March 2008 Archives

(08:58:37) Beth's 30 today.. lots of surprises in store.. Chilling out this morning, though - last day before I go back to work.

(17:16:28) is with family friends today.. hopefully this is a worthy birthday for Beth! We're off to see a performance later. Musical Theatre Treat!

(18:47:06) Studio curtains: up .. early celebrations of Beth's 30th birthday: done .. tonight? I may make a plinth. And muse upon how to do the door.

(14:18:11) Down on the coast..it's my best mate's folks' ruby anniversary..lovely to have been invited. OK, so I'm a mile from the sea, but feels good.

(19:02:34) is home in time for the Dark Earth Light Out Thing at 8pm.. is that GMT or BST? Or ELO? Mr Blue Sky, please tell us why... etc.

(20:03:19) Lights out! Dark, innit... should I turn off my PC, too?

(13:41:52) Wet day.. busying myself indoors... need some of those curly curtain hooks. Off to my Dad's later.. maybe to walk the dog, or to make cakes.

(13:43:35) is still looking lasciviously at nailguns. The 400quid one is a *bit* out of my price range...

(23:54:37) is off to bed after recording some NSD (yay!) then listening to some remarkably good music on Asda FM (http://asda.co.uk/corp/asda-fm.html)

(10:09:58) has been to the doctors (still achey neck ow) & received Stock Answer 2: probably a virus.. keep taking ibuprofen, come back if not better.

(12:15:51) advice for anyone considering using a VoltStick to help put a mirror up. It's hypersensitive. Well, I hope it is..

(12:16:52) In other news, we spent the whole drive home from Argos trying to say "Mirror" like an American. We know how to have fun :D

(17:46:52) DIY success.. new taps downstairs: done. New light fitting at the top of the stairs: done (save for a lick of paint). New mierrrr: done.

(18:27:42) I've been a-blogging: Holiday week.. and signage! http://tinyurl.com/3c7ytb

(19:58:18) Does honey count as one of my 'five-a-day' fruit and vegetables? If not, it blimmin' well should.

(23:34:35) All done for the day.. and before midnight, too! Tonight I mainly made A Curtain. I know.. exciting, isn't it? Yeah, pull yourself together.

(09:45:12) Ahh the dear old NHS.. I'm in a waiting room at the L&D Hospital with Beth- will it be 10 mins, will it be 4 hrs? Thank goodness for my GBA.

(11:45:26) is in RMA hell. I just hope they pay the postage.. otherwise this could get expensive and irksome. Oh I'm SUCH a complainer.

(17:17:38) All done packaging things up for sending them back - £120 worth of defective tech (defectech?) Need insurance.. hope postage gets refunded..

(19:56:53) This is one of the best (of the few!) compilation CDs I've made in the past 3 years. In no small part due to podsafe music. Boyscoutn'. Wow.

(19:59:45) I'm using Spaz (http://funkatron.com/spaz) - mainly cos it's Air driven - and when I post a Tweet it says "Wilhelm!" at the bottom left.Why?

(20:01:46) *cries* I've done it again... put together the PERFECT track order in VLC, then closed it before I saved the .m3u. I. Am. A Pillock.

(23:33:26) Stripped back Bomb The Bass and a gorgeous video... http://www.dieterwiechmann.com/butterfingers . Props to the Trev for finding it.

(10:18:29) is having no truck with Tuesday. CDs being burned, washing being sorted and general things being done. We have comedy tonight, though. Yay!

(11:14:25) on hold with Canon.. I've had enough of my 50mm lens refusing to autofocus. Their hold music is out of phase. Sounds horrible. 2nd lap...

(14:21:06) is having purple highlights applied to hair for comedy and whimsy.

(21:55:50) is watching Comedy At The George on the Strand. Some hilarity. Some old mates, and birthday celebrations for Beth. She's having fun.

(00:11:38) That's quite enough PC destruction for the day (having managed to destroy my VMware Fusion XP installation). At least my TomTom works again.

(01:01:34) is it me, or has the latest OS X 'Security' 'Patch' mullered VMWare Fusion *and* my Apache2 installation? Having to start my www manually...

