2006 as it ends and as it was - the best of everything before 2007 arrives

To start off, the Riversdale's had a blast and it's nearly all documented in photo form so pop over to Flickr and enjoy 2006 as much as we did: flickr.com.../2006/calendar

And for the rest of the world, it wasn't too ... ooh, hang on, just gotta go change a night time poo ... *phew*, so small, yet so stinky ... um, I'm referring to a child of mine and not a poo I created myself.
Anywho ... the rest of the world seemed to have done quite well this year (especially the every shrinking role of the current USA President in world events), but has ended on a 'low note' for Mr Brown but given all us white-middle-aged-males a chance to get funky for a reason (unless you're Mr Urban that is).

For all things science-y I never go passed the New Scientist magazine (it's never too techie for me but doesn't treat me like an idiot - something I find unusual and gratifying as my kids get older). They have produced 2006 reviews for human spaceflight, biology and medicine, tech, videos, environment and astronomy - all cracking reads linked to deeper detail.

It's also been the year of murders in NZ according to some and, having returned to it all, it does seem to have been quite a nasty wee time in Aotearoa ... maybe the weather was just too shite and made everyone go a wee bit mad.
I hope this sort of attitude prevails and we become far more easier on our fellow (wo)man inhabitants of this planet. A planet that seems to be in danger, has ex-Presidential candidates making films for but no-one seems to quite know what to do - do you, what do you actually do to help? How about supporting 'food miles', I certainly do despite its obvious negative $ effect for NZ. Oh, 'carbon neutrality' is another I'm keen to check out - anyone got any ideas on that?
(yes, I am an old hippy-type when it comes down to it. I'm even fairly well engaged with my feminine side if you want to know)

Didn't get to see many of this years 'best movies' (from any list you care to mention) - did love V for Vendetta though and will be buying it!


The New Year's resolutions will be similar to last years with the addition that I, like most New Zealander's, will fail in our attempt to get fitter ... or will I - 40 is the number of the birthday and somethings just have to be taken in hand at the half way stage! I will, however, pay off my major debts a darn sight faster than Britain has!


And so, 2007 ... will be a slow but relentless build-up and focus onto the September Rugby World Cup for most of NZ (whether you like it or not) - all the fixtures, news and feeds at my very own free Rugby World Cup calendar.
It'll otherwise be a chill year for the Riversdale's, the sleep program for Meg will have been a roaring success by January 3rd (latest!!, please gods) and we'll be debt free and planning for the next silly adventure.

Web things - Google will relentlessly plow on without releasing a WebOS and lose more and more of their hipness and start to do things that we ("users") see as 'evil'. RSS will become 'normal' and something we don't remember not having just like email was in the lat 1980's. My blog will never cease being tweaked and things will appear and move around in the ever desperate search to make the perfect layout.

As with other places of work (yours, probably) the cool stuff (content sharing/tagging, blogging, online collaboration, community sites ....) that we 'early adopters' use outside of the office drudgery will only sloooowly be the work tools we use as a matter of course - how dumb is that!?! I intend to speed it up at all places I interact with and especially remove the addiction with email.

* The picture is my strange attempt to to come up with something that represents the year, which, considering the multi-coloured year I have had, is bloody difficult. And so, the meeting of the sister-in-laws, one from New Zealand and the other from Sweden in Monmouth isn't bad - nothing of Meg growing up or Jack maturing but read that in somehow.