Date: Friday, 11 April 2007, 5.00pm
Location: Brunswick St near Victoria St, Fitzroy
Coffee: $4.90, Spanish mocha - delicious
Reading: Being and Time
I wrestled with Derrida again last night until close to 3.00am. I think I 'translate' about a paragraph an hour. I woke up at 11.00am today, which meant a late start on more Derrida. I don't think I got through more than two pages. This insistence on tackling Derrida seems a bit masochistic but I am a bit proud of myself as well. I still am not sure why it is necessary to be so complicated (Heidegger's language is much more straightforward) but I am not as sure as I used to be that the purpose of its difficulty is to hide the flaws in the theory. Still, it is difficult to argue with something so abstract as how the way we conceptualise meaning and thinking is affected by an idea of the unity of truth that we'd like to preserve. For this next essay, though I think I'm going to structurally analyse and deconstruct a Salinger story, maybe my interest will take me elsewhere - or distract me from my goal. I'm considering looking at the play Copenhagen instead of Salinger since it is a play about philosophical issues and it interests me more. Hopefully something comes together - with less grief than it did last time.
I meant to walk to Smith Street to treat myself to a cafe work-read, but discovered Gertrude Street, which is perpendicular to Smith and has many funky and artsy shops. I didn't find an open cafe however (as opposed to a restaurant or bar) and ended up on Brunswick St. I haven't been to this part of Brunswick Street yet while living in Melboune, and am not sure if I've ever been here. The chocolateria seemed the likeliest place to obtain a coffee only, given the dinner-time nature of the hour. The cafe is a long narrow shop all wood and brick, with orange baroque-patterned grating windows and frilly brown and orange aprons on sale. The mocha was thick, creamy, deep and beautiful.
It has been a good week. I didn't do too badly on that first paper (Derrida and Barthes) - 3 points only off a High Distinction, with the major comments being such that I should be able to fix quite easily for the next paper. Mainly the paper was marked down for being under-researched (which it was given the (now I realise) overblown claims I made in the introduction and conclusion). I was relieved the major issues were not with my argument or interpretation. The paper felt like a risk and I am glad the risk was one well taken.
I got to take centre stage in the feminism class of my Wednesday Critical Theory course as the only female in the seminar and, you know, actually knowing about feminist theory. I had a good chat afterwards with two other Masters students, talking about sexuality and Cisoux and gender. Yesterday I saw K at her apartment in Docklands. She cooked me a lovely frittatta and plied me with red wine. The highlight of the afternoon was scoping out a couple of fancy time-share luxury boats. They were beautiful things, replete with beds, fridges and barbeques. Check out photos of the boats here (http://www.leisureboating.com.au/Boats.asp?sessionID=), though I don't remember which ones we saw - two of the biggest, anyway, though I liked the smaller one better. I told K that if they do join the club she MUST take me out on the boat.
On Monday evening I went to a great feminist lecture (check out http://lipmag.blogspot.com for details). It made me understand that after this experiment with critical theory I will go back to feminism - so much more immediately relevant to what's going on in the world right now. Tomorrow night is a Frencham Smith gig.
I certainly could have gotten more work done this week but I'm going to try to do some significant hours of work over the weekend to make up for it.
Hmmm, need a new notebook...
Friday, May 18, 2007
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Cafe #18: Koko Black
Date: Tuesday, 1 May 2007, 2.30pm
Location: Shop 4, Royal Arcade, Bourke St, Melbourne
Coffee: $5.50, chili hot chocolate - very chili
Reading: Thomas the Obscure
I'm feeling a bit dazey la-la from my cold. I worked at the bookshop yesterday, thanks to cold pills, and slept for more than twelve hours last night. Today I wanted for myself to relax and clean the house a bit, get done some personal activities - reading, writing, email. I cleaned the sink and shower this morning, then met E and A at the markets. Following our usual lunch and shop, A and I had our usual coffee at the market, and now I am here, nursing a hot chocolate.
