29 June 2012

A Breath of Fresh Air

~ It was refreshingly (comparatively) mild outside this morning. So much so that I decided to walk to the station instead of catching the bus. In fact, I strolled rather than rushed, breathed deep instead of stressed, savoured the blue sky and fluffy pink-lined clouds, smiled at the gum tree at the oval (I'll take a photo of it for you one day Emma) and just simply took my time.

~ Then it started raining.

~ and then it stopped, right in time for me to go for a lunch time walk ... which I did, again breathing deep the (relatively) fresh post-rain air, the Korean Barbeque, the Chinese bakery, the Indian spices on my way to make some sale purchases (Torchwood Season 1, The Office (US) Season 1, Castle Season 2, Camelot and the latest from The Temper Trap - in case you were wondering).

~ I have a bad habit of checking my Blogger stats, I don't really know why but I do find out some interesting things. There are a lot of people who stop by but don't ever comment, that's fine I don't comment on every post I read either. I get more traffic when I'm actively commenting on other blogs, obviously. Posts with more photos and less words seem to attract more comments, not sure how to take that!

~ Last Friday Two Thursday's ago (seriously where did the extra week go?) I popped in to my stats to see that I HAVE MY FIRST FOLLOWER!! Sorry, I know it's really not that exciting but seriously Ali, it had been a pretty rough day and you put the bounce back in my step.

~ Speaking of bounce, we're babysitting The Sparky's niece on Saturday ... she's a great kid and it should be fun but we've already decided that if she has a melt down or an 'accident' then she's going outside with the dogs!

~ Just kidding (of course)!

~ and speaking of the dogs (because it's Friday after all) ...

another oldie, way back when he was still less than a year old

28 June 2012

Please excuse me a moment ...

... while I get my brag on a little.

I had actually decided not to mention this little snippet of a recent happening in our life but then I saw this post over at Whispering Gums (hope she doesn't mind the mention) and decided I had to share, even if for the wrong reasons.

As most of you will by now be aware, The Sparky is in the process of an electrical apprenticeship, in fact he's now almost at the end of his fourth and final year. A few weeks ago he was invited to go to the school's 'Centre for Electrical and Refrigeration' award night where, drum roll please, he received the Third Year Electrical Apprentice of the Year Award for his work last year!! Now, admittedly this was from a reasonably small pool of approximately eighty people but it is still a nice recognition of the work that he has put in over the years ... plus the award was sponsored by Milwaukee (already his chosen tool brand) and came with a pretty awesome prize ... oh, and it will look good on his resume!

So, what does this have to do with apostrophes? Take a look a the brag photo I took and see for yourself ...


... bonus points if you spot the spelling mistake.

22 June 2012

Let's Dance to Joy Division ...

It's Friday!! And of course Friday wouldn't be Friday without me sharing at least one pet photo with you, would it now ...

poor sweet thing is still very sick, it's hard to watch him with so little of his usual spunk

Most people would, quite fairly, assume that Astro was named after Astro Boy. Actually, maybe that's presumptuous, maybe it's just people who know that The Sparky and I grew up on the cartoons of the '80s, who know that one of my favourite tops of all time was an Astro Boy top* and that we have one or two bits of Astro Boy related nick-nackery around the house would assume that. Maybe people who don't know us would actually assume that we like stars and stuff or maybe even people don't assume or think anything at all when they hear his name.

Anyway, back to the Astro Boy assumption ...

We have progressively gotten worse with our animal naming, Samson was named as soon as we got him in the car to take him home, Nutmeg was named a few hours after we got her home and after quite a while pouring over The Sparky's Dulux colour book (he was still working in drafting and design at that stage), but poor Astro was unnamed for days.

I originally had my heart set on Magnum because of his steely grey colourings but The Sparky wasn't so keen (my sister-in-law on the other hand liked it so much that's still what she calls him). Back and forth we went neither agreeing on anything the other suggested, I didn't like the 'pet-like' names The Sparky came up with, he didn't like my 'weird' ones (apparently Maximus is both too long and a dog's name, who knew?). Then one day we were in the car and The Wombats' 'Tokyo (Vampires and Wolves)' came on the radio ...

Sorry, I need to interrupt this to give just a little bit of back ground information - a handful of people who know The Sparky know that he sings, not 'he sings' as in he should be on the stage but 'he sings' as in he spends a large part of his day singing ... known songs with their normal lyrics, known songs with made up lyrics, made up songs, songs about what's going on at the time, songs with made up words ... he sings and sings and sings. So, at the time that we were trying to find a name for our new kitten, I had heard the line "astrophysics, you'll never be my closest friend" dozens of times before I ever even heard the song.

