london
I found a blog, which is doing a fun thing. The author is a malaysian abroad, and is visiting malaysia in april, and wants anyone interested to fill in a form to participate and she shall send them a postcard from malaysia and they blog about it linking it to her blog. It is a novel way of popularising the blog.
It is a fun way of getting a postcard from malaysia. nowadays not many people send postcards anymore. It's nice to receive them, though i myself dont send them. haha. It would be interesting to read about her adventures in malaysia during her time there. I seldom visit malaysia nowadays but am still interested in the goings on there.
At the end, she shall post links to the blogs of all those who participated. Not sure if my blog is suitable for ordinary folks, haha, so i wont mind if she omits mine, as i m not too bothered about attracting traffic to my blog. I just like to receive a postcard from malaysia... and to see what scene she thinks would suit me.(Added 1.4.10. Just realised that i forgot to say London UK. so used to London being only one london, in uk, i forget there are many other londons in the world. )
It would be interesting to see who others also finds it a fun and communal thing to do.
Anyone can join in, so why dont u? Closing date 15april2010
Link for more information
Wednesday, 31 March 2010
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
coming out
london
Ricky martin and the cherry blossoms are coming out.
Big fuss over ricky martin saying he is a proud homosexual man. whilst the cherry blossoms around here are quietly flowering. haha. The flowers are small, and so there are more branches than flowers now, but gradually as the month goes on, we shall be seeing more flowers and the branches will be bending down with them.
I thought there will be no blossoms this year, that the trees will go straight to leaf, but nature is consistent. haha.
In the past, cherry blossoms come into bloom in april, it is just that so many years now it has appeared in march, and that makes us forget.
Now we are back to the past.
Coming out is a very gay thing. We gay guys have or will come out sooner or later. it is the one common experience of being gay.
I think ricky martin being gay is an open secret. When i saw him in a video recording of a concert he gave, where he took a chinese guy on stage and sang directly to him, for quite a long time, i knew he was gay...
Deciding when to come out is a personal choice. When each of us become at ease and accept our homosexuality, we will come out. Some will do it quietly, others will do so with a bang.
it is better that no one forces another to come out by exposing them before they are ready to come out on their own free choice. That is a very traumatic thing to do to anyone let alone an insecure gay guy who has not accepted being gay or are living in a gay hostile environment.
The problem is that before they come out these guys may well become even more homophobic, to throw a red herring, hoping to carry on the deception. They dont realise that we now all know that someone who is very homophobic may be a closet homosexual.
I think in ordinary folks, esp in the west, being gay is not a stigma anymore. Let's hope with ricky martin coming out, famous people may decide not to hide.
though i remember someone said dont come out if u r an actor. i can see if people know u are gay, it will be difficult to act the heterosexual hero getting the girl. Yet, the opposite does not apply. We have any number of straight men acting gay in films and it does not seem to make audiences disbelieve them. why is that??? in fact, they get oscars for it.
On another note, i read today's mirror in the library and saw an advert by tesco that they are selling 50p cauliflowers. So i went to buy it today and that was all i bought.
I have forgotten that people can spend £20 or more on one trip but was reminded of it only yesterday. Yesterday, I was showing a friend where the supermarkets are, and we were at the tesco to buy groceries. he had just arrived in london , visiting for 10days and is stocking up, buying breakfast things, and i was surprised that it came to £20. It did not seem like a lot of things, each thing costing about £1 but i guess they do add up.
He wanted to buy an umbrella, and i picked one up at tesco without opening it. it costs £1.99 whcih is very cheap. it has a security tag, which had to be removed by the security guy when we bought it. why they want to tag something so cheap?
Anyway, after using it, my friend told me it was too small. it was a woman's umbrella. Why do woman want a small umbrella? he was soaked. I noticed even when it is used by a woman, the umbrella hardly covers them. And it is not because woman want a small folded umbrella, because i found an umbrella once, which folded up very small, but is of normal size.
Added. 31.3.10. he tells me he has lost it. haha. not surprising, as i m sure it is subconscious.
he is from israel, and he said he will be visiting london for another two times,in july and september, as he made lots of advance bookings when easyjet gave those cheap offers.
he wants to sightsee when he is here, so have bought a tourist pass which gives him free entry and free transport for a week for about £100.
I suppose it is good value, as he can visit kew gardens and travel there free. with kew entry fee of £13, and free tube travel there, it is quite cheap, i guess. but it means u have to go to all of those places once to get ur money's worth. Sounds like a lot of work to me, hardly a restful holiday, haha. And you are not allowed to go to the same place again for free. It would be nice to go back to kew gardens a few times, to really enjoy it, or to visit a museum more than once, so that u dont have to cramp everything into one visit. But the tourist pass is for only one visit.
That last bit about the museums does not apply to london as they are all free entry.
my friend gave me a tip about the louvre in paris. he said one off entry fee is about £8 or something like that, but if u buy a ticket for a week it is £11. Also, i know it has cheap entry on some day in the week, or evenings.
It's like the tate britain, first friday of the month they have cheap entry to the exhibitions after 6pm, when it opens late to 9pm.
My idea of a good holiday is to watch and participate in the street scene, just enjoy people watching, eating at local food stalls with the locals, etc. But i guess not many people like that. They want to go visiting country houses, parks, museums, theatre. I used to do that during my early days of travel.
When you are a visitor to a country, things are more expensive. I remember when we were holidaying in il du levant, our first grocery shopping on the island came to about £60. Such a lot of money, it is quite ridiculous. But we had to buy cooking oil, herbs, and basic stuff and that took up the bulk of the costs. That is why it is a good idea to bring those basic stuff from home. But now with airlines charging for baggage, and no liquids more than 100ml, it is not possible to do that.
Still, most people wont bother to self cater, as they dont like the idea of cooking on holiday. Most like to eat out and pamper themselves. That is why they are on holiday after all, to get away from doing the daily household chores.
I dont like eating out in london, far less in a foreign country where these tourists areas give very indifferent food at exorbitant costs, and the stress of ordering these foods in a foreign language is quite forbidding.
Ricky martin and the cherry blossoms are coming out.
Big fuss over ricky martin saying he is a proud homosexual man. whilst the cherry blossoms around here are quietly flowering. haha. The flowers are small, and so there are more branches than flowers now, but gradually as the month goes on, we shall be seeing more flowers and the branches will be bending down with them.
I thought there will be no blossoms this year, that the trees will go straight to leaf, but nature is consistent. haha.
In the past, cherry blossoms come into bloom in april, it is just that so many years now it has appeared in march, and that makes us forget.
Now we are back to the past.
Coming out is a very gay thing. We gay guys have or will come out sooner or later. it is the one common experience of being gay.
I think ricky martin being gay is an open secret. When i saw him in a video recording of a concert he gave, where he took a chinese guy on stage and sang directly to him, for quite a long time, i knew he was gay...
Deciding when to come out is a personal choice. When each of us become at ease and accept our homosexuality, we will come out. Some will do it quietly, others will do so with a bang.
it is better that no one forces another to come out by exposing them before they are ready to come out on their own free choice. That is a very traumatic thing to do to anyone let alone an insecure gay guy who has not accepted being gay or are living in a gay hostile environment.
