered the Sydney market within the last 6 months. (Borders opened in Pitt Street Mall, just 500m away, at the end of Summer.)

Always keen for a discount, I headed over there to check the store out, grab the 20% opening discount and purchase a couple of books that I have been meaning to buy for a while now.

Well, the place is quite typical, although they have quite a large selection of books in Asian languages. (It is a Japanese bookstore, after all.) However, they have a v. nice collection of one of my favourite things – no, it is not magazines and it is not porn – globes.

Anyway, I ended up buying a copy of Glamorama by Brett Easton Ellis and Naked by David Sedaris. (It's my little foray into American pop-referenced literature. I thought about buying a Chuck Palahniuk novel as well, but that would be a bit too excessive.)

There was quite a large crowd there on its first day, but I wonder whether the current market can sustain so many megabookstores. (Especially when it is Sydney, where people are hardly bookish.) Australians are generally not avid readers (apart from trashy gossip magazines) and it would take a lot more than big, accessible bookstores for the public to buy more books. In addition, book prices in Australia are extortionately high. With large paperback novels priced at $20-30 and first release hardbacks at over $30, both Borders and Kino will definitely have a harder time flogging off their wares around here.

Thursday, July 04, 2002

New look
It has taken me a while, but I have finally made some alterations to the aesthetics of the blog. It's not the prettiest blog, but it's taken me a hella lotta effort, considering my vast inadequecies in the area. (Sorry, but there is no hope for the content, I'm afraid.)

I apologise in advance regarding the functionality of the new menu on the right. At the moment, some of the links have not been activated. I hope to remedy this soon (when I actually create the pages).

I have added some quick reference links to the blog entries concerning certain topics of particular interest (ie, for all those Googlers who are looking for information about Brad Tomberlin).

Additionally, I have created a new ratings system for films I have watched. It's the "Taste-O-Meter" and each film is rated on Chinese take away boxes1. The maximum score is three tasty boxes (which makes a v. fine meal), while one and a half is adequate (when you want to waste a couple of hours). Anything equal or below one is dog's breath and should only be watched at you own risk.

Again, webdesign is definitely not my forte, so any constructive comments about the design will be greatly appreciated. Does the sub-heading appear too wanky?

1 I "took" and altered the image of the take away boxes from "Yolk" magazine's "Got Rice?" series of merchandise.

Tuesday, July 02, 2002

Mardi Gras
What would it be like without *gasp* a Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras?

To some queer folks, the mere mention of such a notion would bring more than just shivers down their spines - it would be their worst nightmare come true! Taking away the community's beloved Mardi Gras Festival and Sleaze Ball would be an act of such tremendous cruelty, of which, only the removal of Christmas, New Year's and Easter (all at once) could be analogous.

Well, it seemed as though such a nightmare almost became reality. The Mardi Gras organisation ended the 2001-2002 financial year with a crippling loss of $534,000. When a community donation appeal failed to bring in additional funds for the organisation's survival, crisis bells began to ring. Without a sudden major cash injection, the company was to go into voluntary administration.

Fortunately, at the 11th hour, an anonymous member of the community opened his/her chequebook and loaned Mardi Gras $400,000 to pay off the debt. In addition, a consortium of five investors raised their hands and volunteered to become the guarantors for a $250,000 bank overdraft.

So, the fat drag queen has not sung. There will be a tomorrow, darlings, and there will be another Mardi Gras Parade next year!
TV is so gay
How has SBS sought to retain some of their sensational World Cup television ratings?

Well, the free-to-air channel has premiered the US version of Queer as Folk! (They were promoting it all through the football last month.)

On Monday nights, the home video recorder will be on overdrive. Apart from QAF, there's the Osbournes, Secret Life of Us, Buffy, Six Feet Under and Sex in the City...

Monday, July 01, 2002

Turning 5
Hong Kong will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the Handover today, although many in the Special Administrative Region (SAR) will not be so enthused. Although the demise of the former colony into economic obsolescence has not eventuated (yet), the SAR's economy has been mired by economic weakness in the last few years (housing prices have spiralled downwards and unemployment has reached all-time highs). The current government may have been unfairly blamed for their inability to revive the economy (there are just so many structural problems), but Tung Chee-hwa's leadership has been absolutely lacklustre, to say the least.

I may sound completely white-washed with this statement, but the British weren't all that bad (in the last decade at least). (Kick in the "I-remember-the-good-old-days" music... ) Even though they did leave with nasty colonialist attitudes embedded in the local psyche, they did create the strong legal and governing foundations that have allowed folks to economically thrive and prosper. (It must have been sweet when the standard of living rose above that of the UK.) The last Governor Chris Pattern definitely had cojones, which cannot be said for the current Chief Executive. (Yes, Honkers is run like a corporation, including the use of the CE title for its highest government officer.)

OK, it is not all bad news. There are plenty of things to look forward to in Honker's near future. These include the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland in 2005 (the workings of the other evil empire) and more Norman Foster projects!
Glory Glory Hallelujah!
Yes, it is finally all over. I survived the whole "final week ordeal". No applause is necessary...

So, on Friday afternoon, I crawled my way out of the Ninth Circle of Hell and emerged from the week's assessments relatively unscathed. (Although trying to read and understand s 149(2) Local Council Certificates has left me slightly traumatised and the mere display of those obfuscatory sewerage diagrams will still make be run away screaming).

By-in-large, the final two assessments were relatively pain-free, considering I had been expecting the most unpleasant experience. To my relief, I was able to maintain my deception. I'm sure, that in time, people will come to discover that I know absolutely nothing about the law...

Now that I have completed Practical Legal Training, I am a free man. (Well, for the next 2 months at least.) As a new man of leisure, I plan to do as little as possible (which is not v. hard) and let my brain atrophy. Nevertheless, in the forthcoming weeks, I shall endevour to work on these various pursuits:
  1. create public displays of lewdness and general drunken debauchery.
  2. tinker with the design of this incredibly mundane-looking site. (I plan to inflate my ego to stratospheric heights by adding a few more sections - all about me, I promise.)
  3. watch films on a more regular basis.
  4. decide on what to store away, what to throw out and what to take with me to Honkers.
  5. learn to drive. (I am definitely not holding on to any promises on this one.)


I have only recently been reintroduced into society, so this was a surprising sight to see - World Cup-inspired styling in Sydney. I saw three guys with mohawks the other day, within the space of an hour. One fellow had a fully-fledged creation, dyed red and green. The other two had skunk-tailed mock-hawks à la Becks.