What's Doing

Cold, so cold.

I’m off to buy some more jumpers. That is all.

Courtesy of the lovely people at Yahoo! I discover that I share my birthday with such luminaries as;

Michelle Trachtenberg, Dawn from Buffy the Vampire Slayer who is 17 today.
Jane Krakowski, who played Elaine in the worst TV show in the world was born on exactly the same day as me.
Luke Perry, who can’t act his way out of a wet paper bag, is two years older than I am, and looking it I think. I’d make a much better matinee idol.
Daryl Hall is 53 today – blimey.
On the day I was born Apollo 7, the first manned Apollo mission, was launched with astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn Fulton Eisele and R. Walter Cunningham aboard. So there may be some credence in the assertion that I am a space cadet. Continuing the space theme, in 1984 space shuttle Challenger astronaut Kathy Sullivan became the first American woman to walk in space.
Finally, five years ago: President Clinton blamed pop culture for glamorizing illegal drug use as he heralded a new $195 million anti-drug ad campaign during his weekly radio address. Insert your own inhalation gag here please.

Of course, being septic in the extreme this site doesn’t mention anything in the actual world, and forgot to remind us that I also share my birthday with comedy Goddess Dawn French, Bobby Charlton and Alan Pascoe.

Birthday boy, birthday boy, birthday boy.

There, that got it out of my system. Its going to be quite a quiet day, I haven’t got anything planned apart from a little mooching around during the day and then a little light celebrating in the West End this evening. It will be a select group, as I emailed an invite to everyone I know and they are all apparently very busy. Apart from my sister, who is going to a pop quiz. Really.

Still, the wife took me out last night (thanks dear). We went to see a little comedy at the Soho Theatre. Very funny, and quite excruciating at some points.

I even got some presents, thanks for the rugby shirt Mum, its almost exactly the same as the one you bought me four years ago, which I am still wearing by the way. But the piece de resistance came from Bobo, a corkscrew with its own web site. A completely top tool for wine loving folks. Even better, its made by the people who make the best casserole dishes in the world, Le Creuset so I have an excuse to go and ogle cookware for a while at their web site.

Now that is a phrase I didn’t think I would ever use, does it mean I am growing as a person?

Meanwhile, for those reading this from the other side of the world I’ll just share todays weather in London with you. The sky is grey and overcast, there is a light wind blowing directly from Siberia and consequently the temperature is somewhere between completely freezing and really bloody cold. Welcome to autumn in England. I am very glad that I bought a nice warm jumper last weekend, although I am holding out against buying thermals – for the time being.

Still, there are horse chestnuts on the ground so I should be able to play conkers at school work next week. You know, I haven’t seen a conker for years, didn’t miss them though.

A couple of counts for you. One sleep until I can invoke "Birthday Boy"* and four sleeps until I return to the world of work. Oh joy.

We got an interesting puzzle in the post this morning. It wins the all time award for the best invitation – ever. Essentially Cathy and Chris have sent a fridge magnet poetry invite. There are about forty words (in ones, twos and threes) on fridge magnets and the invitee has to assemble them to make a coherent phrase or sentence. Top idea.

Of course, there is always the possibility that they don’t make sense, which is a fair thought where Mr Buck is concerned.

*Copyright MartinMolloy for the uneducated (or those who sadly missed the seminal radio show by not being in Australia).

Prefab Sprout. Isn’t it, shouldn’t it.

Just to check if my lovely wife reads this here page I’m going to conduct a little experiment.

Dear, if you want to know what to get me for my birthday, you wouldn’t go far wrong with a copy of Big Lad in the Windmill.

I was just sitting here on a quiet Sunday afternoon minding my own business so I thought I would post an update. It beats watching apt-get download 100Mb of packages to update my GNU/Linux box anyway.

Well, blimey, a bit of luck seems to have blown our way. Lorna mentioned on Friday night that a friend of a friend of hers has a flat just around the corner that would be coming up for rent in the near future. So we asked her to pass a message on that we would be quite interested in taking a look. Within about an hour and a half Bobo was on the phone to the lady in question and had arranged a viewing for us next weekend. She seems quite keen, understandably as if we take the place it saves her the effort of advertising, interviewing and vetting applicants. We took a wander past and it looks good from the outside. So fingers crossed its as nice on the inside and then we can cease to be homeless wanderers.

I couldn’t think of a suitable Francis Dunnery lyric as a title for this post so I have reverted to tired cliches. Still, that should stop the 70’s throwback from complaining too much.

Much has happened in the Todd world this week. I managed to acquire a job the other week, but wasn’t supposed to start until the 14th of October. However, Javelin called me up on Friday and said they had an Oracle problem and would I come in for a couple of days and help them out. Being the obliging fellow that I am I couldn’t refuse and have done that.

In the mean time the wife had received two job offers. The details of the second came through on Friday afternoon and she decided to take it. It wasn’t exactly a new job, she has transferred to the UK arm of Cap Gemini Ernst and Young. She rang them up to accept their offer on Monday and was asked if she would mind starting the next day, so she did.

Next, we are trying to acquire a car, and thanks to the Reading branch of the Perry family we are looking good on that front. After that we may have to consider finding somewhere to live. But everything in its own time.

I’m aware that I haven’t been posting with my usual regularity, and my apologies for that. I have been somewhat busy, but I’ve also been somewhat lazy as well.

Still, we have been out and about doing things. I’ve managed to get a job, but I don’t start work until the 14th of October. So, in the mean time we are trying to do London on a shoestring. The previous two sentences are connected you see, its hard to do things when you haven’t got a job (and thus no money coming in) but its a little career challenging to leave work at two o’clock in the afternoon because you must just pop into the V & A dahling.

Still, I have been reminded of why I like living in London. Last week we went to an Iain Banks reading and I even got to ask a question – oh the shiver of excitement – and meet the man up close. I don’t believe Iain has ever done one of those down under. I’m also trying to get tickets to the Fast Show Live, not a possibility for those that live in sunny Sydney.

Mind you, its starting to get bloody cold round these parts. I’m going to have to invest in a whole winter wardrobe when I get my first pay check. Well, the bits of it that don’t go to the credit card company and Bobo’s boot fund anyway.

We are back, and trying to integrate ourselves back into polite society. For the curious our honeymoon destination was Las Vegas. We stayed at the Bellagio and did our best to enjoy ourselves flat out for ten days.

We are now in Bracknell but will be relocating to the big smoke in the next day or so. If anyone is in London and fancies a refreshing beverage we are available for trips to the pub and other social occassions. Just call me on my mobile and we will see what we can sort out.