The Brick House

Saturday 25th

• Hugh: cooked dinner on the BBQ (beef burgers, lentil burgers and tofu kebabs)
• Dan: thought ahead and borrowed my portable battery to recharge, ready for camping at Finn’s tomorrow

Sunday 26th

• Dan: had been planning to go to Invasion Day rally in Hobart but misread bus timetable
• Dan: set up for their first night camping at Finn’s place with some friends from summer camp
• Hugh: discussed ways to extend his German language study (currently on a 45 day streak on Duolingo) with YouTube videos, etc

Monday 27th (public holiday)

• Dan: camping; toasted marshmallows around campfire

Tuesday 28th

• Dan: camping; took bus up to town and went to the cinema

Wednesday 29th

• Dan: last day camping; went to the park
• Hugh: started planning for Lughnasadh BBQ feast – picked recipes and did up list of ingredients; I gave him the responsibility of drawing up the running sheet for the whole meal, factoring in additional cooks (me, and Dan for the cheezecakes) and leaving several days prep time for some recipes (eg. cheezecakes)

Thursday 30th

Friday 31st

Because clearly I’m finding it hard to get back in the groove… a retrospective compiled from various places:

Saturday 11

• Dan: made sure they had all their stuff packed for camp so we can leave early tomorrow
• Dan: sent them the link to the FB event for Rainbow Prom (1 Feb), also noted date for TasPride Parade (8 Feb)
• Dan: went to Cygnet Folk Festival – made some money busking as The Immortal Miss Victoria, also unexpectedly performed in the Young Performer Awards after Eric (who was MCing) co-opted them because he only had three performers signed up

Sunday 12

• Dan: drove to Launceston (Mum); picked up remainder of stuff needed for camp on the way
• Hugh: spent the day at Philip’s
• Dan: Daedalum Luminarium
• Dan: first day of Summer Camp (dropped off 6:40pm)

Monday 13

• Dan: second day of Summer Camp

Tuesday 14

• Dan: third day of Summer Camp

Wednesday 15

• Dan: fourth day of Summer Camp

Thursday 16

• Dan: fifth day of Summer Camp
• family: with dylen, started organising accommodation near Sheffield for our trip to SteamFest

Friday 17

• Dan: sixth and last day of Summer Camp; drove home (Eric)
• Dan: received their postcard from the band Steam-Powered Giraffe (Patreon reward)
• Hugh: read through the camp booklet so he would know what to expect
• Hugh and Dan: sent them the link to a steampunk roleplaying Discord server
• family: finished organising accommodation near Sheffield for SteamFest – booked Sat/Sun nights, dylen will go up on the Saturday and check in, then we will head up straight after the formal parts of the Investiture are done, so we can be there all day Sunday and head home on Monday afternoon
• family: started planning for Rowany Festival – both kids want to come this year; also spending a couple of days in Canberra with Nan and Pa, and possibly a day/night in Melbourne with Beth and Harry

Saturday 18

• Hugh: made it to “General” rank on the Unturned server he plays for – gives him a great deal of administrative power in approving/training new members for the Axis forces in any “division” (eg. air, land, special forces etc), in promoting/demoting officers, running briefings/debriefings etc
• Dan: exhausted after camp, did not come to SCA event but spent most of the day catching up on sleep
• Hugh: packed most of his stuff for camp
• Hugh: came to SCA event, served as page to Anna and myself, helped in kitchen
• Hugh: discussed with Eric and myself in the car on the way home his desire to learn how to run SCA events, we discussed plans to run small events (E steward, me feast cook) so he can get experience before he’s old enough to run his own; also promised to recommend him as kitchen hand to other feast cooks in Barony at upcoming events
• family: discussing possible options for starting a Hobart steampunk meet-up at the Railway Museum (steam train!), need to go up and reconnoitre (but not this month, the open day is tomorrow and we’re already booked)

