Mount Typo, Victoria Superthread

[Cactus Annie]

In the advert on interference it said to avoid banana's. Banana's are good, full of potassium

 

[liamcool]

The thing I love about History is that it is a democratic discipline, moreso than most others. I fear that some academic history goes right up its own arse, and I strongly disapprove. History does not have, nor does it need, any specialised language or framework, and it should be as comprehensible to a popular or lay audience as it is to a scholarly one. I approach History as a writer and a storyteller; I want to construct narratives that are entertaining, meaningful, and instructive. Above all I prize good writing, and except in the hands of a talented few, theory is the death of good writing. Plus it usually just leads to generalised wank that lacks specificity or evidence. (I immediately stop taking seriously anybody who mentions Foucault; it's normally just a disguise for "I don't actually have any evidence to prove this so I'm going to namedrop instead".)

I don't know if I agree. I know that the stuff I write is pretty methodologically complicated (who the fuck uses psychology and history, seriously?) but I've never had any problem getting it across to a wider audience. I think it depends on the audience you're writing for; if I'm writing an article for Rethinking History I'm going to put myself across very differently than if I'm writing a monograph or talking at the bar.
I like Foucault, but part of that is because I've had to read certain works by him a half dozen times at this point, and so I've been able to figure out his language based on repeated exposure.
I imagine how you feel about Foucault is how I feel about Derrida, say.

We've got a number of postgrad courses that have been introduced recently that are inter-disciplinary. How are yours working out? I began early enough to dodge ours, but the general feeling is that they struggle to really cater to the breadth of student expertise and interest.

I did an interdisciplinary Cognitive Science class last semester, which was basically an intensive reading course on the line between history and cogsci; so I got to basically go to PhD classes, present a couple of papers and then write papers on that intersection. I really enjoyed it (although it was insanely difficult.) I also like all of that interdisciplinary bullshit; I've started to think of myself more as a memory theorist than as a historian at the moment, because that's where my work seems to be dragging me, kicking and screaming. Have my second class for the feminism class today. Will see how it goes.

Ah, we've never had anything like a reading week. Most Melbourne unis have a fortnight's break mid-semester; the University of Melbourne however has just a one-week break in exchange for longer summer/winter holidays. We used to have a fortnight break in second semester only, but this year it's just one week (and not until after week nine, the fuck?!). We have a summer semester - and even a handful of winter intensives - but there's no defined length. Each course determines its own teaching schedule for those. Some begin in mid-January; others not until February, by which point the teaching phase of the earliest courses has already finished. I like it from the perspective of being able to work before semester one and get some money, but we offer very few History courses so getting tutoring is hard. As it stands, most casual teaching staff have essentially no chance of earning a living over December/January.

I like the reading weeks in that I'm usually reasonably caught up on where I'm reading at by those points, and so it's good to just get a bit of a breather and go and socialise or some shit. I know Sydney has their week breaks either very early or very late (I believe it's after week 9 in Sem 1 and after week 4 or 5 in Sem 2?) which I think is utterly pointless; you break the routine and can't build it back up. For us we have four first year history classes which PhD students have the opportunity to tutor; even then enrollments are about 100 per subject so the amount of classes available is very small. Lecturers typically take about half the classes in that situation too. There is basically no tutoring option available for second year, third year, postgrad; I've had a PhD student as a tutor ONCE in history. By comparison, in philosophy I had a lecturer tutor me ONCE, in my entire undergrad degree. And that is through sheer laziness on the department's part; the tutor are sometimes taking three or four classes while the tenured lecturers haven't taught since 2011.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Anyone wanna hear me rant about my future and general confusion/hatred of the industry I'm gonna be a part of for the next some decades, be my guest.

 

[bono_212]

Please, continue.

 

[cobl04]

My industry's suckitude grows exponentially all the time.

The founder of Amazon just bought the Washington Post.

 

[cobl04]

In better news Tony Martin is at The Shelf next week. As is Greg Fleet. Gonna have to try and stop the Late Show/Get This fangirl in me from getting out.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Please, continue.

