Monthly Archives: November 2007

Sunday Roast: asparagus is almost sausage shaped

So how has this week gone? Really rather blissfully actually as I’ve had the week off from work. I really can’t deny that a week of drunken debauchery and dancing, shopping, writing, fireworks, curry, gossip, season 2 of Bones finally arriving on DVD, the odd plumbing emergency and lots of sleep was just what the doctor ordered. I feel human once more and ready to face whatever work has in store for me. Apart from maybe dealing with the Temp Lottery again – I might need another couple of weeks before I am ready for that! The week could only have been improved by the presence of a certain eligible bachelor, hell! I’m getting to the point that any bachelor would be quite nice. I once again put out the call to my friends to cast about their assorted and various acquaintance and I think they might be starting to believe me. That’s the problem when all your friends are disgustingly happy with their Other Halves and their friends are also hooked up. There must be single men out there in Southampton. There must.

Grrr.

Not that I want to give the impression that I am a desperate man-seeking missile. I mean, what on earth would give you that impression?! There are just times I think it might be quite nice to have someone else around. He’d have to be f***ing fantastic to be worthy of my blogging greatness, that goes without saying, but… I repeat. There must be single men out there in Southampton. There must.

And now I have splurged far more information that my Dad probably wants to be reading over the ‘Net, let’s get on with the Roast, shall we?

You know that gun crime is a problem when even the dogs are in on the act.

Followers of my Twitter feed might have noticed me getting a bit irrate with Royal Mail over their inability to deliver a simple parcel. Which makes this news item all the more galling.

I don’t really care for whether or not Digg opens itself up so it can grown. What I do care about, and find rather amusing, is that (and I quote): “There is value in vertical focus… but there may be a vertical which we would choose not to go into”. Now, it’s been a while since I did maths or Physics, but isn’t there just one vertical? I mean, gravity and all that kinda relies on there just being one up-down, doesn’t it?

Not that I’m pissed off with Royal Mail or anything, but how can they justify giving the boss a pay rise when they can’t actually do what they claim to do – i.e., deliver letters?!

Alonso has left McLaren. Well, that’s a surprise.

Now I am the proud owner of an external harddrive, I can finally do what I’ve been promising myself I’d do since I made the mistake of installing Tiger over the top of 10.3, nuke my HD back to factory fresh and hopefully reclaim some memory. The problem with doing this is you’re never totally sure you’ve backed up all the programs you rely on. Which is where this little list might come in handy.

I love me my keyboard shortcuts – CMD+W to close tabs is just great. The problem being I keep hitting CMD+Q to quit Safari instead with enough regularity to annoy myself. It’s especially annoying when I’m in the middle of a Roast and have twenty or thirty tabs open… You can imagine the language. So this little trick looks very handy. (Thanks Justin for responding to my Twitter wail 🙂 )

How to buy Leopard for $40. Legally.

Thinking of what Christmas cards to buy? You could worse than these Moo cards.

At last! Someone who shares my postcard obsession

And time for Abi’s favourite part of the Roast – Movie Corner
Not technically a movie, but the latest mindbending animation from The Other Side.

The Golden Compass – so I’ve linked to this trailer oodles of times already, but I am looking forward to the film, damn it!

Jumper – sci-fi, mutants, genetic alteration, evolution…

What Would Jesus Buy?

To Desk, or not to Desk

For the last few weeks – it might be longer than that actually if I’m being truthful – I’ve eschewed my carefully ergonomically set up workstation in favour of just the PocketCalculator on the living/dining room table. Well, WiFi means I can browse anywhere in Meadow Towers and there is a power socket near the table, so why not? I can be merrily computing away whilst Moose is watching something on the TV just a few feet away – companionable, but separate. Perfect.

Plus, the living room is a bit warmer.

OK, the main reason I haven’t been sitting at my desk lately is that I can’t actually see my desk for the mounds of crap that have accumulated all over it. I’m not sure which came first, the not using the desk, or the mounds of crap, but right now it’s gonna take a concerted effort, with backup teams of sherpas and medics standing by at base camp, just to find my keyboard, second screen and laptop stand under all the mess, and frankly sitting in the living room is just nicer.

I am seriously contemplating putting my computing life back where it belongs however, if only because Moose wants to make a cover for the sofa this weekend, and needs to set the sewing machine up where the PocketCalculator currently resides. Plus, you know, RSI is no laughing matter, and I’m just courting disaster with the setup I am using at this moment. And it might be nice to be able to eat dinner at the table without having to push my desk-crap to one side every time.

