Lurking subconcious musings

Goth Ball

2008-07-18T15:40:18Z

Attention all Birmingham goth types...

Anyone out there planning on going to the goth ball tomorrow who may be willing to share a taxi to somewhere south of the city in order to save costs? We are thinking of going but don't want to blow too much cash on taxis if we can help it (July has been an expensive month so far...). Get in touch if you are willing to share a route home.

camelot test

2008-07-18T15:36:49Z

Your result for The Camelot Test...

Lancelot

Honourable and passionate. You never back down from a challenge. Your friends are very important to you. You believe in justice and duty far above your own personal security and comfort.

Congratulations! This was the most challenging result to get. You are one of a kind.

Take The Camelot Test at HelloQuizzy

Ugh!

2008-07-18T08:14:53Z

I have Man flu. I only know it is not real flu because I am capable of standing. Mind you, the workout I did on the new exercise bike yesterday probably did not help at all, especially when in a fit of confidence I got the weights out after a several month gap in using them.

Of course today's feeling may also have been compounded by the agency end of term party yesterday where it turned out I was the only person who drank red wine and so drank a whole bottle to myself in less than 2 hours. It was fun, though, as I got to network a lot and also got given a mug and a rather nice pen set. I failed to win the prize draw and get a Sat Nav, however, which is a shame.

On the job front, little has changed. I failed to get either of the jobs I got interviewed for last week so this week has been an intense apply for as much as I can. I also took steps to temporarily sign onto unemployment again to at least preserve my national insurance over the summer drought. I have a few things in the works at the moment including a Library assistant job and an Analyst for the ONS.

The Dark Knight

2008-07-17T08:42:22Z

So, as usual Sarah is not interested in going to see a comic book adaptation at the cinema. So, I am looking for buddies to go and see it with. Anyone planning to see it anytime?

Quizzy thing...

2008-07-14T14:39:40Z

Your result for The Attachment Style Test...

The Cuddleslut

40% Anxiety Over Abandonment and 25% Avoidance Of Intimacy

You're mostly secure, but sometimes you need a little extra reassurance to make it through the tough times. You are usually affectionate and sweet, and you find it easy to fall in love. An encouraging word from a crush or a loved one can motivate you for weeks.

Fictional character with whom you might identify: Kaylee (Firefly/Serenity), Hiro Nakamura (Heroes)

Other Attachment Types:
Secure:	The Unicorn	\|	The Cuddleslut	\|	The Free Agent
Preoccupied:	The Cling Wrap	\|	The Squid	\|	The Insect
Fearful:	The Doormat	\|	The Leper	\|	The Exile
Dismissing:	The Hermit	\|	The Stone	\|	The Player
Confused:	The Waffler

Take The Attachment Style Test at HelloQuizzy

The secret wedding project

2008-07-12T09:52:05Z

Ok, I think I am safe by now in assuming that Chris and Abi have opened their presents and therefore seen the evil that we perpetrated for their listening pleasure. So, I can finally post openly about the secret wedding project...

A few people at the wedding were keen to see the covers for the project but we couldn't let anyone see them because (due to convoluted reasons linked to there being no suitable gift bags) we had to wrap them properly rather than do things the lazy way. So, I promised to post images of the covers for you all to see.

The two sets of covers were partly designed by Dave Lowry (the excellent front covers) and partly designed by me (the less professional looking back covers) though I did all the lettering on the front so blame me if it spoils your view of Lowry's excellent work. The photos were taken from a variety of sources and I think I managed to credit all photographers and models involved. If I haven't and you spot yourself in the shots or a photo you have taken, please feel free to shout at me in order to point it out and I will apologise (though I cannot afford to pay you anything in recompense...).

Also, in the original version as printed the colours on the Artificer cover match a lot better. This is a version copied and pasted to paint to turn it into a jpeg for posting and the background colour never seems to copy over from publisher to any other software...

This is the Artificer one.

And this is the Riftworld one.

The tracks on the listing are probably familiar to most of you though you may not have heard any of Martin's compositions for Riftworld nor the Riftworld remix of Ride of the Valkyries. If you are that interested, you can ask and I will let you have a listen...

