Parents finally returned to Heathrow last night, after a week holed up in a luxury five star hotel and becoming media celebrities (BBC Breakfast!). Doesn't seem too bad does it.
We're very glad they're back safely though.
Saturday, 6 December 2008
Friday, 28 November 2008
Our Parents in Bangkok
My parents have spent the last month visiting Singapore, Australia and Thailand.
Guess where their last stop was...
Guess where their last stop was...
Thursday, 6 November 2008
Imaginary fruit
So is it wrong to be teaching my daughter about imaginary numbers?
Mind you, the fact that e^iℼ = -1 still blows me away...
Mind you, the fact that e^iℼ = -1 still blows me away...
Saturday, 1 November 2008
Excited Arr!
Conveniently, this Thursday was not only the tenth (gosh!) anniversary of Herring and I getting together it was also the night Jonathan Coulton played in London.
Thus, having arranged for a small girl to stay with Grandma (Thanks!), we went off to London for some fun.
Firstly we managed a briefish look at the new (opened that day!) Westfield shopping centre. Boy, is it big! And then it was off to Shepherd's Bush Empire for our concert. We were very amused while queueing outside. People fell very quickly into two categories. One, the geeks (easily recognisable) who joined the back of the queue. Two the non geeks, who looked at the queue, and then at Jonathan Coulton's name with complete confusion!
JC was supported by Paul & Storm. If you've never heard of either of these - go look at their websites now (ok, read this first!). What a fantastic combination. It started well with a song - 'We are the opening Band'! And really got better and better. There was lots of audience participation, particular highlights being all of the audience being pirates - 'Arr', which became the cry at random points throughout the evening. All geeks being (naturally) pirates.
Jonathan Coulton and Paul & Storm shared the stage at several points, which worked brilliantly. The three of them making a great combination, and playing up to the (extremely!) geeky audience throughout.
Finally a chance to be zombies (All we want to do is eat your braiiins...), and more singing before it was time to go home (or in our case back to our hotel).
Wow! There really was too much great stuff to describe; but it was great to see so many geeks, and have such a good time (and how often do you get to sing about the Mandelbrot set?!).
*sings* 'Take a point called z in the complex plane...' ;-)
Thus, having arranged for a small girl to stay with Grandma (Thanks!), we went off to London for some fun.
Firstly we managed a briefish look at the new (opened that day!) Westfield shopping centre. Boy, is it big! And then it was off to Shepherd's Bush Empire for our concert. We were very amused while queueing outside. People fell very quickly into two categories. One, the geeks (easily recognisable) who joined the back of the queue. Two the non geeks, who looked at the queue, and then at Jonathan Coulton's name with complete confusion!
JC was supported by Paul & Storm. If you've never heard of either of these - go look at their websites now (ok, read this first!). What a fantastic combination. It started well with a song - 'We are the opening Band'! And really got better and better. There was lots of audience participation, particular highlights being all of the audience being pirates - 'Arr', which became the cry at random points throughout the evening. All geeks being (naturally) pirates.
Jonathan Coulton and Paul & Storm shared the stage at several points, which worked brilliantly. The three of them making a great combination, and playing up to the (extremely!) geeky audience throughout.
Finally a chance to be zombies (All we want to do is eat your braiiins...), and more singing before it was time to go home (or in our case back to our hotel).
Wow! There really was too much great stuff to describe; but it was great to see so many geeks, and have such a good time (and how often do you get to sing about the Mandelbrot set?!).
*sings* 'Take a point called z in the complex plane...' ;-)
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Only Contains Natural Ingredients
I'm always amused by products that “Only contain natural ingredients”. While I think this is a good thing in general, its also a little misleading.
After all, asbestos, deadly nightshade and snake venom are all natural ingredients, just not very good for you.
After all, asbestos, deadly nightshade and snake venom are all natural ingredients, just not very good for you.
