Sign of the times

Did a quick overnight trip up through the north-east of the state on Tuesday/Wednesday. The thing that struck me most was the devastating effects of the drought. Down here in suburbia we have water restrictions but, other than that, there's no real reminders of the situation. But, out in rural areas it's a very real problem. I saw so many dead trees it was depressing. These were River Red Gums, which are the most magnificent trees in normal circumstances. A very sad sight.

Sign of the times, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Even sadder was that every creeek and small river we crossed was empty. I'm not exaggerating here either - every one! Some of the bigger rivers were looking very depleted too.



Eildon Weir is also completely empty. This photo was taken last year but nothing has changed since then. If you look closely you can make out the normal water level marks on the pillars holding up the bridge. There should only be a few feet of pillar showing, not the whole damn pillar!.
Eildon is usually a place for houseboats, water-skiing, boating in general. Not now.

One Word Meme and a 123 meme

Saw these at Wendy's - looks like fun....

All you have to do is answer the questions with one word, and tag four people. Tag yourself if you want to play along.

1. Where is your cell phone? Bed
2. Your significant other? Who?
3. Your hair? Greying
4. Your mother? Muriel
5. Your father? John
6. Your favorite thing? Music
7. Your dream last night? Gone
8 Your favorite drink? Vodka
9. Your dream/goal? Travel
10. The room you’re in? Bookshop
11. Your hobby? Photography
12. Your fear? Falling
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Somewhere
14. What you’re not? Gay
15. Muffins? Occasionally
16. One of your wish list items? Gibson
17. Where you grew up? Liverpool
18. The last thing you did? phonecall
19. What are you wearing? Clothes
20. Favorite gadget? Camera
21. Your pets? None
22. Your computer? Laptop
23. Your mood? Anticipation
24. Missing someone? No
25. Your car? Corolla
26. Something you’re not wearing? Bathers
27. Favorite store? Bookshop
28. Like someone? Sure
29. Your favorite color? Blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? Today
31. Last time you cried? Yesterday

123 meme:
The rules
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you. As always, tag yourself if so inclined.

"Friends of one of the others," the Dune man said. "Just friends from a village who wanted to see the spice sands."
Kynes turned away, "Fremen!"
- Dune by Frank Herbert

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Loneliness :: of the long distance runner


2. Traffic :: jam


3. Chaos :: bookshop


4. Burp :: 'scuse me


5. 500 :: D


6. Movie :: film


7. Coma :: -tose


8. Bark :: tree


9. Stare :: it's rude to


10. Angelina :: I so don't want to write "Jolie" but there's nothing else I can think of.

from here

Happiness is.... this week's collaboration.

With Janet. I don't know about you, but live music played well is always a happy experience for me. Unless you've been living in Outer Space you'd be aware that I saw The Cure in August '07 and absolutely loved the show. It still brings a smile to my face when I think about it. In June of this year Madame Snape went to a Robert Plant/Alison Krauss gig. A show I'd love to see too but I doubt Australia is on their tour agenda. Oh well, I'll just have to hang out for the full blown Led Zeppelin tour. :)

Happiness is...., originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "bright". What could be brighter than the sun?

Sun crop 3, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Happy Birthday Paula

Paula, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Contemplating the approach of the big five-oh next year.

Memememememe

Saw this at Susan's.

1. What is the last thing you googled or searched for online?
ND (neutral density) filters
2. Who is the last person you kissed?
Uncle Brian - and it was a very chaste "goodbye, see you next year" type of kiss!
3. When is the last time you got flipped off? Or flipped someone off?
In jest, yesterday at my sisters - football banter. Not in jest, I can't remember.
4. What did you have for breakfast today?
Coffee
5. What was your favorite song or album when you were fourteen?
Led Zeppelin II (1969, sheesh!)
6. What is the last thing you laughed out loud about?
this

Tag yourself if you feel so inclined.

Doctor Page OBE

The University of Surrey is proud to confer the honorary degree of Doctor of the University to Jimmy Page for services to the music industry. The award was made on Friday, June 20 at Guildford Cathedral. Jimmy generously signed a guitar (see attached photo) which will be given away in a competition at the upcoming GuilFest festival. Surrey’s involvement with GuilFest this year celebrates its innovative music programmes that reflect the diversity of contemporary musical practice.
James Patrick “Jimmy” Page, OBE is a world renowned guitarist and composer. Born in Middlesex in 1944, he grew up in Epsom, Surrey where he developed a passion for both painting and music. Throughout the 1960’s he was in demand as a session musician, leading eventually to his becoming a member of The Yardbirds. After various personnel changes, the band renamed themselves Led Zeppelin, and played under that name for the first time at the University of Surrey on October 25th 1968.
Over the next decade Led Zeppelin effectively redefined ‘rock’ music, drawing on a wide range of influences to create a string of legendary albums which have, to date, sold over 300 million copies. Led Zeppelin are unquestionably one of the most important and influential ‘rock’ bands ever, and the highly successful reunion concert at The O2 in 2007 shows the phenomenal interest in their music which persists today. Through his work with Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page, a major creative force within the band, became universally recognised as being one of the greatest and most versatile guitarists of all time.
Away from music, he has been involved in the Action for Brazil’s Children Trust, or ABC Trust. His commitment to this cause goes back to 1994 where he witnessed first hand unrest in the largest of Rio de Janeiro’s shanty towns. He resolved there and then to do something to help, which led to the establishment of “Casa Jimmy”, a shelter for abandoned street children, which continues to be run successfully today and has helped over 250 children to find a better life. Building on this, the ABC Trust was set up with Jimmy Page as the founding patron. In 2005 he was awarded an OBE in recognition of his charitable work, and also made an honorary citizen of Rio de Janeiro later that same year.



