Several minor points to tick off in this blog, so:
Century Up: Hundredth blog of the year - not a bad effort considering that I hadn't even started up until mid-August.
Blog-a-Day II: Second consecutive month that I've blogged every single day, albeit with some cheating thrown in there to fill in gaps (particularly timezone-caused lapses over the last week).
Besides that, Chrissi and I are currently starting to get ready to head back to England. My thoughts are starting to turn towards what I need to do when I get back, what I need to get ready - and more immediately, just how we're going to manage the packing challenge to fit everything we brought and everything we bought back into our two suitcases.
Last night we went with Chrissi's aunts Mel & Tori to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra play about an hour's drive from here. It was the only show they were doing in Southern California this season, so we were lucky to be able to make it at the right time with our holiday dates! I'm sure I've blogged about them in a previous year, and they were again excellent - always good entertainment, and it was a new show this time round, which was very good and very enjoyable. It was a good time had by all, and I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Inadvertent Celebrity
As alluded to in yesterday's entry, we were due to meet a former colleague of Chrissi's, Andre, for lunch. We've met up several times on previous visits (others may also recall him as the photographer at our wedding), and is always good to catch up.
Following a pleasant lunch (in part in recognition of his birthday) we then headed back with him to the office for Chrissi to make a few waves at people that she knew and used to work with. This quickly became her being surrounded by several people asking questions about her life in England, how her work was, and many other things. I even had to act as the overflow, fielding questions from some who couldn't get close to her enough to ask.
The most amusing part, however, was on leaning over people's cubicles who weren't quite expecting - doing a 'yes' in half-acknowledgement then suddenly being surprised by who it actually is and doing a double-take. I was almost following in the train of a minor celebrity for the small time we spent there, as people crowded around, asked questions and looked surprised to see her. It was amusing and entertaining.
Following a pleasant lunch (in part in recognition of his birthday) we then headed back with him to the office for Chrissi to make a few waves at people that she knew and used to work with. This quickly became her being surrounded by several people asking questions about her life in England, how her work was, and many other things. I even had to act as the overflow, fielding questions from some who couldn't get close to her enough to ask.
The most amusing part, however, was on leaning over people's cubicles who weren't quite expecting - doing a 'yes' in half-acknowledgement then suddenly being surprised by who it actually is and doing a double-take. I was almost following in the train of a minor celebrity for the small time we spent there, as people crowded around, asked questions and looked surprised to see her. It was amusing and entertaining.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Current Day (In Theory)
Yesterday was again spent in part entertaining Chase - that's two consecutive days we've been awoken by him jumping onto the bed with us and demanding we pay attention to him. As I don't think I've explained properly, Chase is the two-and-three-quarter year old child of Chrissi's neighbour (and long-standing childhood friend). He is babysat by Chrissi's mother and so we see him a fair amount.
Yesterday he was particularly sulky about sharing Chrissi, insisting she was his Chrissi and throwing a fit if I went near her. He is very insistent about putting people where he thinks they should be, so instructions typically focus around 'you sit there'.
As well as Chase-sitting, we also caught up with some of Chrissi's school-friends in the evening from her masters programme in Counselling. I know the majority of them reasonably well also by this point, and it was good to see them as well - an enjoyable evening with good food, good company and good conversation.
Catching up to today, I'm currently writing this in late morning before Chrissi and I are due to go out and meet another friend of hers/ours, who she used to work with, for a lunchtime date. This should be good fun, I'm looking forward to it - although I think my waistline is starting to protest at the number of mealtime meetups we are scheduling for this visit.
This evening Chrissi and her mother are due to see the final film in the Twilight abomination series. I didn't even have to opt out of participating as it was quite clear to all that I had no interest in going, which neatly gives them an opportunity to spend time together and for both of them to see the film as well, while I don't have to explain why it's pitiful. This gives me an opportunity to do some writing as well while they're out, so in the theme of yesterday's blog we'll see if I make any progress.
Yesterday he was particularly sulky about sharing Chrissi, insisting she was his Chrissi and throwing a fit if I went near her. He is very insistent about putting people where he thinks they should be, so instructions typically focus around 'you sit there'.
As well as Chase-sitting, we also caught up with some of Chrissi's school-friends in the evening from her masters programme in Counselling. I know the majority of them reasonably well also by this point, and it was good to see them as well - an enjoyable evening with good food, good company and good conversation.
Catching up to today, I'm currently writing this in late morning before Chrissi and I are due to go out and meet another friend of hers/ours, who she used to work with, for a lunchtime date. This should be good fun, I'm looking forward to it - although I think my waistline is starting to protest at the number of mealtime meetups we are scheduling for this visit.
This evening Chrissi and her mother are due to see the final film in the Twilight abomination series. I didn't even have to opt out of participating as it was quite clear to all that I had no interest in going, which neatly gives them an opportunity to spend time together and for both of them to see the film as well, while I don't have to explain why it's pitiful. This gives me an opportunity to do some writing as well while they're out, so in the theme of yesterday's blog we'll see if I make any progress.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Retrospective Updates
I seem to have gotten into the habit of posting all events a day behind, meaning I always have ample material to write with and saving me the bother of having to fit in a day's events before the day is finished here.
So logically, this means that today I will talk about yesterday. The chief event of which was Chrissi and I meeting up with Carisa; talking about this on here is obviously of minimal relevance considering that everyone featured on that day reads this, so they don't really need a recap of the day's events that they were already there for.
We went for a walk around downtown Disney, a stop by Chrissi's home where we played with Chase for a while, and then out to dinner in the evening. Following this we returned home where we then entertained ourselves by playing Mario Kart on the Wii before promptly falling asleep watching a TV show via Netflix, an episode of the reboot of Sherlock Holmes (which Chrissi and I had started to watch before we came out here).
As always there was large amounts of entertaining conversation on a wide variety of topics - I learnt that I can only hint at Merlin updates in my blogs, as it is not available in the US until the New Year and so I'm providing large numbers of spoilers without realising. We also talked a fair bit about writing, which might give me a bit more of a kick to continue with my scribbling on a quasi-regular basis. We'll see on that however ...
So logically, this means that today I will talk about yesterday. The chief event of which was Chrissi and I meeting up with Carisa; talking about this on here is obviously of minimal relevance considering that everyone featured on that day reads this, so they don't really need a recap of the day's events that they were already there for.
We went for a walk around downtown Disney, a stop by Chrissi's home where we played with Chase for a while, and then out to dinner in the evening. Following this we returned home where we then entertained ourselves by playing Mario Kart on the Wii before promptly falling asleep watching a TV show via Netflix, an episode of the reboot of Sherlock Holmes (which Chrissi and I had started to watch before we came out here).
As always there was large amounts of entertaining conversation on a wide variety of topics - I learnt that I can only hint at Merlin updates in my blogs, as it is not available in the US until the New Year and so I'm providing large numbers of spoilers without realising. We also talked a fair bit about writing, which might give me a bit more of a kick to continue with my scribbling on a quasi-regular basis. We'll see on that however ...
Monday, November 26, 2012
Bookworm
Today was an efficient day from a reading perspective as after a while of not picking up a new book I started to read the Hunger Games series. Chrissi got this for Christmas last year, and brought it out for her mother to read when we were here in July. I had planned on reading these then but never got around to it.
The series comprises three books, of which the first roughly corresponds to the film that was out last year. Films are due to be made of the other two books as well. I started the first book at around 8am when I got up, and had finished it a little after midday. As I was making good progress I then decided to move straight onto the second book, which I had finished by around 7pm (including pauses to eat, shower and go out).
This left me with time to move onto the third book, which I started around 8pm (well, I read a little while watching two Big Bang Theory episodes between 7 & 8) and kept reading until I was done - finishing a little after midnight. The end result of the day was that I'd finished the entire series in a little over twelve hours reading.
