700 bus

I am writing this on a 700 bus going down Warrigal Road from Box Hill Station. I am having a carless week and I have to say – though it might partly just be the novelty because it does take twice as long – I enjoy public transport most of the time. I know I am rare in that. But the option to do other stuff while travelling is valuable. And for no logical reason I also feel safer with my life in the hands of some unknown disgruntled sociopath (a train or bus driver).

I had almost no sleep last night, and I don't knowwhy. I set the alarm to get up early, and then couldn’t sleep for ages when I went to bed around 11:30, and when I woke up at 4 or so I thought ‘this is stupid, I’ll be hopeless tomorrow’ so I turned the alarm off. Then I woke up at 4:44 (I hate that symmetry, it reminds me of when lux flakes congeal like crocodile skin on water, makes my skin crawl) and realised I was never going to sleep again. So I got up, let the cat out the front (he spends the first hour or so of each day acting tough in the front garden often with a local ginger) and let the dogs into the lounge room and made some juice in the juicer (I am still fearful of getting the flu) and read the paper. Beazley’s rating is back at its lowest ebb for christ’s sake. People are so fickle but he possibly gets what he deserves. I left for work around a quarter to 7 (what took me two hours? I can’t say, I must be a bit of a zombie for some of that time). Zombieness can be proven by the meandering way I took to work: I got the bus to Jacana station (I wouldn’t have, but I could see it coming) and then the train to Melbourne Central, then a train to Box Hill, and just missed the bus from Box Hill to work, so I took this 700 instead which is going to get me to the tramline which will ultimately get me to work. The whole thing is a bit scrambled but it’ll be OK.

Last night I finally got to read some of the book of Jonathan Lethem essays Shane gave me for my birthday. It’s marvellous, and I think he is a splendid and imaginative writer. So far I’ve read the first three which I think puts me at about half way through the slender butand (that’s right, I am trying to make ‘butand’ catch on as a word in itself – use it daily please, I’d appreciate it) attractive tome.

Further example of my tiredness: the bus is playing bad, bad pop music (on MMM) that could be from today or twenty years ago, could be anyone but I wish they would die and take their records with them, and out of the corner of my eye I saw some movement and thought – Oh no, someone’s dancing to this music, out on the street (highly unlikely when you think about it, but I’m in no state to think about nothing). Then I realised it was an oldish man washing a window.

Last night I read the one issue of Peace and Quiet, Guy’s follow-up fanzine to Salty and Delicious. I note that in both magazines he thanks ‘The Coalition of Self-Help Groups’ and I wonder what this is. There is also an interview with Julian Williams in there whose house we have been invited to tomorrow to celebrate his birthday – I think his 39^th. He said not many people would be there, because it’s a small place (actually a flat not a house) and so of course I wonder who on earth will be there, because Julian knows a lot of people. It’s flattering to be in the ten. Perhaps he is staggering his celebrations over a week or so and just inviting ten people at a time based on… what? Their interests? The alphabet? Level at which he likes them? (if it’s a week-long event, either way we’re in the middle, which is about where I’d expect to be). I wonder what the hell to get him for his birthday. Luckily I have the option of going to the Animal Liberation op shop this morning, as this bus is going to cross Toorak Road before then, and they sometimes have interesting albums. Trying to buy a present for Julian Williams is about as impossible a challenge as one could imagine. Well, that’s not true, but trying to buy a present he’d like is pretty impossible.

Mia is leaving for the US in a week. I am trying to figure out what I will do while she is away. I have plenty of stuff to write, things I put on the backburner in February when teaching began. So hopefully I will get a lot done. I also became attracted to the idea of seeing all the Star Wars films, now there is a finite amount. I could get the first two prequels on DVD and watch them, then go out and see the current one, then get the rest on DVD as well. The only one I’ve seen is Star Wars and that was in 1977, so I have no recollection whatsoever of it. Jesus what a boring plan. I can’t believe how boring that plan was. I can’t believe I thought about it. I will never go and see a friggin’ Star Wars film. I so much don’t care!!!