Owner: London Calling URL:http://beansmail.blogspot.com Join Date: Sat, 08 Mar 2008 01:15:18 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Daily (well sometimes) observations on living and working in London Site statistics:Click here
Just no explaining it... 2008-04-30 01:01:27 ...the email that is supposedly not working until 5th May was back again this morning. So, suspiciously was the email for my own domain name which also had not worked the whole of yesterday. Proof positive that whoever I spoke to in VM tech support yesterday doesn't know what on earth they are talking about.
London is turning Blue 2008-05-02 21:36:40 I was all ready to sit up all night and watch the election results come in - before I discovered that London weren't even starting the count until Friday morning. You can find out the President of the most powerful country on earth over night, but not the mayor of London.
I was even more disappointed to find out that they weren't expecting to have a result until after midnight on Friday. No Read more:turning
It's been a long week 2008-05-02 21:20:16 As anyone who has MS knows some days are good and some days not so good. Some nights are good and some nights are not so good. Last night was not so good. Yesterday was an 'every other day' on which I take my injection (or try, I forget about as often as I remember). I took it in the mid-late evening and went to bed as normal. Then I woke up around midnight feeling as though I was getting the '
Analytics and searching 2008-05-04 11:08:05 Earlier this year I read a post by a fellow blogger which discussed Google Analytics
. Although I was already using several applications to track visitors to my blog this seemed to have even more statistics for the inner geek.
Not only can you find out where you visitors come from (roughly) you can also find out what brought them to your site in the first place.
I am particularly fascinated to Read more:searching
Holiday Monday 2008-05-05 09:36:36 Typical English Bank Holiday
. We are threatened with thundery showers and torrential downpours and what we actually get is warm, reasonably sunny but unpleasantly humid. Still, it would not have precluded going out and doing things, which were postponed on the basis that nobody wants to go out in a downpour. As I said, typical Bank Holiday.
I've been inside not enjoying the weather. I did go out Read more:Monday
Spring at last 2008-05-06 23:37:28 So, it seems it is time to ditch the coat and take my gloves out of my handbag. Time to add instead my hand-held fan and a bottle of water. Spring
arrived today with temperatures up in the twenties; which means sweltering on the underground.
The office was sweltering today too. I think that building management may finally have got the message and turned off the central heating. Doesn't make much
Garden gang 2008-05-08 11:33:29 I went out into my garden at lunch time today for a little sun... and to enjoy the plethora of nature that has arrived along with spring
A water-boatman on the pond
A few of the many tadpoles (fast becoming frogs)
One of the squirrel family up the tree
Molly keeping a watchful eye on proceedings Read more:Garden
Pillow talk 2008-05-08 01:19:05 Ask anyone who knows me, I like to sleep. I could put it as a hobby on my CV. If it was an Olympic sport I could win a gold.
My quest is for the perfect sleeping environment. As I'm inclined towards a bad back I like to have a firm mattress. This is directly at odds with my desire for a soft and cushioning base. I've tried all sorts of solutions to this. Firstly a rather inefficient mattress '
Prohbition on public transport 2008-05-08 01:10:47 The big news across town today was the announcement by Mayor Boris that alcohol is to be banned across the public transport
network in London. This was met with a mixture of delight and derision depending on the commentator.
The stated idea is to make the network a 'safer place'. Granted it could do with some of that. I do not see the need for guzzling drink on the tube (for example); the smell Read more:public transport
Leisure pursuits 2008-05-12 14:28:50 I've been neglecting the recently watched movies a bit. That isn't because we haven't watched any...
Recently we have had:
"The Lookout" - about a guy with a brain injury and now short term memory. Certainly made me feel that my rubbish memory might not be so bad! It was an OK movie, reasonably paced and just about had a plot line. It was a bit drab though. I give it 6/10.
"The M Read more:Leisure
More from the Garden Gang... 2008-05-12 01:08:52 More tadpoles living in the fish pond
Two frogs in the Frog Pond
Frog sheltering from the hot weather!
Another of the Frog Pond's inhabitants
This guy is just thinking
The squirrel appears to have forgotten where he left his nut stash!
A lot of hard work for a small spider!
Butterfly rests from his dance Read more:Garden
If ever there was a time for SatNav... 2008-05-12 00:59:54 It may be a cliche, but a lot of women have no sense of direction and can't navigate. I read once that it is because women have no spacial awareness. Possibly true. Definitely true for a lot of women in my family (my mother, possibly, excepted).
Today I was meeting my cousin for lunch. My cousin lives around the South Circular from Charlton in Dulwich. Not too far of a trip; especially as this
Definition of a Committee 2008-05-12 00:49:10 A Committee
takes minutes and wastes hours.
That is pretty often my definition of a meeting. Take the one I was obliged to attend this morning. There were ten people attending (with additional apologies). It went on for over two hours. There was nothing that I learnt that I a) needed to know or b) didn't know already. And not even a biscuit to keep body and soul together.
Interestingly at the Read more:Definition
Transport troubles 2008-05-14 07:51:43 Not my troubles (for once).
Boss-one arrived rather late into the office looking slightly dishevelled, the reason for this... the DLR (well, it is always that or the Jubilee Line). He'd arrived at the DLR station (having missed a bus) to be given a leaflet detailing 'improvements to your service'. He arrived on the platform to find that there was a crowd of people, and a ten minute wait for the
A good service on the Jubilee Line 2008-05-15 21:33:05 If only there had been a good service tonight. I was depressed when Boss-one phoned the office on his way back from a meeting to tell us he was going to be delayed because there was trouble with the Jubilee Line (seriously, when is there not). This was at 3pm, two hours before it was time to go home.
