Forecast: 20-37
Attained: 22-37

I return triumphant!
So yes, picked up my prize this afternoon for the short-short story competition. $20 gift voucher and a squee book! 1000 Steampunk Creations.

(The above is a photo of my copy cos it was just too hard to nick a pic from online.)

Michael Pryor, an Australian author, presented the prizes. He also gave a very entertaining talk on Steampunk, its origins etc. (He also had some interesting things to say about the writing process, and research, and listening to your characters. I was able to relate to that. :)

Anyway! Here's a pic of me and him. (It's a bit blurry, sorry, but it's the only one where I don't look vaguely psychotic or 'just take the gorram picture...'.)

(Oh, see the fish necklace I'm wearing? Soulsis gave me that. I luvs it.)

~=o>
After the prize-giving I zipped on 'round to Penny's, cos she invited me to share her air-conditioning, where we chatted a bit, then I fell asleep on her couch. Penny woke me in time for dinner - steak and salad! - and then we watched Porco Rosso. Was an excellent evening. Thanks, Penny!

~=o>

Forecast: 15-27
Attained: 14-30

A few weeks ago, quite by accident, I stumbled on a short story competition hosted by a local library. The story could only be 50 words - not 50 words or less, 50 words exactly - with a title of up to 10 words, and it had to have an element of fantasy...

Got a phone call today telling me I'd won*! :)

I'll be trekking out tomorrow afternoon to the awards thingy. Prize is 'a book' (unspecified) and a gift voucher to Minotaur Books. Bit pleased with myself, oh yes.

[*There were two categories, under 16 years old and over 16. I'm wondering if there'll be more than one winner in each category? :)

~=o>
Hee!
Only have to wait until May. Tch.



~=o>

Forecast: 13-22
Attained: 13-21

The snargly cub is getting better, however - not unexpectedly - the other one is now teetering on the edge of snargledom.
And only 2 weeks 'til I get some hols. Woot.

~=o>
Wow. Thorki!pr0n is very easy to find on tumblr. [shifty] I think I may have a problem...

~=o>

Forecast: 12-18
Attained: 12-18

Oooh! Hawkeye was in an episode of Angel: first season, conveniently. Well, I was planning on collecting the series anyway...

~=o>
Oh dear, New Zealand...



(from here.)

~=o>

Forecast: 12-18
Attained: 12-17

Oh dear, I haz a poor sick cub, coughing and snargling. Lucky the school year's ended.

~=o>
Sorry to bring this up, Joules... :)

On this page here you can Build a Royal Baby. [titter]

~=o>

Forecast: 12-22
Attained: 14-21

Cubs are on holidays so on this day, my usual day off in the week, I could actually get a decent sleep-in.
Or, it would've been a decent sleep-in if I hadn't gone to bed stupidly late because I knew I was going to be able to get up later. [sigh]

~=o>

Forecast: 14-21
Attained: 14-20


Something to look forward to!

Giant strawberry plan approved by the council

...SSS Strawberries has proposed to build a big strawberry which will act as a shop, cafe, education tour and offices and tomorrow's planning committee meeting is D-Day for the big decision...

Hee, this will be in Bundaberg, which is even further north in Qld than where my brother lives. Would I travel that far to see this? Yes. Yes I would.

~=o>
This song is effing awesome. (I made a joke there, but you won't know what it is until you watch the clip.)

This is easily my favourite song for the year. :)

Warning for LANGUAGE!



~=o>

Forecast: 19-26
Attained: 18-27

Cubs and I took their cousins to see Skyfall today, for their birthday.





Wow! I like the Bond movies, especially when they go beyond the 'action ride' to something deeper, as this one has. Plus, it has the best opening credits of any Bond film. Ever. Everything in it is relevant.

Also, the bad guy is really, really scary, yet sympathetic. Completely messed with my head. :)

~=o>
There was stuff happening near/at the cinema, too!

Yes, the tree has been wrapped in knit/crochet. It's a thing, apparently. Yarn bombing.

Soulsis was saying the 'artists' had just bought old stuff from the second hand shops but, no, I'm pretty sure at least some of it's been custom made.

