After The Beep

2006-12-10T17:25:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Sunday Haiku

I am wondering
If I should continue with
This blog or not. Hmmm.

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2006-11-20T20:02:00.000Z

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Quizzage

As I'm sure I've said before at some point, no, this is nothing to do with Harry Potter. Though I have seen the latest pictures from The Order Of The Phoenix - they look spiffy.

You scored as Postmodernist. Postmodernism is the belief in complete open interpretation. You see the universe as a collection of information with varying ways of putting it together. There is no absolute truth for you; even the most hardened facts are open to interpretation. Meaning relies on context and even the language you use to describe things should be subject to analysis.

Existentialist

63%

Cultural Creative

63%

Postmodernist

63%

Materialist

56%

Idealist

50%

Modernist

44%

Romanticist

38%

Fundamentalist

38%

What is Your World View?
created with QuizFarm

Mout

Ironic, tremendous internal wealth, know how to rapidly connect with others, looks for paternal authority.
Colors: male: brown, female: red carmine
Compatible Signs: Amon-Ra, Thoth
Dates: Jan 22 - Jan 31, Sep 8 - Sep 22
Role: A creator goddess, she was the mother from which the cosmos emerged.
Appearance: A woman with the wings of a vulture, holding an ankh, wearing the united crown of Upper and Lower Egypt and also a dress of bright red/blue, with the feather of Ma?t at her feet
Sacred Animal: vulture
What is Your Egyptian Zodiac Sign?
Designed by CyberWarlock of Warlock's Quizzles and Quandaries

"The important thing is not to stop questioning." - Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

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2006-11-17T23:55:00.000Z

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Friday Haiku

Car is still working.
Amazing, eh? Still need a
New one next year, though.

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2006-11-11T23:55:00.000Z

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Friday Haiku

Got my car back now.
I'm surprised it's still working.
It's a jinxy bitch....

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2006-11-04T10:00:00.000Z

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Saturday Haiku

Almost forgot this
Again, like I did last week.
Not much to say, though.

I may get my car
Back on Monday. It's about
Time. Expensive. Ouch.

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2006-10-24T22:38:00.000+01:00

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Torchwood

Needless to say, I found this rather spiffing, and I think the level of spiff will rise yet higher. Interesting ideas, some well done interlocking with Doctor Who, and a mystery or two to wonder at. Fun, dirrrrrty, and not without nastiness.

Get watching, or downloading, or whatever. Just do it.

GWEN: I'm getting tired of following you.
JACK: No you're not - and you never will.
- Torchwood, Everything Changes (1.01)

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2006-10-20T12:37:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

A day off from work
To get a hire car and to
Lounge around, mmmmm nice.

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2006-10-17T23:31:00.000+01:00

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Black Cat = Bad Luck?

Had just left work. Car shudders and stops. Does not restart.

Breakdown guy tries it and says "it's the timing belt."

Bugger. When that goes, it's expensive and tricky to replace, and as the engine shakes to a halt after it breaks important parts can get damaged. Like the valves and stuff.

So, more expense and inconvenience. Bah.

P.S. My car is a black Ford Puma, hence 'black cat'. I call my car "that jinxy bitch" now. And not affectionately, neither.

P.P.S. The timing belt was supposed to have been replaced a while back, but both me and the mechanic who said he'd do it forgot. Double bugger.

"It is bad luck to be superstitious." - Andrew W. Mathis

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2006-10-14T16:00:00.000+01:00

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Weekend Haiku

Lots more sleeping. Then
I lounge around, not getting
Up to much. Oh yeeeaaah.

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2006-10-11T20:22:00.000+01:00

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...But Someone Got There First

I was trying to think up something funny to say about this whole Nuke/North Korea "thing", but a very funny webcomic got there first.

P.S. You've seen the footage of the North Korean TV news reporter woman gleefully announcing their success, right? Have you noticed how the place in the picture behind her looks exactly like the base of operations of the evil Bond villain, Doctor No?

"Diplomacy without arms is like music without instruments." - Frederick the Great (1712 - 1786)

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2006-10-07T17:18:00.000+01:00

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Serenity Character Quiz

You scored as Hoban 'Wash' Washburne. The Pilot. You are a leaf on the wind, see how you soar. You have a good job, and a stunning wife who loves you (and can kill people). Life is good, which is why you can't help smiling. Now if you can just get people to actually listen to your opinion things would be perfect.

Hoban 'Wash' Washburne

69%

Kaylee (Kaywinnet Lee) Frye

63%

Zoe Alleyne Washburne

63%

River Tam

63%

Jayne Cobb

63%

Shepherd Derrial Book

56%

Capt. Mal Reynolds

50%

The Operative

50%

Simon Tam

50%

Inara Serra

44%

Which Serenity character are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

"I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar." - Hoban 'Wash' Washburne

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2006-10-06T23:55:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Just sneaked this one in:
Only, not much to report.
Must talk some more, yes?

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2006-10-01T00:15:00.000+01:00

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Who Is The Longest Running?