... back to the car and The Wombats on the radio, the line "astrophysics ..." starts up and I yell out "Astro, that's it, we'll call him Astro!" The Sparky agreed and the rest, as they say is history.

Oh and on a 'same but different' note, I couldn't let this Friday go past without sharing with you my new favourite 'pick me up' song ... I dare you to listen to it and not start dancing!


It's the weekend ... almost ... have fun :)

*this top may or may not have died an untimely and violent death when the dogs were still both puppies and going through a 'we must attack the laundry' stage ... but I won't dwell on that, I'm over it, really I am ...

21 June 2012

I've gone to Queensland roaming and I don't know where I are ...

What? A girl can dream can't she ... and really can you blame me when it looks like this outside today ...

lest you think I'm cheating this was taken just before midday today ... the middle of the day and look how dark it is!

not quite so bad when I angle down ...
Side note - see that van on the right? That's a court transport vehicle, I see a lot of them at my end of town. You know they're carrying someone high profile or really bad when the laneway I walk down in the morning is lined with gun-totting law enforcement!



This however is not a pity party ... I like Melbourne remember ... it's a re-introduction to some fabulous poetry (or introduction for those of you not raised in the Australian school system).

I was sitting on the train heading home the other day, having forgotten to pack a new book to read I pulled out the iPad and took a look at what was on there. Not feeling like committing to one of the books on there I pulled up The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses and found myself reading ...

Clancy of The Overflow
A.B. Patterson

I had written him a letter which I had, for want of better
Knowledge, sent to where I met him down the Lachlan, years ago,
He was shearing when I knew him, so I sent the letter to him,
Just on spec, addressed as follows, “Clancy, of The Overflow”.

And an answer came directed in a writing unexpected,
(And I think the same was written with a thumb-nail dipped in tar)
‘Twas his shearing mate who wrote it, and verbatim I will quote it:
“Clancy’s gone to Queensland droving, and we don’t know where he are.”

In my wild erratic fancy visions come to me of Clancy
Gone a-droving “down the Cooper” where the Western drovers go;
As the stock are slowly stringing, Clancy rides behind them singing,
For the drover’s life has pleasures that the townsfolk never know.

And the bush hath friends to meet him, and their kindly voices greet him
In the murmur of the breezes and the river on its bars,
And he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended,
And at night the wond’rous glory of the everlasting stars.

I am sitting in my dingy little office, where a stingy
Ray of sunlight struggles feebly down between the houses tall,
And the foetid air and gritty of the dusty, dirty city
Through the open window floating, spreads its foulness over all.

And in place of lowing cattle, I can hear the fiendish rattle
Of the tramways and the buses making hurry down the street,
And the language uninviting of the gutter children fighting,
Comes fitfully and faintly through the ceaseless tramp of feet.

And the hurrying people daunt me, and their pallid faces haunt me
As they shoulder one another in their rush and nervous haste,
With their eager eyes and greedy, and their stunted forms and weedy,
For townsfolk have no time to grow, they have no time to waste.

And I somehow rather fancy that I’d like to change with Clancy,
Like to take a turn at droving where the seasons come and go,
While he faced the round eternal of the cash-book and the journal-
But I doubt he’d suit the office, Clancy, of The Overflow.
(here)  
 
As I read the italicised verse I found myself nodding and smiling at the familiarity (for those who don't know me well, for me this is tantamount to standing up in the middle of the train and dancing as far as public displays go).

I'm pretty sure my desk was around when Patterson penned those words ... and not in a nice antiquey way ...
 
So, if you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would it be? As nice as it would be to visit my folks at the moment, Queensland would not my first choice ... I think I'd be back in Venice given my 'druthers.

18 June 2012

Countdown ...


Not sure that it's healthy to be counting down to a one week holiday more than seven weeks out ... I also think that the fact that the counter is for when I finish work a day and a half earlier rather than, say, when our flight leaves, possibly says a lot about where my head's at at the moment ... either way, it's fair to say that I am very much looking forward to the break (and yes, I've only been back from the last one for five weeks, it's just like that around here at the moment).



What are you looking forward to at the moment? Please share ...

15 June 2012

a reminder ...

found here

So, um, yeah ... I'm still here.
Just working through some stuff at the moment.
I'll be back next week, I promise.