I have a quick question however it does not have a quick or simple answer...........
If you were in a situation as a 17 year old where your best friend was being pummelled by another 17 year old, would you try and pull that person off your best friend or would you wait for the authorities to intervene (who are at least ten minutes away)?
But there is more.........you are at school
And yet more - as you are trying to protect your friend, the attacker turns on you and punches you in the ribs and across the bridge of the nose. Would you retaliate or would you wait for the authorities to intervene?
The interesting result of this is under NSW Schools policy, any act of violence (including what I would class as self defence) warrants instant (long) suspension from school.
The 'protector' has been bullied for their 12 years at school. Both the attacker and the 'protector' are injured.
This is a really basic scenario - there are other contributing items but I think these are the important ones.
On the whole as a society, we tend to take the attitude of 'it's not my problem' or 'its not my business' when we see someone in trouble and so many people walk by and do nothing on so many levels. Given the above example, seriously, what are we teaching our kids?
My opinion (and I don't expect everyone will agree) is that yes, on a school policy level the 'wrong' thing was done, as a human being assisting another human being, I see no fault in protecting your mate or yourself. Start the fight though, that's a whole different matter and one I will never condone.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
How time flies when you are having fun...
It’s been ages since I’ve written here – too many other things to do and besides that, my rambling’s probably aren’t of any interest to anyone but me anyway :-) That’s okay though, I really only write to get things sorted out in my head anyway and I am certainly not going to put anything on here that I don’t want the whole world to know! LOL
I have returned to my substantive position at work after acting in other jobs for 18 months – it feels like I haven’t been away or that it was a lifetime ago. I’m settling back into routines and just finding my way around everything again. I have a rather large ‘to do’ list of files that need archiving or just sorting out. There are a lot of changes happening within the department so I think it will be interesting times ahead. It’s not so bad being back in an administrative role – I always seem to end up there for some reason, at work or in the SCA :-)
Speaking of the SCA, lots has been happening there too. We held Radburne War IV which was a huge success despite the panic the week before – the weather was atrocious prior but we had gorgeous weather on the weekend! (Thank goodness!) It will be forever known as the ‘bog wars’ though – the mud claimed 5 cars and a couple of fighters ;-) It was exhausting but well worth the effort – I only took one day off work this year (as I had just returned to my job) which I think made things a little more tiring. Will do things differently next year. We made a decent profit which has helped the group buy some things we really needed – such as two 6m x 3m white gazebos with enclosed sides – very handy all our events are outdoors!
We are off to Spring War on the long weekend – this will be our first visit so really looking forward to it. More than half the household is going so should be fun – plus it helps we know more people now which makes things less scary! LOL Just have sewing to do, but what else is new? LOL I got one shirt almost done (bar the hand sewing) last night, another one to do tonight, need to finish the hemming on Terry’s Cotehardie and Hose, need to make a banner for Terry and a tabard to go over his armour, I need a new chemise and I would like to make another dress plus I still haven’t finished my Italian one! I need to finish the sleeves on Wolfstanus’ doublet and possibly make him another one although that may be a little ambitious with less than 3 weeks to go! No, nothing has changed ;-)
Our next event is our annual Tourney of the Yellow Rose on the 6th November – this tends to be a low key event attended just by the group however wayfarers are welcome! We will be doing archery in the morning, sausage ina bun for lunch, tourney late afternoon and potluck feast in the evening.
Next year will be a party year – lots of milestone family birthdays to celebrate including Conrad’s 18th and my 40th! Any excuse for a party :-)
Anyhow, best get some work done – break is over……
I have returned to my substantive position at work after acting in other jobs for 18 months – it feels like I haven’t been away or that it was a lifetime ago. I’m settling back into routines and just finding my way around everything again. I have a rather large ‘to do’ list of files that need archiving or just sorting out. There are a lot of changes happening within the department so I think it will be interesting times ahead. It’s not so bad being back in an administrative role – I always seem to end up there for some reason, at work or in the SCA :-)
Speaking of the SCA, lots has been happening there too. We held Radburne War IV which was a huge success despite the panic the week before – the weather was atrocious prior but we had gorgeous weather on the weekend! (Thank goodness!) It will be forever known as the ‘bog wars’ though – the mud claimed 5 cars and a couple of fighters ;-) It was exhausting but well worth the effort – I only took one day off work this year (as I had just returned to my job) which I think made things a little more tiring. Will do things differently next year. We made a decent profit which has helped the group buy some things we really needed – such as two 6m x 3m white gazebos with enclosed sides – very handy all our events are outdoors!
We are off to Spring War on the long weekend – this will be our first visit so really looking forward to it. More than half the household is going so should be fun – plus it helps we know more people now which makes things less scary! LOL Just have sewing to do, but what else is new? LOL I got one shirt almost done (bar the hand sewing) last night, another one to do tonight, need to finish the hemming on Terry’s Cotehardie and Hose, need to make a banner for Terry and a tabard to go over his armour, I need a new chemise and I would like to make another dress plus I still haven’t finished my Italian one! I need to finish the sleeves on Wolfstanus’ doublet and possibly make him another one although that may be a little ambitious with less than 3 weeks to go! No, nothing has changed ;-)
Our next event is our annual Tourney of the Yellow Rose on the 6th November – this tends to be a low key event attended just by the group however wayfarers are welcome! We will be doing archery in the morning, sausage ina bun for lunch, tourney late afternoon and potluck feast in the evening.
Next year will be a party year – lots of milestone family birthdays to celebrate including Conrad’s 18th and my 40th! Any excuse for a party :-)
Anyhow, best get some work done – break is over……
Friday, June 04, 2010
Reflections
One thing about being home sick and not feeling like doing much or being able to do much for that matter means lots of time to think and reflect.......I had an interesting conversation with my dad over coffee this morning and it has got the old rusty clogs turning and started me thinking. One of the main themes in our conversation was the need to start doing things differently. Life is a constant change and evolution and sometimes the new way is not necessarily the better way.
We watched the first episode of 'Victorian Farm' on BBC Challenge on Austar the other night and it was really interesting. What was also very interesting was Gryffen's reaction to it - 'Oh mum, I would love to go and do that.' I do think he would really enjoy the hands on experience :-)
Whilst I am sitting here drinking my honeyed milk and eating peanut butter and honey sandwiches, my mind is running in all sorts of directions and I have been reflecting on where I have been in the last 20 years or so and where I am heading. I will be 40 next year which could be considered the half way point of my life all going well. I am not depressed by this nor do I feel like I am getting over the hill - I am looking forward to the celebration that I have made it this far :-) It is just a new stage in my life - Conrad is 17 now and we are teaching him how to drive, Wolfstanus will be 16 at the end of the year and is doing his School Certificate, Gryffen will be 13 in February and heads to high school next year. It is a new phase and time to shift a gear.
I really feel blessed to be living my life in a place where I am truly happy, with family surrounding me and a good job that I enjoy. Although most of my friends do not live in the same location as me, we still stay in touch and catch up in person whenever we can - it is wonderful to have this option. To date, my life has been an interesting one with its ups and downs just like everyone else - I am thankful for all my experiences, even the bad ones, as without them, I would not be where I am now. My Oma always said there was a path we were meant to travel and no matter whether we took a right turn or a left turn and veered off that path, we would always end up where we were supposed to be. I am a firm believer in this philosophy also and there have been enough 'coincidences' in my life to reinforce this belief. This doesn't mean I will blindly blunder on through life waiting for something to happen! Far from it - the choices we make will determine where we end up, I just think there is something more guiding the choices we make at times.
One thing I have learned about myself is that I am a hoarder - not just of things but of information. I spend countless hours researching, buying books, making plans etc but then there never seems to be the time or the motivation to actually use any of this information! I need to get better at this. I run the scenarios through my head, work out what I am going to and then.............nothing. Sometimes it is a lack of confidence in myself to carry through, other times I feel like I am too exhausted to even try. I spend most of my time cooped up in doors on the computer. I am indoors on the computer or the phone for my job, 5 days a week. I then come home to cook/clean etc and then I am back on the computer until I go to bed - checking emails, Facebook, Warcraft, paperwork for the business or SCA......this is not healthy. Is it any wonder given my health issues that I am susceptible to viruses and things? Is it any wonder with the number of antibiotics I have taken in my lifetime, my lack of physical exercise and being outdoors and my genetic make up that I am now paying the price? Have my chickens come home to roost?
