When the Cheshire emerges...

I didn't put last week's in my blog because it was stitched up much too late. You can view that here for news including week one of the Sochi Winter Olympics.

I had a short week of sorts. Monday and Tuesday were taken up by training for our new system (where we upload stories, etc - and it was much more draining and difficult than I expected), Wednesday I had off but it didn't feel like it, and now it's the end of Friday. But there have been things nagging at me for some time. Out with it.

1: Air conditioner/real estate dramas.
Newly-installed machine stops working on me a couple of times. I get it going with shaking of cords etc (but don't know if it's the actual air-con cord or connecting cords that are the potential problem). The worst thing of this is first time around I called my real estate agent and left a message - after attempting to visit in person - and she doesn't call back. POOR FORM.

2: The Sochi on Ten social media person.
I got up at 3am to watch David Morris take silver in the men's aerials during Sochi 2014 coverage. Loving the Winter Olympics. I post a pic from the TV on to my Instagram account, tag @sochionten - and then they crop and repost my pic to take it as their own. Now, being half asleep I joked to say what a coincidence we have the same photo - but not to acknowledge the repost was quite unprofessional. And just lazy. POOR FORM.
*Yo, by the way: THIS is how reposts are done.

3: I can't embed Instagram images to show you on my blog.
I don't know why the code doesn't work. They're fabulous. The best I can do is links, which sucks.

4. Flies are getting in sneaky-like.
Again, don't know why or how. It's always when I don't keep my balcony doors open that I notice it, which is the worst.

5: Thursday.
See last night's post.

6. Stomach bloating.
No, it's not that time of the month. I think I'm bloating from water retention because of the climate's humidity or something. I look like I'm pretty much pregnant. Feels like it anyway.

7. Unposted articles.
I was in good form having written two Movie Mezzanine articles in two or three days. But they weren't good enough to post apparently. One of which was timely and I'd written going past midnight.

One thing I'm NOT annoyed about.
It's Friday night! Working tomorrow, but it's thankfully the end of what's felt like a very long week.

Where do I begin?

Let's start from the very beginning in the quickest of ways.

I am now the education reporter from my paper. As well as education and general stories for said paper, I write up a fortnightly double-page spread on what public schools are getting up to and also an advertising feature every month or two (as guided by the education department).

Today and tomorrow were always going to be busy days. Because the way things happened, my turnaround for the fortnightly feature is basically today and tomorrow. The first of my ad features was also due to be done by today so it could be laid out ready for tomorrow's edition.

***

I'm fine with getting into the office at the start of the day, if not a few minutes late. I even got a new surprise.

I get into work aiming to deal with the feature first. Email everything to the sub editor I was told to go through, words and pictures. She comes in having no idea what it is. Then the designers that come out with the fancy banner headings and that also had no idea. Neither knew because advertising hadn't told them about it (we didn't sell any ads with them so they didn't think it was necessary to notify other departments).

Talk about an office-wide miscommunication. Then about 4.15pm I get called by advertising asking about what headings to put with each story. Which of course is a sub-editor's job and not mine (anymore). But I found out without the notice, said sub wasn't touching it and had just passed it through. So the head of advertising pretty much did that and made other corrections while I sat there wondering how it had even made it to that point.

***

In between this, I begin sorting out things for the fortnightly feature. Straight up, I almost get told it's not happening (which would've been third week running, it's been a rocky start to the year) - but that gets sorted very quickly. Then I get notified instead of six stories where photos would be provided (as I requested because of the short turnaround), I'm to do two stories and a feature. Two of those where I'd have to organise photos and go out on the job. I must stress, this is usually not a problem. But today it was.

For the feature story, I get the call to confirm a time just as I was about to step out for lunch. At a pub. As part of a meeting. I'd made sure I couldn't miss it - until this call. Instead it was left by the wayside as I had to make my way - in my own car, because I was meeting my photographer there - halfway across Darwin to the primary school right near where I first lived. And I managed to miss two turns on my way.

That went OK in the end, I got food at 3.15pm or so and went back. Eventually, I find out the second photo story is getting rescheduled on me - from 9.30am which was perfect, to 12pm. Now, this change means I miss out on another meeting, a union meeting that we've waited an age for, completely. It was a case of knowing she was going to say that time even before I picked up the phone.

To end the day were a couple of small notable things. Firstly, I received a reply to my progress update saying 'I hope it hasn't been too much drama'. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. And then I overhear story pitches regarding education stuff that I should really be doing, not knowing how they got that information; they're not a focus of other rounds and I feel like a fraud because that should be me finding that stuff out. Makes me angry.

So I said (in my head, I don't want to be rude) 'screw this shit' and walked out. I know today's event were not really any one individual's fault, so I can only blame Mercury retrograde. Of course. How else would all this happen in a single day?

At least I got to relax with an after-work Bodybalance session. Tomorrow's another day. Hopefully a more sane one.

There is such a thing. Almost. It's always a happy birthday to my cousin Stefan at least.

But for someone who has never had to care much for it, I've had a lot to talk about on Valentine's Day the last few years.

Today is also Library Lovers' Day for those Aussies who didn't know, which I wrote about two years ago, and eluded to last year.

This year? I actually have plans!

Drumroll...

I will be attending the (bookends of the) NT's Board of Studies education awards, interviewing the high achievers of 2013 who have been honoured by the government!

Geez, people should be grateful I'm a singleton.

***

In other news of today, the CSIRO had some huge arrow from that angel guy stuck up its backside. My mistake of putting them on a Twitter education feed meant that all day I was bombarded with shit like this:

Watch: Why do you love science? 12 of our summer students declare their love: http://t.co/zB5GIEeXE2 #ValentinesDay #sciencelove ^SL
— CSIRO (@CSIROnews) February 14, 2014

No more. There's work to be done.

A bit late, but it exists!

A few things today:

1. I got THIS in my letterbox... and then AGAIN stuck in my door.

The unit directly above mine is having damaged floor tiles removed among renovations. Expected to take two weeks. While it's only during the day, weekends/late mornings will be a bitch. Great.

2. I had to laugh at this.

While the rest of Australia experiences a Man Drought... is the #NorthernTerritory experiencing a Woman Drought? @MarkMcCrindle ON AIR.
— 105.7 ABC Darwin (@1057darwin) February 12, 2014

So social demographer Mark McCrindle reckons there's a huge portion of men to every woman in Darwin. We knew this already, but there's definitely not a woman drought. Otherwise I would've been picked up at least once whenever I've gone out. And I can safely say that's not happened. Ultimately it means I wouldn't be single. And I can safely say that's not a reality either. This may come to the disappointment of some, I know, but it is what it is.

3. How frickin' awesome is the Winter Olympics? Really? Particularly the snowboard halfpipe.



I had to go to bed by the time the final came around, but was surprised to hear that Shaun White was outdone. Still amazing to watch (I can't believe how much air he gets, it's incredible) - this has been one of the better events of Sochi 2014 for me so far. Looking forward to seeing how Torah Bright and the other girls go tonight!

My news for the week!

I want to share an article I read earlier today. It is genius; it involves Friends and the words of an eight-year-old boy.

Discover great thinking from America's youth.

(Warning: use the arrows to flick through the pages/pictures, if you click like I did you manage to miss a pivotal moment).