(09:39:53) Singing along with Neil Diamond as the snow froths down.. I love the juxtaposition. In other news: VMWare has risen from the dead Alleluia!

(12:09:17) A modern twist on an old idiom.. "like looking for a sock in a ballpool" Another day, another indoor play area... it's snowing again.

(15:28:48) Off home now, butter wouldn't melt as the weather goes.. the snow's gone, mind. I think I've a cold. My me hurts. Echinacea: the way ahead.

(12:39:37) Enjoying Scenes From South Yorkshire - definitely John Shuttleworth country. Yay for playbarns with free wi-fi, though. And campachino.

(15:01:41) NOW I'm cross with iMovie. I don't spend half an hour putting clips together only for it to explode and crash. I don't *do* video. Bah.

(18:33:39) We made a video to celebrate the Grand Opening of our Big Pockets Bag o' Crap. http://snipr.com/bagospong . It's, er, unusual. We had fun.

(22:34:59) Playing Herb Alpert - "Keep Your Eye On Me" on internet radio. I love pop music SO much.

(23:18:53) I've been a-blogging: Things to do on Good Friday http://tinyurl.com/2qfxkg

(12:30:38) First tweet of the day (kinda like first drink?)- it's 12.30 already! Shows how busy I am. Feeling buoyant today. I like that word. Buoyant.

(18:20:13) Finally at the bus stop after Extreme Desk Tidying - couldn't face to leave it despite my laptop's continued deadness. Done, finished, good.

(20:56:00) Back down to the studio.. finishing off the voicers for my mate Van. This time, I might get the time of his show right. I feel such a fool..

(21:26:13) Is this for REAL? http://snipr.com/melodyne - pulling audio chords apart. The future of mashups is here!

(09:29:36) is working on a server without any music or podcasts in my ears.. brainitch is drifting from Spin Doctors, through Chicago to Jon Coulton..

(10:37:55) has just ordered another two boxes of teabags for the office, after 440 were used in the LAST WEEK! That's an average of 62 cups a day(!)

(10:38:54) is excited because he's just had a box o'crap (so not a bag, then) delivered from Bigpockets. Activity for the weekend: YouTube video!

(06:44:14) The coach driver is listening to Jive Bunny. Voluntarily. My neck hurts this morning.. open window stiffness. I really don't 'do' Tuesdays.

(14:09:19) Oh dear. My work laptop has borked, so it's time to move desks.. this has had a bad effect on my List Of Things To Do. I need more coffees.

(18:41:22) Ooh.. Leo Laporte's reviewing a bit of kit I recommended to him on the Daily Giz Wiz. Makes me feel like a pro.. Heh.. some hopes.

(19:05:48) Dead laptop with the doctors.. so onto the PDA. The following are inexplicably in autocomplete memory: 'becauseto', 'norks' and 'CliveDunn'.

(21:13:19) is off downstairs again to try and make some jingles before I have to go to bed. Frankly, I have no hope (since bedtime is in 15 minutes!)

(21:14:02) Ooh! This is my 1002nd update. How did I manage to miss that? A round of drinks for everybody... I wonder if I'll make it to 2008 in.. 2008.

(11:30:28) The delights of diddly-diddly music. Lots of Irish folk in Luton; there's dancing in the Arndale today. A chance for poor photography?Taken!

(13:53:20) It's sad, but I don't think I'll ever get the hang of playing games on the Mac, despite the graphical eyecandy (http://source.bungie.org)

(17:51:18) My knee is damp, due to washing machine floodery. It seems the guinea pigs' fur gunged up the filtery thing. Aren't they machine washable?

(21:06:15) writing sweepers for a DJ mate of mine.. I hope he thinks they're good enough. I'll rustle the family together to do some 'shouts' tomorrow.

(23:22:19) Needed CD-Rs, so I ordered a bag o' crap (http://snipr.com/bagocrap - now with amusing comments!) too.. expect a video of my disappointment.

(11:15:23) It's a lovely morning in Herts- I'm spending time with the children while Beth's at a tutorial. Poundland yay! (THE place to get tiewraps!)

(15:33:17) I've been a-blogging: Early Day Motion: Photography in Public Areas. http://tinyurl.com/2lugdt

(23:14:33) wonders what has happened to this evening. Like a rug that's been pulled out from under me, except with more tuna panini. Bah. Night, world.

