BMI ... AGAIN

I vowed never to fly with BMI again and you can search this blog's archive to see why.

However, as part of the trip to Riyadh that I am just finishing now, I was put on the Manchester - Heathrow - Manchester sectors, connecting to Gulf Air flights to run me down to Riyadh.

Needless to say, my luggage has not made it back with me. Moroever, I couldn't be booked all the way through from Riyadh to Manchester so I had to check in with BMI at Heathrow. The check in girl even kindly explained why I also needed to reconfirm my luggage with her. Otherwise, she said, it wouldn't be put on the same flight as me.

How prophetic that turned out to be!!!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Language again

A rather well spoken English woman was interviewed on BBC World's financial news from Singapore this morning and she used one of those stupid phrases that inadequates use. She suggested that a company had "kitchen sinked" a financial report.

Secondly, do you know the plural for Corgi? A Corgi is the Queen's favourite dog, of course!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

The Sun

I am in Riyadh at the moment and one of my delegates asked me what the difference is between their sun and our sun.

I said the difference is that we can see theirs!!

Jolly japes!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Deleting Microsoft Office 2007

Before Deleting any software using Windows' Add/Remove Software utility do make sure you read what it is you are removing. After all, you wouldn't want to uninstall Office 2007 in its entirety would you? More particularly, you wouldn't want to unistall that software when Windows' Restore utility has been disabled for some reason would you?

 

That's probably a double top tip

 

DW

The Lawn

Hooray!

 

It has taken me a long time but when I got back from a recent three week trip I found my lawns to be knee high in grass. The grass just flourished during those fewweeks. It took me another couple of weeks to get my mind ready for mowing but I did nothing. Then this week my old neighbour shamed me by mowing my front lawn. Now, it's not a big lawn but he is quite a bit older than me and he just got on with it.

 

Galvanised, I then found the missing cable: my lawn mower has been standing idle since last August as I left the power cable in my old house in Abingdon. That is, I went online and bought a new power cable and it arrived yesterday.

 

So I spent just an hour or so hacking down my back lawn and whilst it is not at the same standard as my prim and proper Abingdon lawn (the best on my estate by far!), I have begun to look after it now. I will be buying lawn food, moss and weed killer for it now and will mow it more frequently than once in 7 months!!

 

When it is perfect, I will take photos and show you. NO before and after either: forget the past!!!

 

DW

The Secret of Dieting

I know there are lowly people who are fat and then become thin who go on to write a successful "diet" book. Nigel Lawson, one time miserable failure of a Chancellor of the Exchequor, was very blubbery, like his daughter, that ridiculously pseudo poetic cook Nigella.

 

Lawson lost his blubber and now looks more like a Rhinocerous than a person, illustrating just how fat he really was.

 

So, Lawson wrote a book that I believe became a best seller. It is doubtless just a collection of recipes and doubtless the recipes are interspersed with crappy motivational thoughts ...

 

Let me tell you the secret of losing weight, having lost over a stone (more than 14 pounds, more than 7 kg) myeslf recently.

 

Eat less. There you are, that's the secret; but there's more

 

Cut down on the fat: much more important than cutting out the carbohydrates.

 

Eat fewer sweets, chocolates and puddings.

 

There you are: simple

 

If you are a moderate to heavy drinker of alcoholic and/or high calorific soft drinks, drink less,

 

It's that simple and if you cannot do any of this then you are going to be or stay fat.

 

Exercise is important for general health and the more you do the better. In my own experience, especially as I get older, exercise is not such a weight controller. However, good quality exercise gets the heart pumping and the lungs shifting the oxygen around. So take more exercise, especially if you are a slouch and an idle Jack or idle Jenny.

 

Finally, sleep well: you don;t need to sleep more than 7 or 8 hours a night once you are an adult. You don't.

 

Get out of bed, take some exercise and eat and drink less.

 

If you want to pay me some money for that advise, just let me know and I will tell you where to send it!!

DW

DHL ... No thanks Parcelforce is better

I needed to send a package from Abingdon to Halifax and chose DHL. On the web I found the phone number of their nearest office, Leeds. This is what happened; and in each case I started by telling them what I wanted them to do for me..

1 Oh no you need next day delivery for that. Let me give you their number.

Dialled that number.

2 Ah no you've come through to Leeds, I'll give you the number you need.

Dialled that number.

