#Australia is only a couple hours away from 2024

[stevesbipanic]

@steddiemas Day 31: New Year's Eve

There was always a certain magic in the air on new year's eve. Steve could feel the bubble of excitement in the countdown and it almost felt like a clean slate washed over you as the fireworks brought in the new year. When he was little his parents would often take him to New York for the big celebration, his father often hosting a party. After they stopped returning home as often, Steve brought in the new year with Tommy and Carol getting drunk on his father's whiskey.

1983 he spent alone and hoped that 1984 would be better, it wasn't, well except for the kids coming into his life. 1985 saw him cuddled up in the living room with Robin watching the fireworks on tv, he hoped 1986 would be their year.

"Stevie, do you have plans for new year's?" Eddie had asked at Christmas dinner, Wayne had insisted he joined them when he heard Robin and the Hendersons wouldn't be in Hawkins this year. "Not really, Robin won't be back, I might just turn in early." He was kind of sad to be spending it alone this year.

"No! You've gotta have fun Steve! Come join us here, Rudy a couple doors down always lights up the best fireworks!" Eddie explained excitedly and who was Steve to say no to that face.

Steve had gotten to Eddie's around 8, a pack of beer and a warm smile on his face when Eddie answered the door.

"We've gotta get you your own key one of these days, Stevie, you're here enough." If that warmed Steve's heart that was his business.

Wayne wouldn't be back from work until 11, getting that holiday pay to help them through the rest of winter. The boys didn't mind, curled up on the couch watching movies, laughing and drinking beer. Steve felt a soft buzz from the alcohol but the butterflies were certainly because of the boy sitting across from him.

When Wayne got home they switched the TV to the countdown of the final hour of the year. Eddie moaned about the pop music they played but didn't seem to mind as much when Steve was pulling him up to dance around the trailer. Soon it was time to head outside with all the other neighbours to watch the fireworks.

"Here, Stevie, I know the perfect spot," Eddie said pulling Steve up to lay down on the trailer roof. They could see Rudy setting up the fireworks on the hill, sleepy looking kids still just staying awake gathered with their parents. The radio crackled as the last song finished and the countdown began.

Ten!

Steve could feel the magic start to fill the air, the new year was so close.

Nine!

He hoped that next year they'd all be safe, that next year would be their year.

Eight!

Next year he's going to make sure he spends it with Eddie, this has certainly been his favourite new year's eve.

Seven!

He turns away from looking at the hill to the other boy to find him already looking at him, there's something in his eyes.

Six!

"I'm glad you're here this year, Stevie."

Five!

"I'm glad I'm here with you, Eds."

Four!

Eddie's face is holding a soft smile and his eyes flick down to Steve's lips.

Three!

Oh, that's what that magic was.

Two!

Steve took a chance and lent forward, pressing his lips softly to Eddie's who immediately pushed back against him smiling.

One!

Fireworks went off behind them but they didn't care as they pulled away, twin smiles on their faces. Yeah, 1987 was going to be their year.

Ao3

[charlesandmartine]

Monday 11th November 2024

It's moving on day again today, this time to the Barkly Homestead. Our route has now left the Stuart Highway, and we are heading East towards the coast, but these are small steps. But we are jumping ahead. Just before the junction of Stuart and Barkly is a remnant from the past, one of the eleven telegraph repeater stations. We had planned to visit this place today because it was on our route, so on the advice of the man in the tourist information centre, who said it was open everyday, we expected no impediments to this rudimentary plan. How wrong can one be? It transpired that the site would be open but not the buildings. But that's not a problem because our caravan site has a key said the reception lady. You can't leave the place open, it would be trashed, she said. Just sign here and place a deposit of $20 cash. Well, we don't have cash, we said. Sorry, no key then. So we had to go into town to the post office and draw cash. Then, back to the site and collect key. Go visit Repeater Station 10 km away, return key 10 km, collect twenty bucks, all done! Simple.

The Telegraph Line was completed in 1872, a remarkable feat considering Stuart had only surveyed the route ten years previously. Some 1800 miles in length, 36,000 poles and an awful lot of wire. The project was conceived and planned by Sir Charles Todd, who was by training a mathematician and astronomer working initially at the Greenwich Observatory, but needed telegraph to communicate between observatories. So he was inspired by the concept of linking Southern Australia to India and on to England. The repeater stations received a morse message, then it would be relayed to the next, and so on until it reached London. It would take in the region of 7 hours to send and receive a telegraph message in London from Australia, which made a huge improvement on the previous record of some three months on a package ship.

The buildings had long ago been stripped of any technology, but it was easy to imagine how they were used, from the kitchen and dining areas to the telegraph room, bedroom and storage areas. When the centre finally closed in the 1930s due to technology changes, and then sold in 1951, finding one room being used as a butchers shop! All very interesting and good to see the fruition to our Mr Stuart's endeavours and the works of the ingenious Sir Charles Todd.

