planeterry.
Thursday, March 28, 2002
yay - weekend!
happy chocolate holiday everyone!
although may come in and actually update this sometime before the actual chocoliday...
Monday, March 25, 2002
*embarrassment*
apparently we had a meeting scheduled for 8:30am this morning with out-of-department people (whom we have a contract with), but somehow no one in our department knew about it, so these two people turned up, and there was no one to meet them (out of the four of us who regularly go to these things). Very Bad. However, as lowest in the hierarchy (and not officially part of the contract), I also have the lowest level of responsibility. Still. Embarrassed for our department and myself.
did double session at gym last night - feeling fit - did two doubles last week too and with 6.5 hours dancing on Sat night... :) also - measured heartrate this morning (was quite worried the caffeine was getting to me - hmmm - need to get archives working so i can link to heartrate experiment intro) but was 44 bpm - phew. however i did actually try and take it a couple of times yesterday, and kept getting like 62 bpm (previously used to get ~ 54-58 bpm resting). Is currently 60 bpm.
Sunday, March 24, 2002
We walk toward the large abstract shapes, glowing in the velvety black night, with slightly paler car shaped masses to either side of us. A gap in the cars indicates a path leading to the glowy space, and the music gets louder and we can see barely see the movement of people dancing in a clearing, surrounded by these huge shapes stretched between the trees or wrapped around them and lit by UV or dim coloured lights. In the middle of the clearing is a fluorescent green totem pole, with a footwide beam of light shining out the top toward the sky, but somehow it doesn't illuminate the dancefloor at all. Blacklights around the sides of the clearing fluoresce the decorations and the dancers. On the other side of the clearing, an open sided tent is lit up with multicoloured tube lights, and the dj is set up under it. Beyond the dj, there are rugs under the trees, with groups of people sitting, and beyond them there's a well lit chai stall, with more rugs and people around it. We wander a little, but apart from right next to the chai stall, it's too dark to really make out faces unless you're a metre or so away - our best bet for identifying friends is probably dancing style, so we go back to the clearing for a dance. It's rather dusty.
Last time I went to an outdoor party (Pines? 2000?), I had a huge list of stuff I'd bring to the next one - including dust masks - of which I have some sitting in the bottom drawer of my kitchen right now. But it's been so long that I forgot all that and brought the bare essentials - lots of water, a jumper, my camera, my sunglasses. Next time. More prepared.
Have a really good dance. Our ID theory is supported by someone recognising tish by her dancing, but we don't manage to ID anyone ourselves. We try different places, trying to kick up less dust - on the leaf litter, on the gravel path, and eventually realize they've set up some old carpet right in front of the dj - probably for this express purpose - although most people are dancing around the totem pole, so there's plenty of space on the carpet.
Emily and Graeme arrive 1:30ish (although they don't find us till past 2), and i meet Graeme's sister (name? argh - Rowena?), and their friend Debbie. Dirk is also there, haven't seen him in ages - I think he just got out of a one-year relationship, in which he never went out - heh. Well he seemed quite happy. So had a very happy group to dance with for a while. Tried a cup of ma huang from the chai stall - if i recall correctly, it's supposed to contain ephedra - but I can't believe the dose in a cup of tea would be very potent - should probably do some research. I didn't notice any effects, although I would, in any case, have messed up any results by eating half of the Viking Bar tobie gave me.
Lots of happy hippies, some not-so-fierce ferals, a few smiley ravey glowy people...
(I counted ~100 people at one point, so I'd say maybe 150+ people - a good turnout being so remote I think)
Met Steve (having a Scottish party next weekend I think - can I dress up as the Loch Ness Monster?) and his 2 year old son (Chris?) who was up all night, and very cute, dancing, playing with sparklers, getting carried around by lots of different people...
Also, MORE firetwirlers - at least 8 different people, mostly really good, have a go, plus another 5 people with poi, and i know that a couple of my friends also had their firesticks with them, but felt guilty about lighting up in the middle of the forest (firebans and things, and just generally making worry for the organizers).
Danced and danced till the sky got light. You can actually see peoples faces. Lots of people smile at me. The music was very good - I had at least as good a time as i had at Two Tribes with all those big names and elaborate setups - must support this scene much much more. The music was quite trancey, some techy elements, nothing minimal, all danceable. Brill. Took photo's - hope the cute chai stall turns out (with funky 70's ish lamp and huge cauldron of bubbling chai) - should have tried a second photo just in case - and hope the firedancers turn out too (will probably be just the spiining fire though, rather than the dancers themselves). And the first rays of sun hitting the clearing, pretty full of people still dancing. Got the sunnies out and kept dancing. There were still a good 30 or 40 people dancing at sunrise, and well after, with maybe another 20-30 sitting around snuggled in rugs or sleeping bags.
