Callan Mulvey's wife reads my blog! Some wedding photos.

I always wonder who reads my blog. When I look at the google statistics and keywords I wonder why someone was thinking of me enough to google me. Once someone googled 'what does Carly Findlay look like naked?' at 3 am. I thought I'd hit the big time. My Mum said to me (and the doctor because we were discussing my blog in the emergency ward) that the googler was probably drunk. Because according to my Mum, apparently someone will only think of me naked when they're drunk and it's 3 am. (I look hot naked, in case anyone is wondering. It'll save you a google.)

I digress. I am always excited when readers reveal themselves.

I was walking down the street one day with a colleague when someone stopped me mid tram track to say 'great blog'. Recently I had a lady in the lift at work ask me for my autograph because she's watched me on TV and reads my blog. I had to laugh!

So about month ago when I got an email through my comment form from someone called Rachel Mulvey I was equal parts excited and nervous. As some of you may know one of my idols is Callan Mulvey, the Australian actor in Rush and Underbelly. I've met him at the season 2 premiere of Rush, filming, at the season 3 premiere of Rush, and at the Logies. And he wrote me a letter.

Rachel Mulvey is Callan's wife.

Oh my gosh!, I thought. Callan's wife knows there's another woman out there who admires him almost as much as she does. And I worried she may have seen a picture of me kissing the TV screen when I had that Rush themed birthday party and I had to kiss the nearest man in the room - Callan in character as Sgt Brendan Joshua.

Her email was really nice - very complimentary. She said she has been reading my blog (and Callan has too!) and wanted to send me a message of thanks for my support and admiration, and offer me some photos. We've been emailing for a few weeks now.

Callan told Rachel about me after he'd met me, and Rachel found my blog. She came across my post about their wedding. She has been kind enough to send me some good quality pictures of the wedding and given me permission to share them on my blog. So here they are :)

I am incredibly grateful and lucky for her to take the time to email me and give me a little insight into their lives. She's passed on a few messages from Callan too, and he seems the loveliest. I am so looking forward to seeing Brothers in Arms this year - it's coming soon I think.

Blogging. You never know just who might be reading. Wow.

And it turns out we both like Callan looking long haired and scruffy! ;)

I don't care what my teacher says, I want to be a super model

In the first week back at work for the year (only 51 more to go, people!) - a week where public transport ticket prices went up, Melbourne weather fluctuated between ridiculously hot and wind chills, each hour during the day felt like three and I took a fleeting interest in cricket (Michael Clarke 329 not out), there was only one certainty. Laksa King for dinner tonight.

When I went to go to get my cider (what a bargain it was at $13 for a six pack!) while I waited for my laksa to be made, the takeaway beeper started vibrating and beeping. I felt very important, like I was very busy in two places at once, being called to attend to a very important situation - picking up laksa. I almost felt like a doctor. A doctor of food appreciation perhaps. I feel very cross-cultural with my Tasmanian cider and Malaysian laksa, all the way from Flemington.

This arrived in the mail today. It's my Darren Hayes fanclub pack. Very exciting! I especially love the patch, which I have considered using as a feature on a handmade iPad case, when I get my iPad (I neeeeeeeed one for BlogHer in New York. I do.).

Progression has been made on the New York trip planning front. I booked my leave yesterday (nothing like preparing for a holiday on the first week back at work for the year). I am taking four weeks and one day off work - one day to get my stuff together, three weeks overseas and one week to recover. I also sourced two luggage tags (I think they're going to be my new interest, the way I love brooches), and got one of my passports acquainted with its new home - a beautiful leather passport wallet which I received for Christmas. I especially like the popcorn luggage tag. My mission for America is to pack light, so I probably won't need any more luggage tags because I shall only take one suitcase and a carry-on.

And I now have a small collection of New York travel books, and a large collection of travel brochures. All I want to do is eat street food, visit everywhere Felicity went and perhaps go to Sesame Street, but it appears New York City has so much more to offer.

With these small things sorted, I feel like my trip is becoming a reality. I have a list of questions to ask my doctors when I go to hospital on Tuesday. I am sure I will be over prepared.