(08:08:37) The M1's at a standstill again.. apparently, it's because a lamppost has been knocked over. Emergency vehicles whizzing by.. I'm SO late.

(16:57:46) Cabling up servers.. nice to have some solitude, while my inner ears are massaged by some messy bass electronica (http://bleep show.com)

(19:50:33) The end of a tiring day- another one with that 'stitched-up' feeling. Writing a post-mortem email on the bus; study's going to have to wait.

(23:56:39) I've been a-blogging: Catching up.. and Neil Gaimon http://tinyurl.com/3a2fju

(11:11:02) Catching up with a TOP old workmate over a cinnamony coffee thing. Good times. With bonus caffeine.

(18:27:22) Another hectic eclectic, static electric workday done..all tired out now. What to do when I get home? Studio things, maybe; I need a nailgun

(19:06:25) Writing some North South Divide news, while the coach crawls up the M1. I fear it'll be rubbish till Christmas (the motorway, not the news).

(10:01:11) Tuesdays shouldn't be this good. If I could find that darn voucher, it'd be close to perfect. C'mon, St. Stephen (I think..)

(13:06:54) Irksome: Grammatically poor sale flashes: "Save up to 70% off clothing". Also clothes that look like two things but are just one. CONFUSION!

(15:26:09) Skype phones by 3.. are they any good? We were discussing the Cool Things (free MSN messenger etc).. now my dear ol' Nokia 5140 is sulking.

(23:07:15) First time in AGES I've watched a DVD with Beth.. Stardust. By Neil Gaiman: Customarily brilliant.. humour: spot on (except Bloody Gervais).

(11:49:01) I have spent far too much time this morning looking for things.Finally found my jeans(!) but a M&S gift receipt that I've "filed" eludes me.

(15:31:37) Things I've said more than once today: "Isn't it quiet?" Something of a contrast from the weekend's happy mayhem. Hometime.,bring the noise.

(15:35:59) Find a penny, pick it up, and all day long you'll have a penny. It's started again: good old-fashioned British horizontal rain. Fabbo.Soaky.

(16:01:26) Gah! When is the Nokia N96 out? My gadget-addicted brain wants one, and I need to persuade myself that I can't afford it for, say, 5 years..

(16:34:42) This site gets more bizarre by the day.. I defy you not to laugh at this SPECIAL OFFER: http://snipr.com/bagotat Word of the day: Fukubukuro

(16:36:09) Trying that link again: http://snipr.com/bagocrap . Darn it, they've sold out already. Perplexing.

(19:13:34) Just been up to the loft to drop some boxes off. So much junk in there; it needs inventorying, then mostly Freecycling or chucking. One day.

(09:46:41) Singing "Spider Pig" with the children, before we head off out to a play farm.. I'm sleepy, but in a good mood. People are great.

(11:44:25) Things I had never seen before but have now: capybara. Large bundle of fur, really, and much less rubbish than rabbits. We're at Woodside!

(21:51:37) Playing radio stations.. now playing Propaganda : Duel. Still to come, Martians and I, Ludicrous. Everyone should be allowed to do this.

(22:36:48) Dan Le Sac, Killers - Tranquilize and Dave Ford... I'm playing some FANTASTIC music tonight... worth the hassle of preparing daft features:D

(09:23:32) Beth's bought a new gadget! Oh it's SO gorgeous.. diy ambient music.. http://snipr.com/zoundz . Kinda like the iZ but more 'Chill' :D

(19:42:12) Just saw an advert (best bit of Ant & Dec's Sat-Night Lowest Common Denominator) Trident Soft: "Mess with your head." Psychotropic gum now?

(09:25:48) Learn something new every day.. Food company "3663" is so-called because it spells 'FOOD' on a phone. Can't find that US food giant. Help?

(09:27:43) Ahh. Cargill. I'm learning so much about the world through podcasts.

(09:55:39) needs to know what 6music shows are pre-recorded over the weekend. Purely for matters of public trust. Or IP address changes.One or t'other.

(18:36:14) There's some good pop about at the moment, under the leafmould of hip-hop, 'r'&so-called-'b' and Winehouse. OneRepublic & Alphabeat for two.

