By ones self

Missing other company?

Missing offshore duty?

(first written 28/12/2011)

No and no, apart from the money and challenges

A call the other day from an old friend got me thinking a little bit about company and fulltime work.

As myself and a single dad, the answer is pretty easy. If I retired [ha] tomorrow, I have too much to find out, I would never be bored!
The Kindle has me sucked in, I may have to unsubscribe from three SF magazines I have been buying since '79.


27/4/2013
Things change, got myself a great job that may last a few more weeks at least as a springboard to more better work as a geo, on the second Kindle, west wall fixed, car and van running, gels in secondary school and oldest boy a year from graduation, MS under control, bank balance balanced!

Life's good.

top hole job

A Top Hole Job Nearby

It may not be so interesting, but to me, getting back into a field job as a geologist is just great.

I have been feeling up and down recently, daily, so I do not think I am depressed as such. Just not coping, and then coping. Marvined.

It is just the inadequacy of life's special daily presentations to oneself- from Bills to Pensions to Stupid People Pissing Me Off [Elected Figure Heads For Example or the Wannabees-or VIPs anyway- ie Abbot and Romney) rant rant rant, not blah blah de bloody blah.

But enuff grumbling and whinging to ones self!

Big news

My recruitment agency (My!?), this week, has found a third job in the nearby coal country up valley from home- an hours drive at the most, daily, five days a week only so far, for about two to four weeks doing: top hole monitoring, collecting samples, monitoring progress for the Big Smoke operations office.

So that is good news, and it may go on after Nu Ye-yah as well, so kudos to the recruitment agency- they do know more than so-called word of mouth in my little co-called network of colleagues  or once again, maybe it's just me not getting up their noses about jobs anywhere?

Anyway, I had a quick interview with an OpsMan yesterday, up the valley, and today I emailed off a an acceptance of contract, via the agency, for an 'assignment', YAY me.

Other news

Now back to the household drudgery for a week, and then work AND household drudgery; who says women have it all? Or is it men? Looks like I do, cos in addition-my lil gels are 'growing out' this month, if you know what I mean, and that means getting them 'fitted', "Aunty? HELP!!", oh boy, then there will be the monthly tantrums starting too I guess...

[what do you give the guy that has everything? Penicillin...]

back in the saddle or what

back in a saddle anyway

Just spent six and a bit days working as the wellsite geologist on a coring job in west Gippsland.

After ten years, to turn up and smell that diesel exhaust wafting past me... takes me back to my first jobs, many years ago now of course.

I think the job went well, apart from it being the weirdest shortest job and EWR ever, and then did not fill out one page on a meter by meter description of---- SAND, CLAYS, and LIGNITE, cos I did not think to ask what else is needed. But next time... I will have to get a BETTER job description [RTFM]. But they paid up quick and expenses too, so an outlay for a large screen lappy is good for the next job I can get at least. But will charge going rate rather than beginners rate- lost out heaps, can see why they let me do it this time. Live and learn.
If you ever get a delivery van---- excellent choice I think for an onsite office..
And only one and a half bottle of red for four nights, reckoned I dried out!

Setting it up

The Rig

Drilling and Geology Office

View from Office

Lil ol bit

Lignite

real work

Ah to be back in the field

On a dry day

This week I have started off in a new direction, parceling the kids out for a short while to get back out into the field, as in a Wellsite Geologist capacity.

Hands were shaken two weeks ago after a short email exchange two weeks before that.
Naturally, mind thinking at warp speed- what do I need etc.

Anyway- it rained yesterday at the coring site, the drillers were back in their yard surprisingly, and I wasted a day travelling there and back. The boss was not pleased at this abortive start, back on Monday nevertheless.

A Marvin day, ready to geologize, but Waiting on Weather.

Ah cassettes cassettes

Remember cassetes?

the old philips type?

and an update

From the the the.... well, years ago, before the CD anyway...