Sunday 19

• Hugh: drove to Launceston (Mum)
• Hugh: Daedalum Luminarium
• Hugh: Cataract Gorge – did chairlift
• Dan: started organising local catch-up with southern camp friends
• Hugh&Dan: discussing with Beth an idea for her having the kids to stay for a few days in Melbourne as an “experiences” present – one suggestion was to give them a budget and get them to plan an itinerary of things they are interested in, which seems like a good plan

Monday 20

• Hugh: first day of summer camp (sleeping over)
• Dan: sent Dan a link to a FB event for a talk by Sophie Labelle, author of Assigned Male Comics
• Dan: sick

Tuesday 21

• Hugh: second and final day of Summer Camp; drove home (Mum)
• Hugh: I bought him a BBQ cookbook at an op shop after he expressed the desire at the Summer Solstice to do more BBQ cooking, he spent half the drive home going through the recipes
• Dan: sick, losing their voice (partly lurgi, partly singing too much while they were lurgified)

Wednesday 22

• Hugh: planned a BBQ meal with a selection of recipes from his book to cater for vegans/vegos/omnivores
• Dan: sick, has lost their voice entirely – too sick to do much but watch videos etc

Thursday 23

• Hugh: helped in menu planning – made me a list of ingredients for his BBQ meal (Sunday)
• Hugh: building a huge base in Ark: Survival Evolved which required him to overcome a number of engineering challenges
• Dan: sick, has lost their voice entirely
• Dan: finished organising the catch-up with a couple of southern-based camp friends – they are spending a couple of days camping on a friend’s property in Geeveston, from Sunday morning

Friday 24

• Hugh: made a running sheet for his BBQ meal (now on Saturday as Dan will be out Sunday)
• Hugh: as trial moderator on his Unturned server, involved in the process of disciplining another staff member who had done something wrong
• Dan: has their voice back

Saturday 21st – Friday 27th

Saturday 21st

• Hugh and Dan: made vegan cheesecakes for Solstice party (without supervision – this is now their job for WotY celebrations)

Sunday 22nd – Solstice

• Hugh and Dan: went through steampunk hamper present and divided up the various items between themselves
• Hugh: helped set up gazebos etc for Solstice party; made fruit punch; helped set up and serve snacks, food etc
• family: BBQ with friends, ceremony at the hawthorn tree, fire pit with marshmallows
• Hugh: hung out with Philip
• Dan: hung out with Sage and Amelia

Wednesday 25th – Christmas

• family: quiet day at home

26th – Boxing Day

• Hugh and Dan: went up to town with Eric
• Hugh: bought new headphones with his Christmas money
• Dan: went busking (made heaps!)
• Hugh: had to jump through multiple hoops to get his headphones actually connected to his computer but fortunately Eric had the necessary parts

28th

• family: D&D campaign – we unexpectedly destroyed the Big Bad with several rooms unexplored so that was the end of this campaign! Hugh is still working on world building our steampunk one (with Dan’s help)

Saturday 28th – Friday 3rd

Monday 30th

• family: high fire danger day + smoke haze from Mangana fire and false alarm of a fire on Arve Rd meant we enacted the first steps of our bushfire plan and got ready to evacuate – the kids already have their backpacks packed but we collected toiletries, valuables, camping gear etc and packed the car before we found out it had been a false alarm after all – need to refine that evacuation plan a bit more!

Tuesday 31st – New Year’s Eve

• Hugh: went to Dayle and Hamm’s NYE party/Chrissy’s birthday party at CFB Rec Ground, talked D&D with Alex for most of the evening

Wednesday 1st – New Year’s Day

• Dan: bussed up to Hobart, had a picnic with Sage and Amelia

Friday 3rd

• Hugh: needed to earn some money to buy an extenion to D&D Beyond, so after negotiation, cleaned the bathroom ceiling
• Hugh: bought an extension to D&D Beyond which allows him to include homebrew content

Saturday 4th – Friday 10th

Saturday 4th

• Dan and Hugh: created Dan’s character Miss Victoria for Hugh’s new steampunk D&D world

