pick one : jenny/jenga/jentle/jengi/itchy/jk

victory!

praise the Lord for appleworks 6.2.9.

stuff you mac office. you can't screw me over microsoft.

appleworks has all i need for $500 less!! woohoo!

now my fingers are crossed that it actually does have all i need. i just want to be able to open, read and edit excel documents on toffee.

domestic

we get a new oven & stove top this morning. so i have three random people in my house. and had to wake up early for their 7:30am arrival.

so farewell crappy old dirty inconvenient oven and welcome fun new shiny clean oven.

it's an exciting thing.

cheerio

bye bye glasshouse.

powerless

we were blacked out for over an hour today. so, in the initial stages, howie and i went to westfield. but it was blacked out too. as was much of the upper north shore we learnt. it was fun coz there was still christmas music playing throughout the centre, but virtually no shops open. so we just had a walk through out of interest more than necessity.

we walked back to work and played handball out the front, and then had a competition to see who could build the tallest free-standing building out of the duplo-type blocks we have in the office. i must say i'm the more successful engineer.

after howie's hissy fit because of my superiority, the lights came back on. so we went back to westfield. most shops had reopened, although we deduced that the general pants people probably had gone to the beach or something, coz they were still closed.

login

so many usernames and passwords to remember these days. i have a small selection of passwords which are tried and tested, but sometimes i must come up with unusual ones. either unusual passwords or unusual usernames. why oh why must i confuse myself. maybe it's drawing closer to the old '1-2' trick. thank goodness for "Forgotten Password?".

tees

we got fun mail today - tshirts! i got two. they say these things

current affairs

naomi robson's last 'today tonight' is on friday, says smh. there goes half of the chaser boys' material!

dropped

mikey robbins has lost 50 odd kilos, and i reckon he looks great.

before:

after:

tinsel

it feels much too early to be writing Christmas cards. granted i won't post them for a bit, but still, it's not yet december.

not that you could be blamed for thinking Christmas is only moments away as you wander through the shopping centre.

hoorah for Christmas stamps though. maybe everything i post should be written on a Christmas card for the next few weeks. i'm also looking forward to the holidays that Christmas and New Years brings. they are good things. the holidays, and the reasonings.

and in other joyous news, phil and shazzy had another baby boy last friday. if i remember correctly, his name is owen thomas.

disappointment

we were very excited about having pancakes tonight, with lemon and sugar. yummo! but alas, when we got home from church and a woolies visit for other products, the pancake mix we expected to find in the cupboard didn't exist! oh dear! and we don't have any eggs to make our own batch. it will make pancakes all the more sweeter next time.

renovations

i've been feeling bit blerk the last few days. i'm caught myself a head cold. hopefully i let go of it soon.

we're getting a new oven & stove top this week. i'm excited about that. a nice new shiny clean oven. i think it's being installed on wednesday. i'll have to find new storage space for all our casserole dishes coz we lose two deep drawers with the installation. and i'm too short to reach the top cupboards.

oh friday will be a good day - we'll have our speedy internet back.

defenceless

i don't think it is very fair of mosquitos to attack you overnight while you are asleep. we have a mosquito living in our bedroom, quite happily feeding on us each night, surviving swimmingly. i currently have one particularly painful welt on my knee from this creature, i think it's not a fair fight. so i'm thinking of pulling out the big guns. mortein here we come!

ashes record

whatever happened to the first 11, plus a 12th man. i don't think it's very fair of australia to be sending so many in to bat!! england aren't that good!