Last weegen or so I was playing some tapes in the old player [1986] and the thing hisses and plays etcetera. I was a little tidly so that did not matter!
Except for the third Test Tape...
What!!! NO SOUND?
Had a look this time, in the little gap at the 'front'.
NO TAPE!!!!
Soooooo, and cos it was a great album, out with the sticky tape, knife and screwdriver and wind up device [a la Bic pen] to repair it... for the first time in  in   in    ages?     Decades even?   A little DIY while ... Why do I still have those tapes? But tried the tape back in the player and it Worked Just Fine Thank You All Very Much. Some of the old tapes are definitely of the mid 70's that a friend passed on to me when he "went religious", and those belonged to his big sister! Later I passed a few on when ever anyone was interested, when the CD came out for instance, but kept ones I Liked A Lot. Among the box of tapes was also compilations made when I was fairly sozzled after parties and still could not hit the sack... Good road trip tapes man!

Then the Walkmen

And this thingo?!? A real boys toy if ever!
I bought the Sanyo walkman style tape player back in  '83 so I could cruise the highway on the Yamaha 250 I had, between cold old Kyneton and Barfold- with some tape or radio music in the helmet.  And later on in the jet when going to work in WA or outback SA or QLD or cold VIC from Adelaide!


Did a few miles with this!


I won a real Sony Walkman Sports in a sailboard race about four years later.

Then when the Discman had to come out before I went to Aber-bloody-deen for a year, wellllll, yeah, well, so I Upgraded With the Duty Free Opportunity as I got on board! Pity the bugger only lasted a few years, I have only just tossed it* NO I DID NOT - a fine little machine, not much bigger than a CD and about 11mm thick. Paired with the Sony Speakers--- was nearly all we needed coping near the Arctic Circle...


I did replace it however, before the Millenium, with another albeit second hand, but still great Sony CD Walkman that only needed AA batteries, not the special battery pack for the first one I had- barstid to charge up etc etc.

This one was plastic and light compared to the first which though small, was heavy.
It did a few flying miles too.

Amazingly enough, none of the kiddies ever played with my musical "boys toys" or tapes in order to test them all to destruction...

Do you remember boys toys and Cassettes?





















*[ie I cannot find it at the moment- check back one day]

Another Bad Hair Rant

Should I avoid another bad hair day by..?

Hmmph. Dunno. This week has not panned out as a balance of good v bad.

Helping

I have been trying to help out a friend, and by their absence and lack of telepathy, I have on one hand been not exactly clear in my communications, which left me feeling an idiot at not getting a good Idea of what is required because what ever I have done, it's not quite right or clear and I am confusing people. I know I like to think I am smart, but at the moment... I think I am on the right track now, but also think that a third party might be better employed at the [or for the] required expertise. I hate that, I like to help out and excel in that endeavour, or any for that matter. Kludging not a good trait notwithstanding that I can do that too. Should I have another bad hair rant at my friend- nah, I believe I have to see from their point of view that they really would like to do the chore themselves, but circumstances... Marvined.

Work

The low paying jobby I have has not been exactly heart warming or well paid for the amount of time and effort needed for that either. I really feel like with a brain the size of a planet, and my expectations, the world could be left turning the wrong way. Marvined. And the environmental factors left me seething when the co-workers supplying me with work, did not get things right and I had to walk a few extra meters and get them to get their act together so I could achieve more with less effort myself...

This does not sound good I know, but these days time is money, efficaciousness is not highly rewarded  but enormously necessary and mental state [happy now?] not regarded as required. It appears.

Close, relatively

Then on the family front this month: My dear brother and family are off skiing in a better place and cheaper too. My sister is nearly too busy to go visit, her time is like mine- busy [family, work], and/but/or with the the added twist of a four o'clock start in a week [here you should be able to hear the Simpson's catch-cry of "Ah ha!" or Muttley-like]. Ah well...  My dad and another brother have gone and bought a little yacht to do up, be nice to live that much closer so I can join them on Port Phillip Bay more than maybe the once a year I see happening. Then the youngest brother is off accross the continent to look after his boys racing their Karts in a national championship. And my baby sister is cooling her heels, waiting for the fiance to get home from the rails... And #1Son is visiting NY and the nearby N.Falls for his birthday next week.

Thursday... The washing machine, another bad hair day there! 

The power switch thingo panel in the hall [with the short circuit detector or earth leakage trip detector] tripped Mid Spin of the washing cycle... Last spin anyway. Marvined.

