Mmm... Fruitloops...

Watched the first episode of Tennant's Dr Who this evening. Frankly it was embarrassing - until our hero finally made an appearance, then it got immeasurably better. Could've slapped Rose; whiny bloody cow. Tch. Not fit companion material. I like this Doctor though, he's got that mercurial temperament thing - that thing that's both appealing and off-putting - shaping up nicely. And he's prettier than Eccleston.
However, interesting alien prosthetics aside it was a story of cliches. But then Dr Who = cheese. It has since the beginning and yea, even unto the last episode it will reek of the dairy. Even if it's a particularly English dairy... <g>

I was reading a drivel recently (don't ask) and I stumbled over a couple of things that gave me pause. Both from the hero's perspective.
The first was him musing about how attractive the heroine was. Quoting loosely: she was the sexiest woman he'd ever met, even without make-up. <growling> Because of course, rule: 1 in the book of being a girl is that you can't possibly be considered attractive without enhancements. <swearing>
(Aargh, no, leaving that there. I can already feel myself sliding into incoherency. Where was I? Oh yes...)
That first made me cross, the second just made me boggle. Again the hero was musing on the heroine and how her proximity was a torment because for reasons of paperthin plot bonking her was inadvisable. Again quoting loosely, he mentions, casually in passing, that he hasn't jerked off since college but now, given the heroine's irresistible speshulness he might just have to resort to it to stay sane.
<blink blink> 'kin' what?!
My first thought was 'He doesn't wank? What's wrong with him?'.
What was the author trying to say here? That masturbation is something that grown-ups don't do? Bullshit! Not that I'm in the habit of questioning my male friends about their forays into self-love but over the years, as the subject's come up, the evidence seems to suggest that even with a perfectly amenable sex partner to hand - so to speak - wanking is a normal activity.
Or is that just Australia? Are we a nation of degenerate wankers? I'd rather that than live somewhere that thinks masturbation is something to be shunned. Pffft. Stupid story.

Not a stupid story, however is Neil Gaiman's American Gods. I'm about a third of the way through and well and truly hooked. Gods above this man can weave a cunning thread.
(And I can't think of anything else intelligent to say cos it's end of the day and the fruitloops have worked their soporific magic. Mmmm... Fruitloops...)

I made a trifle the other night. It had green cream - and with the 'rainbow bright' sprinkles it was a very colourful dessert. Yummy too. :)

Had a good day today. Penny and I went trawling in Box Hill for material and... stuff. Picked up some really neat stuff in an op shop - a chunky green glass goblet; an elephant shaped glass jar; and a pretty little notebook. Unfortunately whoever priced the thing had whacked down a piece of sticky-tape to write the price on, and despite my care, removing it lifted and tore some of the (handmade paper) cover. Ah well, the notebook doesn't have a clearly defined front/back - the damaged bit can be the back, I spose.
I also found an interesting souvenir from Israel, at least I think it's a souvenir. What it is is a couple of intriguingly prickly seedpods encased in a 5cm square perspex cube. Beautifully done, the plastic is absolutely clear and there's no bubbles at all, but... what? Is Israel renowned for a particularly spiky plant? Something historical/biblical? I know the cube's from Israel cos there's a sticker on the base that says so. I almost didn't pick the thing up - it's a dried seedpod and therefore brown - but I'm glad I did. The more I puzzle over it, the more fascinating it becomes, if only because I don't have any other perspex paperweight things that are so wonderfully clear...
I also grabbed another handful of mismatched dinner forks. I'm going to have to watch myself; if I'm not careful I'll end up collecting forks. But then, some of the designs on the handles are so pretty.

Heh, following Joules' example I'm making an attempt at finishing up some of my outstanding fics. 'Outstanding' as in 'not finished yet', as opposed to 'blimey, this is fantastic'. <g>
The second part of 'Cathouse Ellis' is almost done, then I might think about completing the 'Elgar' series. Perhaps. What had been a vague idea for a crime novel has suddenly flared into life and I want to make a start on that while I'm enthusiastic.

One of our big retail chains here started its annual Toy Sale today. (I ignored the 'buy now for Xmas!!' signs.) The cubs - clutching the cash and gift-vouchers they got for their birthday - ventured in after school to have a look. (Actually, their hands were free; I had the goodies carefully stashed in my purse. Anyway...) The S cub was specifically looking for RC cars cos they've recently become very popular at school, and lo and behold he found some well within his price range. Bonus, the set had 2 cars in it, so he and his brother could play together. <g> The M cub found a Halo figurine he wanted but there was some problem getting a price on it. Eventually a very helpful salesperson hunted out a barcode we could use at the checkout, at the same time quoting a price that was half retail. Hee, happy cubs. We also started a couple of lay-bys (no deposit and 6 months to pay). The M cub now finally has a Darth Vader Voice Changer helmet to look forward to while the S cub found a cuddly Garfield plush. And they have a big Lego 'plane kit put away as well. Alas, there was nothing there that I wanted, which is probably a good thing, what with needing the cash for my incipient fork obsession...

First day of the new school term and it was two extremely underwhelmed cubs I chivvied out of the house this morning. <g> But it wasn't too bad, they had their ice-cream vouchers to look forward to redeeming after school and it was the first day in the new school.
I've decided that our principal has an overdeveloped sense of occasion. Not that finally moving into the new building isn't a cause for celebration - we've been waiting for two years after all - but having the school's brass band (marching behind the Aus flag) lead us in a parade from the old to the new? Seemed a little cheesy to me, but then again I think the children appreciated the dramatics, so...
After raising the flag on the new flagpole the students filed inside, followed by the parents etc. We were given quick tours around the new building and I have to say I'm impressed. The classrooms all lead off from a large central space which is much more community minded than consecutive rooms linked by a corridor. The library/computer room looks good, too, with lots of light and space. The teachers'/admin area is like a warren, rooms leading into rooms leading into more rooms. <g> And there's a good, solid door separating that from the students' area. The canteen, however, is tiny: as one of the volunteers good-naturedly pointed out the space will very quickly go from 'cosy' to 'claustrophobic' if the workers are on the large side. :)
I like the new building, I don't doubt there'll be teething problems as we settle in, but on the whole I think the design will work well, even if the exterior could possibly be likened to a shearing shed...

In honour of the cubs' birthday I unwrapped the fruitcake I'd made at the beginning of the year. It's very yum, perhaps a little dry, but rich and heavy nonetheless. Hee, delicious, but all the dried fruit gave me some ferocious wind.
I'm going to make another cake (perhaps two!) in the next couple of weeks for xmas. A slight lessening of the cooking time and a more liberal use of brandy should help smooth out the dryness. <g>

Speaking of xmas... We're halfway through the year, and if previous observations are anything to go by, in 8 weeks time xmas merchandise will start appearing in the shops.

Found something odd in the supermarket the other day - Caviart. The taste was reminiscent of dill pickles, and the wee balls were firm and didn't pop between your teeth like real fish eggs do. Good to try it but I don't think I'll be going back.

The cubs had an early start to their birthday this year. The day before the hallowed event we trotted off to the local op shop where they found a fistful of 00 scale model railway tracks and a compatible 'iron' bridge for just a few dollars! Happy cubs, and it revitalised their enthusiasm for model railways.

On an impulse I bought a boxed set of season 1 of Deadwood. It's set in an American frontier gold-mining town in the late 1800's and while it's brutal and gory - I wouldn't want to eat any of the pork in this place - I really enjoyed it. Even despite the casual violence I got sucked in to the lives and trials of the characters, and the characters are, generally, compelling. Not always pleasant or attractive but they feel like real people. For example, at first glance I thought Brad Dourif had been cast yet again as a creepy weirdo but as the series progressed and the character was allowed to develop it was revealed that there was a lot more to him. It was intriguing to watch it all unfold.
The cubs' father watched some of it with me and he queried the sense in using historical figures (Wild Bill Hickok, calamity Jane) in the story. Didn't bother me at all, I thought it gave the series an easily recognisable frame of reference. I knew where I was right from the start.
Heh, I have this thing though, where if I watch a lot of something I'll begin to mimic the speech - at least in my internal monologues. When I was indulging with Taggart there was a pronounced Scottish lilt to my thoughts; after watching Deadwood I find the voice in my head has affected a ponderous mode of speech with a frontier-town drawl. <g> It's probably just as well I never got into Lernsom' Durve cos I would have been incomprehensible even to myself!
So anyway... loved Deadwood and I'm going to get the second series. And I'm delighted to see there's a third season in production now. Woohoo!

Hee, cubs turned 11 today. They've been bouncing off the walls for a week in anticipation of their birthday. I'm not quite sure what time they went to sleep last night but they were still awake at 11.30 when I tried to sneak into my room to haul out their presents. Tch. However, all was quiet in their room when I dragged myself off to bed at 2...

Cubs have had a great day - and it's not over yet cos I'm letting them stay up 'til midnight. <eg> Doubt they'll make it that far, to be honest, they're both flagging noticeably.
By the time I'd managed to wake up this morning the cubs were already well into a game of Halo 2, a present from their dad. He also gave them a couple of action figures from the series, a copy of the Trainz software, and two plastic kits of WWII 'planes. From our housemate they received another couple of H2 figures - and from me they got a Spongebob Squarepants xbox game, a gift voucher from Trampoline Icecream each, a Mars Rover board game thingy and a couple of little spy games kits. They were very pleased with all that but the fun didn't stop there. Their cousins (with Soulsis, naturally) came 'round and gave them a set of toy weapons each, and a Dr Robotnik figure to share. And Becca showed them her gorgeous new pet mouse - Belvedor - but I was probably more thrilled about that than the cubs were. <g> (He's so cute! Soft dove-grey fur and ruby eyes...)

