Ok, well I've only got 5 gig worth of mp3s on my computer, 90% of which are ripped straight from CDs either I or a friend owns. I thought that there would be more.. but I guess I've only just started putting the classical stuff on there too.
Last CD I bought
Rachmaninov Vespers
Song playing on Radio Meg at the moment.. Dave Matthews Band doing All Along The Watchtower live at Red Rocks 1995
5 songs that I listen to a lot:
I mostly listen to Radio Meg (my entire collection on random) .. which seems to be right into The Beatles and PJ Harvey recently.
But songs I never get sick of include
Como Ves Ozomatli
Better Man John Butler Trio
Two Step Dave Matthews Band
Hallelujah - Just about anyone's version!
Anything at all by The Cat Empire
ta da! *grin*
Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Fyodor's response
Total volume of music files on my computer.Zero. I have way too many CDs as it is, and there's not much out there that interests me enough for me to get into the downloading thing. If I like music I'll just buy it from a regular store and play it on my CD player.
Last CD I bought
Best of Bic Runga
Song playing right now
Been playing "Marlene on the Wall" a lot recently.
"Even if I am in love with you
All this to say, what's it to you?
Observe the blood, the rose tattoo
Of the fingerprints on me from you
Other evidence has shown
That you and I are still alone
We skirt around the danger zone
And don't talk about it later..."
5 songs that I listen to a lot
Aside from the song above, these have been on high rotation recently:
"Sexual Healing" Marvin Gaye
"Slave to Love" Bryan Ferry
"Inner Smile" Texas
"Love Removal Machine" The Cult
"Gravity" Bic Runga
Last CD I bought
Best of Bic Runga
Song playing right now
Been playing "Marlene on the Wall" a lot recently.
"Even if I am in love with you
All this to say, what's it to you?
Observe the blood, the rose tattoo
Of the fingerprints on me from you
Other evidence has shown
That you and I are still alone
We skirt around the danger zone
And don't talk about it later..."
5 songs that I listen to a lot
Aside from the song above, these have been on high rotation recently:
"Sexual Healing" Marvin Gaye
"Slave to Love" Bryan Ferry
"Inner Smile" Texas
"Love Removal Machine" The Cult
"Gravity" Bic Runga
How sad does this make me look?
Okay music meme from Zoe. Do I risk telling the truth? Why not.
Total volume of music files on my computer.
Zero, zip, zilch, nada. Told you this was going to make me look sad. My excuse is that we only have a really slow dial up connection. Not that I would know how to download music anyway.
Last CD I bought
Missy Higgins - Sound of White
Does that regain me any credibility?
Song playing right now
Nothing - the cd player on my computer doesn't seem to be connected to any speakers.
5 songs that I listen to a lot
Old MacDonald had a farm (garble garble garble ei ei no (Charlie's version))
Charlie has a toy that plays this song and then he chooses which animal Farmer MacDonald has. Lately Farmer MacDonald has been running a pig farm. With an oink oink here and an oink oink there ad infinitum.
Boohbah theme music
Not only do we have the DVD we now have a toy Boohbah which plays music and makes sounds. Joy.
Whatever Missy Higgins track is playing in Dave's car when we drive somewhere.
It used to be Crowded House or Dire Straits until I got so sick of them I hid the CDs.
I could lie and say Neko Case ''blacklisted'' but the copy I borrowed from work is stuffed and I only got to listen to the first two tracks. Really good though. Unfortunately my chances of finding it in Alice are probably pretty slim. If I keep taking music tips from LP I'll be listening to Beth Orton next.
Whatever is on top of the playlist on 96.9 Sun FM when I'm driving to or from work. Lately it's been Dido's new song.
Having shown how in danger I am of having my gen X membership revoked I choose to pass this onto Harry - who might actually have to get off his bum and do a post on this blog, and Fyodor who can either let us in on where he's hiding his blog, or guest post?
Total volume of music files on my computer.
Zero, zip, zilch, nada. Told you this was going to make me look sad. My excuse is that we only have a really slow dial up connection. Not that I would know how to download music anyway.
Last CD I bought
Missy Higgins - Sound of White
Does that regain me any credibility?