 I spent half an hour or more traipsing about the house going backwards turning off wall switches in each room to track the infidel, and forwards flipping the detector switch back on. I did not want it to be the refridgerator, but at the same time hoped not the bloody clothes washer either. Cannot afford new ones this month of either after the last six months. Bloody Consumer Society, love it and hate it. The thought of a major electrical problem in the house wiring had me edgy too- what about the TV shows I like? See, I am as shallow as... Ended up being the washing machine.

I can sometimes repair stuff around the house, but RTFM was not going to help me out here.

Not happy Jan. It maybe one of the last things in Tarn's "dowry", but I would like to be able to keep things a long time, especially the washing machine. [The drier is out side awaiting its destruction. Or recycling...] The poor old washing machine, a trusted brand, maybe on its last legs too. The repairer will "be straight on to it".When he has time.  Marvined again. I may have to borrow my sis-in-laws machine this weegen? At least the winter holiday break means no school clothes needed for a few weeks, as long as we have enough socks and underwear to last until Buckies verdict on the machine...

Weegen for the boy

I see that as I get older, the care and avoidance factors conflict when it comes to supervising young adults and their Friday Nights Out. A small party turns out not to be, the backyard late night weather turns cold and loud [unfortunately not  rainy- bugger]. I end up having to say to the 2am laggards that don't/can't/won't go to the shady nightclubs- if they really want to be able to come back here at least another time, then they better go home now, and they were smart enough to scat in ten minutes.

The detritus got up late... with bad hair, Ah Ha.

On the road again

A Not a DIY Situation
I did try but!

Two weeks ago, I took my lil yacht out to the lil lake for some quiet time. The kids were all out with friends, it was sunny and a nice lil breeze from the northeast. Then it got windy...

You know the rest.

The catch up is that the broken down van had a problem at the repairers too! Poor guy was told by Mercedes that the Mercedes Vans [made in Korea by SangYong] have this special alternator and pulley combination- [the power supply and battery charger unit][BTW- a $1000 special!- that will fit. But they sent one pulley for him to fit because the mechanic knew that that was all that was needed. (3 x that in a sentence! Ha!) It did NOT. Back it went! He finally had to find one made for a Japanese 4WD to fit the "Korean built Mercedes branded vehicle". Cos he has seen this problem before. Wow. Anyway, $300 later, we are moving people. Yay. Cost the repairer quite a few phone calls, but good him. Owe him one.

He also told me that he could fix the sticky buggery hard to shift gear lever too. "Seen it before". Again!

Next time I win Lotto, I'll get it looked at. Like the LCD screen in the family car. Lotto. Later.

seemed odd after

A family run around
Busy or what? [repost from the family blog but fits anyway]

Last week, we had fish n chips n ChikoRolls midweek at my inlaws D and PD at the NuHoose

Friday, she picked the gels up from school for the weekend because I was off to see my mum, so did not catch her Friday arvo.

At 6 pm. dropped into see my eldest son in The Big Smoke for a coffee and to drop off of xrissy prezi.

At 8pm (late cos had to pick up some flowers!), arrived at Mum and Dad's place, by the sea and  river, not far from a 13 hole golf club!

Saturday, saw Dad off for his trip to help my sister boy and my broinlaw for the Garmin 24 at Redesdale, where the little guy got a third in his division. By the way, it bucketed down and the nobby tyres caused the portable showers a problemo, if you know what I mean...

For the weekend, sat around with Mum, fixed this up and that, installed a new weather station, formatted a slow laptop that they had given up on and hey presto, it just ZINGS along Now! Cos everyone wanted to put something on it for Nana to use, it was very cluttered, and glacially slow that they got another one... Should have taken it home to fix- for meself- but thought the better of it, it would be something the grand-kids can fight over when it rains...

Sunday: Did the leaves in the gutter thing, took dog for a walk once- cos it rained and rained and...Dad gets back and I take off home, with a washing machine for my brothers girl that has moved into a share house in the Big Smoke with mates and three dead laundry machines... cannot believe she has finished study and ready to work in the real world of Nursing. Their place was not too far out of the way, and a simple [NOT] drive home to pick the gels up. And catch up with D and PD again, and collect my gels.

