Shane.Blamer's blogspot

3 AM Wordle 4/6 Listened to podcasts: introvert/extrovert, judge gag-order vs. internet archive, A.I. reddit posts Cereal Up late 8:15 AM Walked to Jolimont. I often forget this café is closed on tuesdays Walked to Brentford Square for a coffee & hot-cross bun  Book in my telehealth appointm't for thu10:10am I plan to work from the office tomrw (wed) and then not again until the following wed — due to easter Part of the benefit of WFH is the comfortable pants  Also, saves on petrol costs

Blamer's Best of Bluey (a list i'm putting together) " But i don't want a life lesson. I want an icecream, " - Bluey, Season 2 8:30 AM Nigel coffee. I'm in my leather jacket today. The sky is bright blue, but it is chilly for now Later will be 26°C 12:15 - 12:50 PM (Lunch-break)  Subway, and a walk around the block 5:20 PM I'm home already, i left a little early — i was the only team member in the office today Weights, listened to Making Sense podcast: What is technology doing to us Watched some great Bluey episodes: S2 Bin Night - Road Trip Played some zombie Soldat 9:37 PM Planet America 10:15 PM Bed time

Bfast at Heidi gallery café ~9:15am Black cockatoos ~11 12 PM Newlife aquarium in Bulleen: got 3 olive shubunkin goldfish for my backyard pond. They will grow into their shubunkin colours: orange, black, white blotches Got them back home and then went back out.... Mullum mullum: got 2 mosquito-fish, one tiny, the other miniscule. Those go in their own tank.. Unsure if they play well with goldfish which are far bigger than them (and far less aggressive) Plenty of choughs, plenty of kangeroos, 2 rabbits 4:45 PM Uber to Dainten taphouse in Croydon Burger. Took some good photos. The be itIPA hid is still there (since foragers 8th bday) Double NEIPA, then TIPA 7:30 PM Double-stop uber to mitcham then vermont Last sunday in dayloght saving, twi-night lighting

Mushroom Tarot  by S.Blamer I'll need a way to mount these very squarely (on a black background) Breakfast at BATTLE café in Blackburn. The chef gave me a handshake when he saw me & gave N a hug. I thought that was a very friendly welcome. Later, N explained that she knew him & i had met him at Forager's Drop (at least one time) 10:45 AM Home to rest 11:30 - 1:45 PM I slept some, and played around on ebay on my phone I've ordered a night light for N's apt. It has 2 modes: dusk-to-dawn warm light or dusk-to-dawn motion sensor (off after 60 sec). I think it looks ok I had to re-hang the security camera that faces my backdoor — which turned out to be easy enough (just a few nails into the wooden frame of my back decking) Then i had a rough go at laying out my Mushroom Tarot  (above pic.). They will replace my old 137 tarot cards from 137.thecomicseries.com 4 PM Time to go steal some fish.... Unsuccessful. Too much water flowing down the stream near knox...

Grey-headed Flying Foxes in the GP waiting room 8:40 AM Fasting midnight to ~10am Ultrasound scan in Ringwood at 9:45am I've told work i'm starting late today, so i can skip stand-up at 9:14am In the afternoon, there's a planning meeting with my Project Manager's boss(es). Hopefully i can skip that too I had to turn on my ducted heating this morning (for the 1st time in ages). Used my fingerbot app to remote-control the on/off switch from bed — it worked great I was awake around 4am to do wordle like normal. I didn't go back to sleep. Perhaps because of yesterday's 2nd coffee. I looked for metal shirts on ebay etc 10 AM (Seymour, Ringwood) Went okay, results on Monday. Now i'm all cold and sticky. Will need a 2nd shower. But first.... coffee.... and food 7:45 PM (Glen Huntley)  w/ N, and T The First Sip, Glen Huntley. With petrol prices going up like this i might not be back for weeks months years (whatever Chas tells me to think) An Irish woman ...

4 AM I wake at this time pretty much every night (ever since i dated a baker: i'd get up to have bfast with her) DAILY NEWS Petrol prices are up. Trump's bombed Iran. They retaliated by bombing their neighbours. Both USA and Israel attacked together Background is: Iran wants nukes & as soon as they get the bomb, Iran's leaders have vowed to nuke Israel. They currently enrich uranium "for nuclear power" — nobody really knows how close they are to building a nuclear bomb. Years ... ? Ukraine is still trying to fend off Putin's Russian invasion. They gave been at war for several years Apparently the war in the Middle East means that Russian oil is fetching a higher price. The world works has a shortage. The news is saying March 2026 is the worst oil crisis ever — nobody knows how many months or years it will last  Their are rumours that the State government will restrict car usage, which may mean more working from home. From now, i'm expected in the offic...

