Well, I’m letting go of the private practice bit of it anyway … and re-embracing my first true love, books (… with coaching). Complicated? Yes. But no. Because it just means I’m letting go of things I no longer need. Things that others may find useful. It’s like a professional spring clean… (Hooray for spring!)

I spent most of August letting go of my clients. Now, I feel the need to let go of my baby ebook.

OMG! What am I doing with my life? The DIY Guide to creating a life and work you love is a short introduction (with a very long title, admittedly) to sorting out what it is you exactly want out of life. Complete with exercises that will get you on your way.

This little book has had so many lives. It started as an ebook for the Centre for Human Potential, then became a self-coaching course, then a promo ebook for my worklifedesign website. Now it’s for you my friends. Please use it to create a life you love.

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1. This (Blogless) Life
2. How people change: Working with the stages and processes of change
3. Ditched the new year resolutions? Set goals that get results in 2010

I have a thing for chocolate croissants.

It’s a perfect food. One that you would imagine could never go wrong. Chocolate + Croissant = Sublime experience.

But my friends, it so often does goes wrong. I have sampled hundreds of these humble treats in my life and am often disappointed by the dry, rubbery, chewy, bland, skimpy chocolate offerings by people who call themselves bakers.

And then, I come across this delight. This is the real deal. The Best. Ever. Chocolate. Croissant.

What’s so good about this one?

Well, in a nutshell, the folks at the Oxford St Bakery get it right.

Firstly, the croissant is fresh. (They only seem to make them on the weekend – although I could be wrong. They may have just run out on the week days I’ve been there.)

Then, not only is the croissant fresh but it’s light and fluffy and buttery with a moderately crispy shell.

And then there’s the very liberal amount of chocolate found within. The chocolate is added after the croissant is cooked and cooled so it’s sweet and soft (rather than hard and bitter). It’s not just a smear of chocolate we’re talking about. There is so much delicious chocolate that I usually end up with it all over my hands, face, furniture, cat…

The croissant is then finished with a light dusting of icing sugar … to give us the perfect chocolate croissant.

It’s a sublime sensory experience of the food kind.

And and and… today’s chocolate croissant experience was made even better by the lady at the bakery confirming my purchase by asking, “You’d like a choccy croissant?”

Yes! I’d so like a choccy croissant.

Here are some more pics to torture you…

You can find the best chocolate croissant ever at the Oxford St Bakery in Bulimba (Brisbane, Qld, Australia).

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If you’re up the coast today be sure to check out the exhibition on display at the Cooroy Butter Factory.

Up The Coast: Our Stories, Our Collections brings together memorobilia, art and photos that tell the stories of the Sunshine Coast as a holiday destination.

My formative years were spent holidaying in fibro shacks at the beach (albeit “Down the Coast”) so this collection is not only a great history of the region but, for me, it brought back memories of carefree days in truly laidback destinations.

Here are my favourites from the exhibition. (There was also a Model T on display but I didn’t get a photo).

Sunshine Coast surfing legends, Ma and Pa Bendall

Early surfboard.

Swoon. A photo of classic fibro beach house on the Sunshine Coast. From the collection of Roger Todd.

And… my favourites by Susan Schmidt …

"Sunseeker" - 2009 (print) by Susan Schmidt

"Welcome" 2009 (print) by Susan Schmidt

Up The Coast is on at the Cooroy Butter Factory until 30 October 2010. (Today! Go, Go, Go!)

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Tonight, we remember Mandy Rollins.

Early last month news reached me that Sydney DJ and event promoter, Mandy Rollins, was missing. It is believed that she took her own life on 4th September 2010.

I was mates with Mandy when she lived in Brisbane in the early 90s. We shopped and swapped tunes. We DJ’d together at Damnation. She DJ’d for me at my Joy parties. She was a gorgeous girl with a beautiful spirit.

I lost touch with Mandy when she left Brisbane but I was so proud of her when she played her first Sleaze Ball in 96 and gradually made a name for herself for her fine DJing and became a legend in the underground scene.

So where ever you are Mandy Rollins, thank you for bringing so much joy into my life mate. You will always shine on in my heart.

If you’re struggling with life or feeling depressed, pick up the phone. There are people who will listen and help you move through the difficult times.