Overall it was a good series with a decent pace to it - as you might have suspected by the speed I went through the trilogy. There were enough surprising twists in the latter two books as well (I knew the plot of the first one as the film followed the book fairly closely). The third book was a little more disappointing however - it didn't seem to resolve satisfactorily, although up to that point there was a lot of tension.
An enjoyable day's reading, all in all.
The series comprises three books, of which the first roughly corresponds to the film that was out last year. Films are due to be made of the other two books as well. I started the first book at around 8am when I got up, and had finished it a little after midday. As I was making good progress I then decided to move straight onto the second book, which I had finished by around 7pm (including pauses to eat, shower and go out).
This left me with time to move onto the third book, which I started around 8pm (well, I read a little while watching two Big Bang Theory episodes between 7 & 8) and kept reading until I was done - finishing a little after midnight. The end result of the day was that I'd finished the entire series in a little over twelve hours reading.
Overall it was a good series with a decent pace to it - as you might have suspected by the speed I went through the trilogy. There were enough surprising twists in the latter two books as well (I knew the plot of the first one as the film followed the book fairly closely). The third book was a little more disappointing however - it didn't seem to resolve satisfactorily, although up to that point there was a lot of tension.
An enjoyable day's reading, all in all.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Friday Shop
One event I hadn't commented on in the aftermath of Thanksgiving was this year's Black Friday. For readers who are unaware, this is the day after Thanksgiving when there are typically huge discounts available on a wide number of items. Typically as we've been out in Arizona I haven't done a huge amount of this - there are fewer shops to go to, less deals and I've not actually been hunting for anything.
This year as we were still at Chrissi's parents, there are a lot more places to go in the area - and I had things I needed to get this year (namely a replacement jacket, as a large hole had developed in my old one - considering how many things are discounted and by so much in the sales, it was worth holding out for).
There were some events starting on the Thanksgiving evening itself - which we didn't partake in - but we did go down to Kohls for the Friday morning, as there were large discounts running until 1pm. We picked up a few items - a couple of jackets for myself, both heavily discounted, a few jeans and sweaters for Chrissi - and joined the queue at about 12. This was then our activity for the next hour - it wound most of the way around the store and we were waiting for about an hour before we finally got to the checkouts.
End result was a successful trip, but the hour waiting while we slowly walked around the store was mind-numbingly tedious.
This year as we were still at Chrissi's parents, there are a lot more places to go in the area - and I had things I needed to get this year (namely a replacement jacket, as a large hole had developed in my old one - considering how many things are discounted and by so much in the sales, it was worth holding out for).
There were some events starting on the Thanksgiving evening itself - which we didn't partake in - but we did go down to Kohls for the Friday morning, as there were large discounts running until 1pm. We picked up a few items - a couple of jackets for myself, both heavily discounted, a few jeans and sweaters for Chrissi - and joined the queue at about 12. This was then our activity for the next hour - it wound most of the way around the store and we were waiting for about an hour before we finally got to the checkouts.
End result was a successful trip, but the hour waiting while we slowly walked around the store was mind-numbingly tedious.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Correct Date & Time
Today is the first blog for a few days where I haven't needed to correct the date and time to fit into the correct day for the UK timezone - as I start writing this it's only a little after midday, so I still have over three hours left to post this before the clocks hit midnight back home.
The more observant among you will notice that I've abandoned my recent titling run - having done this before twice in 2010, I was again taking inspiration from a single band's discography. In this case it was The Ataris - no particular reason other than their song Takeoffs and Landings came to me when I was casting around for a blog title on Saturday, and then the theme followed from there for the rest of the week.
One thing that I've discovered on re-reading old blogs (I was hunting for when I had used the themes previously) is that I badly need to proof-read before I actually publish. There are errors scattered throughout and I feel the need as I read through to make minor corrections to posts that are years old and are likely never to be read again! Oh, the curse of perfectionism!
The more observant among you will notice that I've abandoned my recent titling run - having done this before twice in 2010, I was again taking inspiration from a single band's discography. In this case it was The Ataris - no particular reason other than their song Takeoffs and Landings came to me when I was casting around for a blog title on Saturday, and then the theme followed from there for the rest of the week.
One thing that I've discovered on re-reading old blogs (I was hunting for when I had used the themes previously) is that I badly need to proof-read before I actually publish. There are errors scattered throughout and I feel the need as I read through to make minor corrections to posts that are years old and are likely never to be read again! Oh, the curse of perfectionism!
Friday, November 23, 2012
All You Can Ever Learn Is What You Already Know
One of the most (unintended) funny things about yesterday was the puzzlement and questioning of some of Chrissi's cousins about how things work in England, or seemingly basic questions. At first I was trying to be genuine in explaining the answers to the random questions proposed, but after a while the sheer silliness of these questions meant that the answers became increasingly sarcastic.
Some examples of random questions included:
Most of these were met with explanations or the statement of the obvious - although after a while, the answers became sarcastic, so 'do you have cities?' was greeted with the response 'no, we live in mud huts and light fires for warmth'. A similar answer was given as to whether we had movie theatres, with a sheet being suggested as the sole source for us seeing films.
I'm not quite sure what was expected or why it was so bizarre - or why any of this was expected as different. I can understand the curiousity about the different ages for doing things, but why a 14 year old would ask whether we live in cities in England or whether we have movie theatres shows a disturbing lack of awareness about ... well, anything!
Some examples of random questions included:
- Do you have Independence Day? Do you have different holidays to us?
- What age can you drive / get a tattoo / drink / smoke?
- Do you have balls in England? (This one I have no idea about. I'm thinking we're talking about ballroom-style balls. I'm hoping we're talking about ballroom-style balls!)
- Do you have cities in England?
- Do you have movie theatres in England?
- So does it sound to you like we have accents? Does our accent sound strange?
- Does England have states?
Most of these were met with explanations or the statement of the obvious - although after a while, the answers became sarcastic, so 'do you have cities?' was greeted with the response 'no, we live in mud huts and light fires for warmth'. A similar answer was given as to whether we had movie theatres, with a sheet being suggested as the sole source for us seeing films.
I'm not quite sure what was expected or why it was so bizarre - or why any of this was expected as different. I can understand the curiousity about the different ages for doing things, but why a 14 year old would ask whether we live in cities in England or whether we have movie theatres shows a disturbing lack of awareness about ... well, anything!
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Looking Back on Today
So today was / is Thanksgiving (due to the time difference my blogs have to be written earlier in the day so I potentially have more details to add in later). This is the second consecutive year that I have been out here for Thanksgiving, and the fourth time in total. This year is the first time that we've had the day itself at Chrissi's - although to be more strictly accurate I should label it as Chrissi's parents as Chrissi no longer lives here.
This year not only was I allowed in the kitchen but I was also able to assist with some of the cooking - I was responsible for peeling the potatoes and generally moving things around in the kitchen when required. Besides this the majority of work was involved around the handling of the children, which principally meant keeping them out of the kitchen!
This year not only was I allowed in the kitchen but I was also able to assist with some of the cooking - I was responsible for peeling the potatoes and generally moving things around in the kitchen when required. Besides this the majority of work was involved around the handling of the children, which principally meant keeping them out of the kitchen!
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
In This Diary
Something we were idly watching on TV today - an old film that mentioned a diary - made me think about this. While this is in practice a blog, and people occasionally read it and make their comments, I'll typically post it more as a note to myself. If I were to do this properly I should really do it somewhere that noone reads - although that would be a loss in that my witticisms wouldn't be more widely shared - although I'd still enjoy using this as somewhere I can simply write what's been happening.
In case you can't tell, today hasn't been a day where much has happened or where much has been accomplished. As far as I'm concerned this is how a holiday should work - this for me is about relaxing and not much more!
As a result I managed to spend some time yesterday making some progress with my writing (see my blog on this subject from late October). This resulted in me adding another 1500 words to what I already had - which as I had about 6000 words added in over two and a half years isn't a bad effort for a single day. We'll see if I make any further progress over the next week and a half!
