unseasoned geezer

Hi Andrez

Nice to see you signed up to The Cult. I read about your book last week, sounds cool, I love odd Sci-Fi and I hear the book has that vibe to it. I am planning to check it out soon.

-Martin

P.S.

Be prepared for the welcome thread bizarro interrogation.

Screw it, I'll get things going.

What's your favorite novel?

What's your mother's favorite novel?

Support any sports teams?

If you could steal any one living person's brain, and consume their mental abilities, who would it be?

Australian food or Japanese food?

Fight club, book or movie?

Hey Martin - ta muchly, matey! Nice to be welcomed like this!

Thanks too for the nice words about TSMG, and I hope you enjoy it.

Ha Ha Ha... inquisition indeed! I like the questions, tho', so hopefully I do 'em some kind'a justice:

(1) Favourite novel? Sheesh. I dunno - at the moment Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, which has been a long-time love, but I also dig Haruki Murakami's The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. Obviously Fight Club gets a nod, Kristopher Young's Click, Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep, Joseph Heller's Catch 22, a lot of Philip K. Dick, Dr. Seuss' Fox in Socks. Then there's Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence, which the shameless romantic in me still likes; decisive, aren't I?

(2) My mum's fave? Dunno. I'll have to ask her. She did like The Age of Innocence too, from memory.

(3) I'm a hack at sports, but I used to follow the Aussie cricket team - trouble is I haven't been able to watch it on the telly over the past decade here in Japan, so I've kind of lost interest.

(4) Stealing brains? Probably Charles Bukowski's, so we could compare and contrast who had the most alcohol damage.

(5) There's not really any "Australian" food per se - prob'ly instead a whole gamut of international stuff. But the real Aussie tucker? - I LOVE Vegemite, I like kangaroo, and I loathe Timtams.

I seriously adore Japanese food - it's one of the reasons I moved over here. Top would be sashimi, followed by tonkotsu (pork bone ramen), sushi, soba noodles, yakitori (chicken BBQ), octopus balls, squid, and basashi (raw horse). Yum. Topped off with sake, of course.

(6) Fight club: book AND movie.

Ta-dah! Did it! ...whew...

Loathe Tim Tams!!!? What is wrong with you, man? Are you sure you moved to Japan willingly or did we kick your Tim Tim-hating ass out?

At least you like Vegemite, I guess.

But then there's the mention of eating raw horse that's slightly concerning.

So, any favourite Australian authors, mate?

Nice to meet you.

Also, why am I not surprised to find ANOTHER Bukowski fan...

Talk about Tokyo!

Because, like Chuck, he's quite popular and a lot of people respect the work he produced during his career, not just for the fact that he was damn fine himself but, too, because he turned them on to other great writers like Celine and Fante? Oh, and the fact that he was just a total badass. Didn't give a fuck about fame and fortune and just got pissed and gambled and fucked women? Because he had his finger on the pulse of the male pysche? Because he brought something real, something heart and soul and blood and sweat, something that the everyday bloke coupd relate to, something that was dirty and filthy, just like real life is? Because he was completely unforgiving, uncompromising, ruthless and gut-wrenchingly heartbreaking with his words?

Maybe. Just a guess, Chris.

Hello! Did you feel any of the effects of the recent earthquake?

I like your avatar a lot!

It's from the cover of his new book, Alecia.

Is the mountain goat a transvestite?

Heh-heh... wow! Thanks, mates - great to stumble across this kind'a curiosity! OK, here're my hack responses; lemme know if I miss anything...

****

Vegemite is god. Timtams, unfortunately, are not.

Give me Chocolate Teddies, Mint Slices, Jaffa Cakes... anything but Timtams. I think I'm the only person in the world who doesn't dig 'em, and the karma-kick is that Timtams are the only Aussie biscuits you can find overseas. Bah.

As for the raw horse... I know, I know. I'm trying not to enjoy the stuff.

Nice to meet you too, Fano. And why am I not surprised either, in this forum?

