Wassup???

How sentimental …

• Well, done a little bit of riding - Must say that it has been a lot longer getting back on the bike of late, but I am really a little unsure why. In part it may be because there have really not been people to ride with, whether by choice or circumstance is unclear. Certainly the weather has been a little more haphazard than I remember - but when did that ever matter? Still, may be with Spring coming things will change? Really do need to get off my fat arse and starting doing more exercise - the mid-level spread has become rather noticeable :( but what can you do? Stop worrying about and do something about it, maybe? I wonder if part of it is the pain in the nether region which continues - is it something that will fix itself with more riding, become calloused, or will continue to nag at me as I continue to ride? Maybe I could actually do some investigation, and report back on the results, hey?
• Ate (cooked) some nice meals - Cooked a rather nice little moussaka, using the recipe which was in the UK cookbook. Interestingly, it used a topping of yogurt and eggs, with the parmesan sprinkled on top of that. Made two and gave the smaller one to the neighbours - although, given there is 2 of them, and I kept the bigger one, I do wonder about the logic :p Lesson to (also) be learned is to use as fat-free mince as possible, as I found that it was quite a bit greasy when eating it. Might be why the magpies click and clack so much about it?
• Phone stopped working (which meant that this bill will be another low one) - Went out for lunch one day, turned it on, too cold, so I came back in, turned it off, and it never turned back on again :( Telstra shop in Geelong was vaguely helpful - again, subtle hints did not elicit any anticipatory sales! Seems that photos were stored on Sim card, but telephone numbers NOT there were lost … Also lost all of the previous apps (e.g. BoQ and ColourNote), which also meant that I lost all the progress of Ingress :( Still, has been fun starting again, as it has provided a great guide to the hints and techniques - am already on the cusp for 6th level, and it has been barely more than a week ...
• Had a fellow come by to look at the place - Saw an ad on Gumtree - gay guy, 2 dogs, replied to it, and arranged to meet. Not entirely sure about him, but it fell through anyway, so I guess I gave him reason to decline my good intentions, by being suitably passive-aggressive? Did not get down to the financial questions, as I was more concerned about the person than the money. As you do. Am I being too fussy about living with someone? Maybe I just need to put it out there, into the universe, and see what comes out of it? But have been less than impressed with the options, in general - the 1st girl was good, though.
• Shred a lot of twigs - Got in and pruned the broddelia’s and some of the natives out the front, so pulled the Rok out and had a go reducing the volume of twigs. Noticed that the leg bits that I filled with expandable foam also served to trap the dust, which then clogged the shredder :o so I had to turn it off and then proceed to scoop all the trapped bits out - surprisingly, there was quite a lot up there! I think especially as the broddelias were quite leafy, there was a lot of material which did not shred cleanly. But it certainly was a lesson for future usage - which is a timely reminder that there are still quite a few twigs left from the previous tenant … or, which is still as much a fyi, that the twigs were dry, rather than ‘fresh’, may signify that dust builds up and gets trapped.
• Put some plantings in, of vegies & fruit trees - Put in some bare root plantings of almond, plum, peach, blueberry, goji berry, and a mulberry out on the footpath. Also have put in a whole bunch of seeds, but none have arisen (as yet), so have also put in some seedlings of beetroot, pak choy, lettuce, spring onions, cauliflowers, and eggplants. Have also spread out quite a few flower seeds, especially in the rose garden, to give a little bit of colour and variety for the roses as they develop.
• Was sick - Went to the Myers Street clinic, got a few days off - had Friday off for flex, took until Wednesday to recover (+ had an essay to do, for Torts). Was a ‘severe’ case of man flu :p which I was infected by Chris, of all people … one of the most irritating symptoms was that my eyes were SO scratchy! Indeed, I think Thursday was the 1st day that I had woken up without itchy eyes for the previous week?
• Wrote/submitted three (3) essays in the space of a week - There was Criminal Law, dealing with murder and procedure, then Torts, dealing with ‘invasion of privacy, and finishing with Taxation, dealing with the IT and FBT implications of frequent flyer programs. Needless to say, but I will say it anyway, there was a lot of time spent thinking 'I will get to it’ (but was not) - although, in all fairness, there was quite a bit of preliminary reading(s) - and then I got sick :p ah, the irony, hey? Particularly the Torts essay was fun - was a lot of surrounding reading, along with extrapolation about the future possibilities.
• Got ‘promoted’ to the coach’s team again - But what is even more challenging is that we are now a blended team, with all of us (Sugi, Hong, Beth, Matt, Dana, Ngoc, and I) all part of the same team, so that whenever an opportunity presents itself, they can just pluck one of us from obscurity. Or so the theory goes … And I was SO looking forward to doing my 3 months and then fading back into obscurity :( Interestingly, the last four (4) are all from the ‘Hardship’ team - maybe Ramirez did something right, or maybe that was where the quality was? ;) Much of the work goes on as per, but there have been some other opportunities - at the moment, I am trying to get myself into the role of providing four (4) days (or nights) of training to a new intake of casuals, who will work from 1700-2200 … which will make for an interesting day’s work.
• Watched more episodes of Big Bang theory - Also saw the Director’s cut of Blade Runner
• Been working late(r) and catching another train - For whatever reason, this past fortnight, I have been working until 1745, and toddling off to catch the 1754 train, and it is very busy (+ people are so consistently rude(r), especially as it is more noticeable about the ones who sit in the aisle seats and/or put their things on the seat next to them). Indeed, there have often been people standing for the journey, or at least from Footscray to Lara … which kind of negates the doubling up on seats, so why bother??? Also means that I am catching another train in the morning, and again the people are way past weird - this morning, guy sits next to me, puts the armrest down, then proceeds to lean forwards to read his photocopies … so after a few minutes (a decent interval) I just put the armrest back up :p He looked all affronted, but said nothing, nor did anything subsequently. Did make me wonder, however.
• Oh well, at Lara now, time for many to disembark, and me to stop the music - have been listening to MoS ‘Addicted to Bass’ as the soundtrack - and put this away again ...

