Synchronicity ... Yeah, Nah!?👌🙆🙅🚫

William McInnes at the 'Yeah, Nah!' talk

I haven't read William McInnes' book 'Yeah, Nah!' yet, in fact I don't even own a copy yet, but I did finish reading his co-authored 2011 book 'Worse Things Happen at Sea' written with his late wife Sarah Watt.

Which crossed paths with me in a Thrift (or opportunity) shop I work in part time, a few weeks before I met William at a writers festival in Bangalow, and asked him to sign for me.

Thrift Shop Biography Podcast?🎤✍📕

Pete Murray in Bangalow

Music, Myth, Cosmos: Sunday Morning Coming Down

I was only about halfway through the book when William signed the book for me, as I wrote in this recent post -

Grabbing a Bite at Wahlburgers Byron Bay After a Day at the Writers Festival?🍔📕

"Mate, My Hobby is Being Alive" William McInnes

William McInnes at the 'Yeah, Nah!' talk at the Bangalow Showgrounds

After listening to William's Byron Writers Festival talk about his book 'Yeah, Nah!' I did an Apple Podcast search to hear him speak about the book and found an old 2023 'Conversations' episode where he and Richard Fidler make themselves laugh over Australianisms. 

William McInnes and his
favourite Australianisms

I'm just not so sure that 'Yeah, Nah!' is of Australian origin when I think back to hearing the expression in the 2022 movie 'NOPE' ... Year, Nah?-)

And I like how William starts off his conversation with Richard saying that he is either a trained actor or a hamburger, because of a play on words over the name of the acting school and the name of an Aussie hamburger:-P 

I guess that makes Mark Wahlberg an American hamburger?-)

But William is right that a lot of Australians do use the expression Yeah/Nah quite often, especially our sportsmen and women I noticed.

Being a Tottenham fan long before Ange took over the coaching job there, I was watching his press interview last week and about 40 seconds in he says it:-)

Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou speaks
 after his side beat Everton 4-0 at home

Samuel Stonestreet

Even in a post-match interview with The Sharks' Sam Stonestreet last week with Fox Sports Sam says it, too:-)

What ... or Who is a Bogan?

A Bogan in the movie 'NOPE'?-)

'Bogan' is a controversial slang word?

Also, in that 'Conversations' podcast William refers to sharks as "Noah's arks" and in his book 'Worse Things Happen at Sea' writes about his daughter owning chooks (chickens/roosters) with one having the name Russell Crowe:-)

The inside cover of 'Worse Things Happen at Sea'

And of course, Russell Crowe has played Noah on the big screen.

From 'Worse Things Happen at Sea'

Magda Szubanski, Rainbows, The 2016 Byron Bay Writers Festival, Jung and Synchronicity

From 'Worse Things Happen at Sea'

I take it that William is a Redcliffe Dolphins supporter like his old man?

And because William grew up in Redcliffe, I just surmise he goes for The Dolphins in the NRL now?

Then again, I grew up in Brisbane and am a Sharks supporter, because there was no Brisbane Broncos when I was growing up in Brisbane.

They didn't come into the NRL until 1988, the year I got married.

And I've grown to hate the Brisbane Broncos since then to the point that they are the last team in the NRL I would go for.

Drew Barrymore is Far From Home This Weekend I See? 🏡👀😀

What's Drew wearing a Dolphins hat for?-)

I know Trent Dalton is a Brisbane Bronco fan I take from listening to some podcasts.

Not that I know what a "Trent" is supposed to look like;-)

Magic Words and the Power of Language?

From 'Worse Things Happen at Sea'

Funny thing is, I showed Trent Dalton this page from William's and Sarah's book when I was getting Trent to sign a few of his books for me, and he had a laugh about it.

I then showed William that page when William was signing the book for me, and I told him I had shown Trent that page:-)

Do you think I'll be going for the Broncos over The Dolphins today?
Yeah ... Nah!?

William McInnes on dads

Tomorow in Australia is Father's Day, so I had to listen to the above podcast which was originally broadcast in 2018.
Fathers!

