11/8/03 Q & ACT

Q: If you left Canberra, what local place or activity would you miss most?
A: The Curtin Milk Bar. I grew up in and around it. Vince's pizzas, cappuccinos and sweets carry with them the taste of a very satisfactory childhood. A shame he lost the Space Invaders machine.

Q: Which TV show or movie does Canberra most resemble?
A: Mulholland Drive. What we want to see and what is really happening can sometimes be poles apart.

Q: Which is better: northside or southside?
A: I think the north has slightly better record shops.

Q: Which is the better bridge: Kings Avenue or Commonwealth Avenue?
A: I'm fond of the bridge that connects the two treehouses at Weston Park. Or the rattly one going into Tharwa.

Q: When your relatives or friends visit Canberra, what's the first
attraction you take them to?
A: Pay parking. Then a roundabout. Followed by roadworks.

Q: If you were a Canberra landmark, which one would you be?
A: The memorial walk up Mt Ainslie from behind the War Memorial. I could get happily trampled on while providing people improved fitness, a sense of perspective and a nice view.

Q: If there was to be a beach built in Canberra, where should it be?
A: Leave it where it is. Otherwise you couldn't stop for pies at the Braidwood Bakery. Sutton is a nearby alternative if pushed.

Q: Which Canberran would you most like to sit next to at a dinner party and
why?
A: My dad. He'd want to lose the joint and go do something like see a show, kick a footy, plant a tree.

Q: In 2020, which team will be the most popular: the Brumbies, the Raiders, the Capitals or someone else?
A: Aren't these the arts pages? I think Canberra Repertory, Canberra Philharmonic, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Canberra Poets, Canberra Youth Theatre, the Choreographic Centre and HMT, to name a few, are just as worthy teams.

Q: Does Canberra have a soul?
A: Yes. More often than not it is found, tenaciously existing, in struggling artists, underpaid community workers and kids who don't play computer games.

Q: What's the best concert/event you've been to in Canberra?
A: Jonathan Richman or Matthew Sweet at the ANU Refectory - there were about a dozen of us in the audience for both concerts and these unforgettable performers played like there were 12 000 of us. And stayed for a chat afterwards. You don't get that in Sydney.

Q: Where is your favourite place to spend a night out?
A: Having a duck laksa and jasmine tea at the Tak Kee, Dickson, amidst the splendid light blue decor.

Q: Apart from home, where in Canberra do you feel most comfortable?
A: On the floorboards or seats in any of its theatres.

Q: If New Yorkers are famed for being pushy, what should Canberrans be famous for?
A: Canberrans surprise you when you think you've got them sussed. Most Canberrans have an in-depth knowledge of something arcane.

Q: If I could travel in time, I would have...
A: Warned Canberra about the devastating bushfires. And recently, not visited my friends who had kids with chicken pox.

Q: You've been frozen for 50 years. After thawing the first thing you want is?
A: A mango smoothie. Then the reassurance that 'Home & Away' no longer exists, that no more Bush family members are in the White House, that the Socceroos have made the World Cup finals, and that people have rediscovered and frequently attend the joy that is live theatre.