a day to have fun (run):
(He came 118th out of ~1, 890....beep beep - yeah!)
a day to see mum (in-law):
and a day in the sun (and surf):
Monday, May 11, 2009
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Victoria
- I did indeed love (every) a piece of it!
However, it is abit of a relief to be back home, not only to be back at Blogger HQ and to sleep on my own firm mattress but also to see my husband ;-)
I have had a great time in Melbourne, Knoxfield to be precise, learning about a particular group of bacteria (Xanthomonads for those of you playing at home) from a world renowned 'expert'. Moreover, I've enjoyed the welcome cool temperatures and lack of humidity in Victoria - sweet relief!! However, two weeks is abit too long to be with one group of people, in a hotel without consistent internet (Oh the woes!) and punishing my back with a terribly soft sunken-mattress each night.
Top 5 Melbourne highlights:
1) The weekend spent with my husband in Melbourne!
- catching a comedy act as part of the Melbourne Comedy Festival (we wanted to see Danny Boy or the guy Amos but ended up with Reginald D. Hunter instead)
- eating my way around the arcades and hidden laneways of Melbourne aka: Cafe heaven! ( I recommend Koko Black chocolates and "Little cupcakes" cafe's highly!!)
- spending time with Andrew's friend and Melbournite- Kerryn, who once again showed us some hidden gems! i.e roof-top restaurants and cosy art-deco inspired bars with terrific views over the Yarra.
2) Cold weather and NO HUMIDITY!
- although a downside here is the necessity for moisturizer! Not having a facial regime of any sort (see previous posts about horrified beauticians who have had to deal with my ravaged facial waste-land) I realised with pimple-ridden shock, the need to keep up moisturer on a twice-daily basis.
3) Catering
- an unexpected perk of the course! We were provided with sumptuous morning and afternoon teas along with lunch!! My food baby is now in his 7 month and growing well....
4) Autumn leaves!
- the joy of actually getting distinct seasons! Glorious red-leaves on chestnut trees and the the vines in the vineyards were also changing colour....which leads me onto...
4a) Yarra valley!
- hmm we may have had a daytrip as part of 'work'.....what stunning countryside! (wine tasting? ofcourse not!;-)
5) Meeting great people
- in particular one girl, Rachael, whom I really had a blast with on the course - and who plays a mean air-guitar rendition of "Pathogen City" (sad sad scientist nerds that we are)...
and the pictorial highlights in no particular order:
My partner in crime, and much hilarity - Rachael - looking sterotypically 'scientific'
Trying to stifle a laugh as I pose 'thoughtfully' as we inspect our diseased plants on the course. The 'expert' (inverted commas!) lecturer flown from US is at the front.
The great 'Birds of Prey' show at Healesville Sanctuary
(visted as part of a 'sample collection' trip).
The raptor here could break the egg using a small stone in his beak! First hit! This isn't a learned behaviour ie. trick - it's genetic! Amazing.
(taken from a vineyard as part of the same 'sample collection' trip)
The view from a great bar in Federation Square overlooking the Yarra
and the view from the other end of the bar looking back towards the city!
I not only felt but saw the signs of autumn all around! Beautiful!
Two loved up types in the botanical gardens....
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Bake off!
Something's going on this week and I'm as confused as my poor dishpan-hands-husband as to how it started!
Sunday - exhausted from the remainder of the cold that is still hanging on for grim death - I decided to bake. And I haven't stopped since!
I remember a friend of mine, Min, once mentioned the 'nesting' feeling expectant mothers experience close to the time of delivery. If that's the case, then I have a food baby that's about to be delivered!!
So the menu this week:
Sunday - melting moments
(for work morning tea - the stakes have been upped in the snack department with the arrival of our new entomologist who buys something for us all to share each week. Well two can play that game sonny!)
Monday - macaroons
(in-laws dropping round may have been a prompt - look how well I look after your son! Every day is baking day here! etc.)
Tuesday - chicken casserole and tropical dessert
(Niti came round for dinner so I love a chance to try new recipes)
Wednesday - break!
(Hey, it was Farmer Wants a Wife!)
Thursday - orange and poppyseed cake
(for bible study group)
Friday etc.....Enough is enough! I think I've reached my peak for one week!
p.s. I'm not hormonal either, my only explanation is the weather. Perhaps it's the flo(ur)ers! :-P
Sunday - exhausted from the remainder of the cold that is still hanging on for grim death - I decided to bake. And I haven't stopped since!
I remember a friend of mine, Min, once mentioned the 'nesting' feeling expectant mothers experience close to the time of delivery. If that's the case, then I have a food baby that's about to be delivered!!
So the menu this week:
Sunday - melting moments
(for work morning tea - the stakes have been upped in the snack department with the arrival of our new entomologist who buys something for us all to share each week. Well two can play that game sonny!)
Monday - macaroons
(in-laws dropping round may have been a prompt - look how well I look after your son! Every day is baking day here! etc.)
Tuesday - chicken casserole and tropical dessert
(Niti came round for dinner so I love a chance to try new recipes)
Wednesday - break!
(Hey, it was Farmer Wants a Wife!)
Thursday - orange and poppyseed cake
(for bible study group)
Friday etc.....Enough is enough! I think I've reached my peak for one week!
p.s. I'm not hormonal either, my only explanation is the weather. Perhaps it's the flo(ur)ers! :-P
Friday, March 27, 2009
Sing low, Sweet Shuffler...
The other day, at Bible Study....
There was talk of a non-biblical nature about the songs of our generation. A member of the group was playing the piano for a church event and was bemoaning the repetoire to be sung. Which then beggered the question -
"When we're all old (in nursing homes)- what songs would we sit around and have a 'sing-along' too?"
That question came to mind the other (other) day as I listened to the radio while driving home from work and concurrently taking my blood pressure measurements for the third time, to dissuade myself of the notion that blood could physically boil! Oh yes, you'd be surprised by the things I carry in that home/garbage facility-on-wheels!
I imagined a nursing home with the chintz recliners all arranged in a semi-circle around the piano in anticipation for a night of reminiscing. An arthritically-affected, folically-challenged old man leaning precariously over the piano keys then begins manically pelting away in-time to a JT classic of our youth! The cracked voices from the recliners all raise in choral carcaphony to the strains of,"I'll make you believe in love and sex and magic"....ah sweet innocent days of yesteryear!
My goodness, all the songs I hear nowadays (you know you're getting old when you use a term like nowadays) I don't believe could even be played on a piano! Aghast I thought - we've sunk the sing-along! Banished by the gen-X'ers and the synthetic computer gen-Aters!
Would we have our own X-gen sing-along game instead perhaps?
The scene then shifted to our nursing home's open-plan, semi-partitioned living space. Twenty to thirty year old looking lads and ladettes with arthritically -affected hands laze on swedishly-designed and chinese-made imported bean bags, around the "NewGen Shuffleupagus 7000". All jostle to be first to sing along to the randomly-shuffled selection of greatest hits from the 01's - on voice-activated, camera-captured, siren-simulated and fast-tracked direct from the US - karoke. The sing-along of our generation - everyone's a sing-star - Karoke!
Alternatively, with our disdain for social interaction inbred since Facebook, we would twitter our current bed-ridden status for the 50th time that day to our fellow twits. To accomodate our bed-ridden state we would therefore not even have to leave the comfort of our automated existences. Instead, programming a virtual sing-along experience in a social-networking cyber sense, as we downloaded an 'app' on our lap to 'Rate our Sing-Stardomness'!
Ah for those melodic strains ..it's a long way to Tipp-er-ary, it's a long way to go.....
sent from an i-dont-phone
(by a Facebook obsessed, computer addict :-P )
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
An unexpected delight...
I have to admit, we should be at the Heidari's tonight, but in a blessed piece of 'luck' (thank you Lord!) - they weren't at home when we duely arrived at 7pm.
So as an unexpected delight - we have a night at home and a chance to cook a proper meal (not the usual late wed-night pizza!).
It feels bad to be rejoicing in not seeing people you actually like and whom I imagine rarely get visitors....anyway...
How is everyone?!
I realised that once I'd done those past two month reviews I sort of lost steam and never came back! Now March is upon us and I haven't even blogged once during February! I know, I know - the heaven's haven't collapsed yet, but it's a bit of a worry that my attention span is so short!
