*** 27th / 28th ***
i was feeling quite sick (i think i got a cold - my throat's been killing me, and my post-nasal drip's come back from a long vacation to say hello), so i spent these days doing pretty much nothing at all.
i watched five movies: the green berets, the cell, the green mile, real-life serial killers, and cobra.
about 2am on the 27th, i received an email from grootbek. i'll post my response in mental masturbation.
*** 29th ***
i returned the videos just before 10am, and aeroplane came to pick me up about half an hour later.
first stop was his girlfriend's apartment, which she was in the process of moving out. we listened to some music, looked at some artwork, and were then joined by two of his friends, who shall rename maneless.
they'd bought an ENORMOUS roll of bubble-wrap, for packaging the big things (like tables), which was the biggest tease ever.
while we were talking, i was unconsciously popping the bubble-wrap encasing one of the tables, which was really upsetting aeroplane.
we continued talking for a bit, shunted some of the stuff to the cars, and then we were on our way to the comic book store.
scoring some frighteningly powerful stuff on the way - two tokes and i was trashed... but then, so was everyone else.
oh, and we stopped to get breakfast / lunch (this is an argument with no conclusion).
let's just say that cavendish can be most entertaining / confusing in a state like that - we got lost a couple of times before we remembered our destination.
the comic book store is not really my thing - it's great for the first few minutes, but there's only so much time i can spend looking at models of aliens, the predator, neon genesis evangelion's eva units, akira's tetsuo, and clive barker's gruesome (yet most compelling) 12" gore fest, to name a few.
after what seemed like an hour, the guys had had enough, and finally bought some rather nice stuff (i never understate...).
getting back to the car involved crossing a rather busy main road, and in the state we were in, that was quite a hairy experience.
for those of us who'd called our earlier "meal" lunch, the munchies were tapping on our shoulders, and tugging on our clothes.
for those of us who'd called it breakfast, it was lunchtime.
none of us got anything to eat, however, but we all agreed that supper would consist of home-made subs.
we visited a liquor store, and went off to aeroplane's hangar (house, sometimes i just can't help myself). we prepared the punch (some vodka, some energy drinks, some lemon twist, and "stuff".
we all went to misky's place, to drop off the boxes, drink some coffee, and almost converse. i was still a bit fuzzy around the edges, and my mouth and brain weren't quite on speaking terms.
we were all dragged along on a mission to find a trailer, which bombed, and then went back to the hangar (there we go again), for drinks, and subs. all of which were really, really good.
pre-movie, we stopped off at one of the guys' place to get royally %$!@ed, and left for tyger valley about five minutes before the movie was due to start.
we made it JUST in time for the movie. bad boys ii was totally satisfying - some of the gore was a tad unnecessary, but everything was done, IMHO, perfectly. in my head it's all one movie - they were utterly consistent, and i was completely blown away.
*** yesterday ***
i arbed around most of yesterday. i've been reading terry pratchett's the colour of magic for the past few days, after finishing a most disappointing vittorio. most of the two anne rice books were really good, and very interesting. however, she has no idea when to stop - the intro to pandora, and the selected and annotated bibliography in vittorio were not only unnecessary, but just plain BAD.
i've only ever read the colour of magic in its graphic novel form, and i have to say that this is much funnier.
my mom convinced me to join her for a walk along the beachfront at some point in the early afternoon. it was really beautiful, and it was the first sunny, warm day since i left israel. and it's not humid, so i can actually enjoy the heat without sweating.
we stopped for coffee at the newport deli (some classy little cafe / coffee shop), after running into some cousins there, and afterwards we were joined for the walk back.
during which we ran into some other cousins.
i decided to take a nap, and left the tv on for ambient sound. muthafunstas put celine dion on, and i was woken with an urge to strangle small furry animals. stupid, ugly canadian witch.
i really can't think of a nickname for the friend of mine who came over yesterday afternoon. we talked for ages, had stir-fry for supper, and watched most of traffic before remembering that we were supposed to be going to town with dirk diggler's crew.
we went to a place called velvet lounge, i think, which is a really sweet bar / pub / club type thingy, managed by diggler's girlfriend's brother, and a friend of ours from waaay back.
really nice pool tables, at R2 a pop, and i got me a free whiskey (which tasted a little watery, but hey).
we then moved on to the fez, where me and the friend with no nick were de-selected (weren't dressed smart enough), so we came up with a contingency plan which involved meeting up with diggler at cafe erte.
when we got there, he sent us an sms to say that he'd gone home.
bastard.
we discovered that the first half an hour of internet access is free, so we sat with don pedro and chocolate milkshake, tapping and clicking away...
we tried to find the trance party at culemborg (after i, still in my trashed state from the day before, not helped by the whiskey, got lost in town), but gave up when there was no sound to be heard anywhere in the vicinity.
so i dropped him off on the other side of the mountain, and made my loosely controlled way (drunk-driving style, just without the drunk part) back home, had a bath, and crashed.
i woke up this morning barely able to breathe, and have spent a most charming couple of hours coughing and producing elephant-cries for the neighbours.
Sunday, August 31, 2003
Tuesday, August 26, 2003
26/08/03
*** 24th ***
the airport run was crap. i hate driving in the rain, and i had to circle the airport parking bays twice before finding a place to sit and wait.
i then drove to some business park, where the two of them moved to my sister's car, and i had to drive home alone.
i met up with them at her place, we got stoned, talked crap, and i vaguely recall walking home and going to bed at some stage.
*** yesterday ***
my other mom made a batch of her famous chocolate chip cookies yesterday, and i got to clean the batter from the bowl!
dirk diggler came by, and we made our way to uct on our way to visit a friend of his.
i introduced him to david (still not 1337 script) and campey, and we met up with moonflake and sat at nc^3 (nescafe cafe cafe cafe) with coffee and muffins.
now that it's vac (i'd never heard of it, damned lazy capetonians) it's really difficult to find a jammie taxi, so we drove to pick up diggler's car, dropped moonflake's shiny kadett at her place, rented stark raving mad from the dirty corner cafe in rondebosch, and zoomed off to the electrician (helicopter electrician)'s place.
nice little apartment, with a REALLY pretty setup consisting of cd-j's, turntables, and a mixer, all really flash and shiny.
the movie was great - loads of fun, really good atmosphere, and it's the first time i've seen stiffler (i never remember his name) not playing a doodyhead.
we then moved over to shadowslight's place, for spaghetti bolognaise (with cheese!), and watched all the monday night tv series' before heading home and crashing.
*** today ***
i woke up way too early this morning. i don't know why, but i'm back in cape town, on holiday, and yet i'm still diurnal.
stupid body.
i had breakfast and watched soapies, got fed up and went on a mission (sans objectives).
i had a haircut, which so far seems decent (no camera, no photo's), rented two videos, and took them to my sister's place, to watch in comfort.
i had trouble at the video store, because, as i only discovered when i tried to take them out, my niece has incurred a debt of R30, almost two months ago, and STILL hasn't paid it. and i didn't have enough money on me.
and she tells me that i'm anal-retentive and paranoid, because i get upset when she does this kind of thing. whatever happened to the phrase "don't make your problems, my problems"?
fortunately, the guy from the store knows me well enough...
i now can't believe that i hadn't seen bram stoker's dracula before - i've been missing so many movie references, for instance the entire vampire hunter: d movie.
the movie was most entertaining, and VERY surprising (great cast!). everytime i saw gary oldman, all i could think of was "what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. your time for revenge, is at hand.".
i had trouble staying awake during the wind in the willows, as it was freezing cold and i was lying on an extremely comfortable couch. it's a really good film, the casting is superb, and i felt that it has the same feel as the book.
soon after my sister got home, my mom came over for some coffee. afterwards, we went to her best friend's parents, to provide some elderly technological assistance (teaching them how to use a portable telephone, ag shame), and then came home for a really decent meal and a repeat of the wind in the willows (my mommy likes that stuff, too).
the airport run was crap. i hate driving in the rain, and i had to circle the airport parking bays twice before finding a place to sit and wait.
i then drove to some business park, where the two of them moved to my sister's car, and i had to drive home alone.
i met up with them at her place, we got stoned, talked crap, and i vaguely recall walking home and going to bed at some stage.
*** yesterday ***
my other mom made a batch of her famous chocolate chip cookies yesterday, and i got to clean the batter from the bowl!
dirk diggler came by, and we made our way to uct on our way to visit a friend of his.
i introduced him to david (still not 1337 script) and campey, and we met up with moonflake and sat at nc^3 (nescafe cafe cafe cafe) with coffee and muffins.
now that it's vac (i'd never heard of it, damned lazy capetonians) it's really difficult to find a jammie taxi, so we drove to pick up diggler's car, dropped moonflake's shiny kadett at her place, rented stark raving mad from the dirty corner cafe in rondebosch, and zoomed off to the electrician (helicopter electrician)'s place.
nice little apartment, with a REALLY pretty setup consisting of cd-j's, turntables, and a mixer, all really flash and shiny.
the movie was great - loads of fun, really good atmosphere, and it's the first time i've seen stiffler (i never remember his name) not playing a doodyhead.
we then moved over to shadowslight's place, for spaghetti bolognaise (with cheese!), and watched all the monday night tv series' before heading home and crashing.
