RSS SOS

Like most of us who hang out a bit on the internet, I read blogs (possibly too many blogs but that's another post altogether).

I don't use any sort of blog aggregator (basically, I cannot be bothered learning how to use one and setting it up etc etc). However I do love my RSS feeds and have the very low tech solution of when a blog I read regularly has a feed, I save the link to the feed in a folder in my bookmarks menu. So when I open the bookmarks menu and there are new posts it says something like:

Blogs I like (3) to let me know there are 3 new posts to the feeds. Open up the folder and each blog name has the number of new posts next to it if it has any ie:

Blog A (1) Simple. Who needs an aggregator, right?

Except, er, lately my RSS feeds seem to be toying with the laws of mathmatics. I've noticed a couple of times that when I've read all the blogs with new posts, the folder will still insist that there are Blogs I like (1) even though none of the blogs have any new posts. Which I figured was just an occasional glitch in the browser clearing the feed or something. Until I came home to day to discover that apparently my RSS has gone for broke and invented some entirely new system of mathematics altogether.

I opened the bookmarks menu to see "Blogs I like (23)". Hmmm, thinks I, that seems like a lot of posts for one day (I don't have heaps of blogs in this folder and those I do, I often read during breakfast as lots of them are written by people who live in places where it is daytime while I sleep and post then). So I go in and see something like.

Blog A (1)
Blog B (1)
Blog C (5)
Blogs E - N, say had 11 between them. So that adds up to 18, not 23. I thought maybe Blog C was being weird so opened it up to read it and clear the RSS count. The Blogs I like figure dropped to 17 (which you will note is not what 23 - 5 equals). Worse still, Blog C still said Blog C (5). So I click on Blog C again to see if it will clear. Blogs I like total becomes 15 (17 - 5 equals 12 last time I checked). Blog C still insists it has 5 posts. So I read a couple more of the blogs and the Blogs I like number dropped to 10. Which was then less than the total of what the individual blogs said. The math, they no like it. I know how they feel. As someone who often works with numbers in the day job, I can relate to the "math, I no like it" vibe. But that doesn't change the fact that 1 + 1 = 2. Something appears to be rotten in the state of RSS (or maybe rotten in the state of Safari). As I type, Blog C is still insisting it has five new articles despite being opened several times, all the other blogs say they have none and the Blogs I like insists that 2 is the correct count. Maybe it's using the same math that the financial systems has been relying on. Oy.

I think all this adds up to it's time to have some dinner and a glass of wine while we put the browser in the naughty corner and threaten it with remedial arithmetic. Maybe it's time to work out that whole aggregator thing after all....

Vale

Paul Newman has left us at the age of 83. I remember seeing The Sting and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid when I was younger and being pretty taken with both Paul and Robert Redford. And I've liked them both ever since. Paul was a great actor, had gorgeous blue eyes, a long and happy marriage in Hollywood, followed his passions and gave away lots of money to good causes. That's a good life though I'm sad it's over.

Vale Mr Newman.

Excursion

Well the week has sped by in a blur of "you were sick last week and missed work and now you have even MORE work to do" at the day job and the inevitable, "yes I was sick last week and pushing it this week will make me sick again" dragging out the virus thing. Lots of early nights to try and get enough sleep given it's been cough central.

Lots of thinking about the books but not much writing. I need to get the first act of Wolf 2 moving a bit faster and have the antag more active. I have an idea about that but will mean re-writing a chunk. So there may be much writer hermit Mel going on while we figure this stuff out. Having never attempted book 2 in a series before (I've written short contemps with characters that appeared in other wips but that's a whole stand alone plot and everything in the other book was always pretty much wrapped up apart from the tension between the new couple for book two) it's a bit of a learning curve to get the pace and balance of new threads/old threads/what's happening/what's happened/what will happen right.

So before being hermit Mel, we went on an excursion to see the Art Deco exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria which was fabulous. Full of beautiful things. I love a lot of Art Deco stuff (and they had some truly beautiful '30's evening gowns and jewellery). So it was a feast for the eyes. If you're in Melbourne and like Art Deco, it's only on for another week but is well worth a visit.

