Forecast: 11-19
Attained: 11-19

I logged on to the computer at work today and was briefly stymied by the fact that none of my folders, shortcuts etc were loading. I was mildly aggrieved - if there was a problem I'd have to contact IT and get them to reload stuff blah blah. And then it dawned on me that I'd logged in with the library's generic username, not my own. [sigh] Blame it on the rubbish sleep I had last night. Still, it meant I didn't have to negotiate with IT...

~=o>
A dilemma. The Astor is showing Branagh's Hamlet this weekend. It's been a long time since I've seen it and I'd really like to go but it's a few days before payday and I'm basically skint. It is however showing again in a couple of months, and the cubs have indicated they'd like to go then, so I could wait.
Eh will see. If the need is burning I'll wrangle something.

~=o>
Via soulsis on fb:

Bwhahahahahahah!





~=o>
Wow, cubs have only got a couple of weeks before the end of the school year. Better get a move on and sort out their fees/booklists then, hadn't we?

~=o>

Forecast: 9-22
Attained: 11-19

We had a total solar eclipse this morning! Akshully, it was visible as a total eclipse at the pointy end (North) of the continent, but down here in Melbourne we were only able to see a partial. But I did get a glimpse!

The action was happening as I was driving to work but after I'd parked, a kind gentleman, weilding a double-thickness (black) x-ray film, was letting people have a few seconds look-see. :) So cool!

This is what I saw:

(Artist's impression. Mine. I am not an artist.)

The bite out of the sun was a bit fuller than that, but you get the idea.


~=o>

Forecast: 11-19
Attained: 12-20

My tastebuds are still a bit weird after the ear surgery so when I received a bunch of 'herbs' in the weekly veggie delivery I couldn't tell just by nibbling a leaf if it was parsley or coriander.

I was almost certain it was parsley, but when I used it in dumplings I was very pleased to discover it was akshully coriander.
Coriander is best pony herb.

~=o>
Not overly keen on the song but the clip is awesome sauce! Intriguing narrative.



Thanks, Ms Raven, for the heads up. :)
(Hm, actually, the song's growing on me...)

~=o>

Forecast: 19-25
Attained: 20-26

Yes, so last week I got a box from Joules. This week I got 'round to recording m' booty. (Aaarr, etc.)

Overall:

Look! Look! My supply of life giving pink-stuff has been replenished!
Also note the plastic UK flags. They are for waving - along with wearing the UK 'fun party glasses' (see below) - when watching the recordings of the London 2012 Opening & Closing Ceremonies (thanks, GoodTwin!)


Details:

The piggie (in the middle) grunts!
Mmmmm sachets of flavoured hot chocolates...
The red sack contains a present which I've been asked to leave opening until Xmas. I did shake it a bit but other than that I've been very good in leaving it alone.
Also, note the aforementioned 'fun party glasses'. There's also a gorgeous shiny star, a gorgeous bag charm - shiny & blue - and a snowman candle holder that will be shiny when the candle is lit. :)


Shiny!:

Rainbow shiny xmas crackers - what more do I need? :)


Thanks, Joules!

~=o>

Forecast: 8-27
Attained: 8-27

Adorable cat adorably enjoying the sunshine. (She's batting at a weed... :)

First apple on the tree.

~=o>
Mentioned to BadgerCub today that I was writing a Hawkeye/Black Widow ficlet.
His response? Good grief, a straight pairing?
Cheeky bugger. :)

~=o>
Ahahahahahahah!

Sad dinosaur funny cross stitch.


~=o>

Forecast: 10-20
Attained: 10-19

"Have some fruit. Sorry, that's the extent of my mothering today..."

I said this to the cubs this afternoon, after a nap when I was still very fuzzy.
The cubs found this hysterically funny. :)

~=o>
Existential cat comments on Halloween. Is funny.



