Here we are

The YouAreHere festival has come around again. It's a wonderful event: "a curated festival ... of Canberra's diverse independent and experimental arts and culture". It strangely pops up in various empty spaces around Canberra or takes over whatever venue for the week. It's only a week but it's a busy and eclectic time. I should give it more time, but I tend not to. My loss. But I happened on a few venues after Hippo.

First was Reuben Ingall. I've seen him performing electronica. Apparently he's on 2XX (our Indie community radio station). This was a talk on some musical interests and their approaches. Just outside was a little library, actually standing quite forlorn. I noticed this because a friend of mine started the first of these free community libraries here in Canberra a few months ago and it was featured in the Canberra Times by Ian Warden, no less. Then I walked around the corner hearing classical music from Phoenix Pub. Mmm, stange. The venue has been setup differently from my last visit, with enhanced stage and lighting and layout and bar down the back. Two of the Inventi Ensemble of Canberra, Melissa Doecke (flute) and Ben Opie (oboe), were playing, all decked out to the nines and entertaining a diverse audience as a breather from the Bad!Slam!No!Biscuit! comedy session. Just proof of the diversity and impish mischievousness of this festival.

Finally, we've all seen this plaque on the corner of Northbourne Ave and London Circuit. For once I stopped to read it. "EIIR Here on 15th February, 1954, the citizens of Canberra greeted Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the first reigning British Monarch to visit Australia". It has this republican musing of many things. First reigning monarch to visit? Maybe the delay is understandable given commercial flights were just new. British Monarch? Isn't she claimed as the Queen of Australia?