In case you can't tell, today hasn't been a day where much has happened or where much has been accomplished. As far as I'm concerned this is how a holiday should work - this for me is about relaxing and not much more!
As a result I managed to spend some time yesterday making some progress with my writing (see my blog on this subject from late October). This resulted in me adding another 1500 words to what I already had - which as I had about 6000 words added in over two and a half years isn't a bad effort for a single day. We'll see if I make any further progress over the next week and a half!
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Bite My Tongue
So far since we've been in the States the main activity for me and Chrissi has been spending time with family. As I alluded to in the second part of my 2011 Thanksgiving flashback blog, one of Chrissi's aunts has been ill with cancer and while still hanging on in there, is honestly at this point on her last legs. She's been living with (and looked after by) Chrissi's parents for the last year, so this has been the main focus of our stay so far.
The title of this blog is a reference to the number of family members who seem to be oblivious to what is actually happening - as well as what is inevitably going to happen. People have been here both Sunday and Monday, and this will likely continue for the rest of the week - and the amount of attention paid where it should have been has been staggeringly negligent.
I have been quite reticent in my comments - unusually, you may note - simply because I'm the least involved here and am aware of that, even if I have a better grasp of what's been happening the last year. It's going to be a good trick to keep that up for an entire fortnight, however, particularly if this theme continues.
The title of this blog is a reference to the number of family members who seem to be oblivious to what is actually happening - as well as what is inevitably going to happen. People have been here both Sunday and Monday, and this will likely continue for the rest of the week - and the amount of attention paid where it should have been has been staggeringly negligent.
I have been quite reticent in my comments - unusually, you may note - simply because I'm the least involved here and am aware of that, even if I have a better grasp of what's been happening the last year. It's going to be a good trick to keep that up for an entire fortnight, however, particularly if this theme continues.
Monday, November 19, 2012
As We Speak
One of the bizarre things about travelling in this direction is that the big changes in timezone confuse you as to exactly what day you are in and what is going on. I have this nagging suspicion that I've missed a day somewhere in the count of things - that while it is only Monday we should already be up to Tuesday.
This was most neatly proved by my monitoring of the test cricket over the weekend. As England are touring in India, the games are starting in what is the early hours in the UK. I had been following the third day's play from when I got up to when I left for the airport, catching up on the first session and a half and then keeping up from there.
However, by the time I got across to California after the eleven hour flight, making it back to the house from the airport, I was able to check my phone and on the same day, then start to follow the fourth day's play. This was very confusing to both start and finish the same day reading live updates from different day's cricket play in the same match.
Confused? Imagine how I felt considering I was jetlagged and tired at the same time!
This was most neatly proved by my monitoring of the test cricket over the weekend. As England are touring in India, the games are starting in what is the early hours in the UK. I had been following the third day's play from when I got up to when I left for the airport, catching up on the first session and a half and then keeping up from there.
However, by the time I got across to California after the eleven hour flight, making it back to the house from the airport, I was able to check my phone and on the same day, then start to follow the fourth day's play. This was very confusing to both start and finish the same day reading live updates from different day's cricket play in the same match.
Confused? Imagine how I felt considering I was jetlagged and tired at the same time!
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Are We There Yet?
One thing I didn't pay tribute to in yesterday's blog about the trip was the flight itself. Our carrier this time is Air New Zealand (or Air Middle Earth as it also humourously brands itself). The safety demonstration video took this tongue-in-cheek effort further, featuring orcs, dwarves, hobbits and wizards giving the by now standard instructions. This was rounded off by a captain dressed in hat, cloak and beard dramatically uttering 'fly, you fools' as his sign-off line.
The entertainment system was an improvement over many I've seen before - definitely appreciated when you have an eleven hour flight to kill time on. The screen on the seat in front was closer to 4.5" than the standard 3" mini-screen, and meant you had a much superior view. There was a decent choice of films and TV shows, as well as the obligatory moving map for you to see exactly how far the plane has travelled and how far you still have to go.
However, for me the stand-out feature was that instead of walking up and down the aisles every couple of hours offering drinks and the odd snack, you could instead order your own drink from the comfort of your seat via your video screen. Chrissi and I didn't realise this until well into the flight, but still took the opportunity to order a couple of drinks each using this feature - I'm sure we'll get more use out of it on the return leg now that we're aware of it!
The entertainment system was an improvement over many I've seen before - definitely appreciated when you have an eleven hour flight to kill time on. The screen on the seat in front was closer to 4.5" than the standard 3" mini-screen, and meant you had a much superior view. There was a decent choice of films and TV shows, as well as the obligatory moving map for you to see exactly how far the plane has travelled and how far you still have to go.
However, for me the stand-out feature was that instead of walking up and down the aisles every couple of hours offering drinks and the odd snack, you could instead order your own drink from the comfort of your seat via your video screen. Chrissi and I didn't realise this until well into the flight, but still took the opportunity to order a couple of drinks each using this feature - I'm sure we'll get more use out of it on the return leg now that we're aware of it!
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Takeoffs and Landings
Nothing is ever quite as simple as it should be when you travel by plane. There's no such thing as a straightforward journey through an airport, a seamless sashay through security or a hassle-free hurry to your gate.
Today's journey was equally amusing - while we were ready comfortably in time to leave this morning, which boded well, when we got on the bus from Kingston to Heathrow instead of this taking us into the Central Bus Station, we were left abandoned at Hatton Cross. No explanation was given for this. We then had to catch a second bus from here into the middle of the airport so we were actually within reach of our terminal.
Fortunately this was the only irritating moment of the flight experience - it was a smooth flight, passing through the airport on the way out was straightforward and the immigration queues were blissfully short when we landed at LAX. I almost thought for a moment that I was going to get out ahead of Chrissi, but by mere seconds she beat me through.
I've not mentioned the disappointing fact though that when we landed it was raining. This definitely wasn't advertised. Being California it only lasted a few minutes, and it cleared fairly quickly - but definitely not the promised weather, particularly in light of the mocking comments i had made to colleagues when pointing out that they would continue to experience the fog and gloom that was besieging the office on Friday, while I would be enjoying the Californian sunshine. Rain was not in the script.
Today's journey was equally amusing - while we were ready comfortably in time to leave this morning, which boded well, when we got on the bus from Kingston to Heathrow instead of this taking us into the Central Bus Station, we were left abandoned at Hatton Cross. No explanation was given for this. We then had to catch a second bus from here into the middle of the airport so we were actually within reach of our terminal.
Fortunately this was the only irritating moment of the flight experience - it was a smooth flight, passing through the airport on the way out was straightforward and the immigration queues were blissfully short when we landed at LAX. I almost thought for a moment that I was going to get out ahead of Chrissi, but by mere seconds she beat me through.
I've not mentioned the disappointing fact though that when we landed it was raining. This definitely wasn't advertised. Being California it only lasted a few minutes, and it cleared fairly quickly - but definitely not the promised weather, particularly in light of the mocking comments i had made to colleagues when pointing out that they would continue to experience the fog and gloom that was besieging the office on Friday, while I would be enjoying the Californian sunshine. Rain was not in the script.
Friday, November 16, 2012
To Pack Or Not To Pack
I'm always notoriously late with packing - I never have too much consideration around what I throw in to the bag as I rarely take a holiday where it actually matters. Usually I'm visiting family or friends, and as a result there's not the same level of urgency to ensure you have everything. Chrissi doesn't organise me in a cliched wifely fashion either - which is not something I'm ungrateful about.
However, I have been rather hindered this time by the lack of clothes which are clean - having planned to do a rotating wash and iron production line all evening (to get something clean and tidied up to throw in the suitcase and get creased up), I'm sitting here at a little after 2am with the washing machine still going. I'm waiting on this to disgorge its load for me to hang up, then I can go to bed.
