Weasley’s Wizard Freezes
Okay, so I was just reading this random Harry Potter puff piece and eating my lunch, when I got to the part on page two where the interviewer asks the kids what they’ve spent their millions on. Emma Watson bought a Mac; Daniel Radcliffe wants to collect art. Rupert Grint? “I’ve recently got an ice-cream van,” he said. I nearly spewed lamb stew out my nose.

And then later on, they get asked whether they’re going to keep acting when the movies are finished. Grint says that he will… “and if it doesn’t work out, I’ve still got the ice cream van.”

I know that Fake Steve Jobs isn’t the real Steve Jobs, but I hope to God he’s somebody important in the industry and that, therefore, his mention of the iPhone coming to Australia soon is true. BECAUSE I WANT.

Weekend Recap: Aches and Pains

• I spent, no lie, like twenty hours knitting. In addition to finishing Penn’s hoodie, I also started a new jumper for the Snook. It’s an Elizabeth Zimmerman Seamless Hybrid, with a very special design on the front (which the Snook himself charted). It’s pretty much top secret for now, but we’re calling it “Robots in Disguise.” Anyway, my arms, shoulders, and neck absolutely KILL from the sustained effort. I have knitting-induced carpel tunnel syndrome.
• I also finished my marathon viewing of the Dawson’s Creek Season 3 DVDs, which I cannot in good conscience recommend to any of you. No, not even actual Creek fans. It’s that whole music problem. The horrible generic crap they’ve used to replace all the recognizable songs just sucks all the cheesy goodness out of even the best scenes. (And yes, HATERS, there are some.) So that was a disappointment.
• My head cold is finally starting to diminish, but as I was eating breakfast this morning I made a massively disappointing discovery: a burgeoning cold sore on my lip. GODDAMMIT. I HATE COLD SORES. I haven’t had one in nearly two years, so I’d been lulled into a false sense of security. The combination of a compromised immune system and the stress of the sale must’ve done the trick. I spent the day employing every remedy I could find in an attempt to keep it from erupting. I’ve slathered my lips with Zovirax. I’ve dosed myself up with Lysine. I held ice cubs to my lips til they went numb. I even rubbed in some zinc oxide (which Amy‘d given to me as a sunscreen) because I read it would help. It’s still slightly tingly and swollen, and now the glands beneath my jaw are starting to ache. Any other suggestions? I feel like a goddamn leper. (Don’t look at me! I’m hideous!)

So those were the bad things. On the plus side, we wandered over to the Nicholson Museum to check out the antiquities. And the stupid sale is finally finished, so things should calm down a bit at work…

Oh my god. I think Eileen has finally killed Crocs for me.

Not happy, Jan.
Here I am, doped up on cold medicine, and all I wanted to do tonight was curl up on the couch with my Dawson’s Creek Series 3 DVDs I brought back from the States. So I popped in the disc and hit Play All. (I’d skip right to the Pacey-and-Joey-smooching episodes, but I won’t feel like I’ve really earned it unless I watch all the shite ones that come before.) Imagine my surprise when, instead of Paula Cole’s familiar warbling of the title song, they played some other random crap! WHAT. THE. HELL. There’s random crap music all through it! Turns out that the original music cost too much. THAT SUCKS. One of the best only pleasures of the Creek was its savvy usage of 90’s pop songs. AND I AM DENIED. I am most seriously put out.

Despite a sudden misery-inducing head cold, I bundled up last night and headed out with the Snook to see Play! A Videogame Symphony. The Sydney Opera House was filled to the rafters with geeks of all ages, races, and genders. For me, the highlight was the first ten minutes when the Sydney Symphony Orchestra played a medley of themes from Super Mario Brothers. How can you not like that? The crowd was actually cheering as each familiar tune came up. (I’ve always liked the carousel-sounding “swimming” theme, myself.) The rest of it was a bit meh for me. Sonic, Zelda, Halo, World of Warcraft, whatever. Sure, they were kinda epic sounding, but hearing one after another just emphasized how John-Williams-knockoff they all sounded. The only notable exception was Silent Hill, where the composer (a supercool Japanese rock star from the future) actually came out and accompanied the orchestra on the electric guitar. That was pretty cool. Other than that – and this may well be the decongestants talking – it was pretty much a snoozer.

My sister informs me that the Philadelphia Phillies (her husband’s favorite baseball team) are hosting their first ever Stitch and Pitch night. “Needlearts enthusiasts” are invited to come to the game and knit, crochet, or embroider as the Phillies take on the Reds. What a great idea! As someone who has knitted at the cricket over here, I give it a big thumbs-up.

Baby Viking Hat. Now that’s cute!

Cyclonic winds to batter Sydney. This is probably the closest I’m gonna get to being in a hurricane!