~=o>

Forecast: 12-18
Attained: 13-18

Annual Performance Review aggravation at work is finally sorted. The boss had some quite nice things to say about me, too. :)

~=o>
Hee, I've downloaded an epub app for my 'phone, primarily so I can d/l and read fanfic. The only drawback is that I have to d/l it directly to my 'phone from the 'net.

~=o>

Forecast: 13-21
Attained: 13-23

Wow, tomorrow's friday. Already. I remember now why I like 3 day weeks...

~=o>
I can't pretend to know what's going on here but visually, this clip is stunning.





It's one of the nominees for this years Music Video J Award.


~=o>

Forecast: 14-22
Attained: 15-19

This is a song currently on the Triple J Unearthed playlists. Love it to bits! At first I thought it was a love song but then piping it directly in to my ears on the train to Mildura I got a chance to really hear the lyrics, and realised it was about alien abduction. :)
And there's a kooky video clip, as well. So much fun.





~=o>

Forecast: 21-26
Attained: 20-22

I was going to cook myself something for dinner but I'm so full of trifle I really couldn't be arsed...

~=o>
Melbourne Cup Holiday!
I have no idea who won the race. The cubs and I largely ignored that aspect of the public holiday and just enjoyed a day at home. And then we went to see a movie.



I don't like monster/horror movies, and I'm no fan of the macabre but I know enough to pick up on the in-jokes and cliches here. :) Fun movie, a bit ew in a couple of places. The animation was great, though, and I was impressed with the continuity of the sets and props. There was a definite 70's vibe to the thing, right down to the furnishings and homewares.

~=o>

Forecast; 20-27
Attained: 23-26

I remain ambivalent about xmas but I do quite like the shinies.

~=o>
Spotted in the supermarket this evening.
Who the heck is the gay cowboy chicken thing s'posed to appeal to?

~=o>

Forecast: 13-28
Attained: 12-29

Had a fun day, yesterday. Cubs and I went to see Soulsis et al. We spent the afternoon grazing on crackers and dips and cheese and fruit, and then we had mashed spuds and various meaty comestibles for dinner. :)
Was also introduced to A Monster in Paris. Cute movie. There's a full version on Youtube.



~=o>
I settled down to watch The Avengers this afternoon but ended up sleeping through most of it. I guess I needed sleep more than I needed to fangirl. :)
Is ok, I'm watching it again now. (FrostEye!squee!)

~=o>
One of my rediscovered 80's favs. As one of the comments says, cocaine is a hell of a drug...



~=o>

Forecast: 11-17
Attained: 11-16

It's official! After the surgery my bad ear is 'almost normal'. Confirmed by a hearing test today, and seconded by the surgeon. [happy dance]

~=o>
I don't normally work mondays and next tuesday is a public holiday. Four day weekend! [happy dance]

~=o>
I'm tired of not having an oven, so I bought one of these.

Works quite well and it doesn't take up any more room than a toaster oven. I can do roasty things again! [there would be happy dancing but I'm too full of chicken wings]

~=o>
This is very funny, on two levels.
At first I was just snorfling at the Engrish (transcript follows, cos I couldn't work out how to embed the url - which you used to be able to do with cheezburger stuff - and couldn't find a bigger version of the pic):

"Captain America in frozen a few years later, wake up. The world is not what he used to familiar appearance, various types of evil opponent to emerge in an endless stream, the whole society turbulent, sheet relies on a person's power is unable to save the world. So the United States of America captain, iron man, Thor, the hulk and other super heroes together, consisting of the history of the most "powerful Avengers" team, the common good and evil, fighting for peace. Stocks come unexpectedly powerful evil forces on earth caused a deadly threat, no a s uper hero alone can resist. Long term commitment to protecting global saftey shield board (SHIELD) was the commander be taken by surprise, "the one-eyed man" Nick fairui realizes he must....."

(Mistakes are not my own. I'm just typing what I see. :)

So, yes, that was funny enough, then I noticed Hill's face - she's standing behind the 'one-eyed man' - and how she appears to be scowling at the text. That sent me off in to a fresh round of hysterical snorfling!

