Sunday, August 31, 2003
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The Snook and I made our second attempt at Japanese dumplings - "gyoza" - tonight. Rather than using Kristen's arduous (but authentic) recipe, we cut a few corners. Our dough wrappers were pre-bought from the Chinese store around the corner. For the filling, we used our hand blender to whiz up green onion, ginger, water chestnut, and blanched cabbage. We mixed this with cooked minced chicken, sesame oil, and a raw egg. Then we filled the dumplings and dropped them into boiling water. After they had floated and cooked, we removed them to cool. Then it was into a frying pan of oil to crisp and brown up. The Snook improvised a dipping sauce of soy, white vinegar, mirin, chili, and ginger. Like I said, it's not really authentic, but damn they were good. Seriously. We made thirty, and the Snook and I sat there and ate them all in one sitting. (Don't even mention the carbs to me. They were so good I don't care.)
Saturday, August 30, 2003
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Wow. Check out these 3-D animated gifs. I wonder if could do that with a conventional digital camera...
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Baby animals are always cute, but a zenkey? Cutest. Animal. Ever.
Goodbye, Boudicca. She's all backed up and going into the shop to hopefully get this monitor issue fixed. Between that and moving house, it may be a week of light posting...
Friday, August 29, 2003
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Books: During a break in a Sunday knitting class a few weekends ago, I wandered into Dymocks bookstore to kill some time. "Hey," I thought, "there's that Da Vinci Code book everybody's been raving about." As I am powerless to resist the book-buying impulse, I bought it, brought it home, chucked it on the bookcase and promptly forgot about it. I rediscovered it a few days ago while packing up books for the move. On a whim, I started reading it on the bus this morning... and got completely and irrevocably hooked. I have a feeling that "Boxing stuff for the move" is about to get reprioritized down my To Do list in favor of "Spend every second devouring this book as quickly as possible."
Meanwhile, I've finally finished one strand of the Ender saga with Children of the Mind. I found the ending disappointing. After three books worth of impending doom, the big climax is Jane picking up the bomb and putting it back on the ship? Not very exciting. And I'm still disturbed by the whole Jane/Valentine Ender/Peter thing. It was all just so convenient. Nevertheless, I'm on the lookout for Ender's Shadow. I always found the Battle School stuff more interesting anyway...
Thursday, August 28, 2003
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Trivia Update: We only managed a measly fifth place tonight. To add insult to injury, the Snook completely boned a bonus jug question that involved identifying the song that starts with the lyrics: "I hear that train..." That was a tough one to forgive. Other highlights from the quiz were: Name the five biggest ethnic groups in New York City (besides white Americans). What was the name of the family in the film Vacation and which amusement park were they going to? Which two female tennis players competed against Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes?
Only one week til we move! The Snook got the phone hooked up at our new place today. Unfortunately our new number doesn't spell anything cool.
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RunningBlog:
Since I've been back from vacation, every time I've run I've gotten a side stitch and had to stop. Every time. Until this started, I don't think I'd had one since elementary school. It's high up on my right side and it hurts so badly I have to stop and walk. Anybody know why I'm getting them? Am I running wrong, breathing weirdly, pushing too hard, not pushing hard enough? Am I wearing the wrong shoes, the wrong sports bra, not enough sports bras? Please help, because this has been severely limiting my distance.
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
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Thoughts I had while watching Lost in La Mancha (the documentary about Terry Gilliam's failed attempt to make a Don Quixote film in 2000) tonight:- Man, I'm glad I dropped Film Production junior year of college. I'd hate to be stuck working in that industry.
- I didn't know Terry Gilliam was American! I thought he was a Brit.
- Johnny Depp, while breathtakingly beautiful onscreen, looks like a disgusting dirty bum in real life. However, his ripped sleeveless shirt did allow me to verify the urban legend that he had his "Winona Forever" tattoo modified to read "Wino Forever" after they broke up. It's clearly visible on his right shoulder.
- Johnny's wife-to-be, Vanessa Paradis, is a diva who never turns up for appointments and looks like an alien. Seriously.
- Those giants rock.
- Horses, hail, floods, airplanes, injuries... This production was like the Book of Job.
- I really wish this movie had gotten made.
If it's playing anywhere near you, I recommend you see it. It'll be your only chance to see Johnny Depp yelling "F**k you!" to a fish.
There was a stupid anti-knitting troll in the Sydney Morning Herald today. I'm debating on sending in a response.
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
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RunningBlog:
Hey, my sister's raised over 10% of her marathon fundraising goal! Congrats and keep it up, Aim. Thanks to everyone who's contributed!
