Why the warning?

Writing about web page http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/insite/newsandevents/notices/stagecoachbuspasses/

I’m really confused – is warning everyone about bus pass and bus ticket spot checks a legal requirement, like TV licensing needing to get a warrant before searching a house for a TV?

It seems a very odd thing to announce…

: 13 Nov 2006 23:40 |  Tags: Getting Old Life |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Print–your–own postage stamps

Writing about web page http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/jump3?catId=400043&mediaId=26800663

This seems really useful, as it is so much easier (for me) to print a stamp when I need one rather than buying a book of stamps once a year from a Post Office, but what happens if the stamp is printed with an inkjet printer, gets wet and the ink runs?

Will the Post Office charge the receiver in the same way as when a stamp falls off a letter? or will they check the details in some other way (like cross-matching the receiver address with the stamp database)?

And do you think you can print onto normal paper and glue the stamp to the envelope or do you have to use labels? I can’t see it being used widely if you have to print onto the envelope (sure to cause a paper jam) or buy a set of labels!

It also says:

Post your mail by the end of the next working day after purchase

What happens if you forget? is it not delivered? Does it cost more?

I suppose I should be putting all this into the feedback form

So, has anyone tried the online stamps? Do they work?

: 22 Sep 2006 13:26 |  Tags: Computers Getting Old Life |  Comments (3) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Grrrr – cold callers

Writing about web page /cjehinds/entry/the_telemarketing_calls/

Writing about an entry you don't have permission to view

I just got off the phone to cold call from a web development company:

Man: Hello, This is xxx calling from xxx. [Introduces company and the fact that they sell Content Management Systems] Apparently you’re the person to speak to regarding the website
Me: Yes
Man: Do you have a way of updating your website at present?
Me: Yes, myself
Man: So, are you technical?
Me: Yes
Man (surprised): So, you know how to code HTML?
Me: Yes
Man (even more surprised): You can do that by hand?
Me: Yes
Man: Do you have a content management system?
Me: Yes
Man: What is it?
Me: A very small bespoke one, developed by a local company about 5 years ago which is intermittently being upgraded.
Man: Do you do that yourself then?
Me: Yes
Man: Oh, ok. Thank you for your time. Bye Bye.

OK, I didn’t make it easy for him by revealing too much information, but he didn’t do a great job of selling his product either! First he questioned my technical ability (not the best way to get me onside), then he didn’t even trying to sell me his product – despite me not saying at any point that I wasn’t interested…

Oh well.

: 13 Sep 2006 15:34 |  Tags: Calls Computers Getting Old Job Life |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

A Pain In The Neck

Yesterday I did something stupid which resulted in me clicking my neck and being unable to move it properly.

I’ve already tried:

• Deep heat muscle rub
• Prayer (more always welcome)
• Rubbing jet option of shower head on neck
• Getting Rich to try and click it back into place

Any further suggestions welcome as the pain is now spreading to my jaw and making eating my apple painful too…

: 06 Sep 2006 12:53 |  Tags: Getting Old Life |  Comments (3) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Accessibility

…of my lunch

After spending all morning reading the WAI Web Content Accessibility Guidelines I decided to take a well–earned lunch break as I was looking forward to the pitta bread, houmous, a box of raspberries and a chocolate bar I brought to work.

However…

Pesto Houmous

The houmous leaked, making it all greasy. Probably because the plastic seal (the type where you have a serated section to rip) had slipped down, making it impossible to find and open without using my car keys.

Pitta bread

After opening the houmous my hands were covered in oil, so I couldn't open the pitta bread packet (cue trip to toilets to wash hands and to get toilet paper to wipe the desk.

Raspberries

Hmm…well, I can see them through the plastic box. And I've pulled all the little plastic tabs to try and open the box, but I can't eat them! I'm going to find a pair of scissors now to cut my way into them, as I know that if I pull really hard I will shower my desk in raspberries…

Dairy Milk

Chocolate saves the day! What would I do without easy–to–open chocolate bars?

So, where are the Accessibility Guidelines for packaging?!!

: 01 Aug 2006 12:51 |  Tags: Getting Old Life |  Comments (1) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Getting old (2b): Herbs

Follow-up to Getting old (2): Gardening from 1129 - Ali's () blog

If anyone was wondering about the state of the herbs that didn't want to grow last week – they've appeared!

