For a while there I was keeping a separate blogspot for my links, but I didn't use it much so I'm going to delete it. But before I do, I'll have a poke through and put the useful/interesting stuff here.
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Greysweater.net because it's nice to get flowers Mmmm... the photolog.
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p h o t o g r a p h i c a . o r g Wow.
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UBD E-Directory Street Search Now when friends and family move house I can track them down with ease.
The Best of Bread - Recipes Index I haven't baked any bread for a while...
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WorldFactbook The CIA knows everything. (Or so we thought, naively, before 11 September.)
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UT Library Online - Perry-Castañeda Map Collection - Country and Regional Map Sites Brilliant, brilliant site. I love maps. This has historical maps as well as current ones.
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A List Apart: Practical CSS Layout Tips, Tricks and Techniques Might come in useful if I ever get round to a redesign (in between fixing the shed doors and painting every room in the house and putting in loft stairs and ....)
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harrumph! still crazy Another goddamned journal, with interesting photos, interesting links page, interesting life.
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soygaucho.com My boss is an Argentine & has often told me about gauchos, cowboys of the pampas. This is a superb site, really worth visiting.
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Free Email Address Directory -- Not only web-based email but on-line storage, calendars/PIMs, forwarding etc and other resources.
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Kiwifruits New Zealand shop in London The temptation to immediately order 20 peanut slabs is almost overwhelming.
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OH LA! Oui! En francais!
Somehow it all sounds so much more sophisticated.
LES PETITS SECRETS DU MARIAGE DU SIECLE: "Il y a vingt ans, le 29 juillet 1981, le prince Charles épousait lady Diana Spencer, de douze ans sa cadette, en la cathédrale Saint-Paul à Londres."
Even poor old Céline Dion sounds interesting:
"Plus de 1500 fans ont fait le pied de grue dès l'aube devant la basilique Notre-Dame-du-Sacré-Cour à Montréal attendant que la chanteuse leur montre la création dont elle est plus fière : son bébé miracle, conçu par fécondation in vitro, après la découverte du cancer de René."
The English and Spanish versions are also online. Sigh.
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VICTORIA BECKHAM - OFFICIAL SITE! Strewth. I can't believe it's not a satire. So much purple ...
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the kat page I love these little games. Fluff the Kitty ... haw!
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Geocaching - The Official Global GPS Cache Hunt Site Almost worth getting a GPS for ... looks like fun.
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kottke.org - home of fine hypertext products Another blog.
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Patsy Cline: Patsified! A Celebration of the Legendary Patsy Cline! Crazy! Crazy for lovin' you!
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Aviation Safety Network: Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) transcripts Woop woop pull up pull up woop woop ...
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- snapshot.auerweck.com - Peekshas, many peekshas
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Les Photos de Villes How completely extraordinary. The French ... what are they like?
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Worldwide Internet Music Resources: Song Lyrics; Libretti More song lyrics.
Songfile This used to have a searchable database with lyrics of more than 2 million songs, but I don't think it has any more.
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Japanese Engrish Very funny -- but I think the funniest one is where someone has sent in a "haiku" from some Japanese stationery, mocking its silly English, and someone else writes in to point out that it's actually a Simon & Garfunkel lyric ...
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Matt Barrett's Greek Island of Sifnos Guide Next year ...
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HowStuffWorks - Learn how Everything Works! This site is fantastic. I've just been looking at how USB ports work -- it's very clear and concise, with photos and diagrams.
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Scottish words - illustrated Hilarious.
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The Blue Roebuck will lead you into her World of the Goddess. May you share in Her ecstasy as you learn of Her many faces. In addition, The Blue Roebuck is happy to bring you Her Sacred Trees and the Ogham Alphabet.
Very interesting info on myths, lovely pics.
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George Eastman House International Museum of Photography & Film Great pictures ....
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Rescued Racers More greyhounds ...
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Linlithgow Canal Centre Ooooo -- this looks like fun.
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:::::coolstop/2002::::: Coooooool sites.
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Welcome to uComics featuring -- The Best Comic Site In The Universe! (It IS pretty good...)
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Guillaume Dargaud's home page I stumbled on this while looking for info on Antarctica. It has some fantastic photographs, many of which Guillaume provides in sizes suitable for downloading as wallpaper. He has an interesting little link where you can donate a bit to him via amazon.com if you do download any pictures.
The photos are stunning -- he climbs all over the world and has visited Antarctica four times, plus he's interested in all kinds of everything & has a cracking sense of humour.
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HotSource HTML Help - Main - Tutorials and resources on HTML, JavaScript, Cascading Style Sheets, DHTML, CGI, Graphics Design, Ethics and Design, Publicizing and Promoting your Website, Frequently Asked Questions, and More from HotSource It does just what it says on the tin.
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laura Holder not com Another photographic weblog, this time New York.
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Hunkabutta.com » » » A stranger's life in pictures Weblog with wonderful photographs, by a US techie type living in Japan.
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Über: Better Than You, Daily. Magazine of some sort.
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McSweeney's Internet Tendency: Notes Toward a Restaurant Review for the Living Section of the New York Times Editor Dave Eggers, who wrote A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
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The Gazetteer for Scotland Names of towns etc.
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Bord Na gCon Irish Greyhound Board, the racing authority.
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Whitfield This place sounds absolutely gorgeous. Just the ticket for a relaxing holiday.
Pet Planet Or hey! We could go to civilised Europe, where people take their pets everywhere!
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Operabase Wow.
The Aria Database - Information, translations, and MIDIs of famous opera arias for singers and music lovers Double wow and hurrah!
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Welcome to the Embroiderers' Guild
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lantern waste: do you see what I see Tesserae's journal. I keep losing the link to this one for some reason, but it's interesting & well written.
and miles to go before I sleep More from Tesserae.
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Alex's paper airplanes I love the internet.
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Cat-Scan.Com Scan your cat! It's hilarious!
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DonationJunction.com Donate to good causes just by clicking on buttons ... it's easy and free.
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File /asdfhjkl not found! Snort.
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Love and Rockets I love these comics, I first read them around 1980.
More: The Unauthorized Love and Rockets Page ... this one has lots of artwork
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First Chapters from various publications:
First Chapters The New York Times.
Booknotes First Chapters C-Span (US non-fiction).
Guardian Unlimited Books | First chapters | First chapters The Guardian.
