all things me

HTML comments show up in the source, so what if you want to remove text from the page without actually deleting it from the files?

<?php if (false) {?>
  (content to be removed…)
<?php } ?>

Last year I had to pay residual tax, but this year I’m getting it back — fivefold!! (Not until December, alas.) Next year I’ll probably have to pay again because for some reason they lowered my percentage considerably, and this year — unlike in the past — I’m making dough (well, ‘dough’ in the student-budget sense).

Remember to convert database export into UTF-8 before importing

Luckily I’ve been playing around with local installations of WordPress and I just noticed the special characters (ä, ö, etc.) which really aren’t that special (you darn ASCII Americans ) turn into questionmarks when I import. I remember noticing it before and I guess I’ve corrected all the questionmarks in the past (have to check, actually) but after the amount of posts increases, I don’t really feel like flipping through every single one of them.

[Ctrl-Alt-Del]

True to my nature I get overly excited about something even though it’s not going to happen in the near future. Recently I’ve started seriously thinking about moving out. This coming December I’ve saved for 2 years which is the minimum, but I definitely don’t have the planned 12 000€ saved yet. On Monday I’m going to the bank to change my monthly deposit but I’m afraid I’m stuck here for quite a while. On Wednesday I told my boss that I want a raise, but we’ll see…

I already know that I won’t live in a studio; I want separate bedroom and living-room. The other night I couldn’t sleep, instead I started thinking what I need for my own place.

• bed
  (Even though I have a bed I’m going to buy a proper one and leave my current bed here for visitors.)
• bookshelf
• couch (sofa bed?)
• armchair
• TV (and sidekicks)
• subscription to some sort of TV guide (I’m a program circler)
• stereos
• desk (I hope I don’t need a separate desk because I already have a computer desk)
• computer
• Internet connection
• phone (i.e. cell phone)
• kitchen table + chairs
• fridge-freezer
  (Ticked off on Sep 23. I don’t have to buy a fridge-freezer. It’s already there!)
• coffee maker
  (Ticked off on Sep 23. We have 3 coffee makers. Mum says I can take one of them )
• microwave oven
• wall clock
• washing machine
• vacuum cleaner
• iron + ironing board
• 1 mug, 1 plate, 1 fork, 1 spoon, 1 knife, 1 cereal bowl OK, maybe something to make food in, too
  (Comment on Sep 23) Mum bought me a set of utensils for my nameday (in July). It has 6 forks, 6 knives, 6 big spoons, and 6 coffee spoons. Plus a cake cutter (?) and salad servers.
  My mug collection is huge and I have 4 or 6 cereal bowls (which double as soup plates). And mum has apparently bought me 4 soup plates.
  (Comment on Dec Grandpa bought me 6 dinner plates and oven pan (for lasagne etc.) for early Xmas present.
• a nice big plant (something looking like this)
• sheets, towels, carpets of course

Hmm… What else?

I’ve decided I want to find a nice couch first. After that it’s easy to find curtains and such things. Wow, I can’t imagine a toilet without an orange sink. Don’t believe I have one?

I don’t undestand what the previous occupants where thinking! A very good reason for wanting to get out of here, don’t you think?

I hate all students in University of Helsinki! Well, no, I actually hate the people who plan language studies. I’ll never graduate because I’ll never get to pass Swedish course because I never get in! Enrolment started 38 minutes ago, and I’ve been phoning the expensive phone service for 38 minutes. Toot-toot-toot. No luck. At least it doesn’t charge for the toot-toot-toot.

And now, after 40 minutes the phone number is not working at all.

1 hour later: The course is full. I’ll try enrolling via Internet on May 2nd if I’d get in a queue. Guess I won’t be getting my bachelor’s degree this year. *whimper*

Luckily I’ve got good music. Thank you, S! You saved my day!

I just realised that wrong people (or a wrong person) could be reading this blog, so I decided to de-publish the previous post. Sorry, Vera, you had commented already I could of course password protect it, but what’s the point? I wrote. I vented. I cleaned the evidence.

Funny thing happened the other day. Ha ha. The magazine that I’ve been trying to finish the article for is publishing its last issue in May. So, I’m too late. I’ve been trying to think of what to do with the nearly-done article but most likely I’ll just leave it to gather binary dust.