Nothing supernatural about Canberra

[Worldslaziestbusker]

Hello
I'm a marine ecologist, living in Canberra and suffering sea withdrawl.
I was sent to an anglican Sunday school through my childhood and was confirmed into the church at fourteen. My path to atheism began in high school biology class. Christian friends said I should reject evolutionary theory as it contradicted the story of creation. This didn't sit well with me as Darwinian concepts made a lot of sense. For a long time I tried to keep science and faith in parallel in my head but the more I read the more science made the better case. I never had any visions or epiphanies in church and eventually the effort of trying to keep a weak faith alive without any evidence to support it wore me out. It takes a lot of mental energy to think up ways to fit a faith model to every aspect of your life in the face of strong evidence to the contrary.
Since rejecting the supernatural I have studied a lot, worked in various science agencies and enjoyed my life a lot more without the background buzz of guilt and doublethink I endured through my youth.
Every day I am lucky enough to get paid to look down a microscope at amazing critters whose diversity, morphology and behaviour would be bewildering without the background biological framework provided by Darwin and his successors and I often breathe a sigh of relief that I didn't listen to my christian friends.
Looking forward to contributing to the AFA forums.
WLB

[Jaar-Gilon]

Welcome WLB, saw your name last night at the bottom of the page as newest member and totally read it wrong, thought it read Worldsleaziestbusker and assumed it was a porn bot :rolleyes: Laziestbusker not sleaziest I'm an idiot!! Does that mean you just play guitar on your couch?
Can understand the sea withdrawl being in landlocked Canberra, not too many degrees in that dip this time of the year either.
I wanted to be a marine biologist when I was a kid, spent a lot of time snorkelling on the mornington peninsula, Somers and Flinders in particular. Got close too did 2 years of Zoology at uni but shit happened, as it does, and never got to finish.
Anyway hope you find some like mindeds here, sure you will as it is a pretty cool bunch.

[SinisterDexter]

Welcome. I don't know much about Canberra, everytime I go there I freeze solid and need to be chipped from the resulting block of ice. But I hope you enjoy the forum.

[Praxis]

Welcome, and what the FSM is a marine biologist doing in Canberra, for starters?

Hope you find some sea soon (it's everywhere - we're girt by it you know ;))

And why are you the world's laziest busker? Curious minds want to know.

[Worldslaziestbusker]

Thanks for the warm welcome. In response to questions and comments:

Q: what the FSM is a marine biologist doing in Canberra, for starters?

A: sulking and counting the days.


Q: And why are you the world's laziest busker?

A: (copied from my myspace page and thus containing many spurious asides)
I invented lazy busking while living in Tauranga, on the north island of New Zealand. After finding busking in Dunedin to be profitable but fraught with danger (see post about Freak Magnet and consult locals about Clappy Guy), I wanted to continue with the activity in my new home. Despite the warmer climate, I found I could only sing for about two hours before my voice was wrecked. Also, the local population, mostly rich retirees from Auckland, didn't part with their change with the same alacrity as the starving students of Dunners.
A different approach was called for. I made up my sign (see pics) and used it to prop open my guitar case on the streets of Mt Maunganui. I sat behind it and read a book with my guitar across my lap. Not many of the elderly and well to do residents knew what to make of this. Few stopped to chat and even fewer threw in coins, but on a quiet, sunny Saturday when there was no surf (and, as this was Mt Maunganui this was often the case) it was a fun way to get some coffee money together while enjoying sea air and a good book.
It was also a good way to meet interesting folks. Kiwis tend to be wary of speaking to strangers, so those that did stop for a chat were often charmingly eclectic.
When I took this non-act to Auckland and spent an afternoon on Queens St, some guy gave me $20 to support what he thought was a unique means to get the Christian message out there. I don't understand what he meant and hope he never finds out where I went on the K-Road to spend it.
I also found guys in their early twenties would ask to borrow my guitar, which I always agreed to. This usually resulted in a horrible recital of "Stairway" or "Wish You Were Here" being inflicted on myself and their bored girl friend.
My favourite response came from a retired naval officer and went like this:
"Whats this? Huh, how do you know you're the laziest?"
"No-one's put their hand up to claim the title from me."
"Perhaps they're too lazy. How can you be sure there aren't hundreds of buskers out there who never had the energy to get out of bed?"
"Yeah, I thought about that, but I decided they aren't really buskers. You have to do the verb to claim the noun."
"Can you play that thing?'
"Yes."
"Well, go on then."
"This is a cash up front operation. I can't make exceptions."
A two dollar coin was produced and thunked in among the felt. The New Zealand $2 is a kick ass big coin compared to our wuss little unit.
"What would you like to hear?"
"Whatever you want to play." The standard reply. Piss off the next busker you approach by having a snappy, difficult response at the ready. I'm going with "I touch myself" by the Divinyls.
I thought about pandering to national pride and giving forth with the Crowded House but decided to go with "This Guy's in Love," which I learnt from another busker in Dunedin. It takes some time to get through and has some tricky changes, but I like it a lot and gave it heaps in the crowded street. He was impressed and failed to be offended by the potential homo-erotic interpretation (I usually only sing this to my girly). He sat down to discuss music, the state of the All Blacks (a given in any weekend conversation in NZ) and his career, which mostly consisted of picking soggy French people out of the southern ocean.
$2 and an interesting chat. Not rock-n-roll stardom excess but a nice touch.

