budget

/'bΛdZət/ n. an allotment of expenditures for various items over a period of time. v.t. to make a plan for spending based on how much you have.

There’s been a lot of discussion this past week about finances. So far, things are going pretty well, but at the back of my mind is always the consideration about cost. I think I’ve been fairly relaxed and easy-going about everything, but Rachel (who’s probably being a little more practical than I am) keeps reminding me about how we’re on a fairly tight budget. I think I just need to rein myself in every now and then!

Last Saturday we took a car trip to check out some venues for the ceremony, photography, and reception. We’ve found some very nice places, and for the photos and reception I’ve been told the date we want is available. We’re waiting on final quotes and confirmation of our requests before we pay a deposit. The church we like the look of for the ceremony isn’t yet confirmed. I telephoned them earlier this week and left a message on their answering machine, but haven’t heard back yet. The outside of the church looks great, but we need to check out the inside to see how many people it can hold … not to mention the fact that we need to know whether they’ll let us use their sanctuary on the day we request … and of course, we need to know how much they’re going to charge us. We have a couple of back-up options, but obviously, we’d love our first choice. I reckon if I haven’t heard from them by the end of the week, I’ll need to call them again, or perhaps send them an e-mail. Mum started to get into a bit of a panic about “how little time there is left” before the day, but I think things will all be OK.

Anyway. So far, things are going pretty smoothly. My parents and Rachel’s parents had dinner last Saturday night, and it was nice for the six of us to get together. It was the first time Rachel’s dad had met my Dad, so that was good. Overall, it was a very successful evening. I’m looking forward to the next one; it’d be nice if the whole family (that is, brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews) could be in on that one.

I’ve been carried away with the excitement of it all, and already started looking at table decorations, invitations, and “bonbonnieres” or “favours”. This is probably a little bit premature, but … oh, well! I’m getting some good suggestions and ideas.

Phil came ’round to my place last night, which was great. We had dinner (a baked tuna risotto I’d made) and watched an episode from LOST season one. After that, we chatted for a couple of hours about the wedding, and his responsibilities as “best man”! He was keen to know what I was going to expect of him, but I think I’m pretty easy-going. Depending on what we do with car hire, he might need to drive on the day, and I’ll need him to help with choosing clothes, because my dodgy colour vision might let me down in the “matching swatches” department. Other than that, I’d prefer the lead-up to the wedding to be relaxed and casual. I’m looking forward to having a few nice meals with my groomsmen, just hanging out, watching some DVDs … that kind of thing. I’ve also suggested it’d be nice for all the bridal party to have dinner together one evening a little closer to the day. That will probably depend a fair bit on when Copland and Gary fly into Sydney.

So far, pretty much all is on track. Our next step will be to start confirming venues and paying deposits. Of course, Rachel is getting closer to choosing a dress, but I’m not allowed to have anything to do with that!

Cheers,
Andy

propose

/prə'poυz/ v.i. to make an offer of marriage.

Rachel and I are engaged! About a week ago, we had a really fancy dinner at the Sir Stamford Hotel dining room in Circular Quay. The restaurant was very nice, but there weren’t many people there for a Friday night. The food was great, and the restaurant was very accommodating. I’d rung ahead to book the table, and asked if they could make sure there were some gluten-free options for me. When we arrived, there weren’t any issues at all! I had some very tasty pork ribs with potatoes, and a wattle-seed brûlée for dessert. Delicious!

After dinner, we went for a quick walk down along the harbourside, and that was quite pretty, because the city was all done out in bright colours for the “Vivid” light show; all the buildings were shifting through the spectrum, there were fairy lights in the trees, and the opera house was being splashed with different colours. (Don’t think I’d planned that! It was all a lucky coincidence! As we were driving in to the city, I was thinking to myself, Wow! This is pretty cool, and great timing!)

As we sat down in front of the opera house, looking out at the harbour bridge, the water, and across to Kirribilli and North Sydney, I asked Rachel to marry me. She said yes! The weather was icy cold, with a chilly wind blowing. Rachel (who’d had an inkling that it was going to be “the night”) had brought her camera along. The photo turned out all right, which is a bonus, since I could barely keep the camera still because I was shivering so much!

