ajft

There really is an opportunity here for someone to invent a reasonable way that sellers and buyers can broker a house buying without having to deal with the leeches. Its almost a joke, we looked through the place on Saturday, asked for the Section 32 paperwork to be faxed through today — so what happens? A couple of hours later the agent calls up to ask have I received the papers, and, by the way, they are currently showing another potential buyer through the place RIGHT NOW AS WE SPEAK!

Is there a single time when this hasn't happened? How do I politely tell him that I believe him about as far as I can throw him into a stiff wind? That even if he was telling the truth, it is generally accepted that he will by lying 100% of the time, as much as the law allows, and plenty more when he believes he can get away with it.

...

Friday, time for my weekly treat of lunch at Cinque Lira, the tables are all full, there's one large table with only one occupant. I join him and give an involuntary laugh at the bottle of San Pelligrino water — the juxtaposition of that big concrete bottling plant in the pristine valley still make me laugh. We lunch and chat, John N. Crossley, a lecturer in the Faculty of Information Technology and Monash staff member since 1969! But more importantly, an interesting conversation partner and, as I was to discover, an excellente photographer. The joy of eating by yourself, chance meetings with others who you wouldn't ordinarily get to talk to.

The chance meeting ended with a mention of the photograhic exhibition upstairs, “Composition & Context,” I'd seen the exhibition advertised earlier and meant to go, but as with so many things, would probably have let it pass me by.

Photos from all around the world, the perks of being a senior lecturer! Reminders of some places I've visited, insights into other places I might one day get to see...

It's Saturday, we're house-hunting. I shouldn't even bother answering the rhetorical question above. They talk, they lie, that's it. They have such a reputation for lying, and keep on proving it every time they open their mouths, that everything they say is suspect. The only slightly paraphrased conversation with one specimen went something like the following:

Hi this house is advertised for $X. Yes, but we won't sell it for that, what would you like to pay? How much would the seller like? We won't tell you, what would you like to offer? How about this much less? No, that wouldn't be enough. How about the amount that you advertise it for? No, we'd expect more than that. So you'd expect more than the price that you offered to sell it for? We'd consider the offer.

What a load of #W$%$W%%%@@!!!

We visited about six properties, which seems to be the daily limit before stress hits and brains fade! Some were good, some not so good, one amost deafening in its proximity to North road, then dropped in to visit an auction for a place we'd seen previously. Twenty or so people stood around outside looking bored, four power-dressed men-in-suits tried to fire it all up. A single lone "vendor bid" from the auctioneer, then the whole “going once, twice, three times” bit (repeated twice because nobody was interested), it all ended with nothing happening and everyone walked off. Poor little real-estate people, no big fat commission today.

Silver Ray were launching a CD at the [[http://www.robroyhotel.com/][Rob Roy]], Rob Snarski and Dan Luscombe supporting, in the back of my mind was a niggling thought that there was another support act but I couldn't remember... the Rob Roy's website is no use, just a big splash screen advertising the company who hasn't created the website yet, maybe I was mistaken, maybe I'd been confused and coutned Snarski and Luscombe as two acts...

Pink Stainless Tail. What can I say. Weird, loud, entertaining, thoroughly enjoyable. Simon, the lead singer looks as though he'll burn out and explode right in front of your eyes. Not what I expected, not what I'd think would fit as a support for Silver Ray, but boy did they make an impression!

A long day, a sore throat, a hot smoky pub and a late support act meant that Silver Ray didn't start until nearly midnight, by which time I could barely keep my eyes open. Great music to listen to from a comfy chair, but not so good at the time. After about half an hour I had to leave, I tried to find the CD they were lanching to buy a copy but none could be found, maybe later then!

Time for a taxi home. First taxi that approached had his vacant light on, we tried to flag him down, he sat across the traffic lights from us and turned the light off then drove past with a cigarette in his hand — taxi drivers aren't allowed to smoke. Half a dozen more then went past, all full, at last another vacant one. 80km/hr in a 60 zone, 70 in a 50 zone, straight through a stop sign. All standard taxi-driver behaviour, at least he followed the instructions and took us to the right suburb. Is it any wonder that people hate them?

