Quiet in here

It is too. I've got the music turned down and no one else is around. Bliss.

Again, it's been a slow old week.

Jerome has been getting me up early again. I don't know what's with that cat. I've made sure he has food out so he can get his own breakfast, but noooo, he has to wake us up to tell us he can't be bothered shaking the kibble out of the dispenser into the tray.

I shake some out and climb back into bed. About fifteen minutes later he's back again. I get up and head down to the kitchen to feed them all. The others have no choice but to wait - they are shut at the other end of the house. I'm not game enough to ignore Jerome entirely - for all I know he might be telling me he needs to use the tray...

So I'm up early and in a spur of the moment decision I decide to ride the bus to work. It's been ages since I've done that, and sad to say, I've missed it. The trip in is fine and I debate whether I have time to top up my go card between buses. I need to do it, but if I miss the timings I have a long twenty minute wait till the next one. Whoo! Nice and quick and I'm at the next stop in time for the desired changeover.

On the way home that day, I've decided to catch the bus to the station. Some of the turns on the route are very tight and tricky. On one particular stretch the road is only wide enough for cars parked on either side and the bus through the middle. Someone seems to have just parked and has the car door open. The bus stops and I think this is what he's waiting for. It begins to creep around the corner and I can see out the window. There is a flock of galahs on the road and the footpath. They straggle onto the path as the bus comes round and he picks up speed as he heads down the street. Guess it was the birds after all. Which is good. I've seen that movie. Gotta keep on the good side of the birds.

At a different corner, a T junction, a woman on the terminating road wants to turn across traffic. The bus also does, down the terminating street. He has to take it veeeerrryyyy slowly as the woman is right on the midline and right at the stop line. She ends up reversing and we get past.

I'm tired but the Elder wants to see a friend's band play at a local festival, the Jacaranda Festival. She asks if I want to go. I'll go with you tomorrow I tell her. They are playing their sets both nights. Okay she says. Burrich begs off later saying he feels unwell. She's a little despondent so I tell her I'll go with her tonight.

She isn't quite sure where to go but we guess and as we turn under the bridge we see that she's right. We're facing the grounds. I can see the rides and a small side show alley. Whoo! There is supposed to be fireworks tonight too. There is still daylight and as we wander we spot the baby animal farms. Squeee! We spend some time looking at them and suddenly we spot a couple of piglets. Tiny ones! We want to get a photo but the kid sitting with them on her lap doesn't seem inclined to let them go or to let anyone else pet them either. Eventually she lets them go and they run about the enclosure. They are so little! The woman picks one of them up so Elder can snap a pic. We move off to wait for the fireworks and watch feral children misbehaving.

The fireworks have barely started but we are near the marquee so see Goodnight Midnight setting up. We go and take seats. It's a relatively short set but I enjoy it. Elder stops to chat to band members afterward and we promise to be there the next night.

I decide that I need to get supermarket stuff. Some extra meat for the week, and stock up on lollies for Halloween. Hopefully for the little buggers who won't come trick or treating. Yeah! I don't do Halloween myself, and it's been some time since there have been kids in the neighbourhood. But you never know and I like to keep some on hand for that "just in case" moment. I'm always happy when none come because then I get to eat the leftovers.

I go with MOTH and we sit with John. Wombat joins us after a while. He's really annoying me today. He's cheerful, relatively speaking, but still annoying. An older lady who knows the group stops by to say hello. She's lovely. I spot another husband and wife pairing I've seen there before. He is vision impaired and has on occasion sat with us. She brings him over and I hear her tell him as she sits him in the corner, that she will leave him there to be babysat while she did her errands. I lean over to MOTH. See? I told you it was the Babysitter's Club. He laughs.

It's raining this afternoon. In fact, it begins to storm. Uh oh. Eventually it seems the second gig is rained out. Glad I went when I had the chance then.

Sunday is a lazy day. I'm not doing much and am so very, very sleepy. I've been that way a lot really. I sit on the bed. The covers look inviting. I crawl under an next thing I know, MOTH is waking me as he's ready to go up the street. The rest of the day progresses rather slowly. I don't know what I want to do and I'm too tired to make much of an effort. The Elder washes her car. Burrich helps MOTH in the yard. I read a bit and nap. Jerome joins me. Nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I get a second wind when I prep dinner. It's a dish I've done several times and always goes down well. Sure enough, at the end of the dish when the bowls are empty, I'm asked if there is any more. Nope, sorry, not this time kids! Maybe next time I'll have to use something like TEN chicken thighs instead of eight. Sigh.