And here's a good way to brighten up those dull dull dull chain link fences! Note the red-back spider in the bottom left corner...

Ah, you've gotta love independent cinemas in the outer suburbs... I do! :)


~=o>

Forecast (friday): 23-28°
Attained: 25-26° (I finally went and looked up the code for the degree symbol)

(Had planned on finishing this update last night, but was interrupted by fanfic [reading] and then thunderstorms. Speaking of which... poor KittenKong. She was torn between wanting to be where I was, as usual, but I was watching the storm, which she didn't want to know about...)


Pfft. It got down to 25° thursday night. [grump]

~=o>
I mentioned I was overpaid last fortnight, well, being of the generally Lawful-ish Good alignment* I let payoffice know. After some to and froing of emails it appears that I am actually entitled to being paid for a public holiday that falls on a Tuesday - even though it's not one of my contracted days - because I've worked more than 50% of them (heh, all of them) for six months. Good to know - this means I'll also be paid for Xmas day this year.

(imaged nicked from here.)

[* Yes, this means I do things like only cross at the lights, I don't cross against the lights. I will queue more-or-less patiently. I will give back change in a shop if I'm given too much etc...]

~=o>

Forecast: 19-38
Attained: 19-39

Imagine, if you will, a day where the temperature reaches 39 degrees, then imagine a school hall, unairconditioned, filled with people...
And then imagine the main carpark at the school is closed - because there's building work starting - which entails parking some distance from the school then treking, in the 39 degree heat to the crowded hall...
And then imagine they'd run out of programmes so there isn't even anything to fan yourself with...*

But aside from that the evening went smoothly, and quickly, with lots of enthusiasm for award recipients and performers. One cub received the Maths award for Yr 11 while the other cub essentially received the runner-up Maths award.
And then we had icecream, and it was good.

(*Akshully, I was lucky enough to be sitting next to a lovely woman who was happy to share the air when fanning herself. Plus, we'd scored seats right next to the open doors so we benefitted from the tiny, tiny breezes that found their way in.)

~=o>

Forecast: 16-27
Attained: 15-28

First:

D'awww, adorable!




~=o>
Second:

This is the actual title of an actual book, published in England in 1742.

A cheap, sure, and ready guide to health : or, A cure for a disease call'd the doctor : instructing, how to prevent being cheated and destroyed by the exactions and unmerciful usage of ignorant and oppressive physicians and apothecaries : and to prepare at home the proper medicines for usual distempers : with the prices, to save ninteen shillings in twnety, and expend little more than a penny a dose : likewise a new account of the connection of distempers, key to all physic, and to know any disease/ set forth by the benefaction of a very worthy private gentleman, to contain more than any book of the kind, at the lowest rate, as necessary for all families, and all persons.

(The record is from the National Library of Medicine. Good gods, my love of the interwebs knows no bounds... :)

~=o>

Third:

Bwhahahahahaha!

Building Safety Awareness on tumblr.

Temecula, CA—A fence crashed into a car on Monday. Witnesses said alcohol may have been a factor. The fence was cited for traveling against the flow of traffic and slapped with a “reckless endangerment” ticket. Courts are expected to demand the entire fence to stay out of traffic, be covered in reflective material, and have flashing red lights installed every five feet.

[snorfling]

~=o>

Forecast: 14-25
Attained: 15-23

Woke up to thunder and lightning this morning, it was fantastic!
The drive to work in the teeming rain was less fantastic, as was having to share the roads with dickheads who don't know how to drive in the rain. Sheesh.

~=o>

Work has introduced a thing whereby you can buy extra time off. Normally, if you run out of accrued leave and need to take more, it becomes leave without pay which is no fun financially. Now with the bought leave, you still lose the pay for those days but the cost is spread over your salary for 12 months. Quite a sensible idea, really. Good to know there's options if needed rather than just taking time off and not getting paid.

~=o>
Combat kitchenware. Oh yeah...



~=o>

Forecast: 14-22
Attained: 14-21

It may have only got to 21 today but the UV was fierce.

