Monday 26 September 2011

Happy Birthday to me!

So, this one is only a quick one, and I am not sure if I'll be able to update for a while. I reckon I'll manage something though.

This week has been a catch up week. I managed to catch up here at work, and I even had time to go for lunch with the boss's wife on Friday. The only thing left to catch up on now is the housework.

Saturday was my birthday, and as is often the case, I got spoiled. You will remember I received the iPad last weekend, so this time it was just the stuff for the day. I was given a lovely bottle of bath salts, some perfume, another perfume gift pack, and another bottle of bubble bath/shower gel. Plus, a heart-shaped box of chocolate cherry liqueurs. Yummo! Mum also sent me the most beautiful box filled with scrap booking bits and bobs. Plus, I was well-loved on Facebook to boot! I didn't do much of anything at all, which added to the fun.

Dobby had a friend over Saturday night, and on sunday that friend's mother had a Flashengeist licquer party. Lovely stuff. Check it out here. There were only the hostess and three others of us, but it was very nice. I ordered a couple of little things for myself! Even though I don't drink!

Then back home to pack. Before we left Dobby was packing and we realised she didn't have anything that fitted, so it was a very quick dash to KMart for some shorts and a couple of tops. And a couple of tops for me too :-).

Now I have this week at work, and that's about it. A visit to the hairdresser tonight to trim the wild mane, the house sitter is stopping by tomorrow to meet the animals (and Roger and Oz!) and guitar Wednesday will round off the week. Saturday will be spent furiously cleaning and making sure everything is ready. Fluffy booked the car today, and we were pleasantly surprised at the cost. I also bought travel insurance to make sure we'll all good.

So, I'll do my best to stop by but you might not hear much of me for a bit. Most of you, though I will be seeing in person, so consider yourselves warned! I'm on my way!

Monday 19 September 2011

Checking in

It's been an incredible few weeks for me. Remember how I said I was training the Boss's wife? Well, that takes most of my work day, then it's a scramble when she goes home to catch up. I am way behind but hopefully that will sort itself out tomorrow when she's not in. I may even be where I should be tomorrow!

For quite a while it seemed that my life was a round of work and house work. I never seemed to catch up either way. That in itself can be quite stressful. Then Fluffy went away for a week.

But first, I must tell you about our weekend away. The weekend before last we went to Blanchetown with the caravan club. Turned out that the only families to go were committee members! So we had an impromptu committee meeting instead of meeting through the week.

Dobby bought her friend Sarah with her, which was nice for her. Because Fluffy was going away on the Sunday afternoon, and we couldn't take the dog, we decided to just go on the Saturday morning and stay in a cabin overnight.

It was soo cold, though. But the small intimate gathering made it fun all the same. Plenty of time to sit and chat, and a pool room with a TV to keep the big kids occupied. Apparently there was a pants-down game of pool the Friday night....

Anyway, we arrived kind of stars, which was good fodder for a bit of ribbing. See, the week before Dobby and I had our photos taken for a newspaper article on the joys of caravanning. We made sure to wear our SAPI shirts, much to the joy of the committee members. Lots of pats on the back for that! This is the result...





Of course, this opportunity couldn't come up when I was thinner and looked good. No, it had to arise when I looked like the caravan I was modelling and had crazy old-lady red hair! Haha.

Never mind, it was a bit of fun.

So, after the weekend we drove home, got there just after lunch. A quick pack and relax for Fluffy then off to the airport. He was off to Melbourne for a training course for work.

Dobby and I made a trip to the video store, then called out for Chinese takeaway, something we don't buy when Fluffy is home as it's not his forte.

Later that afternoon we get a call. "I'm pissed off," says Fluffy. Why? Work told him they'd book his room and he could pay for the taxi, claiming it back when he gets back.

Only, they booked him a room $80 away from the venue! Each way! First, the taxi dropped him at the wrong Quest hotel. Then, when he booked in he found he had nowhere to eat. Not a place within walking distance! He found someone nearby who would deliver, only to find that when it arrived, his fish and chips were literally swimming in a half-inch of water! He threw it out..

So on Monday he phoned the chick who booked it and told her to change it. She did. To another Quest hotel only marginally closer than he already was. So $40 for taxi's each way. And again there was nowhere to eat. He didn't. On Tuesday morning he went to the McDonalds across from the study venue for his first meal since, well, Saturday night really.

The finally booked him a room at the pub across from the venue. They didn't choose it because it was, well, a pub. But, as he said, I don't have to pay taxis, and I can get a great meal (booked to the room, I might add, as it should be!).

He was so stressed and upset that he thinks after all that he failed the course. How rotten for him!

And for us during that time, it was just as stressful. Dobby was on her worst behaviour, acting out and being a very difficult child. With the stress at work, and her at home, I was on a knife edge for the whole week. Then, when Fluffy phones, she tells him "we're doing all the housework so it's clean when you get home". He answered that see, it's up to him to keep the place clean.

I really took offense to that because the house was a mess because Dobby was just so darn hard to shift! She left a trail of mess behind her and resisted every attempt by me to get her to clean it up. I often did it for her, only to turn around and find it back. It was a terrible week.

And Fluffy wasn't due home till Saturday evening, even though the course finished Friday. Luckily for him he was able to change his flight. They even did it for free, even though they weren't supposed to. It was very good to see him, and he bought us gifts - heaps of Smiggle pencils for Dobby and a book on the Kerobokin Jail in Bali. Looks like a great read too.