(from smh)

lemon watermelon

how cool is this!

from here

snip

i had a haircut tonight. just a few cm - feels heaps less ratty. thanks mum. why pay $60 for a cut when mumma can do it for free. took me back to my youth.

when worlds collide

my good buddy justine and my good buddy zoe

audience participation

i like to know who you are. so tell me about you!

name:
currently residing at:
age:
website/blog address:
pets:
occupation:
favourite blog:
play any instruments?:

heat

tis a warm one. i don't think i'm impressed with this ducted air con at home. doesn't seem to do anything.

fans are good inventions.

bushfires are pretty full on things. it's bizarre seeing charcoaled leaves on the ground here. leaves that have travelled a hundred or so kilometres on a seemingly non-windy day. i don't envy the job of a RFS volunteer. but good on them.

tabitha

this is my little friend tabitha and i at damo and jen's wedding last month.

silly season

i can now tick howie off my mental christmas shopping list. i've already ticked off my grandparents, aunt and parents as well.

bonza!

28kps

howie is a happy man. except that we've gone over our download limit and will be running at dial up speed the rest of this month. ouch.

and sam came over today to start our whipper snipper, watch cars, and play with the dodgem cars we gave him for his birthday. i ripped it up.

adventure - brought to you by westfield

today howie and i decided we had to go on an adventure. so we met duckie in the car port

and headed to pie in the sky for lunchies - i'm a man and had a beef pie. howie is a pansy and had chicken

we then took the official scenic route up the coast. i've never driven past brooklyn on the old pacific highway. it was fun and twisty

we decided it was a good idea to go to westfield, and to experience tuggarah westfield for the first time ever. it's definately a westfield. much like hornsby but stretched out. we bought stuff at bay swiss, jb hifi and donut king.

then we headed back the water route, and stopped off for some swings

and now we await the time to celebrate sam's birthday with sam.

oh, and apologies to tamara for again being absent when you decide to drop in! one day we'll be home!!

and i'm not sure of the quality of these photos resizing by image tricks. hmmm... well i'm off to download open office for mac. no way am i paying $650 for excel.

shopping list

i must remember to buy biscuits today.

the number of times i look at blogfeed during the day, this should be a good reminder.

eatery

we're going to my family's house for dinner tonight. i think it's only the third official dinner with my family since we got married.

i am hoping to make it a weekly thing, at least for me (howie can come and go as he wishes). i like my family. i miss them. i miss my cat. oh how i miss my cat. it has been kinda strange moving out of the house i lived in for almost 25 years - but not as sad or bad as i thought it could be. so that is good. i think if my parents told me they were selling the house tomorrow, i might have a bit of trouble with that. but they will be in there forever, so there is no danger.

but i am glad for my family, and all the things that are annoying and nice and comfortable and stupid and funny and silly. they are good sorts.

grimace

i'm sure it's perfectly fine that i have a restrictive pain right in the middle of my chest, at the base of my sternum.

brrrrr

tomorrow is going to be chilly. 19 degrees. well that's chilly for almost summer. what a day to be going to wanda beach!

brokeden duckie

for some reason, duckie decided he either didn't like john mayer trio, or really likes them, coz he won't give the CD back.

it does not fill me with much excitement to see his screen read CD ERROR, firstly coz i want to listen to CDs in my car, but also because if he doesn't fix himself, i have to take him back to barry smith, and we all know i don't want to have to do that.

cmon duckie - give it up!

contrasts

a busker was playing a full size harp in hornsby mall this afternoon. it was very soothing actually.

then as we crossed the bridge, howie got called a faggot by a passing girl because she bumped into his shopping bag.

how's the serenity.

two three

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY FRIEND SAM!!

i love sam. he is bonza. so i hope he has a very happy birthday.

dressing up

i bought a dress today. i thought it would be nice to give my one and only dress in my wardrobe a friend after all these years.

i'm not a fan of all the baby doll type dresses that seem to be all that shops sell these days - the style looks terrible on me. so i feel all the more successful for finding a good dress in amongst all the unsuitable ones.

fashion is a strange thing. and something that i am totally not in.

although, having just thought about it, i tell a lie, i in fact have another three dresses - two formal dresses and a wedding dress. but i'm not often finding they are appropriate attire.

yummo

how good are ovalteenies. many i say.

