Well, she's done it.
I've been reluctant to make the big statement in the past few days ("were those really independent steps, or did she just stumble forward?") but I can finally announce that Jessica walked for the first time tonight. Not just "for the first time, tonight", but "for the first time tonight". (I think "tonight, for the first time" might have been the grammatically correct, less-ambiguous way of saying what I meant to say!).
Yep - Jessica was holding onto the couch with one hand, looked out at Mel who was sitting in the middle of the room, and then took three very independent steps out to meet her! It's all tres exciting! (And I'm thankful that she waited until I got home from Brisbane). Not sure that she's altogether ready to give up her crawling just yet - it's quite a skill - but I guess we'll see her walk a few more steps each day or so. No, the camera wasn't rolling, but I'll try to capture and post something by the weekend.
While Jessica may be new to the "walkie", she's now quite a veteran of the "talkie": she is extremely vocal, and has long, animated, serious, and even stern conversations with us all the time. She'll quite often wake up after a long sleep and start telling us long stories full of emphasis and excitement, peppered with short segments of sing-song whispering. At the moment she likes launching out at your ribcage with her fingers outstretched, excitedly gasping "ticka-ticka-tickle", or waving and saying "Seeya Dad" when I leave for work. And her latest is to respond to, "Are you sleepy, Jessica?" or "Does Jessica need to go to bed?" by very pointedly shaking her head from side to side three or four times. I thought at first that she had just picked up on the tone of voice or inflection when we would pose a question, but then she heard the word 'sleep' among a normal conversation and started shaking her head aswell! If she's already worked that out, we're in real trouble.
Brisbane was a good trip, although it stirred up a host of problems that some people (eg. my boss, for some reason) were hoping to keep hidden, and will therefore mean that a lot of further trips are likely in the near future. The project team said they'll even find me a nicer place to stay next time, although I have to admit the Motor Inn was not too bad (it didn't smell of rotten carpet anyway). I guess I don't mind travelling entirely, but I really do miss the time with M & J. And I'm also very conscious of just how much can happen in only a few days at the moment: at this rate the next milestone I miss may well be Jessica learning to drive!
Matt
(BTW, have I told you how much I hate Current Affairs television in Australia? Tonight's feature story was about "Queensland's Worst Serial Water Waster", who had been dobbed-in by his neighbour at the caravan park for having long showers in the facilities block. The neighbour would sit in his caravan with a clipboard and log the arrival and departure times each day. So the current affairs journalist fitted a hidden camera in the shower block to catch the man showering for too long (with commentary), before confronting the man with the usual but highly ironic "have you no shame?" approach. It's hard to go past the hidden camera as my favourite piece of shlock journalism, or perhaps the tedious coaxing of an obviously ambivalent passer-by into agreeing that long showers were shameful, but I think I most loved the last comment of the complainant neighbour. Speaking about the man who took too long in the shower (and the journo was at pains to remind us that, if you took a shower for the same length, and you did that twice a day, you could fill a swimming pool...ummm....in just under a month): "He's just lucky I'm not the Prime Minister, or I'd grab a gun and I'd shoot him. It's treason - that's what it is!". Priceless.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Jessica's Last Stand?
I'm off to Brisbane for work tomorrow, staying up there until the weekend.
In fact, I'm up at 3:30 (yes, a.m.!) to catch the 'plane. From what I can tell, the motel I'm staying in resembles a 1960 toilet block (in both form and fragrance), and is located on a highway in the middle of an industrial area (in fact, the website lists "close to industrial estates" as one of it's two highlights).
The early flight I can handle, and the dodgy motel too, but the real issue is that there's every chance I'll miss Jessica's first steps while I'm away. D'Oh!!!!
Jessica has been increasingly confident with her cruising around, and will also stand for a couple of minutes at a time (often dancing away to the music on TV). She gets to her feet in 2 seconds flat, gives herself a round of applause for being so clever (we of course join in), before sitting down and repeating the process many times over. Her assisted walking really just consists of the slightest hold on your little finger, and I think she'll very soon realise that she doesn't need even that. So it's a real possibility that by the time I get back she'll have already taken her first totally-independent steps.
Maybe I can take her with me?
In fact, I'm up at 3:30 (yes, a.m.!) to catch the 'plane. From what I can tell, the motel I'm staying in resembles a 1960 toilet block (in both form and fragrance), and is located on a highway in the middle of an industrial area (in fact, the website lists "close to industrial estates" as one of it's two highlights).
The early flight I can handle, and the dodgy motel too, but the real issue is that there's every chance I'll miss Jessica's first steps while I'm away. D'Oh!!!!
Jessica has been increasingly confident with her cruising around, and will also stand for a couple of minutes at a time (often dancing away to the music on TV). She gets to her feet in 2 seconds flat, gives herself a round of applause for being so clever (we of course join in), before sitting down and repeating the process many times over. Her assisted walking really just consists of the slightest hold on your little finger, and I think she'll very soon realise that she doesn't need even that. So it's a real possibility that by the time I get back she'll have already taken her first totally-independent steps.
Maybe I can take her with me?
Friday, January 26, 2007
Drumroll...
Hi. It's been an eventful few weeks since I last posted anything, and there have in fact been a number of milestones that I've missed...so here's a recap of some of them:
Milestone A: this blog thing has now been around for an entire year. Exactly. In that time there have been 18,821 words typed, across 322 paragraphs (not including this post). I've certainly used a lot to say very little: many people could have written a decent book with that many words! I'm not sure that this year's blogging experiment has been completely successful (it's hard to find the time to write, and it's not always the best medium for keeping in touch anyway) but it's been fun and worthwhile nonetheless. (oh, and Milestone B: over 1000 people have visited this blog for some reason: people who don't have any decent books to read I guess).
Milestone C: last Sunday was our 12th Wedding Anniversary. It's fun to look back at who we both were on January 21st, 1995, and to think of how we've changed (or remained the same). 12 years ago, Mel & I were both very young, very poor, very happy and very much in love. While the "very young" label is now looking a bit dubious, and the "very" prefix can probably be removed from the second label, those last two descriptions are still very much true: I know how much I've been blessed by Melly, and I am forever grateful. What changes wll there be for our relationship over the next 12 years, when we'll suddenly be in our mid-40's with a 13 year old and perhaps a whole house full of her brothers and sisters?? Don't know, but I'm very much looking forward to whatever comes our way. (Unfortunately, we weren't able to do anything, or go anywhere, to celebrate this milestone, because we've all been laid-low with sickness this week (I don't want to watch any more DVD's on the couch! Although "Top Gear - Revved Up" was fantastic!). Will have to do something next week when we're all a bit more lively.)
Milestone D: My sister Becky made a big announcement this month, deciding that it was time for her to resign from her job in Sydney and move back to Victoria. We're really happy for her, and it will mean a great deal to have her back in town. I think she arrives back tonight, in fact, but we'll give her some time to relax and unwind before popping in for a welcoming visit. Don't want to frighten her into changing her mind...
Milestones E, F, G, H & I: Last week we spent 5 days in Sydney. It was Jessica's first plane trip, first ferry trip, first time to the zoo, first train trip, first cable-car ride etc etc (milestones everywhere!). We even got to have a lovely dinner with Jon & Bec at The Rocks, in a restaurant overlooking the Opera House, followed by a nightime ferry ride with them to Darling Harbour for dessert at the Lindt Cafe (yes - there are only two Lindt Cafe's in the world, and Sydney has both of them!! And they're every bit as good as they sound). There are far too many things to mention, and photos and video clips to include, so I'll post a separate entry on that over the next couple of days.
But the biggest Milestone of all this month, aptly Milestone "J", was of course Jessica's 1st Birthday. It was a terrific day and a very memorable one for all of us. But as I can't do it justice at the end of this post, so I'll again make a separate post (with photos and maybe a short clip) within the next week. Stay tuned.
