Weekend

At first I thought it might have been an LGBTQIA+ rally. On the stage in the nearby park, they had just rehearsed “We Are Family” (by Sister Sledge), and then it was “What’s Going On?” (by Four Non-Blondes). Respectively, they are anthems you might normally associate with gays and lesbians. As I got closer, I spotted the word “family”, further reenforcing my thoughts that it might have been a “rainbow family” event. But I was wrong, it was an anti vax rally. Suddenly, I was a lot less sympathetic to the disruption it had caused to the light rail service that would have brought me home.

I had spent the morning at Sydney’s “Museum Of Contemporary Art” (MCA) checking out some of the works on display. Due to COVID, there have been quite a few interruptions to my regular visits to the MCA. Heading back for the first time in a while, I was surprised at how friendly and pro-active the guides were. I couldn’t decide if it was because they’d received training, or if it was because there were so few people, so they had more time to spend chatting. As my face-mask dropped down below my nose, a guide came over to me asking me to pull it back up. I suspect they’re just as nervous about things as we all are right now.

Though there’s a “big ticket” exhibition on there right now, I was more interested in checking out Primavera (the exhibition which celebrates under 35s), and an exhibition of permanent collection works focussing on time and place.

Also, this weekend, a couple of friends and I took in a movie, “Ring Mamma” which is part of the Scandinavian Film Festival.

“She’s a bit of a fuck up” one of my friends commented, as we chatted afterwards.

Without too many spoilers, the film tells the story of a 30-something woman who faces some life dilemmas: she has relationship problems, she becomes unexpectedly pregnant, and her mother is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (a quick death). Despite these dramas, the film is also a comedy, and there are lots of laugh-out-loud moments.

There are also many moments of great intimacy in the film. 

Interestingly/amusingly, a couple of our “favourites”, Viktor Frisk and Björn Gustafsson get “star billing” but utter only a few words of dialogue.