Thu 16 March 2006 - The blame Games

Filed under: — Daniel @ 07:12

Flying tram - from BBC news onlineAhhh… the Commonwealth Games opening ceremonythe flying tram… landing on a giant Melway. You know what, if I had designed the opening moments, that’s probably how I would have done it. Didn’t understand the juxtaposition of ballet dancers and trail bikes though.

I noticed in a city drycleaners the other day a sign indicating there could be problems getting clothes back on time… due to traffic restrictions and other delays imposed by the Games. And I’ve seen similar signs elsewhere.

It’s brilliant. You can blame any problem on the Games.

“Sorry I’m late… The Games…”

“I think I’ll work from home tomorrow… you know… The Games…”

“Sorry boss, didn’t get that report done. The Games…”

“I know I didn’t get you a birthday present… it’s The Games…”

“Yes I’m sorry I forgot our anniversary, and the car has a flat battery, the kids didn’t get fed, and the cat died, your mum’s got gastro and the house is a tip… you know, it’s The Games.”


Wed 15 March 2006 - Wonka and Tropfest

Filed under: — Daniel @ 07:23

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory — OMG, it’s Johnny Depp playing Michael Jackson playing Willy Wonka. Deep Roy (who 30 years ago played Mr Sin in Doctor Who — The Talons of Weng-Chiang) must have worked hard on this, playing all the Oompa Loompahs. All in all, enjoyable, and thankfully the spectre of the old version of the movie didn’t hang too much of a shadow over it.Thumbs up!

Tropfest 2006 finalists (DVD free with The Age a few weeks ago) — a lot of great short films. One or two I didn’t quite understand fully, but most very good. My faves included Last Stop, Carmichael and Shane (a father talks about the benefits of favouritism of one twin over the other — this one won), terrific animation in Carnivore Reflux. Geek prize goes to Glitch.Thumbs up!


Tue 14 March 2006 - Queen’s baton relay

Filed under: — Daniel @ 07:07

Yesterday the Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton Relay went past my mum’s house. So we decided to go and have a look.

My mum got some chairs out and we sat waiting on the nature strip.

Waiting for the baton relay

After a few minutes, some police motorcycles and a support vehicle arrived to drop runners at the appropriate spots, clear one side of the road of traffic, and block intersections, a bit like when I saw the Turkish Prime Minister escorted through the city.

Then came lots and lots more police motorcycles and support vehicles. Our tax dollars hard at work.

Baton relay police escort

One of the police stopped his bike right next to Isaac and Jeremy, put his visor up and said hello and shook their hands. They seemed quite pleased.

Eventually the baton itself appeared, carried by (according to Google) a trauma co-ordinator from the Alfred Hospital. So, a deserving community member, rather than a bigwig from a sponsoring company. Good.

Baton relay police escort

A few more motorcycle police and support vehicles (including an ambulance) followed.

And then the massive traffic snarl behind them all, from people apparently oblivious to the reasonably well-publicised fact that the baton relay would be travelling along there that day.

Baton relay traffic snarl

So, all in all… well, it injected a little Games excitement into the good people of Hampton. Though I suspect the motorcycle police escort was more exciting to most (especially the kids) than the baton itself.

PS. I wouldn’t be travelling by road (bike, car, tram or bus) on Wednesday evening in the inner-city if I were you…


Mon 13 March 2006 - The balance

Filed under: — Daniel @ 08:17

The next time you hear the government making excuses as to why they can’t extend train and tram lines, and how they have to provide a “balance” between freeway and public transport expansion, keep this in mind:

Melbourne transport network expansion 1996 to 2006

(Current and past ten years dollars spent on freeway expansion: $7.2 billion. Rail/tram network expansion: $225 milion. Full figures here.)


Fri 10 March 2006 - Bobby Shaftoe and Pete Tyler

Filed under: — Daniel @ 18:23

Paul Cornell, who wrote the excellent Father’s Day episode of Doctor Who, has a blog, and remarks that Rose’s father Pete was based on his own dad.

