Birthday Geekery

Look what I'm getting for my birthday...

It's hard, from the picture, to appreciate the cuteness of it, coz it's not in relation to anything else! However it's a bit easier when you see this picture of one sat on a Thinkpad - which are the ones we have for work...

CUTIEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Several (non-geek) people (you know who you are) have asked why? You are on a computer all day at work, and you have a laptop at home, why would you want another computer?

Well, here's my answer - I like blogging - especially when away on holiday. Usually, when I have the time to blog, I'm not anywhere near a PC. So this is for taking away - using to upload pics to t'interweb, tweeting, facebooking, and all the rest of it!!!

Someone said to me, 'but you need a rest' when you go away. I think there's a perception, possibly from non-computer people, that the computer is a tool for work. Well, it is, when you're using it for work. At home, it's mucho fun. I use blogging (and reading others' blogs) nowadays a bit like I've always used reading before bed. It's very relaxing. And, who would comment if I went to bed and wrote in my 'journal', or read a book. That is acceptable relaxation activity!

So, let me reassure you that blogging and uploading pics to my multiple Picasa accounts is really nice relaxation! Even more fun if I can do it when I'm sat in a bar, in Venice, drinking a nice prosecco! Watch out - it's got a webcam - I may be wanting to skype the experience to you direct in real time!!!!

Oscaroonie

Little, or rather, 'getting bigger' Oscar, Dan's newest nephew popped in for a visit today; thanks Irv & Hannah! Dan and him had some 'quality time' together...In their matching blue stripey tops it was like 'Big Dan, Little Dan'. There was some gurgling and dribbling and when Oscar woke up, he did some of that too...

Flying High

It's a bit of a pity but Dan didn't get any pics from the air when he went gliding at York Gliding Club 2 weeks ago. I took a couple just when we arrived - looking out at the gliders on the airfield.

Dan took the camera up in the plane...but then forgot to use it. Another guy who'd done it all before, took a vid and has put it up on YouTube.





Pretty cool huh?

Going Grey Gracefully

I've just returned from one of my regular 'grey extraction' sessions at the hairdresser's tonight. I've recently reduced my once-every-6-weeks appointments down to once-every-5-weeks, because for that last week, I'm ready to slit my wrists. No, not literally, but it *does* make me depressed.

Dad went completely grey from lovely dark black within about 5 years from his 38th birthday. I have the same hairline, thickness and double crown. My hair even used to do the same 50's quiff when I had it as short as his. Hmmmm I wonder what else is going to be the same?

True to my genetic heritage, I started noticing the grey around 2 years ago when I turned 38. My hair grows really fast and so for about a fortnight before I was due an appointment at the hairdresser I'd notice the tufty unruly grey straggley bits at my temples - most out of line with the normally shiny, rich dark brown colour of all the other hairs on my head. Brunettes have it hard.

The fringe is the friend of the 'greying at the temples' 30-something girl about town, so I had one cut in at the beginning of the year. It allows you to hide the grey in your parting (or the scars from your facelift) by moving the parting to your crown - thankfully not greying there yet!

I've yet to have *that* conversation with my hairdresser - the one that a good (brunette) friend of mine recently had. The one where the hairdresser says that trying to keep your hair at your 'natural' aka OLD colour is like trying to push back the tide, a losing battle. "Go lighter" they tell you. "Have blonde highlights". I think I'd rather have no hair at all.

So no, there'll be no going grey gracefully for me. No getting lighter and lighter until there's more 'ash' than 'blonde'. No coming out as a 'silver surfer' like Jamie Lee Curtis. No.

I'll be a brunette 'till the day I dye!

Best Hot and Sour Soup EVER!

Dan's just made some soup for my tea. It's THE BEST SOUP EVER! Can't say much more than if I had to choose a food to eat for the rest of my life - it'd be this.

A big poo

I came out of work yester- -day and this
was on my window.

Two of the biggest bird(?) poohs I've ever seen, on the driver's side.

There had been some very very heavy rain in the early afternoon which would definitely have washed this off - so it must have happened afterwards.

I'm thinking maybe this was an eagle or possibly an incontinent pterodactyl.

Tee Hee!

