Wednesday May 20, 2009

Buy our computers or the Dog gets it....

During a chat with a collegue from Sun this T-Shirt entered the conversation which had caused a storm in the US many years ago. At that time Sun was using a dog called Network as part of a marketing campaign. The idea was if you wanted something you asked Network and he got it for you. There was even a kennel for him in the Menlo Park Campus and it was said he was Mcnealy's pet at home. So an enterprising person in Sun designed this alternative marketing T Shirt. Soon after the T shirts were distributed we all went to Sun's yearly technical convention held in two sessions a week apart. A lot of the Brit's turned up wearing these shirts we they registered for the event (which was held in the US) and the American registration people were agast at the T shirts content. I think we were told to change into something else asap. However the creator of the shirt managed to palm one off on Scott Mcnealy who thought it was great. I wonder if he still has it. The person who found this example in his house wants to remain anonymous. In light of the recent IBM/Oracle announcements maybe we should commission a new shirt with this design but with different words - modesty prohibits me on publishing any spinning around my head at the moment..

Friday March 06, 2009

Churchill has the last word...

I have just finished this jigsaw. It is not like the photo mosaic ones I have done in the past, this one is made up of all the famous Churchill quotes. Sadly you can't read the words in this photo but if you get up close to the jigsaw you can easily make out the sentences. I am now doing another photo mosaic of a dolphin which is proving more troublesome...

Thursday March 05, 2009

A Time Of Gifts..

This book by Paddy ( Patrick ) Leigh Fermor is a classic. It is the first of three books ( the last has not been written and may never be) on his trip from the UK to Constantinople. The trip was made just after Hitler came to power and starts with a brief autobiography of his life before he made the trip. By all accounts he was a wild child, his family lived in India where his father worked and he was left behind with a family and he pretty much did what he liked. He got thrown out of school and then decided on a whim to make this trip. He kept a journal of the trip but it was only after he was re-united with it that he wrote these books in the 1970's. His historical knowledge and love of languages is quite amazing for someone so young at the time he did the journey.

The incredible thing is he undertook this journey on foot. He did get a few freebie trips on boats/lorries but he had strict guidelines before he accepted such lifts. His accomodation given he was living off a small amount of money varied from barns sleeping on straw to plush 'stately homes' as we now call them ( where he was invited to stay). Wherever he went he marveled at the buildings and took in the culture unusual for someone so young. People were very kind to him and often allowed him a stranger to stay in their houses. Of course WW2 was around the corner and already Europe was getting ready for those dark years but there was no bad feelings towards him at all.

At one point his rucksack was stolen and he to go to the local embassy in Germany to get replacement papers. The embassy also loaned him a fiver which in true Fermoor style was returned to them as soon as he could. He also lost his diary in the theft. He had arranged for money to be sent to various places so he could pick up extra funds on his travels. In Vienna he had a longer stopover and ended up making money by doing drawings for people. He also learnt there that many years ago the Viennese stopped the Turks over running their city and possibly prevented a total Turkish victory over all of Europe. One reason they managed this was they had a wall protecting the city built that was paid with money obtained from the UK to release someone the Viennese had kidnapped. Europe's love affair with coffee started there also when Turks who did not want to return stayed on and introduced the locals to the strange brown liquid. I imagine they did not want to go back as the reception they might have got having not won the battle might have ended up with their untimely death..

Fermor has finished the second book in this series but has not written the last of the three. He needs to get a move on as he is in his early nintees... I will be getting the second book soon.

Wednesday March 04, 2009

On the continent...

I thought after several years observations having had holidays on the continent I would discuss the differences between Europe and blighty (The UK). First of all the bad stuff....

Cars. Because of the narrow streets and shall we say erratic driving most cars have accident signature(s) on them. Except Police cars for some reason...

Horns. European driving requires ample use of the cars horn. So much so that car makers when they hand out guarantees for new cars exclude the cars horn in any warranty

Two stroke engine fumes. These come from the scooters and other two wheeled vehicles that wizz around the streets causing ear splitting noise pollution as well.

Toilets. The ones in the UK are not brilliant but it has to be said my experience of toilets in Europe is worse. When in Italy recently no public toilet had a seat at all. Is someone a toilet seat maniac and is stealing them all ? How could you smuggle out a toilet seat from a bar ? Also what is with that toilet looking other porcelain bowl in the bathroom - what is that used for ?

Now we have got the bad stuff out of the way lets discuss the good things..

Street squares or Piazza's. These are wonderful places. They provide a rest for weary walkers with cafes where you can sit down and take a break and people watch. In the evening very often they are places where people gather and meet and talk to each other. Kids play in safety.

Paying the bill. Often when you go to a bar you pay when you are ready to go. You can often be sat outside and the proprietor will trust you to pay before you go. Amazing.

