JOURNAL | PROFILE | FRIENDS | MANIFESTO FOR 40 | ABOUT THE SITE | CONTACT
Thursday 20 November 2008
Oh What A Beautiful Morning
Sort of.
Walking to the tube this morning, the air was clear, the feeling crisp, the sunlight on Canary Wharf made the towers look as nice as they ever do, and generally speaking it was enough to raise one's spirits (especially after the crappy journey home last night via a public transport system that can apparently be brought to a grinding halt by someone giving it a funny look, it's so prone to disruption).
Then I actually got to the station and it all went horribly wrong. I can't believe how badly caught short the entire country seems to have been by a fall of snow that was being forecast as far back as the weekend. Does nobody ever actually think "We really ought to get organised for that."?
Mad.
Dissent Is Bad
It seems that the government, perhaps understandably worried that they might be horribly shown up, would really rather no rally be held to round off the Stop The War demonstration on 15th February, and so are seeking means by which one can be avoided. It's a pity they aren't working with equal diligence to avoid the killing of innocent people. Shameful barely begins to cover it.
I'd be embarassed to be a socialist if there was even the tiniest degree of socialism still being pretended to by 'new Labour'.
Actually:
One thing from the State of the Union I will comment on:
Barnaby and I were having a giggle yesterday about the following glowing example of the speechwriter's art:
"The dictator of Iraq is not disarming. To the contrary, he is deceiving."
I mean, come on - the contrary of disarming isn't deceiving - that would be 'arming', Mr Bush.
How many speechwriters did it take to come up with this infantile prose, and which high-powered White House Comunications Director (or whatever their title is) let it through? It's not even as if it's particularly stirring stuff, is it?
The State Of Whose Union?
I did mean to comment yesterday on GWB's State of the Union speech, but frankly, I was just too depressed.
However, when confronted with the home-grown bloodlust of our very own Bush arselicker Prime Minister, even though still more depressed, I feel like I ought to say something. Dear old Tony has joined with the leaders of seven other European countries to issue a joint declaration of support for US Imperialism, apparently as a snub to France and Germany, who, of course, have made it clear that unlike the UK they're not Bush's poodles.
I continue to be perplexed by this unwavering support for a war whose justification has still not been proved. The idea that Bush is going to provide his evidence next week (as promised in the State of the Union) is, if anything, even more mental than what has gone before - if evidence exists, why hasn't it been revealed already? Wouldn't it have made the work of the weapons inspectors more meaningful if they had been pointed directly at the target of this 'evidence'?
I know I've said it before, but sadly I'm a repetitive bugger:
Demonstrate to me once that the reason for going to war is the best interests of those actually threatened, tyrannised and harmed by the Iraqi regime, and I'll give it my grudging support. Demonstrate that a tangible threat exists from Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (which I refuse to capitalise and give credibility to the politicos' soundbites) that isn't effectively held in check by the threat of overwhelming retaliation and I might do the same.
Keep trying to pretend that the whole thing isn't actually about some or all of; oil, revenge, Bush's attempts to distract from his failure to make good the promise to bring the forces behind the 11th September attacks to justice, or plain old arrogance and might-is-rightism, and when you do go bombing innocent Iraqis, you ain't doing it in my name.
Sexually Offensive
So the government has unveiled its long-anticipated new Sexual Offences Bill, a much-needed overhaul of the laws around sexual matters designed to straighten out inconsistencies, take account of changes in societal standards, and address the various complications which new technologies permit. On first viewing, it seems to cover all of the main bases (though somewhat unimaginatively in some cases, and with recognition that this new 'grooming' offence will be hellishly difficult to make stick), but the convolutions around the whole 'sex in public' thing are causing me a degree of amusement.
"No-one wants to be an unwitting spectator to other people having sex in a public place," according to home office minister Hilary Benn. Well, personally speaking, I can see things significantly more gruesome and disturbing on a daily basis with very little effort: People with no homes, people with obvious mental problems and no support, people unable to get a doctor's appointment when they need one, children not getting a decent education or balanced diet. In that context, people who feel good enough about themselves to shag in public really don't register on my shock-o-meter.
