Phillbo’s Blog Site

Well today I returned to my “day” job, after six glorious days away from the office. The day dragged on.. and I was dead tired. I think maybe because the blood bank took like 18 samples of blood from me yesterday; I have a potential match for a bone marrow recipient. They want to cross check my tissue, and there is a small possibility that I may be required to donate stem cells or bone marrow.

Today (when I wake up).. I will be sole trading again. I’ve re-designed a network, to allow minimal downtime for all staff in their premises, in the event that one of the staff members may leave and take his Windows server with him. After my changes, everything works all OK, with the exception of one workstation. The Windows event viewer has too many red crosses, and slowly but shortly, I’ve managed to get rid of most of them, however it still doesn’t explain why it takes one user around five minutes just to log onto Windows domain controller. I’m sure it is something I’ve over looked, but persistance will pay off. I am thinking about doing a quick hack in the host file on the local workstation, just so it can locate the server easily… but rest assured, I will keep at it until the issue is resolved. For some reason, I love challenges.

My old housemates, Paul and Kellie got married yesterday. The reception was at Ascot House, a lovely old house with a grand piano, and I must say, today I am feeling worse for wear. It is a good think I booked annual leave.

I’m sure someone will have got me on camera being crazy, however I didn’t perform any “out there” stunts on the dance floor. A good night was had by all there, well I think so anyway.

My cousin drove me home in my intoxicated state, and drove me to the air port this morning (I was supposed to take him there). I think by the time I arrived at the air port, I had woken up good and proper, but right now I am still feeling seedy.

Well last night, I gave my cousin Lance’s computer an overhaul, and he’s back online. I just need to organise some other stuff for him, and he should be set all set. He made a splendid curry, however a bit more spice would have perfected it

Got a big week ahead of me.. my friend Paul is getting married this Friday (and I’ve got annual leave booked for Saturday), and I’ve volunteered to take my cousin Alistair to Melbourne Airport, as he is speaking at a conference in New Zealand. He’s almost a doctor, and he knows the sooner he finishes his thesis, the sooner I shall buy him a stump rump.

Work was pretty average today, but I’ve put in a few more applications over the past few days, and hopefully someone will bite the bait, and give me a job.

I’ve got a sole trading job tommorrow, so I must ensure I have an early night. I’m setting up a network for some steel retailer in Melbourne.

Well my Fridays are usually set aside for my own sole trading work, however this week is a little different. The local media has camped around my client’s work places (due to circumstances beyond their control), so I’ve chosen not to turn up this week. I will definately make up for lost time next week.

I instead have applied for several jobs, and have even been bold enough to apply for temporary contract work, with the likely possibility of leaving my permanent part time job. I am long overdue for a change, and have decided it is about time I took a few risks.

One of the applications required a personality profile test, and I’m not sure how to make heads or trails of it… however I answered it using the process known as free association. I’m pretty sure they want to probe my mind about my alliegances to certain political point of views, and I suppose you can probably expect that when you are applying for a job in a security sensitive area. Anyway time for bed, I need to make sure I wake up in time for work.

Today I went for a job interview with the local council. I’ve managed to be shortlisted down to four candidates out of over 100 applicants, however my interview didn’t go as well as expected. Having a mental blank prevented me from asking some cool questions and answering other questions in a better manner, however I think it went relatively OK. I will find out next week if I am successful in getting a job there. I am pretty happy that they called me in a second time though, which in itself is encouraging.

Yesterday I visited Myer, and bought some slacks. My suits are all to big for me now.. I’ve dropped around 10cm around the waist, so here I go again. I wish I never donated my older (and smaller clothes), as I’ve come to the realisation that I’m smaller than I used to be, and some of those clothes may fit me again. It is good to see that I can now fit into my dress shirts again, and if a drop a few more kilograms, they will probably fit very comfortably indeed.

Well reflecting back about whats happened over the last few weeks, it has all become one big blur.

I’ve worked flat out for about eight days straight, however as I’ve got a saw throat coming on, I decided to take the day off work. Loosing my voice is the last thing I want to happen. It could be a blessing though, as I may have develop more patience to listen to people too. In my spare moments, I’ve been hopelessly addicted to Xbox game, Stars Wars; Knights of the old Republic. This game has some cool features where it makes you think outside the square, and has some interesting puzzles in it also. But more importantly, I think it whacks you between the eyes by reminding yourself that you only have one chance at life, and make the most of it. Unlike a computer game, you can load/save, and see alternate options.

Tennis was washed out tonight, but that was to be expected. It also allegedly snowed in some Melbourne suburbs, however I didn’t manage to catch a glimpse. All I know is, it has been very cold over the past few weeks, but hopefully with Spring almost upon us, it should begin to warm up. Well I hope so anyway.

Late this afternoon, I turned up to “George’s” place, where I was educated in the ways of Big Brother, and I also involved myself as a mandatory participant in the game of, “Guess a tune.” “George” plays guitar very well, so it always a pleasure to sit back and watch him play guitar. Fantastic stuff.

I arrived home around 10pm, and decided I’d try my hand at Sheppard’s Pie. I’ve never made this dish, however my confidence in my cooking has been improving over the past few months.

I made the mash, prepared the meat and vegetables (and gravy), and now its baking. The only problem is, I’ve never made this before, so I have no idea how long to bake it for, considering the food is already cooked as such. I am assuming around 180 degrees C, for about 15 minutes. An after thought is that I maybe should have brushed some oil on top of the mash. But either way.. the meat tastes splendid using a Miles cooking method, ahd the mash tastes good also (using an Irish Pub secret ingredient). I am sure the end product will turn out quite reasonable.

If I am not 100% content (but I’m sure I will be), I will attempt it again next week.