Comment on Discussion Thread š¦ Friday 23 May 2025
PeelerSheila@aussie.zone āØ11ā© āØhoursā© ago
Actually one thing I wanted to share with you guys was that somehow this week I managed to read a book! I used to be a massive bookworm when I was younger, until one of my nervous breakdowns when I discovered that I struggled to finish one page of a book without my mind wandering and me giving up. But I found this book in a street library called First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung. I have a friend from my high school days whose background is Cambodian, so I was interested. Heās told me in the past that his earliest childhood memory was when they left in a boat. Reading that book, man it was gripping. The things that little girl and her family experienced, Jesus Christ. It had me enthralled how she survived, how much guts she had.
When I finished the book I gave thought to something else I read recently with a chart, about how most people in Australia and other modern western countries are amongst the richest 20% of the global population. When I think ārichestā I usually think of the 1%. But apparently if you have a car, have a roof over your head, shower daily, can easily access food, turn on the tap and drinkable water comes out whenever you want it, have an education and stuff like that, you are among the worldās richest 20%. It really made me think, you know? And it made me feel really grateful, grateful for my life and the lives my kids live. It made me realise that I am rich in a lot of ways, and it made me feel really thankful.
Enough of my ramblings, just wanted to share my mind space of this week. Have a lovely evening you guys!
Iāve always read books but what got me into biographies was a book called Two Pence To Cross The Mercy by Helem Forrester. Itās about a twelve year old girl who basically raised her family out of poverty during the depression. She was smart and all she wanted to do was go to school. Thereās 4 books in the series. You feel for this young girl but thatās not how she wrote the stories. She just did what she felt she had to do.
Itās something thatās never left me.
I loved that series. That and Janet Sandisonās series called Jean In The Morning, Jean Towards another Day, Jean at Noon and Jean In the Twilight. We donāt remember the depression, but it marked our parents/grandparents with huge trauma.
I may have to start a āto readā list
Iāll have to look this up. We have to learn from this.
Ok this sounded interesting, and a sample reading has driven me to download Libby and start on the eBook. Thankyou š
Itās like Angelaās Ashes but from young girls feel.
Have you read Poor Manās Orange?
I love recommendations so just bought the audiobook. š
You will love it
It reminds me of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, which I read when I was about 10.
40 years later I would visit Brooklyn regularly and I would always think about the book.
Youāve inspired me to get off the usual screens and finally get started on a book Iāve been meaning to read for a while - Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro. Itās starting off really well! Iām going to go back to it after this comment, butā¦
I had a closer relationship to lower living standards growing up, still very much first world but things like your own patch of grass, the space to not live constantly surrounded by others, a relaxed way of living, wide open spaces and yes, having a car for many people, were all almost unattainable privileges. And just one generation removed my family came from a country that definitely had much less: I remember the constant power cuts, military checkpoints, curfews when I visited (and we were considered privileged back there, having migrated away from it all). Parents had their stories of lining up for rations, the bombings, the terrorā¦
Yet I still often fall into the trap of the hedonistic treadmill and forget how absolutely, blinking, freaking lucky and rich I am to be where I am right now. Itās easy to get caught up in how unaffordable housing is, etc, and itās not like those things shouldnāt change, but holy shit most people in the world would still kill to be here in our places. We never, ever genuinely have to worry about starvingā¦ What a blessing.
And Peeler, you yourself have such a generous, creative, loving personality that is its own richness regardless of material wealth āŗļø the minis are blessed to have you as their mum indeed!
Never Let Me Go is a gut punch. I think Iāve read a few of his that really hurt
I watched the movie of Remains of the Day and it squeezed my heart in quite a unique way
Yeah that was the other book I readā¦ the way he just kept on going when (spoiler)
Iām really happy to hear you got to finish a book. Iām similar in that I was a huge bookworm but struggle to read these days.
So itās a huge achievement!
I recently read The Revenant and The Particular Sadness Of Lemon Cake. Both were op shop finds.
The first is about a man left for dead after being attacked by a bear and his subsequent survival/quest for revenge. The second is about a girl who can taste emotions in food. Bit of a weird ending.
I still have part of the Memory Sorrow and Thorn trilogy to finish as so much was going on for so long that I got too tired to read.
The Revenant was made into a movie with Leo DiCaprio. Beautiful amazing movie.
Havenāt read any those books at all but they all sound interesting.
The past few days Iāve been watching/listening to various renditions of The Hound of the Baskervilles.
I have come to the conclusion itās Doyleās version of a Gothic Novel.
The Lemon cake one sounds interesting, I might try that next.
Seagoon_@aussie.zone āØ10ā© āØhoursā© ago
Outrageous opinion follows.
Life for homeless people in Australia is usually better than life for average people in most of the world. They still have clean food, clean water, good medical care if they walk into a hospital, clean streets. True, they often have psych problems and need care. But they donāt need to worry about open sewers and such.
Catfish@aussie.zone āØ10ā© āØhoursā© ago
Um no.
Strapping yourself to ceiling beams to sleep so you donāt get assaulted.
Boyo at 14 in the RMIT brewery.
Seagoon_@aussie.zone āØ9ā© āØhoursā© ago
i didnāt say it was safe or good or something to aspire to nor a reason to not stop homelessness or help, just that there are some of the same advantages of an advanced industrial country.
Catfish@aussie.zone āØ9ā© āØhoursā© ago
Actually, fuck that um.
This is a disgusting and ill considered opinion.
Seagoon_@aussie.zone āØ8ā© āØhoursā© ago
ffs,
clean water is precious, sewers is precious, etc
our whole society benefits from these basics
we do need to care about everyone and stop homelessness, and itās possible, we just need the will , we need to tax mining companies etc
we know itās possible to help people because we did it during covid