A little competition is healthy...

Someone famous probably said that once. Not sure who.

Anyhow, I've decided to run a little competition. Not quite certain what the prize will be, but there WILL be a prize. Visit this page:

http://glenn-jammin.blogspot.com/2005/08/im-not-afraid-to-use-word-in-song.html

...and guess the mystery word in the song title & chorus.

Leave your answer in the comments section below the song itself.

Thinking caps on!

Glennjamin

Getting out of Norway - 28/29 July

THURSDAY 28 JULY

More last-minute souvenir-Christmas-present shopping. I still had a few people on my list to buy something for.

I went to one souvenir shop, and when I went to pay, found out I needed 315 kroner worth of goods to qualify for the Tax-Free Shopping. So I bought a pencil for 10kr and it was done! How good did I feel, having two tax-free bags... sure, it might not be much, but hey, any money back is good money in my book. Why should you pay so much tax in a country you're just visiting?

FRIDAY 29 JULY

I had to be out of the campsite by 12 at the latest, but I was all packed up and ready to leave at 11. I caught the bus into town. Walked to the bus station, and caught the bus out to Sandefjord... about 2 hours or so. Watched the scenery going by... southern Norway looks so nice in the summer time.

I arrived at the airport sometime around 2 in the afternoon, I think. My flight wasn't till 10-something... that's a while to wait. I read a book. I listened to live versions of U2 songs on my iPod (still on a high from the concert, I think). I wrote an original song, which may appear on my music blog soon. I also finished off a parody song, which will be appearing on my music blog as soon as I finish posting here.

As the evening came around, I decided to check in. This was about 3 hours before my flight time. I had with me the following:
Large backpack, approx 15 kg
Normal backpack, approx 7 kg
Tent & bedroll, approx 2 kg
Guitar, approx 2 kg
Bag of souvenirs x 2, approx 1.5 kg

I was allowed 15kg checkin and 10 kg carryon... I figured I'd be a little over, but if I was early enough and the flight was empty enough, they wouldn't care.

There follows a re-enactment, in semi-screenplay format. Can't get darn indents to work the way I want in html.

INT. AIRPORT. CHECK-IN COUNTER. EVENING.

GLENN puts his backpack and tent/roll onto the conveyor belt. He indicates his guitar.

GLENN: Do I need to check this in?

The CHECK-IN LADY looks at the LCD weight readout.

CHECK-IN LADY: You are allowed 15 kilograms to check in.

She points to the bag and tent.

CHECK-IN LADY: You are already 17 kilograms. You will have to pay for 2 kilograms over. Carry the guitar on with you.

Glenn looks at his guitar and bags of souvenirs, plus the backpack on his back.

GLENN: It's not too much?

CHECK-IN LADY: It should be OK.

GLENN: How much is the baggage?

CHECK-IN LADY: It will be 110 kroner.

GLENN: I have no kroner left... I just changed it all back into pounds.

CHECK-IN LADY: You can pay at the service desk.

She starts writing a receipt, but doesn't give it to Glenn. She scrunches it up and puts it in the bin.

CHECK-IN LADY: OK, you can go.

Glenn shrugs.

INT. AIRPORT. ARRIVALS HALL. EVENING.

GLENN walks across the airport, past the newsagent, past the service desk, past the souvenir shop, to the security-guarded doorway into the Departure Lounge.

INT. AIRPORT. SECURITY CHECKPOINT. EVENING.

GLENN walks up to the X-ray machine. He takes his backpack off and places it on the metal rollers. The SECURITY WOMAN looks at his guitar.

SECURITY WOMAN: You have to check it in.

GLENN: They said I should carry it on.

SECURITY WOMAN: You have too many bags. You are allowed one bag to carry on.

Glenn indicates his backpack and souvenir bags.

GLENN: Can I leave these here?

The security woman nods.

Glenn places his backpack and souvenir bags tucked in to the corner, round the side of the x-ray machine.

He walks off.

INT. AIRPORT. CHECK-IN COUNTER. EVENING.

The CHECK-IN LADY looks up and sees GLENN standing there.

