Nature Geek

While still watching the news, I was also really pleased to know that the nesting pair of Ospreys in Cumbria have returned for another year. The link also includes a webcam of the osprey nest, if you’re as much of a bobble-hat as I am.

The New New Towns

Embarassingly, considering I live in the vicinity of it, I’d never heard of Buckshaw Village until a news report on it today. It turns out that it’s the new version of the New Towns of the 1950s-70s, such as Milton Keynes and Welwyn Garden City. Buckshaw is a smaller-scale development, created on a brownfield site where a munitions factory used to be situated. In the end it’ll have 2000 homes, and a full set of facilities – almost a small town, rather than a village.

The difference is that the entire development is owned privately by Redrow Homes rather than being a government-controlled process. It’s an interesting plan, one taken with the long-term in mind – this “village” won’t be completed for another ten or more years, and it’ll be an interesting project to keep on watching how it develops.

Sins – Pride

Dead easy, this one. Acerbia wants to deal with Pride today, and it just so happens that I’ve been for an interview with the Caudwell Group for an “in-at-the-beginning-of-something-very-cool-and-new” kind of job. Unfortunately, the interview also included an NDA so I’ve got to keep lip zipped about most of it. However, Pride certainly took a major part in the interview – well, it was either Pride or Egotistical Twat – the jury’s out for now, so we’ll see.

And in a smaller dollop of Pride (coupled with self-referential linky lovefests) Gordon awarded me the accolade of Article Title of the Day – I’m assuming for “The Butler Did It”, but who knows. Either way, it’s another small dollop of Pride, and another step down towards Hell’s epicentre (AKA Coventry)

The butler did it

Personally, I’m amazed that Sophie thingy has announced she’s pregnant – I didn’t think Edward was someone who was interested in women at all.

Maybe we’ll find out in the end that Sophie’s been getting poked by the manservants or something. I’m sure Edward’s been getting poked by them too.

Sins – Anger

OK, So I missed out on yesterday’s Envy – nothing to envy, so I didn’t get involved. But today’s Sin is Anger and I’ve had enough of that today to last a while. Nothing’s been broken, although the necks of at least two bank clerks deserve to require the services of traction. I’ve been to the bank to find out why they still can’t get their fucking act together enough to send out a cashpoint card within three weeks, and why they’ve got all the communication abilities of Helen Keller in a straitjacket. Closely followed by a sojourn to the dentists, as detailed below.

Following that, a client changing their minds on what they wanted on the site, once it had already been uploaded for 24 hours. Dealing with it doesn’t take long, but the fact that they’d had the documents, OK’d them, and then only when they went online did they turn round and say “Oh, a lot of those numbers weren’t supposed to be accessible online”. Still, it’s all done now.

Thing is, yes, it’s annoying at the time, and drives me mental, but it’s over and done with, there’s no held over anger, so is it a sin? Who knows.

Feeling Shit

One thing I’d forgotten about today was that I had to go to the dentists again. Joy, Happiness. “Luckily”, this time only involved four lots of root canal work, and the preparation for post & crown replacements for a couple of teeth.

So right now I’m back to feeling like some kind soul has just beaten me senseless. The anaesthetic really isn’t any fun either, it leaves me feeling distinctly crap.

Maybe more later, but maybe not. Enjoy.

UPDATED : Great – one of the temporary crowns has already fallen out. I’m back at the dentists on Thursday, but that won’t help tomorrow when I’m off at an interview. Don’t you just love fate’s superb sense of timing.

Eight Nine months and counting…

Amazingly (Well, amazingly to me, anyway) d4d yesterday passed the 50,000th page impression mark. This blog section (personal publishing, whatever) started off on August 9th, so it’s *counts on fingers* actually nine months of blog existence. Still, not bad at all – just under 600,000 hits, but it’s the page impressions that are important (allegedly) so that’s what I count.

Oh, and if I take out the logfile references for my own IP address? I’ll still hit 50,000 by the end of the week. (Just before certain people start alleging it’s all me looking at the site. *grin*)