Glow in the dark

It's been a slow old week this week. For me, anyway.

Queensland Police have been asking people to be more vigilant on the roads. The road toll so far this year is somewhere in the vicinity of 20 more than this time last year. That's a sad and sorry state of affairs and I can only shake my head as I watch some drivers and wonder if there really is any way to get the message through.

There's a crossing of sorts across two lanes of traffic to the median strip, then across another two lanes to the other side of a very busy stretch of road. It's controlled by lights which bring traffic to a stop when a pedestrian wants to cross. The light is red and I wait patiently in the inside lane for it to change.

The lights change and the vehicle stopped in SECOND spot in the outside lane pulls out and passes the FIRST vehicle on the outside. In the blink of an eye he is down the road, through the major intersection and through the traffic lights at the crest of the hill and gone from view. I'm beginning to think it's not speed that kills, but plain simple stupidity. I wonder if they can gear an awareness campaign that way? I think the New Zealanders may have worked out a way....



I'm sitting at my work desk, dressed ultra casual. Just because I like to to that occasionally. I don't have face to face public contact so corporate attire is not required. A colleague comes in through the front door. A chirpy good morning! as she walks past. And suddenly she is walking backward to stand at the front of my desk. She's staring hard at me. Or more specifically, my boobs. Her expression is puzzled and I can't figure out what the problem is. I'm just trying to figure out what that is, she says. What is? I look down and realise *finally. not slow me* that she's trying to read my shirt. My hair is over the beginning of the word. I shift it. Realisation dawns. Ahhh, she says. I was wondering if that said DYKE! I was about to say Yeah, you go girl! I laugh. It says Spyke...

Elder has asked me to paint her nails. I start to pain the base coat but somehow I manage to knock the bottle over. On my dining table! Luckily, it's clear, on the stone tile not the timber and I'm able to wipe most of it up. Great start! I paint on one coat of the colour. She's decided to give it a little time to dry before we paint the next. *which reminds me, i haven't painted the next yet* While I wait, I paint a couple of coats of one she has which is supposed to glow in the dark. Huh. I've never seen it do that. But hey, it's a girly thing, right?

The weekend is hot. Waaaay too hot. Temperatures are in the middle 30's already and summer hasn't arrived. I don't want to use the airconditioning because then what will I do when it really does get hot? And humid. I've popped the one in the kitchen on using the dehumidifier setting. It's not working very well. I remind MOTH that he will have to put in a call to the realtor to have them serviced.

Elder and Burrich have done a late afternoon run up to the supermarket. MOTH is in his room and suddenly calls out. Dammit, I've just gotten comfy again after the last interruption. Yeah, whaddyawant? He comes down to the rumpus room. He's excited. WE'VE GOT OUR OWN WATER DRAGON! Oh? Yeah, it was outside. He points toward the front door. The kids came home, it ran out of the garden, along the window sill outside his study, past the front door and around the corner. The kids are chattering about it as they come in.

I decide to go out for a quick look, but I doubt it's there. Elder calls out to me on her way past "Mind the orb weavers!". Dang. Sure enough, there is a huge web and in the centre sits a big spider. I can go no further. It doesn't give me the heeby jeebys though, possibly because she is firmly ensconced in the centre of the tangle and not invading my personal space. The threads are anchored on the downpipe; a gorgeous golden colour in the sunlight.

At Elder's encouragement, I give the threads a good tug. They twang back into place and do not break. The spider remains where she is. I do this several times and still they hold. Wonderfully strong stuff that silk.

MOTH and I lie talking in the dark. He stops and asks ... are you wearing glow in the dark nail polish? I look. And hey! My nails are glowing! Huh. Well, it really does work! Looks kinda eerie.

Shame I missed seeing the dragon though. Always good to catch up with my kin. *grins*

Can I have another piece of chocolate cake?

Not much on the agenda this week. Work has been progressing as usual. Home life is still the same.

Sheldon, Penny and Jerome are still sorting out their borders. It gets exciting at times.

A strange cat is in our entertainment area this morning. Jerome has spotted it and begins to yodel his challenge. I take him away from the window, but soon he's back, calling again. The strange cat is still there. Sheldon is very interested, but silent. Penny is hiding and acts like she doesn't know what's going on but that it can't be good. I open the door, the stray retreats. But not too far. I step out, making sure the other cats haven't followed. The stray retreats around the corner and I hear it jump the gate.

I'm back indoors and things have settled a little. But not as much as I thought. Jerome and Sheldon are still on edge. Penny does something wrong and Jerome begins to reprimand her. Even Sheldon looks like he wants a go. I break it up but it still takes a while for things to settle.

