Jon-ster's Jon-blog

Freezing bloody cold

2010-12-07T19:48:00.002Z

Well, it isn't any more, but winter is upon us, huh?

December. Not exactly my favourite time of the year for a number of reasons, but there are events aplenty going on at the moment, so I thought that I'd write a little blog post to air out my little corner of the internet and exercise some mental muscles. I've not written anything of any length in a good long while, and it would do me good to get back into the habit.

Part of the reason I'm on blogger rather than my usual haunts is that WoW:Cataclysm was released today, or perhaps unlocked is a better description. Ordinarily I'd be right in there lapping up some new content, but I guess that since my PC graphics card threw a wobbly at the weekend, and that there are upwards of 5 million people across Europe trying to log in via the same server right now, I'd give it a miss. It's going to be pretty hideous for the next few weeks, and I'm not so totally addicted or dedicated (yet) to have to log in immediately.

Britain has had an inordinate amount of snow this past week, though now almost all of it has gone. At least in the south-east. It were pretty hideous last Weds, I can tell you; having gone down to Brighton the night before, I was greeted by snowy roads the following morning. Or slushy at least. Needs must, so I hopped onto the bike and started making my slow way to work. Not a pleasant journey, with a nice load of wheel spin whilst trying to crawl up a shallow hill, and then even more pant-shitting events as my engine completely shut down in the centre lane of a 3-lane dual carriageway. Eeeks. Luckily I pulled over without collecting anybody (or actually touching my brakes, somehow) and rang in distress for the breakdown people. And luckily we got up to a garage and I'm now in a long queue to get looked at. Suspicion is that owing to improperly treated fluids the carburettors iced up and stopped working, but we will have to see. I'm also replacing my chain and sprockets for the second time in a calendar year, not cheap. But I'd rather not have a dodgy bike.

All of this put together means that my advanced test date has been indefinitely postponed. It was due for Friday 3rd, a day which I actually spent indoors since there was a foot of snow outside and I didn't feel like going out. So keep your fingers crossed for a healthy, throaty bike machine and clement weather, bloggardes. I'm not nervous about riding in rain, or even cold, but the snow has put the shits up me, and I can do without the extra worry.

In other news, I'm distinctly more chubby. I way precisely the same as ever, but it's redistributed from the obvious places to the obvious places, and I feel lardy. But chilly always means more food please, so we might worry about it come April time.

Righto, bath ready. More tomorrow, but I fear my life is a little bit dull at the moment!

November

2010-11-09T19:05:00.002Z

Welcome to November!

I'm having a bit of a shite time of it at the moment; after a nice weekend break away with P, I seem to have caught something hideous in my eye. Along with that, my eczema has had a huge flare-up on one hand, the like of which has not been seen in many years. This is worrying. The eczema is painfully awful, though I can cope with it, but the eye thing has me rather crapping myself.

I know the state of my vision is nothing so awful - I can still see, still function, though reading is much, much less of a pleasure than in used to be, even with my stylish specs (that I've managed to lose, gawd knows how). I find it tiring to focus on text, which is a bugger if you do enjoy reading. I've taken to relying heavily on my non-herpetic eye which, though no longer perfect, at least doesnt have the ghosting effect of my right eye and I can read text at a ggod rate. If I get scarring on that other retina, it's going to really knock my ability to read on the head, and that's freaky-scary. I know it won't be me going blind, but it will seriously curtail what I can see, and there's not a hope of any kind of non-invasive correction....which basically means my eyesight will be shot until they'd agree to operate once I turn 60-odd. And we're not talking laser surgery, it'd be the full-on hack-open-your-eyeball job. Not pleasant to consider.

In other news, I now have a date for my advanced riding test: 3rd Dec. I'm totally not ready for it at the moment, though there are about 3.5weeks in the meantime to try and sort things out. I'll have to spend some evenings reading up, and get in as much backroad riding as is possible to prep me for it. I've not really been for a long spin since it started getting nippy and darker in the morning - so in the coming weeks I'll have to force myself to get up earlier, leave earlier, and go the back roads. Because I'm certainly not riding them at night, scary.

Had a first play event with new theatre group in Horsham, they're plagued like most groups with lack of ticket sales and not helped by the local council with regards advertising, or the local facillities regards charges for hire. It's a real shame, but it's almost like many local theatre groups are battling the same issues - not being able to breakeven, meaning no money to operate. Unfortunately the costs are a lot higher than they used to be, audiences are no longer there with the recession, and that which is exciting for a group to stage in not exciting for a public to watch (outside of London). This, and also the aging demographic of theatre groups. It's a shame that younger people don't seem to want to take part - or if they do, it's in a musical-framed capacity. I kinda understand that, hopefully it is something that will change though. Good theatre is possible without music. The best theatre moments often lack it entirely. I won't go as far as to agree with Marceau, though.

Enough for now, my fingers are getting a bit sore. At least I have only to listen to things in the morning - training course to attend, no thought required :D

Wake up in the morning, wanting some breakfast....

2010-09-20T06:54:00.002+01:00

Cue Vitalite. Actually, I don't think they make that any more, do they? In those round, flat tubs? The world of margarine is very different than in used to be.....

Off to work in a minute to welcome the new guy, and I'm in cubby mode. I think I've basically given up on the full-on headshaving for the time being, it's been a couple of months now and I'm only missing the fresh feeling, rather than the look. I quite like furry Jon-ster, though P thinks I look like a tramp.

Theatre tonight - better learn some lines, hadn't I?

I was going to make a post more recently!

2010-09-18T18:16:00.002+01:00

...and how many times have we heard that? :D Seriously though, I had some photos and everything, but I think this story will work just as well by description, and hell, it's good exercise for my brain and fingers to get it down in print.

P and I went out for chinese the other night. Nowt posh, just essentially take-away but without taking-it-away, but in bigger portions and some things slightly more obscure. And the same place serves dim sum on a weekend, just like the place in Southampton I used to frequent did. Even down to the deep-fried prawns served, bizarrely, with the quintessentially asian ingredient of salad cream (strangely tasty in this context). Anyhow, meal over, regulation fortune cookie and hot towel dispensed, nice nice. I crack mine for the fortune 'you will receive a gift you have always wanted'. So far, so typically trite.

P cracked his to obtain the fortune 'British Telecom has made a mistake, you will get a rebate'.

Errrm, whut? This is a remarkably precise prediction for an art form usually mired in indecipherables and inexactitiudes. That a cookie not only knows you have telephone provided by BT, it knows they've buggered up your bill and that the cheque is in the post. Not that this is unlikely - I have many gripes over my BT service at the moment but nothing is likely to change - but still, surpisingly to the point. I did take a picture just to make sure it was real and not a hallucination, but as yet do not have the technology to transfer them (read: my camera battery is flat and I don't have an SD card reader).

It is a pleasant day today, not much happening; big mug of coffee, crumpets and sausage rolls. Shall have to stop with the pastry soon though :-(

I shall love him and cosset him, and call him Brian

2010-09-06T22:16:00.003+01:00

There follows a picture of my coffee french press. Oh how are the mighty fallen! Not only do I now make coffee like I live in the 1980s, but I've let it become covered with the lovely green residue of mould. Coffee grounds are noted as being good for compost; clearly they are attractive to microorganisms who have decided to come and live with me. I'm a skank, no two ways about it :D

I've been having a little electrical trouble with my bike recently, something lurking deep within the myriad dirty cables under the seat has decided it doesnt want to play any more and is shorting out the dashboard. So though my engine will start and the bike will run, mechanically fine (though I'm paranoid about all the knocking I 'sense'), I have neither brake lights, nor indicators, nor indeed a working rev counter. My speedo stays dead at 0 mph even though, woah, I'm clearly nipping along the dual carriageway at a fair lick. Honest, officer, the dial said I wasn't breaking the limit.

Work is shaping up fun and interesting, especially now I'm on a new area of project as the first dedicated guy on the job, even more so now there are new people around joining in on it. Always better to be the 'old hand' rather than the young buck, I guess. And somehow in the last 6 months to a year I've randomly managed have 'the knowledge' in my field. Or at least, I don't give a crap if I make mistakes anymore :D

I've also recently found out that I have quite a high level of cholesterol in my blood. Now, despite the fact that this should come as no shock to anyone who has lived with me, or indeed has ever eaten food prepared by me, it was still a little bit disconcerting. Jon-ster is therefore moving away from the delicious red meats he loves so much and is even going to be sacrificing a quantity of cheese-nibbling. Luckily I can pretend pork is white meat, the fattiest of the lot! Clearly in a case of wanting immediately whatever one is denied, I've been thinking about slow-roast belly pork and large pieces of crackling. In fact, sometimes I've though about pork dishes entirely in terms of the sensuous fat which leeches out and soaks sumptuously into my big pile of kraut. I'm hungry again.

Butyraldehyde

2010-08-21T08:01:00.002+01:00

Yuck. And I do mean yuck.

In a frivolous attempt to get back to the writing style and tone of several years ago, I'm going to try and not blog about how crap my life is and yada yada, because all it achieves is making me depressive. And this is not a good thing, huh? Let's try and be upbeat and happy and count our blessings for a change.

P's got a new memory foam matresss thing. You know the ones that reshape to your body as you lie on them? Yep, well, it retains heat like nothing else. I'm sure this will be fab in winter when there's less heat about, but at the moment it's very warm despite being a bit shitty weather outside.

Hopefully I'll be starting in a new play, week after next. Have to do the almost nudity thing, again, so the second time I'll be getting my kit off in public. People will start to get the wrong idea. Actually, they probably wont, but there you are. It's quite fun, in fact. Strangely liberating, as they say (not that I'm likely to leap into a lifestyle of naturism anytime soon), especially since it 'isn't me' who's getting naked, no, not anally retentive, wound-up Jon-ster - rather the character, so it's all fine :D

Whinge

2010-08-20T07:05:00.002+01:00

Pah, it's not fair being a poof sometimes. Well, at least not at the moment. Everyone else has some nice big life experience things coming up on that whole trad marriage-baby-school thing, and I've kinda finished with all of that. I know the hippy response is 'make your own occasions', but it appears I'm a conservative boyo when it comes to this kind of thing, and I've happily translated it into some sort of failure in my head.

As I've said before, life is certainly not turning out to be what I expected for myself. Most importantly, I've got to stop comparing myself to other people, or just get depressed!

Back to work again today. I'm shaping up to like my boss quite a bit, it's rather refreshing to have someone say 'fuck' at you at work. Doesn't help that he be rather tasty, there's a whole. Chemistry is quite exciting too - anyone have any tips for dodgy Friedel-Crafts reactions?

IAM riding is going swimmingly, so I'm probably due another crash in a couple of weeks.

A long day

2010-08-08T18:53:00.003+01:00

Had a very long day of riding. I'm totally enjoying it more than ever now that I'm doing the IAM-Advanced thing, it's lifted everything and I feel more confident, safer and more kick-ass at the same time. The fear of a smash has even gone. (That's the dangerous part!)

I was making a list in my head during the ride of witty observations to put down here when I got home, but I can't think of a single one now. The juddering, potential RSI of the wrists and ankles and a hot bath have washed it clean out of my head.

The question now is - pasta dish or rice dish for dinner? I suppose I should have the personal crazy-ass rice dish, since it's far too minging for me to make for P ever :D

Funnies

2010-08-07T13:31:00.001+01:00

Just to break the tedium, go look up Shappi Khorsandi on youtube and have a giggle. She funny.

I own a sofa

2010-08-07T13:19:00.002+01:00

...aned it is a bizarre feeling.

I'm realising slowly that as I grow older, more cynical and less spiritual, that I can't remember my nebulous childhood dreams. You know, the ones where you reckon you'll be playing football for the national team, or exploring regions of space, being a fireman or prime minister or any of the thousand possibilities that occur before effort is needed. The only things one I kinda remember is wanting to be the cleverest person, ever. Some kind of knowledgeable guru, the one everyone pays due respect and homage to, who can hand down knowledge from on high.

I eventually worked out that this was not exactly something to win me friends. Patronizing, much? Yup. I was no doubt pretty insufferable, but it gave me a certain drive to achieve, academically. The kind to be measured by an exam, of stuff you know or can work out using the rules. Life unfortunately isn't like that, and half the time I rage against myself and those adults who were around me for lulling me into that false sense of security.

Thing is, life isn't like a simple maths problem, or an hypothesis refuted by a designed experiment, or an essay where you argue two sides. It's a freakish amalgamation of chances, opportunities and craziness that doesn't make any sense a lot of the time. I miss out on a lot through emotional inertia, but I know that the life I have now is partly the life I have made.

I'm all growed up, and certainly am not the person I dreamed I would be. Who is? I've gone balding, I've grown a beard, I don't own a car because I chose 2 wheels instead, and most of the people I have known, are people I have known and not people with whom I currently talk. There will be no enduring legacy, and this is not a bad thing.

I own a sofa. I own a bed. I actually live somewhere now. And I'm of the age my parents were when they met, married, and travelled off around the globe. Full-on weird.

A return

2010-07-16T22:56:00.002+01:00

Well, I logged back in again.

No need for current updates, since I'm not sure how many people check on this any more - why would you, I've not posted for a year! But this is just to let the general world know that I'm in rather a fucked up headspace at the moment, and need what might be termed normality to sort myself out.

I do know, however, that I can no longer do things on my own. This year past has seen me age internally, such that the hadn't-even-started-life person I had been, is now someone jaded-by-the-years. What made this change, I don't really know, but I realise I can't do things without friendly faces.

I just hope I can turn myself around enough not to lose one that means much.

Welcome to August

2009-08-02T09:47:00.002+01:00

And what a changeable month it has been so far! Awful yesterday, beautiful today.

Interview on Friday went OK, certainly once it started I lost my nerves and seemed to be someone worth talking to, and they're a friendly bunch. Technical bit was slightly odd, since I think I was thinking around things too much, and not letting myself be led - whether this is good or not I wouldn't like to say - but all in all a positive experience, and I'm not an absolute idiot (like I was beginning to think). However, I'm not sure about the position as a whole, for several reasons; the need to make a very rapid decision should they offer, the technical instability of the company as a whole (finance until next April, but likely after that? Not a solid bedrock), and more to the point the issue of releasing from my current housing situation. I'm not sure about any of this, will need advice from several people at work.

My life otherwise? There's one big issue that bothers and I don't know how to confront it. P and I clearly have problems, but I don't know how to deal with it. If I bring up the subject, he appears to not want to talk about it - fair enough - but I get the impression that he feels it's wrong but doesn't want to act to rescue it. I don't know. Maybe I'm wrong, I hope I'm wrong, but I'm not really prepared to deal with this kind of stuff. The best thing to do might just be to leave it all alone, but then I don't want anything to escape through inaction on my part. And I obviously cant be psychic, much as it would be nice. I dunno.

Today is gorgeously sunny, and I'm going to go out in it once I've finished the household stuff; breakfast is cooking, I have all my stuff to put away and the hoovering to do, the bathroom to do, ordering stuff to do....but this is all by the by....

Double coincidence

2009-07-26T16:46:00.002+01:00

A week gone. A few things of interest; warcraft guild imploded, to be replaced with basically the same guild within minutes. Most odd. Have got my work cut out at the moment, boning up on chemistry that I do, should, know, but am having trouble with just at the moment. Horrible feeling, makes you feel old and forgetful.

But the fun story of the weekend has yet to be told. Making scrambled eggs on Saturday, had a surprise to get a double-yolk egg. Quite a little treat! But then, later in the day, making pancakes for some nice dessert, there was another double-yolker from the same box of eggs! Quite a high dose of probability against that, eh? Please don't devolve into discussions of psychology about how we only notice that which we do not expect, I've heard it before.....but the event still makes me smile.