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The Snook and I watched a fascinating documentary on the ABC last night called "The Anti-Fat Pill and the Bushmen". It's about the San tribesmen of the Kalahari Desert in Africa and this amazing "Hoodia" cactus they've cultivated for centuries. Their hunters would chew a bit before going out after game and they wouldn't need to eat again for days! So naturally several companies have seized upon this discovery as the cure for our big fat gluttonous Western culture of obesity. They're working towards developing it in a pill form right now. The documentary focused more on the tribesmen and their fight to share in the profits from the drug, but to be honest all I could think about was this miracle pill. The interviewer tried some and then wasn't hungry for twenty hours! Sign me up! I want some now! No matter how much I exercise and no matter what foods I eat, I'm always hungry. This Hoodia thing could change. my. life.
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Check it out! It's my first computer (the Atari 800XL down at the bottom). Well, it wasn't technically mine so much as my family's. We had the cassette tape drive and everything. Can you find yours?
Co-Worker: Well, that person has obviously entered a fake name on their form. I've looked through the White Pages and there's nobody in there by that name. I looked under "Bill", and "B", and "Billy"--
Me: Didja try "William"? *rolling eyes*
Co-Worker: Oh. *pause* Okay, well, there's a name there, but that doesn't mean...
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Ebert answers the question: "Why do good guys in movies and on TV always use Macs, while the bad guys always use PCs?"
Monday, August 25, 2003
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Just as I was starting to think my computer had spontaneously fixed itself, the display died again. I'm going to have to take it into the shop. Oh look, there's that G5 commercial on TV again. Hmm... Oh yeah, that'd only be three months rent. Sheesh.
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As I know John's been looking for a good eggplant recipe, I present to you Dr. Atkins' Shortcut Moussaka. I've made this a couple times for the Snook and he likes it a lot. You don't have to use ground lamb if you can't find it; I've used plain old hamburger and it turns out well.
Saturday, August 23, 2003
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The Amazing Race is over and we have seen the end. My self-imposed Internet blackout is now over. Read on for my thoughts on the winners. (Aussies: Don't read any further unless you want to be spoiled! And try to avoid the "Recent Comments" list over there on the right.) [more...]
Friday Five:
1. When was the last time you laughed?
About an hour ago when I went to the bathroom and realized that the Snook, in preparation for our house inspection today, actually put the toilet paper roll on the little holder. He never does that. It cracked me up.
2. Who was the last person you had an argument with?
Hm, the last real argument I had would've been with the Snook in Italy. Not good.
3. Who was the last person you emailed?
What lame questions. I send about thirty emails a day at work. The last one is hardly significant, but I think it was to Kyrenia asking her if she was ready to go home.
4. When was the last time you bathed?
Ten hours ago. I went over to a friend's house for dinner and drank way too much wine, and when I got home I figured a shower would help ease any potential hangover icky feelings the next morning. It wasn't an entirely successful plan.
5. What was the last thing you ate?
My friend Kiri made us crostini with ricotta and olives (so good!), grilled asparagus with parmesan (even better!), lamb chops with rice pilaf and rocket (yum!), and stewed pears with ice cream (drool). I need to hang out with people who can cook more often.
Friday, August 22, 2003
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I'm having a terrible day. I'm trying to write some ASP code and I just don't get it. My problem is that my brain is very literal and I write code the way I would do something, but not necessarily the way a computer would. The frustrating thing is that I know enough now to know that my way isn't the best way, but I don't have enough technical knowledge to do it the way I know it needs to be done. My co-worker is trying to show me but it's all a big mess of objects and methods and arrays and loops. So I feel stupid and that's when the damned tears spring to my eyes. This always happens. I hate it so much; it makes me feel like a big emotional girl. And my anger only makes it worse and I have to flee to the bathroom before the entire office thinks I'm insane.
Does anybody else have this problem? Is there any way to control it? I try to take deep breaths and remain calm but it never works. I get upset right now just describing it. Why don't guys get this way? It's not that I'm tearing up over the stupid code; it's that I'm tearing up over my own inability and frustration. And short of having my tear ducts removed, I don't think there's a damn thing I can do about it.
Thursday, August 21, 2003
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You all are probably watching the big Amazing Race finale right now, aren't you? Well, don't friggin' ruin it for me! I'm probably just going to take a break from the Internet for a day or two so I don't get spoiled. Maybe I'll be productive and, like, prepare for the move or something... at least until we manage to download the episode.
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License plate seen while driving home: "GAY 666". It was on a rusty little blue hatchback with a rainbow sticker. I swear I recognized the driver from my knitting group. :)
The Block has become the first Australian TV series format to be sold to major American broadcast network. I predict that this will be a huge hit back in the States. It's like Trading Spaces crossed with Big Brother - DIY and reality TV all rolled up into one show!
Power corrupts. PowerPoint corrupts absolutely. Hee!
