... the IT man in LibraryLand
Well it's back and I've already been to my first game of the season. I went at the insistence of The Great Sandro who wants me to go every week but I think I've talked him down to once a month.
Of course I wore my jumper, despite the scorching weather conditions, and, of course, the jumpers curse appears to be back.
Apart from sweating profusely whilest watching my team play badly and have some perpetually puzzling penalties awarded against us, I was most distraught to find that food venues inside the ground are apparently not worth opening when it is a visiting interstate team.
I had to go snack-free until we scavenged some mouth-scaldingly hot pies from the bar.
Thankfully the outside venues had plenty of footy donuts once the game was over and I was able to drown my sorrows in sugar.
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... The Do-overs
Well here we are at the tail end of attempt number three at "Be kind to AntagonisticAl week".
Week one ended after an hour and a half with only Lord of the Small Fries giving me any credit at all - "that was quite a long time for you to be nice to someone Phill".
The second week ended after a misunderstanding. Apparently being nice to someone entails more than just not being mean so I was hit with "you haven't been nice to me all day Phill so this week is a do-over".
At this rate I'll have to be nice until Xmas! So fingers crossed that I can make it through the remains of this week without running into Her Marketing-ness and her plethora of problems... dammit I think I just caused another do-over!
Also speaking of do-overs, at last nights gaming I was forced to retire my character after The Viking Hat GM stuck to his idea of what he should do and ignored my characters dice proven skill at deception while the The Blithe Bogan performed none of the rules-enforcing his game running position is supposed to involve and Exploding Ninja Pony cowered at his end of the table eating snacks that were destined to be mine.
My do-over character is fitting in to the team, for now, but revenge shall be mine, umm his, I have no character/player separation problem.
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Week one ended after an hour and a half with only Lord of the Small Fries giving me any credit at all - "that was quite a long time for you to be nice to someone Phill".
The second week ended after a misunderstanding. Apparently being nice to someone entails more than just not being mean so I was hit with "you haven't been nice to me all day Phill so this week is a do-over".
At this rate I'll have to be nice until Xmas! So fingers crossed that I can make it through the remains of this week without running into Her Marketing-ness and her plethora of problems... dammit I think I just caused another do-over!
Also speaking of do-overs, at last nights gaming I was forced to retire my character after The Viking Hat GM stuck to his idea of what he should do and ignored my characters dice proven skill at deception while the The Blithe Bogan performed none of the rules-enforcing his game running position is supposed to involve and Exploding Ninja Pony cowered at his end of the table eating snacks that were destined to be mine.
My do-over character is fitting in to the team, for now, but revenge shall be mine, umm his, I have no character/player separation problem.
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... The Near-perfect Return
Last night I was back in action on the soccer field.
After a short warm-up I was into action in my Svetlanaland national jumper.
The knee was a bit tender and I had to nurse it along, but for the last third of the match it had really warmed up and was working quite well - I even had a shot on goal thanks to a great pass by SoccerBuddy but, no thanks to the goalie, there was a deflection and then it bounced off the post. Sigh, I suppose you can't have everything.
Afterwards the real action began in the clubhouse with beer and snacks. My knee survived that with flying colours too.
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After a short warm-up I was into action in my Svetlanaland national jumper.
The knee was a bit tender and I had to nurse it along, but for the last third of the match it had really warmed up and was working quite well - I even had a shot on goal thanks to a great pass by SoccerBuddy but, no thanks to the goalie, there was a deflection and then it bounced off the post. Sigh, I suppose you can't have everything.
Afterwards the real action began in the clubhouse with beer and snacks. My knee survived that with flying colours too.
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... The Watching of The Watchmen
I went and saw the Watchmen movie last Saturday night with Legion2 and BrotherStealer.
I enjoyed it although the violence and steamy bits did seem to be pushed to make a contrast to the mostly talky way it all goes in the graphic novel. I'm not surprised that parents in the US who took their eight year oldsdecided to walk out - I am surprised (a little anyway) that they even took them into a MA15+ movie. It must be that whole attitude of "superheroes a for kids"
In an unintended homage to the films grim run-down eighties New York setting we saw it at the Greater Union cinema which had seen it's best in the eighties and is now a large, empty, grim, run-down space haunted by the ghosts of my teenage film viewing experiences.