February was a bit of a blur but I do remember a lovely Valentine's Day spent at a French restaurant in Flaxton (near Mapleton in the moutains around the sunshine coast). I also remember a truly stupendous dessert for said restaurant which consisted of five 'samples' of each dessert listed on the menu. It included a creme brulee, a profiterole, a poached peach, fruit (which I did eat!) and a chocolate cake. Oh my!!! That on top of the snails for entree and the duck leg for main! I'm such a glutton - french through and through then!!!
Talking about food - drool - we've discovered a fantastic cafe in New Farm! I love hunting out great eats especially on a lazy Sunday (I don't know why those tops no longer fit really - clothes sizes these days aren't what they claim ;-) ). This cafe, is "Au Cirque" on Brunswick St and is DIVINE! Reasonably priced, great service and the food is so flavoursome and fresh! If you had to classify it I would say the food is french-australian. The only downside is the small size of the place which means quite literally an 'intimate' dining experience (not necessarily a downside if you enjoy a good eavesdrop and a laugh).
Hold those salivating horses Jen I'm going off track.....
February
- we watched Dad stare at the same four walls for another month which creep ever more sedantly towards completion. You can't rush a master - or my father!
- Andrew's work continued to dry up to the point where his hours have now been cut back. We are the lucky ones though at least I am still employed (woohoo for public service security) and Andrew is okay for the moment.
- my godmother had some major mental illness issues which has affected not only herself but her friends, especially my mother who had to admit her to hospital. Things are on the improve though but your prayers would be appreciated!
- my DNA sequencing work progressed with one step forward and two in opposite directions (the way of science - one way works which then opens up more avenues to explore!). I am loving having the opportunity to do some research (shhh) and making a worthwhile contribution to the job.
And now March has marched right on in....as has my dinner.
Time to eat again!
life, it's uncertain,
eat dessert first!
So as an unexpected delight - we have a night at home and a chance to cook a proper meal (not the usual late wed-night pizza!).
It feels bad to be rejoicing in not seeing people you actually like and whom I imagine rarely get visitors....anyway...
How is everyone?!
I realised that once I'd done those past two month reviews I sort of lost steam and never came back! Now March is upon us and I haven't even blogged once during February! I know, I know - the heaven's haven't collapsed yet, but it's a bit of a worry that my attention span is so short!
February was a bit of a blur but I do remember a lovely Valentine's Day spent at a French restaurant in Flaxton (near Mapleton in the moutains around the sunshine coast). I also remember a truly stupendous dessert for said restaurant which consisted of five 'samples' of each dessert listed on the menu. It included a creme brulee, a profiterole, a poached peach, fruit (which I did eat!) and a chocolate cake. Oh my!!! That on top of the snails for entree and the duck leg for main! I'm such a glutton - french through and through then!!!
Talking about food - drool - we've discovered a fantastic cafe in New Farm! I love hunting out great eats especially on a lazy Sunday (I don't know why those tops no longer fit really - clothes sizes these days aren't what they claim ;-) ). This cafe, is "Au Cirque" on Brunswick St and is DIVINE! Reasonably priced, great service and the food is so flavoursome and fresh! If you had to classify it I would say the food is french-australian. The only downside is the small size of the place which means quite literally an 'intimate' dining experience (not necessarily a downside if you enjoy a good eavesdrop and a laugh).
Hold those salivating horses Jen I'm going off track.....
February
- we watched Dad stare at the same four walls for another month which creep ever more sedantly towards completion. You can't rush a master - or my father!
- Andrew's work continued to dry up to the point where his hours have now been cut back. We are the lucky ones though at least I am still employed (woohoo for public service security) and Andrew is okay for the moment.
- my godmother had some major mental illness issues which has affected not only herself but her friends, especially my mother who had to admit her to hospital. Things are on the improve though but your prayers would be appreciated!
- my DNA sequencing work progressed with one step forward and two in opposite directions (the way of science - one way works which then opens up more avenues to explore!). I am loving having the opportunity to do some research (shhh) and making a worthwhile contribution to the job.
And now March has marched right on in....as has my dinner.
Time to eat again!
life, it's uncertain,
eat dessert first!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Let's recap....January
Dad continued work on our "Great Wall of China" downstairs....
Price of materials: $2K+, Price of labour: $0 (and a few dinners), Watching Dad's dedication to building the strongest and most perfectly braced laundry/cyclone shelter known to man - Priceless!!!
Our beautifully handcrafted leadlight window was installed in the toilet (original design and work by Dad). Best seat in the house! Dad comes up every visit to admire his work ;-)
He is now trying to persuade us to think of a design for another window - our home will soon be a showcase to Dad's leadlighting passion! What have we started!!!!!
We celebrated New Year's with Anna, Adele and Adele's sister's family at Rainbow Beach. Blistering heat, fighting a flu but an otherwise great time away with lots of sand, surf and Israeli dead-sea mud madness. Adele's sisters' two children, Sam and Zoe were absolutely gorgeous and Sam took a particular shine to Andrew - jokingly referred to during our stay as his 'best bud'.
Three members from our afghani refugee family became AUSTRALIAN CITIZENS on Australia Day! The two sisters: Roya and Nasimeh and brother: Akbar. What better way to celebrate Australia day than seeing the two girls take their oaths, as we 'renewed' ours :-)
Just wonderful to see them so happy and feel a sense of belonging at last! They have and continue to have, an amazingly inspiring journey. A real lesson to us all in how they handle every hurdle with such courage and thankfullness! (yes that's Premier Anna Bligh with the two girls).
Andrew and I returned to work after a relaxing 2 week christmas break. A few weeks back at work and I was then off down to Melbourne for a week, to get to know all-things Phytoplasma related (they are bacterial like organisms which cause disease in plants - just look at the red leaves at the top of your pointsettia plants for an example or these grapevines).
A re-Juvenating January full of joyous laughter and new horizons...
Let's recap... December
We had a christmas party - and it was good fun to see everyone and share a bit of christmas spirit!
"We" won the office christmas decorating competition (Vanessa my boss did all the work)! Our theme: Calvin and Hobbes inspired (ofcourse) "The Twelve Treatments of Christmas". The 'treatments' related to AQIS approved means of eradicating diseased or pest ridden items that we discover...ie. gamma irradiation (see example below), Methyl Bromide fumigation for insects, Heat Treatment etc...
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
It's beginning to feel alot like Christmas...
Yes, with only one sleep to go, I can truly say it's beginning to feel alot like Christmas!
At last, Christmas joy has awoken in me and stretched its bent wings..
I'm feeling abit more Christmas jubilation today. The reason - good hard labour!
Labour of love that is. Just as I was decrying my lack of creative inspiration this christmas...lo and behold, I made some cards!
Alas, too late to actually send them to you my friends! My apologies...and now just to rub it in, here's what they looked like! (Ok, so I'm a little proud of my first proper attempt with stamping)
Plus, I'm making chilled carrot soup for Christmas day (taste better than it sounds!) and have experimented with some ginger, citrus and green-tea (ie. I had left over ginger and added to a teabag of citrus green-tea - oh I'm such the culinary genius!).
So now I'm feeling like I've contributed more to Christmas, than propping up the languishing economy!....and talking about languishing, here's a little word from the silent blog partner
Joyeux Noel (eat, drink and follow Andrew's lead!)
At last, Christmas joy has awoken in me and stretched its bent wings..
I'm feeling abit more Christmas jubilation today. The reason - good hard labour!
Labour of love that is. Just as I was decrying my lack of creative inspiration this christmas...lo and behold, I made some cards!
Alas, too late to actually send them to you my friends! My apologies...and now just to rub it in, here's what they looked like! (Ok, so I'm a little proud of my first proper attempt with stamping)
Plus, I'm making chilled carrot soup for Christmas day (taste better than it sounds!) and have experimented with some ginger, citrus and green-tea (ie. I had left over ginger and added to a teabag of citrus green-tea - oh I'm such the culinary genius!).
So now I'm feeling like I've contributed more to Christmas, than propping up the languishing economy!....and talking about languishing, here's a little word from the silent blog partner
Joyeux Noel (eat, drink and follow Andrew's lead!)
Monday, December 22, 2008
Brooklyn, Paris, Cleveland?
Today I went to see my Mum down in my 'hometown' of Cleveland.
