Diverse Ramblings

Techno-kitteh

Nylon strings and a powerball

Re-stringing a classical guitar is a pain in the neck because, besides being fiddly to do (you have to use special knots because the nylon slips, it's much easier on a steel-string folk guitar), the process also requires a lot of re-tuning of the new strings as they stretch quite a bit under the tension and take several days to settle. Next time I'll pick a night when there's better programs on TV...

Mike's guitar has been in dire need of a new set of strings for ages, and yesterday we finally made it to a music shop (the morning the heavens opened, of course).

By the way, did you know that apparently there are no music shops in Gozo? We didn't take a guitar on our honeymoon and we actually went looking for a music shop while we were there because Mike missed playing - but no-one knew of any, not even the Monti hawkers in Victoria, and there weren't any in the Yellow Pages. How sad.

Anyway, we were in Hamrun yesterday, with very wet feet from the rivers flooding the streets, and we did a xirja at the music shop once we were at it to replace some of our equipment that has become quite worn - besides the strings, we needed a second capo, and a couple of leads, and a shoulder strap and so on.

While Mike was picking out a set of strings, I noticed an interesting gadget on the shop counter that I'd heard about before - a powerball. I was interested because I began practicing my violin again this week (in hopes of some day advancing beyond rank beginner) and I can only play for a couple of minutes at a time because my left arm gets tired. I had tried lifting Mike's lightest set of weights to start building some strength, but it's quite boring, so I thought the powerball might be a more fun way of exercising.

We bought the powerball and I like it so far - I use it while surfing youtube and just switch hands when one gets tired. Definitely cooler than boring old weights.

Whether or not my violin playing will improve remains to be seen.

The Euro is coming! The Euro is coming!

In three days' time, the Euro becomes Malta's official currency, and I'm not looking forward to it because I'm quite happy with my Lira Maltija, thank-you very much.

I've used Euros before when travelling, and I didn't mind the coins, but they look like play money when compared with our more substantial muniti.

I haven't bothered to go get any Euro starter kits because have you seen the queues at the bank? Not worth it. My mother-in-law showed me a couple that she picked up, and Michael's little sister helped him familiarise himself with the coins.

I prefer the ones that Santa brought us.

It seems that every few days we get another leaflet in the letterbox about the Euro. I have been a good citizen and read most of them, so I know that the Euro isn't legal tender until the first of January, and the Lira Maltija can still be used until February (but change will be given in Euros), I've memorised the security features on the Euro banknotes, and I even know how to use my old chequebook to write cheques in Euros.

Although I haven't received a Euro converter *sob* I have to say that I've been impressed by the massive effort that's been made to educate the great unwashed about the changeover. Even to the extent of excruciatingly over-acted clips on TV where characters go on about "Did you know that the price of a carton of milk will be blah blah blah Euro cents?". You have to give the NECC points for trying, the sheer number of different schemes they've implemented is quite impressive.

By the way, I think the terminology is annoying - saying something costs twenty Euro instead of twenty Euros sounds cool, but saying fifty cent instead of fifty cents is just wrong, so I shall use whatever trips off the tongue at the time.

I've noticed with interest some of the coping strategies used by shops.

The local stationer's has never been the most accomodating of shops - you have to pay 2 (Maltese) cents for plastic bags, and they won't even sell you a plastic bag if you only buy a newspaper, it's The Rules. They've stuck up a sign by the till which very handily gives the Lm-Euro prices of all the newspapers, but also says that from 1st January, customers Will Not Be Served if they do not tender Exact Change for newspapers. Is that even legal?

PAVI (our favourite supermarket) has stuck up signs saying that Liri Maltin won't be accepted at the checkout counters during January, but they are offering an exchange bureau on the premises. Is that legal too? I mean, not accepting a legal currency at the checkout? I don't know what the laws are concerning currency and retail.

Oh well, roll on Tuesday. I'm going to make sure I have enough Liri Maltin to tide me over in case the Lm-Euro changeovers of the ATMs don't go as planned. I wonder how many people are going to go out and buy stuff just as an excuse to use their shiny new Euros?

