The Dentist

I went to the dentist today. I dislike the sound and sensation of the tools used. It sets my teeth on edge, so to speak. I primarily went to the dentist in the hope that it would remedy the cause of my mouth ulcers, and also because it had been a good many years (at least 9) since my last visit to a dental practitioner. I have clean teeth, but no solution to my ulcer problem as apparently my teeth aren't the cause, or at least aren't the primary cause, which is frustrating as it means I still need to find the actual cause. I was also informed of the presence of a cavity. The cavity is in one of my wisdom teeth, which the dentist thinks should be removed. The good side of this is that I won't need to get the cavity filled, but the bad side is that I may have to have my wisdom teeth removed, a process which sounds extremely painful. Having a cavity filled also sounds like it could be potentially painful. Damn teeth.

Notebook Computer

I want to buy a new notebook computer (the style of computer known as laptops before stupid people started burning their laps and private bits with them).
I have fairly basic requirements, which I'll list below, so if anyone has opinions for or against various brands or deals, please let me know, as I'm open to suggestions.

My requirements:
1. They usually supply windows as part of the deal, and I'd prefer windows xp as I neither need nor want vista.
2. Lightweight, as I need to carry it around and take it o/s.
3. SD card slot.
4. Wireless.
5. Built-in webcam would be nice, but not absolutely necessary.
6. Decent sized hard drive - at least 60GB, preferably 80GB or more.
7. Screen size - I don't want a huge screen as I want this to be portable and part of that includes size as well as weight, but on the other hand, I don't want to use something the size of a digital wristwatch display.
8. Sturdy - I'll definitely look after my notebook, but I'd like the reassurance of knowing that it would survive a knock or two.
9. DVD burner
10. At least 4USB ports (though I could survive with 2)

I think that's the list, or at least I can't think of anything else to add at the moment. I'll edit if things come to mind, or if people suggest useful and/or important extras.

I've noticed on a few websites that several notebooks no longer come with PCMCIA card slots; Are they necessary or are these slots becoming a bit obsolete?

In Melbourne

I'm in Melbourne. The flight down here was horrid, due to two small children competing for the title of Loudest Crying Child. I also made the mistake of flying into Melbourne's Avalon airport, which is almost in Geelong. I should have listened to Mark's advice (he told me to avoid Avalon).

I'm enjoying Melbourne so far. Yesterday we went to the Victoria Markets, which are exactly as I remembered them from when I went in 1992. Then we went to Federation Square to see the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. It was interesting, though a large part was closed in order to install a new exhibition. Last night Mark, Nathaniel and I had dinner in an Italian restaurant called La Porchetta, which was near Lygon Street followed by a trip to a pub with live music. I noticed that Melbourne doesn't have the same anti-smoking laws as Brisbane, and cigarette smoke is still plentiful in these places, which is rather annoying. I quite like the Brisbane system of being able to breathe inside pubs, but apparently some version of this law will be introduced in Melbourne in the near future.

Today we'll probably go to St Kilda and then do other stuff.

Pracy in Angleterre

Hehe, three languages in the title.
Other options are: Work en Anglii; Travail w England.

Anyway, the point of this post is to mention that it's likely that I have a job for the summer in England. I'll probably be working in Berkshire. The school I applied with has two centres, one in Berkshire and one in Hertfordshire. I actually would prefer to work at the school in Hertfordshire, but I'm happy with Berkshire too. The job isn't confirmed, as they haven't actually received my application, but I was recommended to them by Kat, who has worked for them before, and she has been told that it's likely they'll find a spot for me.
This would mean that I'll be in England, working from about the 6th of July for a period of about 4 weeks. After that I'll have some free time to travel around and gradually make my way to France, where I hope to stay for some time.

My plans are currently rather vague concerning the travel, as I haven't put much thought into them. The only definite is that I want to visit Lizard in St. Andrews or Edinburgh while I'm in England. I'm open to suggestions from people, especially if you've been in the region of the British Isles and there's a location or activity that you'd particularly recommend.

Busy as a very busy bee

I have been told that I've been neglecting my blog of late. This is indeed true. There have been a few things worthy of blogging but I've suffered from a problem some would refer to as blogging laziness. So, here's a quick run-down on what's happened in my life recently:

1. I've begun learning French again. I opted not to go through Alliance Francaise because they didn't have an appropriate course at a convenient time for me, so Kat and I found a private tutor who is giving us lessons together. The bonuses of this method are that we can have a course structured to our specific needs, we can organise the lessons around our lives and timetables and we get more attention in class.

2. I went to Sunrise Beach last weekend with Rowan and Klaus. We had a fantastic weekend, and the weather was fantastic, especially considering the forecast had predicted rain and showers all weekend. I discovered the, until last weekend, elusive location of my school's Noosa branch. It's well-placed in Noosa Junction, so very convenient for Noosa's public transport system, which is a good thing for the students, as they don't, as a rule, bring their cars over here with them.

3. I'm going to Sunrise Beach again this weekend, but this time with Liam and Alana. Part of the reason we're going up is to deliver a new futon mattress. The current mattress is a bit thin and not as comfortable as it once was.

4. Next weekend I'm off to Melbourne for a few days. I'll arrive on Friday night and then depart on the following Tuesday night.

5. I posted an application for a job in England today. If I'm successful, I'll be working in Hertfordshire, or perhaps Berkshire, which is not in the same part of England as Lizard; she's further north, in Fife. I'll be able to visit her at some stage though, which will be good.

Okay, I think that's enough for now, and enough to remind my blog that it's not neglected.

Brak pliku jeszcze ras

Jeszcze ras mój komputer jest popsute. Nie ma plika, jak ostatni ras. Mogę naprawiać komputer teraz.

Melbourneland

I'm going to Melbourneland. I've booked my flights already, and I plan to spend about 4 days in the southern. I shall visit Nat, Mark and Mel while down there, as well as see some of the city. The last time that I was there, which was also the only time that I've been there, I was about 12 years old and managed to offend an elderly Greek woman. I hope to avoid doing this again.
I will be there from late Friday evening, the 23rd of February, to the evening of Tuesday the 27th of February.
I must remember to inform work of my impending absence.

Il y a beaucoup de temps

Je vais ameliorer mon francais. Kat et moi avons trouve un prof de francais qui va nous aider. Nous l'avons envoye un courriel hier soir et elle nous a repondu aujourd'hui. Je veux aller en France cette annee et je crois qu'il faut ameliorer avant que j'y arriverai. Je voulais suivre des cours a l'alliance francaise, mais je ne peux pas parce que maitenant j'ai des repetitions d'orchestre aux soirs de jeudi et les cours d'alliance pour mon niveau sont aux jeudis. Quel dommage.

J'espere que notre nouvelle prof est tres sympa.

I want to buy a house

I've been watching the property market for a while, mostly watching friends buy things, but I've just seen the perfect property. I want to buy this. It may be slightly out of my price range at the moment, but sometimes you have to pay a bit extra to buy something that you really like, and I'd really like to own Dracula's Castle. Of course, we could then refer to it as Drakeula's Castle.

Forgetful Fred

My sunglasses are missing. They may have gone the way of my bookmark, which still hasn't turned up ('turn up' is a phrasal verb).

I also left my keys at home today, again.