Stray to stay?

A poor sweet little stray has taken a shining to our home. She turned up on the back deck, skinny with only angles for hips and probably a stash of kittens waiting for her return nearby.


The cat is incredibly friendly, so she hasn't been stray for long. I wonder what has happened to her. Did her owners find out she was pregnant and dump her somewhere? Did they move and abandon her? Or are they just not feeding this mum well enough so she has to come scavenging for food? Put a notice on the Pets on the Net webpage just in case someone is missing her. Its the lost and found for pets, even the SPCA uses it.

Mean times she follows me round the house and the garden, getting under foot and jumping on my lap at every chance. She'll even sit at the end of my bed for a while and then she's out the cat door till morning. Shes a sweet little cat, if a little neurotic.


Either way I think I have to follow her and see if she will show me her kittens. If they aren't raised around humans it will be very hard for them to ever have a home. They will all need worming and flea treatments. Then the mother will need to be fixed too.

Sigh, well I have been saying a need a cat for a while now.

Here's to mini dates

After scrambling into to town to drop the boys off at the bus by 5:30 it suddenly struck me.
Oh crap. Its less than a week til christmas (chaos!) and we are stuck in the city on a rainy afternoon (bad driving!) at 5:30pm (argh rush hour). Well there was no way I was going to be stuck in a car for an hour trying to get home in that traffic, so I coerced my dear husband into going to happy hour at the Mexican Cafe.


And what a happy wee hour it was. I drank cheap beer and ate cheap mexican foods and we chatted the time away in relaxation while those other suckers tried to get home. As an extra Bonus one of Zeds mates was at the Mex too, and as a Christmas gesture secretly paid our tab. Woot.

So heres to mini dates with my darling husband. Just an hour, away from the distractions and only each others company. It might be coffee, it might be a beer at the local, or a walk along the beach, it doesn't really matter its the time spent together.

lol cat day, thanks can I has cheezburger.

I know I am a nerd when...

I know I am a nerd when............

giving my address I end with Glenfield dot co dot n z.

Printing my photos - What a nightmare

I thought I might get some nice glossy prints. My printer is out of ink and I needed a couple of hard copies of some old photos.

So I load them on to my trusty 4GB usb stick. Ah USB stick, how handy you are, have I ever told you that I love you? Oh I have? Shhhhhhhhh!

Er um where was I? oh Yeah I was at Camera House. I have previously had success there printing photos from USB.

So I go to use the kiosk, But hang on I cant. I actually have to become a "member" now before I can use the kiosk to print photos. le SIGH!!!!!! So I stand in line, chat with the lady at the counter get my nice laminated membership card (oh goodies yet another card for my wallet) and back to the kiosk I go.

So I go through all the steps of entering my 9 digit membership number (oh usability where for art though!) and plug in my USB. Lovely little think starts blinking its green light at me and the kiosk has detected it, but alas!!!!!! The kiosk cannot find the photos. After trying another kiosk I stand in line again to ask if there is an issue with using USB.

Apparently I can only use my USB stick if (and this is only the word of the dubious looking counter lady)

a) there are ONLY photo files on it
and
b) they are not within a folder.

Useless. Kiosks made so easy to use that any idiot with their memory card from the camera can print, but any organised person with essential files and photos within a folder cannot use their USB stick. What a waste of my time.

For some reason this whole encounter left me feeling very angry, I had to leave the mall and go get a wheel alignment for my car.

Taxi Driver Nearly Kills Zed!

Okay its not so bad as that. but it feels like it to me.

Zed was riding his bike on saturday when a taxi driver coming in the opposite direction decided to pull a U-turn. A u-turn INTO MY HUSBAND!

Luckily Zed is an amazing motorcyclist, even though he had no warning he was able to break enough so the impact wasn't too bad. He still hit the taxi though and went down hard. Heaps of bystanders came to Zeds aid and he was able to walk away with only a sprained ankle and a badly bruised body. People who had seen the accident began giving the Taxi driver a hard time, I can understand why, a motorcycle accident is an awful thing to see happen but Zed stepped in and defused the situation. (What a legend, begin dreamy sighs and batting of eyelashes for my honorable husband)


Zed is of course being his usual pragmatic self about the whole thing. The law of averages says a car is bound to hit you eventually if you are a motorcyclist (75% of all motorbike accidents are caused by cars. Yet motorcyclists pay almost double ACC levies in their registration). I guess he is just happy he wasn't hurt more badly.

I am however quite shaken by the whole incident. Its like I have been given a taste of what it might be like to lose Zed to a motorbike accident and don't like it. CURSE YOU CARELESS TAXI DRIVER!

In other fun news.. Neuralgia!

Jeebus, its supposed to happen to people over 30. But with the way I drink my body is at least that!

Anyway mines being caused by some bunged up shoulder and neck muscles. (Probably, a doctor told me)

Its an interesting sensation, its like pins and needles....ah um.. but different (mmmmmm pain my favourite!). All over my scalp. Thrills a minute! Neuralgia my new friend!

Its been going on for three days now and all my nerves are inflamed (apparently, a doctor told me so!) So Voltaren for a week and I must work on my posture and see an osteopath. bah.

Once again $42 (Thank god, its used to be $60! thanks Labour government!) for something I already knew. But I guess I will actually go and see someone about my posture rather than just thinking about it. Hey my doctors opinion cost $42!! I'm not going to ignore it! ;-)

everyday - a little bit angry.

Every morning on the way to work I pass the bus stop on Glenfield road. The weird bus stop.

To me its looks like it has been installed backwards. The seat faces in towards the hill. So if you are a weary traveler and are looking to rest your tired feet you can do so, but you must face the bank of the hill. Which I'm sure is peaceful and relaxing for some.

BUT HIGHLY STRESSFUL FOR OTHERS.... because you cant see the traffic! So how can you tell if your bus is coming along the road. The only possible part of the bus shelter that would be useful as a clear window to the outside world of traffic and buses is covered completely with advertising.

So on cold wet mornings, weary commuters are often seen standing in the rain, the ridiculous shelter unused. It is a daily glaring indictment on the lack of foresight of the north shore city council (water bill $83.00) .

It makes me just a little bit outraged, just a little bit mad. So every morning I arrive at work, a little bit angry.

Top Five Smells - Fresh clean Sheets

One of the chores I never mind doing is changing the sheets. They smell good and feel good, and theres nothing like going to bed on the first night of fresh sheets.

1. Fresh clean sheets.

2. A real nice aftershave on a handsome man.

3. Eucalyptus

4. Baking - Biscuits, Banana loaf, anything!

5. The way the air smells when you sit next to clear rocky rivers surrounded by trees.