#blog12daysxmas Day 7.

For the last post of 2010 I thought I'd use our Christmas 2010 photos. This year my brothers were going to their in-laws places so we had our family Christmas in 2 sessions.

The first was held the week before christmas at my mum's place in Pakenham. My youngest brother & my two youngest nephews were in attendance.

The little boys were in fine form. They each put an ornament on mum's tree, charmed mum's neighbours at the retirement village, and saved the village from attack by deadly cumquats.

I'm sure the village residents didn't realise that they were at risk from cumquat attack. But luckily Master 5 & Master 3 were there to remove the offending cumquats from the tree & squash them flat.

This is our 'official' 2010 family Christmas photo. It was actually taken in October when my middle brother was over from England for mum's 75th birthday.

Our second family christmas was an early breakfast on Christmas Day with my other

melbourne based brother and his family.

There were more presents to open and fun to be had. My niece got a kinect for their xbox so we all had to take our turn at the various dance based games she also scored. (the damn thing takes really embarrassing photos when one is in mid dance move may I say)

The final Christmas extravanganza was lunch at Windows on the Bay in Mordiallioc for me, my sister & my mum.

This is the view from our table.

It was a lot more impressive in real life!

So as always a fantastic family Christmas lots of fun, lots of food, and a great way to celebrate the festive season.

#blog12daysxmas Day 6.

This was probably taken for Christmas 2003 - our last Christmas Day in Sale.

One of our enduring family traditions is the reading (or reciting) of The Night Before Christmas.

As kids dad always read it to us and most of us can recite it now.

When B.L. & Mrs B.L. were living in Japan B.L actually rang home on Christmas Eve to recite it with the rest of the family.

It is a tradition he carried on with his young sons (Master 5 & Master 3). Although as Mrs B.L. is a kiwi the boys alternate between being read the original version, an Aussie Night Before Christmas, and a Kiwi Night Before Christmas.

I think, so far, they prefer the original.

This year we all recited it Christmas morning via a conference skype call between Viewbank, Elsternwick, & the UK. Miss 10 followed along with the book to make sure we didn't leave any verses out.

#blog12daysxmas Day 5.

Think this photo was Christmas 1973.

By then we'd moved to Sale - but we still made the trip to Melbourne to see the Myer windows and get our picture taken with Santa.

There was a Santa at the department store in Sale (Foard's) but the tradition was Myer melbourne so that's where we went.

I rebelled after this photo and refused to have my photo taken with Santa ever again.

There are many more Santa photos through the years but I'm not in any of them.

B.L couldn't be woken for this photo.

It is also good to see that Row has forsaken the tie for a purple jumper (formerly mine iirc) and a floral shirt.

TappingBetty seems unsure about the whole thing.

#blog12daysxmas Day 4.

Every Christmas Day, after an early Christmas lunch, we packed the car, and the roof rack, and the trailer and headed to McCrae (Section 5 of the Rosebud foreshore) where we set up camp.

For the first couple of years we camped in a big tent on a non powered site, then we graduated to big tent on a powered site, then caravan with a boys tent and a girls tent, and a storage tent.

We would stay at McCrae until the Australia Day long weekend. Once we moved to Sale dad would work at the Long Island/ Hastings office over January so he could commute daily from McCrae.

We all looked forward to the McCrae holiday. It was mainly the same people camping around us each year so we made a lot of good friends that we only saw every January at McCrae.

This was before the days of slip slop slap.

After breakfast we would head for the beach and stay there til lunchtime.

After lunch it was back to the beach until late afternoon.

Then it was queuing at the shower block for a shower (10c for a hot shower) then tea (usually a bbq - dad was evening cook at the beach).

After tea there was cricket on the 'track' - the lanes between camp sites, or for the older kids, hanging out at 'the wall' until it got dark.

If the weather was less than clement then we would walk down to Rosebud to the trampolines.

There was also a regular visit to the Rosebud carnival.

And at least one trip to the Dromana drive-in.

This photo was taken, I think, Christmas 1974/January 1975.

That's mum in the photo with the 5 of us.

#blog12daysxmas Day 3.

My youngest brother was peeved that he wasn't in the last family Christmas photo I posted so here is Christmas 1971 featuring baby B.L. (all of 3 months old).

I don't have a copy of the Christmas photo of him in the manger at his big brother's kindergarten Xmas concert.

The kinder was going to use a doll in the manger but Cam persuaded everyone that his little baby brother would be better suited to playing the role of the baby.

From what I remember B.L. was quite well behaved whilst in the manger....

Once again Row is wearing a tie in the photo...

#blog12daysxmas Day 2.

Think this photo was taken in 1970 - it was before my youngest brother was born (I think this because he isn't in the picture).

In those days we had a family christmas photo ritual - we would catch the bus into town (we lived in Doncaster in those days), check out the Myer Christmas windows, have lunch in the Waltons cafeteria, and then have our photo taken with Santa at Myer.

We were so young in this photo. (I'm the one in the yellow mini dress). Not sure why my brother was wearing a tie.

I think we are aged 10, 8, 6, and 4 in this photo.

#blog12daysxmas Day 1.

This is me opening my Christmas presents a 'few' years ago. My mum and my little sister (TappingBetty) are looking on.

I don't remember my dressing gown but in this photo it looks really cool.

In this picture I had just turned 2 (a few weeks earlier) and for my 2nd birthday I got a little sister.

It looks like I scored better better presents for Christmas that year!

Hawaii five-oh

So I recently celebrated my 'Hawaii' birthday.

I didn't go to Hawaii for it, I went to New Zealand.

Cos I was out of the country for my birthday I didn't get presents til I got home.

So yesterday my mum, my sister, & I went out for a belated celebration. (my sister's birthday is the day before mine, & I was born on my parents second wedding anniversary)

They also gave me my birthday present.

My family joined together and gave me a coffee machine.

They also gave me a photo book - photos of me through the years. It is the most awesome present - the photos brought back some amazing (& teary) memories.