The piece is really about me appreciating the sacrifices he made, and how I know he’d do what the Dad in ‘Father’s Day’ does. I think most Dads would.

Yup.

Paul goes on to say that he’s recently discovered his dad had a terrifying, chaotic time in WW2 in the Far East, including a spot of treasure hunting, and he now thinks of him in the same vein as Bobby Shaftoe, the character in Neal Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon.

I can’t help thinking that for most of us, there’s way more about our parents than we know about.


Fri 10 March 2006 - Burger time

Filed under: — Daniel @ 06:59

Every couple of weeks, often on a Friday, I have a hankering for a burger and chips. I know it’s not good for me, but sometimes, just sometimes, you need to indulge your tastebuds.

So I go along to the local Hungry Jacks, incorrectly choose the queue which looks like it’s going to move the fastest, but which in fact has at its head the little old lady who has never been to Hungry Jacks before and is asking the counter staff what each item on the menu is. Eventually I get to the head of the queue and order a Bacon Deluxe Value Meal, but with an OJ instead of a Coke. (Occasionally it’s something else, but that’s the usual one. Yes, they have allegedly healthy salad-oriented meals now. Would I order one of those? Hell no. If I want a salad, I don’t go to Hungry Jacks.)

The counter person will ask me if I want to upsize, and I will say no. They’ll ask if I wish to eat in, and I’ll say yes. With attention and skill they prepare and bring my meal, and I go and get a strawer. Then I’ll try and grab a napkin.

Is it just me that has trouble grabbing the napkins out of the napkin dispensers at Hungry Jacks? It’s like they’ve been specially set up to resist giving you anything. They’re wired up so tightly that if you try and grasp just one napkin, all you get is a tiny bit of torn paper. Thus you have to try and get a grip on three or four napkins, and you end up with too many.

I find a seat, eat my meal, ponder why fast food is so often just a little bit disappointing in terms of taste and general satisfaction, ponder the napkin dispensers, and try and calculate how many K’s walking I should do to work off the burger. I use one napkin to wipe my mouth and hands, and take the rest back to work with me to use on another occasion.


Thu 9 March 2006 - Six days to go

Filed under: — Daniel @ 07:30

Six days to go until the Commonwealth Games

Prepare to be snug with strangers

(Based on the Rexona advert. Pic from CPT.)

I (with my PTUA hat on) got an invitation to the swimming, plus a breakfast function hosted by John Thwaites. We had a chat about it and decided that given it wasn’t a lobbying opportunity, it wasn’t appropriate for an organisation that regularly criticises the government to accept the tickets.

Besides — 7:45am on a Saturday? You gotta be kidding. That’s serious sleeping-in time. So I turned it down.

By the way, regular train users: given how bad Connex was in February, if you have a monthly or longer ticket, send it in for compensation. A free Daily ticket isn’t much, but it’s better than nothing.


Wed 8 March 2006 - Coles vs Safeway

Filed under: — Daniel @ 07:06

I have both a Coles and a Safeway nearby. With inspiration from Andrew’s post the other week, this is why I shop at Safeway:

  • Safeway is a few minutes less of a walk, which isn’t a lot, but counts when you’re staggering home with two green bagsful of shopping.
  • My local Coles has computer monitors scattered around the aisles showing Channel 10 News headlines, and playing the Channel 10 News theme music over and over and over again. Whereas Safeway has annoying Muzak, but at least it changes every few minutes.
  • I’m more used to the Safeway layout and in-house product range, having regularly shopped at Safeway when I lived at my previous homes at Carnegie, Glen Huntly, Hawthorn (the weekly shop to Safeway in Camberwell involved two people, a wire shopping jeep, and the 75 tram) and Hampton.
  • I’ve been in Coles too many times when there have been long queues and few checkouts open. Not that it never happens at Safeway, but it seems to be less frequent.
  • Safeway’s affiliated petrol stations are more convenient for me than Coles’s. And though 4 cents per litre is only about $2 saved each time I fill up, which is only about fortnightly, I still find this a good enough reason to use them.

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