GLENN: They said I have to check this in.

CHECK-IN LADY: Why? What is it, a guitar?

GLENN: Yeah.

CHECK-IN LADY: Is it some special kind of guitar?

GLENN: No, just a guitar.

CHECK-IN LADY: Wait one moment.

The Check-In Lady picks up her phone and dials a number. She waits for a few seconds.

There follows a ten-minute argument in Norwegian. Glenn stands to one side, holding his guitar.

Finally, she hangs up the phone.

CHECK-IN LADY: You can take it on.

GLENN: I don't have to check it in?

CHECK-IN LADY: No, it's all bull****.

GLENN: OK.

CHECK-IN-LADY: Enjoy your trip.

GLENN: Thank you.

Glenn walks off again.

INT. AIRPORT. SECURITY CHECKPOINT. EVENING.

GLENN arrives back at the X-ray machine, carrying his guitar case. The SECURITY WOMAN looks at him.

GLENN: This is all confusing. Coming to Norway they said check it in, now they say carry it...

He puts his backpack up onto the rollers, and it goes through the X-ray. His keys, wallet, and iPod go into a plastic tray, and it follows the backpack. Next through is the guitar. Then lastly the souvenir bags.

Glenn walks through the X-ray door. It doesn't beep.

The backpack is through fine. As is the guitar.

The SECURITY MAN seated at the X-ray screen peers closely. Something is suspicious.

SECURITY MAN: (In Norwegian) Put this one through again.

The souvenir bags are run through the X-ray once more, this time on their sides.

SECURITY MAN: Ah, o********.

He runs back through the scan on the computer screen, showing the Security Woman the first run-through. The o******** in question had looked like a knife, when seen from the side in an x-ray.

Glenn collects all his bags, and heads off towards the shop.

INT. AIRPORT. DEPARTURE LOUNGE CAFE. EVENING.

GLENN approaches the counter, where a STAFF MEMBER is waiting.

STAFF MEMBER: Can I help you?

GLENN: I have these two tax receipts.

Glenn hands over his two Tax-Free Shopping receipts. The Staff Member scans their barcodes into the computer.

STAFF MEMBER: Um, there is a problem with this one.

GLENN: Really?

STAFF MEMBER: To get the tax back, you need to spend three hundred and fifteen kroner or more.

He holds up the receipt from the Tourist Information Centre in Tromso.

STAFF MEMBER: This is only three hundred and six kroner. I can't give you any tax back.

GLENN: In Oslo, they told me it was three hundred and fifteen kroner, but at that store in Tromso, they said three hundred kroner was the minimum.

STAFF MEMBER: I will call and check.

The Staff Member makes a quick phonecall to someone who knows about such things as refunding V.A.T. to foreigners leaving the country. He returns.

STAFF MEMBER: I'm sorry, I can't give you any tax back. The minimum refund is forty kroner, and for that you have to spend three hundred and fifteen.

GLENN: What can I do?

STAFF MEMBER: Nothing. That's life.

If this is an attempt at humour, it doesn't work.

GLENN: Life sucks.

Glenn takes his money and walks away. He keeps the receipt from the Tromso store, meaning to email them at some point and let them know the real minimum amount for claiming V.A.T. back on departure...

INT. AIRPORT. DEPARTURE LOUNGE NEWSAGENT. EVENING.

Using some of the money from his tax-back, GLENN buys a soft drink at the nearby newsagent.

INT. AIRPORT. DEPARTURE LOUNGE. EVENING.

GLENN sits on a chair, and breaks the tape seals on his souvenir bags. The seals had been for tax-back purposes. Now that he has his money, he can open them and repack them all. They all fit nicely in one bag, which makes his carry-on baggage appear much less.

FADE OUT

FADE IN

INT. AIRPORT. PASSPORT CONTROL. NIGHT.

TITLE: "9:30 P.M."

GLENN stands in the European passport line, and approaches the POLICEMAN behind the glass window.

GLENN: Can I have a stamp, please?

The Policeman nods and flips through the passport.