Something else that became a reality this week was my excess Twitter use. Just as I sometimes spend time frittering my money away, this week I was twittering my time away. I was tweeting on two devices - my iPhone and MacBook (hello Apple!) and my cerebral something or other in my brain was getting quite the intellectual workout. I spent quite some time thinking of 'less ambitious books' - using the hashtag #lessambitiousbooks. Some of mine were 'Snugglepot and Cuddlepastry', 'Charlie and the Carob Factory', 'The Guinness Book of MP3s' and 'Pippi Ankle Sock'. LOL indeed.

And today I pretended to be a supermodel. I won't get out of bed for less than $5K. Unless you were giving me any amount of vouchers from the shopping centre to spend, then I'd get out of bed. Or if I was hungry - then I'd get out of bed for free. It wouldn't take much actually. The lovely Cam took some photos of me in different outfits for an upcoming feature somewhere. Vague I know. It was fun, but the constant changing of outfits meant I got a bit sore from the scraping of the clothes. Here is a sneak peak.

It was fun choosing all the outfits and accessories and packing them in my case this morning (the most economical packing I've ever done, and Cam was a brilliant photographer - very encouraging! Whenever I got to Cam's house, I eat! We had morning tea - sampling two halves of sweet tarts - apple and lime - and then went to a bakery for lunch. Meeting up with Twitter turned real life friends means it is acceptable to take photos of food and tweet mid meal. I shared a coke with Comet. I felt like I was sharing it with the Jebediah song She's Like a Comet. Sort of. 

I swear the names on the Cokes are strange. I haven't seen my name yet, and my name was a bit common in the Carly Simon era. 

Finally, and don't say I don't regularly do community service work, the highlight of my day on Thursday was when my colleague said to me 'that actor you love, you know the one whose photos you have stuck all around your desk, the one with the scar on his face. Have you seen that ad? He looks a bit gross'. And so I asked her if the ad was for the new Channel 10 show Bikie Wars. Yes she said. And so I did the only logical thing - googled Callan Mulvey on my phone. I was in love. A long haired, scruffy Callan Mulvey. 

No need to thank me. He is hot isn't he?

Ok, I am off to eat my Laksa King, I had to leave it a bit so I wasn't eating at old person/hospital time. I'm starving Marvin!

Logies red carpet - Callan Mulvey + Sam Johnson

So I did a really daggy exciting thing last night and went to the Logies red carpet. For the unitiated, the Logies are Australia's television awards. I was given a green wrist band and fortunately stood near to one of the red carpet entrances. I took heaps of photos, but mostly of the backs of dresses. They aren't very good to post here.

I am a goal focused woman and I only went to see the cast of Rush. And I braved the rain, cold, girls screaming for Hamish Blake and Justin Bieber, and bogans (there was an annoying man near me trying to spot Justin Bieber) to achieve my goal. Just as I was getting bored from seeing TV stars I didn't know, and from the annoying man vocalising that he didn't know the TV stars he saw, the Rush cast walked out.

I called Callan's name and he said 'Hi Carly, how are you?' and waved. We chatted from afar, I congratulated him on his wedding, and he posed for this photo. So so lovely.

And then, just after I got over the Callan Mulvey moment, Sam Johnson strayed from the Rush cast and came to talk to me with his trademark grin. He was so affable - and I was so excited I jumped and smiled and cried a little. No, really. I did. He gave me a hug and asked if I remembered him from the fun times we had at the Rush premiere. Of course I remembered him! And I told him about my Channel 31 No Limits work and he said to keep him in mind. Here's our happy snap :)

Callan and Sam made me feel so special. Once I met them I went off home. Mission accomplished.

Callan Mulvey got married

Though the locusts are flying thick and fast in country NSW, the internet, or interNOT, is chugging along like me on a hot day. S L O W. I believe the locusts could somehow play a part in delivering faster internet - there are many and they are very fast.

Due to my lack of (limited because of speed) internet, I missed the news of the week and was alerted to it via Twitter today while I sat at the tyre place having my front left tyre replaced. iPhone coverage is good in Albury, not good 20 minutes north of it. I am three days behind the eightball of celebrity news gossip.