Friday, 3 October 2008
Calamansi Crazy
As Herring said; we have some calamansi cordial (mostly calamansi juice and honey) and it is very nice.
So here we are, in the cold British evening. It really is cold, because I'm resisting turning the heating on; and don't get me started on the current cost of heating!
Anyway, we want a nice warming drink, so hot toddy seems like a good idea. What do we need? Well honey, lemon... Ah!
*lightbulb goes on*
So here I am sipping a Calamansi Toddy. Whether that's a taste of summer or winter I'm not quite sure, but I'm pretty sure there's going to be a lot more of these.
So here we are, in the cold British evening. It really is cold, because I'm resisting turning the heating on; and don't get me started on the current cost of heating!
Anyway, we want a nice warming drink, so hot toddy seems like a good idea. What do we need? Well honey, lemon... Ah!
*lightbulb goes on*
So here I am sipping a Calamansi Toddy. Whether that's a taste of summer or winter I'm not quite sure, but I'm pretty sure there's going to be a lot more of these.
Ube, Ube, Ube! Oi, Oi, Oi!!
Ever since our trip to the Philippines this summer, there are three things we have really missed:
Calamansi is a small green citrus fruit, about the size of a large cherry, that tastes like a curious mixture of lemon and lime. A half calamansi is absolutely fantastic in gin.
Ube is a sort of yam, that has a fantastic purple colour. In the philippines, it's traditionally cooked with lots of sugar and used as a dessert. We have a particular fondness for Ube ice cream.
Well, the reason I'm bringing this up is that a Philippino shop has just opened in Aylesbury and is selling, amongst other things, ube, in lots of forms, including ice cream, and calamansi squash! Sadly no whole calamansi, though I will try asking them next time we're in.
On a cold autumnal day, ube ice cream is like a little bit of (purple) summer and a reminder of the ones we love that are so far away. See you soon!
- Calamansi
- Ube ice cream
- Cerveza Negra
- And the lovely warm weather
- Calamansi
- Ube ice cream
- Cerveza Negra
- Buko Juice
- And the lovely warm weather
Calamansi is a small green citrus fruit, about the size of a large cherry, that tastes like a curious mixture of lemon and lime. A half calamansi is absolutely fantastic in gin.
Ube is a sort of yam, that has a fantastic purple colour. In the philippines, it's traditionally cooked with lots of sugar and used as a dessert. We have a particular fondness for Ube ice cream.
Well, the reason I'm bringing this up is that a Philippino shop has just opened in Aylesbury and is selling, amongst other things, ube, in lots of forms, including ice cream, and calamansi squash! Sadly no whole calamansi, though I will try asking them next time we're in.
On a cold autumnal day, ube ice cream is like a little bit of (purple) summer and a reminder of the ones we love that are so far away. See you soon!
Friday, 26 September 2008
I got promoted!
For some time now I've been in the odd position of being a system architect on my project but not the system architect. And then the system architect left (the company).
As I'd already been doing some of his job for a while, I simply started picking up more of it, however this was all unofficial at this point. Anyway they offically advertised the post, and I was interviewed on Tuesday. It's been a long week since then, but this lunchtime, I finally got told I've officially got the job.
This is actually quite a big challenge, but it's the chance to do a lot of good stuff, and I'm really looking forward to it. It's a bit scary too, but I guess that's a good thing!
As I'd already been doing some of his job for a while, I simply started picking up more of it, however this was all unofficial at this point. Anyway they offically advertised the post, and I was interviewed on Tuesday. It's been a long week since then, but this lunchtime, I finally got told I've officially got the job.
This is actually quite a big challenge, but it's the chance to do a lot of good stuff, and I'm really looking forward to it. It's a bit scary too, but I guess that's a good thing!
Friday, 19 September 2008
Words
Is it wrong to teach your 5 year old how to say “antidisestablishmentarianism”?
No?
How about telling them to ask their teacher what it means?