Back when it was announced that the TV sci-fi series Stargate SG-1 was officially the longest running TV sci-fi show, I immediately had questions. Actually. I only had one:

What about Doctor Who?

It was on for many years. SG-1 is talking about it's ten years while I'm thinking Doctor Who was on for more than twenty before it was (finally and properly) ended in 1989. How did SG-1 win the title?

It seems it's all down to how you work it out, and the operative word is "consecutive". Because SG-1's run is unbroken but shorter, while Who's run is longer but broken (by the 16 year gap between the old series and the new, with the Eighth Doctor TV movie in the middle somewhere), SG-1 wins the "longest (consecutive)" prize while Doctor Who gets 'merely' the longest in terms of years and number of episodes (723 eps compared to SG-1's 203).

Thing is, did the calculation for Doctor Who's longest run (1963 - 1989) include the multi-year breaks in the middle and at the end of the Colin Baker Era? If so, why not include the (admittedly much) longer breaks following the end of the McCoy Era?

Okay, so that won't happen, but I still think it's crap that Doctor Who hasn't got both records. Maybe that's just me. I doubt it, though - I'm sure there are many others who think the same way.

...Another things that's crap about Doctor Who is the insistence on having so many Earth-based episodes. We're not seeing enough "proper" space episodes, it's all about bloody Earth and Earth people all the damn time. And it's going to be even worse in the nuSeason3 - budget reasons are restricting them to even more episodes based on Earth, as it's "too expensive" to create an alien world-type setting plus sets. And the episodes that are set on alien worlds apparently get the worst reviews, as "the audience" finds it stupid that a forest on Earth should stand in for the planet Zagfon.

Too many cretins are watching, it seems. I'm getting bored of the TARD, I want the full TARDIS back! Give me more adventures In Space, dammit!!

"Five million Cybermen, easy. One Doctor? NOW you're scared!" - Rose Tyler, Doomsday

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2006-09-29T23:41:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

It was a long, dull
Week of work. I'll talk about
Doctor Who next post.

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2006-09-28T20:06:00.000+01:00

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Make Your Own Kind Of Music

Like many people, I first heard this song in the opening minutes of the first episode of season two of Lost. It was amusing, then, to download it and listen to it, and then to put it on one of the compilation CDs in my car.

Listening to it since, I've realised the lyrics make for a good life philosophy, although I'm highly unlikely to follow it my own self.

So....

"Make your own kind of music,
Sing your own special song,
Make your own kind of music,
Even if nobody else sings along." - Cass Elliot

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2006-09-23T13:13:00.000+01:00

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One Web Day

So, yesterday was One Web Day, a day for people to "reflect on how the web had changed their lives".

The answer for me at least is obviously "immensely". Certainly I am 'addicted' to the sites I like to go and read and/or participate on (RPG.net, StarWarsEpics.com, FireflyFans.net and more besides) and there are many people who only know me by my various online sobriquets. Some of those I have managed to meet up with in recent years, and have become more involved with some than others. Some I will never probably meet, but a few I would never have expected to meet (because they live so far away) I have in fact met, usually at conventions.

I have more of a 'life' online than off, to be honest.

I was thinking on this before I found out about One Web Day, but perhaps I should use this blog more. I don't really have the sort of friends I discuss my life stuff with, so maybe I could put it here instead.

Except for some things that will never be mentioned, of course. I'd have to do something odd like start another blog elsewhere under a totally different name to do that. Not that I've ever done that, of course...

The majority of the folks that know me, under my real or most-used identity, don't know about this blog. As far as I know, anyway. I'll certainly keep it that way as long as I can.

Anyways, no haiku last week because I was at another Firefly/Serenity convention. One particular aspect of the weekend put a very negative spin on it for quite a while, but thankfully I'm past that now and in the happy place again. Except for one thing: I did not get a photo with Jewel Staite this time, and with all the big hugs she was giving out (to judge from the pictures I've seen) I really missed out. You lucky bastards!!

And no haiku this week because I got home too late and I've written this instead.

CAR NEWS: my headlights were not properly aligned when I got my car back, and the mechanic who subsequently fixed it (and the wonky washers) said it should never have been let out on the road like that. Fucking typical.

The building work at home continues slowly. The bathroom is now moved and just needs tiling, lighting and the new shower fitted, while the now ex-bathroom needs finishing off. There more, but it's dull.

I still have much less in my savings than some think I do. This is really not good, and it's not likely to change soon, which could cause problems...

"Dream the life" - autograph, Gigi Edgley

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2006-09-11T20:01:00.000+01:00

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Personality Report

I'd debate the accuracy of some of this, but not all of it...

My Personality


Neuroticism	83
Extraversion	8
Openness To Experience	37
Agreeableness	23
Conscientiousness	18

Test Yourself Compare Yourself View Full Report

MySpace Surveys, MySpace Codes and MySpace Layouts by Pulseware Survey Software

"Personality goes a long way." - Jules, Pulp Fiction

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2006-09-11T19:48:00.000+01:00

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Bad Name

Does anyone else think 'Freedom Tower' is a really stupid name? It's very American, I think, because it memoralises the wrong thing. It basically says "we still think we're the greatest!" and says nothing about why they had to build it.

