Herman J. Theijsmeijer, R.I.P.

I am very sad tonight.

I took my little Cate-cat in to the Avon Pet Hospital yesterday for her annual shots and check-up (she's A-1 -- although i can't believe it's a year since i adopted her) and learned that Dr Theijsmeijer -- my vet for over twenty years and through six cats -- had passed away in June, of pancreatic cancer. That is he, to the left, there.  It was ... a helluva shock.  He was such a good man and there aren't so many of those around these days that we can afford to lose one (which could explain the tears welling up in my eyes as i type this).  I only just saw him, in April maybe, at the beer store.  (Yes, me at the beer store, that's stretching credulity innit.)  But he seemed perfectly fine.

He was a little eccentric, maybe -- but that made me like him even more.

The new vet, Dr Maal (sp?) seems really nice, but she's not Herman

Tonight's Dinner

Finch & chimps, of course!

Working For A Living

Quote of the day: Mikhail Bulgakov: He looked slightly over forty. Crooked sort of mouth. Clean-shaven. Dark hair. Right eye black, left eye for some reason green. Eyebrows black, but one higher than the other.  In short -- a foreigner

Oh,  i am so glad i have tomorrow off.  I just did twelve days straight and it's been damned hot in that kitchen (as you know, i, for my sins, make my living as a cook -- when it's 30° outside it's generally ten degrees warmer in the kitchen and i go outside to cool down).


But here's something that has annoyed me for a long time about my job.  It's policy that if one works seven days in a single calendar week, i.e. Monday - Sunday, one is paid time-and-a-half on the seventh day.  But i've just worked twelve days -- six last week, six this week, and what do i get extra? Nada, rien and  zilch. 


Besides hypertension and cirrhosis, of course....

World Cup Fever 7 (And That's It, Then)

Quote of The Day: Anthony Powell -- I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm actively enjoying what I'm doing at the moment -- but then how little of one's life has been actively enjoyable. At the same time, what I'm doing is what I've chosen to do.  Even what I want to do, if it comes to that.  Up to a point it suits me.

 Well, it's all over for another four years, and my teams have all lost, but well done Spain.  I was wrong every time, and "Paul Die Kraken" was right....  I have been outdone by an octopus

World Cup Fever 6

Ohh, what a shock, Germany lost today :o(

So my money is now on Holland, land of windmills and tulips....

Ozzy Vs Slash Part 2

And so i did in fact buy Slash's CD -- full of trepidation and thinking that it could well be another $14.99 down the toilet -- an entire CD bought for only one song, but guess what, it's terrific!

I mean, let's face it, i basically never liked Guns 'N' Roses, which is where Slash cut his teeth.  Who'd 'a thunk he would have made such a superb album of really brilliant guitar playing? 

He doesn't sing himself, of course, but he has roped in a pretty impressive collection of guest singers -- including Ozzy himself (see previous post), Lemmy, Fergie, plus a few who actually have two names, like Ian Astbury, Dave Grohl and, er, Iggy Pop.

An excellent album, it could well wind up in my "best of 2010" list.