See this post quoted in CoreEcon. "On average, a dollar that people spend for themselves creates nearly 20 percent more satisfaction than a dollar that someone else spends on them." This is sure going to be inspiring for me when I'm scrambling today to post my Christmas present to my relatives in Tasmania. I'm not quite sure I agree. I can buy things for myself anytime - well, a lot of the time. It doesn't have as much meaning.
What books did you love as a child?
Submitted by hearts.
There are so many. I was lucky because my mother was a librarian and for a while she was getting a lot of samples from publishers, which she usually gave to me. I loved choose your own adventure books and the first game books, such as the Warlock of Firetop Mountain. I'd go onto waste a lot of time on them in my teens.
But back to childhood, I also liked the Lotus Caves by John Christopher. Also anything by Nicholas Fisk and Monica Hughes and Ruth Chew and Roald Dahl. Going further back, I remember liking Asterix and Tin Tin books. One of my favourite books in my primary school library was Fungus the Bogeyman. There was a time when I really liked Richard Scarry books. The earliest books that I remember seeking out were the Mr Men books, my favourite ones were Mr Silly and Mr Daydream and Mr Messy.
w00t! I just found out that I've won a free ticket to the launch of the new Sarah Blasko album -
What the sea wants, the sea will have
It's an exclusive performance on Thursday night in a small venue. Too bad the ticket is only for one person, but I'm really looking forward to it.
What's the best way to spend a rainy day?
Submitted by Vee.
I would sleep in until the soft sound of rain entered my dreams. Once out of bed, I would brew a pot of tea, and open all the blinds and curtains, drinking my tea looking at the mist and rain. Occasionally I would glance at a newspaper (which somebody else had got from outside). Then I would go back to bed for another nap. If it was still raining after that, I would put on some old bushwalking/hiking clothes and my raincoat and go for a walk in a rainforest. It could be Sassafras Gully. I would breathe deeply the rich loamy scent which is the smell of a rainforest in the rain, and see the vivid wet colours and listen to the loud exuberant birds and the bubbling of the invigorated creek. I would not mind if I were saturated, because when I finished my walk, I would have a long hot bath with my bathroom window slightly open, letting in the sound of the rain and the occasional cool drop.
What's your musical horoscope? (Put your music player on shuffle and write down the first 10 songs that come up.) Inspired by Stephanie.
This random sample makes me appear way more mainstream than I am, but I guess I'm getting over feeling so worried about that stuff these days.
Woman on the tier, Suzanne Vega
Dani California, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Soak up the sun, Sheryl Crow
Never Win, Fischerspooner
Sorry (Paul Oakenfold remix), Madonna
Star, the Hampdens
Someday, Kylie Minogue
Running up that hill (a deal with God), Kate Bush
Lift me up, Moby
To your love, Fiona Apple
I still can't believe that there's no Björk or Aimee Mann there.
Like postponing the obligatory post-holiday post because once that is being written, the vacation is irrevocably over. I've been gradually easing back into my normal routine since I returned on Sunday night. But forgive me for trying to make this moment linger...
This evening I'm flying to Honolulu. Because of crossing the international date line, I'll be arriving a few hours ago. I may check my email and Vox and other blogs once or twice while I'm away, but I don't plan to be spending all my time in cyber cafés.
I plan to do a lot of nothing. I will definitely eat a lot of bananas - which have been incredibly expensive in Australia for months since Cyclone Larry wiped out most of the country's crop. I think I will probably eat bananas until I throw up. I will also get my fill of American trashy (and not so trashy) TV, which I miss sometimes. I'll be seeing a few more museums and art galleries. And I'm really looking forward to spending a few days in Laie, on the windward coast, and experiencing some less crowded beaches and doing some hiking and even more relaxing.
I'll be back late on next Sunday night.
What is your browser's default home page set to?
Submitted by Kelev T. Cat.
At work, it's my library's catalog - because I never know when I have quickly have to look up a book or database - and I need to know right away if it's not working properly.
At home, it's my backpack useful links page. It's just a private backpack page which has a some of the URLs which I use a lot. It's boring but useful - and quick loading. I used to have my Google page as my home page, but then I loaded too many apps onto it and it became too slow. There's nothing worse than a slow-loading home page.
Sometimes I get a cold and I'm pretty much able to fight it off after two or three days. But occasionally there are nasty ones, which keep me out of action for longer. I first started getting the symptoms of this cold the Friday before last, and I'm still dealing with it. It hasn't been the worst, most intense cold I've ever had. But it's one which has lingered like the worst bad guest, sapping my energy, mucking up my thermostat making it difficult for me to sleep. I have a few more complaints about it, but that's just getting into the area of Too Much Information.
I hope it is totally gone by the time I fly to Hawaii in less than 2 weeks now. If this cold is still affecting my sinuses, I know that I'll have intense pain during the descent of the plan. Last time it was like somebody hammering nails into the back of my neck.
Anyway, I just wanted to write a little to explain what was going on and why I've been fairly quiet here lately.
What's the nerdiest thing about you?
I'm a Dr Who fan. I'm not just talking about the cool new episodes with Billy Piper, David Tennant and Christopher Eccleston, but going way back to Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker. I am also a Buffy, Angel, and Firefly aficionado. But for me, fandom has its limits. I've never been to a convention, and can't ever imagine myself going to one.