Situated 45mins east of Brisbane by the bay (Moreton Bay) the Redland Shire used to be a sleepy farming district but alas has blossomed over the last 20yrs into a thriving mini-metropolitis! I still feel the charm, but it has certainly been lessened somewhat with the mushrooming housing developments on the subdivided farming land. Each visit, I find more land being consumed by developments and it does break my heart alittle. Bring back rural living or at least larger home blocks with a less monotonously-rendered appeal!
Anyway, off my anti-development soap box!
My visit today took me back to other years, where about the same time I would be enjoying the delights of christmas shared with my parents and grandma. The days when I lived at home and toiled long and hard over handmade christmas cards and gifts! The days when my wonderful grandma was still alive and joyful, and sitting with me watching King's Choir on Christmas Eve. Glorious memories!
My grandma two years ago, at her home for one day only, and a special day that was.
Each year out of home reminds me how I have slipped more into laziness with store-bought cards and gifts and seemingly the joy of christmas diminishes just a tad each year too. Now this is quite an admission for me, as I LOVE Christmas! I adore the decorating, the gift giving, the carolling, the midnight church services, the visiting of friends and celebrations with family. But to be honest, I think the older I get the more I wish I was younger for Christmas sake! It also makes me wonder if children bring out this joy again at Christmas time. What a delight!
Anyway, off my self-indulgent soap box.
On a merrier note, I took great delight today in other aspects of getting older - observing and aiding your parents adopting new technology! Notably my mum and the woes of the computer age! I am apparently a computer wiz according to my mum's high IT standards and so I am called in to explain all manner of error messages and broken internet connection problems. Today was no exception! Mum was confused about a 'drive error' (and I have to admit, so was I) that appeared as she failed to connect to the internet. Donning my IT whiz-kid robes I strode into the room and looked quizically at the screen in a most thoughtful IT-superior manner- then I did the failsafe routine of checking all buttons and then if all else fails hitting the computer. Thankfully, I was able to avert stage 2 violence when I realised Mum had not actually turned on the vital link with the internet - the modem! With a flourish of satin robes I departed. Another disaster curtailed by IT girl!
Later that day I had another chuckle - this time at the strangest children's name I could possibly imagine hearing - and in Australia, nay, the Redlands! Now, I'm quite au-fait with the latest celebrity trends of naming your children after the city in which they were conceived...case in point: Victoria Beckham and her son Brooklyn. Au-fait, if not bemused! So strike-me-down speechless if I didn't hear a woman calling her child "Cleveland" at Victoria Point today! Cleveland?!! What next?! Ormiston for his sister?! Oh that gave me a good chuckle!
So Merry Christmas one and all! I hope you have a little child inside you that takes great delight still in celebrating Christ's birth. If not, I hope you enjoy it through your own children or other's or in whatever way you can! (I find a good verse or two of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" works wonders for me ;-)....
Jingle-all-the-way Jen xx
Situated 45mins east of Brisbane by the bay (Moreton Bay) the Redland Shire used to be a sleepy farming district but alas has blossomed over the last 20yrs into a thriving mini-metropolitis! I still feel the charm, but it has certainly been lessened somewhat with the mushrooming housing developments on the subdivided farming land. Each visit, I find more land being consumed by developments and it does break my heart alittle. Bring back rural living or at least larger home blocks with a less monotonously-rendered appeal!
Anyway, off my anti-development soap box!
My visit today took me back to other years, where about the same time I would be enjoying the delights of christmas shared with my parents and grandma. The days when I lived at home and toiled long and hard over handmade christmas cards and gifts! The days when my wonderful grandma was still alive and joyful, and sitting with me watching King's Choir on Christmas Eve. Glorious memories!
My grandma two years ago, at her home for one day only, and a special day that was.Each year out of home reminds me how I have slipped more into laziness with store-bought cards and gifts and seemingly the joy of christmas diminishes just a tad each year too. Now this is quite an admission for me, as I LOVE Christmas! I adore the decorating, the gift giving, the carolling, the midnight church services, the visiting of friends and celebrations with family. But to be honest, I think the older I get the more I wish I was younger for Christmas sake! It also makes me wonder if children bring out this joy again at Christmas time. What a delight!
Anyway, off my self-indulgent soap box.
On a merrier note, I took great delight today in other aspects of getting older - observing and aiding your parents adopting new technology! Notably my mum and the woes of the computer age! I am apparently a computer wiz according to my mum's high IT standards and so I am called in to explain all manner of error messages and broken internet connection problems. Today was no exception! Mum was confused about a 'drive error' (and I have to admit, so was I) that appeared as she failed to connect to the internet. Donning my IT whiz-kid robes I strode into the room and looked quizically at the screen in a most thoughtful IT-superior manner- then I did the failsafe routine of checking all buttons and then if all else fails hitting the computer. Thankfully, I was able to avert stage 2 violence when I realised Mum had not actually turned on the vital link with the internet - the modem! With a flourish of satin robes I departed. Another disaster curtailed by IT girl!
Later that day I had another chuckle - this time at the strangest children's name I could possibly imagine hearing - and in Australia, nay, the Redlands! Now, I'm quite au-fait with the latest celebrity trends of naming your children after the city in which they were conceived...case in point: Victoria Beckham and her son Brooklyn. Au-fait, if not bemused! So strike-me-down speechless if I didn't hear a woman calling her child "Cleveland" at Victoria Point today! Cleveland?!! What next?! Ormiston for his sister?! Oh that gave me a good chuckle!
So Merry Christmas one and all! I hope you have a little child inside you that takes great delight still in celebrating Christ's birth. If not, I hope you enjoy it through your own children or other's or in whatever way you can! (I find a good verse or two of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" works wonders for me ;-)....
Jingle-all-the-way Jen xx
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Blue will just not do, warm-white is the winner!
Ah tis (nearly) Christmas!
Ah tis a bad girl who has been buying christmas lights instead of blogging.....
but they are so pretty (sigh), especially when you can make them do different flashy things (so sayeth the three yr old child that I've regressed to).
The other night I made a desperate search of Big W to find another set of these gorgeous star -shaped fairy lights which hang in our doorway. These lights which see me sit mesmerised on the sofa just staring at them with a silly grin on my face repeating to Andrew "aw they're soo pretty!". He turns his head fractionally and "mmm's" at me. Why I am surrounded by such an unappreciative audience! And alas, the search proved fruitless. Big W has sold out of the warm-white star lights! (I made the poor sales assistant ring half of QLD just to be sure).
Blue will just not do! And multicoloured?! Well christmas light etiquette you do fall behind in, for they are only for the christmas tree ofcourse!
Now onto the tree......time to deck the halls and tinsel-trim the tree....
Friday, November 28, 2008
Word-of-mouth advertising..
We live in a 'modern age', so I'm being told. But our thinking is not necessarily advanced it seems, when it comes to age-old values such as customer relations!
I value word of mouth. I wish more companies did!
Case in point - IMPULSE Solar Panels.
Background:
I took a cold call this week from IMPULSE who were promoting solar panels and a deal to become a 'display home' for a discounted solar installation package. I, for once, showed some interest. Their speil included the phrase "would I be willing to pass on favourable comments to my friends and colleagues about IMPULSE if I was impressed by their service". I was indeed willing to do this, as I value word of mouth as an effective and often incredibly persuasive means of advertising. I am all too willing to help out those who value their clients and giving them quality service.
So after arranging a time, during my day off, they came to give me a quote and some information about this discount deal. Their speil on the phone had also included the phrase "this will not be a hard sell". I also appreciate companies who do not force their product on potential customers, but respect their customers enough to let the product sell itself.
Today:
So at 1pm today, after arranging my time around this appointment, the salesman from IMPULSE arrived. He chatted about the neighbourhood, enquiring about the neighbours and what the percentage rental vs buyer was like in the area.....'hmmm' thought I. He then asked where my husband was - to which I replied truthfully, that he couldn't come as he was too busy. At this point, having not even given me any information he shut his books and said he couldn't proceed as it was 'company policy' for him to talk with both husband and wife. I stared incredulously at him! Excuse me! What about the 'quote' of how many solar panels I would potentially need etc???
He then proceeded to talk AT me about how information would not be passed back accurately to my husband about what IMPULSE had to offer and that my husband would OBVIOUSELY have questions to ask. I then stated, truthfully, that I would have more knowledge about Solar electricity than my husband and that I was quite capable of passing back information to my husband. I was happy to take all their brochures and pass back all quotes to my husband for our joint decision.