Trouble took the form of suspension between Waterloo and Canada Water due to a signal failure
Three o'clock and all is well... 2008-05-15 21:18:55 ...well, not so well.
I don't like being awake in the middle of the night. I don't like that it is quiet. I don't like that there is nobody to talk to (although in the age of digital communication that is never really true).
This morning's nocturnal awareness is caused by side effects of last night's injection. I shouldn't complain really. The side effects were much, much worse taking Avonex, Read more:Three
Wednesday wanderings 2008-05-14 22:31:06 Today the car had to go and get fixed. The reason the car had to go and get fixed is rather upsetting. The car had to go and get fixed because I hit the front of the house whilst parking last week and broke the headlight. Oops.
Originally I was going to take it to a Ford dealership. This idea was abandoned though on account of a) there isn't one very near me (at all) b) they never called me back Read more:Wednesday
Old Girls 2008-05-18 13:57:19 This weekend I took a trip down to Tonbridge. The purpose... the 100 year anniversary of my school's Old Girls
Association. Also the last meeting of the Old Girls as they are now re-branding themselves Alumni and going on-line!
It was quite an experience to go back to the old School. It is 15 years since I left, and about 14 years since I was last there. It hasn't really changed much. Some
More transport woes 2008-05-20 12:07:46 The biggest London news story today was that concerning the route 188 bus which hit a tree on Tower Bridge Road, killing one person and injuring 18 others. It isn't yet apparent exactly what transpired in order that the incident occurred; although as the deceased was crushed by falling branches from trees along the road it seems likely that trees had something to do with it; even more so when the Read more:transport
The years of commuting 2008-05-19 13:39:28 I read a story in the paper today (twice in fact as it was in both the morning and evening papers) which said that on average a worker spends FIVE YEARS commuting to and from work. Unless you live in London in which case the figure rises to EIGHTEEN YEARS. Now I know where all my time goes.
Tonight's journey felt like five years all by itself. I'd make a resolution not to complain about the
Movie night 2008-05-19 08:01:20 Last night's movie was "Walk Hard: the Dewey Cox Story". I chose this after watching a trailer, and to say that Rich was dubious about the merit would be an understatement. It was really good though. The humour was a bit over the top sometimes, but generally pitched just about right. Anyone who had seen "Walk the Line" could pretty much figure out what was coming up... but the
If it ain't broke... 2008-05-19 07:58:08 One of my favourite place near the office to buy lunch is our local Sainsbury's. There are a plethora of available options... ranging from small independent sandwich bars to multiple outlets from the likes of Pret a Manger, EAT, etc. etc. I prefer Sainsbury's as there is more than just sandwiches and/or salad and it is a little more cost effective.
Today Sainsbury's have annoyed me. For no Read more:broke
How very strange 2008-05-21 17:09:12 This evening I was pleased to arrive at Green Park station without any delays or suspensions in evidence anywhere on the network (or indeed during the previous several hours).
My contentment was disturbed by the higher than usual concentration of British Transport Police and London Underground staff. I decided that this must be due to the football later... and thought no more of it. Until I
Tax doesn't have to be taxing 2008-05-21 08:00:38 The well beloved advertising slogan of HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) to remind people to file their tax returns on time.
The idea is that income tax doesn't have to be difficult to understand, the problem is that just isn't true. I've never worked anywhere other than the UK so I've never had to deal with any other tax system, but I do find it difficult to imagine how it could be more complex. In
Web 2.0 (again) 2008-05-24 10:02:28 I've been Stumbling around the internet this afternoon. That is what I do these days, not surfing anymore. I sit and press the little "SU" button on my toolbar and see where I end up. It is the Zen form of website navigation... like the form of Zen Navigation expounded by Dirk Gently in Douglas Adam's book The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul. Find someone who looks like they know where th
Ready for the Holiday 2008-05-24 09:37:36 Here we are on the cusp of another holiday weekend... the last until the Late Summer Holiday
at the end of August. Rain has been threatened for the whole weekend which will hopefully include all the way down to Monaco. The Monaco Grand Prix is pretty boring unless the weather is bad!
I've no plans for the weekend. Possibly do as much of nothing as possible, maybe enjoy the weather if it is of
Exercise and football 2008-05-24 09:30:09 My back was quite sore when I woke up this morning. I decided that I would try sitting on my exercise ball whilst working (working from home day today) and see if that helped. The ball was too low for the desk. So I moved the laptop onto a chair. Probably just about the right height. Then the ball rolled away and I ended up sitting on the floor. End of experiment. Back to the chair and the desk. Read more:Exercise
Eurovision 2008-05-25 12:00:40 The Late Spring Bank Holiday. Some things in life are inextricably linked to this weekend at the end of May. Wet weather (usually), the Play-off Finals of English Football and the Eurovision
Song Contest. If you are reading this outside of Europe this probably doesn't mean much to you. Let's face it, if you're reading this inside Europe odds are it still doesn't mean much to you, especially if
Little drops of water 2008-05-26 13:50:27 The threatened downpour that was supposed to last the entire weekend finally arrived today. It rained, and rained, and rained. My nearly-mother-in-law's kitchen ceiling started leaking (much to the disgust of the cat), but the inhabitants of the garden pond seemed to be enjoying the weather. According to Metcheck's daily weather forecast that landed in my inbox yesterday afternoon this is the Read more:water
Fuel rage 2008-05-27 23:46:15 The Tuesday after a Bank Holiday Monday is always a confusing day. You feel like it is Monday because it is the start of the week, even though it is in fact Tuesday. This then knocks on into the rest of the week, meaning that Friday is always a pleasant surprise because it seems to have come a day early!
Traffic in London was badly affected today by more fuel protests. Lorry drivers from all
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