personal political

interview

I think it went well. It was an interview about... I'm not sure what the position is, exactly. I don't even know if there is a position, though I guess there must be or she wouldn't have asked me in to talk. I don't know what the rate of pay is ... because I can't assume there is a position and it's not exactly clear that I'm in the running for any position there might be. She played her cards close to her chest and so did I (though I don't know if we were playing the same game.) It may well be true that there are technical reasons for the delay till she contacts me again or it might be that she's talking to other candidates (if I am indeed a candidate) or it might be that she wants time to consider her options. Or did I say something wrong? Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned D by name when I told that anecdote about the immediacy of the online media world compared to the bureaucratic slowness of the public service. Maybe I shouldn't have been so open with examples from my current place of employment. But I had to give evidence of my experience and expertise if I wanted the ... I'm not sure if it's an ongoing job or a casual position. On the telephone she implied regularity and responsibility but in person she implied nothing. Maybe she didn't like the look of me from the moment she set eyes on me. Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that I don't know much about ... you should only ever stress your strengths in a ... well, I'm not sure if it was a job interview or not. That's the brave new media world for you.

rat (or rats)

I have two worm farms - one at the front of the house and one at the back. About three years ago, I went to put some scraps in the one at the front and uncovered a rat sitting in it - the rat jumped out and ran off very quickly. Ever since, I have tapped on the cover before I lift it up, hoping that any visiting rat will leave before I have to set eyes on it. Rats give me the creeps.

greetings from...

Yes, it's World Youth Day in Sydney - actually, it's the week leading up to World Youth Day, which will culminate in a huge Mass conducetd by the Pope next weekend. I've written a couple of posts about the experience, cross-posted at LP. 

user pays

On the way to work this morning (by bike), I had a verbal run-in with a motor vehicle driver.

beat it

I was reading to Olle this morning (from The Saturdays, a charming 1940s American story) and came to the line where the housekeeper affectionately tells one of the children to "beat it".

"What does that mean?" Olle asked. "That's not a very nice thing to say".

I was really surprised that he hadn't heard that expression before - it's an Americanism that I was very familiar with as a child (from tv programs) and I would have imagined it was still in use in American movies - but maybe not. Maybe it's already an anachronism.

lost and not found

A few weeks ago I lost my reading glasses.

I'm still not entirely convinced that they are irretrievably lost. I wore them last thing on a Sunday night when I was on the computer. I then walked the dog down the street to the nearest tree for his bedtime toilet (about 20 seconds walk), walked back and went to bed. I think I had the glasses on my head for that walk. In the morning, they were gone. I usually have them on my bedside table but they weren't there. It was a public holiday so no one was around when, at 9.30am, I retraced my steps to the tree to see if they were lying on the ground. They weren't. I think the chances of them having been taken by a passer-by are very remote, as it was a very quiet public holiday morning (and besides, who would take such a pair of glasses? If I came across an obviously lost pair, I'd leave them, thinking the owner would come looking for them.)

over 40 motherhood

Last Sunday's newspaper ran an article called 'Better Late' about women who've had their first children over the age of 40. When I went to look for it online, I discovered that it had first been published in the UK Telegraph last February, The print version we saw was the same article but with Australian add-ons - side stories about Australian woman who'd become mothers at 'elderly primigravada' ages.

clouds, winter sunset today

happy bloggers

A few weeks ago I was interviewed by Elissa for an article about blogging and 'mental health' - now her article's been published in The Age and it's a good one - clearly written by someone who understands and doesn't see blogging or the Web as some kind of weird netherworld (as too many journalists still approach it).

best birthday card ever

Guess who? For half a second when I took it out of the envelope, I thought it was Princess Margaret (it was the cigarette!)