.: Cath’s Blog:.

I slept like a baby last night and was as raring to go this morning.

I feel guilty to say I found it amusing (I know I am sick) to hear that the NSW Opposition leader John Brogden tried to commit suicide (unsuccessfully) last night after calling (the former Premier) Bob Carr’s Malaysian Wife a “Mail Order Bride” a few days ago. As Goldie said the other day, it would have been funny if she was called Yow Peng…instead she is called Helena!

I had a pretty dull day…lots of calls to check…this was funny though, so I thought I’d share…

• Agent: Is there anything else you would like me to clarify or explain?
• Customer: Yes, Why does my wife spend so much money?

Hee Hee

On the way home on the tram again I sat and stared at all the strange weirdo’s and wondered what kind of job they could possibly do wearing the outfits they had on. One woman had hair so ragged it looked like she had a long haired dog on her head. Another woman was wearing clothes that looked so dated that she looked like an extra from Miami Vice.

One of the girls from work (the one who is pregnant) had her last day today. It’s sad as she is really nice and we had good chats. I am pretty sure that because she has left I will be working at this company for a while. I am not complaining though…I like it.

I hardly slept last night because of all the wind and rain…my door was rattling all night and it was driving me crazy…I was stuffing paper in the cracks to stop the noise…ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

I got another ride to work with Goldie…I was thankful as it was pretty chilly outside. The weather is so weird here in Melbourne…one minute it is sunny and the next it’s pouring.

Work was fine…I was tired though and found it really hard to concentrate on the calls. For some reason nearly all of the calls were with really old people…70 or 80 and they were finding it so hard to understand what was being said to them. On average the calls I check are from 3 minutes to 10 minutes tops. Well, nearly all my calls today were 5 to 10 minutes long and just were so confusing. My worst call was 19 minutes long and I had to listen to it more that 3 times to totally understand what was going on. Anyway, I think the only reason why I was having problems listening was because I was tired. I will have an early night tonight and make sure I am refreshed.

I watched a new Drama tonight that just started on TV called ‘Afterlife’. I love Andrew Lincoln and Lesley Sharp (who are the leads) and thought it was great.  Lesley (Bob and Rose, Playing the Field, Planespotters) plays a medium, Alison Mundy, who is able to reach people on the “other side” as a result of a traumatic accident. But she is uncomfortable with her powers, and fears the effect they have on her and other people. Andrew (Whose Baby, Lie With Me, Teachers) plays Dr Robert Bridge, a psychology lecturer who is  very sceptical about Alison’s powers, and believes they could even be dangerous. The series follows the emotional, poignant and frightening stories of Alison and Robert.  I can’t wait to see the next episode. I also found out today that Andrew Lincoln’s real name is Andrew Clutterbuck!!

When I first came to Australia three months ago I cringed every time the Holden advert came on.

Why?

…because the man who was on the advert has the most annoying voice ever…possibly in the world.

Now over the last few weeks…I have been growing quite fond of Dave Hughes.

Why?

…because he is everywhere. First of all, the Holden adverts are always on. I get up in the morning and Goldie gives me a lift to work…Hughsey is on Nova 100. Late at night he is on other TV shows too. His voice is irritating, but I am starting to find him funny.

Something I did not find funny was the film ‘House of 9′ which I rented today…it was so awful…I say to you all…don’t waste your money. I only wanted to see if Kelly Brook had learnt any acting skills from Billy Zane…no, she was just as useless as she was in Big Brother. I have never seen such a rubbish panic attack!

A movie that I can recommend is ‘The Interpreter’ with Nicole Kidman & Sean Penn. Dad, rent it…you will love it.

Last thing I will say…sign up with http://www.google.com/talk/ you will love it. They say talk is cheap. Google thinks it should be free. Google Talk enables you to call or send instant messages to your friends for free–anytime, anywhere in the world. Google Talk offers you:

• Choice: Get in touch over email, IM or a call.
• Quality: Talk through your computer but hear your friends as if they were in the same room.
• Convenience: Your Gmail contacts are pre-loaded into Google Talk so inviting or talking to your friends is just a click away.

It was again a beautiful day in Melbourne (20c+) and I decided that since the sun was out I would head down to Brighton Beach.

I have seen pictures of these boxes all over the place…in travel books, pictures on walls, advertisements for Melbourne etc. I attempted to try and find them a couple of weeks ago but took a wrong turn and ended up giving up…including the weather was miserable. So, I got onto Brighton Road and stayed on that road until I saw a sign for South Road…which took me all the way down to the sea front at Brighton Beach. I turned right and headed down the promenade to ‘Middle Brighton Beach’ where I saw the huts in a long line. I parked up and walked down to the beach. I didn’t think I would find anyone on the beach, but the beach was quite crowded with sun worshipers and families.