Song playing right now
Nothing - the cd player on my computer doesn't seem to be connected to any speakers.
5 songs that I listen to a lot
Old MacDonald had a farm (garble garble garble ei ei no (Charlie's version))
Charlie has a toy that plays this song and then he chooses which animal Farmer MacDonald has. Lately Farmer MacDonald has been running a pig farm. With an oink oink here and an oink oink there ad infinitum.
Boohbah theme music
Not only do we have the DVD we now have a toy Boohbah which plays music and makes sounds. Joy.
Whatever Missy Higgins track is playing in Dave's car when we drive somewhere.
It used to be Crowded House or Dire Straits until I got so sick of them I hid the CDs.
I could lie and say Neko Case ''blacklisted'' but the copy I borrowed from work is stuffed and I only got to listen to the first two tracks. Really good though. Unfortunately my chances of finding it in Alice are probably pretty slim. If I keep taking music tips from LP I'll be listening to Beth Orton next.
Whatever is on top of the playlist on 96.9 Sun FM when I'm driving to or from work. Lately it's been Dido's new song.
Having shown how in danger I am of having my gen X membership revoked I choose to pass this onto Harry - who might actually have to get off his bum and do a post on this blog, and Fyodor who can either let us in on where he's hiding his blog, or guest post?
Monday, May 30, 2005
The future...
People may have noticed that the Sydney Morning Herald has a new section... Campaign for Sydney
Today the Herald launches a campaign to fix Sydney. A campaign to fix its water, air, urban development and transport. It is time for a boldness lacking for 50 years.
Without that boldness Sydney is in danger of going nowhere fast, of squandering an enviable urban legacy and of severely curtailing our economic and civic success. This week we spell out how three decades of small thinking have brought us to a point where urgent action is needed. On Saturday we'll start on the solutions, many straightforward, many far-sighted.
What can I/we, as average citizens, do to help move this city into a healthy place? What can we do NOW rather than in 50 years time? And what are the issues that stop you personally from living as sustainably as you would like? How would you change these?
Personally, I feel I take water for granted, and often indulge in 2 showers a day which is a luxury. Also, I don't have a way to compost green waste, it goes in my rubbish. And although I don't drive/own a car, there are times when friends drive me home late at night, 15+ minutes of extra driving because it's a 30 minute wait on a cold train station.
Today the Herald launches a campaign to fix Sydney. A campaign to fix its water, air, urban development and transport. It is time for a boldness lacking for 50 years.
Without that boldness Sydney is in danger of going nowhere fast, of squandering an enviable urban legacy and of severely curtailing our economic and civic success. This week we spell out how three decades of small thinking have brought us to a point where urgent action is needed. On Saturday we'll start on the solutions, many straightforward, many far-sighted.
What can I/we, as average citizens, do to help move this city into a healthy place? What can we do NOW rather than in 50 years time? And what are the issues that stop you personally from living as sustainably as you would like? How would you change these?
Personally, I feel I take water for granted, and often indulge in 2 showers a day which is a luxury. Also, I don't have a way to compost green waste, it goes in my rubbish. And although I don't drive/own a car, there are times when friends drive me home late at night, 15+ minutes of extra driving because it's a 30 minute wait on a cold train station.
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Monday, May 23, 2005
We wuz robbed!
The BBC has robbed us! Just look at this -
Firth became a heart-throb in 1995 in the TV adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, for the moment he emerged from a lake in a dripping wet shirt and breeches. The actor later revealed he was supposed to be naked in the scene but the BBC would not allow it.
We should have been seeing Mr Darcy nudey rudey over and over again on rewind. Damn the BBC!
Firth became a heart-throb in 1995 in the TV adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, for the moment he emerged from a lake in a dripping wet shirt and breeches. The actor later revealed he was supposed to be naked in the scene but the BBC would not allow it.
We should have been seeing Mr Darcy nudey rudey over and over again on rewind. Damn the BBC!
Friday, May 20, 2005
One boy's fantasy
Of the MANY plot holes in the whole Star Wars story (the movies anyway.. haven't read any of the books) the one that stands out the most, irritates me the most is the fact that an independant, intelligent, powerful, politically aware leader would even look twice at a whiny self-involved arrogant BOY, let alone love and marry him, carry his children, and have her heart broken by him. So important to the story, so far from reality.
