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The White Hat Melbourne NewsletterArchived Newsletter No.320 - 26th June 2009Contents
Celtic FestivalThis weekend is the Celtic Festival at Kilmore, not far north of Melbourne. As a conversation starter at the pub you might proffer the opinion that Ned Kelly was nothing but a common thug and murderer and that it was the English who brought a civilising influence to the colonies. You will find that the Irish and Scots are always interested in some restrained intellectual debate on subjects such as these. Details at The White Hat Guide to Ethnic Festivals in Victoria.
Melbourne Boat ShowMELBOURNE BOAT SHOW The following weekend is the Melbourne Boat Show where you can check out the latest in boat design. Please observe the time honoured tradition where the English are above deck the Irish are below deck and Scotty is in the engine room. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Places/JeffsShed.asp
The mother of all rave partiesTHE MOTHER OF ALL RAVE PARTIES “Man, you should see the colours in my head. There are sparks everywhere, and everything’s so hot.” “Keep up the fluid intake man. How many of those pills did you take?” “I don’t know, man. What day is it?” “24th of August 79AD. Hey, this stuff is good. I can see those lights too.” Experience a day I the life of Pompeii at the Melbourne Museum. Details in all the mainstream media.
The Light in WinterTHE LIGHT IN WINTER For a less threatening light displays try the Light in Winter at Fed Square. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Places/FedSquare.asp
Cinema on the WaterCINEMA ON THE WATER This weekend there is a giant screen floating on the water at Docklands with free family movies such as Happy Feet and Madagascar. You can also moor your boat and watch Jaws and Titanic. Details in all the mainstream media.
Classical musicCLASSICAL MUSIC This weekend the MSO performs Mendelssohn & Rachmaninov. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Music/Classical.asp
Animation FestivalANIMATION FESTIVAL The Melbourne International Animation Festival finishes this weekend at Fed Square. Full details at: http://www.miaf.net/
Forums & lecturesFORUMS & LECTURES This week there is a public lecture on Morality Law and Politics and also one related to the Elgin Marbles and cultural heritage and another one one Melbourne's Buillt Environment as an introduction to the upcoming 'Melbourne's Open House'. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Events/ForumsM.asp
Seven Significant Occasions from Australia's PastSEVEN SIGNIFICANT OCCASIONS IN AUSTRALIA Currently the inland creeks and rivers are bringing one of the irregular flows into Lake Eyre and the Centre is a mass of water birds and short-lived vegetation. It brought to mind a significant occurrence from the past so we thought we might start a little series about some chance occurrences that we feel have shaped the way we live today. This sections of the newsletter can now be found at Seven Significant Occasions from Australia's Past.
Fun runFUN RUN This Sunday there is a fun run which should appeal to those people who feel those two words belong together. Details in all the mainstream media.
Reader FeedbackREADER FEEDBACK In last week’s newsletter, Sarah commented on the double negative in The Beatles’ ‘I can’t get no satisfaction’. Stephen replied: “Sarah, sadly, has little future with pedantic Damien, having exposed her person to his reflective approbation by attributing to the moptops the Stones' timeless whine on satisfactionlessness. Unless, and let me admire the many layers of her assertion, she is intentionally truthful in her observation that most people don't recognise the double negative in question being of Beatles origin. In which case, Damien, silence is golden and don't let that girl go. Stephen” “I would like to thank White Hat once again for being such an informative web site! Until last week I hadn't heard of Black Rock House so visited it last Sunday. The volunteers are themselves interesting people and we found the house is also So, thanks once again for your very useful and informative site. Regards Sonia” “Hello Whitehat, I was just wondering if you were aware that your emails say Copyright 2008? Of course, this may be fully intentional as you may have planned extremely well ahead. If this is indeed the case, my sincerest apologies for troubling you. May I also add that I follow the adventures of Sarah and Damien with the greatest delight! Mel” “Hello White Hat, Thank you so much for inserting our notice re "Memories of St Moritz"in your newsletter this week and we've already received a few responses (including one which may fall into yr category of "sometimes we get replies to the newsletter which we expect were intended for someone else". Once again, many thanks. Kindest regards Frances Bader [on behalf of St Kilda Historical Society]” “hello my Melbourne friends (my birth town), can't wait to get back next week (30th June) for 6 weeks! look forward to continuing to receive your newsletters on my Emails............ valuable info and lots of laughs! Where are all those "Uni High" friends from 1953-58?? Judy (Cordy) Krohn, Somerset West South Africa. Tel. in Melbourne will be: 0425 711 675 (68 and still smiling!)” “As a newish White Hat subscriber I'm very impressed with the weekly Guide - always full of interest and a few challenges :) Regards Geoff W”
It's a Barbie WorldIT’S A BARBIE WORLD Next week at a Fed Square there is an exhibition celebrating Barbie turning 50. If you have a pre-teen who is fascinated with Barbie you might want to engage them in a scientific experiment. If you have an illuminated oven, fire it up and place Barbie in there. Have your daughter observe the change in shape. Depending on the calibration of your oven, about 10 minutes equates to about 10 years aging. If they still want to go to the Barbie exhibition you can find details at: http://barbie.com.au/