No radar flashes or hidden traffic cops the whole weegen, cos I was Very Watchful of my poor empty wallet...

The point: face to face time with family. Just doing it.

tested time return

less than a week
a negative return

The Bowel cancer Kit I was going on about the other week- resulted in a negative result.

Yay me. Nothing on that account to worry aboot. For noo anyway.

I wold like to thank my wife, my self, the kids and ...... ....  ...

My way or the..

Trying to adjust to bad  and good news

The neurologist gave me the news, not good, not altogether bad.

MS, mild case of.

So?

Still walking talking spilling beans etc etc

If left eye tells me a thing is red, and the right says, Nah Mate, its greyish and a bit more pinky brown red than red, what is going on.

Three years ago, my eye doc said take a few tests.
And nothing was seen to be wrong with my eye sight.

The year before I remember tryinhg to explain to an uncle and some others this strange thing- nada- blank looks from them all.

But is was there.

Since then I have been wondering about how left and right eye tell me different things in this case.

Finally, after the MS diagnosis- and further free ranging thought, I think this is the explanation:

A signal [red colours] may indeed go to the particular and separate processing places in the brain for each eye, but it must also be shared or leaked between them so a comparison can be made and evaluated as to the validity of the signals captured by the retinas. The overall grayness too can be more apparent at time, especially trying to read.

And then once codified or validated, then passed onto the Mind for further assessment- Red Corvette or Burgandy Corvette?
A test is a Ferrari- no greyish burgandy-ish red Ferraris: so the right eye signals are off by nearly that much.

I once used rock colour chart books in my old mudlogging job in oil and gas exploration, and wished I still had one, and then I could tell you what I mean by a simple alphanumeric code what left and right eyes see.

But now, I see that the website chart available can not go to that finer gradation, that shade tone tint that is the difference I can see. Bugger. Well, today anyway.

FLW, not TLAs

Weird Words
Four letter everyday words
I may have written up word play thingos before, like four letter words that end in ASH for example.
There are quite a few! And then there are there five letter words ending in ash. But never mind.

TLA- three letter acronyms amuse me no end too.
BHA- Bottom Hole Assembly [nothing to do with derrieres mind!]
RLD- Red Letter Day

But then there are the everyday four letter words to do with us.

Arse, coff, pooh, pi*s, d**k, an*s, **n*, fart, larf, tits, kiss, lick, cute, ugly, eyes, ears, feet, f**k, fool....

greeting card for the century

Cheap day.

Do you like this one?

Send off a blank greeting card joined on a string to a pencil, with eraser on its end. Recipient makes out what they want to read, from you, and everybody feels good. And wealthier.

Or this one? Probably a little less subtle. More personal?

Recipient's name printed/penned inside, signed by you, with empty boxes or lines to fill in events.

A few bland diagrams of for example- a tree, a bunny, candle on a cupcake.

Together or on post-it-notes to swap around, suitable for the event required. On the inside or the front.

With the attachment as above.

The other thing is to cut costs further by sending instructions by email, rather than using snail mail, to the intended recipient of the greeting card to make it as instructed above.

Either way its a win-win situation.

No massive profits to the bloody greeting card dupers or to the post, there is money in your pocket for the ISP bill and less useless processed native timber floating around, or on the road or in the sky.
Let's keep the processed timber for the bathroom?

So the point of the card is you have named the recipient, and it's signed with Yours Faithfully, Sincerely, best regards, thanks in advance, truly yours, BFF, etcetera etcetera. With a few little pictures on the front or inside, you have the year covered.
All your recipient has to do at the right time of the year is just rub out the last event/year and fill in the blank.

An ultimate recycling project.

They will always thank or think of you for being a planet saving thoughtful/less tight-ass whenever they dig it up.

Headless Chook Syndrome

Whatever... 


The To Do List is decreasing or evening out 


Or, A weeks "Diary extractions"... 

The front lawn and garden has been deshevelled for three weeks. Finally, it is less so. Some leaves, twigs, branches and logs are now out of sight, once spring kicks in...