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
The Cat Empire as an example for society !!
One of my favourite places to think is in the shower. And today’s thoughts were on the old theory: That the total is greater than the sum of it’s parts. Possibly not a very trendy idea at the moment.. in this age of individualism (is that a word? It is now!) , but true anyways. Example can be seen everywhere. Marriage-type partnerships being the most obvious – two people together can achieve much more, and make it through things much better than two people alone. And we see that in family and extended family groups too. We all know it. And yet for some reason we don’t extrapolate that to society.
With the trend of a user pays, individualist society we are losing the benefits that are afforded by a ‘pitch-in’ society. I’m talking about healthcare, education, public transport and other necessities. Sure it’s a bit of a drag to help friends move house, but when it’s your turn and all your mates turn up it’s all worth it and then some. Like The Cat Empire. The six guys are all fabulous musos. But together they create something that is way beyond what they could create individually. Thus with society. If I talked to someone down the street they would understand these illustrations. Why can’t they understand that it works for society too? Am I stretching it? Am I simply an idealist? Is it time for coffee?
With the trend of a user pays, individualist society we are losing the benefits that are afforded by a ‘pitch-in’ society. I’m talking about healthcare, education, public transport and other necessities. Sure it’s a bit of a drag to help friends move house, but when it’s your turn and all your mates turn up it’s all worth it and then some. Like The Cat Empire. The six guys are all fabulous musos. But together they create something that is way beyond what they could create individually. Thus with society. If I talked to someone down the street they would understand these illustrations. Why can’t they understand that it works for society too? Am I stretching it? Am I simply an idealist? Is it time for coffee?
And I thought my friends were nerds......
Our own Dark Lord
Simon Dewar reckons it has taken about 2 1/2 years to perfect his homemade Darth Vader costume, experimenting with polystyrene codpieces and sculpting hinguards out of industrial-strength linoleum. The Star Wars fanatic, who works for the tax department in Albury, can pinpoint the moment that his obsession with Darth Vader began. "When he walks into the ship in Star Wars: A New Hope, he just had such presence that it made your jaw drop," the 34-year-old says. "You've got this guy all in black, in stark contrast to the white stormtroopers. He just stood out. It was like 'Who is this guy?' " Dewar began assembling his outfit after deciding to dress up for the cinema opening of Attack of the Clones in 2002. He scoured hardware shops and reject stores for "crap that can be used for anything but what it was made for". The miniature tusks that jut out of his Vader helmet, for example, are made from the tubing that hospitals use for intravenous drips. On his website, Vader Maker Australia, Dewar provides a guide for those keen to create their own outfit. The site is alarmingly comprehensive; the section on making Darth Vader's belt alone is almost 2000 words long. But obsessive fans determined to dress up as the Dark Lord for Thursday's opening of Revenge of the Sith would be advised to log on. Fancy dress shops are already struggling to meet demand. "All the Star Wars costumes
are booked," says Narelle Desmond, who works in Rose Chong Costumes in Gertrude Street. "Some people even booked them last year."
See here
Simon Dewar reckons it has taken about 2 1/2 years to perfect his homemade Darth Vader costume, experimenting with polystyrene codpieces and sculpting hinguards out of industrial-strength linoleum. The Star Wars fanatic, who works for the tax department in Albury, can pinpoint the moment that his obsession with Darth Vader began. "When he walks into the ship in Star Wars: A New Hope, he just had such presence that it made your jaw drop," the 34-year-old says. "You've got this guy all in black, in stark contrast to the white stormtroopers. He just stood out. It was like 'Who is this guy?' " Dewar began assembling his outfit after deciding to dress up for the cinema opening of Attack of the Clones in 2002. He scoured hardware shops and reject stores for "crap that can be used for anything but what it was made for". The miniature tusks that jut out of his Vader helmet, for example, are made from the tubing that hospitals use for intravenous drips. On his website, Vader Maker Australia, Dewar provides a guide for those keen to create their own outfit. The site is alarmingly comprehensive; the section on making Darth Vader's belt alone is almost 2000 words long. But obsessive fans determined to dress up as the Dark Lord for Thursday's opening of Revenge of the Sith would be advised to log on. Fancy dress shops are already struggling to meet demand. "All the Star Wars costumes
are booked," says Narelle Desmond, who works in Rose Chong Costumes in Gertrude Street. "Some people even booked them last year."