*** today ***
i woke up way too early this morning. i don't know why, but i'm back in cape town, on holiday, and yet i'm still diurnal.
stupid body.
i had breakfast and watched soapies, got fed up and went on a mission (sans objectives).
i had a haircut, which so far seems decent (no camera, no photo's), rented two videos, and took them to my sister's place, to watch in comfort.
i had trouble at the video store, because, as i only discovered when i tried to take them out, my niece has incurred a debt of R30, almost two months ago, and STILL hasn't paid it. and i didn't have enough money on me.
and she tells me that i'm anal-retentive and paranoid, because i get upset when she does this kind of thing. whatever happened to the phrase "don't make your problems, my problems"?
fortunately, the guy from the store knows me well enough...
i now can't believe that i hadn't seen bram stoker's dracula before - i've been missing so many movie references, for instance the entire vampire hunter: d movie.
the movie was most entertaining, and VERY surprising (great cast!). everytime i saw gary oldman, all i could think of was "what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. your time for revenge, is at hand.".
i had trouble staying awake during the wind in the willows, as it was freezing cold and i was lying on an extremely comfortable couch. it's a really good film, the casting is superb, and i felt that it has the same feel as the book.
soon after my sister got home, my mom came over for some coffee. afterwards, we went to her best friend's parents, to provide some elderly technological assistance (teaching them how to use a portable telephone, ag shame), and then came home for a really decent meal and a repeat of the wind in the willows (my mommy likes that stuff, too).
Sunday, August 24, 2003
24/08/03
*** 22nd ***
yesterday's surfing was AMAZING. words cannot do justice to the beauty and majesty of the ocean and mountains surrounding the spot that we went to, just further down from gordon's bay, where the waves were just right (about two or three feet, i think), the sun was shining, and even getting hit in the head by the crash of the wave could not deter me from heading back out again and again.
my muscles are all sore, though.
but it's a good kind of pain.
my mum wasn't feeling well, so i was nominated as designated driver, and i had to drive two of our elderly relatives quite a ways, when it was my first time driving on the left-side in six months.
the way to supper was okay, but on the way back, i was concentrating so hard on keeping them feeling safe, that i went through a red light... and i don't know if i was caught or not, but it's a potential R1000 fine...
supper was great - at one point the conversation got a little out of hand (penguin testicles), and i received a powerful reminder of the cultural differences in senses of humour. there were about four or five minutes where i could barely breathe, i was laughing so hard.
after dropping everyone back on our side of the mountain, i made my way back to rosebank, to moonflake's (and sandman's) housewarming.
it was really nice seeing all those people again, and i really enjoyed the evening in general. also, campey loaned me a phone, which makes everything here a hell of a lot easier.
afterwards, i made my way to gandalf's. there were lots of really annoying kids, and there was lots of really bad music accompanying them.
firstfallen, duity and i moved over to stones, for a few games of pool (which were quite fun), and then it was time to go home for some sleep.
*** yesterday ***
my mom and i very busily did nothing for the majority of yesterday, until about 17.00, when it was time to get ready, and go to the LARP.
the LARP began just over an hour late, and that hour was absolutely appalling. the new kids are as reserved, introverted, and cynical as we weren't - with scarely any sense of humour / imagination between them. i found two of them, the entire evening, with potential - the rest are all merely sublime.
the LARP playtest was fun, however - i was given very little information, and discovered that my character was in a position requiring a lot of attention being paid to everything around him, and a lot of work (half the duties of running a ship), so i was kept busy, and interested, the whole night. i also managed to accomplish my objective, so all-in-all i was most satisfied.
we finished rather late, so i went home and slept.
*** today ***
i woke up this morning with a craving for an interesting breakfast, so i infiltrated my sister's fortress, and ousted her kids from theirs. this included an eggy snackwich, and a bowl of nutri-k (an EXCELLENT idea - thank you, kellogs).
i went with my mom, my niece, and one of my mom's best friends, for a quick trip to the jewish library, and a quick megastore run.
my mom and i then went to the waterfront, bought a few pairs of socks for me, and then went with another friend of hers to some coffee shop, where i got myself a fantastic waffle, with ice-cream, and then ditched them to meet up with a really good friend of mine, whom i shall hereforthwith (unless put under duress) refer to as aeroplane.
we went off to town, to have a couple of drinks and play pool at stones. the pool was great, but the drinks (two bottles of hunter's dry for me) went straight to my head, and #@$!ed me up chronically.
it HAS been a while.
we went off to a really good friend of his, whom i've met before, and listened to some rather good tunes he's been working on, before returning home and passing out (still heavily under the influence. what a loser!).
almost immediately after i woke up, my mum returned with one whole roast chicken, rice, some munchies, and other assorted goodies. it's now a little bit after dinner (it takes a while to type, as i've said, and it takes simply FOREVER to upload!).
i'm off in a couple of minutes, to fetch my sister and her dodgy best friend from the airport, and after that i'm open to suggestion. which there's so much of here, i don't know what to do with it!
this entire city is my happy place.
* sigh *
yesterday's surfing was AMAZING. words cannot do justice to the beauty and majesty of the ocean and mountains surrounding the spot that we went to, just further down from gordon's bay, where the waves were just right (about two or three feet, i think), the sun was shining, and even getting hit in the head by the crash of the wave could not deter me from heading back out again and again.
my muscles are all sore, though.
but it's a good kind of pain.
my mum wasn't feeling well, so i was nominated as designated driver, and i had to drive two of our elderly relatives quite a ways, when it was my first time driving on the left-side in six months.
the way to supper was okay, but on the way back, i was concentrating so hard on keeping them feeling safe, that i went through a red light... and i don't know if i was caught or not, but it's a potential R1000 fine...
supper was great - at one point the conversation got a little out of hand (penguin testicles), and i received a powerful reminder of the cultural differences in senses of humour. there were about four or five minutes where i could barely breathe, i was laughing so hard.
after dropping everyone back on our side of the mountain, i made my way back to rosebank, to moonflake's (and sandman's) housewarming.
it was really nice seeing all those people again, and i really enjoyed the evening in general. also, campey loaned me a phone, which makes everything here a hell of a lot easier.
afterwards, i made my way to gandalf's. there were lots of really annoying kids, and there was lots of really bad music accompanying them.
firstfallen, duity and i moved over to stones, for a few games of pool (which were quite fun), and then it was time to go home for some sleep.
*** yesterday ***
my mom and i very busily did nothing for the majority of yesterday, until about 17.00, when it was time to get ready, and go to the LARP.
the LARP began just over an hour late, and that hour was absolutely appalling. the new kids are as reserved, introverted, and cynical as we weren't - with scarely any sense of humour / imagination between them. i found two of them, the entire evening, with potential - the rest are all merely sublime.
the LARP playtest was fun, however - i was given very little information, and discovered that my character was in a position requiring a lot of attention being paid to everything around him, and a lot of work (half the duties of running a ship), so i was kept busy, and interested, the whole night. i also managed to accomplish my objective, so all-in-all i was most satisfied.
we finished rather late, so i went home and slept.
*** today ***
i woke up this morning with a craving for an interesting breakfast, so i infiltrated my sister's fortress, and ousted her kids from theirs. this included an eggy snackwich, and a bowl of nutri-k (an EXCELLENT idea - thank you, kellogs).
i went with my mom, my niece, and one of my mom's best friends, for a quick trip to the jewish library, and a quick megastore run.
my mom and i then went to the waterfront, bought a few pairs of socks for me, and then went with another friend of hers to some coffee shop, where i got myself a fantastic waffle, with ice-cream, and then ditched them to meet up with a really good friend of mine, whom i shall hereforthwith (unless put under duress) refer to as aeroplane.
we went off to town, to have a couple of drinks and play pool at stones. the pool was great, but the drinks (two bottles of hunter's dry for me) went straight to my head, and #@$!ed me up chronically.
it HAS been a while.
we went off to a really good friend of his, whom i've met before, and listened to some rather good tunes he's been working on, before returning home and passing out (still heavily under the influence. what a loser!).
almost immediately after i woke up, my mum returned with one whole roast chicken, rice, some munchies, and other assorted goodies. it's now a little bit after dinner (it takes a while to type, as i've said, and it takes simply FOREVER to upload!).
i'm off in a couple of minutes, to fetch my sister and her dodgy best friend from the airport, and after that i'm open to suggestion. which there's so much of here, i don't know what to do with it!
this entire city is my happy place.
* sigh *
Friday, August 22, 2003
22/08/03
this is done, more or less, in a hurry. i still have other stuff to do, like sleeping. and using this computer is a bitch.
*** 19th ***
as i left the apartment, with my heavy, wonky handluggage in one hand, dragging along my suitcase (17kg's) in the other, the handle of said suitcase broke. so i was forced to actually carry the damn thing.
not that i don't need the exercise...
at the ra'anana bus station (which isn't really in ra'anana), some german guy was struggling to explain himself to the bus driver, and he turned to me to translate. fortunately, he didn't use any big words, but i found it cute that my hebrew is finally at a level where SOMEONE thinks i can speak. even if it is just a tourist.
go on, laugh. i don't care.
i don't remember that bus ride ever taking so long. and it was horribly squished, with many unpleasant looking people.
i'd placed a lock on my bag. i thought this was a good idea. especially considering the fact that all my important documents were in it.
but unlocking/locking one's handluggage everytime one wants something is not easy. it was a mission just to check if i hadn't managed somehow to misplace my tickets (standard paranoia), or to get my book out, or put it back...
the security check wasn't too bad. there's always a little stumble whenever they try to figure out which language to speak to me in. my first few words out, in hebrew, are normally good enough for them to begin speaking in a totally different language.
once we settled on english, this woman began firing off all sorts of questions and explanations so quickly, that i had to ask her to slow down and repeat them. i felt a bit stupid.
the guy checking the suitcase was kind enough to remove the useless remaining bits of plastic, and everything from then on was smooth.
while attempting to go through to the gates, i was blocked by a woman mumbling something completely unintelligable and frantically gesturing to me and my trolley
it took me a while to realize that she was struggling with the english word "trolley"...
