Happy Mondays: Happy New Year
Hello!
Happy brand spanking new year! I think it's going to be excellent.
1. Last year I updated this 48 weeks out of 52. Pretty good going - gaps when I went on holiday and in August. This year I want to try and make it 52, and have more consistently on Mondays, as only 38 were.
2. Eve was here! Eve is Ariadne's oldest friend (possibly); they went to college together when they were just little imps. She is impossibly beautiful and perfect and runs a school in Malaysia. It was excellent to have her for a couple of days, and she's now thinking, I think fairly seriously, of moving to Edinburgh. I think she has finished with Kuala Lumpur. Edinburgh folks, I think you will approve :).
3. Rockhampton is flooded, which is worrying us a little. It's where Ari's grandmother and quite a bit of family live, and is being reported as the worst hit by the Queensland floods. Everyone seems fine though - we've been keeping in touch via Facebook through Ari's aunt, Jess, who is involved in the rescue effort. Everyone just seems to be getting on with it and managing expectations to avoid panic.
Facebook has its faults but it's great in this kind of situation - we can keep an eye without constantly calling or emailing.
4. Hermione (the car) is sick! Tried to go to the sorting office on the 30th and she wouldn't start. Tried to jumpstart her, but didn't work. The incredibly lecherous but nevertheless very cheap and efficient mechanic came out, failed to fix her but didn't charge, and gave a number for a Man Who Might. I will call him on Wednesday after the bank holiday.
5. Hogmanay was just lovely. Sat about with my favourite people. Did dubious tarot card readings. Sat about in silence for long periods reading magazines. Danced to Auld Langs Syne in the garden, after watching the fireworks. Ate all the pizza I could handle (ordered in honour of Siân, who is now vegan as of 2011.) Fell asleep on the floor after watching Finding Nemo. Tops.
By the way I decided not to do the whole new year texting thing - it always takes ages, and then jams, and then sends multiple messages (I got at least one duplicate from everyone I had a text from!). But Happy New Year everyone, particularly those who braved the network outage and texted me :)
6. New Year's Day, after waking up at Erin's, waving off Eve who had to catch a train to get a flight back to KL, and eating all the pancakes and bacon, we went for a Proper Roast Dinner at Emily and Ade's, with Georgie and Jonathan in attendance, too. They had made delicious slow-cooked pork with roasties and parsnips and even sprouts, so I didn't go without all season. They also had a stonking amount of chipolatas in bacon, interesting brandy drinks and the most huge and tremendous trifle I ever saw.
So delicious food, but even more delicious company. I have had a lovely lovely festive season, but the one thing lacking was a bit of a big raucous roast dinner like, complete with small children. I felt all happy and Christmassy and it totally made my season. And I saw an astonishly large section of my Favourite People in the World on New Year's Day. All quite as it should be.
7. Yesterday, then was our last holiday day before getting back to work. So we made the most of it. We slept in 'til noon, cosied under our very fluffiest blanket and watched Mary Poppins. I hadn't seen it for years, and Ariadne had never, so I wanted to show it to her. I was nervous, then, that it wouldn't be very good. It was genius though and I'd forgotten most of it so it was like watching it for the first time.
Ari wondered if the guy that plays Uncle Albert was the same guy who played the lion in The Wizard of Oz, so we looked him up. He wasn't, but it turns out he was a uite famous clown at the time, who died only a couple of years later. He was buried with his son, Keenan, and the epitaph reads 'Dear God, Thank you'. I think that's the most beautiful epitaph I've ever heard.
8. Then last night we went to Hazel's for dinner and scrabble. I thrashed everyone and won by about 50 points. Ari retaliated by demanding a rematch when we got home and winning by 150 points. Scrabble bitch. Excellent night though. Hazel is a marvellous cook.
9. So today we are back to work. We got up early and have been sitting and working very well, with the slight discrepancy of an overly long lunchbreak. I have a to-do list as long as your arm (if your arm has 50 items on it), but I'm working through it. I'm a bit concerned about my workload just now, but will get there on a hangglider.
10. On the subject of which, I was asking on Facebook earlier about free time management software. I would like something I can use on my PC, but also update from my phone - I currently have a BlackBerry but am upgrading to an Android phone soonish. I like Workflowy a bit, but I really need to set deadlines and priority ratings against stuff. There seem to be plenty of paid services, but I'd rather just keep doing it on Excel like I am doing than pay money which I don't have. All advice gratefully received though.
11. All in all, going into 2011: I'm very happy, very fulfilled, and very poor, in equal measures. Still, it's the way round I'd want it, and according to my Ricebox horoscope (very scientifically accurate): 'You are expected to accomplish both fame and fortune...wealth comes in smoothly.' Hurrah for year of the Dog people (nearly used the phrase 'year of the Doggers there. Misleading.) Off the top of my head, that's Morag and Siân. And Emily? Oh dear, I don't know how old my friends are.
Don't be thinking that's for everyone though. Ari's, for example - Rooster - reads 'Beware of backstabbers and lawsuits...poor fortune this year...strewn with emotional disturbances'. Tough going, man.
