Monthly Archives: July 2006

Which countries do you trust?

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Something on Radio 5 made me think about which countries I would trust when they made any sort of important judgement, be that governmental or judicial. Accepting the fact that all Govt’s will always act in the national interest first but that the judiciary are not so bound, I wondered which countries I would inherently not trust.
France.
I don’t care about any facts (in case someone were to trot them out) but I do not trust any decision at all by anyone at any level of power. I have the feeling they look at someone (anyone) from another country (esp the UK) and automatically (without the slightest hesitation) decide that they are right and everyone else is wrong. I think the animosity runs to deep that no decision will ever be in the interests of the UK and even if it were that word would be circulated to ignore the decision. (Remember – this is my intuition, not facts).
I think paused a while….in fact I’m still stuck on a country level anyway. On a different level I don’t trust the FIA, or FIFA.
Back to countries… would I trust a judgement from Germany, Italy, Spain – yes. Turkey …. probably not. Of the 25 EU members Greece would be behind France. It’s fuzzy then (I know Turkey is not yet in the EU.). But broadly speaking those two countries would – when a decision was made that adversely affected the UK – immediately draw a “Well they would do that” from me. The USA? No. In fact that’s 3rd on the list. This isn’t about individual people. It’s about the whole thing rolled into one.

A hypocritical woman

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Radio 5. Commenting on a new film 9/11 by Oliver Stone a woman says it’s wrong to make money from people who have died. She said that if he wanted to make money from heroes he should have gone and found some others. That’s “Our dead are better than their dead” isn’t it?

Ibuprofen

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Bed at 2am. Up at 6am due to back pain. It’s definitely the trampoline injury and it definitely hurts like hell. No position is now pain-free – sitting, standing, moving, lying. So I have decided maximum amounts of ibuprofen + any other painkiller I can take (paracetamol + codeine I suppose) is definitely in order. Not that masking symptoms is big or clever but I know it’s damaged, I know it hurts and unless I’m careful I’ll compensate by using different back positions which itself will cause problems. So I’m stuck either way – but pain-free is a more attractive option. I see little point in a GP visit, I know no chiropractors nor could I afford one and I am – sadly – lacking an acquintance with a lady who could provide acupuncture relief using stilletto heels (and relief which would otherwise distract me). So 800mg Ibuprofen at whatever the shortest time interval is has become order of the day.

One week+1

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8 days right now I’ll be on the other side of the Atlantic. So that’s 8 days to get tickets sorted to and from airports, to sort music/games/reading for the journey (I’m thinking that Capote’s “In Cold Blood” might keep me entertained and others from talking to me on the flight if I grin manicaly as I flip every page. I mean, all those hours, not a clue who might be next to me. It’s easier to put the book away than it is to wish I chewed raw garlic in the departure lounge.) sort clothes and any other bits I’ll have forgotten. Must charge some batteries. Post-it note time….

stuff

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The Independent does not have a favicon.
Some good fast help from the Autohotkey forum. Problem could be a combination of a wireless keyboard, the ctrl key + key buffer and also my selection of shortcuts keys. So, ctrl-f now becomes ctrl-win-f. I shall test throughout tomorrow.

It’s 02:23 .. I suppose I should head to bed soon..

Update: Autohotkey fails completely no matter what. Activate, press ONE key combo and lose control of the kb until I randomly press ctrl or win and the program decides to let me back in. YMMV.

Nice things

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I am really liking this new machine. A week of getting used to it, a new keyboard, dual screens, less clutter. Most good. And yesterday, after trying all week I managed to max out the cpu by doing things with a DVD that meant a film ended up on it and working – no silver coaster! That made the CPU sweat – it does on the other machine but this did it much quicker. Must try that again some time ;)

Things to do:
- find a task launcher that really does stay on top all the time. Yzdock does not, Objectdock does not. Both disappear just when you need them. My quick launch is fairly stacked right now which is annoying.
- get used to Autohotkey It’ll save me loads of typing IF I get used to using it and IF it stops freaking out for no apparent reason and turning the kb into a letter explosion when a key is touched. (It just did it again when writing an email. Seems more and more like AutoPITA)
- hope my back gets better. The trampolining damage was lessening but this morning when out with Winston I had to hold his collar as 2 dogs were taken by. He pulled toward them – which he usually doesn’t do – and I had no slack so I was twisted sharply. Right now I’m sitting up very straight as it’s the only comfortable position.
- ponder what I can do with my
- welcome eldest back to the fold. She’s been away for the week with a friend so it’ll be good to have her back.

(Post title should mean this entry looks better in a feed reader :) )

The name of this blog

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I’ve had a few comments recently about the name of this blog. So here it is. Anyway… this blog started as a WP blog in January 2004 and it was not under it’s present name (I half remember the original)..

In March 2004 there was a UPB munch in Bristol (photographic evidence). On one of the days we were walking through the centre of the city and there was a TV crew of some sort that were talking to people. I’m wandering past and a lady from that crew approached me and said “What makes you happy?” to which my immediate response was “Lithium”. I declined the opportunity to talk on camera. I have no idea just how out of my tree I was around then – I’d stopped drinking the month before – but I won’t have been completely in control. I suppose. My memories of that are vague at best even with the pictures. That question stuck though. I liked it.

So I stuck it on top of my blog.

(If you want to read what makes other people happy, click the link at the top of the sidebar.)

A small cube of chalk

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When I was a teenager, a puncture repair kit (from the local shop) consisted of 8 patches (2 large, 2 medium, 4 small), a tube of ‘rubber cement’, a square of sandpaper, a small wax crayon and a small cube of chalk. The box had a serrated area to create the chalk dust. If you spent a bit extra you got a couple of tyre levers. Quality little kit it was. I’ve had 2 punctures in 3 days – and the kits are crap.
4 patches only and they are very tricky to use with the thin film of cellophane on them. They also lack any stickiness themselves so they can’t stick until the cement has worked it’s magic. No sandpaper but you do get a viciously punched square of heavy foil to scrape the tyre with, no crayon (not that I ever used the one in the orginal kit but that is not the point) and no chalk. How am I to prevent tyre stickage now? So I get less kit, worse kit for a job that has not changed in forever. Maybe it’s because I’m not looking in the right place……