GLENN: I forgot to ask to have it stamped when I arrived.

POLICEMAN: So you left Norway, but never arrived.

The Policeman laughs.

INT. AIRPORT. DEPARTURE GATE. NIGHT.

GLENN sits along with several other PASSENGERS waiting for the RyanAir flight from London to land. Once it's landed and the passengers off, they can start to board.

Here ends the exciting tale of Glennjamin's frustrations and confusions upon trying to leave Norway. Soon to come - more mayhem upon arriving in England!

Here's the cute couple... Alastair and Saara.

See the countdown in the sidebar!

 

You know you're an Aussie when...

You Know You're From Australia When...

Your next door neighbours can be from Tunisia, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, Zimbabwe, Iraq, Brazil, Spain, Malaysia... The community is so concerned over the fact that muslim women can't use public swimming pools because there are men present that they have female-only periods. The Greeks and Mexicans next door ask you over to have a barbeque. You don't actually use the words 'sheila' or 'shrimp'. You sleep with Aeroguard on. You're wearing a cap emblazoned with 'Get A Dog Up Ya.' You feel obliged to spread salty black stuff that looks like congealed motor oil on bread and actually grow to like it. You actively dislike Americans, but watch their TV, eat their food and worship their idols. You think Tall Poppy Syndrome is a national condition. Democracy means the freedom to draw caricatures of John Howard. Your idea of a lethal weapon is a slug gun. The closest you ever got to going overseas was your packet of 5 Days In Rio grundies. A posh meal = an all-you-can-eat buffet. The term "musical instrument" also extends to wobbly bits of ply-wood, hand saws, gum leafs and combs. Your most offensive curse also doubles as an exclamation of awe or amazement, like, "f*** orf!" All of your internationally famous people don't live here. You think footballers dressing up in drag on TV is funny (but your son being gay isn't). You relish test cricket - the longest, slowest game in sport (and that's not even counting the replays). After all, what else gives you an excuse to sit on your backside for five days, watch TV and drink beer with your mates? You don't drink Fosters, but you let the world think you do. The only thing better than beating the Poms at ANY sport is giving them s*** for it. You love, adore and admire a particular team/sportstar/actor on a winning streak - until they lose. Then they're just crap and 'past it.' You can compress several words into one - ie 'g'day', 'd'reckn?' This allows for more space for profanities. You favour either Holden or Ford - or a souped-up WRX with new kit and a bootful of subwoofer. Driving down the main street/beach road playing bad techno is your idea of a perfect Saturday night / Sunday arvo. You make kooky films, sometimes about wayward road trips (across the outback preferably). Quite a few are crap. You know all the words to Khe Sanh but not the national anthem. Your nickname ends in 'a' or 'o'. You have a customised stubby holder. Your soap stars become pop singers and move to the UK. You've ever used the words - grouse, tops, ripper, choice, sick, rad, exo, ace, wicked, ballistic - to mean good. And then you place 'bloody' in front of it when you really mean it. Your cooking apron has plastic breasts on it. The "Aussie Aussie Aussie! Oi oi oi!" chant has been a religious experience in the past. The blokes at the local gym think your weight training is an opportunity to ask you out on a date. The big national sporting events are men-only. Your politicians believe that sticking the prefix 'un' in front of your nationality is an effective way of making you sit down and shut up. Our mantras are 'fair go for all', 'mateship' and 'little Aussie battler' - but we still publicly condemn those with different viewpoints to us. The barbeque is a male-dominated arena. And the women do the salads. 'Fair go for all' excludes indigenous people. An eight-hour trip to go camping for the weekend isn't out of the question or excessive. You take pride in living in a tolerant multicultural society but firmly believe that all Poms and Kiwis are fair game. You insist on asking every celebrity who steps of an aircraft what they think of Australia. If the response is not overwhelmingly positive, they should be subjected to immediate public ridicule. The private lives of footy and cricket players become more important than local and national news stories. Slick pick-up lines like 'Wanna shag?' and 'Carn, show us yer ****' can constitute male-to-female conversation. You say 'no worries' quite often, whether you realise it or not. You realise you have no Bill of Rights. The first thing guaranteed to get eaten at parties is fairy bread. So that's the special ingredients that make up an Aussie - whatever your taste. You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Australia.