See here
It's so nice ...
It has finally gotten cold here in Alice Springs. Cold so you don't want to get out of bed in the morning. I woke up this morning at 6.40am thinking I don't want to get out of bed. I then realised that if I rolled over and prodded D until he woke up I could tell him that it was his turn to have first shower. I then got another delicious ten minutes in my nice warm bed. This is the best part of winter.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
I blame his father ...
Since you ask harry ...
D made the mistake one night of forgetting that toddlers are walking sound recorders, who instantly record and repeat anything they shouldn't. Ours has an affinity for swear words, which are word perfect within seconds. One night, while D was looking for something which he was having difficulty finding (no surprise there) he yelled out 'For f**ks sake'. Charlie who was close by with me immediately parroted 'F**ks sake' about three times. D came very close to death at that point, but we decided to work on the harm minimisation principle of never mentioning that particular set of words again in his hearing. It seemed to be working, but we couldn't work out why he was chasing the cats around calling them 'F**kers' because it's not a word we use at home. Obviously he picked that one up somewhere else.
Anyway, a few weeks later we were driving home after picking up takeaway one evening, with the windows down cause it was warm when suddenly from the back seat our toddler screams, very loudly, 'f**ks sake! f**kers!' several times, just as we are passing a large group of people sitting on the lawns outside the Flying Doctor Service. We were trying hard not to react and encourage him, which resulted in a lot of shaking and erratic driving while we struggled not to laugh out loud. Again, D's demise was only put off by the fact that he was driving, and I was hungry. We have been working hard on substituting oops and other more toddler appropriate words since. With some success. I blame his father.
D made the mistake one night of forgetting that toddlers are walking sound recorders, who instantly record and repeat anything they shouldn't. Ours has an affinity for swear words, which are word perfect within seconds. One night, while D was looking for something which he was having difficulty finding (no surprise there) he yelled out 'For f**ks sake'. Charlie who was close by with me immediately parroted 'F**ks sake' about three times. D came very close to death at that point, but we decided to work on the harm minimisation principle of never mentioning that particular set of words again in his hearing. It seemed to be working, but we couldn't work out why he was chasing the cats around calling them 'F**kers' because it's not a word we use at home. Obviously he picked that one up somewhere else.
Anyway, a few weeks later we were driving home after picking up takeaway one evening, with the windows down cause it was warm when suddenly from the back seat our toddler screams, very loudly, 'f**ks sake! f**kers!' several times, just as we are passing a large group of people sitting on the lawns outside the Flying Doctor Service. We were trying hard not to react and encourage him, which resulted in a lot of shaking and erratic driving while we struggled not to laugh out loud. Again, D's demise was only put off by the fact that he was driving, and I was hungry. We have been working hard on substituting oops and other more toddler appropriate words since. With some success. I blame his father.
Thursday, May 12, 2005
How Embarrassment
Let me set the scene for you. I got home and decided that as I wasn't going out anywhere or seeing anyone apart from my toddler, I didn't need to wear my bra anymore. So into the washing b asket it goes. I then decide to give the world's stickiest toddler a bath, so I undress him and take off my jeans so I can sit on the edge of the bath and wash him.
So we are almost finished the bath when the doorbell rings. Can't pretend I'm not home because the washing machine is on, as is the TV and the car is in the drive. So I decide to wait a bit, then get Charlie out of the bath. I look out the bathroom window through the blinds and into the cat garden and courtyard. Why I thought sitting on the side of the bath in a t-shirt and panties would allow me to see through walls and around corners to the front door I don't know.
