Here are just four snaps ... for some reason they have flipped them here. I had previously unflipped them but Gates knows best!
DW
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22.9.12
Hard Rock Cafe Barcelona
HRC Barcelona is next door but one to my hotel and since it is the restaurant of all restaurants that I visit wherever I can, I went there for dinner this evening.
Here are just four snaps ... for some reason they have flipped them here. I had previously unflipped them but Gates knows best!
DW
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Here are just four snaps ... for some reason they have flipped them here. I had previously unflipped them but Gates knows best!
DW
21.9.12
Moving Again!
Montserrat Caballe and Freddie Mercury waxed lyrical over my destination.
Forgive any bad spellings!
DW
Forgive any bad spellings!
DW
Well, Well, Well!
I have reported at various times on the HP Tablet I bought a few years ago and how it was a disaster: five burned out motherboards in a year as well as three or four Bluetooth units having gone kaput ... they replaced it and I am still using that replacement.
The replacement HP is not that good in that I never feel confident enough to use the tablet features that I bought it for. Moreover, the fan whines and whines almost the whole time the computer is switched on. Well, that was until today.
This morning there was yet another power cut here: annoying and frustrating at the same time. Then I noticed after a while that as the HP was running on battery, I couldn't hear the fan whining and whirring away. Zounds! I have been party to all sorts of discussions with all sorts of people all over the web on how to stop the fan making such a racket. I don't think anyone has suggested unplugging the power cord to stop the whining before.
Once the power came back, I recharged the battery and then when the fan started whining again, I pulled out the power cord and, proof of concept, the fan stopped whining.
The thing now is to find out what it is about the power connection that makes the fan a bit shirty!
DW
The replacement HP is not that good in that I never feel confident enough to use the tablet features that I bought it for. Moreover, the fan whines and whines almost the whole time the computer is switched on. Well, that was until today.
This morning there was yet another power cut here: annoying and frustrating at the same time. Then I noticed after a while that as the HP was running on battery, I couldn't hear the fan whining and whirring away. Zounds! I have been party to all sorts of discussions with all sorts of people all over the web on how to stop the fan making such a racket. I don't think anyone has suggested unplugging the power cord to stop the whining before.
Once the power came back, I recharged the battery and then when the fan started whining again, I pulled out the power cord and, proof of concept, the fan stopped whining.
The thing now is to find out what it is about the power connection that makes the fan a bit shirty!
DW
20.9.12
Plug it in: another top tip!
Before you start ranting and raving at an external hard drive that neither appears in Windows Explorer nor allows you to browse any files in it, do make sure it's been plugged in!
DW
DW
19.9.12
Positive Steps
As I was waiting in the chemist the other day I saw a leaflet entitled Positive Steps for you mental health. I took a copy of it and here are the pain points of their message ... worth working at:
I thought that was a good list and worth applying and sticking to.
DW
- be kind to yourself
- prioritise
- if possible, look on the bright side
- maintain a healthy, balanced diet
- enjoy some physical activity
- learn a new skill or try a creative hobby
- set realistic goals
- try to see the funny side where possible
- keep your mind busy
- make a little time for yourself each day
- learn to relax
- take one day at a time
- take time to reflect
- keep in touch with friends and family
- talk about things
- don't be afraid to ask for help
- remember you are not the only one
I thought that was a good list and worth applying and sticking to.
DW
Taxi Date and Time: top tip
My first top tip for a while.
When ordering a taxi by sms or email, don't forget to tell the taxi driver the date and time you'd like him to come and collect you.
DW
When ordering a taxi by sms or email, don't forget to tell the taxi driver the date and time you'd like him to come and collect you.
DW
18.9.12
It Pays to Graduate
I will never agree with the British Government's decision to make tertiary education students pay for their degrees and diplomas but it is worth considering the chart in the Daily Chart series in the Economist that shows the effect of potential benefits of graduating at primary, secondary and tertiary levels of education in various OECD countries.
Take a look here:
Many of the comments following the article are also worth a read.
