What's two hours?

well, here i am in Geraldton, WA. there's a baby screaming in the unit next to ours, and it looks a little windy outside.. at least the sky is blue. *smile*

Heather and i arrived here on Monday - we've caught up with the Circus and have been driving around watching some shows.. it's pretty cool. not sure that it's teh best use of my time this week.. but i guess i'll just have to be really productive next week back at work.

i'll be heading back to Perth and then to Canberra on Saturday.. i'll be hitting home at about 9am on Sunday.. not really looking forward to that trip - the red-eye flight.. *sigh* o well.. i'll sleep sometime.

*smile*

hmmm.. guess i should get moving.. we're driving over to Mullewa today (about an hour away) to catch up with Eug and Jenny.. there were some gorgeous wildflowers out that way.. maybe i'll get a chance to photograph some of them today.. we'll see.

have a good day.

new avatar

decided to upload something.. and since i'm not a fan of photos at the moment, here's a "not photo".. inspired by damien's artwork.

i guess my hair isn't this long anymore.. (it's growing though).. and i've got a bit more purple these days.. and haven't worn the horns for a while..

hey, maybe i can take them with me this weekend.. i'm heading over to sydney (i think) to get out of canberra, catch up with a friend and check out some markets..

Workshops - tick

i'm not even sure if this will work.. but i'll give it a go. (oops, i sent it to the wrong address.. so it didn't work.. take two).

i'm currently sitting in an airport, waiting for a flight that doesn't leave for another two hours.. why am i so early?

because i gave a fellow team mate a lift to the airport after our team workshop.. unfortunately, her flight leaves way before mine.. in fact, it may have already left. *smile*

today finishes a fairly full on fortnight of workshops. we've had voice workshops, stagecraft workshops, think tanks on new stuff, journal clubs on existing stuff, and two full days off-site for team stuff. *phew*

i'm interested to see how the info from the workshops is implemented (or not) into the work environment. i guess i'll let you know..

right now, i'm tired.. but it's an optimistic tired.. the team could accomplish great things - and the possibility is certainly achievable.

Interview Me (repeat)

I originally answered this in my LJ.. but no one has asked me to "interview" them.. so let's try it here...

1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."
2. i'll respond by asking you five random questions.
3. update your LJ with the answers to the questions.
4. include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, ask them five random questions.

i asked Strangehours to interview me.. so here's what came of it...

1) In your experience, do kids like science? Do they "get" it? Where do we go wrong?
i'll assume that when you say "kids" you mean those of high school age (since that's been my audience for the last couple of years).

as with anything, some people like and some people dislike. it's the same with science. unfortunately there's currently a trend away from the sciences (i think most sciency courses at uni have dropped by about 20% in the last 5 years.. although i could be making that up - i'll find out at work..).

so i guess, in answer to your question (in three parts).. some like it, most seem ambivalent.
occasionally they'll "get" it - and that's something that's particularly good about presenting..
when you start with a room full of teenagers who are oozing "i'm not going to like this because it's science and because my teacher made me come to this", and by the end of the show, they're leaning forward in their seats, taking part and actually liking some of the stuff we talk about.
of course, i can only do this second-hand now.. ahh, living through my presenters. *grin*

where did we go wrong? i think we just neglected to make science relevent to the students. if science was taught along with their applications, students might understand it a little better. they'd at least then be able to see why they need to learn about chemical reactions (for example). *shrug* i'm not a teacher, maybe they're already doing this and science is just facing a very bleak future.. ..i kinda have to hope this isn't the reason - cos if it is, there's no point in me doing my job. if nothing else, the government think that science is important, and the lack of interest is something that can be fixed. *smile*

2) Is there any particular piece of kitchen science that tends to get kids fired up?
well... if it's little kids (and some big kids too).. the borax slime can be a winner
(borax in water, watered-down pva glue - the clear stuff looks best, some food colouring, mix it together and... shebam!.. slime.. just make sure it's washed extremely well in water before use because borax is toxic!).

other kitchen science that fires kids up.. hmmm.. farting cows...
take a toy cow, replace its stuffing with pipes (a T-piece on its side, block the bottom hole, the top hole goes to the mouth, the side hole goes to the butt), attach a balloon to the rear end of the cow, tip some vinegar in to the T-piece (cow stomach acid, it sits in the lower arm of the T),
feed the cow sodium bicarb.

in order to catch the cow's fart, one must block the mouth hole (stop the burps). the gas collects in the balloon which can be removed, tied up and kept if desired. sometimes the vinegar/bicarb reaction is so vigourous that some of the liquid also ends up in the balloon, leading to some disgusting jokes.

