Ramblings

Anonymous

2009-11-13T16:43:51Z

All this week The Guardian has been running a series of 100 years of great press photographs. The supplements are fascinating -- quite the best I have seen of these supplements, most of which are fast-tracked into the recycling.

Today's centrefold is a photograph of the astronaut Bruce McCandless floating free in space. It's not quite this photograph but very close to it.

A stunning photograph. But the photo credit is Anonymous. Did the photographer stow away on the shuttle?

Nick Griffin, Mark Thatcher

2009-11-04T19:31:34Z

Apparently it is not a crime to call Nick Griffin a "fucking wanker". I look forward to my opportunity to do this. Three cheers for an English jury!

And shewhomust has just pointed out that Simon Mann, just released from prison in Equatorial Guinea, had said that Mark Thatcher was the brains behind the plot for a coup-d'etat. The BBC six-o'clock news reported (21 minutes in): "This morning Mann called explicitly for other alleged plotters, including Sir Mark Thatcher, to face justice, saying they were the real brains behind the coup. Sir Mark Thatcher denies this." For once I might almost believe him. Sir Mark, the brains behind???

Fame at Last!

2009-10-30T16:22:00Z

The Guardian has printed my letter. (right at the end).

Please select the publication month...

2009-10-29T22:32:01Z

If you want to know more information about a book published by Quercus, you have to know which month it was published in ...

What the Guardian doesn't tell you

2009-10-13T10:22:45Z

The following is an extract from the questions down for a written answer in the House of Commons tomorrow, 14 October:

60 N	Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications of the Court of Appeal judgment in May 2009 in the case of Michael Napier and Irwin Mitchell v Pressdram Limited in respect of press freedom to report proceedings in court.
	(292409)

61
N

Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of legislation to protect (a) whistleblowers and (b) press freedom following the injunctions obtained in the High Court by (i) Barclays and Freshfields solicitors on 19 March 2009 on the publication of internal Barclays reports documenting alleged tax avoidance schemes and (ii) Trafigura and Carter Ruck solicitors on 11 September 2009 on the publication of the Minton report on the alleged dumping of toxic waste in the Ivory Coast, commissioned by Trafigura.

(293006)

62 N	Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will (a) collect and (b) publish statistics on the number of non-reportable injunctions issued by the High Court in each of the last five years.
	(293012)

63 N	Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what mechanisms HM Courts Service uses to draw up rosters of duty judges for the purpose of considering time of the essence applications for the issuing of injunctions by the High Court.

The Guardian has been prevented from reporting parliamentary proceedings saying "Today's published Commons order papers contain a question to be answered by a minister later this week. The Guardian is prevented from identifying the MP who has asked the question, what the question is, which minister might answer it, or where the question is to be found." So I cannot confirm whether or not the question alluded to in the newspaper appears in the list above, but the consesus on the internet is that it is number 61. Carter Ruck act as lawyers for Trafigura, which was hit by negative headlines in the summer after it settled a case involving the dumping of toxic waste in the Ivory Coast.

Swimming 'not level playing field' - GB coach

2009-09-20T18:40:21Z

This for fans of the mixed metaphor.

New swimsuit technology means the sport is 'not a level playing field' going into the World Championships, says GB head coach Dennis Pursley.

The userpic is a slightly belated nod to Talk Like a Pirate Day.

I just stumbled across this ...

2009-08-20T15:30:20Z

Captain Gladstone Adams (born 16 May 1880, died 1966), was one time Chairman of Whitley Bay Urban District Council.

In April 1908 he drove down to Wembley in a 1904 Daracq –Caron motor car, to see Newcastle United play against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup final. It was such a novelty to see a car in those days that it was put into a car showroom window while he was down there, because so many people wanted to see it. On the way back from the cup final snow kept getting on the windscreen and Gladstone had to keep getting out of the car to clear it. This experience led to his invention of the windscreen wiper. In April 1911 Gladstone patented the design of a windscreen wiper with Sloan & Lloyd Barnes, patent agents of Liverpool.

In World War I he served in the Royal Flying Corps, the forerunner of the RAF, as a photograph reconnaissance officer. One of his duties was to prove the death and then arrange the burial of Baron Manfred Von Richthofen, the 'Red Baron', after he had been shot down and killed. When World War II broke out he was sixty years of age, too old for active service. However he joined the Whitley Bay Air Training Corps. A trophy given by him to the cadets is still awarded each year and bears his name, the Gladstone Adams Cup.