The future of MelbourneTHE FUTURE OF MELBOURNE This weekend you can visit an exhibition where young urban planners present a number of their solutions to the problems created by an ever-expanding Melbourne in a world faced with climate change. The exhibition is tucked away at the back of Eckersleys art supply store a short walk from the Vic Market. The information is dense and requires you to do a fair amount of reading and thinking – sort of the opposite of Twitter – but we think well worth visiting. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Environment/EnvironmentM.asp
Pedants' Dating ServicePEDANTS’ DATING SERVICE Damien and Sarah were deep in conversation at after work drinks. “You wouldn’t believe, Damien, that I saw this website that said that on this day in 1865 Sir John Monash was born.” “How ridiculous,” said Damien “he wasn’t a sir when he was born.” “And would you believe” said Sarah “that his dates were given as 1865 – 1931.” “You mean they didn’t say 1865—1931? They used the short en-dash instead of the long em-dash! There’s no excuse for that when most word processors will automatically convert two short dashes to a long dash. Still, I suppose there are still a large number of sloppy people out there in the world. Sometimes I wonder how they manage to get the trains to run on time.” “They don’t!” interrupted Simon. Simon was Sarah’s brother who occasionally joined them after work. “Damien and I are going to an exhibition after this. Why not come with us? It will be fun.” “Going out with you two would be about as much fun as going to ‘Commonwealth Style Guide – The Movie’”. “Has it been made into a movie? That would be great and . . “ “No Sarah, he’s joking.” said Damien, “He’s got his eye on some chicky-babe and they’ll probably go home for some rumpty-tumpty. He lives in a different world.” Sarah involuntarily clutched her pendant and pondered that, although she valued the world which she and Damien inhabited, it could be interesting for them both to occasionally visit the world of . .”And sometimes they leave a space on either side of the em-dash!” said Damien. Sarah had been jolted back into the valued cerebral world she shared with Damien but somewhere, deep in her . . deep in her .. , deep in her being she wondered if might not be pleasant to visit that other world. Has the tick on Sarah’s biological clock got louder? Will Simon contract a social disease? Should rumpty-tumpty have an en or an em dash? Find out next week . . .
Magic FestivalMAGIC FESTIVAL Next week there is a magic festival where magicians have a range of acts so amazing they will leave a young teenage girl speechless. Well maybe not that amazing, but what is? Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Lifestyle/Children.asp
Last week's quizLAST WEEK’S QUIZ We had lots of replies to last week’s Melbourne and shapes quiz. It must have been too easy. Here are the answers:
Building & Home Improvements ShowBUILDING & HOME IMPROVEMENT SHOW This weekend at Jeff’s Shed there is a Building and Home Improvement Show where you can learn how to build a faux Edwardian dog kennel for the mutt that always sleeps inside anyway or where you can buy a divine runner that you can throw on the table when guests arrive which is just the right size to cover all the bills sitting there. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Places/JeffsShed.asp
Kids' FestivalKIDS’ FESTIVAL Starting this weekend in Warrnambool is the annual Fun 4 Kids Festival. To us the name didn’t seem very promising – it sounds like something adults will think is fun for the kids but the kids will regard as ‘boooring!’. Well it appears that our first impressions were well off-target. It has won some serious accolades as one of the best festivals in Australia. – congratulations to the organisers. If you heading down that way with kids we suggest you go out of your way to check it out. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Victoria/Regions/Warrnambool.asp
From the White Hat InboxFROM THE WHITE HAT INBOX We received the following personal message: “hi from portc the blood doctor i told u about was gay!! he was really sweet & sensitive about it & how come all the sweet & sensitive guys r gay & all the str8 1s r insensitive & gross & crystal says its due 2 global warming & its natures way of slowing down breeding & if we all used less power there would be more cute guys out there but im not sure whether to believe her. luv nat”
Bread & CircusesBREAD & CIRCUSES There are some dads who will find themselves in charge of the little br__ - sorry valued small people who are part of the family during the holiday period. Remember they should start the day with some healthy macrobiotic bread available from most local markets spread with organic prune extract. Then again you could let them eat cake. For details try a search on “Bill Cosby - chocolate cake for breakfast.” As for circuses, there are currently three major ones running in Melbourne. There is Circus Oz at Birrarung Marr, Silver’s Circus in Nunawading and Circus Sunrise in Wantirna South. Details in all the mainstream media.
Gertrude Street Projection FestivalGERTRUDE STREET PROJECTION FESTIVAL Coming up next week is the annual Gertrude Street Projection Festival where, after, dark, various images are projected onto the buildings in the area. We saw a very clever one near the entrance to a well-known housing estate where the projections provided a realistic replica of a ‘Desperate Housewives’ set. It was only when we returned in daylight that we realised it wasn’t a projection. The theme for the Fitzroy projections is ‘Dreams’ so go along and see what you think. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/StreetsSuburbs/BrunswickSmithSts.asp
Mildura Art & Collectables FairMILDURA ART & COLLECTABLES FAIR The following weekend is the annual Mildura Art & Collectables Fair. Mildura is a long way to go, but then collectors are strange people. Details at: http://www.whitehat.com.au/Melbourne/Festivals/Animal.asp
The White Hat QuizThis quiz can now be found at the end of the section on Sid at Seven Significant Occasions from Australia's Past. No prizes – just glory and a warm inner glow.
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