No?
How about telling them to ask their teacher what it means?
Saturday, 30 August 2008
My house is a mess
Well that's not really very surprising I know; but currently it's even more of a mess than I was expecting.
We got up this morning, and full of enthusiasm we decided to do some tidying. Now the landing has been full of all our Cropredy kit (tents, chairs, etc) for weeks, and finally we were going to put it back into the roof. Since the roof is full of junk however, we thought it was a good time to finally throw some of it away, and make more room for the things we actually want.
So off I go into the nursery, to bag up all the stuff in there that needs throwing away, and Herring headed up to the roof. Soon he was happily throwing things out of the roof (literally!) and I was walled in by bags of stuff. I say how happy I am that we're finally tidying this lot up, and he says, yes, something normally comes up which stops us getting this done. (Jinx!)
So a bit later he wants to show me something, so I go to look. He is at the top of the loft ladder with something in his hand (small and light, whatever it was). Then suddenly 'Ow, my back!'. He's suddenly incapacitated, and struggles down the ladder. End of tidying!
So now my landing is still full of Cropredy kit AND things destined to be thrown out. Not quite the result I was looking for.
He has assured me he was not deliberately trying to get out of tidying...
We got up this morning, and full of enthusiasm we decided to do some tidying. Now the landing has been full of all our Cropredy kit (tents, chairs, etc) for weeks, and finally we were going to put it back into the roof. Since the roof is full of junk however, we thought it was a good time to finally throw some of it away, and make more room for the things we actually want.
So off I go into the nursery, to bag up all the stuff in there that needs throwing away, and Herring headed up to the roof. Soon he was happily throwing things out of the roof (literally!) and I was walled in by bags of stuff. I say how happy I am that we're finally tidying this lot up, and he says, yes, something normally comes up which stops us getting this done. (Jinx!)
So a bit later he wants to show me something, so I go to look. He is at the top of the loft ladder with something in his hand (small and light, whatever it was). Then suddenly 'Ow, my back!'. He's suddenly incapacitated, and struggles down the ladder. End of tidying!
So now my landing is still full of Cropredy kit AND things destined to be thrown out. Not quite the result I was looking for.
He has assured me he was not deliberately trying to get out of tidying...
Tuesday, 12 August 2008
Oh why is IE such a time waster?
Well, that's probably not the right question to ask, as its easily answered:
"Internet Explorer is such a time waster as it does not adhere to web standards, and does not provide any sort of helpful error messages."
A better question is why is IE so difficult to work with. The answer to that is probably something along the lines of "Microsoft did not really care about developers who were not using its products."
As you have probably gathered by now, I have just spent the best part of four hours with a Javascript (a rant by itself) error that only appears in IE. What's more, IE provided very little diagnostics about what was actually wrong. So I was basically left with adding lines of code to see if that shifted the error about, so I could gradually narrow down where the actual problem was.
We got there in the end, but it really should not be that difficult. If IE had something like Firebug, it would make the whole thing a lot easier. So would IE adhering to published standards, but I suspect that porcines will be taking off on skis in hell before that happens.
"Internet Explorer is such a time waster as it does not adhere to web standards, and does not provide any sort of helpful error messages."
A better question is why is IE so difficult to work with. The answer to that is probably something along the lines of "Microsoft did not really care about developers who were not using its products."
As you have probably gathered by now, I have just spent the best part of four hours with a Javascript (a rant by itself) error that only appears in IE. What's more, IE provided very little diagnostics about what was actually wrong. So I was basically left with adding lines of code to see if that shifted the error about, so I could gradually narrow down where the actual problem was.
We got there in the end, but it really should not be that difficult. If IE had something like Firebug, it would make the whole thing a lot easier. So would IE adhering to published standards, but I suspect that porcines will be taking off on skis in hell before that happens.
