Snap! Snap! Snap!

So, I broke my left arm, falling off my mountain bike.
20 odd years of cycling (on and off) and this is the first time I've broken something. Grrr.
I'm learning lots of things - such as how to cook, wash, and netsurf with one hand.
Meantime, the bike lurks at work, mocking me in it's garish green-ness - I
will get back on it again, once I've had the plaster cast taken off and once I've finally dealt with the irritating itch I've had for the last couple of weeks!

Of course, this pales into insignificance when compared to Katrina and the imminent Rita - good luck to anyone in their respective paths.

She's Back!

I apologises in advance if the following sounds like serious fanboy indulgence, but Kate Bush Is Back!
According to a news item on the BBC website, her new album "Aerial" is out in November - a mere 12 years after her last album "The Red Shoes"
Gives me something to save my pennies for...

In Praise of Customer Service

It seems to be the norm to complain about shoddy customer service received - so, for a change, I thought I'd post about some excellent customer service I've received in the last few days!
Item No. One: Land's End (UK)
Many moons ago, when the world was slightly younger and I had more money, I bought a shirt from the Land's End catalogue. This was quite a few years ago. It rapidly became my favourite shirt, and has (so far) worn well. Note that 'so far' - when I took it out of the washing machine on Sunday, the shirt showed definate signs of wear - one of the button-down collars had torn away from the rest of the shirt (taking the button with it).
Now, Land's End is famous for their "Guaranteed. Period" slogan, though I didn't hold out much hope for a shirt this old. I emailed their customer service anyway and, (please remember, this was on a SUNDAY), got a reply, from a real live human being (i.e. not an automated answer) about 30 minutes later, asking for more details. I replied and again a fast response was received, offering to send a couple of material swatches that might possibly match and so patch up the hole.
The swatch arrived yesterday and, although it is a different type of material, it will do fine as a patched repair. As soon as I have more money in my pocket, I'll be buying from Land's End again!

Item no. Two:
Integral Memory
I had an Integral Envoy 512mb USB Flash drive of which I made a great deal of use - until the day when the LED refused to light up and all of the various computers on which it was used refused to se it at all. The flash drive was dead. It was an ex-flash drive (It's blue, by the way, though not, as far as I know, Norwegian!)
I emailed the customer service at Integral to ask if anything could be done. They replied with a returns number, suggesting I post it back to them for testing. This I did last Saturday. Yesterday, there was a card in my letterbox asking me to collect a package from my local post office. Integral had sent me a brand new Envoy to replace my dead one!

Kudos to Land's End and Integral Memory - they deserve the praise...

Sticking a thumb out...

Well, it's Hitch-Hikers week here in the UK - not only did the movie open this weekend, but BBC Radio 4 is broadcasting the last of the new radio adaptation of Douglas Adams' books AND BBC TV is re-running the TV adaptation from the eighties.
More on the radio once I've heard a bit more of it.

WARNING!!! Potential Spoilerage Follows

The film I saw on Bank Holiday Monday and... I enjoyed it!
Yes, I did. It's not the H2G2 purists might have wished for but it IS H2G2 - the movie version. I've seen a fair bit of criticism this weekend of the film and how it is not faithful enough to the original - newflash: NONE of the other versions are truly that faithful to the original radio series. The books diverted in different directions, the computer game ditto and the TV series was little more than a subset of the first two radio series/books; even the towel was a version, not an accurate representation!

Martin Freeman as Arthur is fine. A Dent for the noughties. He won't ever replace Simon Jones in the fans affections, but that is truly not the point. Sam Rockwell is underused - or, rather, Zaphod is. There are a couple of gags that feature the Big Zee but that's it. Mos Def as Ford? Fine. Again, a different Ford, but none the worse for that. He still has that 'otherworldly' feeling that marks him out as not quite belonging on Earth, and I like him. Zooey Deschamel as Trillian? She was cute and clever and really rather nice. The American accent jarred a little (as it did in the TV series - no offence intended towards Sandra Dickinson, but her version of Trillian was what I liked least about the TV series - especially as, in the special 'Making Of video that the BBC issued some years after the event, Adams admitted that she could have done an 'English Rose' accent but they (the creatives) didn't ask...)
I liked Marvin. I liked even more the fact that the TV Marvin made a cameo appearence and that Simon Jones appeared as the security video on Magrathea. I liked that Bill Bailey, one of my favourite comic perfomers, voiced the Sperm Whale. I loved Stephen Fry as 'The Book' (seing as Peter Jones was not a possibility, Fry was the best replacement) I didn't like that the film started with a song and not "Journey of The Sorcerer" by Bernie Leadon but then I was more than pleased to hear it's familiar strains over the first appearence of "The Book" itself!

