I’ve got a list of things I am going to buy when I have money again (i.e., when I am finally gainfully employed). Yes, I am that anal. Well, I forget things if I don’t write them down!

Number one on my list since about October was these boots. I have chunky calves, which makes finding proper boots that fit me is difficult, so when I found not one but two pairs in Clarks, I was over the moon. Sadly, I could only afford one of the pairs. I’m glad I got them because I’ve worn them most days since, but I’ve lusted after the second pair none the less. The pair I bought were sensible. The pair I had to leave behind were just so pretty! I promised myself that I would get the boots when I finished the thesis as a treat, but I couldn’t afford them then, so restrained myself.

Today I was walking past Clarks and noticed they had a sale on… Yup, the boots I wanted were in the sale! A bit of mental budgeting and some judicious usage of discount vouchers later, I am the proud owner of a pair of boots that should have cost me £80. I paid £25.

I also caught every single bus I wanted to today, completed all my errands, and had some very nice emails from people.
All in all, a good day.
(Don’t forget, you can still Name That Penguin)

Finally got around to chasing down a Chinese horoscope for myself. I’m a dog (- yes, the CC made all the possible jokes this morning, I assure you), and according to this horroscope… Continue reading →

I am pleased to announce the second round of the Name That Penguin competition is now open.

The short-listed names are:
Brix
Pablo
Aliette
Clio
Satanic Penguin of Doom (3)
Mr Flibble
Optimus Pengu
Remington

• The shortlist comprises my personal favourite out of the names each person submitted.
• To vote, go to the sidebar, and use the form you will find there. (It’s just under the Meta section and the pretty coloured buttons, above the Mini Meadow’s section)
• Each person can only vote once, or so the plugin says. I haven’t used this plugin before, so if things start going a bit haywire, I may just shut down the poll and get y’all to give your vote in the comments field of this post. Try the form first though – we’ll see how things go.
• You have a week to vote. The poll will be closed first thing on the 9th of February. I will then tally the results and announce the winner.
• Comments on the first “Name That Penguin” post are now closed. If you have anything to say regarding this competition, say it on this post please 🙂
• Even if you didn’t get around to submitting a name for the shortlist, please vote for your favourite name. I want this choice to be as democratic as possible. I write this blog for you all to read – even my lurkers who I know are out there somewhere – so it’s only fitting that you should have some say in what goes on around here 🙂
• Don’t worry – I won’t be able to tell who voted for what, if that’s the only reason you won’t vote. Unless you tell us what you voted for, of course, but that’s up to you 🙂

That’s it. I look forward to finding out what name we all choose for the Bright Meadow penguin.

Ok, I saw this laptop and it reminded me of the first computer/laptops that the Crazy Canalman used to bring home from work. Now, bear in mind I was about four at the time, but I would swear he had an “Apricot” computer. Apricot being a brand? The manufacturer? I don’t know, but Apricot is what I remember. Can anyone help clear this up for me? Did there used to be Apricot computers way back in the mists of time (we’re talking around 1986 or 7 I’d guess), or am I going ever so slightly mad?

Just had a very hairy thirty seconds – for a moment I thought that my ENTIRE mail database had upped and deleted itself for no reason. Luckily, it was just Mail having a hiccup – restarted the program and all is happy again. Don’t think that just because it is a Mac, you’re not going to have heart-in-mouth moments. You have them, just a lot less often than with a PC (consequently, they seem that much worse when they DO happen!)

If you’ll excuse me, I’m just going to go have a small gibber in the corner. I’ll be fine in a moment.

I’d like to remind you all that there are just two days left to Name That Penguin!

I’d also like to urge any of you who haven’t already to contribute their three names, to do so!

I want the Bright Meadow penguin to have the best name possible, and that means having a top-notch selection for you all to choose the winner from.

Get thee to the appropriate post right now, and start naming! Don’t forget, win, and you are assured special Minion status, and my eternal love and devotion.

😉

Just in case you missed the copies of the link scattered through the post: Name That Penguin Competition

I just installed Askimet – for some reason the past week has been spam-tastic, and I am fed up with nuking fake comments (most of them said really nice things as well!), but I don’t want to make it harder for legitimate people like yourselves to comment.

Anyway, I’m expecting there to be a bug or two (I’ve yet to have a totally bug-free WP plugin installation), so if you have a comment snarled up in the system, email me and I’ll sort things out.

(Please bear in mind though, I’m UK based, so I’m only going to answer emails that get to me between around 9am and 11pm MY TIME. If it’s before/after that, please just be patient. Much though I’d like to, I can’t be online 24/7 as I need my beauty sleep!)