Before finally leaving Tennant Creek, we ticked the last box in the Lonely Planet Guide and visited the oldest Catholic Church in the region. Built in 1937 and looking remarkably pretty despite its corrugated iron components and, more importantly, appeared like it was well used. Then, driving briefly back up the Stuart to the intersection with the Barkly Highway, we passed over the Tennant Creek, which gave its name to the town. It is still possible to see the old crossing over the Creek which is a reminder of what the old, unsealed pre-1943 road would have been like where traffic had to go virtually down to the level of the water to cross over. Very much like a ford at home.

Our journey to Barkly Homestead was just 212 km, so we had arrived by 3.30. The decision to stop here for a couple of nights was made out of necessity; it was too far in one journey to make it to our next location. However, there was no choice in the matter of location as this is the only accommodation along this route. A comly little place, home to tourists, tradies, and truckies alike. Very limited in the self-catering department, but we shall cope.

We have really enjoyed our time at Tennant Creek despite all the bad press it had from pretty much all those we spoke to. As a town, it clearly has its problems. There weren't that many people in the post office, but two of them had ASBO tags on their ankles. But a lot of investment has been made in this clean town: large outdoor swimming pool, new library, bowling club, hospital, mens and womens clinics. Let's hope things improve for these people.

[viridianstarlight]

It always blows my mind how God shows his love for us in ways we don’t expect.

The last few months, I’ve really been wanting to join a local Lego group, and as far as I could tell, there weren’t anywhere within a convenient distance. I’ve also been wanting to going to Lego conventions to display some of my custom builds, but it seems the only convention that still happens each year in Australia now is in Melbourne (which is hours away, and somewhere I’ve never been), but applications for next year’s convention (which is in January) were closed months before I even started considering the idea, so I couldn’t display there until 2024.

I’d kinda just given up on those desires for the time being.

And then yesterday, God shows me that he was paying attention to all of that (duh, of course He was), even though I’d never talked to Him about it.

Mum mentioned yesterday that she heard on the radio at work that the festival that’s happening in town this weekend is gonna have a Lego thing happening, but she didn’t know any more.

I looked into it, and it turns out to be a Lego display on Saturday run by a local Lego group. I decided I was gonna at least attend, and hopefully make some connections and find out more about the group, but I decided to email the organiser and ask about displaying with the group. I figured that, since the event is only a few days away, it’d probably be too late for that, but why not try anyway?

I got an email back this morning saying I could join in! They’re gonna be setting up most of tomorrow, and will likely be there until midnight (and building a huge Star Wars set too, which I might join in on). I’ve just finished preparing my builds and getting them in a couple of tubs to take up after work tomorrow so I can set things up.

Oh, and to top it all off? It’s right up the road from where I live at a church.

[decibeldissect]

Sabrina Carpenter's Please Please Please

For those who grew up watching Disney Channel in the last several years, Sabrina Carpenter was certainly no stranger. She played a lead role in Girl Meets World as Maya Hart, the stereotypical rebel teen with a troubled background and best friend to Riley Matthews, daughter of one of the best 90's TV couples, Cory and Topanga Matthews. 

Of course, as with many of the Disney girls who are musically inclined, Sabrina Carpenter was signed to a deal with Hollywood Records in 2013, a label owned by Disney at the time. She recorded four albums in addition to her EP with Hollywood Records - Can't Blame A Girl for Trying (2014), Eyes Wide Open (2015), Evolution (2016), Singular: Act I (2018), and Singular: Act II (2019). These releases grouped with numerous singles and even several holiday song covers grew a huge audience for Sabrina Carpenter outside of her acting, which has only grown, now leaving her as Spotify's 11th most-played artist worldwide in 2024. 

In January 2021, Carpenter announced that she had signed with Island Records of Universal Music Group. Emails I Can't Send was released just two years ago in July of 2022, and when a deluxe edition was later released in March of 2023 with bonus track Feather, it became her highest charting song at the time, claiming the #1 spot on the US Pop Song Charts. 

2023 continued to prove a huge year for Carpenter's career growth when she was invited to open for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour in Latin America, Australia, and Singapore. Earlier this year in April of 2024 Espresso was released, peaking at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and of course, her most recent release  Please  Please  Please is currently sitting at #2.

Carpenter's Please Please Please is the new anthem for those who find themselves drawn to toxic relationships and pray that just this once things could be different. I would bet there's not a person, man or woman, who hasn't found themselves creating excuses and defending their taste to their loved ones, especially in their twenties. The lyricism is relatable but the music video truly takes it one step further. Not only do we see the love interest played by Barry Keoghan, real-life boyfriend of Carpenter since 2023, but it gives a broader view into just how deep some (including myself) will go to defend their partner, no matter how clear it may be for those outside of the relationship. 

The video opens with Carpenter in a jail cell (while Espresso plays over the station speakers, an amusing touch) being released on bail. As Carpenter pauses at the window to collect her belongings and fix her lipstick, we see Barry Keoghan escorted in by two cops. I'll be the first to admit that his smirk as they make eye contact would have me there for visiting hours frequently and that's exactly where we find Ms. Carpenter as well.

