I’ve been doing my Pilates for about … a month? Six weeks? Now. I can’t quite remember, obviously. Doesn’t matter. My core muscles are distinctly stronger than they were. I don’t find Pilates makes me thinner–I can’t do a long enough workout to really get calorie-burning going–but really in very little time I do find it strengthens the ol’ core.

I *have* done an initial “Pilates for Normal People” video. I just sort of figure I need to do two others–one a talking head thing to explain what I’m doing (on the off-hand chance someone who doesn’t read this blog happens on it) and one which is … explanatory. A ‘and in this exercise the idea is to use your stomach mucles instead of your thigh muscles which is much easier’ sort of thing.

…I had a whole bunch of things I was going to post about when I started writing this this morning. Nine hours later, no clue what they were.

Oh, well, except Ted and I went to the sports photography exhibition last night and it was pretty damned cool. The reason it’s from 8-10 at night is because the images are, as suggested by the exhibition name “Illume”, illuminated from behind, so you’re wandering through the dark surrounded by these very large brilliant photographic images. It’s fairly awesome, and well worth going to if you’re in Dublin.

We also went to see “Salt”, which is preposterously full of plot holes but has Liev Schrieber so much is forgiven. Also Angelina Jolie has never been so hot as she is with the man’s haircut. Dayumn.

There is a meet-up of tweeting Dublin writers on the 15th at half ten. I must remember to go!

I am exceedingly pleased to announce that the final three books of the Walker Papers are a go.

Book six, SPIRIT DANCES (which is already written) will be out in April 2011. Book seven, RAVEN CALLS, will tentatively be out in February 2012, with books 8 & 9 coming out…*handwaves* After that. :)

Yay! *does a little dance*!

Ted and I just finished watching Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles, which my friend referred to a while back as being the best SF show nobody was watching. He was totally right, too. It started off fine (with the single flaw of having Lena Headey do pull-ups she clearly was not really doing, which bugged me out of proportion to its five second screen time) and by the end of the second season, as John Connor was growing up and becoming John Connor, Hero Of The Revolution, it was *really good*.

And then it got cancelled. I swear if I’d had the, oh, you know, twenty million the Terminator franchise was selling for a couple years ago I’d have gotten all the writers back together and given them a third season, because wow, I want to know where they were going, and not many TV shows leave me wanting that. Farscape did, but it’s the only one I can think of off the top of my head besides this one.

Also, just for the record, “Sarah Connor Chronicles” is remarkablyhard to say. I keep saying “Sarah Chronner Conicles”. :)

Unrelated except for being about a TV show, I have a question about the last episode of season 5 Supernatural! Behind the cut, so it won’t be spoiled for anyone who hasn’t seen it, .

No, seriously, Kate, don’t read this. Because it’s too big a spoiler and you don’t want to know.

You’re still reading, aren’t you.

I told you not to read this!

No, dammit, I can’t trust you’re not reading it, I have to wait until you’ve seen the season before I can ask the question!

:)

Young Indiana borrowed his eldest cousin’s flat cap for a while:

Photo by my dad. :)

It has proven to be Phat L00t For Young Indiana Day. Not only did the mailman this morning deliver a gorgeous hand-made bright purple bib (which immediately went on him, as all the rest of his bibs are in the wash) from Mary Anne who I have known DEAR GOD TWENTY YEARS THIS MONTH ahem, but then this afternoon two octopus-decorated bath towels and a ridiculous little toy My First Cephalopod arrived from Blue Haired Angie. Thank you both very much. *beams*

To make up for the past few weeks, I have not left the house at all this weekend. It was still very, very busy. I undertook a fairly significant housecleaning measure Saturday, as the plumber and electrician were done with the shower and had left a big-ass mess behind. I still have not mopped, but possibly that’s for the best as today’s barbeque meant a fair amount of tracking dirt and wet around. Maybe tomorrow, she said unenthusiastically.

We had the whole fan damily over for dinner today, including a guest appearance by one of the Irish cousins. Ted grilled salmon and shrimp and made a very yummy brown rice salad, and I baked the most successful pecan sour cream cake I’ve made thus far. A good time was had by all. :)

It occured to me this morning that the still-present ache in my heels is probably something like bone bruising from wearing inadequate shoes for too long. Unfortunately, the only cure I know for bone bruises is time. And arnica, which I will apply assiduously now that I’ve realized the likely reason for the on-going ow. Along those lines, though, I was inspired (by Mom saying, “Who made them?” and me checking the insole of the shoes) to look up the makers of the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever owned, which are a pair of clogs I got ten years ago in Santa Cruz. They’re Ana-Tech, and they’re pricey, but if you get ten years’ wear out of ‘em, well, $15/y isn’t so pricey after all.

I’m off to see the wizard now.

It’s 7:20am, I’ve been up 90 minutes, I might as well make a list of things that need doing.

- clean the house, comprising of:
» cleaning the kitty litter
» empty garbage & recycling bins
» sweeping
» clean toilets
» do remaining dishes
» move everything off the tile & wood floors
» so i can mop
» put everything back
» so i can vacuum
» finish our laundry
- get fabric brightener stuff
» so i can do young indiana’s laundry
- shop for food for tomorrow’s family dinner
and most critically
- nap, not that another one would hurt (it didn’t)

also:
- change credit card for web sites
- start looking into new host because i’m tired of the spam at cemurphy.net

*hop* *hop* *hop* *hop* *hop* *hop*

*hophophop*

*hop*

There is an electrician in my house. He has been here since twenty to six. It is now twenty to nine. My son is sleeping on the couch. I would like to be able to sleep with him, since I have learned to sleep when he does, but I can’t exactly conk out while this guy is here. >.< And poor Zilli has been locked in the back room all evening because I can't trust people to close the front door. :p

eta: the electrician just left. it’s 10:20. boy do i hope that shower works. o.O

The Road Home: miles to Isengard: 492

There is SO MUCH STUFF going on in September that I want to go do!

The first annual Phizzfest is this-and-next week, with an art crawl, history lessons, musical and theatrical performances, outdoors yoga classes, drumming workshops, and a photography contest thing to enter your photos taken during the festival. And it’s nearly all free!

Next week is the Mountains to Sea Book Festival in Dun Laoghaire (wow, I spelled that correctly on the first go), and I have promised that I’ll pop out. I should arrange that with her more solidly, but certainly at least one day I’ll go out and check it out.

Up through next weekend is an exhibition of sports photography at Trinity College, which I’m really looking forward to. I think we’ll probably go Tuesday, which day Ted has off.

And *starting* next weekend is the Dublin Fringe Festival, which is opening with the Wild Hunt coming to Dublin. Obviously I must go to this. Possibly with Young Indiana’s eyes and ears covered because it looks potentially pretty scary, but damn! I must go! And there’s loads of art and theatre and music and stuff going on for the two weeks of the festival, and I’d like to try to get to several of the things.

I could obviously do this full time and never go back to work. :)