Was feeling very awake and energetic and fit after at least six and a half hours of dancing, would've really only sat for a max of half an hour during the entire night, plus a bit of wandering around...
Poor tobie was tired when we arrived (big day setting up new studio in VERY cool location), but he waited till 7:30ish before suggesting we leave - love the morning after outdoor party feel, everyone was really smiley, totally would've loved to stay and keep dancing and help cleanup or whatever afterward, next time maybe...
Saturday morning, me and housemate caught up with my ex-housemate-best-friend, who I was supposed to see at the masquerade party last Sat, but didn't turn up - turns out she had a bit of a family tragedy :( and all week I wasn't sure if I should call and check she was ok, or give her space, or what; but friday night, i asked her S.O. (integral part of karaoke krew), and he said "you should drop around tomorrow, don't call first, she'd like to see you and should, but probably doesn't think she'd want to see you". So we went by about 10:30am, and she was just about to make some coffee, so we sat and talked for ages and played with the neighbours cat, which, thanks to housemate started attacking us all, and now we all have battle-scars. Then I sent them off furniture shopping, and I went and did groceries and things. Didn't make it to the gym. Cleaned the bathroom, did the vacuuming. Settled down for peaceful read. Tried for a nap, but didn't make it. Started watching tv, but didn't get to see the end of "Lost in Space", before I had to go meet tish and tobie to go to a bush doof out in the unknown wilds...
Got to theirs by 11, put on some white face stripes, got tish to do some temple dots and tobie to do forehead stripes - think we managed to leave by a quarter past or so. Drove for a while, and then a while more, glad I didn't have to navigate. Eventually we leave civilisation - without warning, the road turns into a gravel road, and then into a gravel track, somewhat past midnight we pass a car going the other way, who stop, tell us we're going in the right direction (phew) and ask us if we have any 'supplies' - of course we don't, although tobie has kindly given me a Viking Bar if necessary. A bit later we hit a sign saying "ONLY 8 kms" - ah, but by this time the path is bad enough that we're stuck at 40 km/hr, and it seems to be a very long 8 kms, but actually at the 6 km mark we hit a little lit up stall, where three or four hippie types hand out fliers for the next party and have a chat to tobie and tish, and give me a vague wave for the far side of the car, we donate some money (will give more next time) and drive on down, cars everywhere, park, get out, it's *really* dark. We hear the beat, and then see the glowing purple, green and orange decorations through the trees...
mmm... can't believe it's Monday again.
Had a lovely weekend, of course. Didn't do any work - how could it be otherwise (low standards, I know).
Friday evening, went to the tav with the original tav trio - me and C and K (2 jugs between us)... then to the local pub for one more (1/2 pint), then home for dinner (stir-fried snow peas in sesame and soy, with noodles), then back to the pub with housemate and AC, have another 1/2 pint, and the karaoke krew also arrives (Eric and Dave, and then Andrew and Nick and Paul), but then I have to go home to meet Tish to go to some housewarming, see Jesse and friends as I'm leaving. Home, meet tish, to housewarming, which is actually just around the corner from the pub! Well the housewarming is full of people i see at the gym - including a couple of instructors (can't remember their names at the mo'). I meet tish's friend Christina, who's just moved in, and is from Norway, and does anthropology and I think knows Rob too. I have a beer, but after that we decide to move along to another party I didn't realize we were going to, but who a friend of mine is dj'ing at. As we're leaving I also meet the other person who's moved in, Dan, who is one of those people I see at the gym like every single time I go (which, as I'm quite random as to when I go, means he must be there all the time).
First I convince tish to just drop in at the pub (third time for me!), and the karaoke krew is still there, and quite happy, and we just catch up a bit. Off to the other party, we walk in, and the house is full of people, and we walk through the house to the backyard where there're even more people, and someone yells "SIDEBURNS" at us, and i realize everyone there has (mostly fake) sideburns - it's a sideburns party! We got there quite late, but apparently earlier they had a big bowl of fake sideburns by the door for people, some people have just texta'd them on, other's have huge furry muttonchops (some real!), there are a couple of elvis's (full on costume, not just the sidies), there are also a few multicoloured velvet sidies (red and green), and quite a few real sidies. Shane is dj'ing. Paul (ex-Central Ave) is there, so I have a chat. There are a couple of fire-twirlers, who start up just after we arrive. Then someone spills the kero, and there's no more fire :( Emily and graeme also arrive (also not realizing it's a sidies party, but graeme already has some very sharp sidies), so we have a chat (have to explain work to him - urk). See a couple of people with snorkels, chatting, find out there's an underwater party down the street - I like the theme thing... Finish the beers I brought, then tish is tired, I'm reasonably trashed, so we go home...
Thursday, March 21, 2002
have been watching way too much tv this week.
although really, it's mostly been sitting in front of tv with housemate, but me with book and mostly reading.
Wednesday, March 20, 2002
I really like doms.
