Wave

There are days when everything seems wrong. Savings are going down, nothing interesting is going on, no contacts with new people, can't think of places to go, thinking of job does not leave a good feeling...
Such things happen and the best thing to do is to do nothing. These times come and go. Usually its best not to do anything otherwise that gets "spoiled" in a way.
I'm glad I had enough rest during the weekend. Spend some time at home, just relaxing. Now I know what it takes to feel good again. No plans, no action, no goals, just nothing. Life can be so easy and simple. And, yes, that's how it should be.

Motorcycle Riding Schools

I've got my Bosnian driving license back again. A few months ago I have transferred the car license into the Australian one. Now I'm looking to transfer the motorcycle license, too.
Here is the list of motorcycle riding schools I am looking into:

Ride-Tek - One of the schools from the VicRoads list. They were kind enough to explain how to transfer an overseas license. Located in Dandenong.

Stay Upright - Came to their testing site accidentally while riding a bicycle. Located in Hoppers Crossing.

12 Apostles

We, at work, are planning a road trip one of the next Sundays. The idea is to get to 12 apostles and see as much as possible. Since the travel time is quite high in case we go through Great Ocean Road AND the Port Campbell, the decision reached is to go only to Port Campbell and see the 12 apostles. That way we'd have enough time for lunch, dinner, looking around, taking pictures, etc. Then, some other time, we could focus on the Great Ocean Road itself.
Mmm, I like the idea already. This will be a nice trip. First time completely out of the metropolitan area.

Australia Post : POSTbillpay - Home Page

Australia Post offers a way to pay bills online. There are lots of billers in the scheme. All that is required is Post billpay code (biller), reference number (bill), payment amount, and credit card details – number and expiry date.

Australia Post : POSTbillpay - Home Page

Health Insurance

I just found out that the bill, increasing the income threshold for Medicare Levy Surcharge, has not been passed yet. The agreement has just been achieved and the bill is to be voted on. As a result of negotiation, the new thresholds will be $70,000 for individuals and $140,000 for families.

A good, not-for-profit, health insurance provider is GMHBA. They have recently introduced a minimum package – Bronze Hospital Young Singles Start Package. This is an addition to what is now Silver Hospital Young Singles Start Package. It used to be only Young Singles Start Package. :)

Other useful links, related to GMHBA health insurance, are the list of participating hospitals and member services page.

Comparison of extras on different plans for Victorian residents.

Just for reference, here is a list of approximate costs for dental services in Melbourne – Melbourne Dentist Fee Schedule (Vic).

30 Degrees

Today we went to Werribee. As soon as we arrived, Roger and I found a cash shop open near the station so we went to have a look. There I decided I'm getting a camera. I should probably have it next week.
Then we rode through Werribee to the West. There is a nice path next to a creek. That one continues on the Federation Trail. We were at the very beginning of the Fed Trail but we then went further West. We cycled on the highway (yes, here you CAN cycle on the highway) and ended up climbing across the fences and pushing our bikes across the agriculture fields.
On the way back to Werribee, cause we decided to go back in order to reach the park south of the town, we came across the B-24 Liberator site. This is the only B-24 Liberator in the world. There is a hangar where volunteers are assembling the airplane from original and engineered parts. The place looks totally out of this world. There should be quite a few photos from that visit.
The project is very interesting. Lots of people donate parts, engine, or work on restauration of the original parts and are assembling the aircraft. The whole thing started sometimes in 1988 when the remains of a Liberator were found somewhere in the jungle. The completion of the restauration work is expected in 2010. The airplane is an amazing sight. The look inside it leaves a pretty claustrophobic feeling. I could not believe how small the space was and the seats were tiny in today's standards.

After that we rode on the Federation Trail. Took some nice photos of the Australian outback. The grassy plains, gum trees... That's what I'll remember of Australia later. Certainly won't miss the city and the jam that much.
The wind was quite strong so we decided to back on a train and use the time more productively. I'm going to try to read the remaining 300 pages of the .Net book today. :D

News from the Front

Not much new development. I mean, things are appearing but it takes time to finalize them.

At work, we don't have to work Saturdays any more. We don't have to work *every* Saturday, that is. Now we are going to have a roster where we work 4 days the first week and then 6 days the alternate. That's OK. In fact, I'll see how it goes but it sounds OK.

Still haven't reserved the ticket. Will look to do that on Monday. There are some interviews coming but those should not interfere with the flight plan.

Today is the end of this working week. The plan for Sunday, tomorrow, is to go to Werribee. There appears to be a nice park with a castle. Roger will bring the camera so there should be some nice photos from the ride. It's not that far so we could cycle back towards the city along the coast.

Got a refund from Metlink. In return for 5 x daily ticket, they gave me back two 5 x weekend daily tickets. :) Now that I have both days off on every other weekend, these will get used faster. I could use them to go to Frankston or Sandrigham on weekends. Those places are quite far from the city and beaches are wonderful.

The market fell more than looks real in the graph. People start mentioning horror stories about loans, obligations, ruined investments, etc. Well, I never thought debt was a good thing and I'm glad I do not have any obligations in that regard.

I'm reading some reference book on software development. It has sections on software engineering with .Net, SQL Server, UML, XML, and design. It's a good reference book and a refresher for all the technologies above.

Changing Geopolitics

Business Spectator - Geopolitics turned on its head

Ha, the current financial crisis will have adverse effects on the world's geopolitical scene. I didn't expect this to happen so suddenly.
In effect, this may mean that I came to Australia only to witness the fall of western civilisation (I dramatize, of course). But, really, soon I might be looking for a working visa to some other country, I never suspected of going to. :))
Or I might just go home and live happily ever after.

Lillydale - Eltham

On Sunday I cycled through beautiful areas from Lillydale to Eltham. The terrain is hilly. Lots of trees, pastures, farmlands and large houses. Definitely to be repeated in the summer.
Kudos to iGo as it has excellent maps. Even dirt roads are there and path finding works excellent.
I need to draw this route on Bikely when I find the time.

Other than that, I'm looking for plane tickets for January/February.

Home Decoration

Home... how good that sounds.
I've started to look for nice software to help in home decoration. I thought there must be, by now, some good and free software that does the basic thing almost everyone needs.
The post with links and my opinions is at http://alensiljak.blogspot.com/2008/10/free-home-design-software.html
So far, I like the best Sweet Home 3D. It is open source, runs via Java Web Start so is available almost everywhere, and can import 3DS and OBJ models. The last part means that you can find lots of models for 3D Studio or other modeling programs on the Internet and use them in your design. The software itself comes with enough elements to get you started. It contains some very nice features.
There are two windows - one displays the plan, where you draw stuff, and the other is a 3D view of the model. The 3D view can be either Aerial or Inside view.
There are just enough features to do whatever I wanted to do. The overall feeling while using it for about 15 minutes was great. I don't even feel the need to check out other programs out there.