Speaking of next week, I'm heading back to work next Wednesday, and I have to say that I'm dreading it. I mean really dreading it. It's more than the usual "I can't be bothered" feeling, where you've had a nice holiday and don't look forward to being roused out of your slumber: I think I now really dislike the work that I do. And it's not that the work I do is particularly-arduous, or risky, or life-threatening: I just have an overwhelming feeling that I'm not where I should be anymore. I'd like to think I have more to offer and that, if I had the courage to try it, I'd find a much more fulfilling role elsewhere. But it always seems to come back to inescapable economics: my current role allows us to pay the mortgage, run a car, buy food and clothes, and look after Jessica pretty well - and there's no guarantee that an alternative role would do the same. If retrenchments were offered tomorrow, I'd be the happiest guy in town: the decision would be out of my hands, and I suspect I'd find the search for a new job less daunting than I've imagined it. But in my line of work, retrenchments are never going to be offered (in a company with 175,000 employees, there is always some lame job that you can be transferred to!). Perhaps I will pluck up the courage one day to take that leap of faith...who knows? Maybe I should start stealing, or being rude to the boss, and see if they'll save me having to pluck up the courage to leave myself! Ahhhh Fear: I think I could write several posts just listing all of the things of which I'm afraid! (and most of them quite irrationally so). Maybe some other time.
Speaking of work, which I think I vowed never to do again, I forgot to mention another of the endearing episodes which took place late last year. As background, in our industry there is a tradition of gift-giving between our suppliers and ourselves at Christmas (yes, it is usually pretty one sided, in our favour). It is customary to be given a small gift from several trade partners as a gesture of thanks, and our company has a policy of accepting these provided they are within acceptable guidelines. That is, we did have such a policy until 2006. In 2006, it was decided by the CEO that gifts would no longer be accepted from any supplier: in the case that a gift was received, it was to be delivered to a central location and raffled, with the money raised going to support sick children. No complaints here (I don't usually get any gifts anyway, but have no objection to the policy). So, when several hampers and bottles of wine were delivered to our office in December, addressed to the Admin girls in particular (they are the ones who do most of the actual work), the gifts were quickly rounded up and taken upstairs to a senior manager's office. So far, so good. But then, on Christmas Eve, the managers quietly gathered together in the office and gave each other free raffle tickets - exclusive to the management team - and started divvying up the pool of gifts! Nevermind that there were 50+ gifts and only 30 managers: that just meant that some of them could have more than one gift! That left a bit of a sour taste in the mouths of the Admin girls (who 'earned' the gifts) and the 400 other staff on the floor who weren't invited into the free raffle. I don't think this is what the CEO had in mind, and it's hard to see how any sick children were helped by a free raffle! The managers then went home early (half-day), carrying bundles of presentes addressed to other people, and left the staff to stay back at work. But to make matters worse, there was also a separate Christmas raffle held for all staff during Christmas week: it was a door prize thing, and you were given a raffle ticket as you filed in for the Christmas lunch. The prize was a substantial, expensive hamper (several hundred dollars worth), that had been on display in the HR Managers office for the preceding two weeks. The managers were reluctant to publicly declare who had won the prize, and it turns out that the raffle was won by the HR Manager himself, despite the fact that he was actually interstate during the Christmas lunch (and had been all week). Not sure how, amongst a group of 430 people, the only person who wasn't there wins the door prize. Quite magical really! ("Integrity" is not one of the buzzwords in our office).
Anyway, I don't know why I'm talking about work when I only have a few days left to enjoy this holiday: I should instead head off to bed now to make a good start on tomorrow. After a week of being quite sick, and sharing those germs amongst each other, I think we all need a trip to the beach or somewhere nice and sunny.
So I'll end this post here, and work on posting about Jessica's Party and our Sydney Trip in the next few days. Happy Australia Day to everyone for whom that salutation applies (de ja vu!), and 'avagoodweekend.
Matt
Milestone A: this blog thing has now been around for an entire year. Exactly. In that time there have been 18,821 words typed, across 322 paragraphs (not including this post). I've certainly used a lot to say very little: many people could have written a decent book with that many words! I'm not sure that this year's blogging experiment has been completely successful (it's hard to find the time to write, and it's not always the best medium for keeping in touch anyway) but it's been fun and worthwhile nonetheless. (oh, and Milestone B: over 1000 people have visited this blog for some reason: people who don't have any decent books to read I guess).
Milestone C: last Sunday was our 12th Wedding Anniversary. It's fun to look back at who we both were on January 21st, 1995, and to think of how we've changed (or remained the same). 12 years ago, Mel & I were both very young, very poor, very happy and very much in love. While the "very young" label is now looking a bit dubious, and the "very" prefix can probably be removed from the second label, those last two descriptions are still very much true: I know how much I've been blessed by Melly, and I am forever grateful. What changes wll there be for our relationship over the next 12 years, when we'll suddenly be in our mid-40's with a 13 year old and perhaps a whole house full of her brothers and sisters?? Don't know, but I'm very much looking forward to whatever comes our way. (Unfortunately, we weren't able to do anything, or go anywhere, to celebrate this milestone, because we've all been laid-low with sickness this week (I don't want to watch any more DVD's on the couch! Although "Top Gear - Revved Up" was fantastic!). Will have to do something next week when we're all a bit more lively.)
Milestone D: My sister Becky made a big announcement this month, deciding that it was time for her to resign from her job in Sydney and move back to Victoria. We're really happy for her, and it will mean a great deal to have her back in town. I think she arrives back tonight, in fact, but we'll give her some time to relax and unwind before popping in for a welcoming visit. Don't want to frighten her into changing her mind...
Milestones E, F, G, H & I: Last week we spent 5 days in Sydney. It was Jessica's first plane trip, first ferry trip, first time to the zoo, first train trip, first cable-car ride etc etc (milestones everywhere!). We even got to have a lovely dinner with Jon & Bec at The Rocks, in a restaurant overlooking the Opera House, followed by a nightime ferry ride with them to Darling Harbour for dessert at the Lindt Cafe (yes - there are only two Lindt Cafe's in the world, and Sydney has both of them!! And they're every bit as good as they sound). There are far too many things to mention, and photos and video clips to include, so I'll post a separate entry on that over the next couple of days.
But the biggest Milestone of all this month, aptly Milestone "J", was of course Jessica's 1st Birthday. It was a terrific day and a very memorable one for all of us. But as I can't do it justice at the end of this post, so I'll again make a separate post (with photos and maybe a short clip) within the next week. Stay tuned.
Speaking of next week, I'm heading back to work next Wednesday, and I have to say that I'm dreading it. I mean really dreading it. It's more than the usual "I can't be bothered" feeling, where you've had a nice holiday and don't look forward to being roused out of your slumber: I think I now really dislike the work that I do. And it's not that the work I do is particularly-arduous, or risky, or life-threatening: I just have an overwhelming feeling that I'm not where I should be anymore. I'd like to think I have more to offer and that, if I had the courage to try it, I'd find a much more fulfilling role elsewhere. But it always seems to come back to inescapable economics: my current role allows us to pay the mortgage, run a car, buy food and clothes, and look after Jessica pretty well - and there's no guarantee that an alternative role would do the same. If retrenchments were offered tomorrow, I'd be the happiest guy in town: the decision would be out of my hands, and I suspect I'd find the search for a new job less daunting than I've imagined it. But in my line of work, retrenchments are never going to be offered (in a company with 175,000 employees, there is always some lame job that you can be transferred to!). Perhaps I will pluck up the courage one day to take that leap of faith...who knows? Maybe I should start stealing, or being rude to the boss, and see if they'll save me having to pluck up the courage to leave myself! Ahhhh Fear: I think I could write several posts just listing all of the things of which I'm afraid! (and most of them quite irrationally so). Maybe some other time.