Usually I only use a wallet for my cards (ATM cards, ID card, phone card etc) and carry my cash in my pockets. My personal Lm-Euro changeover strategy will be to keep my Liri cash in the left-hand pocket of my jeans, and my Euro cash in the right-hand pocket.

I am tempted to go over to the stationer's on January 2nd and use a Lm10 note to buy a packet of Maltesers, but I can just imagine the string of invective...

Doppelgänger

Fairy Fluff

Christmas was great, Santa was very generous and we spent time with both Mike's extended family and mine.

Remembering the consequences of previous years, I didn't overeat this year and so didn't spend the evening groaning "Oh, my stomach!", heheh. Of course, I was helped by having had breakfast courtesy of Santa and the chocolate Euro starter kits that he left us. We don't have any stockings yet so he had to borrow our pillowcases, but that was OK because some of the presents he left us were quite big, such as my big hardback book on the history of musical theatre *grin*

Yesterday Mike was at work but I wasn't (yay holidays!), so I cleaned the bathroom.

What I would like to know is, how does the bathroom get so grotty so fast?

I have a theory that there is a Fluff Fairy living in the third compartment of the washing machine, and at night she comes out and blows fluff bubbles all over the bathroom.

Santa's on his way!

It's Christmas Eve and I'm here at home listening to Christmas songs, catching up on my blog-posting, and keeping tabs on Santa's journey.

I have a pile of Christmas presents to wrap - Michael convinced me this afternoon, as I staggered through Clamus, that I couldn't possibly need twelve rolls of wrapping paper and surely I could get by on just nine. Well, we'll see. I have a whole box of ribbons and stick-on stars and I'm looking forward to using it all.

Mike is an inordinately curious man, and I am quite pleased with myself (also very smug) because I bought his Christmas present three whole weeks ago and didn't tell him because I knew he'd rip the house apart looking for it. Can I keep a secret or what? However now he knows where two of my various hiding places are (under the bed, and in the laundry spinner in the bathroom) so next year I may have to buy a safe.

OK, off to start wrapping presents. I can't find my Love Actually DVD but maybe I'll find something suitably Christmassy on the telly.

Bloggers Meetup Dec 07

On Saturday a bunch of Maltese bloggers (plus a couple of non-bloggers) met up at the Vitorja band club in Mellieħa. I had previously only met two of the people there, but no worries, they were a friendly bunch. Thanks Jacques for organising it!

Quiche, Kinnie, Twistees and Cisk comprised the refreshments.

There was an extra chair or two at the table, so every so often someone would get up and move to an empty chair, and this was great because I got to talk to almost everyone instead of just four or five people.

Below are examples of some of the conversations I had in the course of the evening. Haven't had this much fun in ages, and we definitely need to do this more often!

Claire Commando and Annalise - the trials and tribulations of first-year law studies

Ninuhadida (surely the coolest nic) - electronic music

Rene - various internet-based technologies, and related entrepreneurs

Jacques - the superiority of the tea served in the Vitorja band club

Wen - cats, Christmas trees, and home loans

David - the pros and cons of a capitalist society

Rupert - the geneology and geographic distribution of the Cefai clans in Malta

Vlad - the rise, fall and future of the Maltese bloggosfera

Sandro - pros and cons of having a bilingual blogg

Unfortunately I didn't get to spend much time with the rest of the people there such as Jean Paul and Neebother - maybe next time!

What they're drooling over in the USA

But with a price tag of Lm159, no-one on my Christmas list is getting a Wii from me. Apparently since there is such a supply-and-demand problem in the USA, there's good money to made flogging Wii-related merchandise on ebay.

Kinnie in a can

A couple of days ago, Mike and I went to Pavi to restock the pantry cupboard, and while there I was dazzled by the display of Kinnie and other softdrinks in plastic bottles and cans.

Hooray for the European Union, the removal of barriers to trade, and the destruction of the Maltese environment.

Twenty Questions

Wen tagged me with a meme...