As to the specific situation of cottaging: Well, the attraction of sex in public toilets completely passes me by (not sex in public, you understand, which appeals to me every bit as much as the next rampant exhibitionist) - have you seen the state of most men's toilets? - but I know that it's a thing for a lot of people. "If the cubicle door was open then clearly an offence was committed. If it's closed, it's different." (Mr Benn again). I could be wrong, but I've always gathered that the thrill of possibly being caught is a good part of the experience, so I would have thought that there'd be little point in closing the cubicle door.
It strikes me anyway that the whole world of cottaging could do with a bit of an updating - things have moved on a long way since the days when there were fewer bars and clubs. I'd have thought that the expanding sauna business fills at least part of its traditional niche, so who is still in the cottages? Surely it's not just all the married men who want to have sex with other men?
Of Books And Groups
I came late to the first series of Channel 4's The Book Group (very late, in fact, only seeing the last two episodes), but what I saw made me keen to see more, so I'm looking forward to the DVD release in a couple of weeks time, and I made a point of catching the first of the new series (Fridays, repeated late Monday night), and what an excellent thirty minutes of TV it was.
From sparklingly funny dialogue, (Janice thinks she's perfect for a job as a telly journalist, because, among other qualities, "My spelling is impeccable."); to the hysterical scene in which the dreadful Lachlan experiments with lubricating Claire's perineum; to the sublime sequences of Anselmo's seduction of the unaware, non-Spanish-speaking Rab (the culmination of which was startlingly graphic and wonderfully romantic), it all works brilliantly. Tragically, there wasn't much of an actual book group, but it made an excellent reintroduction to the characters.
On the subject of book groups, has anyone ever tried one? Might anyone be interested in doing so? It strikes me as an interesting concept, and an at least vaguely stimulating way to pass the occasional evening.
You Don't Miss It....
....'til it's gone.
A permanent high-speed internet connection that is. Having a fabulously fast connection in the office, plus a permanent DSL link at home is so spoiling. Three days of occasional access vial dial-up comes as a rude awakening.
I've always said that the thing I get most out of with my connection at home is not the bandwidth (I'm not a large file downloader, by and large), but the 'always on' aspect, because I so frequently think of something that I'd like to check out, and appreciate not needing to log-on and wait for a connection before finding what I'm looking for, and several times over the weekend, this has indeed proven to be exactly the kind of use I've missed.
Can It Really Be?
Dave has been given a confirmed hospital bed tomorrow.... Is the pin finally, really, going to come out?
Three From The Observer
The controversy over Rolling Stone's article on 'Bug Chasing' (gay men who allegedly set out deliberately to be infected with HIV) gets an Observer summary.
And sperm donors are to lose the right to anonymity: "The psychological impact of maintaining anonymity is now becoming clearer. Children who were conceived 30 years ago, and have found out in adulthood that their biological father was not the man they had grown up with, have been utterly shocked, mainly because they were misled by their parents." I can't speak for those conceived by this method, but you won't get any argument from me about the impact of a bombshell like that.
Out Of Even The Bloggies....
...detestable though they are, at least one good link can come. And here it is:
Whedonesque is a community weblog covering all things relating to the Slayermeister and his works.
Speaking of which - fairly major Buffy spoilers at Ain't It Cool News.
Gosh
They do lovely sunsets up here.
Well, GNER's replacement bus service, contrary to expectations, delivered me at exactly the same time that the train would have, had it been running - how can that possibly be right?
Not much else to report - small town life seems to be even quieter than usual, and apart from anything else, being here has a curious feeling of not being away from home - I suspect that has something to do with the proposal I've spent most of today writing.
Way Up North
I'm heading out of town again this weekend for more family fun with hospitals, consultants and the like. (Well, strictly speaking all of that happens on Monday, but I'm going up to spend some time first.)
