The Homicidal Urges

This is partly to balance out last night's Post o' DOOM.

As a Melbournian, I've put up with the supposed rivalry between us and Sydney for a very long time. I've heard people say that Melbourne is a drab, grey place that can't compare to Sydney's natural beauty, set next to its harbour with its bridge and its opera house blah blah blah. That all Melbourne is is a large, dirty port city.

It's true: Melbourne doesn't have Sydney's harbour with all its little outcroppings and lit-up ferries at night that prettily reflect off the water's surface. It's also true that Melbourne is decidedly colder. However, recently I saw something that stunned me: Melbourne from the air, hugging Port Phillip Bay.

It was a gorgeously sunny evening as we returned from our honeymoon. I still had the remains of a bad mood that I'd nurtured from the start of the flight (don't ask). And then we passed over the border between South Australia and Victoria. The sky was so clear that I could see directly below, with surprising clarity. I saw green Victoria and was shocked by the green: I'd forgotten that recently Victoria had received a shitload of rain. I was hoping to eventually see Melbourne by air but didn't hold out much hope, as the airport is west of the city and I didn't think the pilot would make a circle over the city. Turns out I was wrong. Either the pilot was a Melbourne boy, or he'd read my thoughts. Because we came up to Melbourne in such a way that I could see perfectly the entirety of enormous Port Phillip Bay. I saw the Rip, that historically nasty little channel between Points Lonsdale and Nepean that caused so much trouble for transport vessels. I could pick out little Corio Bay and Geelong; I even spied the shit farm in Werribee. I recognised the remarkably recognisable Bellarine Peninsula with its bay that looks like the open maw of one of the aliens from the same movie. And I saw the sprawl of Melbourne hugging the huge main bay, with the mouth of the Yarra River spewing into it. I saw how the suburbs give way, in fits and starts, to little settlements and farmland.

It was an utterly astounding view. I saw just how massive Melbourne is, how freaking majestic it is. How green it is. I saw the colourful scenery that Jeff (one of our past state premiers, for those who have no idea what I'm talking about) put up next to the exit to the Tulla freeway near to where we live: from the air, even that unsightly mess looks charming.

I've seen a fair few cities from air. Nothing compares to the sight I saw last Monday from that plane. It was amazing. And that pilot accommodatingly flew a wide circle around the grandiose sight, dipping the wings every now and then so both sides could see it. He must have been a Melbourne boy.

It's times like this when I realise that, for all my bitching and moaning about Melbourne, it's always going to be home to me. And that I'll always love it, whilst occasionally hating it.

And as for Sydney: you can keep your bloody harbour, and your humidity, and your ridiculous pieces of outdated architecture. I'll keep my nasty, dirty port city, thanks.

It's good to be home.

One of the guys at work just directed me to NCBI ROFL.

Oh dear. Oh deary, deary me... this is better than the Darwin Awards and the Ig Nobel Awards combined!

Strangely enough, this has somehow boosted my faith in research. If only because a) I know that esoterica is not dead after all; and b) because I know I could do a much better job than the vast majority of publications described therein.

Though I don't think I'd ever be able to top this one.

Apparently it's going to be 20 degrees (C) today...

FINALLY. WINTER'S GETTING THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!

I'm definitely leaving work early-ish today.

EDIT DAAAAAAAMN IIIIIIITTTTTT...



What this doesn't show is the FUCKING RAIN...

I suspect this would not have been as much of a shock had I actually looked at the forecast.

BAKLAVA IS AWESOME

Gliese d might be an ocean-world and Gliese e, while probably not able to support life as we know it, is the smallest planet outside out solar system ever detected.

( And for the link-phobic )

The only thing that depresses me slightly is that it's unlikely that I'll ever see humans going there in my lifetime. Or, let's face it, that any humans will actually get there before the entire human race self-destructs.

I just had lunch.

It was a souvlaki. With chips in it.

That's right, you didn't misread it. And yes, I knew there were to be chips served with the souvlaki, but I thought, according to the menu board, that they would be served alongside the souvlaki. Instead, they were in it.

Yes, I assure you, you are still reading correctly. THERE WERE BIG FAT SOGGY CHIPS in my pitabread souvlaki with lamb and garlic sauce. There might have been some lettuce and tomato in there as well, but I couldn't really detect them through the BIG FAT SOGGY CHIPS.

Goddamn that was good...

I'm feeling slightly better after that. Well, my state of mind is, but my stomach is rebelling.

I also got a brownie. I think I'm gonna save it for tomorrow. I don't think I'll be able to eat until then anyway.

Rediscovering old favourites = FUCKING AWESOME.

\m/

This morning, instead of mooching around the house after dropping Eva off at Nth Melbourne station, I took Jezzy for a walk. She was absolutely ecstatic, as it's unusual for her to get a walk in the morning.

Anyway, after being down at the park for about a quarter of an hour, and her having had a fairly good run, I was about to take her home. But all of a sudden it was like a floodgate opened and a sea of labradors came flooding into the park. They were seeing-eye dogs in training, being supervised by three volunteers. The dogs were all young, all friendly, and all beautiful specimens of labrador. Seriously, about fifteen of them. Jezzy went nuts and had a great time. I almost died of teh cute.

I must go down there more often early in the morning. I actually feel much better for having been out of the house with the dog before skulking off to a day of drudgery at work. And the dog really needed it, as she's alone for most of the day and it's nice to break up her day with a fun morning and a walk in the evening.

To end on a slightly disturbing note, I have been reliably informed that there is such a thing as Fallout Boy fanfic. This unsettles me greatly. As I told my source, I shouldn't have been surprised. This does not stop me from being disturbed, though.

It's beer o'clock.

And I is sheepish.

The minute I walked into my Once-Again Favourite Café, the proprietress apologised profusely for fucking up my coffee order yesterday, and gave me another free one. I actually did half-heartedly protest, but she insisted.

Mnyes. Now I have coffee. Mnyes...

( Now for a ramble about the new Batman movie. Thar be spoilers. )

That was not supposed to be so long. Oh well.