It's in the stars apparently & it's fair messing with with the end of 2003.
There's some talk of Jupiter having some sort of influence on little pisceans like myself. Do I believe in all the astrology stuff? Well... I don't know for sure. What I do know is that things are occuring that are all a bit strange & complex. I'm as tired as buggery & don't really care, so i'll just run with whatever is thrown my way!
I went out & saw 'Cabin Fever' last night (if you're into schlock horror, you won't be disappointed!), at the flicks only to bump into a friend who I haven't seen or spoken to directly throughout the year. I've been wanting to catch up with this person for a long time & had a number of questions that I wanted answered, which all were in the thirty seconds I had to speak to her. The odd part was that it happened last night, she picked me out of the crowd where I would not have recognised her & If I had been standing one metre away in any direction, we would never have spoken. Crazy stuff this 'fate' thing!
My explanation for being excessively tired is that I then managed to dream with a cameo appearance by the above person which ended at 3:17am after which I watched the clock until 7am with no ability to fall asleep! I suspect my endurance levels will be rather depleted by countdown time this evening.
It seems that I always have items outstanding at the end of each year that somehow end up being resolved just before or on New Years day. This one has taken the cake. I'll be starting two double zero four with a nice clean slate.
At this stage I'll be having a quiet start to the new year at my sister's place with a few people, watching my sister get smashed on a glass & a half of champagne & rolling on the floor giggling until the early hours. Should be fun!!
Okay, I'll succumb. Even though I am not a fan of Christmas, it's still important to a whole lot of people for one reason or another, so, Merry Christmas!!
I do hope everyone has a decent, caring, sharing & safe day!
My wishes go out to all my friends in & around Adelaide, those interstate & the few that I know are scattered around the planet this year!
Irony is having a Christmas lunch at a restaurant near a golf club & receiving a big fat golf-ball dint my car's roof, after working at the Glenelg Golf Club for over two years & never getting a scratch.
I managed to get a nice little run-around action from the North Adelaide Golf Club & the Adelaide City Council. Neither of which really wanted to know. I actually had a guy from the club tell me that the majority of clubs no longer have insurance & it was just my bad luck! Ahem, this particular club is owned & operated by the Adelaide City Council & they don't have insurance?!? Very unlikely!
Anyway, I now have to write to the council's legal department to make a claim, which will no doubt get bounced around for the next few years & then filed in the under-desk-round-file!
Many moons ago I threatened to upload some original material & try my ability to handle copious amounts of criticism.
With the purchase of my acoustic guitar & the final achievement of finding somewhere to upload music for free (this site has still not cost me a cent!), I've taken the plunge & released (using that word very loosely), two of my original songs.
A week or so ago I recorded a version of John Mayer's "3x5", which managed to get some positive feedback. Now, these two other tracks have been sitting on the !"dare to sing" website since just before the weekend & thankfully the comments have been good & constuctive.
I've seen some crazy stuff in my 28 years to date, but today I saw something that made me laugh on the inside while trying to hold myself together on the outside.
Today was my first attempt at Christmas shopping. Yes, I know, it's getting a bit late & as I type this I still have more to do. There's still a few days of shopping available!
Westfield Marion is one of Adelaide's largest shopping complexes outside of the city. Due to the fact that most of the population turn up on the weekend, it's generally wise to get in early to find a carpark. This morning was no problem. I turned up around 20 minutes before the shops were due to open & managed to get a rock star park (one near the door!). While I waited, I decided to take a walk around & here is what I saw;
Firstly, dozens of people sitting down waiting outside various stores. The question is: why? They all looked so eager to get on with it, mingling in front of the doors, ensuring they're the first in. If this was some huge stocktake sale with DVD players for $50, I could understand, but in this case I just don't!
Second, with about a third of the car park full, the rest of the Christmas consumers had to be somewhere! They were. Walking briskly around, destination oriented but with absolutely nowhere to go. I had people literally rushing & getting pissed off trying to get past me, but their cause was completely in vain. There were no shops open!!! With so much time before the stores switched on the lights & unlocked the doors, you could walk the entire complex a couple of times. Why individuals were belting around is again beyond me. Very funny to watch though!
Finally, at Christmas there is always the free wrapping service available for all those that buy presents within Marion. I found it interesting that with no possible way to purchase anything with all the stores closed, how there can be a line up of customers with bags full of to-be-wrapped articles??
Anyway, once the place did trading, my pressie purchasing efforts were tested & I actually spend more on myself than on anyone else! I'll be damn happy when Christmas is over. I say that every year & I just think the whole "gift of giving" thing at this time of year is a waste of time & money. Those that are religous have the right to celebrate, but it's gone very overboard & the obligations on everyone make the whole thing frustrating.
I much prefer New Year, where the only obligation is to head out with good company, enjoy yourself & party hard!
I'll sure be glad when this week is finally all over!
I've been a real prick to so many people here at work. I've definitely not made any friends over the last few days, but if they actually performed the duties they were employed to do, rather than hand-ball most of their responsibilities, they wouldn't be getting me in their face. Thankfully, my efforts are having some effect & things are getting done!
I'm happy to do stuff for people & cover parts of their job when things are really busy, especially now Christmas & New Year is approaching ( at great velocity!), but when they start dropping the basics just so they can go home early, it's not on.
Work hassles, combined with being stood up on Saturday night, have already buggered me enough, but it was all topped off last night.
You know it's always going to happen, but that still doesn't provide any consolation when it does occur. My stunning new guitar, my Maton EBG808, my baby, has a blemish!!!!