Seen here

Friday Fill-ins

1. Birthdays are everywhere this week. Evan, Janet, Paula.

2. Spring is my favorite season because everything comes out of hiding.

3. I feel my best when I can relax.

4. Whatever someone else cooks is my favorite food!

5. First impressions are usually correct.

6. The best piece of advice I ever received was listen to this!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to doing nothing, tomorrow my plans include possibly another b'day dinner for Paula and Sunday, I want to do not much at all!

FFI

stress relief

Bubblewrap

World's End

by Mark Chadbourn.
Book 1 of the Age of Misrule trilogy.
Basically a classic fantasy in that the central character turns out to be the hero needed to fight off the forces of evil and save the world.
However, it's more than that. There are five unlikely heroes - the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons. The world, well actually just Britain so far, is under threat from the Fomorii and the Night Walkers; ancient evils who have broken the covenant with the ancient Celtic gods and are attempting to reinvade the land. These are creatures of horror.
To prevent them taking over, the 5 heroes must find the 4 Celtic talismans, hidden for centuries, and free the Celtic gods, the Danann, from their place of exile. Only then can the evil be banished once more.
For a while the story turned into yet another Grail hunt which had me sighing with "oh no, not again, not another Grail story". But, thankfully, that was only a smallish part of the tale.
It's a story that gallops along at a reasonably adventurous pace. Plenty of mythology, magic and more than enough bloodthirsty horror. The 5 "heroes" are quite disparate people - 2 women, 3 men. All carry plenty of baggage and there's little love lost between them all. There's action aplenty which kept me turning the pages in anticipation. At times they escaped dire circumstances a little too easily but not so that it spoiled the story.
By the end of this first book of the trilogy they have freed the Danann and the evils appear to have been vanquished. However, the Danann have made it clear that they are not about to leave. Instead, the land is now theirs for the taking.
Book 2 awaits......

And so it begins...

Wimbledon.
Two weeks of sleepless nights coming up. Roger (my man) Federer has already won his first round match. Shame about the face 'cos the rest of him is hot hot hot. Best backhand ever. Poetry in motion.

This is a weeping song

No visuals on the video but the live sound is great. Lyrics below the vid.




To have his arms around me, to sense his perfect trust
I'd give all I ever had, all I ever had.

I'd love to see him dream, I'd love to watch him sleep
To have his arms around me,
Held his arms in mine, sense his perfect trust
I'd give all I ever had for a moment of his love

He's my heart and my soul
He's my blood and my bones
He's my prayers and my hope
My wishes and dreams
Seems so long ago, so long ago.

I'd love to watch him dream, love to see him sleep
To have his arms around me, feel him as he breathes
Hold his hands in mine, sense his perfect trust
I'd give all I ever had for a moment of his love

He's my heart and my soul
He's my blood and my bones
He's my prayers and my hopes
My wishes and dreams
Seems so long ago.

He's my blood and my bones
He's my heart and my soul
He's my prayers and my hopes
My wishes and dreams

A boy I never knew
And the man I'll never know
I'll never know, I'll never know.

To have his arms around me, sense his perfect trust
I'd give all I ever had.
- A Boy I Never Knew - The Cure

Freakshow

Tagged

By Shirl

The Rules:

Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What I was doing 10 years ago:
Teaching History at Emerald Secondary College

What 5 things are on on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
Sell books, add books to database, upload databased books to the website, price and shelve books, recharge camera battery.

Snacks I enjoy:
Toast, cheese, dips and crackers, anything really.

Things I would do if I was a billionaire:
Quit work. Employ someone else to run the bookshop. Travel the world. Buy a swanky house on the beach somewhere a bit further north of here. Pay off all family debts, mortgages, etc. Buy a '59 Gibson Les Paul. Travel the world again. And again.

Places I have lived:
Liverpool, England. Melbourne, Australia.
Tag yourself if you feel so inclined.

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Goodbye :: You say goodbye, I say hello. Hello hello.


2. Cage :: trap


3. Buddy :: friend


4. Magic words :: abracadabra


5. Library :: books


6. Fall in love :: don't


7. Tense :: stressed


8. Work! :: a four letter word


9. Empty :: void


10. Heat wave :: NOT HERE!!

from here

Happy Birthday Janet :)

Yay. Sort of.

Saints had a win last night. Beat Fremantle 65 to 57. Low scoring, scrappy game which wasn't pretty to watch. But still, a win's a win. Not out of it just yet.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "water". I had a few to choose from :)

Water, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Photo meme - kinda fun :)

Photo meme - kinda fun :), originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

The concept:
1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
2. Using only the first page of results, and pick one image.
3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Big Huge Lab’s Mosaic Maker to create a mosaic of the picture answers.

