NEPI: a ghostly vacuum
Very late on Saturday night I went ghost-hunting. The venue was a manorial house, the seat of a Scottish estate, less than 30 miles south
Bradley Wiggins v the Flat Earth Society of Cyclists
I am glad that Bradley Wiggins (winner of the 2012 Tour de France and the Olympic Gold Medal for cycling) has called for it to
Knackered (confessions of a plumber, part 4)
I arrived at the house on the fourth successive Saturday morning – toolkit in hand once again. But this time I had the *second* replacement
Knackered (confessions of a plumber, part 3)
Feeling a bit jaded, I turned up the following Saturday with, as well as my trusty toolkit, a small cardboard box containing a complete mixer
Knackered (confessions of a plumber, part 2)
The next Saturday, 10am, I rocked up – toolkit in hand once again – but this time I had the full service kit for the
Knackered (confessions of a plumber, part 1)
7.30pm, Sunday 29th July 2012. Day two of the London Olympics if you need another time reference. I am in bed. Yes, that’s right. 7.30pm.
Fucking cats
There are four or five cats that climb in to my (protected) garden. They piss all over the plants and shit all over the place.
The sun shone so…
… to celebrate, I went for a little spin.
The online dating scene; a view from here
This post is inspired by this blogpost from Chloe. When my marriage suddenly ended, as they tend to end very suddenly under the same circumstances,
Playing with myself
You know what I mean. That irresistible urge. Usually first thing in the morning or last thing at night. Sometimes both. Sometimes during the day
Soccer upset
In a completely predictable upset, this evening in Eastern Europe, eleven Italian millionaires proved they were no match for 11 English millionaires. Post-match analysis conclusively
Culture, vulture?
You know those mobile phone-sponsored flashmobs at St Pancras train station? Well here’s a video of a Scandinavian flashmob, with all the cultured polish that
Friends in places
I know this guy, Chris Bartle (no, not Chris Bartle the Eventer – who I do know, vaguely – this is a whole different Chris
Why this matters: ‘
The difference between: Helping your uncle jack off a horse… and, Helping your Uncle Jack off a horse… is the correct use of capitals. The
Video documentary
The reason: Because of Sammi’s illness, I am looking for a new subject (or possibly two, but we’ll see) for a short documentary film I
Rooting for the router (pt 2)
I decided to follow a variation of Daniel’s excellent suggestion. I ran ping -t for 24 continuous hours and the router behaved itself perfectly. I
Rooting for the router
When my broadband was upgraded, the BT Openreach engineer installed a BT Openreach Modem which he coupled to a (new) Netgear N150 WNR1000v3 Wireless Router.
You can run, Fearne Cotton, but you can’t hide
Talentless uberbimbo, BBC Radio One-presenting chav-in-chief, Fearne Cotton, has made one of the most ludicrous statements to the press. Ms Cotton (let’s not forget she
Two year changeover
It’s been two years since I adopted the Nexus One as my mobile phone handset. It has been a happy two years. Apart from when
It’s all Greek to me
This political debate, shown live on Greek TV, packs more punch than Question Time. The discussion warms up from the outset, but the last 20
Wishing the early morning away
It is 2am and I am awake. I used to be a regular visitor to the shores of the all-too discovered country known as ‘insomnia’.
Two days good. Four days bad
I can not be the only person in the country who is itching to get back to work, surely? Yes, I’ve had a lovely break
On being in love, and not. On companionship, and not
In my commuting moments (which are really ‘daily hours’ rather than ‘moments’) I spend a lot of time listening to music, and thinking. In the
Weekending
It’s been a major week. So I’m going to Rome tomorrow. Just because. Back on Monday though. So, to fit with a weekend in Rome,
Magic, carpet
Monday: 4.30am alarm, in the office at 6.20am, leave the office at 7pm, work like bonkers between arriving and leaving. Tuesday: 4.30am alarm, in the
On not being in two places at the same time
Friday night (25th May 2012) was a busy calendar night. If only my super-power was ‘being everywhere’ I could have gone to the Jonquil gig
What’s in a name? What’s in a place name?
I’m amused to learn that eight of the London 2012 Olympic soccer matches will be played in Glasgow. That’s rather stretching the definition of ‘London’,
Never happy?
We Brits love to talk (and complain) about the weather, no matter what the weather is doing. Too hot, too cold, not enough rain, too
Cruisin’ down the internet superhighway
My home broadband connection has been upgraded. In an improvement from the previous 5Mb download and 250Kb upload, I’m now getting 29.75Mb download and 2Mb
On the one hand. On the other hand. On the other other hand.
Decisions, decisions. We have a four-day weekend coming up. Something to do with us not having a dead queen. Or is that Dead Queen? Anyway.
Sunday afternoon. Bedside.
It is 4pm Sunday. I am in bed. I have hot, buttered crumpets, a mug of fresh tea and, on standby, some chocolate. I am
Life, imitating art, imitating life, imitating…
You know those media-based clichés? The kind of imagery that television has served up for years? You might not see one for ages, then unexpectedly there
An early night
It’s been a busy weekend. In the last few days I have been sent five CDs by bands/artists, music agents, PR companies. Or not. I
The Lucky One
This afternoon we went to Cineworld in Witney to see the new Zac Efron film ‘The Lucky One’. The film was well in to the
Prescient past
In 2008, when my marriage hit a significant pothole that changed the shape of the relationship forever, I wrote this short but poignant post; Blindsided.
An Australian hack
This is the helmetcam footage of the 2012 Sydney CCI Three Star (CCI***) Three Day Event, as shot from the view of Australian eventer Seamus
Racing line
I have booked an indoor go-karting session for this Sunday at the former RAF Wroughton, Swindon, Wiltshire. I may have a couple of spare places. If
Sorry love, Eventing’s off
I’m a little sad that the authorities have cancelled the 2012 Badminton Horse Trials, that was due to run this weekend. It is the right decision
Happy St George’s Day?
Apparently today is St George’s Day. St George (a Greek guy), is the Patron Saint of England. St George is famous for killing a dragon. A creature
Dressing Up and Getting Down
Language is a code, and if we have the key, we have perfect understanding. But when someone says to you that the dress code for
Updating/Repairing/Teaching/Learning
Updating: Has it really been a week since I wrote anything? Soz. The hiatus is not an indicator that things have not been going on;
Sunday Bloody Sunday
It is now *checks clock* 9.30am. For some unfathomable reason I’ve been awake since 6.30. But I haven’t wasted those three hours. Oh no, I
Spring is in the air
The UK is currently going through what some people say is an uncharacteristic bout of weather. But is it? I can remember Easters where we
The one with all the sex in it
There is a quaint Strine word; ‘toey‘. It sums my particular state of mind and condition up. Accurately. I had a meeting, today, with Leggy
Saturday outpourings (bed)
I’m going to get up in a minute. It’s 9.48am. I’ve just finished breakfast; the remains of last night’s delivered pizza; the breakfast of champions.
On beating the jet-lag thing
I had to cut short my visit to Austin, TX, to start a new contract on Monday 19th March. The ever-present problem of time-zone adjustment
I want this horse!
This is a piece of helmetcam footage from the cross-country phase of a CIC*** One Day Event. Not only is it apparent that the horse
Most drunk South by South West memory…
I am just about to fall in to bed in my own little house but thought I’d share this anecdote… My Most Drunk, South by