Someone mentioned to me the other day that you will tend to socialise and communicate best with people who have IQ's within 20 points or so of your own. Given that the person I was talking to had been measured with an IQ of 160ish, this gave me a wee bit of a surprise although when I thought about it, it seemed pretty reasonable.
Knowing what I do about the IQ of some of my friends (I'm pretty sure I have atleast one if not a couple who are in Mensa), this makes me quite curious to know what the IQ's of my friends are.
Maybe combined we are smart enough that tonight, Pinky, we could take over the world......
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Day Off
It was lovely having a short week, which is fantastic. It's even more fantastic that Nic and Sammy are in Orcland for the weekend :)
So yesterday Nic and I decided to just hang out and mooch at her uncles place and watch DVD's. That was fine until the DVD player decided to completely CRAP OUT and stop every 5 minutes until we were both going mental (Sammy was asleep on the other couch).
This was about when we flicked over to Channel 1 and saw this great documentary, Reluctant Hero, about Willie Apiata VC. Tem Morrison was narrating (so cool) and it covered the lead up to Willie getting the medal, the circumstances in which he won the medal, some of the things that he has done since getting the medal like visiting Passchendaele (so sad) and gifting the VC to the SAS (so awesome). Seriously if anyone gets the chance to watch it I would fully recommend it.
It reminded me that my family lost alot of people in the WWs, including a few at Gallipoli and some in the genocide in Armenia. When you consider this, it's kind of odd to think that the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East are barely even news worthy these days. I think that perhaps the modern world has begun to get a bit immune to the violence and forget that there are people still affected by war every day, even here in NZ.
So everyone raise their glasses to our defenders, both present and past, guys and girls, frontline and support. Here's to you.
So yesterday Nic and I decided to just hang out and mooch at her uncles place and watch DVD's. That was fine until the DVD player decided to completely CRAP OUT and stop every 5 minutes until we were both going mental (Sammy was asleep on the other couch).
This was about when we flicked over to Channel 1 and saw this great documentary, Reluctant Hero, about Willie Apiata VC. Tem Morrison was narrating (so cool) and it covered the lead up to Willie getting the medal, the circumstances in which he won the medal, some of the things that he has done since getting the medal like visiting Passchendaele (so sad) and gifting the VC to the SAS (so awesome). Seriously if anyone gets the chance to watch it I would fully recommend it.
It reminded me that my family lost alot of people in the WWs, including a few at Gallipoli and some in the genocide in Armenia. When you consider this, it's kind of odd to think that the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East are barely even news worthy these days. I think that perhaps the modern world has begun to get a bit immune to the violence and forget that there are people still affected by war every day, even here in NZ.
So everyone raise their glasses to our defenders, both present and past, guys and girls, frontline and support. Here's to you.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Continuing life
So the apartment search has been relatively successful but after talking to my financial guru advisor guy I have decided that to successfully manage the demands of Auckland and my plan of actually saving some pingas I will be required to share with another person.
Okay - I know I swore black and blue that I wanted to live on my own but gosh-darn-it-all-to-HE-double-hockey-sticks there is a whole lot more places out there if I have a couple of hundred extra bucks a week added to the budget. So the searching approach will be slightly altered but the plan is that this will also allow for the world of Spare 'Oom to be sufficiently financed for visitors. This now means navigating the world of flatmates. I'm not sure if I'm worried or okay with this.
And on another track, I'm rather looking forward to seeing Nic & Sammy at the weekend, my first friends to visit Orcland since I've been here. We will be going to the monthly Titirangi markets on Sunday which are apparently excellent.
Moving right along..... Work is AWESOME. I've been on site for a week now and am settling into a bit of a routine. I've got another bit of work to do for that customer as at tonight and will be learning SQL next week to do that! Yes yes geekiness ensues.....
My boss is pretty damn cool and he trusts me quite a bit which is a very refreshing change.
But anyway right now I'm watching the ever hilarious Robin Hood Men in Tights on telly so I'm going to bugger off now. But FYI the first thing that popped into my head when I saw it was on telly was how wierd it is not living with M&M!
Okay - I know I swore black and blue that I wanted to live on my own but gosh-darn-it-all-to-HE-double-hockey-sticks there is a whole lot more places out there if I have a couple of hundred extra bucks a week added to the budget. So the searching approach will be slightly altered but the plan is that this will also allow for the world of Spare 'Oom to be sufficiently financed for visitors. This now means navigating the world of flatmates. I'm not sure if I'm worried or okay with this.
