I’m back. I’m really busy, but I’m back.
When time permits, a post on:
- Leiden
- Arrow Jazz FM
- Kraak en Smaak
- Miffy
- Utrecht
- a David Lynch moment
- Maastricht
- Pruevenemint
- the Atomium
- Antwerpen-Zuid, and
- why EuroTunnel is doomed
Expect quiet
Don’t panic. Travel, workload and other stuff will preclude writing new content for this site for a little while, plus delay the long-awaited redesign.
But things are good.
Why we are not exactly leaping around at the moment
This week has included:
- learning that a friend and client is very unwell
- literally dozens of phone conversations with two different sets of lawyers and two different sets of surveyors
- realising that I’ve cocked up my plan to go to a trade show in Poland (note to self: VIII means August, not September – d’oh!)
- dropping a client because he is really not on my wavelength and I can’t be bothered to struggle for what would be a potentially small reward
- getting a very long document from the Borough Council
- not getting a whole bunch of things sorted out that I planned to do this week
- cleaning up purple projectile vomit after Tom had blackberries for tea (he’s fine now, but I’ve got to redecorate a wall)
- having to clean the cat litter tray every day after one or other of them decided that the garden was too cold and wet to use now that the weather has turned.
And that is just what I’ve had to do – Hels has had just as much.
But there are positive things too:
- Sussex beat Durham in the cricket
- it rained (very good news in this part of the world)
- we caught up with some people in the pub
- it’s Friday
- we’re going on holiday soon
- Tom “pulled” a waitress in the place we went to today for lunch (very funny – you had to be there)
So it’s not all bad. It just feels that way.
Three thousand and twenty seven
This government has made 3027 new offences since coming into office in 1997 (more than 330 per year), compared with just 500 or so introduced under John Major (roughly 100 per year) and the rate of introduction is increasing.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll just wade through some red tape to the kitchen and fill out an application form to make myself a cup of tea.
WiFi wabbit
Pointless. Useless. Bound to sell shedloads.
In other wireless news, my high gain antenna has boosted the signal in my office from around 48% to about 65% and resulted in only one dropped connection since installation. So I think we can consider it a qualified success.
Good listening
Things on Radio 4 that you may have missed:
- Crossing Continents: Thembi’s AIDS diary. Incredibly moving, particularly the part when Thembi tells her father that she has AIDS.
- Forging the Union. Alan Little’s excellent history of the European Union which shows how, by dragging her heels and hanging back, Britain has always found herself disadvantaged in the EU.
- Linda Smith – A Modern Radio Star. I miss hearing Linda Smith as much as I miss John Peel.
Radio 4 is, I think, producing some of the best programming I have ever heard right now. Whatever would we do without Radio 4?
UPDATE: I forgot to include:
- Unseen China. I don’t normally enjoy Peter White’s radio style (I remember when he was on South Today, 15-odd years ago), but this series is excellent.
Bacon mayonnaise
Bacon mayo, for the perfect BLT. via Cal.
33 things to do before you are 10 years old
This list of things that "every child should do" comes via the linkbunnies. I like the idea of number 32.
How many of these things did you do before your tenth birthday?
Not quite full of beans
We’ve just had our first harvest from our runner beans in the garden. However, one bean does not a meal make.
Still, it was very fresh and tasty. And there are more coming.
Tinkering
Some of you may have noticed some oddness here. I’m working on it. Expect great change.