Scary Snowman

Scary Snowman, originally uploaded by Emma. x.

My kids made this scary snow man while the snow lasted. It never lasts long round here.

Zimbabwe $2

$2 not $200,000, originally uploaded by danny angus.

The BBC report that Zimbabwe is introducing a $200,000 note.

I thought it might be worth posting this picture of a $2 note I brought home with me after visiting a Zimbabwean friend in 1993. It is literally not worth the paper it is printed on.

At that time $2 would cost you £0.20 (20p) and $2.35 would buy you 20 cigarettes, the same cigarettes cost £2.35 in the UK, mainly because of duty.

Now (by which I mean *today* as inflation is running so high in Zimbabwe), if a grain of sugar weighs a milligram, this note would buy you five grains.

Zimbabwe is a lovely country and the people I met were very friendly. The sight of the kids in neat school uniforms coming out of traditional mud hut villages to line up for the school bus filled me with hope. Many people I spoke to then believed that Zimbabwe could be a role model for the whole of Africa, that dream must be well and truly dead now. How much longer are we going to sit around watching this get worse and worse?

Pistolwhippers. The new DDG Champions!

ddg_champ_2006 (283), originally uploaded by rude awakening.

Google sent someone to my blog looking for "detroit derby" trophy. Ever happy to oblige a bona fide reader (as I have so few!) here's a picture of the stunning thing in all its glory.

Congratulations to Pistolwhippers who won the Detroit Derby Girls championship last saturday 96-82 over the Devils Night Dames.

All in all its been a fascinating thing to follow, I'd never even heard of rollerderby before this year, but already I'm a confirmed fan.

War on terror? This time its personal..

Welcome, originally uploaded by danny angus.

All good things come to an end, and here I am back at work, its my lunch hour, after nearly a week in the sun near Ayia Napa.

It was smashin'.

Sadly our family-fun-fest got off on the wrong foot after what appears to have been a bunch of doctors (surely not?) decided to ram the airport (Glasgow) with a burning Jeep Cherokee filled with butane cylinders. Not only were we then put back by a whole day, but I was worried (well ok, not really worried) that our car (also a Jeep Cherokee) might be destroyed in a "controlled explosion" (isn't that an oxymoron?) while we were away.

Luckily it wasn't because it transpires that we can't claim on our insurance for our missed day's holiday because it was a "direct or indirect result of terrorist actions".

Now I don't know who to be more pissed off with, terrorists, doctors, or insurance weasels. Just let me get my hands on any of them.

The picture was taken from a beach bar owned by a guy named Andreas who, refreshingly for the middle aged visitor to Ayia Napa, played reggae all day long. If you want to know where it is its in the centre of this map.

I'm interesting

Flickr has decided that my picture of Strawberries is interesting. Which is nice.

I want a pony!

IMG_2217, originally uploaded by danny angus.

Well we finally did it. Unable to avoid the consequences of encouraging child No1 to follow the family tradition and learn to ride, and after nine years of fobbing her off with riding school ponies, our "family" comprising four humans, two hamsters, two dogs, and a goldfish now includes Finkley Joker, pictured, who we're getting on loan for three months, and then who knows.

Tip for parents: When you say to your 5 year old that they can have a pony when they are twelve beware, they won't forget, and it comes round very fast!

In fact we should've done this last year, but she cracked her skull, which is an experience I would totally not wish on any parent. Ironically we've always been very careful to teach the kids that safety equipment isn't optional. So she fell off a swing.

The original WWW

The original WWW, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

I haven't blogged a gratuitous picture of glasgow for a while, so here's the facade of a warehouse in James Watt St. (Anderston) on a day that the sun actually shone.

Robert falls in!

2, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Yes, that's right!
Robert Burrell Donkin fell in this dock in Amsterdam last night, with his bag containing his laptop.
Looking none the worse for his ordeal this morning his only concern is for his mac which went in with him.
Apparently the Axio bag it was in helped to protect it on its journey to the bottom of the sea. Lets hope the all the incubator docs he'd written over the week can be saved. oops!

Talk done

img_6490.jpg, originally uploaded by herberts.

Gave my talk on James yesterday, I'm not sure how it went, I can never tell. However its done now. I could've done with less material, or more time, which isn't such a bad thing.
If it gets accepted for Apachecon US 07 I'll definitely rationalise it a bit.

Hackathon

Hackathon, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Well I got here, after a 1hr delay to my flight, and a further delay while the pilot drove round the airport looking for a parking place. "There's a space over there dad" we all yelled.

And lo! The hackathon is already progress.

Apachecon Flickr Group

I find it difficult to track down everyone's Apachecon pictures on flickr, tags are OK but not brilliant for this so I've created an Apachecon group on flickr at http://www.flickr.com/groups/apachecon/

If you are attending any Apachecon feel free to join the group and post your pictures, the more the merrier.

Cows go out

Petal, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

As a shamless excuse for blogging another of my photos you might like to know that the dairy farmers round my house have turned their cows back out to the grass after spending the winter indoors.

Welcome back girls.

Hot Water

Ahhh, after weeks without it (since 23/02) we finally got our hot water back today.

Even though we've got an electric shower and a washing machine its been hard work having to boil pans for everything else, but we're kind of getting used to it, so having it back, and having a hot bath, will be luxury.

If you're looking for a plumber I totally recommend Alan Milton of HG Milton & Son, Craignair 51 Hamilton Avenue, Mauchline, Ayrshire, KA5 6BT. Thanks a lot Alan.

6 nations 2007

IMG_0488, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

The standard of refereeing in this 6nations is really dire, without moaning on about everything... what about those ten seconds that the ref promised to the Welsh?
The guy who told the ref that there were ten seconds, and then that there weren't, should be sacked.

Well done and bad luck to Scotland for just about rehabilitating themselves.

Tarbolton Cubs 3rd in 5-a-side

IMG_0395, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

On saturday there the 69th Ayrshire, Tarbolton, Cubs (black and orange) came 3rd in the 5-aside tournament, held this year in Tarbolton Activity Centre.
Well done boys!

Lunar Eclipse

Lunar Eclipse I, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Here's a pic of Saturdays lunar eclipse.
There are two more on flickr.
They're heavily cropped but you can make out the craters, which I think is pretty good, I didn't even use a tripod.

Demolition VII

IMG_0196-C, originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Demolition VI

IMG_0203
Originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

This is a colour photo, I like the way it looks b & w the sky is nice and looming too, it poured with rain almost straight after.
I'm enjoying my New Camera. :-)

Diggers - Demolition V

IMG_0185-crop
Originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Took this today with my new camera..
I like the old-fashioned atmosphere it has, with the grain and the contrast.

Today I am The Answer (i.e. 42)

oops
Originally uploaded by ki113rb33s.

Yes I'm 42 at last, how long have I been waiting for that to happen (Hint: Not!)
My lovely family softened the blow by buying me a camera (canon eos 350d if you're interested.)
Hardly had I finished showing it off around the office than this guy ran his low-loader aground right outside our window, across an intersection and blocking both streets. How could I resist? :-)