Get Your Own "You Know You're From" Meme Here



More cool things for your blog at
Blogthings

Alastair, fresh from a mountain bike ride through Daisy Hill Forest.

"He was very sickly until he started riding around on that bicycle."

"Yeah... well... now his body's fine, but his mind is gone." - Mrs and Mr Stoller, Breaking Away

 

Here's Mum, about to teach her children the intricacies of "Smoke On The Water".

"Yes! But, you can't just say it, man. You've gotta feel it in your blood and guts! If you wanna rock, you gotta break the rules. You gotta get mad at the man! And right now, I'm the man. That's right, I'm the man, and who's got the guts to tell me off? Huh? Who's gonna tell me off?" - Dewey Finn, The School Of Rock

 

Dad in front of his physics class.

"Certainly in the topsy turvy world of rock and roll, having a good solid piece of wood in your hand is quite often useful." - Ian Faith, This Is Spinal Tap

 

Third Day as they might appear in South Park... :D 

The Fab Four, as seen on the cover of "Let It Be"... :D 

Another South Park self-portrait, this time with my iPod and wearing my Gomer shirt. :D 

My South Park self-portrait, with my guitar. 

U2 as they might appear in South Park... :D 

Bono on stage... scanned from "VG" newspaper, July 28. 

Aerial view of Valle Hovin Stadium, from "VG" newspaper, July 28. If you're looking for me, I'm behind that speaker stack... about where the red and black walkway on that side juts out from the stage. :) 

looking for something to do?

Thanks to Mark's blog...

1. What is your full name? (mumbles) M...... Glenn Davies
2. What color pants are you wearing? fading blue jeans with interesting mud stains picked up on travels
3. What are you listening to right now? random mix of "My Top Rated" on my iPod... current song "I Believe" by Third Day
4. What is the last thing you ate? some ham and cheese sandwiches I made
5. Do you wish on stars? Can't say I do
6. If you were a crayon, what colour would you be? An intriguing shade of blue
8. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Um, someone doing a phone interview for a job I'd applied for...
9. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Go Doc!
10. How old are you today? 64 days away from turning 24
11. Favorite drink(s): ginger beer
12. Favorite sport? Football (the kind played by Man U, Liverpool etc)
13. Do you wear contacts? No, I keep them in my address book ;)
14. Siblings? Younger brother Alastair.
15. Favorite month? October (my birthday!)
16. Favorite food? Riceballs and groundnut (peanut) soup... mmmm
17. What was the last movie you saw? saw "Pollock" with Ed Harris on TV last night
18. Favorite day of the year? December 25 is pretty good... I like January 1 also
19. What do you do to vent anger? Write... think... listen to some venting music...
20. What was your favorite toy as a child? Lego... still is!
21. Summer or winter? Summer
22. Hugs or kisses? Hugs
23. Chocolate or vanilla? Mango :)
24. Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? If they feel like it...
25. Who is most likely to respond? Fred
26. Who is least likely to respond? Fred's twin brother Joe
27. When is the last time you cried? I was watching a movie ;)
28. What is under your bed? At the moment, carpet
29. Who is the friend you have had the longest? tough question (i've known lots of people off-and-on for a long time)... Anna Lear, Ethan Ring, Steve Dickman
30. What did you do last night? Watched movies on TV, chatted with folks around the globe
31. What are you afraid of? um... finding out the crossroads is a dead end
32. Plain, buttered, or salted popcorn? Not a popcorn fan...
33. Favorite car? oh how I wish I could drive :) Go the old-school Minis like in the Italian Job... the 1969 version.
34. Favorite flower? Roses are cool... and my parents have a huge garden
35. Number of keys on key ring? Don't have a key ring at present...
36. Favorite day of the week? Sundays are good
37. What did you do on your last birthday? Probably went to an izakaya (Japanese pub) and followed that up with karaoke :D
38. How many states have you lived in? 1 State (Queensland = Australia), 3 Regions (Northern Region, Western Region and Greater Accra Region = Ghana), 1 Prefecture (Okinawa = Japan)

That last post reminded me of another recent msn conversation. It didn't take long to progress (or is it regress?) into puns...

