Omg, drop dead gorgeous...
Lynne's random ravings about life, the universe and everything with added dashes of crafting and gardening
Friday, January 27, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Australia Day
G'day all!
Ok, it isn't Australia Day here yet, but it's been Australia Day back home for about 16 hours now.
It is sorta weird being in a place that is similar but still quite different to home. Homesickness is starting to kick in. There's still plenty to explore here but I've started noticing a certain longing for familiar things. I went to a knit night at Bad Woman Knits tonight - one of DH's friends lives in the same building. That entertained me but it also reminded me that once again I have to start establishing connections with people.
DH's job is going great guns so far. Tomorrow he will presenting to the Big Boss. He's only been there for 2.5 weeks....
I am heavily into house/apartment hunting at the moment. The place I've liked the look of most is the place that is furthest. Typical! It isn't particularly close to a supermarket either (though I now realise it isn't very far at all, I just forgot about a certain place that we drove past), though I am starting to think that is what Amazon is for. After all, I have to drink the company Kool Aid, even if it is not my workplace. Anyway, the rental market is pretty tight and I am starting to get a bit worried. We only have another week and a bit at this place, and then? Of course even if we get a place, we don't have our furniture yet. We've done the living without furniture thing before and it gets very old very fast. When we moved to Colorado, a workmate of Nathan's brought round two garden chairs, and we used them for about a month as arm chairs. We slept on a full/double bed size futon on the floor (we did that for the entire stay in the US cos after a while, we sorta liked it and the idea of finding a normal, larger, off the ground bed was just too much hassle).
The weather has been kind and cruel to us. After the excitement of Snowmageddon last week (seriously, Seattle is hilly, like it has really steep hills, the sort of hills that you need to plant your foot flat to the floor in a car and they are impassable after snow, and the place half shut down), we had a weekend that was like Melbourne in winter as a cold front hits and then starts clearing. Monday was brilliantly sunny and I went to Ballard to see the locks and the railway bridge and as it turns out the beach and the Olympic mountains. It was brilliant!
Then it was grey all day yesterday and semi-gray today. I have never seen so many shades of grey before, nor of steely, dull blues.
The person who is helping us with the househunting is working out I am not your average chick. I got overly excited (ie I thought it was in the slightest bit exciting) that the bridge at Fremont opened its drawbridge. It didn't worry me that it meant we were stuck there for the time being (maybe about 5 minutes, if that), OMG THE BRIDGE IS OPENING! Bounce! I took pics of it. I put one on G+ but I've not edited any yet.
I'm really hoping that over the next couple of weekends we'll be able to go for a drive and see something other than Seattle. Even if it is raining on and off. Saturday's forecast is for mostly sunny!!! But that would be twice in a week and this is Seattle in the winter! I was told that Monday's weather was unusual, then again Snowmageddon was unusual. It is all unusual for me. I've never lived here before.
Snowmageddon was fun from my POV. We didn't lose power, for starters, no trees fell on our property, we weren't trapped in our neighbourhood (snowploughs and buses!), etc, etc. We got to experience snow! Kids and their dads were having snowball fights outside.
I have been knitting. I pulled out the cowl I started umm four times? Now it is the right size and is getting close to being finished. I should get pics of it, but we don't really get good light here - we are in a courtyard facing east and the best light we get is reflected off the south-facing places by us. I've also finished the sock that has taken me forever and started a new sock. The new sock is also taking forever, but I've not been knitting it much.
Anyway, I must cease rambling and go to bed. It is late and I am reallly tired, first time in ages I've let myself get this tired.
anon!
Ok, it isn't Australia Day here yet, but it's been Australia Day back home for about 16 hours now.
It is sorta weird being in a place that is similar but still quite different to home. Homesickness is starting to kick in. There's still plenty to explore here but I've started noticing a certain longing for familiar things. I went to a knit night at Bad Woman Knits tonight - one of DH's friends lives in the same building. That entertained me but it also reminded me that once again I have to start establishing connections with people.
DH's job is going great guns so far. Tomorrow he will presenting to the Big Boss. He's only been there for 2.5 weeks....