They all wrote something personal in the book as well. My mum, my sister, & 2 of my 3 brothers*, all wrote something about our family life.

My niece and nephews also wrote something as well.

My 13 yr old nephew contributed a cricketing analogy (it is the cricket season after all).

My 10 yr old niece remembered a time she stayed at my house about 6 years ago - we walked to the pizza shop next door & got pizza and then we watched the animal kingdom channel (she loves animals and was rapt to be able to watch animal docos nonstop for several hours).

5 yr old nephew wrote his name and drew a picture of me, and pictures of ghost freak & echo echo (his favourite Ben 10 aliens - he often draws ghost freak, but echo echo is apparently a very special treat)

3 yr old nephew contributed a series of dots (his version of his name) and when someone else wrote Archie for him, he coloured it in rather carefully with green highlighter.

I've spent much of yesterday & most of today flicking through the photo book (and frequently having to reach for the tissues), it's just so special and such a great gift.

* 3rd brother lives overseas and is apparently emailing his contribution to be added to the book.

More Dunedin

Lanarch Castle was today's touristing highlight.

The castle was built in 1871 and has had something of a chequered history (or rather its owners have)

The Barker family purchased the castle (as a family home) in 1967 and still live there today.

Because there were cruise ships in port there were more tours than usual to the castle.

This meant I could head out on one tour and head back on another.

The castle is pretty special but the gardens are magnificent (and the views are just awesome).

There are nine different gardens which are all spectacular and all worth seeing.

This is the patterned garden.

Although the weather was still overcast (and a little drizzly) it didn't stop me from exploring the gardens thoroughly.

Once again took heaps of pictures.

Today was Taieri Gorge Railway day. The train left at 9.30 and was pretty full (there were a couple of cruise ships in port).

The morning had dawned overcast, and a bit drizzly, not ideal scenic viewing but it didn't really matter too much.

The train travels over some spectacular railway bridges and viaducts - I staked a position on a viewing platform and didn't move for the entire journey (didn't want to lose my position - I had the windswept hairstyle to prove it)

Took heaps of photos which I need to sort through and upload to flickr.

Back to Dunedin in early afternoon and headed back to the hotel to try and tame my hair (couldn't so picked up hat instead) then went to check out the exhibitions at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery.

Ran out of time to see the exhibitions so will try and go back later.

Dunedin

Happy Birthday to me.

My %)th birthday dawned bright and sunny (and two hours earlier in NewZealand).

I treated myself to a rather spectacular cooked breakfast and then headed to see the butterflies at the Otago museum.

Yummy morning tea or lunch of green tea with lime & and a savoury muffin at the museum before heading across the road to the University of Otago Library to see their exhibition of pulp fiction.

Checked out the world's steepest street (Baldwin Street) before heading back into town for a hot chocolate from chocolat (& coconut ice).



Also treated myself to a pair of new shoes (just because) before joining some friends for an Indian meal. (Awesome rogan josh)

Christchurch to Dunedin.

It was difficult to leave my palatial digs at the Holiday Inn in Christchurch but I had to cos the bus to Dunedin was picking me up at 7.45 am.

The bus ride was uneventful - we stopped for lunch at Oamaru and we arrived in Dunedin at 2.30pm.

My hotel was further away from Dunedin station than I expected so (I should have got a cab) it was a longish walk for me & my suitcase.

The Mercure hotel in Dunedin is in a heritage building (well the front half of the hotel is) and my room was tucked under the eaves on the seventh floor.

To get to my room I have to take the heritage lift which is a manual lift (you know with the gates) - scary.

In this photo my room is in (or under) the topmost centre window.

Dumped my bag and headed out into the big wide world of Dunedin.

By the way HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAPPINGBETTY

Christchurch - Day 2

Up bright and early this morning and headed for Cathedral Square where I started the day with a rather delicious breakfast at the Cathedral coffee shop. (french toast with banana, crispy bacon, & maple syrup.)

There was a craft market in the square so I checked it out before heading for the Arts Precinct and the market there.

And wow, what a market. I think my credit card almost melted.

I did a fair bit of Christmas shopping at the woodcraft gallery - a wooden scarf knitter (sort of like a knitting nancy but a rack rather than a tube); a cotton wheel racer & a pompom maker for young cousins overseas; jewelry boxes for myself & my sister, etc etc etc.

And there is of course the fudge cottage...

There was a range of international food stands to choose from for lunch.

There were some beautiful woollen craft stands but on a gloriously warm day buying woollen goods seemed impossible.

After a late lunch it was across the road to the Canterbury museum to see "The Heart of the Great Alone: Scott, Shackleton & Antarctic Photography." It was a great exhibition and well worth seeing.

The Robert McDougall gallery (where the exhibition is on) is in the Botanic Gardens so a perfect place for a spot of afternoon tea and a rest in the sun before continuing on with my touristing.

After rogan josh at an Indian restaurant near the hotel it was off to Hagley Park for the Christmas concert in the park.

The concert was great - there were thousands of people there, it was a beautiful night to be sitting in a park listening to music.

Christchurch - Day 1

The flight was uneventful - I was flying Virgin Pacific - & it pretty much left on time and landed on time.

I had just taken my suitcase off the xray machine when the airport went silent as the whole building observed a minute's silence for the Pike River Miners.

Caught a shuttle to my hotel (Holiday Inn City Centre) dumped my bags and headed out to gegt my bearings and do a bit of a reconnoitre of the city.

Grabbed a souvlaki for tea from the souvlaki stand in Cathedral Square.

New Zealand - the game day version

So the great birthday escape began before dawn as I waited on Mont Albert station for the 5.07 am train.

It's the first train of the morning, & this is the third time I've caught it, yet it has never been on time. Go figure.

This, of course, meant that I was at the airport ridiculously early but gave me plenty of time to a) earn 2 dollars helping an american lady find where to check in (she was queueing to check in international but her flight was actually domestic.

It also gave me time to bump into a couple of people I used to work with - Michael B & Patti M.