Quick blurb

04/08

Well, a bit crook today - tummy exploding out the back end, as it were … but once I managed to drag myself out of the house, the day was surprisingly warmer - I suspect that this house may be a little bit cooler, if only by virtue of wooden floors? Which reminds me, Rachel (Spurgeon), the realtor from Keane, has gone across to LJ Hooker, which (apparently) is really the same company, but trading under a different name … maybe … anyway, she called to say hello, so I must get her over for a pot of (lemongrass) tea soon? She keeps popping up on my FB page for suggestions - how weird is that??? Anyway, have managed to catch up on Tax Law, so it was good for something, all those toilet visits :p There are a lot, a LOT, of complexities to taxation law, and the majority of it seems to be that case law determines the assessability of income, then statute comes to redress discrepancies many years later? Point in case - income is not received unless it is cash, or readily convertible to cash … then statute introduces FBT … alright, pizza time :)

Time away

29/07 :o

Weak(er) way

Got to take some of my ‘enforced’ leave (1 week + 2 weeks pay), so that will keep me ticking over for another year, or so … Did not do an awful lot of anything - relaxation or ‘housework’, but maybe even doing that was enough? Did ‘discover’ the joys of books by McCarry, and so promptly rushed out to get another 4 … there are 2 relating to Paul Christopher and 2 relating to the Hubbards. The latter are still growing on me … but, they are easy to enjoy, settling in, as it were. I took Wednesday off, basically laying in bed for the day, drinking beer and reading a book, which then led to taking Thursday off as well. Did a lot of that - drinking beer - as though it was a comfortable way to stagger through the week? Have moved into the front room, so as to enjoy the fire whilst up late watching Le Tour, and because this was the final week, there were a lot of 1AM finishes … which was kind of okay, as I had the week off. Except that I am so used to getting up early that I would often awaken by 0630, and then not be able to get back to sleep … although, I would often try :p It was a strange race, with many of the big names out early - Contador, Cancellara, Froome, Cavendish - from crashes, etc. Porte started to come really good, climbing up to 2nd behind Nibali, but then once they hit the Alps, he fell right away. Valverde also faded quite a bit in the mountains, although on the 2nd day in the Pyrenees, he led his own recovery in the chase. French riders did very well, showcasing some great talent, but it was the polka jersey rider (Maljk) who was the most cheeky - winking at the camera, grabbing on to a passing motorcycle, etc. Rogers won a stage - his 1st in Le Tour? - and the crowd went wild! It was a very good ride, with him giving some advice to Vockler to work together on the way down. For somebody who has been a time trial world champion, it is perhaps not that exceptional that he has done so well going up (+ over) the mountains? There was a lot of good coverage on SBS, often showing more of the stages than in previous years, and Keenan got to provide more commentary - it is true that he has quite good knowledge, but for me, pleasure also lies in his enthusiasm.

• Interview - First day back and I had an interview for the APS4 Law Interpretation role with ACNC. Lovely, chatty, doubt I will get the nod … but it is for a pool of vacancies, so that may make a difference?
• Pants - Have moved to a more formalised dress standard, with collars and ties. So I went out and bought some pants - the main drawback with all of them is that they are all too short … 1 pair from Harris Scarfe, and 2 pairs from Myers. What I will do is look to see what the cost of dropping the hems would be. Note to self: spend the extra money, get uncured (suit) pants, and then have them cuffed … Still, I do have a pair of the brown stripes which are long enough, but will need to get some more shirts (anyway) to match up with them. been a long time since I spent money on clothes like this, and I am reminded why when I think of all the stresses involved :p Still, what can you do?
• Ingress - Am now up to 6th level, after a few intense days spreading the joy. On the ride out to Drysdale for fish, I found large stretches with nothing in between, and then several areas with quite heavy concentration of portals, e.g. Curlewis Road. The ride out there of 45km round trip took me 4.5 hours (or 270 minutes), with not all of it from the stopping and starting! On the one hand, the section is now sealed from the former dip behind the golf course through to Jetty Road; on the other hand, the unsealed parts were still quite heavy from all of the rain we have had.
• Gardening - Roses/mowing Also got in and mowed the grass - been so much rain of late that I have been putting it off for awhile, then after a few days dry, the mower would not start! In the end I came back the next day, and after rain too, and just gave them the once over, leaving the cuttings on the ground - probably should rake them up, but I figure that I will have another crack with the mower, but leave the catcher on this time? The roses from MistyDown arrived, and they are happily ensconced in the front, so I hope that they are able to settle in comfortably - there will be a tremendous battle between Sweg and Om, with massive canes arching up/through each other. Which I guess means there will be a bit of severe pruning and shredding in subsequent years? I noticed that the soil was quite rich underneath too :) Went to the botanic garden’s sale, but walked away empty handed - bit like going shopping when hungry - but I just could not visualise what was needed for the quiet corners, and what I did see that was nice, I justified as not being able to use :( Oh well, there is always next season ...