Sunday, 27 July 2008
Anti-terrorist Ants
Our house is not a million miles away from Chequers, as it is located in a particularly nice part of the Chilterns, we are in its vicinity fairly frequently.
Yesterday, we were walking near Chequers when we came upon its boundary. This is quite clearly marked with up ended rail track embedded in the ground to prevent vehicles approaching the building, and large warning signs.
What we were un-prepared for were the large red ants that came running out of a small branch that Louisa picked up, which then proceeded to give her a very nasty bite.
I tell you, you'd be mad to approach the place. They've even trained the wildlife to protect it!
Yesterday, we were walking near Chequers when we came upon its boundary. This is quite clearly marked with up ended rail track embedded in the ground to prevent vehicles approaching the building, and large warning signs.
What we were un-prepared for were the large red ants that came running out of a small branch that Louisa picked up, which then proceeded to give her a very nasty bite.
I tell you, you'd be mad to approach the place. They've even trained the wildlife to protect it!
Monday, 7 July 2008
Melaka
Melaka has exchanged hands several times over the years. Apart from its native inhabitants, its been run by the Portuguese, the Dutch, and most recently, the British. This shows in its architecture, and its food, amongst other things.
On our visit, we saw the old fort, mostly destroyed by the British, to stop it falling into other hands, an old Portuguese church, and lots of Dutch architecture. There were also many funny bicycle things with side car seats for carrying tourists around. These were decorated extensively with flowers and tinsel, sporting similarly decorated umbrellas and generally playing music radio very loud!
We had some very nice satay, mango juice and dutch cake.
So far, the heat has been quite bearable, and though there is air conditioning in the car, I could have coped without it, though possibly with the windows wound down!
On our visit, we saw the old fort, mostly destroyed by the British, to stop it falling into other hands, an old Portuguese church, and lots of Dutch architecture. There were also many funny bicycle things with side car seats for carrying tourists around. These were decorated extensively with flowers and tinsel, sporting similarly decorated umbrellas and generally playing music radio very loud!
We had some very nice satay, mango juice and dutch cake.
So far, the heat has been quite bearable, and though there is air conditioning in the car, I could have coped without it, though possibly with the windows wound down!
Sunday, 6 July 2008
In Malaysia
Well, we're here!
Its warm, sunny, and we're gently recovering from lack of sleep, and the hour change.
Plan for the day: Malacca.
Its warm, sunny, and we're gently recovering from lack of sleep, and the hour change.
Plan for the day: Malacca.
Friday, 13 June 2008
Real Parties
In this day and age of ready meals, quick this and instant that, I'm currently feeling very slightly smug.
Its Louisa's birthday party tomorrow, and she's having 8 or so school friends round for a nice traditional party. There's going to be balloons and Pass The Parcel and Simon Says and lots of other games. There will be real food. There are sausage rolls with 100% pork sausages, I know, because I made them myself - the rolls, not the sausages... maybe next year ;-)
There will be free range roast chicken sandwiches. Ok, I confess. I did not make the bread, just bought it in Waitrose (Oh we're soooo middle class!). And Kettle Chips.
The last is particularly important, as Louisa reported at another party that there were crisps, but she didn't like them. (Not up to her exacting standards!)
Yes, I'm a party snob, and I've spent all of today either shopping for party gifts or cooking. But I'm also very happy in that all the food is real, and made from real ingredients, and lacking in artificial colours and flavours, and cooked from scratch (mostly!)
And I'm now knackered. But I do love my daughter, and I'm not afraid to show it.
Its Louisa's birthday party tomorrow, and she's having 8 or so school friends round for a nice traditional party. There's going to be balloons and Pass The Parcel and Simon Says and lots of other games. There will be real food. There are sausage rolls with 100% pork sausages, I know, because I made them myself - the rolls, not the sausages... maybe next year ;-)
There will be free range roast chicken sandwiches. Ok, I confess. I did not make the bread, just bought it in Waitrose (Oh we're soooo middle class!). And Kettle Chips.