'Memorial Tower' would have been a much better name, I think.

Just a thought I had to share.

"Those who enjoy such freedoms as we enjoy, forget in time that men died to earn them." - Franklin Roosevelt

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2006-09-09T00:20:00.000+01:00

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(Almost) Friday Haiku

The people behind
The project I am on at
Work have no damn clue.

They keep changing things
But don't know how complex the
Changes are to do.

This is annoying,
And stressful. I hate getting
Their fucking e-mails.

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2006-09-06T23:49:00.000+01:00

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Back In Black

I finally got my car back today, after almost six weeks. Finally, all the parts they needed arrived and got installed. And amazingly, unlike last time, it had fuel in it too.

But then, I go to Enterprise to give the hire car back and the place is shut with no one there and no message left half an hour before they shut. Turns out they'd gone somewhere and couldn't (or wouldn't) make it back, so I had to leave the key with the car selling people who's site the Enterprise place is situated on.

Bloody useless all round, really. And my car feels really odd to drive now.

"Never invest you money in anything that eats or needs repairing." - Billy Rose

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2006-09-03T15:04:00.000+01:00

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Comments

I've added comment moderation and the word validation thingy. I got tired of dozens of random comment spam messages being posted by total fucking arseholes on blog posts more than two years old.

Wankers.

"To remark idly is the blind man's folly." - Hans Ingraham

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2006-09-02T13:35:00.000+01:00

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Friday-ish Haiku

More car bits are on
Order. So might be done on
Monday. But we'll see.

Saw someone I've not
Seen for many years. He is
Totally unchanged.

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2006-08-25T23:58:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Still not got my car
Back. The bonnet arrived, now
Needs air con unit.

Time is money; their
Time, my money. And I bet
They ain't hurrying.

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2006-08-19T13:58:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Car still at garage.
They say they can't find a new
Bonnet. Sounds like crap.

Might buy a lower
Insurance group car so my
Premium lowers.

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2006-08-14T23:04:00.000+01:00

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The Cards Say...

You scored as XV: The Devil. Despite its fearsome appearance, The Devil is a card of weakness. It is one of the few cards in the Tarot deck that almost always has negative connotations when it occurs in a reading. When the Devil appears in a Tarot spread it can represent lack of achievement through negative thoughts. It suggests character flaws such as greed, bitterness and authoritarianism. All these things can ultimately destroy a person. The rest of the Tarot spread will determine whether or not the querent will overcome their problems or continue blindly on.

XV: The Devil

63%

I - Magician

63%

0 - The Fool

56%

VIII - Strength

44%

II - The High Priestess

44%

XIII: Death

44%

XVI: The Tower

44%

XIX: The Sun

38%

IV - The Emperor

38%

XI: Justice

38%

X - Wheel of Fortune

31%

VI: The Lovers

31%

III - The Empress

31%

Which Major Arcana Tarot Card Are You?
created with QuizFarm.com

"Calamities are of two kinds: misfortunes to ourselves, and good fortune to others." - Ambrose Bierce (1842 - 1914), The Devil's Dictionary

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2006-08-11T23:57:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Some twat posted some
Major comment spam, sixteen
In all. Sad wanker.

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2006-08-09T22:50:00.000+01:00

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Car Blah

So I got word (or rather I had to phone them to find out). The garage ordered the parts, so in other words they're fixing my car, not junking it. It "should be done next week some time", apparently.

So, when I went to extend the temporary insurance cover on my hire car (which I've had to change to another one as the washers don't work) they tell me I should have been charged for it before. So this time I have, about £120 which doubles the cost of the hire for the next couple of weeks. I am not impressed.

Then my renewal notice comes in the post. It's more than doubled to £906. I am not impressed.

I try online quotes from two other insurance companies. One seems to reject me completely; the other gives me a quote of £1766.

I am not fucking impressed.

"The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it." - Dudley Moore (1935 - 2002)

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2006-08-04T17:04:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Had a good week off.
Most of it involved sleeping
And watching Star Wars.

My car is being
Fixed, not trashed. Engineer had
A look on Wednesday.

Parts will arrive next
Week. The garage is taking
It's time again. Gits.

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2006-07-30T15:36:00.000+01:00

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Quizzness

You're Totally Sarcastic

You sarcastic? Never! You're as sweet as a baby bunny.

Seriously, though, you have a sharp tongue - and you aren't afraid to use it.

And if people are too wimpy to deal with your attitude, then too bad. So sad.

How Sarcastic Are You?

You Passed 8th Grade Science

Congratulations, you got 8/8 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?

"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." - Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

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2006-07-29T13:05:00.000+01:00

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Friday-ish Haiku

Vehicular bad
Luck redux. Hit the back of
A Mondeo. Bah.