All they needed was a bit of radiator heat, sprays of water and sunlight – plus we (well, I) thought it would do no harm to talk to them every morning and evening – not sure if I should have admitted that but there's some evidence to say it helps…

: 22 May 2006 21:34 |  Tags: Garden Getting Old Herbs Life New Home |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Getting old (2): Gardening

Writing about web page /caseyleaver/entry/the_little_things/

Writing about an entry you don't have permission to view

New House

We've been (myself, Rich and Thor) living in our house since July and we hadn't mowed the lawn in all the time we've been here, so when it was sunny last week, Rich and I took it upon ourselves to tidy up the garden after work, whilst Thor (who suddenly felt lazy that we'd both arrived home from working 9 – 5 and then started gardening) decided to do some work after noting that his main accomplishment of the day was 'having a shower'.

New Bin

However, the first hurdle was our new recyling garden bin as, like Casey, our brown bin had disappeared overnight, along with my normal bin. I decided to adopt a new bin from across the road that wasn't being used - does anyone know if you can "personalise" your bin so you know which one is yours?

Once I had acquired a new set of bins I successfully managed to stand in the street talking to our neighbours, whilst Rich and Thor happily(?) manoeuvred the brown bin through the house to the back garden.

New Look

Once the bin had arrived in the garden, I took the lawnmowing role (as Rich had never used a lawnmower before) whilst Rich cut back bushes, and pulled up dandelions.

Depite our lawn being about 2m x 2m, after an hour I gave up trying to mow the lawn as the blades flew out of the holders every time I went over a bump (a.k.a weed) in the grass. arghh…so frustrating!!!

Thankfully I visited my Dad last weekend and borrowed a strimmer so I could finish the lawn.

New Leaf

I was on my way home from work last week and decided that my housemates deserved presents for being lovely. So I bought Thor a bag of apples (as we are having a long–standing competition as to who can buy, and eat, the most fruit in our house) and Rich some compost and herb seeds as he is the house chef and likes adding herbs to his cooking.

He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment.

Proverbs 12:11

We're being to think that the idea of having herbs grown from seed was a fantasy as they've been in soil, warm and watered for over a week now and nothing has appeared.

Are there any biologists / gardeners / cooks / clever people with any suggestions?

: 16 May 2006 00:33 |  Tags: Garden Getting Old Herbs Life New Home |  Comments (2) |  Close comments |  Report a problem

Getting old (1): Proper Job

I just wrote an entry, far beyond a sensible length, so I've decided to split it up, so I can add more wafflling…

Proper Job

I've had, what I would call, a proper job for 6 weeks now. Here's my thoughts in typical bullet point form:

Good bits:

• I've been reading programming books /websites and writing code for pleasure again – something I haven't done since before Uni - crazy, considering I did a Computer Science degree!
• I'm getting to do quite a lot of PHP and MySQL in work – good, as I have a unexplainable dislike for Java
• I still design things – emarketing, webpages etc.
• It's flexi–time – I can leave early on Fridays and not be late for work if I get stuck in A45 traffic
• I get to talk to lots of people – I even have my own phone
• I'm close to campus – so I can have lunch with Rich
• Getting to tidy up loads of redundant HTML – I enjoy tidying

and added bonuses of not working on campus:

• Free car–parking directly outside the office!
• Free communal drinks – i.e no milk funds or getting mistakenly told off for 'being a student' in the staff kitchen !
• A warm office – I don't have to wear a coat all day
• No Groupwise – I can access my email

Bad bits:

• I have to wear smart clothes 5 days a week.
• Having to go to work on days that Thor and Rich can have lie–ins.
• Having my own phone – which cold-callers have got the number for

Bits I would rather never had happened:

• Accidentally implying that my boss was bald – so had an "equality and diversity" guide thrown at me
• Not understanding the hidden innuendo behind "Master Bates" in Captain Pugwash – I don't get puns
• Commenting on the enormous size of the banana I had bought from Morrisons
• Accidentally opening the same corrupted file 3 times – forgetting it would crash my computer
• …and many more that I have wiped from my memory…

Degree Usefulness

And finally, for those getting fed up with revising and not seeing the point of exams, I thought I'd finish by mentioning that in my new job I've remembered and used quite a lot of the stuff I learnt during my degree (which I never thought possible at the time).

I just read this in Proverbs which I thought was quite apt:

For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.

Proverbs 3:10

: 15 May 2006 23:59 |  Tags: Computers Degree Getting Old ITS Job Life Revision |  Comments (1) |  Close comments |  Report a problem