Back from job interview 1

2008-07-09T13:38:58Z

Looks very interesting. School is nice (an independent grammar school on a voluntary assistance scheme) and could be good to work for, especially being so close. Only hitch in the plan may be that they do sort of require a driving license (job cvoers some other schools so you have to occasionally travel) so I would have to get one sharpish if they appoint me.

I may know tonight if I have it or not.

The job itself is an unusual one and needs explanation. Its not a 'science technician' role involving setting up lab classes but a science specialist IT/AV technician. Basically, they are already a Humanities specialism (and have one techie for that) and have recently acquired science specialism and this job is to be the specialist for that. From talking to them today I have worked out that they actually need several people or a gestalt of the following:

Me for the science knowledge
Redhillian for the lighting/sound tech duties (part of it is running the sound and light deck for assembly and school plays)
Dave Lowry for web design and publication layout
Iain Jackson for AV technical duties
Salyavin or Myki for sound/video editing duties.

If i get it, it is inevitable that I will have to learn html and possibly java as well as sound/video tech stuff (some of which I know from waypoint and DJing.

I'll let you all know if I get it when I know...

Christening

2008-07-07T18:16:44Z

This weekend we trekked several hundred miles to watch my Nephew being godified in a remarkably small Methodist chapel in Craminlington. All was good and I made some form of promise to help bring him up in the faith. Given that I was only aware of two methodists in that room (apart from the Minister) I am not sure which faith that actually might be...

Though I have to say that my Nephew has already begun to demonstrate godlike tendancies. Well, ok, he's started to act a bit like Davros who has a definite god complex so that is the next best thing:

It was good to see the family tendancy for meglomania being carried on into the next generation.

Party afterwards was fun and the baby had his head well and truly wetted. Though it worried me somewhat that less than an hour after the bar opened, one member of the family was staggering round in his underwear....

Type your cut contents here.
I also do indeed have photos of Sarah and a baby... I am saving those for when I want something special... :) In all a good weekend, though the rain spoilt any chance of any exhibitions to anywhere other than the christening. A trip to the beach with the dogs turned into a scene from the Perfect Storm and a proposed trip to Helmsey castle today was cancelled...

I may also have eaten too much chinese food and aquired either wine or tea poisoning....

I am full of win!!!!!

2008-07-04T16:15:03Z

I got an e-mail today inviting me to an interview for a job!!! Its a microbiology position for a company in Great Barr.

Interview is next thursday at 1130. I need to sort out a means to get there but I suspect that the best way would be to head into town then get a bus from there as there are no train stations anywhere near the place.

Great Barr is looking like it will be a trek each day (but I am sure there are ways and means...) but if I get this it would be good. I have heard that there is this strange concept called 'money' and I wish to explore it more, preferably while lying on a silk bed, sipping good red wine and surrounded by naked... er Sarah.... :)

I need to go and look at travel options and re-read the job description now...

Dr Who....

2008-06-30T16:13:33Z

Ok, watched the episode from Satuday today and have a number of thoughts.

First of all, an excellent episode with lots of geeky cameos though I feel the episode suffered from far too many plot threads in one short episode. It felt rushed in parts as if it did not have time to fully explore the plot. There was an awful lot of cut scenes and hurried exposition that bordered on confusing at times.

However, that is not what I am here to talk to you about today... no, what I am thinking about (and the main reason for the spolier cut) is the mystery of who will play the doctor now that David Tennent is in mid regeneration. Now, apart from a sneaking suspicion that Tony actually knows and is not telling (damn him and his BBC contacts and his ability to actually keep a secret! :) ) from hints I have seen on his facebook I have absolutely no idea about this whatsoever other than speculation. I mean, this has to have been the best kept secret the BBC have ever had. Usually it gets leaked by now, especially as it has been hinted from the start of the season that series 5 will be a new Doctor. However, there are no reports anywhere I can find and the trailer for next weeks finale has no sign of the Doctor. Clearly the BBC has got better at the old security and confidentiality thing. Of course, it could simply be that I am being blind and missing all the news reports and rumours about it...