Car in shop, and hire
Car. Did not add courtesy
Car to insurance.

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2006-07-26T21:34:00.000+01:00

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"What Is Your Life Score?"

Crappy, mostly, by the looks of it.


Your Love rating: Poor
Your Friends and Family rating: Good
Your Finance rating: Good
Your School / Career rating: Poor
Your Health rating: Average
'What is your life score?' at QuizGalaxy.com

"Life. Don't talk to me about life." - Marvin The Paranoid Android

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2006-07-21T23:57:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Damn it's hot. Got air
Con at work though. As long as
The fuses don't blow!

At home it's so cool
Downstairs it's like we have air
Con. Hot upstairs, though.

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2006-07-14T23:58:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

The only thing to
Report today is that I'm
Getting new glasses.

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2006-07-08T23:58:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Sometimes I am too
Helpful for my own good. It's
Just I can't not help.

I got this nasal
Spray for hayfever. It's like
I've never had it!

Squawkbox is gone for
Good. Stupid crappy site kept
dying. I'm well rid.

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2006-06-30T23:53:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

To entertain you:
The Armageddon Flowchart.
Look out for the nuns.

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2006-06-24T23:59:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Hayfever is still
No fun. At least the work air
Con stops it. Mostly.

I now play in a
Local pub boules league. Almost
Got the hang of it.

This one really was
Done on a Friday. I know;
Amazing, ain't it?

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2006-06-23T23:55:00.000+01:00

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My Thinking Style

Your Dominant Thinking Style:

Experimenting
You're all about looking at the facts, and you could always use more of them.

You see life as your lab - and you're always trying out new things, people, and ideas.

The master of mix and match, you're always coming up with unique combinations.

You are good at getting a group to reach consensus.

Your Secondary Thinking Style:

Exploring

You thrive on the unknown and unpredictable. Novelty is your middle name.

You are a challenger. You tend to challenge common assumptions and beliefs.

An expert inventor and problem solver, you approach everything from new angles.

You show people how to question their models of the world.

What's Your Thinking Style?

"If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - Don Marquis (1878 - 1937)

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2006-06-17T11:00:00.000+01:00

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A Note to Google Users on Net Neutrality

Go here, read, sign the petition.

If you're not in the US, it doesn't like you. So do what I did: cheat. Say your city is Washington and use one of the zip codes on this page.

It's not a US problem, it's a world problem. Let them know.

"It shouldn't be too much of a surprise that the Internet has evolved into a force strong enough to reflect the greatest hopes and fears of those who use it. After all, it was designed to withstand nuclear war, not just the puny huffs and puffs of politicians and religious fanatics." - Denise Caruso, (digital commerce columnist, New York Times)

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2006-06-17T10:25:00.000+01:00

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Quizzle My Shizzle.... Or Some Such Thing

Your World View

You claim to be a realist or even a cynic.
In realty, you are more emotional, romantic, and truthful.
You tend to life in a fantasy world and avoid reality.

If you are not living a happy life, the cause is within yourself.
You are a rebel with a trace of spoiled child about you.
You value truth above morality, but you are reasonably tolerant of those who disagree with you.

What Is Your World View?

Your Luck Quotient: 40%

You have a low luck quotient.
You've had a few lucky experiences, but overall, you feel like a pretty unlucky person.
Good luck can come your way, but you have to be more trusting in the world.
Have some new experiences. Meet some new people. You never know where luck can be lurking!

How Lucky Are You?

"We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like?" - Jean Cocteau (1889 - 1963)

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2006-06-16T23:33:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Hayfever is not
Fun, especially when it's
Only at weekends.

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2006-06-09T23:59:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Hayfever season
Has started for me as of
Today. Oh what joy.

But the weather sure
Is nice right now, isn't it?
Too hot inside though.

Sometimes the Friday
Haiku is really done on
The next Saturday.

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2006-06-02T23:54:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Car service and an
MOT. Dentist visit
With two fillings. Ugh.

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2006-05-30T20:26:00.000+01:00

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Top 10 Signs of the Impending U.S. Police State

I just had to share this with y'all.

If it should vanish for some reason, I've saved it away to repost.

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790), Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759

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2006-05-19T23:55:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

I hate it when I
Can offer no help, nothing
To make it better.

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2006-05-16T21:09:00.000+01:00

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The Grand "Where You Will Go After You Die" Quiz

After you die...
the Beetlejuice Waiting Room

After death, you will end up in an overcrowded waiting room sitting beside Beetlejuice. You've been given the number 736 076 827 378 919 023, but they are currently serving number 3.
Good Luck.

Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

"He hoped and prayed that there wasn't an afterlife. Then he realized there was a contradiction involved here and merely hoped that there wasn't an afterlife." - Douglas Adams (1952 - 2001)

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2006-05-15T23:00:00.000+01:00

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Prison Break

If you're not watching this TV series, why the hell not? It's damn cunning, and tense, and all that.

Just saw a damn good ep and had to speak out, is all. So get watching, inmate.

