Great Issues

February 5, 2002-Sex Obsessed?

From the tidbits I’ve been sending you may think Australia is a sex-obsessed country. It’s just more open than the U.S. An example of that is that there will be three major events in the Brisbane area at one time. Bill Clinton is coming, the Queen of England will be here, & Sexpo 2002 will take place. One commentator noted that, ” … Clinton & the royal family set cultural milestones with their sexual peccadilloes…” The new event at Sexpo that has raised eyebrows is “shadow sex.’ It’s borrowed from Amsterdam’s sex scene & involves voyeurism & exhibitionism. Couples have sex behind an opaque curtain & the audience gets to watch.

Sydney is gearing up for the Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. This is a three-week event culminating in a parade. The parade started as a protest march in the mid-80’s & has evolved into the single biggest event in Sydney. Mardi Gras brings in more money than any other happening in that happenin’ place. It’s gotten to the point where hired curators run the three-week long events. There’s still grassroots involvement, but these experts co-ordinate the dance parties (including one for 13-17 year olds), fashion shows, workshops (from DJ master classes to writing workshops), forums on sexuality, health, & gender politics. There’s a Boxing Club where anyone can rant & rave about love, life, & art. There’s a film festival, live performances, visual arts programs, & the requisite Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir.

We’re really regretting that David agreed to stay through Pesach. We thought the congregational Seder was on the first night. It’s on the second. We haven't done two nights of Pesach in 35 years. We're really annoyed. The only good thing is that there’s a new member in town. He’s catering the Seder at temple. At a meeting to discuss the Seder, someone asked if he was gay. David said that his favorite daughter was gay & our cantor here said that two of her favorite nephews were gay. End of discussion. That brings the total of the families that are out to us to five. The new member’s partner will be in town soon.

There was a proposal made to us to come back, but it wasn't something we even considered for a second. They wanted us to take a year off & then sign on for three years. They’d send us back to the U.S. for a month each year. That sounded really inadequate even if we accepted. What don’t they get about the meaning of retirement? There are times when, family considerations aside, we would love to stay, but there’s never a time when David wants to keep being in the active rabbinate. That’s why he retired. There’s also a feeling of isolation here. We love travel, but it’s a huge first step to get anywhere. When we leave Sydney for India, it will be a nine-hour flight just to get to Hong Kong. I'm not sure how good certain parts of medical care are & I think that dental is really behind the U.S. Education is inferior & the Jewish communities here are sicker than ours.

David might have to keep really busy when we get home. He’s taken up window washing here. It’s the second time he noticed that the balcony sliders were spotted & undertook the job of cleaning them. He now knows how hard it is to do a streak free job. He was whinging about not having a squeegee or proper window washing solution. No, I don’t have vinegar in the house.

February 6, 2002-Turmoil

They’re rioting in Woomera, there’s strife in Aurukun, there’s flooding in Sydney, & the rainforests need rain. If it weren’t already a song, I’d write it. Woomera is the detention center where some people have been locked up for over three years without a decision. Aurukun is a tiny town of mainly aborigines where out of 250 children enrolled in school only 10 students attend regularly. Where Sydney didn’t burn, it’s now flooding & sliding downhill as a result of torrential downpours. The rainforests in Queensland are in such need of rain, and the animals may loose so much habitat that koalas, an already endangered species, may disappear. Did I mention the cyclone in Broome, Western Australia?

We watched the new episode of West Wing last night. It was a bit disconcerting. I know that the repartee is clever, fast, & lively, but we had more trouble than usual understanding it. Can our ears be that un-attuned to American? I did notice we’ve become unaccustomed to seeing multi-racial casts on TV. Here, there’s no way a black aboriginal man or woman would be cast as the head of the department of defense.

Our travel agent in Akron emailed us what looks like a great itinerary for the remainder of our adventure. We’re tentatively booked to leave Sydney on March 12, & arrive in Cleveland on May 10. The emails should get more interesting during that time.

Toby