I am heavily into house/apartment hunting at the moment. The place I've liked the look of most is the place that is furthest. Typical! It isn't particularly close to a supermarket either (though I now realise it isn't very far at all, I just forgot about a certain place that we drove past), though I am starting to think that is what Amazon is for. After all, I have to drink the company Kool Aid, even if it is not my workplace. Anyway, the rental market is pretty tight and I am starting to get a bit worried. We only have another week and a bit at this place, and then? Of course even if we get a place, we don't have our furniture yet. We've done the living without furniture thing before and it gets very old very fast. When we moved to Colorado, a workmate of Nathan's brought round two garden chairs, and we used them for about a month as arm chairs. We slept on a full/double bed size futon on the floor (we did that for the entire stay in the US cos after a while, we sorta liked it and the idea of finding a normal, larger, off the ground bed was just too much hassle).
 |
| This lady sits on a bench opposite an older gentleman. |
The weather has been kind and cruel to us. After the excitement of Snowmageddon last week (seriously, Seattle is hilly, like it has really steep hills, the sort of hills that you need to plant your foot flat to the floor in a car and they are impassable after snow, and the place half shut down), we had a weekend that was like Melbourne in winter as a cold front hits and then starts clearing. Monday was brilliantly sunny and I went to Ballard to see the locks and the railway bridge and as it turns out the beach and the Olympic mountains. It was brilliant!
Then it was grey all day yesterday and semi-gray today. I have never seen so many shades of grey before, nor of steely, dull blues.
The person who is helping us with the househunting is working out I am not your average chick. I got overly excited (ie I thought it was in the slightest bit exciting) that the bridge at Fremont opened its drawbridge. It didn't worry me that it meant we were stuck there for the time being (maybe about 5 minutes, if that), OMG THE BRIDGE IS OPENING! Bounce! I took pics of it. I put one on G+ but I've not edited any yet.
I'm really hoping that over the next couple of weekends we'll be able to go for a drive and see something other than Seattle. Even if it is raining on and off. Saturday's forecast is for mostly sunny!!! But that would be twice in a week and this is Seattle in the winter! I was told that Monday's weather was unusual, then again Snowmageddon was unusual. It is all unusual for me. I've never lived here before.
 |
| Some kind person gave her a scarf in the snow last week. I hope it kept her warmer. |
Snowmageddon was fun from my POV. We didn't lose power, for starters, no trees fell on our property, we weren't trapped in our neighbourhood (snowploughs and buses!), etc, etc. We got to experience snow! Kids and their dads were having snowball fights outside.
I have been knitting. I pulled out the cowl I started umm four times? Now it is the right size and is getting close to being finished. I should get pics of it, but we don't really get good light here - we are in a courtyard facing east and the best light we get is reflected off the south-facing places by us. I've also finished the sock that has taken me forever and started a new sock. The new sock is also taking forever, but I've not been knitting it much.
Anyway, I must cease rambling and go to bed. It is late and I am reallly tired, first time in ages I've let myself get this tired.
anon!
Monday, January 16, 2012
Wow, just wow
G'day all!
I am being a bit slow on this blog updating thing, huh?
We've been in Seattle for just over a week now. We have had internet since Friday afternoon (for an apartment with laid on internet, it caused a LOT of hassle and running around. I spent six hours with comcast until they said "Oh, it hasn't been paid for at that address" though the phone and the cable tv were with them.... It only took three hours to get the cable tv going. No we are not having cable tv in our apartment, when we get one....)
It is minus 3 Celsius outside. To my poor little Australian sensibilities, where if I was home in Melbourne it would be 32C (80s F), it is amazingly cold. And I really need a nice warm winter coat. I have a raincoat but it isn't insulated and so is not nice and snuggly warm.
I have been perusing legwarmer patterns on Ravelry. I think they would be rather practical if I want to wear tights or leggings with my boots. I have snow boots from my time in Colorado. Maybe old boilers shouldn't wear legwarmers or leggings but I don't care. If you've got it, flaunt it.
I have found two yarns shops so far, though I didn't use the net. One shop is in a building that a friend lives in. Just as well we don't live in that building! I just had to have this rainbow sock yarn, though I don't think I'll knit socks from it - I already have a rainbow set made from this yarn's sibling.