Eventually however i checked in & headed through passport control to the duty free that lay beyond.

There is work going on so it was a quite a trek between the 2 duty free shops but i managed to purchase some food for the journey so i was happy.

Then it was on to the plane & off to Christchurch.

Thank G for holidays

Well I had the day from hell at work today. So crappy that working at Macca's seems preferable.

Now I need to get the hurt & upsetness out of my system cos tomorrow I'm going to New Zealand for 12 days.

Holidays - yeeeeeesssssss.

I cannot wait.

Still need to pack & find my passport (minor details) but I'm almost there.

New Zealand here I come.

Day 3 - fave food

Hmmm.

Savoury - crispy bacon (definitely #1)

Sweet - chocolate.

Other favourites in the food department.

Vegetable - potato

Fruit - banana

Meat - no favourite

Takeaway - pizza

Indian dish - rogan josh

Chinese dish - dumplings or peking duck pancakes

Pasta - gnocchi

Pizza - aussie, or margherita

Dessert - chocolate mousse, lemon meringue pie

Icecream - chocolate or vanilla (or a magnum gold)

Lolly - pineapple lumps

Soft drink - pepsi max

Hot drink - white hot chocolate, flat white (coffee), apple & cinnamon (herbal tea)

Day 2. Fave animal.

My fave animal - thats a tough one.

We had dogs as pets when I was growing up.

Our first dog was called peanuts.( labrador)

Then came Andrew (also a golden lab)

Then last up was Murray (known to all & sundry as Murray Dog Malcolm after the little girl next door nicknamed him that)

My niece has a dog called maggie, my two youngest nephews have 2 cats called Soda Pop & Chilli.

Yet outside of pets I think my favourite animal is the giraffe, or penguin. If I'm at the zoo it's the giraffe, if I'm at the aquarium it's the penguin.

30 day drawing challenge -Day 1

The part of me that can't draw to save her life is taking part in the 30 day drawing challenge.

As my drawings won't be recognisable I'm going to blog the challenge as well.

Therefore Day 1. Me.

I'm a librarian.

I'm 5ft 3 (don't know what that is in metres)

I have dark hair & greeny hazel eyes.

I love musical theatre, chocolate & reading

I've got 1 sister & 3 brothers.

I've got 3 nephews & 1 niece.

I think that's all for today.

Sydney return

So I did something that I thought was decadent, extravagant but turned out to be quite normal...

On Wednesday morning:

I caught the 5.06 am train from Monty to Southern Cross/Spencer Street.

I caught the 5.45 am Skybus from Southern Cross/Spencer Street to Melbourne airport.

I caught the 6.45 Tiger flight from Melbourne to Sydney.

I caught the 7.15 pm Tiger flight from Sydney to Melbourne.

I caught the 9.40 pm Skybus from Melbourne airport to Southern Cross/Spencer Street.

I caught the 10.10 pm from Southern Cross/Spencer Street to Monty.

Why?

Why not?

I got $30 each way airfares and arranged to meet a good friend in Sydney for lunch.

Whilst $60 for airfares & $51 for skybus/airtrain added an extra $110 to the lunch bill it was definitely worth it.

Surprisingly I was not the only person on the plane doing Sydney return in the one day (and I don't mean just business types either)

The elderly couple seated next to me on both flights - they went to Sydney to go to an exhibition. (humorously it turns out I went to primary school with their daughter)

The family sitting behind us went to Sydney for a day's shopping. There was at least a dozen other people on both flights that didn't seem to be travelling for business.

It was a fun day, a long day, and a tiring day. I think i'll do it again one day.

October show and tell - the test drive

Having been unable to put a positive spin on September! I've decided to have a go at the October Show and tell digital storytelling project.

This is my test run....

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Sidderknee day 1

For some reason i had booked a ridiculously early flight and checked with metlink as to which train i needed to catch to connect with the skybus to the airport.

As always they gave me 3 options. The first had me catching the last train LAST NIGHT, the 2nd had me catching the first train this morning (5.07) or the 2nd train this morning (5.22).

So i decided to take the middle option & catch the 5.07.

So far so good. Only the 5.07 was delayed 20 minutes, & the 5.22 was delayed 10 minutes. Still i made it to the airport in time for my flight & that was the main thing.

Due to an uber crappy last couple of hours at work yesterday i was too upset to sleep last night so it was a tired & emotional little vegemite who dumped her suitcase at the hotel & headed to guylian for coffee, chocolate, & chocolate.

After that it was a pass thru the opera house to a shady, sunny, spot in the botanic gardens where i alternately tried to read (Common lawyer by Mark Giminez) or doze.

Dumplings for tea (of course) and i think an early night will be in order.

I can haz a fipad (or an ipatch)

For the past few months I've been convincing myself that I don't need an ipad.

*ebooks - I already have a sony ereader (that I love)

*lightweight carry anywhere internet machine - I already have an eeepc (that I love)

*music, games & pretty much everything else - I have a itouch which I use constantly

So yesterday I went to JB to spend a $15 gift card that expires on August 30. I also had another $85 dollars in gift cards and was intending to buy an ipod dock/clockradio thing (& some dvds)

Instead I walked out with an ipad.

I spent last night renaming it the FIPAD & downloading apps to the fipad.

I rang my brother to tell him I was with ipad, almost 5 year old nephew answered - he wasn't interested so I told my sister-in-law. She called the news out to my brother 'Hey Fi's got an ipad'

Next thing I know Master 3 is on the phone chatting excitedly with me about my ipatch - he doesn't care that it is really a sort of computer he just thinks I'm cool pirate aunty.

Will do a full fipad review when I've played with it more thoroughly.

I'm taking it to sidderknee with me tomorrow so that will give it quite the workout I suspect.

I now have more internet capable gadgets than I have rooms in the flat.

Arrr Captain Feathersword.

Melbourne Aquarium

So I took messrs 3 & 4.5 to the aquarium.

Mr 3 staged a sit in in the foyer of the aquarium - he just sat in the middle of the floor while I organised the tix.