The story is slight and filled with some marvelous sight gags that would possibly have appealed to Douglas Adams if he were still alive (oh, thre are a couple of other Adams related in-jokes in the film - but you'll have to find them for yourselves!).
My cony concern is that the ending doesn't actually close some of the plot points - but presumably these will be addressed in any subsequent sequel (and that has been more than adequatly set up)
If you are a died in the wool, old school radio series fan who hated the TV series and hasn't bought a new towel in years (and, by the way, Marks & Spencer missed a trick by not having one of THEIR towels in a 'Product Placement' deal!), then you'll probably have already made up your mind about this film and wont be bothering with it anyway. I respect that. To everyone else, however, go to see the film. It's as entertaining a way to spend two hours as I can think of (I do have a slightly limited imagination!).

The Mating Season

(with apologies to P.G.Wodehouse!)
I have spawn at the bottom of my garden. The assorted amphibians, with whom I share my back garden, have obviously been busy and I'm hoping that the recent cold-ish turn taken by the weather hasn't done the spawn any damage. If the spawn is still full of living embyionic amphibia, hopefully I'll have a garden full of frogs or toads again this year...

Charging for less...

As mentioned in a previous entry, I recently got an Apple iPod Shuffle 1Gb.
Now, this has a rechargable Lithium battery - to charge it you either plug it into a powered USB port on your computer, or you buy the relevant charger accessory from Apple for (at time of writing) £19.99.
I've found a Third Way! My local branch of W.H.Smiths is having a clear out of selected computer accessories, and in amongst the assorted cables etc., I found a Belkin Powered compact USB 2 hub - 4 USB2 ports and a standalone power supply. Reduced from £22.99 to £8.62
Well, I needed to get something to connect the iPod to the computer - the front USB ports on my Dell are not powered, so it won't charge from them (a common enough problem on most computers with front USB ports), and as the cheapest extension cable online would have cost me about the same (including P&P) I bought this instead, reasoning that it would give me an additional two USB2 ports when the iPod was plugged in, or 4 when not. (The iPod Shuffle is slightly wider than the USB plug, and so prevents anything being inserted to other USB ports next to it!)

When I got home, I had a brainwave - if the Hub is independently powered, then the iPod should charge without it being connected to the computer - a quick test shows this to be the case.
So, if you have an iPod Shuffle, want to be able to charge it from the mains without having to connect it to a computer, and can find a cheap enough USB2 powered hub, this might be your answer! OK, so it won't be Apple White, and you'll still have to connect it to a computer with iTunes installed to upload stuff to it, but it might save you money and may get you out of a 'flat battery' problem...
Next step - to find a cheap alternative to the add-on Battery pack!
(I take no responsibility for any damage caused by this suggestion - you follow it at your own risk - though I seriously doubt that any damage will occur!)

Who is that with the white headphones singing "Ice Cream Man"*?

Well, for one brief moment (probably less than a nanosecond) I became slightly 'cutting edge' - for my recent birthday a friend gave me an iPod Shuffle 1Gb.
Has to be said, I didn't imagine myself ever needing an iPod, let alone owning one - but now I've got it working (by installing W2K over the top of my WME PC) I'm having fun with it!

*That's the Van Halen version...

Springtime for...Brooks

Belated Happy New Year! On New Years Day I went to see the West End version of Mel Brooks "The Producers" (a very kind friend gave me a ticket for Christmas!)
Unfortunately, Nathan Lane (the last minute, short term replacement for Richard Dreyfuss) had to pull out due to having TWO slipped discs - having seen what the character gets up to in the show, I can quite understand how he managed it!
Cory English, his 'Stand-in' was excellent, and after a couple of minutes I forgot that I was disappointed about not seeing Mr Lane and realised I was enjoying seeing Mr English! Lee Evans was equally as good. The songs add greatly to the show, and there are enough references to both the original movie and to other Brooks movies to keep the anorak Brooks fan happy!
Of the show itself I will not write - if you are familiar with the movie, then you'll pretty much know the plot (though it IS slightly tweaked for the stage); if you're unfamiliar with the movie, but have heard that Mel Brooks could write comedy, then you're in for a treat (a tasteless one, but a treat nonetheless!)
The show is still running on Broadway and apparently the original Broadway pairing of Lane and Matthew Broderick are to make a new movie based on the musical.