NIS 23 (R30) for a small, nay, tiny sandwich, and NIS 8.50 (R12) for a can of coke. now, i'm terribly sorry, but this is altogether too much.
i settled for an average chocolate brownie and filter coffee. which was still expensive. i wrote the following in my real-life journal (which i never use):
i'm really happy that i'm going home. i just got upset about paying more than R30 for filter coffee (not very good) and a small brownie (not fantastic). what's more upsetting is that i just remembered that it's a fair price for this country.
some old guy was trying to understand the vending machine, so i began reading the instructions in english and translating them to hebrew for him (neither of us had seen the hebrew instructions attached carelessly to the bottom...). the instructions include waiting for sixty seconds before opening the can.
so i waited ten seconds, aimed at him, and said "i think the sixty seconds are up!". it didn't explode all over the place, but i wonder who got away with sueing a vending machine company!
the 767 is AMAZING! i can keep my legs straight for the entire duration of the flight! there was a group of kids (i'm guessing sixteen-year-olds) who were flying for the first time. the kid in the seat next to mine had no clue, and every time i gave him advice or answered a question, i heard a small echo pass through their seats, which was cute.
two of the girls were REALLY good-looking, and one of them was wearing a fairly skimpy outfit, and stood next to me for about half the flight, leaning over me to talk to her friends. the paedophile signal was going off in my head, but i knew that if i said anything it would be perceived as hitting on her, so i just curled up and tried to ignore her.
supper was an okay-ish turkey sandwich. thank you, el-al! just before supper, the kid in the seat next to me was given one ferrero roche chocolate by a friend of his. he wasn't in the mood, so he offered it to me, and of COURSE i accepted! i did tell him, as soon as i took it, that in the morning he'd regret giving it to me. when he told me that he was already regretting it... i ate it. i've become totally mean lately.
*** 20th ***
breakfast was a cheese blintz with raisins. yuck.
having been warned of the current temperatures in south africa, and hearing that the ground-temperature in johannesburg was one degree celcius, i put on all my winter clothes, including my beanie. i was cold on the plane anyway, and it seemed like a good idea.
soon after i put it all on, some woman started commenting that i was correct and (blah blah blah), and i very soon felt silly and self-conscious, i removed the beanie.
getting out of the plane wasn't so bad. not nearly as cold as i'd expected.
i HATED waiting for my suitcase. i was feeling ill, listening to pantera, all sorts of annoying people pushing and shoving around me, and my bag happened to be one of the last off the plane...
unfortunately, moonflake's tao was proved wrong, as the first piece of luggage was claimed about a quarter of the way around.
customs: not knowing one's home address always seems dodgy. i had to find someone with a pen to help me, and we basically spent two minutes going through the entry form, making scratches and doodling, until eventually even he gave up and sent me through without checking me.
mr paranoid walked again through the jo'burg airport. those people are just SO creepy.
as i got to the service counter for nationwide airlines, some guy walked off cursing them for their shitty service.
turned out that the flight he'd been on had been cancelled, and they couldn't give him a ticket for said flight. some people are just brilliant.
i found them to be really pleasant and helpful. what bothered me, however, was them giving me my ticket sans asking for id.
check-in was smooth, and pleasant. the person i spoke to was not only polite, but outright friendly.
still no id checking.
if i had been any male, knowing my name, i could have taken my ticket from the service counter and gotten myself to cape town. does anyone else find this worrying?!
at least, unlike in israel, i didn't have to argue my way into getting a tray for my metal items (for the x-ray).
some things in life simply amaze me.
i only realized that i didn't have my jersey after about ten minutes. fortunately, after a slightly wobbly walk (a bit tired), i found the security office and retrieved it. i'm always surprised when things go my way.
breakfast consisted of simba salt and vinegar, lemon twist, and much later some filter coffee from the w-cafe (wimpy? coffee??)
after getting on the plane, i found my seat with someone else in it. after some initial confusion, as she didn't know that it wasn't hers, she found out where she was meant to be, and i moved there.
i had a brief conversation with the woman sitting next to me, and just before take-off, because she knew that i wanted to sleep, she moved to a seat further back and left me with three seats to myself!! i was most grateful, and as soon as we hit the skies i lay down and passed out.
waking up for the beverage and meal trolleys, of course.
i hate airplane toilets. i hate airport toilets even more.
i had to try not to cry when we got off the plane. everything here is so incredibly beautiful...
the luggage took ages to arrive, but mine was one of the first this time, so i walked out fairly soon. the drive home was breathtaking.
my mom's new apartment is really nice. it has great views, and wall-to-wall carpeting.
obviously, the first thing i did was put my sim card in my shiny new phone. the woman at orange GUARANTEED me that the phone would work outside of israel, but i turned it on and received a "phone restricted" message.
scaly, incompetent BITCH.
i went shopping with my mommy, at a supermarket that i haven't been to in years - i didn't even know that it still existed!
after shopping was done, i went off with my niece to visit the magic dragon. he's a very small, yet extremely powerful dragon.
dirk diggler came by, and we chilled and talked kak for a while before we moved over to my place, for some more of the same.
after he left, i had a nice hot shower (would have been better if it didn't take so #@$!ing long for the hot water to get to the shower...). my bed - is - AMAZING. and warm, and fluffy.
*** yesterday ***
i slept like a baby, huddled in my huge duvet / blanket combination. and woke up to a cold-footed cup of coffee while staring at the most beautiful scenery in all the world. how can one stay upset in a place such as this?!
i took a black taxi (i'll probably describe these someday, under mental masturbation) to town, and then a train to rosebank. i went on the jam-packed jammie-taxi-thingy to campus, got directions to the nescafe cafe cafe cafe, and after saying hi to some old friends, i made my way there.
the new CLAWs are depressing. they're just a handful of intraverted, boring, serious people. no fun at all. no sense of humour either, apparently, as i made an "inspection" and got no response. nada. just blank looks. this group is shameful, and in a way they don't DESERVE the CLAWroom that was so evilly taken away from us.
there is no more CLAWroom! it's only just sunk in today, and it's crap!
so moonflake and david (i'm NOT typing in 1337-script) each showed me where there offices are, and we ran into campey (read the elephants entry in my post-hoc journal), and we all had a bit of a chat. or a few chats. we talked for a while, really.
i had a steers burger for lunch. that was nice. and cheap, too - it's so nice to compare costs when i'm here (but so shitty to do when in israel).
we walked from campus to moonflake's (and sandman's) new place, which is quite fine (read VERY nice, aside from the couches being pink. but they are comfy...), and moonflake made a mean stew (hah, almost wrote stu).
after supper we were off, in moonflake's shiny kadett, to shadowslight's. a few of the old CLAWmembers came, and we watched desperado and se7en.
there is no way to make fun of the movie se7en.
what was disturbing, though, was getting a call from my mother on his landline, when i hadn't told her where i was going. hmm...
creepy.
*** today ***
i had a half a cigarette this morning with my coffee. i'm so glad i quit - it tasted kak and i'm still feeling a little woozy. i went shopping with my other mom, she bought me a hake & chips gatsby for breakfast, and now i'm off somewhere with dirk diggler for a surf somewhere.
it's too cold for me to type properly. my fingers are constantly numb.
*** 19th ***
as i left the apartment, with my heavy, wonky handluggage in one hand, dragging along my suitcase (17kg's) in the other, the handle of said suitcase broke. so i was forced to actually carry the damn thing.
not that i don't need the exercise...
at the ra'anana bus station (which isn't really in ra'anana), some german guy was struggling to explain himself to the bus driver, and he turned to me to translate. fortunately, he didn't use any big words, but i found it cute that my hebrew is finally at a level where SOMEONE thinks i can speak. even if it is just a tourist.
go on, laugh. i don't care.
i don't remember that bus ride ever taking so long. and it was horribly squished, with many unpleasant looking people.
i'd placed a lock on my bag. i thought this was a good idea. especially considering the fact that all my important documents were in it.
but unlocking/locking one's handluggage everytime one wants something is not easy. it was a mission just to check if i hadn't managed somehow to misplace my tickets (standard paranoia), or to get my book out, or put it back...
the security check wasn't too bad. there's always a little stumble whenever they try to figure out which language to speak to me in. my first few words out, in hebrew, are normally good enough for them to begin speaking in a totally different language.
once we settled on english, this woman began firing off all sorts of questions and explanations so quickly, that i had to ask her to slow down and repeat them. i felt a bit stupid.
the guy checking the suitcase was kind enough to remove the useless remaining bits of plastic, and everything from then on was smooth.
while attempting to go through to the gates, i was blocked by a woman mumbling something completely unintelligable and frantically gesturing to me and my trolley
it took me a while to realize that she was struggling with the english word "trolley"...