I nearly had my revenge against the stupid motorists this morning. Typical small courier van came flying past on my right, left indicator on and with the intention of turning left down the side street, he swung out to hook in, realised that he hadn't made it past me and stopped. Stopped half in the next lane right in front of a semi-trailer, whose driver was not impressed! The truck airhorn was very loud, but worth it for the expression on the courier's face as he braced himself and tried to shrink from view. Shame the truck didn't hit him, maybe that would work as an aide memoir for future overtaking manouvres.

Boscastle in the UK has almost been washed away by floods and rain in the last week. All I can remember is what a beautiful and peaceful little village it was when I was there in 2001. I wish I'd taken more photos when I was there. Last night Prince Charles was promising to help rebuild the place, and being filmed in the local pub, I can remember having dinner there, but a lot of comfortable old pubs all look the same.

Clearing the desk this evening and out came a list I thought I'd lost for every, the ubiquitous “Top Ten Favourite Songs of All Time.” I'm not sure how long ago I wrote it out, probably two or three years at least, a couple of weeks ago I was wishing I could find it to see how well it has weathered... In no real order:

• Shivers, The Boys Next Door
• A Song from Under the floorboards, Magazine
• Wide Open Road, the Triffids
• Pretty in Pink, Psychadelic Furs
• Throw your Arms around me, Hunters and Collectors
• Ziggy Stardust, David Bowie
• The Wild, The Beautiful, and the damned, Ultravox
• Far side of Crazy, Wall of Voodoo
• Behind the wall of Sleep, the Smithereens
• Know your product, the Saints

Hmm, no Ramones, no Damned. Ten songs is such an arbitrary number. The choice still stands today, I can't think of any major changes. I wonder how it'll look in another couple of years?

We're having some wild weather this week! Saturday's copped 30mm of rain, the coldest August day in 28 years, and 100km/hr winds on the bay — and I was out on the motorbike going up and down the Monash freeway to work! Today was a very brisk 4.5°C as I left on the bike, foolishly thinking that with the sun out I didn't need the full gloves. First frosts I've seen this winter, and it took until nearly 10:30 before my fingers were unfrozen enough to type normally!

...

What else is there to do on a wet afternoon than to sit around and try to get the cheap old USB camera to work. Previously it sorta-worked, but gqcam seems to have a habit of flipping back and forth between RGB and RBG, or some combination like that. I end up with some rather colourful, but highly inaccurate, pictures like the one at the left!

The blue house is really rather fetching, but nothing like the rather drab and very English council-house looking 1940's semi-detached that is the reality. That yellow taupaulin is especially eye-catching too! A shame it doesn't exist...

Checking back to the last time I fiddled, it looks as though streamer was another option. Ok, now I've got streamer grabbing an image and imgstamp stamping it, all that remains is to upload it a little more frequently than I have been... Must check with my ISP first.

So there it is, Speed-Hump Cam in all it's glory!

It seems ridiculous, but I think its going to be easier to buy new inner tubes for the bicycle by mailorder than it will be to get myself to a shop when they're open. Been meaning to try the place out anyway, some people swear by them, some in the bicycle industry seem to swear at them. Anyway, I've ordered five tubes from [[http://www.deanwoods.com.au/][Dean Woods]], that should keep me going for a while!

A sliver of glass in my new — ten-day old — rear tyre got the day off to a bad start. Rain and punctures, punctures and rain. I thought I could pump it up enough to ride up the road to the shop, but managed to tear the valve off the tube in the process. Walk the bike up the Trek shop on Bridge road to grab some tubes — with no spare I've been riding on borrowed time. The shop doesn't open until 09:30, so I get to walk back home again. I'll know better next time!

Back up the stairs, get changed, grab the keys to motorbike and car and down into the garage to try and start the bike. The battery is going flat, so that doesn't work, jump start it from the car, whose key I had thoughtfully brought with me. A cloud of smoke at last, and I'm finally on my way.

Nearly at work, only one set of lights to go, the corner of Ferntree Gully road and Gardiner road and what's this, two motorists have driven into each other — again. One turning right across the front of the other — again. Two ambulances, a fire truck, the police divvy van and a highway patrol car, flashing lights all around.