The front veranda post has been lifted back, the bearers been reinforced with an eye out for a builder to maybe do a better job. There is a bit of creaking when one walks past... Some wrought iron pieces need to be re-assembled at some stage too.

The painting of gel#2's room is about to start as soon as I think the walls are puttied up enough and clean and smooth. That has been the weekend project, and I think the gels think I am putting off the painting for another week the process has been so slow.

The back yard feature has been fixed and tweaked. The rotten end of the upright has been cut off and an extension bodgied together for ten bucks rather than a new post for ninety... And the cross piece that could not be kludged together to make a longer one was replaced. It was used instead to bodgey up the extension to the post... There is more light in the kitchen now the evil looking overgrowing vine-like weedy bloody plants have met with my friends bonfire.

The trails of tyre/tire marks through the lawns has been sort of fixed.

The weeks washing put away.

A new Portable Vineyard and Alcoholery Blog started.

A Dan Brown book finally finished.

Some suspect moles on upper chest and lower back CUT out at the unearthly time of 9am Saturday Morning! The evidence to be sent off and examined- I suspect there will be a positive outcome. But these days in SEOz, you cannot be too careful if you know you spent the first few years of life naked in the sun, then dutifully tried to look healthily suntanned from mid teens to mid thirties...

And I just boiled the kettle before I started this.... ANOTHER COLD COFFEE- 2 in 24 hours, sheesh!

Djya Know wo Oi H8?

I hate not a lot.
But Dislikes- wow.

I could go on and on and on

Pruning trees, over head, and one cutting slips down and nearly stabs you in the eye even though you are wearing glasses. How does that work?

Doing the right thing on the road and indicating changing lanes but the dickhead waiting in front thinks I want to to a U-turn where he is, and he does one RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!

Doing the right thing and being a good guardian, and getting told doing a bad job! By non-experts too.

Go to spit out the window, but the window is shut.


Told I am lazy. Slack, not lazy. Clumsy, not lazy. Forgetful, not lazy.

Kids told over and over and over...to clean crap up.

Cleaning kids rooms...

Leaky iron roof...

Car display system playing up, or CD player crapping out.

Windy days when I would rather be at Maui...

Paying the utility bills, and not see any improvement in the wattage, heat and cleanliness...

Paying a grand for a Sony 30" and the bastard's colours fade away...

The cat leaving messages. Anwhere. But expecially on my cream carpet. Where it can remain hidden for days and drive you MAD looking for it around the house, on shoes....

More shoes for growing kids- can't we get stretchy things that last more than the semester?

Paying a tradesman too much for a ten minute job. If it is that easy, should have been for free!

Mowing lawns. Gardening in general?

Finishing a great book. hate that sometimes

Redoing a DIY repair job cos I forgot one step.

Going back to the hardware store to buy MORE stuff cos I cut the wood shorter than required...

Tidying up the garage/shed........   a nightmare to come

Forgetting any appointment cos sooo busy doin other crap.

The pain in the butt for forgetting the appointment.

Also I dislike really overly opinionated and so obviously BIASED persons in front of me, or on the radio and TV and or in the newspaper. Oxygen wasters and mega-wankers!

Going to work and there is nothing to do- a wasted bloody trip. Shut up Muttley!

Depression.

Dislike the lack of an opportunity to geologise in any way locally for a profit.

Helicopter Underwater  Escape Training.
In England.
In Winter.
Or anytime really.

Long helicopter trips across water.
When there are tropical thunderstorms all around.
In the evening.

Sore back and knees- so I dislike getting older then.

Gaining
experience and
pains
must
go together.

Bugger.

marvined memory kitchen

Woke up this morning  lalala

Dishwasher stuck in drain mode last 8 hours.
Call-Forgotten to be at friends place earlier in the week for vine pull.
wash sort hang out
Phone calls left right and center
travel
Buy gels goods
travel
wash sort hang
fix bastard machine
hang out
travel
pull
travel
buy
washing in
tidy
catch up messaging
dinner for one

post.....

winning and losing

The last few weeks are not going to be greatly remembered for anything more than me making it to the winning old age of fifty. Greys through hair and beard, little pot belly annoying the aching back. Need a trim as well. Bothersome bloody life. Maybe I should be auditioning for St. Nick!