Anyway, I devise a brilliant plan of holding a towel wrapped toddler in front of me, as I go to see if anyone has left anything at the front door. This, I reason, will prevent anyone still there from seeing that I'm not wearing any trousers. So I open the front door. Of course, the person is still standing there. He's probably 12 at the most. He looks at me and then at his feet and stammers something about a walk-a-thon. I reply - yep I'll be right back I just have to dry him off a bit and I'll be right with you. Cue to dump toddler in his room, still wet, and run into kitchen to find my trousers. Thank god I didn't put them in the wash. Out of guilt, because I'm suspecting that perhaps the toddler wasn't as strategically placed as I had hoped, I find $5 in my bag to give to walk-a-thon boy. Then I dash back to the front door, now attired in trousers at least (and hoping that he doesn't look too closely at my t-shirt) and fill out his little walk-a-thon card and pay my $5. Doing so I notice that all my neighbours have given him about $2. Obviously they answered the door in pants.
So we are almost finished the bath when the doorbell rings. Can't pretend I'm not home because the washing machine is on, as is the TV and the car is in the drive. So I decide to wait a bit, then get Charlie out of the bath. I look out the bathroom window through the blinds and into the cat garden and courtyard. Why I thought sitting on the side of the bath in a t-shirt and panties would allow me to see through walls and around corners to the front door I don't know.
Anyway, I devise a brilliant plan of holding a towel wrapped toddler in front of me, as I go to see if anyone has left anything at the front door. This, I reason, will prevent anyone still there from seeing that I'm not wearing any trousers. So I open the front door. Of course, the person is still standing there. He's probably 12 at the most. He looks at me and then at his feet and stammers something about a walk-a-thon. I reply - yep I'll be right back I just have to dry him off a bit and I'll be right with you. Cue to dump toddler in his room, still wet, and run into kitchen to find my trousers. Thank god I didn't put them in the wash. Out of guilt, because I'm suspecting that perhaps the toddler wasn't as strategically placed as I had hoped, I find $5 in my bag to give to walk-a-thon boy. Then I dash back to the front door, now attired in trousers at least (and hoping that he doesn't look too closely at my t-shirt) and fill out his little walk-a-thon card and pay my $5. Doing so I notice that all my neighbours have given him about $2. Obviously they answered the door in pants.
Never underestimate the power of a Fortune Cookie….
from New York Times
Powerball lottery officials suspected fraud: how could 110 players in the March 30 drawing get five of the six numbers right? That made them all second-prize winners, and considering the number of tickets sold in the 29 states where the game is played, there should have been only four or five. But from state after state they kept coming in, the one-in-three-million combination of 22, 28, 32, 33, 39.
It took some time before they had their answer: the players got their numbers inside fortune cookies, and all the cookies came from the same factory in Long Island City, Queens.
Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs Powerball, said on Monday that the panic began at 11:30 p.m. March 30 when he got a call from a worried staff member.
The second-place winners were due $100,000 to $500,000 each, depending on how much they had bet, so paying all 110 meant almost $19 million in unexpected payouts, Mr. Strutt said. (The lottery keeps a $25 million reserve for odd situations.)
Of course, it could have been worse. The 110 had picked the wrong sixth number - 40, not 42 - and would have been first-place winners if they did. "We didn't sleep a lot that night," Mr. Strutt said. "Is there someone trying to cheat the system?"He added: "We had to look at everything to do with humans: television shows, pattern plays, lottery columns."
Earlier that month, an ABC television show, "Lost," included a sequence of winning lottery numbers. The combination didn't match the Powerball numbers, though hundreds of people had played it: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42. Numbers on a Powerball ticket in a recent episode of a soap opera, "The Young and the Restless," didn't match, either. Nor did the winning numbers form a pattern on the lottery grid, like a cross or a diagonal. Then the winners started arriving at lottery offices.
"Our first winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie," said Rebecca Paul, chief executive of the Tennessee Lottery. "The second winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie. The third winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie."
Investigators visited dozens of Chinese restaurants, takeouts and buffets. Then they called fortune cookie distributors and learned that many different brands of fortune cookies come from the same Long Island City factory, which is owned by Wonton Food and churns out four million a day.
"That's ours," said Derrick Wong, of Wonton Food, when shown a picture of a winner's cookie slip. "That's very nice, 110 people won the lottery from the numbers."