Speaking of work, which I think I vowed never to do again, I forgot to mention another of the endearing episodes which took place late last year. As background, in our industry there is a tradition of gift-giving between our suppliers and ourselves at Christmas (yes, it is usually pretty one sided, in our favour). It is customary to be given a small gift from several trade partners as a gesture of thanks, and our company has a policy of accepting these provided they are within acceptable guidelines. That is, we did have such a policy until 2006. In 2006, it was decided by the CEO that gifts would no longer be accepted from any supplier: in the case that a gift was received, it was to be delivered to a central location and raffled, with the money raised going to support sick children. No complaints here (I don't usually get any gifts anyway, but have no objection to the policy). So, when several hampers and bottles of wine were delivered to our office in December, addressed to the Admin girls in particular (they are the ones who do most of the actual work), the gifts were quickly rounded up and taken upstairs to a senior manager's office. So far, so good. But then, on Christmas Eve, the managers quietly gathered together in the office and gave each other free raffle tickets - exclusive to the management team - and started divvying up the pool of gifts! Nevermind that there were 50+ gifts and only 30 managers: that just meant that some of them could have more than one gift! That left a bit of a sour taste in the mouths of the Admin girls (who 'earned' the gifts) and the 400 other staff on the floor who weren't invited into the free raffle. I don't think this is what the CEO had in mind, and it's hard to see how any sick children were helped by a free raffle! The managers then went home early (half-day), carrying bundles of presentes addressed to other people, and left the staff to stay back at work. But to make matters worse, there was also a separate Christmas raffle held for all staff during Christmas week: it was a door prize thing, and you were given a raffle ticket as you filed in for the Christmas lunch. The prize was a substantial, expensive hamper (several hundred dollars worth), that had been on display in the HR Managers office for the preceding two weeks. The managers were reluctant to publicly declare who had won the prize, and it turns out that the raffle was won by the HR Manager himself, despite the fact that he was actually interstate during the Christmas lunch (and had been all week). Not sure how, amongst a group of 430 people, the only person who wasn't there wins the door prize. Quite magical really! ("Integrity" is not one of the buzzwords in our office).
Anyway, I don't know why I'm talking about work when I only have a few days left to enjoy this holiday: I should instead head off to bed now to make a good start on tomorrow. After a week of being quite sick, and sharing those germs amongst each other, I think we all need a trip to the beach or somewhere nice and sunny.
So I'll end this post here, and work on posting about Jessica's Party and our Sydney Trip in the next few days. Happy Australia Day to everyone for whom that salutation applies (de ja vu!), and 'avagoodweekend.
Matt
Monday, December 25, 2006
I'm Dreaming of a Wet Christmas...
...and we got one!
After weeks of raging bushfires, extreme temperatures and tight water restrictions, we were blessed with a most wonderful Christmas present of heavy, heavy rain. The big downpour started Christmas Eve, continued well through the night (I was still up at 2:30, so can vouch for that), and has been sustained throughout much of this morning. In fact, we have even had several showerings of hail, too, allowing us to experience just a hint of a white Christmas.
I haven't checked, but I imagine that snow might even be falling in parts of the state which were burning only last week. I hope this means that all those wonderful fire-fighters can go home to their families - exhausted but relieved - and relish a well-earned break. My brother-in-law was one of those unsung Fireys, and I haven't thanked him yet: on behalf of Victoria, "Thanks Jamie!" - I know everyone is extremely grateful for people like you, even if they don't get around to saying it (and thanks R, S, E, G & B for parting with him at such a critical time).
Our December has been so hectic - on many fronts simultaneously - that I think Mel & I were in danger of 'missing' the simple joy of Christmas. And by that I don't mean we were rushing around the shops, caught up in the commercialism, but instead we were caught up with work and Family Albums and work and general busy-ness. So it was terrific to get to Church last night for an evening carols service, and immediately start to feel like we hadn't completely missed the spirit of Christmas. The service was terrific - the carols sounded beautiful, it was finally raining heavily outside, the childrens' participation was hilarious and Jeff gave a great message aswell. Connor, Darcy, Sam & Eliza - my nephews and neice - were all involved as everything from wisemen to angels, and made it a very, very memorable experience - I SO wish we had taken the video camera, but will just have to savour it in our diminishing memories instead. We then went back to J & K's to enjoy their company, and watch Carols by Candlelight over a glass of wine. Given the choice between watching Hi-5 and Dannii Minogue performing carols, or watching Connor performing his stand-up routine as a wiseman in the local church's nativity story, the latter wins hands down.
This morning has been a relaxed Christmas morning - the VERY BEST kind - and we have listened to some carols while watching Jessica open the first three Christmas presents of her life. She wasn't overly enthusiastic about the first one, but soon got into it. She was very, very tired though (after a couple of very late nights), so it was probably too much to handle first thing in the morning. It was probably no help that cameras were trained on her for a good portion of that time (although she must know by now that this is to be expected by her doting and well-meaning parents). Mel & I finally committed ourselves to not buying each other a gift or gifts, and for once had the resolve to stick to that plan. We figure there is nothing we need, and little we really, really want, so the money could be much better spent where it'll do some good.
This afternoon it's off to Mel's Dad's for a Christmas dinner, then tomorrow it's a Boxing Day Christmas Dinner at my Mum's. It's the first family Christmas she's been able to host in years (she just moved back from Sydney this year), and is very much looking forward to it. Knowing previous years, no effort or expense will be spared in catering so beautifully to everyone (both with regard to food, and in the broader sense also). Then it's back to work for a couple of days before a three week break in early January. At this stage, I'll be asking Mel not to wake me up until around about the 15th, as we are both well and truly ready for a long rest. The Family Albums are almost all completed: Mel's were finished this morning (they're due to be distributed tonight), and I have one more video to finish before mine can be given out tomorrow. Mel's, especially, looks terrific (a 2 Disc collectors edition), but my family will have to make do with a single disc (albeit one with 19 clips). As always, we've used every possible hour before our deadlines, and have resolved that we'll try to start earlier next year. Since they take about a month to do already, and demands on our time will only increase, we're telling ourselves that we'll actually start in September next year. I guess it's possible, but we'll wait and see. I somehow predict that there will always be some album-related work involved every Christmas Eve.
Well I should get back to it. Jessica's sleeping at the moment (poor girl has been down for 2 hours already), so it's the ideal time to finish video number 19 before it's too late. It's obviously already too late for those in the Northern Territory and Northern Ireland, so I'll post a photo of the disc so that you can pretend you have it in your hands today - the real thing will be posted on Wednesday.
Here's wishing you a terrific Christmas and a safe, fun and fulfilling New Year.
Love,
Matt
(I'm off to put the heater on - it's freeeezing!)
After weeks of raging bushfires, extreme temperatures and tight water restrictions, we were blessed with a most wonderful Christmas present of heavy, heavy rain. The big downpour started Christmas Eve, continued well through the night (I was still up at 2:30, so can vouch for that), and has been sustained throughout much of this morning. In fact, we have even had several showerings of hail, too, allowing us to experience just a hint of a white Christmas.
I haven't checked, but I imagine that snow might even be falling in parts of the state which were burning only last week. I hope this means that all those wonderful fire-fighters can go home to their families - exhausted but relieved - and relish a well-earned break. My brother-in-law was one of those unsung Fireys, and I haven't thanked him yet: on behalf of Victoria, "Thanks Jamie!" - I know everyone is extremely grateful for people like you, even if they don't get around to saying it (and thanks R, S, E, G & B for parting with him at such a critical time).
Our December has been so hectic - on many fronts simultaneously - that I think Mel & I were in danger of 'missing' the simple joy of Christmas. And by that I don't mean we were rushing around the shops, caught up in the commercialism, but instead we were caught up with work and Family Albums and work and general busy-ness. So it was terrific to get to Church last night for an evening carols service, and immediately start to feel like we hadn't completely missed the spirit of Christmas. The service was terrific - the carols sounded beautiful, it was finally raining heavily outside, the childrens' participation was hilarious and Jeff gave a great message aswell. Connor, Darcy, Sam & Eliza - my nephews and neice - were all involved as everything from wisemen to angels, and made it a very, very memorable experience - I SO wish we had taken the video camera, but will just have to savour it in our diminishing memories instead. We then went back to J & K's to enjoy their company, and watch Carols by Candlelight over a glass of wine. Given the choice between watching Hi-5 and Dannii Minogue performing carols, or watching Connor performing his stand-up routine as a wiseman in the local church's nativity story, the latter wins hands down.