The salesman then told me they had NO BROCHURES!???? What company has no brochures about an area of their business?!
He said they had only a select number of properties that could take advantage of their 'discounted' display home offer so "usually customers made a decision yes or no on the spot". Oh, now the alarm bells went off! This was a hard sell through and through!!! The salesman however said "Oh if that's how YOU want to see it - you do have the option of saying yes or no". Yes or No ON THE SPOT that is!
I stated as such to the salesman! By no means would I or my husband be making a snap decision ON THE SPOT regardless of whether it was just me talking with him or us both together. I consider it an affront that he thought I was incabable of passing on information to my husband and that he considered me less worthy than my husband of asking pertinent questions about solar electricity.
Aside from the fact that I was specifically told on the phone that this was;
1) NOT a hard sell
2) no mention was made of a 'company policy' to only talk to husband and wife together
3) no mention was made of a limited time frame in which to make a decision about this 'discount deal' - ie. ON THE SPOT!
I am still very angry at this outrageous, outdated, hard-sell tactic and the prehistoric attitude of the salesman. I can't believe they would think, in this 'modern age' that alienating customers would somehow guarantee a sale?!
Plus we are not talking about a small amount of money here either!
As my mother said later, I could have told him to leave then. But it was the principle of the matter. Another age-old value I consider important. I was promised a quote for solar paneling and that was what I had set aside time to obtain. I was very annoyed that they would not even do what they said they would come to do - and that was look at our situation and determine how many solar panels would be needed. Regardless of whether we were buying into this 'discount deal' they surely would want to sell their product???? Does this not seem a logical sales tactic?
But no, the salesman would not give a quote. However, he rang his manager and I then talked with him and the manager conceeded that I could be given a quote. Conceeded to a quote? Again, am I totally behind the times? Do companies not usually WANT to sell their product?!
After scribbling figures on a rough pad of paper. The salesman told me that they sold "top of the range panels which had numerous small panels interconnected which was more efficient than a solid single panel". Naturally interested in this sweeping statement and its basis, I enquired why this was so much more efficient. He could not answer! Indeed he even said "I don't know why. I was just told they were more efficient than the single panels". Oh my goodness!!!!!!!!! First rule of sales - KNOW YOUR PRODUCT!
So all in all - I was very dissapointed at the underhand, shoddy tactics of IMPULSE and their sexist, chauvanistic attitude. I am not a fan of policitical correctness on the whole, but my dealings with IMPULSE could be described as nothing short of sexist and patronising.
For a company that wants word-of-mouth promotion so badly... Then I am happy to oblige!
I advise all - stay well clear of IMPULSE!
I value word of mouth. I wish more companies did!
Case in point - IMPULSE Solar Panels.
Background:
I took a cold call this week from IMPULSE who were promoting solar panels and a deal to become a 'display home' for a discounted solar installation package. I, for once, showed some interest. Their speil included the phrase "would I be willing to pass on favourable comments to my friends and colleagues about IMPULSE if I was impressed by their service". I was indeed willing to do this, as I value word of mouth as an effective and often incredibly persuasive means of advertising. I am all too willing to help out those who value their clients and giving them quality service.
So after arranging a time, during my day off, they came to give me a quote and some information about this discount deal. Their speil on the phone had also included the phrase "this will not be a hard sell". I also appreciate companies who do not force their product on potential customers, but respect their customers enough to let the product sell itself.
Today:
So at 1pm today, after arranging my time around this appointment, the salesman from IMPULSE arrived. He chatted about the neighbourhood, enquiring about the neighbours and what the percentage rental vs buyer was like in the area.....'hmmm' thought I. He then asked where my husband was - to which I replied truthfully, that he couldn't come as he was too busy. At this point, having not even given me any information he shut his books and said he couldn't proceed as it was 'company policy' for him to talk with both husband and wife. I stared incredulously at him! Excuse me! What about the 'quote' of how many solar panels I would potentially need etc???
He then proceeded to talk AT me about how information would not be passed back accurately to my husband about what IMPULSE had to offer and that my husband would OBVIOUSELY have questions to ask. I then stated, truthfully, that I would have more knowledge about Solar electricity than my husband and that I was quite capable of passing back information to my husband. I was happy to take all their brochures and pass back all quotes to my husband for our joint decision.
The salesman then told me they had NO BROCHURES!???? What company has no brochures about an area of their business?!
He said they had only a select number of properties that could take advantage of their 'discounted' display home offer so "usually customers made a decision yes or no on the spot". Oh, now the alarm bells went off! This was a hard sell through and through!!! The salesman however said "Oh if that's how YOU want to see it - you do have the option of saying yes or no". Yes or No ON THE SPOT that is!
I stated as such to the salesman! By no means would I or my husband be making a snap decision ON THE SPOT regardless of whether it was just me talking with him or us both together. I consider it an affront that he thought I was incabable of passing on information to my husband and that he considered me less worthy than my husband of asking pertinent questions about solar electricity.
Aside from the fact that I was specifically told on the phone that this was;
1) NOT a hard sell
2) no mention was made of a 'company policy' to only talk to husband and wife together
3) no mention was made of a limited time frame in which to make a decision about this 'discount deal' - ie. ON THE SPOT!
I am still very angry at this outrageous, outdated, hard-sell tactic and the prehistoric attitude of the salesman. I can't believe they would think, in this 'modern age' that alienating customers would somehow guarantee a sale?!
Plus we are not talking about a small amount of money here either!
As my mother said later, I could have told him to leave then. But it was the principle of the matter. Another age-old value I consider important. I was promised a quote for solar paneling and that was what I had set aside time to obtain. I was very annoyed that they would not even do what they said they would come to do - and that was look at our situation and determine how many solar panels would be needed. Regardless of whether we were buying into this 'discount deal' they surely would want to sell their product???? Does this not seem a logical sales tactic?
But no, the salesman would not give a quote. However, he rang his manager and I then talked with him and the manager conceeded that I could be given a quote. Conceeded to a quote? Again, am I totally behind the times? Do companies not usually WANT to sell their product?!
After scribbling figures on a rough pad of paper. The salesman told me that they sold "top of the range panels which had numerous small panels interconnected which was more efficient than a solid single panel". Naturally interested in this sweeping statement and its basis, I enquired why this was so much more efficient. He could not answer! Indeed he even said "I don't know why. I was just told they were more efficient than the single panels". Oh my goodness!!!!!!!!! First rule of sales - KNOW YOUR PRODUCT!
So all in all - I was very dissapointed at the underhand, shoddy tactics of IMPULSE and their sexist, chauvanistic attitude. I am not a fan of policitical correctness on the whole, but my dealings with IMPULSE could be described as nothing short of sexist and patronising.
For a company that wants word-of-mouth promotion so badly... Then I am happy to oblige!
I advise all - stay well clear of IMPULSE!
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Sequins and Shenanigans
My goodness I have been slack!
I know it seems unbelievable, but I have actually been able to prise myself away from the computer of late (read addicted to Facebook now instead). So alas, my blogging has suffered as a result. Therefore I am well aware that my few loyal readers may have given up on the Pimpernel and her supply of ink!
Refilled I continue with:
1) J and A'isms:
Oh I wish I remembered them all ;-)
A: rushing into the room in a loud indignant manner - "I don't belieeeeeve it!"
J: turning away from the computer screen (shock horror) - "What?! What is it?!"
A: holding aloft newly acquired cough syrup - "The measuring cup off the cough liquid starts at 25ml! I specifically went for the one cough mixture that had a measure for the amount I needed to take". Letting the breverity of this statment sink in - "The dose says 5ml! And the b"%$y measuring cup starts at 25ml!!!"
J: Obviously speechless at this cunning plot by the manufacturers, and waiting to see what was to follow from this DASTEDLY set back to my man-cough-suffering husband's recovery.
A: "I mean, if it had started at 15ml then at least it would have been closer to 5ml and I could have taken a shot at it."
J: thoughtful "hmmm" (I may have been distracted by someone's status update on Facebook)
A: silence
J: attention now piqued by the lack of ranting and raving from indignant man-cold suffering husband
A: "Ah, I see......"
J: "yes?"
A: "it's actually 2.5ml, not 25ml"......sheepishly eyeing off measuring cup and slinking out of room
J: satisfied that the danger had passed and settling herself back infront of her Facebook profile for the evening. "Jen is..bemused at her husband's antics - again!".
