When you walk a dog in a park regularly you find all sorts of stuff.
Like the film script Maisie, Daniel and I found last week.
It was lying forgotten on a park bench.
A quick skim revealed all sorts of wacky, zany scenarios set in and around Footscray.
Neither of us can remember what it was called.
But I’m sure we’ll recognise it when (if) we see it again.

You know those conversations you have when you think that both participants are talking about the same thing but it slowly dawns that you’re actually not?
We were talking about UK bands and tours and the like.
I was talking Arctic Monkeys.
He was talking Snow Patrol.
Out of the confusion was born the ‘Arctic Snow Monkey Patrol’.
Check them out!

I recently went to a seminar on ‘wellness’ (it was a work thing) where there was a lot of talk about simple strategies to enhance the, well … “wellness” of employees in workplaces.
One of the strategies was simply to encourage people to exercise more. “Go and take the dog for a walk around the block after work”, they enthused. “You know ‘studies’ have shown that this can be as effective as taking an anti-depressant like Zoloft.” (Or words to that general effect.)
I had been waiting for a break in the seminar as I had to leave early in order to, among other things, walk the dog.
I had to laugh as I have been taking my dog for a walk around the block most nights after work for the last five years – and she’s been taking a quarter of a Zoloft tablet daily for almost as long.
The walks sure ain’t doing the dog much good! And as for my “wellness”? Well ….

And there’s definitely an evil twinkle in her eye!

Taking the short cut to the kitchen to make a cup of tea at work I was pounced on by a lady in a woolly beret. “Are you going to the lifts?” she asked. We were standing in the corridor with six lifts. “I’m going to get a cup of tea, but don’t worry, you’re here. These are the lifts”, I said. “No , no, I need you to come with me in the lift”, she said. “I hate lifts. I avoid them. But I couldn’t climb 24 flights of stairs to get here either.” The poor thing had been waiting for someone who looked like they might be heading for the ground floor to hitch a ride with. Fortunately my desire for tea could stand a minor diversion to the ground floor. Besides in life’s great kharmic tradition, I can clearly remember being petrified by the escalators in Myers at Chadstone when I first arrived in Melbourne. Someone kindly helped me then, so it was nice to return the favour.

It was a cold and damp morning. The train was filled to capacity. The crush of commuters kept even those without a hand hold wedged upright. All those extra overcoats, hats, gloves and scarfs filling the carriage buffered us in a strangely woolly atmosphere. At the next stop the doors opened and we tumbled out. The man next to me looked down in surprise to find a stray umbrella hooked into his overcoat. His “Anyone lose an umbrella ….” got lost in the mass of rapid departures. “Well”, he winked and smiled. “My lucky day!”

My local icecream shop (actually somewhat of a misnomer as it moved away some time ago but, as the building wherein it resided has remained empty ever since, it is nevertheless still known to me as the local icecream shop) has changed its format.
It’s now a dentist.
Oh, the irony.

Got tagged for this one by Zucchinis in Bikinis.

Q) What were you doing 10 years ago?

A) January 1996 … I was living in East Malvern with a flatmate called Angel. I was a postgraduate student at Monash University – although on sick leave at this time. Doctors appointments, twice weekly blood tests, queues at DSS. NOT a fun time. Read a lot of novels.

Q) What were you doing 1 year ago?

A) January 2005 … I was back at work (unlike now!!)

Five snacks you enjoy: chocolate; fresh popped popcorn; corn chips, cheese ons; crumpets with golden syrup.

Five songs to which you know all the lyrics: Closer to Fine (Indigo Girls); Great Leap Forward (Billy Bragg); Wonderwall (Oasis); Wide Open Road (Triffids/Weddos); Total Eclipse of the Heart (perhaps a duet, Kathy?).

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire: pay off the house; assist family members; travel widely and in style; give to worthy cause(s); probably not be a millionaire for long!!!

Five bad habits: a failure to show a willingness to learn about technology and consequent dependence on others to solve related problems; catastrophising; making plans and then failing to follow through with them; using a new cup to make subsequent cups of tea during the day rather than rinsing and re-using the initial one; and that old favourite: procrastination.

Five things you like doing: being on holidays; reading; having a chat; pottering about antique shops; the Age word puzzle.

Five things you would never wear, buy or get new again: velvet headband; ‘Princess Diana’-style haircut; pearls; uncomfortable shoes; tanning lotion.

So this is the plan: Remove the blog in the top spot from the following list and bump everyone up one place. Then add your blog to the bottom slot:

the state of indiana
watching me grow
Ready or Not
Zucchinis in Bikinis
Marita’s Nameless Blog

Then select five people to tag:

Diary of a Perseverant Pincushion
Middleclassgirl
(everyone else I know has done it!)

This morning: while walking to the train station I rounded a corner and encountered two rats.
Rats: “Eeek. A human. Run away!”
Me: “Eeek. Rats. Run away!”

This afternoon: following several hours at the hairdressers.
Man in street: “You look a million dollars.”
Me: “Independently wealthy at last!”

Cool.

The end of the Uni year is definitely in sight. My final exam (actually it’s an open book test – not nearly so scary) is on Thursday evening and then the blissful summer of no study begins. Hooray! Last week’s revision class was cancelled so an additional class was scheduled for this afternoon. I misread the time so had to run most of the way to RMIT to make it (was still late, mind you). Only to find that, besides the lecturer, I was the only one there. The sole reviser. Had to quickly improvise some informed questions to show I have been paying attention throughout the semester and have not left all revision to two days before. Damn – that’s just too much attention focussed on me.