The same number combinations go out in thousands of cookies a day. The workers put numbers in a bowl and pick them. "We are not going to do the bowl anymore; we are going to have a computer," Mr. Wong said. "It's more efficient."
Powerball lottery officials suspected fraud: how could 110 players in the March 30 drawing get five of the six numbers right? That made them all second-prize winners, and considering the number of tickets sold in the 29 states where the game is played, there should have been only four or five. But from state after state they kept coming in, the one-in-three-million combination of 22, 28, 32, 33, 39.
It took some time before they had their answer: the players got their numbers inside fortune cookies, and all the cookies came from the same factory in Long Island City, Queens.
Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs Powerball, said on Monday that the panic began at 11:30 p.m. March 30 when he got a call from a worried staff member.
The second-place winners were due $100,000 to $500,000 each, depending on how much they had bet, so paying all 110 meant almost $19 million in unexpected payouts, Mr. Strutt said. (The lottery keeps a $25 million reserve for odd situations.)
Of course, it could have been worse. The 110 had picked the wrong sixth number - 40, not 42 - and would have been first-place winners if they did. "We didn't sleep a lot that night," Mr. Strutt said. "Is there someone trying to cheat the system?"He added: "We had to look at everything to do with humans: television shows, pattern plays, lottery columns."
Earlier that month, an ABC television show, "Lost," included a sequence of winning lottery numbers. The combination didn't match the Powerball numbers, though hundreds of people had played it: 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42. Numbers on a Powerball ticket in a recent episode of a soap opera, "The Young and the Restless," didn't match, either. Nor did the winning numbers form a pattern on the lottery grid, like a cross or a diagonal. Then the winners started arriving at lottery offices.
"Our first winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie," said Rebecca Paul, chief executive of the Tennessee Lottery. "The second winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie. The third winner came in and said it was a fortune cookie."
Investigators visited dozens of Chinese restaurants, takeouts and buffets. Then they called fortune cookie distributors and learned that many different brands of fortune cookies come from the same Long Island City factory, which is owned by Wonton Food and churns out four million a day.
"That's ours," said Derrick Wong, of Wonton Food, when shown a picture of a winner's cookie slip. "That's very nice, 110 people won the lottery from the numbers."
The same number combinations go out in thousands of cookies a day. The workers put numbers in a bowl and pick them. "We are not going to do the bowl anymore; we are going to have a computer," Mr. Wong said. "It's more efficient."
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
It takes a village?
Talking to a friend last night, I learnt that her stepmother will not allow her to discipline or correct or anything her (half) siblings. Basically it's be fluffy and nice, or nothing. Is this the way society is heading, the complete breakdown of the function of extended family? It seems that more and more, parents are the sole authority figures in a child’s life. Heaven help us if a teacher tries to discipline a child, or even suggest that their behaviour is less than stellar. And we all know what happens to bus drivers who dare to assert their authority – they get accused of kidnapping!
And yet, the phrase ‘it takes a village’ is still being thrown around. Every shopping centre now has special parking for pregnant/new mothers. Cash handouts from society go to every new mother now. And yet we get nothing in return. If we see a child misbehaving it is not acceptable to say anything, or even throw a dirty look their way. I have the ‘luck’ of travelling on the train with Newtown High School kids every day, and their behaviour is woeful. And yet we must suffer in silence while the little darlings cause absolute chaos. Can you imagine the outrage if one of the passengers ever told them off? Or if CityRail staff read them the riot act?
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind pitching in and helping out for the common good, community and society are big beliefs of mine (yes I know, bloody hippy right?) BUT this all falls down when all you do is take… today’s children may be tomorrow’s society, but if they aren’t taught that they have a responsibility to society as well as a right to its benefits then I’m moving to Lower Mongolia. Or Yass. Whichever has better weather.
It makes me SO grateful that my friends are all good, sensible parents whose kids are a pleasure to spend time with.