2) Plagarised posts (part A):
'Why do you blog?'
- this comes from a recent post by Min who outlined her reasons and emotions behind the desire to blog.
Perhaps - I blog, therefore I am. Which means I haven't blogged, therefore I am not?!....hmmm.
Actually I think it's a stock standard reason of wanting to have an outlet for all these tit-bits of life you want to share with others but seem too trivial to actually call someone and tell them about. As we don't have children, it's not about updating relatives with news of what our mob has been up to but rather a creative outlet for myself. I find I read so little of late that I feel my vocabulary slipping. Take normal conversations - I forget words. Common words! Like 'sequin' (aka: that circular shiny thing - as I described it to my boss while gesturing hopelessly around the room, as if that would somehow pluck the word from a corner in which it was hiding). So blogging is a form of mental exercise for me, allowing me to dabble in creative writing, which I love so much, while hopefully resoldering a few frayed neural connections!
Okay, so soldering torch aside, it's good to be back posting!
I have so much to tell you, but will save it. I know others have been frantically posting all November, so my excuse is that I'll let you all catch your breaths before I too join the fray again!
I know it seems unbelievable, but I have actually been able to prise myself away from the computer of late (read addicted to Facebook now instead). So alas, my blogging has suffered as a result. Therefore I am well aware that my few loyal readers may have given up on the Pimpernel and her supply of ink!
Refilled I continue with:
1) J and A'isms:
Oh I wish I remembered them all ;-)
A: rushing into the room in a loud indignant manner - "I don't belieeeeeve it!"
J: turning away from the computer screen (shock horror) - "What?! What is it?!"
A: holding aloft newly acquired cough syrup - "The measuring cup off the cough liquid starts at 25ml! I specifically went for the one cough mixture that had a measure for the amount I needed to take". Letting the breverity of this statment sink in - "The dose says 5ml! And the b"%$y measuring cup starts at 25ml!!!"
J: Obviously speechless at this cunning plot by the manufacturers, and waiting to see what was to follow from this DASTEDLY set back to my man-cough-suffering husband's recovery.
A: "I mean, if it had started at 15ml then at least it would have been closer to 5ml and I could have taken a shot at it."
J: thoughtful "hmmm" (I may have been distracted by someone's status update on Facebook)
A: silence
J: attention now piqued by the lack of ranting and raving from indignant man-cold suffering husband
A: "Ah, I see......"
J: "yes?"
A: "it's actually 2.5ml, not 25ml"......sheepishly eyeing off measuring cup and slinking out of room
J: satisfied that the danger had passed and settling herself back infront of her Facebook profile for the evening. "Jen is..bemused at her husband's antics - again!".
2) Plagarised posts (part A):
'Why do you blog?'
- this comes from a recent post by Min who outlined her reasons and emotions behind the desire to blog.
Perhaps - I blog, therefore I am. Which means I haven't blogged, therefore I am not?!....hmmm.
Actually I think it's a stock standard reason of wanting to have an outlet for all these tit-bits of life you want to share with others but seem too trivial to actually call someone and tell them about. As we don't have children, it's not about updating relatives with news of what our mob has been up to but rather a creative outlet for myself. I find I read so little of late that I feel my vocabulary slipping. Take normal conversations - I forget words. Common words! Like 'sequin' (aka: that circular shiny thing - as I described it to my boss while gesturing hopelessly around the room, as if that would somehow pluck the word from a corner in which it was hiding). So blogging is a form of mental exercise for me, allowing me to dabble in creative writing, which I love so much, while hopefully resoldering a few frayed neural connections!
Okay, so soldering torch aside, it's good to be back posting!
I have so much to tell you, but will save it. I know others have been frantically posting all November, so my excuse is that I'll let you all catch your breaths before I too join the fray again!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Step 1 - admit your problem...
Hi I'm Jenny, and I like killing plants (mostly herbaceous ones).
At last I can admit it!
Step 2 - admit defeat....
I'm no green-thumb - however hard I try!
While my sherlock-style sleuthing has improved since I've moved over to the 'dark side' of plant physiology, my pot plants have suffered long-torturous deaths as a result.
Plant pathology = pathos = laziness = death.
See it was inevitable that when I walked hand in hand with the scalpel, my love of the secateurs was lost.
But redemption is at hand!
Well, nature has a sneaky way of showing she's still there to pick up the dry, withered pieces and go forth and be fruitful!
Infact it feels like Eden to me in my garden as I witness trees that I thought were so deprived of nutrients, flowering and then ...... producing fruit!!!!
I'm like a little kid, I'm so excited to see my avocado, mango and lemon tree all with small growths that indicate that maybe this time:
- the voracious possums haven't eaten all the new growth on every accessible tree limb
- the bronze-orange-bugs aka: stink bugs haven't sucked all the juice out of the citrus buds
- the mysterious flowering pattern of the avocado has come together in magical synchronous dichogamy!
I just had to share the wonderous bounty of our poor neglected garden!
I think that sole bucket of laundry grey-water obviously pushed the avocado over the line this year. Plus the talk of demolition scared the mango into reproduction! And the lemon tree - well she's a stayer!
"And that's your bloomin' lot, but just for this week!"....
At last I can admit it!
Step 2 - admit defeat....
I'm no green-thumb - however hard I try!
While my sherlock-style sleuthing has improved since I've moved over to the 'dark side' of plant physiology, my pot plants have suffered long-torturous deaths as a result.
Plant pathology = pathos = laziness = death.
See it was inevitable that when I walked hand in hand with the scalpel, my love of the secateurs was lost.
But redemption is at hand!
Well, nature has a sneaky way of showing she's still there to pick up the dry, withered pieces and go forth and be fruitful!
That's right - it's Spring - trees are blooming. Even in my garden!
Infact it feels like Eden to me in my garden as I witness trees that I thought were so deprived of nutrients, flowering and then ...... producing fruit!!!!
I'm like a little kid, I'm so excited to see my avocado, mango and lemon tree all with small growths that indicate that maybe this time:
- the voracious possums haven't eaten all the new growth on every accessible tree limb
- the bronze-orange-bugs aka: stink bugs haven't sucked all the juice out of the citrus buds
- the mysterious flowering pattern of the avocado has come together in magical synchronous dichogamy!
I just had to share the wonderous bounty of our poor neglected garden!
I think that sole bucket of laundry grey-water obviously pushed the avocado over the line this year. Plus the talk of demolition scared the mango into reproduction! And the lemon tree - well she's a stayer!
"And that's your bloomin' lot, but just for this week!"....
Monday, October 13, 2008
Multicultural Festival
Ah, now the regular readers may have picked up on a very saliant point already..
(Clue: read the previous post)
Yes, this was not on my list of forthcoming blog posts! Surprise! Ah, spontanaeity is the spice of life! (And, yet another example of how far short I fall when it comes to goal-driven behaviour!)
So, for those of you who missed it, the Multicultural Festival was on this past weekend. Andrew and I got ourselves out of bed just in time to - not go to church - and head over to Roma Street Parklands and enjoy the festive atmosphere! We were going to meet our refugee family there, but alas that never eventuated.
What we did end up doing was enjoying the delights of:
a) Lagos = Hungarian deep-fried yeasty flat bread. Delicious! Excellent source of three essential vitamins (O, I and L) and helps provide essential padding for any traditional thigh-slapping behaviour which may follow.
The well-satiated male of mine!b) Donuts = not American but another Hungarian delicacy. They looked like a hollowed-out, thick french stick with cinnamon. I'm thinking aesthetically pleasing cuisine is not a Hungarian forte (but hey, it's taste that counts according to my stomach).
c) Angels of Fire = awesome threesome of kiwi sisters whose voices were so rich and powerful. Great rock/pop set from so young a group! The eldest would have been 16 yrs, if that, but very mature arrangements
(says the consumate performer herself! Like I have an idea about music?!).
d) Sudanese dancers = displaying their traditional dances in vibrant costumes. I particularly loved the little girl who instead of holding one of their 'traditional weapons', held a multi-coloured feather duster! Hilarious! Obviously warding off those dreaded evil dust spirits!
e) Greek dancers = another traditional display of fabulous costumes and a very polished performance all round.
f) Mauritius dancers = very flamboyant latin-looking dancers of all ages. Particularly enjoyed the little girl intent on playing in the sandpit despite all this dancing occuring around her.