First stop was the cafe as mr 4.5 was starving and wanted a croissant for lunch. Luckily the aquarium cafe sells croissants so disaster averted there.

Mr 3 wanted to skip lunch and headed over to the large aquarium in the cafe - he was more than happy to wander the aquarium on his own - and was quite disgruntled when I insisted he stay with us.

After eating we wandered the aquarium. The boys loved the 'tunnels' (their word) where the fish swim over the ceilings.

But the big hits were the penguins.

The boys loved them. Mr 4.5 adopted one penguin and followed him round the enclosure. Mr 3 darted from glass pane to glass pane watching the penguins swimming, playing or just standing there.

After an ice cream break mr 3 wanted to go back to see the penguins (which we did) and he would still be there now if mr 4.5 hadn't wanted to go home.

Day 31

Yesterday would have been my dad's 74th birthday so last night most of the family went out to dinner.

We dined at the Manningham Club - formerly the Victorian home of the Brisbane Lions (it used to have a lot of the Fitzroy Football Club's memorabilia displayed - hence dad used to enjoy dining there)

In attendance were my mum, myself, my sister, two of my brothers,one of my sisters-in-law, and my three nephews (12, 4.5, practically 3), and my dads brother & sister-in-law.

Missing were my other brother (he lives in England so Bulleen is a bit of a commute), my niece (holidaying in Yinnar) and a sister-in-law (prior engagement)

On Wednesday nights there is a guy called Andy (Andy's antics) hired to entertain the kids so while the adults sat & chatted & caught up the littlest nephews were playing poison ball, having car races, seeing magic tricks etc.

Funny moment was when practically 3yr old showed us how he could pull a 50 cent piece from his ear.

It was a good evening - it was great to catch up with my aunt & uncle; the food was good and the company superb.

Dad would have enjoyed it.

Day 30

So I made it.

30 days.

30 blogposts.

I've learnt a lot while taking part in this challenge.

I've had to be disciplined - it would have been easy to skip a day or two.

I've had to think - of things to blog about, of memes to meme about, of items of interest in the library world

My rss feeds have gone through the roof - as I follow my fellow #blogeverydayofjune bloggers and get links to other bloggers from them.

I've felt at various times - inspired, amused, envious, part of a community, befriended, and a thousand and one other emotions.

It's 'fleshed' out some of the people I follow on twitter - I've learnt more about them and their jobs and their lives than I knew from their tweets.

I've got ideas and thoughts to follow up on - things for my job, things for a job I don't have yet, things for a job I want.

I've learnt a lot - there are a lot of 'thinkers' in the group - my mind is buzzing, my To Do list is full of websites to visit, software to investigate, and information to ponder, read & inwardly digest.

But most of all it's been fun.

Will I keep blogging?

Yes - perhaps not every day, but I am setting myself the target of updating each of my blogs on a weekly basis, which, if I include work blogs, will probably average out to one blog post a day but at least I know I can do it.

The End (or The Beginning)

30 things in 30 days

Thanks to @Sophiemac for this...

30 things I did in June besides blog every day.

1. Bought a MacBook

2. Uploaded my first ever youtube videos

3. Went to Hobart (Richmond, Salamanca market)

4. Thought about 'self-funding' Alia access 2010.

5. Read 22 books

6. Went to a 'downloadables' seminar (& got into trouble for going to said seminar)

7. Decided I don't like my job (see #6)

8. Organised 2 author talks

9. Decided on my 5 favourite books

10. Wrote an op. ed piece on the difference between favourite books and best books

11. Took my youngest nephews on an 'after dark' adventure

12. Started knitting a blanket (lots of tension squares, all different patterns)

13. Made a donation to Peter Mac in memory of my dad

14. Got my hair cut (new hairdresser - same salon)

15. Found out that a cousin (who is exactly 2 weeks older than me) has a tumour on the pituitary (sp?) gland.

16. Did two desk shifts at Camberwell

17. Changed a light globe

18. Broke the smoke alarm

19. Decided I wanted to learn to crochet

20. Bought 5 dvds

21. Re-read Mary Grant Bruce's Billabong series

22. Bought too may books from Book Depository

23. Became addicted to Toddlers & Tiaras on Foxtel

24. Went to the theatre (x 4)

25. Took 8 (garbage) bags of donations to the op shop

26. Renewed my membership to the Fitzroy Brisbane Football Club Historical Society

27. Took my mum out for a counter lunch - just because

28. Found my pinking shears (missing for over a year)

29. Competed (badly) in the World Quizzing Championships

30. Having dinner with my family (and my dad's brother's family) to 'celebrate' what would have been my dad's 74th birthday (tomorrow)

Only one post to go...

Day 28

So I've somehow made it to day 28. It's been an experience!

I must admit I've had to be disciplined (no bad thing) to blog each day which will hopefully stand me in good stead.

With 5 blogs of my own that I contribute to; and 2 work blogs (plus possibly another couple) if I can write one blog post a day and alternate between home & work blogs I could easily be updating each blog regularly.

Perhaps that should be my goal for the 2010/2011 financial year?

Remembering dad.

At 12.30 am this morning it was exactly 5 years since my dad passed away.

On Christmas Eve 2004 he was diagnosed with three types of cancer: thyroid - easily treatable; bone - a tumour on the spine that could be controlled with radiation therapy; and lung .

The lung was the most worrying as his father & 2 of his uncles had died of it.

Dad started treatment at Peter Mac just after Christmas - me, my sister & 2 of my brothers organised a roster among ourselves to drive mum & dad to and from Sale, and to and from wherever they were staying in Melbourne to Peter Mac.

My England based brother came over for a quick visit in early march 2005 - dad was on a real high then - he looked amazingly fit & healthy.

Then a little over 2 weeks later dad was in Peter Mac & we were told he wouldn't be coming home.

But he did.

His condition started to deteriorate in late June and we organised for England brother to come back. We kept telling dad "Cam will be home tomorrow morning, Cam will be home tomorrow morning"

Dad made it to tomorrow morning but passed away before Cam arrived home.