In 2003 there was an auction for one of these bathing boxes. The bidding started at $85,000 and and bounced steadily upwards to a nice round $150,000 - at a time when the property market is supposedly as flat as the bay on a calm afternoon. The box sold was number 47 and is smaller than your average single garage. Like the other boxes, it boasts neither electric power nor running water and is essentially a glorified shed without tools. Yet the price it fetched was only slightly less than the top bid for a flat in St Kilda and even closer to the sale price for a four-bedroom unit in Sunshine North.

A fellow called Mark Hollow could have had no idea what he was starting when he erected what is believed to have been the first Brighton bathing box in 1862. Showing commendable initiative, he did so without permission from local authorities. Why am I not surprised!! By the early 1900s, there were also boxes on the beachfront in Hampton, Sandringham, Black Rock, Mentone and Mordialloc. Most disappeared over the years, victims of tempests, neglect, or short-sighted councils. Some of those in the Brighton region were destroyed by storms; many of the remaining 81 were shifted from places roundabouts during the 1930s, first to the beach and subsequently, after some dunkings, back from the high-water mark. Now they enjoy heritage listing.

On the way back I passed Luna Park…The famous laughing face of Luna Park has been a symbol of St Kilda since 1912. This amusement park has some great attractions, including the heritage-listed roller coaster (the only one of its kind operating in the world) and a beautifully crafted carousel.

I was glad that I got out for a drive away from the hustle and bustle…Acland St was so busy I could hardly drive down in. All the cafes were packed inside and outside and the streets filled with shoppers. I went home and relaxed for the rest of the day.

Last but not least…

• I have had my hand slapped via email from my mother about my vulgar mouth…Mother I will never swear again…ok?
• Natalie, if you are reading this, I have been trying to call you FOREVER…I will try again next week.
• Steph…I am still waiting for the answer to the name of that show…get a shifty on.
• Luciana, I hope all is well on the rocky Imagination. I hope that you get a cushdy couple of days in port…you know that won’t happen though don’t you?
• Jacob and Sam…I found this picture of you both from Papa’s birthday…you both look fabulous!

Some for you to see…

I don’t think they like Bush or Blair either!

Goldie was good enough to offer me a lift to work again today. On the way in, we were talking about how we love the trams in Melbourne. There are two type of trams I have seen so far. The first is an old green tram which looks like it is from the 1980’s and the second type are new, sleek and stylish and look a little bit like the Metrolink. The funny thing is, apparently these green trams are not all that old. In fact, they are from the 80’s. Another reason why some people might say Australia is old fashioned. I personally love the old trams, they remind me of the trams in San Francisco.

Another thing I love about the trams in Melbourne is that ‘no one’ pays to ride them. I am too scared and knowing me the one day I don’t pay I would get caught, but I never see people do anything other than getting on the tram and finding a seat. You see, on trams you don’t go directly to pay a driver, you just go straight to a machine and buy your own ticket. For the people who have a valid ticket, when they get on-board they are supposed to validate their ticket. I have asked a few people why this is happening and most people have said that they carry a ticket which has not yet been validated or just get on-board and risk it…and then try and not shit their pants once a conductor comes on-board to check the tickets.

Work was great again today. I was doing QA again today and have started to suss out who the agents are that make mistakes and which agents are excellent. The girls I am working with are really great. One of the girls is pregnant and the other girl is an Indian girl who (disturbingly) reminds me of Desiree D’Souza, but this girl is really nice, unlike Desiree who is the spawn of the Devil. So many people dislike that girl…it is unbelievable!! I am glad I don’t have to work with assholes like that anymore.

They have asked me to return on Monday and since they are behind in their work I am hoping they will have quite a lot of work for me. I am not going to get my hopes up though. I enjoy the work, so as long as they can provide me work I will keep going…it’s money after all and I enjoy it so far.

On my way home I had a very uncomfortable tram ride. You know those people (normally men) who sit in the middle of a two seater chair with their legs spread wide open…as far as they can go…well, I sat next to that person. The thing is though, he kept the pressure on his legs so they wouldn’t move and if he didn’t look like a total psycho I would have said something. Instead, I just sat there and counted the seconds to my stop.

Today was a great day…of course I was working…for the first time FOREVER!

I was up early this morning, to get myself ready for work and Goldie was good enough to offer me a lift into work…lucky for me, she works really close by.

I was working at a place close to the Arts Centre (off St Kilda Road) and Goldie dropped me off at the place and I went in to try and find where the company was that I was supposed to be working.

I was there early (which was good) and I waited to be taken inside and shown what to do. I did initially think I would be doing Data Entry but in fact I was doing Quality Assessments of phone calls made for a gas/electric company. I was working with a team of girls who were really nice and were really helpful answering my questions.

Anyway…good news…they want me back tomorrow…hopefully they will have more work for me next week too.

Bizarre News…Olivia Newton-John’s boyfriend has been missing for 2 months and it’s only now in the papers…sounds a bit fishy to me.