The cubs' father had organised a party for them at Darkzone where they (and their guests) had a ball. It started with tearing into even more presents (more games, more 'spy'ware, gift vouchers, stuff from Cars...) then a 15 minute 'free play' session in the arcade followed by the first of the laser-tag maze games. I didn't join in, cos I'm a wuss, but it sounded like loads of fun. :)
Then we trooped upstairs to the party room for pizza and ice-cream cake, (and sushi, which Soulsis had bought for me) then back down again for a second free-play session and a final run through the maze. <g> Soulsis joined in for that one.
Said goodbye to the friends - except for their cousins, and Sarah, who stayed with us for a little while - and went home where the sprogs played more or less cooperatively on the xbox, then had fish and chips for dinner (thank you, cubs' dad!).
And then they all went home and I passed out on the couch for a couple of hours. Heh.
Despite the snooze I don't doubt I'll have any problems getting to sleep tonight, and I know for a fact the cubs won't! :)

Interesting dream last night. There was a kitten, lovely wee ginger thing that had spent most of its time asleep. Not the way kittens normally spend a great deal of time asleep but only able to stay awake for a few minutes at a time, just long enough to have some liquids spooned into its mouth so it didn't die. Sounded grim but I found the longer I stayed with the kitten the more awake it became, the more it behaved like a normal cat though weak and uncoordinated. The little cutie was gaining animation and confidence as I watched...

Good gods the holidays are almost over. <pout> Don't wanna go back to normal.
What have the cubs and I been up to? We saw Cars again - yay! - and Over the Hedge. Not the most original or intelligent of movies but entertaining nonetheless. You can say one thing for William Shatner, he's not afraid to mock himself.

Cubs and I spent a few days up at Mum's as well. Took the traditional ride on the Healesville Trolley, and found out the company has just got hold of one of the original diesel engines that ran on the line. There's some work to be done but hopefully it'll be running before too long.

Mum wasn't feeling the best the next day so she didn't come with us to the Sanctuary. It's been a couple of years since we were there; lot of good changes including a hospital centre that's open to the public. Had fun looking at microscope slides and browsing the interactive displays; watched a kookaburra being operated on... That was fine until the vet started trying to remove the pin that had been holding the bird's fractured leg together. The thing was solidly wedged and the vet was tugging, tugging, tugging. That I couldn't cope with. <g> I don't know how the operation panned out, the cubs and I left soon afterwards.
I misread the information at the front gate so when we trotted 'round to the Birds of Prey display we discovered we had an hour and a half more to wait than anticipated. Wasn't time wasted though, in the meantime we sat in on the Free-Flying Parrot display. That was fun, and relatively new apparently; that was the first time we'd seen it. The keepers talked about several types of parrots while their charges zipped over and through the audience. Dang some of those birds are noisy! But sooo pretty!
The cubs and I didn't hasten to leave the arena after the display so consequently we were amongst the few that were asked if we'd like to stay and watch a training session for another galah. It was her first time in front of an audience but she handled it well. :)
The Birds of Prey display was as wonderful as ever, even though they couldn't bring the wedge-tailed eagle out cos of the wild eagles in the area. The osprey was being a prima donna as well, gliding between the trees instead of diving into the pool after the fish like she was sposed to. She was teasing her keeper, I'm sure; almost doing as requested, once, then equally ignoring his command to go home. It was quite funny. <g>

The following day, the Friday, I took the cubs swimming while Mum was in her exercise class, then we piled into her little car along with a friend and drove out to Powell Town for lunch at the milk bar/pub/post office/general store. Nice little place - I can always get crunchy cabana there.
After lunch we continued southwards to the heritage-listed Trestle Bridge. Cubs had fun rollicking about on that for a while, then we went back to Mum's.

Last day at Mum's we drove out to Warburton and the Patchwork Teahouse for morning tea. Picked up some nice Japanese influenced material, then the cubs insisted on exploring another old bridge across the road. We found our way up on to it - it's part of the walking trail - then came back down. :)
Had a quick lunch at Mum's, or rather the cubs had something else to eat - I didn't need to, the scones at the Teahouse were huge - then Mum drove us out to the train station and we came home.
It was a fun few days, and not exhausting. Cubs loved their early birthday presents from Nana - a home made heat bag (wheat filled) each, and a selection of 'Australian Light Railways' magazines. Oh, and a pair of bendy pencils, which are bizarre. I can't see how the lead can't be broken and useless, not when you can tie the sheathing material in knots... <g>

Joules has had a quick read through of the SFSG rewrite and still managed to find several boo-boos. Was-were, loose-lose, it's-its, and those pesky commas. Tch. I take heart at least that there's a lot less of those things to find now than when I first started writing.

I did something last night that I haven't done for years. I stayed up stupidly late to watch a soccer match. If it hadn't been the holidays it wouldn't have happened - I fell in to bed at 4.30 a.m! <g>
So anyway, Australia vs. Brazil in the World Cup Soccer. It started slowly, seemingly - to my untrained eye - to be more about defence than goal-scoring. Lots of near misses by both teams but I think there were more too-high/too-wide shots than actual saves by the goalies. I could be wrong, I'll check the stats later perhaps. At half-time the score was 0/0 and the Aus commentators were enthusing about how the 'Roos were holding their own against the best team in the world. Really? It didn't look to me like either side were playing particularly well. There was a lack of follow-through, I thought, a fair few missed opportunities for goals because there were inexplicable holes in the attack. Doesn't matter how skillfully a shot is set up if there's no one there to pass the ball to...
Early in the second half Brazil scored a goal and the energy and pace of the game picked up. Lots more near misses, including some excellent saves from both goalies. Brazil scored a second goal in the last few minutes of the game though it wasn't because of skill - more a case of someone being in the right place at the right time to take advantage of a fumble. There was no need for them to be so smug about it. <grump>
Listening to the commentators afterwards, the consensus was that Australia did very well, considering. There was some very skillful play, I have to admit, and the goalies certainly earned their fees. If we beat Croatia in the next round we could go on to the next level.
Speaking of Croatia... before the Aus/Brazil match I caught the second half of the Croatia/Japan. Now that was entertaining. :) Neither team scored but they were both playing hard. I was impressed too, by the camaraderie and politeness between the opposing sides. There was none of that in the Aus/Brazil match. If someone went down they were on their own, and Aus racked up a huge amount of fouls. Hm. Not sure I could be bothered with catching another 'Roos game but I'll keep my eye out for Japan. <g>
(And chips [crisps] are great for keeping you awake, but only while you're eating them.)

Right. Aside from a couple of minor details needed to slot into early chapters... the SFSG rewrite is finished! <happy dance> 187k words - 4k more than the first draft. Yeah!
Thank you so much for the beta, Joules, it helped enormously. :) I envision there'd have been lots of ineffectual fumbling about if I'd been left to my own devices.
Hee, the next step is to have it looked over by a someone who's not seen it before. That's probably the best way to see if the story makes sense - gods know I can't be objective!
I could have a drink to celebrate... Nah, chocolate...

I grumbled when the alarm went off this morning, until I remembered we're on holidays!

Odd dream last night. Some friends and myself were looking at renting apartments in a huge towerblock in Melbourne's CBD. Someone, the cubs' father I think, was making suggestions about who could live where and said the cubs and I could share a three bedroom unit with... Robert de Niro. I protested that; the cubs need their own rooms! Besides, I didn't know this bloke why would I want to share with him?
Toted up my finances and thought I could just possibly afford a unit on my own though rent would take up 2/3rds of my income. (Which just goes to prove this was a dream - even a bedsit apartment in the docklands would be waaaaaay beyond my reach.)
But the units were quite nice, roomy and light though the building felt quite old, not one of the new glass and chrome edifices that have been fashionable recently. The view of the Yarra and the ports was lovely and you could open a window and catch a sea breeze, or watch the weather coming in...
There was bugger all space for the cubs to run around however, but then, I thought, they don't do much of that anyway, and there was a swimming pool nearby where we could get discount vouchers. So, I decided it was do'able, expensive but do'able.
And then I woke up before I had to start dealing with all the crap that comes along with moving house. :) Still, a docklands apartment? I could go for that...

Of all the GoF stickers I'm missing, the majority are either the 3D or 'character' ones. Demn annoying. Heh, ordering from the company might be an option now cos I'm likely to spend far more than the order price trying to find the missing numbers buying sticker packets. Eh, next month perhaps, once the rent is paid.

Mum rang me last night to complain that she had to hear it on the radio that the cubs' school is reopening - why didn't I tell her?
Um, cos it's so low priority in my mind I forgot? <g> I've got far more important things to think about! I also didn't volunteer to help with the move because, well, I'm lazy, for one thing, and I know just how much use I won't be in a situation working cooperatively with lots of people I barely know.

Cubs got their half-year reports - they didn't vary much from previous ones. Their teachers again acknowledge that my boys are intelligent and capable but bemoan the lack of motivation which is holding them back from excelling. <shrug> They don't have much pride or interest in their work but I don't know what I can do, or if I should try. When they are interested in something the focus they can bring to bear is astonishing, but... They're keeping ahead of what they need to know, and they're both excellent readers and widely read which, as far as life-skills go, is one of the most important and useful you can have.
Should I be worried about this apparent lack of interest in reaching their potential? If they're anything like their father and myself - which, given what I've seen, is likely - they'll happily apply themselves once they've found what it is they want to do. Their organisational skills could definitely stand some improvement, but then, so could mine. In that respect, as a role-mode, I would be marked 'unsatisfactory'. <g> Oh well, in that case, perhaps there is something I can do? Pull my own socks up and serve as an example...

Penny rang me this morning, squealing excitedly. Seconds later I was squealing too. The community centre near the cubs' school is holding Bollywood Dancing classes next term! Hee. I'll be there.