Sunday 5th

• family: woke up to a blackout, cooked breakfast on the woodstove before it came back on
• family: started planning for our first steampunk event: SteamFest in Georgetown in March
• Dan: made wedges for dinner

Monday 6th

• Dan: took bus into Hobart and went busking
• Hugh: helped with BotVC/pantry stockpile menu plan

Tuesday 7th

• Hugh: worked out an itinerary for Sunday before camp; decided to go up early and do some touristy things in the afternoon

Wednesday 8th

Thursday 9th

• Hugh: told him about the Ballawinne Festival in Cygnet on the 13th; he doesn’t particularly want to go but we might insist that he leave his room and have some cultural experiences
• Dan: walked down to Geeveston and went to op shop; bought two dolls to refashion into steampunk dolls

Friday 10th

• Hugh: did research into airsoft guns, gel pistols, various forms of live action laser tag etc in Hobart (check exact details)
• Dan: worked out an itinerary for Sunday before camp; booked tickets for me and Dan to go to an art installation in Launceston for MONA FOMA
• Dan: started looking at Cygnet Folk Festival program for Saturday
• Dan: took bus up to town, went busking, went to 5pm climate rally, bus home

Saturday

• Hugh: Tournament of the Rising Razorback – played with Ethan and Jacob, helped teach a new kid boffer fighting, helped with the food, served as a page/attendant in Baronial court and presenting roses from Her Majesty to the populace
• Dan: end of year student concert

Sunday

• family: D&D session with Hugh as DM

Monday

• Hugh: went to op shop with Mum and collected clothes for steampunk refashioning; found an outfit he really likes (pant, shirt, vest)
• Hugh: went to bank and activated his card and online banking; spent some of his pocket money at the IGA
• Dan: went to bank and deposited change from their busking last week

Tuesday

• Hugh&Dan: long conversation about Steam-Powered Giraffe, the music and fandom

Wednesday

• Hugh: telling me various things he’s been learning about WWII, I suggested he email his grandparents to learn about his family war history
• Hugh: has been learning German on Duolingo for six days now and is quite enthusiastic.
• Hugh: moving up in the ranks (he’s now a Colonel) on his Unturned server by being the most competent person around; has applied for admin
• Dan: drawing the characters from their Steam-Powered Giraffe online roleplay (digital art)

Thursday

• Dan: returned the forms to continue as a CCYP Ambassador next year
• Dan: went busking in Franklin Square (Mall spots were booked out); decided not to go to roller derby and hung out in the car while E and I did our main Solstice present shopping
• Dan: read some amusing reviews about Cats the movie and is even more determined to go and see it when it comes out on Boxing Day, to see if it really is as horrible as everyone says

Friday

• Dan: psych appointment
• Dan: bought new guitar picks at McCann’s Music and went busking in the Mall; started a FB page for The Immortal Miss Victoria
• Hugh: did something with Eric?

Saturday 7

• family: Eric flew to Sydney, back Thursday
• Dan&Hugh: made pizza for dinner

Sunday 8

• Dan: Children of the Aftermath activation (plus BBQ and folk music), Dover
• family: discovered five 3 week old kittens in the garden, collected them and gave them to a local cat rescue for fostering (we’d like to adopt one when they’re old enough)

Monday 9

• Dan: I contacted Musical Theatre Crew about classes next year
• Dan: singing – no lesson due to mix-up with times
• Dan: working on creating an internal chronology for Steam-Powered Giraffe’s songs/storyline

Tuesday 10

• Dan: helped me work in their courtyard
• Dan&Hugh: cooked Mexibeans for dinner/cleaned kitchen

Wednesday 11

• Dan: took Q to the vet with me; went to lesson with Eleanor
• Dan: went to op shops with me and started assembling a steampunk outfit – originally just for their concert on Saturday, but they got so inspired that “Victoria” is now Dan’s new vampire steampunk character for busking
• Hugh: after school activity

Thursday 12

• Hugh and Dan: cooked scrambled tofu for breakfast
• Dan: picked up their new busking licence and took their vampire steampunk character out busking, very successfully
• Dan: roller derby
• Dan: started working on the character and alternate-history world of “the immortal Miss Victoria” in the car – it got pretty detailed!
• family: Daddy back from trip to the mainland