The problem is that before they come out these guys may well become even more homophobic, to throw a red herring, hoping to carry on the deception. They dont realise that we now all know that someone who is very homophobic may be a closet homosexual.
I think in ordinary folks, esp in the west, being gay is not a stigma anymore. Let's hope with ricky martin coming out, famous people may decide not to hide.
though i remember someone said dont come out if u r an actor. i can see if people know u are gay, it will be difficult to act the heterosexual hero getting the girl. Yet, the opposite does not apply. We have any number of straight men acting gay in films and it does not seem to make audiences disbelieve them. why is that??? in fact, they get oscars for it.
On another note, i read today's mirror in the library and saw an advert by tesco that they are selling 50p cauliflowers. So i went to buy it today and that was all i bought.
I have forgotten that people can spend £20 or more on one trip but was reminded of it only yesterday. Yesterday, I was showing a friend where the supermarkets are, and we were at the tesco to buy groceries. he had just arrived in london , visiting for 10days and is stocking up, buying breakfast things, and i was surprised that it came to £20. It did not seem like a lot of things, each thing costing about £1 but i guess they do add up.
He wanted to buy an umbrella, and i picked one up at tesco without opening it. it costs £1.99 whcih is very cheap. it has a security tag, which had to be removed by the security guy when we bought it. why they want to tag something so cheap?
Anyway, after using it, my friend told me it was too small. it was a woman's umbrella. Why do woman want a small umbrella? he was soaked. I noticed even when it is used by a woman, the umbrella hardly covers them. And it is not because woman want a small folded umbrella, because i found an umbrella once, which folded up very small, but is of normal size.
Added. 31.3.10. he tells me he has lost it. haha. not surprising, as i m sure it is subconscious.
he is from israel, and he said he will be visiting london for another two times,in july and september, as he made lots of advance bookings when easyjet gave those cheap offers.
he wants to sightsee when he is here, so have bought a tourist pass which gives him free entry and free transport for a week for about £100.
I suppose it is good value, as he can visit kew gardens and travel there free. with kew entry fee of £13, and free tube travel there, it is quite cheap, i guess. but it means u have to go to all of those places once to get ur money's worth. Sounds like a lot of work to me, hardly a restful holiday, haha. And you are not allowed to go to the same place again for free. It would be nice to go back to kew gardens a few times, to really enjoy it, or to visit a museum more than once, so that u dont have to cramp everything into one visit. But the tourist pass is for only one visit.
That last bit about the museums does not apply to london as they are all free entry.
my friend gave me a tip about the louvre in paris. he said one off entry fee is about £8 or something like that, but if u buy a ticket for a week it is £11. Also, i know it has cheap entry on some day in the week, or evenings.
It's like the tate britain, first friday of the month they have cheap entry to the exhibitions after 6pm, when it opens late to 9pm.
My idea of a good holiday is to watch and participate in the street scene, just enjoy people watching, eating at local food stalls with the locals, etc. But i guess not many people like that. They want to go visiting country houses, parks, museums, theatre. I used to do that during my early days of travel.
When you are a visitor to a country, things are more expensive. I remember when we were holidaying in il du levant, our first grocery shopping on the island came to about £60. Such a lot of money, it is quite ridiculous. But we had to buy cooking oil, herbs, and basic stuff and that took up the bulk of the costs. That is why it is a good idea to bring those basic stuff from home. But now with airlines charging for baggage, and no liquids more than 100ml, it is not possible to do that.
Still, most people wont bother to self cater, as they dont like the idea of cooking on holiday. Most like to eat out and pamper themselves. That is why they are on holiday after all, to get away from doing the daily household chores.
I dont like eating out in london, far less in a foreign country where these tourists areas give very indifferent food at exorbitant costs, and the stress of ordering these foods in a foreign language is quite forbidding.
Saturday, 27 March 2010
timesonline pay to read come june
london
So Murdoch make good his threat to make timesonline pay per view in june. A lot of people are sceptical about whether he can make it pay. I think he will get the expatriates, and those who have come to study here or work in uk and got to like the english papers and are now back in their own country. They will all want to keep in touch.
I remember when i visited a friend who lives in torrevieja, spain, i missed the english papers a lot. I did not fancy the european edition of the english papers that were sold in the local newsagents, because they slant the news to what they think europeans would like to read. Also, the european editions of all the english papers were very expensive. I want to read the papers as it is published and sold in the shops in uk with all the local news. And I for one would definitely subscribe to the times if i were retired in europe, or elsewhere in the world. But only if the format is like a newspaper, and it is sent to my laptop every day first thing, so i dont have to search for news items and can read it like a newspaper.
That is my tip to murdoch, haha.
I have noticed that even now, the online version is a pale shadow of the print newspaper. I think he is allready restricting the news coverage on the free online version. Most of us who live in uk will be reading the actual paper, as it better than reading it online. If u take me as being representative of the Times reader, i am reading the newspaper rather than the online version. I very rarely read it online now, only when i want to link to a news item on my blog and even then, not always, as there are other newspapers online that carry the same news.
If he starts charging online, than i would expect the news coverage to be as good as the printed newspaper in which case if i were living overseas, it would be worth paying for it.
Now, if murdoch were to make it like a paper format online, or send all the pages to the subscribers' computer daily first thing in the morning , so that when the chap opens his laptop, it is there for him to read, and if the format is like a newspaper, which he can turn the pages... it would be a big hit with all the british expats. As well as all the foreigners who have been to uk before and want to keep up with the international news uncensored, rather than read their own local newspapers which may be censored.
So dont write murdoch off, just yet. he changed the way the printed newspapers operate and broke the power of the unions, and with this pay per view online, he might just possibly usher in a new way of online publishing that makes money.
Added. 28.3.10 I thought i shall actually see what reading the news like a newspaper while online is really like. so i went into times pages and I dont think i like it that much. the screen is too small to see the whole paper and still be able to read it. So u end up having to scroll up and down. i conclude reading the news online is never going to be anything like reading the real newspaper.
I remember a commentator asking for it to be sent to his email as a pdf file. that might be the answer.
So Murdoch make good his threat to make timesonline pay per view in june. A lot of people are sceptical about whether he can make it pay. I think he will get the expatriates, and those who have come to study here or work in uk and got to like the english papers and are now back in their own country. They will all want to keep in touch.
I remember when i visited a friend who lives in torrevieja, spain, i missed the english papers a lot. I did not fancy the european edition of the english papers that were sold in the local newsagents, because they slant the news to what they think europeans would like to read. Also, the european editions of all the english papers were very expensive. I want to read the papers as it is published and sold in the shops in uk with all the local news. And I for one would definitely subscribe to the times if i were retired in europe, or elsewhere in the world. But only if the format is like a newspaper, and it is sent to my laptop every day first thing, so i dont have to search for news items and can read it like a newspaper.
That is my tip to murdoch, haha.
I have noticed that even now, the online version is a pale shadow of the print newspaper. I think he is allready restricting the news coverage on the free online version. Most of us who live in uk will be reading the actual paper, as it better than reading it online. If u take me as being representative of the Times reader, i am reading the newspaper rather than the online version. I very rarely read it online now, only when i want to link to a news item on my blog and even then, not always, as there are other newspapers online that carry the same news.
If he starts charging online, than i would expect the news coverage to be as good as the printed newspaper in which case if i were living overseas, it would be worth paying for it.