As in delayed onset muscle soreness.
Although, since that makes me a masochist.
Maybe I'd like the other kind too.
(did a double session at the gym yesterday)
Last night I forced myself to finish _Rogue Planet_, the Star Wars novel by Greg Bear. It didn't get any better. It was just so amateurish, throwing in random space opera-ish tropes, ridiculously simplistic characterisation - I suppose he may have decided to try to write for a 10 year old audience or something, but even so...
To get bad taste from mouth, started more W%dehouse, _The Mr Mulliner Omnibus_, which is much better. Although somehow not quite hitting the spot.
Monday, March 18, 2002
Oh! Other Sunday Morning report - Dreamt I had ground my teeth to bloody stumps, - they were really really painful, I remember the pain as quite clearly real. ALSO, the phone rang at 5:30am (after I got to bed about 3:30am), when i realised it was actually ringing, and what time it was, I of course knew it must be an emergency of some kind and leapt out of bed to get it - but I was too late and it stopped ringing before I got there. They didn't leave a message either. I kind of sat by the phone for 10 minutes, thinking if it really was an emergencey, they'd ring back, unless they'd been caught by the psycho already, but no one did. And then I realised that the dream I'd been having before I got up involved a friend I was with getting rung several times, and him answering his phone - which would be consonant with me registering a phone ringing MY place several times and stopping, and me inserting this into my dream. I didn't know the *10# last number trick, but the housemate did it in the morning, and promptly forgot exactly what number it was (very annoying). Although she remembered enough to reassure me that it was local, and so not an emergency of one of my sisters, and it wasn't from anyone's house who was really familiar, however, it COULD have been someone we knew calling from an unfamiliar place, for example, after having been kidnapped and held in a basement, and momentarily escaping before getting recaptured by an insane scalpel wielding xenotransplantation enthusiast.
Also, I haven't been able to reach my mum, which is a little worrying, but often occurs...
Sunday, woke up before my alarm went off (set for 10:45), had breakfast, read some, checked vid hits to see what crap youngsters watch these days, generally just waited to go out to coffee (11:30). Went to a local cafe, and chatted for a good while, was very nice. It rained, and was nice and temperate. Home, cleaned a bit, did stuff, thought about going in to work and doing some, managed to avoid it and read instead. Then at 16:00, to the beach, but for more coffee, rather than swimming or sunning - actually had an iced chocolate, yummy - and caught up with a friend now living in Londres, but back for a couple of weeks. She gave out chocolate - including Penguins - which I've only just heard are what Tim-Tams are ripoffs of (ahead by several decades). Haven't tried it yet. At this coffee, I also bumped into a friend who we were supposed to pick up for coffee in the morning, and discovered she had actually been waiting for us at a certain cafe which had definitely come up in our prepatory conversation and which we may actually have decided to meet at! :( but all I actually recall is that I was going to get picked up, so I think my brain switched off and discarded any extra info.
C is looking rather natty in full black tie, with waistcoat and tails, although her leather riding crop and purple mohawk are slightly overshadowed by the large shaggy white yeti she has on the end of a chain (hey G! is this your first mention? maybe not...). There's also a fireman and a schoolgirl, a couple of devils, a sailor, an army guy, and some less outre identities. After we've said our hello's, a couple of 30's gangsters arrive, and then three guys in beige shorts and full body paint, sky blue, with a few clouds and birds painted on their torso's, a couple of tropical branchlets sticking out of their sandy shorts, and waves and fishes painted on their legs - very quality bodypaint - from Apparition apparently, good texture and coverage (must keep in mind if I need any).
Eventually, we also end up with a half naked Pan (with exposed phallus), a couple of eighteenth century aristocrats, Zorro, a nurse, a guy in a red sequined g-string (plus red silk robe most of the time, fortunately), a couple more S&M themed people, a fairy, and a few more people in mostly normalish looking clothing.
There was some rather full-on catering, with two actual caterers standing around, getting rid of empties and plates, refilling food, etc. Food included oysters, lots of sushi, finger sandwiches, shrimp, fried chicken, little pastry boat things, and a few other bitesize things which i'm forgetting. Also a cheese platter and a fruit platter - and of course a huge and very nice chocolate cake later in the night.
In the backyard, there were two fire-twirlers, with three sticks and a set of poi between them. One was very good (and also blew fire), the other was so-so and obviously the other guys protege. Really must have a go at this sometime - is very nice.