This morning has been a relaxed Christmas morning - the VERY BEST kind - and we have listened to some carols while watching Jessica open the first three Christmas presents of her life. She wasn't overly enthusiastic about the first one, but soon got into it. She was very, very tired though (after a couple of very late nights), so it was probably too much to handle first thing in the morning. It was probably no help that cameras were trained on her for a good portion of that time (although she must know by now that this is to be expected by her doting and well-meaning parents). Mel & I finally committed ourselves to not buying each other a gift or gifts, and for once had the resolve to stick to that plan. We figure there is nothing we need, and little we really, really want, so the money could be much better spent where it'll do some good.
This afternoon it's off to Mel's Dad's for a Christmas dinner, then tomorrow it's a Boxing Day Christmas Dinner at my Mum's. It's the first family Christmas she's been able to host in years (she just moved back from Sydney this year), and is very much looking forward to it. Knowing previous years, no effort or expense will be spared in catering so beautifully to everyone (both with regard to food, and in the broader sense also). Then it's back to work for a couple of days before a three week break in early January. At this stage, I'll be asking Mel not to wake me up until around about the 15th, as we are both well and truly ready for a long rest. The Family Albums are almost all completed: Mel's were finished this morning (they're due to be distributed tonight), and I have one more video to finish before mine can be given out tomorrow. Mel's, especially, looks terrific (a 2 Disc collectors edition), but my family will have to make do with a single disc (albeit one with 19 clips). As always, we've used every possible hour before our deadlines, and have resolved that we'll try to start earlier next year. Since they take about a month to do already, and demands on our time will only increase, we're telling ourselves that we'll actually start in September next year. I guess it's possible, but we'll wait and see. I somehow predict that there will always be some album-related work involved every Christmas Eve.
Well I should get back to it. Jessica's sleeping at the moment (poor girl has been down for 2 hours already), so it's the ideal time to finish video number 19 before it's too late. It's obviously already too late for those in the Northern Territory and Northern Ireland, so I'll post a photo of the disc so that you can pretend you have it in your hands today - the real thing will be posted on Wednesday.
Here's wishing you a terrific Christmas and a safe, fun and fulfilling New Year.
Love,
Matt
(I'm off to put the heater on - it's freeeezing!)
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Idle Australian
The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.
I know, I know, it's been a long while since I posted anything, and some may have started to equate idleness (of the blog) with laziness (of the blogger). They are two different things, I would argue: Idle being "not working or active; not spent or filled with activity; not in use or operation" as opposed to Lazy: "averse or disinclined to work". While the latter description has been applicable to me on many occasions, it's not the reason I haven't posted anything recently. If anything, it's been the opposite: there's been too much on the go. If I didn't have such a deep respect for the Queen's English, and such an aversion to punny plays-on-words, I might term this lost month "Go-vember". But that would be pretty lame, right?
Jessica is continuing to amaze us with her development: she is just so engaging of everyone around her, so inquisitive, so determined, so independent, so intelligent, so loving, so funny, so precious. (and I think that's what I'd say about her even if I wasn't her Dad!). She goes out of her way to catch people's eye when we are out shopping, and give those people a great big smile, which almost always gets a big smile in return (from people who just moments-ago had their serious shopping faces on). She's been busy with lots of outings recently including two birthday parties in as many days. Yesterday's party was for her cousin Jesse (he turned 1), and today's party was a combined 1st Birthday for all the kids in Mel's mothers group (the kids are all turning 1 over the next month or so aswell). The party today was held at Wilson Botanic Park and I'm embarrassed to say I'd never been there before - and it's in my town! It's a beautiful place for an outdoor party and BBQ, and there's even a lake filled with turtles and ducks (there were 8 turtles swimming around just in front of us). Anyway, this photo was taken yesterday, at Jesse's party, and it features a guest appearance by Jessica's cousin Grace (who intuitively wore a turtle neck yesterday in anticipation that I might mention turtles in tonight's post - how clever!):
Mel is doing very well, too, I think. At least that's what she says when I ask her. She could be lying. She seems quite tired (which is understandable, since she does way more than I do), and I know that she pushes herself to cram heaps of productive things into every available moment of the day (usually at the expense of any down-time). The deck has been scrubbed and restained, the Christmas presents have all been bought and wrapped, the garden has been trimmed and tidied, her work clients have all been micro-managed, and of course Jessica and I have been looked after beautifully (I like to think that I require a little less maintenance than Jessica - certainly less changing - but maybe I'm every bit as dependant). It's certainly time for a holiday somewhere for Mel's benefit especially - I put the form in about 6 weeks ago, but 'they' want to think about it a bit longer before they'll decide if I can have the time off. Approval of my leave - if it comes - will then mean we have to decide on where to go, and we're no good at that having had so little practice! Any ideas?
Work has been busy, with a LOT more travelling this month (and on that note they upgraded my old, second-hand vehicle with a lovely brand-new one...which was nice!). The extra travelling (sometimes 8 hours a day) is certainly made much easier in the new car, which is one of these. As well as much more travelling, there has been a renewed interest in the DVD proposal, which has necessitated a lot of after hours work in putting together costings and production options for senior review. The DVD was presented in part to about 150 of our trading partners to gauge their interest, and they seemed to appreciate the idea. A decision from our C.I.O. can't be far away and, if it was in the affirmative, production would start in mid-January (for approximately 5-6 weeks full time, or 20 weeks part time). I had learned to not think about the proposal any more, since it had been put on the 'back-burner' for so long, but now that there is some real chance of it being taken up I guess I'm getting a little excited about that (quietly, of course!).
As well as work, there's been a bit of activity involved in putting together some quick clips for Children's Celebration (which took place today). Jeff and the team did a great job as usual, but I have to say that his kids (my nephews) stole the show. Connor read perfectly, pausing for effect and adding emphasis on the the right words like someone five times his age. Darcy said a great prayer and only stumbled once (and added an "Aw, shucks", which was a great touch). Then both of them played air guitar up on stage. I say "played air guitar", but that doesn't do it justice: when all the other kids mimed the actions of playing a guitar, C & D started drawing inspiration from some of the best 80's big-hair rockbands, wrestling with their air guitars, dropping to their knees and arching their backs, doing windmills with their strumming hand, and doing it all with a strained face and eyes squeezed closed. I wish so much that I had taken the video camera (or any camera). It was so incredibly funny that I was almost crying. Jamie & Beth & Grace were also able to make it, so it was great to see them briefly too. The Celebration seemed to go really well, and people had a fun time.
Speaking again of Australian Idol, it was the Grand Final tonight. I think more people were interested in that than in the Victorian State Election held 24 hours earlier. As Mel says, if electoral voting wasn't compulsory, there would no doubt be far more votes cast on Australian Idol than at the polling booth. Actually, as I think about it, maybe we could adopt the Australian Idol model for all state and federal elections?: 25000 hopefuls, culled to a Final 12, each having to perform policy announcements in front of a live audience each week. We could SMS their names to keep them in the running, with the PM or Premier emerging at the end of an arduous few months of elimination. On second thoughts, I wonder if anyone would actually spend the money to vote for a politician? Perhaps you'd SMS to vote them off instead? Yeah, I can see the voting-off model working much better. The considerable amount of money earned via the mobile phone charges could then go into public works or tax cuts, so the populace gets the politician that they dislike the least AND the the money goes back into the community - everyone's happy. But I digress...
Yes, it was the final tonight, and we found ourselves watching it with a level of interest that I hadn't expected a few months earlier. We hadn't been followers of the show this year (we watch very little TV anyway, and hadn't had much interest after previous years' AI efforts), but we caught Jessica (not that Jessica - the contestant!) singing "Beautiful" quite late in the series. We also saw a stunning few performances from Damien ("Crying" by Roy Orbison, "Waiting On An Angel" by Ben Harper), and it was pretty clear that there were some terrifically talented people this year (well, at least 2 of them). It was nice to have a final where both finalists really deserved to win - unlike some previous years - and where you were pretty confident that both were destined to have strong success regardless of the night's outcome. We have family in the Northern Territory (Jessica's from Darwin), and family in the U.K. (Damien is from County Kerry), so we didn't even have a parochial favourite. Terrific to see a 30-year-old Irish-born father win, and I'm sure his album will be eagerly anticipated and well worth picking up. I'm also pretty sure that Jessica will be given a contract of her own in the next 24 hours or so, and do equally well. So, Dad, were you flying the Damien flag over there in Downpatrick? (I know he's from the Republic of Ireland, not Northern Ireland, but he does have the right accent!!) Or did you not even know that it was on?
