Girl 3

Lie in this morning, didn't get up 'til 8.00. Potter about, Cal comes downstairs to join me. Blokey conversation is had. Monst wakes and declares she's taking a curry into work tonight and can I get some beef. Then also tells me her glasses are broken and need repairing. So off to the chinese supermarket and opticians. This leaves me in town for an hour. Despite the Sally Ipod demon on my shoulder (I'm still very jealous) I manage to resist temptation and I end up in Waterstones, pick up a book and have a civilised coffee. Return to the second opticians who like the first couldn't fix it but unlike the first offered to fit the lenses into some other frames an charge me 20 notes for it. Result, I'm out of trouble and Monst has workable glasses. Home via the supermarket. Cat food has been purchased, Katie is relieved. At least someone is pleased with me. Cal is watching Dangermouse which is interesting to me as a) it's my DVD and b) the humour is very wordy. We sit down and watch together. Then its off for a bike ride. Which reminds me Librarywebbie has discovered the Rotters Club too and enjoyed the prog rock. Me, I'm mid book because I enjoyed the first episode so much. Cracking little read. Me I'm mightily impressed, Elaine over at the Bearable Lightness of Being has answered Dave's challenge. Much appreciated because its a blog on my list of regular haunts. Meanwhile need to send the thing to Mr. Taylor and Ken. Musically the excellent Indie MP3 - Keeping C86 Alive! Blog (a must in my aggregator) introduces me amonst other things to the lovely All Girl Summer Fun Band, now as a sucker for girl led indie bands like Talulah Gosh and a lover of the ever wonderful Jonathon Richman this lot who combine both in their own lovely package (I discover having downloaded a few MP3s) have me smitten. Bit of the original out of 'We've Gotta Fuzzbox and We're Gonna Use It' thrown in too. 'Later Operator' is a work of genius and 'Grass Skirt' ain't far off. Check 'em out, well worth the visit.

Just Like the Friday Five Again

1. What is the total amount of music files on your computer? 500 2. The last CD you bought is: The Frames 'Dance the devil...' 3. What is the song you last listened to before reading this message? 'Star, Star' 4. Write down 5 songs you often listen to or that mean a lot to you. 'On a Beach' - Ella Guru 'Just Like Ollie Reed' - The Dentists 'Levitate the Pentagon' - The Anyways 'Ben Sherman' - Heavenly 'Only the Stones Remain' - The Soft Boys 5. Who are you going to pass this stick to? (3 persons) and why? Elaine @ The Bearable Lightness of Being - nice to have a perspective from the States Ian - who doesn't blog but is chargeable under crimes against music. Ken - for all those prog rock moments.

Stupid Cupid

Begin the move of books from open shelves into boxes to solve our problem that thin and floppy grey literature, the stuff that constitutes a fair proportion of stock keeps on falling over. Farenheit 9/11 on TV tonight and as these day's I don't get to watch grown up films often it's nice to be able to catch one on TV. Serious stuff delivered in a fun way. Cool. Dave sent me a mail that took me back to the days of the Friday Five, meant to paste the reply earlier but like the fool I am manage to forget to. Doh! Note to self, check out: Image*After The Open Photo Project stock.xchng Pixel Perfect Digital BigFoto morgueFile. Always good to have more image sources up my sleeve. Notice absence of Ken blogging so delve into WLSINFO and relieved to see a post from 27th and amazed that the site is to years old. Still shocked by my reaction recently to the holocaust material I've been reading. Over the years I've read a reasonable amount on the subject and it's never got to me as much as it is right now. Mind you the more I think about it the happier I am by the shock.

Shocked

Eat lunch read the Shadow of Auschwitz in the Independent. I'm no stranger to the subject matter but it's increasingly sick. That I'm eating doesn't help. Shocked that in a poll 45% of Britons weren't aware of Auschwitz.

