h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Ahhhh, and enough sage wisdom to recognize this, eh?

Sounds like you've been brushing up on your Eastern Philosophy...Terry Pratchet spoofs the reverence held for the East where the old sage quotes the cockney ladylady of his youth to his apprentice...never rains but it pours etc...I will get the title for you if you like

If you would? I keep hearing of Pratchett from so many corners, but am sure I've never read any. So, with perhaps a few titles, a couple of gift certificates from Christmas .... hmmmmm.

Who knows? The sages, mystics and monks might have something? They've certainly had enough years to ponder their notions and perspectives, eh? As well as navels, pebbles and who-knows-what-else.

Just FYI, though raised Catholic and an altar boy, I had too many questions to suit the priest. Since, I have made a point of reading bits of as many faiths, religions and traditions as I can find. Economically, of course.

I come from the other end and reached the same ground...raised an athesist I now trying to understand if I'm missing something ...the eastern faiths seem to have up-front, practical philosophies and spirituality

The book is the Thief of Time...Pratchett has a knack at twisting language and other ideas that strike a chord with me...I find them dangerous though, difficult to put down and the suppressed sniggers late at night do not aid the domestic situation

I love the sardonic, the satirical and the sometimes simply warped. I've enjoyed every Kurt Vonnegut book I've encountered, as well as John Irving. Obviously Douglas Adams as well, else I wouldn't be here, eh?

I'm a bit later on line today, a swing past the lawyer. Time to re-vamp our Wills and such, what with my daughter being married and a Mom now as well. Just an un-nerving things, pointing out how much I am worth to the missus, DISCEASED.

Yes, wills, life insurance and salary protection make the rat poison just a little too tempting thankfully my sister-in-law is a para-legal and insists the family's matters are always in order

Read a couple of John Irving and like the surreal atmosphere he creates, haven't read Vonnegut, always meant too...so many books so little time

We were both military and it was almost (but not quite) mandatory. There being a few inherent risks to the job, eh? So we've both kept something or other current and legal. There are not enough benefits to either for an interesting "mushroom" omellette, but enough to deal with needs. And then some.

You should be rapidly approaching the end of your work week. Have anything fun or interesting in mind for the week-end?

Son's school volleyball, replacing a very awkwardly place fan-belt on the ride-on mower...then hopefully mowing the horses look after a lot but when I can convince Annie they don't eat the tall dry stuff when there is more than enough short juicy stuff, I like to use the mower to tidy

Sunday is a family BBQ with relatives from our west coast, Perth. They are a young family and I gather Joanne has post natal emotional problems so the older cousin (Annie and her sister) are rallying round


And yourself?

From the looks outside, more snow to re-locate. No yard work here for atleast another 2 months, and then the refreshing of flower beds for the missus, some tree limbing, the usual spring "sprucing up". But otherwise, nothing that I am yet aware of. I'm sure something will arise but Saturday morning.

The family BBQ sounds like a fine thing, even if for somewhat less-than-happy reasons. My family is spread across this country, and never been particularly close anyway.

I often wonder what people who aren't handy do on the weekend...a pal of mine is a banker and boasts that he doesn't have as much as a hammer in the house I often return to work thinking "that fence etc I built looks good"...set me up for the week

with the space and aspect we have, BBQs are nice, good food, conversation and cold drinks and always the dogs' and horses' pranks to laugh at...and mostly all the in-laws behave mine and Annie's...I saw you bragging about your in-laws

That's something I've not been able to explain to some people. The "why" of wanting to own a home, even if it's just a small something. Everything you fix, change, improve, ... you see it and know that YOU did that. A renter sees fading paint or wall-paper, they're on the phone to the superintendent. The first day we had the keys for the house, I went straight to this room, and neatly punched a small hole in the wall. Right under the light switch. The missus asked "why?" A simple answer, ... because I can!

never thought of it that way but yes, it is nice have control of your own living space even if only to "neatly punched a small hole in the wall" but also to think something you have created might last the test of time and thought well of by the next owners

This place was built quite sound, and sensibly laid out. Probably why it appealed to us right away. So now, we are re-doing floors, walls and such in materials and colours more to our liking. And the yard is taking on character and detail that we like. None of it done on-the-cheap, but with quality materials that WILL stand the test of time, wear and tear. Simply, we enjoy it. You'd maybe chuckle if you saw the size of it compared to yours, but it does suit us quite nicely.

And actually, the hole is still there, ... I used an automatic center-punch that I carry in my jacket. A left-over from volunteer fire-fighter times. It'll cleanly take out any car window, quickly, at minimal risk to who-ever is still inside.

Annie and I are the same...my father-in-law complains when I use timber rather than composites, he thinks it as a waste of money (and does mind expressing himself ) but I prefer to know that my work looks good because it looks permanent as much as design

Laminate flooring seems to be a popular and easy thing these days. Looks "almost" like hardwood. So guess what I put down for the dining room? It took a lot more hours, but it WILL take a beating for years.

My father-in-law thought I was nuts, until he saw it. Then grudgingly admitted it was the right thing.

ceramic tiles versus vinyl and my sister-in-laws siletto heels tongue and groove hardwood flooring was the standard in homes in the 40's and 50's - in our three previous homes we have removed the living area carpet, polished the floors and had rugs - especially with little ones - usually it's one of the Austalian hardwoods (we'd call them Australian Gums as their eucalytus) great colour and tough!!

Maple and oak are the longest enduring here, though pine is easier to work. Being somewhat softer. I like the hues and grain of maple, and so it is.

We did have a ceramic tile put down in the kitchen. One job I wouldn't tackle, figuring that with the wet-saw, I might waste a tile for every 3 or 4 cuts. And I wanted it properly levelled and mortared. So we paid a pro.

I've successfully tiled before but only small areas...our present home is quite long and we wanted quite a large tile from the dining room through the kitchen and the living room and down the hall, some 20m by 4m...we got a professional

we stayed in a B&B in the UK that was Tudor...oak beams and panelling...like rock...it is strange to be in a house that's stood longer than your country's been colonised

Our kitchen is smallish, about 3.5 x 4 metres. But with 3 entry-ways, various cupboards and a small "island" alonsidge the stove ... All of those finicky cuts and corners would have driven me mad. The chap that did it was done the main works in 5 or so hours, and grouted the next morning in under an hour. A fine job, very meticulous about precise spacings and level.

You do seem to have travelled about a bit. I've only ever been out of Canada once, for a 4-month training session in Florida. I have lived and worked in 4 of our provinces, and done some short spells in 2 others. Real world traveller, I am.

Annie was born in Britian...my father-in-law was a RAF tech who worked at the missile testing station here and decided to emigrate.

As newly-weds, Annie and I moved to the UK for a couple of years and travelled around the UK and Europe. I worked for a small telephone traffic survey company contracting mostly to the UK central government - MOD, Home Office, British Airways (got to stand in a stripped-down Concorde) etc.

On our way back to Australia, my brother and his wife were trying to start a craft business in Rimbey, Alberta. They were using the cast-off brass lubrication pipes from the oil-drilling outfits to make object d'art (lasted about 18 months). We stayed with them as slave labour Annie became a great polisher and I'm a dab hand on a lathe now...every so often my brother gets tired of teaching and tries light engineering again.

We made sure we saw as much as we could as we planned to have a family once we were home.

Our tiler was able to start from a single line running through the house...people still take pride in their work...just need to transfer that to the assembly lines.