Now, if murdoch were to make it like a paper format online, or send all the pages to the subscribers' computer daily first thing in the morning , so that when the chap opens his laptop, it is there for him to read, and if the format is like a newspaper, which he can turn the pages... it would be a big hit with all the british expats. As well as all the foreigners who have been to uk before and want to keep up with the international news uncensored, rather than read their own local newspapers which may be censored.
So dont write murdoch off, just yet. he changed the way the printed newspapers operate and broke the power of the unions, and with this pay per view online, he might just possibly usher in a new way of online publishing that makes money.
Added. 28.3.10 I thought i shall actually see what reading the news like a newspaper while online is really like. so i went into times pages and I dont think i like it that much. the screen is too small to see the whole paper and still be able to read it. So u end up having to scroll up and down. i conclude reading the news online is never going to be anything like reading the real newspaper.
I remember a commentator asking for it to be sent to his email as a pdf file. that might be the answer.
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Feeling strongly about things
london
I had a good laugh this morning.
It was from overheardinnewyork.com
I marvel at how funny these overheard conversations are. New york seems to have a lot of them, none in london, since there is no overheardinlondon.com.
Americans seem so much more intense about things. Take for eg the large statues of anthony gormley which he exhibits by putting them on top of buildings. in london, they hardly caused a stir, whilst in new york, they look like people going to jump off the building, at least that is what some americans said it reminded them of.
And currently there is so much intense emotions caused by obama's national health bill. With people virulently for or against.
And what do u make of jamie oliver's failed effort to change the way americans eat? In uk, he was able to change school meals, but it seems americans are resistent to his charms and did not take kindly to his ways. I read he reduced a mother to tears when he said she is killing her children by serving them pizzas. I dont recall he said that to british mums so why he took such an extreme position there? If he said that here, he would alienate even the british, i think. It looked like he too got infected with the american evangelical ways. Is it something in the water?? haha.
I had a good laugh this morning.
It was from overheardinnewyork.com
I marvel at how funny these overheard conversations are. New york seems to have a lot of them, none in london, since there is no overheardinlondon.com.
Americans seem so much more intense about things. Take for eg the large statues of anthony gormley which he exhibits by putting them on top of buildings. in london, they hardly caused a stir, whilst in new york, they look like people going to jump off the building, at least that is what some americans said it reminded them of.
And currently there is so much intense emotions caused by obama's national health bill. With people virulently for or against.
And what do u make of jamie oliver's failed effort to change the way americans eat? In uk, he was able to change school meals, but it seems americans are resistent to his charms and did not take kindly to his ways. I read he reduced a mother to tears when he said she is killing her children by serving them pizzas. I dont recall he said that to british mums so why he took such an extreme position there? If he said that here, he would alienate even the british, i think. It looked like he too got infected with the american evangelical ways. Is it something in the water?? haha.
Monday, 22 March 2010
nudist space
london
I was at the guildhall today. Interesting to see the inside.
I was there to join michael peacock, who has been trying to get the nudist space in the men's highgate ponds enlarged. He had been at it for 2yrs.
Today's meeting was to get our answer to whether it will happen. The short answer is no.
Not surprising, because it would involve reducing the space for the changing room for the swimmers.
There was one member of the board asking if the whole space might not be increased, but it was shot down quickly by the superintendent who said it will involve cutting down trees and asking for planning permission. And we all know asking permission to cut down trees will be nigh impossible. haha.
Pity that.
Though we did get a bit of a consolation... that if British naturism asks the board to consider establishing another area for nudists they will consider it.
One lady member brought up the old canard... that she had some families who said they feel threatened by the nudist space. She said she had no idea why they said it... privately i was wondering why she did not ask them... but we observers are not allowed to make comments during this meeting.
The inside of the guildhall is very bright, no dark corridors, at all. bright windows letting in natural light on both sides of the building, because the building is narrow. The board room is full of floor to ceiling windows along one whole wall, showing a excellent view outside.
Well, it was a nice attempt to get the space enlarged, but in the end it did not succeed, and maybe just as well.
How many of those who use that space are that keen on having it enlarged? only two of us were there at the meeting, with one coming late, after we left the meeting. After the nudist decision was discussed and voted on, we did not wish to stay whilst the board continued with other business. So it would seem most of the users of that nudist space may not be that interested. It is easy to sign a petition as it does not really take much effort nor commitment.
I think if the board has said 'would the nudists contribute money to the expansion of the space'... would we see any one putting up their money for it??/ it might separate the goats who are really serious and committed from the sheep haha.
Added. 25.3.10 I just remembered that one of the board members said why this concentration on hampstead heath. why people dont ask other parks to reserve nudist spaces. I thought he had a good point there. why not approach other councils to give nudist spaces to the many parks and commons that they administer.
I mentioned this to michael peacock. he is against the idea saying if hampstead heath do it, it will be a great example to others. I disagree with him, though i kept my council, haha. I think if u can persuade other councils to open their parks to nudists, it will be very productive. which councils in london are that progressive, I wonder? Or put it another way, where in london are there so many nudists that they can vote in a nudist who would make that his platform in the council election, and get the space they want. Any suggestions?
I have a feeling that providing nudist spaces will be too small an issue. haha.
Added. 6.4.10 There is a council that is providing a nudist space in a park. it is brent council. and they are going be the first council to open a nudist park in london next month. it is in gladstone park , dollis hill. what a lovely thing to happen. Added. 7.4.10. I am afraid i have been april fooled. That report was written on 1 april. So highgate ponds remains unique as the only official urban naked space in all of uk.
I suggested that since being naked is not illegal, all it will take to get our nudist space is for lots of nudists to descend on a place and go naked. If enough of us do so, it might make it a fiat accompli, without any need for legislation.
Nudity is a contentious issue at the best of times. and these are not tolerant times, with even nudists argueing amongst themselves about aspects of nudism. I think nudism will always remain a niche activity.
Today, i read that this summer in uk shall be very hot, breaking records it seems, and this prediction is from a source which has been quite reliable before. So it will be nice if they are correct about this coming summer.
Personally i dont mind if it is not as hot as they say... 30C they said, which is too much really. 25C-28C is my ideal.
Whatever the weather, i like london a lot. today has been coldish, cloudy and windy too, but i like it. Very nice walking to and from the nudist meeting at the guildhall. I found a nice shortcut there from my place and passed a shop selling cheap cauliflowers, 2 for £1.The shopkeeper was outside and he talked to me to buy. I would too, but i was going to the meeting, and did not fancy lugging two heads of cauliflowers all the way there and back. haha. But good to know it is there, and available for when next i fancy cauliflowers.
Added.9pm. Just got back from my foraging, and bought a 0.9kg beef brisket for £1.25, reduced from £5. It's been a long time since i was able to buy brisket of beef for such a reduced price. Cauliflower in tesco is £1.18 each. and it was about the same size but not so fresh as the two cauliflowers, costing 50p each, in that shop on the way to the guildhall.
Added 23.3.10 made a curry out of that beef, using my slo-cooker. Delicious, very chewy which is how i like it. i cooked it for only 2.5hrs, after braising it in a pan; in the past i cook it raw overnight. But this result shows that it is not necessary to cook it that long.
I was at the guildhall today. Interesting to see the inside.
