Even though Rae got in first, here’s my afternoon/evening in a nutshell.
1) The clock on the silo said 11 degrees.
2) My new PC was ready a day early
3) I get to do a site for hockey club.
How much happier could I be?
Black Book Belonging
Today I was presented with the official 2003 MIS department diary. A large day to a page hard bound glossy black affair.
All very impressive but a complete waste. I use Outlook for my diary and synch that to my Palm, which I carry everywhere. So until this black monolith starts humming and sending any nearby wild apes crazy it shall sit behind my printer, gathering dust.
In Which Tony Spends A Lot of Money Very Very Slowly
For those of you who don’t know, I’m a web designer, a glorious career that I have stumbled into quite by accident. One of the essential tools for a web designer is a computer – more particulary a computer that works. My PC has all but given up the ghost after two and a half years of my pushing it to the limit so I have to dig deep and go get a new one.
Landmark Computers has come to the rescue. My new system (with an update to 512MB of RAM) will be ready Wednesday night – two sleeps to go! I love getting a new PC – and this one will be particularly sweet. Its clock speed is almost 400% faster than my current PC, it will have 400% more RAM and 200% more hard drive space.
Best of all because I am a business I’m leasing the thing over a few years. It’s a tax deduction and I can update it in two years time. New PC, more power and less money to Mr Costello! Win, win, win.
The World’s Funniest Joke?
CNN.com reports this is ranked as the world’s funniest joke. Don’t know about that but it’s got me chuckling, although maybe that says more about me than the joke.
Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn’t seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy takes out his phone and calls the emergency services.
He gasps: “My friend is dead! What can I do?” The operator says: “Calm down, I can help. First, let’s make sure he’s dead.” There is a silence, then a gunshot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says: “OK, now what?”
It’s My Kind Of Town
Face it- Melbourne’s perfect or so says EIU. I find it funny that my other favourite town, Vancouver, comes in a very close second.
Just goes to show what wondeful taste I have.
Yesterday
Today I am back at work, but yesterday, oh yesterday was beautiful.
It started off in Nagambie and then we headed for the high country – Victoria’s beautiful alpine region (think The Man From Snowy River). We went mustard shopping, cheese shopping and even a little wine tasting (and purchasing). We’ve decided it’s worth a mustard run every six months – one autumn, one spring.
For some pictures see the picture page.
Melbourne Zoo
Well, the zoo went well. I have learnt that six year olds have an unhealthy fascination with monkey poo – every stop on the monkey boardwalk involved some new question about its origins, their abilities and methods of disposal. This was only topped when we were viewing a tiger pacing centimetres away on the other side of a glass wall. My little girl pipes up “Dad, it looks like a real tiger”. I was so proud of the surrounding crowd – not one person laughed.
Wish Me Luck
Wish me luck, today is my first full school holiday with Phee – and I’m all alone. Rae has run off to work so it’s me and Phee vs the demons of six year old boredom. I’m diving in at the deep end too – we’re off to the zoo. Then, if she’s not exhausted after kangaroo watching we might tackle the observation deck at the Rialto
Pepper Tree Cafe
Ah ha! The whole reason for this blog gets its second entry.
Friday afternoon on a day off is a perfect time to take a book (that is disappointing me, so much so I’m only a hundred or so pages in) and try a new caf?.
Coffee : Latte
Area : 5/5
Caf? Atmosphere : 3/5
Staff : 4/5
Coffee : 4/5
Total 16/20
Take a left out of the Newport rail station, another left at the end of the subway and at the top of the ramp (if you make it) you’ll find a groovy little place – The Peppercorn Caf?. You can sit inside at the bench (that, and this is a major plus, is deep enough to read The Age on) and watch the passing parade of trains and people or you can sit outside on the mandatorily mis-matching retro chairs.
I was reading and didn’t feel like any food so I ordered my latte and chose the red chair outside. The coffee was good, surprisingly so. Good strong body, milk at the perfect temperature and a great chocolate taste. If I wasn’t off shopping I would have had another – and that’s as high a praise as I can give.
I think this is a new place – he had no business cards when I asked – so we’ll need to keep track to ensure standards don’t slip. But with coffee this good and being so close to home that won’t be a chore at all.
Something I Learned This Morning
If you want to have a quiet, peaceful day off don’t take it when the kids next door are home on school holidays.