The cubs and I were chatting (enthusing) to the cubs' father about Cars this morning while waiting for the bus. The cubs asked us what sort of cars we'd be in that universe. Their dad decided he'd be a blue panel-van - suits you, sir - and I'd be an old valiant. Yeeeah, a big old purple valiant...
I've seen some less than enthusiastic reviews for Cars over the past couple of days and they've made my brain go spang cos, what? How can you not like this movie?!
But then, realistically, I went into it with a pronounced bias. The soft spot I have for fast and/or powerful cars is largish, and then there's the other largish soft spot I have for road-trips and the scenery thereof...
Heh, each to their own. As I recall I said that Fellowship of the Ring was 'good for a laugh'. <g>

GoF sticker update (cos it's just sooo important...)
47 stickers left to collect, and 4 of the 12 'detector' cards. I've been buying the half-price 'starter packs' - 8 so far - and the people at the newsagents are starting to give me funny looks. Hate to think how much I'd be spending, though, if I had to resort to the full-price individual sticker packs.
You can order missing stickers from the company but at $1 each I'd rather get as many as I can through regular means first. Or eBay. : )

=0
That's a 'gasp' emoticon. Discovered it by accident today while chatting to Joules...
<blink> It also kinda looks like a b/w minstrel. Oh dear.
=0
... that's better. It's not been bolded...

As the SFSG rewrite ambles to an end I'm inevitably drawn to the question of 'what next'. I'm spoilt for choice, really - which is never a good thing. <g> So? Do I delve into the potentially 3 part fantasy? The Dystopia (hence a distinct lack of fluff) Romance? The actual Romance (just to see if I can bring myself to write one)? The contemporary crime fic? The several children's novels lurking in my 'ideas' folder? Eh, I'll come up with something. :)
Heh, and just noticed that those listed are in descending order of preparedness. Guess that narrows it down a touch.

Cars.
I don't have the words... but in the interests of doing the thing justice I will try to find them. :)
Gods, where to start? Um...
The plot was simple, no surprises there, but as I've found with all of Pixar's things the characterisations more than make up for any cliches. True, there's a lot of borderline stereotypes but they're handled so deftly by both the voice-cast and the animators that they become believable, even lovable in some cases.
Okay, visually, this movie was... wow. The speedway sequences were stunning, and the backgrounds/scenery were a cause for endless delight. Again, Pixar has taken the idea of a world and made it live and breath in super-realistic detail. (Hee. Cadillac Ranges and Ornament Valley. You have to see it to believe it.)
There were loads of visual jokes - some very subtle - as well as loads of self-referencing from previous Pixar productions. Do please stay for the end credits! I laughed as hard during those as at any point in the movie.

Right, I can sense myself descending into incoherency at the wonderfulness of it all - there'll be nothing more sensible out of me tonight.
Cubs and I will be definitely seeing it again. We'll get the DVD as well, when it's released even though Cars will certainly lose impact on the small screen.
(Oh, and the short this time was something called 'One-man band'. Not as charming or funny as 'For the Birds' or 'Boundin' but still wonderfully detailed and giggle-worthy.)
Very happy we finally got to see the movie - been waiting for at least eighteen months...
(<frown> Who's got the copy of The Incredibles, Soulsis? I've lost track. :)

Speaking of Soulsis, she visited last week and brought me presents!
A Danger Mouse DVD! (Eeeee! Crumbs, DM!); a very pretty pink/purple polar fleece scarf; a wee little plush fish; a gorgeous burgundy ceramic tri-part serving dish fashioned from leaves, and a set of 1970's paper-plate holders shaped as fish. <g> Authentic colours too: mustard, burnt orange, cacky (Missionary) brown and sage green. Ooh, I love vintage tat... <bounce> Thanks, Soulsis!

Heh, just about finished the follow-up to Lord Rakehell - and because it's lemony, naturally I dithered overlong on it. Tch, there's not even that much smut but still it took more time than it perhaps should've. Eh, well, it's more or less done. Perhaps I should start giving myself mini-challenges? See how much smut I can write in an hour? :)

Joules has finished beta'ing SFSG (the first beta, at least) so I have no excuses now. <g> Not a problem, really, only six chapters to go! With luck (read: determination) I can hopefully get the rewrite finished before the school holidays. That'd be neat.

Watched Coffee and Cigarettes yesterday. It's a series of vignettes about people smoking, drinking coffee and talking. It was odd, and though amusing in places I kept waiting for some deeper meaning to emerge. It was a little disorienting as well - were the actors (in some segments) playing themselves? Or playing characters that had their names and the same professions? Is Tom Waits really that prickly?
There was a lot of awkwardness in the segments too, lots of uncomfortable silences, the sort of silences you have when you're trying to make hesitant conversation with someone you don't really know.
Stylistically there were some wonderful images - some of those faces are fascinating in black and white - and it was fun looking out for and comparing the linking similarities in each segment, but ultimately this movie was a little duller than I'd expected. Though having said that I'll probly still be picking it over in my mind for a little while.

Perspective's a funny thing, innit? Joules and I were comparing temperatures the other day. At 25 degrees she was sweltering while I consider that quite comfortable. At 10 degrees I was shivering but that's apparently balmy in the UK. <g>
I also realised - after seeing a pic of the moon that Joules had taken - that we must be seeing the moon from a different angle down here in the Southern Hemisphere. Back to front (and upside down?) to be precise. No wonder I've never been able to see 'the man in the moon'! I can however easily pick the Japanese 'moon-rabbit'. <g>

This last week of term is mercifully short. Today (Monday) is the Queen's Birthday holiday, and school finishes on Thursday rather than Friday so we can begin the move over to the new building. It should be ready to move into by then. It better be, considering we were sposed to have been able to move at the end of last term.

Mwahahahahahah! I have a GoF sticker book! Actually, it's a 'starter pack' so there were 8 packets of stickers included - and all at about the price of 4 packs. <g> I think I'll pick up a couple more; nice, cheap way to collect. Yes, okay, that means I'll have extra copies of the book and 3D glasses but I'm sure they'll come in handy.
(I have confirmation now: 234 stickers and 12 'secret icon' cards. Now I know what I'm aiming for...)

Andandand! I got a parcel today from GoodTwin! Cutest little lapel pin with a pic of an otter, and a slidey pen! With an otter! <boingboing> Happy now. The pen came from New Forest Otter and Owl Centre. Did you go there, GoodTwin? Looks like fun!

There's nothing like a new fluoro to show you how shabby a room really is.

We've known for months that the light in the kitchen would need replacing sooner rather than later, but in the past few days it's been noticeably failing. So I got a new tube today and - because I get vertigo from standing on chairs - the cubs' father installed it.
Bam!
From perpetual twilight to sunshine bright in a split second! Pity I was looking at the light fixture at the time. <wince>
It's now so bright in the kitchen the spiders have run for the shadows. It's so bright, in fact, that I keep having to stop myself turning the light off cos it feels like daytime and of course you don't need the lights on then...

Dammit. <head~desk> I've mostly managed to ignore the packets of Goblet of Fire collectible stickers for months but yesterday, in a moment of weakness, I... weakened. Buying one won't hurt, will it? - I bethought to myself - Just to see what they're like...
Tch. It only takes one.
Because now I know I'm sporting a wild-eyed, wide-nostrilled look of must-have-more-obsession. And of course I must get the sticker-book so I know how many stickers I have to collect! Plus - and the official site is no bloody use - I need to know what sort of 'specials' there are. Out of the 6 packets (30 cards) I've got already there is one example of a 3D card, and a plastic 'secret icon' card! (Which has quite a nice pic of Draco in dress robes. However...) Is there anything else I should be looking out for? And let's not forget the sticker packets themselves, which have different designs...
<sigh> I think I've made things hard for myself though, coming in 6 months after the initial release; means the cards could be tricky to find - once I've exhausted the supply at my local newsagents. Soulsis, could you keep an eye open for me, please? I don't doubt there'll be some stickers I won't mind having multiples of at all. (No: 160, for example...)
What is odd, however, is that one of the early stickers in the series is from Prisoner of Azkaban. Mistake? Or recap of previous story? See, I need the sticker book so I know what's going on. <nods>

There's toys an' stuff out for the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie! (I've noticed I only tend to sneer at cynical merchandising when I'm not interested in the product. Tch, shallow or what?) The action figures don't look too bad - no more or less like the actors than the Lord of the Rings figures were anyway - but the wee ships are cute. : ) But, I don't have a burning desire to own any of that stuff yet, though I could quite fancy some of the posters.
(I wonder sometimes if my life would be dull if I wasn't a fangrrl. Heh, it'd probably be cheaper...)

Both cubs are back at school with a minimum of grumbling. I, however, am ignoring my scratchy throat and runny nose. Nah, not sick, just... gribbly <g>
Only two weeks left of the term though, and one of those weeks is only 3 days long! Then, all being well, we'll be moving into the new school after the holidays. Exciting. Sort of.
I'm going to go paw through my stickers now...

The cubs handle sickness in different ways. One will just lie there quietly, while the other will - loudly - tell me how sick he's feeling. This is the same cub who flung himself face down onto the couch in the busy lounge room and declared he 'wanted to be left alone'. <g>
Yes, they're both still home. The cub who got sick first will probly be able to go back to school tomorrow - the other cub may have to have another day at home. Am I getting much of anything done? No.
We did watch Flash Gordon though. First time the cubs have seen it and they had a ball. I'd forgotten how cheesy it was, but damn good fun. Some of those costumes are intriguing, and Flash/Barin? Poor Dale, she'll never know the truth... <smirk> Ah, she's better off with Aura anyway. Especially once she admits to her BDSM kink. Hee.

Cubs have been playing Cluedo, but not as its makers intended. They're using the house-plan on the board as a battlefield, chasing each other all over the place - roll the dice! Apparently the characters can buy weapons (knife, rope, lead pipe etc:) and use them to inflict damage. I wasn't listening too closely to the rules - it sounded... complicated. >g>

Joules! Crystal Power has turned up in a bookclub catalogue here!