I've blocked a lot of that time out of my memory but there are some things that stand out.

My youngest brother & I leaving Sale @ 2.30 am to drive to Tullamarine to pick up England brother knowing that he was too late.

That drive - it was extremely foggy - we couldn't see anything through the fog - we were tired, emotional and (with hindsight) should not have been driving.

Breaking the news to England brother.

Calling in at sister's house & brother's house @ 5 am to pick up clothes etc for funeral. Neighbour of brother called police when he saw two people enter brother's house & emerge 20 minutes later with suitcase.

Now, five years on, I look back on the memories & treasure them - dad was always there for us. If we were involved in something then dad was there cheering us on.

When my (then) 4 year old brother was told he was too young to join the under 10 footy team (the youngest team) dad and a mate started an under 7 team and a football club (which went on to produce several AFL players).

When the family moved to Sale dad's Saturdays were spent trying to watch my sister & I play netball before heading off to the football (where he was usually coach/runner/statistician for my brothers' teams).

He MC'd the calisthenics concerts (mum taught calisthenics in melbourne & in sale).

He was at various times President of the Sale Football Club, President of the Sale Cricket Club, on the committee of the Sale Basketball Association, Araluen PS's parents committee, Sale High's parents committee. He was a founding member of the Doncaster Heights Primary School committee (not to mention again the Doncaster Heights football club).

Then there was his 49 years & 10 months as a Freemason (both in Melbourne & in Sale).

His long term devotion to the Fitzroy Football Club (despite his favourite cousin playing in several premierships in the 1950s for Melbourne).

His unique collection of McCallum Whisky memorabilia (which was written up in several publications here and overseas)

But most of all he was Dad and I still miss him.

Bruce Robert Malcolm. June 30, 1936 - June 27, 2005.

winter shopping in Melbourne

So I ventured into the city today to buy a new laptop. (The city cos I have giftcards/vouchers from David Jones, Myer, JB & Officeworks - & I knew i could find them all in the city)

My current laptop was purchased at Big W some 4 years ago and whilst still an an absolute workhorse and brilliant pc it's down to less that 5gb hard disk space free (& that's after I've shifted absolutely everything I can think of to an external drive). When the new laptop arrives this one will become an open source machine (big brother or sister to the eeepc).

However whilst I did shop successfully I did not buy a laptop.

Instead I bought a new doona & some new flannelette sheets. Perfect for the chilly Mont Albert winters.

Tomorrow I will buy laptop (or new slippers - who knows?)

Sesquicentenary - 5 favourite books

The liberry service wot employs me turns 150 soon.

As part of the sesquicentenary celebrations we are compiling a list of favourite books and are asking borrowers to nominate their 5 favourite titles.

So I got to thinking what are my five favourite books.

It's tricky - do i nominate kids books?

Seven little Australians
Ballet shoes
Magic faraway tree
Billabong's daughter
Five go off in a caravan

Crime books? (British setting)

Greenway
Chalon Heads
Gaudy night
Ten little niggers (and then there were none)
Death at the dolphin

Crime books? (American setting)

Murder on the run
If ever I return pretty peggy o
Murder in the dog days
Black Ice
Black echo

Non fiction?

One L
Q's legacy
Moneyball
Penguins stopped play
Pitch invasion

Then there's biography/autobiography, organising, sport, music, computer books, ebooks, books i've borrowed from the library, books i own, books about books.

So many choices, so little time.

But I have to decide soon.

Entries close tomorrow.

By the way I cop a lot of flak because of my love for the word sesquicentenary


sesquicentenarysesquicentenarysesquicentenarysesquicentenarysesquicentenary

so there!

what a difference a day makes...

This time last night I was lamenting the lack of internet at chez tapsister.

The only web access i had was via my phone (in other words hardly any, very slow access) so it was difficult to follow the spill hashtag on twitter (strangely my netbook doesn't have a hash key).

So I was reduced to getting my political news from the 24 hour news channel on foxtel - so not the same as twitter!

So 24 hours later a lot has changed. I have internet access again.

We have a new Prime Minister. (Julia Gillard - elected unopposed)

We have our first woman Prime Minister. (Julia Gillard)

Kevin Rudd gave a very emotional press conference.

What will the next 24 hours bring?

day 23 - fail wail

So the interweb@ chez tapsister was cactus last night (& this monring) so day 23 of #blogeverydayofjune did not happen.

Hopefully the interweb will redeem itself tonight & I can catch up on the blogging otherwise I don't know what will happen!

Day 22 - Music Meme

nabbed from @fionaweb et al

1. Open your library (iTunes, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that’s playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool!

Opening Credits: Creep (G4)G4 were runners up in the UK series X factor back in 2004/2005. My brother brought their first album with him when he came home for a visit & we all loved it. They are a group of classically trained singers (Think Il Divo).

Waking Up: Staying Alive (Bee Gees)

First Day At School: Mockingbird (Johnny O'Keefe)

Falling In Love: Let me finish (Denise Van Outen - from the musical Tell me on a Sunday)

Fight Song: Stop the cavalry (Jona Lewie)- classic 80's

Breaking Up: Big Time (Lottie & Company from the musical Mack & Mabel.)

Prom: Crocodile Rock (Elton John) One of my favourite songs of all time)

Life: Merry Christmas Maggie Thatcher (from Billy Elliot the Musical)

I guess it's fairly obvious I'm a child of the 70s/80s and a musical theatre tragic.

Tapsister does Tassie - day Two

The Salamanca market is probably a Hobart 'must visit' so we got an earlyish (7.45 am) start and an excellent car park at the top of the market which gave us an opportunity for a quick walk through to check out the stalls as they were setting up and a yummy french toast breakfast at Rendezvous cafe before shopping the market proper.

Hmmm where to start.

It was a sunny morning -so perfect shopping weather. We'd arrived armed with a list of things we *had* to buy for ourselves (and for others).