Inmate: "Welcome to Prisneyland, Fish."

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2006-05-12T23:55:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

One of my fillings
Fell out last night. Now there's a
Big hole in one tooth!

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2006-04-28T23:59:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Stuff and things..... Got a
Parking ticket, only one
For two months. Not bad.

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2006-04-21T23:11:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

All the painting done.
Bookcase and shelves and drawers. Just
Need new bed and desk.

Short week good. Less work,
More rest. Between constructing
Furniture, at least.

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2006-04-15T01:36:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku, Only Later

Decorating, lots
Of decorating. Much too
Busy for more now.

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2006-04-07T23:42:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

Not much to report.
Nothing at work to speak of.
Am painting bedroom.

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2006-04-03T22:28:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

I Must Be Nuts!!

Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

"Every oak tree started out as a couple of nuts who decided to stand their ground." - Unknown

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2006-03-31T11:11:00.000+01:00

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Friday Haiku

I got my car back.
They had cleaned it inside as
Well as out, too. But....

...They left me with an
Almost empty fuel tank so
My car died on me.

Stuttered, stalled, lost foot
Brakes and power steering. Could
Have crashed, again. Grrr.

Had to fetch petrol
In a can from a nearby
Petrol station. Grrr.

They could at least have
Warned me I needed to fill
Up, the useless gits.

My advice: never
Use the Matlock Ford Repair
Centre. They are crap.

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2006-03-29T22:55:00.000+01:00

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Qizzich

You Should Be a Film Writer

You don't just create compelling stories, you see them as clearly as a movie in your mind.
You have a knack for details and dialogue. You can really make a character come to life.
Chances are, you enjoy creating all types of stories. The joy is in the storytelling.
And nothing would please you more than millions of people seeing your story on the big screen!

What Type of Writer Should You Be?

"The only reason for being a professional writer is that you can't help it." - Leo Rosten (1908 - )

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2006-03-26T20:25:00.000+01:00

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Faces From The Past

On Saturday I passed someone in town that I had last seen over a decade ago. I knew her instantly, especially since I used to fancy the pants off her. She recognised me too.

It wasn't the sudden reblooming of something that had never existed that I had wished might happen in the past. But then a) it was not ideal conditions and b) we are not living in some amazing fantasy movie-land.

Heh.

"I tend to live in the past because most of my life is there." - Herb Caen

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2006-03-24T23:58:00.000Z

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Friday Haiku

Still no damn car. More
Wrong with it. Means another
Engineer visit.

Means more parts ordered.
Means more car hire fees. Means less
Paycheck for myself.

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2006-03-23T23:00:00.000Z

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Dah Bien-Hwa

That's Mandarin for 'big change', by the way. The benefits of a Firefly education.

So, I've activated Blogger comments for all my posts, all the way back to the beginning. I've also, get this, gone and transcribed all the Squawkbox comments over to the Blogger comments. This is because the Squawkbox ones are dodgy at best, and the site keeps dropping off the radar. And it'll be closed down at the end of the year. So I thought it best to dump the stupid thing now.

A side effect of this is that I've gotten a look at a whole lot of my past posts. There's all kinds of stuff back there on the old shelves. Quite a few quizzes. Some maudlin drivel. Highly appropriate song lyrics. Poetry and haiku and songs, oh my. Oddly, quite a bit of commentary on then-current affairs and such. I don't really do that anymore; maybe I should again?

It's been kinda fun, actually.

Anyways, enjoy the new comments thingy. The old one will linger around for a bit till I'm sure everything has been swapped over.

"History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon." - Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 - 1821)

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2006-03-17T20:45:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Still my car is in
The garage. And the rental
Is costing me loads.

Apparently, a
Wait of two weeks is normal
For this garage. Bah.

I'll have a new desk
At home soon. Custom made. Can
Buy furniture now!

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2006-03-15T21:15:00.000Z

beeeeep!

A Casey And Andy Quiz!

You're Casey, a full-blown mad scientist. You enjoy duking it out with your best enemy and worst friend (and housemate) Andy, be it role playing or sawblade Tron. You have a propensity for being assaulted by unfriendly aliens and burning down the house by doing things that seem completely harmless. Sometimes, you slip under a black mask and become Dr. X, whose goal it is to conquer the world. For some strange reason, you seem to be completely unable to die.
Test-o-mat! Which character from Casey & Andy are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

You all should go and read their adventures in the webcomic. It's fun!

"MWUAHA MWUAHA MWUAHAHAHAHAAAA!" - a random Mad Scientist

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2006-03-10T22:00:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Still not got my car
Back from the garage. Rental
Costs me quite a bit.

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2006-03-03T23:05:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Commentary

Yes, that damn Squawkbox site has pissed me off at last. If it comes back, fine. In the meantime, use the BlogSpot comments if you please.

"Comments are free but facts are sacred." - Charles Prestwich Scott

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2006-03-03T22:50:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Skidded on ice. Broke
A wheel on my car. We'll see
If it's bad or not.