The last is particularly important, as Louisa reported at another party that there were crisps, but she didn't like them. (Not up to her exacting standards!)
Yes, I'm a party snob, and I've spent all of today either shopping for party gifts or cooking. But I'm also very happy in that all the food is real, and made from real ingredients, and lacking in artificial colours and flavours, and cooked from scratch (mostly!)
And I'm now knackered. But I do love my daughter, and I'm not afraid to show it.
Monday, 9 June 2008
Red Kites!
I've been trying for ages to get some pictures of some Red Kites. Its been very frustrating. Every time I got my lens out, any kites in the area would disappear.
Finally!
Finally!
Tuesday, 3 June 2008
Well, that was a surprise!
A few weeks ago we had a sofa delivered. To get it into the house, we needed to move the morgan out of the garage. As it was going to sit on the drive for a few days, I thought that it really ought to be insured.
Then came the mad idea.
Well, we thought, if its going to be insured, we may as well get it taxed and MOTed as well. It can't cost that much more...
A new battery, new headlights, a new sidelight, new oil and oil filter later, and much to our surprise, it passed its MOT.
Today, of course, its raining.
Then came the mad idea.
Well, we thought, if its going to be insured, we may as well get it taxed and MOTed as well. It can't cost that much more...
A new battery, new headlights, a new sidelight, new oil and oil filter later, and much to our surprise, it passed its MOT.
Today, of course, its raining.
Monday, 12 May 2008
Receive the light...eventually
On Sunday I became a 'Godfather'! This may seem fairly unlikely, but that seems to be how it works!
To explain, Sunday was my nephew's baptism, and I was honoured to have been asked to be a godparent. Since I'm already his Aunty this has the bonus of not conferring any extra present responsibilities, since those I have anyway!
His other godparent, was (nicely symmetrically) his other Aunty, and before the service we discussed the fact that there were two jobs for the godparents, one was to present a white garment, and the other a candle. I immediately of course volunteered for the candle role, on the grounds that I have prior experience with candles.
The baptism proceeded beautifully. There were three babies being baptised, so we lined up along the steps in St Edmunds, with our family at the font end (and nearest the Paschal candle). One by one, the babies were baptised, and they were all very good, with no crying. Then of course we got to the interesting bit (from a godparents point of view). First of all Fr John asked 'the godmothers to present the white garments'. I think he was then a little confused as he realised that I looked like a godmother too, and at this point it occurred to me that he actually had considered these roles to be gender related, which had never crossed my mind before.
Candles were then distributed to 'godfathers', and at this point things started to go down hill slightly. Fr John decided that since the paschal candle was way above his head he'd light a taper from it to light the baptismal candles with (so far, so good), however the taper resolutely refused to light. I resisted the urge to take over the taper, though I was right next to him. After several attempts he instead managed to put the paschal candle out! So some rushing around quickly produced some matches. I had thought he might have tried to light the paschal candle again, but instead he went for the simple option of lighting the baptismal candles directly. So finally I got to fulfill my godfatherly role and present Oliver with his candle.
The parents and godparents then all held the candle together, and I was delighted to see Oliver reach out and hold on too. He's a very special little boy.
To explain, Sunday was my nephew's baptism, and I was honoured to have been asked to be a godparent. Since I'm already his Aunty this has the bonus of not conferring any extra present responsibilities, since those I have anyway!
His other godparent, was (nicely symmetrically) his other Aunty, and before the service we discussed the fact that there were two jobs for the godparents, one was to present a white garment, and the other a candle. I immediately of course volunteered for the candle role, on the grounds that I have prior experience with candles.
The baptism proceeded beautifully. There were three babies being baptised, so we lined up along the steps in St Edmunds, with our family at the font end (and nearest the Paschal candle). One by one, the babies were baptised, and they were all very good, with no crying. Then of course we got to the interesting bit (from a godparents point of view). First of all Fr John asked 'the godmothers to present the white garments'. I think he was then a little confused as he realised that I looked like a godmother too, and at this point it occurred to me that he actually had considered these roles to be gender related, which had never crossed my mind before.