Fortunately a later flight than usual means that I can actually pack in the morning - as we have the luxury of not leaving until around 11:30. Tomorrow is due to be a fun-filled morning of packing and ironing then, it would appear!
However, I have been rather hindered this time by the lack of clothes which are clean - having planned to do a rotating wash and iron production line all evening (to get something clean and tidied up to throw in the suitcase and get creased up), I'm sitting here at a little after 2am with the washing machine still going. I'm waiting on this to disgorge its load for me to hang up, then I can go to bed.
Fortunately a later flight than usual means that I can actually pack in the morning - as we have the luxury of not leaving until around 11:30. Tomorrow is due to be a fun-filled morning of packing and ironing then, it would appear!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Fog & Farce
Today was another day where I was working from home for a few hours, then attending a meeting for the rest of the day. Like September, today this involved a visit to Gaydon to visit Jaguar Land Rover. The trip out was uneventful - although as I did fall asleep on the train coming out of London and wake up to find myself surrounded by fog-clad countryside, I did wonder just where I was and how long I'd been asleep.
The meeting went without incident, but the return journey was farcical - I missed a train by one minute, and the train fifteen minutes later was delayed by nearly three times that amount - meaning that I was waiting at the station for about an hour. Excuses for the delays were cable theft and signalling problems, which made for a nice mess. I got home later than planned, worked later than planned and this made for an all round annoyance.
However, penultimate Hunted recap! This was the first time we watched it at the scheduled time, and we gained absolutely nothing by doing so. The main star the hat returned this week, covering Sam's head as she made a secret raid on top-secret Hourglass firm. Having snuck carefully around the building, retrieved a file, killed a henchman and got away, she then stared gormlessly at a surveillance camera. I would have thought this came under the headings of 'things not to do' in spy school.
Also in competent spy actions, Natalie who is the MI6 section deputy who was sleeping with and blackmailing Aidan the Mole who is not in fact called Aidan (no, I'm not keeping track either). She also revealed her spycraft by going straight to the person she suspected and talking loudly about how something had happened to leak these files - look, these ones here. If this is how good the opponents are no wonder the Hourglass plot is successful.
We even got a hint of Hourglass plot as well - in classic evil firm ends-justify-the-means style in foreign climes, a Pakistani village had been conveniently gassed to make way for the much-trumpeted dam, and for the record we still don't know why Jack Turner is trying to buy the bloody thing. He is blackmailing Hourglass firm to try and get the contract, making for a bizarre web of relations here.
Speaking of webbed relations, Stephen Turner once more demonstrated his utter uselessness. Last week's dossier on Sam was a couple of fingerprints which she brushed off with some unbelieveable excuse and then convinced him to leave his father. He later had the complete opposite conversation with his father - confronting him and then believing him utterly when he was told how Sam was a spy and his father was the only one he could trust. This man allegedly went to Oxford, clearly taking a degree in agreeing with the last thing someone said to him.
I've no idea how Chrissi and I are going to see the last episode, but it's been chaotically farcical fun so I for one would love to see how they're going to try and draw this towards a conclusion - particularly as we're not scheduled for a series 2.
The meeting went without incident, but the return journey was farcical - I missed a train by one minute, and the train fifteen minutes later was delayed by nearly three times that amount - meaning that I was waiting at the station for about an hour. Excuses for the delays were cable theft and signalling problems, which made for a nice mess. I got home later than planned, worked later than planned and this made for an all round annoyance.
However, penultimate Hunted recap! This was the first time we watched it at the scheduled time, and we gained absolutely nothing by doing so. The main star the hat returned this week, covering Sam's head as she made a secret raid on top-secret Hourglass firm. Having snuck carefully around the building, retrieved a file, killed a henchman and got away, she then stared gormlessly at a surveillance camera. I would have thought this came under the headings of 'things not to do' in spy school.
Also in competent spy actions, Natalie who is the MI6 section deputy who was sleeping with and blackmailing Aidan the Mole who is not in fact called Aidan (no, I'm not keeping track either). She also revealed her spycraft by going straight to the person she suspected and talking loudly about how something had happened to leak these files - look, these ones here. If this is how good the opponents are no wonder the Hourglass plot is successful.
We even got a hint of Hourglass plot as well - in classic evil firm ends-justify-the-means style in foreign climes, a Pakistani village had been conveniently gassed to make way for the much-trumpeted dam, and for the record we still don't know why Jack Turner is trying to buy the bloody thing. He is blackmailing Hourglass firm to try and get the contract, making for a bizarre web of relations here.
Speaking of webbed relations, Stephen Turner once more demonstrated his utter uselessness. Last week's dossier on Sam was a couple of fingerprints which she brushed off with some unbelieveable excuse and then convinced him to leave his father. He later had the complete opposite conversation with his father - confronting him and then believing him utterly when he was told how Sam was a spy and his father was the only one he could trust. This man allegedly went to Oxford, clearly taking a degree in agreeing with the last thing someone said to him.
I've no idea how Chrissi and I are going to see the last episode, but it's been chaotically farcical fun so I for one would love to see how they're going to try and draw this towards a conclusion - particularly as we're not scheduled for a series 2.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
No Ironing Progress
Of course, I said on yesterday's blog that today I was going to continue with my ironing crusade. I may have been a little optimistic on that front - I had somehow overlooked the fact that Rachel was coming over for dinner and so I wouldn't have as much time in the evening as I had anticipated.
As it's her birthday in middle-to-late November, and as Chrissi and I consistently go away for Thanksgiving so are never actually in the country, we thought it'd be nice to catch up before we left and have a nice meal. This was duly had and done together - a present was given and all such efforts were made.
Two more days left in the week now - I'm counting down a little as with a lot on at work I'm quite grateful for the opportunity to escape for a fortnight, even if it will by no means disappear in my absence!
As it's her birthday in middle-to-late November, and as Chrissi and I consistently go away for Thanksgiving so are never actually in the country, we thought it'd be nice to catch up before we left and have a nice meal. This was duly had and done together - a present was given and all such efforts were made.
Two more days left in the week now - I'm counting down a little as with a lot on at work I'm quite grateful for the opportunity to escape for a fortnight, even if it will by no means disappear in my absence!
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Catching Up
Tonight was quite an effort on the blogging front as I managed to write four blogs - which is somewhat cheating as I'm backfilling from my days off. I had blogs planned, but never got around to actually writing them! I knew if I didn't sit down and actually put metaphorical pen to metaphorical paper then I would never actually write them and I would slip slowly into blogging inactivity.
However, the slip has been averted. Yesterday I was working from home so that I could take my driving lesson in the evening straight after work hours had finished - the first time I had driven in the dark, which was interesting. I should also make the point - although it's slightly counter-productive to do so - that I was actually on time for work yesterday by virtue of getting up at least fifteen minutes before I had to start. I also got so into my work and focused on finishing things before moving on that I didn't actually remember to have my lunch until 3pm.
Tonight has been a tidying evening of activity - preparations for going away are in full flow, which for my part means tidying up large piles of washing so that I have enough clean clothes to wear, and ironing the clean clothes so that the airer can be cleared for the next laundry load! This was attacked tonight with moderate success, and we'll see if we can repeat the trick tomorrow.
However, the slip has been averted. Yesterday I was working from home so that I could take my driving lesson in the evening straight after work hours had finished - the first time I had driven in the dark, which was interesting. I should also make the point - although it's slightly counter-productive to do so - that I was actually on time for work yesterday by virtue of getting up at least fifteen minutes before I had to start. I also got so into my work and focused on finishing things before moving on that I didn't actually remember to have my lunch until 3pm.
Tonight has been a tidying evening of activity - preparations for going away are in full flow, which for my part means tidying up large piles of washing so that I have enough clean clothes to wear, and ironing the clean clothes so that the airer can be cleared for the next laundry load! This was attacked tonight with moderate success, and we'll see if we can repeat the trick tomorrow.