3) What do canberrans do for fun?
no idea - suggestions most welcome!
ooh.. just discovered that on a Sunday night, families in Canberra go to the Pancake Parlour in Civic!

4) How's the photography going?
i haven't done a lot.. we got ourselves a new slr camera that i'm supposed to learn how to use..
but this is an old house and i'm worried about keeping important stuff here.
so the camera is with timmy, and i've got a happy snappy one..

the picture in this post is one i took in Canberra a couple of weeks ago. it's a seat near the Carillion (could you guess?).

5) How are you and Tim coping with being so far away from each other?
i'd be lying if i said i hadn't considered moving back to melbourne again.
but i like my job, and it really is the best thing for the both of us (as far as work and career and learning stuff goes).

it's not an easy thing to do. but neither of us is willing to ask the other to leave what they're doing - and i think that's okay.
we're going to be together "until death parts us", so what's two years in 50?
i have my path, t has his..
unfortunately, for the moment, they're in separate cities.

we have decided that where-ever we are, whatever we do next, we're going to live in the same house! it'll be novel for us (we've lived together for up to 6 months.. but that's all).

i try to get back to melbourne every month.. it's kinda funny.. cos it takes at least the weekend to get used to sharing a house and bed again.. and then i'm gone again, back to the cold aloneness of canberra.
*sigh*
it doesn't pay to dwell..
many times i've wondered if i'm made the right decision.. (i've only been here three months so far)..

i guess i just hope that, in the end, i succeed here and prove that it was.

Share-house courtesies

1. Do your dishes reasonably frequently.
2. When leaving dirty dishes in the kitchen, stack them well (and don't take up the rest of the kitchen with them)
3. Likewise, clean up chopping boards and communal food preparation spaces after you've used them (not a week later)
   
4. If you eat the last of the bread, honey, jam, etc. - REPLACE IT! (bold for emphasis)
   
5. Replace item 3 even if there's a little bit left! (bold for emphasis)
6. Don't take the only jar of honey away camping for the weekend (unless you KNOW you're the only one eating it.) - especially when it's a full jar, bought as an item 4.
   
7. DO NOT use someone elses shower gear (face washer, shower gloves etc) - that's just gross!!!
8. Don't use someone elses towel (even if it is a hand towel..) - especially when you have your own towel already in the bathroom and there's not enough towel-rail for another bath towel!!
9. Don't leave the door open to the cold Canberra winter.
   

Any thing else you feel should be on this list? I'll no doubt add to it frequently.. *sigh* ...just how much can i deal with for cheap rent in a good location?

bloggedy blog blog..

this seems to be the less frequently used, lighter friend of my livejournal.

i guess i don't really have much to say on these things at the moment..
i'm not going overseas like the Kilted Aussie (or even on any holidays that aren't just to Melbourne at the moment)..
i don't have cool computer artwork to display like Tales of the Samurai (by the way - this is my favourite site of the month.. )
i don't go out heaps, so i don't have good stories to tell..

i think it's just way cold here..

o well.. maybe i'll try to make more of an effort.. but i'm not promising anything.
*smile*

movies..

just this week i watched "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" for the first time.

i quite liked it.. just wacky enough to be entertaining without being tooooooo far fetched (although it's still way out there).

any other movies that i should watch? classics that i may have missed?

good theatre

have you seen Wars of the Roses by the Bell Shakespeare Company?
i saw it last wednesday night - fantastic! really enjoyed it. if you get the chance, check it out!

what's going on

i don't really know what i'm doing here.. i'm not sure where i'm supposed to write to enter stuff on this blogger..

i'm sure i'll work it out.. eventually..

it's just too late on a friday right now..

*grin*

blah blah blah

is it possible to have too many blogs??

i'm sure it is.. and if there are too many, which ones do you write to? any of them? none of them? all of them?.. don't think i have time for that..

*shrug*

strange, so strange..