I should be writing my resume. I’m amazingly good at procrastinating. If there was an award for procrastination… well, I don’t think I’d win it exactly, but I think I’d be in the top 100… something like that.

My new phone: Nokia 6288. It replaces my old phone, Nokia 7370. Some cool things about this phone: The screen is huge; I can do video calling because it can access the 3G network; it has a 2 megapixel camera with flash; it has a 512mb memory card… Once I’ve played with it a little more, I’ll be able to list all the awesome features.

Nokia 6288
Someone’s going to get me for direct linking! Mwahahahahaha. I’m so evil.

Yeah.

 

Due to circumstances beyond my control, Casbot blog has been down for a while. But it’s back up again, and hopefully will remain up FOREVER (said in a booming, ominous tone). I felt disenfranchised, and I was going into blogging withdrawal. It’s a very serious condition – symptoms include depression, a general feeling of uselessness, severe boredom, and an uncharacteristic desire to log off the internet after five minutes of pointless surfing. The only cure for me was to reinstate my site, and edit all the content that could possibly get me into hot water.

So, what you see here is not the original, but the censored version of the original. It did make me quite sad to have to cut out entire sections of blog entries, but I suppose that’s what happens when you integrate yourself into a bureaucratic society. I don’t think I’m cut out for a censored life.

Yesterday, Calum and I went to Currumbin Sanctuary, on the Gold Coast. As you can see in the following photos, we had a grand old time.


On Friday night, Christian had a dinner at his place and invited me, Lauren and Nathan over. The reason for the dinner was so that Lauren and Nathan could meet Neo. I, of course, have already met Neo many times. I have also been bitten by him many times (no hard feelings, Neo!). Christian cooked a delicious meal of chicken breast stuffed with spiced gouda and avocado, and wrapped in prosciutto, on a bed of cous cous and steamed vegetables. Yum! Then we had banana fritters and vanilla ice cream for dessert, which was a special treat considering banana prices at the moment.

Mum and dad are selling our house in Wooloweyah. You can view its entry on Realestate.com here. It’s quite sad that it’s being sold, especially as, if it were fixed up a bit, the price it could go for would be a lot higher. Mum has already asked me to help out with settlement once she finds a property she wants to buy up here, but there’ll be no need for me to help out if she’s going to borrow money in order to purchase it – the Bank will take care of settlement for properties it takes security over. We’ll be living here in this house for another year yet, or at least until the Wooloweyah house sells.

 

Today I announced to my team leader my intention to leave work. Or rather, my intention to seek alternative employment, while remaining at current job until I secure said employment. They need me, I need them. It’s a good situation while it lasts, but hopefully it won’t need to last too long.

This weekend I’m going to go through and write up answers to the selection criteria of a whole lot of Govt jobs. That’s what I’m hoping to get into – the Government. I feel like this is my opportunity to make a change, branch out, get out of banking & finance. I’m going to make the most of it. It’s scary, but in a positive way (if that makes sense, or is even possible in the real world and not just the imagined one in my head…)

We were helped out this evening by some of the people from another department. I said to them “Have you reevaluated your perception of the degree of difficulty of our jobs?” and they said, “We always knew you worked hard!”.

I put up the Christmas tree on the weekend. Napoleon enjoyed it for a little while, then quickly lost interest. Unlike Christian’s cat, Neo, who has made the Christmas tree his private retreat. Napoleon is more interested in chasing the baubles he batted off the bottom branches of the tree.

image020.jpg image019.jpg image018.jpg image015.jpg image016.jpg

 

Sooooo today was our first day in our new building. Best river views ever. There was a slight problem in that our desks are on the Western side of the building, and it seems to get uncomfortably warm despite the airconditioning. Closing the blinds helps a little, but mainly with the glare. It’s still pretty warm. I’m hoping that I will get to move at some point in the near future, if I don’t leave beforehand.