Monday, November 12, 2012
Overdue Visit
This weekend just gone I went up to Chester to visit Dad and Gill, as the keen-eyed among you would have spotted from the notes to this extent in my posts at the tail end of last week. I'd long planned on going up before Chrissi and I went away for Thanksgiving, but at the same time was trying to balance this with driving lessons which I can only really do at the weekend.
By good fortune my driving instructor was unable to do a lesson this weekend (instead I booked one in for this evening) - so I booked tickets to head up instead. I surprisingly managed to get away for an early train (10:10 from Euston) which landed me in Chester a little after midday.
It was a pleasant couple of days - both relaxing and pleasant. We went out for a walk around Chester on the Saturday, and headed slightly further afield on the Sunday to West Kirby where we initially walked around the sailing club lake, and then along the coast for a few miles - stopping at a visitor centre at the furthest point of our walk, where there was a small coffee shop doing a roaring trade in superb coffee and excellent cake.
It was a very enjoyable couple of days - I headed back south on the Sunday evening, getting home at a little before 10pm (which wasn't too bad as I'd headed off from theirs at around 6:15).
By good fortune my driving instructor was unable to do a lesson this weekend (instead I booked one in for this evening) - so I booked tickets to head up instead. I surprisingly managed to get away for an early train (10:10 from Euston) which landed me in Chester a little after midday.
It was a pleasant couple of days - both relaxing and pleasant. We went out for a walk around Chester on the Saturday, and headed slightly further afield on the Sunday to West Kirby where we initially walked around the sailing club lake, and then along the coast for a few miles - stopping at a visitor centre at the furthest point of our walk, where there was a small coffee shop doing a roaring trade in superb coffee and excellent cake.
It was a very enjoyable couple of days - I headed back south on the Sunday evening, getting home at a little before 10pm (which wasn't too bad as I'd headed off from theirs at around 6:15).
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Flashback: Thanksgiving 2011, Part Two
I posted about the majority of our trip in yesterday's blog, but there's more to the story than that. One of the sadder events was that one of Chrissi's aunts was diagnosed as being terminally ill with cancer, and we spent a couple of days as a result visiting her in hospital. Chrissi was naturally quite worried that it would be the last time she'd see her as she was going away (happily she was still going in July when we were out there, and is hanging on in there even now).
This partially contributed, but by no means was the only factor, in Chrissi being rather upset when leaving. As it was her first trip back, it was always going to be the hardest, and leaving again was very difficult for her - and for me to see her so affected by it.
This naturally didn't stop when we got home, and she was down for the first couple of weeks back in the UK. I suspect the weather didn't help too much either - it's a lot easier to be depressed and miserable when the weather matches it! It was a struggle for both of us, and it was difficult for me to be supportive when I couldn't fully understand what was happening - particularly as I had hoped that having gone through this once in March, that it wouldn't be quite so difficult.
Of course, this happens to everyone, and it's perfectly normal - as many of her friends at work told her. I knew this full well, even if I didn't want it to be happening and hoped that it would be easier! The work routine almost certainly helped a lot, forcing her back into just normal day-to-day life, but it was hard in the evenings. It was difficult but it worked out in time as normal day-to-day living just took over and became normal once more.
The other reassuring thing for us is that we knew this time was always going to be the hardest - the first time back, the first time seeing everyone again, feeling that it was still her home. It was always going to be the most difficult, so to get past that is a significant achievement. I'm comfortable about it this year both knowing what to expect, and knowing that it will be easier for both of us knowing what happened last year and with the knowledge that it won't be that bad this time.
This partially contributed, but by no means was the only factor, in Chrissi being rather upset when leaving. As it was her first trip back, it was always going to be the hardest, and leaving again was very difficult for her - and for me to see her so affected by it.
This naturally didn't stop when we got home, and she was down for the first couple of weeks back in the UK. I suspect the weather didn't help too much either - it's a lot easier to be depressed and miserable when the weather matches it! It was a struggle for both of us, and it was difficult for me to be supportive when I couldn't fully understand what was happening - particularly as I had hoped that having gone through this once in March, that it wouldn't be quite so difficult.
Of course, this happens to everyone, and it's perfectly normal - as many of her friends at work told her. I knew this full well, even if I didn't want it to be happening and hoped that it would be easier! The work routine almost certainly helped a lot, forcing her back into just normal day-to-day life, but it was hard in the evenings. It was difficult but it worked out in time as normal day-to-day living just took over and became normal once more.
The other reassuring thing for us is that we knew this time was always going to be the hardest - the first time back, the first time seeing everyone again, feeling that it was still her home. It was always going to be the most difficult, so to get past that is a significant achievement. I'm comfortable about it this year both knowing what to expect, and knowing that it will be easier for both of us knowing what happened last year and with the knowledge that it won't be that bad this time.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Flashback: Thanksgiving 2011, Part One
As we are fast approaching the end of November this year, it's probably overdue to continue my flashback sequence by discussing last year's holiday at the same time.
Chrissi and I headed out last November to her parents', first stopping in Canada to see my aunt and uncle. We had two-three days there and had a very enjoyable time. It was Chrissi's first visit out to that part of Canada - we had a couple of days where we spent time in Halifax, and also went further afield too - down to Peggy's Cove, which is a lovely place to visit. It was quite breezy when we were there, not surprisingly for November, and I got a few good pictures of Chrissi with her hair wildly flowing in the wind and sheltering behind the lighthouse.
The next leg of our journey took us on to California (our flights taking us via Toronto). Nothing to report on our journey in, all very straightforward - but it is worth reminding people at this point in my tale that it was Chrissi's first trip back since she had moved out to England. It was nice for her to see everyone again, particularly her family and friends.
The whole week passed in mostly a blur - we were visiting people non-stop and catching up with different groups of family and friends at lunch and in the evening. Unlike in England, it's hard to meet just for a drink at the pub, so with two meals a day Chrissi and I were soon sharing our portions as it was otherwise just too much to cope with!
We went out to Arizona for Thanksgiving itself to visit Chrissi's grandparents. It was a nice trip out there, and it is always really nice out there weatherwise. There's something to be said for sitting outside in shorts in late November just relaxing and enjoying the sun. This year I even participated in some of the Black Friday shopping - although there wasn't any particular early rising event to note, but I did pick up a few books!
Chrissi and I headed out last November to her parents', first stopping in Canada to see my aunt and uncle. We had two-three days there and had a very enjoyable time. It was Chrissi's first visit out to that part of Canada - we had a couple of days where we spent time in Halifax, and also went further afield too - down to Peggy's Cove, which is a lovely place to visit. It was quite breezy when we were there, not surprisingly for November, and I got a few good pictures of Chrissi with her hair wildly flowing in the wind and sheltering behind the lighthouse.
The next leg of our journey took us on to California (our flights taking us via Toronto). Nothing to report on our journey in, all very straightforward - but it is worth reminding people at this point in my tale that it was Chrissi's first trip back since she had moved out to England. It was nice for her to see everyone again, particularly her family and friends.
The whole week passed in mostly a blur - we were visiting people non-stop and catching up with different groups of family and friends at lunch and in the evening. Unlike in England, it's hard to meet just for a drink at the pub, so with two meals a day Chrissi and I were soon sharing our portions as it was otherwise just too much to cope with!
We went out to Arizona for Thanksgiving itself to visit Chrissi's grandparents. It was a nice trip out there, and it is always really nice out there weatherwise. There's something to be said for sitting outside in shorts in late November just relaxing and enjoying the sun. This year I even participated in some of the Black Friday shopping - although there wasn't any particular early rising event to note, but I did pick up a few books!
Friday, November 09, 2012
Contrasting Evening
After yesterday's blog, heralding my evening accomplishments, tonight was a complete contrast. I pottered idly online for a couple of hours, Chrissi and I watched last night's episode of Hunted (more later) and then promptly fell asleep for 4 hours as Chrissi went upstairs to redecorate her nails or something equally exciting. On reawakening on the sofa at 2:50, I quickly did the washing up and then came on here to blog, because even if I haven't managed to prepare ones for the weekend I can at least write tonight's now!