After a couple of drinks, I decided I was still sober enough to drive over to the closest other party, it was only about five minutes away, so we popped in and said hi and things and had a drink and talked for a bit and then went back to the masquerade - unfortunately we'd missed our group present presentation which included variously kinky things like a gimp-mask, a dog-collar, etc. as well as a proper present, which I can't recall... but the dancing had started even though someone had vetoed the BB's normally quite good (often trance-to-prog-house-ish) taste in music and replaced it with 80's mainstream dancey stuff. But I stiffened my courage with beer and had a good boogie for a couple of hours. Met some nice people (will name names so I can actually remember them later, although odds are that I will never encounter them again, so it won't matter if they read this, although this renders somewhat of a catch-22 if I *do* get to know them): Paula, a dance teacher, who goes swing dancing up to SIX nights a week, she showed me a few steps, but I gave up rather quickly; Andrew, who knows the BB from salsa dance classes (and there were a few more of these dance class people around), although the dance class people seemd to be doing the 'siroc' (sp? I was thinking sirocco, but it might derive entirely different) if anything; and Ella, who's just submitted her thesis (something arty i think - oh - maybe developmental psych)! Finished my beers, and moved onto the rather nice coffee which was thoughtfully provided (real stuff kept in insulated urns), and kept dancing till the neighbours complained about the music about 2am or so. I had to hang out till 2:20 or so to ensure I was under the limit, then gave a few people lifts home. I fortunately didn't get breathalysed anyway, which would've been a little stressful, despite my careful accounting. Home, scrubbed facepaint off (it really did just come off with soap and water), and managed to sleep despite a cup and half of coffee after midnight :)
Sunday, March 17, 2002
Arrive - sensibly, all the lovely antiquey chairs have plastic covers. BB is half naked, wearing black shorts and several studded leather armbands - he's looking pretty buff, and I suspect that showing off his sixpack may have been part motivation for the fantasy theme :) He's getting body-painted by a professional looking lady with a rather large case of paints and equipment. BB's wife is ALSO topless - very daring of her (being a carefully raised conservative private school girl). She's already been body painted as a peacock (with a feathered head-dress and sarongish skirt) and you really can't see a lot more than you usually would with a skin tight top.
Driving on the way to the party, I discovered the housemate hadn't read the invite, and didn't realize it was BYO drinks (which is pretty standard in most circles in which we mingle anyway), and insisted we stop at a bottle shop on the way. Slightly nonplussed - having specifically bought my own drinks earlier in the day, precisely to avoid having to stop at a bottleshop in outfit, along the way - we stopped at a bottle-o, and she THEN insisted I go in with her. With barely a roll of my eyes, I decided to make the most of it, and hopped out of the car. A couple of guys walking in with us asked us where we were heading - I was all for replying "oh nowhere really, how about you?", but the housemate replied with the truth quite quickly, and with too much explanation for my liking.
There were quite a few people around, but we were done quite quickly. It was a nice primer for dropping-in to other parties (a couple of which were in pubs) later in the night if we were feeling so inclined :)
On to the party...
The housemate had borrowed a Cleopatra outfit from a friend, and seemed to take as long over her makeup as I had over mine. So while taking turns in the bathroom, we also rang our good friends E&M in Nineveh, who we've been meaning to call all week, but haven't been home together early enough to do, so had a good chat.
I'd originally intended to also apply fake wounds on any exposed flesh (using red food colouring, tissue paper, petroleum jelly, and cocoa powder), but decided we were late enough already, so I strapped on my horns and collar, and we were ready to go.
Got invited to a sixth Saturday night party on Friday arvo, but it was a general, not really personal invite to the workgroup, so it may not count.
Anyway, I started getting ready for the big 30th birthday masquerade, probably a little later than I was originally thinking I should. I wanted to iron my blue and white striped cartoon animal pants, but we don't seem to have a working iron, hmm. have I really not tried to iron anything for more than 6 months (my last housemate definitely had a working iron)? not really surprising I suppose. I got out my warty latex horns, and my UV-glo blue spiked dog-collar, and then I decided I'd wear a shirt (despite the apparent desire of the birthday boy that people wear as little clothing as possible), and selected a bright red quite fitted singlet which I rarely wear, and which I thought would complement my outfit as a PSYCHO-DEMON-CLOWN. I fortunately also had facepaint, from I think a masquerade party in like year 10 (!!!), a thick stick of maquillage (I'm uncertain as to whether this is a generic name for thick makeup, or specific to this type of white greasepaint), and a finer black crayon type. Essentially, I had everything I needed for my costume on hand already, very satisfying. The maquillage was reasonable to work with, smearing on thickly, although a little unevenly, into the shape of a mask. Once satisfied with the coverage, I dusted talcum powder over it to set it (as advised on the package). With the black crayon I did the vertical clown eye-stripes, which went on reasonably easily, although going very slightly grey due to the white underneath. I also did some clockwork-orange-ish black eye spikes over the outside of my left eye. For my mouth, I was going to do a vertical red zig-zag across my lips and extending out onto my cheeks, but the red went on much too pink for my liking, and the toothy zig-zag didn't really work, so I had to wipe it off along with the underlying white, and reapply the maquillage (which went a little clumpy, which i suspect was due to drying out and talc'ing - next time I'd leave off talc'ing till the very very end). So for the mouth I just did a horizontal black line across the very bottom of my upper lip and extending out to the sides for un ultra-serious expression. Quite a nicely inhuman look in the end (if only I had some slit-pupil or spirally iris contacts) - I hope the photo's turn out.
