Two nights in Sydney

Read half of this. Like the later Adrian Mole diaries, when he's an only semi-successful adult and the joys of his youth aren't quite the same, it is bittersweet.

Met CM at his CBD workplace, so I could stash my bag. This was the first photo I took. I guess when JA became free, they blacked over that part. Long may he stay so!

I was craving potato wedges, so we went to the 3 Wise Monkeys pub. Served with the traditional sweet-chilli sauce and sour cream, they satisfied the hankering.

Next was the Nat. Maritime Museum, for the "Treasures Of The Viking Age: The Galloway Hoard" exhibition. I wanna steal the idea below for an RPG module!

Afterwards, cutting through the Entertainment Centre due to rain, we spotted this vending machine containing only high-vis vests. Wish I'd checked the price.

Bought a Pokemon card I "needed" from Pidoof, then we headed to gaming bar Fortress Sydney for a pint of the house lager in faux-Medieval surroundings.

Upstairs from FS is the JF. "S/T/O" is a video diary of a Japanese artist's journey to Cowra, site of an infamous WW2 POW uprising. We found it poetic and moving.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowra_breakout

I crashed at CM and AM's place for the two nights. Our first dinner was at a Chinese restaurant which recently opened in their street. I opted for a simple beef dish.

C. always has new figures. This fig of Motoko Kusanagi from "Ghost In The Shell" he 3D printed (using resin) and painted himself. Commercial quality, I reckon.

Because none of us had seen it, we sat through the following. Barely scifi and one of the worst movies ever made. Even so, LN's antics raised the odd chuckle.

On the second day, I arrived in Randwick an hour early for a medical appointment. Spent it on the campus of my former uni. This is their resident bilby sculpture.

Having gotten the thumbs up from my specialist, I ate a Subway sub. Then: WW1 postcards exhibition at the War Memorial. The librarian shared a few cool stories.

"Avatar: Forms Of Vishnu" at the Art Gallery Of NSW was impressively large and full of wonders, although it left me with more questions than it answered! 

I'd planned to spectate on park Chess at this point, but was too tired. Returned to the lads' joint. Dinner was Turkish fare at Sahara, Burwood, a past fave of mine.

With fancy ice-creams for dessert, we watched actual scifi (shorts) on the Dust channel on YouTube 'til it was time to call stumps. I trained it home the next morning.

Herkermer Homolka

COMIC COVER (& JOURNAL COVER) OF THE WEEK

Multiple names listed for "U/R/G", so I'll just say, "Well played, team." The "Totoro" cov is plush!

SONG OF THE WEEK

"Hugget I Sten" By Hugorm feat. Ghita Norby (Denmark).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Qy0MSvuACY

Commended >>> "Voice" by The Oral Cigarettes (Japan), "I Can Feel Your Solar System" by R. Missing (US), "Candy Blue Magic Hole Flip Phone" cover/remix by Azikazin Magic World (South Korea).

RANDOM TRPG-RELATED REMINISCENCE OF THE WEEK

As a "D&D" nut in the '80s, you met a lot of adversarial DMs. Even good DMs didn't take much pushing to begin issuing dire warnings. There was a term for when a DM took a dislike to and repeatedly - unfairly - injured one PC: wandering damage. Like...they were the character the burly tavern bully targetted without cause or who triggered the swinging-blade trap despite being third in line or whose horse decided to buck them off when a group of kobolds approached. I remember once JH was DM-ing. He was annoyed with DP for some reason and had started to make things hard for his chara. Our party was in a city, so there didn't appear to be any imminent danger...then a literal giant began walking towards us. He seemed friendly, though - the cityfolk showed no signs of alarm. The giant walked over to D.'s PC, dropped trou and crapped on his head from above. "D&D" was a wild frontier in the '80s.

Citywide misting system

As someone with no knowledge of the case, I found the docofilm "Inside The Trustor Scandal", about a super-dodgy Swedish company takeover and cash siphon from the '90s, pretty fascinating. As you'd expect with high finance, most of those involved are unlikeable, but compellingly so. Don't switch off when the end credits roll - there's a little more to come...

Sherlock Holmes And The Suspicious Brown Stain

COMIC COVERS OF THE WEEK

"Black Tower: The Raven Conspiracy #1" by ACO (Alex Cal Oliveira) is classic Vertigo.