Finally get to work, it barely seems worth the effort! Time to go and sit in Cinque Lira, get a coffee and get my breath back.

King Kong is playing on the TV on the wall, Fay Wraye passed away this week. Some students behind me are avoiding their assignment by trying to calculate the mass of the monkey. Looking about I see half a dozen students studying, interestingly, half of them seem to be using their mobile phones as calculators. The mobile phone is turning into the PDA. Me, I'm avoiding work, my personal development portfolio is due this afternoon and I've done so far is read about it and felt my eyes glaze over at the buracratic wordage.

A cold and foggy morning as the dogs and I walked up to the end of the road to try and find the newspaper. No newspaper, but plenty of kangaroo smells to keep Boris and Scarlet interested. Then back inside to warm up by the fire with a mug of tea while waiting for Jo to wake up.

Off to Bungendore for a look around, a visit to the railway station to look through the antiques and furniture, back around the block and back along the Federal highway to view Michael Scott-Lee's photos in the combined gallery and shop. One of these days we'll get around to choosing one of the prints to hang on a wall — a wall that we'll have to get around to buying first!

Back home to be visited by Colin and the first load of three nieces, shortly to be joined by Kathy with the second load! Then most of the day spent being shrieked at and clambered over, subjected to muffin and lamington crumbs and chocolate cake smearings.

...

...

Five days from order to arrival! Three CDs in their shiny box, from the UK to Australia quicker than the local places can even find them in their catalogues!

Now to contemplate how my CDs are listed, remembered, stored, displayed.... Currently there's a CDDB directory, but that's all plain text and I don't do anything much with it.

jersey cow trombones living with 5

It has a certain poetry, doesn't it?

  Police call for text messaging ban in cars
  By Jason Dowling
  August 1, 2004

Text messaging from cars would be banned and the penalties for using hand-held phones increased under a push by Victoria Police to curb the alarming rise in road fatalities linked to mobile phones, one of the state's top traffic police said.

...

Why do we need yet another law? The current law prohibits "use of a hand-held phone."

The current law is not observed by the public, why would a new law be?

The current law is not enforced by the police, why would a new law be?

  Road Rules - Victoria.
  Part 18 Miscellaneous road rules (Rules 287-304)

300. Use of hand-held mobile phones

(1) The driver of a vehicle (except an emergency vehicle or police
vehicle) must not use a hand-held mobile phone while the vehicle is
moving, or stationary but not parked, unless the driver is exempt from
this rule under subrule (3)

Penalty:	2 penalty units.

Note: Emergency vehicle, park and police vehicle are defined in the
dictionary.

(2) In this rule---

mobile phone does not include a CB radio or any other two-way radio.

(3) This rule does not apply to a driver if the Corporation has, by
notice in writing, exempted the driver from subrule (1).

So who needs a new law? Bring on the trained magpies! Swoop down, peck out their eyes, take away their phones and poop on their windscreens.

Confirmation that Spring is on its way arrived this morning, not with the scent of flowers in the air, not with the sight of blossom unfolding on the fruit trees, but with a crack across the side of the head as a swooping magpie [*] made its prescence known. The bane of the cyclist's life in the Spring!

Now if only I could train them to swoop and attack the motorists who yabber on their phones while driving...

Groove Train remains a favourite café, even though over the last few months they seem to have been getting slacker with their service, less inspiring with their food. Maybe its a change in staff, maybe its because the boss doesn't seem to sit at his table in the back corner and supervise any more... he's got a baby now and we see him far less often. Whatever the cause, tonight we dropped in for dinner and were treated to a magnificent meal. Wrocky (sp?) was in residence, smiling and observing, maybe he'd even smacked a few heads. The food was magnificent, Jo had a beautifully colourful risotto, I snuffled my way through a flavoursome chicken tandoor dish with jasmine rice, then even had room for some Lemon Meringue. It all more than made up for the couple of lack-lustre dishes that have appeared in the last few months!

An institution, I have the feeling that Groove Train has been there forever, but on asking this evening I found that they had only opened in mid-1998, probably less than six months before I moved into the area and started eating there. So while I think that the place has been there forever, they think that I've been going there forever... we all take good care of each other,