Top 5 People to get stuck in an elevator with

I've talked about my fascination with people and the cults of personality that pervade the lives of many a young person. Here is the list of personalities that pervade mine.

5. Annie Lennox

Annie Lennox has been an idol of mine since I was very young. Aside from having an incredible, unique singing voice, she's a passionate activist who has spent much of her life travelling and experiencing different cultures and communities, often lending her voice to those who suffer in silence. It would be wonderful to talk to someone who has had a life like that.

4. David Bowie

Yeah, another rock star. But wouldn't he have had the most incredible experiences? David Bowie was part of a crowd of young musicians in the 60's and 70's that included Iggy Pop, Mick Jagger and Lou Reed. He played at Live Aid, collaborated with Queen, and constructed multiple identities that went perfectly with his incredible music. Oh, and he was in Labyrinth.

3.Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Hugh Fearnley-Eatsitall is my current personality obsession. In fact, as I sit writing this post, I am watching River Cottage Road Trip, in which Hugh is currently fishing in the Lakes District. He is a pretty admirable human being, a chef who has spent the last ten years becoming an exemplar of seasonal and ethical cooking and eating. His tv programs and books have inspired me to eat better, more interesting and more sustainable food in my own diet.

2. Stephen Sondheim

I think this is somewhat self-explanatory considering my last post. Sondheim, simply, creates music and poetry that affects me. He has had a long, rich life (he's eighty!), has been instructed by Oscar Hammerstein and Leonard Bernstein, and has written for Ethel Merman, Mandy Patinkin and countless other amazing performers. I would unashamedly pick his brains for hours and hours.

1. Stephen Fry

Well, he's not eighty, he's not a great musician and he's not known for being an activist, but I think having a conversation with the hyper-intelligent Stephen Fry would be just incredible. He's so smart, so funny, and probably full of conversation starters thanks to his role as Quizmaster on Qi.

Well, that's my 7x5 project finally over (very belatedly, please excuse me), thank you for reading, and I hope it's got you thinking about the art, writing, and personalities that intrigue and inspire you.

7 x 5

I'm starting a project. Sheer boredom really, but I feel it's moderately likely to help me streamline my ideas about art and life. Possibly.

The idea actually comes from a seriously bad/funny film called High Fidelity, in which the two main characters, who work in a record shop, are constantly quizzing each other on their Top 5 hit B-sides, Top 5 Drummer-turned-Lead Singers, etc, as you can imagine.

So - seven days of Top Fives.

FRIDAY - TV Shows

SATURDAY - Songs

SUNDAY - Artworks

MONDAY - Films

TUESDAY - Books

WEDNESDAY - Musicals

THURSDAY - People to get stuck in an elevator with

From easiest to write about to most difficult - and interesting - to write about, starting tonight.

Mission Lifestyle Rearrangement

I think I probably could have managed a snappier title. Oh well!

Yes, I am, to put it mildly, COMPLETELY FED UP with my failing immune system and as such have decided that I need a serious shift in habits to stop my body from giving up on me.

So, I've made some goals:

1. No more alcohol.

I don't drink that much, really, but occasionally I drink too much too frequently and make myself very unhappy. I think it has something to do with not drinking at all until after I turned eighteen due to a mixture of respect for the law (ha) and the fact that my liver just couldn't take it after I was seriously ill when I was younger.

Normal nineteen year olds are far more bullet-proof than I am, and I must remember that.

What I will do now is swear off the demon drink altogether until the 20th of March (the closing night of the next show I'm producing) and then reassess whether I really can't live without it after that.

Besides, less drinks = more shoes. Or something.

2. Get physically active.

This is a hard one. Apart from the effort it takes to actually get out of the house after you've had the flu or similar (as I've experienced repeatedly in recent months), Australian summers are unkind to those who wish to walk/jog/do anything out of the water. Luckily enough, I'm a very strong and fairly fearless swimmer, so that makes my choice easy.

I'm on holidays. My boyfriend drives, my parents both drive, they all like going to the beach (even though Roman swims like an Englishman*) so that's what we will do. I will go swim laps of Clovelly Bay every day I can this summer, and on days I can't, I will either go for a nice long walk after dark, or put on Paul Simon and dance like a maniac.

*Not very well

3. Eat Well

I know I can do better than I'm doing right now. I plan to eat healthy amounts of healthy food and stop buying meals wherever possible. For example, today (day one) I have eaten:

• An organic cheddar, bean and tomato toasted sandwich with orange juice for breakfast
• A small but awesome serving of Dad's home made veggie fried-rice
• A parsley omelette with rye toast, fresh tomatoes and baba ganouj.
• About to eat apple slices and raisins in natural yoghurt. Yum yum yum.

The great thing is I know it makes me feel so much better than eating the crap I usually buy at uni or work. So yay, let's hope I can keep it up.

3.1 Eat Meat!

My vegetarian period has coincided with the highest rate of recurring illness in my life. After watching far too much of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall on River Cottage, I've realised that as long as you eat good meat that has been treated organically and ethically in its previous life, it's not actually a sin to be an omnivore. Plus, my dad makes amazing lemon lamb.

4. Drink water

Seems dumb, right? Well I am dumb. Profoundly, apparently, because my doctor says that two days ago I was so dehydrated it was raising my heart rate. More fluids required. This is an important one for everyone, I think, especially anyone planning on dealing with Australian weather over the next few months.

5. Get on the self-respect wagon

This is the big one. When I'm staying up to all hours with no food and too much drink in me, I forget that I'm actually a bit of a goddess.

This sounds ridiculous, and in many ways it is, but I don't think it'd kill me to remember that I've got a beautiful, feminine body that needs a bit of care given and attention paid.

..Which is why I painted my nails! They're a deep, shimmery turquoise. Like the shadow of an iceberg under the southern waves.

It's the beginning of appreciating what my body does for me and thanking it just a little for that immense labour.

I know I'm going to get better.

King of Diamonds

My dear friend Harry dropped over the most amazing book about magic tricks. I've been completely obsessed with magic and illusions since I started watching Jonathan Creek a few weeks ago.

I can't imagine why, can you? ...

Anyway, this book is awesome but I am SO TERRIBLE at the card-flipping thing...

I learned one trick, practiced it a couple of times, bamboozled my brother and then tried it on my dad. He was fairly unimpressed. And even the brother figured it out the second time.
Is this your card? No? Oh. (shit.) Hang on!
Is THIS your card? Still no?
I'm loving the book, but I might have to give up on the actual practice...