In Australia,

Lifeline
13 11 14
www.lifeline.org.au

Beyond Blue
1300 224 646
www.beyondblue.org.au

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3. Joy Retro Disco presents I Can See Clearly Now by Johnny Nash

Kelly Sutton, over at The Cult of Less has been receiving a bit of attention lately for his decision to dramatically reduce his possessions and digitise his life. I’m not sure if I’m keen to part with physical books yet but it’s made me start compiling my own list of essentials.

It’s not a new idea. Folks have been intentionally simplifying and downsizing their lives for years. In 2007, a guy called Dave Bruno set himself a 100 Thing Challenge where he reduced his possession count to less than 100 and then lived with only 100 possessions for 12 months.

My working list currently stands at 111 items (and it excludes consumables such as food stuffs, toiletries, notebooks, etc). There are whole categories of things I haven’t included (books, CDs, tools) because the number would lose all meaning if they were included.

Initially, I was aiming for keeping it under 100 items as per the 100 Thing Challenge – and sure, it could drop under 100 items depending on where I was living. The number is arbitrary though. This is all about minimising the clutter and noise in my life. If I own something it has to serve some essential function in my life or be so beautiful that every time I see it my heart swoons.

I still have a long ways to go…

But in the meantime here is my current working list of my 100 Things …

My 100 Things

Laptop

Phone

ipod dock / stereo / speakers

headphones/headset

Backpack

Messenger bag

Wallet

Keys

pen

glasses

long pants casual x 2

long pants work

shorts x 2

gym short

track pants

tshirts x 5

underwear x 6

bra x 2

socks x 3

Singlets x 2

Jacket – heavy

Jacket – light / sports

Jumper

Flannelette shirt

Long sleeve shirt – work

Long sleeve shirt – casual

collar shirts x 2

togs

boardshorts

rashie

Pyjamas – winter

toothbrush

wetpack

umbrella

shoes – boots

shoes – shoe

running shoes

thongs

hat

bed

side table

bedside lamp

heater/fan

desk

bookshelf

chair

dining table

dining chairs x 2

couch

lounge table

tv

tv table

bike

bike helmet

shopping bag

glass

wine glass

cup

plate

bowl

knife

fork

spoon

cutting knife

cutting board

small saucepan

small steamer

large pot

frypan

spatula

large spoon

bottle opener

large bowl

comb

brush

bathtowel

bathmat

facewasher

beach towel

sheets

pillows

doona

broom*

dustpan & brush*

mop*

bucket*

vacuum cleaner*

fridge*

washing machine*

outdoor chairs x 2 *

*these would depend on where/who I was living/with

It’s been an interesting exercise in discovering what physical possessions are important in my life and I intend to use it as a guide for what I keep and what I let go of. Interestingly, as I give each item consideration, I find I’m changing the way I think about consuming. For example, if I have one set of sheets (I’m not sure if that is practical) then they sure as heck are going to be beautiful.

I’m curious to see where I am with it in 12 months.

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Cootie 1993 - 2010

One of our family, Cootie, left us today.

Cootie’s been part of my life for 17 years. She came to me as a wee kitten (with her sister Dusty) when I lived at Gloucester St and has been a constant figure in the kitchen, and on the couch, through a succession of houses, flatmates, towns and cities since.

For the last 15 years, Cootie has been known about town as ‘Carolyn’s cat’ – this change of primary Big One followed a successful coup (oi vey) by Ms Ride to lure Cootie’s affections away from me in 1995. But Cootie and I continued to be good friends, sharing cheese and chicken snackies when Carolyn was not looking.

Cootie, and her slacker demands of ‘meh’, will be deeply missed.

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Damnation Poster International Lesbian Day 1993? On display at Prejudice and Pride exhibition, Museum of Brisbane, 2010, poster by trishweston

I wrote this a few months ago after seeing the heart-swellingly wonderful Prejudice and Pride exhibition in Brisbane. The exhibition finishes on 17th October 2010 …

I had a few hours spare while in Brisbane on a Saturday afternoon recently and decided to check out the Prejudice and Pride exhibition that’s currently on at the Museum of Brisbane.

Not only was I captivated for hours by this amazing exhibition but I also came away having rediscovered my own pride – for the people who have lived according to their own truth in a culture that has often violently repressed their authenticity.

I am of course talking about all the gays, lesbians, transgenders, queers and every other permutation of other-sexuality and gender you with to throw under the GLBT umbrella.