Anyway, the rest of Saturday was beginning-of-weekend stuff, laundry, buying groceries, checking my dad's place for food dye and talcum powder, etc. Then I took an hour off (in which i should've done some work), and tried to start reading another of my library books - [*embarassment*] a Star Wars novel. I NEVER read these things! Really! But it's by Greg Bear, who I usually enjoy very much (although _/_ was possibly not very inspiring), and I was also worried I was unreasonably prejudiced against the movie-(and-tv)-spinoff genre, and so I decided I should borrow it and at least try it out properly. Well, I've only managed to make it three chapters in, and so far, there's been nothing to tell me my prejudice is unreasonable. The writing is awkward, and the characterisation poor, the imagery overdone (although maybe this is for the benefit of the movie-going-non-readers who may be trying a rare novel, and i should try to ignore it). It *seems* as if he thought he could scribble anything down with little thought, because it was assured to be a success due to the movie-tie-in. A little disappointing.
Anyway, Friday's band was "the Panix", who I turn out to know a member of, and who are doing quite well (JJJ airplay, trip to UK, etc.). Pub was nice. Drank too much.
Saturday morning, I managed to get up, little the worse for wear, and did a double session at the gym (should've gone for a triple, really, but in the circuit, the instructor guy made us do lunges, which I'd just done in the body pump class, and my legs were really quite tired by the end of it).
Then... oh yeah, went to my local (library), returned some books, picked up some new ones. I've just started reading _Intelligence, a short introduction_ by Ian J. Deary - which is a synthesis of important and new research on intelligence. It's very readable, interesting and informative. For example, it summarises the use of identical and fraternal twins in nature/nurture tests (genes correlate in varying studies from 0.3 to 0.8 of IQ, and family environment has almost no effect at all!), how age affects 'intelligence' (we score lower on IQ as we age, but apparently most of the change can be explained by a slowing of our processing speed), and carefully defines IQ vs "intelligence", it has very good references, and the last chapter I read (about half an hour ago, when I should've been coming to work on time) was about using IQ tests (psychometric evaluations) as a predictor for job performance by employers - apparently they're equal best predictors of success (correlation of about 0.51) in a job as well-structured employer interviews (which apparently are rare) - and much better than things like checking referees, or even past work samples. Which is kind of reassuring, if only from the point of view that I can point potential employers to a scientific reference for odds-on support to employ me...
Thursday, March 14, 2002
But don't have real set plans for tonight - am supposed to go check out a band soonish, but tonight is yet unformed.
I really don't understand why more people don't have their parties on Friday night.
It's, like, the start of the weekend, and if you go to a good party then, you still have TWO MORE WHOLE DAYS to enjoy yourself! Way back in the dawntime when we used to occasionally actually throw parties, I always used to opt for Friday night (to the annoyance of F1 who used to work Friday nights).
Dammit - has nothing happened in the last couple of days? did a little work I suppose. Went to the gym a couple of times. um. Cooked tuna and tomato spinach fettucine last night - and forgot to bring in the leftovers for lunch today :(
Monday, March 11, 2002
so anyway. was just accosted by my supervisor as i was entering the building, for the first time in a bit - it had to happen as i was returning from the pub and had beer-breath. think i talked work okay though.
at the tav, everyone was very young of course, but we joined the most empty table there was and met this less-young guy Rory, doing an assignment for his MBA, from Calgary, and we like talked skiing and Australia and shit, he seemed pretty nice. wonder if we should try for a jug every day this week. also tried the foccaccia's which i haven't seen there before - chicken, cheese and avocado, pretty average.
tuesday at the tav is dj day, and some guy was mixing some quite listenable drum'n'bass. randoms were also handing out fliers advertising FREE tickets to a gig in a couple of weeks. it's actually at a pretty dumb venue, and the dj's listed didn't have a lot of attraction for me (used to quite like one of them, but he's gone a bit downhill), but i mean, free... anyway, you had to go to this website and register, and of course, the free tickets are GONE already - bah. now, out of annoyance, i'm going to badmouth the gig to everyone.
dammit. keep mixing present and past tenses in here. conflict between presentation of experiences as alive and happening, and reality of recounting the past...
buh. For some reason, I didn't wake up till 9:40am today, I was expecting to be woken early by the garbo's... made it in by just past 10am though.