But before all of that I have the inestimable joy of GNER engineering works and a replacement bus service between York and Darlington to look forward to.
Joy.
Another Lara Occasion....
.....that I should have mentioned is the anniversary of Laraland's birth on Wednesday. The first of many, I hope.
Most Disconcerting
There's been an emotional scene playing itself out immediately under my balcony for the last twenty minutes, which has been odd, because I couldn't work out for ages where I was hearing it coming from. Eventually I managed to get an oblique view from another window and realised that there's a woman who is sounding fairly hysterical; crying, screaming and the like, being comforted by a man who's just holding on to her (in a 'I clearly can't say anything of substance, but I can hold and support and make occasional supportive sounds' way. The reason I was getting so confused is a combination of the general incoherance of what she's saying/crying, and the fact that he isn't saying anything I can hear, which made it initially sound like she was having an almost schizophrenic episode by herself. And when I thought that was the case, I was all set to go out and see if I could do anything for her. I can't make out what exactly is the problem (which is as well, as it's none of my business), but whatever it is, it's clearly pretty damn major.
On The Effects Of Antique Browsers
Barnaby and I had a discussion the other day about the strange nature of the medium we've chosen to work in. There isn't another medium in which the creators have so little control over the way their output is received. Between the varying degrees of compliance various browsers exhibit, other odd glitches between them, different monitor resolutions and window sizes, colour settings, even the brightness and contrast on individual monitors (yes, I once had a client complain that we hadn't used their corporate colour, only to show them the same thing on another monitor, and "Oh, there it is.")
And we try to compensate, which ends up driving us mad. We tell our clients that we create compliant sites, and they should be happy to know that their website is built properly, but they're not. Their Webtrends report shows that 1.2% of their users use Netscape 4.x, and so the site has to work in that. But when you get it working in NS4, it breaks in everything else, because you've had to write wonky, non-compliant HTML.
And so madness ensues.
Why do we do it to ourselves?
Marvel's New Wave
So the third Marvel press conference of the week revealed that their new initiative, Tsunami, (the one behind the teaser image campaign I mentioned last week) is for a new line of Manga-influenced titles aimed at a wider age range than their regular lines. It's taken precisely no time flat for the online comic 'fan' community to start jumping up and down on these, in most cases before they've seen a single page of any of them. And yet strangely, there's a significant number of people who think comic fans are sad obsessives with no social skills. No idea where that comes from.
Newsarama have details here, but note that the URL is likely to change.
Who Would You Kill?
Look, it's not me asking - it's a site. Choose which character from current and classic TV shows you'd kill off and how. They're all US series, so you might not recognise them, but enough have made it to the UK to make it a fun way to while a few minutes.
A Post-Tax Form Mixed Bag
Yes, I've spent the evening doing my tax self-assessment for 2001-02 - a whole ten days before the deadline for submission. Still, last year I posted it at Paddington Station before catching the train to Heathrow on January 25th (at the start of the San Francisco trip) - if I'd forgotten to post it I'd have been guaranteed a fine. Next year I'm determined to get set up with access to the online version soon enough to use it. If I've got it right, I'm owed a stonking £64.
I also had a long conversation (probably the longest in well over a year) with Peta in Los Angeles about the new project she's going to be working on.
Anyway - some bits and pieces from around the Blogaverse:
Courtesy of Gert I read this article, which led me to this site: Londumb Live is campaigning for a return to quality from the BBC local radio station for London. I've long been on this case - back in the days of GLR, the capital had a radio station of intelligence, wit and yes, quality. The music policy alone meant it stood head and shoulders above the dreary chart-focused crap that was the only significant alternative. Back in the day, the Fi Glover and Gideon Coe breakfast show was the only way to start the day.
Blogadoon's considered view on the whole Pete Townshend/Matthew Kelly yada yada saga is well worth taking in - it'll take a few minutes, as Ian's done his typically thorough job of pulling together several sources and forming them into a very sensible whole.