The view from my desk, if I swivel around in my chair:

And some others:

When we first arrived this morning, we were greeted by breakfast in our food preparation area. They supplied us with bacon & egg muffins, cut up fruit, ham & cheese croissants, bagels with some crap on them, and tiny muffins. Plus bottles of orange or blackcurrant juice in the fridges. It was cool! The day slowly became less cool, after about the one millionth phone call and stupid email from stupid people. Plus people are being rude because things aren’t going their way, and there’s nothing that they can do about it because they have no control over what’s happening with us.

I’m looking forward to the first time we get to see a storm moving in from the big windows, that’s going to be awesome. Imagine if it hails, and they’re huge hailstones, like golf ball size, and they crack the windows. That would be ironic, because the company would have to call itself to lodge an insurance claim. It would be funny if they rejected the claim and said something like “people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones”. Not that they were throwing stones, but just having your walls made of glass is asking for trouble. Expensive trouble.

Having a shower when you first get home from work is one of the best things about summer. The comparative fresh feeling that you get almost makes it worth having to suffer through the heat and humidity in the dirty city. ALMOST. I’d say that if you’re one of those people who think that it DOES make it worth it, you’re one of those people who say summer is their favourite season. Also another nice thing is having a shower and then going into an airconditioned room from the heat of the bathroom. Bestest.

On to something more fun and exciting: A list of my DS games :D Click on the image to go to the Nintendo page for that particular game.

Animal Crossing - Wild World

Animal Crossing – Wild World is cute. You get to have a house, plant flowers (I keep stealing the prettiest flowers from other people’s yards), buy clothes (I’m wearing a viking helmet and red glasses right now), write letters, do little jobs for other people, go fishing, collect shells and fruit and sell them in the store… You also get to furnish your house, and sometimes if you do things for other people, they’ll give you a present in the form of something to put in your house.

Big Brain Academy

Big Brain Academy tests how much your brain weighs based on your ability to solve various different puzzles in different levels of difficulty. I haven’t played this one much yet, it’s one of my newer games so I don’t have a score for every puzzle yet.

Mario Kart DS

I <3 this. It’s just like Mario Kart 64, except little and with a combination of tracks from all the previous Mario Kart games. I can’t wait to unlock more tracks.

Nintendogs - Daschund and Friends

My puppy is a Siberian Husky named Joue. I haven’t had a lot of time to teach her new tricks, but she knows how to sit and she was learning to roll over this afternoon. She met Lauren’s puppy Lola on the weekend, and Brian’s puppy Kemo, who is also a Siberian Husky.

New Super Mario Bros

I <3 Super Mario Bros too. It’s sort of like Super Mario Bros 3, with a game map and mini games etc. I wrote about this on a previous blog. Quit being so lazy, GOSH!

Brain Age

My brain age is pitiful, because I only ever get time to play this when I’m tired after a long day at work, or on the weekend after I’ve just woken up and my brain isn’t functioning yet. I like the fact that you get to unlock different brain training programs the more you use the game. I do best in memory and language games, and worst in calculations, surprise surprise.

Wario Ware - Touched

This game is awesome and weird. It’s all mini game where you have to use the stylus to do certain things. My favourite is the little halloween girl, because the boss level is where you are the earth floating through space, and you have to save a baby that looks like a foetus that’s floating through space. When it hits the earth, it gets smaller and smaller until finally you hear a splash and it drops into the ocean somewhere. It’s funny.

 

My cat has spots AND stripes. Not only that, he’s also really soft and has long back legs, and no tail so that he looks like a rabbit. Here are some photos of when he was a baby:

     
  

 

I don’t feel like writing.

 

I’m currently waiting for the Indian food that I ordered to arrive. Noelle and I were going to go to the movies tonight to see The Wrong Man, but then Julia (who would have been Noelle’s ride home) couldn’t go because she had a family dinner on. Therefore, the effort of Noelle having to get home and get changed and ready and then come back into southbank and see the movie, then wait around for another two hours for Julia, would be just too much. Also, Noelle was tired, and I was busy at work. We’re getting paid for overtime at the moment, and I really want to take advantage of it. I love getting cabcharges too. Tomorrow is payday, so finally I get to reap the benefits of all the extra work that I’ve been putting in. I’ve also clocked up quite a bit of time for next pay, too :)

We’re going to see Borat on Thursday! woot!

