Some more semi-random history 1986-1991
Some more family album scan-spam, including bonus doctor_k_ v.1989.
Probably around the same time as my OMG-look-at-that-hair school ball photo, this is a picture of me in costume for my friend Barbara's birthday party.
Yes, it *was* a costume:
kremmen, this is for you ;-)
That's the 1986 costume version of slutty/BDSM, in case you were wondering. Or possibly a prostitute for a P party. Without the benefit of professional help, my hair is even bigger this time. I put a lot of effort into this: Vinnie's for the black vinyl jacket, Bunnings for the chains, and (hard to spot but I still have the original) a cat o' nine tails made from a very cheap leather steering wheel cover I found after trawling many $2 shops (or whatever they were at the time, adjusted for inflation). I've been trawling for costume bits for quite some time now.
These were my first proper *cough* black boots, and I must say that Mother was a champion for buying them for me. Not only were they bedazzled with studs and plastic jewells, but they were reversible. One could wear them folded as in the photo for maximum visible studliness, or unrolled to mid calf for more conservative occasions. This meant of course that the studs were on the inside, an important factor in the early establishment of my identity at university.
What I first took to be a sock peeking out of one boot (because comfort is important) I think was more likely to be some kind of bandage around my ankle. Bandages were also an important factor in the early establishment of my identity at university.
doctor_k_ and I all dressed up to attend edthebanker's 21st in 1989ish:
A surprisingly well-annotated photo from the family album. doctor_k_ cuts an elegant figure in basic black, while I actually hired this dress *on purpose* to look my best for the event. Oh dear. It's not a costume. I remember being very proud of the matching shoes, and also how badly they crushed my tiny toes.
A completely unremarkable shot of some of the family sitting around the dining table circa 1991 (or is it?):
What caught my attention in this shot is the 1 kilogram plastic tub of margarine on the dining table. This was always referred to as "the best crystal dish" but I can't quite put my finger on the tone we used to colour that statement. Sarcastic? Ironic? Defiant? It was something more than playful. If memory serves, on grand occasions (Christmas, or Visitors) we actually used a small porcelain butter dish with a picture of Queen Elizabeth II on it, so the marge never saw the crystal after all.
The salt and pepper shakers are Tupperware. I use the present tense because they are still in service to this day; Tupperware comes with a lifetime warranty after all. Actually at least one of these needed a replacement lid after less than a decade of constant use, but the replacement (albeit in a non-matching plastic) was acquired. It broke again, but this time it was deemed a design flaw not worth repeating, and home repairs were applied to the tune of a large metal screw or two. It was a case of design failure analysis that I saw every day.
I still have some of those small bowls at Sector 7, passed down to me when I left home 20 odd years ago. They still work. Come to think of it I still have quite a lot of the original kitchen equipment I was given or bought at the time at garage sales and Trash & Treasure events.
Under that atrocious tablecloth is a beautiful example of solid jarrah furniture, which sadly never sees the light of day. Its surface is protected by a rubbery underlay and tablecloths of dubious taste. I'm glad to report that Mother has been re-educated in the matter of tablecloth fashion, but the timber table remains out of sight. Every now and then I peek under the covers to admire it. No glass of water has ever touched that perfect surface.
The wilds of suburbia circa 1991:
This shot was taken from the middle of the road outside my folks' place, looking down the hill. Mother is included for purposes of scale. You can't actually see any houses, but they're there on their quarter-acre blocks, set well back from the road behind their impossibly green lawns and huge trees. I find it a bit eerie. A good number of these blocks have been sub-divided now, and there are always spare cars parked in view. It certainly doesn't look so green now, but a few trees have survived. Judging by the shadows this was taken late afternoon in Winter. I must try to get a comparison shot.
Probably around the same time as my OMG-look-at-that-hair school ball photo, this is a picture of me in costume for my friend Barbara's birthday party.
Yes, it *was* a costume:
kremmen, this is for you ;-)
That's the 1986 costume version of slutty/BDSM, in case you were wondering. Or possibly a prostitute for a P party. Without the benefit of professional help, my hair is even bigger this time. I put a lot of effort into this: Vinnie's for the black vinyl jacket, Bunnings for the chains, and (hard to spot but I still have the original) a cat o' nine tails made from a very cheap leather steering wheel cover I found after trawling many $2 shops (or whatever they were at the time, adjusted for inflation). I've been trawling for costume bits for quite some time now.
These were my first proper *cough* black boots, and I must say that Mother was a champion for buying them for me. Not only were they bedazzled with studs and plastic jewells, but they were reversible. One could wear them folded as in the photo for maximum visible studliness, or unrolled to mid calf for more conservative occasions. This meant of course that the studs were on the inside, an important factor in the early establishment of my identity at university.
What I first took to be a sock peeking out of one boot (because comfort is important) I think was more likely to be some kind of bandage around my ankle. Bandages were also an important factor in the early establishment of my identity at university.
doctor_k_ and I all dressed up to attend edthebanker's 21st in 1989ish:
A surprisingly well-annotated photo from the family album. doctor_k_ cuts an elegant figure in basic black, while I actually hired this dress *on purpose* to look my best for the event. Oh dear. It's not a costume. I remember being very proud of the matching shoes, and also how badly they crushed my tiny toes.
A completely unremarkable shot of some of the family sitting around the dining table circa 1991 (or is it?):
What caught my attention in this shot is the 1 kilogram plastic tub of margarine on the dining table. This was always referred to as "the best crystal dish" but I can't quite put my finger on the tone we used to colour that statement. Sarcastic? Ironic? Defiant? It was something more than playful. If memory serves, on grand occasions (Christmas, or Visitors) we actually used a small porcelain butter dish with a picture of Queen Elizabeth II on it, so the marge never saw the crystal after all.
The salt and pepper shakers are Tupperware. I use the present tense because they are still in service to this day; Tupperware comes with a lifetime warranty after all. Actually at least one of these needed a replacement lid after less than a decade of constant use, but the replacement (albeit in a non-matching plastic) was acquired. It broke again, but this time it was deemed a design flaw not worth repeating, and home repairs were applied to the tune of a large metal screw or two. It was a case of design failure analysis that I saw every day.
I still have some of those small bowls at Sector 7, passed down to me when I left home 20 odd years ago. They still work. Come to think of it I still have quite a lot of the original kitchen equipment I was given or bought at the time at garage sales and Trash & Treasure events.
Under that atrocious tablecloth is a beautiful example of solid jarrah furniture, which sadly never sees the light of day. Its surface is protected by a rubbery underlay and tablecloths of dubious taste. I'm glad to report that Mother has been re-educated in the matter of tablecloth fashion, but the timber table remains out of sight. Every now and then I peek under the covers to admire it. No glass of water has ever touched that perfect surface.
The wilds of suburbia circa 1991:
This shot was taken from the middle of the road outside my folks' place, looking down the hill. Mother is included for purposes of scale. You can't actually see any houses, but they're there on their quarter-acre blocks, set well back from the road behind their impossibly green lawns and huge trees. I find it a bit eerie. A good number of these blocks have been sub-divided now, and there are always spare cars parked in view. It certainly doesn't look so green now, but a few trees have survived. Judging by the shadows this was taken late afternoon in Winter. I must try to get a comparison shot.