Mister Brisbane: Driving me crazy
Best and baddest, Batman, books and burlesque.
I’ve just started driving again after a long period without a car (that’s my shiny new red Suzuki Swift above), so I’ve been discussing motoring with online friends and followers. One discussion I had on Twitter was about long-distance drives, and it was revealed to me that Rest and Revive stations are still a thing, and that the roads in central Queensland now have signage with trivia questions on them.
I posited whether anybody still played the game that entertained me as a child, where you get points for spotting certain things, such as white horses, old men with beards and Volkswagens. Do people still play driving games or, as some folk in the country do, conduct family singalongs during long-distance trips?
Tune in to the Mister Brisbane radio show on Reading Radio at 1296AM and on DAB+ in Brisbane at 6.30pm on Tuesday nights. It’s also available as a podcast. Just search for “Mister Brisbane” on your favourite player or follow this link.
GOOD AND BAD
During my recent stint curating the @WeAreBrisbane Twitter account, I asked people what the best and worst things about Brisbane were. It got a lot of responses that were quite revealing. Here are just a few. From Dave, “Best: Fantastic views, some very cool venues. Worst: For its size, travelling around it is positively tragic.” Dobbo said the people and lifestyle were the best, and “woeful public transport in the outer areas” was the worst. He added than he “should have bought closer to rail and we should have kept the trams back in 1969”. Spencer (not my friend and colleague Spencer Howson) said: “The best thing is the atmosphere. Just the vibe of the place! The worst? It’s far too far away from me, here in the UK!” Robb said the best thing was “the weather, but also the weather. The winters are brilliant but the summers, not so much”.
Martin: “Best: more laid back than southern capitals. Worst: the humidity in summer.” Rae: “Best: the size is just about right for a while. The people. Worst: the humidity, definitely. Then job prospects (could be bigger). Then the road and public transport layout (could rely less on the city).” Natasha: “Best: The greenspaces. I really love how green Brisbane is, how many parks and gardens we have, it makes it a beautiful place to live. Worst: The UV. During the day you can’t go outside without SPF50+ for more than five minutes without burning.” Kim: “Everything (except midges)! Worst thing: Midges — silent assassins in low-lying creek areas”. And Dale noted: “Best: the lifestyle, weather 9-10 months of the year, the way the river is used, inner city hilly burbs. Worst: the humidity, public transport outside the inner parts, job opps.”
PERFECT 10?
A couple of years ago, I stayed in a hotel somewhere in South East Asia and, a few weeks after that stay, the hotel sent me a survey. I dutifully filled it out, giving what I thought were excellent marks. For most questions about the stay, I gave them 9 out of 10. A few days after that, I received an email from the hotel manager apologising that my time with them was not perfect and asking if there was anything he could do to make things right. I was quite taken aback. I wrote back and said that everything was great but it wasn’t perfect, because nothing is, and that’s why I gave a 9 out of 10. My attitude is that rating anything 10 out of 10 allows no room for improvement, and everything can be improved.
When I bought my new car a few weeks ago, the dealer told me I could expect to receive an email survey from the vehicle manufacturer. He implored me to rate everything 10 out of 10, otherwise he and his principal would receive a “please explain” missive from head office in Japan, where the expectation is that their customers should be 100 per cent satisfied. I’ll play along, but I’m not happy about it. It seems to me to be part of a trend where everything has to be either this or that. Is there no room for nuance any more?
BY THE BOOK
I’ve been going through personal possessions that have been in storage for decades, and I’ve come across hundreds of books. But they weren’t all packed together, they were here, there in every where in boxes full of miscellaneous items. The four books pictured above were grouped together for some reason: some short stories about Batman by well-known authors (including Isaac Asimov), some crime fiction, a collection of plays by Anton Chekov, and the Norton Anthology, which contains many of the finest poems every written in English. I’ve heard it said that “you are what you read”. What does this say about me? And what would a snapshot of your reading say about you?
By the way, as I write, the Batman book is selling on Amazon for $98.73! Mine is not for sale.
GETTING IT RIGHT
A visit to the Brisbane City Council website has revealed interesting (to me, at least) facts about our lord mayor. Apparently his official title is “The Right Honourable, the Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Councillor Adrian Schrinner”, but his preferred title is “Adrian Schrinner, Lord Mayor” and, should you need to write to him, we’re advised that “the correct salutation is: My dear Lord Mayor”. Now you know.
ON STAGE
Cabaret show Club Cremorne is returning to QPAC from January 28 to March 6. Hosted by comedian Damien Power, it promises “a world of laughs, lust, loops, and looseness”. Expect comedy, circus acts, burlesque, music and more. Details are here.
FEEDBACK
Noel, an actor, said he remembers providing street theatre characters for Ashtons and Grundys. Also, on the city of origin, he notes he was born in Nambour but moved to Brisbane when he was three, and loves “Banana Bender”. Evan said: “I still tell people I’m from the Gold Coast, even though I only spent 19 years there. The previous 25 years were in Newcastle.” He also noted that despite it hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2018, “I still get asked where the Gold Coast is”. “ ‘Just south of Brisbane’, I say. ‘I know Brisbane’ is always the response.”