Step 1 was recognising there is a problem - complete
Step 2 - make plans to rectify this issues
Step 3 - Carry out said plans
Step 4 - review and start the process again
So, where to from here? I need to make some changes - I am not super woman (sorry to disappoint you) and I cannot do everything on my own. There needs to be 'me time' and not just giving out my time and energy to every one else. If I don't look after me, who will?
The plan:
1. Do more cooking! We have fresh produce in the shape of eggs and vegies grown at home, use this resource! Much healthier - ask Gryffen to help. He likes to help cook. Make time on the weekend to do this - book it in!
2. Get outside more - yes during the week this is easier said than done. Get up 15 minutes earlier and go check the chickens! Talk to them, check them over, give them food and check water. This is the boys job but it is not happening properly - supervision is the key :-) And it will get me outside!
3. Don't eat lunch at my desk unless I have fit in at least 30 minutes away from the computer - go for a walk if it is a nice day! Take a book and go to the lunch room if the weather is foul!
4. Limit time on computer at home - no more than 2 hours at a time! (This will be the hard one!) Read a book, do some sewing, get creative!
5. On the weekend - get outside when the weather is good! Take the dogs for a walk, get on the ride on lawn mower, clean out the chook pens, do something!
6. Treat myself once a week - do something I *want* to do, not something I need/have to do.
7. Saturday night - if the kids are home, have a movie night or a games night together. Take it in turns for picking what we do.
That's a start in the right direction. There is so much more but if I try and do too much change at once, I will fail. Bite sized chunks and with some determination, I can make the changes. I needto make the changes, and only I can do it!
Our whole adult lives we seem to be working harder to make that extra dollar to buy the things we really don't need because we think they will make us happy and then we don't have the time or energy to use them. What a waste! I am just as guilty of this as the next person. I *need* to work so we can live where we do and I can drive the car I drive - but that does come at a cost. Is that cost worth it? At the moment yes, but there is a but. I am walking a fine line at the moment and I do need to stop, take a step back, look at what is happening and make some adjustments. I will be taking a quite substantial pay cut in August when my temporary appointment comes to an end - almost the equivalent of my car payment. Yes, I knew this was going to happen. Things have changed in the financial world - interest rates have gone up, I bought a new car, cost of living has increased. Something has to give and the money has to come from some where. It means re-evaluating what I do. Those cappuccino's every morning - they will need to stop. Buying things on credit - needs to stop. Get more patience and save for it - OMG what a thought ;-) LOL You get the picture though - we have become so consumed in instant gratification and keeping up with the Jones's that as a society we have forgotten what is important. We keep digging ourselves a deeper hole that is getting harder and harder to get out of and yet we ignore the white elephant in the room and blindly continue on our headlong charge into Oblivion. No, I am not a doomsayer nor am I a pessimist. All I am saying is I think we need to do some serious re-evaluation on where we are and where we are heading. I know I am - I want off this crazy merry go round and gain some control back over my life. I want to enjoy the good things like spending time with my family, enjoying the incredible place I live, create instead of consume all the time, enjoy the company of our amazing animals, just live! None of us know when it will be our time to go and I don't think we can take the risk of leaving everything to 'later' because 'later' may never come. Let the people you care about know how much they mean to you, not just in words, spend good quality time with them. Take care of you - be healthy, be happy, be true to yourself and to hell with the rest of the world :-)
We watched the first episode of 'Victorian Farm' on BBC Challenge on Austar the other night and it was really interesting. What was also very interesting was Gryffen's reaction to it - 'Oh mum, I would love to go and do that.' I do think he would really enjoy the hands on experience :-)
Whilst I am sitting here drinking my honeyed milk and eating peanut butter and honey sandwiches, my mind is running in all sorts of directions and I have been reflecting on where I have been in the last 20 years or so and where I am heading. I will be 40 next year which could be considered the half way point of my life all going well. I am not depressed by this nor do I feel like I am getting over the hill - I am looking forward to the celebration that I have made it this far :-) It is just a new stage in my life - Conrad is 17 now and we are teaching him how to drive, Wolfstanus will be 16 at the end of the year and is doing his School Certificate, Gryffen will be 13 in February and heads to high school next year. It is a new phase and time to shift a gear.
I really feel blessed to be living my life in a place where I am truly happy, with family surrounding me and a good job that I enjoy. Although most of my friends do not live in the same location as me, we still stay in touch and catch up in person whenever we can - it is wonderful to have this option. To date, my life has been an interesting one with its ups and downs just like everyone else - I am thankful for all my experiences, even the bad ones, as without them, I would not be where I am now. My Oma always said there was a path we were meant to travel and no matter whether we took a right turn or a left turn and veered off that path, we would always end up where we were supposed to be. I am a firm believer in this philosophy also and there have been enough 'coincidences' in my life to reinforce this belief. This doesn't mean I will blindly blunder on through life waiting for something to happen! Far from it - the choices we make will determine where we end up, I just think there is something more guiding the choices we make at times.
One thing I have learned about myself is that I am a hoarder - not just of things but of information. I spend countless hours researching, buying books, making plans etc but then there never seems to be the time or the motivation to actually use any of this information! I need to get better at this. I run the scenarios through my head, work out what I am going to and then.............nothing. Sometimes it is a lack of confidence in myself to carry through, other times I feel like I am too exhausted to even try. I spend most of my time cooped up in doors on the computer. I am indoors on the computer or the phone for my job, 5 days a week. I then come home to cook/clean etc and then I am back on the computer until I go to bed - checking emails, Facebook, Warcraft, paperwork for the business or SCA......this is not healthy. Is it any wonder given my health issues that I am susceptible to viruses and things? Is it any wonder with the number of antibiotics I have taken in my lifetime, my lack of physical exercise and being outdoors and my genetic make up that I am now paying the price? Have my chickens come home to roost?
Step 1 was recognising there is a problem - complete
Step 2 - make plans to rectify this issues
Step 3 - Carry out said plans
Step 4 - review and start the process again
So, where to from here? I need to make some changes - I am not super woman (sorry to disappoint you) and I cannot do everything on my own. There needs to be 'me time' and not just giving out my time and energy to every one else. If I don't look after me, who will?
The plan:
1. Do more cooking! We have fresh produce in the shape of eggs and vegies grown at home, use this resource! Much healthier - ask Gryffen to help. He likes to help cook. Make time on the weekend to do this - book it in!
2. Get outside more - yes during the week this is easier said than done. Get up 15 minutes earlier and go check the chickens! Talk to them, check them over, give them food and check water. This is the boys job but it is not happening properly - supervision is the key :-) And it will get me outside!
3. Don't eat lunch at my desk unless I have fit in at least 30 minutes away from the computer - go for a walk if it is a nice day! Take a book and go to the lunch room if the weather is foul!
4. Limit time on computer at home - no more than 2 hours at a time! (This will be the hard one!) Read a book, do some sewing, get creative!
5. On the weekend - get outside when the weather is good! Take the dogs for a walk, get on the ride on lawn mower, clean out the chook pens, do something!
6. Treat myself once a week - do something I *want* to do, not something I need/have to do.
7. Saturday night - if the kids are home, have a movie night or a games night together. Take it in turns for picking what we do.
That's a start in the right direction. There is so much more but if I try and do too much change at once, I will fail. Bite sized chunks and with some determination, I can make the changes. I needto make the changes, and only I can do it!