NIS 23 (R30) for a small, nay, tiny sandwich, and NIS 8.50 (R12) for a can of coke. now, i'm terribly sorry, but this is altogether too much.
i settled for an average chocolate brownie and filter coffee. which was still expensive. i wrote the following in my real-life journal (which i never use):
i'm really happy that i'm going home. i just got upset about paying more than R30 for filter coffee (not very good) and a small brownie (not fantastic). what's more upsetting is that i just remembered that it's a fair price for this country.
some old guy was trying to understand the vending machine, so i began reading the instructions in english and translating them to hebrew for him (neither of us had seen the hebrew instructions attached carelessly to the bottom...). the instructions include waiting for sixty seconds before opening the can.
so i waited ten seconds, aimed at him, and said "i think the sixty seconds are up!". it didn't explode all over the place, but i wonder who got away with sueing a vending machine company!
the 767 is AMAZING! i can keep my legs straight for the entire duration of the flight! there was a group of kids (i'm guessing sixteen-year-olds) who were flying for the first time. the kid in the seat next to mine had no clue, and every time i gave him advice or answered a question, i heard a small echo pass through their seats, which was cute.
two of the girls were REALLY good-looking, and one of them was wearing a fairly skimpy outfit, and stood next to me for about half the flight, leaning over me to talk to her friends. the paedophile signal was going off in my head, but i knew that if i said anything it would be perceived as hitting on her, so i just curled up and tried to ignore her.
supper was an okay-ish turkey sandwich. thank you, el-al! just before supper, the kid in the seat next to me was given one ferrero roche chocolate by a friend of his. he wasn't in the mood, so he offered it to me, and of COURSE i accepted! i did tell him, as soon as i took it, that in the morning he'd regret giving it to me. when he told me that he was already regretting it... i ate it. i've become totally mean lately.
*** 20th ***
breakfast was a cheese blintz with raisins. yuck.
having been warned of the current temperatures in south africa, and hearing that the ground-temperature in johannesburg was one degree celcius, i put on all my winter clothes, including my beanie. i was cold on the plane anyway, and it seemed like a good idea.
soon after i put it all on, some woman started commenting that i was correct and (blah blah blah), and i very soon felt silly and self-conscious, i removed the beanie.
getting out of the plane wasn't so bad. not nearly as cold as i'd expected.
i HATED waiting for my suitcase. i was feeling ill, listening to pantera, all sorts of annoying people pushing and shoving around me, and my bag happened to be one of the last off the plane...
unfortunately, moonflake's tao was proved wrong, as the first piece of luggage was claimed about a quarter of the way around.
customs: not knowing one's home address always seems dodgy. i had to find someone with a pen to help me, and we basically spent two minutes going through the entry form, making scratches and doodling, until eventually even he gave up and sent me through without checking me.
mr paranoid walked again through the jo'burg airport. those people are just SO creepy.
as i got to the service counter for nationwide airlines, some guy walked off cursing them for their shitty service.
turned out that the flight he'd been on had been cancelled, and they couldn't give him a ticket for said flight. some people are just brilliant.
i found them to be really pleasant and helpful. what bothered me, however, was them giving me my ticket sans asking for id.
check-in was smooth, and pleasant. the person i spoke to was not only polite, but outright friendly.
still no id checking.
if i had been any male, knowing my name, i could have taken my ticket from the service counter and gotten myself to cape town. does anyone else find this worrying?!
at least, unlike in israel, i didn't have to argue my way into getting a tray for my metal items (for the x-ray).
some things in life simply amaze me.
i only realized that i didn't have my jersey after about ten minutes. fortunately, after a slightly wobbly walk (a bit tired), i found the security office and retrieved it. i'm always surprised when things go my way.
breakfast consisted of simba salt and vinegar, lemon twist, and much later some filter coffee from the w-cafe (wimpy? coffee??)
after getting on the plane, i found my seat with someone else in it. after some initial confusion, as she didn't know that it wasn't hers, she found out where she was meant to be, and i moved there.
i had a brief conversation with the woman sitting next to me, and just before take-off, because she knew that i wanted to sleep, she moved to a seat further back and left me with three seats to myself!! i was most grateful, and as soon as we hit the skies i lay down and passed out.
waking up for the beverage and meal trolleys, of course.
i hate airplane toilets. i hate airport toilets even more.
i had to try not to cry when we got off the plane. everything here is so incredibly beautiful...
the luggage took ages to arrive, but mine was one of the first this time, so i walked out fairly soon. the drive home was breathtaking.
my mom's new apartment is really nice. it has great views, and wall-to-wall carpeting.
obviously, the first thing i did was put my sim card in my shiny new phone. the woman at orange GUARANTEED me that the phone would work outside of israel, but i turned it on and received a "phone restricted" message.
scaly, incompetent BITCH.
i went shopping with my mommy, at a supermarket that i haven't been to in years - i didn't even know that it still existed!
after shopping was done, i went off with my niece to visit the magic dragon. he's a very small, yet extremely powerful dragon.
dirk diggler came by, and we chilled and talked kak for a while before we moved over to my place, for some more of the same.
after he left, i had a nice hot shower (would have been better if it didn't take so #@$!ing long for the hot water to get to the shower...). my bed - is - AMAZING. and warm, and fluffy.
*** yesterday ***
i slept like a baby, huddled in my huge duvet / blanket combination. and woke up to a cold-footed cup of coffee while staring at the most beautiful scenery in all the world. how can one stay upset in a place such as this?!
i took a black taxi (i'll probably describe these someday, under mental masturbation) to town, and then a train to rosebank. i went on the jam-packed jammie-taxi-thingy to campus, got directions to the nescafe cafe cafe cafe, and after saying hi to some old friends, i made my way there.
the new CLAWs are depressing. they're just a handful of intraverted, boring, serious people. no fun at all. no sense of humour either, apparently, as i made an "inspection" and got no response. nada. just blank looks. this group is shameful, and in a way they don't DESERVE the CLAWroom that was so evilly taken away from us.
there is no more CLAWroom! it's only just sunk in today, and it's crap!
so moonflake and david (i'm NOT typing in 1337-script) each showed me where there offices are, and we ran into campey (read the elephants entry in my post-hoc journal), and we all had a bit of a chat. or a few chats. we talked for a while, really.
i had a steers burger for lunch. that was nice. and cheap, too - it's so nice to compare costs when i'm here (but so shitty to do when in israel).
we walked from campus to moonflake's (and sandman's) new place, which is quite fine (read VERY nice, aside from the couches being pink. but they are comfy...), and moonflake made a mean stew (hah, almost wrote stu).
after supper we were off, in moonflake's shiny kadett, to shadowslight's. a few of the old CLAWmembers came, and we watched desperado and se7en.
there is no way to make fun of the movie se7en.
what was disturbing, though, was getting a call from my mother on his landline, when i hadn't told her where i was going. hmm...
creepy.
*** today ***
i had a half a cigarette this morning with my coffee. i'm so glad i quit - it tasted kak and i'm still feeling a little woozy. i went shopping with my other mom, she bought me a hake & chips gatsby for breakfast, and now i'm off somewhere with dirk diggler for a surf somewhere.
it's too cold for me to type properly. my fingers are constantly numb.
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
19/08/03
picture this: a really old, fat woman slowly makes her way onto the bus. she's wearing a t-shirt, white, with pink sleeves. on the front it says "LEGENDS", on the back, it says "MONROE" with the number 6 below it.
that takes balls.
i woke up at 8am, had a HUGE eggy breakfast, and bladed to the other side of herzliyah. picked up the documents, and decided to take the bus back.
ran into the bus-stop girl (i forgot to ask for the ice-cream, but there wasn't any time anyway. she was in army uniform and running for a bus that i couldn't take...)
i got sick of waiting for the bus, and bladed home. i realized when i got here that i too less time than the bus would have.
hmmph.
i then went to tel-aviv, handed the student authority the letter that SSSO helped me write, and then returned home. i really like walking the streets of tel-aviv, they have a very special atmosphere. lazy and busy at the same time.
in cape town we just get the lazy feeling :P.
i'm now packing, making sure i have everything, and then in a couple of hours i'm LEAVING!!!
i'm very excited.
that takes balls.
i woke up at 8am, had a HUGE eggy breakfast, and bladed to the other side of herzliyah. picked up the documents, and decided to take the bus back.
ran into the bus-stop girl (i forgot to ask for the ice-cream, but there wasn't any time anyway. she was in army uniform and running for a bus that i couldn't take...)
i got sick of waiting for the bus, and bladed home. i realized when i got here that i too less time than the bus would have.
hmmph.
i then went to tel-aviv, handed the student authority the letter that SSSO helped me write, and then returned home. i really like walking the streets of tel-aviv, they have a very special atmosphere. lazy and busy at the same time.
in cape town we just get the lazy feeling :P.
i'm now packing, making sure i have everything, and then in a couple of hours i'm LEAVING!!!
i'm very excited.