And yet, the phrase ‘it takes a village’ is still being thrown around. Every shopping centre now has special parking for pregnant/new mothers. Cash handouts from society go to every new mother now. And yet we get nothing in return. If we see a child misbehaving it is not acceptable to say anything, or even throw a dirty look their way. I have the ‘luck’ of travelling on the train with Newtown High School kids every day, and their behaviour is woeful. And yet we must suffer in silence while the little darlings cause absolute chaos. Can you imagine the outrage if one of the passengers ever told them off? Or if CityRail staff read them the riot act?
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind pitching in and helping out for the common good, community and society are big beliefs of mine (yes I know, bloody hippy right?) BUT this all falls down when all you do is take… today’s children may be tomorrow’s society, but if they aren’t taught that they have a responsibility to society as well as a right to its benefits then I’m moving to Lower Mongolia. Or Yass. Whichever has better weather.
It makes me SO grateful that my friends are all good, sensible parents whose kids are a pleasure to spend time with.
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Sexy older men
What is it about certain older actors, often British, but not always , that is really sexy. I'm talking Bill Nighy, Robert Lindsay, Robson Green, Anthony Head (PM from Little Britain), Nigel Havers, Don Warrington, Pierce Brosnan. Lets include Kevin Spacey, Alan Rickman, John Malkovich (cheating a bit on this one - from Dangerous Liasions). Of course we have to include Mr Darcy in this list too.
Why are these men thinking women's crumpet? What is it about them that sets them apart from George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and the babies like Orlando Bloom and Colin Farrell?
The only exception is Michael Douglas - never been able to see the attraction there.
Why are these men thinking women's crumpet? What is it about them that sets them apart from George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and the babies like Orlando Bloom and Colin Farrell?
The only exception is Michael Douglas - never been able to see the attraction there.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
They need to watch CSI
You would think that in this day and age of three, count 'em three versions of CSI, people wouldn't make elementary mistakes when faking their own deaths. But apparently, the message just isn't getting through to some people.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=49674
At least choose a male corpse guys. Also, dyeing your hair black and pretending not to be your child's father? Oh please, my two year old would see through that one. Otherwise we'd have a western world full of traumatised kiddies who didn't recognise their parents after they'd been to the hairdresser. The Beckham's Nanny would be selling stories about the kids going to therapy because they didn't recognise Daddy because he's changed his hair style again.
Commonsense really isn't common.
Like the couple in this story
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=49674
At least choose a male corpse guys. Also, dyeing your hair black and pretending not to be your child's father? Oh please, my two year old would see through that one. Otherwise we'd have a western world full of traumatised kiddies who didn't recognise their parents after they'd been to the hairdresser. The Beckham's Nanny would be selling stories about the kids going to therapy because they didn't recognise Daddy because he's changed his hair style again.
Commonsense really isn't common.
Free Media?
From Crikey.com.au's email bulletin
Crikey's done it again – we've sparked another budget ban. It seems Treasury officials didn't much like it when we reported last week that two journos from the yoof website Vibewire were going to the budget lock-up. But instead of seeing the inconstency of their stance and letting Crikey in, Vibewire.net got a call on Friday saying that its journos weren't welcome because Treasury is "tightening up the definition of mainstream media". So if you'd like to help Treasury boffin Ray Gavin get his story straight, email him at rgavin@treasury.gov.au. And apologies to Vibewire – it didn't deserve to get sucked into this petty stand-off.
'Mainstream' Media? Does that mean only Murdoch and Fairfax? And why should only 'mainstream' media be allowed into the lockup? Out-fucking-rageous. No wonder people in this country don't give a toss, the information they get is CRAP.
grrrrr *angry face*
Crikey's done it again – we've sparked another budget ban. It seems Treasury officials didn't much like it when we reported last week that two journos from the yoof website Vibewire were going to the budget lock-up. But instead of seeing the inconstency of their stance and letting Crikey in, Vibewire.net got a call on Friday saying that its journos weren't welcome because Treasury is "tightening up the definition of mainstream media". So if you'd like to help Treasury boffin Ray Gavin get his story straight, email him at rgavin@treasury.gov.au. And apologies to Vibewire – it didn't deserve to get sucked into this petty stand-off.