Friday 13

• Hugh and Dan: worked on world-building and alternate history timeline for Dan’s steampunk character (Hugh did most of the research)
• Hugh: swimming because the pool was closed for maintenance – now on Christmas break
  
• Dan: working on their first artistic commission (found through the Children of the Aftermath activation where they put out their shingle as an artist for hire)

Saturday 30

• Hugh: Lightwood’s 8th birthday archery picnic and tournaments (helping serve lunch, hanging out with Philip, boffer fighting with Philip, Victoria and Floki)
• Hugh: sleepover with Philip (here)

Sunday 1

• Hugh: sleepover with Philip (here)
• Dan: end of year concert rehearsal

Monday 2

Tuesday 3

• Hugh: D&D&D II at The Link – talked to Tom about how to get started as a DM, Tom let him have a copy of his notes from the adventure they’d just done

Wednesday 4

• Hugh: worked on handwriting; practised a signature so that he could finish opening a Bendigo bank account
  
• Dan: singing; working on a Steam-Powered Giraffe fanfic
• Hugh: after school activity
• Hugh: used the D&D Beyond app to help me and Eric create D&D characters so we can start a campaign tomorrow (Dan already has one)

Thursday 5

• family: first D&D game, with Hugh as DM
• Dan: roller derby
• Hugh: went to Geeveston Twilight Feast with Eric
• family: came home to another blackout which lasted til around 2am; Hugh helped filling and lighting the kerosene lanterns etc

Friday 6

• Hugh: dental check-up
  
• family: played D&D during yet another blackout (third in three days)

Saturday 16

• Dan&Hugh: sent suggestion for a new YA series to read/listen to at the eLibrary, Tara Sim’s Timekeeper.
• Hugh: learned how to make maple pecan butter to add to yoghurt for breakfast
• Hugh: worked on board game mechanics and researching new monsters; discovered a new YouTube channel, Monsters of Folklore
• Dan: helped me work on the brushwood fence

Sunday 17

• Dan: Children of the Aftermath activation, Dover
• Hugh: worked on doing a hippocampus icon with pixel art

Monday 18

• Dan&Hugh: I started the process of booking them both into summer camp in January next year
• Dan: went to singing, then op shop, then spent several hours stuck in Huonville as the result of car trouble
• Hugh: finished his hippocampus icon; started investigating drawing tablets to see if there might be some he could afford with his birthday money

Tuesday 19

• Hugh: talked about the possibility of fostering or adopting a greyhound
• Hugh: got his second lot of birthday money (parcel from Nan and Pa arrived late) and realised he could buy quite a reasonable drawing tablet now; has decided to spend most of it on the tablet and a recommended pixel art app
• Hugh: decided not to get the tablet, but did pay for Aseprite, the pixel art program

Wednesday 20

• Hugh: after school activity
• Dan: new weekly night to cook – made stir fry with egg noodles

Thursday 21

• Dan&Hugh: booked them both into the Dungeons, Dragons and Diversity session at OUTspace/the Link next week; Hugh has been watching intro to D&D channels on YouTube to get more of an idea of what to expect
• Hugh: booked him into the junior summer camp and organised payment
• Hugh: decided to apply for a job as a moderator on SS13 instead of continuing to apply for the IPC character he wanted
• Dan: went to the Huon Valley AYCC welcome night/launch

Friday 22

• Hugh: researching the Skrel character class on Space Station 13 with a view to applying in future
• Hugh: group swim class
• family: get everything ready for the wedding tomorrow!