are you there?

all our wedding photos are now available if you make your own login here, and then go to Jenny and Robert WEDDING PHOTOS (sorry i can't seem to just link to the gallery).

there are a bagillion photos, so if you were at the wedding, it's likely you will spot yourself. if you weren't there, then you may find it a little harder.

hope you like.

sxs

today was sculpture day, after a bit of a sleep in coz of our friends bono and the edge.

we miraculously found a park in bronte, and walked our way around to tamarama to begin the backwards journey

but we started with the king of all sculptures, the melted mr whippy van

and found a fun set of traffic lights next to that (with a bit of a political message)

we ran into our first work friend next to the plastic rubbish gun things

we ran into another around the headland

this was a fun metal thing

and this is the tornado, which is done by the same guy who did the wave from last year. good old scaffolding

these guys remind me of when you watch 4:3 tv in 16:9

and of course we ended up at bondi, an australian icon

because we were at bondi we had to have oporto for lunch. and then an icecream from a mr whippy truck that wasn't melted.

what a nice sunny browning day.

now it's time to vacuum!

my 0.1 megapixel camera phone

bono has been and gone. actually he's still in sydney, and lots of you are still going to see him. i'd say he is worth the seeing.

U2 in dot points:

* hoorah for early peoples who sat around from 9am in the line at gate J. good on you.

* hoorah for getting into the pit

* hoorah for getting within 5 metres of bono (as the below photos obviously prove), adam and larry. the edge was more like 10 metres.

* hoorah for front view of the stage, less than 50m away.

* hoorah for rain

* hoorah for my 600ml diet coke being $4.00 instead of $4.20

* we heard:
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
Elevation
Until The End of the World
New Year's Day
Beautiful Day
Yahweh
Walk On
Sometimes
Love and Peace
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Bullet The Blue Sky
Miss Sarajevo
Pride (In The Name of Love)
Where The Streets Have No Name
One

Zoo Station
The Fly
With or Without You

The Saints Are Coming
Angel of Harlem
Kite

* not so hoorah for incredibly painful back for the whole concert

* not so hoorah for the big man who stood in front of me and blocked my view of anything for the majority of the show

* not so hoorah for dark portaloos

there was much more to it than that - obviously. but that will do. i've decided, for my self, that The Edge is the bomb. more the bomb than bono, if i dare say. i welcome you to disagree with me.

i've also decided that i probably won't ever go to another concert again where i have to stand for a very long time. and where my vertical challengement is likely to be a disadvantage. but still, hoorah for U2. and hoorah for a once in a lifetime experience.

upside down

i would like to be more excited and less petrified about tonight's concert.

mirror project

yay me!

gigs

i transferred some thousands of photos from howie's lappy last night, and even having deleted about half of them, toffee is still noticibly slower. that's unfortunate. maybe it's already time to uninstall some unnecessary software.

pressing on

well that's a bit poopy. we still don't know about the building next door. not til sometime in december now. and things aren't all that positive anymore. bummer. glad God knows whats going on.

i don't much like cooking. i think it is bad for me to think this. it's not a very motivational frame of mind. it doesn't make dinner an exciting thing. unless it is that we are not eating at home. or just having jaffles or something.

but the boys are cute. they get so excited about food. they are all hyperactive and trying to climb out the water. piney is getting quite big. hammy's shell is smaller and much darker. but they are growing. our little bubbas.

tick tock

i was waiting at the doctors for an hour and a half this afternoon. the guy before me was an hour! so much for 15 minute appointments. and when i finally got in, paul said "sorry for the delay" and i said "that's fine" - do you think i meant it? no. but it's the thing you have to say isn't it.

but what is most exciting is that now i don't have to sit in that waiting room for another three weeks. that's the longest break i've had so far, discounting getting married and being on a honeymoon. so a jolly hoorah for a healing thumb (well, fingers crossed).

according to this i'm a pretty crap wife

An Actual 1955 Good Housekeeping article.

~ Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.

~ Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

~ Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

~ Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dustcloth over the tables.

~ During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by.

~ Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.

~ Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.

~ Be happy to see him.

~ Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.

~ Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.

~ Don't greet him with complaints and problems.

~ Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.

~ Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom.

~ Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.

~ Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.

~ Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.

~ A good wife always knows her place.

not so elemental

oven man was friendly. he removed and took the element saying he'd find a replacement one and come back. so i thought, ah well, that was good and easy.

BUT the lady then called me and said that he had tried to find one at their work, and then with the wholesaler, but no one has any anymore, or any that will fit, coz it's such an old oven.

so, i've emailed our home owners, and we'll see what happens.

elemental

i am at home waiting for the oven man. he is going to fix our oven. i hope. actually i don't really hope he will fix it. i hope he will say it will cost many monies to fix, and that we will tell our home owners, and they will say it's time for a new oven. that would be more exciting than just the fixing of the oven.

it's a stupid oven. and stove.

b is for bored.

bargains coming out my ears

oh how i love that an op shop is part of our work.

this is today's $2 bargain

love david and goliath stuff

two wrongs make a right

i do like cherry tomatoes.

howie and i are trying to restore health after eating krispy kremes and chips, by eating carrot, beans, snow peas, capsicum and cherry tomatoes. with some strongbow.

i'm not sure if our plan will succeed, but we'll give it a good shot!

museums, dreams and games

i'm glad it didn't rain like this when we were in the city today, but i am glad that it is raining. hopefully its raining as much in the catchment places as it is here - if not more!

today was fun because howie, sam, josh and i went to the powerhouse museum. it was still fun even though howie and i went recently. we went to the great wall of china exhibit, which was semi interesting, and to the on the box exhibit, which was quite reminiscent. plus we visited fun regulars like isaac, the aus trans video and the space ship. so thanks to alison for the free tickets!

then we got some lunch at oporto and maccas (depending on your persuasion), and wandered paddys markets briefly - my first paddy's experience. now i can say i've been to markets, coz i've been to paddys.

it was a very sleepy day, leading to a nap when back home.

yesterday was fun also, as jo, mil, tom and ryan came over for a bbq. it was good to give the beefmaster a more substantial workout - chicken, steak and tofu - as well as the side burner. we cracked open 'articulate' as well, and jo and i almost ripped it up, but howie and ryan got in the way. thanks for coming over peoples.

beefmaster

what a lovely day for a barbeque!

snap

the rest of our profesh wedding photos were meant to be ready tomorrow, but our photo man has been heaps sick, so they won't be available for another week or so. ah well. i am looking forward to seeing them. i like photos.

passing the time

if you like deal or no deal, have a go!

is it nerdy that howie and i are sitting on our couch side by ride with our blog admin open, typing away, as we watch the best of the glasshouse?

nahhhhh

picked a name

my laptop is called 'toffee'. he already has a label.

we had dinner at my family's house tonight coz it's xander's 6th birthday! and that's a good excuse to eat my mum's cooking... yummy roast chicken and vegies.

so happy birthday xander.

and happy birthday martin!

yippee

debsy gave me my birthday present last night - it's the original magnetic poetry kit! woohoo! now i'm very much more excited about having two fridges in our kitchen!

shattered

the glass house will be no more in less than a month, according to this although there's nothing on the official site as yet, although wil has blogged about it (don't mind the colourful language on that page)

that's so sad. the glass house is one of my favourite shows - particularly after the demise of good news week all those years ago.

there goes wednesday night tradition!

mac daddy

well here i am, FINALLY blogging from my new laptop. this is a different machine to the one i was initially sold - this one has an airport card!

he still doesn't have a name, but i like this laptop.

and i'd just like to clarify for all, that in no way was mac or apple ever dodgy in this whole process, just the store i was buying this from (not an apple shop).

so mac is still all good in my books. but there certainly is a store i will never be shopping at again!