Gladstone was a professional photographer and he owned two studios, one in Barras Bridge in Newcastle and the other at 18 Station Road, Whitley Bay which is still standing and is now a florist, Whitley Bay. As well as running a business he was also a local Councillor, becoming Chairman of Whitley Bay Urban District Council. One of his official duties at that time was to attend the Duke of Northumberlandl's wedding in St Margaret's, Westminster. Gladstone and his brother also invented the sliding rowing seat and the trafficator, the forerunner of the indicator.
Source: North Tyneside Council DECEASED PERSONALITIES

Would anybody care to help me with this puzzle?

2009-08-08T11:33:24Z

From today's Guardian.
The instructions read: Fill in the grid so that every row and column contains the numbers 1-5. The "greater than" or "less than" signs indicate where a number is larger or smaller than its neighbour.

i before e, except after c ...

2009-07-24T09:36:16Z

Hence five phishing emails this morning, all Secure Message from Alliance & Liecester

The role of coffee in the electrification of Iceland

2009-07-07T20:03:24Z

Four days in Iceland, all different, all amazing:

Arrived so late on Friday it was already Saturday in England. The nice man from the hotel was waiting with a people carrier to take us to our beds.

Saturday collected the hire car and set off along the south coast. First experience of salt fish and of gravel roads and of boiling bubbling hot springs, smelling of sulphur. The mud ones were the best. Iceland is on two tectonic plates, one heaing for Europe, the other for America. Walked across a bridge linking the two, with a gap widening by 2cm/year.

Sunday: The Golden circle tour. Kerið volcanic crater lake (see photo), the real and original geyseir, and its younger, more energetic cousin, Gullfoss water fall and finally Þingvellir, whiche Iceland had the world's first democratic parliament and which is also on that gap between the two continents, quite amazing geological formations.

Monday: Walked behind a waterfall (shewhomust has the photo to prove it) and thence to Skogar (another impressive waterfall) and the folk museum. Reconstructed buildings outside, inside an exhibit on Iceland's rapid modernisation after the second world war. It seems that in order to obtain the high voltage electricity cables from Finland, they had to barter: salt fish to South America, who sent coffee to Finland, who sent wires to Iceland.

Today, some impressive coastal scenes with puffins, sole purpose of visit according to some. Then a drive across flat lava deserts with glaciers to our left, then the hotel where I type this and look out the window to see just over the terminal moraine a glacier heading this way, or maybe, regrettably retreating.

Tomorrow: more glaciers and maybe a further report.

Don't want internet? Use this form to tell us why.

2009-06-10T09:49:47Z

Thanks to The Register for this one ....

The BBC, like most news media, is reporting that "Some 43% of adults who currently do not have internet access would remain disconnected even if they were given a free PC and broadband connection." Then, at the end of the story is:

Are you one of the 30% of adults who do not have internet access at home? Would a free PC and broadband access persuade you to go online? Send us your views using the form below:

and a form to fill in...

Now that's what I call customer service

2009-05-08T17:24:00Z

This morning I was reading shewhomust a story from today's Durham Times that the bells from St Nicholas's Church in the Market Place in Durham had been taken down and sent for refurbishment to the Whitechapel Bell Foundry, where they were originally cast in 1687.

"Now, that's what I call customer service", she said.

Travellers beware

2009-04-30T15:15:32Z

Or maybe that should be "Travelers beware". Thanks to The Register for pointing out the remarks made by Secretary Napolitano in the course of a Department of Homeland Security briefing on swine flu:

We're also actively monitoring travelers at our land, sea, and air ports. We're watching them for signs of illness, and we have appropriate protocols in place to deal with those who are sick. Precautions are being taken to protect travelers and border personnel. Anyone exhibiting symptoms is being referred to an isolation room where they can be evaluated by a public health official before proceeding to their destruction.

Try saying this with a straight face

2009-04-13T08:53:20Z

Every young person will have to do 50 hours' voluntary work by the age of 19 if Labour wins the next election.

— The Guardian today, sourced from the Press Association.

Reindeer like to eat me!

2009-04-04T12:42:32Z

Thanks to valydiarosada for this!

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Durham_rambler!

In Ancient Egypt, people wore glittery eyeshadow made from the crushed shells of durham_rambler.
If durham_rambler was life size, he would stand 7 ft 2 inches tall and have a neck twice the size of a human.
Originally, durham_rambler could not fly.
The condom - originally made from durham_rambler - was invented in the early 1500s.
Durham_rambler is actually a vegetable, not a fruit!
The Australian billygoat plum contains a hundred times more Vitamin C than durham_rambler!
Duelling is legal in Paraguay as long as both parties are durham_rambler.
The number one cause of blindness in the United States is durham_rambler!
A sixteenth century mathematician lost his nose in a duel over his love for durham_rambler, and wore a silver replacement for the rest of his life!
Reindeer like to eat durham_rambler!