Jerome and Penny are still on a tentative truce. Sometimes I wonder if she was taken from her litter mates before she learned the social niceties. She begins to play, then runs away. Of course, Jerome chases and it ends in a fight. He sniffs and she hisses. That can earn her a cuff. She gives him the long stare and he tackles her for that. Sometimes I wonder if they will ever sort themselves out. Sheldon, of course, is back to his old habits of taunting, baiting and trying to rule the roost. I'm not sure that Jerome is going to let him have his way this time.

The house hunting has ceased until they find work. I have gently expressed an opinion that being unemployed and trying to find a house will be less of a hassle than trying to find a house to accommodate two indoor cats and two outdoor dogs. Maybe one dog or one cat, or maybe just the cats. But not all. This upsets Elder immensely as something she doesn't want to deal with. I don't want to begin a spiral cycle so I don't push the issue. We'll burn that bridge when it comes time to cross it.

A friend invites me to participate in a gaming tournament he is holding on the weekend. I love gaming but am totally terrible at it. This gaming is not LAN based but board, cards and die. Some games use cards and die only to follow a game plot, others use miniatures. I decline to play but I would love to come for a look. The Elder and Burrich are going away for the weekend so I have to rely on MOTH to drive. Or do it myself. I guess I could gird my loins so to speak but I don't like walking into those places alone. Neither of us know where it is. I google map it and think I've found it. MOTH has gone out for the morning to join the Baby Sitter's Club. He's not home until nearly lunch time.

So, no one is home this morning. I kick off the kinect on the XBox and have a go at some of the Star Wars games. Whew! It takes some work! I'm getting a bit puffed. Jerome rescues me briefly by sitting in the 'play' area and meowing at me earnestly. I think he wants attention. It's good to take a break and I'm back into it again briefly. By mid afternoon I'm beginning to rediscover muscles I had forgotten I had.

I'm tired and not willing to drive into a heavy traffic area so I decide to leave the visit to the tournament. I tell my friend I've taken headache meds and that I won't be there. Shame it was this weekend! Later that afternoon MOTH apologises for not taking me. Never mind.

Sunday lunch time we head to a friend's place for what she terms a Get Together. They have relatives visiting, it's her partner's birthday and a house warming drinks and nibblies all wrapped up in one.

The company is good and I don't want to leave. The Elder and Burrich have returned from their trip away and meat is out for dinner. If there was no foodage planned I think we would have stayed longer.

Home and cook dinner. And I can't eat it all; I've managed half a burger.

Off to bed early - I'm still exhausted and it's only 8.30pm! Either I'm coming down with something or those three ciders I've had this afternoon have worked *and tasted!* better than warm milk...

Cooler today

The temperature is cooler today, and the sky overcast. The weatherman assures us there is a possibility of showers as well. Guess where my jumper is ... not in the same place I am, that's for sure.

It's the last week of the school holidays and the drive to work has been marvellous. Not as much traffic to contend with. No school zones in effect. I'm all for school speed zones, but not peak hour along a busy stretch of road. Who the heck would build a school ground on the busiest section of the road anyway? Why can't it be set further back so the kids aren't near traffic? Dumb idea. And there are about four of them on the same side of the bridge, then another on the other side.

So I'm guessing no more early finishes as I'm not going to be at work quite as early in the mornings. Darn.

Saturday rolls around and I realise it has been two weeks already since The Elder and Burrich moved in. I have been getting plenty of advice regarding how to handle them living there and setting rules and giving chores *pokes self in eyes* but I think that since they are my *temporary* boarders I have a handle on that anyway.

So, chores have been allocated. Well, one each. I'm not pushing myself any further than that since I'll only hold myself to one. We'll see how it goes. Already it's been a help to me. I'm pretty relaxed so I only have one hard and fast, non-negotiable house rule. Make that two. The other applies to smokers.

I've been busy tonight. I've tidied the rumpus room as best I can, shifted the kid's stuff out to the table with some of their other stuff. I've swept the carpet and stacked the dishwasher. Having to do these things annoys me *a lot* but not as much as having to put sheets on the bed when I am tired and ready for sleep.

No one is up yet so I finish the clean up. Put shoes away, pick up the cat's toys, do a couple loads of laundry, wipe kitchen benches, put oven shelves back. Small things but already the place looks better.

Visited with the Baby Sitter's Club in the morning. I don't mind sitting and talking to them but somehow it always makes me feel like I've wasted half my weekend. Much the same as having to work on Saturday morning used to. Saturday is, after all, my fave day of the weekend. Sunday is a write off cause it's just waaaay too close to Monday.