So, here are my speculations and wish lists. I wonder if any of them are even close. I doubt it...

Ok, first thing. David Tennant was well known to RTD before he got the job. He'd worked on Cassanova with him. Now, Moffat is taking over, so what actors are familiar to him? Well, how about the following names:

- Jack Davenport
- Ben Miles
- Richard Coyle

All three worked with Moffat on Coupling and all three are the right age more or less. Also, all three have genre credibility with Davenport in Ultraviolet and Pirates of the Carribean, Ben Miles in V for Vendetta and Richard Coyle in Strange. Of all of them Coyle has the strangeness to be able to pull off an original portrayal of the Doctor but I can see any one of them doing it.

I have also wanted to see Alan Davies do the part for a long time but not sure if that will now ever happen... he more or less played the role on Johnathon Creek (a nictone patch for Doctor Who addicts for a long time) so either that will work for him or against him.

Of course there is also the possibility that there is no new actor. That the regeneration is not a true regeneration but some form of flange which will be directed by all the people in the world shouting 'The Doctor' at 3pm on a tuesday in order that the Regeneration is halted and David Tennent does another few episodes - the specials etc and maybe a short while of Moffats reign with a new Doctor sometime later. That may explain why there have been no rumours of the new actor. Because, lets face it, RTD has done this before. However, I am willing to trust that this time we have seen the last David Tennent scene and all will be revealed.

So, what do you all think? Do you know or think you know? Who would be your ideal Doctor?

areteus @ 2008-06-30T16:41:00

2008-06-30T15:51:43Z

1. The Lord of the Rings, JRR Tolkien
2. Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
3. His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman
4. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, JK Rowling
6. To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
7. Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
9. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis
10. Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë
11. Catch-22, Joseph Heller
12. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
13. Birdsong, Sebastian Faulks
14. Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
15. The Catcher in the Rye, JD Salinger
16. The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame
17. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens
18. Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
19. Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernieres
20. War and Peace, Leo Tolstoy
21. Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
22. Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, JK Rowling
23. Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets, JK Rowling
24. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, JK Rowling
25. The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
26. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy
27. Middlemarch, George Eliot
28. A Prayer For Owen Meany, John Irving
29. The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck
30. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
31. The Story Of Tracy Beaker, Jacqueline Wilson
32. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel García Márquez
33. The Pillars Of The Earth, Ken Follett
34. David Copperfield, Charles Dickens
35. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, Roald Dahl
36. Treasure Island, Robert Louis Stevenson
37. A Town Like Alice, Nevil Shute
38. Persuasion, Jane Austen
39. Dune, Frank Herbert
40. Emma, Jane Austen
41. Anne Of Green Gables, LM Montgomery
42. Watership Down, Richard Adams
43. The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald
44. The Count Of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas
45. Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh
46. Animal Farm, George Orwell
47. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens
~~48. Far From The Madding Crowd, Thomas Hardy~~
49. Goodnight Mister Tom, Michelle Magorian
50. The Shell Seekers, Rosamunde Pilcher
51. The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett
52. Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck
53. The Stand, Stephen King
54. Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy
55. A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth
56. The BFG, Roald Dahl
57. Swallows And Amazons, Arthur Ransome
58. Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
59. Artemis Fowl, Eoin Colfer
60. Crime And Punishment, Fyodor Dostoyevsky
61. Noughts And Crosses, Malorie Blackman
62. Memoirs Of A Geisha, Arthur Golden
63. A Tale Of Two Cities, Charles Dickens
64. The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCollough
65. Mort, Terry Pratchett
66. The Magic Faraway Tree, Enid Blyton
67. The Magus, John Fowles
68. Good Omens, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
69. Guards! Guards!, Terry Pratchett
70. Lord Of The Flies, William Golding
71. Perfume, Patrick Süskind
72. The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, Robert Tressell
73. Night Watch, Terry Pratchett
74. Matilda, Roald Dahl
75. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
76. The Secret History, Donna Tartt
77. The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins
78. Ulysses, James Joyce
79. Bleak House, Charles Dickens
80. Double Act, Jacqueline Wilson
81. The Twits, Roald Dahl
82. I Capture The Castle, Dodie Smith
83. Holes, Louis Sachar
84. Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake
85. The God Of Small Things, Arundhati Roy
86. Vicky Angel, Jacqueline Wilson
87. Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
88. Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons
89. Magician, Raymond E Feist
90. On The Road, Jack Kerouac
91. The Godfather, Mario Puzo
92. The Clan Of The Cave Bear, Jean M Auel
93. The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
94. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
95. Katherine, Anya Seton
96. Kane And Abel, Jeffrey Archer
97. Love In The Time Of Cholera, Gabriel García Márquez
98. Girls In Love, Jacqueline Wilson
99. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
100. Midnight's Children, Salman Rushdie