And finally the Snupin's been posted! Hoorah!

Rated R, cos it's a bit rude (but not overly so.)

Lord Rakehell
(Link goes to the archive page where I'm currently top of the list.)

Thank you, Joules, for the beta!

My local library has a small but intersting range of DVDs. I picked up Fritz Lang's 'M' (1931). Even with the overstated performances common to the era (and let's face it, Peter Lorre was never subtle) this is a superb bit of cinema, chilling and powerful.
Lang is described as an 'innovative' director and there's plenty of evidence of that here in one of his first 'talkies'. He plays with camera angles - to great comic effect at times - and deftly swings between the different story threads, allowing them to contrast and highlight each other. Below the suspense there's a sympathetic, wry sort of humour. This humanising humour is absent in the nasty bits though, which just makes them that little bit more skin-crawling, even though the violence is only implied, never seen. (Heh and that's a pet peeve. The introduction of the 'gore fest' in movies - that loss of subtlety - in my opinion has done more to lessen the artform of cinema in recent years than anything else. Except perhaps Star Wars, but that's another rant.)
Yes, so, 'M'. Bloody marvellous!

Both the cubs stayed home on Friday - one was actually sick, and the other insisted that he wanted to look after his brother. <g> If I was being conscientious I should have made the healthy cub go to school but honestly, I couldn't be arsed. It's been a long term, with a few weeks left yet, and we're all tired.
They'll probly be home again on Monday. The sick cub still has a nasty cough, and the healthy cub is now complaining about a sore throat. Of course, that's not stopping either of them playing on the Xbox, but they've both been getting to sleep earlier. Something that only happens when they're unwell...

So, using as a template an earlier fic Joules had coded for me, I coded the Snupin I'd just finished. 25 pages - couple of hours - no problem. Except when I went looking for the file later I could only find the first incomplete and buggy version. Voluble swearing ensued; no idea why the blasted thing hadn't saved properly.
So, I coded it again - another couple of hours. When I'd done I whapped it over to Joules to check. Everything looked fine, so I sent the file over to Master and the Wolf. All sorted, everything fine - except the site mod emailed me back to say he'd fixed a couple of coding glitches, glitches that I knew were only in the first version.
Checked the link - more swearing - yes, my 'puter had apparently reverted to the original file. Again. I don't think my gremlins are technically minded, I can see them both staring as dumbfounded as me! None of us know what's going on...
Fortunately this time the html version was intact so I've sent that over instead. I've asked the mod to check it first before posting, just to be on the safe side.
Tch. Did I simply not save the file correctly? Was the goat the wrong colour? Sheesh. <grump>

Tch, been very difficult to shift the cubs these past few mornings. Not that I blame them, it's been jolly cold.

<smirk> Saw this on someone's icon the other day:
"One thing fanfiction has taught me is that everything is a hot bed of madsex."
Oh, how true...

Ah, and I forgot to mention that the 'fashion parade' at the Japan Festival on Sunday also included a young Japanese man hamming it up in very bad drag. Hee.

Hm, The Breakers is the second Minette Walters novel I've read and again, while I've enjoyed her skill in building the story I found the denoument rushed and unconvincing. Third time lucky? I'll try another one and see how that goes.

A few mornings ago, as I was walking back to the bus after dropping the cubs off at school, I noticed that the scenery - for want of a better word - had the same pinky, lilac haziness that I've seen in some old European paintings. It was caused, probably, by the morning's thick mist being almost dispersed by the sun, but to actually see that effect, to know it's real, was oddly thrilling.
There was a time - long ago, thankfully - when I thought there was nothing left that could surprise or move me. I'm continually grateful to be proved wrong. <g>

And finally: I wrote a angsty Snupin drabble today. Really ought to get 'round to getting my lj ready for posting stuff...

Awww. KittenKong will leave the warmth of the fire to come and sit on me. It must be love...

Yay! Finished the Snupin! And at 24 pages I think that's the longest bit of fan fic I've ever written. Excepting, perhaps, some of those mammoth chapters I contributed to Joules' AC. But anyway, reasonably pleased with it.

The cubs and I went with their Dad on Sunday to the annual Japan Festival in Box Hill; our third year in a row. Blimey, where to start? Ah yes, the Trader's Hall. Lots of stalls, lots of lovely stuff. The cubs bought themselves some toys; I didn't get myself another vinyl figurine of an uber-perky bishojo as I have in previous years. There were several there but none that I really wanted. Instead I bought a book of Hiroshige prints postcards. Just gorgeous!
Next, the cubs and I trooped over to the adjoining building for the flea market and activities. One of the cubs spotted a huge gourd melon and proclaimed it was the biggest pear he'd ever seen! I don't think he believed me when I said it was something like a pumpkin. The stall-holders all thought he was very cute, though. <g>. We found the origami room and I was made a purple frog and a pink boat.
In another room were model trains! Much to the cubs delight. N gauge models of Japanese trains. So woodgie and wee!
Food! We didn't tackle the food hall cos the crush of people was frightening, but there were some traders inside the main building so I got myself some pickled fish sushi ('kin' yum!) and some herb and red bean paste daifuku. There was lots and lots of other foodstuffs to choose from and with an unlimited budget I could've quite easily eaten myself into a stupor. We couldn't see any fairy-floss this year, not that that bothered me. Keeping an eye on two young boys is hard enough without sugar being a factor.
We had an hour or so to wait for the cubs' father's 'performance' so we wandered over to the hall to see if we could get seats. Unfortunately the place was packed but I managed to find one seat at the edge and the cubs sat on the floor beside me - when they weren't down the front of the hall, peering over the stage etc. We arrived just at the beginning of 'youth' section and, I must be getting old, but I was floundering for understanding in places. Two bands performed, a local amateur (I think) and a Japanese professional. Didn't catch the name of either. The local band was of the grungy persuasion and wasn't too bad, what I could hear despite the dodgy sound-system. The Japanese band made me giggle. Four thin and angular young men with spikey hair. Cute, if you like that sort of thing. I gathered they were somewhat known here; they had fans in the audience who knew their songs and squealed enthusiastically throughout the performance. Now, while the bands took it in turns to play, projected behind them was a bizarre multi-media display incorporating modern and traditional symbols of Japan. Plus, we were treated to a sort of fashion show of - I presume - currently popular street wear in Japan. And then, in the middle of all this two girls in school uniforms did an energetic dance to Tatu's "All the things she said". <blink> Which was... interesting.
Overall, that section was loud but entertaining. The next part of the programme was listed as 'Live Calligraphy'. Didn't sound especially dynamic, but it was. 3 people stretched a looong piece of calico out across the stage and, to the accompaniment of a few drums, the artist scribed something that covered the material from end to end - in about five minutes. Then he tore the cloth in half, scrunching up a piece to make a double fistful of impromptu brush. He dipped the lot in a bowl of ink and used it to complete his next piece on four big boards at the back of the stage. Very cool!
And then at last the cubs' father was there introducing his naginata group and talking the audience through the display. Cubs were thrilled.
I needed a break after that so I nipped out for some fresh air and the loo. Got back in time to see 'Action Dance' a Japanese dance group that incorporated martial arts in the moves. ...Right. Athletic people leaping about the stage looking fierce and brandishing (plastic, I have it on good authority) weapons at each other. And then Mr Shiny Purple Pants entered the fray with Mr Shiny Silver pants. An epic battle ensued with nearly everyone dying. Hong Kong cinema, live on stage, without the fountaining blood. It appears I have completely lost all capacity to take dance seriously. <g>
The programme wound to an end. The raffle prizes were drawn and then... the drums! The drums always make everything worthwhile. <happy sigh> They're the main reason I go to the festival. That and the food... :)

It's always nice to know your children are actually listening to your random outbursts what you say. One of the cubs was watching telly when an ad for a 'revolutionary' banish-the-blemishes skin-care product was shown. He said - in a 'Sheesh, are you stupid?' tone of voice - 'You don't need that! Eat more fruit; drink more water and don't smoke!'
<fuge grin> So proud...

A couple of the grades at school have incubated chicken eggs recently. The chicks are awfully cute! And free to good homes, as well. I was very tempted but resisted the wee bundles of yellow fluff cos I have a: a cat, and b: nowhere to keep a chicken. One day, perhaps, when I've got my biodynamic garden.

Erk. School photos tomorrow. Still haven't managed to get any of the <cough> required logo'd uniforms so the cubs'll just have to trot up in their cheaparse supermarket stuff. Eh well, it's all clean and I really don't care anymore.

The Snupin is almost finished! Woohoo! Should be up at Master and the Wolf well before the deadline.
And speaking of fanfic; GoodTwin has recently revamped the Prosfanfic archive. I was having a browse through my stuff there and, dagnabbit, for all that it's some of the first fic I wrote it's not that bad. My favourite is still "Heartless Bodie", followed closely by "668: The Neighbour of the Beast". Hm, you know, for a DoyleDoll I wrote an awful lot of Bodie-centric stories.