Mainly mongrel socks it would seem and/or Federation chocolate. A wire necklace for cousin Eilidh, chocolate honey, vanilla honey, ideas for mum's retirement village craft club.

Some birthday presents, a wedding present - the list went on and on.

So what did we buy?

Mongrel socks (toasty warm) Federation Chocolate (Apple)

And lots of other stuff (including chocolate dipped musk sticks - yum)

After the market we headed for the Mount Nelson Signal Tower & lookout for lunch and superb views across Hobart, then it was back into town to the Cenotaph and then on to the Botanical gardens where there was an old-fashioned Merry-go-round which bought back lots of childhood memories.

Tapsister does Tassie - day One.

So TappingBetty & Tapsister arrived in Hobart Town at 7.20 am yesterday morning (yes there is a 7.30 am when on holiday - who knew?)

After a delicious breakfast at the Smith St store cafe, and a quick flyby the Cadbury factory (seriously folks did anyone think we wouldn't hit the Cadbury factory?) we headed for Richmond.

When we were in Tassie last year we'd driven through Richmond on the way to Port Arthur it was early & nothing was open but we'd heard good things about it so this time we made sure we were there when it was open.

This was possibly a mistake - Richmond is full of interesting arts & crafts shops. I could have spent a small fortune in the wood shop - some exquisite woodwork using local timbers.

There were several galleries showcasing local artists in a variety of media (lovely glass work, unique jewellery) not to mention the handcrafts. (How many hand knitted/crocheted/felted mittens, scarves, gloves, hats, handwarmers, legwarmers do two sisters need?)

My sister went to zazzle & all i got was this t shirt!

This is a 'cheat' post cos when this turns up in your rss readers I'll be in Hobart (escaping Melbourne's winter weather?)

My sister bought me this t shirt recently while my teeth & I were recuperating at her house.

I love it.....

Card Cubby

Some of you may be aware that I am a huge fan of organising books (that's books about being organised not books about cataloguing!)

This love of things about organisation includes blogs & products (I should point out that I am not super organised in real life despite the interest!)

I also have a sister-in-law who is a professional organiser.

So here is my latest purchase...

The Card Cubby

Card Cubby® is a stylish, alphabetized mini-card file that fits right into your purse, briefcase, baby bag or car console!

The Card Cubby® measures 5" wide by 3" high and 2" deep!

NEW- Card Cubby now has an inside zipper for money and change!

Use your Cubby to Alphabetically File:

• Gift Cards
• Coupons (Fold and File)
• Frequent Buyer Cards
• Discount Cards
• Business Cards
• Player Cards
• Important Contact Info
• Insurance Cards
• And on and on...

Room for most cell phones, iPods and small cameras!

Put your Drivers License in the clear pocket, some cash and credit cards inside and use as a wallet!

I bought mine on ebay and I love it, love it, love it.

Just the thought of having my cards in alphabetical order & easily accessible makes me happy.

Okay I'm a strange, weird tapsister.

Apologies for tardy posting -Day 16.

My Day 16 post #blogeverydayofjune was delayed due to circumstances beyond my control...

On Tuesday I received an email from my ISP informing me that they'd merged with another ISP and I had until Monday 21st June to migrate to a new plan or decline the offer and make my own arrangements.

Given that I was happy with my old ISP & the new ISP (who my geek neighbours use) came highly recommended (and I was pretty much too lazy to do much more than basic due diligence) I opted to migrate to an adsl2+ plan which suited my usage & budget.

So far so good. Once I'd made the decision and filled in the online forms I was told that I would be migrated in 1-5 days and the down time would be between 45 minutes & 4 hours.

So last night I apparently migrated.

Don't know how long I was offline for but it was more than 2 hours so that's my excuse for no Day 16 post.

Please forgive me.

Day 15 - the tv meme

Sorry guys, lacking inspiration today so am meme'ing.

Do you snack while watching TV?

Yep - current favourite is/are banana smoothies

What is your favourite TV show?

Don't have a current favourite although "Toddlers & Tiara's" is almost a must-see (it's like watching a train wreck -I can't look away)

What TV show makes you run to change channels?

Current Affair, Today Tonight, most reality tv shows (except Location, Location & Property Ladder)

How do you view your TV guide: online, on-screen, newspaper, magazine, other?

Usually the online guide

Have you ever been surveyed for your TV-viewing habits or do you know anyone who has been?

Yes - although my sister now works for Neilsen so that usually rules me out

Do you watch TV news and/or current affairs regularly?

ABC news if I'm home

.Do you watch any TV “soaps”? (Truth please, even if it is embarrassing.)

Is NCIS a soap?

What other series shows do you try not to miss?

NCIS, Numb3rs, Without a trace, Spicks & Specks, Cold case, Good News Week

Sport: any Major League Baseball games, gymnastics, basketball

Any previous series or shows you really liked?

Drop the dead donkey, Vicar of Dibley, Homicide life on the street, Hill Street Blues, West wing, Frasier, Cardiac Arrest, (early/classic) Bill,

Do you have pay TV or are the digital channels enough?

Foxtel

Do you only watch certain TV shows online?

NCIS, Numb3rs, Without a trace, on Surfthechannel

Do you regularly use services like ABC catch-up or other online replays?

Nope

Do you ever pay any attention to the adverts?

Only if there's tapdancing cows

Do you multi-task while watching TV & if so what else are you doing?

Most of the time: knitting, surfing the net, reading, housework (okay maybe not so much housework)

Is there a TV show that makes you laugh out loud?

none in particular

Have you ever said no to a social invitation to stay at home and watch TV? (Truth again please.) Mind telling us what the show was?

Nope

Do you record TV shows & if so why and how (VCR, DVD recorder, TIVO, laptop, etc.)?

No (would do but recording function on dvd recorder is kaput)

Least favourite TV personality/actor/character?

Sam Newman, Eddie McGuire, The sham wow guy

Most popular TV personalities/actors/character?

No-one in particular

Have you ever seen anything really memorable on TV (not news/events – made for TV drama, etc.)?

