How to challenge the sun

Yesterday was a 'record' (the weather is always a record to the Brits) hottest day of the year so far.

Yes, I could have told them that minus their termometers and weather experts.

How?

June 27th for the past 2 years have been that - a record hottest day of the year so far.

How do I know?

We had our wedding picnic party on June 27th and I remember being toasted black by the sun and last year during our anniversary we were toasted again during a picnic in Horsham with family friends.

This year I managed to stay indoors but it was so hot it might as well be a home sauna.

So this morning I had a plan.

I bathed in ultra cold freezing water after walking the dogs.

Changed into my shortest shorts and thinnest sleeveless tee.

Took our table fan downstairs, stuck it on a high table pointed it at my direction and switched it on to maximum.

Flung the windows and doors wide open.

I was ready. I wasn't going to bake in the heat today.

Only there's one verrrrryy minor problem.




The sun have decided to have a laugh at me and is no where to be seen....

Darn!

What can change the nature of a man?

I remember the first time I came across that question, playing Planescape: Torment (I still rate it as one of the greatest games of all time). For some reason, the question popped into my head a couple of days ago again, and I realise, far too late, that even though that game affected me profoundly and made me sit and think, if I were to play the game for the first time again today, how much more meaningful it would be to me. What did the 14/15 year old me know about change and life? What did the stupid boy know about being a man?

I look back at who I was and see just how much I have changed, how I have gone from being a boy to a man; from being a selfish, irresponsible person to someone who now has so many things to deal with, a life to live; from being someone who just wanted to write code in a corner in peace to someone who's facing customers pretty regularly. Quite a lot of change to go through in such a short period of time.

And I realise one other thing. I'm happy. What can change the nature of a man? Torment's script was written in such a way that no matter what answer the Nameless One gave, it would have been the right answer. My answer, right now, today - is love. I may not be who I thought I was going to be when I was younger and dumber, but I have the love of my wife (yes, she's listening to that Bette Midler song right now), and she has mine, and that is all we need.

Done and dusted

Finished my last paper today - Information Resources Management.

And that's it..

I can't believe it. We have both finally finished all our coursework and exams, all that's left now are our thesis.

With some luck, this is also going to be goodbye to formal education. At least until I start itching about getting my MBA (I hope not!). The husband has had enough and isn't interested in any MBA.

I remember the first day he started his part time- postgrad almost 2 years ago. I thought to myself, it's going to be 2 years of part time hell.

Sure enough it was, we have tried to juggle so much over the last 2 years I'm surprised we managed to come out fairly unscathed (besides being burnt with the crazy mother problem).

Actually we have also found a solution to that problem. We've put a filter in that automatically sends her emails into the trash.

I've been asked by several people if they think it is right to do that. Afterall, she is his mother.

Yes, I totally understand that and I would never recommend what we are doing to anyone either, but in our situation, the amount of damage she's caused and is STILL causing warrants it.

I don't think anyone (even his mother) has the right to constantly make unwanted, untrue, hurtful remarks about me, us and our family.

Apparently, a filial daughter in law will just laugh it off or keep quiet about it. Well, thanks but no thanks, I can live with being unfilial.

We will move on with our lives.

With much luck, I should get some form of a consultant/project manager job by November.. gain 2 - 3 years of experience then maybe with lots and lots of luck, we will find ourselves in a position, ready to start a family.

But you're so precious to me.. sweet as can be..

I have the annoying ability to listen to the same song over and over (when I say over and over, I probably put it on play over 10 hours everyday for 3 weeks or so).

Eventually I either get sick of it or move to another song on repeat. It takes forever to get something out of my system.

Unfortunately for the husband who have been working from home quite a bit these days, his ears suffer.

At the moment, am midway on exams - 2 gone, 2 to go and the dogs are suffering on this song

Actually, they get quite calm when it plays but I'm sure they are sick of it by now, poor babies, but it does say so much about how I feel about them.

From your head down to your toes,

You're not much goodness knows,

But you're so precious to me, sweet as can be,

Baby of mine.