Sorry to go on, but you did ask.

I haven't seen any overt signs of freemason activity in the ACT yet, but overt's not really their caper. Staying alert to unusual handshakes and will report as news comes to hand.

World's Sleaziest Busker is an interesting idea but I think I'll stick with the lazy version as it requires less effort.

Yes, Canberra is cold but I can handle it after life in Dunedin. It's the landlockedness that irks me and I hope to get back to a coastal lifestyle once my contract is complete.

Thanks again for the enthusiastic welcome.
WLB

[SinisterDexter]

That...

...is...

...awesome!!!

(and we all know there is no charge for awesome)

Great story.

[Praxis]

What a brilliant post *insert wildly applauding icon herehttp://images.zaazu.com/img/clap-animated-animation-clap-smiley-emoticon-000340-design.gif* - thank you! (I'm so glad I asked)

I was in NZ recently (in April) and have to say that out of the cities we visited, Dunedin was our absolute fave. So vibrant! We decided that if we had to, we could live there.

But I digress.

Keep counting the days (how many? We can count with you) but try not to sulk too much. After all, each day you're there is one less until you leave.

[Praxis]

More than makes up for a few of the recent acquisitions. :)
Hey!! .....

[davo]

Nice to meet you mate :) Nice to get back on the forum after a short interim to even more interesting people :)

have a good one

[Sir Patrick Crocodile]

Welcome. I don't know much about Canberra, everytime I go there I freeze solid and need to be chipped from the resulting block of ice. But I hope you enjoy the forum.

How do you breathe in there though? Do you have oxygen? I'm also quite surprised you don't suffer hypothermia every time this happens!

[starr]

Welcome worldslaziestbusker.

I am also in Canberra. I love Canberra (truly!) but I can understand it would be a frustrating place for a marine biologist. : )

[Dave]

Welcome WLB ,I would throw you $2 for a sing-a-long but there seems to a problem with my computer, the coin keeps bouncing back to me.

[TÐöer]

Oh. a marine biologist... cool...

I'd love to be one, if it wasn't for the sharks, eels, sting rays, sea slugs, jelly fish, seaweed, corals.... practically everything. :D Though I do think going out to sea and being in water is great!

[Seamus]

IIRC, some bloke called Peter Proudfoot wrote a book on the subject, but it's probably fairly Von Daniken-esque.

Possibly because the city as built is more than a little differnt from the original plan.


I've been to Canberra once,in 1972. The place closes at 5pm,I got lost on that bloodyfreeway and if hadn't been for the National War museum,I probably would have died from boredom. I thought it was elegant but cold. I hated it.

[Worldslaziestbusker]

Thanks for the continued greetings.

Marine science enthusiasts, I call on you to read Milton Love's excellent expose of our existence. It's the truth. The truth, I tell you.
http://www.lovelab.id.ucsb.edu/biologist.html

Hello Starr23. I like your avatar but am finding your city a little on the cold side. I tried plying my lazy trade in Kingston yesterday but was thwarted by numb fingers and indifferent punters.

Dave, I'll get a paypal account hooked up to my Skype account and I'll be able to busk from the comfort of my own home.

Cheerio
WLB

[starr]

Hello Starr23. I like your avatar but am finding your city a little on the cold side. I tried plying my lazy trade in Kingston yesterday but was thwarted by numb fingers and indifferent punters.

Yes it is pretty darn cold at the moment in the Nations Capital. I just went outside to feed the dog and my face froze like this :eek:

:p

Dave, I'll get a paypal account hooked up to my Skype account and I'll be able to busk from the comfort of my own home.


What a fabulous idea :D