It was quite a jolly ride into art school today, the first time I've done the bike thing since our local weather decided to take an nude icy plunge into Antarctic air flows. It was -5 degrees last night -- take that, Thirdcat!
So I rugged up well for the peddle: Nepalese fully-lined woolly hat, polo-neck shirt, weird long mini-cardie that I got heavily discounted at Tar-gey the other day, jeans, Blunnies with thick socks, and a fantastic faux-suede padded coat I bought in the sweat of summer at an op shop that I KNEW would come in handy just about now. Topped off with a possum-fur/wool mix scarf and some leather gloves, I looked like a dark marshmallow, but I felt great. Except for the hands. Tomorrow I will need my microfibre glove liners as well; my fingertips, vanguard of the ride, were freezing. I'm just warming them up now with a little keybort exercising before I start work ;)
In other news, yesterday's workshop with teh Women of Majura was fun, because they get into things without stressing too much. Lots of tea and slice, babies to coo over (and reinforce the rightness of one's decision to draw a line in the sand) and things quietly made amongst gossip and other conversation. I was teaching them simple Japanese binding techniques, with a few more complex patterns drawn up on a board for those who wanted to go further, and we talked about how it was a great stitch to collate kids' drawings, or make cloth baby books, or photo albums, or to teach kids so that they can make their own little notebooks etc. If you are a mother in Canberra and need something to do once a week to get you out of the house, I highly recommend this group. They meet in Downer, which is very easy to get to from anywhere, I like to think.
On the way back to my formal day job yesterday, I stopped at an intersection in Civic where I normally chat to a windscreen washer. But he wasn't there, someone else was. He is a part of a new wave of windscreen washers in the inner north who are completely annoying -- they don't have the rhythm of the lights worked out, so they approach you just before you know the light's about to change, and/or they approach you and ignore your shaking head, and give you a 'freebie' in the hope that you'll then change your mind about flinging cash at them. Yesterday the dude tried both things, and I yelled at him. I was shaking my head, knowing the light was 20 seconds off changing, and I had people behind me who wouldn't appreciate waiting for him to finish my already clean windscreen (the wonders of rain!). So I yelled NO!, but he kept lowering the dripping wiper, grinning, so I lowered my window and yelled again: WHAT PART OF NO DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?!
He backed off. I got a few thumbs up by people as we all drove off, and I hope he starts to look at the lights a few times before he does it again. I miss the other guy. I hope he comes back. If I don't want a wipe, we have a chat, and I give him whatever I have, which is usually lollies. He never refuses them.
In other other news, one of my son's Photoshop efforts from a few years ago has made someone's 'bad Photoshop' blog. I don't mind, really, but I don't like the assumption that [a] the parent has inflicted these effects upon the child against their will, and [b] it's a male parent. Yah boo sucks to you, tumblr, whoever you are. Bumblebee had a great time exploring Photoshop, and I thnk he did ok for a nine-yo, or whatever he was.
Anyhoo, my fingers are now warm, better do something constructive around here. It's assessment time, the place is so quiet, it's spooky. I might put some music on for starters.
5 comments:
Wow, I thought it was cold HERE!
The dash from water to shelter was interesting, though only a tropical 7C. I will think of you in the minus five tomorrow when my feet burn on the wet steps.
I never seem to see window washers anymore. I wonder why?
That bad photoshop blog? ORLY. I suppose BB didn't come up to the staggeringly high standards of the author of the heartbreakingly evocative "Perimeter Fence", for instance. Yes, I can completely see why he felt the need to take down a nine year old.
These Will Ferrell types, who live in group houses of likeminded dudes or their Mum's basement, forget what it's like to be 9 (or an alternative theory is that they're not far enough away from it to be objective.) Some of them develop some empathy and ability to allow for people being different ages, so I'm sure for this dude all is not lost. If he moves out of the basement, that is.
(Do you think he washes windows?)
Awww. Look at that brilliant womens' site. WIsh I had moved to Canberra 15 years ago now. Despite the froideur.
Dear Duck,
Oh please oh please oh please tell me that one day in the near future you may do a bookbinding/book repurposing for people in Canberra?!??! I have some really mioce old book covers that I am not game to try rebuilding into a journal - too scared...
Yes, Anonymous, I can guarantee I'll be doing something like that in Canberra soon! Just keep checking in to the Megalo website, I teach there all the time. In fact, I'm teaching there next weekend, but that's box-making.
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