Not blogged, but Charles pointed me at this site today. If you ever wanted to see what a real Dalek fan gets up to - look no further. Astonishing.
There's been a bit of an outbreak of Rollercoaster Tycoon playing at both Terreus and Not You, The Other One.
At the latter too, Sarah's a bit concerned that, it seems, she Walks Like A Lesbian.
Marvel's press conference today, by the way, was very X-focused, detailing some of the stuff they're putting out to tie in with X2, and announcing a few details on other stuff.
More On The War
Reports of the numbers which attended the Anti-War demonstrations in Washington DC and San Francisco at the weekend are subject to the usual variance between organisers, police, and media. The Metafilter thread on this subject surprised me by initially offering quite a lot of support for the "numbers were under-reported" side, before the bickering started. One thing that was offered made me laugh though. Someone quoted a site (this one in fact) which maintained that by not going to the demonstration, some 289,000,000 Americans were in fact demonstrating their support for war.
Even from my humble position as neither a statistician nor a political analyst I could see the logical problems with this argument. Fortunately someone stepped in and pointed them out: By that reasoning, some 289,000,000 Americans have demonstrated their position against every protest ever held - against easier abortion and restricted abortion, against gun control and removal of gun controls, against human rights and the death penalty. And for the most part, it was the same people in every case. Confused? They clearly are.
What's that thing about not being able to prove a negative?
Ulysses
Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are,--
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
Ulysses, Tennyson
I've been reading while insomniac, in case you hadn't guessed.
Not In My Name
I haven't spoken a great deal about the war that it seems Mr Blair is hell bent on taking us into, leaving comment to those far more eloquent than I. But a conversation I had with Lara today, together with the news of the significant deployment of troops to the Gulf, brought some things home to me about it. You may not know, but a close member of my family is in the British Armed Forces, and there's a not insignificant chance that he too might end up sent off to fight for the interests of US imperialism with the colusion of our own government.
And so, though I hate myself for doing it, I find myself working out where in the likely order of targets he falls. I actually find myself imagining the people more at risk than him, and I hate that I'm reduced to that - to mentally placing other people's family members between him and death. What the hell is this mad situation bringing us to?
To my own personal shock, I found myself nodding while watching Conservative defence spokesman Bernard Jenkin, commenting in the Commons today that while he supported the deployment, it was important that those being sent to the potential front line should feel that they went with the backing of the British people, and I can't help but feel that they don't. I also hope that they don't. I still haven't seen the 'compelling evidence' of an immediate threat, and no attempt to link Saddam Hussein with Osama Bin Laden is ever going to work when they've been on opposite sides in the past and Bin Laden wants to overthrow secular governments such as Hussein's.
There'll be a lobby of Parliament tomorrow (Tuesday), and a national demonstration against the war in London on February 15th. Think about taking part - at the very least, if you're not convinced that there's been a valid case made for war, you should be asking some questions. Details of the lobby and demonstration are at the Stop The War site.
It's All Off
Dave's trip to hospital to have the metal taken out of his leg, that is. Postponed due to an outbreak of "vomiting disease" (and isn't that the most reassuringly medical terminology you've ever heard) at the hospital. So tha saga continues. Maybe one day Dave....
Non-Violent Solutions
In the first of three press conferences on consecutive days, Marvel Comics have announced a new series called 411, an anthology which will aim to tell stories of non-violent solutions in a violent world. They've rounded up some impressive talent from within and without the industry, with the latter including playwright Tony Kushner and Get Your War On creator David Rees. It's going to carry an introduction by (brace yourself) Ghandi's grandson. I have no idea if this will be good, bad, or simply strange, but I'm going to give them some significant kudos for trying something so entirely different.
Newsarama covers the announcement (if you'll forgive the odd inevitable "Marvel are crap" comment in the discussion thread).
New Project - Congestion Charging
I'm a great believer in the concept of the congestion charge, though I've noted before that I'm not convinced by the specific implementation that the GLA are going for.
