Phew

Another weekend nearly over.

I went and settled my tax today. Went to the tax office and enjoyed the thrills of the waiting room for an hour. Tatsuno City Hall had rigged up a temporary tax office in a hall to put through all the last minute submitters such as myself. They had a disco ball suspended from the ceiling! A most un-disco-like affair though. My number was called and I was ushered to a desk only to find that since I'd lived in Himeji all last year they couldn't do my tax there! D'oh!

They pointed me to the main tax office where I enjoyed the thrills of waiting for another half hour or so. Then one of the office staff took me through the online tax submission website. Interesting how they do the whole thing online, print it off - on copy for them and one for you. and then you can go! That part took about ten minutes I reckon. Not bad for about two hours work!

Then I went and paid my water bill - which I hadn't been charged for the past two months since they hadn't billed me! I had a nice guy from the water company come over last week and get to the bottom of why I hadn't been paying.

That done, now I have a cold beer on the desk (which is good for you again!) and Shuggie Otis on the stereo. Cool.

I had to read this story just for the headline alone.

It's the 30th anniversary of Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

Swords!

And completing the geek trifecta; Natalie Portman!

This was an interesting insight into how the Chinese internet works - or doesn't work.

HD-DVD players are now hot property it seems.

It's now OK to use plastic bags again - maybe.

US Christians are finally getting organised to speak out about Bush.

Here's another story about imported workers being exploited in the US. Rule #1 of slavery; Don't bring in workers who can speak your language!

Now's a good time to invade Australia.

I feel sorry for Americans, in a way. They have a selection of people for the next president who hardly represent a 'choice'. Much like the past few elections, really. Whoever wins, they're going to preside over the financial, political, ecological, environmental and personal disaster that is Iraq. Just to look at the economic side of the disaster makes for fascinating and horrifying reading. Don't forget the land is strewn with depleted uranium and people who 'live' there are not only coping with that but also a lack of clean water, food and power as well as facing constant death from civil strife as well as from their occupiers.

The supposedly more left-wing Labour government of the UK is steadily eroding civil liberties left, right and centre. Take this for example.

Sorry, no stupid story to end on. Buy Shuggie's CD though. It's a good 'un.