Product Placement: My allergies have been terrible lately. I wake up with a sneezy, runny nose and watery eyes nearly every day. I was taking Clarinase and it helped, but it's pseudoephedrine and it made me feel wired for hours. (Plus the pharmacists here are all worried that you're going to use it to make crystal meth, so you can only buy seven tablets at a time.) I saw Zyrtec recommended on Glitter the other day and decided to give it a try. I'm on Day 2 and it's great so far! That first little pill lasted a full 24 hours - no sneezing when I got up today. They've also got a neat website with a fun clicky-house thing that helped me determine that I'm probably allergic to dust and feathers. I guess it's time to throw out my pillow!
One great side effect of our upcoming move is the opportunity to declutter. We've got so much crap! The Snook is such a little pack rat and it's been rubbing off on me. I've been researching strategies to tackle the mess at Organized Home.com. I think the classic Four-Box Method is what we need. Unfortunately I don't think we have enough non-junky stuff to merit a real garage sale. Maybe I'll offer up some stuff online...
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
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RunningBlog:
Running Update: New personal best time for the mile tonight. 11:15. I'm closing in on ten!
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The other day the Snook asked me if I'd seen any of the commercials advertising the upcoming Sydney vs. Collingwood Aussie Rules match. I said I hadn't and asked why. "Because," he said, "they stole your victory march!" Tonight I saw the ad myself and was able to confirm that the Sydney Swans' anthem is indeed the Notre Dame Victory March. They've only changed three and a half lines!
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According to the World Terrorism Index, Australia is currently the 38th most likely to be hit by a terrorist attack in the next year. The USA is sitting pretty at #4 and the UK's at #10. Hey, at least we moved in the right direction, right?
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
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In Australia you can say the F-word on television. (Well, after 8:30 anyway.) In fact, you can pretty much say anything you want. For instance, we get uncensored episodes of Sex and the City and The Sopranos on normal free-to-air stations, and Aussie Big Brother even has a special "Uncut" episode each week where they show all the boobies and curse words. I sorta assumed that it's always been this way, but instead it turns out that 1997 was the year when everything loosened up. Why? Four Weddings and a Funeral. Ha!
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I just found out that a Fernwood Fitness Centre will be opening up at the Broadway, which is relatively close to our new apartment. These are a chain of "women only" gyms and they look pretty neat. My first impulse was to sell off my existing gym membership and join Fernwood. Upon reflection though, I don't think I need to. I can't honestly say that the men at my gym bother me at all. I don't feel uncomfortably ogled or intimidated. I wonder how much of that has to do with my burgeoning self-confidence (courtesy of weight loss and better fitness) and how much has to do with the fact that the men at my gym are predominantly gay. :)
Do you think segregated gyms are a good idea? I can see where some people might be more comfortable with that, but it sounds a little ridiculous. Like, are "men only" gyms then okay? The only good reason for them, as I see it, are in places where the big bodybuilding guys feel like they have a right to the equipment and little girls don't. Maybe I'm just lucky that my gym isn't really one of those places.
Monday, August 18, 2003
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Me: "Holy crap, Snookums! Thylacines (Tasmanian tigers) have been spotted in parkland not far from Melbourne's CBD!"
Him: "Aww, somebody probably just painted stripes on their dog."
All joking aside, that's pretty friggin' cool. The thing's supposedly been extinct on the mainland for over 2000 years, and now they've suddenly got credible evidence that it might still be around! This country is pretty amazing.
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I knew there'd be a catch with the new apartment. I called the agent today and asked about the possibility of pets. No go. I just felt like the time was right to go find our little Dr. Alowicious Jones kitty, but it's not to be. Crap.
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When I first heard the Flaming Lips' song "Fight Test" I immediately recommended it to the Snook. "You'll like this," I said. "It reminds me of 'Father and Son.'" I guess I wasn't the only one to make the connection. The Lips have agreed to split all royalties from the song with Cat Stevens. I'm not sure I agree with that. I didn't think they were trying to rip him off; I felt like they were quoting him, making a reference, and possibly even continuing on ideas from his song. That's legitimate "fair use", as far as I'm concerned.
Saturday, August 16, 2003
Friday Five:
1. How much time do you spend online each day?
Hmm. Well, I jump on as soon as I get up to check my e-mail and comments... and then there's eight hours at work... and then probably at least another hour at home... Good grief. Probably 8-10 hours a day. And believe it or not, that's actually an improvement over my life in London.
2. What is your browser homepage set to?
At work, Google. At home, My Yahoo. I like to read the news.
3. Do you use any instant messaging programs? If so, which one(s)?
I use iChat AV, which is Apple's IM client for AOL/Netscape Instant Messenger. You won't find me on it as much these days because the firewall at work doesn't allow it and the whole time difference thing makes coordinating chat difficult.
