Corin Forest

Lilly has been intermittently watching the tobogganing luge from the winter Olympics, with across-the-lounge room commentary I can do that! And so, in a coincidence reminiscent of a Muppet movie, Saturday saw us ballet dance classing, and then off to Corin Forest.

It was a nice day trip (about 45 minutes from Belconnen). The GPS said the coordinates are E149 4' 39.362" and S35 27' 11.922" (since the map location didn't show up in the search list.) Google maps has a great satellite view

Better Place Australia announces Canberra as starting point of national roll-out of electric vehicle

Better Place Australia, (an electric vehicle infrastructure provider) announced in Jul 2009 that it will use Canberra as the first site in Australia for the roll-out of EV-infrastructure. The roll-out is expected to be in place from 2011, and active in 2012.
more info from the press release

What the?! It's 10 days since Christmas, leave off the Easter Buns already!

So it's not enough that I'm back at work less than two weeks after Christmas, or that we've all managed to catch a cold in the middle of summer, but today, we walked into the local supermarket at Kippax, and they are selling [are you ready for this?] Hot Cross Buns. Hot, freaking cross buns and the first weak of the year isn't even half over.

I kid you not. Seriously, they were so in-your-face out front I didn't even notice until Flavia pointed them out. I know people often complain that the hot cross buns are out a few days after Christmas or even in Jan but I'd always taken that as a bit of an exaggeration.

I understand that as a card-carrying pagan I have no call being upset about anyone selling me sugary bread with sultanas in on any day of the year, I just wish the local commercial operators wouldn't be so blatant in their lack of imagination when it comes to ripping me off. Because it's January 5th, and Easter is only well.... the next food-based holiday to cash in on. I haven't spotted Easter eggs yet.....

Post-script Jan 7: Easter Eggs. Here is what I will be eating until April

Painting Gabriel's room

Last week we began to move Gabriel into his own room. He'd had a random selection of rooms through the holidays, hotels, Nanna's... and so the dislocation was less substantial. Just one more move (or so we kept telling ourselves...)

Flavia and I had talked about jungles, pictures of smiling lions or big trees or something. But we couldn't agree on scale - was it going to be wall-paper sized stick-on animals or a big tree, or lots of thin ones? In the end, our trip North for Christmas decided it: it turns out Gabriel loves wheels, cars and mechanical stuff in general. So we painted hills (see pictures). And a road, for some wooden cars we'd found. The cars are glued directly to the wall: it is my philosophy that should anyone ever buy this house, they'll be welcome to take the kids wall decorations off with a chisel.

Of course, Miss 3 assisted with the rollers (green), and some sponges on the road. Then she decided that stacking the paint tins, and painting on paper on the floor was much better than keeping within the lines on the wall. Small dude was ever present... surely, if Dad and Miss 3 were getting messy with green paint, he'd be allowed too..... he particularly liked the acoustics - empty wooden room, big echoes, lots of "Aahh!     aah? Aah!"

It's now a whole 24 hours since we finished, and both Miss 3 and Small dude are asleep in their respective rooms. Our bedroom feels oddly empty....

Dear Santa; All I want for Christmas is to orbit the moon.

Dear Santa, for a cool hundred million US, yes, US$100,000,000 I can buy a space flight and orbit the moon, International Space Station lay-over included and return. So far I don't seem to be able to actually walk on the moon, but hey, would you buy a ticket on the only ever Russian rocket to attempt a moon landing?

So, Santa, I've been reasonably well behaved, and if you were to say, tax everyone (else's) toys in only Australia by about $6 each, I'd be able to see myself clear to a modest holiday on board the ISS. I'd be ever so completely grateful.

I know, you're probably thinking it sounds like a lot of money, but these guys reckon it only takes 4 years to raise 100mill. And this beach umbrella is apparently worth $34mil, so I'd say putting me within apple-throwing distance of the moon for a few weeks is totally worth it.

And anyway, I just want to be the guy who rings up the (online) Adrenalin store, hands over 100 million in (what would it even be, government bonds? Swiss bankers? Who'd be mad enough to use a credit card with a 100mil limit on it? On the internet!??! ), anyway, hands over 100million in a very tightly secured bank vault in a tax-free, but unlikely to have a military coup this week, Pacific island, and says "Hi, I'd like the moon package please."

So, Santa, how about it eh?
Yours in anticipation

Gym. Yay, lets all go to the gym.

I offer for your amusement: A dozen people that look nothing like me.

In a wildly optimistic move Flavia and I have joined the local gymnasium. It's called Energy Fitness. This is precisely the opposite of how I feel just now, having just come home from my first cycle class. It's called ICE. I want the job of coming up with those names.

Gym class namer is second on my list of top jobs, closely following the best ever job which is the guy who provides the film-ratings, at the office of film and literature classification, Australia. If you've ever gone to a movie in Australia, you will see the sign "This film is yet to be classified, check closer to release" which is fine, until you realise you're watching this sign in the movie, so what is the office actually doing? Seriously. Look at the site's icon - looks exactly like someone poking their tongue out. It is also obvious that I'm not the only one thinking along these lines - "how can I get a job as a member of the OFLC?" is one of the frequently asked questions!

Nonetheless, in the absence of a rush of requests to come up with names in the key of pump, or offers to completely fail to classify a film before release, I continue to seek improved health by running and cycling and generally swearing away each evening. Nobody here is kidding themselves that we will (or will want to) look like those guys. Nobody. Right? Right. Flavia has said to me "Don't kill yourself, just take it easy" but of course, I am completely suckered by the chappy who is at the front of the class pedaling like some sort of manic DJ courier dude, talking through a PA-system while the whumpa-whumpa music blasts out. And I'm thinking to myself, yeah, he's saying make it harder for yourself, I can do that. I can. Do. That. . .. I. Think. I. Will. Be. Just. A. Little. Bit. Sick. Now.

We shall see how things progress.

Back!

Today was my first day back (at work) after nearly 6 weeks away - most of the time was spend with Flavia's family in Brazil. We deliberately avoided internet access, news anything. Very nice to disconnect from the "perpetual now" of IT- and news- life. Interestingly, upon returning and plugging back in, nothing seems to have changed, and the world appears not to have completely imploded without my constant attention.

Maybe I'll stay away longer next time.