Starting from so long ago ...

05/06

Hmm … seems these things are typed around the birthday of the siblings :p

Which is possibly an around about way of saying that it is that time of the year again?

MoF is to be pizzas tonight: suspect that the main idea will be to show what options are available, then set us lose to try at home. The most important thing will be to learn how to make the base, I guess. So I went looking at rolling pins just before, and the lady behind the counter was somewhat odd - not going to buy anything? Ciao baby … As often happens with these things, 

Have the ‘boys’ coming by this Saturday night: am thinking green curry with boiled rice for main, mini pizzas for entree … but dessert? Will put out the rose for entree and the ‘Hill’ pinot gris for the main, I think. No doubt the others will also bring something to drink, but I must be cautious not to imbibe too much. For a change!

Going insane with the HD: the work is largely drudge, with little recognition - had 1 fellow ring up yesterday, and ask me what to do. Did not like what I had to say, so said he would do something else … So why ring? The majority of the time I am sifting FTL objections and/or providing notes to authorise PIT garnishee warnings for Serco. Possibly my fault, but Kala is very hard to get on with, e.g. complains how I am the one to always cause trouble, such as being too slow to input my position number. But the one she gave me does not work … Have exams next week, and the constant complaints about not taking any time grind me down, stop me accessing my study leave provisions. Unlike Jorge!

Here we go. Again

So, where am I?

• Well, I am doing higher duties :) Did some training (on PORO and voice authentication), with about two (2) hours notice, and it was good. But some of the feedback provided (later, anonymously, etc.) was less encouraging: lack of interpersonal skills - Sheldon, anyone? Anyway, glad for the opportunities to try things … mostly what I am doing is to provide phone support; providing email support; and, less so FTL objections. I am all trained up for QMS but have yet to sit down with anyone and do some … Have been doing a lot of moving about too - 3 desks in 3 weeks … Wonder if I will still be doing this next month? Job is month by month … remember that this is all about moving. So just keep on going …
• Have been trying to ride more - maybe 3/week? There is some incentive to be moving in different directions … Been out to Torquay twice recently, with the last time to go to Rip Curl to get a hoodie for Bro - got one of the Bells Beach Surf Pro ones. Now just need to get something for Sister, and then send it all off for them … do that tomorrow :p and find something worthwhile …
• Had the East End Boys come by for dinner, including Felix. Had intended to do rabbit in a meat rich sauce, but no rabbit at the providores … so did chicken wrapped in proscuttio, and the pear crumble, with custard … all courtesy of the MoF recipes and training :) It was kind of funny with Felix; he had said he was busy, was going to play pool with Kristy, so I did not invite him. He called in late afternoon, and I was busy preparing food, people arrived, they ate, I confirmed he was eating dinner, and at no time did he even acknowledge what I was doing … very self centred!!! But he spoke with Kristy several times and kept putting her off, as he was having too much fun :p Simon also seemed to have had a bit of fun, as after everyone left, I opened a nice bottle of Pinot to enjoy with him … turns out that there may be a few ‘secrets’ amongst the crew after all? Greg was the only one who brought any food - the other two brought a bottle of red each, as well as a bottle of soft drink to enjoy. He was also the ONLY one to get up and try to help - even tried to get me to sit down and relax :o Still, he seemed to have had fun, which is the point of it all :)
• Planted out all of the bulbs and the rest of the garlic. Garlic has gone into the veggie patch, to ‘fumigate’ the ground after the tomatoes - must get some marigolds too … but the last few weeks when I have been to the markets, my favourite plant sellers have been (noticeably) absent, so I suppose I will need to find another source? the more things change, hey? The jonquils and freesias are mostly planted in the ‘rose garden’, but I have also put some out on the footpath, to add some colour in Spring. As for the green lilies, they have gone in near where the pomegranate is (and I hope it is deciduous - otherwise it has died), so that when you walk into the driveway, they will be immediately visible. Was a bit concerned that they had not gone into the crisper for a few weeks prior :o but as they had already started to shoot, I decided to have a go, and just plant directly … The frittelias I put in next to the native mint - which is amazingly nice :) one of my better purchase choices! Anyway, as long as they come up and out, I think that they will be reasonably happy up there … there is a bit of sun/shade balance there, and it is a spot that gets a reasonable amount of rain, as well. Which reminds me - if there is rain, there will be snails coming soon … the other thing is that it is that time of the year again when the nut grass is blooming again - time for the glysophate? One way or another, I have to make serious attempts to minimise the encroachment … it is one drawback of how great the garden is otherwise … Of course, the other challenge is to spray without getting it on other plants :p