I was there to join michael peacock, who has been trying to get the nudist space in the men's highgate ponds enlarged. He had been at it for 2yrs.
Today's meeting was to get our answer to whether it will happen. The short answer is no.
Not surprising, because it would involve reducing the space for the changing room for the swimmers.
There was one member of the board asking if the whole space might not be increased, but it was shot down quickly by the superintendent who said it will involve cutting down trees and asking for planning permission. And we all know asking permission to cut down trees will be nigh impossible. haha.
Pity that.
Though we did get a bit of a consolation... that if British naturism asks the board to consider establishing another area for nudists they will consider it.
One lady member brought up the old canard... that she had some families who said they feel threatened by the nudist space. She said she had no idea why they said it... privately i was wondering why she did not ask them... but we observers are not allowed to make comments during this meeting.
The inside of the guildhall is very bright, no dark corridors, at all. bright windows letting in natural light on both sides of the building, because the building is narrow. The board room is full of floor to ceiling windows along one whole wall, showing a excellent view outside.
Well, it was a nice attempt to get the space enlarged, but in the end it did not succeed, and maybe just as well.
How many of those who use that space are that keen on having it enlarged? only two of us were there at the meeting, with one coming late, after we left the meeting. After the nudist decision was discussed and voted on, we did not wish to stay whilst the board continued with other business. So it would seem most of the users of that nudist space may not be that interested. It is easy to sign a petition as it does not really take much effort nor commitment.
I think if the board has said 'would the nudists contribute money to the expansion of the space'... would we see any one putting up their money for it??/ it might separate the goats who are really serious and committed from the sheep haha.
Added. 25.3.10 I just remembered that one of the board members said why this concentration on hampstead heath. why people dont ask other parks to reserve nudist spaces. I thought he had a good point there. why not approach other councils to give nudist spaces to the many parks and commons that they administer.
I mentioned this to michael peacock. he is against the idea saying if hampstead heath do it, it will be a great example to others. I disagree with him, though i kept my council, haha. I think if u can persuade other councils to open their parks to nudists, it will be very productive. which councils in london are that progressive, I wonder? Or put it another way, where in london are there so many nudists that they can vote in a nudist who would make that his platform in the council election, and get the space they want. Any suggestions?
I have a feeling that providing nudist spaces will be too small an issue. haha.
Added. 6.4.10 There is a council that is providing a nudist space in a park. it is brent council. and they are going be the first council to open a nudist park in london next month. it is in gladstone park , dollis hill. what a lovely thing to happen. Added. 7.4.10. I am afraid i have been april fooled. That report was written on 1 april. So highgate ponds remains unique as the only official urban naked space in all of uk.
I suggested that since being naked is not illegal, all it will take to get our nudist space is for lots of nudists to descend on a place and go naked. If enough of us do so, it might make it a fiat accompli, without any need for legislation.
Nudity is a contentious issue at the best of times. and these are not tolerant times, with even nudists argueing amongst themselves about aspects of nudism. I think nudism will always remain a niche activity.
Today, i read that this summer in uk shall be very hot, breaking records it seems, and this prediction is from a source which has been quite reliable before. So it will be nice if they are correct about this coming summer.
Personally i dont mind if it is not as hot as they say... 30C they said, which is too much really. 25C-28C is my ideal.
Whatever the weather, i like london a lot. today has been coldish, cloudy and windy too, but i like it. Very nice walking to and from the nudist meeting at the guildhall. I found a nice shortcut there from my place and passed a shop selling cheap cauliflowers, 2 for £1.The shopkeeper was outside and he talked to me to buy. I would too, but i was going to the meeting, and did not fancy lugging two heads of cauliflowers all the way there and back. haha. But good to know it is there, and available for when next i fancy cauliflowers.
Added.9pm. Just got back from my foraging, and bought a 0.9kg beef brisket for £1.25, reduced from £5. It's been a long time since i was able to buy brisket of beef for such a reduced price. Cauliflower in tesco is £1.18 each. and it was about the same size but not so fresh as the two cauliflowers, costing 50p each, in that shop on the way to the guildhall.
Added 23.3.10 made a curry out of that beef, using my slo-cooker. Delicious, very chewy which is how i like it. i cooked it for only 2.5hrs, after braising it in a pan; in the past i cook it raw overnight. But this result shows that it is not necessary to cook it that long.
Friday, 19 March 2010
some observations; collapsible fork and future gas glut
Don't know why there are those two pits on each side. if it is to put finger and thumb there to lift the lid, it does not work, as it is easier to just peel the cover off.
london
I was at the gym this morning, and saw one of the trainers having his lunch. It was a pasta with mustard chicken. he was eating it with his own fork, but on the cover, in a sunken pit there was a folded fork.
i had a good look at it when he finished.
i had a good look at it when he finished.
Interesting design. And all to be used once. v extravagant. I assumed it was a M&S container, because it is something i would expect of M&S so i did not take notice of the label. And i have broken through the label to get at the fork so i dont have any idea now who it is from.
I am just more aware of these design things since reading an article about a chinese guy who designed a foldable plug. Very clever, but where did he put the fuse? it won an award recently. but this article from the daily mail 15.8.09 shows that 3 of these plugs can be placed into an adapter and plugged into one socket at the same time. very clever.
Ian came to visit me, and he gave me a economist magazine (march 13th-19th issue) to read. His bf got it from the plane on one of his trips abroad.
One struck me was an article titled 'the gas glut'. pg 16.
'Now new drilling technologies pioneered in America are allowing gas to be extracted from more types of rock - most notably shales, but also so-called 'tight' sands and some coal formations- and thus from much more widespread sources. Other innovations, such as producing liquefied natural gas from offshore sources and shipping it to its destinations directly, and technologies that might allow exploitation of the natural gas that is frozen into some permafrosts, further increase the scope for new production.'
Allready usa is self sufficient in gas.
Does this glut of gas mean Uk wont have to rely on Russian gas, which is expensive to extract, for its supply now.
That means gas prices should go down within 5yrs.
They are even talking of gas powered cars. And electricity from gas fired generators to replace coal fired ones.
it looks like gas and electricity may come down in price in future. If it does not, it is because the gas and electricity companies want to make more profits.
An interesting jacpac jacket that folds out into a one man tent. link
I got an email from michael peacock, the guy who is campaigning to enlarge the nudist space in the men section of highgate ponds, saying there will a meeting of the authority who oversee these things at guildhall on monday 22march. i shall be going to lend my support. it would be nice to have that nudist space enlarged.
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
tough shit
london
I suppose people will call me very unfeeling, but what is this about blaming a legal plant food when two teenagers supposedly died from taking it.
(Added. How interesting, i added that link to the plant food this morning and now found it has been removed. I googled that link that is how i found out that website, and I thought it was a legit gardeners site selling it as plant food, little did i know it was one of those drug dealing sites. haha. Well, just goes to show that i have no idea that this drug is so widespread. It's obvious i dont do drugs. I don't even take pain killers, which is now found to be addictive. I suppose i should not say anything about drugs, seeing i am not addicted to it and have no personal experience of it... though i suppose i could argue that i m more able to see that our currant fight against drugs is not working, and maybe legalising all drugs, even though counter intuitive, may be the answer. )
If they are foolish enough to use it in ways that it is not intended, well then, they shall take the consequences.