I haven't said how much I <3 the Space Needle. It is 50 years old this year and still whizzing into the future. It is also about 400m from our current residence. It helps me find my way home when I'm navigating the maze of one way streets. About every third street goes two ways, just to add to my confusion. When I am walking, I don't care but once in a while I try to drive the wrong way down a one way street....
I've been doing a lot of walking when the weather was (only slightly) kinder to this poor wayward Californian, ahem Australian. (When people ask me what the weather is like where I come from, I say like California cos it is easier than laying it all out.) I've taken lots of pics, some of which I've shared in this post, but never fear, I have plenty more, mostly sunset, pics and pics from the Space Needle. I've pics that show it snowed half of today, with snow about 3" deep lying around, just hanging out, making things look pretty and white. I am quite sure that in another couple of days I will be well and truly over snow, at which point it will start raining instead and I'll be able to whinge about that instead cos rain is just grey, not pretty and white.
Normally I would have edited a heap of pics and stuck them on Flickr, but I have somewhat of a backlog from Hawaii and home that I am still uploading. Hooray, the blogger pic uploader is much less clunky than it used to be. It fits in with the rest of the stuff. Plus you can put captions on and left/right/centre the pic! Hooray! Now if only they would integrate blogger with google+ (look for me there, I post things there a bit cos it is easy to chat with Sydneysiders there, share pics with peoples and it integrates with my android phone like that (snaps fingers)) so any pics from the phone upload and voila! I can share them.
And what do you call someone who lives in Seattle? (Hint, it fits quite nicely with the Space Needle and the forward into the future idea.)
anon!
I am being a bit slow on this blog updating thing, huh?
We've been in Seattle for just over a week now. We have had internet since Friday afternoon (for an apartment with laid on internet, it caused a LOT of hassle and running around. I spent six hours with comcast until they said "Oh, it hasn't been paid for at that address" though the phone and the cable tv were with them.... It only took three hours to get the cable tv going. No we are not having cable tv in our apartment, when we get one....)
 |
| Olympics and seaplane. |
It is minus 3 Celsius outside. To my poor little Australian sensibilities, where if I was home in Melbourne it would be 32C (80s F), it is amazingly cold. And I really need a nice warm winter coat. I have a raincoat but it isn't insulated and so is not nice and snuggly warm.
 |
| Afterlight looking towards the Olympic Mountains. |
I have been perusing legwarmer patterns on Ravelry. I think they would be rather practical if I want to wear tights or leggings with my boots. I have snow boots from my time in Colorado. Maybe old boilers shouldn't wear legwarmers or leggings but I don't care. If you've got it, flaunt it.
 |
| Afterlight on the foreshore of Puget Sound |
I have found two yarns shops so far, though I didn't use the net. One shop is in a building that a friend lives in. Just as well we don't live in that building! I just had to have this rainbow sock yarn, though I don't think I'll knit socks from it - I already have a rainbow set made from this yarn's sibling.
 |
| Of course this yarn followed me home. It is my favourite colour. |
I haven't said how much I <3 the Space Needle. It is 50 years old this year and still whizzing into the future. It is also about 400m from our current residence. It helps me find my way home when I'm navigating the maze of one way streets. About every third street goes two ways, just to add to my confusion. When I am walking, I don't care but once in a while I try to drive the wrong way down a one way street....
 |
| Deal with the wonky. It really isn't the leaning Space Needle. But it is a shot taken at night |
I've been doing a lot of walking when the weather was (only slightly) kinder to this poor wayward Californian, ahem Australian. (When people ask me what the weather is like where I come from, I say like California cos it is easier than laying it all out.) I've taken lots of pics, some of which I've shared in this post, but never fear, I have plenty more, mostly sunset, pics and pics from the Space Needle. I've pics that show it snowed half of today, with snow about 3" deep lying around, just hanging out, making things look pretty and white. I am quite sure that in another couple of days I will be well and truly over snow, at which point it will start raining instead and I'll be able to whinge about that instead cos rain is just grey, not pretty and white.
 |
| Afterlight on Seattle downtown and Mt Rainier. |
And what do you call someone who lives in Seattle? (Hint, it fits quite nicely with the Space Needle and the forward into the future idea.)
anon!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Another year over
G'day all!