Also, just fyi, Super Mario for Nintendo DS is really good. It’s just like Super Mario Bros. 3, with little maps and those sideshow games, and the graphics and controls are awesome. I am so in love with DS.

 

I don’t have time tonight to write a decent, proper post on Lauren & Nathan’s Engagement Party, but here are some photos:

   

 

Today is my dear darling cousin (and best friend!) Noelle’s 22nd birthday. Happy Birthday Noe! We celebrated tonight at Jorge on George, and will celebrate further on Friday night at Noelle’s place, where the theme will be “transit”. I’m still deliberating over what is in my wardrobe that might possibly suit that…

menoe.jpg

Me and Noe at Jorge on George this evening.

This week has been/will be a big week. I’m glad that I had last weekend to rest up and get some washing done. For a while there, I was going out almost every weekend (and then some!) and creating my own occasions where there were none. Now, it seems like it’s no longer my choice, that events are there and must be attended. Not that I don’t like going out, I think sometimes it wears me out. Sometimes I’d like to sit at home and watch a DVD, which is something that I think about doing but don’t really do that often anymore, but because I think about doing it then it feels like that’s all I ever think about doing and so when it comes time that there is the opportunity for me to do just that, I don’t want to because it’s so ordinary, or boring… and I should be spending my time doing something more productive or just a better use of my free time. I seem to stay up later and later, and don’t end up doing anything at all, but just sort of stuff around for a couple of hours. Then I realise the time and that there was no point me staying up late at all.

This weekend, I have Noelle’s party on Friday night, work on Saturday morning, helping set up Lauren & Nathan’s engagement party Saturday afternoon, Lauren & Nathan’s engagement party Saturday evening, and then I am not allowed to stay at home Saturday night because we have family up for Lauren & Nathan’s engagement party. This doesn’t mean that I won’t be able to relax… every thing that I do is time out from the other things that I’m not doing at that exact moment in time.

Christian and I went out for dinner last night to Hanaichi. It was good – we had Wagyu beef, and some sushi, and then a black sesame creme caramel with sesame ice cream for dessert. Then we went to see the Grudge 2. There were a couple of disturbing things, and I jumped a few times, but it wasn’t the most amazing horror film ever. Nothing was explained, nothing was resolved… in the end, there was really no point for the movie having existed at all, except to use that womans face to scare people some more. I don’t regret seeing it, because i like scary movies, but I think that it could have been a lot better. I’m hanging out for Borat!

Our team finished work early today. Christian picked me up at 3:00PM so that I could take all my personal belongings home. We also went out to WOW and got new Divx players ($55 cheap cheap!).

Anyway, I’m getting tired looking at Napoleon nap beside the computer, so I’m going to go to bed.

napnap1.jpg

Napoleon in his castle.

 

This post is inspired by my new DS Lite. (No, Nintendo are not paying me. They’re just stealing all my boredoms).

My interest in video games, however, was inspired by our Townsville cousins, The Towlers. Anna, Noelle, and Clare would come to visit us each Christmas, and one Christmas they received something that would shape our lives to come: a Super Nintendo (or SNES).

They also had two games: Spy vs Spy, and Super Mario Bros. 3. Spy vs Spy was a good time-waster – look in some filing cabinets, get blown up a couple of times; but Super Mario Bros. 3 was something else entirely. Any list of my favourite video games must start with the game that started it all:

smb3.jpg
Super Mario Bros. 3: Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

I don’t know why I like this game so much. It’s a million times better than the other mario games. Nothing in the mario range has come close to being this good, even with the increase in quality of graphics and better controls, they still can’t compete. There were so many awesome things in this game: the map, the mini-games where you have to choose a box, or where you have to make the little spinning pictures line up… Or all the secret levels that you could get to if you only had either a raccoon or a tanooki suit… Check out the Wikipedia article. They know what I’m sayin’.

leafmario.gif Mario in his super-leaf Raccoon suit.
basic_mario_tanooki.gif Mario in his Tanooki suit.
kuribo_shoe_smb3x.png Mario in the kuribo shoe. This is my favourite level, just because of the shoe.

zeldaootbox.jpg
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time: Nintendo 64 (N64)