I would have thought any sensible adult would have said 'well, u people, we did tell u not to abuse drugs, and if u do, then tough shit, if u die from it'.
And those who do abuse drugs will maybe , just maybe, think before they take drugs.
But instead we have people clamouring to have it banned.
They might as well ban glue, because of some who are foolish enough to like the thrill and sensation of sniffing it. But they dont, simply because those people who died from it, have gone unnoticed or no one thinks glue is a drug.
or ban lots of other things , like alcohol or cigarettes for eg, that have definitely been linked to deaths, and lots of it too. Why they are clamouring for this one to be banned instead of the others? This one is not even supposed to be taken by human beings.
Maybe because it has such a druggie name, mephedrone.
Even now, no one is sure what else those guys who supposedly died from mephedrone have been taking.
They should legalise everything, and just warn people, users beware.
And if they die from abusing it, well tough shit. That's life.
And we can use their organs for transplants, and use the huge revenues from tax to make our health service the best in the world, and make the rehab facillities the best for those who are addicted and want to get off the threadmill, and also pay off the national debt.
Perfect, dont u think?
Added. An article in the Times no less that agrees with me. wonders of wonders!!!
Added 20.3.10. Someone, a doctor, who tried it and liked it. link
Added 25.3.10. Prof Nutt, the sacked head of the drugs board for saying alcohol is worst than ecstacy, says in the eveningstandard today, it might be better to sell mephedrome in small quantities in clubs.
link
I suppose people will call me very unfeeling, but what is this about blaming a legal plant food when two teenagers supposedly died from taking it.
(Added. How interesting, i added that link to the plant food this morning and now found it has been removed. I googled that link that is how i found out that website, and I thought it was a legit gardeners site selling it as plant food, little did i know it was one of those drug dealing sites. haha. Well, just goes to show that i have no idea that this drug is so widespread. It's obvious i dont do drugs. I don't even take pain killers, which is now found to be addictive. I suppose i should not say anything about drugs, seeing i am not addicted to it and have no personal experience of it... though i suppose i could argue that i m more able to see that our currant fight against drugs is not working, and maybe legalising all drugs, even though counter intuitive, may be the answer. )
If they are foolish enough to use it in ways that it is not intended, well then, they shall take the consequences.
I would have thought any sensible adult would have said 'well, u people, we did tell u not to abuse drugs, and if u do, then tough shit, if u die from it'.
And those who do abuse drugs will maybe , just maybe, think before they take drugs.
But instead we have people clamouring to have it banned.
They might as well ban glue, because of some who are foolish enough to like the thrill and sensation of sniffing it. But they dont, simply because those people who died from it, have gone unnoticed or no one thinks glue is a drug.
or ban lots of other things , like alcohol or cigarettes for eg, that have definitely been linked to deaths, and lots of it too. Why they are clamouring for this one to be banned instead of the others? This one is not even supposed to be taken by human beings.
Maybe because it has such a druggie name, mephedrone.
Even now, no one is sure what else those guys who supposedly died from mephedrone have been taking.
They should legalise everything, and just warn people, users beware.
And if they die from abusing it, well tough shit. That's life.
And we can use their organs for transplants, and use the huge revenues from tax to make our health service the best in the world, and make the rehab facillities the best for those who are addicted and want to get off the threadmill, and also pay off the national debt.
Perfect, dont u think?
Added. An article in the Times no less that agrees with me. wonders of wonders!!!
Added 20.3.10. Someone, a doctor, who tried it and liked it. link
Added 25.3.10. Prof Nutt, the sacked head of the drugs board for saying alcohol is worst than ecstacy, says in the eveningstandard today, it might be better to sell mephedrome in small quantities in clubs.
link
water bill 2010, tv license
london
Typical of life to have bills coming all at once. I am putting this in here just for the record.
The tv license was up for payment £142.50 every 1st march.
Water bill is broken down into
Water 318 x 48.72p supply charge £154.93 Fixed charge £27.00 Total £181.93
Wastewater 318 x 22.18 supply charge £ 70.53 Fixed charge £36.00 Total £106.53
Charges £288.46
And maybe you can compare ur bills with mine. Water bills are fixed at least for me, as i dont have a water meter, but what about your usage of electricity and gas? Are they even less than mine? if so, tell how u do it. haha.
Typical of life to have bills coming all at once. I am putting this in here just for the record.
The tv license was up for payment £142.50 every 1st march.
Water bill is broken down into
Water 318 x 48.72p supply charge £154.93 Fixed charge £27.00 Total £181.93
Wastewater 318 x 22.18 supply charge £ 70.53 Fixed charge £36.00 Total £106.53
Charges £288.46
And maybe you can compare ur bills with mine. Water bills are fixed at least for me, as i dont have a water meter, but what about your usage of electricity and gas? Are they even less than mine? if so, tell how u do it. haha.
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
electricity bill for nov 09-jan.10
london
the electricity bill came. I pay for it by direct debit of £15.00 a month.
Total bill came to £58.97 - dual fuel discount £1.45 - direct debit discount £3.85 +5%vat £2.68 =£55.27.
I used 409 kwh over 92 days
first 126kwh x 22.542p = £28.40
Next 283kwh x 10.802p =£30.57
compared with my last elect bill I have used 100 kwh more this period. I thought the extra was due to my guest john M musthave used that much when he was here. But I had a look at last year's nov-jan bill and I used about that much kwh too. So no increase in usage for that time of year.
I guess it is not bad seeing this winter was the coldest in 30yrs.
the electricity bill came. I pay for it by direct debit of £15.00 a month.
Total bill came to £58.97 - dual fuel discount £1.45 - direct debit discount £3.85 +5%vat £2.68 =£55.27.
I used 409 kwh over 92 days
first 126kwh x 22.542p = £28.40
Next 283kwh x 10.802p =£30.57
compared with my last elect bill I have used 100 kwh more this period. I thought the extra was due to my guest john M musthave used that much when he was here. But I had a look at last year's nov-jan bill and I used about that much kwh too. So no increase in usage for that time of year.
I guess it is not bad seeing this winter was the coldest in 30yrs.
Sunday, 14 March 2010
gas leaks
london
I found out a very interesting fact about the gas.
Even if u switch off the gas appliances, there is a small leakage.
I discovered this when I read my new meter. When it was installed on 17feb 2010 it read 999998(983).
Now on 14march 2010 it read 999999(013). Looks like 0.030 subunits have been used up in about a month.
There is a small leakage through the boiler in the bathroom or through the old gas heater in the kitchen, or through the old hot air heater. It is difficult to find out which is the culprit, or all of them, but i suspect it is the old gas heater in the kitchen.
Whatever it is, i have now turned off the gas completely, via the lever so there is no gas coming into the meter.
But it just goes to show that u will be wrong to assume just because u turn off the gas appliances that no gas is used.
All in all, i m rather put off gas appliances now. They need regular servicing too, which costs money, and they are always so prone to go wrong. And they are so noisy and smellly when they are on.And u have to be so careful about ventilation. The gas pilot light uses up a lot of gas too.
Friday, 12 March 2010
the souls wants it.
the underside, showing the two fans.
Added. I found this during my nightime supermarket foraging. a notebook cooler pad.
oven cooked pork chops from the ones i bought 4 for £1.
london
Strange things in the news.
