Bluesfest acrobats
Seduced perhaps by the immediacy of Instagram, I have been finding it hard to get back to this blog - sort of a blog-lag? (My Instagram name is eclair57, if you want to find me there...)
Other excuses could include: starting a new job recently, and having spent a bit more time out and about having fun...over two long weekends in a row...however, the real added value for me in being away, is being able to put things in perspective, and this is a really helpful skill, for those of us who tend to be anxious at times. Oliver Burkeman describes it well here. Giving new meaning to the devil is in the detail...
Bluesfest good friday lantern parade 1
Very uncharacteristically, I went to Bluesfest at Byron Bay for the first time ever, having almost given up on live music about 20 years ago. Apart from Billy Bragg, of course. Why? Too loud, too annoying to stand up for long periods, too unsure what I really liked. I did start to challenge this negative perspective, by going to Woodford early this year, though. And, come to think of it, Reggae for Recovery three years ago, after the 2011 Brisbane floods.
Well, perhaps this new job can also assist me in my leisure pursuits: inspired by my new colleagues, I decided to plunge into Bluesfest on good friday. It happened to be the 25th anniversary, so the line-up was particularly impressive. S was also willing, which helped.
Bluesfest good friday lantern parade 2
Hard (for me) to capture live music in images, especially on a smartphone, but it was really good fun, and we saw some great acts, including: India Arie, Aaron Neville and Dyson, Cloher and Stringer, three female singer songwriters from Melbourne. Not to mention Rockwiz (a live music t.v. quiz, for the non-Aussie readers), Boz Scaggs and Joss Stone. Phew.
Then the following night, we saw KC and the Sunshine Band, a real blast from the seventies, at the Tivoli in Brisbane. Wow, that was also really fun. At 63, KC has some health issues, but he is still boogie-ing on down. (His best joke was that he was thinking of changing his name to KFC...oh dear!)
I just spent another long weekend away, this time at Springbrook National Park, in the Gold Cost Hinterland: a beautiful rainforest environment. We walked and relaxed, and last night, we saw two planets, Saturn and Mars, and Alpha Centuri (nearest star) through the Springbrook Research Observatory telescope, before the clouds set in for the night. Now that's taking perspective!
Looking at very old trees can have the same effect.
ancient Antarctic beeches at Springbrook National Park 'Best of all Lookouts'
As can this:
Perspective-taking: we can either focus on the detail...
...or the big picture
Blogging also helps a lot with perspective-taking, as do both art and mindfulness, as they all develop capacity to observe and reflect as well as react.
Meanwhile I have been making something special for my old work colleagues: this is a sneak preview.
tree of hearts detail
On
the work front, I am slowly adjusting to my new
environment. I have booked to go to the International Trauma
Conference in Melbourne in August. Trauma, at least, is a given, and a source of continuity.
How comforting!
more later.
