So it's been a while between serious posts (ones that aren't road raging!) - so here we go!

So probably of most importance to my way of life, I sold my beautiful car. My lovely little 2002 Mazda Mx5 has relocated to Sydney, and we've parted ways... It was definitely not through lack of love, more fear of not loving her enough... She had a lovely layer of dust when I took her in for a pre-sale wash! So mixed feelings (but the right decision) - I'm gonna miss my beautiful little beast!

This leads to much more reliance on the ol' push bike - which can only mean good things! So between riding into work and occassinally leaving my bike there to catch a lift home so as to have an excuse to walk to work the next day, i should be improving the amount of exercise i'm getting... Having said that, I've been riding in several days a week for the past couple of months anyways...

So other than that, I've been spending all of my spare time in my other life (SecondLife). It is a virtual world where you can basically live nefariously through your avatar (seeing as I don't have any children to be able to do this with - apart from the cats). So my name is Gizzy Electricteeth (don't ask me why - they give you a selection of available surnames and that was the coolest available at the time). My avatar looks somewhat like I did - say - 5 or 6 years ago.

One of the cool things in SecondLife is that you can "buy land" and build houses, shops, whatever you choose... So I've built a house the closely resembles a plan that I've been working on for some months. Based on our sets of wants and must haves, I think I've come up with something relatively cool. So having built it in SecondLife, we get to road test the design... We've worked out that the shower works betteragainst this wall instead of that, this door should open this way because it gets in the way if you open it the other way, etc etc etc... So by the time we're ready to build it, it should be perfectly livable with no "damn, I wish I'd done things differently!". If anybody has a secondlife account and would like a walk through, please email me and we'll organise a time to eet up online OR i can just tell you where to go (as in where the house is, nothing impolite!).

On the home front, I've finished building the deck, it looks unreal... So we bought a cantilevered umbrella to put over the deck to provide shade in the hot summer. Chris (the big meanie) said that when I finish installing the umbrella (which involved much concreting and star pickets and shtuff) he would buy me a deck chair for my birthday. So I got my birthday pressie this weekend just gone (2 weeks AFTER my birthday)! I think it highly unfair - I never make him work for his pressies!

Pipe hasn't been swimming again, but he has been birdy chasing... He's not very good at it (thankfully). Since adding a bird feeder to our back yard we have crimson rosellas visiting every afternoon - would be devastated if he actually managed to get one. Fortunately he's way obvious when he starts his run, so they have heaps of notice of incoming cats.

Chris got a new Nokia E70, and has been playing with it almost constantly since it arrived (yesterday) and now has it working with our asterisk (voip) setup at home. So when he's home all his calls are made through voip (free or cheap), and when he's away it defaults to the mobile network. Way cool! He pretty clever (even if he is mean).

My cousin's wife is pregnant (YAY!!! Go Matt and Relle!!), and one of my best mates (Stevo!!) is getting himself hitched in about 4 weeks... Oh - and Anton is getting a motorbike! Am way jealous, and trying to convince him he needs one in Canberra as well as Austin for when he's local - we have heaps of room in the garage now! AND I have a new laptop! It's an IBM thinkpad Z61p - and it is way sexy (gorgeous widescreen) =) That's about it in catching up on the news!

now... back to my second life ;)

Alli recently got a new toy, and was a source of inspiration to me...

For those who couldn't be bothered following the links, it is a ddr (Dance Dance Revolution) mat - one of those dance games like you see at the games places at movie theatres. This one is a soft, foam filled one that you can hook up to your computer via the USB port. Your computer sees the mat as an 10-button joystick, so you can use it with any apps that work with joysticks. They're made with dance games in mind - like PyDance and StepMania (both of which are FREE and OPEN SOURCE - of course =). These two run on linux.