(20:28:14) It might not be the first rule of broadcasting, but surely it's in the top ten.. make sure you're on air? Numpty.. http://snipr.com/idiotdj

(10:09:14) It's going to be one of those days. I am saving myself up for some Nice Coffee while I dredge through the emails from the last six days...

(10:56:15) Mmm.. heavenly. Taking a screen break at my favourite coffee haunt. Working out how exactly I'll spend the next 7 hours. Not eating bagels.

(18:13:02) Today marks a turning point, when it's not quite dark when I leave my home, nor when I prepare to return. The dusk is a delightful colour.

(21:00:51) was invited to "pulse @ plaxo.com"..I'd never heard of it. The Art of Geek says: "Find out who keeps copyright." Seems not to be a Evil Site

(22:27:58) I've been a-blogging: Daily Photo of the Day: cars http://tinyurl.com/3d5ejy

(22:31:08) Once again, it seems that Juice has jammed up my mac. Is there another half-decent podcatching app for OS X? (iTunes? I said "half decent").

(09:18:21) Early morning start.. playing a game of "which smoke alarm is dying?" at quarter past six. First scrapey car window day in a while, too.

(12:34:11) Thou shalt not go to Asda just before lunch, and be unable to resist The Cheese. Scroobius Pip must've forgotten to write that line.

(21:19:39) I should never have had all that cheese.

(21:42:14) I've been a-blogging: Daily Photo of the Day: branding http://tinyurl.com/39s6x9

(07:57:20) It's been an incorrect morning. "Irish database has been updated.." "I fear we own no ramekins" I had a headache. Now I'm just bewildered.

(08:41:43) Oh oh woo oh oh.. the white stuff. Will it be Snow Day today? Bah.. it's not settling - no traffic chaos for us.

(13:03:56) I've been a-blogging: Daily Photo of the Day: landing http://tinyurl.com/2w9fr2

(15:28:04) Extreme car washing.. needed to try my Asda Smart Price hose bodgery before the school walk. I've left it in the hall. Hope it doesn't leak.

(16:31:28) Christopher's been doing some excellent research- his current favourite video is a classic: http://snipr.com/perpe2L Rube Goldberg: genius.

(17:43:04) Oh lovely. I'm really enjoying hearing two mums discussing grim details of the horror films they've enjoyed. Chris, mercifully, is unaware.

(23:51:38) Alrighty... bedtime after an evening in the studio achieving.. well, not a great deal. Comedy potential, though. Poor old Gordon Ramsey.

(00:09:19) Assignment 5 done & dusted. I should be in bed, but I've not finished unpacking my freshly-repaired (replaced?) monitor. It can wait. Night!

(00:25:00) Right.. definitely going to bed before I get sidelined by futile ideas of getting Movable Type automatically to post daily Twitter digests..

(08:59:42) I wonder what the probability is of the Bed Head Machine giving me non-heinous hair.. emergency barber appointment this afternoon, I fear.

(09:31:42) I've been a-blogging: Web 2.0... it's like spaghetti, except with tubes. http://tinyurl.com/2spgvy

(09:45:50) Ruby On Rails scares me. It always has. I fear I am getting old.

(10:01:50) I'm bewildered. Last week, we had crates delivered for recycling glass. This morning, when I went to put out some bottles.. they'd all gone!

(11:29:43) In town doing ambly shopping things with my beautiful wife. No geekery,no doubt. Except this phone. Primark keeps giving me electric shocks.

(12:35:51) Podcasts and pizza. Beth's at a pre-school meeting. Does tuna and sausage go together?

(17:40:32) I am shorn.

(18:41:16) I am torn (Not in a Natalie Imbruglia sense, I might add).

(22:28:42) I've been a-blogging: Daily Tweet digest on Movable Type - the old-school way... http://tinyurl.com/2vpmf8

(23:01:25) I've been a-blogging: Daily Photo Of The Day: Blackbird http://tinyurl.com/2sej35

(23:09:14) OK.. so it's not a 10.30pm bedtime, but at least it's before midnight. Goodnight you horrible, addictive internet. I may avoid you tomorrow.