Watercooler Sub Zero: Ice Capades

Also early 2006 looks to be busy as hell. Potential trips to Sri Lanka, Belgium, Finland, Singapore, India, Vietnam, Reunion, Dublin, the West Midlands, Grimsby, Toxteth and the States.

Blimey, that's a lot of travelling.

Ugh, JB, that sounds awful. The most horrible part of gastric flu isn't the vomitting, it's when it comes out the other end.

And we may make enough money to pay me a bonus.

Someone in the sodding marketing department is listening to Oasis, loud enough to be heard across the building. I am hoping this is a Christmas aberation - if it continues in the new year, I'm going to complain about it. I use headphones when I listen to music so as not to disturb others. I don't understand why others cannot exercise the same consideration.

Music out loud in an office environment is enough to make me quit a job.

Best thing I did on '06 was start on gluten/casein free diet

Plans for 2007:
play live more, incl solo electronic music improv
obtain & start learning to play cittern
clear out all surplus music gear
release CD in some form

...and that freaking Mascara thread makes me feel like a space alien.

Plans for 2007 for me:

Write and record around an albums worth of new songs that actually are worth writing! (in conjunction with a friend who's suddenly interested in home production but does not write songs)

Write a sitcom (possibly for radio), a preview of which exists on old ILX.

Get paid more.

Plans for 2007:

Get a job

Plans for 2007: anticipate Transformers movie. Watch Transformers movie. Feel vaguely empty.

Ed, why the hell are you coming to Grimsby? Let me know when you do and we can FAP in the One Decent Pub.

I probably shouldn't talk about it online but there is a TV station broadcasting from your fair city. If I do make it, then we certainly shall.

Question:

How does one explain to a person - especially a person who also claims to be an introvert - that hell really *is* other people at breakfast. And conversation beyond grunting and "please pass the milk" really is NOT welcome before I've had my tea.

Especially when I'm in a rush to get out the door to get to work, and really not in a mood to talk about global warming or the Archbishop or whatever.

"sorry dude, I like talking to you, but it's really too early in the day for me to be all chatty"

I've never lived with anyone - for any serious length of time - that did not understand this.

Then again, I suppose she's on holiday and I'm not yet.

But honestly, even on holiday, I don't talk about anything before I've had some caffeine. She doesn't drink caffeine, either, so I guess she doesn't understand.

I will say something tonight.

Ooh, I see.

Yeh, the first thing I say to new housemates is "I'm very much the gregarious type, but don't even TRY to say anything more than 'hi' to me in the morning before work."

Hello all, Mitya I shall be around to keep you company, don't worry!
Kate, did you get that email?

Have a Happy Christmas all of you who will be offline for a while(and those who wont be of course too)

My long-standing housemate in NYC and I had a system whereby we grunted at one another - one grunt meant "do you want the coffee/milk/whatever it is that I am extending to you?" and two grunts meant "no, go away".

It worked perfectly for nearly 4 years!

Kerr, I can't download it. I will try again now and see if it's less busy.

I've been researching costs for the cockamamie grad school idea and looking at craigslist and the like and I really don't know if I could do a flat share (with strangers) again. Also I hate flat hunting.

God, even the idea of living with someone else again... bleugh! No way. Even, god forbid, I ever actually got married, I'd want to be married without living together.

Thing is, living with actual *strangers* isn't so bad because there's no pressure to communicate or anything. It's when you live with people who expect you to, you know, be friendly and talk to them and crap when all you want to do is crawl off to bed with a Chinese takeaway and a Jane Austen film, that's what's annoying.

Aaargh, why why WHY when I have enough work to do already, do half the people in the office have to get trojan infections on their computers?

We've got it quite good at our house. I'm friends with everyone but there's no pressure to socialise and everybody gets that personal space is really important. You can go "I'm just off to chill in my room for a bit" and everybody's cool, nobody thinks you're being weird.

You shouldn't feel under pressure to communicate with your spouse at all times either, you know. Marriage doesn't lead to a state where you do everything together all the time as a couple. I can happily go a whole evening where I watch the telly/read a book/pootle around teh interwebs and Neil is in another room playing WoW or something. I'll happily bugger off down the pub when I can't be arsed to sit in and do something with him. We've been together long enough that we don't need to be together all the time.

I was warned by my g/f (now wife) that she was not the 'cheerful after waking' type, so 'now you know'.

Several years later, she's nothing like that and it seems she has changed in this respect.

Having kids that need rousing/cheering probably helps.