So after playing with Alli's, I told Chris about it. He got as inspired as I was, and it really didn't take much arm-twisting to convince him that we needed one. Or two =)

So they arrived today!!! We have one each so we can plug them into the 'puter, run stepmania, and have a dodgey-dance-off. We've spent most of tonight playing with the thing and are both now truly exhausted. And our feet hurt!

But it's all worth it =)

Great fun - a highly recommended toy!

but now is bed time.....

I like my car. It's pretty and it's fun and it's done me well for four years (apart from the annoying tax thing where the australian taxation office rewards drivers of leased vehicles to pollute the atmosphere).

Since the end of the tax thing, the pretty little car really hasn't done much other than sit in the garage costing for insurance and registration on the odd chance that I may want to take her drivies.

We really only use her as a weekender. Lately all our weekends have been taken up with lugging around large quantities of shtuff (for the various back yard projects we've been playing with), which won't fit in my car. We've also decided that we're really keen on kayaking, and would like to procure (at some stage in the future) some kayaks. These are also not easily luggable using my car. As such, Chris's car is getting (and will continue to get) much more use than my own.

So it is with heavy (albeit sensible) heart *sob sob* that I relinquish my beautiful vehicle to the highest bidder. I have more pics and info here!

So make an offer!! =)

I've been feeling headachey, really tired, generally rather ordinary, etc etc etc (no point complaining - it's boring), and notice that good quality vitamins can make a huge difference.

My friend, Roger, and his beautiful gal, Carol, have been doing a detox diet recently as a result of Carol visiting a naturopath for similar symptoms. While Roger wasn't told by medical (or pseudo-medical - depending how you feel about it) personnel to do the diet, he decided to jump on board so that he and the girlfriend could do it together.

Both of them are reporting incredible results in all sorts of areas , although I'm mainly impressed with just the ability to concentrate more and for longer - something I've been lacking in for the past 2 years or so (which I put down to stress). I saw the pair of them a couple of weeks back and they just look fantastic - full of vitality, bright eyes, great complexion, and Roger has lost a metric truck load of weight! Well, he wasn't that heavy, but he looks fantastic. Carol always looked great =)

So I've decided to do the detox diet...

What it involves mainly is cutting out all caffiene, sugar and bad things from one's diet. No cooked oils, no red meats, no processed food, etc... WTF?!?! NO SUGAR?? AAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGHHH!!!!! It's basically to clean out the liver and make sure that the body is functioning the way it is meant to. I start on Monday! =)

So the first week of said diet is basically just getting used to the difference in the diet - lotsa vegies and salads, able to eat non-wheat bread (but not too much), eggs, chicken, fruits, etc... Apparently it's all good. The second week is when your withdrawals start kicking in to all that you're addicted to... Due to my massive sugar addiction, I'm expecting to be REALLY crabby for this week... Then the last two weeks are reportedly smooth sailing. There's lotsa vegie juice drinking (for which we bought a juicer). I have to be good, I have to be strict.

So this weekend we've been splurging. Well, not for THAT reason, but we've been splurging anyway and have eaten or drunk basically everything that the diet says not to. Started with a trip to a cafe for brunch today, followed by Thai green curry over a bottle of champagne for dinner, chocolate, etc... And plans to eat out again tomorrow night.

Why am I blogging this? For anyone who invites me out for dinner in the next few weeks who thinks I am a damned snob for saying "thanks, but no thanks" - I have a point of reference to show why I am unable to eat out, and I'm not just making it up. And for those of you who have to put up with my grumpiness in the coming weeks, sorry - and there is a reason for it!! I am an addict, and will indeed be suffering from withdrawal. To tea, to chocolate, to caffiene and sugar in general.

I'm not much of a television watcher, but Chris is. So I mentioned this new program, Forget The Rules, to him the other day and was surprised to find that he knew all about it from some documentary that he'd been watching about it. It's apparently the first series being broadcast by pay TV, mobile telephone and available on the internet.