The questions:
1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food? right now?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. What is your favorite drink?
7. What is your dream vacation?
8. What is your favorite dessert?
9. What do you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?
11. What is one word that describes you?
12. What is your flickr name?

If you click on the mosaic it'll take you to flickr where I have the answers and links to the original photographs in the comments. Play along if you feel so inclined.

Friday Fill-ins

1. A smile is priceless.
2. Pictionary is my favorite board or card game.
3. I would love to have more money in my life and less stress.
4. When I think of the Summer Solstice, I think of Christmas.
5. I just remembered I need to try on my costume to see if it fits.
6. One of my favorite song lyrics goes like this: I've been looking so long at these pictures of you
That I almost believe that they're real.
I've been living so long with my pictures of you
That I almost believe that the pictures are all I can feel - Pictures of You by The Cure
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to preparing for tomorrow night, tomorrow my plans include our annual Medieval party and Sunday, I want to recover!

FFI

Thursday Thirteen

I pinched this idea from Madame Snape. Thirteen of my most viewed photographs on Flickr.

13 of my most viewed photos, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

T13

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Purchase :: buy


2. Squeaky clean :: brand new


3. Blended :: scotch


4. Wednesday :: what is it?


5. Function :: key


6. Look down :: and around


7. July? :: No, Julie


8. Raspberry :: Beret


9. Assertive :: forceful


10. Cracker :: cheese

from here

This week's collaboration

This week's photo with Janet, who was definitely the leader this week. I have to admit to being absolutely clueless when it comes to photographing food. It's a lot harder than it looks.
It just so happened that we'd cooked the same thing (hehe) - although the methods were different. I deviated a fair bit from the recipe, which calls for bbq, and baked my chook in the oven. BBQ? - in this weather? No way! But, oven baking the chicken made it look all pale and ick in the photo. Tasted great though.
This week was a real challenge.

I had honey-mint chicken for dinner, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "emotions". I went through some family shots and put together this collage which shows, I hope, the positive side of the emotional coin.

Emotions, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Friday Fill-ins

1. Travelling the world is high up on my bucket list.
2. My favorite quote is I believe in long, slow, deep, soft, wet kisses that last three days; it's from Bull Durham.
3. Shirl inspired me to start blogging.
4. Strawberries are best soaked in champagne.
5. A visit from Janet wearing a dress is the last dream I remember having.
6. The most enjoyable time to go for a walk is at sunset, along the beach.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to watching the footy on TV in front of the fire, tomorrow my plans include work, then a family dinner and Sunday, I want to have sold enough books to pay the bills!
FFI

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen photographs of my phone. Taken for the One Object 365 Days Project on Flickr. So far I'm up to day 271 of 365 and I'm beginning to worry that the phone is not going to last the distance. The wear and tear is beginning to show. Anyway, if you're interested you can see the full set of pics here.

Phone X 13, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

T13

Banned books

I saw this meme over at Wendy's and had to do it. The titles in bold are the ones I have read at one time or another.

#1 The Bible - bits of it only.
#2 Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
#3 Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes
#4 The Koran
#5 Arabian Nights
#6 Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
#7 Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
#8 Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer - I've read bits and pieces of this one.
#9 Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
#10 Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
#11 Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
#12 Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
#13 Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
#14 Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert
#15 Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
#16 Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
#17 Dracula by Bram Stoker
#18 Autobiography by Benjamin Franklin
#19 Tom Jones by Henry Fielding
#20 Essays by Michel de Montaigne
#21 Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
#22 The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon
#23 Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
#24 Origin of Species by Charles Darwin - dipped into it but haven't read the whole thing.
#25 Ulysses by James Joyce - tried, couldn't do it.
#26 Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
#27 Animal Farm by George Orwell
#28 Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell - Everyone should read this book.
#29 Candide by Voltaire
#30 To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
#31 Analects by Confucius
#32 Dubliners by James Joyce
#33 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
#34 Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
#35 Red and the Black by Stendhal
#36 Das Capital by Karl Marx - although I had no idea what it was saying!
#37 Flowers of Evil by Charles Baudelaire
#38 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
#39 Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence
#40 Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
#41 Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser
#42 Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
#43 Jungle by Upton Sinclair
#44 All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
#45 Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx
#46 Lord of the Flies by William Golding
#47 Diary by Samuel Pepys - another one I've dipped into but haven't read properly.
#48 Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
#49 Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
#50 Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
#51 Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
#52 Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant - I did two years of Philosophy at university. Two wasted years at the time.
#53 One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
#54 Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus
#55 Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
#56 Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X
#57 Color Purple by Alice Walker - saw the film.
#58 Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
#59 Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke
#60 The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
#61 Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe
#62 One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn - this was a school novel.
#63 East of Eden by John Steinbeck
#64 Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
#65 I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
#66 Confessions by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#67 Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais
#68 Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes
#69 The Talmud
#70 Social Contract by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#71 Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson - this was banned? We teach it to 12 year olds here.
#72 Women in Love by D. H. Lawrence
#73 American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
#74 Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler - bits of it. The most turgid book ever written.
#75 A Separate Peace by John Knowles
#76 Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
#77 Red Pony by John Steinbeck
#78 Popol Vuh
#79 Affluent Society by John Kenneth Galbraith
#80 Satyricon by Petronius
#81 James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
#82 Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
#83 Black Boy by Richard Wright
#84 Spirit of the Laws by Charles de Secondat Baron de Montesquieu
#85 Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut
#86 Julie of the Wolves by Jean Craighead George
#87 Metaphysics by Aristotle
#88 Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder - saw the TV show
#89 Institutes of the Christian Religion by Jean Calvin
#90 Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse
#91 Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
#92 Sanctuary by William Faulkner
#93 As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
#94 Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin
#95 Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
#96 Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
#97 General Introduction to Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud
#98 Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
#99 Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Alexander Brown
#100 Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
#101 Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman by Ernest J. Gaines
#102 Émile by Jean Jacques Rousseau
#103 Nana by Émile Zola
#104 Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
#105 Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin
#106 Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
#107 Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
#108 Day No Pigs Would Die by Robert Peck
#109 Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
#110 Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