Washingtonpost.com: Style Chapter One The Washington Post.
Calendar Live - 'First Chapters' Archives Finally ... the LA Times.
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OK, that's the last 100 entries (less really, because a lot of links were broken). I'll do the rest at some point.
7 August 2002
:: what is that strange fiery ball in the sky?
Mmm, yes, we had a day of sunshine that coincided with my day off. Sort of unbelievable. I made the most of it.
The morning walk was eventful in that first of all we met two lads who've decided Bertie must be cured of his fear of children, by them. They were excellent: they got off their bikes, ignored his wild barking and posturing, spoke to him gently and actually got him calmed down enough for me to get him on the lead.
Then we went down to the marina, where we met Lisa from down the road. She gave me a cigarette and we sat and smoked while her dogs splooshed about in the river. Bertie had copied them drinking from their favourite puddle, but romping in the river? No thanks.
Back home I mowed the lawns and did some very light gardening: dead-headed the roses and hacked off some blackberry infiltrating the honeysuckle. Had a long chat with Frances from next door. Then I went out the back and flopped down in my under-used folding chair with the crossword puzzle and a cold drink to soak up the rays.
Took the dog for a quick afternoon walk, then did some more lying around in the sun. Staggered back indoors much later, washed the dishes in a fit of shame (they were starting to smell) and was just contemplating what to cook for dinner when the phone rang. It was John -- he and Penny were coming to Queensferry to walk the dog, would l like to join them for a meal? Yes please!
So Bertie and I sauntered down to the agreed cafe, on the seafront. It's a new one, it has tables and chairs outside. It was busy, plus they were setting up a funfair across the road -- part of the Ferry Fair Week -- and the two dog-taming boys turned up, so Bertie was not a happy dog. John and Penny's terrier, Oz, on the other hand, was very well behaved, sat quietly under the table. We didn't discover until it was time to go that he'd been gnawing away on the furniture ... oh dear.
It was amazing how busy it was: the road was thronged with traffic -- including an annoying boy on a motorised scooter who droned back and forth in a "look at me" manner. At one point he was holding up some blokes on Vespas, who were beeping him: Hey, we've got real scooters, all right? Haw. And the footpaths were thonged too, and the cafe. Bertie got lots of attention -- a man with no shirt and lots of tattoos threw his arms around him and gave him a good cuddle: "There ye go, darling, ooooh ye beauty, lovely boy..." etc. Then he said, "Ye can tell he's no racing, he's fat." I laughed at that, because everyone else thinks he's really skinny -- only the experts can spot his lard-arse state.
So yes, that was fun. I walked J&P back to their car, at Dalmeny, and they gave me a lift home. At home I discovered a phone message from Fiona, who'd called to invite me to an Abba singalong! Wah! Never mind, I'm meeting her tomorrow (later today actually, as it's nearly 1am) at the same cafe as last night's meal.
Then Faye rang, and I talked to her for two hours! Blimey.
To backtrack a little, the weather was horrible on Saturday so I did go clothes shopping. I spent several sweaty hot hours at the South Gyle mall, ugh, but came away with good purchases, including a very pretty pink shirt and four bras. Four! My old ones were falling apart, literally.
Today's weather report: intermittent haar, hot and sunny otherwise. Some spectacular sights as the haar blanketed the river, leaving the bridge pylons poking out, the rest completely invisible. Then later on, after I started work, there was a tropical deluge. The skies opened and the rain thundered down.
I visited the podiatrist this afternoon for a follow-up on my insoles, she's pleased with progress and so am I. I thought last week they were horrible but my legs/ankles/feet/knees are so much better now. Everything just about is pain free, and when I don't wear the damned insoles I feel my ankles wonking around like dough hooks.
Oooh! Time to go home.
Weird website alert, before I go: I don't know if this is a piss-take or not.
The morning walk was eventful in that first of all we met two lads who've decided Bertie must be cured of his fear of children, by them. They were excellent: they got off their bikes, ignored his wild barking and posturing, spoke to him gently and actually got him calmed down enough for me to get him on the lead.
Then we went down to the marina, where we met Lisa from down the road. She gave me a cigarette and we sat and smoked while her dogs splooshed about in the river. Bertie had copied them drinking from their favourite puddle, but romping in the river? No thanks.
Back home I mowed the lawns and did some very light gardening: dead-headed the roses and hacked off some blackberry infiltrating the honeysuckle. Had a long chat with Frances from next door. Then I went out the back and flopped down in my under-used folding chair with the crossword puzzle and a cold drink to soak up the rays.
Took the dog for a quick afternoon walk, then did some more lying around in the sun. Staggered back indoors much later, washed the dishes in a fit of shame (they were starting to smell) and was just contemplating what to cook for dinner when the phone rang. It was John -- he and Penny were coming to Queensferry to walk the dog, would l like to join them for a meal? Yes please!
So Bertie and I sauntered down to the agreed cafe, on the seafront. It's a new one, it has tables and chairs outside. It was busy, plus they were setting up a funfair across the road -- part of the Ferry Fair Week -- and the two dog-taming boys turned up, so Bertie was not a happy dog. John and Penny's terrier, Oz, on the other hand, was very well behaved, sat quietly under the table. We didn't discover until it was time to go that he'd been gnawing away on the furniture ... oh dear.
It was amazing how busy it was: the road was thronged with traffic -- including an annoying boy on a motorised scooter who droned back and forth in a "look at me" manner. At one point he was holding up some blokes on Vespas, who were beeping him: Hey, we've got real scooters, all right? Haw. And the footpaths were thonged too, and the cafe. Bertie got lots of attention -- a man with no shirt and lots of tattoos threw his arms around him and gave him a good cuddle: "There ye go, darling, ooooh ye beauty, lovely boy..." etc. Then he said, "Ye can tell he's no racing, he's fat." I laughed at that, because everyone else thinks he's really skinny -- only the experts can spot his lard-arse state.
So yes, that was fun. I walked J&P back to their car, at Dalmeny, and they gave me a lift home. At home I discovered a phone message from Fiona, who'd called to invite me to an Abba singalong! Wah! Never mind, I'm meeting her tomorrow (later today actually, as it's nearly 1am) at the same cafe as last night's meal.
Then Faye rang, and I talked to her for two hours! Blimey.