Charles has suggested a small project to present an unscientific examination of the short-term (and potentially long-term) effect. The suggested methodology is that a number of locations within the zone are photographed at specific times and days before the charge is introduced, with the resulting photos published, then equivalent photos taken after 17th February.
As noted, it's hardly scientific, but it will offer (excuse the pun) a snapshot of the effect of the charge. I'll set up a microsite off here to house the results, and probably include some surveys and feedback space for people to add their own observations.
So I'm looking for volunteers. Charles and I are meeting later this week to discuss the guidelines, but we need people who will be in suitable locations to commit to taking and submitting photos. If you're usually inside the zone (or right on its edge) during the working day, and would like to take part, drop me a line, and once we've worked out the guidelines, I'll let you know what's needed.
The zone, if you're not clear on it, is defined in this PDF or with less definition in this image.
The more people who take part, the better this will work, so if you can, or if you know someone who might, spread the word. Thanks.
Grrrr
Barnaby mentioned that there's a blood drive happening near the office tomorrow, and I thought it would be nice to go and make a donation to the well-being of my fellow human beings. I used to donate from the ages of 18 to 22, and was happy to do so. Then they introduced a blanket "No queers thanks, we don't want your sort round here" policy and that ended. To be fair, I understood the concern. HIV testing of individuals was far less accurate than it is now, and not that many people were having tests anyway, plus their own blood screening was not so thorough.
So on the offchance I could once again help out, I checked the National Blood Service website and undertook their questions. And guess what? Even now that they screen donated blood, even if you've been highly responsible, never had unsafe sex, and even so gone for years worth of negative HIV tests, if you're a man who has EVER had sex with another man ("even with a condom" as they rather coyly put it), the attitude remains, "Fuck off, faggot, we're not that desperate for blood."
More Congratulations
To Gert and Jimmy this time, as they've decided to get married.
Also, Dug turns 40 today, so that could be either congrats or commiserations, depending on perspective.
Golden Globes
Well what a ho-hum set of winners climbed the podium this year. I'm looking forward to The Hours, but not much else here.
By the way - lovely alignment problems on the Hollywood Foreign Press Association homepage.....
Note - forgot to switch this from 'draft' to 'publish' this morning.
So Not Fair
I've been awake since just before 4am, mind racing, can't settle, prowling the flat feeling completely wired. Not exactly the start to the week I was hoping for.
LOTR Slash Pics
If that's your kind of thing, get them here.
At the risk of being denounced as....something, I actually think this one is quite tasteful.
[Via L:e:g:a:c:y]
Weekly? That'll Be The Day.
Yonks after the last one appeared, if anyone's interested, there's a new Weekly up, on the topic of changes in legislation affecting gay men and lesbians.
By the way - "Weekly? That'll be the day." Geddit?
Ad Astra Per Aspera
Armageddon is on TV - I know it's ridiculous, but I love it anyway.
Which is more than can be said for Without Prejudice on Channel 4, which I was watching while writing some of my earlier postings. I think the only word I can think of to describe it is cruel. On one hand it makes for an interesting examination of the human tendency to judge for people not involved, but on the other, especially if you get into the last two contenders but don't win, it's just vicious. If you're not familiar with it, a panel of five people have to choose which of five contenders they're going to gift with £50,000, without knowing what they would do with it. This evening's final two entrants were a smug self-employed 'consultant' who 'nurtured talent', and a woman who had a data entry job in a factory. The panel decided (three to two) to give Mr Smug the money, on the basis that he would probably use it to change peoples lives and be all altruistic. It turned out that he was actually going to have three bracelets made as gifts for people, possibly open a London presence for his business and buy two kittens (not even, as one of those on the panel who was anti-him noted, treat two kittens rescued from a shelter really well). Elaine, who didn't get the money, would have given it to her parents and younger sister, who are all struggling financially.
And yes, I know I'm being entirely judgemental myself, I'm not pretending otherwise, but I'm not sitting her playing god with people's lives and broadcasting the results to the nation. Mad.