4. Where was your first webpage located?
I started my very first webpage in 1996 when I was a sophomore at Notre Dame. I just used the Internet Wayback Machine to look it up, and here is it: Kristine Howard's Page O' Wonders. (I so wish I was joking. What a nerd. Although I'm not the only one.) You can also see the very first version of the Roald Dahl Home Page, featuring the extra-cool javascript thingy that scrolls text at the bottom of your browser. Yeah, I was cool.
5. How long have you had your current website?
As you can see from the archives, web-goddess has existed since the beginning of 2001. That's two and a half years!
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I really, really want a Silpat.
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We think we've found an apartment! *fingers crossed* You knew we were looking, right?
Update: We got it! We're moving in three weeks! Ugh, there's so much work to do... but it's an awesome place.
Wow! Apparently the blackout extended all the way to Ohio and people got stuck on the rollercoasters at Cedar Point! My Dad was researching this for me yesterday when he came across even more shocking news: they're going to dismantle my favorite ride, the Schwabinchen! I am really, really disappointed about this. Maybe I should mount a "Save the Schwabinchen" campaign.
Update: That kid's video footage (from the first link) got showed on the news here in Sydney tonight!
Friday, August 15, 2003
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Have you taken the Dr. Phil Personality Quiz? I got a 34, which equates to: "Others see you as sensible, cautious, careful & practical. They see you as clever, gifted, or talented, but modest..." Well, how nice. Thanks, everyone! The quiz was originally a Word document but I've reproduced the text below if you wanna try it out. [more...]
Marrickville Council rocks. Over the past week the Snook and I have noticed a drain behind the Abbey (the local backpackers') that's been backing up. Yesterday morning I stepped out to go to work and saw that it was literally *gushing* sewage into the street. Yeah, toilet paper, poo, everything. (Luckily it was flowing away from our place.) The Snook called the Council that morning and by the time I got home from work they'd inspected it and put up barriers. This morning we woke up to the sound of jackhammers breaking up the concrete around the drain. A 24-hour turn-around time for local government? I never would've believed it.
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McDonalds' New "Salad Plus" Line: A Review
First things first - I love McDonalds. I grew up as a typical American kid who thought Happy Meals were the greatest meal ever. I cheered when I moved to England and discovered that my beloved back-catalogue McChicken was still available there. I also got pretty damn chunky. Not long after moving to Australia I had one last burger and decided, "This is it." I quit cold turkey. For a year and a half, I never even went into the restaurant.
Recently McDonalds Australia, in an attempt to defuse any possible litigation, announced that they would be adding salads and low-fat items to the menu permanently. (Unlike in the US, salads here were strictly a novelty item that would only be available for a limited time.) They call the new line Salads Plus. It consists of two salads, a veggie burger, a chicken wrap, two muffins, a yoghurt, and apples. New commercials show kids rejoicing that now their mothers will bring them to McDonalds more often, and mothers rejoicing that now there's something for them to eat at Macca's. (I find it funny - and telling - that they don't actually show any of the kids eating the healthy stuff.) Anyway, I decided it was time to give McDonalds another try. [more...]
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Friday Annoyances:- Some misguided fool at my office thought it was a great idea to designate Fridays "No Lift Day". This means that the elevator is turned off and we're all supposed to use the stairs. (As expected, all of us on the second floor* are grumbling, while those damn lucky ground dwellers don't mind at all.) This policy is supposedly designed to "make us healthier" and "save the environment". I think it's because they're "cheap bastards."
- Further evidence for the cheap bastard theory: It's frickin' freezing in here, Mr. Bigglesworth. Is the lack of central heating also due to health and environmental concerns? I think not.
- I have nothing to do.
- Some stupid big power outage in New York has knocked out half the sites I normally read, so I really have nothing to do.
- The clowns got eliminated. :(
* In US terms, we're on the third floor, and this damn office has high ceilings. Just wanted to explain that lest you think I'm unduly complaining here.
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Trivia Update: Fourth place, then third, and now - inevitably - second. We lost on a tiebreak. My own personal highlight was knowing the names of the actors who played Bill and Ted. Other memorable questions included the nine European capitals that have hosted the Summer Olympics, the name of the spellbook on Charmed, and the medical name of the four bones fused at the bottom of your spine. Can you get any of them?
Congratulations to our friends Major and Steph, who just announced their engagement tonight. (This is disturbing. It's only been one week since I made my anti-marriage proclamation and already our ratio of married-to-single friends is shifting.)
Thursday, August 14, 2003
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Geek or Serial Killer? I am ashamed to admit that I only got three correct out of ten! No wonder slashdot meetups are so intimidating for me; I subconsciously think everybody's a murderous psychopath!