Aussie writers? I loved George Johnston's My Brother Jack back when I was in high school, but I haven't read it since so I'm not sure how well it holds up.

I also enjoy some of Peter Carey's output and I still adore Norman Lindsay's The Magic Pudding - which I read now to my 5-year-old daughter ostensibly for her sake, but prob'ly equally for my own.

I'm about to start on Markus Zusak's The Book Thief, so stay tuned there.

There've been a wad of others, though right now their names slip my mind, which kind of makes me want to kick myself as I (mostly) enjoyed their stuff.

Wow, there's a broad-band question... where do I start?!

Been here a decade now, all of that time in Tokyo. Love the place to death, and being a city of 12 million you can guess that I'm still discovering new things here 10 years on.

The people are sweet - and I have about ten times more respect for them following on from the March 11 earthquake and the crazy ongoing nuclear problems @ Fukushima, north-east of Tokyo.

Yep, we did feel that tremblor here in Tokyo, and hundreds since, but we've been pretty much lucky up till this point.

Right you are, 'tis from the back cover (a femme fatale mountain goat exhaling a smoky kanji symbol that reads zuzushi, or shameless/impudent). Thanks, Alecia. They were done by an illustrator I really dig, Scott Campbell.

Ha Ha Ha... no! I don't think so!!

Meant to represent two different characters.

I hope you stick around as you're interesting on multiple fronts.

And link us some of your muzak! I dig leftfield electronic.

Ripping. And a Newbie that knows his way around the quote button. Naaaaaice.

Yeah, love Peter Carey. He's fantastic. Haven't read Zusak yet. Been keen to for ages, but he hasn't quite reached the top of that to-read pile yet. I keep hearing it's spectacular though. And his newest one, I am the Messenger, I think it's called, is apparently quite good, too. One of the Cult ladies, Melody, was reading it recently and told me a little about it. Said she really enjoyed it, but didn't want to spoil it for me.

Yeah, I, too, wanna get up in this musak.

Thanks, labelleza and (again!) Matthew - yep, I'll endeavour to stick around a bit... enjoying it here thus far!

Music-wise I make hack tunes as Little Nobody and Funk Gadget, as well as a few other silly aliases like Nana Mouskouri's Spectacles and DJ Fodder.

Little Nobody's my main one, and I actually have a digital album out now, plus some recent vinyl and CD stuff. I guess it gives you some off-skew insight into the wayward grey matter behind the book, so if you're at all curious you can check out my website for that stuff, which has the various links and so on:
http://littlenobody.weebly.com/

Ta again for being interested!

Ha Ha Ha - yeah, it took me a long while on a couple of other music forums to work out how to tweak the quote button (man, it's so much easier knowing how to do it!!).

Oh my lordy, Matthew... only if you really wouldn't mind? I'm dying for some of that stuff, esp. the Mint Slices and Arnott's Creams... ye gods... Thank YOU!

No stress, but that'd be vaguely akin to one of those Red Cross care packs to prisoners in German POW camps in WW2. Kind'a. Except I'm not a prisoner, there're no towers, there's no Wagner on the speakers, and only a smidgeon of barbed wire.

Great to hear about that other Zusak novel (cheers). Yep, I've heard equally good things about The Book Thief, so fingers crossed it's what I'm expecting.

Really dug what Carey did with Ned Kelly, by the way.

Oh, hell yeah, on Carey's The True History of the Kelly Gang. Loved Oscar and Lucinda, too. And, Illywacker. Just a great writer. I'm a bit of a fan of Tim Winton, too. You read any of his work? But, my favourite Aussie writer is probably Luke Davies. Loved Candy so hard. But, his other two novels, Isabelle the Navigator and God of Speed were brilliant, too.

Definitely PM me your address. I'll put something together for you. It might take me a little while due to the money that goes into international shipping, but I'll hook you up. And if there's any particulars you want let me know and I'll be sure to include them.