Not that I can think of

Do you prefer TV series or stand-alone shows?

No preference

Is there a specific show you find yourself recommending over and over?

Probably Homicide life on the street. It was written by David Simon (The Wire) & I thought it was better than The Wire.

So there you have it - confessions of a TV addict.

Day 14 - a photoblog

I've spent much of today (slowly) going through my digital photos and organising them (before i start scanning in even older photos) so I thought today's post could be about memories evoked by the photos.

In 2003 my sister (tappingbetty) & I travelled to Europe together.

TappingBetty is a huge Jane Austen fan so a visit to Jane Austen's house at Chawton was, for her, an absolute must.

Almost opposite the house is the Greyfriar (perfectly acceptable pub lunch). As we are both Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School fans - it seemed a logical, if not quite as literary, addition to the day.

A few days later it was Bourneville to worship a totally different addiction.

Yep Cadbury World. What else is there to say?

What gets me through the day?

So yesterday Bookgrrl blogged about what she was carrying in her bag - as I giggled along I thought to myself wow my bag has nowhere near that much stuff in it.

How wrong I was!

I carry a backpack - ostensibly because I walk the 3.3 kms to work (or the 1.6 kms to the tramstop) but in reality I think that I would do my back in if I carried all this stuff in a shoulder bag.

So what's in the bag?

In the main pocket:

• sony e-reader (cos i took it to the ebooks seminar on thursday & forgot to take it out when I got home)
• paperback crime novel (Sheila Radley This way out)
• non fiction book (Digital shoebox) in case I don't feel like reading fiction
• scarf, beanie, mittens (it's melbourne after all)
• smiggle bubble pencil case containing 4 pens, a pencil, eraser, 2 usbs, stamps, gift vouchers & my diary
• headphones
• an A4 plastic pocket containing all my dental info/bills/receipts in the hope that i will remember to go to Medicare & HBA to claim so that I can pay the anaesthetist
• A5 notebook
• Card holder containing blank catalogue cards for jotting notes on.
• shopping bag (onyabag)

Middle pocket

• wallet
• itouch
• mobile phone (Nokia E63)
• headphones
• Card wallet (for loyalty cards, library cards etc.)
• 2 usbs
• camera
• keys

Front pocket

• another set of keys
• lip balm
• tissues
• cough lollies
• panadol
• metcards
• name badge
• emergency coffee/chocolate purse ( just in case)

Scarily the only things that aren't usually in there are the ereader (i either have it with me or books - not both) and the medical stuff.

If I'm on the way to work there's usually a couple of books to be returned that are added to the above mix. If I'm on the way home from work there's usually a couple of newly borrowed books in there.

Now that I've scared myself it's time to go and see what else I can cull from my bag. (I'm too scared to weigh it)

After dark adventure

So I was down to babysit the youngest nephews aged 4 and a half and 3 in 2 weeks.

Master 4.5 was keen to go on a train at night and if mr 4.5 was keen then mr practically 3 was going to be keen too.

Luckily it's dark by 5.

I'd spoken to them yesterday to arrange our adventure. They assured me that they had warm jackets, beanies, and torches for our after dark adventure.

I suggested that extra quiet time friday afternoon might be a good idea(they feel they are too old for afternoon naps). Mr 4 agreed; mr practically 3 did not seem to think that was at all necessary.

I arrived at their house just before 5 and armed with torches and rugged up warmly we made our way to Elsternwick station and the train to Sandringham.

A quick walk around Sandringham and it was back to the station and the train to Elsternwick. Then it was time for our special 'after dark adventure' dinner of burgers & chips @Grill'd.

To make the adventure even more special we had dessert of hot chocolates & gingerbread men at a local cafe before heading home. (at 7.30)

The boys are convinced that they stayed out really, really late and there was much discussion about how many people would still be awake.

They are now planning our next after dark adventure.

Surfing the catalogue

So today I attended a very interesting seminar on ebooks and downloadable audiobooks.

The day started with presentations from 2 libraries that have downloadable audio books. Port Phillip have had the Wavesound (Clipper) product for 6 weeks and gave us an insight into how it's going so far.

One thing that struck me was that it was not a completely seamless interface - there seemed quite a few clicks from the library site to the Clipper site.

Melbourne Libraries followed with their product from Overdrive which seemed to integrate more naturally into the library catalogue.

In the afternoon we had presentations from three vendors - Wavesound (Clipper), Ebsco, & Bolinda.

The day finished with a panel consisting of the three vendors and they answered a range of questions from the audience.

It was an interesting day and certainly got me thinking about the provision of ebooks and downloadable audio books for our patrons.

It was obvious there is no one answer to the question of which product is the best -all have their strengths but hopefully I can be involved in the evaluation phase when we start to look seriously at downloadables at my library.

An aside.

One of the presenters used the term 'surfing the catalogue'. I was immediately taken by the phrase and my mind wandered into ways we could use the phrase in marketing & promotions.

Does it make the catalogue more approachable? (surfing vs searching?) or does it make absolutely no difference.

My thoughts are very much half formed at the moment - I have some ideas that I might play with when I have a moment.

It's cold outside

and it's cold inside too.

I type this huddled in dressing gowns & snuggie - in front of the heater - watching television cos I'm too lazy too put on a dvd (or do anything else for that matter)

I've watched Hogans Heroes (even though I can quote most episodes), relocation relocation (feel very qualified now to buy property in the UK), spicks n specks, more relocation relocation (this time in Scotland with its offers over property buying system). Tom & Fiona are looking for a flat in Glasgow and a house on the shores of Loch Lomond - I'm very envious.

I've also been knitting - I'm basically knitting tension squares in different wools & patterns with a plan to sew them eventually into a blanket (or, more likely, to turn into a pile of tension squares in various wools & patterns!)

Hopefully tomorrow will be warmer and I'll feel more energetic... but then again...

Och aye the noo?

So the munnsterling made me go into town today because I was watching the national spelling bee and so instead she dragged me kicking and screaming to Typo (where she made me buy things).