Anyway, I should leave it there for now. I'm not sure if I'll head to bed just yet, or try to do some more on the Family Album (each year, Mel and I put together some clips of old and recent home movies and photoshows, and present those on DVD to our respective families at Christmas - her DVD's being a far superior version to mine). Neither of us have had much time to do a lot towards these as yet, so I can see that the next 4 weeks will be a mad scramble to get the Albums done (it's a very enjoyable scramble though). On second thoughts, since it is 1:27am , I think the scramble can wait another day. Maybe I am lazy after all??
Take care,
Matt
I know, I know, it's been a long while since I posted anything, and some may have started to equate idleness (of the blog) with laziness (of the blogger). They are two different things, I would argue: Idle being "not working or active; not spent or filled with activity; not in use or operation" as opposed to Lazy: "averse or disinclined to work". While the latter description has been applicable to me on many occasions, it's not the reason I haven't posted anything recently. If anything, it's been the opposite: there's been too much on the go. If I didn't have such a deep respect for the Queen's English, and such an aversion to punny plays-on-words, I might term this lost month "Go-vember". But that would be pretty lame, right?
Jessica is continuing to amaze us with her development: she is just so engaging of everyone around her, so inquisitive, so determined, so independent, so intelligent, so loving, so funny, so precious. (and I think that's what I'd say about her even if I wasn't her Dad!). She goes out of her way to catch people's eye when we are out shopping, and give those people a great big smile, which almost always gets a big smile in return (from people who just moments-ago had their serious shopping faces on). She's been busy with lots of outings recently including two birthday parties in as many days. Yesterday's party was for her cousin Jesse (he turned 1), and today's party was a combined 1st Birthday for all the kids in Mel's mothers group (the kids are all turning 1 over the next month or so aswell). The party today was held at Wilson Botanic Park and I'm embarrassed to say I'd never been there before - and it's in my town! It's a beautiful place for an outdoor party and BBQ, and there's even a lake filled with turtles and ducks (there were 8 turtles swimming around just in front of us). Anyway, this photo was taken yesterday, at Jesse's party, and it features a guest appearance by Jessica's cousin Grace (who intuitively wore a turtle neck yesterday in anticipation that I might mention turtles in tonight's post - how clever!):
Mel is doing very well, too, I think. At least that's what she says when I ask her. She could be lying. She seems quite tired (which is understandable, since she does way more than I do), and I know that she pushes herself to cram heaps of productive things into every available moment of the day (usually at the expense of any down-time). The deck has been scrubbed and restained, the Christmas presents have all been bought and wrapped, the garden has been trimmed and tidied, her work clients have all been micro-managed, and of course Jessica and I have been looked after beautifully (I like to think that I require a little less maintenance than Jessica - certainly less changing - but maybe I'm every bit as dependant). It's certainly time for a holiday somewhere for Mel's benefit especially - I put the form in about 6 weeks ago, but 'they' want to think about it a bit longer before they'll decide if I can have the time off. Approval of my leave - if it comes - will then mean we have to decide on where to go, and we're no good at that having had so little practice! Any ideas?
Work has been busy, with a LOT more travelling this month (and on that note they upgraded my old, second-hand vehicle with a lovely brand-new one...which was nice!). The extra travelling (sometimes 8 hours a day) is certainly made much easier in the new car, which is one of these. As well as much more travelling, there has been a renewed interest in the DVD proposal, which has necessitated a lot of after hours work in putting together costings and production options for senior review. The DVD was presented in part to about 150 of our trading partners to gauge their interest, and they seemed to appreciate the idea. A decision from our C.I.O. can't be far away and, if it was in the affirmative, production would start in mid-January (for approximately 5-6 weeks full time, or 20 weeks part time). I had learned to not think about the proposal any more, since it had been put on the 'back-burner' for so long, but now that there is some real chance of it being taken up I guess I'm getting a little excited about that (quietly, of course!).
As well as work, there's been a bit of activity involved in putting together some quick clips for Children's Celebration (which took place today). Jeff and the team did a great job as usual, but I have to say that his kids (my nephews) stole the show. Connor read perfectly, pausing for effect and adding emphasis on the the right words like someone five times his age. Darcy said a great prayer and only stumbled once (and added an "Aw, shucks", which was a great touch). Then both of them played air guitar up on stage. I say "played air guitar", but that doesn't do it justice: when all the other kids mimed the actions of playing a guitar, C & D started drawing inspiration from some of the best 80's big-hair rockbands, wrestling with their air guitars, dropping to their knees and arching their backs, doing windmills with their strumming hand, and doing it all with a strained face and eyes squeezed closed. I wish so much that I had taken the video camera (or any camera). It was so incredibly funny that I was almost crying. Jamie & Beth & Grace were also able to make it, so it was great to see them briefly too. The Celebration seemed to go really well, and people had a fun time.
Speaking again of Australian Idol, it was the Grand Final tonight. I think more people were interested in that than in the Victorian State Election held 24 hours earlier. As Mel says, if electoral voting wasn't compulsory, there would no doubt be far more votes cast on Australian Idol than at the polling booth. Actually, as I think about it, maybe we could adopt the Australian Idol model for all state and federal elections?: 25000 hopefuls, culled to a Final 12, each having to perform policy announcements in front of a live audience each week. We could SMS their names to keep them in the running, with the PM or Premier emerging at the end of an arduous few months of elimination. On second thoughts, I wonder if anyone would actually spend the money to vote for a politician? Perhaps you'd SMS to vote them off instead? Yeah, I can see the voting-off model working much better. The considerable amount of money earned via the mobile phone charges could then go into public works or tax cuts, so the populace gets the politician that they dislike the least AND the the money goes back into the community - everyone's happy. But I digress...
Yes, it was the final tonight, and we found ourselves watching it with a level of interest that I hadn't expected a few months earlier. We hadn't been followers of the show this year (we watch very little TV anyway, and hadn't had much interest after previous years' AI efforts), but we caught Jessica (not that Jessica - the contestant!) singing "Beautiful" quite late in the series. We also saw a stunning few performances from Damien ("Crying" by Roy Orbison, "Waiting On An Angel" by Ben Harper), and it was pretty clear that there were some terrifically talented people this year (well, at least 2 of them). It was nice to have a final where both finalists really deserved to win - unlike some previous years - and where you were pretty confident that both were destined to have strong success regardless of the night's outcome. We have family in the Northern Territory (Jessica's from Darwin), and family in the U.K. (Damien is from County Kerry), so we didn't even have a parochial favourite. Terrific to see a 30-year-old Irish-born father win, and I'm sure his album will be eagerly anticipated and well worth picking up. I'm also pretty sure that Jessica will be given a contract of her own in the next 24 hours or so, and do equally well. So, Dad, were you flying the Damien flag over there in Downpatrick? (I know he's from the Republic of Ireland, not Northern Ireland, but he does have the right accent!!) Or did you not even know that it was on?
Anyway, I should leave it there for now. I'm not sure if I'll head to bed just yet, or try to do some more on the Family Album (each year, Mel and I put together some clips of old and recent home movies and photoshows, and present those on DVD to our respective families at Christmas - her DVD's being a far superior version to mine). Neither of us have had much time to do a lot towards these as yet, so I can see that the next 4 weeks will be a mad scramble to get the Albums done (it's a very enjoyable scramble though). On second thoughts, since it is 1:27am , I think the scramble can wait another day. Maybe I am lazy after all??
Take care,
Matt
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Monday, October 30, 2006
Cape Capers
Firstly, great to see you back online, Bec. Hope you're back to 110% health very soon. Your Sydney Symphony/Rocks market/Italian dinner/Walk through the Botanic Gardens outing sounded very special indeed. I'm glad it wasn't a date, or else Mel might be very jealous ("when was the last time YOU took me to the symphony!").