My celebrity love, Callan Mulvey got married (not to me).

He married school teacher Rachel Thomas in Byron Bay.

There is a New Idea magazine spread. I RUSHed out to buy it today.

Rachel looks beautiful! I love her dress.

Congratulations to them both - I wish them much happiness together. Callan is one of the nicest celebrities I have ever met - Rachel is a lucky lady.

From the Herald Sun:

ROMANTIC Callan Mulvey has Rush-ed down the aisle and married his schoolteacher sweetheart Rachel Thomas.

The pair tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in the Byron Bay hinterland after a whirlwind, long-distance romance.

"It was hands down the most beautiful, incredible night of my life," Mulvey told New Idea.
The blushing bride looked stunning in a dusty pink 1930s vintage gown and lace-edged veil.

Her young son Charlie, 6, was ring bearer in a little pin-striped suit as his mum and Mulvey exchanged vows in front of 25 guests.

The ceremony was written by a meditation teacher and a local chef prepared a vegan wedding feast.

Handsome Rush actor Mulvey met Thomas in 2002 when he moved to Byron Bay to focus on music.

A year later, Mulvey was fighting for his life after being injured in a head-on car crash.

He has since recovered, but he lost the sight in one eye and still suffers headaches.
Mulvey told the magazine it was not until this year that "the planets aligned" and their friendship blossomed into romance.

With Mulvey in Melbourne filming Rush and Thomas based in NSW, the pair managed a long-distance love and Mulvey proposed on holiday in Bali in June.

"Rachel is my lover, my best friend, my everything. It is just so special and so right," he said.

Edit; Callan Mulvey's wife reads my blog! Some more wedding photos.

On falling (in like)

I fall in love too easily. Well, it's not even love, just a small amount of liking above the friendship level. The type where you get excited about an incoming text message. Yes, I think that's my current level of falling. Text message related. The type where even the strangest compliment can make you feel special. And it seems the way I fall is through conversation.

I always seem to love a boy more than they've loved me. Unless I've got some secret admirers out there, in which case I invite them to make themselves known. A proverb I once read said to always marry someone who loves you more than you love them. I can't recall who said this, but thinking back now, I may have read it in an interview with a Hollywood starlet in a trashy magazine. Darren Hayes, my own romantic prophet, once sang 'it is easier to give than receive love'. Agreed. It is easier to give than receive love. How do you make someone love you?

In my 28 years I've truly loved three boys. Seven boys if you count my unrealistic obsession love for Jack Jones, Shane Warne, Darren Hayes and Callan Mulvey. (And if you throw Hamish Blake into the mix, that is eight.) Two boys if you take away the one I felt unrequited love for over about three years. That leaves two relationships (if you can call them that) where (I think) there was reciprocal love. I didn't feel love in my other two relationships (or maybe it was only one – one could be classified as 'seeing someone', the other was seven months spent by the both of us trying to get a word in edgeways – we both had a lot to say). And there you go, I've just done some very complicated maths about the boys in my life. Maths was never my strong point, and nor is love.

It's strange because my life was going along pretty well. I didn't think I needed love. Ok, truthfully, I was always guy spotting. And I see friends and strangers in secure, loving relationships and know that I want that for myself. But I have resigned myself to the fact that I probably will be a catless spinster. (Maybe I'll have a dog if I ever own my own home and have enough time to devote to it.) Because it's really hard finding someone who can accept the way I look. And I think I'm mostly happy with that. Maybe happy is the wrong word. Accepting of that, then. Because I got family, friends, work, life outside work, and education and lots of interests. (Secretly I hope once I'm on Channel 31 I will get some fan mail from men asking me to be their wife – ok, so it's not such a far-fetched idea...is it?)

When someone came into my life, only last week, and I discover we have things in common, he can make me laugh, and make me feel special, my tummy does butterflies. I haven't felt this comfortable talking to someone in years. I feel like I can tell him anything. And he said I'm pretty awesome to talk to. And then, on the flipside, something else is said, and life feels mopey. Even though all those other great things I've mentioned are still there. It's odd how life can be going along pretty well and then you feel these spectrum of emotions because of one person. Life goes from the soundtrack to Love Actually to some ironed fringed, fingerless glove and black tshirt wearing emo song.