Puncture my Bubble You Bastard

Disaster on the way to the Heath, a lorry acts like a Hollywood chariot and slices up my front tyre. I'm stationary at the time and yet the geezer claims I hit him. I ask the old girl behind me, believing I must be out my tree and that I moved but no I was stationary and yet I suppoedly hit him. Luckily I'm near a garage they sort me. Means I'm late for induction, catch Andy Meadows being me, cool, I'm full of adrenalin and the session flies as does the cardboard Jimi sesh I do afterwards. Warrington dreadful traffic wise on the way back. Pick up some mini-dv cassetes from Tesco and then back to Hammy. Spend the afternoon ranting. The Heritage User Group are looking at bibliographic standards for Jericho. I object they are going to come at it from a Heritage and Manc perspective. Ring Colin and object and he's most civil. Ring Chris Thornton, need to put my probs in an e-mail to her. Ring Jean Williams and get abuse over the Bolton 1-0 win, fair play to her, boot on the other foot and I'd do the same. More rant. Chris and Jean feel their hands are tied. I'm not pissed at the whole Jericho notion, I support many of its aims, but I am pissed that it will create de facto standards the ret of us will have to live with without consultation and input from us. Ring Rach and rant. Avoid the filming. Positive news from Joe from HR. Good lad he offers further help. Cool. Much discussion of implications. I have a memory like a sieve and prove it again, but then I'm stressed by the day. Eventually start the vid. I'm shite I have no ability to stand still, stumble over words. Dunno, I'm used to the sound of my voice on tape but sight of myself is another matter. Job done I head to Studio 5 at the Liverpool Studios to deliver the thing to Mereysound. Almost disturb some filing only to find they've moved next door to Stuio 4. Hand the cassette in and scarper. Supermarket, cheap Irn Bru to celebrate Burns night (when did Burns write about Irn Bru? was it 'Ode to an Orange Hangover Cure that Tastes Like Boiled Sweets and Claims to be Made of Girders'). Home food, wash up, blog. Beer. Sorted.

Nonsense Again

Poxy websense again gets in the way of stuff. Today it claims the Independent is a site dealing with personals and dating. I know the news out there is desperate (with the clear exception of England's success in the cricket) but not in that sense. Not impressed, fire a mail to Graeme the Websense Rottenfuehrer and Big Bri. Apparently 'Websense provides filtering solutions to help companies productively use the Internet' er...that don't make sense I hit a site sensed I look for a way round it, it therefore takes me more time to do the job. Ban me from gambling, ban me from porn by all means they aren't part of my working day but let me get at stuff I need to work. Induction packs and mugs sorted for today at the Heath. Music and script to scrawl. Yipee! Word from yesterday's HR shenanigins looks positive following a chat with Tracy, appeases my guilt.

Gentleman Jim

Once more HR wind me up. They wnader in announce they're looking at people's jobs without letting me know what's going down or more importantly letting the girls know in advance to prepare for ordeal by HR. All I can do is trust the goodwill of Joe. Will have words (hopefully nice one's). Manage to chat things through marginally with Sally but not Christina and Tracy. Feeling guilty again.

Gentleman Jim

Once more HR wind me up. They wnader in announce they're looking at people's jobs without letting me know what's going down or more importantly letting the girls know in advance to prepare for ordeal by HR. All I can do is trust the goodwill of Joe. Will have words (hopefully nice one's). Manage to chat things through marginally with Sally but not Christina and Tracy. Feeling guilty again.

Headlong

Er... Letter of the law or spirit of the law. Big question, big debate, draw in what passes as ready legal advice from the Asian John Le Mesurier who wishes to vote with the former. Me, I vote with the latter in matters FoI. Come to an amicable solution but not before I witness some local politics in action. FoI training sesh with the information team. Flies by and is kinda fun. Discover I'm double booked and have to be cardboard Jim tomorrow and should be at a PCT induction. Try to convince Tracy to be cardboard me and cardboard Jim but she votes to do the PCT induction with Sally. Don't blame her, that'd be my preference so instead I'm back at Stockton Heath broadcasting library propoganda. Need to go to Hammy House for goodies then to the Heath then back to Hammy to shoot our epic vid all 60 seconds of. This will be the occaision of much piss take I suspect. Hope whoever operates the camera don't laugh to much. Develop photies of Disney and pizza for dinner. Nice.