17th out of 215

Melbourne apparently has the 17th best quality of life ranking of 215 cities worldwide.
It says so here. Zurich tops the list while Baghdad, understandably, is at the bottom.
Australia has 4 cities in the top 35. Not bad :)

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Rambling :: on. Keep a ramblin' baby.


2. Magnetic :: compass


3. Again! :: and again and again and again and again.


4. Acoustic :: guitar


5. Mahogany :: wood


6. Promises :: broken


7. Ill fitting :: clothes


8. Sublime :: ridiculous


9. Poop :: deck


10. Disoriented :: confused

from here

Half way through the season.....

Saints have won 5, lost 6. Finals are looking more and more unlikely. Even the coach came out last week and labelled the players "soft". I think he may be right.
*sigh*

This week's collaboration

with Janet. Again showing the seasonal differences between here (Melbourne) and there (Boston) - this time through shots of trees in the backyard.

Winter gloom, Summer sunshine, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Friday Fill-ins

1. Idle hands are twiddling their thumbs.
2. I love getting clean in the shower.
3. My favorite time of the day is when I can feel relaxed. Somedays, that's never.
4. The last tea I drank was about an hour ago.
5. I like to get wet in the Summer.
6. My mother always said "tut". And still does.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to being warm, tomorrow my plans include not saying in case they fall through and Sunday, I want to enjoy a Saints win, although I'm not hopeful!

FFI

Thursday Thirteen - Mornington Peninsula

Thirteen of the photos I took on the trip down to Mornington on Tuesday.

Mornington Peninsula, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

T13

Yesterday

Yesterday I went down to Mornington, the extreme south-eastern part of Port Phillip Bay, to see a photographic exhibition. The exhibition features photographs of Led Zeppelin during their 1972 concert at the Sydney Showgrounds. Most of the photos featured either Jimmy Page or Robert Plant. There were three shots of the whole band, put together as a triptych, and one each of John Paul Jones and John Bonham. All were black and white and huge. The largest were 4 feet by 5 feet in size. Prints of those can be ordered for a lazy $3500. The smaller ones start at $1200. Shame about the price because they'd look magnificent on my wall!
No cameras were allowed inside but I did manage to sneak a couple of shots with the phone's camera. Terrible quality but at least it's something.

Phone sneaks a peek at the guitar god of all time., originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

After the exhibition I wandered around Mornington for a bit and then headed further south to Portsea. I thought I might get some nice sunset shots at the ocean beach there. However, I was way too early. By the time I got back to Mornington the sun was starting to go down so I stopped there again and lugged the camera and tripod down to a little beach near the pier.

The Only One

New song from The Cure - the first single of the new album, due out later this year. Dunno about this one. When I first heard it I thought it reminded me too much of earlier stuff - like Friday I'm In Love and songs like that. The happy side of The Cure. I always did prefer the doom and gloom atmospheric songs.
Check out the tattoos on Porl Thompson!!

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Gossipping :: idle chatter


2. Misplaced :: lost


3. Spaceship :: Enterprise


4. Ignore :: disregard


5. Bodily :: functions


6. Tweezers :: splinter


7. Goodnight :: Irene


8. Curls :: hair


9. Faucet :: tap


10. Right? :: right!

from here

This week's collaboration

This week's collaboration with Madame Snape is based on "breakfast". The idea (Janet's) was to use products peculiar to our own countries. That meant, of course, that Vegemite had to be on the menu.

Uncle Toby's Strawberry Fields, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

A Forest

Bumping this back up to the top for Stuff Portrait Friday by RandomAndOdd
Anything goes for the music theme this week. Here's my tribute to The Cure's A Forest

Autumn leaves, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Closer and see
see into the trees
find the girl
while you can
Closer and see
see into the dark
just follow your eyes
just follow your eyes

I hear her voice
calling my name
the sound is deep
in the dark
I hear her voice
and start to run
into the trees
into the trees

into the trees

Suddenly I stop
but I know it's too late
I'm lost in a forest
all alone
The girl was never there
It's always the same
I'm running towards nothing
again and again and again

Friday Fill-ins

1. For me censorship is the opposite of creativity.
2. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger was the last excellent book I read.
3. I like fill-ins because I dunno why, I just do.
4. In nature I like looking at all of it.
5. The best person for the job should win the US elections.
6. The last time I laughed with all my belly was yesterday when I saw Skelly's new hairdo.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to nothing special, tomorrow my plans include work as usual and Sunday, I want to be smiling. So come on Saints, get your act together!

