Hello!
Well, it’s been over a month since I last wrote anything here. Last message was a little negative because I’d just found out about the mixup in the lab. Unfortunately that’s sort of still ongoing. I’m working towards fixing it all but there’s still a few weeks worth of work to do. It should hopefully however lead to my first scientific publication so that’s pretty cool (although even once that’s done, I’ve got two more to get results for & write so it’s going to be pretty busy in the lab!).
Talking of lab stuff I’m currently supposed to be on North Stradbroke Island, on a week-long summer school being taught lots of stuff on the boundary between physics & chemistry. (Un)fortuantely I found out last Friday that we’ve been given some beam time on a brand new neutron source down in Sydney on the 18th & 19th of December. Basically this means I have got only 2.5 weeks to fully organise a whole experiment very similar to the one I came to Oxford to perform earlier in the year! Not something I could do if I was away for a week – so I’ve been excused from that and I’m working hard to get ready for the experiment now. So I will definitely be off to do this experiment and I can hopefully take a day or two that weekend to have a look around Sydney while I’m there. I’m just hoping that someone will be coming with me… mostly because it would be a hell of a lot more fun working with someone, but also because a straight 48 hour shift working on the neutron line would be pretty hard going I think…………..
So…. what else has been going on lately……… *checks diary for things that have happened in the last month*………… Well the honours students have finished in the lab and they’ve mostly all gone now. Ellen should be coming back to start a PhD in the new year and Simon’s doing some paid work for a few weeks but Julie & Alice are gone. We all went to the boss’ house for a “bring and share” dinner thing to say goodbye to them which was good fun. Also went to Julie’s flat party with Ben & Arthur. We looked like a right trio of idiots as we showed up with two crates of beer and when we walked in nobody at all at the party knew who we were. Luckily the beer eased everyone up quite quickly and we ended up staying until about 3:30 or 4 in the morning before Ben & I walked home as the sun rose 
BK also invited us to his son’s first birthday party at the UQ swimming pool. Everybody brought some food with them and there was SO MUCH. Thai, korean, japanese, chinese, and a birthday cake made of rice. Also got to have a bit of a swim which was nice.
Tim & Seamus have both gone home for Christmas now so I have the house to myself. I think Seamus is popping back for a bit next week but I’m not sure how much he’ll be around. For those people who are asking whether I’m coming home for Christmas, I’m afraid the answer is NOT THIS YEAR 
My current plans are to try and save enough cash to come back Christmas 2009.
Oh yes, and summer is well & truly on its way. The heat & humidity is coming back swiftly and south-east Queensland has had some serious storms the last few weeks. A few people have even died so it’s pretty serious at the moment. We appear to have been pretty lucky so far *touch wood*. and the worst we’ve had to deal with is a 10 minute power-cut. The lightning & rain is something to behold as well…. absolutely awesome. The weather has also brought the spiders back as well. I think the ones in the bushes and trees all along the roads & gardens are orb weavers of some variety and there’s one right over our front door. I also found a “baby” (read baby as “size of a 50p piece) huntsman inside my shoe. Unfortunately I found it with my foot as I put my shoe on & thought “that doesn’t feel right” before promptly removing my foot and checking it thoroughly for more eight-legged friends before I put it back on again. Not fun!
I think that’s about it for the moment. I’m going to try and take my camera around with me more often because I haven’t taken any photos for ages…..
Hope everybody is well (and that at least one person reads this wall of text… haha)!