So much variety!
Great to get a taste of other cultures in every sense of the word - and every sense was covered by the festival. So glad the rain held off and encourage everyone to go next year!!!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
post-it note
post-haste I shall write this post-it note (el husbando on patrol - Blogger patrol....)
So 5 sec blog post -
Coming Soon:
1. "Degradation and Rejuvenation"
2. "Mixed Tape"
3. "Photo of the week"
4. "J & A to the rescue"
5. "Top 5 ...."
edge of seat stuff, eh.
"I have a Cunning Plan"....(Blackadder)
Saturday, October 4, 2008
6 random ramblings...
Yes, again I must admit to stealing this idea from Min. It seemed a very fine way to sum up a very fine day - and to collect my fragmented thoughts..
6 random recollections for today:
1) It's good to be alive! - Despite the racket of last night, as our neighbours directly across from us (of the burn-out fame) celebrated their imminent departure from our fine suburb, and thereby (our) lack of snooze time. I thought this morning in Church, how good it was to be alive! I think this was obviously influenced by the uplifted voices of the congregation at St Phillips Church (Annerley) and the glory of a gorgeous morn. There's something to be said for a congregation who enjoys singing, even if I can't, at least with all voices raised it's hard to tell those in-tune from the tone deaf! I love a good hymn! Especially those I remember from my Anglican childhood! Who can go wrong with "All Creatures of our God and King" and my favourite "Lord of the Dance".
2) Christening the day - Felicity Isabelle Smith. Thanks to Matt and Steph who kindly invited Andrew and I to the christening of their daughter Felicity. It was lovely to come and share in the warmth of their special day - apologies though for leaving before cake! As mentioned above, I really enjoyed the service! Promise! Particularly the Franciscan element and the enthusiasm of the congregation. In the church hunt that Andrew and I are on at present, it's always nice to find somewhere with potential - and I think St Phillips may warrant a return visit!
3) Soul stirring stuff - pass the caffeine please....hot on the rosary-tails of the spiritual start to the day I met up with a friend for a caffeine injection and some more soul stirring stuff in a 'girly-get-together' way. Now as I've mentioned before, Bronwyn is someone who blows into town like a tornado (as Karen so accurately said) and leaves as fast - but leaves not havoc in her wake but a shake-up which can be the basis for a new life (re-evaluating) direction.
So it's always good to see her and this was no exception! Our venue was the local Ned's cafe, on the basis that Bronwyn LOVES the butterscotch pancakes (she even rang in advance to make sure they were serving them after a previous DISASTER breakfast date sans pancakes). As a result of our catch-up - we've decided to only go to Ned's when Dave the chef is on (cause his pancakes are the proper ones) - and she reawakened my passion for craft, travel, gardening and writing - all in one morning! She's a dynamo that girl ;-)
Did I mention she's also started up her own business in Time Management?! If you need a girl to organise your life, (and I'll attest to her powers at this), I'd be happy to pass on her details!
4) Mother nature - wildlife warriors to the rescue. "Apparently" I am a wildlife warrior! I don't know how I came by this title - certainly not by any merit that's for sure! The only thing I've fought for is...hmmmm. I do love nature and have been forced to hold many creepy crawlies thanks to my entomologist/terrorising father. Anyway, basically to Bronwyn I'm a lover of wildlife - hence I'm a warrior.
Me strong fearless lady..Me go take eggs from hens for Bronwyn.. Me beat chest, as me fearless wildlife warrior...Me surrounded by hens, me not fearful... Me see beak of hens, me laugh...Me see toes, me see beak....Me run! Me hang head in shame.
5) Oh to be a man - and no that isn't a direct link with the hens! I doubt Andrew would have had better luck than I did in the chicken coup. I tell you that was one beefed up mother-hen sitting on her clutch of eggs and her bevy of bantam bouncers were just eyeing off my toes! It was purely because of my exposed toes that I was alittle 'cautious'! Anyway, so Andrew has been in bed ill with the flu for the past three days - and I'm realising what a bad wifey-wifey I am. As I was discussing with Karen and Bronwyn, it must be because as women we try to 'soldier on' even if we lose a limb! So to me, three days in bed doing nothing is not on! Yes, I'm terrible I realise this - I guess if I have a day off when I'm sick I'll still fit in housework and other chores and then when that's done go and rest for abit. Yep, I really need some lessons in wifely compassion and understanding. Oh to be a man instead..
6) Craft central - rock, paper, scissors - origami! It's time to get those pinking shears out and get a decorating! All these ideas and pieces of wallpaper I have floating about the place - and all this lack of will power! What's a lazy, un-compassionate wife to do? Well, join a craft group I say! We say infact. Bronwyn and I (yes, this girl features heavily in my day today) have struck gold we feel, with the idea to start a craft group with our joint friends. We all seem to love crafty stuff and have lots of good intentions - but follow through needs companions it seems. So come join us!!! Here's what we are thinking - one day a month we go to someone's house and they provide abit of food and we all bring our latest craft project and sit about and do just that - get creative! Anyone keen to dust off those paints and get productive?
6 random recollections for today:
1) It's good to be alive! - Despite the racket of last night, as our neighbours directly across from us (of the burn-out fame) celebrated their imminent departure from our fine suburb, and thereby (our) lack of snooze time. I thought this morning in Church, how good it was to be alive! I think this was obviously influenced by the uplifted voices of the congregation at St Phillips Church (Annerley) and the glory of a gorgeous morn. There's something to be said for a congregation who enjoys singing, even if I can't, at least with all voices raised it's hard to tell those in-tune from the tone deaf! I love a good hymn! Especially those I remember from my Anglican childhood! Who can go wrong with "All Creatures of our God and King" and my favourite "Lord of the Dance".
2) Christening the day - Felicity Isabelle Smith. Thanks to Matt and Steph who kindly invited Andrew and I to the christening of their daughter Felicity. It was lovely to come and share in the warmth of their special day - apologies though for leaving before cake! As mentioned above, I really enjoyed the service! Promise! Particularly the Franciscan element and the enthusiasm of the congregation. In the church hunt that Andrew and I are on at present, it's always nice to find somewhere with potential - and I think St Phillips may warrant a return visit!
3) Soul stirring stuff - pass the caffeine please....hot on the rosary-tails of the spiritual start to the day I met up with a friend for a caffeine injection and some more soul stirring stuff in a 'girly-get-together' way. Now as I've mentioned before, Bronwyn is someone who blows into town like a tornado (as Karen so accurately said) and leaves as fast - but leaves not havoc in her wake but a shake-up which can be the basis for a new life (re-evaluating) direction.
So it's always good to see her and this was no exception! Our venue was the local Ned's cafe, on the basis that Bronwyn LOVES the butterscotch pancakes (she even rang in advance to make sure they were serving them after a previous DISASTER breakfast date sans pancakes). As a result of our catch-up - we've decided to only go to Ned's when Dave the chef is on (cause his pancakes are the proper ones) - and she reawakened my passion for craft, travel, gardening and writing - all in one morning! She's a dynamo that girl ;-)
Did I mention she's also started up her own business in Time Management?! If you need a girl to organise your life, (and I'll attest to her powers at this), I'd be happy to pass on her details!
4) Mother nature - wildlife warriors to the rescue. "Apparently" I am a wildlife warrior! I don't know how I came by this title - certainly not by any merit that's for sure! The only thing I've fought for is...hmmmm. I do love nature and have been forced to hold many creepy crawlies thanks to my entomologist/terrorising father. Anyway, basically to Bronwyn I'm a lover of wildlife - hence I'm a warrior.
Me strong fearless lady..Me go take eggs from hens for Bronwyn.. Me beat chest, as me fearless wildlife warrior...Me surrounded by hens, me not fearful... Me see beak of hens, me laugh...Me see toes, me see beak....Me run! Me hang head in shame.
5) Oh to be a man - and no that isn't a direct link with the hens! I doubt Andrew would have had better luck than I did in the chicken coup. I tell you that was one beefed up mother-hen sitting on her clutch of eggs and her bevy of bantam bouncers were just eyeing off my toes! It was purely because of my exposed toes that I was alittle 'cautious'! Anyway, so Andrew has been in bed ill with the flu for the past three days - and I'm realising what a bad wifey-wifey I am. As I was discussing with Karen and Bronwyn, it must be because as women we try to 'soldier on' even if we lose a limb! So to me, three days in bed doing nothing is not on! Yes, I'm terrible I realise this - I guess if I have a day off when I'm sick I'll still fit in housework and other chores and then when that's done go and rest for abit. Yep, I really need some lessons in wifely compassion and understanding. Oh to be a man instead..