Geez I ‘like’ these emoticons …

Other than that, all seems relatively pleasant … Yeah, must say that there is not too much more to report

This is now

16/04

• Have awoken feeling very, very wobbly - just in time for my Easter break … actually got up and sneezed four times :o head feels stuffy too :( oh well, be an excuse to laze about in bed for a few days :p hmm, seem to be loving the emoticons … Also want to get some clothing finalised, cleaning out the closet(s), and trying to eat some different things, e.g. try some of the seafood shops out of town - apparently there is one on the outskirts of Portarlington too. Oh, and will be doing some riding, of course - might even work out what to do with that seat? Although, could be a radical step to get another one …
• How coincidental is that Brother wants to invest $30000 in whisky, with a 9% compounding return, and Mother offers $50000 as a contribution for the mortgage? Not that I am paranoid, but … Sister apparently told her that she wanted to have no conditions attached to it, so I suggested putting it into a term deposit until she is able to utilise it. Which may work? What an odd family, hey? Not sure if it is a good thing - reminds me of that tale in the Bible about the receipt of gold coins … I wonder where it is coming from?
• Anyway, we shall see, we shall see …
• Been quite a bit of rain lately, so (no doubt) my tank will be full … odd though it may sound, this may be the incentive to get another tank, for that way I will always have enough as spare/surplus, which will free me up to use it more, i.e. I still have not yet fired the pump up. Maybe that is something else I could do over the next few days? As for the garden, because of the rain, there has been both an explosion of lawn growing, and a distinct lack of mowing, so it is looking a tad scraggly out there! Have been accumulating cardboard boxes and newspapers in anticipation of building the 3rd garden bed, so that is another thing to be done. Also cleaned up the 1st bed, so will lay out some manures, etc. to bed down, give it a rest. Once this other bed is in place, I should be right to run a four bed system, with one resting at any given time … With the incredible amount of newspaper and cardboard I have been collecting (accumulating), there will be plenty remaining to spruce up the other parts of the garden … which reminds me that I had best prepare the front bed for the roses for when they arrive, get some sheep manure mixed in, maybe through some green manure crops over the top? Hmm, bit of work to be done around the house, in the garden … There is also a few spots where I will need to get cracking to clear up, e.g. the panel boards surrounding the external room, for as Winter creeps in, the more sealed the house is, the better it will be to enjoy.
• My aim is also to do some basic investing and/or usage of ‘excess’ funds: superannuation, solar, teeth, shares - both to lift holdings and to increase spread of holdings. Then there is also consideration of other options, e.g. Public Trustee (Victoria), credit card (which might be a ‘good’ idea), spending on/in the house … so many options, hey? I think that leaving a buffer and then adhering to my ‘budget’ is going to be a much, much more sensible idea … must remember to leave enough to re-charge the Myki card too … could be a bit embarrassing if I was unable to ‘afford' to go back to work … It seems hard to make these investment decisions in isolation, so it may be beneficial to read up those books I have to get some perspective in which to consider what is ‘best’? Especially as I am an inherently ‘lazy’ investor …
• Woke up on Tuesday morning to find that my watch had stopped at 2312 whilst I was asleep … seems a bit pointless, but I am still wearing the watch, even though it has stopped :o another thing to be done tomorrow is find somewhere respectable to get the battery replaced. The place where I have been before, which was up some stairs above that ‘geek’ shop I do not think is still there, so I will have to find somewhere all over again :( In some ways, I am SO conservative - hard to make changes for the sake of change … despite what I often say on job applications and/or in interviews :p

…..

Well, the day is over - let the fun begin!

Really (really) annoys me the number of people that sit in the aisle seats, or, if they do move over to the window seat, they then put all their junk on the aisle seat! Having said that, I AM sitting in the aisle seat of a four seater - but that also means that there is adequate room to manoeuvre around me … and, with my nose dripping like this, I am of good mind to put this away, put some tunes on, and just vague out for one hour … especially as I do not have much news :o

That was then

11/04

There maybe something to be said for staying busy:

• Contract essay due a week earlier than expected. Having planned to spend the w/e doing a bit of reading around the two subject areas, getting a feel for the particularities to be considered, and sending out emails to a few people offering preliminary thoughts, I then discovered it was due on 08/04 :o Given that I was also going to spend the w/e doing other things, like writing an application for a NDIS position and/or cleaning up, you might say that I did not get a lot of other things done! Mind you, on Saturday night I thought to get out, take Zeffa for a walk, clear the head, letting the thoughts come to an equilibrium. So stopped at Beav’s for a stout, where I also reclined into my favourite couch, did a bit of net surfing, and found some decent quotes from B. Then off to Union St for a glass of Sangiovese, which even came with complimentary bits of cork! An interesting little place - the sort of place it would be good to sit down at and pontificate for awhile? They had a lot of wines (as you would expect), and seemed to serve variations on tapas, or at least, easy to eat bar nibbles with a twist. For what ever reason I called into E&C for a glass of beer, which was kind of interesting, due to the happy little atmosphere of the place :) There were a lot of happy people there, but I was too inebriated to do much more than goggle about, like a fish out of water. Anyway, although it left me quite drained, it did have the advantage of calming the jitters - ended up citing, with varying depth, about 20 cases … later I looked at some of the other essays, and they did not use such a depth, but argued the points better. The lessons from this is that I am going to need to be able to discuss the law better, and then provide supporting cases, I think - reminds me in someway of Gibson’s ‘consensual hallucination’ the way(s) that ‘we’ all agree on specifics. Anyway, went to bed on Sunday thinking to let it percolate, and spent the train ride on Monday reading the textbook, got home Monday night and played with a few things, but pretty much left it the same. Also had to submit the EOI for the APS4 position, so in light of my decision to actually do things, I drafted up an application for submission. I think. Actually, see the previous posting. Slept on it, then got up Tuesday, could not think of much else to change, so submitted it … then saw some of the other essays, which made me reconsider my approaches;
• Vicki turns out to be a bloke. On Thursday, I get a text saying that my ad (on the DUSA site) had elicited a response, and that they were keen to move in soonest. So I said come by, when is good? Turned out that soonest was literal! Anyway, turns out to be a fellow and his mate, who wanted a fully furnished room, high speed broadband, common rooms, and the $100/week was to cover all bills as well … His mate was a bit OTT, whereas I was trying to open grounds for negotiation/compromise - after all, I have always felt that we can talk about these things :) On the one hand, it would be good: he would be quiet, he is studying a MIT, could be a reasonable aspect for a mid term lodger, and he seemed to be nice, but … ‘he’ not ’she’, what is source of money? significant initial capital investment, and how would it be recovered? seemed to lack interaction skills - thought I was shy! Still, on the train back, especially when I thought it was a ’she’ I did expend quite a bit of thought trying out various scenarios, as the enthusiasm was a tad disconcerting (turns out that the more established options are already taken), as well as having to actually live with somebody. Anyway, got home and spent a bit of time cleaning up, which at least means that the place looks a bit better now! Oh, I do not know … what to do, what to do???;
• Interview for APS4. It was part of the getting on & doing things … Anyway, it did result in an interview. Which resulted in being selected for the pool :) The interview was with Kala and Leanne, with Sub sitting there as the scribe, but more as the ’truth’ post IMHO. Questions were: what skills/experience? We work in a scheduled environment. How do you deal with flexibility? and, How did you respond to an identified learning developmental need? The interview itself was reasonably short - it had been allotted 30 minutes, but it lasted only 20 minutes. I guess the remainder was for the collation of notes, etc.? Hoang was (and continues to be) quite odd about the whole process! Provided some guidance to align what she had initially wrote, to emphasise the ‘doing’ by providing examples of work completed - emphasise that have done work (of a similar ilk) and can do the same here. Took onboard what Ramirez said re use of 2 examples, indicate policy skills, and discussion of strategic vision (or at least an awareness of the strategic direction, and how I contribute to that). Since then Hoang has been on tenter hooks, so was quite elated with her selection … must remember to be more encouraging, make more reference to it in conversation … still have a lot of difficulty with contextual remembrances, I think. Ramirez was leaving Friday night, stopped by for some trivial miss mash, then got to the meat - “so, how did you do?” to which I replied that his report made all the difference … ah, the look on his face;) It is unfortunate that I find it hard to dissemble from direct questions (Have you seen it?”), to have left him with an implication, but, I guess, it makes me a ‘better’ person? yeah, it is funny … and it will be funnier to see what eventuates;
• Cooking with Jamie MoF. The ‘dreaded’ moment arrived - and wouldn’t you know it, but the one time I can NOT afford to be late on a call, this is the one time that a caller wants to chat! I am a farmer; was going to pay, but waiting for fruit to dry, etc. etc. So (fortunately) I handed off to Deb to take the call, and scooted - a tad late, but I DID run to the station :o to find that the train was waiting for a driver, and so did not leave for another 5 minutes … then there was some congestion getting through the outskirts of Melbourne … but I was still the first one to be at class :o and Felix was really, really close to the point of exclusion. Not that I could convey that too well. I think he has come back from Adelaide on the manic upswing - smoking, wanted to go riding :o and go visit Alley Cats. Oh well, therein lies the rub, I suppose? Anyway, first thing they do is get everyone to wash hands, put on an apron, listen to the OH&S briefing. Couple of cheeky birds there, who were then joined by their husbands, one of which was Ross Parkes. Seems an oddly shy person - spent a lot of time watching his body language and listening to conversation? Must be hard to be a man around town, ‘instantly’ recognisable (although, to be far, I did not recognise him for awhile), and then try to relax in public? But he seems a good ‘egg’ … which is what we cooked :) The pattern seems to be that we are shown what to do, how to do it, and then we get to have a go ourselves. So, we boiled (add to boiled water - 5 minutes for soft boiled, 7 minutes for medium, and 10 minutes for hard boiled), poached (gentle simmer, add to water gently, one at a time), and omelette (gentle heat, fold into middle as you go, add ingredients, then fold in half to rest). Following class was a massive clean up operation, but it seemed quite confused, e.g. sweeping prior to finishing the cleaning of the benches. Also thought it a bit odd that we cleaned down the stovetop, and had only used it o boil water … Each week seems to be about learning new skills, then applying them by undertaking a recipe - next week is to be carne and guacamole. Yum! Best remember to take my storage containers; and,
• Contribution to send G to Brisbane. In the spirit of not having to go myself :p I slipped G $200 to assist with costs - should I have asked for a receipt, or confirmation that was already expended? Maybe I am too trusting? Anyway, in some ways, I probably would have spent that anyway, as he had invited himself to come by for the weekend … am still not entirely comfortable with him, after what he expressed, and the way that he behaved, when he came to visit, and I took him over whilst I was doing Wendy’s ceiling - what a one sided deal that was!!! Anyway, be that as it may, I get that this is his version of trying to beat up on me, which he fails to do physically, but I really would rather that he not do such things! Maybe that is why I no longer communicate with ‘people’ - perhaps not accepting it in other people means that it is not accepted by me? Or maybe it is also all about that I am not who I was ...