Comics Round-Up
Haven't done one of these in a while.
Marvel Comics have announced a reprinting of the classic X-Men Graphic Novel God Loves, Man Kills, just ahead of the release of X2. GLMK is, if you'll forgive me a moment of opinionated excess, one of the best superhero stories I've ever read. Originally published in 1982, the story concerns a religious campaign against the 'impurity' represented by genetic mutants, and opens with the execution of two small children in a playground. It's powerful stuff, raising questions about tolerance, bigotry, courage and loyalty, and presenting a very striking examination of the contrasting approaches to resisting oppression. I bought it in its first printing, and it became the single best response I think I ever had to the "But aren't comics just for kids?" question. It was ahead of all that "Comics have grown-up" hype that followed on from Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns, and when I was seventeen, I had to do a lot of justifying of my hobby. It also had the advantage of featuring the definitive X-Team written by their definitive writer. Sadly, my original copy was lost in the great comics catastrophe of the early 90s, so I'll certainly be picking up a new one.
Marvel have also been driving the online community mad this week with the release of a series of teaser images for what has been assumed to be a batch of new titles. Truthfully, this community can get all riled up over practically anything, but you've never seen the kind of energy expended over what is, after all, just another marketing campaign. If I'd read one more comment about how this is just typical shallow Marvel marketing hype from someone who finished off their contribution by saying that they hate Marvel and never read their stuff, I was going to go mad. I mean, why the hell bother commenting if you're not interested in the things anyway? The truth will apparently start being revealed by Marvel from Monday.
Gallery of the teaser images here.
Revealed 'real' version of one of them here.
New Buffy - No Spoilers
Soundtrack - My Vitriol; Fine Lines
So, Season Seven arrives on Sky One, a week ahead of Angel Season Four, and on the basis of Episode One, and in keeping with other opinion I've read, it looks like it's going to be a good one. It's interesting that Joss Whedon's 'back to basics' comment is absolutely valid in the sense that some of the elements echo the series' very earliest days, but every single one of the characters has grown so far along the way that it's like watching a completely new series. It's also reassuring that the situation with Willow at the end of last year hasn't been forgotten or dismissed - she's been changed by her experience, not subjected to a reset switch. And I'm very intrigued by the new Principal of the school. And by Spike's changes. And by the mystery of whatever was happening in Istanbul. And for the first time ever I'm starting to see some point to Dawn....
And of course Faith's coming back. Wah-hoo!!!!!!
We Rock
Well, found out last night that the effort and fretting that went into the presentation yesterday was not in vain. Though we came out of it not at all sure what would be the outcome (tough room), we got the gig. So I'm happy, and judging by the reactions when I told the rest of the team last night, so is everyone else....
Thanks for the good luck messages.
Busy Busy Busy
We've got a big presentation this afternoon - mucho pressure to get things right - there's a substantial job riding on it. I'll let you know how it goes, but in the meantime: Busy busy busy.
You See....
......this indicates precisely the reason why I need finally to get onto a redesign here that includes a 'recently commented on' space like the one Chris has. Otherwise I'd be the only one who ever knows how much effort had gone into some of these long-after-the-fact comments.
Lord Alive
So Matthew Kelly looks like being the latest high-profile personality to be had up for alleged child abuse. It's odd - certain others who have been caught out surprise me not at all, but this is a real shock.
I worked with him once, and met him a couple of other times, and liked him enormously. He's a charming, witty man, with the least affected and self-involved manner of any 'TV Star' I've ever met or worked with.
Just Williams
Long-term readers will know of my ambivalent views of the late Kenneth Williams. When I was younger I loved watching his performances, and later, in his raconteur days I'd have gone a long way to have seen him in action. I used to admire him in many ways, in fact.
Then, years after his death I read his diaries, and discovered a man I could not bring myself to like any longer. His attitutudes towards people of other races, towards those of his own sexuality, and his overweening arrogance, as presented in his own words, create a picture that I for one find intolerable. The first time I read them, in fact, I had to give up before the end when I hit one of his comments about AIDS sufferers.