Koko Black is one of the several chocolate lounges in Melbourne (one surely must love a city with several chocolate lounges). I am upstairs in the Victorian cathedral-roofed arcade, in the a tanny-cream space of chocolate vinyl chairs and couches, and orange and cream wallpaper. There is a a mirror and old black and white photograph of a chocolate factory framed in gilt and swirly tan granite-topped tables.
At 2.30 in the morning on Sunday I emailed in the second paper that I have been furiously working on for the past few weeks. I wasn't very happy with either paper (one 4500 words, the other 5500 words). My Critical Theory paper was about 500 words too long and the Semiotics and Poststructuralism paper I just lost interest in (plus, Petersburg is such a loaded book, every sentence symbolic, that I could not possibly do it any kind of justice in the time/space available. I'd needed to have read it again and taken very extensive notes - which is difficult when reading a book is fun). I wish the final papers had reflected how much work I actually put into them but I'm afraid they didn't, as much of what I put work into didn't actually make it into the papers (significant expositions of Peirce, Derrida and Bely). It Will be interesting to see what marks I get. The second paper, on Peircean semiotics, the novel Petersburg by Andrei Bely and Bely's theory of Symbolism struck me rather as an undergraduate effort, though I didn't feel that way about the Derrida/Barthes deconstruction essay. I've got one more 4500 word essay to do (will probably do more with Derrida and Barthes) and then I look forward to having a year to write a thesis.
It has been a good week despite the papers. On Thursday my semiotics professor put the office to some effort to get in touch with me (via Canberra; my mobile was off while I was studying in the library) so she could offer me her spare ticket to opening night at the opera. It was Dvorak - Rusalka - and was an incredibly beautiful and sad production. It was, I think, the best production of an opera I've seen and I suppose my favourite as well - even better than Aida. The British singer, Sally Matthews, who played Rusalka was wonderful, a fine actress and dancer as well as singer. I believed her at every moment (think little mermaid; Rusalka is basically that story in its most tragic form). I feel so privileged to have been able to see that production and will always have a special place in my heart for my professor, despite our intellectual disagreements.
On Friday I met a friend of K's for coffee in the city and enjoyed chatting with her about theses, Bristol, Melbourne, slow food, etc. There was an art project launch going on under Flinders Street Station so I went down for free wine and to see whom I might see. I chatted with a PhD student from CCLS (the centre in which I study) and her friend, caught up with P from Is Not Magazine and L from Sticky. L gave me a heads-up about the Victorian arts grants and Is Not throws fundraising parties, so hopefully something fruitful will come of either meeting. On Wednesday night, after a full day at home, essay writing, I took myself to the pub. I couldn't bear not having spoken to another person all day any longer and by 8.30pm was desparate. I ended up at the Retreat, a florid old pub that I had not been to before. I ordered a Stella, saw a boy sitting by himself and asked him if he was alone. He replied in the affirmative and asked if I wanted to join him. I also replied in the affirmative and sat down at his table. I did most of the work pushing the conversation along and sometimes struggled to catch the words articulated in his very quiet voice, but he proved to be an interesting subject: a chef at Lentil as Anything. I chatted with him for a while then came back home to more work. I was very proud of myself for striking up conversation with a random boy.
On Saturday night was a 13th birthday party for A's cat and Sunday was home and essay writing.
How much lighter I feel without those essays. I felt incredibly stressed by them and worked long hours those last couple of weeks. I know I should get started on the next essay soon to avoid that problem again. I'll give myself this week off, though. I deserve and need it.
Location: Shop 4, Royal Arcade, Bourke St, Melbourne
Coffee: $5.50, chili hot chocolate - very chili
Reading: Thomas the Obscure
I'm feeling a bit dazey la-la from my cold. I worked at the bookshop yesterday, thanks to cold pills, and slept for more than twelve hours last night. Today I wanted for myself to relax and clean the house a bit, get done some personal activities - reading, writing, email. I cleaned the sink and shower this morning, then met E and A at the markets. Following our usual lunch and shop, A and I had our usual coffee at the market, and now I am here, nursing a hot chocolate.