DW
Take a look here:
Many of the comments following the article are also worth a read.
DW
16.9.12
Microsoft Innovations Know no Bounds
You might have seen the new hotmail interface on the web, Outlook. It looks modern and like many innovations, it takes time to appreciate all of its improvements.
I wonder how shrewd this innovation will turn out to be, however? Using Outlook and an iPad, I clicked on New Message and entered a subject and my message. Then I clicked on To: to tell Outlook where I wanted my message to go. I clicked again. And again. In what must be some kind of revolutionary anti spamming invention, no messages can be sent because no address can be entered.
I thought I'd cracked the system by clicking Add CC and BCC ... WRONG! That didn't work either.
Gatesed again!
DW
I wonder how shrewd this innovation will turn out to be, however? Using Outlook and an iPad, I clicked on New Message and entered a subject and my message. Then I clicked on To: to tell Outlook where I wanted my message to go. I clicked again. And again. In what must be some kind of revolutionary anti spamming invention, no messages can be sent because no address can be entered.
I thought I'd cracked the system by clicking Add CC and BCC ... WRONG! That didn't work either.
Gatesed again!
DW
13.9.12
The Thick of it ... Utter Tripe!
For the first time the other night, I watched an episode of The Thick of it! I had heard that it was brilliant and true to life ... I found it utter tripe.
Then I heard the author, Dr Ianucci (sp?), say on the radio that he believes the programme is very true to life. I don't think so.
Yes, there are smarmy politicians. Yes, there are smart Alek politicians and civil servants. Yes, yes, yes; but these people were beyond caricatures in my opinion.
Lots of F word swearing too: not unrealistic but not needed.
I will not be watching this tripe again.
DW
Then I heard the author, Dr Ianucci (sp?), say on the radio that he believes the programme is very true to life. I don't think so.
Yes, there are smarmy politicians. Yes, there are smart Alek politicians and civil servants. Yes, yes, yes; but these people were beyond caricatures in my opinion.
Lots of F word swearing too: not unrealistic but not needed.
I will not be watching this tripe again.
DW
9.9.12
Last Night of the Proms
It's on now ... they just sang You'll Never Walk Alone and that was great!
Land of Hope and Glory
Rule Britannia
Jerusalem
Back to normal this year. I don't think anywhere else on earth does such a thing do they?
DW
Land of Hope and Glory
Rule Britannia
Jerusalem
Back to normal this year. I don't think anywhere else on earth does such a thing do they?
DW
7.9.12
Golden Hannah's Tribute
Here's the gold post box outside Halifax Town Hall in honour of Hannah Cockroft's gold medal at the Paralympics. Look at the arty composition too!!
DW
DW
6.9.12
5.9.12
Perfect Home Made Bread
By accident I found a bread making tip that made me happy.
Using the same recipe as before and the same ingredients, I added SLIGHTLY too much water to my last batch of bread. I then added a LITTLE bit if extra flour to take the stickiness away. I ended up with the most fantastic dough and the resulting loaf and buns were the best bread I have ever made.
Can I replicate that?
DW
Using the same recipe as before and the same ingredients, I added SLIGHTLY too much water to my last batch of bread. I then added a LITTLE bit if extra flour to take the stickiness away. I ended up with the most fantastic dough and the resulting loaf and buns were the best bread I have ever made.
Can I replicate that?
DW
Gibb Lane is TOUGH
As part of my keep fit for life campaign I walk up Gibb Lane for lung busting exercise and it's tough going.
Up until yesterday I used to zig zag my way up it but yesterday I wanted to go straight at it and did it.
I felt happy to have done it. When I finished my walk and hit back home though, my legs were a but jelly like!
Keeping fit is a full time job and although this is my fourth good outing in six days, we have to keep on top of our fitness as we get older.
Young people can slouch around and then go and do something ... not the more mature types!
Take a look at an Ordnance Survey map to see why I think Gibb Lane is so tough!
DW
Up until yesterday I used to zig zag my way up it but yesterday I wanted to go straight at it and did it.