~=o>
Happy duckling. :)





~=o>
Cubs are in their last week of school for the year. Short week, too, and they're being shown through the course requirements for their Yr 12 subjects. Akshully sounds like a lot of fun. :)

~=o>

Forecast: 16-22
Attained:

Cute idea!
Mad Hatter Ornaments.

~=o>

I would really really like to buy some books but alas, cubs' school fees need to at least have a deposit put down, added to which I was overpaid last fortnight so will probly have to give that back as well. [sigh]

~=o>

Forecast: 15-34
Attained: 13-34


KittenKong, exiled from my lap for being annoying, sleeps instead on the printer...

~=o>

Forecast: 12-27
Attained: 15-21


End of the cubs' exam week and their dad and I took them out for noms at the Piggy Place. So full...

Hee, and despite some issues with a couple of subjects both of the cubs are up for awards this year. No idea what for, we'll find out next week. :)


~=o>
This is from Think Geek. It's called the Useless Box. I quite like it.





~=o>

Forecast: 12-21
Attained: 12-21

I feel the need for a hamsterball of solitude.
Possibly bigger than this one, though. :)



(thanks for the vid, Joules! :)

~=o>
Crystal clear tape, indeed...

(Was I at a smidge of a loose end at work today? Perhaps...)

~=o>

Forecast: 19-22
Attained: 17-20

[rolling around laughing]

Lifted from Hilarious Subtitles on Chinese Bootleg of The Avengers.

~=o>
Just been on a little bit of a muzic buying binge on itoons (yay, payday). I did kinda sorta make a dint in my wishlist, but then I promptly replaced the newly bought items with other tracks I'd like.

One of the songs I bought today was Lovesong, by The Cure. (Sorry, this is the only version of the clip I could find online. It has an annoying non-skippable, non-fast forwardable ad at the beginning.)

Absolutely gorgeous track but the video clip makes me titter.

They're surrounded by glistening penises!

See?

Easily amused? Oh yes... :)

~=o>

Forecast: 13-28
Attained: 12-28


Ahahahahahahahah! [gasp] Aahahahahahahah!

Robot Chicken Avengers Parody


~=o>
[solemn] It works.

~=o>

Forecast: 10-23
Attained: 12-24

Girl's milk. Obviously. [snort]

(Pointed out to me by Penny. :)

~=o>
I ❤ Carp?

A tablet of compressed tea I bought in Mildura. (Plus my favourite teapot.)

Beneath the pink foil was a coarse black tea that made an ok brew.

~=o>
[snerking] A public service announcement from Metro Trains here in Melbourne.



~=o>

Forecast: -19
Attained: 11-19

Oops, meant to do an update yesterday but got distracted.

Yay! Series 3 Wallander is showing on our ABC!
Boo! No Tom Hiddlestone...

(Still really like the series, though. :)

~=o>

Forecast: 11-18
Attained: 12-18

I'd heard a little bit about Henrik Scharfe so I decided to look him up.
I only managed to get 30 seconds in to the first clip before I ran screaming. :-/

(Nope, no links. Go look for yourself.)

~=o>
Professor John Murtagh is an excellent teacher and his books on General Practice are fantastic. However, I'm curious about the cover pic on this one.

Clearly this is meant to be a GP consulting with a patient and her young, not infant, daughter.
Why is there a fact-sheet about breast feeding on his monitor...?

~=o>
I love pop-up books, really truly love 'em, and was intrigued and delighted to see one demonstrated at the conference I went to a few weeks ago. It was on an ipoop but I figured there'd have to be some for android devices, surely?

Found some!
I bought one today: Sandra Boynton's 'The Going to Bed Book'. I spent most of my lunchtime playing with it, making the characters move, and things spring out of drawers, and turning on the hot water tap in the bathroom and having the screen fog up. So much fun! :)

A screenshot. I'd tilted the 'phone to one side and the characters all slid down the deck. Hee.

~=o>

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>

Forecast: 17-20
Attained: 15-22

Random thingies from the weekend (except about the paddle steamer, cos that's a post in itself):

Mildura is flat, and hot. Don't think I'd want to live there. Pat - my colleague - pointed out that though this would be the perfect spot to employ solar energy, there's hardly any in evidence anywhere. Real waste of resources.
The flatness had its advantages though. Did a lot of walking and wasn't bothered by hills...