But… Well, here’s the rub. I have realised that I don’t like to write on the fancy duel screen set up, with the full sized keyboard and mouse. It doesn’t feel right to write like that. I much prefer the intimacy… no, intimacy is the wrong word… immediacy, of using just the laptop. I’m right there. Just my fingers on the keypad and the words appearing on the blue screen right in front of me. No distractions (when I’ve got the second screen up, it’s invariably the ‘browser’ window). Just me and the words. There’s more to it than that, I know, but at the root of it, the feel is just wrong. I never used to feel that way, then I spent a week writing, just me and the laptop, and realised that this was my preferred writing method. There wasn’t anything wrong with the other way and I demonstrably can work that way, but…

I’m not expressing myself very well.

I’m thinking back to that piece the Guardian did a while ago about different writers and their workspaces. Some people took away from that how different writers can/can’t work with computers and hailed it as the death knell of one form or the other. What I took away from it is that I’m not the only remarkably territorial writer out there. Everyone of them had a workspace that was uniquely theirs. It had to be set up just so, so they could write their best. Now, I’m not saying that what I’m bashing out in my spare time is even remotely decent or will ever see the light of day, but I do write. It’s inescapable. Writing, I have come to realise, is my thing. When I can’t do it I feel grumpy. When I don’t do it I feel grumpy. And when it’s not going well (for however you measure ‘well’), I feel grumpy.

So there’s my dilemma.

Put my computer back where it belongs on the shiny, ergonomic goodness that is my proper desk with the dual-screen setup; return the living room to being, well, the living room; maintain harmony at Meadow Towers; but not feel totally comfortable writing. Or stay on the living/dining table, court RSI and a pissed-off Moose, but be happy writing.

Logic would suggest that I go back to my desk and just not use the dual-screen etc, but since when have I ever been logical?

*sigh*

I’ve answered my own question really, haven’t I? It’s time to go back to the desk. Because after all, the PocketCalculator is just that – a laptop – and supremely portable. Just because I am doing the majority of my computing where I should be, it doesn’t mean I can’t make the odd excursion to the living room when the muse has descended. So if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to perform an archaeological investigation of my desk. If I’m not back in three hours, send in Indiana Jones will you?

I’m a finalist in the 2007 Weblog Awards!

Vote for me in the 2007 Weblog Awards

So, it turns out that I’m a finalist in the 2007 Weblog Awards. Apparently I’m one of the ten best UK blogs. I’m not sure how stiff the competition is because, at the time I write, there aren’t links to anyone in my category (grrr), but I’m sure they are all glitteringly wonderful and that I stand no chance of winning. It sure is nice to be nominated however.

This news, as you might expect, has pretty much knocked me for a loop. I first saw that I’d been nominated this morning when Lifecruiser and Abi told me in the comments. Now, I was drinking my morning cup of tea at the time I read the comment. I jumped up from the table to do a little Woot! of joy, tripped over the table leg, knocked the table, split my tea (narrowly missing my computer), and then I stubbed my toe.

The pain is worth it though. It’s the first time I’ve been nominated for anything!

Clearly I got this nomination because the armies of 9rules went out and did their “nominate THIS person or you’ll regret it” thing I totally rock and rule the world 😉

Seriously, however I got it, I am ready to be bowled over by something that is very good at bowling people over. And yes, I will be bragging about it down the pub tonight! (I am that sad)

So, what can you do now? Well, the best thing you can all do, dear readers, is hike your cute little behinds over to the voting page and vote for me. You can vote once a day till the closing date, which is the 8th November.

There are oodles of other awards which I’m not up for, but other spankingly great blogs are, so whilst you’re there I would recommend seeing if any of your other favourite blogs are included in the list.

I refuse to pick favourites, but you could do worse than voting for my One True Blog Love, Roro in the Best Individual Blogger category. (I did a genuine punch-the-air, YES! when I saw her on the list).

Come on people, I need you. Bright Meadow is only as fantastic as it is because I know y’all are out there, reading, waiting and commenting, constantly forcing me to up my game. So I need you a bit more now – vote for me.

Please? If nothing else I want to be able to go “ner-nerny-ner-ner” and stick my tongue out at my brother this Christmas for daring to say my blog is “silly”. Who said sibling rivalry can’t spur you to greatness?