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I've been pretty discouraged with the diet lately. After the vacation I went back to hard-core induction but no matter what I did I just couldn't get into ketosis. That stupid Ketostick just refused to turn pink. Without that encouragement I found myself unable to resist the siren call of carbs. (Last weekend alone I had french fries, eggs benedict, and two burgers with buns!) I decided to give it one last try this week. Again, no ketosis. Finally in desperation I went to the chemist and got some new ketostix. Eureka! It turned pink immediately. I have renewed faith and willpower. Moral of the story: When the packet says "Discard six months after opening", believe it. The darn things just stop working.
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
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Problems With Having an American Accent in Australia That I Never Noticed in England:- I regularly get twice as much hamburger from the butcher as I request. Seriously. You see, we Yanks pronounce "have" and "half" almost identically. The vowel sound - at least in my Midwestern experience - is the same. Australians, though, pronounce that second word more like "hoff". So when I approach Dobsy, our local butcher, and say, "Can I have half a kilo of mince, please?" he inevitably gives me a full kilo. It's like he thinks I'm an idiot and I've repeated the "have" twice, because he doesn't hear the "hoff." After the first couple times I finally figured out why, but I feel like an idiot over-enunciating and saying, "Could I HAAAV HOFFFF a kilo..." So now I just get the big bags and split them up when I get home.
- Everyone thinks I'm Canadian. Well, they don't actually. It's just that everyone assumes you are because apparently Canadian backpackers get way annoyed when you assume they're American. So Aussies always start off by asking if you're Canadian. Which is fine, but it's getting to the point where it annoys me. Why Canadian backpackers have to be so sensitive, I have no idea.
- Whenever I ask a shopkeeper for something they don't carry, they think I'm making it up. Exhibit A: the spaghetti squash. When the Snook and I gave up pasta, I thought this would be a great replacement. The only problem is that not a single greengrocer I talked to had ever heard of the damn thing. They're all like, "It's like a pumpkin? And you eat it like pasta?" You'd think I was describing some strange Narnian vegetable. I finally gave up on that one. Exhibit B: Since I'm trying to cut down on the beer consumption, I've been drinking more cocktails. I saw an ad for Absolut Vanilla recently and I thought, "Man, that sounds good! Mix it up with a little Diet Coke and you've got a Vanilla Diet Coke With Kick!" Unfortunately none of the liquor stores in Newtown carry it. Which is fine, except for the fact that the guy at the last one was like, "Are you sure it exists?" Me: "Yeah, I saw it advertised in a magazine." Him: "In Australia??" Me: "YEAH, IN AUSTRALIA. I'VE BEEN LIVING HERE FOR ALMOST TWO BLOODY YEARS, YOU TOOL!" Maybe I'm the one that's getting oversensitive.
- Some people are just mean. The old lady at the laundrette was asking me about my holiday recently (since we had so much clothing to wash) and asked where I was from. After assuring her that, no, I wasn't from Canada, she asked how long I'd been in Australia. "A year and a half!" I proudly announced. She turned and sniffed, "Haven't really lost the accent yet, have you, love?" Beeyotch.
I'm sure I'll think of more.
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I always thought using "they" or "them" to refer to a singular person was a grievous grammatical sin. Instead it turns out that it's actually not so bad! We English-speakers have been doing it since the 14th century, in fact. So the next time someone tries to correct you on it, tell them to stick it up their bum.
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I just got an e-mail from my friend Julie asking me to take part in the Small World Experiment. Some researchers at Columbia University are basically testing the whole "six degrees of separation" theory. They designate a target person somewhere on the globe and then observe how many e-mails it takes to reach them. Julie's target (and now mine) is a potter in New Zealand. She cleverly reckoned that - being in the same hemisphere - I might move the chain closer. Now I'm obsessed with picking the right person. I know a couple Kiwis but I don't think I have e-mail addresses anymore. (Any of you Netdeciders in contact with Ash Dando?) I could take the easy route and just send it to the Snook, since he knows way more folks than me. But I want the chain to be as short as possible!
Tuesday, August 12, 2003
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RunningBlog:
The Run Log is having the intended effect. I actually thought to myself today, "I better hit the gym tonight so I don't look lazy." Ah, the power of peer pressure. I went. My overall pace wasn't blistering but I did manage to finish the first mile in 11:28 (a personal best). I think I need new gym clothes though. My old shorts and T-shirts are getting pretty baggy and I spend half my time flopping my arms around and trying to un-bunch things into a comfortable position. What do you wear when you run?
Mmmm... butter.
Monday, August 11, 2003
 Ballads, Beer, and Buffy.