Our whole adult lives we seem to be working harder to make that extra dollar to buy the things we really don't need because we think they will make us happy and then we don't have the time or energy to use them. What a waste! I am just as guilty of this as the next person. I *need* to work so we can live where we do and I can drive the car I drive - but that does come at a cost. Is that cost worth it? At the moment yes, but there is a but. I am walking a fine line at the moment and I do need to stop, take a step back, look at what is happening and make some adjustments. I will be taking a quite substantial pay cut in August when my temporary appointment comes to an end - almost the equivalent of my car payment. Yes, I knew this was going to happen. Things have changed in the financial world - interest rates have gone up, I bought a new car, cost of living has increased. Something has to give and the money has to come from some where. It means re-evaluating what I do. Those cappuccino's every morning - they will need to stop. Buying things on credit - needs to stop. Get more patience and save for it - OMG what a thought ;-) LOL You get the picture though - we have become so consumed in instant gratification and keeping up with the Jones's that as a society we have forgotten what is important. We keep digging ourselves a deeper hole that is getting harder and harder to get out of and yet we ignore the white elephant in the room and blindly continue on our headlong charge into Oblivion. No, I am not a doomsayer nor am I a pessimist. All I am saying is I think we need to do some serious re-evaluation on where we are and where we are heading. I know I am - I want off this crazy merry go round and gain some control back over my life. I want to enjoy the good things like spending time with my family, enjoying the incredible place I live, create instead of consume all the time, enjoy the company of our amazing animals, just live! None of us know when it will be our time to go and I don't think we can take the risk of leaving everything to 'later' because 'later' may never come. Let the people you care about know how much they mean to you, not just in words, spend good quality time with them. Take care of you - be healthy, be happy, be true to yourself and to hell with the rest of the world :-)
Tuesday, June 01, 2010
It's a sick world we live in at times
This is just a very brief post while I am on a coffee break, I may post more later, I may not. I have a severe chest infection at the moment which is annoying the crap out of me but it is nothing in comparison with the news I just got.
People we know, let's just call them acquaintances, are in the middle of an awful situation. We always knew there was something untrustworthy about this particular person, but had no idea he was as bad as he is. He has just been arrested for sexually assaulting his step daughters. And to top it off, I also found out at the same time he had tried inappropriate behaviour with my cousin's daughter. I don't know what to feel at the moment - great sadness, extreme anger, disappointment, outrage and an overwhelming urge to cry. And no, it is no one in the SCA, it is mundanely. From what I know, the girls are okay thank the gods, I think it has affected us adults more and in ways I will not be discussing here.
People we know, let's just call them acquaintances, are in the middle of an awful situation. We always knew there was something untrustworthy about this particular person, but had no idea he was as bad as he is. He has just been arrested for sexually assaulting his step daughters. And to top it off, I also found out at the same time he had tried inappropriate behaviour with my cousin's daughter. I don't know what to feel at the moment - great sadness, extreme anger, disappointment, outrage and an overwhelming urge to cry. And no, it is no one in the SCA, it is mundanely. From what I know, the girls are okay thank the gods, I think it has affected us adults more and in ways I will not be discussing here.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Having the lurgy sux
Well, it has finally caught up with me and the lurgy got its hooks in. I started coming down with it Tuesday and now I am miserable. More time off work that I cannot afford as I am so busy!! Oh well, such is life :-(
Got my Warcraft account sorted and I have been super careful since ;-) Lesson learned the hard way! LOL
I could write about the Dubbo Show and the lovely Mother's Day I had last Sunday with all the family but I am too brain fried to think straight at the moment.
We have Radburne's Annual Feast and Tourney next weekend with our smallest bookings to date - not sure we will even bother next year. Or if we do, might make it a pot luck instead - I think that would work better.
Although we have a few die hards coming for Radburne War IV but with the way things are going, I am not expecting a big turn out for that either - will just have to wait and see! I hope we can make Spring War but this year is turning out very unpredictable in a lot of ways so I just can't say!!
I am trying to become a Scribe and have a wonderful lady offer to mentor me - I am so excited! Unfortunately I am just too ill at the moment to even do any of that - I can't even be bothered playing Warcraft so I must be sick ;-) LOL
Dylan and I were going to walk in the Million Paws walk on Sunday for the RSPCA but may not be able to now I am sick - will see how I am Sunday *sigh*.
I'm sure you don't want to read anymore about how miserable I am feeling so will sign off now ;-)
Got my Warcraft account sorted and I have been super careful since ;-) Lesson learned the hard way! LOL
I could write about the Dubbo Show and the lovely Mother's Day I had last Sunday with all the family but I am too brain fried to think straight at the moment.
We have Radburne's Annual Feast and Tourney next weekend with our smallest bookings to date - not sure we will even bother next year. Or if we do, might make it a pot luck instead - I think that would work better.
Although we have a few die hards coming for Radburne War IV but with the way things are going, I am not expecting a big turn out for that either - will just have to wait and see! I hope we can make Spring War but this year is turning out very unpredictable in a lot of ways so I just can't say!!
I am trying to become a Scribe and have a wonderful lady offer to mentor me - I am so excited! Unfortunately I am just too ill at the moment to even do any of that - I can't even be bothered playing Warcraft so I must be sick ;-) LOL
Dylan and I were going to walk in the Million Paws walk on Sunday for the RSPCA but may not be able to now I am sick - will see how I am Sunday *sigh*.
I'm sure you don't want to read anymore about how miserable I am feeling so will sign off now ;-)
Friday, April 23, 2010
Disappointed
My World of Warcraft account has been hacked and is being used to spam other players. I have had my account suspended twice in 48 hours for spamming when I haven't even been on! Account services have been next to useless apart from the quick suspension of my account which has hopefully stopped too much crap. At this stage apart from being extremely frustrating (and has resulted in me not wanting to play) there does not seem to have been too much damage done apart from the spamming. From what I can tell so far, my characters gold and items are intact. I haven't been able to check the guild bank yet so I will reserve judgment until I do.
I have all my system up to date, my anti virus is up to date and even after changing the email associated with the account and the password it was still compromised a second time. My anti virus showed up nothing. I installed Windows Defender which picked up nothing and then Spybot Search and Destroy which did pick up a tracker - my guess is this is how they were getting access to my changed email and password. This has now been removed. Initially I think it was installed at a website that looked like the Warcraft account login due to a message I received in game that appeared to come from Blizzard. As I accessed this when I was tired, I wasn't as vigilant as I could have been. I will not make that mistake again. Hackers piss me off no end and so does the fact that you almost need an IT degree to play a favourite game safely on line. It also pisses me off that hackers get paid to do what they do - until it becomes financially un-viable for them to do what they do this kind of behaviour will continue and I believe escalate. I don't think we should have to know exactly how everything has to work inside and out to play something casually however it appears that may be a naive point of view and one that may have no place in our spiraling out of control society (that is another rant for another time).
I have tried to contact Blizzard accounts for Warcraft but they are experiencing a high volume of calls at the moment and cannot take my call. I wonder why?
On a positive note relating to my last post, Cleopatra did come home that night and we have had no more escapes to date :-)
I have all my system up to date, my anti virus is up to date and even after changing the email associated with the account and the password it was still compromised a second time. My anti virus showed up nothing. I installed Windows Defender which picked up nothing and then Spybot Search and Destroy which did pick up a tracker - my guess is this is how they were getting access to my changed email and password. This has now been removed. Initially I think it was installed at a website that looked like the Warcraft account login due to a message I received in game that appeared to come from Blizzard. As I accessed this when I was tired, I wasn't as vigilant as I could have been. I will not make that mistake again. Hackers piss me off no end and so does the fact that you almost need an IT degree to play a favourite game safely on line. It also pisses me off that hackers get paid to do what they do - until it becomes financially un-viable for them to do what they do this kind of behaviour will continue and I believe escalate. I don't think we should have to know exactly how everything has to work inside and out to play something casually however it appears that may be a naive point of view and one that may have no place in our spiraling out of control society (that is another rant for another time).