In my case, the pressure was coming from the pseudo-spouse who would never leave *me* alone to get on with what I was doing. And then kicked me out of the house saying he needed "spaaaace".

But let's not drag all that up again. :-(

Plans for 2007:

Keep a job

Right, so one bad relationship with one selfish wanker means "oh noes, any person in a relationship with me will be like that therefore I'm never living with anyone ever again"? That seems reasonable... :-/

(xpost)

No, it was the third time attempting living with a partner, with the similar results.

Maybe that says more about my taste in men or whatever, but it's not for me.

Oh, and similar complaints from the last housemate, as well. I'm hard to live with, I know that. I can count on the fingers of one hand people I've lived with that I'd live with again. The chances of my finding *any* partner ever are remote enough - the chances of finding a partner I could actually live with?

It makes me less upset and angry and depressed just not to think about it or beat myself up over it or worry about it. Not wanting is better than wanting and not having.

And now the pointy nosed boy has disappeared off the top of the thread.

:-(

Is there a pointy nose emoticon?

i suggest

;^)

You have to get the fringe in, too.

\:^)

xpost

No, Western ("Catholic" as they call it here) Christmas isn't a holiday as this is an Orthodox country. So we work right up to 29th. Then the whole following week is a holiday, as is January 8 (that's Orthodox Christmas). Orthodox New Year ("Old New Year") is January 13 - it's not a big holiday but the country doesn't really start working fully until January 15, as a lot of people take vacation on that second week, too.

I don't have to work but for some reason I was selected from my department to be "on duty" in case Putin drops dead or something and we have to react.

Morning stuff, i'm awake, showered and out the house in under 10 mins. Breakfast at work where i get paid to eat it

The second half of 2005 and first half of 2006 were mostly absolutely lousy - among the worst in my life, I almost think - with a few bright spots. I'm hoping the trend continues. (My bank balance is climbing again, which is quite nice.) Not anywhere enough travelling, though.

The flat share thing was probably the most important factor that kept me from moving back to NY during my own dark period, so I totally symphathize with you, Ed.

Before I miss anyone leaving early - happy holidays Kate and Ailsa and everyone else.

Is Putin on the poisoner's list, then? Is he expected to drop dead?

LOL no. My boss actually said "In case Putin resigns" (you may remember that Yeltsin did this unexpectedly over the holidays back in 2000 or whenever it was) but "drop dead" seems more appropriate now.

1) Hello all! long time etc, been busy with stuff etc and thus not going out of my way to locate sandbox. Until now, eek! *envisions drain with time swirling down it*

2) Sorry to hear abt the band, Kate. :(

3) Searching amazon.co.uk, am I right in assuming that "Mid T4ble" is a cd by the Dr C Fr4ctured, while "0nly Hum4n R3mains" is by another Fr4ctured completely? Must keep up with watercoolists' releases, been grebt so far.

4) 2006 was reasonably good to me.

Guys, watch some Jerry Jackson web toons:

http://www.fat-pie.com/jerryjackson.htm

They're easily the funniest things I've seen all year.

New Jesu album is FANTASTIC!

Meep! Full name! Googlexposed! Oh noes! Ah, never mind.

just thought i'd pop in here to wish you merry xmas watercoolers, am going to be in work all afternoon but more than likely be playing online games or something.

Anyway have a good'un!

Kate, just wanted to pop along to wish you a Merry Consumerfest before you left the Interweb. Pls to try not to throttle the M4rg0 (and say Hi) although I myself do not know what I'd do with my mum staying in that size space. Probably without Fox News on 24/7 we'd be fine!

I'll be around throughout otherweise as one of my neighbours is very sharey with his wireless settings.

Suzy you thief!!!

Santa might not visit you for that.

When Kate opens her presents I wonder if she will get the pointy nosed dirty dronerock boy she wrote a letter to santa for.

I have been working from home today and wacthed a bit of Cavuto banging on about the Ellison/Koran/Swearing in non-story, the Ann Coulter came on and i switched to Aj Jazeera

What do you reckon to Bubba Bigot there Ed, and what did you think of my Muslim congressman?

I am in Minnesota. We know our neighbours so is all good, ja?

I am waiting for my mum to ring me and tell me which train she'll be on. Or maybe I should just go to London Bridge. I don't know. Knowing her, she will forget to bring the phone entirely. Argh!

Cavuto is basically who Colbert is trying to ape most closely. That southern Hick, 'I am for controlling immigration so we never have a muslim majority in the House' was excruciating. Cavuto just isn't funny like O'Reilly.

i'm so bored with the u.s.a.