I think I may be in trouble. Over the recent man-on-a-stick celebrations there were scrummy Lindor eggs available and I indulged whenever I could afford them. I mourned their inevitable removal from the shelves but they've turned up in the lolly clearance shops at less than half-price. I can afford twice as much!
Oh dear... : )

Yes, as the previous - bright yellow - entry proclaims (thanks, Joules!), it was Mother's Day here in the Antipodes.
I didn't get breakfast in bed but as my stomach doesn't wake up for an hour or so after I do, that wasn't something to lament. The cubs had some gifts waiting for me in the lounge room: two frog-shaped plastic back massagers and a copy of the Goblet of Fire DVD. Woohoo! <g>
I didn't immediately turf the cubs off the xbox so I could watch it, however, I had other plans. I got myself organised and out of the house just after 8 a.m. (that's just masochistic on a weekend) so I could get down to the Camberwell Antiques Market nice and early. The place is huge but I was only there for an hour cos I didn't need to peruse every stall. Was lots of fun though, wandering about in the drizzle. : ) I picked up some little odds and sods but my best find was one of those Japanese split-curtain thingies decorated with maneki neko! So cool!
This afternoon the cubs and I sat down to watch GoF. It definitely does lose something on the small screen but is still entertaining. Had a poke around in the extra features but wasn't overwhelmed. Most of the additional scenes were of the Golden Trio, with only one extra featuring Snape on Chaperone duty at the Yule Ball. <eg> That made me giggle; the 'great bat' gleefully swooping down on canoodling teenagers.
Oh, and there was the full version of 'Do the Hippogriff' which was also amusing...

So, that was my Mother's Day. Not the worst I've experienced by any means. : )

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Blimey, it's Friday already? Sheesh. And Mum told me today there's only 5 weeks 'til the next school holidays. That threw me. This term is very, very long - cos of the Commonwealth Games - but there I was thinking there was, oh, at least 8 weeks to go.
I am unprepared for the middle of the year...

I've been adding to my collection of Alan Rickman movies.
Found this one recently - An Awfully Big Adventure - nice and cheap. I vaguely remembered seeing a promo for it years and years ago and while I remembered that Hugh Grant was in the cast it hadn't twigged that Mr Rickman was as well. Naturally when I discovered that I leapt upon it and cackling, bore it home clutched to my bosom.
Damn there are times I love British Cinema. This isn't a comfortable movie, or a comedy, though there were some wonderful moments of wry humour. Ultimately it was quite sad and a little confronting. The cast is understated but strong, with Mr Grant playing a thoroughly unlikeable bastard. The highlight, naturally, was Mr Rickman. I don't think I've ever seen him in a sex scene... <wibble>
There's a lot going on in this movie despite the gentle pace. It's all there, however, in the character asides and banter. Wonderful stuff. Very glad I've got a copy that's mine, all mine, that I can peruse at my leisure. Mwahahahah.

Aaaand I'm about 2/3rds of the way through the rewrite. I think I'm pleased...

Soulsis et al came 'round for a visit yesterday. The cubs were very happy to see their cousins and the sprogs all more or less played happily together all afternoon. Soulsis brought me some presents! A beautifully tacky devilled-egg set (chicken-shaped dish with egg-shaped depressions and matching chicken-shaped salt/pepper shakers) and a very pretty Wedgewood sandwich plate! (That link's just to show an example of the plate, by the way.) She also brought a big batch of fresh Anzac biccies, and let me use her car to do some shopping. <g> Thanks!
And then Niki showed up bearing chocolate cake! Then she amused herself hacking a path through the vegetation obscuring the path to the front door - something I've kind of thought about perhaps getting 'round to one day. Hee, I have the best friends.

There's a Latin translation of Philosopher's Stone - how cool is that?
Was there a Klingon version as well? Or did I imagine that? Hm...

I took a week off to play with a Snupin. It's not quite finished yet - I estimate it's about 2/3 through - but 12 pages isn't too shabby. But, it's back to SFSG now, during the day at least.

I borrowed an Eddie Izzard DVD from the library. Laugh? Oh gods, yes! I really enjoy his stuff. In this show he was talking about poking stoics with sticks, and drawing comparisons between cows and dancers, and how he subscribes to the Chaos theory cos what else explains why seals are so good with balls when they're not part of their natural environment. What would happen if you gave banjos to tigers...? <g> I've been giggling for days...

Oops. Been a while...

Heh, well, the SFSG rewrite's ground to a halt cos I'm having too much fun with a Snupin at the moment. I'll get back to it soonish though...

Today was one of those days when I'm very glad I don't drive. There'd been an accident in the city in the morning which closed the nearby freeway. Consequently all the roads that fed into that freeway - including the one my bus tootles along - were stupidly slow. Fortunately the cubs and I managed to get the early bus this morning, but even that was 15 mins late. We still got to school before the bell rang so it wasn't too bad, I suppose.
I was almost late picking the cubs up this afternoon cos the traffic was still chaotic and the bus had to take a looong detour to avoid standing still for half an hour. Fortunately this sort of thing doesn't happen very often.

Some of the phishing mails are quite funny.
This one came yesterday:

Due to last days hack attacks to our database we decided to review
our customers account information to prevent security problems . If you could take 3-5 minutes out of your online experience to verify your account status , you will not run into any further problems .

<snigger> My online experience?
And today's phish had this at the top, well before the 'official' content:

Â? a week after she brought those oogy sundaes? boyish bowl "He said.

The riding mower was a small tractor-like vehicle meant for keeping larger-than-average lawns neat and clipped. Just remember, a little pain and it will be over. I hope she will be tried again on one of the other counts. His dreams were confused and unpleasant. What's that? It was summer vacation, his father working, his mother gone to spend the day in Boston with Mrs Kaspbrak from across the street. If I start out on the bike at first light, I might even be able to make it back before noon. countenance

Riiight. Are they even trying?

We've been having some lovely Autumn mornings recently. Nice and crisp, clear blue sky and no frost yet. I like this time of year.

<happy sigh> I watched Velvet Goldmine today, first time in months. I forget how much I love that movie. The interactions and tangled histories of the main characters still fascinate me.

Thank you, Sue! If I hadn't read your blog I wouldn't have picked up 'Forests of the Heart' by Charles de Lint. Wow, fabulous book, fabulous author. The story started slowly because there was so many characters to introduce, but once the pace picked up and the individual threads began to flow and twine I couldn't put it down. Fortunately the library has a lot of his work for me to ferret out and pounce on. Forget the Anita Blake series, this stuff is far more engaging!

I let the cubs watch the 'South Park Movie'. I admit I was a little concerned cos the language is... extreme's too extreme a description, but it is pretty full-on. I warned the cubs beforehand but they still wanted to see it, so...
<g> They enjoyed it, so much so they've watched it 3 times now. Fortunately perhaps a lot of the humour and concepts are zipping way above their heads (I'm waiting for them to ask me what a clitoris is) but they're having a good time cracking up at the slapstick. I've forbidden them to sing the <ahem> Terrance & Phillip song at school cos that will completely ruin my reputation as a responsible parent. : )

"Every Breath You Take" really is a malevolent song.
I miss The Police sometimes. They produced some incredible music and were an excellent live band.

'kay, I'm definitely past the half-way mark in the rewrite now but damn it's been a battle at times. Not that there's terribly much to tweak but when I'm in the midst of a <hand to forehead> this is clunky and puerile and no one will ever want to read it!! crisis of confidence I sometimes find myself wondering if it wouldn't be easier to start again with something new. I'm not going to, of course, because I'm lazy but stubborn, and I'm not going to waste over a year's worth of effort (plus the time Joules has put in beta'ing for me). I just have to remind myself sometimes that I can and will see this through to the end. After all, I finished the initial draft of the story, what's harder than that? <g>

The cubs really enjoy The Order of the Stick but they miss a lot of the D&D based jokes. They've responded enthusiastically to their dad's suggestion that he run a campaign for them and I said I'd join in. It could be fun - the cubs' father is an excellent game-master - but I have to admit that role-playing just doesn't hold the appeal it once did. Eh well, should be interesting to see how the cubs cope with the somewhat restrictive rules: "No. You can't have that mega-twega death-dealing spell until you're nth level..." <g>

I saw in a documentary sometime ago that wolves (and dogs/foxes as well, I assume) can in some instances help their sense of smell by snorting out puffs of air through their noses. This apparently boosts the scent particles into the air so they can be snuffled up easier. Guess what - it works! I've been trying it with very faint smells and it does give a stronger trace. I've had some odd looks though; it's not everyday you see someone with something pressed right up against their nose, snuffling and snorting with a look of intense concentration... <smirk>

Speaking of dogs... I borrowed an Akira Kurosawa DVD from the library: "Nora inu (Stray Dog)" [1949]. I knew Samurai flicks weren't really my thing but I was curious to see how the Japanese handled a Film-noir, one of my favourite genres.
Bloody marvelous! <bounce> This may be one I end up buying. The story starts simply but gains layers of complexity as it progresses. Seeing the depiction of a post-war, post-occupation Japan was intriguing, especially the sometimes uncomfortable blending of East/West culture. Stylistically the film is wonderful with some breathtakingly elegant cinematography and staging that spoke volumes about Japanese artistic sensibility.
...Yes, the more I think about it the more decided I am to have my own copy. This definitely bears repeated watching.

And still on the subject of Japanese cinema - I picked up a copy of Dianna Wynne Jones' "Howl's Moving Castle" cos I thought it might give me some insight into some fuzzy bits of the movie. All I can say though is that the movie - gorgeous as it is - bears little resemblance to the book. They're both great, but ultimately not comparable. I haven't quite finished the book but I have to say that I got a little excited about it. Part-way through it took a left-turn which transformed it from an enjoyable but not particularly gripping story into something truly magical. There's quite a list of the author's other works - I'm going to see what else of hers my library has...

Curriculum day, today - tacked on to the Easter long-weekend; woohoo! - so the cubs and I went to see Ice Age 2. Fun movie, pure fluff, but entertaining. Scrat, as usual, was a highlight.
So, yes, the movie was okay, butbutbut... <squee!boing> posters advertising PotC 2: Dead Man's Chest. Biiiig posters... MmmmOrli-squee... Something to look forward to an' all. <g>

And speaking of Johnny Depp (there is a link) I finally got to see From Hell. It's another Jack the Ripper movie, not something I generally go out of my way to see, but I thought this version was t'riffic - and sad. True, historically, it's bollocks but Depp produced an interesting take on Insp. Abberline and the plot made more sense than some 'recreations' I've seen.