The highlight of the evening was, of course, the Mexican meal afterwards. There's nothing quite like that bloated-by-beans-and-light-headed-from-margaritas feeling.
The lowlight of the evening was that Svetlana refused to talk to me on the phone while I was in my Mexican Nirvana. However that was rectified the following evening when it was just me talking with no margarita involvement at all.
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I enjoyed it although the violence and steamy bits did seem to be pushed to make a contrast to the mostly talky way it all goes in the graphic novel. I'm not surprised that parents in the US who took their eight year oldsdecided to walk out - I am surprised (a little anyway) that they even took them into a MA15+ movie. It must be that whole attitude of "superheroes a for kids"
In an unintended homage to the films grim run-down eighties New York setting we saw it at the Greater Union cinema which had seen it's best in the eighties and is now a large, empty, grim, run-down space haunted by the ghosts of my teenage film viewing experiences.
The highlight of the evening was, of course, the Mexican meal afterwards. There's nothing quite like that bloated-by-beans-and-light-headed-from-margaritas feeling.
The lowlight of the evening was that Svetlana refused to talk to me on the phone while I was in my Mexican Nirvana. However that was rectified the following evening when it was just me talking with no margarita involvement at all.
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... The Puzzling DVD Classification
So here I am whiling away my Labour Day holiday doing very little of much import.
Naturally my gaze strays towards my heretofore unwatched loan of the new Doctor Who series three so kindly provided by the library (really you should go there and borrow stuff - honestly I don't get a commission).
My eyes happened to linger upon the classification section for longer than the usual passing glance and lo and behold I actually read it.
Mild science fiction themes!!
What the hell does that even mean in the context of a warning classification?
I am still boggled as to what this is specifically trying to warn people or parents about. Science Fiction is not inherently scary and that possible angle is covered by the supernatural themes and frightening scenes warnings so that doesn't seem like it.
Maybe they think that there may be something confronting for young minds in science fiction? Might as well label every DVD with mild reality themes as well so parents know they have to supervise their kids.
All in all I can only conclude that it is the continuation of the grand librarian conspiracy to ghetto-ise Scifi and Fantasy and keep the world safe from these terrible genres and only ready genres that are sensible and realistic, like crime.
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Naturally my gaze strays towards my heretofore unwatched loan of the new Doctor Who series three so kindly provided by the library (really you should go there and borrow stuff - honestly I don't get a commission).
My eyes happened to linger upon the classification section for longer than the usual passing glance and lo and behold I actually read it.
PG - Mild violence and supernatural themes, Some frightening scenes, Mild science fiction themes
Mild science fiction themes!!
What the hell does that even mean in the context of a warning classification?
I am still boggled as to what this is specifically trying to warn people or parents about. Science Fiction is not inherently scary and that possible angle is covered by the supernatural themes and frightening scenes warnings so that doesn't seem like it.
Maybe they think that there may be something confronting for young minds in science fiction? Might as well label every DVD with mild reality themes as well so parents know they have to supervise their kids.
All in all I can only conclude that it is the continuation of the grand librarian conspiracy to ghetto-ise Scifi and Fantasy and keep the world safe from these terrible genres and only ready genres that are sensible and realistic, like crime.
.
... The Unexpected Kindness
So after yet another Training Day where I was expected to earn my free lunch by presenting IT stuff to my staff, and a few days of last minute RFID tagging and nigh-constant scanning of books I was stopped dead in my tracks on Wednesday night.
Upon my arrival at Exploding Ninja Pony's Fortress of Doom™, The Viking Hat GM promptly presented me with two pre-cooked meals to help me in my quest for better bachelor living.
Of course I was immediately suspicious - a condition that continues despite the wonderfully satisfying full-belly feeling from the pumpkin soup last night. So far only good has come of it but you never know, it could be a slow-acting poison...
