Travelogue Day 51

14/7/06

I awake feeling worse than ever. I guess spending the night screaming over cover bands and running around without a sweater isn't the best thing to be doing when you're trying not to get sick.

I barely made it through class this morning. Many trips were made to clear my sinuses of various nasty things. We discussed the good and bad bits of the program as it exists this year. The only major change suggested was to have the paper for the film component due before the week of holiday. This could be a good thing, but I seriously have no complaints about this program.

We filled out course and overall program evaluations today too. I feel that I should have been more verbose, but I was feeling both very hungry and in rather poor health, so there was a distinct lack of writing done.

After a lunch of meat pies from Little Devil (why are they so tasty?), I took a little nap, and by little, I mean one half hour at the absolute maximum. I went back over to the Fusion building for a final email check (I, like an idiot, had forgotten to email Robert about setting up meeting details until this morning) and to say my goodbyes to Lauren and the others I probably wouldn't be seeing again. (Did I mention that I really don't want to leave Australia?)

Devon and I got back to the UniLodge just early enough to visit our rooms before departing for our farewell dinner with Daryl, Fred, and Greg. We went to a small Italian place located somewhere near Leichhardt(?). Daryl brought the wine, and the food was quite good. I had mussels in a spicy tomato broth that helped my throat, and whole body, feel ten times better. I also tried Marc's four cheese pizza (good) and Joy's potato and gorgonzola gnocchi (also good). For dessert, I had chocolate nougat gelato and a flat white. Alone, each was good, and together, they were doubly so.


A little more wine and we were ushered out (our group was fairly large, and their space was limited). A.C., Tom, Marc, and I waited for a cab for so long that Marc went to ask a restaurant to call one for us (it was much too far to walk, especially since we didn't know the streets we needed to take to get back). That worked out little better because someone along the line gave the cabby the wrong address, something we discovered because, as coincidence would have it, we flagged down the cab who had been called for us after he had given up at the other, wrong address.

(Side note: Greg is not only working on selling a new market targeting/analysis software program that NTF made in-house, but also writing a mockumentary about the marketing/advertising business. He told some good stories that should end up in the script)

When we got back to UniLodge, I was planning to have a relaxing night in to help me recover, but we ended up in Mike's room somehow, and I was enticed into slapping the goon. It's just as bad as it sounds. Never Have I Ever was played and much was learned about the sexual history of those in the room along with many more mundane details. After four or five slaps of the goon, Devon arrived to inform us that a party of people were embarking on a journey to see a drag show at the Imperial in Newtown.

Devon, Sarah, Sayaka, Mike, Tom, A.C., Marc, Donna, Ashley, Vicky, Annabel, and others set out around 23:00. I was wearing one of Mike's hats featuring a picture of a recently hatched chick and reading "Just been laid." It was a hit, and many photos were taken. After a few mishaps with cabs and buses, we made it to the club and paid our five dollars admittance fee.

Half of our number left after the first show, they got a little uncomfortable, but Devon, Sarah, Sayaka, Vicky, Annabel, and I stayed for two more shows. The standout number of which was the performance of a song that must be titled "Everybody's Fucking but Me." The lyrics were great, and the performance fit well with them.

On the walk back home, I could tell I would have no voice tomorrow. It had been bad enough to begin with, but after an evening of yelling over the dj between drag shows, I could hear that it was dying a slow, agonizing death. Oh well, it was a rather good time.