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 ...