Candles were then distributed to 'godfathers', and at this point things started to go down hill slightly. Fr John decided that since the paschal candle was way above his head he'd light a taper from it to light the baptismal candles with (so far, so good), however the taper resolutely refused to light. I resisted the urge to take over the taper, though I was right next to him. After several attempts he instead managed to put the paschal candle out! So some rushing around quickly produced some matches. I had thought he might have tried to light the paschal candle again, but instead he went for the simple option of lighting the baptismal candles directly. So finally I got to fulfill my godfatherly role and present Oliver with his candle.
The parents and godparents then all held the candle together, and I was delighted to see Oliver reach out and hold on too. He's a very special little boy.
Thursday, 24 April 2008
Long Service
Today I received my ten year long service award from work. Of course this doesn't mean I've worked for the same company all that time. On the contrary I've worked for two companies on three sites under four different names.
I did get two rather lovely whisky tumblers though to share a drink with the husband who I've known for all those ten years.
I did get two rather lovely whisky tumblers though to share a drink with the husband who I've known for all those ten years.
Thursday, 17 April 2008
Innocent photographer or terrorist?
I tell you, we are doing the work of the terrorists for them.
Read this.
To quote:
"There's a great deal of paranoia around but the police are on alert for anything that vaguely resembles terrorism."
Really, we don't need to do the job of the terrorist for them. The press and government seem to have whipped up this country into a fever of suspicion; step out of line, and you are obviously doing something wrong, and must be taken away.
It really saddens me. Aren't we supposed to be the ones with all the civil liberties? How long till we are as controlled by the authorities as Iran and China?
Read this.
To quote:
"There's a great deal of paranoia around but the police are on alert for anything that vaguely resembles terrorism."
Really, we don't need to do the job of the terrorist for them. The press and government seem to have whipped up this country into a fever of suspicion; step out of line, and you are obviously doing something wrong, and must be taken away.
It really saddens me. Aren't we supposed to be the ones with all the civil liberties? How long till we are as controlled by the authorities as Iran and China?
Monday, 14 April 2008
Friday, 11 April 2008
And its fixed!
It was the fuel pump in the end. All now repaired with a shiny new one.
Though I could have bought a pair of flashes for that price...
Though I could have bought a pair of flashes for that price...
Thursday, 10 April 2008
The car's still broke.
The garage thinks that its the fuel pump too. Sadly they couldn't get a new one today. It will probably be ready tomorrow.
Not having a car at all is really quite difficult. While I can generally get by during the day without (Paws has the car), there are too many things that are too far away from public transport. While I'm happy to walk several miles to get somewhere, Louisa's legs are short(er) and she just doesn't have the stamina to go that far.
In particular, Zoomania is nowhere near a bus route. This is particularly irritating during the school holidays.
Not having a car at all is really quite difficult. While I can generally get by during the day without (Paws has the car), there are too many things that are too far away from public transport. While I'm happy to walk several miles to get somewhere, Louisa's legs are short(er) and she just doesn't have the stamina to go that far.
In particular, Zoomania is nowhere near a bus route. This is particularly irritating during the school holidays.
Wednesday, 9 April 2008
The long way home
Well seeing as it's Easter holidays (what DO you call the holiday between the spring and summer term when Easter isn't actually in it?), I'd planned to work from home this afternoon in order to give Herring the car and a chance to take a little girl out for the afternoon.
So, I packed up my laptop, went downstairs, got in the car (in the car park, obviously) and turned the key. At this point things started departing from the plan. After a few attempts to start the car, I called Herring and pointed out that nothing seemed to be happening. There's been a relay clicking in the car with no obvious symptoms for a while now, so he got me to attempt a Doctor Who style fix (thump it with my fist), but still no joy.