I rarely receive any signals from people showing interest. The last text message that I received that I felt the need to keep forever was 'there's a Carly in my mind stealing my heart', and that was six years ago, back when I had a simple Nokia. A little after that, there was this weird situation, which deserves a blog entry of its own, where someone sent me a picture of his penis. That was showing interest, I guess...

So this week, when I received a text message with quite direct words expressing feelings towards me, I workshopped it with girlfriends, thinking maybe the words were true. There was some excitement brewing, and I held out hope. And then I decided that he's probably just not that into me, because that's how it always is. And now I guess he's just not that into me.

It's like one day everything is going along fine, the next day you can't stop thinking about someone, and wham, life gets complicated.

Maybe the reason I don't often write about romance on this blog (other than there not being any to report on) is so I don't jinx myself. So I don't share my feelings with the world and open myself up to heartbreak.

It's probably because I'm currently really sore that I'm feeling this introspective. I marvel at how I can be in control, calm, sensible and professional, and then turn into a forlorn girl at the drop of a hat. I was talking to a friend about this and we both agree the best way to feel good about ourselves in times like these is to fawn over pictures of us with our celebrity loves. She said 'keep looking at the Rush cast pictures and remember your prince is out there somewhere'. I hope so.

Post script, heard when watching Rush:

‎'I suppose that's half the battle right? Finding someone that is into you' - Stella and Michael from Rush. Too true.

The Auction Rooms Cafe - North Melbourne

When Jentopia suggested we do Saturday morning breakfast at The Auction Rooms Cafe in Errol Street North Melbourne, I squealed with delight. Twitter told me the first scene in episode one of the latest season of Rush was filmed there. It's one of my favourite ever moments of Rush. (The scene is at the 1:34 mark of the video.)

The Auction Rooms Cafe is wonderfully rustic. Jen and I loved its ambiance. Sugar in positively antique tiny Heinz pea soup tins, flowers and drinking water in old long neck beer bottles (the only time I've ever drunk from a long neck beer bottle), pipes turned into lights hanging from the high ceilings, and amazing lead lighting features.

I'd loved to have captured the lead lighting clearer, but I was worried I was taking too many photos.

This is an artwork of colourful milk crates strung together, hanging with the slope of the roof in the courtyard.

Saturday morning was brilliantly sunny - it was nice to have the sun streaming in through the windows, providing us with delicious warmth.

The front counter is atop a baked goods cabinet – grainy breads, tarts and beautiful cupcakes. I fell in love with the flourless chocolate one with blue sparkly icing.

Though it's a bustling and uber trendy cafe, frequented by uber trendy customers (I need to rethink my striped hoodie and jeans arrangement for next time) the service is friendly and attentive. The male waiters are cute and unshaven, like they've just rolled in from playing a gig the night before. They wear a range of hats, jingly chains and bracelets, and I saw a kerchief tied to one waiter's wrist.

The menu combines breakfast and lunch and is available until 3.00 pm. It's a menu full of simple dishes – mostly eggs, stews, salads and sandwiches – made very interesting. Prices range from $6.50 to $19.50

Jen had the Opening Bid – toast with deep orange yolked free range eggs, field mushrooms, spinach, bacon and tomato. She said it was healthy and delicious.

I had the French toast. It was certainly the most unique French toast I've ever eaten. And quite possibly the best. It was made of beautiful fluffy bread stuffed with toasted coconut, drizzled with tamarind and maybe chilli sauce and served with vanilla crème fraiche, lime and coriander. It was sweet and zesty and rich all at once. Fantastic!

Jen said her coffee was so good it didn't need sugar.

My hot chocolate was great too – very chocolatey and no milk taste, though could have been hotter.

Jen and I had a great chat - about work and food and plans for new blog projects. I'm so glad I met her because of blogging.

We ate breakfast around 10.00 am, and despite me only having an election day sausage after bellydancing to see me through to 6.00 pm when filming finished and I was served dinner, it sustained me well.