I have tried to contact Blizzard accounts for Warcraft but they are experiencing a high volume of calls at the moment and cannot take my call. I wonder why
On a positive note relating to my last post, Cleopatra did come home that night and we have had no more escapes to date :-)
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Surviving
I have survived my two days in Sydney for work and my trip to Forbes today. I am tired now but it was worthwhile. I tested my Powerpoint presentation at my first of many meetings today and all in all I got a lot of positive feedback so feeling good. I also have some ideas now on how to tweak it :-) The group were great and very supportive - thanks!!!
I am feeling bad though now - I didn't check to make sure the front door was locked properly. Cleopatra the clever cat can open the door - she let herself, Rex and Candy out. Candy got so frightened she flew back in the front door not long after when we opened it and Rex hid under the caravan (Shadow was trying to round them up - typical Border Collie). Unfortunately Cleopatra is now missing - down the paddock somewhere no doubt chasing bugs or something, Dylan is feeling miserable - we have neighbours that shoot anything that comes on their property so I can understand why he is worried :-( I feel so bad!!!! Hopefully she will come home soon for her dinner and bed - I really hope so! We have locked Shadow up in the pen so when Cleo comes home he cannot chase her. What a mess!!!
I am feeling bad though now - I didn't check to make sure the front door was locked properly. Cleopatra the clever cat can open the door - she let herself, Rex and Candy out. Candy got so frightened she flew back in the front door not long after when we opened it and Rex hid under the caravan (Shadow was trying to round them up - typical Border Collie). Unfortunately Cleopatra is now missing - down the paddock somewhere no doubt chasing bugs or something, Dylan is feeling miserable - we have neighbours that shoot anything that comes on their property so I can understand why he is worried :-( I feel so bad!!!! Hopefully she will come home soon for her dinner and bed - I really hope so! We have locked Shadow up in the pen so when Cleo comes home he cannot chase her. What a mess!!!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Easter and other sundry stuff
Had a lovely weekend camping with the family at Easter - the weather was perfect, the fish were biting, I finished 3 books in 2 days, lots of good food - what more can you ask for? LOL
I have had this week off work - vegged out, played Warcraft (when my internet connection was working), made some jewelery (some as gifts), got some not so good news about a good friend who is in hospital (wishing you a speedy recovery!), did Target Archery this afternoon and talked lots of SCA stuff, got the house mostly cleaned, did washing - you know, the usual boring stuff ;-)
This week I am off to Sydney Monday and Tuesday for work, then Forbes on Wednesday. The following Monday I am in Bathurst, then back to Sydney on the Wednesday and Orange on the Friday. The 29th and 30th I am in Canberra - next month I have trips to Orange, Sydney, Young and maybe even Broken Hill. Nothing quite like traveling across the state ;-) I may as well enjoy it whilst I can - my position finishes at the end of July when B returns from maternity leave. I will then go back to my substantive position as PA which I will have been away from for 18 months! I will probably have to relearn everything! LOL
I need to follow up with a couple of people and see if they are coming to the feast next month - it will be a smallish affair again this year but that's okay - we will still have fun ;-) Really looking forward to RWIV - complete with Viking wedding :-) I need to start planning and timetabling - I want to be more organised this year. I know laugh away - me organised? Yeah right ;-)
Anyhoo, off to do some browsing methinks :-)
I have had this week off work - vegged out, played Warcraft (when my internet connection was working), made some jewelery (some as gifts), got some not so good news about a good friend who is in hospital (wishing you a speedy recovery!), did Target Archery this afternoon and talked lots of SCA stuff, got the house mostly cleaned, did washing - you know, the usual boring stuff ;-)
This week I am off to Sydney Monday and Tuesday for work, then Forbes on Wednesday. The following Monday I am in Bathurst, then back to Sydney on the Wednesday and Orange on the Friday. The 29th and 30th I am in Canberra - next month I have trips to Orange, Sydney, Young and maybe even Broken Hill. Nothing quite like traveling across the state ;-) I may as well enjoy it whilst I can - my position finishes at the end of July when B returns from maternity leave. I will then go back to my substantive position as PA which I will have been away from for 18 months! I will probably have to relearn everything! LOL
I need to follow up with a couple of people and see if they are coming to the feast next month - it will be a smallish affair again this year but that's okay - we will still have fun ;-) Really looking forward to RWIV - complete with Viking wedding :-) I need to start planning and timetabling - I want to be more organised this year. I know laugh away - me organised? Yeah right ;-)
Anyhoo, off to do some browsing methinks :-)
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Tuesday evening
Played WoW for a bit but the lag got too bad. Work is crazy busy and I now have a date - I will be acting in the IMRC role until the 26 July 2010 when the substantive returns from maternity leave. I will then do a week hand over with her and back to my normal job.
I worked out today it will be 18 months that I have been out of my substantive position when I go back! I'm in two minds about going back - my boss is awesome and I love working with her so that will be great, on the other hand, in a way I feel like I have 'moved on' so mixed emotions about that. You never know what opportunity may be around the corner (such as for project work) so I will keep my eyes and ears open ;-) Of course then there is the money too which will drop when I go back ;-) (But I knew that when I took this on so it is not a surprise.)
Had a bit of a 'meh' afternoon yesterday but it is all sorted again.
Festival is on this weekend but we won't be going - just too far and too costly. I think that first camping experience a few years ago at Glenworth Valley has scarred us a bit too ;-) Instead, we will be camping with family on a property on the river just the other side of Warren - we haven't been for ages so really looking forward to it! I will miss catching up with people at Festival, market day, watching the fighting etc but at the same time I won't miss the rain, the humidity, the mozzies and leeches, the loos and the lack of campfire and shower. At least where we are going we will have a 'loo with a view' and 'a shower with a view'. All temporary stuff but T has it made really well :-) Looking forward to his cooking on the campfire too and sitting around the fire gazing at the stars. So much family time to look forward too! I hope to catch up on some reading and calligraphy ;-)
Only two more sleeps to go! Candy will miss us and probably won't talk to us for days when we get back ;-) I must admit I will miss that brat ball of fluff! When the alarm goes off of a morning she uses both T and I as a trampoline until we get up!
I worked out today it will be 18 months that I have been out of my substantive position when I go back! I'm in two minds about going back - my boss is awesome and I love working with her so that will be great, on the other hand, in a way I feel like I have 'moved on' so mixed emotions about that. You never know what opportunity may be around the corner (such as for project work) so I will keep my eyes and ears open ;-) Of course then there is the money too which will drop when I go back ;-) (But I knew that when I took this on so it is not a surprise.)
Had a bit of a 'meh' afternoon yesterday but it is all sorted again.
Festival is on this weekend but we won't be going - just too far and too costly. I think that first camping experience a few years ago at Glenworth Valley has scarred us a bit too ;-) Instead, we will be camping with family on a property on the river just the other side of Warren - we haven't been for ages so really looking forward to it! I will miss catching up with people at Festival, market day, watching the fighting etc but at the same time I won't miss the rain, the humidity, the mozzies and leeches, the loos and the lack of campfire and shower. At least where we are going we will have a 'loo with a view' and 'a shower with a view'. All temporary stuff but T has it made really well :-) Looking forward to his cooking on the campfire too and sitting around the fire gazing at the stars. So much family time to look forward too! I hope to catch up on some reading and calligraphy ;-)
Only two more sleeps to go! Candy will miss us and probably won't talk to us for days when we get back ;-) I must admit I will miss that brat ball of fluff! When the alarm goes off of a morning she uses both T and I as a trampoline until we get up!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Disco duck is home
and got a prize for best 'air guitar' for his impersonation of Angus Young doing AC/DCs Highway to Hell (complete with long hair and baseball cap). LOL
Thursday
A fairly uneventful day today - got 2 new claims' paperwork sorted today and attended a PAB training session. Caught up on emails etc. Went grocery shopping, bought all the Star Trek movies, T's birthday present had come in (phew!), need to go pick Gryffen up from the school disco shortly and Manfred advised all the stock clerk books arrived safely (huzzah)!