Keeping (ish) within my money worries at the moment, though I'll still have to keep a watch on it all. Especially since this month will be lower in value, owing to (non-swine-flu) sick days. Feeling good for not spending as much cash, and snacking on fruits at work. Could get used to it all....

Monday

2009-07-20T11:09:00.002+01:00

Welcome to Monday. Walked into work again, and realising that it actually is only about as far as I used to walk to school - so a half hour trot if I keep up the pace - and that I've actually been benefiting from the exercise. And walking gives me time to think, even if I don't want to; no computer-based distractions out on the road. Whether this is a bad thing, given my current tendency to depression, I don't know.

Set up a tonne of reactions this morning, which will all hopefully be ready tomorrow and I'll have cut a huge slew through the backlog of work I needed to do. This should be the case, considering I've done all of these before and only need to fully characterise the intermediates which I used up last time around. Luckily I have a defined list rather than a nebulous 'variety' to make. Decisions, they are useful tools to deal with a life :-)

Watched several episodes of the Supersizers over the weekend, that's the show where Sue Perkins and Giles Coren (slightly less pompous in real life than in print) pretend to be living in the past and eating various gruesome items. Light relief really, and it appears I never tire of the look of Sue's face as she chows down on something particularly rank. Very expressive face, and a vocabulary to go with it. Perfect combination.

Big things are still happening in the background. Fear is tinged with optimism, but I think a lot is out of my control. And that's part of the problem, I'm more anally retentive than I gave myself credit for...

Please let me know about all your doings, bloggardes, it gets lonely in here sometimes.

Oops, three day lag!

2009-07-18T08:50:00.002+01:00

Well, that's the first big pause. Not that I have much to say about the past few days apart from the fact that rigourous adherence to the sleeping plan has meant that I've been getting through the night undisturbed. Helped not doubt by the magic of earplugs. Even managed to do my normal hours down here at P's without a disturbance, though I've not been able to lie in.

Work has kinda settled down a little, though I still have lots to do and lots of stress about it. Plus I have a major issue that I don't want to talk about here just yet, as it bears a lot of thinking. So now I'm just going to enjoy the weekend :-)

Turning over a stone

2009-07-15T18:57:00.002+01:00

Trying to finish stuff up at work, and it's like turning over a stone to find a whole bunch of interesting mud underneath. And now I have to investigate it - more time, more worry! It's exciting, but I kinda want to just draw a line and move on. Even if moving on is in fact moving back to the project I initially started two years ago, but needs to be given a nice finish too. So it's like going over the same ground again to collect the whole gamut of publishable data. Scientists will know what I'm talking about. For others, it's like being asked to dig out your bank statements from 5 years ago, but not being able to and having to reconstruct them from a big pile of receipts you saved 'just in case'.

So all in all, I have a lot to do, and that's even without considering the whole job hunting gaffe. Anyone want a part-time share in my life? I'll pay in cakes, and you get the use of my psyche at the weekend if you like.

P is out meeting a new friend this evening, so I don't quite know what to do with myself. Should log on to WoW, but am feeling a bit like I should be doing something more active. Though I did walk home in the pissing rain. I think the exercise is actually good for me, though it rapidly it has already become a chore. Can't wait for the weekend. I want to show P a little bit of a good time, for putting up with me miseryguts these past few weekends, but I'm not sure what to do. Suggestions welcome, but bear in mind I don't want to blow my well-started sensible spending! I want to buy him things without giving the impression that I resent it.

Time to finish off my veggie stir-fry. Yum.

A simple achievement

2009-07-14T08:08:00.002+01:00

Woop-de-do! I managed to sleep a lot better last night, not soundly all the way through, but there has been considerable improvement. Having looked up a lot of tips about good sleep practice online (gotta love teh internet), I tried out some of them and they did help. Though why they insist on calling it all 'sleep hygiene' I'll never know.

So, I did wake up at around midnight, and had the boiler knocking as it did before.....but I managed to get back to sleep again. In the first instance where bam I was wide awake, I got up, went into the other room and sat down with the intention to read a little. Almost instantly I was yawning my head off and within a couple of minutes was back in bed for the next stretch! Other wake-ups I just turned over in bed and got on with it. So though I'm not feeling totally refreshed and lalala this morning, I'm a helluva lot better than yesterday.

Some other tips for you: abstinence from caffeine after lunch (and obviously not too much beforehand either) - so that includes no tea, no coke, no red bull (yuck). I had the little idea of taking my bike leathers down from hanging on the door, so that I could actually close it fully for the first time in ages, making myself a little bedroom haven divided from my worldly worries and condiusive to sleep. I shall be doing that one again.

And now I'm at home waiting for the man with a van to arrive to take away my bike. The original one that went smash back in 2007 and has been parked up outside ever since. About bloody time, and will be one thing off my mind! Should've just got rid straight off - and that's something I'm going to be trying to do in future, deal with things as they come in (if I can) and not leave them to fester and niggle and get old.

After that, it'll be a brisk walk to work, dropping off my suits to be dry-cleaned along the way (been a while since I've needed to wear one), and then lots of computer-desk-work stuff to do once I arrive. And a reaction to work up. Back in the lab for a short period!

Absolutely knackered

2009-07-13T18:35:00.002+01:00

Dear all,

Jon-ster is feeling particularly tired today, having woken up for the first time at half past midnight, and then only slept intermitently since.....not good. And I usually sleep so deeply and well down at P's courtesy of his much better mattress! Mine, I shall have to replace it soon, and to be fair - it was actually P's in the first place.

So, now I'm home, still no insurance check though I rang them up and apparently it was chased today....equity star do not offer a fast service, it appears, though can't say enough good things about Carole Nash.....and I've arranged a financial planning meeting and I've rung to have my old GS bike taken away to the scrapheap. Ay me! About bloody time I did it, though of course it is going to mean sacrificing my little parking space - and the weeds that have sprung up under the wheels will get flattened down by merciless car tyres once again.

Re-writing my CV and for a chemist-type position it's looking pretty good! Doesn't bode too well if I want to switch to something else, though....those of you readers working in recruitment and HR, please tell me any tips you have :D Though I've already conned a friend from theatre here to help me out on that front.

I'm flitting between tasks at the moment, though, so I think I'm going to take a moment to stop, breathe, and concentrate on one thing.

Sunday

2009-07-12T13:40:00.002+01:00

Another early wakening, but this time I dug in and tried to force myself to sleep, and I'm pretty sure I got off again, though it did take a while. Hopefully I can keep on doing so once I'm home again, and I think part of the problem is the piss-poor quality of the mattress at home. So though my intentions of not spending money still hold good, I think I'll have to invest in a new mattress. I'm almost tempted to ask my landlord to remove the old bedstead, so I can sleep on the floor, but that might be just too trashy for words.

Have been looking up alternatives to my phone plan, since I seem to be paying a bomb for it. Silly me flung out all my bills though, so I haven't got a baseline reference to look at, but the plan I'm on should be costing less, so I'm either making a helluva lot of calls, or texts, or I don't know what else. Maybe there's an after-seven thing with the cheap calls that I'm not sticking to.....either way, as I said before, I need to manage it a bit more, and I think that I've found a way to do it, though it does mean not having a new phone with it. Anyhow.

Paid in some dollars to my account that I've had hanging around with me for years, right back to when I didn't go to Peru, but never changed them back. Well, they've gone in and are making my account look healthier, but I don't really want to just spend them off pat as it is, 'cos in a way it was a little money bolthole.

But for something more interesting. Met up with my sister on Saturday, was boggled in mind by the way my neices are growing up so quickly and one is now definitely a little person rather than some baby/toddler/dribbling lump. Had a long sit and a long chat in a cafe, basically therapy on my part with lots of sobbing, bawling and being a bit childish, but it was good to let it all out, and it has built up my confidence somewhat and also motivated me to sort out something with Gran's legacy and pensions and the like. Big grown-up decisions to be made, all about stuff that I really don't find interesting, didn't really ever want to deal with, but now is apparently one of the most important things you need to do. Bummer.

Have also come down to see P again on Saturday evening, and have been spending a lazy Sunday. But I think I'm going to have to have a weekend or so at home, just so I can try and fix some of the money things (thank god banks open Saturday these days), though it is a lot shit staying away. I get lonely and frankly quite bored not being around people.

Might go and have a little nap....

Early morning

2009-07-11T07:08:00.001+01:00

It is early for a Saturday, no? Yes it is. However, there is a reason, I'm off to see my sister in a bit, and the byzantine behaviours of London transport mean that I have to leave very early to get to her at a reasonable time. And then there will be much weeping and gnashing of teeth, for I have to make some big apologies for being a bit of a crap brother, get things off my chest, and explain my current worries.

It's also partly due to the fact that I seem to be very restless these days. I'm waking up regularly at about 4:40 every morning, just as it's getting a bit lighter outside, and then >boom< my brain kicks in and all the worries I'm having surface. And lying in bed with not much to do means I'm perfectly set up to just go round in little worrying circles, and this is of course not condusive to sleep. So hopefully I'll sort out my worries soon and rest more easily.

I've actually started thinking about all those niggling things that I've been putting off because they're painful. And tasks that seem to just sit and never get done, I will finish them off! Life cleansing, I suppose, and with my new found drive to cut back on money, means I should be able to concentrate on these things a bit more.

Right, breakfast time.

Eeek!

2009-07-10T19:05:00.002+01:00

Bet you've all had those bank statements moments? I've had a big one today. Don't really look at them except to check that there's no enormous payments I don't remember making, but I've noticed that I'm spending right on the limit of my means, and sometimes beyond it. Of course, this is not good, since when you spend more than you earn, thereby leads the way to Newgate. And we don't want that, do we?

So, basically, we have to make some cuts. First thing will be my profligate mobile phone bill, which seems to have been increasing of late as I've been calling people, and obviously the insurance people, in the middle the day, which is when I have to pay. So all calls except for essential stuff will be made at the end of the day - and I do count ringing at least one friend at lunchtime essential at the moment :-)

Next up will be my coffee habit at work. Even though it's incredibly cheap, that only tempts me to buy even more! So no more. No more coffee, no more coke in the afternoon (water will be better for me in any case, with my skin), I shall drink the slightly insipid free machine teaand coffee, and lump it. Likely to save me a somewhere between a fiver and a tenner a week, but it's something, especially if switching will bring some benefits. And no more snacks.

No more eating out either. Harsh when I visit P, 'cos it's nice to do (and you all know my foodie leanings), and no more takeaways. Since being introduced to internet ordering, I've been, well, not free and easy with it, but the temptation is omnipresent. So no more. And I'm afraid, no more at P's either. Not to mention that a slight reduction in diet will be good for me! Time to start living on veggie dishes, little pieces of bacon, liver if I can get it, and plenty of rice. Inspiring diet? Hardly, but it'll do me good to get cooking random stuff again, and not my regular things. And if I'm truly clever, then taking things to work is an option, so no need to buy loads of bread and sandwich fillings! More to the point, hopefully no more need to supplement food I make at home with more at work. I shall be limiting my food spending as much as I can, hopefully I can get by relatively healthily on twenty quid a week, though store-cupboard is not looking well-stocked right now. And I'm sure I'll get sick of tuna quickly. And of course we take to the non-branded stuff.

Not sure what to do about my bike situation; the insurance premium will be a huge expense for me, but I've already got all the kit I need and petrol at the current rate will probably cost me about £15 a week (with no runs to Brighton or otherwise out), less if I trek to the cheaper stations in Camberley. Maintenance lube will of course put up my prices, but the train costs me about £15 a week as it is. I'm not sure on this one. The walk to work will do me good, but will get very unpleasant once the autumn arrives with wet and nasty all over the place - not to mention the dark. Unfortunately few people live over in my direction, and always cadging lifts will become a problem.....though I think I will approach Anja, who lives around the corner, for morning lifts once winter comes....annoying that single train tickets are almost as expensive as returns, since it means I only make a real saving if I walk both ways.

Entertainment wise.....NO MORE BOOKS! This will be harsh, no question. But I have a nasty habit of blowing fifty quid on things every once in a while, when I have a perfectly good library (and plenty of internet), all for free. Perhaps time for me to go to Bagshot library and see what's on offer....might be worthwhile :-)

Sounds pretty bleak, eh? I've been lulled into false security with my Gran's legacy, but I will have to be careful not to just piss it slowly, slowly away, as that would be a real waste. I reckon I'm more sensible to make some cuts now, rather than wait until I really am in the lurch or am jobsearching without any income for any length of time. Life may be a little bit sad, but I'm going to keep blogging - fun! - and doing things I already get as part of an essential, or that I already have. Warcraft I will continue to pay for, not too expensive across a month, really, and I do get a lot of use.

Only trouble is living here and accessing other people and things to do. Don't fancy the prospect of walking to Windlesham for theatre all the time, but since Im not in the current play it's less of an issue, but it does preclude even a social visit. Pah, I'm sure I'll cope. But the potential isolation is a really good arguement for reinvesting in a bike, though it'll have to be the cheapest that is commensurate with good running sense - cant have one that falls to bits......

Conclusion: it is good that I have noticed my issues, and can immediately cut back, but it may be a bit unpleasant. Never mind, I can cope. I lived for that summer in southampton before starting the phd on little more than rice, bacon and carrots, and whilst things aren't quite so dire just yet, I can cope well.

(And P, this is me budgeting a train trip to you every weekend as part of the 'fixed costs' - that's too important to me to try and give up! Though I will have to start getting late Sunday trains home again; but a good reason to get the bike again would be to be able to park at a more convenient station for the weekend, and come home late as possible....hmmm, lots to think about)

Tips and advice greatly received!

I was right

2009-07-09T18:54:00.002+01:00

Well, it didn't last long, and I'm having a little tizzy again tonight! I'm making a mountain out of a molehill, essentially, but it is often the case when you are so close up to things and don't know precisely your own mind or what you can do. Life is just big and scary sometimes, and I wish I could have P's more phlegmatic attitude of basically enjoy it while you can and get on with it. Maybe I need to get on the drugs after all!

Well, there is a history of mental illness in my cousins now, so perhaps I've got it too? Who knows. It'll probably show up in a humilliating situation and then I'll be right done for. Perhaps I should lop off my legs and then have to live in a bungalow? Random statement, shows the way my brain is currently working!

Fourth day and still here!

2009-07-08T18:36:00.001+01:00

Not much to really comment on, I suppose. I'm feeling more upbeat today, but I reckon it won't last too long.....I'm feeling better as I move towards completing items of work, but there's always more to follow!

Off raiding (WoW) tonight, should be interesting....and unusual, since P won't be coming along for the first time in a while!

Seeing my sis at the weekend, kinda looking forward to it.

Quick one

2009-07-07T21:38:00.003+01:00

Short one today, because I'm very tired and keen to promote 'sleep hygeine' and so I'll be off to bed in a bit. Since my boiler was fixed, it seems to have become much, much louder in the middle of the night as it heats up the water, and so I've been distrubed in my sleep (which is disturbed anyway at the moment). Do me good to get some good 8 hours under my belt.

P tells me that the main character in the new computer game he bought has the same name as me. And someone at work saw my name plastered all across the side of a butcher's van! Small world.....

Keep it on up!

2009-07-06T19:28:00.002+01:00

Well, I said I'd make more of an effort, so here we are....though I make no promises about post length; it may be just little thought about food, or about lunch, but....

I'm feeling a lot better about myself today. Have spoken to the boss and to several other people and am feeling quite a bit more relaxed about what I have to do next. Scary thoughts still, but I think I'll be more than OK; the question is just how soon I'm going to get there!