Monday, August 18, 2003
18/08/03
i had a revelation this morning! although i wish i'd had it sometime when i was a kid...
at about 6am, i woke up with, as per usual, a blocked nose. unable to breathe comfortably, i decided to stop trying altogether. after repeating this until bursting point (i can hold my breath for approximately thirty seconds) about three times, my nose unblocked!
and then i was so excited that i couldn't get back to sleep anyway.
at 09.45 i was informed that my 10 o' clock meeting with SSSO was postponed until 15.00. wonderful.
i went to the bank, found out that everything is in order. i then went off to orange, in order to check that my account was paid up, and to have them take a look at my phone.
i've just returned, with a shiny new 6310i, and the knowledge that i don't have to worry about the cash while i'm abroad.
but now i have to get myself an icon and a ringtone.
mmmm... shiny.
i'm meeting with petrol today at 17.00, to finalize (uh, start working on) my vtm character. so i'm gonna do some more research (bullshitting) before then.
aaaaand played some more cs. i logged on to a german server this morning, got two frags, got shot, and disconnected. that was FUN! i'll think of a name for that tactic later.
*** later ***
petrol called to cancel, so all i had to do was drop off his vtm book at the freak store, and buy myself an ice-cream.
i finished up a whole bunch of stuff (bad english, don't care) with SSSO, but we might have to meet up later to work on the guidebook for new students.
at least i have a bit more time now.
tomorrow morning, however, will be most interesting. i have to be at my cousins' at 9am to take some papers, and then in tel aviv before 11am, which is not that simple. possible, not simple.
and after that, all i have to worry about is final packing, and getting myself to the airport!!
w00000000000000000000000t!!! (look which meme *I* got hold of)
goddamn, i'm so nervous now, and there's nothing to do till tomorrow. i'm shaking i'm so excited - and (ooh, sms received, my phone is SOOOOO pretty!) i dunno how i'm going to handle tonight... i think i'm going to drool myself to death.
at about 6am, i woke up with, as per usual, a blocked nose. unable to breathe comfortably, i decided to stop trying altogether. after repeating this until bursting point (i can hold my breath for approximately thirty seconds) about three times, my nose unblocked!
and then i was so excited that i couldn't get back to sleep anyway.
at 09.45 i was informed that my 10 o' clock meeting with SSSO was postponed until 15.00. wonderful.
i went to the bank, found out that everything is in order. i then went off to orange, in order to check that my account was paid up, and to have them take a look at my phone.
i've just returned, with a shiny new 6310i, and the knowledge that i don't have to worry about the cash while i'm abroad.
but now i have to get myself an icon and a ringtone.
mmmm... shiny.
i'm meeting with petrol today at 17.00, to finalize (uh, start working on) my vtm character. so i'm gonna do some more research (bullshitting) before then.
aaaaand played some more cs. i logged on to a german server this morning, got two frags, got shot, and disconnected. that was FUN! i'll think of a name for that tactic later.
*** later ***
petrol called to cancel, so all i had to do was drop off his vtm book at the freak store, and buy myself an ice-cream.
i finished up a whole bunch of stuff (bad english, don't care) with SSSO, but we might have to meet up later to work on the guidebook for new students.
at least i have a bit more time now.
tomorrow morning, however, will be most interesting. i have to be at my cousins' at 9am to take some papers, and then in tel aviv before 11am, which is not that simple. possible, not simple.
and after that, all i have to worry about is final packing, and getting myself to the airport!!
w00000000000000000000000t!!! (look which meme *I* got hold of)
goddamn, i'm so nervous now, and there's nothing to do till tomorrow. i'm shaking i'm so excited - and (ooh, sms received, my phone is SOOOOO pretty!) i dunno how i'm going to handle tonight... i think i'm going to drool myself to death.
Sunday, August 17, 2003
17/08/03
this morning began at 10.00 with a half-hour's walk, to the other side of town, to my cousins' for breakfast.
i then walked back in time for the plumber.
it woulda been nice if he'd shown up.
in the end, two maintenance workers were sent in his stead, and they did a quick job, and the toilet stopped it's leaky behavior, and life more or less resumed it's normal pace (after a desperately needed pit-stop).
i bladed to idc, took my financial statements, managed to delay my advance payment (they wanted $1000 by the end of this month... yeah, right), waited for half an hour to be told i couldn't meet with SSSO, said goodbye to everyone (again), and returned home.
i started the packing, for real. sammy came over to borrow my movies while i'm gone, and then went off to do his own packing (moving house, slightly more arduous than mine).
after getting quite a lot done (though not nearly enough), i took a cs break, which lasted quite a lot longer than expected.
as usual.
suppertime now, spaghetti with tuna again.
*** later ***
while eating, i watched this israeli sitcom/comedy called life's not everything, and i understood pretty much everything, and it wasn't so bad!
two very strange things.
must be all the excitement about going (coming?) down to cape town.
i then walked back in time for the plumber.
it woulda been nice if he'd shown up.
in the end, two maintenance workers were sent in his stead, and they did a quick job, and the toilet stopped it's leaky behavior, and life more or less resumed it's normal pace (after a desperately needed pit-stop).
i bladed to idc, took my financial statements, managed to delay my advance payment (they wanted $1000 by the end of this month... yeah, right), waited for half an hour to be told i couldn't meet with SSSO, said goodbye to everyone (again), and returned home.
i started the packing, for real. sammy came over to borrow my movies while i'm gone, and then went off to do his own packing (moving house, slightly more arduous than mine).
after getting quite a lot done (though not nearly enough), i took a cs break, which lasted quite a lot longer than expected.
as usual.
suppertime now, spaghetti with tuna again.
*** later ***
while eating, i watched this israeli sitcom/comedy called life's not everything, and i understood pretty much everything, and it wasn't so bad!
two very strange things.
must be all the excitement about going (coming?) down to cape town.
Saturday, August 16, 2003
16/08/03
*** yesterday ***
the drivers guy wasn't pissed off with me for not doing the work - in fact he was downright friendly!
just when you think you've seen it all.
i went to say goodbye to her parents yesterday. which was a mite uncomfortable, but nonetheless it went okay.
last night we watched whale rider - great movie! it's a modern day fairytale - i couldn't help myself, and cried a little at the end, but it's a most enjoyable film. there wasn't a moment that i wasn't entertained.
*** today ***
she slept over last night. when she left, i had a really good breakfast (scrambled egg on toast, vanilla dessert, chocolate milk, and orange juice), and then began packing. i was sure that i could get online and check my mail at the same time...
wrong.
i've spent the past four hours or so in simultaneous conversations with at least six different people, and i haven't got any packing done. at least i did some laundry though.
i'm SO excited!! i've spent today bouncing up and down, because i'm leaving in THREE DAYS.
THREE - count 'em!
i'm been making lists of the things i need to take, and everyone's contact information, and i've begun planning my first couple of weeks already.
some of it may prove damaging to my lungs and liver, not the least of which will be surfing over the weekend.
but i suppose that'd be damaging to my bones and muscles too.
the only really sad news is that she's leaving tomorrow.
the drivers guy wasn't pissed off with me for not doing the work - in fact he was downright friendly!
just when you think you've seen it all.
i went to say goodbye to her parents yesterday. which was a mite uncomfortable, but nonetheless it went okay.
last night we watched whale rider - great movie! it's a modern day fairytale - i couldn't help myself, and cried a little at the end, but it's a most enjoyable film. there wasn't a moment that i wasn't entertained.
*** today ***
she slept over last night. when she left, i had a really good breakfast (scrambled egg on toast, vanilla dessert, chocolate milk, and orange juice), and then began packing. i was sure that i could get online and check my mail at the same time...
wrong.
i've spent the past four hours or so in simultaneous conversations with at least six different people, and i haven't got any packing done. at least i did some laundry though.
i'm SO excited!! i've spent today bouncing up and down, because i'm leaving in THREE DAYS.
THREE - count 'em!
i'm been making lists of the things i need to take, and everyone's contact information, and i've begun planning my first couple of weeks already.
some of it may prove damaging to my lungs and liver, not the least of which will be surfing over the weekend.
but i suppose that'd be damaging to my bones and muscles too.
the only really sad news is that she's leaving tomorrow.
Thursday, August 14, 2003
14/08/03
*** yesterday ***
aside from waiting in line for over half an hour, things went pretty smoothly!
once i started getting angry and assertive with the "lady" (actually, she wasn't so bad) behind the counter, she got quite helpful and we managed to pretty much sort things out.
now, in the morning (right after work), i just have to go to the bank, the post office, and back there, and then we're quite done.
sammy and i played some tekken before he gave me a ride to work. we signed in, played snooker for an hour, and then joined everyone else for a pretty heavy session at work (lots of stupid people calling).
*** today ***
we're about to begin another session, but i have a few minutes to spare.
i have to email this driver guy, and i've been working on my vtm character, with tons o' help from my co-workers. only sammy knows what it's for, but everyone's had fun participating anyway.
first call - here we go.
*** later ***
work turned into a nightmare nearing the end. we had a lot of very stupid people, who were incredibly difficult to deal with, and all of us were really tired.
i got home around 6am, passed out on the couch, and set my alarm for 08.00.
i woke up around 08.45, had a cold shower, and went to the bank.
the bank experience was pleasant - i had no problem drawing the money i needed to pay social security, and i received my renewed visa card, which is much prettier than the old one.
i paid the social security, made a few important calls on my way home, got home, washed the dishes, and am currently sorting through my niece's belongings to find her army call-up papers.
fun, fun, fun!
i've got loads to do today; this includes meeting up with JOSH, who i think is somewhere in the greater tel-aviv area, and sorting out my vtm character.
she's nowhere near completion, but she's off to a good start. which is a rather nice feeling.
i have to say that i'm feeling pretty good on this complete lack of sleep, and i've begun wondering if maybe i haven't just been overdoing the zzz's.
it could just be the timing - being diurnal has destroyed my body in all sorts of gruesome ways, and not sleeping at night feels more right.