It looks like we will be camping from the 1st April to the 5th April out on the river at Warren - thank goodness mum and dad will be here to house sit and look after all the animals! Poor Candy will be lost and probably won't talk to us when we get back, at least for a day anyway! She will have to sleep with the other cats instead of us - shock horror! LOL
Wolfstanus is going to a Metal Concert tomorrow night so will have to straighten his hair before he goes! LOL He has got me listening to Drowning Pool, Ramstein, Bullet for my Valentine and Disturbed - some if it is pretty good! Cradle of Filth isn't one of my favourites though ;-) I actually really like 'Upside Down' by Drowning Pool, had it blaring on the way home tonight! LOL
Anyhow, better go get my disco duck!
It looks like we will be camping from the 1st April to the 5th April out on the river at Warren - thank goodness mum and dad will be here to house sit and look after all the animals! Poor Candy will be lost and probably won't talk to us when we get back, at least for a day anyway! She will have to sleep with the other cats instead of us - shock horror! LOL
Wolfstanus is going to a Metal Concert tomorrow night so will have to straighten his hair before he goes! LOL He has got me listening to Drowning Pool, Ramstein, Bullet for my Valentine and Disturbed - some if it is pretty good! Cradle of Filth isn't one of my favourites though ;-) I actually really like 'Upside Down' by Drowning Pool, had it blaring on the way home tonight! LOL
Anyhow, better go get my disco duck!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Life is interesting
So much for writing more often here - I think I just need to get back into the habit instead of just going to Facebook and then playing WoW ;-)
On the SCA side of things, I have finally sent the books off to the new Stock Clerk - after 4 years it was time to hand it over to someone else. I have finally completed the paperwork to make a small change to my device - removing the Ermoinois. This will make drawing it a lot easier! I need to help Danieru and Johanna with getting their devices conflict checked. I have lots of sewing to do but just can't seem to get motivated at the moment. Part of the problem is I have so much I want to do I don't know where to start!
It's T's birthday on Saturday so having the family over for a BBQ. Then Easter we are off camping at Warren for the weekend - I have the first week of the holidays off and then off to Sydney for two days and then Forbes for a day. Can't say I'm bored! LOL
We have the Radburne Feast coming up in May - at this stage it looks like just the usual local crowd - that's okay though. In August we have Radburne War IV complete with Viking wedding - really looking forward to that!
I have Conrad's 18th to organise next year along with my 40th - the year after that is Wolfstanus' 18th and our 20th Wedding Anniversary. For our anniversary I want to organise a hand fasting to renew our vows - I have an idea of what I want to do but have lots of research and planning to do before hand. I also want to make T a cotton voile shirt to wear with black work embroidery.
On the SCA side of things, I have finally sent the books off to the new Stock Clerk - after 4 years it was time to hand it over to someone else. I have finally completed the paperwork to make a small change to my device - removing the Ermoinois. This will make drawing it a lot easier! I need to help Danieru and Johanna with getting their devices conflict checked. I have lots of sewing to do but just can't seem to get motivated at the moment. Part of the problem is I have so much I want to do I don't know where to start!
It's T's birthday on Saturday so having the family over for a BBQ. Then Easter we are off camping at Warren for the weekend - I have the first week of the holidays off and then off to Sydney for two days and then Forbes for a day. Can't say I'm bored! LOL
We have the Radburne Feast coming up in May - at this stage it looks like just the usual local crowd - that's okay though. In August we have Radburne War IV complete with Viking wedding - really looking forward to that!
I have Conrad's 18th to organise next year along with my 40th - the year after that is Wolfstanus' 18th and our 20th Wedding Anniversary. For our anniversary I want to organise a hand fasting to renew our vows - I have an idea of what I want to do but have lots of research and planning to do before hand. I also want to make T a cotton voile shirt to wear with black work embroidery.
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
Hmm...it's been awhile again
I was going okay but sort of fell in a heap again with updates ;-)
Went to Border War last weekend which was awesome, Conrad fought his authorising bout against Duke Siridean and passed - he conducted himself really well :-) So he is now an authorised Combat Archer and Heavy! Wolfstanus has been asked to be Banner Bearer for Whyte Companie (by Duke Cornelius) and has officially been released from obligations to Baron Sir Osric (distance played a big part in this). So happy and sad at the same time :-)
All of us, including the rest of House Radburne seem to be invigorated and we have two new members which helps liven things up ;-)
I have managed to bugger my ankle up again, I can't get in for an ultrasound for 2 weeks to see if there is any ligament damage so resting it at the moment under doctor's orders.
The new car is going awesomely well but I am not allowed to drive at the moment *sigh*. Will try and post more regularly but not making any promises ;-)
Went to Border War last weekend which was awesome, Conrad fought his authorising bout against Duke Siridean and passed - he conducted himself really well :-) So he is now an authorised Combat Archer and Heavy! Wolfstanus has been asked to be Banner Bearer for Whyte Companie (by Duke Cornelius) and has officially been released from obligations to Baron Sir Osric (distance played a big part in this). So happy and sad at the same time :-)
All of us, including the rest of House Radburne seem to be invigorated and we have two new members which helps liven things up ;-)
I have managed to bugger my ankle up again, I can't get in for an ultrasound for 2 weeks to see if there is any ligament damage so resting it at the moment under doctor's orders.
The new car is going awesomely well but I am not allowed to drive at the moment *sigh*. Will try and post more regularly but not making any promises ;-)
Friday, February 05, 2010
Internet connection that keeps dropping out = no posting
My internet connection is all over the place at the moment so I am fairly limited to what I can do right now.
Have been doing some family history research which is really interesting - I love that stuff ;-)
We have had over 90mm of rain so far today and it is still raining steadily - the storm water drains are not coping and the highway had water over it in three spots between town and home tonight. A lot of the paddocks look like lakes - haven't seen this much rain this quick in a very long time!
Forgot to get my WoW Game Card today so that means no WoW tonight - damn!!!
Happy Birthday Gryffen!!!! I can't believe you are 12 today!!!
Have been doing some family history research which is really interesting - I love that stuff ;-)
We have had over 90mm of rain so far today and it is still raining steadily - the storm water drains are not coping and the highway had water over it in three spots between town and home tonight. A lot of the paddocks look like lakes - haven't seen this much rain this quick in a very long time!
Forgot to get my WoW Game Card today so that means no WoW tonight - damn!!!
Happy Birthday Gryffen!!!! I can't believe you are 12 today!!!
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Gambesson dilemma solved :-)
With a few slight modifications, I will be using the gambesson I made for T as he doesn't use it. Problem one down ;-) I need to make an arming cap now!
Got the second lion's head sewn on Gryffen's banner - need to mark the eyes etc and sew them.
Got a bargain today at one of the local bookstores - Tudor Treasures to Embroider by Pamela Warner for the princely sum of $9.95! It has some really cute projects in it I hope to do, *sigh* the list just gets longer!
We are hoping to go to Rowany's Newcomers Feast in March but it will depend on if T's work picks up - it's a bit quiet at the moment. February is our crap month where a whole heap of bills hit at once and we have Border War at the end of February so we'll just have to wait and see.
Got the second lion's head sewn on Gryffen's banner - need to mark the eyes etc and sew them.
Got a bargain today at one of the local bookstores - Tudor Treasures to Embroider by Pamela Warner for the princely sum of $9.95! It has some really cute projects in it I hope to do, *sigh* the list just gets longer!
We are hoping to go to Rowany's Newcomers Feast in March but it will depend on if T's work picks up - it's a bit quiet at the moment. February is our crap month where a whole heap of bills hit at once and we have Border War at the end of February so we'll just have to wait and see.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
A few projects started......
I have had internet on and off over the last few days - has to do with hitting our cap and having speed throttled - the reception isn't that great then and with 4 computers trying to hook up you get the drift ;-)
Bought Family Tree Maker 2010 on Saturday and have been entering data and searching online stuff - it is going to take years! I have a heap of research from years ago that I need to enter, documents to scan, my grandparents old photos to go through etc. It's been really interesting and exciting!