Nando's, Chechen arvo wrap, medium hot sauce Drive to work: 40-min (worst yet, best is 25-min) 8:40 AM Egg & bacon muffin, with my coffee @ nigel café 2:20 PM Lunch-break 5 PM Lett work right on time  6:30 PM Sopporo Japanese in Mitcham near the train station w/ N. It was very tasty. The decor looked good too. Sushi sashimi came in a little boat. We had 2 wines each & plenty of seafood food (N had skipped lunch, she's back working in her company's office) incl. fried oysters, muscles, tempura prawn, sweet potato, zucchini.  Foragers for 2 pots

8:15 AM Blood test in Springvale Rd. One of the 2 women nurses commented that my hair looked good 9:15 AM Stand-up from my car, forest hill chase. We have 3 new consultants (joining 1 of the team's 2 other projects) I said i would continue working on the actions from Friday's meeting: Runbooks, splitting P2/P3 Bought hair stuff. A short, woman working at hairhouse commented that my hair looked good 9:45 AM Central Core café for a coffee, a magic

Cactus on my porch that flowers for 1 night only Drove to the office, arrived early 8:20am Coffee, bacon & egg muffin Sushi for lunch, took my lunch break ~ 2pm Booked for an ultrasound on Fri (intermittent pain in my abdomen) which means i'll need to WFH Stayed a little late ~ 6pm Sandwiches for dinner: salami, tomato, cheese Watched a Japanese samurai film from 1962 (b&w) "Harakiri" A+ Had 1 beer, hawkers IPA, not much good 10:15 PM Bedtime

Boaz's aquarium, Mitcham Black Stallion shared a big bfast, Mitcham 11:50 AM Doctor appt Took a handful of photos at Boaz's aquarium, browsed (every tank) for 30 min or so 1:45 PM Greensborough, played some guitars Walked at mullum mullum, saw a fox! No rabbits, no roos. Picked up a bag of rubbish. Found my kylo ren figurine near Pixel's pond: 21 months at sea 6:30 - 7:30 PM Snoozed, listen to Planet Extra Podcast 7:30 - 8:30 PM Weights

Aunt Billie's for breakfast N got bit by a Skip-jack ant Mullum mullum, saw kangeroos (incl. a joey), gang-gangs, rabbits One wine at Cherry Hill, Donvale Home for a rest, meditation, ebay browsing (zip hoodies, longsleeves) 7:45 PM The food at Oysis is impressive, we had 4 small plates (tapas) Ashburton 10:30 PM Forager's

Team lunch in Malvern Rd, Malvern Vale Hotel 12-2 PM There was 8 of us, as a farewell for N who is going on secondment & may never return to our team 5-6 PM After work, Governer Hall for 2 pots with A and B 7 PM Back home I was supposed to be go see a Simpsons themed heavy metal band, dr callouses — but heard it's sold out (and can't buy tickets on the door). Can't be bothered creating a tixel account, although i hear it's trustworthy 7:45 PM Instead i'll go meet up with N and we'll decide whether to go to Far Side (Hawthorn East) or stay closer to home (Sessions, Natural Science, Bar Nearby, and/or Forager's Drop) 8:15 PM Ubered to Far Side bar (Hawthorne) 10:30 PM Black Sheep bar (Hawthorne)

Black Stallion café w/ N, shared big breakfast  Coffee was excellent & so were the fried eggs on bread, chorizo, mushrooms, spinach, baked beans Worked 9-5, no break — rather silly, it's a bad habit Nobody bothered me really, so i just pecked away I should do weights Because tomrw: Simpsons Metal (potentially). T wants to go, it's 40$, stay gold in sydney rd brunswick. Pondering.... H said she'd liked to tag along, which makes it fun 

Adventures of Hi-Vis Duck x Frog (Forager's Drop) Egg & bacon muffin w/ my magic @ nigel café Traffic was ok. I'd left home a bit late ~8am, it only took 34min The drive home was ok too, i left work ~4:30pm (because i hadn't taken my break for lunch, by 5pm quite hungry) Quickly relaxed at home, meditated FORAGER'S DROP (MITCHAM) Then meet up with N at foragers. J was in a good mood, he hosted trivia Before i arrived, J climbed up on a chair to pull down some hops flowers for me and N. We put them in our pots of beer. She'd already been there a couple of hours We ate at Mitcham Hotel, parma w/ prawns (which we shared) was fantastic. Even the salad tasted great. Had a wine each. I really enjoyed the pinot noir, coldstream hills & the chardonnay was just ok (over the shoulder) At foragers we had Range (8%), Dangerous Ale (9%), and a new Mountain Culture x BentSpoke Collab (6%) which were all really outstanding IPAs

