VirtuousNess

Feeling extreemely virtuous, I cleared out my 'present box' (the one with all the things I buy on the spur of the moment, thinking 'that'll make a good present' and never find the right person for), jewelry case and unwanted gift store.  I even rifled through all my stuff in storage (once again) to come up with a whole load of stuff that i could GIVE AWAY! 

Yes, the blinding realisation came that there are all sorts of things that I don't need/want and can't sell but are in perfectly good/new order, and would make excellent presents for others.  Including some of my once-treasured Monopoly collection - NO, REALLY - it turns out I don't need 30+ games of monopoly,  who knew!  None of the rare ones, of course, ahem, ahem, but hey, there's loads of kids who don't have monopoly, who could use it much better than me.  So, looking at the pile I've created I'm feeling pretty good about my generosity this Christmas, and ignoring entirely the fact that I don't have all the presents for the family sorted yet.  Still, I am two shopping bags of presents closer to the being the Christmas fairy.

Have a Happy Christmas all you budding entrepreneurs!

the tiger awakes

I guess I should take it as a compliment - I got called a cougar tonight.  At the petrol station a bunch of loud teeny-somethings called out "Hey cougar!  in the purple".  I guess it means the days at the gym are paying off - but also made me feel old!

I love to cook!

I have just been to see Julie & Julia.  I LOVED it! 

It inspired me, made me think 'what am i doing with my life?', all the things that the hollywood boffins would expect.  Anyone who knows me already knows that I love cooking.  Certainly way more than the changes in parliamentary power, which is what is distracting me on the TV right now!

It is certainly very cool that someone can start a blog and come from obscurity doing something they love, to be what they want to be.  But more than that, I can't help but identify with Julia Child when she went to that all-hallowed cooking school in gay Paris that she was doing something she loved, and doing it with gusto.  I have certainly thought about it in the past (doing a full-time cookery course), and then I think to myself "there's no point because I don't want a career as a Chef" - but as a good friend of mine once said - Do it for the love of it, not for the rightness or wrongness of it!

I am not proposing to drop everything and return to college!  I think for the short term, an invite to friends to come and have dinner, and continue experimenting in the kitchen, but you never know what could be coming around the corner.  Live my life so that i don't regret that I never did something - that's what I want out of me.  That's all you can really ask for.

the good fruit

I saw this pear and had to buy it because I thought it was beautiful.  The leaf is whole and gives it a rustic note because of the colour.  The tones seem to compliment each other and I just liked it.

waterfront man

Yes, it's been a while - sue me!  I went down to the waterfront today after work.  The weather was fantastic this afternoon, so on the drive home I decided to take advantage of it and get outside.  The waterfront in wellington is so beautiful in the spring evening sunshine.  I took my camera and just as the sun was setting I took a whole load of photos of a statue near the marina.  The light was great, but my camera wasn't!  Most of the shots were fuzzy.  But I managed to get this cool one of the hands of the man who is straining into the wind.  sometimes it's the little details that stand out.  Sometimes the evening, the feel, the light is just so calming.  I love Wellington!

Appreciation

I can't think of anything nicer than coming back to your desk, or house, or room, and finding a little note from someone.  So thankyou to the little fairy who left this on my computer on friday.  I'm glad that some people are absolutely loving having Phoenix, the application, working for them!

Phoenix flies

I was at my desk yesterday and the curtains were drawn, when I looked up and saw the little phoenix on the top of my monitor, against them - just the right combination of colours.  Amazing how something small can make you feel happy.

The phoenix's were created by my friend Alan who is, let's face it, obsessed with origami.  Thanks Alan, appreciate the time and effort that went into creating 70 of them for go-live.

Commitment

One of the things I really don't give myself credit for is my commitment.  When I do a job, I do it to the best of my ability and don't think twice about going beyond and above just the basics.  This gets brought home to me when I don't get the same in others.  I was at work today until 9.30, just to get some testing done.