Free 'Phone

Visiting a friend in Switzerland (let's not talk about the fun I had getting there - at least, not yet!), he sold me on using Skype - aka VoIP.
Upon my return, I signed up at the Skype website
It's brilliant! Even though the website suggests a minimum of W2K or XP (it does run on Mac's and Linux machines as well), it runs well enough on my W98 system.
Sound quality is good and, if you have broadband connection, calls to other Skype users are free! The rates to non-Skype users are highly competitive too.
I know, this is starting to sound like a plug - but I can't (at the moment) recommend it highly enough...

Demo Tapes from Harpists...

John Peel 1939-2004
RIP

Radiators

It's been an interesting couple of weeks, it has to be said. (well, it doesn't have to be said, but if I didn't say it, I'd have nothing to put in my blog!)

First, the living room radiator sprung a leak. Thsi is the second radiator to go in the living room in about 6 years - luckily I have no carpet on the floor, or I probably wouldn't have noticed it as quickly as I did (I got up from an evening of TV zombiedom and noticed a puddle. As I am house trained, and I wasn't doggysitting at the time, it was either a leak from upstairs or a leak from the radiator. Gee Whiz Sherlock!)

A little praise for British Gas, who service my central heating. I noticed the leak at around half past midnight. I mopped up what I could, shut off the radiator and put a bown under the leak (once I had found it) this took about 15 minutes, so it was 00:45 or so when I called the emergency hotline. It was answered within a couple of rings, the chap who answered was helpful and polite, and arranged for another chap to come and have a look the next day. You're expecting me to say I had to wait in all day for the service chap, but I didn't - he was there at 9am and arranged for a replacement to be delivered and installed the following week (last Friday, in fact) The only thing left is the old radiator, which someone is apparently going to collect from the front of the house...

The weeknd after the leak, I visited a friend in Sandy, and was given the 2 most recent paperbacks by Alexander McCall Smith (The Kalahari Typing School for Men and The Full Cupboard of Life - both in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series) which was unexpected! Both great reads, gentle humour, and if you haven't already read the first three volumes, I'd recommend that you do so.
I get back from Sandy and find yet more books - another friend had sent me some stuff hje thought I'd enjoy (so far, he's right!)

Jennings' End

Jennings was, as usual, not entirely concentrating on what Mr Wilkins was saying, and so it came as no surprise to anyone that when, as might have been predicted in advance, the teacher asked a question, Jennings didn't have a clue.
Mr Wilkins had built up quite a head of steam, and was about to let rip (the "I - I - I - Corwumph" was on his lips) when the classroom door opened, and in walked the Headmaster. "I have an announcement to make" he said, in solemn tones. "Mr Buckeridge, who did so much to bring this school to it's current prominence, has sadly passed away. Linbury Court will, therefore, be closing it's doors for the last time, and all pupils will be sent home."
A thoroughly deflated Mr Wilkins dismissed the class. As he passed into the corridor, Jennings asked his friend Darbishire, "Well, what happens now? Mr Buckeridge was the only thing that kept this school going."
"We'll be sent to another school, I suppose" replied Darbishire. "As my father sometimes says..."
Jennings didn't bother listening to what the Reverend Darbishire sometimes said; it wasn't important. What was important was that there was to be no more Linbury Court.
"Goodbye, Mr Buckeridge" he thought, "and thanks."

Anthony Buckeridge 1912-2004 RIP

Radio Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Now I have broadband up and running (a doddle!) I can now listen properly to BBC7.
BBC7 is one of the new 'digital' stations operated by the BBC, and is available on DAB, Freeview and via the internet.
streaming audio is available on the websites for each of the different 'Digital' stations, but on a dial-up connection, this isn't really practical (the streaming is via RealMedia and it keeps buffering the stream, leading to silence!)
The big advantage on the BBC 7 website is the "Listen Again" feature - there is a page devoted to an entire day's schedule, and you can listen whenever you like up to 6 days after original broadcast - if you have a fast internet connection, this works rather well, and the sound quality is pretty good (at least, it is through my PC speakers!)
Most of the other digital BBC stations are devoted to music, but BBC7 is the 'Archive' station, and is full to the brim with old BBC drama, comedy and book readings - the rule being, as long as it has been repeated on the analogue station of origin, or was last broadcast more than three years ago, it can appear on BBC7 (subject to the usual licensing issues)
For an old-fashioned spoken word radio fan such as myself, the station is a godsend - Round The Horne, The Goons, Hancock, The Masterson Inheritance, I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, Sherlock Holmes, Discworld adaptations, all are (or have been, or will be!) broadcast on BBC7. (No news breaks or advertising either, though there are sometimes some lengthy 'trails' for other BBC7 programmes)
If you have digital, check it out; if you have broadband, try out the BBC7 website