Back at home - well, I'm not going to call it home anymore on here, because it's more 'where I happen to live right now', since home is definitely in one place, and that's with P. And I suppose my home-home that I grew up in, and where my Dad still lives home. Odd thought that he still is there, and that house is still full to the gills with lots of my old stuff, that I don't know what I'm going to do with. Our family being the hoarders that we are, I've kept quite a lot, a lot of stuff over the years that fills me with hard memories sometimes, but I can't bear to throw it away. Feels heartless, you know? Like hacking yourself away from the past, even though it is the past and isn't about to happen again anytime soon. Daft, but there you are.

But yes, back at home, and have cooked some dinner for tomorrow, made lunch and had some sandwiches, and now the evening is my own. Not sure what to do with it, but I reckon I'm going to just totally chill out, not worry about things and maybe do some reading or relaxed WoW. And definitely have a bath, since my skin is quite dry after yesterday's little dip in the sea. No infections from dirty seawater just yet.

Weather is a little bit crazy at the moment, hope it's nice again tomorrow as it really is still too warm for a coat, but if it's damp, then I can't do without the cover!

Blimey

2009-07-05T09:49:00.002+01:00

Soon? What a lie. But I've been semi-ordered by P to start blogging again, and I think it will be good for my wellbeing in general to get thoughts back down onto paper/computer screen.....

Basically, I'm in a lot of a rut. And feeling like a bit of a failure. At the moment I have slightly less than a year left on my postdoctoral contract, and at the moment feel like I have very little to show for it; whether this is my fault, is a good question. But I feel as if I don't have anything to say >this is what I have achieved< in the past three years. This is not a good thing as regards future job prospects.

And to be honest, I don't know that there are any prospects out there at the moment; and I severely lack a publication record, something that for research scientists is rather critical, no? I have the two papers out from my PhD, but nothing since, so not really anything from the past four years.....and though I'm trying hard to get something out of what I currently am doing, I'm not hopeful that it will go through, and it's aches, pains and groans regarding pushing it through. It's hard to not start doubting yourself, and thinking you're good for nothing.....whereas I know I do work hard, do try hard and am methodical....but it's convincing someone of that to give you work that is hard.

And you know? I'm not sure I want to do all the research thing anymore. No, not true, I do want to do it but I think it might be bad for me to keep doing it, as it will shrink down my opportunities ever more....and I don't want that. So a career switch might be in order, but I've no idea where to start!

Part of what is making me unhappy is the prospect of a permanently long-distance relationship with P. I want to be nearer him, more of the time; I see other people who've had long-distance relationships and I know that it's hard. I've experienced it as being hard.....and I want to move to be nearer him, and see him more. The trouble is, I don't know if that will ever be able to happen. This makes me sad, but it also makes me scared, based on things that P has said to me in the past. He is just saying what he feels, and I understand him. It is all difficult.

.....so, I've in the last week been seriously thinking about what I can do. The most likely option is to continue to try and work what I'm currently doing, though this may whip me further away from P, for longer, and maybe even further. Because I will have to go to where I can find the work, no? Which maybe means living close, working in London or something, but equally it could mean moving ever further away. So another option is to go back to the graduate recruitment thing and try and flip into a new career - wow, is that ever scary, because I've no real idea of what else to do! A third option that has popped into my head, is to move into pharmacy, retrain and register....but that would mean another five years of training, and still no guarantee of being satisfied at the end! Because, though I reckon there are plenty of opportunities out there for pharmacy (something which I am investigating), it may not lead to a career closer to P....you see where I am thinking with all this? Also, I'd have to start properly considering applying now to start next year, which is a scary prospect.....so I'm basically going to have to jack in the effort at work to make enquiries.

Of course, I could just jack it all in and work in a very basic job to just get by....and then I could live where I like and be around who I want! Not really a financially viable situation, though one that does appeal, becauase it gets me what I want. To a certain degree.

I'd appreciate getting back in contact with people again, because I've been naughty about that, and don't want to lose friends completely.....but anyhow......

Hilarious sopranos

2008-11-18T21:16:00.003Z

There are many. I swear at least one of them is cross-eyed! Without the appropriate costumes, it's all highly amusing.....

Turn it up loud, it you like that kind of thing :-)

(and I swear I'll be back to blog properly sometimes soon)

Staff of life

2008-08-18T19:18:00.002+01:00

So it's rather manky outside. The weather seems to have taken a turn for the worse at the start of this week - the sunny spell at ten o'clock notwithstanding - and to be quite honest, I'm rather pleased about it. Not at the prospect of damp feet and smelly socks, which being now a pedestrian rather confines me to, but rather at the idea of sitting snug in my little place and enjoying it. At least for the next couple of months, before it starts getting bitter again and I have to spend another fortune on my storage heating. I shall be investing in a large number of packet soups, teabags and big jumpers.

Have been on somewhat of a Bronte-related overdose of yet. Good books and plays so far, not all of them Bronte-authored, and I'm feeling all virtuous for visiting the classics. I should really have read them before now, but I think that it's only at this time in my life that I'd have been interested enough to enjoy them; I'm beginning to appreciate a lot more that much of what I think, say and feel has been done over a thousand times before and recorded in much more beautiful language than I could ever essay. And it's right handy for refreshing your vocabulary, heavily-laden with chemistry-jargon. I'm enjoying it, and will be moving onto the books of sister number three tomorrow.

Play is running on apace and I still have learned hardly any of my lines. Really I should sit down tonight and do some of that, but I think I'm more likely to spend some time at it tomorrow evening, and in fact that would be a good way to spend it. Rehearsals tomorrow, but I shall hopefully be home early and that gives me a good couple of hours, which if dedicated I'll have at least a scene down pat. Really I should have the lot down pat already, but I cant seem to work up enthusiasm for this one....it's a bit of a crap one, to my mind, but it'll probably turn out all right!

The other thing which has been taking up a lot of my time is a sudden obsession with bread-making. Bread is so ridiculously expensive these days, that I begrudge paying so much for it, especially when a lot of it is just so much pap. So I decided to have a little go at making some myself, courtesy of a recipe I found via google and have since had the bare-faced cheek to lose the link to (whilst retaining a printed copy). Shame, 'cos it's a good recipe I'd happily have shared! Bread-making turns out to be a lot of fun. Unhurried, the greater part of your time devoted to waiting for rise, and therapeutic, something about kneading which is fundamentally satisfying, though I cant go at full whack with my wrist still a bit dodgy. And I turn our rather passable loaves; at least I think so, and there are few others who will have it inflicted on them. P will be diplomatic here and keep his trap shut if he doesn't like. But I think it will do me, and a regular couple of bags of flour will have to make their way into my weekly shop from now on, inconveniently large though they may be. Buying in large quantities, easily done via the internet, doesnt seem to be such a good plan; delivery costs push up the price, to say nothing of the logistics of delivery (and I dont want a half-cwt of flour left out in the hallway for god-knows-what to get at it), and most of the stuff you seem to be able to get is OTT-organic stuff, which would defeat the point of making bread (cheaply) in the first place. I just want bog-standard, gluten-rich white flour! None of your three-seeded macrobiotic hand-reared silk-polished guff!

I've even gone so far as to attempt to tend my own yeast colony. Sounds hideous, eh? As if I've scraped my athlete's foot into a jar and am watching it fester, but no - a bit of flour, a bit of water and a bit of dried yeast for a reliable kick-start and all I have to do is wait. My flat may begin to stink of beer in a couple of days, but if my starter can thrive, I wont even have to buy yeast anymore, just tend my little microbial friends and turn them into delicious loaves every once in a while.

And on that note, I have to go check my proving dough.....

...stirrings....

2008-08-09T08:12:00.002+01:00

Wow, what a hiatus! Just thought I'd better confirm to you all that I still haven't passed beyond the veil - that would be spooky if I had - and a lot has happened in the past month or so, so I'll do a quick rundown just to keep you up to date.

Got some bioresults on my project, at last, now just need some more. But it is looking slightly better than it has been.
Pretending to be James Toseland going around Kent, tremendous grin-worthy fun right up to the moment I panicked on a blind corner on some loose gravel and snatched my front end. This is not a clever idea, but it goes to show my brakes were in good nick! Result: a lowsider and a rather trashed bike. I have a lot of stored invective for the insurance people, I'm back on foot and it's all annoying. On the plus side, I came off very lightly, though have ripped a pair of gloves to shreds and obviously ruined by nice helmet (couple of hundred quid I wont see again in a hurry), so have nothing to complain about.

That's it really. Been reading a lot of new plays recently and getting a bit frustrated that I'll never get to do this kind of stuff because local drama groups have far less licence to be experimental and shocking. Have developed a mild fascination for the Bronte sisters in the meantime and will be reading some more of that....that's about it.

Oh yes, and Gwylion hit level 70, and I have my first almost-fledged raiding toon :-)

How very fucking annoying

2008-06-24T20:52:00.002+01:00

Some people are so lacking in a sense of logic; I've been watching a documentary (with very awful reconstructions, but that's by the by) in which there are several people who, in my mind are rather superb gimps.

This documentary is about crystal skulls, cashing in on a recent film. There are few example of these, some in famous museums and one in private ownership. Now, there is a description of a lot of science in this, and leaving aside the thorny epistemological problems regarding deriving truths from an empirical methods, the upshot is that the skulls are deemed to be modern (20th century) manufactures rather than ancient ones.

Right, so the people who put credence to a theory that these skulls are of ancient origin, suddenly it's all "well, they must have been pretty damn clever" or "some aliens must have given them the technology" or other, suddenly new ideas to fit a pre-conceived view. Despite the fact of a startling lack of evidence for other manufactures of similar technological sophistication. Seems highly unlikely that only a very limited number of artefacts have ever been found, all of exactly the same nature. This with at least 50 years of substantial excavation at many appropriate sites.......I dunno; seems very shaky to me, but it irks me more than a little. Not least because all the responses given by the 'ancient manufacture' theorists are cannot be framed in the form of a testable hypothesis.

Anyhoo, with that off my chest......what is in fact even more annoying is that I've (finally) made myself some bread. Doesn't sound annoying, huh? Well, having accidently added water to double the intended amount of flour, I've had to make a double batch of dough, and thus have not only a nice tray of loaves (and I can vouch, I've eaten one!) but also a tin loaf. And it is only just now I realise that I don't actually own a breadknife. Pillock, c'est moi.

Upbeat

2008-06-23T22:02:00.002+01:00

Well, as upbeat as I can get!

Back at work today after another ride up from Brighton. 1hr commute certainly wakes you up in the morning, with the thrill of sudden death as people decide to switch lanes without looking.....and a shame that I cant do it every morning with the price of petrol....and it'd have to stop once winter came anyways. Still, I can enjoy myself at least a little during the rest of the summer, and may indeed have to go away somewhere and recuperate, as suggested by the eminent P.

Not much going on in life, still waiting for the new play to kick off properly and have that little 'erk' moment with learning of lines, but other than that, I'm sort of cruising for a while....

The man with no history

2008-06-20T22:16:00.002+01:00

I just realised that I'm rather ashamed of who I am. Evidenced by the fact that I'm no longer in touch with almost anyone and everyone I know; why else would I let friendships last, but for the psychological truth that I value myself so low, that no-one could possibly want to stay in touch. Instead I live somewhat in a little aching bubble of my own. But I think I feel more guilt for the fact that I continually feel that anything I do is not good enough, and not enough; and rather than use this as a means to drive myself onwards, I instead turn it inwards, causing this lack of self-worth.

I dunno, I'm just miserable......and more scared of the future than at any other time in my life. Nothing remains obvious, and all I want to do is retreat from the world! Falling between stools.....

Sorry for blogging this here first, P, but sometimes I need to put things down as soon as I think them, and you know how bad I am for talking, at all. Seeing you tomorrow is something that I need more than ever.

Jon-ster is in rather a pit (:-(

Promise to post up-beat in the morning, because this is a rather depressing note to be leaving at the top of the blog for a long while!

Oops

2008-06-14T20:24:00.002+01:00

Well, Blogger fucked up whilst attempting to post the last entry, but that's likely not their fault, rather the interwebby. Anyhew, looking at the last post there is clearly a rather abrupt end; unfortunately I can't remember what followed, and the law of the Jon-blog states 'no editing', so it'll have to remain.....

The Pan-cake worked out all right, though with the trimming suggestion I'd recommend waiting until it's entirely cool. This is because I trimmed it quickly, and after standing, the top pancake layer started curling up at the edges and getting hard, this will be avoided by trimming off such curls later. Otherwise, it tasted quite nice, though the layers had a tendency to come apart instantly in the mouth, and the pancakes I'd made had acquired a chewy consistency rather than a pleasant one. Still, worth a try! P has been telling me it sounds vile all the way through, but I maintain that he has no taste. And you can shut up about lemon-y meatballs, they weren't that bad.

Observations from a Saturday; petrol stations are bastards. Well, I'm sure most of you bloggardes are quite aware of the petrol situation in the UK at the moment, with delivery strikes, vastly (crassly) inflated prices and pillocks draining stocks to store it at home in a can. Which is more likely to be kept and then cause a woof more than anything else. Still, I've been avoiding my local BP garage with the crap-design forecourt and the M&S shopping (all at silly prices, I love the middle classes), mostly because they are consistently the most expensive and are really just taking the piss. Till now, I've no idea why they always have so many customers, but I suppose there's no price on convenience (clearly, the way people go out of their way for certain 'conveniences' sometimes, grumbl grumble). Anyhew, I'm running low after a bit of shopping - more on that later - so I nipped up the road to the next best option, the 2 Texaco places up the road which are marginally cheaper.

Not so today, the fools have inflated their prices, seemingly overnight, by about 5p/L, making them the most expensive for miles around. 126p per litre for unleaded? This is a farcical price. For crying out loud, 113p a litre was farcical, and we passed that mark only back in April sometime, since I commented on it then. And considering we were at about 95p/L only a year ago, it is most worrying. I forsee that roads will become much less busy in certain areas, except that they wont around here because the alternative, public transport, simply does not exist. Crap.

Back to the shopping; I toddled all my way up to Aldi out in Blackwater for cheapo prices, and yes indeed, it is cheaper out there on certain items, but bread was still going at a shocking rate (thank god bread is marginally subsidised). It might not be worth my while going up there all the time, since though there is everything I might need, there's not a heck of a lot of choice, and it's more of a chore with the 'no labelling' thing. Severe lack of kraut also noted. So I shall pay a visit next week to Lidl on the opposite side of the road, and then make a judgement. I think though, that with the petrol crisis about to descend, we're going to get another notch up on the food prices; now is the time for me to start making friends with the allotment people! And anyone who gets snooty about supermarkets, you can stick it; there's 'quality product' (and to my mind, the top-end supermarkets do have better stuff, but it's obscenely marked up and I refuse to be taken for a sucker) and then there's bog standard. Most of the stuff you get in the standard places is not that good anyways, compared with what you can get direct from the growers and producers - it's just annoying that there is no source around here. I miss being able to go shopping in Winchester! Well, I suppose I could, but a 50-mile round trip for the bi-weekly shop seems more than a tad excessive.

That being said, I did put in quite a few miles getting my shopping since I had decided that I wanted to eat liver today, and nowhere can you find it, no sir. So I went to the very nice butcher in Lightwater (who sold me a silly amount of sausages one time, good they were too!) and got some. I'm quite surprised really, there was all kinds of weird offcut and secondary cut in Leeds, and I could really do with a reliable source of half-decent stewing meat, rather than having to cut up joints for myself. More than ever I miss my butcher in Clifton (one of these days I shall have to combine my favourite food shops.....). In the process, I went into the little shop to get some loo roll, and ended up queueing to pay up behind Brian Blessed. Very strange to see familiar faces like that in unexpected places, but then I suppose most people find the time to do their own shopping!

Enough blathering for now, I need a drink and a read....