It's all worth it when I get a comment like one from Andrew earlier today - "I've used Phoenix today for the first time, and I'm a fan".  (Phoenix being the IT system we've built).  Thanks Andrew.

Easy like Sunday morning

There is nothing like a Sunday morning - whether after a night on the town (like this weekend), or just a nothing-planned weekend.  I love the feel of waking up on sunday morning, sleeping in til you wake up naturally, and the sense of possibility of what could happen today.  I am free to go to the market, go for a walk along the shore by the sea, or potter in the garden and enjoy the space - and time.  There is potential in a Sunday morning to achieve all sorts of things.

almost ready for go-live

Spent the day at work - uurgh - but that means that we are as ready as possible for monday, except for the data corrections which require a developer.  I do get a great deal of satisfaction out of organising.  This is one of those situations where having all the dots and crosses in a line (to mix metaphors!) is not only possible but required!  It is a great feeling at the end of the day to have everything squared away.  Yesssss!

Flowers for summer

My most amazing jeans. Today was a good day - a fabulous day training people. I had a compliment on my trousers. I have had them a while so I forget about them sometimes - they are so intricately detailed, it's amazing. Probably hand sewn by small aisians being paid very little, I love them.

Save the light

It's been daylight savings changes over the weekend.  I am glad because it's finally feeling like summer.  I'm tired after getting up an hour early!  I truly love the change in seasons when we're heading towards summer.  There is a change in the feel of the sun - at the moment it's clear and crisp and warm in the sun, but it's moving into heat in the earth and warmer general feel.  That means that summer is coming.  If it wasn't for the cold winter, I wouldn't really appreciate the sun.  When I lived in brisbane, I lost the appreciation of the warmth - it's so hot that the sun is a bad thing.  I am so tuned into summer that I wake up happier on sunny days.  Thank you universe!

it's full of iron, is that why people don't like it - me(n)tal!

My fabulous flatmate gardens in the garden.

While she's been away I've been enjoying the fresh spinach in the raised bed, and only found out too late that the broccolli had gone to seed!

I miss growing stuff - pots are great but don't have quite the same capabilities!

Still... only til I have enough saved for my own house again :}

Karepokee

Those of you who know me at all will know I love to sing.  You can always tell when I'm happy - you'll hear me coming :}  So when my friend Karen asked me over for a spot of singstar I was there!  Thanks to karen, Cat and the girls for a fun night of kareoke and chitchat.  (thanks to karen for the photo of me taken on my camera too!)

Two for the price

Two posts today to cover the last couple of days.  Above - Cat Cam!

Although i think this blog thing is a great idea, it's not always easy to come up with something interesting in an average day.  So after a fairly normal, if full-on, day at work and blobbing out in front of the TV, I took a few photos around the sitting room, thinking "what do i appreciate today" and I have to say I have the best couch in the world!  It is really comfortable, supports your back, is deep enough for me to not have half my legs sticking out, lightweight even though it's solid, long enough to sleep on and has zany fabric!  This came from the middle east, a gift from my father when he left the country and I have appreciated it more and more over the years.  Thanks Dad.

day 4 - visual illusions

I have a great daily gadet on my toolbar which gives me a new visual illusion every day.  This is a classic.

Day 2 - data conversion starts without too many hitches

Today was the first day of the 2-week countdown to going live with Phoenix (the application we've been building at TLC).  I'm really glad that we only had a small hitch - things could have gone alot worse!.  We got the log-ons sorted out for the 6 ladies doing the data entry, and we were away.  Already 200-odd of 950 records are in the real system - awesome!

Even better, I am up to date with all the stories (functions) in the current iteration - it was worth a few hours on saturday.

Day one - a day out

I went for an awesome walk today from Te Aro, where I was visiting my friend Marcel's plot of land, to Karori, where I spent the afternoon in the sun on my friend's balcony. On the way I saw this cool building and couldn't resist. In wellington we have some of the most amazing buildings possible. I think our builders must be some of the best in the world! given some of the things you see around town.