It's really over, folks. The Snook and I watched the first ten minutes at the Sandringham Hotel, the pub around the corner. We soon tired of peering around people's dreadlocks so we made a mad dash for home during the first commercial break. I'd already read the spoilers so I knew everything that was going to happen, but it was still nice to see it. The Snook - who is unspoiled about pretty much everything after Season 5 - thought it was disappointing. "On the grand scale of Buffy episodes," he said, "I'd rate that one about a '4'." He did get a kick out of the Trogdor reference though.
Now all we have to do is fill in three more seasons worth of missing episodes... Thank heavens for DVD.
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Can someone in California please go to 826 Valencia next time you're in San Francisco and verify that Dave Eggers really is running a pirate supply store? Because that's nutty. Thanks.
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Attention Australians! The Snook has just discovered that The Amazing Race Series 4 will finally premiere on Channel 7 this Wednesday night at 10:35 p.m. About damn time. I'm happy to report that we're technically only an episode behind though (at least in my house), thanks to the Snook's mad downloading skillz. We had a marathon yesterday and watched episodes 5-10 (up to the octopus eating in Korea). Right now I'm cheering for the clowns, but honestly I wouldn't be upset with any of the teams left winning. This must be the karmic payback for enduring Flo/Zac and Teri/Ian last year.
Oh, and please don't spoil the last episodes for me! I've been really good about looking away whenever I see anything Race-related. (I actually screamed and covered the monitor with my hand when I saw the word "clowns" at the top of Max's site.) I'll probably have to unplug from the Internet altogether before we get the last episode though...
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RunningBlog:
I've added a Running Log to the site down there in the right sidebar. As I told the Snook this morning, hopefully showing you guys my times will bring some needed accountability. Don't neglect to call me out for slacking!
The lush who sits behind me at work was just giving one of the temps crap for saying she wanted to watch "Australian Idol" tonight. This from the woman who plays Celine Dion loudly at her desk. Rolling your eyes repeatedly can't result in long-term damage, can it?
Sunday, August 10, 2003
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Put me out of my misery, please!
What TV show was it that had the theme song "Thank you for being a friend"? It's driving me nuts. "And if you threw a party, and invited everyone you knew. You would see the biggest gift would be from me, and the card attached would say, 'Thank you for being a frieeeeend...'"
Saturday, August 9, 2003
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I just downloaded the new iChat AV Beta and I'm itchin' to try it out. I don't have a camera up here just yet (I can't bear to lose CouchCam), but I can do a voice chat. Anybody got it that can chat with me? I also understand that it'll work with PCs that can do voice chat via Instant Messenger. If that describes you, add "krisinsydney" to your buddy list and keep your eyes open for me!
Argh! As soon as I made the decision to back up Boudicca (my computer) and take her in for service, the darn thing came good! The monitor flickered a few times but it hasn't troubled me in hours. I just know that if I take it in now they'll never be able to reproduce the problem and I'll get laughed out of the store. How annoying! I always talk about my computer like she's a sentient being, but this is getting ridiculous. What a brat!
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Friday Five:
1. What's the last place you traveled to, outside your own home state/country?
Well, on our last trip we touched down in Los Angeles, Chicago, Goshen, Boston, London, Venice, Florence, Naples, Rome, and Singapore. Those round-the-world tickets are nice. :)
2. What's the most bizarre/unusual thing that's ever happened to you while traveling?
Bizarre and unusual? Nothing really. The Snook and I don't really go places where bizarre and unusual things happen. Although, EuroDisney was kinda trippy...
3. If you could take off to anywhere, money and time being no object, where would you go?
I've always wanted to go to Reykyavik, Iceland. I just like the sound of it. I'd also like to take the Snook on a Great Beer Tour of Germany one of these days.
4. Do you prefer traveling by plane, train or car?
Hmmm. I guess I like all three. I like long road trips in the U.S., where you can go on fun side trips and eat in truck stops. I also like flying on airlines where they load you up with free alcohol and food and give you a mini-TV. And thanks to our time in Italy, I now know the joy of train travel. They're always on time and if you book the right ones - Eurostar, baby! - they're pretty luxurious.
5. What's the next place on your list to visit?
I think it'll be a while before we take another big trip. We'd like to see some more of Australia though, so hopefully I'll get to see Melbourne and Canberra before the year is out.
Friday, August 8, 2003
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Trivia Recap: We improved slightly from last week and finished in third place. Unfortunately our streak of winning mini-jackpots came to an end (though I was only half a second late in identifying Patrick Swayze and should've had that one). The hardest question of the week was definitely: "Name the seven countries of the world whose English names contain the letter 'J'." We got all seven but we really had to rack our brains. Other notable questions: What's Angela Lansbury's character's name on Murder She Wrote? What are the four biggest countries that lie entirely in Asia? Which two countries were the first to host the modern Summer Olympics twice?