And yet....I'm drawn back to the Diaries like an old friend. When I find myself looking for a break from whatever else I'm reading, I reach for the space on the shelf where they live and dip into them at random, always finding something interesting or entertaining for a while before I hit something that makes me put them down. It's a strange fascination, and one that I don't at all understand. Horrified revulsion might be it, I suppose
Couple Of Quickies
So the government has been running this consultation on the introduction of compulsory ID cards since July last year (what do you mean, you haven't been consulted? Everyone knew about it - it's been very widely-publicised, don't you know?) and has managed to gather 1,500 responses. In the meantime, an alternative sounding by Privacy International and Stand.org, launched last week, has gathered 2,500 mostly negative responses. What in heaven's name has the government been consulting if it's only managed to get 1,500 responses in over six months, the entrails of a sheep? Summaries of alternative positions to the government's are on the Stand and PI sites, by the way.
Elsewhere, redefining 'arrogant tosser' for a new generation, Brian Sewell thinks that art shouldn't be taken to the uncultured masses in the North, but should be kept entirely as the domain of the cultured intelligensia here in London. By which he means people like himself, presumably. Even by his own usual standards of self-indulgent crap, this one stands out.
They Call It A Custard Apple
Meant to mention this last night. I did my food shopping at Waitrose at the weekend, and was intrigued by an item in the fruit and veg section called a 'Custard Apple'. "Chill, cut into halves, and scoop out the flesh with a spoon" was the essence of the instructional label. This seems to represent a variation on a theme.
So I thought "I'll have that after dinner this evening." And I did. And perhaps I just got a not-so-good one, but it was horrible. Fibrous, chewy, all-but-flavourless and generally about as far from the expected yummy, creamy, custard-like experience I was expecting as eating Shredded Wheat. That, my friends, was a major disappointment.
Good Morning?
So here I am, dutifully having turned up at the office nice and early, because at some point (I think it was the point before the crack-of-dawn start was mentioned), we agreed, out of the goodness of our hearts, to take part in a business education (yes, that again) series, and the film crew are coming in this morning.
O but it's a glamorous life we lead.
(Stifles yawn, lifts head from desk, wishes he didn't look quite so much like someone who's only had three hours sleep in the last two days.)
Giving Something Back
In the interests of good corporate citizenship (and indeed good citizenship), I'm thinking of giving some time to work with a charity that provides business education for students. The idea is that people with real practical experience of running a business should lead seminars designed to inform students about the issues faced in business.
It's the kind of thing that taps into a range of my experiences and interests, and I've been saying for ages that I want to find something that I can usefully turn my time to. I think this might well be the perfect match.
Post-Weekend
Apologies for the silence round here the last couple of days. Apart from some domestic stuff (finishing floor-laying, etc), I really haven't had a lot to write about. I've also been doing a great deal of worrying and fretting about life, the universe and everything, and while I'd love to share; 1) I don't consider it my job to depress the hell out of my loyal readers, and 2) there are others involved in some of it and it wouldn't be appropriate to discuss it.
I shall, needless to say, endeavour to be sparkling and upbeat in the days to come.
Toys And Stuff
Just thought I'd round up a few things I've had pointed out to me:
1) The 'Luxury Game Boy'. Niiiiiiice. [Via L:e:g:a:c:y]
2) The new PowerBooks. Very niiiiiiice.
3) And staying with Apple - a new browser, because let's face it, you can never have too many of those to deal with. (Supply your own irony tags.)
Look - it's like a real weblog again.
Normal Service
Or something approaching it, anyway.
I'm back. I'll be going away again, though hopefully with a little more notice next time. Family matters are at least stable, if still ongoing. Thanks for the supportive comments and emails.
So - snow! The first proper falls I can remember in London for a good few years. I know we usually have a few flurries, but this is like proper snow; snowballing, building a snowperson snow. Bit of a shock to the system.