But the girls kind of latched onto this:



The one I saw today was a little different, bronze not black and you couldn't see the face so much (maybe it was turned around) but it was all sleek and intriguing and the little pointy ears are otherwordly and the girls went "oooh". It's called 'Departing Night'. Which is a muse jumpstarting phrase if ever I heard one. So a little excursion out of the ordinary was well worth it. Unintentional artist dates are good. Note to self: Please remember this.

Friday thirteen

Just because I was listening to the radio and something that made me kind of nostalgic came on.

Thirteen of my favourite artists or albums (er Rock/Pop/Country category):

U2: The Joshua Tree (for the sense of joy and exaltation in the music that just makes me happy) and Achtung Baby (for memories of waiting in Bourke Street at midnight to buy it then listening late and night and falling in love with Bono's voice all over again)

Sunday Mornings and Saturday Nights: Matraca Berg (an album I listened to over and over writing one of my books and still don't get tired of)

Melissa Etheridge: Melissa Etheridge/Yes I am

Barenaked Ladies: Gordon. Goes from silliness to heartbreak all with gorgeous harmonies and contains "If I had a million dollars" a song to be sung with a friend whilst drinking margaritas on warm summer nights.

The Getaway: Chris de Burgh (I blame my mother but he does write great story songs which just happen to hook me in)

Abba: Abba Gold (I'll pick this as it hits most of the high spots. Because I'm an child of seventies Australia, that's why)

Pink: I'm Not Dead (for releasing an album that is spot on for one of my heroines and for being a generally fabulous in your face rock chick)

Robbie Williams: The Ego has Landed/Escapology (for a fabulous voice and being ridiculously charismatic live aka HOT)

Wham: The Final (because I was also a teenager in the eighties)

Mary Chapin Carpenter: Stones in the Road (more beautiful story songs)

The Dixie Chicks: Taking the Long Way Round (for standing up and generally rocking)

Chris Isaak: Wicked Games/Always Got Tonight (for smooth sexy heartbreak and being, you know, generally hilarious and easy on the eyes)

Damien Rice: O (for not so smooth heartbreak)

And this list could go way over thirteen so I'll just stop there...

Or maybe I could add Thirteen of my favourite albums (Instrumental/Electronic/Soundtrack category):

Adam Hurst: Passages (Haunting cello over a drone)

Moby: Play

Lisa Gerrard: The Mirror Pool (Mostly for Sanvean but it's all beautiful)

Rodrigo y Gabriela: Rodrigo y Gabriela (Brilliant spanish guitar)

Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End (More book crack for my werewolves)

Gotan Project: La Revancha del Tango (Sexy tango electronica)

Ottmar Liebert: Winter Rose (Christmas with guitar)

Buffy the Musical (Well, because Joss is God and can write musicals)

Delerium: Archives Vol 1 (Book crack for witches)

The Last of the Mohicans (First film soundtrack I ever fell in love with)

Local Hero (Moody celtic as done by Mark Knopfler)

The Lion King (Because everyone just can't wait to be king and needs to remember Hakuna Matata lol)

Rent: Original Broadway recording and the movie. (It needs no reason, it's just great)

Stationery lust part 2

This evening the girls decided that they might consent to send up a little info if I wrote longhand. And, more specifically, long hand on blue paper with black ink. Or, white paper with something turquoisey. Preferably a fountain pen. I don't even OWN a fountain pen. My favourite writing pens when the girls demand longhand are either the good old Bic Velocity if I'm in a ballpoint mood or the Uniball Signo Fine Blue if I want gel ink. I've only ever had one fountain pen which was a gift and never really worked well, so I gave up on it. But I duly googled cheap fountain pens and found that there are a few brands of disposable ones if you don't want to shell out too much.

I came across the Pilot Varsity, which in the states (once again, this is a grrr, why do I live in Australia moment) comes in blue, black, purple, pink and a gorgeous looking turquoise. The Australian equivalent (which seems to be mostly available online anyway) comes in boring blue, black and red. Le sigh. Officeworks yielded one black Pentel disposable which is okay, but it has a plastic nib, so not great. So I gave in and bought myself a Lamy Safari (Blue, of course) with some aqua-ish ink as a birthday present which is nice but I'm still lusting after the Varsity's...given that they'd let me change ink colours at less expense than acquiring more Lamy's (which are almost twice as much here as in the US, so double grrrr). So now I'm googling to find who does international shipping. On cheap pens. The girls must be crazy.