Sunglasses. I think it is so cool as soon as the sun appears even in winter our European cousins don their sunglasses. They also manage to wear them on the tops of their heads and they never fall off. I am also sure Europeans are cold blooded. As soon as the sun shines very often they will stretch out in the sun soaking up its rays - again even in winter.

Cobbled streets. Very often old towns will still have their cobbles showing. In the UK most have been tarmaced over. They add character to the place and slow cars down as they are like a medieval rumble strip.

Rustic buildings. Very often the old buildings will have chips out of them, cracks, peeling exteriors. Like the cobbles they make the place seem lived in and full of character.

No sink taps. In public toilets the sink will have a foot pedal. Two good things about this. One it is hygenically a good idea. Second you don't end up with taps being left on wasting water.

Food. The tomatoes and other fruit and vegetables are fresh. They have not been transported miles and or were taken from the farm when they were green and ripened over a prolonged journey across continents. It means food like pizzas and salads are divine.

Language. It seems amazing that so many languages sprung up on the continent. Countries that butt up to each other created their own language. Some like Belgium chose to use one or more existing language. It is so nice to hear different languages even if you can't understand a word that is being said.

Driving on the right side of the road. I hate to admit it but once you get used to it driving on the right hand side of the road seems better - I can't explain why but I am sure there has been studies on this and those studies indicated it was better to do so. Also the UK are in the minority driving on the left.

The Euro. Ok it was a joke when it came out but who is laughing now with the pound almost at equality with the Euro.

Siestas. Great idea. When it is boiling hot who wants to be working? Have a midday sleep and come back when it is cooler. I often have a nap during the weekends and feel rested afterwards.

Shops. It is great to see on the continent they have managed to keep the local shops and have the large supermarkets alongside. Both seem to be doing well. It keeps the centre of towns vibrant and alive with activity.

Tuesday March 03, 2009

A few horses which should have not left the BMW stable

Over the last two weeks I have seen two examples of the new BMW X6 car. It is the 'X' version of the equally horrible Six series coupe that to me looks like it has been run over by a steam roller. Looking at X6 car from the side its shape appears to be a lop sided triangle. The only reason I can see for buying this car is to indicate to all you meet while you are driving it that you have fifty thousand pounds to spend on a road vehicle; more than the average person. While I am critising BMW cars, I cannot miss out mentioning the one series that seems to be selling well. The front and rear look like they have come from two different designers who never met each other until they glued their front and rear bits together and then BMW made the car.

The final car to mention which is a BMW car in all but name is the Mini. The basic car is a fantastic - if overpriced version of the classic Mini. The rag top version looks silly but then BMW decided to rebuild the Clubman. The original was bad enough but new version looks like a Mini Hearse [pun intended]

Monday March 02, 2009

Eddi Reader

A friend from work lent me an album by Eddi Reader . I sort of remember her from Fairground Attraction but the album lent to me Angels and Electricity is fantastic There are 'twelve plus one tracks' on the cd and the best is the first called Kiteflyer's hill. Very often in the car I'll play that track twice in a row - it is that good. Apart from the quality of the lyrics and music she has a really great voice. I like the cd as it has a nice mix of music not just ballads. If anyone can recommend any of her other cd's I would be grateful.

Shine a light

Watched the DVD of this film by Martin Scorsese recently. It is a part documentary part live show of the Rolling Stones. It follows the other film he did a while ago called No Direction Home about Bob Dylan. I did not expect the Stones film to follow the same format but it was mostly live show with little documentary. For me the amazing thing about their live performances is the energy Jagger has on the stage. It is like he is Jumping Jack Flash himself. Keith Richards with his laughter lines and odd things in his hair, Ron Wood with the perpetual cigarette hanging from his mouth an boyish face and Charlie on the drums who is delightfully vague - the man with a garage load of cars who cannot drive. An interesting question was posed to a very youthful Mick Jagger in the documentary bit. Do you think you will be doing this when you are sixty? Yes he said.....

Friday February 27, 2009

Person of the Week - Gail Trimble

A week ago no one had heard of her except the followers of University Challenge . She led her team, Corpus Christie Oxford to win the series. There then followed some rather unpleasant comments about her which I thought were totally out of order. I think it is great she has managed to lead that team and amass the amount of knowledge that I think gave her the all time highest tally of point in the series. The funny thing about this story is that a men's magazine called Nutz contacted her brother ( I don't know how they knew how to do that ) and asked him to provide them with her email address so they could contact her to discuss being in their magazine - which was promised to be 'tasteful'. He declined.

Thatcher's last days

Lindsay Duncan was excellent as Margaret Thatcher in a TV drama last night on BBC. It charted her last days as the Tories kicked her out of office and replaced her with John Major. There were loads of well known supporting actors who also did a great job, the actor playing her husband was especially good. It has been announced she is going to be Doctor Who's sidekick in a program to be screened this year. There is a little more information on the Thatcher program here . The program did not act out the part where Thatcher was driven away from No Ten. The ghostly frozen image of her face behind the glass of her Jag was something to behold.