To backtrack a little, the weather was horrible on Saturday so I did go clothes shopping. I spent several sweaty hot hours at the South Gyle mall, ugh, but came away with good purchases, including a very pretty pink shirt and four bras. Four! My old ones were falling apart, literally.
Today's weather report: intermittent haar, hot and sunny otherwise. Some spectacular sights as the haar blanketed the river, leaving the bridge pylons poking out, the rest completely invisible. Then later on, after I started work, there was a tropical deluge. The skies opened and the rain thundered down.
I visited the podiatrist this afternoon for a follow-up on my insoles, she's pleased with progress and so am I. I thought last week they were horrible but my legs/ankles/feet/knees are so much better now. Everything just about is pain free, and when I don't wear the damned insoles I feel my ankles wonking around like dough hooks.
Oooh! Time to go home.
Weird website alert, before I go: I don't know if this is a piss-take or not.
2 August 2002
:: make it stop!
The rain is starting to get me down. This morning was bright and sunny and hot, so I bundled Bertie into the car and went to Blackness, planning to mow the lawns when I got back. Fantastic walk, very peaceful. Just as we were heading back, the first drops fell.
By the time we got home it was raining steadily, with occasional torrential bursts.
I went to the supermarket instead of mowing the lawns.
Tomorrow, if the weather is still horrible, I'm going to force myself out to do some clothes shopping. A certain dog tore the sleeve of one of my favourite white shirts on Friday night. When I had a close look at it, it was actually worn quite thin. A lot of my clothes end up like that, worn thin because I'm so reluctant to shop for new ones. Some of my trousers need replacing too. So there's that.
If the weather IS good, I may go for a sail in the afternoon. I haven't been out for ages, and I want to try out my new buoyancy aid. The lawns can wait.
Then I'm doing a Sunday shift as foreign editor, 11am to whenever, 9am probably -- we've got early deadlines because of the festival. I've got one story lined up already, about a man in Bulgaria who's changed his name to Manchester United. His dog is called D. Beckham.
The paper's become famous in Bulgaria since our Moscow correspondent visited there and wrote a story about King Simeon. Here's what a Bulgarian acquaintance of the reporter wrote to him: "The day it was published, the Bulgarian Information agency, the National radio, Dautche Vele and probably some others radio stations gave it to he public. Next day all the national newspapers had some bits of you, or had published all the article. It could be read also on the main www agencies. The day after - today - I read in the "24 hours" newspaper some kind of "investigation". The author had interviewed some people from The Scotsman."
By contrast, an earlier article about Bulgaria focusing on the plight of dancing bears tortured by hot coals -- thrown in as a desperate space-filler on a slow news day -- evoked this response from A. Bulgarian: "I am sorry, BUT THIS IS A LIE!!! I do not know which is the sourse of this discusting libel, but the dance on hot coals is not played by bears. This dance is part of our nationality and culture, as well as the stripped skirts in your country. It is a part of our folclore. This dance is played by HUMANS, usually at our national holidays. We believe that with this spiritual ritual the evil forces will be sended off our lands."
It reminds me of how New Zealand used to be: amazed if anyone took a blind bit of notice of us overseas (apart from sport, obviously). And horribly offended if they got it wrong, of course.
By the time we got home it was raining steadily, with occasional torrential bursts.
I went to the supermarket instead of mowing the lawns.
Tomorrow, if the weather is still horrible, I'm going to force myself out to do some clothes shopping. A certain dog tore the sleeve of one of my favourite white shirts on Friday night. When I had a close look at it, it was actually worn quite thin. A lot of my clothes end up like that, worn thin because I'm so reluctant to shop for new ones. Some of my trousers need replacing too. So there's that.
If the weather IS good, I may go for a sail in the afternoon. I haven't been out for ages, and I want to try out my new buoyancy aid. The lawns can wait.
Then I'm doing a Sunday shift as foreign editor, 11am to whenever, 9am probably -- we've got early deadlines because of the festival. I've got one story lined up already, about a man in Bulgaria who's changed his name to Manchester United. His dog is called D. Beckham.
The paper's become famous in Bulgaria since our Moscow correspondent visited there and wrote a story about King Simeon. Here's what a Bulgarian acquaintance of the reporter wrote to him: "The day it was published, the Bulgarian Information agency, the National radio, Dautche Vele and probably some others radio stations gave it to he public. Next day all the national newspapers had some bits of you, or had published all the article. It could be read also on the main www agencies. The day after - today - I read in the "24 hours" newspaper some kind of "investigation". The author had interviewed some people from The Scotsman."
By contrast, an earlier article about Bulgaria focusing on the plight of dancing bears tortured by hot coals -- thrown in as a desperate space-filler on a slow news day -- evoked this response from A. Bulgarian: "I am sorry, BUT THIS IS A LIE!!! I do not know which is the sourse of this discusting libel, but the dance on hot coals is not played by bears. This dance is part of our nationality and culture, as well as the stripped skirts in your country. It is a part of our folclore. This dance is played by HUMANS, usually at our national holidays. We believe that with this spiritual ritual the evil forces will be sended off our lands."
It reminds me of how New Zealand used to be: amazed if anyone took a blind bit of notice of us overseas (apart from sport, obviously). And horribly offended if they got it wrong, of course.
1 August 2002
Quite a good American greyhound site, with a discussion forum and articles: A Breed Apart. In one of the forums an Englishman mentioned that he walks his greyhound through central London without a leash. You could nearly hear people sucking their breath in! Is he mad? But apparently his dog is very well behaved. Maybe it's not a greyhound...
Later: On closer inspection, there isn't a post on any of the forums since 1999. Maybe there was a mass alien abduction of greyhounds and their owners.
Later: On closer inspection, there isn't a post on any of the forums since 1999. Maybe there was a mass alien abduction of greyhounds and their owners.
:: good morning sunshine ...
... and good afternoon fog. Or rather, good afternoon haar. It came drifting in from Fife at about lunchtime, blotting out the ends of the bridges and chilling the air. It was also quite blustery, which is unusual with a haar and may mean it'll be blown away.
Weather gets to be very important when you have a dog -- nothing as dispiriting as glancing out the window at the rain/sleet/hail/fog and thinking, time for walkies.
