Went into Fortitude Valley to see Love Outside Andromeda at the Troubadour. Okay, for all you Americans, here's a quick description of the above:

Fortitude Valley - Think of it as a bastion of nightlife and queer rights. It's a combination of the freaky nightly party atmosphere of the Greenwich Village and the glowing neon and glitz of a Midtown club scene. I can dance here and not get hassled by straight guys. Get it? Good.

Love Outside Andromeda - Indie rock that focuses on loss of self, the desperation of relationships, and isolation. Yet they really look like they're having a blast live. Sianna, the lead singer, carries the band with her strong lyrics and lush voice. Dual guitars create that layered effect that I've really come to love these days.

The Troubadour - For an $8 Australian cover charge, I got to lounge around on couches, sit on carpet, all under soft, dim, warm lighting, and watch theredsunband and LOA on an intimage, six inch stage. Totally groovy. I wish there were more places in the States like this. I wouldn't hate shows then.

So I get in, and this country / blues / rock band is playing, and at first they're groovy, but they're not very original. They had one good song, and played it like 8 times. I enjoyed at first, but then I just wanted to see Love Outside Andromeda. They set up nice and quick, and every band used the same drum set, which made set up SO much faster.

Finally, LOA came on! Interestingly enough, Sianna took off her pink Converse low-tops and her black socks before the set. She has great stage presence, and LOA had the biggest crowd of the three bands I saw there. In the last song, a punky bouncy number, which was being "road tested," Sianna took the mic and abandoned her guitar and walked, crawled and laid around the floor, generally being the captivating frontwoman she is. I was sitting on a barstool near some couches, in the middle of the floor, dancing and singing along to the old songs from "Something White and Sigmund" that I knew.

After LOA's set, Sianna got hassled by some drunk guy who knocked over a glass of water and stepped on her shoes (which were still off her feet at this point). I was waiting to speak to her, and I was just standing there, messing with the sleeves of my sweatshirt, which was tied around my waist. The guy just kept going on and on, and Sianna at one point made eye contact with me and just waved, acknowledging my existence, as well as her annoyance at that guy. Eventually one of the guy's female friends dragged the dude away.

I just congratulated Sianna. And guess what? She remembered me from the Big Gig at UQ! How great is that! For those of you who haven't been keeping up with the journal, the Big Gig is a big annual show at UQ, and I was the first kid to stand up at the fence and cheer for Love Outside Andromeda (who, at that time, were just Andromeda). I guess that makes an impact, huh?

I asked her when the new CD came out. She said in a few months, and then that she would talk to me after she got done packing her stuff. While she was packing and getting interviewed, two girls from Emmanuel saw me and recognized me. One was Sara, the other was Joy. One of their friends was cousins with Joe, the drummer. Small world. :) Dean and Diana showed up around now.

Sianna came over and we talked, I introduced myself. We chatted a bit, but mostly watched theredsunband. She told me that that jerky guy was really drunk and was touching her waist and stuff. I apologized on behalf of my gender. We chatted some more.

Honestly, I didn't know what to say. What do you say to someone whose music has helped define your experience on a whole damn continent? She was really nice though, and theredsunband was kind of like a flip-flopped White Stripes.

It was the same guitar/vocals/drums thing, except it was the girl on the guitar and the guy on the drums. They both sang, and the girl created a dirge-like, slow wall of sound on some songs, and a faster rock melody on other songs. Unlike the WS, most of the songs were slow with a great intensity. The frontwoman is only about 5'2" but she had great presence. Overall, pretty cool.

Sianna had to leave right away afterwards, to make it to Sydney for a gig tomorrow, but it was nice to meet someone you really respect artistically.

Dean and Diana and I went to go get some food down at the kebab place, then they gave me a ride home, which was really really nice of them.

Tomorrow, Dee's having a party, so that'll be nice. :)

Crap.

Judging from what I heard from studentuniverse.com, I can't change my plane flight at all. That leaves me with a set exit date: June 27th. That's it. Game Over. I can no longer respond to the question, "When are you leaving?" with a vague, unsure, "Late June, early July" with any shred of honesty anymore.

And just once I've settled in here, I feel the imminent pull of leaving. I've built up so many things here, I've met people that I feel like I could be friends with for the rest of my life, and I'm INVOLVED here. Goddammit, the only thing I hate more than leaving is leaving things UNDONE. FUCK.

A month ago, all I wanted to do was go home. No offense to all you guys reading this, but now all I want to do is stay.

Viki told me not to think about how I'm going to lose things, just enjoy them while I'm here. Well here goes nothing. Living in the moment...

The key to acting.

The key to pretending.

The key to belief in the imaginary reality.

That doesn't really exist.

And when you step off that stage, or onto that plane...

It all fades.

Hey guys,

Had the last official meeting of my Performance class for "The Resistable Rise of Arturo Ui." Parting is such sweet sorrow. Even though the cast party hit some serious speed bumps, no one seemed to hold my explosive temper against me, and I didn't want to bring up what I felt were some serious foibles on the part of my fellow cast members. It's like Nadia said: what happens at the party, stays at the party.

I'm going to really miss having that purpose, having those friends around, to perform with. I gave a little speech at the meeting, basically talking about how lost I felt here in Australia after the first few days, and how nervous I was about taking the class and the time committment, but how happy I was in the end that I stuck with it. Having that purpose, that niche, and these friends has been invaluable to my time here.

I'm glad about how it all turned out. This has definitely been the best production I've worked on so far, in terms of final product. The only thing that comes close is Masque, but that was a ver ydifferent experience, and it would almost be like comparing apples and oranges. Maryrose, my director, has said that this has been one of the best groups that she has ever worked with, and that means a lot, particularly from a woman that knowlegdeable and experienced.

Now, on to the Laramie Project. We can't rest on our laurels, now can we? I hope the skills and the knowledge that I bring back with me will be enough to really grab those parts that are offered to me back home. :)