Waking up is hard to do

Above: The University of Adelaide

Feeling ultra guilty at the moment as I've just discovered all those Australian Conservation Foundation emails that I've been procrastinating on reading for the past couple of weeks all point to 350.org (and urging the Opposition to make a decision on climate change). The 350.org day of action is Oct 24, this Saturday, when Sir Ass and I will be merrily making our way north to the Hunter Valley vineyards.

Not to mention that I'll be missing a slew of great bands like Fergus Brown and True Live. Still, I'm looking forward to going, which is part of the reason why I feel guilty.

Anyway so, Adelaide. Apart from having to wake up at 4.30am on Monday (barely three hours after I'd gone to bed) to catch a morning flight the trip was informative and useful. The conference was an interesting mix of presentations and keynote speakers (including Olympian Shane Gould and Reverend Tim Costello) as well as a lot of socialising. Seems I'm well networked so I found myself readily accepted into the project management microcosm.

This worked only too well on awards night. Had a pretty good time with the AIPM crew. Didn't get too drunk, just three glasses of wine with dinner. No prohibitions dancing to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones cover bands (singular? It was the same cover band, just two different sets), but I did have a guy called Logi ask for a dance and not let go until the end of the set (about 15 mins). Later on he gave me his business card and hugged me quite publicly. It's always the people I'm in no way, shape or form attracted to that do this. Such a shame.

Rob from AIPM was valiant and came to my rescue by inviting me to after-awards drinks at the hotel lobby where a bunch of people were already hanging out but by then I'd successfully despatched Logi and was gathering a crew to go there anyway. Had a couple of glasses of champagne with a few of the night owls but left at 2am as they were preparing to hit the casino. Had a warm bath and went to bed instead.

On the last day (Wednesday) took advantage of the 90-minute window in the schedule while there were workshops on to walk around the city a bit. The problem with conferences is that unless you take a day off either side of the conference to see the area, you may seriously see nothing but the airport, your hotel and the convention centre.

Unfortunately the weather had been craphouse all week - windy, cold and rainy - and my jaunt was no different so I only ended up doing a circuit of a few blocks. I did welcome the Coopers Alehouse at the airport, though - the nicest airport in Australia (that I've been to, anyway) - and the Coopers merchandise store.

But I was just so TIRED by the end of my time there I slept in the waiting lounge, on the plane and on the train home. It's because, other than when I was in my hotel room, I was 'on' all the time having to be alert, friendly, recognise many faces, ask pertinent questions, introduce myself etc.

It took me well into Saturday afternoon to recover. Had a pretty easy weekend. I did do some work (two articles = 3,000 words) but mostly it consisted of watching Austin Powers #1 on DVD, drinking litres of tea, reading magazines and visiting my parents.

Took Cityrail's new line to Beecroft via Macquarie (by the way, I don't think I've ranted here yet about the fact that this train does not stop at Waverton or Wollstonecraft for no other reason than Cityrail hates me, so I have to catch the train before it to St Leonards and change there to get to my parents'). The Macquarie tunnel exuded a strange construction smell, like new plaster or glue or something. More evidence that Cityrail is trying to kill me, any way it can.

The visit was fairly ho hum. Ate too much as usual: lunch, afternoon tea AND dinner. It's my mum's way of mothering. Also wrote a resume for her (she is going for non-nursing casual retail positions). I learnt that she has never written a resume before. When she began nursing she just called up, they asked her in for an interview and said 'when can you start?'. And she kept the job for 30 years. O the glory days!

Anyway, the funniest thing was that my parents don't have Microsoft Office, despite my dad's insistence that they do. What they have is 60-day trial software that has since expired, which meant I had to do my mum's resume in WordPad. Back to basics, no fancy formatting...

Yesterday was quite productive in the morning, then I went to an ASEAN trade briefing, which was tedious but necessary. But then I went and had a massage and promptly felt lazy. Damn these daylight saving mornings. Waking up is hard to do.