Up at 8:30am as me and housemate are supposed to pick a friend up at 8:45 to make it to a 9am cafe birthday breakfast in the yuppie village. We're late to friend's place, but he's only just getting out of the shower anyway, but we still make it to the cafe by 9:05am. And are the first people there - well, the first of the birthday brekky group there. Order a cappucino. Everyone else arrives in two big bunches, and the noise level of the whole cafe increases exponentially. Lots of talking. I get my coffee and get a buzz. I *want* to order chocolate cake for breakfast, but just don't really feel like it. I could probably have gone the lemon-lime brulee tart, but I actually order a roasted eggplant, pumpkin, goat cheese, and spinach panini.
We had a lovely breakfast.
Anyway. Was a good night, although I only talked to one total stranger.
Went back to F5 and M5's for tea and talk.
Then home. Think I was asleep by 3:30 or so.
And after lift home from the helpful B and N, I called F5 and M5, as they'd expressed an interest in going clubbing and since we haven't hung out in sooo long. I thought I probably wouldn't catch them as it was 10pm, and I thought they may be out to dinner or something and then be going straight out, but no, they were home, and just starting to think about heading out, and willing to come pick me up as I was in no state to drive. I felt somewhat ambivalent about going out after having been drinking all arvo, but successfully covered I think, as I *did* want to hang out with them. So I had a quick shower and change, and then they were there, and I was quite happy to see them and we headed out into town, and I felt reasonably sober, or at least not trashed, and we went into a random free club, and they're playing total old skool rave classics, so I was quite happy, we had a boogie, and I saw another friend there and we have a small yell at each other, but mainly just smile and dance.
After a while though, the music goes downhill. Newer songs, trying to capture the sound of the classics, but just not succeeding and sounding bland, plus some newer remixes of classics, which also tend to miss the point, or omit the best aspects of the classics. But a couple of interesting tracks - eg. dance remix of AC/DC's Thunderstruck - veeerrry interesting....
Amusing to see the glo-sticks and whistles out in such force. Don't really go clubbing much these days, but I'm pretty sure that you don't see so much of it at the other clubs around, and it's mainly this one club where they're so prevalent nowadays...
Sunday, March 10, 2002
Lying in the sun with a beer, drying off from the pool. Lots of friends around shooting the breeze. Perfect.
And then there was dinner. Yum, ate too much of course. And cake.
Drank rather a lot (five full strength, plus 3.7 midstrength, say 11ish standard drinks), but it wasn't too much. Low point of day was (rather early) when I was resupplying the esky from the fridge, and I dropped and cracked a can of beer! The horror! The humiliation! At least it was a midstrength. And I drank the remaining two thirds.
But yes. Pool party! Yay! We arrived practically on time, and (after putting the cake and beer in the fridge, and a couple of the beers in the esky), I jumped straight in the pool. The weather was a bit cooler than it has been recently, I believe the Deutsch wall-thermometer said it was 29-30 degrees, although it felt a little cooler due to the wind. The water was a little gasp inducing at first, but was fine once you acclimatized (and the pool thermometer actually reckoned it was a toasty 23 degrees in there!).
Sun, pool, beer, what more do you need? Well, Birthday-Girl brought down some chips and dips and crackers and broccoli (woohoo!). AND a CD player. And CD's. And then N and C and B and BG joined me in pool. And then more people started arriving. And that was all I needed. Friends, sun, pool, beer, food.
Saturday was also very very nice. I got up in time to go to the gym, but didn't. I had breakfast and rehydrated self instead. Then scoured cupboards and found icing sugar and chocolate chips, and went off to B's place to help make a birthday cake for my group of unifriends usual cakemaker (who made a MOST impressive stegosaurus cake for MY last birthday).
I wasn't sure about the theme behind it (a lake she studies), mainly, I think I was worried it wasn't very celebratory or frivolous (as cakes and birthdays should be), but it was very enjoyable to help do it up. A had baked 2 sheetish chocolate cakes, and B (after carefully tracing an outline of the lake's plan view shape - not) cut out the lake from one, and layered it over the other (with chocolate frosting in between). When I arrived, B and C had already made some marzipan to line the bottom of the lake with, which they proceeded to do (while I watched helpfully). Some chocolate mousse served as a floc layer on the bottom of the lake. While (handily previously prepared) blue jelly topped up the lake level. Green frosting for grass, and carefully slivered green snakes served as reeds around the edge. A wool-scourer shed was contructed from wafer biscuits joined with white, piped frosting, and decorated with hundreds and thousands (and realistically labelled "Wool Sc."). C excavated a couple of settling ponds next to the scourer, and filled them with more sludgy mousse. A chocolate wafer roll served as a pipe for wool scour effluent (more of the ubiquitously useful mousse) from the shed to the lake. Another wafer, cunningly carved into a dinghy by C, and an orange jellybaby, gave an uncanny representation of the birthday girl dragging the boat down to the lake whilst on a field trip. Finally, we stuck candles into the lake for the weather monitoring stations, and a little marzipan dead duck entangled in the cables next to one of them. I might even post a photo. If one turns out.
