I’ve just completed a final count of the number of 3″ dunnies in my collection, and also broken the count down to the number of each series released and even to the number of each specific design within each series. It has taken a while what with my collection being sited in different parts of Wellington, but done it finally is.

The magic number? It seems I have 455 of Kid Robot’s 3″ dunnies. 455.

Breaking that number down into the different series 455 starts to look something like this:

• 37 x Series 3 (2006)
• 7 x 2-Faced Series 2 (2006)
• 31 x Azteca series (2007)
• 31 x Series 4 (20007)
• 54 x French series (2008)
• 42 x Series 5 (2008)
• 1 x Kronk Gingerbread dunny (2008)
• 74 x Ye Olde English series (2009)
• 30 x Endangered series (2009)
• 25 x Dunny 2009 series (2009)
• 1 x TADO Santa dunny (2009)
• 60 x Fatale series (2010)
• 62 x Dunny 2010 series (2010)

I have relatively low numbers remaining from the early days because back then I was prone to drunkenly passing on my spares to friends and others. There’s a certain amount of regret for me in all that. Less so from sharing the dunny love, but more from how I may have gone a bit overboard in the giving department.

Ah well.

If you’re even vaguely interested, you can see a collection of dunny figures set up at Te Papa (I’m not sure where just yet). A number of the 3″ figures from the Series 3 and Azteca series are from my own collection. For those everso slightly further afield, feel free to view vicariously via the internet here.

We were travelling from Damascus to Aleppo when we noticed plumes of smoke rising from not far off, planes swooping rather low, rather unavoidable if muffled booms, and the familiar pop-pop-pop of gunfire. It wasn’t until the next morning that we read in the English-language newspaper that Hafez had made a pre-emptive move against his brother trying to wrest the presidency in a coup.

I mention all this because a certain someone suggested we visit the Hezbollah Theme Park in South Lebanon as part of a week-long stay in Syria around the same time as we’re in Italy for the Venice Biennale next year. South Lebanon is a daytrip from Damascus, so eminently doable. There is however a part of me that questions the wisdom of:

1. Tempting fate in a country I have narrowly missed being caught up in coup reprisals.
2. Tempting fate by entering Lebanon through a Syrian border point.
3. Tempting fate by entering a part of Lebanon that was until recently occupied by Syrian armed forces.
4. Tempting fate by entering a part of Lebanon that was until recently occupied by Syrian armed forces to visit a theme park owned and managed by a known terrorist organisation.
5. Tempting fate by attempting all this with a hebrew first name, ambiguous surname, questionable ethnicity, unknown nationality and all the while in the company of someone who would struggle to blend in with the locals.

Then again, could be fun.

You’ll find this section titled “Attempted coup d’état” within Rifaat Al-Assad’s wikipedia entry.

I would like to draw your attention to the second paragraph.

The guy on the left is Rifaat Al-Assad, former Vice President of Syria. He was also the younger brother to then-President Hafez Al-Assad, uncle to current-President Bashar Al-Assad and the would’ve-liked-to-have-been President of Syria.

This is Hafez Al-Assad, the former President of Syria. He was also the father to current Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, but I knew him as the “Lion of Damascus”.

Spite truly does decide so very many of my life choices.

I’ve been sitting on this for a week or so, but this Dinosaur Comic by Ryan North floats my boat in somewhat awkward ways.

As someone that struggles to sleep on the best of nights, I’ve often found myself enjoying BBC World and other late night news services. As is often the case, somethingorather has happened that requires comment from Israel’s Shimon Peres and so he has dutifully obliged. The truly memorable thing about Shimon Peres for me is his really heavy Israeli accent, certainly so strong that the way he says “terror” is both amusing and amazing.

Terr-or.