So, Hunted update. The body count continues to rack up and Sam has lost her hat collection - having barely spent a moment without one on in the first half she's now not worn one in the last two episodes. I realise I've now no idea what her mission was - it was originally 'spy on Turner and find out his bid for the dam', but as that was sorted out in the third episode it's now gradually morphed into 'stay in the house, wander around and read any interesting faxes left lying about'. At the same time she seeks information on shady timing device Hourglass - between spying for her company in night, for herself in the day and pretending to be a nanny when she has a spare moment, I don't know when she sleeps and fail to understand how she looks so chipper. Perhaps this explains the recent absence of hats.
This week she found out more on this ultra-secretive company by virtue of the top spy investigative technique on looking on the bedside table of Stephen Turner (son of professional menacer Jack) - who she slept with to distract from an awkward question he asked about where she'd been. Stephen's main job in the household is to walk around the house wringing his hands at not being included in conversations - why he needed to hire a nanny to look after his kid when he has ample spare time is beyond me. This week he slowly connected the dots that the mysterious explosion that coincidentally gave them the exact money they needed just when they needed it didn't happen by accident. At the end of the episode we saw him receiving a dossier on Sam, which will presumably be the topic of his hand-wringing next week.
The main focus this week was the arrival of a Pakistani politician opposed to the dam sale (we still have no idea why Turner wants to buy the bloody thing in the first place). While having no influence and not being able to stop it, she was targetted for assassination because you don't leave these things to chance, in a plot that involved a man dressed in a rabbit suit. After the Byzantium team confronted her by taking out her bodyguards to warn her she was in danger (a phone call might have been more subtle and less ironic), she narrowly avoided being shot while meeting with a whistleblower. True to form of the program so far, said whistleblower managed to give us only a tease of plot exposition before being killed. We're either being drip fed additional information with torturous slowness to keep us intrigued, or they're making up a bit of plot each week to cover for the fact they don't actually know where this is going.
So far, my money's on the latter - we've a lot to resolve in two episodes and I suspect it's going to be the equivalent conclusion for a thriller that a sci-fi program would slot the word 'quantum' in a lot and hope it covers for a lack of explanation. It'll be fun, join us for my commentary on those.
So, Hunted update. The body count continues to rack up and Sam has lost her hat collection - having barely spent a moment without one on in the first half she's now not worn one in the last two episodes. I realise I've now no idea what her mission was - it was originally 'spy on Turner and find out his bid for the dam', but as that was sorted out in the third episode it's now gradually morphed into 'stay in the house, wander around and read any interesting faxes left lying about'. At the same time she seeks information on shady timing device Hourglass - between spying for her company in night, for herself in the day and pretending to be a nanny when she has a spare moment, I don't know when she sleeps and fail to understand how she looks so chipper. Perhaps this explains the recent absence of hats.
This week she found out more on this ultra-secretive company by virtue of the top spy investigative technique on looking on the bedside table of Stephen Turner (son of professional menacer Jack) - who she slept with to distract from an awkward question he asked about where she'd been. Stephen's main job in the household is to walk around the house wringing his hands at not being included in conversations - why he needed to hire a nanny to look after his kid when he has ample spare time is beyond me. This week he slowly connected the dots that the mysterious explosion that coincidentally gave them the exact money they needed just when they needed it didn't happen by accident. At the end of the episode we saw him receiving a dossier on Sam, which will presumably be the topic of his hand-wringing next week.
The main focus this week was the arrival of a Pakistani politician opposed to the dam sale (we still have no idea why Turner wants to buy the bloody thing in the first place). While having no influence and not being able to stop it, she was targetted for assassination because you don't leave these things to chance, in a plot that involved a man dressed in a rabbit suit. After the Byzantium team confronted her by taking out her bodyguards to warn her she was in danger (a phone call might have been more subtle and less ironic), she narrowly avoided being shot while meeting with a whistleblower. True to form of the program so far, said whistleblower managed to give us only a tease of plot exposition before being killed. We're either being drip fed additional information with torturous slowness to keep us intrigued, or they're making up a bit of plot each week to cover for the fact they don't actually know where this is going.
So far, my money's on the latter - we've a lot to resolve in two episodes and I suspect it's going to be the equivalent conclusion for a thriller that a sci-fi program would slot the word 'quantum' in a lot and hope it covers for a lack of explanation. It'll be fun, join us for my commentary on those.
Thursday, November 08, 2012
Productive Evening
Tonight was poker, so I was home later and therefore missed Hunted - will have to catch up with that tomorrow and share my thoughts on that. This weekend I'm headed up to Chester to see Dad, so I'll have to prepare a blog for Saturday and Sunday in advance - because otherwise I'm going to leave this empty. I leave early on Saturday morning and arrive late back on Sunday.
My observation from last night, where I had a sudden surge of activity (tidying, cleaning, washing and ironing) was that it's much lazier on the ironing when I'm working from home, or going to meetings. For the latter I can call on my reserve of smart shirts, and don't have to pull from my regular pile. For the former, I can laze about all day and work in my pyjamas and dressing gown perfectly efficiently. However, going to work at least requires me to flatten out a t-shirt.
Next weekend we head off to the States for two weeks on holiday - so I need to spend some of the time inbetween getting prepared for that. One of the tasks that raises its ugly head is ironing - just so I have enough clothes presentable enough both for holiday, and importantly for when I come back too!
This evening's blog, I also note, is the 666th in its history. An unusual landmark, if not one that the traditional significance attached to actually represents.
My observation from last night, where I had a sudden surge of activity (tidying, cleaning, washing and ironing) was that it's much lazier on the ironing when I'm working from home, or going to meetings. For the latter I can call on my reserve of smart shirts, and don't have to pull from my regular pile. For the former, I can laze about all day and work in my pyjamas and dressing gown perfectly efficiently. However, going to work at least requires me to flatten out a t-shirt.
Next weekend we head off to the States for two weeks on holiday - so I need to spend some of the time inbetween getting prepared for that. One of the tasks that raises its ugly head is ironing - just so I have enough clothes presentable enough both for holiday, and importantly for when I come back too!
This evening's blog, I also note, is the 666th in its history. An unusual landmark, if not one that the traditional significance attached to actually represents.
Wednesday, November 07, 2012
Overnight Coverage
I didn't stay up and watch the US election results come in, although I was tempted for a little while. As most of the key states weren't going to declare until well into the night (at least 3-4am in the UK) it would have been a rather pointless exercise. I did watch a bit of the early coverage, which was entertaining.
The main reason it was entertaining was because it was so bad. The networks in the UK started early, just before midnight, and went through the night - but wouldn't have anything to discuss for a good while after they started. They had nothing to talk about, no news to discuss, and were simply bouncing talking points randomly around the room and never actually dwelling on the subject long enough to actually investigate it.
My particular favourite was when BBC, as they like to do, put up lots of random graphics showing different things - the stand-out being a graph comparing presidential reelection success against unemployment. The message was that high unemployment meant no reelection - apart from Reagan, which wasn't the point they were making so they ignored it, but they did use this as the logic for Ford not being reelected. Personally I'd suspect that everything around Watergate and the Nixon pardon had a bit to do with it, but apparantly it was unemployment that was the kicker.
There was much else uninformed opinion, but I went to bed too early to see anything happen. Good news on the result though, and apparantly Karl Rove kicked off about FOX calling Ohio for Obama too early, which sounds like it was worth seeing.
There was also a beautiful comic on XKCD today which neatly lampooned all the nonsensical talking heads, which is worth a look.
The main reason it was entertaining was because it was so bad. The networks in the UK started early, just before midnight, and went through the night - but wouldn't have anything to discuss for a good while after they started. They had nothing to talk about, no news to discuss, and were simply bouncing talking points randomly around the room and never actually dwelling on the subject long enough to actually investigate it.