Today we managed another drive down to Cape Patterson. For the past couple of days, Mel had been threatening to spend Monday working from home, but at about 9:30 morning she gave in and agreed to a trip to the beach with Jessica & Jersey & I instead. We were able to get everything ready and packed in just over an hour (a new record!) and we took off to spend a few hours by the sea. Being a Monday, we pretty much had the beach to ourselves; hard to believe given the lovely day and the stunning scenery. Jessica had a fantastic time: amazing to think it was only her second time at the beach (and the second time this month - how extravagant!). She crawled for miles and would stop every little while to excavate, yell something, then move on again. This time around she wasn't so intent on eating the sand...just throwing handfuls of it into the air with great enthusiasm. She also crawled down to the waterline and enjoyed the tide lapping around her - without any fear whatsoever.
We had the cameras with us - of course - and I'll try to upload a short, unedited clip just to show you Jessica's excavation exploits. I may post another one of Jessica in the water, in the next few days...
Today we managed another drive down to Cape Patterson. For the past couple of days, Mel had been threatening to spend Monday working from home, but at about 9:30 morning she gave in and agreed to a trip to the beach with Jessica & Jersey & I instead. We were able to get everything ready and packed in just over an hour (a new record!) and we took off to spend a few hours by the sea. Being a Monday, we pretty much had the beach to ourselves; hard to believe given the lovely day and the stunning scenery. Jessica had a fantastic time: amazing to think it was only her second time at the beach (and the second time this month - how extravagant!). She crawled for miles and would stop every little while to excavate, yell something, then move on again. This time around she wasn't so intent on eating the sand...just throwing handfuls of it into the air with great enthusiasm. She also crawled down to the waterline and enjoyed the tide lapping around her - without any fear whatsoever.
We had the cameras with us - of course - and I'll try to upload a short, unedited clip just to show you Jessica's excavation exploits. I may post another one of Jessica in the water, in the next few days...
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Uleaderboard...
For those of you who have been asking for an update, the results of the Ulead video contest were announced today. In short...no, we didn't win. We did take second place though, so that's something (unless you subscribe to the "first loser" philosophy, in which case it's not). If you're interested in seeing who we lost out to (that should probably be "to whom we lost out"), the winning video is here.
Take care,
Matt
Take care,
Matt
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
City to Surf
We had a ball yesterday. Monday's my day off, but Mel had to work in the City, so Jessica & I decided to take Mel to work and then hit the town ourselves. After dropping Mel off at 9am for an 8:30 appointment (doh!), J & I parked at the Queen Victoria Gardens and set off to see the sights.
We first walked along the south side of the Yarra, past all the private school boathouses, watching all the school kids set out on their rowing classes. We walked through Southbank, across the walkbridge then down to the Melba Star where we sat and had our milk (OK...that was mainly Jessica). A group of old ladies - who were waiting for the Half-Tix counter to open - couldn't resist coming over and checking out Jessica. They thought she was just adorable, and then kept remarking that it was "just lovely to see the young fathers these days - they're just beautiful", adding (to me) and feigning total indignation, "Do you know that in your parents generation the fathers didn't lift a finger? I keep telling my husband 'you did nothin' - I did everything'. It's true! It's true! He didn't! Lazy so-and-so. I reckon you young dads are just soooo wonderful." Then they tottered off to see a show, giggling away as they went. Funny old ladies - I don't think they'd been drinking, either. Jessica loved the attention (which is obviously SO lacking otherwise!).
We then went along to Birrarung Marr, back up and along Flinders St to Federation Square, then up Swanston Street, across Collins, down Elizabeth (where we bought some rice crackers for Jessica and some Brunch bars for me!), then back along Flinders. Over the bridge to the Arts Centre we charmed an old lady who was busking operatically (again, it was mostly Jessica doing the charming, and I was just there to push m'lady's chariot). Past the Arts Centre and the Gallery, across to the Walker fountain and the Floral Clock, then up to King's Domain for some avocado, pear, cheese and apple (at least that's what Jessica had - it was the remaining Brunch bars for me). Then we walked to the Shrine of Remembrance, where Jessica fell asleep (I'll have a stern word with her about respect!), before we headed into the Botanical Gardens and sat on the lawns by the lake to have a post-sleep snack. A group of Japanese tourists who were passing by were admiring Jessica as she ate, and even asked to have a picture of the two of us (though I suspect they framed me out - unless of course they were doing more whale research). We then went back to the car and headed off to collect Mel.
From there we went down to St Kilda beach, where we walked along the pier, had a coffee and sandwich at the pier cafe, then walked back along the beach to Acland St. Luna Park was closed so we couldn't show that to Jessica, but we did give her a taste of our gelati from 7 Apples. Oddly, she didn't seem to love it (there's plenty of time to acquire that taste, and boundless opportunities to do so!). Headed back to the car and got home at about 7pm I think: a big day out (at least by our standards). Perhaps Bec & Vanessa did rub off on us with their recent visit? In any case, Jessica saw so much colour and movement and it was great fun for all of us, so we'll try to do something similar at least twice a month. I hope we can stick to that plan.
Here are a few snaps from our big day.
Matt
We first walked along the south side of the Yarra, past all the private school boathouses, watching all the school kids set out on their rowing classes. We walked through Southbank, across the walkbridge then down to the Melba Star where we sat and had our milk (OK...that was mainly Jessica). A group of old ladies - who were waiting for the Half-Tix counter to open - couldn't resist coming over and checking out Jessica. They thought she was just adorable, and then kept remarking that it was "just lovely to see the young fathers these days - they're just beautiful", adding (to me) and feigning total indignation, "Do you know that in your parents generation the fathers didn't lift a finger? I keep telling my husband 'you did nothin' - I did everything'. It's true! It's true! He didn't! Lazy so-and-so. I reckon you young dads are just soooo wonderful." Then they tottered off to see a show, giggling away as they went. Funny old ladies - I don't think they'd been drinking, either. Jessica loved the attention (which is obviously SO lacking otherwise!).
We then went along to Birrarung Marr, back up and along Flinders St to Federation Square, then up Swanston Street, across Collins, down Elizabeth (where we bought some rice crackers for Jessica and some Brunch bars for me!), then back along Flinders. Over the bridge to the Arts Centre we charmed an old lady who was busking operatically (again, it was mostly Jessica doing the charming, and I was just there to push m'lady's chariot). Past the Arts Centre and the Gallery, across to the Walker fountain and the Floral Clock, then up to King's Domain for some avocado, pear, cheese and apple (at least that's what Jessica had - it was the remaining Brunch bars for me). Then we walked to the Shrine of Remembrance, where Jessica fell asleep (I'll have a stern word with her about respect!), before we headed into the Botanical Gardens and sat on the lawns by the lake to have a post-sleep snack. A group of Japanese tourists who were passing by were admiring Jessica as she ate, and even asked to have a picture of the two of us (though I suspect they framed me out - unless of course they were doing more whale research). We then went back to the car and headed off to collect Mel.
From there we went down to St Kilda beach, where we walked along the pier, had a coffee and sandwich at the pier cafe, then walked back along the beach to Acland St. Luna Park was closed so we couldn't show that to Jessica, but we did give her a taste of our gelati from 7 Apples. Oddly, she didn't seem to love it (there's plenty of time to acquire that taste, and boundless opportunities to do so!). Headed back to the car and got home at about 7pm I think: a big day out (at least by our standards). Perhaps Bec & Vanessa did rub off on us with their recent visit? In any case, Jessica saw so much colour and movement and it was great fun for all of us, so we'll try to do something similar at least twice a month. I hope we can stick to that plan.
Here are a few snaps from our big day.