A father having incest with his two daughters and fathering 18pregnancies and 7children over 35yrs. You might think how come it went on for so long, without the daughters running away. After all they were not imprisoned.
Maybe they are simply following the bible, where the first incest were committed by adam and eve and their children. haha. I say first , because noah and his children did the next incest after the flood killed everyone. haha. If you believe the bible.
There is obviously something hidden from us in this case, the knowing of which will explain all. Why it was not found out long ago, even though so many social workers knew about it. Not to mention, it would be difficult to hide all those prenancies...so how come it went on for so long?
Their souls want to experience all these things. And why not? After all it is an interesting experience. It would be interesting to study the surviving children and see if they are all of normal intelligence. I bet they are, and it is not always the case that the children will inherit defects. It seems from this family 7 out of 18 will survive. Quite good odds if u are thinking of replenishing the human race from incest.
Nowadays there is this taboo on incest but it was not always so... after all the ptolemys in egypt practise it. Like slavery, it was an accepted thing in olden days.
And if there is a mass threat of extinction of the human race, we shall all have to use it to replenish the earth. In fact, there was a news report of a father who believed just that and had sex with his daughters.
'Added. I read this article about high intensity exercise being as good as long duration ones.
The example given was to cycle at highest heart rate for 1min, take a rest, and repeat 10times. It is quite appealing to me, so i shall do that when i do my daily gym workout.
Added. I found a laptop cooler pad, with two fans. I wonder how useful are they. I dont use my laptop that much that it overheats. But it seems notebooks do that, overheat, (I did not know that, trust them not to tell us)and this tray is named notebook cooler cp-2008. The instructions are all in chinese which i cannot read.
Not sure i like this contraption, since I have a grouse against laptops allready use so much electricity, this one will just make it consume more.
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
no trips abroad
london
I have long ago decided not to bother with the expense of holidaying abroad, what with the airlines restricting their cheap fares, and the £ going downhill.
So I have no regrets nor longing when i get news of friends who have been abroad.
John is in Thailand now, having been earlier in malaysia.
He is to join some friends in ChiangMai.
I got news from one of them saying it is 38C now.
After hearing that i am glad i did not join them.
38C is unbearably hot.
It looks to me that whether we are in uk, with the cold weather, or in thailand, with the hot weather, neither is ideal, which is about 25C-28C in my opinion.
At least in uk i spend nothing, as i am allready at home. haha.
It would be rather waste of money to be spending so much money travelling to s.e.asia to get such hot weather.
I daresay they are enjoying it, as they want to be there,(don't forget they are all white guys who like s.e.asian guys, and there are not many of those in uk.) but it makes me glad i m here in london.
I heard from another friend who had just returned from a 2wk holiday in Gran Canaria. He said it rained a lot before they went there, and the Maspalomas dunes where all the cruising takes place was waterlogged. It was warm though.
It was so expensive to eat out, they decided, for the first time since holidaying there, to cook their own meals . He said for a meal out they can have 9meals in.
(Added.I have just got back from my night foraging and got such great bargains in meats. 500mg organic mince beef for 40p, 4 pork chops for £1 from £4. chicken wings 65p, cheshire cheese 50p.etc. They were selling pizzas for 50p too but i dont bother to buy them.That reminds me it is not possble to get such bargains on holiday and another reason not to bother going.)
All this just makes me rather glad i m not there.
hahaha.
Though even if they tell me they are having ideal weather, and everything was cheap, i doubt i shall want to go. I seem to have gone off going half way round the world nowadays.
It seems so much trouble coping with a foreign country and paying over the odds for accommodation, and meals just to be somewhere else. And when the weather cannot be relied on to be sunny and warm, it defeats the purpose of a holiday.
Since the biggest reason why i want to go on holiday is for the shagging, i now realise it is just as good if not cheaper to just do it in london, and let them come here instead. haha.
Added.7.45pm. Just read online that majorca has been hit by a snowstorm that has been devastating Barcelona, and northern spain. Must be quite a shock for the expats who live there attracted by its supposedly warm winters. haha. It goes to show there is no point chasing the sun when u decide where to live. Seems to me London is the best place.
I have long ago decided not to bother with the expense of holidaying abroad, what with the airlines restricting their cheap fares, and the £ going downhill.
So I have no regrets nor longing when i get news of friends who have been abroad.
John is in Thailand now, having been earlier in malaysia.
He is to join some friends in ChiangMai.
I got news from one of them saying it is 38C now.
After hearing that i am glad i did not join them.
38C is unbearably hot.
It looks to me that whether we are in uk, with the cold weather, or in thailand, with the hot weather, neither is ideal, which is about 25C-28C in my opinion.
At least in uk i spend nothing, as i am allready at home. haha.
It would be rather waste of money to be spending so much money travelling to s.e.asia to get such hot weather.
I daresay they are enjoying it, as they want to be there,(don't forget they are all white guys who like s.e.asian guys, and there are not many of those in uk.) but it makes me glad i m here in london.
I heard from another friend who had just returned from a 2wk holiday in Gran Canaria. He said it rained a lot before they went there, and the Maspalomas dunes where all the cruising takes place was waterlogged. It was warm though.
It was so expensive to eat out, they decided, for the first time since holidaying there, to cook their own meals . He said for a meal out they can have 9meals in.
(Added.I have just got back from my night foraging and got such great bargains in meats. 500mg organic mince beef for 40p, 4 pork chops for £1 from £4. chicken wings 65p, cheshire cheese 50p.etc. They were selling pizzas for 50p too but i dont bother to buy them.That reminds me it is not possble to get such bargains on holiday and another reason not to bother going.)
All this just makes me rather glad i m not there.
hahaha.
Though even if they tell me they are having ideal weather, and everything was cheap, i doubt i shall want to go. I seem to have gone off going half way round the world nowadays.
It seems so much trouble coping with a foreign country and paying over the odds for accommodation, and meals just to be somewhere else. And when the weather cannot be relied on to be sunny and warm, it defeats the purpose of a holiday.
Since the biggest reason why i want to go on holiday is for the shagging, i now realise it is just as good if not cheaper to just do it in london, and let them come here instead. haha.
Added.7.45pm. Just read online that majorca has been hit by a snowstorm that has been devastating Barcelona, and northern spain. Must be quite a shock for the expats who live there attracted by its supposedly warm winters. haha. It goes to show there is no point chasing the sun when u decide where to live. Seems to me London is the best place.
Monday, 8 March 2010
old elgar £20 cannot be used after 30june 2010
old £20 notes with elgar on the back.
london
There are not many of these notes in uk, because they are gradually being replaced by the new notes, but i wonder, what about those notes held overseas?
There must be plenty of them about in other countries and it is hardly likely that those old notes would find their way back to the uk by june 30th.
The banks are not obliged to change them after 30th june, so that the only sure way of changing them will be to go to the bank of england.
I went looking around my flat to see if i have any of those old notes. And found 3. Hope there are not others hanging about in some corner or other.
This is because i have deliberately used the old notes whenever i found them, before i use the new ones. I knew they will be removed one day. Now it is important not to accept any more of those old notes.
It is all done to stop forgeries. At one stroke, they all become useless... clever, huh? Anyone hoarding them will be out of pocket or have to explain to the authorities how they happen to have so many.