We had nice walks today though -- met up with lots of Bertie's large fan club. Like Alastair, who works on the road bridge and has a Lhasa Apso called Jasmine. "No' so great when I take her to the pub." And Bridie from down the road with her short, fat terrier, Butch -- Bertie's scared of him but loves Bridie. Then there were George and Sheila, from down the road and around the corner. They have a corgi and a guide dog, because George is partially sighted. They live above what used to be a pet shop, and today they were telling me about how many shops there used to be, before the Scotmid supermarket opened. There were three butchers, three grocery shops, a bakery and a wool shop. Now it's all knick-knacks and tartan tat. And of course Scotmid is suffering in turn because now an enormous Tesco has opened nearby.
So yes, that was interesting. And then I got busy and swept up the dog hair and dirt littering the floors, and washed the dishes. A very suburban day.
I'd had very little sleep -- Bertie got up crying and carrying on at about 5am. I let him outside and he went out and started eating grass, so I suspect a stomach upset. He wouldn't come back in so I left the door open and went back to bed. I'd just dozed off and he came back inside grizzling and crying again. Argh! This time I ignored him. Today he's fine, after a slow start.
Work has been ok today, no major dramas.
Weather gets to be very important when you have a dog -- nothing as dispiriting as glancing out the window at the rain/sleet/hail/fog and thinking, time for walkies.
We had nice walks today though -- met up with lots of Bertie's large fan club. Like Alastair, who works on the road bridge and has a Lhasa Apso called Jasmine. "No' so great when I take her to the pub." And Bridie from down the road with her short, fat terrier, Butch -- Bertie's scared of him but loves Bridie. Then there were George and Sheila, from down the road and around the corner. They have a corgi and a guide dog, because George is partially sighted. They live above what used to be a pet shop, and today they were telling me about how many shops there used to be, before the Scotmid supermarket opened. There were three butchers, three grocery shops, a bakery and a wool shop. Now it's all knick-knacks and tartan tat. And of course Scotmid is suffering in turn because now an enormous Tesco has opened nearby.
So yes, that was interesting. And then I got busy and swept up the dog hair and dirt littering the floors, and washed the dishes. A very suburban day.
I'd had very little sleep -- Bertie got up crying and carrying on at about 5am. I let him outside and he went out and started eating grass, so I suspect a stomach upset. He wouldn't come back in so I left the door open and went back to bed. I'd just dozed off and he came back inside grizzling and crying again. Argh! This time I ignored him. Today he's fine, after a slow start.
Work has been ok today, no major dramas.
30 July 2002
:: wet wet wet
"A month of rain in just one day" says the headline, and yep, that's about how it feels. This morning when Bertie and I set out on our marathon walk (nearly to Kirkliston and back) the fog had lifted a bit -- you could see most of the bridges -- and the old lady we passed was optimistic. "Seems to be clearing up!"
But during the walk the thunder started to rumble, and the radio newsreaders spoke ominously of flooding in England. On the way back, rain started splatting down and basically it hasn't stopped since, though I managed to get Bertie out for his afternoon walk between showers.
The drive to work was hair-raising, great pools of water across the road in several spots. There was a bus behind me on the motorway, and in my rear-view mirror I saw it throw a gigantic wave up over a poor cyclist struggling along in the bike lane. I hope it didn't knock him over. The next pool I drove through swept up over the bonnet of my car on to the windscreen -- scary!! I'm not looking forward to the drive home.
But during the walk the thunder started to rumble, and the radio newsreaders spoke ominously of flooding in England. On the way back, rain started splatting down and basically it hasn't stopped since, though I managed to get Bertie out for his afternoon walk between showers.
The drive to work was hair-raising, great pools of water across the road in several spots. There was a bus behind me on the motorway, and in my rear-view mirror I saw it throw a gigantic wave up over a poor cyclist struggling along in the bike lane. I hope it didn't knock him over. The next pool I drove through swept up over the bonnet of my car on to the windscreen -- scary!! I'm not looking forward to the drive home.
28 July 2002
:: how weird is this?
Synchronised swimming solo event. Did I miss something? Synchronised swimming is strange enough, but solo?
25 July 2002
I thought of something rivetting to talk about then was interrupted by work and forgot what it was. Well, that was interesting.
Some good news on the website front finally -- according to Steve at easynet support, I now have a 15Mb limit on my "unlimited" webspace. I still find this bizarre, that they says it's unlimited then dole in out in little chunks. Why not just give me a 100Mb limit? Anyway, it will probably be enough for the blinking helicopter pictures. Stand by for further announcements.
I'm being foreign editor for the next few days, which means long hours, lots of stress and a crabby dog. I may see if I can get someone to walk him in the afternoons. He's feeling better after all his recent traumas but I'm thinking I might try and find some obedience classes or perhaps have private sessions with a trainer -- I'd like to have more control over him in the vital seconds before he loses his mind in a crisis situation.
Some good news on the website front finally -- according to Steve at easynet support, I now have a 15Mb limit on my "unlimited" webspace. I still find this bizarre, that they says it's unlimited then dole in out in little chunks. Why not just give me a 100Mb limit? Anyway, it will probably be enough for the blinking helicopter pictures. Stand by for further announcements.
I'm being foreign editor for the next few days, which means long hours, lots of stress and a crabby dog. I may see if I can get someone to walk him in the afternoons. He's feeling better after all his recent traumas but I'm thinking I might try and find some obedience classes or perhaps have private sessions with a trainer -- I'd like to have more control over him in the vital seconds before he loses his mind in a crisis situation.
23 July 2002
:: rain rain go away
Yes, it's raining again. During my days off it did stop raining long enough for me to weed the front garden, where the convolvulus was staging a comeback. It's looking quite spiffy out there; the St John's Wort bushes that had been choked out to just sickly sticks are flowering well, and the hydrangea I moved from the back garden is also blooming, a lovely blue. I dotted some dark blue lobelias around too, and they all look lovely together. Along further there's a rock rose I got from the "Search and Rescue" section at the garden centre, it's doing really well too.
I moved all the Spanish bluebell bulbs I could find from the big bed to the narrow one by the wall -- they look good for about five minutes while they're flowering, but they grow so thickly their leaves block out anything smaller, and then there's just bare ground where they've been. I thought they'd be good with the bushy plants and would help fight the dreaded convolvulus. We'll see. If they're a pest there I'll move out the back up under the trees. They'll grow anywhere, apparently.