Moving right along to more historical bollocks...
No, that's a bit harsh, though "Nights at the circus" was certainly a confounding read. It became more fun, however, once I stopped waiting for it to make sense and just went along for the ride. Not sure what else to say about it, really, except that for the life of me I can't imagine how it was made into a stageplay!

Cubs and I spent a few days at Mum's for Easter. We ambled off to Alexandra for a day at the steam tram railway. It's been over a year since we were there and it was good to note the improvements to the site/displays. Soulsis and her chicks popped 'round on Monday morning for a few hours. Soulsis - bless her - had made a huge tin full of biscuits; they didn't last long. <g>
It was a nice, relaxed weekend and astonishingly I came home without any material. A couple of books, true, but no material. Egad, what's the world coming to...? <sigh>

I've been watching a series on ABC, Little by Little, a documentary about the development of the Dusty Springfield musical. Hee, well, last night I dreamt I was part of the cast, in a 'small but pivotal role' except I hadn't had any rehearsals, I didn't know where my costume was or what my cues were. Funnily enough I was more annoyed than anxious cos I knew I'd be able to wing it with minimal direction but still a little bit more organisation on the part of management would have avoided all the aggravation. <g>
Today I picked up a copy of DS's greatest hits cos I thought if I was going to be in the stageshow I'd better know the songs...

<giggling> It's fun listening to the cubs playing combat games on the Xbox - they swear like (19th century) troopers. "Take that, you bugger!" "Aaargh, no! Oh my gosh!" Is it any wonder they're uncomfortable with actual swearing?

And I've picked my challenge for the 6th wave of the Snape/Lupin Fuh-Q-Fest. : ) It's not due 'til the end of July - if I'm quick enough I might be able to slide a second fic in as well...

Eurgh. Don't like cheap Easter chocolate - it's gritty. <shudder> But some of the wrappers are so pretty. It's not a complete waste, though, I get the wrappers while the cubs will happily eat the crap.
(Awww. The S cub's just produced some 'wrapper art' of his own. He's fashioned a small human suffering from yellow fever [gold wrapper] covered by a blanket [red wrapper]... I knew the Horrible History/Science series would be beneficial. : )

<g> Following Joules enthusing about the Nights at the Circus stage play (March 31 on her blog) I hunted down a copy of Angela Carter's novel at my library. Interesting, very interesting, even though I'm having to read it in increments - the Victorian setting is... off-putting. Pfft, 'off-putting', hell, it makes me hiss! But anyway, I'm intrigued to see where it goes. Is Fevvers a hoax or not?

One book I've had no trouble reading though, is Circus of the Damned, the third in the Anita Blake: vampire arse-kicker series. I'm not sure why I'm reading these, to be honest. Crime fiction is my equivalent of brain-candy Romantic drivel but I don't like horror at all and this series is kind of a fusion of the three genres. One out of three shouldn't be enough to keep me reading, but I'm intending to finish the series even though the conclusion of Circus felt like a cop-out. Eh, perhaps I'm a literary masochist, or just stubborn. Actually, no, it's probly laziness. The books are easy to read, they don't tax my brain and they keep me distracted while waiting for/traveling on buses. I'll read the fourth anyway and then see how I feel.

Sometimes I like discomfiting my children, if not shocking them outright.
I treated myself to a copy of Spiderbait's video clip compilation DVD; and one of my favourite tracks is a subtle little number called Fucken Awesome. <smirk> One cub has to leave the room when it's playing, he just can't cope with the language... but I really like this track, it's fast and boppy and unlike the majority of other songs that are riddled with profanity, it's happy, not angry. No matter, there's other tracks the cubs do enjoy and will watch over and over again. I'm slowing making inroads into expanding their musical tolerance...

This would have to be my favouritist line in a fan fic ever:
"Severus had taken to a magic-less life like a trout to international finance..."
<rolling around laughing> It's a quote from an excellent and very funny snarry, 'Fourth Year' by Calligraphy. There's an awful lot of good HP fanfic out there, more than I ever would have suspected. I've been having such fun! <g>

Almost half-way through the rewrite now, as well, all thanks to Joules for the betas. : )

Monster trucks. I just don't get it. <scratching head> Is it... is it like grotesquely huge breast implants? Repulsive yet you can't take your eyes off them cos they're so weird?

I'm reading through Jane Austen's Guide to Dating (Lauren Henderson; 2005). The author has compiled a list of 10 dating 'principles' that constantly pop up in Austen's stories. The author says that after consulting (having foisted on her) dating 'manuals' and advice that not only needlessly complicated the process of finding a mate but turned everything into adversarial powerplay, she found herself turning back to Austen's simple, common-sense notions of over a century ago - back to a time when divorce wasn't an option so one had to be more selective in one's choices. : )
It's amusing, though some of the sweeping generalisations make my lip curl, and Henderson very deftly uses examples from the novels to illustrate the principles as well as modern-day anecdotes from her friends and family to demonstrate how it all works in real-life.
Amusing an' all as it is I can't see myself using the advice with any regularity though. I'm not likely to 'date' anymore, but you never know, I might meet someone nice in the retirement village to hold hands with after a suitable amount of time strolling about the elegantly manicured gardens. One wouldn't want to appear too forward, would one? <g>
(And on a side note: I keep meaning to read something of Austen's. I've seen a few of the dramatisations and loved those but the prose is harder to decipher than Dickens. Admittedly, the only attempt I made on one of the novels was when I was pregnant and therefore only had half a brain, but still, it'd be easier now, surely?)

Joules has finished Band 3, another of her Alternate Oedo stories, and it's fabulous! Had me cackling aloud in places, and I definitely want "I'd rather be eaten alive by weasels..." (© to Joules, of course) on a t-shirt! Says it all, really. <snerk>

I joyfully perform The Dance of the Returning Vegetables! Brussel sprouts and asparagus are coming back into season! : )

Had some good wee bits of luck today. The supermarket had finally got 'round to restocking the organic coffee I like, but that wasn't the lucky bit. There was no price on the shelf - though I know it generally retails for around $8 - neither did the item register at the, um, register. After standing around for a couple of minutes trying to get a response from the front desk, the cashier eventually shrugged his shoulders and put the coffee through for $1. Bonus! And there was some more luck after school. On our way home the cubs generally indulge in a daily taste test at Trampoline Ice Cream. Earlier this week one of the lovely staff gave them both a small cup of ice cream for free. Very sweet of her, I thought, but tonight when we stopped in to buy the cubs' weekly cone's worth of numminess, she gave me a free cup as well! Lychee and Lime sorbet... <swoonthud> Just delicious. Needless to say, under these circumstances, the cubs and I are happy to continue our patronage.

Got to see "Howl's Moving Castle", at last. The artwork was beautiful of course (bishiebishiebishie!), but the story left me wondering if I'd missed something. It made sense in an overall sort of way but the detail was patchy in places. Admittedly I was watching the dubbed version - and we all know how true-to-the-original those are, especially for something that's going into general release - but it smacked of squishing and pushing things around to suit a more 'Western' viewpoint. <scowl> Why can't they just translate the bloody things as they are? There's no need for all this... tinkering...
I'll watch the subbed version sometime, see if I can glean any more sense from that.

I'm about a third of a way through the SFSG rewrite - which sounds more impressive than it actually is. Or perhaps I'm just frowning at my dithering again. Though it seems to be getting easier.
Once again big [huggles] to Joules for her invaluable help betaing. <g>

I see that the Goblet of Fire DVD is finally on sale here. <pout> Can't afford it yet, oh well.
I'm reading Order of the Phoenix though (for only the second time - it's much better on a reread) and I can't help envisioning Dan Radcliffe's inevitable chewing of the scenery. Attractive poppet but really not the best of actors. Ah well, bless; I'm sure he does his best.

Hee, so yes, Penny and I went to the Closing Ceremony. It was fun, though the evening had a bit of a rocky start, a slight communications mishap. Penny thought I'd invited her daughter as well, though in fact I only had 2 tickets. Likely my fault, I was too excited to be coherent, I suspect. <g> Anyway, not really a problem as it transpires, the cubs' father was happy to look after Sarah as well. And because I'm slightly obsessive about ensuring there's plenty of time to get somewhere, Penny and I still made it to the MCG early enough to have a leisurely picnic and a look around before finding our seats.
And there was a pleasant surprise! Free tickets - I thought we'd probly be up with the gods... Not at all! 12 rows from the front, almost directly underneath the VIP box! Impressed? Oh yes...
I don't like being in amongst a mass of people but a happy, boppy audience of 80,000 is vastly different to your xmas shopping crowd. There was a great, communal vibe that only got stronger as the evening progressed. The remodeled MCG is a good venue, too. It's well organised and sign-posted and there's toilets everywhere. Very important. I went there years and years ago and I remember it was a bloody long trek to the loo!
The Scared Weird Little Guys were the warm-up act and they were extremely good, very funny. They sang some of their own stuff ('Old MacDonald had a farm' to the tune of 'Teen Spirit' <snerk> ) and taught us some simple choreography and lyrics for later in the program. The highlights for me though were the arena-wide, co-ordinated camera flash (so bright!), the mexican wave camera flash, and the world's largest ping-pong match. <g> The audience in the Southern Stand vs. the audience in the Northern stand batting an imaginary ball between us. There is nothing quite like 40,000 people gleefully bellowing 'POP' when it's their turn to 'volley'.