Matt
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Blogtoberfest
I don't have one specific topic to post about tonight but, as I'm quickly being left behind in the posting stakes by my brother-in-law and my Dad (the latter of whom has only started his blog this week - here), I'll make an effort to update mine. The content is likely to be incoherent and rambling, so it should fit in seamlessly with the preceding posts. Here are some random topics, in no particular order and without a unifying motif of any kind:
We have a Family Christmas party at work (I've never been but I'm told it's great fun for kids - in fact we plan to attend this year) and as part of that, the social club provides a present for each of the children in an employee's family. There's a form to fill out, nominating the name, gender and age of each of your children, to ensure that the right number of gifts are provided, and that they're age and gender-appropriate (are you allowed to say gender-appropriate? Too bad, I already have). Anyway, I'm only explaining this so that the conversations I've overheard in the office this week have some context. In a couple of conversations, I've heard people proudly boast (der, what other type of boasting is there Matthew?) that they lie about their children's ages each year - adding a couple of years to the age of each child because...wait for it...they'll be given a more expensive present. Charming, eh? I've also heard comments from people who have listed imaginary children - in one case three of them - on their form to collect more presents. You'd be surprised - or maybe you wouldn't - by the number of people who openly say they do this every year. But the conversation that really struck me was one I overheard yesterday between two of the ladies in the office - one of whom is the HR Manager. It went something like: Admin Lady: "Are you going to the Christmas party this year?" HR Manager: "Nah, can't be bothered. But I'm sending a girlfriend to pick up my presents for me. You gotta make sure someone gets 'em for ya, or else some charity will get 'em." Ah, priceless. The spirit of Christmas wrapped up in one beautiful sentence: "...or else some charity will get 'em." Yeah, fancy THAT happening? Those pesky poor kids stealing OUR kid's unwanted, unclaimed and unnecessary presents. And at Christmas, too? Oh, the horror.
My sister and her friend Vanessa came down from Sydney last week. It was terrific to see Bec and lovely to meet Vanessa. We had dinner together a couple of times - including Thai! - and they were able to be entertained by Miss J (I'll try to attach a photo here of Bec with Jessica, but my strike rate with posting photos is not high). Bec & Vanessa spent most of the week painting the town red - going on train rides through the hills, touring Yarra Valley wineries, strutting along the St Kilda foreshore (I added the strutting part - it may or may not have occurred), eating Vicar's Follies at Miss Marples in Sassafras (it's a huge sundae, in a cozy tearoom which pays homage to the Agatha Christie character), and many other things that crazy young kids get upto these days. Terrible that out-of-towners can do more in your home state in one week than you've done in several years, but hopefully some of their enthusiasm will have rubbed off on me. I could certainly put away a Vicar's Folly.
We were invited to a dinner at Docklands (a newly developed restaurant/entertainment precinct in Melbourne) for a product launch, and listened to Max Walker delivering sporting anecdotes to the small audience (we were given signed copies of his new book, too). Even Sally the BrandPower lady was there, just smiling and signing photos of herself, while the 3-Minute Angels gave everyone 3-minute shoulder massages as we were served nibbles and drinks by 4 girls dressed as 4 different product variants (of course they were!). So that was a bit surreal, and not at all like our usual Saturday night on the couch. Except for the 4 girls dressed as product variants serving us drinks; that part is exactly like our usual Saturday night.
Did I tell you what I was given as a combined Father's Day & Birthday present? Well, despite assurances that a gift would not be given this year, my girls presented me with... a 60GB iPod Video! It's such a brilliant present, and I have it with me every day. I can now carry aroung hundreds of photos of Jessica & Mel, along with hours and hours of video, and of course weeks and weeks worth of music. But the aspect of this that I wasn't expecting to get so much enjoyment and value from is that of Podcasting. I've known that Podcasting exists, and I know what Podcasts are, but I didn't realise how useful, entertaining, educational and fun they could be. For the uninitiated (there must still be someone who knows less about this than me), Apple (the maker of iPod) provide a free software program called iTunes. In it's simplest role, it lets you manage your music library: you load all of your CD's onto your computer and iTunes takes care of the organisation of your collection by title, artist, genre, playlist etc - also providing the interface for playing these files on your PC or syncing them onto your iPod device (it also does the same for any photos or videos you want to manage or sync). That was a verrry long sentence. In a slightly-more advanced role, iTunes also lets you connect to the online iTunes Store, where you can buy songs or albums or videos or TV shows to put on your iPod (haven't done so yet). Here you can also subscribe to a multitude of audio and video podcasts from thousands of different people or organisations: a podcast is a free program delivered automatically to your PC on a regular (daily/weekly) basis. You find a podcast you're interested in, click on Subscribe, and every time a new update is uploaded by the author, it'll be downloaded to your PC (and by extension, onto your iPod). There's an enormous variety of podcasts available across every possible genre. I'm now subscribed to almost 20 different podcast 'channels': from the very funny (eg the "Ask A Ninja" advice-line, "The Chaser's War On Everything", and "The Ricky Gervais podcast"), through the very practical (eg. "43 Folders" - a personal productivity resource, "This Week In Media" - a discussion of digital creativity and new technology), through a series of short-film 'festivals' (eg. Australian Film Television & Radio School podcast). Most recently I've been receiving some really interesting/challenging lectures on society, philosophy and apologetics by Ravi Zacharias (a speaker who's strongly influenced by C.S. Lewis). I now very often listen to one of Ravi's talks on the way to work, or watch a short film when I'm waiting 15 minutes to pickup our Thai order, and Mel is now well accustomed to (though no less annoyed by) the inane-but-catchy "I am Ninja" jingle that I sing to her throughout the day. iTunes is free, and you don't need an iPod to use it, so if you have a reasonably fast internet connection and you're interested in watching something other than TV, or listening to something other than the radio, you may get a lot out of subsribing to a few of these podcasts. Not all of it's good - in fact some of it's lousy - but you get that with everything I guess (and at least you didn't have to pay anything for it). There, that's my public service announcement for the day.
On a mildly-related note, here's a funny video I came across on YouTube today: as a former Duty Manager myself, married to a George Lucas fan, I really enjoyed the concept. There're 4 episodes I think, but here's #2.
Jessica (I must stress again here that these paragraphs are NOT in order of priority!!) is now a completely competent and confident crawler, and has turned into quite a Jersey-seeking missile. She also loves opening the pantry and clearing out the bottom shelf (just like I remember Susanna doing 16 years ago!), and is also very confidently getting to a standing position and beginning to "cruise" along the furniture. She also has 7 teeth on show, with one more just about to break through. We keep asking ourselves where our little baby went, since we really seem to have ourselves a little girl already. We're even talking about what to do for Jessica's 1st Birthday (it sounds premature, I know, but if the next few months go as quickly as the last 9 did, we'll need all the time we can get!). Mel has posted some more photos of Jessica on her blog, here.
What else is news? I read recently that Mat Kearney will have two of his songs featured on two successive Gray's Anatomy episodes. I don't watch the show (from what I can tell from the occasional ads I see, it seems like a poor-man's Scrubs?) but I recognise that many, many, many people like it - so that's great news for him in terms of broadening his audience. One of the songs they'll be using - "All I Need" - is actually the very same song that I've asked permission to use for a 3 minute clip I'll be making later this year. The record company (Aware) were really, really nice and in addition to letting me use the song, they thanked me for having thought about Mat! Very nice indeed. I've been turned down flat by another record company in the past, so it was a lovely surprise to get such a positive response from Aware. It's a beautiful song, so I guess I'm willing to share it with Gray's Anatomy. Even though they totally stole my idea! (But I guess they're used to stealing great ideas on that show).
Speaking (the astute observer will recognise that I am actually writing) of videos, you may be wondering what happened with that ol' DVD Proposal? Well, the man in charge - the only one who could approve the project - resigned from the company a couple of weeks ago and left the building immediately. Yep, just like that! He had never managed to watch the DVD - despite my gentle prodding - so the proposal is once again in a state of limbo. The two lower-level managers who did see the DVD way back in May (both of whom liked it) have suggested that there's life in the dusty-old, moth-eaten proposal yet, but we'll just have to wait and see. I'm glad I have a day job, and I'm not counting on this project to put food on the table!
Well, I should probably call it a day. For not having had anything to say, I certainly used enough words to say it! I noticed today that the hit counter at the bottom of this page reads "555". Fancy 555 visits to read this long-winded drivel? To be honest, I'm probably responsible for 500 of those visits, but to the remaining group of visitors, thanks for dropping by! I'll even try to make it worth your while next time.
No promises, though.