3 Let me put you on hold a second ... I need to give you another number ...

I stopped her and said this is the third number they've given me and I don't need any more. Goodbye.

I then called Parcelforce and for just £14.99 and five minutes of my time they sealed the deal!

DW


Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Slugs love fish fingers

I went out into the back garden this evening and found a tiny child' bike and then saw a bowl on the floor nearby with three fish fingers in it. Slithering their way into the bowl were three slimy balck slugs.

So now you know slugs like fish fingers don't you?

DW


Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

A lake?

It's funny but at least she can speak two languages!

I was chatting to a friend on MSN and showed her my front garden via my web cam. At one point she asked me, 'Is that a lake?' and I replied, 'No, it's a bird bath'!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Plug on the stairs: a top tip

Don't just throw an electical cable with a plug on the down the stairs in case it lands prongs uppermost on a step and you are stupid enough to step on one of the prongs thus gashing the sole of your foot causing prolonged bleeding.

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

More Politicians in the Stupid Tree

Have you seen the latest crackpot idea from our politicians? They want to give us all a carbon allowance that we can either use or trade with. So that's another hare brained scheme that is probably impossible to manage and that they will no doubt waste billions on trying to cobble together. These clowns have only fallen one level down the stupid tree but it looks as if they have firmly smashed their heads on the thickest branch as they fell. DW

Grandchild II Arrives

Ey up, let me introduce you to one of the planet's newest people: Rosalin Williamson.

Rosalin was born on Sunday 18th May 2008 in Germany. How about that and she was, as Shakespeare put it in MacBeth, from her mother's womb untimely ripp'd.

DW, the happy and proud grandad!

Is it London?

I am working in London this week and following a successful meeting I decided to buy a SIM card for my new phone. I did that and as I was finishing the transaction I cheerily asked if my new number was a lucky number. I got a reply that surprised me.

Charmaine said I could make it my lucky number if I wanted. Lighten up Charmaine!

Then I called in a Post Office to buy an envelope to send Dima a little something. I paid for the envelope and asked if I could take it to that counter to send it. The man behind the counter told me that he was closing in a minute.

I said, no, it will be tomorrow. However, I didn't ask him when he closed, I asked him about the services he provides.

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Hold the phone!

How about this?

I have just spoiled myself and bought a new mobile phone at Dubai Duty Free. When I told the assistant about my BlackBerry she asked if she could hold it!

The first one she's ever seen she says.

Wasn't a pick up line either I'm sorry to say!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Shoulder back!

I congratulated myself yesterday when I realised that I hadn't felt any twinges in my left shoulder area for ages. These are due to sitting badly.

So, Sod's Law being what it is, today I am sporting a strain in my left shoulder area.

How do these things work? What law of nature and/or science is at play?

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

How about this then?

Isn't this nice of Pamela?

I am currently studying finance and I found your website <http://www.duncanwil.co.uk/invapp.html> http://www.duncanwil.co.uk/invapp.html extremely useful. It was much easier to understand that all the textbooks!
 
I typed in "Capital Investment Appraisal" and it was there on the first three hits.
 
I just wanted to take the time to write and say: Thank you!
 
Pamela MSc student Robert Gordon University Aberdeen
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Too close ...

Doesn't the phrase "too close to call ..." Get on your nerves?

It's fine for Americans but as a Brit it grieves me to see such informal language being used in supposedly high quality writing.

DW


Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

The name's Bond ... Duncan Bond

Small things: went to the British Embassy in Dubai this morning to organise a letter and they use one of those ticketing machines they use at the Waitrose deli counter.

I got there at about 0740 to find that my place in the queue was ... wait for it, 007.

There you go! Recognition at last for my derring do!

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Brown should not be there anyway

I've said it before and I will say it again: anyone who actively seeks political office or appointment should automatically face a lifetime ban from politics.

Gordon Brown is at the head of such a list.

So many self selecting wastrel people in politics all over the world show that I am right.

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Queue Warning ... Top Tip

Top Tip: If you ever see me in a shop or post office or anywhere else, don't join the queue behind me.

I got in the 10 Items Only queue at the supermarket. Three items only, so that was good then. Well, except for the family in front with a trolley with MANY items in. I thought they would leave the queue when they were told it was against the queue's rules.

Not a bit of it. That family stood its ground and caused a five minute delay at least.

These slow downs happen to the people in front of me all the time.

DW
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device