there is that about it ...

04/04/14

pt a

A day at work, survived, struggled at times? EOI is in, it is all practice :)

Keep on moving, find the balance? Lost it with ‘Sylvia’ but no reason to grant another pointless p/a; ‘Michael’ did not believe my reference to s 51 (ii) of Constitution re legislative powers of Parliament to create taxation bills. Highs/lows. Great skills being learned here, just need to articulate into ‘something’ else … was fun talking to Michael - not that I ‘won’ but that I was able to offer a reasoned argument with evidence in support of my contention. Did not even bother to argue about debt recovery powers :p Anyway, I think he has had a ‘win’ in that he will be able to true to seek to have GST/ITW/SGE debt waived … happiness comes in many forms. In other news, it is getting cold again; AEDT changes for 07/14; and, it is the w/e :)

pt b

Random, solipsistic tardiness … the w/e after was an introduction to statutory law interpretation, that closely followed the text. But you had to be there, even if only for the social interaction … worringly, people came up and spoke with me, mentioning things that I could not recall - sometimes the context of conversations is so necessary :(

Had decided to start afresh, not drink any more beer from 31/03. Which kind of worked alright. Except I drank a bottle of wine instead, got depressed, and went to buy beer anyway! maybe I shall need to just ameliorate these experiences in trying to take care of myself? Has worked before with narcotics, so may be that I need to focus on what that key message or pivot is?

There is, of course, a routine for addressing these things, something that needs to be followed. Finding that something is the challenge …

More jobs to apply for - all very well saying that if you are going to do something, do it well … but sometimes you just need to do that something - an essay by the submission date, for instance, or an application by the time required. Little things like that … which reminds me - see what I mean? - that the mobility application is still not finalised :o

Fridays seem so insane on this train, more so than other days, anyway! Less people, less standing. Yet still there are some of the latter. Strange, that.

Oh, and apparently Sue Conrad is dead. Taped up the bathroom doors, filled the bath with coals, burnt out the oxygen. Could have been embarrassing waking up from that.

Geelong-Otway Challenge. Not

24/03/14
Well, that hurt!

Mind you, after disparaging the efforts of Felix on Saturday, he then tells me on Sunday that he actually did NOT get into the sag wagon, but rode all the way back to Torquay, doing 190km all up - bit better than my paltry 187km … In terms of statistics, 187.5km total distance; 8h 07’ 21” ride time; 23.1kph average speed; 4284 calories; and, a 1312m climb. According to the Garmin report, there were two records broken - distance ridden and the amount of climbing involved :)

Funnily enough, the Monday preceding (17/03) had dropped in to visit Felix, to go and celebrate St Patrick’s Day, and his jersey had arrived - he was so excited! Was adamant that he would now do the ride, even though the preceding six (6) weeks he had been out on the bike maybe twice? All I could do was encourage him to go out and spin in the remaining days … On Saturday morning, I picked him up at 0600, and we rode to Torquay. Quite a few people there, with a lot of effort to rouse people up, get them involved, start the vibe moving. I think that starting with the Orange crew (25kph) was best, as we started well, and just drifted back slightly. Quite a bit of a struggle riding along - told Felix that I was happy to ride in front, but he needed to communicate with me. Where have I heard that before? Anyway, after Moriac we got onto a few trains - got to 35kph with one! Got into Deans Marsh, and he is complaining about the pain, etc. so I advised him to take it slowly, and I would see him on the other side - there being a bit of ‘debate’ about where to wait for him … This was a timed climb, so I reset my shoes, and started climbing. Soon passed him, and kept powering away, then realised that the odometer had clicked over into triple figures, so pulled over to give him some encouragement … waited for while (10mins?), then realised that it was a timed climb, so jumped back on the bike and rode to the top, where I thought I would wait for him … only to get a text saying that he had turned back down the mountain. So I replied, and advised him to take the sag wagon, which he acknowledged as a good idea. Hence why I was a little unsympathetic about his ‘pains’ when I saw him in Torquay, thinking that he had spent three hours sitting around waiting for me … As an indication of the effort(s) involved, it was 48min up the hill, and 16min down … The rest of the ride was assisted quite a bit by a Southerly breeze, and I think that having made it over the hill helped to set my own mind at ease. Having the HR belt working again, I was able to ride a lot more ‘scientifically’ too. Felt that the climb out of Anglesea would be quite challenging, and it was, but I stopped at the bottom to re-fuel, which helped. Having planned it in my head, I was able to ride quite conservatively up it.