You can't live with 'em and you can't live without 'em:-)

PREGNANT BARBIE/MARGOT?🤰🚼🪆

Congrats Margot ... and maybe a Barbie doll to celebrate the birth may be on the cards I would think?

Maybe Matel can make it work now?

Pregnant Margot Robbie glows as she displays
bare baby bump on vacation in Sardinia

If the baby is a boy promise to call him Ken?-)

Hey, who cares, because the main thing is that there is another Aussie coming into the world;-)

I guess if it's a girl it will be named Nikki (don't quote me on the spelling of Nikki, that's just how a high school drop out like me would spell the name ... blame my high school English teachers for that one ... even though I know that that did the best they could do with a little bastard of a student like me;-)

Was Weird Barbie mentioned in that video right at the top of this post?

Did Weird Barbie Touch My Pussy?-)🎥😸🐅🎬🐯

Looks like Margot is giving birth to another dragon, like me this year, also:-)

And did they say that the Midge doll already had a son named Ryan?-)

Born in 1976, the
Year of the Dragon

2024, The Year of the Dragons?⚽🐉🏆🐲

Barbie is One of the Most Annoying Aussie Words Around?🍤🥳🌏🦐

Thrift Shop Biography Podcast?🎤✍📕

Drew Barrymore

I found the 'Thrift Shop Biography' podcast recently when I was searching for podcast episodes through Apple Podcasts about Drew Barrymore, when Drew was about to take the stage in my hometown of Brisbane a few weeks back -

Drew Barrymore is Far From Home This Weekend I See? 🏡👀😀

Far from Home (1989)

I've since listened to the episodes about Prisilla, Prince Harry and yesterday one that I thought I would never have listened to about Mariah Carey, only because I saw the tragic news yesterday about her mother and sister passing away on the same day, and realized I knew nothing about Mariah really, than brief news headlines now and then about her LoveLife to James Packer.

Mariah Carey's mother and sister
die on the same day

Mariah Carey

"Welcome to our podcast where we discuss and deliberate over memoirs and biographies found in thrift shops. This is a great way to do things as we are not choosing who to read about[?]. We may not be fans of the person, we may never have heard of the person and we never know who we are going to find next...
There are only 2 rules to this podcast. The book has to be found in a thrift shop and we are not allowed to talk about the book until we press record, which is sometimes agonising.
We have lots of episodes coming up so if you find yourself enjoying our podcast, please be sure to subscribe to be among the first to hear about each episode."

Thrift Shop Biography Podcast

I guess I love the concept of this podcast, because like I wrote in my last post, I get a lot of my books now through the Op Shop I work at part time -

Grabbing a Bite at Wahlburgers Byron Bay After a Day at the Writers Festival?🍔📕

Grabbing a Bite at Wahlburgers Byron Bay After a Day at the Writers Festival?🍔📕

I crossed the Queensland/New South Wales border for the first time since the Covid lockdowns to spend the day (Saturday August 10th) at the Byron Writers Festival and on the way back from Bangalow I ducked in to grab a burger and beer at Wahlburgers in Byron Bay, since there still isn't one in Brisbane despite all the hype years ago in the local press about building one on Brisbane's north side.

2020: Fortress Queensland?

Artworks at the 2024 Byron Writers Festival?📕🎭🎨🖌

The Art of Writing Crime talk at
 the BWF, August 10th, 2024

A burger business with star power
 is about to hit Australia

Burgers, Missing Loved Ones, Holidays, Movies ... and Would You Like Minimum Fries or Hot Chips with That?

I'm pretty sure the last time I was down here this was a Mexican restaurant where this Wahlburgers now is, which I wrote about in this old post -

Using Your PGS ... or Maybe Even Your Internal Dash Cam?

Oddly enough, the last time I was down in Byron was to watch a movie in the Palace Cinemas on this same level of the shopping centre that Wahlburgers is on, and then to duck up to Bangalow for a play that night, which I wrote about in this old post -

What Will Children's Day Look Like in 2040?

Magic Mushrooms and a Night in 'Dreamland'?

