Things keeping us sane during lockdown Part II
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Well, here we are again. Confined to our homes and in search of happy distraction amid the turmoil of a global pandemic (and a climate change Code Red, Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, earthquake in Haiti, we could go on…).
It feels really important right now to focus on the good and not succumb to the overwhelm of overwhelming news out there. So we thought we’d share what’s keeping members of the HerCanberra team sane. Let’s kick off with our Associate Editor Emma Macdonald.
What I’m watching
If Tiger King defined the lockdown tastes of our 2020 experience, then The White Lotus will define this one. The setting is a luxe tropical hotel in Hawaii. The cast is an ensemble of flawed rich Americans and an underclass of staff. And someone is dead. Everything about this show is binge-worthy and brilliant, from the dialogue to the cinematography to the plot. The only drawback is that it kind of makes you feel ashamed to be human.
Similarly, Luxe Listings Sydney shines a spotlight on what not to aspire to. In the most completely addictive way. Ever. Venal, blood-thirsty real estate agents and their various vacuous hangers-on cavort around Sydney’s exclusive property market. The house porn is next level and the shameless behaviour and naked ambition of the estate agents really does make for great TV. The only hero is D’Leanne, the hardworking mum-of-two whose genuine empathy shines through and who keeps her creepy male competitors in line like a boss.
The Newsreader is an Aussie-made ABC series that takes us back to the ’80s. Dale and Helen are covering the events of the time (think the Challenger spacecraft explosion, Lindy Chamberlain, and Chernobyl) in a blatantly sexist and pressure-ridden newsroom. There’s big hair, bigger shoulder pads and politically incorrect invective at every turn. What a brilliant hit of nostalgia and heart. Highly recommend.
What I’m Reading
Trent Dalton had me at Boy Swallows Universe and I am completely consumed by his second novel, All Our Shimmering Skies. I’m taking my time with it because my heart breaks with every page describing the life of young Molly Hook. She’s a gravedigger’s daughter living in Darwin in 1942 when Australia is attacked by Japan. Molly’s mum dies and she escapes the horrors of an abusive and alcoholic father and uncle. Trent writes of terrible things with such tenderness it’s actually hard to keep going at times.
I was truly thrilled to see our own local writer Emma Batchelor win the Vogel this year with an autobiographical account of her male partner’s transition to female. I haven’t wanted to start her book until I can clear some mental space to give it all the attention it deserves. I also need to finish Trent Dalton first, and as I explained some nights it’s so heartbreaking I can only get a few pages in. But I know Now That I See You is going to be an incredibly personal journey and I cannot wait to get started.
What I’m Listening To: Music
Last lockdown we started at A in our record collection, and it is with some pride that I can report back we are still going with it. Ironically we finished at XTC (British new wave band of the 70’s/80’s) just the week before last and now we are indulging the “best of” albums.
I can assure you at this stage it is very hit and miss. Hit Pix ’88 Volume II has not actually stood the test of time, truth be told. But it is nice to finish what we started and usually I have a cocktail in my hand while we listen, so that helps.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CPc25L4hD_K/?utm_medium=copy_link
What I’m Listening To: Podcasts
I am well and truly an Em Rusciano fangirl. I absolutely love her energy, intelligence, irreverence, and desire to suck the marrow out of pop culture life. The Emsolation Podcasts started in last year’s Melbourne lockdown, so it’s fair to say Em knows her way around relatable pandemic content during these unprecedented (but also now totally precedented) times. Her divine bestie Michael Lucas adds a calming influence.
What I’m Eating
What gets eaten in lockdown doesn’t count, right? So if I tell you this potato bake with a triple cream truffle Brie stuck in the middle of it is absolutely the best thing I have tasted, you will cook it yourself, right? Here is the recipe (you’re welcome).
I am also religiously referring to this list of local restaurants doing lockdown takeaway, in order to make wise choices about where to turn when the thought of standing in the kitchen making one more snack for one more hungry child makes me want to stick my head in the oven.
What I’m Drinking
Which brings me succinctly to what I am drinking. All the gin and all the wine. But specifically The Canberra Distillery’s Sloe Gin and Dawning Day’s The Fabio Chardonnay, which is the butteriest and best of them all.
What lights up our lives
Last lockdown we spoke a lot about getting an animal. My then 10-year-old made a PowerPoint presentation about how a fluffy kitten would improve all of our outlooks. It wore even the most reluctant member of the household (dad) down.
This lockdown, our beloved one-year-old Ragdoll has not known what to do with himself now that we are all home and ready to worship him 24/7 . He goes from room to room to check on us and I haven’t managed to finish a story without him coming to sit on my lap at some stage.
Thanks Cosmo for lighting up our lives. You are the brightest and floofiest spot in a dark time.