I'd been chatting with Scott Peacock, a fellow MK I knew from my Ghana years. Earlier in the conversation, I'd mentioned that I saw a resemblance between Scott as I'd last seen him, and the character Gibson Praise from the X-Files. Discussion of our hair/beards led us to the following...

Glenn: friend of my parents occasionally called me Colin by mistake
Scott: That kid does look like me..
Glenn: ha ha
Scott: People at funerals come up to tim and say, "You're wes's son."
Scott: All three Peacock males also sound similar on the phone.
Glenn: i get confused for dad all the time on the phone...
Glenn: at my grandfather's funeral, there were strangers who knew who I was from the "family nose"...
Scott: Yeah, these are things that we don't really control.
Glenn: not unless we have friends in either the gene-splicing or plastic-surgery fields...
Scott: I don't really want friends in those fields. Eww!
Glenn: he he...
Glenn: my face is fine the way it is... although i lost weight in norway .... my baggy jeans could do with a bit of splicing
Scott: Well, I shouldn't speak hastily.
Scott: A lot of girls study science and stuff like that.
Glenn: da dum ching! first pun of the evening...
Scott: ooh, you better zip it quick.
Glenn: great rejoinder
Glenn: i bow to your mastery of the witty repartee
Scott: Well, it's not witty, really.
Scott: But it is off the cuff so it has some merit.
Glenn: just thinking about meeting a plastic surgeon... or if you got the phone # of the (probably) female receptionist...
Glenn: lol at your last remark...
Glenn: how would that receptionist recognise you on your date?... with a new face and all...
Scott: That's true.
Glenn: i'm not quite at the stage where i need to book myself into hospital to meet people...
Scott: You'd have to give your last name, and tell her to look you up sometime.
Scott: That's true. I'm still not at the level of the ambulance chasers.
Glenn: i'm just patiently waiting...
Glenn: not a patient-in-waiting...
Scott: Arghhh! It burns, it burns!
Glenn: i'm going to go get some sleep now...
Scott: A wise idea.
Glenn: it's been good catching up
Scott: Yes, definiately. I may write an e-mail...
Scott: Is it still glenn_in_japan?
Glenn: yes.
Glenn: i'm not in japan but my email account is in denial...
Scott: I thought so.
Glenn: denial? but that's in Egypt.....
Scott: Boo!
Glenn: sorry...
Scott: I bet you get a torrent of spam that flood your in box
Glenn: the inundation of denial...
Glenn: and one day on my way back to the sunny land of oz i will pass through the northern land of canada
Glenn: thou art in edmonton?
Scott: I never knew that Canada was on the way to Australia.
Scott: Yeah, verily.
Scott: oops yea
Glenn: UK - Canada - USA - Australia... i get more baggage
Scott: Ahh...A canny wanderer.
Glenn: and I get to see all my Canadian and American MKs...
Glenn: and finally get to meet some Gomers (Third Day fans) in person...
Glenn: so i know people in NB, ON, AB, BC...
Scott: Sounds good..
Glenn: WA, CA, KA, WV...
Scott: NWT?
Glenn: NWT... who lives there?
Glenn: I know one person from saskatchewan
Scott: Ummm... Don't ask difficult questions.
Glenn: lol
Scott: One of these days I'll have to go travelling.
Glenn: I tried to make puns about Canada... but they were having none of it...
Scott: No? Why not?
Glenn: reread those last three words...
Scott: Yeah, I should have figured.
Glenn: :)
Glenn: think my canadian visa will get revoked now?
Scott: Problem is that pun is just too provincial for my taste.
Glenn: nice one...
Scott: Well, it is my home turf...
Glenn: yu kon talk...
Scott: Boo!
Scott: If you continue like this, Alaskya ta leave
Glenn: I guess I'll have to skip the North and visit South America... ON TA RIO!
Scott: Dang! You're sucking me dry!
Glenn: couldn't fit Saskatchwan or Newfoundland into puns...
Scott: Nah, theyre tough.
Scott: You could probably fit PEI into one though.
Scott: Yes, it really is that small ;)
Glenn: You know, man, a 'tober baby I am
Scott: Boo!! Boo!!
Glenn: sorry... that was well worth boos...
Glenn: I should get a prize... do I win a peg?
Scott: I'm citying out now.
Glenn: OUGHTA WArn ya, I can go on all night...
Scott: Yes, at this point you can claim victoria