OK so I don't even know where to BEGIN, I mean it's like just when I feel like I've passed a big wave and things get in the clear and I'm doing pretty good, my own mind starts messing shit up and getting a way. I was at an exhibition the other day, where the only two other people were some rich couple incessantly babbling about what to buy (mainly one half in particular) and you know, it doesn't even matter if they were purely concerned with formalistic qualities, or the name of the artist, or if they understood the conceptualisation behind the work, what matters is that this is how artists get money, entirely through 1percenters with way too much dosh to spare, buying frankly useless shit with money that could be going somewhere better, artists can say as much as they want about the world in their work about how messed up the world us, but ultimately, we're keeping the world messed up, we're the ones who have to pander to rich people making shit that doesn't mean anything without explaining it in an elitist language most people don't understand, we're the ones with this 500 year old system of artist and purchaser that's never going to change anytime soon, we can be name dropped in a Jay-Z song but most of us will still have to fight just to eat cornflakes for dinner unless we get another job, and for what?? to make some bullshit point with something that nobody's going to like, but will at most 'get'? The third and fourth years in my school, myself included, have just put on a fundraising exhibition full of cheap, purchasable works that go towards a later, bigger exhibition at the end of the year. I made a few of them, in a cartoony inkwash style that I utilised sometimes before I even went to school, just illustrations, really, because I felt like doing something different that would appeal to the average viewer but I probably wouldn't be able to get away with at a contemporary art school, and well lo and behold all that stuff sold within the first hour of the exhibition opening, and yes I am very proud of that and happy but at the same time terribly confused because everyone came up to me being all like yowza yowza why isn't this your current art practice? and motherfuck, this WAS what I was doing before I came to art school! If this is what's getting the best reception, and not the sound and video stuff that I've been making this year, why am I even here?! For some lines on my resume that I'll be paying for for the rest of my life?! Just when I was starting to feel that it was all working out, that I was going in the right direction, I feel pulled back again. I always felt too low brow for the contemporary art world, but now I feel two high brow for the popular culture world. I say all this bullshit about the art world, but when someone outside of it speaks of us being all pretentious wanks, I tell them they're wrong. When someone claims an illustration is an artistic masterpiece, I cringe, even if I do admire it. And yet I don't feel right or certain about any of this, anything I've said. I speak in one language and think in another. How appropriate that my current practice deals primarily with liminality! Thank you for reading, god bless. I'm not even drunk, just angry. Not even the Spice Girls can cheer me up at this moment.

 

[bono_212]

Art is always going to be in the eye of the beholder. I'm always going to enjoy paintings and art that aren't "difficult", because I'm just a highly art-minded person.

The simple fact is, what you're doing, even if it feels like it's just for a couple of lines on a resume, is going to make you feel better about yourself in the long-run. I don't believe that's bullshit at all, either. I feel like, when I think I've never accomplished anything in my life, that, no it's not true, I've managed to go to college, and some people may scoff, but it's worthwhile to me .

You should do what makes you happy, Bonnie, not what you think you should be doing. The stuff that sells for the high prices that you're talking about is the stuff I'm saying that I don't care much for. And the people who bought your ink drawings are likely not a part of the 1%. They're the people who just enjoy nice things, beautiful things. And that's why your stuff sold so quickly. It's appealing to the average eye. I hope that doesn't make you think I'm saying you're average. Far from it. It means you have a gift that appeals to many, and not just a few who "get" it.

It doesn't sound like that's what you want to hear, but it's what I've taken from what you're saying, anyways.

 

[liamcool]

Feminism class today was both awesome and awful. An hour of inspired discussion that suddenly ground to stop when one student told another to "put a gag in it for ten minutes", and then discussion ground to a fucking halt.
Yeah, fuck you too.

s, Bonnie. I don't really have an adequate response other than that at the moment that sort of responds in the way you deserve, so. Maybe tomorrow.

 

[Alisaura]

Correct use of punctuation is even better than bananas.

Bonnie, I will read your rant as soon as time permits, but for now,

 

[cobl04]

I sympathise with you Bonnie. I think I got your point pretty clearly, and believe me, it is totally okay to be frustrated when the low-brow is more popular than the high-brow.

The majority of our publications, since we merged with another company, are real estate-based. When I first started back in September 2011 we were much more independent, we had regular meetings on what stories would go on the covers and what strong news stories would fill the other pages. The workplace was much happier. But real estate advertising brings in the money.

 

[Axver]

The worse something is, the better it sells. Just look at my line of work - fucking Gavin fucking Menzies' fucking 1421 has probably sold more copies worldwide than every book authored by literally every historian at the University of Melbourne combined.

 

[Alisaura]

Spoiler

I have no idea if this is in any way relevant to what you're saying Bonnie (and I totally understand why you're conflicted, I think), but I did geology at uni because I had a naive ambition to be a palaeontologist and because it was interesting and I thought it was cool. I spent four years of my life and large amounts of my parent's money (maybe that makes me/them a 1-percenter, I dunno) getting that degree, but at the end of it I was fed up with uni and went to Canberra and was unemployed then had a bunch of shitty jobs. If things had gone differently I might have ended up working for a mining company, earned mega-bucks and bought a house outright by now, but I never wanted that (well, I never wanted to work for a mining company, I wouldn't say no to mega-bucks otherwise). And I can't pretend that I deliberately chose to direct my promising career away from the evils of mining and the lure of said mega-bucks... I just didn't have the sufficient interest or drive or whatever else other people who follow their passions have. And honestly, I never worked that hard at uni except for a couple of subjects that really caught my interest. And now I have a 9-5 office job and I have to pursue my creative interests in my spare time, except I still don't have a lot of drive or passion so I guess I'll just keep doing this until I retire with hopefully enough money to do what the fuck I want for 15-20 years if I'm lucky.