On the train home we got to Richmond just in time for 'the game is too one-sided and its very wet so let's leave at 3/4 time' crowd to join us.

A woman in full Carlton regalia sat down opposite me and I asked her who had won the footy. She told me and then asked me what part of Scotland I was from.

I looked at her quizzically (or like she was insane) and she responded that I had a lovely scottish accent.

WTF?

Now I do have scottish relatives but I'm aussie born & bred and I'm pretty sure the only words I'd uttered since she got on the train were "excuse me, who won the footy?" (in my normal accent which is pure australian - or so I thought)

She continued to admire my 'accent' until we parted company at Auburn station.

The people around us just looked bemused.

Luckily I hadn't told her my name (which probably would have reinforced her opinion of my 'scottishness'

toothless anniversary

WARNING: contains what's left of my teeth.

Today is the one week anniversary of my teeth outing.

Gotta say it's been nowhere bad as expected.

* Pain - very manageable,

* swelling - i'm 'adorably chubby cheeked' but not bulbously swollen,

* bruising - ok my face has some very yellow patches atm

* eating - have graduated from soup to mashed potato, and don't need to wait for the ice cream to melt,

Still needing a lot of sleep but other than that the Freemasons team did a great job.

Really less teeth now

WARNING: contains self indulgent me and post dentistry stuff.

Back home after 4 nights @ my sister's.

The surgery etc went way better than I expected.

I was supposed to be @ Freemasons at 1pm.

At 1.01 I was ushered into a prep room where I signed the first of many, many forms that said my name, address, date of birth, on the stickers etc were correct.

I also got weighed (fully clothed including shoes & beanie so I refuse to accept the weight listed!)

I also got labelled (right wrist, right ankle) gowned & dressing gowned & met my admitting nurse, theatre nurse, anaesthetic nurse, anaesthetist, and surgeon - each time signing numerous forms.

I was a bit worried that the surgery might not go ahead. I'd just gotten over a head cold and had a slight cough - exacerbated by the no water fast which meant my throat was a little red & my voice a tad raspy. However the anaesthetist made me say aarrh and checked for congestion before saying I was fine (thank goodness btw, did not want to extend panic any longer)

I was booked into theatre at 2pm. And at 1.55pm the nurse walked me into the theatre (with a stop at the warm blanket place for a beautifully warm blanket.)

I lay down on the operating table, the anaesthetist complained that he was having trouble finding a vein on my left wrist. He was gently thumping my wrist while the nurse talked to me.

The anaesthetist said I'd feel a slight sting, the nurse started attaching electrodes (monitors maybe?) and then I woke up in recovery and it was just after 3.15pm.

The admitting nurse had told my sister that I should be in recovery about 3.15pm. They offered me jelly and ice cream (I settled for lemonade and water).

Played thumbs up with young Lisa who'd gone in after me. They let TappingBetty (my sister) in about 3.30 to see me and my 3.45 I was dressed and sitting in a recliner rocker while TappingBetty went to the pharmacy and got my prescriptions filled.

They'd given me local anaesthetics in the sites of each extraction so that my mouth felt incredibly numb and I felt incredibly tired.

Somehow made it to TappingBetty's car about 4.45. In bed by 7 slept thru til 5.30 the next morning.

So far it's mainly been tiredness that's been a problem. i have a large bruise on my right cheek - current theory is the anaesthetist couldn't find a vein so punched me instead.

Glad it's over.

Even more, less teeth

WARNING: contains self indulgent me stuff & dentistry

Tomorrow is D (dental surgery) day.

I've rung Freemason's & confirmed my appointment.

I've rung the surgeon & confirmed him. Interesting aside (well not really).

Apparently the payment form that I posted @ Sydney Central GPO in an overnight express post bag at 9.30 am on Thursday has not yet arrived in suburban Essendon. (WTF) so I've given the receptionist the credit card details on the phone. The $ amount she mentioned was quite a bit less than what I expected and I sort of (in a stunned sort of way) queried it.

The surgeon had written 2 x $900 which I took to mean $1800

but no apparently it means 2 = $900 so an immediate saving of several thousand dollars which made me that much happier (in so far as I'm having 8 teeth out tomorrow can be happier)

18 hours to go.

Have packed my bag - I'll be staying at my sister's tomorrow night - I seem to be taking more stuff to her place than I took to Sydney last week!

Have set the alarm for 6am so that I can have breakfast as I have to fast from 7am.

Wish me luck

More Less Teeth required

Warning: contains self indulgent me stuff & dental fears.

My dentist assured me that the surgeon was 'lovely so I bravely headed to see him. Don't know about lovely but didn't scare me any more than I already was (always a good thing).

He disagreed slightly with the dentist - she had 3 wisdom teeth & 4 others, he went for 4 wisdoms and 4 others - chances were, he thought, that wisdom 4 would cause probs in the next couple of years so it should come out now rather than then.

Then we arranged a date for the surgery (May 25 - 3 weeks away) and he made me sign a forms that I had read and understood what he had told me; the risks associated with surgery, and that the surgery needed to be paid for 72 hours in advance and that it would cost me a small fortune.

He gave me a 'quote' for the work and I made my shell shocked way home...

Teeth, teeth, teeth and less teeth.

WARNING: contains self indulgent me stuff, & dentistry

So a few weeks ago I lost a filling and thought i'd better mosey along to the dentist and get it fixed/replaced it had been awhile...- that was my first mistake.

Dentist looked at my mouth and said 'get thee to an xray machine and have your head xrayed (examined)'

So I did - second mistake.

After Easter it was back to dentist for news. (third mistake)

"Your wisdom teeth have decided to become a problem and need to come out - oh and there's a couple more teeth that need to come out also."

"Oh and you need a couple of fillings"

Aaaaaaaaaarghhhhhhhhhhh

"Get thee to the oral & maxofacial surgeon and arrange surgery cos you're such a dental scaredy cat that you're going need sedation at the very least."