The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they've printed. Well let's see.

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicise those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE, or strikeout the books you read but didn't like.
4) Reprint this list in your own LJ so we can try and track down these people who've read only 6 or less and make them read.

Ok... a better list given that it is the original and a score of 39. Though most of these I read many many years ago when I was at school in some cases....

Back from wedding

2008-06-29T17:31:20Z

And it was good. Apart from being very ill on saturday night. Apologies and thanks to all those who looked after me, drove us back to the hotel and force fed me coke.

Full report may happen later plus photos will be loaded to Flickr at some point...

Secret project has apparently not been opened yet so I won't report on that yet...

That book thing

2008-06-26T07:57:02Z

I am having great difficulty beleiving that:

a) there are people who have read 6 or less of this list
b) that this is considered to be the top 100 books. I mean, mixed in with the classics are things like the Da Vinci code which was remarkable only for how naff it was compared to its sales. Hardly great literature.
c) that whoever compiled this list was idiotic enough to include several books twice (once alone and once as part of a collection) and to list any of the books as collections rather than individual books. I'd understand it if all those book swere available as collected editions (a whole trilogy in one book like Lord of the Rings can be bought, for example) but they inlcude all 7 books of the Harry Potter series in this. While you can buy all the HP in one purchase it is hardly one book but all the books together.

Had they included every book as a seperate one, I would probably have scored higher than I did...

I am also wondering how I managed to avoid reading 1984 or Brave New World at school as many I know seem to have done it as part of their English education. We just got Far From the Madding Crowd, possibly the most tedious novel in existence.

The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they've printed. Well let's see.

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicise those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE, or strikeout the books you read but didn't like.
4) Reprint this list in your own LJ so we can try and track down these people who've read only 6 or less and make them read.

1. Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2. The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4. Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6. The Bible
7. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8. Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9. His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10. Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11. Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12. Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13. Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14. Complete Works of Shakespeare
15. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16. The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17. Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18. Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19. The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20. Middlemarch - George Eliot
21. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22. The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23. Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24. War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25. The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26. Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27. Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28. Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29. Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30. The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31. Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32. David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33. Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34. Emma - Jane Austen
35. Persuasion - Jane Austen
36. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38. Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40. Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41. Animal Farm - George Orwell
42. The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43. One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44. A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45. The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46. Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
~~47. Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy~~
48. The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
49. Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50. Atonement - Ian McEwan
51. Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52. Dune - Frank Herbert
53. Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54. Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55. A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56. The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57. A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58. Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60. Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62. Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63. The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65. Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66. On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68. Bridget Jones' Diary - Helen Fielding
69.Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
70. Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71. Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72. Dracula - Bram Stoker
73. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74. Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75. Ulysses - James Joyce
76. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77. Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78. Germinal - Emile Zola
79. Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80. Possession - AS Byatt
81. A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82. Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83. The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84. The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85. Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87. Charlotte's Web - EB White
88. The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
90. The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92. The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93. The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94. Watership Down - Richard Adams
95. A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96. A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97. The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98. Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100. Les Miserables - Victor Hugo
Type your cut contents here.

Work and things

2008-06-25T18:32:59Z

Its been an interesting few days jobswise...

First of all, I had a call about one of the jobs I applied for on Friday. IOt was basically a phone interview and they want me to go in tomorrow at 3.30 to see them. Its an agency doing the interview so chances are the job I applied for has already gone but 'they'll keep me on their books' however it is worth going for. Pay is terrible (£10 an hour compared to the £20+ I get teaching) but it promises to be interesting work - Youth Offending service. One of the phne questions was 'have you worked with unmotivated youngster and.or young offenders?' My first thought was 'Duh! Have you read my CV? Birmingham schools are full of both'. Didn't actually say it, however... :)

Will have to see how it goes tomorrow.

