(no subject)

Oh dear, I have been very remiss.

I went to see Nattie for a week as planned (27th October to 4th November), and that made me feel a lot better for a while. In the middle of the week, of course, was Halloween, time for fancy-dress parties with spooky decorations and far too much sweet food. We made a couple of pumpkin pies using tofu, from a recipe Nattie found on alt.food.vegan (no, she isn't vegan, so I don't know why she reads it). It turned out quite well, despite the fact that neither of us has made pie in ages or tried cooking pumpkin before. Nattie dressed as Anathema Device (a witch) from Good Omens while I dressed as a random goth girl. Make-up and hair dye were involved. There are pictures (added on 2 December).

I persuaded Nattie to watch Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, thus subtracting one from the long list of good films she hasn't seen. Also, we watched Monsters, Inc., the latest Pixar production, which manages to be very good despite being fairly wholesome family entertainment.

Shortly after I got back to Cambridge, I found that my flat had been burgled. Thankfully it wasn't ransacked - only my Playstation, its various accessories, and my cycle bag had gone (presumably the bag made a convenient container for the rest). The police were quick to attend and get details from me; during the week another officer came to take fingerprints around the window that the burglar apparently used to get in. I wasn't too perturbed by the incident, but it does make me feel a little less secure.

Back in Cambridge, it wasn't long before I was feeling low again. But I'm getting by. I've replaced the things that were stolen and the replacement cost should be covered by insurance. I've got new things to work on, though without two of my original colleagues, who have left the company in circumstances that leave me feeling a little uncomfortable.