*** later ***
i couldn't get hold of JOSH, as he left his phone at home this morning. so instead of meeting, we talked for fifteen minutes, and we'll have to see each other when i get back.
she came over, so i postponed the character construction session till monday.
she's moving to a distant city on sunday, so this is our last time living so close together for a LONG time.
and i'm not going to get to see her for two months! :_(
i've been constructing lists of the things that i need to do, both before i leave on tuesday, and once i'm in sa.
there's a lot of stuff to do before i go.
but DAMN - i am SO excited about going home!!!!
thanks moonflake and shadowslight for the advice (i needed help sending a really uncomfortable email today).
aside from waiting in line for over half an hour, things went pretty smoothly!
once i started getting angry and assertive with the "lady" (actually, she wasn't so bad) behind the counter, she got quite helpful and we managed to pretty much sort things out.
now, in the morning (right after work), i just have to go to the bank, the post office, and back there, and then we're quite done.
sammy and i played some tekken before he gave me a ride to work. we signed in, played snooker for an hour, and then joined everyone else for a pretty heavy session at work (lots of stupid people calling).
*** today ***
we're about to begin another session, but i have a few minutes to spare.
i have to email this driver guy, and i've been working on my vtm character, with tons o' help from my co-workers. only sammy knows what it's for, but everyone's had fun participating anyway.
first call - here we go.
*** later ***
work turned into a nightmare nearing the end. we had a lot of very stupid people, who were incredibly difficult to deal with, and all of us were really tired.
i got home around 6am, passed out on the couch, and set my alarm for 08.00.
i woke up around 08.45, had a cold shower, and went to the bank.
the bank experience was pleasant - i had no problem drawing the money i needed to pay social security, and i received my renewed visa card, which is much prettier than the old one.
i paid the social security, made a few important calls on my way home, got home, washed the dishes, and am currently sorting through my niece's belongings to find her army call-up papers.
fun, fun, fun!
i've got loads to do today; this includes meeting up with JOSH, who i think is somewhere in the greater tel-aviv area, and sorting out my vtm character.
she's nowhere near completion, but she's off to a good start. which is a rather nice feeling.
i have to say that i'm feeling pretty good on this complete lack of sleep, and i've begun wondering if maybe i haven't just been overdoing the zzz's.
it could just be the timing - being diurnal has destroyed my body in all sorts of gruesome ways, and not sleeping at night feels more right.
*** later ***
i couldn't get hold of JOSH, as he left his phone at home this morning. so instead of meeting, we talked for fifteen minutes, and we'll have to see each other when i get back.
she came over, so i postponed the character construction session till monday.
she's moving to a distant city on sunday, so this is our last time living so close together for a LONG time.
and i'm not going to get to see her for two months! :_(
i've been constructing lists of the things that i need to do, both before i leave on tuesday, and once i'm in sa.
there's a lot of stuff to do before i go.
but DAMN - i am SO excited about going home!!!!
thanks moonflake and shadowslight for the advice (i needed help sending a really uncomfortable email today).
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
13/08/03
wow! today is the first day that i haven't felt the URGE to write these logs.
*** yesterday ***
yesterday morning, i made a laughable attempt to work on the drivers. at this point i admit defeat, however, i do NOT have the courage to face the guy who wanted this! i don't know what i'm going to tell him!
she and i went out for coffee, then to the beach, and then i returned home for some sleep and cs before going to work.
i had the first telephone, so i was almost constantly busy for about half of the night. i made some really dumb mistakes, and now that i'm working alone, i really don't have any excuse...
we all ordered supper from a pizza parlour. i got bacon and mushroom - a really, really good pizza.
*** today ***
i felt like complete and utter crap when i got home. i suspect it was a case of pizza revenge.
but that's okay. had a shower, and crashed around 07.30 (AFTER watching invader zim).
i was told on sunday that i'd be working tonight from around 21.30. sammy called at 13.30 to tell me we have to be there by 18.30.
DAMN.
so i'm most definitely awake now. i'm off, soon, to the social security place, for an hour's exercise in futility, and then it's off to work i go.
hi ho, hi ho.
*** yesterday ***
yesterday morning, i made a laughable attempt to work on the drivers. at this point i admit defeat, however, i do NOT have the courage to face the guy who wanted this! i don't know what i'm going to tell him!
she and i went out for coffee, then to the beach, and then i returned home for some sleep and cs before going to work.
i had the first telephone, so i was almost constantly busy for about half of the night. i made some really dumb mistakes, and now that i'm working alone, i really don't have any excuse...
we all ordered supper from a pizza parlour. i got bacon and mushroom - a really, really good pizza.
*** today ***
i felt like complete and utter crap when i got home. i suspect it was a case of pizza revenge.
but that's okay. had a shower, and crashed around 07.30 (AFTER watching invader zim).
i was told on sunday that i'd be working tonight from around 21.30. sammy called at 13.30 to tell me we have to be there by 18.30.
DAMN.
so i'm most definitely awake now. i'm off, soon, to the social security place, for an hour's exercise in futility, and then it's off to work i go.
hi ho, hi ho.
Monday, August 11, 2003
11/08/03
*** yesterday ***
i spent yesterday at the azrieli centre (that mall again) with her, instead of going to the beach as we'd originally planned. it was probably cleaner, but a lot more expensive - now we're going back to the penny-pinchers' plan.
we watched the new movie spirited away, which was incredible! and it's what i expect of anime, so it was a lot of fun to see it on the big screen.
*** today ***
i JUST finished converting all the logs into xml!
now, this would be GREAT news, but i JUST discovered that you can't view xml in a dialog box. so i have to come up with another way, or all my hard work becomes completely, utterly pointless.
i think i'm going to cry.
i still have to work on my vtm character - i haven't really spent much time on it, and i STILL have to work on this damn driver - i really hate the mess i've made for myself.
*** later ***
i just remembered - fanta has come out in a new flavour in israel:
lemon and elderberry.
*** later ***
i feel like crap - i did NOTHING today. i kinda started on the drivers thing, but i'm considering giving up. and i played cs most of the day.
i spent yesterday at the azrieli centre (that mall again) with her, instead of going to the beach as we'd originally planned. it was probably cleaner, but a lot more expensive - now we're going back to the penny-pinchers' plan.
we watched the new movie spirited away, which was incredible! and it's what i expect of anime, so it was a lot of fun to see it on the big screen.
*** today ***
i JUST finished converting all the logs into xml!
now, this would be GREAT news, but i JUST discovered that you can't view xml in a dialog box. so i have to come up with another way, or all my hard work becomes completely, utterly pointless.
i think i'm going to cry.
i still have to work on my vtm character - i haven't really spent much time on it, and i STILL have to work on this damn driver - i really hate the mess i've made for myself.
*** later ***
i just remembered - fanta has come out in a new flavour in israel:
lemon and elderberry.
*** later ***
i feel like crap - i did NOTHING today. i kinda started on the drivers thing, but i'm considering giving up. and i played cs most of the day.
Saturday, August 09, 2003
09/08/03
the party was cute - the foam definitely had potential, but i didn't really feel comfortable. the fact that lots of underage girls were running around half-dressed and soapy didn't help.
i didn't know where to look, and i felt so DIRTY.
i had a beer, and half a screwdriver, and i haven't really been affected (my body's responding a little slower, but that's not unusual).
the music was absolutely aweful.
i've been inspired, however, to write about my birthday last year - there were some similarities... but above all, i really missed her tonight.
i didn't know where to look, and i felt so DIRTY.
i had a beer, and half a screwdriver, and i haven't really been affected (my body's responding a little slower, but that's not unusual).
the music was absolutely aweful.
i've been inspired, however, to write about my birthday last year - there were some similarities... but above all, i really missed her tonight.
Friday, August 08, 2003
08/08/03
i'm writing this in a hurry - i'm on my way for a foam party (snicker) and i'm still dressed in decent clothing...
we went shopping in afula today, it's strange to see all the same stuff, at much cheaper prices.
and what the hell is the "shopping" thing? everyone seems to think i'm into it - hell, i may start getting used to it.
i bought a plain white vest.
i plan on making a GIR shirt, that says "i LOVE this show!".
i finished anne rice's pandora today, and i feel better educated for it.
and that pretty much describes my day. i'll post later or tomorrow concerning the party.
we went shopping in afula today, it's strange to see all the same stuff, at much cheaper prices.
and what the hell is the "shopping" thing? everyone seems to think i'm into it - hell, i may start getting used to it.
i bought a plain white vest.
i plan on making a GIR shirt, that says "i LOVE this show!".
i finished anne rice's pandora today, and i feel better educated for it.
and that pretty much describes my day. i'll post later or tomorrow concerning the party.