Other job thing was an application form for the lecturer job which is the one I am really interested in. From the job description I am even more interested... 8 hours a week teaching with the rest of the time divided between research interests, teaching assistance and Masters lectures. £13K a year plus all the students I can eat. With obvious progression to full scale lecturer at the end of it all. So, let me see... teaching adults (well, university students) so none of the discipline problems of schools plus learning stuff plus research? Sign me up, please! :)

In other news, secret project one has achieved completion ahead of schedule. Many thanks to all who helped, even those of you who did not know you helped. Especial thanks to secret operatives one and two who produced some excellent work over the weekend and managed to deliver it to me well in time. Remind me later to post about this more openly and explain why there is only one of something and who the rest of the band are...

On snooping for dog poo

2008-06-23T10:13:11Z

Apparently it is not permitted for councils to put cameras around to spot people who are not picking up dog poo. Toilet shy doggies will be pleased, though those who hate those who do not pick up dog poo will be annoyed.

My opinion? I wish something would be done about those annoying dog owners who leave thier dog's crap lying around so Eddie can roll in it (as he did yesterday, the little so... darling). £1000 fines are not working, mainly because there is no way to enforce this unless you have a policeman/dog warden/RSPCA officer at every dog walking place and, frankly, the police/council/RSPCA do not have the money/interest/power to do that. Note the reasons follow - the Police haven't got the money, the council haven't got the interest and the RSPCA haven't the power. There are only 3 dog wardens for the whole of the city of Birmingham and we are considered one of the larger cities, the police haven't got the resources to catch real criminals and the RSPCA have enough on their plate with all the animal cruelty going on.

The solution? Well, how about this...

When I was at Download I saw something that I have seen at a number of other organised events (Re-enactment fayres etc) and it seems to work remarkably well. They put a deposit (or a bounty) on every paper cup. This means that there were hordes of people wandering around collecting them and taking them to the authorised collection point for the bounty. Its not much cash but it is a lot to random children and teenagers who seem to do quite nicely from it. I even saw some people diving into the large bins looking for the cups.

So, how about applying this to dog poo? A small amount of money for every bag collected? I mean, it could even be recycled for fertiliser as it is a source of organic ammonia and other resources. Even if the person who owns the dog doesn't pick it up, you can bet someone else will cos they get money for doing so.

And why stop there? Why not horse manure as well? I remember the times when people used to follow horses around the streets with buckets to collect it for the fertiliser. And what else can be picked up in the street that can be recycled? Broken glass? Paper? Electronics? Plastic bottles? I've seen all of these thrown in the street. The council street cleaners don't get to them fast enough (if at all) but if you put a bounty on every piece of recyclable rubbish taken to a special depot somewhere you can bet there would be clean streets in a very short space of time. Plus, recycling, as we are told, is good for the environment.

George Carlin

2008-06-23T06:46:15Z

Heard this morning that George Carlin has died. But I can't access any of the links posted about it to get more news. Just thought some people on here may want to know...

Dr Who and the mighty hedge

2008-06-22T14:15:25Z

Today, I have mostly been taking part in the great hedge massacre. A mere hedge trimmer (which apparently is insufficient to deal with even the weakest of zombies, a fact which disappoints me) was not up to this mighty task. So, I went to it with a tenon saw and brute force.

The hedge is no longer a threat to passing traffic. It can no longer bash them in the head as they walk past nor can it poison them with its evil spores of mind control or its temptingly green berries. I am win. Like the Doctor in Seeds of Doom, I stand victorious over evil alien plants. No damn triffid hedge is going to get the better of me!

In other news, the secret project has proceeded to satisfactory levels thanks to one of the secret operatives. I got full updates from him yesterday including a photo of one of the final products. It looked damned funky to my eyes. Waiting to hear if the second product is complete and to see what that looks like. Also waiting on operative two to report completion. Hopefully sometime this week...

