So happy that I got tickets for both Melbourne dates; just like the last time I've enjoyed the second night so much more than the first one.

I thought it was fun to see Tori with the full band the last time she played Melbourne, but IMO she's at her most magical when it's just her alone onstage. The setlist on Thursday wasn't the favourite I've heard - way too many vapid mid-tempo songs that have been cluttering her albums for the last decade. Still, Tori is such a compelling, magnetic...

I went to a GP recently because I've been experiencing strong pains below the abdomen and other areas, and after having an ultrasound scan I found out that I have complicated cysts in both of my ovaries. I've never heard the word before but apparently I've got endometriosis and my cysts are called chocolate cysts. The specialist (a very nice lady) showed me all sorts of disgusting pictures and recommended that the cysts should be removed, especially since the right one is 5cm large and there's a...

My Mum and I went to Sydney this past weekend, for a little bit of a break and to fulfill my Mum's long-held dream to watch an opera at the Sydney Opera House. To save money we bought the cheapest plane tickets, which meant an early flight on Saturday and late flight back home on Sunday. It was fine, except that, after checking out of the hotel on Sunday, spending the whole day without an opportunity to have a nap and lie down was a bit tiring.

Had lunch at a German restaurant in...

Went to see lovely Sarah at the Forum Theatre yesterday. A bit strange to go to a gig on Sunday night, which probably accounted for the rather quiet vibe at the start of the show. The opening act, a five-piece from New Zealand called The Brunettes, were enjoyable - good onstage chemistry between the two singers and nice whimsical indie-pop songs, though not something I'd rush out to buy.

Sarah was as adorable and strange as ever, her live singing never fails to amaze me and her idiosyncratic...

Went skiing with my Mum and sister for the first time in ages and second time since coming to Australia. Last time we went to Mt Buller, this time we decided to try Mt Hotham which is bigger and further away, about four hours drive from Melbourne.

The weather on the day was SHIT! Seriously, it just couldn't have been worse - showers, wind and fog all at the same time. Going down the slope was like skiing into nothingness - you could see maybe five metres ahead and it felt like you...

After Turkey I flew to Frankfurt to meet my Mum and start our car trip around Germany. The night before I stayed up until 2.00am smoking water pipe and chatting with our group leader and a couple of girls from my group, and then had to get up at 5.00am to catch my flight. As a result I spent my first day in Germany feeling totally out of it, which was ok since we've spent most of it driving from Frankfurt to Berlin. Back in Istanbul I also got us 1 kilo of Turkish delight to snack on in the car,...

I came back from my 6-week holiday in Turkey, Germany and France almost a month ago and finally decided to write about it.

Once again, I went to Turkey with Intrepid who should really give me some sort of loyalty points by now because this is my fifth trip with them. I wasn't as lucky with my group this time around though; some people really didn't like other people which made it rather uncomfortable for those of us who didn't have a problem with anyone. Still, the trip was awesome...

Holy crap this was one of the best shows I've ever been to! Balloons, confetti, people in animal costumes, trippy visuals, great music, happy dancing audience - what more could you wish for?

I completely forgot that because I remembered about the show too late I got a seated ticket instead of GA, so at first it felt a bit disappointing that I couldn't join the floor. Still, it was a pretty good seat compared to some other people who were only able to see one side of the stage....

Good show but not as good as the two previous times I've seen them. Which I think was mostly due to the crowd - I was in the second row from the stage and the people around me had all the liveliness and enthusiasm of corpses. Of course you try to have fun regardless but the flat crowd does make a difference. The band were on form though, Jetstream was a perfect opener and they played a good selection from the new album and their back catalogue (boo to no Satellites, yay to Kingdom of Rust). Jimi...

I cull my CD collection on a yearly basis (well, try to but I'm a terrible softie) but it still managed to grow to 800, not counting a few singles and random freebie CDs that came with the music magazines and which I haven't filed properly. I started off with a single 60-CD stack and now I have sixteen of these. They've pretty much taken over the shelf space in my room, gradually pushing out the books and the trinkets; if I need one more I'll have to keep my shoes on the floor. I sometimes wonder...

My Mum and I decided to go to Kangaroo Island this Easter weekend, and to save money on plane tickets and car hire we opted for a drive. Bloody long drive as well. We hit the road on Thursday straight after work, and spent the night in Horsham which was about 4 hours away. On our way there, we drove past some small town with a giant statue of koala right by the highway - it was about the size of a two-storey building and had red glowing eyes. The overall effect was quite sinister, my Mum said she...

The festival this year should really have been named "All British People Currently In Melbourne Gather Here" - I swear I haven't heard so many British accents around me outside of UK! Perhaps not surprising considering the line-up which also included Madness, Kaiser Chiefs, Razorlight and Killers (who as I understand are darlings in UK). This may or may not have accounted for the amount of smokers at the festival - never seen so many.

Anyway, this year it was held at Melbourne...

Last night I was sitting at the computer in my room, when all of a sudden I felt a tremor through the floor and the wall between my room and my Mum's was visibly shaking. It didn't last for more than three seconds but it was pretty creepy. Today Mum told me that it was in fact an earthquake that measured 4.6 on the Richter scale.

Went to see Coldplay last night with Kylie, a girl from my work, who is a massive fan. I liked them since Parachutes yet never got to see them live. When they toured Rush of Blood I was on holiday, and the last time they were in town I was so disappointed by X&Y I decided to ignore the tour altogether, but since Viva la Vida was a major improvement I was in a mood to splash out on tickets.

We went to the concert straight from work and stopped at McDonalds, where we spotted Shane...

This was a somewhat unplanned holiday: because of the tough economic times everyone at my work was told to cut down their holidays to 10 days by the end of the financial year. I was one week over so rather than bumming around the house doing nothing I decided to spend it in New Zealand. I've already been there a few years ago with a coach tour, so this time I thought I'd just hire a car and drive around South Island. Which was a new territory for me - I've travelled by myself before but never with...