Update – Some things

May 21, 2023

Hello and thanks for reading this far. It’s been a while and that is because the most recent and exciting event to arrive at the First Dog on the Moon Institute has been COVID! You may have heard of it. We have avoided it until now… Got it in March which turned into April which has turned into May and the effects linger. The actual covid part only took two weeks but I just can’t shake the weariness and the weird tiny fever. I am told this is normalish and doesn’t mean long covid it can just take ages to get back to being how one was prior. I don’t like it and if you haven’t had it yet I don’t recommend it. We press on! Things have been happening.

THE PLAY – The Carbon Neutral Adventures of the Indefatigable Enviroteens finished its Hobart run in April – it has been deemed “a success!” by the folks at Archipelago who did all the work and a HUGE SUCCESS by me. Seeing my brainial creations up on stage as interpreted by some wonderful young actors has been an absolute career highlight. There are PLANS to take it to various places (rural Tasmania, the Opera House etc etc) however nothing concrete yet or perhaps ever, these are complex times for live theatre don’t you know. These photos by Jesse Hunniford feature Caitlin Berwick as Binky, Bhavika Sharma as Letitia, Griff Mclaughlin as Pastry Person, Noah Casey as Melissa the giant anteater and the Great Niffle and Milla Chaffer as Nurse Barnevelder and two people from Switzerland.

THE BOOK – Book 2 of The Carbon Neutral Adventures of the Indefatigable Enviroteens – The Revenge of the Dreadful Potato from Mars (working title) is muddling along. Getting my turn at a global pandemic did not help. It is taking forever and while I am enjoying it a bunch I am at the oh woe is me stage of writing. Jokes and funny pictures I can do, complex narrative structures are my kryptonite. Poor me what a terrible burden to get paid for writing a graphic novel.

THE GUARDIAN – I try not to travel much these days – however this week I am in Sydney for the Guardian’s 10th birthday. There is a do at the Seymour Centre of which I am a small part and Comrade Viner is in town apparently. Everyone is in a flap. It’s like when the queen visits except less ermine.

BELLINGEN WRITERS FESTIVAL – Speaking of not travelling, I will be travelling in June to the Bellingen Writers’ Festival! What could possibly go wrong. In conversation with Mark Humphries no less – that should be a hoot. If you are in the area come and say hello – don’t forget the secret Institute Hand Signal because I have and you can remind me what it is.

THE LABRADOR – Stella the labrador is really coming along – the poor little anxious bean is so very serious – however lots of walks and training and training walks has seen her relaxing and even enjoying going to the park. She is turning into an extremely delightful dog and look at that face!

Thanks for reading and thanks for being part of the Institute!

Comments

  1. Dear FDOTM,

    In 2019, I had a virus I call Pre-Covid Virus but that others called the Virgin Virus (because I caught it flying with Virgin – not the other version). It was a life changer. I lost my voice that up to the time was really good in choirs and singing in the shower. I never really found my pure singing voice again but have always been vocal so recovered a smoker’s voice as a non-smoker. The virus damaged my vocal cords. So, I sympathise. No-one sympathises with me -except when I sing – because I still do that to people. Nothing keeps creative people down, FDOTM, nothing and no-one. I now coordinate a Grey Power anti-fracking group to annoy the NT government for allowing frackers to explore in the NT – and especially in the Beetaloo Basin. We sing (started with 5 then expanded). We change songs and jingles. We are wandering troubadors. Sometime I’ll share an example of our first troubadoring experiment with you. ‘Oh Woe is me’ is a fine chant (I used it often when my son was little and thought people didn’t like him because he was different. We’d walk around together with our hands behind our backs chanting it as we shuffled along. Misery can be fun sometimes). Don’t get long covid (doesn’t deserve Capitals)! It’s become another attention-seeker and, apparently, it hurts.

    Reply

  3. G’day FD,
    I’m sorry to hear about Covid, and I hope it clears up very soon. I’ve yet to hear a good word about it! Wonderful to get your update, especially about the play. Say hello to all the Guardian people when you visit for the 10th birthday celebrations – they’re (like you!) doing a marvellous job of trying to keep the b’s honest.

    Reply

  5. Hello FD. Your Covid experience sounds a right pain. In the middle of a play and a book and everything.
    We will be at the Guardian Seymour thing, smiling broadly at you and everyone on the stage.
    Thank you so much for the update, you can’t have felt much like doing it, it has made me feel better anyway.

    Reply

  6. first ferret really likes the “less ermine”line. mustelids abhor monarchy.please feel better again precious dog.

    Reply

  7. Good morning fabulously funny FD. I do hope you are recovering/have recovered from your awful bout of Covid.
    Just wanted to say Thank You for your latest (and one of your many Greatest) cartoons in the Guardian last night.
    I don’t know why, but your cartoons seem to appear very late in my Edition (Ha Ha – or could I just be getting old and forgetting to check early-ish ??).
    Irregardless, I must set an ⏰ on my phone to remind me to do so (check my Edition).
    Come to think of it, there are occasions when I have checked often, your cartoon is MIA and yet? The next morning it is there, and Comments are closed.
    Aha ! There it is. Conundrum solved. They don’t want to read my Comment (neither do I, but sometimes it helps what little sanity I have left 🤪).

    So, today I have found yesterday’s hilarious “Matilda’s” cartoon (Geez, that was a long story of mine to get to the point 🥱) ….To wit (or is it, whit, I would like to add that I too have never followed “footy” or indeed, soccer (I do like tennis and F1 though …go figure 😀) until this past week or two.

    I haven’t watched a full game but do read everything I can the next day, so that I can appear well-versed if the subject arises – and Gee Whiz, the conversation has arisen so much of late, that anyone would think the Great Land of Oz is a sport-obsessed island with nothing better to talk about.

    The husband has been diligently watching the Matilda’s for months, which does cause much amusement in our household (he was once a proud misogynistic male who thought women belong in the kitchen – sadly, his comments almost caused him premature death, so he rarely utters the words these days. Not within my earshot anyway).

    But, here it is, in my funny little life, this brouhaha over the Mighty Matildas is so reminiscent of that time, last century when we Aussies were on that almighty “high” at the prospect of winning the America’s Cup (and having an added Public Holiday thrown in for good luck) . Life seemed so much simpler then.

    Or that forever wonderful time of the Sydney Olympics (Cathy Freeman) ..and more recently, our delightfully modest Champion of Champions, Ash Barty – winning Wimbledon and later in Oz 😀 before retiring.

    My only fear is that IF they don’t win, we Aussies will be quick to tear them down with our well-known tall poppy syndrome (added to the loss of another Public Holiday).

    Anyway, I hope the girls do well on Wednesday night. Either way, they are great ambassadors for our country, in my mind. And I intend to watch it myself, the whole game, with the husband 😅.

    Thanks FD for always making me laugh and smile and cry with your valued contributions.

    Reply

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