FFI

Survey Addicts Anonymous

Seen at Kwizgiver

Do you wear slippers? When it's cold, yes.

How many pictures are in your living room? One big print and dozens of photos

Do you wear a bra to bed at night? No

Do you ever watch Brady Bunch reruns? No.

Are you allergic to anything? Penicillin

When was the last time you called in sick? 2 or 3 weeks ago when I sliced my finger

Have you ever been in a car accident? Yes

What is your favorite snack food? Cheese

Do you think you have a big butt? No need to think -yes.

Would you like to look like your mom when you are her age? No, but I hope I have her energy.

Have you ever seen a tornado? No

Do you think Barack Obama is sexy? No

If you won a million dollars, what would you buy first? '59 Les Paul

What time is it right now? 10.18pm

Are you pregnant? No

Have you ever been pregnant? Yes

Do you like men who wear pink shirts and flip-flops? Not at the same time

How many pairs of shoes do you own? Including my thongs, five.

Do you think you are a hypocondriac? No

Do you own a dictionary? Yes

Where was the last place you went on vacation? Queenscliff

Do you talk about your friends behind their back? Only the good stuff

Are you actually fat but are in complete denial about it? Yes but there's no denial about it.

What color is your mouse pad? N/A

Does your kitchen have a theme? Chaos

Do you like to mow the yard? Pffft, no.

Are you addicted to using Febreze? I don't know what Febreze is, so no.

What is your ring size? No idea

When was the last time you consumed alcohol? About an hour ago.

Do you know someone who gets food stamps? No. We don't have them here.

Do you have a basement in your home? No

Are you still in love with 1 of your exes? No

Any big plans for the summer? Who knows, so far away.

What is your favorite comfort food? Alcohol

Do you prefer broccoli or asparagus? Broccoli

What color are your bedroom walls? Peachy

Who do you live with? The boss, his girlfriend (off and on), his dad.

Which Star Wars movie is your favorite? None

How about Harry Potter? Haven't seen them all so probably the first, cos I know I've seen that one.

What was the last movie you saw in theatres? Mr Brooks

Did you get the popcorn or the candy? Neither

What is the most romantic text in your inbox? Hahahaha! Yeah right.

Have you ever played miniature golf on a date? No

What's a phrase you overuse? Fuck it.

Where do you buy most of your shoes? Rebel Sports

Do you always use good grammer? Yes.

Do you have an accent or a speach impediment? I think not but people overseas might think I have an Ocker accent.

What did you eat today? Grilled fish for lunch, spinach and ricotta pasta for dinner.

What do you do at work? Sell used books, occasionally.

Do you know the rules to any sports? Yes

Do you prefer to watch or play sports? Tennis - play. Others - watch.

What is your favorite kind of hat to wear? Don't wear hats.

Do you pray? No

Who do you pray to? No-one.

What is the closest mountain to your house? Mount Dandenong

When is the next time you will move? No idea.

Isn't there something better you could be doing right now? At 10.30pm, probably.

Is there anything good on TV? not now.

Does your significant other have a myspace? N/A

What is your dream marriage proposal? The one the man of my dreams comes up with.

What are your nicknames and who gave them to you? Jules - family. Jewels - the boss (he can't spell), Strahanie - what I was known as when I was still teaching.

How often do you wear jewelery? Rarely.

What size engine is in your vehicle? 1800cc

What do you need to do tomorrow? Sell books

Who do you hope never to see again? My ex-boss, the principal at ESC. Bastard!

Which friend of yours lives the farthest away? Shirl.

D'ya drink beer?

Fancy a trip to The Ocean?

In The Light

Alarming headline

Local paper up in the Yarra Valley. Apparently, a laptop exploded, was tossed on to the sofa which caught fire and the whole house burnt down. The family escaped unharmed.

Alarming headline, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Referral :: medical


2. Indiana :: Jones - haven't seen it and probably won't.


3. Foil :: aluminium


4. Horizon :: never straight


5. Event :: happening


6. Sailing :: yachting


7. Footage :: film


8. Sunday :: today


9. Breathtaking :: photograph


10. Dude! :: what Janet calls me

from here

Sob

Saints are getting slaughtered.

Edit: came back from 75 points down to lose by 40something. *sigh*
4 wins, 5 losses now. Not good enough.

This week's collaboration

with Janet. My sister's dog, Lily at Phillip Island, Vic., and Janet's Wolf at Salisbury, MA.

