Category: Personal History

Teaching again
by Kimliatach

Back in the saddle, well kind of,

tutoring has begun.

Today I spent an hour each with two delightful children, getting to know them both and learning how best I can help them.

I promptly spent my earnings on sausages and beer to feed the ravenous horde at home. We have had two nephews about. Both playing very well with our boys while, during my absence N and her parents tore down the ancient and hazardous back fence and constructed an entirely new one using their wealth of fencing experience.

They found some pretty extraordinary pieces of metal in the process too. Some of which will feature in future projects.

 

I haven’t managed to finish the card I’ve been working on today, in truth I’ve barely touched it. Going to put some time into templates now.

 

Found a great early learning maths game for L and as a reward activity for my younger students. From the always brilliant ‘Dragonbox’ creators WeWantToKnow games ‘Numbers’ is rather brilliant for little ones.

 

Young #Bluetongue approx 200mm #macro

A photo posted by @liatach on

 

More #Bluetongue. Try as I might I was unable to get a picture with it’s tongue out.

A photo posted by @liatach on

Some wanton stupidity made amazing by the grace of Slo-Mo

Garden Beds and the Font of Absurdity
by Kimliatach

Garden progress, Finally filled the raised garden bed tanks to the brim today, though we are expecting some subsidence, they will be ready to be planted into very soon. Each is filled with a nice wet lasagne of sheep poo, soil, potash, cardboard, hay and compost, some layers mixed more thoroughly than others. Shade cloth for the poly covers is still required. The chook tractor build is stalled waiting on suitable plywood for the roost walls. N made significant progress on the orchard bike path digging and paving should commence there tomorrow.

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Spending this evening preparing a go bag for my first tutoring session tomorrow. In the process I have discovered that the only way to legally acquire the official handwriting font for NSW and the ACT ‘Foundation Handwriting’ is to pay this dubious and outdated Northern Territory based site $30. More hilarious and baffling still, judging by the pricelist they also charge schools $60 a licence as well. So despite no doubt having been paid to create the fonts in the first place, they now have the gall to charge the education departments, parents, teachers, tutors and schools for the privilege of using the mandated font for NSW school students. All free hosts back to page 5+ of the search have received takedown notices or are obvious scams.

Absurd.

Anyway ‘Foundation Handwriting’ appears nearly indistinguishable from the frightfully ugly QLD QCursive handwriting font and in yet another discovered policy win for QLD v. NSW they at least give their font away for free.

 

Lots of interesting biology around yesterday and today.

Mantids

More baby mantids, so many more. #macro

A photo posted by @liatach on

A lizard

Tiny bearded dragon on my pinkie.

A photo posted by @liatach on

Didn’t have my lens with me today unfortunately.

Yabbies caught on the farm.

#yabby says “I will cut you!”. >200mm

A photo posted by @liatach on

#yabby s are really rather alien looking creatures up close.

A photo posted by @liatach on

 

 

 

Seeking Materials & Waiting.
by Kimliatach

Slow progress being made in the back yard. Projects reaching completion, others just begun, others are still waiting on materials, help or decisions. We need help with the fencing, which will wait on in laws convenience. Shade cloth for a number of things including shading the garden beds, creating a shade sail to block light to the radiant brick wall and another sail to shelter the other side of the house.

Soon to be bikepath

A video posted by @liatach on

Today I scored metal framing used in the transportation of quad bikes from our neighbours the motorbike store. Frames which will form structures in the chook tractor. Some parts of this project require timber, in particular decent ply, which I have been unable to find locally. The local hardware is unreasonably expensive. There was one decent piece I could find at the tip, though it required some unearthing, turned out to be be too big for me to transport home which was very annoying. That project may have to wait until our trip to Dubbo for my First Aid course on Feb 2nd. 

Cobar tip has got it all.

A photo posted by @liatach on

This image shows the building waste slope. Timber is on the ‘Trees’ slope and is primarily composed of broken pallets and garden waste. The household waste field is truly repugnant and as Cobar has no recycling at all, it’s pretty depressing.

 

Finished the first two steps of another terrain card today. I should be able to finish the rest tomorrow.

No more calls about tutoring yet.

I’m getting ready for a side by side comparison of the Samsung GS4 and iPhone4. It can’t be completely fair as the GS4 is a full year newer and more powerful. The Iphone 4 has a lot going for it all the same. Not going to start that this late in the evening though. There is a much bigger tech and politics story brewing tonight though.

 


I am very curious to see what is coming out midday tomorrow.

Progress
by Kimliatach

 

 

Completed a terrain card. Screen quality with watermark displayed below.

This one took way longer than it ought to have, partially due to the lure of good SF, partially heat, partially I’m just out of practise. Planning to smash a few out and get into flow with them.

For reasons unknown this image won’t centre justify.

Mountain 1 In template

Finished the thrilling and at times extraordinary ‘Seveneves’  overnight. This book has been interfering with my projects because it was so good that I had to force myself to put it down and turn out the lights a few nights in a row. I’ve been snatching time to read a few pages at the expense of more pressing activities. a more detailed review another night.