There was a gecko in our motel room the first night I was there. Cute thing, about 4 inches (10cm) long. I didn't get a pic cos it left and didn't come back.

Ah yes, the dance-of-the-unfamiliar-shower. Bit hot, bit too cold, moving in and out of the water while you adjust the temperature. :)

We had fresh towels provided every day. I liked that.

~=o>
Back to work today. I'd only a couple of extra days off but it felt longer. Hee.
Anyway, hopped in the car this morning and immediately noticed an absence of rotten meat smell. The night before my trip I'd bought some sausages for dinner but they'd disappeared by the time I got home. I couldn't find them in the car so figured I'd probably left them at the supermarket - and not my usual one, which is just up the road, but one that's 30 minutes drive away. But just because I couldn't see them didn't mean they weren't there - that's how my world works - but clearly, they weren't there cos there was no smell this morning. Logic!

~=o>
Whoa...

MRI fruit & veg.

(via Penny.)

~=o>

Forecast: 24ish, Melbourne
Attained: 9-22

Home now! Had a great weekend - went for a cruise on a paddle steamer - and the trip back wasn't bad. Cubs were glad to see me, as was the cat. :)

There's photos but they probly won't be organised 'til the weekend cos I really don't get that much time on weeknights, not with having to get to bed at a reasonable time...

~=o>
I've been listening to this track pretty heavily this past week. It was used as a soundtrack for a gallery of Jeremy Renner pics on the 'toobs, and I loved it. Was quite surprised to see it was released in 2006 - it's perfect '80's gothpunk - but then on the band's entry on wikipedia it says their musical heroes are Bauhaus and The Cure. See what I mean? :)


she wants revenge - tear you apart by aquarius3

~=o>

Forecast: 11-24
Attained: 13-25

Final day of the conference, marked by the excellent food. :) Oh, and the great industry discussions. I've really enjoyed the time spent.

Afterwards we had a tour of the Mildura library. Lovely space, and I found a copy of The Adversary on the sale table! Excellent! Sure, it doesn't match the rest of the series I've got but that's not something I'm particularly fussed about.

Pat and I went for a drive this afternoon, just a quick trip, 30 km in to NSW cos we were on the border anyway. We drove past orange orchards and the car was filled with the scent of orange blossoms.

View from the car: mallee scrub.

This evening we trotted off to see a movie at the Deakin Cinema Complex (it's a 'Complex' cos it's got two screens. :)
We saw Lawless, which I can't say was enjoyable - guns and blood and violence, oh my - but the acting was fabulous.
This was followed by particularly nice pizzas - crispy crusts that were crunchy but not tooth-breaking. A good finish to a great day.

~=o>

Forecast: 11-30
Attained: 8-28

I rebooted my 'phone and surprise, surprise, I have full network access again. Should've done that yesterday, srsly...

~=o>
First day of conference! A very good day: a number of extremely useful talks - learnt lots - and some jolly decent food. Was very tired by the end of it though, so tired I had to have a nap before the dinner at the Mildura Brewery. Which was nom, I might add. I had roast lamb with a gorgeous light mash spuds and freshfreshfresh veggies. Mmmm... Finished off with a lovely cheese platter that included the most delicious muscatel raisins that were a little bit tart with a honey aftertaste. [drool] The cheeses were pretty good, too. :)

~=o>

Forecast: 11-30
Attained: 14-34

Here I am in Mildura! Had a good trip up. Left the house around 6.15 this morning. The cubs' dad gave me a lift in to the city in plenty of time to wander around and find my train.
Had just over 4 hours on the train, then another 3 on a coach, but immersed in my pod of music (yay for having 2 working ears!) it didn't feel like a long trip at all.

I found a Big Thing, quite by accident!