It's a dog's life, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Meme time

Saw this at Janet's.
What were you doing five years ago?
Teaching.
What are five things on your to-do list for today?
Sell books
Shelve books
Add books to database
Cook Janet's recipe for dinner.
Listen to the Saints game
What are five snacks you enjoy?
Cheese
Dips and crackers
Toast
Cashews
Peppers stuffed with fetta
What five things would you do if you were a billionaire?
Pay off my debts.
Pay off my family's debts.
Buy a swanky house.
Travel the world, several times.
Buy a '59 Les Paul.
What are five of your bad habits?
Smoking
Grinding my teeth
Idleness
Frowning
Procrastination
What are five places where you have lived?
Liverpool, England.
Melbourne, Australia
That's all.
What are five jobs you’ve had?
Teacher
Bookseller
That's all again
What five people do you want to tag?
Whoever wants to play along.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is shoes. Here's the shoe phone :)

"Get Smart!" "How?" "On the shoe phone of course!", originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Friday Fill-in

1. On my laziest day I like to read and listen to music!
2. Books on shelves makes me feel like I'm being productive.
3. I love little acts of kindness and big presents.
4. This summer I want to who knows? It's so far away.
5. Shirl made me start my blog.
6. Red roses and orange juice.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to being toasty in front of the fire, tomorrow my plans include work as usual and Sunday, I want to be celebrating a Saints win. Ha!

FFI

The Time Traveler's Wife

by Audrey Niffenegger. Gorgeous book.
Essentially it's a love story, which is not normally my cup of tea. It's the story of Clare, firmly in the here and now, and Henry, the time traveler. He has a genetic disorder which causes him to flit back and forth in time. However, he only ever visits his own lifetime, doesn't travel to the distant past or future. Chronologically, the book more or less follows Clare's life from the age of six, when she first meets Henry who is aged 36 at the time. They eventually get married when Clare is 22 and Henry 30. Each "chapter" is titled with the date and the ages of Clare and Henry. The writing is first-person present tense. Sometimes the first person is Clare, sometimes it's Henry. I think it takes an very talented writer to produce a story in a particular voice, rather than just as a narrative. To produce it in two voices takes extraordinary talent.
There are various philosophical undercurrents throughout the book - particularly the concept of free will versus determinism. When Henry is travelling is he really free to do as he chooses or must he stick to the script, so to speak? One thing he does do is hand out some advice on stocks and shares and lottery ticket numbers :). Another theme is how people deal with loss of loved ones. Genetic engineering is another. I won't say more on those as it would give away too much of the story.
All in all I loved this book. It's beautifully written, tender, funny, poignant, scary, sad.
Very highly recommended.

Thursday Thirteen

Haven't done one in a while, but today I thought I'd share some of the stupid things people, other than me, say...

1. * Lawyer: "Was that the same nose you broke as a child?"
* Witness: "I only have one, you know."

2. * Lawyer: "What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke that morning?"
* Witness: "He said, 'Where am I, Cathy?'"
* Lawyer: "And why did that upset you?"
* Witness: "My name is Susan."

3. * Lawyer: "How old is your son, the one living with you?"
* Witness: "Thirty-eight or thirty-five, I can't remember which."
* Lawyer: "How long has he lived with you?"
* Witness: "Forty-five years."

4. Lawyer: "You were there until the time you left, is that true?"

5. Lawyer: "The youngest son, the 20 year old, how old is he?"

6. * Witness: "He was about medium height and had a beard."
* Lawyer: "Was this a male or a female?"

7. * Lawyer: "Do you know how far pregnant you are now?"
* Witness: "I'll be three months on November 8."
* Lawyer: "Apparently, then, the date of conception was August 8?"
* Witness: "Yes."
* Lawyer: "What were you doing at that time?"

8. * Lawyer: "How many times have you committed suicide?"
* Witness: "Four times."

9. * Lawyer: "She had three children, right?"
* Witness: "Yes."
* Lawyer: "How many were boys?"
* Witness: "None."
* Lawyer: "Were there girls?"

10. * Lawyer: "Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead people?"
* Witness: "All my autopsies have been performed on dead people."

11. Lawyer: "Now, doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep, in most cases he just passes quietly away and doesn't know anything about it until the next morning?"

12. * Lawyer: "What is your relationship with the plaintiff?"
* Witness: "She is my daughter."
* Lawyer: "Was she your daughter on February 13, 1979?"

13. * Lawyer: "Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?"
* Witness: "No."
* Lawyer: "Did you check for blood pressure?"
* Witness: "No."
* Lawyer: "Did you check for breathing?"
* Witness: "No."
* Lawyer: "So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?"
* Witness: "No."
* Lawyer: "How can you be so sure, Doctor?"
* Witness: "Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar."
* Lawyer: "But could the patient have still been alive nevertheless?"
* Witness: "Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law somewhere."

T13

Huge discovery

If I look at things with my right eye they're always out of focus. If I use my left eye, voila!, everything's all there. Explains a lot about my photography. Now I just have to train myself to hold the camera to the right, in this case the left, eye.

Totally obscene!

Just saw a thing on TV about the outgoing CEO (or whatever he's called) of Macquarie Bank, the largest corporate bank in this country. Poor guy had to take a 24% pay cut this year. He only got 24.8 million dollars. That's obscene. He could give a million bucks each to every person in the country and still have 4.8 million left for himself. Corporate bastards.

Edit: As someone so politely pointed out, I can't count. Still doesn't alter the fact that that's an obscene amount of money.