My particular favourite was when BBC, as they like to do, put up lots of random graphics showing different things - the stand-out being a graph comparing presidential reelection success against unemployment. The message was that high unemployment meant no reelection - apart from Reagan, which wasn't the point they were making so they ignored it, but they did use this as the logic for Ford not being reelected. Personally I'd suspect that everything around Watergate and the Nixon pardon had a bit to do with it, but apparantly it was unemployment that was the kicker.
There was much else uninformed opinion, but I went to bed too early to see anything happen. Good news on the result though, and apparantly Karl Rove kicked off about FOX calling Ohio for Obama too early, which sounds like it was worth seeing.
There was also a beautiful comic on XKCD today which neatly lampooned all the nonsensical talking heads, which is worth a look.
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
Scant Tales
Having worked at home the past two days, I've little in the way of information and stories to share - mostly this happens when I go outside. Today I was working from home in the most part because I wanted to isolate myself from annoying distractions while working on a document that had long needed finishing - and also because I was absolutely shattered this morning and didn't feel like getting out of bed. With my laptop already at home after working from home yesterday around my meeting, it was too tempting.
Despite the lack of interesting tales to relay, I find myself surprisingly more productive at home. I don't constantly stop for coffee or water or toilet breaks (the latter brought on by the first two). I obviously am not chatting with others at any point, and will typically start earlier and finish later without realising just because I'm not thinking about the train I need to get.
Today I managed to take this to a new height by using my lunch break to do the washing up and tidy the kitchen. Most unusual! But I'm back into work tomorrow so I'm sure I'll see something to inspire me to post about then.
Despite the lack of interesting tales to relay, I find myself surprisingly more productive at home. I don't constantly stop for coffee or water or toilet breaks (the latter brought on by the first two). I obviously am not chatting with others at any point, and will typically start earlier and finish later without realising just because I'm not thinking about the train I need to get.
Today I managed to take this to a new height by using my lunch break to do the washing up and tidy the kitchen. Most unusual! But I'm back into work tomorrow so I'm sure I'll see something to inspire me to post about then.
Monday, November 05, 2012
Public Transport Break
It's not uncommon to bemoan smokers who you work with - and particularly their breaks to feed their addiction. It is unfair, the nicotine-free cry, that because of this filthy habit they have the luxury of taking a 5 minute break every hour or two.
Leaving to one side how this is often utterly irrelevant, that smokers will often make up that time and that non-smokers will dawdle just as much over making a cup of coffee on an hourly basis - but I noted to Chrissi this evening that public transport users have a similar effect without anyone noticing.
Today I was at a meeting, and as I am still in the process of learning to drive I was attending by public transport. This meant a bus to a train to a bus, leaving my home at 10:55 to get to my destination for a 12:00 meeting. The return journey meant I left my meeting at 13:30 and arrived home at 14:45 - which is not too shabby for public transport involving multiple connections. However, I was close enough that had I been able to drive, it would have taken me a mere 25 minutes each way - and if we allow that I would not have cut it so fine and would have allowed myself an additional 15 minutes on the way there, we still notice that my 2 hours and 20 minutes of public transport greatly exceeds the 1 hour and 5 minutes that the trip would have taken by car.
Now, as this meeting was at such an annoying time I effectively missed my lunch break, grabbing a sandwich at my laptop when I returned home - but the point is still valid that it was still a huge additional use of time. So I won't be picking on any smoking breaks for a while.
Leaving to one side how this is often utterly irrelevant, that smokers will often make up that time and that non-smokers will dawdle just as much over making a cup of coffee on an hourly basis - but I noted to Chrissi this evening that public transport users have a similar effect without anyone noticing.
Today I was at a meeting, and as I am still in the process of learning to drive I was attending by public transport. This meant a bus to a train to a bus, leaving my home at 10:55 to get to my destination for a 12:00 meeting. The return journey meant I left my meeting at 13:30 and arrived home at 14:45 - which is not too shabby for public transport involving multiple connections. However, I was close enough that had I been able to drive, it would have taken me a mere 25 minutes each way - and if we allow that I would not have cut it so fine and would have allowed myself an additional 15 minutes on the way there, we still notice that my 2 hours and 20 minutes of public transport greatly exceeds the 1 hour and 5 minutes that the trip would have taken by car.
Now, as this meeting was at such an annoying time I effectively missed my lunch break, grabbing a sandwich at my laptop when I returned home - but the point is still valid that it was still a huge additional use of time. So I won't be picking on any smoking breaks for a while.
Sunday, November 04, 2012
Sunday Politics: US Election
While to some of my readers this won't be relevant, I think the majority (by a small margin) are either US citizens or live in America, or obviously are both. Even to those who don't live in the USA or have any involvement with people who do, the impact and reach of the presidential elections (and those in House and Senate races) will still be keenly felt by us.
I noted in a previous blog in mid-September that I felt uninspired by the politics of the moment, and in particular by those of the presidential election. As with two any races that eventually come down to picking between two, you always feel that you are compromising - vote for the candidate with the least faults, despite their merits, and feeling that by making it into a simple tally that you are in turn compromising on their own faults.
The media and the parties don't help this trend, of course - casting a vote for either candidate is deemed a ringing endorsement of everything they stand for, when none is ever cast in such a manner. Nuanced critique is hard to come by in such an environment, and a criticism of the candidate you support is painted instead as a betrayal rather than a perspective - as if there are only two viewpoints and all others are sidelined.
With all that in mind, however, voting is still important - because it's the only hold that the public has over their politicians. What perhaps best applies here is the salient quotation attributed to Edmund Burke, 'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." While only the most dramatic commentator (although there are plenty of those around of all colours) will cast this election in that light, the point is still that a failure to vote and have your imprint allows others to have their say at your expense.
I'm going to veer off this line for a moment to instead review some perspectives - points that won't have been raised in this election, but are relevant. In relation to other countries, education attainment is average, healthcare availability and healthcare for cost is poor, incarceration rates are absurdly high and - what should be most concerning in light of the 'American Dream' ethos - inequality is the greatest in the world while social mobility is amongst the lowest.
For a country that considers itself the foremost nation on earth, these should be shaming and their underlying problems challenged and debated. Little of that will occur - and while I don't think in this election either presidential candidate is going to work tirelessly to address these issues, there is still a distinction - that Obama will at the very least preserve the status quo, while the path put forward by Romney will exacerbate all of these issues. For that reason alone, I would only consider voting for Obama's reelection.
My reader(s) may disagree, of course - and while I wouldn't cast my vote as they would, I would remind them as above that it's still important for them to do so if they want to have their say.
I noted in a previous blog in mid-September that I felt uninspired by the politics of the moment, and in particular by those of the presidential election. As with two any races that eventually come down to picking between two, you always feel that you are compromising - vote for the candidate with the least faults, despite their merits, and feeling that by making it into a simple tally that you are in turn compromising on their own faults.
The media and the parties don't help this trend, of course - casting a vote for either candidate is deemed a ringing endorsement of everything they stand for, when none is ever cast in such a manner. Nuanced critique is hard to come by in such an environment, and a criticism of the candidate you support is painted instead as a betrayal rather than a perspective - as if there are only two viewpoints and all others are sidelined.
With all that in mind, however, voting is still important - because it's the only hold that the public has over their politicians. What perhaps best applies here is the salient quotation attributed to Edmund Burke, 'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." While only the most dramatic commentator (although there are plenty of those around of all colours) will cast this election in that light, the point is still that a failure to vote and have your imprint allows others to have their say at your expense.
I'm going to veer off this line for a moment to instead review some perspectives - points that won't have been raised in this election, but are relevant. In relation to other countries, education attainment is average, healthcare availability and healthcare for cost is poor, incarceration rates are absurdly high and - what should be most concerning in light of the 'American Dream' ethos - inequality is the greatest in the world while social mobility is amongst the lowest.