R.I.P Wendy Richards

After her third battle with cancer Wendy Richards died yesterday . She spent her later years as Pauline Fowler in Eastenders a soap on BBC TV. I must admit it was not my favourite TV program except when Phil and Grant Mitchell knocked seven bells out of each other - a regular occurance when other storylines had dried up. Wendy was also well known as Miss Brahmes in "Are you being served?" a comedy series based in a department store again on BBC TV. Her last TV role as Mrs Crump in Marple: A Pocket Full Of Rye.

Thursday February 26, 2009

Has a deal been done?

Today we have learnt that the old Honda team have been told to prepare for a test in Spain next month. So the rumours are that a management buyout led by Ross Brawn has been accepted by the Honda management. The new unamed team will use Mercedez Benz engines. In other F1 news an American F1 team was launched in the US yesterday and will appear on the grid in 2010.

Was it really that bad ?

I was talking to the students about the men's aftershave/deodorant called Hai Karate yesterday. I even bought a bottle of the stuff years ago and was a bit annoyed that wearing it did not reproduce the same effect as you saw on the advert. Anyway I looked on YouTube for the advert and yes it was as bad as you may remember it - Be careful how you use it...

The allotment queue...

It has been reported today that 150,000 people in the UK are waiting for an allotment. For those outside the UK an allotment is a piece of land you rent from your local council or in my case church on which you can grow your own vegetables. I know from the large allotment site down the road from me that allotments are more popular than ever before as the unused plots on that site have shrunk to zero over the years. So a scheme called garden share already setup in some counties of the UK which encourages those with gardens who don't have the time/knowledge to use that space to grow vegetables to share them with those waiting for a plot is going to be rolled out nationwide. It sounds like a great idea.

Wednesday February 25, 2009

Rome - a short break

Last week we had a short break in Rome. Having now seen the historical buildings especially those dating back to the Roman period I can confirm Rome was not built in a day... Do you know why the city has its name? It all relates to Romulus and Remus .

Anyway most people have heard of the major sites and the first we saw was the Coliseum.

The picture does not do it justice. Like all the major Roman buildings it is HUGE. The 'stage' where the fights took place has been excavated to show the cells where the animals/gladiators stayed while they waited for their turn to entertain the crowds. The good news is that travelling to Rome in February the queues were short and it was not boiling hot as it can be in the summer. In fact it was quite chilly. After looking over the Coliseum we walked over to the Forum area where a lot of the remains of buildings exist - sadly not very well signed. Near to this is the Palatine hill where people like Cicero had their flashy houses. In the Forum area was a small monument built by Julius Caesar's wife to indicate the place where he was cremated after being killed. On this monument people had put fresh flowers...

We visited the Pantheon a Roman temple later used as a church. It has an amazing Dome roof. The Roman's were clever devils and they knew how to build the dome using light materials that made the construction easier. Again there were not many people in it so you could enjoy it.

In Rome there are countless churches. Most of the larger ones had fantastic painted walls and ceilings. Unlike other countries they did not mind you taking photos.

Of course the site people always go to is the Vatican city a state within the Rome city. St Peter's is an amazing church, it makes the other churches in Rome look ordinary. You can go to the top of the dome (cuppola). The first part of the journey is by lift. When you get out of the lift you enter the inside of the church and walk around the 'base' of the dome which has a walkway around its perimeter with a high wire fence to stop you or any objects falling onto the people below. You then continue your journey up the dome to a viewing area outside.

Another place everyone goes to is the Sistine chapel. This is part of the Vatican museums. You could easily spend a day looking at the gathered gifts presented to the popes over the years. Once in the chapel no photos are allowed but the painted walls are awsome. There is more information and pictures here . For me the picture on one end wall "The Last judgment " by Michelangelo is just fantastic and I could have looked at it for hours.

So my only downside of this trip was the cost. The pound/Euro rate is not in our favour. We made the fatal mistake of going in a cafe and ordering without seeing the prices. We were fleeced for seventeen Euros for a fanta, coffee and a measly sandwich. To make matters worse the toilets were blocked, smelly and not working. They needed some Roman technology.

A final picture of the Trevi Fountain where you throw money in to ensure you go back to Rome.

All in all a great trip.

Timewatching Lizzies cannons

Excellent Timewatch program last weekend. It was all about the raising of two cannons from the wreck that sunk during England's battle with the French/Spanish during Elizabeth the 1st's reign. The guy raising the cannons believed all the cannons on the wreck had the same bore size and if so proved would bring the date forward when England could produce cannons that could all share the same balls. This was a big development as when loading the cannon you did not have to find the right sized ball. It allowed you to then fire all cannons together increasing their effect on your enemy. At the end of the program they built a replica and fired it to show how good it was. It had a range of a mile! They also raised a musket and built a replica of that and that could pierce a plate of mild steel that a modern gun could only put a dent in.