Palacsinta

2008-06-13T19:51:00.002+01:00

My, the price of food is going up! Starting to feel the pinch, I is, and will have to be more careful how I market myself with stuff to eat.....which will mean less going out riding - not least because idiots are panic buying petrol; how selfish! - and spending my time cooking for myself and buying basic foodstuffs.

Well, in this effort, I'll be making my own bread this evening in a first attempt! Problem could be storage, and more to the point, extended use of oven (in the middle of summer? I'm the idiot). But this evening has started with me taking a slight inspiration from Hungary and doing my own spin on their own brand of pancakes.....I shall call it the Pan-cake; here is the gist.....

Make a load of panics, but resist the temptation to sprinkle them with sugar and lemon and wolf them down (difficult, I know), but instead make a nice little pile. As you go, spread a thin layer of apricot jam on each, except for the last, giving a big multi-layered sandwich, and if you've got the amount of batter right, this'll be a nice size. I'm undecided as to whether it requires instant consumption or will be nice once cooled, but we'll see (:-P I reckon that some playing with the batter will give a best texture for cold or hot.....yes, this is one for the crepes rather than the thick pancake......

I'd now suggest trimming the rough edges to give a nice straight-looking thing

Foodstuffs

2008-06-09T19:52:00.002+01:00

Had a bit of a random food event on Saturday night; it being hot, P and I went to a japanese cafe just around the corner from him that has always been there, but we've never been. Wish we'd been earlier since it was very nice, and we ate almost nothing yet felt stuffed. There is apparently a reason why the Japanese are traditionally stick-thin! (pace those of you crying sumo) A nice little surprise was the unexpected blob of wasabi underneath a piece of tuna, which is (As I know now) actually an integral part of nigiri. Still, the japanese aesthetic is pleasing and cleansing to the palette, and I now wish to fill my home with small square dishes and decorations of bamboo. However, I think my penchant for hoarding books and other crap will preclude this working!

Money worries hitting, since the price of everything is shooting up at the moment. Will have to cut back somewhat, and I reckon 'leccy prices will get a hoick-up this winter.....

Agents are GO!!!

2008-06-06T21:21:00.002+01:00

So there's this game, a computer game. It's incredibly camp, yet incredibly cool with it too, for what is a pretty simple concept! And, like all the best simple games, it is the last word in total addiction, with a great 'one more play' factor.....

So I've been playing it manically for the past week or so, slowly clearing out levels and having Avril Lavigne, the Jackson 5 and the Village People in my head constantly (I told you it was a camp game), but I have just now whupped the ass of the final level, with the crazy hard sequential 13-beat-then spinner combos and the duplicate 15-beat combos......soooo hard to do with a tiny little stylus.....it has taken me numerous repeat playings over the past few days, always to fail at any one particular juncture.

Till this evening. I've just managed to finish it, which is an achievement in itself (not exactly meaningful, but what the hell). Imagine my surprise when I then discover I've completed it, for the first (and possibly only!) time, without missing a single beat. Fuck me, I think I've just come in my pants! Admitedly I'm not in the god-like league of this geezer, playing with a near-perfect score whilst simultaneously filming, but I feel a large sense of achievement nontheless.

Thankyou, Ls&Gs, for this little indulgence.

Disturbing

2008-06-06T17:37:00.002+01:00

New Huggies advert that I have just seen is more than a little bit disturbing. To highlight their 'leg-fitted' new design (since when were nappies a fashion item?), they've had a nice montage of adults - mostly city types - rolling about and crawling and bumping like babies do to get around. So obviously this involved a lot of men on all fours with their arses in the air. You can see why this might be a difficult image.

Disturbing.

Apparently

2008-06-05T15:49:00.000+01:00

I am DMSO. So I taste a bit funky on your fingers. Noice.

The blockage of a very small valve

2008-06-03T14:35:00.001+01:00

....leads to a massive fuck-off malfunction. I hate it when things go wrong, on top of all the other things that have already gone wrong today!

I will be destressing by cleaning up, and starting it all again tomorrow; more annoying is the fact that I can only send the large glassware downstairs to be cleaned piecemeal; means I cant clear much space very fast!

Young man

2008-06-03T07:49:00.002+01:00

....there's no need to feel down;

Dont leave your keys in your bike

2008-05-29T18:38:00.003+01:00

...like I managed to do all day. Thank bollocks it's a secure compound!

Bike will now definitely have to have oil doodads this weekend; much greasiness to ensue, hence I may have to invest in greasiness or cakiness for other parts of the weekend. Perhaps a nice bit of plum tart? Plum season should be upon us....or cherries if not....dammit, I still need a good greengrocers......

Discovery

2008-05-29T07:11:00.002+01:00

Always make sure you have enough flour for your butter when you intend to make crumble topping. Insufficient butter means that on rubbing in you will obtain a single large sticky mass rather than fine breadcrumbs.

Clearly this happened to me yesterday owing to a lack of flour - was sure I had a fresh bag somewhere, but clearly not! In the end my sticky mass was put to good use and went on top of the not-quite-crumble anyways; addition of lots of sugar has helped in this regard. It's more like a rich (very rich) pastry top, but lacks that crunch crumble-ness. At any rate, flour is on the shopping list.

Today at work is a day of lectures. I'm looking forward to it, since my own work is a bit tedious at the moment.

Therapy

2008-05-27T19:52:00.002+01:00

Time for a little typing therapy, since I have a moment to spare!

Well, actually, it's not like I never have moments to spare; in fact, I make them for myself by managing to avoid doing those niggly jobs that I just dont want to do, viz. cleaning anything. But at the moment I feel in the mood for a bit of mental disconnection and exercise for my fingertips. In fact, it is more than a little strange that these days I can manage almost to touch-type, though not quite, and yet still not be able to do it when I actually have to. If I could indeed touch-type, then there'd perhaps be a much easier way to compose......though I do believe that we need to retain the word write in the lexicon, because I'm with the graphologists on this one (now that no-one actually has to learn to copperplate anymore).

Anyhow, this summer appears to be turning into the stuff-stuffed-in-a-tortilla summer, there being a large number of these things being consumed by myself in recent weeks. Can't get enough of the stuff, though this is without a lot of the fattening guacamole/sour-cream-type sauces that tend to go with this kind of food. Likewise a severe lack of anything remotely resembling chilli (I'll leave that to a certain P and his penchant for jalepenos). But it is an easy way to cut out heavy carbohydrates in your diet, since you fill up without needing a big plate of rice or potatoes or suchlike.....

Bank holiday was spent down in Brighton, and very relaxing. So relaxing that I have no desire whatsoever to return to work, and in fact am loathing it at the moment since one project is on the wind-down and I'm not warming to what is likely to be next, at least just yet. Just frustrating that the current one is going out the window, because there's some bloody decent work I've done on it and no way this is being recognised unless persons beyond my influence actually give me some results to deal with! Grrrr.....it seems to be a bit of a theme. Going to have to pitch some ideas of mine in the near future too.....not something I relish.

Still have not managed to change oil in bike; I know it will survive without a change just yet, but it's making me feel itchy about it, and not wanting to ride heavily till I've done it. Have to pull finger out, eh?

Other than that, not much to tell; play now finished, bit of a blast (though a bit of a miraculous recovery towards the end; it was a bit of state right up till opening night! I suppose 'tis par for the course).....on to the next one now, though of course it remains to be seen how I get involved. It's not till October, so we'll see if I have a lot or not so much free time of a Thursday.

Been plowing through my medicinal chemistry light reading, and it has been most fascinating. Almost enough to inspire me to do a bit more studying off my own bat, until I realise the price of adult education courses (THERE's a policy I can get on board with) and the fact that, since I'm totally in control of my own life, I have no time to do the leisurely studying that I used to. In fact, I have ever-growing respect for people who undertake higher and further education on a part-time basis, since you have to be that much more dedicated, and reading when tired only leads to rapid sleeping.....still, one of these days I'll add a third language to my bow, assuming I havent forgotten the second by then!

I know it's a bit of a whinge, since I never make the effort myself, but if anyone reading wants to come visit, I'd be more than grateful at the moment; though I do value my private space, the more private I am, the more likely I'll turn into Crazy Snake Man, which is the current end stop on the Jon-ster train line!

Ommmmmm.............

Just so you all know

2008-05-21T12:40:00.001+01:00

Don't try and talk to me when I'm going to the loo. Ever. Hmmmkay?

Lost/Idiot

2008-04-29T23:34:00.002+01:00

Well, I managed to lose my keys. That's my house keys, aren't I a clever boy? Dont know how I managed to do it, but I'd just come in through the door, dropped off my lid and gloves and picked up my bike cover to run out and cover up my poor baby who had to sit outside in a downpour for an hour whilst I was a t rehearsal. And in that space of about ten seconds I managed to lose my keys.

Numpty, eh? So I shoved the door on the latch while I ran downstairs to check around outside, and to turn my bike back on so I can actually see the floor - very dark around my door, the light's on the fritz - and no keys to be seen. Oops.

Turns out I'd actually shoved them into my pocket, but the one on the left side where I normally have nothing but my phone. Took me a good five minutes to work it out though; I'm officially a dopey old man, becoming more like my own father with each passing day, yuck.

So, otherwise I've been totally into reading around the Manhattan Project. It's turning out to be fascinating reading, with plenty of drama (not surprising when it considers the invention of the first so-called doomsday weapons) and psychology. Absolutely fascinating, and a good introduction to some cold war history that I shall be going in to. Not so far distant that it seems less meaningful to life, but not been done to death a la Nazis. And actually explains why the world is somewhat like it is, with the first development of the so-called scientific-millitary hegemony and the current state of funding of original research *scraping of grindstone*

Some insight I have is that this little period of history moved the centre of what is considered the important knowledge base of the educated person. Previously, the study of classics, sociology and philosophy might have been considered critical to play a contributing role in the great debates of the day. In the nuclear age, an understanding of things scientific and technological would be considered necessary to make an informed contribution, and the strict evaluation of evidence. I'm sure there's a thesis of some description in there, but I'll donate that one to any passing kibbitzer who needs inspiration (:-)

At any rate, I can highly recommend looking into that period, especially if you like the spy-thriller sort of novel or film, because that period of history is totally that sort of environment! I shall be continuing to look into this, and at the development of Japan before and after Hiroshima/Nagasaki, since this naturally follows on and I'm a bit of a japanophile.....

Tomorrow may be a slooooow day. I'm trying to read up on my organometallic chemistry but it's not really that fun. Anyone remember all that d-block rubbish? I'm having to rediscover.....

Freaked

2008-04-28T18:44:00.002+01:00

So I bought this book. Supposed to be a good introductory text, and that's exactly what I need, to do a bit of learning in a new but related field (though I'll probably be fleeced as that, the latest edition, was published in 2005 and there's probably a new one coming along soon). Turns out that someone I used to work around and got along with quite well had a hand in reviewing and helping with the editing process. So obviously the name and title go down in print in the front of the book.

Very odd to see that, because everyone else in that list is highly distinguished and imposing sounding (not that Stuart isnt). And the guy I know, I know, which kinda contrasts very starkly with it. To the extent that I had pasted his head onto a dancing Scissor Sister to general amusement and my intense lack of professionalism.

Begs the question of what the other people in the list are like; surely the same thing applies about them to someone else (not the dancing toon part), which means that the whole imposing edifice of academia really shouldnt be. This might help in my sense of intimidation, but.....

Anyhew, felt I should blog something!

Wow

2008-04-26T20:34:00.002+01:00

Well, I'm still alive. Not through any grand design, but still alive.....though having just ruined a very good day at a stroke, I feel rather more than a bit of an idiot; people all reckon they are beyond reproach when it comes to driving.....though I think something is amiss with persons who feel the need to overtake in a 30 zone when barely a minute away from their home. A mystery.

Not a pleasant post to which to return to blogging, but I shall endeavour in the coming days to pad myself out again with niceness and calm, and compassion for idiots. Some chance, eh? We'll see. In point of fact, it is highly unlikely since the family is coming to visit tomorrow, something I dont deal well with on the best of occasions, and I'm scared tomorrow will send me into another pit of depression.

I'm an ungrateful sod, aren't I?

Social commentary

2008-03-02T14:22:00.002Z

Where do I live? In a very odd place. Stumbling out of the local supermarket today, a clearly very upmarket lady wearing a white fur-lined coat....with a gaudy golden handbag and matching gaudy golden stilettoes. I do wonder, sometimes.....

Having a bit of a digestive issue at the moment, being a bit blocked up. This is probably due to not drinking any water for about 3 days, subsisting entirely on caffeinated drinks of one kind or another. Net result: not pleasant. So I shall be making sure that I have my daily intake of water from now on, and a coffee cutback is also in order. The same cutback that is regularly instigated every month and a half or so.

Nothing much else to say, not been doing much......new play has been chosen and is a farce, should hopefully be quite good - it's a script that reads well - and I have a smaller part but it's really the only one I was ever going to play - being the only young man in the group. Well, not true, there's Adrien but the small problem of language barrier; but to do him justice, his English is very good and I'm sure he'd cope. But in any case, he got the other small part, so no bug there!

I was not planning on going riding this afternoon, but I'm almost on the point of changing my mind......let's see, eh?

Interesting reading

2008-02-26T08:04:00.002Z

...to be found here. An easy to read piece, perhaps a bit heavy for this blog-lite, but it's early in the morning and I'm waiting for a column, so wtf.....

Funny thing

2008-02-22T06:55:00.002Z

Just an odd little occurence to report. Yesterday my bedroom light bulb blew, so I had to replace it. This morning, the main lounge one blew too! Perhaps not very interesting, but these are the only two light bulbs that I really use in my flat.....oh yes......

No more!

Female Draenei can no longer become stuck under a root in the tunnels leading to Blackfathom Deeps, Ashenvale.

2008-02-20T12:34:00.001Z

lmfao.

God wants me to be fat

2008-02-13T12:59:00.001Z

Now selling at subsidised cafe at work.....apricot danish. I am weak, weak and pitiful......

Reassuring

2008-02-13T08:01:00.003Z

Clearly I've moved up in the world. It's nice to know what the house prices are, even if I'm not in the market for it and wont be for a very, very long time at this rate! Still, reassuring that of the top 10 most expensive areas, I live within 10 miles of three. And within 50 miles of eight.

No castle for Jon-ster.

Another nice one from good old Johann

2008-02-06T18:58:00.000Z

"Wer fremde Sprachen nicht kennt, weiss nichts von seiner eigenen".

Cheers, Goethe!

Bleargh

2008-02-06T18:34:00.000Z

Came home today at about half four, with good light, and so had the most marvellous idea that it'd be good to clean my new baby. Of course, it is necessary, and a good thing, since I've not cleaned her yet and it's been two weeks. I think, as with house cleaning (groan) it's a task that is far better to do little and often so that all is well for an extended period - and I'm planning on having this bike for a goodly number of years and longer than the 2 I had the last one.

So, it certainly was still light by the time I got home, but not for long! Cleaning bike off in the dusk and semi-darkness, and in the end, absolute darkness is not the cleverest thing to be doing. Still, it needed it and I'm not likely to have gotten up early of a morning to so do. I still miss greatly the presence of a hose (maybe I need to ask a favour of someone local with an outside tap?!) which would make regular rinsing a lot easier. Still, I'm less covered in road cack, am sprayed with FS365 to keep off the salt, muck and corrosion, and am lubed up with this new-fangled dry lube stuff that you are supposed to just keep reapplying and have reassurances is easier to clean (:-) and does not spray over your back tyre (:-))))) like wet lubes. I now just need to retension my chain and daub it up with copper grease, and I'm set! Regular grease monkey, I'll have to get some overalls.....only things left to worry about is polishing/buffing (nice idea, but I dont have the spare cash for umpteen products and chamois at the moment!) and finding where to put the bloomin' oil in, hidden by fairings as it is! I forsee that I will eventually be removing those fairings for a good clean at some point in the summer.......