What i often wonder about is why the american notes have never been changed. There must be more incentive to forge the US$ as everything is quoted in US$. How come america dont have to change their bank notes????
Sunday, 7 March 2010
assuming the worst is the official default
london
Read today that australia is rethinking its tsunami alert , because so many australians ignored it after the chili earthquake. In the end, there was no tsunami in australia.
When i first read the headlines, i thought the headlines are suggesting the australian tsunami experts are going to be told to sharpen their skills, but instead it is a report about whether the govt should bring in the police to enforce it, and force people off the beaches.
I would have thought that since there is no tsunami, the experts should consider that the tsunami science is in its infancy and admit they dont know enough and to consider their warning as just a probability, (maybe even give it as a percentage like they do with the weather, 20% rain etc); and let the individuals decide on its significance for themselves. That would be the sensible response, but of course, 'sensible' is not what govts do.
But then i read this report about the head of weather forecasting in chili being sacked from his job for not giving a national alert warning of a tsunami. And it made me realise that for the sake of their jobs, any one involved should automatically give a national tsunami alert, everytime there is a maritime earthquake.
You dont need to be an expert to do it, because if you do, and nothing happens , no one gets sacked. If u dont, and a tsunami happens, u will definitely get sacked. It does not take a genius to guess what will happen.
haha;.
Read today that australia is rethinking its tsunami alert , because so many australians ignored it after the chili earthquake. In the end, there was no tsunami in australia.
When i first read the headlines, i thought the headlines are suggesting the australian tsunami experts are going to be told to sharpen their skills, but instead it is a report about whether the govt should bring in the police to enforce it, and force people off the beaches.
I would have thought that since there is no tsunami, the experts should consider that the tsunami science is in its infancy and admit they dont know enough and to consider their warning as just a probability, (maybe even give it as a percentage like they do with the weather, 20% rain etc); and let the individuals decide on its significance for themselves. That would be the sensible response, but of course, 'sensible' is not what govts do.
But then i read this report about the head of weather forecasting in chili being sacked from his job for not giving a national alert warning of a tsunami. And it made me realise that for the sake of their jobs, any one involved should automatically give a national tsunami alert, everytime there is a maritime earthquake.
You dont need to be an expert to do it, because if you do, and nothing happens , no one gets sacked. If u dont, and a tsunami happens, u will definitely get sacked. It does not take a genius to guess what will happen.
haha;.
Friday, 5 March 2010
smokers, and free £25 M&S voucher.
london
I was going to sun myself at the bench in the communal gardens. I saw a man approaching it, and sat on it.
It was the only bench getting the sun, so i had to sit on it with him.
It was then that i noticed a strong smell of cigarette and realised he was smoking one holding it in the hand next to me.
Ah ... if only smokers realise how the smell of smoke can be v unpleasant for non smokers... and the smoke seems to warf always in my direction. He was chain smoking so there was no respite.
Anyway, i thought i could just ignore it and read my book whilst enjoying the sun, but it was not easy.
The sun was not strong, and a breeze came up so i was glad to abandon all desire to carry on and left.
Well, there is no point being upset about the smoker, as it is obvious he is not well, and is dying. He might be lucky and die before suffering; or not. haha.
It's one of the strangest things about humans. They do things that are clearly not very good for them, but ah well, we all have to die of something, and if the soul wants to die of smoking induced diseases so be it. haha.
The only thing for us who are not interested is to move away and leave them to it.
That is why i dont feel sad or upset when someone dies of cancer or whatever. Their souls wants it, and u might even look at it as a blessing. At least they can die quick instead of slowly and having to suffer all the way.
Death is a great release and is to be welcomed. It is a blessing in disguise. Not many people know that.
Well that was a cheerful topic wasn't it? haha.
Life is fun and lovely. For me anyway.
I got a card given to me by the janitor of our estate. It contained a £25 Marks and Spencer voucher as a thank you for taking part in the estate's tendering process for the major works in the four blocks of flats , which includes mine.
It will cost £1million for the 4 blocks. Just repairing the windows, repairing the gutters and redecorating the common hallways. It will be done this summer. It is a requirement of the lease, that this work is done every 8yrs, and allready it is overdue.
God knows what my portion of the cost will be but I have allready started saving for it.
This was rather unexpected, to get the voucher. Rather nice of them, actually, because i was just thinking it cannot be easy getting other people interested in joining these things. i do it because i want to look after my own interest, so i dont get overcharged.
I tried to get others interested by opening a yahoo group for residents in myblock to join, but no one is interested it seems. Perhaps they are all so rich that they dont care about the costs. Hmm we shall see what happens when the bill drops into their letter boxes. haa.
I went to M&S branch in victoria after my gym this morning to see what they have got, but most of it was ready meals which do not interest me. The best buy i think is the chicken , free range at about £5 each for 1.5kg chickens. Much more expensive than tescos and not something i would buy if i did not get it free from the vouchers. Everything is more expensive in this company. But u can see how perverse it is that it makes the getting of the vouchers seem like a treat. Perhaps that is why most people seem to give M&S vouchers as a gift.
I did not buy the chicken today, as this was just a trial run to see what they have got. But i know if ever i fancy chicken, here it is in M&S.
Remember the naked party i went to, and met a gay couple who also throws naked parties at their place in watford? i had been emailing them, to get directions to their house, but recently i got their formal email invitation for the naked party. It will be in april. and the format is to bring something to eat, and a drink.
I was looking in M&S for ideas of what to bring, they suggests pizza, quiche, cakes, all very fatty and or sweet, but i guess it is just snacks and tidbits. it is from 2pm-6pm.
Perhaps this summer shall be full of such naked parties.
That would be nice.
I was going to sun myself at the bench in the communal gardens. I saw a man approaching it, and sat on it.
It was the only bench getting the sun, so i had to sit on it with him.
It was then that i noticed a strong smell of cigarette and realised he was smoking one holding it in the hand next to me.
Ah ... if only smokers realise how the smell of smoke can be v unpleasant for non smokers... and the smoke seems to warf always in my direction. He was chain smoking so there was no respite.
Anyway, i thought i could just ignore it and read my book whilst enjoying the sun, but it was not easy.
The sun was not strong, and a breeze came up so i was glad to abandon all desire to carry on and left.
Well, there is no point being upset about the smoker, as it is obvious he is not well, and is dying. He might be lucky and die before suffering; or not. haha.
It's one of the strangest things about humans. They do things that are clearly not very good for them, but ah well, we all have to die of something, and if the soul wants to die of smoking induced diseases so be it. haha.
The only thing for us who are not interested is to move away and leave them to it.
That is why i dont feel sad or upset when someone dies of cancer or whatever. Their souls wants it, and u might even look at it as a blessing. At least they can die quick instead of slowly and having to suffer all the way.
Death is a great release and is to be welcomed. It is a blessing in disguise. Not many people know that.
Well that was a cheerful topic wasn't it? haha.
Life is fun and lovely. For me anyway.
I got a card given to me by the janitor of our estate. It contained a £25 Marks and Spencer voucher as a thank you for taking part in the estate's tendering process for the major works in the four blocks of flats , which includes mine.
It will cost £1million for the 4 blocks. Just repairing the windows, repairing the gutters and redecorating the common hallways. It will be done this summer. It is a requirement of the lease, that this work is done every 8yrs, and allready it is overdue.