This game came with the N64 console when we bought it from some kid up the street, along with James Bond 007 (I think, though I can’t remember ever playing it), and Rosie somehow acquired Pokemon Stadium or something. Despite the fact that the Zelda series is pretty old, I had never heard about it before. It quickly became the number one game played on the N64 in our household, and Lauren, Rosie and I took turns in beating the bosses and playing missions. It was a team effort, but I was especially good at beating monsters and then collapsing in tears from the stress of it. I love this game. I think I had a secret, unacknowledged crush on Link for a while there. Or maybe I’m just making the connection between Link and Legolas. They do look pretty similar. Check out Wiki on this one too.

4344-1.gif Link and the cuckoos
6865-1.gif Link being all moody.
8704-1.jpg Link in Legolas mode

Zelda:Ocarina is an in-depth multi-layered puzzle/adventure/RPG. There are side quests that span across the entire game, through shifts in time and location.

Still TBC

 

My favourite objects acquired over the last few days:

DS Lite

Nintendo DS Lite
I have the white one. I got this on Friday, when Christian and I had lunch. I’ve been playing it off and on over the last few days. It’s pretty much the most awesome portable gaming system I’ve ever owned (that’s not saying much because I’ve only ever had one of those huge old-skool gameboys, plus a little mermaid handheld game, and one of those water games where you press the buttons and it sends a pump of water up and levitates the little ball); but if you concentrate on the fact that I’m older now, and more discerning in my choices of entertainment, and I’ve seen a lot more of the world, then it should mean more that I think it’s awesome now. I’m a nerd and this is a ridiculously long and drawn out paragraph.

DS Lite rocks. Go buy one.

Groggy Ice Crusher - Ikea

“Groggy” Ice Crusher
I bought this from Ikea, when Chris and I visited the new Logan store on Saturday. We also managed to have a minor accident in the car park. Bloody Swedish drivers. (I’m kidding, of course. I think they were actually Norwegian). Something good did come of the day though. Groggy is my new favourite kitchen thingamy. You put ice in the top bit, and then turn the handle, and it crushes it and it goes into the clear bottom bit. Then you can put it in a cup and have a sort of poor man (or woman)’s slushy. You can have whatever flavour you want (depending on what you have at home), plus the sound it makes as the blades crush the ice is really satisfying.

***

I didn’t end up going out last night. There were several reasons for this – none of which I’m going to bore you with now. I stayed in instead, and watched Happy Gilmore and spent some quality time with Napoleon. It was good to just do nothing, especially after the pretty full weekends I’ve had lately. I’m relaxing and recharging for next week, because there are quite a few things coming up, including Noelle’s 22nd Birthday (Wednesday 15th Nov), Noelle’s birthday party (Friday 17th Nov), and Lauren & Nathan’s engagement party (18th Nov). Then, the next week on Tuesday I have my second 8-week orthopedic review for my arm. It’s not that big a deal, it just seems like it because I used to go to the hospital twice a week for my arm, and now I haven’t been in two months.

I might go see if I can have a catnap, like Napoleon

 Napoleon catnap

 

This is just a quick one before Chris gets here (we’re going out tonight, feeling alright, gonna let our hair hang do-oown… Ew. Apologies everyone), I haven’t had the chance to post any pictures up here from Superstars since Mel gave me the CD on Friday, and I thought I would take the opportunity now before I get completely drunk and useless (it might be funnier that way, but I might do something I regret that would descimate what little dignity I actually have, and I wouldn’t be able to fix it until late tomorrow morning. I don’t want to take the chance of someone happening across this site when they’re actually looking for casbot grafiche or whatever that other site is that stole my URL and seeing me and saving pictures that I might upload and using them to blackmail me). Because I so care what random people think.

No, seriously I don’t. Do whatever you like. The real reason I’m not posting these later is because I’ll forget. Or I’ll be too busy playing my DS Lite. I’m in love with it. It’s sleek, smooth case; it’s clear, bright screen; it’s stylish stylus pen… Ok. I’m back. What was I talking about?

Oh yeah. Superstars photos. Here ya go!

 

 

 
 

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