6) Craft central - rock, paper, scissors - origami! It's time to get those pinking shears out and get a decorating! All these ideas and pieces of wallpaper I have floating about the place - and all this lack of will power! What's a lazy, un-compassionate wife to do? Well, join a craft group I say! We say infact. Bronwyn and I (yes, this girl features heavily in my day today) have struck gold we feel, with the idea to start a craft group with our joint friends. We all seem to love crafty stuff and have lots of good intentions - but follow through needs companions it seems. So come join us!!! Here's what we are thinking - one day a month we go to someone's house and they provide abit of food and we all bring our latest craft project and sit about and do just that - get creative! Anyone keen to dust off those paints and get productive?
Friday, October 3, 2008
Grow old along with me...
Well while I'm technically behind, it was indeed for those playing at home - Wednesday - when we celebrated our second wedding anniversary, I'd like to dedicate a few moments to what we've achieved.
1) Matrimonial bliss, obviously comes in at number 1 - why, I don't know! It would be impossible to achieve, let alone in two years! Who do you think we are?! Have you not been reading this blog?!
1) Matrimonial harmony, instead comes in at number 1 - much more realistic!
yes I don't count whinging to friends about my dearly-sedated, man-cold sufferer as a sign of disquiet on the home front, merely therapeautic, in the quest for conviviality!
2) Computer envy. Andrew clearly needs to organise his time better rather than whinging about my frequent forays into the 'facebook office' - how rude!
3) Domestic bliss. Yes clearly this is possible to achieve in two years. All you need is a residence (and yes we achieved home-ownership status in 2 yrs) and to rid yourselves of those pesky guilty feelings (programmed in by your parents no doubt) that dust/grime/uncleaned dishes are your enemy. Relax those standards, hide that duster and all will be well. Embrace the heat-saving benefits, of the dust carpet that enfolds you.;-) Aaah choooo.
4) Responsibility freedom. Two years.. and counting...;-). Although technically a mortgage the size of katmandu could be a slight impingement to the term freedom, and designate us as responsible - home-owners (nothing else).
5) An incredible (and deepening) love for an incredible man.
Andrew's cue to say vice-versa but he's in bed still with the lurgy so his coughs I'll take for aye aye's of confirmation.
In his many roles as friend, teacher, nurturer and entertainer, alongside that of husband, he has been such a positive influence on me and on our marriage! So that would make el husbando Mr Incredible, and by association - just call me Mrs Incredible! Together we are - The Incredibles! (it all comes back to Pixar).
Do I hear a cough of affirmation?
1) Matrimonial bliss, obviously comes in at number 1 - why, I don't know! It would be impossible to achieve, let alone in two years! Who do you think we are?! Have you not been reading this blog?!
1) Matrimonial harmony, instead comes in at number 1 - much more realistic!
yes I don't count whinging to friends about my dearly-sedated, man-cold sufferer as a sign of disquiet on the home front, merely therapeautic, in the quest for conviviality!
2) Computer envy. Andrew clearly needs to organise his time better rather than whinging about my frequent forays into the 'facebook office' - how rude!
3) Domestic bliss. Yes clearly this is possible to achieve in two years. All you need is a residence (and yes we achieved home-ownership status in 2 yrs) and to rid yourselves of those pesky guilty feelings (programmed in by your parents no doubt) that dust/grime/uncleaned dishes are your enemy. Relax those standards, hide that duster and all will be well. Embrace the heat-saving benefits, of the dust carpet that enfolds you.;-) Aaah choooo.
4) Responsibility freedom. Two years.. and counting...;-). Although technically a mortgage the size of katmandu could be a slight impingement to the term freedom, and designate us as responsible - home-owners (nothing else).
5) An incredible (and deepening) love for an incredible man.
Andrew's cue to say vice-versa but he's in bed still with the lurgy so his coughs I'll take for aye aye's of confirmation.
In his many roles as friend, teacher, nurturer and entertainer, alongside that of husband, he has been such a positive influence on me and on our marriage! So that would make el husbando Mr Incredible, and by association - just call me Mrs Incredible! Together we are - The Incredibles! (it all comes back to Pixar).
Do I hear a cough of affirmation?
Grow old along with me
the best is yet to be...
Monday, September 29, 2008
and now the post you've all been waiting for....
TOP FIVE CHOCOLATE BARS
Come on down:
1. Bounty
2. Moro
3. Picnic
4. Violet Crumble
5. White Knight
any other contenders?
Sunday, September 28, 2008
When I get older...
I'll become a - ?
So what did you want to be when you were/are all grown up?
I never had a burning ambition as a child to 'be' anything in particular - apart from dessert taster (this I am still working hard on) and an annoyance to my father (success!). I did enjoy the thought of archaeology at one point until I realised that bones = dirt = digging = heat. End result equals sweat and not necessarily equal archaelogical achievement of monumentous proportion (unless sweat marks the size of a small wading pool can be called an achievement of modern wonder).
Then with such sustained logic now driving my career endeavours I shied away from the sun and into the shade. The shady bone-chilling world of pathology - forensic pathology. Just call me Kay Scarpetta. Like my grandmother before me, I loved a 'good murder' and was (and am) a dab hand at guessing a 'who dunnit'. With stellar qualifications such as these my career path seemed obvious to even the dumbest schmuck! However again, I overlooked a fundamental piece in this career puzzle - bones = body = scalpel. End result equals surgery and a surgeon/pathologist inserting scalpel into aforementioned body to excise and extract pieces for puzzle. Hmm, did I mention I'm a little squeamish at the sight of operations?
Logical compromise: Plant (no blood and guts) Pathology (mysteries to solve - Elementary my dear Watson!). And it's turned out to be brilliant!
Although, as my friend Adele once asked me - what have you always wanted to do? And I wouldn't say either Archaeology or Forensic Pathology now but these would be my top 5 choices:
1) Photographer:
I spend so many moments (especially after a fabulous photographic foray around Byron Bay on our hols) thinking the immortal line "that would make a wonderful photo". I am in the car and in between clutch, brake, swear at inconsiderate drivers, clutch, ...(notice the lack of accelerator - there's never much use for one on Kingsford Smith Drive between 7.30am and 6pm!), I see the warm afternoon sun playing on the city builidings or the Brisbane river and delight in another gorgeous photographic moment - missed. If not professionally, I'd certainly welcome doing photography (scenic not people) more regularly and certainly with some proper professional equipment (and training!).
2) Writer:
Non-fiction. I've always wanted to charm and delight people as a witty novelist (like the other 49 99999 billion people worldwide) not necessarily extrememely popular a la Steven King but more Bill Bryson - stimulating and entertaining all in one. For someone who's well on the way to stardom in this respect, check out Clever Girl Goes Blog - she writes so well and is endlessly amusing!
3) Restaurant Critic:
This was the one I told Adele when she asked! As another friend Anna, and my husband comment upon, I am already a bit of a self-proclaimed critic. I have a healthy (ahem) love of food, a good set of discriminating taste buds and I err towards pessimist [and humility ;-) ]. Restaurant critic = fait accomplis!
4) Travel Writer:
Love 1 = Travel
Love 2 = Writing
....spelling it out would be humilitating for us all.
5) Aged Care Nurse:
Yes, this has crept in recently to my top 5 displacing but not necessarily replacing psychologist. I have always been quite different in that I relate better to the older than the younger generation. This may have been caused by a lack of siblings and exposure to many adults from a young age. Plus I feel it is terrible to see the treatment of our older generation, especially in western cultures where our traditions do not place as great an emphasis on care for our elders. I know the arguement before with forensic pathology may come up here - and with due cause - I'm still squeamish! However it would be worth working on this perhaps and integrating my psychology background to maybe adapt aged care nurse to social worker come psychologist with senior citizen emphasis?
Anyway - they're my top 5 - how about you all?
Watch this post - my top 5 chocolate bars coming soon....
So what did you want to be when you were/are all grown up?