The exhibition explores the GLBT history of Brisbane through stories, flyers, magazines, letters, photos, videos and other ephemera. It’s not easy being different but throughout all the items collected here, I saw the common thread of people standing up and saying, “This is who I am. This is how I live.” I could only imagine the courage it would have taken to be gay in sleepy old 1950s Brisbane – when homosexuality was still considered a sexual deviancy. (We are talking pre-Kinsey). And yet folks did.

I was beautiful. It is beautiful.

The personal is still political

On the same weekend I visited the exhibition, I saw Nick Douglas’s film People, Parties, Pride & Politics. Nick’s film explores DIY culture and activism in GLBT Brisbane and the impact of decriminalisation in 1990. So once I got to the exhibition I was quite sentimental for a life I used to live, where I belonged to a community, where I felt appreciated and loved, where I got to use the skills and talents I had (as well as develop a few unusual ones – spray painting anyone?) and where I could be myself. (Well, at least if I wasn’t in the company of the PC Police…)

The exhibition was personally touching for me as some of my posters (above) from the period were on display. These were posters / artwork that had been accidently thrown out in one of my house moves and so to see them again just brought back so many memories.

There was something very special about that time and that community. Homosexuality had just been decriminalised in Queensland and this major victory had me believing that I could indeed make the world (or at least our little corner of it) a better place.

But I also appreciate that I was able to experience the joy of belonging to a vibrant, exciting community and part of something that was bigger than me. It’s made me wonder how I can create that vibrancy and sense of belonging in my life now.

If I take a moment to look, I see it is there – albeit in a different form. The players may be different but those communities still exist. I still get to discover new talents – mostly legal nowadays. And most importantly, I still have the belief that my actions can contribute to the world becoming a better place.

Pride is not a sin

A few years ago I came across a reference to pride as a negative emotion (see Power vs Force by David Hawkins). I really wrestled with that as a concept, because for me, pride is a positive. It’s about believing you are as worthwhile as the next person. But our culture insists on loading it up with religious baggage – giving it a ‘deadly sin’ status and insisting that it is merely a precursor to an ignominious fall.

However, after spending time with the stories of the Prejudice and Pride exhibition, I knew I could trust my experience of pride. The feeling I had on leaving the exhibition was overwhelmingly positive. I didn’t think myself better than anyone else. I had merely glimpsed what it means to be human and feel worthwhile.

Happy International Lesbian Day!

Ahh, there was a time when you could win awards for being a lesbian. Miss Stray Cat trophy award to Ms Gai Lemon 1992.

Pushing buttons.

Dykey Bridge, West End, early 1990s

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6.24am Cooran Station. Photo by trishweston

Sublime moments catching the train to Brisbane this morning – helped along by heavy fog. I just had to capture it (with my phone).

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However, last night I made a curry that tasted SO good I had to stop myself from finishing the pot, and now I’m rethinking my spice mix.

Specifically, I’ve always been a very conservative garam masala user – just a dash or quarter teaspoon added toward the end of cooking. The recipe for last night’s curry (a lamb Rogan Josh found after investigoogling) called for three (3!) teaspoons of garam masala. I’d never made a Rogan Josh before so decided to trust the web recommendation and put a whole two (yes, 2!) teaspoons in my curry. And, I put it in with the other spices at the beginning. I tell you, there was much change afoot in the C’ran Country Kitchen last night. The other thing I did differently was cook it extra long (60 to 90 minutes) with the yoghurt in.

So here be the easiest, tastiest lamb curry – inspired by the Lamb Rogan Josh at the blog, Route 79.

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

500g lamb (leftovers was my choice but you can get fancy and buy fresh) chopped into 2cm pieces (or however you prefer it)

oil

half tsp salt

1 tsp turmeric

2 tsp garam masala

2 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chilli powder

1 tin tomatoes (diced)

2 tblsp yoghurt

Cooking this curry is too easy.

In a medium pot, dry fry the spices and set aside. If you’re using fresh lamb, then you probably want to brown it first. (Leftover lamb can be thrown in later). Remove browned lamb and set aside. Add a little oil, fry the onion and garlic until soft. Throw the spices back in – making sure to keep it moving so they don’t burn. When it’s all getting nice and fragrant, throw the lamb in and coat with the spice/onion mix. Throw in the chopped tomatoes. Let it cook for a couple of minutes and then add the yoghurt. Mix it all up, bring to simmer, cover and cook on low heat for 90 minutes. Be sure to check every 30 minutes and add more water if necessary. As I was using cooked lamb, I only cooked for 60 minutes or so and then let it sit for the next 30 minutes.