Other interesting facts of the day: I'm hungry and have not that much time to cook. Also, you can look up how to say daft sentences in Manx, a most useful pastime!

Any excuse

2008-02-04T18:23:00.000Z

Well, normally I try to blog to keep you all up-to-date, or at least point out something interesting or funny....or more often, talk about stuff that pisses me off, but today I'm just procrastinating.

Past week was show week, much stressfulness and, now that strike has occured, much wheezing and asthma. Good fun in the end, even if I did get taken aside for a quiet word to the effect of 'you smell, sort it out'. A most embarrassing moment; like crabs, something you never expect will happen to you, but it did. Mortified though I was, I must admit that when I came back the next day, my costume was more than a little ripe, must have been caught on a bad day or something....anyhew, much washing did follow and overkill of deodorant, which means that I now have a well-nasty rash all over my upper arms, a bit on my back, and down my sides and leg-tops. Nasty, and all because of the perfumes or the alumina in the deodorant (well nasty, aluminium is dead toxic, bloggardes!). For the sake of not offending noses and appearing to be a scumbucket, I must suffer it this time; and it's not like I dont wash at all. Please refrain from putting in comments to the effect that I do reek, I'm not sure my ego could take another such bashing at short notice!

Panto was the show, and I did have my reservations about it from the start.....did come off well (surprisingly, given the state of play at T -7 days), but I think everyone had a little mental block about how good it really was. Since audience only ever sees what you put in front of them, and not what could have been, you cant really judge, but I think there was a more worthy production in there. Though with all the setbacks, it's quite amazing how well it came off!

Anyhew, this leads to the procrastination; since I've not been indoors for most of last week, except to munch sandwiches, the place has turned into an absolute bombsite. I badly need to tidy, hoover, do all that kind of domestic rubbish that seems to come so easily to everyone I know (bar one special person, missus, you know who you are). However, it's not exactly an enthralling task, is it? So I'm blogging instead.

Not much else to report, however. So I guess I'll have to go and put on those rubber gloves after all, damnit!

Delivery companies

2008-01-31T18:04:00.000Z

What is it with delivery companies? They clearly are not what they say on the tin.

For domestic deliveries, it is rather unreasonable to assume that nobody has a job and will of course be at home on any day during office hours. I mean, what kind of weird-ass assumption is that? They'd actually deliver more of there packages if they ran a weekend extended running hours, and certainly on a sunday; as it is, it seems that they manage to fail to deliver almost every single package.

So, you can either ring to arrive another delivery time, or come to the depot at your own inconvenience. Why not ring to arrange a delivery time in the first place? Save your company a lot of petrol and man-hours. Likewise, returning stuff to the depot makes a mockery of the idea that 'home delivery' is a convenient way for the busy worker to do shopping, since you then have to devote actually more of your free time to picking up said package.

Ridiculous. Supermarkets seem to manage to deliver in the evening, why not everything else? I will now have to spend saturday morning riding to Basingstoke for about an hour to pick up some bike cleaner. Utterly ridiculous.

Spare half an hour

2008-01-27T15:32:00.000Z

Well, I've got plenty to blog about, and a spare half an hour before I go dashing off to rehearsals, so here goes nothing! It's a bit of a cop-out, but I thought it was about time for another of those questionaire jobbers.....

What is in the back seat of your car right now?
Car? Waste of two wheels (:-) In the last car I had there wasnt much on the back seat, but my first car when I cleaned it out contained newspapers, socks that had gone mouldy and a neat pile of chicken bones.

When was the last time you threw up?
I dont honestly remember.....I was probably a little bit drunk at the time, though.

What age will you be next birthday?
I'll be the ripe old of 29....in previous centuries I'd have been classed an old-timer....I feel it, too.

What's your favourite curse word?

I dont like to think that I swear, though I know I do; 'fucking' passes my lips more than I'd like it to. Bollocks is an old favourite though.

Name 3 people who made you smile today?
Not seen anyone yet, so no-one. Maybe it'll happen later.....

What were you doing at 8 a.m. this morning?
Showering. I think. Either that or snoozing.

What were you doing 30 minutes ago?
Riding. *enormous fat grin*

Where were you born?
North Tees General, by C-section......from mother's womb untimely ripped, though actually I was 2 weeks overdue because they had to reschedule it or something....

Have you ever been to a strip club?
Nope. Dont think I'd want to, either.

What is the last thing you said aloud?
'Bye'....was telling workmate that I dont need a lift on Monday!

What is the best ice cream flavour?
Depends on the mood....though I'm more likely to pick something fruit-based than chocolate-based.

What was the last thing you had to drink?
Cup of coffee? Seems likely.

What are you wearing right now?
Clothes, dur.....actually, it's my bike thermals and a T-shirt.

What was the last thing you ate?
Leftovers of last night's dinner....though I'm about to wolf a sandwich down too!

Have you bought any new clothes this week?
Nope.

Where were you last?
Little round-trip over Hogs Back.....Surrey generally....

What's the last sporting event you watched? Who won?
Rugby world cup final. South Africa, curses.

Who is the last person you sent a comment/message while blogging?
No idea. Not commented in ages. Dont read so many blogs these days, since everyone gave up!

Ever go camping?
Yes. I didnt like it all that much.

Where do you live?
The warm heartland of Tory Surrey.....Bagshot.

What song are you listening to?
Right now, nowt. Been playing Sondheim recently though.

Do you have a tan?
Nope. Natch.

Do you drink your soda from a straw?
No.

What did your last text message say?
Ummmm.....delete them, so cant remember!

Who's your best friends?
Ignoring the incredible bad grammar in that question.....I dont really know. Friends seem to come and go like the seasons......I'm very bad at staying in touch....
What are you doing tomorrow?
Work. Rehearsals.

Where is your mom right now?
Technically, nowhere. Even physically I'm not sure! She died back in 2003 and was rapidly oxidised and the resultant carbon deposits scattered.

Look to your right, what do you see?
My telly. And a big pile of my crap.

What colour is your watch?
Who needs watches?

What do you think of when you think of Australia?
Sunshine.
Ever ridden on a roller coaster?
Many. Coaster-freak, if I get the chance.

What is your birthstone?
I've been told many things....it's all a bit pants.

Do you go in at a fast-food place or just hit the drive through?
I do, though I'd usually rather not....though it is an occasional guilty pleasure.

What is your favourite number?
The next one.

Do you have a dog?
Nope. Not a dog person, really.

Last person you talked to on the phone?
T. For those of you who know her! Workmate, she be.

Have you met anyone famous?
Dave Parlett. None of you have heard of him. Stephen Briggs? Likewise! Walked past Magnus Magnusson in a corridor.

Any plans today?
Rehearsals, and always more rehearsals.

How many states have you lived in?
Two. Her Majestiey's United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Island, and the Bundesrepublik. Though that second was illegally for about 2 months!

Ever go to college?
Yus, for a very long, long time.

Where are you right now?
Home. Where the heart is. Or rather, it isn't, in this case, since that lives about 40 miles away.

Biggest annoyance in your life right now?
That I have had to incur debt to afford my new bike. I love it to bits (and will be keeping her in better nick than the other) but am gutted it was forced on me.

Are you in love with someone right now?
Yes. Though sometimes he pisses me off somewhat (:-P

Are you allergic to anything?
Something. I have histamine response to certain situations, so there must be some kind of allergy somewhere.....nothing in the 'eat a peanut and DIE' scale.

Favourite pair of shoes?
My bike boots. Though not really shoes, and not exactly things for a formal occasion!

Do any of your friends have children?
Plenty. But then several of my friends are quite a bit older than me. In fact, some of my friend's kids are technically in my generation, which is a bit weird.

Do you eat healthy?
Yes and no. I tend to cook from fresh most things, so I score highly on the no additives-and-salt front. But I cook and eat lots of things that are bad for me. Delicious, but bad.

What do you usually do during the day?
Eat. Drink. Talk. Work. Piss.

Do you use the word 'hello' daily?
But of course.

How did you get one of your scars (if you have any)?
The one on my inside leg? Jumping over a sharp stick at age 4-or-so. Remember it being very painful.

And that's the lot! Not very interesting, but easy for me to do. And that's good enough for me, for now.

Mad time

2008-01-21T19:44:00.000Z

Time for a bit of a dribble, in terms of dribbling out a bit of story.

Spent this weekend at P's, as the last one, after the small incident of the roof leaking into his kitchen and ruining almost everything, coupled with less than helpful letting agents. He asked me for some cheering up and I hope I obliged, though no doubt he'll tell me otherwise (:P Interesting trip on the way there though, as I came via a different route than normal which can always be quite interesting, and since not in a hurry was to be enjoyed. Except for the fact that the trains seem to be on turbo-charged heating, just in time for the warmest January days on record, nice one again the train companies! Reason for detour was to go and look at a particular bike that I have now put a deposit down on and am looking forward to riding the hell out of the coming weekend, once I get insured and bank funding sorted for it. Have also the desire to spend a lot of spondooliks on a new riding suit, but I really cant stretch to it. No, I really cant, much as I'd like. Bloggardes, please all forbid me to buy as I'm lacking the willpower.

Anyhow, it's a GSX750F a little like this one, though this is a 1-year later model, and mine is a lighter shade of grey.

So Jon-ster is all happy, and hopefully the lack of red will stop him going faster. Not least because the insurance is also going to cost a pretty packet, what with my decision to go for a fully comp. lot for the reassurance. Also need to buy paddock stand for occasional bouts of chain fiddling. Will once again be able to go where and when I want, and a little of this spray will keep the rust down too, buying food never held such fascination before! Already planning a nice long summer of riding, riding, riding.....bonza (:-)

Work has been slow today, what with arriving slightly late on the train looking dishevelled - badly needing a shave here - and working up two reactions on the trot, what effort! Tuesday is to be spent working harder, though obviously the bike errands take precedence. Feeling quite on top of things, though I'm getting the feeling that the next few months or so will be spent not doing very much (wet) chemistry at all, I'll be running about doing modelling and the like.....fun. Well, it probably will be, but I think my days will be very unstructured and you knows how I likes to have plans, and my little lists.

No real other big news to tell, still verging on the porky side of porky, still not meditating (big news), still not doing lots of reading. But on the other hand, I've dinged up my alt shaman in WoW to a respectable lvl 46 in less than a week of playtime, so it's not like I've achieved nothing at all........

Needing new experiences to have something interesting to talk about, really. Hence need for bike-age. And hopefully soon, a long-planned trip to the capital.

Oh yes, and the Sweeney Todd film is very good, if a tad grand guignol and lacking in character development. Enjoyed. Recommend.

Laters......

Geeeeeeeek

2008-01-15T07:03:00.000Z

The world is an incredibly small place. Or at least, my life leads me to find snippets of info about people who are all assosciated with my work. For instance; several of my friends I have met by means electronic, but in the process of finding these friends I have met an inordinate number of other chemists. This is not because I've been in some freakish chemistry chatroom (does such a think exist? I'll have to go look now), but because I clearly have some kind of talent for finding other homosexual chemists. Go figure. Do I really give off a 'come talk to me about oxidation' vibe? Probably, knowing my past record.

Herpes eye is still herpetic. Need to book to go to docs, because it's getting silly, but I really doubt there's a lot they can do about it, other than give me prescription specs, and I'm not ready for that yet. Distinguished I might look with glasses, but I really cant be doing with having another item to tote around all the time. Plus getting prescription lab specs would be a right pain.

Funny little incident in the toilets at work the other day (oh, yes I hear you mutter), guy who is friendly enough but who I never actually talk to - he's a tad football obsessed - strikes up a convo at the urinals. What are you supposed to do? Ignore them and carry on pissing? Unlikely, can require a degree of concentration (and lets be honest, having that quiet 'aaah' moment to yourself can be somewhat pleasant), and in any case, I'm not used to having a talk with someone with my knob out, unless of course shagging is in the air and then you've usually got your mouth full. So have to pass some comment, but I think this business of cheery cameraderie in the bogs is not on. Far better to be quiet and let everyone just do their thing. Sometimes I really appreciate privacy, and having shy willy is really not fun.

Had another accident with a razor the other day, managed to dunk the blade right through my fingernail. Ouch. Not something I can recommend, and the bugger is it'll take the time for my nail to grow before it heals.

Just a quick update, not much else....back later....

Quickie

2008-01-10T22:58:00.000Z

No, not that kind of quickie. Just a brief posting!

My herpes eye appears to be properly up and stonking, I've got terrible vision in that eye and it feels irritated. Not good. A trip to the docs next week may be in due order, but it's not good to think I may have flare-ups thrice yearly or more for the rest of my life. Still, there are worse medical complaints around! Just so long as I'm not actually going blind or have diabetes or something.

Yesterday was a particularly decadent evening, or quite slobbish if we're being realistic. Had a bath whilst eating pizza, quite a fun thing to do as long as you're careful! Unfortunately the pieces I saved to eat for lunch today weren't quite so tasty, the base whilst bready enough hot, aquired a more pastry-like consistency on cooling, which doesnt really sit well with the pizza theme. Nice in itself, but it could have used more liquid filling to perhaps make it less snappable and more chewy-rippable, if that's not writing rubbish!

Today was a bit of a slow one again, it's meetings galore and so I've not actually been doing reactions. Next week will hopefully be a bit better, I feel the need to crack on with working somewhat.....but this will be the case tomorrow, since I'm going in super-early with my lift who wants to be there super-early.

Time for bed now, then! I'm that tired.....

Accident with a razor

2008-01-08T08:48:00.000Z

Bit of an embarrassing moment yesterday. Well, quite a lot of them, really; more of a day-long experiment in humiliation. Not that it was that bad, but quite a faux pas on the bathroom front.

I always shave in the shower, both noggin and chin (chinoggin?), because it's so much easier and the compounded hair-and-shaving-gunk washes away nicely down the drain to block up my pipes. Usually goes very well, feeling your way for the smoothness [the very nice, sensual smoothness :-) ] and retouching where appropriate. No need for a mirror when you've got your fingers. I should really do it more regularly for the cleaner, more professional look, but in all due honesty, most mornings I cant be bothered. Not that it is a long or arduous task, just that it's a bit of fiddling I cant be having with. I'm sure you all have simillar pet-not-quite-hates. So often as not I have nigh-on a week's growth up top and on the jowls, giving me a more hirsute look. Since I find this look more than a little bit horny (*blush*) it tends to stay longer than is convenient for the next scraping of the chinoggin, usually resulting in a sore scalp from having to retouch bits repeatedly to ensure complete depilation.

Anyhow, yesterday was a scraping day so I do the usual palaver - less fun at the moment since my shower will not product hot-hot water and in the current cold weather you feel distinctly chilly standing in the flow after a while - and scrape off all the hair. Or so I thought. Men, you know that little nook in the corner of your jaw, just by your ear? That's right, the most fiddly bit to shave. On my right-hand side, I somehow managed to miss this area completely. Coupled with the shave-by-feel tactic (and the fact I never look in the mirror), I thusly went out to work with a nice freshly shorn pate and face (bar the goatee), except for a nice tufty bit in the corner. A nice tufty bit in the corner that was dead obvious owing to the lack of surrounding hair, or at least dead obvious to everyone apart from myself.

*cringe*

Well, worse things happen at sea, I guess (even though as a truism that's absolute rubbish, far worse things happen in your own home where you least expect them) - no-one ever really died of embarrassment and I've done plenty of those sorts of thing in my time.....pick your own from your personal knowledge of me, bloggardes....

Very long boring talk yesterday that we wont go into just in case, but work was a bit of a non-starter yesterday. So today I shall of course do double the amount of work to make up for it. Ahem.

