An attempt at writing something semi-coherent

Blogger decided that my post about my weekend playlist the other day infringed some sort of copyright thing, which it did, and deleted it. Rightfully so? I'm not really sure. I didn't put the songs in my playlist on here so that people could download them and avoid buying the track. I put them on here because a) Blogger doesn't offer a streaming function thingy and b) the songs deserved publicity.

I had to write a scholarship economics essay on a topic something like this, and it got me thinking. We're living in a world where there is virtually no incentive to purchase a song that is so readily available for free online. Aside from the fact that it is illegal, the only other reason that purchasing a song is preferable is that it supports the artist.

But what about artists that aren't as good live as they are in a recording? Do I want to support them?
Essentially anyone can create reasonably good recorded music. Whether they can recreate this when performing live is the true test.

For example, I spend ages reading music blogs and downloading songs off them. When I say ages, I mean the amount of time I spend on them falls somewhere between Facebook and Tumblr. The songs I download off them aren't mainstream ones, and many of them aren't actually available for download on iTunes store. If I find an artist that I like, I'm more inclined to purchase their songs (although I already have an illegal copy) or see them live.

If I see an artist perform and I really think that they deserve it, I will go out and buy their album.

Take Chromeo for example. I saw them live, and they actually blew me away. I'd always been a fan, but they were 100x better in real life. One of the first things I did when I got home was buy their album. Same with High Contrast. And I saw Redial the other night, he was incredible and his EP is coming out soon - guess who will be purchasing it?

Now think about your mainstream artists - Rihanna, Lady Gaga, Kanye etc. These guys can get away with charging $80+ for a ticket to their concerts, and still expect you to pay for their songs. Something here isn't quite right...

I could probably go on for ages about this, but I won't. I'm not really much of a writer, I prefer pictures. I apologise if this post is boring and I promise the next one will be slightly more interesting.

Haawwwkward.

Hey, so I do have quite a few things to write about, but at the moment I'm a little sick and a little tired so I can't concentrate enough to write a proper post!

Anywho, embarrassing things always seem to happen to me, I don't know how, they just do. From boobs slips in a room full of girls over new years, to walking out of bathrooms multiple times with my dress tucked into my undies, to flashing Steph my undies once or twice at Toni's old place, to calling up my dads tenant in our house drunk without realising how drunk i am, to always somehow managing to trip up on myself in public.

Here's a bit of background to the latest embarrassing thing that happened:

2 years ago I was in hospital with some weird thing going on with my feet that meant it was too painful to walk, I had lumps on my chest and I think having a tube in my hand the whole time made me a whole lot sicker just looking at it. Still don't know exactly what it was and I always wish that I had doctors like Grey's Anatomy, because the 9 doctors in my room knew nada.

ANYWAY.

While I was there, they do their routine background checks so that when they take your blood, they can test for different possible things it might be. So in comes a doctor and asks the routine questions, then comes the dreaded "are you sexually active?". When he asked this, I froze. I thought that they would test to see if I was pregnant (I didn't consider the other disease stuff), so I thought i'd let him know pretty swiftly there was no way in hell I could be, so I came out to the doctor. And he looked a bit taken aback. Then I got uncomfortable. Then I needed to pee real bad but needed a nurse to wheel me around. And then he asked some more questions and left. THAT was terrifyingly awkward and has scarred me emotionally in a really pathetic way.

So. Learning from this after retelling my story to my friends, I found that you should just answer as anyone else with the standard yes or no.

Yesterday I went to the doctors because I was in pain (won't go into this but it was enough for me to go to A&E) and was put into the room with a really lovely and (really damn attractive) erm, efficient. Here's the convo.

Nurse: Okay is there any chance of you being pregnant?

Me: (laughs) No.

Nurse: (Looking at computer screen and typing) So, are you sexually active?

Me: (Quite sure of myself) Yes.

Nurse: (looks at me) Do you use protection?

Me: Ahh, no?

Nurse: (A little confused) No condoms..?

Me: Noo..

Nurse: The pill..?

Me: Nope

Nurse: (A little incredulously) Um, a diaphram?!

Me: (Freaking out because I've just realised I have to come out to yet another medical professional) Um.. well, no, I don't really because um, I'm kind of a, you know, um. I have sex with my girlfriend. /coughs.

Nurse: (Goes silent then pulls herself together and types) Right, so, um, same ah sex relationship..

Me: /dies.

Then the doctor arrives and looks at the info.

Doctor: So, same sex relationship huh? (smirks and looks over at me)

Why oh why!

I feel a little better now getting that out there, I don't know if I have told Steph about this yet but I have a feeling she'll check on her fancy ass iPhone tonight. I promise to post something more interesting next time!xx

Dee Eye Why

I got really bored the other day and went out and bought some Sculpey clay - the stuff that turns solid when you bake it. I made this ring, but it's a bit too girly for me so I probably won't end up wearing it.

Rhian says:

I WILL WEAR IT! Give it to me tomorrow!

Steph and I in fab form last night..

Edit by Steph: excuse my sleazy rapist eyes....

Things I learnt at Rhythm and Vines

I'm so glad Rhi finally decided to post on here, it kinda felt like I was talking to myself for a bit...

Anyway, a week ago today I got back from the Rhythm and Vines festival in Gisborne, New Zealand. I camped (roughed it) at BW Campgrounds for a whole week, and somehow actually survived. When people tell you it's like the slums, believe them...

Our campsite on new year's eve, before people started setting fire to things...

I learned a LOT of interesting things that week, so I thought I'd compile a list of the 10 most important lessons learned.