This is the Giant Murray Cod at Swan Hill, where I transferred from train to coach. Only had time for a flying visit to take photos, alas, with only 10 minutes before the coach left. No time even to check for souvenirs. [pout]

Anyway, got to Mildura, met up with Pat - my colleague - found the motel and settled in for a bit before we walked the block or so down to an excellent pizza place for a pre-conference meet'n'greet.

The only really gribbly thing about the trip so far is that my 'phone's network doesn't extend out to here, so no texts/calls.
... I miss it more than I thought I would. BUT, the motel has wifi so I can still email, and I remembered to bring my laptop. :)

Now, let's see if the wifi will hold stable for long enough for me to post an update...

~=o>

Forecast: 8-23
Attained: 9-21

Well, I'm ready to go. I have a load of somewhat nutritious snacks for the journey and my suitcase is finally packed, but as expected:

Helping...

~=o>
This song is unofficially known on Triple J as 'Sexy Gherkin'. [snerk]
Listen, and find out why.




~=o>

Forecast: 8-18
Attained: 9-16

'My cat makes it difficult to type...'
(First World Problems.)

~=o>
Everytime I'm in a lift/elevator and the door's closing my imagination immediately - unhelpfully - supplies the image of something dire trying to force its way in.

~=o>
I'm not packed for the weekend per se but I've made piles of the stuff that's coming with me.

~=o>
I have no idea what she was looking at.

Forecast: 15-21
Attained: 12-20

Checked the forecast for where I'll be this weekend. [pout] Low 30's for most of it. Still, I'm going on a long train ride - twice! - and that's always a good thing...

~=o>

Forecast: 14-27
Attained: 15-26

Last day of training in the city today. Last day of free lunch and abundant morning and afternoon teas.
I was so full at the end of it all I hardly had anything for dinner. :)

~=o>

Forecast: 9-22
Attained: 8-22

Apple blossom in the backyard.
Spring is still sprung.

~=o>

Had a fabulous time this afternoon at the Astor with Aaron watching Singin' in the Rain. Unfortunately it was an old print so there were a few spots where the film jumped or blurred, but it doesn't matter cos it's still possibly my faaaaaavourite movie. It doesn't matter how many times I see this on dvd, it is always so much better on the big screen. So much more detail, like the footprints on the couch in the 'Good Mornin'' number, and so much more subtlety in the facial expressions.

Cyd Charisse is just wow in this bit. The phwooar starts at :33.



And for added adorableness, in the foyer after the movie there was a completely unselfconscious four year old boy recreating bits of Donald O'Connor's 'Make 'em Laugh' number.
Priceless. :)



~=o>

Forecast: 11-16
Attained: 10-17

Tom Hiddleston, Chris Hemsworth and Jeremy Renner on a Russian chat show.
So many levels of awkward...




~=o>

Forecast: 9-14
Attained: 9-15

ROFL!

Screencap from The Adventures of Fatty Thor. (Recommended by Penny.)

~=o>
Now look.
That visor on the Iron Man suit looks like it fits pretty snugly, yes?

And yet...

Seems to be plenty of room in there for the HUD.
I'm happy to have some sciency type explain, in not so sciency words, the plausible explanation.
Or we could just put it down to Sony Tark's genius, I guess...

Forecast: 7-15
Attained: 7-13

Weirdly adorable...



~=o>
I'm very glad it's friday tomorrow: I've been dragging myself through this week. Hopefully the weekend will be restful, next week is going to be packed...!

~=o>
(Nicked from somewhere.)

Oh hush. Don't you start! :)

Forecast: 8-16
Attained: 7-15

Egad, friday week I'm off to Mildura for a weekend conference! That's come around quickly. Last time I checked there was weeks to go. Well, I've already bought my train/coach ticket but better get on and start making lists of things not to forget to pack, I suppose.

~=o>
Hee. Hawkeye is on order...

Forecast: 7-19
Attained: 9-18

First day back at work. It was fine, though I'm tired now. It's definitely the early mornings that bugger me up. :)

~=o>
Uh oh... There's a Hawkeye figurine, too.

Though from what I can gather from poking about online, it's already sold out. Eh well, I can but try...

([pout] I think the Loki figure will be released next year. [pout] Want it nao...)