If anything, losing a bit of weight would be nice, but choc covered liquorice and a block of chocolate, a few rum and lite-colas is too much to pass up! And the new dinner plates are bigger than the old, and so I have to add a little more to make it look enough...

I noted to Son#2 today that I have not been at all busy with my model boats. Scratching time out for that is harder than I thought lately, or my enthusiasm has been quenched- been there- done that. Nearly full PVR[s], so I am not entirely stuck in front of the idiot box mindlessly sipping coffee or liquor or dozing off. Much.

However, minding the collection of pc's takes up a bit of time too- looking for needs to upgrade on the net, or googling and wiki-peering things also manages to distract and procrastinate things a wee bit. A bit of blogging and associated research and reading other peoples doings... I hated researching stuff at BCAE for a report or essay, but if it interested me, well!

Updating the genealogy... A death and birth in the family jungle meant booting up the older pc for a balance. It takes ten minutes to be warm enough to start pecking away! And marked off my mum's cousin Cutch, the first along that side of my grandmother's neffs-n-neeces. I think. And then added my cousins girl in the births ledger. Losing and winning.

The family wagon is back in use as the school taxi while daughter#1 recovers from a chipped fibula. It sounds terrible as I crank it up and move it down the road. The mechanic I used  for a service on the blasted thing last year was required to report back if it needed fixing- no report- so must be okay? Winning? Poor old car, been abandoned while using the van for nearly everything else. Long road trips aside of course- the van does not fit the family! Only me, work trips and HOBBIES and SPORTS equipment!(This is the Old Adelaide collection- similar in size to current, imagine nearly all of it on a Maza 323? No?, then here you go then)

The garden, as noted elsewhere, is starting to piss me off. The weeds and shrubs and trees all need a complete make over. Long live a concrete yard please. Or gravel. The grapevines have been looked after, a bit early but while the sun shines and I do not have to bend over- bugger it, cut it. The baby hedge is "still in nappies". The plan to make a new gravel path and reduce the greenhouse effect (using the lawn mower LESS) is still fermenting near the front of the brain, rising to the top of it as I trudge to the post box to collect the next bloody bill. At least on that front I have reduced some insurance costs due to being half a century old now... winning!

Lists not done to be done

done at least

Spouting

Boat back to Dad
Wine making '11


to be done

garden path weeds and  trip points

hedge planting continued
'vranduh tidy, clean and dump junk
grape vine pruning
fruit trees pruned back
weeds snipped/sprayed
yard clean, old spouting!
junk junked!
hedging on hedges to be hedged
yachting stuff back to Dad
Spare room Spruced for new occupant mid year
etcetera
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, that list above is a week old now!
And Nothing completed.

Today I sorted out my bedroom/office... Yep, vacuumed where it had not seen light for years and years and years, NO! A while, yeah. Ah, old utility bills! An expensive recharging station for NiCads etc went to the vranda today, and other nineties and early norties pc stuff too, and room looks so much better. Nearly. Have to decide on kicking out a new but shitey 23" monitor! Cannot find the receipt... yet.

Poor excuse to keep away from the kids, as they were up to date with their room [tidy and clean]. Just. If only because they were having guests for a sleep over this afternoon.

But, I had to knuckle down and sort and tidy and clean and and and etc etc etc my work area. Had to show some sort of example! I really just wanted to sort out my USB hubs actually, and with so much junk, there had to be a spare power adapter somewhere to power a hub or cobble one up! Keep on getting messages "faster if used a USB 2.0 connection". Bullshit, motherboard is slow! A netSearch reveals may need a new PC, YAY me. Bullcrap, NO WAY.  Success after an hour or two. Check th eDevices, looks like hubs are High Speed and the connections a full speed ie SLOW! Not sure on downloading files and upgrading motherboard and bios, but, never ever know if you don't give it a go... Not yet.

It's a bloody long weekend too top of it all! I had said If Things Were Done, I might take the Gels to a beachside town where we might spend a bit of loose change on mini-golf or something. We were away last weekend, were we not anyway? And this being the Longest Weekend for Winter...  And They Have Tue-sdee orf too... [Teachers need to report back to me and assure me their charges are doing well.] Importunately, it may be just a cold wet windy day at the "resort".