Through plastic partitions and jail phones, we see the pair's relationship grow as they smile and press their hands together against the barrier. She picks him up as he is released, presumably on bail himself from Ms. Carpenter (yet another nod to excusing and even enabling the toxic behaviors our partners can exhibit at times) and they embrace before they travel to a restaurant where Carpenter presumes they will share a meal. Unfortunately, Keoghan seems to have other plans and leads her into a walk-in freezer in the kitchen where it suddenly becomes apparent that her new love is in fact dealing with what appears to be the Italian mafia. While Keoghan fights with the men who are presumably responsible for his capture by law enforcement in the background, we see Carpenter in the foreground singing the chorus in a dress as red as the flags she ignores. She tries to comfort him after the fact and attempts to address the wound on his face but he pushes her away. 

We then see him rob a bank as she pleads with him to just stay inside for the day, knowing that nothing good comes from her man when he leaves the house. He's then arrested again and we see the couple share a brief goodbye while she is wrapped in his jacket. She is left to bail him out once again and the reunion is strikingly different from the first. She's fed up with his behavior and does not hide it, at first with her attitude when she picks him up from jail, and at the end of the music video when she handcuffs him while he's on his knees in a parking lot, and places a piece of duct tape over his mouth. She kisses the tape once and walks away. We see him accept defeat and the video ends with him staring into the camera with disappointed eyes and a kiss mark on the tape. 

It's never easy to walk away from a relationship that you want to work and the embarrassment that comes with ending a toxic relationship that you fought for yourself, as well as defended to the people around you can be part of the reason some stay. Sabrina Carpenter has clearly been through the process enough that she can express it both through her words and music video direction in just 4 minutes. 

Of course, as far as the media is aware Sabrina Carpenter and Barry Keoghan are happy in their relationship. I think using him as her love interest is a sweet detail and I hope she does not have to bail him out of jail (or vice versa) any time. 

The music video released on June 6th, 2024 currently sits at 32.5 million views and continues to climb. I do not doubt that Sabrina Carpenter will continue to skyrocket as long as she continues on this streak. Please Please Please might be her top song for now, but with the release of her next album Short n' Sweet looming at the end of August there is certainly no end in sight for her. 

[charlesandmartine]

Monday 25th November 2024

It was an early start to drive the four and a half hours from Hughenden to Townsville. It was sad to leave our little house because it was really comfortable, but Townsville was waiting. The Ford Ranger had to be handed over at the Europcar desk in the airport, and by sidestepping 6 feet left, pick up the keys for a smaller Renault from Avis. Quite simple, really, but they did all get just a little confused as to whether we were picking up or dumping especially when despite the provenance, we had them lined up side by side to move everything from the Ford to the Renault. Anyway, we all laughed about it later. The journey took us through 2 or 3 extremely attractive micro towns and one larger town, Charters Towers. With the clock ticking on the Ford and wishing to ensure we didn't slip into another days rental, we felt spending time exploring would be inappropriate. The young couple we spoke to last evening by Hughenden Lake told us they do a monthly shop in Townsville. We can't imagine driving a round trip of 9 hours to do a bit of shopping, but hey, this is Australia; distance is no object.

From the airport, it was important to get down to the Sealink terminal on the quayside to book ferry tickets for tomorrow to Magnetic Island. With the Renault shouting at us because it was convinced we had a person on the port side, rear seat that hadn't done their seat belt up, and despite trying to explain to it that it was a pretty large heavy bag and not a person that was reclining in that seat position, we drove in the direction of our digs for the night. The hotel is in the; well, at least it's clean, and it's only for one night after all, category. And we do get breakfast, oh and it's very reasonably priced.

Townsville is a very nice-looking city, and once we had lugged the very minimum amount of luggage from the Renault that we could get away with for one night, down a set of wobbly wooden stairs bolted to the back wall of the hotel, and in through a back door leading to our little room, we went out on the town for a bit of a fling. Well, a beer on the waterfront anyway. This was easier said than done. We walked about a mile along the sea front, expecting at any moment to come across a whole string of bars and restaurants. Nothing. Then there was the Seaview Hotel, with a partial view of the sea. Well, they did have a bar. The only visible alternative was the Souvlaki bar, which didn't sound like the sort of place we had in mind. So, partial Seaview it was. When we shared our hostelry lack of enthusiasm experience with our hotel proprietor, we got the standard reply (see Manly), well, it's Monday! Oh, how we miss already those outback cowboy bars. Rough, yes, but they have a charm about them, and the bar staff and clientèle are always ready to have an interesting chat and a laugh. We are back in civilisation again now, and there's not the time for such personal touches.

When we asked said proprietor about things to do on Magnetic Island, she was most excited to inform us about the regular bingo sessions. Hmm.

The fantastic deal we had in the outback continues here. 33% extra free on a bottle of Bancroft SB. It would be rude not to buy some.

Ferry tomorrow leaves on the tide at 13.00 for the 40-minute crossing to our island home for the week. Absolutely, everyone says this is a beautiful island also known for its koalas. Clearly, this level of enthusiasm makes one extremely sceptical, but we are nonetheless excited about going.

ps. It's lovely to see the sea again after some weeks in the outback.