Received two calls in minutes of each other requesting my tutoring services beginning next week. I’m thrilled to bits and looking forward to getting back to work.

 

 

 

 

Bad Hair Day
by Kimliatach

Thankfully a milder day than yesterday.

Swimming continues and I finally got through to NSW education and sorted out what was missing from my accreditation package then posted it.

Visited the library and swung between luxuriating in the air con and stressing out stopping F from dismantling the place.

Had a haircut, I’m not sure if she gives this cut to everyone or if this was just her best approximation of the picture I showed her. Rarely had a less talkative hairdresser anyway.

A photo posted by @liatach on


I am not delighted

 

 

Almost finished application process for F & L’s passports, N’s still has some way to go. As soon as they are processed we can start locking in travel dates for later in the year. We’ve already been looking. Currently favouring a Sydney/Tokyo/Glasgow itinerary.

Today via a recommendation I discovered Google Flights which is relatively unknown because Google or more accurately Alphabet receives so much ad revenue from other flight search aggregates that their own seemingly rather good product doesn’t make ranking.

 

Still working on a card and sketching templates.

 

Interesting reads from my feed:

Maximum pregnancy

http://nymag.com/thecut/2016/01/dual-pregnancy-c-v-r.html?utm_medium=email&utm_source=digg

Neil Gaiman writes Bowie fanfic

http://www.neilgaiman.com/Cool_Stuff/Short_Stories/The_Return_of_the_Thin_White_Duke

 

Heat & Exhaustion
by Kimliatach

Everything is hot and dry.

The breeze is hot, the cold tap runs hot, not warm, hot! and hot for minutes, all surfaces, seats and belongings are hot.

We switched on the air conditioner for the first time this evening, we fear ghastly power bills. It accomplished very little, possibly needs servicing, possibly it cannot actually cope with reducing air temperature from its intake point next to a radiant hot brick wall. N was given two evaporative cooling fans for her birthday and Christmas gifts which have been helping somewhat.

L’s first lesson went swimmingly, 9 more to go. Pool water was warm of course.

Finally won the battle with the wheelbarrow wheel by getting the new tire and tube put onto the old rim. The wheelbarrow is back in action with an extensive list of jobs pending.

Some links to share:

Great short film about art and motivation seen over coffee this morning:

The Long Game Part 3: Painting in the Dark from Delve on Vimeo.

A delightful procedural toy, the download of which works best.tiny world

Plodding away at a few pieces of art, struggling with exhaustion in the evenings and responsibilities, jobs and heat during the day.

 

Vale Bowie.

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Fabulous and extraordinary human being.

bowie

.gif by Helen Green

More Force & Stuff
by Kimliatach

A number of people have noticed my lack of commentary in review over the similarity of ‘The Force Awakens’ to ‘A New Hope’. I maintain the new film did almost everything it needed to. It could have drawn from some of the best of the Expanded Universe novels but to do so would have required a recasting of Luke, Leia and Han which would not have been an acceptable outcome.  it could not in the wake of the prequels do anything other than hark back to its roots.

Two relevant links:

JJ Abrams himself responds

Captain Phasma & Boba Fett

Enough about Star Wars, I’m keen to get back to my book and I have more drawing to do prior. I’m trying to knock out the first complete terrain card. Probably not going to make it tonight.

It’s been another stinking hot day, greatly limiting what can be accomplished during the heat of the day. Some paving done this afternoon, that slab is all but done.

L starts a 10 day class course of swimming lessons tomorrow with me as the parent helper.

 

Hot & Wheeled
by Kimliatach

Mantid live approx. 120mm #macro

A photo posted by @liatach on

Fought with a wheel barrow tire.

Lost.

The one I ordered to match the specs on the wheelbarrow, doesn’t fit. Axle size is wrong and although the wheel itself looks identical, has all the same markings it is bigger. Fortunately the space can accommodate it. The axle is a pain, the new wheel is supposedly 20mm but a 20mm rod won’t fit. The wheel is instead more like 19.5mm, infuriating. Will try for a return on Monday whe the store reopens anyway.

No creative work accomplished. The heat has been barbaric today. Accomplished some yard work and continued to plow through ‘Seven Eves’, which is gripping.

 

More of the mantid. #macro

A photo posted by @liatach on

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tutoring flyer complete
by Kimliatach

Paving is backbreaking hot and unpleasant labour, but my oh my the results are pleasing.

We’ve made good progress on the areas between the laundry tank and washing line as well as plotting out a looping path through the orchard for bikes.

So much more work to do.

Tonight I’ve finished my tutoring flyer. Channeling some early playbill style. Some information redacted for web display.tutoring-flyer-for-web

 

Booked a First Aid & CPR refresher in Dubbo for Feb 2nd. It has been a while since I have had to pay for my own, schools usually cover the group’s cost. This course is going to bite for the cost of accommodation the night before as well as travel. Still better than letting it lapse and needing to do the whole two day again.

About to kick card production to another level. Here begins the first week in which I try and bring to completion multiple whole cards.