So, I admire your passion, which is probably part of why that stuff upsets you. And I certainly sympathise with brains messing shit up. Here I was thinking I'm happier (ie, less miserable) now than I have been for years, but then I have a bad week and two worse days and I totally lose my shit and have a breakdown while driving into the city because of, (among other more complex things) traffic.

Anyway, I'm exhausted and my head hurts and fed up with that stupid Work Safe commercial and all the election bullshit that's filling up my letter box (what the hell is with those sneaky postal vote applications that your local members want you to send to them so they can get your personal details? Send them straight to the AEC, folks), and no one needed to know all that anyway, but hey, welcome to the internet.

tl;dr - Bonnie.

 

[bono_212]

I totally feel that miserable feeling about the job, Ali. Which is why I finally managed to quit mine. I quit my job, and I'm not going to give up on doing what I want to do, even if it means years of being broke, because dammit, I saw what it was like to suffer through a job I hated and I can't ever do it again.

 

[The Sad Punk]

Thanks for the comments, guys - sorry that I was pretty unclear with what I was saying, because it's not that I'm specifically against either the high brow or low brow, it's more that I don't know where I fit in any more and have major issues with how art is categorised, and the inpenetrable elitism, pretentiousness and hypocrisy that seems to swamp the upper echelon of contemporary art (although that could just be my opinion of critics and collectors rather than the artists themselves). And Alison, sorry if I sounded disparaging at all about those with wealth, it was more that I was frustrated on the industry's absolute reliance on a very small amount of people, and the pure luck and chance in succeeding in it.

I do feel better since I made that post, though - I've been living alone the past few days and... kind of loving it? It's just really great to be independant and I get to do more stuff I like and blast music while cooking and exercising and I can stay up late playing videogames and so forth. The feeling probably won't last, especially with deadlines and things approaching, but it's nice right now.

 

[liamcool]

This place is insanely quiet these days. Have we actually...run out of discussion topics?

 

[cobl04]

I fucking love Big Brother.

Is it essential viewing? No.

But I'll always watch it if it's on and I've got nothing better to do.

It could, however, be much more interesting if people were selected upon things beyond the surface.

 

[Axver]

Big Bother is pretty much the worst. I admit I watched a fair bit of the first season but I can't believe it still exists.

This place is insanely quiet these days. Have we actually...run out of discussion topics?

Personally, I'm just busy as hell.

 

[cobl04]

GRUEN & THE CHASER lS ON!!!!!!!

 

[Axver]

Man, Gruen pulled out all the stops - and E.V.B. Sampson and Henry Heng BOTH made appearances! That was a classic. I've been wary before the last couple of seasons, wondering when Gruen's brilliant streak will finally end, but this bodes well.

The Chaser was pretty pedestrian though (don't tell Charlotte). The Bob Katter and Craig Emerson spots were inspired moves amidst a whole lot of "here's a cheap joke voiceover with a slightly funny picture we found". They can do much more cutting satire than that. Hopefully they'll pick up steam as the series progresses, but let's face it, this isn't 2007 any more.

 

[cobl04]

The pitches were brilliant on Gruen tonight, which was great. No idea who Sampson or Heng are.

What do you mean by not 2007 anymore?

 

[Axver]

The pitches were brilliant on Gruen tonight, which was great. No idea who Sampson or Heng are.

What do you mean by not 2007 anymore?

E.V.B. Sampson you should know well from Charlotte's old avatar/the clip they played at the start with "my son, Hugh". Henry Heng is that hilarious Family First jingle about "Henry Henry let's all vote for Henry/he's got a family". And I actually thought the pitches were the weakest part. The ALP one was particularly mediocre in terms of the intended brief.

I mean "not 2007 any more" in terms of that's when their political satire was both at its most cutting and its most influential. The second series of the War on Everything was undoubtedly their creative high water mark. Most episodes they made in 2006-07 are classics of Aussie comedy.

 

[Axver]

So who here thought the new album forum could possibly get any worse than it had been in the dead time between previous albums?

Watching two wankers take each other down has some pretty good entertainment value though.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Now it's a shitfight over whether The National's singer is good or bad.

 

[Axver]

What a shock, Schloop-a-loop yet again proves himself incapable of reasonable discussion!

It's a shame because he's not entirely wrong about The National either. I don't know what this forum or RYM sees in that band.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

I don't know much about them other than the fact that one of their new songs had a video which was a remake of a Russian band's from about 20 years ago.

 

[The Sad Punk]

That whole damn forum and everything in it is the dumbest of the dumb.

& that's a fact.

 

[cobl04]

Truth.

 

[Vlad n U 2]

I'm going to say that B&C ain't all that perfect either.

 

[bono_212]

So...what's up?