I'm not long back, and for various reasons haven't had a lot of sleep over the last few days, so I'm going to retire early this evening and then start to catch up properly tomorrow. Good to be home though.
Heavy
It's a strange thing - how something relatively minor can suddenly make you question so many things. An accident in my family has suddenly made me more aware of some responsibilities that I've tended to avoid. I've tended, always, to be a person who doesn't worry about the future; to cross that bridge when I come to it, and not get worked up about things that might happen one day. Which is a perfectly valid way of living of course, if there isn't any reason to live otherwise.
But when you're in a situation where you might need to provide for someone else if they can't provide for themselves, or have to deal with being 'the responsible one' when you've tended towards the irresponsible for thirty years, things can suddenly come very sharply into perspective. The need to start changing some fairly well-established habits (or call it a lifestyle, which is what it is, after all) becomes suddenly urgent, and the prospect of the impact of those changes seems entirely imminent.
It's rather sobering.
The Best-Laid Plans
Well, floor-laying on Saturday took much longer than planned, meaning I didn't get to the cinema, and due to a sudden family crisis, I'm now not even in the city I expected to be in.
Normal service, etc......
Nation-Building
Via Metafilter, I came across Nation States, which allows you to set up a nation and then steer its development by means of the way you address various issues that are presented to you each day. It could be fun, it could be slightly slow-moving, only time will tell. Either way it's a pretty impressive way to promote a book, which is what it's primarily there for.
UFO Revisited
Yonks ago, I mentioned that Gerry Anderson's first live-action series UFO had been released on DVD. Today's update on that is that Amazon are now selling each of the two box sets for only £19.99 each, down from their RRP of £49.99. So I suspect the time has finally come to purchase.
The Flying Scotsman Restoration
Don't know if you know, but the Flying Scotsman, probably Britain's most famous passenger train, was restored in the late 1990s and is now travelling all over the world to be used in exhibitions and the like, as well as actually carrying passengers on special trips. I'm a long way from being a train-spotter, but even I find that interesting. More interesting still though is the gorgeous book of photographs that is now available which chronicles the restoration - large-sized, with eighty photos, it's a bit pricey at £150, but probably still worth checking out.
Firefly
Catching the tail end of Independence Day on TV, and spotting Adam Baldwin ('not one of the Baldwin brothers'), got me to thinking about Joss Whedon's new series, Firefly. (Baldwin is one of the stars - he's on the left of this picture, for reference, as there isn't a picture on his IMDB bio.) Everyone I know who's seen it seems to think it's excellent. Hercules, leading voice on the Ain't It Cool News - Coaxial section calls it "the best new show of 2002". Yet it's not getting audiences, and Fox have all-but cancelled it after only 15 episodes. Sky One have apparently bought it for screening over here, but it seems a crying shame that such an apparently quality production should not be better supported. There's a campaign to keep it alive which is now focusing on having the show picked up by another network.
Review Of The Year
Victoria Wood, in discussing how her likely biography would probably be a slim volume, due to the lack of glamour or event, summarised it as "Was born, told a few jokes, knackered a few bras in the tumble drier, died."
I had thought about summarising 2002 and my experience of it specifically at the end of 2002, but I opted for the quiz instead. Having read Anne's summary, I'm glad I didn't, as I doubt I could have said much as meaningful or well thought through: "More than anything else, I've ended the year no longer afraid. Confused and uncertain at times maybe, but not afraid of trying for the risk of failing."
I could probably get a Mayfly project out of the profundity I could muster up just at the minute.
By the way, I don't plug Anne's site enough - she's well worth stopping by and getting to know.
2003
Happy New Year, one and all.
I saw in the New Year over in Greenwich, where there were some spectacular fireworks, and we had a very protracted dinner that started in 2002 and ended in 2003. Very pleasant, and much amusement was had when Radio Four went over to hear the sound of Big Ben chiming midnight, only to broadcast a minute and a half of silence, as something had gone wrong.... *chuckle*.
'Nother foul day outside - I think I'll stay in....
