173

Turned on the TV and it was 173 (and still climbing).

Some Items

Yesterday I bought a dual thermometer and a bunch of P2 dust masks from Bunnings.

The dual thermometer can measure both inside and outside temperatures. It's electronic and has a lead with a sensor that you can poke through a window so you don't have to go outside. I looked in over 7 shops for the old mercury style thermometers but it seems that no one sells them. However, the Bunnings attendant told me about a shop in Wallsend that "might" have them. I'll check it out Thursday.

The P2 Dust Masks are in case I need to fight a bushfire in the near future. This might seem like an over reaction to the disaster in Victoria, however in 2000 there was a large bushfire here. It burnt out everything from Holmesville to Barnsley and came to with 5 meters of my back fence. The conditions before that happened were: a long dry spell, some rain followed by growth, then another dry spell so that when the fire (was?) started there was plenty of fuel.

I find similar conditions about now. We may or may not get a bushfire here this year, but if we do I don't want to collapse from asthma combined with inhaling smoke et cetera. The pack of three's going in the first aid box.

Allergy Results

I saw my G.P. yesterday. The results of the allergy tests are: pets - NO, dust mites - YES. I'll be vacuming the front of the house (my end, where all the carpeting is) later today. Yesterday I also bought a set of mattress and pillow protectors and they'll be going on today as well.

The verdict on the Buffy movie

Yaken from TVFix:

Will the stars of the cult series Buffy the Vampire Slayer ever reunite for a big-screen movie? Don't get your hopes up: series creator and geek hero Joss Whedon has personally killed off the long-standing rumours.

"There's not going to be [a movie]," said Whedon, according to iF magazine. "I mean, I think it probably won't happen. That's my guess."

Whedon explained that the main barrier to a Buffy movie is that no film studio has ever been interested in financing it. "Until someone who has millions and billions of dollars asks me [if I want to make the film], the answer is pretty much the same."

Rumours of a Buffy movie began circulating almost as soon as the series ended in 2003. Since then the cast of the series, including leading lady Sarah Michelle Gellar, have revealed similar feelings about the film: they'd love to do it, but doubt it will ever happen.

But Whedon's fans have plenty of other projects to look forward to: in addition to his upcoming drama Dollhouse, starring Buffy's Eliza Dushku and Battlestar Galactica's Tahmoh Penikett, Whedon is also keen on producing more of his 2008 web series Dr Horrible.

Nancy Gibbs Essay on Valentine's day

SBS in Australia show the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer. Anyway today's edition had an essay by Nancy Gibbs on Valentine's day,. I thought she was spot on, but if you missed it you can hear it again on their essays page, or by direct link to an MP3.

In particular I liked these two points:

"...my main frustration is that Valentine's day only pretends to celebrate what we like about love while more often undermining it..."

"...love should fizz without champagne, should grow in hard soil. The minute its expression feels like a duty, it's lost its bearings."

 

The Weather

It's been coolish and nice today. No sign of thunderstorms yet, as forecast. I've had fun finishing web comic pages. Tomorrow is a clean-up catch-up day.

The only sad thing about today is hearing that the death toll in Victoria is now over 150.