Doctor Who yesterday was good but I am sure Sarah will not like it. For a start there was far too much Donna when to her mind ANY Donna is too much. Secondly, there were beetles. Far too many beetles. When one beetle is too many (and there was one beetle, a big and black bastard of a beetle with mandibles and everything...). Still, I can see RTD had a choice to make - Spiders and freak out Baz or Beetles and freak out Sarah. Though surely it should have been spiders given the hints earlier on? Nice concept of a creature able to change history and the consequences of the change were nicely done - especially all the various people who die as a result. The trailer for the next episode is intriguing with all the people said to have died all being present implying that making sure Donna never meets the Doctor means that all the people who can face whatever comes next are not there to do so... And of course we have Davros, the most evil holder of a disabled parking badge in existence, to look forward to.

BTW, I know why all the bees have disappeared... what do you think is needed to make Dalek voices sound the way they do. I suspect they are also driven by cat and toast drives as well :).

Just a question...

2008-06-21T18:29:36Z

Is there anyone *not* in next week's Doctor Who?

Hell of a lot of cameos showed up in the trailer... :)

News from the hen night...

2008-06-21T08:32:05Z

Apparently, whereas the stag night was an American road trip movie the Hen night seems to be a Disney animation with added wine. Bacon has turned into a Disney heroine with squirrels walking up to her to be fed. I am expecting to hear news any moment that Mr Bluebird has arrived for his duet with her... :)

Anyone know...

2008-06-20T16:48:59Z

... why the wireless adapter on the PC never seems to switch on in start up? It always seems to need to be unplugged and plugged back in before the system even detects it... just curious, mainly. Though it can be annoying.

In other news, Sarah is away this weekend so I am all alone (with Eddie). So, I am looking for things to do tomorrow day or evening to stop me degenerating into a cycle of walk dog, eat, internet for the entire day and night. Needs to be easy to get to and cheap (preferably free) as I have no transport and no money. I had planned cinema trips but the money thing is sort of stopping that at the moment.

Today has been a productive one all round. Apart from packing Sarah off to Centreparcs I have:

- pushed forward my complaint about a fraudulent transaction on my credit card over tickets I ordered for last week's Download festival and did not arrive in time (forcing me to buy another set and thereby leading to the above mentioned money crisis).

- Applied for many, many jobs including an interesting one which may suit. Birmingham City University are looking for lecturers. You need a degree in a relevent subject (I plan to argue the case for Sports science being intimately linked to Applied Physiology at Sunderland and so apply for the sports one) and preferablt some experience teaching and that is all. They put you through an MEd in further education and pay you a small salary to work under a more experienced lecturer. At the end of it, you are qualified to teach further education. Very interested in all that as it gets me out of the current 'no qualifications to teach properly therefore stuck in supply' rut that I am in at the moment.

- Progress on a secret project has also been made. The outcome is now in the hand of two special operatives whose specialist skills will, I hope, lead to a successful conclusion before the deadline. I will talk more on this after the deadline when the secret is no longer a secret...

- Kicked off the LRP writing project with a good start and lots of interest. Those who are interested who may not have seen the facebook info can get all the info they need from http://www.savefile.com/projects/808652823. Download the guidelines file (if you haven't already) and remember that the synopsis deadline is the start of August when we will start reading and commenting on them.

- Today is also the last day of a long running project I have been working on for a while. The Paranormal anthology submission deadline is today and we already have 7 stories submitted to the publisher for consideration. Expecting a few more as the day progresses. I'll let you all know if anything comes of this.

And that is all...

Its all a blur....

2008-06-16T09:11:51Z

Donnington was made of awesome despite being a lot more expensive for basic human requirements like food than previously anticipated and therefore making my bank account (and our joint savings account) cry real tears of pain and anguish. At least I wasn't in Batelf's position of having had the site deposit for an event which has now been postponed taken out of his account the day before the festival and therefore making him poorer than he should have been...