Must get on the phone and start ringing round about bike purchases soon, but in my usual inertia I really dont feel like it. All will of course change once the weather turns nice again!

Doo-wop

2008-01-04T12:57:00.000Z

Pfft. Just finished lunch but I'm in a 'meh' kind of mood, not up to dealing with the afternoon. Maybe tiredness? Likely. My vision is also going somewhat, my right eye is being quite fuzzy to me so I think I may be having a little herpetic episode thanks to my scar jobby. Still no idea how it got there, but it's very annoying. Even a little bit scary, and odd considering my other eye seems quite alright.

First rehearsal of the year yesterday, havent talked so much in a good long while. Quite fun, panto should be good if we get enough rehearsals in...which may be the most pressing issue, there's very little time! Also had to sing again after a long time of not doing so, not pretty. Think the last time I sang in public was waaaaay back just over 10 years ago in last year of school, production of 'Oh What A Lovely War', too long ago. I can fill in a chorus, that's about it....not that I'd ever forget it thanks to lovely digs from a certain person :-P

Have had a reaction go in shockingly bad yield, quite annoying really. Still, have to take the rough with the smooth, so to speak, and on we go......washing up this pm, also hunting out some more tubing.....

Start of the year

2008-01-02T16:01:00.000Z

Welcome to 2008, bloggardes! Hopefully a year full of exciting bloggage and personal development. If nothing else, a year ful of twittering and pies.

Xmas break has been much appreciated by myself, with lots and lots, and in fact, too much food. This is the first year that I've actually felt dumpy and fat following the season, and my trousers are in fact way too tight for myself. The fact that my father has told me that he went from being svelte to being stodgy around the age of 28 also gives me cause for concern, suggesting that I'm going to swell in the waistline very soon.....and considering that when I went thin (after the post-degree summer of immense walking/dinners of cabbage and rice/working for chain-smoking troglodyte women a la bingo) I moaned like stink about losing my sexy paunch, it is a shocking case study in hypocrisy. Anyhow, I am determined to walk more places this year, and so long as the weather is nice, to always walk to the shops and even start walking to and from walk more often. It may take a long time and be inordinately boring, but it will be good for me. Especially since gym-type activities are so dull. At least I'm not going podgy alone, quite a few friends are also getting the dreaded gut.....

Anyhow, it was a quiet holiday with much watching of immensely trashy TV (Next Top Model, anyone? Those people are absolute loons), much dinging in WoW, and half-reading (still reading) a very interesting book about chinese navigation. No, really, it's quite fascinating! I've also been resting and healing, my arm is now without bruises and only twinges slightly when I try to move it too quickly, sleep on it, or perform small repetitive movements too much. Still will have to go to physio I think (for peace of mind more than owt else). Bike is hopefully still deposited in my street - not that having it nicked wouldnt be a wonderful thing since then I could claim the insurance - and I should be able to quite easily afford something newer and spanky-er in a few weeks when the prices may drop again. Bank loan is liable to be taken to help, so that I dont empty my account though, but I'll probably only have to borrow max. 50% of the price, so Jon-ster in this case is very (:-))))))

Have also bought some nice new kitchenware, though no knives because I already have too many. Kitchen gadgets have also been avoided, though I am currently hankering after an electric waffle iron which seem to be very thin on the ground in this country, the most regularly occuring hit on the internet being these rather natty but expensive catering-size jobbers. No mind, I dont really need....but it's not about need in this case! I *did* get a new cafetiere - my mokka is really in too skanky a state for continuous use, and you dont get coffee-in-a-jiffy with them on an electric hob as compared to gas. Also a butter dish (despite my protestations of slimming above) and a 1-egg sized frying pan, which is most dinky and will be really useful, 'specially if I can squeeze two eggs in there. Also a draining rack for the sink - boring, eh? - and something else I'm sure I've forgotten. It's all languishing with P at the moment since I didnt want to lug all of that, plus my clothes and other presents and the laptop on the way to work this morning. Yes, I've come straight from Brighton to work, with the rather nasty discovery that the train tickets I usually buy aren't valid before 9am. Fucksocks.

And not only are my trousers to tight, but they are now wearing through at my inner thighs! Damn. I'll have to go and buy some new ones at the weekend, worse luck.......

Anyhew, back to the work wotsit.....

End of the year

2007-12-19T21:09:00.000Z

Well, it's the end of the working year. Last day of work conducted at incredibly slow pace, what with both of my lab-bay-mates having left already, and not having anything sensible to do. Very dull. Though I have scouted out some leads to chase up in the search for a bike.

Next few days herald a little bit of xmas shopping and a lot of cleaning, because I've been a dirty slut and let myself just go. Fun. Being uptight all the time can get a bit trying.

Interesting snippet for today - usual suspect, bloggardes:

"There is also the practice of dry-labbing—which can occur in chemistry or other lab courses, in which the teacher clearly expects the experiment to yield certain results (which confirm established laws), so the student starts from the results and works backward, calculating what the experimental data should be, often adding variation to the data. In some cases, the lab report is written before the experiment is conducted—in some cases, the experiment is never carried out. In either case, the results are what the instructor expects."

Hmmmmmmm! Reading that particular article all about dodgy goings-on was really interesting, though that comment struck particularly close to home! I know for a fact that a lot of this went on during my degree; but in all due honesty this practice is probably just as much work as doing it forwards (if that's the correct turn of phase). So in a way, you've understood the theory being taught and demonstrated by the experiment....but perhaps not appreciated some of the philosophy behind science! Really, if we are to follow the guidelines of falsification, much of the entire edifice of the natural sciences is discredited on a daily basis in laboratories all over the world!

My skin is very dry at the moment, probably the turn to cold this past week. Unfortunately we're due a wet and soggy holiday season. Never mind, at least wet = slightly warmer.

More troubles

2007-12-13T11:38:00.000Z

Obviously I'm getting a big karma payback now....after my entire trauma with the little accident, I only had another little accident yesterday evening.

It's actually quite hilarious in a comedy-situation type thing, but it bloody hurt lots, I can tell you. I've got these wooden folding chairs that seem quite sturdy and take my weight nicely (not that it's a large weight, you understand), but yesterday, one of them decided to collapse under me just as I sat on it, letting me drop to the floor. Ouch.

That's not the main part of it though; reflex meant that I obviously put out my free hand - my right hand - my damaged hand to break my fall. This was not volitional, I'd rather not have done it, because it obviously went bang against the floor. Immense shocking pain, and I'm left wailing like a small annoying child. Horrible. So I've probably set back my recovery by a day or two, not good.

Today I'm waiting in for the recovery service to bring my bike back. Most inconvenient since they cant specify a time and it looks like being this afternoon now, so I'm sitting in waiting, frustrating. And though I was fine when I got up, I now seem to have a headache and feel like utter poo. December is being written off as an entirely bad job!

A helluva lot of news

2007-12-11T20:03:00.000Z

Wow. What a long time to have passed without bloggage, eh? About time I sat down, pulled up my chair, unplugged the phone and got down to some serious typing/writing/verbal diarrhoea.

Much has happened in the last week, but I've got a longer time to cover so I'll try and recreate as best I can.

My manky lip eventually cleared itself up owing to liberal application of Bonjela and witch hazel. Miraculous stuff, witch hazel, I can recommend it for most of your skin/spot applications. Well, it works for me at any rate. Maybe it's just my super-powered immune system or something....though that is a lie, because somehow I've managed to get another cold sore on my lip, a little bit further over to the left. Noice. More bonjela and squirming, since it's a particularly icky sort of pain that you get on application. And I'll be damned if I go onto Zovirax just yet.

Pretty tame weekend had at the end/beginning of the month, remembered to pay the council tax just in time so that they dont come shouting at me for the money. Delightful to have a conservative council, eh? Surrey may be very pretty but I feel sometimes like it's one of those villages where any deviation is ruthlessly supressed in sinister ways whilst maintaining some olde englyshe charm on the surface. I'm sure it isnt really.....mostly because I've not seen Simon Pegg running up the road in a natty police uniform, I never have any original ideas! At any rate, I get to have my little bit of a say in the local administration next week, there being council elections. I think it might be a fiercely contested thing, because I've had no end of flyers, and I dont remember there being half as many when living in Soton, and I dont remember a single one in Leeds....maybe it's because I'm now a sole occupant I actually have to throw them out myself rather than piling them on a table until someone flings them with the rottin detritus at the bottom of the fridge.

At any rate, there is clearly a lack of Labour presence round here, no flyers at all. I've had a door-knock from the Lib Dems and several from the Cons. Now the Con ones are clearly highly funded, very glossy like fashion-mag paper. Big objection there; that kind of paper is more costly and damaging to produce, and does not recycle very well. So much for the Conservative commitment to the environment; I believe that it has been quite subsidised since my local MP is a Con.......in any case, such leaflets look more like junk mail, and I wouldnt be surprised if many people have just swept them straight into the rubbish!

Continuing with the political theme, I was reading the newspaper today, the Times. Now this is a very old, highly respected newspaper, but I have to say that even withing my lifetime standards have dropped. It is more full of advertising than typescript than ever before! I appreciate that publications require some form of income, but the Times appears to have whored itself more blatantly than any other broadsheet (if broadsheets can be said to exist any more). This is, however, not my gripe. Reading through one of the pull-out parts, I was trogging through one article with a niggling trouble that the author was familiar in a way not journalisic. Turns out, said article was written by my local MP, penning a lifestyle column.

Anyone spot the glaring problem with that? If this is my local MP, why is he writing a (quite supercilious) lifestyle column instead of representing my interests within local, national and international matters? Surely there is plenty, for godssakes plenty of governmental stuff to be doing without him having time to write a lifestyle column. When does he have the time to lead this miraculous, nay, quite repugnant lifestyle? Political commentary from MPs seems most good and proper. Ethical, social commentary, yes. Even cultural. But to bang out a piece about his arguments with the wife over bloody wallpaper? No wonder most people have little respect for the current system of government; Whitehall farces aside, if MPs are devoting their time to bleating about inconsequentials......grrrrrrr.........

I would have to agree that this only gets my gander up so much because he's my representative. Had it been the MP for Constituencyville North I'd probably b e less annoyed, but still. It's a reet mockery.

Further news. I have an enormous mountain of rubbish to clean up at work, with a polite request from the lab head. It does need doing, I've been putting it off for far long but for some reason it is much more preferable to continue doing work rather than tidying old crap. Cooking works in the same way, but at least at this stage no-one is eating my chemicals that I produce.....and if they are, they are nice and pure and have been completely recrystallised to a high degree of purity *coughs and splutters*. Good job I'm not a chef, really!

Quite a few people I know are know in parts antipodean, so just wanted to note a quick hello to all, if they're reading! You know who you all are....take care y'all......

And now for the big news *fanfares* ......

Once again I find myself a pedestrian, bikeless, an idiot in tight leather pants with no vehicle. I've been involved in a little road incident and the bike, though not totally destroyed, not a write off and probably still working, is currently out-of-action. Let us begin at the beginning.....

Last Thursday morning I get up and toddle around getting ready for work as usual, warm up the engine and hop out as per norm in the slight rain and the wet. Zoom along the same route as per usual, along the A30 until I reach the junction here, sat behind some Honda or other. Now the A30 at this point is quite a wide road and there is space in the middle for cars waiting to turn right to sit and wait, and a large cross-hatched area surrounding. The A30 is busy during rush hour and queues build up on the side roads. Plenty of drivers emerging from the side roads seem to find it quite alright to pull halfway across and sit waiting in the cross-hatches till they can join the flow of traffic, despite this being strongly contraindicated by the highway code, if not entirely illegal; quite rightly, because if a car is sat in the middle of the road, you don't know what it is going to do, eh?

Someone did exactly this, emerged from the side road at quite a rate (avoiding the traffic coming towards me) to take up a position in the cross-hatches. This is quite close in front of the Honda, so that guy pulls up very short in front of me. Now, ordinarily when that happens, I'm in a position to avoid my performing an overtaking manoever, or at least gain a lot of extra space in which to brake by moving out somewhat. In this case, no can do since there's a car parked on the central cross-hatches. So I'm squeezing my brakes very hard, slow down considerably but still just catch the rear of the Honda and end up sprawled across the road watching my bike scraping along to a stop.

Now, first let me clarify my state of health. I'm in fine fettle now (five days later) with an interesting collection of bruises including ones that seem to have appeared without my noticing. I seem to have landed mostly on my right forearm and chin, and with the protective padding at my elbow and, of course, my helmet, a lot of the shock was absorbed. I do in fact have a very nice scrape up my helmet to include the visor - it's now a rather large table ornament, since one ding means replace! - so I really dont understand these guys and girls who wear open-face helmets. Had I had one one, I'd probably now have no chin. Wear the proper safety gear, bloggardes, for whatever job you are doing! All this means that most of the impact was felt through my (unpadded) wrist, which was very painful, very quickly.

Having leapt up almost immediately, I went to pick up the bike and thought better of it when my wrist screamed at me! So I just headed off to the pavement to talk to the people in cars pulled up and talking, and the very helpful young lady who was a witness type person. Ambulance was duly called, police duly called and I got slinged up, offered gas/air combination [duly refused (:-) ] and taken away to A&E. Nice ambulance people nipped around the corner to work to let them know I wouldnt be in - most useful since I still dont have the number written down - nice policeman let me know what was happening and arranged removal of bike to storage (this will be costing me a lot) and came to talk to me later....and I was whipped away to hospital.

Hospitals seem the same the world over, much waiting going on. In fact, I'd say there is more waiting taking place than action; waiting for diagnosis, tests, to see what happens, to get better......at any rate, the nice nurse on triage duty quickly got me some hefty painkillers to ease it for a bit, till I went in to see the doc. This was quite a shocking experience; I'm sure that he proceeded in the correct manner, but he grabbed my arm rather heftily and began pressing to feel if there was a break! Most surprising. I was in fact in a lot of pain, since the initial adrenalin rush had worn off and my nerves were still screaming 15-12. At any rate, they scuttled me in for X-ray with a very friendly radiologist, and I was quickly diagnosed as having no break, just likely to have severe bruising and sent home with instructions to dose up on painkillers and keep rested. This I duly did, with a £20-odd taxi fare home - wondered at the time if I could have asked the nice paramedics to take me to the hospital closer to home! - and then a day of qite immense pain as the swelling began and stiffening that goes with it.

Right-hand being damaged, there was not a lot I could do without causing myself pain. I now can more appreciate frustrations accorded by the loss of one limb, since even simple tasks became too painful to contemplate with my arm, which I needed to keep suspended in the sling as it was too painful to keep aloft by my own muscle power. No chopping or stirring, hence unable to really cook for myself - the one time a microwave would have been an absolute necessity. Couldnt write or solve puzzles in that matter, since holding the paper still to write very badly with my left was out of the question. So I ended up watching endless Futurama on DVD and counting the seconds till I could take more Paracetemol. A horrible night of discomfort was then spent.

Now, this next paragraph will present a thought which my more tender bloggardes may find disgusting, so I invite you to skip ahead now. With the theme of not being able to do anything with one hand, and my dominant hand......well, how the hell was I supposed to wipe my own arse? No question of doing it with my right hand, so it had to be my left, and you've no idea how cumbersome this turned out to be! Coupled with the suspended limb in a sling, it was a job and a half. Not something I'd care to repeat.

Friday I went and bought some much stronger painkillers which have sorted me very nicely and headed down for some tender care from my beloved P. Well, for some care and being called spasmoidal. He's nice in his own way (:-) I'd been planning to head down at the weekend anyways, since mister man had his birthday this Monday, but was seeming to be less fun with the prospect of days of tablets and pain. Despite what you may conjecture, I finding swallowing things a bit of a chore. But the weekend has been rather nice and relaxing, and I'm always glad to spend time with the man.