Today I started painting some sample scrolls - they aren't too bad but my hand isn't as steady as I would like it to be yet! I also did some more on Gryffen's banner, got one lion's head sewn on. I need to get some bottle green wool or crochet cotton to do the other one. Watched Mama Mia and Ever After this afternoon whilst I was sewing ;-)
Bought Family Tree Maker 2010 on Saturday and have been entering data and searching online stuff - it is going to take years! I have a heap of research from years ago that I need to enter, documents to scan, my grandparents old photos to go through etc. It's been really interesting and exciting!
Today I started painting some sample scrolls - they aren't too bad but my hand isn't as steady as I would like it to be yet! I also did some more on Gryffen's banner, got one lion's head sewn on. I need to get some bottle green wool or crochet cotton to do the other one. Watched Mama Mia and Ever After this afternoon whilst I was sewing ;-)
Friday, January 22, 2010
Thoughts whilst driving........
I seem to do most of my thinking when I'm driving - something about the open road, the freedom, I don't know.......I have been thinking about buying a dictaphone because when I get back and by the time I get to post here, it never seems to come out the same. At least if I could record it as I'm thinking it, I could in theory transcribe it later on. I digress.......
I did have an interesting drive to Bathurst today, in a good way! LOL Just under three hours each way including a stop both ways ;-)
Between Lucknow and Vittoria is a hilly part of road where there is not a lot of opportunity for overtaking. About half a dozen of us got stuck behind a slow moving vehicle for some time. Finally we get to an overtaking lane and we all move out and around - the lane ends fairly quickly so everyone speeds up a little to get past in time. As we are doing this, over the crest of the hill comes a highway patrol car! Talk about brake lights coming on left, right and centre! Very funny! No-one got booked, the max we would have been over was 5km/hr.
As I was driving through the valley coming into Bathurst I had the most amazing feeling of euphoria. You know what, there are a lot of things to be grateful for - especially with all the turmoil in the world and things like the Haiti earthquakes. I don't think we appreciate all the good things often enough, no matter how small they may be.
Today the sun was shining, I got to drive through some beautiful countryside in a comfortable car (work car) with air conditioning, having the freedom to listen to my favourite songs, singing as loudly and as off key as I liked! LOL I was listening to the song 'Twisted' by Brian McFadden and the words really struck me. I know it probably sounds silly but I was almost moved to tears - because it really hit me how blessed I am. I have an incredible husband, incredible sons, incredible extended family (including both sets of parents) and friends, and although there are times we may get frustrated with each other, I love them none the less and I am grateful they are in our lives.
I love my life - I feel content and I would not want to trade with anyone!
Anyhow, the particular words that struck me were:
And I smile my twisted smile when I say,
Let the world keep turning
Cause I'll be standing still
And the earth feels closer to heaven
Just because you're here
I've been chased by angels
I've been drunk out of my mind
And the earth feels better than heaven
Just because you're here
Twisted
So true :-)
While I was in Bathurst I bought 2 new cds - Black Eyed Peas 'The End' and Toby Keith's Greatest Hits 2.
I did have an interesting drive to Bathurst today, in a good way! LOL Just under three hours each way including a stop both ways ;-)
Between Lucknow and Vittoria is a hilly part of road where there is not a lot of opportunity for overtaking. About half a dozen of us got stuck behind a slow moving vehicle for some time. Finally we get to an overtaking lane and we all move out and around - the lane ends fairly quickly so everyone speeds up a little to get past in time. As we are doing this, over the crest of the hill comes a highway patrol car! Talk about brake lights coming on left, right and centre! Very funny! No-one got booked, the max we would have been over was 5km/hr.
As I was driving through the valley coming into Bathurst I had the most amazing feeling of euphoria. You know what, there are a lot of things to be grateful for - especially with all the turmoil in the world and things like the Haiti earthquakes. I don't think we appreciate all the good things often enough, no matter how small they may be.
Today the sun was shining, I got to drive through some beautiful countryside in a comfortable car (work car) with air conditioning, having the freedom to listen to my favourite songs, singing as loudly and as off key as I liked! LOL I was listening to the song 'Twisted' by Brian McFadden and the words really struck me. I know it probably sounds silly but I was almost moved to tears - because it really hit me how blessed I am. I have an incredible husband, incredible sons, incredible extended family (including both sets of parents) and friends, and although there are times we may get frustrated with each other, I love them none the less and I am grateful they are in our lives.
I love my life - I feel content and I would not want to trade with anyone!
Anyhow, the particular words that struck me were:
And I smile my twisted smile when I say,
Let the world keep turning
Cause I'll be standing still
And the earth feels closer to heaven
Just because you're here
I've been chased by angels
I've been drunk out of my mind
And the earth feels better than heaven
Just because you're here
Twisted
So true :-)
While I was in Bathurst I bought 2 new cds - Black Eyed Peas 'The End' and Toby Keith's Greatest Hits 2.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
And it's Thursday again already!
Got lots of filing and archiving done today so was at least a productive day! I'm off to Bathurst for work tomorrow - 3hr drive, 3 meetings and a 3hr drive home. Then I'm off for a week! Hanging out at home, appointments and getting the boys ready to go back to school. I can't believe January is nearly over!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
And the words of today are.......
chronic autoimmune urticaria. Say that 4 times really fast!
That is the name of the condition I have - at least now I can Google it! LOL
That is the name of the condition I have - at least now I can Google it! LOL
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Shooting combat arrows is fun!
T, the boys and I, shot combat arrows at a dummy tonight until it got too dark to find the arrows in the scrub ;-) Was much fun! I am a shocking shot and only hit the target by dumb luck. T and the boys on the other hand are naturals *sigh*.
Now I need to get my gambesson made so T can finish my armour and I can start practicing! I need to get authorised at RWIV so I can keep my promise to Will and shoot his arrows back at him ;-)
It was really nice to spend some time outdoors as a family too - pity the weather won't stay this cool! Now I just need to find the armour I want. Was thinking about learning to make chain mail but I don't think I have the patience or the fine motor skills to do it! LOL
Now I need to get my gambesson made so T can finish my armour and I can start practicing! I need to get authorised at RWIV so I can keep my promise to Will and shoot his arrows back at him ;-)
It was really nice to spend some time outdoors as a family too - pity the weather won't stay this cool! Now I just need to find the armour I want. Was thinking about learning to make chain mail but I don't think I have the patience or the fine motor skills to do it! LOL
Monday, January 18, 2010
Sad and disappointed
I guess that is one way to describe how we all felt when we went to the RSPCA yesterday to help by walking the dogs. I probably should have posted as soon as I got back while my thoughts were running but needed to get ready to go out for lunch with T's parents - it was their 51st Wedding Anniversary (congratulations!!!!).
Poor Gryffen was most upset when he realised just how many dogs and cats are out there at the moment - they have had over 150 through since 1st January. It's really heart breaking - there are all sorts out there and all ages. Some are outgoing and friendly and others are timid, scared and obviously haven't been looked after. We walked about 16 dogs I think in total in the hour or so we were there - plan on going back out on Saturday. I am really proud of Gryffen, he dried his tears, picked a Chihuahua cross to take for a walk and gave it lots of love :-) They have even had to double up with pens as there are just too many and the Ranger keeps bringing them in. I hope that it starts to slow down now - the workers do an awesome job but there is only so much they can do too :-( The problem would be pretty much non existent if people were responsible pet owners - unfortunately there appears to be a large number that just don't care or think that animals are worthless. To me, they are the worthless cretins! The hard part of going out there is knowing that a lot will need to be euthanased, and of course knowing we cannot adopt anymore! There is always at least one we would love to take home! We come home, give our animals a hug and a pat and know that at least they are getting what they deserve - a good life! I love that when I go for my walk that the dogs come with me. I just have to say to Scrappy - going for a walk? And he talks right back and gets so excited. He always stays with me and if I drop behind a bit he comes running back and grabs my hand to make sure I am okay. You can't get better than that ;-) I love that when the cats come in from their pen that you get a happy meow and cuddles - and that Candy curls up next to me to go to sleep at night. Although it is absolutely heart breaking when we lose one, there is no way I would be without them. I am lucky that T and the boys all feel the same way.