Thursday, August 07, 2003
07/08/03
i woke up at 04.30 this morning, but i managed to get back to sleep, which i continued to do until about 10.30.
i had a shower, had the dog take me for a walk (i shuffled for a kilometer or two, i didn't have the energy to walk, even), and then returned to the house, and continued to sleep.
i was woken up for lunch. we went to the dining hall, ate, and when i returned i went back to sleep.
i went with my cousin's son to the small shop they have here, we had supper when we got back, and we've been messing about on the computer (arguing about music and movies), and we're either going to watch boondock saints (my seventh or eighth time), or go to sleep.
i had a shower, had the dog take me for a walk (i shuffled for a kilometer or two, i didn't have the energy to walk, even), and then returned to the house, and continued to sleep.
i was woken up for lunch. we went to the dining hall, ate, and when i returned i went back to sleep.
i went with my cousin's son to the small shop they have here, we had supper when we got back, and we've been messing about on the computer (arguing about music and movies), and we're either going to watch boondock saints (my seventh or eighth time), or go to sleep.
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
06/08/03
*** yesterday ***
we didn't go out last night. hence the lack of an update.
*** today ***
i got to bed around 01.30, and woke up around 05.30 - and haven't been able to sleep since.
i've just been developing my idea for an anti-spam system, so i've been rewriting the definition document i wrote a while ago, and i've suddenly thought of another way of doing it.
here i go again.
i really need to sleep though.
*** later ***
i couldn't focus enough to finish re-re-redefining the document, and i discovered that i couldn't focus enough to play cs, either.
at about 07.30, i had raisin-bran for breakfast, at around 08.30 i phoned SSSO, and afterwards finally managed to fall asleep for a couple of hours.
after i woke up, i began readying myself for my four night trip up north - packed my clothing, sandals, vampire the masquerade book and character-so-far, and remembered to bring my phone charger and a couple of movies (boondock saints and tank girl).
aaaaaaand then resumed converting logs to xml.
i went with her to the mall for some coffee. or, rather, ice-coffee and hot chocolate.
and a really good sandwich (anti-pasta with cheese!).
i discovered that i'd left my toothbrush at home, so we went all the way back to central herzeliyah, and then all the back to the industrial zone, where she dropped me off at the busstop.
i read on the bus, but mainly to keep myself awake.
that was a REALLY long-ass bus ride.
i've been falling all over myself for the past couple of hours - we just had supper, i'm talking on irc, and as soon as i'm done with this log, i'm going to have a cold shower and go to bed.
good night.
we didn't go out last night. hence the lack of an update.
*** today ***
i got to bed around 01.30, and woke up around 05.30 - and haven't been able to sleep since.
i've just been developing my idea for an anti-spam system, so i've been rewriting the definition document i wrote a while ago, and i've suddenly thought of another way of doing it.
here i go again.
i really need to sleep though.
*** later ***
i couldn't focus enough to finish re-re-redefining the document, and i discovered that i couldn't focus enough to play cs, either.
at about 07.30, i had raisin-bran for breakfast, at around 08.30 i phoned SSSO, and afterwards finally managed to fall asleep for a couple of hours.
after i woke up, i began readying myself for my four night trip up north - packed my clothing, sandals, vampire the masquerade book and character-so-far, and remembered to bring my phone charger and a couple of movies (boondock saints and tank girl).
aaaaaaand then resumed converting logs to xml.
i went with her to the mall for some coffee. or, rather, ice-coffee and hot chocolate.
and a really good sandwich (anti-pasta with cheese!).
i discovered that i'd left my toothbrush at home, so we went all the way back to central herzeliyah, and then all the back to the industrial zone, where she dropped me off at the busstop.
i read on the bus, but mainly to keep myself awake.
that was a REALLY long-ass bus ride.
i've been falling all over myself for the past couple of hours - we just had supper, i'm talking on irc, and as soon as i'm done with this log, i'm going to have a cold shower and go to bed.
good night.
Tuesday, August 05, 2003
05/08/03
*** yesterday ***
last night was pretty chilled; i continued to convert my logs to xml (this is taking FOREVER), played some cs (i'm really getting better, although i don't FEEL the difference when i play. weird.), and then went with her to put petrol in her car.
*** today ***
today has been partly cloudy, yet with plenty of sunshine.
woke up fairly early this morning, had a good breakfast (sunshine), played some cs (sunshine), and then went to retrieve a package from the post office.
turned a corner on the way there, and there was no way that i could have avoided the spatterings of dogshit that were EVERYWHERE (thundercloud).
dog-owners suck, 'cause they can never be bothered to a) ensure that their dogs don't leave a mess where people will walk, or b) clean up after them.
IF YOU DON'T WANT THE RESPONSIBILITY, DON'T GET THE FUCKING DOG.
i then discovered that i'd walked all the way across herzliyah to the wrong post-office (cloud).
i never knew that there was one right across the road from our apartment.
found the post-office, and discovered, to my dismay, that the package was one i had sent four months ago to jax, and that she'd never collected it (cloud).
i was expecting either a package from grootbek (he's warned me one's coming), or my SUNGLASSES from ROY.
our argentinian flatmate got really upset with me today, 'cause i made fun of him watching soap opera's (cloud).
she picked me up, we left her car at the train station, and took the train to azrieli center (big mall) in tel-aviv (sunshine).
we went shopping, played airhockey, had sushi and noodles for lunch, shopped some more, and then took the train back (plenty of sunshine).
i've been converting more logs to xml - it's taking much longer than i expected - and after writing this i'm gonna do baked potatoes and noodles (or did i get mashed potatoes?) for dinner, and play some cs.
we're probably going to watch another movie tonight, and of COURSE i'll be updating this (i really am addicted).
last night was pretty chilled; i continued to convert my logs to xml (this is taking FOREVER), played some cs (i'm really getting better, although i don't FEEL the difference when i play. weird.), and then went with her to put petrol in her car.
*** today ***
today has been partly cloudy, yet with plenty of sunshine.
woke up fairly early this morning, had a good breakfast (sunshine), played some cs (sunshine), and then went to retrieve a package from the post office.
turned a corner on the way there, and there was no way that i could have avoided the spatterings of dogshit that were EVERYWHERE (thundercloud).
dog-owners suck, 'cause they can never be bothered to a) ensure that their dogs don't leave a mess where people will walk, or b) clean up after them.
IF YOU DON'T WANT THE RESPONSIBILITY, DON'T GET THE FUCKING DOG.
i then discovered that i'd walked all the way across herzliyah to the wrong post-office (cloud).
i never knew that there was one right across the road from our apartment.
found the post-office, and discovered, to my dismay, that the package was one i had sent four months ago to jax, and that she'd never collected it (cloud).
i was expecting either a package from grootbek (he's warned me one's coming), or my SUNGLASSES from ROY.
our argentinian flatmate got really upset with me today, 'cause i made fun of him watching soap opera's (cloud).
she picked me up, we left her car at the train station, and took the train to azrieli center (big mall) in tel-aviv (sunshine).
we went shopping, played airhockey, had sushi and noodles for lunch, shopped some more, and then took the train back (plenty of sunshine).
i've been converting more logs to xml - it's taking much longer than i expected - and after writing this i'm gonna do baked potatoes and noodles (or did i get mashed potatoes?) for dinner, and play some cs.
we're probably going to watch another movie tonight, and of COURSE i'll be updating this (i really am addicted).
Monday, August 04, 2003
04/08/03
*** yesterday ***
we went to see good bye, lenin! last night - in german with both hebrew and english subtitles.
really good film, loads of fun to watch, but serious and somewhat educational (for us non-germans) as well.
we had our first fight last night - it felt quite shitty.
*** today ***
well, i know why i was feeling tired yesterday - i'm SICK. i don't know what it is, but my sinuses are working overtime, and i'm REALLY tired, and i keep needing to pee.
i can't believe i just said that, but it stays.
i've slept until 11am, but although i should probably stay in bed, i received a call asking me to come to work. considering that i've skipped out of work on thursday night, i feel i may as well suffer a little bit.
it's just that i feel like i'm on thin ice ANYWAY with the boss (as i've said, i'm going to south africa, with or without permission), so i may as well not rock the boat too much - i'll fall off the side otherwise.
by myself.
the other phone call i got was with regards the student authority - i've received an offer to help me write the letter, now i just have to find a convenient time.
i just remembered, i received a rather interesting call yesterday - one of the guys i used to work for, who screwed me out of TONS of money, phoned to tell me that he has a contract for me - writing some form of loader software that keeps source code encrypted until transport.
now i'm wondering if i can do it in reasonable time, and if i'll get paid for it.
as it is, i still haven't written the driver yet, and i'm sure the guy's either found someone else, or going to be REALLY upset with me.
*** later ***
i'm just finishing up at work - i'm feeling a little better (i haven't passed out yet), and sammy and i are almost on our way home.
that is, we WOULD be but i can't seem to find him.
i got some more details on that job i was offered - it sounds like a bad joke - they want me to write software that requires me to decompile an executable, and i know EXACTLY how that's not going to happen.
i wanted to write something specific, but i really can't recall now.
oh well.
maybe i've just become addicted to writing these logs...
NAAAAAAAAAAAH.
we went to see good bye, lenin! last night - in german with both hebrew and english subtitles.
really good film, loads of fun to watch, but serious and somewhat educational (for us non-germans) as well.
we had our first fight last night - it felt quite shitty.
