Well it will be shut down for a while as I’m going away on holiday and not taking the laptop and trying to avoid any place that have networks!
Curious isn’t it that the Americans take “vacations”. That sounds rather “professional” as if they’re going on some form of self-improvement or doing something charitable (if spending US dollars in England can count!). By comparison “holiday” sounds a bit 1950’s to me, it does sound like a “jolly” - which is only right, as that is what it should be, time to re-charge the batteries and put a fresh perspective on things. I rather like the French idea of shutting down the entire country and disappearing off to enjoy three weeks of fun. So back late August with fresh inspiration!
Friday, July 21, 2006
Friday, July 14, 2006
Why is it so expensive to leave this country?
I know this start is a conversation killer but….I watched a great TV programme yesterday. It was about David Walliams' heroic efforts in swimming the English Channel for Sport Relief. End of that plug.
It did strike me that swimming the channel is actually quite a good way of evading modern-day piracy, which is what ferry companies seems to be doing to us on this little island. Why is it so expensive to leave this country? While technology increases and lowers costs, prices creep down and inflation is low. Yet it still costs an arm and a leg to take a short hop on a boat. You’d think a sea-faring nation we’d be able to do better that that!
Unless you have a PhD in reading timetables and an almost telepathic knowledge of arcane bargain-buys, coupled with the sheer tenacity of endurance to arrive at a ferry port on the south coast at 2am, then the reality is a ferry ticket is the price of a small house. That’s without factoring in the size of your car, height of roof rack and top box, inside leg size and hair colour. Want to travel across the water quickly and easily - No chance, Sit in line and wait. I thought the tunnel may shrink the cost and compete with rip-off ferries, not a bit of it, they both increase their prices – it must be the most expensive per mile trip, aside from the Virgin flight to outer space, and at least they don’t charge extra for a return ticket!
Swimming the channel. Suddenly seems like an easy option to me.
It did strike me that swimming the channel is actually quite a good way of evading modern-day piracy, which is what ferry companies seems to be doing to us on this little island. Why is it so expensive to leave this country? While technology increases and lowers costs, prices creep down and inflation is low. Yet it still costs an arm and a leg to take a short hop on a boat. You’d think a sea-faring nation we’d be able to do better that that!
Unless you have a PhD in reading timetables and an almost telepathic knowledge of arcane bargain-buys, coupled with the sheer tenacity of endurance to arrive at a ferry port on the south coast at 2am, then the reality is a ferry ticket is the price of a small house. That’s without factoring in the size of your car, height of roof rack and top box, inside leg size and hair colour. Want to travel across the water quickly and easily - No chance, Sit in line and wait. I thought the tunnel may shrink the cost and compete with rip-off ferries, not a bit of it, they both increase their prices – it must be the most expensive per mile trip, aside from the Virgin flight to outer space, and at least they don’t charge extra for a return ticket!
Swimming the channel. Suddenly seems like an easy option to me.
Friday, July 07, 2006
wimbledon priority week
So in the same week that it was officially a heatwave in merry ol’ blighty, Wimbledon has been stopped due to rain. Um...sounds like a typical English summer to me!
Interestingly heatwaves are like priorities – there are different levels of them. As anyone who has ever called a help desk will have learnt to their cost. “Priority sir, certainly Sir” - Blithely you think you’re now near the top of the queue. You’re not even on the list. Well you are but below “clean the bird cage out”. Make sure you find out what the levels are, not only may there be priority levels above priority one, but there may be grades of priority one. Oh just call a help desk and find out!
Anyway heatwaves are the same. In this case Monday was a heatwave category three. The only thing more serious was category four – an emergency. Actually as we know now the only thing worse is the weather changing and it being hot and wet as opposed to hot and dry. Well at least I mowed the lawn (priority one last weekend).
Interestingly heatwaves are like priorities – there are different levels of them. As anyone who has ever called a help desk will have learnt to their cost. “Priority sir, certainly Sir” - Blithely you think you’re now near the top of the queue. You’re not even on the list. Well you are but below “clean the bird cage out”. Make sure you find out what the levels are, not only may there be priority levels above priority one, but there may be grades of priority one. Oh just call a help desk and find out!
Anyway heatwaves are the same. In this case Monday was a heatwave category three. The only thing more serious was category four – an emergency. Actually as we know now the only thing worse is the weather changing and it being hot and wet as opposed to hot and dry. Well at least I mowed the lawn (priority one last weekend).
Monday, July 03, 2006
twenty-four seven
Well the internet is 24/7, but I’m not, so had the weekend off and here I am again Monday morning. I’m rather in agreement with my friend, who provides technical support, as he says, 24/7 between the hours of 9-5!
We need our downtime and this obsession with having everything available all the time is self-defeating. As we rely more and more on unlimited access to everything from supermarkets to service help, it creates an unrealistic demand on ourselves and on each other. What started out as flexible working soon transforms into the modern equivalent of shift work. That useful tool, the mobile becomes a slavish necessity. People start to never switch off, and then find they’re stressed out. And in reality this “always-on” isn’t that great. Sure the shops are open, but then they only get one or two deliveries a day, so all the fresh bread is sold out by the time you get there at 10pm!
So what are we gonna do about it? Well I for one am moving my daily blog to a weekly one, freeing up my time for some more “quality time” with myself. Try it, be selfish, don’t answer that email, switch off that mobile. Ah bliss, the peace.
We need our downtime and this obsession with having everything available all the time is self-defeating. As we rely more and more on unlimited access to everything from supermarkets to service help, it creates an unrealistic demand on ourselves and on each other. What started out as flexible working soon transforms into the modern equivalent of shift work. That useful tool, the mobile becomes a slavish necessity. People start to never switch off, and then find they’re stressed out. And in reality this “always-on” isn’t that great. Sure the shops are open, but then they only get one or two deliveries a day, so all the fresh bread is sold out by the time you get there at 10pm!
So what are we gonna do about it? Well I for one am moving my daily blog to a weekly one, freeing up my time for some more “quality time” with myself. Try it, be selfish, don’t answer that email, switch off that mobile. Ah bliss, the peace.
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