I dug some ericacious potting mix in around the daphne, to help it along -- it's still sickly despite all the spraying. It has more leaves, but they still eventually go yellow and spotty and fall off. I'll give it until next year before I try moving it to the back.
I've been working hard on Pinky's new website and also on a new design for mine.
On Sunday night I went to the movies, saw Minority Report -- it was ok. I went to the cinema at a newish shopping complex at Leith, it's the one that has the Royal Yacht Britannia tied up outside. And this time, just along the dock from the Britannia, there was The World.
To quote from the website: "It is the world's first residential ocean liner. It is a temple in Thailand, a seaswept summer in Newport, an ancient journey through the Greek Islands, and New Year's Eve in the South Pacific - all without leaving your home." Yes, all very well -- but it's also a rainy afternoon in Leith. Plus, it's an ungainly-looking thing, like a floating block of flats (which is basically what it is).
More traumas for Bertie, and for me, today. I was waiting to cross the road with him after his walk. A bus was just pulling out up the road and a boy was running down the hill to catch it at the next stop, round the corner. He flew across the road right at us, and Bertie panicked. I grabbed his collars and his hindquarters, but he still managed to drag me out into the road -- right into the path of the bus. Luckily the driver saw what was happening and had slowed right down and stopped.
It took five minutes to get Bertie calmed down enough to carry on home, he was rattled to his core. Then as we were on the home straight, a couple of boys came past on their bikes, larking around, and one of them actually hit me. More panicking from Bertie, but not as bad.
We had an altercation last night over a hedgehog. Bertie caught it on his late-night walk, and refused to drop it. I tried prising his jaws apart, but they just tightened. I tried pinching his nostrils, but he just breathed harder through his mouth. I couldn't get a grip on the poor animal, of course, so I had to just walk around and wait for Bertie to get tired of carrying it.
Then as soon as he dropped the hedgehog we had a furious scuffle as I pushed it into the undergrowth with my foot and he tried to pick it up again. The hedgehog made a run for it, which I was happy to see. Very unhappy dog though.
I moved all the Spanish bluebell bulbs I could find from the big bed to the narrow one by the wall -- they look good for about five minutes while they're flowering, but they grow so thickly their leaves block out anything smaller, and then there's just bare ground where they've been. I thought they'd be good with the bushy plants and would help fight the dreaded convolvulus. We'll see. If they're a pest there I'll move out the back up under the trees. They'll grow anywhere, apparently.
I dug some ericacious potting mix in around the daphne, to help it along -- it's still sickly despite all the spraying. It has more leaves, but they still eventually go yellow and spotty and fall off. I'll give it until next year before I try moving it to the back.
I've been working hard on Pinky's new website and also on a new design for mine.
On Sunday night I went to the movies, saw Minority Report -- it was ok. I went to the cinema at a newish shopping complex at Leith, it's the one that has the Royal Yacht Britannia tied up outside. And this time, just along the dock from the Britannia, there was The World.
To quote from the website: "It is the world's first residential ocean liner. It is a temple in Thailand, a seaswept summer in Newport, an ancient journey through the Greek Islands, and New Year's Eve in the South Pacific - all without leaving your home." Yes, all very well -- but it's also a rainy afternoon in Leith. Plus, it's an ungainly-looking thing, like a floating block of flats (which is basically what it is).
More traumas for Bertie, and for me, today. I was waiting to cross the road with him after his walk. A bus was just pulling out up the road and a boy was running down the hill to catch it at the next stop, round the corner. He flew across the road right at us, and Bertie panicked. I grabbed his collars and his hindquarters, but he still managed to drag me out into the road -- right into the path of the bus. Luckily the driver saw what was happening and had slowed right down and stopped.
It took five minutes to get Bertie calmed down enough to carry on home, he was rattled to his core. Then as we were on the home straight, a couple of boys came past on their bikes, larking around, and one of them actually hit me. More panicking from Bertie, but not as bad.
We had an altercation last night over a hedgehog. Bertie caught it on his late-night walk, and refused to drop it. I tried prising his jaws apart, but they just tightened. I tried pinching his nostrils, but he just breathed harder through his mouth. I couldn't get a grip on the poor animal, of course, so I had to just walk around and wait for Bertie to get tired of carrying it.
Then as soon as he dropped the hedgehog we had a furious scuffle as I pushed it into the undergrowth with my foot and he tried to pick it up again. The hedgehog made a run for it, which I was happy to see. Very unhappy dog though.
20 July 2002
:: Swirled News
I thought crop circles had died out. How wrong I was. What interests me is that the X-Files types get furious when anyone suggests they're man-made -- but I think it would be even more amazing if they are in fact man-made (which I think they are).
They're beautiful, intricate, cleverly crafted and all completely pointless. Acts of pure genius.
They're beautiful, intricate, cleverly crafted and all completely pointless. Acts of pure genius.
19 July 2002
:: poor bertie
Bertie had a terrible time yesterday -- an actual live baby came to visit. He was overwhelmed with outrage and horror, but managed not to lose his head and didn't bark, just huffed and paced and rolled his eyes a lot.
Then in the afternoon, someone threw a rock at him. I didn't see who it was, I was too busy controlling Bertie, who was screaming with fear and pain. Luckily he was on the lead, otherwise I'm sure he would have tried to run home. He's got a huge bruise on the inside of one of his back legs, just by his "knee" -- no padding there whatsoever, no wonder he was shrieking. It's still sore today, so he's been on short walks and plenty of sympathy.
While we're on the subject, here's a nice pic of him:
Isn't it a great photo! It took about ten duff shots to get that one but it was worth the wait. Here's another one, a rare picture of him on the lawn:
Oh and go on, here's an update on my garden:
Then in the afternoon, someone threw a rock at him. I didn't see who it was, I was too busy controlling Bertie, who was screaming with fear and pain. Luckily he was on the lead, otherwise I'm sure he would have tried to run home. He's got a huge bruise on the inside of one of his back legs, just by his "knee" -- no padding there whatsoever, no wonder he was shrieking. It's still sore today, so he's been on short walks and plenty of sympathy.
While we're on the subject, here's a nice pic of him:
Isn't it a great photo! It took about ten duff shots to get that one but it was worth the wait. Here's another one, a rare picture of him on the lawn:
Oh and go on, here's an update on my garden:
17 July 2002
:: getting there
I've just finished moving most of my website over to the old space. No need to bookmark it, because I'll be leaving an index on hockadilly that will point to the other site. I haven't done that just now because it's nearly 2pm and I have a thousand better things to be doing.