Well, the snow bunnies can have the snow this long weegen, they have too much money and no sense-  It Is Cold Up There You stupid rich bstds!

And I have lists to compile, do jobs and and and... You know. What I want and can't have, all over again.

RC Yacht and Speed Boat

Once

Dad had a flying “dope” powered plane on cables that he built from a balsa kit. You stood on the ground with a two cable-control line and turned in circles as it flew up and down around you. The fuel smelt weird, and we were not old enough to fly it. The engine was a bastard to turn over to start. It got dusty pretty quick…

Read on From another post

Weegen

Weegen


Weegen and the wallet is dry. 

Between last weekend and this weekend, the house-hold account has bled red and dry via checks, credit cards, savings, and cash! Consumerism Rules me. My head aches. I need a rant, something cathartic besides retail therapy. Food? Typing?



The Shopping. 


New triplet set cordless phones, half price; Hardly Normal. Slow cooker; Aldi. iPhone and contract for Son#2; Retro-Vision. School shoes for gels #3a and #3b plus inserts for that one too; Cheap As Shoe Shoppe. Jeans noir, pour moir; Targettê. Deep wide fry-pan & Multi-socket power adapter for the car and all the gadgets; Aldi. Food gets a...small nod.  There was something else for Son#2, but cannot remember. On top of last weeks rain gauge and Van rego!

Ah, I wonder do I need all this? And how do I do it?

The veranda is accumulating a sediment, a "fine-Not" veneer of boxes of replaced usable but old worn appliances and crapped out fixable maybe appliances. Useless stuff. Unused stuff. A larger than usual aquarium and extras. Roof racks for an Eighties Van. Old swimming and surf gear, boards, fins. Old sailboard gear for teaching getting old, broken pieces cannot be replaced or fixed. A huge sale or clean up is imminent. Yeah, one day, one day. Separation anxiety? The Old Stuff That Works should be in a yard or garage sale some weegen when I can be bothered. De je vu? I thought I wrote this a while ago... I just cannot at the moment. Sad really. There are other things to do, like practice my typing and spelling... The Working Sailboard Stuff there does not count here as crap, it's My Crap, my special weegen get-away and do something gear!

In the yard, the old sailing dinghy- it has to go back to my dad's place. It's probably forty years old and needs TLC. The kids are not into sailing in it. My friend Trav helped me renovate it six years ago and is owed time away with it fishing, but we hardly see each other any more. A weeegen away is off the schedule until he gets his life back (and together) and the neck fixed I guess.


There is the old and new car oil and coolant next to the Alcoholery; bathroom and kitchen sinks next to that, waiting to be either sold or given away, and installed respectively. Needed the oil and coolant like a hole in the head, but you never know. The stainless sink is for the Alcoholery of course. The vines and fruit trees need pruning, the gardens weeding, the lawns mowing...

The Rant, or ranting nagging whatever

This morning, girl talk over the phone-line and then the gels wanna go see their friends play netball.  And meanwhile, four washing loads are staring at me each time I go to the bathroom. Normally on the weegen, the weeks washing is done in one morning, dry by dinner...
Netball? Sure. But there is a condition... have they tidied up the  lounge and their room?
No.
Well?
"Oh daaaad..."

And then, another call a bit later.
"Can We Go To The The Pool?"
WHAT? It's Winter Nearly!

"Heated pool, Dad."

"Dunno, what about the Lounge and Bed Room ? All week, tidy it up. Not done? Well, no outings!"

"But, a shower?"
"No, the room..."

 Ah. All done nonchalantly and under sufferance but not 50%! A friend arrives early, as anticipated while one was in the shower...
At the courts stood with some mothers, watching the gels watch their friends win 17 to 0, and now they want to play too... Other mums try to talk me/us into it and Muttley-like thoughts occur and then cascade- taxi-ing, sports uniforms and footwear, practice nights, game days... Leave the new sports complex calculating time and money...

Shopping on the way back home. Visit the Nu Hoose and check out progress. Then to Aldi. Oh dear. Just the milk?
Nah. A big arse frypan too. Lights, ceramic knife...