You know all those spams that purport to, uh, enlarge your tackle? It turns out that not only do they make tons of money, the guy making the money is a nineteen-year-old. At least we now know what kind of idiots actually buy and sell the stuff. I like the part about how the kid ran away from the interviewer at a chess meet. Tool. (Link courtesy of Ernie.)
Thursday, August 7, 2003
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To love, honor, obey, and procreate...
Just when I was starting to think that getting married might not be inconsistent with my personal beliefs, Australian Prime Minister John Howard had to open his big, fat mouth and ruin it. In the political equivalent of a "Me too!" Usenet posting, he went on the record this week as saying he was against gay marriage and would try to legislate against it. "Marriage, as we understand it in our society," he said, "is about children, having children, raising them, providing for the survival of the species." What in the world does one thing have to do with the other? Is he honestly suggesting that the only valid marriages are ones that result in children? My Grandma got remarried in her fifties; should that have been outlawed? What about people who are sterile? What about those of us that just don't want kids right now? (You better get busy, Brigita, Kristen, and Moire. If I don't see each of you with a kid in nine months I'm going to report you to the Marriage Police!)
It's funny because I would've been less upset if he had based this on religion. I still wouldn't agree, but it's an established viewpoint that a lot of folks share. As much as he'd like to imitate his best buddy George, though, Australians don't like politicians who make decisions on social policy based on religious convictions. (It's a refreshing change, let me tell you.) So he tries to couch it in terms of evolution. Hello? Survival of the species?? Last I checked there were about 6 billion of us on this planet, Johnny. I don't think you need to put homo sapiens on the endangered list just yet. Besides, why should allowing gay people to legalize their unions have any effect on the rate of straight marriage or procreation? Would Bob and Mary Hetero suddenly place less importance on their kids if Chip and Reichen exchanged vows? Not friggin' likely.
I know I'm in full-on rant mode here, but damn this pisses me off. I think I've gone completely anti-marriage again. It's depressing to think that no matter how you justify it and what your wonderful reasons are, people like Howard will simply view you as one more statistic on "their" side. And no offense to the rest of y'all, but I'd sooner go raise 18 illegitimate crack babies in the woods than give John Howard one tiny bit of satisfaction or any opportunity to lump the two of us in the same demographic.
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In case you get an e-mail from me with the subject line "FW: One Friendship to Share :-)", do not open the attachment. It's a virus and it's not from me. Somebody's infected and their computer is sending messages with spoofed headers scraped from webpages. Besides, I would never forward you guys anything with a subject line that cheesy. (Thanks to Moire for the heads up.)
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New Poll: Would you try musk sticks?
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Special thanks to Bill, who sent me a beautiful postcard on his recent trip to Hawaii. Hmm, I'm getting inspiration for what to do with all those frequent flyer miles we got last month...
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Snookums and I were talking recently about the nastiest (real) candy we had personally tried. The worst I could come up with was Swedish Fish, which have a flavor I like to describe as "ass". I didn't think he could top that, but boy was I wrong. I'd like to introduce the rest of the world to the concept of Musk Sticks. Yes, it's pink extruded candy flavored with musk. Musk... as in the animal excretion. (Pause for group involuntary shudder.) It's evidently a classic Australian sweet. The Snook's verdict: "They're disgusting. How does The BFG describe snozzcumbers? They're like that. My sister likes them though." They remind me of the DOE-P stuff my Dad used to sprinkle around to attract deer during hunting season. I won't be trying them anytime soon.
What's the grossest thing you know of that people actually eat?
Wednesday, August 6, 2003
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24 H in a D
One of my co-workers sent along a puzzle today where you have to solve 34 of these riddles. Apparently, "according to MENSA if you get 23 right you're a genius." I've managed to get 26 on my own, so go me! Between the Snook and I, there are only three that have us stumped. Read on if you, my readers, would like to give it a collective try... [more...]
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How stressed are you? According to this test, my level is only at 21% (which apparently equates to "lazy and retarded"). I actually think I'm way more stressed than that; I just don't have many of the usual external manifestations. I drink, but not heavily, and I don't smoke anything. Now if they asked about chronic shoulder pain or inability to sleep, my percentage would have shot up a lot. (For the record, the Snook scored even lower: 13%. Maybe it's because we just got back from vacation.)
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I found two great Mac-related weblogs recently that I've become addicted to: splorp and Daring Fireball. Together with apple.slashdot I've got all the Apple news I can handle. (Hopefully it'll be enough to carry me through my upcoming bout of iBook deprivation as I send Boudicca in to be serviced.)
Oh how I hate you, fickle Elevator Mirror. One minute you show nothing but how fabulous I look in my black skinny pants. The next I can see nothing but the three short glaring white hairs standing up on the top of my head. Quit toying with my emotions!