Fifty-two Happy Mondays to you all xxxxxxxxx
Happy brand spanking new year! I think it's going to be excellent.
1. Last year I updated this 48 weeks out of 52. Pretty good going - gaps when I went on holiday and in August. This year I want to try and make it 52, and have more consistently on Mondays, as only 38 were.
2. Eve was here! Eve is Ariadne's oldest friend (possibly); they went to college together when they were just little imps. She is impossibly beautiful and perfect and runs a school in Malaysia. It was excellent to have her for a couple of days, and she's now thinking, I think fairly seriously, of moving to Edinburgh. I think she has finished with Kuala Lumpur. Edinburgh folks, I think you will approve :).
3. Rockhampton is flooded, which is worrying us a little. It's where Ari's grandmother and quite a bit of family live, and is being reported as the worst hit by the Queensland floods. Everyone seems fine though - we've been keeping in touch via Facebook through Ari's aunt, Jess, who is involved in the rescue effort. Everyone just seems to be getting on with it and managing expectations to avoid panic.
Facebook has its faults but it's great in this kind of situation - we can keep an eye without constantly calling or emailing.
4. Hermione (the car) is sick! Tried to go to the sorting office on the 30th and she wouldn't start. Tried to jumpstart her, but didn't work. The incredibly lecherous but nevertheless very cheap and efficient mechanic came out, failed to fix her but didn't charge, and gave a number for a Man Who Might. I will call him on Wednesday after the bank holiday.
5. Hogmanay was just lovely. Sat about with my favourite people. Did dubious tarot card readings. Sat about in silence for long periods reading magazines. Danced to Auld Langs Syne in the garden, after watching the fireworks. Ate all the pizza I could handle (ordered in honour of Siân, who is now vegan as of 2011.) Fell asleep on the floor after watching Finding Nemo. Tops.
By the way I decided not to do the whole new year texting thing - it always takes ages, and then jams, and then sends multiple messages (I got at least one duplicate from everyone I had a text from!). But Happy New Year everyone, particularly those who braved the network outage and texted me :)
6. New Year's Day, after waking up at Erin's, waving off Eve who had to catch a train to get a flight back to KL, and eating all the pancakes and bacon, we went for a Proper Roast Dinner at Emily and Ade's, with Georgie and Jonathan in attendance, too. They had made delicious slow-cooked pork with roasties and parsnips and even sprouts, so I didn't go without all season. They also had a stonking amount of chipolatas in bacon, interesting brandy drinks and the most huge and tremendous trifle I ever saw.
So delicious food, but even more delicious company. I have had a lovely lovely festive season, but the one thing lacking was a bit of a big raucous roast dinner like, complete with small children. I felt all happy and Christmassy and it totally made my season. And I saw an astonishly large section of my Favourite People in the World on New Year's Day. All quite as it should be.
7. Yesterday, then was our last holiday day before getting back to work. So we made the most of it. We slept in 'til noon, cosied under our very fluffiest blanket and watched Mary Poppins. I hadn't seen it for years, and Ariadne had never, so I wanted to show it to her. I was nervous, then, that it wouldn't be very good. It was genius though and I'd forgotten most of it so it was like watching it for the first time.
Ari wondered if the guy that plays Uncle Albert was the same guy who played the lion in The Wizard of Oz, so we looked him up. He wasn't, but it turns out he was a uite famous clown at the time, who died only a couple of years later. He was buried with his son, Keenan, and the epitaph reads 'Dear God, Thank you'. I think that's the most beautiful epitaph I've ever heard.
8. Then last night we went to Hazel's for dinner and scrabble. I thrashed everyone and won by about 50 points. Ari retaliated by demanding a rematch when we got home and winning by 150 points. Scrabble bitch. Excellent night though. Hazel is a marvellous cook.
9. So today we are back to work. We got up early and have been sitting and working very well, with the slight discrepancy of an overly long lunchbreak. I have a to-do list as long as your arm (if your arm has 50 items on it), but I'm working through it. I'm a bit concerned about my workload just now, but will get there on a hangglider.
10. On the subject of which, I was asking on Facebook earlier about free time management software. I would like something I can use on my PC, but also update from my phone - I currently have a BlackBerry but am upgrading to an Android phone soonish. I like Workflowy a bit, but I really need to set deadlines and priority ratings against stuff. There seem to be plenty of paid services, but I'd rather just keep doing it on Excel like I am doing than pay money which I don't have. All advice gratefully received though.
11. All in all, going into 2011: I'm very happy, very fulfilled, and very poor, in equal measures. Still, it's the way round I'd want it, and according to my Ricebox horoscope (very scientifically accurate): 'You are expected to accomplish both fame and fortune...wealth comes in smoothly.' Hurrah for year of the Dog people (nearly used the phrase 'year of the Doggers there. Misleading.) Off the top of my head, that's Morag and Siân. And Emily? Oh dear, I don't know how old my friends are.
Don't be thinking that's for everyone though. Ari's, for example - Rooster - reads 'Beware of backstabbers and lawsuits...poor fortune this year...strewn with emotional disturbances'. Tough going, man.
Fifty-two Happy Mondays to you all xxxxxxxxx