For a country that considers itself the foremost nation on earth, these should be shaming and their underlying problems challenged and debated. Little of that will occur - and while I don't think in this election either presidential candidate is going to work tirelessly to address these issues, there is still a distinction - that Obama will at the very least preserve the status quo, while the path put forward by Romney will exacerbate all of these issues. For that reason alone, I would only consider voting for Obama's reelection.
My reader(s) may disagree, of course - and while I wouldn't cast my vote as they would, I would remind them as above that it's still important for them to do so if they want to have their say.
Saturday, November 03, 2012
Week in Shorts
Several assorted notes to clean up from last week - rather than drip-feeding them I'm going to do it in one go to skip over the old news.
Bond & Burgers: Thursday I was due to meet with Chrissi's work for Bond & burgers - as I was on a pseudo-health motivation and had eaten Chinese at lunch, I skipped the former but did join to watch Skyfall. It was rather good - a more brutal, simplistic film than many of the Bond ones are (and better for it - motivations like greed and revenge are far easier to believe than the films based around far-fetched world domination schemes). Judi Dench played a superb major role in this, which was excellently done - although the star for me was the rediscovery of the beautiful DB5 from Goldfinger. I've never seen an audience actually ooh and half-clap in appreciation before like that.
Hunted Update: Saturday saw Chrissi and I catching up with professional hat-wearer Sam Hunter in the fifth of the eight episodes. We should be halfway towards working out what's going on, but are possibly more confused than ever. Hourglass is, it transpires, a shady multi-hyper-national set of corporations trying to control the world and obtain all its riches, which proves that you can set a story entirely on the basis of left-wing conspiracy theories and add nothing else. Having expedited the plot a little by informing us of the above, MI6 section head George Ballard was then promptly murdered - as were several other people, meaning progressively fewer loose ends to tie up by the final episode.
Sam let us down by not wearing any hats this week (disappointing) - but did manage to catch up with one of her non-stop flashbacks. Blank Face Man didn't kill her last week, but instead used a sedative to get her to a hospital so that he could tell her that people were trying to kill her, a fact she was already beginning to suspect. It's still nonsense that makes very little sense, but good fun entertainment all the same.
Merlin: Chrissi and I watch this regularly as well, and it's been a long-standing favourite of ours. Originally I mocked it for its silliness, before realising it was a little more tongue in cheek than I had first noticed. While it is still enjoyable, I am getting increasingly irritated by the fact that the training of Camelot's finest knights seems to be around parrying their opponent's sword thrust so they can kick them. As befits a children's drama, noone actually gets hit with a sword and they're mostly carried for the look of the thing. It gets a little wearing - anyway, this week's episode mostly concerned Merlin moping as to whether or not he should save Mordred and whether or not his actions were fated and whether or not all his moping was in fact fated as well - and which trumps which, Mordred being fated to kill Arthur or Arthur's destiny. Merlin's Mordred-obsessed moping is getting a little wearing, in case you hadn't noticed.
Movember Admin: I mentioned on Thursday I was participating in Movember this year - I've gotten my act together and reinstated my page from last year. Please give generously, either in support of myself or in support of Chrissi in coping with my new upper lip pet.
Bond & Burgers: Thursday I was due to meet with Chrissi's work for Bond & burgers - as I was on a pseudo-health motivation and had eaten Chinese at lunch, I skipped the former but did join to watch Skyfall. It was rather good - a more brutal, simplistic film than many of the Bond ones are (and better for it - motivations like greed and revenge are far easier to believe than the films based around far-fetched world domination schemes). Judi Dench played a superb major role in this, which was excellently done - although the star for me was the rediscovery of the beautiful DB5 from Goldfinger. I've never seen an audience actually ooh and half-clap in appreciation before like that.
Hunted Update: Saturday saw Chrissi and I catching up with professional hat-wearer Sam Hunter in the fifth of the eight episodes. We should be halfway towards working out what's going on, but are possibly more confused than ever. Hourglass is, it transpires, a shady multi-hyper-national set of corporations trying to control the world and obtain all its riches, which proves that you can set a story entirely on the basis of left-wing conspiracy theories and add nothing else. Having expedited the plot a little by informing us of the above, MI6 section head George Ballard was then promptly murdered - as were several other people, meaning progressively fewer loose ends to tie up by the final episode.
Sam let us down by not wearing any hats this week (disappointing) - but did manage to catch up with one of her non-stop flashbacks. Blank Face Man didn't kill her last week, but instead used a sedative to get her to a hospital so that he could tell her that people were trying to kill her, a fact she was already beginning to suspect. It's still nonsense that makes very little sense, but good fun entertainment all the same.
Merlin: Chrissi and I watch this regularly as well, and it's been a long-standing favourite of ours. Originally I mocked it for its silliness, before realising it was a little more tongue in cheek than I had first noticed. While it is still enjoyable, I am getting increasingly irritated by the fact that the training of Camelot's finest knights seems to be around parrying their opponent's sword thrust so they can kick them. As befits a children's drama, noone actually gets hit with a sword and they're mostly carried for the look of the thing. It gets a little wearing - anyway, this week's episode mostly concerned Merlin moping as to whether or not he should save Mordred and whether or not his actions were fated and whether or not all his moping was in fact fated as well - and which trumps which, Mordred being fated to kill Arthur or Arthur's destiny. Merlin's Mordred-obsessed moping is getting a little wearing, in case you hadn't noticed.
Movember Admin: I mentioned on Thursday I was participating in Movember this year - I've gotten my act together and reinstated my page from last year. Please give generously, either in support of myself or in support of Chrissi in coping with my new upper lip pet.
Friday, November 02, 2012
Jolted Reminders
November 2nd is always a date that will forever stick with me, being the date of my mother's death now eleven years past. In previous years the main word I've used in my blog has been poignant - which is true, that it is a day when I am more tended to be reflective and thoughtful.
However, this year was notable as it was something that was sudden and a jolted reminder more than a planned one. While I had known all week long what the date was, being adept at understanding the calendar, at the same time it hadn't really occurred to me either as to the significance for me. It was only when I had wandered onto Facebook at a little after midnight in what was then early this morning that I noted a friend's birthday - which I have naturally as a result associated with the date, and that more than anything else was my prompt and reminder.
I'm not sure if this lack of clear thought in advance is significant - I don't think it is particularly - but I do know that over the last year I've chatted about this a lot more openly, with all of Chrissi, Rachel and my Dad. All of which means it's something I'm a lot more comfortable with than I have been in previous years, and better able to deal with.
However, this year was notable as it was something that was sudden and a jolted reminder more than a planned one. While I had known all week long what the date was, being adept at understanding the calendar, at the same time it hadn't really occurred to me either as to the significance for me. It was only when I had wandered onto Facebook at a little after midnight in what was then early this morning that I noted a friend's birthday - which I have naturally as a result associated with the date, and that more than anything else was my prompt and reminder.
I'm not sure if this lack of clear thought in advance is significant - I don't think it is particularly - but I do know that over the last year I've chatted about this a lot more openly, with all of Chrissi, Rachel and my Dad. All of which means it's something I'm a lot more comfortable with than I have been in previous years, and better able to deal with.
Thursday, November 01, 2012
Movember: The Return
As today marks November 1st, it seems an appropriate time to point out that for the second consecutive year I am participating in Movember. For those of you who are not aware, this is the growing of a moustache for charity - and to raise awareness of prostate cancer.
Last year, by the end of the month, I had almost managed to persuade something visible to cling to my upper lip. This year I will see if the feat can be repeated. More news from this and complaining on this from my wife to follow over the next 30 days.
Last year, by the end of the month, I had almost managed to persuade something visible to cling to my upper lip. This year I will see if the feat can be repeated. More news from this and complaining on this from my wife to follow over the next 30 days.
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