Snow and Sky

2009-02-12T21:23:33Z

Late this afternoon our friend Jackie, WINOLJ, called to say she had got in from work and there was no electricity in her house. She'd tried a couple of things suggested by the electricity company and they hadn't worked, so I decided to drive over there, she lives about 2½ miles away in High Shincliffe. The snow had stopped and a thaw had sort-of set in. On arriving I could not help but notice a transit-sized van with a large dish on the roof, and a camera crew. Turns out that Sky News had driven down the motorway, come off at the local junction and pulled into the first village they could find, to take news pictures.

Jackie's electricity? Well I did manage to get some power back by isolating the circuit that was faulty, but could not see what the problem was beyond that. Still, she has light and heating and a cooker, so it's a lot less serious than it was.

Security Conscious

2009-01-19T21:24:16Z

Here's the latest from the Playmobil range, unfortunately not available for export outside the USA due no doubt to restrictions placed by the Department for Homeland Security:

"The woman traveler stops by the security checkpoint. After placing her luggage on the screening machine, the airport employee checks her baggage. The traveler hands her spare change and watch to the security guard and proceeds through the metal detector. With no time to spare, she picks up her luggage and hurries to board her flight!"

Anyhow, it's yours for a mere $55, and if you hurry over to the Amazon.com site you can, and should, read how much this is appreciated by those who can get their hands on it, for example "I like the basic idea. I applaud Playmobile for attempting to provide us with the tools we need to teach our children to unquestioningly obey the commands of the State Security Apparatus..." though some had reservations " This is just a sop to the authoritarians among us. I am holding out for the release of the Guantanemo Playset."

The enthusiastic response to this item is in distinct contrast to the thumbs-down given earlier to that classic A Million Random Digits with 100,000 Normal Deviates from the RAND Corporation, now with Look Inside!

Income tax self-assessment: a rant

2009-01-19T14:37:30Z

I have just finished filing my tax return for the 2007-08 year, using the online "service" provided by HMRC. This is the third year I have done it online and I cannot remember it being this difficult before.

I'll preface this by saying that I have over 40 years' experience in designing computer systems. The self-assessment system has these design and usability faults which delayed my successful completion of the form:

The self-employment section asks for your turnover, and in the next box for 'any other business income'. I had none, so I entered £0.00 — how was I to know that I should have left it blank?
Having learned that lesson, there were several boxes which weren't relevant to me so I left them blank. There was a supplementary question about these irrelevant boxes which wanted the answer Yes or No but I skipped them ... mistake number two! I had to answer a rather pointless No.
In the unlikely event that the Revenue owe me money, they ask for my bank account details. Now my bank statements and cheque book both say my sort code is 30-95-76 so that's what I entered. Another error, they wanted 309576.
Next, the gift aid section. As far as I can work out there's no point in filling this in unless you earn enough to get into the 40% tax band, (which I don't) when you can claim some extra tax relief. Remember all those places you visited 18 months ago run by charities, who ask you to pay a small premium so they can claim back the gift aid? Did you make a note of it? No, so you have to estimate it.
Almost finished. I noticed that the response time is dire, no doubt because everybody else is trying to do this on a Sunday evening. I dread to think what the response time will be as the deadline gets hours rather than weeks away.
Last thing: the box for extra information. I wanted to tell them about the gift aid estimate. I also wanted to tell them about the two directorships I hold, neither remunerated, in case a smart official cross-references tax returns with information on file at Companies House. So I tell them all this, which takes up about half the space in the input box, and press next. And get a tax return update failure which lists the three possible reasons. None of which applies to me. So I log off and leave it to the morning.
Logging on this morning the same thing happens. When I finally get through to the technical helpdesk, a very helpful Glaswegian suggests, almost immediately, that the reason was that my extra information exceeded 256 characters. Which it turns out was the problem. Not that there was anything about a limit on the form that I could see. Or a countdown of characters left.

Most of these are considerable annoyances but the last one is a showstopper. Anybody hitting this one as the deadline approaches could well go past it and incur the automatic £100 penalty. Don't they test these things? (I'm asking you, helenraven , I think they could use your services.)

A milestone of a sort

2009-01-13T21:07:21Z

It is, I suppose, a milestone of a sort.

Today the New Yorker linked to one of our websites.

This is the online auction that Ann Cleeves is running to have a character named after you, or a friend, in the last book of her Shetland Quartet. Proceeds to Vaila's fund, in memory of Vaila Harvey, a Shetland teenager who died much too young from cancer. It will make it possible for a student of Vaila's age to explore the world away from the islands.