There still wasn't room for all the helicopter pics, but there's at least a page of thumbnails to look at.
And look! Here's my gaudy new doorstep and door combo!
There still wasn't room for all the helicopter pics, but there's at least a page of thumbnails to look at.
And look! Here's my gaudy new doorstep and door combo!
16 July 2002
:: ticked off
My To Do list is going really well -- sorted car insurance today, that just leaves the tax next week and the car's dealt with for another year. Went to the podiatrist and my orthotics will be arriving in the next few days.
Just now, I phoned easynet and they've increased the easyweb space to 10Mb and have said they'll look at increasing it to 15Mb once I've put an index page on the site. Which, duh, I couldn't do yesterday because I'd run out of room. I've got the page ready to run -- I updated all the web pages while waiting for the pictures to crawl through the phone wires.
Tomorrow I'll send the pages over and the last few photos, check that everything works, and that should be it, sorted, ticked off the list.
Next most urgent item on the list is the Nautilus website. Then ... oh yeah, I have to go into hospital.
I'm in at work early today because we had a union meeting at 2:30pm. I went home after the podiatrist, walked Bertie and went to the meeting; I hope he's ok being home alone for an extra couple of hours.
The podiatrist was interesting; she says she's not surprised I'm having aches and pains, considering the state of my feet. They're extremely flexible, apparently an inherent thing -- some people have more flexible joints than others. In feet it's a bad thing, it makes you unstable and prone to pronation. To complicate things, one foot is pronating differently from the other. The left foot is worst, so that's why there's more wear and tear on the joints in that leg, because the stress rotates the knee out and that impacts on the hips and pelvis.
The orthotics will straighten the feet out as they hit the ground, and therefore the knees and hips will also be straighter, rather than rotating outwards. Sounds good to me. I have to start out just wearing them an hour a day, increasing gradually until I'm wearing them all the time.
Just now, I phoned easynet and they've increased the easyweb space to 10Mb and have said they'll look at increasing it to 15Mb once I've put an index page on the site. Which, duh, I couldn't do yesterday because I'd run out of room. I've got the page ready to run -- I updated all the web pages while waiting for the pictures to crawl through the phone wires.
Tomorrow I'll send the pages over and the last few photos, check that everything works, and that should be it, sorted, ticked off the list.
Next most urgent item on the list is the Nautilus website. Then ... oh yeah, I have to go into hospital.
I'm in at work early today because we had a union meeting at 2:30pm. I went home after the podiatrist, walked Bertie and went to the meeting; I hope he's ok being home alone for an extra couple of hours.
The podiatrist was interesting; she says she's not surprised I'm having aches and pains, considering the state of my feet. They're extremely flexible, apparently an inherent thing -- some people have more flexible joints than others. In feet it's a bad thing, it makes you unstable and prone to pronation. To complicate things, one foot is pronating differently from the other. The left foot is worst, so that's why there's more wear and tear on the joints in that leg, because the stress rotates the knee out and that impacts on the hips and pelvis.
The orthotics will straighten the feet out as they hit the ground, and therefore the knees and hips will also be straighter, rather than rotating outwards. Sounds good to me. I have to start out just wearing them an hour a day, increasing gradually until I'm wearing them all the time.
15 July 2002
:: grumble growl thunder
I've been sweating away transferring my pix over to the easyweb site only to discover I'VE RUN OUT OF ROOM AGAIN!!!!!
grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
So I've sent a very very nice little email off to easynet support asking please very nicely extend the limit on my unlimited web space. And do it NOW before I get really CROSS.
Pretty please.
grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
So I've sent a very very nice little email off to easynet support asking please very nicely extend the limit on my unlimited web space. And do it NOW before I get really CROSS.
Pretty please.
:: froth froth froth
I just tried to upload some pictures and couldn't, not even one. Sigh. So I got back to easynet and now I'm reeeeeally annoyed. It seems last time, when I thought I had everything sorted out, I actually didn't.
1. The size limit on easydomain IS capped, at 5Mb. If I want more than that, I have to pay extra.
2. There is no size limit on the easyweb service, however.
3. The space currently allocated for me on easyweb is 7Mb. My website is currently 5.3Mb, but it's on the easydomain server so it's over the limit.
Are you following this?
What it means is that I have to move my website off the hockadilly easydomain and on to the easyweb space. But don't worry! You don't have to bookmark anything! Because what I can do is put an index sheet on the easydomain that points to the easyweb domain. That was my idea, by the way, not theirs. James, the poor support boy, had no clue. So I'm not entirely sure if this is legal and will work, given what's gone before, but I'm willing to give it a go.
The blogspot is unaffected. Bless.
1. The size limit on easydomain IS capped, at 5Mb. If I want more than that, I have to pay extra.
2. There is no size limit on the easyweb service, however.
3. The space currently allocated for me on easyweb is 7Mb. My website is currently 5.3Mb, but it's on the easydomain server so it's over the limit.
Are you following this?
What it means is that I have to move my website off the hockadilly easydomain and on to the easyweb space. But don't worry! You don't have to bookmark anything! Because what I can do is put an index sheet on the easydomain that points to the easyweb domain. That was my idea, by the way, not theirs. James, the poor support boy, had no clue. So I'm not entirely sure if this is legal and will work, given what's gone before, but I'm willing to give it a go.
The blogspot is unaffected. Bless.
14 July 2002
:: summer
Yesterday was summer, and very enjoyable it was too. Addled by the heat, I scrabbled around in the bowels of the shed to find the paint I bought months ago, and painted the back door and the front and back doorsteps. It wasn't a total success: the door paint is a brighter green than the label on the tin suggested, and the doorstep paint is bright red. The result is garish to say the least, and very shiny.
I haven't painted the big doorstep outside the livingroom doors because I'm not sure if there's enough paint left. There's loads of door paint though, so I might paint the shed doors even though they're falling apart.
I also dug over the new vege bed, raked in 80 litres of soil improver, covered it all with more newspaper and fenced it off with a little bamboo trellis thingie, to keep Bertie off. Ha ha. Then I cleared all the grunge and dead grass and bricks and stuff from outside the shed window, to see if it's worth replacing the broken glass. The answer is possibly not -- the frame is all rotted away. An interim solution is to patch the broken bit and get some of that "No More Big Gaps" expanding foam filler to plug the hole underneath it. That will at least keep the shed reasonably dry.