One thing about this ride, there was plenty of food + water - probably a stop every 25km, with water and bananas at all, plus other things (fruit, lollies, cakes, etc.) at many of them. The only thing I really missed out on was the Hammer nutrition gel at Deans Marsh - neither hide nor hair ...

Interestingly, the next day was not too bad, although I did not sleep that well, until after lunch. Went to meet Greg (and Brother John and Zeltko), waved goodbye to him, went to get some groceries + bread - the joys of cargo loading, and having no bread/carbohydrates (well, not much) during the preceding week! Then toddled up to wave goodbye to the GTC riders (Simon, Dave, Pam, Maree, Steve, etc.), before heading home to work on essay, then went to meet Simon/Dave for coffee. It was after that my legs began to hurt … had rubbed some Tiger Balm in the night before, not that it seemed to do much - in fact, I think it is more of a massage cream than a penetrative aid?

In the afternoon, I texted Felix to go visit Bruce, who it turns out to have cancer in the oesophagus. Kate is a mess, Bruce has lost 15kg, but they remain brave and resolute, so we shall see what eventuates … Then went with Felix to have Thai for dinner, which was not too bad. However, I awoke again at 0130, and just could not get back to sleep! So eventually I got up and did some more work on the essay, then sent off a draft to Burrows, before eventually drifting off again for another 30 minute doze. Was so shattered that I took the day off, and basically slept through until 1530, I think? Did also play some more of NeverWinter Nights too - bit of a struggle getting it to work, so will be interesting to see what the ongoing progress is like ...

14 January, 2014

Really must get a review of the 13 year done up, highs, lows, achievements, etc.
Lately?

• Went for a ride out to Anakie, with Felix, and that is about all the riding I have done of late ... Very, very stiff Westerly breeze - had planned to turn back, cross through Maude, then get blown back in along highway with tailwind. Called Greg from Anakie, said I was going to turn onto De Motts Road, and he laughed at me - bit bloody step going that way, which is probably why I had odd little flashes of memory about it? Popped into Del Rios winery on way back, as Felix apparently knew the family. But they were not there, and there was a pedal on about 1k of loose gravel to get up there ... but, ended up enjoying some rather nice wines when there, which made the ride back more pleasant ;) Once we got onto the Ballarat Road there was a lot of wind assistance. Called in La Madre, which had shut 20 minutes earlier, and they refused to sell me any bread - what a rye? no, all sold out. so, what do you have???
• Got 4 cubic metres (3 of recycled pallets, 1 of garden mulch) and spent much of the Xmas shutdown spreading around the garden, and drinking lots of alcohol :o Now that it is all pretty much spread, I can go back and spread it thicker on certain area, such as the high traffic areas and/or the area that are more likely to require assistance. Looks good, and I expect that as it begins to settle in it will hold a lot of protection - it is so thick that it will act more as a barrier, rather than an easily digested mulch, such as what was previously down. Also cleared away a lot more of the spinach. Even though there are a lot of reseedings! Oh, also built another garden bed, tucked in next to the house. Filled it with tomatoes, basil, chilli, eggplant. Does not get a tremendous amount of sunshine, which I thought may be more beneficial for some of the plants? But we shall see ...Also pulled out most of the cauliflower plants, then feed them through the new slice/dice machine, before feeding them to the worms, who will be so much happier with it in that form! Actually, it was not too bad an exercise/purchase, as it will be quite useful for helping to speed up the breakdown processes of the plants, etc. The next step is going to be doing some discrete editing/pruning ... Have been looking at the Mistydowns website for some rather intriguing roses, with my usual problem of so many bloody options!!! Am thinking of space for 5, but ... so many options, and also need to be aware of growth requirements ... will underplant them with bulbs (and garlic) to add a bit of variety. By putting them at the front, it will be a nice display for visitors on arrival too. Much of the emphasis will be on 'unusual' varieties and/or hep production, with the secondary emphasis on the fragerance, so most (all?) will be older styles, rather than the modern petal production models.