Fine lines, fine lady from Nathan Szerdy for the front of "Justice League Unlimited #22". 

TRACK OF THE WEEK

"Deadtome" by Mgna Crrrta (US). Deliberately rough-edged yet dreamy electropop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grvRzqb1s9M

And, if I was still doing runners-up, "Net" is a beaut return to form for Otyken (Russia).

RANDOM TRPG-RELATED REMINISCENCE

This goes back to when I was running "D&D" on Saturday arvos at a local store. We were packing up for the day when one lass's dad arrived to collect her. She asked me if we could please keep playing for a bit so he could try the game. He seemed eager, too. I said, "Sorry, I can't stay, I've got some people from the 'Doctor Who' club coming over tonight." While that was true and there was a bus to be caught, I must have sounded like such a self-important nerd! I should have taken the time to explain I was moving house and the people in question were a nice young couple who were doing me a favour by taking a heap of gear I no longer wanted. Think before you speak, Addster.

Crabby patties

Is your Fantasy Premier League team ready for tomorrow? As usual, I decided I couldn't afford Erling Haaland. As usual, I'll likely regret not including the Norwegian ace.

Four-part series. Comes across like a mix of tourism-board hype, potted history and - believe it or don't - "Hitchhiker's Guide" entry. Truthfully, I'm watching for the excellent drone footage of ancient ruins.

Not the worst new Commander from "The Hobbit". Maybe a mite slow. The trick with Thranduil is finding the right ratio of legendary elves to the standard Sultai power cards.

Load-bearing property

The seven types of individual/group you encounter at the bottle bank:

1. SPONSORED SOT

This person, usually a ruddy-faced older gentleman, exclusively guzzles a particular brew, e.g. Tooheys Extra Dry, and brings numerous matching cartons of those to recycle - and nothing else.

2. CAR CLEANER

No trolley, box or bag. No preparation at all, in fact. Just an armful of receptacles gathered (and the straws removed) during an impromptu cleaning out of their messy vehicle in the car park.

3. FAMILY FRENZY

Parents and kids. Possibly a waggy-tailed dog. Much patient instructing of the younger members. Every possible sort of glass, metal, plastic and cardboard recyclable container used at home. 

4. EVENT EXTRAS

Industrial-strength plastic bags chockers with beer and soft-drink empties. There's no mucking around for these men/women in matching shirts, earning a bonus after their latest sporting fixture.

5. LONE LODGIST

They just now drank it and aren't too proud to recycle a single item and accept a voucher for a mere 10c. Means the next Coke or whatever will be cheaper, anyway. More common than ya think.

6. NEWBIE NIGEL/NIGELLA

This person has never been to the bottle bank before. They are a bit daunted and unsure of what goes where. They may ask for help, providing a chance to do your good deed for the day.

7. MIX MASTER

The opposite of the SPONSORED SOT, this saddo tries to buy a different beer, cider or soju every time they visit the grog shop. Well, at least the contents of my...er, their trolley are colourful.

Krudler

 
In a mysterious region known for spaceship-wrecks, Nine and Rose - voiced by Eccleston and Piper, not soundalikes - encounter a strange band of cartographer knights on a quest for a lost mapping vessel. When they find the legendary ship, though, its various systems are still operating and, far more surprisingly, a member of the original crew has survived the intervening centuries - but is now *desperate* to leave. "Dark Tides" is atmospheric, fast-paced and doesn't let up. I've already listened to it twice since purchase. The characterisations of The Doctor and Ms Tyler are spot on, with both given some suitably amusing lines. As for negatives...I'll simply say there are connections and developments rather similar to those in previous Big Finish audios. Considering BF have produced THOUSANDS of tales, those familiar elements can probs be forgiven.

The knight's tour guide

A shy, insecure NEET learns how to move forward in life after joining a baking club full of thoroughly nice chaps and chapettes. On a deeper level, this manga-ish GN is about mental hardship, the difficulty of sharing your feelings and the importance of emotional support. It's sweet and sad, but mostly sweet. Contains baking recipes with instructions. Packs a lot into its 132 pages. There's a long wordless sequence that works very well. Deserves to be mentioned alongside other worthy UK titles like "The Nao Of Brown".