And I've been doing lots!
This has been a pretty incredible year. Not necessarily the happiest year ever but all sorts of things have happened.
We have seen lots of stuff - going to NYC and back to San Jose was pretty darned good. We've made some good friends. We've lived comfortably in Australia's largest city.
And the New Year will ring in changes.
On New Year's Day, I'm driving back up to Sydney to supervise the packing of our gear and its removal to the States. Plus I'm taking some extra bits. On the 4th, I am going to the airport and getting on a plane for Hawaii (meeting up with DH at Sydney airport), where we will spend a couple of days. Then we get on the plane to Seattle and a new life.
I'm going to miss family and friends and Australia and the long days and summer. I am a long days person. DH isn't "validating my feelings" about this, which causes arguments. I am sure things will be fab in Seattle, I am just not good with rain and cold and short days. I don't deal with temps under about 15C with any sort of grace - I get cold, like finger-numb-and-stiff and nose-numb-and-dripping. Even if I dress warmly I get cold. I am after all Australian born and bred. Melbourne gets cold in winter, but Californian-type cold, not temps that you find in a fridge or a freezer. When it is damp it feels even colder.
This just means I'll have to knit Even More Mittens and hats (and line them with polar fleece to make them warmer). And there will be new things to see and explore, and if they carry the nice bread I found in Wholefoods in NYC and Campbell I'll be happy (cos they will also have the amazing range of GF and DF "icecream"... what, I shouldn't eat icecream if I am cold? 8-). I'll take along a good supply of chocolate cos sometimes WF doesn't carry the one that is edible - GF and DF chocolate is surprisingly hard to come by. Most of them have traces of both gluten and dairy, and some dark chocolate outright contains dairy (the horror!).
So if I do not blog over the next few days, you know that I am getting ready to leave (again), and that you have my felicitations for a most fabulous New Year. Make it a good one!
anon!
And I've been doing lots!
This has been a pretty incredible year. Not necessarily the happiest year ever but all sorts of things have happened.
We have seen lots of stuff - going to NYC and back to San Jose was pretty darned good. We've made some good friends. We've lived comfortably in Australia's largest city.
And the New Year will ring in changes.
On New Year's Day, I'm driving back up to Sydney to supervise the packing of our gear and its removal to the States. Plus I'm taking some extra bits. On the 4th, I am going to the airport and getting on a plane for Hawaii (meeting up with DH at Sydney airport), where we will spend a couple of days. Then we get on the plane to Seattle and a new life.
I'm going to miss family and friends and Australia and the long days and summer. I am a long days person. DH isn't "validating my feelings" about this, which causes arguments. I am sure things will be fab in Seattle, I am just not good with rain and cold and short days. I don't deal with temps under about 15C with any sort of grace - I get cold, like finger-numb-and-stiff and nose-numb-and-dripping. Even if I dress warmly I get cold. I am after all Australian born and bred. Melbourne gets cold in winter, but Californian-type cold, not temps that you find in a fridge or a freezer. When it is damp it feels even colder.
This just means I'll have to knit Even More Mittens and hats (and line them with polar fleece to make them warmer). And there will be new things to see and explore, and if they carry the nice bread I found in Wholefoods in NYC and Campbell I'll be happy (cos they will also have the amazing range of GF and DF "icecream"... what, I shouldn't eat icecream if I am cold? 8-). I'll take along a good supply of chocolate cos sometimes WF doesn't carry the one that is edible - GF and DF chocolate is surprisingly hard to come by. Most of them have traces of both gluten and dairy, and some dark chocolate outright contains dairy (the horror!).
So if I do not blog over the next few days, you know that I am getting ready to leave (again), and that you have my felicitations for a most fabulous New Year. Make it a good one!
anon!
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Long time between drinks
G'day all!
We are now down in Melbourne for Christmas. My little old bomb (car) made it down without a hitch. 900km/560 miles over two days, in part because we left in the afternoon, too late to make it in one day and in part because I hate driving that far in one day, particularly with only one driver.