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RunningBlog:
As requested, here's my sister's marathon training page. It's got a log of her training, a photo gallery, and a message about why she's doing this. She's running for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and you should definitely toss some money her way (if you've got any to spare).
Tuesday, August 5, 2003
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RunningBlog:
My sister's doing it. I'm thinking about it. Are we nuts?
"...If you're a seriously overweight white woman, losing 65 pounds is likely to be as lucrative as an extra year of college or three extra years of work experience." I found that in this excellent article. I just find that staggering. I haven't noticed any financial windfall from my weight loss yet, but I guess it's more incentive to keep going. (Thanks to Matthew for recommending the column.)
Monday, August 4, 2003
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 Knitted Baby Sweater
My boss Andrew's wife just gave birth to a baby girl last Friday and I wanted to make them something special. (Okay, so I also wanted to suck up and use some of my extra wool.) I found this pattern for a quick garter stitch sweater knit cuff-to-cuff. I had to start three times but the finished version only took me about five hours. I know it's blue; but that's all I had - and it does have pink buttons! I hope it fits.
Obi-Wan on a motorcycle? Good grief, I hope I never spot Ewan McGregor riding that thing in Sydney. I'd probably go insane and run out into the street after him and get hit by a bus. (Link courtesy of Kevin.)
During last Thursday's trivia quiz we were asked to identify the philosopher that said, "If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent Him." Unfortunately the Snook and I spent so much time arguing over whether it was Descartes or Pascal that we missed the obvious answer. (It was the always-quotable Voltaire, of course.) Anyway, I thought of that quote while reading through these 300 Proofs of God's Existence. Pretty funny. As an agnostic I've never really felt compelled to try to talk someone out of their beliefs, but I can certainly understand the frustration trying to debate with someone that can't form a decent argument. (Link courtesy of John.)
Update: Crap! Looks like the site went down. Oh well, bookmark this one for later.
Sunday, August 3, 2003
My epidermis must weigh a lot. I've already lost all ten pounds I put on during the vacation despite cheating on my diet and not going to the gym. The only thing I can chalk it up to is all the skin I've shed this week courtesy of my sunburn. Gross, I know, but if there's a silver lining to be had from my dermatological distress, I'll take it.
Friday, August 1, 2003
Friday Five:
I haven't done one of these in ages!
1. What time do you wake up on weekday mornings?
Normally I get up somewhere around 7:00, I guess. On the trip we generally managed around 8 or 9. Since we got back on Monday though, I'm horrified to admit I've been sleeping in til one o'clock in the afternoon every day! I didn't schedule myself to go back to work til today so I didn't have any impetus to get rid of the jet lag. Getting up this morning was hell.
2. Do you sleep in on the weekends? How late?
Not really. I've never been one to sleep in very late (except when I'm jet-lagged, of course). We usually get up before 10:00 unless we've been drinking the night before.
3. Aside from waking up, what is the first thing you do in the morning?
The very first thing? SHIVER. It's freakin' cold in Sydney this winter. Then I usually hit the toilet and the shower.
4. How long does it take to get ready for your day?
I'm pretty fast. Less than an hour, although that probably includes thirty minutes of dawdling on the Internet. It helps that I don't bother with drying my hair or putting on make-up. :)
5. When possible, what is your favorite place to go for breakfast?
Lamina. It's about 100 steps from our front door, around the corner on King Street. Great coffee and terrific eggs benedict. We go there way too often.
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What's your blood type? Are you a B-negative? Leigh-Anne and I want you go donate some of that hemoglobinny goodness at your local Red Cross. We're both gonna do it (if they'll let us, that is).
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Just stumbled across Orson Scott Card's website today, and it's fantastic. It's always such a surprise - but why should it be? - when the people who write books I like turn out to be people I like too. My favorite section is his ongoing column "Uncle Orson Reviews Everything". His review of Pirates of the Caribbean has me desperate to see it, while his thoughts on marriage were quite illuminating. I never really thought about it that way.
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We made our triumphant return at pub trivia tonight with a respectable fourth place finish (which netted us $10). I also won a free schooner of beer (for knowing which member of the "Friends" cast was first nominated for an Emmy) and a Black & Decker Toasted Sandwich Maker in the Joker Poker Draw. Go me! Okay, your questions for the day: Which six countries in the world have the highest Christian populations? Which three track & field events did women first participate in at the Sydney 2000 Olympics?
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archives
You can search through the archives by post keyword using the form on the left, or you can browse by month using the links at the bottom.
"Moblog" refers to posts and images posted directly from my mobile phone.
"PW Blog" refers to posts recovered from my very first weblog, which dealt with news related to my college dorm.
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Knitted Baby Sweater