And on another track, I'm rather looking forward to seeing Nic & Sammy at the weekend, my first friends to visit Orcland since I've been here. We will be going to the monthly Titirangi markets on Sunday which are apparently excellent.
Moving right along..... Work is AWESOME. I've been on site for a week now and am settling into a bit of a routine. I've got another bit of work to do for that customer as at tonight and will be learning SQL next week to do that! Yes yes geekiness ensues.....
My boss is pretty damn cool and he trusts me quite a bit which is a very refreshing change.
But anyway right now I'm watching the ever hilarious Robin Hood Men in Tights on telly so I'm going to bugger off now. But FYI the first thing that popped into my head when I saw it was on telly was how wierd it is not living with M&M!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Apart-mental II
This will be a short rant/post.
After my last post I was tasked with the lovely job of finding myself parking for my vehicle - since I need to have one 'cause it is Orcland and with the nature of my job I will actually need to use it.
After reconciling myself to the idea of actually paying rent of the first-born level, I went and got quotes for parking which would have required me to sell a gosh-darned (swap for the expletive of your choice) kidney to even contemplate. And just to slight me even more, for the selling of said kidney they wouldn't guarantee that the car would be monitored and they had no process to let me know if the car got broken into or smashed up by some useless driver.
ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH. Given how much I love my car this actually offends me that they are so very inconsiderate!
As a result this made the lovely apartment completely unfeasible, and the amount of money I would have been paying made me want to vomit (no really I did actually contemplate making a dash for the ladies at one point).
As a result the trawl continues. I am moderately disheartened, but currently coping. The range of the search is being expanded to accommodate my current negative mindset. Any suggestions of good locations would be good.
I think my "short" rant got a bit extended :/
After my last post I was tasked with the lovely job of finding myself parking for my vehicle - since I need to have one 'cause it is Orcland and with the nature of my job I will actually need to use it.
After reconciling myself to the idea of actually paying rent of the first-born level, I went and got quotes for parking which would have required me to sell a gosh-darned (swap for the expletive of your choice) kidney to even contemplate. And just to slight me even more, for the selling of said kidney they wouldn't guarantee that the car would be monitored and they had no process to let me know if the car got broken into or smashed up by some useless driver.
ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHH. Given how much I love my car this actually offends me that they are so very inconsiderate!
As a result this made the lovely apartment completely unfeasible, and the amount of money I would have been paying made me want to vomit (no really I did actually contemplate making a dash for the ladies at one point).
As a result the trawl continues. I am moderately disheartened, but currently coping. The range of the search is being expanded to accommodate my current negative mindset. Any suggestions of good locations would be good.
I think my "short" rant got a bit extended :/
Monday, April 14, 2008
Apart-mental
So for the past couple of weeks, I have subjected myself to trying to locate a place to live here in Orcland. I decided while in Wellywood that I would prefer to attempt dwelling on my own
Here is where I would like to point out that I have done the "living quarters trawl" before in Wellington and more often than not it has been relatively successful with some semi-decent abodes to be found.
Orcland seems to have a large range of places available from cheap and naaaaaaaaaasssssty to mortgaging your soul and handing over your firstborn. Yet strangely they seem to cycle through pretty quickly and for a price that wouldn't kill a Wellingtonian but would certainly raise a few eyebrows. Even worse, for a town that relies almost solely on vehicles due to the seriously crap nature of much of it's public transport, many do NOT come with carparks even if you have handed over your firstborn and all rights to future and as yet unconcieved children.
So after looking at a lovely *wee* apartment for the price of my left kidney, I had very serious second thoughts about the idea of moving and reluctantly continued looking for somewhere to live. (Quite seriously if I had tried to swing a cat in that apartment it would have hit all the walls and splattered on the sliding window/door. Alternatively if more than one person had come to visit, there would have been a queue in the hallway. Pick the analogy that grosses you out less)
Anyhoo, over the weekend I appear to have had more success. There is an apartment I have found which is lovely. It's only 1 bedroom, but there is a nook with enough room for visitors to crash in. There isn't a balcony but there are opening windows (YAY) and it's up high (extra YAY) and it's only a block to get to the movies (DOUBLE SUPER YAY).
Now I just have to convince the landlords that they want me to live there......
And following another thread of thought, I'm stealing a leaf out of the Judge's blog.
