Dark Thoughts

I arrived back from my brief jaunt to Shanghai, China, complete with a nasty cold, and just in time for my birthday. The cold is one of those nasty ones that gums up your head, such that even thinking feels like you are wading through a room of alien goop. It's definately a sudafed grade cold, and I really feel like I could just snuggle up and go to bed.

The trip to China went well. I delivered a paper at a conference, and we met a few mining company's in China who are interested in our technology. There's a lot of work yet to be done, but the technology is slowly gaining acceptance, and producers are beginning to understand the advantages of bacterial leaching.

It was my Birthday on Monday as well, yeah, I know, one day after Sept 11, but ya get that. I had a really mellow day, which was exactly what I needed. I got some cool stuff, but the best is yet to come. Jodie is planning a little weekend retreat thing, I think. She's been pretty secretive about it, but I know it involves travel, and it's in a southerly direction. We will be away on the next long weekend, which is really cool.

My pop died yesterday as well. He will be dearly missed by his grand-children. I have very fond memories of the times I spent with him, from a young age, whether it was fishing, or sitting on his knee, waiting for him to offer me a peppermint from his jar. His health in recent years has been in decline, and I hope that he is at peace. I feel for my Nanna who's dedication and love to my Pop is a model for our generation. Love like that, it seems, is a rare commodity now days.

I will miss my pop dearly.

I haven't given an update on my weight for a while, but it's slipped back to the 102 kg, which is frustrating. I'm not going to gym at the moment, due to my illness, and I missed out on gym while in China, but I am eating healthy, and Jodie and I are working on reducing our portions. It's a long slow battle, but one that I am determined to win.