So, Dan and I were having lunch the other day in the Thorpe Park Hotel next door to work - a really lovely steak sarnie & chips - and I was telling him that I'm getting my new Thinkpad for work after about 4 and a half years. He got his new one earlier on in the year (as mentioned here) and so we were chatting about the process of swapping your old data onto the new machine as it's changed a bit since I got my last one over 4 years ago, and I was checking with him what data I needed to back up before the new one arrives.

As you know, Dan's a super techie - but he is a very busy super techie - so since he's had his thinkpad he's seen a particular problem (a message saying there is a power overload in one of the USB ports) but he's not really paid it much attention.

Anyway, at lunch he confessed that he had found out what the problem was; while we're at work, we have to keep our laptops locked with a kensington lock to the desk. Different models have the slot for the lock (it's like a slim keyhole) in different places. Some at the back, others at the side. His new one has the lock at the back, and the old one was the side. BUT HE DIDN'T NOTICE and in his groggy state in the mornings when coming in to work - BEFORE his cup of tea - he has been reaching round the side of the machine and sticking the kensington lock into the first slot it fitted into...

one of the USB ports at the side!!!!

No wonder it was having a power surge!!!!

Julian's 40th

Dan hangs out with a group of friends who he's known since school, but didn't go to school with. They all went to Morley High and he went to Bruntcliffe. Every time we see them I try and get the story of how they know each other and they don't really know.

Anyway, Julian is one of those guys. This weekend he turned 40 and we went to The Buck Inn in Buckden in the Dales to celebrate with him and his wife Karen.

First part of the weekend was a bit of wandering about along to the next village. We had a few pints and lunch there. Some slightly scary stepping stones to get across the river, oh and a close encounter with some cows! Dan - the cow whisperer!

We had dinner in the pub that evening - a nice bunch of 20 friends and family. His sister had got him some suitably age related gifts - some nice specs, big undies and some haemorrhoid cream! Nice. These and other pics from the weekend are up on our picasa web albums --> here.

Baby Birds & another wildlife story

Told you they were cute didn't I?

I reckon I can count 9 beaks (some underneath the others keeping warm!) click on the pic to see the full sized version you can zoom in on.

The bird box is about 7 or 8 inches wide and I reckon the area of the nest circle filled with the little birdies is about 5-6 inches in diameter. That'll give you an idea of how big or rather how small they really are if 9 of them fit into a 6 inch space!!!

The mum and dad are still going in about 3 times a minute feeding them up and when we checked on Sunday the birds were quite a bit bigger than you can see in the pic. I'd say about half as big again! It's not exactly getting crowded in there yet but they aren't going to fit in for too long if they keep growing at this rate!

Anyway, in new wildlife news we have seen a bat (maybe 2) flying round the house at dusk - 10 pm for the last week or so. Can't work out if there's more than one as they flit past so fast. They're quite big - maybe between the size of a sparrow and a starling - but no idea what type.

Anyway, obviously he had to have a name (remember Cedric the killer spider?) we had a bit of a discussion as to what to call him - I wanted Boris, as I thought it went well with horror movie / vampire conotations, but in the end Dan's corny joke won the day - so hopefully I'll soon be able to get a picture up on the web, and introduce you to...

"Bert Baterach"

(groan)

Fairburn & other birdy news

Just spent a lovely couple of hours having a bit of a wander around the Fairburn Ings RSPB reserve. Didn't wander round the hides or feed the swans as we usually do. Today we took a picnic and a half bottle of champers! Very luxurious. 

It's about 24 degrees here today - just about as hot as I like it, so prepared as ever, I'm smothered in factor 30, and I took a leaf out of the Japanese tourists' handbook - bring a brolly - yes a rain one - it really shelters you from the sun! Great for those of us with translucent skin. (Even though you look a bit of a wally).

Picnic consisted of some fried chickeny bits (Dan's speciality) in pittas, hoummus, cheese & crackers, grapes and champers. Lovely!

In "other bird news" there's a nest of bluetits in the nest box on the fence post at the back of the garden. Only about 4 foot of the ground! When you lift the box up to have a peep in, all you see is about 10 teeny tiny beaks squalking up at you for a worm!! I'm going to try and get a camera in there to show you the size of these little things. Each bird is about an inch high at the moment. They're adorable!