I felt happy to have done it. When I finished my walk and hit back home though, my legs were a but jelly like!
Keeping fit is a full time job and although this is my fourth good outing in six days, we have to keep on top of our fitness as we get older.
Young people can slouch around and then go and do something ... not the more mature types!
Take a look at an Ordnance Survey map to see why I think Gibb Lane is so tough!
DW
2.9.12
Another Moon Cake
Here's moon cake two from Malaysia: green tea with kidney bean and green bean paste. It's really good.
DW
DW
31.8.12
Moon Cakes
My good friend in Malaysia sent me two Moon Cakes and I have opened and started eating one of them. It is excellent. Truly excellent.
This is why moon cakes exist: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooncake
This is a Lotus Paste cake and this is what it looks like:
DW
This is why moon cakes exist: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mooncake
This is a Lotus Paste cake and this is what it looks like:
DW
30.8.12
Livestock ... Dead!
My hallways seems to be a passage way, or is it rite of passage, for certain livestock.
Flies and spiders are always with us and there are a few spiders in residence in my hall.
Two weeks ago I found a dead common black beetle followed a day later by a live one: I guessed they had had a fight as the dead one did seem to be a little bit injured. Little bit for me, massive for it!
Every now and again some worms appear ... and all they do there is die. There are two there at the moment ... see one of them below.
Most surprising of all, however, is the other creature that seems to have died, stuck half way up the wall. It appeared over night. I would have noticed it before. Take a look at it, below, too. Notice the things that are stuck to it! Has it choked to death on the feathers or something? I think, though, that the feathers are stuck to its rear end!
DW
Flies and spiders are always with us and there are a few spiders in residence in my hall.
Two weeks ago I found a dead common black beetle followed a day later by a live one: I guessed they had had a fight as the dead one did seem to be a little bit injured. Little bit for me, massive for it!
Every now and again some worms appear ... and all they do there is die. There are two there at the moment ... see one of them below.
Most surprising of all, however, is the other creature that seems to have died, stuck half way up the wall. It appeared over night. I would have noticed it before. Take a look at it, below, too. Notice the things that are stuck to it! Has it choked to death on the feathers or something? I think, though, that the feathers are stuck to its rear end!
DW
29.8.12
Just Love Home Made Bread
These are BIG but they are fresh and smell delicious! Made by yours truly!
DW
DW
28.8.12
Another Power Cut
Since the power cut on Thursday I received two text messages and a phone call from the power grid company. Reassurances ... we are very sorry ... don't hesitate to let us know if this happens again ...
About an hour after the phone call, on Saturday, we had another cut: 90 minutes this time. When it came back this time, it was on, off, on off on off, then on. It's as if they are trying to blow our fuses!
I wonder if these people would pay if they fried any of my things.
DW
About an hour after the phone call, on Saturday, we had another cut: 90 minutes this time. When it came back this time, it was on, off, on off on off, then on. It's as if they are trying to blow our fuses!
I wonder if these people would pay if they fried any of my things.
DW
Here Kitty, Kitty!
The big story in Essex yesterday was that there was a Lion roaming the streets. Police caution, animal experts involved ... all due precautions in place. Better to be safe than sorry.
This morning I saw the photo that was at the heart of the search and my only and immediate reaction was, here kitty, kitty! I don't have a link to the photo but if you see it you might be struck by the position and shape of the ears. Ears almost on the top of the head and very pointed.
I took a look at a wide range of photos of Lions: male, female and cubs; and not a pointy ear among them.
One if those interviewed over this story also said they heard a big roar ... more likely to be an ear wax problem, I think!
Meow!
DW
This morning I saw the photo that was at the heart of the search and my only and immediate reaction was, here kitty, kitty! I don't have a link to the photo but if you see it you might be struck by the position and shape of the ears. Ears almost on the top of the head and very pointed.
I took a look at a wide range of photos of Lions: male, female and cubs; and not a pointy ear among them.
One if those interviewed over this story also said they heard a big roar ... more likely to be an ear wax problem, I think!
Meow!
DW
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