Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction by Sue Townsend: I’m of the generation who has grown up being about the same age as Adrian Mole, and reading each of them along the way. This is a great read; very very funny. Adrian’s just bought a loft apartment at Rat Wharf. I think my ... [More]
The locksmith last week mentioned a product he sells for people who regularly lock themselves out of their house. It’s a locked box that sits in your garden, which requires only a PIN(*) to open. Inside you keep a spare key. A kind of high-tech version of hiding a key under the mat / in ... [More]
A special charity episode with David Tennant and Billie Piper just aired in Britain, and is available online for a little while. (Though so far, I can’t get it to play. I assume that’s a heavy load, rather them blocking it for non-UK viewers.) This looks vaguely familiar: Cybus Corporation. I’ve just ordered the 9th ... [More]
My old house is now available for rent. They must have taken the picture a few weeks ago, because you can see my car in the driveway in the picture. Two typos in the headline. Good effort. “separate meals area” — I don’t see that myself. It’s pretty much in one room with the kitchen, ... [More]
Ajisai Japanese Restaurant, 377 Centre Road, Bentleigh — across the road from Zagarellis, but couldn’t be more different. Very nice food, generous servings, reasonably priced, unobtrusive but quick service. Green tea icecream for dessert. Delicious. My quest to find more good restaurants in Bentleigh continues…
Socceroos qualified for the World Cup Finals, first time in 32 years… woo hoo!
On Thursday morning ABC radio 774 is running a special programme on Melbourne’s transport problems, with opinion from interested parties and 774 listeners. 774 ABC Melbourne’s Jon Faine will lead a special broadcast where we, with the help of our listeners, map the traffic and public transport problems, and black spots, across Melbourne. Yours truly ... [More]
Whoops, I forgot to mention this until now: the Doctor Who story that just finished on the ABC’s repeats last night, Warriors of the Deep, was the one that I used as the basis for my spoof: Doctor Who — Revenge of the Unrealistatrons. It’s still one of my favourite things that I’ve written.
A huge crowd for the demonstration against the Federal Government’s industrial relations reform package in the city today. Work commitments meant I couldn’t join in, but I did pass nearby and saw all the people. This is the crowd outside Flinders Street Station at 9:50am, as snapped by the Omni webcam. In the nearby arcades, ... [More]
The first automated payment to my home loan went through yesterday, along with the first interest charge. As one might reasonably expect, but I had not previously quite appreciated, in one fell swoop the interest charge wiped out around 85% of the payment. Were I a more emotional person, I might have screamed in anguish ... [More]
The locksmith came on Saturday and fitted shiny new locks, gleefully pointing out the deficiencies of the old ones. Then, with the benefit of a small metal tool from his locksmith’s opened the filing cabinet with the lost key, which took all of 2 seconds.
Remembrance Day at Flinders Street Station, 11am this morning. Two police stop the traffic. The crowd stops moving, and grows silent. A bugler plays The Last Post. A minute’s silence. Then the Rouse. A simple, yet moving commemoration for the war dead. Update 11/11/2013 — Revised pics, and fixed video.
Sometimes I find Friday’s casual day a stress. I find normal weekdays easier — any idiot can look half-decent in an expensive suit. (Have I told you about my suit? It’s really nice. It was pricey though. It’s so expensive that it doesn’t have a pocket for small change. The makers must have presumed it ... [More]
It’s almost two weeks since I moved. When they were shifting the filing cabinet, the movers handed me the key for safe keeping. I put it somewhere safe. So safe than I still can’t find it. All the papers I immaculately filed over the past few weeks are locked away where I can’t get at ... [More]
This is one of the silliest things I’ve seen in quite some time… At my very rough estimate, the signs are about 20 metres apart. By my (admittedly sometimes dodgey) maths, driving at 40kmh you’d cover that ground in 1.8 seconds. (10 points to whoever guesses where it is.)
When I moved, I rang up the phone company to get my new number, which like the old one, is silent, to dodge telemarketers. I also asked if it was a fresh, unused number, and the operator said it hadn’t been used in five years. Excellent. And to avoid telemarketing calls, I’ve started quoting a ... [More]