2012 Had Herpes

I hated 2012.
It was my biggest year.

I worked so hard. I was exhausted. Burnt out. Poked and prodded.

So I kept a list of things that helped me through the year.
That had nothing to do with anything except the reason why I do what I do.
I list it here so I can never forget, that in some way, I did something meaningful.

- Pinocchio pantomime at Bris Arts Theatre - Strogonoff is my favourite character ever
- Jam Jar Poetry Slam (learning what it takes to run a slam and how it's always in the audience's hands as much as the hosts)
- BadSlam!NoBiscuit! - Canberra (my first standing ovation) (staying with Andrew Galan and talking Firefly, being taken up to a mountain by Ellie and eating with eagles)
- OutSpoken - Sydney (twice)
- Byron & Lismore performances (Awkward host David Hallet and the weird vibe of Lismore poetry crowd)
- Nimbin Performance Poetry World Cup 2012 (nearly taking it out and performing 3 new 8 minute sets each round)
- Mad Scientists Tea Party (the kids that ran amok)
- Collaborating with Fern Thompsett in our Gorillaz words of honour
- Collaborating with Rhyll in our as yet unpublished zine and another words of honour (Fat Freddy's Drop)
- Zen Zen Zo (All year keeping my heart beating and giving me another facet of performance to look at, consider, and move towards)
- Shooting at Shadows (mixing a live soundtrack courtesy of Fern with narration by Lucy Fox into a poetic diary of a Shadow that has lost its way. One of my favourite growth spurts and challenges of the year)
- Angela (falling in love with a beautiful woman who has my back and will bash you)
- Raw Poet Roar - facilitating an event that featured my favourite Brisbane underground voices, hosted by Fern and just a beautiful way to finish the year
- QPF - being asked to join the QPF board for 2013
- Woodford - cementing myself as a performer that pulls in crowds rather than lets them slip away. My favourite thing I've ever done. And the most validating way to know that I'm on the right path.

So what have you got for me 2013?

Other vagrants

It's been a busy year and such... Uni + Poetry + Relationships = Crazy. But I've been privileged to know and get to know many amazing artists, teachers, organisers and general vagrants of the world.

Most notably I have been a part of The Broken Records Collective for the past year with Betsy Turcot and Doubting Thomas.

Check it out, we like you, don't be afraid.

Just last Sunday I was involved with a new Spoken Word event in West End at a great lil space called Jam Jar. It involved accapella, acoustic spoken word/slam/performance poetry (so NO mics!) in a dynamic area out the back of the restaurant. The way the space sat, the crowd involvement and the abilities of the poets/rappers/slammers combined into a truly unique view of the spoken word world.

Joelistics, Doubting Thomas, Fern Thompsett, Geoff Lemon (check out his new job at Going Down Swinging too), and myself all had a lot to share and the crowd went away NOT saying negative things. Happy days. In fact there was a discreet air of people impressed with something a bit new and a bit different, kinda like if you go to Bread Top and buy a crazy roll made from green tea and it's actually yum. So yum... Damn green tea rolls...