Get home.
"The Room! or no..."
ring ring   ring ring   rin...Oh dear gott.
"Lo? Yes?"
"Are the girls there?"
"They are somewhat...busy. Can I take a message?"
"Um. Ah. Can I talk to one of them?"
ARHGGG!
Hmm. Buggerisation.
"Oi! Phone!"
Arrangements are made to get to the pool...
"Nah-uh, ROOM! Then- maybe."



Had bought the wrong light. Of course. Lucky  (LUCKY?) the gels wanted a five block ride to the pool, so I could exchange the "Not right" light. Nearly bought a magasine, but thought, Nah, really really really don't need it. Weegen. Marvined Time or what?

As I park the car at home, I note the good weather. And the long grass waiting for Son#2 when he is ready.
To wit, a call, he and his young lady will be home for dinner soon.
Right. Washing out except for last load. Prepare dinner. Bring the washing in and sort to rack or drier. Delegate the young people in the kitchen with rest of food prep.

[Huge sigh remembering all that]

Food.

Still managed to spend more on the kitchen and food.
Top it off?
Aven-a-goo-weegen? So far? Yep!

The Slow Cooked Taco Recipe tonight was a Weegen Winner!
And the lad gave me a Coke and Potato Bombs from the kitchen he works in, excellent!

stopping or quitting and consequences

So I stopped buying cigarettes again the other day. Think I am coping...

Since. Had three glasses of wine. Reduced the coffee intake cos of lack of time only. Not taking a lotta interest in the kids or other people either, attention going from the 'Fear and Loathing:On the Campaign Trail 72' to TV to newspaper to PC and blogs, kids, and back to work, housework, kids, Alcoholery and back to the book, back to TV, kitchen... cycling...

Last night: slept from midnight for aboot nine hours and had a headache all day.

Not QUIT smoking, which is what they all want you to do.

Like as if I have a really short attention span at times, no little project really completed in the allotted time.


When I was working in the oil patch, there was no smoking close to the well head.
Then no smoking at all off shore by the nineties. Nearly none on shore sites too.
So by ten years ago, I could go without my usual five to ten fags a day 'habit' so easily for a fortnight easily.

I would leave the rig, get home, siddown an' 'ave a coupla smokes wif a few cans an' by dinnertime would have a hangover. Weird.

In comparison, some workmates COULD NOT give up temporarily, and would hide away somewhere on the facility and have a choof.

As if no-one could smell it on them! And some of these people were surprisingly pretty high up in the rig hierarchy, which impressed me, because besides the usual three warnings, there was also the sack. So you get the sack for it, lose a hundred-plus-grand a year and forever after: 'sacked cos he smoked at work!'

My Tarn's aunt Dot smoked a pack-plus right up to stepping into her coffin. Me dads gunna go the same way I think.  Back in Radelayde in the 80's I smoked Outside the apartment. I could not stand the smell on the curtains I could detect coming inside after a break of a few days away...

Once long ago, I did stop for while. Did not make me feel any better. Back on em.

Last year my sister-in-law and I stopped the same day, co-coincidently! Again, I did not feel any better for it. Certainly, the little cough was not there after a while, and the little Harmonica down my throat I could hear that summer had disappeared too... The wallet was better off. Ganuarie to Rocktober.

I broke, cos I couldn't stand not be able to have a fag and a drink when socialising with my other sister-in-law and hubby. Weak.

Then stopped again. The day they left for work outta town.

Then my eldest left home, and returning after dropping him at his new life, I went back to the rollies again.

And as the last rollie paper went up in smoke the other day, I thought that 60 bucks in my pocket a month was a good idea.

But- repeat :

So I stopped buying cigarettes again the other day. 

Since. Had three glasses of wine. Reduced the coffee intake more than half. Not taking a lotta interest in the kids or other people either, attention going from the 'Fear and Loathing:On the Campaign Trail 72' to TV to newspaper to PC and blogs, kids, and back to work, housework, kids, Alcoholery and back to the book, back to TV, kitchen... cycling... Divided attention and  and losing time.

Well, what's going on?