The Bangalow Hall on the right

Oddly enough, the hall I saw the play in was in the Bangalow Showgrounds and part of the 2024 Byron Writers Festival, not that I caught any talks in that hall on the day I attended the BWF. 

I got to Wahlburgers right around sunset and took my seat on the balcony overlooking the tattoo shop I got a tattoo from years ago -

Where I got my new old tattoo.
The cinema is right across the road from it

The tattoo looks nowhere as good as
that now and is barely readable

Life Support?

That bright white light on the hill is the lighthouse

One thing that surprised me as I was sitting on the balcony looking over the roof of the tattoo parlour and out to sea was that I could see the lighthouse that marks the spot from where I threw my old wedding ring into the ocean 10 years ago now -

Love on the Rocks ... A Fool's Journey?

Featuring some truly iconic
Aussie locations?

Kylie Minogue Stars in the New Tourism Australia Ad which Features the Cape Byron Lighthouse?

"Ship of Fools" World Party

Pity I wasn't down there on Friday for the start of the Byron Writers Festival;-)

The Catholics Invented the Mc Donalds Filet-O-Fish for Friday’s?

Or down there on Sunday for the finish of the Byron Writers Festival;-)

Exorcism, The Supernatural ... and the Wahlbergs?

Mark Walhberg is on the Gold Coast filming a movie called 'Balls Up' now, so I was kind of hoping he might have been over the border having a burger at his restaurant that night.

Maybe I should have gone to 'The Farm'?

The Farm?

Fig Tree Restaurant Byron Bay Australia

Or maybe I should have dined at the new 'Fig Tree' restaurant, since I haven't dined there since it burned down pre-Covid -

Where's the November Rain When You Really Need it?

DESPICABLE ME 4 - Sweet Child O' Mine?👼🎬

OK, sorry for keeping this post in progress for so long, but I had planned to finish reading William and Sarah's 2011 book 'Worse Things Happen at Sea', which William had signed for me on the 10th at Bangalow within 24 hours of starting this post, but I only finished reading it today (August 27th).

This book crossed paths with me in the Op Shop I work in part time a few weeks before I was going to the Byron Writers Festival and I had only read half of the book the day William signed it for me.
I had tried to read it all before the festival, but "if you want to make God laugh, tell God your plans", as they say, don't they?

I remember feeling a bit guilty when William was signing the book, and he said something like, "it's a good book isn't it, it's one of my favourites", and I just nodded and said "yeah" ... and thought to myself but I'm only halfway through it, because I'm not the original owner of this book and I've only had it a few weeks ... and you should see the books I have in my "to read" pile.    

But timing is everything when it comes to reading books and life, as I told William how our brothers have certain things in common, and this morning I had to take my brother to the hospital to get a blood test, and as we were walking from the hospital to the carpark, a sign caught my eye as I was looking at the helicopter landing pad and it read 'LOOK BOTH WAYS', which is the name of Sarah's movie that I love so much that I would frame it and hang it on my wall if it was a painting.

And I still hadn't finished the book when I took that picture, so I didn't know at that point that the last chapter of the book ends with William walking a dog around a local footy oval with him watching a helicopter taking some random bloke off to hospital.

It certainly is a small and synchy world ... and I'm sure if William ever reads this post that he will get that pun from our conversation about our brothers;-)

But that's not all ... in fact there is probably enough for another post, so stay tuned for that one, maybe ... because Sarah writes near the end of the book when she realizes that she doesn't have long to live that life is not about being happy all of the time.

Putting a Lens on Happiness? 🙋😁😼😆😊😎

'Worse Things Happen at Sea'

That kid rolling in the surf is in the 'Happiness' booklet

'Worse Things Happen at Sea' is what we usually try to convince ourselves of while our feet seem firmly planted on the land, I think;-)

Oh, and if this book was a painting, I would frame it and put it on my wall, too.

Cronulla Sharks chairman Steve Mace
has recounted the horrifying standoff

"Mate, My Hobby is Being Alive" William McInnes

Jung, Starbucks, Signs and Symbols? 📕🥤⚓♒🦉