~=o>
Is it time for more chicken wings? Oh, I think so...

~=o>

Forecast: 13-17
Attained: 13-15

Got a parcel today! From Joules! [bounce] Full of all manner of goodness, including copies of both the opening and closing ceremonies from the London Olympics, courtesy of GoodTwin! [bouncebounce] I've watched part-way through the first disc, and yes, Joules, you're right, it's completely bonkers, but wow!

There'll be photos of the rest of the loot when I'm organised, hee.

~=o>
I didn't get online yesterday cos I was having an "I must retreat to my hamster-ball of solitude" [hand to forehead] kind of moment. So, I took myself off to my bedroom with a couple of dvds - yay, laptop! (Bonus, I could recharge my 'phone while watching something.)
And then I went to bed early and consequently I feel much more betterer, and sociable, today.

~=o>
[giggling]
A novel pre-flight safety briefing from Air NewZealand (I'm saying that in an atrocious NZ accent. The cat doesn't seem to care, however.)



~=o>

Forecast: 15-30
Attained: 13-32

Helen, one of our library volunteers, and her husband have been prospecting for years. She frequently brings in samples from their collection, which naturally I tend to squeal over.

Today she brought in a lump of malachite (polished) from Sth Australia.

[drool] I love malachite...

And a pic with ruler so you can see how big this sucker is! 15cm across!

I... I just wanted to pet it. (Well, more truthfully I wanted to nick it :)

~=o>
I can't remember if I've scoffed at the Bic for Her pens here or not - I think I have - but anyway, Ellen Degeneres has a thing or two to say on the subject...




[snorfling]

~=o>

Forecast: 8-26
Attained: 9-25

My kitchen is teeming with black house spiders.

Well, ok, perhaps teeming is an exaggeration - there's three that I'm aware of - all lurking about the kitchen window. They don't bother me as much as other spiders, despite the size they get to, cos they're stationery and are very good at dealing with European wasps.
Their webs are very sticky though, and a pain in the bum to clean up.

There's nothing in this pic to compare the spider to for scale, but it's living underneath the window latch-y thing and is about half the size of my thumb. That's with it's legs tucked in close.

There's an even bigger one living in the lace curtains about the sink, and a very small male (I think) making a web in the window crack.

Ok, freaking myself out now! Time to move on. Lalalalalalalal

~=o>

Forecast: 10-20
Attained: 11-18

[bemused]

"Well, that's why you don't walk on lava..."

Overheard from the cubs while they were playing a computer game this evening.

=o>
Loki Laufeyson : A User’s Maintenance Guide

[snerk]

~=o>
Mildura photos posted on flickr.

Forecast: 9-17
Attained: 9-15

Yay, statewide local council elections. I gave Penny a lift to the polling station this afternoon which just so happened to be the cubs' old primary school. It's been years since I was there. The gardens, replanted when the school was rebuilt, have settled in nicely and there's a whole new multi-purpose building. I recognised the principal but nobody else. Hardly surprising, cubs finished there five years ago and the other families have moved on as well...

(My local council has postal votes for elections now. I filled the ballot in and sent it back the day after I received it. Conscientious? No. More a case of if I didn't deal with it immediately it would get lost amongst everything else, then I'd miss the deadline and have to pay a fine :)

~=o>

Forecast: 10-17
Attained: 11-15

Heh, well, I had planned on doing a substantial sort of blog update but got sucked in to the black hole of Avengers fic and suddenly it's very late and I'm too tired for coherency. I will note, however, that I went to a copyright training seminar in the city this morning for work. Very interesting, if a bit glazed-eyes-brain-bendy in places. :)

~=o>

Forecast: 17-20
Attained: 20-21

... this reminds me of one of your fics, Joules.
I... think I'm going to go to bed now and have some nightmares...





(via Gruen Planet).


~=o>
I could get one of these cases for my 'phone.
(Warning, Joules, for excessive um, stuff...)

Perhaps not. That's even making me shudder.

~=o>