Sticking a thumb out again

Yes! At Last! At the end of last year (2003) news circulated about a new "Hitch Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy" radio series that had been created by Dirk Maggs, and based on the third of the Douglas Adams books, "Life, The Universe and Everything" - there was even a suggested broadcast date of February 2004. Then, all went quiet. (Apparently there were licensing issues, presumably something to do with the film version that made bigger headlines at the time!)
Well, now there is good news - the BBC has announced on their website (and via newspaper items this morning) that the "Third Phase" will be broadcast in six parts from Tuesday 21st September 2004 at 6:30pm (UK time)- more details at The Official BBC Radio 4 Hitch Hiker announcement page
Including a 4.5 minute 'trailer' (sounds good!) and a video - which I cannot watch yet, but will do so on Friday when the broadband will hopefully be up and running!

Make sure you know where your towel is.

Things are probably getting faster

Well, I finally bit the bullet and signed up for broadband (DSL) internet access; assuming nothing goes wrong, and that it is as easy to set up as BT claims, I should be experiencing the wonders of fast internet access next weekend.
The main reason I held off for so long was the price; it's still quite pricey even now (BT Broadband, without email or webspace, it £27 per month) but the Surftime dial-up I'm using at present has been getting slower and slower, and the broadband option is only about £13 more a month.
Note the 'about' in that last sentence - I had to do a lot of digging to get to that figure; nowhere on the BT site could I find what would have been of most use to me, a price comparison table (surely they can do one? They know how much they charge for Surftime, and they must still have links to the BT Yahoo side of things to get their monthly subscription costs!)
At least I don't have to pay extra for connection or the modem - and I should, apparently, also get a voucher for a free flight to Europe or the USA! I could do with a holiday.
Anyway, here's to fast surfing (though, knowing my luck, the minute I connect up, someone will drop the price for newbies...)

Gardening Left

I'm not a happy, green fingered son of the soil. I know what a plant is and I vaguely remember something about osmisis and photosynthesis from school, but that's it. My sister is the gardener, and she occasionally comes over to prune/hack etc.
She did so last weekend. 13 sacks of garden 'waste' later, and I have something that is a lot less like a jungle - at the house end, that is. The shed end is still a bit wild, and will need to be tackeled at some point.
The thing is, when househunting all those years ago (I bought at the top of the LAST property boom...) the ONE thing I insisted on was a decentlt sized garden; this one is about 60' long, and (for an ex-council house) is huge!

The point of this entry? None at all. I just wanted to put down something about the garden. And to mention that, as a result of the hard work put in by my sister, I can now see all sorts of insects and animals I wouldn't have noticed before - such as the damsel flies, the frogs and (I think) toads, the woodlice (I like the look of woodlice!) and the orangy-brown slug with the forked 'tail'.
Au Res.,
Paul

Richard Biggs - a nice bloke

I heard at the weekend that Richard Biggs, probably best known for his performances in "Babylon 5" as "Dr. Franklin" passed away at the age of 43.
I only met him at conventions, so cannot in any way claim to have known him well, but from what I saw of him suggested that he was, indeed, 'a nice bloke'.
Not that anyone from his family or friends will probably read this, but I offer my deepest sympathies to them for their loss.
Apparently, some of his friends and former colleagues are working on something to help his family - as and when details of this are available, I'll post them here.
In the meantime, there is a tribute page on the The Gallactic Gateway
Au Res.,
Paul

Oh No, Not Another Blog...

Given that practically everyone with internet access has probably got a blog of some sort somewhere, I don't suppose my setting up a new one will be of interest to anyone at all - but here it is anyway.

I'll post whenever something I consider interesting happens - I'm not political (that is to say, I have a slight interest in politics, but not enough to pass on my opinions to the waiting world!) and more often than not I'll be moaning about postal deliveries, or bad behaviour or TV, but as there probably won't be anyone reading anyway, it doesn't really matter!

Just in case you HAVE stumbled on this blog before I've had time to post anything else, here is a brief run down on the stuff I'll probably cover - Books (anything from E.F.Benson, Bill Bryson and Agatha Christie to Terry Pratchett, Tom Holt, P.G.Wodehouse - I like books and have rather a lot of them still waiting to be read...), Humour, music (which is varied), the Royal Mail (currently going through 'Interesting Times'!) and anything else that catches my eye.
Au Res.,