Tag Archives: thoughts

lizbeth

(I wrote this at the end of July)

Elizabeth.

There have been so many words, so much grief, and so much love expressed in your memory these last days. Everyone wants to share their story. How you touched their life. How you were wonderful. I have not been immune to this.

The grief is strong. I suspect I am not alone in being the only one for whom you are the first close friend – a peer – to die.

You were one of the most genuine, forthright, honest people I have known. You were one of the most accepting people I have known, but also you had a very strong sense of justice, and would not tolerate that which was wrong.

I wrote in a comment that you affected people, and I think that defines well your interactions with the world. You knew people, and people knew you. You were affected by people because of your great empathy, but you affected people because of simply who you were.

There is an Elizabeth shaped hole in so many hearts, and my head-Lizbeth appreciates the love from us all, but also tells us to stop being so daft and get on with our lives.

And we will. I promise. We will.

But maybe not just yet.

There are a few more tears to shed, memories to share, and hearts that are still raw

Time heals wounds – because as time passes, events in history appear smaller. Right now the grief at your loss looms large on our collective horizon of history, and in time it will become part of the tableau of life. But memories of you will remain strong, of that I am sure. You wont be forgotten. Your affect on people wont be forgotten. Memories of you will join with other events over the years, but you will remain bright.

The world is a better place that you were in it, and a sadder place now you are gone.

Australian Independence

It’s Australia Day… so, a timeline of thoughts. When did Australia achieve independance?

Soon afterwards, however, in Shaw (2003),[19] the whole Court (including Kirby) took a more comprehensive view: that the Australia Act in its two versions, together with the State request and consent legislation, amounted to establishing Australian independence at the date when the Australia Act (Cth) came into operation, 3 March 1986.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_Act_1986#The_Act_and_Australian_independence

The three main steps to independence were 1901 – formation and recognition of a country. 1942 – Ability to contradict UK laws. And 1986 – UK unable to override Australian courts.

What is wrong with the Geek Pride Manifesto

So, May 25 huh? Geek Pride Day! Or… is it?

The wikipedia article on Geek Pride day lists a “manifesto” of sorts, or a “geek code”(see below) for Geek Pride Day…

…here it is:

Rights:

  1. The right to be even geekier.
  2. The right to not leave your house.
  3. The right to not like football or any other sport.
  4. The right to associate with other nerds.
  5. The right to have few friends (or none at all).
  6. The right to have as many geeky friends as you want.
  7. The right to be out of style.
  8. The right to be overweight and near-sighted.
  9. The right to show off your geekiness.
  10. The right to take over the world.

Responsibilities:

  1. Be a geek, no matter what.
  2. Try to be nerdier than anyone else.
  3. If there is a discussion about something geeky, you must give your opinion.
  4. To save and protect all geeky material.
  5. Do everything you can to show off geeky stuff as a “museum of geekiness.”
  6. Don’t be a generalized geek. You must specialize in something.
  7. Attend every nerdy movie on opening night and buy every geeky book before anyone else.
  8. Wait in line on every opening night. If you can go in costume or at least with a related T-shirt, all the better.
  9. Don’t waste your time on anything not related to geekdom.
  10. Try to take over the world!

So, I have a problem with this. Not all of it, and mostly the ‘responsibilities’ section…

But I get ahead of myself. Here is where I disagree with the rights…

Continue reading

Subway voting…

I recently had pause to use Subway machines to choose my lunch. Which bread did I support (Dear Subway. Bring back Parmeson-Oregano bread. If you do not, I cannot respect your advertising campaign based on the concept of “choice”), which fillings match my views, and which condiments are just “me”. It gave me a paper receipt, and I had food. (it was tasty)

So. Why can’t we have a voting machine to do this? Continue reading