There's a ceiling light in there that doesn't go -- I tried changing the bulb and I checked all the fuses. The fusebox is reasonably new so maybe when that was done, the shed light didn't get wired in. The cable from the switch is cased in a metal tube which disappears into the concrete floor, no idea where it goes from there.
One day I'd like to get the shed sorted as a workshop, with a power point as well as a light, maybe knock the coalshed in together, but it's looking like a bigger and bigger job. So maybe not.
After all that huffing and puffing and breathing in paint fumes I was hot and exhausted, so after washing and changing into a frock (horror), I retired to the lawn with a rug, a stack of cushions, a book and a tall drink clinking with ice. Ahhhhhhhhh.
Poor Bertie though, he hates the heat. He spent most of the day inside, asleep. He sloped out a couple of times to see what I was up to -- most disconcerted to find me lying on the ground. "Are you ok?" But he soon went back upstairs -- outdoors has too many annoying insects. I took him for a good long walk in the evening, when it had cooled down.
I'd wanted to go to Devdas, a Bollywood extravaganza that's showing at a cinema in town, but I couldn't drag myself away from the garden. It's light until so late, and the sunset was gorgeous. Not so much the sky, but the beautiful golden light from the setting sun -- it gives everything it touches a surreal feeling, an extra lush depth and glamour.
Today it's back to weather as usual -- cloudy and grey, with a heavy sultry feeling like a hangover from yesterday's sunny excitement. It's so tragic, the weather this summer! Even yesterday people couldn't fully enjoy it: "It won't last," they'd say, with a grim glance at the sky.
I'm ordering 100 onion sets and some more garlic for the new bed, all autumn planting. The raspberries are ripening and being eaten as soon as they do by the birds, but the blackcurrants are a bit slower. I pulled all the garlic this morning -- mixed results there, but I think the next lot will do better.
I haven't painted the big doorstep outside the livingroom doors because I'm not sure if there's enough paint left. There's loads of door paint though, so I might paint the shed doors even though they're falling apart.
I also dug over the new vege bed, raked in 80 litres of soil improver, covered it all with more newspaper and fenced it off with a little bamboo trellis thingie, to keep Bertie off. Ha ha. Then I cleared all the grunge and dead grass and bricks and stuff from outside the shed window, to see if it's worth replacing the broken glass. The answer is possibly not -- the frame is all rotted away. An interim solution is to patch the broken bit and get some of that "No More Big Gaps" expanding foam filler to plug the hole underneath it. That will at least keep the shed reasonably dry.
There's a ceiling light in there that doesn't go -- I tried changing the bulb and I checked all the fuses. The fusebox is reasonably new so maybe when that was done, the shed light didn't get wired in. The cable from the switch is cased in a metal tube which disappears into the concrete floor, no idea where it goes from there.
One day I'd like to get the shed sorted as a workshop, with a power point as well as a light, maybe knock the coalshed in together, but it's looking like a bigger and bigger job. So maybe not.
After all that huffing and puffing and breathing in paint fumes I was hot and exhausted, so after washing and changing into a frock (horror), I retired to the lawn with a rug, a stack of cushions, a book and a tall drink clinking with ice. Ahhhhhhhhh.
Poor Bertie though, he hates the heat. He spent most of the day inside, asleep. He sloped out a couple of times to see what I was up to -- most disconcerted to find me lying on the ground. "Are you ok?" But he soon went back upstairs -- outdoors has too many annoying insects. I took him for a good long walk in the evening, when it had cooled down.
I'd wanted to go to Devdas, a Bollywood extravaganza that's showing at a cinema in town, but I couldn't drag myself away from the garden. It's light until so late, and the sunset was gorgeous. Not so much the sky, but the beautiful golden light from the setting sun -- it gives everything it touches a surreal feeling, an extra lush depth and glamour.
Today it's back to weather as usual -- cloudy and grey, with a heavy sultry feeling like a hangover from yesterday's sunny excitement. It's so tragic, the weather this summer! Even yesterday people couldn't fully enjoy it: "It won't last," they'd say, with a grim glance at the sky.
I'm ordering 100 onion sets and some more garlic for the new bed, all autumn planting. The raspberries are ripening and being eaten as soon as they do by the birds, but the blackcurrants are a bit slower. I pulled all the garlic this morning -- mixed results there, but I think the next lot will do better.
12 July 2002
:: boooooooring...
Mmmm, nothing much going on. Slightly frustrating day today -- I took my car in for the repairs it needed for the MOT (warrant) in the morning, walked the dog and did some computing. The mechanic had said he would phone to say whether he needed to keep the car overnight but he didn't of course. So I phoned the garage and the woman in the office said he'd told her I could pick it up at 4.30.
I was there at 4.20, but the mechanic wasn't -- he was on his way back from Bathgate. The car was ready though, so the office woman said she'd make up the bill; though I'd have to come back tomorrow for the MOT certificate. She was sooooo slooooow! Fiiiiiinally it was done and I paid and the boy brought the car round and fiddle-faddled around wiping the steering wheel while I fumed and fizzed.
Then the traffic was horrendous, backed up for half a mile at the city outskirts, plus I nearly had a prang at a roundabout. I still can't believe it -- a taxi driver waiting at the next street to my right flashed his lights and waved his finger at me to indicate he was letting me out first, then drove right at me!!! I had to stop in the middle of the roundabout with all the other drivers glaring at me, while the taxi driver didn't give a backward glance. Must be some kind of sick game they play.
Nostalgic trip to the supermarket in my break: I went to the Tesco Metro near where I used to live. Tesco is a big supermarket chain, and Metros are its little central city branches. I'd forgotten what a buzzy little place it is! Full of students, many languages being spoken, plenty of startling fashion statements and almost no children. Fab. There was a near-riot in the bread section when they started marking down the fancy goods -- four bagels for 10p! The down-side was that of course they didn't have a lot of the stuff I wanted, but it was such fun that didn't matter. I even got caught out by the eccentric queuing system, I'd forgotten all about that -- everyone queues between the aisles, leaving the runway by the checkouts clear. Newbies look at the checkouts and think, wow, no queues! But dozens of pairs of eyes are burning into them from behind. Actually the customers there are very laid back and accept an apology without rancour.