Koko Black is one of the several chocolate lounges in Melbourne (one surely must love a city with several chocolate lounges). I am upstairs in the Victorian cathedral-roofed arcade, in the a tanny-cream space of chocolate vinyl chairs and couches, and orange and cream wallpaper. There is a a mirror and old black and white photograph of a chocolate factory framed in gilt and swirly tan granite-topped tables.
At 2.30 in the morning on Sunday I emailed in the second paper that I have been furiously working on for the past few weeks. I wasn't very happy with either paper (one 4500 words, the other 5500 words). My Critical Theory paper was about 500 words too long and the Semiotics and Poststructuralism paper I just lost interest in (plus, Petersburg is such a loaded book, every sentence symbolic, that I could not possibly do it any kind of justice in the time/space available. I'd needed to have read it again and taken very extensive notes - which is difficult when reading a book is fun). I wish the final papers had reflected how much work I actually put into them but I'm afraid they didn't, as much of what I put work into didn't actually make it into the papers (significant expositions of Peirce, Derrida and Bely). It Will be interesting to see what marks I get. The second paper, on Peircean semiotics, the novel Petersburg by Andrei Bely and Bely's theory of Symbolism struck me rather as an undergraduate effort, though I didn't feel that way about the Derrida/Barthes deconstruction essay. I've got one more 4500 word essay to do (will probably do more with Derrida and Barthes) and then I look forward to having a year to write a thesis.
It has been a good week despite the papers. On Thursday my semiotics professor put the office to some effort to get in touch with me (via Canberra; my mobile was off while I was studying in the library) so she could offer me her spare ticket to opening night at the opera. It was Dvorak - Rusalka - and was an incredibly beautiful and sad production. It was, I think, the best production of an opera I've seen and I suppose my favourite as well - even better than Aida. The British singer, Sally Matthews, who played Rusalka was wonderful, a fine actress and dancer as well as singer. I believed her at every moment (think little mermaid; Rusalka is basically that story in its most tragic form). I feel so privileged to have been able to see that production and will always have a special place in my heart for my professor, despite our intellectual disagreements.
On Friday I met a friend of K's for coffee in the city and enjoyed chatting with her about theses, Bristol, Melbourne, slow food, etc. There was an art project launch going on under Flinders Street Station so I went down for free wine and to see whom I might see. I chatted with a PhD student from CCLS (the centre in which I study) and her friend, caught up with P from Is Not Magazine and L from Sticky. L gave me a heads-up about the Victorian arts grants and Is Not throws fundraising parties, so hopefully something fruitful will come of either meeting. On Wednesday night, after a full day at home, essay writing, I took myself to the pub. I couldn't bear not having spoken to another person all day any longer and by 8.30pm was desparate. I ended up at the Retreat, a florid old pub that I had not been to before. I ordered a Stella, saw a boy sitting by himself and asked him if he was alone. He replied in the affirmative and asked if I wanted to join him. I also replied in the affirmative and sat down at his table. I did most of the work pushing the conversation along and sometimes struggled to catch the words articulated in his very quiet voice, but he proved to be an interesting subject: a chef at Lentil as Anything. I chatted with him for a while then came back home to more work. I was very proud of myself for striking up conversation with a random boy.
On Saturday night was a 13th birthday party for A's cat and Sunday was home and essay writing.
How much lighter I feel without those essays. I felt incredibly stressed by them and worked long hours those last couple of weeks. I know I should get started on the next essay soon to avoid that problem again. I'll give myself this week off, though. I deserve and need it.
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Cafe #17: I wrote this down somewhere...