You ever read the Best Australian Stories series? Love that. Get it every year. Try and tell everyone to get it. Might send you a copy of last year's. It was a great edition. And my university tutor had a story in there, too, which is pretty cool.

Welcome Andrez!

I'm looking forward to the Book Club discussion!

Also - is Muzak different in different places? I thought Muzak was elevator music...

Wow, another Australian. AND one that likes Jaffa cakes. Welcome!
I'm Aussie too but currently based in Upstate New York. What made you move to Tokyo in the first place?

Another bloody Aussie!

Welcome.

I think they are planning some sort of take over.

Hello. welcome. I wonder why no one is razing you in the least.

I quite like your hack tunes, Andrez.

The bunch of Australians we have seen too nice to take over anything. It's more of an infestation. Except good and probably practically almost no one nearly would want to have hardly any of them poisoned.

Hehe "an infestation of Aussies".

I effen love that.

We're like a plague.

Thanks, Matthew - yep, agree, Illywacker was great! Haven't checked into Luke Davies or Tim Winton, so ta for the tip-off.

Gotta admit I haven't read the Best Australian Stories series... being in Japan for 10 years means I do lose some touch with what's afoot back home.

Address a-coming. Still chuffed/blown away with your generosity; seriously, don't feel obliged, but if you get time/inclination - I'll owe you!!

Thanks, mate!!

Nah, you're right, it's international - muzak is muzak - I always refer to my own tunes as hack elevator music; I guess it depends what kind of elevator!

...and 'allo, mate! I moved to Japan initially because I loved classic Japanese cinema (especially Kurosawa) and anime... and Japanese food is my favourite cuisine in the world. Plan was to stay 6 months. Dunno what happened!

How about you in New York?

Ha Ha Ha... we breed like rabbits, Cheers!

Darn... you sussed out our evil mission... bah, humbug!

Heh-heh... infestation? Better than my cliched rabbit remark!

Wow, glad you enjoyed the tunes!!

Ain't that the truth! Hope these people don't realize they can get themselves immunized.

Welcome dude I say Muzak too in fact my music channels are bookmarked under Muzak. Everyone else pretty much handled the important stuff. Oh and I like your cover for your book especially the part in your avatar.

Thanks, Audrey!

Great to hear someone like-minded about Muzak, and chuffed you dig the femme fatale goat. I love Scott's artwork; in case anyone here wants to check out more of his work (he does comics, paintings, CD covers, etc), investigate here:
http://www.pyramidcar.com/

Whew... no more questions. I either (1) answered everything with aplomb, or more likely (2) bored everyone senseless.

Another Dashiell Hammett fan. Noice.

How can you not be a Dashiell Hammett fan?

And, yeah, you're right, Chris. Either that or the roos. Those mongrels are taking over, too. What do they think they are, our national animal or something?

Are they really Matt? I didn't know they were that serious of an issue. Although, as a species native to Australia, unless they become a serious threat to humans, my opinion will be "leave them alone." Cane toads were introduced and are ravaging the continent, so I understand the desire to eradicate them.

Yeah, it's completely legal to kill cane toads in QLD, where they are a major issue. PETA probably hate us. And, as for the roos, yeah, they're breeding too much. I don't know the details all to well because I'm a city boy, and the issue isn't in the cities, the populated areas, it's in rural Australia. They're ruining farmer's crops and shit like that. And, I'm not 100% on this, but I'm pretty sure it's legal for farmers to shoot down kangaroos that come onto their property. I think it's also legal to hunt them. And, I'm sure there has been a few culling operations, too.

Yep, I think the culling of kangaroos is legalized in Australia, though like Matthew I'm a city kid, and I've been outta the country 10 years, so I'm probably not the best authority on the matter!

The Cane Toads - eck. Ugly foreign critters. I remember mates of mine in Queensland shooting 'em with air rifles.

And lastly, Dashiell Hammett. What an absolute legend. HUGE influence on Tobacco-Stained Mountain Goat.