So it was over to the professionals, in this case the RAC. The lady on the phone took my details and then asked 'Did you have any urgent plans this afternoon?' in the tone of voice that says you may as well resign yourself to growing old gracefully where you are. She assured me it would be at least an hour and a half before anyone came out to me; so I went back into the office!
Half an hour or so later I was called, by someone (possibly called John) who said he was now dealing with my breakdown, and he'd call when someone was coming out to me. Half an hour later I was called by someone who said they'd be with me in half an hour. Their timing turned out to be spot on, I was just wondering if I should be optimistic and go down again to wait for them, when somebody saw them in the car park.
So, I went and said hello, and he proceeded to attempt various things, generally determining that fuel was not getting to the engine. At one point he 'phoned a friend' who clearly had the technical specs to hand in order to work out if the car had a fuel pump in the tank (look, I don't KNOW, I just drive it ok?). He then proceeded to dismantle the inside of the car to get to said fuel pump and after poking it with a multimeter he attempted a Doctor Who style fix with about as much success as I'd had earlier.
So it was time to admit, that no, the car was not going anywhere, and we should take it to a garage (luckily Herring had arranged this, so I could tell him where we needed to go), and he proceeded to pull down a towing kit out of the back of his van and attach the car to it.
So off we went to the garage. We found it (eventually), and found someone to leave the keys with (the proprietor was strangely absent), and he gave me a lift home. So here I am without a car just hoping that the garage man actually knows it's with him and is going to fix it!
Full marks to the RAC though for trying to fix it, and for getting me home. I was really glad of them this afternoon!
So, I packed up my laptop, went downstairs, got in the car (in the car park, obviously) and turned the key. At this point things started departing from the plan. After a few attempts to start the car, I called Herring and pointed out that nothing seemed to be happening. There's been a relay clicking in the car with no obvious symptoms for a while now, so he got me to attempt a Doctor Who style fix (thump it with my fist), but still no joy.
So it was over to the professionals, in this case the RAC. The lady on the phone took my details and then asked 'Did you have any urgent plans this afternoon?' in the tone of voice that says you may as well resign yourself to growing old gracefully where you are. She assured me it would be at least an hour and a half before anyone came out to me; so I went back into the office!
Half an hour or so later I was called, by someone (possibly called John) who said he was now dealing with my breakdown, and he'd call when someone was coming out to me. Half an hour later I was called by someone who said they'd be with me in half an hour. Their timing turned out to be spot on, I was just wondering if I should be optimistic and go down again to wait for them, when somebody saw them in the car park.
So, I went and said hello, and he proceeded to attempt various things, generally determining that fuel was not getting to the engine. At one point he 'phoned a friend' who clearly had the technical specs to hand in order to work out if the car had a fuel pump in the tank (look, I don't KNOW, I just drive it ok?). He then proceeded to dismantle the inside of the car to get to said fuel pump and after poking it with a multimeter he attempted a Doctor Who style fix with about as much success as I'd had earlier.
So it was time to admit, that no, the car was not going anywhere, and we should take it to a garage (luckily Herring had arranged this, so I could tell him where we needed to go), and he proceeded to pull down a towing kit out of the back of his van and attach the car to it.
So off we went to the garage. We found it (eventually), and found someone to leave the keys with (the proprietor was strangely absent), and he gave me a lift home. So here I am without a car just hoping that the garage man actually knows it's with him and is going to fix it!
Full marks to the RAC though for trying to fix it, and for getting me home. I was really glad of them this afternoon!
Tuesday, 8 April 2008
Monday, 7 April 2008
Online auctions
To go with my nice new Nikon D300 (Its still lovely) I wanted to get a Sigma 70-200mm f2.8 zoom, so I had a look on eBay. I found a likely candidate, and put in a bid. Nothing happened for a long while.