Managed a trip to the cinema to see the Golden Compass - why they had to rename it I've no idea, the book is called Northern Lights - which was most enjoyable. Much speculation to be had about daemons, yours and other people's. For my unaware readers, an important note is that in the world of the story, human souls are not coextensive with the human body, and actually take their own form, that of an animal, and accompany the usual human form. Odd to think of Nicole Kidman being the embodiment of a ginger monkey, but there you are. So much speculation can be made about my, your, random famous person's daemon.

Trip to Eastbourne was also made, for the delightful ride in the mid-afternoon with an alcoholic on the bus. Also a crazy old lady who was rather fixated on open/closed windows. If there wasnt so much already written in this posting, I'd detail more, but I need to get on with my evening! I may write more tomorrow, but no doubt there will be much work junk to update then.

Anyhoo, I'm home again in my pit that badly needs cleaning (since I was going to do some this past weekend before going to P), without a bike and likely to be forking out for the removal and return of it, and even more likely having it taken to the breakers and buying a new (second-hand) one, I'm feeling quite poor. Christmas will be a slow and easy one this year.

Please leave commentary, and I'll be blogging more often in the coming days!

Manky lip

2007-11-26T22:53:00.000Z

I've got a cold sore. Or similar. So now I not only have Herpes simplex in my eye, I've got it all over my face as well. I'm so lucky (:-)

It isnt actually that bad, now just an annoying patch right in the centre of my bottom lip which is both sore and just at a point where I cant leave it alone. So I'm not best pleased with it, but will soldier on nevertheless!

Winding down the year at work, and I've kinda run a little out of steam with it for a bit....not a lot moving forward just now, so I've no reason or pressure to hurry it up, so I'm not bothereing unduly......this will no doubt be changing come the new year!

Blogging has really taken a back seat for a while, and though I keep promising to keep up with it, I dont seem to. Enough stuff in life to entertain me? Or a gradual dissatisfaction with my own writing. Possibly both. Likely both.

Itchy eyes at the moment, so I'm going to go rest them in bed. And sore throat. Maybe I *am* coming down with something bigger......we'll see.

ooooh

2007-11-14T18:17:00.000Z

Where have I been? Well, nowhere in particular. I've been doing my usual observation of the world, but just not blogging it. It's all a bit ephemeral anyway, so I'm sure it's not been missed. Well....

No news to report, pretty standard, eh? I could make something up, but I cant be bothered. So fill in your own blanks. It'll be much more interesting than the truth!

I'm actually having some time off this weekend, clearly I'm far too dedicated since I've not taken any holiday till now. So really I deserve to take off most of December; but I'm rather too interested in getting on with work stuff, clearly far too invested to put it down! But then you all knew I was on the obsessive side of obsessive.

Likelihood is that I will be a Irish dwarf in the upcoming panto. Could be interesting. Could also be hideously awful. We'll see (:-)

Fecking hilarious

2007-11-01T07:16:00.000Z

And she's dead talented too. Two-and-a-half minutes of fun to be found here.....

Onions and bacon

2007-10-31T18:57:00.000Z

A classic combination. What is it about this combination that is just so perfect, so correct, so delicious? A whole essay in aesthetics could be involved here, but I just wanted to remind everyone about the many possiblilities of this allium vegetable and this cured pig-flesh.....suggest your own dishes with the two, please, whether either as a starring ingredient or merely a background basis, bloggardes.....

Ah, grrrrrrrrrrr

2007-10-31T17:42:00.000Z

Sorting out electricity bills. I've traced the original mistake and it goes back to my landlord. Instead of giving the company the night and day readings, he gave instead the total and day reading which obviously skew my bills completely, as then I would end up paying for my deay electricity twice. No fucking way.

Still, British Gas (great 'leccy providers) were still dumb enough to ignore the actual readings I gave and insert an extra '1' into my readings so that my night reading of 0728 magically became 1728 to correspond with the >1000 false reading given by my landlord. Instead of questioning this figure and perhaps even getting someone official to come read the meter. So after actually getting a wrong estimate, then a totally wrong bill, I've had a third, wrong bill. And obviously the phone bill charge to sit a queue for ages.

Some of it is my fault for not querying the other bill I had in July, but I've only just put 2-and-2 together. Still, I'm damned if I'm going to pay for a trivial mistake. I'm short enough as it is.

Grrrr, utility services are usually so useless! I'm half considering cutting of my mobile phone to avoid the cost, except that almost all of my stuff is handled by mobile.....and my home phone I cant get rid of since I desperately need the broadband (:D

Still, I should cut down on my bills, by ruthlessly unplugging things.......

Two wrongs make a big smash-up

2007-10-27T13:53:00.000+01:00

A'noon, bloggardes! It's Saturday, I dont have to go to work and I'm enjoying this immensely. Instead, I've been cleaning up my flat ready for property look-over next week. Bathroom and bedroom are all done, I just face the horror of my main room. Nah, shouldn't be too bad, just tedious.

But more interesting, and back to a favourite theme of mine, was the utterly horrible bits of driving I just witnessed returning home from getting my food in. First of all was by myself, and more about maneuvers than driving. Parked in the bike spaces (which are far too narrow for anything sensible - and mine isn't that big a steed) I had to do about a 500-pt turn to get back out! Not helped by everyone else parked up the accessible front end, making it a very nice and narrow gap to get through backwards. Still, managed it in the end, but hardly graceful. At least I had my luminous bits on to make sure everyone saw me (:-)

More interesting to tell, is the bad bit of work by a moped rider and a BMW driver. My opinions on beemer drivers are well known, and have been confirmed again. So, there's a queue of traffic moving steadily at just under the speed limit, so the moped (probably owing to lack of experience - L-plate) undertakes the BMW, but not the whole queue, and ends up just in front of the beemer in a bit of space. Not the most sensible thing to be doing. Anyway, heading up to lights the road widens to incorporate the right-turn lane, and the queue has cleared a bit. Mope is turning right, moves into lane. Beemer is also turning right, but right before the lights, undertakes the mope and screehces to a halt just in front of it at the red lights. What was the point? Just for the sake of 10' of ground, and almost causing a collision into his rear end? Even more pointless when you consider that mope immediately filters straight past and in front of him again, as is allowed. So he's back in exactly the same situation. Idiot. But the mope wasnt exactly the best rider either.

Anyhow, back to the cleaning!

Disturbing

2007-10-24T07:24:00.000+01:00

Have a gander at this .... in some very strange way it works! Yet still, it's too, too odd......

A poser

2007-10-23T14:09:00.000+01:00

Back again, still not dead (:-)

Spent a very nice weekend with P, after not having seen him in over a month and was really, really glad to see him. How the seasons have changed though, since it means I arrive at his in the dark and almost leave to come home in the dark. Winter is icumen in..........

My cupboard is pretty bare at the moment, I appear to be eating myself out of house and home and not replenishing my stores. So either I'll end up eating very sparsely and healthily for a while, or else I'll end up groaning home under the weight of extra staples!

To the point; Dan at work put a little poser forward, to which no real satisfactory answer has been obtained. You can describe a solid as being dense, that is, per unit volume it has large mass. What is the opposite of this quality? I put forward rarefied which I've heard used in the context of gase, but consulting a dictionary seemed to suggest this not to be quite apposite. Any ideas, bloggardes?

It's gorgeously sunny outside and I really feel like going for a ride. Getting on the bike in the morning is not fun because of the surface rime on the roads and the excessive amount of time I have to wait for the engine to warm up (even to the extent that I'm totally paranoid the whole way to work that I'm about to stall!). I'm still worried about engine failure.....but on the plus side, my insurance premium has dropped to about a third since I've racked up another year's no claims......and what with the massive bill for the electrical repairs, the enormous phone bill for the broadband services in advance and the forthcoming 'leccy bill (once corrected), I'm quite happy to be saving a bit of cash! Think this weekend may be the time to go discuss investments, once I've hoovered my hair trimmings up off the floor......living alone and not having visitors does make one incredibly lazy when it comes to housework, though living in filth is not conducive to self-respect; mens sana in domo sano, anybody?

Laters; I'm kinda at work (:-)

Quick thoughts

2007-10-18T07:26:00.000+01:00

Over a week since last post. Show finished off OK, for those of you waiting with baited breath! Apparently it's 'the best thing they've ever done', but I've heard that about every single show by a theatre group I've ever been in, so there's not much weight behind that comment. Was good in the end though, despite still being a bit of a shambles the week before, I'm just not good at the last-minute-coming-together thing. Prefer to be mostly there beforehand!

Anyhow, my quick thought. You've all heard of the Dave Gorman collection? Was just thinking how much less of a challenge it would be in these days of Facebook, where I just discovered another 92 Jon-sters (under my real name, of course!). Admitedly a lot of those were 'Jonathon', some with double-barrelled surnames, a Jonas and even a Jon-tae (wtf kind of a name is that?), but still, searching for namesakes is rendered a lot easier.

So I'm really not unique, at any rate.

Odd dream last night involving my old English teacher who died from breast cancer, though in the dream I was at primary school. Freaky.

First night over

2007-10-11T23:20:00.001+01:00

Well, that was the first night of the show. Went surprisingly well, considering what a buggery horrible state it was in 2 weeks ago! Two more nights to go, then I can collapse in a little heap and spend sunday sleeping. I'm really looking forward to it. I mean, really. And I can perhaps get down to a smidgen of normality again......like that is ever the case.

And I'm also considering trying out being a bit hairy for a while. Though shaven head is nice, this past week (not the most recent days, but this past week) I've looked at myself in th mirror and thought 'jeez, you actually look quite sexy', not something I often think about myself. So I might be having hair again for a bit. Nothing much more than a light dusting - I dont have the coverage for long locks these days - but something. Opinions?

Woodworms

2007-10-09T23:36:00.000+01:00

More people keep crawling out at me on Facebook....it's getting to the point where I'm adding people I've not spoken to in 10 years, and it does make one pensive. The past ten years have been, well ten years long, to put not to fine a point on it, and a lot happens in 10 years. If I went back to being 18 again, I could probably have said the same thing about the 10 years before that, so it only goes the show how things change.

I'm certainly not the same person I was before. Less serious, to be sure, since I've realised that nobody was ever really going to take me seriously when I had no confidence in my own worthiness. I still doubt my own ability, seriously doubt it sometimes; now I can laugh it off somewhat by realising that there is no-one so pompous as him inflated with his own self-importance, and I can see that at least I'll never be in such a position, so laughing at myself means I dont lose face. Having accepted that universal acceptance is unlikely, I've actually managed to treat myself as perhaps a bit more human and actually like my life a lot more.

Still, though I have happy memories at school, they remain and will remain such; memories. There were some crappy parts of my life back then, a whole lot of confidence issues and superiority issues that matter less now, matter not at all, and so I wouldnt want to go back and be there again. I've made more of my life, though perhaps through the gradual destruction of the old me. I hope the most recent me is a better person, and it only shows how the self is not immutable. Basically, I can accept the change and look forward to more to come.

So all in all, though I'm morbidly curious about all these people who keep knocking me up (so to speak) on Facebook, I've had enough of trying to connect with my past. If I really wanted to stay in touch, I suppose I would have, but I havent. There are in fact very few people I've kept in touch with, all said.......*violins*

Enough maudlin stuff. I was perhaps aiming for something deep and meaningful here, but we've ended up with twaddle as usual....still, at least I'm doing my bit for the 'infinite-number-of-monkeys-write-Shakespeare'-project.

Goodnight bloggardes, and realise that you arent the same person today as you were yesterday, and tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
to the last syllable of recorded time, and that you wont be the same person after that, either. You 'aint never staying the same, so dont try to (:-)

And I've had to park my bike somewhere else apart from my usual spot *grump*

Good Monday

2007-10-08T17:31:00.000+01:00

Acidolysis + no racemisation = very, very happy Jon-ster

(:-)

...or actually, just at the moment : :-)

Another reason to hate Sainsburys

2007-10-07T15:16:00.001+01:00

Why would you put sticky labels on a pepper? Why mar the perfect skin of the fruit? Just so that I can merrily chop it up and throw it into the dinner, label and all.

I am not amused.

Mildly amusing

2007-10-07T13:46:00.000+01:00

Sunday is, so they say, the day of rest. Well, I'm not exactly resting but I'm not doing much. I have but two mildly amusing recounts for you today.

Nipped into Camberley to pick up some new moisturising bath oil, and large bottle of water for rehearsals. I've been off the bike so long, and not into Camberley for so long, that they've managed to remodel the entire insides of the Sainsbury's there, so I got a nice little surprise! Not amusing, but funny how the brain is thrown when things are not as expected. At any rate, I managed to find what I wanted.

Other amusing recount is to do with the bath oil. Having bought it and take my bag of purchases away, the bottom falls out of the bag and scatters the contents all over the floor of the shopping centre. Nice. Shows how flimsy they make bags these days!

That's it for now. I'm off to make goulash.

Smile on the day

2007-10-06T17:13:00.000+01:00

Yes, there is a smile on the day, because some of my karma has come back to me. A gorgeous day, and two loops of bike riding; a 1 hour and a 2 hour, and I still could go out for more if my wrists weren't aching at I'm getting tired; have to be sensible!

Otherwise, have done a weeny bit of laundry and cleaning, and squaring up to rehearsals tomorrow.

Grrrrr

2007-10-04T16:36:00.000+01:00

OK, so I had my posh shoes in for repair, and since I was being all local and supportive (and not being with bike at the time to go to Camberley) I put them into the repair place at Bagshot. They were ready for Tuesday, but I only went in today to pick them up, and lo and behold but they've repaired my heels but not bothered to do the front of my sole, which was why I really had them in in the first place. Grrrrr. So now I'm going to have to make another trip there tomorrow to pick them up!

Otherwise, it's been an odd week. I have a multitiude of acidolysis reactions to do that I've been putting off, but should really start to do ASAP. Next week shall be the week devoted to acidolysis (and smelly reactions).

a la recherche du temps perdu

2007-10-04T13:03:00.000+01:00

Went to bed with my draft copy of thesis last night (as you do) in a fit of nostalgia, and ended up reading quite a bit of it. Realised that actually, my lucid prose isn't actually that lucid, or at least could have been substantially improved stylistically. Gets the message across but is rather hastily put together, as it was really, considering I was in a rush to get it finished and submitted. What was more worrying was that I was looking at all those compounds that I made and thinking 'ugh, they look horrible', and wondering if it was actually possible and that no, surely I couldnt have done that! I know I did, and a quick squizz at my NMR data (broad multiplet, sir?) reminded me how bloody awful it actually was. Still, a little glow of pride was allowed to rear it's ugly head before I collapsed into sleep again.

Woke again at about 2am in a state of wheezy - seems like when I get asthma troubles, it takes an age to die down again - and had a little 'erk' moment when I couldnt instantly find my inhaler, having left it on the sofa. Unpleasant wheeziness, and my condition is really mild. Doesnt bear thinking about what life used to be like in the days before salbutamol and pocket inhalers. So not very nice, though I dozed off plenty nicely after a huff or two. But mornings are becoming ever more difficult now that I'm clearly getting up in the pre-dawn twilight, and feel like I'm sleeping really bad when I'm probably just dozy. There may be something to be said for sleeping with the seasons, and just sleeping longer in winter when it's dark. Not sure it'd wash with work though (:-)

Now evaporating numerous fractions from my column this morning, so ever-so-slightly bored. But at least it's a bit satisfying.

Forgot to collect my shoes

2007-10-02T18:24:00.000+01:00

...so that'll be a tomorrow afternoon job, after getting into work supa-early tomorrow!

This is of course a minor piece of news for the day, since *tan-tarrah!* I went to pick my bike up today! All fixed, and boy there must have been quite a lot of shit going on there, since it was far more sparky in firing (new starter motor :D) and the steering was incredibly amazing! I'm loving it!