I went to see "Definitely, Maybe" on Saturday night. I went into the movie knowing that that this was likely to be complete chicklit pap, and I was not disappointed. I was somewhat disappointed that the storyline wasn't even half as funny as the ads and the various reviews had implied, and the kooky redhead (Isla Fisher, the other half of Ali G) wasn't even half as kooky as I like her to be. Abigail Breslin was occasionally entertaining, but not in best form (as an aside, is she the sister of the other Breslin boy? The one from Zoom and The Kid? My head is spinning OOC). Not even the very, very lovely Ryan Reynolds could save that poor doomed storyline.
So my opinion is girls, watch this on DVD when hormonal due to the cutesy love story; boys, save yourself and leave the house if it's on TV. Other than that, I would ignore it's existance except I know that I'll watch it again just for the Ryan Reynolds eyecandy........
Update: The apartment is mine..... Excellent....... *evil grin*
Here is where I would like to point out that I have done the "living quarters trawl" before in Wellington and more often than not it has been relatively successful with some semi-decent abodes to be found.
Orcland seems to have a large range of places available from cheap and naaaaaaaaaasssssty to mortgaging your soul and handing over your firstborn. Yet strangely they seem to cycle through pretty quickly and for a price that wouldn't kill a Wellingtonian but would certainly raise a few eyebrows. Even worse, for a town that relies almost solely on vehicles due to the seriously crap nature of much of it's public transport, many do NOT come with carparks even if you have handed over your firstborn and all rights to future and as yet unconcieved children.
So after looking at a lovely *wee* apartment for the price of my left kidney, I had very serious second thoughts about the idea of moving and reluctantly continued looking for somewhere to live. (Quite seriously if I had tried to swing a cat in that apartment it would have hit all the walls and splattered on the sliding window/door. Alternatively if more than one person had come to visit, there would have been a queue in the hallway. Pick the analogy that grosses you out less)
Anyhoo, over the weekend I appear to have had more success. There is an apartment I have found which is lovely. It's only 1 bedroom, but there is a nook with enough room for visitors to crash in. There isn't a balcony but there are opening windows (YAY) and it's up high (extra YAY) and it's only a block to get to the movies (DOUBLE SUPER YAY).
Now I just have to convince the landlords that they want me to live there......
And following another thread of thought, I'm stealing a leaf out of the Judge's blog.
I went to see "Definitely, Maybe" on Saturday night. I went into the movie knowing that that this was likely to be complete chicklit pap, and I was not disappointed. I was somewhat disappointed that the storyline wasn't even half as funny as the ads and the various reviews had implied, and the kooky redhead (Isla Fisher, the other half of Ali G) wasn't even half as kooky as I like her to be. Abigail Breslin was occasionally entertaining, but not in best form (as an aside, is she the sister of the other Breslin boy? The one from Zoom and The Kid? My head is spinning OOC). Not even the very, very lovely Ryan Reynolds could save that poor doomed storyline.
So my opinion is girls, watch this on DVD when hormonal due to the cutesy love story; boys, save yourself and leave the house if it's on TV. Other than that, I would ignore it's existance except I know that I'll watch it again just for the Ryan Reynolds eyecandy........
Update: The apartment is mine..... Excellent....... *evil grin*
Friday, April 11, 2008
It's a whole new world....
And I ain't kidding.
I packed up the car, and drove to Hamilton on a Sunday and then to Auckland on the Monday. And now I've been here almost 2 weeks.
It's quite different from Wellington and I find myself comparing things all the time - parking costs much the same, rush hour is completely different, buses are better (! - atleast from the North Shore), and the weather is relatively good. Housing is generally similar although the turnover is way faster, and the rents are slightly more expensive.
The job rocks. After being somewhat bored for the past 12 months, although earning very good deniros, I find that I am enjoying actually having something to do! (even if that thing is learning linux...)
And since I'm lazy I decided that I would start a blog. That way I don't have to keep emailing the same information to everyone and repeating myself repeating myself.
So more to follow shortly......
I packed up the car, and drove to Hamilton on a Sunday and then to Auckland on the Monday. And now I've been here almost 2 weeks.
It's quite different from Wellington and I find myself comparing things all the time - parking costs much the same, rush hour is completely different, buses are better (! - atleast from the North Shore), and the weather is relatively good. Housing is generally similar although the turnover is way faster, and the rents are slightly more expensive.
The job rocks. After being somewhat bored for the past 12 months, although earning very good deniros, I find that I am enjoying actually having something to do! (even if that thing is learning linux...)
And since I'm lazy I decided that I would start a blog. That way I don't have to keep emailing the same information to everyone and repeating myself repeating myself.
So more to follow shortly......
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