In the last few hours, several other bidders pushed the bid up, but I was still in the lead. I added a bit to my bid.
Then in the last 60 seconds, someone topped it.
Bother, I thought, I wanted that!
Then while searching for another likely candidate, I found one that had sold a few hours earlier for £50 less than the winner of the auction I was in.
I'm glad I didn't win now, as that would have been irritating.
In the last few hours, several other bidders pushed the bid up, but I was still in the lead. I added a bit to my bid.
Then in the last 60 seconds, someone topped it.
Bother, I thought, I wanted that!
Then while searching for another likely candidate, I found one that had sold a few hours earlier for £50 less than the winner of the auction I was in.
I'm glad I didn't win now, as that would have been irritating.
Sunday, 6 April 2008
Amazing things...
Two amazing things have happened so far today:
...
It will be great to take photos when it stops!
:-)
- Its snowing,
- The weather forecasters got it right.
...
It will be great to take photos when it stops!
:-)
Saturday, 5 April 2008
It is written in the stars
So yes, today we finally went and bought the camera that Herring has been wanting since, oh, pretty much since it was released. So much so; that when he phoned the shop to ask if they had one in stock, the chap in the shop knew who he was without him identifying himself!
From my point of view this does mean that the little Fuji is now mine (ALL MINE *rubs hands together and cackles maniacally*) .
Still we've bought the camera, and were just basking in the afterglow, when I happened to see Herring's horoscope on his Google page.
"Your creative power is especially strong today, increasing your odds
of getting what you want..."
How did they know?!
From my point of view this does mean that the little Fuji is now mine (ALL MINE *rubs hands together and cackles maniacally*) .
Still we've bought the camera, and were just basking in the afterglow, when I happened to see Herring's horoscope on his Google page.
"Your creative power is especially strong today, increasing your odds
of getting what you want..."
How did they know?!
Tuesday, 1 April 2008
Cameras
Well due to several things, I seem to have found myself in possession of a brand new Nikon D300. I'm not quite sure how this happened, but I can safely say that it is absolutely fantastic, and I've only had it for 6 hours.
I've been struggling with some of the limitations of our previous camera, a Fujifilm S9500, namely its high noise level when taking shots at gigs in low light, and its occasionally lax auto focusing.
My father's purchase of a Sony Alpha 700 might also have had a little to do with things. There's nothing like a bit of competing with your parents :-)
I'll post a review in a bit.
Happy husband!
I've been struggling with some of the limitations of our previous camera, a Fujifilm S9500, namely its high noise level when taking shots at gigs in low light, and its occasionally lax auto focusing.
My father's purchase of a Sony Alpha 700 might also have had a little to do with things. There's nothing like a bit of competing with your parents :-)
I'll post a review in a bit.
Happy husband!
Spot the difference
Really it quite amazes me the lengths that Microsoft will go to to perpetuate their monopoly, despite all the lawsuits and fines, despite the strength of public feeling against them, they believe they can behave exactly as they like.
I guess it is the fault of the courts and our law makers not to take them to task sooner. The American justice system certainly seems to have failed us. Lets just hope that the EU can stick to their guns and keep fining Microsoft till they learn to play nicely.
Monday, 31 March 2008
More Introduction
Actually Herring's introduction probably covers pretty much everything. So what doesn't it cover?
- I'm a System Architect (although actually mostly a Java programmer).
- We also rather like geocaching.
- I'm not generally one for using bullet points!
Introduction
Welcome to our blog!
It was high time that we had somewhere to post our news, rants and ravings, so here it is.First, some terms of reference for you all:
- I'm involved with several communities notably Open Street Map (OSM) and CAMRA.
- I run a web design business, Silverfish Design.
- We're both quite keen about real ale, folk and folk rock, especially when they are combined.
- We're not so keen about Microsoft, and others who abuse the standards process.
- We have a daughter, who will probably feature in this blog, once or twice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