In a move more in his traditional style TVHG and The Blithe Bogan are at this moment trading blunt email ripostes over the state of the gameplay from that night. I plan to roll up my sleeves and dive in shortly after finishing my scribing here. Hopefully things will stay on a civil level as I do hate it when mum and dad fight!
In another move of unexpected kindness next week has been dubbed "Be kind to AntagonisticAl week" because apparantly my relentless hounding of her in her capacity as a hated marketing officer is somehow a little upsetting. Go figure?!
It will be a struggle but I should be able to make it as the Monday public holiday reduces the duration by a whole 20%.
My one fear is that said kindness to A could become a habit in the way that many of our character flaws often do.
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Upon my arrival at Exploding Ninja Pony's Fortress of Doom™, The Viking Hat GM promptly presented me with two pre-cooked meals to help me in my quest for better bachelor living.
Of course I was immediately suspicious - a condition that continues despite the wonderfully satisfying full-belly feeling from the pumpkin soup last night. So far only good has come of it but you never know, it could be a slow-acting poison...
In a move more in his traditional style TVHG and The Blithe Bogan are at this moment trading blunt email ripostes over the state of the gameplay from that night. I plan to roll up my sleeves and dive in shortly after finishing my scribing here. Hopefully things will stay on a civil level as I do hate it when mum and dad fight!
In another move of unexpected kindness next week has been dubbed "Be kind to AntagonisticAl week" because apparantly my relentless hounding of her in her capacity as a hated marketing officer is somehow a little upsetting. Go figure?!
It will be a struggle but I should be able to make it as the Monday public holiday reduces the duration by a whole 20%.
My one fear is that said kindness to A could become a habit in the way that many of our character flaws often do.
.
... The End of the Busy Days?
I think that was just my biggest non-Svetlanaland break. As the title may give away I have had very little "free" time to blog and also because of the massive tome that Badger has had me reading since January first I have had no easy "just finished a book" posts to make.
That doesn't mean, however, that nothing has been happening - as this sample should prove irrefutably:
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That doesn't mean, however, that nothing has been happening - as this sample should prove irrefutably:
- a team lunch at The Yacht Club followed by gaming at my abode in the evening
- the physio's all clear for knee go-live day at soccer
- multiplying my RFID tagging output by ten at Hampton and reaching the allusive 100 items! (only 5467 steps that day however)
- another regular card tournament at my place with most of the regulars in attendance
- the soccer groups annual family BBQ
- spruiking the RFID at Brighton to not one but two visiting contingents of interested libraryland visitors, then rushing to Hampton to lose a battle with a virus infested staff computer, and consequently arriving late to night one of my second great experiment of gaming with The Viking Hat GM, and Exploding Ninja Pony - this time under the auspices of a new GM (blogname pending - edit: The Blithe Bogan)
- network outages ending, virus removal complete, and regular gaming all evening
- early morning wake up calls from The Tiger, who now needs me to stand by the bowl in order to eat - who says cats aren't neurotic!
- working on the desk with Sister Serials while the Sandy Squad talk about me in their staff meeting and, more distressingly, have cake and biscuits in said meeting without me.
- session two of gaming with a baby in the room. I must say it does inspire having the players encounter a screaming monster
- attending a morning tea and lunch - flanked by some talk about wireless hotspots - out in the far reaches of libraryland. The event itself being marred somewhat by the onset of yet another Man-Cold
- spending my training day preparation time suffering from the aforementioned YAMC. Being fuzzy headed and sneezy and sniffly is not conducive to scribing precise answers to IT questions. I did while away some time watching The King of Kong - force-lent to me by Sister Serials. It was lots of fun and I think I may have found my new hairstyle in the bad guys mullet. Mr Prada did ask the pertinent question though - "is it Svetlana approved?"
- a tortuously early start to training day under orders from Devil's Advocate to collect IT gear from the corporate castle, leaving me too exhausted to properly demolish the morning tea, lunch and post-event drinks
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