We have visaed. (That isn't a word, btw.) It only took about an hour and a bit, most of which was waiting in a queue. I managed to read about four pages of my book in that time. You can't take knitting into the consulate. At least they provide magazines these days. The first time we went there, we didn't take books, there were no magazines and the tv was showing the screen saver for the DVD player it was hooked up to. And we were there for over three hours. OMG, nearly died of boredom.
We were told we should expect the visas next week. Hooray!
So Seattle, yes Seattle for all those who guessed correctly, is GO GO GO!
And we will be living in Seattle, not Redmond. Nathan has not joined The Evil Empire, though I really now think Microsoft is not The Evil Empire any more. No, a different company is that. One Nathan hasn't worked for.
I have one more day of work before knocking off for Christmas. I have to go through the attic here and figure out what I want to take with me to Seattle, what is staying behind, how much I can really take with me - I will be driving back to Sydney with Nathan's bike and some boxes of stuff as all our stuff is leaving from Sydney. I have to be back there on the 3rd of January, and will probably go up on New Year's Day just to give me plenty of time (aka a day) to get organised. But I'll have to hire a car most likely because the car I was going to use has decided to have a little rest, and is spending Christmas in a shopping centre carpark with a dud immobiliser or a dud wire.
Hmm, now that I've ignored the blog for a couple of days, I can say I've finished work for the year (I have to go pick up the laptop after it gets more RAM), and the visas with passports arrived yesterday! Hooray!
I have managed to do very little this Saturday arvo, except drive to and from the inlaw's place a few times (argh! I didn't have a key for the house!), read through some old stories I wrote years ago that I found in the attic (alas, I wrote up more of them on my old old laptop but it got stolen and I hadn't backed up the stories, so I only have the handwritten parts. I know one was somewhat more extensive than what I have written down!), and burn the gluten and dairy-free shortbread bikkies (thank heavens they didn't all fit on the tray, so I have about 12 left. I hope I don't decide to water the garden or anything this time around!). I even avoided the golden orb weaver spider who had cunningly placed her web across the best access to the nectarines, which are just coming into ripeness. Alas, about 70% of the nectarines are affected by rot, even though it hasn't been dewy or wet recently. I presume they need to be sprayed to stop them going rotten.
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, or a nice break depending on your religion or lots and lots of moulah for working on Christmas Day, and may no nightmarish santa claws haunt your dreams!
anon!
We are now down in Melbourne for Christmas. My little old bomb (car) made it down without a hitch. 900km/560 miles over two days, in part because we left in the afternoon, too late to make it in one day and in part because I hate driving that far in one day, particularly with only one driver.
We have visaed. (That isn't a word, btw.) It only took about an hour and a bit, most of which was waiting in a queue. I managed to read about four pages of my book in that time. You can't take knitting into the consulate. At least they provide magazines these days. The first time we went there, we didn't take books, there were no magazines and the tv was showing the screen saver for the DVD player it was hooked up to. And we were there for over three hours. OMG, nearly died of boredom.
We were told we should expect the visas next week. Hooray!
So Seattle, yes Seattle for all those who guessed correctly, is GO GO GO!
And we will be living in Seattle, not Redmond. Nathan has not joined The Evil Empire, though I really now think Microsoft is not The Evil Empire any more. No, a different company is that. One Nathan hasn't worked for.
I have one more day of work before knocking off for Christmas. I have to go through the attic here and figure out what I want to take with me to Seattle, what is staying behind, how much I can really take with me - I will be driving back to Sydney with Nathan's bike and some boxes of stuff as all our stuff is leaving from Sydney. I have to be back there on the 3rd of January, and will probably go up on New Year's Day just to give me plenty of time (aka a day) to get organised. But I'll have to hire a car most likely because the car I was going to use has decided to have a little rest, and is spending Christmas in a shopping centre carpark with a dud immobiliser or a dud wire.
Hmm, now that I've ignored the blog for a couple of days, I can say I've finished work for the year (I have to go pick up the laptop after it gets more RAM), and the visas with passports arrived yesterday! Hooray!