Could just mean the wheel
Needs replacing. Could be some
Wheel stuff got broken.

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2006-02-24T23:47:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Got a bit tetchy
With work and parking this week.
Pissed me off big time.

Damn cold now. It snowed.
Slippery roads on the way
To work this morning.

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2006-02-11T16:00:00.000Z

beeeeep!

REPORT: The New Job

About time I did this.

So, I now work for (apparently) the biggest pension administration company in the UK. The software they use to do their job was written entirely in-house in Progress, hence the need for Progress programmers like myself.

It's quite strange to be in a room full of fifty-odd people all of whom are Progress programmers. I've never seen so many of them in one place before. There's even two women! gasp!

It's still all strange and new to me, as is the fact that I have to wear a shirt and tie, which is uncomfortable for me as I have gotten out of practice, as it were. I've not had to wear a shirt and tie regularly since I was in school. It's annoys me, though, when I see all the men in shirts and ties and all the women in, basically, casual and comfortable clothing of their own choosing. It's hardly fair, is it? It's not exactly news, either.

I haven't quite got to grips with the system, either, which is fine as they said it would take a month or so until I got the hang of it.

It's an hour's drive between home and the part of Sheffield the offices are in, and most of the journey is the last five miles or so to or from the building; traffic is always stacked at rush hour. And where I have to park (there's a seven year waiting list for spaces in the car park under the building) I have to go and move it at lunch because you can only park there for four hours before having to move.

There's no internet access (for me at least) and little else to do when I'm not specifically working (coding and such) so at lunch, while I'm waiting for programs to run or when I feel like I need a few minutes rest to relax my brain there is nothing to do but stare at the ceiling or play Solitaire on my PC.

I'll say more about it if anything changes.

"If you can do a half-assed job of anything, you're a one-eyed man in a kingdom of the blind." - Kurt Vonnegut Jr.

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2006-02-10T23:59:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Another week gone.
Nothing new has happened. Still
Not quite settled in.

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2006-02-07T22:45:00.000Z

beeeeep!

If Your Life Was a Movie, What Genre Would It Be?

The Movie Of Your Life Is A Cult Classic

Quirky, offbeat, and even a little campy - your life appeals to a select few.

But if someone's obsessed with you, look out! Your fans are downright freaky.

Your best movie matches: Office Space, Showgirls, The Big Lebowski

If Your Life Was a Movie, What Genre Would It Be?

Joel: That's the movies, Ed. Try reality.
Ed: No thanks.
- Ellen Herman, Northern Exposure, Only You, 1991

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2006-01-27T23:59:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

The end of a week
With more, harder work to do.
Glad for the weekend.

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2006-01-20T23:59:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

First week at work done.
Lots of stuff to learn, and lots
Of people to meet.

Done a few simple
Jobs. 'Cut my teeth' as they say.
More next week I bet.

Not getting much done
In the evenings anymore.
Just not enough time.

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2006-01-17T22:30:00.000Z

beeeeep!

FTL Not BS?

Combine four extra dimensions, the linking of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics, the unification of the four forces in physics, and a really big magnetic field, and what you get? Something not unlike anti-gravity... and faster than light travel. All courtesy of the work of German physicist Burkhard Heim.

Read the article here.

Shiny.

Oh, and for more detail on the theory, try wading through this lot.

"Ye cannae change the laws of physics!" - Mr Scott, Star Trek

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2006-01-16T20:48:00.000Z

beeeeep!

First Day

It went okay. Didn't have to do much; spent most of the day taking a look around their intranet and reading up about the company and what they do. The rest of it was spent staring at some programs, trying to work out just how they hang together and function.

I ate an 'Italian B.M.T.' at Subways for lunch; a foot-long parmesan and oregano roll, with ham, Genoa salami, pepperoni and honey mustard sauce. Heavenly.

Only two problems. The only sounds are the clicking of computers and soft conversation, i.e. no music or radio or anything. And, worse... no internet access. Now, that's not a problem if I'm busy all the time, which I may well be. But half the country could sink into the sea and we'd not know, because we don't get to hear or read any up-to-date news. Ah well.

I have a half-day induction course on Friday, and four more next week. They also say I won't be up to speed on how everything works and such until I've been there at least a month. So it should be fairly plain sailing for the moment.

Hopefully.

"Nothing is easy to the unwilling." - Nikki Giovanni

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2006-01-13T14:42:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

End of relaxment
Week. Work starts on Monday. I'd
Best get ready then.

I can't shop for shoes.
There are none I like. And it's
Dull searching the shops.

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2006-01-06T12:37:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

I've got a job, then.
I get to lounge for a week
First, though. Jolly good.

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2006-01-05T12:37:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Did I Forget Something?

Oh yes, I did.

I got that job, and with a very nice salary too. Now I just have to find some other things about the job to be positive about.

"I was going to buy a copy of The Power of Positive Thinking, and then I thought: What the hell good would that do?" - Ronnie Shakes

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2006-01-03T23:23:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Work, Work, Work?