Saw some really good bands and some so so bands. Both Kiss and Judas Priest were worth watching as they put on excellent shows. Apocalyptica did things with Celloes that should not be possible, including headbanging while playing them (how of earth do they avoid getting their hair caught in the string?) Thier version of Hall of the Mountain King (which we suspect had been their graduation piece from music school, though I think they dropped out due to spending too much time drinking and dancing at rock clubs... :) ) was fantastic but unfortunately not available anywhere that I have been able to find. Offspring were good but could have been better. Wildhearts were fantastic though the 45 min set seemed to be 15 minutes of songs with 30 minutes of stand up comedy and the encouraging the crowd to hit Ginger with bottles :). Stand out line of the stand up act was 'Before we play the next song, I want to be completely covered in shit' and I wondered how long it would take me to get the two dog poo bags I had with me filled. Well, he *did* ask for it and who am I not to take someone literally :)

I have added some new artists to my list of interests including (yet another) Evanesence clone Within Temptation. What can I say... I was wandering past the main stage and I looked up at the screen and saw a cute girl in a red corset. So, I thought I'd stay to watch and maybe pay attention to the music at some point... :) They were certainly a welcome change from the apparent excess of Sepulchura/Pantera clones who all seemed to blur into one sound eventually. There wasn't even the variety you get at The Cambridge Folk festival where the majority of bands play 'Celtic fiddles mixed with [insert ethnic variation here]'. I think this is why the older metal bands, Offspring, Wildhearts, Within Temptation and Apocalyptica stood out - they were different to the majority by a significant amount. I unfortunately missed HIM due to them being on at the same time as Offspring but did catch Bullet for my Valentine who, with Within Temptation, managed to assuage my need for goth music (much like the way I can't beleive its not butter replaces butter so I suppose modern death metal is 'I can't beleive its not goth' :) ).

As to this whole stag party thing... well, as I am sure many of you are already aware, absolutely nothing happened to Chris. Though I did get my arse felt by some cute girl walking past me in the crowd watching Judas Priest and the Offspring set was livened by the camera catching some girl showing her breasts. There was much debate as to whether they were real or not. Other than that, nothing sexual happened to anyone...

Donnington

2008-06-13T10:09:40Z

I am off to Donnington. I shall be returning sometime on Sunday. Assuming I am sober enough to find the train station in Derby.

See you all when I get back... and see some of you when I get there...

Interesting... Evolution evidence builds

2008-06-10T23:15:32Z

As I keep telling my students - the reason why we look at bacteria and fruit flies is because the generation spans are so short... and it pays off!

http://www.newscientist.com/channel/life/dn14094-bacteria-make-major-evolutionary-shift-in-the-lab.html

Weekend

2008-06-09T20:49:21Z

Was very lazy this weekend. Failed to do much of import. Enjoyed HoG party despite being caught between two WoW conversations and failing to bring enough booze. Enjoyed the vacarious pleasure of wandering around Maelstrom site after time out and watching others sweat while taking down tents etc and not helping. Well, we helped a bit... Saw lots of people we rarely see and it was good.

Did however get confirmed as the 'Official PD medivac service' for Midlands based events when we yet again came home with a sick person who could not drive home that evening. Redhillian has promised to ask Matt if he can get us an air ambulance for this service (we could steal it and use it for Waypoint and Riftworld!) or at the very least an offical PD sign to put on the car with optional Blues and Twos so we could cut through traffic easily. We took said person home with orders to not let them drive until we were sure they could do it without danger of exploding into a fiery ball of death on the M6 (or at least no higher than normal chance of this). Take away was bought, Indiana Jones DVD was watched (followed by Run Fat Boy Run and Blackadder though many gave up before that started and went to bed), wine was drunk and crap was duly talked as is the ritual of the time.

Today was lazy. I messed around with sound files for dubious reasons and did housework. I also mentally prepared for my lesson tomorrow by revising in my head the details of transpiration and water loss in plants while in the bath.

And thats all really...

Is it just me...

2008-06-07T20:14:55Z

Is it only my friends list that gets quiet when Maelstrom is on? :)

Someone out there post something to amuse me...

In other news, had some pate for lunch today. Apparently it was pig liver pate with added bacon... yes, added bacon. Isn't that a little over much? There isn't enough pig in this thing, lets add some bacon?