The car trip out to the birthday girl's place was a little harrowing (good work C, good driving B), with the jelly being rather active, and the dead duck bleeding all over the place (well, within the lake, anyway), but we made it. And managed to fit it into a fridge to keep until dinner.
Monday again... after a lovely (subjectively) long weekend.
Friday arvo, after a little while at the pub (of course) - I headed off to a Law faculty sundowner. For $5 I got two free pints (a Boddingtons and a Caffreys), plus cheap ($4) pints after. Ran into a school friend who's now studying law - I almost didn't recognise him, he was looking very gaunt (housemate says it's recent), but we had a good catch-up conversation. He and a group of his friends went to someone's house for more drinking, but as we'd public transported it, it was a bit inconvenient to get home from. We also could have gone to another sundowner people at this one started trickling away, but were quite happy not to - we took the train to the station closest to our place (not particularly close), and then walked through the deep dark cemetery to get home...
Thursday, March 07, 2002
OK, so my dream might be to, like, be a xenobiologist or something, but how would you dress for that? a lab coat? i imagine you'd actually just wear normal clothes while you sit in front of your computer - anyway, birthday boy (BB) just wants wild outfits really (I think) - BB was originally going for a more blatantly sexually oriented theme, but I think was toned down by his wife (poor form I think, or as we might've yelled a few years ago: "THUMB!").
So _The Hundred Steps_ was pretty good actually. Not too depressing, but pretty sad. Poor stupid Peppino. His poor Mama and Papa. Ending a little hollywoodized, but was still glad for closure that the murderer mafia-dude was jailed.
So I have a masquerade party coming up, themed as "your fantasy". Am in a quandary as to what to wear. I have some funky accessories I'd like to use, but no real theme to bring them together. The collar i want to use isn't really a sub-collar, like it has a ring for a chain, but it's like UV-glo plastic. I'd also like to wear my rubber horns, but does this mean I have to go in devil theme? Do cow's wear studded collars? sometimes? And what about my cartoon animal pants - just where do they fit in? My fantasy isn't really to be conflicted and confused...
Wednesday, March 06, 2002
Should I go to the movies tonight? _The Hundred Steps_ only vaguely interests me, but I like the people who invited me and don't know them that well and would like to know them better. For me, 'vaguely interests' is probably the best that can be expected from an arty type movie (excluding Jeunet maybe).
But also have things I should be doing tonight.
did circuit last night - should've done a double, but wanted to see The Simpsons, which i haven't seen for a while - sadsadsad to structure my life around tv, and it so wasn't worth it. will do a double tonight. maybe.
*finally* finished _Three Men in a Boat_ - took me way too long considering how short the book actually is. NB. in between chapters, also read _Worlds Vast and Various_ by Greg Benford, some quite interesting short stories in there, also _Thief of Time_ by Pratchett, and _Curse of Chalion_ by LM Bujold, both enjoyable also... Have just started _Tales of Earthsea_ by Le Guin.
Tuesday, March 05, 2002
-sigh-
"With the death toll rising on both sides, the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, vowed yesterday to inflict more pain on the Palestinians until they agreed to give up armed struggle and return to negotiations."
so depressing...
No caffeine yesterday, but had a little trouble getting to sleep - should have gone to gym. Spent half an hour in bed just cracking and popping my spine with back stretches - quite fun. I don't know why, but sometimes for a stretch of a few weeks, my spine will crack::pop under stretching every time, while during other periods, it won't pop::crack at all.
gargh. just don't feel like going to the gym today. although i know i should. didn't go yesterday. although had danced all night. 54 bpm.
Monday, March 04, 2002
anyway, go check out some Prog House - is nice, but a bit too slow, mostly more a listening rather than dancing vibe, even though the space is ideal for a proper high nrg rave. claire leaves about 4:30ish. some quite funky bits here and there, but eventually decide to get back to check out Rush DJing in the Techno Room (exBerlin). Get to have a properer boogie here. i think legs starting to hurt about now (4:30-5ish). go back to toyroom for some more of steve lawler, gets a bit more danceable, but also has annoying habit of building and building and then when the kick comes (eventually), it's just way too slow... but again, occasional funky bits to boogie too. finally back to metros and john 00 fleming - a bit more bouncy/poppy/clubby. have a dance, but then bump into helen, who's lost john, so we go looking all over the place - way too many stairs - is it like 4 stories? I think so, and quite labyrinthine, so difficult to find people. BUT finally do so, and i decide to have a last boogie to techno - but it's just closed! it's 6am! bump into a raver dude who's name i have trouble remembering - todd? tom? adam? sheesh. freshly red corvetted - looks good. and we head back to Metros which i think is the last place still open, but that's closing up too - blah. run into old raver friend Troy (who's apparently bought a house and is practically married, etc.) and have a chat to him and his friends (May, Chris and I can't recall other one) - oh yeah, earlier ran into Mia (with another Troy) who's back from Denmark and now in East Freo - she gave me her new email addy, which i should put in my addy book now before i forget it (although she picks quite memorable ones, i still remember her old one from like 4 years ago). Anyway, they leave for the afterparty (but it costs like $10, and i've already spent way too much on the night already. So go find Emma and Leonard and Paul and Jo, and we walk over to Simons house to chill for a bit, but we get there and he's not there (or asleep already), so we finish the night, Paul gives me a lift back to my car. Home. My aching calves. Hot shower. Nice.