I should find out tomorrow morning about the job, and how much I'm getting paid too, if I have got it.

I'm trying to work up my enthusiasm. Sure, getting a new job this quick makes it easier - I don't have to go looking for more or do any more interviews - but it's change, and effort, and a new place and new people, and no doubt I'll actually have to work (and think), and it will almost certainly involve having to wear a shirt and tie every day.

The fact that it's going to be alot more money if I do get it doesn't seem to be much consolation.

I know I'm being a little stupid - sadly, everyone has to work and get paid - but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

But, I repeat myself.

"The human race is faced with a cruel choice: work or daytime television." - Unknown

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2005-12-30T22:40:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

A good quiet week
At home this Christmas. Nice to
Escape everything.

New Year's is up next.
Not got anything planned yet.
So no change there then.

Still in job limbo.
Should hear after New Year's Day.
One way or t'other.

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2005-12-23T11:11:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Last day of this job.
The possible new one is
In limbo right now.

Merry Christmas to
All and sundry. But why do
They say 'Happy' now?

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2005-12-16T09:39:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

The interview went
Okay, I think. But did they
'View someone better?

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2005-12-14T22:20:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Interview

Yup, I have an interview tomorrow. Not sure if I want this particular one, but I've got to start looking somewhere.

Wish me luck.

"Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell 'em, 'Certainly I can!' Then get busy and find out how to do it." - Theodore Roosevelt (1858 - 1919)

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2005-12-11T20:48:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Hertfordshire Bang

I only heard about this when I went online at about midday. I was shocked... and then very worried when I realised I knew people in the area. I checked some of the reports and then rang them up... they were okay, but shaken, obviously and literally. They had thought it was a nuke, or the end of the world or something. I can't even begin to imagine how scary it must have been to be close by to the explosion when it happened.

Good luck and best wishes to everyone in the area affected... but mostly to my friends there.

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2005-12-09T11:11:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

I hate looking for
Jobs. Most of them are out of
My league. Or boring.

Need to get onto
Some agencies, and get my
CV out there quick.

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2005-12-02T23:11:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Out of a job soon.
Must start looking for a new
One. Oh, what great fun.

Must learn to convince
Potential employers I
Really want their job.

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2005-12-01T09:56:00.000Z

beeeeep!

The Beginning Of The End

I've just been told that at the end of the year I'll be out of a job. My contract ends, company employing me shuts down soon after.

Great.

"Getting fired is nature's way to telling you that you had the wrong job in the first place." - Hal Lancaster, in The Wall Street Journal

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2005-11-28T21:09:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Irritability III

I did the apology thing.

Bah.

I'm managing to resist the urge to feel stupid. That makes quite a change.

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)

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2005-11-26T22:30:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Irritability II

Since I am, apparently, utterly in the wrong, I am being forced to apologise, for the sake of my mother's social standing in the village, basically.

I have yet to agree. And I don't want to. I don't care enough about them to worry about it for myself.

Bollocks.

"Bollocks" - me, about five seconds ago

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2005-11-25T23:50:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Last weekend I was
At the Serenity Squared
convention. Great fun!

There were queues, and guests,
Parties, new friends and old, and
Stories aplenty.

Then I went to watch
W.W.E.
Wrestling. Smackdown! Woo!

I'm new to it, took
A friend there for her birthday.
No 'Taker. Great shame.

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2005-11-25T23:45:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Irritability

I've mentioned before how I can get irritated at the slightest thing, usually out of proportion to the thing itself. But not for very long... unless something else irritates me some more. Then it keeps going.

Attempting to get back home this afternoon seemed like a trial from some higher power. Everywhere I went, there were slow cars, buses and tractors blocking my way. Then there were roadworks with traffic lights, with a big queue which mostly seemed to be the fault of a bus. Any time I tried to get around it I encountered more slow vehicles holding me up. Needless to say, I got a mite tetchy.

Now, at home I can't park by the house. There's no drive, no real place to park on the road. The small open area in front of the house is used by other people and my mother; there is space for four cars, and no more. All those spaces are filled. So I have to park in the pub carpark, which is only a hundred yards away, so it's not that bad.

When I got home, the carpark was almost full, and, well, after I had a bit of a childish tantrum (very pissed off) I parked rather badly. For some reason, the owner of the pub was standing around outside, and took perhaps understandable exception to the way I had parked.

I can only imagine that he had been having a very bad day himself, because he seemed to take my behaviour (it was of the non-conversational, glowering and walking off variety) and the fact that I park there very personally, yelling about how I had been there eighteen months and never said a word (i.e. not gone into his pub and spent any money), blah blah blah. I wasn't very polite to him, either, but still in the non-talking, walking off way. So he called me an "insolent little cunt" and banned me from parking in that carpark again.

I don't take part in the oh so exciting social life of this little village. I've been in the pub twice, and it's an old man's village pub. Not interested.

I wonder what had happened to put the guy in that bad a mood.