The main program began with some footy practice. The lads jogged around for a bit then did some hand-passing and kicking while the mascots and cheer squads cavorted on the sidelines... Yerrss, I rolled my eyes at that, then snickered aloud when the boys were joined by ballerinas in football team coloured tutus. In the Opening Ceremony we had a flying tram, in the Closing Ceremony there was a giant football hoisted aloft. <sigh> But things only got better from there on in.
The music was great - Ben Lee, Bodyrockers, Paul Kelley, John Farnham, amongst others - and the fireworks were spectacular. Unfortunately, at times there was so much going on with all the dance groups it was easy to miss details of what was happening. The big screens were very handy for some of it, showing those of us not able to see the arena floor in its entirety, how the performers spelled out 'I [heart] M', and a fuge representation of Dame Edna's glasses. <g> That was the bit Soulsis was in - 1000 purple wigged Edna's waving LED lit gladioli. I spotted Soulsis amongst the masses, too, thanks to the big fake flower she was wearing.
D'oh, almost forgot to mention the Bollywood performance, which was wonderfully sparkly and bouncy. Lots and lots of well-drilled and enthusiastic dancers doing their thing while a parade of giant Indian Icon thingies paraded around the edge of the circle. : ) marvelous! I think it'd be so cool to go to the Opening Ceremony in New Delhi in 2010.

The evening had to end though, so after the performances and congratulatory speeches the MCG slowly emptied out. There were so many people it was slow going making our way back to the railway station, and the train we squeezed into was horribly overcrowded, but for all that everyone was good-willed and helpful and there were no problems.
It was a great night, all told, and made me wish I'd made more of an effort to actually go to the Games.
Thanks for the tickets, Soulsis!
<g> And thank you for the Edna glasses...

Weee! I'm going to the Closing Ceremony! Soulsis - as one of the artistes - got tickets! <excited> Why am I excited? Cos in the closing ceremony the host country for the next games puts on a little show and the next host country is India! <big eyes> I wonder if there'll be elephants...?

I read 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' for the first time in decades. Very interesting to see how it compares to the films. For instance, there's moralising conflict in the first movie that wasn't in the book. That was taken out of the second movie but another type of moralising conflict was added instead. Also, single sentences in the book became entire scenes in the first movie but were again whisked away in the second. The children are given Nationalities in the first movie but not mentioned in the book, and Willy Wonka is a whole lot weirder and subtly wrong in the second movie than either previous incarnation (though the Gene Wilder's version is definitely more comic).
I can see why the squirrels were replaced with geese in the first movie (much harder to animate) but I'm glad they were back in the second movie - so cute! I noticed that a few of the changes made in the first movie were carried over to the second but on the whole the second movie is much closer to the original book, despite the addition of back-story. <g>
I really, really like that movie. Soulsis leant us her copy of the DVD and if it hadn't been for the cubs nattering at me while I was watching I would've sunk as deeply into it then as at the cinema.
Patterns, patterns, patterns! Can't help wondering what it's like in Tim Burton's mind if that's how his internal visions translate to the screen. Wow. And I definitely want a copy of the soundtrack; that just gets better with listening.

I thought I caught a mouse the other day. I thought I was very clever. That was until I went to release the wee beastie outside only to find it had somehow sidled out from inside the cardboard tube despite both ends being - I assumed - adequately covered. Hmph. Tricksy things, mice.

KittenKong is getting used to Soulsis' dog, at last. Instead of running away and hiding under the neighbour's house the past couple of visits she's grimly, stubbornly, stayed inside. And she's held her ground when confronted with an exuberant puppy, even though said puppy just can't seem to tell the difference between a happy, playful cat and a pissed off, touch me and you die cat. <g> Her language chip needs updating, obviously.

Well, here's a couple of bits from the meme that I managed to miss:

Five things I'd never wear again.

Black. I realise now it makes me look jaundiced, not deep.
Grey. A dreary colour that brings me down, man.
Beige. <shudder>
Polyester. Gah, I hate that stuff!
Leg warmers. I used to wear them legitimately, when I was dancing, but no, never again.

Five favourite toys.
Tee hee hee.
That I'm willing to mention: Computer. Snowdomes. Slidey pens. Poi. Material.
And some toys that I look forward to playing with (ie; when I get them) : digital camera. Lap-top 'puter. A proper CD player. Interesting bed. New house.


<sigh> Back when I was writing the first draft of SFSG there were a number of places/plot things I skimmed over with the intention of getting back to them 'later'. Well, 'later' is 'now' and my blitheness has come back to bite me on the arse. Still, I'm working through the rewrite considerably faster than the first draft.

Soulsis was out on one of her supa sekrit excursions today, and it being the holidays, I looked after her boys. Well, I say 'I looked after them' but that's not strictly true. I looked in on them and the cubs occasionally, put food down in front of them a few times, but for the most part they didn't need much looking after at all. 4 boys can share an Xbox quite happily for several hours...

I finished Ritual of Proof - didn't take long. Okay, I've read worse drivels, but I've also read much, much better sci-fi. I think this was proposing to be some sort of amalgam but it's essentially a Regency Romance. It was set on another planet, true, and the gender stereotypes were reversed but it still had all the characteristics of a bodice ripper including the 'Top Slice' of society; dashing about the countryside in dramatic storms; and the gently-reared children (boys in this case) of well-connected families being sought and fought over.
It was... all right. The plot was as contrived and thread-bare as I'd expected and there was some mystical shit later on that made me roll my eyes, but it wasn't as self-harm inducing as other drivels I've had the misfortune to delve into.
I don't know that I'd recommend it but if you like that sort of thing... <shrug>

The SFSG rewrite is hardly powering along but it's getting done. I have to keep reading backwards and forwards to confirm details, which ultimately isn't a bad thing - it's quite an interesting story, if I say so myself. : )

An interesting meme that Joules nicked from somewhere:

What was I doing ten years ago?

Freaking out that omigod I'm a mother, and, and I've got to look after these little humans and god-on-a-stick they need so much more effort than a cat...! (<g> I'm perfectly serious - I didn't take to motherhood like a duck to water, no, it was more like a duck to liquid bitumen.)

What was I doing one year ago?

Much the same as I'm doing now: writing, ignoring the housework, marveling at how much my children have grown, grumbling about my living conditions but not actually making much effort to move.

Five snacks I couldn't live without.
Um...
Tea. Tea is a food group all on it's own.
Cheese. I can go for months without chocolate but deprive me of cheese for any length of time and I get nasty.
Sugar. Hi, my name is Lutra and I'm a sugar-addict...
Chocolate Swiss roll. A special treat, really, but sometimes I've just got to have some. It's Bodie's fault.
Sushi. Oh yes, I could happily snack on sushi until I make myself sick. Haven't managed to do that yet but everyone's got to have a dream.

Five songs to which you know all the lyrics.
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen. (and a tip from Soulsis: this is a brilliant song to focus on if you've got something else cycling over and over in your head cos it's got a definite beginning, middle and end.)
Singing in the Rain - (tappity tappity tappity splash!).
Go with the Flow - Queens of the Stoneage.
Wonderwall - Oasis.
King Henry - Steeleye Span. This is a wonderfully lusty song to sing at the top of your voice when you've a few ciders under your belt. It's even better if there's twenty of you.

Five things I'd do if I was a millionaire.
Just a millionaire? Not a multi-millionaire? In which case I'd buy a house for the cubs and I, and furnish it; get a house for my mum if she wanted; ditto soulsis; give money to sundry charities and friends while having enough left over to guarantee an income for a couple of years and go on a t'riffic holiday to the UK.

Five things I like doing.
Writing. Eating. Sleeping. Reading. Thinking about writing.

Interesting, ne?

And finally, some fanfic snerking.
"... lathed a nipple into hardness..."
<blink> Bwahahahahahahah! Ouchies! I've seen lathes, I know what they can do...

Condoleeza Rice. It struck me tonight while watching a news item about her that bunny ears wouldn't look out of place...

The only picture of the flying tram that I could find. The accompanying article's not bad either, but not as good (snarky) as this one. <snicker> (Oh, so that's what the duck was about? Ah, that makes a smidge more sense now.)
I did enjoy parts of the Opening Ceremony though, basically the parts where I wasn't cackling, or cringing, or just staring, bemused and saying: wtf?
There was some world-class waffling from the presenters and at first glance I swore the Welsh athletes were naked! They weren't, alas, it was their beige uniforms that confuddled my eyes.
The fireworks looked deuced impressive though. Melbourne was awash in cordite last night. Very festive, I'm sure...

Hee, yes, I had fun with my mum. We went op-shopping, and patchwork shopping. I came back with loads of material I don't need for my stash and some very pretty Chinese tea cups I found - 4 for $2. I also found a lovely handmade ceramic bowl for only $1.50. The glaze is essentially sand-coloured, not something I normally look at twice, but it's got a beautiful shape. It'll make a very nice serving bowl.
Mum bought me an electric kettle for my birthday (as I requested) and I bought the cubs new electric toothbrushes. Neat ones, too; the holders look like mechs. Cubs were pleased. : )
Not sure that I'm all that happy to be home but I'm certainly glad to be back in my own bed. My mum's couch is hell on my back. <g>

Niki leant me Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys. What a fabulous story! I laughed, I was infuriated, I was squicked. Going to get my own copy, I think. Definitely worth a reread.
As a special 'treat' I got myself a copy of a recommended Drivel, Dara Joy's Ritual of Proof. I haven't been game to open it yet, not immediately after Anansi Boys at any rate. I want to savour the afterglow of that a wee while longer before I bludgeon my sensibilities with Romance, even recommended Romance. : )

A quote I heard on the telly while at my mum's:
"A crooked cop: a friend, a lover, a brother..."
Gosh, I thought, how progressive! Incest on a prime-time Aussie soap?!
Nah, just a poorly worded advert. Tch.
And this one, from a breakfast cereal commercial:
"It doesn't matter what's behind you - it's what's inside you..."
<splutter> Bwaahahahahahahahah! Taken out of context that's very suggestive. <snigger> Maybe I should watch commercial telly more often?

... a flying tram.
Bwahahahahahahahah!
I'm watching the opening ceremony for the Commonwealth Games... More later. I don't want to miss a moment of the good taste...