Jen gave me a mix-tape CD, which unfortunately I'd left behind when paying yesterday. I called them to check if the CD was there, the staff said they had it at the counter, so this morning I went to collect it.

I couldn't resist another breakfast – so I got the Counter Bid – a vegetarian breaky with a side of smoked bacon. The Counter Bid contained the delicious poached eggs, buttery garlic mushrooms, roquette, pesto all served on a rosemary-parmesan baked polenta cake. This polenta was full of flavour, unlike so many bland and gluggy polenta dishes I've tried/cooked. Another awesome dish.

I think I've found my new favourite breakfast cafe. Can't wait to head back there soon.

Auction Rooms on Urbanspoon

Offspring on Channel 10

I must be in the minority because I love Australian movies and television drama programs. Hell, I even like some Australian comedy, particularly of the ABC ilk. Not many people I know enjoy, or admit to enjoying Australian made film and television.

Little Fish is one of my favourite movies of all time. So is Candy and Looking for Alibrandi. And Look Both Ways is pretty good, too. I have the post September 11 telemovie Marking Time on DVD. Surburban Mayhem. Noise. The Black Balloon. Clubland. I could go on... But it's tiring searching then hyperlinking.

I like family shows like Packed to the Rafters and Always Greener. And Seachange, as reminded by Jen.

You know my thoughts about Secret Life of Us. Adored it back in the day. I watched the first series again recently and loved it. Especially Claudia Karvan, Sam Johnson and Deb Mailman.

I've been watching Heartbreak High on ABC3.
The younger Callan Mulvey melts my heart. As does the present day Callan.

I watched five episodes of season 1 of Underbelly. Mainly because of Callan Mulvey. See below.

I stopped because Callan's character died and I needed time to recover from seeing his wonderful acting in the coffin, and the excessive violence and sex. I don't know if I've recovered yet – I might just perpetually watch the first five episodes.

Rush is wonderful. It's fast paced, full of action, a little romance, and funny. You know that I think the men of Rush, or the Sunnyboys, as I refer to them in my tweets, are the hottest ever.

And I regard Love My Way as the best TV show of all time.

I once watched the entire first season of Love My Way on DVD one New Years Eve. Alone. I bawled my eyes out. Because I was alone on New Years Eve and because I was exhausted from the drama. I was once again in love with Claudia Karvan because of Love My Way. Love love love this!


I want to watch Tangle and Spirited but these are on pay TV. And I don't have enough time or money for that. I will wait for the DVDs.

So when Offspring was advertised on Channel 10, I was excited. I loved Asher Keddie in Love My Way, and in Rush. And I loved her dress in the Offspring ad (I have searched and searched on Google but can't find it for your reference.

The show looked quirky. Like Secret Life of Us. Only grown up. I especially love TV shows set in Melbourne. And this one is. I find something identifiable about shows set in Melbourne – not only the setting, but the way the characters live. I think in these shows, you see characters similar to people you really know.

The cast is good looking. Extremely good looking.

I was super excited about Offspring until last week when my excitement levels dropped lower than a rapper's jeans. It was because it was advertised EVERY FRIGGIN' FIVE MINUTES. Seriously, Ten. Every friggin five minutes. I was seriously thinking that I wouldn't need to watch the show with the amount of advertising Channel 10 was throwing at me.

So I was delighted to find that I could download the episode for free from iTunes yesterday, so I could watch it ahead of time, without ads – I actually feared Channel 10 would advertise Offspring DURING Offspring. The advertising was that damn excessive. It was on par with the election campaign.

My expectations of Offspring were met. It was quirky. Funny. Well written. A great cast. And I loved Asher's clothes. She is gorgeous.

Asher plays slightly neurotic Nina. A lot less neurotic than Julia in Love My Way. Waaaay less. But still neurotic.Offspring also stars Don Hany as Dr Chris (niiiiice), Deb Mailman as Cherie (love) and Kat Stewart as Billie (beautiful and versatile).

Nina is a successful obstetrician who has a lot of self doubt. The story revolves around her slightly dysfunctional family - though I expect most families are like hers. All three adult children have not achieved in certain areas of their life.