*** today ***
well, i know why i was feeling tired yesterday - i'm SICK. i don't know what it is, but my sinuses are working overtime, and i'm REALLY tired, and i keep needing to pee.
i can't believe i just said that, but it stays.
i've slept until 11am, but although i should probably stay in bed, i received a call asking me to come to work. considering that i've skipped out of work on thursday night, i feel i may as well suffer a little bit.
it's just that i feel like i'm on thin ice ANYWAY with the boss (as i've said, i'm going to south africa, with or without permission), so i may as well not rock the boat too much - i'll fall off the side otherwise.
by myself.
the other phone call i got was with regards the student authority - i've received an offer to help me write the letter, now i just have to find a convenient time.
i just remembered, i received a rather interesting call yesterday - one of the guys i used to work for, who screwed me out of TONS of money, phoned to tell me that he has a contract for me - writing some form of loader software that keeps source code encrypted until transport.
now i'm wondering if i can do it in reasonable time, and if i'll get paid for it.
as it is, i still haven't written the driver yet, and i'm sure the guy's either found someone else, or going to be REALLY upset with me.
*** later ***
i'm just finishing up at work - i'm feeling a little better (i haven't passed out yet), and sammy and i are almost on our way home.
that is, we WOULD be but i can't seem to find him.
i got some more details on that job i was offered - it sounds like a bad joke - they want me to write software that requires me to decompile an executable, and i know EXACTLY how that's not going to happen.
i wanted to write something specific, but i really can't recall now.
oh well.
maybe i've just become addicted to writing these logs...
NAAAAAAAAAAAH.
Sunday, August 03, 2003
03/08/03
*** yesterday ***
i spent most of yesterday learning xml, and am currently in the process of converting all my log files.
this is EXTREMELY labour-intensive and time-consuming, which is the reason for the conversion in the first place.
took me way too long to get smart, though.
but, i HAVE learned something new! xml may be easy - manipulating the xml through xsl can be a BITCH if you don't know where to get help, and it's not quite immediately available on the web.
aside from reading, xml'ing, and playing counterstrike, i didn't really do much.
she came over, and we went for a long walk, which involved lots of sweets and ice-cream, and i managed to convince her to allow me to post better pictures of her.
it's really hard to get someone who's camera-shy (although a great photographer!) to pose.
so i've uploaded the new photo's, and by her demand removed the old one. i hope you're satisfied (you know who you are).
*** today ***
and it's now very late (00.12), and time for munchies and bed.
and a shower. mustn't forget the shower.
and brushing my teeth. mustn't forget brushing my teeth.
*** later ***
ok - the main lesson learned from today is DON'T EAT LOTS OF HUMUS, ESPECIALLY NOT FOR BREAKFAST.
i have gas.
this morning was great - went with her to the beach, had lots of fun (in spite of the fact that i know about the recent sewerage problems), and shared a huge greek salad for lunch.
i managed to find someone to cover for me at work on thursday, so now i can go up north to visit my cousins!
and chill by their pool for a few days.
i then received a rather disturbing phone call. the student's authority are supposed to be paying a rather substantial part of my tuition - $3000.
when i went there to organize it, they told me that my grades for last year weren't good enough, so i should come back when i've passed all my courses for this year.
i passed all my courses this year.
now she tells me "no, sorry, you're too late. you had to have requested it by april in order to qualify."
BITCH!!!
is she THAT stupid, that she thought that i'd get my grades before i took the courses? so now i have to write them a letter explaining what happened.
and she's a really mean russian woman, and to cap it off, she refuses to acknowledge (say that word like they do in c&c red alert) that i can't speak hebrew properly, so she rushes all her sentences in an effort to make me realize how vastly superior her language skills are.
i have that postal feeling.
i got to watch the grand prix today! unfortunately, i had to watch it on one of the german channels, and it just wasn't as exciting. commentary always helps.
she came over around the middle of it, and, as could be expected, completely disrupted it.
*GLOOM*
i've been feeling rather strange today - quite tired really. maybe it's from the seawater. whichever.
i'm off now, gotta go shopping for healthy stuff. and draw some cash too, we're going to see a movie tonight. i think it's the new disney one.
i spent most of yesterday learning xml, and am currently in the process of converting all my log files.
this is EXTREMELY labour-intensive and time-consuming, which is the reason for the conversion in the first place.
took me way too long to get smart, though.
but, i HAVE learned something new! xml may be easy - manipulating the xml through xsl can be a BITCH if you don't know where to get help, and it's not quite immediately available on the web.
aside from reading, xml'ing, and playing counterstrike, i didn't really do much.
she came over, and we went for a long walk, which involved lots of sweets and ice-cream, and i managed to convince her to allow me to post better pictures of her.
it's really hard to get someone who's camera-shy (although a great photographer!) to pose.
so i've uploaded the new photo's, and by her demand removed the old one. i hope you're satisfied (you know who you are).
*** today ***
and it's now very late (00.12), and time for munchies and bed.
and a shower. mustn't forget the shower.
and brushing my teeth. mustn't forget brushing my teeth.
*** later ***
ok - the main lesson learned from today is DON'T EAT LOTS OF HUMUS, ESPECIALLY NOT FOR BREAKFAST.
i have gas.
this morning was great - went with her to the beach, had lots of fun (in spite of the fact that i know about the recent sewerage problems), and shared a huge greek salad for lunch.
i managed to find someone to cover for me at work on thursday, so now i can go up north to visit my cousins!
and chill by their pool for a few days.
i then received a rather disturbing phone call. the student's authority are supposed to be paying a rather substantial part of my tuition - $3000.
when i went there to organize it, they told me that my grades for last year weren't good enough, so i should come back when i've passed all my courses for this year.
i passed all my courses this year.
now she tells me "no, sorry, you're too late. you had to have requested it by april in order to qualify."
BITCH!!!
is she THAT stupid, that she thought that i'd get my grades before i took the courses? so now i have to write them a letter explaining what happened.
and she's a really mean russian woman, and to cap it off, she refuses to acknowledge (say that word like they do in c&c red alert) that i can't speak hebrew properly, so she rushes all her sentences in an effort to make me realize how vastly superior her language skills are.
i have that postal feeling.
i got to watch the grand prix today! unfortunately, i had to watch it on one of the german channels, and it just wasn't as exciting. commentary always helps.
she came over around the middle of it, and, as could be expected, completely disrupted it.
*GLOOM*
i've been feeling rather strange today - quite tired really. maybe it's from the seawater. whichever.
i'm off now, gotta go shopping for healthy stuff. and draw some cash too, we're going to see a movie tonight. i think it's the new disney one.
Friday, August 01, 2003
01/08/03
i just got back from the party, and it was REALLY good. the dj played hard psychedelic, with very little that wasn't beat-iful.
i had to walk there, which was insane. it's on the other side of a different city, effectively, and it took more than an hour and a half to get there.
which gave me time to realize that i've made plans to go up north to visit my cousins, and at the same time put myself down to work those days.
so at 9am i'm off to work, to try to fix this.
DAMN.
but i feel SO much better for going - i didn't realize how much i needed that.
i going to try taking her along for the next one...
*** later ***
i just got off from playing cs, and there's this warehouse map, really tiny, and i OWNED - i was taking out two or three guys at a time!
then i was doing well on the cs_office map, and *I* got disconnect for high ping. it (my ping) was just FINE by me - i wish the server would just let ME choose!
i made an attempt at using xml for the logs, but unfortunately, i have no clue where to find a tag that allows me to use html.
i basically spent today sleeping. i remembered to shop, ate pita and humus for both lunch and supper (i wasn't really hungry, and i'm still VERY tired), and read some more of anne rice's pandora. it's really getting along nicely - it's much more entertaining than the movie queen of the damned.
and it's intelligent, too. i'm feeling more educated already.
i finished the mind-rape story (see the psychotic american's home page), and if you can get through it it's actually worth it - i haven't been so amused since terry pratchett's jingo (the line near the end about / from nobby nobbs)!
it's basically a long-running collection of fridge quotes...
that's almost it for me - i'm gonna try to find that xml thingy, and then i REALLY need a visit from the sandman.
i had to walk there, which was insane. it's on the other side of a different city, effectively, and it took more than an hour and a half to get there.
which gave me time to realize that i've made plans to go up north to visit my cousins, and at the same time put myself down to work those days.
so at 9am i'm off to work, to try to fix this.
DAMN.
but i feel SO much better for going - i didn't realize how much i needed that.
i going to try taking her along for the next one...
*** later ***
i just got off from playing cs, and there's this warehouse map, really tiny, and i OWNED - i was taking out two or three guys at a time!
then i was doing well on the cs_office map, and *I* got disconnect for high ping. it (my ping) was just FINE by me - i wish the server would just let ME choose!
i made an attempt at using xml for the logs, but unfortunately, i have no clue where to find a tag that allows me to use html.
i basically spent today sleeping. i remembered to shop, ate pita and humus for both lunch and supper (i wasn't really hungry, and i'm still VERY tired), and read some more of anne rice's pandora. it's really getting along nicely - it's much more entertaining than the movie queen of the damned.
and it's intelligent, too. i'm feeling more educated already.
i finished the mind-rape story (see the psychotic american's home page), and if you can get through it it's actually worth it - i haven't been so amused since terry pratchett's jingo (the line near the end about / from nobby nobbs)!
it's basically a long-running collection of fridge quotes...
that's almost it for me - i'm gonna try to find that xml thingy, and then i REALLY need a visit from the sandman.
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