I was in England. He was in Canada. Ah, the fun you can have via modern technology these days.

Fun and games...I'm having none of it...

Here's a fun link...

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Geography.htm

Lots of fun games, with different levels of difficulty.
It's one thing clicking on a country's position on a blank map. It's another dragging a country's outline into its right place on a map without any borders... and yet another to take a country shape, and resize and rotate into its right place on a featureless map... EEP. There are tests of how many you get right, how long it takes, and even (for the country placement) the average number of miles your mistakes are out by.

I've just spent several hours of fun with another Gomer, Sarah, challenging each other onto higher levels.

I do pretty well at national capitals and country locations in Africa, Asia and Europe. Pacific Islands? Scary. Caribbean? Not even going to try. :)
Sarah's blitzing me on US states... but I know more about Canada ;)

I include here a chunk of our msn conversation.

Glenn: when i was in 3rd year uni, looking for a subject to fill my electives, i found a 1st-year education subject on world geography
Glenn: a lot of fun...
Sarah: :D
Glenn: it was called World Regions, and looked at the world... um... region by region
Glenn: so a chapter on the middle east geography/history, and a chapter on central asia, chapter on east asia... etc
Sarah: pretty nifty!
Sarah: :D
Glenn: a lot of fun
Glenn: expensive hardcover textbook, but worth keeping after graduation
Glenn: it's how i learnt about Nunavut
Sarah: :D
Glenn: i flipped open to canada and thought "why are the N.W.T. coloured in two colours? hang on... nunavut? what the?"
Glenn: and then read the relevant paragraphs to find out all about the referendums etc
Sarah: I don't remember nunavut from school
Glenn: it became a territory in 1998 or 1999
Glenn: split off from n.w.t.
Sarah: ok...that's why I don't remember....I was out of school in 1997
Sarah: just missed it
Glenn: i finished h.s. in 98
Sarah: and it's not listed in my atlas
Glenn: there was also a cool map of quebec in red and blue, showing distribution of yes/no votes in their referendum
Glenn: with pie charts for each major city to show how their citizens voted
Sarah: that sounds cool
Glenn: most of the anglophones live along the us border... :P
Sarah: gross....there is a green spider walking across my mous pad
Glenn: what's the first thing you do when you look at someone's atlas?
Sarah: *squishes it*
Sarah: uh....look at how old it is
Glenn: i don't
Sarah: to see if it's really outdated
Glenn: i look at maps, country names, and try to guess the publication date BEFORE looking at the title page
Glenn: "No Eritrea? OK, it's pre-1993..."
Sarah: :D
Glenn: sad but true.....
Glenn: "French West Africa? OK, pre-1960..."
Sarah: lol!
Glenn: there's an atlas at our house that we've inherited somehow... the spine's falling to bits... it's published about 1898 or something
Glenn: big bits of greenland's coastline are dotted lines
Sarah: so you really know geography and the history if you know the dates of all these countries
Glenn: and there are parts of Brazil with "unexplored" written across them...
Sarah: :O
Sarah: wow!
Sarah: that's cool!
Glenn: i know dates of most new countries after, say, 1980s...
Glenn: cos there's not many...
Glenn: and i know some of african history thanks to growing up there and having an atlas that included maps of various stages of colonial history
Sarah: :)
Glenn: middle east capitals level 1...
Glenn: 100% in 36s
Sarah: good job!!
Glenn: wanna try oceania capitals level 1?
Sarah: I think I'll sit this one out
Glenn: hmm its not working for me
Glenn: i'll try south america instead
Sarah: I'll attempt level 2 of south american capitals
Glenn: 95% in 48s on level 1... i'll try level 2
Glenn: i made one silly mistake...
Sarah: :D
Glenn: mixed up honduras and nicaragua...
Sarah: 15/20
Glenn: level 2... 100% in 63 s
Sarah: on level 2
Sarah: :P
Sarah: :D
Glenn: Costa Rica... do you know the way to San Jose
Sarah: la la la...
Sarah: :D
Glenn: gotta love countries like Guatemala, Panama, and Mexico, etc
Glenn: they have very imaginative capital city names... :P
Sarah: :D
Glenn: trying level 3...
Glenn: grr ran into programming errors again
Glenn: what would you say the first three letters of "La Paz" were?
Sarah: lap
Sarah: ?
Sarah: what did they say it was?
Glenn: it's L-A-space
Sarah: interesting...
Glenn: yes...
Sarah: I never would have thought that. I'd assume it was LAP
Glenn: i'm going to attempt the impossible and have a stab at canadian capitals
Glenn: lev 2
Sarah: I am working on US states level 8 with rotating them on an empty map
Sarah: 7/7 so far
Glenn: 77% of canadian capitals right... prince edward island? how would i know...
Glenn: what time is it for yu?
Sarah: 11:25pm
Sarah: it's gotta be really late or really early for you
Glenn: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/results.html?query=London
Glenn: -)
Sarah: you should go to bed!!
Glenn: i know, eh?
Glenn: crikey, it's father's day on sep 4... will have to remember to email dad
Sarah: 44/50 on level 8
Glenn: crikey... you must be american
Glenn: :D
Sarah: that could be it!
Sarah: :D
Glenn: i am just putting this site into a post on my blog...
Sarah: :D
Glenn: this is going online... "Sarah's blitzing me on US states... but I know more about Canada ;)"
Sarah: hahahaha!
Sarah: :D
Sarah: because I didn't know that nunavut existed
Sarah: :P