I have managed to do very little this Saturday arvo, except drive to and from the inlaw's place a few times (argh! I didn't have a key for the house!), read through some old stories I wrote years ago that I found in the attic (alas, I wrote up more of them on my old old laptop but it got stolen and I hadn't backed up the stories, so I only have the handwritten parts. I know one was somewhat more extensive than what I have written down!), and burn the gluten and dairy-free shortbread bikkies (thank heavens they didn't all fit on the tray, so I have about 12 left. I hope I don't decide to water the garden or anything this time around!). I even avoided the golden orb weaver spider who had cunningly placed her web across the best access to the nectarines, which are just coming into ripeness. Alas, about 70% of the nectarines are affected by rot, even though it hasn't been dewy or wet recently. I presume they need to be sprayed to stop them going rotten.
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, or a nice break depending on your religion or lots and lots of moulah for working on Christmas Day, and may no nightmarish santa claws haunt your dreams!
anon!
Monday, December 12, 2011
Grey day
G'day all!
At last I can make an announcement. Hooray! This has been weighing on me for a while.
Today DH resigned from his job. Yep. We are blowing the big G off and going off to a new and exciting location.
Sydney's weather, grey and a bit cool, is preparing us for what awaits.
We are going to a place renowned for its rainy, foggy, cool weather. Am not looking forward to that part. It is a couple of states up the coast from where we lived for a couple of years.
Any guesses yet?
In the meantime, we have had an extra exciting weekend. But blogger just ate my great long ranting post - it completely lost 90% of it and I am now peeved with it and do not want to play with blogger any more today. Plus it made me log in again. Humph. I think that deserves a flounce. It even gave me a 404 page not found error.
There is so much to do, so many places to see before I leave Sydney next weekend. Sigh. We are going back to Melbourne for Christmas and to get new visas (there's another clue). I have to get the results of blood tests to see if the Big C is staying in remission but I can't find anyone who knows if they have been received. I guess it is time for more phone calls.
anon!
At last I can make an announcement. Hooray! This has been weighing on me for a while.
Today DH resigned from his job. Yep. We are blowing the big G off and going off to a new and exciting location.
Sydney's weather, grey and a bit cool, is preparing us for what awaits.
We are going to a place renowned for its rainy, foggy, cool weather. Am not looking forward to that part. It is a couple of states up the coast from where we lived for a couple of years.
Any guesses yet?
In the meantime, we have had an extra exciting weekend. But blogger just ate my great long ranting post - it completely lost 90% of it and I am now peeved with it and do not want to play with blogger any more today. Plus it made me log in again. Humph. I think that deserves a flounce. It even gave me a 404 page not found error.
There is so much to do, so many places to see before I leave Sydney next weekend. Sigh. We are going back to Melbourne for Christmas and to get new visas (there's another clue). I have to get the results of blood tests to see if the Big C is staying in remission but I can't find anyone who knows if they have been received. I guess it is time for more phone calls.
anon!
Brisvegas re-entry
G'day all! Whoops, forgot to post this before the PiLs arrived, and I've hardly been online all weekend.
I am very glad to be home from Brisvegas, though not glad to be home for reasons I cannot reveal until Monday (AFAIK, I am fine, DH is coping, but in the next month there will be some big changes!).
So how are you all?
I am rather stressed, for reasons that will be revealed soon. I have so much to do. Tonight the PiLs are coming to visit, which means moving furniture again and cleaning the place. Did I mention that I've been away for a week? And have Even More Stuff to put away?
Ah well, it will all be good in the end.
So the conference was good, very good. I learned a fair bit, not the least of which was that even without much sleep, I can still put on my own little show and pretend to be a bouncy outgoing type, until I run out of food at least. I had a lovely time at one of the dinners (the dinner where they offered me more than two party pies, a manky sausage roll, and eventually found a plate of prawns and smoked salmon...like doods, that is not dinner, especially when lunch was lentils and rice and there was something like 7 hours in between meals. I graze my way through my day, normally). I seem to have a knack of ending up talking to the overseas visitors. One chap had lived in Seattle for 28 years, and another lives in San Jose about 3-4 miles from where we used to live if that. Another lives near Toronto, which I have visited. Another lives in Sheffield, UK, and likes both Monty Python and Pratchett. My boss picked on me because apparently I had two of the visitors eating out of my hand pretty much, but it was noisy at the dinner and they both turned out to have hearing issues (they had hearing aids). I danced like a crazy thing, though I nearly passed out because I cannot do what is effectively high impact aerobics, sing and breathe all at the same time. Like what is wrong with me? Really. Oh and they had a smoke machine too, just to add to my breathing issues. I stood at our booth and talked to people for hours. I extraverted, or at least pretended to be an extravert, for quite a number of days. It's only taken me how long to learn how to wear that hat?