Thankfully, it's not very visible & actually could have been a whole lot worse, but I know it's there! As I went to put my baby to bed in its case, the top of the case started to fall & had I not pulled the guitar away, the frame would have nailed the side of the guitar & the damage would have been substantial. Instead, one of the latches on the case clipped the wood at the base, right near the edge & made a mark a couple of millimetres long.
The feeling when something like this happens is mortifying. There will inevitably be more marks over the many years that I'll own the guitar, but the first one is always the most painful & just tops off this entire week.
I admit I was a little nervous about going to see Master & Commander at the flicks last night. The rumour was that the whole experience on the big screen was incredibly realistic & in some cases actually made people seasick!
Being one of these above people with a very weak stomach for travel, anything that may set me off is generally avoided.
My fears were heightened last weekend when the cinemas, near where I currently commute each day to a place called "work", had a full scale emergency as four patrons keeled over during the film. Three fire trucks, a closed Jetty Road & major concerns over a potential gas leak or something more sinister, caused great mayhem, but the final result was one person who felt a bit queasy & three other people who decided to join in.
Yeah, it's not a bad film, possibly a bit slow in parts, but certainly not one that was turning my insides at any point. I actually sat there at one stage as the ship went up & down, trying to convince myself it was real & I should be breaking out in a cold sweat. Nup, nyet, nothing!
I've started writing this at 3:16am on the morning of Sunday, December 14. Finishing this entry might take a little time though!
I haven't writen about any relationships here for quite some time, due to the fact that when I do, they are instantly jinxed. Seems like it doesn't matter what I do!
I've never been stood up before, granted, there hasn't been too many opportunities to be stood up.
By hell, it hurts!!
I should have known pretty early in the night that things weren't going to plan. Since the girl involved runs one of the cafe's at the Pier, I actually talked to her more than once after I got there. When the cafe finally closed, I was waiting for her to get changed & come back down & meet me. Instead of coming past & letting me know what was going on, my phone did the whole vibrate "you have a message" thing.
The phone message dialogue explains the story from here.
MJF (12:27am): Hey.. Sorry I took so long.. I forgot my bag of clothes, so I have to go home & get it..
PLE: No Problem! Give me a buzz when you get back! I'll be around the place!
PLE (1:50am): I'm currently in Sol (Sol-Bar at the Pier). Are you still coming down?
MJF (2:00am): Just talking with one of my girlfriends on the phone, sorry dude, she lives in Canada, i will still be going out though..
PLE: What time do you expect to be here?
MJF (2:08am): Not sure, i totally understand if you go, i'm really sorry i wasn't there earlier..
PLE: If you're still coming out I'll hang about. But this place is getting pretty quiet!
MJF (2:16am): Really?? Might make it another night then hey..
PLE: Okay, have a good night! Pete.
Oh, so gracious in defeat!
There you have it. I could analyse every bit of text to the deepest depths, but what's the point!
Okay, now I've put it all on the line! I've said I was going to do a bit of recording now I have an acoustic guitar & the proof now exists.
Crazily enough, I've uploaded a file on the Dare to Sing website just to see what people think. The question is, "do I have a future in music, or do I suck with a passion?"
The song I've recorded is a cover of John Mayer's "3x5". It's such an amazing song that blew me away when I first heard it. No one else has posted a version of this song on the site, but these has been a request for it in the past.
If you want to have a listen, here is the link - 3x5.
Any feedback is good feedback, so leave your comments either here or there!
A higher quality version is available if anyone wants it. Due to the rules of "Dare to Sing" the file is not allowed to be larger than 2meg. It's not that easy making a 5 minute song into a less than 2meg file, especially when in .wav form it's 51meg!!
The main problem in working in an international hotel is the contact with literally hundreds of people on a daily basis & the numerous bugs & germs they carry & pass on. I've had all sorts of colds & viruses during the last year at the Pier, but this morning was rather scary.
I opened my eyes this morning only to find that I couldn't remain fixed on an object & my sight would drift. This has NEVER happened before & to not be able to control the direction that your eyes go is freaky beyond belief. There was no way I could look at anything in the room without my sight moving away. The room according to my head was spinning!
It took quite some time for my sight to return to normality & be able to move around the house without breaking into a cold sweat. Some nine hours later, I'm a hell of a lot better, but my body's telling me it's not 100% yet.
I'm left wondering what took hold during the night. I had a couple of drinks last night, but definitely wasn't drunk as I was breath tested by the Police on the journey home. It may be the aftermath of a recent cold which is the preferred answer. I'd much rather it be the end of something than the start!
Then again maybe I just rolled about in bed last night enough to make myself completely fucking dizzy!!
Quite a few people have got away with speeding fines due to other vehicles being in the same photo, or a misinterpretation of the number plate. Hell, some have even had infringement notices with the photo of a stobie pole or street sign as the only object visible.
Unfortunately, my attempts at trying to argue $149 back into my pocket is lost on this lovely happy snap;
After driving through numerous cameras, radars, etc, over the last seven years, my luck ran out on November 16.
I actually got caught in one of the new 50kph zones on Military Road, West Beach. One measly kilometer an hour over!
The stupid part is, there is no wider, safer or straighter road around, so why the limit was lowered is beyond me. Anyway, I got busted & I'll reduce the pedal pressure in the future.
The irony to all this is, when I got snapped, I was on my way to buy shoes at the newly opened Harbor Town complex at Adelaide Airport. I bought two pair of shoes & when trainee salesperson put them through the register, he missed a pair. I ended up with a free pair which I've now ended up paying for.
To increase the irony.... The day the fine arrived is the first time I've worn that 'free' pair of shoes!
