Bonus!

Woke up this morning and thought it was Sunday. Then, a split second later, remembered it was Saturday. And then another split second later, I remembered it was a bank holiday weekend! Needless to say, I woke up very happy... Ahhh, what to do........

Anyone for ice-cream?

Enjoying the respite from the rain (now sadly over) I spent lunch out on the grass near the office. From there, I have been watching (which much merriment) attempts to stop an ice cream van selling its wares at a popular spot near St Pauls for the last few weeks of summer. Every lunchtime I sit and see a certain van being moved along by the City's finest, only for an almost identical van to sweep into the same spot seconds later. And repeat. This farce keeps me enteratined throughout the day (not just lunchtime) as said vans make their escape from the law past our window...

Now I wouldn't buy the ice-cream (not since the Rash episode) as the pirates are obviously coining it in and don't need my supoport. From a so-called "moral" point of view I do feel sorry for the police though (no, really!) as they just seem baffled by the simplicity of this operation (clue: they communicate by mobile phone!) However, I personally can't see the harm in this trade, but I would probably be told that the ice cream is funding drugs or a prostitution racket elsewhere... but if you cannot stop an ice cream van, what help have we got against anyone more sinister...

Just a thought



Another thought: are Mondays really so bad?

Wallace, and damnit (weather)

Wandered over the the William Wallace memorial in the rain this lunch time, as said I would (plus what with the summer dissappearing into winter I had nowt else to do)

Was actually very interesting - lots of blue and white, poetic tributes and declarations of freedom - Mel Gibson has a lot to answer for (imagine him playing Churchill?) - spent a good ten minutes having a look whilst other office workers and nurses passed by bemused by my interest. Back then of course, this whiter than white Englishman's ancestors resided in a corner of Strathclyde, probably minding there own business and getting on with life inanely...

Back in the present, last night this was a very nice place to go for a drink by Tower Bridge (also an excellent sausage baguette) before moving eastwards to here* to pay homage to a friend's DJ-ing abilities - the question once again about my own former disc spinning sideproject came up - really should invest some time into that now everything else is seemingly settled...

And finally, have collected stories of no more than three other boliers that are suffering from low water pressure in the Sham area - coincidence? Or conspiracy....?


*Four Nathan Barley's out of Five - be warned...

Boiler

Must be a week for things breaking down/technological gubbins not working...

First, there is the lack of mobile communication issue (hopefully soon to be resolved, before I seek counseling). Then I think my cassette walkman is on the brink of permanent breakdown (bored with iPod currently - need some new music so have reverted to what I thought was simpler more reliable technology)...

Well, they say these things come in threes, and finally, as I stepped into the shower this morning I met with the third (or so I thought). Seriously it seemed my boiler had broken down, so much so spent twenty minutes pratting around the flat (half dressed) turning hot taps on and off in an attempt to get the shower going, and gradually carefully selecting the words and phrases for my rant to the landlord on the phone (landline, because no mobile etc.....) once I got into work an hour late as a concequence... Fortunately none of that was to be, as after finally taking the icey cold plunge, I used a cold tap (why had I not thought that would work?!!) and it got the water pressure going enough for the boiler to kick in with the hot water....


Other news: this happened near where I work today (sort of) - might go and have a 'butchers' (geddit?) tomorrow lunchtime...

Mobile 2

Letf the recharger at my folks over the weekend - now I have to go without it... (Still, as Jess pointed out, it's not like anyone calls me on it...)

Mobile

Tee hee!


Anyway, back to business - why is it I feel naked without my mobile phone?

I managed the first 21 years of my life quite happily without one - so 3 hours into my day without a mobile (I left it at home accidentally) I feel a slight nevousness. What it someone needs to call me? (They never do) What if there is some crisis in London and I need to call worried relatives? (Which never helps anyway) What if I can't simply use email or the land line sat on my desk right now as an alternative for the five or so hours that remain until I get home and retireve the bloody thing from where-ever I left it in my not-so-drunken state* last night??!!!

No need....


*Note - moderation is the order after the excesses of last week, which resulted in me feeling ill for days and not even having the nounce to blog...

Facelift

Never sure about these facelifts until after a few days....


Also, noted it was a Bank Holiday in Scotland yesterday... why? No fair...


Speaking of the page-a-day calendar (yes, I know it's been a while but it's still here), not only was it August 1st yesterday, but I've also yet to make a bloody paper aeroplane with my purpose designed for making paper aeroplane calendar! And it's been seven months of opportunity missed to do so...

May not mention it again, but this is what's been before my eyes these last few weeks on the calendar...

...strawberries, a giant chrysanthenam (spelling, I don't know, just imagine a great big bloody flower), a leaf, apples, the planet earth as seen from a camera monitoring vegatation, whispy clouds, a 10-pin bowling ball, honey (as it appears in the hive), a jet of steam, a dried and cracked river bed, glacial formations - from space, another leaf, trees, a sliced loaf - not from space, cherries, old defunct coins - including 19th century French Francs, really old US and Aussie dollars, and a GB Three pence piece (I mean, why??), cacti, clovers, palm trees al la Hollywood Boulevard, dead grass (?!), liquid gold, spider's web, balloons, desert, butterfly's wing (singular), firework in sky (singular), more leaves (!!!), more flowers, green slime (beware!), water, sunset, TV screen, water - as seen under water (eh?), stars and stripes, lightening in the sky at night, pebbles (blue in colour), sky (just sky, with clouds!), condensation (you bored yet?), shell shaped like a downward spiral, cacti (close up!), flame, MORE BLOODY LEAVES, living grass........

Calendar life - never dull...?