And having read through this, you will now spot the pun in the title of this post. :D My work is done here.

I'm going to go to bed now. I want a few hours sleep tonight.

Some writing

Some stories I've had published in the online journal at my old university...


VIGILANT
A science-fiction mystery... both a whodunit and whydunit :)


THE COST OF A PHONE CALL
A comedic crime-caper based on a short piece I read in the newspaper.

I'm a Wookie!

I'm a Wookiee!





Famous fellow members of my species:
Chewbacca


My species' special abilities:
Brute strength, marksmanship, intelligence, engineering prowess


My species' general role:
Engineers, assassins, marksmen


Movies my species is in:
Episode I and III-VI



What Star Wars species would you be?

annotated airport picture :) 

Pictures now online!

Hi!

I've downloaded all my pictures off my camera, and have started putting them up on the blog. So far I've only done a few of the best pictures from Norway. After I finish updating the blogs from Norway (so you can refer easily between pics and stories), then I'll get around to letting you know what I've been up to since getting back to the UK.

Then I might get around to posting pictures from my adventures in Scotland (June 05) and England (May-June 05)...

Also, I've downloaded a lot of pictures from my last month in Japan. Barbecues, last day of work, last karaoke, etc... they'll go up on my other blog soon. [Edit: They're now done.]

Fully laden and ready to go back to the UK. 

Sunset at Ekeberg Camping, Oslo, at around 9pm. 

My tent on the slope at Ekeberg camping. 

Unfortunately, 40,000 people tend to leave a mess. 

Best concert ever. 

What the? Larry's come out from behind the drums to play the keyboard for an acoustic rendition of "Yahweh". 

Norway's biggest singalong... "With Or Without You". 

Walking out during "The Fly". 

Bono in full Achtung Baby mode... singing "Zoo Station" 

Bono drapes a Norwegian flag (taken from the crowd) over the mike stand during "One". 

It wouldn't be "Streets" without a red screen at the end of the song... 

Flags scroll by during "Where The Streets Have No Name".