I enjoyed the music, especially the bits performed by Eddie Perfect's character.

The setting was not instantly recognisable as Melbourne though. And there was excessive use of the iPhone ring tone. It's the xylophone one. That shitted me. There was too much ringing of the iPhone. Me, I prefer the harp. There was also quite a bit of Apple placement. Macbooks galore. I saw at least two, and an iPod too.

I also thought it was far less sexual than the ads insinuated. The sexual innuendo in the ads was probably to sell the program to women and men.

I can see a few openings for some good storylines in Offspring. Cherie's situation with Darcy, her baby's unexpected father. Chris's missing wife. Billie and Mick's on-again-off-again thing may get repetitive though.

As a whole, I enjoyed Offspring. I don't think it will match Love My Way, and I don't think I can hope for another Secret Life. But I think I will enjoy it.

Read a proper review at The Age.
(Click on all pictures for their source.)

Ticking things off the list

I have had an incredible amount of tasks to get through this weekend. Overwhelmingly so.

Here is what I have done so far. I feel pretty accomplished in most areas, and disappointed in one area.

I went on the tram car restaurant on Friday afternoon.

I ate some chicken liver pate (my dining partner was vegetarian except for chicken, so she had the capsicum pate)

 Drank some Champagne...they kept on topping the glass up...

 Ate some trout with soy and ginger dressing - rather nice

 Rode through St Kilda...very Secret Life of Us

 Ate some beef - mooing, but not as tasty as I'd hoped

And see that piece of blue vein cheese? It's King Island. And I ate the lot. My dining partner didn't eat blue cheese. Lucky for me. Unlucky for my arteries.

 Here is a picture of Melbourne as we crossed the Yarra on the tram car in Spencer Street.

Here is me with the menu and carnation they gave me. I am wearing a hoodie because it was Stress Down Day on Friday and that's the 'event' I promoted at work. I want to wear a hoodie to work more often.

After the tram car restaurant we went to crown and had more drinks. I got home around 6:30, made some phone calls and watched The Secret Life of Us on DVD in bed, and fell asleep halfway through. So tired.

Yesterday morning I went to the Children's Hospital to visit a friend and her son who is staying there, had breakfast at Maccas, then went to belly dancing.

After belly dancing I handed over $60 for this.

It's most of the non prescription part of my skin care routine. Very expensive. Shampoo, conditioner and bath/shower wash and cotton buds.

After that outing, I did two loads of washing, had a nap, had some food, and then wrote some comedy sketches that I will perform on TV. I can't believe I wrote that! That I am really doing it! I wrote some comedy sketches that I will perform on TV!

I got ready to go out to The Temper Trap. At this stage I was feeling really tired still, and had two major things to tick off my list.

I went for dinner at a Thai restaurant in Victoria Street. I don't know what it was called, but the food was pretty good.

That is a duck and lychee salad. It was seasoned with chilli and peanuts. I ate it wrapped in roti.

Then I drove to Festival Hall to see The Temper Trap.

This is the disappointing part.

It was cold. I was tired, I bought my ticket months ago so it wasn't like I was forking out the money last night. And the ticket had not been posted to me, so it didn't even feel like I was going. There were heaps of people out. I was going on my own, which I am usually quite happy to do. I couldn't find a park close by. I thought I should have got the train.

And then, I disappointed myself.

I gave up The Temper Trap to go to bed. I was in bed by 8.30 pm, watched some Secret Life of Us, and was asleep by 10.00pm. I know. They had sold out on the day I bought my ticket. I may never be able to get a $60 ticket to them again. But then, I had seen them in January, they were awesome but the setlist was very short. I heard them on the radio this morning and my throat choked up. I missed The Temper Trap gig :/

Anyhow, I slept well. I needed it. Today I have done some grocery shopping, eaten breakfast and read the newspapers, looked over some stuff for my thesis.

I have stared at this picture a lot.

 And this one.

And watched the You Tube video of the Rush premiere 30485 times. I am really happy with how it turned out and not so embarrassed at my over enthusiasm anymore.

I am about to get started on an article for DiVine, then cook dinner and watch Masterchef.

Can I have another weekend please?