30 November, 2013

• Rode to meet Great Vic, saw TracE + Terry. Awoke, fell asleep again, Felix knocking on door woke me again. Had coffee, rushed out the door, forgot to have breakfast :o However, the delay in starting worked to my advantage - came to turn onto Blackgate Road, stopped to take off wind vest (with Felix going on, despite me saying to stop), and Terry & TracE went by :) Rode off after them, had fun dodging the other 5500 riders, leading them along Blackgate, through Breamlea, over 13th Beach, stopped at Barwon Heads for refreshments, then up Wallington Road to QQueenscliff Road, where they turned left towards Leopold/Geelong, and we went right around into Drysdale for coffee - this being the 'price' for Felix to come along! Other sights along the way included: chatting to a chap re larger frames, and I suggesting to look at the CAAD10 option; coming over into Barwon Heads, with a sudden turn right before bridge, and some stopped slowly, running into the people in front; spread out all over Wallington Road, stopping cars from passing, so I rode through the 'peleton' to clear a path, then waved the cars through; Terry losing TracE - apparently she stopped at top of pinch, Terry rode past, did not feel anything was amiss until Queensclif turn off, where we waited for awhile; and, Felix having no capacity to look over shoulder, so nearly caused several accidents ... Grubb Road was a bit hard - stiff headwind - with Felix sitting behind all the way, then turned off towards Clifton Springs, before realising his error - normally he does not hear me screaming at him - and catching up to get to enjoy a coffee. The trip back was not as easy as I had hoped - expecting more of a tailwind - but survived :) Did my little sprint past Apco, then paid the price when turning into Tryboys road - severe calf cramp, so I stopped to relieve, whilst Felix rode on ... Bit bloody sore at the end of that one, but ended up doing 73km for the day :)
• CassE came to visit. Finally got it together to catch up with CassE prior to Xmas - offered either a Saturday night closer to Xmas or a Friday night catch up, and she went for the more contemporary ... which was okay, except that was a day when the trains ran late, so I got in about 20 minutes behind schedule :o but this was compensated by a TA ringing late to discuss submitting a formal compromise offer ... No idea how that worked, but I worked it out - a NPE to Perth with TA details - and managed to catch the Warnamabool train ... which was horrendously packed, not very comfortable at all :( Anyway, she decided to jump on at Geelong, and come back for some tomato sauce on pasta.
• Vegies are coming on nicely :) Have been giving Barbera a lot of silverbeet, zucchini, cauliflower, and kale - indeed, kale is proving very popular with the older ladies, as have dropped some off for Carole (White Eagle) and Viv (BoQ), as well giving some in a 'care' package to Anne as well. Seems all a bit one sided in my down moments ... Took the plunge and prepared a spicy vinegar mix to pickle a cauliflower with - mind you, did take me longer than should have, as I have a paucity of suitable containers - ended up getting 2 spring loaded glass jars from Woolworths one night. Anyway, prepared up a good mix, so they should be ready in time for Xmas - might even give one for a Secret Santa? Still have about 1 quart left - the recipe I was using has been with imperial measurements, which caused quite a bit of consternation working out proportions! Anyway, the red cabbages are starting to come on, so I might use the remaining juice on one of those - pickled cabbage! Of course, I fix the same problem I had before - no jars ...
• Wrote to Mark, possibly the only person that I ever write to in any sort of ongoing sense! Oh, I do send out postcards, such as on CQ13 rides, and/or Xmas cards, but there are inevitably either to people as a lark, given that I usually text to them, and/or just as infrequently drop a line to them. Mark is the one person whom I consistently write to, especially as he refuses to get get connected electronically, whether by getting an email address, a twitter account, a FB account, etc. To say nothing of the more 'modern' linkages, such as DropBox or SnapChat friends, hey? Mind you, after reading about the revelations from Snowdon re NSA capability, maybe he is on to something? In any case, printed up about 20 photos to go with the letter of verious people that I have seen over the years, so that may amuse him as well? Wonder what he will think, not having seen many of the people for many years? Anyway, it is posted now, so time will tell ... I wonder if he will send me a Xmas card this year?
• CQ13 ride
• 
  Is there any other news?

September 2, 2013

Umm ... bit brain dead, to be honest ...

• Tuesday night was still and calm, wind-wise, so went out on Circuit, leaving at about 2030. Turned onto Grubb Road, discovered the rear light had stopped working ... lots of fun riding :) A few cold (cooler?) bits, but I coped ... then got up on Saturday morning, put the washing on, and did the same circuit, but quite a bit faster :) Garmin was impressed!
• Lots of planting done, but still have not finalised the mulching bit ... also mowed (again) and I think I have got most of it fairly even ... well, apart from the bit where the gate kicked the guide down really low, and I did not notice for a few minutes - GT stripe? Also need to get and finalise something about the sweet peas, as hey are growing, but not quite upwards ... The weather has (finally) begun to warm up, and the plants are starting to come alive, pushing through their winter tardiness
• More fights with the strange man on the bus - on 26/08, he even took the bus back to the station and then had it confirmed it was a valid ticket ... not a word of apology to me, or to the other passengers ...
• Have transfered monies to home loan, reduce a little interest, as apparently I can 're-draw' when required, a la monies allocated for solar panels :)

Did I mention I feel quite tired??? Not really sleeping too well - probably drinking too much/often alcohol?

• Been going down to St. Margaret's and shooting hoops. Rather exciting, as I do get the ball in every once in awhile, but really does get the heart pumping and the muscles working differently. Which is good :) Usually go down with two (2) beers, play around for awhile. Yesterday, it was too windy to do much, so I pulled up stakes and went to get some chips. They were nice, but were cooking for ~ 10 minutes? I felt that was an odd amount of time ...