Take care, (and remember: watch out for those sneaky Salvo's trying to steal your unwanted Christmas presents)
Matt
We have a Family Christmas party at work (I've never been but I'm told it's great fun for kids - in fact we plan to attend this year) and as part of that, the social club provides a present for each of the children in an employee's family. There's a form to fill out, nominating the name, gender and age of each of your children, to ensure that the right number of gifts are provided, and that they're age and gender-appropriate (are you allowed to say gender-appropriate? Too bad, I already have). Anyway, I'm only explaining this so that the conversations I've overheard in the office this week have some context. In a couple of conversations, I've heard people proudly boast (der, what other type of boasting is there Matthew?) that they lie about their children's ages each year - adding a couple of years to the age of each child because...wait for it...they'll be given a more expensive present. Charming, eh? I've also heard comments from people who have listed imaginary children - in one case three of them - on their form to collect more presents. You'd be surprised - or maybe you wouldn't - by the number of people who openly say they do this every year. But the conversation that really struck me was one I overheard yesterday between two of the ladies in the office - one of whom is the HR Manager. It went something like: Admin Lady: "Are you going to the Christmas party this year?" HR Manager: "Nah, can't be bothered. But I'm sending a girlfriend to pick up my presents for me. You gotta make sure someone gets 'em for ya, or else some charity will get 'em." Ah, priceless. The spirit of Christmas wrapped up in one beautiful sentence: "...or else some charity will get 'em." Yeah, fancy THAT happening? Those pesky poor kids stealing OUR kid's unwanted, unclaimed and unnecessary presents. And at Christmas, too? Oh, the horror.
My sister and her friend Vanessa came down from Sydney last week. It was terrific to see Bec and lovely to meet Vanessa. We had dinner together a couple of times - including Thai! - and they were able to be entertained by Miss J (I'll try to attach a photo here of Bec with Jessica, but my strike rate with posting photos is not high). Bec & Vanessa spent most of the week painting the town red - going on train rides through the hills, touring Yarra Valley wineries, strutting along the St Kilda foreshore (I added the strutting part - it may or may not have occurred), eating Vicar's Follies at Miss Marples in Sassafras (it's a huge sundae, in a cozy tearoom which pays homage to the Agatha Christie character), and many other things that crazy young kids get upto these days. Terrible that out-of-towners can do more in your home state in one week than you've done in several years, but hopefully some of their enthusiasm will have rubbed off on me. I could certainly put away a Vicar's Folly.
We were invited to a dinner at Docklands (a newly developed restaurant/entertainment precinct in Melbourne) for a product launch, and listened to Max Walker delivering sporting anecdotes to the small audience (we were given signed copies of his new book, too). Even Sally the BrandPower lady was there, just smiling and signing photos of herself, while the 3-Minute Angels gave everyone 3-minute shoulder massages as we were served nibbles and drinks by 4 girls dressed as 4 different product variants (of course they were!). So that was a bit surreal, and not at all like our usual Saturday night on the couch. Except for the 4 girls dressed as product variants serving us drinks; that part is exactly like our usual Saturday night.
Did I tell you what I was given as a combined Father's Day & Birthday present? Well, despite assurances that a gift would not be given this year, my girls presented me with... a 60GB iPod Video! It's such a brilliant present, and I have it with me every day. I can now carry aroung hundreds of photos of Jessica & Mel, along with hours and hours of video, and of course weeks and weeks worth of music. But the aspect of this that I wasn't expecting to get so much enjoyment and value from is that of Podcasting. I've known that Podcasting exists, and I know what Podcasts are, but I didn't realise how useful, entertaining, educational and fun they could be. For the uninitiated (there must still be someone who knows less about this than me), Apple (the maker of iPod) provide a free software program called iTunes. In it's simplest role, it lets you manage your music library: you load all of your CD's onto your computer and iTunes takes care of the organisation of your collection by title, artist, genre, playlist etc - also providing the interface for playing these files on your PC or syncing them onto your iPod device (it also does the same for any photos or videos you want to manage or sync). That was a verrry long sentence. In a slightly-more advanced role, iTunes also lets you connect to the online iTunes Store, where you can buy songs or albums or videos or TV shows to put on your iPod (haven't done so yet). Here you can also subscribe to a multitude of audio and video podcasts from thousands of different people or organisations: a podcast is a free program delivered automatically to your PC on a regular (daily/weekly) basis. You find a podcast you're interested in, click on Subscribe, and every time a new update is uploaded by the author, it'll be downloaded to your PC (and by extension, onto your iPod). There's an enormous variety of podcasts available across every possible genre. I'm now subscribed to almost 20 different podcast 'channels': from the very funny (eg the "Ask A Ninja" advice-line, "The Chaser's War On Everything", and "The Ricky Gervais podcast"), through the very practical (eg. "43 Folders" - a personal productivity resource, "This Week In Media" - a discussion of digital creativity and new technology), through a series of short-film 'festivals' (eg. Australian Film Television & Radio School podcast). Most recently I've been receiving some really interesting/challenging lectures on society, philosophy and apologetics by Ravi Zacharias (a speaker who's strongly influenced by C.S. Lewis). I now very often listen to one of Ravi's talks on the way to work, or watch a short film when I'm waiting 15 minutes to pickup our Thai order, and Mel is now well accustomed to (though no less annoyed by) the inane-but-catchy "I am Ninja" jingle that I sing to her throughout the day. iTunes is free, and you don't need an iPod to use it, so if you have a reasonably fast internet connection and you're interested in watching something other than TV, or listening to something other than the radio, you may get a lot out of subsribing to a few of these podcasts. Not all of it's good - in fact some of it's lousy - but you get that with everything I guess (and at least you didn't have to pay anything for it). There, that's my public service announcement for the day.
On a mildly-related note, here's a funny video I came across on YouTube today: as a former Duty Manager myself, married to a George Lucas fan, I really enjoyed the concept. There're 4 episodes I think, but here's #2.
Jessica (I must stress again here that these paragraphs are NOT in order of priority!!) is now a completely competent and confident crawler, and has turned into quite a Jersey-seeking missile. She also loves opening the pantry and clearing out the bottom shelf (just like I remember Susanna doing 16 years ago!), and is also very confidently getting to a standing position and beginning to "cruise" along the furniture. She also has 7 teeth on show, with one more just about to break through. We keep asking ourselves where our little baby went, since we really seem to have ourselves a little girl already. We're even talking about what to do for Jessica's 1st Birthday (it sounds premature, I know, but if the next few months go as quickly as the last 9 did, we'll need all the time we can get!). Mel has posted some more photos of Jessica on her blog, here.
What else is news? I read recently that Mat Kearney will have two of his songs featured on two successive Gray's Anatomy episodes. I don't watch the show (from what I can tell from the occasional ads I see, it seems like a poor-man's Scrubs?) but I recognise that many, many, many people like it - so that's great news for him in terms of broadening his audience. One of the songs they'll be using - "All I Need" - is actually the very same song that I've asked permission to use for a 3 minute clip I'll be making later this year. The record company (Aware) were really, really nice and in addition to letting me use the song, they thanked me for having thought about Mat! Very nice indeed. I've been turned down flat by another record company in the past, so it was a lovely surprise to get such a positive response from Aware. It's a beautiful song, so I guess I'm willing to share it with Gray's Anatomy. Even though they totally stole my idea! (But I guess they're used to stealing great ideas on that show).
Speaking (the astute observer will recognise that I am actually writing) of videos, you may be wondering what happened with that ol' DVD Proposal? Well, the man in charge - the only one who could approve the project - resigned from the company a couple of weeks ago and left the building immediately. Yep, just like that! He had never managed to watch the DVD - despite my gentle prodding - so the proposal is once again in a state of limbo. The two lower-level managers who did see the DVD way back in May (both of whom liked it) have suggested that there's life in the dusty-old, moth-eaten proposal yet, but we'll just have to wait and see. I'm glad I have a day job, and I'm not counting on this project to put food on the table!
Well, I should probably call it a day. For not having had anything to say, I certainly used enough words to say it! I noticed today that the hit counter at the bottom of this page reads "555". Fancy 555 visits to read this long-winded drivel? To be honest, I'm probably responsible for 500 of those visits, but to the remaining group of visitors, thanks for dropping by! I'll even try to make it worth your while next time.
No promises, though.
Take care, (and remember: watch out for those sneaky Salvo's trying to steal your unwanted Christmas presents)
Matt
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