Taste and adjust seasoning. Throw in some chopped coriander and serve with steamed rice.

You can check out the original recipe (I’ve made a couple of changes) over at Route 79. There’s also a whole swag of other Indian recipes there that I’d love to try. Mutter Paneer? Lamb Biryani? And I’m just a tad curious about Indian style KFC!

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In a bold move, Jane put the offer out to her fans that if they could find 30 people who were willing to pay $30 each, then she’d turn up and perform in their lounge room. At the time of writing, over 80 Salons have been scheduled.

The Salon tour is all part of her reassessing how music and money can co-exist, side-stepping the cookie-cutter machine that is the music industry to bring music and community back to the people.

When I heard of this concept, I knew I had to go. I love it when people create their own ways of being in the world and this kind of thinking and approach is much needed in the music industry – an industry that makes billions of dollars out of talent, while the majority of musicians are working multiple jobs to support their creative endeavours.

It has been a few years since I’d even heard a Jane Siberry track. However, I knew her album, When I Was A Boy, inside out when I was an angsty, love-lorn twenty-something. I was confident that no matter what direction she’d gone in the last 15 years, I was sure to appreciate her immense talent.

It was only as I began the two hour drive to Brisbane that I reacquainted myself with her music. Its impact on me was immediate. I WAS an angsty, love-lorn twenty-something again. The feelings came back instantly. I even remembered some of the words – which would come in handy later in the evening.

So you could say I was well and truly primed when I arrived at the Brisbane Salon. James Lees and Silver Sircus were the hosting Jane’s performance in the lounge of James’ inner Brisbane Queenslander. There was something very apt about this setting. Not only is a Queenslander the ubiquitous Brisbane house – wooden floorboards, windows open and verandah around to quell the summer heat – but being back in that environment was like coming home. Much of my Brisbane life was lived in these houses and their high-ceilinged lounge rooms and verandahs remind me of happy times with many friends.

I was pretty apprehensive about attending, as Caro was sick and I was going alone. I had no need to worry though, as James was the perfect host and because it was a small gathering, most people were happy to chat.

James and Lucinda Shaw, performing as Silver Sircus, opened the night with three songs. When Lucinda began singing, I was again transported back almost 20 years, watching her performing in a cafe in New Farm. I remembered what it meant to me in the early 1990s to hear her sing so lovingly and cheekily of a queer Brisbane life.

Tonight, she mentions that she is nervous to be singing in front of so many friends but the nerves do not detract from the performance. If anything, they enhance it. I get that this is important. Plus, Lucinda and James have become such wonderful multi-talented musicians that you don’t realise that it’s a drummer (James) and a vocalist (Lucinda) stepping out of their roles by providing piano and guitar accompaniment.

When Jane emerges from the Salon’s green room (ie the kitchen) we are ready for the journey she will take us on for the next two hours. She weaves stories of humanity through spoken word, song and music – accompanied by piano, guitar, and trusty ipod. She is captivating. Stories of pain, love and hope that transport you to the villages she’s already visited in her almost 30 year career – whether it be listening (really listening) to kids in a bus shelter in Britain or greeting the locals in her native Toronto. She speaks of energy and oneness and relationships getting to the heart of our human experience – to love, to connect, to see and bring out the beauty in us all. By the time the encore arrives and the whole room is singing (in harmony!) the chorus of Calling All Angels, I don’t just have shivers up my spine, I have shivers through my whole body.

Like a magician, Jane Siberry has transported us to this beautiful place (which is where we always were anyway – we just didn’t see it). I’ve been to many gigs where I’ve been moved, where I’ve felt one with the crowd and performers, but very few have challenged my thinking and cajoled my senses like this one.

It’s love and sustainability in action – through music and performance. It’s connecting with the people directly – not through profit hungry middlepeople. It made me think about all the ways I could be living love and connecting with the people who need what I do. If how we want to live doesn’t exist, or if the current system doesn’t work, then we have the power to change it, to create it anew. Or perhaps create it a-old?

The whole Jane Siberry Brisbane Salon has made think. And feel. And dream.

And from that place, I am alive.

Love IS everything.

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