God knows what my portion of the cost will be but I have allready started saving for it.
This was rather unexpected, to get the voucher. Rather nice of them, actually, because i was just thinking it cannot be easy getting other people interested in joining these things. i do it because i want to look after my own interest, so i dont get overcharged.
I tried to get others interested by opening a yahoo group for residents in myblock to join, but no one is interested it seems. Perhaps they are all so rich that they dont care about the costs. Hmm we shall see what happens when the bill drops into their letter boxes. haa.
I went to M&S branch in victoria after my gym this morning to see what they have got, but most of it was ready meals which do not interest me. The best buy i think is the chicken , free range at about £5 each for 1.5kg chickens. Much more expensive than tescos and not something i would buy if i did not get it free from the vouchers. Everything is more expensive in this company. But u can see how perverse it is that it makes the getting of the vouchers seem like a treat. Perhaps that is why most people seem to give M&S vouchers as a gift.
I did not buy the chicken today, as this was just a trial run to see what they have got. But i know if ever i fancy chicken, here it is in M&S.
Remember the naked party i went to, and met a gay couple who also throws naked parties at their place in watford? i had been emailing them, to get directions to their house, but recently i got their formal email invitation for the naked party. It will be in april. and the format is to bring something to eat, and a drink.
I was looking in M&S for ideas of what to bring, they suggests pizza, quiche, cakes, all very fatty and or sweet, but i guess it is just snacks and tidbits. it is from 2pm-6pm.
Perhaps this summer shall be full of such naked parties.
That would be nice.
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
soaking in the sun
london
I did a early gym workout this morning, and even after reading the newspapers and doing my workout, sauna, I was out by 11.30am. Usually i would have finished reading the paper and have my coffee about this time, and would be heading towards the changing room for my workout. haha.
But it was a sunny day, blue sky and all that, and i wanted to get under the sun when it is hottest at about 12noon, i reckon.
So there i was sitting on the bench in the community garden of my housing estate, soaking in the sun. Still not quite warm enough to take off everything, but having the sun on my face is good enough as a start. Rather glad my life is such that i can just sit in the sun and enjoy its warmth with not a care in the world. It is pure luxury.
Two neighbours came by, one walking his dog, the other on her way to catch the bus. And i chatted with them a bit.
They were both wrapped up to their ears in clothing.
There were others sitting on the benches having their lunch. Office workers, and visitors from the tate britain nearby.
I find just sitting in the sun forces u to stay still and stop everything. Even thoughts. A good way to empty the mind i think.
It looks like we shall have sun till saturday.
Interestingly , the mornings are cold, even though it is sunny; about 1C today warming up to about 10C before going down. by 3pm, the sun is losing its warmth.
Still no sign of any buds from the trees in the area. No flowers either.
I did a early gym workout this morning, and even after reading the newspapers and doing my workout, sauna, I was out by 11.30am. Usually i would have finished reading the paper and have my coffee about this time, and would be heading towards the changing room for my workout. haha.
But it was a sunny day, blue sky and all that, and i wanted to get under the sun when it is hottest at about 12noon, i reckon.
So there i was sitting on the bench in the community garden of my housing estate, soaking in the sun. Still not quite warm enough to take off everything, but having the sun on my face is good enough as a start. Rather glad my life is such that i can just sit in the sun and enjoy its warmth with not a care in the world. It is pure luxury.
Two neighbours came by, one walking his dog, the other on her way to catch the bus. And i chatted with them a bit.
They were both wrapped up to their ears in clothing.
There were others sitting on the benches having their lunch. Office workers, and visitors from the tate britain nearby.
I find just sitting in the sun forces u to stay still and stop everything. Even thoughts. A good way to empty the mind i think.
It looks like we shall have sun till saturday.
Interestingly , the mornings are cold, even though it is sunny; about 1C today warming up to about 10C before going down. by 3pm, the sun is losing its warmth.
Still no sign of any buds from the trees in the area. No flowers either.
Monday, 1 March 2010
the power of labelling
london
We are all aware of how labelling something focuses its significance a lot. Clothes brands, designer labels, etc are all familiar to everyone.
But have u thought about how we label the seasons and the months and associate those words with a significance that is way above the simple word. We imbue those words with a meaning that is very psychological in its underlying manipulation.
This is apparent in the word spring, and the month of March.
Today is the first day of March, and allready psychological lift to everyone, whether they are aware of it or not.
Normally a nice sunny day is very welcomed in winter, but this sunny day has achieved a significance way above its ken.
It feels as if it heralds spring.
yet, deep down , we know it means nothing of the sort. haha. it is just a juxtaposition of wind and cloud that happen to produce a relatively cloudless day to allow the sun to shine through.
I was out in the communal garden enjoying it, for the first time this winter. It feels great but really it is purely psychological in its warming effects, as it was a weak sun, and did not even warm me enough to warrant taking off my t-shirt.
I was just desperate to get some sun and the vit D that my skin will make, but i ended up only exposing my face and arms.
But today makes me feel that spring is here simply because it is March. haha.
Of more significance and backed up by astronomy is the Spring equinox, this year it is on 20 march at about 5pm. I dont quite know the ins and outs of the science of it, because i thought it is always on 21st march, when the daylight hours equals the nightime hours. So what is this day early and time means?
Anyway, i would think that day must be the real start of Spring. That is when afterwards, the days are lengthening. Now that is a physical manifestation, unlike a man made labelling like calling a month March.
All the plants are still closed and tightly wrapped in winter. Other years, we would be seeing buds, but not this year. There should be a burst of leaves and flowers when they all come out at once.
sunrise today at 6.47am , sunset today 5.41pm
We are all aware of how labelling something focuses its significance a lot. Clothes brands, designer labels, etc are all familiar to everyone.
But have u thought about how we label the seasons and the months and associate those words with a significance that is way above the simple word. We imbue those words with a meaning that is very psychological in its underlying manipulation.
This is apparent in the word spring, and the month of March.
Today is the first day of March, and allready psychological lift to everyone, whether they are aware of it or not.
Normally a nice sunny day is very welcomed in winter, but this sunny day has achieved a significance way above its ken.
It feels as if it heralds spring.
yet, deep down , we know it means nothing of the sort. haha. it is just a juxtaposition of wind and cloud that happen to produce a relatively cloudless day to allow the sun to shine through.
I was out in the communal garden enjoying it, for the first time this winter. It feels great but really it is purely psychological in its warming effects, as it was a weak sun, and did not even warm me enough to warrant taking off my t-shirt.
I was just desperate to get some sun and the vit D that my skin will make, but i ended up only exposing my face and arms.
But today makes me feel that spring is here simply because it is March. haha.
Of more significance and backed up by astronomy is the Spring equinox, this year it is on 20 march at about 5pm. I dont quite know the ins and outs of the science of it, because i thought it is always on 21st march, when the daylight hours equals the nightime hours. So what is this day early and time means?
Anyway, i would think that day must be the real start of Spring. That is when afterwards, the days are lengthening. Now that is a physical manifestation, unlike a man made labelling like calling a month March.
All the plants are still closed and tightly wrapped in winter. Other years, we would be seeing buds, but not this year. There should be a burst of leaves and flowers when they all come out at once.
sunrise today at 6.47am , sunset today 5.41pm
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