I'm sorry, that was a horrible way to die. Flattened with no warning and no chance to say farewell to your loved ones. I hope it was painless and quick for you, squashed under the tape dispenser. I will always remember that you were large and had a white tail.

Blogging about my favourite toy over on the craft blog. It's totally valid. Lego is a medium for art.

Brickvention - Melbourne - this Sunday. See you there!

I am trying to write a brief bio to accompany a short story publication. I think it must be the hardest thing in the world.

Despite a horrendous cold which is leaving me sleepless, achey and blocked, there are several things which are making me happy today.

• The Atheist Bus Campaign
• Totally clean loungeroom. I may never let anyone in it again. Or perhaps I could put newspaper on the floor. If I had any.
• Freshly baked bread from the bread machine.
• Sooooup for dinner tonight.
• The idea I had at 3.30 this morning that continues to not suck.
• Browsing vintage bags on Etsy.

In 2009 I will

• Co-run Continuum 5. It will be great. It will be in August. Expect to hear a lot more about it on this blog and elsewhere.
• Read more fiction. Even if I have begun with a William Shatner Star Trek novel. It's terrifically awful!
• Finish more of what I start. Does not apply to eating.
• Consume fewer food additives which I am hoping will help me to
• Be less grumpy.
• Blog more.
• Watch far less television. I was nearly going to vow not to watch any, but I really don't watch that much. I think I'm just going to cut out everything broadcast on commercial tv. Which I think was only So You Think You Can Dance and the Antiques Roadshow (it's one of Abbey's favourites, honest!) last year. And leaves just Spicks and Specks and the occasional Top Gear and Food Safari episodes. They won't kill me. Of course it still leaves television acquired by, um, other methods, but I'm going to be stricter about that too. No more completing series "just because". They have to be good!

So I'm looking forward to this year. Abbey goes to prep, which she is very excited about, and we're off on an overseas jaunt later in the year too. I hope you are all going to have a fantastic 2009. Pretty sure I am.
Happy New Year!

In 2008, I

• Won a bunch of competitions. Books; tickets to see Edward Scissorhands (the, I kid you not,"dance-ical". It was dreadful.); and best of all, a year's supply of cat food.
• Had my first paid publication, uh, published in Midnight Echo.
• Read 65 books. I was aiming to read my height in books, but fell 11.5 books short. This is how I established my book-height.
  The best one I read for the year would have to be Margo Lanagan's Tender Morsels. Amazing stuff. I heart it a lot. Close second would be The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. The best non-fic read in 2008 was What's Happening to Our Girls? by Maggie Hamilton. I was made nauseous by this book and had to put it down at regular intervals for some deep breathing. I don't think it's just because I have a young daughter either. It's just so different to my experiences 20 years ago.
• Watched 91 films. I was casually aiming for 100, but not bothered at all by not getting there. A lot of those 91 I had seen before, and saw repeatedly. Best of the year, Juno, followed closely by Sweeney Todd.
• Began reviewing episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer with Alisa at Shiny.
• Wrote no book reviews (for shame!).
• Began craft blogging at Cobalt and Cochineal. Hah! You didn't know that did you? Well, it's only new and I'm still figuring out what to put there. Apart from all the stuff I make and then give away but don't want to forget about.
• Was grumpy a lot.