Saturday 9

• Dan: stayed up late watching classic movie musicals – was outraged by the sexist/classist plot (and the outcome) of My Fair Lady
• Hugh and Dan: hauled out all the copies of Deltora Quest they could find, then went through the pile together to put it in order while attempting to recall as much of the plot of the series as they could. Much hilarity ensued.
• Hugh: started reading the first Deltora Quest novel: got halfway through
• Dan: started re-watching the Deltora Quest anime of the first series

Sunday 10 – Hugh’s birthday

• Hugh: supervised Eric making him Eggs Benedict for his birthday breakfast, since he is the only person in the household with a consistent success rate
• Dan: I set Dan a challenge to go through their vegetarian recipe book and find some new recipes they thought they might like, and set a day each week (Friday) to teach them to cook new things

Monday 11

• Dan: no singing
• Hugh: finished the first Deltora Quest book, started the second

Tuesday 12

• Dan: finished watching the anime of the first series and reading the second series, is now reading the third series of Deltora Quest and engaging in trenchant literary criticism (primarily the miscalibrated foreshadowing and the lack of narrative tension)
• Hugh: still reading the second book of the first series; also dipping into Tough Mothers

Wednesday 13

• Hugh: his second application to be an IPC was rejected, but he got some nice character references and a much quicker turnaround this time, and was invited to resubmit
• Hugh: no after school activity
• Dan: wrote a survey trying to find out whether any members of the LGBTQI+ community outside of Tumblr actually has an issue with the term “queer”
• Hugh: decided to revive his attempt at a board game from earlier in the year, we play-tested it again and took notes for improvements

Thursday 14

• Dan: roller derby
• Dan: got sick of waiting for the Deltora Quest books to come in on the LINC ebook system and started rereading the Alana series (Tamora Pierce)
• Hugh: worked on some of the changes we came up with for the board game

Friday 15

• Hugh & Dan: had hair cuts, spent their pocket money in Huonville
• Hugh: swimming lesson
• Dan: cooked dinner, something new from their recipe book (bean burgers)
• Hugh: play-tested the game with me and Eric, came up with more ideas

Saturday 2

• Dan: using the keyboard to work out and memorise intervals in different songs
• Dan: we went through the first few sections of the Game of Life maths workbook together; then discussed scheduling regular sit-down lessons with Eric during the week that work with everyone’s other commitments (agreed on 1pm for half an hour on days when everyone is home, starting Monday)
• Dan: expressed a desire for guitar lessons again to improve their technique; I asked on FB for local teacher recommendations
• Hugh: 10 minutes handwriting practice

Sunday 3

• Veganfest? – can’t make it
• Family: Sunday cleaning (trying to get back into the groove of everyone doing the living areas weekly)
• Dan: HVT Drama Club (meets monthly)
• Hugh: 10 minutes handwriting practice with Mum
• Dan: Silver Words pop up open mic and Silver Slam

Monday 4

• I researched dates for Hobart College Open Day 2020 and found that they are usually in June, I have followed HC on FB to get updates
• I researched options for finding Dan a guitar tutor for a short time to improve their technique: options in Huon Valley are fairly limited but it is offered as an extension through Exit Left so we decided to pursue it through that avenue next year
• Dan: singing lesson 11:45am
• Hugh: 10 minutes handwriting practice with Mum
• Hugh: started a new A&S project for the category “Eastern Europe”, using The Prince of Transylvania’s court cookbook from the 16th century, The Science of Cooking
• Hugh: helped me fix the door of the netting house
• Hugh: made GF naan, helped me make curries for Curry Night
• Dan: half an hour on their maths workbook with Eric
• Dan and Hugh: I read out more interesting excerpts from the cookbook (like an ox stuffed with a sheep stuffed with a calf stuffed with a capon – beat that, turducken!)

Tuesday 5

• Dan: did half an hour on their maths workbook with Eric

Wednesday 6

• Hugh: after school activity
• Family: collaborated on dinner (DIY mini quiches)

Thursday 7

• Dan: roller derby; also acted as Beth’s agent to buy Hugh’s birthday present

Friday 8

• Hugh: started working on another application to be an IPC (Integrated Positronic Chassis – a non-human race) on Space Station 13
• Hugh: swimming lesson
• Dan: watched a(nother) car being winched out of our gully
  
• Dan: half an hour on their maths workbook with Eric