Most of my CDs are still in working order I have a CD player in my car, which i use occasionally Some have by now "rotted" (i found out the hard way that CDs don't last forever) so no doubt a track or two skips on some of my CDs that i never play anymore Manta Ray w/ A ~8:15am 5:45 PM I've finished at a reasonable time today — lovely sunshine My oldest mate says Baby Metal are in Melb tonight. I've known him since 4yo, in kindergarten My work gave my a $1,000 voucher for reaching 10 years of service. I've tested with $5 that it can be used on eBay — which has worked. I purchased the cheapest item in my Watch list. I'll soon receive a 1:86 ninja (18mm) which i will need to paint.... in black 

Sushi for lunch at Tooronga village ~ 1:45pm Worked in the office until 7:30pm At 4:20pm i got approached by 3 people who thought they had identified a Priority 1 fault It took 2 hours to walk them thru where they needed to look to find evidence for their concern  And then about 1 hour of hanging about while they wrote up their findings & took screenshots I had attended meetings on the morning & done some migration work in the afternoon, so it didn't bother too much that this came up — they needed a bit of a helping hand from me, because today the team was down 2 staff Ate sandwiches for dinner  Paid some soldat zombies Watched planet america 11 PM Bedtime Total steps: 3,600

Breakfast at Mr Robertson. I had the steak sandwich, but left most of the bread & chips. N had the crushed avacado w/ sweet potato crisps We walked from "Cape Group" Morack Rd to the forest hill police station Springvale Rd —along the new path— which is quite a distance. And then the return journey 3:15 PM Back home. Will rest this afternoon to re-energise for my return to work tomrw Total steps: 11,600

Figure9 café, begels for breakfast ~11am Lilydale lake, nearly 20 types of birds: pelican, spoonbills, white crane, 3 grey herons 2:45 PM Sub_Urban rooftop in ringwood (above pic.) Home to rest 8 PM Scott Cook in Upwey. He started with a song sung from the audience without a microphone. The final song in the 1st set was about driving across Canada from coast to coast, and was also about a 1 legged marathon runner with an artificial leg that was running every day for charity.... and didn't make it. I cried a bit Total steps: 7,800

Barrels at mountain goat, pizza & two-piece band Breakfast with L at 57 café, blackburn rd. We talked about new zealand, miniatures, working with data streams. I had the burrito & she had the avacado I walked at mullum mullum, only took 2 tiny survivor photos. Saw 3 kangeroos, but they saw me before i saw them — they soon hopped away  12:20 PM Meditated, and considered doing something workout adjacent. Although, my right elbow is slightly sore & the arch of my left foot — managed a slow workout minus 2½ arm exercises 4 PM Uber to Richmond with N • Our Terroir wine bar • Beer 360 • Mountain Culture • Royston • Mountain Goat • Foragers

The Hatter & The Hare 12:30 PM Back home for a rest 3 PM Time for a short walk, bellbird dell. I've parked near Kingsclere (Boronia rd end) for something different. The skies are grey & threatening to drizzle. I should be able to make it to see the sheep, at least.... but they weren't there — perhaps because of the pathway construction Bird species: 11 Total steps: 6,000

Red-headed spider ant (carrying something) Grocery shop, drove to the local Wooolies ~ $90 Made sandwiches for lunch 12:30 PM Meditated for 10 min Walked at mullum mullum & took photos for Tiny Survivor . So far I've only uploaded 6 + 6 to that website, however, i have now ~90 in the album to choose from. I'm applied a filler called Moderna, so the photos all match — regardless of the day N got a good report from her neurologist appointment today We went to Mitcham Social for an early dinner. They had a new menu, so we tried the snacking platter for 2 Then to foragers for a few beers incl. Keep On Truckin' (and Let The Good Times Roll, 9.3%) approx 6-10pm

Tuna melt toastie at Figure8 café, which we call Signal8 (like the smoke shop) 12:30 PM Back home. Postie had delivered my new shorts (dark grey) and sleeveless tshirt (black). They look like will fit. The shirts were only $29 delivered, and the tanktop something like $17 I intend to do weights later — but first i need rest  It's a lovely sunny day, blue skies with a top of 24°C forecast. I'm in a positive mood (albeit somewhat tired). Feeling grateful for the blue sky 6 PM Finished a workout, it was very tough today — tired & hot

10:30 AM Mr Robertson Forecast 28°C Blue skies Shorts & thongs Walked maroodah dam w/ M Saumah cellar door, Yarra valley on the way home: tastings — "The Butcher" (CSM?), and Arneis (white) Home to shower Foragers Uber to Sub_Urban, the uber smelled like vomit so we jumped out 2nd uber was great, maxda, he played jazz — i added 1 track to my Spotify Steak sanga & steak downstairs, cult ipa by mountain culture on tap — really hits the spot too Rooftop for 1 pot, then home Total steps: 9,300