Since then, the past week has been a whirlwind of discussion and the beginning of organisation. There’s a lot that goes into a wedding which I hadn’t realised. We’ve been talking about churches, reception venues, dates, themes, guests, music, ministers, dances, food, photographs and photographers, cakes, travel, the honeymoon ... the list goes on! At the moment, things are in the very early stages, but we’re looking at narrowing down our choices for reception and service very soon. That’ll help us start to organise some of the other things we need to do. We’ve already chosen our bridal party, so that’s very exciting. Rachel’s very happy with the ring. It had to be resized, but that’s all finished now, so I’ll take it back to her tomorrow.

We’re heading for a January 2011 wedding date. That’s not too far away! Stay tuned!

good will hunting

You know, there are very smart people here at Harvard, and even they have to study because this is really hard … and yet — you do it so easily, I don’t understand, I … I … I don’t understand how your mind works…

Good Will Hunting came out in 1997 and was directed by Gus Van Sant. Will Hunting (Matt Damon) is one of those super-intelligent people who reads science and maths textbooks for fun on the weekends. But he’s had a hard life and is a bit rough around the edges. With his posse of friends (played by Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, and Cole Hauser) they terrorise their neighbourhood of South Boston. Will is arrested, and destined for gaol, but a sleazy MIT professor, Gerald Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgård), agrees to post bail on two conditions: that Will meet with him to help him solve complicated maths problems, and that he have weekly therapy sessions. After unsuccessfully trialling five different therapists, Lambeau turns to his old college roommate, Sean Maguire (Robin Williams), as a last resort. Along the way, Will meets Skylar (Minnie Driver) in a “Harvard bar”, and they begin a relationship.

I think the first time I saw this movie was the first time I heard a Boston accent. I put “Harvard bar” in inverted commas up there because of the way they say it (without the usual American post-vocalic “r”) which makes me smile: “Hah-vehd bah” … in fact, they pronounce it pretty much the same way an Aussie would! Speaking of accents, I also appreciate the fact that Minnie Driver uses her own British accent, and doesn’t have to fake an American one. A few actors and actresses are very talented at “doing” other accents, but I always reckon that if it’s not crucial to the story or history of the character, they should just be able to perform their part in their own voice. Anyway…

It’s kind of refreshing to see Robin Williams play a serious role. (His performance won him the Oscar that year for “best supporting actor”). It’s a testament to his acting ability, I think, knowing that he doesn’t always have to be the “funny guy”. He has a great four-minute monologue about halfway through the film, slamming Will for his cocky attitude.

You’re an orphan, right? Do you think I’d know the first thing about how hard your life has been, how you feel, who you are, because I read Oliver Twist? Does that encapsulate you?

As someone who’s worked in a university setting, I enjoy the little digs the movie takes at academia. It seems academics live in their own little world a lot of the time, doing research and either patting each other on the back, or stabbing each other in the back. You could be a genius in your field, winner of the Fields Medal, but if you suddenly need someone to unblock your toilet, all your work doesn’t count for very much. The interaction between Prof. Lambeau and the maintenance man shows the antagonistic relationship “academic staff” and “general staff” (or “faculty” and “staff”, as I think they’re called in the USA) have with each other. Lambeau’s reaction when Will sets fire to one of the proofs he’s been working on makes you realise how different they are to each other, and where their priorities lie.*

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have written an amazing story (which subsequently won them the Academy Award for “best original screenplay”). They’ve done a fantastic job at putting together a terrific script, from the light-hearted scene between Skylar and Will in the novelty shop, to Will and Sean’s lump-in-the-throat final two sessions. How are two twenty-something blokes able to write such a deep story so authentically? Speaking of authentic, there’s a lot of swearing in the movie, but — unlike some movies where the swearing is just gratuitous — I think in this case it helps give an insight into the characters, their backgrounds, and community.

Danny Elfman (composer of The Simpsons theme song) has written a subtle, poignant music score.

In Australia, Good Will Hunting is rated (M)15+: Medium Level Coarse Language, Low Level Violence. I should also point out that my copy of Good Will Hunting on DVD doesn’t come with subtitles/captions for Deaf or hearing impaired people. The purpose of this feature is usually to enable people access to the movie, which they wouldn’t otherwise have. How any DVD distributor can get away with this sort of discrimination in these modern times, for whatever reason, is beyond me. Shame, Village Roadshow, shame!

* Last night, I read this review in my copy of Time Out’s Film Guide of 2004 (Twelfth Edition): “To an extent, the film challenges America’s ingrained anti-intellectualism, yet its anti-elitist instincts lead it close to equating academia with a dubious effeminacy.” Hmm. What do you think?