Sunday, March 03, 2002
hmmm... gossip now out in open and official - my supervisor has a new job. starts in 6 months. i SO better be done here. :P heh. hope he doesn't feel guilty about me or anything, cos I'm actually quite happy for him.
oops. distracted by work.
Jeff also gets a little minimal after a while, and I want to go check out the venue across town (Globe - bleah), get housemate to come for a walk with me and check out the Scratch perverts in the allegedly (33 1/3) breakbeat room, they're very much hip-hoppy. Glad I checked them out, but they weren't very danceable - their stuff was kind of all over the place. Go next door (drum'n'bass room) to check out Ed Rush and Optical, who friends love, and they *are* very good. Have a fun leaparound. Get very sweaty. Eventually E and L and J turn up, and I leave with them, we pick up P and Simon along the way and go to check out the Toy Shop.
Meet housemate and co outside Metro's, we had a convoy into town in different cars, but I found parking in like a second, and then had to wait for aaages while they roamed the city... but:
Two Tribes. Dancing. Music.
DJ Tiesto - hadn't heard much of, but friend quite likes - he started great, but after a little tech hiccup about 15 mins in, got a little boring, Metros too crowded - little dancing space... Hard to find anyone you know also... (at end of night after 6 hours dancing, it also has too many stairs). Has great light system though.
Techno room in old Berlin - luverly! need to use this space more - music a bit minimal, but find some friends there (Em and Kel and Stanton and Leonard and Jo and Paul), so am happy. Am glad I brought my earplugs.
Go to check out Toy Shop/ProgHouse space, which I've been to one party in before, and quite liked, but there's a huge queue outside -ah- Seb Fontaine has attracted the MoSmainstreamers.... So back to Techno Room for start of Jeff Mills - find other friends in queue (N&B&R& new person Marnie?Marcy?darn, forgotten her name). Is very humid inside. Have a boogie.
Saturday, March 02, 2002
Quite nicely written piece on altruism in evolution. I particularly like:
Economics, of course, is a paradigm example of a study that assumes we behave self-interestedly. So, in a delightfully simple but telling piece of research, Robert Frank asked American university students at the beginning and end of a semester whether they would return a lost envelope with $100 in it. Students who had taken an economics course during the semester showed a greater shift away from returning the envelope than students who had taken an astronomy course.
Which shows how
the hypothesis that we all act self-interestedly can become self-fulfilling. If we all think everyone else acts to further their own interests, we will feel foolish doing anything else.
Lovely.
Yesterday, woke up, went gym, did circuit, should've done some lifting, but too lazy. Home, cleaned half bathroom and most of kitchen. Lunch, laundry. Last night had two bbq's. A housemate-friend put up all the food and cooked and everything, was very nice. And company was nice too (despite being mostly lawyers-to-be). Then went by another friends place, who it turns out also put a stack of food on, but couldn't eat any more.
*Guilt* Was roundaboutedly organized to meet good friends at 22:00 to go clubbing in town, but I didn't even get home from bbq's till 22:10 - whereupon I immediately rang mobile no. but could only leave phone number. Hope no one's mad at me. Although perhaps I cramp their clubbing (and pickup) style anyway, since they tend toward different places and music than me...(and sometimes they're all girls and maybe want a girly night, although i don't think that was the case last night...)
And so Spa Party also very very fun. Great spa, fit the seven of us perfectly, there *might* have been room for one more person, but I think it was probably fine with just the company we had. Many settings. Many levels for different heighted people. And I found some Passion Pop beforehand which has many links to spa's in my memory, so that was a happy start to my night. Beautiful night too, quite temperate - although it was freezing when you first got out, once you dried off, it was quite fine.
yes. have some dodgy html in here which messes up on Netscape which is a bit more of a stickler for correct code than Explorer. will fix it sometime. maybe.
forgot to mention (free!) short film fest i went to on thursday night with housemate and officemate and friends. local shorts. varying quality. turned out we were sitting next to the main character in one of the better films. there was much whispering amongst ourselves ("it's him! that's the guy! no it's not. oh, ok. maybe, i suppose so"). but fun evening.
About:
I do: Sciencey-research, but don't discuss that here.
I like: People, dancing, cooking, and stuff.
I am: Procrastinating.
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