There is a reason why I want to crawl into my hidey hole and pull a lid over it and pretend that I don't have a number of deadlines hanging over me....
I was vastly entertained by the opening speaker of the conference, Amanda Gore. She is like me crossed with my boss, extraverted and on speed. The lady's stage show would imply she is mad as a cut snake, though I have the feeling she isn't. Anyone who can get a pack of dour occupational hygienists all standing up, arm in arm, singing "Always look on the bright side of life" has to be pretty darned cunning I reckon. (Although the lady next to me walked out. She couldn't take it any more. Someone else sat down next to me and we had a brilliant time - me and him and the other lady next to me....) Now not all occupational hygienists are dour, as you might realise. My boss isn't and most of the Bright Young Things amongst them aren't either. Some of the older ones really know how to get their groove on too. Amanda gave us a lot to remember and be grateful for.
Must post this little one before getting onto the Big News.
anon!
I am very glad to be home from Brisvegas, though not glad to be home for reasons I cannot reveal until Monday (AFAIK, I am fine, DH is coping, but in the next month there will be some big changes!).
So how are you all?
I am rather stressed, for reasons that will be revealed soon. I have so much to do. Tonight the PiLs are coming to visit, which means moving furniture again and cleaning the place. Did I mention that I've been away for a week? And have Even More Stuff to put away?
Ah well, it will all be good in the end.
So the conference was good, very good. I learned a fair bit, not the least of which was that even without much sleep, I can still put on my own little show and pretend to be a bouncy outgoing type, until I run out of food at least. I had a lovely time at one of the dinners (the dinner where they offered me more than two party pies, a manky sausage roll, and eventually found a plate of prawns and smoked salmon...like doods, that is not dinner, especially when lunch was lentils and rice and there was something like 7 hours in between meals. I graze my way through my day, normally). I seem to have a knack of ending up talking to the overseas visitors. One chap had lived in Seattle for 28 years, and another lives in San Jose about 3-4 miles from where we used to live if that. Another lives near Toronto, which I have visited. Another lives in Sheffield, UK, and likes both Monty Python and Pratchett. My boss picked on me because apparently I had two of the visitors eating out of my hand pretty much, but it was noisy at the dinner and they both turned out to have hearing issues (they had hearing aids). I danced like a crazy thing, though I nearly passed out because I cannot do what is effectively high impact aerobics, sing and breathe all at the same time. Like what is wrong with me? Really. Oh and they had a smoke machine too, just to add to my breathing issues. I stood at our booth and talked to people for hours. I extraverted, or at least pretended to be an extravert, for quite a number of days. It's only taken me how long to learn how to wear that hat?
There is a reason why I want to crawl into my hidey hole and pull a lid over it and pretend that I don't have a number of deadlines hanging over me....
I was vastly entertained by the opening speaker of the conference, Amanda Gore. She is like me crossed with my boss, extraverted and on speed. The lady's stage show would imply she is mad as a cut snake, though I have the feeling she isn't. Anyone who can get a pack of dour occupational hygienists all standing up, arm in arm, singing "Always look on the bright side of life" has to be pretty darned cunning I reckon. (Although the lady next to me walked out. She couldn't take it any more. Someone else sat down next to me and we had a brilliant time - me and him and the other lady next to me....) Now not all occupational hygienists are dour, as you might realise. My boss isn't and most of the Bright Young Things amongst them aren't either. Some of the older ones really know how to get their groove on too. Amanda gave us a lot to remember and be grateful for.
Must post this little one before getting onto the Big News.
anon!
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