So now I have four parking options. Make my mother park in the pub carpark when I'm home; force someone else to do so by taking up their spot; park on the side of the road and risk my car being trashed by one of the many huge lorries that go by day and fucking night; or park in that carpark anyway and see what jollity comes next.

Oh, and if that guy had come knocking on our door afterwards, I'd be locked up in the local police station now. I was ready to do murder, I tell ya.

"Speak when you are angry - and you will make the best speech you'll ever regret." - Laurence J. Peter (1919 - 1988)

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2005-11-24T00:37:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Been A While

It really has, hasn't it? Either I've not been in the mood, or I've been busy. I've just got back online tonight after almost five days away. I might tell you some or all of what I've been up to, I might not. But first, a quote that is utterly true.

{quote excised}

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2005-11-12T18:00:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Busy Being Grumpy

Yup.

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2005-11-10T09:45:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Man Flu

I thought I had a cold. Then I thought I had "flu", which is basically just a bad cold. Now it's definitely flu. Blocked nose, sneezing, runny nose, sore throat, slight headache, general 'bad' feeling.

Some would say it's just man flu, and maybe they're right. Certainly men react to illness differently from women, but then men and women are different, right? All kinds of reasons why that should be the case. And it's not like I'm staying in bed, all wimpy and pathetic. Even after a night of little sleep I got up at the usual time and am now here at work as normal. Sure, I'm complaining, but that's normal when you're ill.

I doubt I'm helping my "I'm not being pathetic with man flu" case, but who cares. No one can doubt that I am actually ill. How ill I am is a relative issue; maybe I've not got it as bad as some, but that's true for anything.

I'm rambling. So that's not changed at least.

"Uuuurghhh...." - Me, waking up this morning

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2005-11-04T23:22:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Power problems all
Week at work. Not a lot more
Else going on. Bah.

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2005-11-03T11:33:00.000Z

beeeeep!

Settled

Things have settled down at work now, other than the fact that the power supply is still very dodgy. It keeps tripping out, which seems to happen every night at different times, which is a problem at weekends when there's no one to turn it all back on. Annoys the people doing overtime no end. But it's not my problem. Which is nice.

The weather's pretty crappy though. That's a settled/unsettled connection there. Groovy.

"Don't knock the weather. If it didn't change once in a while, nine out of ten people couldn't start a conversation." - Kin Hubbard (1868 - 1930)

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2005-10-28T12:37:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

It took all week but
The system is back up and
Working again. Phew.

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2005-10-21T13:40:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Computer problems
Are a pain when you don't quite
Understand what's wrong.

It won't be working
Until Monday, which ain't good.
Engineers come then.

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2005-10-20T19:35:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Big Trouble In Little Computer

My boss is on holiday. I am currently the entire IT department. The server with the all important software thing on that everyone uses to do their work had to be shut down for a short interval. I'm not sure I did it right. I can't get it to turn on and start up properly again.

This is not good.

"Incompetents invariably make trouble for people other than themselves." - Larry McMurtry (1936 - ), 'Lonesome Dove'

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2005-10-14T11:05:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

UK second week
For Serenity. I hope
It bucks lots more trends.

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2005-10-14T11:00:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Meltdown

I noticed yesterday the air conditioning in the server room did not seem to be working. This tends to be a bad thing, since if it stops working the machines will seriously overheat. By the time I left, though, I had forgotten...

...and now, this morning, I get told they did indeed overheat and shut down. Or rather, break. Engineers will be sorting out the air con today, hopefully, and then we'll find out if the servers are okay or broken in some way.

Ummm... whoops.

"A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history, with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila." - Mitch Ratcliffe

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2005-10-07T10:00:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Serenity did
Okay but not great in the
US. Not so good.

Now it's our turn in
The UK to give it the
Boost it really needs.

That and the second
Weekend in the US may
Give us some sequels.

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2005-09-30T16:25:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Friday Haiku

Serenity has
Opened in the US. Let's
Hope it breaks records.

Can't wait till next week.
I'll see it Friday and on
Saturday. Shiny!!

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2005-09-27T19:25:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Serenity Quizzle

You scored as River Tam. The Fugitive. You are clever and dangerous, which is a nasty combination. The fact you are crazy too just adds to your charm. They did bad things to you, but you know their secrets. They will regret how they made you.

River Tam

69%

Hoban 'Wash' Washburne

69%

Shepherd Derrial Book

63%

Kaylee Frye

56%

Zoe Alleyne Washburne

56%

Capt. Mal Reynolds

56%

Jayne Cobb

50%

Simon Tam

50%

The Operative

50%

Inara Serra

31%

Which Serenity character are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

"Sure I got a secret. More'n one." - River, in Shindig

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2005-09-22T18:00:00.000+01:00

beeeeep!

Innocent In London

If you think the UK really is a free country, and that an innocent man has nothing to fear, you need to read this. Right now. Immediately.

Innocent In London

You may find your opinion being changed somewhat. And that you never want to go near London ever again.

"The strictest law often causes the most serious wrong." - Cicero (106 BC - 43 BC)

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