The amazon stushie has escalated somewhat. They still haven't refunded my money; the last email from them says they will once they receive the USB hub back from me. The email I sent back in reply had flames coming off it. No rude words, but lots of capital letters. I'm so annoyed with them! They made a mistake, why can't they just give me my money back?

I went in to PC World and bought a USB hub there. Pure torture -- they have Christmas muzak playing already! Argh! I had a browse around of course, and came away with Myst III: Exile, the sequel to the Riven computer game. Like I needed another reason to stay up all night getting RSI. I've had one play with it and it's pretty good, though it's as creepily empty as the other Myst games. You end up shuffling around these beautiful landscapes, all alone apart from an occasional animal, trying to solve puzzles. It's absorbing, addictive even, but somehow oppressive.

Anyway yesterday I installed the new hub, with great results. Everything works fine, whew.

I also took Bertie to Blackness for the first time since he cut his leg. He was ecstatic, ran around like a crazy dog. Just before we left he did exactly what he did on the last visit: ran out over the mud chasing seagulls and came back plastered in it. Mud that is. Blech. I'm going to have to check the tide tables next time we go out there. Back home I dragged him out into the garden to cool his jets while I filled buckets with warm water. I shampooed & rinsed him thoroughly then dried him off, after which he raced around hysterically, tearing up the lawn.

Yesterday I also finally fixed the drawer of the Ikea cupboard I broke while constructing it (I hammered in a dowel too enthusiastically, driving it through the front and knocking off a chunk of veneer), did several loads of laundry and all the ironing, hung a mirror, washed and/or vaccuumed all the floors, washed a week's worth of dishes and went to the supermarket. This last was complicated by my discovering at the checkout that I didn't have my purse with me. They were very good about it, apparently it happens all the time.

So all in all it was a busy day. I bought some salmon for my tea but couldn't be bothered to cook it and had takeaway Chinese instead. Today I'm at work again, next days off are Tues/Weds/Thurs. Faye arrives tomorrow and we head off up north on Tuesday.