The Patent Dragon's Zone of Soul Retraction

Yay! I'm on time now!



Meanwhile... Looks like I'm not finished with the exams on Monday after all. Wednesday PM is the last slot where I'm needed... so that's another week arsed up, I guess...

...and it looks like I'll have to venture out of town for another cinema trip, on Spiritwalk Day (Thursday). That's not so bad - just mildly inconvenient.

Day 2, different "team member" - whole new ball-game, and one that sucked royally. Thank the gods it was only one day... albeit one day too many.

I blew off some steam in Saints Row The Third (video to come), and tomorrow is another day.

On a much more positive note: this...



Bet that goes straight to fnajing Sky TV.

Heeeee's baaaaaack.

Yeah, I'm DONE. Already.

It can all be summed up as follows: "Feel like a broken-down sewage plant - sick and tired of trying to process other people's SHIT."

It didn't get any better, and that's all I am prepared to say on the matter.

I'll just end with THIS.

Pity - I was getting some good writing done in between doses of grief and hassle. Wreck Of The Nemesis will still air on time - but not before the current chapter of WORLDS COLLIDE is completed, this weekend.

And so, I commence a "decompression" period. hell, I need it.

Not A Surprise... Hmph. Some painting was needing done in the work office this morning, so I decided to come in to work later, closer to lunchtime... but apparently the work isn't actually done, and needs continued tomorrow. Tomorrow morning? Tomorrow afternoon? When? If I hadn't spoken to one of the janitors, I wouldn't have known all this wasn't over and done.

Frustrating. I'll do a late start again tomorrow, in the hope that it will all be done by then. Grrrr...

And half my blinds have been taken down, meaning that I am now bathed in unhindered sunlight, unless I hide from it, which isn't always easy.

At least I was able to do some Star Trek Online catch-up this morning, 'cause I was up late (also facilitated by my deferred work-start) pre-loading X-COM Enemy Unknown, the new version of the glorious classic UFO/X-COM series. Downloaded the demo, played the demo, and knew at once that I had to have this... ooooh, the misson zone view rotates!

Currently Listening To... The fantastic Bat For Lashes in a live session for Radio 6. A new album is semi-imminent, and I hope that "stripped-down" doesn't mean that Natasha Khan's music loses its undeniable magic in the process. This is someone I'd very much like to see live - and maybe a new album means a tour... Update - AGH! BFL touring THIS MONTH, and I just don't have the time to make arrangements. Dammit! (And if there are gigs next year, they better not just be bloody festivals!)

Grrr... This sun is really getting to me. It's a lovely day outside - but I'm not outside, am I...?

I might just take tomorrow off - pity it's not the 12th, 'cause I know I could spend a whole day playing X-COM. Failing that, I can always rack up a whole bunch of raw Dilithium for Walks-With-Storms.


I have about three days' worth stockpiled for refinement right now...

(...to the tune of "Sittin' On The Dock Of The Bay"...)

We're really needing that roof repair, due in March, but which was postponed from September because someone didn't read the small print (and no, it wasn't me). Once the "big job" is underway, or completed, the rest of the work needing done can kick off, including a refurbishment of the office window, which is draughty as hell, and a pain to try and sit in when you're wanting to do serious stuff. I will just have to sit downstairs when necessary until the work is done.

(Okay, enough bitchin'.) Tiem for some news...

ITEM! Just had a nice surprise at the bookshop today - an unexpected half-price purchase! Kinda makes up for earlier in the week (by about a third).

ITEM! All of a sudden, it's the weekend again - and I'd really have liked *gasp* some real work to do these past three days. I'm not entirely back in my groove yet, and that's a pain in the backside. Next week, the exams start - but not until Tuesday...

It's a full week at least.

ITEM! The first big movie of the year is on the horizon - War Horse. I really want to see the stage version, with its beautiful "puppet" horses, as does The Parental, but the cinematic version with real horses may have to do for now. Now, do I read the book (which I just bought) first, or wait...?

ITEM! I'm getting REALLY sick of the piss-poor selection of movies on TV right now. There are surely other films out there that haven't been on twenty times in the last few weeks - and why was Cars the only family film on BBC3 NOT to get shown more than once? Dammit, I missed a chunk of that one.

ITEM! It's funny how Diane Abbott's outburst stopped being news so damned quickly...

As promised, some bonus material from

- The "Extras". Images taken directly from my trusty Notebook of Awesomeness!

Release Notes... This entry was a last minute addition. Seems like a fitting way to wind up Season Six.

Meanwhile... No thanks. I don't want "BBC Alba" on Freeview, if that means losing a bunch of radio channels. The latter are far more likely to be of any interest.

Oh, and there was something of a "whooops" this morning - I flipped the wrong switch on my alarm clock, and it never went off. Still made it to work "on time" - hooray for flexible hours!

It's nearly the weekend, and that means it's time to start marshalling some stuff for relocation. Gonna have to get serious now...

Still no clarification about my contract position for Work Slot 1 - I'll be paying the office a visit when I finish work on Wednesday, with completed contract in hand whether I need to fill it in or not.

Oh, and I so bloody hate 1) those Discrimination and Diversity forms, which now include "sexual orientation", and 2) electronic forms that DO NOT FUNCTION...

Meanwhile... should the Seattle Seahawks be in the playoffs in the NFL?

( Skip if you're not a football fan - but even if you're not, you might learn something... )

Post-Season Predictions...
- Saints beat Seahawks (comprehensively)
- Eagles beat Packers (just)
- Jets beat Colts
- Ravens beat Chiefs...

And Finally... As I watched the football, I did some development work, most of which went over already well-trodden ground. "The Road To Reignfall" is pretty much set in stone, and I know where I need to go with The Secret Adventures of Mane-of-Night: Flight 102 Is Overdue. The latter story is not going to be done and dusted in one go - a new "property" may be required to handle that. A team, an individual... something new.