Chronicles of a Trailing Spouse...

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Christmas is heroically attempting to make its presence felt here in Perth, but I remain unconvinced. There is something fundamentally askew about shopping in Woolworths , wearing thongs (no, I'm not in the habit of wearing several g-strings at once, I'm talking about flip-flops) and a halter-neck dress --  not to mention it being almost 30 degrees outside -- while Bing Crosby croons 'Have yourself a merry little Christmas' over the sound system. And although I've lived through several Christmases in the Middle East, at least it was actually winter there, meaning it was ever so slightly cooler than usual (and the locals would amusingly go around bundled up in jumpers and tights to fend off the slightly-cooler-than-normal weather). Here in Perth things are hotting up, and frankly the last thing I want to do is shoehorn a celebration which can only work if it gets dark at 4pm, is freezing cold outside, and one can comfortably drin...

I remember my first Gay; he was up the hill in the Christian Brothers School, and I had a little crush on him. Of course I now realise why; he was engaging, charismatic and yes, slightly effeminate. He was also able to look a girl in the eye without kicking a stone, muttering 'fuck', and gobbing on the pavement. He wore nice clothes - actual colours and patterns -- in a time where such things were unheard of, and he had nice hair too.... You didn't get many gays back then. Well there was that odd-looking guy who worked in the Chemist and lived with his mother, but his gayness was never confirmed beyond the odd scurrilous whisper. Gay happened on telly - Stephen in Dynasty was gay. Poor Stephen. But I can't think of another single case as I sit and type. It will come to me no doubt, but maybe not.... So when the boy from the CBS confided to my best friend that he was gay, it was big news. She of course immediately told me, with the impossible caveat that I couldn...