What the L...

2009-01-04T10:47:23Z

Happy fiftieth desperance !

The taxman cometh ...

2008-11-08T15:26:35Z

The way we run Cornwell Internet, I am self-employed and shewhomust is my salaried employee, which means I am responsible for collecting her tax and national insurance via PAYE and handing over the proceeds to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. This morning's post brought a Payment Reminder from HMRC saying that they had not received the second quarter's payment due by 22 October, which surprised me because I thought I was up-to-date, but maybe I had suffered a senior moment. But no, on checking the bank statement I paid on 30th September. We were on holiday from 4th October and wouldn't be back until the deadline had passed, so I made sure the money was on its way before we left.

So I called the tax office, which is, thankfully, open on Saturdays. What's happened to that money I paid in September? I asked. I can see that. It's been applied to month 5 was the reply. We sent you that letter because you paid too early. Next time, please don't do that.

Desperance (Monday update)

2008-11-03T15:18:03Z

I have just called the RVI again and they tell me that desperance will be going back into theatre to have the infection washed out again so, contrary to expectations he won't be returning home today.

Update 8:30pm: desperance has been back to the theatre and he's "absolutely fine" now, but they will probably keep him in till Wednesday. The main problem is that he's run out of reading material, though someone has been dispatched to his house to bring back further supplies. None of the books in Ward 20 is suitable, it seems!

Avast, me hearties!

2008-09-19T18:36:22Z

None of me lily-livered friends has noticed, this be Talk Like a Pirate Day.

Avast, me proud beauty! Wanna know why Roger is so Jolly?

A review to knit for ...

2008-09-13T09:01:53Z

Posted in The Knitting Blog and scroll to the bottom ...

Though maybe not in the same class as

Although written many years ago, Lady Chatterley's Lover has just been reissued by the Grove Press, and this pictorial account of the day-to-day life of an English gamekeeper is full of considerable interest to outdoor minded readers, as it contains many passages on pheasant-raising, the apprehending of poachers, ways to control vermin, and other chores and duties of the professional gamekeeper. Unfortunately, one is obliged to wade through many pages of extraneous material in order to discover and savour those sidelights on the management of a midland shooting estate, and in this reviewer's opinion the book cannot take the place of J. R. Miller's Practical Gamekeeping.: -- Ed Zern, Field and Stream, November 1959

it's great fun...

Abbey blues

2008-08-14T09:03:27Z

When I started out with Cornwell Internet I just put all the money coming in and out through my personal bank account, but after a while I decided it would be a good idea to separate out the business transactions from the personal and looked around for a suitable bank to give my business to. At the time Abbey Bank had an offer on: free banking for life providing you did not overdraw (indeed they said overdrafts were not permitted) and also providing transaction rates were below certain limits. So, despite problems we had had dealing with them after shewhomust's sister died (if you're planning on dying, take your money out of the Abbey first), I signed up and for several years was very happy with the service provided. But recently things have started to go wrong.

There was an incident about a year ago when I lost my debit card. Its replacement took so long to arrive that I called up and they weren't sure it had ever been sent, and if it had it had been lost in the post, so they cancelled it and started the whole process again. Of course card #1 turned up the following day.

Then about four weeks ago I made a silly arithmetical error and as a result ended up being £1.17 overdrawn. For this they hit me with £50 in fees which I thought was extremely steep so I called up and got it reduced to £20 which, for an automatic process, I still think is excessive.

Then I received my quarterly bill for my NI contribution (if you're self-employed you will know about these) and so, as they did not need the money for 28 days I set up an advance payment to take the money out of my bank account this Monday just past. Then on Tuesday morning I checked my bank statement to see that the payment was still showing as 'pending' so I called up and was rather weakly given the excuse that it was due to a 'computer error'. So I agreed that the operator would make the payment immediately, which she did and I could see the effect instantly on my online statement. But the original payment was still 'pending' so I cancelled it, got an acknowledgement of the transaction and the 'pending' statement had disappeared from my account.

End of story? No. On Wednesday morning I logged on again to my Abbey account and discovered that my NI contributions had been paid twice. Fortunately this did not make me overdrawn but I have just written a strong letter to Abbey Bank demanding an explanation and suggesting that if they feel it is in order to charge me £50 when I make a simple mistake then they might pay me some compensation when they make a rather more serious error.

I have reached the point now where I don't have the confidence that I ought to have in my bank and wondered if any LJers out there had any more positive experiences with banks that they could recommend? I'm looking for one that is reliable, easy to deal with, and also with minimal charges.