while you wait for the others

Seriously, how good are grizzly bear? The layering of vocals are so beautifully full. The lyrics are interesting and (i think) relevant. They are playing southbound in January. Hopefully I won't be too sunburnt to enjoy them.

I am currently also really enjoying this one song by carla bruni (yes, the french president's wife!) it is called Quelqu' un m'a dit. It is on the 500 days of summer soundtrack. I like her natural, laid back vocals. French pop is so much better than American. Too bad Sarkozy doesn't feature in the (boring/awkward) video.

eurovision highlights

Last night I watched the Eurovision semi finals with some friends. Since I am the only one without European born parents I pick my favourite based essentially on how much I laughed during the performance. Ridiculous lyrics, dance movements and costumes also have an essential role to play.

My favourite this year is HUNGARY! I want to be this man's best friend.

jazz maverick

This is silly. I woke up this morning and I was good at jazz. Really! All of a sudden I can write jazz songs. This is excellent, I am basically Howard Moon.

On an unrelated note, I really like Asobi Seksu.

count the stars

I have been trying to record more music lately. Here is a link to one of my songs "count the stars." Excuse the poor piano and production, I just wanted to record something for now and get some feedback.

I need some pointers/tips/comments - tell me what you think!

http://www.garageband.com/artist/jilliananne

in the pines

Yesterday I went to 'In the Pines' which is basically a day of local bands set in one of the outdoor auditoriums at uni. One word to sum up the day? Dirt. I always forget how dirty somerville is. When I got home I was covered in brown dirt.

I started drinking too early and felt sick quite early on (I don't handle alcohol well). Then I ate more than three grown men and drank two bottles of water and I was fine, just tired. I found myself drifting around alone a lot of the time from group to group but I guess that is generally what I do. In one of my more melodramatic moments last night I decided that I like my dog better than any human. Easily. Anyway, it was still good to get out.

The photos are of me with my good friend Brett and the girl is Nat. I only have 7 more polaroid shots left! The film is ridiculously expensive so until the new stuff gets made, I'm out of the game.

Today is a public holiday. I am going shopping with my high school bff, Kelly. I find that spending money (that should be saved for europe!) is the fastest remedy for melancholy so I am going to buy underwear. I may as well splurge on something useful, and it is always nice to have matching sets, yes?

another attempt

Image from ffffound

If you never fall together you can never fall apart.

Gamble on your fortune you have an athlete's heart.

a brief interlude

Sorry i haven't posted in a while, I have been in South Africa for my aunt's 50th birthday (I am not South African, actually my mum's family are from Kenya, my aunt/uncle/cousin moved to SA a year ago).

The photo is me with a baby rhino at a rehabilitation centre for injured animals. The baby rhino wasn't actually injured, it was orphaned. He was so adorable!

Cape Town was a pretty place, Kruger national park was amazing and Johannesburg was bizarre and a little scary. I feel very lucky to be Australian.

I am starting to get back into PhD work. I have to tutor 3rd year statistics this semester, I hate statistics! I guess at least being forced to tutor means I will know the stuff backwards which will no doubt be useful when it comes to my own data analysis.

I have started to write some more songs that are pretty horrible, but the more I write the better I will hopefully get? My lyrics are still lame. I seem to come up with really cheesy songs that make me cringe when I play them back (I am making some rough recordings using garage band). I wish I could write a tune that was as simple and pretty as "let's go bowling" by camera obscura. I love everything about that song. "let's get out of this country" is also a favourite, why can't i write like that?! i am getting so frustrated with myself!

Songwriting tips are welcome!

toy piano

I forgot to post that creedon gave me this amazing toy piano for christmas. The sound is sort of similar to a harpsichord and quite loud.

I have a piano and a keyboard but this one is my favourite.

i always say too much when i'm talking to you

I have been learning to play this song on piano:



It is so beautiful. I found the sheet music free online :)

sleep the clock around

I started sewing a few weeks ago and have made 3 sets of pillowcases to give to my grandmas/mum at christmas. It is nice to do something creative, as basic is it may be. I also spent all of Wednesday at my grandma's sewing a dress, I learnt a lot about darts, etc she was very helpful! The dress isn't finished yet, after christmas maybe!

Also this week I made an impulse purchase keyboard, it's a Yamaha E413. I have only ever had a piano but now I want to try to write some stuff and muck around in the privacy of my own room. I can't play in front of anyone, I am always really shy about playing music for anyone, I think it is because I think I am really crap because I am at the moment but hopefully I will improve over summer. I think if I start writing some stuff on the keyboard and being more creative I will feel much happier about myself.

I can't believe a year has gone by. I am one year into my masters/PhD! The scary thing is I really haven't done a lot and I have no idea what I'm doing with my first meta-analysis.

This year has been relatively uneventful compared to the last. I miss a lot of people. I miss going out with new people and seeing so many bands. But it has been great to have a sense of stability, which is not something I could comprehend in 2007. I think I will save the nostalgic writing for new year :p

I have moved back home now after living in North Perth for a while. The best thing about living in North Perth besides being close to everything was Hyde Park and the amazing Jacaranda trees. I love Jacaranda trees so much, they make me happy. I have also seen a lot of willie wagtail birds around, these remind me of my Pop who died 2 years ago. He loved birds and these were his favourite. It is nice seeing them, it is like a reminder that he is looking out for me.

I know I have a lot to do, christmas shopping, study, but I just can't bring myself to do anything even though I am incredibly bored. I have just been finishing sewing and listening to belle and sebastian all morning. I'm still in my PJs. I really want to reread the catcher in the rye and I got a really old copy out from the library but I haven't got around to reading it an it feels like too much effort to get out of bed at the moment (thank god for macbooks!)

I wish I wasn't so lethargic and lazy!

lovely links

1. nubbytwiglet.com - art/design blog. lots of pretty outfits, inspiring pictures and great links.

2. ffffound.com - probably my favourite photo site. i find all my favourite pictures here!

3. http://www.poladroid.net/ - this is so fun, i am addicted! much less expensive than polaroid film, here are some of mine:

4. http://www.freeindie.com/ - free downloadable indie tunes, what more could a girl want?

5. postsecret - of course!

Things I should do...

1. Read more novels

2. Write some short pieces on my dusty glockenspiel

3. Move out!!!!