Anyway, I also spent Saturday morning swapping around our bedroom. I like it's new look, and Fluffy does too.

Sunday morning we were all sitting outside in the warmth (it was an unseasonable warm weekend here) and I told Fluffy that I had been giving thought to buying an iPad. I don't like to get caught up in the techno hype, but had been thinking of a laptop. The one I wanted, though, was way too expensive.

I thought all I would use the iPad for was for books, and I already had a reader (like a Kindle) for that. Then, I realised that I could put small movies on it so it might be handy to take to away with us.

On the Sunrise program we were watching we saw an internet place that had cheap electronics. So he decided to do some research on pricing. Yes, this place was cheaper, but he wasn't sure he wanted to pay all that money at once. He found out that Dick Smith does interest free, so next thing we're all piled in the car and I now own an iPad 2. Plus he spent a small fortune on a cover for it, which is sooo pretty. It's cream leather, with pale cream suede animal print inserts. Very swish! Well, not sure if it's real leather, but it looks nice anyway.

So then it was home to play with that for a bit. I put heaps of music and photos on it, and a couple (but not many yet) apps. I also found some movies to load on it, but apparently they take all night...

Anyway, today and tomorrow at work we have some people from Sydney over so I've been dealing with them, helping Mrs Boss learn, and still run the house. Hopefully tomorrow will see me up to date, and I can afford to slow down a bit, and not do any overtime! Not much each day, but enough anyway.

Not much on this weekend, but I'll try to find something to blog about!

Monday 5 September 2011

Happy Father's Day yesterday

So this blog will be small. Not a lot to report. As I am going away in October, I have been training Mrs Boss to do my job. It's a trial. I don't mind training her at all, but it's a slow process. She can only spare me a few hours at a time, and each task takes several hours just to show her, not leaving her any time to do the job on her own.

We are hoping from this Wednesday that she can stay longer and will therefore be able to take in more of the tasks. There are some things she will do every day, others only once, but each of them require a written set of instructions, which have to take into account her lack of skill with Excel, which we use for almost everything. I know she finds it a trial too so I try to make it as easy as I can.

Dobby started music in place of the dreaded Dance at school last week. She is quite keen this time, although I don't think she fully realises that "being part of the band" means she will be required to play in public... Hmmmm...well, while she's keen I'm not going to burst her bubble. She is also looking forward to learning the theory side of music, which to be honest, was the only subject I did really well at in school.

She also had Friday off, as it's Royal Adelaide Show time. The whole town goes into party mode for ten days. The schools give their kids one day off in that time so they can attend. I wonder, really, how they are supposed to go when the parents often still have to work?

Anyway, today is also a Student Free Day for her, so her friend's mum took today off work and is taking them. Whew! I get out of it for another year. Mind, she has a huge list of showbags to collect! Haha! Punishment!

I am working solo at the moment while the boss is away, and for me that means heaps of work getting done (except while typing this of course). Because I am training I am so far behind with my own work. I can't set tasks yet for Mrs Boss to do while I continue doing other things. Add to that, that most of my "other things" involve the computer, and we have a little problem.

However, I know we can get there in the end.

This weekend was so lovely, just to sit still for a bit. Saturday we took a drive up to Gawler to pick up some bottles of Ned Kelly drink. Never heard of it? Check this out. We tried it some time ago, and Fluffy really liked it. It's like a sweet carbonated wine. Friends of ours had been to the show and bought it for us, so we popped in and picked it up.

A very late lunch (or early dinner if you like) at Villis and we were home and relaxing by 4.30pm.

Sunday was Father's Day. I made breakfast for everyone (including Dobby who managed to drag herself out of bed reasonably early) and we sat outside while she gave her dad his gifts. Nothing flash because he's so difficult to buy for. We got him a few DVDs, a large Toblerone choclate block, and a box of Fererro Rocher chocolates.

Later, Dobby had been asking if she could have her tragis pierced. That's the little nobby bit in front of the ear. She thought I had agreed but really I had just been listening to her waffle while she talked about it. Anyway, she pointed out that because she wants to play netball she will only have this weekend to do it before it's too late, because you have to let it heal sometime before you can remove it, which she would have to do for sport.

So we trudged down to Marion, as she also had to buy a gift for a friend whose party she will miss on the weekend. I got a rude shock when I went to pay for it. It was 3 times what I had envisioned, but she is happy anwyay. She chose a tiny black spike. I don't have a pic, but apparently she does.

Then onto the jewellery store for something for the friend. That done, we wandered over to Bunnings because I had told Fluffy I had seen a tool box I would like to buy him. However, he saw it and mentioned he had seen a better, cheaper one, advertised recently at Repco, so off we toddled over there.

Yep, that's the one he wanted, so he left a happy dad. We also stopped in Dick Smith for a sticky and priced small laptops and wireless printers.

Back home and it was a semi lazy afternoon for me, but busy for Fluffy who cleaned the Fairlane and the back patio. I did the ironing, mopped the kitchen and dining room, and did the litter tray, then cooked dinner. Fluffy chose spaghetti bolognaise for some reason. Dobby agreed to vacuum the lounge because I paid for her earring.

After Underbelly it was time for a shower and off to bed...