For some time now I’ve been talking about wanting to have an exhibition of my photography but in my usual fashion, I’ve been talking more than I’ve been doing. That was until today. A friend who knew about the talk wanted to know when. I said 12 months. He wanted a more definitive time. So, I have until 1st March 2011 to have an opening of my work, to coincide with Mardi Gras. Talk stops now.

Now… how the hell do I make this work?

Yesterday a fellow blogger posted that he’d just hit 300,000 visitors to his blog which for quite a new blogger is a great result. As time goes on, unless you are making money out of your blog, you stop counting hits and trying to work out what gets them higher. I’ve noted visitor number milestones in the past but not for some time, so today I went and added the hits on the previous and current incarnations of Aussielicious.

In four years and four months roughly I’ve had over 6 million hits. I’m not quite sure how it’s happened to be honest and I’m quite stunned. The public nudity challenge and my photo nude on the steps of the opera house back in the beginning certainly got my blog noticed, especially when Fleshbot linked it.

To everyone who keeps coming back day after day and to everyone that stumbles across the blog from time to time, thank you very much for all the support, comments, constructive feedback and even tough love you’ve shown. Admittedly there have been times when I think, can I keep doing this? Do I want to keep doing this. Well, the answer is yes. I love the interaction it provides. So, stay tuned!

Ever since he found fame playing uber camp Jack, Hayes has refused to answer questions on his sexuality, preferring that people focus on the roles he’s portraying. That I can understand. His work has no correlation to his sexuality at all, as does any actor’s sexuality. It does beg the question, why now?

What comes to mind after a long hot day in the office and a gruelling aerial silks class when you can tell summer isn’t far off being over? Getting a bunch of friends together and having a skinnydip in one of Sydney’s beautiful harbour locations of course.

The Skinnydipping Sydney facebook group is starting to gain a bit of momentum and last night, thanks to the balmy weather, we had 10 guys turn up. We swam and chatted and laughed for close to 45 minutes before packing up and heading home. We’re going to have to mix up the locations or it’s only a matter of time before we get busted. 

It’s quite funny when newcomers are trying to work out, in the dark, whether the people they can see swimming around and jumping off the pontoons are the people they are actually supposed to be meeting. It would be a bit awkward to turn up, strip off and swim over to a group of people that aren’t expecting naked company. 

On friday night at one of the Skinnydipping group’s dips, a friend that I haven’t seen in several months turned up. I knew he’d been training hard through facebook updates and some new photos, but when he turned up he looked incredible. He’s been training 7 days a week doing weights, martial arts, cross-fit and other bits and pieces.

Why is it that some people are so good at finding the motivation and discipline to do that kind of training? Does it come from their own set of insecurities or maybe a form of obsessive compulsion? Sadly my obsession seems to be with skipping the gym and eating badly. Two or three years ago I was even handed the best motivation to get in shape in the form of a photo shoot for aussieBum and that apparently still wasn’t enough.

Should I hang around with these motivated people more? Probably not. My flatmate is another disciplined guy and after sharing with him since July, still no luck. I’m genuinely fascinated as to why some people have this kind of mind set and why others (ie me) do not. Any trainers out there willing to offer advice in this realm, feel free to comment with said advice.

Sigur Rós - Gobbledigook from Sigur Rós on Vimeo.

Several weeks ago I had an amazing email from a reader of this blog who, despite being straight, identifies with a lot of what I write on this blog. TM is a 30-something year old straight reader from Germany who at the end of an email full of compliments and observations, told me he’d bought me a gift that he knew I would like.

In a bookshop in his home city he’d found all these treasures that he knew I’d love so bought me and sent to me a stunning copy of my much adored “Bear Pond” by the legendary Bruce Weber, Mario Testino’s “Portraits” book and a special edition of Stern, again by Bruce Weber called “Roadside America”.

How do I ever thank someone for that kind of generosity? I write this blog for a little bit of self-therapy, as a way to interact with many different people around the world and because it’s fun. There are some perks here and there, like being invited to various things I wouldn’t have been invited to otherwise and the odd freebie here and there, but being sent beautiful books worth stupid amounts of money is just humbling and flattering. I’ve actually been almost too nervous to truly enjoy Bear Pond. For me it’s almost the holy grail of photography books and a stranger felt compelled to send it to me.

TM, I haven’t stopped thanking you and I don’t know when I will. Thank you!