Random blogs

The computer finally won - the epic battle continued after the last blog and kept crashing. Finally a new, younger, faster model took its place. Worked out I've gone through two motherboards, a bit of RAM, a video card, a power supply unit and a hard drive (without including various pirated software), before the old comp was put in its resting place (i.e. the garage with all the other ex-computer parts). Hence the time between updates.

We've started looking at buying a house which I honestly like the least of all adult tasks I have to do these days. Melbourne it is a case of trying to guess what it will actually sell for and if that is in the price range we can afford. So I've tried to go on the +10-20% asking price. Yes that's right, every house is quoted at 10-20% below the vendor selling price (underpricing) with an equally non-transparent reserve. Imagine my surprise when 80 people turned out for an auction in Malvern East and the selling price 35% higher than the opening bid. We're looking in Clayton, Mt Waverley, Notting Hill, and some western and northern suburbs. With all the news about attacks on Indians recently, the real west (Werribee, Footscary, Altona, Brooklyn, etc are out, even though they are affordable). That said a stabbing occurred within 50 metres of our front door last week.

Deepti's settled back in Melbourne; two months has passed since she got back, so it probably feels like she never left. We're planning a trip to Singapore soon, but with the house hunt on, it may have to be postponed. Naina keeps Deepti busy - apart from chasing N around the house, there's story time, play group, visit to friends' houses and searching for houses.

I'm my usual pensive state; not quite sure if I'm going forward or backward. I actually thought it might be easier to buy a house in July-Sept this year as the economy went down the gurgler. But I got my assumptions wrong, as I think every economist in the country did. Judging by how busy the shops and restaurants have got again, I think the recession has well and truly passed.