I never had a burning ambition as a child to 'be' anything in particular - apart from dessert taster (this I am still working hard on) and an annoyance to my father (success!). I did enjoy the thought of archaeology at one point until I realised that bones = dirt = digging = heat. End result equals sweat and not necessarily equal archaelogical achievement of monumentous proportion (unless sweat marks the size of a small wading pool can be called an achievement of modern wonder).
Then with such sustained logic now driving my career endeavours I shied away from the sun and into the shade. The shady bone-chilling world of pathology - forensic pathology. Just call me Kay Scarpetta. Like my grandmother before me, I loved a 'good murder' and was (and am) a dab hand at guessing a 'who dunnit'. With stellar qualifications such as these my career path seemed obvious to even the dumbest schmuck! However again, I overlooked a fundamental piece in this career puzzle - bones = body = scalpel. End result equals surgery and a surgeon/pathologist inserting scalpel into aforementioned body to excise and extract pieces for puzzle. Hmm, did I mention I'm a little squeamish at the sight of operations?
Logical compromise: Plant (no blood and guts) Pathology (mysteries to solve - Elementary my dear Watson!). And it's turned out to be brilliant!
Although, as my friend Adele once asked me - what have you always wanted to do? And I wouldn't say either Archaeology or Forensic Pathology now but these would be my top 5 choices:
1) Photographer:
I spend so many moments (especially after a fabulous photographic foray around Byron Bay on our hols) thinking the immortal line "that would make a wonderful photo". I am in the car and in between clutch, brake, swear at inconsiderate drivers, clutch, ...(notice the lack of accelerator - there's never much use for one on Kingsford Smith Drive between 7.30am and 6pm!), I see the warm afternoon sun playing on the city builidings or the Brisbane river and delight in another gorgeous photographic moment - missed. If not professionally, I'd certainly welcome doing photography (scenic not people) more regularly and certainly with some proper professional equipment (and training!).
2) Writer:
Non-fiction. I've always wanted to charm and delight people as a witty novelist (like the other 49 99999 billion people worldwide) not necessarily extrememely popular a la Steven King but more Bill Bryson - stimulating and entertaining all in one. For someone who's well on the way to stardom in this respect, check out Clever Girl Goes Blog - she writes so well and is endlessly amusing!
3) Restaurant Critic:
This was the one I told Adele when she asked! As another friend Anna, and my husband comment upon, I am already a bit of a self-proclaimed critic. I have a healthy (ahem) love of food, a good set of discriminating taste buds and I err towards pessimist [and humility ;-) ]. Restaurant critic = fait accomplis!
4) Travel Writer:
Love 1 = Travel
Love 2 = Writing
....spelling it out would be humilitating for us all.
5) Aged Care Nurse:
Yes, this has crept in recently to my top 5 displacing but not necessarily replacing psychologist. I have always been quite different in that I relate better to the older than the younger generation. This may have been caused by a lack of siblings and exposure to many adults from a young age. Plus I feel it is terrible to see the treatment of our older generation, especially in western cultures where our traditions do not place as great an emphasis on care for our elders. I know the arguement before with forensic pathology may come up here - and with due cause - I'm still squeamish! However it would be worth working on this perhaps and integrating my psychology background to maybe adapt aged care nurse to social worker come psychologist with senior citizen emphasis?
Anyway - they're my top 5 - how about you all?
Watch this post - my top 5 chocolate bars coming soon....
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Grumpy Old Women...Top 3
Hot on the heels of that controversial little segment from the previous post, concerning essential pointers to be on the lookout for in your nearest and dearest male, comes...
"you know you've become an old woman when...":
1. You're number one gripe is service and the lack of it from most shop assistants.
My big gripe here is that a smile doesn't cost anything (oh my goodness that distinctly sounds like a phrase my mother would use!) yet it is the hardest thing to obtain from an assistant. Is surly now a selection criteria? Gone are the days of customer service and the assumption that the customer is always right (that's how I was raised in my youth - oh those many years ago- when serving at the Newsagency).
Case in point: I've just had a run in with a woman at Kmart yesterday about poor quality photo reprints who was determined to talk over me at every single opportunity. Hence, what could have been sorted out quite easily and quickly, if the right attitude was taken to start with, escalated quite rapidly as my temper simmered then reached boiling point beneath my calm exterior (well let's hope that poker face was serving me well for once). I couldn't seem to get a word in edgeways with the Kmart lady and we reached a stale mate with her line "the machine prints them" - from which I wasn't able to move her. Today - Holster loaded (with reprints of the same photos from other stores) I then marched myself up to the photo counter in Kmart, mind brimming with possible scenarious she may counter with from her ammunition belt, and prepared for an all down show down (think guns of Navarone). Outcome: boy with pleasant attitude sorted it out in 2 seconds, refund took 5 mins, lady wasn't to be seen. All OK at the OK Corale!
2. You utter lines your mother/father would have uttered at you in your youth:
a. Is that a belt or a skirt?!
b. How does that keep her kidneys warm?!/ She'll get kidney disease with all that exposure?!(referring to short shirts with short skirts - for those as slow as Andrew out there)
c. Would a smile kill her/him?! (that's my own addition)
3. You get overwhelmed by crowds:
There is no longer joy associated with a Saturday spent shopping. Instead I find myself tired before I'm even there and once there turn into a grumpier old woman with every passing minute. Goodness knows why considering the:
a. struggle to get to the shopping centre as the rest of Brisbane goes shopping at my particular mall
b. struggle to get a car park with the rest of Brisbane because of the lack of public transport options and the lack of car spaces at shopping centres in general
c. struggle to tolerate the throngs of pre-teens/post-teens and teen-teens who swamp in their twittery groups every travelator, shop entrance and walkway that you need to get through.
d. struggle to comprehend once you've reached each store, as you madly cross off chores (no longer do you pleasure shop), where the day has gone?!
(Amendment: Andrew would like it to be noted for the record, that I am a great participatant in the 'pleasure shopping' category - bah!)
e. and don't get me started on the customer service ;-)
"you know you've become an old woman when...":
1. You're number one gripe is service and the lack of it from most shop assistants.
My big gripe here is that a smile doesn't cost anything (oh my goodness that distinctly sounds like a phrase my mother would use!) yet it is the hardest thing to obtain from an assistant. Is surly now a selection criteria? Gone are the days of customer service and the assumption that the customer is always right (that's how I was raised in my youth - oh those many years ago- when serving at the Newsagency).
Case in point: I've just had a run in with a woman at Kmart yesterday about poor quality photo reprints who was determined to talk over me at every single opportunity. Hence, what could have been sorted out quite easily and quickly, if the right attitude was taken to start with, escalated quite rapidly as my temper simmered then reached boiling point beneath my calm exterior (well let's hope that poker face was serving me well for once). I couldn't seem to get a word in edgeways with the Kmart lady and we reached a stale mate with her line "the machine prints them" - from which I wasn't able to move her. Today - Holster loaded (with reprints of the same photos from other stores) I then marched myself up to the photo counter in Kmart, mind brimming with possible scenarious she may counter with from her ammunition belt, and prepared for an all down show down (think guns of Navarone). Outcome: boy with pleasant attitude sorted it out in 2 seconds, refund took 5 mins, lady wasn't to be seen. All OK at the OK Corale!
2. You utter lines your mother/father would have uttered at you in your youth:
a. Is that a belt or a skirt?!
b. How does that keep her kidneys warm?!/ She'll get kidney disease with all that exposure?!(referring to short shirts with short skirts - for those as slow as Andrew out there)
c. Would a smile kill her/him?! (that's my own addition)
3. You get overwhelmed by crowds:
There is no longer joy associated with a Saturday spent shopping. Instead I find myself tired before I'm even there and once there turn into a grumpier old woman with every passing minute. Goodness knows why considering the:
a. struggle to get to the shopping centre as the rest of Brisbane goes shopping at my particular mall
b. struggle to get a car park with the rest of Brisbane because of the lack of public transport options and the lack of car spaces at shopping centres in general
c. struggle to tolerate the throngs of pre-teens/post-teens and teen-teens who swamp in their twittery groups every travelator, shop entrance and walkway that you need to get through.
d. struggle to comprehend once you've reached each store, as you madly cross off chores (no longer do you pleasure shop), where the day has gone?!
(Amendment: Andrew would like it to be noted for the record, that I am a great participatant in the 'pleasure shopping' category - bah!)
e. and don't get me started on the customer service ;-)
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