Date: Tuesday, 24 April 2007, 1.45pm
Location: Kew
Coffee: $3.30, cappucino - good
Reading: Selected Essays of Andrei Bely
I took the tram and train to Box Hill today for an appointment at Family Planning VIC. I am considering changing my birth control from Implanon (the implant) to an IUD. I came all the way out to Box Hill (in zone two!) because I have always gone to family planning for birth control matters. I don't really trust anyone else. I had a good chat with a couple of doctors and have come out with an Implanon prescription if I choose to stick with that method and advice to go to the Royal Melbourne Women's Hospital for the IUD if I choose that method.
I expected to be advised against the IUD but I wasn't. The doctors (a trainee doctor was there as well) took no position. The Mirena IUD has a little bit of progesterone, which can stop one's periods altogether - really appealing. The copper one has no hormones at all - also appealing, and why I am considering an IUD (I haven't experience my natural hormone cycle since I was 21), though probably not as appealing as no period. Either IUD can stay in for 5 years, but the initial insertion is a bigger deal and more painful, requires more appointments than Implanon and I may not like my own hormones. I have time to decide what I want to do.
Following my appointment, I travelled the 109 tram towards Port Melbourne and have gotten off at Kew. There are many nice restaraunts and cafes but all seem quite expensive. I wanted lunch but didn't want to pay more than $10 - so I ended up at a cafe with baclava and coffee instead of lunch. I had hoped a cafe called ??? would have falafel on the menu. No such luck.
??? is a pleasant cafe with an old dark wood floor and heavy green marble-topped tables. There is a tube of multicoloured blinking lights around the windows and the walls are brown, cream-peachy and orange (different walls, different colours). There are bar seats in two windows and small white vases of fake rosebuds and lily-of-the-vally on the tables. It is a classy cafe with a Euroean feel, but I don't feel comfortable staing too long. Plus I have this essay due on Friday...
The baclava was alright - probably quite authentic but very nutmeggy and sweet.
It is a beautiful day outside despite the chilliness of the morning so I shall probably stay out a bit more, hunt for cheap falafel.
Location: Kew
Coffee: $3.30, cappucino - good
Reading: Selected Essays of Andrei Bely
I took the tram and train to Box Hill today for an appointment at Family Planning VIC. I am considering changing my birth control from Implanon (the implant) to an IUD. I came all the way out to Box Hill (in zone two!) because I have always gone to family planning for birth control matters. I don't really trust anyone else. I had a good chat with a couple of doctors and have come out with an Implanon prescription if I choose to stick with that method and advice to go to the Royal Melbourne Women's Hospital for the IUD if I choose that method.
I expected to be advised against the IUD but I wasn't. The doctors (a trainee doctor was there as well) took no position. The Mirena IUD has a little bit of progesterone, which can stop one's periods altogether - really appealing. The copper one has no hormones at all - also appealing, and why I am considering an IUD (I haven't experience my natural hormone cycle since I was 21), though probably not as appealing as no period. Either IUD can stay in for 5 years, but the initial insertion is a bigger deal and more painful, requires more appointments than Implanon and I may not like my own hormones. I have time to decide what I want to do.
Following my appointment, I travelled the 109 tram towards Port Melbourne and have gotten off at Kew. There are many nice restaraunts and cafes but all seem quite expensive. I wanted lunch but didn't want to pay more than $10 - so I ended up at a cafe with baclava and coffee instead of lunch. I had hoped a cafe called ??? would have falafel on the menu. No such luck.
??? is a pleasant cafe with an old dark wood floor and heavy green marble-topped tables. There is a tube of multicoloured blinking lights around the windows and the walls are brown, cream-peachy and orange (different walls, different colours). There are bar seats in two windows and small white vases of fake rosebuds and lily-of-the-vally on the tables. It is a classy cafe with a Euroean feel, but I don't feel comfortable staing too long. Plus I have this essay due on Friday...
The baclava was alright - probably quite authentic but very nutmeggy and sweet.
It is a beautiful day outside despite the chilliness of the morning so I shall probably stay out a bit more, hunt for cheap falafel.
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