Oh, and yes, I had fun at my mum's, thanks. : )

(That link up above is for an ordinary, ground tram - I'll see if I can find a pic of the mystical flying tram once the ceremony's finished.)

Happy birthday to me,
it reached 38 degrees...

(Hey, it scans!)
Yes it was hot today, though not unexpectedly. It's usually hot (if not stupidly hot) around my birthday.
So, last night the cubs and their father presented me with a cream cake - mmmm... - and a pair of very cute cards the cubs had made. ("This mech was going to wish you happy birthday - but the pilot had to eject!" <giggling> And, "Hope your birthday's a ... <cliché bomb explodes> Blast!" <g> What can I say? They spend a lot of time playing Spy vs. Spy and Mech Assault...) Where was I? Ah yes.
Anyway, that was lovely, and today Soulsis kidnapped me (and the cubs) and took us 'round to Niki's. Lots of good conversation and evil food. Soulsis gave me a pair of chicken salt and pepper shakers (incidentally, a pair I'd looked at on eBay and really liked but decided not to bid cos I already had a few things outstanding) and then she plunked a packet of marzipan down in front of me and said I had to imagine it was a Ham-ham! <rolling around laughing> She didn't quite get time to make it... Funnily enough, Niki also handed me a packet of marzipan. <g> I like marzipan, oh yes I do. She also gave me a packet of Jelly Bellys, a lovely card and a purple tin! Oh, almost forgot the fishy glass dessert dish from Soulsis as well... : )
Best of all though was I got to nap uniterrupted in air-conditioned comfort. <eg> I suppose it's indicative of, I dunno, something, that I get more enjoyment from an afternoon snooze on my birthday than a wild party. But then, I never really was a party girl, so there you go.
Thank you, Soulsis and Niki! <huggle>

(Ah good, the cool change has come through. Should be able to sleep well enough tonight...)

Last day of term. Woohoo. I'm knackered... Spent the morning tearing around paying bills and picking up groceries; dived home long enough to unload then tore out again to get down to the school in time for the end of term assembly.
<sigh> The principal suggested the preppies sing their song again and while everyone else smiled, in my mind I was shouting 'Noooooo!' Yes, I was a prep parent once, I can remember that swell of pride at seeing your sprog up on stage for the first time but by year 5 you're over it. Or perhaps I was just having a cynical day... : ) But, I got through the second rendition of Oscar Organised without screaming. Amazing how pleasantly distracting thoughts of Snupin can be. Heh, and people probly thought that goofy grin was cos the preps were cute.

Penny gave me 3 sets of plastic grapes! And a box of gorgeous beaded fake fruit and berries. <g> The raspberries glisten: they look delicious.
I bought myself another present, too, a big tin of assorted licorice. Mmmm. I'm hiding that from the cubs. So mean.

My local fabric shop is having a sale; I picked up some wonderful black and white linen material for my (proposed) Snape plush. Actually I got 2 pieces of black, one of which is slightly heavier and coarser than the other and will be great for the outer robes. There's more than enough white, too, for Balian's 'good' shirt. <g> So satisfying having projects to look forward too.

I'm running away to my mum's for a few days next week. The cubs are looking forward to that cos they'll be having boys' time with their dad. Just them, and the Xbox. <rolls eyes> As long as they get outside at least once a day and eat the fresh fruit I'll leave for them I shouldn't be returning to a house full of gaming-zombies...

I know when I'm reading something good cos I'm not mentally editing as I go. Just as learning to teach ballet meant I couldn't watch a performance anymore without critiquing, being a writer means I can't just simply read a story. This isn't a bad thing by any means; I'm learning more now from what I read. With good work I'm half-consciously studying/comparing style and language use - with bad work I'm reinforcing my knowledge of what can and can't be done with words. So, in conclusion, even godawful crap serves a purpose.
My, aren't I a little ray of sunshine this morning? <g>

Moving right along...
This is a completely evil site. Cat owners will know precisely what I mean. <snerk>

The chapter 4 rewrite is turning out to be tricksy, very tricksy. It might've helped if I'd been a little less vague when I initially wrote the thing. Eh well, there's deep satisfaction in coaxing out a better product.

Hee. I bought myself an early birthday present today from an opp-shop. I've seen a lot of casserole dishes with lids shaped like chickens but this one was a duck, a very handsome green duck, I might add. It spoke to me; I couldn't leave it behind. It was expensive, though - $12 - far more than I would normally consider paying for anything from an opp-shop but as I'd been willing to pay 5 times that amount for a brand new one I didn't think it was too bad. The glaze inside is perfect, too, I don't think it's been used at all. Not that there's any guarantee I'll use it either, but it's attractive enough to be decorative.
Plus I picked up a pair of lovely mauve flannel pyjamas very cheaply. They won't fit me at all but that doesn't matter, I only bought them for the material.
And I'm now the proud owner of two kilos of sun-dried and marinated tomatoes! Mwahahahahah! They were on special at the supermarket - less than half price. I wonder how long it will take for me to finish the jar? I can almost certainly guarantee that very few will actually be used in cooking - I'll probly just snack on them as they are.

David Attenborough's new series on insects is fascinating, in a creepy sort of way. So interesting to watch, but I always feel itchy by the end. : )

Russian Ark has been on my 'to see' list for a long time. I borrowed a copy from the library the other day and finally sat down to watch it. Absolutely intriguing, if incomprehensibly... Russian in places. Still, the 'making of' documentary in the bonus features went a long way towards filling in the gaps. Now that I've got a clue I'd like to watch it at least once more before I have to return the DVD, see if it makes a more complete sense with a second viewing.

The cubs and I watched the HRE's Atlantis for the first time in probably over a year. Aside from a couple of cliché<cough>trademark HRE moments, I'd forgot how much I enjoyed this movie. It remains one of the few HRE name-brand productions I respect.
And damn those Atlanteans are an attractive people...

Parent-teacher interviews today, hooray. I deliberately arranged the interview times to be quite late so the cubs could go into the After School Care program - which they enjoy - but also so I could have a couple of extra hours to myself in the afternoon (to pet my new duck <g> ).
The cubs' father came with me - another reason for the later timeslots - and we were both pleased with what the teachers had to say. Both cubs seem to be happier and more settled this year. They're interacting a little better with their classmates and there's less overall friction. They're also both more inclined to have a go at sports which is great to hear, though they're still not overly inclined to finish class work on time. Heh, that's a criticism that's carried all the way through from Prep. But, their teachers are happy with them; the cubs are more than capable, academically, and their reading, comprehension and spelling are very good. I knew that already but it's nice to have it confirmed.

The rewrites of chapters 1-3 were relatively easy but 4 is undergoing a major overhaul after I had a [ping]. The extra detail is definitely needed, though; it'll define and deepen a couple of the characters.

Dagnabbit it's hot again. <grump>

"I really must get off my arse and get on with SFSG..."
The irony of that statement is, of course, that I need to stay on my arse to carry on with the task. Very awkward typing while standing...

And so another school Twilight Sports fades into memory. Haven't missed one yet - something to be proud of, I suppose. As is now traditional we had fish and chips for dinner in the park before the event, then the cubs had fun participating, happily running first and second last in their year level heat. In the team 'novelty' events, one cub's team came second, and the other's fourth, which meant they both had a 'placing' ribbon to pin on their shirts along with the non-placing 'well done' ribbons.
As always I avoided the 'Mum's' race (pfft, yeah right, I'm going to run in front of people) but, <soppy grin>, the M cub offered to run for me so I could have a ribbon as well. (He wasn't allowed to but it's the thought that counts.)
And Penny, bless her, gave us a lift home afterwards. Most grateful - we got in the door around 9 instead of closer to 10. : )

<sigh> I miss my piggle; she died a couple of days ago (old age). I miss her enquiring/demanding shrill whistles and how she'd brazenly sniff KittenKong when the cat stuck her nose in the cage. Sure the piggle was psychotic but she was company while I did the dishes. Eh well...

Egad, only one more week of term left.
I'd like some cooler weather now, please.

Tee hee hee.
IKEA is having a competition/promotion thing where (I think) you win something if you can guess correctly if something is worth more or less than a related IKEA product. There's posters and billboards all over the place with stuff like "Does this pair of thongs [flip-flops, for non-Aussies] cost more than this IKEA shoe rack?" There's one though, that had me gasping with laughter.
"Does this Boyband [CD] cost more than these four knobs?"
Oh gods, cacked myself laughing - and I'm quite sure that was an entirely deliberate pairing. <g>

The rewrite inches onwards. Took me a day to sort out one paragraph of Very Important Details. I knew what had to be said, I just couldn't seem to phrase it in such a way it would make sense to anyone else. But, it's done now and I can forge ahead.

Would stubbornly forcing yourself to read/finish badfic indicate a tendency to self harm? Just wondering...
Joules - after one of my typos - has come up with a word to describe what you do to your brain when you read badfic. Crusie: a cross between bruise and curse. : )
Tch, and I've yet to read a convincing Evil!Dumbledore, or even a plausible EvilDeedsForTheGreaterGood!Dumbledore. Give it up, people, it's like turning Harry into an angsty girl, or making Snape a hidden fluffy-bunny who only needs luurve to release his true nature. <gackshudder> He's not misunderstood, he's a bad-tempered, grudge-bearing bastard who nevertheless will do what he has to and not expect anyone to thank him for it. </rant> I think I might forego trawling for fic for the moment and concentrate on my own...

The cubs' father had a colonscopy the other day. He was very twitchy beforehand because he'd recently nursed two patients who consequently died from complications of the procedure.
Before he left for his appointment with Doom he gave me a verbal list of what he wanted done with his possessions. I told him he could write it all down properly when he got home. : )
As it was, he got the all-clear; there's nothing nasty lurking in his bowel. Well, nothing nastier than normal.