1. It is unacceptable to start drinking at lunchtime.
You should have started at 11am. Except on the first day. Getting drunk in the line for the campground will impair your tent pitching skills and result in a tent that sags in the middle for the rest of the week.

2. A 35 year old tent will withstand 100km/h winds better than a brand new 10 person tent.
As will a $40 Warehouse tent. Better yet, befriend someone with a 10 person tent and use their tent as a windbreak, storage space and shelter for when it rains.

3. The Portaloos in the shade smell less than the main ones.
They may, however, spontaneously combust.

4. Your chairs will get stolen.
We started the week with 13 and ended up with 1. The chairs that don't get stolen may get set on fire on the last night, so hiding them in your tent might be a good place to start...

5. If you run out of balloons, condoms will do the trick.
(for water bombs, of course...)

6. Jandals and mosh pits do not mix.
Wearing jandals in a mosh pit will result in you spending the rest of the night convinced you have a broken foot.

7. Make friends with your neighbours.
We thankfully knew everyone tenting around us, but I heard some horror stories about some people's neighbours backflipping off their tents and others who woke up to find their neighbours peeing on their tent.

8. You don't need somewhere to sleep.
Sleep where you drop, I can assure you that you won't be the only one doing this. Nobody will judge you.

9. This is the one week of the year you can stop caring what you look like.
Seriously. I had an afro and wore the same clothes all week. I'm pretty sure nobody remembers, let alone cares. DON'T be that girl in the bathroom straightening, then curling her hair.

10. If you have to get up at 6am to leave the campground before anyone sees you...
then spend the day at your hotel room getting ready, before finally returning to the campground (with straightened hair and perfectly applied makeup) at 5pm, perhaps you should consider a different new years destination... Auckland maybe?


I know that's 10 lessons there, but I'm going to leave you with one more, the most important lesson I learned all week...

DON'T BE THAT GUY.

StephoMcPhephoTAXIteeee

I'd just like to quickly say that no, Rhian is not an imaginary friend or mythical creature vacationing in a little hole in New Zealand called Dargaville that Steph made up.. I am real!!

So I'm sorry about being slack with my first post, I've had quite a lot else to do and also nothing alse to do, but somehow I forgot about this!

Stephanie Teatime*. She is the one person who i never, ever thought I'd be best friends with. We've been through a lot and get up to all kinds of stuff. From running about near town in our town clothes and heels with a huge printer and scanner (to ensure I get into clubs when I was under age), to planning yacht trips to Waiheke when we were 14, not thinking our parents would have any problem with it and doing online food shopping plans for this totally realistic trip, to her making me my first double shot espresso and her having to clean up the tiny bits of the many leaves I ripped up that night.

She's half Italian and South African, and can totally speak fluent Italian but refuses to on command (I have a video of her speaking it though when her Nonna called). Steph also plays the guitar. I mean, she speaks Italian, IS part Italian, plays the guitar, drives a manual sports car, has a great sense of style, I bet if she were a guy she'd go for herself!!

Steph used to live in SA and had this totally crazy dog she told me about, who once chased this equally crazy monkey across the roof of her haa-yooj house and then got stuck in this tree. He was a boxer just like my gumpy Cuba.

She's already told everyone about her interests below, and yes she has crazy music choice but I love it and I get almost all my music from her. In fact, I just got 2 texts from her with songs from Jakwob, Chase and Status and Donkey Boy. And I can imagine that 90s outfit on me, because I have sunnies, shorts and boots like that.. She's totally onto it.

We're still yet to have our first night out together as legal-aged besties on the town, but I believe I remain her person to call or text when she's drunk or incomprehensible. Or to talk about boys (something I actually know something about, even though my current and permanent interest is boobs, it used to be those boys) or cars, even though i only know the most about the old school american muscle cars - drool- it's still interesting hearing about those strange clutch things and turbo-stuffs and sea horse power? I dunno, I'm more into my public transport.

One thing that makes her so refreshing from my other friends, is that the only time noone else would understand her drunken ramblings (I can usually try to imagine what 'kjdsnfj rhi frool gate home!' might mean) this sentence makes no sense so I'm just going to keep going like nothing happened.. When she's upset, she hardly ever is. I don't have to try and understand incomprehensible sobs and wails, although she sometimes has to with me. Steph is super chilled, finds the positive outlook in most situations, and always has a laugh with me.

Oh, she's also really freaking smart, even if she won't acknowledge it, and is off to Otago to study really hard to get a good job and earn heaps of money to spend on me. JK. She's going for the boys and the boxed wine.

My mum considers her as her second daughter, which kinda makes steph a step up from just best friend, to being like a sister. She's a good bitch, and I love her to bits.

(you still owe me my birthday and christmas present :) )

I'll Be Ready

Rhi still hasn't got around to writing her post, and probably won't for at least another week as she's in Dargaville at the moment. And apparently they don't believe in internet there, or something. They also (apparently) ride cows around...

I haven't left the house in three days, mostly due to the weather being so shit, but also partly because I bought season 1 and 2 of Baywatch. It's almost as good as the original 90210. Almost.
I mentioned in my last post how so many of the 90s trends have come back to life, well, aside from the high cut swimsuits, so many of the clothes in Baywatch are fashionable again.

Top: Opening Ceremony, Cardigan: Rag & Bone, Shorts: General Pants, Boots: Tina Leigh, Sunglasses: Ray Ban Classic Clubmaster

As you can see, this is a pretty simple outfit, inspired by the off-duty clothes of the Baywatch lifeguards.