Although it isn't much, we will keep doing what we can to help. If everyone just looked to themselves and their own backyard it would already go a long way to changing things.
Poor Gryffen was most upset when he realised just how many dogs and cats are out there at the moment - they have had over 150 through since 1st January. It's really heart breaking - there are all sorts out there and all ages. Some are outgoing and friendly and others are timid, scared and obviously haven't been looked after. We walked about 16 dogs I think in total in the hour or so we were there - plan on going back out on Saturday. I am really proud of Gryffen, he dried his tears, picked a Chihuahua cross to take for a walk and gave it lots of love :-) They have even had to double up with pens as there are just too many and the Ranger keeps bringing them in. I hope that it starts to slow down now - the workers do an awesome job but there is only so much they can do too :-( The problem would be pretty much non existent if people were responsible pet owners - unfortunately there appears to be a large number that just don't care or think that animals are worthless. To me, they are the worthless cretins! The hard part of going out there is knowing that a lot will need to be euthanased, and of course knowing we cannot adopt anymore! There is always at least one we would love to take home! We come home, give our animals a hug and a pat and know that at least they are getting what they deserve - a good life! I love that when I go for my walk that the dogs come with me. I just have to say to Scrappy - going for a walk? And he talks right back and gets so excited. He always stays with me and if I drop behind a bit he comes running back and grabs my hand to make sure I am okay. You can't get better than that ;-) I love that when the cats come in from their pen that you get a happy meow and cuddles - and that Candy curls up next to me to go to sleep at night. Although it is absolutely heart breaking when we lose one, there is no way I would be without them. I am lucky that T and the boys all feel the same way.
Although it isn't much, we will keep doing what we can to help. If everyone just looked to themselves and their own backyard it would already go a long way to changing things.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Drooling!
After a random conversation with T this morning, we are looking at maybe traveling to Europe in about 5 years time (the boys have been warned they will need to start saving LOL). Where do you start? What do we want to do? I naturally want to spend some time in the Netherlands but it would be good to do some other stuff too. I know we won't get to see a fraction of the things we would like to see but we could always go back ;-)
Looking at spending 4 weeks there all up - so I thought I would look a few things up out of curiosity, and then went OMG I will have to start planning now to be ready to go in 5 years! None of us have ever been overseas.......
Anyhoo, when thinking about interesting places to stay, I came across this one, The Chateau De Clavy-Warby in France. I figured 2 weeks in the Netherlands, a week in France and maybe a week in Germany. *sigh* I might have to start buying Lotto tickets!!!
Looking at spending 4 weeks there all up - so I thought I would look a few things up out of curiosity, and then went OMG I will have to start planning now to be ready to go in 5 years! None of us have ever been overseas.......
Anyhoo, when thinking about interesting places to stay, I came across this one, The Chateau De Clavy-Warby in France. I figured 2 weeks in the Netherlands, a week in France and maybe a week in Germany. *sigh* I might have to start buying Lotto tickets!!!
Friday, January 15, 2010
Excited!!!
Went out for nummy dinner with T at Hog's Breath tonight, boys are at my cousin's for a night of Warhammer and PS3. Yes, it is very quiet!!!
I decided to try and do some more research on Delden and couldn't find a whole lot - some lovely people on The Shambles had some great suggestions which I will pursue (will need Dad's help though for translation).
I also came across this site by 'accident' when broadening my search to Medieval Low Countries. It is a Review by Elisabeth van Houts of 'The Narrative Sources from The Low Countries' website. I am off to do some reading!!!
Just had to share :-)
I decided to try and do some more research on Delden and couldn't find a whole lot - some lovely people on The Shambles had some great suggestions which I will pursue (will need Dad's help though for translation).
I also came across this site by 'accident' when broadening my search to Medieval Low Countries. It is a Review by Elisabeth van Houts of 'The Narrative Sources from The Low Countries' website. I am off to do some reading!!!
Just had to share :-)
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Iz tiredz, needz bedz now........
Busy, busy week back at work but at least I feel like I have achieved something! Still a long way to go tho..........
Watched some more episodes of 'The Tudors: Season 3' last night - may be 1 more episode to go or we may have watched them all - then will have to wait for the final season *sigh*. Funny thing is T bought the original for me but he got really engrossed himself!! Yes, I know it is loosely based on History, it is after all a soap opera written to keep viewers entranced rather than being historically accurate. I am okay with that - I watch it for entertainment value ;-) Hmmm...Henry Cavill as Duke Charles ;-)
Anyhoo........after doing some reading on the net about the Tudors (the real ones), I decided to start doing some research for my SCA persona, who is from Delden, in the Low Countries in the 14th Century (haven't pin pointed exact date yet LOL). I must admit I am a little frustrated - Googleing 'Delden History' hasn't exactly given me great hits first up. I know, patience! LOL Anyone got any tips?
Oh well, time for bed. I have been good and getting up early for my walk everyday - tomorrow will be day 5 in a row and week 1 completed! Yay me :-)
Watched some more episodes of 'The Tudors: Season 3' last night - may be 1 more episode to go or we may have watched them all - then will have to wait for the final season *sigh*. Funny thing is T bought the original for me but he got really engrossed himself!! Yes, I know it is loosely based on History, it is after all a soap opera written to keep viewers entranced rather than being historically accurate. I am okay with that - I watch it for entertainment value ;-) Hmmm...Henry Cavill as Duke Charles ;-)
Anyhoo........after doing some reading on the net about the Tudors (the real ones), I decided to start doing some research for my SCA persona, who is from Delden, in the Low Countries in the 14th Century (haven't pin pointed exact date yet LOL). I must admit I am a little frustrated - Googleing 'Delden History' hasn't exactly given me great hits first up. I know, patience! LOL Anyone got any tips?
Oh well, time for bed. I have been good and getting up early for my walk everyday - tomorrow will be day 5 in a row and week 1 completed! Yay me :-)
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Dark, stormy skies
rumbling thunder, and a huge downpour! It still looks very dark outside but the rain has stopped for now. And I still have an internet connection - yippee!!! Turns out it was the branch on the big tree out the front interfering with our already weak signal ;-) At least the temperature has dropped a bit! They are predicting a ten degree drop in temperature - hmmmm 45 to 35, better but still too hot in my book!!!
I am starting to catch up at work, the pile of notes to be recorded is getting less but there is still so much to do! I am off to Bathurst for the day next Friday for some meetings. Will need to be at work by 8am and should be home by 6pm - then I am on leave for a week! (To get the boys organised and back to school.) The following week mum and dad will be away so need to make other arrangements for the boys after school.
So much I want to do but by the time I get through everything at work, come home, cook, clean up etc and with the heat, I just don't feel motivated!
What to do, what to do - banner making, calligraphy or play Warcraft? I might read for a bit..........
I am starting to catch up at work, the pile of notes to be recorded is getting less but there is still so much to do! I am off to Bathurst for the day next Friday for some meetings. Will need to be at work by 8am and should be home by 6pm - then I am on leave for a week! (To get the boys organised and back to school.) The following week mum and dad will be away so need to make other arrangements for the boys after school.
So much I want to do but by the time I get through everything at work, come home, cook, clean up etc and with the heat, I just don't feel motivated!
What to do, what to do - banner making, calligraphy or play Warcraft? I might read for a bit..........
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Hello, anyone out there?
Probably not, but that's okay - will continue to post when I feel like it ;-)
Have been back at work for two days now catching up on the backlog after having two weeks off. I'm having another week off at the end of January to get the boys organised and back to school.
Weather sux as usual, supposed to be a cool change coming through in the next couple of days - can't wait!