Instructions: remove one of the twenty questions and replace with one of your own. Then tag eight people.

1. At what age do you wish to marry? Already married, three months ago at age 26.

2. If you were to be stranded on a desert island, who are the 3 blog buddies you would take with you? Why?
I would take Athena because that woman can really cook.
I would take Coemgen because he's a nurse and could handle our medical emergencies.
And I would take Jacques because the man would be so desperate to blog that he'd get us rescued by any means possible.

3. Where is the place that you want to go the most? I don't know - I'd like to visit Ireland and New Zealand for the scenery (WOW) and Scotland/Australia/South Africa to visit relatives.

4. If you could have one dream come true, what would it be? Be given a huge amount of money so that I never have to work again, hahaha. Then I would laze around all day reading.

5. What's the best compliment you've ever received? I can tell you're your father's daughter.

6. What are you afraid to lose the most? My husband :-)

7. If you win $1 million, what would you do? Buy a cute car, upgrade our flat, travel a bit.

8. If you meet someone that you love, would you confess to him/her? Or would you keep it to yourself and observe from afar? Am already in love (with husband) but at the time I did keep it to myself. We got together through a match-making friend.

9. List 3 good points of the person who tagged you. Wen is kind-hearted, loves books, and can cook.

10. If you could go back in time, would you like to change something in your life? What would it be? I would like to have learned about ten years earlier than I did, that other people's opinions aren't really that important after all.

11. Which type of person do you hate the most? People who lie and swindle other people, and won't help anyone unless they'll be getting something out of it.

12. What is the thing that will make you think he/she is bad? Not caring about the welfare of someone else.

13. What is your ambition? To combine having a family with a fulfilling job.

14. Christmas is coming, who do you like to celebrate with? Family and close friends.

15. What do you think is the most important thing in your life? My husband and our relationship.

16. Are you a shopaholic or no? Depends what I'm shopping for, but yes in recent years I have discovered a latent shopaholic streak. My husband dreads hearing the words "I'm going shopping".

17. Which actress or actors you would like to be? Well the actress I admire the most is Emma Thompson because she's clever, funny, a great actress, and can write too.

18. It would be 2008 in a few days, do you have a new year’s resolution? The same as for the last five years: I resolve not to make any New Year's resolutions.

19. Do you have any plans for tomorrow? Going to church, where I'll perform in the choir and coax the kiddies through their 30-second performance, and then off to the theatre to watch the Panto dress rehearsal. Yay!

20. My question: what is one of your all time favourite books, and why? The Time Traveller's Wife is one of my favourites because it's such a great story combining much love (aaaah) with time travel (cool).

I tag: anyone who wants to do this.

Making this Christmas a tal-Lira Christmas

Because if you can't be tacky at Christmas-time, then when can you?

Il-Bloggers Jiltaqgħu

This year, given that I didn't get around to organising a bloggers' bash, Jacques took it upon himself to take care of it... he's even got a map and a flyer done...

So come along to the Mellieħa Band Club this Saturday evening, surely you'll find SOMEONE you'll enjoy talking to. Bloggers/ex-bloggers/readers/non-readers etc etc welcome.

While I'm at it, I'll insert some propoganda for a website that Jacques has set up, it's a "socal network" for Maltese bloggers called Blogs of Malta. Good place to, um, socially network with Maltese bloggers... One of these days I'll take a decent picture of myself and upload it to my profile. Or, if you really want to see what I look like, see you on Saturday.

All I want for Christmas

Michael, sensible man that he is, has given me carte blanche to buy my own Christmas present.

Muahahahahaha...

Isn't it sad that what I want, what I want, what I really really want, is a bathroom heater?

So domestic.

The cat and the Christmas tree.

I love Christmas, it's my favourite time of year.

All the excitement, all the preparations, the lights, the presents, the feeling, it's great.

I'm listening to Christmas carols on my mp3 player, I've bought presents, and the other day I put up the tree which a friend donated to us as she's been given a new one.

This is the story of that tree.

And my husband's cat.

I keeell you!

Politically-incorrect ventriloquism, always amusing.