Last night I went to Science Museum Lates - it was so cool! We saw a comedy duo called Punk Science who waved apples on strings and told us that the space stations have fans in them so when you sleep CO2 doesn't stay by your face and SUFFOCATE YOU TO DEATH!

We also played with magnets and learnt that I'm not very good at building circuits. It is good that I hang around with geeks. :)

Work is crazy-busy. I'm never going on holiday again - the wash-up when I get back is just too messy.

Finally, here is a quiz swiped from guiliaine. It's about Ted. *happy smiles*

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen?

The Wire. Or Trawlermen or Ice Road Truckers. (So sweet.)

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad?

Chips Blue cheese.

3. What's one food he doesn't like?

Sushi. It's a shame, 'cause it's healthy and I like it. Maybe if it came with chips ...

4. You go out to eat and have a drink. What does he order?

It depends on what we're eating, of course.

5. Where did he go to high school?

In Surrey, I'm afraid.

6. What size shoe does he wear?

Clown shoes 11

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be?

History books. Or maybe Transformers.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich?

A hot chicken and Swiss cheese from Heroes in Oxford

9. What would he eat every day if he could?

Curry. And chocolate/sweeties, which he does. He thinks I don't know about the latter, but I do, oh ho ho ho, I do.

10. What is his favorite cereal?

Porridge

11. What would he never wear?

Flip flops in London.

12. What is his favorite sports team?

The England cricket team

13. Who did he vote for politics?

Left wingers and Greens. Also, anyone to keep the Tories out.

14. Who is his best friend?

Stevie! :D

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do?

Lose my passport just before we go on holiday. (Every year.)

16. What is his heritage?

Scottish and English and also monkey.

17. What is his favorite color?

I have no idea. Whatever I'm wearing?

18. What is his habit?

When his hair gets a bit long, he starts playing with it as if he's Stan Laurel. Aiieee!

19. What is he proud of?

His books. And me, I think.

20. Lastly, do you think he will read this?

Hahaha, no.

So for reasons that are too complicated to go into here, Ted and I are, essentially, homeless for a month or so, in that we have nowhere to live close enough to work that's big enough for both of us.

Ted's solved this by arranging to work in various archives around the country - something he needed to do anyway. This week, he's in Norwich, and as I had quite a bit of writing to do, I've packed it up and brought it here for a couple of days.

I got here late last night. They say there's no pleasure without pain, and ONE trains certainly provided that - but I won't bore you with it. Anyway, we're staying in a sweetly swish hotel, we had a delightful Thai meal, and last night I actually slept properly.

This morning, I hit the zone. The coders amongst you will know what I'm talking about - that wonderful state of semi-consciousness that descends when your code is flowing, all standards-compliant and in the most elegant way, onto the screen. Well, today, I felt truly in the verbal zone. Little bounces of happiness fired off in my brain as it hopped about from thought to thought. The words were my toys. As I plucked them from the ether and placed each of them with tenderness on the page to form sentences, it felt as if I was chanelling the joy of verbal play - weaving them together into a sort of silver thread, like the stuff Dumbledore keeps in his Pensieve.

(Of course, when I look at it tomorrow, I'll probably wince, hack it all about and give it a good kicking, but for now, I shall enjoy feeling fulfilled. It helps to get out of the office sometimes.)

At lunchtime, I nipped into the centre of Norwich. What a delightful place! It's pretty, with proper little shops selling all sorts of precious things and tasty snackerels. Everywhere smells of gingerbread. I tracked down a dressed crab, a lime and some green leaves for my lunch, brought them back and compiled them into a salad. (Note to others - if you're trying to get the juice out of a lime with only a teaspoon to help, I'd advise attacking it with the end, not the bowl, of the spoon, then wiggling the handle around inside to mess it up - works a treat.)

And - AND - in the market, they also had Victoria plums and woodnuts (which I call cobnuts) so I have those to snack on this afternoon. Yummy!

There was also an incident involving a second-hand bookshop, but I shall tell you that separately after I've done some more work.

I wasn't sure where to start this post, so here's a big old splurge.

Sussex
It's wonderful being here. Already, I feel so much more at peace. Things aren't perfect, of course, but deep inside, I absolutely know I've done the right thing, and that's wonderful. I'm so happy to be home.

Work
Work has been - surprising. A friend put me in touch with a friend, who liked my work, and the upshot is ... I'm now freelancing as an online writer for CNN. I'm quite in shock about it - it comes pretty close to "my most dream job ever". Heaven knows how long it'll last, but right now, it's fun (actually, it's wonderful just to come into work in the morning, sit at a PC and write for 8 hours), I'm earning and the people I work with seem really *really* nice. I hope it lasts - I've been working really hard to give it my best shot - the pace is certainly faster than in Liverpool (this is a good thing). It's brought my passion back - I feel so enthusiastic and excited about what I'm doing - and they give us free apples. Apples!

Travel
It's so strange - I was dreading my commute, and it is tiring, certainly (3 hours a day, maybe a little more) but my favourite time of the day is when I'm on the big train (which goes from Sussex to London, as opposed to the Underground) looking out of the window at the sun rising over the Sussex hills. I feel peace and quiet washing over me, and my brain has space to wander. The weather here has been very fine, and I feel so lucky to be in this beautiful land.

On the downside, I do look a bit of a twat on the train, because the low sun is really bright and flickery through the trees, and that's one of the things which in the past triggered my migraines. I haven't had one for many years, but the light does make me feel uncomfortable, which means I have to wear sunglasses en route, and I feel like a right wally. (Especially when the train goes through a tunnel.)

Even the tube's not bad, as it's only 2 stops, and at the times I travel I can usually even get a seat.

(What I could do without, though, is the people who smell of booze at 8am. Eww, people! This is not good! Yuck!)

Money
Ouch! Well, I'm earning a bit less than in Liverpool, and everything here is more expensive. My travel costs are burning a large hole in my pocket, and gosh, I'm going to have to get used to southern prices. I wouldn't trade back for the world, though ^_^

Internet
The most frustrating thing, though, is that I'm seriously struggling to find time to spend online. I'm just about (only just) keeping up with emails, and reading LJ, but when I want to post to LJ - mainly when I'm on the train - I can't, and in the evenings, I'm too tired. I've been looking at mobile internet options but they don't seem to be quite what I want yet. Hurry up, Orange! Sort yourselves out with some decent plans and kit!

In the meantime, are there any plans to bring voice posting to the UK? *plaintive wail*

Music
I can't wait to pick up the new Killers album! Meep! I haven't yet picked up the new Scissor Sisters' - but I'm hoping to pinch that off someone at some point.

Also, I have revised my opinion of the new Timberlake single - I love it, even if the lyrics are a bit cringey.

Minki
Minki is now with us, and settling in (trans. "making friends with my folks' cats.") There's been lots of growling and hissing, but relatively little claw-on-claw action. We shall see how things progress ...

So, I don’t often write about my work here, but last week I was at a conference and it was great. If you’re interested in building websites, read on – otherwise you probably want to skip this.

( @media2006 )

( and now hear about why writing up this entry nearly cost me my LIFE OMG! )