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Concentration :: sadly lacking


2. Relocated :: moved


3. Clot :: blood


4. Joints :: aching


5. Satellite :: Sputnik


6. Money back :: refund


7. Kittens :: cute


8. Shady :: tree


9. Drain :: -ed


10. Stroke :: breast

from here

Reading....

This Charming Man by Marion Keyes. I've read just about all Keyes' books and enjoyed them all. Funny Irish chicklit. This one, however, is testing my patience. The style it's written in is very annoying. It's a bit like Bridget Jones on steroids. In fact, it's so much like Bridget Jones that, as I'm reading, I can hear Renee Zellweger in my head. Pronouns, prepositions and conjunctions have been thrown out the window which makes for a very jerky read. There's also very little colloquial Irish. That has always made Keyes' other books so very charming and I'm missing it in this one.
I'm seriously considering not reading any further because I'm just not enjoying it.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "candy". This is a Crunchie which I broke open just to take a photograph. Of course, then I had to eat it.

Crunchie, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Friday Fill-in

1. There is absolutely NO way you can get me to touch a spider!
2. Haha, absolutely nothing reminds me that summer is almost here!
3. I cannot live without my computer.
4. Scuba diving and climbing the Eiffel Tower are two things I'd like to try.
5. When life hands you lemons squeeze them like stress balls.
6. Saturday nights at Nanna's is my favorite childhood memory.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to watching my team play Bronnie's team over at her place, tomorrow my plans include just work as usual and Sunday, I want to cook without slicing myself to pieces!
FFI

Stuff Portrait Friday - Song lyrics

Randomandodd hosts SPF. Pics that relate to song lyrics this week:

Ramble On - Led Zeppelin
Leaves are falling all around,
It's time I was on my way.
Thanks to you, I'm much obliged
For such a pleasant stay.

But now it's time for me to go,
The autumn moon lights my way.
For now I smell the rain,
And with it pain,
And it's headed my way.
Ah, sometimes I grow so tired,
But I know I've got one thing I got to do,

Ramble on,
And now's the time, the time is now
To sing my song.
I'm goin' round the world,
I got to find my girl, on my way.
Ive been this way ten years to the day, ramble on,
Gotta find the queen of all my dreams.

Leaves are falling all around, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Misty Mountain Hop - Led Zeppelin
Walkin' in the park just the other day, baby,
What do you, what do you think I saw?
Crowds of people sittin' on the grass with flowers in their hair said,
"Hey, Boy, do you wanna score?"
And you know how it is.
I really don't know what time it was, woh, oh,oh
so I asked them if I could stay awhile.

I didn't notice but it had got very dark and I was really
Really out of my mind.
Just then a policeman stepped up to me and asked us, said, "Please,hey,
would we care to all get in line, Get in line."
Well, you know, they asked us to stay for tea and have some fun; Oh, oh,oh.
he said that his friends would all drop by, ooh.

Why don't you take a good look at yourself and describe what you see,
and baby, baby, baby, do you like it?
There you sit, sitting spare like a book on a shelf rustin',
ah, not trying to fight it.
You really don't care if they're comin'; oh, oh,
I know that it's all a state of mind.

If you go down in the streets today, baby, you better,
you better open your eyes. WOAH WOAH YEAH
Folk down there really don't care, really don't care, don't care , really don't , which, which way the pressure lies,
so I've decided what I'm gonna do now.
So I'm packing my bags for the Misty Mountains
where the spirits go now,
over the hills where the spirits fly.
I really don't know.


Credit to Janet for the mountains half of this.

Secret Garden

Did my regular Tuesday trek out to Warburton yesterday. I was a bit early to pick up Georgia from the bus stop so I wandered along the road a bit to check out this place I drive past to get to Clare's. It's right on the road so it's not that secret really :) The bit of creek comes down the hill and empties into the Yarra, which is directly behind me, across the road. It's private land on this side here so I didn't venture off the road to get better shots. No tripod with me so, to get the long exposure, I set the camera on the ground and pushed the button in hope. Turned out okay I think.

Secret Garden reprise, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Track :: down


2. Snake :: one-eyed trouser


3. Assignment :: homework


4. Blockbuster :: movie


5. Bombastic :: loud


6. Adventure :: story


7. First time :: long time ago


8. Aged :: vintage


9. Grip :: get a


10. Shortcut :: desktop icon

from here

Why do I not know these things?

Man: I want a book for my mother. What do you think she'd like?
Me: Umm, what sort of books does she read?
Man: I don't know. She comes in here a lot.
Me: Sorry, but I don't know which of my customers is your mother. Crime fiction? Romance? Biographies?
Man: I think I'll just get her some flowers.
And off he went.
*sigh*

This week's collaboration

with Janet. I think these two go really well together. Kudos to Madame Snape for spotting the match :)

Circles of pink, originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week we get to share any photo:
I thought I'd go with one of my more successful pics on flickr.
Taken in January 08 at Woolomai surf beach, Phillip Island.