BTW Kylie’s Costume Collection which is touring around Australia is now online…click the picture to see it.

The map of Britain offers a geographical A-Z of the crude, vulgar, offensive and downright hilarious. As the sign suggests, this is a holiday centre in the New Forest, Hampshire, given its name in Henry VII’s time where sandy outcrops contrast well with the local Scots pines.

A residential street in east Norwich was named after local-born William Jackson-Hooker, a distinguished and much-travelled botanist.

A cul-de-sac in Greenock Docklands, the origin of this name is unclear.

This obscure little alleyway is in the City of London close to Smithfield meat market. It was so named as it is simply a passageway running around the back of a row of buildings.

A well-known village near the hills of North Kent, the name quite literally means ‘the village at the bottom of the hill where the Pratt family lives’ and dates back to the 14th century.

Found along the Dorset coastal path, the name describes a rugged and rough hollow.

A street in Paisley, Strathclyde, which was once home to the Bladda Fever Hospital. Either the hospital lent its name to the street or vice-versa, because the origin of this Gaelic word remains obscure.

This Essex village is listed in the Doomsday Book as Ugghelea - taking its name from ‘leah’, the Old English word for ‘wood’, and ‘Ugga’, the name of the person who lived there.

There are a number of places in the Worcestershire flatlands with names deriving from the Old English word ‘pidele’, meaning ‘marsh’ or ‘fen’.

This Merseyside name refers to the heaps of refuse which were once a feature of the Haydock area.

The origin of the name of this Devon village near Dartmoor is so obscure not even local history records it. The turn-off does pass a large, rugged boulder, so perhaps someone didn’t think much of the rock.

This Lincolnshire hamlet takes its name from the Middle English ’spitel’ or ‘hospital’ and the Old English ’stroet’ or ‘Roman road’.

I had another interview today, so I was up early and I headed into the city on the tram. This time it was easy and quite straight forward.

I again had to fill out endless amounts of paperwork (but if it’s what I have to do then so be it) and had my interview. The lady interviewing me was very nice (from Ireland) and we sat for an hour or so. I did my tests again…this time doing even better than the last, so I was happy. When I finished I was given a job for tomorrow, so hopefully (fingers crossed) things are on the up and up.

The job I am doing tomorrow is only Data Entry but I am quite happy at that and it’s good money.

Lastly I will say I am sad to hear that Six Feet Under finished FOREVER. I was apprehensive about the show when it started but it has been excellent and one of the most enjoyable shows I have seen for a long time.

Did you know?

• Ancient Greeks buried their dead with a coin in their hand or mouth to pay Charon, the ferryman who carries the dead across the river Styx and into the afterlife.
• For as little as $1000, a Georgia firm will mix the ashes of a loved one with concrete and cast the deceased into an artificial reef to create habitat for endangered ocean species.
• Ed Headrick, the free spirit who created the Frisbee and was a lifelong advocate of the Frisbee lifesytle, asked his family members to cast his ashes into a series of limited edition discs.
• According to Islamic tradition, the corpse of a Muslim is not to be left alone between death and burial.
• Taking a body to the crematorium, some Hindus toss coins on the way, symbolizing that the deceased must leave everything behind.
• An Italian coffin maker recently sought to increase sales by using bikini-clad models posing with the caskets.
• The tombstone of Mel Blanc-the voice of Bugs Bunny and Porky Pig-is inscribed “That’s All Folks.”
• In Celtic folk tradition, the dead often take the form of birds.
• In most states, embalming is not required by law. Bodies are cremated at temperatures of up to 1800 degrees, for an average of 2.5 hours.
• Recent changes in Massachusetts law allow funeral home patrons to rent, rather than buy, a casket.
• According to the National Funeral Directors Association, about 27 percent of Americans opt for cremation.
• According to USA Today, Americans are increasingly considering home funerals as a cheaper and more relaxed alternative to commercial mortuary services. Traditional U.S. funerals average $5,000 to $6,000, per the Funeral Consumers Alliance.
• In 1999, the cremated remains of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and LSD advocate Timothy Leary were launched into orbit on a Spanish research satellite.
• Mark Gruenwald, the influential Marvel Comics editor who helped create Captain America, wanted his ashes mixed with ink and printed into a comic book after his death. His wife followed his wishes, and his remains were printed into a special edition poster of ‘Squadron Supreme’ in 1996.
• Ancient Egyptians used nitre, a naturally occurring potassium nitrite, to cure the bodies of the dead. Those who could afford it received elaborate embalming, with palm wine and perfume; the poor were injected with a cheap preservative.
• According to the Japanese Shinto religion, each person becomes a supernatural “kami” at the time of death. Kami continue to influence the daily lives of the living, one of the reasons ancestors are revered in Shinto homes.

That’s all folks…