April 2017

[mbernardi]

Yoga class has still been reduced to 4 students and last week there was no class. Decided to add an additional workout and have now started line dancing on Wednesday evening.
Watched 3 episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
At work the merger between SE CSU and NEL CSU was completed first week of the month, (IT merged last year). IT Team has new installed Skype for business (IM Service from NHS Mail).
In ballroom dancing learned new sequence in Waltz, and new sequence dance the Veleta, social dance on last Saturday of the month and 2 additional practices on 2nd & 3rd Fridays.
Got some sad news too. Dance partner J's Dad died, after some weeks of ill health. Had a DNR authorisation.
Stared final migration from LiveJournal to Dreamwidth, including all my posts and as many contacts and feeds as I can. I started posting to LJ on 11 April 2007 and it seems appropriate to finish 10 years later. This will be my last post at LiveJournal, my next post will only appear at Dreamwidth.
On the 8th I treated myself to a day at the Theatre Royal in Brighton (as previously noted) Walking back stage (and on stage), getting to see all the props for the afternoon performance was really cool. It's also really small, I've also been backstage at the Hawth (a much more modern theatre) which has much wider passageways and rooms. But then the Theatre Royal was built 210 years ago.
In the afternoon I attended a matinee performance of "Thoroughly Modern Millie" based on the movie (which I saw many years ago) with a delightful performance by Joanne Clifton as Millie.
The following Monday the SF Book club discussed Crashing Heaven by Al Robertson, which I hadn't finished on the night, but did complete the book a few days later.
Took my birthday off work and spent the day with my family (it is my sister's birthday the day after mine so we usually celebrate together), walked the dog together! Chinese meal for lunch.
Eastercon was in Birmingham NEC - stayed at Arden Hotel And Leisure Club about 20min walk from the con hotel (but cheaper!) used its Leisure club facilities a number of times
Registered for Innominate and collected program pack and badge, used app to select program items of interest (the one do not miss was ""Vorkosigan's Law: Legal Concepts from an Imagined Universe - this compared and contrasted the fictional universe with example in the British Legal system - SB was in the military and has since become a barrister!)
The program opened with a bang as Dr Emma J King, educator from The Royal Institution explored the history of the institute with added explosions!
The trek to and from my hotel was a bit of a pain, but the room cost were almost half that of the con hotel so.... (and it was good exercise).
The other program items that I didn't was to miss was the first episode of the new series of Doctor Who, which was one of the best attended and started with free jellybabies! And the Easter Morning Service, which was non-denominations with a CoE backbone.
I did attend a least one program item with each GoH (Pat Cadigan, Colin Harris & Judith Clute. I also supported the Dublin worldcon bid.
My journey home was also somewhat fraught, as I caught what I thought was the Virgin - London train, but which I discovered, at Winchester, was going to Bournemouth! I did get off at the next stop of Southampton Central, then had to take a train along the south coast from the Isle of Wight to Brighton, before getting home some hours latter than expected (I still managed to got some shopping before going ballroom dancing!)
I finally topped up my iPhone, with £10 credit (may have been a year since my last £10) got one month addition £20 credit for free. BUT I have to use it before 24 May
Had my bi-annual dental checkup and will have to return for another filling, but generally speaking my teeth are OK!
D & I did a major spring clean of the kitchen (may be the most comprehensive clean since it was re-built!) Floor was bushed and mopped and scrubbed, all the counters were cleared and cleaned, the bins emptied, the sink and cooker tops cleaned and the freezer was defrosted!
I will have to buy replacement dish racks now though.
And this is the end of my posting to LiveJournal, all future material will appear at Dreamwidth anyone who wants to follow me there feel free, please comment there rather than on LJ. All my previous LJ material and comments have been imported into Dreamwidth.

Comments

[filkferengi]

This post didn't show up on dreamwidth. Should I comment about it--so much exciting news!--there or here? Also, I still need your current email address. If you want to use up a phone credit, why not set up a plan to call us? We'd love to hang out with you!

[mbernardi]

I've now managed to import my final post, and the comments. All future posting WILL only appear on DW

[filkferengi]

Remember the lord Miles mentioned, who kept giving everyone liver paté, because that's what *he* liked? All those years, I kept trying to get you to do walks, because we like them, & we like you. But that's *our* thing. I'm so glad you've found *your* thing[s], that you'll do, and enjoy! Good on ya!

[If the line dancing offers "The Electric Slide", just be aware, that's been a white-people dance-at-weddings stereotype for years, made fun of in many romcoms. It's a fun tune, though.]

How many years have you & J been dance partners now? I'm sorry about her dad. Do you have a DNR in place? We do.

I'm glad you had a fun birthday. What kind of dog is it? Is it like the Leslie Fish song, "A Very Large Dog?"

So, you *did* make the Bujold law panel--oh, good! I had wondered.

I do so enjoy reading your adventures being out and about. Aside from library runs & shipping runs for my book-swapping site, my main getting out activity is book sales, with or without the Professora. Speaking of whom, she finally quit teaching last week, at the end of the semester. She'd been commuting 1 1/2 hours each way every day for several years. [That's what gamers call critical fail on your sanity check, right there.] She misses the students, but doesn't miss the commute at all. Of course, one can't really call it retirement; her disposition is even less retiring than mine. Plus, she's busy editing a book about Cooper & preparing a paper for presentation at a conference this month. We've got a library booksale with maybe a thrift store this morning, & the same again tomorrow.

[One of my favorite thrift store games to play is "made you cringe" in the clothes section. Now that many of the worst of the '70s are coming back--we barely survived them the first time!--it's so easy, it's no fun anymore. I pout, in your general direction.]

Look at you, being all thrifty, not at the con hotel, & getting bonus walks in, too! It makes a filkferengi proud. :)

All your exuberant dancing reminds me of the Maddy Prior song "Baggy Pants" from her album "Woman In The Wings." I can email you the mp3, if you'd like, as it doesn't seem to be on youtube.

I'm glad your dental adventures have been relatively agreeable. After fillings, my mom & I used to go out for french fries & milkshakes [so fun to poke in the gap between your lips after novocaine, donchaknow?].

Spring cleaning hereabouts has been clearing out several boxes of books. My helpful spouse keeps offering to rent fleets of U-Haul trucks, 'cause he's all supportive like that. :)

[mbernardi]

J and I have been dancing together for 4 years next month. Her dad had a long life (J is older than I) but even so..
The dog is a fairly small bejon freize (sp.?)
Give the Professoria my best, and enjoy your thrifty adventures.

[filkferengi]

Will do.