Walked at mullum mullum with N, zero kangeroos 2:15 PM Lunch at Cherry Tree hotel, donvale. Steak with calamari topper (lobster unavailable)  Urban Vineyard wine shop, Ringwood east Dropped the car back at Mitcham train station carpark 8 Track for 2 pots, the brewer told us about his IPAs. One of the staff recognised me, i recall he's a drummer Sub_Urban rooftop (cherry sour), where we ran into N's work colleague E. They had a lot to discuss with the new employees & people leaving Foragers for the massive Range DIPA, which was excellent — we had 2 each, Let The Good Times Roll 9.4%

Walked around Blackburn Lake Nuts About Coffee, Blackburn Podcasts Weights, heavy metal Danté wine bar was: good staff, a bit sterile, no real vibe Northcote social club, 30$ (cash, had change) • Space Ghost 7.30p • Dirty Pagans 8:30p • Bengal Tigers 9:30p • Wicked Smile 10:30p I completely missed the opening band  Smiled so much thru the 2nd band (from NSW?), think nobody could see me in the dark up the back Goodwater was: awkward staff, free drink on arrival, very very good pinot noir from mornington.... would certainly go back there I met an artist named Sooka, his Procreate was excellent Bengal Tigers, every band member is 1,000 years old.. rock stars, everybody proficient — the singer most impressive 

Far Side , Hawthorn East Final day of work before holiday Had bfast with N, A & B at jolimont Friday night out  • Far Side, Hawthorn: amazing Range Hazy DIPA • East of Everything, Camberwell • Rosalita • Bar none Foragers

7:30 AM Train now departing Nunawading 8:10 AM Coffee sit-in at Supagrind, 664 Collins Pick up new keyboard & mouse Town Hall Team lunch at Moondog, Docklands Tennis on L8

Manta Ray Coffee Roasters Arrived at 8am, quickly shot A a message on Signal to suggest he meet me here if he's free I'm looking forward to next week of work. I feel like i've been dreaming of work, which is my sign that i need to stress less about it The menus are new: beige with red text. They used to be black with white text, so it's quite a noticeable change I feel like i haven't been here for weeks and weeks. And yet the barista, she still remembered my order: magic to have here & a warmed up plain croissant Hawkers WC DIPA, very good Forno88 pizza, olives, anchovies  Bracket beer with simcoe, pretty good, a bit under-powered Played some soldat zombies, first sooner & then we had a big team of ~10 10:15 PM Bed time Total steps: 1,600 (shameful)

6 AM Woke up early Watched last night's Planet America — half before my shower & then the 2nd half "as a podcast" in my car: Iran strike, Epstein deposition of Clintons Drive to work: 45 min, the longest it's ever been. It didn't bother me. I was plenty early. Listened to a couple of tunes. Then caught up on a pod about Iran being bombed by USA (again) this week 8:45 AM Coffee, bacon & egg muffin My manager annouced that he wasn't coming in to the office today (due to a conference). I'm expecting that will dissuade my colleagues from attending today too — which should result in a quiet day for me I found last Friday uncharacteristically disruptive — due to morning team coffee, in-person meeting, lunch together (that kind of thing, i don't recall exactly). Anyway, it didn't bother me because (1) return-to-office feels like a decision to be less productive this year, and (2) my project will no doubt overshoot it's deadline by many months ...

Strathdon House (and Orchid Precinct) • I've only seen 1 walker, 1 dog on a lead • It's about a 20 min walk from home • Smells like marijuana Supposed in at Jolimont café on the walk home for a coffee (only). I saw it the back, which was dry enough. Not very many patrons inside/outside 1 PM (Lunch-break)  • Weights • Did a load of washing • Listened to a podcast about Claude (LLM) 6 PM Striped away from my laptop. Ate a sandwich. Hung out my washing 8 PM Watched some Bluey episodes. And then a bag movie, Mother Father Sister Brother, Frank (2025) Bird species: 8 Total steps: 4,500

Figure9 café, mitcham • Bircher w/ yoghurt & strawberries, blueberries • Corn fritters & gauc, w/ poached egg Walked home, quick shower, drove N home 2:30 PM (Greensborough) Upgraded brother printer software, firmware & added a desktop icon for Printer queue 6 PM (Vermont) Back home, planted sunflower seeds Listened to Planet Extra Podcast Had 1 fridge beer & sandwiches for dinner: salami, cheese, cos lettuce, siracha hot sauce