Secret Songs of Silence

much ado about adam

It's been a busy week and a tiring one at that so blog posts have been sparse.

I did not watch Idol though I was certainly aware of Adam Lambert at the time.

I did not watch the American Music Awards so I did not see his controversial kiss and simulated blow job though I have certainly read about it this week.

But I did watch the video clips of his interview on CBS afterwards and I have to say I thought he did well. He didn't apologize even though the host was all but begging him to do so. He stood his ground. He pointed out the inconsistencies in his treatment.

I liked how he pointed out (indirectly) that kids should have been in bed by that time of night!

Good on him.

cartoon

Anyone in academia should get a smile out of this:

I had the pleasure of attending a talk by the cartoonist earlier this year. His cartoons capture the life of graduate students everywhere.

thanksgiving (2)

Here's wishing my American readers a Happy Thanksgiving...

cartoon

LOL

renovation recap

My renovations resumed this week. I was both surprised and relieved.

I came home from work on Monday to discover a great big hole where my porch used to be.

By way of explanation - the old porch simply rested on concrete supports. It was completely open underneath - and that was also why it had started to rot away.

The great big hole was actually the second thing I saw.

The first thing I saw was the dirty great mountain of soil and rocks that had been dumped to one side of my front garden (on a flower bed!) and seemed in imminent danger of smashing part of my fence and smothering part of my driveway.

Now, I knew that the contractor was going to dig a hole in order to put in a foundation. But, it had never crossed my mind that this would mean that he would need someplace to put all the soil and rocks formerly in that space. It was a duh! moment.

The contractor left a invoice for me that same day. For downpayment and progress expenses.

I had to laugh at the idea of "progress" expenses. There was not much in evidence.

When he came by the next morning to collect the cheque, he told me that the city had to inspect the hole before anything else could be done.

They must have said all was well because wednesday brought two guys who have laid some concrete to form three sides of a concrete shape at the bottom of the hole.

I'm praying that they will be back today to get whatever else needs to be poured done so the hole can be filled in properly before we get any major snowstorms. The forecast for this week is quite good. Lord only knows what that mound of earth will do to the wind currents and snow drifts in my driveway.

* * *

Two weeks ago, when he started the demolition of the old porch, the contractor made an offhand comment by way of inquiring what style of front door we had decided upon.

We hadn't.

It has been a source of some stress and frustration that neither the contractor nor interior designer seem to want to *plan ahead* at least as far as decisions that I might have to make are concerned. Such as selecting a front door.

I have now selected a door. I took a fancy to a nice contemporary stained glass style for my door. I have also discovered that front doors are bloody expensive!

It will take 6 weeks for delivery.

That means after Christmas.

I shudder to think how I'm going to cope with winter snowstorms with a partially finished entranceway.

I took my first steps towards this renovation last May. My goal was to have it done in September. My goal was to have a gas fireplace installed by Christmas. Now, I reckon that I will be lucky to have the porch done with a temporary door by then. I don't now expect to have the living room and fireplace done till the end of January.

I'm telling myself to stay calm and just let it all happen.

It's not that easy.

slán le breiffne

Last night, I caught up with my weekly online reality TV shows.

I watched the latest episode of The Apprentice - Ireland and the end of Breffny's time on the show. In truth, this was coming and, by the end of the show, it was not unexpected. This week's task was a sales task and he sold nothing. Most of his fellow competitors did not do much better with only one or two sales to their credit but he had none. To compound the problem, he let Geraldine write up her sale in his book. Looking back, it seems as though he knew that was a wrong thing to do.

However, when he was fired he displayed class with a gentlemanly thanks to Bill. I think he's the only competitor to have done that.

For the first time, I also watched the after show in which he appeared for a panel discussion. He admitted that he knew when the task was announced that he would probably be going home. He knew that the 'sales' task was coming and that it would not be his forte. I can see that but if ever there was a sales task that he should have been able to do, this was it. But, he seemed to never have heard about BreatheRight nasal strips. These nasal strips are commonly seen on athletes on TV. I'm surprised that a Harvard athlete hadn't heard of them.

He was also the gentleman in discussing his 'relationships' with two of the female contestants.

Here's a video of Breffny's best bits:

hat tip to culch.ie who also wrote:

The man was often the butt of jokes, made some terrible decisions, fell over and mumbled his way through pitches, but he was always entertaining and added something to this year’s show that elevated it above last year’s first Irish Apprentice.

cubo magico rosa

The words are all in Italian, but the message is, well, clear...

...and I have to confess that I couldn't help but laugh at the concept!

(via Antonia Zerbisias, who certainly shouldn't take it personally)

Bondi style

Australia is a country of great contrasts. Think Sydney style (assuming that's not an oxymoron) versus Outback dust.

Judging by two flash mob videos that appeared in my blog reads this morning, Bondi beach is also a place of contrasts.

This was the first video I saw:

A bit Muriel's Wedding isn't it? Not at all what I expected of Bondi beach. Then again, I have only visited Bondi beach once and that was in the Australian midwinter. I went paddling but I don't recall that there were many others brave (foolhardy?) enough to venture into the water. No one was undressed as far as their swimmers.

Then I saw this video:

(also on OhLaLa and TowleRoad)

Now, this is more like the Sydney I expected.

But, but...

Even in this video there is hardly a speedo/aussiebum swimsuit in view.

No wonder Sydney failed to set a world record for a swimwear parade!

ballet works

Continuing the dance video theme from last week...

A compilation of bits from the San Francisco Ballet 2008-09 season. These look terrific and make me wish I had been able to see them live.

on the pitter patter of feline feet

A cat died last tuesday.

It's death very nearly precipitated an international incident between Canada and the UK.

The cat was 16. A fine old age for a cat.

The cat was owned by Canada's MInister of Transport, John Baird.

He named it Thatcher. In honour of the Baroness, one of his heroines.

He tweeted its death: "Thatcher is dead".

This is NOT the message to send to a group of 1700 Conservative bigwigs assembled for dinner.

They are apt to misinterpret. Thatcher the Lady. Not, Thatcher the cat.

Luckily, they checked before going public. Which is too bad. I'd have loved to have seen the red faces.

(UPDATE: picture added)

* * *

Ever mischievous, Kady O' Malley, sympathises with John Baird's loss and suggests some remedies:

...at the heart of the deliciously comedic tale of mangled messages is the at least temporarily tragic figure of our transport minister, who is left mourning the loss of a beloved companion even as her passing becomes an international punchline.

...no matter how disloyal it may seem, one of the very best ways to honour the memory of a dearly departed furry family member is to open your home -- and your heart -- to another, especially if you choose rescue, rather than hitting the high-priced breeder circuit, as longtime foster advocate -- and dear friend of the minister -- Laureen Harper would surely point out.

To appreciate the wicked wit, you need to know that Laureen Harper's husband, our erstwhile Prime Minister, does not accompany her to arts events. That task is entrusted to John Baird, who, so some have written, is gay. The Harper's are cat-friendly and have advocated for a cat rescue.

Ever helpful, Kady has identified some half dozen replacements for Thatcher at the Ottawa pound. She ends her piece by asking:

What do you say, minister? Will your house be filled with the pitterpatter of little padded feet by the end of the weekend?

Brilliant!