high tea by candlelight

contrary to popular perception high tea does not bear aristocratic roots. the poor working class of yesteryear could only afford one solid meal per day which was lunch. after crawling back home late at night from the coal mines, factories etc they were obviously hungry.

the kettle would go on, tea would be brewed and what scraps could be gathered and assembled into a snack of sorts supplemented by never-ending cups of tea. it would seem that the institution of english drinking copious amounts of tea is a many headed beast. in far flung colonial outposts the aristocracy would be drinking tea under the mobile shade of their coolies as a symbol of class superiority whilst back home the comfort it provided the poor industrialised peasants was arguably equivalent if not greater. emotional, physical and psychological sustenance is hard to beat.

as standards of living gradually increased then so did the quality and quantity of accompanying tea foodstuffs until eventually the now antiquated english expression "tea" was born. and still they incessantly drink the vile stuff in delicately patterned porcelain cups. i mean even lady gaga does it [this makes me think of my south australian friend dave].

cut to every other thursday. in a semblage of eclectic worlde bric a brac & dark sombre tulle walls surrounded by the odd what not, a wonderful underground movement has been born sprung from the humble building which gave us the original [recently relocated] 505. this is high tea.

last visit we [claire & yours truly] were delighted to find ourselves in a small world filled with strangers punctuated by friends. the wonderful kent eastwood [who was my 13th hour live pianist for my "explorations into the sound mind" installation at the successful punk monk collaborative "multiple personalities exhibition"] was a special guest performer. with renny field. a delightful & unexpected treat. fine company indeed.

high tea is a pseudo secret movement for artisans & lovers of intimacy where unplugged sets are experienced up close with a cup of tea in hand or a bottle of bagged wine. i'm not that traditional & nor is claire, so we float on the periphery of the caste system with lips stained red not black or blue. no china required here.

but RSVP quick.

soylent green politics of gentrification

with urban squeeze comes gentrification. the two are inevitable & uncomfortable bedfellows. property developers after a fast buck even in times of arguable recession are the enemies of equitable housing & low socio-ecomomic urban communities.

money is an incredible motivator as is population growth which provides a precurser for dense urbanisation in areas previously considered unfit (for wealthy white "pioneers").

in some city areas in sydney & the world this has resulted in displacement of existing inhabitants. the shabby & old [often toxic] juxtapose against shiny upwardly mobile cuckoo architecture.

generally those most prone are indigenous or ethnic minorities who have traditionally resided on the industrial fringes of the city where noone before wanted to live, [once too] close to transportation, where rich diverse communities were built as best they could.

alexandria & redfern, sydney are experiencing just such a development revolution. the former homes of industry & low cost housing primarily occupied by pensioners, aboriginals & welfare beneficiaries are becoming increasingly minimised as architects, developers & town planners move in to rape & pilage, lure the natives out with blankets & alcohol before sterilisation & the importation of a new wave of cashed-up settlers. warehouse conversions are de rigueur. social conscience gets a face-lift.

this trend can recently be demonstrated in the very hip williamsburg, new york. the latinos who've been there for multiple generations can no longer afford to live in their hood as city improvements & consistently low rents have made it attractive for the nouveau hipsters who then in turn make the area more desirable, utilise the amazing "undiscovered" spaces and drive up rents.

but where do these lost civilisations go? do they like the streetwalkers & homeless people during olympics time get trucked to some western badlands or nazi labour camps to work-for-the-dole where noone can see? westernized post-modern leprosy valleys. out of sight, out of mind.

in many countries it's a punishable crime to be poor. people are incarcerated for vagrancy. what can you do when your home is taken away from you by fancy types & you just can't afford to live anymore? poverty crime is a reality.

is soylent green made out of poor people?

our (ware)house...

in the middle of the street.

this is the beautiful humble start-up base for PUNK MONK PROPAGANDA, mine and our collective trainer-wheels home & hub. ideas are bigger than spaces but sometimes it's hard not to get attached.

i love our house. i love our self-generated techno bloomsbury family deviation even more.

nostalgia over, time to face the music.

"...i remember way back then when everything

was true and when

we would have such a very good time

such a fine time, such a happy time

and i remember how we'd play,

simply waste the day away

then we'd say nothing would come

between us two dreamers"

every night is a crazy sex party!

well not really. but isn't perception a crazy thing? to live up to the mythology & madness it seemed only right we apply some method one rather dull rumour-mongering sunday night at the warehouse...

a room with a view

NB. cleveland st, sydney: $270.00 per m2 = 81,000 AUD p/a (~50K too much)