So he knew about it for it's coolness and geekiness value =)

I heard about it from someone I used to work with on the Victoria Police account (at IBM). Nick was chatting to me the other day and drops into the convo "So... Did you hear about Steve?", to which I automatically get worried and say "no, is he ok?"

Steven Cabral, my ex-colleague and a very good friend (whom I have seriously neglected since moving interstate) has been involved in a few plays, student movies, TV commercials, etc for quite a while and had been looking to sink his teeth into something a little more full on. It appears that now he has!

There's three main Characters:

• Pony (actor Daniel Kitchener)
• Lisa (actress Louise Crawford)
• Pepe (actor STEVE CABRAL)

I just wanted to bring attention to it to everyone I know because I think Steve is just FAB and deserves the support of everyone possible by way of us all spending a little time watching his excellent new project

The only thing left to say:

GO STEVE!!!!!

I wish you great success - as always =) I know you'll be wonderful!

Oh... and where can I sign up for the fan club? =)

My car rated a mention in Michael's blog!

Translates roughly to the title of the spam I received today... If only all spam was like this, it might be worth reading! Read on =)

Oh. You call THAT something to lend? returned Traddles, with a services were constantly called into requisition for the and trembling. That Mr. Dick supported her on his arm. That he thing. he was now alluding to Mrs. Micawbers letter, and we were her opinion that he should have done this at first. But, my dear Sir, though estranged by the force of circumstances vigorous the sapling, said Mrs. Micawber, shaking her head, I use me so? But why do I ask? It is because you know how weak I

to Mr. Wickfield. And really his anxiety to be of use in the The tranquillity and peace belonging, of old, to that quiet ground usual, that precious little kiss - once, twice, three times - and

but that he had dispelled them, and reassured her. As to her think, could have been more terrible to me, than the mental purpose, new intention. Great was the labour; priceless the we should follow her. I would have done so again today; but Uriah reminded me of the changes that had come to pass since then; but to see the ship wafted on her course.

It was then calm, radiant

I think there's a lesson in that for all of us...

Went to pick up my poor, sick child this morning... Sitting in his cage, looking rather sad and sorry for himself. He has one shaved arm so that they could attach a drip to rehydrate him.

Dehydration fixed, vomiting stopped, overall happier cat. Now he's just crying to be fed but the vet said no food until later this evening. Have to stay nearby today to make sure that the throwing up doesn't recur, otherwise it's back to the vet for another round on the drip!

I think overall the middle of the night vet visit may have done him good. The new cleaner is here, and he's a man... Gizzy usually hates new people, especially men, although doesn't seem overly worried about the cleaner today. After a few minutes of hiding under the couch he's now walking around the house. Even stopped in the bathroom to take a look at the cleaner in action!

Still wish he didn't have to scare me like that =\

Can't sleep... My little monster is spending the night at the vet emergency centre after spending the last hour or so vomiting and with diarrhea...

His last meal was about 4 hours before the vomiting started, although the food looked as though it had not been digested at all. The vet said that this is often a sign of food poisoning. Salmonella or the likes - usually something similar to what may cause humans to have similar symptoms. The biggest problem now is that he was started to get dehydrated.

So he's staying in kitty-cat hospital overnight with a drip in his little kitty-cat arm to ensure that he gets the liquids required to keep him healthy, and he's on anti-biotics. The vet said he should be ok to come home tomorrow, although may need to spend the day on the drip in hospital and come home at night.

The result is that I'm lying in bed worried sick, with horrid memories swimming through my head of the last time he was sick (intestinal obstruction requiring surgery), and how I thought then that I would lose him... I know he's "just a cat", but I am truthfully as dependent on him as he is on me... That said, I'm worried sick...

The vet said he's going to be ok, so I know he is going to be fine... I'll just do the panicky young mum thing in the interim.

I guess one good thing is that at least this time he's gotten sick, he hasn't timed it for the week before I'm moving interstate - at least I can be with him to ensure a happy recovery instead of driving between Canberra and Melbourne every weekend until he's fit enough to move here himself!