Cancelled my gym membership - it's not helping and it's killing my feet. I've decided to just eat sensibly (most of the time) and walk 5 days a week. Shock, horror, I have arisen at 6:30am the last two mornings and done two laps of the block each day (2.8km per day in total), then I've done a 20 minute walk at lunch time. On the days that it is not stinking hot I plan to walk of an evening too. According to my scales I have lost 1kg this week - could be the scales playing up though ;-) I have blisters on my blisters and my ankles have been locking up but nothing some good stretching doesn't fix. I've also got the Zumbafit DVDs but they are a little too energetic and need too much coordination to do everyday! I plan on doing that once a week to start with and then work my way up. I need to lose 20kg to help relieve the pain in my ankles. I see the ankle specialist next month - I have heel spurs in both feet - can you believe it?
Spoke with the allergy specialist yesterday - looks like this is going to be a long term thing of special diet and medication. I have to say though, as long as I follow it I feel great. I gave in at Christmas and splurged on favourite but 'not to eat' foods and paid the price. Man was I sick Christmas night and Boxing Day. Went back onto the diet and I was fine. Had Tacos tonight so now I have a rash - but I knew that would happen ;-) It should settle again in a few hours - makes it hard to sleep though! Tried Paw Paw today - not sure that I like the taste. It's one of the few fruits I can eat so I am going to look at maybe trying them different ways - time to search for recipes!
I'm hoping my Calligraphy ink and paints will turn up tomorrow - if not then should be here Friday in time for the weekend (we only get mail 3 times a week)! I'm really keen to get going on this ;-)
I have mixed feelings about the SCA at the moment - part of me is really excited about some of the things happening and part of me just isn't sure it is worth the effort anymore. I'll just blame the weather - hard to think of wearing frocks and fighting in armour when it's 43 degrees!!
I started cutting out the new banner for Gryffen on Sunday but with the heat, lost enthusiasm very quickly! I must admit Warcraft has been the go when I just want to veg out and do nothing! LOL
Anyhow, off to feed Candy and then to bed.
Have been back at work for two days now catching up on the backlog after having two weeks off. I'm having another week off at the end of January to get the boys organised and back to school.
Weather sux as usual, supposed to be a cool change coming through in the next couple of days - can't wait!
Cancelled my gym membership - it's not helping and it's killing my feet. I've decided to just eat sensibly (most of the time) and walk 5 days a week. Shock, horror, I have arisen at 6:30am the last two mornings and done two laps of the block each day (2.8km per day in total), then I've done a 20 minute walk at lunch time. On the days that it is not stinking hot I plan to walk of an evening too. According to my scales I have lost 1kg this week - could be the scales playing up though ;-) I have blisters on my blisters and my ankles have been locking up but nothing some good stretching doesn't fix. I've also got the Zumbafit DVDs but they are a little too energetic and need too much coordination to do everyday! I plan on doing that once a week to start with and then work my way up. I need to lose 20kg to help relieve the pain in my ankles. I see the ankle specialist next month - I have heel spurs in both feet - can you believe it?
Spoke with the allergy specialist yesterday - looks like this is going to be a long term thing of special diet and medication. I have to say though, as long as I follow it I feel great. I gave in at Christmas and splurged on favourite but 'not to eat' foods and paid the price. Man was I sick Christmas night and Boxing Day. Went back onto the diet and I was fine. Had Tacos tonight so now I have a rash - but I knew that would happen ;-) It should settle again in a few hours - makes it hard to sleep though! Tried Paw Paw today - not sure that I like the taste. It's one of the few fruits I can eat so I am going to look at maybe trying them different ways - time to search for recipes!
I'm hoping my Calligraphy ink and paints will turn up tomorrow - if not then should be here Friday in time for the weekend (we only get mail 3 times a week)! I'm really keen to get going on this ;-)
I have mixed feelings about the SCA at the moment - part of me is really excited about some of the things happening and part of me just isn't sure it is worth the effort anymore. I'll just blame the weather - hard to think of wearing frocks and fighting in armour when it's 43 degrees!!
I started cutting out the new banner for Gryffen on Sunday but with the heat, lost enthusiasm very quickly! I must admit Warcraft has been the go when I just want to veg out and do nothing! LOL
Anyhow, off to feed Candy and then to bed.
Friday, January 08, 2010
Waiting for it to be 11pm........
so I can start a download for C. We have reached 48% of our peak download allocation and it is only the 8th of the month! I guess that is what happens when you have 4 computers hooked up to the net and it is school holidays ;-)
Christmas has been and gone - it was a wet one this year with over 100mm rain. It rained all day but we still spent it outside at the BBQ area with the aid of tarps!
Lots of time with family, same as New Year's Eve. I got to have two weeks off work, back on Monday. Not looking forward to all the stuff I will have to deal with. *sigh*
I am handing over the SCAA Stock Clerk office after 4 years - everything is packed up. I just need to work out when I can get to Sydney to hand over all the stuff - there is too much to send via courier or the like - it would cost an absolute fortune!
I've decided to take up calligraphy - as have the boys. I'm thinking about joining the College of Scribes (if they will have me). This is my first attempt at 'Uncial Hand'. I've had to order paints and ink online as I can't get it here. One of the downfalls of living west of the Blue Mountains ;-)
I keep looking for SCA events we can try and get too but there always seems to be something conspiring to stop us *sigh*. We are booked and paid for Border War in Wagga Wagga at the end of February, looking forward to that. We were planning on attending Crown Tourney in May in Rowany but it turns out it is the Mother's Day weekend. We were planning on staying with T's sister in Sydney but she will be in Dubbo that weekend more than likely. Will try and sort something out....... Rowany Festival is out at Easter. The drive is just too far and the cost too much. Our first experience at the new site wasn't the best either so not too keen to repeat the experience at this stage. Planning on attending Spring War in October but we will have to see what happens. Keeping an eye out for Rowany and Polit events - we would have liked to go the Polit event in February but it is only 2 weeks before Border War and it is too much to do both *sigh*.
The animals are doing well, both Princess and Candy have grown so much!
We still volunteer at the RSPCA - hope to go in the morning. It is so sad though - they have received over 100 animals this year already, that's in only 8 days!!! What is wrong with people and being responsible? Sadly, a lot of people don't see animals as important.
Speaking of important animals, Candy is climbing over the keyboard telling me it is bed time ;-)
Christmas has been and gone - it was a wet one this year with over 100mm rain. It rained all day but we still spent it outside at the BBQ area with the aid of tarps!
Lots of time with family, same as New Year's Eve. I got to have two weeks off work, back on Monday. Not looking forward to all the stuff I will have to deal with. *sigh*
I am handing over the SCAA Stock Clerk office after 4 years - everything is packed up. I just need to work out when I can get to Sydney to hand over all the stuff - there is too much to send via courier or the like - it would cost an absolute fortune!
I've decided to take up calligraphy - as have the boys. I'm thinking about joining the College of Scribes (if they will have me). This is my first attempt at 'Uncial Hand'. I've had to order paints and ink online as I can't get it here. One of the downfalls of living west of the Blue Mountains ;-)
I keep looking for SCA events we can try and get too but there always seems to be something conspiring to stop us *sigh*. We are booked and paid for Border War in Wagga Wagga at the end of February, looking forward to that. We were planning on attending Crown Tourney in May in Rowany but it turns out it is the Mother's Day weekend. We were planning on staying with T's sister in Sydney but she will be in Dubbo that weekend more than likely. Will try and sort something out....... Rowany Festival is out at Easter. The drive is just too far and the cost too much. Our first experience at the new site wasn't the best either so not too keen to repeat the experience at this stage. Planning on attending Spring War in October but we will have to see what happens. Keeping an eye out for Rowany and Polit events - we would have liked to go the Polit event in February but it is only 2 weeks before Border War and it is too much to do both *sigh*.
The animals are doing well, both Princess and Candy have grown so much!
We still volunteer at the RSPCA - hope to go in the morning. It is so sad though - they have received over 100 animals this year already, that's in only 8 days!!! What is wrong with people and being responsible? Sadly, a lot of people don't see animals as important.
Speaking of important animals, Candy is climbing over the keyboard telling me it is bed time ;-)
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