Fall 2014 – not much happening at all. Wore my woolly hat for the first time today.
1 gig – Future of the Left. Was good… the crowd banter didn’t sound particularly authentic, having seen them before. But bass guitarist crowd-surfing was pretty sweet.
And that was pretty much it. The only other events of note were actually not events, but confirmation/portents of events to come…
- Got some tickets to the Rugby World Cup for next year, innit. In fact, I was allocated all the tickets I applied for in the ballot, except the final. Which may have been a blessing, I can’t remember how much that one was… but not cheap. Anyway – I’ve got NZ vs Namibia (at the Olympic Stadium, so I get to watch a farce/thrashing and finally visit the Olympic village/stadium), NZ vs Argentina (at Wembley, will be first time at Wembley Stadium), the Quarter-Final that NZ should be in (at Millenium Stadium on a weekend, so will finally visit Cardiff), and the Semi-Final that NZ should be in (at Twickenham, so convenient). And, I’m really hoping my ticket allocation isn’t some terrible omen of NZ’s progress (or lack thereof).
- Gigs booked for next year, not many, just 2 so far: Ryan Adams, and Public Service Broadcasting.
- I’m soon going to try my hand at being a teacher, or a presenter, or something. Going to India, going to do some presentations on how people should do their job. It’s not even teaching people to do my job… it’s actually teaching people how to do the job they already have. A job that I don’t do. All in all – should be interesting.
- And, the cherry I requested before agreeing to do the above – a quick side-trip to New Zealand, while I’m in the area. Booked some flights today, so unless things at work change (I’ve booked tickets based on unofficial confirmation that things are happening):
- arrive in Auckland on afternoon of 14th December
- leave Auckland in wee hours of 11th January (dinner in Auckland on the 10th, anybody?)
- As soon as I’m in NZ, I think I’ll be paying off my student loan. It was nice while it lasted, but it’s just one more piece of paperwork I’d be best rid of.
- Very close to hitting the mark on the Adventurer, where half the miles on the odometer are ‘mine’. There were only 11,000 miles on the clock when I bought it – over its 16 years of use. In my 16 months or so… very very close to another 11,000 miles. But, unless next weekend is clear (socially… I’m tempted to take it out even if wet to hit the milestone), doesn’t look like I’ll make it this year, dammit.