“The quintessential West Australian beach house sits comfortably in a cloud of salt infused air. Sun-baked beach towels hang stiff over balcony railings. Aluminium dinghy huddling safe beneath the protected canopy of decking soaking in a marinade of burley and two-stroke. When we designed The Sorrento, these are the things we sought to encapsulate.”
I haven’t seen the word quintessential since my year 12 Lit classes. Maybe I should get out more. Surely a TWOPer can summon a haiku from this copy for the Sorrento, a Rural Building Company product.
The Worst of Perth 
Western
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Not exactly Wintoning and certainly not a haiku – but 20 pages of cathartic writing on the joys of building a Rural Building Company House over a period of three long years. http://mikaelacastledine.wordpress.com/2010/02/14/the-housing-complex
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Wow. I notice that this piece of writing does not yet seem to have a conclusion… what about the building project?
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It got to the point where I could no longer bring myself to be funny about it. We have been living in the house for 6 years – so bits are now starting to fall off!
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I was particularly admiring the light hearted tone throughout – I think I would have been at the rant and rave/hit people/throw things stage at about Episode 3. But then, what would I know? I fear I may become a life-long renter of other people’s houses simply by having severe cases of despairing rage whenever I have to interact with financial institutions…
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“The quintessential West Australian beach house sits claustrophobically among three hundred identical others. Sun-baked dogshit stiffens over thirsty lawns. Tevara AWDs straddle the curb, while the HSV squats in front of its protective canopy of Colorbond. All is awash in a soupy marinade of TV noise and other people’s cigarettes. When we bring civilisation, this is how it feels.”
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Gold, JJ!
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brilliant
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Slight correction – northern beaches are now seeing fewer thirsty lawns and more bright green, low-maintenance pieces of “ground cover”. Sometimes laid over concrete, sometimes over weed-inhibiting mulch. The only water it needs is that to wash it down from time to time.
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true, and totally horrifying. How better to eliminate our need for water-splurging sprinklers than by precluding any possibility of anything growing at all?
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Heard from someone who’s been observing their neighbour’s beautifully manicured astroturf that over time you do actually get weeds in it – difficult to remove them without damaging the plastic stuff. Also have heard from a cabby that whole estates around Baldivis are landscaped not only with fake lawn but also artificial plants and plastic trees. I hope this is an exaggeration? I also wonder what happens when a mob of cockatoos pays a visit…
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Poor Lisa you remind me of a Gloria Jeans Waitress (No Offence)
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I actually work at Miss Maud so thanks.
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Awsome,Seriously i love that resturant
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One can only dream of becoming a G J waitress
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Ok then, Are you new here? ive never seen you on here before.
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Better ‘quintessential’ than ‘iconic’. Actually, both are bad.
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Do they build “Queenslanders” in Qld anymore? Having seen some of the travesties that are marketed as “Federation” here, I wonder what could be done by the white shoe brigade with wooden houses on stilts…?
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salt wind blowing in
sorrento squats there lurking
damp wood weedy lawn
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