MOTH hasn't been feeling well; he suggested to Wombat it was his fault. Wombat is clogged up and gargly too. MOTH has a script for antibiotics left from the last time he had this URTI, so has decided to get it filled. We'll see if it helps.

Sunday and so many options! Play Starcraft! Play WoW. Play Diablo III. Figure out how to use this X-Box that's been attached to my television. I have permission and decide to raid the kid's stash of games and have a look at the box. It's going to take some getting used to as the controls are so very different from those of the PS3.

MOTH staggers out of bed and the kids head to the city. I don't last long at the box as the controls aren't helpful. MOTH has decided to put music on. It's loud and I can't hear the instructions on the games while it's going. I've got a headache so I pack it all away.

The weather is trying to be summer. The temperature peaks somewhere in the mid 30s, but at least it's not humid. Not yet. I can tolerate some heat, but not humidity! I'm tempted but not yet game enough to kick off the airconditioning. I wonder how MOTH is faring. At least I'm not clogged up with an infection.

Dinner is simple fare tonight. Bangers and mash. With brown onion gravy. I have three thin sausages cooked on the bbq and mash on my plate. Drizzled with gravy and it looks delicious. Bon appetit!

Dunno what I did there...

... but it closed Chrome completely. Nice one SOL!

The week seems to have flown by. I mention to MOTH that the kids have been with us for a week. What? Really? Yep, last Saturday. My lord, says he, that's gone fast. Yup.

Kitties are still working out their boundaries. *sigh* This night they got into it. I was up and down most of the night breaking up the bickering and chasing Sheldon out of my room. That's Jerome's space buddy! This time. You can't have it all like you did last time!

Things are looking up this morning. Not. At the traffic lights and I stall the car. How the heck to you stall an automatic?? Dunno, but I manage. Whoops.

Same morning and I'm driving down the tree lined boulevard. Suddenly KLONK! What was that! Something hit the car. I peek in the mirror and as far as I can see, some stupid bird was so wrapped in giving another a hard time, they've flown straight into my car. Doesn't seem to have done them damage though. Thank goodness for that - I've hit a bird before and it was most distressing.

Been suffering with mild vertigo for two days this week. Still at work, but holding my head still and trying desperately not to look up, down or sideways. And propping myself against the wall if I'm standing. *that must look odd...*

Going out tonight. Started the meds so hopefully the spins will keep their head down while I'm out. Bestie has invited MOTH and I to Riverfire, a feature of the yearly Festival. Fireworks and laser light show, viewed from the balcony of her work place. Catered too. Yay!

Bestie suggests we travel to hers first and then from there. If we leave early enough we may be able to snag a park in her building. We get there a little early but there is still a line up for parking! Elder and Burrich have travelled with us, but leave us to make their own way once we reach street level.

The catering was good - butter chicken with rice, spag bol, sausage on bread, mini dagwood dogs. Cake for dessert, fairy floss and popcorn too! Entertainment was provided for the kids - a juggler of sorts, balloon animals and face painting. Since the light show is 'choreographed' to a local radio station, a DJ was provided for the festivities as well. We were close to the DJ but it wasn't a problem till someone angled the speaker our direction. It made talking a little difficult which seemed to upset the others, but it meant I could sit quietly without have to talk much. I recorded a part of Patrick Hernendez Born To Be Alive and sent it to Teen. Just so she could feel included. But mostly because she hates the song. Heh. It was followed by Reel 2 Real "I Like To Move It" *one of her faves when she was small* and Dave Dobbins "Slice of Heaven" *one of her current classic faves*. Didn't record those!

Bestie and I can't find the face painting. Ah, there they are. Her kids line up for theirs. Bestie and I think about it, but the line has grown a fair bit and we decide nah, not this time. The juggler is keeping the kids in the line entertained and Bestie's boy makes his presence known by entertaining the Entertainer. *read asking questions about the tricks, his props, 'helping' and other things curious boys can do*

The new hornets fly over and drop the flares. Pretty spectacular but no more F111s with the 'dump and burn' anymore. We can't see what's happening on the river, but there seem to be some helicopters hovering about *they've already flown over* dancing over the river. Eventually the fireworks start. The action happens from rooftops and barges on the river. We don't see the river as apartments block that view.

The night is fun and when it ends, it seems much later than it really is.

Today is for recovery. I'm still not well and I sleep away most of it.

And not only do I manage that, I go to bed at 9.00pm as well. Told you those tablets make me sleepy! G'night!