Friday Fill-in

1. The lasagne had an extra secret ingredient; it was my finger and its blood!
2. I see grey skies through my window.
3. Right now, I need coffee.
4. Home is where I went Thursday night; it was chaotic. People over for dinner, much red wine. No-one found my finger but the lasagne was a big hit!
5. Why does a Tetanus shot hurt so much?
6. All I can think of is the pain - in my arm (see above) and in my head (see further above).
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to an early night, tomorrow my plans include family bbq for Mother's Day and Sunday, I want to hopefully have a shower without having to wear a plastic bag on my hand!

FFI

Looking for that extra special flavour?

Bleed into your food.
I was using the very sharp kitchen knife to slice open a packet of shredded Mozzarella to put in the veggie lasagne. The knife went flying right through the packet and right through my finger as well. Well, not right through, just half way through. Ouchies! Mucho blood. After much sucking of blood the gauze and tape were found and the finger bandaged up. Then off to the hospital. Three hours I was there. By the time a doctor got around to looking at it the wound had started to close up (thanks to Sylvia for bandaging it properly!!) so stitches were not required, fortunately. So they cleaned it up, put some sterile strips over it and bandaged it up.
So now I have this whopping great bandage for people to stare at. Much nuisance value in not being able to use the index finger - just as well it's my left hand or it'd be even worse. Now I have to shower with a plastic bag taped around my hand. No doing the dishes for a week (or year) either - so maybe not that much of a nuisance :)
A bit hurties today but I think I'll survive.

Phone thinks I should use the other hand for texting., originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Weekly Word Challenge

Hosted by Pickled Beef but seen at The Snapery. The words are "three" and "fire".

Three little cocky birds sitting on a fence:



Three daisies



Three sculpted children



Fire reflected in the Phone

Unconscious Mutterings

1. State :: of the Nation - by New Order


2. Lively :: up yourself


3. Valet :: butler


4. Traction :: grip


5. Official :: bureaucrat


6. Red hot :: Chili Peppers


7. Powder :: finger


8. Replies :: answers


9. Flagrant :: obvious


10. Tweet :: -ie Pie

from here

Heart stopper!

Saints by 3 points over the Tigers. Oh man, what an exciting game. The lead changed so many times during the game, it really could have gone either way. Tigers had a chance to kick the winning goal right in the last second but missed. Phew big time!!
Unbelievable game.
Go Sainters!!!

There and back again on April 22nd.

This week's collaboration with Janet.
Both pics were taken on the same day, not intentionally I might add. But, they show the opposite seasons pretty well I think.

There and back again on April 22nd., originally uploaded by jsarcadia.

Saturday Photo Hunt

This week's theme is "time".

My sister-in-law's clock. I think it's pretty spiffy.



The Flinders St clocks which show what time the next train leaves on any given line. A Melbourne icon.



The Melbourne Town Hall clock



And, of course, the Phone

Apparently I am...

I'm an apparently intelligent, liberal, tight as fuck, relatively well adjusted human being!
What are you?
Brought to you by Rum and Monkey

Seen at Shirl's

Just read the most bizarre book

Diary of an Amateur Photographer by Graham Rawle.
It's about a guy who decides he wants to be a photographer. He buys himself an old Rollieflex camera and discovers it still has film in it, which he gets developed. It turns out to be a photo of a murder victim, although he interprets it as a picture of an angel. So he sets out to find out as much as he can about the photograph.
The central character, Michael Whittingham, is one of those socially dysfunctional types who lives entirely inside his own head. People he interacts with always have to rush off to appointments, although he never realises that they just want to get away from him. When he's out and about he counts the women he sees and has sex (imaginary) with every tenth one. His imaginings lead him into quite a bit of trouble, especially when he decides to dabble in nude photography and tries to acquire a model.
As I was reading I was constantly reminded of Mr Bean. This guy is that sort of character.
Everything is recorded in his diary - which is the book. It's basically a record of the events and his bizarre interpretations of them. The book itself is set out as a diary. Whittingham's entries are typewritten (on a typewriter, not a computer) and are interspaced with other bits and pieces he's collected; photographs, newspaper ads, all sorts of odd bits and pieces. It's beautifully put together.
The crime is eventually solved - the answer is tucked away in an envelope glued to the inside back cover.
It didn't take long to read but it's a fascinating study of a man not quite in tune with the reality around him.

Stuff Portrait Friday - Song titles

Randomandodd hosts Stuff Portrait Friday. Today the theme is Song Titles. I think I can do that :)

Pictures of You - The Cure



Dazed and Confused - Led Zeppelin



Over The Hills and Far Away - Led Zeppelin



Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin (again)



I, Robot - Alan Parson's Project



Fascination Street - The Cure



I think that'll do :)

Friday Fill-in

1. Two of my favorite ingredients in a drink are alcohol and more alcohol!
2. The stupidity of people often amazes me.
3. You can keep doing that forever, the dog is on guard.
4. Vodka, Tia Maria, coke mix it all together and voila! You have a Black Russian!
5. If I had a yard with a garden, I would love to grow herbs and veggies.
6. Not me, that's for sure! is best au naturel.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to nothing in particular, tomorrow my plans include an underwear party and Sunday, I want to see the sun!
FFI

It's nice, I think I like it, but......

And is it just my imagination or does Percy have man boobs?