'Mainstream' Media? Does that mean only Murdoch and Fairfax? And why should only 'mainstream' media be allowed into the lockup? Out-fucking-rageous. No wonder people in this country don't give a toss, the information they get is CRAP.
grrrrr *angry face*
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
Burgers anyone?
A bar in Pennsylvania has just introduced the world's biggest burger. This puppy weighs in at 8.8kg. That is 2/3 of the weight of my 2yr old. Why on earth would anyone want to eat that much? The bar owner proudly states that it can feed a family of ten.
Lets have a little run down of whatcha get with one of these babies:
4.8 kilograms of mince beef, 25 slices of cheese, a head of lettuce, three tomatoes, two onions, 1 cups each of mayonnaise, relish, tomato sauce, mustard and banana peppers - and a bun. see the whole story at
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Truly-gross/2005/05/04/1115092538933.html
(apologies to Zoe, I printed and deleted linky love and left it at home)
Is this bar owner trying to make us all turn into human boa constrictors. Should I be practicing unhinging my jaw for this new world order? The sleeping the meal off for a few months I can do. Easily.
In fact I could start right now I'm so tired. Which is ridiculous, I went to bed at 7.40pm last night. Feberising doesn't work, I've discovered. I take the toddler out of bed so he stops screaming, before the neighbours call the police. Then, one very tired toddler and I go to bed. Lights out and one toddler asleep. Lights back on so Mummy can read for an hour or so before she is lulled to sleep by the gentle sound of toddler snoring. Even thinking about it is making me sleepy. Goodnight.
Lets have a little run down of whatcha get with one of these babies:
4.8 kilograms of mince beef, 25 slices of cheese, a head of lettuce, three tomatoes, two onions, 1 cups each of mayonnaise, relish, tomato sauce, mustard and banana peppers - and a bun. see the whole story at
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Truly-gross/2005/05/04/1115092538933.html
(apologies to Zoe, I printed and deleted linky love and left it at home)
Is this bar owner trying to make us all turn into human boa constrictors. Should I be practicing unhinging my jaw for this new world order? The sleeping the meal off for a few months I can do. Easily.
In fact I could start right now I'm so tired. Which is ridiculous, I went to bed at 7.40pm last night. Feberising doesn't work, I've discovered. I take the toddler out of bed so he stops screaming, before the neighbours call the police. Then, one very tired toddler and I go to bed. Lights out and one toddler asleep. Lights back on so Mummy can read for an hour or so before she is lulled to sleep by the gentle sound of toddler snoring. Even thinking about it is making me sleepy. Goodnight.
Generation Gap
Few things scare me, I'm a pretty brave lil tiger.
But today I received a text message from my mum. My mum the librarian, who has a BA in English and Geography, and won the university medal for her degree in Information Management. She who is still studying.
"R u at wk 2day?"
It freaks me out. Speakee English Woman.
But today I received a text message from my mum. My mum the librarian, who has a BA in English and Geography, and won the university medal for her degree in Information Management. She who is still studying.
"R u at wk 2day?"
It freaks me out. Speakee English Woman.
Monday, May 02, 2005
Rights/Responsibilities
In a pre-coffee haze on Saturday morning I heard a politician say (in relation to the current IVF debate) that the RIGHT to have children was the most important right that we had in this country.
Most important?
Does this mean that as a society we have gotten so blasé about things like freedom of religion, speech, the rights to shelter, food, education, healthcare, a fair justice system, the right to vote, live in safety etc that we can now bicker over this?
I’m not saying that the right for people to chose whether to bear and raise children isn’t important. I’m just questioning whether it is the MOST important, and I doubt we have actually got to a stage where those other things have ceased to be an issue and we are certain that they will never be taken away from us.
And in all this talk of rights, where is the mention of responsibility?
Most important?
Does this mean that as a society we have gotten so blasé about things like freedom of religion, speech, the rights to shelter, food, education, healthcare, a fair justice system, the right to vote, live in safety etc that we can now bicker over this?
I’m not saying that the right for people to chose whether to bear and raise children isn’t important. I’m just questioning whether it is the MOST important, and I doubt we have actually got to a stage where those other things have ceased to be an issue and we are certain that they will never be taken away from us.
And in all this talk of rights, where is the mention of responsibility?
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