So -- tomorrow if it doesn't rain I'll get into the garden. If it does, I might go clothes shopping. I'm also going to the movies, come what may. I fancy this Bollywood spectacular that's coming out this weekend, sounds delicious. That or Minority Report, because it's sci-fi.
Bertie's had a good couple of days, meeting several friendly new dogs and their friendly people and chasing lots of rabbits. Last night -- well, in the early hours of this morning -- as a treat I took him up to the field. All the rabbits were out and unwary, and he had a ball thundering around neeeearly catching them.
I was there at 4.20, but the mechanic wasn't -- he was on his way back from Bathgate. The car was ready though, so the office woman said she'd make up the bill; though I'd have to come back tomorrow for the MOT certificate. She was sooooo slooooow! Fiiiiiinally it was done and I paid and the boy brought the car round and fiddle-faddled around wiping the steering wheel while I fumed and fizzed.
Then the traffic was horrendous, backed up for half a mile at the city outskirts, plus I nearly had a prang at a roundabout. I still can't believe it -- a taxi driver waiting at the next street to my right flashed his lights and waved his finger at me to indicate he was letting me out first, then drove right at me!!! I had to stop in the middle of the roundabout with all the other drivers glaring at me, while the taxi driver didn't give a backward glance. Must be some kind of sick game they play.
Nostalgic trip to the supermarket in my break: I went to the Tesco Metro near where I used to live. Tesco is a big supermarket chain, and Metros are its little central city branches. I'd forgotten what a buzzy little place it is! Full of students, many languages being spoken, plenty of startling fashion statements and almost no children. Fab. There was a near-riot in the bread section when they started marking down the fancy goods -- four bagels for 10p! The down-side was that of course they didn't have a lot of the stuff I wanted, but it was such fun that didn't matter. I even got caught out by the eccentric queuing system, I'd forgotten all about that -- everyone queues between the aisles, leaving the runway by the checkouts clear. Newbies look at the checkouts and think, wow, no queues! But dozens of pairs of eyes are burning into them from behind. Actually the customers there are very laid back and accept an apology without rancour.
So -- tomorrow if it doesn't rain I'll get into the garden. If it does, I might go clothes shopping. I'm also going to the movies, come what may. I fancy this Bollywood spectacular that's coming out this weekend, sounds delicious. That or Minority Report, because it's sci-fi.
Bertie's had a good couple of days, meeting several friendly new dogs and their friendly people and chasing lots of rabbits. Last night -- well, in the early hours of this morning -- as a treat I took him up to the field. All the rabbits were out and unwary, and he had a ball thundering around neeeearly catching them.
10 July 2002
:: see what I see
If you go to the Scotsman's webcams and click on the Scottish parliament one, you can see what I see as I sit at my desk. Except of course you don't see the desks and computer terminals and colleagues in between me and the window, because the camera's outside. But roughly. Oh, I just looked at it again and the camera pans around. Woo!
There's also a Forth Bridge cam there, but it's at North Queensferry and angled so you can't see South Queensferry. It doesn't seem to pan.
Took the car in today for its MOT (WOF) and it failed miserably. Lots of its bits are about to blow, like the front exhaust pipe and the brake pipes and a compliance bush. Six bulbs had to be replaced! I had no brake lights! Not expensive taken one by one, but all together it adds up to a goodly chunk of money. There's also a tire that passed this time but won't next time. I'm happy to get everything done though, because he's a good mechanic.
So that's all being done on Friday. If it doesn't rain, I'll take advantage of the early rising and get out in the garden, start spreading around all the dirt I bought the other day.
There's also a Forth Bridge cam there, but it's at North Queensferry and angled so you can't see South Queensferry. It doesn't seem to pan.
Took the car in today for its MOT (WOF) and it failed miserably. Lots of its bits are about to blow, like the front exhaust pipe and the brake pipes and a compliance bush. Six bulbs had to be replaced! I had no brake lights! Not expensive taken one by one, but all together it adds up to a goodly chunk of money. There's also a tire that passed this time but won't next time. I'm happy to get everything done though, because he's a good mechanic.
So that's all being done on Friday. If it doesn't rain, I'll take advantage of the early rising and get out in the garden, start spreading around all the dirt I bought the other day.
9 July 2002
Quite a quiet weekend, mainly due to continuing horrible weather. I did manage to get the lawns mowed though. And I went and bought a whole load of different potting mixes and soil improver. I'm going to spade over the new bed at the back, and plant some potatoes or something. I've got some ericacious mix for the daphne, some regular potting mix for indoor and patio plants, and some seed mix for ... seeds, duh. I got so much because some of the bags were damaged and were half-price. At the moment the 80-litre bag of soil improver is still in the car, because it's too heavy to carry in. Don't worry, I have a plan...
What else? I've been working a lot on Pinky's new website, which has been frustrating and satisfying about equally.
Today I went to a chiropracter to see about my feet/ankles/knees/hips and he's passing me on to a podiatrist, says I'm a "classic pronator" and will need orthotics, special corrective insoles.
Bertie is fine. He chased a deer the other day -- we went to the usual field in the gloaming, and the deer was standing right out under the bridge. When I've seen them before they've been around the edges. A year ago Bertie would have ignored it, but now he's game to take on just about anything except cows. Alan showed up just a few minutes later and was quite put out -- he's never seen deer in all the years he's been coming there, while "everyone else and their dog" has seen them.
What else? I've been working a lot on Pinky's new website, which has been frustrating and satisfying about equally.
Today I went to a chiropracter to see about my feet/ankles/knees/hips and he's passing me on to a podiatrist, says I'm a "classic pronator" and will need orthotics, special corrective insoles.
Bertie is fine. He chased a deer the other day -- we went to the usual field in the gloaming, and the deer was standing right out under the bridge. When I've seen them before they've been around the edges. A year ago Bertie would have ignored it, but now he's game to take on just about anything except cows. Alan showed up just a few minutes later and was quite put out -- he's never seen deer in all the years he's been coming there, while "everyone else and their dog" has seen them.
5 July 2002
I am not paranoid
Today I started work at 11am instead of 5pm, since I am doing my boss's job, and by pure coincidence it is gloriously sunny and warm outside.
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