October 21, 2010

On the Scottish Covenanters: "Once upon a time this was God's country.  It isn't any more.  Thank God for that!"--Neil Oliver

    Last night I went to a Dining Meetup at Little India Restaurant. (I had the meat combo.) I was conversing with Rebecca, a daughter of missionaires who grew up in New Guinea.

    Dreamed of piano examinations; swimming in the ocean in the winter.

    We bought a ten-pound bag of carrots the other week but they've gone moldy!

    Baked multigrain bread.

    John came over and got his wheelbarrow back.

    Dinner was salmon.

    Saw the first part of the DVD of How the Celts Saved Britain, about Irish civilization at the start of the Middle Ages.

October 19, 2010

    Dreamed of seeing an Upstairs, Downstairs episode I hadn't seen before (I've seen all of them); hearing of the death of Upstairs, Downstairs actress Lesley Anne Down (she's still alive).

    Dinner was chicken.

    At opera rehearsal we were doing Madama Butterfly. (The first hour was stuff for the female voices only.) I got a big headache and had to leave midway, which I don't usually do.

October 18, 2010

"My reason was not made for bending and bowing, my knees were"--Michel de Montaigne

    Dreamed of being on the second floor of our old home in Sackville, N.B. (a ranch house with no second floor).

    Went shopping.

    I've been figuring how to make best use of the energy limits in Frontierville.  For example, the first thing to do is harvest crops before they wither.  And some actions give you a food reward that's ultimately worth half an energy point. (In an hour and a half your full energy gets restored.)

    Dinner was spaghetti.

    At choir practice we went through all the Lucia di Lamermoor chorus parts in order.

October 17, 2010

 Dreamed of Gilda Radner; Robinson Crusoe.

    Dinner was sausages and mashed potatoes.

    Saw the first episode of Neil Oliver's A History of Scotland. (Moira went out and rented it.) I learned a lot about the Scottish kingdom's origins.

    Started a new game from the Farmville people called Frontierville.  I eventually ran out of energy.

October 16, 2010

    Dreamed of travelling east on a low cart I lay on top of, pushing the ground with my hands; pushing it in my sleep till around when I reached Quebec City; meeting people I knew further on in Riviere du Loup.

    Dinner was turkey pie.

    Dragged myself away from Farmville long enough to spread compost on our real garden. (Our new wheelbarrow helped a lot.)

    Went to a Dancing Meetup at Dovercourt House.  We had a salsa lesson.

October 15, 2010

"If we had sound nostrils our shit ought to stink all the more for being our own"--Michel de Montaigne

    Dreamed of feeling a heavy wind; trying to think of a subject for writing a second Ph.D. thesis. (For all the grief with the first one, I wish I could do it again.)

    Baked rye bread.

    Dinner was the rest of the fettucine alfredo.

    Went to a Karaoke Meetup at BarPlus. (It was a farewell party for someone leaving for England.) Among other songs, I sang the "Summer Nights" duet with Anna.

    I love me some Farmville!  I need a soybeans mastery to plant chickpeas, so now I'm planting that crop everywhere.  I miscalculated on my first cranberry crop, so I couldn't harvest it till after getting home from karaoke, three hours after it ripened.  But I got to it before it withered so all's well that ends well.

October 14, 2010

"I like a strong, intimate, manly fellowship, the kind of friendship which rejoices in sharp vigorous exchanges just as love rejoices in bites and scratches which draw blood"--Michel de Montaigne

Hitchhiker (getting off a truck full of sheep): "Bye, girls!"--An American Wolf in London

    Dreamed of the song "Amazing Grace"; old Flash Gordon Sunday comics.

    Went to see my shrink Dr. Hassan.  I had a lot to say for a change.

    Dinner was fettucine alfredo (which I cooked).

    Saw John Landis' An American Wolf in London at the Underground.  It's quite weak:  a bit scary and a bit funny, but not scary or funny enough. (Landis did it better with his video for Michael Jackson's "Thriller.") Jenny Agutter's appealing.

    At the movie they showed a trailer for the original Star Wars release: "A billion years in the making, and coming to a galaxy near you this summer!"