here is a portion, a collection of my life.
some of it has to do with travel. a lot of it has to do with photos. a bit of family, a bit of friends. a whole bunch of nonsense, really.
drop me a line sometime, i would love to hear from you: laurenfarmer (dot) blog (at) gmail (dot) com
lauren farmer
I really dig all the photos of your cozy Christmas trees with your eggnog and your sweaters and being indoors and all, but I much prefer this.
Merry Christmas from Oz.
Nana and Uncle Charles are too busy playing Words With Friends with each other on their iPads to help me build a gingerbread house.
Melissa:: My sis wants to know if you do Christmas trees or bushes in Australia.
Lauren:: Hahah trees, just like you do. Some people take mini trees to the beach when they do their Christmas BBQ's.
Lauren:: Aussies are really into antlers on cars. And gnomes, but that's an all-year-round thing.
On bullies.
An honest post.
I’ve been dealing with something of an internet bully for a while now. Someone who is terribly bitter and angry, who must find some refuge or fleeting satisfaction in the tearing down of others.
I see it for what it is. I’m a 29 year old woman with perspective, with much more life experience than the one who is causing me this nuisance. But still, I’ve let it bother me. I’ve allowed it to dampen my mood, to ruin a few days. And for that, I’m disappointed in myself.
When it’s someone else, when it’s not you it’s easy to say, “Just turn a blind eye, don’t give them the power.” Such sage advice, which I mysef have given. But when it’s you, when you read things about yourself which aren’t true, which are uncalled for, it’s well…fucking annoying.
But what I refuse to do is give them the satisfaction of a response, of a reaction of any kind. (Let’s not call this post a reaction…) Which for me and for this situation, is the appropriate way to tackle it. As tough as that is, as much as I’d like to write a scathing email or partake in a public confrontation, I won’t. Because I’m a grown up and I can handle this, because I know that my value is in more than some petty assumptions and accusations.
I guess this post is to say…well fuck it. It happens. Some people suck. Most don’t.
Unfortunately a lot of people are dealing with this on scales MUCH more significant than mine. And that really blows. I am so sorry.
I want to help, we all need to help. I wish I had some sort of answer, solution. But does anyone? I guess we all just do what we can. Even if it’s not stepping in but just lending an ear. I’m good at that, and I need to do more of it.
What I’m saying is…fuck the bullies and be a friend, and as my Nana says, “Don’t let the bastards get you down.”
And with that, Merry Christmas Eve! I’m off to decorate my balcony for a family BBQ and make a jug of mojitos. :)
gpoy
So thankful for summer sun, finally. So ready for a break from work bullshit. So thankful for Christmas with my family. So excited for a Tasmanian road trip.
Thanks, Dad.
Friends!
A lot of you are Summer Heights High fans. I know this because you’ve told me you are.
And guess what! Chris Lilley is doing a live Twitter commentary of the first episode of Summer Heights High TONIGHT at 10pm ET.
Watch the episode on HBO2 (or start it on HBO on Demand, HBO GO or HBO.com http://itsh.bo/ruGpEJ) and follow along with his behind the scenes commentary at http://twitter.com/chrislilley.
That’s 2pm AEST in Australia and 3am GMT in the UK.
Also, all episodes of We Can Be Heroes and Summer Heights High are currently on HBO on Demand and HBO GO, leading into the premiere of Angry Boys on January 1 @ 10pm.
Hopefully see you in a few hours for the SHH commentary!
Q: Kind of a weird question, but what's your life story? It just seems like you've had some amazing experiences and been a lot of places.
A:
Hi,
LIFE STORY! Wow. I don’t usually answer Tumblr questions publicly but what the hell, I’m bored.
I was born in a country town in Australia in 1982. When I was 7, my parents, brother and I up and moved to Ft. Wayne, Indiana and lived in a townhouse community where we took family Tai Chi. A year later, we wisened up and moved to Kansas City. We were always meant to return to Australia but one thing led to another and 20 years later…
So middle and high school in Kansas, great midwestern time. I was very shy, barely had any friends. Found my way into theater which really opened me up and gave me the confidence that had eluded me. Yeah. Then I headed out West and went to college at Pepperdine University, a small liberal arts school on the beach in Malibu, California. Studied advertising and interned for a number of high-profile Hollywood producers that treated me like shit. But a great experience. Did a study abroad year in Florence, Italy. That was fun and got to see much of Europe.
And then I graduated, in 2004. My brother, who had since moved overseas, took me to South America for a backpacking trip where we met my now sister-in-law, Leighanne. I returned to LA, hoping to settle into post-college life but couldn’t quite pull it off. Decided to spend 6 months back in Kansas, working in medical records at a children’s psychiatric hospital.
One day, my best friend Monika who had moved out to New York after graduation, called me up and said she had an extra room to fill and if I wanted it, it was mine. But she needed to know tomorrow. So I thought about it, and said yes. A week later, my parents drove me out to New York. It was home from that first day.
I landed my first job in New York as an executive assistant in the Media Sales department of Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. That was alright. I stuck it out for a couple of years and then worked my ass off to get over to HBO, into Marketing. First as an assistant, and then ended up on the social media team. Loved it. HBO’s awesome.
My parents moved back to Australia, and that was hard for me. I was now the only member of my family left in the States.
I started taking photos and one thing led to another, I left HBO to try my hand at full-time photography. It was fun, but I found it difficult to manage the freelance life and I was running out of money. Winter was approaching and I needed a break, so I decided to move to Sydney for 6 months. I knew I’d never be able to fully settle in New York or the States, with my family a world away, if I didn’t at least give it a go living over on this side. So I threw a going-away party and told my friends I’d be back soon. That was 15 months ago.
I tried freelancing here, but it was tough without the contacts I had worked so hard to build up in New York. Had a great time shooting some of my favourite bands though while they were here for summer festivals. Once again, running out of money, I started casually looking for a job and landed a killer one at the ABC as a social media producer. I’ve been here a year now and have worked on some really, really great projects.
So here we are now in December 2011. I don’t know what my plan is. I don’t know where I want to be or who I want to be, but I’m learning lots and taking it as it comes. Trying to see as much of the world as I can. That’s about it.
Why, what’s YOUR life story?
Oh and here’s a photo of my family when we moved to the States in 1990. Matching jumpers, y’all.
Here’s a story.
4 years ago, a 16 year old kid named Matt Corby almost won Australian Idol. I was 25, living in New York and I’m unashamed to admit I was just a little bit obsessed with him. I spent hoursa lot of minutes watching YouTube videos of his performances, including these insanely awesome ones of Music of the Night from Phantom and The Blower’s Daughter. I don’t doubt that I posted them on Tumblr 4 years ago. Update: I did.
And now he’s all grown up (21, totally legal!), smokin’ hot and making waves with his new single Brother. Is it getting airplay in the States? If not, it should be.
Here is a beautiful acoustic version.
So yeah, Matt Corby. Remember that name.