Except.....the wires were a lot more exposed than previously, so I tried to tuck them back in a bit. Big mistake, I managed to loosen the indicator connections, making them go crazy re: flash timing. So after a few moments of absolute panic, I've re-worked them into a position where the connection isn't pulled when I steer. But the ends are quite a bit more exposed, so from now on I'll be absolutely paranoid about them getting wet, and will probably start carrying something to put over them to keep the rain off when I'm out! Not that I'll be riding many places now that it's winter, but.....a scary moment when I'd just forked out loads for the repair and not really ridden very much. I'll be keeping an eye out, at any rate, and may treat myself to a replacement machine sooner than I was meaning.....2 years isnt a bad run for a first bike though, especially since it's 10 years old. Have to start looking out for a good deal!

Had my first totally random 'poke' on Facebook the other day, not a clue who it is but they must have surfed on in from an actual friend's page. Most odd. I've sent him a message along the lines of 'I havent a bloody clue who you are (unless my memory is crap) but thanks', and have heard no response. I feel like I'm being stalked. Slightly odd feeling. And on this theme, got a totally random text message from some guy I once had a date with. I'd deleted his number ages ago and he'd obviously forgotten who I was, but was curious why my number was in his phone. Fair enough, but I'd just delete it rather then sending a txt and then proceeding to call. Here's advance warning bloggardes, that I've finally got my first stalker! So exciting! But please keep a watch out for me, I dont want to inadvertantly drawn into a cannibalism pact (again). Natch.

Rehearsal again tonight, we're on next week and it's getting along....only worry is having a massive allergy response next week; I had a bad weekend of it after set-build and I'm hoping a lot of that was sawdust. Dont want to be inhaler-sucking and steroid-slapping all week.

Time for dinner, people......

Resolution to drink more water

2007-09-28T20:30:00.000+01:00

Blogger is still talking to me in German. Most odd.

And a warning now, to not watch TV willy-nilly whilst eating dinner. The only bearable
thing I managed to find involved me watching some woman use a pig stomach to do demonstratios about the digestive system, them reveal a box with authentic looking poo for the amount of faeces we should all be excreting every week. Delight. And so I should be drinking lots more water to stave off IBS or worse. It is true though, I really need to drink more water.....and so I shall endeavour to do so.

Shoes require fixing in the morning, and so it'll be an early start. I shall sleep well tonight since I've been to the pub after work for the first time in a very good long while - I'm such a lightweight these days - and have to get up early to go drop off said shoes and then go help finish off the last touches of set. So a full day for me!

Groggy

2007-09-28T07:02:00.000+01:00

Murrrrr......far too early in the morning, I'm sat here with the light on for the first time during the getting-up rituals and it's an unpleasant reminder of the irresistable march of winter.....soon I'll be shovelling snow off my path, eh?

Realised quite how whiney I've been sounding in these latest blog posts. Well, not much I can do about it now, but we'll try and keep my chipper up for a while. Shouldnt be too hard at the moment with apple cake for breakfast and the prospect of a fishy lunch. And this evening will be spent conjuring marvellous things from nothing (because I have nothing).

Re-signing contracts this weekend to stay in my lovely batchelor pad for longer, also required for further little touch-ups of our set. Play is in a very short period of time, looking forward to it for the first time since yesterday we got into costumes for the first time. Always gives everyone a lift and breathes new life, I find, and we really did need it for this!

No amusing stories for you at the moment, but I'll try and blog a few more random thoughts as I go.....

Thinking of those in Myanmar

2007-09-27T10:50:00.001+01:00

Shocking events of the past few days, filled with hope and despair. I can but wish for all things to be at their best, but I do hope there is no undue unrest, and that none are hurt. Sadly, I think this will not be the case, but......

Washing-up

2007-09-18T20:03:00.000+01:00

This is an act I detest. Regardless of whether satori is to be found therein (see below), I still hate it, doing it lots at work (though less than previously) and then even more at home. Vile. I suppose the motto is: clean your stuff before it becomes encrusted. How true in organic chemistry as in cuisine.

Barely enough time left tonight to nibble the last of the lasagne and play six hours of Warcraft!

Someone is going to appreciate this one.....

2007-09-17T13:14:00.000+01:00

Cribbed from the usual source;

"Most of the time we don't really do things, but rather think about them. That's why zen-masters often stress the point that enlightenment is to be found in things like dish-washing, soaking in a bathtub, and going to the toilet."

A very nice idea.

One other note.....

2007-09-15T21:12:00.000+01:00

Blogger has decided to start talking to me in German, for no apparent reason. Good job I understand it, eh? No idea why, it hasnt asked me about a language change.....

Grumbles

2007-09-15T20:52:00.000+01:00

Just had to install a new version of MSN messenger, since my comp wouldnt let me use my old one. It now has a new layout, which is far worse, in the 'lets miniaturise everything so no-one can see it'-a la-mobile keys, which is very annoying. There was nothing wrong with my old version, so I dont see why I should be forced to upgrade it. In fact, I find it very suspicious that I have to updgrade it.

Brings to mind the couple of episodes I've had with cold colding recently. Orange (my network) phoned me up with desperate corporate fervour to ensure my continued custum by offering new packages. Whilst I resent cold-calling, the lady who had the luck to be calling was quite understanding. I in no uncertain terms stated that I didnt want a phone upgrade; mine works fine, and I find it a disgrace that so many upgrades get offered, creating the current mountain of mobile phone waste we currently see and fostering a disposable culture (when not everything can be replaced by buying a new one). This assertion of mine meant that I could not make any changes to my plan; it was impossible for this company to offer me a new service (that's service, not product) without forcing a new phone on me. How ridiculous; surely it would save them both postage and a handset by not sending me this. So bascially it was dropped, what I secretly had hoped in the first place.

This didnt stop me receiving a second call a few weeks later to the same purpose. But I'm getting the hang of dealing with them and was very polite and firm in rejecting all offers. It's a total destruction of everybody's karma that poor people are forced to call as part of their work, causing we the call-receivers to feel inately bad at having to be rude to get them off the line! The worst tale yet to come was a cold call on my home landline from an unascertained mobile phone company (I never was told which), who called me to ask if I was satisfied with my mobile package. I replied yes, and then told them upon asking that I wasnt prepared to tell them how much I paid for my mobile bill (how rude!). And then asked them how they knew I had a mobile phone; I then said that I didnt. In amongst the entire sales pitch, I had to the keep clearly stating that I didnt want their service; hanging up is so bad.....

I have to indicate here, bloggardes, that all should point-blank refuse to enter discussions with cold-call selling. Economics tells us that they only keep doing it because it is to some extent profitable; hence they must be making some kind of sale in this manner. Hence a blanket refusal will be the only retort that will be understood; if the selling technique doesnt work, it'll stop. I live in hope. But sometimes I feel like ringing up all these people to ask whether they'd like to buy some lovely hand-drawn art by myself for display in their offices, or if they could use a dancing clown for their board meeting (i.e. me). But that's my vindictive nature.

Back to today; set build half accomplished, owing to a booking cock-up and the hall caretakers booking in a kids party for this afternoon, so we packed up at half three. Rest of day has been spent trogging and nearly overflowing the bathtub. Now watching one of those crap programmes about some kids who need a good arse-beating, in the dock this week are an American family (who else) with six boys, who the mother home-schools. Now I've not been paying so much attention to know if there's a reason for that, but....six kids? Have these people not heard about over-population and dwindling global resources? Contraception, people, it's there for a reason, the clue is in the name......that's gonna be one messy and god-awful smelly household in a few years once puberty kicks in for them all, one year after another.....bejaysus.......

Full to the brim with rice this evening. Tomorrow will be spent doing quite a bit of cooking, to whit; lasagne, some banana bread, and a small ham. I'm looking forward to it. Also to do is the laundry, lots of it, much less fun.

Bikey gone

2007-09-14T20:07:00.000+01:00

Well, it's been picked up and there's a lonely parking space that's empty outside, and I've got the cover back inside (and hopefully not covered in snails). I've got a good feeling about this, guy was very friendly and obviously cares about his work, thanks to Steve for tipping me off about him (:-), I owe you a cuppa! Hopefully wont be too long and I can be back on the road.

Thanks must also go out to T for giving me lifts in the morning, most generous. I shall have to get her a little present, but I've got no idea what. Suggestions welcome, bloggardes, possibly not food related.....have to have a think.

Busy watching some House Doctor derived crap TV, rather endearing. All these programmes about property should be depressing, but they arent remotely; they're all just rather hideous, hideous rooms, hideous residents, hideous presenters....all adds up to what could be a bitch-fest, but I actually feel a bit 'awww, rub the cheeky kid in his messe-up hair' about it. Obviously I'm still suffering from lack of sleep and need to go to bed! This will of course not be happening, as I need a big dose of WoW tonight, having kept away all week thus far.

Tomorrow holds the delight of a brisk trot to Windlesham, and then banging nails and lark. Quite looking forward to it. Less looking forward to walking home again, but hey. Such is life!

Midnight

2007-09-13T22:52:00.000+01:00

Not quite, really. But time enough for me to go to bed. Had the most delicious sleep yesterday (if you'll permit the synaesthesia), my theory that I wasnt getting quality sleep obviously holds. I dropped right off and didnt wake up until just before my alarm went off at half six. Not even stirred by the guy revving up his Yamaha - *jealous mumblings* - or the first train of the day. So I shall be repeating that one tonight, and be fresh as a proverbial daisy come tomorrow.

Rehearsals, meh. I'm feeling a bit odd about it today, since we dont actually seem to do very much actual work at them, just go linearly through the script without repeating any bits of it; so I only hope we do get second runs at it at some point! I do feel, though, that I'm getting a little bit of stick since I've got my lines almost down, whereas others havent, and so my performance can be directed, whereas there's not much you can do with someone still reading from a book. It's all about the posture, and I can pull that somewhat....still, I suppose I'm only whinging, and it's not like it was ever going to be a perfect piece.

Getting ready for bike pick-upage tomorrow, means I have to screw my fairings all back down again. Battery has also to be replaced, for which I'm tip-top charging it overnight and probably all day tomorrow. So when I get home I can just plonk it back in and get it carted off. I shall be slightly glad not to have the reminder sat outside for a while, but shall be even more glad when she comes back nice and revvy and I can ride again. I'm totally missing being on the road, even without seeing riders everywhere.

Work seems to be going quite swimmingly at the moment, which is always nice, but I'm quite certain that something is going to bite me in the arse sooner rather than later, which is never a good sign.....I'm still grinding my teeth, which is not good......meditation? Would be good, but I've pretty much lost hope that I'll ever get back down to it. So much for stream-entry, I've crawled up the bank and am towelling myself down with each passing tick! Anyhow, life is full of ups and downs, one thing that you can be sure of.

Time for snoozage. Goodnight, bloggardes, and may you dream the sleep of the pure in mind. If not, may you have a bloody good breakfast instead!

Tray muffin, and the perilous of crystal salt

2007-09-12T21:16:00.001+01:00

Being as there were plenty of apples that were progressing towards rotting - that stage where they arent so appealing to eat but are still perfectly good, I decided to cook with them. Plenty of nice apple recipies, and an easy favourite of mine are apple spice muffins. Now, I cant remember if I abandoned my muffin trays in Leeds (since I didnt use them the whole time I was there and thought 'get shot') or whethere they are lurking in the back of a cupboard. Either way, I decided to make the batch and just cook the whole lot in an oven dish a la tray cake. Works quite well, tastes nice and lovely.

Only trouble is, the only salt I have is the natural crystalline salt, perfect for pasta boiling and general usage in stews, but unfortunately it does not dissolve into muffin mix, so I now have localised pockets of extreme saltiness in my muffin. Not unpleasant, but a bit of a shock! Wont stop me wolfing it though (:-)

Enough!

2007-09-12T08:11:00.000+01:00

Had a very odd dream last night. Keira was telling me how my blog has been far too depressing and concerned with food, so hopefully this will be a lighter post. Unfortunately I'm practically wilting all over the keyboard, so tired I be; it seems like I'm not getting decent sleep at the moment. Lack of proper deep sleep or something, so tonight I'm going to get home early and go to bed at half ten on the dot, rather than trying to stay up making the next level in WoW or getting beaten up by zombies.

Rehearsals seem to be going swimmingly, but also a bit pants at the same time. Very thin on the ground yesterday, several people ill (which you cant blame them for) and hence not there, but it's getting to the point now where I'd like to do all the stuff properly with people in place. And repeat and repeat. This is probably not going to happen, since my part is a diddy one (no sniggering). At any rate, it's set build this weekend (earliest I've ever known a set build to happen, there are obviously bonuses to having a permanent theatre!), so I should have some fun doing that. Must remember to take along my adjustable, just in case.

Other news: finally have arranged to have bike taken away to be looked at. Keep your fingers crossed, bloggardes, since I dont want to pay too much, but at the moment I just want my ride back. I miss it way to much.....god forbid I should ever break my back and not be able to ride.

Ah, now the caffeine is kicking in and I'm starting to wake up! Clearly, being at work is no bar to wasting time, but I should really think about getting on now......

2-D people

2007-09-05T06:55:00.000+01:00

Have I been utterly shallow myself? I think I've been seeing people as resolutely 2D in recent past. Being a bit wrapped up in myself (proof below, bloggardes), I think I've forgotten somewhat that others are in the same situation. Pffft. Cant be considerate all the time, eh?

It's early morning, and I really dont want to go to work today. This is a freakish occurence, but we'll ride it out. Coffee is a wonderful drug, peps you up and turns your pee a funny colour......

Kick up the arse, please (:-)

Evening out

2007-09-04T18:22:00.000+01:00

Well, this is a surprise, no? I've not posted as much as this in a long while! Perhaps returning to writing as of form of mental purging? Could be a worthy explanation, but it does mean that my mind generates one helluva lot of crap!

Off to the theatre this evening, glad to be going though admitedly I've no idea what it is I'm going to see anymore. Agreed to buy a ticket in a fit of assent one night at rehearsal, so we'll see. Do me good to get out of the house and go somewhere that isn't the station, the supermarket or work. Have been revolving in my little, eingeschraenkt world for far too long. Difficult to get out of a rut though. This will make a difference, since I'll have to talk to these people both before performance, after performance and in the interval. A performance of my own? *grin* Now that makes me sound either deeply shallow or deeply schizophrenic, eh? Well, bloggardes, most of you know me as a person, so you can make your own judgement.

Am missing having plenty of people to talk to about anything and whatever. Some people at work I can be entirely comfortable with, but not all; mostly because there is something about them I dont like, or get the feeling they dont like me. I'm good at making large expansive mountain ranges out of molehills, but I'm also good at hiding that fact from other people. Still waters, people, still waters......

Jeez, what blather. But the rule is, once typed, goes undeleted! So you'll have to put up with that ramble.

Exchanged a few messages with Martin today, seems like the man is having a bit of a rough time of it. Always sad to hear that, and as I regularly resolve, I should go and see people a lot more often. He's only down the road, and so handy for so many other people. Any other Southampton-ites fancy a visit? Or you could all come up the smoke and I'll see you for a change? Ditto to anyone else out there.....come and visit me before I come and visit you!

Mooooooooo

2007-09-04T11:46:00.001+01:00

'Nuff said.

Strange coincidence

2007-09-04T07:56:00.000+01:00

How bizarre. Little moment of clarity, realised that in the recent past there are three Chris's and three Steve's in life....as if there were no other names! Funny, that. Totally unremarkable, but it is what I was thinking this morning, waiting in the cold. For yes, it is cold in the morning, enough that the air-con in the building feels warm rather than cold.

Onto work! 'Tis what they pay me for.....