1. IS SUNDAY THE START OR THE END OF THE WEEK?
This morning the radio news mentioned 'the death of Steve Irwin last week'. In my understanding, the week starts on Monday. Best Beloved disagrees. But if we're following a predominantly judeo-christian (note lowercase there) calendar, isn't Sunday the day of rest at the end of a working week? I could wiki it, but I reckon one of you intelligent readers will be able to give me an explanation.
2. AFI SCREENINGS: down and dirty on the streets
It's the Australian Film Institute Awards judging season again, and as members, we're in the thick of viewing as many films as we can. This year the predominant theme seems to be streetwise and seedy, drawing upon our Australian right to look cool while we break the rules and thumb our noses at authority. It's ok occasionally, but a bit jaded by the third or fourth film in a row. Still, I'm trying very hard to watch each film freshly, to give it a chance. I haven't got time to go into depth, so I'll give you the speedy version of what I've seen so far:
Em 4 Jay: Heroin. Bonny & Clyde. Good pace, some good laughs, old theme. Nothing very cutting-edge or shocking (unless you are offended by nudity and injection scenes) but entertaining in parts. Good lead actors.
Kenny: Very 'The Castle', endearing with fabulous Aussie vernacular. Take your (older) kids for some good poo humour.
Macbeth: Reviewed well on Sarsaparilla. If the intention was to make the play accessible to a modern audience, it worked for me (first time I've watched any form of M without wanting to drift off somewhere internally), although I could have done without the Michael Hutchence treatment of the lead character (half expected him to wrap a belt around his neck at the end). Lady Macbeth fabulous.
The Book of Revelation: A few things grated on me in this but generally powerful, with beautiful visuals and some compellingly twisted sexual issues. Tom Long (always a favorite of mine) looked amazing.
Lots more to see! Lots of babysitter points being racked up.
3. HOW CAN I WORK IN THESE CONDITIONS???!!!
What is it with cats and desks? The following is an example of my home office working conditions (and as I construct it, Mary Gilmore's manuscript pile is being warmed nicely by Pooter's fluffy arse).
Every time I leave the room, this is what I see when I return. Padge.
Pooter sits on my lap, then uses my arm as an armrest. I don't think he realises what bad OH&S practice this is.
When he gets bored, he shifts around and lies on my mouse hand.
As he lies there, he sees things that should be chased, like this naughty nimble pencil.
Finally, when my hands are numb, he moves to warmer climes -- lampbathing under my ancient and manky desklamp.
Then Padge, having recovered from being ignobly cast from HIS chair, joins Pooter for a gentle lamp-bathe, looking for all the world like two Victorian dowagers in mourning.
Padge, being for some reason extra dusty today...
...gets a gentle clean from his brother. Meanwhile, I am trying to get to the papers underneath their bums.
Pooter gets the hint, but Padge, as ever, is persistent. Pooter then begins the whole cycle again by trying to jump onto my lap. If I get up to go to the loo, Padge will get onto my chair.
Sigh. I hope Dame Gilmore liked cats.
17 comments:
A friend and I refer to this as 'cat help'....
I've always noticed that whenever you're reading/sitting at a desk doing something cats insist in sitting on whatever it is you're reading/doing. My old laptop was encrusted with cat fur for that very reason.
As always, Padge and Pooter look beautiful. I didn't realise they were shaggy cats, I always thought they were sleek short haired cats.
I really enjoyed the 'Regency Redux' entry, btw. She looks lovely now.
They are sleek and shaggy, but not long-haired, if that makes sense!
Yes, sometimes help can be not very helpful... like kids trying to put away glassware :)
Thanks, too. I think Georgette looks great. I'm planning on rereading her after I finish 'The Vivisector' so that she looks a bit more comfortable in her new clothes.
The Squeeze was leaning over my shoulder drewling, panting "kiiiitties". I am terribly allergic and forbid all felines. The Squeeze adores them. We have to stop and pat every cat on the walk home from the video shop. That's an average of three cats. He uses me as bait (everyone knows cats are most attracted to those with the least interest in them).
Can The Squeeze come over to your house to play?
I was always led to believe that Sunday was the beginning of the week.
I have a cat that loves to do what yours does with an extra twist.... she likes to wrap her paw around my neck and try to 'kiss' me.
Sunday's the beginning of the week, with it's origin coming from Judaic calendars. This is based on Saturday being the Sabbath. Most calendars still use this method for layout.
As for the cat on the lap, MaggieB loves to claw at my leg until I let her get up. She then tries to walk along my arms and thighs while I type, occasionally making an effort to assist by pawwing at the keyboard :)
The Squeeze is always welcome to come and play. The reason cats like you is because you give them the human 'I don't like you' response, which is slitty eyes. This to cats means 'Come here you gorgeous thing, I lurv you'. heh.
Yairs, cats don't make good office assistants, do they? Especially with the onset of spring moult. My keyboard is full of cathair.
bronwen and boysenberry are correct.
The Sabbath was the last day of the week, the day of rest. Christians moved their holy day to the first day of the week (eh, read the Gospels, "Very early on the first day of the week" is how one account of the Resurrection starts) to commemorate Christ rising from the dead on Sunday. So Sunday is the first day of the week, and the holiest of Christian days, but it's NOT the Sabbath.
Well, there's my thing learned for today. Thanks for that. Unfortunately I'll probably go on thinking that Monday is the start of the week because that's how my diary is laid out :)
But at least I officially know better.
That's OK, &D. Later Christians moved on and were happy to consider Sunday as the Sabbath, and thus Monday as the first day. Luther particularly favoured it as the older way of calendar layout smacked of Judaic influences, and he was very strongly bigoted against the Jews. Most Protestant calendars followed the Lutheran trend.
Like a lot of Christian practises, things have varied widely over the years regarding Sabbath stuff. There are still some sects which do a sunset to sunset observance (dating from before domestic timepieces) instead of our modern midnight to midnight observance.
Just about the time you were writing this post I was working in my study with Baz slobbing around under his sun-desk-lamp and stealthily curling up on my desk chair every time I stood up to get a book from a bookcase more than an arm's reach away.
Heh. And I bet he really enjoyed himself.
Hmmm. Yeah. And he always had that heavy-lidded nonchalant look on his face, too, like Padge's - like he'd been there for hours, and did I want to make something of it...
Sit them on the keyboard and let us see catbum poetry. Please. Envying their blissed out sun-lampness right now.
Good to read about nice, cute things cats do, that don't cost their servants an arm and a leg. Am still reeling from the vet's bill for repairing Tintin's missing cheek ($438!!) Love the way your two are into sun lamps.
Well, it's been very cold at night lately. The lamp is the warmest spot in the room!
Missing cheek... poor thing.
Post a Comment