Max Headroom

Angela Delea swings by, lays on me the concept of an Oscars like honours ceremony for the PCT. Then asks for a minute's worth of promo vid for the library. Er..politically sound move, can't say the prospect fills me with anything but dread. Gonna bother about it and it should be throwaway. Slots in to a bigger vid they've done. Horrible suspicion OU stylee beckons from us. Knackered and need sleep, somehow avoiding it.

Misery Monday

Cal's birthday falls on what the papers term Misery Monday. People realise how much they spent on Christmas, the weather is awful etc. For us though a happy day. Head home early and Cal and Aaron are running around like loons. Monst cooks sausage rolls etc. Work beckons for me later though.

Charlie Big Nose Again

Geography mirrors the name, terminal 2 is as huge as Charlie's hooter. Monst sprints to get us from 2F to 2B. Cal's little legs are a blur. I lope along after them much to their disgust. Monst gains instructions from a Kato look alike and eventually we locate the BA desks. Check in ain't easy and we go through passport control before we grab food. Leaves little food choice so cheese ham and mustard sarnie, Cal indulges in a bag of Lay's crisps and Monst has a Croque Monsieur. Not the feast Monst envisaged so food the Manc end beckons. Bad news is that Cal picked some Orangina Rouge with added Guarana. Stimulants this time of night! Better news is a 1-0 win over Newcastle. Cheery stuff.

Bus Home Blog

Manc suggests to us the City of Culture is all about Scallies using books instead of bricks when then nick your wheels. My how we laughed, an original wit strikes again. Worst is it looks like we're lumbered with the geezer until Manchester. Deep joy. Must be bad I'm no where near scouse and it bothers me. Meanwhile Arsenal are one up at half time against Newcastle courtesy of DB10. Bus is full of Disney fashion crimes which must be bad if I notice them. Can't see any possible value in stetsons or big ears in the real world. Still I may be wrong, I usually am. Hacked off the reading lights are off. Not to bad typing in tHe dark, I type badly at the best of times. Difficult to read, which is how I'd prefer to spend my time.

Magic Carpets, Herbie and Psychedelic Baloo

We hit the mock Studio today. Full of scary fire and water effects that have been through so many health and safety checks that even our lot at work would find it hard to object. Cal loved the stunt show, Catastrophe Canyon was a successful disaster. The animation stuff has gone down well too. Cal has created a psychedelic Baloo. Most impressed. Woke up this morning to discover snow covered cars. Whole family is tired. Breakfast, empty room. Check out. Sort out bus times for return journey. Meanwhile in the real world, Arsenal take on the Geordies this afternoon and I either get to take the mick out of Ingrid or the other way round. A loss today and Chelsea really are well away. Still kinda hoping they throw it all away. More importantly the Mancs won well yesterday and Bottle Nose Fergie needs a couple of rigid digits in his direction. Will keep up to date via Blackberry, guess it ain't a priority over here.

Yee Hah!

Much to my suprise the Silver Spur provides real food. Monst impressed with her steak. Cal eats his grub and I now feel stuffed. Top stuff. Cal falls asleep at the table but then he's been running around daft fuelled on very little food. Once more I am greatful for Camp Freddie's wine tasting lesson. Micro teaching on the Train the Trainers course comes in useful again. Parade follows dinner and Cal entranced by the mouse and his co-workers. Me I wanna boo at the mouse and Minnie and cheer Abanazer. Home, early night. Learn via blackberry that the Saints tonked Liverpool, will this result in gentle leg pulling for Christina by Dave on Monday?